“All right, people,
let’s get this stuff set up before we get one of those
summer showers this place is famous for. I did the Sport’s
Illustrated cover here last year and ruined my favorite
Nikon lens. If that happens today, heads will roll,”
said Annie Crain, the photographer Nike had hired.
A crew of fourteen women ran
around the outside court setting up lighting equipment hoping
to get as much natural light as they could. In the gym Parker
was lifting weights in her birthday suit on a towel draped
bench so there would be no marks on her body of any kind
for the camera to find.
The shouting and music from
next door finally woke Gail who was still asleep in the
dunes with what tasted like a mouth full of sand. The combination
of alcohol and sun had made a bad situation worse and she
felt as if a team of horses had trampled her during the
night. On the way into the house she passed Emily who had
her bathing suit on and was on her way out. Emily shrank
away from her as if in fear and Gail reached to comfort
her making the blonde take a couple of steps back to get
away from her. The small woman’s demeanor told Gail
that there was nothing to say at this point so she just
headed to the shower and some aspirin. Maybe after a nap
she would feel good enough to have the talk they were avoiding.
Had Gail made it into the house the night before, she would
have found the door to their bedroom locked.
The music pumping through
the outdoor system made Emily put her book down and concentrate
on what was happening next door. Besides a whole lot of
people with camera equipment, there was a huge selection
of tennis shoes around the outside of the court. Once the
photographer was set up she called to a man named Nick and
told him to get Parker. The shower the woman had been complaining
about was just offshore and looked like it was bringing
with it a dazzling lightening display.
Emily watched as Parker walked
out of the house onto a now clean deck wearing only a robe.
The fencing from around the court had been taken down and
Emily figured they were going to take photographs of Parker’s
play. The pilot found it odd that Parker grabbed a racket
and hit a few practice rounds with the robe on. Out of sight
in a small boat in the water Gary fed her some lobs over
the net so that Annie could get her locations for different
shots set up.
Once a good sweat had broken
out on Parker, they were ready to begin and she dropped
the robe. Emily thanked god that she was sitting on the
beach and not out in the water. The sight before her would
have made her drown she was sure.
Standing on the court with
her hair loose wearing only tennis shoes was Parker. The
makeup job Parker had undergone that morning made it look
like there were no tan lines anywhere on the most perfect
body Emily had ever seen. “Holy shit,” was all
she could think to say as the popping noise from the day
before returned. Parker hit ball after ball as the woman
shot more and more rolls of film. The backdrop of the incoming
storm only accentuated Parker’s form thought Emily
as she watched how the muscles bulged when she went to hit
the ball. Without her permission Emily found her feet moving
closer to the court as the commercial shoot came to an end.
By the time Emily was next
to the deck Parker was sitting at the table they had had
dinner on the night before having another bottle of water
wearing the robe she had come out in. The man that had been
throwing the balls from the water was sitting with her as
the other man helped the crew pack up their gear.
“Emily, good morning.
I hope our little bit of capitalism didn’t disturb
you too much this morning. If it did see Nick, it was all
his idea,” said Parker. Abby’s whining had alerted
Parker to the pilot’s presence before Parker had actually
seen her.
“No, I came to apologize
again for last night,” started Emily before Parker
put up her hand to stop her.
“Not necessary, Captain.
I think if I were in Gail’s shoes the evening might
have played out about the same, minus the drinking and the
broken dishes. I am really glad you came though, I enjoyed
our time together before you have to go back to the real
world.” The bathing suit finally clicked as to who
this woman was and that she was very much, like Willy had
said, involved with someone else.
Gail wouldn’t look
as good as you in your shoes, thought Emily as the mental picture of a naked Parker
played in her head again. “Thank
you then, I enjoyed it too. I’m thinking of heading
back today and I wanted to see you before I go. If you are
ever in New York please give me a call and if I’m
in town I’d be happy to return the dinner favor,”
said Emily. She crossed her arms over chest to hide her
discomfort.
“Why don’t you
come up for some juice or something,” offered Parker
not ready to see her go just yet. Parker could see that
like her, Emily looked lonely and the thought of not seeing
her again was suddenly unacceptable.
