Twin Flames, Two Souls Journey Through Time – The Professor - Chapter 17

                  Amelia’s blood was boiling, she was almost positive that steam was cartoonishly coming out of her ears.  Daniel held her hand, no longer caring what anyone else thought, and led her to a set of chairs outside of the President’s office.  He rubbed her back knowing that she was incredibly angry to calm her down, “breath with me Amelia, in…and out, in…and out,” he repeated this a few more times until she was finally able to calm down.  “Remind me not to piss you off, ever,” he said with a slight smile trying to lighten the moment.  “I’m sorry, but few things flip my bitch switch quicker than being spoken to condescendingly, or my integrity being called into question, and that asshole did both in the span of thirty seconds.  I hope you won’t get into trouble for my outburst I literally saw red.”  Daniel lifted her chin so that her eyes were on his, “I’m in a union Amelia, and I’m tenured, nothing you said could ever cause me any trouble,” he paused momentarily and in an admiring tone continued, “your defense of my honor and yours was something to behold, I’m glad you are on my side.”  Amelia smiled and replied, “I hate a bully, and Nigel is a bully.  I will always protect the people I love when they are being falsely accused.”  Daniel and Amelia could hear raised voices coming from Nigel’s office, and it was Roy doing most of the yelling, suddenly the door swung open, and Roy stepped out and slammed it shut behind him.  “Daniel, I think you should contact the union, and I will contact the other Deans in the school to try and schedule a meeting to discuss Nigel’s actions hopefully for this afternoon.  I’m so sorry he spoke to both of you like that, I always saw him as a reasonable man.”  Then looking at Amelia, Roy continued, “I don’t know what his issue is with you Amelia, you seem lovely and reasonable to me, and he was combative and insulting towards you without any provocation.  I appreciate your sentiments about Oceanview, as well as your willingness to keep this matter out of the public eye when you don’t have to.”  “I would never compromise the school or staff, I love this school, and I’m not going to sully its name because of one asshole…I mean jerk.” “No, Nigel is most assuredly an asshole, you are rather intimidating Amelia, he is petrified at the moment, I saw it in his eyes.”  Then looking at Daniel he said, “I would stay on her good side if I were you Daniel,” and he gave them both a sly smile and a wink.  They walked away and continued to discuss what needs to be done as they made their way back to their respective offices.

                  Daniel and Amelia felt shell shocked when they got back to his office.  Amelia sat silently watching as Daniel spoke to his union rep about what transpired, and based upon the loud voice on the other end of the phone the union rep was just as pissed off as Daniel and Roy.  Amelia was also angry, but this part of the battle was Daniels to take the lead on, it was his career and reputation at stake.  She stepped out of his office and made a call to Lucy to tell her what happened.  Lucy offered to be a witness as she has lived with Amelia for the last twenty-five years and can attest to Amelia’s rather sad dating life.  She is a Notary Public, which means she also has a State Department security clearance, so her word would hold wait in a court of law. Unlike Amelia, Lucy can speak with conviction without the emotion with which Amelia spoke.  It annoyed Amelia that her passion was always seen as a negative, just because she had inflection in her voice didn’t make what she was saying any less correct or valid.  The funny part was that when Amelia would speak without passion in her voice it was because she no longer cared, and that version of Amelia was cold and detached, and people knew what to do with that version of her even less than the impassioned version.  The way Amelia looked at it was they didn’t like her either way, so why should she expend any of her energy caring about what people who never liked or appreciated her felt about her.  It reminded her of one of their father’s many colorful expressions, “they wouldn’t piss on you if you were on fire,” crass but ultimately some people just enjoy being the bane of other people’s existence.  Amelia understood that certain people would continue to push and nitpick at you until finally it comes down to them or her, and she was always going to choose her.  It took her a very long time to finally do that, because for years she continued to allow people to beat her down, feeling as though she deserved to be treated badly, a testament to how important words of affirmation are, and teaching your children that they matter is vital to healthy relationships as adults.  That was why Nigel’s contemptuous attitude towards her riled her up so badly.  Amelia thanked Lucy for the offer and told her that she would mention it to Daniel and let her know if it was necessary, but it probably wasn’t going to be.

