The Pale Man Rises

CHAPTER THIRTY NINE

288

After getting her sweater Deborah printed her name, phone number, and address on a sheet of the order pad, which she seldom ever used. Before leaving the room she tore out another page and wrapped her pen in it and slipped it into one of her pockets just in case her new beau had no writing material. She was not going to let this gorgeous man absent himself from this town without leaving the vital information relating to him in her custody.

He stood awaiting her at the booth. It was as if he was some exotic animal that had just arrived at the zoo the way all the eyes in the place bore down on him as if he was still regular army and standing in a formation. And when he saw her emerge from the break room he reacted as a soldier commanded to relax may have done, he went into a parade rest.

They all acted as though he was some thief that had just plucked their purse. She was not their property and she intended to make that clear to the lot of them when she returned. But now she had to get Danny out of here.

She loved the sound of it. Danny, Danny, Danny, she examined the name over and over in her mind. It was cute, charming, and ultimately American. She beamed with pride as she approached him. He was both handsome and rugged looking. His dark brown hair was full, but trimmed short for the time, but not as short as the army lifers kept theirs.

His dress coat fit ht him so well that it looked tailored on his frame. His left breast above the pocket of the coat was highlighted by at least six multicolored ribbons and even though she had lived near the military complex of Fort Dillman the whole of her twenty-three years she did not recognize what medals any of the ribbons represented.

Reaching him she took his left arm and guided him to the door where Kim sat legs crossed grinning at the two of them. The two women spoke briefly with each other in hushed and almost conspiratorial tones and then she led her man on to the door. In the distance someone began loudly humming Mendelssohn's "Wedding March". As they went through the door and entered the vestibule she called back over her shoulder. "Oh that's clever, you're soooo clever!"

289

As the door latched behind them she frowned and turned to him. "I apologize for those crude jerks." She said to him. "Pay it no attention, hell I'd probably be just as jealous if I were them." he told her. She looked up at him smiling demurely.

"You're so sweet." she said. He smiled at her and they moved on out of the vestibule. It was now quite cold on the street. "Damn it sure got cold fast." he said pulling his collar up around his neck. He shivered. "Oooh I get cold easily." he confessed. He looked down at her bare legs. "Aren't your legs cold?" he asked. "A little bit, but it's not so bad since I'm wearing these thick hose, you know–like the cheerleaders wear at football games." she said and then to demonstrate she pinched some of the flesh colored material from her right leg stretched it out for him to see. He raised his eyebrows in surprise as if he was Mr. Spock confronted by something that was "fascinating".

Now she pulled her address and the writing material from her pocket. She pressed her information into his left palm. "My address and phone number." she said. With his other hand he took a slip of lined notepaper from his right pocket and gave it to her. "I'm way ahead of you." he told her. "Then you won't be needing this." she said showing him the pen and paper she'd brought for him. She briefly studied the information he'd given her and then stuck it into her pocket.

He smiled at her again. It seemed this night he had smiled more than at any other time in all his previous nights combined. They embraced and when they did the pen and blank piece of paper slipped from her grasp as they clutched each other. She did not even realize she had lost it. They kissed then.