Husband Next Door. Anne Ha
When do we start?”
“Start what?”
“My lessons. On being less of a nightmare for women. On becoming a lifetime proposition.”
She held up her hands. “Oh, no. That’s not my problem.”
“Shelly, you can’t just pronounce sentence on me without allowing a means of salvation. If I’m going to reform myself, I’ll need a good teacher.”
“Then look in the yellow pages, because it’s not going to be me! Some other brave soul can try to fix you.”
He wore a wounded expression. “But you’re perfect for the job. You already know all my faults—which means we’d save time—and you know what women want Plus, I trust you.”
She felt her resistance slipping. “I don’t know, Aaron….”
He was right, she realized. If someone else helped Aaron, assuming he could talk them into it, he’d have to waste countless hours explaining his past behavior to them—hours that could be better spent improving his character.
And she did know all the ways he needed to improve.
Aaron shook his head sadly. "I thought you’d help me out of friendship, but I guess I was wrong….” His voice trailed off; he looked like a lost puppy.
It was a difficult look to ignore. Against her better judgment, she said, “Oh, all right. I’ll help you. No guarantees, though.”
He smiled. “Fair enough. Actually, that reminds me— what if we’re successful and it still doesn’t make any difference?”
“It will.”
“Oh, I don’t know about that. You’ve neglected to consider an important point, Shel. What if it’s the woman who’s at fault?”
“Not likely.” She winked at him. “Correcting that little misapprehension will be the first step toward molding you into a new man.”
Aaron leaned forward. “I’m serious. What if my perfect woman judges me without really knowing me? What if she jumps to conclusions based on my colorful past and never sees that I’ve changed?”
He had a point, Shelly thought. It could happen. Not only did he have a colorful past, but also a dazzlingly handsome face and a lean, elegant body. Even if he managed to reform himself on the inside, he’d probably always look like a rake on the outside.
She didn’t want him to use that as an excuse not to make an effort, however. “Let’s deal with the possibility after you’ve changed,” she said. She smothered a yawn. It was getting late, and she did have the open house tomorrow.
Aaron watched her, his blue eyes thoughtful. “All right.” He carried their coffee mugs to the sink. “Looks as if it’s your bedtime, anyway. I’ll see you to the porch.” He followed Shelly outside and waited while she unlocked her door.
She stepped over the threshold. “Good night, Aaron. Have a nice time with Amelia tomorrow.”
Once inside her own apartment, Shelly lowered herself to the couch and sat there, staring into space for several minutes. Her mind kept replaying their recent conversation as she tried to assure herself Aaron really meant to change. She never would have believed it.
From the first time she’d met him, Shelly had sensed he was incapable of being serious about his love affairs. His humor and charm covered up an intense fear of emotional risk, of emotional vulnerability.
He would be a difficult case.
But if anyone could help him, she could. Shelly knew she had to try. She had to teach him how to lay the foundation for a lasting relationship, or he really would be alone his whole life. And, no matter how many jokes he cracked, she knew that wouldn’t make him happy.
Shelly got up and got ready for bed, reminding herself Aaron’s happiness was, in the end, his own responsibility. She’d do what she could, but she also had other things to think about. Her best friend, Chloe, was moving to San Francisco next week and would be staying with Shelly until she found her own place. And of course there was Eric’s proposal to consider….
She wasn’t too worried about it. Eric was the safest, most stable man she’d ever met. He was the farthest thing from a ladies’ man, and Shelly knew he’d be true to her. Though she still planned to take her time, it wouldn’t be a difficult decision.
The following day Shelly left the legal aid office at half past five and headed for the bus stop. She’d only taken a few steps on the busy downtown sidewalk when she spotted Aaron’s dark blue sports car at the curb up ahead.
“I was in the area,” he said by way of greeting. “How did the open house go?”
Shelly climbed in gratefully and fastened her seat belt. “It was great—no shortage of lawyers this time. How’s the Discovery Center?”
“Can’t complain.” He pulled into the flow of traffic. “I need to pick up some hardware on the way home, if you don’t mind.”
Aaron parked the car in the industrial district. Shelly entered the huge outlet store with him, but stayed at the front near the gardening supplies while Aaron cruised through the aisles, grabbing items off the shelves. Almost every week she accompanied him on some shopping trip or other—he was always buying supplies for different projects with his students.
A former investment banker, Aaron had left the rat race in order to work with children. He now ran an after-school activity group in San Francisco’s Mission District, drawing students from low income families in the neighborhood. Often, the parents had to work two jobs in order to get by, and Aaron’s Discovery Center helped keep their children off the streets. It nurtured the youths’ creativity and self-confidence and gave them a place to belong.
In the course of her own work at the legal aid office, Shelly had been able to refer several families to Aaron’s group. She liked being part of a larger network of people helping others. It was one of the things that kept her going whenever she felt overwhelmed by her clients’ problems, as she had at times during the open house that day.
Shelly was lost in thought when Aaron reappeared by her side with a cart full of tools and supplies. He paid for them and they walked back to the car.
“Were you thinking of Eric?” he asked as they drove off.
“About work, actually.”
“Oh,” he said. “Does that mean you’ve already made your decision?”
“Of course not. This is too important to be hasty.”
He shook his head with feigned regret “And you dismissed my proposal so easily…. It’s a good thing I don’t have feelings.”
“Only in the short run,” she returned, her voice tolerant. “In the long run it sharply decreases your odds of finding someone permanent. But we’ll save that for one of our advanced lessons.”
“Speaking of which, when can we get started?”
She shrugged. “How about tonight? I could come over and spend a few minutes pointing out the trouble spots in your apartment—photos of previous girlfriends, stacks of old love letters, and so on—and start to address the deeper issues of your treatment of women. At the very least, you need to learn how to dump your girlfriends properly. No more of this cabbage quiche stuff.”
He gave her a rueful look. “Great, as long as it doesn’t take too long. Keep in mind that Amelia is coming for dinner tonight.”
“Amanda.”
Aaron looked confused.
“Her name’s Amanda,” Shelly repeated.
When they reached their building, an old, converted Victorian, she followed Aaron inside his apartment. She dropped her purse onto the sideboard by his front door and hung her