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  “Oh you shut up you stupid!” Maria bit out as she pushed Lucia into her small office in the back of the restaurant and closed the door.

  Maria sat on the edge of a desk that was piled high with a disarray of paperwork. Lucia crumbled into the chair that sat in front of the desk, wiping at her tears and sniffling. Maria handed her a box of tissue and waited for Lucia to blow her nose before she began her interrogation.

  “H-okay honey, you tell me what happened.” Maria continued without giving Lucia a chance to answer the first question, “I can’t believe you gettin’ married and you no tell me. Did you husband leave you?”

  Lucia shook her head, resting her forehead in her hand, “No! He wasn’t my husband. He was going to be, but…well he wanted to marry me but he doesn’t love me. Oh God Maria, I don’t even know where to start.”

  “Why you gonna marry a man that you no love?”

  Lucia shook her head again than laughed, “I didn’t say I didn’t love him, I said he didn’t love me.”

  Maria’s warm face crumpled into a scowl, “Well if he no love you than he a stupid. I find you a man honey, a good man.

  Lucia stood and squeezed a still seated Maria, “Oh Maria, you never change.”

  Maria pushed Lucia away, “Well, I know lots of good man for you.”

  Lucia flopped back into the chair and changed the subject, “Do you have something I can change into?”

  Maria smiled down, “I got you a shirt, but you no fit my pants.” Maria nodded, “I get you some pants anyway.” Maria left the office, returned several minutes later, and dropped off a pair of faded blue jeans that were too big in the waist and too short in the legs. Luckily, the black long sleeved sweater and black canvas shoes Maria brought back fit.

  Lucia bent and rolled up the bottom of the pants to make them into pedal pushers and she grabbed a pair of scissors from the penholder on Maria’s desk to snip off a few inches of one of the shoelaces. Standing, she used the shoestring to tie two belt loops together in a make shift belt.

  Maria watched with her brows hiked high. “Girl you so crazy.”

  Lucia tightened the knot and pulled the hem of the sweater down to cover her handy work. She was relieved to have one person in the universe that was always there for her. When she’d first moved to England, her first job had been as a waitress in Maria’s Italian restaurant. The two had grown close and had stayed that way over the years.

  Maria gave her a look of concern before asking, “What you want me to do with you dress?”

  Lucia snagged a rubber band from on top of the desk and started pulling pins and combs from her hair as she bit out, “Throw it away.”

  “No! Don’t worry. You honey come find you and you still get married.”

  Lucia rolled her eyes as she walked past Maria who was bent over shoving the flowing wedding gown into a large garbage sack.

  “I save this for you baby.” When Maria finished tying a knot in the bag she exited her office and found Lucia munching on a bread stick and pouring herself a cup of coffee in the dimly lit waitress’ station.

  Lucia opened the fridge and grabbed some creamer before pulling the half-eaten breadstick from her mouth, “Umm, Maria? I could really use a job.”

  Maria eyed her quizzically, “You got a place to stay too?”

  Lucia lowered her eyes, “No, I’ve got nothing.”

  Maria puffed up, “Well, you get you old job back. You start tonight and you stay with me upstairs.”

  Lucia’s eyes glistened her appreciation as she set the breadstick down and hugged the shorter woman, “Thank you Maria, I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

  Maria hugged her back before shoving Lucia away, “I tell you, you can always come back to me. Now get to work.” Maria smiled at Lucia and hesitated before she left, her eyes shifting down Lucia’s face to her throat, “And tonight you tell me how you get burned, h’okay.” With that Maria ducked into the kitchen.

  A couple entered the restaurant and Lucia picked up two menus and went out to greet them, eyeing the sign over the cash register that declared the daily special. “Welcome to Maria’s. I’m Lucia and I’ll be your waitress. Our special today is spaghetti and meatballs for eight dollars. Can I get you a drink to start?” She barely heard the couple as they ordered a coke and water. It’s like I never left.

