At First Sight
People nodded and waved back.
"Out of the way... coming through...," Jeremy heard Doris call out. There were rustles of movement as people began pressing into one another, making way, and Doris appeared in front of them. She immediately pulled Lexie into her arms.
When Doris released her, she looked from Lexie to Jeremy and back again. From the corner of his eye, Jeremy noticed the crowd doing the same thing, as if they were part of the reunion as well. Which, considering their proximity, they probably were.
"Well, I'll be," Doris pronounced. Born and bred in the South, she sounded as if she were pronouncing the letters L-I-B. "I didn't expect you home until a little later."
Lexie nodded toward Jeremy. "You can thank lead-foot here. He regards the speed limit as more of a guideline than an actual rule."
"Good for you, Jeremy," Doris said with a wink. "Oh, we've got so much to talk about! I want to hear all about your week in New York. I want to hear all about everything. And where's that ring you've been telling me about?"
Everyone's eyes flashed toward Lexie's ring. Necks were craning as Lexie held up her hand. A couple of oohs and aahs rose from the throng. Folks began closing in to get a better peek, and Jeremy could feel someone breathing on the back of his neck.
"Now, dat dere's a purty ring," Jeremy heard someone say behind him.
"Hold it up a bit, Lex," another added.
"It looks like dem cubic zircomiums from the Home Shopping Network," a woman offered.
For the first time, Lexie and Doris seemed to realize they were the center of attention.
"Okay, okay... show's over, folks," Doris said. "Let me talk to my granddaughter alone. We've got some catching up to do. Give us a little room."
Amid murmurs of disappointment, the crowd tried to back away, but there was really nowhere to go. Mainly, people shuffled their feet.
"Let's go in the back," Doris finally suggested. "Follow me...."
Doris grabbed Lexie's hand and they were off; Jeremy struggled to keep up with them as they headed for Doris's office just beyond the kitchen.
Once there, Doris peppered Lexie with questions in rapid-fire succession. Lexie told her all about their visit to the Statue of Liberty, Times Square, and--of course--the Empire State Building. The faster they talked, the more southern they sounded, and despite Jeremy's attempts to keep up, he was unable to follow everything they were saying. He managed to decipher the fact that Lexie had enjoyed his family but was less than thrilled when she said the evening reminded her of something "you might have seen on Everybody Loves Raymond, except six times bigger, with in-laws crazy in a different kind of way."
"Sounds like a hoot," Doris said. "Now, let me get a better look at that ring."
Again Lexie held it out, preening like a schoolgirl. Doris caught Jeremy's eye.
"Did you pick this out yourself?"
Jeremy shrugged. "With a bit of help."
"Well, it's gorgeous."
At that moment, Rachel poked her head in. "Hey, Lex. Hey, Jeremy. Sorry for interrupting, but the hush puppies are running low, Doris. Do you want me to start another batch?"
"Probably. But wait--before you go, come see Lexie's ring."
The ring. Women the world over loved to ogle the ring, even more than they loved saying the word fiancee.
Rachel walked over. With her auburn hair and reedlike figure, she was as appealing as ever, although Jeremy thought she seemed more tired than usual. In high school, Rachel and Lexie had been best friends, and although still close--it was impossible not to be close in a town this size--they'd drifted apart when Lexie went off to college. She eyed the ring.
"It's gorgeous," she said. "Congratulations, Lex. And you too, Jeremy. The whole town's been in a tizzy since they found out."
"Thanks, Rach," Lexie said. "How are things going with Rodney?"
Rodney, a local deputy sheriff with a penchant for weightlifting, had pined for Lexie since they were kids and hadn't been all that happy when Lexie and Jeremy became an item. Had it not been for the fact that he started dating Rachel soon afterward, Jeremy was pretty sure Rodney would have preferred that Jeremy stay in New York City.
Rachel's gaze faltered. "They're going."
