What Echoes Render Read online

  She applied her makeup, touched up her hair, and decided to drive Wanda to the event instead of Matt’s car. She didn’t usually drive her on the highway. Not because Wanda couldn’t handle it, but because Jesse had seen the victims of too many accidents from older cars. They were big and heavy but just didn’t have the same safety features as more modern cars. But still, a girl could use a little fun every now and then, and Wanda was definitely fun.

  And the old car definitely caught people’s attention when she came rumbling onto the scene. Jesse was still laughing to herself when she walked into the elegant hotel along the Hudson River in Albany. She wasn’t sure what the valet stared at more, her or Wanda, and damn if she didn’t feel just a tad bit competitive with her own car.

  She headed straight into the ballroom and was greeted at the door by several friends. This event—one of many she attended throughout the year as head of Riverside Hospital—was one of her favorites. And as a board member, she was more invested than usual in the success of the evening. The event, an auction and dinner, raised several hundred thousand dollars for Children’s Health Alliance, an organization that provided healthcare to children who would otherwise go without. They weren’t going to solve the problem of children’s healthcare in one night, but the gala went far to helping.

  So she spent the next hour or so chatting with friends, driving up the bids on the silent auction items, and dealing with all the little last minutes details and problems that came up. By the time dinner was served, she was more than ready to take her seat. All the board members were seated at tables with major donors and, not having done the seating arrangement herself, Jesse was pleased to see Anna and Joseph Klinkenburg, and their guests, at her table. Anna and Joseph were as old as the hills but were still kicking it like people half their age. And they were, hands down, her favorite major donors because they did it from the goodness of their hearts. And though they loved coming to the gala to visit and catch up with friends, the hoopla around their generosity usually seemed to embarrass them more than anything else.

  Jesse chatted with the guests at her table and caught up with Anna and Joseph over the salad. When the main course was served, Gerald, the president of the board, went up to the podium to give his talk and introduce the speakers for the night—a physician who volunteered with the Alliance to provide free care to children in need and a young family whose two small children had benefitted from that care. The doctor talked about how the Alliance connected with local physicians and healthcare suppliers to ensure that quality care and equipment were made available at no cost to the families. And the parents elaborated on how their doctor had worked with them for over a year to make sure that not only their children’s basic medical needs—such as checkups and asthma medication—were met, but that they also received benefits such as eyeglasses and a new wheelchair for the youngest of the two.

  When the physician and the family sat back down, Jesse doubted there was a dry eye in the house. Although the silent auction had concluded for the evening, she was pleased to see people pulling out their checkbooks to make donations.

  Even as she glanced around the room to enjoy the moment, a small prickling sensation washed over her skin. She paused for a moment to let the moment of fear subside. She was fairly certain she was being watched, but that didn’t always mean something ominous. She had hoped to catch an appreciative look or two tonight, maybe it was just that. When her heart rate dropped back down to normal, she casually scanned the room.

  And two tables over, her eyes landed on David.

  ***

  Holding a glass of sparkling water, David’s hand stilled halfway up. He hadn’t known Jesse was going to be here tonight and when he’d caught sight of her two tables away, well, warm and fuzzy didn’t quite cover what he’d felt. No, it was something much more primal than that.

  She had her hair mostly down but pulled up on one side, like a film star from the fifties. Her dress, what he could see of it, draped between her breasts and met at her shoulders in thin straps. He couldn’t see the back, but he’d bet it draped, too. The fabric was soft, maybe silk, if he had to guess, and it moved with and clung to her as she shifted in her seat. And it was the same green as the color in her hazel eyes. He couldn’t see her eyes clearly from where he sat, but he knew their color well.

  And then those eyes landed on him and the world didn’t exactly stand still, but it did narrow in. For a moment, the rustle of everyone around him, the jostling of chairs as people reached for their wallets, faded into the background, and all his attention focused on her. She held his gaze, though he could feel her giving him the same assessment he’d given her—taking in his tux, what she could see of it, and in general, his presence at this event.

  Then someone bumped his arm and the moment was gone. They were still looking at each other, but he saw the questions creep into her eyes. They hadn’t had a chance to talk since that day he’d visited her office. She didn’t know what he was thinking, about her or about what she had—and hadn’t—offered him. Still holding her gaze, he raised his glass in a small gesture. Tonight, they’d talk, he promised without saying a word. She nodded, then her attention was drawn to her neighbor and she turned away.

  An hour later, David was never so glad for the opportunity to dance in his life. Not really much of a dancer under normal circumstances—he’d only gone to the requisite high school events and missed out on the club scene in his twenties—he was making an exception tonight. When he was sure the band was striking up a slow song, he crossed the room and asked Jesse to join him. The older couple standing with her looked a bit surprised, and maybe a touch delighted, and urged her to agree. Within seconds, he had one hand resting on her lower back, the other wrapped around one of hers and tucked against his chest.

  They swayed to the music for moment and he was content just to feel her so close.

  And then she spoke. “You didn’t call.”

  He took another moment to absorb the feel of her pressed against him and then answered. “I did, when I got off work tonight, before I came here. If you look, you’ll have a message.”

