A Woman in Search Of...

One night she went to Cat and Mouse to listen to Matt. Cat and Mouse restaurant was busy, also the bar area. She stood in the bar entry for a minute. People there whispered to each other, no loud voices, nothing to interfere with the sheer joy Wendy experienced from the exceptional sound his calm voice brought. She couldn’t believe she loved Matt’s phenomenal voice as much as Brad’s.

The piano bar was full, so she meandered to an empty table across from it. Matt looked up and nodded at her as she passed by him. She gave a little wave. The waitress took Wendy’s drink order. Another reason she liked Cat and Mouse was because of its more elegant look than the more casual Pirate’s Cove, not in a snippy way though. The atmosphere seemed more like she was at a private party. The simple décor reflected the formality with the black velvet drapes around the windows. The tables were covered with small lavender and black plaid and the booths seats were solid black. It amused Wendy because the other times she was there she didn’t pay much attention to much of the area.

The waitress brought her screwdriver and Wendy took several sips. She liked sitting at the table as an audience member. She never felt that way at the piano bar, where she only faced the entertainer. She cherished the songs, especially the one he now sang, James Taylor’s, “Something in the Way She Moves.”

At his break Matt stopped by her table.

“Hi. You haven’t been in for a while, everything okay?”

“Been good. I was busy putting together an interior design show at The Convention Center.”

“How sweet is that? How’d it go?”

“Terrific, actually. Thanks for asking.”

“You’re the creative type, huh?”

“I’ve been told, yeah.”

“Keep it up,” and with those words he wandered to chat with some others before returning for his next set.

Wendy sipped her drink as she experienced complete relaxation.

Alice, the friend she made the last time there, walked in and with a surprised look came over to Wendy.

“Haven’t seen you in ages.”

“I know. Wanna join me?”Alice looked toward the piano bar, turned back and leaned into Wendy. “Thanks, but I’m going to sneak into the bar stool that just opened up.”

“Okay, see ya later.”

“Gotcha.”

Wendy figured Alice did have the hots for Matt. Wendy put her drink down and sat back in her chair and mellowed out immersed in the lyrics. She stayed for the next set but when it finished, she decided to leave. She didn’t get a chance to talk to Alice but waved to her as she left. Matt nodded as she strolled past him.

At home, she lit up a joint, sat back in a chair with her feet on the ottoman. She sat completely unwound, what a good day and evening.