Until We Meet Again

Richie & Libby

by Atonia & Layne

Richie dropped off his computer with the geeks, hoping they could rescue his files. He bought himself a new laptop while he was in the store and carried it out to his vehicle. He checked his watch for the time, he sure didn’t want to be late with his appointment at the court house. He’d practically swallowed his lunch in a gulp and now was nursing a case of taco heartburn. He fished around in the dash for antacid tablets while he pulled out of the car park heading for the court house.

An hour later he was out on the sidewalk smoking a cigarette, after pleading his case before the clerk. He’d claimed a personal emergency, no time to call in another solicitor…but somehow he’d pulled it off and got his case rescheduled. He leaned against the fencing and breathed a sigh of relief. When he opened his eyes he saw Libby crossing the street,. Had she seen him? He looked left and right…nowhere to run.

He’d been trying his best to avoid Nonnie and Libby until he could get his head straight on the whole situation. He’d planned to think on that the night before when he got home, but he ended up working on his lawnmower instead…and then there were the basketball games on TV, and so he’d put it off again. He put his cigarette out in the sand-filled flower pot and stood away from the fence. He looked up. She’d seen him all right and was headed his way.

Libby had worked in the house most of the morning. Around 10 a.m. she had a call from a solicitor in Coffs Harbour. She'd called on the solicitors in Coffs and the other town surrounding the Glen, chatting and handing out business cards, but this was the first call she'd had. He had a case he'd like her to work on for him. Could she come to his office at 2:00 that afternoon to discuss it?

She made the appointment and spent the rest of the day looking forward to it. The first case she'd had outside of looking up Barth for Richie. At 1:15 she headed for Coffs. The guy's office was near the courthouse and it wasn't easy to find a parking space. They spent nearly an hour discussing the case. He gave her a large brown envelope with the information he had and she promised to call him with an update by the end of the week.

Outside, Libby looked at her watch. A little after 3:00. As she'd worked that morning, she'd thought of stopping by Richie's office on her way home from Coffs. It had been two days since he'd brought her home from Queensland and, after their hug goodbye, she hadn't heard from him since. He hadn't phoned or come by.

She knew he had a lot on his mind--a lot to think about, so she was being patient, but she really would like to hear from him. So, thinking of dropping by his office, she had dressed with him in mind. She wore jeans but, unlike the ones she usually wore, these were designer jeans. Ones she had bought when she was out shopping with Abby. They had a closer fit, hugged her hips nicely. The top she'd chose was also a new one. Blue and form-fitting, it was cut lower than she normally would have worn. Her long, curly blonde hair was pulled away from her face and fastened in a clasp which left the curls cascading down her back and she'd put on perfume--a light, crisp floral scent that Abby had assured her was perfect for daytime.

Abby had told her that the whole look was great. Much more feminine than the way Libby had always dressed for work. She hoped Richie thought so too.

Heading for her car, she had to pass the courthouse. There, leaning against the fence was the man she'd just been thinking about. Nervously, she started toward him.

He noticed, top to bottom, and his first thought was that he wondered who she was meeting up with. He fought it back…what was it anyway…could he possibly be jealous of Libby? No…no he couldn’t be. He put on a smile, “Hi, Libby.” He said coolly.

"Hi," she answered, her heart thudding wildly. Had she actually noticed him looking her up and down, or had that been wishful thinking on her part?

"You have court today?" She was trying to be just as cool as he was being. Wasn't sure if she succeeded.

“Um, no, I had to come and reschedule. I, uh, missed a court date the day, um, we came back from Brisbane. So, uh, how ya doin’?” She looked damn good, he thought. He glanced toward the court house steps, “you’re not in trouble are ya?”

Libby suppressed a grin that that would be his first thought. "No, not today," she told him.

Holding up the envelope in her hand, she said, "I had business with one of your colleagues. A case he's hired me to work on. His office is just down the street."

He looked so good in that gray suit, she couldn't help thinking to herself. "I'm sorry you missed that court date." She was sorry he'd missed it, but at the same time she was very glad he'd come for her.

A case eh, “Oh yeah, well, um, I hope it doesn’t involve sailboats and bounty hunters,” he laughed a little nervously.

In a different tone, “You look nice, Libby.”

