Daphne

(24) Monday, Six weeks later

Daphne arrived at the company cafeteria and scanned the salon. The lunch hour was winding down and only a dozen or so folks remained, grouped into three clusters. Daphne limped over to the nearest group where a man on crutches, sporting elastic bandages on his left ankle and a few visible scrapes, stood, gesturing.

"Hi, Bob. What happened to you?"

"Oh, Hi Daphne. I was just telling the folks here about my spill. I was ripping down a trail on my bike. Halfway 'round a curve the trail narrowed and I lost my front wheel to an exposed root. Next thing I know I'm at the bottom of a ravine with a sprained ankle and my bike on top of me. I managed to get about halfway back up by the time the Rescue Squad showed up. They hoisted me up the rest of the way and carried me to an Aid Station where they patched me up and sent me off. And here I am. My twisted bike's in the shop and I'll be good as new before it will be."

"Wow. That's a tale! I'm glad you're... well... you know... mostly OK..."

"Thanks. So, you look a bit the worse for wear yourself. How was your weekend?"

"Nothing as dramatic as launching myself off a cliff and having a bunch of hunky guys carry me around. That last part doesn't sound so bad, but maybe that's just me... Nah, I just visited the old Alma Mater, hung out at Leo's, saw some old friends... A couple of guys were there demoing some whips. Came back, and here I am! No drama at all..."

Daphne. At Leo's. With guys with whips. And today she's so sore she can barely walk.

Nobody needed any help connecting those dots.

"Did you know that the 'crack' sound that a whip makes is from the tip exceeding the speed of sound? It's actually a mini sonic boom!"

Everyone's mouths went dry.

It made sense that she, of all people, would know something like that.

A young junior executive, Hannah, swallowed hard a couple of times to moisten her throat, but she still sounded a bit like a frog: "Did you... umm... enjoy... the 'demonstration'?"

Daphne closed her eyes, breathed a deep breath. and smiled as she exhaled: "Mmmmm!" She shivered visibly. Bob and a couple of others recognized the adrenaline shakes. She was reliving the experience before them! She inhaled again and opened her eyes lazily, looking content. Relaxed. "Phew!" she said, grinning, her eyes twinkling. "Well... it definitely had its moments..."

Hannah looked at her in disbelief. Daphne, who had become used to that expression, just smiled. Then she noticed something: the twenty-something junior exec standing before her was wearing a sensible, but casual wardrobe, including a skirt hemmed just above the knee, under-the-ankle sport socks, and what looked like really comfortable sneakers; her legs were otherwise bare. An idea flashed in Daphne's head. "If you really want to know what my weekend was like I'll tell you – and only you – privately... over there." She pointed to an unpopulated spot across the room. The girl looked around nervously and stumbled off as her friends watched. "You folks, just wait here, please."

Daphne grabbed two chairs and set them about a yard apart facing each other. She sat down on one and motioned Hannah to join her. Daphne leaned forward and the other followed suit. From afar it seemed to be an intimate meeting.

"You really don't understand what I do, do you?"

"Ma'am, they whipped you! And I think I know where!" She unconsciously squeezed her legs tight. "Jeezuz! How could you let anyone do that?"

"First, don't 'Ma'am' me; I may or may not be above you somewhere in the Org chart, but it's lunchtime – right now we're just two people on our own time." Daphne smiled and offered her hand. "I'm Daphne, OK?" They shook hands.