Fool for Love
By
Javakamp
Chapter 18: That was no Woman.
Sunday afternoon Emily was sitting at a table in a restaurant in New Haven, with some women from the Audubon society discussing plans for their upcoming fundraiser. The waiter had just finished refilling her glass of iced tea when she noticed a man across the restaurant. He was tall, in his mid to late thirties, and good looking. The man was seated with an attractive blond woman about the same are and two boys, under twelve.
Emily tried to put the man out of her mind and concentrate on the fundraiser plans. However, try as she might, her gaze kept returning to the family across the way.
Suddenly she realized where she had seen the man before. It was the man who had been with Lorelai the other night. What was his name, Emily wondered. Collins, something Collins. Phillip? No that wasn't right. His first name was Colin. That's right Colin Fletcher.
What was he doing in New Haven? One of the few facts she had managed to drag out of Lorelai was that he returned home to Albany most weekends. However, even stranger this man looked like he was with his family. Emily and her daughter disagreed about many things, but surely Lorelai would not be seeing a married man, would she?
During the next twenty minutes, Emily fought an internal battle about what she should do. First off, she wasn't positive that the man across the restaurant with his family really was the man Lorelai had been dating. Moreover, if it was the same man what should she do? Did she have any right to interfere with Lorelai's private life? At the same time if some man was taking advantage of Lorelai, how could she not become involved?
As Emily debated with herself, she watched the man stand up as if to leave. He kissed the woman, and said good-bye to the boys. After he put on his coat he waived good by and left the restaurant.
Plans and options spun through Emily's head as she struggled to decide what to do. While she deliberated, she watched the waiter walk up to the woman and hand her the bill for their meal. The woman reached into her purse, pulled out a credit card, and handed it to the waiter.
Emily finally decided to run a risk and do a little checking. If she found out that this wasn't the man she had met last week, then there was no harm done, And Lorelai would never have to find out what she had been checking up on her.
She excused herself form the ladies at her table, saying that she saw someone she needed to say hello to. Not believing what she was doing, Emily picked up her purse, stood up, and walked across the restaurant towards the woman and two boys.
As she neared the woman, Emily realized that she had no idea what she was going to say. She was about to turn away when the woman looked up at her and smiled. Deciding that she was committed, but still not knowing what she would say Emily stepped up to the woman and just started speaking, "Excuse me, but my name is Margaret Townsend. I noticed the man who was here with you, and I thought I recognized him as a business associate of my husband. Well Thomas would never forgive me if I ran into one of his associates and didn't say hello. Well, I only met him a couple of times, so I couldn't be positive he was the man I thought it was. So as not to embarrass myself, by not being sure it was really my husbands associate, I thought I would wait until you were alone and ask you. That way if I was wrong, maybe you could keep it between you and me."
"I understand all about men and their business relationships," The woman answered in a voice that said she had breeding.
Before Emily could respond, the waiter showed up with the receipt for the woman to sign. He sat the tray with the slip and card on the table, before he turned and walked away. The woman signed the slip and tore off her copy, putting the white copy back in the tray. The woman glanced up at Emily and as she started to return her credit card to her wallet asked, "Who was it you were looking for, Mrs. What was your name again?"
"Oh excuse me," Emily gushed, as she sat her purse on the table and held out her hand, "My name is Margaret. Margaret Townsend."
The blond woman took Emily's hand and answered, "Rebecca Fletcher, and that was my husband Colin. But I'm sorry he's left already, if you wanted to say hello."
Emily didn't know if she should be happy, or upset, with the confirmation of her suspicions. Trying to hide any reaction, she said, "Oh dear, this is frightfully embarrassing. That's not who I thought it was at all. I'm sorry to have bothered you."
Rebecca shook her head, "No problem." She put on her coat and continued, "It was nice to talk to you. Let's go boys."
"Nice to talk to you," Emily replied to their retreating backs, as she watched them leave. Once they had left the restaurant, she turned and pick up her purse, which was still covering the yellow copy of the Fletchers credit card receipt. Emily glanced around, then casually picked up the receipt, and slipped it into her purse.
She turned and headed back to her table to rejoin her fellow fundraisers. However, she was still not able to concentrate on the planning, because she could not stop thinking about, what, if anything, she should do next. No matter what she did, she was sure that Lorelai would be furious with her.
