Between Friends (45 page)

“I’m so embarrassed,” Lillian lamented. “I don’t remember her, either.”

“She’s going to love you,” Alex added.

Vin voiced his own uncertainty. “Maybe we shouldn’t have come.”

“Of course you should have,” Rosemary said. “Besides, there’s going to be a mob of people in my backyard for the little party Valerie planned. Some of Meggie’s friends and cousins will be there.”

“We can see her some other …”

“No, please.” Valerie turned in her seat to reach out and take Lillian’s hand. “You and Vin have to be there. I’ve handled this whole thing so badly. I should have said something years ago.” She glanced briefly at Dallas, color rising in her cheeks. “I haven’t been very fair or very smart.”

“You know what?” Ross whispered in her ear, but loud enough for them all to hear. “I don’t think Megan’s going to care as long as she knows the truth. She’s going to have a lot of questions.”

When the ceremony was over, the auditorium emptied out onto the school grounds, where the graduating students became antsy and quickly bored with the novelty of caps and robes. Dallas stood with Alex waiting for Megan to appear and find them.

“Mommy, did you see me?” Megan interrupted, bursting into the center of the group of adults to capture everyone’s attention.

“Yes, I did. Megan, honey, we’re all so proud of you.”

“I suppose I’ll have to bow down and kiss your hand or something,” Ross teased her, making her giggle.

“I’m going to be on TV again.”

“I guess this makes you famous,” Alex said to her as she came over to give Dallas a hug. “Can I have you autograph my program?”

“Aaaah, isn’t that sweet,” Rosemary crooned as Megan blushed.

Then Megan turned her attention to the older couple who stood off to the side, looking at her with great curiosity, and as if they were a little afraid of her. Valerie came forward and placed her hands on her daughter’s shoulders as Megan became subdued and a little shy.

“Honey, I want you to meet Lillian and Vincent Marco. You remember me telling you about them.”

Megan nodded, staring openly at them. “I know. You’re my father’s parents, right?”

Dallas could see that Lillian’s eyes were moist with unshed tears as she nodded with a tremulous smile. “It … it’s very nice to meet you, Megan. You look so grown-up in your cap and gown.”

“Thank you,” she replied quietly, taking hold of Dallas’s hand and leaning against her arm.

Lillian took a step forward. “You know, you have Nicky’s eyes. And the same mouth. Doesn’t she, Vin?”

Behind his wife, Vin looked at Megan, equally fascinated and timid. “Yeah. But she’s a lot prettier.”

Everyone laughed at Vin’s comment.

“I’m sorry he died,” Megan said to Vin, surprising everyone with her reference to Nicholas. “I didn’t get a chance to know him.”

Vin cleared his throat. “I hope you’ll give me and Lilly a chance to know
you.
”

“Sure,” Megan said with a shrug. She glanced suddenly at her mother and then back to Vin. “I don’t have to call you Vin, do I?”

A slight shock went through everyone, although no one said anything. Only Lillian drew her breath in, her eyes blinking as she waited for her husband to respond.

“Not if you don’t want to,” Vin said softly, clearly taken aback by the question.

“Megan, why don’t you want to call him Vin?” Rosemary asked her.

“Well, why can’t I call him Grandfather? I never had a grandfather before,” she explained.

Lillian covered her mouth to hide her quivering chin. Valerie stroked her daughter’s cheek with her hand. Everyone else grinned foolishly. Vin cleared his throat.

“Sure, why not? Nobody’s ever called me that before, either.”

Dallas went into the kitchen balancing used paper plates, plastic forks, and crumpled napkins in both hands as she headed for the garbage. Behind her, the voices and conversation trailed from the backyard, where the adult voices were outmatched by the exuberance of Megan and several of her friends and cousins, gathered to finish the graduation celebration. She’d left Vin, Alex, and Ross engaged in a conversation about the merits of the military when Vin had served in Nam, to Alex and Ross’s tour of duty in the Middle East. Valerie had approached them but Ross did not separate himself to give her his undivided attention. Instead he’d put an arm around her waist to include her. That Val consented said volumes about what was developing between them. But it was pretty much the same kind of acceptance that Dallas knew she felt with Alex. And no one seemed surprised by either couple.

