"This is good work, Yang. You and your team of first years have done some brilliant work here. We're going to make the initial presentation next week to the client. I am certain that you would want to be there," Parsons said to Cristina at their Friday morning meeting.
"Thank you, sir," Cristina said, delighted. "When is it?"
"Tuesday at 10 a.m. at our client's conference room. I trust that you would be able to make it," he said.
"Of course, sir. I wouldn't miss it for the world," she said.
She turned to leave his office to give some attention to some other cases she had put aside to work on the Warwick case.
"What are you doing tonight, Yang?" Parsons said.
"Sir?" she enquired.
"Would you like to come with me to a charity event which I have to attend? Usually, I take my friend, Mary to these things but she's out of town. The Mayor and his wife are hosting the event and I have to represent the firm," Parsons said.
"I am sorry, sir but I have other plans," she said, quietly.
"Other plans? Can you break them? I really need someone to accompany me. It would look so dreadful that I don't have a date with me," he said.
"I don't think so, sir," Cristina said, feeling quite badly.
"Alright, then. I know it is short notice. Maybe you can accompany me to another function at a later date. I will give you ample notice the next time. You need to meet important people, Yang. Networking is vital to a business like ours. I am going to teach you to do this," he said.
"Yes, sir," Cristina said, hoping to make a quick exit back to her desk.
"Are you kidding me?" Terry, her colleague, caught up with her, as she walked to her desk.
"What are you talking about?" Cristina said.
"I just heard everything. You just turned down Tim Parsons to be his date at tonight's charity event. That is one of the biggest events of the year," Terry said. "Anybody who is anybody in Seattle is going to be there."
"So?" Cristina said. "Why don't you go with him?"
"He didn't ask me. He asked you. Mr. Hunky Tim Parsons – rich, suave, good-looking, penthouse apartment in the sky, seven figure salary," Terry said. "You must have something really special to do tonight."
"As a matter of fact, I do," Cristina said.
"Oh," Terry said, as the light suddenly dawned on her. "You're going out with your doctor, again. Aren't you? What date is it?"
"It's our third date," Cristina said.
"Third date! You know what that means," Terry said. "You're going to have to put out, missy."
"Why does that have to be?" Cristina said. "Who declared that the third date means that you must sleep with the guy? Where did that stupid rule come from? Is it written somewhere in the annals of dating?"
"Besides, I've only known him for five days, Terry," she added.
"Well, there must be something going on between the two of you, if you have three dates in five days," Terry said, lifting one eyebrow.
"We like each other. I like him and I am pretty certain that he likes me. But I don't think we're ready for any sort of intimacy right now," Cristina said, firmly. "We have only kissed twice and that's it."
"Don't be too sure, Cristina. Guys have a different expectation than we do," Terry said. "Where are you going for your third date?"
"Oh, he's cooking dinner for me at his apartment," Cristina said.
"Ah, ha, dinner at his apartment. Makes it easier to transition to the bedroom," Terry said, triumphantly.
Cristina began to feel a little bit uneasy about her date that night.
Owen and Steve were having a midday workout at the gym, since Owen had been called into an emergency surgery earlier that day, so the guys had arranged to meet up at the gym during their lunch break.
"So, third date, huh?" Steve said.
"Yup. Cooking dinner tonight at my place. I am going to leave work a little early to go home and cook," Owen said. "I hope she likes my cooking. If not, I am going to have delivery take-out on standby."
"So are you going to seal the deal tonight?" Steve asked. "It is the third date. Third date in five days, I might add."
"If by sealing the deal, you mean if I am going to sleep with her, I am not going to pressure her in sleeping with me," Owen said. "If, however, she does want to sleep over, I'm fully prepared for that occurrence. After all, someone has got to do it." He smiled.
"Yeah, right, Owen. Taking one for the team. Such a hardship sleeping with a beautiful young woman," Steve said. Owen grinned even more.
Steve continued, "In all seriousness, though, you better seal that deal, soon. There's a hotshot lawyer at my office. I think he has developed an interest in her. He mentioned to me yesterday that he thought Yang was a very attractive, intelligent girl," Steve said. "This is a man who doesn't say these things, lightly."
"Who is this guy?" Owen was curious.
"His name is Tim Parsons. He's pretty much a done deal in terms of making partner. The guy is that good. Good-looking ladies' man, very smart. He's quite a catch, as the women would say. Cristina is currently working with him on one of his cases," Steve told Owen.
"Really?" Owen said. "Hmm." He clearly needed to keep on the alert with that guy hanging around.
Later that evening, Cristina was getting dressed for her date. She was in a quandary about what to wear. If she wore something too sexy, would she be sending the wrong message that she was ready to leap into bed with him? But if she wore something boring and staid, would it seem like she just didn't care?
The thing is she did care and cared a really great deal, she thought.
After trying outfit after outfit, she finally decided on a short, black, strapless dress. It was sexy enough without trying too hard. She pulled out a pair of nude Louboutin heels to complete the look. She always liked how the nude heels made her legs look longer, because in reality, she wasn't all that tall. She hated when people called her petite, it made her feel small and insignificant. "Maybe I have a Napoleon complex," she chuckled to herself.
Meanwhile, Owen was finishing setting up his table. He had done most of the preparation and was already starting to grill on his patio. He was going to open with grilled shrimp and arugula salad, then grilled balsamic-dijon chicken accompanied by vegetables. He had set up the table on his patio, so they could eat outdoors – fine table linens, fresh flowers, candles and a table setting for two.
He wanted to make a good impression, after having almost blown it with her on the last date. Still, he hadn't expected that he would be in a competition to win this girl's affections. "Damn that Parsons guy," he thought. He didn't even know the guy and already, he disliked him.
