prices on the
menu. If you had to worry about the price, you couldn’t afford to eat at Sage.
I was glad I’d worn a dress.
Matt was extra attentive,
opening doors, putting my arm through his, and pulling out my chair. I opened
the black leather menu. My mouth watered just reading about the dishes offered.
The rumor was true. There were no prices.
“What is your vegetarian
offering tonight?” Matt asked.
He’d better not be
ordering for me . With the food
described here, there was no way I was ordering vegetarian.
“We have a sea palm and
root vegetable strudel. It’s quite delicious,” the waiter said. His British accent
sounded a little overdone. He was probably an acting student from Medford.
“Give us a few more
minutes?” Matt said.
“Certainly.”
“I’m not sure that sounds
very good,” Matt said.
I took this opportunity to
ensure I wouldn’t be forced to eat vegetarian. “This pecan-encrusted salmon
sounds good to me. I think I’ll have that,” I said.
“Salmon is certainly
better than red meat. Maybe I’ll order that, too. But I don’t know about the
pecans. A lot of extra fat there.” When the waiter came back, Matt ordered two
of the salmon, one with pecans and one without.
“Is the bank doing
anything for Christmas?” Matt asked.
“They’re having a
Christmas party next week. They reserved a room at the Marriott for dinner and
dancing. Have you ever heard of a work party that included dancing?”
“I didn’t think there were
enough employees at your bank to hold a dance,” Matt said.
I laughed. “That would be
super awkward. It isn’t just our branch. Bank employees from all over western
Oregon will be there.”
“Are you going?”
“I wasn’t planning to.”
“You should go. I’ll come
with you.”
“Really?” What was going
on with all this sudden attention?
“Unless you don’t want
to,” Matt said.
“No. I mean yes. Let’s do
it,” I said.
Matt’s smile disappeared
and his face turned serious. “Elizabeth, may I ask you a question?”
“Of course.”
“What would you call us?”
I was confused. “I’m not
sure what you mean.”
“Do you consider me a
friend? A boyfriend? Are we ‘dating?’”
My mind muddled through
possible answers and then I realized this was easy. It wasn’t my job to define
the relationship. “I’m not sure what I’d call us. What would you call us?”
“I’d like to think we’re
sort of a couple. But if we were a couple, you wouldn’t be dating the swim
coach.”
I took a long, slow drink
to give myself time to respond. This was wonderful, right? Exactly what I
wanted. So why did it make me bristle? And then Mom’s words came to me.
“That swim coach is my
friend. And until you give me a reason not to go out with him when he calls,
I’m not doing anything wrong.”
Matt looked at me closely
and then smiled. “So all you need is a reason?” I nodded. “Then here’s a
reason. I like you. More than I ever intended to. And I think we may have a
future together. But I don’t want to be worried about what’s happening with
other men. I think we should date exclusively. Is that a good enough reason?”
I nodded but a pain seized
at my heart.
“Good. Now tell me how we
dress for this dinner dance.”
“It’s semi-formal,” I
said.
Matt reached for my hand
and held it between both of his. “I have a good feeling about us, Elizabeth.”
He smiled and it was warm and sincere. I smiled back. Matt let go of my hand
when the food arrived.
The ride home was quiet.
Matt seemed very satisfied with the way the evening had gone. At the door, Matt
pulled me into his arms and we shared our first kiss goodnight. It was nice. It
really was. He didn’t rush and his arms felt warm and gentle. I wanted to be
swept away, to have all thoughts disappear in the heat of the moment. But the
heat wasn’t hot enough to burn away the memory of another kiss just a few days
earlier. I refused to think
menu. If you had to worry about the price, you couldn’t afford to eat at Sage.
I was glad I’d worn a dress.
Matt was extra attentive,
opening doors, putting my arm through his, and pulling out my chair. I opened
the black leather menu. My mouth watered just reading about the dishes offered.
The rumor was true. There were no prices.
“What is your vegetarian
offering tonight?” Matt asked.
He’d better not be
ordering for me . With the food
described here, there was no way I was ordering vegetarian.
“We have a sea palm and
root vegetable strudel. It’s quite delicious,” the waiter said. His British accent
sounded a little overdone. He was probably an acting student from Medford.
“Give us a few more
minutes?” Matt said.
“Certainly.”
“I’m not sure that sounds
very good,” Matt said.
I took this opportunity to
ensure I wouldn’t be forced to eat vegetarian. “This pecan-encrusted salmon
sounds good to me. I think I’ll have that,” I said.
“Salmon is certainly
better than red meat. Maybe I’ll order that, too. But I don’t know about the
pecans. A lot of extra fat there.” When the waiter came back, Matt ordered two
of the salmon, one with pecans and one without.
“Is the bank doing
anything for Christmas?” Matt asked.
“They’re having a
Christmas party next week. They reserved a room at the Marriott for dinner and
dancing. Have you ever heard of a work party that included dancing?”
“I didn’t think there were
enough employees at your bank to hold a dance,” Matt said.
I laughed. “That would be
super awkward. It isn’t just our branch. Bank employees from all over western
Oregon will be there.”
“Are you going?”
“I wasn’t planning to.”
“You should go. I’ll come
with you.”
“Really?” What was going
on with all this sudden attention?
“Unless you don’t want
to,” Matt said.
“No. I mean yes. Let’s do
it,” I said.
Matt’s smile disappeared
and his face turned serious. “Elizabeth, may I ask you a question?”
“Of course.”
“What would you call us?”
I was confused. “I’m not
sure what you mean.”
“Do you consider me a
friend? A boyfriend? Are we ‘dating?’”
My mind muddled through
possible answers and then I realized this was easy. It wasn’t my job to define
the relationship. “I’m not sure what I’d call us. What would you call us?”
“I’d like to think we’re
sort of a couple. But if we were a couple, you wouldn’t be dating the swim
coach.”
I took a long, slow drink
to give myself time to respond. This was wonderful, right? Exactly what I
wanted. So why did it make me bristle? And then Mom’s words came to me.
“That swim coach is my
friend. And until you give me a reason not to go out with him when he calls,
I’m not doing anything wrong.”
Matt looked at me closely
and then smiled. “So all you need is a reason?” I nodded. “Then here’s a
reason. I like you. More than I ever intended to. And I think we may have a
future together. But I don’t want to be worried about what’s happening with
other men. I think we should date exclusively. Is that a good enough reason?”
I nodded but a pain seized
at my heart.
“Good. Now tell me how we
dress for this dinner dance.”
“It’s semi-formal,” I
said.
Matt reached for my hand
and held it between both of his. “I have a good feeling about us, Elizabeth.”
He smiled and it was warm and sincere. I smiled back. Matt let go of my hand
when the food arrived.
The ride home was quiet.
Matt seemed very satisfied with the way the evening had gone. At the door, Matt
pulled me into his arms and we shared our first kiss goodnight. It was nice. It
really was. He didn’t rush and his arms felt warm and gentle. I wanted to be
swept away, to have all thoughts disappear in the heat of the moment. But the
heat wasn’t hot enough to burn away the memory of another kiss just a few days
earlier. I refused to think
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