Now the nervousness returned. She suddenly found a license plate on a
nearby car very interesting. “I'm surprised you recognized me.”
“Well, c'mon Katie—Kate. I'm not going to forget you.” He smiled—a
disarming, crooked smile, and folded his hands in front of him. “You look great,
by the way.”
Kate felt her face warm slightly. She narrowed her eyes even as her heart missed a beat. “Well, thanks. And look at you,” she said, trying to deflect the attention. “All grown up.”
He spread his arms. “Guess so. I'm pretty sure I've stopped growing—at
least up, anyway.”
“You look well. Fit, I mean.” Fit? She sounded like his doctor.
He nodded. “Running, probably. I'm one of the coaches of the cross-country
team, so that keeps me going. At least into late fall.”
This was turning into an actual conversation. Is that what she wanted?
Maybe if she got it over with, she'd be done. She could go on with her work, not
worry about having to talk to him again while she was here. That could work out
okay.
“Um, so…what do you do here, exactly?” As if she didn't already know.
He sighed. “Well, believe it or not, I teach chemistry at the high school.”
“Really? I bet you're one of the favorites.”
“Oh, I don't know about that.” He stuck his hands in his pockets.
The “aw shucks” routine, but it worked for him. Kate cleared her throat.
Another pair of bearded men came out of Ray's, brushing past them. One had a
beard sculpted into a parrot sitting on his shoulder. The other looked like he was being swallowed by an angry octopus.
“So,” she said, trying to ignore the weird interruption. “You've just stayed in
good old Golden Grove?”
“Guess so.” His smile went faint.
She didn't say anything for a moment, just watching his eyes. Was that it, then? Had they done their conversational duty?
“So, have you had dinner?”
Dinner? “I was supposed to have a shake. With Carol, before she
disappeared.”
He nodded. “Me, too. With Lucius.” He shifted his weight. “So, look. They
obviously think we're supposed to do some old-friend catching up, right?”
“Appears so.”
“So, I say, why don't we humor them, have a greasy burger or a pie shake,
shake hands, and say how great it was to see each other again? Then we can tell
them we did our duty and they'll get off our backs.”
It was reasonable, it was sound. It might even be painless. “Lead the way,”
she said with a wave.
He pulled open the heavy oak door for her. “After you.”
She stepped inside. “So, do you still get a free lunch if there isn't any grease
on the check?” she asked.
