"Well, that ended badly." Peter mumbled to himself. He tried to get to his feet. He was sitting on the floor of his living room trying to sort out just what had happened. But his alcohol clouded mind and his stinging cheek made coherent thought a little difficult. He had acted like a prick and he knew it. He made another attempt at standing up but his pant-legs were bunched around his ankles and one foot slid out from under him again. "Fuck it." He growled. And lay back onto the floor, his hands clasped behind his head. He chuckled to himself when he thought back to the spectacular disaster the night had become.
He hated dating. It was usually a necessary evil if you wanted to get into a woman's pants but he still hated the ritual. Tonight was no exception.
He rolled to his side, stretched out an arm to the coffee table and groped for the wine bottle he knew was there. Ah, pay dirt. He lifted his head a little and tried to drink but most of it dribbled down his chin. "Fuck it." He said again and let the half full bottle drop to the floor and roll away, leaving a red liquid trail.
He met Allison at his boss's birthday party. Allison was a beauty. Allison? No, that wasn't her name. ADDison. That was it. Good god what kind of name was that. What happened to Mary and Linda? He would even take a Tiffany now and then. But all the Madison, Taylor, Dakota, Kristen, Tristen, Kirsten, Kirsty crap made him feel old.
At 42 Peter was far from decrepit, but he had less and less to talk about with the bevy of beauties he usually surrounded himself with. He kept himself extremely fit and he was usually moderate about most things. Tonight was an exception.
Back to Addison. When he met her at his boss's birthday party he was instantly struck by her sexily tosseled red hair, big blue eyes and incredible figure. She was draped in a tiny black cocktail dress with a plunging neckline that showed off her milky skin to perfection. It wasn't hard to turn on the charm and get her phone number. She was just as eager as he was to get together.
Tonight as they ate dinner at an elegant restaurant, he had found out she was only 21. Peter had been out with many much younger women before, but tonight the age difference struck him particularly hard. She was literally half his age.
He found himself struggling to keep the conversation flowing. She was intelligent but she was also still in college and that fact only made Peter order another bottle of wine. He began to get irritated with everything she said. She brought up movies and music that he had no interest in and when he tried to change the subject to something he was interested in, she was obviously pretending to be interested, too. At least that's what he made himself think. He began making snide comments about everything she said. Until they both sat in an uncomfortable silence.
Even though he didn't feel like it, he asked her if she'd like to go dancing and she eagerly agreed. He was glad that they had left his car at home. After a bottle and half of wine he was in no condition to drive.
The cab took them to a trendy nightclub. The night was still young so it wasn't crowded yet. Addison took his hand and immediately led him to the dance floor. He barely moved as she swiveled and gyrated around him. The music was deafening and Peter's head began to pound with the beat. Addison rubbed her ass up against his crotch. He supposed this was the latest dance move because he noticed some of the other couples were doing it too. Again he felt old. God, he needed a drink.
Peter spun on his heel and made his way to the bar without a backwards glance at Addison. He heard her call his name over the thumping beat of the music but he pretended not to hear her. She finally caught up to him after he'd already ordered the drinks. "Jesus, Pete! Why'd you just leave me there!" She shrieked.
"I told you I was going to get a drink, didn't you hear me?" He lied.
"Oh." She said. She tried to catch his eye then she shrugged. "I guess I didn't." She shrugged again, deciding to let it go. "I guess it is pretty loud in here."
Peter just grunted and took a large swig of his drink. Addison leaned into him and sipped her cocktail. "Hey," she cooed. "Why don't we bounce and go back to your place?" She rubbed her hand under his jacket. "How 'bout it?"
Her obvious attempt to turn him on only worked to irritate him more. He tossed back the rest of his drink and said through clenched teeth, "Yeah, let's bounce".