                  Amelia knocked on Daniel’s door before going back in as she slightly opened the door, he waved for her to come back in.  He was still on the phone with the union representative, but the call was winding down.  When Daniel finally hung up, he let out a heavy sigh.  “I’m so sorry that my stupid book started such a shit storm for you Daniel,” Amelia hated seeing him so worried.  “First of all, your book isn’t stupid, and please don’t ever say that again.  You should be incredibly proud of the fact that you, a) wrote a book in the first place, b) it was very well received, c) they are making it into a movie, and most importantly, d) it was the catalyst that finally led me to you.  I was mad initially not that you wrote the book, but that I felt blindsided finding out that it was about me.  I still think you should have told me, but I also understand why you didn’t.  Besides, the how’s and why’s no longer really matter.  Everything that is going on is because I went to the studio, if I had just…” “No Daniel, there was nothing wrong with your going to the studio, Nadine is at fault for trying to falsely accuse you of inappropriate behavior, and we all know you would never do anything inappropriate.”  Amelia smiled remembering all those years ago in this same office and how she had asked Daniel out and he told her how ‘inappropriate’ it was.  He looked quizzically at her, and then she reminded him about when she asked him out and what he had said.  Daniel chuckled slightly, “What did the union rep say?  Oh, and Lucy said she would be willing to testify that we only started dating four days ago if you think it would help.”  “Tell her thank you, but it won’t be necessary.  The union rep. told me that there is nothing in our contract about dating former students, current students yes, for obvious reasons, but nothing on former students, and that Nigel’s attitude was completely out of line.  The situation with Nadine is being handled correctly, she clearly cannot be in my class anymore, I told them that Roy would be handling that portion, and that he was also going to be talking to the other department heads.  He suggested that if Nigel doesn’t step down immediately that they would call for a strike, because his behavior was abhorrent and uncalled for.”  “I could hear him yelling on the phone,” Daniel laughed, “Yeah he was more pissed than me.”  “Has Roy contacted you?”  “No, not yet I was going to walk over to his office, would you like to join me?”  He stood up and walked over to Amelia, holding out his hand to her, she knew he wasn’t really asking if she wanted to go with him.

                  Daniel knocked on Roy’s office and he yelled to come in, and he smiled reassuringly when he saw that it was Daniel and Amelia.  Roy advised that he spoke with the other department heads, and they are all in agreement that Nigel had severely overstepped.  Daniel told him that the union rep was incensed at Nigel, and he suggested that if Nigel didn’t step down that they should strike.  No one wanted that, it would be a disruption to the students, and it was unnecessary, but a valid threat if Nigel continued with his antics.  “What about Nadine, have you spoken to Doug and Susan regarding her switching to their class, and the reason why she needs to be removed from my class?”  Roy responded, “Yes, both are fine with the move, but only after they speak with you.  I’m afraid the fact that you and Amelia are dating is going to come out, but I did not go into too much detail with either of them figuring that it is not my story to tell.”  Daniel looked uneasy but nodded his head in agreement.  “That is understandable, if they are both still here, we can get this over with now, I’d rather just get this over with.”  Amelia felt severely out of place, “I can step out during this meeting, Susan and Doug may feel more comfortable if I weren’t here.”  Daniel grabbed her hand and smiled and shook his head, “No Amelia, I would like you here and I’m sure that both Doug and Susan may have questions for you.”  Then Roy chimed in, “Yes Amelia, I think it is best that you are included in the meeting,” he paused for a second looking uncomfortable and then continued, “I think it would be good for people to see you so that they understand that there is no issue with the two of you dating each other.  I know this may sound blunt and rude, but when you hear about a teacher dating a former student the cliché is the older professor and much younger student, and well…” “I’m actually older than Daniel, I get it, no problem, Roy.”  “Please don’t take it the wrong way, I’m not saying that you are old…”  “Roy it’s fine, no offense taken, I am older than Daniel, and I understand the reticence Doug and Susan might have based on traditional professor student relationships.  I never had either of them as a professor, so they have no personal history with me.”  “Thank you for that Amelia, I’ll contact them and set up the meeting.  It’s getting later in the day so it may not be until tomorrow, I hope that will work with both of you?”  