Chapter 5: Reciprocating

At lunch on Thursday, Lara invited Celia and Davis to have dinner out with her on the following night.

“My treat, and we can dress up a little. I’ll bet your husband has a nice suit he can wear to complement our dresses. And we can stay out late, being that it’s Friday. Are you available?”

“Sure, but you don’t have to go to that all trouble and expense.”

“Not at all, it will be fun! I’m only going to have a little wine, so I’ll do the driving. We will go for Italian at Cattivella’s; my reservation is for 7:45, so I’ll be at your door at 7.”

“Are you sure? That place is expensive.”

Lara said, “fuhgeddaboudit” in her best imitation New Jersey accent.

Cattivella’s

Lara leaned forward, speaking softly, conspiratorially: “I know this place looks very elegant, but do you know what ‘cativella’ means in Italian? Naughty girl!”

They all laughed.

As expected, their meals were delicious. Lara limited herself to sips of wine, so her driving would be unimpaired. When the bill arrived, Lara grabbed the little folder and handed it back with her credit card.

“I don’t need to see the bill. But it was worth it, we had a great time. Oh, here it is back, it’s $180. Let’s see, $180 ÷ 10 is 18, plus half of 18 is 9, total $27 for a 15% tip.”

“Thank you, Lara, that was lovely.”

“So, as they say, the night is young, what would you guys like to do now?”

“To tell you the honest truth, Lara, neither of us like to dance, or hang out in noisy nightclubs. How about the three of us go home, make popcorn, and burrow into our big sofa with a movie, instead?”

“Actually, that does sound appealing. Let’s get our coats.”

Cinema Bungalow

As soon as they were inside, they abandoned Lara for a couple of minutes, reappearing in bathrobes and slippers.

“Oh, I’m jealous. My fancy clothes aren’t so comfortable,” said Lara.

“Come with me, I’ll fix you up.”

Their bedroom was unremarkable, except for one thing, the closet doors were mirrored, so when they were in their king-sized bed and looked down past their feet, they could see themselves fully reflected.

“Must be fun,” thought Lara.

“Here you go, this old robe of mine should fit you. Let me unzip your dress so you can change. Just hang it up in the closet so it won’t wrinkle. See you in a bit.”

When Lara returned, Davis noticed her robe and said, “Oh, I remember that,” neutrally. It was, unfortunately, the color of mint toothpaste. But it was soft satin and very comfortable.

Celia picked out a romantic comedy, and they settled in to watch.

About one hour in, Davis had drowsed off. To be fair, it was the end of a long work week for him. And the selected film didn’t have enough exploding starships to hold his attention while he was digesting a large meal with wine.

Meanwhile, the romance in the movie had affected Lara, making her feel more emotional. She was looking over at Davis’s peaceful sleeping face, and tears began spilling.

Confession

“Oh, Lara, what’s wrong?” Celia paused the film.

“I can’t tell you. <Sniff>.”

“That’s bullshit. You’re looking at my husband, and you’re crying. Tell me!”

“He’s beautiful, and he’s yours, there’s nothing I can do with the attraction I’m feeling.

“There, I’ve said it.

“Celia, you’re my friend, I could NEVER hurt you or your marriage. I’m having this crazy crush on Davis, and I don’t know how to handle it. How to suppress it, for all our sakes. It started at the barbecue, and Wednesday evening here just made everything worse.

“I hoped being out in public tonight would help me build, I don’t know, perspective, distance, something. It helped, but then we came back here. And he’s just THERE, in his robe, oh, hell. I don’t need to tell you again what I think about his looks.

“And since I have heard him talking, his personality, I’m wavering, I’m slipping. He’s perfect, but he’s yours. There’s nothing I can do with these feelings.

“I’m going home now, Celia, I need to stay away from your man. I’m sorry.”

Lara stood up to return to the bedroom and get her dress back on.

Celia grabbed her hand.

“No, Lara, stay, please. We can work this out. You don’t need to feel this way.”

“Celia! This is killing me. It’s like all the loneliness of living on my own these past years rolled up and smashed me in the head.”

“Look, just do me one favor. Lara, you shouldn’t be driving when you’re upset like this. Let’s put you in our guest room for tonight, and we can work things out in the morning after breakfast.

“We’re all tired, for sure. Come with me, I’ll get you set up for tonight. The bathroom there has towels and toothbrushes and what not, everything you might need.”