When Eve moved to New York, she fell out of contact with many of her friends, and much as she liked the other women at the office, part of her always saw them as competition. With such a lack of female friends, she was overjoyed, albeit a little nervous when Philip invited her to spend an afternoon with his sister and niece. Her palms were sweaty by the time they reached the front door, but here fears were dispelled when Claire Vandamm emerged from the house.
"Philip, daring!" Claire ran down the front steps to meet them. Eve hadn't known what to expect, so Claire's appearance was at one surprising and completely expected. She was very much the hostess type; thick red (in spite of her age) hair piled atop her head, a conservative yet colorful print dress that showed off an obviously well cared for body. She held Philip at arm's length as she admired him. "Oh, that suit looks marvelous on you!" She quickly turned and shook Eve's hand. "And Eve, how wonderful to finally meet you! Oh, do come inside." Eve smiled when she noted that Claire and Philip had very similar interior decorating tastes. The furnishing wasn't quite so sparse, but it was just as elegant. They sat in the living room and Eve was flattered by all the questions that Claire asked her. Philip had obviously kept her informed, since she knew the name of Eve's boss, what project she was working on, and that she hadn't liked Redhead as much as Philip or Claire had. After about half and hour, Claire's daughter Mandy burst in. She was an extraordinary sight. She wore blue jeans with a pink plaid top and her hair was cut short and shaved on one side.
"Hey, Uncle Philip!"
"Now, what do you mean 'Hey uncle Philip'? I was supposed to be a surprise. I even parked up the street so you wouldn't know I was here."
She shrugged. "No one else here has a car like that. Plus, the license plate has a 41 in it, which I always remember 'cause it's my birth year. Sorry, James Bond" she hugged him tightly. "Still good to see you, though. And you" she turned to Eve "you the uh fash-industrial designer, yeah?"
"Um, yes, yes I am"
"Is that like making stuff look cool so people will buy them?"
"Why yes, I suppose you could put it like that."
"That sounds really neat. Kinda hard, though. Like I feel like there are only a certain number of things you can do with something, y' know?"
"Yes, I know what you're saying, and it can be difficult sometimes to come up with a new idea without making it somehow less functional."
"Yeah, you must be mad creative."
"Well, I'm not sure I would quite go that far, but thank you."
"Yeah." Mandy nodded pensively. "Hey, Uncle Philip, you wanna see Charlie? I can prob'ly find him for you."
"That would be marvelous. He always seems rather dispirited when I visit and you're not around."
"'Kay, then!" she beamed before dashing to her room.
"Oh, Claire" Philip patted his sister's knee "you know I think college has given her an extra sort of spark."
Eve smiled to herself. It was true that he was a bit old, but if they started right away, there was no reason he couldn't be an excellent father. Eve had never particularly wanted children, but it was comforting to know that if she and Philip got really serious, it would be an option. Really serious she thought, surprised by the turn her mind had taken. She shifted her glance to the fireplace, embarrassed, as though he and Claire could suddenly read her mind. Marriage hadn't occurred to her, at least not as it related to Philip. There was no reason it couldn't happen, though. He was rich and he adored her. His frequent business trips would be inconvenient, but if she kept her job she wouldn't be lonely without him.
"Got 'im!" Mandy called before she reappeared a few moments later, cradling a fat, black and white cat in her arms. "I think he's just jealous being around you since he's so used ta' being the only man around the house." She handed Charlie off to Philip who stroked him idly as the four of them continued to talk. Eve was somewhat amused when she realized that Philip touched Charlie the way he touched her. It was the same distracted rubbing and stroking that she had grown so used to during the last few weeks whenever they went to a movie or play together.
There was something adorable about watching Philip with his family. They were all so animated and obviously glad to be in each other's company that the feeling was infectious and Eve didn't feel like an outsider. She was almost sad to leave them after dinner, and promised both Claire and Mandy that if she ever needed anything while Philip was out of town, she would call them for help.
Philip continued beaming as they pulled out of the driveway and Eve couldn't remember a time when she was so sure about him, and about them. She decided to ask him, not about marrying her specifically, but a general question about whether the state of matrimony was one that he would ever consider entering. The meaning of the question would be obvious enough and even if the answer was no, he could break it to her gently enough so that she wouldn't be hurt.
"Philip"
"Yes, dear?"
She took a breath, then, as Mandy would have said, chickened.
"I love you."
"Why thank you, darling." He took one hand off the steering wheel and put it against the back of her neck. "I love you too". She smiled and lightly rested her head on her shoulder while he massaged her neck. That was really all she needed from him.