“Parker, we need to
finish this,” insisted Gary. Parker glared at him
to shut him up and the coach just ignored her. Before him
on the table was the fifth death threat that had been sent
to Parker in just the last month. In each note the group
that claimed to be the Soldiers of Christ got more explicit
as to how they were going to kill the tennis player. The
tabloids headlines of her latest break up with Alicia had
spurred a new flurry of right wing hate mail, but this group
scared Gary. The others never sent such detailed descriptions
on how they were going to do away with his friend.
“Maybe I should just
go, Parker, you seem busy.” And I’m standing
here half naked, and you are naked under that robe.
“Nonsense, Emily, Gary
is just our resident worry wart. People threaten me all
the time because of who I am, the clothes I play in, for
the way I wear my hair you name it they find fault with
it. This isn’t anything new and I’m sure it
won’t be the last time it will happen. Apple, cranberry
or orange?”
“Apple thanks,”
She picked up the letter that was on the table and read
it after Gary encouraged her to do so. Emily wasn’t
there to further upset Parker so she settled for humor when
her hostess handed her the juice glass. “Ah, so you
do know my name, I was beginning to wonder.”
“Of course I know your
name, Captain. Willy told me all about you. Your likes,
your dislikes and what kind of person you are.”
“I’d be afraid
to know,” said Emily. The chair swallowed her up and
Emily wished that she had remembered to wear a shirt over
the revealing suit she had on.
“Abby, fetch blue for
me, boy,” said Parker to the dog sending him inside
before putting to rest Emily’s doubts. “He and
the rest of that crew think you are hard to work for, but
they love you, Emily. They feel safe with you. Hell you
can fly the plane serve hot chocolate and put up with full
of themselves tennis players. Good boy,” said Parker
when Abby came back out with a red shirt in his mouth. Parker
threw it at Emily as she petted Abby for his good deed.
It was hard enough looking at Emily like that for the obvious
reasons, but the sight of Gail’s hand in the back
of the bikini bottom was etched in her mind now.
“Thanks, Parker, but
this is a red shirt.” Emily held the shirt up before
slipping it on.
“I know that and you
know that, but he doesn’t. Abby’s color blind,
but he’s eager to please so cut him some slack.”
“That he is. Must have
learned it from you. Could I use your phone please?”
Emily got up and headed toward the kitchen after Parker
nodded her head. She left the coach and player to work out
a solution to their problem while she went to work out her
own.
“Thanks, Bobbie, I got
a flight out tomorrow. I’m taking a couple of days
off to start looking for a place as soon as I get there,
so I appreciate you giving me a place to stay until I find
one.” After only a ten minutes Emily had found a flight
back to New York and an old friend to stay with once she
got there. The airline would put her on a different route
for awhile to give her more time at home until she resolved
her family problems, so she could use the rest of her vacation
to look for a new apartment.
The pilot stepped back outside
to find Parker dressed and ready for what she assumed to
be more practice. The large hands that usually held a racket
now held the hate letter that predicted her death, and from
the movement of her eyes Emily could see she was reading
it again. Gary was standing at the railing of the deck staring
at the water not looking happy. Emily had never seen another
person that looked so much like a free spirit just sitting
still as Parker King. Who would want to kill a person
for that?
“All set?” Parker
looked up from the paper in her hand and smiled at Emily.
She had gotten these types of things before, but these people
seemed a little more organized than the rest. At the bottom
of the page they had listed her schedule of play to point
out different places they could get to her.
“Yeah thanks. I should
let you get back to work. I have to pack and find a place
to stay in town.” Emily twisted the borrowed shirt
she had on in her hands and waited for Parker to walk away.
“Why?”
“Why what?” Gary
walked off the deck headed toward the court when he heard
them begin their conversation. Emily figured he and Parker
had had an argument while she was using the phone and there
was no clear winner. Or maybe she was just imagining things
and was projecting the fight she knew was waiting for her
next door onto the two glum looking people here.
“Why are you going to
stay in town, when I have three guest rooms inside that
are empty? I promise to be on my best behavior, Captain,
if you would grace me with your company for the evening.
I’ll even take you out to dinner so that you don’t
have to suffer through my cooking two nights in a row.”
