The Bastard Ch. 01

"No. I'll do it. But thanks." I gave her a little kiss.

"What was that all about?" It was Elizabeth, right at my elbow. She's so quiet, so unobtrusive sometimes, that I hadn't noticed her.

"A pillar of the writers' community, come crashing to earth."

Later I ran into Robb again. He was chatting it up with a potential contributor I'd been trying to see for weeks, who slipped away when he spotted me. Robb enjoyed seeing me lose one. "Your Elizabeth is pretty sharp," he said while he got another brandy. "But I can't imagine you dating a musician. I bet she hasn't got a cent to donate."

"Cynic. I tell you, what she's got is talent." He gave me a look. "No. Not that type. Not that I'd know. Musical talent. She makes the thing hum like lime cello. Didn't she talk about auditioning?"

"No. I thought she was just someone who played."

"Yah. I guess she wouldn't. Well, she's got it, Robb. The real thing. You ought to audition her."

"I take it that's your professional opinion?"

"You really oughta."

"And you're the expert?"

"Have I ever steered you wrong?"

"You've never tried to steer me at all."

"Well, there you have it!" I put my hands out, palms up, like the magician who's just made the naked lady disappear.

Robb swirled his brandy. He put a finger in it and tasted the finger. High class. "Are you sure you're not just trying to look good to her, to get her in bed?"

"She'll never know we had this conversation. Not that I would mind going to bed with her." We both laughed. "Look. Let's make it interesting. If you don't like her playing, I'll buy you lunch."

"And if she's good?"

"You'll be happy to treat me. And none of your damned chowdah. I want Thai." He laughed again.

* * * * *

Afterwards, I drove Elizabeth to the Commons, where it was quiet, and we walked along the edge, sipping coffee from Styrofoam mugs. Being alone with her gave me the best odds, and it was a romantic night—clear, chilly, and still. Nice for a walk. She was thrilled because Robb had told her to call for an audition.

"You have interesting friends, Edward."

"It makes up for my not being interesting myself." She looked at me. "I'm joking! I'm joking! I'm the most interesting one of all. Anyway, my job lets me meet a lot of arts people and get invited to their parties."

"You have to be careful. Sometimes I don't get the joke."

"Tell you what. I'll wear a red flashing flower in my lapel, to warn you." She scowled and punched me on the arm. That was certainly unexpected. "Don't make me spill my coffee."

After a minute, "Tell me about your drunken friend."

"Not a friend. Not really. Really not. The drunken part is right. That's his usual state, that, or getting drunk, or coming down from a drunk, or planning to get drunk. I don't know if the drinking ruined his writing. It's a chicken-egg thing. He was very talented. Wrote a wonderful novel based on his sex life with his first wife and some of her friends."

Elizabeth scowled at me again and I raised a hand. "That's not a joke. It's beautifully written. Seriously. Text like Pinot Noir. It was nominated for a National Book Award. Well, that was then. Now he can't write, and he's driven away his friends, and I think Harvard may force him to retire. And Anne bears the brunt."

We waited at a curb for a line of cars to go by. We were near the Cheers bar.

"She's a lot younger than him."

Yes, and you're younger than me, my dear. Does that mean I can't fuck you? How will it feel when I'm sliding inside your pristine pussy?

"He looks older than he is, but yah, she was his grad student."

"You're close to her?"

You'll never know how close.

"Oh, I love Annie. You'll like her if you get to know her."

"You were really good with her."

"Well, I'm trying to get her to go to bed with me." Elizabeth frowned at me yet again, and I gave her my best, boyish smile. "Red flower flashes!"

She hit me on the arm again. "Just take a compliment, Edward."

"Yes'm. You're going to leave a bruise." I tossed my cup into a trashcan. "The fact is she should leave him, but she won't."

"And his grant application?"

My turn to frown. "Everyone knows why he doesn't get grants anymore. What I don't know is what I'm going to tell him." Time to change the subject. "So how did it go with Robb?"

"Well, we had a nice conversation. Then later he just mentioned the audition out of the blue."

"Excellent! He sees talent." I rubbed my fingertips together like Montgomery Burns, and Elizabeth stepped back and looked at me strangely.

"You didn't have anything to do with that, did you?"

"No. I'm teasing. Red flower flashes now!" I made some firecracker motions in the air with my hands. "Don't hit me, Mistress Elizabeth! I didn't mean to make you suspicious. I'm just glad for you. You know I like your playing."

I got a goodnight kiss, a sweet one. One date down. No, no sex, but progress made. I was sure it was going to happen. And thank you, Paul.

How could I know that it was the end of it all?

End of Chapter 1