The Indiscretion

by Jean Blasier

She saw him first.   He and the woman with him were late arriving.  They were seated directly across the table.  On the man’s right was a woman about seventy, talking endlessly even before he sat down, and on his left, now seated with him, a bored young woman twenty something.

After a while she saw his eyes glaze over as the woman on his right continued to talk.  He picked up his fork, took a bite of salad, and looked around.  Then he saw Gina across the table looking at him.  His face softened, a smile around his lips. 

Gina did not look away.  She smiled back.  Neither one of them wanted to be there that evening, but now perhaps they had something to savor.    

The salads were removed; the main course served.  Gina took a bite, still watching him.  He also took a bite without taking his eyes off her.

The young woman on his left took one look at the plate in front of her, got up and excused herself. 

Gina continued to stare.  He was the most handsome man she’d ever seen, dark hair combed straight back, a few lines beginning to form around his eyes, sexy, mischievous, alluring.

The man on Gina’s right asked her to pass the rolls. 

The look from across the table said, “This could be exciting, even dangerous.  But that’s what we both want, right?”

Another bite.  Gina actually dropped the bite off her fork as she brought it to her mouth.  The man across the table shook with quiet laughter.  Gina should have been embarrassed but she wasn’t.  She smiled.  She’d made him laugh. 

The man took a bite with his eyes on Gina. He chewed, smiled, continued to listen to the woman on his right without ever moving his eyes away from Gina.

This went on for five more minutes before the woman who had arrived with him returned.   Before sitting down, the young woman saw her date grinning at someone across the table and Gina returning the smile.  The young woman glared at Gina, tugged on the man’s arm and nodded toward the door.

The man got up, excused himself to the woman on his right, who never stopped talking, and followed the woman tugging on him.  He glanced at Gina when the woman’s back was turned.  He took a card out of his breast pocket and placed it on an empty server’s table.

All Gina had to do was get up, head for the ladies room, pass the server’s table, pick up the card and put it in her bag.   Then call.   She would hear his voice for the first time.   They would arrange to get together.

It was enough for the rest of that evening to think about.  She left later with her husband who commented as they walked straight to the entrance to leave, “That was a boring evening, eh?”