Page 20 of The Flirtation
“If you aren’t still rich by then, I will be partly to blame, and I will have no business opening up my own firm,” she said,smiling.
“And that is why I love working with this woman,” he said, turning towards me. “Don’tyou?”
I was about to say something appropriate and witty (I’d like to think), but Bucket’s mobile phone buzzed. He immediately answered it and walked away from the table before I could respond. He spoke in hushed tones. I looked over at Avery, who was concentrating on her Key Lime pie. “I do enjoy working with you,” I said, “for therecord.”
She smiled. “Good.”
Bucket returned to his seat, his leg bouncing up and down under the table. He couldn’t stop smiling. “You guys are cool, I’m glad you’re here,” he said. He leaned in. “I feel like I can trustyou.”
Avery swallowed her bite of pie. “Well, I certainly hopeso!”
“I’m gonna need you to keep a secret,” he said, not conspiratorially, but matter-of-fact. And then he received a text, laughed, got up from the table again, and said, “I gotta go! You guys stay here, enjoy the night, let the crew know when you want to go back to the villa. We’ll continue this discussion tomorrow, yeah?” He then descended from our deck, hopped onto the dinghy that was tied to the yacht, and disappeared into the darkness, towards land. It all happened so quickly and it was the strangestthing.
Avery and I looked at each other, aghast, and laughed. We stared at each other, smiling, for a moment. “Hello, sailor,” she crooned, her face erupting in a smile, the likes of which I had not seen directed towards me since we’d arrived on theisland.
I breathed a sigh of relief. “Hello darling.”Good. Let’s stoppretending.
She looked up at the night sky and gasped. “Look at that moon! Soshiny!”
It was. The shining moon, the soft music, the rhythmic sound of the lapping waves against the side of the boat, the sweet taste of coconut and rum on our lips, and the beautiful woman across a small table from me, it was almost toomuch.
“He’s being kind of squirrelly, I wonder what’sup.”
It had something to do with a woman, I was certain. “I can’timagine.”
“Have you ever asked him why he got the notion to do business in London all of asudden?”
“No. Haveyou?”
“No, I’m just wondering if it was for personal reasons. He’s such a shrewd investor, I’d be surprised if it were, but...He’s nothing if notsurprising.”
“Indeed he is. I make it a point not to ask clients their personal reasons for wanting to do things. I’m sure it was because he’d been surfing around the UK and saw a growth opportunity.” Truth was, I didn’t care why he’d wanted to do business in the UK, I was just glad it had given Avery and me a reason to work together again. But I had a strong sense that there was a woman involved, for Bucket aswell.
My personal mobile phone was in my back pocket, and it had been vibrating on and off all evening, but I hadn’t checked it. It vibrated again. I ignored it. “I should give you my personal mobile number,” I said, casually. “So you can text me while we’re here. You know, for emergency work chats or what have you. I usually keep two phones with me, but I figured while we’re here I’d carry one at a time. So I’ll have my business mobile with me during business hours,and—”
“You have two phones?! I don’t have two phones. Should I have twophones?”
She passed her phone to me and I added in my number under the contact nameSailor Mason. My phone buzzed again. I had a feeling it was Chiara but didn’t want tolook.
“Go ahead and answer your personal phone,” she said, leaning back in her chair. “Sounds like someone really wants to get a hold ofyou.”
I pulled out my phone and saw eight missed calls from Chiara, no voicemails. I texted her that I was still in the middle of a dinner meeting and would call her when I returned to my hotel room. Then I returned my phone to my backpocket.
“Girlfriend?” she asked, as if she were just making casualconversation.
“No, it’s someone I’ve been out with a few times” I said, looking her straight in the eyes. “I don’t have agirlfriend.”
She blinked, then looked back up at the moon. “Chandra,” she whispered. I tried not to stare at her long, smoothneck.
After a significant pause, I finally said: “And what’s Mr. Potter up to thesedays?”
“Hmmm?” She continued to stare at the shining moon. “Oh, uh. Quidditchtournament.”
“Jolly good. Best of luck to him.”He’s already the luckiest bastard I know.“Must be difficult for him. Not being able to see you very often. In person, Imean.”
“Ah well. ‘The course of true love never did run smooth.’” Shegrinned.
“Midsummer Night’s Dream. I don’t think I’ve ever heard Shakespeare quoted in such an unpretentious way—welldone.”
“Thanks…I’m not all that great in person anyway.” She looked up at me, daring me torespond.
After a moment I said, “So far I have no complaints.”Except that you have aboyfriend.
It becameclear quite quickly that it was impossible to remain alone together on a yacht, on a balmy night, without being uncomfortable in that way that you can only feel with someone you have a deep desire to have sex with, but can’t. So we asked to return to shore. She was extra vigilant about remaining balanced and upright as she disembarked. I held my hands up, inches away from her, just in case, without ever touchingher.
The interior of Chandra Villa glowed, like a sexy beacon, inviting us in for anightcap.
