LACKING VIRTUES by Thomas Kirkwood Page B

from the club director.
     
    “Aren’t you taking lessons from this guy?” Jules croaked.
     
    “Tomorrow,” Nicole whispered, feeling a tremor of anxiety. She had found the stranger attractive when he spoke to her in the restaurant the other night, and she had smiled at him very openly, not once but twice. She hoped she hadn’t given him the wrong idea. She certainly wouldn’t have smiled at him that way if she had known she would be seeing him again so soon, and at such close quarters.
     
     
     

 
     
    Chapter Eleven
     
     
     
    Wayne Jenkins polished the wine glasses with a paper napkin and, satisfied there were no more water spots, returned them to the table. He conducted one last survey of his work, making sure he had remembered all the little essentials he didn’t want to be jumping up for during a romantic dinner – salt, the corkscrew, matches for the candles, Lori’s wooden salad spoons. Everything was ready.
     
    When she came home from taking Sean to his party, he’d put the salmon on the grill and open the wine. From then on it would be clear sailing. He wasn’t much of a cook, but how could you go wrong with hors d’oeuvres from the gourmet shop around the corner, two bottles of expensive Chardonnay and a salmon that had been alive a few hours ago?
     
    He knew Lori would appreciate the effort. His promotion last year to Manager at the Spares Distribution Center had meant a lot of time on the job. She definitely got the short end of the stick when it came to work around the house. It shouldn’t be that way, he thought. She worked full-time, was the mother of a spirited 15-year-old, and her job at the brokerage house, while it didn’t bring in the $127,000 a year of his Boeing gold mine, was probably a lot more demanding.
     
    Now, finally, he had gotten smart and made the only ethical choice: he was coming to the rescue. Starting with this meal, he was going to share equally in the cooking and cleaning. He would break it to Lori over her favorite dessert, Haägen Dasz chocolate ice cream.
     
    The way he saw it, tonight marked a real milestone in their relationship. They had been through hard times together, toughed it out and endured. He was giving up the siege mentality that had served its purpose but was no longer needed. He was going to start relaxing and enjoying family life. There would be some quality time with Lori in the bedroom, too, reminiscent of those peaceful afternoons before Sean was born and his troubles at Boeing began.
     
    On the balcony he lit the grill and lingered at the railing to appreciate the fine view of Seattle. The clouds had broken to the west. It was incredible, he thought. After weeks of rain and sagging gray overcasts, there would be a proper sunset tonight at dinner. It was almost as if God were rewarding him for his efforts at self-improvement.
     
    The telephone rang. He went inside to answer it, hoping Lori had not made other plans.
     
    “Hello.”
     
    “Wayne Jenkins?” inquired a slightly accented voice.
     
    His heart sank. It was a voice from his past he’d never wanted to hear again. “You know who I am, don’t you?” the voice continued.
     
    “I . . . Mr. Hecht?”
     
    “That is correct, Wayne. I would like you to come to the downtown Hilton at once. Your old room, 2715, is booked in your name. We can chat comfortably there.”
     
    Wayne took a deep breath and tried to muster some courage. “Look, Mr. Hecht, this is a little awkward. It’s nothing about you. It’s just that I’m in the middle of cooking for a dinner party. Can’t we do this some other time? Any other time at your convenience?”
     
    “I’ll be here another hour, Wayne. Whether you wish to come or not is entirely up to you.”
     
    “It’s not up to me, Mr. Hecht.”
     
    “Then I’ll look forward to seeing you shortly. Good evening.”
     
    Wayne stared at the receiver for a while, then scribbled a note to Lori about the late dinner he was planning for the