“I understand,” Lisa had said. She was curled up on her sofa in her comfy robe, leaning on pillows. She’d turned off most of the lights, because she liked the sense of intimacy she felt while they were talking. “When I first worked for Vesta, before you were born—”
“Stop that,” Mack interrupted.
Lisa was determined to keep them both aware of the difference in their ages before they got too close. Before she got hurt.
“Okay,” Lisa said. “Anyway, Vestments sold clothing for the young and chic and sexy. Very short skirts. Plunging necklines. Skintight and revealing.”
“I’d like to see you in something tight and revealing,” Mack said.
She ignored him. “I suggested we sell more traditional apparel. Blazers, silk shirts, long-sleeved dresses. More women came in, and younger women also bought some of the more tasteful clothing. Hermès scarves. That sort of thing.”
“What do you sell now?”
“The same stuff, really. Classy clothing. Elegance never goes out of style.”
“Does Juliet wear what you sell?”
“Heavens, no. She’s very NYC urban. Lots of black, knee-high boots.”
“I’ll bet Beth would buy your clothes more often if she could afford them. She’s always liked the clothing you carry.” Mack laughed. “Listen to me, as if I know anything about fashion.”
“But that’s interesting,” Lisa told him, and it was. Speaking about clothing led them to talking about their children, what they’d been like as children, what their goals were now.
As they talked, Lisa settled more deeply into the sofa cushions. Somehow this conversation made her feel more comfortable with Mack. Neither one of them went to bars, and Mack never really had, since he became a father at twenty-one. They had the work ethic ingrained in them, and that didn’t bother them one single bit. They both loved their work, the routine, their everyday life.
“Oh, Lord,” Lisa said after they’d talked for over an hour, “I’m afraid you’re as much of a stick-in-the-mud as I am.”
“Yes, I think we’re very much alike,” Mack agreed.
Lisa paused, wondering about the consequences of this conversation. Before she could speak, Mack said, “So the age thing shouldn’t bother us, right?” Again, before Lisa could speak, he said in a joking tone, “I can put up with you being more sophisticated and better traveled than I am, and you can put up with me being callow and inexperienced.”
Lisa’s heart went into overdrive. I’m frightened! she wanted to say. But Mack was…endearing. She wanted to spend more time with him. She wanted to do more with him. “Yes, I think we can put up with each other, at least for a while.”
“Great. Okay, let’s go to the movie tomorrow night.”
“I’d like that,” Lisa said.
“Then it’s a date. I’ll get tickets in advance and pick you up at six-thirty.”
“Lovely. Thank you, Mack. See you then.”
“I might see you before then.”
“Really?” Lisa’s heart raced.
“I’m working on your house with my crew, you know.” Mack laughed as he spoke.
“Oh, right. This conversation took me to another sphere of reality.”
“And I haven’t even gotten started,” Mack told her with a smile in his voice.
* * *
—
The movie playing at Dreamland, the only theater on the island, was a biographical drama about a famous singer whose star had faded. It was oddly exciting to sit in the dark room with Mack’s shoulder touching hers, and when Mack reached for Lisa’s hand, and held it until the movie ended, Lisa was almost too overwhelmed to pay attention to the screen.
But when the movie drew to its conclusion, Lisa wanted to sink in her seat and disappear before the lights came on and the audience saw her with Mack.
To her surprise, as the lights exposed the room, Mack leaned over and whispered, “Did your high school boyfriend ever kiss you in the movie theater?”
“Not with the lights on,” she whispered back, her mouth only inches from his ear.
“Let’s go to your house,” he said.
The theater was only half full. No teens. As they filed out into the foyer, some people said hello to Mack, some to Lisa, and Lisa’s friends grinned and did a thumbs-up which Lisa hoped Mack didn’t see. Women who were Mack’s age spoke to him before giving Lisa a brief up-and-down glance.
And Mack put his hand on Lisa’s waist, gently guiding her to the door.
They walked instead of driving to Lisa’s house. It was a beautiful night, calm, windless, with the moon riding high in the sky. Main Street was bright with businesses staying open late now that summer was here. They held hands and window-shopped as they walked. Art galleries, real estate companies, clothing shops, the bookstore, the pharmacy. Brick sidewalks and a cobblestone street. No stoplights, no neon, only old-fashioned streetlights and tall trees full and heavy with summer leaves.
“When I walk here, I sometimes think of all the people in past generations who have walked just like this,” Mack said.
“Yes. I do that, too,” Lisa replied. “I’ve read that you’re either a future person or a past person.”
“I guess I’m both,” Mack said. “I revere the past, which is why I try to restore old houses, so they’ll be lived in in the future.”
“But some things can never be returned to the perfect state they were in when they were young,” Lisa said awkwardly.
“And some things get better as they grow old,” Mack said. “Many people, for example, become more beautiful. Softer. So a person wants to sink right into them.”
Lisa couldn’t get her breath.
Mack stopped walking. They were only a block from her house, and on Fair Street many of the homes had not yet been opened for the summer, so only the moonlight illuminated their faces. Mack gently embraced Lisa, turning her to face him. He stared at her for a long moment, his eyes silver in the soft light, and Lisa knew her eyes must look silver, too. He bent and kissed her. The air was very quiet. No cars passed, no dogs barked, even the leaves didn’t rustle on the trees. Mack’s mouth was warm and insistent. Lisa raised her arms around his neck and pulled him closer.
When they broke apart, they were both out of breath.
“I’ll race you to the house,” Mack said.
Lisa let her head fall back as she broke into laughter. At this moment, age did not matter. Desire mattered, and it was overwhelming her, so she took Mack’s hand and pulled him along to her house, both of them laughing.