Until I Die Again [On The Way To Heaven] (Soul Change Novel) by Tina Wainscott

at each other, then cleared their throats and looked in the other direction. He glanced back uneasily at her, trying to put casualness in the gesture.
    “You look nice.” And he meant it. She wore a stunning calf-length dress that brought out that new deepness in her blue eyes. Her dress didn’t reveal most of her cleavage, in fact, didn’t reveal any skin at all. The collar went right up to her neck, finished off with an amber brooch. Her hair tumbled in big curls over her shoulders, not in that wild frenzy she usually sent it in. Her makeup was light and natural, not overdone. Elegant was not a word he would have ever used in describing Hallie, but she was it now. She looked uneasy, and he realized he’d been scrutinizing her.
    “You look nice, too,” she said. “Sorry I took so long. Let’s go.”
    In the garage, Hallie walked to the passenger side of the car, and Jamie opened the door for her. The setting sun created a warm, peaceful feeling in the car. He glanced over at her and found her looking out the window and fidgeting. It seemed as if a stranger sat beside him. She looked like his wife. And she smelled like her, too much perfume smothering the air. He couldn’t quite pinpoint the feeling, but she didn’t feel like Hallie anymore.
    He turned up the stereo, changing the satellite radio to the hard rock one. How deep that change had gone was something Mick could figure out. And that was strange too. Why wasn’t she with him now? Jamie had figuratively opened the door for her to go live with the jerk, but she had stayed. These opera tickets, too. He knew she had not bought these tickets with him in mind, yet she didn’t want to take Mick. In fact, she had used her wiles to coerce him to go with her. He shifted in the seat, his thoughts making him feel uncomfortable.
    Dinner didn’t go much further to settle his nerves. Oh, the service was impeccable, as usual, the food delightful. The conversation was polite, and that was not usual. And there were a few surprises, too.
    “You never liked salmon,” he remarked after she had ordered. “You always said it was too fishy tasting.”
    She frowned. “Oh. Guess I’ll order the steak then. Medium?”
    “Medium rare…”
    The waiter gave them an odd look, but Jamie didn’t bother to explain.
    She ordered an ice tea instead of a glass of wine. After he said something about that, she added wine to her order, then ended up drinking the tea anyway. She put pepper on everything but never once used the salt. He looked across at her as she scooped the last bit of potato out of the skin.
    “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you eat this much. Ever.” He tried to make his remark sound light, but she wrinkled her forehead.
    “Oh. I guess I’m just extra hungry, that’s all.”
    He smiled. “I’m not trying to be derogatory, Hallie. I like to see a woman eat and not pick at her food and complain about her weight like you used to do.”
    Her eyebrows formed a frown. “Do I have a weight problem?”
    “You used to when you were younger. Before I met you. I never see you eat much, and you’re always complaining about dieting.”
    She pushed her empty plate away. “Guess I’ll pass on dessert then.”
    He glanced at his watch. “We’d better get going anyway.”
    As they waited for the attendant to retrieve the Porsche, Hallie asked, “Did I go to the health club a lot?”
    His right eye involuntarily narrowed at her. “Every time we came to Los Almeda you went with Joya.”
    “Did I like going?”
    He looked away. “Apparently. You spent five or six hours in San Diego every time you went.” He didn’t feel like getting into what she really liked about the club. Damn, why did it still bother him? He couldn’t wait for the evening to end. Or their marriage.
    When they walked up to the San Diego Opera, Hallie looked around at everything as if she was seeing it for the first time. He found himself smiling at the sparkle in her eyes as she watched