Leave the past in the past?

**August 2013**

Needless to say I had a hard time sleeping that night.  I had so much running through my head; was he being truthful? Could I do this? What if his wife finds out?  By the time I closed my eyes the alarm was blaring and it was time for me to get up for the early shift.  As I got dressed there was no text from Mark, and I found myself a little disappointed. 

I strolled into work and was setting up for breakfast and making sure everything was ready to go for the early rush of people.  At least Arianna wasn’t in, and I could avoid the questions at least for a few hours.  Mark had stopped shortly after opening to grab a coffee and a bite to eat (to go).  We made small talk at the bar while he waited for his order, but neither of us brought up the night before.   As he was leaving he asked me if he could see me tonight.  I nodded and blushed as Arianna had entered for her shift and smiled at him as he walked out.  I quickly moved to refill coffee cups before she could ambush me.

When I went to make a new pot of coffee she was waiting for me by the register “did you think you could avoid me? You know I need to know what happened.”  I smiled and said “We just talked, that’s it.  No hanky panky” and I proceeded to brew a fresh pot of coffee. 

She came and stood beside me “Bella, I am not judging you.   Hell I am the one pushing you two together.  You don’t see the way he looks at you, I do.  Maybe he just needs an ‘out’ so he can not feel like he is abandoning his family.” 

For once I had wished that was true, but he made it very clear he had no intentions of leaving his family anytime soon.  I just looked at her and nodded and then sighed to myself thinking ‘if you only knew.’  I looked over at her and said “mind if I take a 10 minute break? Can you cover for me?” She nodded as I proceeded to the back and grabbed my purse.  I went out into the alley way and dug to the bottom of my purse for my emergency cigarette; I’m the cliché friend who only smokes socially however today I just needed something. 

Leaning against the brick wall, I felt my phone buzz in my purse.  I thought maybe it was Arianna saying the boss was here and to get my ass back to work.   When I looked my phone I saw it wasn’t her or Mark, but a number I didn’t even recognize.  Shortly after I received a text message from the same number

 “Hey beautiful, how are you?  Long time no chat, I miss you.  Call me.”

I butted out my cigarette and wracked my brain trying to figure out who the heck this was.  In the back of my mind I was thinking it was probably just a wrong number.  I shoved my phone back in my purse and headed back inside.

My shift went by quickly, Lunch was an absolute zoo.  We were so busy that I didn’t even think about my phone or Mark once.  After everyone had cleared out and I was cleaning up my section, getting ready to end my shift, Arianna came over with a note and a big smile “Well someone is popular....first Mark and then a handsome stranger.  You holding out on me Bella?” she winked and walked towards a couple of business men who had come in for a late lunch. 

I looked down at the paper and wondered if Arianna was playing a practical joke on me.  I finished cleaning up my area and went to punch out.  As I was packing up my apron I opened the letter “You look more beautiful than I remember, I couldn’t take my eyes off you.  Please don’t ignore me, call me back.   Craig”

I crumpled up the note and threw it in my purse shaking my head.  I walked back out front and sat at the bar, Arianna got me a glass of diet pepsi “OK Bella spill it...who is he?”

I looked at her and said “he’s the whole reason I moved here.”  She looked at me shocked and I nodded.  “Wait a minute...that’s HIM? The one you were ....”

I nodded “The one I was supposed to marry.”