Parker whispered something into the dog’s ear and
he went and stood in front of Emily. He lifted his paw and
waved it at the small blonde trying to get her to look at
him. “See, even Abby wants you to stay. I’ll
even drive you to the airport in the morning. I give excellent
cab service.”
“Well I won’t
complain if you want to cook for me again, you do great
work in the kitchen. You really don’t mind if I stay
with you?” Emily scratched Abby’s head as she
looked at Parker.
“I wouldn’t have
offered if I didn’t mean it. You want me to go over
with you and help you pack?” Parker wasn’t asking
for any explanations of why Emily wasn’t leaving with
Gail, but something had happened last night and she wanted
to make sure Emily was all right.
“No, get back to work
before it’s Gary that doesn’t let me stay.”
Emily could see that Parker wanted to not let her go alone
after Gail’s performance from the previous night.
Their relationship had died but Gail had never been violent,
though a huge confrontation was not was she was looking
for either. “How about I take Abby with me then we’ll
both meet you out on the court when I’m done? Since
I’ve never scored court side tickets, this will be
a treat for me.”
“Just whistle if you
need me to come over.” Parker threw the hate mail
on the table and bent down to pick up her rackets. Natasha
would be there soon to begin their session and Parker wanted
to finish early to spend the afternoon with Emily.
“I don’t know
if I can whistle that loud.”
“I was talking to the
dog.” The creases on the blonde’s forehead told
Parker that she was trying to figure out if she was serious
or not.
“No freaking way,”
said Emily finally over Parker’s laughter.
Gail had gone for a walk along
the beach after her shower and sleep wouldn’t come
to try and think of a way to apologize to Emily for her
behavior. From the moment she had met Emily, Gail had fallen
in love with the gregarious woman, and for the longest time
she had thought Emily felt the same way about her. She had
been relentless in making Emily hers, but the long trips
and the constant finding of fault in her behavior were beginning
to tell Gail she was losing her grip on the pilot. The problem
was she wasn’t ready to let go. In her other relationships
it was Gail that had done the leaving, not the other way
around. Aside from the night before she couldn’t find
a reason for Emily’s pushing her away.
Nothing looked different when
she got back from her walk and seeing that Emily was still
gone Gail took the car into town. Maybe some flowers and
a bottle of their favorite wine could be the start of a
better ending to their vacation. By the time the rental
car hit the end of the driveway, Emily was walking out to
the tennis court over the water after dropping her bags
off in one of the guest rooms of Parker’s house.
It had taken less than an
hour from the time she had stepped off the deck with Abby
to the time she got back, but Parker and tall blonde she
was playing with were covered in sweat. Like Emily had seen
the day before, the two kept up a blistering pace with Gary
calling out instructions every so often over the grunts
that followed almost every shot.
Emily sat on a bench that
was right behind the side of the net Parker was playing
on and drank the bottle of water she had brought out with
her. Abby jumped up next to her and put his head in her
lap looking relaxed but Emily could see he was keeping his
eyes on the ball waiting for the opportunity to pounce on
a missed one.
“Move the shots out
more, Park, aim for the lines. If your opponent thinks the
balls are going to go out they might not chase them all
down. When that happens, you win shots and conserve energy,”
said Gary. Parker let the next ball Natasha hit fly past
her stopping to take a quick break.
“Why would anyone let
a ball past them, Gary, I chase them all down even the ones
that look like they’re out by a foot.” Gary
threw her a couple of balls then pointed his finger at her.
“Damn right you’ll
chase them all down. You know that, but not everyone has
me as their coach.” Gary puffed up his chest a little
remembering the defeated look on Jill Seabrook’s face
by the third game of the first set. Parker really was one
of those people that came along every decade or so that
combined the power of her play with the soft touch needed
to win. “Now get back to work.”
Parker bounced the ball her
customary four times then went into her serving stance.
To Emily she looked like a bow that had been drawn back
and was ready to fire. She watched the ball leave Parker’s
hand and flinched went the racket smashed it over the net.
You didn’t hear that on television when you were watching
tennis. The ball landed, what to Emily looked like, a millimeter
from the line where an embarrassed Natasha took a swing
at it and missed.