  As the dinner rush hit, Lucia was lost in the monotony of taking orders, bringing out hot dishes, and filling drinks. She’d never been more grateful for such a busy night in her life, but even with a packed restaurant, the two or three seconds when she found time for a break, her thoughts wandered to Draken and the game he’d played with her and at her expense. When she wasn’t angry she was hurt, and she didn’t want to feel either, so she kept herself busy checking too often on her tables and refilling anything that looked remotely empty.

  Chapter 22

  The next few months passed in a haze. Lucia worked day and night to keep her mind from constantly drifting back to the day she’d last seen Draken.

  Because she wasn’t paying any rent staying with Maria and because Maria fed her all she wanted, Lucia quickly had a nice little nest egg saved up. She’d taken some of her tip money and purchased some clothes and toiletries straight away, but other than that she had saved every dime. Her plan was to find a small apartment and start anew. She’d been scouring the papers for weeks considering whether she’d prefer one room flats, or bunking with a roommate. She quickly decided it’d be best for her to be alone. In the end, she found a quaint little duplex.

  The day the landlord had given her a tour, she’d met the woman renting the adjoining apartment. Ronnie, a stunning 6’3” model, was as nice as they came.

  Lucia introduced herself to the much taller woman who squealed with delight and bent to hug Lucia, “Oh my gosh, I can’t tell you how excited I am to have you as a neighbor.” The taller woman released Lucia and beamed down at her, running perfectly manicured fingers through silky blonde curls, her blue eyes glistening like radiant sapphires. “I’ve gone through dozens of neighbors, but never a single woman. It’ll be so much fun, we’ll be like sisters!”

  While Lucia doubted they’d ever be like sisters, she did feel an instant kinship towards the woman who was so immediately friendly.

  Two days later, Lucia was moving into the duplex. The cab she’d taken from Maria’s pulled to a stop in front of the apartment and Lucia was pulling her two garbage sacks of belongings from the trunk when Ronnie came squealing from her apartment, “Oh great, you’re finally here.”

  Lucia looked up from the trunk to see the statuesque blonde approaching. She wore form fitting blue jeans and a loose-necked sweatshirt that hung sideways, revealing one smooth shoulder.

  “I asked the manager when you’d be moving in and he told me, so I took the day off to help you with the move.”

  Lucia scoffed at Ronnie’s moving attire and paid the cab driver before bending and hauling up her two garbage sacks, “Uhh…thanks but…”

  “Well where’s the moving truck.” The blonde’s perfect face cracked with a scowl as she eyed the street confused.

  “This is it.” Lucia held up the two bags as she passed the blonde.

  “Well, all you could fit in the cab, but when does the moving truck get here?”

  Lucia shook her head, fighting to hide a smile at the other woman’s misunderstanding, “No. This is it.” She turned to Ronnie dropping her two bags to the ground. “Ronnie this is all I’ve got. There is no moving truck. There is nothing else to bring. This is all I own.”

  Ronnie’s bottom lip pouted and her eyes actually appeared to flood with tears. “You mean you don’t have anything at all.”

  Lucia smiled her gratitude at the woman’s apparent distress over Lucia’s situation as she grabbed Ronnie’s hand and gave it a squeeze. “It’s okay Ronnie. I’m all right. I’m just starting over…starting fresh is all.”

  Ronnie bit her bottom lip, “Well, it’s not fair.” She turned and left L
ucia standing on the sidewalk staring after her as she retreated into her apartment.

  Lucia stood waiting for several moments before deciding that Ronnie wasn’t coming back. She hiked up her two sacks and used her key to let herself into her new apartment. Entering the front door, she dropped her two sacks in the living room and was standing looking around when the front door opened behind her. Ronnie came in, arms full of towels, blankets, pillows, and a lamp swinging by its cord that was wrapped around Ronnie’s wrist. “Where do you want this stuff?”

  Lucia rushed to help her overwhelmed neighbor. “Oh Ronnie. You don’t have to do this. Honestly, I’ve got the money to get started I just need a chance to shop.”

  “Well tough, because I’m not taking any of it back.”

  Lucia carried the supplies over to the kitchen counter and set everything down. “Well, thank you, but you truly didn’t have to do this.”

