by Robert Olsen
When the boat docked at Liberty Island, they walked the grounds. Kathryn took several pictures of the Statue with her iPhone. Of course, she took dozens of pics of Richard or selfies of the two of them just having fun! For quite a while, they spread out on the grass lawn, her lying next to him, on their backs, as they stared out at the Hudson River, Verrazano Bridge, City Skyline or directly upward at Lady Liberty.
“Whatever made you think of going to the Statue of Liberty?”
“I don’t know. I thought of how beautiful Lady Liberty is and then I thought of you.”
She just looked into his eyes and smiled.
I’m so happy, yet scarred at the same time. What are you doing to me Richard? Please, whatever it is, just don’t stop.
They stayed until the last boat left.
The sun was low in the sky, and Midtown was beginning to come alive with lights, cameras, and action as they walked into BEA’s Restaurant and Bar in the Theater district.
“Good evening,” Richard said to the hostess. “Do you have a table for two at the brick wall, by chance?”
“One minute sir, I do believe we have something,” she said, walking away, then returning in a minute or two. “We have your table ready now. Right this way sir.”
“What a cool little place,” Kathryn said. “I’ve heard of it Richard, but I’ve never been here before. Why did you pick this place?”
“Don’t know. It’s got elbow room, and a great place for conversation. Hip, casual, and good food too!”
“What do you recommend?”
“Well, if you like lamb, the chops are excellent or Uncle Tommy’s Pie. The Chilean Sea Bass is fantastic if you want sea food. They have a lot of interesting choices. Sandwiches and light meals too, if you aren’t real hungry.”
“I’m famished!”
After the couple ordered, Kathryn was holding, and playing with, her wine glass, not sure what to say.
“I hope you’ve been enjoying the day, Kathryn.”
“Of course I have, what girl wouldn’t. It’s been so perfect Richard. I assume you’ve done this many times before.”
“Actually, I haven’t.”
“What?”
“I haven’t really done this before. I mean with other women. It’s hard.”
“What do you mean, hard? You’re not telling me you’re gay, are you?”
“Gay? No. I’m not gay. Well, I guess I mean, you’re not the most talkative person in the world Kathryn. Don’t get me wrong, I think you’re incredibly smart, but small talk, or everyday conversation doesn’t always come easy. And, I don’t want to push because I don’t want to scare you off.”
“I find you very intense, and intimidating at times, Richard.”
“Sorry.”
“Please, don’t be. I just meant, it’s hard for me, too. I assume you’ve been with other women. Look at you. You’re successful, handsome, brilliant, and probably rich too, and I see women wanting to throw themselves at you.”
“I wouldn’t go so far as to call myself a loser, but I haven’t had many dates.”
“That’s ok. How many women have you had?”
“I don’t know, perhaps a dozen or so.”
“Holy shit, you’ve had a lot of women! Oops!” Kathryn said looking up at the waitress peering over her glasses obviously having heard that last comment.
“I have one Uncle Tommy’s pie for the lady, and the steak and spicy onions for you sir.”
Ok toots. You’ve eyed him long enough now, just put down the damn steak and go!
“Sorry Richard. I shouldn’t have said that last comment, about the women, but seriously, I thought you said not many? Shit, you could have completely missed Med School playing with a dozen women!”
“Please don’t get the wrong impression. That was over my entire life Kathryn, and frankly, many were just an occasional night out.”
“Oh, like a one night stand?” Kathryn said, immediately blushing after she realized what she had said.
“Absolutely not! It’s just that I am very serious about my work. My interests I guess, are very focused. Most of my life, I was studying, or just very passionate over my desire to be the best doctor I could possibly be. I wasn’t interested in women and didn’t want a relationship. I wanted to be a doctor to save lives. Seriously! But, enough about me. What about you?”
“What? How many women have I had? Only a few,” she said, giggling as she said it.
“Really, you’re very beautiful Kathryn, why aren’t you married?”
“I never really found anyone that I really wanted.”
“Boyfriends?”
“Some, but like I said, nothing serious. Maybe it’s medicine. Remember, I wanted to be a doctor, too.”
“Maybe that’s why I like you so much!”
“You do?”
“Yes, Kathryn. I do. I think you’re amazing.
“Your too kind, Richard. I really don’t feel amazing. I’m just a girl, nothing special.
“You’re so honest, Kathryn. I love how you speak your mind, say what you mean. You don’t play all the political games. You have a sense of humor, and honestly, you have a head on your shoulders. So you think you have moments of insecurity, but I’d say we all do. I’ve already seen your confidence, passion, and how you can get fired up over things you believe in. That’s admirable. You have a fast mind and I like that, too. You really have a lot going for you little lady, and just in case you’re wondering, I had a hell of a great time being with you today.”
“It’s not over, yet. Is it?”
“It certainly doesn’t have to be. I was actually planning to take you to a play, but I think for two people who think they have a problem with conversation, I’d say we did pretty good. Unfortunately, the play started 30 minutes ago.”
“That’s ok, we did have a great day.”
