Chapter Five

Valerie enjoyed working the Saturday lunch shift because she had a chance to see people she didn’t normally see in the evenings. Lots of families came in for a late breakfast or for a midday meal, and she also saw a lot of older couples who made Bishop’s their regular weekend lunch place. Since the diner didn’t open until after church on Sunday, Saturday was the busiest day for breakfast, and when Valerie started her shift, the morning waitresses were very busy and falling behind, so she jumped in to help Lisa and Dotty out.

Time passed by quickly as she interacted with lots of customers, including some adorable young ladies who were overjoyed when Valerie brought them waters for their dolls. It wasn’t until a little after noon that Mrs. Gregory and her husband came in for lunch, and Valerie was happy to see them. She was excited to talk to Mrs. Gregory about the dance.

She seated the couple in a booth near the door, Mrs. Gregory’s preference so that she could speak to whomever came in, and went to grab them each a sweet tea. Even behind the counter, she could hear Mrs. Gregory chattering about what she might have for lunch, and though she couldn’t hear him, she was certain Mr. Gregory was responding to each of her remarks with an, “Uh huh,” or a, “Yes, dear.”

“Okay, two sweet teas,” Valerie said, setting the glasses down and pulling straws out of her apron. “Do you need a few moments?”

“I do,” Mrs. Gregory said with a sigh. “Allen always knows exactly what he wants.”

Valerie looked at Mr. Gregory whose mouth was wide with a chuckle.

“Well, while you look at the menu,” Valerie said as she watched the older woman’s eyes scan the selections, “I wanted to let you know I spoke to Delaney, and she said she’s happy to help.”

Mrs. Gregory slammed the menu down on the Formica tabletop. “She did?” A delighted smile spread across her face. “Isn’t that wonderful?”

“Yes, she said just to let her know what we need and how much, and she’ll get it all ready in time.”

“That really is great news,” Mrs. Gregory said, still beaming. “So good to hear that. Thank you for asking, Valerie.”

“Sure,” she replied. “I’m just glad she can help.”

“Me, too. There are some ladies from the churches who will donate some baked goods, but knowing Delaney is willing to help will make things much easier.” She straightened the pink sweater she was wearing and breathed a sigh of relief. “Now, I spoke to Elvira, and she would like to meet on Tuesday in the conference room of her church, that’s the Methodist, over on Chapel Street.”

Valerie was very familiar with most of the churches in town since all of them cooperated so well for things like the dance and the festival. “Okay. I have Tuesday off.”

“I thought you did,” Mrs. Gregory continued. “We’ll meet at 7:00 if that works for you?”

“Yes, that’s just fine.”

“Perfect. Now, you’ll just need to call Alec and let him know.” Mrs. Gregory picked up her menu and began to study it again as if she hadn’t just given Valerie a directive that set her heart racing and her head spinning.

“Call Alec?” Valerie repeated. “Oh, Mrs. Gregory, I don’t even have his number.” She wasn’t sure why exactly, but the thought of calling Alec O’Connell on the telephone seemed very unsettling. She hardly ever even spoke to Alec in person. What would she say to him on the phone?

“I have it.” Mrs. Gregory opened her large handbag and pulled out a business card for O’Connell Construction with a phone number written in ink on the back. “Here you are, dear. Now, I am thinking I will have the Caesar salad with the grilled chicken.”

Valerie took the card and held it up to inspect it, not sure what to think. How could she argue with that? While she had no idea why Mrs. Gregory hadn’t just called Alec herself, she didn’t know how to ask that question without sounding rude. She slipped the card into her apron pocket. “Caesar salad,” she repeated, trying to turn her attention back to her job. “Mr. Gregory?” she asked, turning to face the older gentleman.

He placed his order, a large sandwich his wife insisted would clog his arteries, and Valerie kept her mouth closed, thinking of all the sweets Mrs. Gregory was always baking for him or picking up from the diner. She assured them she’d get their order out as quickly as she could and then went on about her work, checking on tables and seating new guests, trying not to think about calling Alec, her date with Joe, or the Cupid—whose present had yet to show up even though her shift would be over in less than two hours.

Frank’s brother, Marv, was manning the grill today, and while Valerie liked him well enough, he wasn’t Frank. When he rang the bell to let her know an order was up, it just wasn’t the same as seeing Frank’s smiling face, giving her a hard time about not being quick enough or wasting time talking to customers too much, even though they both knew that was Valerie’s specialty. When she took the tray of food out of the window, he didn’t even say a word, and she missed Frank for a moment, though she realized they’d be working together again on Monday.

Sam was also off this morning. A couple of the high school boys were working alongside Marv, and neither one of them was as speedy or organized as Sam. She didn’t joke around with them or even talk to them much at all. To top it off, Wanda always had Saturday off, a perk of working there for twenty years, so Valerie concentrated on speaking to her customers, the only people she truly felt at home with on her weekend shifts.

It was almost time for her to hang up her apron when the door chimed and she looked up from behind the cash register to see Joe standing there, a timid smile on his face. His hair looked different, as if he’d put some sort of product in it to keep it out of his eyes, though it wasn’t slicked back so much it stood up. He was dressed nicer than Valerie could ever remember seeing, and he stood back a bit from the register, as if he was waiting for her to finish before he said anything.

