AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Jewell groaned. "Anything but the sandwich in my desk drawer.”
"Bertucci's is just around the corner and down a block. They have this amazing chicken allegro salad."
"Sounds good to me," Jewell said, slapping her hand on the desk. "Point me in the right direction."
Minutes later, Jewell stepped into the bright sunlight of a Boston summer afternoon and slipped on her sunglasses. The humid air hit her in a wave of moist heat, and she swore she felt the hair at the nap of her neck instantly curl into tight ringlets. Unbuttoning her jacket, she shrugged it off and let the sun heat her bare arms. The collar of her shell hugged her throat, but at least she could find some relief from the warmth by carrying the blazer. Another six weeks and autumn would fully hit New England, and she'd need the jacket, but for today it was just too much.
By the time she walked the three blocks, a fine sheen of perspiration dampened her neck and she was thankful to step inside the air-conditioned restaurant. The overpowering smell of garlic, roasted tomatoes, olive oil, and yeasty crust greeted her, and she inhaled. Her stomach immediately growled, rumbling almost painfully, and she weaved through the patrons and tables to the order counter. A dozen or so tables filled the small space, covered with red and white checkerboard tablecloths, with only three occupied at the end of the city's lunch hour.
"What can I get you?" asked a young man of maybe twenty, with slightly stringy hair parted down the middle and a mild case of acne.
"I hear your chicken allegro salad is to die for," Jewell said with a smile.
"Just find a seat. We'll get it right out."
A small table with two chairs sat in front of the large window that looked out on Market Street. Jewell draped her jacket on the back of the chair and sat. A waitress arrived almost immediately with a glass of ice water. "Thank you." Jewell took the glass before the woman could set it down. "It never ceases to amaze me how someone can get so thirsty when you could wring water right out of the air."
The waitress laughed as Jewell drank half the glass of water, the cold making her head ache just a little but not nearly enough to stop. "Do you want anything else to drink?"
"No, just more of this."
She nodded and walked away. The air in the restaurant was at least twenty degrees colder than outside, but Jewell still felt flushed from the short walk. She leaned back in her chair, indulging for a moment by pressing the condensation-coated glass to her cheek.
A sharp rap on the window made her jump, and she nearly spilled the water down her front. Jewell smiled when she saw Benjamin standing outside beneath the green restaurant canopy, his eyes hidden behind dark shades. His straight lip tipped up at one corner for that hint of a smile he teased her with. She motioned him inside and he pulled open the door, letting in a gust of thick air. He slipped off his sunglasses as he sat, dropping them on the tabletop. In practically the same motion, he took her glass of water and turned it to drink from the side she'd drank from. In three deep gulps he drained the ice water and set it down with a deep sigh.
Jewell chuckled, and tried to ignore the slow heat infusing her cheeks. "Are you on your way back to the office?"
He nodded. "I was downtown running errands."
"Have you eaten?"
He nodded again, but his eyes shifted down to her bare arms before he looked her in the eyes again. "Did you just get here?"
The waitress returning with Jewell's lunch interrupted her chance to answer. She set down the plate, followed by two more glasses of water. "Can I get you anything else? Would you like something, sir?"
Benjamin never looked away from Jewell and missed the question. Hoping the dim lighting in the restaurant hid her flush, Jewell quickly signed the question and pointed to the waitress, indicating she had spoken. He finally looked up and shook his head.
"No, thank you."
The waitress smiled again and walked away, but Jewell felt suddenly self-conscious about eating the salad with Benjamin sitting there. The way he watched her was a step beyond what she was used to, even for someone who communicated through body language and lip reading, and the glint in his eyes—barely suppressed—had nothing to do with wanting to know what she said. One part of her knew alarms should have been going off in her head, that bosses shouldn't be looking at her like that. If she didn't enjoy the flutter of awareness that hit her every time he gave her that 'almost smile,' she'd probably listen.
"Do you want some?" she asked, picking up her fork.
"I'm fine, but I'll keep you company if you don't mind. If you're not in the office, no need for me to rush back."
Jewell froze, her lips open and her fork full of gemelli and tomato in front of her mouth. "Did you need me to do something? I can have this boxed up and head back right away."
He held up his hand, then switched to sign. "No, I just meant that…" He paused, his hands in front of him, palm up, as he considered. Then his almost grin turned into a full-fledged smile and he leaned forward slightly. "I mean that there's no rush."
* * *
Benjamin had plenty to do in the office. His day was filled with reviewing reports, compiling data, and watching various markets as they closed, and opened, depending on the market. But he considered it a stroke of luck that on the one day he wandered outside of Bulwark he would run into Jewell, just sitting in a restaurant, all alone.
She was flushed, bright color blooming in her pale cheeks, and tiny ringlets escaped the french braid that hugged her skull to sprinkle across her brow and along her cheeks. As warm as the day was, he hoped that perhaps he was responsible for the pretty blush and the nervous flutter of her hands. It was wrong, he knew it was wrong, but he couldn't help himself and didn't want to try.
"I feel like I'm holding you up, Benjamin," she said, poking her fork around in the remains of her pasta and chicken. "I peeked in your office before I left to see if you wanted to come with me?—"
"You did?"
