Arlene James - A Mommy in Mind

The TV star lost his smile, his eyes narrowing, but the next instant Matthews was “on” again, all affable charm. His voice smoothed, resonating parental concern.

“My son’s got a little sunburn. You know how it is. Four-year-olds are sensitive. We were tossing a ball around in the backyard and lost track of time. Nothing serious, but we didn’t want him out in the sun again today. Like I told my wife, we don’t want to set the boy up for skin cancer twenty years down the road, now do we?”

Ramon had to hand it to the guy. He’d wielded the brush adroitly, taking the teeth out of the innuendo and painting himself as a conscientious family man in the same stroke. Yet, the picture struck Ramon as fatuous. Matthews reinforced that impression by turning abruptly, announcing that he was needed elsewhere and quickly striding away.

A dozen or so die-hard admirers followed him. The reporter who’d brought him to heel stayed behind, however, scribbling madly on his pad. Lori turned to Ramon.

“Stay here.”

He cocked his head, surprised that she was even aware of his presence. Besides, it had been, well, years since anyone, in or out of a judge’s robe, had given him such a blunt, direct order. Feeling rather like an obedient pet, Ramon stayed put and watched Lori push the stroller toward, not the attractive local celebrity, but the thin-haired, slope-shouldered reporter. Coming to a halt, Lori reached out and plucked a small tape recorder from the fellow’s shirt pocket. He made a grab for it, but Lori appeared to switch it off before handing it back.

What followed became an increasingly animated conversation carried out in harsh whispers, with much tense head-shaking on the man’s part and a lot of arm-folded insistence on Lori’s. The way the fellow kept looking around told Ramon that he did not want their argument overheard.

When the man shook a threatening finger in Lori’s face, Ramon actually stepped forward, but she gave back just as good as she got, poking the fellow in the chest until suddenly he threw up his hands in obvious capitulation. After a moment Lori inclined her head in a gracious, satisfied manner and then she turned around and strolled toward Ramon, smiling.

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