One Night With You (5 page)

“You haven't gained a pound, man,” Marcus said, “but I've put on sixteen.”

“Sixteen pounds is nothing on a six-foot-four-inch frame. If you'd lived my life—at least my life the last seven years—you wouldn't weigh more, either. Where'll we eat?”

“I assume you're going to explain that, but if I remember properly, I'll find out what it means only after I pry and insist.”

“Oh, I'm not that bad. Did you marry that tall, slim beauty?”

“Yes, but she split when the going got tough. I've got a real gem of a woman now, and she is definitely not the willowy type.”

They ate at a new Italian restaurant not far from the school where Marcus's wife, Amanda, was the principal. “You learned a lesson,” Reid said when the conversation turned again to their pasts, “and I sure hope the hell I did.” He told Marcus about the loss of his company, his wealth and his reputation, how he'd made it back to where he was.

“I feel you, man,” Marcus said. “I came within a hair of losing my business, and if it hadn't been for my wife, I would have. Next time you're here, I want you to meet her and my three children. The oldest one is from my first wife, but if you see her with my wife, you'd never know it. I'm a lucky man.”

“I'm on my way back, man,” Reid said, “and it's a great feeling.”

“Take it slow,” Marcus advised. “Be patient. If you find a good woman, latch on. She'll make all the difference. Say, what's wrong with me? I'm sitting here talking with a first-rate architect. Reid, I told you that I repair fine musical instruments, string instruments, and that my factory is in Portsmouth. I'm planning to open a factory here in Caution Point, and eventually—maybe two or three years hence—I'll close the one in Portsmouth. I repair anything from a Steinway concert grand to a Stradivarius. Would you design a building for me? The place has to be humidity proof.”

“I work for Marks and Connerly, and I'm not sure you'd want to pay their fare. I'm also not sure they'd let me do it on the side. I'm straight, Marcus, so I'd have to ask. I can tell the boss of our relationship and see if that will make a difference.”

“Not being able to make your own decisions must go against your grain,” Marcus said.

“Not right now, because I know I'm lucky to be working for a company of this caliber. If I'm fortunate, I'll be back on top and running my own company in a couple of years.” He showed Marcus his sketches for the airport terminal.

“Either one of these would work there, but I especially like this one,” Marcus said, pointing to the one with the round dome. “It's unique and fits the area.”

“Thanks. That's the one I prefer, but it's a long road from this point to the laying of the corner stone.”

“I'm sure. When will you let me know whether you can design that building for me?”

“Next Monday, I hope. See you then.”

When they separated, Reid had the feeling that he was on his way. He didn't go back to the airport, but took the shortest route to Queenstown. He parked the station wagon in the company's parking lot, locked it and went to his office.

“You're back?” Jack Marks asked him when he answered the intercom. “Are you satisfied? I'm not asking for a report, but I'm anxious to know whether you're comfortable with what you've done so far.”

“I am, indeed,” Reid said. “I need to make a couple of very minor changes. We can meet tomorrow, if you'd like.”

“You bet I'd like. How about lunch? Is twelve-thirty good?”

“Fine,” Reid said. “That's my preferred lunchtime.”

“I'll stop by for you,” Jack told him.

It would be a memorable lunch. “I love this one,” Jack said referring to the one with the round dome. “It's perfect. Maybe we can use this other one for something else. It's very imaginative.” He snapped his fingers. “It would make a great golf clubhouse. Put it under lock and key. If I can close a deal I'm working on, you've got another job.”

Reid told Jack about Marcus's request. “I told him that I wouldn't do it on the side without your permission and that if you didn't like that idea, I'd ask if we could lower the price for him.”

Jack's thick fingers brushed back and forth across his chin. “It doesn't seem to be a huge job, does it?”

“The biggest problem will be to control the humidity. It's close to the Sound.”

“Right. There're some materials you can install in addition to air conditioning. Tomorrow, I'll write you a letter giving permission. I don't have time today.”

“Are you sure it's all right, Jack?”

“It isn't something we would normally do, and I want to encourage you to tackle unusual jobs. It's good experience. By the way, Connerly and I have decided to change your title from assistant architect to architect. It makes more sense.”

“Does it carry more pay?”

“Sure. A lot more. I'll ask the accountant to send you a note, and you'll get a personnel action sheet in a day or so.”

