have any casual clothes with him, he decided to walk up to F Street, where he bought two pairs of jeans, half a dozen T-shirts and a pair of Reeboks. All he wanted was a chance to soak up some sun, be himself with his friends and leave the ambassador behind. After checking in with his father and younger brother, he showered and crawled into bed for a nap.
He awakened around six-thirty and called his grandmother, whom he had spoken to while en route to the hotel. “Hi, Nana. How about going out to dinner with me tonight?’
“As long as you feed me Maryland crab cakes. I love Italian and French food, but you know I love my crab cakes.”
“You’re on. I’ll be there in an hour.”
His office had advised him not to check out, but to remain in the hotel until he could move into his condo and his belongings had arrived from Vilnius. So, when Judson arrived on Friday afternoon, Scott was leaning against the reservation desk waiting for him.
“Lord, man, you’re a sight for sore eyes,” Scott said as he and Judson greeted each other with a warm embrace. “Marriage agrees with you, buddy.”
“You bet it does. Wait ’til you get to know my cousins and their families.”
“I liked what I’ve seen of them already. How is Heather dealing with such a big family?”
“You’ll see. Neither of us hangs around the office.”
“If you’d told me otherwise, I would have thought something was wrong with your marriage. You’ve only been married for, let’s see, eighteen months.”
“Best year and a half of my life. Let’s take the elevator down to the garage level.”
Judson drove his Mercedes out of the hotel garage onto Wisconsin Avenue, connected to Route 270 and headed for Frederick, Maryland. “We’re right in Eagle Park next to the Harrington estate, and that’s less than fifteen minutes from Frederick. Everybody’s expecting you. How’s Nana?”
“Great. We had dinner the night I got back.”
Half an hour later, Judson parked in front of a stately beige-colored brick house. The first-floor windows provided a glimpse of the cathedral ceilings and the elegant interior. “We told Russ what we wanted the house to look like,” Judson explained, “and he designed it to perfection. Drake and Telford did the rest. We’re so happy here.”
The door opened, and Heather greeted him with open arms. “I haven’t hugged a woman since I was here for your wedding eighteen months ago,” Scott said, enjoying Heather’s warm embrace.
“Just don’t get too comfortable there, buddy,” Judson told him.
The three of them went inside arm in arm. Once inside, a tall, good-looking woman in skin-tight jeans and a snug red T-shirt walked toward them. Heather grasped the woman’s arm. “Adelle Smith, this is Scott Galloway. Scott’s just completed a tour as ambassador to Lithuania. Scott, Adelle is one of my law associates.”
They greeted each other, although she seemed a bit more enthusiastic than Scott. “How do you do, Adelle?” he said, preferring not to say that he was delighted to meet her since he wasn’t so sure.
“I’m fine, Scott. Heather has told me so much about you. I couldn’t wait to meet such an impressive man.” Her smile bordered on an invitation, as he realized he was facing a woman who didn’t mind letting a man know that she liked what she saw.
He raised an eyebrow. “Heather, you never used to exaggerate. Does marriage do that to a person?”
“Of course not. I told her you’re like my big brother, and that I’m very protective of you. I also said you’re a super guy.”
Hmm. So he’d have to negotiate with Adelle for the remainder of the weekend, he thought. The problem was that, although she had the goods in all the right places, he did not like aggressive women who chose men on the basis of sex appeal. Besides, she’d made up her mind before she saw him.
Just play it cool, he said to himself. But how was he going to do that when he was sexually starved, and she’d let him know that nourishment was available?
“I’ll show you to your room, Scott,” Heather said, saving the day.
He followed her upstairs. “How far apart are these guest rooms, Heather, and does mine have a lock on the door?” Scott said.
She stopped at the top of the stairs, as her eyes widened and her jaw dropped. She stared at him, utterly speechless. Then she laughed so hard that she practically doubled over clutching her stomach. Scott slapped her on the back to help her recover.
“I’d forgotten how frank you can be,” she said.
“Don’t tell me I struck out.”
“I’m as hungry as an Alaskan wolf at the end of winter. But if I hook up with that one, I’ll never find what I really want.”
“What’s wrong with her?”
“A gentleman never says anything bad about a woman, no matter what the circumstances.”
“Chicken.”
She opened the door to the guest room. He tried the doorknob to make sure that it would lock, looked at Heather and winked.
“You were serious, weren’t you?” Heather said with a note of surprise in her voice.
He didn’t want her to misunderstand him. “Heather, that woman downstairs would take advantage of a drunken sailor. I’ll be down shortly.”
“Scott, please don’t be mad. I meant well,” she said, blinking rapidly, a subtle tic that appeared when she was nonplussed. “Honestly, I did. I’m remembering things about you now that I had forgotten during these past two years while you were away. You’re right. I definitely didn’t choose the right one.”
A grin spread across his face. It was so good to be back with his two dearest friends. “Knowing you, I’m sure you’ve got some more lined up. See you later.”
He let his gaze take in the decor of the room around him. He liked blue, and Heather had furnished the guest room in a light navy blue and rustic orange for a striking effect. He changed into black jeans and a red polo shirt, slipped on his new Reeboks and bounded down the wide, curved staircase. Russ Harrington was indeed a brilliant architect, Scott thought. He’d said as much to Judson.
“All three of them are good at what they do,” said Judson. “They have a tremendous reputation as builders, and Telford, the eldest, is only forty-one. The Harringtons are coming over with their wives after dinner. And the Harrington women have taken to Heather and made her one of their own.”
“So you’re glad you decided to live here?”
“Absolutely! My family is here. Scott, this is where I belong.”
“I’m glad for you, Judson. Say, I brought you guys something,” Scott said, handing Judson a box that contained half a dozen tins of Beluga caviar.
Judson looked at the contents of the box. “Get outta here, man. This stuff is precious.
