by Avonlea Cole
"Yeah." I motioned to my smoothie. "I don't think I've ever been here before actually." I tried to drink the too thick smoothie, but the little tidbits making it through tasted of vitamins so I gave up pretty quickly.
"Oh really! Are you from around here?" She genuinely looked interested which gave me hope considering the last odd date I’d had.
"I have lived in Raleigh most of my life actually. What about you?" I had stopped short of mentioning my dad's company and the necessity of living close to airports.
"Well, I am originally from Colorado, but I moved here a few years ago to attend college, and I fell in love with it." The way her eyes sparkled when she said how much she loved this state made me wonder how deeply she could love someone. "I still miss the mountains, but I don't miss the crazy weather patterns. It gets cold here but not that cold." She stirred around her plate before looking back up, directly into my eyes. "So what should I know about you?" I felt like she was peering into my soul, and I answered her question by spouting out my basic info minus how much money was in my bank account.
"I'm pretty normal." Depending on your version of normal. "I’m twenty-nine, and I work in business/marketing/personnel services. I like to go out to dinner and the occasional after party. I like to travel . . . by car mostly, and I love the ocean."
"Interesting," she said, smiling and nodding her head.
I knew I had to turn on the charm so I flashed my best interesting smile and said, "Wait. What do you mean interesting? Interesting like cool or interesting like I am a weirdo?" We both laughed, and she took a sip of her drink.
"Well, I hate to break it to you, but interesting like I can't believe you didn't mention one outrageous thing in there. Are you hiding some bad boy lifestyle, or are you really a business man that likes to party on occasion?"
"I'm stunned!" I laughed. "If you're asking if I like jumping off buildings or something I must warn you, I'm afraid of heights and I am not a fan of most things life threatening, but I am willing to go for a thrill ride every now and then."
"Fair enough," she said. We discussed her background in depth. She had graduated from U.N.C. here in North Carolina with a degree in sports medicine and education. Now she was an instructor for an extreme sports company in Raleigh that does everything from rock climbing to hot yoga. My mind roamed thinking of whatever "hot yoga" consisted of. I was impressed, a little thrown, but very impressed.
"So where do we go from here, Drew? I have to get going, but I'd like to see you again." Her piercing green eyes weren't riddled with shyness or fear, instead she looked like a girl who knew what she wanted, and that confidence was very appealing. So I explained my newly adopted three-date rule.
"Okay then. So the next date is my choice. You’re sure you aren't scared of what I might pick?"
"Actually I am a bit scared, but I want to find someone that can keep me interested and someone I am compatible with so I am willing to try new things . . . except for the heights. No sky diving if you can resist." She giggled and said she'd try. I don't know if I believed her, but we would cross that bridge when we got there. I tossed our mess in the trash and walked her to her car. Well, I thought it would be a car, but then again I should have known. On this beautiful summer day, Jenna had driven her motorcycle to work. According to the black decals on the blinding white painted motorcycle it was a Yamaha R1. Her helmet was also white with a swirly black design and her matching leather jacket completed the look. Freaking hot!
I watched her mount the crotch rocket, and my mind roamed to the dark side thinking about how those long legs would feel mounted around me. When the motor roared to life, I had to adjust my pants. She looked back at me one more time; I could still see her glowing green eyes through the tinted helmet. I waved and she sped off around the corner.
Damn, that girl was fine.
I was getting warmer. The library chick might have failed, but this girl was a prize.
When I finally made it back to the office I was a few minutes late, but I had worked constantly through the morning so I hoped it wouldn't matter.
I went back to work reading through the files coming to the quick conclusion that I needed some sort of estimate. I pulled up one of our vendor sites and looked up the dreaded feminine product machine. Turns out it wasn't that expensive. It was more for the refills than the machine, but if we needed to we could refill them ourselves and skip the maintenance fee. I wonder who would be in charge of that task.