She caught that tone in his voice and it was music to her ears. Striving to keep her voice normal, she told him, "No sailboats or bounty hunters either, as far as I know right now. I'm supposed to track down some family members in a child custody case. Seems no one's heard from them in the last few years."

"You look nice too, Richie."

“I wish you luck on your case. Just don’t go taking unnecessary chances this time.” He shifted his weight. “Look, um, I’m sorry I, uh, haven’t called to check on you…I’ve been trying to get myself straightened out, and not getting very far.” He looked at her, “I was just thinking,” he took a breath. "If you’re not doing anything Friday night…maybe you’d like to go to dinner- I hear there’s a new place opened here in Coffs, supposed to be a real nice place.” He heard himself say. What was he doing? This was not part of his game plan. He bit his lip.

Dinner? He was asking her for an actual date? Not knowing what to say for a moment, she bought herself some time by saying, "Yeah. I've been trying to get myself straightened out too. It's harder than I thought it would be."

Libby knew why she was nervous, but she couldn't quite figure out why Richie should seem nervous. Was he afraid she'd say no or something? "Dinner on Friday would be nice," she said quietly.

“Okay, good then, um, I’ll pick you up around 6:30 if that’s all right?” He was asking her out and this thing with Nonnie was not settled yet, at least not for him. So what was he doing? He felt like banging his head against the fence. So much for laying low for awhile. He couldn’t seem to help himself. “Well, I probably should be heading back. I need to ah- catch Miss Peeg before she leaves.”

"Six-thirty's good. I'm--not heading back for a little while yet. I was going to check on a friend while I'm here." She didn't know why she said that. He was the friend she'd been going to check on, but now that she'd run into him here, that was unnecessary.

"I'll see you on Friday then." Libby felt like shouting those words, but she said them as calmly and quietly as she could manage.

“Yeah, Friday.” He smiled. It was a lie of course, Miss Peeg would be gone when he got back to The Glen. It was just a way of getting him away from her. He knew he didn’t need to be hanging around Coffs with Libby this afternoon. He’d already made a date for Friday, one leg in quicksand. If he didn’t get out of there, the other would follow, “I’ll see you then.”

"Okay, Friday." Libby wasn't sure how many times they could say Friday but, for some reason, both of them seemed a little reluctant to make the first move to leave.

She wasn't sure what friend she would check on. She supposed she could go down to the marina and see if Barth had made it back. Ask if he was doing okay. But she wasn't sure if she should do that. Things were getting awkward here.

Finally, she said, "Maybe I'll take a walk down to that open market and check it out while I'm here. You wanna walk with me?"

"Oh- I'm sorry. You just said you needed to see Miss Peeg!"

He looked at his watch, “Um yeah, I guess I could walk down with you for a few minutes. I’ll, uh, just give her a call.” He pulled out his phonem making a show of calling Miss Peeg.”

“Mr. Roberts, I was just leaving…there’s um something on your desk for you.”

“My desk?”

“Yes sir, what can I do for you sir?”

“Uh…um... Aubrey, did he come by and did you get his signature witnessed?”

“Yes sir, he was in this morning…you witnessed it?” Miss Peeg was beginning to worry seriously about him.

“Oh that’s right. Well I’ll, um, see you in the morning.” He folded his phone and pocketed it and looked over at Libby.

“Okay, lead the way.” Something on his desk? He should have asked what it was.

She always enjoyed the outdoor market. It was full of bright, beautiful colors and delicious smells. Today, though, it was difficult to be aware of anything other than the man walking at her side.

"How are things going with your house?" she finally asked him, unsure what to talk about with him in this new kind of relationship that they had. And just what kind of relationship was it that they had anyway?

“Oh the house well um- I worked on my lawnmower last night and finally got it running again and cut the grass. I’ve kind of let things get ahead of me there so I’m spending my evenings trying to catch up. You know how it is. You can’t ignore it.” He was wondering now why he’d agreed to walk with her. He felt uncomfortable around her and didn’t know why. Knowing how she felt about him changed a lot of things.

"Yeah, I know how it is," Libby agreed. "I spent this morning doing things around the house before I came over here.

They walked for several more minutes, remarking on various bits of merchandise on display. At last, Libby felt she had to say something. "Richie. We don't have to be so awkward around each other. We always talked about all kinds of things. We still can, you know."

