Life had never been better. I had just moved to a new city, landed a high-paying job with a prestigious firm of designers, found myself a plush apartment, and bought myself a sports car.
The people I worked with were all friendly and considerate, and the atmosphere was terrific. I had a great cabin with a superb view, with just one other table - waiting to be allotted to a new hire like myself.
I had worked for a few years after my graduation, and this was my third job. I had several casual relationships, but never a long-term one. However, I made friends with women quite easily, and many allowed me to have my way with them.
I reckoned the time had now come to settle down and find a mate, perhaps even raise a family in the next few years. There were quite a few pretty and intelligent girls at work, but it seemed wiser to seek one from the world outside.
Then, one day, a vision simply walked into my cabin, and all my long-term plans turned topsy-turvy in a flash. The vision spoke, and introduced herself as my new cabin-mate, Nicole.
Nicole was easily the most stunning woman I had ever seen, with a rare aplomb and charm. I knew immediately that this was the woman I wanted in my life. She also happened to be a very shapely, though small, brunette.
She was very intelligent and friendly, and we hit it off immediately. However, I was not the only one at work who had noticed her arrival. There was a stream of visitors, both male and female, who walked into our cabin under some pretext of work, and then tried to get her to go out with them. Fortunately, she turned them all down, despite being single.
I was going to ask her out too, but dropped the idea for fear of meeting the same fate as the others. So, I maintained my dealings with her as a friendly colleague would, waiting for the right moment. Meanwhile, the stream of her would-be suitors also trickled to a halt.
This turned out to be the right ploy, and I got lucky sooner than expected. We had hardly worked together for a couple of weeks, when our boss announced that he was sending us out of town together for an assignment with a very important client.
I was pleasantly surprised to see that Nicole looked quite happy at the prospect of a three-day trip with me. We were to leave the following day, and spent the rest of the afternoon making plans eagerly.
The client was none other than Dr. Flemming, descended from European nobility, with a wife from a royal family. He was the head of an industrial empire, ranging from electronic goods to hotels. We were to help make one of his mansions "intelligent", using electronic equipment made by one of his many companies.
He had been unusually considerate in sending us first-class tickets, and arranging a limousine at the airport to take us to our hotel. We were to land in the evening, and start work the next day. I planned to make the most of our very first evening together, and had already identified the best restaurants in town.
The flight together was a dream come true. It was a three-hour trip, and after a couple of glasses of wine, we both declared much admiration for each other. We had started making body contact by the time we finished our third drink. She pressed her legs against mine, and her breast into my arm, and I was in seventh heaven.
We even exchanged quick kisses, limited by the freedom offered on a flight. The thought of joining the mile-high club crossed my mind, but I desisted. I wanted to marry Nicole, and it was too early for such adventures.
We arrived at our destination, very excited, and we walked hand-in-hand. A limousine, far fancier than what I expected, awaited us. The liveried driver served us vintage champagne once we were seated, and declared that Dr. Flemming was looking forward to meeting us.
This came as a total surprise, as we had not expected to meet the mogul himself. It was also apparent that we were not going to a hotel, putting an end to my plans of a romantic dinner with Nicole.
I managed to console myself that we still had two more evenings to ourselves before we returned home. And in any case, we had already established a bond, which could be developed further once back.
We arrived at a huge mansion with sprawling grounds, and Dr. Flemming himself greeted us as though we were long-lost friends. He regretted that Lady Flemming could not be with us, as she was on a skiing holiday in Austria with their two teenage children.
He explained that this was the mansion we were to redesign, and he was here in person as this was his pet project. We were to stay in the mansion, naturally.
The evening started with just the three of us at a table sharing a 20-year Montrachet, one of the finest white wines around. It was accompanied by some delectable hors d'oeuvres.
I was finally starting to enjoy myself, as were Nicole and the good doctor. More fabulous wines accompanied the dinner, and we were all rather exhilarated.
Dinner ended, and we were having cognacs when Dr. Flemming's personal secretary, Jodie, joined us. She was a curvy brunette, not petite like Nicole. Her arrival gave our host the opportunity to dedicate his entire attention to Nicole, leaving his secretary and me to indulge in light banter.
Dr. Flemming looked at his watch and announced that Jodie would take me for a round of the observation deck where the mansion overlooked the sea, and then show me to my residence in the Sapphire Room.
Meanwhile, Dr. Flemming would take Nicole to see his collection of stradivarii. This seemed quite logical, as she had mentioned that she had been a violinist in an orchestra.
This was obviously another disappointment, even though I had already given up hopes of spending quality time with Nicole in the mansion. Jodie was attractive, but very businesslike, and showed no inclination to flirt.