CHAPTER 30 ONE MORE CUP OF COFFEE
ONE MORE CUP OF COFFEE
Phoenix
The loneliness of being home propelled Phoenix outdoors. He turned towards the Starbucks near his building. A tall woman with golden-brown hair in a long bob arrived before him. She was dressed professionally for a weekend. She wore a belted coat over dress slacks.
She eyed his cane and swung the door open for him.
“Thank you,” he said.
“You’re welcome.” She stepped in behind him.
“Please,” he gestured, “you were here first.”
“I’d prefer to have an excuse to delay getting to my office. You go ahead. And if you could linger over the ordering, you’d be doing me a favor.”
Phoenix tried not to be intrigued. The granite slab of her back, like an I.M. Pei monument, was antithesis of the soft, sensual one he missed. “What horror are you trying to delay?”
“Corporate tax review.”
“Are you an accountant?”
“Actuary.”
He snickered.
“I’m not joking.”
He couldn’t help it, he laughed harder.
“I’m a CFP,” she added, seeming proud of her certified financial planner status.
Phoenix tried to control his clenching stomach muscles. The queue moved ahead, and though he was next in line, he couldn’t gain enough self-control to close the gap between him and the cashier. He waved the woman forward, “Please—”
She looked at him askance and turned to the barista. “Caffe Americano, two Splendas.”
Phoenix composed himself enough to join her. “Double espresso, black.” He pulled out his credit card, “I’ve got these,” he said.
“You paying for laughing at me?”
“I’m sorry. I wasn’t laughing at you. But I would like to pay.”
They waited at the counter for their brews. He didn’t know what overcame him. “Would you like to sit for a moment and delay the tax filing further? I’ll try to explain my jocularity.”
She nodded with such conservation of motion that he wasn’t sure it was assent.
When their drinks arrived, she double-fisted them and followed him to a small round table.
She sat and put out her hand. “Catarina Dubrovski; friends call me Rina.”
The last time he’d laughed this much was with a woman who couldn’t be part of his life. Phoenix grimaced. He rested his cane against the wall to shake her hand. “Phoenix Walker.” He settled into a chair and tried to get serious.
“Ms. Dubrovski, I hope I’ve not offended you. I work in advertising, and we had a creative idea about bots replacing actuaries. It was hysterical but too offensive to be produced.”
“Well, Mr. Walker, there’s nothing funny about actuaries.”
He took a sip of the scalding espresso and used the pain to still his mirth. “Well, Ms. Dubrovski, I’ve laughed more just now than I have in a month.”
“If the idea of actuaries cracks you up, it must’ve been some serious month.”
“Yea, it’s not been a great few months.”
She nodded and pulled out a business card. “If you ever need an actuary here’s my number.” She wrote her personal contact information on the back of the card.
He peered down at it. “Your office isn’t far from mine.”
“I’m here on assignment from Toronto, and I’ve picked up some tips, like don’t try to find an uber on a rainy day, and don’t buy the homeless a sandwich ‘cause they just want the money.”
He was suddenly inspired by the idea of her being a welcome diversion at an upcoming family commitment. “Have you ever experienced Thanksgiving in America?”
“Not yet, but call me. It’d be fun to spend Thanksgiving being laughed at.”