Club Fantasy

by Joan Elizabeth Lloyd

  Chloe looked horrified. “Of course you’ll date. That’s what you’re here for.”

  “No, it’s really not. I need space and time to figure myself out.”

  “Nonsense. From what I hear, you need to experience everything and that means a social life and a sex life. Sky rockets, earthquakes and all. You need to find out whether Glen is the one or not and you can’t do that without other men to compare him to. Take it from me, good sex is the best cure for whatever ails you. You said he was just average. It’s time you found someone who makes your toes curl.”

  Was curling toes a cure for her confusion? “I’ll think about it.”

  “If I have anything to do with it, you’ll do more than just think about it.”

  Chapter 3

  The two women talked for several hours until the lowering sun and the shadows of the nearby buildings darkened the little garden and voracious mosquitoes forced the women inside. They talked about nothing and everything and quickly all of Jenna’s remaining unease about the living arrangements lifted. Chloe was still the same easy-to-be-with, caring person she had been in college. Although Jenna and Chloe had been friends in school, she hadn’t felt as close as they did after that one long afternoon.

  When they eventually went inside, Chloe took Jenna on a quick tour of the brownstone. The charming four-story building consisted of a living room, dining room, kitchen and one bedroom on the main floor with three bedrooms of varying sizes on each of the upper floors. “I sleep down here,” Chloe explained, “and you can have the larger bedroom on the second floor.”

  “I’ll take a smaller room,” Jenna said quickly. “I don’t need much space.”

  “Actually there are only two bedrooms with furniture, mine and the one I picked for you. I put your boxes there, so let’s just leave it the way it is for now. I’m happy where I am.”

  “There’s no furniture in the other rooms?”

  “Oh, there’s a bed in most of them, and a dresser in some, but not much else. Aunt Elise was into antiques so when she got sick we sold off most of the contents of the upstairs. We also replaced the good pieces downstairs with stuff from discount stores. She liked to think of it as redecorating.”

  “I didn’t realize that money had gotten that tight.”

  “She had been a collector of sorts and spent freely, so the furnishings were worth quite a bit. Between that and my secret supplements she had private-duty nursing and the best food from good restaurants. Remember that scene in the movie Arthur, when he brings the butler the meal on the cart? I took that to heart. At the end, eating was her only real pleasure.”

  Chloe opened the door to her bedroom. “Aunt Elise took over this room when she got sick and I moved into it after she died.” Like the living room, Chloe’s bedroom gave the immediate impression of being comfortable. It was just big enough for a queen-sized bed with a bright crazy quilt topped with brightly colored pillows, a rocking chair with flame red seat and back cushions, a narrow dresser topped by a large mirror, and several white ginger jar lamps. A TV stood on the corner of the dresser, arranged so Chloe could watch in bed. The thick, moss green carpeting matched the drapes.

  “This is a great room,” Jenna said. “Inviting, welcoming somehow.”

  “Except for putting the regular bed back instead of the hospital one, it’s not too different from when Aunt Elise lived in here. I hope you don’t think it’s ghoulish but I feel closer to her with her rocking chair and quilt still here.”

  “It’s not ghoulish at all.”

  Chloe showed Jenna her large closet, stuffed with clothes, a wardrobe that must have cost a small fortune. “Wow,” Jenna said.

  “Yeah. I love nice clothes and you know how I love to shop.”

  Chloe backed out of her room and led Jenna up the stairs. She opened the door to the room on the left. It was as cheery as Chloe’s room, with soft rose carpet, a queen-sized bed with a mauve satin quilt as a bedspread, sprinkled with small roses and matching pillow shams. One wall held a triple-width dresser and a desk/makeup table combination with a small upholstered chair. “I got new linens and stuff when you told me you were coming.” She stroked the quilt. “I had a ball in one of those giant bed-and-bath stores. I got you new towels and mats too.”

  “You didn’t have to spend the money. I don’t know how long I’ll even be here.” Jenna knew that Chloe hadn’t fully recovered financially from her aunt’s illness and so felt slightly guilty. She hadn’t wanted Chloe to spend anything on her. “I offered to send anything we might need.”

