Page 83 of Dance with Me on New Year's Eve

Rising abruptly, I bumped the table slightly as I pushed my chair back with my legs. “Restroom,” I mumbled to anyone who might be listening, avoiding eye contact with everyone.

Once safely in the bathroom further down the hall, I splashed some water on my face and then flipped the toilet lid down and sat, my hands covering my face.

The usual mix of shame and relief coursed through me as I tried to breathe normally and waited for my heart rate to eventually calm down. Ten minutes later, I was still shaky but feeling less light-headed, so I washed my hands and face and left. I didn’t feel ready to return to the party yet, so I sat in a small sitting room and started doing a modified body scan meditation. Sometimes it helped me calm down, and sometimes it wasuseless, but it was worth a shot.

The room was sparsely decorated because Hazel, when she’d given me a brief tour, said this was Peter’s space. I mean, it was his house, but she’d taken over the decoration of much of the house since she’d sold her own next door, and nearly every square inch was covered in Christmas decorations. I marveled at their unlikely success as a couple, given how wildly different they were.

It was a massive old house, and this part was far enough away from the formal dining room that I couldn’t hear them. But as I stared at the plain wood-paneled walls, adorned only by a winter holiday landscape painting, a figure walked into the room and startled me.

Immediately sitting up straight, I said, “Oh, hi, Peter. I … I’m sorry, I know this is your private space. I didn’t mean to—”

“Roxy, it’s fine. You’re welcome to relax here. I actually wanted to talk to you about something.” He paused, hesitation on his face. “But first, are you OK?”

“I’m—yes. I am now.” I bit my lip and sighed. “Was it that obvious when I left?”

“No.”

“Oh …” I remembered Peter was a man of few words. The sooner I changed the subject, the better. “So, what’s up?” I asked, aiming for a normal tone.

He sat down on a chair across from mine. “I have a surprise planned for Hazel, and I was hoping you could help me.”

My eyes widened. “Oh, of course. It’s my job to support her.”

“No, that’s not what I meant. Just … as our friend.”

My heart leaped into my throat. Peter considered me a friend too? I couldn’t believe it, and I surely hadn’t done anything to deserve it.

“Oh, right.”

He eyed me for a moment, not breaking a smile. His stoicism reminded me of Jeff in that way, but they were different too, in ways I couldn’t quite articulate. “I want to arrange for herparents to surprise her on her birthday. At the New Year’s Eve party.”

My jaw dropped. “That’s … wow. How incredibly thoughtful.” I remembered then that she didn’t have the best relationship with her parents, though it certainly sounded better than mine. “Do you think they’ll agree to it though? I mean, her dad’s in Japan, and her mom is … I forget, somewhere in Europe. That’s quite a trip for a birthday party, especially with holiday travel costs.”

He nodded. “That’s why I think it’ll mean a lot to her. She thinks they’re not interested in her life, but they are. I could tell instantly from one conversation with them. So I’ve already reached out to them, and they’re excited.”

I smiled. “That’s truly wonderful. I am so happy for her that she’ll get to see them—and that she has you.”

His lips turned up at one corner. “That’s kind of you, Roxy.”

“How can I help?”

“Could you arrange their travel and lodging? They could stay at the house if they want, but I’d rather not just assume they’d want to. So we can book hotel rooms and cancel if needed.”

“Of course, I’m happy to do that.”Happywas a stretch, as I was a bit tired of coordinating events and logistics for others. But this seemed like a worthy cause. “What about Hazel’s sister?”

“Halley can’t come, unfortunately. And maybe it’s for the best, so this visit is truly about Hazel, you know?”

“Makes sense. Well, this is such a wonderful gift. It’s last minute, only ten days away, right? But it’s definitely doable.”

“Eleven days, but yes. Let me give you my phone number so we can chat about this tomorrow some more.”

I handed him my phone so he could type in his number. “I’ll start working on this tomorrow, along with the final party details.”

For a moment, Peter looked conflicted. “Is that too much? Sorry, I don’t want to overload you.”

“Not at all!” I smiled brightly, maybe too brightly.

He looked hesitant but then nodded. “All right. Well, we should probably get back to the table, right?”

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