“Goddammit, Parker,
I think the girl fancies you already, there is no need to
show off.” Natasha aimed her racket head over the
net and glared at Parker. The Swedish player had retired
from the professional circuit two years prior and stayed
in shape by practicing with Parker whenever she could. They
had met at Natasha’s last match when the younger Parker
had knocked her out of the tournament in the semi-finals.
Ever since she had made every effort to stay at her condominium
in Clearwater for the summer to be close to Parker. There
had been harmless flirtations between them, but they had
never crossed the line of the good friendship they had built.
“That’s Captain
Emily Parish to you, sore loser.” Parker aimed her
own racket back at Natasha waiting for the smile that was
always delayed whenever Parker got a good shot passed her.
“You know my last name
too, I’m impressed, Ms. King.” When Parker stopped
playing Abby had started whining in her lap. Parker turned
around and put her hands on her hips to silence both the
spectators.
“Your name tag had E.
Parish on it, so of course I know your last name. Abby,
cut it out, no fly balls for you today we have company.
I don’t have hours to kill blowing drying all that
fur of yours, boy, so enjoy the sun.” Parker turned
back to Natasha already poised to serve up another ball.
“And here I thought
you were just looking at my chest.” Parker missed
the ball she had tossed up for her service and for a second
Emily thought the tall woman had pulled a muscle in her
back from stopping her actions so abruptly after her comment.
“Trust me, Emily, when
I start looking at you, you won’t miss the meaning
behind it.” She turned to face Natasha again and caught
the balls Gary tossed to her. They played for another hour
and Parker called it a day. Gary didn’t look happy
with her but they had two months to prepare for the Open
so one missed day wouldn’t kill them.
The dunes that separated Parker’s
house from the one next door gave them sufficient cover
so that Gail didn’t see them walking back to the deck
together. After a trip to the liquor store for wine and
the florist for Emily’s favorite roses, Gail walked
out to the beach to look for the pilot. When she didn’t
find her on the blanket, Gail started walking down the beach
away from Parker’s house figuring that Emily had gone
for a walk. It was the only alternative since she had taken
the car into town. After an hour Gail turned around and
headed back to the house. A few hundred yards from the cut
up to the back of their rental she saw a piece of paper
flying along the top of the sand so she scooped it up and
stuffed it into her pocket to throw away when she got back
to the house.
“Emily, are you here?”
Gail slid the glass door shut behind her and took her sand
filled shoes off on the mat. When she didn’t get an
answer she walked through the house to their bedroom. The
note was sitting on the pillow on her side of the bed, and
the writing on the envelope just said Gail. She smiled thinking
that it was sweet of Emily to write her. In the first few
months of their relationship Gail would find love letters
in her briefcase every so often making the days on the trading
floor that much more bearable for her. The smile fell the
second she got to the ending and instead of reading it again
she just crumpled it in her hand and let it drop to the
floor. Just to confirm Gail opened the closet and found
it empty.
“We’ll just see
if this is over, Emily. You have to talk to me cause this
note isn’t going to cut it.” Gail pulled down
the scotch bottle and poured a full glass. She drank down
the entire contents of the glass with stopping, filling
it again to fuel her anger. The bottle of wine and roses
sat on the counter taunting her to Emily’s betrayal.
Gail picked up the bottle and threw it against the wall.
The thorns digging into her finger didn’t break through
the scotch fog as she snapped the bouquet in half and dumped
them into the trash.
“Ready?” Parker
walked into the front room of her house. It was filled with
trophies and pictures from her career on the court, and
Emily had been in it ever since she had showered and gotten
dressed. When Parker walked in, Emily was running a small
delicate finger over the Wimbledon trophy that had just
come home with her. In a few weeks the framed photograph
of her holding it up before the crowd on center court would
hang along side it just like all the other ones in the room.
Emily moved to another picture
of Parker with two other women that looked so much like
her, but like Parker had said they were both taller. Aside
from the height, they both had brown hair, blue eyes and
the same brilliant smile. “Are these your sisters?”
