Mean Season (21 page)

“If you'd been at the Fourth of July party, you'd know all this,” I told Sandy.

“If you'd known about it to begin with and invited me,” she said.

“She told me she was thinking of asking him out. I wasn't going to say, no wait, I like him, you can't. It doesn't work that way.”

“I wonder who he's dating,” Sandy said.

“If Charlene's back in town, it won't matter.”

Second Birthday That Month

“B
eau Ray, look who's here!” Momma was in full party mode. The backyard was littered with coolers and Paulie's wading pool and the grill, which sent up puffs of smoke each time Judge Weintraub lifted it to check the hamburgers and hot dogs. Our neighbors had lent us their picnic table, which was covered with sodas and small plates of potato salad that people had set down, then forgotten about.

Beau Ray's friends from physical therapy and “Move Your Body, Move Your Mind” class wandered around with their chaperones—parents or sisters or nursing assistants, mostly. Beau Ray sat at one end of the picnic table, trying to explain a card trick to Joshua. Joshua looked like he was paying close attention. Maybe that was his birthday present to my brother. I figured he might have stayed holed up in Vince's room—sometimes even I got overwhelmed by Beau Ray's crowd.

“Beau Ray,” I said. “Did you hear Momma? I think Susan
and the kids just got here.” Beau Ray dropped the cards and ran into the house.

“Now how am I going to learn that trick?” Joshua whined. But he was smiling. “Hey,” he said to me. “Sit.”

“A little more than you bargained for, huh?” There had to be forty people milling around our yard. “Come meet Susan,” I said.

 

My sister Susan was talking to Momma while the two of them unpacked the tubs of coleslaw and Jell-O salad she'd brought. Beau Ray was playing rock-paper-scissors with Kenny and Kathy. Kevin, who was fifteen that year, had mono, Susan was explaining, so Tim was looking after him back home. They both sent their love and prayers.

“You must be Joshua,” Susan said, as soon as we walked in the kitchen.

I still hated the way people dropped all they were doing to look at him. I hadn't seen Susan all summer, and still, she said hi to him first.

“I must be,” Joshua said. “And you're Susan. Nice to meet another Gitlin. I recognize you from all the pictures. You're even lovelier in person.”

Susan blushed. “So how have you been enjoying Pinecob?” she asked.

“To tell the truth,” Joshua said, “I haven't gotten out as much as I'd like.”

Susan blushed again. “Oh, of course not. What a stupid question.”

“But the house and backyard are great. And I couldn't ask for nicer company than your little sister.”

Susan finally looked over at me, her eyebrows gone high up. “Is that right?” she asked, as much to me as to Joshua.

“Leanne's a superb hostess,” he said. “I think she ought to explore a career in home incarceration.”

“Is that really something people do?” Susan asked, frowning a little.

“No,” I said to her, then turned to Joshua. “What do you want?”

He laughed and excused himself. Susan grabbed my arm before I could do the same.

“Are you sleeping with him?” she demanded.

“Nice seeing you, Susan. How have you been?” I said. “And no, I'm not. That's crazy,” I told her. “No,” I said again, when it looked like she didn't believe me.

“You'd swear on the Bible?”

“On whatever you want.”

“Well, he wants to. I can tell you that.”

“No, he doesn't. Really. He doesn't.”

“Is he queer? I don't want him around the kids if he's queer. Even if he is some sort of moviestar—”

“No!” I said. “Get a drink, Susan. Honestly.”

“Watch yourself, Leanne. I know men. That one has his sights on you.”

“Go ahead and believe that, then,” I told her. I turned around and ran smack into Max. I cringed, hoping he hadn't heard Susan. When I turned, I knocked him in the chest with my hands, and I left them there just a second longer than I needed to. I could feel the arch of his muscles beneath his shirt, and the slight heat of them. I didn't want to pull away.

“Hey,” I said.

“I, uh, I brought the cake,” Max said. “Let me go get it.”

“Oh, great. Momma, Max brought the cake.”

In a minute, he'd returned with a big box that he set on the kitchen table. Momma opened it up and fawned over the huge frosted sheet-cake inside.

“Oh, Max, that's real nice,” Momma said. “Leanne, go get Max something to drink.”

“That's okay, Mrs. Gitlin,” Max said. “I'm sure Leanne's busy. I can find the cooler myself.” I watched him walk away.

