“What got you interested in stained glass originally?”
I thought about the first time I’d ever noticed stained glass and felt a chill come over me. Despite the warmth of the fire, the fullness in my belly, and the hot coffee in the mug in my hand, I shivered.
“I saw some as a child and just… fell in love I guess,” I said quietly.
Lio’s large hand came up to pull one of my hands off my mug and enclose it in his warm grip.
“There’s a story there, Felix. What is it?” he asked.
I shook my head and cleared my throat before looking back at him and trying to hide my sad memory with a smile.
“Doesn’t matter. Anyway, my grandfathers always encouraged my love of it. So when I went to college, that’s what I studied. My undergraduate degree was in art history with a minor in chemistry. Then I got a Master of Fine Arts in Glass. Now I’m finishing a doctorate in chemistry. Kind of geeky, I know.” I chuckled and shrugged. “But there it is.”
Lio’s thumb caressed the back of my hand as he peered at me with his intense blue eyes. I could tell he wanted to push me on the story I was obviously hiding, but in the end, he didn’t.
“Why do you want to teach instead of make glass?”
“I’m not good enough to make a living as an artist. If I want to be around stained glass, there aren’t many options. Glass preservation would require lots of travel. I’m a bit of a homebody normally. So teaching is the natural place for me to end up. Chemistry, art history, glassmaking… any of those things, really. As long as I’m able to keep studying and appreciating the glass, I’m not picky about how. My grandfather gives me hell about not making more glass, but… I don’t know. Honestly, I’m happy just being around it.”
“You’ve mentioned your grandfather before. I take it he’s been important to you?”
This time, my smile was genuine as I thought of Grandpa and Doc. “Both of them, yes. They raised me from the time I was nine.”
His lips turned down. “What happened to your parents?”
“Um, I never knew my dad. And my mom sort of… decided it would be better for her to pursue her career unencumbered by a kid.” I didn’t dare mention who my mother was. The last thing in the world I wanted was that weirdness that happened whenever someone realized who I was.
Lio’s other hand came up to cradle mine in both of his. “I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be. It was definitely for the best. Doc and Grandpa were… are amazing. They’re funny and smart, sweet and caring. I loved growing up with them. They’re still my greatest champions.”
Lio smiled at me. “Tell me about them.”
I felt my entire body relax and my mouth turn up. “Doc was married when he was pretty young. To a woman, I mean. They had several kids before my grandmother passed away. When Doc hooked up with Grandpa, they raised the kids together. Grandpa was a rancher, and Doc was the family physician in town. So when I moved in with them, it was onto a ranch.”
“You grew up on a Texas ranch? How the hell did you wind up going into academics?”
Lio’s teasing grin washed over me, and I felt myself relax even further.
“I know, right? People in Hobie think I’m a little nuts,” I admitted. “Hopefully I can get a teaching position at UT Dallas or University of North Texas. Otherwise, I’ll have to leave all my family and move for the job. In addition to my grandfathers, I have a bunch of cousins in Hobie and Dallas whom I adore.” I gazed at Lio’s deep blue eyes. “Do you have siblings or cousins?”
“I have a sister,” he said with a smile. “Typical sister. She drives me crazy.”
“What’s her name? Do you live near her?”
He seemed to hesitate before answering. “Henriette—Hen—lives close to me in Monte Carlo.” I sensed his body tense up and wondered if his sister was a sore subject.
“You don’t have to tell me about her if you don’t want to. I didn’t mean to…”
“It’s fine. I like talking about Hen. She’s actually very funny and sweet. She’s my best friend.”
We continued talking while we finished the dinner he’d brought for us. Once we were warm, Lio had opened the bottle of white wine and poured us each a couple of glasses as we kept finding things to talk about. Getting to know Lio was easy and relaxing—way less stressful than I’d anticipated. Something about him tamped down my shyness and put me at ease. We talked about everything from family members, to embarrassing moments in college, to our favorite bingeworthy movies and shows.
At one point, he told me about serving in the French army.