Waiting and Watching by Darcy Darvill Page A

You’re the only reason I came back here, Connie. Getting to see Julio is a great bonus and I feel like a proud big brother, seeing how well you’ve turned out.”
    â€œThanks, Andrew. I’ll never forget how good you were to me when I was an irritating, obnoxious brat.”
    Both Connie and Andrew laughed. “Tell us more about your mom and dad,” Connie asked.
    â€œDad died several years ago, but not before I passed the bar. It meant a lot to him. The suspicion that surrounded me after the incident really put him over the edge. Up until then, he was carefree and refused to let the impact of racial injustice affect him or his family. For the most part, he was able to do that because he was educated and successful. His black friends and family used to tease him about living in a white neighborhood. He would always say why shouldn’t he enjoy the same benefits that the white people have? He grew up with discrimination, but didn’t let it change his goals and ambitions. I think Dad just worked around it. However, when the police suspected his son of murder because of race; that was too much for him. He died with a lot of bitterness over it.
    â€œThat’s a damn shame and an injustice of the worst kind. What about your mother; how is she?” Julio asked.
    â€œMom’s doing well. She lives in a senior condominium complex in Tennessee with her sister. They both have lots of friends and say they are quite happy. I’ve gotten her to visit New York, but she doesn’t stay long because she misses her friends.”
    â€œAndrew, we never thought for a minute that you were guilty,” Connie said, placing her hand on the table, atop his. We were horrified that they even suspected you.”
    â€œYour parents were the last people I would ever hurt and why in the world would I? Your mother was nicer to my family than anyone else in town. She took Mom to the Garden Club and introduced her to all her friends. Shoot, yours was the only family that ever invited us into their home and by doing so, I think your mom ruffled a lot of feathers, but she didn’t seem to mind.”
    â€œI’ll never get over losing them, but from what I hear and remember of this town, I was better off growing up in Miami than staying here,” Julio said somberly.
    â€œDefinitely,” Andrew said. “It was Jim Crow segregation back then. It may not have been a written law, but it prevailed. Everyone thought segregation only existed in the south, but prejudice and ignorance were alive and well here too.”
    â€œI guess I was so wrapped up in myself I never really noticed until the incident at the prom. I’m so sorry, Andrew.” Connie said, squeezing his hand. He had turned it over to hold hers.
    The evening went well with the three of them catching up on twenty-two missing years. Julio noticed Andrew hadn’t let go of Connie’s hand, nor did she seem like she wanted him to let go. So when the DJ announced he was going to slow things down, he said to Andrew, “Why don’t you get my sister out on the dance floor before the music stops? I remember how well you two danced together.”
    Connie enthusiastically followed Andrew onto the dance floor. He pulled her close and held her firmly. His strong arms felt familiar and safe. She just let herself melt into his body as he led her slowly around the dance floor. The music could not have been more perfect. They were playing Moon River which they had danced to many times. It was the song from Connie’s favorite movie, Breakfast at Tiffany’s , with Audrey Hepburn, and it was the song they used to call their own.
    She felt her former classmates watching them, but she didn’t care. The champagne and the welcome feel of Andrew’s arms around her had left her feeling carefree and happy. Even Martin’s dark piercing stare wasn’t going to ruin this special moment.
    Andrew pulled away to look in her