Esq. (closed)

[BeachBum25]

Gallo listened to Meg as they walked. She had overcome so much in her life, and now she had to endure catching her fiancée fucking another woman in their bed. It just wasn't fair. He really wished she could be happy. She was a very successful attorney in the Prosecutors Office, but that didn't mean she was happy. It seemed to Gallo that Meg was still fighting the battle to prove how good she was every day.

"Meg, looking to the future doesn't mean that you don't work hard. It just means that you have to have a balance. You can't be focused on being the best lawyer 24/7. Focus on the job while you are working. When you leave the office, leave the work behind. I almost had a breakdown, because for a while all I did was work. That will send you to an early grave. I learned to be efficient while working. I don't waste any time. That way, when I leave the time is mine. It means I get to go for a walk in the park with a pretty woman from the Prosecutors Office." He smiled and winked at her.

 

[heartofcourage]

"Well, I guess it's luck that I have time to take a walk with a hot shot attorney." Megan said back to him, giving him a rare true smile as they continued walking. "I think rekindling our friendship will be good for the both of us. I'm glad that we're giving it a chance."

 

[BeachBum25]

"Megan, you know that I have always been willing to give it a chance. You just took everything in the courtroom personally. My opinion of you has never changed. There is more to you than what everyone sees on the outside. You just never let anybody see the inside." He continued to walk with her. He was really enjoying his time with Meg. "I think that we are good for each other. Rekindling out friendship is definitely a good thing, Megan."

 

[heartofcourage]

"I think you're the only person who has ever seen what was on the inside." Megan murmured as they continued their walk, a little touched by his comment. "I was always too scared to let someone get too close to me. I was afraid that I would ruin anything good that came my way. That's why I pushed you away so hard. I didn't want to hurt what we had."

She glanced up at Jerry, letting out a sigh. "I always bring a conversation down. Ever met anyone else with that kind of a talent?"

 

[BeachBum25]

"there is nothing wrong with telling how you feel. I know what you went through a lot growing up. That never goes away Megan. I know how you try to protect yourself. That involves pushing people away so you dont get hurt." He reached out and took for her hand as they walked. They remained quiet for a while. "Whatever you need, I am here for you."

 

[heartofcourage]

Megan glanced down at his hand as he took her own in his. She gave him a slight smile as they were quiet for a while before he promised to be whatever she needed. She thought about that offer and it was incredibly tempting. She hadn't had a friend in a very long time that she could lean upon when she needed them most.

"Thank you for that offer. It means a lot to me." She murmured softly as they went quiet again, their walk soon leading them out of the park and back to the street. "So, where to now? Back to your place?"

 

[BeachBum25]

He enjoyed their quiet walk. Actually, he enjoyed the time with Megan. He never wanted to be without her, but that had been her decision. He squeezed her hand as they exited the park. "We can do whatever you want. If you just want to go back to my place, that is just fine with me Megan."

 

[heartofcourage]

Jerry had always been an agreeable kind of person. He would defer to her when they were making plans and she was always left considering what she wanted to do. They could go back to his place and she could go to bed. Perhaps there was something more that they should be doing.

"What if we went and picked up some beer? We could watch a movie at your place and drink. It would be a hell of a lot easier to get to bed than it was last night." Megan suggested, not really knowing what more there was to do out there.

She wasn't the kind of girl that went out often. Mostly because of her job, but that was few and far between. She had never really liked crowds or loud voices. It was part of the reason why she loved her solitude.

 

[BeachBum25]

Jerry was surprised by Megan's recommendation. He couldn't believe that she was really interested in drinking again tonight. It was obvious that she didn't drink much, but she was suggesting that they drink again tonight. Gallo wasn't sure about this, but he was going to give in to her wishes.

"Sure, there is a place around the corner from my place that I can get a couple of six packs. I am sure that you will be able to find a movie on cable for us to watch. It sounds like a great way to end the day." When they got to the store, Gallo grabbed two six packs of Corona. He picked up a couple of limes also.

