Charlie Foxtrot (Book 2 of Love is War Series)

Chapter 10

For once, Auden thanked her lucky stars that she hadn't gone over to visit her Aunt Mary that Saturday. It had taken her far too long to get pick out a dress and get ready for a date she didn't know if she would actually enjoy. Jim scared her a little. Any man with any power did.

Since moving to the west coast of Florida, she usually spent Saturdays with Marietta, doing anything from shopping to just sitting around and chatting or watching some television. Her Aunt Mary was like a surrogate mom here, because she missed her family on the east coast terribly. They were her backbone and touchstones, but at least she could get to know her aunt even better now.

It's not that she didn't visit regularly, but even across the state, it was a hassle, so they only met a few times a year.

As she waited outside her apartment building, she looked around. It wasn't the best neighborhood in the city, but it wasn't the worst either. It definitely could have used some extra policing at night. Car burglaries in the area were high, that was for sure, which was why she left her car in the garage of the building for an extra fee each month. It was monitored by CCTV, which helped keep her car safe from the normal rabble who plundered the citizen's cars that were parked parallel to the curb.

A car pulled up, and she blinked. Jim was driving a Mercedes when he normally rode around in a Lexus. When he got out of the car and smiled, she had to force herself to do it back. It wasn't that she wasn't pleased to see him, but the whole situation made her nervous.

"Hey there, lovely lady," he greeted as he got out of the driver's side and strolled up to her. He pecked her quickly on the cheek before moving over to open the car door for her, stepping back to let her in. "I hope you like Italian food. I made us a reservation at La Terrazza. I love their seafood alfredo and their penne alla vodka best. Best in the city if you're a fan. If not, they have steak, veal, chicken, an—"

"Oh no. I love pasta. And seafood. I was always glad I wasn't allergic. I had a cousin who was allergic and blew up like a balloon once. It was terrible and so scary. Is the place far?"

Shaking his head, he walked away from the door after making sure she was belted in and closed it for her. When he hopped into the driver's side again, he expounded. "Not at all. Ten, maybe fifteen minutes away. I made sure we were seated in a nicer seating area, though. Busy part of town and usually a waiting list to get in. They have a second floor and third floor balcony seating. I requested third floor above all the baloney happening below. I always feel like a goldfish in a bowl when I'm sitting near a window. Hard to carry on a conversation that way, in my opinion. Would rather go into therapy."

She couldn't help it and snorted, trying to catch the sound in her hand before eyeing Jim, who seemed to be amused by her response. She tried to stifle her laughter and hissed a little, sounded like a snake until she couldn't help it and broke apart. Auden ended up laughing at herself just as much as at Jim's comment.

"You know I always hated the whole fish bubble thing too. I used to work in a physical therapist's office where the desk was snugged right up against the window. If I didn't pull the shades, everyone could see everything you were doing, and all the people walking by were usually heading down to their surgeon's office, Mr. Ball. He was a spinal surgeon. Nice guy, but why the hell would you have your office on the 3rd floor when the elevator constantly needed repair?"

"What would happen when it broke down and he had people coming in for their appointments?" He sounded genuinely curious.

"Well, they installed one of the chair lift things like you used to see on TV back in the day. You popped them in it, placed a tray over their lap, locked it, and up they went—slowly, mind you. It wasn't attached in any way to the elevator, and some people preferred it, actually."