A Birthday Surprise

Nora walked downstairs a few minutes after six, planning on spending at least an hour of quiet solitude in her office before Matthew woke up. She walked into the kitchen, expecting to find it empty, the only noise being the coffee as it dripped into the carafe below. Instead she could hear his small muffled voice as he sat underneath the kitchen table, the cord from the phone giving away his hiding place.

She bent down and looked under the table, clearing her throat to make her presence known. Matthew slowly turned his head and looked at Nora, “Gotta go”, he said into the phone.

Nora backed away from the table and waited for Matthew to climb out. He hung up the phone and turned and looked at his mother, “Morning, mom.”

Nora crossed her arms in front of her, “Morning, Matthew.” She tilts her head at the phone, “What was that all about?”

Matthew shrugs, “I just had to make a phone call.”

Nora raised an eyebrow, “At six in the morning?”

“It was important, I swear,” he pleads.

She reaches out and cups his chin, “Let’s just hold off the phone calls until after breakfast from now on, okay?”

Matthew smiles, “Okay, mom.” He walks over and wraps his arms around her waist, “Almost forgot, Happy Birthday, mom.”

She lifts his face up to kiss him, “Thank you, sweetie.” She tilts her head towards the stairs, “Go get ready for school.”

She tousles his hair and quickly smacks his backside as he runs out of the room. She shakes her head and walks over to the counter to pour her coffee. An hour later, after seeing Matthew off to school, she was sitting in her office, her feet propped up on her desk.

He walked up to the front door and peered in through the window. He could see straight through the living room and into her office. She had her glasses perched on her nose, a file in one hand, her coffee mug in the other. Even through the window he couldn’t help but enjoy the view her short robe was offering him.

He smiled as he watched her tapping her foot to the rhythm coming from the CD player. He recognized the song; it was her Valentine’s CD from Matthew. He thought back to that night and how they had danced for hours. He knew that night something was changing between them, something inevitable.

He was about to knock on the door when he thought better of it. He reached into his pocket and pulled out the key she had given him a while back. Why not, he thought to himself. He knew she probably wouldn’t hear him knocking anyway; the music was so loud he could hear it outside as though he was standing in the room. He slipped the key in the lock and quietly closed the door behind him. He walked towards her office, pausing just inside the doorway. He leaned against the doorjamb and took advantage of the situation, taking in the sight of her.

He could feel the heat rising up his neck, the beating of his heart took on a whole new rhythm, pounding so loud he was sure it would give him away. He tried to look away; he tried to stop the feelings that were rising up inside of him, but he couldn’t fight them. Or was it that he didn’t want to fight them anymore? He couldn’t remember the last time he felt this way. No, that wasn’t true, he did remember, the last person to make him feel this way was sitting across from him, and another smile broke out across his face.

He quietly walked over to the front of her desk, the file still in front of her face. He reached out and bent the file down, causing her to jump at the movement. She brought her hand up to her heart, her legs dropping to the floor, causing her robe to fall open even further, “Bo Buchanan, you scared the hell out of me.” She stood up so flustered she never noticed the shape her robe was in. She points to the front door, “How did you get in my house?” He held up the key, that “Bo Buchanan” smile on his face. She shakes her finger at him, “I gave that to you so that you could drop Matthew off, not to come sneaking into my home and scare me half to death.”

He tried to stifle his laughter; the fire in her eyes reminding him of their past and all the little spats they would get into, when that fiery temper of hers would get the best of her. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a box. He leaned across her desk, his face just a few inches from hers. He held the box out to her, “Happy Birthday, Red.”

That one word, that nickname she had longed to hear from him again, stirred up so many emotions inside of her. She bit her lip, as she looked down at the box in front of her and then back up at Bo. She took the box from him and sat down in her chair, their eyes never breaking contact, “Bo…”

He smiled, “Go ahead and open it, Red.”

She slowly unwrapped the small box, looking back and forth between the box in her hand and his face. She looked up at him confused, “Super glue, Buchanan? You got me a tube of super glue for my birthday?”

He smiles, “It’s one of those little gifts that lead to the big gift.”

She smiles, her eyes growing wide with excitement. She stands up holding her hand out, “There’s another gift?”

He reached out and took her hand, bringing it to his lips, “Yes, but you’ll have to wait to get it.”

She stuck her bottom lip out, pouting like a child, “That’s not fair,” yanking her hand out of his, crossing them in front of her.

