Anything for Her(42)

She drew him into the apartment by the hand, apologizing because their days off didn’t coordinate and thanking him for coming anyway.

“No, this is good. I got in a couple of hours of work this morning. And this gives us a day when I don’t have to explain to Sean where I am or what I’m doing. I’ll put in half a day Saturday to make up.” He watched with pleasure as she bustled in the tiny kitchen. “How was the shopping trip?”

“I bought this T-shirt.” She twirled once, doing something completely natural but also complicated with her leg that made the spin something out of the ordinary. “And a whole bunch of other clothes, too. I got carried away.”

“I like the shirt,” he admitted. The pale rose was good with her white skin, and the deep scoop of the neckline exposed the first curves of her small breasts. The front had, hmm, a picture of a bird in flight. He thought. It was kind of abstract. Nolan grinned. It looked like something he might sculpt.

“Why are you smiling?”

“Because I like you in the shirt?” Then he told her what he’d thought. “Will you come out to my place next Monday for lunch and a tour?”

“I would love lunch and a tour.” She danced by where he leaned against the counter edge and gave him a kiss on his jaw as she passed. “It’s a date.”

Lunch was chicken tikka masala accompanied by garlic naan bread, which she’d baked herself. She sat on the far side of the table, obviously guessing he’d have a hard time squeezing himself in over there.

Even though he was mostly hungry for her, he surveyed the food with appreciation. “I usually settle for a peanut butter sandwich for lunch. If I’m feeling ambitious, I nuke a frozen pizza. You worked hard on this.”

“Cooking for two is more fun than just for myself. I don’t do this every day, believe me.” Her smile was crooked and tantalizing. “You know I’m lucky to get a sandwich at work myself.”

He got her talking a little more about her mother. At other times he’d sensed nothing but love and pride. This time, it was as if she was having to remind herself of the pride. She spoke firmly about how hard her mother worked, how dedicated she’d been to the Friends of the Library, about what good friends they were.

“You never talk about your mother,” she said finally.

Now, how was it she’d known to zero in on the parent about whom he had the most complicated feelings? No, it wouldn’t have helped if she’d asked about his father, because then he might have to say, Which father? The one I thought I knew, or my real one?

Nolan had wrestled with himself about this. He wanted to know her with an urgency he’d never felt before. She was already unsettled by his nosiness. He couldn’t ask of her what he wouldn’t give.

“There’s a reason for that.” He tore a piece of naan bread in half, then set down both pieces, hardly aware what his hands were doing. “My mother is sophisticated but also warm and friendly. She managed to juggle owning a successful business while still making time for us kids.” He paused. “I thought my mother was the greatest, until I was fourteen and got hurt in shop class at school. I cut myself real bad. I bled so much I needed a transfusion. That’s when I found out my blood type didn’t match either of my parents’.”

Allie’s mouth formed into a shocked O.

“The shit hit the fan. I’d never thought about why I didn’t look like either of my parents, or much like my brother or sister, either. Jed now, he looks like our father, and you can see Mom in Anna, even though Anna’s a lot taller and more angular.”

“You were adopted?”

“That’s what I first assumed. I couldn’t believe they’d never told me. It especially stung when I thought I was the only one of the three of us who was adopted. That’s when she confessed that she’d had an affair and, while I really was hers, the man I’d always believed was my father wasn’t.”

“Oh, Nolan,” Allie whispered, her green-gold eyes soft.

“I guess you can imagine how shocked I was. Who wants to think about their parents having sex at all?” He was trying to add some humor to this, but she didn’t smile and he couldn’t blame her. “Your mom having sex with some man other than your father?” He shook his head. “You could pretty well hear the pieces shattering when she toppled off her pedestal.”

“Did your dad know? Or was this a surprise to him, too?”