Reid thanked him. He didn't do it profusely, knew he deserved the title and pay. Nonetheless, he had a better feeling of his worth as an architect and as a man. “You're a straight shooter, Jack, and I appreciate that.”

“It's only just, Reid.”

Reid thought for a minute, then changing to a light subject he said, “If I'm going to live here, I want to be a part of the community, but I can't seem to find a niche.”

“We have a great theatrical group that's extremely popular. Ever do any acting?”

“Not since undergraduate school.”

“They're all amateurs. I'll tell Iris to give you the address and telephone number. This has been a productive lunch, Reid. Let's do it again real soon. Oh, and what we've discussed here is between you, me and Connerly. My architects do everything to get an assignment, except fight duels.”

“You bet.” He pointed his right thumb to his chest. “What happens here stays here.”

He didn't know how he got through the remainder of the afternoon, for it seemed that he would burst with happiness. At a quarter to four, a messenger brought him a letter from the company accountant. He tore it open and stared at its message until the words blurred before his eyes. That promotion nearly doubled his salary. After his first month's pay, he'd have the means to retain a lawyer, and he'd soon be able to buy a car.

All the wonderful things that happened to me today, and I don't have anyone with whom to share it,
he thought as he walked home. But he could share it with Kendra, couldn't he? Doing so wouldn't imply anything. After all, hadn't she shared her news with him?

What the heck! It was too good to keep to himself. He walked into his apartment, kicked off his shoes and pants, loosened his tie, dropped himself on his bed and used his cell phone to dial her number.

“Hi, this is Reid. So much has happened today that I have to dump it on somebody, and I don't know anybody here but you.”

At the next words in her low, sultry voice, he nearly jumped off the bed. “Hi. Hang up, Reid. Then call me and say, ‘You wouldn't believe the day I had. Can we get together so I can tell you about it?'”

He lay back down and stretched out. “What's wrong with the way I put it?”

“You said it as if you'd tell somebody else, but you don't know anyone else in town.”

“Well, that definitely is not what I meant.”

“So, what did you mean?”

He sat up. “Don't ask me a question unless you want the answer. I want to see you.”

“Uh…where?”

“In the middle of Albemarle Heights. I don't give a damn, Kendra. I'll put on a jacket and tie, and we can have dinner someplace, but that would be three whole hours from now.”

“Well, since you haven't bought a car, let's ride in mine. I'll put on a pretty dress, you put on that tie, and you be over here in an hour. How's that?”

“Woman, you move fast, but that suits me to a T. I'll be there.” He'd almost added that he wanted a kiss when he got there, and it surprised him that that was what he needed from her most of all. He wanted her to rejoice with him, but what he needed was to know that she thought him worth her affection.

He showered, dressed in the Oxford-gray suit with a white shirt and yellow tie. He put on his gray Chesterfield-style overcoat, a remainder from his affluent days, and gave thanks that, in his lowest moments, he hadn't sold it or exchanged it for a hot dog. He'd been wearing it when he'd met Philip. A glance at his watch told him he had thirty-two minutes. He made it to the florist in eleven minutes and cooled his heels while the florist chatted with a neighbor. Vexed, though he knew it was the way of life in a small town, he turned to leave, and the man asked if he could help him. He bought an American beauty rose, had it wrapped in cellophane and tied with a red velvet bow.

He felt like a teenager about to take his girl to his first prom. What had happened to his resolve to stay away from her, his concern that associating with her might jeopardize his case against Brown and Worley?
I can't help it,
he said to himself.
Right now, I need to be with her.

If Reid was able to rationalize his way out of his dilemma about Kendra, she had no such success, but admitted her strong attraction to him and the trouble in which it would one day land her, and figured that she would have no choice but to take it on the chin when it came. She hoped he'd be worth the price she had to pay.

She looked through her closet and pushed aside the sedate business suits and tailored dresses she wore to work until she found the red silk sheath that fit snugly until it passed her hips and then flared out sassy and flirtatious. Its low-cut bodice promised a delicious tidbit if she let him get that far. She looked at herself in the mirror and frowned. What was she thinking when she bought that advertisement for sex? No wonder she'd never worn it.

