Page 58 of Champagne Nights

“Hi, Gwen. I’m going have the Pad Thai tonight with chicken.”

“Medium spice?”

“Yes, please.”

“Great. I’ll put that order in for you. Would you like a spring roll to go with that?”

“Sure. A spring roll sounds good.”

As I sat there and waited for my food, I thought about the conversation Ian and I had this morning about his date with Rigby. Things went so well that they were seeing each other again tonight. Rigby Jones was a financial officer over at Chase Bank, and he hadn’t been in a relationship in over a year, just like Ian. When he told me about his date this morning, his voice was excited, and I could tell he was happy. I got the impression that he was already head over heels for him, which I believed could happen after one date. After all, it did happen to me.

After finishing my dinner, Gwen boxed up the leftovers for me.

“Have a great night, Aubrey. Hopefully, we’ll see you soon.”

“Thanks, Gwen. Have a good night.”

Opening the door and stepping out, I walked down the street, tapping my cane. As I turned the corner, I abruptly stopped when my cane hit something or someone standing before me. That scent. It was him.

“Aubrey.”

“Ethan.”

“How are you?”

“I’m fine. Thank you for asking.”

“Did you just come from dinner?” he asked.

“Yes,” I replied as I held up my container. “What are you doing over here?”

“I had a dinner meeting, and as I walked out of the restaurant, I saw you.”

“So you decided to stop in front of me?”

“I guess so.”

“I need to get home, Ethan. I have a lot of essays to grade.”

“Please wait. There’s something I need to say first.”

“What?”

“I’m sorry for what happened and what I said the other night. I just wanted you to know that. I didn’t mean to hurt you.”

I stood there, trying to hold my composure as I inhaled his scent. He sounded sincere, and I accepted his apology even though he broke my heart.

“I accept your apology.”

“Thank you. It means a lot to me.”

“Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have to get home.”

“Please let Harry drive you. He’s just around the corner.”

“No. I can walk. Enjoy the rest of your evening, Mr. Klein,” I spoke as I moved to the side and walked away.

It was nice that Ethan apologized, but I wondered if he would have called and said he was sorry if he hadn’t run into me. A part of me believed he would because if he didn’t stop me, I never would have known he was in the same area. He could have just kept going, but he didn’t. I appreciated his apology, and it took away some of my bitterness towards him for saying what he did, but it didn’t change the fact that I needed to move on and forget about him, which I felt I could do now. It would be tough, but I’d overcome more challenging situations in my life and survived.

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