Page 45 of Strictly Business

“Ah American pizza isn’t so bad. It’s just totally different to what the Italians call a pizza,” Wyatt says.

“You’re not kidding,” I reply. “Did you enjoy yours Ruth?”

To say dinner has been awkward would be the understatement of the year. Ruth has barely said a word unless Wyatt or I have asked her a direct question and that became so awkward, Wyatt and I mostly stopped talking too just passing the occasional comment about the food. I decide to have one last try to bring her into the conversation now that she’s had two glasses of wine.

“Yes, thank you,” she says.

Well, that worked then.

“Did it ruin home pizzas for you?” I press her.

She’s quiet for so long I don’t think she’s going to bother answering me, but then she finally speaks.

“I think it’s like Wyatt said. If you think of them both as the same thing and compare them, the Italian one will always win hands down. But if you think of them as two separate things, then I see no reason why we can’t enjoy both,” she says.

It’s not really an answer to what I asked her, but it’s the most she’s said all night, so I’ll take it.

“Anyone for dessert?” Wyatt asks.

“Not for me thank you,” Ruth says instantly.

If I thought she would leave and Wyatt and I could enjoy dessert together, I would say yes, but as much as I’m not a big Ruth fan, I’m not about to let her wander off on her own at night in a foreign country and I’m sure Wyatt wouldn’t either. I shake my head, praying Wyatt doesn’t want one either and we can end this awkward meal once and for all.

I’m relieved when Wyatt catches the waiter’s eye and makes the signal for the bill. I don’t actually think Ruth has made this dinner awkward on purpose, because she looks as relieved as I feel when she sees Wyatt requesting the bill. I think it’s just a case of me and her not really getting along and no one knowing which topics of conversation would be safe ground and which ones wouldn’t be. And I think for Wyatt, it must be just as awkward being stuck in the middle and if he sits and chats and laughs with me, he feels like he’s leaving Ruth out and if he sits and chats and laughs with Ruth, he feels like he’s leaving me out.

The waiter comes with the bill which Wyatt pays and then we leave. We head back to the hotel without it being a discussion. We step inside the lobby. There is a bar area off the lobby that looks pretty lively and for a moment, Ruth looks into it, and I speak up before I really think it through.

“Do you want to grab a night cap, Ruth?” I ask.

For a moment, I think she’s going to say yes, and I don’t know if that’s a good thing because we can let this silly awkwardness go or whether it’s a bad thing because we won’t be able to just let it go like that. I’m saved from ever finding out which it would have been though.

“I think I’m just going to call it a night. It’s been a long day and we have an early start tomorrow. Thank you for the invite though. Another time maybe,” she says, and I smile and nod.

“You’re probably right. I think an early night is probably the best idea,” I say.

We all go to the elevator and ride up. When it reaches the seventh floor and Ruth says goodnight and gets out, it feels like the air lightens and when the doors close again, Wyatt and I both breathe a sigh of relief.

“Please tell me I’m not the only one who thought that whole dinner was as awkward as hell,” I say looking up at him.

He shakes his head.

“No, it wasn’t just you. What on earth were you thinking asking if she wanted to go for a drink with you?” he says.

I shrug my shoulders.

“I don’t know. I felt a bit sorry for her. She was always your golden girl and now she’s got competition and she’s losing, and I feel bad for her,” I say.

Wyatt raises an eyebrow as we get out of the elevator.

“She’s losing, is she?” he says.

“Oh, yeah. By a country mile,” I say.

We are at our room doors and Wyatt smiles at me.

“Your place or mine,” he says.

“Actually, I really want to go over the slides one more time,” I say. “So how about you give me like an hour, and I’ll knock on your door when I’m done.”

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