“That obvious, huh?” he laughed a little, “I don’t know, Libby…something’s changed…it’s different now, at least it is for me and I haven’t figured out what it is yet. That’s what I meant earlier, when I said I was trying to get my head straight.” He looked away for a moment. “I’m not in a good place right now…” He almost mentioned Nonnie and remembered what Michael had said about discussing one with the other. “Um I think I just need a little time you know.”

He looked down the street, “Want an ice cream?”

"Sure!" she said enthusiastically. "That sounds perfect today."

Richie paid for the ice cream cones and wondered why it was so easy for her. She seemed calm and collected. He handed her the cone and a few paper napkins and found a low wall to sit on. “I can’t remember the last time I had an ice cream cone…”

Libby grinned. "I think my last one was two week ago! They're one of my weaknesses!" Her voice lowered. "Along with you." She licked off the chocolate dribbling down the side of the cone.

Choosing her words carefully, she ventured. "Maybe you need to do more things like this, Richie. Get out and do some things just for fun." He HAD told her back in Brisbane that he needed her help to keep from screwing his life up. Maybe getting away from work and all his other worries would help.

He looked up when she said her other weakness was him. The sight of her pink tongue working that ice cream was more than he could watch.

“Actually I’ve been telling myself I need to concentrate more on my work. I’ve let personal problems interfere and that’s not good. I’ve never in my life missed a court appearance.” He concentrated on people watching.

"I'm sorry about that," she said quietly. "I never meant to worry you, Richie. But I never thought about you coming after me. If I'd had any idea that you felt something for me..." She let her words trail off. Thinking about what had led up to that was still painful.

He did feel something for her, he just hadn’t identified it yet. “Yeah well I never thought at the time I would be tracking you to Brisbane. It was something I knew I had to do. I don’t want to get into that now.” He looked down at his shoes, ice cream dripping onto the shiny toes.

"Then we won't go into it." She didn't want to worry him any more.

Her eyes followed his down to his shoes and she laughed a little. "Oops." Sliding off the wall, she wiped them off with her handful of napkins, since she'd already finished her cone.

She threw the napkins into a nearby trash can and turned back to him. "You've got some here too." Moving to stand in front of him as he sat on the wall, she leaned forward and kissed the corner of his mouth briefly, her hands resting lightly on his knees.

He smiled a little, “thanks for cleaning me up…Libby, Libby, Libby what the hell are we going to do?”

"Do?" She tilted her head, puzzled, continuing to rest her hands on his knees. "I'm not sure what you mean. What do you WANT to do?"

He shook his head slightly, “I don’t know yet and that’s the truth.” He placed his hands on top of hers. A thought came to him, “You know Michael Stanley is staying with Miss Peeg? She says his doctor has told him he can’t live alone. I think he’s going to stay with her. He has this, ah- flat here in Coffs and he won’t be returning to it, so I’m thinking I might…lease it from him.” He stood up and ran a hand through his hair, fully aware of where his mind had gone in such a hurry. It went where it always went when he was around her. Now he was suggesting a trysting place away from The Glen. “I hope I haven’t insulted you.” He met her eyes, lips slightly parted.

Libby hoped desperately that her mouth hadn't dropped open from astonishment. She knew immediately what he was proposing. Knew it more from the look that was in his eyes than from the words he'd spoken. Despite the fact that they both had houses in the Glen--and that they both lived alone--Richie wanted a place for them to meet outside the Glen. He didn't want anyone to know about them. And that meant...

She might be young, but she was no fool. Richie was acting as though he were still married. As though he wanted her to be some kind of kept woman. Or a mistress. And, given the current circumstances, that could only mean that he intended to date Nonnie openly and that she, Libby, would be his 'other woman'.

She'd always told him that she didn't expect him not to see other people, but was this how she wanted it to be? Libby's mind went briefly to her father. He'd had other women in his life besides her mother. Libby had even known one of them, and she'd seemed quite happy with their relationship.

Richie was still looking at her and she realized she'd been silent for several minutes. Very quietly, she told him. "No. You haven't insulted me."

Meeting his eyes, she went on. "But this only works for me if you let me pay half the rent. And I wonder if it should be in my name instead of yours? That way, your name wouldn't be on any lease for Nonnie to find out about."

