She sat at the table alone, against the wall in the small deli staring at her cell phone… Her sandwich sitting there staring back at her… she had no appetite but knew she had to eat for strength. A busy afternoon remained ahead of her… this wasn’t the time to not eat and she had been hungry.
She hadn’t heard from him in a week, and just before leaving for lunch, she had googled him in his local paper, followed the link to the business section and there it was…. the picture of him and his wife. Unable to move, she had stared at the picture, drawn there like a magnet, unable to force her eyes away.
Dear God…. What had happened? Her heart raced as she scanned the article. Oh no! NO! She had died…. She had been on that plane last weekend, the one that flew into the mountainside in the storm! How can this be? And yet she had sat staring at the screen as tears had streamed down her face, reading, gasping at each word… devouring the few details the author had included. He must be devastated. This can’t be true! And yet….the memorial service had been two days ago. The finality… The end. Her heart was racing, exploding with the pain he must be feeling…… she had to talk to him… but…… should she? Would he even want to talk to her? What if he didn’t? Good God! What if he DID! She could think of no words of comfort that didn’t sound banal and trite… so sorry, didn’t suffer, in a better place! God! What crap!
She flipped open the phone with a trembling hand… the weight of it making her arm bend down, as her mind wandered back……… back to their first meeting…
She had just recently moved there…. running from a broken romance, looking for a new start in a new place. She had opened a little public relations firm and hung out a sign and hired an overqualified assistant. He had been wanting to grow his business…. at a time when the government was not so subtly attacking his industry, demonizing all that he stood for. He just happened to be walking by and he spotted her newly painted sign and had walked in without an appointment. She was standing at her assistant’s desk and they looked up together when the bell on the door tinkled. And the instant their eyes met, she knew that this was the man she had waited for. He smiled at her and she melted. She walked towards him and extended her hand and introduced herself and when he took her hand in his she quickly prayed to God to let her breathe normally.
She showed him into her office and as she closed the door, she indicated a leather couch for him to sit on. She asked him if he would like something cool to drink….. he said water would be great. She went to a small under counter fridge and took out a pair of bottled waters. Handing him one, she then reached for a pad and pen on her desk and moved to sit across from him in a leather chair. As she sat, she glanced at his hand... no wedding ring but a tan line and a slight indentation, indicating that there had been one there not long ago.
He explained the nature of his business and she made copious notes. He had been very successful but now was the time to grow, and he wanted her to prepare an expansion plan and lay out what was needed for him to grab a larger share of an expanding industry. By the end of the meeting, her head was spinning with ideas, and she suggested that they meet in three days, at which time she would lay out a preliminary plan for him. He agreed and rose to leave, again reaching for her hand in farewell. He held it a few seconds too long but as she smiled into his eyes, she lost track of time. After a warm smile from him, he turned to leave, agreeing to meet for dinner the upcoming Friday evening. It was several minutes before she realized how long she had stood there staring at the door he had closed behind him……
All she had done for three days and nights was to think about his account as her mind raced with ideas for promoting his small company. So many avenues to explore - so many choices for him. And tonight she would bring him a small folder with graphs and charts suggesting areas to concentrate on first. She also had a CD with some graphic designs for an updated company logo. She had laid out her ideas for an advertising campaign, starting small and simply, with the promise of more as the business grew.
She dressed carefully… not too seductively in a simple black dress with a mandarin collar, sleeveless and belted at the waist with a silver chain. Her only jewelry was her signature diamond earrings (bought with her first three paychecks from her first job out of college). Black 4” heels finished the outfit, making her 6’2...... she smiled because he was at least 6’4, so the shoes were fine. She grabbed her black shawl and tiny purse, a slim black satchel with her files in it, took one last look in the mirror and headed out the door. It wouldn’t do to be late!
He had selected the restaurant since she was new in town… The Oceanaire Seafood Room… a local seafood restaurant… sounded wonderful and she LOVED seafood…… she had googled the directions there from her tiny apartment and printed out the map – it wasn’t too far but she was giving herself plenty of time to find it in the waning daylight. And now here she was, sitting in the parking lot, 15 minutes early and as nervous as a 16-year old going to her first prom. She grinned and took a deep breath…. THIS WAS A BUSINESS DINNER! For Pete’s sake – CALM DOWN!
Then she saw him striding across the parking lot towards the door and she gasped. God, he was tall…. God, he was handsome… his wavy hair neatly trimmed, his jacket perfectly tailored, tan slacks and tassel loafers. He walked through the door and disappeared and she glanced at the clock. He was 10 minutes early….. she would wait 5 minutes and then go in.
As she walked across the parking lot, her mind was racing as she tried to envision how the evening might go. It’s business….. keep telling yourself that. Entering the lobby of the restaurant, the hostess approached. ‘You are Anna’, she asked, already knowing the answer. Anna nodded and the hostess indicated that she should follow her.
