The phone was on its fifth ring when she finally grabbed it.
"Shit. Dammit. Hello..."
"Well, it's different and it has a certain something, but I don't think it's going to replace 'Style and Grace'." Nick laughed into the phone.
Grace laughed too. "Sorry, I was in the shower. I'm soaking wet and I'm dragging wet plastic bags all over the apartment."
Nick gulped. Soaking wet meant naked. He closed his eyes to picture it. He heard rustling sounds.
"There," she said, "Bathrobe secure. Plastic bags disposed of. Not enough water to necessitate building an ark. Cast seems solid. Let me try this again. Style and Grace. Good morning."
They both laughed. Nick told her that he had called to make sure she was awake. He was going to pick her up at two. Was that still okay? She assured him that it was. What should she wear? Besides plaster. Family barbecue, he said. Shorts would be good.
"Yes, because I really want to get working on that one legged-tan," joked Grace. They chatted for a few minutes and he rang off.
******************************When Nick arrived to pick her up, she was already waiting in the lobby. She had come down a few minutes early, because she was so nervous and anxious that she couldn't stand being in the same place any longer. It was bloody hard to pace the floor with crutches, she had decided.
Gary had come on duty at 1:00 today. He was not very friendly when he saw her step off the elevator.
"Ms. Barrett." He nodded politely.
"Hi, Gary. You're working today? I thought you had Sundays off."
Inwardly, Gary was thrilled that she had noticed what day he had off, but he was still upset. The first thing he did whenever he came on a shift was to rewind all the security tapes and run them at fast forward to see what he had missed while he was gone. Then he would update his notes. He was not pleased to see that the blond airhead pop star had left the building this morning at nearly six o'clock. Since Gary had been there when he had checked in, he knew it had been a long night.
"Just filling in for Jermaine. His wife went into labor."
"Finally," Grace stated emphatically. "That had to be the longest pregnancy on record." The two of them laughed. Jermaine had announced his wife's pregnancy practically from the moment of conception. They had been given daily updates and shown pictures of sonograms.
"Yeah," said Gary, "And if it's a girl, it'll kill him." They laughed again. Jermaine's determination that it was going to be a boy was incredible.
"Only until she's placed in his arms. I understand babies have a miraculous effect on fathers."
I didn't have much of an effect on mine, he thought. He opened his mouth to ask her about her father, when he heard the door open.
"Nick!" she whispered breathlessly and turned away from Gary, who realized he had suddenly become invisible to them both. He glared at their backs as they made their way out the door.
******************************The barbecue was hectic and fun. People came and went. Conversations were interrupted in mid-sentence as someone else came by or dragged the person away. It was hard to keep everyone's name straight. Since both Aaron and Nick were home, there were a bunch of cousins and aunts and uncles thrown into the mix. There was a strong family resemblance and none of them stayed in one place long enough to give Grace a chance to put name and face together. Nick was assailed over and over by his siblings. Come here. Do this. See this. Throw the ball. Catch the ball. Even Aaron, the latest pop star sensation, vied for his share of Nick's attention. Grace used the excuse of her broken ankle to sit back and let Nick go, roughhousing with his brothers and sisters and cousins. He would pass by her chair occasionally to have a word or to touch her hand or her cheek.
After awhile, a panting Aaron dropped into the chair beside her. "Hey, Grace," he said. "Welcome to the Carter madhouse. Lucky for Nick you have that broken ankle. Otherwise, you'd be free to run away."
"Why would I want to run away? I think it's wonderful. Did his other girls run away?"
"Couldn't say," said Aaron. "You're the first one he's brought home in a long time. Watch out!" He reached in front of her to catch an errant ball.
"Oh, for heaven's sakes, can't you see the poor girl is crippled?" said Nick's mom, Jane.
Grace grimaced to herself. It had been obvious from the moment they met, that Jane Carter did not like her. Grace wasn't sure if it was her personally, her age, or whether Nick's mom disliked any girl that claimed his attention. She was barely civil and made it obvious that she considered Grace an unwelcome intrusion on a family gathering. Nick's dad, Bob, had tried to make up for it by being friendly, but this kindness only served to make Jane even frostier. Grace was tempted to French kiss Aaron right in front of her to see is she could precipitate a coronary.
Grace did not usually have such uncharitable thoughts, but this woman was a piece of work. She spent half the time refusing help from people and the other half complaining about all she had to do. She had dismissed Grace's offer with a wave of her hand and a haughty, "What could you possibly do? You can't even walk."
Grace was not sure if Nick had noticed his mother's attitude toward her. He had been swept away so quickly after the introductions that she had barely seen him. Bob settled her in a chair where she could watch the kids play. He offered her a drink and she accepted some lemonade.
"We have harder stuff for the grown-ups," he smiled. She assured him that lemonade was her drink of choice.
Nick’s dad returned with a tall, frosty glass of it and sat down beside her. “How did you and Nick meet?” he inquired politely. Grace almost asked him if he wanted to take notes. She knew he had been sent out by Nick’s mom to get the information.
