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“Very well. How did you meet?”
“At a fundraiser. Well, that’s where we re-met. I knew her back at Appleton and ran into her at Boston U, as well. But we never hit it off back then.” All true, though omitting the details may qualify that statement as a lie. It’s all he’s getting out of me, though. No sense in explaining the auction.
He smiles, and it’s such an unusual event that I’m not sure how to interpret it. “What’s her name?”
I can tell him that because I’m sure I’ve never mentioned her before. “June Devlin.”
“What clubs does she belong to?”
I almost laugh at the question. “I don’t think she does, actually.”
“Devlin … I don’t know that name. Is she from Boston originally?”
“I believe so?—"
“You believe so? You don’t know? How serious can you be if you don’t know the basics? Think, Anderson.”
I force a smile. “I know the important things about her. She likes French toast over pancakes. She laughs like there’s music inside of her. When she says my name, it’s all I can think about.”
“God help us, my son is in love.”
I laugh hard at that. “Not sure I’d go that far?—"
“It’s all over you. No wonder you were late.”
“You’re getting ahead of yourself, Dad. I like her. A lot.” Probably more than I should. “Things are getting serious, but I’m not in danger of losing myself in this. It’s like you always say, love is a child’s emotion. It’s not for men like us.”
“No, it is not. Watch yourself with her.”
“I will?—"
“Better yet, I’ll watch you with her. Bring her to Sunday supper. Your mother will be overjoyed. She’s always going on about how you need to settle down, and this will put her mind at ease.”
Shit. This was a bad idea. Abort. “I’m not sure she will be available on such short notice.”
“Make her available, Anderson. I want to meet this June Devlin and see if my boy has lost his heart to her.”
He never calls me his boy. My mouth goes dry, and I flash back to the end of that fateful summer and that feeling of pride again. I cannot believe it. He’s actually proud of me for having a girlfriend. All this time, I had thought he used the girlfriend thing as an excuse to never retire. It’s a strange feeling to see him proud of me, but I like it. I want to keep this going, no matter the consequences. “I’ll do my best, Dad.” Now, how do I get June’s number?
-
Chapter 18
JUNE
Friday, on our way back to the office, we are dodging the rain, and I’m practically vibrating. Callie has been trying to keep me calm this whole time, but I’m done. When we get to our office building, I stop and she notices. “What?”
“You go on without me. I’m calling the Chamberlain mansion. Now.”
“It’s pouring cats and dogs out here, and it’s freezing.”
“Is it? I hadn’t noticed.”
She rolls her eyes. “At least come inside. You’ll catch pneumonia out here.”
But I shake my head. “Can’t let anyone in there know about this. Go ahead. I’ll catch up.”
Her lips smooth to a line as she thinks about it. “Alright. But don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.”
