Mrs. Brody wrinkles her nose and laughs before placing the bowl in the sink and running hot water in it. “I guess you didn’t bring those cookies in for the teachers,” she says, as she scrubs and dries the bowl before placing it back in the cabinet.
“Nope. The only place they went was right in the garbage,” I recall, giggling, and she laughs again, too.
“Well, the kids did a lot of baking, and with six of them, they made a lot of messes. Actually, make that almost nine with Matt, Brad, and Clara,” she declares, her lips curled up, her eyes smiling.
“Come sit.” She motions to the table and puts the pie in the fridge before coming to join me. “Can I make you some tea or would you like something to drink? Juice, water?”
“No, I’m good, thanks.” I feel completely at ease with Mrs. Brody and the words begin to flow without apprehension. “Matt speaks so highly of you and Mr. Brody and I think the fact that you were there for him when his mom died is pretty spectacular. You helped him make it through,” I say quietly, watching her face and her eyes shine with so much admiration and love that it takes my breath away.
She lets out a sigh that is happy, yet somehow tinged with a morsel of sadness. “Brenda was such a wonderful woman,” she begins, grabbing onto the table with one hand as if needing to brace herself for this conversation. “She was always there for them—playing, watching their games, encouraging and supporting them, talking them through the tough times…and when she passed….” She pauses and releases a breath. “They were devastated. I think Matt got it the worst because he saw how Clara and Brad were handling it and felt like he had to make it better for them.” She smiles and it lights up her eyes. “He’s such a good boy, well, good man. Do you know that when Caleb was still living in New York and my husband was traveling for business, Matt would come by here once a week to check that we were all okay and see if the kids needed any help with their studies, or really anything at all. He wanted to make sure we were taken care of.”
I smile at his thoughtfulness and my heart warms at her words.
“Even with all of his struggles, he’s grown into an amazing man and I’m very proud of him.” She stares at me and my cheeks flush in response. “You care about him.” It’s a statement not a question and she taps a finger to her lips as she waits for an answer.
“Yes, I do care about him…a lot. We’re having a nice time together. But, well, I go back to New York in eight days…back to my life.” The words leave my mouth and I feel as if I’ve eaten something rotten.
“Right. Matt mentioned that to me.”
He did?
She pats my knee with a warm smile, the kind of smile that tells you everything will be okay, the kind that makes you feel it, too. “One moment at a time, sweetie. Because in the end, that’s all we’ve got. So make the most of each and every one.” She stands up and heads to the fridge, looking over her shoulder at me. “I like you, Fran. You’re like a breath of fresh air. Matt hasn’t brought too many girls here over the years, but the ones that he has brought.…” She grimaces and shakes her head. “Well, they weren’t like you and me.” She winks like she just told me some big secret and holds the pie up in the air. “Let’s go eat pie!”
We trot back out to the living room just as Matt is coming down the stairs. He purposefully bumps into me and grins.
“Watch it, Dixon,” I warn, my lips quirking up into a teasing smile.
He grabs hold of my arm and pulls me close, his warm breath filling my ear. “When you say my name like that it makes me hard, and when I get hard I think about how much I want to fuck you. I’m so ready to be inside you, Fran, and if you’re not careful I might take you up to the guest room and spread you open right there. So choose your words carefully, baby.”
I let out a gasp I’m praying no one heard and shoot him a warning glare. “Mr. and Mrs. Body are right over there,” I whisper, and sure enough when I look up, Mrs. Brody is watching us with a pleased smile. Clearing my throat and willing away the desire unfurling between my legs, I link hands with Mr. Sex On a Stick and we plop down on the couch across from Mr. and Mrs. Brody.
It’s quiet for a minute as we all dig into the pie, Mr. Brody’s voice being the one to interrupt the silence. “So Fran, Matt tells us you’re in design, also.” And for the second time tonight I realize Matt’s been talking a lot about me and I grin internally at the thought.
“Yes, I work at Hudson & Mathers in New York. They’re an advertising firm, heavy into consumer branding and marketing campaigns. I like it a lot.”
“It’s interesting that you’re both in the creative field,” he says, his salt ‘n’ pepper eyebrows raising on a grin. “Quite a coincidence, I’d say.”
Mrs. Brody jabs her elbow into his side and he scowls, then takes a dollop of whipped cream and smashes it onto her cheek. She wipes it off and licks her fingers, and the way he’s eyeing her doesn’t go unnoticed, not by me anyway.
“Well,” Matt coughs rather loudly, as if that was a cue they want to be alone, “we should probably get going. It’s kinda late.”
“Oh,” Mrs. Brody says with a glimmer of disappointment as she glances at the clock behind the sofa, “I didn’t realize how late it was.”
I walk over to Mr. Brody and bend down to give him a hug. “It was so nice to meet you, Jim, and I hope you’ll be all healed up soon.”
“It was great meeting you, Fran, and I hope to see you again,” he says, tilting his head and glancing over at Matt with an approving smile, and my heart does a tiny pitter-patter in my chest.
We collect the plates and forks from the coffee table and I help Mrs. Brody bring them into the kitchen while Matt says goodbye to Mr. Brody. She stacks the plates on the counter and turns to me, her gaze wrapping me in a warm hug as she takes both of my hands in her own.
“I’m so pleased to have met you, Fran, and like Jim said, I do hope we see you again.” She looks down at our hands in hesitation and I can tell she wants to say something else. “Be good to our Matt. He’s one of a kind.”
She’s caught me a bit off guard and I’m not sure how to respond to that, so I reply with the only thing I have…honesty. “Yes, I’m starting to see that.”
My answer must have satisfied her because she nods her head and we wander back out to the living room where Matt’s waiting for us by the door. “Ready, sunshine?” he asks, and I catch the smile on Mrs. Brody’s face.
“Yup.”
She envelops Matt in a huge hug and then lathers me with the same affection. “I’ll see you soon, sweetie. Thanks again for helping with the bookcases,” she tells him before walking us outside. “We’ll see you soon. Goodnight.”
“Goodnight,” we both say, as Matt puts his arm around my waist and we make our way to the car, turning back to see Mrs. Brody standing in the doorway with yet another huge smile on her face.
“Matty!”
I hear a high-pitched scream and watch a petite, willowy silhouette bound toward us in the darkness, throwing her arms around Matt, nearly knocking him over and making me take a step back.
He returns the hug immediately, engulfing her small frame, lifting her off the ground. “Hey! Trace! I’m so glad to see you!” he says with excitement, finally setting her back down.
“I’m just here to pick up something. I’m off to the club with some friends.”
He glances over at me and brings me close to his side. “Fran, this is Tracy, Caleb’s sister, Tracy, this is Fran, my.…” He pauses, and I wait for the label. Friend? Girlfriend? Fling?