“Can I meet him?”
“Sure. I guess so.”
“Maybe he’d like to have dinner with us, that’s a lot of crab. I can’t eat all of it myself.”
“I’ll ask him,” she said, and went to the cupboard where she kept the phone. She told him to come by at six, and Maddie couldn’t wait to meet him.
When he rang the doorbell at six o’clock, Maddie was setting the table, and she looked up to see an enormous man filling the doorway. He had a healthy face, red from the cold, and a thick crop of dark hair. He was as brightly colorful as Milagra was pale and almost invisible. He seemed to fill the room when he walked in, and smiled shyly at Maddie. Everything about him was unexpected. He walked over to shake Maddie’s hand. He was wearing a lumberjack shirt, blue jeans, and rubber boots, which he left at the door. He was strikingly tall, about six-foot-six, and his hand grasping Maddie’s was huge.
“Hi, I’m Bert English.”
“Thank you for the crab.” She smiled at him warmly after they shook hands. “It looks fantastic.”
“I’m glad you like it. I can’t get Milagra to eat it. She hates fish.”
“Did you get it in town?”
He laughed at the question. “No, I got it on my boat, from my traps. I’m a fisherman. We’re fishing crab late this year because we got a late start to the season in December. It took us a month this year to set the prices.” Maddie was faintly surprised to hear it, but nothing surprised her in Milagra’s world. He had brought a bottle of wine and set it down on the table. Along with his size and coloring, Maddie noticed that he was considerably older than her daughter, and closer to her own age. He looked to be in his late forties, a good fifteen years older than her daughter. But he looked like a gentle person. He sat down on the couch and chatted with Maddie about her trip. He was intrigued to hear that she had driven out from New York. He was intelligent and well-spoken and had read all of Milagra’s books. She sat quietly on the floor at his feet stroking one of the dogs while he and Maddie talked, and Maddie tried to figure out his role in her daughter’s life. With anyone else, she would have assumed he was a boyfriend, but with Milagra one never knew. Maddie asked him about fishing in the local waters, and he mentioned that his son was a fisherman in Alaska. By the time they sat down to dinner, Maddie liked him. And halfway through the bottle of wine, they were friends. And by then she had no doubt that he was in love with her daughter. But Milagra said and did nothing to clarify his role in her life. As always she was mysterious and impossible to read, and one couldn’t assume anything with her.
“I’d be happy to take you out on my boat sometime,” he offered as they shared the delicious crab dinner, and Milagra ate lentils and kale.
“I’d love that,” Maddie said in response to his invitation. “Could I take pictures?”
“Sure. It would be fun. What about tomorrow?”
“Would you come?” Maddie asked Milagra, but she shook her head vigorously.
“I still get seasick, and the water is rough around here.”
“What about you?” Bert asked with a look of concern as he glanced at Maddie.
“I never get seasick. What time do you go out?”
“Five o’clock in the morning.”
“Tell me where to go and I’ll be there.” She smiled at him.
They talked for a while after dinner, and Maddie really liked him. Before he left, he told her where to meet him on the dock in Fort Bragg the next day. Maddie looked at her daughter in amazement when he was gone.
“What a terrific man,” she said, and meant it. “And he’s crazy about you. How long have you known him?” Milagra was silent for a long time and looked at her mother with wide eyes.
“Do you really like him, Mom?”
“Yes, I do.”
“I was afraid you’d hate him. We’ve been together for eight years.” Maddie looked stunned by her daughter’s confession.
“Does he live with you?”
She shook her head.
“He stays here when I’m not writing. I can’t have anyone in the house when I write.”
“I think he’s a terrific guy.”
“I was afraid he wasn’t fancy enough for you. That’s why I never let you come out.” There were tears in her eyes as she said it, and she put her arms around her mother, and Maddie held her tight.
“He doesn’t have to be fancy for me, Millie. He just has to be real, and good to you. How old is he, by the way?”
“That’s the other thing I was worried about. He’s forty-eight. He’s been really upset that he’s never met you. He wanted to meet you this time. I wasn’t sure. He’s very smart.”
“I can tell,” Maddie said comfortably, feeling close to her younger daughter for the first time in years. She had finally let her in and shared something about her life. It was a first.
“Are you really going to go out on the boat?”
“Yes, I am. It sounds like fun.” And she could get some great pictures.
Milagra seemed happier than Maddie had ever seen her, and as though a thousand-pound weight had been lifted from her shoulders. “I’m so happy you like him. He’s such a good person.”
“I can see that,” Maddie said as she continued to hold Milagra in her arms. “Do you think you’ll marry him?”
“He wants to. I don’t think we need to. He makes a good living with his boat. I don’t want kids. I don’t think I could handle marriage. Too much pressure. Too many expectations. I just want to write, he says that’s fine with him. And he has a son. He’s twenty-five.” He was only eight years younger than Milagra. “He got divorced when his son was two. His wife hated being married to a fisherman.”
“You might change your mind about having kids one day,” or maybe not. “And now I have an important question to ask you.” Milagra looked instantly worried. “Do you have an alarm clock?”
Milagra laughed at the question. “Yes, I do.” They went upstairs together to find it. Maddie had already cleaned up the kitchen, and they met again in their nightgowns when Milagra came to sit on Maddie’s bed. She had already put two of her cameras in a waterproof case, ready to grab in the morning. “Thank you for liking him, Mom.”
“He’s not hard to like, and if he makes you happy, that’s all I want for you.” They had already stood the test of time, after eight years, and Milagra looked peaceful as she kissed her mother good night.