LITMIR.BIZ

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the back of the food court. As he took a bite out of his egg roll, he noticed out of the corner of his eye a woman much younger than him, staring at him from three tables away, then turned to sip her drink out of a straw. He turned and looked behind him, wondering if she was attracted to the three guys who sat at that table. One of them wore a Phillies jersey of Roy Halladay.

      His mind wandered back to Sara as he took another bite of his egg roll. He thought back to his wedding 2 years later after they met, her pregnancy, her miscarriage. Yes, he missed his chance to have a son but he knew that Sara was his soul mate and one day they try again.

      He had told her many times that he was concerned about his job, especially after signing the non-compete agreement. Sara’s firm recommended a law firm, Sherman & Holtz in Miami, Florida.

      When Gunn contacted the firm, the attorney recommended that he see should send the contract first with a check for $350. He would review it and call him. Gunn sent it by messenger overnight and he got the call the next night. The attorney told him the contract was standard in the industry and that they could recommend changes but the company probably wouldn’t accept them. He should either sign it or look for a job with a company that doesn’t have a non-compete contract.

      Sara said at that time “what are you worried about? Everything is fine. You’re doing well. You have a job. That’s what’s important.” Gunn knew that most if not all the agencies had non-compete agreements so he signed it.

      Yes, he had a job but within three years, he wasn’t getting any advancement. He won a lot of accounts for the agency: Procter & Gamble, Best Foods, and Nike. Yes, he was named a senior account executive after nearly 5 years but the agency was expanding, being more concerned about their growth in their public relations arm.

      The agency was losing money. Even though Gunn was one of the few people who brought in more accounts than the other reps, the firm continued to ignore his efforts. Then, after 6 years, the first set of layoffs started. He was nervous but knew he would survive since his team still made more money for the agency that many of the other teams.

      When his boss, Cole Bowman was fired, everyone thought that Gunn was in line to take over. Instead, Bob Blake chose Stacey Jones, a sales rep out of the home office in Florida. She had only been with the company for 3 years.

      He finished his lunch, emptied it into a garbage can. He looked at the woman again and saw that she was still staring at him, her hand perched on her chin.

      He debated about going over to talk to the woman, lost the debate. The truth was that he hadn’t been comfortable talking to another woman since Sara died six months ago. Gunn thought the woman was nearly half his age and she wouldn’t have anything in common with him. He walked out of the food court and into the mall.

      His first stop was Best Buy. He had planned to buy some jazz CD’s. He bought albums from Diana Krall, Rick Braun, Mark Antoine, Ramsey Lewis, and The Rippingtons.

      Gunn remembered how upset he was at losing out on the promotion. He shook his head, knowing there was nothing he could do since he was on the non-compete agreement. He continued to look for jobs on the internet but he had no experience for any of them since they were in other industries.

      He walked to the register, stopped to watch 2 people playing basketball on the X-Box. Video games are more lifelike than they were 20 years ago, Gunn mused.

      After he paid for his CD’s at the register, he took the escalator upstairs, staring at his brown shoes, paying no attention to anything that was going on around him. He planned to go to the history section at Barnes & Noble, wanting to read Steve Coll’s Ghost Wars. He was interested in Bin Laden and the history with Afghanistan. Seeing the paperback edition, he grabbed it, then walked over to the fiction section. He grabbed paperbacks by Michael Connelly and John Sanford, debated about looking at true crime novels, won the debate.

      As he reached that section, he looked at the books when a female voice behind him said “have you read the execution of Barbara Graham? It’s really good.”

      He turned and saw the woman again, noticing a romance paperback novel in her hand. She was nearly his height, 5-7, her blue-black hair fell over her shoulders. The black scoop neck dress fell just above her knee, displaying her long tapering legs. Her top was cut low enough to reveal the deep cleft between her breasts that testified to their fullness.

      “No, I haven’t read it,” Gunn said nervously.

      She looked into his eyes, smiling. “Why don’t you buy it? I think you’ll like it.”

      He bent down, took the paperback that was between two others, stood up, then returned her smile. “Thanks. I’ll read it.”

      “Nice to see you smile,” she said, leaning against the shelf.

      “Not sure I understand that.”

      “You seemed so sad at the food court.”

      Gunn was shocked, realizing that she was staring at him. “Guess I have a lot on my mind.”

      “It’s such a nice day though,” she said, running her hand though her dark hair.

      “I guess.”

      “It’s the weekend. You’re done with work.”

      “True.” His heart was racing.

      “And the Phillies are winning.”

      “Yep, they are. Going to see them on Thursday against the Diamondbacks”

      “Nice. Roy Halladay is pitching. Must have been tough to get the tickets.”

      Gunn licked his lips, trying to keep them moist. “It was a lot of money but it was worth it.”

      “Yeah, I’d like to get to some games this year.”

      “Uh huh.”

      “How long have you been a Phillies fan?”

      She could have left at anytime, Don thought, yet she continued to talk. He thought of the Starbucks and the tables that were a few feet away.

      “Guess all my life.”

      “Me too. Since I was 8 years old.”

      “Since you were 8.”

      “Sure.”

      His heart was still racing as he looked into her dark eyes. “I was thinking of having a coffee over at Starbucks. Would you like to join me?”

      She bobbed her head, said “I’d like that.”

      “Okay. Let’s go.” They walked out of the true crime section together, Gunn surprised that she accepted his invitation. “I don’t even know your name.”

      “Kim. Kim Hunter. My friends call me Kimmy.”

      He chuckled at that, following her to a table. “Why don’t you sit here and I’ll get you a cup of coffee.”

      “Okay, I’ll have a Carmel Macchiato.”

      Chapter 2

      Gunn reached the register and ordered two Carmel Macchiato’s, surprised that a woman almost half his age was sitting at a table waiting for him. He thought that she must be nearly at least 20 years younger than him. Gunn wondered why she would be interested since she could have any guy she wanted.

      He took the drinks, walked back and sat down, noticing that she was twirling her hair and smiling at him again. “Thanks,” she said, taking it with her right hand and taking a sip.

      “Your welcome,” Don said taking a sip as well.

      “You’re not married, are you?” Kim asked.

      The question caught him off guard.

      “I didn’t see a ring on your finger but some men take it off.”

      “I wouldn’t do that. And no. I’m not married. Anymore that is. My wife died about 6 months ago.”

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