~*~ Urs & The Kissing Hand~*~ BY: Sue

This story is written purely for entertainment purposes and no offense or insult is intended to Il Divo. Grateful acknowledgment is given to Judy my 'literary agent' and Cheryl my mentor.

Prologue

Somehow the man did not seem out of place as he sat in the gaily-painted rocking chair in the middle of the room. His black silk shirt and slacks were worn with an elegant grace born of both birth and practice.

The story he had chosen, The Kissing Hand by Audrey Penn., was about a little raccoon that was afraid to go to school. He slowly closed the book and extended his arm. “Let’s pretend you are that little raccoon. Open your hand.” Around the room, twenty small hands appeared from under blankets, out of laps, and around stuffed animals. He got up and carefully avoiding books, sleeping bags and other toys scattered on the floor, he placed a kiss sticker on each palm and then closed their fingers.

Returning to his chair he continued. “This is a kiss from your family. Now whenever you miss them, put your hand on your heart like this and you can feel their love deep inside. Then just like the little raccoon in the story, you’ll always have your family’s love with you in your kissing hand.”

Keeping his hand over his heart, he sought out the eyes of the young woman sitting quietly at the back of the room. She caught and held his gaze. As her hand slowly touched her heart the tears began.

Chapter 1
The Invitation

Skillfully juggling her purse, book bag, a grocery carrier bag, and an armful of papers, Susanna stepped out of the elevator and unlocked the door of the 3rd floor apartment.

”Hi, I’m home.” she called out, while dropping her things on a chair in the hall.

“I hope you remembered to get the mail.” replied a male voice.

Hurriedly sorting through the letters and advertisements, she put them neatly on the hall table, all but one.

She turned the thick cream-colored envelope over in her hands several times, noting the carefully addressed card written in exquisite calligraphy. Then quickly tore it open with both joy and dread.

____________________________

The wedding invitation itself was no surprise. While living in London these past two and a half years, she’d become even closer to her only cousin, Andrew. Perhaps it was just that having no brothers or sisters could sometimes get a little too solitary, but she liked to think their similar temperaments and shared experiences growing up, had made it easy to reconnect again after years apart. Of course the fact that he now lived in Paris wasn’t exactly a hardship.

During her first year in England, Susanna and Andrew saw each other often, both eager to show the other what their country offered in terms of history, scenery, and entertainment. She and Isabel, Andrew’s Spanish girlfriend, now fiancée, had quickly become good friends after discovering a common bond: children. Between Isabel’s adventures as an au pair and Susanna’s as a teacher with a class of seven year olds they always seemed to have something to talk about.

It would be wonderful seeing them both again and in such an exotic place: Madrid.

‘Of course any place I haven’t visited yet comes under my heading of exotic’, she chided herself.

And she certainly hadn’t been to very many exotic places during this past year and a half. She’d only managed one Paris visit and had paid dearly for it. Crossing her fingers, she hoped that if this trip to Madrid went well maybe Bruce would become more enthusiastic about traveling. Then just like a hungry thing, her passport would finally begin to fill up.

She’d been so excited that day it had come in the mail. It was the last thing needed to assure her of a job teaching in an American school overseas. Then the assignment to a small base near Cambridge was the icing on the cake. In no time at all she became an unabashed Anglophile. She poured over books on the area, embraced local customs with gusto, and even became adept at brass rubbing. Yes, that first year was wonderful.

At the start of her second school year she’d met Bruce quite by accident. She’d been attending a Saturday meeting of the Overseas Teachers Association in London and he’d been one of the guards checking people in at the door. The rest was history. During the six months they dated, the A1 from London north had burned up at least one set of tires. Then after a rather unromantic, ‘Let’s get married’ they’d set the date. Both sets of parents had flown over, met, approved, and happily witnessed Father Mike uniting their children in marriage.


After a brief honeymoon in Majorca, Susanna set about moving her things to London. By taking a leave of absence she’d left the door open to return to a contract school next year. In the meantime she substituted and settled into married life in the big city. The reality however fell far from the ideal. Here she’d been so proud of herself, finally striking out on her own, away from dear, loving parents to avoid “death by smothering and hovering’ only to find herself in a ‘hold and control’ pattern. Better add this to the list of things she couldn’t do right: judge people.

_________________________

“Wasn’t there any mail for me?” asked the tall, blond, crew-cut man, walking into the hallway.

Quickly, Susanna slid the invitation into her book bag and handed him the rest of the mail as she went through to the kitchen to put away the groceries.

“I just need to go upstairs and change. I’ll be down in a minute and start supper.”

“I picked up some nice steaks on the way home. I thought we’d have baked potatoes, a spinach salad and there’s still some of that apple pie left over from last night. Does that sound OK?”

Susanna asked as she leaned over the banister, knowing this was a mere formality. Although he didn’t usually complain about her cooking, she was also sure he had never attended compliment class.

‘Maybe he and my mother were both absent that day,’ she thought wryly.

“Whatever.” came the grunt from below.

Reaching the master bedroom she began her daily after school ritual. Shoes off first, ‘ooooh that feels much better’, she padded around the room neatly depositing clothes and jewelry in their proper place. After pulling on her favorite set of comfy sweats and wiggling her feet into some soft slippers, she had one last look around the room.

Yes, everything was neat and tidy, “shipshape” she’d teased as they’d picked out furniture before their marriage, before he’d lost his sense of humor along with his single status. Bruce’s touch dominated the apartment: modern, clean, angular, functional, and uncluttered. He’d already been assigned permanent shore duty when they met eighteen months ago, so Susanna had never had the opportunity to tour a ship. Although not privy to the paint scheme inside a Navy ship, she imagined their rather drab bedroom décor in shades of tan wasn’t too far off the mark. She closed the door and went downstairs.

The Preliminaries

As she walked into the kitchen she heard the phone. Bruce answered it by the second ring, then curtly shoved the phone toward Susanna.

“It’s for you. Andrew. Tell him you can’t talk long. You need to fix supper.”

“Hi Andrew. Yes it came today. We need to talk about it. Yes, I know. Now is not a good time. I just got home and he’s waiting for supper. I’ll check and let you know. Yes, as soon as possible. Bye.”

The minute she hung up she knew what would come next.

“What was all that about then?”

It always starts with a question she thought. Feeling the knot grow in her stomach, she willed herself not to let him get to her this time.

She walked out into the hallway to her book bag and produced the invitation.

“Andrew and Isabel are getting married in Madrid on June 2nd. Isn’t that wonderful, darling? I told him we’d need to check our calendar and get back to him.”

Five minutes later as she sat on the bed in tears, the door slammed. Bruce was gone for the evening.

Well, it could have been worse, she thought. Why hadn’t she just given him the invitation? That was the first mistake, leaving it in the envelope. How many times had she heard the loud in your face lecture on the ‘proper’ way to open an envelope? Why couldn’t she use the letter opener? What if there had been something really important inside and she’d accidentally torn it? In other words some sentimental drivel from his old Navy buddies reliving their glory days as ‘free’ men, probably written while under the influence. She’d seen these guys live in action together and it was not a pretty sight.

And at least she hadn’t gotten ‘the look’. She couldn’t really explain it but sometimes he’d almost look right through her with such a cold stare it made her shiver. And he hadn’t actually come right out and said they weren’t going. He had only ranted a bit, about him being all the family she needed and her being disloyal. So maybe Madrid was not completely out of the question. She just had to bide her time and wait for the right moment.

With a sigh, she changed into dark brown, muted plaid slacks, a tan sweater set and boots. A quick brush of her hair, some blush and lip-gloss and she was ready. Going downstairs, she grabbed her purse and quietly closed the door.

Neutral Corner

Just a short five-minute walk brought Susanna down a flight of stairs and into Mi Famiglia.

“Buon giorno, Susanna,” Anthony, one of her favorite waiters greeted her with a hug.

Noticing how crowded the popular family run restaurant was tonight, she silently thanked her lucky stars she was not only a regular, but actually enjoyed eating practically in the kitchen. Without even asking, he led her to her ‘spot’, seated her and returned with a menu and a Campari and soda. With a smile and a ‘grazie’ she sat back in her chair, thankful for the warmth and friendliness of her surroundings. This tiny table near the kitchen and practically hidden from view by a large plant, was her sanctuary, her escape.

Bruce had only been here with her one time over a year ago, after they’d been married only a few months. They had opted to dine al fresco at one of the tables set up out front. Unfortunately their meal had ended prematurely due to an argument; she couldn’t even remember what she’d done or said to set him off. He had stormed off, leaving her to settle the bill and scuttle off after him. Mortified did not begin to describe how had she felt.

Where she found the nerve to return alone a few weeks later was beyond her. She supposed it was part convenience, part stubbornness, and just a smidgen of curiosity, well maybe a bit more than a smidgen. Bruce had a weekend duty assignment at the Embassy and she’d been at loose ends for dinner. Mi Famiglia was so close and Italian was her favorite cuisine. But mostly she’d been intrigued by the glimpse of the art deco décor she’d seen as she left the dinner fiasco.

As soon as she walked down the flight of stairs and entered the restaurant she was hooked. It was as if she’d entered a time warp and come out in the 1930’s. Already a movie buff of this era, she visualized her favorite stars of that period dining in cozy, relaxed elegance: Busby Berkley with his spectacular dancing sequences, Clark Gable, Claudette Colbert, Cary Grant and Katherine Hepburn, with their screwball comedy.

She had requested a table near the back and prepared to bolt, but the waiter gave no sign he recognized her. As she sat down and looked around she realized that the ceiling seemed to be deep red leather. It had mirror balls hanging so that the whole room had little sparkles of light everywhere. With mirrors dotted on the walls, the whole room seemed to shimmer. She was enchanted.

It soon became her safe haven, her refuge. Here she could be herself and her friendly nature and genuine interest in people made her ‘almost’ family, adopted by Carmine the owner and his two sons, Anthony and Mario.

Chapter 2
The Wedding

“Hurry dear, the car will be here in 10 minutes,” cautioned Marian Nelson.

“Yes Muz, I’m just about ready,” Susanna replied giving herself a light spritz of Angel perfume.

A quick glance in the mirror showed a petite young woman wearing a pin tucked deep red jersey dress with cap sleeves and an Empire waist. Gold studded ankle strap sandals, a matching purse and small gold hoop earrings completed her outfit.

She tucked a stray bit of sun streaked chestnut brown hair behind her ear and tried out a practice smile in the mirror. Huge brown eyes peeked from under wispy bangs as her full lips formed a shape somewhere between a grin and a grimace.

“You look very elegant dear, in an understated way,” complimented her mother.

“Only if ‘accident chic’ is in this season”, retorted Susanna, looking down at the cast encasing her right arm, from her wrist up past her elbow.

‘Bite your tongue’ Susanna reminded herself, not for the first time since she and her parents had arrived in Madrid two days ago for Andrew’s marriage to Isabel.
‘You are acting like an ungrateful wretch’.

She really couldn’t have gotten through the last couple of weeks without their support.
Waking up injured in the hospital, hearing that Bruce had died in the car, and the mixed feelings of guilt, relief, and overwhelming emptiness were almost more than she could bear.

For once she had welcomed Muz’s practical, no nonsense, I’m in charge, take no prisoners attitude. It had helped Susanna get through the funeral and the aftermath.
With dad to handle the legal issues, now she could focus her energy on healing her body; the rest of the healing would come later.

But the more Susanna recovered and felt stronger physically, the weaker she felt emotionally. She could feel herself slipping again in that familiar role of dependent, smothered child and it mattered not that she was a recently widowed twenty-something. Much as she loved them, she was so thankful Muz and Dad had a cruise planned and would be going back to Florida tomorrow night.

As their car dropped them off at the impressive Gothic style church of San Jeronimo el Real, Susanna was thankful for the Spanish tradition of evening weddings. How practical of them to take advantage of the cool breezes. The smell of orange blossoms and roses became stronger as they were ushered to their seats near the front.

Isabel and Andrew had chosen to include several traditional Spanish wedding customs. As Andrew walked his mother down the aisle he wore a shirt embroidered by Isabel. Her gown, although silk, was black with an accompanying black lace veil. The thirteen gold coins Andrew had given to his bride as a symbol of his commitment were blessed during the ceremony. After vows were made, rings were exchanged, the Mass ended, and as the newlyweds emerged from the church they were greeted with fireworks.

At the reception the lively music of the strolling Mariachis reminded Susanna of a festival as everyone feasted on paella, red wine punch, white sangria, and wedding sponge cake rich with fruit and almonds.

When the dancing began, Susanna finally had a chance to spend a few minutes congratulating the happy couple, and admiring their rings, worn on their right hand in the Spanish tradition.

As she turned to go she caught sight of a striking couple on the dance floor and began to wave in recognition.

“Hola, Gerry!”.

A beautiful woman with almost white blond hair stopped dancing and still holding her partner’s hand, quickly made her way to Susanna.

“Susanna, I am so happy to see you. It’s been so long, almost a year I think, since we were together at Isabel’s in Paris.
She told us of Bruce’s accident. We are so sorry. Isabel was worried that you wouldn’t be able to come. How are you feeling?”

“Thank you, Gerry. I’m doing much better. I think a change of scene was good for me.
By the way you made a gorgeous matron of honor. You looked beautiful. Marriage must agree with you.”

“Oh, that’s right you haven’t met Carlos yet?”
“Susanna, this is my husband Carlos Marin.”

As Carlos took Susanna’s hand and kissed it, she inventoried the handsome tanned features, twinkling dark eyes and dazzling, friendly smile.
‘Oh yes, Gerry, he’s a charmer all right and did he actually just wiggle an eyebrow?’ thought Susanna trying to suppress a giggle.

“Hellloooooo,” intoned Carlos, as if he were practicing a scale and holding the last note.

“It’s nice to meet you, Carlos.
Is this what they mean when they say ‘You had me from hello’?” Susanna laughed.

Carlos looked quizzically at Geraldine who said she’d explain later. With formal introductions out of the way, Carlos excused himself to get a drink while Geraldine and Susanna began to do some serious catching up.

After apologies from Susanna for not keeping in touch as much as she should have, Geraldine was able to share her news. Carlos had joined a group with two other opera singers and a fourth member from the pop field. They had recorded their first album in Sweden and just finished some promotional appearances and interviews.

As a newlywed, it been hard being away from Carlos for so long, but those early days were also difficult for the group. It had taken many weeks of long, hard work, by four virtual strangers, fluent in different languages, to achieve a sound worthy of their name, Il Divo.

The best part was that London was now their home base, so there would be plenty of chances to see each other and also visit Isabel and Andrew in Paris. They exchanged phone numbers and Geraldine promised to call as soon as she and Carlos were settled.

As Susanna returned to her table smiling, her parents looked lovingly at their daughter and both gave themselves a mental pat on the back. For the first time in weeks, she was not wearing that horrid practice smile.

Chapter 3
The Golden Ticket

Three months later

Larry was the first one around the corner this morning, giving Susanna a hug and a smiling, “Good morning Miss Nelson” as he bounded into room 4.
Pulling off his woolen hat he asked, “do I look a bit disheveled?”

“Just a bit, Larry” answered Susanna. ‘What would this 7 year old pint-sized walking encyclopedia came up with next?’ she wondered.

She suddenly remembered his first oral book report on Bullfinch’s Mythology and immediately ceased wondering. From that day forward she had mentally renamed him Larry the Learned.

“Catch-up Day! Yeah!” He noticed the large red cutout of a Heinz catsup bottle relabeled ‘Catch-up Day’ hung on the white wipe off board.

All the children loved to see this, marking today as a time for finishing assignments, doing research, extra time with their laptops, and a lot of educational games to practice basic skills. Soon the room was filled with eager, smiling faces of students preparing to begin their morning. Colorful bulletin boards, friendly clusters of desks, brightly hued rugs and comfortable pillows to encourage reading, and tubs, shelves, bins, and baskets of books everywhere shouted ‘Welcome, come have fun and learn.’

Today seemed to be ‘catch-up’ day for the teachers too. Susanna usually ate lunch with her team members, but the past two days had been hectic so she’d worked in her room. As she joined Rosemary, Joanne, and Marissa they were deep into the burning topic every Friday: what are you doing this weekend. She sat down just as Joanne and Marissa were deciding on a movie to see tonight.

Rosemary and her husband Rick had already decided on a quiet night at home. Since Bruce’s death, they had all been so supportive and invited her out but somehow Susanna just didn’t feel comfortable being in a crowd yet.

She told herself she was getting better though, having been to lunch twice with Geraldine and to Rosemary’s for supper once. Maybe she should see what her friends thought of this latest offer.

Tentatively she began to tell them about Geraldine’s phone call last night. Il Divo was performing at the Guildhall, just a small concert for their fans, she’d love for Susanna to hear her Carlos sing, along with the other three guys of course. She’d leave a ticket at the door for her and afterward they could all go to dinner and maybe a club together. Susanna had made no promises.

Immediately she was bombarded for more details, regaled with raves over the group, thoroughly chastised for living under a rock and proudly declared fit and capable for this momentous debut back into the world of the living. By the end of lunchtime, having been outvoted 3 to 1; her plans for tonight were no longer in doubt.

On her way home from school a line from a children’s book played through her head; you can make me do it but you can’t make me like it.

Ready, set, go

Just what were you supposed to wear to one of these concerts? Geraldine had said dinner and maybe a club after and that was definitely a decision where Susanna’s vote would be the deciding one: no. Listening to music in a dark crowded room, unnoticed, was as much of a debut as she could handle. Now how to guarantee that outcome?

Simply dress inappropriately. The rest was easy. Susanna chose black, well-tailored jeans, but jeans all the same, a pale pink cashmere turtleneck, black leather jacket, and as her final act of defiance, black cowboy boots with a pink flame design.

Meet and Greet

The hall was just starting to fill up as Susanna picked up her ticket and quickly found her seat. She had to admit that it was a good seat, only 4 rows back and almost in the middle.

A few minutes later she saw Geraldine standing near the stage talking to some man. She motioned for Susanna to join them and explained they were going backstage to meet the guys before the concert. She introduced Susanna to Steve, evidently someone in charge and they followed him up some stairs and behind the curtain. To the side of the orchestra, busy setting up, stood four men impeccably dressed in black suits, white shirts, and black ties. Susanna’s first thought was penguins as she ruefully smiled. Yes it had been way too long since she’d ventured into the grown-up world.

Carlos greeted her first with a kiss on both cheeks and that same dazzling smile he always wore. ”Susanna, it’s wonderful to see you.”

Next came Sebastien, playfully oozing Gallic charm, extremely handsome in a Cary Grant kind of way, again a kiss on both cheeks, “Enchante, Susanna. Please call me Seb”.

Then, the tall American David with a “Hi Susanna” accompanied by a wide grin and an even wider hug, a stereotype of the romantic, fun-loving boy next door.

Finally, Urs the Swiss, “Hello, Susanna”, a firm handshake and polite half smile, chiseled features, a continental, exotic James Dean.

Susanna was fascinated as Geraldine and Carlos explained how the group had been formed and as each one added their little personal anecdote she marveled that they could make these same answers they’d given a hundred times somehow sound fresh. When dinner and clubbing plans came up, Susanna politely begged off, rather skillfully she thought, using her lack of dress as an excuse. On that note it was time to take their seats.

