by Donna Hill
“True. I’m looking forward to it myself.”
“Do you have plans for the break?”
“Hmm, I did, but I may change my mind about a few things. Let’s talk about it over lunch.”
“Sure.”
“Well, I’ll let you get back to work, and I’ll find something to keep myself busy until I see you.”
It wasn’t so much what he said but the intonation of how he said it, with a stomach-fluttering sincerity that left her momentarily without words.
“One o’clock,” she said.
“On the dot. See you later.”
She disconnected the call but could still feel the pull of Preston’s voice and couldn’t wait to see him.
“Hey, Lee,” Dominique said, tapping on her sister’s bedroom door.
Lee Ann stepped out of her walk-in closet, holding up two of her favorite summer dresses. “Hi. Whatsup?” Her gaze and concentration drifted back and forth between peach and Mediterranean blue.
Dominique came in and plopped down on the end of Lee Ann’s queen-size bed. “I was wondering if you could loan me a few bucks.”
Lee Ann lowered the dresses and focused on her sister. “A few? How many is a few, and what for this time?”
“You don’t have to say it like that,” Dominique huffed, feigning offense.
Lee Ann crossed the room, undecided about her dresses and what to do about her sister. This was the third time in a month. “How much, Dom?”
“Five hundred.”
Lee Ann’s eyes widened, and her mouth opened then closed. “Dominique, what in the world for? I just gave you three less than a week ago.”
Dominique sprang into an upright position on the bed and put on her saddest, most earnest expression. “I know this sounds bad, but I maxed out my credit card and you know how hard I’m trying to keep a good credit rating so that I can get my own place without having to depend on you and Daddy.”
Lee Ann cut a look at her sister’s sorry attempt to win her over and rolled her eyes. She tossed the dresses onto the bed and stood over Dominique with her hands planted on her waist. “Listen, this cannot go on. It can’t. You have a job, a hefty spending allowance and you still can’t manage your money. You can’t spend every dime you get on the latest fashions, girlfriend getaways and who knows what else!”
Dominique folded her arms beneath her full breasts, pushing them higher into view over her low cut, body hugging T-shirt. “That’s so unfair. You know my job at the nonprofit barely covers my hair appointments.”
“What you do is what’s more important,” Lee Ann chided. “Young, single, poor mothers come to you for help, and when they do that’s worth much more than a paycheck.”
“I know that. I do love my work, but personal satisfaction doesn’t pay bills.”
“Then don’t accumulate them. Live within your means.”
Dominique stood as if catapulted off the bed. They were at eye level. “Live within my means! We’re rich for heaven’s sake.”
Dominique looked so astounded and bereft that Lee Ann seemed not to understand that fact, that Lee Ann did all but burst out laughing. Instead, she turned away to keep the laughter out of her eyes.
“I’ll loan you three,” she conceded. “You’ll have to figure out how to get the rest. Go bug Rafe.”
“Ooh, thank you, thank you,” she said, wrapping her arms around her sister and kissing her on the cheek.
“I’ll deposit the money into your account when I go out later.”
It was then that Dominique noticed her sister was getting ready to go somewhere. She lifted one dress from the bed and then the other. “Where are you off to?”
“Out.”
“Out where? With who? Anyone I know?”
“Out for brunch if you must know,” she said, spinning out of her sister’s web of questions.
Dominique eyed her with suspicion. “Why are you being so evasive? Why can’t you just tell me where you’re going? Suppose something happens to one of us or you. No one will know where you are. And don’t you watch The First 48?” she added dramatically. “The first 48 hours are always crucial in an investigation.”
Lee Ann held up her hand to stop the onslaught of Dominique. “All right, all right. I give up. But…don’t read anything into it,” she warned. “I’m having brunch with Senator Graham.”
Dominique frowned for a moment, and then her eyes popped with excitement. “The gorgeous new Senator Graham, Daddy’s protégé?”
“Yes.”
“Well I’ll be. Still waters. It’s about damned time you went out on a date.”
“It’s not a date.”
“Of course it is.” She rocked her head from side to side. “You aren’t planning to spend the entire time talking business and politics as usual, are you?”
“I don’t know what we’ll talk about.”
“Then it’s a date!” she said triumphantly. “And since that’s the case, you are not wearing the blue one. Peach is soft and feminine and brings out the color of your eyes.” She held up the peach spaghetti strap dress that smoothed along the curves of Lee Ann’s petite frame and stopped just above her knees.
“You think so?”
“I know so.” She held the dress up in front of her. “And I have the perfect accessories.” She shoved the dress at her sister and darted out of the room.
Moments later, she returned with Desiree in tow.
“You’re going on a date with Preston Graham?” Desiree said as if he were a rock star. “That is so awesome. He’s yummy. I didn’t know you knew him like that.”
“I don’t,” Lee Ann said. “It’s just lunch.”
“It’s a date,” Dominique said. “Don’t listen to her.”
For the next hour, her twin sisters fussed over her as if she was getting ready for her senior prom. By the time she was ready to leave, she was exhausted from their chatter and advice. You’d think she’d never been out with a man before in her life. She knew how to handle herself. After all, she was the oldest sister—although Dominique had all three women beaten in the men department.
