Capturing You

Chapter 37: Pictures of You

I took a deep breath. I would add this picture of Joe and I's love to our scrapbook. I smiled across the table at him and kicked his foot. "I love you, slick," I told him.

"I love you too, Shot Caller."

Suddenly, I wore a mischievous smile. "You know, I couldn't help but remember... Didn't you once offer me a spot in your fancy mansion a while back? One with a big king-sized bed and Egyptian cotton sheets?" I felt hopeful for the future; we were picking up back where we left off.

Joe laughed. "You're showing your true colors, Avery."

-

Joe headed back to Cincinnati early Sunday morning, sending my wishes to Spencer and Trish and even giving my dad a call about what happened. Of course, my dad had to call me as soon as he found out.

Just as I was entering my apartment from dropping Joe off at the airport, I felt my phone buzz in my pocket. "Hello?"

"Honey, I'm so proud of you," he told me.

"Oh, dad, it's way too early for you to be such a sap right now," I groaned.

"I'm being serious. C'mon! Can't your old man be proud of you?"

I cracked a smile and plopped down on my couch. "Honestly, I couldn't have done it without you. Tomorrow morning, I'm going to tell Mr. DuPont that I'm not going to take the position. And obviously, I'm going to thank him for giving me the opportunity."

"Good. Honey, I'm so proud of you. Would ya just let me be proud of you?"

"Fiiiine."

"I have to ask. How are things with you and Joe?"

I snickered. "Hmm, I don't know. You tell me, since you were probably just on the phone with him a few seconds ago. -- But, in all seriousness, he and I are... really great. I took your advice and I think things between us are just going to get better from here."

He breathed an exaggerated sigh of relief. "Thank God. I was worried I was going to either have to pay big money to come visit you in Paris or just never see you again and make that pet raccoon we found at your uncle's house my new daughter."

"I was just about to tell you how much I loved you," I said, shaking my head. "I'm going to finish working 'til my internship ends, though. I booked my flight and I should land..." I trailed off to check my flight on my phone. "On New Year's Eve."

"Alright, kiddo, sounds good. I'll let you get some rest. Love you,"

"I love you, dad. Thanks for everything."

Though we often bickered, I realized I looked forward to my dad's calls more and more as the year went on. He was too focused on cracking jokes to give upper echelon advice, but he had his moments, and throughout the year I appreciated him being there for me more than I ever had. My mom's advice would have been different; more sophisticated and straight to the point. But my dad had no less warmth than she would have had. Together, my parents were like a fireplace on a cold night. I wished my mom was here to see how things were. I think that she would have gotten a kick out of the kinds of talks about life that my dad and I had. I only wished I had a chunk of the wisdom she carried so gracefully, but I liked to think that I was on my way to that.

On Monday I gave Mr. DuPont the news, and he was disappointed to hear that I wasn't interested, but I almost think he saw it coming. Maybe it was that I was my mother's daughter. I expected him to be cold to me--probably thinking about all the money the company had spent on my French language classes--but he told me that he was happy for me.

"You'll always have a friend in me, Mademoiselle Thompson. I loved your mother's work too much to just let you slip out of my hands," he teased. "Perhaps, if we ever do a United States issue, I'll contact you for photos of--Ohio, is it?"