Firmly, she told him. "You might have to keep secrets from Nonnie, Richie, but I don't want you to feel you have to keep any from me. I always told you things. The only thing I ever held back from you was that I loved you and, now that you know that, I don't want to ever have to keep anything from you again. It's too hard to do and it hurts too much. And I'd like to think that you could tell me anything, too. Anything you need or want to talk about."

“I um probably shouldn’t have said anything. My mouth seems to have a mind of its own today. If I lease it, I’ll do it in my name. Michael and I understand each other, and NO you won’t be paying half the rent. I’ll do it to help him out financially. It’s the least I can do after all the grief I’ve caused him. As for Nonnie, whatever happens between me and Nonnie is between us. Right now, I’m not sure where that stands.

“You know how it is in The Glen. All the shit that was flying around when we were seeing each other. I’d rather not put either one of us through that again. Besides, I could use it as a safe house if a client needs one.” He was convincing himself his motives were altruistic. “I told you I wanted to see you, Libby, and I’m through taking you to some back door motel. You don’t deserve that. You probably need to slap me about now, because I’m listening to myself and I don’t like what I’m hearing.”

Libby was still feeling a little dazed. She sat back down on the wall. "You know, Richie Roberts, you're one of the most stubborn people that I've ever met! You try to take all the responsibility for everyone and everything!"

She went on, even though she wasn't exactly sure where she was going. "You owe Michael something? Your problems were with Toni, not her father! You're all worried about hurting Nonnie! You think I don't deserve the way you treated me and that I should slap you for what you're saying now!"

For the first time she could ever remember, Libby was angry with him. Angry because he wouldn't let her share any of the burden and, to her, that was a big part of what love was. "You don't let anyone help! You don't let anyone share any of the responsibility with you, and that's what I'm trying to do! Take some of the weight off your shoulders."

Her speech winding down, she took his face between both her hands, kissed him briefly, and then drew back to look at him. "Richie, I'll see you at this apartment, or some motel, or anyplace else you want to see me. I just wish that you would please let me help. Let me do something to make things easier for you."

“I don’t need financial help…I just…I need you.” He put his arms around her and pulled her to him. “I didn’t know it until I saw you in Brisbane. It hit me like a Mack truck. I’ve been an ass and I know it. I’m sorry. You deserve better than me, better than what I can offer you.” He became aware people were beginning to turn and stare at them on the sidewalk. “We need to get out of here. I need to go home.”

Those words about needing her made her happier than anything in her life had ever made her. Libby's arms went around him too and she said, "As far as I'm concerned, there isn't anyone better than you. I'm always here when you need me, Richie. Always. And home is the last place I want to go right now. Not by myself anyway, but if that's what you need right now..." She trailed off.

He knew what she was suggesting and he thought about it but, “I do need to go home and by myself.” He pulled back and kissed her forehead.

"All right," she sighed. "I guess I'll let you. This time." She grinned teasingly.

"But- Richie- I wasn't just talking about financial help. I was talking about...emotional help too. You do know that's always here for you any time you need it too?"

“Yeah, Babe, I know.” He hugged her again and began walking back up the street toward the car park.

Libby walked beside him until they reached her car. They hugged and kissed goodbye and then she said, a little nervously. "Some little part of me's afraid that maybe you won't come back to me again."

He ran his hand over her head, “We got a date Friday, right? I’ll see you then. Tell that little part of you to shut up.” He smiled and kissed her again.

Libby returned his smile. "I'll go home and get started on my case. Do the internet research anyway, and then get started on the leg work tomorrow. See you Friday. I love you." As she drove away, she was already thinking about the dress she intended to get.

He pulled out of the parking lot with a smile. Those three little words. They made him feel warm inside, but it bothered him that he couldn’t return them. Why, he wondered, was there some part of him incapable of loving to the extent he was loved?

He thought about Michael. She’d been wrong when she said he hadn’t caused him grief. He had. Michael had tried to save his marriage. He thought he’d give him a call about the flat later on that night.

Richie arrived back in The Glen and, remembering Miss Peeg had said he had something on his desk, he stopped by the office, picked up his messages and sat down at his desk. In the center was a plain white envelope. He opened it…it was the key to Nonnie’s shop.