Best Laid Plans

"Finally!"

Danni closed the door behind her and leaned up against its cold

metal exterior. “Sigh.”

She locked the door and kicked her shoes off on the mat under the bench in the entryway. She dropped her keys in the small dish she kept on the hall table and hung her jacket on her DIY coat rack. One of the few projects she started and managed to finish. It was simple but stylish. She found the wood on the beach and picked up some old railroad spikes at a flea market. It fit rather perfectly with her little country home, just minutes from the bay.

The week had been "the week from hell" with its

meetings, conferences, and a deadline she barely met. She was praised by

everyone on her staff and her Supervisor gave her a big kudos for her efforts.

She didn’t care. The only thing she wanted was a hot bath and a cold glass of

merlot. Entering the kitchen, she pulled a bottle of Duckhorn Vineyards from

the wine rack and grabbed the tallest glass she could find from the cupboard.

The corkscrew plunged and twisted into the wine-soaked cork; a feeling of

accomplishment swept over her as she pulled it out like a pro. Pop! She loved

that sound.

Pouring herself a tall glass of satisfaction, she made her way

to the bedroom. Taking a sip, she savored the moment, letting the rich

satisfying flavors of strawberry, plum, cherries and loganberry dance on her

palate. Every taste bud swelled with the perfect blend of acidity.

She placed her glass on her nightstand as she undressed, leaving

her clothes in a pile on the floor. She ran the bath, not too hot, but warm

enough not to have to reheat every 10 minutes. The bath was one of her favorite

things in the house, it was large enough to soak your entire body in, with jets

on all sides. It was the epitome of relaxation and stress relief. She brought

in her wine and set it on the stand near the tub and slipped into the clear

water, allowing it to devour her. She rested her head against the bath pillow

suction cupped to the back of the tub and closed her eyes. “Sigh.”

Ding!

The doorbell chimed. It played a short song of sorts each time

it was pushed. The song played 3 times before she threw her robe on and dripped

water through the house to answer it. Obviously, the person couldn’t take a

hint. Looking through the peephole she saw the Schwan’s man. "Are you

frigg’n kidding me" she thought to herself. "Hi, I'm good this time

around, thank you!" She didn't open the door, just yelled through it. She

could see the disappointment on his face through the peephole, upset he wasn't

getting any commission this time. He yelled back an "ok, no problem"

before sulking back to his truck.

She shuffled back into the bathroom and hung her robe on the back of the door

before slipping back into her tub. *Sigh. * Her body started to relax, she took

a sip of wine and closed her eyes for what seemed like 2 minutes before her

phone rang. "Damn it." She thought she'd turned the ringer off before

getting in, but of course not. Obviously. She decided she’d just let it ring

and let voicemail take care of it. She closed her eyes again. The ringing

stopped. “Sigh.”

Ring!

"Seriously??!" This time she swore out loud.

She slipped back out of the tub and retrieved her phone from the

bedroom nightstand before returning to the bath. Caller ID said Bestie. She

answered with "Dude, this better be good, I'm trying to relax in my

tub!" To which Drew replied, “Gee, hello to you too.”

“Sigh.” "Is everything alright?" She sat up in the tub and tried to

act concerned, but with Drew, it could have been anything. "No” he

replied, "I wouldn't be calling if it was alright." Now she started

to get a little concerned and nervous, she hated the idea of bad news.

"What's going on?"

When Drew started with "remember that girl Allison I met last week in the club,” she should have hung up. “You know, big tits, big hair?" He didn't let her answer and continued, "well we hooked up that night and a few nights after, then she calls me tonight and wants to go on an actual date, I don't do actual dates, you know that. I've already made plans with Lisa from work. Now this Allison chic is pissed and wants to know why I won't see her. I mean what is it about woman needing to feel special? I mean why can’t they all be laid back like you Dee?”

He stopped talking and was waiting for Danni to respond with understanding or

some great advice. What he got was a pissed off woman who hadn't had a date in

years, who was overworked and underpaid, who had literally spent more than 60

hours at the office that week and who simply wanted a bath and a glass of wine

without interruption. "Drew, you are a selfish, arrogant man-whore. You

have more woman in your rolodex listed as "potential hookup" than I

have in my entire circle of friends. I have been busting my butt all week, I

have no social life, as you know and all I want to do is enjoy my GD bath and

wine. Unless you are bleeding out or almost dead, don't call me again until

next week!" She hit the red circle with her index finger, turned her phone

off completely and tossed it on the little blue bath rug.

"URGH!" She punched the water around her legs, realizing that it was

now lukewarm. “Sigh.” She ran some hot water to warm it back up, washed with

her loofah and her favorite grapefruit body wash, then washed and rinsed her

hair. She put her robe back on, grabbed her glass of wine and went to the

kitchen to heat up last night’s Chinese. The Twilight Series was on Netflix,

maybe she'd stay right there on the couch and binge watch all weekend.

The microwave dinged and she grabbed her leftovers. She sat down on the couch, wrapped her blanket around her legs, set the plate on a tv tray table and placed her wine next to it. Using her one remote for the tv and Netflix she found the first Twilight movie and pressed play. “Sigh.”

