"I’ll be back by two."Claire touched Anna’s elbow with friendly affection as she brushed past and hustled toward the elevators.
By the time she made it to the street, she had three minutes to get to the restaurant.Gripped with nervous anxiety that he might not wait for her, she walked as fast as her heels allowed, her trench and her hair billowing as the breeze took hold of both.Do I text him?Tell him I’m on my way?Or let him sweat it out a little?Keep the element of surprise?And what happens when I see him?Do we hug?Shake hands?
Maybe this is a bad idea.
These questions and dozens more lit up her mind like the Vegas strip.Yet when she turned a corner and caught sight of the restaurant, her inner monologue fell silent, giving the spotlight to the collection of knots that knitted her stomach.She slowed her pace, brushing her hair into place and wishing like hell she’d taken time to grab the tin of breath mints from her desk drawer.At the door, she paused and took a cleansing breath.Here goes nothing.
The restaurant noise forced Claire to repeat herself to the hostess.She scanned the main dining room, but there were too many business suits to identify her lunch companion.The hostess conferred momentarily with a passing server, who nodded and pointed to a table in the back corner.Claire turned her head to follow and that's when she saw Jay—his eyes sparkling with both surprise and relief.He pushed his chair away from the table and stood.God, he looked good.Claire strode toward him, her heart drumming wildly inside her chest.
"You look beautiful," he whispered as they exchanged a friendly hug.
Those three little three words sent an avalanche of flutters.Feelings from Jamaica, the gelato date, and the night at the bistro—everything on repeat.Had it been anyone else offering a warm embrace and the whispers of a compliment after months of silence, she’d have run in the opposite direction.
He pulled her chair out before settling back on his own.A server appeared and took their drink orders.Once alone, they smiled at one another, each waiting for the other to speak.
"The CD was a nice surprise.It's the one Nancy Chen I don't own.Thank you for thinking of me," Claire said.
"You're welcome.You probably don’t even own a CD player now that everything’s digital.”
“I still have an old boom box I pull out from time to time.”
“I know it won't make up for what happened that night when I?—"
"There's no need tomake upfor anything,” she reassured him.
"Something came up and I needed to fly back to California,” he explained.“I just got back here last night."
"Really, Mr.Avery, there's no need to explain yourself.I totally understand."
"Ouch!”he said.“Demoted again.From Jay back to Mr.Avery?That's never a good sign."
"I don't want you to feel that you owe me any sort of explanation or apology," she said.
"But I do."He reached across the table, resting his hand lightly on hers."And I'm so thankful you agreed to have lunch with me today."
They spent a few minutes engaged in light conversation while perusing the menu.The server returned and they laughed when they discovered that they'd both decided on the same entree.Jay ordered a bottle of wine to be delivered with their meals after receiving a permissive nod from Claire.They sat across from one another, discussing an array of topics, oblivious to the noise around them.Though several months had passed between them without any communication whatsoever, they fell back into their same easy-going rhythm.
"Molly and Hamish went to the Nancy Chen concert," she said.
"They did?How was it?"he asked.
"She said it was fabulous."
"I promise that if and when she comes back to London, we'll be first in line."
We’ll be first in line?We?Jay’s thinking in the long term about us?As a couple?
“So how are things in Cali?”she asked.
“Fine, fine,” he said.“How’s your father?Has he recovered from his fall?
"He's hanging in there.His body’s healing, but his mind is having a hard time accepting his physical limitations.He’s actually planning to come see me in a couple of weeks if he's feeling strong enough and his doctor gives him the all-clear.Hamish is turning sixty-one and he's having a huge party at his home.My father hasn't seen him in a couple of years.It's kind of a joke really.Hamish always throws a big bash on the yearaftera milestone birthday—just to be cheeky and difficult."
"I see."Jay nodded.“So, turning forty-one, fifty-one, and so on?”
"Exactly.The whole thing started because of a bottle of whisky and a cricket match gone wrong.It’s a different story every time they tell it.You'll have to ask him to share the tale with you.Talk about a comedy of errors."
"Wait."Jay sat up very straight.“Are you saying I warrant an introduction?"
