Finally Tina turned to Bette.  “And how about you, Bette?”

“I don’t care,” she said.

“That’s not an answer.  How many eggs do you want?” Tina asked again.

“You look very nice, Tina,” Bette confessed.

Tina looked at Miriam and Coleman and then back to Bette.  “Thank you.  Now how many eggs?”

“Two, I guess,” Bette said. “Scrambled be fine.”

Tina paused a moment and the two considered each other briefly.  Then she walked away and back to the kitchen. 

Bette sat down at the table and looked up to see Coleman and Miriam studying her.  She chucked a little and said, “Remember how she hated wearing dresses?  How she used to fuss if I tried to fix her hair?  And now look at her.  She’s so grown up.”

Miriam nodded.  “She has grown up, and, yes, she is quite stunning.”

When Bette looked at her aunt again, she realized that the old woman had seen through her.  How, Bette wasn’t sure.  She wasn’t even certain that Miriam knew what it was to be gay, but somehow her aunt knew, had read Bette’s reaction to the beautiful young blonde.

During breakfast, Coleman dominated the conversation.  For once Bette was thankful for that.  Otherwise, she knew there would have been many long and uncomfortable silences.  Tina ate with her eyes on her plate, refusing to make any eye contact with Bette and only speaking if Coleman asked her a direct question or when she was checking on Miriam.

Finally the meal was over and Coleman joined Tina in the kitchen to clean up while Bette finished getting ready.  It gave him one more opportunity to try and smooth things over.

“So listen, I’ll be back in two weeks, but, you know, we’re not due into Virginia until later that week, so maybe we could all hang out a day or two longer,” he offered.

“I’m sure Bette’s anxious to get to Chesapeake Bay and on that grand yacht she was talking about,” Tina said with bitterness.

Coleman dried a plate and watched the young woman.  She was certainly a hard nut to crack, he had determined.  So he decided a direct approach was needed.  He leaned close to her and said, “Bette likes you, Tina.  She always has.  She told me last night after dinner.  And what’s more, she feels terrible about how she stopped writing you, how she lost contact with you.  You know, if you’d just give her a chance, she’d really like to be your friend again.”