by Various
“What?” she wondered, taking her napkin and wiping the place his finger had grazed. “Chocolate on my face?”
Brooks shook his head. “No…I just….” He turned his attention to his own dessert. “Lolly, I hope I haven’t put you in an awkward position. Vance got this idea in his head and…well, as you might guess he’s a tough one to talk out of anything.”
He glanced up to see Lolly studying her dessert, shaking her head vehemently. “I’m happy to do what I can for Vance. After hearing his story I feel terribly under qualified.” She put her spoon down and her eyes met his. “How much did you know?”
“None of the details,” Brooks said. “I didn’t get to know Vance until high school. We were the only two freshmen to make the varsity team and were hazed unmercifully. We bonded pretty quickly.”
“You were hazed?”
“Big time. We were constantly being snapped with wet towels, forced us to eat goldfish after a win, and brutal stuff I can’t even get into. I had no idea that kind of shit went on. Almost made me quit the team. But Vance kept saying, ‘Dude, we are gonna live through this. In the grand scheme of things, this is nothing.’
“I thought he was nuts until it dawned on me he’d been through worse. When I realized he was the kid whose mother had walked out, I figured he was right. Having to swallow a couple goldfish was nothing. So I sucked it up.
“That’s when I introduced him to Lewis and the two of them got along right off the bat, talking about…stuff.” Brooks shook his head. “Frankly I’m not sure what they talked about; it was all over my head. The three of us played a lot of video games, but those two are bookworms and I’m not…so they bonded.”
Lolly sat back in disbelief. “Vance Evans? That Vance Evans, is a bookworm?”
Brooks chuckled and nodded.
“So when he said he was going to the library to get a book on tennis?”
“He’s going to the library to get a book on tennis.”
“Can you even learn to play tennis from a book?”
“Vance says you can learn anything from a book. Which is why he majored in English.”
“He majored in English?” Lolly squealed.
Brooks sat back and laughed. “I know,” he said throwing his arms wide. “Right?”
“Well, what’s all this about his not being much of a cop?”
Brooks flashed his broad grin. “Ah, we love to tease him about that. He started out being full time, but over the past few years being a cop has become more of a pastime for Vance. But he’s still got some special talents we rely on.”
“What kind of talents?”
“He can speak Spanish, so he volunteers as a court interpreter. Actually, he’s an interpreter for the precinct whenever we need one, which is more and more these days. He’s one of the best shots on the force—“
“Better than you?” Lolly interrupted, smiling, goading him.
Brooks scoffed. “Now you’re just being ridiculous.”
Lolly laughed. He liked making her laugh.
“He’s good, but he refuses to carry a gun,” Brooks went on. “And he started the bicycle unit. Probably because he can’t stand being inside, sitting still, or driving under the speed limit. He still contributes, but he’s a coach first, an entrepreneur second, and a cop a distant third.”
“An entrepreneur?”
Brooks shrugged. “Apparently the guy’s been making money since he could talk. All I know is that he had enough stashed away five years ago to give Lewis seed money for his crazy App business. Which turned out to be a brilliant investment. Vance is probably as rich as his dad, but he still drives the same beat-up truck he bought when he was sixteen.”
“He told me that he had paramedic training,” Lolly added.
“Yeah, well we’ve all had that. But I will tell you this…." Brooks said, getting serious as he captured her regard. “He’s kind, Lolly. Every Tuesday night he teaches English as a second language. Doesn’t take a dime for it. He does it as a way to honor his grandmother. I know he’s a snake when it comes to women, but that’s because his mother left with his heart. He’s either punishing the women he takes to bed because of her, or he’s too afraid to let himself want more than sex. But now that he’s facing thirty, I do believe he’s trying to make a change. You may not be able to help him. I’m not sure anyone can. But I…” he hesitated, “I appreciate that you’re willing to try.”
Lolly simply nodded, chewing her lip.
“Lolly. If you spend time with him, he’s going to hit on you.”
Her eyes widened.
“He considers me his brother. I’m close to all he’s got. And he’ll still hit on you. He won’t be able to help himself; it’s how he relates to women. And I am probably asking you to do the impossible because I have never once seen a woman turn him down. But for his sake…and yours…."
Brooks went back to eating his soufflé.
“Why did you ask me out?”
Brooks' head shot up. That question came out of the blue and it was a direct one. Why did I ask her out? Wow. He carefully placed his spoon on the side of his plate, took his napkin from his lap, and wiped at the side of his mouth.
He could easily come up with several reasons that would be adequate. Instead, he decided not to lie.
“I don’t want to tell you.”
She smiled a quick smile like he’d made a joke. “You don’t want to tell me?”
He shook his head. “Not tonight.”
She opened her mouth but apparently couldn’t think of anything to say. So she closed it and sat back from the table, letting both hands fall to her lap, still holding his gaze. He could almost see the calculations happening through the brilliant, blue gems of her eyes.
“You and I worked on a baseball statistics project, remember? I was a freshman in high school and you were a junior in college. You happened to come home for the weekend and got roped into helping me.”
“It was a father-daughter team project. Darcy and Dad were on top of theirs. You needed a teammate. I’m a good teammate.”
