Joyce Barnhardt walks into Pino's and comes face to face with
Stephanie Plum. She never ever likes Stephanie Plum. They have been
sworn enemies ever since they were both little girls. And she flat-out
hates those wild crazy curls. She almost died of jealousy upon hearing
the news of Stephanie's marriage to Dickie Orr, a smart and sly budding
lawyer with a bright future. So she intervened and smashed Stephanie's
happiness—or saved her from a life worse than Hell, depending on your
point of view, she guesses—right on the beautiful dining table(oh yes,
by the way, it's actually the wedding present from Mr. and Mrs. Plum).
Joyce thinks of all the grudges between them and smiles to herself as
Stephanie frowns. She raises her eyebrow and looks straight into those
narrowed blue-eyes, and for the very first time in a long long while
feels nothing. Nothing at all.
No adversary. No resentment. No dislike. No jealousy. No nothing.
Joyce
can't help feeling a little bit surprised. Maybe she has finally moved
on. Maybe she has finally grown up. The woman whom she has spent so much
time to hate is right in front of her eyes, and somehow all of a sudden
it doesn't matter anymore. The smile on her face widens into a grin.
She grabs hold of Stephanie's free hand and shakes it, and then walks
into the dining area to find herself a table.
Stephanie gapes. The
diners and the waitresses gawk. And Joyce smiles while studying the
menu and remains oblivious to the world. Weird things do happen
everyday, everyone soon decides and moves on with their busy life. 22
minutes later, a deflated and red-eyed Joe Morelli walks in and sits
down at his usual table with his shoulders slumped. He orders his usual
large pizza with extra garlic and cheese and his usual beer in a quiet
and still shaky voice. He nods to his co-workers and acquaintances but
doesn't speak much. He looks up to see if his late lunch is ready and
sees Joyce. She's eating alone. She looks happy and eerily beautiful
under the bright light.
And at that moment, Joseph A. Morelli falls in love.
~End of Kiss 40: The Look Of Love~
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