BUNNY EARS by BOOMERCAT RATED FRPT

Away from home at Easter, Jeff gets a welcome surprise.

He walked into the room with barely a glance at the opulent furnishings. It had been a long time since the trappings of wealth had had the power to impress him.

He shrugged out of the damp cashmere coat, tossing it negligently over a custom side chair that probably cost as much as the average American car. He pulled at his silk tie, loosening it enough to release the button underneath. With a sigh of relief, he sank down onto the bed, mentally and physically pausing.

A glance at the damp coat brought a brief rush of guilt, and in mild annoyance, he got up and picked up the offending garment, using his hand to brush it, and the chair down. Hanging it up in the antique armoire, he glanced around the room.

The negotiations had gone well, and he anticipated being able to head for home within a couple of days. Not that it felt like home. Not yet, anyway. He'd moved to the island less than three months earlier, and even if it hadn't been a new place in a decidedly exotic locale, it still wouldn't have been a comfortable place. Not without his boys.

He sighed, refusing to dwell on the fact that his sons were now all grown, his youngest just starting college the last fall. The new home was echoingly empty without his boys there. If his plans came to fruition, that would change within a few years.

For the moment, he'd have to make do with whatever time he could get with any of his sons. The thought brought a smile to his face. Tomorrow, both John and Alan were flying in for Easter dinner with their old man.

He poured himself a couple of fingers of scotch from the bar, and went over to the window to look out over the city. Springtime in Washington D.C. was touted to be a beautiful time of the year, with delicate cherry blossoms delighting the senses. He snorted, the pounding rain on the glass gave the lie to the season.

A soft knock on the door had him turning away from the gloom of the half-drowned city. Reaching the door, he paused with his hand on the knob, calling out, "Yes?"

"Sir, this is the bell captain. A package was delivered for you."

Nodding to himself, he opened the door. To his mild surprise, instead of the contracts he expected, the uniformed man was holding a large box. "Uh, bring it in."

The bellman entered, and with a glance for permission, put the box on the hall table. Caught up in his curiosity, he ignored the bellman's pause at the door, and only after it shut, remembered that courtesy demanded he tip the man.

Well, he could make up for that later. For now, he was more interested in the box, which was addressed to him in his mother's distinct handwriting. Pulling a small folding knife from his pocket, he slit the tape, and pulled open the flaps, revealing a sea of white Styrofoam pellets.

With a touch of trepidation, he plunged his hands in. Almost immediately, he encountered something soft. Pushing aside the packing material, his eyebrows climbed at the sight of a large pastel bow. The grin started when he realized what the bow was attached to.

He reached down, and gently pulled out the large basket. He laughed with pure delight. It was his Easter basket. The one that he had had since his childhood. His mother had put the basket away with other mementos when he had left for college. But when he had brought his boys back to the farm to live, she had surprised him on that first dark Easter by presenting him with his basket filled then, like now, with all of his favorite treats.

As usual, he had to handle the basket carefully. It was almost as old as he was, and had seen many years of hard wear. And it was weighed down with all of the candy. Just as he had when he was a child, he carried the basket to his bed, and dumped the whole basket out, to see what he had.

He started to sit automatically, putting the large chocolate bunny next to the basket, but then he thought the better of it. Picking through the jellybeans to find the black ones, he tossed a small handful into his mouth, then headed for the bathroom. Pulling off his clothes, he took a short shower, reflecting that nothing lifted the heart quite so much as a gift of love.

Dressed in silk monogrammed pajamas, he stood at the sink, staring at his toothbrush. He burst into a laugh. His nighttime routine was so ingrained that he had pulled out the toothpaste and brush without even thinking. The adult in him told him to just finish brushing up and go to bed… the candy would still be there in the morning. But the most-times squelched little boy was saying that the bunny ears were calling him.

It was a siren call he could not ignore. Tossing the toothbrush aside, he strolled with pretended indifference back to the bedroom, where the Easter basket's contents were strewn on the bed in gay profusion. With the same delicious anticipation he had enjoyed as a child, he sorted his goodies into neat piles, all the time carefully ignoring the tall chocolate bunny presiding over things from his place next to the basket.

Once he knew exactly how many jellybeans, robin's eggs, malted eggs, gummy bunnies, peeps, marshmallow bunnies, peanut butter eggs, chocolate kisses, and fondant eggs he had, he eyed the chocolate bunny with an evil grin. He decided he had waited long enough, and he snatched the bunny up. Tugging off the cellophane wrapper, he took a large, satisfying chomp, taking off the entire ears and half of the head.

Leaning back against the headboard, he closed his eyes, chewing with utter satisfaction.