In the cab she talked and talked about school, while Peter just stared out the window. What the hell was wrong with him? He was usually very friendly, a great conversationalist and a master at seduction. All he wanted right now was for Addison to shut up and to stop rubbing her hands all over him, but he couldn't think of a way to tell her so without hurting her feelings. And as bad as he felt, he also realized that it wasn't her fault that he was feeling so shitty.
Once inside his home, he went directly to the wine rack behind his bar and opened up a new bottle. Addison stood by the door uncertainly. "Look, Peter. I can leave. I can tell something's wrong."
He gulped down half his glass of wine without really tasting it. He poured a glass for her now. He sighed tiredly. "I'm sorry, Addison. I guess I'm a little tired tonight, and not just a little drunk. Please excuse me. Why don't you have a seat?" He came across the room to the sofa she had perched on and handed her the glass. He refilled his own glass and sat next to her.
"So. Allison, why don't you sit back and relax and let Ol' Peter make you feel nice. Hum?" He put his hand on her soft shoulder under the strap of her dress and felt her silky skin. "I bet it costs Daddy a pretty penny to keep his baby girl all powdered and curled." He ran the back of his hand across her chest and skimmed over her perfect breasts. "And I'm guessing these cost him a pretty penny."
Addison stiffened. "The name is Addison! And my daddy's money is none of your business! And neither are my tits!" Her voice was shrill. "I think I better get going. I guess this wasn't such a good idea." She stood to leave but Peter grabbed her wrist.
"Aw come on, Ally . . . uh Addy. We were just getting started." Peter stood a little unsteadily and let go of her hand. "I thought you wanted to have a little fun." Peter clumsily started to unbuckle his belt. "Little Peter hasn't been out in a couple of days and he was looking for a good time!" When he finally got to the zipper, Addison had slapped him pretty hard and was out the door before he could register what happened.
He stood there for a few minutes as his pants started to creep slowly down his legs. Good Lord! What had just happened? Never in his life had he ever treated a woman so shabbily. He started towards the wine bottle when his trousers hit the floor and so did he. Damn!
------
Sunlight stabbed at Peter's eyes. "Where the hell . . " he croaked. The midday sun was streaming through the skylight above him. He tried to lift his head but his neck and back protested. "Gawd!" He groaned. He was still on the living room floor, his pants still wrapped around his ankles. Another attempt and he was finally in a sitting position. He had never felt this hung over, not even in his college days of debauchery.
"Mr. Walker? Are you alright?" Peter winced. It was Maria the housekeeper just coming in the front door. "Mr. Walker, are you hurt?" She rushed over and tried to help him up.
"Gently, Maria. Just help me to the sofa. Ow!" His muscles protested but he finally managed to half sit half lay down on the couch. "Please, just leave me here a minute. You just go about your work."
She hesitated. "Can I get you something? I mean you don't look too good." She rushed off towards the bathroom leaving Peter mumbling feebly to himself.
"Please. Don't mind me. Just leave me here to die." He chuckled to himself then his head pounded. "Christ Almighty, take me now! Oh, my head."
Maria rushed back with a glass of water and aspirin. "Here. Take these and you just lie back and let Maria take care of you. I knew one of these days you were going to go too far and here you are lying on the floor, reeking of liquor. Tsk. Your nice suit all soiled. I wouldn't wonder if you soiled your underwear, too." As she scolded him she helped him out of his clothes.
Peter was too hung over to struggle. He just let her take over and before he knew it he was resting comfortably under a soft blanket as Maria rushed around cleaning up the mess he had made the night before.
He watched Maria as his eyes began to close. Maria was a very pretty woman, even in her drab gray uniform and heavy black shoes. She always wore her dark hair in a tight bun and as he drifted off to sleep, he imagined Maria's glossy black tresses cascading around her smooth shoulders.
"Mr. Walker?" Maria's soft voice slowly woke Peter. "Mr. Walker, I'm leaving now. I left dinner on the stove. It just needs to be warmed up when you're ready." Peter stared into Maria's gentle brown eyes.