Daniel looked at Amelia and she nodded, Daniel responded, “That is fine, I don’t have class tomorrow, I had planned on staying in Vallejo with Amelia, so please let me know the time of the meeting as soon as possible since it will be at least an hour drive depending on the time of the meeting.”  Amelia didn’t want to say anything while in Roy’s office, but she was fine with staying at Daniels apartment that night, she had even packed an overnight bag in case things went bad.  Roy replied, “OK guys, it’s getting late in the afternoon and I’m sure both would like some time to decompress after the eventful day.”  They both stood to leave, and Daniel told Roy, “we are going to get something to eat before we head back to Vallejo, if Susan and Doug can meet today, please let us know it would be preferred to meet today rather than tomorrow, but I understand if they can’t.”  Roy acknowledged the request, and they left his office.  As soon as Roy’s door shut behind them Daniel’s shoulders dropped, he was exhausted mentally and emotionally.  Understanding where they were Amelia encouraged him to go to his office and grab his stuff and then they should go and get something to eat and talk everything over.  Daniel nodded and they made their way to his office, picked up his stuff and they walked to her car, they would pick his up later after they ate a late lunch.

                  Amelia woke up at around 5am used to feeding her cats at that time, but she quickly realized that she was at Daniel’s apartment.  She looked down at him with a sweet smile when the previous day’s events came hastening to her mind.  A wicked grin formed on her face, she nuzzled back into his chest, and he reflexively wrapped his arm around her and pulled her closer to him while still asleep, her special little nook where she seemed to fit so perfectly.  She started delicately caressing his chest hair while she watched his response, her hand moving down lower and lower towards the waistband of his pajama’s.  He started to stir, and her mischievous smile got bigger, her hand brushed against his penis, and she felt it react to her touch, she then flicked her tongue against his nipple, and that is when she saw him smile with his eyes still closed.  Amelia decided to continue with her naughty plan, and she moved her hand under his waistband and started stroking his penis which was already semi hard, he kept his eyes closed but his smile grew larger, and that was when she pulled it out and placed her mouth around him.  His expression switched to one of ecstasy as he enjoyed her incredibly gifted mouth as it moved up and down on his shaft, how she mixed speeds and pressure was absolutely mind blowing to him.  His hands were in her hair and his head was firmly thrust back into the pillow as she brought him closer and closer to his climax.  Amelia could feel him start to twitch inside of her mouth, so she increased her pace and pressure as a groan escaped Daniels mouth.  As soon as Amelia swirled her tongue around his tip, Daniel pushed her head down deep as he knew he was going to cum, and his warm liquid went down her throat as she pulled up one last time tightly and sucked on his tip before releasing him.  He smiled languidly at her and she found her way back into her familiar nook on his chest with his hand wrapped around her.  “Not a bad way to wake up, feel free to wake me up like that anytime,” and he kissed the top of her head.  “You had a rough and long day yesterday, if anyone deserves a happy morning it would be you.”  “Your day was just as long and miserable as mine.”  “You were the one threatened, I’m just glad everything worked out.”  “Thank you for speaking with Doug and Susan, and the Deans of each department, it’s not that I think anything would have happened if you didn’t, it just made things less…complicated.”  “It’s my fault in the first place, and well I love you Daniel if I can help, I’m going to.  I will say that having to tell the story multiple times makes me never want to have to speak about it again, but alas once the fans of the book find out it will be all I ever talk about.  The fact that one of the Dean’s had read the book was slightly awkward,” Amelia said with a chuckle.  “Thankfully she is the dean of the language arts department, so I don’t have to interact with her.  Please don’t think I’m embarrassed about your book, I’m genuinely incredibly proud of you.”  “I know you are, and so am I.  Eventually this will blow over, and the new book will come out and this will all be a distant memory.  Thankfully Nigel saw the writing on the wall and decided to step down quietly.”  “Your threats helped greatly, as did the sight of every department head in his office.”  “I’m glad that it’s over with, and we can enjoy the day off,” a playful smile on her face.  Daniel was rubbing her back as he normally did when she was snuggled into her nook, a licentious smile forming on his face, and she quickly found herself laying on her back with Daniel hovering over her with a lustful look in his eyes, “now it’s my turn.”