  “Well, that’s what neighbors are for, and if we’re going to be like sisters one day we might as well start acting like it now.”

  Again with the sisters. “Well, thank you again.”

  “You’re welcome.” Ronnie smiled pleased with herself for her good deed, “So, do you wanna go shopping? I have a car and I took today off to help you move in and since we’re done doing that…”

  Lucia took advantage of the gracious offer, “I’d love to go shopping.”

  A few hours and few hundred dollars later, Lucia was back at the duplex unpacking and setting up her new apartment.

  That night in her own apartment, sleeping in a newly purchased sleeping bag on the floor of her empty bedroom, Lucia finally felt like she was taking the first steps to getting her life back. She smiled as silent tears slid down her cheek. Confident and terrified, even my emotions are in turmoil. She drifted off to sleep fighting to think of anything, anywhere, anyone, but Draken Shatan.

  ***

  Over the next few weeks Lucia’s apartment slowly filled up until the rooms actually resembled liveable space. One warm fall day as she was in her small kitchen baking a gooey butter cake from a recipe she’d cut out of a magazine, Ronnie danced through the front door without knocking. The two had become extremely close and much to Lucia’s earlier protestation, she actually did feel a sisterly connection with Ronnie.

  “Okay baby, I’m throwing a party and you’ve just got to come.” Ronnie sidled up to Lucia and handed her a glitter-encrusted invitation.

  Lucia frowned down at the overly glitzy paper that rained glitter down on her countertop. Lucia licked chocolate frosting from her fingertips before taking the invitation, “What’s the occasion?”

  Ronnie snagged the nearly empty frosting bowl off the counter before hopping up and taking its place as she dunked her fingers into the bowl and sucked the chocolate from her red tipped fingers. “Well the fall fashion line-up is out and we’ve just finished the shoot for the special spring edition of the magazine, so I thought I’d have a party to celebrate how great and gorgeous we all are.”

  Lucia rolled her eyes at her friend’s conceit, but smiled at the truth of it. Ronnie is gorgeous, so what’s the harm in celebrating that? “And who is this we you speak of?”

  “Oh everyone!” Ronnie sucked the last of the frosting from her fingers before setting the bowl down to eye Lucia excitedly. “And I do mean everyone! And Luce you just have to promise me you’ll come, no excuses this time. I’ve got some really great guys I want to introduce you to, and I think that they feel like I’m making you up because I talk about you so often and none of them have met you. Oh please say you’ll come, you’re making me look crazed.”

  Lucia eyed Ronnie skeptically, a refusal on the tip of her tongue when Ronnie’s bottom lip pouted out, “Oh Luce, please! Don’t make me beg, I’ll need your help after all. Please, oh please say you’ll come and help?”

  Lucia just couldn’t say no to Ronnie when she put on her pout, “Oh fine! But I’m not staying all night.”

  Ronnie jumped off the counter and wrapped her arms around her friend, “Thank you, thank you, thank you! I promise you’ll have the greatest time ever!”

  Lucia hugged Ronnie back before pulling away, “Look, I don’t want you trying to set me up okay?”

  “But Luce…”

  “Ronnie! Just promise me, no blind dates, no hook-ups, no match making.”

  Ronnie sighed her exasperation, “Okay, but I don’t see what harm there is in just simply looking.”

  Lucia took the frosting bowl to the sink and filled it with hot water as she spoke, “The harm in looking is that when you go looking for trouble you find it.”

  “Geez Luce, I don’t know who broke your heart, but he sure did a good job.”

  Lucia bristled at the comment but didn’t turn to face her friend, hoping to hide how close to the mark the comment hit.

  She had revealed to Ronnie some facts about her past. The fiery car crash couldn’t be avoided because once they were comfortable enough with each other Ronnie asked about her scars, and Lucia saw no reason in hiding the truth. Lucia did however refrain from speaking of Draken at all costs. The thought of rehashing their relationship, if it could even be called that, was almost as painful as actually having lived through it. Ronnie knew nothing of Draken and Lucia planned on keeping it that way.

