Page 10 of Polly

“Hey, Pol,” he said. “Good to hear from you. How are you?”

“Hey, I’m peachy. How are you?” she choked out.

“Great. I got back this morning from my work trip. Grinding away at the office.”

A lie. Polly winced and swallowed. She could feel tears brimming and holding them back made her throat ache, but she willed them not to break free.

She said, “I got an unexpected break and I’m in town. How about I swing by the house tonight and make dinner?”

“Oh umm. Let’s go out for dinner tonight and make plans. That way we can both relax and not have to worry about groceries or cleanup or anything.”

That made sense...

“Where do you want to meet?”

Grady rattled off the restaurant information and planned to meet her there at 5:30. After he got off from work.

“Okay, see you later. Love you,” he said.

“Love you, too.”

“Bye.”

“Bye.”

She hung up the phone and sniffled. She looked up at the red brick home Grady had sworn would always be theirs. For sale.

She drew a deep breath and swallowed. Okay. Maybe there was an explanation. Maybe he’d changed jobs and bought a new house. Hard for her to believe, but maybe.

Polly sniffled and started the car with resignation. She would give him the benefit of the doubt and let him explain before she jumped to conclusions.

* * *

Polly pulled the rental car into a parking spot at the restaurant Grady picked and shifted to park. The restaurant looked like a nice Italian place from the outside, but Polly had never been, so she didn’t know.

She climbed out of the car and smoothed the creases from her purple sundress. She grabbed her clutch purse from the passenger seat and closed the door.

She didn’t see Grady’s car yet, but she went inside.

She smiled at the hostess. “Hi, my name’s Polly. I’m supposed to meet someone here. I’m not sure if he’s here yet or not, but if he’s not then I’d like to get a table.”

“What’s the name?” she asked.

“Grady McClelland.”

“Ah, yes, miss. He’s already here.” The hostess grabbed a menu and gestured for Polly to follow her.

They approached a table toward the back, where Grady studied the menu. Polly found his familiar look comforting. He looked like he always did with his blond hair, glasses, and suit. Nothing seemed different.

He smiled and stood when he noticed them. Always courteous. “Hi, Polly,” he said, stepping around the table to assist with her chair. She sat and thanked them both.

The hostess left and Grady sat down. He adjusted his glasses and spoke to her with excitement. “It’s been so long since I saw you. You look better than ever, Polly. You got some sun on that beach.”

“I did. Thank you,” she said. She picked up the menu and fiddled with it.

“It’s a pleasant surprise that you got an unplanned vacation.”

“I know. A venue cancelled because a pipe burst, so I’m off until Saturday.”

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