"Oh, she fell for me in a big way, didn't you Grace?" Nick loomed up in front of them, a frisbee in one hand. He was sweating and covered in grass stains. Grace wanted to kiss him all over. She blushed at the thought. Nick thought she was embarrassed about the way they had met. He explained it to his dad quickly - Grace fell down; I picked her up; we went to the hospital; there's the cast. "Gotta go," he laughed, as two youngsters tried to tackle him from behind. He walked away with the two hanging from him.
Bob Carter turned back to her. Grace could see him mentally turn to the next page of questions. "So, Grace, um...as a grownup..." he looked across at Nick.
"How much more grown up am I than he is?" she asked.
Bob laughed, "Oh considerably, I would say, and that's maturity, not age."
"Why don't I just give you the thumbnail biography and then you won't have to do this?" she offered.
He rolled his eyes. He nodded with his head toward the house.
"I understand completely," she said. "And she has every right to know about me. Believe me, if we were in Ohio right now, my mom would have sent my dad out with an even longer list of questions for Mr. Nick."
"You're a sweet girl," said Bob.
"Here goes. My name is Grace Barrett. I am 24 years old, but not for much longer. I come from White Oak, Ohio, which is a suburb of Cincinnati. I am a website designer, by trade, and my hobbies are books, music and baseball."
"The Reds?"
"Absolutely! I want to live through what my parents did in the seventies with The Big Red Machine."
"Johnny Bench," said Bob.
"Frank Robinson," added Grace.
"Joe Morgan," put in Bob.
"Pete Rose," they said together, and laughed.
"Should he be in the Hall of Fame?" asked Bob.
"Absolutely! No question about it!" responded Grace.
"Well, I think I have all I need to know. Enjoy yourself, Grace and welcome to my home." He stood up and turned away.
"Thank you very much...and Mr. Carter?"
He turned back. "Yes, Grace?"
"I will never hurt your son."
Bob Carter smiled and nodded. He wanted to ruffle her hair, but he knew he was being watched and he really wasn't prepared to put himself through that!
******************************"Well, did you find out about her?" Jane Carter asked her husband, as she tossed salad furiously in the kitchen.
"Yes, I found out all the important things," Bob responded.
"Oh good," said Jane. "Tell me."
"She'll never hurt our son and she thinks Pete Rose belongs in the Hall of Fame."
"That's it. That's all the important things?!" Jane Carter was disgusted. It was exactly the kind of thing Nick would do, she thought.
"It's good enough for me," he responded, "But I'm sure you also need to know that she is 24." He turned and walked from the room.
******************************When dinnertime came around, Grace could see the Carter family dynamic in all its glory. As hard as Jane tried to make things difficult for her, the men of the family thwarted her every move. Jane tried to serve Grace her dinner in a chair with no table beside it, so that she would have trouble managing plate, cutlery and drink. Nick and Aaron picked up a patio table and moved it close to her. They then both pulled up chairs beside it, saying they would eat there. Bob Carter made a move to rise and was pulled back into his chair by his wife.
Jane tried to talk about family things that Grace would know nothing about. She succeeded for the first three minutes, until she said, "Of course, we shouldn't be talking about family things in front of poor Grace. She knows nothing about any of it."
"Grace is a website designer," put in Bob. That was all it took. All of the kids and most of the adults turned interested eyes on Grace. Next to pop star, it was pretty much the coolest occupation there. Jane stabbed a forkful of macaroni salad and remained silent for the rest of the meal.
When dinner was over, Jane stood up. Grace stood up at the same time. "Nick," she said with authority in her voice. "Sit your mom back down. 'Cooks don't clean up.' Leslie. Angel. Boys too. Let's go."
Within minutes, the patio had been cleared of all dishes and food. Jane's efforts to protest had fallen on deaf ears. Half the joy for the men had come from seeing Grace become a hit with the younger members of the family; but half of it came from watching Jane sit there and seethe, knowing that the enemy had just taken control of her kitchen.
When it was time to go, Grace discovered that the Carter family members were huggers. They lined up to say goodbye. The younger ones said goodbye and a couple told her she was 'cool'. Leslie said they should go shopping sometime. Aaron told her to take care and that he hoped to see her again. Bob told her that it was a pleasure meeting her and he really hoped to see her again. Jane was last and she didn't hug her. But she did shake her hand and thank her for the spotless kitchen. Nick opened the door and as Grace went to go through it, she heard Nick's mom whisper under her breath, "Take care of my boy."
Grace looked back at her and nodded. They went through the door and were halfway down the sidewalk when Nick's mom called him back. Grace continued her slow path to the car. Nick caught up with her and opened the car door.
"Well, you're certainly a hit," he said. "My mom has never been so complimentary about anybody before." He tucked her crutches in the back and closed her door.
"What did she say?" asked Grace, when he had gotten in the driver's side.
"She said you were 'okay'." He said it with a perfectly straight face. Grace nodded, equally serious. He backed the car out of the driveway onto the street. Then he put it in 'park' and leaned across to her. "Yeah, you're okay! It's a fact. My mom says so." And he kissed her.
Grace treasured each second that his lips were on hers. When he pulled back finally, she whispered, "Well, if we want her to continue to think I'm okay, maybe we ought not to do this in front of the house."
"Good point," said Nick and he put the car in gear.