“If you wouldn’t mind, we could always go to my place, I can fix you some coffee and as far as desert, I’ve been known to fix a fantastic dish of ice cream, with whipped cream too, if you’d like.”
“I think I’d really like that, Richard.”
The couple hailed a taxi, and were soon at the apartment on the upper east-side. Richard had a beautiful two bedroom apartment with a den on the 17th floor. Being single, Richard didn’t think he needed a second bedroom, and had it converted to a paneled library complete with desk and a beautiful Chesterfield lawyer’s couch.
“Go ahead and make yourself comfortable. Can I get you coffee, tea, or a glass of wine?”
“Wine sounds wonderful,” she answered, as she walked around admiring his choice of artwork.”
“Here you are,” handing her a glass of chilled Chablis.
Thank you,” she said kicking her shoes off, and tucking her feet under her legs while curled up on the sofa. Your apartment is so beautiful, Richard. I love the colors you’ve chosen, especially within all of these paintings. Everything looks awesome.
“Thank you, I feel really comfortable here.”
Once again, the couple managed to engage in all sorts of conversation from their childhood days, to why they wanted to become doctors. Both of them were getting much more comfortable with each other. Kathryn felt an incredible attraction toward him, and Richard felt a connection too, despite the fact that neither really understood how strong the connection was. The entire day had been breathtaking to her, so full of surprises, and she certainly did not want to leave just yet. She tried extra hard to keep their conversation going. Of course, refilling their wine glasses several times helped prolong the evening.
Richard too, had difficulty trying to describe how he felt about her. There seemed to be something magical that pulled him closer and closer to her. They both viciously procrastinated bringing the evening to a close, and even when their words started to diminish, Richard placed some soft music on
his sound system, and turned his lights low, to keep the moment alive. Kathryn too, took advantage and snuggled closer to him. She continued sipping her wine, listening to the music, as well as Richards stories, until her eyes began to get incredibly heavy. It didn’t take long for her to fall sound asleep leaning up against Richard’s shoulder. He sat there staring at beautiful Kathryn until he felt that it was getting awfully late and they really should sleep. He chose to let her lie down right where she was. He couldn’t bring himself to waking her and taking her back to her apartment, so he carefully reached over and eased her down onto a pillow, and covered her with a cotton throw. She slept like a baby.
It was perhaps 2:00 or 3:00 in the morning when Kathryn awoke. She was cold and looked around, confused at first, until she realized where she was. Then she quietly stood up and without thought, walked into Richard’s room. He was lying in bed, sound asleep and completely unaware of the surroundings. She just felt like she belonged there. As she climbed under the covers, and cuddled up against him, she no longer felt cold. In seconds, she was fast asleep once again.
Chapter 14
“Good morning gorgeous! What a wonderful surprise to wake up and find you at my side.”
“Oh my God. Richard! What am I doing here?” Kathryn said feeling confused, groggy, and rubbing her eyes trying to wake up. Fortunately, her rapid heart rate and pumping adrenaline would soon kick in and bolt her out of the bed.
“Do you mean other than tearing off all your clothes, climbing under the covers and making love to me all night? Thank goodness you finally got cold and put your clothes back on, or I would really be getting an earful this morning!”
“What?”
Richard really had no idea how she ended up in bed with him, but he figured he could at least have some fun over the situation, regardless of what may have happened.
“Calm down sweetheart, I’m only teasing you. I don’t know how you got here either. Last night, we were in the living room and you feel asleep. I didn’t have the heart to wake you and take you home so I let you sleep on the couch. I put a small blanket around you to keep you warm, and then, I went to bed. That’s the last I remember.
“I wasn’t naked?”
“Hey, don’t feel bad. You can take it off now, if you’d like. We have all morning!”
“That’s not what I meant.”
“Well, in that case, I have to go to the bathroom,” he said, climbing out of bed forgetting that he wasn’t wearing his PJs.
“Maybe I can....Richard! You’re naked, damn it!” She said, turning toward Richard and staring directly at his bare ass, as he walked into the bathroom.
Not bad Richard. Cute ass!
Kathryn climbed out of bed and went into the kitchen to see what she could find.
I wonder if he’d like it if I fixed him a big breakfast. Oh good, he’s got orange juice, eggs. And here’s some bacon. Wonderful!
After surveying the kitchen, scrambled eggs and bacon seemed to make the best choice. She found everything she needed including some bread, butter, a toaster and the dishes.
By the time, Richard entered the room, she was busy at work and at first did not notice him. With a big smile on his face, he sat down at the counter, just enjoying, for a moment, the entertaining and gorgeous woman in his apartment, cooking and bouncing around to the music playing on Pandora.
“Oh, there you are. I didn’t see you. Hope you’re hungry, because I just made a wonderful breakfast for us. Want some eggs? And where do you hide the coffee? I couldn’t find it.”
“Yes, I am hungry and breakfast smells terrific! I’ll get the coffee. I don’t drink that much and usually just do a single pour over if it’s just me. I keep a French Press up here, and the boiling water is in the wall, right behind this little door.”
“Wow, how cool is that?”
