is Austen doing? He must be so worried," Brian asked before I could pick up on his previous comment.
"He spends most of his time at the hospital."
"Please tell him I asked about him. We were all delighted when Sophie met him. We didn't even know what a big deal he was until Laeticia told us he donated a huge sum to the museum last year."
"We?"
"All of us here. Sophie seemed surprised too when it came up in conversation but maybe it embarrassed her."
"They met at the theater, right?"
Brian cocked his head to one side. "I think so. Sophie is a big theater fan. Austen took her all the way to New York once just to attend opening night of a new Broadway show. She said they stayed in a fancy hotel and rode in a horse-drawn carriage through the park. Isn't that romantic?"
"Very," I agreed, noticing a father and his two young children joining the queue, and realizing I was holding them up. "Do you know where I can find Melinda or Laeticia?"
"Melinda is probably at the front desk. Laeticia will be in her office. I'm sure Melinda will take you there if you tell her about the get well card. I'm sorry, I didn't catch your name?"
"Lexi," I said. "It was so nice meeting you, Brian."
"And you too! Please tell Austen I'd like to visit sometime."
I agreed I would and went in search of Lily. I found her perusing a selection of scarves. "I was trying to decide whether to get one of these for my mom's birthday until I realized I can't remember her new address," she said as she stroked the material. "I'll email my dad and maybe come back later."
"Good idea," I told her. "I'm sure she'll appreciate whatever you send her."
"Hmph," snorted Lily but I knew better than to answer. Lily's parents were never hands-on. Since we became friends, she probably spent more time with my parents than her own. Lily’s parents traveled incessantly and often forgot they had a daughter. "What did you find out?" she asked as we left the gift shop.
"Only that Sophie and Brian were friendly and he liked her and Austen, but not Zach. Also, Austen is super romantic," I added, retelling Brian's Broadway story as we left the gift shop.
"I like Austen," said Lily. "Any man who does that is a keeper, so long as he's actually normal."
"Weird that you needed to qualify that."
"Have you met any people lately? Awful people can do wonderful things."
"I think Austen might just be one of the nice ones," I replied, wishing I was that sure about Sophie. If it weren't for all the odd things Austen suspected, and the pile of cash, I'd have a hard time imagining her as anyone who did anything out of the ordinary. She seemed to live a very quiet life as a stay-at-home wife. As we approached the front desk, I thought most people would have been pleased to have their skills recognized in the workplace. Especially when offered the chance to use them in a more active way and with some kind of accolade. Yet Sophie shunned any recognition for sharing her knowledge at all. Could it be that she simply didn't want to work harder? It wasn't inconceivable. Perhaps she just wanted a simple life and a job she could leave behind at the end of the day. Unlike me, her job did not have to occupy most of her waking hours.
"Hi, are you Melinda?" I asked the woman we bought our tickets from.
The woman moved her collar and tapped her name badge. "I am. How may I help you?"
"I'm Lexi, this is Lily. Brian referred us to you. We're friends of Sophie Takahashi. She's in the hospital after having an accident and we thought she would appreciate a get well card from all of her friends."
Melinda sat a little straighter, smiling. "And you thought of me? I'm happy to sign it, although I haven't seen Sophie for a couple months. We all miss her around here."
"Brian was just talking about how knowledgeable Sophie was on the subject of art. I never knew!" I handed Melinda the card and she opened it, laying it on the desk as she scanned Brian's message.
"Oh, yes. We were all so impressed by her unlimited scope in the field of art appreciation. I told her once she could have been an art professor. It's a shame she didn't stay on."