  He spread his hand wider across the small of her back and curved his fingers around her waist. He could feel her going soft under his hands—his body, of course, had the exact opposite reaction.

  “Do I need to listen to it or are you going to tell me what you said?” she asked.

  He didn’t miss the hesitancy in her voice. He found it hard to believe she could wonder about his intentions, but obviously she was. He drew back just enough to look down into her face and spoke.

  “Here’s where I stand, Jesse. The last nine months have been the first in my adult life that I haven’t been responsible for someone else. That I haven’t had to worry about someone else’s schedule or make sure homework or laundry was done or that food, good food, was on the table. The first time in my adult life that it doesn’t matter to anyone but me if I don’t do the dishes or if I eat takeout every night or sleep until noon when I’m not working.”

  He turned her around the dance floor, moving them away from the other couples. “And while all my friends spent their twenties bar hopping, dating, and growing up, I was changing diapers, coaching T-ball, and going to parent-teacher conferences.”

  He stopped talking for a moment and pulled her closer. She rested her head on his chest and as he turned them on the dance floor, he brushed a kiss across her hair when he knew no one could see.

  “For the first time, I finally get to do what I want, maybe not all the time, but most of the time. Including dating whoever or however I want.”

  That got her attention and she pulled her head away from him and looked up.

  “Look, Jesse, even if doing all the things my friends did in their twenties appealed to me—bar hopping, casual sex, and all that—it would be kind of creepy for someone my age. And just for the record, it doesn’t appeal to me. But what does appeal to me is sex—like you said, ‘hopefully good sex,’” he added with a
smile. “And companionship—uncomplicated companionship. I get it,” he said as his hand stroked her back out of view of the others on the dance floor. “I get what you want and why. But I need to make a few things clear.” He waited until she nodded before continuing. “If we do this, it is a relationship. It’s not just no-strings sex. It’s friendship and all that, on our terms. I want to know I can call you if I’ve had a bad day, or that you’ll call me if you’ve had a bad day, or if something funny happened and you just want to share it.”

  She nodded again.

  “And it’s also monogamous.” That was non-negotiable for him. If he wasn’t so interested in her, maybe, maybe he wouldn’t care as much. But he was. And while he wasn’t creepy possessive, he didn’t want the complications that would come with an open relationship.

  Thankfully, she nodded in agreement.

  “I’m not going to sugarcoat it. What we’d be doing is unusual and it will probably have a few kinks to work out. Keeping things private and as uncomplicated as they can be between the two of us isn’t always going to be easy. But I think, if we agree, it could work for us for as long as we both want it to.”

  Her big hazel eyes were staring at him. She swayed in his arms in silence for several long moments, and for a brief second, he wondered if maybe she’d changed her mind.

  Then she spoke. “So, just to be clear, you’re in?”

  He smiled at her choice of words. Ducking his head to place his lips next her ear, he whispered, “Metaphorically and, I hope soon, literally too.”

  “Jesse!” The voice startled them apart and she drew back from his embrace.

  “Gerald. Is everything alright? Oh, Gerald, this is David Hathaway from the Albany Fire Department. David this is Gerald Black, the president of our board.” David shook hands with the short, older man who switched his gaze back to Jesse.

  “I hate to interrupt your fun, but the hotel staff has some questions about the silent auction items, and since you coordinated that piece, I was hoping you might be able to help?” The man sounded sincere in his apology and David stepped away. She looked at him.

  “Go. We’ll catch up later,” he said.

  Gerald turned back to him and smiled. “Thank you, Mr. Hathaway, and please thank the department for their donation of the child’s birthday party. It’s always one of biggest sellers. Half the time, I’m fairly certain the parents are buying it so they can have an excuse to ride in the fire truck.”

  David smiled and nodded, thinking Gerald was probably right. Every year, the fire department offered to host a child’s birthday party for the highest bidder, and every year, from what he’d heard, it was the adults who showed up with gleaming eyes.

  Watching them leave, Gerald leaning in close to talk to Jesse, David wondered when she might be done for the night. And when they might be able to meet up again. Not soon enough, his body insisted, even as he turned away and went in search of his teammates.

  ***

  He had seen neither hide nor hair of Jesse since she’d left the room to talk with the hotel staff over an hour earlier and his mind was starting to agree with what his body had been telling him all along. He was standing with his chief and a few folks from other fire stations having the one drink—a glass of whiskey—that he was allowing himself that night, but the only thing on his mind was when he’d see Jesse again. As he glanced idly around trying to catch a glimpse of her, a man bumped into him.

  “Excuse me,” David said, automatically.

  “No, my fault,” the man replied, glancing at David. Then, after a moment’s hesitation, he cocked his head to the side and asked, “Don’t I know you?”

  David glanced back at the man. He was a few inches shorter than David and probably a few years older. His receding hairline and air of confidence made him seem even older. David frowned. The man looked vaguely familiar, but he couldn’t place him or the woman with him—a young brunette who wasn’t quite managing to mask her bored expression.

  “Wait, I know,” the man said, with a vague gesture of his hand. “You were with Jesse that day in the hospital,” he said.