“Yes, that’s us
at the French Open last year. They had some down time so
they came to see me play. I owe them so much, and it makes
me happy to look into the stands and see them cheering me
on. You probably think that’s incredibly immature
but they are the only family I have.” Parker put her
hands into the pockets of the linen slacks she had put on
and looked at the floor over her admission. Gray and Kimmie
were the only two people besides Gary and Nick that didn’t
want anything from her. The money, the fame nor the publicity
of making the papers on her arm weren’t important
to them.
Emily stepped forward and
put her hand on Parker’s arm. Seeing this vulnerable
side to Parker let her know that she had misjudged the person
on the plane. This was the real Parker. “No, that
doesn’t make you immature, Parker, that makes you
incredibly sweet.” When the blue eyes focused on her,
Emily could understand why so many women had fallen victim
to them before.
“Thank you for thinking
so,” said Parker.
“Are your parents deceased?”
Emily wondered since there were no pictures of an older
couple in any of the frames in the room. The arm under her
hand turned to stone at the question giving her the impression
that they had died in some horrible accident making her
regret asking it.
“No they’re very
much alive and living in Atlanta. They unfortunately have
major difference with my two sisters and I, and we don’t
speak very often. I don’t really like to talk about
it.” Parker took a deep breath and tried to let out
the instant anger that had welled up at Emily’s innocent
question.
Her parents’ attitudes
combined with the letters she had been getting were starting
to enter Parker’s mind more often. It was disgusting
to her that the people that were supposed to love her the
most basically agreed with the content of the letters she
had been receiving.
“I’m sorry.”
Emily squeezed Parker’s arm trying to offer comfort
and was glad when the muscles relaxed under her touch.
“Don’t be, it’s
not your fault and it isn’t mine. My parents have
condemned us all to hell for the way we live our lives.
One gay child would have been bad enough, but three was
over the top as far as they were concerned. The cherry was
that one or all three of us are constantly in the sports
page or on television rubbing their noses in it.”
Parker made quotation marks with her fingers as she spoke.
“They’ve never attended a match or been there
for any of us since I was sixteen. The gulf between us is
so big now that it won’t ever be crossed, and at this
point I don’t think any one of us wants to.”
“Well those two ladies
did a wonderful job with you then,” said Emily pointing
to the picture she had admired before. With that the smile
returned to Parker’s face and Emily noticed that her
hand was still on the tall woman’s arm. “You
mentioned something about eating?”
Parker looked down at Emily
and laughed. The night before Emily had eaten twice what
she had and had been eyeing the piece of fish Parker had
left on her plate. Only after the second piece of cheesecake
Parker had brought out for dessert did she looked satisfied.
“I did indeed, but you are going to have to wait until
I make one stop.” There was a pout on Emily’s
face for that and Parker almost laughed again. The woman
before her was a little older than she was, but looking
at her in the sundress she had put on, they looked the same
age.
“Can’t it wait?”
“No my book dealer found
a first edition “Confederacy of Dunces” and
I want to go and pick it up. If you’re patient with
me, I promise to make it worth your while.” Parker
held her hand out in invitation and gave Emily a pout of
her own.
“You are an enigma,
Parker King. I would have thought that jocks only read sports
magazines and watched ESPN on television.” Emily took
the hand that was being offered to her hoping her palms
weren’t sweating. She was a little nervous being here
with Parker having Gail so close to them. Emily was sure
Gail would have found the note by now and started her search
for her. Her one wish was that her soon to be ex-lover would
get help and get interested in someone else before they
ran across each other again. For Emily it was over, she
wasn’t willing to be Gail’s support system and
excuse maker anymore.
“I only read sports
magazines when I’m on the cover, and ESPN when they
are showing highlights of me.” Parker said it as serious
as she could pull off wanting to make Emily smile.
“Ah, the Parker King
I know and love.” The last part came out before she
could sensor it and the smile on Parker’s face matched
the blush on Emily’s.
Parker squeezed her hand letting
the comment slide without further embarrassing her. “The
truth is I read more books than sports magazines and I only
watch television on occasion. That doesn’t fit the
tabloid image of me, but then again I never have been one
to conform to what other people want to define me as.”