“He's looking good, isn't he?” I heard Susan say to Momma.

Joshua came back in the kitchen just then, and pulled me out by the arm.

“What?” I asked him.

“This way.” He steered me to the front door and then out onto the porch. He pointed to the end of our driveway. “Who's that?” Joshua asked.

So it was true, I thought. She was back in town. “That's Charlene,” I told him. “Someone must have told her we were having a party.”

Charlene was talking to our neighbor from across the street, I couldn't hear about what. But she looked up and over toward our porch. I saw her excuse herself, and she started walking up the driveway. She gave us a pageant wave.

I'll admit that Charlene was pretty, in a tight blond way, though I always expected to see a sash and tiara when I looked at her. She was the type of woman that guys describe as having a “body that won't quit” although I have never really understood what that means. At least with Max, she hadn't shown much endurance. Or maybe she'd just needed a rest before coming back for round two.

“Is that you, Leanne?” Charlene called out. “I haven't seen you in ages. Don't you look wonderful!”

“Thanks,” I said, as she came close. “I heard you'd be in town.”

“I saw you on that thing with
Hollywood Express,
” Charlene said to me. “Funny, with the apples.” Then she turned to Joshua. “And you're Joshua Reed, aren't you?” She stepped onto the porch.

Joshua held out his hand, then took hers and kissed it. I wanted to gag. I felt way too tall and gangly, standing there.

“Charlene,” she said.

“Charlene,” Joshua said. “That's a lovely name. I've got to remember that.”

“Charlene used to live around here,” I told Joshua. “But
then she left.” I smiled at her. She smiled at me. I doubt either one of us actually meant it.

“But now I'm back,” Charlene said. She was a lot better at being perky than I was.

“Lucky me,” Joshua said.

“If you play your cards right,” Charlene said.

“Did you and Max come together?” I asked her.

She turned to me with big round eyes. “Max? Is he around? I should say hi.”

“You know Max?” Joshua asked.

I think Charlene was waiting to hear whether I would say anything about her having been married to Max, and having left him. But I wasn't going to do that. Charlene hadn't ever done anything mean to me, not directly. She was inconvenient, and sure, I was sorry that she'd shown up when she did. But if her showing up meant that she and Max would get back together, I figured that nothing was meant to happen between us anyhow.

Charlene turned back to Joshua. “Will you excuse me for a moment?”

I watched Joshua watch Charlene leave. I felt sure she'd be back.

 

Judy showed up with a gift box in one hand and a man who wasn't Lars. She introduced him to me as Sasha. She said that he was a casting director, come to finish work on
Musket Fire.
Sasha had an accent I couldn't place and wore sunglasses, even when he was inside. He was more pretty than handsome, and he stuck close to Judy. The three of us, Judy, Sasha and I, walked out to the backyard, and as soon as Sasha stepped outside, he stopped, took a deep breath and scanned the entire party.

Judy pointed across the yard. “That's the one I was telling you about,” she said to Sasha. She spoke in a low voice, like maybe I wasn't supposed to hear.

“Talking to our dear Mr. Reed?” Sasha asked. He peered over his sunglass frames. “I see what you mean.”

“That's Max,” I told them.

“And Max is?” Sasha asked.

“He's a friend,” I said. “He's a family friend. And a manager over at the Winn-Dixie.”

Judy laughed. “I just love that name,” she said. “That's what the grocery store is called,” she explained to Sasha.

Sasha excused himself, and I watched him go kiss Joshua on both cheeks and then get introduced to Max. I watched Sasha and Max shake hands.

“Sasha is famous for having the eye,” Judy said.

“What do you mean?” I asked her.

“No one's better at finding people,” she said. “Hey, great job on the newsletter by the way. I've been trying to get J.P. to talk more about Texas for ages. And that story about Jackie Reed? Excellent. That shit sells.” She headed off toward Joshua and Max. I followed.

“Hey, Judy,” Joshua said, kissing her cheek. “Good seeing you again, as always. It's been a quiet two weeks with you gone. How's the city of angels?”

“Relatively sane with you locked up here,” Judy said. “So, boring. We need you back there. I ran into Elise last week. She sends her love.”

“Yeah, right,” Joshua said.

“You know what I mean. That shirt's a great color on you.”