I got the quotes together and considered that issue dealt with until the next board meeting convened in two weeks. Moving on to another office request, I totally agreed that the snack machine situation was monumental. The request was made for new snack vendors to be brought in. The snack machines were ancient, and I had refused to buy anything from them because the last bag of M&Ms I’d purchased were not only out of date, but they had turned completely white in color. Gross. I contacted a local vendor, and he said he would come down with some options tomorrow at ten a.m. I jotted it down on my calendar and moved on.
The rest of the day went like that. A few of the evaluations were funny. Jake, one of the pilots, had put that he would like a box of Swiss roll cakes available for every flight and new tassels for their uniforms.
I actually felt important doing this project, in fact, for the first time I felt like I had a sense of responsibility. I enjoyed fixing problems and finding ways to make our company a better place to work. I couldn't say I cared a lot about the flying part, but the employees were an important part of the company. Maybe I could be their supervisor? I would definitely bring it up to my father at the next board meeting. I mean we did have an employee relations manager, but he focused more on the insurance benefits and payroll. I put the thoughts aside and grabbed my things to leave. Then it hit me! I hadn't checked my inbox since the message from Jenna, almost eight hours ago. I could no longer wait till I arrived home. I clicked the link and watched it load. Three new messages appeared. The first was from Claire, she was the chef of a local hotel restaurant. I had been to a few catering events there, and the food was phenomenal.
"Hi Drew. Sorry for the delayed response, the hotel I work for has been booked solid for a few weeks, I would love to hear back from you and maybe schedule a time to meet for drinks or something. Anyway, talk to you soon." Her message was very pleasant, and I instantly responded with a no problem, blah blah blah, I'd love to meet her. I meant the words just the repeating them part was getting a little weird.
The second message was from Jenna, we had never exchanged numbers, and she was asking for mine. She said lunch was great, and she would be in touch about that second date. I messaged her back with my number and blah blah blah.
The last message was from Victoria. She was a single mom, and I had been nervous about being around her child. She wrote, "Drew, what a handsome name. I am sorry I took so long to respond. Life is busy when school is out. Maybe you could tell me a little bit about yourself? I am a single mom to a six year old. I work part time for the school system, and I also do side work during the tax season. Gotta make ends meet, right? I love reading and going to the movies and anything outdoors. I look forward to hearing from you! -Victoria"
The message was sweet, and I felt like I could picture who she was as a person. I wanted to meet her for sure. I messaged her back and once again shut my computer down.
THE NEXT EVENING I headed out of the house to meet Matt. He was hanging at one of our favorite pubs, Sir Anthony’s, watching reruns of UFC fights.
"Happy hump day, man," he said, standing to greet me. He smelled of hops and pretzel salt, and I could tell by the way he hugged me that he was well on his way to being toasted.
"All right, hero. Have a seat before you get knocked out early." I shrugged him off, and we sat down at the tall pub tables. Wendy, our favorite blonde waitress, came over with a tall glass of Samuel Adams. "Just the lady I was looking for." I smiled.
"Well, I know what my fellas like." She winked and twisted her hips w
alking away. I had a brief thing with her for a while, but we both decided that it couldn’t go anywhere, especially since her boyfriend—I think his name was Jerk Off—tried to fight me outside the pub. Yikes! I smiled remembering the look on her face when she said "Friends?" Who could resist a hot blonde winking as she ended our umm, friendship.
"So where have you been all week? I haven’t seen you once since last week," Matt slurred as he chugged the last swig or his foamy beer.
"At work, man. My dad came down on me about being late all the time. But I have to say that since I started getting into it, I kind of like the management side."
"Has he gotten over his dream of you flying yet? Lord knows he hasn’t been the same. I saw him pass by the other day in one of those tinted black rides. He didn’t even glance my way. He used to be like a dad to me growing up."
"Yeah, me too. Old man’s gotta relax . . .” I jammed a pretzel rod into the honey mustard dip in the basket and chewed on the end. I let the salty goodness sink in putting some space in between the negative comment and the good news I had come to share. "So check this out." I whipped out my phone, and Matt leaned towards me. Pulling up my profile on the dating site, I scrolled through my profile showing him the pictures I’d chosen.
