Page 6 of More Than A Boss

“How about we wrap it up for the day and you let me buy you dinner?” Zane asked.

“I’m in!” she responded, as she rose from her chair and bent down to begin gathering up her things. “There’s no way I am cooking tonight, and the thought of another frozen pizza is less than appealing. What do you have in mind?”

“Do you like Thai food?” he asked, pulling his eyes away from her shapely derriere right as she turned to respond.

“Love it.”

“I know a great family-owned Thai restaurant a little off the beaten path. We’ll go there then,” he offered.

“Great. I’m starving!” she said, walking out of his office.

“Me, too. Meet you at your desk in five,” he said.

Strolling to the parking garage in companionable silence, both needing to decompress after their long and stressful day, their strides were evenly paced. Since they were both tired of sitting at a desk all day, they chose to take the stairs to the fifth floor of the parking garage rather than take an elevator. Zane used his SUV key fob, the chirping sound signaling that the doors were unlocked. Zane opened and held the door for Allie, as she climbed in and buckled her seat belt. He circled around and settled in, letting the car warm up before pulling out of the parking space. He drove down and around until he reached the ground floor, inserting his monthly pass, which signaled the lever to lift, allowing them to exit.

Walking into the Thai Bistro, they were seated at a corner table by a friendly Thai hostess who was also part owner of the establishment. Her husband was the chef and her business partner. She recognized Zane, who was a regular, frequenting the restaurant multiple times a month. Their waitress, who Zane knew was the owner’s niece, handed them menus and took their drink orders. Zane suggested a bottle of pinot grigio, and Allie thought that sounded perfect.

The wood flooring and subdued lighting, coupled with white tablecloths and votive candles, created an intimate atmosphere. Allie wore a pale-yellow, loose-weave sweater that fell off her shoulders, with large white buttons down the front. The yellow brought out the deep brown of her eyes and complemented her platinum blond hair. Her gray slacks were slim fitting and rode low on her hips. She wore her pantlegs tucked into tall gray suede boots that rested above the knee, a thin silver watch on her left wrist, and silver bangles on her right. Her hoop earrings caught the light and sparkled when she moved her head.

Zane, sitting across from Allie, leaned back in his chair and stared at her. She was intently studying the menu, so she didn’t notice.

“What do you like here?” she asked, not looking up from her menu.

“Everything is good. Personally, I always get pad Thai with shrimp and chicken. However, I also love their drunken noodles and their spicy noodles with chicken, which has garlic, basil and a hot Thai sauce. Their curry is great, too. I’m not much help, am I?” he chuckled. “I’m also hungry, so everything sounds good. Would you like me to order for us? How about I order a couple different things and we share? That way we get to sample more than one thing,” he suggested.

“Sure! Why not live dangerously?” she replied.

The waitress returned with the wine and uncorked the bottle, pouring them each a portion in their glasses. Allie took a sip and sighed out loud. “Yummy!” she said approvingly. “Good choice!”

“Thanks.”

“Are you ready to order?” the waitress asked.

“Yes. We will start with the minced chicken lettuce wraps and two crispy spring rolls, one order of tom yum soup with shrimp and two spoons. For our entrees, we’ll have an order of pad Thai, one order of red curry chicken, and an order of Siam beef. That should do it.” He said, smiling at the waitress, who shyly smiled back and left to place their order with the chef. They both sat back in companionable silence, sipping their wine. Allie glanced around the restaurant approvingly.

“How did you discover this place?” she asked.

“Stan turned me on to it.” He said, referring to one of the law partners at the firm, Stan Smith.

“He and his wife go out to eat quite a bit, don’t they?” Allie asked. “We often get into discussions about food because we both love to eat,” she laughed.

“Yes, he is definitely a culinary expert on fine dining.” Changing the subject, “So, Allie, tell me about your life before becoming a paralegal?”

“Well, how far back do you want me to go?” she said, looking down suddenly, feeling a little shy.

“From the beginning,” he answered, gazing into her eyes intently.

“Well, my first eighteen years were spent growing up on a farm. I had great parents, got my own horse sophomore year in high school, Mel, who is still with me, dated my high school sweetheart for my freshman through junior year, a straight A student, a little shy, pretty uneventful really.”

“More wine?” Zane offered.

Nodding her head yes, she held her glass while he refilled it before filling his own.

“And then?” he asked, urging her to continue.

“Then I went off to college right out of high school and majored in English. Met my future husband the first semester of my freshman year. We fell in love almost immediately. We were engaged by the end of the year, married the following year. Our parents wanted us to wait until we graduated, but nobody could tell us anything. Got pregnant immediately, lost the baby, decided that was it for me. Too devastating to think of going through that again. We were young and dumb. Neither of us had any experience, we were complete innocents. We both graduated, and he went on to get his master’s, and I initially worked part-time at the university admissions office, while launching my writing career from home. After several years, I quit the university job to focus entirely on my writing.”

“What did you write? Did you have any success at it?” he inquired.

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