'Not that I can see.'
'Do they leave her alone?'
'Occasionally. Hmm,' Diane said. 'That's something I hadn't thought about.'
'What's that?' Robert Clark asked.
Three hours after Diane took the pie over to the McCays', she and the Chief of police-though you'd never deduce his occupation from the dark turtleneck sweater and jeans he wore-sat in front, of the fire in Diane's place, discussing her odd visit with Jeff McCay.
'Why would they leave a young girl like that alone? Especially after all the traumas she had.'
Firelight flashing on various corners of the darkened living room, Clark leaned forward, put another plump white marshmallow on the willow stick he'd whittled earlier, and set the willow on the edge of the grate. 'Maybe they have a baby-sitter you don't know about.'
'I don't think so.'
'Why not?'
'Because I'd see her coming and leaving.'
He smiled. 'Weren't you the one who once told me how much she disliked nosy neighbors?'
She knew the heat on her cheeks was caused by more than the warmth of the fire. She laughed comfortably at herself. 'Gosh, I was being a hypocrite when I gave you that speech, wasn't I?'
'That's all right. We're all hypocrites-and all busybodies. It's just human nature.' He set a big, but gentle, hand on her shoulder. 'Is it all right to tell you how much I'm enjoying myself?'
She set her slender hand on his. 'It's fine, Robert. In fact, if you hadn't said it, I would have.'
For the next few minutes, they stared without words into the lapping fire, the glowing coals pleasant and reassuring on a night of five degrees below zero, with a wind-chill factor of minus eighteen. No words were necessary. Over the past three months, Diane and Robert had had five dinner dates, Diane being careful to confine their meetings to public places, and to end them all with almost childlike pecks on Robert's cheek. Neither of them wanting to make the same mistakes they had the first few times they'd gone out. Diane told Robert the truth-that she'd been a virgin when she married her husband and, consequently, the prospect of dating, let alone going to bed with anyone, terrified her. Plus, there was the residual guilt to work through. She still was not sure if it was 'proper' for her to see anyone less than a year after her husband had been buried. If Robert could accept all her anxieties and hang-ups, then she thought that going out for dinner dates made sense. If he couldn't, if he was going to push as hard as he had the first few times, then there was no sense in seeing each other because they'd both just end up frustrated and hurt. Robert accepted her terms.
Tonight was the first time she'd ever fixed a meal for them. She'd had first-date flutters all day, worrying about everything from how clean the downstairs bathroom was to the quality of the rump roast she'd bought for tonight. Fortunately, everything had turned out fine thus far.
'I have to warn you about something,' Robert said.
'Oh?'
'With the wind blowing and us nice and snug in here, I may be tempted to kiss you.'
She laughed. 'Now, that would be a shame, wouldn't it?'
'You mean, you wouldn't mind?'
'Not if that's all it is. A kiss.'
'Like this, for instance?' he said.
And then they moved to embrace each other, the rustle of clothes temporarily louder than the crackle of the fire, the warmth of her vulnerable desire temporarily warmer than even the flames.
But while she should have been enjoying the kiss, she started worrying about all the things she'd always worried about during high school and college: Was her breath all right? Was she a good kisser? Did she seem interested but not forward?
Finally, she gave in to the moment, closing her eyes, running her fingers through the back of his hair, and letting him put his tongue in her mouth at least briefly.
Gently, then, she pushed him away.
'Now, that's what I'd call a good start.' She laughed. 'But this is a very slow track.'
'Yes, I seem to remember you saying something about that.'
'And I remember you giving your word about going slow.'
He grinned and leaned over and kissed her on the forehead. 'And I remember giving my word, too. This time I don't plan to spoil anything, Diane.'
They spent the next two hours in the den watching a TV movie about an astronaut who came back to earth as an alien time bomb meant to kill the President of the United States. While it was not exactly an original premise, the script and acting were quite good, and Diane and Robert took turns telling each other how much they enjoyed it. Only a few times did Diane think of her husband and how, in much the same way, they'd sat so many nights in the den, similarly enjoying themselves.
Afterward, in the kitchen, Robert helped Diane load up the dishwasher. In no time the appliance was thrumming and Robert was glancing at his watch.
'I'd say it's time for a respectable couple without a chaperone to say good-bye for the evening,' he said.
She kissed him on the cheek. 'Thanks for keeping your word. I've had a great time.'
'I hope I've earned another invitation.'
'I was just thinking about asking you for Saturday night.'
'How about if I rent a movie?'
'That sounds great. I hadn't thought of that.'
'Did you ever see Cape Fear, with Robert Mitchum and Gregory Peck?'
'I don't think so.'
'Then that's what I'll bring. If you like suspense movies, you'll love this one. I promise.'
'Fantastic!' she said, walking him through the house to the front closet, where she gave him his rugged green parka.
Wrapping his tan wool scarf around his neck, he puckered his lips and pushed his face forward.
She kissed him quickly and withdrew.
'I've had a beautiful evening, Robert. I really have.'
'So have I. And I almost hate to ruin it.'
They were at the front door now.
'Ruin it? How?' she asked.
'By asking you to do me a little favor.'
'Oh?'
'Uh-huh.' He nodded in the direction of the McCay home. 'The next time you see that both Mindy and Jeff are out of the house, call me right away, all right?'
'Sure, if you'd like. But why?'
'Because I'm going to go in there and look around.'
'For what?'
He shrugged. 'I'm not sure. But there's something odd going on there. They won't let anybody in anymore-no doctors, no clergy, no social workers-nobody. And they won't let Jenny go to school…or go out anywhere, for that matter.' He smiled. 'Now, as one busybody to another, aren't you kind of curious about that?'
She opened the door. It was like throwing back the covering on a deep freeze. Even inside, the temperature seemed to drop by twenty degrees.
'I'll call you as soon as they both leave the house.'
He took her hand and held it. 'Maybe if I get lucky I can even persuade you to go in there with me.'
She nodded. 'I'd like that.' Her dark eyes became somber. 'I'd like to see Jenny again. I miss her.'
He squeezed her hand, and then made his way out into the howling night.
Diane came awake around two o'clock that morning. At first she assumed it was the wind that had brought her up from the depths of a cozy, warm sleep, a wind furious enough to rattle windows and set chill invisible snakes of cold air slithering across the bedroom floor.
Beneath her electric blanket Diane stirred, but only grudgingly. She had been dreaming of a summer picnic
