"What—no wedding gown?"
"Mother's," she said serenely.
He carefully grasped sobriety and held on tight. "Enough of this. We have to be serious. This is a serious situation, Taylor."
"Agreed." She was frowning gravely at him now. "And I'm much appreciative of your understanding the seriousness of this situation."
He put his head in his hands.
"After all," she went on loftily, "we're adults. And this is the Age of Aquarius. Or maybe that was before. Anyway, we're certainly capable of resolving this very serious situation. We only have to be reasonable and logical about it." She blinked at him as he raised his head, adding severely, "Except that I don't want to be reasonable and logical. Let's be unreasonable and illogical. Let's make love."
Trevor pulled on a stern face. "You're a forward wench!"
"And you're a backward suitor!"
"Is that what I am?" he wondered, amazed.
"Yes!" She kept her mouth firm, but her eyes danced irrepressibly. "I went to a great deal of trouble to seduce you tonight, and you had to let your scruples rear their ugly heads. I'd planned on being a fallen woman by midnight!"
"You look like one now," he managed unsteadily. "Curled up like a cat on my carpet wearing nothing but that ridiculous bit of black lace. And garters. Garters. And not even the decency to ask for your dress!"
"Decency," she said austerely, "can go by the board. Besides, I asked Mother for advice, and she suggested the black lace and gaiters."
Trevor's mind boggled. "You asked your mother—"
"How to seduce you. Well, not that exactly, but what to wear. She said she caught Daddy with black lace and garters."
Searching in vain for words to express himself, Trevor finally uttered an elusive sound somewhere between a strangled laugh and a bear's growl.
"Something caught in your throat?" she inquired innocently, eyes limpid.
He picked up his discarded wineglass, drained it very scientifically, and, now better able to deal with madness, cleared his throat. "Do you mean to tell me that you told your mother you were going to seduce me?"
"I knew she'd be interested," she explained gravely.
"Oh," he responded carefully. "You knew she'd be interested."
"Certainly. And Daddy said—"
"Him, too," Trevor told the ceiling in a faint voice that suggested his cup was more than full.
Taylor ignored the interruption. "—that there was just something about black lace and garters. The male libido, I suppose."
"Do you?" He eyed her in utter fascination. "And that's all your loving parents had to say about the matter?"
"Well, when Mother suggested the teddy, Daddy said they were the very devil to get off—"
Trevor choked.
"—but Mother reminded him that Christmas presents wouldn't be half the fun to open if they weren't wrapped up in shiny paper. And after he thought about it, he agreed with her."
"I'll bet," Trevor said weakly.
"So then Mother gave me this necklace; she said it was meant to be a coming-of-age present, and tonight looked like as good a time as any. And Daddy told me to kick my shoes off at the proper moment, because they could get confoundedly in the way." Taylor looked thoughtful. "And since Mother started laughing when he said that, I imagine he spoke from experience, don't you?"
Trevor was laughing too hard to answer. He could picture that scene so vividly in his mind, seeing Sara's vague smile and Luke's absently paternal expression, both of them uttering their wonderfully unconventional, ridiculous, absurd advice in the most matter-of-fact way. In that moment, he would have traded his bank account for the privilege of having been present to see and hear them advise their firstborn in the art of seduction.
"And now," Taylor said sadly, "after they went to all that trouble, and I tried so hard to be sexy, you had to ruin everything with your silly scruples."
"Sorry!" he gasped.
"You should be! I've waited twenty-six years for you, buster—"
"Consoled by occasional strange foreign and domestic men," he
"Mother's," she said serenely.
He carefully grasped sobriety and held on tight. "Enough of this. We have to be serious. This is a serious situation, Taylor."
"Agreed." She was frowning gravely at him now. "And I'm much appreciative of your understanding the seriousness of this situation."
He put his head in his hands.
"After all," she went on loftily, "we're adults. And this is the Age of Aquarius. Or maybe that was before. Anyway, we're certainly capable of resolving this very serious situation. We only have to be reasonable and logical about it." She blinked at him as he raised his head, adding severely, "Except that I don't want to be reasonable and logical. Let's be unreasonable and illogical. Let's make love."
Trevor pulled on a stern face. "You're a forward wench!"
"And you're a backward suitor!"
"Is that what I am?" he wondered, amazed.
"Yes!" She kept her mouth firm, but her eyes danced irrepressibly. "I went to a great deal of trouble to seduce you tonight, and you had to let your scruples rear their ugly heads. I'd planned on being a fallen woman by midnight!"
"You look like one now," he managed unsteadily. "Curled up like a cat on my carpet wearing nothing but that ridiculous bit of black lace. And garters. Garters. And not even the decency to ask for your dress!"
"Decency," she said austerely, "can go by the board. Besides, I asked Mother for advice, and she suggested the black lace and gaiters."
Trevor's mind boggled. "You asked your mother—"
"How to seduce you. Well, not that exactly, but what to wear. She said she caught Daddy with black lace and garters."
Searching in vain for words to express himself, Trevor finally uttered an elusive sound somewhere between a strangled laugh and a bear's growl.
"Something caught in your throat?" she inquired innocently, eyes limpid.
He picked up his discarded wineglass, drained it very scientifically, and, now better able to deal with madness, cleared his throat. "Do you mean to tell me that you told your mother you were going to seduce me?"
"I knew she'd be interested," she explained gravely.
"Oh," he responded carefully. "You knew she'd be interested."
"Certainly. And Daddy said—"
"Him, too," Trevor told the ceiling in a faint voice that suggested his cup was more than full.
Taylor ignored the interruption. "—that there was just something about black lace and garters. The male libido, I suppose."
"Do you?" He eyed her in utter fascination. "And that's all your loving parents had to say about the matter?"
"Well, when Mother suggested the teddy, Daddy said they were the very devil to get off—"
Trevor choked.
"—but Mother reminded him that Christmas presents wouldn't be half the fun to open if they weren't wrapped up in shiny paper. And after he thought about it, he agreed with her."
"I'll bet," Trevor said weakly.
"So then Mother gave me this necklace; she said it was meant to be a coming-of-age present, and tonight looked like as good a time as any. And Daddy told me to kick my shoes off at the proper moment, because they could get confoundedly in the way." Taylor looked thoughtful. "And since Mother started laughing when he said that, I imagine he spoke from experience, don't you?"
Trevor was laughing too hard to answer. He could picture that scene so vividly in his mind, seeing Sara's vague smile and Luke's absently paternal expression, both of them uttering their wonderfully unconventional, ridiculous, absurd advice in the most matter-of-fact way. In that moment, he would have traded his bank account for the privilege of having been present to see and hear them advise their firstborn in the art of seduction.
"And now," Taylor said sadly, "after they went to all that trouble, and I tried so hard to be sexy, you had to ruin everything with your silly scruples."
"Sorry!" he gasped.
"You should be! I've waited twenty-six years for you, buster—"
"Consoled by occasional strange foreign and domestic men," he
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