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My eyes are slits as I crack them open and groan. Shit. It’s eleven o’clock! I gingerly sit up and see a bottled water with more ibuprofen and a little packet next to that. I pick up the packet and a note flutters onto the bed.
Felicity,
I miss you already.
Call me if you need anything.
I wish I’d had these chewables last night for you, but Cecil’s wasn’t open yet. They’re supposed to make a hangover feelbetter. Sunny Side breakfast would probably also help. Wish I was there to eat it with you.
Sutton
I smooth the note with my fingers, admiring his handwriting and loving that he wrote this note for me.
Did he really go out early this morning before work to buy me a hangover remedy?
I start with the chewables and water, taking my time getting up. After I go to the bathroom and get a shower, I almost feel human again. I look at Sutton’s note again and, on a whim, I call and place a large order from Sunny Side. About fifteen minutes later, I pick it up and drive to the courthouse.
This is around the time he usually calls me, unless it’s when he’s done for the day, and I wasn’t up to pack his lunch this morning. It’s possible he went out, but when I pull into the parking lot, I see his car and park a few spaces down.
Olivia thought the courthouse was run-down, but I think it’s pretty. It’s brick with white trim, the details are ornate but not gaudy. Two white columns are at the top of the stairs leading to the entrance, and there’s a small room in the center of the top floor, with three windows on the three sides. The dome on top makes it a distinguishable building whenever you’re near Landmark Mountain. The trim could use a touch-up in a few places, but it’s not run-down at all. And inside, it’s even more beautiful. The woodwork is intricate, and everything is shiny and clean.
There’s a small check-in that almost has me second-guessing this decision, but it’s painless, and I’m through the door in less than a minute with instructions to go up the stairs to the left to reach the offices. Once I’ve done that, the woman at the desk looks up and I see from her placard that it’s Miss Eleanor.
“Hello, I’m Felicity Shaw. I have Judge Landmark’s lunch.” I lift the bag and she nods before picking up the phone and reciting what I said to presumably the man himself.
When she hangs up, she looks at the files in front of her as she says, “His office is behind me. You’ll see his name on the door.”
“Thank you.”
She nods and I walk past her desk just as Sutton opens the door to his office.
“Hey,” he says in surprise.
I hold up the Sunny Side bag and he laughs.
“Great idea,” he says.
“You have some good ones.”
He motions for me to walk inside and closes the door behind us.
“I see you haven’t lost your sass. Hopefully, you lost the hangover?”
“Thanks to your bedside care, I am feeling fine.”
He takes the bag and motions for me to sit at the couch near the windows.
“Your office is beautiful.”
“Thank you, and thanks for the food. I was about to leave to grab something.”
I nod and feel as stiff as Miss Eleanor.
I sit and he sits in the chair across from me. He watches as I pull food out of my bag and then he does the same with his. When we’ve started eating and it’s still quiet between us, I clear my throat and finish the bite I’m chewing.
“Do you have to be in court this afternoon?” I ask.
“Not today. It’s a light week and mostly mornings in court.”
