Once upon two valentines, a floral moral

There were times after my divorce that I dated more than one man at a time. It was rather flattering.

I met Marty through his son, who was my next-door neighbor. He liked to cook, and he'd also open his home for Parents Without Partners' parties.

That was actually our first date. He invited me to attend a pool party he was hosting. It was my birthday and my children took me to my favorite restaurant for dinner.

They all had plans for later on, so I went to the party. Marty introduced me to everyone and gave me a tour of his house.

Without even knowing whether I was coming, he had a birthday cake for me and everyone sang and shared my cake.

I met Allan through a personal ad in Newsday. He was the total opposite of Marty. He was an accountant and always dressed in a suit and tie.

He was very secretive, but very polished. He held doors open and drank martinis. I had never been with anyone who drank martinis; stirred not shaken, with olives.

We'd usually meet for dinner on Friday when he'd drive from his office in Manhattan all the way to Westbury. I loved the way he smelled, and he fascinated me with his debonair manner.

Valentine's Day came, and I dressed for work in my red sweater. I was in a semi-festive mood when I came home from teaching that day.

About 4 p.m. the door bell rang and the delivery man handed me the most enormous bouquet of flowers I had ever received. The card read, "Happy Valentine's Day" and was signed "Allan."

I didn't have any plans for dinner because Allan was in Manhattan and Marty was working for a florist -- it was a very busy day for them.

I ate dinner by myself since my daughter was out with her boyfriend and then watched television.

Around 9 p.m. the doorbell rang and there stands Marty with a vase filled with red roses! But as soon as he walked in, he saw Allen's flowers on the kitchen counter in the biggest vase I owned.

"Oh," he said. "Someone was here before me?" My mouth sort of hung open in midair. To save the moment, I replied, "I'm not the only female living in this house!"