Charlie Foxtrot (Book 2 of Love is War Series)

Chapter 10

For once, Auden thanked her lucky stars that she hadn’t gone over to visit her Aunt Mary that Saturday. It had taken her far too long to get pick out a dress and get ready for a date she didn’t know if she would actually enjoy. Jim scared her a little. Any man with any power did.

Since moving to the west coast of Florida, she usually spent Saturdays with Marietta, doing anything from shopping to just sitting around and chatting or watching some television. Her Aunt Mary was like a surrogate mom here, because she missed her family on the east coast terribly. They were her backbone and touchstones, but at least she could get to know her aunt even better now.

It’s not that she didn’t visit regularly, but even across the state, it was a hassle, so they only met a few times a year.

As she waited outside her apartment building, she looked around. It wasn’t the best neighborhood in the city, but it wasn’t the worst either. It definitely could have used some extra policing at night. Car burglaries in the area were high, that was for sure, which was why she left her car in the garage of the building for an extra fee each month. It was monitored by CCTV, which helped keep her car safe from the normal rabble who plundered the citizen’s cars that were parked parallel to the curb.

A car pulled up, and she blinked. Jim was driving a Mercedes when he normally rode around in a Lexus. When he got out of the car and smiled, she had to force herself to do it back. It wasn’t that she wasn’t pleased to see him, but the whole situation made her nervous.

“Hey there, lovely lady,” he greeted as he got out of the driver’s side and strolled up to her. He pecked her quickly on the cheek before moving over to open the car door for her, stepping back to let her in. “I hope you like Italian food. I made us a reservation at La Terrazza. I love their seafood alfredo and their penne alla vodka best. Best in the city if you’re a fan. If not, they have steak, veal, chicken, an—”

“Oh no. I love pasta. And seafood. I was always glad I wasn’t allergic. I had a cousin who was allergic and blew up like a balloon once. It was terrible and so scary. Is the place far?”

Shaking his head, he walked away from the door after making sure she was belted in and closed it for her. When he hopped into the driver’s side again, he expounded. “Not at all. Ten, maybe fifteen minutes away. I made sure we were seated in a nicer seating area, though. Busy part of town and usually a waiting list to get in. They have a second floor and third floor balcony seating. I requested third floor above all the baloney happening below. I always feel like a goldfish in a bowl when I’m sitting near a window. Hard to carry on a conversation that way, in my opinion. Would rather go into therapy.”

She couldn’t help it and snorted, trying to catch the sound in her hand before eyeing Jim, who seemed to be amused by her response. She tried to stifle her laughter and hissed a little, sounded like a snake until she couldn’t help it and broke apart. Auden ended up laughing at herself just as much as at Jim’s comment.

“You know I always hated the whole fish bubble thing too. I used to work in a physical therapist’s office where the desk was snugged right up against the window. If I didn’t pull the shades, everyone could see everything you were doing, and all the people walking by were usually heading down to their surgeon’s office, Mr. Ball. He was a spinal surgeon. Nice guy, but why the hell would you have your office on the 3rd floor when the elevator constantly needed repair?”

“What would happen when it broke down and he had people coming in for their appointments?” He sounded genuinely curious.

“Well, they installed one of the chair lift things like you used to see on TV back in the day. You popped them in it, placed a tray over their lap, locked it, and up they went—slowly, mind you. It wasn’t attached in any way to the elevator, and some people preferred it, actually.”

“Ah, one of those things that they usually installed in homes, right?”

Mmhmm,” she agreed. “I loved looking at the little old grannies who stared at it, scared for a moment, and then they were fans by the end of the ride. More than one looked into getting one for their home.”

The ride was full of chatter, and before she knew it, they were at La Terrazza, a quaint little place that resembled a swanky rowhouse. It was all brick, and she looked up at the tall façade of the building after the valet started to drive away with the Mercedes. Indeed, there were two balconies above them, and what she thought were probably apartment above that, sans balconies.

