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Show 170 she knew that. It was the middle of the week, Wednesday, when Steve came in. She had just ordered, the waitress was leaving her table when she saw him. That first moment, before he saw her, she was struck by how these surroundings fit him. The way he moved among the people, the total ease of him! He had also removed his name tag. Good. That pleased her, she was suddenly more comfortable. He saw her and waved. She smiled and waved back. There were spaces at the counter, but he walked by them to her booth. "The store's a madhouse today, isn't it?" "Worse than last year," she said, the calmness in her voice reassuring her, "I've done almost five hundred dollars worth already today." He glanced around, all the other booths were taken-there was a fresh energy in him, in the alert way he moved his head. It reminded her of something. What? An image from her childhood. "Sit down," she offered, trying to make it sound off-hand. After-one more glance around, he did. "Everything seems to be full up." "It's pretty crowded this time of day." "Do you eat here often?" "Oh, sometimes. Here and the bowling alley. Do you?" "When it works out," he said. The waitress brought a glass of water and a menu. He ordered without looking, before the waitress left, a ham on rye and a cup of coffee. |