“DC. I just graduated from law school… Well, it feels like five minutes ago, but it was last year, and I moved here six months ago. I had my job lined up when I graduated. All I had to do was pass the bar.” That had turned out to be somewhat harrowing, and he’d spent the whole last month of school trying to finish his course work while furiously studying for the New York, Illinois, and DC bar exams. He’d passed all three on the first try, barely. But his employer didn’t care about his score, only that he’d passed.
“Why New York?” Paige asked.
He shrugged. “Some of the best law firms in the world. Plus, I wanted to be close to my sister. I guess I could have moved back to Ohio if I wanted to be around the rest of my family, but the paycheck was hard to turn down.”
“Hey, I worked for ANP Bank for ten years. I don’t judge.”
“Wow, really?” For some reason, when she’d mentioned she was an event planner, he’d pictured her throwing weddings and bar mitzvahs, not corporate meetings for a huge multinational bank. Even though her tone was self-deprecating, he was impressed.
“Yeah.” She leaned across the table, a little closer to Josh, and spoke softly. “When I finished college, I wanted a solid paying job but didn’t know what I wanted to do when I grew up, so I applied to be the assistant to ANP’s corporate event planner. Turned out, I was really good at that job and they promoted me pretty quickly. Then I got to travel. I lived in London for a couple of years, then Dubai for a year, and we did events in Tokyo, Bangkok, and all over Europe. It was great until I got really homesick and tired of the pace of that life and decided to move home and do something with lower stakes. So I still plan events, but for hipsters in Brooklyn, not billionaire bankers.”
“I admire that.” Josh leaned close, too. The bar wasn’t especially loud, but he liked being near her. “I mean, I figured I’d get my corporate shill experience in now, and make enough to pay off my student loans, then I’d go do something more personally fulfilling.”
“Like what?”
“Not sure yet. I could go work for a nonprofit. The ACLU. Public service. When I started law school, I thought I wanted to be a prosecutor. My focus was actually in criminal law, but then I got this internship… It’s kind of a long story.” Josh shook his head. He knew complaining about having such a great job made him look like a dick, so he didn’t bother. He smiled at her instead. “I’m really grateful to have gotten this opportunity. This first job as an associate is a lot, though. I see why New York has just as many former lawyers as lawyers.”
“Yeah. I know a lot of former lawyers. Two of them are librarians, actually. One works in IT. That first year of corporate hackdom burns you out, I guess.”
“They make you pay your dues to earn that overstuffed salary, that’s for sure.” Josh sighed. “On a scale of one to asshole, how bad do I sound?”
Paige laughed. “You’re doing fine. I still like you. Not an asshole.”
Well, that was good news. He grinned. “Awesome.”
Their gazes met. Josh didn’t think he imagined the electric zip between them.
The waitress delivered their snacks. The stuffed olives were indeed very good. The asparagus had a cheese on it that Josh couldn’t identify, but it paired well with the whisky.
As they ate and chatted, Josh started to contemplate how he could get this woman home and into his bed. He didn’t have much hope for a relationship beyond tonight, especially since he’d be chained to his desk all weekend to make up for taking tonight off. But he liked Paige a lot and was crazy attracted to her, and he got the impression the feeling was mutual. He’d have to go back to the law firm in the morning, but he wasn’t ready to let Paige go yet.
“Can I just say, it’s so nice talking to a mature adult man,” said Paige.
“Yeah?” Josh laughed, not believing he qualified for that description. “Do you talk to a lot of men-children?”
“The last few guys I’ve gone out with would have balked at the drink prices here and then talked to me about artisanal pickles and indie rock bands for half an hour. Not that there’s anything wrong with those things, but the men in the Brooklyn dating pool and I have not been working out much lately.”
“Sorry to hear that. Except not, because I’m enjoying your company and happy to hear that you’re single.”
She smiled. “I’m enjoying your company, too.”
“I was just thinking, I’m sad to even think about going back to work tomorrow, because I’d love for tonight to keep going.”
The way her smile widened told Josh all he needed to know. “Yeah?” She raised an eyebrow.
“You live in the neighborhood, you said?”
“Yeah. Closer to Barclays, so a couple of stops on the subway.”
“Oh, me, too. Other side of Flatbush. In one of the new high-rises. It’s a pretty cool building. Very modern, lots of amenities.”
“Interesting.” She reached across the table and ran a finger along his knuckles. The gesture left tingles in its wake. “Are you suggesting I come see it?”
“I am. You wanna?”
“I can’t believe I’m going to say this, but I totally do. You wanna go now?”
Josh laughed, admiring her boldness. “I sure do. But you should know before anything happens that I’m a month into a very demanding job and barely have time to bathe these days, so I’m not sure I’m exactly grade A relationship material.”
