Sam came to Kezia’s front door again on Friday when he arrived to take her to dinner. He was wearing black slacks, and a black shirt with neither tie nor jacket. He was freshly shaven and looked like he had just stepped out of the shower. He looked like a proper date come to pick her up, which made her smile. She was wearing a short black summer dress, which showed her small waist and slim body. Her hair was in a neat blonde bun. They made a handsome couple as they left the building, and the doorman acknowledged them both. Sam had a driver waiting outside in a dark blue SUV, and they hopped in. They weren’t going far, but the car gave them protection from prying eyes and paparazzi. She was suddenly reminded that he was a major star and that people recognized him no matter how discreet and unassuming he was. She had even noticed it the night of the attack, at Hudson Yards. People had recognized him and then went back to what they were doing in the emergency, but in normal life, there were times when fans pursued him. He did the best he could to stay below the radar, but it was impossible to avoid having people recognize him all the time. He was too big a star for that.
They stopped at a restaurant they’d never been to before but had heard about. Felicity had mentioned it to her. The food was Italian. It had a pretty garden, and the atmosphere was friendly, chic, and informal. The head waiter greeted Sam warmly and led them to a secluded table in the garden. It felt like being in someone’s home in Italy, and when the food came, everything was fresh and delicious. It was nice being outdoors on a warm night, and not thinking about what had happened recently in New York. People had to heal from the trauma of what they had been through, and it would take time. Many were still not going out, and the restaurant wasn’t crowded that night. For most, it took weeks to get a reservation there, but not for Sam. The restaurant was always full. They didn’t fawn over Sam, as some places did, which always made him so uncomfortable he never went back. They were respectful and excited he was there. He liked to go unnoticed in the crowd, and he led a very private life.
Kezia commented on it at dinner, and he said he had never liked that aspect of stardom, of being conspicuous and on show all the time, with no private life.
“It was even harder when Audrey was alive. Everyone knew her, and she was notoriously kind to everyone who asked for an autograph. People wanted their photographs taken with her, and we’d get trapped for hours. My son hated it, so we always went to very remote places on vacation with him. We took him to Africa, which is how I knew the area where Kate just went. I made a movie there once. We went to Kruger National Park too. It’s a beautiful part of the world. She said she’s writing about it now.” Kezia was startled that he knew that and she didn’t. She was afraid to ask Kate about what she was writing. She didn’t want her to think she was prying. Kate had always treated her writing as her private world.
“I think the trip was good for her,” Kezia said quietly. “She seems happier since she came back. I thought it was from meeting her father. It seems to have freed her of her illusions about him, and then she and Jack got engaged as soon as she got home. I can’t believe that both girls are getting married. By the way, Felicity moved out to the house she rented in Southampton the night after she came to dinner. Work is slow for her in the summer, especially in August. She asked me to come out for the day tomorrow, and she wanted me to invite you if you’d like to come.” He didn’t hesitate for a minute, and smiled immediately.
“I’d love it,” he said enthusiastically, and then he cautiously asked her a question. “Could I be very rude, and ask if my son could come too? I’d love him to meet Felicity, although unfortunately I think he’d bring his girlfriend. Is that too much to impose on her? I’m happy to come alone if she’d prefer.” He felt comfortable enough with Kezia to ask her, but he really wanted his son to meet her girls. He hadn’t mentioned Kezia yet. It was very new. They had only recently met, and everyone in the city had been engrossed by the terrorist attack, so other subjects had fallen by the wayside in the past few weeks.
“Kate and Jack are coming out too. It would be fun for all of them to meet. I’ll ask her,” Kezia said, and took her phone out of her bag and wrote a rapid text message. The response was instantaneous from Felicity.
“Of course, Mom. Tell him to bring them. Sounds like fun.” Kezia relayed the message to Sam, and he in turn texted his son, John, who also accepted with pleasure for himself and Caroline. He had told John that friends of his had invited him and his son for a day in the Hamptons. John told his father by text that he’d give him a ride if he wanted.