“Hey, Joe,” Valerie called, like everything was normal. “You here for lunch?”

“No,” he replied, taking a step forward, running one hand around his jaw. “I just stopped by because I realized I hadn’t gotten your address or found out what time you wanted to go tonight. You do still want to go tonight, right?”

Sophie’s warning from the night before popped into Valerie’s head, but she dismissed it. Looking at the nicely dressed, handsome man in front of her, a sincere smile on his face, Valerie couldn’t imagine he could’ve done anything too terrible to his ex-wife. “Oh, yeah, sure,” she said, smiling. “What time were you thinking?”

“Well, it depends on what you wanna see.” Joe took another step toward the counter, running a hand through his hair, which didn’t seem to give as much as usual this time.

“There’s that new comedy romance that just came out. It’s supposed to be pretty funny.” Valerie couldn’t remember the name of the movie, but she’d heard on her local Christian radio station it was pretty clean, which she thought would definitely be a plus for a first date.

“You’re one of those rom-com girls then?” he asked, a teasing tone to his voice. “No action adventure for you?”

Valerie’s eyes widened a bit. “No, I like all sorts of movies. But you said I could pick, and I just thought it might be nice to see something lighter, something less intense.” She looked up at the hearts on the ceiling and couldn’t figure out why she’d want to see a romance instead of action this close to Valentine’s Day, but then the weight of the dancing symbols of love seemed to be just as stressful as watching someone being chased by a fleet of bad guys.

“All right,” Joe said with a heavy sigh, but he was smiling. “Let me see what time that starts.” He pulled out his phone and did some searching while Valerie grabbed a scrap of paper from a container by the phone where they took messages. She began to write down her address as Joe said, “It starts at 7:20, so… pick you up at 6:30?”

She quickly did some calculations in her head and thought that would give them enough time, though Winchester was nearly forty minutes away. As long as he was on time, they shouldn’t be late. “Sounds good,” she replied. She slid the piece of paper over to him. “Here’s my address and phone number.”

“Awesome,” Joe said, picking it up and shoving it into his pants pocket. “I guess I’ll see you then.”

“Okay,” Valerie said, still smiling. She watched him exit and then scoured the shelf under the counter, looking to see if he had managed to slip her day-three present under there while her back was turned. There was no sign of a gift anywhere, so she went on about her work, wondering if her Cupid was going to let her down on day three. Or, if it was Joe, maybe he’d surprise her at the movies that night.

The rest of Valerie’s shift went by just as quickly as the beginning, and by the time she took off her apron and grabbed her belongings, she was ready for the rest of her weekend to begin. She did have a short shift Sunday evening, but it was always slow, and she didn’t mind it at all. For now, she was ready to watch a funny movie with a friend and see where the night took her.

She went out the back door of the diner, and as she stepped down off of the little porch by the loading dock, she saw a single pink, heart-shaped vellum balloon tied to one of the window wipers of her Bug. It hung in the crisp winter air, hovering over her car like a beacon. Valerie looked around but didn’t see anyone and rushed over to see if there was a note, juggling her keys and handbag as she did so.

A white envelope was tucked beneath the same wiper. Valerie pulled it out carefully and saw her name written in block letters on the back. She stuck her finger in the crease and pulled until the envelope was open. Inside was a pink card with another typed message glued inside.

It’s the third day of Valentine’s.

Your Cupid still cares.

Here’s to showing true love

Doesn’t have to be up in the air!

After she’d read the card a few times, Valerie glanced around again. Wouldn’t he want to stay to see her open it? Or maybe not. He likely hadn’t been in the diner when she’d gotten her first gift. “Well, whoever you are, Cupid, thank you!” Valerie said, her voice not loud enough for anyone to have heard even if another soul had been in the small employee parking lot. She untied the balloon and unlocked her car, pushing the helium-filled heart into the back seat as she did so.

Driving home, she felt relieved that her Cupid had come through, even when she’d started to doubt there’d be a present that day. But with the new gift came all the unanswered questions. Who was sending them? Did he secretly love her—or was it just a friend? Perhaps most importantly, what had she done to deserve this sort of attention? Whoever was doing this was going to a lot of trouble and potential expense if there were actually going to be fourteen gifts. She definitely didn’t feel worthy, but she was happy that she had something to distract her from the fact that she didn’t have a boyfriend, and even though she had a date, that was a long way from romance in her book.

It wasn’t until Valerie was dressed and had just finished the final touches on her makeup that she realized she needed to call Alec. She had taken his phone number out of her apron and dropped it into her purse before heading home, so she knew exactly where it was. It wouldn’t be fair to make him wait too much longer to tell him about the dance committee meeting. After all, Tuesday was just a few days away, and he might need time to plan. But thoughts of calling him made her anxious for some reason. She knew he’d be perfectly polite, but how did someone who never talked carry on a conversation on the phone?

