Karen Harris is a young woman who narrowly escapes death on the freeway. In the middle of a trying time she meets someone from the past.
“Yes I am sure. It’s Darin King, isn’t it?”
“Why, Yes. I didn’t think you would remember.”
“I have a confession to make. The last day you were on the show I came back to the green room to ask you to go with me to dinner. You were busy with someone and when I came back you were gone. I have looked up your phone number and was going to call at least ten times. I would remember Julie, how beautiful she was, how you loved her and I was afraid.”
“Of what?”
“That you would think I was cheap to try to take a guy who loved someone else. That I wasn’t good enough. She was impressive. Beautiful. Awesome.”
His eyes clouded and he squeezed her hand. “You? Cheap? The woman I loved is no longer alive. If you had made any advance five minutes before she died I would have considered that cheap. For a while after I was hurting so bad I would not have even responded. But the last night of the show I actually left the green room and walked the hall looking for you. I wanted to know if we could go somewhere. Everyone kept saying you were wandering around, they had seen you somewhere. When I went to where they said you were, you were gone. Finally I left.”
He felt her squeeze his hand. “Thanks for coming over to my table, Darin King.” Her head went down and when it came up her makeup was smearing with the tears. “I almost sat at home alone tonight.”
They ate together and spent time talking. She finally said, “I have to go home. My arm is hurting. I need to take pills for the pain. If you want to spend the evening with me, watching a movie or just sitting talking, fine. This isn’t an invite to stay overnight. I am not into one night stands or shacking up, it’s just I don’t want to be alone for the evening. I can’t think of anyone who I would rather spend it with.”
They drove separately to her home and spent the evening. About eleven he told her he had to leave. She got up from the sofa, hugged and held him with her left arm. The right in the sling was between them. “Sorry about the one arm hug. The right one doesn’t work well.”
“A one arm hug is much better than no hug. And you really do it well. Actually I think that one armed hug is better than any I have had since Julie died and pretty close to the ones she gave. And she had two arms and practice.”
“I doubt it was that good. But thanks.”
She walked him to his car and handed him a paper. “That is my cell number. Call me if you want to.”
Before he would leave he walked her back to the door and handed her a business card. “I can’t leave with you standing in the driveway. You can watch me leave from the door. I don’t want something else to happen to you. If you need someone, even just to hear a friendly voice, call.” She took the card. Then he said, “I hate to be presumptuous but I haven’t had a good night kiss for over five years. If.”
She looked up at him, “It has been over three for me. I can help you break that drought and I can’t think of anyone who I would rather break mine with than you.”
She reached up, pulled him down with her left arm and kissed him. As their lips parted she said, “God that was good. So good.” She pulled him down for a second kiss.
She went into the house and got ready for bed. Her arm’s color had turned an almost pale grey. She wondered how long it would take. She took pills and went to bed.
Karen: Chapter One – The Attack
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