want to hear how everything went!”
“My head hurts,” said Ceinwen. “I guess professors drink a lot.”
“You’ve had NYU students in the store. Do you blame them?” said Jim. He was pouring coffee for her.
“Which professor was drinking?” said Talmadge. “The old one or the one you like?”
“They both were. The old one is sweet. The other one’s okay. Kind of annoying at times.” She tasted the coffee and wrinkled her nose. “Cafe Busted?”
“It was all I could get last night,” said Jim. Cafe Busted was Cafe Bustelo, a lethal Cuban coffee that none of them liked, but which was cheap and effective.
“All right, the annoying one you wore your best dress for. Is he going to call?”
“I didn’t give him my phone number,” said Ceinwen. “He has a girlfriend.”
“Talmadge,” said Jim, “get your jacket. We’re leaving.”
“Ceinwen looks all in,” said Talmadge. “We should get her some breakfast. Something good and greasy.”
“Talmadge,” said Jim. “We’re leaving. So get your fucking jacket.”
When Jim swore, you moved. Talmadge edged toward the kitchen entrance, then stopped.
“You didn’t do anything dumb like ask about the girlfriend, did you?”
“I mentioned her at the end of the evening,” she admitted.
“No, no, you didn’t! Oh, sweetie …”
Jim threw up his hands. “Why shouldn’t she mention his girlfriend? He’s gonna have one whether Ceinwen brings up her up or not. We’re leaving. You know the earlier we make it there the better he is.”
Talmadge went to get his jacket. Jim said, “He’s really pushing it this morning. If you ask me, he should give those meetings another try.”
“He always goes in the end, you know that. This is his way of psyching himself up.” Jim was picking at something stuck to the kitchen counter. “I could come too,” she said, “before work. Maybe he’d like seeing someone different.”
“That’s sweet, honey, but right now I’m not sure he’d even remember you.” Talmadge reappeared, clutching a tissue to show he wasn’t dropping the cold-in-an-AIDS-room issue. Jim kissed her and headed for the door. Talmadge kissed her too and said, “I bet you anything he shows up at the store today. You just watch. Now go get some eggs and bacon.”
She got her eggs and bacon at the tiny coffee shop two blocks away, as well as a Coke that settled her stomach and cleared her head. But Matthew never appeared that day, nor the next. The books, at least, kept her occupied.
At work she kept looking toward the front door whenever she wasn’t helping anyone, until Lily caught her and remarked that it was no wonder her sales were down, since she spent all her time in a trance like this was a fucking ashram. Talmadge was still working the early shift so Ceinwen often went to lunch with Roxanne. Roxanne had been her first friend at the store. She was from Trinidad, a stunningly good-looking girl who was also very good-natured, but she really only wanted to talk about her boyfriend, and also apartments.
About a week after the dinner she went to the benches in front of Courant to smoke her cigarette after lunch, and she watched the people filing in and out. A lot of Asians. Not a lot of women. A lot of men, young and old. None of them Matthew. As she ground out the cigarette she reflected on how embarrassing it would be if he found her there, looking at the building like Edward G. Robinson keeping vigil for Joan Bennett in
Scarlet Street
, and she resolved not to go back.
Tuesday afternoon she trekked uptown to a silent movie at the Thalia, Greta Garbo and John Gilbert showing off their love affair in
Flesh and the Devil
. When the ladies room cleared out, she took a stab at a Garbo smolder for the mirror. Only Garbo, she thought, could smolder while she was taking communion. She wished she didn’t always have to go to the movies by herself.
That evening it was her turn to buy coffee, and she had enough money to upgrade
“My head hurts,” said Ceinwen. “I guess professors drink a lot.”
“You’ve had NYU students in the store. Do you blame them?” said Jim. He was pouring coffee for her.
“Which professor was drinking?” said Talmadge. “The old one or the one you like?”
“They both were. The old one is sweet. The other one’s okay. Kind of annoying at times.” She tasted the coffee and wrinkled her nose. “Cafe Busted?”
“It was all I could get last night,” said Jim. Cafe Busted was Cafe Bustelo, a lethal Cuban coffee that none of them liked, but which was cheap and effective.
“All right, the annoying one you wore your best dress for. Is he going to call?”
“I didn’t give him my phone number,” said Ceinwen. “He has a girlfriend.”
“Talmadge,” said Jim, “get your jacket. We’re leaving.”
“Ceinwen looks all in,” said Talmadge. “We should get her some breakfast. Something good and greasy.”
“Talmadge,” said Jim. “We’re leaving. So get your fucking jacket.”
When Jim swore, you moved. Talmadge edged toward the kitchen entrance, then stopped.
“You didn’t do anything dumb like ask about the girlfriend, did you?”
“I mentioned her at the end of the evening,” she admitted.
“No, no, you didn’t! Oh, sweetie …”
Jim threw up his hands. “Why shouldn’t she mention his girlfriend? He’s gonna have one whether Ceinwen brings up her up or not. We’re leaving. You know the earlier we make it there the better he is.”
Talmadge went to get his jacket. Jim said, “He’s really pushing it this morning. If you ask me, he should give those meetings another try.”
“He always goes in the end, you know that. This is his way of psyching himself up.” Jim was picking at something stuck to the kitchen counter. “I could come too,” she said, “before work. Maybe he’d like seeing someone different.”
“That’s sweet, honey, but right now I’m not sure he’d even remember you.” Talmadge reappeared, clutching a tissue to show he wasn’t dropping the cold-in-an-AIDS-room issue. Jim kissed her and headed for the door. Talmadge kissed her too and said, “I bet you anything he shows up at the store today. You just watch. Now go get some eggs and bacon.”
She got her eggs and bacon at the tiny coffee shop two blocks away, as well as a Coke that settled her stomach and cleared her head. But Matthew never appeared that day, nor the next. The books, at least, kept her occupied.
At work she kept looking toward the front door whenever she wasn’t helping anyone, until Lily caught her and remarked that it was no wonder her sales were down, since she spent all her time in a trance like this was a fucking ashram. Talmadge was still working the early shift so Ceinwen often went to lunch with Roxanne. Roxanne had been her first friend at the store. She was from Trinidad, a stunningly good-looking girl who was also very good-natured, but she really only wanted to talk about her boyfriend, and also apartments.
About a week after the dinner she went to the benches in front of Courant to smoke her cigarette after lunch, and she watched the people filing in and out. A lot of Asians. Not a lot of women. A lot of men, young and old. None of them Matthew. As she ground out the cigarette she reflected on how embarrassing it would be if he found her there, looking at the building like Edward G. Robinson keeping vigil for Joan Bennett in
Scarlet Street
, and she resolved not to go back.
Tuesday afternoon she trekked uptown to a silent movie at the Thalia, Greta Garbo and John Gilbert showing off their love affair in
Flesh and the Devil
. When the ladies room cleared out, she took a stab at a Garbo smolder for the mirror. Only Garbo, she thought, could smolder while she was taking communion. She wished she didn’t always have to go to the movies by herself.
That evening it was her turn to buy coffee, and she had enough money to upgrade
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