The balloon danced in the heat coming through the vents as she made her way into the kitchen to get the number. The flower was still as fresh as it had been the day before, which didn’t surprise her because Macey had a special way of cutting her flowers that made them last longer than usual. The pin she’d received on the first day was fastened to the red cardigan she wore over a black fitted top, matched with a black pair of slacks she hoped looked slimming. She’d put on her black boots before Joe arrived, but for now, she needed to get this phone call over with.

It took her a moment to find the number in her unorganized bag, but eventually she pulled it out and headed back toward her room to make the call in private. Sophie was just coming out of her own room, dressed in a sweatshirt and yoga pants, a towel on her wet hair. “Oh, you look nice,” she said as she rubbed her brown tresses.

“Thanks,” Valerie muttered, not sure how to accept a compliment. “I wasn’t sure what to wear.”

“You look classy,” Sophie said with a nod.

“I appreciate that. Are you going somewhere?”

“Oh, a group of us are going to the bowling alley. We just put it together last minute. I would’ve invited you, but I knew you had plans.”

Going bowling with friends sounded more appealing, all of a sudden, than sitting through a first date, but Valerie was aware that there had to be first dates in order for there to be second ones. “That sounds fun,” she remarked, hoping Sophie didn’t pick up on the hint of jealousy she was able to hear in her own voice.

“Hope so,” Sophie replied. “I’ll be one of the only single ladies there, though.”

“Maybe not so much fun,” Valerie added, on second thought.

“Yeah. Erin’s going, though, and she’s single. Maybe she’ll bring her brother and then we won’t be the only two solos. But I’m looking forward to getting to know some of these new guys a little better.”

The mention of Erin’s brother had Valerie’s mind somewhere else, and it took her a minute to respond. “Right. Who else is going?”

“Olivia and her new boyfriend, Memphis. I think Delaney is bringing Josh, and maybe Melody and Reid, although the last I heard Michael wasn’t feeling well, so they weren’t sure if they were going to make it.”

Valerie knew all of those people, the women being friends from high school and their significant others, who were mostly new to the area. Those were exactly the people Erin had been referring to when she’d mentioned love was in the air in Charles Town. Now, Valerie was actually quite happy she wouldn’t be attending the bowling meet-up. “Sounds like a party,” was all she could manage to say.

“Ha, I don’t know about that. We all have to be at church bright and early tomorrow, so it’s not like we’ll be out too late.” Sophie continued on her way into the kitchen, and Valerie heard her exclaim, “Oooh, a balloon. Nice!” as she went on her way to her bedroom. She also had to be at church in the morning, but then, she didn’t think she’d be out with Joe too late.

Once she was sitting on her bed with the door closed, she pulled the business card out of her pocket where she’d stashed it and grabbed her phone off of the nightstand. She punched in Alec’s number before she allowed herself to give it much thought. She was an outgoing, chipper person, right? How hard could it be to call her friend’s brother on the phone? Maybe I should call Erin and let her tell him, she thought, but before she had a chance to consider that strategy, he answered.

“Hello?” Alec sounded as if he was in a vehicle and she was on speaker phone. It took Valerie a moment to reply, and he repeated his inquiry, a little louder this time. “Hello?”

“Hi, Alec. This is Valerie,” she said, hoping he didn’t catch the wavering in her voice. “Do you have a second?”

There was a long pause, and she thought they might have gotten disconnected. “Valerie?” he repeated. Surely, he knew who she was without her telling him her last name. “Hi, Valerie. How are you?”

She let out a breath she’d been holding way too long. “I’m good, thanks. How are you?”

“Not bad,” he replied. “What’s up?”

Alec actually sounded a lot more relaxed than she thought he would. For someone who didn’t like to talk in person, he sure seemed chill on the phone. “Well, I saw Mrs. Gregory today, and she said she and Mrs. Carpenter had decided to meet on Tuesday at 7:00 at the Methodist Church in the conference room. She’d like for us to attend if we are available.”

“That should work,” Alec replied. Valerie could definitely hear street sounds now, and she wanted to ask where he was, but she knew it was none of her business. “Did she say if we needed to bring anything?”

“No, just ourselves, I guess. Also, Delaney is going to help out with the refreshments.”

“Really? That’s great news.”

“I know.” She wasn’t sure why she felt the need to add that detail in now, as he would find out on Tuesday, but for some reason, she was having trouble hanging up the phone. The tone of his voice seemed very soothing to her all of a sudden, and since the butterflies in her stomach seemed to be multiplying with each tick of the clock, talking to someone with a calming effect seemed quite appealing. Still, a glance at the time told her Joe would be there soon. “Well, you sound busy. I should let you go.”

“I’m actually on my way to a DJ gig,” he replied. “This sweet sixteen is going to be epic.”

Valerie couldn’t help but laugh out loud at the way he’d said the phrase. It was almost as if he believed that would be the case for him as much as the young people he’d be entertaining. She’d never been to a party where Alec was the DJ, but she did remember him performing at a talent show once in high school. Now that she thought about it, she remembered being astonished at how different he was when he was behind his turntables. Everyone had been so shocked to see him come out of his shell, and he’d done a great job of spinning tunes to keep the crowd energized. “You have fun with that,” she joked, though she really did hope he had a good night. He seemed to enjoy his side job a lot, and she assumed it would be a good time no matter where he was.

