Something in the Wine by Jae Page A

candles.
    “Open your present,” Sarah said while she pulled out the candles and cut generous pieces of cake for everyone. “It’s from all of us.”
    Annie slid one finger beneath the tape, removed the wrapping paper, and folded it.
    “Sarah wanted to hire a stripper, but we convinced her that you would appreciate this present more,” Mia said.
    “Thank you.” Whatever the present was, Annie was sure she would like it better than a half-naked man gyrating on her lap while her friends watched. She lifted the lid and looked at the objects in the box—five of Sandra Scoppettone’s mystery novels. “Oh, wow. How did you get them?” What Sarah had said earlier was true. The books were out of print and hard to find, at least at a reasonable price.
    Sarah chuckled. “My female charms took care of that.”
    “More like your credit card,” Tamara said.
    “Thank you very much.” Annie gave each of the women a short hug. “I don’t want to appear ungrateful, but I really have to go.”
    “Take some cake,” Sarah said.
    Annie’s parents had invited her to a restaurant, and she didn’t want to spoil her appetite, but Mrs. Perez, her neighbor, would appreciate a piece of cake. She waited until Sarah had packed her some cake, then hurried to the door. She hadn’t even made it to her car when her cell phone rang. One glance at the caller ID made her smile. How nice of her mother to call her to wish her a happy birthday even though they would see each other later. “Hi, Mom.”
    “I’m sorry, darling,” her mother said, “but would you mind meeting us an hour later? Your father got called in to conduct a matinee because his colleague called in sick. We already called the restaurant and changed the reservation.”
    Annie unlocked her car, slid into the driver’s seat, and closed her eyes. Great. And I ran out on my friends without even trying the cake. She tried not to let her disappointment show. “Sure, Mom. No problem.”
    “Great. I knew you’d understand.”
    Yeah. Annie the Understanding. That’s me. When her mother ended the call, she sat for a minute, staring at the bushes in front of Sarah’s house, then gave herself a mental kick and started the car.
    * * *
    “Oh, great,” Drew said with a glance at her phone’s caller ID. “Jake.” Was he calling to tell her again to stay away from his sister? She picked up the phone and steeled herself. “Hi, Jake.”
    “I need a birthday present,” Jake said. A radio played in the background and a car’s engine hummed, indicating that he was on the road.
    Drew looked at her phone, frowning, then shook her head and moved the phone back to her ear. “I’m doing wonderfully. Thank you so much for asking, dear friend. And by the way, need I remind you again that talking on the phone without hands-free equipment while you’re driving is illegal in the great state of California?” Knowing Jake, he wasn’t using hands-free equipment.
    “Yeah, yeah, yeah,” Jake said. “No time for pleasantries or long lectures. It’s really urgent.”
    “So which of your many girlfriends are you trying to impress?” Drew asked.
    “Huh? Why would you think this is about a girlfriend?”
    Drew rolled her eyes. “It’s not because I’m a mind reader. Usually when you call to ask for something, it’s about a woman.”
    “But this time, it’s not.” He paused and then laughed. “Yeah, well, I suppose it is.”
    Drew reached for the calendar she kept next to the phone to see if any of their common acquaintances’ birthday was coming up. Nothing. “Want to clue me in? Whose birthday is it?”
    “Annie’s.”
    “Oh.” Drew clicked on a pen to write it down in the calendar. “When is it?”
    “Today.”
    The pen dropped on top of the calendar. His sister’s birthday is today, and he’s only starting to search for a present now? She shook her head. Maybe being an only child wasn’t so bad after all. She picked up the pen and circled today’s date, October