Lexie watched her, knowing not to push. Rachel brushed a strand of hair from her cheek. "Listen, I'd love to stay and chat, but it's a zoo out there. I have no idea why you let the mayor use this place for these meetings. People get crazy when it comes to hush puppies and bingo. See y'all later. Maybe I'll have some more time to chat."
As soon as she left, Lexie leaned toward Doris. "Is she okay?"
"Oh, it's her and Rodney," Doris said. She waved a hand as if it were old news. "They had some sort of spat a couple days ago."
"Not on account of me, I hope."
"No, no, of course not," Doris assured her, but Jeremy wasn't convinced. Despite the fact that Rodney was dating Rachel, Jeremy had no doubt that he was still sweet on Lexie. Crushes, even in adulthood, were never easily forgotten, and the argument seemed to coincide with the news of their engagement.
"Well, here you are!" said Mayor Gherkin, interrupting Jeremy's thoughts. Gherkin, overweight and balding, was color-blind when it came to clothing. Tonight he wore purple polyester pants, a yellow shirt, and a paisley tie. The consummate politician, he never seemed to draw a breath while speaking. And speak he did--the man was a veritable typhoon of words.
Not surprisingly, Gherkin was still going on.
"... hiding away in the back... why, if I didn't know better, I'd say you were making secret plans to elope and deprive this town of the ceremony it rightly deserves." He lumbered over, grasped Jeremy's hand, and pumped it up and down. "Good to see you. Good to see you," he said almost as an afterthought, before continuing on. "I'm thinking the town square under the lights, or maybe right there on the library steps. With enough hoopla and a little planning, we might be able to get the governor to swing by. He's a friend of mine, and if it coincides with his campaign, well, you never know." He stared at Jeremy with his eyebrows raised.
Jeremy cleared his throat. "We haven't even discussed the wedding yet, but actually, we were thinking about something more low-key."
"Low-key? Nonsense. It's not every day that one of our town's most prominent citizens marries a genuine celebrity, you know."
"I'm a journalist, not a celebrity. I thought we'd been over this--"
"No need to be modest, Jeremy. I can see it now...." He squinted as if he actually could. "Today, columns for Scientific American; tomorrow, your own talk show, beamed to a worldwide audience from right here in Boone Creek, North Carolina."
"I highly doubt--"
"You've got to think big, my boy. Big. Why, without dreams Columbus would never have sailed to the New World, and Rembrandt would never have picked up a paintbrush."
He slapped Jeremy on the back, then leaned down and kissed Lexie on the cheek. "And you are even lovelier than usual, Miss Lexie. Engagement definitely suits you, my dear."
"Thank you, Tom," Lexie said.
Doris rolled her eyes and was about to shoo him from the room when Gherkin turned his attention back to Jeremy again.
"Do you mind if we talk business for a minute here?" He didn't wait for an answer. "Now, I'd be remiss as a public servant if I neglected to ask if you were planning to write something special about Boone Creek, now that you're living here, I mean. It might be a good idea, you know. And good for the town, too. For instance, did you know that three of the top four catfish ever found in North Carolina have been fished from Boone Creek? Think about that... three out of the top four. There just might be some sort of magical quality in the water."
Jeremy didn't know what to say. Oh, his editor would love that one, wouldn't he? Especially the title: "Magic Water Responsible for Giant Catfish." Not a chance. He was already on thin ice for leaving New York; if there were ever any cutbacks at the magazine, he had the sneaking suspicion that he'd be the first to go. Not that he needed the income; mo
st of that had come from the freelance articles he sold to other magazines and newspapers, and he'd invested well over the years. He had more than enough to survive for a while, but the column at Scientific American definitely kept his profile higher than it might have been.
"Actually, I have my next six columns done already. And I haven't decided on the next story, but I'll keep the giant catfish in mind."
The mayor nodded, pleased. "You do that, my boy. And listen, I want to officially welcome you both back to town. I can't tell you how thrilled I am that you've chosen our fine community to be your permanent home. But I have to get back to the bingo game. Rhett's been calling the numbers, but with him barely able to read, I'm afraid he's going to make some sort of mistake and a riot'll break out. Lord only knows what the Garrison sisters will do if they feel they've been cheated."