“You, too. You going bowling with the other crazy kids?”

Once again, she found herself giggling. “No, I… already had plans.” For some reason, she felt reluctant to tell Alec she had a date. Why would he care? Why would she care if he cared?

“Oh, well, whatever you’re up to, have a good one.”

“Thank you,” she said. Why did the surprise in his voice that she had alternate plans and wouldn’t be hanging out with her roommate and his little sister bother her so much? Shaking her head, Valerie realized she was being silly. He wasn’t surprised—she was just overreacting. “Bye, Alec,” she finally managed.

“Take care, Valerie.”

She disconnected the call and tried to return her thoughts to Joe who would be there in less than twenty minutes. She was going out with a really nice guy whom she’d enjoyed visiting with for quite some time. Tonight was going to be a lot of fun. So why was she wishing she was in the passenger seat of Alec’s Subaru headed to a sweet sixteen party?

Stepping in front of the mirror atop the dresser she’d had since she was a sophomore in high school, Valerie looked into her own blue eyes and said, “Knock it off, Val. Get yourself together!” She had known Alec O’Connell for as long as she could remember, and now, for some reason unbeknownst to her, he had her intrigued. Maybe it was the fact that they would be working on the dance together. Or maybe it was the idea that she’d seen him near the flower shop the day she’d received a flower from an admirer. Or maybe it was just that she’d never taken the time to look into those emerald green eyes and see what was hiding back there. She shook her head and tried to gain some clarity. She was going out with Joe—not Alec—and she was certain she would have a lot of fun with the vet tech who had a way of keeping her entertained nearly every evening as he ate his dinner.

Valerie placed the business card on her dresser and checked her hair one more time before grabbing her boots and shoving her feet into them. “No more thinking about Alec or Valentine’s Day. Let’s just go have some fun.” She headed out of her room to the living room to grab her coat and purse, assuming Joe would come to the front door, and took a seat on the sofa. The time on the clock said she had five minutes, which meant she really had ten, since she knew Sophie had set it fast. No time to turn on the TV or read anything. She pulled her phone back out and flipped through some pictures on social media.

“What time is Joe going to be here?” Sophie asked, fighting the collar on her oversized coat as she entered the room.

“In a couple of minutes,” Valerie replied, glancing at the clock again. He needed to be on time or they would arrive after the movie had already started.

“Well, have fun.” The look on Sophie’s face was one of both apprehension and pity, and Valerie didn’t care for either of those sentiments.

“I’m sure I will,” she replied. “You, too.” She considered letting her roommate know that Alec wouldn’t be at the bowling get-together, but that would spark the conversation of how did Valerie know, and she didn’t want to try and explain. Sophie would find out eventually. Another question popped into her mind. Was Sophie interested in Alec? A tinge of jealousy set in, but Valerie quickly pushed it away. She had no claim over Alec, and she highly doubted Sophie would be interested in him anyway. Her roommate usually dated sports enthusiasts with blond hair and a build to match their interests. While Alec was definitely in good shape, he wasn’t quite the muscle-bound type Sophie was usually interested in, and he definitely wasn’t blond.

“Take care,” Sophie said as she gave her one more sympathetic look and then disappeared into the kitchen and out the back door.

Valerie wanted to yell at her that everything was going to be just fine, that Joe was a perfect gentleman, and they were going to have a great time, but she didn’t do that. What was the point?

A few minutes passed with Valerie staring at the doorway where Sophie had vanished before she realized Joe was running late. She checked the time and saw that it was 6:35. Surely, he’d be there in the next few minutes. She would’ve called him, but she realized she’d neglected to get his number. Valerie appreciated punctuality, but this was the first time he’d be coming to her house, and there was a chance he’d taken a wrong turn.

At 6:45, a bit of panic began to set in. Where was he? There was just about no way they could make it to the movie on time now, not unless he drove well over the speed limit the whole time, something she could never condone. She glanced out the window but didn’t see any traffic on the street at all. With a sigh, Valerie dropped down on the couch, wishing she had decided to go with Sophie instead. Was he going to stand her up?

Finally, at 7:02, an older looking Toyota Camry pulled into her driveway. She looked out the window and saw Joe sitting behind the driver’s seat. The window was down, and he was looking expectantly at her front door. Wasn’t he going to come in? His hand was poised over the horn, and she thought, If he blows that horn at me, so help me, I’m not going on this date.

When it seemed clear he wasn’t coming to the porch, Valerie made sure she had everything she needed and went out the door, locking it behind her. “Hey, Val!” Joe called, still inside the car. “You look pretty.”

“Thank you,” Valerie said, managing a smile, though her teeth were clenched. She wanted to add that she had no idea how he looked since he was still sitting in his car but she bit her tongue. Maybe they did things differently in Harpers Ferry. She went around to the passenger side, and Joe pushed the door open for her. Reluctantly, she climbed in.

“All ready?” he asked with a smile.