What the heck? He wants me, and I want him. Might as well be an adult about it.
She combed out her hair and brushed it until it curved under at her shoulder, put on a pair of gold hoops, dabbed perfume in strategic places and took a deep breath. Did she dare wear those spike-heel sandals in weather that was below freezing? And could she drive while wearing them?
I can kick off the right one,
she said to herself and slipped her feet into the shoes just as the doorbell rang.

She opened the door and, to her delight, his eyes lit up and his long, sharp whistle made her heart sing. He stepped inside, closed the door with his foot, and she'd never seen a happier look on a man's face than when he gazed down at her. She felt her tongue rim her lips, and then his big hands were on her seconds before he lowered his head and she rose on her toes to meet his mouth. He came down hard on her, but she didn't care because she felt his need of her.

“Open up to me, sweetheart. Let me feel myself inside you.”

She parted her lips, took him into her mouth and as he began to dance and twirl inside her, one of his hands moved down to her hips and the other locked around her bare shoulders. Oh, the feel of his hands on her naked flesh. She sucked him deeper into her mouth, holding him, caressing him while her nerves began to riot and the blood sizzled in her veins as it raced to her vagina. She heard her moans, but didn't care. She wanted him as she'd never wanted anything in her life.

He stopped kissing her and looked down at her. “Sweetheart, if we don't cut this out, we'll never get anything to eat.”

Frustrated and not bothering to hide it, she poked his chest. “You shouldn't have started it. I opened the door, and you didn't even say hi, just like you never bother to say goodbye to me.” His grin settled around his eyes, and it was all she could do to stop herself from putting her arms around him and hugging him. “Would you mind driving? I don't think I should unless I take off these shoes.”

He looked down at her feet. “No wonder you seem taller. I'll drive.”

When he handed her a red rose, she kissed his cheek. “You're such a sweet man,” she said and turned away, intending to get a vase and water for the rose, but he grabbed her arm.

“Do you think I'm sweet, or were you making small talk?”

“Yes, I think you're sweet, Reid, and I'd…We'd better leave it at that.”

“Y
ou haven't asked where we're going,” Reid said as they headed out of Queenstown. “Aren't you concerned?”

“Not really. As long as I can eat when I get hungry, I'll be happy. Besides, a really sweet man will do whatever he can to make me comfortable.”

“Let's see. You told me that you're almost forty. Haven't you ever misplaced your trust?”

“I did once, and thereafter I protected myself, but while I was protecting myself, life passed me by. Do you get my drift?”

“Yeah. Are you saying you're willing to take a chance with me?”

“If you want the truth, Reid, I have not let myself face that question. In fact, I have skated all around it, and very skillfully, I might say.”

“That's two of us. There're a lot of reasons why we should avoid each other, and you know all of them. But that's what I think when I'm being logical. The rest of the time, I want what you gave me when I walked into your house this evening.” He drove into a roadside restaurant, parked and turned to her. “I want that and more, and I know that wanting you has nothing to do with the number of women I'm acquainted with in Queenstown. I would want you if I lived in Baltimore, where I know a slew of people, male and female, or for that matter, if I lived in Paris.”

This man was telling her that she should take him seriously; that he wanted her and was bold enough to go after what he wanted. Taken aback by his bluntness, she stammered, “Oh…I think you're ahead of me.”

“And if I did what I want to do right now, I'd take you in my arms and kiss you until I'm drunker off you than I was forty minutes ago.”

She wanted him as badly as he wanted her, but she didn't want that to be the basis of their relationship and she decided to tell him so. “Do you think you can slow down, Reid? I confess that I want you, but I am not going to allow that to be the basis of a relationship with you. I need more. I need friendship, companionship and…and…okay, I'll say it…and love. I need caring and affection, and I'm dying to give all that in return. I want to make love with you in the worst way, but I've learned how to deny myself, so…let's go eat.”

He gazed at her until she began to wonder at his mood. Suddenly, he said, “I'll buy that.” His face transformed itself into a smile, and she wondered whether she'd be able to handle him if she ever needed to. He held her hand as they walked into the restaurant, a large but cozy room with hanging chandeliers, upholstered chairs, tables spaced far apart and the sound of soft, easy-listening music flowing around them.

“It's beautiful, Reid. How did you find it?”

“I saw it when I drove to Caution Point this morning and noticed that it was used for wedding parties, so I figured it would be nice. I called and made a reservation.”

