[Meeting]
The third day of the celebration began with the customary breakfast, where Tonya thanked the Sales team for all their hard work and their efforts contributions to the company's continued success. While the different divisions gave their own reports of their sales quotas and how much they exceeded them, Pat was thinking about last year's meeting with Alex when his voice broke her from her reverie. His presentation highlighted their largest successes, the photographs of the construction and completed installations, all accomplished by him, she noted. She had assumed he would be there, but had not seen him before that moment. He appeared not to have seen her until, near the end of his presentation, he swept the room and their eyes locked. His speech continued on as if on autopilot, but his expression changed for a moment, becoming softer. If it were possible to wrap up a hug and send it with a glance, she would swear that is what he just did. With a wink, his eyes moved away and his presentation continued without interruption, receiving applause at the end. She joined in but couldn’t recall what he had said. During her presentation, she scanned the audience, but could not find him.
All that day, she looked for him to no avail. It was not until the evening dinner awards celebration when she caught sight of him. When she walked out onto the stage, there he was. Unlike last year, he was much more confident in his stance and position. When his gaze drifted around and locked with her’s, her knees felt a little weak. There was something about his stare, like a secret she didn’t know. Recovering quickly, she graced him with a wide smile and sat next to him, in the only empty chair. Sitting so near to him, she could feel the energy pouring off him. He was excited, though he tried to cover it with nonchalance.
Without looking at her, he began speaking, “I think I’ve done it, this year.”
“What do you think you’ve done?”
“I’ve had you in my sights for a while, and I think, tonight, I’ve caught you.”
Her answer was a simple, “Oh?” but her mind was racing.
Was he talking about the top sales award or something else.
She didn’t look at him, though she wanted to. All of a sudden, she couldn’t remember if she had remembered to put in her violet contacts. She wondered if she hadn’t, if he’d notice, then she wondered why she wondered that.
“I have chased you. I have caught you. Now, you can chase me.”
She wondered again if he was speaking about the job or the moment they shared last year, “I have to tell you that I’m not easily caught, and in the end, I always get what I want.”
He turned to look at her. She felt him shift and turned to see him giving her his full attention. The weight of his gaze was something physical, sensual. She turned toward him, her bare knee bumping his trousered leg as they faced each other.
His eyebrows raised slightly and a smile crossed his face, “Oh, I like the green. It suits you.”
Confused for a moment, she realized that she had left her contacts in her room, “I’m so glad,” she feigned, “I wondered if you would notice,” wondering why she told him that and hoping it sounded more coy than it did in her head.
Leaning closer toward her, he slipped his hand onto her bare knee, “Oh, I noticed.”
They sat there gazing at each other for a time, silently drinking in the other’s eyes. When the room started to settle, they turned to face forward, again. She felt something missing, something lost, then realized after a moment, as Tonya was ascending to the stage that his hand had left her knee and she missed it. What was wrong with her? Yes, he was attractive, but was she giddy? She was not a teenager with a crush, she was a professional, but she still felt the absence of his hand on her knee and wondered if she could just take his hand and put it back. Would he mind? Can anyone tell what I’m thinking?
Tonya began her welcoming and congratulations to the sales team for another record breaking year, before she got to the awards. She announced the dual retirement Tom and Betty Lauder, Executive VPs of Engineering and Sales, respectively. She called out the top new salesperson, Francine Dainberry from Las Vegas. Then she announced that, for the first time, we didn’t have a top salesperson award. The crowd murmured while Alex and Pat exchanged a glance, Alex’s smirk was endearing and infuriating at the same time - what did he know? Tonya continued and called Pat and Alex to stand on her right and left sides. She paused for a moment before announcing that there was a tie, to five decimal places, and that we had co-top salespeople. The cheers shook the room!
Alex and Pat looked at each other and then to Tonya. She beamed at them both for a moment before taking each by the hand, raising them up, above her head, and bringing them together so all three were together. Turning back to the three dozen other sales people, she said, “Our top sales couple!” before lowering her hand, leaving the top couple holding hands and basking in the adoration.
Alex and Pat looked at each other and across the crowd, soaking in the congratulations. Alex and Pat, each, wondered if Tonya could feel the attraction between them, or if was just another of the word choices for which she was famous - that left people wondering what, all, she meant by that.
The three of them descended the stage to take their place at the head table, but at the last moment, Tonya, who was slated to sit between Alex and Pat, slipped to the right, sitting in what was to be Pat’s place and engaging Sam Harvest, Sales Manager for New England, in a conversation, picking up in the middle of a point made by one and agreed by the other.
Pat looked a little confused, but shrugged and began to sit. When the chair bumped the back of her knees, she turned to see Alex holding her chair. She smiled and allowed him to help her, inwardly glowing from the attention - Why was she feeling like this? She needed to find out if this was going anywhere. She did NOT need a crush to desire from across the country. She had to work hard to win the top spot, or at least not let him win it from her.
Dinner was an excellent affair of delicious food and wine, or beer if you were of that sort. Once the dinner was well underway, Alex and Pat talked across the table and amongst each other. After one such exchange, Alex reached under the table and patted Pat on her left knee, smiling as he did so. As he made to pull away, she grabbed his hand, placing it back on her left knee, pulling his attention back from where he was already shifting, said, “I think I like that just where it is, thank you.” The move took him by surprise. His composure shaken, he blushed the lightest pink, all of a sudden, vulnerable and adorable for it. He gripped her knee slightly and leaning in close, said, “No. Thank YOU.”
Leaving his hand on her knee for most of the remainder of the dinner, they continued conversations amongst everyone at the table. If anyone was aware of the slight shifts of Alex and Pat toward each other, no one mentioned it. By the end of dinner, his hand remained on her knee and their chairs were so close that their shoulders nearly touched. After the rich food and alcohol, no one noticed, except for Tonya, who just smiled.
Following dinner, the three dozen people split into groups for more boisterous, less formal entertainment. Tonya invited anyone that wanted to attend a bourbon tasting with her. Alex, Pat and a few others followed Tonya to the bar, bidding others good night.
The bourbon tasting was enjoyed by everyone. As the liquor flowed, so did the stories, and eventually, the bourbon tasting turned to tasting of anything at the bar that looked expensive or interesting, from Mexcal to Japanese liquor to something 23 years old and very smooth. After just a little while, or so it seemed to Alex and Pat, the bar only contained them and Tonya. One more drink and Tonya bid them a good night, claiming some engineering conference call in the morning. The pair turned back to the mezcal and had a shoot-out. After a dozen shots, they bid the staff a good night and returned to the hotel, weaving a bit as they walked, an arm around the others’ waist, to help “them” not fall.
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