Joanna woke the next morning feeling tired and hung over. The divas had talked her into having a few drinks with them, and before she knew it, whether it was to celebrate her impending nuptials or wash away the ache she felt whenever she thought of Glenn, a few drinks became a few too many. Turning, she noticed that Chris was still in bed also. The two had come back to his hotel room and made love a few times that night before passing out completely. He was plain out exhausted.
Joanna decided that what she needed was coffee. She figured that she would let Chris know so that he would not be angry with her later. Shaking him gently, she whispered his name. "Chris?"
No answer. "Chris?" She said again, louder this time.
Still not receiving an answer, Joanna slipped out of bed and pulled on her Pink terry sweatsuit and tied her hair back. She left Chris a quick note and then headed down the hotel hallway to the small cafe by the lobby. She took her coffee black and sat down at one of the tables. No one was there except her and the employee at the counter. She sipped her coffee slowly, all the while staring at her new ring blankly, making it glisten in the flourescent lights above her.
"Mind if I sit?" A voice suddenly asked, not waiting for an answer and taking a seat.
Joanna looked up and almost fell out of her chair. There, sitting across from her was Mark Callaway. Mark motioned to the employee to come over and ordered himself some coffee as well. When the Employee walked away, Mark leaned in and looked at the still stunned Joanna.
"Joanna is it?" Joanna shook her head, and Mark continued. "Ok, well Joanna, I believe that you and I have to have a discussion about something. That alright with you?"
Even if it wasn't, Joanna knew she had no choice. Struggling to find her voice, she answered. "Sure Mar...Mr. Callaway."
Mark leaned back in his seat, continuing to keep his eyes on Joanna. The employee came back with his coffee and left before Mark began to speak again. "I saw how the two of you were carrying on last night. It's not a good idea." He said, sipping his drink.
Joanna looked at him a little confused. "Me and who? Chris?"
"You know who I am talking about Joanna." Mark answered, slightly irritated. "Glenn."
Joanna sat upright in the chair. "But how did you..."
"Went out for a smoke last night, heard voices. Looked around the corner and saw the two of ya out there carryin' on about this and that. Saw the way the two of ya looked at each other. Didn't think that either of ya had any business doin' what ya were doin'. He's married, and you might as well be. Now, I'm not sayin' that I'm a good ol' boy that didn't do nothin' wrong when it came to the ladies. Hell, I divorced my first wife and met Sara at a signing. The thing is that I know better now, and I think given the situation, the two of you should too."
Joanna stared at her half empty cup looking very embarrassed. "I know, but no disrespect to you, you don't know the whole situation."
"I know that nothin' should come between a man and his wife. You'd do yourself good to remember that." Mark answered, finishing the last bit of his coffee and standing up. "Do yourself a favor. Hell, do everyone involved a favor and stay away from Glenn." He knodded at her and walked away.
Joanna stood up and walked out of the cafe after him. She watched him walk towards the elevators with a smug look on his face. She was so angry at that moment. What did he know about her life? With a huff she made her way back to her room and began to pack both her and Chris's things. It was time to go home for a week. Christmas meant vacation, and vacation meant a chance to clear her already crowded head.
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The Christmas festivities were exactly what Joanna needed. She spent the holidays with Chris and his family in Los Angeles, even flying her mother in from Minnesota. She & Chris got along better than they ever had and soon things seemed to be shaping up for them. She barely thought about Glenn at all those few days. Maybe, she thought, Mark was right. Maybe it is better for everyone if she just cut all ties with Glenn.
Once Christmas was over, Joanna decided that she wanted to spend a few days at home in Minnesota. She invited her fiance to join her, but he had already made plans to stay with his parents until it was time to go back to work. He explained that there was family he still had to see before he left. Joanna understood, and flew home with her mother. Once home, she drove her mother the short distance back to her house. She walked her in, and after making sure she was all set, Joanna made her way back to her car. The sound of her mother's voice calling her made her stop. Her mother came running out of the house with a Christmas card.
"This is addressed to you." She said, handing it to her daughter and walking back inside.
