“I know it’s super nerdy, but it’s a way to bring me back to when I was a kid, when you could imagine all kinds of stuff. I think when you get older it’s really important to try to hang on to a sense of play.”
“Absolutely, I mean, if this is what it takes, that’s great.”
“I used to spend a lot of time alone with them.” Curt hesitated. “I wasn’t super popular or anything.”
Now Jane could see traces of the sweet, guileless, lonely little boy Curt must have been. It was endearing, and she felt an unexpected and uncomfortable pang of maternal feelings toward him: she simultaneously wanted to hug him and to slap him.
“I bet the other kids were just intimidated by how smart you were.” Sometimes, Jane resorted to flattery.
“You think so? That’s sweet, but naw, I was just a dumb kid who was too shrimpy to be any good at sports. You were a Queen Bee in school, am I right?”
“Oh, no. In the social hierarchy of school, I was firmly in the middle. Which was fine by me. I never wanted to be the center of attention.”
“But I am sure people noticed you.”
“Noticed me?
Once again, he was looking at her intently, studying her. Jane felt an unexpected tug of attraction.
“I mean, no more than any other kid, I think.... Anyway, we’ve got a lot to do here, so let’s get to it.”
“All business, I like it.” He chuckled.
“I’ve dealt with doll collections before. We can go through them together, or you can let me—”
“They aren’t dolls.”
Oooh, had she touched a nerve? Why were men afraid to call their dollsdolls? Especially now, when everyone was all about nongendered toys?
“You’re right,” she conceded, “they aren’t really dolls, per se.”
Now that she had successfully defused any charge of attraction that hung in the air, Jane relaxed. Curt, on the other hand, was getting defensive.
“Not at all. They’re action figures. Girls are just not into this shit, they don’t get it. I never let my girl in here.”
“Trista isn’t allowed here?”
Jane was expert at leading questions.
“No, she’s not my girl, she works for me. My girl is Julia.”
Jane tried not to flinch at his use of the possessive. Despite herself, she wondered what it would be like to be Curt’s girlfriend, to be his favorite female gadget?
“Oh, my mistake.... Okay, so what is your goal with this collection? We can edit, catalog...”
Curt shrugged. This was going to be like pulling teeth.
“What would you recommend if your boyfriend had a collection like this?” The tinge of challenge in his inflection was playful, a little sly.
“Honestly? I’d make him get rid of every single one.”
Curt was a uniquely taxing combination of arrogance and solicitousness. He’d looked poised to vomit when she said she’d purge the entire collection. But he had asked her for her honest opinion.
Ultimately, Curt decided the only figurines he would get rid of were duplicates, and there were quite a number of those, the end result of shopping on eBay while wasted. Jane suggested arranging the remaining Transformers by color—the only way she could really distinguish them—but he bristled. No, he would do it himself, according to the arcane rules of the Transformers world.
As Jane and Lindsey were ushered out the front gate by Trista, Jane felt a residual unease she couldn’t shake off. Was Curt hitting on her? Did she want him to be? Hmm. To her consternation, part of her did. Not because she was attracted to him, but for validation. But maybe she actually was attracted tohim? To his wealth, to his success, or maybe even to the sweet, guileless little boy she had caught glimpses of.
As she started her car, she mused about the role luck and chance had in finding a mate. What if she had met Curt three years ago instead of Teddy? Since she and Teddy had been together three years, and living together for over a year, it was inevitable that the idea of marriage loomed, yet they’d never discussed it. When Jane mused about what a successful marriage could be like—a font of love, of understanding and security—simply considering this antiquated institution would make her blush.