  David nodded when recognition dawned. “Oh, yeah. Dr. Bennet, right? You brought Jesse her phone?”

  Dr. Bennet gave a distracted nod as he scanned the room, and David wondered how a man could manage to be both engaged and so seemingly disengaged in a conversation at the same time.

  “Are you here with her tonight? I haven’t seen her,” Dr. Bennet asked, still eyeing the room. And now David knew why. He was looking for her.

  He shook his head. “No, I’m not. A few of us came from the fire department,” he responded with a nod in the direction of his teammates behind him.

  Dr. Bennet’s eyes cut back to his and, after a brief calculating look, he gave a sharp nod. “Then I’ll let you get on with your night,” he said.

  David watched as Dr. Bennet pulled the young woman behind him. For a brief moment, he wondered if the physician was interested in Jesse or if maybe the two of them had been an item at some point. But that unpleasant train of thought was cut off when his eye caught on a waitress who looked to be making her way toward him.

  “Sir?” she said. He turned his back to his colleagues to see what she wanted. “Are you Mr. Hathaway?” she asked

  He frowned, wondering what was going on, but nodded. “Yes, I’m David Hathaway.”

  “Then this is for you.” She handed him an envelope with his name on it. Not having any idea what it was all about, he watched her leave before breaking the seal. And when he did, he was glad his back was still to his teammates.

  Inside was a slip of paper with “990 in 45 minutes” written on it. And a magnetic key card.

  Tension and anticipation coiled in his body and his head jerked up. Scanning the room, he saw her, forty feet away, standing with a group of older women. Her gaze landed on him and held, even as she laughed at something someone said. Raising her glass of champagne to him in a mock toast, much as he had toasted her with his sparkling water earlier in the night, she gave him a ghost of a smile before returning her attention to the other guests.

  “Hathaway? Everything alright?”

  He turned back to his chief, tucking the envelope, and its contents into his breast pocket. “Yeah, fine. Just something I thought I won at the auction.”

  “And did you?”

  David shook his head. “No, turns out I was wrong. But if you’ll excuse me, I need to get going.”

  His departure was abrupt but there was no way he was going to be able to stand around and shoot the shit with a group of people who, with the exception of his chief, knew him too well. Not when he had a room key burning a hole in his pocket and a few things he wanted to pick up before he saw Jesse again.

  He exited the hotel and walked a couple of blocks to a mini-mart. The cool night air seemed to help him get his anticipation in check. Picking up a pack of condoms had just about the opposite effect. Ever practical, he also picked up some toothpaste and a couple of toothbrushes, hoping they’d have a chance to use them. In the morning.

  He didn’t know what her schedule was—if the boys were back home, or if they would be expecting her home—but he hoped there might be a chance that they could stay all night. It had been a while since he’d had sex and an even longer time since he’d actually been able to sleep next to someone. Having a young child, then a teenage daughter, had put the kibosh on most of that. But he wanted both, tonight, with Jesse. Hopefully, lots of the former and little bit of the latter.

  Heading back into the hotel, he took the stairs to the third floor then caught the elevator. He hadn’t wanted to risk seeing anyone he knew while waiting in the lobby for an elevator to take him to the ninth floor. He was pretty sure no one would say anything to him, but was equally sure it would get back to his own station, and he’d be subject to the endless questions he, like Jesse, was trying to avoid.

  Letting himself into the room, he glanced at the clock. He had ten minutes before she was due to arriv
e. He stripped off his jacket and bow tie. Laying them on the chair by the window, he looked out at the night view. The city lay vibrant and bright below him, the Hudson River cutting an empty, black swath through its urban surroundings.

  Needing something to do while he waited, he tugged off his cufflinks and placed them on the table, then removed his shirt. Pulling his undershirt out from his pants, he sat down to remove his shoes and socks. When he was done, he debated whether or not to look in the minifridge for a bottle of champagne, then decided it would be too cliché. Turning back to the view of the city before him, he forced himself to still his own body.

  And that was where she found him five minutes later—barefoot in tuxedo pants and a white cotton t-shirt, watching the Albany night, waiting for her.

  He turned to look at her over his shoulder as she came in. She paused in the room’s entryway as the door clicked shut behind her. It had been a long time since he’d wanted something or someone as much as he wanted this night and this woman. She took a few steps into the room, never taking her eyes off of him, and stopped again, dropping her wrap and purse on the desk. He turned to face her.

  “I’ve never done anything like this before, David. I’m thirty-six years old and you’re only the third man I’ve ever been with,” she said.

  He could hear a hint of nerves in her voice and he gave a fleeting thought to saying something soothing. But then she took a step toward him and her dress moved against her body.

  “Good,” was all he managed.

  A hint of a smile played on her lips at his response. He realized then that all the tension he’d felt since first receiving her envelope had coalesced into a restrained calm—the kind of calm he felt before walking into a burning building.

  He held out a hand and she walked toward him, closing the space between them. He slid his fingers into her hair and pulled her to him. Angling her face up toward his, he paused for a moment and just took her in. Then he dipped his head and met her mouth with his.