Wednesday, September 24, 2008

Three Word Wednesday

The prompts at Three Word Wednesday are:

dissolve
trinket
zest


Cheesecake

Judy used to be a passionate woman, full of joy and life. Everything was right, everything was sunny, and Judy felt it always would be. When Richard died, all of that changed. Her passion waned. Her once boundless enthusiasm dissolved slowly like some long lost trinket at the bottom of the sea, amidst the wreckage of a forgotten ship. The reality of the loss of her husband battered her like innumerable waves, and she felt that she would never love again. Eight years went by, and Judy kept mourning Richard, kept living life but not really living it, kept feeling sorry for herself.


Judy's fifty-sixth birthday found her standing alone in the self-help section at Barnes and Noble, wondering if any of the books could really help her find herself again. Judy began to feel eyes on her. Looking to her right, she saw him. A tall man of about 60, with more gray in his hair than brown, and well dressed. He was in the cooking section, holding open a cookbook. He noticed her looking back at him, and smiled.

"Maybe you can help me," he said open-endedly. Judy noticed his bare ring finger. She walked over to him, trying to appear casual. Her heart was fluttering, and she told herself that she was being silly and girlish.
"What are you making?"
"I thought I'd try my hand at a cheesecake. But I'm afraid I'm feeling a little overwhelmed." And he sounded overwhelmed. Judy glanced down at the recipe he held the book open to. New York Style.
"Any special occasion?" she searched, hoping against hope.
"No. I just needed to... well, I wanted to try something new. I've never baked anything," he half-muttered, and looked away.
After a moment, Judy said, "I happen to consider myself somewhat of an expert cheesecake baker, if you don't mind me saying so."
He grinned, and her eyes twinkled back at him. "I'd be honored to have the expert assist me. How about it?" he offered playfully.
"Well, come on, then," she laughed back as they made their way to the exit. "I like to add a little lemon zest in my cheesecake. Got any lemons?"
.

12 comments:

Thom Gabrukiewicz said...

I'm glad you're participating in 3WW. This was a good one. Got to keep all options open.

poefusion said...

So? That's where men and women hook up these days, at the bookstore. This is a well written short story, Rachel Renae. Enjoyed reading it very much. Have a nice day.

poefusion said...

Oh, and I like cheesecake too.

Tumblewords: said...

A warm piece of hope, here! And cheesecake is nothing but good!

susan said...

Oh, I like where this went. Bookstores are great places to meet intelligent and good-looking folk. I thought everyone knew that. lol

Thanks for the read.

Anonymous said...

I liked this story. I liked the writing. Well MJ no one is like that:) That would be a miracle.

Linda Jacobs said...

Kind of trusting, isn't she?

Cute story, though!

RachelRenae said...

She's just desperate enough to be trusting. ;)

Thanks everyone!

Anonymous said...

I like it. It shows promise.

Fine detailing

Melissa said...

This is great- I love it! In my head, the gentleman is Sean Connery... and you can't go wrong with Sean Connery or cheesecake. ;) **more like Sean Connery 20 years ago. lol

Amy said...

I liked it too! It's cute.

TD said...

Emotionally fulfilling. I hope the best for these characters. You got me into the story. Good post.