Worthy Opponents(19)

They both kept things light between them, and saw each other about once a week, outside of advertising meetings for the store. He was handsome, and the right age for her, but there was always something missing between them, probably because Spencer knew she didn’t love him, and neither did he love her. It was just easy, and nice to get out to dinner once in a while. She worked so hard at the store that she had very little social life or interaction with other adults, except at work. It was nice being out with a man occasionally, even if it wasn’t serious. They had always kept their relationship undercover and discreet, because of his connection to the store through the ad agency where he worked. It met their needs for the moment, but there had never been any pretense of a future, and she had recently begun to think they were reaching their expiration date. He had started to bore her. But she had no great desire to replace him either. He was familiar, and she hadn’t met another man who interested her since her divorce. Sometimes she thought that Bart had cured her of love forever. He hadn’t been a heartbreak, but he had been a major disappointment. His profound disapproval of her running the store had stayed with her for a long time. She didn’t want another man in her life who would try to force her to sell the store. She shuddered at the thought.

Bill came back to the apartment with her after dinner. They had perfunctory sex, which was less satisfying than usual. It had been fun in the beginning, but had become less so and more predictable over time. He didn’t spend the night, and she didn’t ask him to. She was sorry to notice that she was relieved when he left. She liked the idea of spending the night alone in her bed, and having a quiet morning to herself the next day before she went to work. She always worked on Saturdays, although she went in a little later than during the week. Francine was going to pick up the boys at their friend’s house that afternoon. She left for her day off on Saturday evening when Spencer got home, and Spencer had the boys to herself after that and enjoyed that too. She felt like a real mom when she was alone with them, until Francine returned late Sunday night, after spending her time off with her boyfriend. Their arrangement had worked well for seven years.

On Saturday, after playing tennis, Mike decided to go back to the store to buy the brown suede shoes he’d seen. It was in the back of his mind that he might see the young manager again. He didn’t see her, but he bought the shoes, a gray cashmere sweater, and an English tweed jacket he liked, and was pleased with his purchases when he got home. Renee and Jenny were right. What Brooke’s carried wasn’t cheap, but it was of the finest quality, and he loved what he’d gotten, and would wear it a lot. Nothing they carried was too odd or too trendy or would go out of style.

Maureen had gone away for the weekend, and Mike enjoyed being alone. The chronic tension between them made solitude preferable whenever possible. It was like a brief relief from a dull ache that he had gotten used to, and was surprised when it abated for a short time. He watched a series he enjoyed on TV, and went to bed early. He thought of the young blond manager at Brooke’s again, and was mildly disappointed he hadn’t seen her, which seemed foolish to him. What would he have done if he had? But she had been such a pretty woman, so well put together, and so pleasant to talk to. She seemed like a happy person, which had made her more attractive. It was tiresome living with Maureen’s bitterness and complaints. But they were married and intended to stay that way, for their children. It seemed like the right thing to do, to both of them. It was one of the few things they agreed on, even though a sacrifice they were willing to make. Maureen seemed to enjoy punishing him.

When he had gone back to the store, he had noticed the neighborhood more clearly. It was frankly ugly, and parts of it even looked dangerous to him. Brooke’s really would have benefitted from a better location, and he wondered why they had never moved. The building had charm inside, but as soon as you walked outside, the magic ended. He wondered if they would do better in a more upscale location. It seemed obvious to him that they would.

On Sunday, after he did the New York Times crossword puzzle and got most of it, he flipped through a recent edition of New York magazine and was startled to see an article about Brooke and Son. There was a photograph of the front of the building with the doorman standing to attention outside, and he read the article and was surprised to learn that the store’s current owner was not the founder’s son, but his granddaughter, Spencer Brooke. The writer explained that Spencer Brooke had an MBA, was thirty-seven years old, and had been running the store since she had inherited it from her father at thirty. According to the article she had done a bang-up job and had improved their profits considerably since she took over. It said that she had preserved most of the traditions her grandfather had established, while modernizing subtly and effectively, which explained why she had kept the store in the original location. Although the neighborhood was less than desirable, and inconvenient for most of their customers, they kept flocking to the store in spite of it. The article listed some of their most devoted customers and the list was impressive, of socialites, politicians, movie stars. It said that several First Ladies had shopped there and continued to do so.

The article sang Spencer’s praises, and when Mike turned the page, he saw a picture of her and stared at it for a minute. It was the beautiful young blond manager he had spoken to, who had been so lavish with her comments about the store and the staff, and he grinned when he saw it. He thought it was bold of her to have been so enthusiastic about Brooke’s, without admitting she was the owner. She had been passionate about it, and now he knew why. There was also a photograph of her with her grandfather when she was a child, in front of the store. The article said that she had been groomed to run it by her grandfather, and that her father’s tenure had been brief. He had died suddenly, and she inherited the store at thirty. She was quoted about how much the store meant to her, and how much she had learned from her grandfather.