Chapter Six
Forgotten
Ellie was feeling uncharacteristically nervous has she stood examining her self in her bedroom mirror. She didn't know why she was wound up so tight considering she'd eaten with Grant a million times before. It was just like any other meal she shared with him except this time…this time it is a date, she thought with color painting her cheeks. I'm about to go on a date with my teacher. "EX-teacher," she scolded herself aloud. "He is my EX-teacher. No harm in that. We don't have an image to keep."
She glanced at her watch, feeling a wave of panic. She was supposed to meet Grant at Hart's Diner in twenty minutes. She hastily began applying a little powder and eye shadow. She wasn't much for make-up bearing in mind she spent her days rummaging through the dirt, but that didn't mean she didn't appreciate what a few strokes of the brush did for her eyes.
Grabbing her keys, she heard the shrill of the telephone and paused. Should she pick it up? It might be him, she contemplated while reaching for the receiver. Maybe he's running late. Those conferences can take unsuspecting turns. "Hello, Ellie Sattler speaking."
"Ellie! It's good to hear your voice again."
Ellie froze then, slowly lowered herself to the stool beside the counter. "Mike?"
"Listen, I know it's kind of sudden, but I was wondering if I could come by and…talk. We-we need to talk, Ellie. I miss you and I want to…talk."
Michael O'Conner was a doctor she had met back in Chicago while attending the University of Grandview. They had dated heavily, but then she was sent out to Montana for her internship and things died down. When she returned to Chicago, Mike said he thought it best if they cooled things until they both graduated. Then Ellie returned to Montana and Mike began seeping from her life, only calling a couple times a month to discuss the minor details of their lives.
"What do you mean 'can you by come by'? Where are you, Mike?"
"In Montana." There was a pause. "I'm in my car. Can we talk, Ellie?"
"You drove all the way over here from Ohio to talk to me? Isn't that what phones are for, Mike? It's how we've been doing things." She bit her lip nervously and was unsettled by the churning of her stomach. What is he doing here?
"Yes, I came all the way to Montana to talk to you. Please, Ellie."
She pressed her fingers into her temple. "Ok. When? I'm kind of…"
She heard a car door slam and the color seeped from her face. "Are you here, Mike?" She went to the door and thrust it open to reveal Mike strolling up to her, clipping away his cell phone. "What are you doing here, Mike? What if I weren't here?"
"It doesn't matter because you are here." He scooped her up into his arms and kissed her firmly on the lips. "I've missed you, Ellie. I wish you weren't stuck up here, but I know you love it, so I'm willing to move. I want to be with you, Ellie. I love you; and we're both graduated now, so what's stopping us?"
She pulled back from him to stare quizzically into his earnest eyes. "What are you saying?"
Mike dropped to one knee and pulled out a blue velvet box. "Will you take me as your husband, Ellie? Will you marry me?"
Part Two
Grant sat in the booth, drumming his fingers lightly against the tabletop. He glanced at his watch to confirm that she was indeed fifteen minutes late. It wasn't long enough for him to start worrying, but it was long enough for him to feel the boredom trickling in. He hadn't brought any material in with him and he was debating as to whether or not he should sneak out and get his notes from his truck.
Bad idea, he thought wisely. How would it look when she comes in seeing me engrossed in work? With thought, he started making a pyramid from the packets of jelly and butter. Twenty minutes later, he decided to give her a call, but received no answer at the trailer. Maybe she's on her way, he thought hopefully, but something in the pit of stomach was telling him otherwise.
Another twenty minutes went by before he gathered up his hat and jacket and exited the diner. It was a clear, starry night, but he couldn't find the ability to appreciate it as he climbed into his truck. I wonder what came up. He was disappointed, but not hurt or upset. He figured something imperative arose that kept her from coming and he could understand that.
After taking the twenty-minute drive to the dig, he was feeling relaxed and curious. Pulling up to his trailer he noticed a red Sedan parked out front besides Ellie's blue jeep and he eyed it oddly. Grant quietly let him self in, but saw no sign of Ellie or her company.
He rapped his knuckles on the bathroom door and jerked when a man tossed it open. "Who the hell are you?"
The younger man thrust out his hand. "I'm Mike."
Grant grew defensive, wondering where Ellie was. "I'm Dr. Alan Grant, the supervisor of this dig sight. This is my trailer. What the hell are you doing in it?"
From behind him he heard a click and Grant whirled around to see Ellie standing in her bedroom doorway. He hair was messy and her clothes rumbled. Grant eyed her suspiciously. "Who is this, Ellie? Some how I'm doubting he's our new recruit from Las Vegas."
"I'm her fiancé," Mike interjected.
"Oh," Grant murmured. He glanced at Ellie who looked away guiltily. "I see. Um, congratulations to you both." He quietly walked into his bedroom and shut the door leaving Ellie feeling as though he'd just shut her out of his life.
End Chapter Six
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