Kim entered the bar of the 54 West restaurant from the street side, pausing to remove her sunglasses so she could search the room for Rob. The late afternoon sun had temporarily blinded her, so she waited for her eyes to adjust as she put the glasses away in her clutch.
Several men seated near the door took notice of the gorgeous woman who just entered. She had dark hair, worn down to her shoulders in cascading curls. Her coloring and facial features reminded one man of a beautiful gypsy. She was dressed in a fairly short skirt and sweater set that could be considered business attire, but she pulled it off in a way that made it very sexy as well.
She had on high heeled sandals, with only two straps. One crossed her foot at the widest point, and the other held the heel onto her slim ankle. Her long, thin legs were bare, and slightly bronzed from the sun. Her toe and fingernails were done in a French manicure. Several men who were appraising her tried to imagine what she would look like without the classy outfit she was wearing.
Kim felt the eyes of some of the male patrons in the bar looking her over. The crowd was mainly business types, either stopping for a drink on the way home from work, or waiting for a seating in the restaurant, and skewed heavily toward men versus women. She was finally able to scan the crowd for Rob, and tried to avoid making eye contact with the single men who watched her with interest.
She spied Rob sitting at a secluded table in the back of the lounge. She expected to see Alan with him, and was surprised to realize he was seated with a man she didn't recognize. She made her way over to the table, and caught Rob's eye as she approached. She made a quick gesture with her shoulders to signal the question of "who is this" to Rob.
He rose to greet her and gave her a wink and his most charming smile. The man seated with Rob also rose quickly and turned toward Kim.
Rob took Kim's hand and used it to pull her into a quick kiss on the lips, then he turned to his companion and introduced him. "Kim, I would like you to meet a business associate of mine who is also my mentor. This is Max Stefanos. Max, this is Kim Anderson."
"Hello Max, it's nice to meet you." Said Kim.
Max took Kim's proffered hand and smiled at her as he murmured, "The pleasure is all mine, I assure you."
Rob pulled out the chair between he and Max and held it while Kim sat down. Rob and Max then sat and Max said, "Rob has been telling me all about you."
Kim glanced to Rob with her eyebrows arched. "All good things, I hope."
Alarm bells were going off inside her head, wondering if Rob's description included their sexual relationship. Kim trusted Rob in most things, but he was impulsive sometimes. She liked to keep her lifestyle choice compartmentalized from her public life. A lot of people, if they found out she had sex with men other than her husband, even with his consent and encouragement, would be quick to judge and condemn her.
Rob jumped in to explain, correctly surmising that Kim might be worried about how he characterized their relationship. "I told Max that I have known you for years, and that you and Rick took me on as a greenfield site in need of a complete design-build out."
Max chuckled at the look of confusion on Kim's face, and explained, "Rob is using a construction analogy, referring to an undeveloped parcel of land that is ready for someone to use in a project. When he was getting started, I told him that he had all the smarts about building that he would ever need, but his social skills were rough around the edges. I suggested that he cultivate some friends who were more refined, whom he could emulate in his dealings with clients."
Rob added, "Max did much more than that for me. He gave my company our first contract as the interiors sub on an office complex he was building. Since then, he steered several big projects my way when his crews were booked up. I owe a lot of my success to this guy. That's why, whenever he comes to town, I insist on treating him to dinner."
Kim smiled at the obvious warmth and admiration that Rob had for Max. "Well then I am honored to be included, and glad to help Rob entertain such a wonderful man." She added.
Max laughed again, delighted at the praise from his protégé and Rob's very attractive friend. "Why do I feel like the two of you have ulterior motives tonight?" he asked.
The hostess appeared, and told them their table was ready. After they moved to the dining room, Max realized that Kim still didn't have a drink, so he asked her what she wanted.
"I think I will just have a glass of red wine," replied Kim.
Rob ordered a bottle without even consulting the menu. Kim recognized the name from an earlier date with Rob, and recalled that the wine was over two hundred dollars a bottle. It was one of her favorites, though she and Rick would never order such an expensive wine if they were out for dinner together.
"You remembered what I like." She commented happily.
"Well of course I did." Responded Rob, as though the notion that he would forget such a detail in the weeks since they last dined together was absurd.
The trio settled into a comfortable conversation as the dinner progressed. The men talked shop for a while, giving Kim a chance to study Max. She learned that he was Greek-Italian, and had been in the business for over forty years. She guessed his age at about sixty, and he seemed in good shape, but not as good as Rob, who was compulsive about working out.
Max had gray hair cut short and styled impeccably. In fact, everything about him was impeccable. He had on a polo shirt and sports jacket over linen trousers. His watch and shoes looked European, and very expensive. He had the confidence and relaxed attitude shared by all men who have made it in life, and are enjoying the ride. Kim found him to be very sexy.
After dinner, Max excused himself to use the restroom. As soon as he left the table, Rob turned to Kim and said, "Thank you for going along with me tonight."
Kim smiled and said, "Of course, baby. Max is nice. I'm having a good time."
Rob relaxed and added, "I did call Alan about tonight, but he was already busy. I hope you are not disappointed to be stuck with me and the old man. I know you might have had something else in mind for after dinner."
Kim laughed at Rob's assumption that she couldn't be attracted to Max because of his age. Why did guys assume women had the same fixation on youth that they did with young girls?
"What makes you so sure that I'm not interested in something other than dessert after dinner?" she asked Rob. Then she added, "Unless you wore yourself out with that little hussy you were out with last night."
Rob grinned, and said, "You pretty much put the kibosh on that one, calling me in the middle of my date with her. I didn't even get to second base after your call."
"Poor baby," cooed Kim, reaching under the tablecloth and rubbing Rob's crotch.