  “I know it wasn’t necessary but I just couldn’t help myself. I want you to be comfortable.”

  “Thanks.” Jenna was starting to understand why Chloe had trouble making the tax payments on the building. Maybe she could help her friend get her financial house in order. It was usually Marcy who made budgets but Chloe certainly needed help if she was going be able to stay in the brownstone.

  Chloe opened the door to the double closet and Jenna saw her boxes, neatly stacked off to one side. “Those were heavy,” Jenna said, shaking her head. “I hope you didn’t try to carry them upstairs by yourself. I fully intended to help you.”

  Chloe winked. “Don’t worry, I didn’t carry them myself.” She batted her eyelashes. “When you’re five feet tall, no one lets you do anything. One look at me and the UPS guy called me honey, carried everything upstairs, and put it all in the closet.”

  Jenna couldn’t suppress a chuckle. “Doesn’t playing helpless get you down from time to time? From what I remember you’re as helpless as a barracuda.”

  “I know that, and you know that, but when it suits me”—she batted her eyelashes again—“no one else does.”

  Jenna burst out laughing. “Okay. I give.”

  Early on Tuesday morning, Jenna took the copy of the advertisement in the New York Times and made her way to the temp agency Chloe had found. She explained to the manager that she didn’t want a permanent position since she didn’t know how long she’d be in town. With her letters of reference from AAJ and her scores on the computerized exams she took, she was immediately welcomed into the cadre of translators at a generous hourly rate. “It says you’ve specialized in simultaneous translation. I’ve got something for you for tomorrow if you’re ready to begin working. I’ve got some textile importers from Hamburg coming to negotiate with the president of a small firm in the garment district. I had intended to send someone else but, if I can arrange it, I’d like him to stay on the long-term assignment he’s on. I had just about given up hope of finding anyone.”

  “Sure. Sounds great.” A job already. This is going to work out fine.

  Just before nine the following morning she arrived at Paramount Textiles, in the heart of the garment district. She’d dressed carefully for this, her first job. With Chloe’s help, she’d selected a beige linen pantsuit with a black, knit, short-sleeved top and black flat-heeled shoes. She’d kept her jewelry simple, wearing only a slender gold necklace and matching earrings.

  She fought her way across west Forty-seventh Street, weaving between rolling racks of dresses and slacks in every color of the rainbow and triple-parked trucks, finally arriving at the ancient but spacious building just on time. As she got off the elevator on the fourth floor, she was almost tackled by a tall, angular man of about thirty-five, with lots of deep brown hair, touches of grey already gracing the temples, and large, flashing brown eyes that glared at her from behind rimless glasses. He was scowling and pacing the front office. “If you’re Jenny Bryant, the translator the agency sent,” the man said without preamble, his face flushed, “let’s get started.”

  “Are you Mr. McBride?” When he snapped a quick nod, she continued, “I’m sorry if you’ve been waiting for me but I was told to be here at nine.”

  The man glanced at his watch, then huffed and looked chagrined. “Call me, Toby, and I’m the one who’s sorry.” When his eyes softened, she realized that he was really quite nice looking. “I’m very anxious about
these negotiations and I guess I let it get to me. You’re actually right on time, Jenny. Can we begin?”

  “Of course,” she said, realizing that she probably had more experience at such meetings than Toby had. “And it’s Jenna.”

  “Jenna?”

  “My name is Jenna.”

  “Jenna. Unusual name. Would you like some coffee?”

  “No, thank you. I’m fine. Why don’t we just get started?”

  He led her into a room with a wall of windows, and she placed her purse on the long wooden table covered with papers, bolts of fabric, and a large assortment of swatches. He introduced her to two men, Herr Schuller and Herr Morgen. They nodded to her, and they exchanged a few words with Jenna in their native language.

  “What did you say to them?”