Valerie wondered if he was going to explain why he was late, but since he didn’t seem to be broaching the subject, she put her seat belt on and nodded. Joe checked his rearview mirror and backed out of the driveway.

She noticed his hair looked freshly gelled, but he was wearing the same clothing he’d had on when he came by the diner earlier to ask for a time he clearly had no intention of using. There was a slight smell of mildew in the air, and she hoped it was coming from the car and not from him. She was fairly certain it was the ceiling, which had a few water stains around the sunroof. Since Joe smelled like Old Spice, she guessed the Camry was the culprit.

“Did you say the movie starts at 7:20?” Valerie asked as they made their way down the road going a little bit faster than she was comfortable, though not fast enough for her to say anything about slowing down.

“Yep,” he replied, one hand on the steering wheel, the other elbow propped on the window ledge.

“We might not make it,” she nudged, looking at the time on his display. It was already ten past seven.

“We’ll be fine,” he replied. “I hate all those opening commercials and stuff anyhow.”

While Valerie wanted to ask if that’s why he was late to get her, so they could miss all of the previews, she bit her tongue. Again. Maybe it was one of those movies that you could walk into late and still know what was going on.

“So you always lived in Charles Town?” Joe asked, a glimpse in her direction before returning his eyes to the road.

“Yes,” Valerie replied. They went on to talk about how Charles Town was a nice little community, and when she asked about Harpers Ferry, Joe only said that it wasn’t what it used to be—that people there were judgmental and nosy. Most of the ride, they were both quiet, but every once in a while, Valerie would try a new topic; Joe didn’t have too much to say. She wondered if maybe he was just nervous.

It was 7:45 when they pulled into the movie theater parking lot. Valerie hoped he’d already purchased the tickets online so they wouldn’t have to stand in the line at the window to get them, but when they came to a stop behind a mother with four kids trying to get her children to calm down by threatening to take away popcorn, Valerie realized they probably wouldn’t actually be sitting inside of the theater until 8:00. “Joe, maybe we should see something else,” she said, tapping the shoulder of his denim jacket.

“What? Why?” he asked, his brown eyes puzzled. “I thought this is what you wanted to see.”

“I did, but we’re so late.” A look at the marque let her know the next showing of the movie she wanted to see wasn’t until 9:30, and she wasn’t willing to stay out that late when she had church the next morning.

Joe let out a sigh and ran his hand through his hair, studying the listings. “Well, that action movie with Matt Damon starts in a few minutes. We could see that instead if you’d rather.”

Valerie had seen the previews for that movie and definitely didn’t think it was something she would enjoy. Not only did it promise to have profanity, she really wasn’t into chase scenes, fight scenes, and cars blowing up. The only other movie starting in the next few minutes was the children’s flick she was certain the wild kids in front of her would be attending though, so reluctantly, she said, “Okay.” Joe’s face lit up, and Valerie suddenly wondered if this hadn’t been orchestrated. Surely, he wouldn’t purposely make them late to her movie so that they could go to the one he wanted to see, would he?

Joe finally had his chance to step to the ticket window. He asked for one ticket to the movie they’d agreed on, and Valerie’s mouth nearly dropped open. As he made his purchase, she dug her wallet out of her bag, shocked that she was now buying her own way into a movie she didn’t even want to see.

The woman behind the window was nice but busy, and Valerie made her transaction as quickly as possible as Joe stood to the side waiting for her. Once she had her ticket, they went inside, and though she was surprised, Joe held the door open for her.

“Want popcorn?” he asked gesturing at the concession stand.

“No thank you,” Valerie replied. The buttery smell was intoxicating, and she was hungry since she hadn’t eaten dinner yet, but she didn’t really have money to spend on popcorn, and she was too angry to eat right now anyway.

“Well, I’m going to get some,” Joe said, getting in line. The same family was in front of her again as she hung behind Joe, and the little boys were practically fist fighting as the girls chased each other in circles around a mom who looked exhausted. The threats of no popcorn were clearly empty since each of them walked away with their own children’s special of popcorn, a drink, and a small box of candy.

Joe ordered a large popcorn and a soda and asked Valerie to hold his drink as he slathered on the butter from the liquid dispenser near the counter. Once he had some extra napkins and straw, she followed him to the entryway where a nice older gentleman checked their tickets and sent them to, “Theater six, on the left.”

There weren’t a lot of seats to choose from by the time they came in, and Valerie found herself on the third row. She had to tip her head back pretty far to see the screen. They were near the aisle at least so if she had to excuse herself to go to the bathroom for a few hours she wouldn’t have to climb over too many people.

The previews started, and Joe munched on his popcorn, laughing and seeming to enjoy the tastes of new movies to come. Valerie tried not to dwell on the fact that he’d said he hated previews. Maybe she was being too hard on him.

He didn’t offer her any of his popcorn, but he did smile at her from time to time, and she hoped that meant he was attempting to be attentive. The man had been married before. Surely, he knew how important it was to take care of his date? Yet, once the movie started and he seemed to have had enough popcorn for now, he set the half-full container on the floor and wiped his hands on a napkin, still not offering her any.