                  Daniel leaned down to kiss Amelia and trailed kisses down her neck, her breasts, her stomach, until he reached her entrance, his masterful tongue swirling and teasing her clitoris, as he brought her closer and closer to her release.  She reflexively closed her legs attempting to control her orgasm, he quickly responded, “Are you trying to pop my head, keep your legs apart, or do you want me to tie them to the end of the bed…again,” his eyes dark and serious.  She bit her bottom lip as her body shivered remembering the intensity of the previous night’s hijinks, how he kept bringing her to the brink of release only to pull away and start all over again.  How she could do nothing as her arms and legs were securely tied to the bed using the restraints from her bag of tricks that he had taken to his apartment with him.  Daniel saw her wanton expression and he smiled wolfishly as he said, “I see you are thinking about my proposition, should I pull the straps out, or are you going to be a good girl?”  Amelia squirmed beneath him, “How about you hold my thighs apart,” her eyes dark with desire, Daniel smirked and held her thighs apart as he continued his relentless torture.  Her body bucking off the bed while his hands kept her legs firmly in place making it impossible for her to control her release.  Her moans spurring him on until he finally released one of her thighs so that he could insert his fingers into her incredibly wet opening, the magic combination pushing her over the edge as she groaned out his name while her hands grasped at the sheets and her orgasm radiated throughout her entire body.  Daniel removed his fingers and watched with a satisfied expression, watching her as she climaxed and the subsequent five minutes it took for her soul and senses to return to her body was intoxicating to him.  He moved back next to her, as he gently caressed her hair as she finally regained her senses.  They were both physically spent, and she buried herself back into her nook in his arms with her head on his chest and she fell asleep, Daniel smiled to himself as the lyrics “Knocked me out with one shot for the rest of the night,” from Whatta Man, by Salt-N-Pepa popped into his head, feeling that masculine sense of pride for being the one who “knocked her out,” and he eventually nodded off to sleep as well.

                  Daniels cell phone kept going off, and after realizing that the sound was not part of his dream, he groggily answered the phone.  “Hello…wait what…OK, well we are going to need some time to get ready, we can probably get there in two hours…OK, I’ll talk to Amelia and see what she thinks, did you get their information?  OK thanks for the heads up, Roy.”  Daniel looked down at Amelia, she was still half asleep with her eyes closed, in a lowered tone he said, “Amelia,” “hmmmm” she responded, he smiled warmly at her, “that was Roy on the phone,” “hmmmm,” she really didn’t want to get up.  “Apparently Nigel contacted Nadine after he was forced to resign, and they decided to go to the media and let them know that you and I were dating, and well a news agency had contacted the school for a comment.”  That immediately woke Amelia up, “Who did they speak to, and what did they say?”  “Well apparently, they transferred them to Roy, and he told them that he didn’t speak about his collogues personal lives, but that didn’t seem to satisfy them.  He’s afraid they are going to show up to the campus and cause a disturbance.”  “Boy we have certainly had an eventful five day courtship haven’t we, I’m going to call Sherri and let her know what is going on and see what she says we should do.  I really want to ring both Nadine and Nigel’s necks right now.”  “Apparently she didn’t take getting removed from my class very well.”  “And she thinks that doing this is going to somehow improve her situation, she’s making it so no college will want to risk having her as a student.  Did I hear you tell Roy that we would be there in two hours?”  “I told him that we could be there in two hours, but that I would talk to you first, he got the name of the reporter and their number.”  “Ok can you have him please send that over to me and I will forward it over to Sherri and she will deal with it.  Are you OK with doing an interview, should it be necessary?  I mean I honestly do not understand why anyone cares who I’m dating.”  “I don’t think they do; they are hoping for a salacious story on how and when we started dating, everyone loves to gossip.  And after you spent the entire day yesterday in meetings for me, of course I will do an interview with whomever you or Sherri suggest.”  Amelia gently touched Daniel’s sweet face, and he leaned down to kiss her, “I love you,” said Daniel, “I love you too,” and she gave him another kiss.  “Please get the reporter’s name from Roy, so that I can call Sherri.  Then we need to eat something because I am famished, and then we can take showers and get ready.”

