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* * *
Josie jumped up from her chair to run after him, but Lydia held up a staying hand.
"This is my story," she said. "I'll fix it." She raced out the door and through the bullpen. She finally caught up with Sam on the stairwell. "Mr. Coulson! Wait, please!" she called after him.
Lydia breathed a sigh of relief as she saw him stop, although he did not turn around. She placed a pleading hand on his arm and said, "I'm really sorry if I interrupted you and my sister. Please don't be angry with me."
Sam turned around to face her. "What? Your sister,?"
"Yeah," Lydia said with a shrug. "My older sister Josie."
"Josie Geller is your sister?" Sam repeated incredulously.
"Well� She's married," Lydia furnished quickly.
Sam blanched at this news. "Oh," he said, in a small voice.
No wonder Josie had been trying to break it off between them. But why would she put so much emphasis on his girlfriend, and never even mention her husband? Something just didn't add up there. But for the time being, he pushed it out of his mind. He knew he couldn't think about that now� right now, he was a teacher talking to a student. "Why were you asking her for a paper?"
"Well . . . um . . . I was really asking for her help with the paper. She went to Northwestern, so she has access to doctoral papers that I sometimes use as sources. I wasn't trying to cheat, honest, Mr. Coulson." She slid her hand across her bare stomach and started fiddling with her bellybutton ring, trying to distract him. As usual, it didn't work. 'What was his problem?' Lydia thought peevishly. 'Was he gay or something?'
"Okay, Lydia," he said softly. "Thanks for clearing that up. I'll see you in class tomorrow."
Lydia hooked her thumbs in her pockets. "You're really not mad at me?"
"No, I'm not."
They both turned away from each other, then Sam added, "Lydia?"
"Yeah?"
With a strained voice, he continued, "Tell your sister I said goodbye."
Not catching the strange tone in his voice, Lydia agreed enthusiastically. "Okay, I will!"
Lydia turned and jogged back to Josie's office to find the latter's head buried in her arms. "Hey, Josie, chill out. It's okay; I fixed everything."
Josie lifted her head. "How?"
"I told him that you're my older sister."
Josie smiled, light returning to her eyes. Lydia was known for being a quick thinker, even if she was kind of a ditz. "Right," she replied, breathing a sigh of relief. She hated the hurt look in Sam's eyes just before he'd bolted from the room�
Lydia plopped herself heavily into the chair that Sam had so recently vacated and sighed deeply. "I'm having the hardest time getting him to notice me," she confessed. "He's different than other guys."
"From," Josie corrected absently.
"What?"
Josie shook her head dismissively. She was used to people not getting it. "Never mind."
"What in God's name was he doing here, anyway?" Lydia demanded, crossing her arms across her chest and giving Josie and accusing look. "Do you realize that my story was almost completely ruined?"
Josie shrugged one shoulder and replied, " I did that story a while back about the Shakespearean festival. I met him then. We're just friends," she defended.
"Well, you better be a lot more careful from now on. I had to do some serious backpedaling to fix things out there." Lydia got up from the seat and got all the way to the doorway before turning and adding, "Oh, and I told him you're married�I had to come up with some reason why our names aren't the same�so don't say anything to him."
Josie choked, then repeated in an inaudible voice, "Married?"
Lydia nodded, quite pleased with that spur-of-the-moment explanation. "By the way, he said to tell you goodbye."
* * *
Weeks passed, and Josie still hadn't heard from Sam - not that she was surprised. How could he think anything good of her anymore? She must have come off as a complete and total hypocrite, and God knew what else. She knew she should get in touch with him and try to make some kind of excuse, but was too afraid. Besides, what could she say that would help matters without ruining Lydia's story and getting them both fired? No, it was best to put it all behind her. It shouldn't be hard to get over someone she'd only met a few times, especially someone that she had no chance with in the first place.