Joanna thought it was strange that a card for her would be sent to her mother's house, but decided that stranger things had happened and forgot about it. Returning home, She tossed it on her kitchen counter and walked back to her livingroom, where she curled up and watched tv for hours. Chris called her a few times, making sure she was alright, although Joanna seemed to think that it was more like he was checking up on her. Around 11pm, tired out from the flight, she decided to go to sleep. She walked into her kitchen to grab a glass of juice before bed when the Christmas card caught her eye. Placing the juice down, she picked up the card. She frowned when she realized there was no return address on it & opened it slowly. The picture on the front was of a snowman in front of a cozy cottage, nothing special. Smiling, she opened the card and read it. "Wishing you all the joys of the season." And under it, in Red pen, "Everything. -Glenn."
Joanna dropped the card on the table. Placing her head in her hands, she stood there for what seemed to be an eternity. Lifting the card back up she opened it again. "Everything." She repeated, running her thumb over the word on the page. "What is it Glenn?" She asked out loud, placing the card in a drawer and walking to her bedroom. Snuggled up under the covers, she closed her eyes and fell into a fitful, unsettling sleep.
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Joanna was awaken by a soft knock at her bedroom door. Turning her head to see who was there, the door opened slowly. Standing there was Glenn, who walked across the room and stood over her bed, looking down at her. Joanna met his gaze, questions in her eyes. "Glenn?" she whispered.
Glenn reached down, putting a finger over her lips to silence her. He climbed into bed with her and pulled her into his arms. He kissed her softly at first, then made his kisses longer and more passionate. The two lay together, touching, kissing & carressing every part of each other's bodies that they had longed to explore since the night at the cabin.
Glenn pulled Joanna's face up to his and they both stared into each others eyes with a look of longing for each other that needed no verbal explanation. Glenn slowly removed the rest of what Joanna was wearing, kissing every spot of exposed skin. He laid himself on top of her , running a finger along the side of Joanna's face. She smiled at him warmly, anticipating what was to happen next.
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Joanna jumped quickly at the sound of her alarm clock buzzing. Slightly disoriented, she looked around the room trying to get reaquainted with her surroundings before shutting the alarm off. The time was 9am, and if she didn't have to run around and have everything ready for her return to work in Florida the next day, she would just have assumed sleeping the rest of the day away. Sitting up in bed, her mind wandered back to the dream she had just had. She shook her head in slight disappointment over the fact that he was still not out of her mind. Why did she still feel this way for him? She was so certain that a week away would allow her to realize that he was nothing more than a crush. Sighing she slid out of bed, determined to start her day.
The day sped by, due to the fact that Joanna was on the phone with airlines, rental car companies, hotels & Chris at least once an hour. Before she knew it, night had crept it's way back into her life. Joanna decided that she would spend the night in her livingroom again, since it was her favorite part of her house, and facing a long road trip, she knew it would be a long time before she was able to be back there again. She kept the house quiet and dark, opting to lay across her couch and close her eyes. Soft music played quietly in the background. Joanna was enjoying this peaceful moment in her life and almost drifted off to sleep when the phone rang. Frowning, she sat up and answered it, sure that it was Chris.
"What do you want now Chris?" She asked, unable to hide the frustration in her voice.
Her question was met with silence & she asked again. "What do you want Chris?" She said, louder this time.
"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have called." The voice, who she instantly recognized as Glenn's, answered.
"Glenn? Hi. How are you?" Joanna asked surprised.
"I'm uh...I'm fine. I just, I had to hear your voice." Glenn answered hesitantly.
Joanna smiled. "Well I'm glad you called me. I was missing your voice too." She put her hand up to her mouth after saying that, embarrassed by her boldness.
Glenn didn't answer her at first. She heard lots of comotion going on at the other end of the line. "Glenn? You there?"
"Yeah uh, can you hold on a minute?" He asked, sounding distracted.
"Sure." She said. As she waited, she heard his muffled voice talking to what seemed to be another man. A few minutes later, Glenn got back on the line.
"Listen Jo, I have to go now. I'm sorry to bother you. I'll see you tomorrow, ok?"
"Wait! Glenn!" She replied frantically. "Where are you? What's going on?"
Glenn took a deep breath in and out. "I have to go." And with that, he hung up.
Joanna held the reciever in her hand for a moment. It was no doubt that Glenn's peculiar behavior towards her had confused her before, but that phone call had really upset her. She had no idea why he called and what he wanted, and before she was able to get any answers, he took off again. Joanna put the phone down and laid against the pillows of the couch. She was determined to know what was going through Glenn's head, how he really felt about her, and what 'Everything' was really all about & decided that she would get to the bottom of it the next day in Florida.
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