  Feigning nonchalance, Lucia started scrubbing the frosting bowl, “Not a broken heart, just trying to avoid getting one is all.”

  “Well, you’re going to have to break some eggs Luce.”

  Chapter 23

  Two weeks later Lucia stood in front of her full-length mirror eyeing herself warily. Ronnie had insisted on taking her to the salon and dress shopping for the party.

  Lucia’s once waist length black satiny locks were now shorn and straightened so that they formed silky black sheets that hung in a sexy bob just below her ears. Coupled with the grey and silver eye shadow accented by thin black liner, thick black eyelashes and full red pouty lips, Lucia thought she looked like she’d just stepped off the pages of one of Ronnie’s fashion magazines. The dress she wore was one Ronnie had picked out, and one Lucia wasn't exactly comfortable in.

  The form fighting strapless white satin evening gown made Lucia’s olive skin appear even deeper. The tight fitting heart shaped bodice barely contained Lucia’s ample breasts, and the slit in the front of the dress that went from one high-heeled ankle to her hip gave Lucia the appearance of being all legs.

  “Oh my God Luce, you’re a stunner! You look like a cross between a Greek goddess and a tan Marilyn Monroe.”

  Lucia smiled at Ronnie’s comment, and for once, she agreed with her friend. Wow! I don’t even recognize myself.

  Fastening on one last diamond teardrop earring she’d borrowed from Ronnie, Lucia smoothed her hands down her newly bobbed hair.

  “Well doll, you ready? Guests should start arriving any minute. And contrary to you not wanting me to do any match making, with you in that getup I won’t need to lift a finger.”

  A look of concern passed over Lucia’s face and wasn’t lost on Ronnie, “Oh gosh Luce, I’m just kidding. Well I mean, you do look great but it’s not like these guys are out to devour you. You just need to give someone a chance.”

  “A chance?”

  “Yes, you need to give a guy a chance to be a good guy. Just promise me that you’ll dance with one or two. That’s all I’m asking.”

  Lucia lifted her chin feeling confident in her new look, “Give a guy a chance. I can do that. I will do that.”

  Ronnie squealed her excitement, “Oh great Luce! Come on, let’s pop some champagne.”

  The pair left Lucia’s apartment and crossed to Ronnie’s more contemporarily decorated digs. The expanse of her apartment was covered in plush cream-colored carpet with white leather furniture sprinkled throughout the apartment. Where Lucia used her small kitchen for cooking and eating, Ronnie had hers converted into a small bar area complete with four bar stools lined up in front of a marble topped bar that sat like an island separat
ing the bar area from the sitting area.

  Ronnie had rented a white tile dance floor that had been setup in her former living room and as Lucia crossed the dance floor to the bar to begin opening what seemed to be endless bottles of champagne, Ronnie stopped at her state-of-the-art sound system and turned on some jazz that reverberated through the room.

  Lucia was filling champagne glasses as guests started filtering in, and in no time, the apartment was packed. Once Lucia filled the bar top with full glasses of champagne, she took a glass and sipped it as her eyes scanned the party.

  No bad scenery. Guess it pays to have a friend who’s a model.

  She was smiling to herself when a tall, dark, and handsome stranger approached, “You must be Lucia.” The stranger bent to speak in her ear as he held out a hand, “I’m Tyrone.” Tyrone pulled Lucia’s hand to his lips and kissed it.

  Lucia stiffened immediately wondering if he’d be disgusted by the scarred flesh of her hand, but Tyrone didn’t seem to notice. He eased her hand back down but didn’t release his hold, “Ronnie has promised me that you are single and willing to give a guy a chance.”

  Lucia stared up at his handsome face and perfect smile.

  “I…uh…,” she tore her gaze from Tyrone and scanned the room looking for Ronnie, who smiled back at Lucia from across the room before she held up her glass of champagne in a mock toast.

  Tyrone used a finger to tilt Lucia’s chin up to meet his gaze, “Look, I’m just looking for a dance. One dance.”

  Lucia hesitated a moment not quite sure what to say. What do I have to lose? “Okay.” She shrugged her bare shoulders, “A dance, I can do that.”