7. Emily

7

EMILY

T he waiter with his dark, curly hair took our empty plates away after asking if we wanted dessert. The posh restaurant Evelyn chose for our evening out probably wasn’t as ritzy as I thought it was, but back in Monroe County, the fanciest restaurant we had was a McDonald’s and it was always busy. Here in Chicago, to eat at a joint like this was probably beneath some people, but to me it was fine dining.

“You ought to give him your number,” Evelyn prodded, elbowing me. I sat on her side of the booth, unable to get out without her moving first. Charlotte sat across from us, snickering. Both of them liked to set me up with guys they thought I’d be good with. I couldn’t count how many times I’d had to cancel a blind date they wanted me to go on.

“No, I don’t like him. Guys, he’s too young. He looks straight out of high school.” I gulped the glass of wine and shook my head. I wasn’t really into younger guys at all, but the prospect of an older guy had never turned me away.

“Alright, well what about the guy at the bar?” Evelyn continued her sisterly badgering. Being married now, she insisted that I was missing out on something amazing. She had a toddler and a nice little domestic life, whereas I was still single and ready to mingle.

Charlotte, being engaged, egged Evelyn on most days, though she was always more supportive of my singlehood. She rolled her eyes at Evelyn’s prodding and being my best friend, she stood up for me. “Look, Eve, if she’s not ready to date, she’s not ready.”

“I didn’t say I’m not ready.” I set my wine glass down and felt heat creeping into my cheeks. The thought of Daniel and me dating had been on my mind for days now. After sex with him last week, he was all I could think about. I’d even made a few mistakes at work and Olivia had to scold me for being distracted, but how was I supposed to focus on boring paperwork and filing briefs when Daniel was just down the hall?

“Oh, yeah? So the guy, at the bar, with the tattoo.” Evelyn pointed a thumb over her shoulder, and I turned to see a man there. What Evelyn failed to notice was the ring on his left ring finger.

“Married.” I shrugged and finished my wine. “Besides, I think I might be into someone at work.”

“Ooh,” Charlotte called, leaning in. Her eyebrows waggled as she said, “Tell me now. All the details.”

I grinned, not sure how to explain exactly what was happening between me and Daniel because we hadn’t even talked about it yet. We’d had lunch multiple times and chatted, then flirted a lot. The sex was completely out of left field and had my mind reeling, but it was amazing and I wanted it again. Still, there was no evidence that he wanted a relationship. The most encouragement I’d gotten was his naughty flirting before golf the day we’d had sex. Since then, he’d been busy.

“I don’t know what there is to say.”

“Uh, hello? Everything?” Evelyn angled her body to face me and poked me on the shoulder. “Who is he? What is his job? What does he look like? What’s his name?”

Charlotte slurped her soda and nodded along with Evelyn’s interrogation. “Yes, all of those details and more. We want to know how you met, and what you’ve done with him. Have you gone to dinner? Lunch? Kissed?”

I regretted opening my mouth at all. Both of them were incorrigible, honestly, and I knew they would never let me out of the booth until I’d spilled the beans. I took a deep breath, sighed, and started my story.

“So, his name is Daniel. He’s a little older than me, and he’s really handsome. Uh, he’s a lawyer, and I met him the first day because I assist him sometimes with paperwork and stuff.” I eyed Evelyn as she took out her phone and started typing. I thought maybe she was texting her husband or something, so I continued. “Anyway, I brought him some files one day and he had extra lunch. He asked me to sit and eat with him. He’s so amazing, Char. He plays basketball and loves sports. He’s a reader too. Gosh, we have so much in common.” I heard myself swooning over the details.

“Oh, he sounds amazing. How romantic. You had lunch with him? What else? Has he taken you to dinner? Have you kissed him?”

At Charlotte's question, I found my cheeks burning, just thinking of how little kissing we accomplished before we had sex, and then the kissing was only to keep me from making so much noise the whole office would hear. I swore Olivia was suspicious as I walked past her office on the way to the bathroom to wash my face and check my hair. And Grace had given me the stink eye too.

“Uh, well…” I was nervous. I’d tell Charlotte anything, but with Evelyn there, I was intimidated. She always told Mom everything, even things that were none of Mom’s business.

“You kissed him!” Charlotte snickered. “You little vixen. Oh, my gosh, is he a good kisser?” She leaned in, eyes wide in suspense as I hesitated to answer her. I was anxious about what she’d say, but more so what Evelyn would say.

Shrugging, I bit my lower lip and gave her a knowing look, not turning my eyes away from her. I hoped she would understand that I’d had sex with him, not just kissed him, but without telling Evelyn about it. At least not yet. Her eyebrows rose, eyes widening, and she gasped. “No way! Really?” She leaned forward, palms splayed on the table.

