Rule of Thumb Ch. 11

"Let me check my calendar. I think I've got something on Saturday. Hold on." I could hear her moving around. "Yeah, sorry. Saturday's taken. I probably could get something together for Friday. Is it the same kind of thing?"

I smiled again. "Nope. Plain vanilla this time. Long time friends. The sort Loren thought she was meeting last night. Probably not as many, and not for as long – maybe two hours, six couples. We talked about the salmon for last night, but it was too pricey for that big a crowd. Would it work for Friday?"

We continued to chat about the menu. "No. Just you. Loren and I can help serve, or we can make it buffet. No bartender. This isn't a business expense." We both laughed.

"Okay," she said. I got the impression she was trying to say something else. Or maybe it was just my projecting. "You...you saw my note?" Her voice trailed off.

"Yep. Loren and I discussed it. We are looking forward to seeing you Friday." I said it with a smile, leaving it completely understood she was going to be our plaything for the evening.

"Okay," she sighed, wondering if she was doing the right thing. "5PM."

Now to see if anyone would be joining us. I spent the next hour calling up the regular dinner and drinks crowd, suggesting a change in plans for the week, if they were up for it. Surprisingly there were few conflicts, and at the mention I was planning to introduce someone new in my life, they promised to clear their calendars.

Finally, I called Anna.

"Wilson residence."

"Mistress Anna, please." Heartbeats.

"This is Anna."

"Good afternoon, Anna. This is Rick. I wanted to thank you again for the wonderful evening last night. I hope it was as satisfying for you as it was for us?"

"How is Loren?" She zeroed in on the thing that mattered.

"We're fine. We had it out. We came to an understanding. You're right. She's a changed person. Completely different person this morning."

"Yes. Well. That won't last. At least, it may return and I hope you like what you're seeing, but her patterns have been ingrained so long it will take more than one bad evening to get her on a different track."

I didn't share her pessimism, but then again, she had been right almost every time, so I made a mental note. "Okay. Well, I was just calling to thank you and to suggest we should discuss when we'll meet again."

"Is there a question? I assume you'll be here Saturday night. I've reserved my Saturday nights for you two. I promise, it will not disappoint you." She said it with that smile that made me cringe.

"Mmmm," I said with what I hoped sounded like sincere enthusiasm, "we're looking forward to it. Okay, Anna. Thanks again."