The one thing that lifted her spirits over those dismal weeks was her article on Lara Patton. In the short interview session that had set up with the press at large, Josie had been given five minutes to dash in and pepper Lara with questions. The next day, she received a call from Lara, who liked Josie so much that she offered her an exclusive interview.
When Rigfort saw the feature-length article, he was thrilled and gave it a prominent spot in that day's paper. "Geller," he told Josie as he swung around a golf club, "I should have sent you on the undercover assignment. But I'm gonna give you something better, as soon as that something comes up."
For those few days at least, she was able to push the thoughts of Sam Coulson to the back of her mind. But she found that no matter what she did, she could not forget him: his boyish smile, the comforting feel of his hand on her back, the look on his face when he fell beside her at the skating rink, his good-natured laughter at himself when he shot the cue ball in the pocket for what seemed like the thousandth time.
Everyone noticed Josie's melancholy, even Merkin, who was usually as dense as concrete. He actually started having everything ready for her when she arrived in the morning, and even offered to rearrange her office to provide better "Feng Shui."
As Anita ate lunch with a silent Josie one afternoon, she decided it was time to say something. "Josie, do you know what you need?"
Josie deadpanned, "Another job."
"Don't talk like that!" Anita exclaimed. "Anyway, I was thinking along more shallow lines. You need something to boost your self-esteem, something to make you feel better about yourself. You need a makeover."
"A makeover?" Josie looked skeptical. "How would that fix things with Sam Coulson?"
Anita raised an eyebrow. She was still stuck on that teacher? She thought. Well, we'll fix that� "Who cares about Sam Coulson? That's history, right? Let's move on," Anita encouraged her. "With a new look, you'll find someone better - someone single."
Josie sighed and took another bite of her chocolate bar. Anita did have a point. Why waste her time pining for someone she couldn't have anyway? Still, allowing Anita to make her over was a frightening prospect� Heck, what did she have to lose? "Okay," she agreed.
"Great! This afternoon we're going to get you a new look, and then . . ." Her eyes wandered to the flier Merkin had hung up on the bulletin board earlier. She pointed to the flyer and said, "Then we'll go to the Delloser club and have some fun."
"Maybe kiss some losers," Josie rolled her eyes and added wryly.
"Exactly." Anita grinned. Looking over at Josie speculatively she asked her, "Now, what color hair do you want?"
* * *
As Anita pulled into the parking lot of the Delloser club, Josie studied herself in the mirror over the visor. She patted her hair, which had been cut to just above her shoulders, dyed blond, and curled into soft, sweet ringlets. They had spent a small fortune at the department store buying Josie makeup of all types and colors. But Josie drew the line at letting Anita apply it�she did that herself. The results were very pleasing. Yet, the fact that she could hardly recognize herself made her uncomfortable.
On top of that, Anita had talked her into buying something completely different from her usual style. Admittedly, it was a cute dress�a pink, knee length georgette dress with a V neck edged with ruffles. It was flattering, sexy, and revealed just enough to spark a man's imagination.
Anita parked the car and turned off her lights. Looking over at Josie, she sighed and flipped up the mirror. "Stop worrying. You look great, okay? Let's go inside and have some fun."
"You realize that we're at an event recommended by Merkin," Josie remarked as they walked in.
"Just try to look past that," Anita giggled.
As they made their way through the stuffy room, Josie looked around and saw Lydia sitting at a table of gorgeous high school girls. She was surprised to notice that beside Lydia was a tall, slender girl who, though she was pretty, obviously did not fit in. Her clothes were eclectic and mismatched, and she was wearing the funniest headband. Josie furrowed her brows, wondering why such a girl was sitting at a table of what looked to be the "popular" kids.
Josie was in better spirits tonight; Anita had actually succeeded in cheering her up. She had practically forgotten about Sam Coulson�for a while anyway. She parted from Anita, went over to the table, and leaned in to hug a very surprised Lydia. "Hi, sis," she cooed with a knowing smile.
