The Way You Look Tonight

“Take the Lake Shore exit-”

“I know, Grace. I know what I’m doing,”

“Which is why we had to double back about half an hour ago is it?” Brian looked across at her and huffed.

“Know it all,” he mumbled under his breath.

“I’ll pretend I didn’t hear that,” she smirked, putting a CD in the player, she took out a book and started to read.

“Uh… Grace? Why is there no, Mandana Boulevard?”

“Did you take a sharp right?”

“Yes I went right-”

“No, Brian, it’s a sharp right,” he huffed again, “Looks like we’re doubling back again,” she smirked, once again triumphant. Brian drove back up the road to where they had turned off the motorway and took a sharp right at the end of Lake Park Avenue, to then take a right into Lakeshore Avenue. Then, with directions from Grace, he took a right at Mandana Boulevard into Crocker Avenue, the area was becoming more and more suburban and picturesque as they drove on.

“Ok, Brian you want to take a left and Woodland Way and then a right at Wildwood Gardens, then it’s number one-two-five.” Brian nodded in recognition.

Every house, Brian noticed was lined with a hedge, and ‘soccer mom’ cars lined the road with the occasional Buick or Lexus in the driveway.

“That’s my house!” Grace did an odd sort of bounce in her seat of excitement as she tried to put her flip-flops back on.

Brian pulled up in front of her house and shut off the engine. He got out and went round to open Grace’s door for her she smiled at him.

“Just leave the bags, I’ll send Kevin and Liam out to get them later,” she grabbed his hand and lead him up the slate-flagstone path, lined with little white flowers, in front of larger green bushes, with two Silver Birch trees on either boundary line.

The house itself was fairytale-esque with Italian kilne-fired roof tiles, several dormers and a large chimney near the centre of the building. The crisscrossing of the wooden panels on the outside of the building gave it a very British feel, however, it also reminded Brian somewhat of Snow White.

Grace opened the door and led Brian into a large foyer with an eye-catching mahogany staircase as the focal-point of the room. Doors led off to different rooms both left and right, and another door to the right of the staircase.

Still holding his hand, Grace guided him through the door to their right.

“Mom, dad, we’re here!” she called as she walked into what Brian recognised as the kitchen.

Sitting in what Brian reckoned must have been a family room were a man and a woman around middle age who obviously Grace’s mom and dad.