The afternoon was hot and muggy. The umbrella of trees only gave the illusion of cool. She was thankful for her short hairdo that held up against the onslaught of Louisiana weather. She turned on the air conditioner full blast in her gunmetal-gray, two-seater Mercedes-Benz convertible. The color was custom-mixed for her, and it drove like a cloud. It was a gift to herself on her thirtieth birthday, three years earlier. She checked her GPS built into the dash and made the right turn then navigated her way along the narrow streets. She spotted Treme up ahead and drove into the parking lot behind the restaurant.
Nerves overtook her, racing her heart and making her legs feel weak as she drew closer to the entrance. She pulled in a long breath of calm, tugged the door open and stepped into the cool dimness.
“Good afternoon,” the hostess greeted. “A table for one or are you meeting someone?”
“I am meeting someone, actually,” she said, peering into the restaurant space and the tables dotted with afternoon diners. “I’m a bit early. I can wait at the bar.”
“If you leave the name of your party, I can direct them to you when they arrive.”
“Graham is his last name.”
The hostess jotted it down. “I’ll let him know as soon as he gets here.”
“Thank you.” She walked over to the bar and slid onto the stool.
“What can I get for you?” the female bartender asked.
“White wine spritzer,” came the deep voice from behind her left shoulder.
Lee Ann slowly turned on the stool and looked up into his smiling face. Her heart banged in her chest, momentarily stunting her breath.
“Sorry to keep you waiting.” He leaned down and placed a featherlight kiss on her cheek.
“Not at all. I just sat down.”
“Next time we’ll arrive together.”
Next time, she thought. A happy bubble tumbled in her stomach.
>
“You want to sit here with your drink, or should we get a table now?”
“Let’s get settled.”
The bartender returned with the drink.
“Thanks. You can add this to our tab,” Preston said, taking the drink and helping Lee Ann to her feet. “I got a table by the window just in case we get tired of talking to and looking at each other. We can then pretend to watch street traffic.”
Lee Ann laughed, feeling the knots of anxiousness begin to loosen. “Very funny. But definitely an idea worth having.”
“Although I can’t imagine not wanting to look at and talk to you,” he said. His voice drifted to her over her shoulder, the heat of his words warming her cheek and fanning out to her limbs. She glanced behind her for an instant to measure the sincerity of his voice with his eyes, but he was looking ahead and not at her.
Preston guided her to their table, and several heads turned in their direction as they crossed the restaurant, his face recognizable from the local papers and the news. He offered a casual nod but didn’t stop. Lee Ann was thankful for that. She wanted this first time to be for them and not turn into a circus.
They came to their table, and Preston pulled out Lee Ann’s chair for her then sat down. Once they were settled, he asked, “So…how have you been since the last time I saw you?”
Lee Ann chuckled. “I’ve been just fine, and you?”
“You have a great laugh, you know. Rich and honest.”
She lowered her gaze for an instant. “Thank you.”
Preston reached for his glass of water and took a slow sip, staring at her from above the rim, amazed with the way the golden flecks in her eyes picked up the daylight from outside—something he hadn’t noticed last night—and the way the pulse in her throat beat and how her skin looked like honey, perfect and sweet to the taste.
“Is something wrong?” she asked breaking his trance.
He blinked and gave a slight shake of his head. “No, I’m sorry. I guess I was staring.”
Lee Ann shifted in her seat.
He put down his glass and released a tight breath then leaned forward. His voice was low when he spoke. “Listen, I’m going to be honest because I like to be clear and up-front right from the beginning.”
She nodded and waited for the shoe to fall.
“I rarely date. I don’t have time. Because of my choice of careers, it’s hard to have a lot of downtime or privacy. And coming from the family that you do, I’m sure you can understand that.” He paused, started to speak then stopped and started again. “What I’m trying to say is I don’t know what’s going on in my head, and I know we’ve only met and you don’t know any more about me than a stranger on the street. But I want to get to know you—Lee Ann the woman, not Branford Lawson’s daughter. And I want you to get to know me, Preston Graham—the guy with student loans, dishes in the sink and a Lab retriever named Rocky.”
The tension that she felt burst into effervescent bubbles of laughter. “So, besides dirty dishes, student loans and a dog named Rocky, what else do I need to know about you?”
The afternoon went by much too fast, but over a light lunch of grilled chicken salad, several glasses of wine and raspberry sorbet for dessert, they talked and laughed and talked. Lee Ann discovered that they were both avid joggers. Preston was delighted to learn that Lee Ann was captain of her debate team in college and had also majored in political science. He was devoted to his mother, she to her father. His favorite book was James Baldwin’s Another Country; hers was Emily Brontë’s Wuthering Heights. They both loved New Orleans jazz and boasted about their collections. They were angered, appalled and frightened by the devastation along the Gulf Coast resulting from the catastrophic BP oil spill and the still unresolved devastation caused by Hurricane Katrina.