“This is really cute!” she exclaimed quietly as they walked in the front door. “I thought it would look more elegant and was afraid I was underdressed.” She looked down at her semi-formal attire.

“Not at all. This place is reasonably priced and more intimate without seeming pretentious. I may make enough money to afford much more expensive fare, but this place has a five-star rating and excellent reputation. I’ve been here enough times that I’m friendly enough with the staff, and the owner is actually an old friend of mine.”

They walked into the second set of doors, Auden winking up at him. “Looking for the old family friend discount?”

It was his turn to snort, and she was thankful he wasn’t offended. “Not at all. If he insisted on it, I would give the difference in check the server. Not only is their food good, but they have excellent service otherwise. I’ve never had a problem here.”

They were seated by a beautiful Italian woman with a slight accent, soulful brown eyes, and long chestnut hair that resembled spun silk. Auden was immediately admiring and a little jealous. She wondered what hair products the woman used but thought it rude enough not to ask.

After heading upstairs, they were immediately sat at the table on the third-story balcony, all by themselves. They were too high up to be seen from the street well, and it was dark by now, so their table was lights by electric candles and an overhead streetlight. It was fashioned to look antique and added to the ambience of Old-World Italy.

The main 3rd floor dining room was spread out, giving everyone their space, and the shade was drawn so those that were inside could only see the silhouette of the people on the outside. Auden was amazed.

“How were you able to reserve the balcony on such short notice? This has to be an in-demand seating arrangement.”

“Like I said, I know the owner, and he was able to rearrange some things for me. And this place is more of a hidden gem. Because it’s not glamorous and glitzy enough for some, it isn’t as popular as some of the other places.”

Shrugging her shoulders, Auden spoke. “Who needs glamorous and snooty? It’s uncomfortable. I wasn’t born with a silver spoon in my mouth, and I definitely don’t find it reassuring to be sitting in formal clothing and praying I don’t spill on myself. Plus, the etiquette needed? I’d rather be able to put my elbows on a table and have a chat over making sure my spoons and knives and forks are all in the right order. Give me comfort over class every time.”

Jim looked pleased to hear that and grinned. “Same. Everyone thinks that because I sometimes drive a Mercedes and live in a mansion that I only eat at restaurants that do a credit check before they’ll let you through their doors. No diners’ cards, no pomp and circumstance. I like this place. I’m comfortable here. It’s clean and doesn’t charge me $29.99 for a garden salad side, and the entire staff is approachable and friendly. They treat you more like family than customers. If this place got a name for itself, they would have a line down the road trying to get in.”

“Yeah, I have a question about your Mercedes. I’ve never seen you drive it to work.”

“Oh, that?” He waved it off. “It’s one of Clay’s fleet at the house. He’s got a ton of them, and we switch them up and drive them every other. Last week, he drove it to work. You might have seen it in the parking lot.”

“I don’t pay much attention. Unless it’s my ride, I can’t be bothered. I’m not big into cars.”

“Me either, though I do make sure I keep mine regularly maintenanced. I didn’t drive it to show off. It just needs to be driven. Clay has a terribly lot of vehicles, and Muse will only drive her own car. She’s pretty uncomfortable with anything like that old boat outside. She likes her vehicles small. SUVs scare her, I think.”

“I don’t mind SUVs unless they’re huge—like those big Jimmy’s that my dad used to own. I learned to drive in one. It felt like driving a school bus.”

Jim laughed, and the server came over to take their drink orders.

***

Auden was drinking her second glass of wine, her cheeks flushed prettily. She was a lightweight when it came to alcohol. Jim was drinking a glass of water after having a scotch on the rocks. He didn’t want to imbibe too much when he had to drive again.

“Having fun?” he asked her as she drank the last of her wine and ordered an after-dinner coffee. “You can admit you did, you know.” He winked and smiled before adding some creamer to his decaf.