The sound of his ringing doorbell interrupted his thoughts. He left his chicken on the grill and ran to answer it. When he saw her, she took his breath away. Her hair was up, revealing the smooth, flawless skin of her neck and shoulders. Her strapless black dress fit her perfectly and her legs seemed to go on forever in those nude heels.
"Hi Owen," she said. She was so gorgeous that he couldn't help himself as he pulled her into her arms and crushed her lips with his own. He hadn't seen her since their last date and he found that he missed her.
When they came up for air, Cristina said, "Well, that was a nice welcome."
"I just missed you," he said.
"I see you're grilling," she said, observing his apron.
"Yup, just follow me to the patio," he said. "I set up the table out there, so we can eat out here."
"You have a fabulous apartment," Cristina said. "Very nicely decorated."
"All done by a professional interior decorator. I just paid the bill," he said.
"Wow, what a view from up here," she said, as she stepped on to the patio. "Great view of the Space Needle. Kinda reminds me of the view that Frasier had from his apartment. You know, Frasier, the television series."
She took a seat at the table and watched him grill. It was really nice when a man cooked for you. Really kind of sexy, she thought. The man screamed sexy from every pore.
Not that she could ever return the favor. She was an absolutely horrible cook and she had developed very strong relationships with the take-out delivery guys from all of the restaurants.
"Have some grilled shrimp," he said.
"Ooh," Cristina said, as she started munching on the shrimp. "I'm so hungry."
"So how was your day?" he asked.
"Great. I finished my research on that big case I was working on. The lawyer in charge, Tim Parsons, said I did a great job and he said I could come to the initial presentation to the client next week," she said.
Owen's ears perked up when she mentioned Parsons' name.
"In fact, I would like you to know that I turned down Mr. Parsons' invitation to attend one of the biggest social events tonight – the Mayor's charity ball – so I could be here tonight," she said.
"I am so honored that you chose me, milady," he said. She smiled. He continued, "So tell me about Mr. Parsons," he asked, since he might as well as find out about the competition. One of the rules of warfare is to know thy enemy and he certainly was going to follow that one to the letter.
"He is this hotshot we have at the firm. He is a real rainmaker. Very valuable asset for the company. He has developed so many contacts and relationships that he brings in so much business. He said he's going to teach me," she said. "That's why he wanted me to go to the charity event, tonight, so I could begin to network. He said he's going to take me to the next event but he needs to let me know in advance."
Owen thought, "I am certain that is not all he wants to teach you."
Cristina said with a smile, "I told him that I had plans tonight."
"I guess I should be flattered," he said, grinning.
"Honestly, I prefer to spend tonight with you than with a whole bunch of society big shots at some charity ball," she said.
He beamed at her. "Well, our chicken and vegetables are ready. Give it a shot, baby."
Cristina thought, "Wait a minute. Did he just call me baby?"
Owen thought, "Wait a minute. Did I just call her baby?"
They both wisely chose to ignore it. They settled down to eat. One thing he loved about Cristina was that she was a girl with an appetite, not one of those girls, pretending to be dainty and demure, hiding behind a salad. The girl looked like a princess but ate like a truck driver. He could appreciate that.
"It's really good, Owen," she said, appreciatively. "Way much better than I could ever do."
"Aw, come on. Don't tell me you haven't prepared a meal for a date?" he said.
She shook her head. "You wouldn't want to sample my culinary efforts. Gastronomic disasters, I tell you."
"Well, then that is something I would just have to teach you," Owen said. "We can do that at a future date. Cook a meal together."
She liked that he saw them having future plans together. It really felt great, she thought.
"Okay," she said. "Next time, you can come over to my house and we can cook a meal together. I will provide the ingredients and you will provide the instruction. Is that a deal?"
"Agreed, Cristina. I have chocolate cake for dessert if you want any. I baked it myself," he said.
"A man of many talents," Cristina replied.
"Yup, I have quite a few. I would like to show you them some time," Owen responded.
"Was that a sexual innuendo? Showing me all of his talents," Cristina wondered in her mind.
He went to the kitchen and brought out the chocolate cake with some ice cream for her. The cake was moist, delicious and oh so chocolaty. "Chocolate must be an aphrodisiac," she thought, as she was starting to feel all warm and relaxed.
As she polished off the ice cream, he was mesmerized by the way she used her tongue to languidly lick the spoon. He suddenly wished he were a spoon.
It took everything in him to break his stare. "Gonna put on some music, let's go sit on the couch."
"Okay," she said. "What about this stuff out here?"
"I'll clean it up when you leave," he said. "Just want to spend some time with you."
They settled on his big, comfy sofa. He wrapped his arm around her, rubbing her shoulder. She leaned her head on his shoulder. He smelled so good, she thought. She just had this sudden urge to lick him. She snaked out her tongue and licked his ear in a slow, sensuous manner. He suddenly got chills. "What was this girl trying to do to me, using that same tongue I was just staring at?" he thought.
He turned his head to her and covered her mouth with his own. He pushed apart her lips with his tongue so he could taste her. Their tongues met and danced together. He deepened his kiss and he pushed her down on the couch. He lay on top of her, kissing her everywhere, her neck, her shoulders, her cleavage, her face, her mouth. He could already feel the tightening in his groin as he became aroused. She was also starting to feel a little bit moist down there. He wanted to put his hands up her dress to touch her there but he stopped himself. He didn't want to pressure her into something that she wasn't ready for.
He looked at her. "Before this goes any further, I need to ask. Do you want to stay the night?"
A/N: Please, leave a review. It helps me decide to continue. Reviews are love.