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“You’re not leaving already?”
“Sorry, Georgie,” Neal said innocently. “I think I’m coming down with something.”
George rolled his eyes again, this time, more obviously.
“Try again,” he said calmly.
Neal pretended to give a defeated sigh. “There’s a pretty girl I want to get to know better… and I’m not one for parties like this one, anyway.”
George nodded in resignation. “Better.”
“How about we grab lunch on Saturday?” Neal asked, trying to make up for his early departure.
“You know I’m flying out this Friday,” George replied.
“Ah,” Neal said, his mind groping for the country, “Yes. To… Tibet...?"
“Taiwan,” George corrected in exasperation.
“That’s what I meant,” Neal said confidently.
George sighed and then gave Neal a good-natured pat on the back.
“I’ll see you when I get back, little brother,” he said.
Neal leaned in and gave him a hug. “Thanks for letting me cut out early, you’re the best.”
“Don’t you forget it,” George said with a wink.
Chapter2
Elena wasn’t sure why she had said yes to him. He was good looking enough, but apart from that, she didn’t think there was much there beyond the charming smile. Still, her day had been hard and she wanted to do something spontaneous, something that did not require a lot of thinking and planning. She just wanted to spend a night with a stranger and never have to worry about the consequences later.
She felt relieved to remove herself from the heavy richness of the opulently decorated ballroom. It was such an unnatural environment; as though it was trying hard to make everyone who entered it feel insignificant. Elena knew she was projecting. Her feelings of inadequacy reflected her own life and were not a result of the extravagant party in the ballroom.
She momentarily forgot his name and panicked slightly. Then she recalled that it started with an N. Finally, she remembered – Neal. His name was Neal. She tried to relax, but she could feel the tension in her body. She hated days like this. They made her feel like she was on the edge of a cliff, and she was about to fall at any moment.
She depended so much on unpredictable lifelines that they were starting to take a toll on her. She was a twenty-five year old graduate and she had only barely survived the last three years on her own.
Her fingers fidgeted, but she refused to let them rise to her mouth. She had managed to stave off nail biting si
nce her freshman year at college, but stress was wearing down her will power. She clenched her hands into fists and paced up and down the entrance to the hotel, waiting for Neal to appear. The vibration from her pocket interrupted her chaotic thoughts and she retrieved her cell phone with a fast prayer.
“Elena Parker speaking.”
“Elena, how’re you doing?”
Elena only barely recognized the nasal voice on the other end.
“Is this Mitcham?” she asked.
“Yeah, doll,” he said casually, “how’s it going?”
She wanted to slap him.
“You were supposed to drop off my check three days ago, Mitcham,” she said, struggling to keep her voice calm.
“Aw, doll,” he said, “you know how it is.”