As they approached a small round table by a floor-to-ceiling window, he spotted her and stood, pulling out the adjacent chair, She smiled graciously and sat, as the waitress laid a menu and a wine list in front of her. She thanked the hostess and then turned and smiled and said ‘Hello, John’……. And the evening began.
Over drinks – she ordered a white wine and he had scotch on the rocks - she reviewed her proposals and ideas with him – making notes of his suggestions and comments. Before the main course arrived, she closed the folder and handed it to him, along with the CD. He laid it aside, his eyes never leaving hers.
Then the conversation changed…comfortably and easily… and everyone in the room disappeared. They were like old friends, catching up on each other’s lives.
This first dinner… the laughter, the comfort with one another… she was smitten by his intelligence and had hung on his every word… and he couldn’t take his eyes off her, never wanting the meal to end because he couldn’t bear to let her walk away, if only for a little while. Each thinking the same thing but not knowing how to stop the inevitable…. the end of the evening.
He asked what had brought her here, to this town and she told him about the tragic death of her fiancé in an auto accident Christmas eve two years ago… how she had withdrawn and mourned…… Six months later she had decided to move….she put her belongings in storage, turned her house over to a real estate agent to find a tenant, gave her notice at the PR firm she loved and had basically thrown a dart at a map of the country - and here she was. It wasn’t until he offered her his handkerchief that she realized the tears were streaming down her cheeks.
She dabbed at her eyes and then blew her nose, and her head flew up as she looked at him and smiled, realizing he would not get his handkerchief back tonight! The thought of what she had done almost made her laugh, and she felt her face glow warm as she blushed. Oh well, she thought…. Too late now! She slipped the hanky in her purse and looked up into his eyes as he reached for her hand, holding is gently in both of his.
They sat, neither moving nor speaking… but neither needing to. Suddenly John released her hand and turned to speak to the waiter, ordering clam chowder for them both, and another round of drinks. Anna turned to look at the night skyline, a panoramic display that seemed just for them. After the waiter left, she turned and said to this man... ‘Tell me about you, John…’ The soup arrived as he began his story….
European by birth but raised in New York by parents who were in the diplomatic corps, had an Ivy League education, married right out of college and divorced two years later. Married again at 30, a child born within that first year… struggles in the relationship because of careers and parenthood, and then another child… but they settled into a comfortable existence that had lasted until two years ago. It had occurred to both of them that ‘comfortable’ wasn’t synonymous with happy and they had parted amicably. His oldest son was out of college and he had one still in high school that lived with his mom. He had resigned from his corporate job and finally fulfilled one of his life’s dreams - having his own company. He had poured his heart and soul into it and had seen the fruits of his efforts as it began to grow. Hired an assistant, then another, and now was the time to expand his market. That’s why he needed Anna - his time was totally taken with giving his company all that it required to keep it leading edge, and besides - he had no creative genes.
Anna laughed and looked up from her chowder. ‘Thanks for sharing with me, John. I think I can provide what you need for your immediate and long-term goals. I’m surely going to try’, she smiled, ‘because you’re my first and only client, and I need for you to need ME so I can pay my bills!’ and they both laughed at the prospects.
John suggested the blackened trout and she agreed. They continued talking, comfortably, like they had known each other forever... discussing travels, favorite movies… music... she found it totally amusing that SHE was an oldies fan but HE liked the trendy music and artists of today. And both became animated when the conversation turned to politics. He was an ardent conservative, actually more of a libertarian. She was equally way to the right of center and had dreamed of a career in politics.
When the waiter came to the table with the dessert menu and asked if they wanted coffee, they both realized with disappointment that the evening was almost over. Neither wanted either so the waiter presented the bill to John. Anna leaned forward and picked it up…’this is on me,’ she smiled. ‘My first dinner with my first client.’ John smiled and whispered ‘Thanks, lovely lady. The next one will be on me.’
The waiter brought the receipt and John stood to help her with her chair. As they were leaving the restaurant, John looked around and realized that most of the men in the restaurant were following Anna as she walked ahead of him towards the exit. He stepped closer to her and placed his hand in the small of her back, wanting to send a warning that this one was taken, and then he shook his head as he wondered what the hell he was doing!
Outside, he asked Anna where her car was and she pointed to it… the little red one over there…. John walked her to her car, his hand still on her back and when they got there he held out his hands for her keys and unlocked the door for her. She tossed her shawl, case and purse into the passenger seat and turned to face him, and in that moment he placed his left hand over the door opening, blocking her from getting in the car. He cupped her chin in his hand and leaned in to kiss her gently. Her hand slipped up behind his head and she pulled him closer, returning the kiss. After a few moments, John stepped back and cleared his throat. ‘I would like to see you again, Anna… socially, not a business dinner.’
Smiling and catching her breath, she said she would like that. ‘You have my number, John.’ As he walked away, she leaned against her car, realizing that her legs were trembling. She brought her hand to her face and inhaled the scent of him on her fingers, and smiled.
....... to be continued........... I hope
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