TWELVE
Cooper
I approached the apartment building without receiving a single phone call all day. She’s been on my mind since the day I saw her being lifted into the air and away from the base. My luck in love was far from great since getting out of the Army, but it wasn’t exactly my first priority either. I hit the buzzer at the door and waited to hear her voice. After years of not having seen her, I could still hear her laughter ringing in my memory. There was something special about Jade. She was the first woman to leave this kind of impression on me.
“I’m on my way down,” she said, interrupting my thoughts as they trailed off.
I hailed a cab for us as I waited. When she walked through the doors and made her way to me, she demanded every eye on the street. I checked her out as the cab took off toward the restaurant I’d given to the driver. The red, low cut dress she had on played off the dark color of her hair and enticing eyes.
“You look incredible,” I said.
“Thanks. You never told me where we’re going.”
“A picnic in the Afghanistan mountains.”
She laughed. I slipped a hand behind her, rubbing her back.
“No, it’s a place called Maggiano’s. You know it?”
“They have the best pasta.”
“You have good taste.”
Tall buildings passed outside on either side of us, so different than Afghanistan where buildings over two-stories high were a rarity. The thought reminded me of something.
“Whatever happened with that story you were working on?”
She frowned.
“Well, after Captain Jeffries kicked me out before I’d had a chance to put the story together, my readers and the website who had paid me to go to Afghanistan were not happy. I had a hard time finding any work as a freelance journalist after that.”
“That sucks.”
“You’re telling me.”
“But you’ve got a better job now?”
“I don’t know if I would go that far, but I pay my bills. What about you? What happened after…that night.”
At the mention of the night where things were left unfinished, the mood changed in the back of the cab. She looked away, peering out the window on her side. I pulled my hand back.
“Yeah, it didn’t go too well for me either. I left the Army about a year ago.”
“What have you been doing since then?” she asked, turning back to face me.
“Oh, a little of this and a little of that. Let’s forget about work and the past for now. We’re just two people having a great dinner together.”
“I don’t think it will be as romantic as a picnic in the foothills of a mountain range, but I’m game.”
Her smile returned, putting me at ease. The driver pulled over to the side of the road in front of Maggiano’s. I paid the driver then got out and glanced around.
“I’ve not eaten here in a while,” she said. “It’s so expensive.”
“My treat.”
We walked to the front of the restaurant. I stopped and opened the door for her. Once inside, the hostess smiled when she recognized me.
“Mr. Anderson. Your table is ready.”
“Wow. You come here a lot?” Jade asked.
“Usually alone.” I nodded my head toward the hostess as she walked away. “After you.”
She walked after the hostess. I followed behind her, loving the way the dress clung to her body.
After we were seated at my usual table in the corner, she glanced around. The sound of other couples talking filled the dining room. I sat with my back to them. They didn’t matter.
“They’re busy,” she said.
“Good food.” I picked up a menu. “I’m not sure what to get yet.”
Both of us studied our menus a moment until a waitress arrived. She took our order quickly and then we were alone again. When she left, I looked across the table at Jade.
“That sucks that story didn’t pan out for you,” I said, feeling a bit guilty about not giving her all the information I had about what was going on in Afghanistan.
“It’s probably for the best. At least I’m not traipsing across the planet to war-torn countries anymore.”
“Yeah, me either.”
“What are you doing now?” she asked then took a sip of water from her glass.
“Not too much. I saved a bit of money, and I’ve been thinking about starting my own business. Lately, I’ve just been relaxing and enjoying life after all the craziness over in Afghanistan.”
She nodded.
“What kind of business?”
“I forgot how much you like asking questions,” I said with a chuckle.
“I’m sorry. When I get nervous, I tend to ask questions to keep the conversation going.”
“You’re fine. It’s cute.” I unrolled my cloth napkin and put it on my lap. “I guess I’m not sure what type of business I want to run yet. With my background, maybe a security firm or something.”
“It must be nice to have enough money saved up to not need to work for a while.”
“Yeah, I guess. My expenses were super low the two years I was over there, so I saved a lot.”
“Maybe I should join the Navy or something.”
I smiled.
“What about you? Boyfriend?”
She glanced away a moment, avoiding my eyes.
“Not really,” she said in a noncommittal voice. “You?”
“Still single. I’ve been thinking about that night…”
I stopped talking as the waitress returned with our bottle of wine. She poured us each a glass before leaving. Jade lifted hers into the air.
“To finding friends years later.”
“To moving relationships to the next level.”
She stared into my eyes as we clinked our glasses together. I took a sip of the expensive wine, enjoying the bittersweet taste in my mouth.
“That’s good,” she said after taking a drink of her own.
“Maybe I’ll open a vineyard.”
“You’d have to move out of the city.”
“That’s true. There’s too much here I’m interested in right now.”
“Yeah? Like what?”
“Well, Maggiano’s, for one.” I joked. “Then there’s you…”
She glanced away again, looking down at the table covered in a white cloth.
“You’ve thought about that night, haven’t you?”
“Yeah,” she said. “I mean, once or twice. Not excessively.”
The waitress returned with our salads. I wanted to press Jade for more, but I backed off. We ate quietly for a minute.
“We can’t just pick up where we left off,” she said suddenly.
“No, I guess not. Let’s forget about it and have fun tonight, okay? We have more options here than in Afghanistan.”
“That’s for sure,” she said, smiling.
By the end of our dinner, I had her laughing lightheartedly.
We finished our dinner and walked toward the door.
I don’t want this night to end, I thought. Where could we go next?
“You up for a comedy club or something?”
She took a deep breath.
“Normally I would, but I need to get up in the morning. I should get home.”
“Maybe some other time. You have my number now.”
“I do,” she said.
“Let me get a cab for us.”
“I’d rather go home alone if that’s okay with you.”
“Sure,” I said, hiding my disappointment.
From what I could tell, she would be worth the wait.
“I’ll call you later this week, okay?”
I stepped forward and put my arms around her waist, hugging tightly. After a few seconds, I pulled back and gave her a quick peck on the lips.
“Good night, Jade. So great to see you again.”
“Yeah,” she said. “You too.”
“Hold on.”
I stepped to the street and hailed a cab for her.
“Thanks again,” she said as she got in the back.
“No problem. Talk to you soon.”
After I closed the door, I watched the driver pull away, merging with traffic. I thought briefly about heading to a nearby strip joint to blow off some steam, but with her on my mind, I decided against it.
She’ll come around, I told myself as I made my way home. We’ll finish what we started.