Chapter 4
The Concert

The stage was at one end of the rectangular hall beneath a perpendicular stained glass window. A small stool and microphone with a stand stood waiting for each man. The rose colored curtain at the back added to the warm glow reflected off the wood paneling toward the hammer beam ceiling by the simple low hanging chandeliers.

As the lights dimmed, David, Carlos, Seb, and Urs entered from the right through an arched stone doorway, took their places and the orchestra began the strains of Senza Catene.

Seb, tie slightly loosened, began to sing with his soft, gentle, intimate, pop voice, calling to mind a boy serenading his first sweetheart.

Even before his first note, several cheers and woohoos could be heard. Susanna was a little surprised given the rather formal look to the venue but Geraldine explained that each Divo had their special fans that delighted in showing their support at every possible opportunity.

Next came David, nonchalant, hand in his pocket, devilish eyes, opening his mouth and revealing the most beautiful, huge tenor voice imaginable and those long rrrrr’s in Italian were spectacular. Susanna could almost hear him saying, ‘What? This is no big deal. As soon as I’m done can I go back out to play?’

Then came Carlos. He didn’t take his turn, he took over.
With his commanding stage presence combined with such a rich and powerful baritone range, at that moment he was the only one on stage. He demanded your rapt attention, craved your adoration and in return gave you a spine tingling, heart stopping experience. Susanna glanced toward Geraldine and saw the love and pride in her face mirrored in Carlos’ eyes as he sought and found her.

Susanna fully expected Urs’ solo to be next and was faintly disappointed when he and David sang in harmony. She could and did appreciate the lilting harmony but really wanted to hear Urs’ solo voice. During the next offering, Heroe, sung in Spanish, Urs again acquitted himself well, from what Susanna could tell, trying a little harder to focus on his harmonies.

As Seb sang the ending notes, the crowd rose for a standing ovation. She could see how amazed and pleased they were by this acknowledgment. The exchanged looks, broad smiles, head nods, and bows spoke volumes as to how much fun they were having.

Then as they drew up stools and seated themselves, a solo guitar picked up the soft, romantic notes of Si Tu Me Amas.

Carlos opened with beautifully restrained sensuality, obviously reveling in the Spanishness of the song; then Seb continued the rest of the verse.

With a slow glance toward Seb, Urs raised his microphone in a graceful, fluid motion and began to sing the title line. Susanna had never heard such a pure, sweet, gentle sound.

As Urs sang, he became the song: voice, facial expression, and body language melding to form his interpretation of the words. Certainly she had been moved by music before, but never in such a heart racing, stomach fluttering, and soul touching way.

She turned her head and saw Geraldine watching her.
With a knowing smile Geraldine reached over and squeezed her hand as if to say ‘Welcome to the club,’

The rest of the concert passed in a blur. Susanna couldn’t have named any of the songs but knew; somehow, Il Divo had changed her forever.

She loved it all: the magical blending of voices, the obvious bond between the men, and the shared sense of joy in the moment, their dedication and professionalism.
They were standing for yet another ovation, as Carlos announced their final song My Way.

Just then an usher leaned over and handed Susanna a folded note. Puzzled, she opened it and read, ‘Susannah, Would you like to go with me for a coffee after the concert? Urs’.

“Just what did you tell the guys about me, Geraldine?” asked Susanna in a worried voice.

“Why?” asked Geraldine.

Susanna showed her the note.

“Carlos and I only told them that we’ve known you for a long time and that your husband had died a few months ago, that’s all”.

“That was probably enough knowing how soft hearted Carlos is. I can see it all now. Let’s take the poor widow to dinner, oops change in plans, she’s refused. Time to draw straws guys. Sorry Urs you lose.”

“Susanna, I’m sure it wasn’t like that. Of course we want to see more of you but we would never gang up on you like that. We just want to see you getting out again and having fun. Besides, Urs is definitely his own man. He keeps his own counsel, so I’m sure this was all his idea. You may not have noticed but he looked over here several times tonight. It’s only coffee, what can it hurt?”

“I’m sorry I’m so prickly, Gerry. It’s just that I hate people feeling sorry for me. Remember you promised, no details. I just don’t want to have to rehash the whole thing.”

“We know that honey, don’t worry. Now about that coffee…”

Susanna shook her head and grinned at her old friend.
The song was almost ended as she looked up at Urs and nodded her head ‘yes’. He smiled back and then a very strange thing happened. He blinked both his eyes rather slowly. What was that?

Susanna made a mental note to ask Geraldine in private if Urs was suffering from a nervous tic.

Chapter 5
In H.O.G. Heaven?

With waves, smiles, and thank yous, the four men left the stage, each carrying a large bouquet of flowers presented to them by eager fans. Gerry and Susanna waited for the crowd to thin and soon Steve appeared to escort them backstage again.

Carlos, Seb, David and Urs were talking to some of the band as the girls approached. Susanna could hardly wait to tell them how much she enjoyed the concert.

“Well, you’ve all heard of surround sound?
Tonight was like surround life!
Each of you has such a wonderful solo voice, but when you combined them I simply was lost in the beauty of the music. It was unforgettable. Thank you so much.”

Susanna’s comments earned her grins, smiles, nods, and even a little bow from Seb. They had just witnessed a live Diva birth.
Then David quickly excused himself, eager to change, get back to his apartment and share tonight’s success via web cam with Sandy, his longtime American girlfriend.

While Gerry, Carlos, and Seb discussed where to go for dinner, Urs found Susanna a place to sit and went to change. As she waited, she watched the musicians and stage crew packing up, idly wondering what kind of car Urs drove.

Carlos & company had barely decided on their destination before Urs reappeared, a new man, well very different anyway to Susanna’s eyes. Was it possible for a person to look squeaky clean and dangerous at the same time? Yes, he was living proof.

His hair was drawn back in a sleek, neck-hugging ponytail.
He was wearing a black, long sleeved tee shirt emblazoned with the Harley logo, jeans, shrunk to fit Susanna suspected, black cowboy boots, carrying a black leather motorcycle-looking jacket and two helmets. Hmmmm, Susanna began to think maybe she should have been worrying instead of wondering a few minutes ago.

After saying their goodbyes, Urs shrugged into his jacket, and holding Susanna’s arm, gently guided her out the door and into the parking lot. Ever the gentleman, he did not acknowledge her momentary tensing as he touched her.

Several modes of transportation were in the parking lot eagerly awaiting their owners.

”Have you ever ridden on a motorcycle?” asked Urs as his stride lengthened in a beeline to the only motorcycle in sight.

“Um, no, “ Susanna quivered. Where was her teacher voice when she needed it?

“She’s a Road Glide”, explained Urs, deftly taking her small purse and putting it in the side storage compartment.

Road Glide, short for huge, black with a red whirly decoration, shiny chrome, scary motorcycle
Glide, ride, hide, that sounded like a plan.

Urs put on his helmet, explaining that he usually wore his hair in a ponytail when he rode so he wouldn’t get helmet hair, causing Susanna another mental groan.

Great, at the autopsy I’ll be the only one making a fashion statement with helmet hair. Thanks a lot.

Then he handed her a helmet and helped her fasten it under her chin. After getting on the cycle, he motioned for her to climb on, pointing to the footrest and turned to hold her arm and help her. With a comforting smile he explained that he’d never lost a passenger yet and instructed her to follow his lead and lean slightly into the turns. Fervently wishing cowboy boots came with six-inch heels, all 5’2” of Susanna put her foot where Urs pointed, and swung her leg over the seat.

The engine roared to life as Urs gunned it, causing Susanna to quickly grab Urs and hang on for dear life. He immediately down throttled so he could be heard above the engine. “I don’t think I need the Heimlich maneuver just yet. Let’s wait until after I’ve eaten’’ he grinned as he pried her hands from around his waist.
After repositioning them and assuring himself another death grip wasn’t imminent, he gave her a comforting pat on the hand, and slowly exited the parking lot.

When, after a few blocks, Susanna discovered she had not fallen off, crashed, been injured or maimed, she began to relax a little and actually enjoy the feeling of total freedom in the open air. Urs, able to feel her relax, glanced back, grinned, and gave her a thumbs up. Not yet brave enough to release her grasp, she hoped the grin she returned showed her approval.

About ten minutes later they reached their destination, a pizzeria. Evidently the coffee invite included food and surprisingly Susanna felt hungry. Urs parked the cycle and helped her off. It seemed a little easier this time since she knew where to put her feet. Off with their helmets, fortunately a little fluffing on her part disguised her helmet hair.

Walking into the restaurant carrying their helmets caused an instant movie flashback for Susanna: Marlon Brando in the Wild Ones. Casting a sidelong glance at Urs she could definitely see the same sideburns. There was also that undercurrent of danger, albeit minus the mumbling speech, thank goodness. What little she had heard of Urs’ speaking voice mimicked his singing voice perfectly.

They slid into an empty booth and shrugged out of their jackets. A friendly waitress appeared with menus, took their drink orders, water and coffee.

‘At least he didn’t lie about the coffee’, Susanna thought.

After a quick glance at the menu, Susanna told Urs to get whatever he wanted and that would be fine with her. As soon as the words were out she wished for them back.
Did she sound rude or ungrateful or just plain bored?
Oh well, old habits die-hard.

With just her luck she’d be stuck eating pepperoni and pineapple with anchovies. Yuck! Fortunately, Urs taste ran rather to more mundane combinations and thankfully he ordered sausage and pepperoni.

”I’m sure glad I dressed for the occasion” she opened with. “What would you have done if I’d had on chiffon and 4 inch heels?” Susanna asked pointedly.

“I’d just have had Carlos drop us off and take a cab from there. Why?” Urs explained with a casual shrug.

“I was just wondering why me?” questioned Susanna warily, looking him in the eye.

“Well, actually, I saw how you kinda cringed at Carlos and Gerry’s plans and quite frankly I usually prefer some quiet place after a concert. I was hungry and I don’t like to eat alone so I thought maybe you like quiet places too.” he admitted.

“ I do. I’d forgotten how nice a change of scene could be. I haven’t been out with people much since…”

“I know. Carlos told us about your husband’s car accident. I’m very sorry.” Urs interrupted.

“Thank you.” Susanna replied softly.

Just then the waitress brought the pizza.

And not a minute too soon, I could almost hear the plaintive strains of violins in the background.

Conversation for the next several minutes was limited to the topic of sausage and pepperoni pizza. Susanna hadn’t realized how hungry she was and almost kept up with Urs.
Comfortably full, they relaxed over more coffee. After professing that all he knew about her was that pink was probably her favorite color, through gentle teasing he was able to put her at ease.

Soon they were having a relaxing conversation, trading a few funny childhood stories here, a little family background there, and interesting experiences in their jobs.

Urs learned that Susanna taught a class of 7 year olds in an American school, was an only child, her parents were newly retired, liked to stay up late and sleep in, she had met Gerry through her cousin’s wife Isabel and loved old movies and Sudoku puzzles. She also loved to travel, but hadn’t done much of that in the last year or so.

Susanna learned that Urs had three sisters and a brother, was from a small town in Switzerland, liked to get up early and go to the gym, spoke several languages, and hated to be late.

But more than this, she learned that she liked carrying on a conversation where she controlled the content, divulging as little or as much as she wanted.

Chapter 6
Not Too Bad

Following Susanna’s directions, they arrived outside her flat, Urs noting how close it was to the Il Divo block of flats in Chelsea.
Luckily he found a parking spot right in front of the building and helped her off the cycle.
She silently congratulated herself on an almost graceful exit, proud of her new achievement.

As they walked up the steps and entered the lobby, she began to fish in her purse for her key, ready to unlock the security door, say a quick thank you, and make an even quicker retreat to her apartment.
The next thing she knew, Urs had her key and was ushering her through the door.
Momentarily taken aback at being out maneuvered, she preceded him to the elevator, pressed the first floor button and they were on the way to her apartment.

When they arrived, Urs opened the door and handed Susanna the key.
Did he notice her release the breath she had been holding?
With a slight smile he shook the hand that had been hurriedly thrust toward him.

“Thank you for coming with me tonight, Susanna”, Urs said rather formally, not releasing her hand.

‘Why doesn’t he let go of my hand?’ she thought as a little finger of panic began to creep into her brain.
“Thank you for asking me, Urs, it wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be.” she replied, without thinking.
‘Oh my gosh! Did I really say that out loud?’

“I’m SO sorry, I didn’t mean it that way.
I enjoyed the music so much and I just meant that being out again among strangers and meeting people wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be.
Really it was easy talking to you and even your motorcycle wasn’t so scary after I got the hang of it.”

Having dug herself a hole deep enough to bury at least three people, she clapped her mouth shut and took back possession of her hand.
With a shake of his head, Urs gave a hearty laugh.

“If my Ubers could see me now. Shot down in flames.” he managed to get out as he calmed down.
“Susanna, it will indeed be fun getting to know you.”

With that, he said goodnight, turned and left, preferring the stairs to the elevator.

Susanna slowly went into the apartment, closed and locked her door and, then on a whim, hurried to the window.
By moving the curtain ever so slightly she could see him walk to the Harley, climb on, and start the engine.

‘The graceful, catlike, prowling movements of a supremely confident male animal,’ observed Susanna blushing.

He must have been aware that she was watching because as he roared off into the night without looking around, he gave a little wave.

Now there was another question to ask Geraldine. Just what was an Uber?

A Clean Conscience

Susanna loved weekends and she carefully guarded these precious two days when she could have a lie-in and laze around.
How many times had she heard her father say, ‘If sleep were a religion, you’d be the Pope’?
Her mother had loved to tease her about liking to take naps as a child and how she’s fallen asleep the first time she’d seen the Nutcracker, never mind that she’d only been four at the time.

Ironically she thought of it as one of Bruce’s best parting gifts to her, two whole days every week to be her own boss, squander or use as she saw fit, no questions asked, no demands made, no explanations needed.

After Bruce’s death, she had opted to move to a one story flat and had beginner’s luck with finding one not only closer to her school but with a balcony overlooking a small garden, walled for privacy.
She’d worked hard at making the place her home, her retreat, her sanctuary.

The moment you entered, the enticement began.
Walls were painted in rich, warm hues.
Gently curved sofas, chairs, and ottomans upholstered in striking Liberty prints beckoned with their softness.
Several small tables artfully casual with novel arrangements of personal treasures, photographs, and unexpected household items waited patiently to be touched, marveled at, admired – and on every flat surface there were books.

Warm oak wood abounded with the exception of a mahogany pianola made in London circa 1929, and a dining room table and violin backed chairs in cherry.
The thoroughly modern appliances lived in comfortable companionship with an antique farmhouse table welcoming you to stay and visit.
And whether by conscious decision or decorating intuition, not a speck of tan could be seen.

Susanna woke up Saturday morning about 9:00 to a cool, drizzly, day.
Fixing her usual soy fruit smoothie, she went through to the bathroom and turned on the shower.
As she allowed the warm water to gently finish waking her up, she replayed the events of last night, mentally grading her performance, no doubt from force of habit, she thought ruefully.

Appearance C+, although inappropriate for dinner and clubbing, fine for the back of a motorcycle and pizza.
Manners in a group A hands down.
Alone with Urs D or should it be an F, no definitely not a failing grade even though she’d almost squeezed the stuffing out of him and told him her evening wasn’t as bad as she anticipated, she had thanked him and apologized.

Having justified her passing grade, she quickly dried off, finished her morning routine, and headed out for a quiet afternoon at the National Gallery.
As her newly cleansed body hurried up the steps, eager to be out of the rain, her rather less than clean conscience followed, at least to her way of thinking.

Contemplating the Impressionists, especially her favorite Degas, usually gave Susanna a sense of peace and tranquility, but not today.
Her outspoken behavior last night shocked her.
Whatever had possessed her to just speak her mind without thinking, without measuring the effect of her words?
How careless and rude she had been!

Her cell phone suddenly interrupted her mental tongue-lashing.
Quickly she grabbed the offending noisemaker visualizing a swarm of ‘quiet’ police escorting her from the building in disgrace.

“Hello” she whispered.

“Hi Susanna, it’s Urs here.”
“Oh, um…hi, Urs.” she whispered.

“Why are we whispering?”

“’Cause I’m in a museum and I don’t want the ‘quiet’ police to throw me out.”

“Would you like to get together later? I would really like to see you again. “Urs whispered.

“I’d like to Urs. That sounds nice.”

“Is there anything special you’d like to do?”

Someone asking her what she wanted to do?
This was really a switch.
She could probably count on one hand the times Bruce had even asked, let alone paid any attention to one of her suggestions about anything.
Let’s just see if he means it.

“There’s this really neat market, Borough Market, I like to shop there.
They have the best fruit and veggies. How does that sound?”

“Great! What time should I pick you up?”

‘He wants to go grocery shopping? I don’t believe it!’

“How about 3:00? And if you help put away the groceries I’ll even make dinner for you.”

“That’s an offer I can’t refuse. See you soon.”

With an amazed and slightly self-righteous grin, Susanna switched her contemplation from Degas to dinner and for dessert, a clean conscience.

Chapter 7
Opening Night Jitters

Urs flipped his cell phone shut, rolled his eyes and shook his head, a gesture becoming all too familiar since being introduced to Susanna last night.

Just how had she turned a would-be date into a grocery shopping expedition, albeit he was getting dinner out of it? What kind of woman could profess to control a room full of bouncing 7 year olds yet be afraid of the, what did she call them? Ah yes, quiet police? And worse still, he’d caught himself mimicking her whisper voice! If any of the guys ever found out, he’d never hear the last of it. He was still trying to live down those Urs Bermuda Triangle photos David found in the Gallery.

During the sound check yesterday Carlos had casually mentioned to the others that Gerry had invited a friend to the concert. He had given few details, just that she’d been widowed several months ago and he’d met her briefly at Andrew and Isabel’s wedding. She seemed to be taking more interest in getting out again so Gerry thought this might be a first step. A waiting ticket did not however guarantee she’d be there since Susanna had been careful not to make any promises.

So all the Divos were pleasantly surprised when Gerry appeared backstage before the concert with Susanna in tow. What would this virgin Diva think of them? Being consummate artists, they gave their all each evening, hoping to impress the entire audience. But did their love and passion for the music they sang reach out to individuals? For a brief time did it take them to a place where only beauty existed?

The number of CD’s they sold, the applause and standing ovations they received seemed to answer yes. But tonight they would not be playing to a faceless audience. Perhaps in Susanna’s reaction they would have their definitive answer.

When Susanna had politely but firmly declined Gerry’s invitation for dinner after the concert, Urs felt a sympathetic twinge. He sensed she’d been practicing this refusal and indeed it had been delivered perfectly.

Without warning, memories of the death of a best friend from school invaded his mind. He had been so young then. He had felt so useless.
What should he say? How should he act?
He had watched as gradually the boy’s family came to understand that their reluctance to step back into life was not a way to honor the dead boy’s memory but a means to hold onto the guilt they felt. Finally as they began to forgive themselves for not being able to protect him, for being the ones left behind, they began to heal.
Now he felt an overpowering compulsion to reach out and stop Susanna from slipping backward in her healing journey.

Besides, he truly could not unwind after a performance by experiencing still more crowds and noise. For him, donning the Il Divo attire and persona enabled him to revel in the adulation, personify the romantic possibility, and accept the shouts, screams, and roars of the audience with a teasing confidence, knowing full well that the stage was the boundary line, protecting his safe zone.
Tonight he wanted to be that safe zone for Susanna.

