It was late on a Thursday afternoon. I remember exactly. Jake and I walked over to the commissary in silence and each got a cup of coffee. It was very quiet all around...a dead time before the early dinner diners arrived. We found a table and sat, just looking at each other for a minute or so. I wasn't in the mood to let him off the hook. But I was happy to see him. The spark I'd felt in Las Vegas was still there. He actually looked even better...thinner...a touch of gray in his dark hair. I wondered just how old he was. We'd never gotten to that part of the conversation.
"I've thought about you", he said..."and felt lousy about what I did".
"Oh, making me walk three miles at 5AM in a weird city like Las Vegas?", I countered.
"Yes...among other things", he replied.
Silence...
Finally Jake just started talking...free form stream of consciousness one might say. He had been in a "bad" place, behaving badly, thought I was adorable and knew he acted like a total a**hole. Why? He was married.
The coffee curdled in my stomach. Of course he was married.
Still didn't explain why he couldn't drive me back to the motel, but I let him off the hook on that. He was on a much bigger hook - married??
"Well, ok, nice to see you, take care", I said and got up from the table.
"No, wait", he put his hand on my arm to stop me. "I said, I WAS married...I'm not anymore. Please, have dinner with me tomorrow night. And, please tell me your last name".
I had a couple questions of my own. His last name? Howe What agency did he work for - it really was in Beverly Hills. Was he really no longer married. Yes.
We agreed to meet Friday at 8:00PM at Musso & Franks.
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