Valerie tuned out during most of the movie. She really didn’t care for any of the actors, and the plot seemed contrived to her, from what she could tell. The language made her cringe more than once. As the villains began to close in on the hero, she let her mind wander, wondering what Sophie was doing, if she was having fun with their friends at the bowling alley. She thought about Frank. He had the night off. Would he be curled up with his wife on the sofa, listening to her read her latest work of poetry? What was Wanda doing? Playing with her grandkids?

And then she thought of Alec. He was likely completely consumed in his DJ gig, making sure some young lady had the night of her life, a party she’d never forget. Why had she always thought of Alec as Erin’s older brother and never as an individual? Why hadn’t she ever taken the chance to get to know him?

The noise from Joe munching on popcorn again brought her attention back to the theater. She had no idea what Joe had done to his ex-wife, but if he treated her like this all the time, it was easy to see why the marriage hadn’t lasted. While Valerie understood that some women nowadays might be offended if a date paid for their movie ticket or shared their popcorn, Valerie was not one of those girls. She wanted a gentleman—someone who treated her with respect and care, someone who arrived on time, came to the door, maybe even brought her flowers. Joe really didn’t seem like that kind of guy. She hoped they could stay friends, but another date was out of the question at this point. If only she’d listened to Sophie.

***

Alec loved working parties for young people. There was just something about their energy that kept him pumped from start to finish. This particular young lady was so excited about turning sixteen, Alec loved watching her twirl around the dance floor in the country club her parents had rented for the occasion, the smile on her face glowing even in the dim lighting.

Having responsible parents there always made his job better. His contract was very specific about the types of music he would and would not play, and that was always a plus with parents who wanted to make sure the music their teenagers were dancing to wasn’t going to negatively influence their kids. Alec was a firm believer that going to church on Sundays had to translate to something, and even though he spent a great deal of time at parties playing popular music, he could be a testament that it could be done without compromising one’s faith or morals.

“This is a great party,” the mother of the birthday girl said, tapping Alec on the shoulder as a particularly up-tempo song caused the kids to jump around on the dance floor. “The kids are having so much fun.”

“So am I,” Alec admitted with a smile. “I’m so glad you asked me to DJ.”

“Absolutely,” Mrs. Abernathy replied. “You came highly recommended by a friend of mine from work. And a few other people have asked for your card tonight. I’ll gladly pass on your information.”

“Thank you so much,” Alec shouted back as he segued one song into another at just the perfect time to get a shout out of the kids. As Mrs. Abernathy stepped away, he slipped into his DJ voice and said, “All right, this song was requested by the birthday girl herself. Let’s give it up for Brittney!!” The kids roared again, and Brittney beamed from beneath the spotlight, her blonde hair bouncing around her shoulders as she hopped up and down with the beat.

Despite all of the festivities going on around him, from time to time, Alec couldn’t help but let his mind meander back to the conversation he’d had with Valerie. Even though the discussion had been short, he’d been so excited to hear her cheery voice on the other end of the line. He distinctly remembered one other time, back in high school, well before Erin was allowed to have her own cell phone, he’d answered the house phone—torture for him—and discovered it was Valerie calling for his younger sister. In that instance, he’d practically frozen, suddenly unable to speak again. It had taken him forever just to stutter out, “Just a minute,” so he could go and get his sister from her bedroom. Now, he was a little surer of himself, thanks mostly to his DJ gig, but he’d still been surprised it had been Valerie calling. Whatever her plans were for that evening, he really hoped she was enjoying herself. She deserved to be happy more than anyone. He wished there was a way to make her see herself the way that other people saw her.

Alec attempted to concentrate on the party and push thoughts of Valerie away, but he was definitely looking forward to meeting with her on Tuesday to talk about the Valentine’s Dance. Hopefully, this would be just the chance he needed to make her stop seeing him only as Erin’s brother but as something more.

***

“You wanna go grab a bite?” Joe asked as he walked next to Valerie back toward his car after the movie was over.

“Sure,” she said, no longer able to ignore the rumbling in her stomach. She was pretty sure she’d end up paying for her meal, but she had to eat either way, so they may as well find some place close by.

Joe didn’t open the door for her, which didn’t come as a surprise, but as they drove out of the parking lot, he did begin a recap of the movie, stopping every once in a while to ask if she, “saw the part where…” or if she, “liked it when….” Since she hadn’t been paying attention to most of the movie, she sort of bluffed her way through his inquiries, though it didn’t much matter since he hardly stopped to listen to her answers anyway.

They came to a block with several restaurants in view. None of them looked too crowded considering the time. “Applebees all right with you?” Joe asked, turning into the parking lot.

“Sure,” Valerie said—again. Since he was practically in a parking spot there seemed no reason to protest now.

Valerie didn’t bother to wait to see if he was going to open the door for her. In fact, she walked in ahead of him and let the door shut behind her, nearly catching him in the face. She pretended not to notice. Soon, she was seated across from him in a booth also pretending not to notice the sheepish grin he gave the young lady who seated them.

“What’s good here?” he asked.

“I have no idea,” Valerie replied. “I haven’t eaten anywhere except for Bishop’s in a long time.”

