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The ten years that had passed did nothing to lessen the pain of his loss or to make less vivid the depth of our passion for each other. But I had learned to love again, without ever forgetting that I would have sacrificed all the other pleasures and triumphs of my life to have had this time with him. I had made changes in the house, too. Something had nagged at me to create a different feel, a sense of another phase of my relationships. So the previous winter I added an addition with a larger living room, a huge slate-trimmed hearth, and tall windows open to the handsome sweep of sea and sky. And with Nina s urging, for her upcoming Labor Day weekend visit, I had the architect build a new bathroom, decadently luxurious, with a steam shower and whirlpool tub. Slowly it had become possible for me to be here without any longer feeling that I was betraying Adam s love for me. Now I found myself looking at my watch every ten minutes, filled with anticipation about the arrival of Jacob Tyler, with whom I had serendipitously become entangled in early July. Less than two months later, I sat here daydreaming about seeing him again this afternoon, excited by the pleasure he gave me, emotionally and physically, and still palpitating from the newness of the romance. I read the papers, knocked off the Friday crossword puzzle, and called the office to make sure everything was still quiet. I wasn t a cook, but there was an easy trick to serve an elegant Vineyard dinner with no effort at all, and I set about making it happen before Jake arrived. A phone call to the fish market to order a late-afternoon pickup, a stop at the Chilmark store for island corn and tomatoes at the peak of perfection at this point in the summer and I was off for the twenty-minute ride to the airport to meet Jake s plane. Cape Air s one o clock from Boston was the only flight due in when I arrived. As usual, not many people were leaving the island on a Friday in summer, and several locals waited with me for the nine-seater to come into range. The tiny plane first appeared as a small dot in the cloudless blue sky, and circled out over the south shore before coming in for a landing. I could see the crown of Jake s thick brown hair emerge from the door first as he bent down to get out onto the steps that the pilot had lowered. He picked up his head to look for me behind the arrival gate and broke into a wide smile when he saw me standing on a bench against the chain-link fence, waving at him with both arms. His suit jacket was slung over his shoulder and hooked by the finger of his left hand, and he blew a kiss to me with his right hand when he touched ground. When he reached where I stood in the waiting area, next to the luggage rack, he dropped his briefcase, took me by my shoulders as he said, Hello, angel, and kissed me for what seemed like three minutes. My head nestled in the crook of his elbow, and I closed my eyes and stood still to savor the feeling of his embrace. Got room in that little car for a duffel full of dirty clothes? It s hard to travel light for ten days in China. Jake had covered the presidential summit in Beijing for NBC and had been traveling for almost two weeks on his way there and back. We had spent a weekend on the Vineyard before he took off, and our communications had been frustratingly erratic since then, between time differences and our unpredictable schedules. I m thinking of giving up prosecution and taking in laundry. I d be delighted to start with yours, Mr. Tyler. Bad week? I couldn t seem to catch you anywhere, no matter-when I called. The suitcases were off-loaded to the luggage rack, and Jake lifted his bag out Page 89 ABC Amber Palm Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abcpalm.html so we could walk to the car. I carried his jacket and briefcase under one arm, taking hold of his left hand with my right. You ll get a full report this evening. I ve been ordered to take today off, so if you don t talk to me about the gross national product or global warming or the Japanese commodities market, I won t bore you with the twists and turns in my murder case. There s nothing boring about it. What s been happening? he asked, as I opened the trunk to put the bag inside. I put my index finger up to my lips, whispered Ssssssssssssshhh, and slipped behind the wheel of the Miata. I m taking you for a ride. Just relax and enjoy the scenery. We left the airport and started up-island. After about a tenminute ride on the South Road, I turned the car off onto a wide-mouthed dirt drive, unmarked and unpaved and full of rutted holes that threatened to devour the small car. Am I being kidnapped? Jake asked, tousling my hair. Nobody at the network will ransom me, you know. Take me away now and you ll be stuck with me forever. The brush was thick on both sides of the way, and we bounced along the winding path for more than a mile until we came to a fence attached to two wooden posts, which seemed to be standing on guard in the middle of nowhere. I took a key from the glove compartment, got out of the car to unlock the gate, drove through, and locked it again behind us. Where the hell are you taking me? he asked with a laugh. I m exhausted. Quite frankly, I was hoping for a long, hot shower in your fancy new digs, and then well, something in the way of a warm welcome stateside. I promise you ll feel like a new man after this. You ve got to trust me. After a few more seconds I went around a bend, and ahead of us we saw the flat stretch of the dusty long green grass of the wetlands, and a pond populated only by a handful of swans. Beyond that were the rolling dunes of South Beach, merging into the wide-open expanse of the Atlantic Ocean. There were a couple of other cars parked at the entrance to Black Point Beach, on one of the most exquisite summer days. What s with the gate and key? Where is everybody? There are only two states in the country, Maine and Massachusetts, in which you can own beachfront property to the mean low-water mark. As a result, the Vineyard was dotted by vast lengths of ocean beaches that were privately held and not accessible to the general public. This was one of them more than a mile in length and I had bought a piece of it when I purchased the house, more than a decade ago. Better than a shower. Let s go for a swim. I parked the car, grabbed two towels from my tote, and ran to the footpath that led over the dunes, kicking off my moccasins and telling Jake to do the same with his loafers. We reached the peak together and stood looking out at the wide belt of white sand and the white-capped blue water that seemed to go on forever. Great, Alex. You think I didn t see enough of the Pacific, that I needed this today? Don t be such a grouch. Get those rags off you c mon, hurry up. There are people I lifted my sunglasses and peered down the beach. It looks like there are maybe four stick figures between here and Edgartown, I said, turning to Jake and unbuttoning the business shirt that he had worn on the plane, while he stood with his hands on his hips. I reached for his waistband, drew off his belt, and unzipped his pants. Well, I guess if they won t recognize that you re the sex crimes prosecutor from the big city, they won t have a clue that the tired, naked guy you re molesting is a newscaster. Jake finished taking off his clothes while I lifted my T-shirt over my head and dropped my shorts on the sand. I ran down to the water s edge, hesitated for a moment as the cold surf dashed against my feet, then dove into the sixty-eight-degree water and started swimming straight out, away from shore. Page 90 ABC Amber Palm Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abcpalm.html [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ] |