It had been two weeks since the massage appointment and Sadie had not heard from or seen Robert. She tried so hard to get him out of her mind, thinking that their fling was a one time event, but whenever her mind was idle, Sadie would start to daydream about that appointment. Not wanting to appear desperate, or scare him away, she avoided calling the number he used to make his appointment, even though she picked the phone up and started dialing it at least 10 times already. Sadie was beginning to fear that her boyfriend would notice how distracted she had become at the gym, constantly scanning the room, and looking to the door whenever it opened, but she could not help herself. Robert had given her the best sex she'd ever experienced, and that isn't something she would get over quickly.
After a month had passed, Sadie accepted that she and Robert's fling was a one time occurrence, and that she needed to move on. She settled into her life of average, once a week (twice if she was lucky) sex with her more often than not distant boyfriend. Sadie also quit her job at the spa. The thrill and arousal she experienced before Robert never returned, and she no longer enjoyed massaging the way she used to. Instead, Sadie began to spend more time at the gym, busying herself to keep her thoughts from returning to Robert.
It was at the gym that Sadie received a phone call from her mother, saying that she wanted to have family dinner the following day. Sadie usually avoided dinners with her mother, who brought up marriage and babies whenever she was in the same room as her, and had missed the last 4 dinner invites. Feeling guilty, Sadie reluctantly agreed to show up, and asked if there was anything she needed to bring.
"Just stop and pick up a few bottles of wine. Your aunt Helen is coming over. She is separated from her most recent husband, already, and I'm afraid I won't have enough," her mother said.
Sadie had not seen her aunt since the encounter with Robert and she immediately felt a twinge of guilt at the mention of Helen's name. Her guilt was paired with slight annoyance though, Helen was not the easiest person to be around. She had, on more than one occasion, been the instigator of family arguments. She was especially insufferable when she was dealing with freshly failed relationships.
"Sure mom, it'll probably just be me though. I don't think we can afford to shut the gym down for the day, and no one is scheduled tomorrow but us. I'll be there around 5. See you," Sadie said, and replaced the receiver, already regretting her decision to go.
*************
Sadie left for her mother's house a little after noon the following day, preparing herself for the 4 hour drive. She usually chose to drive home the same day, even though it meant arriving home in the middle of the night, but she packed an overnight bag in case the weather took a turn. Right now the roads were clear, but judging by the clouds that hung overhead, she was sure she would be running into snow soon. In fact, an hour away from her mother's house, the snow started to come down so thick that Sadie's small car began to slide on the road.
The unexpected road conditions caused Sadie to be late to her mothers, and there was already another car in the driveway by the time she arrived. Sadie took her time getting from the car to the front door, not entirely excited to spend the evening with her mother and her aunt. She walked into the house and was greeted by the sound of laughter coming from the kitchen.
"Sadie? Is that you? We are in the kitchen," her mother yelled.
Walking around the corner Sadie was greeted by her mother, who pulled her into a tight embrace.
"I'm so glad you're here. We were starting to get worried with this weather," her mother said, placing a full glass of wine in Sadie's hand. Sadie was grateful, knowing that she would need it to handle the rest of the night. She took a long drink, as her mother continued, "I sure hope you plan on staying the night. I'm sorry, but I let Helen and Robert take your old room. But, I already set up the study for you."
Sadie inhaled sharply and choked on her drink, "I'm sorry, who?" she asked, more loudly than she intended.
"Helen and Robert. I thought I told you on the phone?"
Sadie stared at her mother, waiting for the words to form, "You told me Aunt Helen would be here, but Robert? Her ex-husband Robert?"
Lowering her voice to a whisper, her mother continued, "Yes, Helen told me she called him after her break-up, and he came over. She said that it seemed he was getting over a bad break-up himself, so she invited him to dinner with us. I think she's hoping to get back with him. So let's be supportive. We all love Robert, and he's the best person she could be with right now."
Sadie tried hard to put a smile on her face, "Of course," she said, although she didn't mean it. Turning her attention to Helen, she quickly hugged her and through a forced smile, asked, "How are you? It's been too long." While Helen went into a long monologue about her life, and her troubles, Sadie saw Robert walk into the room over Helen's shoulder. A smile began to spread across his face, but he stopped when he saw the look on Sadie's face. Sadie tried hard to hide her hurt and anger from Robert, but the reaction was strong when he came into the room.
"I'm sorry Helen," Sadie said, cutting her aunt off, "But the drive here wore me out. I'm going to go lay down for a bit, until dinner is ready. We can finish catching up then," she said and hugged Helen again, before turning and walking out of the kitchen.
