~~~~ Day 1 Saturday
This business trip was going to be different I told myself. Ever since the company I work for had picked me to attend the annual symposium of financial planning put on by the prestigious McCormick Institute of Finance and Investments, I had been planning and preparing for this trip. I had worked long and hard to earn this distinction and knew that attending meant I would soon be in line for advancement in the company.
Everything was in place as I waited for the Uber to take me to the airport. This year's symposium was being held at an exclusive resort in the Bahamas. The institute valued privacy and always chose a secluded venue for this meeting. The entire resort had been reserved for the symposium and it was not easy to get there. I had to take a flight from O'Hare to Atlanta and connect to a flight going to Ft. Lauderdale. Then I would take another flight to the small airstrip on the island where the resort was located.
To insure that I would have plenty of time to get there I booked flights that left on Saturday even though the symposium did not begin until Wednesday. I needed a little mini-vacation and the resort seemed like a nice place to spend a few days before the other attendees arrived. Even with an early departure from Chicago, I wouldn't actually get to the resort until two PM. There was only one flight a day to and from the island.
I had actually wanted to take my wife Cheryl with me but no spouses were allowed. I kissed her goodbye when the Uber driver arrived and we left for the airport with plenty of time to spare. Check in went smoothly, the flight was on time and arrived in Atlanta as scheduled. I walked to the gate for the flight to Ft. Lauderdale and took a seat in the waiting area. While waiting for boarding to start I used my phone to check last minute emails and text messages from work. Since it was Saturday, there was little activity.
I set my phone to airplane mode and put it in my coat pocket. Then unexpectedly, my attention was drawn to an unusually pretty woman walking along the concourse. I could tell just by the way she walked that she was different. This was a woman you didn't see very often and when you did you paid attention. I was delighted when she turned in at the gate and went up to the desk to check in for the flight I was waiting for. She was dressed very smartly in business attire but it fit her more like high fashion haute couture than off the rack from Brooks Brothers. Her look was a remarkable combination of businesswoman and pole dancer. I didn't doubt for a minute that she would be equally capable in either role.
She had beautiful brown hair that shone like the hair on a model in a TV commercial. It was a little longer than shoulder length and framed her face perfectly. Her suit was midnight blue with a white blouse and high-heeled shoes in a color that matched the suit. Everything about her screamed expensive and classy.
She removed her coat and sat across the aisle from where I was sitting. As she carefully folded it and placed it on the seat next to her she surprised me by smiling warmly at me. I wasn't being very subtle about leering at her while she was getting comfortable so I smiled back and hoped that I communicated an appreciation of her appearance rather than the ogling stare of a pervert. I was determined not to let a pretty woman unnerve me so instead of reaching for my phone to feign doing something important I just took a deep breath and moved my eyes to the flat screen TV where CNN was being broadcast.
In less than ten minutes they announced the flight was ready for boarding. Passengers in business class could board first so I stood and picked up my carry-on. I was happy to see she stood as well and I waited for her to collect her things then followed her to the gate. When we entered the business class area of the cabin we were the only ones sitting in this section. I found my seat, which was directly behind hers. Once the doors were closed and it was apparent nobody else was going to be in this section, I leaned over to ask her, "Since we have this whole section to ourselves, would you like some company?"
"I think that's a great idea. Please, join me."
She was in the window seat so I would have the aisle. I removed my coat, folded it neatly and put it in the overhead compartment, then sat down. Holding out my hand I said, "Hello, I'm Jim."
She took my hand and said, "Steffani Marks. Glad to meet you Jim."
"So Steffani, what takes you to Ft. Lauderdale?"
"Actually I'm only passing through Ft. Lauderdale. My destination is a resort on a small island in the Bahamas."
"You wouldn't be going to the McCormick symposium by any chance?"
"Oh my God! You're going there too?"
"I am and here I thought I was the only one clever enough to go early and have a few days to relax and get ready."
"GMTA Jim."
I looked a little hesitant at her comment and she said, "Great minds think alike."
