It was Friday morning, the last day Angie wasn't really feeling all to well
and they spent the day with her making sure she was all right. They were
just about to go riding when.
Emily was outside talking to Charles and Hartley. Charles said he had to
run to get ready for the ride. Which left Hartley and Emily outside.
"Where's Linda?" He asked.
"She's getting ready. Hartley I have to say this cause Lin is a dear friend
of mine." Emily started. "Hartley you're a great guy and we all really
think you're good for Linda. But you do know where she's coming from? By
now the McMahon name is almost a household name."
"Emily, I know all about it. I don't live under a rock. But none of that
changes or influences the way I feel about her. Truthfully he doesn't
deserve her, he's taken her for granted one too many times. And I don't
want to see it happen again. I'm not here to have my heart broken again, so
I'm not going to do anything I don't feel is right, for either of us." He
said.
"I'll go get her." Emily smiled
Angie wandered into the living room.
"Feeling better?" Emily asked
"Yeah I'm sorry I was so much trouble yesterday." Angie said.
"Please you were no trouble, we just want you to fell better." Linda said.
"Thanks you guys, I'm going to stay in bed today, maybe latter on I'll feel
better." Angie said.
"We'll be back at lunch to check on you." Emily said.
"Don't worry about me, you two go and have a good time you both deserve
it." She said going back to her room.
They rode in the morning and came back to find her dressed and looking a
lot better.
"I feel great." She said when they asked her how she was doing.
"But I saw you guys out there today, it must be the water here or
something. Everybody is in good spirits some more then others." She smiled
at Linda.
But it was true. Linda and Hartley looked as though they had always been
together. They were amazing comfortable and at ease with each other.
Everything with Hartley was so much smoother it was like dancing with
Astaire and Ginger Rogers. She and Vince weren't even in the same ballroom
any more.
She was on her way to the Dining hall; she was looking for something that
was the only reason she was still there in the cabin. She was half way out
the door when the phone started to ring, normally she would ignore it, but
it could have been important. She picked up the phone sounding breathless
from running to catch it on time.
"Hello?"
"Is Mrs. McMahon there?" She didn't recognize the voice at first.
"This is she. Who is this?" She said formally and then was startled by the
answer.
"Linda? It didn't sound like you." It was Vince and it only underlines how
remote they had become.
"Sorry I didn't recognize you either, I was on my way out to dinner"
"Sorry if this is a bad time," he said dryly. It was three in the morning
for him and she couldn't figure out why he was calling.
"Is Stephanie all right?" She asked her hear skipping a beat. It was the
only reason she could think of for him to call.
"She's fine, I talked to her yesterday."
"If you talk to her again, tell her I love her. She hasn't called me. I
think it's the time difference. Speaking of what are you doing up at this
time?"
They were now like business associates exchanging news and there was
nothing personal between them.
"I was working late, and I was stupid enough to have coffee and now I'm up
at the ungodly hour, so I figured I call you. The time difference really
never works well for me either." And neither does our marriage she wanted
to say to him.
"It was nice of you to call," she said, but sounded unconvinced.
"So what are you doing up there? You haven't said much in your faxes. In
fact I don't think I've heard from you in a while."
"Neither have you," she said pointedly.
"There's not much to say, I go to meeting after meeting. It's not like its
really any fun."
"So I'm guessing everything is going well at the company?" She asked, its
not like she really cared anymore. Maybe a few years ago she would have but
not today, not this week.
"Everything is fine. Going smoothly."
"That's nice," she said looking at the floor and thinking of her husband,
but the face of the matter was she was really thinking of Hartley. She
could never imagine having this conversation with him. She couldn't
imagine having the last year with him. She didn't want to live like that,
or even continue any longer.
"What about you?" He was pressing her and she didn't seem to want to talk.
"We're riding everyday, it's incredible here."
"How are you friends?" He asked. Why was he so suddenly interested?
."They're fine, in fact they're waiting on me." She said not mention that
they were going dancing after dinner.
"I won't hold you then. Give them my best." She was about the hang up,
there was a pause "Lin. I miss you." She don't know why he said it, after a
year of pain and silence, he all of a sudden was going to grow a heart
again. He missed his chance. She wasn't going to play games with him and
she wasn't going to get hurt by him. His door was closing and there was no
saving it now.
"Don't work too hard." She said before she hung up. A month ago, six months
ago a year ago she would have felt bad about what she finished with. But
now she felt nothing.
