Whenever he was meeting Gina he made sure he arrived first. He loved to witness how she made her entrance, how she turned heads as she walked toward his table.
He stood up to greet her. He planted a kiss on her cheek, surprising her. Surprising himself; not a known habit. She was dressed for impact; the dress she had changed into when her dinner plans had been altered, was designed to lure. Shimmery gold in color, it had a low décolletage covering just enough to leave to the imagination, their roundness tastefully outlined. The material discreetly recorded every move her body made. She was in for a kill, for more than just making an impression.
As he helped her into her seat, he was treated to glimpses of her thighs. The skin smo
They talked, unrelated to work and mostly about her. He listened intently while replenishing her wine now and then—signaling the server to let him do the pouring. She told him of her friends, social circles and their youthful manners. She told him of what she dreamt of when she was a child, then as a teenager. She told him how proud she was of her job … and of him. As more wine was poured, she became more confident and bubblier, and instead of being daunted as she usually was, she enjoyed the undivided attention her boss gave her. Then she said, "I like you. Very much." Her glass was empty, and so was the bottle. The Boss, for the first ti
Late into the night, the place started to morph once again, this time into a lounge with upbeat jazz as the music. A new batch of patrons started to flock in, the hip and young, the Gina kind of crowd. The servers cleared up some space for a dance floor. Gina wasn't sure what would be next. She hoped it didn't end too early. He was thinking how convenient his pad would be. All they had to do was to walk out, ride on an elevator to the penthouse and they would be there. The same ritual as with all others. No, I can't do that. I shouldn't. When? Never? Not tonight. No. He was struggling. Before his mind agreed, his anxiety had spoken, "I'll take you home."&
Dungi was sweating, the palms of his hands were wet. His vision was getting blurry. Tears were forming. He held it back; he had to hold it, they must not know. He looked at his wife and son who were still absorbed in the menu, oblivious to the change of mood in Dungi, oblivious to his problems to procure for his family beyond his means—a vice Dungi let them keep so he could reign King of the Hill. He put the phone down slowly, and grabbed the menu to cover his face with it—of course, under the pretext of assessing choices for the most sumptuous lunch. As he glimpsed over its contents, Dungi just realized how exorbitant the prices were, as were the others he and his family had frequented for three-time-a-day meals: breakfasts, lunches, and dinners.&nbs
Suddenly Adrian wasn't so sure. He looked at Abram for support, but Abram pretended to look elsewhere. Adrian swallowed, "I can't say beyond what I have said. Let's see how things go, ok?" Well, well, someone is on his own, Rhonda smiled inwardly and applauded her friend. No, not ok, Gina said. They would not pour substantial resources to go through the bidding process against Kronos beyond due diligence. They needed to know if Trelleco management would throw their support behind her company so they could avoid the lengthy and costly process of selection. "I can't promise that." Gina and The Boss had anticipated this development. They had run
He sat on his throne, a big leather chair behind his big table, waiting for her to come in anytime now. He could hear the taps of her stilettos on the wooden floor furnishing the executive quarters, and saw her walk towards his office with quick steps, briefly stop at Linda's desk, and continue the sway of her long legs in the direction of his office when his secretary motioned her to go in. Her smile was already forming as she entered, and widened as she neared; the taps of her shoes silenced instantly as they sank into the plush carpeting of The Boss' office. "I actually threatened the CMO of a Fortune 100 company and it worked!" Gina exclaimed—referring to the meeting that afternoon. Her eyes were flashing with excitement, her entire face lit up. She put her hands on his desk and leaned forward, bringing her fac
The phone call with Abram ended soon with the two gentlemen agreeing to meet again that week to discuss the next step. The Boss punched in the extension to Linda,"No more interruptions. Just take everything down for now. Thanks, Linda." He then turned his full attention back to Gina. He saw her glass was empty and asked if she wanted another, to which she nodded and replied, "Yes, please."As he handed her the glass, his fingers lightly brushed over hers; she asked, "Oh, could I have three olives, this time?" He cocked an eye at her but complied without a word and handed her the glass for the second time. She took a sip of her martini and slid one olive into her mouth."Okay, so where were we?""I was just about to tell you about Adrian's reaction." Ah yes, that fool."Right. So?""Well, I tried to remind them, not so subtly, of our good relationship. Of what we've built over the years with them. But Adrian was being dismissive and
She now had a purposeful life. A sense of beginning, middle, and end. No matter how trivial the end was, or how short the trip could be, it would be eventful, because she was going to move along with full awareness; because her mind would not be tired of forever being alert even to the tiniest joy; because now her heart wanted to savor every moment—moments which many might see as being all the same. From then on, she would truly experience her days, and her life had just become a journey. All this because of a kiss? But that wasn't a kiss like thousands of other kisses she had had. That was a kiss of profound depth; one that wasn't planned but happened, one that originated from the lips but felt as if from everywhere in her being.
