Ashleigh was talking on the phone with a member of her analyst staff. Her eyes kept darting to the clock. Damnit! It was already 11:17 and Gloria was still going on and on about non-work related stuff. Why did people go into details about their personal business?! Why couldn't she understand that no one in their right mind needed a detailed accounting of your weekend when all you did was hang out with the same man that you've been married to for twenty years and go out to eat at the same restaurant you went to each Friday???Gloria wasn't exactly her boss but high enough on the food chain that Ashleigh had to carefully consider her exit strategy."...so the bartender is single and he's such a nice guy. I think his wife died in '07…wait, maybe it was '08 because it was the same year that Bob and I bought the Tahoe—""OH MY GOD!""What?!" Gloria exclaimed."There's a…fire! FIRE DRILL! I gotta go. Talk to you later!" Ashleigh quickly disconnected the phone and then she sighed and sho
"Is Christopher okay?!"The man gave her back another awkward pat. "He's okay. Everything is okay. Shots were fired but we controlled the situation. Everyone is okay with no casualties."She looked past him out into the empty corridor. He had somehow caused the doors to be frozen open and she wanted to be on the outside of this elevator, but more than that she didn't understand why Christopher wasn't here now. "Where is he?""Lt. Jameson came to me earlier today and requested that I take him off this mission and that I give him another." Her eyes got big, hopeful. Bruce resisted his urge to smile as he continued to stare down at her. He didn't think that she was aware that she was touching his shirtfronts, but he was…very aware. "I complied with his request." Bruce didn't feel as if it was his place to give her the details. That was between her and Beast. "I spoke to him right before he shipped out and he asked me to tell you that he explained everything in a message on your phone
Lance watched Ashleigh pick at her salad. "Honey, if you don't eat you're going to get sick. You have to eat when you have diabetes."Ashleigh shook her head and offered him a smile. "Sorry. I guess I was daydreaming." She took a bite of the wilting salad and felt like gagging. Kendra cleared her throat. "Do you want us to come over tonight?"Ashleigh shook her head. "You two came over Monday and Tuesday." Now it was Friday."You don't have to spend the weekend alone," Lance said while sipping a glass of wine. "Rick and I were thinking about throwing some steaks on the grill…"Ashleigh shook her head. She wouldn't be good company and she didn't want her friends to think that she couldn't manage her first weekend alone without Christopher. She was not going to turn into a basket case. "I'm going to hang out at Christopher's place and maybe take care of some yard work." "You?" Lance's eyebrow quirked up."Yes me. I'm not going to mow or anything. Christopher already took care of
Ashleigh got out of her car Sunday afternoon. She had roamed around Christopher's house missing him and had a desire to do something that would make her feel even closer to him. Now she was wondering what in the hell she had been thinking. She lingered there for a moment and considered getting back in though she said she wouldn't do that. But she considered it. Then one of the kids called her name. "Miss Ashleigh!"She plastered on a smile and headed to the little girl; Rachel. "Hi Miss Ashleigh! Where's Uncle Chris?" The other kids surrounded her in curiosity. "Your uncle is still on his mission.""Aww." They began to disburse. Rachel stuck with her and slipped her little hand into Ashleigh's. "I don't like when he goes away for a long time," she said. Ashleigh gave her small hand a gentle squeeze. "I don't either." The two of them headed for the side door and Ashleigh took a deep breath, knocking briefly before poking her head in. "Hello?"Five sets of heads turned to he
On Sunday Ashleigh sat in Mrs. Jameson's kitchen with the other ladies. She'd come every single weekend since that first time she'd shown up hesitantly on the doorstep like a little stray kitten. Surprisingly, it wasn't out of a sense of duty. This family made her feel closer to Christopher in the sound of their accented voices, the stories they told about him, and the resemblance that they all bore to each other. And in turn, she began to learn and understand them. For instance, she found that they weren't just regulated to the kitchen to cook for the men. The kitchen was their gathering place. They drank their coffee or soda, had a slice of cake or pie and they talked about the happenings of the past week. They were funny, sweet and entertaining, and best of all they loved having a new person to tell their old stories to.Ashleigh was making the meatloaf as she listened to tales about the wildcats that sound like women screaming and ghost stories about people who had died but then b
Doubt crossed Alma's face. She opened her mouth and closed it. "I have a four hundred and twenty-five dollar leather Louboutin purse." She twisted her fingers in distress. "I couldn't tell anybody. Nobody would understand. My family can't see why I'd pay that much for 'things'. I mean, what's wrong with wanting to get my nails and hair done?! I don't have to be a fashion model! But so what if I spend my money on things that I like?"Ashleigh took another look at the woman. Jealous? Alma had been jealous of her? Her heart softened. "Alma, you have to do what it takes to make you feel good about yourself. You don't have to explain yourself to anyone about that."Alma nodded. "But…I don't have anybody that I can…do those things with…" She blushed red and looked so expectant that Ashleigh further warmed up to her. "Louboutin? For under six hundred? How?""QVC.""Then it's not a knock-off…Can I see it?""Can I see your Manolo Blahniks?" "Are you crazy?! I couldn't afford them." She
Lance and Kendra called but understood when she explained that she didn't want company. They each told her that they loved her and after she hung up she finished the entire pizza that she had ordered. She intended to purge but didn't have to. Her system, unaccustomed to the deluge of junk food, made her sick on it's on. Afterwards Ashleigh climbed on the treadmill. She stared forward, not seeing the mounted television or the wall, only picturing the man that she had grown to love so much. She began to run and to think about Christopher. As soon as the alarm clock sounded on Wednesday morning, the first thing she did was to check her cell phone for messages. Nothing. She buried her head into her hands knowing that at some point soon an officer would go to Mrs. Jameson's house and inform her that her son had died in the line of duty. They would give her a letter signed by the President of the United States and then at his military funeral they would offer her a folded American flag…
Two of the Marines stood outside of the lockers as Ashleigh got dressed just in case Tom Kardel should return. She hadn't asked them to do it, but was happy because that man had been totally unhinged. Ashleigh saw that she had a message from the guard at The Homeland Security Office so she got dressed and quickly thanked the men standing guard for her. She went upstairs to the lobby and knocked anxiously on the door to the security office. She then got the official notification. Christopher Henry Jameson was officially missing.Ashleigh sat down in a chair and shook like a leaf until the kind man explained that it wasn't the same as being missing in action. The reason Christopher was missing was because he was taken off all active duty rosters. In layman terms; Christopher wasn't on a mission. Then she remembered his long sent message. It said something about him not being active…Ashleigh was put into contact with her ombudsman through the Department of Homeland Security and then