Her cell phone rang, and Alison picked it up, glancing at the number she didn't recognize.
"Hello?"
"Hi Alison, it's Kim. I hope you don't mind, I got your number from Rob."
"Hi Kim," Alison said, "no, no, it's fine. How are you?"
"I'm good, thanks. How are you doing today?" Kim asked pointedly.
"Uh, I'm good. what's up?" was Alison's confused reply.
"Rick just told me that Rob told him during golf this morning that you moved in with him! That's amazing, I am so excited and happy for your two!" Kim gushed.
Alison laughed, charmed by her new friend's delight over her developing relationship with Rob. She had only met Kim two days before, but Kim had the kind of personality that allowed you to feel close to her almost as soon as you met her.
"I am pretty excited, too." Alison confided, "It all happened so fast, and I agreed to the idea without even thinking about it, which is very unlike me. I really like being with Rob, though. He is the sweetest guy I have ever dated."
"You don't have to tell me that, hon," Kim said, "I love him like a brother. No wait, that's a bad analogy given my sexual history with him... Anyway, you know what I mean. Hey, how about having lunch with me this week?"
Alison laughed as she tried to follow Kim's ricocheting thought process. "Sure, that would be fun."
"Good Since you work downtown, how about if we just meet at 54 West again? I will set up an appointment to put me in that area in the morning, and we can meet for lunch at noon on Tuesday." Kim suggested.
"Sounds good to me." Alison replied. The two chatted for a few more minutes, then Kim hung up.
When Alison told Rob she was meeting Kim for lunch she could tell that he was glad. He had been casually probing Alison on how she felt about Kim and Rick ever since they had been together with them the previous weekend. Alison figured out that it was important to him that she be able to get along with his close friends. Even after the wild turn of events that had taken place when she met them, she really did like them both, and was looking forward to getting to know them better.
When Alison got to the restaurant on Tuesday, Kim was already at a table, and doing business on her cell phone. Kim waved her to a seat as she finished her conversation with the person she was talking to. Alison was struck by how mature and authoritative Kim sounded when dealing with other professionals. It was a contrast to her whimsical and capricious sexual nature.
When she ended the call, Kim put her phone down and wrapped Alison in a hug, followed by a quick kiss on the lips. Alison could not remember another friendship with anyone that had gone from the first handshake to the 'kiss hello' stage in such a short period of time. The waitress brought them a bottle of wine that Kim had selected and took their food order.
"So tell me what has been going on," Kim demanded.
Alison broke into a wide smile, "I am so happy. Rob asked me to move in right after you two left the house Saturday morning. We drove over to my place that afternoon with his truck, and I went in to pack a few suitcases to take back with me.
The next thing I know, he is cleaning out my closets and carrying everything outside to his truck. We ended up bringing back my clothes, shoes, purses, makeup, cat and two litter boxes. When we got back to his place, he hauled everything to that massive walk in closet of his and piled it in the center of the floor."
"Have you met Maria yet?" Kim asked.
"Yes, she actually took all of my clothes, with the mismatched and bent hangers I had them on, and hung them up on new metal trouser hangers and padded shirt hangers, then she arranged them for me in the empty half of the closet. She is just the sweetest lady."
Kim nodded in agreement, "She has worked for Rob as his housekeeper since he started his company. Her husband is Rob's foreman, Miguel. They will be at the party with their kids on Saturday, too. How do you like living in that mansion Rob built?"
"Living there is like a fairy tale," Alison said, "the house is a palace! I can't get over having someone to take care of all the household chores for us. Rob told me that I have to stop doing the dishes every night, or Maria is going to get mad at me."
"You should relax and enjoy it. Use the time it frees up to get into something that you have always wanted to try but never had time for." Kim suggested.
"Rob and I take advantage of it, for sure. We are able to go to the gym right after work, and when we get home, Maria has a light supper waiting for us. She even feeds my cat so I don't have to worry about him. I tell you, a girl could get used to this kind of life."
Their food arrived and Kim filled Alison in on the plans for Rob's birthday party the following weekend. Alison was amazed at everything Kim had planned, and how carefully she managed every detail. Kim informed her that the tent was going up over most of the back patio the following day, and Rob had already arranged for Miguel to meet the tent supplier at the house to help him figure out how to set it up without damaging the stone work.
Then Kim invited her to go to the spa with her after work on Thursday. She explained to Alison that Rob had given her a membership at the health spa of the most exclusive resort in the city for Christmas the previous year, and she was going to get ready for the party with a mani-pedi and a Brazilian wax.
Kim teased her with, "You probably need to get a Brazilian too, for that DP you have planned with Rob and Rick."
Alison choked on her Chardonnay, and grabbed Kim by the wrist. "Who told you about that?"
Kim tilted her head back in a throaty laugh, and admitted that Rob spilled the beans to Rick during golf on Sunday. Rick told Kim about it when he got home.
"Kim, I just told Rob that to see if it excited him. It sure worked for that, but I had to tell him after that I am not sure I could actually go through with it." Alison said.