Chapter Fifteen
Joyce Hawke wastrue to her promise to call me. Monday morning, as I sipped coffee at my desk, my cell phone rang.
When I answered, she greeted me cheerfully. “Tanya dear! Please tell me you’re free for lunch sometime this week. I so enjoyed talking to you at brunch. I’d like a chance to get to know you better.”
Warmth bloomed in my chest at her words. Not only was I relieved that she liked me, I was happy that I felt the same way. I wanted to get to know her better, especially after my conversation with Jordan this weekend.
“Hi, Joyce. I really liked talking to you as well and I’m free every day except Wednesday,” I replied. “So you tell me which day works best for you.”
“Wonderful!” she exclaimed. “Let’s meet today. I’ll come downtown and take you to this wonderful little restaurant I found a few years ago. Will twelve-thirty work for you?”
I glanced at the schedule on my desk. “Could we push it until one? I have a meeting that might run long.”
“Perfect! I’ll meet you at your office at one.”
“That sounds great, Joyce. See you then.”
“Bye, Tanya!”
Smiling, I disconnected the call and settled in to work.
At one o’clock,I stepped off the elevator in the lobby and immediately saw Joyce standing next to the metal sculpture that had recently been installed. She was staring up at it with apparent consternation.
I approached her and asked, “Something wrong?”
“Hmmm,” she shot me a distracted glance then a wide smile spread across her face. “Oh, sorry. I was trying to decide if this was supposed to represent a giant ant or invasion of the stick people.”
I laughed with her as I considered the sculpture with new eyes. “I never noticed but it does resemble them both.”
“Well, abstract metal art aside, are you hungry?” she asked, hooking her arm through mine.
“Starving,” I admitted.
“Then let’s go.”
Ten minutes later, we were seated at a tiny table in an Italian restaurant that I hadn’t realized existed. The air was heavy with the scent of garlic and yeasty bread and the walls were covered with dark wood paneling and framed photos. It was essentially a hole in the wall but perfect. Though most of the tables were filled, it wasn’t loud. There was the random clink of silverware and the occasional burst of laughter, but the hum of conversation was low and almost soothing.
“I like this place already,” I told Joyce as we opened our menus. “If the food is half as good as it smells, I’ll have to come here all the time.”
Joyce smiled at me. “It’s better.”
“I’m going to end up needing a nap after lunch then,” I joked.
We ordered drinks and entrees. As our server walked away, Joyce turned and studied me.
“I’m so pleased my nephew met you. He mentioned that you two dated a couple of years ago but you both decided it was best to end the relationship when he left for New York. I’m glad you reconnected when he came back.”
Unsure of exactly how much information Jordan had shared, I nodded. “Me too.”
Joyce leaned closer. “No, Tanya. I don’t think you understand. I’m sure by now you’ve realized that my nephew is not the most demonstrative man, but I have not heard him laugh the way he does with you in over twenty-five years. The last time I’d seen him so open and affectionate was the summer before his parents died.”
“Joyce, I’m not sure we should be discussing Jordan like this. His past is something he should share when he’s ready.”
She shook her head. “That’s all I had to say about Jordan. I just wanted you to understand what I mean when I say thank you from the bottom of my heart for bringing my nephew back to me.” Joyce reached out and took my hand. “For many years, I’ve watched him drift through life. The only thing he seemed to care about was work. Now I see the Jordan I remember from so many years ago.”
I thought Jordan’s reserve had been something he’d always had, maybe a leftover trait from childhood or a natural shyness. It never occurred to me that it was his way of dealing with the loss of his parents, of protecting himself.
And it should have because I had a similar inclination. I wanted to keep people at a distance. If they didn’t get close to me, they couldn’t hurt me. Yancy was the only reason I knew Lucy, Chelsea, and Grier. I would never have opened myself up to them if Yancy hadn’t introduced them to the group one by one.
