When We Meet Again

Chapter 12

Amanda Leonard walked to the sink to fill the kettle with water. She was tense and she wasn’t sure why. It wasn’t the boy exactly. A blind man could see that he had it quite bad for her daughter. Still she couldn’t shake the nagging feeling that he was trouble with a capital Heart Break. She put the kettle on to boil and sat down on the kitchen table waiting expectantly to see what he would say to her. She’d learned from her mother that the best way to interrogate someone was to say nothing at all.

“You have a well-kept house Mrs. Leonard,” he ventured shakily. Amanda smiled internally; she guessed that by his standards, they probably lived in a dump. Still, he was a diplomat – she gave him that.

“Thank you,” she said dryly. Meaghan was hovering anxiously looking like she didn’t know what to do with herself.

“Meaghan get some tea cups won’t you?” she told her. Meaghan jumped to the task, looking relieved at having something to do. Dean watched her, the hunger in his eyes apparent. Was he aware of it? Amanda doubted it, not with her mother sitting right in front of him surely.

“So Dean Wesson, what is it that you do again?” she asked him and watched him drag his eyes away from her daughter to focus on her again.

“I’m a…well I run my family’s business,” he said lamely.

“I see. So is it your day off today or does the boss choose the time he gets to work?” she asked. She saw Meaghan smile before she turned away to pick up some saucers and wipe the dust off them.

Dean laughed as well. “Well it’s not like they can fire me”, he said with a shrug. At least he was honest. But then he hurried on maybe so as not to give the impression of being irresponsible. “Not that I don’t care about the job but I do believe I have some time this morning that’s free on my schedule.”

Amanda nodded and then stood up to pick up the steaming kettle and make up some tea. She had some chamomile tea that would probably help the poor boy’s nerves right now.

“We didn’t meet when my daughter and you were in school together but I did hear that there was some sort of conflict between you. What changed?” she asked casually and felt the young man tense. She pushed his tea toward him and he automatically took a sip and then grimaced at the taste. Clearly chamomile wasn’t his favorite.

“I personally had no conflict with your daughter.” He said but his eyes were on his cup and not on her. “It was just an unfortunate misunderstanding,” he continued weakly.

“Hmm, I see. A misunderstanding you say? So you didn’t give your classmates the impression that my daughter was a wh*re?” she asked equally casually.

“Mom!” Meaghan whispered in shocked tones, widening her eyes at her the same way Amanda used to do to her when she’d wanted Meaghan to behave in front of company in younger times. Amanda gave her a look reminiscent to many Meaghan had given her as a teenager and then turned back to stare at a very flushed Dean, demanding an answer. There was a hint of mischief deep in her eyes, but most of her was in full tiger mom mode, defending her cub if ten years too late.

“No I most definitely did not say any such thing about your daughter,” he said and this time he met her eyes.

“Hmm,” Amanda said. “Well then I just don’t know where those rumors sprang from; they certainly weren’t true.”

“An unfortunate case of jealousy. I’m so sorry she had to go through that,” Dean said looking truly contrite.

Amanda shrugged, “Well I guess its water under the bridge now. Will you drop me off at the train station on the way to your office?” she asked standing up. “I’m sure Meaghan could use some rest.”

Meaghan’s face twisted in amusement but she said nothing. Dean opened his mouth and then closed it, nodding in acquiescence which further amused Meaghan.

“I’ll wait outside while you say goodbye,” Amanda said picking her bag back up and marching to the door. Meaghan lifted her eyes to Dean in commiseration.

“I see where you get it,” he murmured to her watching her mother leave.

“Get what?” Meaghan asked preparing to be offended on both their behalves.

“The sass,” Dean says grinning. Meaghan was so prepared to go on the attack that she was already glaring. It took a minute for what he’d said to sink in.

“Okay, so I better leave before…” he smiled at Meaghan reached down to press a chaste kiss on her cheek and turned to the door.

“So I’ll see you…later?” Meaghan couldn’t resist calling out.

“Count on it,” Dean said without turning around. Meaghan smiled and went off to sleep. It really had been a long night.