To say she was skittish was to say Godzilla was a monkey.
She’d almost jumped out of her skin when he’d taken her arm. Was she afraid of him or the touch?
Then it had gone from famine to feast with that death grip and he hadn’t even taken the brake off. At least she wasn’t a quitter he’d give her that. In fact he’d bet she’d be much more relaxed next time.
Next time?

Yes, he definitely wanted to see her again.
Once they were at the restaurant conversation seemed to just flow between them; real conversation, ok not solving all the world’s problems, but interesting, adult, give and take conversation.
There was no preplanned twenty questions, no blunt probing into his personal life, and thankfully no litany of self-praise.

What Susanna offered was a rarity; true interested focused attention on Urs the man and he could not help but respond in kind.

He loved the way she used her whole body to talk: hands drew pictures in the air, eyes changed from amazed to sad to angry to happy in a split second, her head tilted, hair flipped, ever changing characters told their story through her mouth and body language. He wouldn’t put it past her to wiggle her ears if need be.

Childhood stories and school anecdotes came alive as they dissolved into giggles over fondue pots mistaken for potty training chairs, a bag of earthworms stored in a desk for show and tell, and Urs paying the ultimate penalty of a broken nose for teasing his younger sister Eva.

As they left the restaurant, he felt very pleased with himself reckoning Susanna had probably not laughed this much in months.
Come to think of it, neither had he.

Then came the final comedic episode of the night.
Poor Susanna, trying to gracefully extract her firmly lodged foot from her mouth. It took all the Swiss sense of decorum and polite manners he possessed to keep a straight face. Her furious blushing, explanations given at break neck speed, and profuse apologies were utterly endearing. Finally she gave up entirely. It amazed him to see this woman, so animated and eloquent a few minutes ago, reduced to silence.

Then another thought came to him.
Perhaps we’re more alike than I thought.
Performing on our own stage of expertise each of us feels confident and self-assured, but off stage it’s opening night jitters.

But jitters were the last thing on Urs mind as he saw the curtains twitch. Sauntering to the cycle with long, rolling strides, he hopped on, turned the key, and roared off, waving, without a backward glance.
Definitely good reviews for opening night.

Chapter 8
Let The Shopping Begin

Susanna was just finishing her shopping list when Urs called from the lobby. She buzzed him up, grabbed her jacket, fanny pack, and car keys. Pulling open the door, she was greeted by a doorframe full of Urs. They looked at each other in momentary surprise.

‘She’s wearing those same fancy little boots again and I was right, pink is her favorite color!’ Urs said to himself, noticing that a deep pink hoodie was the only change from last night’s outfit.

‘I love that studded denim jacket. Wonder where he got that?’ ran through Susanna’s head.

“Hi”, almost in unison and accompanied by sheepish laughs.

Noticing Urs was carrying his helmet, Susanna took it quickly, putting it just inside the apartment. After locking the door and announcing she was all set, they headed toward the elevator.

Susanna feeling thankful it was just one helmet because she wasn’t ready just yet for another close encounter with Urs.

Urs feeling a bit unwelcome, picturing himself standing at the apartment door handing groceries through to Susanna or worse yet, being consigned to eating dinner at a table and chair in the hall.

As they rode the elevator to the basement-parking garage, Urs apologized for not asking for her phone number last night and revealed that he’d gotten it from Gerry.

Susanna led him to her car, a brownish green Fiat Panda. Urs, ever the gentleman, offered to drive but Susanna shyly confessed that she needed to practice.

‘Practice!’ Another occasion for an Urs eye roll/head shake, mentally of course. This was fast becoming his new trademark gesture. ‘At this rate it might even replace the blinky wink.’ Folding himself into the passenger seat, Urs fastened his seatbelt, making sure it was extra snug.

As they exited the garage Susanna elaborated. She had never learned to drive a stick shift car. There was no need. She had brought her American automatic car over to England when she was hired. After she had married and moved to London, her husband had decided having two cars wasn’t practical so they sold hers. He reasoned she didn’t need a car anyway because he could take her wherever she wanted to go. If he was using the car, she could get a lift from a friend. If all else failed, there was always the bus or tube. Now however, push had come to shove, so she had been taking lessons.

On the drive to Borough Market she acquitted herself admirably, for the most part. There were only two ‘herky-jerky’ episodes and once she almost killed the engine. Urs did give her high marks for deftly maneuvering into a space in the car park on Southwark Street, or was it just that he was relieved that the engine was no longer running?

A short two-block walk brought them to Borough Market. Situated on the south side of the Thames. This site had been a market since the first century. It was a vast open air space under a Victorian style warehouse roof filled with myriad tiny shops and stalls. Here in this renowned market you could find an array of food from around the world, everything from octopus to oranges, fresh hares to horseradish, French wine to flowers.

With a mischievous grin and a definite twinkle in her eye, Susanna magically produced a string shopping bag from her pack. She presented it to Urs and proclaimed him the Bag Boy. Refusing to be bested, Urs teasingly dubbed Susanna, Houdini, for pulling the bag out of her small pack.
Let the shopping begin.

There wasn’t time to even think of an eye roll or head shake, as Urs the Unlucky darted in, around, and among shoppers in the crowded market trying to keep up with Susanna.

And forget being embarrassed… as he glanced around it seemed only not being heavily encumbered with a bag was cause for embarrassment. Maybe he wasn’t so unlucky, after all he was used to blending, just not on this particular stage.

In fact, by the third stall they had worked out quite an efficient system. Urs inborn skill for organization had taken over. He had added another facet to his heretofore hidden shopping talents. He was now Bag Boy and List Man.

While she gently poked, prodded, weighed, and squeezed, Urs dutifully checked off items. Soon he began adding helpful comments and suggestions, and even scouted out nearby stalls. And of course they stuck to the list, well almost.

On the way back to the car, Bag Boy and Houdini passed a pub and decided to stop for a drink. Susanna had casually mentioned the flat above the pub was the one used in the Bridge Jones movie. Urs could barely contain himself and excitedly described the Il Divo video shoot directed by the same movie director.

After their order arrived, lager for him and Guinness for her, Urs excused himself for a minute, to use the restroom Susanna supposed.

She hadn’t seen him come back and jumped when he leaned over her shoulder.
As he whispered ‘Surprise’ a huge mixed bouquet of flowers appeared in front of her. Clutching them, she inhaled their sweet fragrance. Urs sat down across from her and waited for her reaction.

“Urs, there’s so beautiful. Thank you. Where? When?
You shouldn’t have. I’ve never…”

‘How could he know?
Had she lingered longer when they’d passed the flower stalls?’

If she’d been here alone she’d have bought flowers for herself, but never with someone there, especially not him. Tears threatened now and she just couldn’t let him see her like this, so wanting, so lacking, and so needing.
Better to put on her protective suit of armor: humor.

“Now who’s Houdini?” she teased.

“So you like them? Were you surprised?”

‘I know I saw tears. Maybe I’ve upset her.
Do they remind her of her husband?
But she said something about never.
What if he never bought her flowers?
What kind of man would treat her like that?
What a jerk!’ he thought angrily.

“This was a wonderful surprise, Urs and I really mean that,” Susanna replied, touching his hand for emphasis.

She was rewarded with a slow, bone-melting grin.

‘Oh my’ she thought ’it’s a good thing I’m sitting down because my stomach just dropped around my knees.’ “Just look at the time. We’d better get going if I want to get started on that dinner,” Susanna advised, looking at her watch.‘Saved by the bell,’ she thought.

This time Urs managed a public eye rolling head shake but only because Susanna preceded him out of the pub.

‘So different yet so alike.’ he thought.

He lengthened his stride, making sure he was the first one to the car. He definitely would be driving home and it would be an offer she couldn’t refuse.

Chapter 9
Puccini With Panini

The ride back to Susanna’s flat was considerably smoother both on the car and the occupants. Freed from the constraints of concentrating on her driving, Susanna relaxed not only her mind but her mouth.
“Did you notice…What about those… I’ve never seen.. “

Both were awarded a B for enthusiasm and fluency, since Urs automotive prowess, unlike Susanna’s, enabled him to drive and converse simultaneously. By the time they reached the parking garage a casual observer might even think they were good friends.

As the elevator rose, so did Urs spirits. The possibility of eating dinner at the grown-up table in the kitchen rather than the children’s table in the hall was becoming more of a reality every minute.

While Susanna upgraded her total Urs experience from ‘not so bad’ to ‘winds light to variable with intermittent showers’.

As Susanna unlocked her door, Urs was indeed allowed to follow her across that hallowed threshold into the kitchen and relieve himself of his numerous bags.
He was almost certain circulation would return to his arms and fingers eventually.

After hanging their jackets in the hall closet, Susanna suggested Urs find some music for the CD player while she sorted out their purchases. Pulling up a comfy ottoman, he began to sort through her collection.

Rather heavy on the classical he noted, blues, a few musicals, some easy listening, early rock ‘n roll, very little jazz and disappointingly no heavy metal.
Thinking to match the music to the menu he called to the kitchen to see what Susanna had planned for dinner. After getting his answer, the choice was obvious, La Boheme. The menu for tonight: Puccini with Panini.

Meanwhile in the kitchen Susanna’s first priority had been to get her surprise into water. They made the perfect centerpiece on the huge old table. Her heart gave a little lurch as she pictured Urs smile, that wide grin, those eyes that crinkled at the corners. It was as if the sun had just come out to shine only on her.

‘Get a grip, you silly twit. It’s only flowers. Next thing you know you’ll be dancing around the kitchen like you’re in a Busby Berkley musical.’

Just then La Boheme came drifting in from the living room along with Urs.

Offering to help, Urs was given the job of setting out some crackers to go with the cheeses they’d bought: Sage Derby, Stilton, and some farmhouse Cheddar.
Following her directions, he located two wine glasses and opened a bottle of Chianti, one of his finds of the day.

At the other end of the table Susanna worked on rolling and cutting squares of pastry to wrap around the dessert: boozy baked Worcester apples stuffed with walnuts, raisins, brown sugar, and apple brandy. Putting them in the oven, she moved down to Urs end of the table for some wine and cheese.

“Susanna, that’s an unusual name.
Were you named after someone special?” Urs asked.

“Three someones actually, but only two count.
You see Muz, that’s my mother, loves opera so I’m Susanna in the Marriage of Figaro. Don’t you just love Mozart? I do. What do you think of The Magic Flute? That’s one of my favorites.

Well, then daddy is originally from Texas and loves history so I’m also Susanna Dickinson, the only survivor from the Battle of the Alamo. She was the wife of one of the Alamo defenders. I know you don’t know what that is but someday I’ll explain it.” ‘Someday? Did I just say that?’ she shocked herself with the thought.

“Then finally there’s the Oh Susannah Don’t You Cry for Me one, but she doesn’t count because that’s spelled differently.”

At this juncture, she mercifully ran out of breath. Urs was now the proud owner of a unibrow, and no sign of crinkling could be found near his eyes, which appeared to be extremely round, huge, and rather glazed over.

‘Warning, warning, Too Much Information’ flashed through Susanna’s brain.

Attempting to reduce Urs sensory overload, Susanna came up with an immediate, though not original plan.

“Urs, that’s an unusual name.
Were you named after someone special?” Susanna asked.

“No, not really. Actually Urs is Latin for bear.”

‘He speaks. Thank God, there doesn’t seem to be any permanent brain damage’ Susanna breathed. For a moment there she really thought she’d stunned him speechless with boredom at her runaway explanation.

‘Did she have to have at least one fit of verbal diarrhea whenever she saw him? Why was she so nervous around him?’

Then his explanation registered and her sense of humor was off again running. She had a sudden vision of a huge brown bear galumphing toward her, covered with thick, soft, curly fur who just as suddenly morphed into Urs the man with thick, dark brown curly hair, on his chest, on his back?!, on…

‘Oh crud!’ she thought and she blushed furiously.

She hurriedly excused herself to check on the apples. Turning her back toward Urs, her shoulders shook with silent laughter as she commanded her brain to stop repeating ’Fuzzy Wuzzy was a bear…’
Urs now had a third nickname.

His brain worked overtime ‘Whoa! What just happened here?
I thought we were making progress.
We didn’t have any problem talking in the car.
It’s like she suddenly realizes she’s let her guard down, gets nervous and words just start tumbling out of her.
Then it’s back to opening night jitters.

There were so many things I wanted to ask her.
What operas had she seen?
What is her favorite?
What about this Alamo Susanna?
But I felt that if I stopped her she’d never start again.

Then I thought maybe she was starting to relax again when she asked me about my name. But she suddenly excused herself and I could tell she was trying to gain control. I saw her shoulders shaking. Why? Was my name that funny or maybe she called her husband Bear?’

As usual, Urs tended to overthink things.

Susanna gave herself a mental shake.Time to get back to the task at hand, dinner.
She got out the grill pan, two bricks, and some foil.
Urs got out his unibrow.

Susanna followed with an immediate explanation thus preventing the onset of eye glazing.“Could you please wrap these with the foil? I’ll use them to smoosh the panini as they cook.” she explained.

Urs released an audible sigh though he still remained on high alert as his brain frantically indexed ‘smoosh’ through his five-language vocabulary.

Susanna handed Urs a knife and in just a few minutes they had the squash, red onion, roasted red peppers, zucchini, and mushrooms sliced and on the grill.
As they quickly cooked, Urs split a baguette, making two sandwiches, while Susanna set the table.

Then each sandwich was given a sprinkle of balsamic vinegar, filled with the veggies, a slice of fresh mozzarella, a few leaves of basil, and deemed ready to be smooshed. Back on the grill, they each tended to their brick flattened sandwich, flipping and removing it when it done.

They ate hungrily, the silence between them occasionally broken by a comment about their shopping trip.After they finished eating, Susanna set the dessert to cool. Urs insisted on helping clean up so she washed and he dried. His compliments on the dinner were received with much blushing and an embarrassed attempt to dismiss her efforts.

‘Did she truly think she’d not done a good job or was she not used to compliments?’ he asked himself.

She put on a pot of coffee and they adjourned to the living room with their dessert. Urs and his sweet tooth were obviously enjoying the baked apple Susanna observed. She’d even caught him with his eyes closed once, savoring the taste.So when he praised the dessert she accepted the compliment with a bashful thank you and no blushes.

‘Maybe he was just being polite about dinner but I know he liked the dessert.’

Accepting compliments gracefully was certainly a new skill she’d have to work on, but one she thought would be easy to get used to.

While she was in the kitchen fixing the coffee tray, Urs explored the living room. The comfortable furniture, warm colors, and variety of textures created a friendly atmosphere. Although there were piles of books and groups of objects everywhere, Urs could still sense order and function and felt quite at ease in this space. The varied subjects and number of books attested to her diverse interests and love of learning. There were so many things he wanted to ask her but he must take care. Her safe zone seemed to be constantly fluctuating.

There were many photographs; however, the walls were restricted to displaying only black and gold drawing-like pictures of what looked to be medieval men and women.As she returned he asked her about them. They were brass rubbings, done from medieval tombs and, yes, she had rubbed them herself.

‘I’ll take you with me sometime if you like’ had almost slipped out.
“What in the world are you doing, you fool?
Trying to give away another piece of yourself?
Pretty soon there won’t be any left!’

Susanna dropped her napkin on the floor. As she sat back down, Urs noticed her back had grown just a bit straighter. She had also managed to move a few more inches away from him on the sofa and was now clutching one of the small decorative sofa pillows like a life preserver on the Titanic. An apt comparison Urs thought, watching her comfort zone steadily disappearing under the forced waves of politeness.

Urs graciously made his excuses and retrieved his jacket from the closet. Susanna walked to the door and picked up his helmet ready to hand it to him.

She thanked him for helping with the shopping and the flowers and offered three apologies: one for her driving, one for using him as a pack animal and one for the simplicity of the dinner.

Urs thanked her for a wonderful day, a great meal, and especially for the dessert.

Then it happened.
He leaned over and gently brushed his lips across her cheek, taking the helmet at the same time. Turning, he opened the door and was gone.

‘What had just happened?’ she gulped.
‘Had she imagined it? ‘
‘In over a year of marriage Bruce had never touched her with such gentleness,’

Still holding her cheek, she got to the window in time to see Urs start his bike, wave without a backward glance, and disappear into the night.

Chapter 10
Short And Curly

Piles of papers, a rhyming dictionary, a thesaurus, pens and various colored markers vied for a place at Susanna’s kitchen table. Her vase of flowers had been moved to the far end, to make room for her laptop. Two bare feet and one knee peeked out from beneath faded, well-worn jeans as she sat cross-legged on a kitchen chair and performed her Sunday night ritual: lesson planning.

Since her grade level had started planning most of the lessons together, it had become much less time consuming. Rosemary planned math, Leslie alternated science and social units, Marissa took care of grammar and writing, and Susanna organized guided reading, word wall, and vocabulary instruction.

Joanne, the computer technology specialist had suggested each one put their weekly plans on the school server. That way, they could copy/paste them into their weekly plan, modifying them as they needed. What a timesaver that had been! Tonight however, Susanna seemed to be saving too much time.

Oh the afternoon had gone by quickly enough, spent catching up with little necessities, laundry, paying bills, and a quick tidy up of the flat. Then following her oft-quoted classroom rule; meat and potatoes before dessert, she’d allowed herself a lovely, long self-indulgent read of the Sunday paper complete with crossword puzzles. Maybe not completely filled in but enough to feel she wasn’t a slouch either.

Pushing up the sleeve of her well-worn sweatshirt, she checked her watch, again. Had it only been five minutes?

While she was busy earlier this afternoon, she’d barely had time to think of Urs. Well, once or twice he had crossed her mind, she admitted to herself. But now, now what?… he was just being a nuisance, that’s what! Intruding on her schoolwork like this. After all he hadn’t said he’d call or anything.

Her eyes fell on the vase of flowers. It was just that, well, it was kind of fun having someone new to talk to and eat with and she…she’d like to see him again.
There she’d said it.

‘Now get back to work!’ she chided herself, getting up and moving the fragrant distraction out of her line of sight. Just then the phone rang.

“Hi, Susanna. It’s Urs.”

“Hi Urs.”
‘Wonderful answer there,’ Susanna thought. ‘About an exciting as watching paint dry.’

Apparently Urs enjoyed watching paint dry since he continued the conversation.

He’d called earlier but she wasn’t home. She explained that she’d had her usual lie-in and gone to late church. Susanna shared her afternoon activities but Urs seemed a little vague about what he’d been doing. When he asked what she was doing now, Susanna admitted it was schoolwork.

When Urs replied to the same question, Susanna found herself feeling a little disheartened. He was packing for a PR trip early tomorrow morning to Scotland. From there they were going on to Ireland to do several interviews and a brief appearance. They’d most likely be gone all week. He asked if he could see her next weekend. She hoped her ‘yes’ hadn’t sounded too eager. He promised to call during the week when he knew more.

This time when Susanna took up her place at the table it was with renewed vigor and a definite goal to keep her focused and on task. Next weekend would be completely lesson plan free. She would be seeing Urs.

Deep in planning mode, her brain barely registered the door buzzer. Pushing the intercom, she was very surprised to hear Urs voice. Had there been a change in plans? Would he be gone longer?

She opened the door to see Urs looking down at her.
“You’re much shorter than I thought.” he observed.

