BEN PARIS: CHIEF, CHARMER
Sacred Sins by Nora Roberts (Bantam, 1987)
STATS: There’s a killer strangling slender, pretty blondes with the white silk scarf of a priest and Ben Paris is the magnetic police sergeant assigned to the case.
THE LOOK: “His profile was in shadows, struck intermittently by streetlights. It was funny how sometimes he looked safe, solid, the kinds of man a woman might run to if it were dark. Then the light struck his face another way, and the planes and angles were highlighted. A woman might run from him.”
LEADING LADY: Tess Court is a shrink who believes “The Priest” is in pain and seeking help. She’s immediately drawn to Ben despite his resistance to her theories. He’s immediately drawn to her, struck by her elegance and the cool wash of her violet eyes.
There’s a particularly funny scene when Ben is trying to romance Tess and he gets a call from one of his lady friends:
“It didn’t take a trained psychiatrist to understand there was a woman on the other end. Tess smiled into her drink and went back to the view.
‘No, I’ve been tied up. Look, sugar—“ The minute the word was out, he winced. Tess kept her back to him. “I’m on a case, you know? No, I didn’t forget about..I didn’t forget. Listen, I’ll have to get back to you when things lighten up. I don’t know, weeks, maybe months. You really ought to try that marine. Sure. See ya.’ He hung up, cleared his throat, and reached for his drink again. ‘Wrong number.’
It was so easy to laugh. She turned, leaned against the windowsill, and gave into it. ‘Oh, really?’
‘Enjoyed that, didn’t you?’
‘Immensely.’
‘If I’d known you’d get such a kick out of it, I’d have invited her up.’”
J Love Ben.
BOTTOM LINE: Ben is a tough cop who often butts heads with Tess, but he always makes me think of a gentleman. Just like his description above, he’s a bit of a riddle—gentlemanly but capable of ripping someone’s head off if he needs to protect the public or the woman he loves. This is probably Nora in my favorite phase, concentrating on just a couple of characters and drawing out the story so we get to really enjoy it.
QUESTION OF THE DAY: Ever been in an awkward situation and had to laugh your way out of it?
July 22nd, 2008
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July 22nd, 2008 at 9:56 am
Oh, I have so many I don’t know where to begin. As I get older they become fewer… Thank goodness. But with the internet so entrenched in all our lives, bloopers occur more often on-line. Last year I sent what I thought was a private message over a loop…It was, to say the least, very embarrasing! So now instead of a laughing our way out of situations, were banging our heads against the key board, as we try to explain what was written. One is no better then the other, because in the end, results are the same, the foolishness of it all. I do believe laughing your way out of situation, brings things to an aburpt end much sooner. The internet can keep things alive for days if not weeks…It can be curse, turning what could have been a laughing matter into a bitter battle of words.
July 22nd, 2008 at 8:34 pm
You’re so right, Lee, because it’s not just one person you have to deal with — you might have to deal with multiple people, or one person being embarrassed because multiple people saw a mistake. But it happens to us all. you just handle it with more grace than others!
July 22nd, 2008 at 9:50 pm
I’m not so good at laughing my way out of things. I tend to dwell and fret and still often cringe years later!
July 24th, 2008 at 1:11 pm
Laughter is a great way to relieve tension. My hubby’s very good at that! I tend to be more direct, I suppose. Haven’t read this one of Nora’s. Love her books though.