a new battery. She broke the heel off her favorite pair of pumps during a sprint across the hospital parking lot in the rain. Her boss, the dining manager at the hospital, said her proposed winter menus were “too ambitious,” and that she should stick to the basics. Her absentee roommate turned up in the middle of the night, only to leave the next morning for a week in Florida with an old schoolmate. Aimee tried not to envy her, just to be thankful she’d left a check for half the rent.
Worst of all, she was regretting her note to Frank. She wasn’t in junior high, so where had she gotten the idea that writing a note to say she liked him was a good idea? She hadn’t heard from him by Friday, and she could only hope he hadn’t laughed too hard when he read it.
“Aimee, your cell phone was ringing.”
Luann, one of the line cooks, held it out to her. The food service workers had to deposit their cell phones in a bin outside the kitchen, so the phones wouldn’t be a distraction during meal preparation and service. An unwritten rule was that if you passed by the phone area while a phone was ringing, you checked whose phone it was and let that person know.
“Thanks.”
It was probably either a wrong number or Charlene checking up on her again, but Aimee washed her hands and headed for storage room, the nearest quiet area where she could check her phone. The message indicator was blinking, so she dialed her voice mail.
“Good morning, Aimee,” Edwina’s pleasant voice said. “Could you please call me at your convenience? I have a message from Frank.”
Aimee’s heart jumped. He’d read her note. What was the message? Edwina wouldn’t keep her dangling if he didn’t want to see her again, would he? Or was she the type who believed in delivering bad news personally?
Aimee dithered over whether to call immediately or wait until her lunch shift was over. She didn’t want to start crying if the response was negative, but she wouldn’t be able to concentrate until she knew. She took a deep breath and dialed A Time for Love.
“I’m sorry, Mrs. Darby’s on another line,” the receptionist’s smooth voice said after Aimee identified herself. “But I have a message for you. Can you be at our office tonight at eight? Mrs. Darby has arranged a brief meeting with you and your current match.”
Aimee hesitated. It was short notice, and she and Charlene had made vague plans to spend the evening together. But the message must mean Frank wanted to see her again! Charlene would understand.
“I’ll be there,” she promised and thanked the receptionist.
Immediately she dialed Charlene and left a message with the change of plans and then somehow got through the rest of her shift while mentally running through her wardrobe. She hadn’t bothered with laundry this week. Should she stop at her favorite shopping center for a new outfit? Did she have time for an emergency hair appointment?
No . She’d blown their last date by trying too hard to impress Frank. She’d wear the same thing she’d planned to wear to meet Charlene, and her game plan for the night was just to be herself. The trouble was, she had spent so much time trying to fit into the role of fiancée for Tom, she was no longer sure what being herself meant.
By the time she parked outside A Time for Love’s building, her nerves were jangling. She wasn’t quite sure why she was so nervous or why it mattered so much that Frank give her another chance. After all, she barely knew him. Tish would probably tell her it was a rebound romance anyway, and she shouldn’t take it too seriously. She wasn’t really sure why she felt it so important to make another attempt to connect with Frank, and if this meeting didn’t work out, she’d drop the idea and move on, she promised herself.
Edwina appeared immediately after the receptionist called to let her know of Aimee’s arrival.
“Good evening, Aimee. You look lovely, as usual.”
She tucked her arm
Worst of all, she was regretting her note to Frank. She wasn’t in junior high, so where had she gotten the idea that writing a note to say she liked him was a good idea? She hadn’t heard from him by Friday, and she could only hope he hadn’t laughed too hard when he read it.
“Aimee, your cell phone was ringing.”
Luann, one of the line cooks, held it out to her. The food service workers had to deposit their cell phones in a bin outside the kitchen, so the phones wouldn’t be a distraction during meal preparation and service. An unwritten rule was that if you passed by the phone area while a phone was ringing, you checked whose phone it was and let that person know.
“Thanks.”
It was probably either a wrong number or Charlene checking up on her again, but Aimee washed her hands and headed for storage room, the nearest quiet area where she could check her phone. The message indicator was blinking, so she dialed her voice mail.
“Good morning, Aimee,” Edwina’s pleasant voice said. “Could you please call me at your convenience? I have a message from Frank.”
Aimee’s heart jumped. He’d read her note. What was the message? Edwina wouldn’t keep her dangling if he didn’t want to see her again, would he? Or was she the type who believed in delivering bad news personally?
Aimee dithered over whether to call immediately or wait until her lunch shift was over. She didn’t want to start crying if the response was negative, but she wouldn’t be able to concentrate until she knew. She took a deep breath and dialed A Time for Love.
“I’m sorry, Mrs. Darby’s on another line,” the receptionist’s smooth voice said after Aimee identified herself. “But I have a message for you. Can you be at our office tonight at eight? Mrs. Darby has arranged a brief meeting with you and your current match.”
Aimee hesitated. It was short notice, and she and Charlene had made vague plans to spend the evening together. But the message must mean Frank wanted to see her again! Charlene would understand.
“I’ll be there,” she promised and thanked the receptionist.
Immediately she dialed Charlene and left a message with the change of plans and then somehow got through the rest of her shift while mentally running through her wardrobe. She hadn’t bothered with laundry this week. Should she stop at her favorite shopping center for a new outfit? Did she have time for an emergency hair appointment?
No . She’d blown their last date by trying too hard to impress Frank. She’d wear the same thing she’d planned to wear to meet Charlene, and her game plan for the night was just to be herself. The trouble was, she had spent so much time trying to fit into the role of fiancée for Tom, she was no longer sure what being herself meant.
By the time she parked outside A Time for Love’s building, her nerves were jangling. She wasn’t quite sure why she was so nervous or why it mattered so much that Frank give her another chance. After all, she barely knew him. Tish would probably tell her it was a rebound romance anyway, and she shouldn’t take it too seriously. She wasn’t really sure why she felt it so important to make another attempt to connect with Frank, and if this meeting didn’t work out, she’d drop the idea and move on, she promised herself.
Edwina appeared immediately after the receptionist called to let her know of Aimee’s arrival.
“Good evening, Aimee. You look lovely, as usual.”
She tucked her arm
Similar Books