Looking down at her Ch Ching Cherry painted toes, Susanna laughed, “No cowboy boots this time. And you’re much…curlier.” was her comeback, looking up at him and trying to slow her heart rate simultaneously, not an easy task she discovered.

In a word, he was adorable.
‘Adorable? Puppies are adorable. This is a grown man here, Susanna, get a grip.’ she lectured herself.

Urs had chosen to leave his hair au naturel.
Susanna’s fingers fairly itched to touch that head of soft curls, a perfect foil for his strong, angular face. Hastily, she shoved her hands deep down into her pockets, even as high color rose in her cheeks. Picturing him as a chubby cherub with a harp or worse still a Cupid’s bow, she wisely chose a diversionary tactic.
She invited him in.

As Urs deposited his helmet in its usual spot near the door, he grinned, “No hair straightener this time.” Then quickly stepping back out into the hallway he picked up a square white box and carried it into the living room as Susanna closed the door.

She offered to take his jacket but Urs explained he couldn’t stay. They were leaving very early tomorrow morning and he still had to pack.

“I just wanted to drop this off.” Urs said with a self-satisfied grin, handing the box to Susanna. She took it and sat down on the sofa, motioning Urs to sit also.

“What for? It’s not my birthday? I mean thank you but you didn’t need to, I don’t…” Susanna ran on.
‘You’re doing it again, motor mouth.
Shut up and take a breath!’ shouted the voice in her head.

Urs could fairly see this mental conversation-taking place as her chest rose and fell in a deep, relaxing breath.

Turning towards Urs, Susanna began again.“Thank you very much, Urs, but another present? I’m not used to all this, but I love it!” she confessed with a smile.

“It’s just a little reminder of our shopping trip yesterday, Houdini,” Urs said mysteriously.

As she turned the box around and gently shook it, an alarmed Urs stopped her with a “No, don’t do that!”

“Will it break?” she asked.

“Maybe, maybe not,” teased Urs.

“Oh I bet I know what it is. It’s a vase for the flowers isn’t it? “Susanna crowed excitedly.

“Open it and see.” Urs suggested smugly.

Susanna carefully untied the pink satin bow and lifted the lid. Urs had chosen the perfect present. There nested between many layers of tissue paper were a tall, black silk hat, a magician’s wand, and a soft, white, furry, toy bunny.

Total surprise and delight radiated from Susanna’s smiling face as she examined her present. She snuggled the bunny into the crook of her neck, she practiced waving her magic want over the hat, and she even tried the hat on, completely and playfully lost in the moment.

As a beaming Urs marveled at her reaction, it was difficult to say who was happier, the giver or the receiver.

Then, to Urs way of thinking, Susanna performed another magical feat. Impulsively she leaned over and hugged him, repeating a heartfelt ‘Thank you’. Though only a baby bear hug, a 3 or 4 on the hug scale of 10, Urs felt very encouraged. With patience and gentleness he was hopeful a true bear hug was in his future.

To her credit, Susanna did not panic when she found herself hugging Urs. Withdrawing back into her own personal space, she put her presents on the coffee table and stood up.

As Urs started to say goodbye she asked him to wait a minute. Taking the presents to the kitchen with her, she returned moments later carrying the black silk hat and the magic wand and wearing a mischievous grin.

“And now for my first trick,” she announced, waving the wand three times over the hat.

She held the hat out to Urs and asked him to reach inside. Laughing, he pulled out two foil bundles.

“Presto! Boozy Baked Worcester Apples!” she declared.“I thought you’d like to see me make good use of my presents” was her explanation.

As Urs thanked her, she imagined she could hear him salivating. Carefully, bordering on reverently, he placed the two bundles in his helmet sitting on the floor.

Then lightly putting his hands on her shoulders, he leaned in slowly, softly, and kissed her cheek. Time stopped as they memorized the feel, the scent, and the experience of each other.

They exchanged smiles, hers timid, his trusting. Then picking up his helmet, he opened the door and left.

She followed his distinctive walk all the way to his bike, saw him pause to place his presents into the side storage compartment, and then…

‘What was he doing bending over like that? That little sneak!’ she giggled.

Urs had just snuck a bite or two from one of the apples.
Closing the storage compartment, he threw his leg over, started the engine, and took off, giving his usual ‘no look’ wave.

‘Cheeky devil,’ Susanna reflected. ‘Doesn’t he remember that’s how Adam got in trouble?’

Chapter 11
Chew and Tell

Urs snapped his suitcase shut and answered the knock at the door. As Seb walked in, Urs set the case near the door ready for tomorrow morning.

“So how was the shopping?” Seb asked.

“Fine. Thanks for that tip about Camden Market. I figured if anyone knew about shopping it would be you. In fact I found several magic shops. ” Urs enthused.

“And what ezactly did you get? Some kind of magic trick? I know! You were looking for some magic powder to turn you from a frog to a prince! I see you had no luck.” Seb collapsed into a chair, laughing, extremely pleased with his little joke.

“Look who’s talking Froggy,” Urs shot back with a grin.

“OK, seriously, what did you buy?” probed Seb.

“Just some souvenirs of the day we spent together.” Urs volunteered.

“Oh boy, it must have been a special first date to rate a present. When are you seeing her again?” Seb teased, attempting but failing miserably to imitate Carlos’ eyebrow wiggle.

“Yes and no, and hopefully next weekend. Now time for all good Froggies to be in bed,” answered Urs as he opened the door and ushered Seb out.
“Remember we’re meeting in the lobby at 5:00 AM,” was Urs parting shot as he closed the door.

As Urs automatically cycled through his bedtime routine, he recalled Seb’s observation. Yes, his day shopping and later having dinner with Susanna did deserve a gift. It was special by the very fact of its ordinary-ness.

Since he had stepped on the Il Divo merry-go-round, the normal, everyday experiences of his old life had become the exception not the rule. It wasn’t that he was ungrateful or didn’t appreciate how fortunate he was to have this opportunity. He wouldn’t trade it for the world.

He loved this fast-paced, ever-changing, professional challenge, but sometimes he longed to step off this manufactured reality ride just for a time and walk among the comfortable ordinary-ness of his old life. Yes, his day with Susanna had been special. Susanna was special.
___________________________________________

Susanna knew Monday mornings were always extra busy at school. Settling the children back into a routine after the weekend, explaining new centers and assignments, in a word, getting back into the groove. Since her grade level planning period was in the afternoon, she’d had little time for more than a quick hello to her friends, until lunch.

So it was with both anticipation and dread that she entered the teacher’s lounge for chew and tell. It’s not that she wasn’t eager to share about the concert and even a little of the shopping and dinner. Facts were fine, just not feelings. Anyway, they were too confusing, too new, and too private.

‘What was the concert like?”
Susanna couldn’t believe, even Beverly Adams, the principal was sitting at their table today! Of course, she insisted on a blow by blow of the whole thing.

‘Did you get to meet them?’ Leslie required the Divo by Divo details.

‘Are they as handsome up close?’ Joanne even wanted to know if they wore cologne.

‘Were you nervous?’ Rosemary wondered and then was visibly relieved to hear Susanna hadn’t been struck dumb in their presence.

‘What did you do after the concert?’ Marissa begged for a minute-by-minute accounting.

‘Can we come with you next time?’ they begged in unison.

Of course, armed with this information, there was an even louder barrage of questions fired at her as the saga of the shopping trip and dinner began to unfold amid squeals of excitement, laughter, and support. When Susanna was finished, Beverly even asked when they would be doing their next concert.

Saved by the bell, again!
As the signal for the end of lunch period rang, Susanna presented herself with a medal for bravery. Her army of facts had successfully navigated through the land mine of feelings. There were no casualties, no feelings, facts, or emotions surrendered unwillingly. She was in command.

But then she entered her kitchen that night and saw the flowers. She’d been dreamily replaying her phone conversation with Urs on Sunday when it hit her. She’d wondered why he had avoided sharing how he’d spent his afternoon. Now she knew. Of course, he’d been shopping for her magic presents.

She sank into the chair, overwhelmed by his thoughtfulness and caring. That a person she’d just met, no a MAN she’d just met would want to buy her something amazed her. That it was specially picked out for her by that person, not some trite, generic gift, and also meant to recall something they had shared was almost beyond her comprehension.

The hallmark of Bruce’s few impersonal gifts to her had been the warped sense of duty that inspired them. Again the comparison and again Urs had not been found wanting. ‘Is it the weekend yet?” she asked herself hopefully.
_______________________________________

As Carlos, David, Seb, and Urs settled into the limo on the way to the airport, the topic of conversation was the previous weekend. Carlos, of course was loathe to leave Gerry, but with their blitz of appearances and heavy travel schedule they agreed she’d be bored.

On their previous trip, Juliana, Seb’s French girlfriend had found time to come along, so she and Gerry had been good company for each other when the men were working. Unfortunately, this trip was coming during a busy time at the travel agency where she worked in Paris. Now warmer, sunnier climates were beckoning and people were beginning to make plans for the Christmas holidays.

David in London and Sandy in New York had been catching up big time now that he had the problems with his web cam sorted out. Even his family near Denver had been the recipient of his newfound expertise. Having become an instant weekend guru he offered his assistance to the rest of them but to his dismay had no takers.

Seb had little to offer in the way of news so he fell back on one of his favorite topics: shopping. This morning, however, his topic was expanded to include Urs the Unlucky. He proceeded to explain how he, Seb, had answered the call and helped his less than knowledgeable friend become acquainted with one of the more famous London markets.

‘Halt den Mund’ thought Urs. “Shut up Seb!” came out.

Three inquisitive pairs of eyes stared at Urs.

“What? So I went shopping. Big deal. You know I like to shop. Remember on that trip to New York I bought two guitars.” he rationalized with an eye roll, head toss combination.

“So you bought another guitar?” David deduced, incorrectly.

“Well, no not this time. I just picked up some souvenirs, that’s all” Urs admitted as coolly as possible under the circumstances.

“It was for Susanna." Seb elaborated.

David put on his most shocked look and mouthed ‘Susanna?’

Urs put on his fiercest scowl and grunted, “It was just a little thank you for the dinner she made and before you ask, yes there was dessert. It was apple dumplings and they were quite tasty…um delicious…oh alright they were heavenly.”

Urs slipped his sunglasses down, effectively ending the conversation.

Not daring to say it out loud, Seb, David, and Carlos were of one mind. Just as Adam, this might be the time Urs sweet tooth would be his downfall

Chapter 12
Nuts

He had tried extremely hard to wait until Tuesday at least to call Susanna, hoping to reinforce his image as Mr. Cool. He managed, with difficulty, to hold out until about 9:30 Monday night.

Susanna had only gnawed away half of her recent manicure before the call. Seeing his name on the caller ID, he had her by the second ring.

He had begun with a teasing, “Hi Houdini,” and progressed to asking if she’d learned any new tricks.

She played along by complaining that you couldn’t find a Bag Boy when you needed one. She’d had to lug her heavy book bag all by herself.

After a few awkward ‘talking at the same time’ moments they settled into a pattern of comfortable conversation, sharing their day. They traded email addresses, at Urs suggestion, since he had his laptop with him, both promising to keep in touch. Susanna vowed to herself that she’d answer if he wrote, but wouldn’t make the first move.

The conversation ended with mutual “Goodnight’s” however Urs added, “Sleep tight”. Susanna bit her lip to keep from adding ’and don’t let the bed bugs bite.’
Laughing to herself, she concluded, ‘You can take the teacher out of the school but you can’t take the school out of the teacher.’

True to his word, there was an email awaiting Susanna at school the next morning. Urs the Efficient having left nothing to chance, decided to target school first, home second.

Soon cyberspace missives were winging their way back and forth at a very encouraging rate, at least in Urs estimation. Never had Susanna been so diligent in checking her email, and found that sharing bits of herself long distance seemed somehow much less threatening.

As the week progressed, threads of background, experiences, and feelings, shared in emails, began to weave themselves into a fabric of friendship. His wit and charm were irresistible. Out of the clear blue sky, there he would be in her thoughts, in her dreams, in her life.
Although she didn’t know exactly what it was she wanted, she knew she was getting closer.

Susanna loved Wednesdays, “hump” day as they called it at school. It was all downhill from here. On Thursday’s they had music, physical education, and library, which meant extra planning/grading papers time. Friday was laptop computer lab day, which all the children loved. And often in the afternoon a guest reader would arrive to share a book with the class. It might be a parent dressed as a storybook character, an older student, one of the school staff, or even an invited guest. It was always a surprise, sometimes even for the teacher!

Although her visits to Mi Famiglia had been sporadic, usually after an argument with Bruce, since his death she had become a frequent Wednesday night patron. She chatted with Carmine, the owner while she waited for her order, offhandedly mentioning going to see an Il Divo concert and was a little surprised that he had heard of them. In fact, from the sound of it he was a fan.
Maybe Rosemary and Joanne were right. She had been hiding under a rock socially or at least musically.

Suddenly remembering Urs eye twitch problem and Uber reference she gave Gerry a call when she got home from the restaurant. Maybe these were things she needed to know before the weekend. Gerry admitted to being more than a little curious about her ‘date’ with Urs and mentioned that she’d heard Susanna had found Urs weakness for sweets.

Susanna had shared most of the story, omitting the Houdini and Bag Boy references, and they’d had a good laugh together. Apparently the Divos shared and teased at will, a fact Susanna filed away for reference. She then began her lessons in Uber 101, quickly learning all about blinky winks and Uberbabes. Gerry would have gladly continued her education, but Susanna said she’d rather be on a need to know basis. She figured some things were much more fun to find out on your own. Besides, she’d recently discovered she loved surprises.

Friday, Urs day, was finally here. Susanna was positive that waiting for Christmas as a child had never seemed this long.
Urs called Thursday night saying they’d be getting in late Friday so he’d get in touch with her Saturday morning to make plans.

‘So alright, technically I won’t be seeing him Friday but he’ll be back in the same city, breathing the same air…OMG was she sounding besotted or what?’
Susanna was suddenly and profoundly horrified.

Immediately switching to extreme, focused, all business teacher mode she managed to get to school and keep her second grade class and her thoughts under control, at least until the dismissal bell rang.

On the way home, she made an emergency stop at the market to top off her extremely well stocked supply of baking ingredients. Once home and changed into comfy pink sweats, she poured over her cookbooks deciding to bake a few goodies for Urs, after all he did have a big helmet to fill.

By 9:00 her kitchen table resembled a bakery.
There were cookies: snickerdoodles, chocolate chip, and molasses. Some were already in containers ready to be frozen while the last batches were cooling. She had also made two batches of brownies lightly dusted with powdered sugar, with and without nuts. Deep down she figured Urs for a nut man but she didn’t want to take any chances.

As she put the last pan into the dishwasher, she heard a thump at the door followed by a lump in her throat.
She quickly opened the door and there he stood.

He was wearing the sexiest smile she’d ever seen. Helmet in one hand, both arms held out open wide as if to say ‘Here I am. What do you think?’

‘I think I really missed you’ her body answered as she took a step towards him and he gently folded his strong arms around her.

They embraced, completely still, savoring the closeness, feeling the heartbeats, and slowly acknowledging the shift in their relationship. Still holding his hand, somehow loathe to break contact, Susanna closed the door.

As the latch clicked they both let out an audible sigh followed by sheepish grins as if to say, ‘Now that we’ve got that settled. We can relax and breathe again.’

Urs knew the drill.
Helmet by the door, jacket hung up, and then as if he were a bloodhound on scent, his nose identified the unmistakable smells coming from the kitchen.

“Are you hungry? I could fix you something.” Susanna volunteered.

“They fed us on the plane, but that was a while ago.
I guess I am a little hungry again.” Urs admitted.

His body soon followed his nose as Susanna grabbed his hand and ushered him to the kitchen table. She hurriedly moved the cooling racks away from him, but not before he’d swiped a couple of samples and was blissfully chewing. She could see he was definitely a Houdini when it came to cookies.

As she fixed him a salad and a sandwich, he recapped the highlights of the trip and thought over all they had scored points in the fan department and definitely garnered publicity for their new CD. He vaguely mentioned an upcoming trip to Australia but gave no details, not willing to let any future plans spoil the mood.

Susanna just loved watching him eat. ‘If truth be told’ she admitted, ‘she loved watching him, period.’ He made quick work of the ‘meat and potatoes’ part, eager for some ‘afters’.

As Susanna poured him the prerequisite glass of milk, Urs conceded he had never heard of snickerdoodles. She explained they were a Pennsylvania Dutch recipe, basically a sugar cookie with cream of tartar and rolled in a cinnamon and sugar coating.
Urs hoped she didn’t notice his sampling as she explained. Obviously he didn’t know much about teachers, yet.

”Nuts?” she asked.

“Who you or me?” Urs replied, feeling very ‘with it’ in understanding American slang. Thank goodness David had explained some idioms to him.

“No, I mean do you like nuts in your brownies? I made some with, and some without. I figured you were a nut man. Was I right?”

Susanna was proud as punch with herself. This time she had delivered her little explanation well within the limits of normal speech patterns. No rush, no embarrassment. This indeed was progress.

“Oh, I’m a nut man”, Urs confessed dying to ask, but afraid to know how she’d come to that conclusion.

Two brownies and another glass of milk later, Urs declared himself stuffed. By the time Susanna had packed up a sampling of cookies and brownies for him, she could see he was sleepy. He’d tried unsuccessfully to conceal a few yawns and still had to ride home, so reluctantly she got his jacket and walked him to the door.
She reminded him to drive safely.

In a movement somehow quite natural and unforced, Urs turned at the door and smilingly reached out one hand to touch her cheek affectionately.

Susanna colored and looked down in confusion.
His hand remained on her cheek and he gently applied enough pressure through his fingertips to make her lift her eyes to meet his gaze.He smiled as he looked down at her, and their eyes stayed locked together for what seemed like an eternity.

Barely daring to breathe, Susanna surprised herself as she rose on tiptoes, to meet him as he lowered his head to kiss her. It was a soft kiss, almost as gentle as a butterfly’s touch, but so full of promise that her heart skipped a beat. He smiled as he drew away and gently traced her lips with his fingertips. Her lips parted as he did so. She wanted more-so much more and she nearly gasped with disappointment as he turned back to the door.

Smiling, he gathered his helmet and cookies and said goodnight.

Urs really must have been full because he didn’t even sneak one cookie Susanna noticed as she watched him.
As usual, he put on his helmet, hopped on, started the engine, and…turned around. Seeing Susanna at the window, he waved with a cheeky grin.

Chapter 13
Mr. Rise and Shine

“What was that buzzing?” Susanna’s head emerged from beneath the pillow as her hand swatted the alarm clock.
Still it rang.

As consciousness returned, she realized it was the door buzzer. Stumbling to the living room she croaked a froggy “Hello” at the intercom.

“Good morning Houdini. I’ve got coffee.” Urs chirped.

‘AARGGH!’ replied her brain after sending a message to her finger to buzz Urs in.

‘At least I have a few seconds notice, not like last night when he snuck through with another tenant,’ Susanna thought. Thank goodness no one was in the lobby to overhear her new nickname. Teeth brushing, check, long robe on, check, knock, knock. Forgetting bedhead, she opened the door.

There he was beaming down at her. His easy smile lighting up his face. Balancing his helmet under one arm and a coffee in each hand. “Hi.” Mr. Rise and Shine Like a Super Nova.

Susanna mentally moved Saturday to the top of her favorite days of the week, taking the coffee from him with a big smile. “Hi.” Urs closed the door and followed her into the kitchen, carefully setting his helmet on a chair.

