Mike had wanted to take Ellen somewhere a little fancier for her birthday, but money was low as usual. She had offered to pay, but he refused. She shouldn't have to pay for her own birthday dinner, he had told her. Then she had suggested that maybe they should stay in and order a pizza or something. Pizza wasn't romantic, he replied. It could be, she had said with a smile. Looking back, he realized he should have taken her up on the offer.

The food was okay, the service was lousy, and the bathroom was a mess. If that wasn't enough, April was sitting two tables away with her boyfriend, looking beautiful as always. Mike hoped she didn't spot him. If she did, she would probably come over and talk and later he would have to explain things to Ellen and he really didn't want to do that because that would almost certainly guarantee that he would sleep alone that night and he didn't want that to happen.

"Who's that woman over there?" Ellen asked.

"What woman?" Mike asked, trying not to look at April.

"That tall woman over there who keeps looking over here. She's coming this way. Do you know her?"

"She does look familiar," Mike said nervously. Ellen was just starting to get over her irrational jealousy of Ana and now April was about to give her something else to worry about. He was in trouble.

"Hi, Mike," April said, walking up to him. She was smiling. "I saw you over here and I thought I would come over and say hi."

"Hi, April," Mike said, looking up at her. He had forgotten how tall she was. "Nice to see you again. How's the laundry business?" He hoped he didn't sound nervous or scared.

Meanwhile, Ellen sat nervously, wondering just who this woman was. She and Mike had put off the past relationships conversation, mainly because they both knew it would be a short conversation. Looking at April, she thought that maybe it was time to rethink that decision.

"I've given it up for now," April was saying. "Freddy and I are getting married next week and will be going on a long honeymoon." She suddenly noticed Ellen. "Oh, hi," she said, holding out her hand. "I'm April Conquest."

Ellen shook her hand. "I'm Ellen," she said cooly. "Nice to meet you. Have you known Mike very long?"

"Oh, not that long," she said to Ellen. She turned back to Mike. "How are Micky, Davy, and Peter?"

"Uh, they're just fine," Mike said, very aware of the sudden tension in the air. "I'll tell them I saw you."

"Please tell them hello for me," April said. "It was nice seeing you again, Mike and nice to meet you, Ellen. I better get back, Freddy looks like he's ready to leave."

"Who was that?" Ellen asked as soon as she was sure April and Freddy had left the restaurant.

"That was April," Mike said, hoping to avoid a fight. He really didn't want to sleep alone that night. "She introduced herself."

"I know that," Ellen said, barely holding back her emotions, "but who is she? How do you know her?" What she really meant was, Do you have a past with her? She wasn't sure she wanted to know.

He had dreaded this moment for a long time. He didn't have much of a past, but that didn't make things any easier. Any feelings he'd had for April had died quickly when he fell in love with Ellen. "She owns the Laundromat where we used to go and we all, uh, we all really liked her, but it was a long time ago and we got over it. This is the first I've seen her in several months."

She was about to say something when she spotted someone else headed towards their table. _I wonder who that is._

"Hi, Ellen," she said.

"Oh, hi, Joannie. What brings you to a place like this?" She hadn't seen Joannie in a long time.

Mike looked up at their new visitor and tried to hide his shock. This just wasn't his night. First April and now Joannie. The way his luck was going, Miss Buntwell would show up next. Or maybe Jennifer. And he would almost definitely be sleeping alone.

"I was just in the neighborhood and decided to stop in. I used to work here," Joannie said. "So, what have you been up to lately? Are you still with Joey?" Then she saw Mike. "I guess not. Hi."

"Joannie, this is Mike," Ellen said. "Joey is just my agent." _Thanks for bringing up that painful memory. Next you'll ask about Robert. Wait, nobody knows about him. Good thing, too._

"You look familiar," Joannie said to Mike. "Have we met before?"

Mike didn't know what to say. He had been hoping she wouldn't remember him. He had embarrassed himself greatly that time. "Uh, yeah, we did meet before," he said. "You were filming some vampire movie."