“I did, actually. Thanks for this, Jim. I didn’t honestly think we had anything in common.”

“Oh, people will always find something to talk about,” he stated. “Whether it’s movies or music or fashion, they’ll find something to agree on. If you don’t, you’re probably not trying hard enough and it’s doomed from the start.”

“I guess I can see that. If you make little effort, you get little reward.”

They’d spent much of their time talking in between eating, laughing at stupid stories that Jim told about work shenanigans, and she listened and tried not to judge. That was hard as she listened to some of the dopiest things she heard actually happen. He continued with his most recent tale.

“And they were, where? Broom closet?” She snickered.

“Worse. Since Clay was on his honeymoon, they thought no one would be using the 5th floor filing that houses the paychecks, but someone had to do payroll, right? He left all the paychecks locked up in there during his trip, and I walked in to grab the checks. Jonah and Liz were there. It’s not a big f*****g room. You walk in and boom—two people screwing against the old fax machine? I was a little shocked.”

“They lose their jobs?” Auden couldn’t help but cackle with laughter.

“Oh, yeah. I had to call Clay on his honeymoon and he was at a Kinko’s within twenty minutes, emailing me pink slips to both. I felt terrible, but we couldn’t have that happening everywhere. It would set a terrible precedent. Plus, it was a s****l harassment liability as well if anything were to happen. We had video of them going into the room and everything, and neither looked like they were there against their will, but you never know. If one of them was jilted and wanted to get back at the other and make a bit of cash at the same time, they might try to sue the company. I’m all for a healthy s****l relationship, but they were also supposed to be working, and they had been in there a while, I later found out.”

“Do you know what happened to them afterwards? Did they stay together?”

Jim’s lips quirked up on one side. “You could say that—or at least Liz has a nice little souvenir brewing in the oven.”

Auden gasped. “She’s pregnant?”

“Yup. I don’t think he’s too happy. Jonah was married.”

“Was?”

“Oh yeah, his wife found the pink slip and dug for the reasons behind getting fired. She knew a couple of the other clerks and found out. We didn’t tell anyone, so I assume at least one other person working at CBC knew what they were doing and blabbed.”

He finished up his story and paid the bill, tipping the valet handsomely when the Mercedes was brought around. Instead of heading toward her apartment, he headed west toward the bay. She noticed this and asked where they were going.

“I want to show you something. It’s something you can see in the bay, so it’s not too far, maybe 15 minutes. You have to see it at least once. I promise you’ll like it, though.”

They were oddly quiet for the remainder of the drive, and once Jim got out at a parking lot close to the water, they were abutted up to a couple of piers along the bay. Already, she could see some sort of glow coming from the water and was anxious to see it.

“What is it?” she asked as they stopped and looked down in between two boats at heir berths.

“You’ve heard of bioluminescence before, right?”

She nodded before remembering it was pretty dark outside and he might miss the gentle bob of her head. “Yeah, when something living emits light, like fireflies. But that looks like its coming from under the boats. No chance of them down there.”

“You’re right. It is coming from the water. I don’t remember what it is that causes it, but I think I remember it has to do with the red tide, which everyone knows happens in Florida. The algae gives it that pretty blue glow at night in the bay. You don’t see it often, and it’s probably not a super-healthy environment, but I thought you’d like to see it.”

“It…it’s actually quite pretty. If it only happened more often, it would be a perfectly romantic locale for a restaurant.” Her eyes swept the shore along bay. It was quiet except for the low groan of some of the larger vessels. They watched the water flow and change the intensity of the light, listening to the relaxing lapping until they were both ready to go.

When Auden turned around, her heart lurched into her throat and started to beat faster. Instead of Jim looking at the water, he was staring at her. It was a hungry, intense look that soaked into her skin and made her tremble.

“Jim?”

He grunted.

“Uhm, did you want to—”

But it was too late, and his lips were on hers, taking at first, until she gave back with everything she had.

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