safe and not overworking. If she dreamed about him at night, she quickly gave herself a cold shower and pretended that everything was fine.
Four days later, Helen sighed with happiness. Another picture sold! The check in her hands wasn’t much but the picture of the sunset she’d sold would show up in a prestigious travel magazine. She might not make a lot of money on that one, but she’d get lots of recognition. And it was all because of Alec. Well, his view at any rate.
She stared at the one hundred euro check the whole way up the stairs to her apartment, almost dancing with excitement as she reviewed the name over and over again. This was the first time they’d ever accepted one of her pictures although she’d submitted several before. Even as she looked at the evidence, she still couldn’t believe that she’d finally broken through and had one accepted! It was like a special birthday and Christmas all wrapped up in one.
Dumping her heavy camera bag beside the door, she danced through her tiny apartment to the kitchen. Tonight, she didn’t even notice the chipped, blue linoleum she’d asked her landlord to repair about ten times, or the chipping paint in the corner. Tonight, all she could see was the travel magazine check and her heart couldn’t calm down. This was monumental.
She pulled out the bottle of white wine she’d been savoring the previous few days. Although it had been out and exposed to oxygen which diminishes the taste, the quality of the wine was such that it didn’t matter. At least not to her. She didn’t have the money to throw away. Since she enjoyed a good bottle of wine so much but didn’t have the money to get rid of an already opened bottle if she couldn’t drink it that same night, she accepted the slightly tarnished taste. It was still immensely enjoyable.
She changed into a pair of shorts and a tank top, immediately feeling relief from the heat. The air conditioner in her apartment wasn’t working very well so it never really cooled down. She plopped down onto the comfortable, but well worn, orange couch she’d found at a second hand shop and breathed a sigh of relief, taking a slow, wonderful sip of her wine. It was crisp and pungent and alerted all her senses that an explosion of flavor was about to hit. Then wham! Her tongue experienced the oak, the fruit and the touch of chocolate. Amazing! And oh, so satisfying.
She held the check up, blocking out the soft, yellow color of the walls she’d painted the previous year to enhance the orange couch and stared once again at the travel magazine name. She really owed Alec a thank you, her conscience told her. He’d had his office invaded, his staff corralled and brought into the event and his evening disrupted. The least she could do was send him a note letting him know that his patience was rewarded.
She wouldn’t even need to see him, she thought, her mind working a mile a minute. If she just got him a gift, some small token of her appreciation for his patience, she could simply give it to Mick and he could make sure it got to Alec. That wouldn’t be cheating on her promise not to see him anymore, would it?
Boy, she missed…No! she stopped herself. No, no, no! She couldn’t think about how much she missed him. Even arguing with him. That was completely inappropriate. It had been four days and she wouldn’t do anything about it.
She needed to just get him the thank you gift, then stop thinking about him, get on with her life.
She took another sip of wine and thought about how perfect her plan was. Her mother would be proud of her creativity and her father would be glad she hadn’t broken her promise or put herself into a situation where she might be tempted.
She was completely in control, she smiled. No worries if she dropped off a thank you gift and she could just move on after that. There would be no reason to think about him ever again. She could even see Edna when she
Four days later, Helen sighed with happiness. Another picture sold! The check in her hands wasn’t much but the picture of the sunset she’d sold would show up in a prestigious travel magazine. She might not make a lot of money on that one, but she’d get lots of recognition. And it was all because of Alec. Well, his view at any rate.
She stared at the one hundred euro check the whole way up the stairs to her apartment, almost dancing with excitement as she reviewed the name over and over again. This was the first time they’d ever accepted one of her pictures although she’d submitted several before. Even as she looked at the evidence, she still couldn’t believe that she’d finally broken through and had one accepted! It was like a special birthday and Christmas all wrapped up in one.
Dumping her heavy camera bag beside the door, she danced through her tiny apartment to the kitchen. Tonight, she didn’t even notice the chipped, blue linoleum she’d asked her landlord to repair about ten times, or the chipping paint in the corner. Tonight, all she could see was the travel magazine check and her heart couldn’t calm down. This was monumental.
She pulled out the bottle of white wine she’d been savoring the previous few days. Although it had been out and exposed to oxygen which diminishes the taste, the quality of the wine was such that it didn’t matter. At least not to her. She didn’t have the money to throw away. Since she enjoyed a good bottle of wine so much but didn’t have the money to get rid of an already opened bottle if she couldn’t drink it that same night, she accepted the slightly tarnished taste. It was still immensely enjoyable.
She changed into a pair of shorts and a tank top, immediately feeling relief from the heat. The air conditioner in her apartment wasn’t working very well so it never really cooled down. She plopped down onto the comfortable, but well worn, orange couch she’d found at a second hand shop and breathed a sigh of relief, taking a slow, wonderful sip of her wine. It was crisp and pungent and alerted all her senses that an explosion of flavor was about to hit. Then wham! Her tongue experienced the oak, the fruit and the touch of chocolate. Amazing! And oh, so satisfying.
She held the check up, blocking out the soft, yellow color of the walls she’d painted the previous year to enhance the orange couch and stared once again at the travel magazine name. She really owed Alec a thank you, her conscience told her. He’d had his office invaded, his staff corralled and brought into the event and his evening disrupted. The least she could do was send him a note letting him know that his patience was rewarded.
She wouldn’t even need to see him, she thought, her mind working a mile a minute. If she just got him a gift, some small token of her appreciation for his patience, she could simply give it to Mick and he could make sure it got to Alec. That wouldn’t be cheating on her promise not to see him anymore, would it?
Boy, she missed…No! she stopped herself. No, no, no! She couldn’t think about how much she missed him. Even arguing with him. That was completely inappropriate. It had been four days and she wouldn’t do anything about it.
She needed to just get him the thank you gift, then stop thinking about him, get on with her life.
She took another sip of wine and thought about how perfect her plan was. Her mother would be proud of her creativity and her father would be glad she hadn’t broken her promise or put herself into a situation where she might be tempted.
She was completely in control, she smiled. No worries if she dropped off a thank you gift and she could just move on after that. There would be no reason to think about him ever again. She could even see Edna when she
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