Chapter Thirty-three

The next several days went pretty much the same for Zoey.  She traveled to Germany and photographed the Romanesque Cologne Cathedral in Cologne and the Theatiner Church in Munich. In both cities she wandered the streets, taking pictures of whatever struck her fancy.  She sat at a small table in a terrace café in Munich watching the people go by.  She found herself making up stories to fit their appearance. There were several businessmen. One in particular rushed past her in a blue suit and tie. His face was flushed with color and his shirt and tie seemed so tight that it looked as if they were suffocating him.  He was having an animated conversation on his cell phone and Zoey assumed that this call was the real reason for his red face.  Perhaps he was talking to his boss or maybe his wife. Someone on the other end of the line was clearly displeased with him. He crossed the street hurriedly and for a moment she worried that he might be hit by a car as he was so involved in his call.  The car horn did not seem to phase him in the least and Zoey determined that car horns must be commonplace for him.  A young woman with a baby stroller stopped beside her. She checked her watch and Zoey imagined that she was meeting the father, who must be late.  Zoey could see the child nestled in the stroller. He was small, but chubby with very round little cheeks and thin, blond hair.  He was very interested in his fingers at the moment, his baby bottle discarded beside him. Zoey watched him hold his hand up to his face and move his fingers in and out making a fist.  Zoey figured that he couldn’t be more than 6 months old.  She was enjoying watching him when he stopped making a fist and look directly at her.  His eyes were so blue, it surprised her. He smiled at her and made a sound that must be a baby laugh. She was enchanted by him.  His mother fussed with him and handed him his bottle just as Daddy stepped up to them. He greeted his grumpy wife with a peck on the cheek and then took his turn fussing with the chubby baby. Zoey found herself watching them walk away until they rounded the corner and were out of sight. There were several tables occupied at the café now. It was nearly lunch time. Most of them were businessmen and women who Zoey had always been curious about.  She thought it must take a certain kind of person to do the same job day in and day out. Perhaps they were stronger than her, but she had never been able to master that. She had been lucky to always find something that brought great adventure to her life.

“Zoey!”

She looked up from her coffee to see a man approaching her. A smile covered her face and she rose to greet him.

“Hello, Parker. How’s the new daddy?”

He pulled her into a quick embrace.

“Wonderful! I’ve brought pictures!  Bailey Marie can be quite loud when she wants. Can you still see the circles under my eyes? I think perhaps I will actually get some sleep now!” he laughed.

“And how is Elizabeth handling it?”

“Like a pro. She was born to be a mother!” he exclaimed with pride and brought out the baby pictures.  The first ones were of the child at the hospital. She was so tiny and red that Zoey was alarmed at first, but the next pictures were over the next couple of days and Bailey was a more normal color. She had a small amount of very dark hair and large eyes.

“What color are her eyes?”

“Right now they are brown, but they may change. I don’t think it is likely though. Lizzie has brown eyes and so do both her parents.  They will probably stay brown.”

They chatted about the baby for a few more minutes. Zoey learned that Elizabeth’s mother had come to stay while Parker was gone.

“Works better for both of us, really. I will miss being there, but it is only a short time and I will not miss seeing Pamela,” he said with a snicker.

The waiter stopped at their table and they ordered some lunch.

“Do they not have good food in this country? You have gotten so thin, Zoey. Don’t you like European food?”

“I am not skinny,” she said looking over her loose clothing. “The food is fine here. I guess I haven’t had much of an appetite.”

Parker looked at her perplexed. “You must tell me what I’ve missed. I want to see your pictures.  How was Moscow?”

She swallowed a bit of coffee.

“Moscow was beautiful.”