Lydia looked at her in shock, and then realized what was going on. "Josie . . . hey . . . your hair . . . it looks pretty that way." She pulled herself together and flashed a smile around the table. "Guys, this is my older sister Josie. She works at the Sun-Times." There was a brief pause as the girls seemed to be waiting for their permission to like Josie. "She is just the coolest," continued Lydia.
"I just love your hair," said the short brunette.
"Is a newspaper, like, you know, fun to work on?" asked the blonde.
"Hey, why don't you down with us for a while?" Lydia invited, praying that Josie wouldn't inadvertently give away the fact that she was really a 'loser.' "This is Gibby, Kirsten, and Kristen." Josie smiled at each of them, then smiled at the other girl. "Oh, and this is Aldys," Lydia added, almost as an afterthought.
Lydia and the three girls immediately fell back into conversation, while Josie felt unusually drawn to Aldys. She had a strong feeling that Lydia had something to do with this girl being here, and she was dying to know why. She managed to push her curiosity to the back of her mind and made a mental note to ask Lydia later.
Aldys seemed to like her as well, and as they talked, Josie soon discovered that the girl was sweet and very intelligent. Aldys mentioned that she wanted to go to Northwestern, which gave them a topic both were interested in. Josie loved to talk about her experience and friends, and Aldys wanted to know everything she could.
They were interrupted when a good-looking kid came over and leaned in towards Aldys. "Hi," he said softly.
Aldys answered him in a cool, nonchalant voice. "Hey, Guy. This is Josie� She's Lydia's older sister. Josie, Guy Perkins."
Guy smiled at Josie briefly, and then turned back to Aldys. Josie pretended to turn her attention to Lydia and the others, but she listened to their conversation. "Look, I was just wondering if you want to dance with me," Guy asked charmingly.
"Not really," Aldys exclaimed flatly.
"I know I haven't always been the nicest . . ."
Aldys swallowed, but still cut him off mid-sentence with the retort, "Guy, no offense, but I know when someone doesn't deserve me."
"I know I don't deserve you. I thought maybe it could be a project on your part to make me better." Guy grinned, trying to disarm her.
Aldys blushed just slightly but still answered, "I'd really rather not dance."
"Then let's go somewhere and talk," he insisted. "Please."
With a sigh, Aldys finally consented. "It was lovely meeting you, Josie. Thanks for giving me your e-mail address. I have so many questions!"
"And I'll do my best to answer them."
Aldys walked off with Guy, and Josie watched them leave. She was intrigued by all this, especially as someone who knew the life of a 'loser.' Why had Lydia brought this girl here with her?
She soon tired of the shallow conversation going on around her. Making her excuses to the table at large, she left to go find Anita. Undoubtedly, she was off somewhere flirting blatantly with some poor guy�or guys, she finished, spotting her friend across the room, laughing with several men. Josie grinned and shook her head, then started walking towards her friend.
As she walked, she watched the band onstage and promptly walked right into someone. "Oh, excuse me, I'm so sor --" Josie was stunned to find herself staring into the face of Sam Coulson. "I . . ." Her voice failed her.
His jaw tightened. "Hi, Josie," he said flatly. "I certainly didn't expect to see you here."
Not quite certain how to take that, she took a deep breath and said, "Look, I need to talk to you about what happened in my office."
Sam didn't reply, indeed he almost didn't seem to hear her. His eyes softened almost imperceptively as he studied the 'new' Josie. Finally, he commented, "You look nice, Josie�your hair looks really pretty," as if he were trying to change the subject.
"Thanks . . . so does yours," Josie returned, too nervous to realize how inane that sounded.
A smile played at the corners of his lips. But before he could say Anything else, another voice interrupted them. "That bathroom was disgusting!"
Josie looked up and immediately recognized Lara Patton, and she, after a few seconds, recognized Josie as well. Josie closed her eyes briefly and felt a wave of shock roll over her as she realized what Laura's presence by Sam's side meant. However, Sam did not catch their exchange of looks. "Josie, I'd like you to meet my girlfriend Lara," he introduced them.
