Page 34 of The High Price Of Loneliness

She replied hopefully, “I really appreciate it. That’s all I really wanted.”

He added, “I still think waiting a couple of days would be in both of our best interests, but if you want to talk today, we can meet for breakfast or lunch.”

Angelica encouraged him more warmly as she woke to this good news and said, “Could we just talk at your place? I don’t mind the drive.”

He flatly replied, “No. As I said—my terms and conditions.” Gray reminded her, “I don’t want any drama like last night with you ringing my doorbell and knocking on the door until late. That was not appropriate, nor is it invited to happen again.”

“I’m sorry. I just really needed to talk to you and for you to hear me.”

Gray said, “Well. I will hear you out, but someplace public where you won’t cause another scene. Let’s meet at the Ritz Carlton for brunch downtown.”

“Alright. What time do you want me there? Or are you picking me up?”

Gray wrapped up the early morning call in his calm, business-like tone and said, “See you there at 11 o’clock for brunch, Ms. Hart.”

She started to say goodbye and was really looking forward to seeing him and talking, but he was already gone. While she didn’t get the warmth and fuzzies from Edward that she was yearning for, at least he would see her and talk. She had a chance!

Angelica rolled onto her stomach, pulled the pillow back over her head like she had done when she was little and wanted to sleep in on a Saturday morning. But she couldn’t go back to sleep. Her heart was pumping faster with the anticipation of seeing Edward, and she had no choice but to get out of bed for coffee and start picking what to wear to brunch. It was hours away still, but her mind was racing.

Gray arrived early at the Ritz Carlton for their brunch reservation at the Jack Dusty restaurant. The view inside and out on the terrace looked over the intercoastal waterway and was always easy to enjoy with their unrivaled service. The valet greeted him by name as a faithful regular, “Good morning, Mr. Gray. Great to see you again, sir.”

“Thank you, Mathew,” Gray replied. He knew most of the valets and bartenders by first name at his favorite places, this being one of the most notable. “I’m expecting a guest, a special guest in a red Nissan Z convertible sports car in about an hour. I need your help with some special arrangements after the valet parks her car. Can I count on your discretion?” Gray looked directly at the valet for his level of attention.

“Yes, sir. You can count on me and the team to arrange whatever you might need, sir.”

“Excellent,” Gray replied, continuing with Mathew for a few more minutes of instructions.

Across town, Angelica was just finishing getting ready, checking her makeup in the mirror. She was excited to be meeting Edward at the Ritz Carlton. She had only ever been there once before. She thought to herself,An exquisite place for a kiss and make-up date. Otherwise, he could have just picked anywhere for a place to talk. She finished getting ready and grabbed her keys to head out the door.

Gray had finished making all his arrangements at the Ritz and was waiting in the marble lobby of the hotel when Angelica pulled up. He could easily see her bright red sports car approaching the valet. “Good morning, Ms. Hart. Welcome back to the Ritz Carlton,” the valet said, warmly greeting her.

“Oh, my goodness. How could you have remembered my name? It’s been such a long time since I was here last.” She smiled at the valet, Mathew, who had his special instructions.

“It’s important to us to remember our special guests, Ms. Hart.” Mathew added, “Enjoy your brunch,” which was the dead giveaway that the valet had been instructed to greet her by Mr. Gray. She liked that Edward had spoken to them about her even more than the idea that the valet might have remembered her somehow.

A uniformed doorman opened the large wooden door to the Ritz Carlton lobby, and about 20 paces away from her, Edward stood feet shoulder width apart with his arms crossed. If he didn’t look so damn handsome, he could be the head of security the way he was standing which was a bit intimidating to Angelica.

Gray watched her glide gracefully and smoothly across the lobby floor directly to him. Her blue eyes looked straight into his for a few steps, with Angelica smiling into his stone-cold face. Then, her eyes looked downward more submissively to the floor in front of her as she walked the last few paces to stand in front of him. Finally, she gazed up at his eyes again seeking any sign of softening or hope.

Gray reached out his hand to take hers, a bit less formally than offering her his arm to hang onto, which she always liked. But feeling his big, warm, and inviting hand also felt good on many levels. She was glad to have his touch and breathed easier as he guided her into Jack Dusty.

“Mr. Gray, your table is ready. Right, this way please,” said the restaurant host, greeting them. And, without a word from Gray, they were whisked away outside to a table on the terrace with a view of the water. Their table had been specially arranged to be a bit secluded from the rest of the other tables for privacy. The only other table in this section had a small white “RESERVED” sign. One that would never be used as it would turn out, at Edward’s special request.

Always the gentleman, Gray pulled out the chair for Angelica with the best view of the water. The waitress approached and introduced herself and took their drink order for mimosas. And finally, they were alone.

Edward leaned forward, “To begin, a couple of ground rules. First, when one of us speaks, the other will listen however long it takes without interruption. This is a sign of respect and the only good way to be heard and understood. Is that fair?”

“Yes. I like that,” Angelica replied.

“Excellent,” Edward said, relaxing back into his chair. “Since you were wanting to talk late last night so eagerly, would you like to begin?”

“Yes.” Angelica started by saying, “First, thank you for meeting me in person, not just over the phone. And thanks for inviting me to the Ritz Carlton. This is a lovely place for us to talk over brunch. I really appreciate all that you do, Edward. I want you to know—I do not take it for granted,” she added earnestly.

Gray nodded but did not speak as agreed upon. However, the waitress briefly dropped off their first of several mimosas and parted with a happy “Cheers!” which seemed like a good idea, so the two clinked glasses before Angelica resumed. “As I wanted to share with you last night, Edward, at the big gala in Tampa, when I came out of the restroom, which seemed to take forever because the line was so long, I didn’t know which way to go because it was my first time at the Straz. So, I asked one of the ladies in line for the restroom which way the bar was. Two of them pointed simultaneously to the bar where you found me. I didn’t know there was more than one of them.” Angelica paused to take another sip of her mimosa.

“So, when I got to the bar and asked for another glass of champagne, I had only been there a minute when that fellow Keirlen came up and introduced himself. He then said that he saw I had arrived with Edward Gray, so I thought you two were friends, or at least he knew who you were. He said he thought I was beautiful and that ‘Mr. Gray was a very lucky man.’ When he said that last part, he reached over and touched my hair just a bit. So, we only talked for two minutes, and all but the last few seconds, I simply thought the ballplayer was someone who knew you. Finally, he said something very inappropriate, and I didn’t know how to react, so I was caught very much off-guard and just froze.”

Gray was beside himself, wanting to interrupt, but he had set the rules, so he leaned forward and raised his hand like in a classroom.

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