A man with thick golden brown hair and beautiful cerulean eyes accompanied her. He was wearing one of Winston's morning robes, and although he wasn't quite 'Winston's height, filled it out well. The first thing that struck me about him was that he was years younger than Mommy. There was also something vaguely familiar about his very handsome face, and for a few moments I actually wandered if he was an actor.
"Kirby," she said, "this is my daughter. Grace. Grace, this is Kirby Scott."
"Hi," he said. She has your best features. Jackie." he told Mommy, and she smiled.
"I'm absolutely ravenous." she announced, and called for the maid,
Kirby Scott sat across from me, "Your mother tells me you're quite the sailor." he said.
"I haven't done it for a while," I replied, still a bit taken aback by his presence and the fact that they had obviously spent the night together right down the corridor from me.
"That's a shame. I've done quite a bit of sailing myself, although I was never on a sailing team or anything. I bet that was fun."
I looked at Mommy. How much had she told this stranger about me? I wondered. She had an expression of self-satisfaction on her face as if bringing this young, handsome man to breakfast was a major accomplishment.
"Maybe we could take the boat out today," he continued, "Jackie Lee wants to go, don't you. Jackie?"
Mommy smiled at him. "Yes," she said. "Yes. I do."
"But you hate sailing," I reminded her.
"I don't hate it," she said. "I just like to feel safe, like to feel like I'm with someone who really knows what he's doing." She turned an ingratiating smile on Kirby Scott,
Something turned and twisted under my breasts. "Winston was an excellent sailor. He obviously knew what he was doing. too. He taught me enough to qualify me immediately for the college team," I shot back at her.
She held her smile although it looked as if her whole face might shatter like thin china any second.
"So then, why not go out with us today?" Kirby interjected.
I turned to him with as hard and cold a look as I could manage, but he didn't flinch. His eyes met my eves, and he widened his smile.
"I don't want to," I said slowly, pronouncing each vowel and consonant hard and sharply.
He slugged. "If you change your mind, we'll be glad to have you join us. Say about noon. We were
thinking of taking a lunch." -I looked at Mommy. Who was this man? We were thinking of taking a lunch? "I thought you said eating on the sailboat was uncomfortable. The ocean -rocked too much. You weren't even fond of eating on the yacht anymore," I reminded her.
"We'll find calm waters," Kirby said. It
was as if he had become her mouth, answering everything for her, speaking for her.
"I hope you do." I said. "Otherwise she might throw up."
"Grace!" Mommy cried. "We're having breakfast."
"I'm not. I'm finished.'" I said. I rose.
"See you later," Kirby said, still holding that handsome smile.
"Whatever," I said, and left them. Almost before I reached the stairs I could hear them laughing. I went up to my room and debated getting dressed and taking a ride to the bookstore in the mall. After I showered and fixed my hair I paused at the window and looked out. I saw Kirby and Mommy moving toward the dock. He had a towel around his shoulders and wore only an abbreviated bathing suit and sandals. She was in one of her expensive sailing outfits she had rarely worn. Even from this distance I could see how trim he was. Mommy leaned on his arm, and when he said something, she laughed, and they hurried like two teenagers down to the dock and the sailboat.
I got dressed as quickly as I could, suddenly eager to be anywhere else.
.
After that. Kirby Scott became Mommy's constant escort. If he didn't stay overnight he was there by noon the following day, and they were off to do things together. Whenever I asked her about him, and especially asked about his age, she told me not to be so concerned. He was just a distraction.
"But what does he do?" I pursued. "He seems available to do anything you want anytime you want, and he doesn't look old enough to be retired."