Between Here and Gone by Barbara Ferrer

Author:Barbara Ferrer [Ferrer, Barbara]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
ISBN: 9781626817128
Publisher: Diversion Books
Published: 2015-10-20T04:00:00+00:00

• • •

Past the salad and well into the chateaubriand and Bordeaux, the topics shifted subtly more toward the personal. Preferences and opinions on art and music and current events. He leaned toward Klee and O’Keeffe. I argued the merits of Seurat and Picasso. I declared Rachmaninoff ideal for rainy weekend mornings and the smoky longing of Ella for listening to in the dark and yes, I did like the Beatles a great deal. He insisted if I listened to jazz of any kind, then it was a moral imperative to broaden my horizons and include Mingus and Brubeck and Coltrane. He was currently enjoying Joan Baez and Bob Dylan—an unexpected admission, since the notion of a high-society WASP listening to folk and protest songs seemed incongruous at the very least.

Less surprising was his interest in the well-publicized space race. But rather than the cool intellectual discourse I would have expected from him, he instead leaned forward in his chair, propping his elbows on the fine white tablecloth with the earnest abandon of a schoolboy. His voice rose and fell as he discussed the Mercury and Gemini missions in more than casual detail, a wistful smile crossing his face as he quoted Kennedy’s words on the importance of man eventually reaching the moon and what it meant to the world.

Curiouser and curiouser. And fascinating.

And in spite of the drama and sheer surreal nature of the circumstances that had brought me to this dimly lit patio on a mild February night, it was as normal an evening as I’d experienced in, well … years. A lovely, genuinely enjoyable evening.

As he poured the last of the wine, Jack casually mentioned, “Just so you know, while I have a few business matters that require my attention, my schedule is otherwise clear.” Left unsaid was that he would be available for that first meeting with Ava, scheduled to take place in a few days’ time after her current modeling assignment—a Palm Springs photo shoot for Harper’s—concluded. That as promised, he’d not leave me to beard the lion in her own den comprised of one of the luxurious hotel bungalows.

Originally the plan had been for me to conduct the interviews at her Bel Air home, but that would now be impossible since it had recently been sold. The affair with the wealthy married Italian lover from whom the house had been a gift had run its beautiful tragic course—meaning the staunch Catholic wouldn’t be divorcing his wife to become Ava’s next matrimonial conquest. As such, he’d been summarily dismissed, and memories of the house’s role as secluded love nest were simply too … something. No, it wouldn’t do at all. Information Jack conveyed with a wry grin.

Lacking for anything else to say, I settled for, “Well, in that case, being so close will be … convenient.”

“For Ava. As usual.” In one smooth motion, he pushed his chair back and stood. “Care to dance?”

I stared at his outstretched hand. “Dance?”

“Yes. Acceptable form of social interaction between a man and a woman.

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