"Uh why are we looking at pictures of you?" he yelled far too loud as he grabbed for my phone. "I want to see some hotties, man."
"Patience!" I laughed pushing him away. "Okay. Check her out." I showed him the picture of Jenna knowing that he would be insanely jealous of my hot find.
"Dudeeee! I hate you so much right now. Leave it to you to find a babe on a dating site." Pouting, he jammed another pretzel rod in his mouth; the crumbs taking up residence in his bushy goatee. "But you got to watch out for the catfish."
"Catfish?" I exclaimed. "What the hell is a catfish?"
"You know. The people who put up fake pictures and when you meet them in person you’re like ‘WTF, you’re a cow.’" We both nervously laughed while I considered the risk I was taking with each date.
Shaking off the warning I said, "Well, this girl is no catfish. She drives a motorcycle, and she is an instructor for "hot yoga" among other things. She is smoking hot."
By the time we headed home, Matt could no longer walk. I dropped him off in front of his townhouse and waited until he stumbled inside. I got home just in time to catch Claire online. We messaged back and forth about our likes and dislikes. She was twenty-six and had graduated from culinary school. Food was her life apparently, and she was looking forward to expanding her social calendar. We decided to have dinner on Friday night, and I fell asleep smiling about Jenna and the other girls I was meeting. Oooh, the possibilities.
As promised, I attended the business lunch I had set up for my father with Mr. Bingham at the country club. The sun beating down on the all slate patio was nearly unbearable, but as I watched my father and the old man discussing trips they had taken and some of the war memorabilia that my father had managed to collect, I realized that so much of this business was dependent on the personal relationships he managed to maintain. Like a light bulb I continued to process the relationships in my personal life that I had maintained; next to none. There was my dad and that was about as solid as a piece of paper. My mother was probably my only true supporter in a lifetime full of so-called friends. Matt and a few other guys were good friends, but I needed someone lifelong that could have my back in times of need. Amazingly, I began to add items to my checklist of the type of girl that I wanted. No longer were looks and status as important as support and comfort. I think I just became an adult. I snickered to myself.
"Drew, I have a son about your age." He nudged my father’s arm as he spoke, continuing on to say, "I wish I could get him out of bed before noon to attend a boring business meeting with us old timers." My father gave an uncomfortable laugh while rolling his eyes in the opposite direction. "Your father is lucky to have you, son."
The raspy cough my father barked out could be heard from the other side of the golf course. My blood boiled, just a bit, at the thought of him denouncing me in front of this potential client. "Well," I began to recover as this client had just paid me a compliment. "It’s a tough world out there, and you have to stay current to stay in the game. I bet you and your son would thoroughly enjoy the new jet my father has designed. I haven’t been able to see it firsthand, but the plans are amazing. It has every comfort that a man like yourself would need on that trip to Japan you are taking next month."
My father’s bushy brows creased together as I spoke and then relaxed into a surprised awe as Mr. Bingham replied, "Right you are, son. I believe that I will take you up on that offer if the plane will be done in time."
"Wonderful." I stood next to the table and readied myself to leave. "Mr. Bingham, it was a pleasure meeting with you, and I hope that we will be together for years to come." We shook hands, and he grasped mine heartily. My lips dropped into a thin line as I made my exit. "Father." I only said the one word as I pushed through the patio gate leaving the outdoor eatery. He didn’t bother to respond.
Embarrassing. That was the word I was looking for the full forty-five minute drive back to the office. What was the point of me attending the meetings if he constantly felt the need to express his utter disappointment in me? Why not just fire me and get it over with? I paced my office for a few moments, cursing as needed to deal with my anger.
Knock! Knock! Knock! The quick knock drew me out of my trance and before I could swallow my irritation I barked, "What?" I instantly felt remorseful for screaming at the unknown knocker, unless of course it was my father, in that case, he could just keep walking.
