The Club was crowded, and space was at a premium. For Chris, standing just a few feet away, it gave her companions an excuse to press up close to her, lean against her body, run their hands over her, all in the name of camaraderie.
Ana Isabel on the other hand seemed to have a force-field around her. The men kept a respectable distance, leaving her on an island of solitude in the midst of the entertainment. It seemed to place her in a spotlight, standing tall among the hoi-poloi. She seemed above it all.
To me it looked lonely.
Doing my best Spaniard impression, I reached around her waist, and turned her toward the bar. “So tell me, what is our plan for tomorrow, now that we’ve cleared the first hurdle?”
She seemed momentarily standoffish, resisting my pull, but she relaxed and allowed me to draw her near, not quite manhandling her, as Chris was being treated, but a little more attentive and intimate, leaving my arm around her waist, far longer than necessary, while not pressing in too closely.
The plan, she informed me, was to install the software the following morning on the main server, test it over night, and then to travel up to Zaragoza to bring up the second server. We’d be busy. Both Perez and Ana Isabel would be working with me the entire week, but it didn’t seem quite as daunting as it had earlier.
I was still somewhat hesitant to follow the outlandish behaviour around me, but I found it exciting and heady, especially bathing in the attention of the fascinating Ana Isabel. I was free with my touches, resting my hand on her arm, brushing her hair back, leaning my head against hers while laughing. The openly flirtatious actions were responded to, if not passionately, then at least kindly, with no open rejection. On the one or two occasions when my actions might stretch boundaries, she was able to make it clear with a simple touch, or a turn of her body, keeping me in line.
We were nowhere near as open as most around us, but it was still warm and wonderful, focusing on her and blocking out the world. I believe she had nearly as good a time as me. I had dreaded going out for drinks, as tired as I was, but now I hated moving on.
Chris made her way to me, tipsy and very touchy feely. “Jack, I’ve got to go. I’m sooo tired, and my head is spinning. Take me home, please.” She leaned her head against my shoulder, hugging me from the side.
Her antics drew a smile from the observant Ana Isabel, and I regretfully said my goodbyes, for both of us, against strong resistance from the aggressive men. I took Ana Isabel’s hand in mine and pressed my lips against the back. “You have made what might have been a dull trip a magical time. Thank you.”
“Thank you. Now take your poor boss ‘home’ and take care of her, before the rest of these dirty old men try to,” she teased.
“It’s the jet lag, we’ve been up around 40 hours with almost no sleep. Tomorrow will be better,” I assured her, steering around her insinuations.
The jet lag was finally really hitting me by the time we were able to make our escape. I wasn’t looking forward to the 15 minute drive, but I was dying to get in bed. It turned out the drive was much more relaxing then I thought it would be. Colonel Ortiz escorted us out, and called over a driver, giving us door-to-door service. No cab ride needed that night.
Chris was half-drunk and if possible, even more tired than I was, in spite of her extended nap on the plane. By the time we got to our rooms, she was almost out of it.
Almost.
I had just started unpacking when there was a knock at the connecting door. I unlocked it and opened it to find my sexy boss stripped down to her lingerie, looking good enough to eat.
“I’m going to finish unpacking and take a quick bath,” she told me. “Come on over whenever you’re ready.”
It seemed like a great plan to me, and I followed suit. I checked in with the home first, letting them know that I’d made it and the first day had gone really well. Beth was teasing, “Any Spanish nookie?”
“C’mon. I just got here. I was on a military base nearly all day. Give me a little time to get acclimated,” I told her, earning a giggle. “How’s the day-care coming?”
“All done but the finishing touches. We’re starting to contact a few people, and Amie’s working on getting us a big sign for the place. Those things aren’t cheap!”
“I know, but it’ll be worth it. The bigger the better.”
“Love ya, and don’t be too bad over there. I’m putting Deb on.”
I waited through the pause and heard Debbie’s sexy voice. “At home and safely in bed, I hope,” she said.
“Just finished my shower. I’ll be in bed in a couple of minutes, long day tomorrow.”
“Did you meet someone today?” she asked, anxiously.
“Lots. I had a training class,” I said carefully.
“You know what I mean.”
“No. Well, I did spend a lot of time talking to a Major. Kind of cold fish at first, but not too bad after I got to know her. She’s in charge of the civilian’s on the Spanish side of the program. We kind of got off on the wrong foot,” I explained.
“Be careful, Ok. I keep getting bad feelings about you over there. Come home to me soon.”
“Debbie, all the horses in Spain couldn’t stop me from getting home to you.”
“It’s not the horses I’m worried about. It’s one woman,” she said softly.