“Do you want to ride with us?” Sam offered Kezia.
“I’d love to, but I already told Kate I’d ride with them.” She didn’t say it, but she would have preferred to ride with Sam and his son and girlfriend than to listen to Jack pontificate for two hours about the latest writing workshop he wanted to attend or had been to, or the short story he was working on.
“It’s very nice of Felicity to have all of us,” Sam said. “I really enjoyed talking to her, and I’m very pleased she liked the book that I mentioned so much. It validates my opinion, and she’s a woman of a whole other generation. Audrey used to be my sounding board,” he said, looking wistful for a minute. “You lose so much when you lose a person, so many things you took for granted. It’s not easy to replace that special mix that each person brings to your life. I have to admit, I’ve never tried. I wouldn’t even know how to start.”
“I felt that way about Andrew too,” Kezia said gently. “I just filled the void with helping to keep his firm alive, because it meant so much to him. But you can’t replace a person with a company. I guess eventually you just learn to live without what you had, like an arm or a leg or something. Moving to New York was the right thing to do. It’s put a huge shot of energy back in my life.”
“And we gave you a hell of a welcome when you arrived. Blew up three major buildings in a terrorist attack,” he said.
“That’s more than I bargained for,” she said ruefully with a wry smile, “but the city seems to be healing from its wounds with incredible determination.”
“New York is amazing that way. New Yorkers have tremendous resilience. They survived 9/11 and Hurricane Sandy, they bounce back from all kinds of hardships, and they stick together bravely when it matters, like they did this time. I’m proud of this city.”
“I’m glad I moved here. And it’s nice being close to my girls. I’m looking forward to meeting John.” Sam had mentioned that he was in investments, so he’d have the finance world in common with Blake. Kate and Jack would hold up the intellectual side of the group, although Kate had broader interests than Jack and he talked about himself most of the time, and no one listened.
Sam and Kate were among the last to leave the restaurant. The driver took them home, and Kezia invited him for a drink on the terrace. She gave him the address of Felicity’s house and suggested they get there by noon, before lunch. She was planning to get there earlier with Kate so they’d have some girl time before the guests arrived. Blake usually played tennis or golf on Saturday mornings, and Jack could take a walk on the beach. The three women would be more than he could cope with.
They chatted for a little while on the terrace, which felt familiar to them now. It was their private meeting place, and a moment of respite for both of them, and companionship, which neither of them had. They had their children, and friends, but Kezia realized that she hadn’t had a confidant since Andrew died, and Sam hadn’t either since he had lost Audrey. It was nice to have that now, even in a new friend. He made her laugh with his somewhat acerbic satirical comments about Hollywood.
Sam left earlier than usual since they were getting up early the next day and would see each other at the beach.
He kissed her chastely on the cheek when he left, and then sent her a text when she was in bed.
“Sorry if I folded early, need my beauty sleep for the beach tomorrow. And my wits about me for your daughters.” Beauty was one thing he didn’t need to worry about. He was a very handsome man. He didn’t take advantage of it, but he just was. He had the kind of effortless, healthy good looks that would last forever. He was blessed, but he had a fine mind as well, which Kezia liked even better. Andrew had had a brilliant mind and good looks too.
She texted him back, “Thank you for dinner. Glad you’re coming to the beach tomorrow.” Their exchanges had a touch of schoolyard flirtation to them, which she thought was sweet. He wasn’t some wild Hollywood seducer, which would have scared her off immediately. He had been a happily married man for thirty-two years, with a family, which made a big difference. She wouldn’t have asked him, but she was sure he’d been faithful to his wife, which was almost unheard of in Hollywood. She had been faithful to Andrew, and genuinely loved him. But he had been gone for five years now, and a little harmless flirtation didn’t feel like an infidelity. It added a dash of hope and youth to her life, even though she was turning sixty in two months, which she preferred not to think about.