Richard made them both some coffee, as Kathryn finished cooking the bacon and eggs. When the food was ready, she fixed two plates, added some wheat toast and tomatoes, and was bringing the plates to the counter when Richard suggested they eat outside on the terrace.
“That’s a great idea.”
It was shady on the balcony with its western view, and the air was cool and refreshing. Kathryn loved the sounds of the city.
“If you’d like, you can take a shower to freshen up,” he told her wanting to be polite.
“Thank you, but I’m afraid if I take these clothes off, I may never leave here, and I’m sure you need to go to the hospital or something. Don’t doctors work all the time?”
“Not all the time.”
“Oh yeah, I forgot about Wednesday night’s!”
Kathryn was serious about leaving. She thanked Richard again, a million times it seemed, for the fabulous day she had, but also explained she didn’t want to overstay her invitation. After all, she knew Richard was a busy man, respected that, and had not originally intended for them to be together on Sunday. Richard understood, but before he let her go, he vowed he would arrange another time to see her. He was most interested in what would follow.
“I trust we can maybe do this again?”
“What? Me sleep over in your apartment?”
“He chuckled. “That would be wonderful. Of course, I was hoping that maybe you and I could go out again, soon, in addition to our Wednesday card game.”
“I’d like that Richard.”
“Good, I’ll call you this week. Let’s go see a play next weekend.”
“That would be really nice.”
“Perfect!”
He walked her to the street, hailed a cab, giving the cabby a twenty, and then as he said goodbye, bent over kissing her again on the cheek.
Here we go again, what’s with this cheek thing? And he could have given me a big hug too!
Later that afternoon, Kathryn was sitting in her sofa reminiscing about Richard and their fabulous weekend, when the phone rang. It was mom calling.
“Hi mom, everything ok?”
“I don’t know dear, Agnes had to take me to the hospital yesterday, but I’m ok now. I feel good.”
“What? Mom, what happened? Are you sure you’re ok? Where are you, I’ll come right now.”
“That’s not necessary Kathryn, I’m fine. Agnes is here with me and everything turned out perfect.”
Agnes, was her mothers’ home nurse, who she had been seeing for many years, originally to monitor the diabetes and give her mother the insulin injections needed. When her mother eventually got the Gemini pump, Agnes came less often but still made sure to visit to keep an eye on everything. Recently, her mother was having difficulty with the diabetic pump she was wearing, and Kathryn was uncertain if the cause was human error on the part of mom, or had her condition worsened?
“It was that stupid pump again, Kathryn. I just don’t think I was doing everything right. My sugar keeps running amuck at times. Thank God, Agnes came yesterday morning. I was a mess.”
“Oh mom, what am I going to do with you? Let me get a train, it’s easy and I can see you in a couple hours. Are you at North Shore again?”
“Yes, dear, but I don’t want you to make that trip all the way out here. Besides, what if they send me home before you get here? Agnes is with me. It’ll be ok. Today’s her day off. You don’t need to come just yet. We are sitting here talking about your father. You know how much he liked Agnes, too.”
“I remember mom. And thank God she was there when Daddy had the stroke. I know she couldn’t save him, but she put him and you much more at ease. More comfortable.”
“I told Agnes all about what you said about your company’s new pump. I remembered what you told me, like how you said it was so wonderful and advanced.”
“But mom, it only came on the market last week. It’s very new. Maybe we should wait a little while.”
“Nonsense. Agnes knew all about it, and told Doctor
Jones. He likes the idea too, and told me and Agnes it was no problem and was able to get it for me.”
“Mom, are you telling me you ordered one of the new Diage pumps?”
“No honey.”
“Oh good.”
“Dr. Jones somehow had one or could get one quickly. I’m already hooked up, and they showed me how to work it last night. This morning Agnes said I did great!”
“Are you sure you’re ok mom?”
“Yep! Better than ever and you were right honey. This new pump is so much easier to work with. I just love it.”
“I’m glad you’re happy mom. Just, please make sure Agnes comes and sees you every day until you are positive the pump is working right. Promise me you’ll do that mom.”
“I promise I will, but I think you’re just worrying too much.”
“It’s important mom.”
“Agnes already offered to come, so you don’t have to worry.”
“Ok, that’s good mom. I’ll come see you as soon as I can get away. Maybe some night this week, or over the weekend. How’s that sound?”
“That would be just fine honey.”
“I love you mom.”
“I love you too, honey. And don’t you worry. I’ll be fine. Goodbye.”
Oh mom, why couldn’t you have called me or waited just a couple more weeks!
Chapter 15
Monday morning came much quicker than Kathryn had hoped for. Saturday with Richard, was just wonderful but seemed to blow by in a flash, and Sunday was a blur continually thinking about her feelings toward him, in between worrying about mom in the hospital. Intuitively, she knew this week would just be a continuation of the crazy pace that occurred last week, with more than likely, long hours again.
With the high increased level of sales, experienced ever since the release of the Diage AU003 pump, she thought it would be wise to begin the week with a brief sales meeting. Most people grumbled over Monday morning meetings, probably because they forgot where they left off last week, or were worried about the unanswered emails ignored over the weekend. Either way, the team was not energetic about having an early meeting.
