Previously: My two children, both now in their early forties, agree to ditch their spouses for one evening and meet us at an upscale restaurant. It will be the first time in ten years that we’ve been together as a family. I splurge on a streaked hairdo and wear a fashionable outfit hoping that Nichole will give me one of her rare compliments. I haven’t seen her in five years.

Frank and I arrived at the restaurant ten minutes early. We sat on the veranda and waited—and waited. I kept jumping up to walk to the corner and survey the parking lot. What, for God’s sake was taking them so long?

At ten after five, I spotted my son’s car turning into a parking space.

"They’re here!" I hollered. Frank's arthritic bones made it out of the cushioned seat. He turtle walked while I watched first Chris, then Nichole, emerge from the car doors.

Déjà vu. It was as if no time had gone by. Both siblings still looked mid-twenties to me.

With Frank shuffling behind, I climbed down three steps and then picked up my pace. Nichole grinned and waved. Then she was in my arms, a fierce embrace. Chris spoke, "She’s still an albino chick."

"And you’re still a maggot." She broke free and stuck out her tongue at him before hugging Frank. Yeah, nothing had changed.

Chris gave both of us a bear hug before we all headed to the restaurant.

The waiter led us to a corner table away from the wide open noisy dining area. A wine steward offered his menu. Chris and Frank weren’t interested. Nichole and I agreed to split a bottle. I let her do the ordering since she had become an expert at tasting tours in the mountains of California. The waiter returned with a Merlot and poured a bit into her glass. She took the offered sip and let the red liquid linger on her taste buds before swallowing. After nodding her approval, the waiter filled our goblets half full.

When I lifted my glass to my lips, Nichole stopped me. "Before you take a drink, swish the wine around to release the different flavors." She gently swirled her glass to illustrate. Yikes! If I tried that maneuver, half would end up on the white linen tablecloth.

When did my daughter become so sophisticated? (By the way, she was right about the different and better taste.)

"I like your hair," she said next.

I laughed. "You remembered. I see you have streaks too."

That was the only compliment I received. I admired her shoes, open toed zip-up ankle length black boots, but not her sleeveless black dress. As had become her habit the past ten years, she didn’t wear jewelry anymore. A real turnaround from her Madonna days in high school.

After a waiter had taken our orders, I started the conversation with our views of Key West. Nichole had to admit that her dad was right. Not a whole lot to see or do.

"How did you like Chris’s house?" Frank asked.

"It’s impressive. Something like that in California would cost in the millions."

"Location." Chris shrugged. "If we had bought the same house close to Orlando, we would have paid three hundred thousand more."

"Your children are awesome." Nichole changed the subject. "They sat quietly and took in our conversation, asking intelligent questions now and then. All our friends have kids who act like they hate their parents. They can’t wait to get away from them. Jeff calls Anna and Alex the Velcro children." It was true. They clung to their Mom and Dad. Grandparents were incidental.

Bubbles of happiness floated around me as I saw brother and sister bonding. This was the reunion I had hoped for. Nichole kept the praises going. "I can’t get over how much Joanne is like me. Everything from kitchen to closets is so organized. She plans their trips down to the minute, same as I do."

I nudged my son. "I said it, didn’t I? You married your sister."

He made a face. "Yuck."

"She’s big on health food too." Nichole enjoyed another jab.

I wanted to say, "I wish you had married someone like your brother who doesn’t make fun of people or tell crude jokes." Heck, Chris doesn’t even cuss. I have to watch my language even if the children aren’t around. Nichole had a sailor’s mouth even when she’s with us.

Brother and sister sat opposite each other and bantered back and forth. We enjoyed just listening.

"So, Maggot, tell me about your job. Do you have an office of your own?"

"Yes I do, Albino Chick."

"Do you have a big desk?"

"Large enough for my computer."

"Do you have a window?"

"Yes."

Nichole cleared her throat and assumed the role of a reporter or investigator. "Let’s get into the personal stuff. What irritates you most about your job?" She put out the flat of her hand and pretended to have a pen in the other.

"Nothing." Chris answered in monotone and concentrated on his filet mignon.

"Nothing?" His sister’s voice rose up an octave. "No one single person you can’t stand?" Reported pretense gone. She couldn’t believe it.

"Nope."

"Oh come on. There must be somebody who’s a pain in the butt. Your boss? A secretary?"

"Nope."

Incredulous at his passivity, she couldn’t let go. "You get along with everyone?"

"Nichole." He put his fork down and smiled. "We’re all computer geeks. We work for the government. Everything’s top secret. We don’t socialize."

Chris’s nonchalant attitude impressed Nichole. She let the rudeness of co-workers get to her.

After two and a half hours, we had a group hug (Chris’s trademark goodbye) and went our separate ways. My son would drive back to Apopka after dropping Nichole off at the hotel where Jeff was waiting. Before she left, I talked about a plan for the next day. "It will take an hour to drive to Citrus. We’ll find a place to have lunch. The wildlife tour starts at two. What time do you want to come get us? Twelve maybe?"

"Oh no, that’s not giving you much time to visit with Jeff before we leave. How about ten-thirty?"

Ten-thirty! That’s when I get up.

"Okay." I grit my teeth. "We’ll see you both tomorrow." The less time with Jeff the better, I had figured.

To be continued.