It was the end of a workday. Della walked over to Perry. She was holding a magazine.
"Do you need me anymore, Chief?"
"No, I don't think so. You can go on home, now."
"Before I go, I wanted to show you something. Remember when I mentioned that I did a bit of modeling, before I was a legal secretary?"
"Oh, yes."
"Well, I found one of my photos." She handed him the magazine.
"Wonderful!"
"It's on page-"
"-Don't tell me, let me see if I can find it!"
She smiled. "All right!"
It was an issue of True Life Stories from October 1951. He began leafing through it. After a while, he settled on one particular photo. It was used to illustrate a story called "My Worst Day Ever." It showed a girl climbing out of a pond. She was soaked and muddy, and her shoes had come off. He looked closely at it, then at her. Finally, he showed her the photo. "Is this you?"
She smiled. "Very good, Chief!"
"Not one of your more flattering photos!"
"No, it isn't!"
"What was it like doing that?"
"Cold, wet, and dirty! And I had to stay in the water for 30 minutes while they took photos!"
"Wow!"
"But it paid well-$200!"
"If I was your lawyer, I would have demanded more!"
"And you would have charged 30% for your fee!"
"Of course!" They both laughed. "Well, Della, I must say you still look beautiful even totally bedraggled!"
"Aw, thanks, Perry!"
She hugged and kissed him. Then he gave her back the magazine. "Thanks for sharing, Della."
"You're welcome. I have a couple others, but I couldn't find them right away."
"Hopefully, they're nicer photos!"
"They are! One shows me in a bathing suit."
"Now, that I'd like to see!"
"I'm sure you will!"
They laughed again. "Have a restful evening, Della."
"You too, Chief!"
She left, and he followed her soon afterwards.