By
Javakamp
Chapter 18: That was no Woman.
Sunday afternoon Emily was sitting at a table in a restaurant in New Haven, with some women from the Audubon society discussing plans for their upcoming fundraiser. The waiter had just finished refilling her glass of iced tea when she noticed a man across the restaurant. He was tall, in his mid to late thirties, and good looking. The man was seated with an attractive blond woman about the same are and two boys, under twelve.
Emily tried to put the man out of her mind and concentrate on the fundraiser plans. However, try as she might, her gaze kept returning to the family across the way.
Suddenly she realized where she had seen the man before. It was the man who had been with Lorelai the other night. What was his name, Emily wondered. Collins, something Collins. Phillip? No that wasn't right. His first name was Colin. That's right Colin Fletcher.
What was he doing in New Haven? One of the few facts she had managed to drag out of Lorelai was that he returned home to Albany most weekends. However, even stranger this man looked like he was with his family. Emily and her daughter disagreed about many things, but surely Lorelai would not be seeing a married man, would she?
During the next twenty minutes, Emily fought an internal battle about what she should do. First off, she wasn't positive that the man across the restaurant with his family really was the man Lorelai had been dating. Moreover, if it was the same man what should she do? Did she have any right to interfere with Lorelai's private life? At the same time if some man was taking advantage of Lorelai, how could she not become involved?
As Emily debated with herself, she watched the man stand up as if to leave. He kissed the woman, and said good-bye to the boys. After he put on his coat he waived good by and left the restaurant.
Plans and options spun through Emily's head as she struggled to decide what to do. While she deliberated, she watched the waiter walk up to the woman and hand her the bill for their meal. The woman reached into her purse, pulled out a credit card, and handed it to the waiter.
Emily finally decided to run a risk and do a little checking. If she found out that this wasn't the man she had met last week, then there was no harm done, And Lorelai would never have to find out what she had been checking up on her.
She excused herself form the ladies at her table, saying that she saw someone she needed to say hello to. Not believing what she was doing, Emily picked up her purse, stood up, and walked across the restaurant towards the woman and two boys.
As she neared the woman, Emily realized that she had no idea what she was going to say. She was about to turn away when the woman looked up at her and smiled. Deciding that she was committed, but still not knowing what she would say Emily stepped up to the woman and just started speaking, "Excuse me, but my name is Margaret Townsend. I noticed the man who was here with you, and I thought I recognized him as a business associate of my husband. Well Thomas would never forgive me if I ran into one of his associates and didn't say hello. Well, I only met him a couple of times, so I couldn't be positive he was the man I thought it was. So as not to embarrass myself, by not being sure it was really my husbands associate, I thought I would wait until you were alone and ask you. That way if I was wrong, maybe you could keep it between you and me."
"I understand all about men and their business relationships," The woman answered in a voice that said she had breeding.
Before Emily could respond, the waiter showed up with the receipt for the woman to sign. He sat the tray with the slip and card on the table, before he turned and walked away. The woman signed the slip and tore off her copy, putting the white copy back in the tray. The woman glanced up at Emily and as she started to return her credit card to her wallet asked, "Who was it you were looking for, Mrs. What was your name again?"
"Oh excuse me," Emily gushed, as she sat her purse on the table and held out her hand, "My name is Margaret. Margaret Townsend."
The blond woman took Emily's hand and answered, "Rebecca Fletcher, and that was my husband Colin. But I'm sorry he's left already, if you wanted to say hello."
Emily didn't know if she should be happy, or upset, with the confirmation of her suspicions. Trying to hide any reaction, she said, "Oh dear, this is frightfully embarrassing. That's not who I thought it was at all. I'm sorry to have bothered you."
Rebecca shook her head, "No problem." She put on her coat and continued, "It was nice to talk to you. Let's go boys."
"Nice to talk to you," Emily replied to their retreating backs, as she watched them leave. Once they had left the restaurant, she turned and pick up her purse, which was still covering the yellow copy of the Fletchers credit card receipt. Emily glanced around, then casually picked up the receipt, and slipped it into her purse.
She turned and headed back to her table to rejoin her fellow fundraisers. However, she was still not able to concentrate on the planning, because she could not stop thinking about, what, if anything, she should do next. No matter what she did, she was sure that Lorelai would be furious with her.