She woke up early the next morning to a brilliantly sunny day, got up and showered, read The New York Times online with a cup of coffee, and dressed for the beach in white jeans and a pink shirt and pink Chanel ballerinas. She was downstairs promptly at nine when Kate and Jack picked her up in their van, and Kezia got into the back seat.
“Good morning, everyone,” she said cheerfully as they took off toward the Long Island Expressway on the way to Southampton. Kate commented that she’d been up late writing, and they chatted as Jack drove, lost in his own thoughts.
“Is she having guests or is it just us?” Kate asked her mother.
“She invited Sam Stewart and his son,” Kezia said casually, and Kate raised an eyebrow, teasing her mother.
“Should I read anything into that, or are you just being neighborly?” Kate questioned her mother.
“Felicity is just being friendly, inviting them. I hope his son is nice. He’s bringing his girlfriend.”
“We can take a long walk on the beach if we don’t like them,” Kate said. Without intending to, Kezia glanced at her daughter’s left hand, and there was still no ring on it. Jack hadn’t given her an engagement ring yet. She looked away quickly, so Kate wouldn’t notice. He obviously couldn’t afford one, but hadn’t given her a sentimental substitute either. Felicity’s would have been hard for most people to compete with. As usual, Felicity got the big reward, and Kate got none. Kezia hoped she didn’t mind.
They chatted most of the way to Southampton, and Kate told her more about their Africa trip. The territory around the hospital sounded really interesting and primitive. Kate had loved it, although she couldn’t imagine going there again, even to see her father. She had gone to do what she needed, and seemed to have finally closed that chapter. Although the visit hadn’t been unpleasant, Kezia could gather it hadn’t been warm either. Reed’s life was very different from hers.
As Kezia had hoped, they got to Felicity’s rented house just after eleven. It was a big rambling New England–style house, freshly painted white, very handsomely remodeled, with dark green shutters, right on the beach. The cars were in the driveway: Blake’s silver Ferrari and Felicity’s red Mercedes. Kate’s suburban-looking van seemed like a soccer mom car compared to her sister’s jazzy sports car, but the difference in their age accounted for it too.
Felicity came out of the house as soon as they drove up. She was wearing very short pink shorts, white Chanel sandals, and a pink T-shirt, and Blake was wearing tennis clothes and was about to leave. He kissed Felicity before he did, kissed Kate and their mother hello, waved at Jack, got in his car with his racket, and drove off a minute later. Felicity had coffee waiting for them, and Jack grabbed a copy of The New York Times and headed for the back deck with a view of the ocean, while the three women sat in the kitchen. Both sisters were in a good mood, and Kezia enjoyed being with them, especially when there were no tensions between them. Engagement seemed to suit them both.
They were still talking and laughing when they heard a car in the driveway. They looked out the window and saw three very attractive people get out of an Escalade: Sam, John, who was the image of his father, twenty-four years younger, and a very pretty young woman with dark hair in a big fashionable straw hat, with huge dark glasses, a beige knit beach dress, and platform sandals Kezia recognized as Dior. She was dressed more for the south of France than the Hamptons, or for a more elegant gathering. Kate and Kezia exchanged a look when they saw her, and Felicity went out to greet them. They all saw John stare at her in amazement. He recognized her and hadn’t realized they were spending the day with a supermodel. His girlfriend’s eyes were riveted to the rock on Felicity’s hand, which Felicity was oblivious to. She hugged Sam, smiled broadly at John, who stammered and felt tongue-tied at how beautiful she was, and introduced herself warmly to his girlfriend, Caroline, as Kate and Kezia came out to join them. Sam gave Kezia a hug and she smiled at him. The dynamics were interesting, and he was clearly enjoying them as he grinned at her. Felicity led them all out to the back deck, where Jack had fallen asleep with the newspaper in his hand. Kate nudged him gently and he revived with a start, and stood up to greet the other guests and introduce himself. He looked very impressed by Caroline, who was observing all the Hobson women closely. John had told her it would be casual, but she hadn’t believed him. Even though she was attractive, she couldn’t compete with Felicity’s striking looks. No one could. The others were used to her. And Felicity was so innocent and modest, she never thought she was beautiful and believed she had a funny nose. She always said it was too small. Every inch of her was gorgeous.
