Tara sitting at her desk and Alan sitting on the couch looked like two attorneys discussing some important legal matter. The reality was when the hallway on the other side of the glass wall had cleared for a moment, on Tara's mark, Alan had crawled out from under her desk after…attending to her needs and they were both catching their breath.
She sighed, "I do so appreciate your…creativity, Alan. Then again, one has to be creative in this place. Whose idea was it to have glass walls for the offices anyway?"
Alan laughed, "Some voyeur's, I'm sure." He glanced at his watch, noted the time and said, "Well, enough fun and games. I'm going to my office to do some actual, billable work." He stood up and smoothed his jacket, then reached into his inner pocket and pulled out some breath mints. He smiled wickedly at Tara as he popped two into his mouth. "I'll come back to see you before I leave tonight."
Tara watched him as he moved toward her door. "Alan," she called. When he turned around to face her, she asked, "Is Adrienne still in town?"
Alan, for the briefest of moments, considered lying as it seemed easier than the truth, but he didn't really want to start down that slippery slope. "Yes, she's still in town. I'm actually expecting a call from her."
Tara reached into her drawer and pulled out a file. She glanced up at Alan and asked, "Are you seeing her tonight?"
Alan leaned against the door and replied, "I don't know. Would you have a problem if I were to see her tonight?"
"I imagine that would depend on the reason why you were seeing her," she retorted before focusing her attention on the papers in the file.
Alan exhaled loudly and exited her office; he knew that somehow, he was in the doghouse, but wasn't exactly sure how to make it better. I don't think this is going to go well for me.
Alan was picking Denny's brain for advice on how to handle a civil case. If anyone had walked into the office, she would have heard what sounded like a conversation about produce. Denny was going on and on about carrots, lettuce, turnips and tomatoes. Anyone else would have dismissed what Denny was saying out of hand. Not Alan; he understood that Denny Crane had forgotten more about the law than most people ever knew in the first place and, if allowed to speak freely, Denny would give great advice. Even if he didn't realize it. "Thank you, Denny, you're right. Getting the jury to see that this is about harvesting turnips is the best way to go. You're a genius!"
The older man leaned back on the sofa and grinned. "Denny Crane!"
Alan smiled at his best friend and declared, "Indeed." Just then, the intercom buzzed. Alan pressed the speaker button. "Yes, Catherine."
"Your…friend is on line two, dear."
Alan decided to play dumb, "Who would that be, Catherine?"
He was answered with an exasperated sigh before Catherine said, "Adrienne, dear. Please don't ask me to say her name again."
Alan checked his watch, it was five PM. He pushed line two and picked up the receiver. At the mention of Adrienne's name, Denny's ears had perked up and he listened intently to Alan's half of the conversation. After about ten minutes, he hung up.
Denny leaned forward, "Well? She spoke to him, didn't she? Did she say how it went?"
"She wants to meet me this evening. Denny, would you mind if I sleep over and postpone our balcony time tonight until I get to your house? I really think I need to talk to Adrienne completely sober."
Denny stood up and watched as Alan gathered his things and prepared to leave. "That's fine, Alan. This whole thing has you nervous as hell," Denny observed.
Alan nodded. "I told Adrienne that I wasn't nervous until she made me be, but the truth is I've been thinking about the day our son might contact us ever since he turned twenty - two and his parents told him about us. I'm not just nervous, I'm…afraid."
Denny clapped Alan's shoulder and said, "I'm sure you and Adrienne will handle this just fine. Trust yourself; you made the right decision when you were kids and you'll both make good decisions now."
Alan smiled as he and Denny walked out of his office. "I really appreciate your support, Denny. I'll see you later tonight; I'm going to say goodnight to Tara."
I knew this wasn't going to go well, I just knew it. Tara hadn't said anything untoward when Alan said he was leaving to meet Adrienne, but the set of her face told him she was more than a little displeased. I just know that if I leave now, the next few days, if not weeks, of my life are going to be miserable, but I really don't know what to do here. Alan took a deep breath, let it out and in his most conciliatory tone asked, "Are you feeling alright? You seem…annoyed."
