“Can we get a dog?” Nicholas had been right. The demands were endless in the first two hours, and she was scarcely mollified by the new red dress. But Nicholas was thrilled with his watch, and the clothes and the new books. He threw his arms around her neck and kissed her warmly on the cheek.
“Welcome home, Mama”
“I love you, sweetheart … and you too,” she pulled Sasha into the circle of her arms also.
“What about the dog?” Sasha inquired as her mother laughed.
“We'll see, Sasha … we'll see …” The phone spared her then, and she went to answer it. It was Simon, and she thanked him for the roses as she laughed at Nicholas and Sasha arguing about the mythical wolfhound.
“Do you miss me yet?”
“Very much. I think I need a referee here.”
“Excellent. I'll apply for the job. How about dinner tomorrow night?”
“How about a dog?” she laughed and he sounded confused, he could hear the excitement at the other end.
“You want to eat a dog?”
“That's a nice thought,” she laughed again, suddenly missing him more than she thought she would.
“I'll pick you up at eight o'clock.” But she panicked as she thought about it. What would the children say? What would Nicholas think? She wanted to call him back and tell him she'd changed her mind, but even after they went to bed, she couldn't bring herself to do it.
He appeared promptly at eight o'clock the following night, and rang the bell, just as Zoya came out of her room. The apartment was small, but simple and elegant. They had very few things, but nowadays what they had was good. He stood in the doorway looking larger than life, and as she ushered him inside, she saw Sasha staring at him.
“Who's that?” Sasha inquired, making her mother furious that she was so rude. Nicholas was right about her.
“This is Mr. Hirsch, may I present my daughter, Alexandra?”
“How do you do?” He shook her hand solemnly and with that Nicholas wandered in.
“Oh hello … how are you?” He smiled ingenuously, and was telling Sasha what a pest she was as they left. Zoya smiled as she closed the door, and they waited for the elevator to take them down. She was worried about the look she'd seen in Sasha's eyes. It was as though she knew why he was there, but Simon told her he had expected it and he had a very thick skin, so not to worry.
He took her to dinner at “21,” and they talked for hours, as they had on the ship. And then slowly he walked her home, and kissed her gently as they stood a few feet from her house.
“I can't stand not seeing you. I was like a kid waiting for Christmas all day today. Why don't we take the children somewhere tomorrow afternoon?” It would be Sunday and she didn't have to work, and she liked the idea, but she was also nervous about what Sasha would say, or even gentle Nicholas.
“What will the children think?”
“They'll think that they have a new friend. Is that so terrible?”
“They might be very rude to you again.”
“I can handle it. Zoya, I don't think you understand. This is everything I want. I meant what I told you on the ship. I love you.”
“How do you know? How can you be so sure?” She was still afraid of what she felt for him, but she had missed him all day too, and she hated to leave him now, even until the next day. How was it possible? How had it happened to her sifter all these years? She knew she was in love with him too. But she didn't know what to do about it yet. She still wanted to run away, and she was no longer sure she could.
“Just give it a chance, my love.” He kissed her again. “I'll come to pick you all up at noon.”
“You're a very brave man.”
He smiled at her happily. “Not as brave as you, my love. See you tomorrow. Maybe we'll take a drive somewhere.”
“The children would love that.”
And the next morning, when he arrived, in spite of Sasha's complaints that she wanted to play with her dolls, they drove to Long Island and loved it. Nicholas almost fainted when he saw the car, a brand-new Cadillac, in a distinguished shade of dark green, with white sidewall tires, and every possible new device. He had never seen anything so beautiful, and Simon invited him to sit next to him in the front seat.
“Would you like to drive it, son?” He waited until they were on a back road, and actually let Nicholas take the wheel. The boy felt as though he had died and gone to heaven, as Zoya watched him from where she sat in the backseat with Sasha. Simon was right, the boy needed a man in his life. He needed a friend. Even Sasha seemed to behave better than she had in months, and she flirted mercilessly with Simon as they drove home again. He had taken them to lunch at a little restaurant he knew. They ate oysters and shrimp, and for dessert they had ice cream.
“Well, Countess Ossupov,” he teased, once the children had gone to bed, and he was sitting in the living room with her. “How did I do? Pass or fail?”
“What do you think? Nicholas was never so happy in his life, and I think Sasha is in love with you.”
