Love Me Tonight. Gwynne Forster

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СКАЧАТЬ is Judson Philips. How may I help you?”

      “Mr. Philips, my name is Cissy Henry, and I’m from Hagerstown. I think I may have some information for you.”

      He nearly choked on his food. “Are you referring to my ad in the Herald-Mail?”

      “Yes, sir. My daughter-in-law told me you were asking if anybody knew Beverly Moten. Well, I used to know her, but she left here well nigh thirty years ago. Her father was my brother.”

      He’d forgotten his lunch and was standing. “Do you mind if I come to see you and talk with you?”

      “No. I don’t mind a bit. Nobody’s interested in what we old people have to say. Where are you, and when do you want us to talk?”

      “I live in Baltimore, and I can be at your place tomorrow morning at about eleven. What’s your address?”

      She gave it to him. “I know you young folks are busy, so you come anytime you want to. I’ll be right here. I can fix us a real nice lunch, and we can talk. Judson Philips, you say your name is? You come on. I’ll be here.”

      “Thank you, Mrs. Henry. I’ll see you tomorrow morning.”

      “Well now, seems to me you ought to call me Aunt Cissy. Everybody else does.”

      His face broke into a smile. “Thank you, Aunt Cissy. I’m looking forward to meeting you. See you tomorrow.”

      Maybe he would finally know. He told himself that because the woman knew the Motens was not reason to think she knew the circumstances of his adoption. But he couldn’t help hoping. He’d needed to know so badly and for so long.

      Heather read the letter a third time. As she stared at the bold signature of the Secretary of State, she knew that her next move could determine her foreign service career. She was not going to Albania. In that post, a diplomat was no more than a special envoy, and everybody knew that. She needed to talk with someone about it, and she reasoned that it wouldn’t be fair to discuss it with Scott.

      She heard a knock on her door. “Come in.”

      “How’s it going?” Scott asked her. “I thought we had a lunch date. What happened?”

      What else had she forgotten while she digested the letter? She picked up the letter and handed it to him. “This was not what I expected, Scott.”

      He glanced over it. “You’re turning it down, of course.”

      “That’s what I had in mind. My problem is how to do it. I don’t want to shoot myself in the foot.”

      “You know, Pete is separating from his wife. He said a minute ago that he wants an overseas assignment, any assignment anywhere. He wants a change.”

      “Goodness! Is he still in love with her?”

      “Quite the contrary. They’ve been miserable for some time. Tell you what—if you want me to, I can drop a hint that he wants out of here, and you don’t want to leave. That job is not a promotion for you, and you could be stuck there for maybe four years, but at least two.”

      “You can drop that hint, and I’m going to tell the Secretary that although I’m due a promotion, this doesn’t seem to me to be the one. I’ve received perfect scores on all of my evaluations, so I’ll assume that by exercising my right of refusal, I haven’t adversely affected my career.”

      “Sounds good to me,” he said, “but be very careful of your choice of words. What did Judson say about this?”

      “I haven’t had a chance to tell him.”

      “Let’s go eat. I’m starving.”

      “Scott, do you mind if we cancel today? I don’t much feel like eating. I need to go someplace and blow off steam.”

      “Heather, this is your first disappointment here. Let me tell you that you’ll have to learn to take the lumps and still walk as if you just won a presidential election. By tomorrow, everybody will have heard about this. Half of the staff will think you got what you deserved. The other half will know you didn’t. But not one will ever say anything to that effect. Some people are ignorant, some are cowards, and the others just don’t give a damn.” Scott turned to the door. “See you later.”

      “I’d better do this before I lose my nerve.” She wrote the letter, read it once, printed it out, signed it and called for a messenger. It’s what I believe is right, and I’m going with it. I’ll take the consequences.

      She’d just begun to outline a plan designed to introduce self-help programs to women in sub-Saharan Africa when her cell phone rang.

      “Hello, sweetheart.” His deep velvet voice had the ability to comfort her. Somehow, hearing it made everything right. “I have the most wonderful news.”

      “You found something?”

      “No, but I found someone.” She listened to his tale about Cissy Henry. “That’s wonderful. Judson, I’m so happy for you. The pieces will all come together. I know they will. When are you going there?”

      “Tomorrow morning. If I thought you’d be free, I’d invite you to come with me.”

      “That probably wouldn’t be a good idea. She’ll speak less freely if another person is present. I have some news, too. I’ve been offered a post in Albania, and I just signed a letter turning it down. Well, not in precisely those words.”

      “Congratulations. And since you don’t want the post, congratulations for having the courage to turn it down. I’ll be anxious to see you when I get back from Hagerstown tomorrow, so can we have dinner together?”

      “Yes. Do you think you can come to dinner at my place? I’m a fair cook.”

      “I’d love that. What should I bring? Do you have wine?”

      “Yes, but bring whatever you like to drink. Seven o’clock.”

      “All right. I’m…I’m anxious to see you. I’ll have to work tonight. Otherwise, I’d suggest that we get together this evening.”

      “Call me and tell me good-night.”

      “I’ll do that. Bye for now.”

      “Bye.”

      Cissy Henry stood at her front door when Judson parked in front of her house, a white, green-shuttered bungalow with a well-manicured lawn. A profusion of seasonal flowers marked the property lines.

      He strode up the walk to the steps and stopped. “Come on up,” she said. “You must be Judson Philips ’cause don’t nobody around here dress up this good on a Saturday. How’d you do?”

      He shook hands with her. “I’m fine, ma’am. How are you? I can’t tell you how much I appreciate your agreeing to see me.” It surprised him that she seemed so youthful and fit. He indicated as much.

      “I’m eighty-four. All my life I ate right, never smoked or drank. Went to bed early, got up early and said my prayers every morning and every СКАЧАТЬ