“Really?” Joe looked up at her from his menu, and for a moment Valerie was transported back to work. “You should get out more, Val.”

She bit her tongue. Not if this is what happened when she got out.

After deciding on a half sandwich and soup, Valerie put her menu away and wondered why the waitress hadn’t come to get their drink order yet. The restaurant wasn’t that busy. So far, she wasn’t impressed with the staff. Knowing Joe would need quite a bit more time to decide, she said, “If the waitress comes, will you order me an unsweet tea? I’m going to the restroom.”

“Sure thing,” he replied, not looking up from his menu.

With a sigh, Valerie slid out of the booth and made her way to the restroom. She was glad no one was standing at the sink when she finished her business because she needed to splash cold water on her face to gain some clarity. A text from Sophie, sent an hour earlier, said, “How’s it going?” Valerie only texted back that it was fine because she didn’t want to worry her roommate. She’d tell her everything later.

When she got back to her seat, she was relieved to see a glass of amber liquid sitting in front of her spot. One sip, however, let her know there had been a mistake. “Oh, this is sweet tea,” she said trying not to make a face. Her mouth had been expecting something different, and even though she didn’t mind sweet tea, she had decided it was time to cut back on her sugar.

“Yeah, like you said,” Joe replied with a shrug.

“No, I said unsweet.” Valerie tried to keep her tone light.

“No you didn’t,” Joe shot back. “You said sweet.”

“Joe, I haven’t drank sweet tea in months. I’m pretty sure I know what I ordered.”

“Well, I know what I heard,” he muttered under his breath as he looked the menu over again.

“Are you ready to order?” The waitress was a middle-aged woman who looked tired, her frizzy brown hair standing up at her crown.

“I am,” Valerie replied, knowing Joe was not.

“Can I have a few more minutes?” He didn’t even glance up at her.

“Sure, hon,” came the reply, though she didn’t look happy to have to come back.

Before she left, Valerie said, “Would it be possible to get this sweet tea switched out for an unsweet tea?”

The waitress looked at the glass suspiciously. “Isn’t that what you ordered?”

“I’m afraid my date misheard me.”

The woman tried to hide her eye-roll by turning to the side, but Valerie caught it. She grabbed the tea and disappeared, leaving Valerie to wonder if her next glass might have extra foam.

“I didn’t mishear,” Joe said into the menu.

Valerie had a new appreciation for Joe’s ex-wife who must’ve never won an argument.

A few minutes later, a new glass was plunked down in front of Valerie, and Joe had finally decided on a pasta dish. Valerie ordered her soup and sandwich. Without a menu to hide behind, Joe was looking at her, a small smile on his face, and Valerie realized they must speak again.

“What was your favorite part of the movie?” he asked.

An urge to answer with, “The credits,” was defeated, and Valerie shrugged. “I’m not sure I can pick one.”

“Right. It was so good.”

Somehow, she forced a smile onto her face. “It was definitely action packed.”

“Yeah. Maybe they’ll make a sequel, and we can go see that, too.”

Valerie could hardly believe her ears. Did he actually think this was going well enough that they would go out again—or still be going out next year? She wanted to change the subject but struggled to find anything at all to talk about.

“So, you looked into cosmetology school anymore?”

Happy to have a topic supplied for her, Valerie replied, “No, I haven’t. But I think I’m going to.”

“You should. You’re so good at talking to people.” Joe took a sip of his tea, and Valerie remembered why she’d agreed to go out with him in the first place. He could be quite charming when he wanted to be.

“Thank you,” Valerie said. “Although…”

“I dream about going back to vet school all the time,” Joe interrupted. “I mean, especially when I think about how much more money I could be making. And a tech’s job is so much more difficult than actually being a vet.”

Somehow, Valery doubted that, but she listened as Joe rattled on about his job and aspirations until the food came. That didn’t stop him from discussing everything that went on in the clinic he worked at, but it did serve as a distraction.

“So what are you doing tomorrow? Feel like grabbing dinner?” Joe asked, his pasta nearly gone despite his one-sided conversation.

“Oh, I have to work tomorrow night,” Valerie replied. The soup was very creamy and rich, which made her feel full quicker than she’d expected, and she hadn’t even eaten half of her half-sandwich yet.

“Maybe lunch then?”

“Well, after church I have a Bible study group. We meet on Sundays because it’s easier for everyone to get together. We’re all already at church.”

“Oh.” Joe made a face before shoving another bite of pasta into his mouth.

Cautiously, Valerie asked, “What does that mean? ‘Oh’?”

“Nothing,” he shrugged. “I just… didn’t realize you were so in to church. I mean, I know you go or whatever. I just didn’t know you had groups and stuff.”

“I do,” Valerie assured him. “I try to stay as involved as I can.”

Joe just nodded, staring down at his plate.

“Do you go to church?” she asked, wondering why she hadn’t asked that question before they went out.

“Nah,” he replied. “Not anymore. I mean… I went as a kid. I’m okay with it. I just don’t really think it’s right for me.”