Preston took his last satisfying spoonful of sorbet. He glanced around Treme’s and noticed that the clientele had changed several times since their arrival, and early dinner patrons were starting to drift in.
“I’m thinking they’re going to actually ask us to leave if we don’t do it on our own,” Preston quipped.
Lee Ann ducked her head and took a cursory glance around, catching the eye of their empathetic waitress. “I think you’re right.”
He signaled for the waitress, who brought the bill. Preston paid the tab and ushered Lee Ann out into the sweltering early evening. It was almost after four.
“I didn’t know it could take that long to eat a salad,” Lee Ann joked. She slipped on her wide, dark sunglasses.
“Neither did I, but I enjoyed it.”
She glanced at him as they walked to the parking lot. “So did I.”
“Where are you parked?”
She pointed to her beloved car.
His brows rose in appreciation. “Very nice,” he said, drawing out the two words.
“What about you?”
“The blue one over there,” he said with a lift of his chin.
Lee Ann turned her gaze in that direction. “Oh, you mean the Jaguar over there,” she said tongue in cheek.
Preston grinned.
“We’ll have to swap rides one day. I’ve always wanted to get behind the wheel of a Jaguar.”
“Anytime you’re ready.” He walked her to her car and waited while she opened the door.
She turned to him, and her heart did that thing again in her chest. “Thank you for a wonderful afternoon. Really.”
“I’m glad you said yes. And if you’re not busy tonight, I hope you’ll say yes to doing something fun. There’s a concert in the park. It starts at seven. Then the after-dark movie. It’s always pretty good, something old and in black-and-white.”
She blinked away her surprise. “Tonight? I… Yes, I’d like that.”
“I’ll pick you up at six-thirty. Will that give you enough time?”
“Sure, if I leave right this second.”
They both laughed.
“I’ll see you soon.”
Lee Ann got in her car. Preston closed her door and waved before walking off to his. She sang off-key all the way home.
Chapter 3
Lee Ann darted into the house. She’d lost a lot of time getting back. There were some street closures from a protest rally by local merchants who’d lost their businesses as a result of the oil spill. Thousands of business owners were still waiting for checks, and now not only were their livelihoods at risk but their entire way of life and living, as well. It was an issue that plagued the people of the Gulf and across the United States. Her father was on the Gulf Coast Restoration Committee, so she kept abreast of the facts and fallacies of what was really going on.
She had one foot on the stairs when her father stepped out of his study on the ground floor.
“There you are.”
Lee Ann stopped short, her hand on the oak banister. “Hi.”
“I wanted to go over a few things with you about this schedule.” He read the pages in front of him from above his half-framed glasses. “We need to make some adjustments.”
“Um, can it wait until morning?”
He pulled his glasses off and peered at his daughter. “Morning? You know I leave to go to Washington in the morning.”
Briefly she shut her eyes then turned and walked toward her father. “Right. I wasn’t thinking. Let me take a look.”
“That’s not like you,” Branford said. “You generally don’t miss things like that.”
“I guess I wasn’t thinking. I was in a little bit of a hurry this morning.”
She walked into her father’s study with him close on her heels. She turned on the computer and loaded the calendar information. Within moments, she located his itinerary for the upcoming month.
“Where did you want to make the adjustments, Daddy?”
He stood over her shoulder and pointed to the different dates on the calendar. “Next week Wednesday needs to change. And I can’t have that meeting with the assembly tomorrow because I won’t be here. I’m going to need you to mak
e some phone calls and extend my apologies.”
Lee Ann typed as her father talked, while thinking about her date with Preston. She could almost hear the clock ticking and her time to get ready running out. She made all the changes that her father requested, saved the file and then turned to him. “Anything else?” she asked.
“Well, you’re mighty testy this evening. Something wrong?”
Lee Ann moved back from the desk and stood. She turned to her father and pushed a smile across her mouth. “No, nothing’s wrong. Everything is fine. Why would you think that?”
“You seem a little jumpy. Like you don’t have your mind on what you’re doing.”
“Well, I do have plans for the evening. And I’m running a little behind schedule.”
Branford raised a questioning brow. “Plans? I don’t recall you mentioning that you have plans for the evening.”
“It just came up today.” She began to walk toward the door and wondered why she didn’t just tell her father that she was going out with Preston. She knew why. She didn’t want her father’s scrutiny, his acceptance or rejection—at least not tonight. She wanted to get through tonight.
“You’re going to walk out and not say where you’re going?” The idea was totally inconceivable to him.
Lee Ann turned back toward her father, suddenly feeling like a little girl instead of a 33-year-old woman. “I’m going out, Daddy. To a concert in the park.”
For a moment, Branford looked as if he could not process the information. It was almost comical if it wasn’t a testament to the kind of life her father perceived that she lived.
“I’ve really got to get ready.” She hurried across the foyer and darted up the stairs to her room. Once she reached the bedroom, she went into her private bath and turned on the water full blast. While she stood under the pulsing water she went through a mental inventory of the things hanging in the closet wondering what would be appropriate to wear to a night in the park with a handsome young senator.