                  “Hello, you have reached the voicemail of Sherri Taylor, PR, sorry I missed your call, please leave a message and I will call you right back.”  “Hi Sherri, this is Amelia Jenkins again, apparently the media is now aware of Daniel and I thanks to two disgruntled people at Oceanview, please give me a call and let me know what to do.  The reporter who called the school is named, Josephine Castro and her number is 415-555-8235.  Please give me a call back and let me know what you would like us to do.”  Amelia turned to Daniel, “Well I left her a message, let’s see what she suggests.”  She watched him with a full heart as he made breakfast for them both.  She had never had a man she was dating cook anything for her, she enjoyed cooking, but it was nice to have someone cook for her.  “What’s with the goofy smile?”  Amelia didn’t even realize she was smiling, “just thinking about how no guy has ever cooked anything for me and how sexy you look with that spatula in your hand.”  “Seriously, no guy has ever cooked for you?”  “My brothers have cooked for me, but no man I was dating has.”  He looked sad suddenly, “wow, that doesn’t say a lot about my sex, does it?”  “Why do you think so many women have chosen to stay single?  For that and other reasons, but mainly their gross weaponized incompetence.  But clearly there are still some good ones out there.”  He blushed slightly and placed some pancakes in front of her.  Sherri called while they were eating and Amelia put the phone on speaker, “Hello Sherri, I’m on speaker with Daniel, thanks for getting back to us,” “hello Amelia, and hello Daniel, nice to meet you.  I have a good relationship with Josephine, I’ll give her a call, anything you don’t want me to say?”  Amelia and Daniel looked at each other and he shook his head no, “I don’t think so, we met up again a whopping five days ago, and we are not sure why people are losing their minds over it.  If need be, both Daniel and I can speak with her.  We are curious what lies Nadine and Nigel are trying to spread.”  “Oh, you would be surprised, people can convince themselves of almost anything, and when you have nothing left to lose it lowers your threshold for decency.”  “Well, that’s terrifying,” said Daniel, “It will be OK Daniel, lies always come out, that is why I always advocate for people being honest.  Josephine is very reasonable, let me give her a call and I will get back to you.”  “Ok thank you Sherri, let us know how it goes, goodbye,” “goodbye Amelia and Daniel.”  Daniel looked nervous, Amelia reached out and touched his hand, “it will be ok, we have nothing to worry about, the Deans are on your side, and so is the union.  We haven’t done anything wrong.”  “I know, it’s just been a dramatic couple of days, I feel like I’m going to need a month off.”  “Maybe you can take a Friday off, and we can have a long weekend somewhere?”  “Maybe, at the very least we can take some time off during the Christmas break, I’ll get my grades done early and maybe we can go somewhere exciting.”  “I have always wanted to spend Christmas and New Year’s in Paris, or maybe we can do the UK?”  Daniel smiled, a surprise for Amelia coming into his mind, “That sounds like a great idea, I like the idea of either.”  Amelia could tell that he was up to something, but she let it go.  Amelia got up to do the dishes, “You don’t have to do that, I’ll do the dishes,” “You cooked, I’ll clean,” and she leaned in and gave him a kiss.  “Why don’t you jump in the shower and then I can take one.”  