Then gently holding her face in his hands, he dropped a very deliberate, breath stopping, mind numbing kiss on her mouth, as Susanna’s fingers reached up to explore his curls.

‘That may have been an innocent kiss, but he knows exactly what he’s doing’, Susanna concluded, as she leaned her body in towards him.

Urs could feel his heart thud when Susanna turned her face up to meet his kiss. ‘This is amazing, this feeling inside me…almost overwhelming.’ He gently, but purposefully put some space between them as he ended the kiss and steered her toward the kitchen table. Simultaneously, they wished each other a ‘good morning’.

“Looks like you did a Houdini this morning” Susanna teased as Urs produced a bag of warm croissants from his helmet.

Remembering where the plates and silverware were kept from his dish duty the week before, Urs set the table while Susanna found butter and some homemade strawberry jam.

“I didn’t know what kind of coffee you liked, “Urs apologized as he read the label and handed her a container.

“Café Mocha. Good choice. Women and chocolate, we just seem to go together don’t we? Now don’t tell me. Let me guess what you’ve got there. Espresso?”

“Triple, acshually” Urs confessed.

“Good Lord, that stuff will put hair on your chest!” Susanna exclaimed.

“Sorry, too late. I’ve already got that. You wanna see?”

“Um no thanks. I have a rule. No chest-baring before noon.” Susanna giggled.

“Were you referring to yours or mine?” which earned Urs a playful smack on the arm and an order to drink his coffee.

In the middle of a bite of croissant, Susanna suddenly grinned, realizing how much she was enjoying being silly, being herself.

Urs too had an epiphany about silliness while sharing breakfast with Susanna. He’d been so eager to impress her by bringing breakfast that he hadn’t noticed.
And the fact that he was so anxious to see her face had also caused the lapse. But as he ate, his brain began to assimilate her ‘look’.

Perhaps that was too strong a word, seeing as it was comprised of only one garment, a robe. Since thinking about what was under the robe had caused the tight jean phenomenon, he immediately refocused on the robe itself, causing an instant reversal of the effect.

It was soft, thick, fluffy, and probably made of industrial strength chenille he reasoned. Pink of course but scattered with white daisies and yellow centers. Shawl collar, tied at the waist, pockets, and floor length. He could hardly see her hands. ‘How could she look so silly and adorable at the same time?’ Urs wanted to know.
All he knew was he was silly over her.

“How would you like to go on a mystery date tonight?” Urs asked as he and Susanna put away the remnants of breakfast.

“How did you know I love mysteries?” Susanna gulped.

“Well, you liked my surprise flowers so I thought…”

“OK. Yes. That’s right. I’ve love a mystery date. Where are we going? I mean what should I wear? C’mon just a little clue?” Susanna pleaded.

“Wear something you can walk in. Do you like Japanese food?”

“I don’t do sushi. Is that alright?”

“Neither do I so we’re good on that” agreed Urs.

“I’ll pick you up at 5:30. I know that’s a little early but we’ll do something after. Do you mind riding on the bike?” he asked, with a worried look.

“Why Bag Boy, I do believe you’re afraid to ride with me.” Susanna joked.

It was Urs turn to suffer a foot in mouth moment.
Was that a little blush? “No, of course not, we can take your car if you want. I didn’t mean to offend…” he sputtered.

Laughing, Susanna leaned over and gave his arm a little squeeze. “It’s fine, Urs. I probably need more practice on it than in the car anyway. I was just pulling you leg. You know, teasing” she explained.

Urs gave a slow grin and wagged his finger at her as if to say ‘you little devil’.

Standing up, he grabbed his helmet as he casually draped an arm over her shoulder and they headed toward the door.Eagerly, she turned toward him in anticipation of his kiss and was not disappointed.

His warm, moist mouth still tasted of coffee. As he deepened the kiss she stepped into him, wrapping her arms around him, and delighting in the feel of his hard muscles. Her heart did a flip-flop; she wanted it to go on forever. As the kiss ended, two rather breathless people were thinking: Is it 5:30 yet?

Susanna leaned on the recently closed door, basking in the taste, smell, and feel of Urs. Her thoughts were so scattered she barely got to the window in time to return Urs wave.

Chapter 14
Mystery Date

When Urs called from the lobby at 5:25 Susanna was ready and waiting. She’d already changed twice and finally decided on black jeans and a black cashmere turtleneck under her leather jacket. This time her cowboy boots were embellished with black and white cowhide to match her pony skin clutch. No pink was in sight. She wondered if he’d notice.

As she opened the door she had to tell herself to breathe. He looked so devastatingly handsome. And the thing was she didn’t think he even realized the effect he had on her. Well, maybe he did realize it a little. OK he realized it a lot. When he did that little boy grin, her heart just melted.

He too had chosen to wear black tonight, except for his jeans. He had on a thick black ribbed sweater under his leather jacket and had his curls tamed with an elastic band. He looked freshly shaved and smelled divine, fresh, clean, and sexy if that was a scent.

She walked right into his welcoming kiss and returned it most enthusiastically if she did have to say so herself.
She’d even given her hands permission to do a little exploring up and down the firm muscles of his back.
However, she needed a little practice on her technique because she accidentally found a ticklish spot near the side of his waist causing their kiss to end somewhat prematurely in a giggle.

On that note, she grabbed her purse and they were out the door. Mystery date here we come.

“Ummm, you smell good.” complimented Urs, pulling her close, as they rode the elevator.

“It’s Angel.” Susanna offered. “It’s probably the chocolate smell you like.”

‘Does he mean that I usually don’t smell good? Maybe he just noticed. So what? It’s really sweet that he said it. Stupid me, why is it so hard to just say thank you? You know why! How many compliments did Bruce ever give you?’ went her internal dialogue.

‘Angel. I don’t know that one. Maybe it’s French. Guess I’ll have to ask Seb for some more shopping help. I don’t know if I can take all the teasing though.’ Urs thought.

“I like the way you smell too.” Susanna managed to blurt out. ‘Wow, what a wonderful conversationalist you are.
We have now established that neither of us stinks.
You sound like a dumb parrot repeating everything he says.’ she scolded herself.

Fortunately for Susanna, conversation was very limited once Urs started the engine of the Harley. She felt very in touch with her ‘biker babe self’, whatever that was, as she donned her helmet, got on behind Urs remembering where to put her feet, and did not need the jaws of life to pry her hands from his body. In fact, she was beginning to see this as a heaven sent opportunity to explore his toned physique. After all he was a captive audience.

Urs cautiously and precisely guided them through traffic to a spot in front of Zen, a Japanese restaurant. As they entered, the soothing Japanese music and minimalist décor created an immediate feeling of calm and relaxation. They sipped on tea while they surveyed the menu and gave their orders.

“When I was looking through your CD’s on the shelf the other night I couldn’t help noticing that a lot of your books were crime and mysteries. I wouldn’t have figured you for a mystery buff” Urs commented.

“Oh don’t let that fool you, I used to be addicted to historical romance when I was younger.” Susanna divulged.

“Ah yes, romance. So why did you stop reading it?” Urs questioned.

“To quote Bruce: ‘reading love stories will give you starry-eyed expectations of our relationship’” recited Susanna.

“I see,” Urs said noncommittally.

Inside, far from being noncommittal, Urs was seething.

‘In other words Bruce couldn’t stand the competition’.
I wonder what else she’s had to give up by being married to him?’ he thought disgustedly. ‘Obviously he didn’t give her flowers very often…maybe not even gifts judging by the way she was thrilled over that silly magician’s hat.’

Another thing occurred to him. ‘Now that I think about it, I’ll just bet he wasn’t too free with the compliments either. And here I was thinking she was embarrassed about receiving a compliment from a man, just because she was a widow!’

Then he had his own ‘aha’ moment!

‘It wasn’t me at all. She can’t accept a compliment gracefully because she simply hasn’t had any! And that car! What kind of husband would insist his wife get rid of the only car she knew how to drive, making her dependent on him? He must have been some kind of control freak!’
The more Urs thought about it, the more he fumed inside.

Suddenly this conversation was becoming too personal, too uncomfortable for Susanna.

“I don’t imagine with your busy schedule you get much time to read.” she commented.

“That’s very true, but if I do have some free time I usually just read some motorcycle books or magazines.” Urs answered; unaware he had stumbled into dangerous territory.

Like a dog with a bone, however, Urs ploughed on.
“So I know you used to love to read romances and the other night you said you used to love to travel, but what interests you now? Don’t take this the wrong way, I liked hearing what you used to do but I’m more interested in who you are now.”

“I’m the same person I always was.” was her automatic reply.

”But when was the last time you read a romance or took a trip for fun?” he probed.

“It’s been awhile.” she shrugged, unwilling to elaborate.

Cocking his head to one side, he asked gently, “How long were you married, Susanna?”

“Almost two years. Why are you asking me all this?” she replied, feeling painfully self-conscious and looking down at her folded hands, anywhere but at him.

Gentle fingers raised her face to meet his gaze. “Hey, I’m asking because I want to get to know you. Not who you used to be, but who you are now.” he murmured softly.

‘That’s ridiculous, I’m the same person I always was… ‘she declared, sounding more certain than she felt. ‘But are you?’ whispered the voice in her head and her eyes looked stricken.

Everyone said she would get over this uncertainty in time.
It had been weeks since she’d had the nightmare.She was seeing Sam Roth her therapist only one Wednesday a month now. That was progress.

She could hear him saying, 'You may gradually remember more of what happened or you may not. Either way it's OK. Don't try to force it, Susanna.' But right now all she recognized was this profound emptiness. She could feel tears threatening. Quickly she blinked them away.

“Susanna? I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to pry.” Urs whispered, as he gently traced his thumb over her cheek.
“Please forget I said anything!” and he lowered his face to hers.

Susanna felt stunned. How could she not be upset when he was asking such unsettling questions? But one question stood out!Who are you now? She really didn’t know.
All at once her head throbbed and she felt cold chills.
She kept hearing that alarming voice in her head.

Sitting back in his chair he saw the waiter.
‘Here’s our dinner. I’m really hungry. How about you?’

The timely arrival of their food gave them both the opportunity to focus on something other than conversation as they regrouped their emotions.
Toward the end of the main course, Spicy Dharma for her and Dynamite Chicken for him, they were able to resume a relaxed conversation, careful to remain within safe zone boundaries.

Although they had time for dessert, they declined since Susanna had already mentioned she’d made something special for later. Checking his watch, Urs declared it was time for the mystery date to begin, paid the check and off they went to…

The Underground. Aldgate East Underground. Dragging Susanna along by the hand, Urs fairly skipped, well walked excitedly then, to the Toynbee Hall Exit.
With a self-satisfied smile he revealed his Mystery Date; a Jack the Ripper Walk complete with guide. A very surprised and excited Susanna agreed this was a perfect mystery date, earning her the nickname, ‘Susanna, woman of mystery’, at least for tonight.

Beginning at Whitechapel Road they passed the White Hart Pub in which a major suspect worked as a barber in 1890. Past cobbled alleys that took them back to 1888 they could feel the Victorian era surrounding them.

As they continued deeper into Jack the Ripper’s London, and streets became narrower and darker, Susanna’s found herself thankful for Urs presence. At the same time Urs was reaping benefits he hadn’t even planned.
He thought she’d be pleased with his choice of activity but the darker and more sinister the places and descriptions became, the closer to Urs she wanted to be.

First he’d had to hold her hand so she wouldn’t fall on the cobbled streets, then to protect her from the cold he’d had to put his arm around her and finally by the time they stood at the scenes of the murders and listened to the gruesome descriptions he’d noted with satisfaction she was holding tight around his waist.

They’d passed under red brick archways from 1886 where his victims as well as Jack himself had passed daily. At the City Darts pub their group stopped briefly for a drink. In 1888 is had been the Princess Alice, a haunt of the police’s main suspect, Leather Apron.

Off again, down Bucks Row, past Brick Lane and Fournier Street with houses from 1888, typical of where some victims lived. Past Commercial Street and Spitalfields Market, the evening ended at the scene of the double murder of Elizabeth Stride near Berner Street and Catherine Eddowes in Mitre Square.

After tying up the loose threads of the evening, their guide made cases for several suspects. As the group dispersed into the dark London night, they were left to draw their own conclusion as to the true identity of Jack the Ripper.

As Urs and Susanna, still arm in arm, walked to where the bike was parked, they discussed their Ripper theories.
Back at her apartment they continued their discussion.
Over cherry pie and coffee, Urs gradually expanded it to include dinner, music, school, and any other topic he thought was well within Susanna’s comfort zone.

When Urs checked his watch, they were both surprised, 1:00. It seemed they’d only been talking a few minutes.
Reluctantly he got up to leave, but not before inviting her to dinner tomorrow at his apartment. When she asked if she could bring dessert, his eyes lit up like Christmas morning. That settled, he suggested she come over in the afternoon about 3:00 if she wanted, to ‘hang out’ and they’d probably eat around 6:00.

As he bent down to kiss her good night he wondered what her reaction would be. Would she return his kiss? Had he overstepped her invisible boundaries tonight with his probing questions?

She angled her face up to meet his dark curly head as his mouth descended over hers. His kiss was like a silk whisper at first. As he made gentle advances with the tip of his tongue her head began to spin.

No! Jolted from her dazed thoughts, she withdrew from his kiss.

“I’m sorry, Urs.”

Looking up at him with growing alarm, she suddenly felt that he was opening a door in her mind that she might not be able to close again. She placed her hand lightly on his chest and shook her head; her confusion very apparent to him.

He mentally cursed himself for being so insensitive to this recently bereaved woman. He had no right to probe into her relationship with her husband-good or bad.

Susanna had answered Urs unspoken question but now silently asked herself another. What happened to the old Susanna? Where is she?

Taking her hands lightly in his own, he fought the urge to enfold her in his arms, to comfort her.He couldn’t think what to say to ease the awkwardness of the moment, so he squeezed them in what he hoped was an understanding fashion. Leaving, he fervently hoped she’d be there to return his wave and breathed a sigh of relief when he saw she was.

Chapter 15
A Progressive Dinner

‘Noooooo’ Susanna was tumbling in the car, bouncing and then the final crash and the silence. She was lying across the steering wheel, and where was Bruce? There was a burning throb down her arm and then the crushing abdominal pain and the blood, all the blood, and then only blackness.

Her eyes flew open as she sat bolt upright in bed. She almost knocked over the lamp on the nightstand in her rush to switch it on. Turning her hands over, she stared in disbelief. ‘Where was the blood?’ Frantically she ran her hands over her body, checking… her arms, her stomach, her face, but there was no blood. There was no searing pain. She was alive.

It was her same nightmare, her punishment that she could not remember. Her heart was pounding so loudly she imagined she could see it thumping in her chest. Drenched in sweat, she fell back on the pillow and began to weep in despair. ‘Why now?’ As the sky turned to dark gray slate, signaling a dreary, cold November morning, Susanna finally fell asleep.

She went through her usual Sunday rituals exhausted, on auto pilot today; church, laundry, tidy up the apartment. The comforting familiarity seemed to lift her mood, finally allowing her to focus on her dinner with Urs.
Recalling how he seemed to have a soft spot for her pie last night, she pulled another one from the freezer, adding a container of brownies. ‘Would you call this trying to gain brownie points?’ she smiled ironically. With dessert taken care of, she was left with more than ample time to decide what to wear, not a good thing.

After several false starts she was finally ready. A red twin set paired with a knee length tartan kilt worn over black tights and flats seemed a good choice. Urs would be doubly amazed; she owned not only legs, but also clothes other than jeans.

Although he wasn’t overly tall, she loved the feeling of Urs towering over her when she wore flats. It made her feel protected somehow. This was the first time she could remember thinking of her height as an asset.

She readily admitted to being curious about seeing where he lived. On the way to the garage, she not so readily admitted she was relieved to be meeting at his place.
By invading his personal space she realized that hers was safe. She was in control. No telltale possessions would accidentally reveal information. She would decide. With directions in hand, she confidently set out.

Finding a parking spot fairly close to the building, she rang the bell and was buzzed through, taking the elevator to the 2nd floor. Urs was waiting with the door open to greet her. Taking the bag of dessert goodies, and giving her a brief, but warm hug and a kiss on the cheek, he ushered her in. Taking her coat, he looked at her intently.

“Are you alright?” he asked softly.‘Her eyes don’t have that sparkle. I wonder if she’s still upset about last night. I knew I shouldn’t have pushed her.’

“Sure, I’m fine. Why? ” she fibbed. ‘Is he thinking about last night? Do I look different?’

“You just look kinda tired. I hope I didn’t keep you up too late.”

“Well, actually I didn’t sleep too well. I had a nightmare.”
‘OMG! How did that slip out? Crap! Crap! Double crap!
How can I explain that?’ her brain screamed.

“It was my fault really. All those Jack the Ripper theories just kept running around in my mind all night. Don’t you just hate it when you want to sleep but you can’t turn your brain off?” she explained with a little laugh. ‘Whew! That was a close one!’

‘I wonder if that’s really all it was, but I’m not going to risk upsetting her.’ Urs decided.

“So this is where you live”, Susanna said, making a beeline into the living room.

Tonight, his dark, well cut dress pants made a perfect foil for a lightweight, white sweater. Wearing his hair as it had been on stage; Susanna promptly renamed this ‘concert’ mode. ‘He’d probably look gorgeous with bedhead’ was her blushing mental observation.

As Susanna had hoped, Urs was amazed. He was amazed by her shapely legs, even more amazed by her form fitting short tartan kilt and most amazed by her figure hugging red sweater. He was so amazed his pants were doing the Highland fling. As he strategically disappeared into the kitchen with the dessert, she was left to look around.

Her first impression was of sleek, modern, functional Scandinavian pieces. There were several chairs and a sofa done in neutral fabrics with occasional bright accents, primarily in red. The individual pieces were unified in a very symmetrical and balanced arrangement.
The only wall decorations seemed to be two posters, one an Ozzy Osbourne ‘Blizzard of Ozz’ and the other of Yngwie Malmsteen’s ‘Rising Force’. One wall housed an entertainment center, TV, DVD, stereo, with a fairly large CD collection. Two guitars propped up on stands stood at attention nearby, ready at a moment’s notice. Her first thought was: a place for everything and everything in its place.

Then she saw them, two pieces of antique teak furniture: a beautiful crafted chest of drawers and cupboard. Drawn to them, she couldn’t help walking over to touch them, her fingers caressing the smooth wood.

Returning to the living room, Urs fairly beamed. He was the proud papa and these were his babies. He immediately launched into some background on them.
They were both Indonesian. The chest was made in 1900 and the cupboard dated from 1880. He loved them and declared he would never part with them.

He showed her the tiny, but efficient kitchen, where Susanna noted they didn’t appear to be any preparations or smells to reveal their anticipated dinner. When she volunteered her help, he looked a little apologetic. Evidently dinner was indeed a moveable feast. Gerry and Carlos’ apartment down the hall was the venue and Seb and David had also been invited. In fact they were expected there anytime.

Although Susanna was a bit disappointed to have only a quick peek at Urs apartment, she looked forward to the chance to visit with Gerry and Carlos and also get to see Seb and David again. Tonight being with a crowd somehow sounded like a good idea.

