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“You don’t think you’re a perpetual bachelor?” Breck pressed. “I remember you going out on an occasional date, but you never introduced any of them to us.”
“Maria’s different.”
“Maria? You’ve got a girlfriend?” Breck’s eyes widened at his father’s admission. “When did that happen?”
David laughed. “I think I’m too old to have a girlfriend. I have a friend who just happens to be a woman.”
“You’re not that old.” And he really didn’t look it. For a fifty-eight year old guy, David Miller was still pretty good looking and in amazing shape. Wearing a white button down shirt, and grey pants, he looked distinguished, and far younger than his years. “But tell me more. Who’s Maria, and where did you meet her?”
* * *
“Did you know Dad has a girlfriend?” Breck asked his brother later as they video-conferenced. The Wi-Fi speed had slowed down, and Daniel’s face was blurry, each movement leaving a cloud of pixels behind him.
“Maria? Yeah, sure, she’s nice,” his brother said.
“You’ve met her?”
“Yep. We went out to dinner last Thursday. I like her. She doesn’t take his shit, and he laughs a lot more when she’s around.”
“I’ve only been gone for a few months, and everything’s changed,” Breck protested. “I thought you both were going to fall apart without me. But look at you, living and stuff.”
Daniel grinned. “Yeah, we really miss you, bro.”
“Sounds like it.”
“So anyway, how’s it going in Angel Sands? Dad said the project’s going well.”
“It’s great. You’ll be able to see for yourself when you come for Thanksgiving.” Breck tapped his fingers on the table. “Hey, should I invite Maria?”
“She’s spending Thanksgiving with her kids in Florida,” Daniel told him. “So we’re still good to come. Anyway, no woman gets between the Miller Men and their need for Thanksgiving football. She’d probably hate every moment.”
“I’m glad he’s finally got somebody.”
“Me, too. But I’m also glad we’re spending Thanksgiving with you. I can’t wait to see the old place. Has much changed?”
“Not as much as you’d think.”
“And the people? Are they the same?” Daniel asked him.
Breck shrugged. “I’ve seen a lot of Lucas Russell. Do you remember him? And Griff and Jack, too.”
“I remember the Russells,” Daniel said, grinning on the laptop screen. “How are they doing? How’s Caitie? Do you remember that Christmas when she gave me her iPod? I still have it somewhere. You told me it was her own gift after we’d left for Boston. I felt bad for taking it from her.”
Breck closed his eyes. He’d forgotten about the iPod. That was back in the days before smart phones and music streaming. When Breck and Daniel had needed a place to stay that Christmas, they’d had no gifts at all. Their mom had been too ill to buy any before she died, and Breck had forgotten to get some since she couldn’t. Breck had been almost seventeen – old enough not to care about gifts – but Daniel had been an eleven-year-old kid. Bereft at his mom’s death, but also sad because he had nothing to open. Breck had felt like an asshole for not thinking about his little brother.
Then Caitie ran upstairs. It had taken her a while to come back, but when she did, she handed a gift to Daniel. Breck remembered his face as he’d torn the paper off, along with the way it lit up when he saw the box inside.
How had he forgotten that memory?
“She was a sweet girl,” Breck said, a lump forming in his throat.
“And what’s she like now?” Daniel asked. “God, she must be in her twenties. I can’t even imagine.”
“She’s good,” Breck said. “She lives in New York now, and runs her own business, but she came to town for a short visit a couple of weeks ago.” He didn’t mention how he’d taken her to the hotel, or that he’d thought about her every day since she’d gone back to New York. Any hint of that and his brother would be on his back like a monkey. He needed that like he needed a hole in the head.
“I’d love to see her again, to say thanks for all she did,” Daniel said. “Do you think she’ll be there at Thanksgiving?”
Breck frowned. The last time he’d seen her – when he dropped her at home after their trip to Chateau Des Tournesols – she hadn’t mentioned when she’d be back.