"Folks do take their bingo seriously," Doris agreed.
"Truer words have never been spoken. Now if y'all will excuse me, duty calls."
With a quick turn--remarkable considering the man's girth--he was out of the room, and all Jeremy could do was shake his head. Doris peeked beyond the door to make sure no one else was coming, then leaned toward Lexie. She motioned toward her granddaughter's belly.
"How are you feeling?"
Listening to Doris and Lexie whisper about Lexie's pregnancy, Jeremy found himself thinking that there was an irony involved in having and raising children.
Most people were aware of the responsibilities of having and raising children, he knew. Having watched his brothers and their wives, he knew how much their lives could change once a child came along; no more sleeping in on the weekends, for instance, or going out to dinner on the spur of the moment. But they claimed they didn't mind, since they viewed parenting as a selfless act, one in which they were willing to make sacrifices for the betterment of their children. Nor were they unique. In Manhattan, Jeremy had come to believe that this view was often taken to extremes. Every parent he knew made sure his or her child attended the best schools, had the finest piano teachers, and participated in the right sports camps, all with the goal of enabling the child to one day attend an Ivy League college.
But didn't this selflessness actually require selfishness?
That's where the irony came in, Jeremy thought. After all, it wasn't as if people needed to have children. No, he knew that having a child was essentially about two things: It was the next logical step in a relationship, but secretly it was also a deep-down desire to create a miniaturized version of "you." As in "you're" so special, it was simply inconceivable that the world should be burdened with the fact that there's only one of "you" to go around. And as for the rest of it? The sacrifices that led to the Ivy League? Jeremy was certain the only reason a five-year-old would even know about the Ivy League was that it was important to the parents. In other words, Jeremy had come to the conclusion that most parents wanted to create not only a "you," but a "better you," because no parent dreams of standing around at a cocktail party thirty years later saying things like "Oh, Jimmie's doing great! He's out on parole and has almost kicked his drug habit." No, they want to say, "Emmett, in addition to becoming a multimillionaire, just finished his PhD in microbiology, and The New York Times just ran a feature on how his most recent research is likely to lead to a cure for cancer."
Of course, neither of these issues pertained to Lexie and Jeremy, and Jeremy felt himself puff up just a bit at the realization. They weren't typical parents-to-be for the simple reason that the pregnancy had been unplanned. At the time it happened, they hadn't been thinking of a "little you and me," nor was it the next logical step in their relationship, since technically they hadn't had much of a relationship yet. No, their child had been conceived in beauty and tenderness, without any of the selfishness characteristic of other parents. Which meant that he and Lexie were better and more selfless, and in the long run, Jeremy figured, this selflessness would give their child the ever important leg up when it came to getting accepted to Harvard.
"Are you okay?" Lexie asked. "You've been sort of quiet since we left Herbs."
It was getting close to ten o'clock, and Lexie and Jeremy were at her house, a small, weathered bungalow that backed up to a grove of ancient pines. Beyond the window, Jeremy watched the tips of the trees swaying in the breeze; in the moonlight, the needles appeared almost silver. Lexie was snuggling beneath his arm as they sat on the couch. A small candle flickered on the end table, casting light on a plate of leftovers Doris had prepared for them.
"I was just thinking about the baby," Jeremy said.
"Really?" she said, cocking her head to the side.
"Yeah, really. What? You don't think I think about the baby?"
"No, it's not that. It's just that I got the impression you sort of tuned out when Doris and I were talking about her. So what were you thinking?"
He pulled her closer, figuring it was best not to mention the word selfish. "I was thinking how lucky the baby is to have you as a mother."
She smiled before turning to study him. "I hope our daughter has your dimple."
"You like my dimple?"
"I adore your dimple. But I hope she has my eyes."
"What's wrong with my eyes?"
"Nothing's wrong with your eyes."
"But yours are so much better? I'll have you know, my mother loves my eyes."
