The Throwbacks Read Online Free PDF Page A

laugh. “I loved his strong jaw, the way it was softened by his kind eyes. And his voice: a powerful voice, deep and reverberating …” Grace closed her eyes and let herself remember the feel of the sound of his voice near her ear when they were practically under the table.
    “I hear you, but I still don’t see the big attraction,” Sophia said.
    “He reminds me of Oscar,” Grace whispered. She felt that flutter again. Oscar was so long ago, but there’d never been another love like him since.
    “He looks nothing like Oscar,” Sophia said. “Besides, Oscar was trouble.”
    “Not his looks. Something about him. He has that confident king-of-the-world air about him like Oscar. He has elegance and a sense of fun.” She knew she was getting carried away, but she couldn’t stop. “And did I say he has that kind smile?” Grace took a breath and put a hand to her chest. Her heart was beating too fast.
    “You got all that from tonight?” Sophia shook her head. “The only thing I saw that he has in common with Oscar is that he’s way too old for you.”
    That comment caused a pang, but Grace shook it off. She also noticed he had a sadness underneath the fun, but she shook that notion off too. She wanted to hold onto her excitement. It was so rare, and she longed to feel this way about a man.
    She wanted him to be Batman—Oscar’s alter ego.
    “You know, Grace, I haven’t seen you this interested in anyone since Oscar, now that you mention it, and that had to be eight years ago.”
    “Don’t worry about me. I’ve learned a lot since then.”
    “Don’t get crazy here. You do remember that you and Oscar ended disastrously?” Sophia gave her that mother hen look that Grace was mostly fond of.
    She patted Sophia on the arm. “I remember a lot about Oscar besides the ending. I wanted to marry him. I might have, too…”
    “If it wasn’t for the pesky fact that Oscar—or should I say ‘Antonio’—was in the mob,” Sophia reminded her.
    “Don’t exaggerate. That was only a rumor. He was more like an informant.” Grace remembered the ending. She had good reasons, but she was feeling the loss all over again just the same. She pushed a curl off her right eye.
    “That man was trouble. You did the right thing to break it off.” This time Sophia patted her on the arm.
    Sophia was right, but Grace couldn’t help feeling empty as she stood towering over her friend and leaning on her a little for support under the lamplight. “I’m over it.”
    “Yeah, but you’re still searching for your father figure. Maybe what you learned is not to trust any man young enough to have a real relationship.” Sophia tugged on Grace’s arm.
    “I would trust the right man if I found him.” She smiled down at her friend to reassure her but ignored the familiar concern about the father figure. Grace thought about her Oscar number two and considered the possibility. “I’m not a youngster anymore. I’m thirty years old. I know what I want.”
    “You’ll meet your match.”
    “What if I just did?” The taxi pulled up and they both got in.
    Pixie looked skeptical. “You are kidding, right? He’s more like grandfather material than father material. You need to aim younger for the family. And I know that’s what you want most of all.”
    Grace was not kidding about David. But Sophia was right; she wanted a family most of all. Something she’d never had.
    “I have you and Mabel, don’t I?” Grace asked. She looked at her friend in the dark backseat of the cab and needed to hear the obvious answer.
    “You’ll always have me—and Mabel too. And someday you will have your own family and a home with the picket fence and all. I know it, Grace. But you have to be careful and realistic. This Batman guy didn’t seem like the picket-fence type. Especially if he’s anything like Oscar. Plus, and I know I’ve said this before—he’s old,” Sophia said, pausing. “And he didn’t ask for your number,” she added