“Leanne gave it to me,” Joshua said.

I had found the shirt Joshua was wearing at a garage sale. I'd meant it to be for Beau Ray, but Joshua had commandeered it, soon as I'd returned, and seeing as how he offered to give me the two dollars I'd paid, I relented. It was just an olive green button-down, but it did make his eyes look like evergreen almonds.

“Leanne takes good care of me,” Joshua was saying.

Judy turned to me. “I hope not too good,” she said.

“No, of course not,” I told her, quick as can be. “Where did Sasha and Max get to?”

I caught sight of them at the edge of our yard. Sasha had taken Max by the elbow and seemed to be saying something in confidence. Then he let go and made big, sweeping motions with his hands. Max nodded, then shook his head. Sasha took him by the elbow again. I suddenly noticed Joshua watching me.

“They seem to be hitting it off,” he said. “I know people who'd kill for that much face time with Sasha. Lucky guy.”

“Who?” I asked.

Judy and Joshua said it together, “Max!” like I should have known.

I tried to ignore Sasha and Max and focus on Judy and Joshua catching up, on Judy complaining about the humidity and what it did to her hair. I caught Judge Weintraub's eye, over by the grill, and he waved at me and offered whatever he was grilling. I shook my head.

Charlene wandered over with a smile that looked custom-made for Joshua. “I'm back,” she said to him.

“No lie. Hey, Judy, I want you to meet Charlene. This is Judy, my publicist.”

“What a pleasure it is to meet you,” Charlene said.

Judy shook her hand and said, “Likewise.”

“I'm thirsty,” Charlene said. Joshua immediately offered to get her a drink and like that, they were off. And then Sasha was back, talking to Judy, but I didn't see Max anywhere.

“Well?” Judy asked him. I noticed that she was keeping an eye on Charlene and Joshua.

“You are right, Miss Judy. He does have something,” Sasha said. “And I adore the West Virginia angle and that crazy earlobe. We will see how he tests, but I have a few ideas.”

“I can already tell you, he's great on screen,” Judy said. “I saw him.”

“You're going to test Max?” I asked. “Where? Where do you test someone?”

They turned to me like I'd asked what color the sky was.

“In Los Angeles,” Judy said. “Or New York.”

“Max in Los Angeles? You'll never get him there.” I laughed.

“But he already agreed,” Sasha said. I couldn't see his eyes behind his sunglasses. “I did not even have to twist his arm.”

“I'd better see whether my mother needs help in the kitchen,” I said. But it was just an excuse to get away. I felt like a bandage had just been ripped clean off of me. My whole body stung. I wandered instead to Beau Ray's room and smiled to see how much he'd straightened it for the party, though the closet door was closed and behind it might well have lurked a pile of chaos six feet tall.

Then I walked into his bathroom, closed the door, and sat on the edge of the tub. I noticed that Beau Ray had not yet opened the miniature bottle of conditioner and the miniature soap I'd given to him, from the resort in Harper's Ferry, so long ago. I also noticed a small spot of something on the counter, and before I'd thought much about it, I'd found a sponge under Beau Ray's sink and started to wipe it off. The spill stuck a bit—it might have been jam, or syrup from an old soda can—so I pulled some scouring powder from beneath the sink, and sprinkled the sticky spot. And then, I kept going. I wiped down the sink, and then the toilet seat, and then the edge of the tub. And of course you can't leave scouring powder around, so I had to rinse it off, too. I was drying the sink when I heard a knock at the door. That brought me back—I was supposed to be at Beau Ray's party, not cleaning his bathroom.

“Just a second,” I said. I shoved the sponge and scrubbing powder back under the sink. I straightened the shower curtain and opened the door, then I stepped aside for Max. “All yours,” I said, as perky as I could manage.

“Thanks,” he said, but he paused at the doorway. He sniffed the air. “Were you just cleaning?” he asked. “It smells like Comet.”

“Something spilled,” I said. He shook his head like I was crazy.

I tried to imagine him on television, maybe in scrubs like Joshua had worn on
General Hospital.
Or in a cowboy getup. It didn't fit.

“So that guy Sasha says you've got something,” I said. “I hear he wants to test you.”

“Isn't that the weirdest? The guy walks right up to me and says he wants to get me out to California. I tell you, if Josh hadn't been there, I would have figured he was just hitting on me.”