"I do, too. On you, they're seductive. I just don't want our daughter to have seductive eyes. She's only a baby."
He laughed. "What else?"
She stared at him, concentrating. "I want her to have my hair, too. And my nose and chin." She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "And my forehead, too."
"Your forehead?"
She nodded. "You've got a wrinkle between your eyebrows."
He absently brought his finger to it, as if he'd never noticed it before. "It comes from furrowing my brow." He showed her. "See? It's from deep concentration. Thinking. Don't you want our daughter to think?"
"Are you saying you want our daughter to have wrinkles?"
"Well... no, but you're saying that all I get is a dimple?"
"How about if she gets your ears?"
"Ears? No one cares about ears."
"I think your ears are darling."
"Really?"
"Your ears are perfect. Probably the world's most perfect ears. I've heard people talking about how wonderful your ears are."
He laughed. "Okay, my ears and dimple, your eyes, nose, chin, and forehead. Anything else?"
"How about if we stop? I'd hate to think what you'd say if I told you I also want her to have my legs. You seem pretty sensitive right now."
"I'm not sensitive. But I happen to think I've got something more to offer than ears and a dimple. And my legs... well, they've turned heads, if you really must know."
She giggled. "Okay, okay," she said, "you made your point. What are your thoughts on the wedding?"
"Changing the subject?"
"We do have to talk about it. I'm sure you want to have some input."
"I think I'll leave most of that up to you."
"I was thinking about having it take place near the lighthouse. Out by the cottage?"
"I remember," he said, knowing she was referring to the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse, where her parents had been married.
"It's a state park, so we'll need to get a permit. But I was thinking maybe late spring or early summer. I don't want my tummy showing in any pictures."
"Makes sense to me. After all, you don't want anyone to think you're pregnant. What would people say?"
She laughed. "So you don't have any opinions on the wedding? Anything special you've always dreamed about?"
"Not really. Now, opinions on the bachelor party, that's something different...."
She punched him playfully in the belly. "Watch it," she teased. Then, settling back, she added, "I'm glad you're here."
"I'm glad I'm here, too."
"When do you want to go house shopping?"
 
; These sudden shifts in conversation served to continually remind Jeremy that his life had suddenly undergone a drastic change. "Excuse me?"
"House shopping. We're going to have to buy a house, you know."
"I thought we were going to live here."
"Here? This place is tiny. Where would you have your office?"
"In the spare bedroom," he said. "There's plenty of room."
"And the baby? Where's she going to sleep?"
Oh yeah, the baby. Amazing that he forgot about that for a second there.
"Do you have anything in mind?"
"I think I'd like something on the water, if that's okay."
"Water sounds nice."
Her face took on an almost dreamy expression as she continued. "And someplace with a big wraparound porch. Someplace homey, with spacious rooms and windows that let the sun shine in. And a tin roof. You haven't lived until you've heard the rain coming down on a tin roof. It's the most romantic sound in the world."
"I can live with romantic sounds."
She furrowed her brow, considering his responses. "You're being awfully easy about this."
"You're forgetting that I've lived in an apartment for the last fifteen years. We worry about different things, like whether the elevator works."
"As I recall, the one in your building didn't."
"Which should tell you that I'm not picky."
She smiled. "Well, we can't go this week. I'm sure I have a mountain of paperwork at the library, and it'll take a while to catch up. But maybe by the weekend we can go looking."
"Sounds good."
"What are you going to be doing while I'm working?"
"I'll probably pick the petals off flowers while I pine away for you."
"Seriously."
"Oh, you know. I'll try to get settled and get into some sort of schedule. Set up the computer and printer, see if I can get some sort of high-speed access so I can research the Internet. I like to be at least four or five columns ahead so that if a good story comes up, I have the time to work it. It also keeps my editor sleeping easier."
She was quiet as she thought about it. "I don't think you'll be able to get high-speed access out at Greenleaf. They don't even have cable out there."
"Who's talking about Greenleaf? I figure I'll just have it hooked up here."