can find her.” Rob turned to look at
Ana. “The question is, will she want to be with me because of who I am or what
I can offer her?”
Ana was surprised and a little intimidated by
his rhetorical question. He was obviously feeling lonely. And to add fuel to the
fire here he was, paying her to go out with him. It was his idea, after all. He
made it clear this was the lifestyle he wanted for himself, at least for now.
Could he have been testing her? What if he met someone in the next few months
and gave her the boot? She cautioned herself not to entertain such thoughts.
“Just be yourself and the right one will come
along.” Ana assured, not really knowing what else to say. Rob slung his drink,
ice and all, over the banister and turned to walk in the house, leaving Ana
alone with her thoughts and wondering if she had said something wrong. What did
that comment mean? He wanted someone to share all this with, yet just the other
day he had said he wasn’t ready for a relationship. Which was it?
She waited a while before re-entering through
the kitchen. After she placed her empty glass on the counter, Rob waltzed in
dressed to the nines in a dark suit and tie, and they left for the Convention
Center.
* * * * *
The banquet was elegant and much quieter than
the first dinner she had attended with him. This event had a much more formal
feel to it with softly lit candles on each table and light jazz music filling
the air. However, she thought these guests were a bit more stuck up. It could
have been the suspicious stares they received upon entering, or maybe it was
the way everyone seemed to turn and whisper as they walked by. More than
likely, Ana was simply being a little paranoid given the circumstances of their
so-called date. In reality, most everyone was very nice, just not the kind of
people she would choose to hang out with on a regular basis, which was fine
because she was getting paid to attend. Besides, Beth and Rich were there, and
Ana got to meet a lot of different people.
Early in the evening, she and Beth were at the
bar waiting on an order of drinks. Ana noticed that a gentleman standing next to
her kept glancing in her direction. She thought he looked familiar, though he was
probably at the last dinner she went to. When they locked eyes, he smiled at
her and introduced himself.
“Hi, I’m Dan. It’s Ana, right?”
“Yes, how’d you know?” She was surprised. If
they had met before, it had escaped her memory.
“I work with Rob, he’s talked about you some.
Speaks very highly of you. How long have you known him?” Dan turned to leave a
tip for the bartender.
“Not long, maybe a couple of weeks. How long
have you two worked together?” If he wanted to get personal, she could get
personal back.
Dan took a deep breath. “Oh, I’ve been with
Signify for about twenty-two years. Rob came about seven years behind me, so
we’ve worked together for quite some time.” He took a sip of his drink. “I take
it you’ve had the chance to meet everyone?”
“I’ve met most everyone that Rob works with, I
think.”
“Ah, so you’ve met Stephanie?” he asked.
Who the hell is
Stephanie? This guy was rubbing her the wrong way for some reason. “No I haven’t.” Ana looked
at Beth for some support, but she just rolled her eyes while Dan let out a smug
laugh.
“Well, when you do, look out,” he said.
“What does that mean? Look out for what?” Now
Ana was really put off.
“Just be careful, that’s all. You may not want
to turn your back on those two. Especially Stephanie, but you didn’t hear it
from me.” Dan turned quickly and walked off, not giving her a chance to
respond. Spinning around to Beth, she snapped, “What the hell was that about?
Who the hell is Stephanie? Do you know what he’s talking about?” Ana suddenly
realized that it was really none of her business, but dammit, she was jealous.
“Stephanie’s their boss and the CEO of Signify,
but I don’t know why
Ana. “The question is, will she want to be with me because of who I am or what
I can offer her?”
Ana was surprised and a little intimidated by
his rhetorical question. He was obviously feeling lonely. And to add fuel to the
fire here he was, paying her to go out with him. It was his idea, after all. He
made it clear this was the lifestyle he wanted for himself, at least for now.
Could he have been testing her? What if he met someone in the next few months
and gave her the boot? She cautioned herself not to entertain such thoughts.
“Just be yourself and the right one will come
along.” Ana assured, not really knowing what else to say. Rob slung his drink,
ice and all, over the banister and turned to walk in the house, leaving Ana
alone with her thoughts and wondering if she had said something wrong. What did
that comment mean? He wanted someone to share all this with, yet just the other
day he had said he wasn’t ready for a relationship. Which was it?
She waited a while before re-entering through
the kitchen. After she placed her empty glass on the counter, Rob waltzed in
dressed to the nines in a dark suit and tie, and they left for the Convention
Center.
* * * * *
The banquet was elegant and much quieter than
the first dinner she had attended with him. This event had a much more formal
feel to it with softly lit candles on each table and light jazz music filling
the air. However, she thought these guests were a bit more stuck up. It could
have been the suspicious stares they received upon entering, or maybe it was
the way everyone seemed to turn and whisper as they walked by. More than
likely, Ana was simply being a little paranoid given the circumstances of their
so-called date. In reality, most everyone was very nice, just not the kind of
people she would choose to hang out with on a regular basis, which was fine
because she was getting paid to attend. Besides, Beth and Rich were there, and
Ana got to meet a lot of different people.
Early in the evening, she and Beth were at the
bar waiting on an order of drinks. Ana noticed that a gentleman standing next to
her kept glancing in her direction. She thought he looked familiar, though he was
probably at the last dinner she went to. When they locked eyes, he smiled at
her and introduced himself.
“Hi, I’m Dan. It’s Ana, right?”
“Yes, how’d you know?” She was surprised. If
they had met before, it had escaped her memory.
“I work with Rob, he’s talked about you some.
Speaks very highly of you. How long have you known him?” Dan turned to leave a
tip for the bartender.
“Not long, maybe a couple of weeks. How long
have you two worked together?” If he wanted to get personal, she could get
personal back.
Dan took a deep breath. “Oh, I’ve been with
Signify for about twenty-two years. Rob came about seven years behind me, so
we’ve worked together for quite some time.” He took a sip of his drink. “I take
it you’ve had the chance to meet everyone?”
“I’ve met most everyone that Rob works with, I
think.”
“Ah, so you’ve met Stephanie?” he asked.
Who the hell is
Stephanie? This guy was rubbing her the wrong way for some reason. “No I haven’t.” Ana looked
at Beth for some support, but she just rolled her eyes while Dan let out a smug
laugh.
“Well, when you do, look out,” he said.
“What does that mean? Look out for what?” Now
Ana was really put off.
“Just be careful, that’s all. You may not want
to turn your back on those two. Especially Stephanie, but you didn’t hear it
from me.” Dan turned quickly and walked off, not giving her a chance to
respond. Spinning around to Beth, she snapped, “What the hell was that about?
Who the hell is Stephanie? Do you know what he’s talking about?” Ana suddenly
realized that it was really none of her business, but dammit, she was jealous.
“Stephanie’s their boss and the CEO of Signify,
but I don’t know why
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