This is a story about how a week away for a project led me to hook up with an mature woman who was also my boss. This story is a little long to build up the how we ended up hooking up in a hotel.
I couldn't have picked a better time to escape the winter storms of Philadelphia and spend a week in Florida. My company paying for the trip was just the cherry on the top. It was a warm Saturday morning in Orlando and I was looking forward to spend a nice weekend in the city before heading to our Orlando office for the week long project I was there for.
"Hey Om?" I heard a questioning call for my name as I was waiting at the carousel for my luggage.
I turned back to see Sonia.
"Oh hey Sonia, I see you decided to get in early as well," I said.
"Yeah, I needed to get out before the storm hits. Also, need to get some work done before the project begins on Monday," She replied.
"Not planning to get any sun?"
"No not really. I don't suppose I will get much time to do anything else," she said with an urgency on her face that was quite common, "Hey listen, I am glad you are here early as well. I am assuming you are staying at the Hilton near the airport as well?"
"No actually I am staying at the one near the downtown. I thought," I said before I got interrupted.
"Yeah yeah no issues. It's not too far. Let's plan to meet in a few hours. I have some documents I need to review and I could use your help to get it done. I think I see my baggage coming too, I will give you call later. See you in a bit!" she said and hurried to her bag before I could say a word.
I picked up my luggage and took an uber to the hotel.
I was furious. Not only did she never apologized for what she did previous week, she expects me to work with her on the weekend instead of enjoying the beautiful city. Sonia was a Director at the company and was the Program Manager for the project I was travelling to Orlando for. She had recently joined the company and held a very important portfolio of projects that I wanted to be part of. For all my efforts to impress her, she almost every time ignored me and my work like everything I did was just regulation work. Not to mention the reaming she gave me during a team meeting previous week for missing my deadline once by a single day.
She was an Indian, like me. She seemed like she was in her early 40s. Short, about 5'2", and a slim figure. She had straight short hair to a shoulder length. Her hair were straight and always perfect whenever she was seen by anyone. Not sure if it was the discontent towards me or if her eyes just had the cold dismissive look.
I got to the hotel, checked myself in and immediately took a shower to wash off the flight lethargy off me. As I was in shower, I heard my phone ring twice, I got out to see it was Sonia who had called. I saw her text, "Hey, Good Morning. Please meet me at my hotel after lunch around 1 pm."
I was irritated but I knew this was a major project for the company and I would learn a lot from this but project. Sonia was brought in the company for her expertise is Patent Technology. She had an extensive an reputed network and I definitely wanted to get on her good side. Everyone wanted to but at the same time very few could manage to get past her attitude. She wasn't the most easy person to work with.
I replied back with a simple "Okay." I got dressed, got some lunch and then headed to the hotel.
Then I started thinking, she asked me to come to her hotel, could that mean something more? My thoughts broke as I heard the concierge's word, "Ms. Verma said she will see you in conference room 2B. Once you get out at the elevator on the 2nd floor you will find it two doors down to your left." I thanked her and moved on.
Wow, conference room, she really is the ice queen. I met her in the conference room. She was dressed as usual in her business attire. She was wearing dark blue jacket and skirt with a pink shirt inside. Her stilettos made her looked taller which probably put her on the cloud from where she was judging me wearing my casual clothes. I was wearing light blue shirt and white trousers hoping to get out in the city.
"Okay, let's get started. I have reserved this conference room for all day, so we won't be disturbed.
"All day?" I thought as I nodded and got on with the work.
We spent the next 6 hours working in the conference room. I was hoping to get some time to unwind I thought, but this was turning out worse than regular work I thought.
At around 7 pm she asked me, "Hey I am sorry to keep you here all day, but we are almost there. Maybe 3 hours more at the worst, would you prefer us cranking it out tonight or want to get back at it tomorrow?"
"Oh, so you are familiar with the words, I am sorry," I said.
"What?" she replied in surprise.
"I apologize I didn't mean to. I was just a little exhausted and it slipped out of my tongue. I am okay with either," I replied in an apologetic tone
"You do realize the importance of the project, don't you?" she said in a sharp tone which triggered an unexpected reaction from me.
"Yes, I know. And we have reviewed these documents twice now front and back. Last week you insulted me in front of the entire team and now you are asking me to get stuck here all day when I had plans to tour the city." I blasted off.
"Listen Om," she was about to say as I interrupted,
"No, you listen Sonia. You didn't even ask if I was okay with this. I had plans today to see the city today. I admire you a lot, but we are not working now any more this weekend."
"Okay I get it; you can go ahead. I will review these one last time," she said in a somewhat apologetic tone.
"Hmmm. Thank you," I said meekly and started wrapping up my stuff.
"What are your plans?" I asked.
"I am just going to wrap up and maybe get some wine. Why do you ask?" Sonia replied.
"You want to get dinner and a drink?" I asked very nervously.
"Uhmmmm." She said as she took a few seconds to reply. "Okay. Let me change into something comfortable and we can go," she said and went to her room.
She headed to her room and I to the lobby waiting for her. In about half an hour I saw her shop up in the lobby.
She was wearing a black sleeveless top and a matching colored skirt which just about revealed her smooth thighs. For the first time I was able to look at her and admire how smoking her body was. Her boobs were medium sized but upright and perky, something I thought was uncommon for a woman her early forties. She had her hair down which just about reached shoulders.
"So where do you want to go?" Sonia asked.
"How about, we head downtown and figure out then?"
"Yeah, that works as well. Just as long as we get back by" she was about to say as I interrupted her and said, "You look good."
"Thank you, you as well" she said nervously and let out the smallest of smiles.
That was a woman who has not been complimented for a while, I thought. We went to an Italian restaurant in the downtown. We order some appetizers and drinks. The place wasn't too loud, but the awkward silence sure made me wish there was loud deafening music playing.
She broke the silence finally, "Hey listen I am sorry about last week. I know it was the first time you missed a deadline I should have gone easier on you, and definitely not in front of others. And also, for today."
"That is fine, I appreciate you saying that" I replied.
"Thanks! And maybe I haven't said this before, but I really appreciate all the work you are doing on this. I am not good when it comes to complimenting people, but I am glad you are part of this project team. It's just that," she stopped for a second to take another sip of her wine, "I have been so involved with work that I forget people do things outside work as well."
I sensed that the alcohol was starting to open her up, "You don't mean to say that you are either working or thinking of work all day?"
"When I am not with the lawyer, that is pretty much what I do?" she replied.
"Lawyer?" I asked inquisitively.
"Yeah I am in middle of a messy divorce. Well, almost at the end of the line now," Sonia said with visible sadness on her face.
"I am sorry to hear that," I said.
"No that's fine. At least it is about to get over and I can put that behind me," she said while ordering another glass of wine.
"Should we get a bottle?" I asked with a kidding smile on my face.
She laughed and said, "yeah that would have made sense about 4 glasses back, wouldn't it? I don't know about a bottle, I think I will be done after this one last glass, it is quite late."
I reached out my hand to her with a gentle touch and said "It is just 10 pm relax. Tomorrow is a Sunday."