When they got up to his condo, Gallo put the beer and limes into the refrigerator. "I am going to change into something more comfortable. I will meet you in the living room in a couple minutes." He went into his room and changed into a pair of shorts and a t-shirt. Then, he went out to the kitchen, took out two beers and a lime, and, after cutting the limes and putting a wedge in each beer, he carried the beers into the living room.

 

[heartofcourage]

Once back at his house, Megan curled up on the couch and found a movie on TV. It felt strange to be at his house, enjoying a moment like this. They had done this many times before while they were dating but it had been a long time since she had enjoyed a moment like this with someone she loved. With her ex, it was always about appearance. Beer on the couch in front of the TV was just something that they didn't do.

"Thanks." Megan said, snapped out of her thoughts as Jerry came back and offered her a beer. "I got lost for a moment. It's always been hard to turn my brain off."

 

[BeachBum25]

Gallo sat down on the sofa next to Megan. "Come on Meg. You need to flick the switch. This is the time where you have to relax and not worry about anything. This is the time to veg and not worry about anything." He took a big drink from his beer and sat back on the sofa.

"SO, tell me Meg, what are we watching? Let me guess....it is some girly kind of movie isnt it?"

 

[heartofcourage]

"When have you ever known me to watch something girly? It's always documentaries and action movies. You should remember that." Megan said as she gave him a smile and took a drink off her own beer. "Even however briefly we dated."

She was quiet for a moment as she thought about that statement. "You know...I was happy when we were together. I really was."

 

[BeachBum25]

"I was teasing you about the girly movie Meg. I know you were not into the girly movies then. Hell, you like the action movies as much as I do." He remembered how they had similar taste in movies. Heck, they had similar tastes in just about everything. They got along so well.....right up until they broke up. He understood what she went through and he let her vent without interjecting his thoughts or opinions.

"We were good together Meg. We were good for each other. I thought we would be together longer than we were, but it didnt work out. We both moved on and found something different."

 

[heartofcourage]

"You found a lucrative law practice and I found a man who cheated on me." Megan murmured as she looked over at Jerry. "I was a fool for letting you go. If I had stayed with you we would have probably been married by now with a few little kids running around with a dog in the yard. Maybe that's the kind of thing that I've always been missing."

 

[BeachBum25]

He listened to Megan. She was talking about things that she never had as a kid. She never had a family, and it was obvious that it was something that she wanted. "Meg, dont beat yourself up over what happened between us just because some asshole tricked you into believing he was something that he is not. Fortunately, you found out about the real him before it was too late."

Gallo took a long drink of his beer and finished it. He got up off the couch. "Do you want another one, or are you going to just have the one?"

 

[heartofcourage]

Megan looked down at her half finished beer and considered what he was asking. She glanced towards him a moment later and gave him a smile.

"Sure. Why not? It's suppose to be relaxing, right?" She asked him as she drank her beer and finally handed him the empty.

 

[BeachBum25]

"You didn't have to chug it. I would have brought you another one even if you hadn't finished it." He took the bottles out to the kitchen and tossed them in the recycle. He opened two more beers and he put lime wedges in them, and returned to the living room.

Gallo handed the beer to Megan and sat down the sofa near Megan. "So, what are we going to watch Meg. Lady's choice. I am up for anything that you choose." He sat back in the sofa and waited to see what movie she chose. "I have all of the premium channels and I am not sure why. I never watch tv. I am sure you can find something you like."

 

[heartofcourage]

"I didn't have to, but I did." Megan said with a small smile on her lips as he left to retrieve two new bottles and handed her one when he returned. "How about James Bond? One of the older ones. Not sure that I'll really watch it much, but it'll be nice background noise."

"I think that I'd rather talk. I like talking to you." She finally admitted, taking a long drink from her beer before she turned to look at Jerry. "You were always a good listener."

 

[BeachBum25]

Gallo looked at Megan. He had to admit to himself that he was surprised with how she was behaving. He knew that she appreciated how he had helped her, but she was actually being quite social toward him. It want that he didn't like it, he liked it a lot, but he was surprised based on their relationship, or lack there of as they had been opponents in the courtroom.

