waved away her praise. “That boss of yours sure is easy on the eyes, Jeff. Seems like a nice young woman, too.”
Here it comes. He knew his dad couldn’t resist the temptation.
“Don’t go there, Dad. Nothing is going to happen between Ms. Silvercreek and me. I’m not taking any chances that might keep Jen’s paintings from hanging on that gallery’s walls on opening day.”
“Well, of course not. But offering to buy her dinner or take her to a movie seems innocent enough.”
“And what if she sees that innocent invitation as a bribe to get ‘my’ paintings in her gallery? She’ll turn me down flat and that will be the end of a great opportunity.”
“But—”
Jen put a hand on his arm. “Stop it, Dad. Jeff doesn’t need your advice on who to date.”
Jeff shot her a look. Okay for her to give him advice on his love life, but not Dad?
His dad put his big hand over hers. “And how about you, baby girl? Are you doing okay here?” He looked around the remodeled motel room which Jeff’s carpentry skills had transformed into a cozy one-room apartment. “Do you get out much? Meet anybody new?” he asked hopefully.
She just shook her head. “You weren’t going to do this, remember? I’m fine, Dad. I get out as often as I want to. And I don’t want to meet anyone new, so let’s just drop the subject, shall we?”
“You make it sound like taking an interest in my children’s lives is a crime.” He shook his head and concentrated on his plate.
Jen and Jeff shared a look over his head.
For most of his childhood, Jeff had had a difficult relationship with his father. He was never into sports, and his preoccupation with art worried his blue-collar father. He was seven years old when his mom had brought home a can of Play-dough, and the first thing he made was a flower for her. She bought more Play-dough. He made birds. And bunnies. And butterflies. No trucks, no dinosaurs, no Jedi warriors. This, along with his slight build and almost angelic beauty, led his dad to the wrong conclusion.
Jeff spent years trying to allay his father’s fears about his sexual orientation. What hurt him the most was not that his dad thought him gay—he had no problem with gay people—but that the man thought Jeff was a coward for not ‘coming out.’ It wasn’t until the episode with Rusty when he was a freshman in high school that his dad was finally convinced. Still, his dad’s concern with his love life left some lingering doubts. He needed to change the subject before this conversation deteriorated any further.
“We don’t want to argue with you, Dad. In fact, I need to ask for your help with another part of the reno.”
That got him a brusque nod. “Sure. What do you need?”
“The skylights for Zoe’s studio came in today. As long as you’re here, would you mind helping me put them in? Zoe can’t help with that, she’s too small and doesn’t have the strength to hold them while I nail them in place. I was going to hire a temp to help me but as long as you’re here . . .”
“No problem.”
“Thanks, Dad, I appreciate it.”
Jeff started closing up the cartons and putting them away in the fridge. Conversation languished and his disgruntled father finished his dinner in silence, until Jen suggested she and he watch Dancing with the Stars .
Jeff shot her a grateful look, and she mimed him, “You owe me.” He nodded agreement and excused himself. “I’ve got some paperwork to do next door. Let’s get an early start tomorrow, okay, Dad?” His dad nodded and Jeff retreated to his studio.
He took out his sketch pad and pencil. His ‘paperwork’ was drawing Zoe’s face from several angles. He had a sculpture in mind that wouldn’t see the light of day until Jenny’s need for secrecy was past. These drawings would do for now but sometime in the future Zoe would have to pose for him.
Naked.
How he’d accomplish that he as yet had no idea. But he’d been giving it a lot of
Here it comes. He knew his dad couldn’t resist the temptation.
“Don’t go there, Dad. Nothing is going to happen between Ms. Silvercreek and me. I’m not taking any chances that might keep Jen’s paintings from hanging on that gallery’s walls on opening day.”
“Well, of course not. But offering to buy her dinner or take her to a movie seems innocent enough.”
“And what if she sees that innocent invitation as a bribe to get ‘my’ paintings in her gallery? She’ll turn me down flat and that will be the end of a great opportunity.”
“But—”
Jen put a hand on his arm. “Stop it, Dad. Jeff doesn’t need your advice on who to date.”
Jeff shot her a look. Okay for her to give him advice on his love life, but not Dad?
His dad put his big hand over hers. “And how about you, baby girl? Are you doing okay here?” He looked around the remodeled motel room which Jeff’s carpentry skills had transformed into a cozy one-room apartment. “Do you get out much? Meet anybody new?” he asked hopefully.
She just shook her head. “You weren’t going to do this, remember? I’m fine, Dad. I get out as often as I want to. And I don’t want to meet anyone new, so let’s just drop the subject, shall we?”
“You make it sound like taking an interest in my children’s lives is a crime.” He shook his head and concentrated on his plate.
Jen and Jeff shared a look over his head.
For most of his childhood, Jeff had had a difficult relationship with his father. He was never into sports, and his preoccupation with art worried his blue-collar father. He was seven years old when his mom had brought home a can of Play-dough, and the first thing he made was a flower for her. She bought more Play-dough. He made birds. And bunnies. And butterflies. No trucks, no dinosaurs, no Jedi warriors. This, along with his slight build and almost angelic beauty, led his dad to the wrong conclusion.
Jeff spent years trying to allay his father’s fears about his sexual orientation. What hurt him the most was not that his dad thought him gay—he had no problem with gay people—but that the man thought Jeff was a coward for not ‘coming out.’ It wasn’t until the episode with Rusty when he was a freshman in high school that his dad was finally convinced. Still, his dad’s concern with his love life left some lingering doubts. He needed to change the subject before this conversation deteriorated any further.
“We don’t want to argue with you, Dad. In fact, I need to ask for your help with another part of the reno.”
That got him a brusque nod. “Sure. What do you need?”
“The skylights for Zoe’s studio came in today. As long as you’re here, would you mind helping me put them in? Zoe can’t help with that, she’s too small and doesn’t have the strength to hold them while I nail them in place. I was going to hire a temp to help me but as long as you’re here . . .”
“No problem.”
“Thanks, Dad, I appreciate it.”
Jeff started closing up the cartons and putting them away in the fridge. Conversation languished and his disgruntled father finished his dinner in silence, until Jen suggested she and he watch Dancing with the Stars .
Jeff shot her a grateful look, and she mimed him, “You owe me.” He nodded agreement and excused himself. “I’ve got some paperwork to do next door. Let’s get an early start tomorrow, okay, Dad?” His dad nodded and Jeff retreated to his studio.
He took out his sketch pad and pencil. His ‘paperwork’ was drawing Zoe’s face from several angles. He had a sculpture in mind that wouldn’t see the light of day until Jenny’s need for secrecy was past. These drawings would do for now but sometime in the future Zoe would have to pose for him.
Naked.
How he’d accomplish that he as yet had no idea. But he’d been giving it a lot of
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