Choosing two bottles from the wine rack, Urs added them to Susanna’s dessert bag, earning him some teasing about his usefulness as a Bag Boy. Off to stop one on their progressive dinner.

‘Hola Susanna and Urs,’ a hug and double cheek kiss for Susanna and wonderful kitchen smells greeted them.
While Urs delivered the bag to the kitchen, Seb and David approached Susanna with cheerful hugs and hellos as well. As Urs returned with the wine and a corkscrew, Susanna followed her nose into the kitchen to find Gerry.

“Susanna, we’re so glad you could come. Carlos and I love having the guys over when we’re in town together. With their schedule, those times are getting few and far between so we take advantage when we can. We usually start either here or at Seb’s for dinner and then migrate to Urs for movies or games since his apartment seems to be the neatest.” Gerry explained.

As she commented about Urs apartment, she raised her voice a little and poked her head out of the kitchen to give David a meaningful look. That earned her an indigent ‘I resemble that remark’ from David, as Gerry dissolved into giggles. Apparently this was a running gag between them.

Gerry was fixing her famous paella and had things well under control so Susanna unpacked the pie and brownies and they both adjourned to the living room.

Eager to show off their apartment, Gerry gave Susanna the grand tour, returning just in time for a glass of wine.

David and Seb were in the throes of a video game so Urs and Susanna shared the highlights of their mystery date with Carlos and Gerry.

David could find no takers for the next video round so they spent the next half hour in easy conversation about funny tour experiences, interesting celebrities they’d meet and up and coming plans.

Susanna discovered a brief tour of Australia and New Zealand was planned in another week and David was acting as resident tour guide since he’d done the ‘Pearlfishers’ at the Sydney Opera House. From there they would go to Spain before returning to London. They would be gone 10 days. Geraldine was also returning to Madrid for an engagement that would last about six weeks. She’d be back by mid December in time for the Royal Variety Performance. Gradually Susanna was realizing what a whirlwind ride Il Divo was embarking upon.

Checking on a few last minute details, Gerry announced dinner was served. Turning the oven off, Susanna slipped the pie in to warm.Urs and Susanna were seated on one side opposite David and Seb while Carlos and Gerry were at either end.

Susanna was surprised, but pleased when Carlos spoke a few words of blessing on the food and unconsciously Susanna added ’and bless the cook’. Embarrassed, she explained it had been tacked on when she was a child and had just stuck. They agreed it was a nice touch. Reaching over, Urs gave her hand a little squeeze under the table, a silent thank you for her spontaneous gesture.

Dinner conversation was confined mainly to compliments about the food and requests for passing the many dishes and bowls almost overflowing the table. As the food diminished, conversation increased, everyone content to just sit, relax and digest their meal. Eventually Carlos announced the men would clear the dishes and load the dishwasher while the laydeez relaxed.

When the men finished, Gerry prepared the coffee while Susanna checked on the pie. Soon everyone was delighting in coffee and warm ‘razzleberry’ pie. To his credit, Urs didn’t even bat an eyelash over this new concoction.
Ever since ‘smoosh’ he knew she spoke a language all her own. There was no use trying to translate it. In reality ‘razzleberry’ was merely a mixture of any soft berries she decided to put in it. This one was blackberries and raspberries. Needless to say there were no leftovers.

This time the girls finished the clearing up, and when the dishwasher was started and the kitchen tidy they joined the men in the living room. Time to progress to Urs apartment for stop two.

Gathering around the empty dining room table they tried to decide what to play. Susanna asked if anyone played Chicken Foot. Another word Urs filed in his Susanna vocabulary. Of course no one did, so she promised to bring her dominoes and Chicken Foot next time.
Urs prayed the Chicken Foot was just an expression.

They finally decided on double deck pinochle with partners: Carlos/Gerry, David/Seb, and Urs/Susanna. Susanna wasn’t surprised that their card playing style matched their personalities but still it was such fun to watch.

Carlos the flamboyant, bidding as high as possible with nothing to back him up, Seb, going with the flow of David’s lead, Urs the conservative, always holding a little back just to be sure. In the end it was Seb and David coming out on top, with Urs and Susanna close behind and poor Carlos and Gerry in the hole.

Apparently the effects of the pie had worn off, since Urs infamous sweet tooth suddenly remembered the brownies. Carlos was instantly dispatched to get them.
Funnily enough, Urs had made a ‘milk run’ this morning so he was prepared. Seb and David made a mental note to razz Urs about his lone ice cube tray finally getting somebody to talk to.

Gerry and Susanna were still full but the men did justice to the brownies. Seeing there were only two left, Urs snapped on the lid and declared everyone had had enough. Laughing, they all took the hint, said their thank yous and goodbyes and left.

Susanna knew Urs would like her to stay a bit longer, but it was getting late and they both had work tomorrow. Remembering what was on the top of Urs refrigerator, “If Houdini had her magic cookie boxes maybe she could do another trick sometime,” she hinted with a teasing smile.

Urs almost fell over himself in his rush to get them.

“Can I give you a gold star for sharing with others?” she asked in the most serious teacher voice she could muster under the circumstances.

“Well, acshully, I didn’t get a chance.They kinda disappeared. Almost by magic!” he grinned with his best head down little boy expression.

“Will you promise to do better next time? I’ll be checking you know,” she warned.

“Yes ma’am” was the enthusiastic reply accompanied by a heart-stopping smile.

On that note, he helped her on with the coat, conveniently forgetting to remove his arm from around her shoulder as they rode down in the elevator. He said he’d call tomorrow, mentioning a radio interview and plans for an early morning TV appearance later in the week.

Once outside as he folded her tiny hand in his large one, gently pulling her closer, Susanna gave a tiny sigh of contentment. She couldn’t remember feeling this secure and protected. He unlocked her door and tossed the containers into the back seat.

Leaning against the open door, he slowly drew her into his arms. He leaned closer, so close that she could feel his warm breath on her lips. Her heart was filled with a longing so sharp it made her ache. Gradually, almost imperceptibly he closed the gap…closer…closer…giving her every chance to withdraw, turn away.

Then somehow he found her lips meeting his, kissing him with a sweet, tentative exploration that made his heart sing. She had reached out. She had dared to meet him part way. Ever mindful of her comfort zone, even as the kiss grew and deepened, it was Urs who raised his head. “If I don’t stop now, I’ll be kissing you all night!” he groaned.

Her mouth could still feel his kiss. She didn’t know what to say. ‘Did people really say things like that?’ “Um, thank you.” she managed to whisper. She slid into the driver’s seat and started the engine. Urs closed the door and she rolled down the window.

“Thank you again for inviting me. I had a wonderful time.”

Urs reached in for another quick kiss, reminded her to drive safely and was impressed when she accelerated quite expertly off into the night. ‘She’s been practicing’ he smiled to himself.

Chapter 16
A Home-Cooked Meal

Urs called Monday evening, while Susanna was in her water aerobics class. She was pleased that they both enjoyed going to the gym. When she thought back, she and Bruce had shared almost nothing. Had that been part of the problem?

Fetching her purse from the trunk of her car after class, she checked her phone and there was the call. As she listened to her message from Bag Boy on her voice mail, she felt a few excited butterflies. And although Urs had never failed to keep any promises he’d made, she could not quiet her inner voice that added ‘yet’.

And what if he did disappoint, fail to call, couldn’t fulfill a commitment? Would that mean he was another Bruce?

‘No.’ her other self argued.

When I think of Urs, Bruce is the one who is always lacking. It’s not reasonable to think problems won’t arise, schedules won’t change, just look at the complex life style he already leads. Even in your ordinary little world things come up, plans change. Life happens. Look for patterns, look at the total man.

Buoyed up by her little inner pep talk, Susanna repeated her newly created mantra: Make peace with your past so it won’t screw up the present.

Tuesday night, Urs timing was impeccable. Susanna was just walking in the door after a marathon PTA meeting. Hurriedly answering the phone, she kicked off her shoes and sank down on the sofa. An hour later, after hanging up the phone, she sat there hugging one of the pillows and thinking, “I could get really used to this.’

Thursday after school she had just finished entering some grades in the computer when she got a page. She had a visitor in the office. Probably some parent wanting an impromptu conference or a student forgetting their homework she supposed. Wrong!

There in all his glory stood Urs, relaxed, smiling, charming the pants off Ann the secretary, and Rosemary, and now, ‘oh no, here comes Joanne and she’s an Uber too. I’ll never hear the end of this.’

With a quick and all-inclusive ‘Hi’, Susanna grabbed Urs by the arm and propelled him down the hallway, certain at any moment there would be an all call to assemble in the front hall for a public viewing. They were moving at such a pace that Urs almost dropped the empty cookie containers.

Once in her room, she quickly closed the door, and breathed a sigh of relief, safe from prying eyes. Turning to look up at him, she began to reassess the safety issue. He looked ‘drop dead, gorgeous’ as Marissa would say. She wanted to just squeeze the stuffing out of him.

As his long arms wrapped around her, she hugged him tightly, molding her body to him with a contented sigh. To his credit, Urs held together very well. No stuffing was visible as they ended their hug with a brief, tender, kiss, suddenly remembering where they were.

Casually perched on a student desk, Urs surveyed Susanna’s ‘kingdom’. ‘Yes, it had her touch. Having seen her apartment, this was merely a child-oriented version of her relaxed, neatly cluttered, welcoming space. How lucky to be one of her students.

“Got cookies?” he begged, holding out the empty containers.

“Got milk?” she zinged back.

He was really on a quick dinner break he explained. They’d be meeting again to go over some last minute plans for their Australia trip tonight but he just wanted to see her. Susanna was so touched by this simple admission. Suddenly she realized how much she would miss him. They’d been discussing the trip off and on all week but now Sunday seemed so close.

When Susanna discovered he’d be free early Friday afternoon, she invited him for dinner, promising more than just a sandwich this time. He offered to bring the wine.

With arms around each other, they walked to the door. Urs pulled her close, burying his face in her hair, bestowing a soft kiss to her temple.

A quick peek into the hall showed the coast was clear so Susanna took Urs to the side entrance, deciding she’d shared him enough for one day. With that killer smile and one of those funny blinks, he turned and left. As she waved him off, she felt her knees start to buckle and wondered if he was always going to have that effect on her.

On Fridays teachers were free to leave as soon as all their students were either on the school bus or had been picked up. Susanna was poised, ready, and out the door in record time. She had places to be and a dinner to cook.

Even thought she was a little out of practice, Susanna enjoyed entertaining. She was a firm advocate of using her best linens, silverware and dishes often, not just for special occasions. If Bruce’s death had taught her anything it was that each day was a gift and should be celebrated.

She also believed in doing as much preplanning as possible so the table had been set last night, linens, china, crystal, and candles, ready for tonight. Having worked all day, her menu would be what she called ’comfort’ food, nothing fancy, just wholesome and home cooked. It would be as different as she could make it from the hotel and restaurant food Urs usually ate.

Urs arrived only 10 minutes early this time.

Susanna, wearing black slacks, a long white silk blouse, and flats, greeted him with an excited exclamation. No only had he brought wine, but also a huge mixed bouquet of flowers. As soon as he saw her face, he knew he’d guessed correctly. Flowers were definitely one of her weaknesses.

Susanna had already gone through to the kitchen leaving Urs to admire the cute little sashay of her behind under the fluid softness of her shirt. Her skinny black pants and flats made him think of Audrey Hepburn. He could just picture Susanna in that little black dress she wore in “Breakfast at Tiffany’s”. In his opinion, those cocktail dresses from the 50’s were pure sophistication.

Hanging his jacket in the closet, he caught a glimpse of himself in the mirror: black slacks and white shirt, open casually. ‘Snap!’ he thought with a chuckle.

Setting the flowers on the sink she turned and gave him what she would describe as a very enthusiastic kiss. Urs was both pleased and surprised.

“Next time I’ll bring two bouquets,” he promised.

Susanna threw him a disparaging look and rolled her eyes.

“What am I going to do with you?” she groaned.

“Try feeding me,” Urs suggested.

Urs got the cheese from the fridge while she put the flowers in a vase. As she arranged the cheese and crackers, he opened the wine and poured them each a glass. Complimenting him on his choice, a very nice Merlot, he mentally added red wine to her list of weaknesses. Over wine and cheese, they shared their day and Urs elaborated on their trip. He was really looking forward to scuba diving and maybe surfing.

Back in the kitchen, she challenged him to put his muscles to good use mashing the potatoes and tossing the salad while she supervised the rolls in the oven and sliced the meatloaf. Together they carried the food to the table; Urs lit the candles and pulled her chair out for her.

Looking at each other across the table, he took her hands and said simply, ”Thank you for this food” adding “and bless the cook,” as a smiling afterthought.

She had always run the menu past Bruce for his approval, just in case, although usually he could have cared less. So as they filled their plates and began to eat, Susanna anxiously, but discreetly watched for Urs’ reaction. He seemed very hungry, but she did notice a slight hesitation as she passed him the salad. He politely served himself a small portion.

“This looks interesting. I see some…um-unusual combinations.
What exactly is in it?” he inquired with slightly raised eyebrows.

“I’m so sorry” Susanna apologized. “You don’t have to eat it to be polite. I know it seems strange: raw broccoli, bacon, grapes, and almonds but it really is good. In fact whenever I make it for potlucks, everyone wants the recipe.”

Urs took a tentative bite and his eyebrows rose slightly higher, this time in pleasant surprise.

“Oh, and don’t worry about the slightly pink color of the dressing. It’s just from the raspberry vinegar mixed with the mayonnaise.”

‘Gott sei Dank!’ replied Urs.

Even before dessert, Susanna knew Urs had enjoyed the food as much as she’d enjoyed preparing it. The lack of leftovers spoke volumes, along with those compliments, some out loud, some mere gestures. If nothing else, it certainly gave her practice in receiving compliments with more ease. This kind could not be faked.

Sitting with her legs curled under her on the sofa next to Urs, she loved watching him practically swoon over the chocolate cake. There would be a doggie bag in his future she was sure.

Setting their empty plates on the coffee table, Urs patted the sofa next to him in gentle invitation. Uncurling her legs, Susan moved over close to him. Putting his arm around her protectively, she snuggled closer, laying her head on his chest. She could feel his heart beating. She felt her heart was in her throat. His other hand found hers, held it, gently, almost unconsciously stroking it, soothing, awakening, calming.

He could feel the tension release from her shoulders, arms, back as her body gradually yielded, allowing the imprint of these new sensations he created to replace her fear. Releasing her hand he raised her face to his and kissed her. It was a slow kiss; sweet with promise and Susanna could not resist as she timidly explored the bounty Urs was offering.

She felt herself being seduced by his nearness and was a heartbeat away from letting herself go. But something held her back and she ended the kiss with a gasp. Susanna lowered her head, unconsciously clenching both fists, trying to contain her emotions. Sensing her confusion, Urs lifted her chin to look at her and whispered, “It’s OK. Trust me.” Susanna answered with a nod and a tiny smile.

As she walked him to the door, he gave her a reassuring hug and was gone. Leaving her to stand at her spot and return his wave.

Chapter 17
A Little Night Music

Susanna was washed, dressed, combed and ready by the time the elevator rose with Mr. Rise and Shine. For what she didn’t have a clue, but was sure it would not involve wearing her pink robe.

He’d brought out the big guns today.

“Chocolate croissants, yum!” she drooled.
‘Should I be worried?’ she thought.

Throwing his leg over the chair, he handed her coffee, a brief kiss and his best smile.

“How about going for a ride today” he suggested.

“Sounds good to me.”

“How many horsepower do you think you can you handle?” Urs challenged.

Susanna swallowed hard, imagining a Harley on steroids about the size of a monster truck.

“How many do you have?” she sweated.

“One…two counting mine. Horseback riding, Houdini, horseback riding.” Urs managed to get out before he dissolved into laughter.

“Oh, sorry, I thought…you had me worried there for a minute.” Susanna hoped she didn’t sound too relieved.

“I haven’t ridden in about a year though. Do you think I’ll have trouble?” she wanted to know.

“Neither have I, but we can just take it easy. We’ll ask them for some little old lady horses” Urs teased.

After a quick call to confirm the time, he elaborated. He’d booked them for an hour ride at noon. The stable provided boots and hats. Then if she wanted to…only if she wanted to, they could go to dinner and maybe listen to some music. She absolutely wanted to.

Susanna decided they’d need a little more breakfast to tie them over until their early dinner. Over scrambled eggs and bacon, Urs gave a running commentary from some brochures about Australia. Susanna was especially interested in the unusual animals since she was planning a field trip to Regents Park Zoo in a few weeks.

Urs loved her enthusiasm and imagined she sounded much like one of her students as she picked out her favorites, mostly by their strange names…bandicoot, wombat, platypus, and of course the darling furry koala.

The dugong or sea cow also caught her attention because she was very familiar with manatees, another type of sea cow. They lived in the canals and waterways near her parents’ home in Florida and were noted for their gentle, friendly curiosity around humans. Her class had even adopted one as part of the Save the Manatee Program.

****************

They arrived at Hyde Park Stables, were outfitted, and assured all the horses were chosen for their safe temperament. Urs was given a gray gelding and a beautiful chestnut mare was selected for Susanna.

After a few instructions, they led their horses out, mounted and were off down Rotten Row and along the five miles of bridleways skirting the Serpentine, the beautiful, long lake in the heart of Hyde Park.

The horses seemed as eager as their riders to be out on this crisp, cool, sunny October morning. Old skills soon returned as Urs and Susanna picked up the pace from a trot to a canter, easing into a familiar rhythm.

They rode in companionable silence, broken only by the tattoo of hooves, the creak of leather, and the crunch of leaves underfoot. Occasionally they would exchange a look, a laugh, or a smile, in silent confirmation of their enjoyment.

As they returned the horses and equipment, they agreed the hour had flown by, but both reluctantly admitted their backsides had kept track of the time.

Urs dropped Susanna off with an enthusiastic kiss, a request to wear a dress and be ready at 5:00. He did not drop the three containers of cookies she gave him and promised to remember the ‘s’ word: share.

*********

A long, hot soak in the tub did wonders for Susanna’s protesting muscles. She wondered if Urs was doing the same. 4:50 and she was ready. Was she good or what? Not quite as good as she thought because Urs arrived at 4:51.

‘Yes! I knew she must have a little black dress.’ Urs thought thankfully.

Even this quick thought was difficult as he stood on the doorstep grinning like a fool. She was a vision in that dress and she’d worn it for him. It was a simply cut wool crepe dress, a sleeveless, v-neck top with a softly gathered knee-length skirt. Her only adornments were small pearl earrings and her now familiar scent, Angel. Her delicate open-toed, ankle strap high heels added several inches.

‘All the easier to reach my mouth’ Urs thought happily and he proved it with a resounding kiss.

He helped her on with her coat, briefly pulling her close, nuzzling her fragrant hair. Holding hands in the elevator, Susanna suddenly wondered if they were using her car. As if reading her mind, Urs explained he had a cab waiting.

He had chosen a French restaurant tonight with a country ambiance, cozy and intimate. They agreed the rack of lamb was delicious and the Crème Brulee, one of Susanna’s favorites, was exquisite.

Susanna noticed Urs checking his watch during coffee and again as they got into the cab. ‘Maybe he has a lot of packing to do’ she thought, feeling a little deflated. She’d hoped to spend at least a few minutes with him, snuggling on the couch as they listened to some romantic music.

‘Well not too romantic’, she cautioned herself, remembering last night.

