It was a madcap few minutes while people helped her pick up her things and straighten up. Finally, she stood alone in the glaring sun with her assailant. In his mid fifties, he looked fit, was handsome, and had a warm friendly face. His thinning hair was almost all gray, but he was far from balding. While holding her hand, he introduced himself as Sam Waters, and apologized profusely.
"I'll buy you a new vase, and if you want medical attention, I'll go with you and pay the bill. I really am very sorry." Sam ran on with a steady act of contrition.
"Buy me a new vase and a latte and we'll be even," Angel finally interrupted, but she didn't immediately release his hand. After a pregnant pause where all she did was smile while searching his eyes, she turned him in the direction they needed to go, released his hand, and began to walk. She had four steps on him before he moved.
She watched relief overtake Sam while they walked back to the boutique where she bought the vase. He was soon able to converse like a normal person. She slowed their pace to a stroll, and almost passed by the shop while lost in her dreams of the possibilities of the situation.
"May I buy you lunch?" he asked when they left the shop.
"I was going to meet a friend when we met so abruptly," Angel responded, immediately regretting the remark. "But she'll understand." It was a good recovery, she thought, after having been caught off guard by the logical proposal. Duh, she thought, wanting to smack herself on the forehead. "Let's walk in this direction in case we meet her." While they strolled the few blocks to the café, she found out much about the man.
He was from Wisconsin and had retired in his late forties after inheriting a comfortable fortune from his parents. He and his wife, Barbara, traveled for several years before they settled in Costa Rica two years earlier. Barbara died fifteen months earlier.
"No woman since then," she pried.
"No. I loved my wife very much. She's the only woman I've ever been with. I mourned her for a long time, still do. I'm not a Casanova on the make for women."
Angel took his hand as they crossed the street near the outdoor café where she was to meet Mary Beth. She didn't let go when they reached the sidewalk. She could see Mary Beth from a long way off where she sat at a table sipping a glass of wine. When they were a hundred feet apart, their eyes met. Mary Beth's face lit up when she noticed a gentleman at her side. They lost sight of each other in the crowd for a moment but twenty paces away, Angel noticed a man in his mid thirties sit down at Mary Beth's table. When she and Sam passed by, she heard the exchange.
"Why is a beautiful woman like you sitting here alone?"
"I was waiting for you," Mary Beth responded, leaning close to her paramour and batting her lashes. Angel grinned at the scene from a grade-B movie. Mary Beth could be so sassy.
"Let's eat here," Sam suggested. "Why don't we stop at a market, buy some eggs and vegetables, then go to your apartment? I'll make lunch for you."
After a few steps, Sam stopped in his tracks. Angel watched as realization of the implication of her proposal finally dawned. When he turned to face her, a bit of a shocked expression on his face, she took his other hand and smiled. "Yes," is all she said, but her eyes pled, Please? After a few seconds, they walked on again, a little slower, and in silence until they reached the market.
Sam's apartment was the upper rear unit of a two story four family on a quaint side street that wasn't much more than an alley. His was a large two bedroom residence decorated nicely and showed a definite woman's touch. A picture of Barbara stood on prominent display in each room. Angel commented on her evident beauty while standing before one. She lost Sam for a minute when he turned inward after her comment.. She left him to his musing and began to prepare the frittata she planned for lunch.
Sam returned carrying two glasses of wine. He had freshened up in the ten minutes he'd been absent. The spirit of his wife must have moved him forward, but Angel could still see turmoil in his face. She had already sautéed the vegetables, and had just slid the baking dish into the oven for its twenty minute bake when he entered. He sat on a stool on the raised side of the counter while she remained on the kitchen side. She sipped her wine and waited.
"How old are you, Angel?" he asked to break the silence.
"Twenty."
"Why would you choose to spend an afternoon with a fifty-four year old man? You're young, vivacious, and beautiful. You could have any man you wanted. Why did you choose me?"
"I left the house this morning to find a man to spend the afternoon with. The Goddess led me to you. She pushed you out of that door so we would meet, and she broke my vase so we would talk. Your opening up about your wife and your loneliness was inspired by her. I chose you, Sam, because she chose you."
He refilled their wine glasses. "You need to learn to live again, Sam. Mourning your wife was noble and necessary, but you must live and love again. I'm here to teach you, and you're here to fulfill the need that caused me to leave home this morning."
)
