What I also found unsettling was that he wasn’t willing to tell me, at least just not yet, what this personal issue of his was that caused him to cancel his plans with me. He didn’t trust me enough to tell me. He did sound sincere in his apology, but he was being so evasive about it. I really needed to try not to overthink this. Even though he wouldn’t tell me the real reason he had to cancel today, he sounded reassuring. It was probably nothing. Maybe he had some family obligation come up, like his mom or sister were sick or needed help with something.
I started to feel sick myself. I couldn’t tell if I was nauseated from the excess alcohol or if it was a psychosomatic episode brought on my overactive imagination. I really needed to do something with my idle time today or I was going to drive myself crazy.
The phone rang again and this time it really was Anna. Since I no longer had plans for the day, I agreed to meet her at eleven for Sunday brunch.
As I walked towards the Five Spot, I saw a long line of people waiting outside. My stomach was still queasy; food was a necessity. My watch said I was only five minutes late, but knowing Anna, it would likely be another fifteen minutes or so before she arrived. Even though I could predict her arrival time, I never did adjust my own to accommodate hers. Instead, I always found myself being the one to put our name in for the table and killing time reading email and perusing the latest posts from friends on Facebook.
While I waited in line for the hostess to take my name, I took a quick glance around the room and saw a familiar blond woman looking at me. I did a double take and when I caught her eye, she smiled. Catherine.
I just stared for a moment before reacting. It was that moment we’ve all had when you see someone you know out of context, so you’re pretty sure it’s them, but what if it’s not and you embarrass yourself? Well, this was one of those moments and it totally took me off guard. I knew it was Catherine, but wasn’t she still supposed to be traveling in Europe or was it Asia Pacific by now? I guess I never expected to see my manager outside of work, let alone enjoying brunch at the same restaurant as me, when she was supposed to literally be on the other side of the world.
She smiled and waved and I felt obligated to say hello. I made sure my name was listed with the hostess, sighing over the 25-30 minute wait, before walking over to Catherine’s table.
She looked a little tired and I saw some faint, but still noticeable, bags under her eyes. It was probably the jet lag. She still looked great, though, as Grace Kelly-esque as the photo on her door. I smiled as I approached her and prepared myself for the “fancy meeting you here” conversation I was about to have with my manager. I glanced briefly over to her friend and was momentarily stunned … It was Ryan.
Fuck me.
My smile froze and I blinked a few times, double checking to make sure I was seeing correctly. Ryan acted like he had just swallowed something really bad, suddenly pale and equally stunned.
“Julia! Hi, how are you?” Catherine asked cheerfully.
“Uh … Hi, Catherine,” I said stiffly but with as much pleasantry as I could muster while trying to recover from my shock. “I thought you weren’t getting back until later this week?” My words were numb; my smile frozen on my face.
“I decided to cut my trip short because I wasn’t feeling very well. I guess maybe I was getting a little homesick, too.” She glanced over at Ryan, reaching her hand out over the table to cover his. What the fuck? I felt my stomach stir uneasily. I was already a little nauseated from my hangover, but the look Catherine gave Ryan took it to a whole new level. Something was terribly wrong here.
I looked at Ryan but he was admiring the salt and pepper shakers like they were the most fascinating objects in the world. I willed him to look at me, but he wouldn’t. In fact, he didn’t move. I could see a vein in his temple twitching, though, and his lips were pressed tight, but he wouldn’t look at me in the eye.
Catherine noticed me looking at Ryan and said, “Julia, this is Ryan McGraw.” I could tell Catherine sensed something amiss between Ryan and me. She looked back and forth with a perplexed expression, but suddenly got all animated, startling me. “Oh! You guys already know each other. Silly me! Ryan told me he hit you with his car and then ran into you again at the All Hands meeting.” She laughed. “What a funny coincidence, isn’t it?”
I was completely dumbfounded and blinked a few more times in surprise. “Um, yes … completely. What a coincidence.” I smiled nervously and looked towards Ryan, regarding him as politely as I could. “Thank you for the new laptop, Mr. McGraw.”