Chapter Three

KAREN SWUNG THE front door open before Ridley had a chance to knock on it. She stared at Ridley for a moment with a strange expression that distorted her delicate features and crinkled her intense eyes. " I know what you're thinking, Ridley and no I do not have ESP."

" How do you know what I'm thinking, then? "

" Ah...quick witted as usual, I see. I just happened to be standing near the window and I saw you coming up the steps. Did you have a hard time finding a parking place? "

" Believe it or not, I found one right out front."

" Honest to God? That's unheard of around here, especially on a Saturday night." Karen stuck her head out the door as if she needed to confirm Ridley's claim. " Is there a riot, a fire or some other kind of emergency? Did the city order a mass evacuation? "

" Not that I'm aware of." Karen's remarks made Ridley smile. She enjoyed her friend's straightforward sense of humor. " I hope not, anyway."

" It's a little cooler out this evening, isn't it? "

" A lot cooler, thank God. I'm even starting to detect a hint of fall in the air."

" That may be a bit of a stretch, but it does feel good. So, why are we still standing here in the doorway? Come inside and make yourself comfortable. Naturally, our Laurie's not quite ready yet. You know her. Once she gets in the bathroom, you can't be sure she'll ever come out again. Would you like something to drink while we wait? We've got wine, beer, coke and I think there's a few bottles of iced tea in the fridge."

" No thanks. I'd rather wait until we have dinner." Ridley handed Karen the two bottles of wine she'd brought along. " Laurie told me it's a BYOB sobrought a couple of bottles of wine to take to the restaurant with us."

" That's what I was told." Karen studied the labels. " This is one of our favorite Chardonnays, but of course you know that don't you? That's why you bought it. I'm pretty sure we've never tried this Cabernet. Have you had it before? Is it good? "

" I haven't had it either. The guy in the liquor store recommended it."

Karen set the bottles on the table in the foyer and focused her attention on Ridley. " I'm glad you're going with us tonight. I haven't seen you in weeks. What's new? How was the rest of your summer? Are you happy you transferred to Laurie's school" How do you like working there so far? Karen fired one question after another at Ridley in rapid sequence as she walked with her into the living room.

Ridley held up her hand. " Whoa, slow down, counselor. I'm slow, so you're going to have to let me answer your questions one by one. I can't remember the first one by the time you've asked me the next three. Is this inquisitiveness a genetic trait all you lawyers are born with or do they teach it to you in law school? " Ridley said as she eased into a leather armchair. " It probably does come in handy, I'd imagine, especially during all that questioning."

Karen sat on the sofa. " I'm not a trial lawyer, so I really don't question people per se and you're as bad as Laurie. She's always ragging on me about being a lawyer." Karen feigned displeasure but a suggestion of a smile threatened to give away her true feelings. She pursed her lips as though trying to suppress it. " I'm not fooled by either of you. You're both jealous."

" You can't be serious? Do you really think I'd like to work eighty hours a week, memorize volumes of court cases that are written in what might as well be a foreign language and argue semantics with other lawyers? " Ridley dismissed the notion with her hand.

" No thank you, not me. I just couldn't do it."

" It's not for everyone, I'll grant you that and for the record, I only work fifty or sixty hours a week on an average--give or take a few, " Karen said. The smile she'd tried to squelch bubbled its way to the surface.

" Do pardon me." Ridley matched Karen's smile and then changed her tone. " I'm sorry about the teasing. All those jokes about lawyers have tainted my thinking. I hope you know how much I admire the work you do for the gay and lesbian community." Karen handled civil rights cases and she had served as a consultant to the school district to develop policies for the protection of LGBTQ students and staff members.

" Thanks for saying that. Now, stop trying to distract me and start answering my questions. I'll repeat them one by one, so you can keep up."

For the next twenty minutes, Ridley answered Karen's questions until she thought Karen's curiosity might have been satisfied. " If you're through with me, I've got a few questions of my own, " she said when Karen had nothing left to ask her.

" Fire away."

" First of all, tell me about this chef friend of yours, the one whose restaurant we're going to this evening. I remember when you and Laurie went to Chicago to visit an old friend, but you never told me much about her. Laurie didn't even tell me her name."

" I guess I never had a reason to talk to you about her. Her name's Dana De Marco. We were good friends all through high school and right after we graduated, her parents moved to Chicago and she went with them, of course."

" Dana De Marco. That's a pretty name."

" And she's a pretty girl, " Karen added.

" I'm fascinated by the fact that she's a chef. I've never met one and I've always been curious about someone who does that for a living."

" She wanted to be one as far back as I can remember. We kept in touch for a while after she moved away, but then I didn't hear from her anymore until she called me and said she was moving back here to open a restaurant on South Street."

" Have you seen her since she's been back? " Ridley asked.