Lillian was conversing with Rosemary in an attempt to learn a little of what she’d missed for the past twelve years of her granddaughter’s life. She and Vin made it clear that they didn’t at all consider Megan Marie any less a grandchild just because Nicholas hadn’t been their birth child. In the same way, Dallas realized, that Lillian had always treated her like a daughter and Alex like a son. There had been enough love to go around. Dallas glanced out the kitchen window briefly, reflecting on the affinity she felt with Lillian. The fact that they’d both lost a first child. Was it that first failure that had sent Vin Marco to the temporary solace of another woman?

Dallas turned to the kitchen table and began clearing away things that had been opened and spread out for the party. As she worked, she imagined she understood what Lillian was feeling, meeting Megan for the first time.

She’d finally gotten up the courage to write a letter to a Brenda Coleburn of San Antonio, Texas, introducing herself as a cousin; their mothers were sisters. She explained about the letters she’d never seen until finding them recently, and that if Brenda was still interested, yes … she would like a chance to get to know her and her mother’s side of the family.

Dallas didn’t know if she would get an answer. It had been more than ten years since her cousin had attempted to reach her. But she had already decided, through the process of writing the letter, that whatever the outcome was, it was really secondary to the sense of completion she’d gained.

Dallas opened the kitchen door into the backyard and, taking a deep breath, went out into the twilight to sit alone on the top step. She was not there long before Alex slowly made his way across the yard toward her. He was interrupted in the journey as two of Megan’s cousins, giggly teens two years Megan’s senior, stopped Alex to innocently flirt. Dallas smiled, finding it amusing and endearing that he had a chivalrous streak that made Alex so sympathetic. So heroic.

Alex reached her and squeezed in next to her on the step. He put an arm around her waist and kissed her cheek. He could feel her relax against his side as the trust flowed through her body.

“Did you and Valerie make up?”

Dallas looked into his face, his almost-white hair making him look dark and shadowy, his eyes hidden. “Did she tell you what happened?”

He shook his head. “She didn’t have to. I could tell you’d had a fight.”

Dallas didn’t feel the need to add to it. “Not yet,” she answered thoughtfully. “She’s a bit preoccupied with Megan and Ross right now. But we will.”

Alex squeezed her gently. “I bet I know what you’re thinking,” he whispered after a moment of silence.

Dallas turned to regard him skeptically. “Oh, yeah?”

Alex nodded. “You’re thinking, it feels a little strange to be part of this tonight. It’s really a family thing.”

She chuckled with a shake of her head. “Okay. You win. Except I notice that Vin had an awful lot to say to Ross about you. Calling you his older son. Talking about you helping him with his business.” Alex grunted. “Suddenly you’re the reigning prince.”

“I wouldn’t put it that way,” Alex murmured, encouraging her to lean against his chest. “Yeah, it was a surprise, but I’ll settle for the older son title.”

Alex was still adjusting to that. It was the first public acknowledgment he’d ever gotten from Vin, and it had rolled off his tongue with an ease and pride that had caught Alex up short. He didn’t know if he’d expected to feel any different if Vin had ever admitted their relation, but there was this sense of closure, a final link in place.

“Aren’t you happy about it?”

He thought about it. “Are you happy that your stepmother finally opened up to you and admitted that she was afraid your father favored you over Dean? Are you happy that Dean is playing protective brother all of a sudden and is ready to kick my butt if I do anything to hurt you?”

Dallas laughed lightly at the irony of it. “I’m glad to know where I stand, but it doesn’t seem so important anymore. Not that I don’t care, but …”

Alex sighed and hugged her. When she smiled at him, he kissed her briefly.

“I figured out that if you don’t get love and friendship from one person, you can find it somewhere else. There are other people who love you besides your family. Lillian and Megan. Me,” Alex finished, gazing at her intently.

It was the first time that word had been said between them. But Dallas wasn’t really surprised. It seemed natural and a foregone conclusion. Not the end or even a beginning. It was the core of what they had always been to each other.

Dallas kept waiting for it to wear off. The joy. The near breathless wonder. She had the best of all possible worlds. They were real friends … and lovers. She smiled at him, rubbing her hand on his thigh.

“I have a favor to ask.”

“Go ahead,” Alex encouraged.

“My friend Maureen is getting married at the end of the month. I’m in the wedding party. Will you come and be my escort?”

He stared at her, and Dallas watched the thought process displayed in his features. There was consideration. Bemusement. Surprise. Love.

