Afterthoughts by Lynn Tincher Page A

had ever
cried. It seemed to her that she cried for a half an hour and
wondered if anyone could hear her sobs from outside. Her head was
whirling and she was beginning to feel ill again. Taking a deep
breath she leaned her head back to try to stop the tears. She felt
a sense of calm envelop her and she could hear a voice, “You’re okay. Calm down. Breathe. Everything is
fine. Just breathe.”
    After a few moments, she walked out of
the stall and to the sink.
    “ So much for make-up,” she
sighed as she regretted actually putting some on. She decided to
splash cold water on her face to bring down the swelling around her
eyes. When she felt she was as presentable as she was going to get,
she held up her head, squared her shoulders, and walked back to her
office.

Chapter 15
     
    After her first day back to work,
Paige was exhausted. Deciding to take the Steckler file and the
letter home with her and think about what to do next, she packed
her bag and reached for what was left of a soft drink she had
purchased at lunch, knocking it over. “Damn, you are clumsy!” said
a deep voice from the doorway.
    “ David!” Paige ran over
and gave him a hug. “I was beginning to wonder if you would be here
today!”
    “ Just got in,” he said as
he kissed her. “How are you holding up?”
    “ I’m fine. Great now that
you are here,” she hugged him tightly and kissed him
again.
    From the door in his office, Jay
watched David and Paige. He rubbed his eyes with both of his hands
thinking how stupid he was to even think about her. She was
obviously happy with David after all. He turned around and went
back in his office to grab his keys and head out of the door. Paige
saw him pass and could tell that something was wrong. She tried to
walk to him but David stopped her. “What do you want for dinner?
Just name it and it’s yours!” He was beaming. His dark blonde hair
was messier than usual, making Paige wonder if he was using some
new hair gel.
    “ Oh, I don’t know. I’ve
not had much of an appetite lately.” She toyed with the files on
her desk, trying to figure out what to take with her, slipping
everything she thought she could possibly look at in her brief
case.
    “ You never have my dear,”
he smiled at her and kissed her again.
    “ I’ve missed you so
much!”
    “ I’ve missed you too!” She
reached up and hugged him before turning back around to pick up
what she had tucked away to take home.
    They walked out to David’s Mercedes
and drove to Hennery’s, an extravagant French Restaurant in
Louisville. They made small talk along the way about some of the
sights David had seen and things he had done while he was
away.
    “ David, I’m not dressed
for this,” Paige said as she looked down at the sweater she had on
and the khaki pants with coffee stains on the leg, then remembered
that she no longer had on make-up.
    “ Don’t worry about that.
No one will notice,” he winked at her.
    “ We have so much catching
up to do.” He took her hand and led her through the
door.
    Francis, the maitre d’, led them to
David’s usual table. After ordering the wine and dinner as usual,
he then turned to look at Paige. “You haven’t asked me about the
book.”
    “ So, how’s the book
doing?” she smiled at him as if she had come up with the question
all by herself. She was beginning to see how she pushed people off.
Not showing an interest, whether or not intentional, is never a
good thing in a relationship. Promising herself that she needed to
think of others first, she turned her attention back on
David.
    “ It’s ten on the New York
Times.” His big toothy smile was too bright to overlook from across
the room.
    “ Oh David, that’s
wonderful!” Paige tried not to squeal too loudly, glancing over her
shoulders to make sure she hadn’t caused a scene.
    Paige was thankful for the dim lights
as everyone looked as if they were enjoying their own meals and
conversation. She felt she was safe from the