Our story thus far: Lawyer Charles Crafton and clothing designer Alina Stanton met one day on the way to work by getting in a wreck. They spent the rest of the day together, enjoying a picnic in the park.
Charles Layton Crafton was in an extremely good mood, despite the fact that it was 90 degrees outside, he was having difficulty with a case and the office air conditioner was broken.
The past few months had been wonderful -- ever since the wreck in which he had met Alina. Just thinking about her made him smile. She was so smart and beautiful --
His reverie was interrupted when his secretary came in.
"Mr. Crafton! Whatever are you still doing here?" asked Agnes Douglas, her mousy brown hair pulled back tightly into a bun. "All the other lawyers are gone, what with the heat and all."
"Ah, Miss Douglas!" he answered. "I'm waiting for the arrival of Miss Stanton. We are going to have lunch today!"
Agnes smiled knowingly; the whole office was well aware of the romance between the pretty, outgoing Alina Stanton and the shy Charles.
"I'll tell you as soon as she's arrived," she said, noiselessly closing the door behind her.
Charles went back to his reminiscing. He and Alina had spent the day after the wreck in the park, eating cheese and crackers and fruit and drinking wine, as well as feeding the birds that congregated around them. He had felt like a small child that day, playing hooky from responsibilities and partaking in innocent pleasures.
After that day it had seemed natural to continue seeing each other.
The past few months were a blur really; they had made their rounds of social gatherings, plays and parties, getting their picture taken and causing quite a stir in both lawyer and designer circles. Alina?s co-workers, a flashy bunch who lived life on the edge, were shocked that she was dating such a conservative lawyer, while his co-workers were secretly thrilled he was dating such a butterfly.
The pair had not spent the whole time out in public; they had also spent quite a few evenings having romantic dinners in his favorite French restaurant and quite a few having dinner in her favorite Italian restaurant. They had also spent a good deal of time doing more mundane things -- shopping, arguing with their respective insurance companies, and debating the merits of a certain kind of soap.
He grimaced as he thought of the insurance companies. Both of their cars had been in and out of the repair shop, and it didn't seem like they would ever be fixed. He felt especially bad for Alina -- she loved her sporty little car; because of the accident she had been forced to drive a tiny, dull rental car. Charles didn't quite care what he was driving, just so it got him there, but Alina seemed very attached to her vehicle.
He was still lost in his reverie when Agnes buzzed a call through to him.
"Hello Charles, darling," the voice on the other end of the connection greeted him.
"Hello, Mother," he said quietly. She always managed to call at inopportune times. "How are you?"
"I'm fine, son, really I am. When are you going to come see me? It's been such a while, and I haven't heard anything from you! How's work?"