“Yes, it's beautiful,” she repeated, “and so are you. You clean up real good, as they say.”

His smile told her that he appreciated her compliment, but he added, “Thank you, Kendra. I'm beginning to feel like my old self, but when I look at you, knowing who and what you are, I'm humbled. You are so beautiful. I love you in that dress.”

She nearly lost her breath, although she knew there had to be more to that sentence. The maître d' seated them in a corner near a fireplace, one of several in the room. The place was bound to be expensive, but she didn't intend to insult him by suggesting that they split the bill. She ordered white wine, and he asked for a wine and club soda spritzer. “I'm driving,” he told the sommelier when the man looked at him disparagingly.

A waiter took their order, and she noted the frown on Reid's face when the man allowed his gaze to linger on her cleavage.

Reid raised his glass. “Here's to the loveliest of women.”

“And here's to the nicest, sweetest man I know.”

“Okay,” he said. “I won't push you. You don't have to say anything about my…er…charm and—”

“Then, I won't. Did you rent a car today?”

“My boss let me use a company car.” He leaned forward. “Kendra, I have so much to tell you. The day got better by the hour.” He told her about his visit with Marcus, of Marcus's request that he design a building for him, about his boss's agreement allowing him to do it.

“Kendra, Jack invited me to lunch. He loved the sketch I did for the airport terminal in Caution Point, and another one that he thinks he can use for a deal he's trying to make. But, Kendra, even before he saw my ideas for that airport terminal, he and Connerly, the junior partner, had decided to raise me from assistant to full architect with double the pay. Do you—”

She interrupted him. “I think I'm going to cry. I—”

“Cry? Why, for heaven's sake?”

“I'm so happy for you. I…I'm…excuse me.” She stumbled from the table and rushed to the women's room, where the tears flowed. Now maybe there was a chance for them. He would be his own man, the company recognized his value and he didn't have to look up to anyone. She patted cold water on her face, dried it with a paper towel, buffed her skin and headed back to the table.

The maître d' intercepted her. “Is Madame all right?”

“Yes, indeed,” she said, and looked up and saw that Reid stood by the table waiting for her. If she had been at home, she suspected that she would have run to him, but she remembered who and where she was, controlled the urge and let her smile communicate to him her feelings.

He walked to meet her. “What happened? Are you okay?”

“I'm fine, Reid. Forgive me for letting it get out of control.”

He assisted her in sitting down and walked around to his own chair. “I'm glad you're fine, but I need to know what happened.”

She took a deep breath. “Not since I met you have I seen you so…so full of…of hope, so happy, just bursting with
joie de vivre.
Seeing you that way, almost watching years fall away from you. I couldn't help it. I'm so happy for you. It's the first time I've ever cried because I was happy.”

“You were crying for
me?
” He reached across the table and grasped her hand. She didn't answer him. Something was happening between them, and neither of them would be able to alter its course. He repeated the question.

“Yes. Silly, aren't I?”

His gaze—fiery, turbulent—bored into her, refusing to release her, and she couldn't glance away. “I guarantee you that if I had you alone and in a private place right now, I would make love with you, and I wouldn't stop until you were mine.”

“Could I…may I have some more wine, please?”

“Of course you may. I see you haven't disagreed with me. We're going to be lovers, Kendra. Maybe not soon, but you can bet on it.”

“I've never had a man talk like this to me, so I don't know what to say to you right now.”

“You haven't told me that I'm out of line. Am I?”

“I don't…no. You aren't out of line, but it's best you don't push me. I can get stubborn, even against myself.”

A smile lit up his face, and it seemed as if a spotlight shone on him. He squeezed her fingers. “I won't push you. I'm a patient man, or at least I have been in the past. I hope I'll be able to boast of my patience six months from now. Something tells me I've never been tested.”

She leaned back in her chair and looked at him. “When we met, I had trouble getting you to utter a sentence that had more than six words. Now you're very expressive. You talk to me. I like the change. Now if I can just get you to tell me goodbye when you leave me.”

“That day probably won't come, Kendra. My mother was the last person to whom I used those two words. She's been gone since I was sixteen.”

She turned over her hand so that her palm caressed his. “I'm so sorry, Reid. Who raised you after that? I mean, who saw you through school?”

