5 CHAPTER FIVE
A few minutes passed, and it seemed like an eternity to Rebecca. Finally the line moved forward and she was able to catch her first view of the man that had seemingly turned her world upside down. He was seated behind a long folding table. The table had a white tablecloth, and all seven of his books were right in front on display. Three books lined up to the right of him, four were on his left. Behind him on either side of his chair, were some resort personnel. Capsulated, Jefferson smiled and talked to one of his fans. He had a book folded open on the table right in front of him. Taking the pen in his right hand, he signed the inside of the cover quickly. His movements were quick and concise, not a display of grandiose mannerisms, Rebecca noted. Still smiling he handed the book back to his female fan and listened as she talked briefly. He genuinely laughed with her and said graciously said good bye.
The woman moved on and Jefferson looked out at the remaining fans. As his eyes wondered down the line Rebecca felt her heart start to race. Her palms broke out in a sweat and her stomach started doing flips. He spotted her and that's where his gaze stayed. Rebecca locked eyes with him. His smile was broad and genuine as they looked at each other from the distance. A fan moved over to get a book signed, and blocked her view again.
From behind, she heard Jill whisper in her ear, “Well, well, well....Ms. Hollis. I think that Mr. Hughes had his eye on you. What do you think about that?”
Rebecca turned to her friend, her cheeks burning crimson. “Don't be silly...he probably just remembers me from dating my sister, Wendy. Probably remembers the old times when we were all younger hanging out together or something like that.”
Taking a sip from her drink Jill nodded. “Yeah...that's it.” She said sarcastically.
Rebecca turned back toward the front and saw that the line had moved a little. Jefferson was signing another book. He had on a crisp white shirt that was open by two buttons. His tan skin and dark hair stood out next to the bright white of the shirt. He handed the book back to the fan and smiled. His eyes seemed to twinkle.
Why wouldn't he be happy? He has everything. They started to move forward again in unison, and Rebecca noted that there were only about seven people ahead of her. The two older ladies in front were standing patiently holding their books. Behind her Jill and Deb were having a whispered conversation. Rebecca couldn't concentrate on anything but the handsome man sitting behind the table, happily smiling in conversation with the next fan. She felt so many emotions all at one time! The noise in her head was deafening.
As he handed the book back, the line moved forward a step or two and Rebecca numbly moved forward. She reached into her bag and pulled out her copy of his book, feeling silly as she did so. It seemed that everyone else had a copy of his new book to get signed and here she was with a tattered old book. His first one though...
“So...” Jill whispered from behind her, “You gonna try to get him in the sack?”
Rebecca turned around quickly with wide eyes of her own. “Stop it!” she whispered. “He wouldn't be interested in me...I'm sure.”
Jill laughed again. “I don't know about that...he seemed pretty interested a minute ago.”
Now she was just two people away. The older ladies stepped forward and Jefferson smiled up at them.
“Well look at these two.” He turned to the resort employee on his left and said, “That's it...shut it down. I've gotta take these two out for a drink.”
The room erupted in laughter and the two ladies beamed. As he turned back to the ladies he glanced at Rebecca, smiling.
******
The first time Rebecca saw Jefferson Hughes was when she was eight years old. Her older sister, Wendy, was an 18-year-old senior in high school. Wendy met Jefferson at a friend’s house during a party. He was a junior at the University of Delaware, majoring in English. He walked into their house in Milton with the ease and confidence of someone who knows what they want above the petty things. Like meeting the parents of the girl he is currently banging. There didn't seem to be a nervous bone in his body, unlike the other boys Wendy had brought home. Their Dad was a pretty big man, over six feet tall, and pretty strong. He worked at the “King Cole” factory driving a forklift. He outweighed Jefferson by a good hundred pounds, but there Jefferson was, looking at his Dad, non-flinching...smiling in fact.
They made small talk and after a little while her father and Jefferson were laughing and joking as if they were old friends. Her Dad excused himself for a minute to crab a beer, and offered one to Jefferson. He accepted, smiling. Wendy sat next to him on the couch and Rebecca watched everything from the top of the stairs. Her eight-year-old mind marveled at this boy who had just made friends and earned a beer from her Dad. She sat holding her rabbit doll, (the host of the current tea party, Mrs. Bunny Bunnystein) and shifted slightly which caused the floorboard to make a noise. Jefferson and Wendy looked up, and Rebecca felt her cheeks flush crimson.
“Hey Becca... come meet Jefferson.” Wendy had called.
Jefferson was smiling up at her as she shakily got to her feet.
She prayed that she wouldn't fall down the stairs and make a complete fool of herself. Coming down she nervously glanced over at him. He was so good looking! Walking over to meet him, she realized that she was still holding Mrs. Bunny Bunnystein and quickly put her behind her back.
Jefferson smiled and asked, “Who do we have back there? Does it have a name?”
Rebecca stopped a few feet away and looked over at Wendy, who was smiling, and then back at Jefferson. Pulling the stuffed animal from behind her back, Rebecca stared down at her as she spoke.
“This is Mrs. Bunny Bunnystein.” She said in a quiet voice. “She hosts my tea parties...”
Jefferson nodded as if he completely understood.
“Becca has got the most amazing imagination!” Wendy commented, and put her hand on Jefferson's thigh.
Rebecca felt a fit of jealousy when this happened. She remembered thinking that Wendy didn't deserve to touch him! She didn't deserve his smile, and his kisses. Even though Rebecca knew she would never kiss a boy...she might if it were Jefferson.
Wendy and Jefferson dated all that summer. After he returned to the University of Delaware in the Fall, he broke it off with Wendy. She cried for two weeks straight. Rebecca secretly enjoyed her sister's torment. She didn't think that she would ever see Jefferson again, and that broke her eight-year old heart. In her room, away from everybody, she would quietly cry and confide in Mrs. Bunny Bunnystein that if she ever saw him again she would do whatever she could to keep him close to her.
As she stepped forward at the book signing she was that little eight-year-old girl again.