Chapter 8
Natalie dropped into the wingback chair and kicked off her heels. A day full of meetings forced the delay of her weekly visit with her grandfather until late afternoon. The temperature had dropped enough to make it too chilly for him to sit outside, so they’d moved their chat into his library.
Her grandfather frowned at her. “You look tired, girl. What have I told you about working too hard? At your age, you should be taking more time for yourself.”
Natalie wrapped her hands around her mug and drew comfort from its warmth. “I do take time for myself, but some days start off bad and only get worse. This was one of those.”
How much to share with her grandfather was always a problem. He liked to be kept in the loop, but she didn’t like to burden him with minor problems. On the other hand, he always knew when she was trying to hold back on him.
She mustered the best smile she could. “It was what I think of as a domino day. I start off with everything lined up in good order. Then one little thing goes wrong, and it all goes downhill from there.”
Instead of pressing her for more details, the sneaky man changed tactics. “Which brings me back to you taking more time for yourself. How did the art show go the other night? The gallery delivered the painting you bought for me as well as the one you bought with the foundation’s money.”
Again, how much to share? She settled for the truth. “I really liked Julie as a person as well as admiring her work. From what Mom has said, the showing was a huge success. Almost every painting sold.”
“Good for her. I really like the floral painting, but I actually prefer the darker one you bought for the foundation.”
His reaction to her choices pleased her. “I suspected you’d feel that way. Not everyone saw or understood the raw power in that picture.”
Never let it be said that her grandfather was slow on the uptake. “Everyone being Benton.”
“Yeah, he couldn’t believe I liked it.” She took a calming sip of her tea. “He also made it clear that he hasn’t given up on us getting back together. I swear that man only hears what he wants to hear.”
Her grandfather’s laugh sounded rusty. “That’s because the only voice he listens to is his own. Did you tell him where to get off?”
“Not in so many words, but I did make it clear that I haven’t changed my mind. Dad picked up on the tension between us and asked if there was a problem. I informed him the sooner everyone accepted that I’ve moved on the better off we’ll all be.”
“Good for you.” He held out his glass, asking without words for a refill. While she topped it off, he gave her a sly look. “So, how did the date go with that young man you met at the community center?”
For the first time all day, her smile felt genuine rather than pasted on. “We had a nice time.”
Cyrus set his glass down a shade harder than was necessary. “Young lady, don’t play games with me. I want details. Where did you go?”
She relented. “Tino took me out for dinner. Purely by accident, he picked that restaurant that Mom and Dad like so much. At least the maître d’ was smart enough not to seat us at their table. That would’ve been awkward.”
Her grandfather snorted. “How did your young man feel when he found out?”
“It made for a bit of tension when we first got there, but we got past it. Afterward we were supposed to go to a movie, but we ended up going for a walk along the waterfront instead.”
“At least tell me the movie he’d picked out was some action flick filled with lots of gratuitous violence and sex.” He grinned and offered her a hopeful look.
Her face flushed hot. Cyrus’s sense of humor ran to the earthy end of the scale, but the last thing she wanted to do was discuss anything pertaining to sex with him. “I’ll have you know he’d planned on us seeing a French movie with subtitles.”
There was no mistaking her grandfather’s disappointment. “So he’s another Benton.”
She couldn’t help but laugh. “No, actually he’s not like that at all. I suspect Tino chose both the restaurant and the movie because he’d figured out who I was and thought that’s what I’d want. Points to him for trying, but I hope he knows me better now.”
Cyrus perked up. “So you’ve seen him again since the big date?”
“Yep. Tino came back to the center to help on Saturday. He helped me unpack all the new computers. We ate lunch together, and then he stuck around to help with more of the work on the gym while I helped the IT people set up the computer lab.”
“Have you made plans to spend more time together?” Cyrus gave her a hard look. “And I mean for something a helluva lot more fun than unpacking a bunch of computers.”
She nodded as she picked up one of the chocolate chip cookies Esther had brought with her tea. “This week was already pretty booked up for me, but we’re going on a picnic on Sunday and then having dinner later in the week.”
For the first time all evening, her grandfather looked pleased by her answer. “That’s a start, but you’ve been having far too many of these busy weeks. If the job is getting to be too much for you, hire someone to shoulder part of the workload. You know I’ll adjust the budget if that’s what it takes.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