" She came over once, right after she moved here, but this will be the first time we've had a chance to get together since then."

" I'm anxious to meet her and try her restaurant. Where is it? "

" It's between seventh and eighth on South. It's only been open two mon..."

" Hey you two, what are you talking about? Me? " Laurie rushed up to Karen, put her arm around her and kissed her. " You look nice honey and you smell so good." She let out a moan as she nuzzled her lips into Karen's neck. " Remind me to explore this area more extensively later on, when we're alone."

" You look nice yourself and no, we're not talking about you." Karen kissed Laurie on the cheek. " And I'll remind you if you're still awake. So, are you finally ready to go? "

" I'm as ready as I'll ever be. Give me a minute or two to check out my best friend here before we get going." Laurie hugged Ridley, then stepped back, holding her at arms length. " You've got that sexy, young lesbian thing going for you, but that's hardly newsworthy. That top matches your eyes and with that tan and all..." Laurie shook her head. " God, you have no idea how attractive you are, do you? "

" I don't know what to say. I wasn't aiming for any kind of young lesbian thing. I was just being me, " Ridley replied. She knew her close friends found her attractive and she knew other women did because they told her often enough. What mattered most to her was that she be loved for the kind of person she was inside and since Laurie did love her for who she was, both inside and out, she took Laurie's compliments as they were intended.

" We all know how cute she is, Laurie, " Karen said, heading for the door. " Now, let's be on our way before we end up being late. You two grab the wine, will you? "

Without further discussion, they strolled one block north and turned west onto South Street. Ridley was the first to break the silence. " I love South Street. I don't think there's another place quite like it in the entire world."

" You don't know that for a fact, do you? " Karen teased. " Have you actually been everywhere in the world? "

" No I haven't, counselor." Ridley glanced at Karen. " What's with you? "

" I'm simply paying you back for picking on me earlier. You know Laurie and I love South Street. That's one of the reasons we live down here, right Laurie? "

" Right, your honor, " Laurie said. " I love all the funky shops and ethnic restaurants and it's great people watching. That's one of the best things about it."

" That's what makes it interesting, " Ridley said. " I think South Street is one of the city's treasures. It would be hard to find a stranger collection of people gathered together in on place anywhere else that I can think of. Where else would you find people in business suits walking next to gothic teens and new age hippies? "

" And where else would you find stores like these? " Laurie asked.

" They're unique all right, but do you know what I like the most? "

" I don't believe you've ever told me, " Laurie said.

" I like the hustle and bustle feel of it, " Ridley said. " The way everyone darts around on the streets in every direction and seems to be going somewhere important."

Without responding to what Ridley had said, Laurie stopped in front of one of the stores and stared at the window display. She waved her hand to beckon Ridley and Karen over. " Hey, check out this display of penis shaped pasta. It says penis pasta, right on the boxes."

Ridley leaned in closer, her nose almost touching the window. " They didn't have them in there last week when I went by, " she remarked. " I would have noticed that."

" What kind of sauce would you serve on those? " Karen's question sounded so serious, it made Laurie and Ridley laugh. Karen glared at them for a moment and then she joined in the laughter. They took one last look at the window display before Karen said, " Let's keep moving along, girls, we're almost there." She led them along for another block until they reached the corner. " Here we are. This is it."

Ridley paused outside the three story brick building. The name, Café De Marco, was painted in gold letters on the large downstairs windows and again on the awning over the front entrance. She followed Karen as she led them inside and listened as Karen told the hostess who they were. The hostess promised to let Dana know they'd arrived and then she handed three menus to a waitress who escorted them to a nicely situated table tucked away in a secluded corner of the main dining room.

" This is really beautiful, " Laurie said as she and Karen took their seats.

" I'm not the least bit surprised, " Karen remarked. " I'd expect Dana to have exquisite taste." She opened her menu and disappeared behind it.

Ridley scanned the room as she slid into her chair. One wall of exposed brick ran the length of the dining room. The other three walls were a heavily textured plaster, painted in a muted gold and decorated with hand-painted olive branches. Some of the branches followed the ceiling line or climbed the wall seams while others twisted randomly across the walls and reached up onto the ceiling. Brick-red table cloths were draped over black lacquered tables set with sparkling glassware and rich gold napkins. Small bronze lamps suspended by long thin black cables, cast a warm glow over the center of each table. " If the food is as good as the ambience suggests, we're in for a treat, " Ridley said as she picked up her menu.

" This is quite a menu. It all sounds so appealing, I don't know what to choose, " Laurie said. " Did you see the specials? They sound scrumptious."

" Here she comes now, " Karen said. She got to her feet and Laurie did the same.

