Beautiful Stranger

how much he urged me to see Andy for who he was and not the public image he strove to portray, I chose to believe Andy’s side of the story: the woman was a hardworking staff member, depressed over a breakup, and needed someone to listen, that’s all.
    What a caring boss.
    Two months later he was caught in the local paper cheating on me with yet someone else.
    I fed a quarter into the game and braced my hands on the side, watching the shiny silver balls rack into place. Presumably the music and whistles and bells had been disconnected because the game remained eerily quiet as I shot a ball up and over the field, flipped the levers, and nudged the machine with my hips. I was rusty, and playing like crap, but didn’t care.
    I’d had a few of these quiet, crystallizing moments in the past few weeks. Moments where I simultaneously registered how much I’d grown up and how little I really knew about life and relationships. Some of these moments happened when I was watching Bennett and Chloe, and the quiet way they picked on and adored each other in equal measure. Another moment was here, playing a game by myself, feeling more content than I had in a very long time.
    A man or two came and talked to me; I was accustomed to the way guys seemed unable to resist a woman playing pinball by herself. But after four games, I felt someone watching me.
    It was as if the skin on the back of my neck was being pressed only with the pressure of an exhale. Draining my beer I turned, and saw Max standing across the room.
    He was with another guy, someone I didn’t recognizebut who was also in formal business attire and who stood out in the bar just as clearly as I must have in my slim gray dress and red heels. Max watched me over the top of his beer, and when I located him, smiled and raised his glass slightly in salute.
    I finished my game after another twenty minutes or so, and walked over to where they stood, trying to keep my face from breaking into a goofy grin. I was in the mood to see him and hadn’t even realized it.
    “Hey,” I said, letting loose a tiny smile.
    “Hey yourself.”
    I looked to the friend at his side, an older man, with a long face and kind, brown eyes.
    “Sara Dillon, this is James Marshall, a colleague and good mate of mine.”
    I reached out, shook his hand. “Nice to meet you, James.”
    “Likewise.”
    Max took a sip of his beer and then pointed to me with his glass. “Sara’s the new head of moneys over at RMG.”
    James’s eyes widened and he nodded, impressed. “Ah, I see.”
    “What are you doing here?” I asked, looking around. “This doesn’t seem like a place for business in the middle of the day.”
    “Fucked off work early, just like everyone in thistown. And what about you, little miss? Trying to hide?” Max asked with a wicked gleam in his eyes.
    “No,” I answered, my smile growing. “Never.”
    His eyes widened slightly, and then he blinked to the bar, nodding at the bartender. “I come here because it’s filthy and usually empty and they have Guinness on tap.”
    “And I come here because they have pool and I like to pretend that I can kick Max’s ass,” James said, and then finished his beer in a long drink. “So let’s play.”
    I took this as my cue, and secured my purse over my shoulder, smiling a little at Max. “Have fun with that. I’ll see you.”
    “Let me walk you out,” he said, and turned to James. “Get me another pint and I’ll meet you at the back table.”
    With Max’s hand pressed to the small of my back, we walked out of the bar and into the blinding afternoon sun.
    “Aw fuck,” he groaned with the heat, covering his eyes. “It’s better inside. Come back in and play with us.”
    I shook my head. “I think I’m going to head home and do some laundry.”
    “I’m flattered.”
    I laughed but then looked around anxiously when he lifted a hand and touched the side of my face. He dropped it quickly, mumbling, “Right, right.”
    “Does James know about me?” I asked quietly.
    He looked at me, slightly wounded. “No. My friends know there’s someone, but not who.”
    A thick awkwardness settled between us for a beat, and I didn’t know what protocol was here. It was exactly why the Friday-only arrangement was ideal: it required no thought, no negotiation of friends, feelings, or boundaries.
    “Do you ever think about how weird it is that we run into each other all the time?” he asked, eyes unreadable.
    “No,” I admitted.