He stopped and studied her for a minute. "Alright." He dropped into a chair. "By the way, happy birthday."
It was her turn to do some studying. How could he know of the birthday she had forgotten? She sat down in the chair opposite him and studied her coffee. Keeping her voice conversational, she asked him without looking up.
"How did you know?"
He pulled an envelope from his pocket. "This came for you today. Oh, and the mailbox is a dummy. All my mail goes to a post office box."
The blood drained from her face. "You opened my mail?"
"No, it's sealed. It just looks like a birthday card to me. Again I guessed right. You're easy, you know that? You never see it coming. Most people will tell you anything you want to know. You just have to act like you already know it."
She snatched the envelope from his hand. "Thanks for revealing your strategy," she said in an acid tone.
The chuckle was as welcome as it was unexpected. "You always have a comeback. I like that." He stood and stretched. "Well, since you just graduated, my guess is that this is your 20'th."
Examining the envelope, she replied without looking at him. "Well, you haven't broken your record with me. That's right, but not until Sunday. What about you, 25?" No sleuth work involved there. She told him she was nineteen years old the first day they met. A little memory work might be required, but anyone could count from nineteen to twenty.
"Not until next month - and it's 26. Six years isn't much difference, especially five years from now."
She didn't look up. "Yeah, because I probably won't even remember you by then."
He laughed. "I'm going to bed."
After he left the room, she opened the envelope. At least it was still sealed and it was from Connie. Had there been another? Inside the card was a letter from Connie.
"Sorry I haven't answered yet. Howard has been trying to answer your question. He hasn't had much luck yet. Len told me about your car. Scary stuff! I'm glad he found a car for you. He sure is a nice guy. I can't imagine why you chose Allen instead. No, I didn't tell Allen where you were. I haven't even seen him since the funeral. Len said he didn't say anything either. I can't imagine how Allen knew. I'm sending you this card and hope to see you on your birthday if you can get away.