Episode 17 - Meeting the Mark

I stared nervously into space, dreading the moment that Lukinor would sit down in front of me. Lukinor, the girl I was supposed to tag, the target, the mark. The number one rule of a PI, never never ever ever interact with the target. And here I had a loud mouthed chatterbox, inviting the mark over to our table. I was torn in two, should I stay or should I go? And to make matters worse I had a machine gun rattling in my ear that had run loose.

"Hey, Cheryl. Nice to see you here." Lukinor's voice wafted through the air. My ears heard a woman, my eyes saw an angel, my mind interpretted this as celestial intervention. Lukinor's smile to Cheryl seemed genuine, but her eyes seemed to say that she wasn't too happy to see Cheryl.

"HEY LUKINOR! Nice to see you here! I was planning to hit the treadmills and tone my arms. You know what this creep told me at the studio today? He said had flabby arms! FLABBY ARMS! Can you believe the nerve of that guy? It's not like he was so damn thin anyway. Bah. These photographers think they're so high and mighty. Doesnt he know that what he says could hurt a girl? Men. All they care about is their own selves. Oh, anyway, this is Mr. Gustavsen," Cheryl rattled off.

I rose from my seat and took Lukinor's hand in mine. So soft and tender it felt, so warm the smile behind it. Dammit, for the first time since I got the job I regretted bieng assigned to tag someone so beautiful.

Me and Lukinor exchanged pleasantries and I signalled the waiter to take Lukinor's order of a light salmon sandwich. I could hardly take my eyes off her, even after Cheryl began her oral blitzkrieg once again. Cheryl didn't seem to notice that she was being ignored, not just by me but by Lukinor as well. Apparently Lukinor knew enough about Cheryl to know that once she started talking she would never stop.

Despite the cacophony Cheryl managed to generate completely on her own, I found myself engaged in an actual conversation with Lukinor. She talked about her father, about her work, about living in his shadow, about being sick of being rich. More than anything, I heard just how alone Lukinor was, and now I wasn't just falling for her exterior, I was falling for her inner beauty as well. Damn.

"Hey, I gotta go to the loo. I've been holding my pee for so long since I had to entertain Mr. Gustavsen. Where is that place? You know, Mr. G, I've never had to hold my pee for another man. That makes you kinda special eh? And my bladder is so weak..."

"Cheryl, we really don't need to hear about your bladder problems, and the loo is that way." Lukinor interrupted, obviously irritated with the way Cheryl was conducting herself. Cheryl didn't seem to hear the irritation in her voice, and headed of to the loo.

Lukinor waited till Cheryl was out of ear-shot before she whispered in my ear, "Mr. Gustavsen, do you really want to stay here and listen to blabbermouth Cheryl go on and on about her pee?"

I smiled at her. She had read my mind precisely. Better still, this would give me my chance to get an invite to the club tonight. Worst of all, I could feel it deep within my bones, that feeling I had never felt since I experienced it 40 years ago. That feeling you get deep in the bones and down in the loins. That feeling you don't want to feel when you're on a mission.

That feeling called love.

I was falling in love with Lukinor Twubber, the woman I was supposed to mark.