I grinned and looked down. That’s when Evelyn finally chimed in, oblivious to the interaction between me and Charlotte. She had a scowl on her face that reminded me exactly of my mother and took the wind out of my sails instantly.

“Are you talking about Daniel Jacobs? The head partner and CEO?” Evelyn stared at me, phone in hand with damning evidence. She was on the company site, scrolling the headshots of all the lawyers on staff. Daniel was the only “Dan” who worked there. “Emily, you realize he’s twelve years older than you, right? He could be your father.”

I snatched her phone away from her and locked it, laying it on the table. I was frustrated that she couldn’t just be happy for me. “You’re ridiculous. Twelve-year-olds don’t have sex, and if they did, they don’t get women pregnant. Okay? He’s not old enough to be my father.”

“That’s a huge age gap. What is wrong with guys your age? And the head partner? He’s probably just sexually harassing you and you’re too na?ve to know that.” Evelyn turned to Charlotte. “Tell her it’s gross.”

Charlotte shook her head. “No, it’s not gross, but it is sort of odd. I mean, is he nice? Like, does he talk to you like a human? Evelyn has a point, Em. What if he’s just using his authority to pressure you into sex?”

“Oh, believe me,” I told them, “he doesn’t have to make me do anything.” I had to hide the smirk on my face. “I’m very willing to do anything he wants to.”

Evelyn remained quiet, now clutching the phone in her hand again. The way she retreated into herself when Charlotte hadn’t agreed with her was concerning, but at least she wasn’t badgering me anymore. I turned to Charlotte and sighed, ignoring Evelyn’s glower.

“Anyway, we have so much in common and I think we really like each other. I want to see where it goes. I know it’s not conventional to date someone so much older than me, but he’s got his life together, which is more than I can say for most men my own age.”

“Well, I say be careful. That’s all.” Charlotte finished her soda and waved the waiter over to our table. “Just use your brain, not your hormones. If he tells you that you have to do something with him to keep your job, then it’s definitely harassment. Got it?”

I nodded in agreement, and Evelyn excused herself to use the toilet before we left. We all came separately, so I didn’t worry about being lectured more in the car, though I was concerned Evelyn would run straight to my parents with the juicy gossip and they’d call me with their concerned parent act.

After we paid and said goodbye, I walked toward the metro line which would take me to my apartment. Daniel hadn’t pressured me at all. I thought I was the one who'd instigated things, which I knew would bring up a whole other level of gossip if people found out. Evelyn would assume, like my coworkers, that I was trying to sleep my way to the top, when in fact, I had no interest in climbing that ladder. I wanted to use my degree in business to help a company really grow, not stick around a law firm. I’d never be a partner, and that was what I wanted, to be at the top.

I swiped my metro pass and found a seat on the train taking me home, and my phone buzzed. I reached into my pocket to see a call from an unknown number had been missed, then a text came in as I was checking my notifications.

Unknown sender 9:17 PM: Your tits are so perfect, I want to suck them.

I read the message and froze. Who on earth could be sending me nasty things like this? I looked around the car as it started moving and covered my phone so people around me didn't see it, and the phone buzzed again. I looked down to see another message.

Unknown sender 9:18 PM: If I send you my address, will you come over so I can bury my cock inside you?

This one was worse than the previous one. It made me tremble to think someone had this number, or maybe it was just a prank, I didn’t know. I typed a message into the phone and hit Send as quickly as I could, then blocked the number immediately.

Emily 9:19 PM: Sorry. I’m taken already. Lose my number.

I sat back on the train, nervous. Very few people had my number at all, and I had no idea who it could be. The entire train ride, I felt hypervigilant, studying the faces of people around me on the train as if by examining them, I may discover who it was that had messaged me. I feared someone was following me too, so I called Charlotte to chat with her just to calm my nerves. The topic of Evelyn came up, though, which soured the chat.

“You think she’s going to make a fuss, call your mom like she normally does?” I could hear Charlotte eating again and wondered how she ate so much and stayed so thin.

“Yes, I absolutely think she will. It’s only a matter of time before my mom calls me to lecture me.” The train pulled into my station, and I rose and made my way off the train and up the stairs toward the exit.

“Gosh, well I’m here for you. I’m happy you met someone, and I really hope he’s not a loser. I hope it works out.” I could always count on my best friend to have my back.

“Thanks, Char. I’m going to go now. I’m just about to my place. Thanks for keeping me company.”

“You got it, babe. Call if you need me again.”

As I pushed the elevator call button, I resolved that I had to talk to Daniel about whatever this was that we were doing. I liked him a lot, and I wanted more than just office lunches and sex. I wanted to see where it went because I saw us having a real shot at something special. Besides, he wasn’t my direct supervisor. Olivia was. How could that affect my job?