Lost Wife

Chapter 3

"I'm packing as soon as we get home." Rea repeated, nodding firmly. 

"Jeez, Claire, you can't leave. From what you've told me, it doesn't seem like he'll be coming back any time soon. Besides, where would you go?" Chelse countered. 

Rea looked straight into her eyes before saying, "I hear China's pretty cheap." 

"Oh, puh-lease." Chelse waved the answer away with a slight smile. Then her expression turned serious. "What would I do without you?" 

"Chelse, you're the one always helping me out, so don't give me that." 

"Well, is this the thanks you're giving me for helping you out?" Chelse had her hands on her hips. "I thought you had said you didn't know what you'd do without me." 

"Ugh, Chelse... Now's not the time for a guilt trip. I'll come back to visit." 

"Claire, you're not going anywhere." 

"Chelse, this is a life and death situation. I told you; I'm not even sure if he doesn't know I'm alive." 

"Well, you still have the shades if he comes back." Chelse pointed out. 

"Sure, but my actions are gonna be a complete give away. When he came earlier, I could barely even speak." Rea sighed, remembering the embarrassing moment. What would she have done if Leo hadn't intervened? 

"If he ever asks, tell him that you were just blown away by his beauty." Chelse only half-feigned dreaminess. "I mean, he is pretty hot, if I may say so myself. It would take more than some old grumpy king and his daughter to keep me away from that kind of body. Hmm!" Chelse kissed her fingers to her lips, demonstrating his perfection. 

"Not helping." Rea mumbled. Oh, she knew he was nothing to be taken for granted, that's for sure! 

"Okay, okay. Sorry. Think about this instead:" Chelse pointed to the large antique clock that hung on the wall. It was nearing closing time by a couple minutes. "If he's coming back today, it can only be in the next two minutes. After that, you're safe for the rest of the night. We'll go out if it'll help you forget about it." Chelse seemed to be looking forward to that. 

Rea stared at the clock and sighed. Chelse was right; she was fretting way too much about this. "Okay." She agreed. Maybe a good night of dancing would wear her out enough to forget about it. "As long as Jamie's there." 

Chelse smiled at her. "Of course." Jamie had become Rea's closest guy friend since she'd moved to the Big Apple. He was the funniest guy ever and she enjoyed his cheery company. 

"Then it's set. You can help Marge with the dishes. I'll clean up here." Rea watched Chelse go and turned off one of the main lights of the restaurant. She upped the volume of the soft music playing as she wiped the round tables and flipped the chairs on top of them, but must've been so busy that she didn't hear the entrance door open. 

---------------------------------- 

Somewhere along the day Nicolas had changed his mind and decided that he didn't want to find out just how much the waitress would resemble Rea. After all, he'd given himself enough trouble throughout the past two years. But when his mind kept trailing back to her before, during, and after the meeting that day, he found that he had no choice but to get things over with once and for all. And he wouldn't mind getting it over with quickly, especially if the girl wasn't Rea. 

He had parked the Mercedes in The Podium's parking lot at about a quarter to five and waited, wanting to forget the whole thing and return to the hotel half the time. By the time he'd convinced himself to get out of the car and into the restaurant, it'd already been closing time, but that didn't matter much, since the entrance hadn't been locked anyway. 

Nicolas had stopped in his tracks as soon as he'd gotten inside. Though her back was facing him, he was sure it was the waitress he had seen earlier. Her bun hung messily at the nape of her neck, and her hands worked quickly as she bent over a table to reach the far end as she cleaned its surface. He couldn't help but notice the alarming amount of smooth brown flesh exposed to him thanks to the ridiculously short black skirt of her uniform, and desire pulsed through him for a moment before habit automatically suppressed it. He'd promised himself he would never touch another woman after Rea, and he didn't see why he would break that promise for a scandalously-dressed waitress. 

His eyes still lingered on the long legs though as he wondered what to do next. Desire pricked him again as he realized that what he wanted to do was approach her and caress those mile-long legs, but reasoning kicked the thought to the curb. He had business to take care of. 

He'd been about to address her when she half-turned to him to pick up a chair, then froze when she realized that he was there. Nicolas was disappointed to see that she still had sunglasses on. 

"Um, I'm afraid we're closed, but may I help you?" He perceived the voice as a pitch different from Rea's. Something in him wanted that to be the proof that she wasn't his wife so he could get the hell out of there, but he knew that one could change their voice if they wanted to. 

"I'm not sure." He decided to go with the truth, even though it could confuse her. "Could you?" 

The woman stared at him - or at least he thought she did; he couldn't really tell with those damned dark shades - then pursed her lips. "If you would tell me what it is that you want, then just maybe I could." She said. Nicolas's eyes had been drawn to her lips as she spoke, and his heart skipped a beat as he watched the smooth, plump appendages come together and separate with every word she pronounced. Rea's had looked very much like them, and he realized that they would feel very much the same if he kissed them. 

"Could you take off the sunglasses?" 

--------------------------

Rea stiffened. Why would he ask her to do that? "Sir, I don't see what that has to do with anything..." She tried to keep her voice calm and at that strange pitch she wasn't quite used to. It wasn't that easy. 

Rea had frozen at the sight of a silhouette at the corner of her eye as she'd been cleaning. When she saw it was him, she'd almost fainted. She had watched Nicolas mark her every move with those sexy green eyes of his, turning her into a pile of wiry emotions. She wasn't sure she could take any more of this. What if he found out it was her? What if he tried to kiss her to find out? A chill ran up Rea's back before her veins set on fire. If he kissed her, then that would be the complete end. She wouldn't even be able to think. It'd be a clear game-over. 

She panicked as soon as she saw him approach her. "What are you doing? Sir, if you get any closer, I'll call the police." Relief flooded her when he slowed his steps. "Please let me know what you need or please leave." 

"You remind me of... someone." 

Rea could hear her own breath quicken. "Well, I'm sure I'm not that person because I definitely have not seen you before today." 

"If you just let me see your eyes, I'll go." 

She made sure she fixed her expression to show confusion before shrugging. "If you'll leave me alone after that, fine." She quickly removed Chelsey's Chanel shades.