Let's Try This Again by Cindy Gunderson

Author:Cindy Gunderson [Gunderson, Cindy]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Button Press via Indie Author Project

20

This time, Wendy asked for a table for two when she approached the hostess. It seemed slightly wrong to be eating at a Canadian restaurant in Paris, but Cami seemed overly excited at the prospect of having wings, so The Moose, it was. The restaurant was surprisingly jam-packed at seven o’clock on a Friday night. Though there was a slight wait, Wendy didn’t mind. Cami hadn’t arrived yet and, like Mary had commented, she felt alive simply absorbing the energy around her.

She waited in the corner of the entrance, surreptitiously glancing at the patrons seated at the wooden tables, attempting to predict who would leave first. Her best guess was the group of friends along the south wall. They were engaged in jovial conversation, but their plates had long been clean and their glasses empty.

The door swung open and Cami entered the restaurant wearing a red cotton shirt, but otherwise looking exactly as she had the first time they met. Wendy smiled broadly.

“Bonsoir,” Cami said with a churlish grin.

“Ah, are we practicing our French this evening?” Wendy asked, amused.

“Nope,” Cami said resolutely. “My brain is completely fried. That’s the only thing I could manage,” she laughed.

“Fine by me,” Wendy said. “We’ve got a tad bit of a wait.”

“No problem,” Cami said, moving next to her. “I was looking at the reviews online for this place. The food looks amazing.”

“I’m predicting acid reflux as I lie down for bed in a few hours,” Wendy said.

Cami waved her off. “Sometimes it’s worth it, Wendy. You need to live a little.”

“I think I’m doing plenty of living!” Wendy exclaimed. “But I live a lot better when my esophagus isn’t burning.”

“Always so practical,” Cami teased good-humoredly.

Her comment stopped Wendy in her proverbial tracks. Practical? Practical was Walter’s specialty, not hers. She was a dreamer. She was anything but practical. Taking care of one's body and avoiding negative physical consequences wasn’t a refusal to let loose, but merely a strategy to create more ‘living’ opportunities in the future.

“Hey,” Cami said, reaching out and resting her hand on Wendy’s arm. “Are you okay?”

“Mmhmm,” Wendy answered, shaking her head.

“I was kidding, I didn’t mean—”

“No,” Wendy said, “I know. It was...I was thinking of something else for a moment.”

Cami nodded, but concern still creased her face.

“I’m fine!” Wendy laughed. “It was just a reminder of my age, that’s all. I used to be able to eat fried foods to my heart’s content. Things become a little less worth it when you know you’re going to feel terrible afterwards.”

“That should be my new life mantra,” Cami sighed, and Wendy laughed out loud.

“You’re young! How could you possibly be living with regrets already?”

“I’m not that young,” Cami said with a hand on her hip.

“Madame?” a voice sounded, and both women turned their attention to the host. “Your table is ready,” he said, his accent thick.

Wendy nodded gratefully, and they followed him to a table near the back of the room. It was not the spot Wendy had predicted. That group was still going strong.

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