Damn. John stared in disbelief. It had to be her, frigging Conway. It seemed this hard as nails, uptight, cutthroat litigator could rock a whole different persona.
He laughed at himself. Despite how much he liked his fiancé, Claire, he had to admit Conway had taken his breath away when he saw her walking through the supermarket. Luckily, she hadn’t seen him and yes, he had better forget that and focus on the case. She was tough and would flame him and his client if he wasn’t careful. In the stark incandescent light of this courtroom, he did not find her the least bit appealing.
The case dragged on for a couple of weeks before the parties agreed to settle. They had both won in a way, neither client getting what they wanted but both walking away feeling they got the best they could. Secretly though, he knew his client had the better position and somehow Conway had come out even. Had she staged the supermarket thing just to throw him off his game? From what he had heard he wouldn’t put it past her.
It had been several weeks and he was trying to forget about her. Geez, she was a pit bull and obviously on a power trip. He told himself he hoped they would never cross paths again. He knew that was a lie. It was more than just the way she looked, though that certainly didn’t hurt. She had a reputation for suffering no fools, and she certainly had a sharp tongue. The challenge was damned near irresistible.
And then he was back at the grocery picking up lunch and a voice said “counselor”.
He turned and there was a beautiful woman wearing a short dress and bright red sandals. He was aware that he was gaping but couldn’t help himself. He stammered out “you look different Ms. Conway…I mean from court.”
“And you look the same counselor. And by the way, it’s ‘Gretchen.’”
He said “John”, and somehow it came out like he was a 5th grader with a teacher crush.
They stood there exchanging small talk while they waited in line. Then she got called to a newly opened register,
“Bye John”.
He waved and then watched her checkout and head out the door.
That’s just great. Things were going so well with Claire, but now he couldn’t stop thinking about Gretchen. Again.
© Glenn R Keller 2022, All Rights Reserved
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