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She arrived in New York feeling disorientated, knowing the time on the clock didn’t match the time it felt like in her body. She thought she would have been used to jetlag by now having flown so frequently over her life time but it was still an odd mixture of fatigue, nausea and dehydration that did not agree with her. She tried to focus on the positives, she was here for a week and although her schedule was rammed full of radio shows, television appearances and web based interviews her evenings were largely her own. And she knew where she’d be spending them.
He had set everything up, the food and the table were all ready to go, although both terms would require her to use her imagination. He was now pacing up and down his kitchen watching the clock. He knew from checking online that her flight had landed so it was just a matter of time before she checked into her hotel and then made her way over to him. He didn’t know why but he felt nervous. He’d been feeling like that every time before they’d met up recently though, it was a strange feeling that he seemed to vaguely remember from his days of first dates. It had been just under two months since he’d last seen her in Los Angeles and even when she was still there with him he’d been looking forward to the next time he’d see her. If he was honest he couldn’t get enough of her but was reluctant to dwell on what that did or didn’t mean.
His life had become a life lived in two time zones, New York and Belfast. It was a strange existence of waiting for her to text him to say she was back in her hotel room before he called her, usually around the time he was having lunch, usually him with a sandwich half hanging out of his mouth. They spoke or wrote every day and although it was good and they were always reluctant to say goodbye it would never be a good enough substitute for seeing her in person. He was sure they had talked more now than in nine years working together on the show but it was only the benefit of their shared experiences that allowed that.
His fingers were twitching to be on her skin and he risked another glance at the clock, disappointed to see only three minutes had passed. He had time for a shower before she was due to arrive, though he might set it a bit cooler than normal.