AllFreeNovel
Share Us
There are a lot of nods around the table, but I’m looking at Ty and thinking about his webcomics. He looks at me, and something passes between us. Without thinking, I take his hand in mine and raise it to my lips. I know I’ve just made a promise to him, and when he nods, I know he’s made one back to me.
“You are so going to have to invite all of us to the wedding,” the young woman at the other end of the table says, and Ty and I laugh with our fellow jurors, but I don’t let go of his hand.
We finish eating, then the group breaks up to do whatever everyone does after lunch. Some go outside to smoke, some go to the restroom. I lean over to Ty and whisper in his ear that we will be going to separate restrooms. He grins at me and waves as I gather up our trash and get up from the table.
“Oh, my God, you guys are so cute,” the young woman says as I walk away.
I roll my eyes, but I can’t deny the warm feeling I get in my chest. Just before I leave the cafeteria, I look back and find Ty. As if he can tell, he turns toward the doors at the same moment and his gaze finds me standing there. I wave. He blows me a kiss. And I feel like I’ve been struck through the heart as my entire body lights up.
Several minutes later, we’re back in the corridor on the third floor waiting for the bailiff to open the doors and let us in for the afternoon session, but it doesn’t happen. Other jurors return from lunch, and their trials resume, but we’re still in the hallway making idle speculation about what’s going on.
“I’ll bet they’re doing a deal,” one of our jurors says, and there are murmurs of agreement.
Ty and I lean against a wall. This time, our shoulders touch and our fingers tangle and caress with the lightest of strokes. It keeps us connected but isn’t so overt that we’ll attract attention.
“Do you think they’re making a deal?” Ty asks, and I shrug.
“Possible. There was something going on when we left for lunch.”
Half an hour goes by, and a new group of potential jurors troops up the stairs. They eye us with trepidation, and Ty gives a soft snort. I raise an eyebrow at him.
“It’s just funny. A few days ago, that was us. Pissed off to be here, kind of nervous because we didn’t know what to expect, hoping like heck not to end up on a jury, and now look at us.” His fingers stroke the side of my hand, tease at the lines on my palm. “We’ve already got ten people coming to our wedding.”
I laugh so loud it echoes against the hard surfaces and high ceiling. When I get myself under control, I lean closer. “I wish I could kiss you right now.”
Ty leans closer to me. “Me, too.” His hand grips mine a little tighter. “There’s always the bathroom.”
“No.” I can’t say it quick enough though I’m laughing. “You are such a bad influence.”
“That’s a good thing, right?”
“I’m starting to think so,” I say, my voice going soft.
Ty doesn’t get a chance to respond because the doors to our courtroom open at that moment, and the bailiff asks us to all enter. We file in and take our seats in the jury box. In only a handful of days, it’s become routine and familiar. I think about Ty’s observation of the new jurors we saw in the hallway, and then I glance at him, and think about how quickly he became the best part of my day. I don’t want to let that go. I want to continue to get to know him, continue to spend time with him. I want to see where this goes, and I have a feeling it’s going to go pretty far if not all the way to forever. I’m not usually a starry-eyed romantic, but I want to know if I’m right. As soon as this trial is over, we can start doing that.
The end of the trial turns out to be not so far off. As soon as the judge takes her seat, she informs us that the defense has accepted a plea deal.
“I don’t want you to feel as if your time in this courtroom has not served a purpose,” she says. “Jury trials are at the heart of our justice system, and your willingness to take part in this trial, your willingness to weigh the evidence presented to you fairly and without prejudice is one of the fundamental responsibilities as citizens of this country. The court acknowledges you and thanks you for your service. You are now discharged as jurors.”
The twelve of us remain seated for several seconds as if expecting something else, but one by one, we gather up our things and start to file out. We can’t take our notebooks with us, which gives me a bit of a pang when I think about the sketches Ty made in the margins of his because they’re a part of our shared experience. But Ty hands over the steno pad without hesitation, and I remember, he’s got other sketches he made in the assembly room. Then I realize, we’re done. We can have our date. We can finally start whatever this is going to be.
Our jury lingers in the hallway outside the courtroom as if reluctant to let the bubble of our association break apart. Some people exchange contact info, and a few head for the clerk’s office to hand in their vouchers so they can collect their fifteen dollars a day compensation.
I catch up to Ty, take hold of his hand and entwine our fingers, pull him into my arms and kiss him. “Where do you want to go for dinner?” I ask.
My question seems to catch Ty off-guard, and I’m about to backtrack when he grins. “I was hoping we could have dinner at your place.” He gives me a shy glance. “I think I’d like something simple and quiet, besides the fact that I doubt we’d be able to get a table anywhere since it is Valentine’s Day.”
“I like that idea.”
We make plans to meet up at my place at seven, and I confirm food preferences and allergies, already formulating a menu and a grocery list in my head.
* * * * *
As much as I love having Marney around, I’m really grateful she’s going to be staying over at Iris’s tonight. I’m nervous enough about making this evening perfect that I don’t need Marney asking me a ton of questions or commenting on what I’m doing.
I’ve got olives and bruschetta for our appetizers, a little gem salad with avocado and crumbled bacon to start, and a mushroom risotto for our main. There’s a wonderful bottle of Chardonnay chilling in the fridge, and I asked Tyler to bring the dessert. I debated about flowers, but the selection was already pretty slim by the time I got to the store, so I opted to go with candles on the table instead.
At a quarter to seven, I make one last pass through my house making sure everything looks perfect. I pause at the door to my room. Should I have gotten candles? Would that be too presumptuous? I mean, I don’t want to assume we’ll end up in my bed after dinner, but it’s a distinct possibility given the way the day started out. I don’t think I’ve ever been this nervous about a date before.
