Faircloth.
“People
are different,” said Lindsay. “It could be that Ron Sharp’s just an
old-fashioned guy. I mean, there are some left, even if they are few and far
between.”
“Thank
God for that,” Clara said. “And the sooner they die off entirely the better. It
shouldn’t be too far off, given the fact that women no longer want that sort of
man.”
“Oh,
I don’t know,” Lindsay said. She wanted to stop
talking about it, but could not. Even though Clara had no clue that she was a
submissive Lindsay felt the need to defend herself. “I mean , some women still want a traditional way of life.”
“You
mean where a man calls all the shots? Maybe if they’re stupid. Smart women
demand equality, not the likes of a guy like Ron Sharp.”
Lindsay
felt like she’d been slapped across the face. “Well, I’m not prepared to advance
that kind of judgment about the personal choices or tastes of others,” she
said, and only after the words were out did she realize how angry her tone
sounded. When she looked up she saw Clara staring at her with a look of hurt
surprise on her face.
“Good
heavens,” Lindsay,” she said softly. “I had no idea you had such strong
opinions on the matter, or that you were so quick to defend the likes of Ron
Sharp.”
Lindsay
shook her head and waved her hand in front of her, as if trying to wave the
whole conversation away.
“No,
I wasn’t trying…look, just forget it,” she said. “I’m sorry if I’m being testy.
I’ve just got a lot on my mind.”
“The
campaign?” Clara asked , her eyes fixed on Lindsay.
“Yeah,”
Lindsay replied. “The campaign.”
***
“Maybe
this isn’t the best idea.” Lindsay leaned her head against Ron’s shoulder
and sighed.
The
two of them were sitting in a townhouse he had rented specifically as a getaway
for the two of them. Another article was due out about the campaigns – a
piece in The Times that would highlight both the managers – and neither
wanted to take a chance on being spotted with their personalities now part of
the media focus.
“Don’t
say that.” Ron slipped the sheet down and kissed her shoulder.
It
hadn’t taken long for their relationship to turn physical. Both felt they’d
found their ideological – if not political – soulmate.
“Clara
said you have a reputation for being old-fashioned.”
Ron
laughed. “Does she, now? And she bases this on…”
“The
word of her decorator, a friend of your ex-wife’s.”
Ron
sighed. “That would be Andrea. She always hated me and made it her personal
mission to help Tina ‘break the bonds of patriarchal oppression.’ And Tina
being Tina felt more allegiance to her friends’ opinion than she did to me. Or
to Brian.”
He
sighed then and turned to Lindsay. “No, that’s not fair. Regardless of our
differences, Tina is a good mother. I can’t fault her for that. But I do fault
her for walking away from what I believed she really wanted because she felt
bullied by her feminist friends.”
Ron
reached over and caressed Lindsay’s cheek. “I hope you aren’t going to
eventually feel that way, because if you do please let me know sooner than
later. This ‘patriarchal’ guy has some vulnerabilities of his own.”
“Ron
Sharp has vulnerabilities?” Lindsay laughed.
“Yes
indeed!” He reached down and took her hand, kissing it before looking into her
eyes. “Whether you know it or not, young lady, I’ve invested more trust in you
than I ever thought I’d invest in anyone again.”
“I’ve
done the same thing,” Lindsay replied. “I mean, I told you about my involvement
with that fire when I was a college activist. Only a handful of people know
that, and they’re all people I completely trust.” She sighed. “It’s a small
list, really. I don’t want people to judge me by my past, you know. I mean, I’ve
made mistakes and feel fortunate I didn’t get in more trouble. Since then I’ve
learned to temper my social
“People
are different,” said Lindsay. “It could be that Ron Sharp’s just an
old-fashioned guy. I mean, there are some left, even if they are few and far
between.”
“Thank
God for that,” Clara said. “And the sooner they die off entirely the better. It
shouldn’t be too far off, given the fact that women no longer want that sort of
man.”
“Oh,
I don’t know,” Lindsay said. She wanted to stop
talking about it, but could not. Even though Clara had no clue that she was a
submissive Lindsay felt the need to defend herself. “I mean , some women still want a traditional way of life.”
“You
mean where a man calls all the shots? Maybe if they’re stupid. Smart women
demand equality, not the likes of a guy like Ron Sharp.”
Lindsay
felt like she’d been slapped across the face. “Well, I’m not prepared to advance
that kind of judgment about the personal choices or tastes of others,” she
said, and only after the words were out did she realize how angry her tone
sounded. When she looked up she saw Clara staring at her with a look of hurt
surprise on her face.
“Good
heavens,” Lindsay,” she said softly. “I had no idea you had such strong
opinions on the matter, or that you were so quick to defend the likes of Ron
Sharp.”
Lindsay
shook her head and waved her hand in front of her, as if trying to wave the
whole conversation away.
“No,
I wasn’t trying…look, just forget it,” she said. “I’m sorry if I’m being testy.
I’ve just got a lot on my mind.”
“The
campaign?” Clara asked , her eyes fixed on Lindsay.
“Yeah,”
Lindsay replied. “The campaign.”
***
“Maybe
this isn’t the best idea.” Lindsay leaned her head against Ron’s shoulder
and sighed.
The
two of them were sitting in a townhouse he had rented specifically as a getaway
for the two of them. Another article was due out about the campaigns – a
piece in The Times that would highlight both the managers – and neither
wanted to take a chance on being spotted with their personalities now part of
the media focus.
“Don’t
say that.” Ron slipped the sheet down and kissed her shoulder.
It
hadn’t taken long for their relationship to turn physical. Both felt they’d
found their ideological – if not political – soulmate.
“Clara
said you have a reputation for being old-fashioned.”
Ron
laughed. “Does she, now? And she bases this on…”
“The
word of her decorator, a friend of your ex-wife’s.”
Ron
sighed. “That would be Andrea. She always hated me and made it her personal
mission to help Tina ‘break the bonds of patriarchal oppression.’ And Tina
being Tina felt more allegiance to her friends’ opinion than she did to me. Or
to Brian.”
He
sighed then and turned to Lindsay. “No, that’s not fair. Regardless of our
differences, Tina is a good mother. I can’t fault her for that. But I do fault
her for walking away from what I believed she really wanted because she felt
bullied by her feminist friends.”
Ron
reached over and caressed Lindsay’s cheek. “I hope you aren’t going to
eventually feel that way, because if you do please let me know sooner than
later. This ‘patriarchal’ guy has some vulnerabilities of his own.”
“Ron
Sharp has vulnerabilities?” Lindsay laughed.
“Yes
indeed!” He reached down and took her hand, kissing it before looking into her
eyes. “Whether you know it or not, young lady, I’ve invested more trust in you
than I ever thought I’d invest in anyone again.”
“I’ve
done the same thing,” Lindsay replied. “I mean, I told you about my involvement
with that fire when I was a college activist. Only a handful of people know
that, and they’re all people I completely trust.” She sighed. “It’s a small
list, really. I don’t want people to judge me by my past, you know. I mean, I’ve
made mistakes and feel fortunate I didn’t get in more trouble. Since then I’ve
learned to temper my social
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