“My dad. He's gone now. It happened while I was fighting that class action suit.”

She'd like to know what it was about the man that got to her so thoroughly.
I'm not in love with him, so what is it?

“Would Madame care for dessert?” the waiter asked. “Our dessert chef is world famous, sir,” he said to Reid, who ordered a floating island.

“I'll have raspberry and peach sorbet,” she said, pleased with herself for having resisted the sour lime pie.

“If we were in Baltimore,” Reid said as they left the restaurant, “I would take you dancing. I don't know any nice place around here, and that's a pity. You look so lovely that I don't want to take you home yet.”

“There'll be other nights, Reid. At least, I hope so.”

“And there will be, if I have my way. Say, do you have a regional map in the glove compartment?” She opened it and removed an AAA map. He took her hand, walked over to the light and examined the map.

“We can be in Elizabeth City in twenty minutes to half an hour at only moderate speed. What do you say?”

She loved to dance; imagined dancing with him. “I'm for it.”

Half a mile down the highway, he filled up the gas tank, got back into the car and drove off singing, “God Didn't Make Little Green Apples.”

“Can you cook?” she asked him, though she didn't know why the thought had occurred.

“I'm a pretty good cook. I like to eat, so I taught myself to cook. Cooking is a special kind of chemistry,” he said, warming up to the subject. “It's a matter of putting together the right flavors and avoiding combinations that will blow up in your face. Right?”

“I hadn't thought of it that way, but that's close enough. Did you like chemistry in school?”

“I tolerated it. I loved physics.”

They talked of their likes and dislikes in music, art, dance, literature and hobbies, and they shared their dreams. By the time they reached Elizabeth City, nearly an hour had elapsed, but neither noticed. He drove into a gas station and asked the attendant if he knew where a man could take a lady dancing.

“This lady is a judge,” he told the man, “so it has to be a clean and classy place.” He held a ten-dollar bill in his hand where the attendant could see it.

The guy peeped in the car. “Man, she don't look like no judge to me. Uh, sorry, sir. No problem, sir. Check out the Skylight Roof on top of the Wright Hotel. You won't find any riffraff there. Go straight till you get to a circle, turn left, drive four blocks. You'll be there.”

She laid her left hand on his forearm. “Thanks for thinking of the quality of the place, Reid. It's been so long since I went anywhere special that I didn't think of it.”

“When you're with me, Kendra, I'll do everything I can to take care of you, and I know you'd do the same for me.”

When they reached the hotel, Reid said to the doorman, “Do you have a band tonight?”

“Yes, sir. Every night, sir.”

He looked the man in the eye. “My date is a judge. Is it all right for me to take her in there?”

“Yes, sir. We cater to only the most discriminating guests.”

She loved the room. Pink chandeliers cast a soft glow over the white tables, each of which held three white calla lilies in a slender vase. “I don't want anything to drink,” he said, “but I'll order something for you if you'd like.”

“Thanks. I'd like a ginger ale on crushed ice.”

“I think I'll have the same,” he said and beckoned for the waiter.

“What kind of music do you prefer to dance to?” he asked her.

“I love jazz saxophone, but it doesn't matter. I'll enjoy it no matter what they play.”

Why was he looking at her that way? She wished she knew him well enough to read him. The band leader announced a fox-trot, and Reid stood. Just before his arms went around her, he kissed her with his eyes, warmed her with his repressed desire and a riot of sensation sent tremors throughout her body.

“Easy, sweetheart,” he whispered. “I'm already drowning in your aura, so don't pour it on too heavily.”

He
was drowning? “If we get into trouble, we'll save each other.”

He missed a step. “Honesty and straightforwardness are among the things I like about you, but I'd appreciate it if you would choose your times to be candid.”

The piece ended, and the orchestra leader announced “Solitude,” a Duke Ellington song from the 1930s. She moved into him then. She couldn't help it, for the alto saxophone moaned and cried, haunting, harnessing the blues for posterity. She gripped his shoulders and swung to his rhythm as if she had danced with him from the moment of her birth. Soon, she didn't hear the orchestra, only the music of his body moving with hers. When at last the music stopped, she looked up at him.

“If I didn't know better,” he said, “I'd swear we've danced together for years. It's uncanny. I've known you a little over a month, and I feel as if I've known you for years and years.”