A Seal Upon Your Heart by Pepper Pace Read Free Book Online Page B

the office not realizing that she had held her breath until she let out a relieved ‘swoosh’. Jen was frowning at her.
     
    Tim was too busy to take a lunch, so that meant that she and Jen were on their own. He had two appointments scheduled with perspective clients and he still had court. Once he left Jen practically grabbed her arm and dragged her off to lunch.
     
    “Where are we going?” Jane barely had time to grab her sweater. Jen wasn’t pleased that Tim had complimented Jane on her looks. She had been coming to work each day dressed in her finest clothes and he had barely noticed.
     
    Jen was not planning to stay with Rick for the rest of her life; not when his thirteen year old hated her and had threatened to kill her. She was pretty, why shouldn’t she be married to a lawyer? And Tim had married his assistant once before…
     
    She had never thought to worry about Jane. She’d overheard Tim mention a convent and Jane herself had mentioned nuns. She suspected that the girl actually lived with nuns; she certainly dressed as if she did. She didn’t even wear a stitch of makeup.
     
    But today she had come in looking…pretty.  “I know a great place that serves the best salads.”
     
    “Salad?”  Jane asked.
     
    Jen gave her a quick look. Of course she didn’t have to worry about her figure. The girl was as thin as a…well as one of those starving people in Africa. Jen grinned at her private joke. “They have other stuff.” Jen didn’t ask she just led the way to the small Italian restaurant.
     
    “Tell me about yourself, Jane. I don’t feel like I know you at all.”
     
    Jane shrugged. There was nothing interesting about her. “I just graduated from college. I have a degree-”
     
    “I mean do you have a boyfriend?”
     
    “No.” She shook her head.
     
    “Why? Pretty girl like yourself.”
     
    Jane stared at her and blinked. “I…well it’s hard to meet boys when you’re raised in an all girl’s school-”
     
    Jen’s eyes got wide and she covered her mouth. “Jane, are you an orphan?”
     
    She nodded.
     
    “I’m sorry to hear that.” She said honestly. “But you’re still living there? In the convent?”
     
    “Just for a while longer.” They reached the restaurant and Jen continued asking her questions. She explained that she had continued living there until she finished college but would now find her own place. Jane was not comfortable speaking of it, though for once Jen listened intently. Eventually she warmed up and described what it was like to live in a household of nuns. Boring.
     
    They ordered their lunch. It was pretty expensive even for the salad that Jen ordered. Since it was the cheapest thing on the menu she ordered the same. But nearly nine dollars for a bowl of raw vegetables that she could get for free from Sister Brown Mary’s garden? From now on she would pack a sandwich.
     
    They returned to work happy and laughing and Jane felt really good. She had her degree, a good job, a new friend; someone that didn’t judge her, an old friend that had never stopped caring about her, and the world didn’t seem like such a scary place after all.
     
    “Let’s stop at the canteen and get some chocolate.” Jen said.
     
    “You just ate a salad to keep your weight down!”
     
    “I know but its Friday. We should treat ourselves!”
     
    Jane grinned. “I’m just saying; you could have had the lasagna and treated yourself.”
     
    They stopped at the 4 th floor and headed for the vending machines that sold everything from questionable sandwiches to chips and candy. Jane saw Jen’s friends and hoped she wouldn’t want to sit with them. They’d been gone a long time and she was anxious to get back upstairs to check the messages. She knew that they were allowed lunch but they had been gone much longer then their allotted half hour.
     
    “Let’s go over and say hi.” Jen said, already leading the way, her chocolate bar quickly hidden away into her