Tara leaned back in her chair and folded her arms and replied, "Annoyed? Why ever would I be annoyed? Some woman from your past shows up unannounced at our place of business whereupon I find out from your secretary that you are a father. I understand a lot of your past is painful, but we've been seeing each other for over a year! You could have told me she exists, Alan. If she hadn't shown up yesterday, would I have known she exists?"
Alan looked at his watch and back at Tara. "Listen," he started, "you and I do need to sit down and talk and I'm sorry that we don't have time to do it now, but soon. However, I want to leave you something to think about until we talk. I sired a child, but I am not a father. And, you probably would not have known Adrienne exists if she hadn't stopped by the office. But, if you can't understand how not choosing to have my child or his mother with me has affected my life since the day she and I signed away our parental rights, I have to wonder if you know me after having dated for more than a year. I'll see you later." He smiled ruefully at her and left her office.
You may have a point, Alan, Tara thought, but this makes me wonder what else you've been keeping from me.
Fifteen minutes later found Alan on Washington Street in front of Teranga. Adrienne got out of a cab a minute later. After a quick peck on the cheek, they went inside the fairly empty restaurant and were seated at a table a little away from the bar that offered as much privacy as possible. They both opted for bottled water instead of alcohol. They ordered their meals and when the server walked away, they clinked their glasses and sipped. Alan said, "This is a first for me. I've never been to a Senegalese restaurant before."
Adrienne nodded. "Neither have I. I was looking for a place where we could talk without being disturbed. A few online reviews said this is the place you bring your lover when you want to go out without being seen. And all the reviews rave about the food. No wine tonight?"
Alan smiled and replied, "I think I should be completely clearheaded for this conversation. What did Adrian say to you? Does he still want to meet us?"
Adrienne smiled broadly. "Alan, yes, he wants to meet us and I can't wait to meet him! Can you believe it? He went to medical school! Our son is a doctor!"
It was Alan's turn to smile, "Really? What school?"
"After he graduated from SUNY at Albany, he was accepted into Cornell University's Medical School on a full scholarship. He's a first year resident at the Albany Medical Center now. He told me his specialty, but honestly, I was so nervous speaking with him I don't remember what he said. There is one thing though…"
Alan stopped smiling and leaned forward. "What is it?"
"Well, residents work an obscene amount of hours per week and are constantly on call. He was able to trade off with some of his fellow residents so that he has a block of about 12 hours of free time this Saturday. He wants to know if we would be willing to meet him in South Deerfield at noon since it's halfway between Albany and Boston. I told him I was willing and I thought you would be too, but I would ask to make sure. Can you do it?"
"Absolutely. If I have anything scheduled, I will change it."
Adrienne pulled out her cell phone and speed dialed Triple A's number. "I'll probably get his voicemail." Sure enough, Adrian's message started to play. She handed the phone to Alan and said, "You leave the message."
Alan listened to his son's voice for the first time and was surprised at how emotional it made him. After the beep sounded, he said quietly, "Adrian, this is…um, this is Alan Shore. This Saturday at noon in South Deerfield sounds like a plan. My cell is 615-555-5942. You can call or text either me or your, I mean, Adrienne to let us know where exactly to meet you. I'm really looking forward to this. See you soon. 'Bye." As he handed the phone back, he mused, "He sounds a little like me, don't you think?"
"That's why I wanted you to hear his message. He does sound like you. When he and I spoke earlier today, I did tell him some things about us; a lot of things he already knew from his parents, like how old we were when he was born and where he was born. He knows we're both single, that he has no biological siblings and that we are both only children. I told him a little about my mom and I said that I would let you tell him about your family."
Alan looked a little distressed, "Oh, dear."
Adrienne rubbed his hand and reassured him, "You don't have to tell him everything, Alan, just, whatever you feel comfortable sharing. You have three and a half days to think about it. Treat it as an opening statement if that makes it easier."
