Promptly at 8:00 on New Year’s Eve, Frieda and Douglas arrived for dinner.  The stone house glowed with candles on every windowsill, and Katherine adjusted Noodle’s silver bow, which kept slipping to one side of his neck.  Noodle’s left ear twitched as he cocked his head at the sound of car doors slamming shut.  Katherine opened the door and Frieda dashed inside wearing high heels and clutching her coat.  “Hello there Noodle,” she cried.  “Don’t jump!  You’ll ruin my nylons.”
     “No boots?” gasped Katherine while reaching for the dog.  “Noodle, down.”
     “If I’m getting a chance to dress up, I’m not wearing my clunky snowboots,” Frieda declared, going into the warm kitchen.  “I told Douglas he has to play gentleman and drop me right at the door.  And if the car gets stuck, I’m not doing any pushing.”
     “Hello boy!”  Douglas came in carrying a brown liquor bag.  “I didn’t hear you bark.  Not much of a watch dog?  Too young still?  You’ll grow into it.”
     Frieda gave Katherine a kiss on the cheek.  “You look great.  Is that a new dress?”
     Katherine was wearing a knee-length black dress with chiffon sleeves and yoke, sheer black stockings and black velvet pumps.  She felt proud and confident, but smiled and shrugged casually.  “Just a thing I picked up a little while ago.”
    “Very sophisticated.” Douglas handed Katherine the bottle and unbuttoned his long cloth coat.  “That’s an interesting new red we’ve got to try.”
     “Terrific,” said Katherine studying the label.
     “And I’d let it breathe.”  He put his coat on a hanger and then on one of the hooks near the door.
     “You want to open it for me?  The corkscrew’s on the counter.”  She took Frieda’s coat, pausing to admire her tight metallic blue mini dress.  “I love that on you.  Short and sexy.  And who would ever guess that you’ve had two kids?  Look at that waist.  Makes me sick.”
     “You’re just saying that,” Frieda joked, acting like a gushing ingenue.  “Truth is, I’m lucky it still fits.  I didn’t have anything else to wear.  We don’t get out much any more, do we?”
     “Not together, that’s for sure.”  Douglas was unwrapping the cork.
     Katherine passed Frieda’s coat to him to hang up.  “One of you is always babysitting, right?  If you want me to, you know you just have to ask.”
     “Actually we don’t want to go out much together right now, do we?”  Douglas’s voice had a touch of hostility as he pulled on the corkscrew.
     “Together or alone, we don’t go out much at all,” Frieda said smoothly.  “We’d both rather be home with the kids, wouldn’t we?”
     “That’s the way I like it.”
     “Finished your bickering?  Let’s have a drink in the living room.”  Katherine took a silver canister out of the fridge.  “Martinis OK?”
     “Excellent,” said Douglas.
     Frieda’s dress flashed in the candlelight as she moved around the living room.  “So where’s Rick?”
     “He went home to get dressed.”
     “I’m sorry I asked.  I don’t want to know the intimate details.”
     Katherine grimaced and shook her head.  “To put his suit on, as if you didn’t know what I meant.  He went home in the afternoon.  He should be here soon.”  She poured clear liquid into triangular glasses.  Frieda picked one up and asked “What about Lawrence?  Is he coming?”
     “No.  He’s gone skiing with a friend.”
     “Good for  him.  I was beginning to wonder about him.”
     Katherine paused, the shaker in her hand.  “What do you mean?”
     “He’s not married, he never seems to talk about women…I was wondering whether he might be gay.”
     “I’m not married, and I didn’t use to talk about men before Rick, but you never thought of me as gay.”
     Frieda took a sip.  “That’s because I’ve known you for over 20 years.”
     “Did he tell you he was skiing with a woman?” asked Douglas.
     “Well, no,” admitted Katherine reluctantly.
     “So, he could be gay.”  Douglas reached for an olive.  “Or, he’s skiing with a male friend but he’s not gay.  Or he’s with a woman.  And she could just be a friend, so maybe he’s gay anyway.  Or not.”
     The women stared at him and laughed, shaking their heads.
