Robin Alexander - Murky Waters

Tristan woke up in her favorite chair with Ralph still curled up in her lap. “Oh, my neck.” She groaned out loud, waking her feline friend. Her stomach grumbled loudly, protesting her decision to skip breakfast.

She wandered into the kitchen and decided on a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Between the sandwich and the tall glass of milk, she was pleasantly full. She went back to her bedroom and crawled into bed. Sleep had become her only defense against the depression to which she was accustomed.

Claire’s stomach tied up in knots as she approached the door to the crew dispatch office. Torn between wanting to see Tristan and dreading the encounter, she opened the door and plunged right in.

She sighed audibly with relief when she noticed that Tristan was not in yet. Nevertheless, she wondered why Tristan wasn’t already there because she normally was in before her.

Settling into her office, Claire switched on her computer and signed in. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw someone enter her office, and the butterflies in her stomach took flight. Looking up, she realized that Mike, not Tristan, was standing before her desk.

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“Good morning,” she greeted him cheerfully.

“And good morning to you. We’re a little slow in there right now, so I was wondering if you needed help with anything.” Mike took a seat in front of Claire’s desk. “I wasn’t sure if you felt a little overwhelmed by all this.” He gestured around the dispatch center. “I certainly was when I first came here.”

“That’s so sweet of you, Mike. I am a little taken aback by it all.

I have a lot to learn in a very short time.”

“I learned a lot by sitting out there with the crew coordinators.

Watching them work gives you a good sense of what they’re going to need. They’re extremely helpful because they know that the more you understand of what they do, the better equipped you’ll be to help them.

“I noticed last week you got all the reporting down quickly, and that will make Tristan very happy. You always want to keep her happy. Rhonda didn’t quite grasp that concept.”

“Reporting is a no-brainer for me. Learning this business will be a daunting task, so anything you can teach me will be welcome,”

Claire replied with a smile.

Mike spent a few hours with Claire going over details of the job.

She took nearly an entire notepad of notes. Engrossed in what Mike had to say, she never noticed Tristan walk into her office.

The lunch hour rolled around fast, and since it was the slow week, Claire offered to take her agents to lunch. Both happily accepted, pleased with the idea of a free meal. When Claire picked up her purse, her eyes met Tristan’s through the glass partition between their offices. Tristan gave her a slight smile and nod and turned back to her work.

Claire debated asking Tristan to accompany them to lunch but changed her mind when she thought the tension between them might become evident to Lauren and Mike. She grabbed her things and led the two hungry agents out the door without casting another glance Tristan’s way. It tore her apart knowing that Tristan saw her leave without saying a word.

Tristan leaned back in her chair and watched as Claire briskly walked out of the dispatch center. Her heart sank, knowing she had hurt Claire’s feelings. Perhaps it was for the best; in her heart, she believed that she didn’t deserve someone as open and kind as Claire. She packed up her things and went home to work. There, 61

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she wouldn’t have to come face-to-face with what she so deeply desired and was too afraid to pursue.

“So, what have you been doing with yourself when you’re not at work?” Mike asked as he stabbed at his salad.

Mike was the only one who ordered a salad. Claire noticed that he had put on quite a few pounds since she had last seen him. He was still sporting his trademark crewcut that took away from the fact that his dark hair was thinning and turning gray. “I’ve been unpacking and trying to get things squared away around my place.

Ellen took me shopping Saturday, and we really had a great time.

Other than that, not very much.” She decided to keep her private life just that –– private.

“Well, if you would ever like a tour guide to show you around, just let me know. I’ve become well acquainted with Baton Rouge and would be happy to give you a tour,” Mike said as he noticed Lauren roll her eyes.

“What?”

Lauren set down her sandwich and looked at him with a grin.

“You got us lost last week when we were trying to find that pizza place. You don’t know jack shit about Baton Rouge.”

Mike waved off Lauren’s comments. “So, how about it, Claire?

When would you like to take a tour?”

“That’s sweet of you to offer, Mike, but I can’t go anytime soon.

I still have a lot to do right now. Maybe after I get things settled,”

Claire lied. Her apartment was finally in order, but there was something about Mike’s persistence that told her he may be interested in being more than a tour guide.

When Claire returned to the office, her heart sank when she was informed that Tristan had gone home for the afternoon. She regretted not asking Tristan to lunch and wondered if the offer would have been rejected anyway. She was miserable for the rest of the day.

The entire time she sat in traffic on her way home, she debated calling Tristan. “Get it together, Claire; you’ve only just met the girl. Focus on the new job, not the gorgeous woman in the office next to you,” she said aloud to herself, just to hear the words come out of her mouth. She smiled as she continued to encourage herself to forget Tristan Delacroix. Taking a deep breath, she could feel her resolve flowing through every inch of her being.

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“Forget this!” Claire growled as she stomped into her new apartment. “Ready or not, Tristan, we’re gonna talk.” Before she could lose her nerve or debate the wisdom of her decision, she dialed the number she had stared at for two days.

The annoying noise of the phone ringing beside her brought Tristan from a deep sleep. Knowing it was the office, she grabbed the cordless and barked into the phone. “Yes!”

Claire felt anger, and with it came boldness as Tristan’s angry voice greeted her. “Tristan, this is Claire. I hope you don’t have plans for tomorrow night because we are going to try this again,”

she stated huskily, leaving no room for argument. “I’m cooking dinner, and I expect you to be here at six ... okay?”

Tristan lay staring at the ceiling in stunned silence as Claire ordered her to have dinner with her. “Umm, okay. What can I bring?”

“Nothing. Just you and your appetite. See you tomorrow ... bye.”

She hung up the phone with an ear-to-ear grin. “Now, that is how you take the bullheaded Tristan by the horns,” Claire stated triumphantly.

The dial tone startled Tristan as she lay there with the phone still pressed to her ear. Many women had asked her out, but that was the first time she had ever been commanded to dinner. A smile broke across her face, envisioning the blonde dressed as a drill sergeant. “Well, Ralph, I’ve been ordered to dinner. I guess I better heed the order, or she may make me do pushups.”

The following morning, Claire marched down the hall and entered the dispatch center feeling like she was truly in charge.

When she noticed that Tristan was already in her office, her insides turned to Jell-O and began to quiver as she approached her office. In the presence of the woman she desired, Claire felt her courage slip away and felt like a nervous teenager with a powerful crush.