He leaned across her desk once again, his face just inches from hers. He gently placed a kiss on her cheek, his mouth brushing the corner of her lips, “I’ll see you tonight for dinner.”

He turned and walked out the door, leaving her breathless. She brought her fingers up to her cheek, touching the place that his lips had just vacated. She sank back into her chair, laying her head against the back of it, trying to gain control of her breathing, “God, what that man does to me,” she thought to herself.

Matthew ran through the door just after three that afternoon. Nora had taken the day off, but ended up spending the entire day in her home office trying to make some sense out of her desk. She walked out of the living room just in time to see Matthew’s back running up the stairs. She stood at the bottom of the stairs and looked up them, shaking her head. She began to ascend the stairs, heading towards his room. He was sitting Indian style on his bed, the phone from her bedroom pressed to his ear. He looked up at her, “I’ll talk to you later, Stevie.” Matthew pressed the button, disconnecting his call and placed the phone back on the bed.

She walked over and sat down beside him, “Didn’t you just see Stevie a few minutes ago?”

“Yeah, well I forgot to tell him something,” he answered all too quickly.

“Oh,” she said, tweaking his nose. “Well you better get your homework done before your father gets here.”

“Okay, mom.”

Nora walked out the door, turning once to look back at Matthew before heading down the hall to her bedroom. She walked over to her dresser and flicked on the radio. She walked into the bathroom as the music filled her room…

She walked over to the tub and turned on the water, dropping a few lavender bath beads into the steaming water. She threw her t-shirt onto the counter, stepping out of her jeans before turning the water off. She lit a few candles and slowly lowered herself into the hot, fragrant water. She leaned her head back and closed her eyes, letting the heat of the water and the fragrances filling the room begin to relax her.

She sinks lower into the water, as her mind begins to drift. Her memories bring a smile to her face…Christmas at Asa’s; Chanukah dinner, just the three of them; late nights in the office working on the case; movie nights; dancing the night away for Valentine’s Day; school assemblies and award banquets, being the family they should’ve been.

The coolness of the water and her son’s knocking on her door brought her out of her thoughts. She stepped out of the tub, grabbing her robe off the back of the door and tying it tight around her waist as she answered the door, “Dad’s here.”

Nora looked at her watch, “Already?” Matthew just rolled his eyes and ran downstairs to wait with Bo.

Nora quickly dressed, checking her reflection in the mirror one last time before she walked downstairs. She paused halfway down, taking in the sight before her. Father and son sitting on the couch, game controllers in hand, engaged in a battle to save the universe.

She descended the stairs the rest of the way, standing off to the side, wondering how long it would take for them to notice her presence; she wouldn’t have to wait long. Bo suddenly turned, her fragrance assaulting his senses, “Hey birthday girl. You ready to go?”

Matthew looked between his parents; the looks they were giving each other brought a smile to his face. Granpa was right; they do still love each other. He set their controllers down on the table before running towards the door. He grabbed his jacket, putting it on as he ran out the door. Nora began to laugh as they made their way towards the door, “He’s a bit too excited for cheeseburgers and Rodi’s.”

Bo just smiled and helped her with her jacket. He reached into his pocket and pulled out the key, winking as he held it up to her. She just shook her head and rolled her eyes as he locked the door. They stepped off the porch together, his hand settling on the small of her back as they made their way to her car. Matthew was already sitting in the back seat, his seatbelt buckled; ready to go.

Bo slid in behind the steering wheel, glancing once in the rear view mirror. He winked at Matthew, who gave his father a thumbs up. Bo pushed the CD into the CD player and turned up the volume. They sang at the top of their lungs all the way through town, their windows rolled down, despite the cool March air.

Nora was having such a good time she never noticed that they had driven past Rodi’s and were heading towards the other end of town. The latest song ended and she looked out the window, finally realizing that they were no longer heading towards Rodi’s, instead they were pulling into Asa’s driveway. She turned and looked at Bo, “What are we doing at Asa and Renee’s? What happened to Rodi’s?”

“I just need to make a quick stop.”

Matthew jumps out of the car and runs up to the front door. Nora undid her seatbelt and climbed out of the car. A quick visit with Renee wouldn’t be so bad she thought to herself as she followed Bo towards the front door. They walked into the foyer, handing Nigel their coats. Matthew grabbed their hands and pulled them towards the living room. He swung open the doors. Nora jumped back when the lights came on and shouts of ‘surprise’ and ‘happy birthday’ filled the air.