"Oh yeah. Well I hope we can do a little relaxing together once we're there. At least we won't have to try to sell each other an annuity." I reached in my pocket to retrieve my business card and handed it to her. She reached in her purse and handed me one of hers. She looked at my card and said, "Sterling J. Grimes. That's a very impressive name. I assume the J stands for James."
"Yes it does and most people call me Jim."
I would prefer to call you Sterling if you don't mind. I like that name. Where do you call home?"
"I'm from Chicago. I looked at her card and saw her name was Steffani Marks. "That's an unusual spelling for Stephanie."
"My father is from Italy and my mother is from France. He insisted on the Italian version of that name. We didn't move to America until I was five years old so I grew up speaking Italian and French then learned English when we got to the states."
"Marks doesn't sound like an Italian name."
"Marks is my married name. My maiden name is Moretti."
"And where do you live Steffani?"
"New York. My office is on Wall Street."
"That's very impressive Steffani; almost as impressive as your appearance. Your mixed heritage has given a very sultry and exotic look to your face and body."
"Why, thank you Sterling. That's a very nice compliment. You're not too difficult to look at either."
We spent the remainder of the flight talking about the conference and other shop talk about financial markets until it was time to land. Once on the ground we made our way to the gate for the flight to the island. The plane was small with only enough room for about sixty people. I was glad we had come early because if the entire resort was sold out to other attendees they were not all going to get on this plane if they came on the same day. The flight to the island was brief, only about fifty minutes and the view was spectacular as we came in for a landing, gorgeous water and beautiful beaches bathed in sunshine.
A small shuttle met us and helped with our luggage before taking the short ride to the resort. Check in was quick and efficient. While walking to the rooms we made plans to freshen up then put on a bathing suit and meet at the pool bar for a drink. This trip was starting out better than I could have imagined.
I got to the pool first and did a little looking around. The resort was not large, seventy five rooms in in the main building with conventional but extremely well appointed hotel rooms and a few dozen individual bungalows and villas which were quite lavish and included private pools, spacious patios, hot tubs, bath tubs that could hold four people and other posh amenities if you had a budget large enough. Since Steffani and I were on the company's dime we had conventional rooms in the main section.
When Steffani showed up we sat at the pool bar and had a tropical rum punch and talked some more about our jobs and lives. We were close to the same age, I was twenty-eight, she had just turned twenty-nine. She was married to a man that was an IT Vice-President for a brokerage firm. His name was Kevin. They had one child, a six-year-old daughter named Donna. I told her about my wife Cheryl who worked part time as a realtor and took care of our daughter Lindsey who would be six next month.
"Let's go explore this place and walk on the beach. I can't wait to get my tootsies into that beautiful water."
We strolled leisurely along the water line and let the tiny waves splash against our feet as we discovered this incredible place. "I've never been in the Caribbean before. I could get very used to this."
"Kevin and I spent our honeymoon in Bermuda but that's not technically the Caribbean. This is really wonderful. I don't think I'll have a problem slowing down and enjoying myself for the next three days until the conference starts. God I hope I don't hear a phone chime the whole time I'm here."
What kind of attitude is that Steffani? That's corporate heresy in my world. That damn phone is practically part of my body. I do hope you'll help me to ignore the insidious intruder for the next three days."
"We can help each other. We deserve a few days to see if we're still human or have been taken over completely by the body snatchers."
As we walked along the shore we noticed that there were quite a few couples. They seemed to be enjoying themselves and the women wore extremely tiny thongs for bathing suits.
"I think I'm overdressed in this one piece swimsuit Sterling. These women are practically naked."
"That hasn't escaped my notice. I'm sure there must be a shop in the main building that sells these thongs if you wan to stop by and get one. I won't mind a bit. Although, I must say, you look as pretty as they do without revealing virtually everything."
"Thanks for the compliment Sterling. I was aware of the way you looked at me when I sat down across from you in the airport. I saw it as a look of genuine appreciation and it made me feel good that a nice looking man like you thought I was pretty. I don't get that enough from Kevin anymore."
