92 Pacific Boulevard - Debbie Macomber [45]
After their movie date, Will had bided his time. Seven restless days later, he’d risked phoning her. He had a good excuse—another of her pieces had sold.
Again he offered to deliver the check, and again she’d refused. But she’d come to the gallery the next day. She seemed distracted and a bit troubled, and he suggested it might help to talk about her problems. He’d felt her hesitation, but in the end she’d agreed to meet him at D.D.’s for dinner on Saturday night. Will had been walking on air ever since.
The waitress brought him a glass of his favorite New Zealand sauvignon blanc. He thanked her with a smile. She was pretty enough. Young, too; no more than thirty-five, with nice legs.
He savored the wine while he waited. He’d arrived early and was already on his second glass when Shirley entered the restaurant. Standing, he greeted her. Always a gentleman, he helped remove her coat, then lightly brushed his lips against her cheek.
He recognized his mistake immediately. He’d moved too quickly for her, presumed too much. He needed to remember that.
“Sorry I’m late,” Shirley said, a little breathless, as she slid into the booth opposite him.
Caught up in his thoughts, Will had lost track of the time. A quick check showed that she’d kept him waiting twelve minutes.
“I’m afraid Tanni and I had an argument,” Shirley said, fumbling with her linen napkin as she placed it on her lap. Her face was flushed and he wondered if it was due to the dissension with her daughter or the cold.
Never having had children, Will wasn’t sure he should comment. “The teen years can be difficult,” he ventured, although he had little or no experience with that age group.
“She’s seeing too much of Shaw,” Shirley said.
Will motioned to the waitress to take Shirley’s drink order. He was pleased when she accepted his suggestion to try the New Zealand wine. “Bring us a bottle,” he told the waitress.
Shirley hurried to stop him. “Oh, no, that’s far too much! I’m sure I won’t drink more than a glass.”
“This is one of my favorites. What you don’t want, I’ll have.”
Shirley glanced at the parking lot.
He grinned. “Don’t worry, I walked. It’s only a few blocks from the gallery.”
“Yes. Walking…that’s a good idea.”
The waitress returned with a bottle, which Will examined. “My ex-wife and I visited the Marlborough region of New Zealand a few years ago and discovered their exquisite wines.” He hoped to put Shirley at ease and distract her from the difficulties she’d experienced earlier with her daughter. As he recalled, Tanni was sixteen or seventeen. She’d probably be out of the house soon, attending college in Seattle or elsewhere.
Shirley took her first sip and he could see that she liked the wine. Settling back in the booth, he studied her.
“Tanni and I seem to be at odds more and more,” she murmured, her eyes darting around the room.
Obviously this situation was weighing on her and she seemed incapable of setting it aside.
“I wasn’t sure I should still meet you for dinner,” she said. “I would’ve canceled if I’d been able to get in touch with you.”
Thankfully he must’ve already left the gallery and she didn’t have his cell number.
“This argument with Tanni is about Shaw, you said.” If talking helped her, then he was willing to listen.
Shirley gripped the stem of her wineglass and stared into the distance. “They’re constantly together. It’s…dangerous. Tanni’s at a vulnerable point in her life—she was close to her father and she misses him desperately. She and Shaw are too serious, and now that they discovered those remains, it seems everyone wants to question them. I don’t know how the press got hold of their names—probably from other kids at school,” Shirley said. “The sheriff asked Shaw and Tanni not to say anything but Tanni’s been tricked into talking to reporters more than once.”
Will sent her a look of sympathy. He’d heard about those skeletal remains; it’d been in the news for weeks. Every time there was the tiniest bit of information, it was blown out of all proportion, and