Daniel gave her a libidinous look, “we can always take one together,” unable to hide his rapacious grin.  “As tempting a thought that that is, we will get…sidetracked, and you know it.”  Daniel knew she was right, his disappointment evident on his face, she walked over and gave him a chaste kiss and then in a breathy tone said, “delayed gratification…lover.”  He stifled a laugh, at how exaggerated she said lover, he shook his head and gave her a kiss and swatted her butt as he walked to the bathroom, and said with a wink, “I’m going to hold you to that, lover.”  Amelia heard the shower going as she finished washing the dishes.  Sherri called her back, “Hey Sherri, how did it go?”  “Jo is very reasonable; she said their story seemed made up since they were lax on details.  Her suggestion, which I happen to agree with, would be for the three of you to have an interview to quell any future issues.”  “That seems reasonable, Daniel is in the shower at the moment, let me talk to him first and get back to you, but I think that the interview would probably be a go, did she say when she would want to do the interview?”  “She was thinking later in the week.”  “Ok, Daniel’s classes are on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, but it’s an early class.  It’s easiest on a Tuesday or Thursday, I’ll ask him what he prefers once he is out of the shower.”  “Ok, let me know Amelia, goodbye,” “goodbye Sherri, and thanks again.”

                  The shower stopped and Daniel stepped out of the bathroom with a towel wrapped around his waist.  Amelia enjoyed the view, “regretting your decision about not sharing that shower?” “Maybe,” she said as she sauntered over to him, wearing only his t-shirt, highly tempted to pull his towel off and have her way with him.  His eyes were dark, and he pulled her into a deep passionate kiss.  She backed into the wall pulling him with her, and pulled his towel off, he hiked her leg up and entered her slowly and deeply.  Amelia’s nails dug into his back as his mouth was on her neck and his pace increased while he whispered in her ear, “I will never get enough of you,” “I will always be yours.”  Her breath quickening as her release became imminent, Daniel could feel her body getting ready to explode around him, she surprised him by moaning out “cum inside of me,” and that was all he needed to hear, and he poured himself inside of her, while she simultaneously convulsed around of him.  Her legs started to wobble, and he held onto her while he carefully withdrew from her.  He nuzzled into her against the wall for support as their bodies returned to normal.  “I definitely need a shower now,” she mused.  “You started that my love,” “I don’t disagree, what can I say Mr. Hillard, you are simply irresistible.”  He pulled away with his devilish grin on full display and picked his towel back up and wrapped it around his waist again as he sat down on the bed.  She went into the bathroom to turn the shower on to let the water get hot, “I spoke with Sherri, the reporter believes us, and said that Nigel and Nadine’s story was full of inconsistencies, but that doesn’t mean that some other news agency won’t report on what they are saying.  The reporter suggested an in-person interview to get our story out, and Sherri agreed.  Are you up for that?”  He got up and walked back over to her, “I already told you; I’ll do whatever you or Sherri think is best for the situation,” and he gave her a kiss on the forehead, she smiled sweetly at him and then turned, tore of his t-shirt and jumped into the shower.