"Oh, we already know each other, sweetie," said Lara, latching onto his arm.
Sam looked confused. "Oh?"
"Josie interviewed me for the Sun-Times." Looking at Josie again, she gushed, "I just love what you've done with your hair. It really suits you."
"Thank you," Josie replied, wishing Lara would just disappear. She really needed to talk to Sam. But how could she tell him that she wasn't married without ruining Lydia's story and getting them both fired? It seemed she had no choice but to keep up the charade, after all. But what did that leave her to tell him? Her mind was racing; she felt a headache coming on.
"Is your, uh, husband here?" Sam asked.
"Yes . . . no . . ." she floundered.
Lara laughed and waved a perfectly manicured hand dismissively. "Men are so hard to keep track of, aren't they? I didn't know you were married. May I see your ring?"
Josie gulped. Yikes. "I don't really have one," she confessed. "We . . . um . . . didn't do that. It happened sort of quickly. Rather took me by surprise, actually." That was the truth; it certainly had been a surprise for her� She glanced surreptitiously at Sam, who was looking at her rather strangely.
"Oh," Lara replied, oblivious. "You know," she remarked, looking around and turning up her nose slightly, "I can hardly think at all in here." She smiled again at Josie, and assuming her to be an ally, confided, "Sam loves all this, but I can't stand it. When he moves to New York, he'll straighten up."
Josie's heart sank. New York? She dared another look at Sam. He didn't seem too thrilled about that prospect either.
"So, Josie," Lara continued, "how do you know Sam?"
"I wrote an article on the Shakespeare Festival at his school."
Lara giggled and rolled her eyes. "Isn't it the silliest thing? Barbie dolls and bad poetry and such." She smiled up at Sam condescendingly. "But it's a cute idea, sweetheart."
Josie was surprised at how much Lara was irritating her. She felt terrible for Sam, and before she knew what she was doing, she began defending him. "Well, actually Lara, I thought the idea was brilliant. High school students don't usually get that involved with the literature they read. It seems too irrelevant and dated to them. But the festival is a way for them to relate to it and respond in their own creative ways."
Lara opened her mouth to say something, but nothing came out so she shut it again. Sam, on the other hand, beamed at Josie. Her heart raced furiously at the look on his face. Finally, Lara said, looking pointedly at Sam, "I'm going to step outside and get some air. I'm ready to go as soon as you are."
She walked off, leaving Sam and Josie in her wake. Josie was watching Lara's abrupt departure, so she was completely taken aback when Sam reached for one of her hands and held it in both of his. "Thanks, Josie," he said, giving her a meaningful look. Then, glancing toward the door, he continued wryly, "Look, I better go. I know how to take a hint."
Josie laughed. "It certainly wasn't subtle, was it?"
"No." Sam looked away for a moment, and then focused his eyes on Josie again. "Josie?"
"Yes?"
"Would your husband mind if we were friends? I mean, is that why you backed out that day?" He seemed to be holding his breath awaiting her answer.
Josie felt her heart crumbling inside of her as she replied softly, "He wouldn't mind. He knows I have friends."
Sam smiled, and Josie detected a trace of sadness in his eyes. "Would you like to try for bowling again, then? Maybe tomorrow?"
"Sure." She smiled and tried to think of something to lighten the mood. Recalling how fondly he spoke of hockey while they were skating, she joked, "Better watch out�I'm the Gordie Howe of the bowling alley."
His eyes darkened and she felt him tighten his grip on her hand. He had the oddest expression on his face. Josie wondered if she had said something wrong, but Sam simply replied, "Okay, if it's all right with you, I'll pick you up after work like I did last time." When she nodded her reply, he released her hand, and turned to leave.
Josie watched him walk away until she could no longer see through her tears, and then hurried to join Anita.
* * *