Ridley got to her feet and watched Dana De Marco as she walked toward them. One glimpse of her in her starched chef's jacket caused Ridley's stomach to dive to the floor where it landed with a resounding thud somewhere in the vicinity of her feet. For several suspended seconds, she wondered if her shaky knees would continue to support her in an upright position. All the other sounds in the room were obliterated by her thundering heartbeat and she felt a warm flush bathe her face and spill down into her neck. Dana was simply adorable. She was about an inch shorter than Ridley with dark chestnut hair and even darker eyes. Why hadn't she prepared herself for the possibility that she might be so good-looking? Karen said she was pretty, but this?

Dana swept Karen into her arms for a big hug and then she hugged Laurie. After greeting the two of them, she focused her attention on Ridley and acknowledged her with a nod. " You must be Karen and Laurie's friend. Karen called and told me you might come along."

" I'm glad I did, " Ridley said. She could think of nothing else to say.

Karen took hold of Ridley's arm. " Dana, this is our closest friend, Ridley Kelsen. She and Laurie went to Temple together and I think I already told you she's a teacher." Karen turned to Ridley. " Ridley, I'd like you to meet Dana De Marco."

" I'm so happy you could make it tonight, " Dana said. " I hope you enjoy my restaurant. She offered her hand.

Ridley shook hands with Dana and prayed her hand didn't feel damp or cold. She stood dumbfounded with Dana's hand in hers as Dana stared at her with lively, penetrating eyes. " It's a pleasure to meet you and I'm sure I will, " Ridley said, surprised that she could speak coherently. She remembered to let go of Dana's hand when she heard Karen's voice.

" You haven't changed that much, " Karen said to Dana. " Your hair's a little shorter than you used to wear it. I like it."

" Do you? When I first got here, I got it cut by someone new and she cut it shorter than I wanted. But after it grew in and I got used to it I decided I liked it a little shorter so I kept it that way. It's easier to take care of." Dana reached up and touched her hair.

Dana's eyes captured Ridley's again. " Karen told me that you and Laurie work at the same high school."

" We do. I just started there last week. I'm not new to teaching--I've been a teacher for years. I just left my old school and went to hers." Dana's eyes had a way of taking hold and Ridley had a hard time letting them go. After a brief pause, she said, " We brought wine."

" Great. Let me get someone to take care of those."

Dana waved to the hostess who rushed right over as if the Queen of England had summoned her. " Open these bottles of wine, will you please, and put them on ice for my friends? " The hostess bowed slightly, took the bottles from Ridley, and hurried off to take care of them.

" Do you have time to sit and visit with us? " Karen asked Dana.

Dana directed her answer at all three of them. " Not right now. We're really busy and I have to get back to the kitchen. Why don't you go ahead and order? Your waitress will explain any of the dishes on the menu."

" Do you have any recommendations? " Karen asked.

" I highly recommend the butternut squash lasagna if you don't mind eating vegetarian. It's very popular with our customers. We have some nice specials tonight and I'd say go with what appeals to you because I think it's all good. At least I hope so."

" I'm disappointed. I thought you'd spend time with us, " Karen said.

Dana took Karen's hand. " I will, I promise. I'll be out later." She squeezed Karen's hand as if to seal her promise and hurried away toward the kitchen. Karen sat down and picked up her menu again. " I have to go over this. It's going to be tough to choose."

While Karen was absorbed in the menu, Ridley leaned over and hissed in Laurie's ear, " Why didn't you warn me she was so attractive? " It wasn't like Laurie to withhold that kind of information and Ridley wondered why she had. Maybe it didn't cross Laurie's mind that Ridley would think of Dana in any way other than friendship.

Laurie held her menu in front of her face to hide from Karen's watchful eyes and whispered to Ridley. " I didn't know you'd be interested in her and if I recall correctly, you warned me in no uncertain terms to mind my own business, so there." Laurie smirked as if she felt satisfied in an evil way. " So you like what you see, huh? "

" I sure do, " Ridley answered. She thought Dana was the most delicious thing on the menu, but she did not share that particular thought with Laurie.

Karen pulled the top of Laurie's menu down. " What are you two whispering about? "

" Nothing, " Ridley said firmly as she shot Laurie a warning glance.

" Nothing and we're not whispering, " Laurie said with that smirk barely hidden beneath the surface. " We're just talking quietly."

After an hour or more of great food and spirited conversation, they waited as their waitress served dessert. Ridley stared down at the pineapple upside down cake as it was ceremoniously placed in front of her and then she made eye contact with the waitress. " This has been one of the best dinners I've ever had in my whole entire life."

" Thank you and I'll tell the chefs you said so. They always appreciate a compliment." She paused and then added, " I think our chefs are amazing. Our customers rave about the food."

" It's not hard to see why." Karen leaned back in her chair, her hands cradling her distended stomach. " I think I'm going to bust a gut."

" Don't even think of busting anything in here, " Dana's smooth voice made an entry as she sneaked up behind Karen. " It would make an awful mess and it would be very bad for business, although we could use the publicity."

