All Said and Undone by Angelita Gill

tone.
    “Yes, it’s true. We had tea and sinful little desserts this afternoon. It was nice.”
    “Ah, of course, the Velveteen House. That was kind of you…I’d think it would be the last thing you’d want to do. Spend alone-time with her.”
    “I was glad I did. We had a nice chat.” She decided to add, “Your mother is a smart woman. I think she knows more about us than we realize.”
    Silence again.
    She heard him sigh on the other end, shifting the receiver to his other ear. Just as she was about to say something trivial to kill the quiet, he said, “I’ve been thinking about what you said. About how we can’t go back to the way things were. I think…before I come home, we should talk about some of the changes we need to make if we’re going to make things work between us.”
    She spoke with quiet, but desperate, firmness. “I agree.”
    “All right….” he said. “You first.”
    She didn’t hesitate. “We need to make time for each other, Jack, and not just once in a while on a weekend, and not just for the first month or two. Right?”
    “Right.”
    “My schedule can be unpredictable sometimes, but I will always try to be home before seven.” She bit her lip. “Your turn.”
    “Okay, well, sometimes I don’t know I’m going to stay late at the office until that afternoon. On those days, I’ll call.”
    She checked back a groan. “Is it imperative you work late at the office? Can’t you bring the work home?”
    “Can you?”
    “That’s a silly question. Of course I can’t. My clients aren’t paperwork.”
    “And my work isn’t always mobile,” he said. “If I stay at the office to finish up, it isn’t because I want to, it’s because I have to.”
    He had a point. She sighed. “Makes sense.”
    “What else?”
    The next one was essential to her. “We have dinner together at least twice a week. Doesn’t matter whether it’s at the house, in your office, or a restaurant, just as long as we eat together.”
    “I can do that.”
    Now that they had started the conversation, more ideas popped into her head, stirring the anticipation of actually following through with them. But she held back from bombarding him with too much at once. “Anything else for you?”
    He took a moment as she waited. “Sure. I wouldn’t mind if you showed up at my office in nothing but a coat and high heels. With a steak.”
    She couldn’t help but laugh. “Jack! Be serious.”
    “You don’t think I’m being serious about that?”
    She smiled. “I’ll keep it in mind.”
    “Okay, okay.” She imagined him smiling on the other end of the phone. “Another thing. I’d like you to commit to at least one function with me every season.”
    “Oh, I saw this coming,” she said. “Let’s see. I’ll just commit myself right now. The fabulous Novacom family Christmas party. The company retreat in the fall. The annual charity ball in the spring. And…the naked mud wrestling barbecue in July.”
    Through his laughter, he asked, “What was that last one?”
    “Oh, wait. That one is for my job.”
    His deep chuckle warmed her. It had been so long since they’d talked like this, making her want to giggle like a teenager.
    “Naked anything,” he remarked, “Count me in on that, for sure. You have a good memory, by the way. Remembering all of the major events Novacom puts on.”
    “Not really. The invitations were always sent here.”
    “Oh.”
    She could’ve kicked herself for blurting out something so offhand, yet so heavy in meaning. All those months she’d collected the invitations in the mail, wondering if he was going, if he’d call her and ask her to go, just for appearance’s sake. He never did.
    “I think that’s good for now,” he said after a long stretch of silence. “We’ll negotiate some more when I get home.”
    The lightness was lost. “All right. Good night, Jack.”
    “’Bye, Grace.”
    Her hand fell to her side as she hung up the call.

 
     
     

Chapter