  “I just asked which part of Germany they were from and how they liked New York. Sorry, I was just trying to put them at ease. I sense that they are as nervous about these talks as you are.”

  “Really? That’s very good to know.”

  There was another interchange, then Jenna said, “They complimented you on your written proposal.”

  Toby raised a quizzical eyebrow. “There was more than that. You blushed.”

  She found herself embarrassed as she said, “They also complimented me on my pronunciation.”

  His sudden smile lit his face but there was an edge of irritation to his voice as well. “That’s great. You’re getting along with them better than I am already.”

  He’s off the wall, Jenna thought. Calmly, as if to a frightened child, she said, “Since I’m an extension of you it’s good for both of us.”

  Toby nodded and began to speak. For the next three hours, the three people bargained, haggling over delivery dates, quantities, and shipping costs, with Jenna easily keeping the conversations straight. At just after twelve, Jenna said to Toby, “I don’t know what your plans are, but I’d suggest a nice lunch about now. I think they’re close to agreeing to most of your terms but they need some time to let it all gel.” This was a common tactic at AAJ and Jenna had been part of dozens of such lunches.

  She watched Toby consider it, then nod. “Good idea. Why don’t you mention it to them?”

  After a few minutes of discussion, a restaurant was agreed on. “If you don’t mind another suggestion,” Jenna said, “when we get to the restaurant, I’ll go to the ladies room and stay a while. Maybe you can arrange to get a phone call so they can have a few minutes to talk things over in private.”

  “Okay. Great idea. You’re really good at this,” Toby said, his eyes glowing with obvious admiration. “I’ll set that up when we get there.”

  By midafternoon, all terms had been set and the contracts were being drawn up in English. “Can you come back tomorrow and translate the terms and conditions for them?”

  “You’ll have to arrange that through the agency. You know that they’ll have to have their own people go over the documents in detail back home.”

  “I know, but I’m hoping to make them more comfortable with everything before they leave. If there are any last-minute hitches, maybe we can take care of them then.”

  “Sure, no problem.”

  “Thanks for being so patient with me. This deal is my first venture into the international market. I was a bit nervous about it.”

  Dryly, Jenna said, “I never would have guessed.” Toby had the good grace to look chagrined, and then they both burst out laughing.

  By the time she left at five-thirty, her agency had given her the go ahead for the second day, and had given her a two-day assignment for the following week.

  At dinner that evening she told Chloe about her day. “That’s great,” Chloe said. “You seem to have been a hit.”

  “Yeah. Toby called the agency late this afternoon and gave me a glowing recommendation.”

  “Is he cute?”

  Jenna blushed. She thought he was very attractive but that wasn’t a businesslike thing to admit. “I didn’t really notice,” she said, uncomfortable with herself for sounding a bit stuffy.

  “Right. And I don’t notice when I look at that guy from CSI Miami. The cute one with the great biceps.”

  “Really, I didn’t pay any attention to his looks. This was business.”

  “Of course it was. So, do you think he’ll ask you to dinner tomorrow night?”

  Chuckling, Jenna said, “You’re incorrigible. Okay, yes, he’s very good looking.” She hesitated. “He looks sort of like Glen.”

  Chloe frowned. “Stop obsessing about your ex. He’s in the past, or at least that’s where you should put him if you don’t want to get serious with him. It’s kinder to both of you.” Chloe bit down on a burger she’d brought in from a restaurant down the street. “So, if he asks, will you have dinner with him?”

  Would she? Maybe she needed to get back on the dating horse. She mentally shook herself. This was all silly. He wasn’t going to ask her to dinner.

  “How about having dinner with me?” Toby said, the following afternoon after the two Germans had left. “I’d like to get to know you better.”

  “Let me be perfectly honest with you, Toby,” Jenna said. “I’m just out of a long-term relationship and I don’t know whether I’m ready for anything else right now.”

  Toby stared at her. “I asked you to have dinner with me as a friend. Relax. I haven’t devoured a dinner partner in weeks. I just wanted to thank you properly for all your help these last two days. You sped things up and made some very helpful suggestions.” All at once he looked like a little boy. “And you kept me sane.”