“You’re the best teammate. I probably didn’t even thank you, but I never forgot it. We got an A, by the way.”
“You thanked me. You sent me the graded paper. I laughed when I opened the mail.”
She cocked her head to the side. “So, considering our next team project, do you agree with Vance that most of the women you date would classify you as nice, safe, and boring?”
“I haven’t dated anyone in close to a year.”
“That’s not what I asked.”
He swallowed. He wasn’t going to look away. And he wasn’t going to lie to Lolly. Ever. “It would not surprise me if nine out of ten of the women I’ve dated since college would put me in the milquetoast category.”
“Since college.”
He nodded.
“What about high school?”
“I didn’t date in high school. I was a late bloomer.”
She didn’t smirk or smile. “Okay,” she said, leaning forward and picking up her spoon.
“Okay, what?”
“We can do this.”
“Do what, exactly?”
“The Golden Boy of Henderson should never be classified as milquetoast. It’s just…disappointing.”
“Jesus,” he muttered.
“And now that I’m aware you have aspirations to run for public office…well, I can understand how your reputation in all things is a concern. Carrying that dead weight into a date might make you seem a little milquetoast.”
“You don’t know the half of it.”
Lolly gave him an empathetic smile. “You’ve been watching everything you say and do for a very long time, haven’t you?”
He wasn’t aware it was evident. Of course, considering who he was dealing with. “I…ah….” He let out a long breath and leaned back in his chair. This was Lolly. He wanted her to know the whole story. “For whatever reason, way back when, the press took to me. The first article came out
during my freshman year. My parents were so proud and I thought it was great too, right up until some kid asked for my autograph.”
“I don’t understand.”
“Well, as I looked at that kid and asked him his name, I remembered being that kid. I remembered being that age and looking up to Tucker Mayfield, a star on the varsity team at the time. Tucker had it all. He could hit, run, field, and pitch. He was smart, good-looking, got good grades—the girls loved him—hell, the whole town loved him.
“He was in the press all the time. Got a scholarship to fucking Princeton. Tucker Mayfield was the guy. He was the player I wanted to be. He was the son every parent wanted. And then…then he got caught selling cocaine the same night he’d beaten up his girlfriend and left her out by the lake.”
Lolly’s breath caught.
“Exactly,” Brooks said, pointing at Lolly. “There I was signing my first autograph when Tucker Mayfield flashes before my eyes. In a split second, I remember my utter disappointment. My complete devastation. I remember how the entire town felt let down finding out their shining star was nothing but a drug-pushing bully. I remember my momma crying over the article in the paper. Worrying about Tucker’s parents and what they were going through. I realized then that I didn’t just have a responsibility to myself and my team to be the best player I could be, but now I had a responsibility to be a role model for this kid who held my autograph. I decided right there and then that I was not gonna let him down. I was not letting anybody down.”
“And you haven’t.”
“Not yet, anyway.”
Lolly leaned forward. “That fear. That stress I see all over your body. We are going to take care of that,” she promised.
“How are you going to do that, exactly?”
“By promising that I will abstain from voting when and if you run for public office.”
“How’s that going to help?” Brooks asked, throwing up his arms in exasperation. “Sounds like I just lost a vote.”
“It will help because you won’t have to censor yourself around me. Whatever we discuss, whatever we do stays between us.” She gave him a firm, I-swear-to-God nod before picking up her spoon again.
She glanced down at her plate and then back at him. “Actually,” she blurted, holding up a finger, “I might want to get input from my girlfriends at school. I’m only one woman and not all women like the same things. If I’m going to help you and Vance, I’m going to need to do a little research to give you the full spectrum of the feminine perspective.”
“Lolly,” he interrupted.
“Yes?”
“I’m not interested in what other women want or think. I’m only interested in what you want. What you think.”
Well, that shut her up, Brooks thought as her mouth hung open in the sexiest little O. He watched as Lolly took a deep breath and reached for her water glass, her midnight-blue eyes never leaving his.
“Remember a few years back when you and Darcy turned twenty-one and you and your wild bunch came into the Club for your first official drink? Well, I was there and….” Just the basics, just give her the basics. “And it occurred to me then that after you graduated from college and moved back to town, it’d be a good idea to ask you out.”
“I graduated a year ago.”
“Sort of.”
“I still haven’t moved back to town, really.”
“I’m well aware.”
“I might never move back,” she whispered.
His heart constricted at the thought. He couldn’t pull his gaze away from her eyes. “That’s a chance I’ll have to take.”
When Lolly didn’t respond, he broke eye contact and picked up his spoon, pretending to want another bite. “So here’s my promise. I’m sure there will be plenty of reasons to kick me to the curb at summer’s end, but I’m going to do my best to make sure nice, safe, and boring aren’t three of them.”
Chapter Nine
Vance enjoyed driving the Corvette. The Corvette suited him. It was fast. It was lean. It showed well. Plus, there was a lot going on under the hood most people wouldn’t comprehend.
He drove past the library in a time-wasting, fruitless endeavor. He knew the library wasn’t open on Sunday, but a drive-by of the traditional stone building hiding a surprisingly large and modern library always felt good. And even though he wasn’t much of a cop, he did like to make sure no teenagers were roaming around looking for trouble.
