*All characters are above the age 18*
In the last chapter we saw the very beginning of Eroti Co.'s attempt at "world peace" in 2045.
***
[Martin- 2017]
The restaurant was buzzing with people from all different backgrounds, ethnicities, and histories. What else could you expect from the most popular eatery in the city? Café Elephante. While its etymology remains shrouded in mystery, it doesn't stop people from enjoying it any less.
My phone buzzed on the table, alerting me that I had received a text from Caroline Fox.
"Almost there, driver took the wrong exit," she wrote.
"Don't waste my time," I replied. There was no response.
The waitress walked to my table, "Hi sir, are you waiting for someone?" Her brown hair was done perfectly and cut short to just below her chin. Bangs covered her eyebrows which only seemed to accentuate her bright green eyes. The cutest nose that I've ever seen seemed to point down to two red and plump lips. Her round and large breasts presented themselves out from her chest that drew every masculine gaze to their beauty.
"Yes, ma'am," I answered.
"Would you like me to get something for you while you wait?" She asked.
"Just a water with lemon would be nice, thank you," I gave her a half-hearted smile as she walked away. Her round ass swiveled around her waist as she stepped away from the table.
Soon my attention was brought to the front of the room as the hostess brought Caroline to our table.
"Hi, sorry I'm late, Julio fucked up," She placed her extremely oversized purse to the right of her seat.
"That's a bit flashy, don't ya' think?" I asked while I bit into a piece of buttered bread.
"I have some of my product in here, you're thinking about investing, right?" She said as she situated her belongings. The waitress returned.
"Hi, I'm Alice, can I start you off with some drinks?" She asked us with her notepad ready in hand.
"Could you get us a bottle of your best red? Thank you," Caroline said to Alice.
"Of course, it'll be just a minute. Anything else?"
"No thank you," Caroline answered once again. She looked at me as Alice departed towards the kitchen.
"I don't like red," I told her.
"I don't give a fuck," she answered in a very "business woman-ly" voice that bordered on condescending.
"Fair enough," I chortled, "What is it that you want me to invest in? I don't want to be here all night talking about it."
"Oh really?" She replied, "Well then that's too bad. Let's wait until we get our food at least."
"'That's too bad'?" I repeated, "I'm sorry, but I thought you wanted my money. What's to stop me from walking out that door right now?" The corners of her mouth shifted down and her eyebrows furrowed.
"Business is business, I know you, I know how you play your little fucking games. You would never let a potential 'million dollar idea' just slip through the cracks. You're not like that, Martin." We looked at each other for another few seconds before I broke my gaze. For someone who needed my money so desperately, she surely had a lot of experience as a business woman.
Alice returned with our glasses, the wine, and took our dinner orders. Caroline and I talked until our food was served about personal things like family, school, and various other stories. We sat across from each other with two steaming steaks that waited for out attention along with a new, unopened, bottle of red wine.
"Now," Caroline began, "Let's talk business." She reached down into her purse and pulled out a small glass vial, filled with some sort of red liquid, and sealed by a cork. "I'm going to put this in your drink, you are going to call Alice over, you will take a sip of the wine and tell her that it tastes funny, then you will tell her to have a taste to confirm your beliefs. That's what you have to do right now. Understand?"
I scanned Caroline up and down, taking in every detail of her face before finally coming to a decision, "Fine."
"Excuse me, Alice!" I called to her from across the restaurant.
"Yes, sir?" She answered when she arrived at our table.
"Hi, sorry to bother you, but this wine tastes kind of odd to me," I brought my glass to my lips and winced as the wine slipped down my throat, "Here, try some, just so you know that I'm not lying."
"Oh, uh, okay," she replied as she took the drink from my hands and sipped from the glass, "Oh yeah, there's definitely something wrong with that, I can take that off of your bill or I can bring you a new glass, on the house?"
"Just taking it off of the bill would be fine. Thank you, Alice," Caroline interjected.