  Jenna felt perfectly silly. Here he was thanking her for her skill and she was acting like a ninny. “Sorry. I guess I’m a little gun-shy. Sure, I’d love to have dinner with you.”

  He asked whether she’d ever had real authentic Indian food and she admitted that she hadn’t, but that she’d love to try. An hour later they were sitting across from each other at a quiet restaurant near his office, sipping red wine.

  “Tell me a little about yourself,” Toby suggested, moving the small lamp to the side of the table where it was out of the way.

  By the time the appetizers arrived, she’d given him a capsule version of her days at SUNY Albany and her experiences with AAJ. She’d even told him a very brief version of her relationship with Glen. “Tell me what everything is,” she said, pointing to the plate of assorted finger food, “and warn me what’s hot.”

  “Are you afraid of hot things?” he asked smoothly, and Jenna wondered whether he had meant the double-entendre.

  Deciding to ignore it as her imagination, she answered, “Not at all. I just like to be warned.” Phew, she thought. That answer could have the same kind of double meaning. She was about to correct any misinterpretation when she reconsidered. Why not flirt a little? After all, Chloe’s right. I do have to move on, so why not try my wings.

  His smile was warm and open. “Okay. I promise I’ll warn you.” He held her gaze for just a moment longer than necessary, then pointed out the tandoori chicken, mango chutney, vegetable fritters, and a sausage-looking thing called kefta or something like that. “Oh, and this,” he said, indicating a crisp, flat bread covered with black specks, “might be spicy. Sometimes it is and sometimes it just tickles the tip of your tongue.”

  There was nothing in what he said that was in the slightest bit suggestive, but his tone was warm and invitational. To change the subject, she said, “You’ve heard the condensed version of my life story, how about yours?”

  “Fair enough.” Between bites, Toby told Jenna that he had graduated from NYU with a degree in business and had taken over his father’s company when his dad had retired several years before. He had been married for four years, a marriage that had ended two years previously. They discovered that they shared a love of classical music, but while Jenna worked out three times a week, Toby was a couch potato and enjoyed watching vintage sitcoms. During a meal of chicken saag and a moderately spicy lamb curry with rice, two kin
ds of bread, and a delicious concoction of cucumber, yogurt, and mint, they discovered that they generally agreed politically but disagreed on the administration’s handling of the trouble in the Middle East.

  Toby ordered an orange-sherbert dessert that arrived in hollowed-out oranges, and as she ate, Jenna found herself telling him about Chloe and her recent arrival in New York City. When she mentioned Marcy and her need to get away from her twin sister, he asked, “Are you two identical?”

  “Our genes say we are, but except for things that we can’t change, like our height and eye color, we’re really very different. She’s a planner and I’m a by-the-seat-of-the-pants kind of girl. She’s also more of a couch-potato type, like you.” She heard what she’d just said. “I didn’t mean that as an insult, you understand, it’s just different from the way I am. I like to stay in shape. I mean—” She swallowed. “I’m sorry. None of that came out right.”

  “I understood exactly what you meant. There’s no need to apologize. I gather that your sister is still back home in—?”

  “Upstate. Seneca Falls to be exact and, yes, she’s still there. She does document translation for the company I used to work for.”

  “You’re both translators. Maybe you’re not as different as you might think.”

  Jenna thought for a moment. “Yeah, maybe.”

  As the waiter stopped at the table for the third time in five minutes, asking whether there would be anything else, Toby looked around, then at his watch. “I think they are giving us a hint.”

  Jenna glanced around and saw that they were the only ones left in the restaurant. “I think we’re overstaying our welcome.”

  “It’s after ten and I guess they’re ready to close up.” He took out his credit card and handed it to the hovering waiter.

  Jenna felt incredibly awkward. She and Glen had always gone Dutch, but she didn’t know whether it would be an insult to mention it. Toby seemed to read her mind. “This is a business dinner to thank you for all your help with those Germans.”