The Copy Read Free

almost the color of tar. He slammed into Jeff's legs and hugged his kneecaps ferociously. With a lump in his throat Jeff lifted the boy into his arms and looked him in the face. A face so new and bright and impossibly smooth it made him wonder anew at the power of nature. "What's your name?" he whispered.
    "Daddy!" The boy released a squeal of delight. "Silly! Iz me, Patch."
    "I know." Jeff smiled. He couldn't tear his eyes from the boy's face. He pulled him close and Patch nestled into the nape of his neck. Jeff closed his eyes and inhaled the scent of his son.
    "Senor Bartell, I sorry, he run off when hear door." Jeff opened his eyes to see a middle aged hispanic woman entering the kitchen, her face stretched between fear and compassion.
    "It's perfectly all right, Augustina." Jeff smiled at her. She seemed afraid that she'd been found wanting. "Now, where is-" As he said the words, a lithe seven year old stepped into the doorway. "Lilian," he finished.
    "Hi Dad," she said cooly with a noncommittal wave.
    "Hi," Jeff said. He stood transfixed as he took in the sight of her. Lean and tan with blue eyes and long ringlets the color of burnt honey, she was the spitting image of Camilla. His heart clenched.
    "Eez time for the bed," Augustina clucked, reaching to unburden Jeff of his son.
    "I'll take them up," he replied, and without waiting to see the constipated look on her face he stepped past her and offered his free hand to Lilian. After a moment of pursed lip and raised eyebrow Lilian relented and took his hand, and together they marched off through the dining room in pursuit of the stairway.
     
    Augustina was still standing in the kitchen when Camilla found her. After quizzing the governess on the unusual turn of events, Camilla went upstairs to investigate the anomaly for herself.
    She found the three of them in Lilian's bedroom. Patch was sprawled across the far side of the bed, fast asleep with a stuffed dog and picture book clutched to his chest. Her husband sat on the near side, bent conspiratorially towards Lilian who lay propped in a sea of pillows. They were talking softly. Camilla could not make out the words but it was plain from the rhythms of their speech and frequent giggles that the two were clearly enjoying themselves. Just what was Geoffrey playing at?
    Camilla watched them from the doorway, struggling to reconcile this new behavior in her husband. After about ten minutes Lilian's eyelids began to droop. Geoffrey stood up and after helping her snuggle down under the covers he brushed a lock of hair from her face, then kissed her gently on the forehead. He stood by the bed for a minute, staring down at her, his face a picture of contentment. Once Lilian's fluttering eyelids settled closed he walked around the bed, gathered up Patch in his arms, and carried him through the connecting door to his own room.
    Camilla tiptoed into the room and kissed her sleeping daughter. She dimmed the lights on her way out, gently closed the door, then headed down the hallway to Patch's bedroom. Her husband was just coming out as Camilla approached. She bristled, preparing for the inevitable hostilities.
    "Geoffrey, what are you doing?" She demanded.
    He turned and gazed upon her with a look that had she not known better she might have mistaken for adoration. "Camilla." His voice held a note of breathlessness and his eyes drank her in, as if for the first time.
    "What are you doing here?"
    "I-" He looked at Patch's bedroom door, then back to her. "I wanted to see the kids before bedtime." He took a step closer and reached for her hand. "And you," he finished.
    She withdrew her hand before he could take it. "Geoffrey, just what in the hell is going on?"
    "What do you mean?" He asked, a wounded look on his face that gave her a measure of satisfaction.
    "Don't be obtuse, Geoffrey. We've barely seen you in years and now - with the senate hearings beginning tomorrow, mind you - now you suddenly want to play the doting husband and