made a reservation, so we were seated ahead of the two couples waiting at the door.
Doug worked on Wall Street and he and Paula started a discussion about the stock market. Paula mentioned some stock her company was researching and Doug chimed in with comments about “p.e. ratios,” “hedge funds,” and “the Asian markets.” Judging by their intensity and enthusiasm, I think they both forgot that Kirsten and I were sitting at the table. Finally, I struck up a dull conversation with Kirsten. My initial impression of her was dead-on—beyond her pretty smile there wasn’t much there. She worked as an executive assistant at an ad agency and it seemed as if her responses to anything I said were either “really,” “wow,” or “no way.” She seemed like she would be an easy person to get along with, though—definitely not as headstrong as Paula. It made sense that Doug would be attracted to her, since he seemed like the type of guy who had zero tolerance for opinions that differed from his own.
“So what do you do, Robert?” Doug asked, as if noticing me for the first time.
“It’s Richard,” I said.
“Richard, right. Sorry, must’ve gotten a little heatstroke on the tennis court today.”
Paula laughed.
“I sell computer networking services,” I said.
“Oh, a techie,” Doug said. “Hey, maybe you could swing by my room later and fix my laptop. I can’t seem to get my modem to work.”
“I’m not a computer technician, ” I said. “I sell networking systems.”
Paula gave me a nasty look.
“Oh, I get it,” Doug said. “So you must go out of town a lot, huh? Leave your wife all alone.”
“No, most of my business is in the city,” I said.
“Oh, well, that’s good,” Doug said. “Of course, at my job I have to travel a lot—meet with division heads all over the world. I just came back from Singapore last week.”
“I’ve always wanted to go to Singapore,” Paula said excitedly.
Doug went on, in his loud, grating voice, trying to impress us all with his world travels. Meanwhile, I couldn’t stop noticing the way he was flirting with Paula. He wouldn’t take his eyes off her and he was sitting closer to her than he was to Kirsten.
I watched as Paula seemed to be having the time of her life, drinking wine, laughing at every dumb wisecrack Doug made. Not wanting to get back into the alcohol habit, I was drinking iced tea. I hoped that no one would want to order dessert or coffee so we could get out of the restaurant as soon as possible.
Then I snapped out of my stupor when Doug said, “So are you two planning to start a family soon?”
“In a year or two,” I said.
“No kidding?!” Drinking was making Doug even louder and more boisterous. “So are you going to stay in the city or move to the suburbs?”
“Move to the suburbs,” I said. “That is, if we can ever find a way to unload our apartment.”
“That sounds like a great plan,” Doug said. “I grew up in northwest Jersey, in a house with a big backyard and a tennis court. I don’t think a kid should have it any other way.”
The waiter came and asked if we wanted dessert. At first, everyone said no—thank God—then Doug said, “I can’t resist—I’ll have the tiramisù. ”
The waiter left and I looked over and saw Paula glaring at me. It was only a quick glance, but I could tell she was furious. I had no idea why. The only reason I could think of was that it had something to do with dessert. Maybe she’d seen me make a face.
For the rest of the meal, I knew Paula was still fuming, but I doubted Doug and Kirsten realized anything was wrong. Finally, the check arrived. Doug suggested we split it down the middle, even though he’d had the most expensive entrée, drank the most wine, and was the only one to order dessert.
Walking back to the inn, Doug said, “You know, there’s a little nightclub in the hotel, in the basement. I don’t think it’s gonna exactly be like the China Club down
Doug worked on Wall Street and he and Paula started a discussion about the stock market. Paula mentioned some stock her company was researching and Doug chimed in with comments about “p.e. ratios,” “hedge funds,” and “the Asian markets.” Judging by their intensity and enthusiasm, I think they both forgot that Kirsten and I were sitting at the table. Finally, I struck up a dull conversation with Kirsten. My initial impression of her was dead-on—beyond her pretty smile there wasn’t much there. She worked as an executive assistant at an ad agency and it seemed as if her responses to anything I said were either “really,” “wow,” or “no way.” She seemed like she would be an easy person to get along with, though—definitely not as headstrong as Paula. It made sense that Doug would be attracted to her, since he seemed like the type of guy who had zero tolerance for opinions that differed from his own.
“So what do you do, Robert?” Doug asked, as if noticing me for the first time.
“It’s Richard,” I said.
“Richard, right. Sorry, must’ve gotten a little heatstroke on the tennis court today.”
Paula laughed.
“I sell computer networking services,” I said.
“Oh, a techie,” Doug said. “Hey, maybe you could swing by my room later and fix my laptop. I can’t seem to get my modem to work.”
“I’m not a computer technician, ” I said. “I sell networking systems.”
Paula gave me a nasty look.
“Oh, I get it,” Doug said. “So you must go out of town a lot, huh? Leave your wife all alone.”
“No, most of my business is in the city,” I said.
“Oh, well, that’s good,” Doug said. “Of course, at my job I have to travel a lot—meet with division heads all over the world. I just came back from Singapore last week.”
“I’ve always wanted to go to Singapore,” Paula said excitedly.
Doug went on, in his loud, grating voice, trying to impress us all with his world travels. Meanwhile, I couldn’t stop noticing the way he was flirting with Paula. He wouldn’t take his eyes off her and he was sitting closer to her than he was to Kirsten.
I watched as Paula seemed to be having the time of her life, drinking wine, laughing at every dumb wisecrack Doug made. Not wanting to get back into the alcohol habit, I was drinking iced tea. I hoped that no one would want to order dessert or coffee so we could get out of the restaurant as soon as possible.
Then I snapped out of my stupor when Doug said, “So are you two planning to start a family soon?”
“In a year or two,” I said.
“No kidding?!” Drinking was making Doug even louder and more boisterous. “So are you going to stay in the city or move to the suburbs?”
“Move to the suburbs,” I said. “That is, if we can ever find a way to unload our apartment.”
“That sounds like a great plan,” Doug said. “I grew up in northwest Jersey, in a house with a big backyard and a tennis court. I don’t think a kid should have it any other way.”
The waiter came and asked if we wanted dessert. At first, everyone said no—thank God—then Doug said, “I can’t resist—I’ll have the tiramisù. ”
The waiter left and I looked over and saw Paula glaring at me. It was only a quick glance, but I could tell she was furious. I had no idea why. The only reason I could think of was that it had something to do with dessert. Maybe she’d seen me make a face.
For the rest of the meal, I knew Paula was still fuming, but I doubted Doug and Kirsten realized anything was wrong. Finally, the check arrived. Doug suggested we split it down the middle, even though he’d had the most expensive entrée, drank the most wine, and was the only one to order dessert.
Walking back to the inn, Doug said, “You know, there’s a little nightclub in the hotel, in the basement. I don’t think it’s gonna exactly be like the China Club down
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