“Do you need to get home soon?” she asked.

“Oh, no, not just yet although I will need to make it an early night. I have a little last minute packing to do and the car is coming for us at 4:00 AM.” he clarified.

This did not look like the way to Susanna’s apartment.
She hadn’t heard Urs give the cabbie her address or any address for that matter.

“Are we going somewhere else?”

“Yes, remember, to listen to music.”

“Oh, but I thought you meant…” Susanna rattled on.

“You and your dress certainly deserve more than music from a CD tonight, especially since I won’t get to see you for ten days.’ Urs rationalized.

Urs barely gave her heart time to register his ‘warm fuzzy’ before the cab stopped in front of St. Martin-in-the-Fields. Hand in hand they walked up the steps and were escorted to their seats.

The candlelit concert was about to begin. Mozart, of course, Eine Kleine Nachtmusik to be precise. Susanna was enchanted by the music, soaring and filling every magnificent corner of the church.

Without looking at her, he reached over and took her hand. She looked at him as he listened, his face intent on savoring every nuance of the glorious sound and a thought, unexpected and unbidden, filled her mind. It was as though this music was part of him, part of his culture, part of his essence! She felt privileged to share this evening with him and gently squeezed his hand in return.

Urs had the cab wait while he escorted Susanna to the door. Fondly, she thought of the first time he’d done that. It seemed so long ago, but yet it was only a few weeks.

Again he took her key and unlocked the door, but tonight there were no awkward apologies, no proffered hands. Only Urs holding her tightly, two whispered ‘I’ll miss yous’ and a long, but safe and undemanding kiss. When it finally ended, Susanna gifted him with ‘Take care of yourself,’ then turned toward her door ready to wave to him from her usual window.

Urs turned to leave, his arm raised in a wave.

Abruptly, Susanna turned back and grasped his hand. In one smooth movement she pulled him back, drew his face down to hers and impulsively kissed him full on the lips. It was a kiss that was lingering yet so fleeting, was hungry but still held back something. She shut her eyes as the emotions unlocked by the kiss began to overtake her.

Suddenly she opened her eyes and she looked at him; feeling quite shocked by her actions and putting her hand to her mouth, fled back into her apartment. Long after she returned his wave, long after he sped off in the cab, they were each left to wonder: what had just happened?

Chapter 18
Relax and Breathe

Tonight, Susanna sat with unfolded legs at the kitchen table, staring at the blinking cursor, oblivious to its call to get back to her lesson plans. Shifting gingerly on the soft pillow, protesting muscles in her thighs and backside from yesterday’s ride accomplished what the cursor could not.

With a sigh, she attempted to refocus on activities for the five new word wall words. Maybe she needed a little break, no matter she’d had three already in the last hour. She slowly stood up, stretched and walked to the fridge for some water.

I wonder where he is now?

She would just take a little peek. Opening a bookmark on her desktop, a world map appeared. Slowly she traced a line from London to Sydney and stopped. Pulling up another site, The Personal World Clock, she read the time: London 8:00 PM Sunday, Sydney 9:00 AM Monday. Poor guys, they weren’t due to land till 4:00 PM, seven more hours.

Urs said they’d heard the ‘Kangaroo Route’ was a killer. ‘At least they have a little leg room,’ she mused, thinking especially of long, tall, David. They were all thankful to be booked into first class. She could just picture David requiring the Jaws of Life to remove him from his seat otherwise. Idly she imagined them, rumpled, a little worse for wear, stiffly getting their land legs after all that enforced sitting.

Overcome by a silly mood, she could see Urs setting his watch on the hour, and marshaling the other three up and down the aisle like penguins marching, to insure their circulation remained normal. He’d probably have to wake Carlos gently and then run for cover, from what Gerry had told her.

She imagined David’s girlfriend, Sandy greeting him at the airport. Luckily the production she was singing with had just ended, giving her the opportunity to join David, at least for the Australia part of the trip. The love he had for her had lit up his whole face as he talked about her last Sunday at Gerry’s dinner.

Did Il Divo have any fans yet in Australia? It was their first trip there after all.
Would they be surprised if there were fans?
Would the fans ask for autographs? Pictures?
If Sandy was there would she stay in the background?

‘Why do you need to know about Il Divo fans?’ she asked herself.
‘Does it really matter how Sandy and David manage their relationship?
Why are you interested in how Gerry and Carlos handle their separations?’ her mind demanded.
‘Is it because of Urs? That kiss? You’re changing you know’ she observed.
‘I don’t know if I like change. I want things to stay the same but get better.’ refuted her heart.

Susanna realized there were a lot of things she wanted, no needed to know about Il Divo and she knew just who to ask. Thank goodness Madrid was only an hour ahead and Gerry always stayed up late.

******************************

Actually Susanna wasn’t so far off the mark about Urs and his watch. Perhaps not on the hour, but frequently, he prompted Carlos, Seb, and David to stretch, move around and walk. Keeping his promise, he did share his cookies, well at least one box.

So between dinner, cookies, iPods, computers, books, movies and sleeping, the 23-hour flight only felt like 24 hours, they wryly agreed as they unkinked their muscles and deplaned.

Collecting their luggage at the arrival carousel, Urs found a clock and reluctantly reset his watch to Sydney time. Keeping it set to London time had been comforting to him, as if he was still in touch with Susanna, still in the same time zone, if only in his mind. More times than he’d care to count, throughout the marathon flight he had glanced down and thought ’I wonder what she’s doing now?’

And her parting kiss had really thrown him for a loop.
What was that all about? Whatever it was, he wanted more. He wanted her to trust him, to be his friend, to feel safe enough to say anything to him. Yes, he could see her becoming, changing, testing. He was amazed by who she was already, but someday… when she finally figured out who she was, he wanted to be there.

***********************

‘Thank you Alexander Graham Bell’ Susanna offered up as she snapped her cell phone shut. That was just what she needed, a little phone therapy. Gerry had been more than happy to answer her questions.

Yes, there were some fans in Australia, thought not nearly as many as in the UK. They were usually very polite and respectful. The men didn’t advertise their unavailability, after all they were ‘romancing the world’, so wives and girlfriends usually were not front and center. Although publicly acknowledged, each man’s private life was just that.

Long separations were difficult, but both she and Sandy were fortunate to share the same driving passion for their musical careers as their partners. They were on the same page. They knew and understood the pleasure and pain of a grueling tour or performance schedule. They took advantage of any opportunity to be together, knowing for the time being at least this was how things must be.

Then it was Gerry’s turn for questions. To her credit, Susanna treated her to almost an hour of ‘he saids/she saids’, only censoring the emotional kisses. In the end, Susanna appreciated how Gerry would mirror back her statements, somehow making them sound like casual, ordinary, everyday happenings between two people getting to know each other, nothing more, nothing less.

‘I need to just calm down and relax. I’m just nervous because I’m not used to making new friends yet, especially not men. I can see that now. It’s no big deal.
Just relax and breathe.’ she told herself.

************************

Susanna was in the shower when the phone rang just after 6:00 AM Monday. Grabbing a towel and dripping into the bedroom, she was greeted with, “Got cookies?” in a low, sexy, but decidedly tired voice.

“Got milk?” she teased, her warm, husky voice betraying her pleasure at hearing from him.‘During the night, the voice fairy had evidently absconded with my cool, calm and collected one,’ she thought, feeling a little self-conscious at her arousal.

Urs admitted to being dead on his feet, but wanted to let her know they’d arrived safely. They were staying in the Park Hyatt Sydney and had a fabulous view of the Harbour and the Opera House. Due to the time difference and their schedule, he wasn’t sure if he’d get a chance to call again before the weekend, but promised to email and send postcards.

Saving the most important for last, “I drew Seb as a roommate, so at least I’ll be able to sleep in peace.”

‘Should I say it? It’s only been one day. No, play it cool. Stick to the cookies.’ he thought to himself.

“I’m almost out of cookies.” he confessed.

“I’ll make some more this weekend with nuts of course” she promised.

“Night, Houdini.”

“Night, Bag Boy.”

Chapter 19
Picture Postcards

Owls were suddenly roosting in Room 23. When the ‘whooooos’, subsided, they were replaced by their cousins, “wheres, whens, and hows’. Rosemary, Joanne, and Ann the secretary really had contained themselves all day Friday, but this was a brand new week and all bets were off. Susanna owed them a weekend report, well at least a brief outline, Ok then, just a yes or no, did she see him?

Laughing, Susanna hung up her coat and started unpacking her bookbag. Yes, she saw Urs on Friday and Saturday. She’d cooked dinner for them Friday night and then…saved by the bell.

Promising to continue this at lunch she shooed them out the door as Larry the Learned, with several children on his heels, bounded through the door.

“Good morning, Miss Nelson”.

Yes, she grinned, it was. At lunch, she’d tricked them about the riding, purposely leading them to believe it was on his bike and then throwing in the horse.
‘Urs would be proud of me,’ she thought.

Her friends gave her a B on her dinner report, but the candlelit concert was definitely below grade level due to very sketchy details. Her presentation was also a little below par, she seemed extremely distracted and almost dreamy at times.

Then she’d made a fatal mistake, mentioning he might send a postcard and she was thinking of sending one back. They zoomed in on it like true birds of prey.

“When did he say that?” Rosemary demanded
.
“How do you know where to send it?” cried Marissa.

“He called! Why didn’t you say?” they both wailed.

Soothing their ruffled feathers, Susanna gave them a summary almost as brief as the phone call.

“They got there OK. They’re tired. He’s almost out of cookies.”

SNAP! That was it!
Susanna quickly packed up her lunch bag and left on a mission. She had an offer for Joanne, the computer guru. An offer she couldn’t refuse. She hoped. And that was how Urs got his cookies and brownies delivered to Australia, first class.

The gods must have been smiling on Susanna because this was her week with no recess duty. She would send him a postcard every day. As she sat at her desk addressing her first postcard to Urs she was bubbling over with excitement. What she wouldn’t give to be there when he got it!

She supposed it would have been more refined, more adult, to wait until she received one from him, but that could take days. Besides it would probably take him another day just to wake up enough to string a few words together into a simple sentence in an email let alone a postcard.

I wonder what his handwriting is like? I hope I’ll be able to read it. Don’t worry, it can’t be any worse that what you’ve seen already!

Somehow that idea was not very comforting.

It was difficult to tell who was more ready for the school day to end, Susanna or the children. Staying the required thirty minutes after dismissal, Susanna stuffed her book bag and bolted out the door, heading for the nearest post office. At the counter she bought not only enough stamps for several postcards, but also a dozen blank postcards. After putting the required stamps on the card, she gave it to the postman, wishing that Australia were several days closer.

****************************

Urs & company finally surfaced midmorning Tuesday. After breakfast, they went over their tentative schedule. Wednesday was a taping for DWTS, Thursday and Friday were early morning TV appearances and an early morning interview on Monday before their late night flight.

On paper, there seemed to be some good chunks of time left for sightseeing, checking out the beaches, and a promised speedboat trip around the Harbour. This would change if more publicity opportunities came up, and they usually did. You had to get yourself out there to build up your fan base, sell CD’s, and become recognized.

Seizing the opportunity for some free time, they separated. Seb and Carlos headed for Manly Beach, while David took Sandy to see the Opera House where he’d performed.

After sending Susanna a brief email outlining their schedule, Urs stopped at one of the shops in the lobby to find as many animal postcards as possible along with stamps and then to buy a disposable camera. He was going on a field trip of his own.

Sitting in the coffee shop, he addressed the postcard. He’d remembered her going on about the manatees in Florida vs. the dugongs in Australia, so that must be the first card.




Then he had another thought.

‘What if she showed the card to her class? I’d better not say anything personal, just in case. And maybe it would be a good idea to print. Bad idea, she’ll think I don’t know how to write.’

Finally he came up with the perfect solution. He’d send a scenic one to her and an animal one to her class.
Returning with postcards of famous Sydney sights, he chose the Sydney Opera House for Susanna. Quickly writing, not so quickly printing, he finished, added the stamps and dropped them into the nearest mailbox.



A 45-minute ride brought him to the entrance.
‘Featherdale Wildlife Park’ it read, ‘Australia’s largest private collection of native animals and bird life’.
SNAP! Urs could hardly wait to present Susanna with the CD of all the animal pictures he’d take. ‘Her class will love it and what a way to make brownie points!’ he thought smugly. ‘Oops! Better not be thinking about brownies. It’ll be a long while until I get some of those again.’ he lectured himself.

Fortunately for Susanna, the International Date Line was in her favor so Urs postcard arrived at school Wednesday morning along with an email. Why did she still find it amazing that he kept his promises; he was reliable. He’d written to her class, he’d remembered her talking about the dugong, and best of all he had printed, very neatly. He had made brownie points, indeed.

At science time, Susanna had her very own ‘show and tell’, explaining that this was her friend from Switzerland who was visiting Australia and had sent a card to the class. After a mini geography lesson locating both places on the globe and map, she hinted that maybe they would see a dugong when they went to the zoo in two weeks. She read the card to the class and then passed it around and added it to their growing bulletin board display for their animal unit.

If Urs postcard to the class amazed her, the one to her home thrilled her, not in its message, but in its motivation. The fact that he had taken the time to send another card just to her made her feel special, important, and valued. Something she hadn’t felt in a long time.

Fortunately for Urs, there’s not much space on a postcard for a message. That made it much easier to fill the space with news about their appearances and no room to mention his venture into the wilds of Australia. His up close and personal experiences needed to be shared in person.

Wednesday’s rehearsal and taping for DWTS went off without a hitch. Seb did need a little extra time in make-up to disguise a rather pink face, although both he and Carlos enthused over the sand, sea, and surf on Manly Beach.

It didn’t take long for the rest to catch the ‘beach’ bug. They decided that Friday as soon as their early morning appearance was over, they’d all head out to Bondi, the sooner the better to avoid the crowds. None of them had ever surfed before but they were all game, even Sandy.

Sandy had enjoyed David’s trip down memory lane via the Opera House and they’d lunched on some delicious seafood at Doyles on the quay, evidently a seafood institution in Sydney since WWII. Carlos, Seb, and Urs had no doubt the rest of their afternoon trip down memory lane was equally enjoyable but were discreet enough not to ask.

Urs was the target of some good-natured ribbing about his ‘back to nature’ craze. He surprised even himself by nonchalantly mentioning he was taking some pictures of unusual Australian animals for Susanna’s class, in addition to getting a chance to ride and get a lot of fresh air, of course.

After eating dinner together, they decided to continue on to a jazz club, but Urs opted to try out the hotel pool. He’d already checked it out before his workout this morning, right after he’d stopped at the front desk to mail postcards #2, a koala and Bondi Beach.

Chapter 20
Postcards From Home or Suzy Loves Sydney

On Thursday, one thing seemed to lead to another all day long. After another ’wake up’ appearance and short interview, it seemed Steve had some new plans. A quick meet and greet at a local bookstore turned into late afternoon before they managed to leave.

They were really shocked by the number of fans that showed up to see them. Although not what you would call a screaming horde, there was a steady stream of potential Divas of all ages, eager to get an autograph and snap a picture.

Seeing the potential of this type of exposure for Il Divo and future sales for the bookstore chain, by the time they left, a similar appearance had been arranged for Saturday morning. This time Il Divo would sing two songs from their album.

On the way back to the hotel, the three ‘amigos’ settled on dinner in the hotel, knowing David and Sandy would have plans that only included each other. They agreed to meet later in the restaurant, after a much-needed shower and maybe even a nap. Who knew Australia in November could be so hot?

As Urs passed by the front desk, he heard his name called. Looking up, the desk clerk was holding up some messages for him. At least he thought they were messages. And they were, kind of. Urs took the two postcards, hurried to a secluded corner of the lobby, flopped down in a comfy chair and began to read.

Written in beautifully slanted and formed letters, the content of the postcards was casual and friendly, even newsy. The closing was a simple ‘Take care’, but the context of the postcards brought the warmth of the Australian summer straight to Urs heart. She was returning his gesture, perhaps even before his card had reached her. She was matching his attempt, equaling his effort, acknowledging their connection.

And as he turned her postcards over he could see her teasing spirit and caring nature in the pictures on the front: delicious, colorful, mouth-watering chocolate chip cookies and brownies.





Throwing his head back and laughing, he thought, ‘There’s nothing like postcards from home.’ After a long, cool shower, Urs wrapped a towel around his waist and propped himself up on the bed to write postcards #3, a bandicoot and the Taronga Zoo.






“Ah, that feels soooo wonderful, Lee” Susanna moaned as she sank into the pedicure chair and lowered her tired feet into the deliciously warm, swirling water.

Having recently fed her iPod with Il Divo, Susanna usually tuned in, closed her eyes, and relaxed at the nail salon, but not tonight. She just sat grinning like a fool and staring at a darling koala and his even more darling friend. This was one postcard she had not shared with the class…maybe tomorrow. Had he only been gone a few days? It seemed like at least a week.




Susanna had only recently discovered the delights of having a pedicure, but now she was totally addicted. Due to her ticklish feet, from her earliest salon days she had resigned herself to the role of spectator in this particular form of pampering. In fact, her feet were so ticklish that sometimes when she was putting on socks, she even tickled herself!

Then one day after getting her nails done, she decided to throw caution to the wind. Following an extremely detailed explanation of her ‘ticklish’ problem and a promise from Lee to stop on command, she took the plunge, literally. The rest as they say was history. Oh there were still parts on the bottom of her instep that caused giggles once in awhile if rubbed too hard, but it didn’t happen very often.

She preferred a simple French manicure for her hands. It looked professional yet feminine and went with any outfit, but her feet were a horse of a different color.

Of course with her love for silly and invented words, ala Dr. Seuss, she fell in love with OPI polish. She adored their catchy names and seriously thought if she couldn’t teach she’d enjoy having a job thinking up new names for colors. They just rolled off your tongue: Aphrodite’s Pink Nightie, Chocolate Shakes-peare, Frier, Frier, Pants on Fire, Melon of Troy, and of course Ch Ching Cherry, her current favorite.

Whenever she came in, Lee was sure to let her know if any new color collections had arrived and tonight the gods had indeed smiled down on her. The ‘Australia’ collection was just in., and as if that weren’t enough, one seemed to be named with her in mind, Suzy Loves Sydney. It was sign! Even her toes were meant to remind her of Urs. Of course she’d suffer having those same toenails pulled out before she’d let him know.

Susanna lay back and closed her eyes as the massage chair gently relaxed her body and Lee began to massage her feet and legs with fragrant lotion. Laughing at Susanna’s ohhhhhhs and ahhhhhhs, Lee commented, “About as much fun as you can have with your clothes on.”

Suddenly Susanna’s memory jerked back to the fiasco of her honeymoon night. She had dreamed of a night of romance, beautiful music, soft touches, and gentle lovemaking. She had been given a nightmare of reality; she had abandoned her dreams to a clumsy drunk who had eventually passed out on top of her and snored all night.
Welcome to the real world of marriage.

‘Ok Susanna, Life is too short for long pity parties. Put your big girl panties on and deal with it!’ she reprimanded herself.

“Lee, I think I’ll try ‘Suzy Love Sydney’ this week” she announced with a little smile.

Chapter 21
Seals On The Beach

“We’re all set. I’ve booked us for the Bondi Surf Experience at 1:00. That should give us plenty of time since that appearance on ‘Sunrise’ should leave us free by at least 10:00, even if there are fans waiting for pics and autographs.” Seb announced at dinner Thursday night.