He headed home, planning to hit Amazon and order a book on doubles tennis. Swinging through the red brick gates of the estate’s main drive, he coasted over to the long detached garage, artistically designed to look like a stable. He parked the Corvette in its spot and surveyed the rest of the fleet. Nothing safe or boring. Lolly would appreciate them all.
He headed up the slope toward the pool, noticing lights coming from the back of the main house. He could see his father and grandmother standing at the kitchen island, laughing. Laughing?
Without conscious thought, he bore a path to the French doors and tapped briefly so as not to startle them when he opened the door and stepped inside.
His father, Hale, all of fifty-two, didn’t look a day over forty, which made sense because his grandmother at seventy-eight rivaled Sophia Loren. Both were stunning to look at. His father with his square jaw, short-cropped dark hair, and constant day’s growth of beard rivaled models half his age, while his grandmother exuded old-world grace and beauty, her red-to-brown hair always in an updo and her slim figure outfitted in upscale and appropriate fashion for a woman her age. Vance realized in that moment that his own looks and style paled in comparison to those of these previous two generations.
Their jovial mood broadened as he entered, love and appreciation shining from their faces at the unexpected family gathering. The joy directed at him caused two polar reactions at once. While it soothed the long-standing ache in his chest to a good degree, it also struck a raw and sensitive nerve. How could he live up to that kind of love?
He couldn’t. But he could do his best to return it. “Abuela,” he acknowledged with a wide grin and a kiss on both cheeks.
“Dad,” he laughed as he caught his father’s outstretched hand before being reeled in for a rare hug. “No early morning meeting in the outlands tomorrow?” It was his father’s standard operating procedure to fly out Sunday evening to wherever his private equity business was improving some long-standing family-owned business. That or to wherever he was scouting out future investments.
With a brief glance at his grandmother, his father responded with a satisfied, almost exuberant smile. “I’ve found a potential opportunity right here in town. It looks like I’ll be sticking around here for a while. Hope that doesn’t cramp your style.”
Vance simply stared at him, unable to stop smiling. He couldn’t put into words how he’d longed for something to capture his father’s attention enough to keep him home. But the words that did tumble forth came without premeditated thought. “Does this have anything to do with a certain yellow Spyder I’ve seen parked conspicuously close to your car whenever you’re in town?”
His father’s grin told him more than he’d bargained for. “Really?” Vance’s eyes went wide. “Is there something you want to tell me?”
Hale cleared his throat and looked to the marble flooring below his feet. “Well, I just let your grandmother in on this.” He snuck a look at his mother before fastening his dark gaze on his son. “So I may as well face all the inevitable prying questions now. Yes. That little Spyder is not only my next equity investment. The owner of the company and I have….” He looked flustered. “Well, let’s say, we’ve been developing a personal relationship as well as a business one. We’ve kept it under wraps, not from the two of you so much as from the town in general. You know how the gossip hounds like a good story and never get the facts right. The Spyder has some complicated relationships that aren’t worth inciting if we don’t hit it off. Why borrow trouble?”
“Agreed, but I want to meet he
r. I’m sure Vance does, too,” Emelina insisted in her heavily Spanish-accented English. “A woman who has captured this much of your attention after so many years is someone I am very eager to meet.” She reached over and knocked invisible lint off her son’s shoulder, as warm a gesture as she was capable. “Especially if she is going to do the impossible and keep you in town for more than two days in a row.”
Hale laughed and Vance couldn’t take his eyes off his father. He’d never seen him like this. Happy? Yes. His dad looked happy. Young. Fit. Energetic. Dynamic even. In a good way. Not the usual tightly wound Type A persona he’d grown to respect. No, this man in front of him was a version of his father he had yet to meet.
“I will extend an invitation, Madre. And we’ll allow the owner of the yellow Spyder to accept or decline as she sees fit.”
“It’s Lolly’s mother,” Vance declared.
His father’s head popped up in surprise before he smiled a slow, shy smile. When did his father become capable of shy? Vance watched as Hale’s mouth twisted, clearly wrestling with the decision to let them further into his secret. Unable to play the game, Vance blurted, “I saw the car. When I picked up Lolly tonight. I asked if it was her mother’s.”
His grandmother gasped with alarm. “You aren’t dating this woman’s daughter, are you?”
Vance didn’t take his eyes off his father’s face, but he shook his head in the negative. “We are endeavoring to become friends,” he answered his grandmother. Then to his father he quietly stated, “If she’s anything like her daughter, you’ve won the lottery. Don’t screw it up.”
Hale grinned as if life had bestowed on him an embarrassment of riches. “Her name is Genevra.” He said it with great awe. “Genevra DuVal. I have not had the pleasure of meeting her daughter. And I don’t know when Genevra is going to tell her about us. So, if you wouldn’t mind—”
“Discretion is my middle name,” Vance assured him.
His grandmother huffed indignantly. “Not from what I hear,” she scolded underneath her breath. “Leave your father to the DuVal ladies if you will. We don’t need more scandal raining down around us.”