“Sure,” he answered. “I’ll be there with bells on.”

She laughed. “You don’t have to do all that. A tux is enough. Although … it’s going to be a nontraditional ceremony.”

“How?”

“Maureen is doing something Afro-Centric. Jump the broom.”

Alex nodded. “I’ve been to one before. One of my buddies in the service. Best wedding I ever attended. We partied for twenty-four hours.”

Alex lowered his head to kiss her. His mouth parted over hers and his tongue teased at her. There was a fearlessness that had always been a part of him and that had always made Dallas feel safe with him. It was dependable and solid.

“Alex? Do you think Vin will mind … about us?”

“What I think is that it doesn’t matter. You know what the real acid test is going to be?”

“What?”

Alex grinned at her. “Where to spend the holidays.”

Dallas shook her head, joining in the easy take on their future.

“But that’s not the only question,” he said.

“What else?”

“Aunt Dallas, could you come here?” Megan called out, interrupting them.

Dallas stood up, holding onto Alex’s hand as she looked at him. “What were you going to say?”

Alex regarded Megan for a moment and stood up, too, squeezing Dallas’s hand. A slow enigmatic smile played on his mouth. He pecked a kiss on her lips.

“It can wait. We’ll talk later,” Alex assured her. “I’m not going anywhere.”

B
ETWEEN FRIENDS PRESENTED A
number of research challenges. A great deal of information was needed for what turned out to be a very few pages, but these sections are visual and action-filled. I read lots of materials on scuba diving, Navy SEALS, New York Police Rescue and Aviation units, but extensive interviewing of the men and women who perform these tasks added immeasurably to a sense of the importance and excitement of their jobs. I am deeply indebted to all of them for their generosity of time, spirit, information, and sense of humor.

I am grateful to Brian Walker of the Naval Institute Press, who put me in touch with ex-Navy SEAL Dick Couch, USNR, who, with a few personal anecdotes, set me on the path to learn more.

Many thanks to Diane O’Connor (whose husband I interviewed when researching an earlier novel), Stephen M. Giaco, Community Affairs Officers, Officer Kevin Burns and Sergeant Edward Mountford of the Midtown North precinct of NYPD in Manhattan.

Sergeant Dennis M. Schoeller, a former five-year member of the NYPD Scuba Unit, gave me a thorough background in the history of the unit, as well as details on the kind of search-and-discovery assignments typically dealt with.

Doug Sherrad of Grumman Aerospace on Long Island, and a recreational diver, sent me articles to read on equipment and the physiological concerns of diving.

Pete Oliver, co-owner of Adventures in Diving on Staten Island, New York, was added to my list of experts when I spotted him on a local TV report about this company and dive shop. I also appreciate the female diver’s point of view of Debra Williamson, a student of Mr. Oliver’s.

David R. Getty, Marketing and Communications Manager of National Drager, provided crucial information on the LAR 5 rebreather, a respiratory unit used by Navy divers.

I was thrilled to have been invited to visit the NYPD Aviation Unit at Floyd Bennet Field in Brooklyn, New York. There, Captain Bill Wilkins, Commanding Officer, introduced me to his team of officers. I was given a personal tour of the hangar facility, equipment, and the helicopters frequently used in rescue or recovery missions. Police Officer Tom Kelley of the scuba unit and Officer John Galligan, aviation mechanic, spent a few hours answering my endless questions. I will always remember the enthusiasm and patience with which I and my research was treated.

Finally, I came away with a tremendous sense of awe, admiration, and respect for the work of all of the professionals mentioned above. I am inspired to complete my own diving certification, delayed almost
ten years,
by performing my required open-water dive!

Sandra Kitt is the author of more than twenty novels, including
The Color of Love
,
Significant Others
, and
Close Encounters
, as well as numerous short stories. Her work has been nominated for the NAACP Image Award and has appeared on the
Essence
and Blackboard bestseller lists. She is the recipient of the Romantic Times Lifetime Achievement Award and the Zora Neale Hurston Literary Award. A native New Yorker, Kitt previously worked as a graphic designer, creating cards for UNICEF, illustrating books, and exhibiting her own work, which is included in the collection of the Museum of African American Art in Los Angeles. She formerly served as the managing director of the Richard S. Perkin Collection in Astronomy and Astrophysics at the American Museum of Natural History.