It wasn’t my father. I should’ve known he wouldn’t feel bad about his rudeness. Instead his secretary Beth peeked around my door. Her posture showing her concern at the tone I had just used. "It went that well, huh?" Usually she attended the meetings with my father and today when I had gone along, she did seem a bit . . . nervous. I assumed it was her lack of confidence in me which in all honesty may still be the case.
"Yeah. The meeting itself went great if you discount the total disrespect when it comes to his treatment of me. Maybe if I quit and become a client we can have a good relationship again." Wringing my hands together and the pace at which I was stalking across the room showed my anger, which on a normal day I would prefer to do in private. "I’m sorry, Beth. He just gets under my skin." I forced myself to sit in my chair and quickly scrubbed my hands over my face.
"Hey, you don’t have to apologize to me. I know things are strained between you guys, but it’ll get better. Just hang in there." The lopsided innocent smile she shot me was reassuring. Hell, she knew him better than I did. I was determined to end this streak of letting people down, including myself. I was—am—better than that.
When I opened my eyes, she’d already disappeared out of the office before I had a chance to thank her. I massaged the sides of my throbbing temples and turned my chair around to stare out of the window. A plane was boarding a few runways over. I watched as they shoved bag after bag into the storage area. So many suitcases for two people I had to wonder how long they intended to be gone. When the plane’s doors shut and the plane began to move, I had to look away. The takeoff was always my worst fear. The odds of a crash were so much more likely to happen on takeoff or landing.
I heard the door click open, and I turned just in time to see Beth returning with a cup of coffee. "You like it black, right?" She sat the mug down on my desk and curiosity got the best of me.
"Yeah, how did you know?"
"Well, that’s how your father likes it. You are more alike than you think, ya know?"
"I doubt that," I muttered. "But thanks for the coffee and the pep talk."
She nodded and then disappeared again. Sweet girl. No wonder why my father likes her.
I left before my father returned that evening, and I fully expected to pass him somewhere in the house. My mother had made chicken potpie for dinner, and I scooped out a large
slice before retreating to my room for the evening. Beer and chicken potpie. What a meal!
Checking my messages, I had several texts from Jenna telling me "to get ready" and that she was "so excited to see me again." Me too! Conversations with Claire and Victoria had continued. Victoria seemed very down to earth and dedicated. I could use that. While Claire had a great work ethic and the way to a man’s heart is through his stomach, right?
A few new girls had messaged me, but I quickly ignored them as the words princess and diva were mentioned in their profile a few hundred times. No, thanks.
"Andrew, can I come in?" The quiet voice was easily recognized as my mother.
"Sure," I said, less than enthusiastic about the Band-Aid she was getting ready to put on my father-son relationship issues.
"Son, look at this room. It looks like a dorm room in here."
"Well, I have been busy lately. I haven’t had time to do my laundry in a while."
"Yes, I see and by a while you mean like months, right?" She smirked as I turned my attention from my computer screen to her gleaming blue eyes.
"Why don’t we skip the pleasantries and you tell me why you are really here?" I raised my eyebrows looking past the sly smile on her face.
"Whatever do you mean, Andrew? Are you referring to the way you embarrassed your father at the meeting today?" She crossed her arms with concern written on her face.
"Is that what he told you? That lying . . .” Shaking my head fiercely as the list of names rolled through my head.
Her finger pointed directly at me as she warned, "Watch it, mister. I am just here to get to the bottom of all this hostility between you two. You two are family and you have got to get past all of this, especially if you are going to work together."
"I put forth the initiative to start attending the meetings as a show of faith that I was serious about the company. I have taken on several new projects, and I would like to think that I was very helpful in the meetings. Unlike him. He had the nerve to snicker when the client paid me a compliment. So if anyone was embarrassing it was him." Huffing, I went back to my computer screen and tried to focus on anything but the disapproving frown on my mother’s face.