Kate helped her bring mugs of coffee out for everyone, as Caroline glued herself to John, to distract him from Felicity, which wasn’t working. Jack told Caroline how chic she looked, and Sam leaned against the deck fencing and smiled at Kezia. “I didn’t warn them about Felicity,” he said to Kezia in a soft voice. “I guess I should have. She takes your breath away when you first see her. She is definitely a knockout. Kate’s beautiful, but in a much more subtle way.”
“It’s Felicity’s job now. Men reacted to her even when she was a child. She doesn’t care. She doesn’t think about her looks, except when she’s working.” Felicity had masses of blonde hair that cascaded down her back, and John looked like he wanted to run his hands through it. He was trying to regain his composure as they all sat on the deck. Blake showed up a little while later, was happy to see Sam, and shook hands with John. He greeted Caroline. Jack was trying to monopolize her, and John didn’t seem to care. As soon as he saw Blake put his arm around his fiancée and kiss her, normal focus returned to John’s eyes and he got the picture.
“Did you miss me?” Blake said to her, holding her close.
“Horrendously. I cried the whole time you were gone,” Felicity said, and kissed him back, while the others smiled and John looked resigned. He was sitting near Kate, who chatted with him, and they wound up talking about the night of the attack, since John said he lived fairly close to the World Trade Center but had been away for the weekend.
“I was in Africa,” Kate said, and he asked where, and they discovered that he had been within a few miles of where she’d stayed at the hospital, and they talked about Africa after that, and the trip he’d taken there with his parents.
The group mixed and talked until lunchtime. They had sandwiches Felicity had bought at a fancy deli that morning, a big salad she’d made, potato chips, and assorted trimmings. She didn’t waste time in the kitchen. Caroline was talking about her job at Vogue, as an assistant beauty editor, and she was waiting for a job in editorial. She was older than Felicity, who listened attentively. Caroline said she’d been on one of Felicity’s cover shoots once, on a farm in Upstate New York, and Kezia could tell that Felicity didn’t remember it, but pretended she did, to be polite.
Caroline was pretty, although not remarkable, and a fairly big presence for someone who didn’t really have that much to offer, other than her looks, and the fact that she was very chic. No one in the group seemed to care, and John didn’t either. Observing all of them, Kezia didn’t have the feeling that John was in love with Caroline. She had more the vibe of a date than a woman he was in love with. Caroline was very interested in the fact that both sisters were engaged.
“Is Vogue covering your wedding?” she asked Felicity, who looked blank at the question.
“I don’t know, I haven’t thought about it. They’ll probably want to, but I don’t know if we would,” she said, and changed the subject. Kate said they hadn’t chosen their date yet, to deflect from the subject.
After lunch, Jack suggested a walk on the beach and somehow roped Caroline into walking with him. Blake and Felicity said they were going to stay at the house to tidy up, though Kate suspected they had something else in mind, and she wound up walking with John since Jack and Caroline had gone ahead. Sam and Kezia brought up the rear. He smiled at her, and she laughed.
“They’re fun to watch, aren’t they? It’s complicated being young,” Sam commented. “Poor Caroline won’t recover from today in a hurry. John couldn’t keep his eyes off Felicity, who is obviously madly in love with her future husband, and Caroline got stuck with Kate’s rather pedantic fiancé. I may be wrong, but I have this weird feeling that John and Kate would get along, if he can get his mind off the unobtainable younger sister,” he said, enjoying all of it.
“Kate’s older than he is, if that matters,” Kezia said, amused at his analysis.
“Not by much,” Sam persisted. “How old is she again?”
“Thirty-seven.”
“They’re only four years apart.”
“Is he serious about Caroline?” Kezia asked. She liked John, he seemed like a straight shooter and a nice man, like his father. Honest, open and kind, as well as bright and successful.
