Packed and Ready to Go by Jacki Kelly

excited about the wedding?”
    “ Not yet. There’s so much to do. I think we’ve taken care of everything, so I don’t expect any surprises.”
    “ Honey, life always gives you surprises.” Her comment struck me the way she knew it would.
    After hanging up I went downstairs and peeked in Walter’s office for a note. Papers littered his desk. I sat in his soft leather chair and glanced at his neat handwriting scribbled on some of the pages. He spent so much time in here it smelled like his cologne.
    Curiosity pushed me to open the top desk drawer and shuffle through the contents. I didn’t know what I expected to find but if I found something of significance, I’d know.
    The second drawer was full of pens and ink refills, all shapes and sizes. The bottom drawer contained junk; keys, scraps of paper with phone numbers, and several old wireless phone statements. Why would he save old phone bills? I leafed through the statements; one phone number showed up repeatedly each day. Some sales rep must have been causing Walter trouble.
    I lost interest and shut the drawers. I tried to leave everything the way I found it, and padded into the kitchen. Snooping in his office wasn’t one of my normal activities. He guarded his privacy like a centurion. But my mother’s comment about surprises rattled me. Walter had had affairs before. I didn’t want another surprise like that, ever.
    I counted the number of secrets I kept from him. How much I weighed, but that didn’t matter. Half the women I knew kept their weight a secret.
    The packed bags in my closet ready as soon as I got the courage.
    And Marco.
    Walter had no idea how many times I daydreamed about that tall, handsome, hunk. Walter probably thought I was incapable of thinking about anyone but him. He was my first real boyfriend and my only lover. The guy who stood me up for my high school prom didn’t count.
    Marco was only a fantasy. I wouldn’t cheat. Just thinking about making love to Marco made me feel guilty. I would never do that to Walter, no matter how unhappy I was. I could imagine the shame in my father’s eye if he found out his only child not only got pregnant out of wedlock, but was an adulteress, too.
    I dialed Walter’s cell phone. It kicked to voice mail without ringing. “Hey, I’m trying to catch up with you. I’m going to lunch with the girls this afternoon. See you this evening.”
    Next I tried his office phone. It went immediately to the company recorder.
    I pulled a box of cereal from the pantry. Time to drop the two new pounds before they set up permanent residence on my hips. The box pictured a beautiful bowl of flakes loaded with blueberries. My boring bowl barely had enough milk to cover the dull flakes. The crunch filled my ears, but did nothing to satisfy my stomach.
    I grabbed my keys and headed out of the house. I needed to run some errands before meeting Carla and Ursula.
    By the time I browsed Macy’s shoe department and picked up my prescription to control my funky moods it was almost one o’clock. Ursula and Carla were already seated by the window overlooking the Brandywine River when I walked in. I zigzagged my way to their table.
    “ Ciao , Tracy.” I recognized the sultry voice even before I turned around to see Marco seated in the corner. His thick curly hair was the first thing I noticed about him. In my dreams I was always running my fingers through his mane while he planted warm, wet kisses on my neck.
    He broke into a broad smile. “ Buon pomeriggio. Come stai ?”
    “ I’m fine, Marco. How are you?” I stumbled over my feet as I made my way to his table. His eyebrows almost met between his eyes in an attractive way. He obviously lifted weights because his muscles bulged through his shirtsleeves and his waist narrowed above his hips.
    He stood as I approached his table. If he’d stop flirting with me maybe I’d stop having wet dreams about him. I figured he was doing it for fun. My intentions were a lot more