Emily followed Parker to the
back of the house as the tennis player gently pulled her
toward the door of the garage. “And what about what
all those tabloids say about your nights of wine, women
and song?”
“Well there’s
no enigma there, Emily. I like women, I like to have a good
time and I don’t apologize for that. The day will
soon come when people will say ‘Parker King who’,
when my name is mentioned and that doesn’t bother
me as much as it has others who have come before me. I will
be replaced by some other bad boy or girl who will make
better press, and when that day comes the girls who are
calling me now for a night on the town will move on.”
Parker reached for her keys and opened the door to the garage.
Emily noticed there was a black Mercedes parked next to
the SUV she had seen Parker in before. With a quick press
of a button the lights on the car flashed once and the doors
unlocked.
“And when they do, what
will you do?”
“When they do, I will
live my life pretty much the way I do now. I play tennis,
I read books and I teach my old dog some new tricks. I know
that the way we met hasn’t made the best impression
with you, but I’m not all that bad. At least I don’t
think so. Would it surprise you to know that no woman that
you have ever read about in connection to me has ever stepped
foot in my house? Hell they don’t even know where
my house is. You do realize I’m only twenty-two, hardly
enough time to have earned the reputation that I’ve
been saddled with.” Parker opened the car door for
Emily and helped her into the passenger seat. Emily smiled
as she watched Parker cross in front of the car thinking
about what she had just said.
“Why am I here then?”
She looked at the chiseled profile next to her and put her
hand on Parker’s arm. Parker was quiet for so long
that Emily didn’t think she would answer, or was trying
to find her answer written on the wall of gardening equipment
hanging in front of the car.
“You looked like you
could use a safe haven, and this is what this house is to
me. It’s not completely secluded but it’s close
enough. Tomorrow you will move on and I may never get to
see you again if that’s what you want, so I guess
I wanted to spend just the one night with you. It sounds
cliché, my dear Emily, but there is something about
you that I find, well I don’t know what I find about
it but it makes me want to know more about you. So tonight
I will buy a book, take you to dinner then drop you off
at your bedroom door and wish you good night. Tomorrow I
will drive you to the airport and hope that I have made
your bad time a little easier for you.” When she finished,
Parker pressed the garage door opener and started the car.
Before she pulled out after putting the car in gear she
looked toward Emily and added, “I did forget one thing.”
“What’s that?”
“I forgot to tell you
how beautiful you look tonight.” Emily self-consciously
smoothed down the sundress she had put on. The bright yellow
cotton garment had thin straps holding it up and looked
good with her hair and the sun she had gotten. Emily hadn’t
been fishing for compliments, but had been a little disappointed
when Parker hadn’t said anything. This is not a
date, Em, why would she say anything? Emily smiled even though she was mentally chastising
herself. The only thing she hadn’t planned on was
wearing a light sweater over the dress, but when she had
gotten out of the shower the bruise that was a perfect imprint
of Gail’s fingers was visible on her arm. A reminder
of just how out of control Gail had gotten.
“Thanks.” When
Parker put the car in drive and pulled out onto the highway
Emily took back possession of Parker’s hand. If it
was only going to be one night she was going to make the
most of it. She didn’t feel guilty about wanting to
be happy, no matter if it was only for a few hours.
“Emily, I want you to
meet Barnaby Philpot Perry.” Parker stood behind Emily
with her hand on the small of her back as she made the introduction.
Bending down a little she whispered, “And yes, that’s
his real name.”
The older gentleman with a
full white beard and almost black eyes came from behind
the counter and took Emily’s hand into his and kissed
it. “Parker, you’ve been holding out on me,
this creature is simply divine.”
“Thank you, Barnaby,
we just met, knows all about me and still agreed to go out
with me. I just ran by to pick up my book and take the divine
creature out to dinner.” Emily looked around the store
admiring the stacks of well cared for antique and collectible
books while Parker talked to the seemingly eccentric old
guy.
“You have a lovely place
here, Mr. Perry,” Emily added trying to get the conversation
off of her.
“Thank you, my dear,
but as lovely as you think this is you can’t compare
it to the library my friend here as in her home. It makes
me happy to know that every time she takes one of my babies
away from me, they are going to live in that wonderful room.