Nora turned and looked at Matthew who wrapped his arms around her waist, “Happy Birthday, Mom.” She kissed his forehead and pulled him against her before letting him run off to greet his grandparents.

Nora turned and looked at Bo who was standing beside her, a huge smile on his face. He leaned in and kissed her quickly, “Happy Birthday, Red.”

She reached up and laid a hand on his cheek, forgetting the guests watching from across the room, “You’re always full of surprises, Bo Buchanan.”

They walked further into the room, greeting each of the guests; neither one noticing their son and Nigel slipping out the side door. The music began to play and the party quickly got into full swing.

Bo walked over, after finally freeing himself from his father’s clutches. He’d been trying to get to Nora most of the night. He had watched her from across the terrace, dancing with their son, dancing with Hank, even dancing with Kevin.

He tapped her on the shoulder pulling her from her conversation. He held out his hand, “May I have this dance?” She smiled and placed her hand in his. He pulled her close against him. After a few minutes her head found its way to his shoulder, and they were lost in each other’s arms before they even realized it.

Renee wrapped her arms around Asa’s middle as they watched them dance. He looked down at her and winked, they both knew it was only a matter of time.

Matthew stood in the corner wearing a smile from ear to ear. He looked over at his grandfather and gave him a thumbs up.

They danced until the last note of the song ended. She slowly stepped out of his embrace, noticing for the first time how closely he had held her. She looked up at him and smiled an awkward smile. He leaned in and kissed her cheek, “Thanks for the dance, Red.”

“Thank you for everything,” she whispered in his ear.

Nigel walked up to them both, “Mr. and Ms. Buchanan, young Matthew seems to have gotten himself into quite a situation.”

Suddenly panicked, “Where is he?”

“Follow me;” glancing back over at Asa, “I do not want to alert Mr. Buchanan. You know how much he loves his wines.”

Nora and Bo just look at each other as they follow Nigel down to the cellar. Bo reaches behind him and takes her hand, helping her navigate the winding staircase. They walked over to the open cellar door. Nigel steps aside to allow them to enter.

Nora looks around the cellar calling Matthew’s name. She turns just as the cellar door was being closed, “What the…” she notices Matthew’s smiling face through the crack in the door as it’s closed tight, “Matthew Hanen,” she looks over at Bo who is laughing, “What’s so funny, Buchanan?”

“I think we’ve been set up, Red.” Bo walks over to the corner of the room. He holds up the two wine glasses, “One stubborn kid we have.” He held out a card.

She walked over to where he was standing and took the card. She opened it and read it aloud, “Happy Birthday mom, have fun with dad. Love, Matthew, oh PS. Granpa says that you need to stop being so stubborn,” she pauses for a moment and looks over at Bo, she looks back down at the card, “and open your eyes.” She looks up at him, “I’m sorry, Bo.”

He walks towards her, “Sorry for what?”

“I should’ve known something was up, Matthew’s mysterious phone calls over the past few days, his insistence that we get back together,” she pauses, “that we get married,” she adds quietly.

Bo walks over and lays his hand on her shoulder, “Would it be so bad?”

She shakes her head, “I don’t understand…”

He takes her hand and leads her over to the table. He pushes a gift wrapped box towards her. She looks down at the box and then back up at Bo. He nods his head, “Go ahead; open it.”

She lifts the lid off of the box, tears immediately forming in her eyes, “Bo…”

He reaches out and takes the items out of the box and places them on the table. He looks back up at her, smiling through the tears that were beginning to form in his own eyes, “I…I want us to try again, Nora, you willing to give us another try?”

She reached out and laid a hand on his cheek, “More than willing.”

He leaned in and pulled her into a passionate kiss. They broke their kiss after a few minutes. He rested his forehead against hers, “You didn’t happen to bring the super glue did you?” She shook her head. He reached into his pocket and held it out to her, “You wanna do the honors?”

She took the glue from him and stood in front of the two pieces of stone lying out on the table. She ran her fingers over the cold stone, her fingers tracing the lettering engraved on the old cornerstone. She placed the glue on either end of the broken pieces. She reached out and took his hand, placing it on one end, her hand on the other. Together they pushed the pieces back together.

He pulled her close as music began to play on the other side of the door. They looked at each other for a moment and smiled…

Their dance ended, but their new life had just begun, two people picking up the pieces of their shattered dreams.

THE END