A TWIST OF FATE
Chapter Seventy-Four
"No, Jack. No!" squealed Rose as
she charged up the stairs, hat in hand and hair flying, Jack close behind,
pretending to chase her. Her head spun with giddiness, from their first kiss in
the park and their confession of their feelings to each other.
Rose flung the door open and forgetting
themselves completely, they tumbled through, Rose first. A girl was sitting at
the table with Maria. From her dark Italian features, Rose assumed she was
Theresa. Maria was looking at them, slightly bemused with their unguarded
behavior. The other girl scowled at them in such a way Rose quickly
straightened up and smoothed out her hair, as though she was in front of a
disapproving teacher. Jack was still laughing, hunched over trying to get his
breath. He became aware that Rose had stiffened up straight and there was a
silence in the room. He shot up to see what was wrong. He saw Theresa sitting
there, scowling at them. His cheeks flushed when he saw her, something that did
not go unnoticed by Theresa.
"Hello," said Rose with a smile,
hoping the scowling girl would smile back and the silence would be broken. Why
did she look so annoyed? Rose glanced at Jack and was surprised to see him
looking flustered, almost sheepish.
"Hi, Theresa. How are you?" asked
Jack, also straightening out his shirt and hair, which had flopped as usual in
his eyes.
"Well, I’m just fine, Jack. As are you,
I see," she replied icily.
"This is…" Jack began.
"Rose. Yes, I know." Rose looked
from the girl to Jack and back. They knew each other and the iciness was
evident. She looked at Maria, whose expression also belied a feeling of
awkwardness. A sickening feeling was starting to creep into Rose’s stomach. A
feeling that there was something she didn’t know, or maybe had missed. How
could this happen when she had just found some happiness?
"Excuse me," mumbled Rose, and
dashed to her room. She didn't want to witness this. What a fool she had been.
There had been some kind of affair between Jack and this girl. Maybe the girl
thought it was still on. Maybe that was why Jack had asked her out this
evening, to avoid seeing this. Rose threw her hat on the bed. Her sudden flare
of temper that had reddened her cheeks subsided into sorrow.
Maria snapped something to Theresa in Italian.
Jack looked after the disappearing Rose. He wasn’t sure what she had run from.
He could only guess.
"Excuse me, Maria. I’d like a word with
Theresa."
"I’ll be in the kitchen." Maria
glared back at her sister.
Jack stood over Theresa, his arms folded.
"What was that all about?" he
demanded.
"You tell me," Theresa bit back,
her eyes glinting. "You led me on, Jack, and I now find out you have a
girlfriend in Philadelphia. And you bring her to my sister’s house. I don’t
like being made a fool of."
"Whoa, wait a minute there. Firstly,
what did I say to you that night I left New York?"
"It was easy for you to say after the
event. After you made me feel there could be something between us."
"Theresa, I never made you feel
that," Jack protested, but inside he knew she was right. He had cursed
himself that night for his reckless behavior, and it was coming back to haunt
him.
"How do you know how you made me feel?
When we met outside and you kissed me, it was all I had ever wanted, Jack. To
be with you. Surely you knew that?"
"Theresa, I didn’t. I’m sorry."
"Yes, you are sorry, now that your
girlfriend will find out."
"Rose is not my girlfriend." Jack
looked at the floor. He could feel Theresa’s eyes boring into him. "She
isn’t. She is a friend who is in a little trouble and she came here with me.
Your sister and Fabri offered to put her up. Surely Maria told you that?"
"Maria would say anything to cover for
you. You are Fabri’s friend. I am just her sister."
"Hey, you don’t talk about your sister like
that. She is a really kind person and loves you very much. She has been very
good to us. She wouldn’t lie to anyone, you or me."
"I don’t believe you, Jack, about Rose.
She is your girlfriend. You tell me there isn’t anything between you? Not after
the way you both ran in here. You look me in the face and tell me she isn’t
your girlfriend."
Jack bit his lip. "Look, Theresa, this
is my business, OK? I have a few problems right now and I don’t need any
trouble from you. I am sorry about what happened, I said I was sorry then and I
am saying it again now. I didn’t have a girlfriend the night I kissed you. Rose
is special, but she has some problems, too. So leave it alone, will you,
please?" His voice was weak, Theresa noticed. He was hiding something.
Theresa pushed her chair back and stood to
face Jack. She tossed her black hair.
"You didn’t answer my question. But you
have now." She snatched her shawl from the back of the chair and set off
towards the kitchen.
"Theresa," Jack called after her.
She stopped and turned.
"I don’t want to know, Jack. You had
better sort yourself out." With that she went to the kitchen.
Jack threw himself on the sofa and punched a
cushion in anger. Theresa had always been the opposite of Maria and quite a
handful. But he knew his own actions had prompted this and his anger was
directed at himself. He had to calm down before tried to speak to Rose.
Maria and Theresa appeared.
"I’m going to walk Theresa to the
station. I’ll be back shortly," smiled Maria.
How could Maria smile? thought Jack. Her
little sister had just caused another problem for him. But Maria was smiling,
ever happy, always diplomatic, the opposite of her sister.
"See you later. Bye, Theresa," he
mumbled back. The door clicked behind them and their steps faded away on the
stairs that he had so happily run up not long before.