Chapter 2

I was up at five. It was Day Two, Saturday. I piddled around on my laptop for a while, catching up with notifications on Twitter. After that a nice long hot shower then down to breakfast. Mini omelet, sausage and potatoes again, then I was off for a brisk one mile walk in the cool morning air. It helped to stay fit, even at my age. One day the belly might even fade away.

As the sun rose more fully into the sky the temp felt like it pushed past seventy. I found my seat in the lecture hall and put my notebook on my lap when Bella walked in.

Oh my God, look at the way those jeans hug her ass.

The girl was a natural beauty. Not the ditzy blonde with big tits but the girl next door who was flawless. I craned my neck to see where she settled in the upper rows before turning my attention back to the front. And then came Maya.

I don’t know it was about the girl. After a business suit and slacks the first day, she was very dressed down, wearing shorts - and my heart jumped. Not like Daisy Dukes that would hug her crack but more like gym shorts that were loose over her narrow hips. Her legs were thin, pale and lacking muscle tone. I slid my phone out and snapped a pic for use later.

There were many good presentations, but every time Maya stood, she garnered my attention and I felt movement down below.

Lunch was uneventful. I introduced myself to junior analysts from a few clients, trying to pitch them on our newest product.

One of the afternoon sessions was dreadful with student math majors droning on about their revelatory equations. I’d seen Bella go out into the courtyard and felt the urge to see if she was still around. I slipped out to find her sitting at one of the tables, engrossed in conversation with some guy who looked her age.

Her LinkedIn page listened an internship with a company that I wanted to learn more about and thought it would be a good opening line to break the ice. I wandered off to chat with another old acquaintance while keeping an eye on Bella.

Her body language, the way she was laughing.

Dammit, she is too into that guy.

I counted it as a loss and went back inside to my seat.

Soon it was five and a wrap for another day. I chatted for a few minutes then headed into the courtyard and towards the hotel when I spotted her. Maya was alone on the corner, studying her phone.

I took a route where she could see me approach. She looked up from her phone and said, “Hello, Mr. Long.”

“Please, please ... it’s Joe.”

She glanced down and pursed her lips. “Okay ... Joe.”

I smiled. “Hello, Maya. Looking for something on your phone.”

“Well, yes. I was trying to find someplace where I could eat.”

“Are you on your own?”

“Yes, it looks that way.”

I brought my hand to my chin, looked at her for a moment, then asked, “Would you like to join me?”

“Are you sure?”

“Absolutely. I too was facing the prospect of eating alone and now I see no reason why we can’t keep each other company. I think it would be enjoyable.”

She gazed up at me then said quietly, “Well ... thank you.”

“You’re from San Diego, right?”

“Yes.”

“Well, I was thinking of Mexican, but you probably have that all the time in San Diego. How about Irish?”

She gave me a puzzled look. “Irish?”

“Yes, there’s a pub a block on the other side of the hotel. I’ve been there before with some friends.”

“Okay. Can I stop at the hotel before we go.”

I nodded. “Yep, that’s fine. I need to drop of my notebook and stuff. Meet you in the lobby in ten minutes?”

I was standing near the front door when she stepped out of the elevator. Still in pink sneakers, she had changed into a yellow sundress. I took a deep breath.

“I have to say that dress looks quite nice on you.”

“Well ... thank you, sir.”

“Joe.”

“Yes, of course. Now, where is this restaurant?”

I pointed left and said, “A block over and two blocks down. We’ll be there in just a couple minutes.”

She was quiet on the walk, spending most of the time gazing at the surrounding buildings.

I asked, “Where is your family from? Is Darmanin a Hispanic name?”

“Actually, it’s Maltese, which has a lot of influence from Spanish, Italian and Arabic culture.”

“I confess, not an answer I was expecting.”

“Yes, there aren’t too many of us. My grandfather came to the U.S. just before my dad was born. My mother is Lebanese.”

I nodded. “Being from western Pennsylvania, I’m mostly German and Scottish. My mom’s father was born in Scotland and came over when he was a kid.”

“That’s very interesting.”

It wasn’t long before I pointed to the right and the entrance to Seamus McCaffrey’s was just around the corner. I held open the door for her and touched her lightly in the small of her back as she stepped through.

It was crowded and noisy, with many seated at the bar or in booths. I held up two fingers to the waitress and she guided us to a small table in the back. I pulled out a chair for Maya and the waitress handed each of us a menu once we were both seated.

She glanced up from the menu. “You don’t have to do this for me.”

I smiled and reached out to place my hand over hers. “Just a random act of kindness.” But maybe not so random.

“What are you having?” she asked.

I nodded my head. “I think I’ll go with the corned beef and cabbage. Have you decided?”

“The shepherd’s pie sounds good, but they seem so expensive. Almost twenty dollars each.”

“Don’t worry. It’s a tax-deductible business expense. Get whatever you want.”

In a moment the waitress was over to our table. “Are you ready?”