     “Or,” he continued, “he just said that because he didn’t want to come to dinner.  See, you just don’t know.”
     “And that’s the truth,” Katherine said to Frieda, pointing at Douglas.  “Speaking of dinner, I have to check on the oven.”
     Frieda followed her into the kitchen and Noodle suddenly made a timid yap, pricking up his ears.  “You hear something?” Katherine said encouraging him.  “Yes?  Good boy.”  Then she heard it too, another vehicle driving up.  Noodle ran to the door.  “Aren’t you a clever dog.  Good watch dog.”  Over her shoulder, she explained to Frieda, “If you want him to do something you have to praise lavishly at the first attempts.”
     The door opened, Noodle bounded forward, and came tumbling back inside with Goldie, who held her head out of reach and kept him down with one paw.  Rick followed.  “Take it easy, you guys.”  He stood still as soon as he saw Katherine and Frieda.  “Well.  Hello, ladies.  Don’t you look beautiful.  I feel like I should have brought a corsage.”  He put an arm around Katherine’s waist.  “I see why you wanted me to wear a tux.”
     Katherine put her right hand in his left and they were in position to dance.  Then she ducked under their clasped hands and twirled away from him.  Frieda stood with her lips forming a smile behind the rim of her glass.
     Rick grinned a little sheepishly.  “Good to see you again, Frieda.”
     Douglas came into the kitchen and Katherine introduced them.  “How do you do, good to meet you,” they murmured, shaking hands and looking into each other’s eyes as they assessed each other.
     “Why don’t you go into the living room and I’ll check on dinner?  I’ve made martinis.  Can you help yourself, Rick?  Now you dogs stay out of there.”
     Frieda perched on an armrest and watched Rick pour.  “You’ve done great work on the house.  It’s looking good.”
     “It’s coming along.”
     “Is this your line of work, or your hobby?” asked Douglas.
     “More of a hobby, although I’ve fixed up a few houses.”
     “What’s your work?”
     “I used to be a builder.  Now I manage some properties.”
     “He has an investment portfolio,” called Katherine helpfully from the kitchen.  “He’s going to make me rich, aren’t you?”
     “I’m working on it,” he called back with a smile.
     “Do you manage properties for a company, or yourself?”  persisted Douglas.
     “Some of both.  And you?” he said, changing the subject.  “What’s your line?”
     “Teaching.  History and geography.”
     “You know, I was never very good in those subjects.  Math was more my style.  I understand numbers.”
     “Now that was my weak area.  I understand people.”
     There was a pause.  Frieda began swinging her crossed leg.  “Aren’t you going to ask about my work?”
     “I’m sorry, I saw your kids and thought you’d be looking after them.”
     “Well I am for now, but I’m a nurse, and I’ll be going back once Beth’s in school.”
     “I see,” Rick said trying to make conversation.  “Nursing seems like a stressful job.”
     “Can be.”  The conversation faded again, but Katherine came in, the dogs trailing her.  She turned and holding one finger in the air, said “Sit.”  Goldie obeyed promptly, and when Katherine said “Stay,” Noodle groaned and lay down, his head on his paws.
     “What a character,” said Douglas.  “He’s not happy about that.”
     “This dog seems to be able to read my mind,” said Katherine.
     “He’s bright,” said Rick.  “You can tell him to get his ball, not his bone, and he’ll do it.  It’s something.”
     “Dogs are great if you have the room for them,” said Douglas.  “I had a dog once that would play baseball for hours.  I could hit the ball out into the park and he’d fetch it back.  We’d play for hours.”
     “Goldie was that way when she was younger.”  And the two men grew animated as they reminisced about their great moments with dogs.  Katherine looked at Frieda, smiled and shrugged.  When their glasses were empty, Katherine made her move.  “Why don’t we go into the dining room?  Rick, will you shut the dogs in the mudroom while we eat?  Douglas, can you bring the wine?”
     When Frieda, Douglas and Rick were seated around the table in the glowing room, Katherine came in bearing a tureen.  “Cream of carrot soup,” she announced.  “It’s a lovely recipe I’ve just discovered.”  With the ladle in her hand, she looked around the candlelit table and smiled.

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