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They spent the next half an hour watching people and finishing their drinks.
“How far is Fifth Avenue from here?” she asked.
“Not far.” He drained his cup.
“Do you mind if we walk up there? I’d like to see about getting a couple of presents.”
“No. I figured that would be the next thing on the list.” He leaned forward in his chair.
She gave him a pointed look. “You think you know me that well?”
He smiled. “No, but it doesn’t take much to figure out that a woman will find a place to shop.”
She stood and looked down her nose at him. “I’ll have you know I don’t appreciate being lumped in with ‘all’ women.”
“Honey, you don’t have to worry about that. You stand out.” Elijah grinned as he joined her.
Helena looked pleased with his response. Despite being an accomplished doctor, she seemed to need reassurance as a woman. Had someone made her feel less of one?
* * *
Helena hadn’t had a man along on a shopping trip since she and her father had gone out for the day to find her a prom dress. It had been such a happy day. She hated that not long after that she had disappointed him by having to tell her parents she was pregnant.
At the first store she and Elijah stopped in she picked up something for Grace and a couple of her nurse friends on the staff. She questioned whether or not she should get something for Elijah but their fling would be over before Christmas. Would it bother him if she got him a gift? Would he think she was trying to hang onto him? It didn’t matter, she really didn’t have an opportunity. He was never out of eyesight.
He insisted on carrying her bags as they left the store. They must look like a happy couple out shopping for their families. Helena liked that idea too much, even knowing heartache was down the road.
They were soon strolling past Tiffany’s windows. She pulled to a stop in front of one of them.
Elijah groaned. “I knew we should’ve gone the other way.”
She turned to look at him. “You do know that they sell other things besides wedding rings.”
“Yeah, but a man stays far away from this place if he doesn’t want to get into trouble.”
“You really do have a phobia about getting involved, don’t you?” She started on down the street. She certainly didn’t want him thinking she wanted something more than the week they had planned. “Did someone do a number on you? Was she after your money? Your name?”
In her case it had just been a teenage boy who had convinced himself he’d loved her. Then times had gotten tough and he’d left. She knew what it was like to feel used. It was easy to understand why Elijah would be cautious.
“Let’s just say,” he finally answered, “that I’ve watched my parents’ marriage and don’t want any part of that type of life.”
She glanced over at him. “They seemed happy enough at the wedding.”
“That’s just it. Theirs is a marriage of show.”
“My parents really love each other. You can see it in the way they look at each other. After all the years you can feel the love between them.”
“Not the case with mine.” There was a note of disgust in his voice. “I’m getting hungry. I know of a place just off Broadway where we can get a good hot meal.” He put his hand up for a taxi.
“You could just say you don’t want to talk about it any more. You don’t need to buy a meal to change the subject.”
“I’m killing two birds with one stone.” He opened the taxi door for her to get in.
During the ride, Elijah sat so close his body warmed her along her left side. She looked at him, at his strong jaw, high cheekbones, and straight nose. But his best feature was his eyes. It wasn’t that they were an arresting blue, which they were, but it was because they twinkled when he laughed, turned darker just as he entered her, or sparkled when he teased.
“Is something wrong? You’re staring at me.”
“Nope, nothing at all.” She had to watch it or she’d fall under his spell and it would take her years to recover, if ever.
The restaurant was on the bottom floor of an old brownstone on a tree-lined street. Stepping down a few steps they entered through a thick oak door and went down another step. The brick walls and the rich wooden tables and chairs along with the dim lighting gave the place a warm, old-world feel. Helena loved it immediately.
They were shown to a center table for two. It was covered in a starched white cloth and had a small vase of flowers on it.
“How did you find this place?” When he didn’t answer right away she stopped studying the architecture and looked at him.
He gave her a sheepish look.
“Never mind. I don’t want to know.” She didn’t want to hear about the other women he had brought here. Against all logic, she wanted to be special to him. However, that wasn’t going to happen. This was a week-long fling and his idea to boot.
“It’s not what you think.” He took her hand across the table.
“How do you know what I think?”
He squeezed her hand. “Because it’s written all over your very pretty, very expressive face.”
She pursed her lips. “No woman likes to be thought transparent.”
A middle-aged man came to their table and took their drink order.
“They have the best steak here.” Elijah picked up the menu the waiter had left.
“What is it with men and beef? Steak is my father’s favorite meal.” Elijah gave her an odd look for a second. Did her comparison to her father bother him?
They studied the menu and the waiter returned with their drinks. Elijah ordered his steak and she decided on the risotto.
When they were alone again, Helena said, “I’m glad I let you come along this afternoon. It has been nice to have company.”
Elijah chuckled. “You’re welcome. Pack mule that I have been.”
“Hey, that was your choice.”
“It was. I have to say I’ve not spent a day off like this one in a long time.”
“So what do you usually do with your free time?” She really wanted to know.
His forehead wrinkled as if he were giving her question a great deal of thought. “I like to travel when I can. I also do some work at a free clinic a couple of times a month.”
She was astonished. After all, he was known as a playboy. “You do?”
“Don’t sound so surprised.”
“I’m not really, I guess. You’re a Davenport after all. I see the passion you all put into the hospital. I just thought you might want to get away completely from medical work on your days off.”
“I love what I do and a buddy of mine started the clinic. And sometimes it’s nice not to be under the Davenport name all the time.”
“Why is that?”
* * *
Elijah didn’t want to get into all his family’s ugliness. He’d had no idea Helena could pull so much information out of a person. She was naturally open and seemed unable to comprehend that others were not. Yet he felt he could trust her. He didn’t freely give trust and had certainly never given it to a woman he dated. He managed to keep any discussion superficial where they were concerned. In Helena’s case he didn’t think she’d let it go without an answer. He would share what was common knowledge but his own dirty secret would remain his.
“I grew up in what I thought was a happy family.”
He didn’t miss Helena’s wince at his use of the word “thought.”
“We did things together much like what we did today. There were great family vacations. Family dinners, birthday parties and those big family Christmas events you love so much. We were taught to protect the family name. Being a Davenport was important. It meant something to be a Davenport. We were also taug
ht what happened in the family stayed in the family. Our business wasn’t to be in the media.”
“That must have been hard to accomplish as a young adult.”
“Let’s just say that I think my father put out money more than once to keep one or more of us out of the papers. Thank goodness none of us ever got into serious trouble. Anyway, having a well-known family name comes with scrutiny. Sometimes the light gets shined too brightly on you.”