I Looked at Maya and she nodded. “I’ll have the corned beef and cabbage, while the young lady would like the shepherd’s pie.”

“Any drinks?”

“I’ll take a Guiness Ale, on draft, and...” I extended my hand towards Maya.

“Ice water. Plain.”

The waitress smiled and took our menus. I said, “You could’ve gotten something else to drink.”

“I’m still only eighteen. I’m sure she would’ve asked for I.D.”

I grinned and leaned back in my chair. “Very well. So ... what are you studying?”

“Data Science with a minor in Sports Management.”

“I started off majoring in Math and Computer Science but soon found out I couldn’t hack it as a math major.”

She gave me a puzzled look. “What? You are so accomplished.”

“I was a data scientist before they invented the term. My passion was in answering questions. Math was an important tool, but I found out pure mathematics was not for me. In my junior year I switched to Economics.”

“Okay, I get that.”

“But I will admit that background was still crucial to the skills I have now, even if much of what I use has been self-taught over the last twenty years. Once I could find free databases and programming languages on the internet, I pulled out my old notes from college and I was off to the races.”

Soon the waitress returned to serve us our meals, each of us saying thank you.

Maya took a bite of her shepherd’s pie and nodded. “This is good. Just the right amount of spice.”

“Yes. I like bangers and mash too, but it wasn’t on the menu. The Brits and the Irish do like their mashed potatoes and gravy!”

She asked, “What’s the corned beef like?”

“Well, ‘corned’ means packed in salt, so the meat has a salty taste, and I love the way the peppered cabbage blends in with the potatoes and carrots. Would you like a bite?”

She grimaced but I said, “Here, give me your fork.” I sliced off some meat and scooped up a bit of cabbage, then held it out towards her mouth.

Her lips wrapped around the food and pulled it into her mouth. I continued to hold the fork out as she chewed, then placed it back on her plate. After she swallowed, I asked, “Well, how as it?”

“Pretty good.”

“Told you! So, what interests you in sports? Have you ever played?”

She thought for a moment. “I did run track in ninth grade, but I didn’t have enough time after that. What I really love is equestrian, which I share with my mother. We’ve been in competitions together. But between horses and studying I had little time left. Why do I want to be an analyst? Like you, I always liked to be able to have the answer, to figure things out.”

“And maybe one day, you’ll be the person at the top, making the decisions.”

“That would be nice. My father has his own law practice.”

I asked, “Did you go to private school?”

“No. We certainly had the money, but my parents thought it was better for me to mix with students of all backgrounds in the public schools.”

“Tell me about your horses. They are certainly beautiful creatures...”

A short while later each of use had finished our meals. “Any dessert?”, I asked.

“Oh, no. I am stuffed. Thank you.”

I waved to the waitress and gave her my credit card. A minute later she’d returned the card along with the receipt to be signed. Leaving my seat, I extended my hand to steady Maya as she stood. On the way to the door, I let her lead, with my left hand wrapped around her back and gently resting on her waist.

I held the door and once we were on the sidewalk, she spread her arms wide and let out a laugh. “Thank you – that was so kind!”

“It was absolutely my pleasure.”

We walked at a leisurely pace, close enough that my arm would bump hers, with her chatting away with observations of the people and buildings around us. It wasn’t long until I felt her hand take hold of mine, and I allowed our fingers to intertwine.

Right before the final turn back to the hotel, she stopped and turned to face me. “Joe, I couldn’t help but notice that ... the way you looked at me ... it was ... different ... I’ve never had anyone look at me that way before.”

I took in a breath and held it. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to...”

“No, I’m not complaining. I see the desire in your eyes, and it makes me feel so special.” I reached out with my right hand to take hers, so that I was then clutching both of her hands as I gazed down at her. She continued, “I have friends, but only the nerdy boys who only see me as one of them. How is it that you could want someone like me?”

“Maya, I think you are special. I admire your intelligence and was struck by your beauty since the first time ever I saw your face.”

“But aren’t I so average? I have no body to speak of. No boobs or butt.”

My left hand brushed her straight hair away from her face and pinned to her head behind her ear. “I see the beauty inside of you.” Then I leaned down, gently placing my lips on hers as she closed her eyes and moaned softly.

I backed off to see her look silently, longingly up at me, then kissed her again, pressing against her harder as I held the back of her head.

“Can I ... we...” She looked down as if to gather her thoughts, then took my hand and focused on my face. “Will you take me to your room?”

My chest tightened and I felt warm. “Um, yeah ... if you’re sure.”

“I’m sure.”

“Okay, but just in case anyone’s in the lobby, why don’t you go in first and head to the elevator. I’ll be a few seconds behind you then we can ride up together. If I don’t get there on time, my room is on the fourth floor.”

It went off as planned. She entered first and crossed the lobby. I was a few seconds behind and loitered by the entrance. As soon as the elevator opened, I started over and once she was inside, I signaled for her told hold the door.