Abram witnessed how his friend was lost in his thoughts, unmindful of his presence. This was not the reason he wanted to meet him tonight, he regretted having troubled him. He had shared his enthusiasm about Gina's competence too far. "Georg, forget about it. That is not the reason I asked to meet you tonight. We were supposed to meet again this week, but then the secretary brought something up to my attention this evening, and I thought, if you could make it tonight, why not tonight?" "Alright. Tell me." "In a week there'll be a meeting with key shareholders. We have all but Colin lined up to support your company as our partner for the Indonesia proje
She looked out the window. It was raining outside. The plane was still taxiing, rolling slowly on the taxiway. This was it, the last time she would be in the land of her hometown for a long time. She had planned to go back no sooner than six months. If she was to start anew, then today should be her past, tomorrow should be her today, and yesterday should not be revisited too soon. She would not think about the people she left. Not her friends, nor those who were once her clients back in Abalido and Quinaeros—like Roy. Not even Rhonda, the last person she said goodbye to just an hour ago at the airport. And not The Boss—especially not him. She had to make room in her mind for new people, new acquaintances, and new kinds of relationships. She took out the card from her purse—Rhonda had saved
She was not sure how to enjoy the glitz, attention, and admiration she received on the night of the lavish farewell party The Boss threw for her. She would leave for Jakarta as a Trelleconian the following day, and cease to call Georg her boss—and start calling Abram her boss, instead. Something she had never thought would happen. It was surreal—and not something she enjoyed at all. The Boss was her boss now and always—that stood no more. She saw he had spared no expense for her. He closed down the entire Eggs and Flowers for the party, and had them fill the room up with more flowers than what it already had. He made sure that not only the entire management of Abalido and Quinaeros were there that night, but also people who were dear to her. Rocco was there, and a couple of clients she had had cl
"So, you’re finally letting her go," Abram said, seated comfortably, gnawing a cigar, with a drink in his hand—The Boss was doing the same. The Boss said, "I have to," from the mentally opposite side. "It was her decision." He brought to mind the day following their talk the evening after the celebratory party; she had called him to say she was seriously considering the offer, and needed a week to think—and thus his turbulent state of mind. She got back to him yesterday to confirm. Crushed—the seconds that passed tortured him all throughout the night. He met with Abram the following day—this day—to let him know. He forced himself to come to terms with her decision: she would take Abram's job offer and leave him.
It was a glorious day for all of them. The Trelleco board had met and came out to support the Indonesian project, and appointed Abalido and Quinaeros Inc. as their consulting partner. The decision was unanimous—Abram got the unity he wanted not only at the management, but also at the board levels. Kronos had withdrawn their bid the day before when Aerlman—as Trelleco's COO—requested a clear list of key resources to be included in their counterproposal—as he did Abalido and Quinaeros. He acted on the advice Gina gave through The Boss. Surely enough that would have disclosed Kronos' intention to supply inadequate resources if they had not pulled out. To the people who knew, Gina was the star of the private party that the two companies jointly threw together that evening. With the latest thing
The meeting with Waylor was in some place out of town, about twenty miles off Seattle—in Bothell. The diner restaurant was nondescript, and the patrons were scarce. She walked to the end of the room and recognized the other gentleman Abram had introduced her to during breakfast at Eggs and Flowers. He was not Waylor. He was casually dressed, fitting the atmosphere of the place—so was Gina. Waylor had told her what to expect from the place, "We would just be two suburbanites having dinner," his text to her said. He stood up as she approached, and formally introduced himself and they shook hands, unlike two intimate suburbanites. "I'm sorry Mr. Waylor cannot make it in the last minute but insisted this meeting with you
What The Boss did not want to reveal, was not a mystery hard to unravel. The four of them got together on the same evening after Gina met The Boss. She had expected something that would take much longer with him, but otherwise considered what had transpired during lunch as progress. Still in her jubilant mood, Gina told Rhonda, Linda and Rocco what she had learned at her lunch with him: The Boss' hands were everywhere in their affair on and before that fateful night. "Still, he wouldn't let me know how." Except in the case of Roy, which Gina knew from Roy himself—The Boss gave him a pass that was valid on the day their plan was to be executed. Cunning—the girls realized how shrewd their boss was. Rhonda shared what sh
The Sun peered now and then over the grey condensed water vapor. The wind slipped through between the buildings and trees and was quick to wipe out the warmth off the skin. One could see the windswept hair of the women as they went in and out of the shops, and smell the wafted scent of perfume as they passed one another. The afternoon was cloudy and cold. Her heart was joyous. The concierge at Eggs and Flowers was cheerful to see her back. He was quick to greet and usher her to her dining room. He left her at the doorway of the private room. "He's been waiting for you, Miss," he said, smiling before walking away. He stood from his seat the moment she appeared, and walked toward her
The vigor of their lovemaking had sated them and made them hungry. Roy thought it would be nice if they could have their after-sex meal together, and Gina liked the idea. She would not come to lunch with her boss that hungry, either. As she was whipping something up in the kitchen for them to eat, from the other side of the kitchen countertop he said, "By the way, I’ve informed your boss of the unfortunate thing that happened to you last night." What? She stopped beating the eggs. He continued, unaware of her surprise, "He did not say much, but from the few questions he asked I could hear his immense anger through his quivering vo
She observed the good-looking man lying beside her. Roy was still fast asleep. He brought her to his place following her sweet promise of a night together —although she had offered her place, too. That was an odd choice to make, she thought. For a man who was after sex, he should have preferred the female counterpart's place instead, so he could leave when he wished —usually a dent on the pillows was all that was left as the evidence of his ever being there, or maybe fleetingly longer if there was a last-minute subsequent loving-act. She had thought the vain Roy was merely interested in sex and scoring a conquest. She was ok with that, liked it even. It would be a tango. Now, after the night of lovemaking, she caught a different vibe from him. Though not in clear terms, she was sure he was in love with her.&