A Night to Forget by Jessica Wood

really hope so. But I’m a first year associate, I won’t be making the pitch, Brandon will. I just hope that I can go too and watch. I think I would learn so much from just watching,” I said.
    “Yeah, definitely. I can’t wait to watch Brandon in action. I heard he’s a great closer,” Josh said in admiration.
    I thought about Josh’s words and agreed. Despite the fact that seeing Brandon always made my knees weak, I have heard that he was a great presenter, so I was looking forward to watching him in action.
    “So, do you guys have anything fun planned for the weekend?” Sarah asked as we walked into the bar.
    “My buddies and I are going up to Tomales Bay this weekend and doing some oyster shucking,” Josh said.
    “Cool, that sounds like a lot of fun,” Sarah said.
    “You guys should come too if you’re interested,” Josh offered.
    “Awesome, I’m definitely interested. Kelly and I were just going to go shopping this weekend,” Sarah exclaimed. Kelly was another first year associate at F&M that Sarah started hanging out with outside of work when they both realized that they lived in the same apartment building in North Beach.
    “Emma, you in?” Josh asked.
    “Well, my best friend is driving up from L.A. tonight, so I’ll have to check with her,” I said.
    “You guys should come! I want to meet Jill. I’ve heard so much about her,” Sarah said. “Hey, can you order the house chardonnay for me? I see Kelly outside in the patio and I want to ask her if she’s okay with the change of plans.”
    “Sure,” I said as Sarah left.
    “You should definitely come out,” Josh said as we waited for the bartender to take our order.
    “Yeah, I think Jill would want to do that.”
    “Let me give you my number,” Josh said.
    “Okay, sure.” I took down Josh’s number on my phone, and dialed it so that he would have mine.
    “Cool,” Josh beamed at me. “Call me tomorrow morning and let me know. And … and if you can’t make it this weekend, maybe we can hang out next weekend.”
    Before I had a chance to respond, Josh said, “Oh. Hey, Brandon. Didn’t see you there.”
    I immediately turned around and found myself face to face with Brandon. He was no more than a foot away from me and the close proximity made the hairs on arms stand up.
    “Hi,” I said as I looked up at him.
    “Hi guys.” Something in Brandon’s voice made me uncomfortable. I was so used to the warm and inviting tone of Brandon’s voice that this cold and distant edge in his voice unsettled me.
    “Glad you can finally come out to happy hour,” Josh said.
    “Yah, me too. It seems like I’ve missed out on a lot,” Brandon said as he glanced over at me and then to Josh.
    What was wrong with him? I thought to myself. Josh did not seem to notice as he ordered a pitcher of beer for the group.
    “We’re sitting outside on the patio,” Josh said as he motioned towards the patio.
    “Okay,” Brandon acknowledged. He then turned to me, “Have you ordered yet?”
    “No, I’m just about to,” I said as I turned to the bartender and ordered Sarah’s chardonnay and a gin and tonic for myself.
    “See you guys out there,” Josh said as he grabbed his pitcher of beer and a few cups before heading towards the patio.
    “See yah,” I said as I watched Josh leave. I could feel Brandon’s eyes on me and I took a deep breath to calm myself. I then looked up at him. “Are you getting a drink?”
    “Yes, and I also owe you a drink, but it looks like you’re double-fisting it tonight?” His statement came out in a form of question as he looked at me curiously.
    “What? Oh, no. The wine is for Sarah,” I explained. My body began to relax as I noticed the warmth back in Brandon’s voice.
    “Ahh, gotcha,” he said as he sidled slightly closer to me, “So how’s everything going?” he said as he looked down at me.
    I looked at him and his gorgeous face was about eight inches away from mine and my heart skipped a beat. An