“Not a scene,” I said, walking back toward the restaurant entrance. “Just a clarification. I’ll wait for you inside.”
I didn’t wait for their answer. I just walked back in, knowing their curiosity would bring them back.
And I was right.
I heard their footsteps behind me, their murmurs of confusion and irritation. I walked straight to table 22, which had already been reset for the next guests. I stood next to it, waiting for them to arrive.
Michael was the first to approach. “Mom, what are you doing? You’re embarrassing us.”
“Embarrassing you?” I repeated softly. “How interesting that you use those words. Tell me, Michael, how do you think I felt for the last two hours?”
Michael opened his mouth to answer, but Marlene cut him off. “Look, Helen, I don’t know what you’re trying to do, but we’ve had enough drama for one night. If you want to play the victim, do it some other time and some other place.”
Marlene’s parents had approached, too, looking at me with a mix of confusion and irritation. Her father checked his watch ostentatiously. “We really have to go. We have important engagements tomorrow.”