26. Always Has Meaning

26

ALWAYS HAS MEANING

“ Y ou’ve got a boyfriend?” Kellen asked five minutes later.

“I do,” she said. “Why are you so surprised?”

“Not surprised that you do as much as you’re telling me. You don’t normally tell me when you’re dating. I’m not sure the last time I even knew you dated someone.”

“It’s been a while,” she admitted.

“Tell me about this guy. How you met. His name. What he does. Then how he treats you.”

“You should have started with how he treats me and how it makes me feel,” she said. “The rest is meaningless.”

“It always has meaning,” Kellen said. “Mom and Dad treated each other great. At least for the world to see.”

He always found a way to bring that up. “Good point, but we know I’m not Mom or Dad.”

“Thank God for that.”

“His name is Zander Conway. He’s a private investigator and has his own firm next to my office. That is how we met. He used to be a police officer. His father is a retired police captain and working with him now part time. His mother is the DA. His sister is an ADA. He’s got a great relationship with his family. His mother wants to meet me so I’m going there for Thanksgiving.”

“That is a mouthful and more than I expected you to volunteer.”

“There is no reason not to.”

“The fact he works with his father and is close with his family is nice. Gives us a chance to see how the other side lives.”

“I see that plenty,” she said, laughing.

“I’m sure you see more breakups than cozy relationships.”

Her brother wasn’t wrong. “True. But I met Zander’s best friend and wife last night. We had dinner at their house.”

She went on to tell her brother about the dinner.

“Sounds like something you’d like,” her brother said.

“What does that mean?”

“It means that maybe I’m jealous. I don’t have any close friends like that. At least living here. Neither do you. Do you think we were just damaged by Mom and Dad?”

“Kellen,” she said. “Don’t go there. I’m not damaged and neither are you. Are they calling and giving you a hard time about the move?”

“No,” Kellen said. “I haven’t talked to them much at all. I think they are pissed.”

She smirked and wished her brother could have seen her face. “They don’t know how to get pissed. Why would you say that?”

There was silence to that statement. “Good point. Maybe I’m just feeling guilty about the move.”

Which was more like it. “Why?” she asked. “Do you not like your job?”

“I’m sorry. You called to tell me something good and now we are talking about me.”

“We can talk about you and then go back to me. I called you first because I wanted you to know about Zander. But I also want to know how things are going there.”

“As long as you talk more about you when I’m done,” he said.

“I will. I promise,” she said. “How is work?”

“It’s good. Challenging. I’m getting it but slowly. They do things differently and I feel as if it’s taking me longer. Everyone seems pleased though.”

“But you aren’t pleased with yourself?” she asked. “Are you sure you’re not being hard on yourself?”

“I think it’s that. I was at my last job for so long that I knew what I was doing with my eyes shut.”

“This is like school, which you hated. Learning something new?”

“I’m sure that is a huge part of it. It’s a big company. There are groups and cliques of people. I’m the outsider. I never have a problem talking with people.”

Her brother was more outgoing than her and always had been. “That’s right. So what is the issue?”

“I think I’m not fitting in as quickly. Or maybe it’s the fact I don’t know anyone here. If I started a new job at home, I still had friends to go out and do things with.”

“That’s right,” she said. “You’ve always made friends quickly. I don’t have that in my nature and never did. Why not ask someone you like there to get a drink after work one night?”

“I’ve been thinking about it. I’m getting a feel for who is married or single. I don’t want to be the guy to ask some married dude out and get him in trouble with his wife.”

She laughed. “Not sure why you are worried about that. I’d think they’d say no if they can’t.”

“I’m not doubting my move. Don’t think that,” Kellen said.

“But in the back of your mind it’s such a major change that you are wondering why you did it?”

“A little. It will be fine. Tell me more about you and Zander.”

They talked for ten more minutes and in the end were both laughing over her plan for Thanksgiving before Zander asked her to meet his parents.

“I bet I could have pulled it off,” she said. “No one would have been direct enough to call me out on it.”

“We should have done that for years,” Kellen said. “We could have gone out to eat and saved ourselves the trouble.”

“Always an option for the future. Wish me luck with Mom and Dad though I doubt I’ll need it.”

“They are going to be fine,” Kellen said. “Will most likely say something mundane like ‘that is nice.’ Or ‘good for you.’”

“I’m sure you’re right. I’ll text you after and fill you in.”

She hung up with her brother and called her mother first. “Good afternoon, Regan. How are you doing?”

“Well,” she said. “How have you been?”

“Busy,” her mother said. “Is work going well?”

“It is,” she said. “Busy there too.” God, what a horrible boring conversation with her mother. “I wanted to call and let you know I’m dating someone.”

“That’s wonderful to hear,” her mother said. Nope, no jump in her tone. She said it the same as she said she’d been busy.

“Yes,” she said. “He’s a great guy.”

“That’s good,” her mother said.

Not even asking Zander’s name or where they met or anything. Not surprising either.

“I’m going to spend Thanksgiving with him and his family.”

“Oh,” her mother said. “Does he have a name?”

Now her mother was interested since a family holiday was included. “Zander Conway.”

“And what does he do?”

She told her mother what Zander did and how they met. Might as well give a little bit of information, but her mother told her to have a nice holiday and they hung up. Not even a ten-minute call.

Her father’s call started out the same only he added, “Have you talked to your brother lately?”

“I have,” she said. “I spoke to him before I called Mom.”

“So you’re calling us all today. Is there a reason?”

“I wanted to tell you that I’m dating someone.”

“That’s nice,” her father said. She rolled her eyes. She’d pegged this perfectly.

“I’m going to spend Thanksgiving with him and his family,” she said.

“That’s good,” her father said. “Because Lori and I are going to her sister’s this year. Since I hadn’t heard from you, I just assumed you were going to be with your mother.”

She could have gotten away with not even calling her father this year. Guess she put more thought into this whole thing than she needed to.

“Then it’s all working out,” she said.

She was getting ready to hang up when her father asked, “Your mother knows about this boyfriend?”

“I told her. You’re my last call. His name is Zander.”

“What kind of name is Zander? Is it short for Alexander?”

She shrugged. Why didn’t she know the answer to that? “I don’t believe so.”

“You don’t know that?” her father asked. “I would have expected you to know all sorts of pieces of information like that before you got into a relationship.”

She frowned. “Why?”

“You’ve always had to know everything about a person before you decided if you wanted them in your life or not. There isn’t anything wrong with that. Maybe if Kellen was more like you he wouldn’t have developed a substance abuse problem.”

She threw her hands up in the air and almost tossed her phone at the same time.

“Kellen does not have a substance abuse problem. He’s doing great at his new job and life. He’s happy for his sister who happens to be in love. Sorry I don’t know something silly like if Zander is short for anything. Those aren’t the important things.”

“There is no reason to get emotional,” her father said. “Now you’re starting to act like Kellen. It was just a statement.”

She took a deep breath. “You’re right, it was. I said what I needed to. Have a nice day and holiday.”

She said that as calmly as she could, her father said goodbye back and she hung up.

She texted Zander quickly. What’s your full name?

It was five minutes before she read the reply. Zander David Conway. What’s yours? Is this some kind of a test? Can I guess? Is your middle name Ann? Then your initials would be RAP.

She wasn’t sure why she found that response hilarious and was laughing so hard that she had tears in her eyes.

Thanks for that. I needed it. It’s Marie. Just as generic.

Sweetheart, there isn’t one thing generic about you.

Guess she needed to hear that too.