Bill of Human Wrongs

After a wild night with her nightmares, Claire was up and running with the new day. She was on her way to meet Bill at the Belga Café, but her thoughts were raging with images of the strange evening at the coffee house.

Minutes after going over the bill item by item, Eve had appeared at their booth. Was she a plant, a scam to throw them off point? What made her most angry was how she’d been drawn to Eve. Did the woman remind her of her sister? And that Conchita woman. The story of that horrible incident. Claire was agitated over the recollections of the event, and those expressions she’d never heard before. Latino Town, townships? What was she saying? Was it from a script, was Eve a hired actor?

To get her mind off her nightmare, Claire had spent time searching for clues on her computer. She’d looked up phrases such as Scarsborough Meadows and the other strange vocabulary she’d heard. She had even tried looking for, missing woman Conchita from Latino Town. She’d found nothing, not one word from Eve’s story had checked out. So why couldn’t she get the woman’s words out of her head?

“Claire, over here.” She saw Bill flagging her down from a table outside the Café.

She felt immediate relief from her coffee house memories, his warm greeting dulling Eve’s disconcerted story. “Bill, this is nice. I’m glad we decided to do this.” Claire’s thoughts were suddenly replaced with the memory of their delicious kiss.

“I can’t get the smile off my face, so obviously I think it’s nice too.” Bill saw the waiter approach them, “This place makes a great omelet with baby grey shrimp, tomatoes and cheese. Would you like to try it, Claire?”

“Sure, Bill. Listen…”

“Hold on, pretty lady.” Claire didn’t like the way he seemed to always cut her off. She watched him hail the waiter and order for the two of them. Then he reached across the table and took her hands, “Now, where were we?”

“Bill, have you ever heard the term, Latino Town?”

“No, what is it? A new restaurant?”

Claire laughed, “No. Well I mean that I don’t know. I heard the phrase the other day, and was just curious what it was.”

“Forget that, I have a special day planned for us. I hope you don’t have to be anywhere because,” he smirked as he reached into the pocket of his coat and fished for an envelope. His cute demeanor made her grin as he pushed the packet to her side of the table. “Open it, Claire.”

She did as he asked, and inside were two club box tickets to a ball game. “How did you know I liked baseball?” She took a closer look and was delighted to see that they were playing the Red Sox. “But can I cheer for Boston? They’re my east coast team. Mind you, you would really have me going if we were playing the Mariners.”

Bill was enchanted with her, he had a sparkle in his eyes, and her excitement thrilled him. “We have just enough time after we finish here to get to the stadium and have a drink at a hidden little bar. It’s only a few blocks away from the ball park, it’s my favorite way to start a game day.” Claire saw him reach for a second envelope. “And now, I present you with a gift so rare, so prestigious, so grand that I may just win over your heart in an instant.”

“Oh yea? Hurry, the suspense is killing me. What, what?”

“Hmm, little lady. I’m seeing a new side of you. So you like gifts, huh?”

“Sure, but I like nice surprises more. What is it?”

This time he reached inside the envelope and pulled out its contents. Holding up two fabulous tickets, he flirted with her. “These little treasures are tough to come by so you have to be someone in this town to get your hands on them.” He turned to look at the paper gems he held in his hand. “It requires you to dress up in the most sophisticated garment you can find, me to wear my best, most expensive suit. I will be treating you like a queen tonight.” He stretched his arm in the air waving her surprise gently in the breeze.

Claire waited until his confidence got the best of him, and then she reached forward to grab the trophies. “Ha! Never get too arrogant, Senator. That’s when you’ll miss a chance to see what’s coming your way.” She looked down to see what the hype was all about. In shock, her hand covered her mouth while a sound of delight escaped her lips.

“How did you…” She replaced the tickets safely inside their protector, and handed the envelope back to him. “Please accept my joy and appreciation for such a wonderful invitation.” She put her head back and laughed. “We’re going to the White House tonight!”