I predict that for years to come they will talk more of
the King collection than they will of that silly game she
plays.” Barnaby handed Parker her book and gave Emily
a small parcel as well. Emily was about to protest when
Parker shook her head from behind the storeowner.
“Are you holding out
on me, Parker, the King collection?” asked Emily getting
Barnaby to turn around and shoot a mock glare at Parker.
“For shame, Parker,
that is the best room of the house and you didn’t
show it to her?” The creases around his eyes told
her that he was kidding with her. Barnaby looked forward
to Parker’s return from her travels knowing that it
wouldn’t be long before she either dropped in or called
him for something new.
The widower had met the tennis
player two years prior when she wandered into his shop one
day looking for new reading material. It amazed him that
a young person still read the classics and enjoyed sitting
with him and talking about them. When she bought the house,
Parker had transformed one of the rooms into a library with
comfortable chairs and a multitude of oak shelving. They
had spent a great deal of afternoons after her practices
just sitting across from each other reading a book. For
Barnaby it was a treat in that since his wife had died he
was left with no family, and Parker never made him feel
like she was just humoring an old man.
“A mistake I’ll
correct when we get home, Barnaby. Now be good and call
me this week for lunch. Oh and before I forget, I brought
you something.” Parker stepped out to the car to get
a book she had gotten for him in England.
“She is a lovely girl,
Parker is,” said Barnaby. He was talking to Emily
but looking at Parker get something from the back seat.
“Yes she is. I’ve
only just met her but I can see that there is more to her
than most people would guess. She seems to be a good friend
to people she cares about.” Emily was also looking
at the bright young woman now walking back toward the storefront.
“You would consider
yourself lucky to have her call you her friend, Emily.”
The bells over the door chimed and the old man put his hands
out for his gift. “What did you bring me?”
“It’s not in the
greatest shape, but you will forgive that when you see the
print date. Enjoy it and don’t stay up all night trying
to get through it.” Parker handed over the leather
bound edition of Shakespeare sonnets she had gone looking
for during her off time at the tournament. Shakespeare was
one of Barnaby’s all time favorites and had one of
the biggest collections of his writings she had ever seen.
He looked at the book and just wrapped Parker in a hug.
The two women said their goodbyes
and got back in the car for the drive into Tampa for dinner.
Parker had put both of the books they had left with in the
backseat after she had gotten Emily back in the car then
waved to Barnaby who was standing in the window with his
book under his arm.
“That was so sweet of
you to do that for him.” Emily took Parker’s
free hand back into hers as soon as they were back on the
highway. She was glad that Parker wasn’t one of those
people that disliked their personal space invaded.
“I haven’t gone
to college yet, so I consider Barnaby my professor of life.
He likes to find stuff for me to read and then talks to
me about it. His wife died about four years ago and the
big bookstores took a chunk of his business, but he perseveres
through it all.” Parker looked at her for a moment
before turning her attention back to the road. Emily was
starting to regret that she was leaving in the morning.
There was so much more that she wanted to know about Parker
King.
“Will you show me Barnaby’s
favorite room?” Emily turned her body without letting
go of the big hand so that she was resting her back on the
door giving her a better angle of Parker’s profile.
Without looking at her Parker smiled, nodded her head and
squeezed her fingers, they didn’t feel the need to
talk about anything else for the rest of the drive.
The restaurant Parker picked
was an Italian place with romantic lighting, a great view
and even better food. The young woman that showed them to
their table was the daughter of the owner and had met Parker
on a few previous occasions. When Emily arched her brow
at the friendly greeting the tall woman got, Parker just
laughed. This must be the big workup to getting me softened
up for later on tonight,
was the one thought in her head when she realized Parker
had eaten there before. Because, baby, you don’t
eat in places like this by yourself.
“How are Gary and Nick?”
asked the hostess.
“They are fine, I’ll
tell them you said hello.”
“They’re not joining
you tonight?”
“No it will just be
Ms. Parish and myself this evening, Francesca. How about
a bottle of Chianti while we decide on what to eat?”
The young woman turned and headed for the wine racks along
the back wall looking for the wine Parker liked.
