AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Ophelia stretches her arms above her head and I get a vision of those wrists tied together, stuck to the top of my bed as I go down on her. “Getting there,” she adds as I try my best to shake the image from my head.
“No luck seeing that man of yours?”
I get a flash of jealousy, my fingers curling into fists. What man? I’ll kill him for even thinking about her.
“Nope. He left the country so I doubt I’ll see him again.”
“You will if you’re meant to.” Teresa takes the seat opposite hers. “When I met my Reggie, it was the day he shipped out and he’d only come in for a pint of ale. Didn’t see him again for four years but when he came back, we were married within six weeks.”
She leans a hand across the table. “You’ll see him again if it’s meant to be. Maybe be married as quick as me. Forty years I got before he died and I loved every day.”
Ophelia sighs. “It’s dumb anyway. I only saw him for like ten minutes, if that. Saved me from the elevator and then paid me off so I wouldn’t sue over it. Why am I even obsessing over him? Tell me that, Teresa, would you?”
I catch my breath. She means me. She’s talking about me.
“Did he ever reply to your message?”
“Just said cash the check. Mailed me my coat, no return address. It doesn’t matter anyway. I am totally over him.”
“I don’t believe you.”
“Why not?”
“I can tell. You look like I did while Reggie was away fighting.” She gets to her feet. “You’ll see him again if it’s meant to be.”
“It was a stupid crush and I’m over it. I’m going for a pee.”
Teresa pushes a cart of books down a nearby aisle. Ophelia heads right, walking toward the toilets in the corner. I’m about to follow her when a man strides straight over to her table, picks up her laptop without pausing and walks straight toward the door with it.
I don’t stop to think. I simply send a message to Rocky. Then I wait. Within two minutes, Rocky is walking in the door. He passes me the laptop. “Any trouble?” I ask.
“Cried like a baby when I grabbed his balls.”
“I bet he did. Piece of shit. Any affiliation?”
“Belucci associate but low level. I doubt they’ll kick up a stink over this. Anything else you need?”
“I’ll be out in ten.”
“I’ll be waiting. If the Feds take us while we’re sitting here, I hope she was worth coming back for.”
He walks out. I carry her laptop back to her desk and set it down. Then I walk back to my position and wait. She emerges from the toilets a minute later, heading back to her seat. Once she’s sat down, I emerge from hiding, walking straight toward her.
Rocky was right. I can’t risk spending too long here. Someone might recognize me. I need to get this arranged and get back out of the country. One night with her. Enough to sate this obsessive gnawing in my soul and get my focus back where it belongs, on the job.
This is dumb. I shouldn’t approach her. It can’t end in anything but pain for her and trouble for me. I should swerve and walk out the door without looking back.
I think of her looking back at me from the steps of the office. How beautiful she looked with the snow drifting around her.
I walk straight up to her, tapping the top of her book pile. “There’s an exhibition coming up in Seattle next week,” I say. “I could provide you with tickets if you like.”
She looks up, her mouth opening as she sees it’s me. “You,” she says, gawping up at me. “What are you doing here?”
“Paying my overdue fines.”
“Seriously, what are you doing here? Are you stalking me?”
“I like to think I could manage that without being spotted.”
