was his top speed, Velma?” Telford asked.
“My lips are sealed. You two have the time of your lives.”
“We’ll do our best,” Alexis said.
“Thanks, brother, for everything. I’ll finish thanking you when we get back.”
Driving away from the airport, Russ found himself thinking of a way to end what, for him, had been a perfect day. “We’ve got about an hour and forty-minute drive ahead of us, Velma. Would you like to stop somewhere for some kind of beverage and a snack? I don’t drink anything alcoholic when I have to drive, but I could use some iced tea or a soft drink.”
“I’d love to stop,” she said. “Anyplace where this evening dress won’t look silly.”
He couldn’t help laughing. “No matter where we stop, your dress won’t look a bit sillier than this tux with mauve-colored accessories.”
She seemed disappointed, but she was good at bluffing, he saw, when she lifted her chin and said, “I remember you said you liked this gown I’m wearing. Well, it’s mauve, too.”
“I like it on you.”
She didn’t let him drop it. “It’s not more outlandish than the brilliant red or royal blue accessories that some men wear with formal dress. Besides, you look fantastic in that getup. I was practically ogling you when we were waiting for the bride to reach the altar.”
“Really? Thanks for the compliment.” He knew she’d stood there cataloging his assets until he caught her at it and looked her straight in the eye, but he didn’t think she’d be comfortable knowing he was aware of her uninhibited admiration.
“What do you say we stop at the first drive-in restaurant on Route 70? Give ’em something to talk about in there.”
“Fine with me.”
A groan escaped him when he saw the long line. “You have a seat somewhere,” she said. “I’ll get what you want, and we’ll be out of here in twenty minutes.”
He stared at her. “I’d like to know how you plan to manage that.”
“Have a seat and you’ll see.”
He took out his wallet and handed her a twenty-dollar bill. “I’d like a huge bottle of ginger ale and a blueberry muffin.” She saluted him, and he went to find a table, praying that he wouldn’t have to spring her from jail. In less than five minutes, she arrived at the table he chose holding her bouquet as if it were a baby, and followed by a busboy who carried their order. The busboy took the food off the tray and placed it on the table. Russ handed the man a five-dollar bill and thanked him.
“No problem, sir. Congratulations and much happiness.”
“What was he…?” He stared at Velma who was near convulsion with suppressed laughter. “How did you…?”
“I just went to the busboy and told him we were already late for the wedding. People heard me and it was like the opening of the Red Sea. They assumed I was the bride. The busboy ran behind the counter and collected what I wanted, took it to the cashier, I paid, and you know the rest. Here’s your change.”
When he could get his breath, he said, “Well, hell,” opened a bottle of ginger ale and was about to pour some in a glass for her when the humor of it struck him. He slumped in the chair and gave in to the laughter that rolled out of him. He knew that everybody in the restaurant was looking at them, but that seemed to make it all the funnier.
When they managed to control their laughter, he found her staring at him. “What is it? Did I get some blueberries on my teeth?”
“I never knew you to laugh like this. It is wonderful. Just…just wonderful.”
He sobered then. “Drake likes to call me ‘old sourpuss.’ Is that what you think of me?”
“That hadn’t occurred to me. In this context, I think of you as a serious-minded man who has a low tolerance for nonsense.” She lowered her head a little, and stole a glance at him. “Russ, I’ve been called a prankster, and I suppose you’d classify that as nonsense.”
“Most of it is nonsense, but if it’s witty, if it’s clever, that’s different—then it’s a challenge. However, that’s not an invitation for you to—”
She held up her right hand. “I know. I stand sufficiently warned. Still…” She let him wait for her next words, and he found himself anticipating them with heightened pleasure. “Uh…I can’t imagine myself not going to great lengths, if necessary, to make you laugh.”
“Yeah. A prankster would do that.” He pondered her words, but didn’t wonder why she enjoyed seeing him laugh. As frank as he was finding her to be, she’d probably tell him without any prompting.
Nonetheless, it gave him something to contemplate. “I never thought much about my personality or how it strikes others,” he said. “It’s who I am, and I can’t see myself pretending to be what I am not.”
Her left hand moved toward him, and he thought she would reach for his hand or, at least, touch it. But she almost snatched it back, and he realized that what he’d thought was insecurity could well be an uncertainty as to how to relate to him.
“Velma, I find that it never pays to try to figure out a person.”
“You think I’m trying to figure you out?”
“Aren’t you? You wanted to touch my hand, maybe even hold it to show the sympathetic understanding that you felt, but you weren’t certain how I’d react and you withdrew.”
“What would you have done, Russ, if I’d held your hand?”
“How many times tonight did I take your hand? Did I ask permission?”
Her eyes sparkled like a dozen night stars, and her face bloomed into a smile. “Russ, what you’re saying is like dangling money and jewels in front of a thief.”
He glanced at his watch, poured the remainder of the ginger ale into their glasses and took a sip. “Not quite. It means take a chance. Show me who you are, and I’ll reciprocate.”
“But not necessarily in a way that I’d like.”
He drained the glass. “True. But you have one thing going for you. We Harrington men respect women. Now, if we don’t get out of here, that busboy will know you handed him a line.”
“Right.”
When they stood to leave, the busboy appeared with a tray, cleared the table and let a grin take over his face. “Congratulations again, sir. This made my day.”
“You’ve been very kind,” Russ said. He wanted to get out of there before he folded up in another laughing fit. As they walked toward the door, the other diners applauded, and he could feel his lower lip drop when Velma waved and blew kisses to the people.
Deciding to play along, he slipped an arm around Velma’s waist, and while he didn’t succeed in keeping the grin off his face, he was able to resist howling