“I thought…”
Emily started not knowing how to finish her sentence. Parker
looked at the dinner specials listed in the menu not looking
up when Emily broke the silence left when Francesca walked
away.
“I know what you thought.
Candles, romantic music, wine and an ocean view add up to
having to sleep with me later. I come here sometimes when
I’m home with Nick and Gary, and trust me I’m
not interested in sleeping with either of them. Francesca’s
father makes a great sauce and even better veal dishes that
I thought you might like, but if you prefer we could go
someplace, I don’t know, better lit?” Before
Emily could say anything Francesca came back to the table
with the bottle Parker had ordered and two glasses. She
poured a little into Parker’s glass waiting for her
to approve of it before pouring some into Emily’s
glass.
“I’m sorry, Parker.”
“You don’t have
anything to be sorry for, Captain. In a way you are right,
I’m that person all your girlfriends warn you to stay
away from. But I promised you I’d behave and I intend
to.” Parker held up her glass and waited for Emily
to do the same. She leaned forward to tap her glass with
the blonde’s and recited a verse from her favorite
poem. “I shall be telling this with a sigh somewhere
ages and ages hence: Two roads diverged in a wood, and I
– I took the one less traveled by, and that has made
all the difference.”
“Robert Frost, The Road
Not Taken,” whispered Emily. She took a sip of the
wine and enjoyed the warm feeling it gave her when it slid
down her throat. “You could turn a girl’s head
with such romance, Parker. Somewhere ages and ages hence
there will be a woman that will have loved her life because
she got to share it with you.” She lifted her glass
in salute again and swore that nothing else that evening
would bother her about Parker’s much written about
exploits. Spending time with the tennis player would help
her to learn more about the person she was than from reading
about her in The Enquirer.
The dinner lasted three hours
by the time they had made it through the various courses,
dessert and after dinner drinks. They kept the conversation
light and the other patrons looked their way often as they
laughed at a variety of things. It was just the type of
evening Emily had looked forward to on her vacation, only
she never imagined it would be shared with Parker King.
Her idea of the perfect ending would have been a walk on
the beach but a walk through Parker’s vast collection
of rare books was good enough.
Slipping out of her shoes
Emily made one request. “Read me your favorite thing
in here.”
Parker walked to the other
side of the room climbed the rolling latter to the top shelf
and pulled down a book. She put it on the coffee table as
she sat back to take her own shoes off loving the sound
of Emily’s laughter when she saw the title. “
War and Peace? You do realize I’m leaving tomorrow
don’t you?”
“I just wanted to see
if you were still awake after those two and a half desserts
you ate.” She ducked the small pillow Emily tossed
at her in mock anger then got up to pull down another book.
Two roads diverged in a
yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel
both
And be one traveler, long
I stood
And looked down one as
far as I could
To where it bent in the
undergrowth;
Then took the other, just
as fair,
And having perhaps the
better claim,
Because it was grassy and
wanted wear;
Though as for that, the
passing there
Had worn them really about
the same,
And both that morning equally
lay
In leaves no step had trodden
black.
Oh, I kept the first for
another day!
Yet knowing how way leads
to way,
I doubted if I should ever
come back.
I shall be telling this
with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages
hence:
Two roads diverged in a
wood, and I-
I took the one less traveled
by,
And that has made all the
difference.
Parker read all of the verses
of the Robert Frost poem she had quoted at dinner. When
she was finished, Parker looked up to see Emily relaxed
back into the chair with her eyes closed.
“Thank you for today.
It was the most fun I’ve had in forever, and I’m
just sorry that it has to end so soon.” Emily said
her peace without opening her eyes just enjoying the space
Barnaby had talked so fondly of. When she opened them Emily
accepted both Parker’s hand to help her up and her
invitation to walk her to the door of the room she was staying
in.
Parker handed Emily her sandals
and smiled, “Good night, Emily, I hope you have good
dreams.” Parker kissed her softly on the lips then
turned and headed toward the master suite. Emily closed
her door and leaned against it bringing her fingertips up
to her lips. It wasn’t the type of kiss you get from
your lover or even a date, but it had left her tingling
just the same.
“Good night, Parker,
and I think that’s going to be impossible now.”
