“Getting to know you, darling.”
I tried to relax.
“You’re asking a lot of family questions tonight.”
Then he asked something that made my fork stop halfway to my mouth.
“Did your mother live in Chicago in 1965?”
I stared at him.
“How do you know that?”
Arthur reached for his wine.
“Lucky guess.”
“How do you know that?”
“Arthur, that’s a very specific guess.”
He gave a small laugh.
“You mentioned moving around.”
“I never mentioned Chicago.”
His smile faded.
“That’s a very specific guess.”
For the first time, I wondered whether our meeting had been an accident.
***
Before I could ask another question, his phone rang.
He looked at the screen.
“Excuse me. I need to take this.”
His phone rang.
He left the dining room.
I sat alone with my half-finished dinner.
A door closed somewhere down the hallway.
Then came hurried footsteps.
He left the dining room.