He took a long during of his beer. "I would be happy to talk, or listen, Meg. It has been too long since we had a real, civil conversation. Put 007 on and let it be background noise, and we can talk about anything you want to talk about." He took another drink from his beer and put his feet up on the coffee table. He enjoyed having Megan there, and he was looking forward to what she wanted to talk about.

 

[heartofcourage]

Megan turned on the movie and lowered the sound, crossing her legs as she turned to face Jerry. It felt odd to be having a nice conversation with him after all the animosity she had held in the court room, but he had always been a good guy. Even when she had broken up with him, he kept his cool, despite the anger and sadness he might have felt.

"Why did you give me a chance back then?" Megan asked him, the beer bottle rolling between her fingers as she looked down at her lap. "I was the poor kid. No one else would give me the time of day because I couldn't afford to do the same thing that the rest of you did. What did you see that the rest of them didn't?"

 

[BeachBum25]

He paused before responding to her question. Should he tell her the truth, or should he make something up. Telling her the truth might be awkward considering what had happened recently. Ultimately, Gallo decided that he was going to be strightforward with Megan. Just tell her the way it was.

"Meg, there were two reasons. There first reason was that I thought you were absolutely gorgeous. Actually, I still do, but that is a little off topic. The second reason was that you had a drive and determination that was second to none. You didn't let anything get in the way of what you wanted to do. I never cared about what you had or didn't have. I just liked the woman that you were, and the woman that you are."

 

[heartofcourage]

"So, you took a chance because I was pretty?" Megan asked him, a little stunned by his admission.

There had been physical attraction between them always. It had started out hot, flared into a burning fire, and then fizzled out when she had been frightened away. She would have been a fool to deny that there wasn't still something there between them. He was handsome. He always had been.

"I'll take that as a compliment." She murmured as she brushed a piece of red hair away from her face, looking up at Jerry as she did so. "I'm still jealous of that trip you took with the rest of them during Spring Break. I worked my ass off to afford to go skiing with the rest of you, but when it came down to it, I realized that I still couldn't afford half of what you were doing."

 

[BeachBum25]

"I was attracted to you by your looks, yes, but also by your work ethic. I admired you....admire you....for what you overcame. Some people gave me a hard time because they said I was just pitying you. That had nothing to do with it. Everything about you, I found attractive."

"Meg, I would have hoped that you knew that money never meant anything to me. If I had known you really wanted to go on that trip, I would have found a way to get you there. You hid it though. You kept saying that you had too much work to do. I am sorry I didn't figure that out."

He looked at Megan as he thought about what she was saying. "I know this is going to sound crazy. What if we took a long weekend and went skiing. It can be the two of us, or it can be anyone else you want to invite. Just get out of town and have some fun on the slopes. Hell, I haven't gone skiing since that trip. What do you say?" He knew that he was way out on a limb, and he doubted that she would agree to it, but he really wanted to do it.

 

[heartofcourage]

"You really want to go skiing with me?" Megan asked, laughing softly at the suggestion.

She was laughing because she liked the idea. There was no malice or suspicion when it came to Jerry. It was sweet that he wanted to make up for that trip that had happened so many years ago. It had hurt her, but she had kept that pain close to the chest from everyone else. No one had known that she desperately wanted to go and no one had known just how much she hurt while they were gone.

"I guess it IS time to take a vacation. Skiing could be fun." Megan murmured as she took a drink from her bottle. "I've never been skiing before, to be honest with you. I'd probably be horrible at it but I'm too stubborn to know when to call it quits."

 

[BeachBum25]

Gallo was shocked that she was so open to the idea. He was also very happy that she was interested in going. No, he was more than happy. He was excited about the possibility of getting out of town for a few days, and about the idea of spending time with Megan. He wasn't sure what, if anything, would come from their time together, but he was looking forward to being with her. He had to admit, there was a part of him that never really got over her breaking up with him.

"Well, I haven't skied since that trip, and that was the first time that I had ever been skiing. Wasn't too good at it either. Heck, if we go, we can tumble down the slopes together." He laughed a little. He was suddenly looking forward to a vacation with an ex-girlfriend. "Who else would you like to go with us?"