Eliza Starts a Rumor(79)
He smiled and took a step toward her. “You do?”
She breathed a slight sigh of relief from the warmth in his tone.
“Yes, very much so.”
“And you are sure—there’s nothing more between you and Marc Sugarman?”
“Nothing. I thought maybe there was, but I’m sure—very sure.”
His smile grew. “When you didn’t take his hand, right? At the press conference—that’s when you were sure?”
She laughed. “Yes—that’s when I was sure. You are unbelievable!”
“Actually, I am believable. Very, very believable.”
He apologized again for misrepresenting himself. “I’m really sorry for not being up-front with you. Please know that’s not who I am. I can show you who I am—if you want.”
She smiled cheerfully. “I want.”
He leaned in to kiss her. She leaned in to meet him. Just as their lips were about to touch, she noticed something move in the bushes. Her eyes widened.
“Don’t move,” she whispered.
Though confused, he listened. Two eyes looked out at her, then moved back into the shadow. From its brief appearance, she was pretty sure that it was the lost dog from the bulletin board.
“I think that lost dog is in your bushes.”
“Who? Truffles Goldstein?”
After all of the awfulness of the night, the mere fact that this sweet, eager man knew the missing dog’s full name really sealed the deal.
“I think so.”
“OK, what should we do? He’s very skittish, right?”
“Yes. They said he always runs when spotted.”
“Should I get him a treat? I have chocolate inside.”
“That would be good if you want to kill him.”
“Sorry. I never had a dog.”
“Wait.” She reached into her diaper bag. “I have turkey.”
“Great. Call out ‘treat’ with the turkey, and I will grab him from behind. Go slow.”
“OK.”
Alison carefully unwrapped the turkey and put it in front of her on the ground. It smelled so good, this dog had better appreciate it, she thought as her empty stomach rumbled.
“Treat! Here, Truffles. Here, boy,” she said calmly and took two steps back. After a moment, Truffles crept out and cautiously sniffed the turkey. As he gulped it down, Jackie reached out and grabbed him by the collar. The dog flinched, but didn’t even stop eating.
“We did it!” Alison cheered.
“My car is right there. Should we take him home?” she added.
“Yes. Let’s do it.”
“I can watch the baby!” Jana called out from the window. They all laughed, realizing she’d been eavesdropping the whole time. Alison was glad she’d been listening, happy to have gained her approval.
They climbed into Alison’s car and messaged Truffles’s owner, who tearfully gave them her address. Once there, Truffles raced to the door, crying and jumping up and down as they rang the bell. He knew he was home. He barreled in, nearly taking Jackie down with him.
The reunion was right out of the movies, with Truffles taking turns licking the tears from everyone’s faces, Jackie’s and Alison’s included. Outside, Alison was feeling quite thankful.
“You saved Thanksgiving,” she said.
He didn’t understand why, but he took it with pride. “Can we kiss and make up now?”
“If you don’t mind, first, I could really use a hug.”
As he wrapped his arms around her, they both sensed that it would be a long, long time until they would let each other go.
CHAPTER 44
Eliza
Eliza woke up at 3:00 a.m. with a fuzzy memory of what had happened the night before. She went downstairs and got herself a glass of water. The fridge was filled to the brim with leftovers. Or actually, now that it came back to her, with uneaten Thanksgiving dinner. She pulled out a turkey leg and headed back upstairs to her computer. She actually felt lighter. Not good, but certainly less dead inside. She sat down at the computer, opened up the bulletin board, and wrote. She knew enough about triggering events to begin with a warning:
THE FOLLOWING POST CONTAINS DETAILS OF SEXUAL ASSAULT
The pent-up words flew out of her:
My name is Eliza Hunt. You may know me as a mom in the neighborhood. Maybe you grew up with me, or maybe you just know me as the moderator of this bulletin board. What you don’t know is that I am a rape survivor.
Thirty years ago a shop teacher at Hudson Valley High, Roy DeLuca, raped me in the musty basement of the school. I can still smell that room. I was a virgin. In fact, I had kissed a boy only once, twice if you count Spin the Bottle. I was too ashamed and too afraid to tell anyone, and I never told a soul until tonight. It has been the deepest, darkest secret of my life.
I thought it was my fault because I often smiled at him and was wearing a short skirt and carrying a copy of Lolita from English class. He asked me to climb up on the table, so that he could see how pretty I was up close. I was flattered that a grown man thought I was pretty. No one had called me that before. And then he forced himself on me, forced himself into me. The pain was intense, but I didn’t cry out for help. I didn’t say no, I didn’t say stop, I just lay there voiceless, in shock and pain. Afterward he pulled up his pants and said, “Did you like that?” Sometimes I think that was the worst part.