“You don’t look old enough to be out of law school to me,” Porter said. “Then again, everyone’s looking like a kid to me these days.”
“I assure you I have the degree and the experience with a major law firm that Gram probably told you about,” Connor said.
“Oh, she’s been singing your praises for the past hour,” Porter said. “Of course, it made me wonder why she was in here seeing me, if you’re so darn good.”
“Because I prefer to keep my business private from family,” Nell said. “Even an old woman should have a few secrets that no one will learn about till she’s gone.”
Connor laughed and leaned down to kiss her cheek. “What kind of secrets have you been hiding from us, Gram? And why would you let Dad, of all people, in on them?”
She waved off the question. “Oh, we just let Mick through the door a minute ago. He wasn’t in here while Joshua and I were going over my affairs.”
Mick scowled at her. “Hey, I can keep a secret, Ma. You have no idea of all the things people have entrusted to me over the years.”
“Name one,” she said, then laughed at her own taunt.
Mick laughed, too. “You’ll not catch me that way.” He turned to Connor. “What brings you down here?”
Connor shook his head. “You actually managed to ask that with a straight face, Dad. Maybe you should ask Bree about joining her theater company.”
“Connor and I have some business to discuss,” Porter said. “And since it’s late in the day, we should get to it.” He took Nell’s hand in his. “That is, if our business is concluded.”
“You’ve done everything I requested, as always,” Nell told him. “Come along, Mick. Maybe we can go for a drive with the top down. It’s been a while since I’ve been out in that fancy old convertible of yours.”
“Absolutely,” Mick said eagerly, always happy to show off his classic car, though he was fiercely protective when it came to letting anyone in the family drive it.
Suddenly Connor recalled his mother sneaking the convertible out of the garage on occasion, almost always when Mick had done something to displease her. He regarded his father innocently, then addressed his grandmother. “Gram, I’ll bet Mom would take you for a ride in it anytime you’d like.”
His father scowled at him. “Don’t try to stir up trouble, young man. I know all about your mother taking this car joyriding on the sly.”
“And yet you remarried her anyway,” Connor teased.
Mick scowled. “Don’t think that same forgiveness extends to you. You’re just lucky you never put a scratch on it.”
Connor had only borrowed the car once. His mother had covered for him, or at least until this very moment, he’d thought she had. Apparently those two had no secrets, after all. He decided that shutting up would be wise. Mick seemed amused by his decision.
“Will we be seeing you at the house later?” Mick asked.
“I thought I’d stay for the weekend, if that’s okay,” Connor told him, changing his mind about hightailing it straight back to Baltimore. His presence was bound to be noted, anyway, thanks to this chance encounter with Gram and his father. And it had been several weeks since he’d spent any real time with his son.
“Of course it’s okay. I’ll let your mother know. We’ll hold dinner till you get there.” Mick gave him a sly look. “Unless you have plans with Heather.”
“No plans,” Connor said, holding his gaze with a touch of defiance.
Mick muttered something under his breath that Connor couldn’t quite decipher, though he was pretty sure his father might have just called him an idiot. Mick left before Connor could confront him on it.
As Porter walked out with Mick and Connor’s grandmother, Connor looked around the office. The oversize leather furniture looked comfortable, if worn. The law books lining the wall behind the desk appeared well-used. Light flooded the room from a large bay window. He hadn’t noticed a room for a second office, which made Connor wonder if Porter intended him to work here or to set up a practice elsewhere, then funnel clients to Connor slowly as he phased out his own practice.
A moment later, Porter returned and closed the door. “So, let’s get acquainted. Why don’t you tell me about what you’ve been doing in Baltimore?”
Connor described the practice and his client list.
“Sounds depressing, if you ask me,” the old man said.
“Lately, I’ve been thinking the same thing,” Connor admitted, much to his own surprise. “But I’m not sure estate law and real estate transactions will be any better.”
“Want to know how I see it?” Porter asked.
Connor nodded.
“You practice law in a big city like Baltimore, especially when most of your cases are divorces or custody battles, you see people at their worst. You get to know them just long enough to navigate them through a rough patch in their lives. That’s the last you see of most of them, am I right?”
“Pretty much.”
“Here, you’re going to be dealing with people you know. If you’re the kind of man I’m sure your grandmother tried to raise, you’ll care about what’s happening in their lives. It won’t be a bunch of filings and motions for you. And when all’s said and done, you’ll see your clients again tomorrow, in church or on the street or at Sally’s. You’ll know how things are going for them. They’ll invite you over for a drink in their new house that you helped them get. You may be around when they’ve had a run of bad luck, but you’ll also be around for the happiest moments of their lives.” He met Connor’s gaze. “You see what I’m trying to tell you?”
“I think so,” Connor said.
“Are you a part of the community like that in Baltimore?”
“No, sir.”
“You like it that way?”
Connor thought about the life he had, especially
