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Charlene looked back at Adrienne for a second. “Wow! I like him already.”
Adrienne and Lloyd exchanged hugs, and then he looked around expectantly. “Where’s your husband?”
“Mel had to do a favor for his sister,” Adrienne explained. “He’ll be here any moment.”
Charlene took Lloyd’s coat and waved everyone into the living room. “Go on, sit down and talk.”
Dan was gazing at Lloyd with unabashed curiosity. “So, I hear life has been pretty good to you, man.”
Lloyd sat down. “Yes. I’ve succeeded beyond my wildest dreams, Dan. I only wish your mom and dad could join us tonight.”
A shadow passed across Dan’s face. “We can call them later if you like.”
Lloyd rubbed his hands together in anticipation. “Yes, I would love to tell them my story.”
Although Adrienne was proud of Lloyd, she felt a bit uncomfortable about the proposed call to her parents. This dinner was supposed to be a relaxing occasion with an old family friend. She also wanted Mel to see that Lloyd was not a threat to their marriage. If Lloyd made such a call to Mom and Dad, it might sound as if he were bragging and everyone would be uncomfortable.
Charlene pulled Adrienne’s arm. “We’re going to leave you guys alone for a few minutes.”
The two women went into the kitchen. “Why don’t you make the salad while I rustle up the pasta?” Charlene suggested.
Adrienne nodded and opened the refrigerator. She took out lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, green pepper, and carrots and set them all on the counter. “I need bread crumbs and salad dressing.”
Charlene was filling a huge pot with water. She gestured with her chin. “Look on the top shelf of the third cabinet. I hope Mel gets here with the shrimp soon. It won’t take long to make this spaghetti.”
Adrienne started cutting up ingredients. “He should be here in the next ten minutes.”
Charlene looked toward the living room. “It’s always nice when I can connect with a part of Dan’s past.”
“Get the fellas something to drink. That’ll keep ’em busy till Mel gets here.”
“Good idea.” Charlene put the pot on the stove, dropped some olive oil in the water, turned the flame up high, and left.
Adrienne could hear snatches of conversation coming from the living room. “I’ll take a vodka and cranberry juice if you have it. . . just bring me a beer, honey . . . ” There was a lot of murmuring after that.
Charlene was grinning when she came back. “I asked Lloyd to tell me what Dan was like when he was a little boy.”
“What did he say?”
“Smart but a little bit of a mama’s boy.”
“That’s true.”
“Maybe so, but I don’t think Dan liked his answer.”
“What do you think of Lloyd?”
Charlene loaded cubes of ice into a bucket and started searching for the tongs. “Don’t get mad, Adrienne, but I think you need to forget the LaMar you once knew. That boy is long gone.”
Adrienne felt confused. “What are you talking about?”
“I’m saying that Lloyd Cooper seems like a man who doesn’t really trust anyone. He also plays his cards really close to the vest. You’ll never really get to know him again, Adrienne.”
“You’re wrong, Charlene. He just seems very alone to me.”
“I’m sure he is, and I’ll bet he likes it that way,” Charlene replied sarcastically. “Why do you think he is here tonight?”
“To see Dan?”