Alan allowed himself a slight grin. "Thank you, Adrienne. That might help. And, this restaurant was an excellent choice! The food was wonderful and we certainly had privacy. Would you like to have an after dinner drink?"
"Coffee would be nice. I have to be up and out early tomorrow. I'm doing some work for a bail bondsman tomorrow and Thursday."
Alan ordered coffee for both of them. After he tasted his, he looked at her and said, "Will you take my head off if I say I worry about you chasing felons all over the country?"
Adrienne put her cup down and said, "No, I won't. I'm actually working with two other hunters who are extremely good at their jobs; we've worked together before. I'll be fine. How is Tara handling all of…this business?"
Alan paid the check and waved off Adrienne's offer to split it. "I'm not sure how this is going to shake out, Adrienne. She's taking it personally that I had never mentioned you to her."
Adrienne rolled her eyes and said, "Well, for God's sake, don't tell her that I knew about her. You sidestepped the question when we were at dinner with Denny. Are you in love with her? Is she in love with you?"
They stepped to the curb and Alan hailed a cab; after they entered, Alan told the driver to go to the Onyx. Alan leaned back into the seat and finally responded, "We care deeply about each other. I don't think we're in love. I can't even tell her I love her; I tell her she smells good. I don't know how much longer we'll be together." He looked out the window and watched the city go by. When the cab arrived at the Onyx, he instructed the driver to wait while he got out to go open Adrienne's door.
She hugged him, "Thanks for dinner! We'll talk on Friday." He looked at her. "Yes, Alan, I promise I'll be careful." She kissed him on his cheek. "For the record, I get no joy from being right about your feelings for Tara. Goodnight, Sweetie."
"I know. Love you. Goodnight."
"I love you, too, Alan. Get home safe."
BLBLBLBLBLBLBLBLBLBLBLBLBLBLBL
Denny and Alan were sitting on Denny's bedroom balcony with a bottle of scotch smoking Dominican cigars. It was about eight PM when the cab dropped Alan at Denny's suburban home. It was a pleasant late summer night and both men were enjoying being in their pajamas with a gently blowing breeze swirling around them. Denny had a look on his face like he was trying to figure out algebra in his head. Finally, he looked at Alan and said, "Help me out here. You can't tell Tara that you love her; you can only tell she 'smells good,' but almost every time you speak to Adrienne, you say 'I love you.' What is that about?"
Alan pulled his cigar out of his mouth and turned his head to his friend. "I have no idea," he responded, "I can't even focus on that right now. Denny, I'm going to meet my son, my twenty - six year old son! There's nothing in my life experience to prepare me for that!"
Denny stood up and stretched, then walked around the perimeter of the balcony. "I do have some experience with this."
Alan poured more scotch for both of them and said, "Oh, really."
"Yes, really. Have you forgotten about Donny Crane? Granted, it's not exactly the same as your situation, but there are some similarities. I didn't raise him either and I only saw him four times while he was growing up with the last time being when he was twelve. Okay, so he wasn't my son biologically, but I liked him; I paid for his education and I let him keep the name when he found out he wasn't mine. Whatever. My point is: You and Adrienne made the best decision you could make given the circumstances. You have no reason to feel ashamed about what you chose to do. Didn't you tell Tara and me that you would have stepped in if you thought he was being abused?"
Alan looked down at his lap. "Yes," he whispered.
Denny had circled back to his chair and sat down. "I know you, Alan. If you had thought for even a minute that your child was in harm's way, you would have done everything in your power to save him. And, if Adrienne had thought he was being abused…"
Alan snorted, "She would have killed them and made it look like an accident."
"No doubt. When you meet Adrian Alan Anderson, hold your head up high. Be proud of what you did for him."
Alan sat looking at his glass of scotch in his lap awhile longer, then drained it and stood up. "I'm going to go read myself to sleep. Denny, you always seem to know exactly what to say to make me feel better. You really are my best friend."
Denny stood up as well. "I might as well go in, too. And, I had to make you feel better; otherwise, you would toss and turn all night and keep me awake. At my age, I need all the beauty sleep I can get."
