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“Looks like snow,” I said. I pointed to the sky through my fog of breath before pointing at her open window. “Clouds are rolling in.”
She turned her gaze upward, cursing, and pulled her phone out. Glaring down at it in frustration, I could only assume she was checking the weather before shoving it back into her purse. “You could have taken me somewhere that has a parking garage.”
“Or you could have just ridden with me.”
Her glare turned venomous while she circled her car, stopping in front of the trunk and pulling at least five times before the latch gave way. She rummaged for a moment before sheepishly pulling out a large, black trash bag. “I prefer to drive myself in case I need to leave suddenly.”
I leaned back against my car and watched as she maneuvered the bag around the exterior of the passenger door, hooking in at the far side and stretching across the open part of the window. “Have you considered getting that fixed? The motor’s probably shot, but it shouldn’t be that expensive.”
She grunted as she slammed the door, locking the bag into place. “Wouldn’t be expensive for you.” She turned to me, her hair swishing in its ponytail, and clutched the sides of her jacket. “Can we go inside now? It’s freezing.”
Her lips parted, little puffs of fog forming before her face. She must have been cold the entire ride over considering how red her nose and cheeks appeared. For just a second, I allowed myself to get lost in thought. If she were anyone else, if she wasn’t so uptight and bratty, if she wasn’t so serious, I’d take her. I’d add her to the list. Fuck her when she wanted me to, treat her when she wasn’t with me. But she wasn’t a bunny. She was an employee, mature beyond her years, likely from the life she had to deal with.
Which was why I wanted to take her out.
“Yeah,” I breathed, shaking away the brief idea of her naked body on my desk and nodding toward the entrance. “Let’s go.”
————
The hostess led us to a quiet table in a back corner near the windows, facing the mountains. Shortly after sitting down, a waiter greeted us, asking if we had any questions about the menu and wine list before taking our order. After a minute or two he returned, presenting a vintage bottle of Bordeaux to me before nodding and corking the bottle. He poured a sample into my glass and I thanked him as I sniffed and swirled before tasting. Upon my approval, he poured some into Ray’s wine glass before adding more to mine.
After an awkward silence filled with sips of wine Ray finally spoke. “Why is it so empty in here?” she asked, glancing around at the few people scattered at different tables. “I would expect a place like this to be packed.”
Just then the waiter arrived with our meals and after confirming we were satisfied, smiled and walked away.
I chuckled and sliced into my rack of lamb. “I may have requested they open early. They don’t normally run a lunch service.”
She froze, fork halfway to her open mouth, and stared at me. “You can just do that?”
I nodded.
“Jesus. Talk about abuse of power.”
I shrugged and tapped the base of her fork with the back of my knife, reminding her to actually eat her bite. “Frasca’s one of my favorite restaurants. I’m arguably one of their most frequent patrons and I pay for more than what I receive. It’s not as abusive as you think it is.”
“Yeah, well, you don’t see McDonald’s opening early just for me,” she mumbled.
“McDonald’s is open twenty-four-seven.”
“Do you have to do that?” she snapped, her glare sharp enough to cut glass as she watched me swig my wine.
“Do I have to do what?”
“One-up me.”
“I’m not one-upping you. I’m teasing you.” I lifted the bottle of Bordeaux, careful not to spill a drop of the far too expensive wine and tipped the bottle toward her untouched glass before refilling mine. Maybe I am one-upping her.
“You can have my glass,” she said, pushing it toward me with two fingers at the base of the stem. “I don’t drink and drive.”
“Just have a sip.” I pushed it back.
“No, thank you.”
“It’s an expensive vintage. I guarantee you’ve not had a wine like this.”
“I’m sure I haven’t. I don’t drink and drive.”
I sighed and gave up. She was like a brick wall, impossible to penetrate and too high to climb, and unfortunately for me, she didn’t have any bouldering holds attached to it.