" So, exploding in a restaurant would be my ten minutes of fame, huh? Just what I always wanted." Karen groaned. " The Daily News would have a field day with that story."

" Can't you just see the headline? " Laurie asked.

" So, how was everything, ladies? " Dana asked.

Karen answered first. " Everything was outstanding. I had the beef and shrimp special and it was wonderful. The beef was tender and the shrimp were perfectly cooked and I loved the salsa. I cleaned my plate." Karen pointed to the dessert in front of her. " But as you can see, that didn't stop me from having dessert. I couldn't resist that sorbet and those ginger cookies. They were out of this world, by the way."

" You can thank Tracy, my sous-chef and pastry chef. She creates all of our desserts, " Dana told them. " I consider her a genius."

" I can see why, " Karen replied. " Tell her how much we loved everything."

" I will. She'll be pleased to hear it."

" Your lasagna was out of this world, " Ridley said. " I've never tasted anything like it. Dishes like that could turn me into a vegetarian. I also loved my salad."

" Which one did you have? " Dana asked.

" I had the green papaya salad."

" That's an excellent choice. It's one of my personal favorites."

" The papaya reminded me of Jicama in a way. It has a delicate flavor and a nice crunch. Are green papayas just papayas that aren't ripe yet? " Ridley asked.

" No, they're actually another variety of papaya altogether. There are many different papayas and this salad is very common in Thai cuisine."

" I didn't know there was more than one kind." Ridley discovered she enjoyed having Dana's attention. Everything that came out of Dana's mouth fascinated her to no end and she wanted to know everything there was to know about this captivating woman even if it meant learning about every type of papaya on the face of the earth.

Dana broke the connection with Ridley and turned to Laurie. " What about you, Laurie. What did you have? "

" I had the Chilean sea bass. It was really fresh and the sauce was the best sauce I've ever had with fish. Not everyone can cook fish just right but this was flaky and tender. Everything was amazing--the asparagus, the potatoes, all of it. And it all went together."

" Thank you so much. I bought the fish this morning and it was very fresh." Dana pulled the empty chair away from the table and sat next to Ridley. " I'm glad you liked the lasagna."

Ridley got lost in Dana's eyes all over again. " You're an amazing chef." That was all she could come up with. She wanted to say just the right thing. She wanted to sound interesting and intelligent and irresistible, but nothing dazzling came to mind.

Dana saved Ridley by taking over their conversation. " I've loved cooking ever since I can remember. My mother's an accomplished cook and she taught me a lot." Dana paused and smiled as if she'd remembered something amusing from her past. " I think my Mom's classes were tougher than the ones I took in culinary school."

" I know what you mean, " Ridley replied, thinking that Dana's smile would melt chocolate. " My mother loves to cook and she has tried to teach me how and I do mean tried. She has a rather extensive collection of cookbooks."

" So does my mother. She has tons of them. Have you ever read a cookbook, I mean aside from the recipes? Some of them are loaded with information about the history and culture of a country or a particular region within a country. You can learn a lot." This time Dana's expression hinted of an underlying shyness. " I guess that tells you something about me."

" It tells me you like to read about travel and food, but I confess, I've never read a cookbook in that way. I barely read any recipes, " Ridley said between delectable bites of her pineapple upside down cake. " By the way, this cake is beyond description."

" I'll tell Tracy you said so. Do you do any cooking at all? "

" I can put together a basic meal and grill or roast a thing or two, but that's about the extent of it. I'm much better at eating than I am at cooking. You have a real gift, though. Everything we had tonight was delicious and I love your restaurant. It's so intimate and romantic." Ridley felt her face grow hot. Why did she have to use those words to describe it? With relief, she realized that Dana didn't appear to have any reaction to her choice of words. In fact, she appeared to be more than pleased with the description.

" I'm glad you think so. I put my heart and soul into it."

" I've never known a chef or anyone who owned a restaurant. I'd be fascinated to know what goes on behind the scenes."

" Would you like to come over sometime and see how we do it? " Dana asked.

" Sure. Yes, I would, " Ridley answered right away. " I'd love to."

" Are you free a week from tomorrow? We're only open for brunch on Sundays so that would be a good day for you to come over. I'd have more time to talk to you."

" I'm totally free. I mean I don't have any plans on that day." Ridley didn't want to sound overly eager or make Dana think she had nothing to do. She felt so thrown off balance, she had to remind herself to stop blurting things out and to think before she spoke. She had to sound less excited. " What time would you like me to come over? "

" Around one-thirty would be good. We should be winding down by then."

" That's fine with me. Should I just come into the restaurant? "

Dana nodded. " I'll tell the hostess I'm expecting you."

" I can't wait--I mean, that sounds like fun, " Ridley said.