Page 37 of Mornings By the Linden Tree
Valeria sighed, sending cookie crumbs flying to the tabletop, but held her arms up for Lennon. I nodded, leaving them to their late-night snack. I entered my room to find Percy peeling off his damp shirt, his bags opened on the floor. I did note the soggy raincoat was hung with care on one of my padded hangers in the shower. Percy met my quizzical look with one of his own. The man was quite attractive. Toned, sleek, nicely shaved torso, but it was akin to looking at the statue of David in Florence. I’d been so thrilled to finally see that incredible piece of art so many people had viewed and then wept over. I had longed for that kind of overwhelming emotion when I had entered the Galleriadell’Accademia di Firenze. And then nothing. Oh yes, I could see the glory of the piece, but tears? No, no tears. It was then I had begun to think perhaps I was just dead inside, for no man, no artwork, no music could make me feel.
And then—like a bolt—Valeria and Lennon appeared in my life.
“I suppose you’re going to bitch about a wet coat on a padded hanger?” Percy asked as he dropped down into a crouch to cautiously seek a dry shirt amongst his neatly rolled clothes. He was a tidy man. I had to give him that.
“No, I’m not.” I closed the door with a weary exhalation. “Percy, I wish I had known you were thinking of coming here. You know how I am about surprises.”
“Yes, I do, and I thought that this once it would be okay.” He stood and pulled a soft blue polo over his damp hair. I rolled my eyes. “Foolish, I know, but it had been a long time since we spoke. And in my defense, I did try to contact you…several times.”
“I had my service vet my calls.” The hurt on his face ran deep for just a moment, then it was gone. Dammit. I had not meant to slice him quite so deeply. “That was not how I meant it to sound.”
“Oh, I do think it was. Why is your niece here? The last I heard, you were of the mind to find a suitable home for the child. And the nanny? Please. If that man is just a nanny, then I’m a fucking ballerina!” He shoved the hem of his shirt into his pressed slacks.
“He is the nanny.”
That comment got me a hand on a popped hip paired with a scathing look. “Wesley, for the love of God, at least be honest with me. I’ve made this trip to spend time with a good friend, and while I see now I should have respected your incredibly high walls, I did come here with good intentions.”
That he had. And if I’d not been in a thing—such an elegant term—with Lennon, then I would have been less peeved to see him arrive unannounced. I’d still have been aggravated, but not as much.
“It’s complicated. Much has changed since I saw you last. Please, just sit. For a few minutes. Let me try to bring you up to speed.”
“Fine, but I am incredibly put out with you.” A fact I was seeing plainly, but still shocked about. Percy had, for years, claimed to be happy with our relationship. A visit to Boston for him once or twice a month, dinner and a show or concert, discussions over some wine, and then a fuck. It had certainly been enough for me, but now I suspected Percy was harboring deeper feelings than he wished to display.
“So I see.” I patted the bed. He lowered his thin backside to it, and I then rewound time. I took him back to the night Aida died, then led him to the present, trying not to withhold any of the emotions that had sprouted and taken root so quickly. “I hope to be her permanent guardian soon. The state is still searching for her father, but I don’t hold out much hope. Probably the man is a junkie with no recollection of my sister or the child they created.”
Percy sat silently, digesting the story. “I would like to start out by apologizing for my outbursts. I’m tired, and I am more than a little hurt. No, no, please.” He held up a wonderfully manicured hand. Always neat as a pin, Percy was. I admired that in a man. Seemed I also admired patched denim overalls and a purple top hat. Who knew? “From the very start, you were quite open, to the point of brutality, about what you expected from us. It was I who let my emotions run wild. I did start to develop feelings for you, which was why I was always trying to lure you to travel with me. Perhaps I thought if I got you in a romantic port of call, you’d not be you.”
“I cannot be anyone else,” I softly commented.
“Oh, but you have become someone else. You’ve softened, Wesley. Perhaps it’s the child that brought that out in you. More than likely so. But I suspect that nanny has a large hand in smoothing down your sharp edges.”
I began to argue, but truly there was no point. Valeria and Lennon had brought huge changes to my life. To me. And to deny it would sully both. So I nodded. I wasn’t ready to talk about the depth of feelings I had for either of them, so I merely bobbed my head.
“My life is not at all what it was when spring arrived this year,” I conceded.
“Yes, well, that goes without saying. To be honest, I thought your nanny was going to wrest that little doll from your niece and plunge it into my jugular.” I snorted in amusement. Lennon was one of the most even-tempered men I had ever met. One had to be mellow when one worked with children. “Sure, laugh if you wish, but I stand by my statement. That man is smitten with you, deeply, and I wager if you would tell him you feel the same—”
“I am not sure that I…” I looked from Percy to the rain peppering the window. “My feelings are odd little things. They’ve been curled up inside me, like an ancient scroll, for so long that now when I wish to open them to the sun, I worry they’ll turn to dust.”
He smiled. It was a measly smile, but the corners of his mouth did move upward. “I know that feeling well.” With that, he stood. I felt absolutely terrible now. I had never once picked up on the fact his sentiments toward me were so strong. I’d been so sure we were peas in an emotionally distant pod that I never saw it. Or maybe I never wanted to see it. “If you’ll give me time to find a suitable room on the island, I will be out of your hair.”
I rose as he did. “Percy, I am so very sorry. I…please, take as long as you need. I’m going to check on Valeria and Lennon. She has sleep issues.”
“Yes, please tend to your ward. I’m deeply touched you have taken her in, Wesley. She’s bringing out a side of you I don’t recognize but fully approve of.”
He forced another smile. I thought to offer him a hug—or a handshake—but instead, I inclined my head and left my room, the door clicking shut behind me.
Good Lord. What a night. And it wasn’t over yet. I padded down the hall, peeking into the den to find Lennon seated on the pullout sofa, a book on his lap, his eyes on the faux fire in the fireplace. Valeria was sound asleep beside him, curled into a tight ball much like a cat. Her bow lips parted as she snoozed without a care in the world. Lennon glanced at me. Closed the book. And motioned me to the ottoman piled high with sofa pillows.
I cleared the cushions and pillows to the floor, stacking them from largest to smallest like a cairn of plush zabutons. I heard a small little snicker.
“This way they won’t tumble over,” I explained without looking from the top pillow I was placing carefully atop the mound.
“Isowant to kick that over,” he confessed when I took a moment to admire my work. Knowing he had a point, I swatted the pile. Pillows and cushions tumbled to the floor. It took all I possessed to simply sit down and not tidy the mess. “That was pretty huge.”
I placed my elbows on my knees and held out my hands. Lennon, dear bighearted soul that he is, placed his palms over mine.
“Very symbolic,” I replied in a gentle whisper so as not to wake Valeria. We should all be sleeping since she was, but itseemed sleep and I were no longer on speaking terms. Much like Percy and me, I imagined. “Lennon.” I glanced from where his fingers were meshed with mine to his face. Such a sweet face. Handsome, yes, obviously, but more than that. His face held joy. His eyes were bright blue like a robin’s egg and always seemed to be shining with life’s pleasures. “I know I sounded dismissive of you and your role in our family. I did not mean to be so uncaring. You are way more than just an anything. You could very well be my everything if I could learn how to let people in.”