“I think she has scared him off. She’s hell-bent on marriage, and he’s not. She’s twenty-nine, the age at which some women start to panic if they don’t have a lot going for them, and she doesn’t. She’s very ambitious, which usually turns him off. She wants to move in with him and has been pushing for it since they met. And he doesn’t want to. Felicity’s engagement ring must be driving her insane. Felicity has everything she wants. A good-looking, successful guy with a lot of money, a fancy car, and some very visible bling.”
“John isn’t exactly a slouch either. He’s a prize too,” she defended him, and Sam smiled. That pleased him. His son was all-important to him, and always had been. He only had the one child.
“He’s not in Blake’s leagues yet. He may be someday, but not yet.” Blake was only six years older than John, and earned more money with a job at Goldman Sachs, but John was doing well too, for his age, at a small, ambitious, younger investment firm.
As they walked along, Kate was telling John about the book she was writing, and about the countless writing workshops she’d been to, how weird the people were who went to them, and that they had nearly scared her off writing forever. But she seemed very confident about what she was writing now. He liked her. She was almost as pretty as her sister, but in a quieter way, and she was smart and had a wry sense of humor.
“Your girlfriend seems to have a serious interest in weddings,” she said to him, teasing him, and he laughed.
“Yeah, she put the Tiffany engagement ring catalogue in my briefcase two weeks before Valentine’s Day. She’s not subtle.”
“What did you get her?” Kate liked him. He was funny and good company.
“A box of chocolates, and heart-shaped gold earrings, from Tiffany of course. I can take a hint as well as the next guy. Speaking of which, what’s happening between your mother and my father, if you don’t mind my asking? I think I missed a chapter here. The first I heard of her was today, on the way out here.”
Kate looked amused. “They met the night of the terrorist attack. They’re next-door neighbors. She just bought the other penthouse and moved here from San Francisco a week before the attack. And they’re friends. It’s pretty new.” She told him all that she knew herself.
“He likes her, I can tell,” John said.
“She likes him too. They’re kind of cute. They’re like two kids circling each other.”
“He hasn’t had a girlfriend since my mom died two years ago,” John said. “He had a hard time getting over it.”
“My father died five years ago. Mom just sold his business, so she felt free to move. I don’t think she’s dated seriously since he died. They had a great marriage.”
“My parents did too. It sucks. They married really young, and look at all of us, we’re all still single. I’m thirty-three, I don’t know how old you are, but I don’t even want to get married for years, in spite of Caroline’s ambitions. They won’t get her far with me. How old’s your sister?”
“Twenty-three. She’s too young to get married,” Kate said.
“They’ll probably be happy as hell, have five kids, and make it work. I think early marriages work best. By the time you’re in your thirties, you have opinions, boundaries, a million preconceived ideas, and a trail of bad relationships tied to your tail like a string of tin cans, which makes it all harder.”
“I never wanted to get married,” Kate admitted, which seemed odd to tell him when they had only just met, but she felt like she knew him. “I had all those bad relationships you just mentioned, and I’ve been dating Jack for four years, and lived with him for three of them, and all of a sudden, it just seemed like we needed progress, or something different, or we’d die of boredom the way we were.”
“I’m not sure that marriage is the antidote to boredom. Isn’t that the cause of most of it?” he said, and she laughed.
“I’ll let you know.”
“When are you getting married?”
“We haven’t set the date yet.”
“Oh, that’s a bad sign,” he said, shaking his head, and Kate grinned as he picked up her left hand and pointed at it. “Where’s the ring?”
“We haven’t gotten around to it,” she said, chuckling. If her mother had said the same things, she would have been furious.
“That’s another bad sign. Do I sense cold feet here? His or yours?” John persisted.
“Previously mine. Maybe now his. Maybe both. I just felt that we needed some progress, so I prodded him a little. All of a sudden I could see myself calling him my boyfriend at my ninetieth birthday party. That would be embarrassing.”