Valerie was very surprised to hear that answer. Almost everyone she knew attended services at one of the several churches in town. It had never occurred to her that Joe wouldn’t. “Well, you’re welcome to go with me,” she offered. “Service starts at 10:00, but I usually go to a Sunday school class that begins at 9:00. You could meet me at 10:00, though, if you’d like.”

“No, thanks,” Joe said dismissively. “When’s your next day off? We could go bowling or something.”

The irony that she could be doing just that with her friends right now wasn’t lost on her. “I have Tuesday off…” Valerie began.

“Perfect. Let’s do it.”

“Actually, I have a meeting that night with the Valentine’s Dance committee.”

“Oh, you’re still doing that? That’s cool,” Joe said, taking another drink.

She wondered why he’d assume she may have changed her mind. “Yes, I’m still doing it. It should be fun. Do you want to be part of the committee?”

“No, thanks,” he said again. “When you get done, though, we could go out then.”

“I don’t know how late it will be.”

He nodded. “Does that mean you have to go to the dance?”

“It does.”

“Is that on Valentine’s Day?”

“It is.”

“Hmmm. That’s really too bad.”

“Why is that?” Valerie asked.

“Well, I was just thinking, maybe you’d want to spend Valentine’s Day with me—with your Cupid.”

He had a devilish grin on his face, and Valerie’s mouth dropped open. “My what? Did you say Cupid?”

“Sure,” Joe replied. “I mean… I know it’s early, but….”

Valerie could hardly believe her ears. How could someone act like Joe had all night but then be nice enough to get her such thoughtful little gifts with sweet notes? “Wow, Joe. I thought it might be you!” she exclaimed.

“You did?” he asked. “I’m surprised to hear that. I thought you always thought of me as a friend.”

“I did,” Valerie admitted. “But when I saw you near the florist yesterday, I started thinking. And that first night, when the box was under the counter, you disappeared so fast. I thought maybe you’d left it there. When I explained the pin to you, you acted like you had no idea what I was talking about. Was that all an act?”

Joe’s eyebrows knit together, and for a moment, Valerie thought he was going to tell her they were having a misunderstanding, but eventually, he smiled and said, “What can I say? You got me.”

Valerie could hardly contain the smile that spread across her face. “Wow!” she said again. “You really had me fooled, you know that? Especially with the way you’ve been acting tonight. Showing up late, not offering me any popcorn. Making me buy my own movie ticket! You had me there, Joe.”

A nervous chuckle escaped Joe’s lips. “That was the plan.”

Valerie leaned back in her booth and re-examined the man before her. He really was quite handsome, in a disheveled sort of way. While he hadn’t been the perfect gentleman tonight, he wasn’t down right rude, was he? He hadn’t been mean or anything like that. All of this must have been an attempt to throw her off. “Why did you decide to go ahead and tell me?”

“Oh, why not?” Joe asked. “I just can’t keep a secret.”

Valerie giggled. There was something so impish and cute about the way he said it. When the waitress brought the check a few minutes later, Joe scooped it up and said, “Only the best for my Valentine,” popping his credit card into the folder and handing it back to her.

On the way out to the car, Joe took her hand in his, and Valerie let him, though she usually didn’t hold hands with someone on a first date. She’d known Joe for a while now, and he’d gone out of his way to make her feel special. What harm would it be holding hands for a few minutes?

He held the car door open for her, and once he was inside the driver’s seat, he took her hand in his again. “Thanks a lot for coming with me tonight, Val,” he said quietly. “It’s been great getting to know you outside of work.”

“It’s been great getting to know my Cupid better,” she said, glancing down at the pin on her lapel.

Joe smiled and let go of her hand only long enough to start the car, then taking her hand back tightly in his.

The ride home was fairly silent. Valerie was so relieved to finally know who the gifts were coming from. She’d had other suspicions, but Joe had been at the top of her list. Now, she would finally know what it was like to have a real Valentine when the calendar said February 14.

When Joe pulled into the driveway, the porch light was on, but Valerie could see a light shining from the living room, too, and Sophie’s car was parked next to hers. “I’ll walk you to the door.” Joe hurried around to her car door and opened it before Valerie even had a chance to open it herself.

He took her hand again as they approached the front door. “Thanks again for coming, Val,” he said, stopping and turning to face her, taking her other hand in his.

“Thank you for asking me out… and for everything else.”

Joe took a step closer so that his face was just an inch or so away from hers. “My pleasure, Val,” he said in a husky whisper.

Even though the lure of his chocolaty brown eyes was pulling her in, Valerie took a step back. “I don’t kiss on the first date, Joe,” she said quietly.

“But I’m your Cupid,” he reminded her, filling in the space she’d vacated.

“All the more reason why you’ll respect my wishes,” she replied.

Joe let out a small sigh and dropped his gaze. “Okay,” he said, retreating a bit. “What about the second date?”

Valerie almost laughed. It’d been a while since she’d had a second date. “We’ll see,” she said, trying to make her voice sound teasing instead of dismissive.

“All right then, Val,” Joe said, stepping around her toward his car. “Have a nice night.”

“You, too,” she called after him. She watched him get into his car and start to back down the short driveway before she turned and bounded into the house, the butterflies in her stomach over their near kiss almost flying her through the door.