Private Lives

“You look lovely,” Brock said and handed her two day lilies that he’d picked from his garden. She thanked him and put the lilies in a vase with water. This Brock Lightner was far and away a different man from the one who walked around in T-shirt, sneakers and Bermuda shorts. She’d thought him handsome and the personification of sexiness, but the man before her had a commanding presence with which she was unfamiliar. He was a man who knew who he was.

“Where’s Jack?” Dudley wanted to know.

“He’s taking care of the house. Jack doesn’t go to restaurants.”

She stared up at him. “There are certainly no flies on you, Brock. You look…” She thought it best to leave it unsaid. “Let’s go.”

He drove them to a restaurant just past North Creek that she knew hosted weddings and other important celebrations. Their reservation was for a small, intimate dining room in which four other tables were occupied. As they ate, she noticed that Dudley copied Brock’s every move and it occurred to her that she may not be able to reverse the relationship even if she wanted to. Dudley had accepted Brock as a part of his life and she realized that her son needed the man.

“I’d better tell you now that I’ll be away for a week or two and I’ll start Dudley’s guitar lessons when I get back.”

“Where are you going?” she blurted out and immediately wished she hadn’t.

“My brother lives and works in Washington, D.C., and he asked me to come down and help him with a problem he’s having. Jason’s my closest friend as well as my brother and it didn’t occur to me to turn him down. Ross Hopkins, the photographer, will call you tomorrow and make an appointment to start photographing your recipes. I can assure you that he is completely trustworthy in every respect. If he wasn’t, I wouldn’t recommend him to you. I’ll call you from Washington. What’s the matter?”