“Well, keep me posted on this. I want to hear about it when you get the ring and set the date. And keep me posted about my father too. He’s being very closemouthed about this.”
“I don’t think there’s a lot to tell at this point,” she said. “My mom is very discreet too.”
“I beg to differ, not about her discretion. They’ve known each other for a few weeks, and somebody masterminded a day at the beach so her kids and I could meet each other. Clever, huh?” Kate hadn’t thought of it that way.
“I think this was Felicity’s idea. She was just being friendly, and he wanted to bring you.”
“Then it was his master plan! My father’s a smart guy. If he wanted us to meet each other, he has something in mind.” He looked at Kate then. “I’m glad he did. Partners in crime here, to share information?” he asked her, and held out his little finger to hook hers, and she laughed like a kid and linked fingers with him.
“Pinky swear!” she said, and they couldn’t stop laughing, and then he raced her down the beach at full speed, and she almost beat him, but he won by a few inches and they collapsed on the sand, breathing hard. The others had turned back by then. “You cheated,” she accused him.
“I did not! I ran faster than you.”
“You got a head start!”
“Did not!” She took off running again and he followed her, and then they took a detour into the shallow waves. The cool ocean water felt good in the heat, after their run. They waded deeper into the water together and got out. Sam and Kezia were watching them from the beach, closer to the house.
“I think I’ll make you a bet,” Sam said with a broad grin. “I’m going to put my money on my boy to get that dead bore out of your hair and hers forever. I give him two months to do it, maybe even by Labor Day, for a hundred dollars.” Kezia was grinning broadly.
“How do I bet if I want you to be right?”
“You just trust me. He’s a smart kid. He knows a quality woman when he sees one. And I think Miss Greedy’s days are numbered.”
“Will she take the dead bore with her?”
Sam turned to Kezia with a stern expression. “I like the occasional gentleman’s bet when the odds are in my favor. I’m not a magician.”
“Oh, sorry,” she said as he put an arm around her shoulders in the late afternoon sun while they watched their children run toward them at a slow steady pace side by side. They looked nice together.
“Labor Day, you’ll see.”
“I’ll take the bet,” she said. “I hope I lose, and will we dance at their wedding, mother of the bride, father of the groom, all that?”
“Of course. And long before that, if you like.” He took her hand, and they walked back to Felicity’s summer rental.
Blake and Felicity looked suspiciously happy and cuddly when the others returned.
Blake manned the barbecue that night, and Sam helped him. They had barbecued ribs and hamburgers, cheeseburgers for those who wanted them, with mountains of potato chips, and store-bought mashed potatoes and corn on the cob. It was delicious and they all had a good time together. They were old friends by the time the visitors left at eleven that evening. Kezia volunteered as the designated driver in Kate’s car, and Sam in John’s. He winked at her as they got into their cars. Felicity hugged them, and Blake had enjoyed the evening too. They were sorry to see them all leave, and they promised to do it again soon. Caroline was absolutely glowing and could already see herself as part of the family, sure that the day had been a victory for her.
John hugged Kate before he got in his car and pointed to her ring finger again with a meaningful look, and she laughed. They were like brother and sister. She had always wanted a brother growing up.
Blake and Felicity waved as the two cars drove away, and a few minutes later, Kezia said to her passengers, “I had a really great day.” Neither of them answered and she turned to look at them. They were both sound asleep. The wine Blake had served was exceptionally good. Kezia smiled, thinking of her walk on the beach with Sam, and how warm and pleasant it was being with him. She turned on the radio. She drove Kate and Jack all the way home, woke them up and dropped them off, parked the car for them, and then took a cab home.
She had just put on her nightgown and was brushing her teeth when she got a text from Sam. “Labor Day!” it said, and she laughed out loud, and then another: “I had a fantastic day today.” She dried her hands to answer him, “Me too.”
“Talk to you tomorrow,” he wrote back, and she got into bed with the warm glow of a beautiful day well spent with her daughters and their friends, and Sam. It was the best day she’d had in years.