"Oh, yes, I remember now," Joannie said. "Nice seeing you both again. Tell Joey hello for me, Ellen."

"You know her?" Mike asked after Joannie left.

"We started out together," Ellen said. "She made it and I didn't."

"You will," Mike said.

"What about when you met her? Sounds interesting." It was an attempt to pry information out of him about his past. Maybe it was time to have that talk that had been putting off. Her past wasn't much to talk about, just Joey, who she would like to forget, and Robert, who she couldn't forget no matter what. She had met him in New York and had fallen in love with him despite her better judgement. It hadn't worked out. Sometimes she wondered where he was, but she was convinced things had worked out for the best.

"It was a long time ago," Mike said, interrupting her thoughts. "I only met her once and nothing happened." _In other words, I'd rather not talk about it._ "Do you want desert?"

"Not here," Ellen said. _You're not getting out of it that easy._ "How about that ice cream place a few blocks away?"

"Great," Mike said. He motioned for the waiter. "Check please."

"Here you go, sir," the waiter said, handing him the check. At least the prices reflected the quality. "How was your meal?"

That was a question best left unanswered. Instead, Mike said, "Your bathroom is messy."

"I'm sorry," the waiter said. "Our cleaning lady only comes in the second Tuesday of every month with an 'r' in it."

"Mrs. Weefers should have been in earlier this week," Mike said.

"Oh, then I'll report it," the waiter said.

"How did you know who the cleaning lady is?" Ellen asked as they walked to the ice cream shop.

"She used to be our cleaning lady, too," Mike said.

They arrived at the ice cream shop without running into anyone else and were trying to figure out what to order when Mike noticed the woman behind the counter. _Oh, please tell me that is not who I think it is._ There was no mistaking the red hair or the sparkling yellow blouse. It was Miss Buntwell. He was sleeping alone that night.

He was hoping she wouldn't recognize him, but her smile turned to a look of pure terror when she saw him. She was probably still upset with him about the dance thing. She had good reason to. After all, the studio had to close down and she lost her job.

"Maybe we should just go to your place and watch TV or something," Mike said, trying to steer Ellen towards the door.

"I want some ice cream," Ellen protested. "Why do you want to leave? Who's here that you know?"

"I just want to be alone with you," Mike said, hoping that sounded convincing.

"Mike, who is that woman over there and why does she looked scared of you?" Ellen asked upon spotting Miss Buntwell.

"She used to work at a dance studio," Mike said. "We went there a few times."

"There must be more to it than that, but right now I want some ice cream," Ellen said.

Miss Buntwell tried not to show her discomfort as Mike and Ellen walked up to the counter. She had been hoping he wouldn't remember her, but it was obvious he did. It was also obvious by the conversation she had overheard that his relationship with the girl was fairly new. "What can I get for you this evening?" she asked, pleased that she didn't sound nervous.

"I'll have a double dip chocolate cone," Mike said. "What about you, honey?"

"I'll have the same," Ellen said.

"That will be seventy-five cents, please."

Mike handed her a dollar. "So, what ever happened to Renaldo?" he asked casually.

"He works here, too," Miss Buntwell said, giving Mike a quarter and their ice cream. "Nice seeing you again. Have a nice evening and come back soon." She motioned Ellen closer. "He's a great kisser, isn't he?"

Ellen blushed, but said, "Yes, he is."

They found a booth in the corner. "This has certainly been an interesting evening," Ellen said. "I guess there's a lot we don't know about each other."

"A little mystery is good for a relationship," Mike said.

She started to say something, but before she could, he pulled her to him and kissed her.

Miss Buntwell watched from the counter. It wasn't the first time she had seen public displays of affection in the store, but this was different.

Outside, April stopped on the sidewalk and smiled at what she saw.

Both had once been on the receiving end of Mike's passion and both had the same thought. Ellen was one lucky woman.

The ice cream, however, wasn't as lucky and melted. So did Ellen. And Mike didn't sleep alone that night.