“What about David and Sandy?” Carlos asked.

“I’ve already called him and he and Sandy are good to go.”

“You know Seb none of us had ever surfed before,” Urs reminded.

“No problem, this class is for first time surfers and we’ll have our own private instructor. We’ll be in a class by ourselves.” Seb reassured them.

“That’s for sure!” Urs replied with a head shake and eye roll worthy of Susanna.

‘What do we wear?” Carlos wanted to know.

“Just your regular swim trunks. They provide the surfboard and the wetsuit.” Seb explained knowingly.

“What is this wetsuit?” Carlos looked puzzled and so did his eyebrows.

‘You know, those rubber suits that divers wear, Carlos. Don’t worry. It will make you look like a …..professional. “ Urs soothed.

“Professional? Professional what?” Clearly Carlos was becoming concerned about his image.

“Don’t worry, Carlos you’ll like just like a professional surfer, and Seb here,” Urs said, putting a friendly arm on his shoulder, ‘will look like a professional… ‘frogman.’”

Convulsing with laughter, Urs and Carlos drew a few amused stares from the patrons at the next table. Seb was most assuredly not amused, but short of creating a scene there was nothing he could do….for now. Somehow he was sure the opportunity to tease Urs would come up. All he needed to do was wait.

Having to be at the TV studio by 6:00AM put the damper on any clubbing plans, so after a nightcap in the hotel bar, they headed to their rooms.

********************************

Friday Susanna checked her email at home before she left for school and sure enough, another one from Urs. He’d had a good laugh over the virtual cookies and brownies she’d sent. What a great way to start the weekend!

Since she wasn’t seeing Urs this weekend, she was looking forward to some heavy-duty retail therapy with Rosemary, Joanne, and Marissa on Saturday. The plan was to shop till they dropped, preferably at a nice restaurant, and end with a chick flick, provided they were still conscious by that time.

Therefore, sticking to her motto of ‘meat and potatoes’ before ‘dessert’ she sat at her desk after school Friday writing her last two postcards, snickerdoodles and razzleberry pie, to Urs.

Hurrying to the post office so they’d make the last pick-up of the day, a thought suddenly came to her. How would she categorize Urs? Meat and potatoes or dessert?

Pulling on her gloves and scarf, she headed out into the cold, November darkness imagining them having surfing lessons on the warm Australian beach.

*******************************

And just how were the student surfers faring on this hot afternoon?
‘Mad dogs and Englishmen go out in the midday sun.’
As they liberally powdered themselves and attempted, with varying degrees of success, to don their wetsuits, they unanimously agreed: one little hour didn’t make a whole heck of a difference.

With their acts more or less together, the lesson began.
Starting out on the beach, they were taught how to recognize surf conditions and various safety precautions, including shark netting to protect the swimmers. The main thing to remember: watch and listen to Jake their instructor.

They did specific warm-ups and stretches to help prevent any injuries from tight or unused muscles. Then, still on the beach, they practiced their surfing techniques such as paddling, standing up and keeping their balance.

Off to the ocean they went where they started off in broken waves – the white foam created after the waves run their course. Cautiously they attempted to do what they had practiced, ever grateful for Jake’s presence, helping, guiding, showing, and correcting.

Carlos was the man!
Chest puffed out, stance balanced, feet positioned perfectly on the board; he was the surfer god riding Neptune’s waves.

Suddenly, he saw something…a fin in the water.

Why were the others, still thigh deep in the white foam, not scurrying to shore as if the hounds of hell were after them?
Why were they pointing toward something behind him? ‘What were they all shouting?

A horrible thought occurred to him, ‘Madre de Dios, I am the food for the fish!’

Fortunately, by now the small wave had carried him close enough to shore so he could jump off, grab his board, and scrabble, splash and stumble onto the beach, collapsing in a heaving mass, barely able to relay his dire warning, “Shark, there’s a shark out there!” His eyes were as big as saucers; big, white, saucers, rivaling his teeth on the brightness scale. No longer could he be mistaken for a surfer god.

Meanwhile, his surfer companions were also in a heap, laughing uncontrollably with tears running down their faces. Gradually they would begin to calm down and then point to Carlos and start howling again. Sandy was laughing so hard she actually had the hiccups. Finally Jake got control of himself enough to walk over to Carlos.

“So you thought you were sharkbait, eh Carlos? Well you do look rather like a seal ,” he said, gently nudging him with his foot, “ but fortunately for you that wasn’t a shark. That was just a dolphin, Carlos.” Then as Carlos struggled to comprehend, Jake added reassuringly, “You’re safe, mate.”

“You all knew?” asked Carlos, still gaping and pointing to the others.

“Of course, they did.” Jake snorted. “Remember me telling you all about the shark netting around the beach? Look, there he goes back out to sea. Now what say we get back to the surfing. We’ve still got half an hour left.”

Later as they drove away after returning their wetsuits and boards, Jake sat down to write his report. All five members of the class have stood up and surfed.

Chapter 22
Milk and Cookies

On Saturday while Susanna & company were jointly attempting to save the lagging retail sales of greater London, Urs & company were regrouping over breakfast.

At the same time Il Divo has been surfing the waves, Sony management had been surfing for PR opportunities. As a result, they were scheduled this afternoon for a long interview for the ‘Video Hits’ TV show. It would be a perfect showcase for their ‘Mama’ video. Of course the fact that their first album had just reached #1 in Australia wasn’t exactly bad timing either. What a break!

The four looked the very height of relaxed sophistication as they lounged nonchantly in comfortable chairs for the interview. Wearing suits of varying dark hues, white shirts, and ties they modestly commented on their success, earnestly discussed their future, and deftly avoided answering personal questions, except to say Australia had beautiful women. Obviously their mothers didn’t raise any fools.

David’s answers articulated perfectly the Il Divo credo. When asked about their formula for continued success in view of their recent accomplishments, he recalled the adage of not letting the tail wag the dog. Elaborating, he clarified that they must stay true to who they were and what they did. The heart and effort they put into their singing could not be faked.

****************************

Susanna’s living room was littered with shopping bags, shoe boxes, purses, and four women, all suffering from shopitis in extremis.

“Boy, my dogs are barking.” complained Marissa, toeing off her shoes and rubbing her feet.

Her dogs were quickly joined by six others being vigorously massaged and wiggled back into life.

There had been a slight change in plans with regard to phase 2 of the Girls Day Out: dinner. As their enthusiam for shopping increased, their eagerness for dinner out decreased, and by late afternoon was replaced by phase 2A: Chinese take away at Susanna’s apartment.The menu was passed around, selections made, and food ordered.

Marissa drew the short straw and left to pick up dinner. When she returned, the various bags and boxes were pounced on as if they were bargains at the day after Chrismas sale. Almost before you could say Cocoanut Curry Shrimp Noodle Soup, all that remained were empty cartons, discarded chop sticks, fortune cookies wrappers, and four shopping buddies with comfortably full stomachs.

After a lightning fast tidy up, it was time for ‘shop and show’. This was their big chance to share their day’s treasures, show off clothes, try on shoes, and pass around their latest must haves.

“OK Susanna. Time to come clean. Take away those bedhead curls, gorgeous smile, beautiful eyes, sculpted cheekbones, killer bod, and angelic voice and what do you have?” Joanne joked.

“Why Joanne I do believe you sound like one of those Ubers. Is that what you call them?” Susanna grinned back.

“100% and proud of it and this little Uber is not about to forget our deal either. “ declared Joanne adamantly.

“Don’t worry. Just remember to leave me your CD cover and I’ll get Urs to sign it for you.” Susanna promised, mentally estimating how much and what kind of dessert this favor would require.

“Those food pictures you found worked great. All I needed to do was trim and glue them to some plain postcards and ‘presto’ instant desserts. Don’t worry, I’ll make sure Urs knows how helpful you were.” Susanna pledged.

“Now seriously, Susanna, besides all that stuff Joanne mentioned, what’s he really like?” Rosemary pressed on.

Susanna took a minute to gather her thoughts.
“I know he really listens to me because he remembers what I’ve said” she bragged with pride. “Do you know he actually asked me where I wanted to go and then when I named a place he agreed and we went there? I feel feminine and protected when I’m with him and when I don’t know how to do things it’s alright.” she divulged shyly.“He never makes fun of me” came her soft voice. “He hasn’t tried to control me. Not even once.” Susanna slowly realized with astonishment.

Her friends sat in embarrassed silence, stunned by this litany of feelings pouring out of Susanna. Embarrassed not by what she said, but because they knew how unique these experiences were for Susanna.They knew what her life with Bruce had been like.

As the door buzzer rang, Susanna breathed a sigh of relief. Again she had been saved by the bell.

**********************************

In the car on the way back to the hotel, Steve informed them of yet another engagement, this one more pleasure than duty. Dinner tonight would be at Tetsuya’s, an exclusive modern Japanese restaurant serving a fusion of Eastern and Western cuisine.

It would be rather informal, a few Sony execs and their wives and of course Sandy was also invited. The car would pick them up at 7:30, so they agreed to meet in the lobby then.

Urs decided he had enough time to visit the gym, but first stopped at the front desk to check his mail. Two more postcards today… snickerdoodles and razzleberry pie. YUM!

Reading them on the way to the elevator, he paused suddenly, mid-stride.‘Take care, Susanna’ he read, beaming. Turning the postcard over he came to an instant decision. Snickerdoodles were now his favorite cookie. Entering the empty elevator and pushing the door button, he gave an exuberant punch in the air. Yes!

Back in his room, Urs turned on his computer and dashed off a quick email letting Susanna know he’d received the two cards. After changing into his gym clothes, he headed out the door, grabbing his credit card on a whim. Deciding, with a grin, it needed a workout too.

***************************

While it was a rather puzzled Susanna who buzzed the visitor through, it was a completely overwhelmed Susanna who responded to the knock at the door. As her curious friends looked on, she was presented with a clear glass fishbowl vase holdiing a domed bouquet of pink roses tied with raffia. Her hands flew to her mouth in surprise and she could feel her eyes fill up.

In a daze, she did manage to remember a tip and close the door. Reverently cradling the vase in her hands, she slowly moved back into the living room and set it on the coffee table. Opening the small white card with unsteady hands, she smiled as she read it silently:

Hi Houdini,
I’m hoping you can work your magic and turn my virtual cookies into real ones. I’ll bring the milk.
Take care,
Bag Boy

**************************

As Seb, Carlos, Urs, David and Sandy sat in one of the two main dining rooms in Tetsuya’s that night, they had a sudden realization of just how far they had come in this short time. Often during the evening looks would pass between them as if to say: Is this really happening? Did you ever imagine we’d have these opportunities to perform? to travel?

The Sony executives, their wives, and Il Divo all seemed to feel extremely relaxed and comfortable in this ‘out of the office’ atmosphere as conversation flowed easily over cocktails.

Looking out over the Japanese garden, they studied the menu showcasing Tetsuya’s unique cuisine, based on Japanese philosophy enhanced by class French cooking techniques. Choosing a ‘when in Rome’ attitude, the Divos decided on the ‘degustation set menu’, a comprehensive sampling of the restaurant’s featured dishes.

Carefully prepared, artfully presented delicious choices were placed before them: Tasmanian Pacific Oysters, Ravioli of Lobster and Crab, and Grilled Wagyu Beef. In fact, even their eating choices attested to their newly found success.

Why was it then, Urs pondered, that when dessert was brought out, Floating Island with Praline and Vanilla Bean Anglaise, he would have been perfectly satisfied with…no, longed for, milk and cookies?

Chapter 23
Souvenirs

What chick flick they watched, what time the girls left, even exactly how the flowers managed to get to the kitchen table, was pretty much a blur to Susanna as she lay in bed later Saturday night trying to collect her thoughts.

She was caught up in a reverie of seeing the flowers and reading the card. A dreamy smile softened her features as she blushingly recalled slipping the card under her pillow.

Rolling on her side she grabbed the extra pillow and pulled it close in to her, cuddling, squeezing, hugging it as she burrowed deeper under the soft down duvet. As she finally drifted off to sleep, she gave the pillow a little extra squeeze. All she knew for sure was that dear, romantic, wonderful, man’s stuffing was going to be sorely tested the next time she hugged him.

********************

Urs was already into his second cup of coffee by the time Carlos and Seb joined him for breakfast Sunday morning in the hotel coffee shop.

During dinner last evening several of the Sony people insisted a visit to Sydney was not complete without seeing the Blue Mountains. Consequently, on the way to their rooms they stopped in the lobby to make arrangements for their tour.

David and Sandy wanted to spend their last full day by themselves. Tomorrow, she would travel with them as far as Frankfurt. Then while she was flying home to New York, Il Divo would be going on to Madrid for three days. Carlos was practically dancing with anticipation.

As they talked about these plans, David and Sandy wistfully, Carlos eagerly, Urs unexpectedly felt the odd man out.

Oh sure, there was always Seb, but Juliana and he had been practically joined at the hip just one trip ago. Looking back he realized that ever since his girlfriend had broken off their long term relationship, he’d been the token single guy of the group.

‘How long had it been now? Almost a year.’ he suddenly realized. ‘Well so what? Well so…so why do I keep replaying pieces of conversations with Susanna, how she dresses, even that funny pink robe, how good she smells, how she likes to hug?’ Finding no logical explanation other than he felt happy when he was around her, he consulted his watch, and announced it was time for their tour pick-up.

They had arranged for a driver/guide and a 4WD vehicle. That way they could get off the beaten track and experience the beauty of the vast wild natural eucalyptus forest regions. Less than two hours travel brought them to the mountain village of Katoomba, the best place to get the full experience of the Blue Mountains, according to their guide. Purposely bypassing the restaurants, trendy cafés, and shopping, they headed for one of Australia’s icons of nature, the Three Sisters, viewing it from Echo Point.
Picking up a bushwalk trail called the Giant Stairway they continued for an hour and then returned for a ride into the rainforest on the steepest cable car in Australia.

Continuing in their vehicle, they they drove along the scenic cliff tops to Sublime Point, for a breathtaking view of the Blue Mountains, with the magnificent Megalong Valley far below. After stopping for afternoon tea, they finished their day with a cruise down the Parramatta River and into Sydney Harbor. Sailing under the Sydney Harbor Bridge and beside the Opera House into Circular Quay, they unanimously agreed this was a day they would remember forever.

*****************************

Susanna appreciated the opportunity to sleep in Sunday morning, since it was the wee small hours before her mind relaxed enough for sleep to enter.

Hurrying home from church, she did a quick whip round the house, threw in a load of laundry, and plopped down at the kitchen table to pour over her cookbooks.

Several hours and a dishwasher crammed full with bowls, spatulas, and spoons later, she surveyed her masterpieces with a satisfied grin.

Her pink roses smiled benevolently down on a precisely designed garden of goodies overflowing her huge farmhouse table. Neat rows of dark brown chocolate cookies with powdered sugar cracks were flanked by bumpy raisin studded oatmeal crispies and rich red brown ginger crinkles dipped in plain sugar. A golden pound cake stood proud in it’s buttery beauty while a pan of apple crisp cooled beside it. Two pies: apple/cranberry and blackberry gazed in wide eyed wonder at the array.
Experiencing a ‘why not’ moment, Susanna picked up her phone.

*******************

Arriving back at the hotel about 8:00 Carlos, Seb, and Urs relaxed over steaks and drinks in the downstairs grill and then reluctantly went upstairs to start packing. Tomorrow after checking out, they had one last brief early morning radio interview. They had all brought comfortable clothes to change into, anticipating their long flight to Frankfurt and on to Madrid.

It was Seb’s turn to shower first tonight and by the time he was finished Urs clothes for tomorrow were laid out neatly on the chair and his luggage was ready by the door, all except that one large bag still in the bottom of the dresser.Try as he might, there was no way it would fit in his suitcase.He would have to carry it on.

As Urs reluctantly turned off the warm massaging jets, he heard his phone ring. Hurriedly wrapping a towel around his waist he dripped to the desk to answer it. It was a text message from Susanna. Flipping it open he read, ‘I need milk.’, accompanied by a picture of her garden of goodies.

With a Cheshire cat grin he sent his reply, ‘Not as much as I need cookies.’

“It was Susanna. She’s been baking cookies.” Urs explained in passing, as he headed back to the bathroom.

Lounging on the bed reading, Seb grinned.
‘More like she’s been cooking your goose’ he observed to the empty room.

********************

Susanna practically did a jump rope routine when she got Urs’ text. Rereading it and hugging it to her chest she did her own version of a happy dance.

As she and her pillow got into sleep position that night, she predicted with absolute certainty the purchase a large body pillow in the very near future.

*****************

Changing into jeans after the interview, they grabbed their carry-ons and headed for the airport. As they pulled up to the door, Urs spied a post box and dropped in his last cards: the Blue Mountains and a pademelon.

As was his habit, Seb was proudly wearing the latest addition to his hat collection, an Aussie breezer, complete with chin strap.

David had picked up some new brightly printed surfer shorts but when he consulted the weather forecast for Frankfurt, made a quick and judicious wardrobe change into jeans.

Carlos has an exquisite opal pendant and matching earrings safely stowed in his carry-on, just waiting for the right moment to surprise Gerry.

While Urs, with ever present sunglasses atop his head, well… he was clutching a large and lumpy tan animal printed plastic bag advertising Featherdale Wildlike Park. When questioned about its contents, he was extremely generic. ‘Souvenirs!’ was all he would say.

Again they were in first class and again Urs was seated next to Seb. Even with that, he’d made sure his iPod was fully charged and earplugs were at the ready, certain a slumber serenade from Carlos was forthcoming at some point during the flight.

Stowing their carry-ons in the overhead bin, they settled down for their long flight.They’d had a smooth take-off and reached cruising altitude when Seb decided he needed his book from the overhead bin.

Urs loved the window seat and Seb didn’t really care.
By now Urs was rocking in iPod land, most likely to Ozzy Osbourne from the beat of his fingers on his thighs.

Standing up and opening the bin, Seb accidentally knocked Urs’ souvenir bag. This launched a fuzzy, brown, rather pig-like stuffed animal, wearing a bush hat, into the aisle. Urs half rose out of his seat to grab the falling fur ball however Seb snatched it first. Holding it aloft on display, he asked, rather loudly,”Whose is this?”

“Mine.” replied Urs tersely, making an unsuccessful grab for it.

”What kind of animal iz thiz?” Seb wanted to know, turning it over to examine it from all angles, as if the name were hidden somewhere on it. He was especially taken with the hat.

“Hairy nosed Wombat. Eats shoots and leaves.” Urs mumbled softly. “It’s for Susanna’s class. They’re studying animals.” he quickly continued while attempting to rescue the hapless creature from Seb’s probing fingers.

“Pardon” Seb increased the volume a bit, drawing David and Carlos attention now.

Suddenly Urs eyes lit up with an impish twinkle.

With an exaggerated sigh, as if instructing three pre-schoolers, he slowly explained, “It’s a Hairy nosed Wombat. You know… a well fed hitman? Eats, shoots, and leaves.”

With a final lunge over the seat, Urs retrieved the toy, stuffed it under his seat, and burst into laughter, feeling extremely pleased with his little joke.

They were all caught up in the silliness of the moment.
Just as they were wondering what or who had happened to the old Urs…
Down came the sunglasses. Conversation over.