                  Daniel called Roy while Amelia was in the shower, “Hello Roy, just wanted to let you know that Amelia’s publicist spoke with the reporter and she doesn’t believe Nigel or Nadine, their story is full of holes, but that some other news agency might not care about that.  She suggested that Amelia and I speak with her, and we agree with that idea.  Do you still need us to come in today?”  “We are deciding with our attorneys what to do about Nadine, no teacher wants her in their class now that this has gotten out.  The attorneys are going to want to speak with you, and maybe even Amelia.”  Daniel sighed internally, this was the never ending situation, “That makes sense, go ahead and give them my number and tell them to reach out.  Sooner rather than later since the interview is being scheduled.”  “OK, sounds good, I’ll give them a call and let them know, thanks Daniel, and tell Amelia thank you too, goodbye.”  “Goodbye Roy.”  Daniel let out an exasperated, “Son of bitch!”  Amelia opened the bathroom door with a worried expression, “What happened sweetie?”  “I called Roy while you were in the shower, and told him about the interview with the reporter, and he told me how they were talking to the schools’ attorneys regarding Nadine, and that they were going to want to speak to me and maybe even you.  I’m just frustrated; this is the never ending situation.”  Amelia’s face dropped; she started worrying that Daniel was starting to question if she was worth all this effort.  Daniel noticed and immediately got up and gave her a reassuring hug, his head gently resting against hers, “hey, hey, hey, it’s the situation I’m frustrated with, not you.”  She silently nodded her head, keeping her eyes downcast.  “Amelia please look at me,” she raised her eyes to meet his, “this is just a bump, and I’m annoyed that this bullshit is getting in the way of our sexcapades,” he knew that would make her laugh, and it did.  “I keep waiting for you to tell me that I’m not worth the trouble,” her voice trying to sound neutral, he leaned in and in a hushed tone said, “I literally just said I can’t get enough of you,” his breath causing a shiver to run down her body, “You said it during sex, that doesn’t hold the same weight,” a sly smile forming on the corner of her lips.   He stood directly in front of her squatting down so that they were eye to eye, “I will never get tired of you.  You may exasperate me and drive me crazy, but I will never, ever, get tired of you.”  Not an ounce on insincerity in his voice or in his eyes, she smiled and hugged him tightly as if he was about to go off to war.  They stood there holding onto each other, neither wanting to let go first. 

                  Daniel and Amelia were sitting down to a late lunch, she had managed to talk him into trying fried pickles, and she took him to this spot called Maverick Jack’s that made the absolute best ones she had ever had.  She enjoyed living in Vallejo and her view, but they really do have abysmal restaurant choices, so whenever she is on the Peninsula she makes sure to eat at her favorite places.  “Careful those pickles are piping hot when they bring them to the table, but they are worth losing a layer of your mouth on,” she said only half joking.  “I’m not much of a pickle person, but I have to admit these are really good.”  “I’m just going to pretend you didn’t say that part about pickles, my German mom would disown me.”  Her smile faltered when she started thinking of her mother, Daniel held her hand across the table and said, “I miss my mom too.”  Daniels phone ringing was a welcome distraction, I’m going to step out and take this call, I’ll be right back.  Amelia sat silently eating her Impossible burger, waiting for Daniel to come back into the restaurant.  She felt a tug on her hair and turned to see Daniel beckoning her to come outside with him, that the lawyer was on the phone.  Amelia made sure to let the waitress know that they would be right back and to please not remove their food.  When she stepped outside Daniel was mid conversation with the lawyer, his name was Bennett, and Daniel let him know that she was there.  “Hello Amelia, Daniel has briefed me about the interview, my only recommendation is to not talk about Nigel or Nadine, which is the same thing I said to Daniel.  Keep your answers honest but brief.  Do not expound on anything, if the question can be answered with a yes or no, then leave it at that.”  “Should I postpone the interview till after everything gets settled?  My publicist hasn’t contacted me yet with a date or time for the interview.”  “No, getting the truth out will hopefully make them back down from their idiocy.  Don’t be evasive, but don’t be forthcoming either.  Remember they are looking for a story, this is her job, and she is not your friend.”  “Would you like to join Daniel and I during the interview?”  “No, showing up with an attorney to an interview may cause more questions on her part, but I would definitely bring your publicist.”  “Yes, Sherri will be coming with us to the interview.”  “Ok, sounds good, Daniel said you were out to eat, so I’m going to let you guys go, if you have any questions, please feel free to reach out to my office.  Do let me know how the interview goes.”  They both said thank you to him and went back into the restaurant to finish their food.  Neither of them were hungry anymore, so they had the food packed up and went back to Daniel’s apartment.