Crystal Lies - Melody Carlson [46]
The waiter smiled politely as he escorted me to a lonely little table near the kitchen. But I didn’t mind the location so much. It was highly preferable to being right out in the middle where everyone could see that I was dining alone. And I must admit that the noises coming from the kitchen sounded somewhat warm and familiar. Really, I told myself, this isn’t so bad.
I watched as other couples and families and groups came in, quickly filling our town’s most expensive restaurant. Not so unusual for a Friday night. And slowly but surely, I began to relax, and I started to enjoy a bit of people watching, and I thought perhaps dining alone had its upside after all. Not to mention that the food and service were excellent.
Shortly after the waiter set my entrée before me, and after I’d taken a few delicious bites, I nearly fell out of my chair. My heart seemed to stop beating as I saw Geoffrey being seated at a table on the other side of the dining room, and across the table from him, already seated and beaming up at him, was Judith Ramsey. It appeared obvious by their happy and relaxed expressions that they hadn’t noticed me. And perhaps they might not ever look up and see me since the restaurant was dimly lit with only the soft glow of small oil lamps illuminating the tables—and since their eyes seemed to be fixed on each other.
Unreal. I couldn’t believe the odds of my seeing them—and in Sindalli’s of all places! This is where Geoffrey always took me for our special dates. Perhaps I should’ve known better. Or perhaps I had done this subconsciously. Is it possible that I came here tonight hoping to see them? Whatever the case, I wished I wasn’t here now. And I knew if they saw me, they would assume it was no coincidence. They might even think I was stalking them.
I’m not sure how long I sat there staring at them, wondering how I could escape this predicament, but finally the waiter approached my table and with concern asked if there was anything wrong with my food.
“No,” I said quickly. “It’s wonderful.”
“Oh, good.”
“But I’m afraid it’s more than I can eat right now. Do you think you could possibly box up what’s left?”
“Certainly.”
And while the young man was off in the kitchen, dumping my beautifully arranged pasta into a takeout Styrofoam box, I considered how I could slip out of the restaurant without being seen by them. There was an emergency exit just opposite the kitchen, but I felt certain that would sound an alarm and draw everyone’s attention. I could try to walk around the far side of the restaurant, but going in and out of tables would probably draw attention as well.
Finally I wondered why I naturally assumed that I should be the one to go sneaking around to avoid them. It occurred to me that I had as much right as anyone to be eating in this particular restaurant. In fact, I had even more right than my husband, who was barely even separated before he started publicly dating another woman.
And so, after the waiter returned with my box and a bill that was more than I’d expected, I stood up, and with what little confidence I could muster, I began to walk directly through the restaurant. I knew there was no graceful way to avoid their table, at least not without making a spectacle of myself, and besides I had conjured up a plan. Okay, maybe it was a foolish plan, but at the time it felt perfect.
I walked right up to their table and paused there until they finally looked up and realized it was me. I could see the look of horrified surprise in Geoffrey’s eyes, not just at seeing me standing there, but also because I looked different. It was almost as if he didn’t recognize me at first.
“Glennis,” he whispered.
“Geoffrey,” I said calmly,“what a surprise.”
Judith remained silent, but I could tell