As the title sequence was playing, she scooped some noodles onto

her fork and slurped them up, catching her chin with the end piece. She didn't

even care at this point. The opening scene, Bella talking about moving in with

her Dad, yada yada, mouth full of Chinese, sip of wine.

Ding!

“Nope.” She thought to herself. She stayed put, hoping that not answering it would let whomever it was bugging her, know that she wasn't up for company. It didn't work. The song played another time through. Pushing her tray table away from the couch, she slowly made her way to the door.

Looking through the peephole she recognized her neighbor Blake.

Now Blake she liked. He was a very sweet guy, handsome and always friendly.

Tonight however, she didn't even feel like thinking about Blake, let alone

talking to him. She opened the door and peeked out through a small crack, not

wanting him to see her in the robe she stole from the last fancy hotel she

stayed in.

"Hi Blake, what's up?" Blake turned towards her and in his arms was the cutest husky puppy. Bright eyed and bushy tailed with one light blue eye and one brown eye. "Hey Danni, I'm really, really sorry to bother you, and I’m sorry to even ask, but my mother is not doing so well, and I have to take her to the hospital. This is my new pup Charley, he's 11 weeks old and well, I can't leave him home alone yet, and I can’t take him with me. I was wondering if…” She knew his question and her answer, so she cut him off.

"You need me to watch him?" Blake’s face made that,

"yes and I'm sorry" look. "Do you mind?" She thought, normally

no, but tonight yes. She had an inside “sigh” with an outside smile. "No, I

don’t mind. I'm sure Charley and I will be good friends in no time." She

reached for the puppy who gladly licked her face, most likely tasting the

noodles she used as makeup not 5 minutes earlier. "Thanks so much. I have

his food, his bowls, some toys, his cage, pet carrier and his bed. If you need

anything else for him, here's a key to my place, just go find what you

need."

She gave him a quizzical look. "It's 7 p.m. on a Friday night, how much

stuff does he need for a sleepover" she laughed as she said it. Blake’s

face changed and she thought she'd upset him. "Oh, shit, I'm sorry Danni,

I’m so flustered over everything I didn’t mention that my mother lives in

Seattle. I’ll be gone all weekend and maybe a few days next week." Danni's

mouth must have been open because Charley now had his tongue in there looking

for leftovers. She spat and sputtered and wiped her mouth. She hadn’t made out

with anyone in a long time and thought, “figures, the man of my dreams comes to

talk to my door in the middle of the night, and I get French kissed by his dog.”

"Oh, yea I didn't realize. No, uh that's fine Blake, do what you have to

do. It's ok." She smiled, but inside she was swearing at herself. "If

you wanted a dog Danni you'd get yourself one." Blake however looked so

relieved she just smiled and nodded as he mentioned his itinerary and was half

paying attention when he said he'd call her when he landed. "Ok, Great,

safe travels!"

He ruffled the dog’s fur on his head and behind his ears. “Be good buddy.” He gave Danni a little hug and kissed her forehead. “Thanks Danni. I really appreciate it.” She just stuttered as he ran to his truck and backed out of the driveway, beeping as he drove off.

She closed the door, locked it and put Charley down. She took his bowls to the kitchen, filled one with water and put a little food in the other. She would put his cage and bed in her room. “Ok Charley, you ready to watch Twilight and cuddle?” “Charley?!”

Crash!

“Sigh.” Yup, there he was licking up her warm wine off the rug, washing down the noodles he’d devoured. “Oh Charley.” “Bad dog, bad.” He scurried off into the corner sulking, and of course, peed. “NO!” “Son of a …” It was already too late; he’d soiled the hardwood. 20 minutes later she had the plate and glass soaking in the sink, the stain in the rug barely visible after using a mix of peroxide and dish soap. The pee stain she mopped up with paper towels, washed with Lysol wipes then touched it up with some Murphy’s oil.

She’d washed her hands, changed into her shorts and tee-shirt, took the dog out to poop, used a plastic bag to scoop it up and threw it in her outside bin, along with the leftover Chinese in the fridge she no longer felt like eating and didn’t want to warm up a second day. “Yea, you’re not getting the rest.” She told Charley as he looked hopeful at the containers she was throwing out.

Charley was now fed, possibly drunk and had an empty bladder. He snuggled up on the blanket on the couch next to Danni and she turned on Twilight. Within a half hour they were both snoring.

CRASH!

She jumped and so did Charley. He ran to the back-door barking. “You have got to be kidding me!” Danni flipped on the kitchen light and then the outside light. The garbage was on its side and 3 pairs of eyes looked up at her. Racoons. Young racoons. They were not at all afraid of the yelping puppy, nor the woman standing with her hair disheveled, her eyes baggy, her head aching and her temperament so passed angry that she was now in the “I don’t give a crap” mode.

She flipped the light back off. “Enjoy.”

Charley followed her out of the kitchen. She turned off the lights and the television, closed the door to her room, put Charley on his bed and climbed into hers. She turned her cell back on in case of an emergency. As soon as she started to fall asleep, Charley whimpered next to her side of the bed. She lazily lifted him up. He spun in circles for a few minutes to get comfortable, then curled up next to her and fell asleep. “Sigh.”

It was 10p.m.

Ring!

Once in Seattle Blake arrived at his mother’s and called as promised, at 11p.m., Pacific Daylight Time.

Danni was in Maine.

Blake left a voicemail.