Capital Romance (CLOSED for Kaligurl222)

[Gr8chtr]

Will Werner groaned silently to himself as he made his way down the narrow aisle of the Embraer 190 small jet that would take him from Boston to Washington, DC in just over 90 minutes of flight time. The business trip that he was taking was planned only two days ago. He got the last Jet Blue seat left, 23D, which he now saw was the window seat in a row with just one other seat on the aisle. At 6'2", 190 lbs., Will barely fit in aisle seats in bigger jets, let alone the window seat in this subcompact model. Moreover, Will was more used to flying longer distances and always flying business class, first class where available. Literally rubbing elbows with the common masses wasn't Will's idea of a good time.
Will arrived at his seat before the occupant of 23C had appeared. He or she must be behind him in the boarding line. "With my luck", Will thought to himself, "my aisle-mate will be a grossly obese auto mechanic who hasn't showered in the past week." Settling into his seat Will realized that the space was too small for him to use his laptop. Fortunately, he had brought the day's copy of the Wall Street Journal; this would occupy him for the short flight to DC. Casually laying the WSJ on the empty seat beside him, Will strained to perform the acrobatics involved in putting his shoulder bag under the seat in front of him. With his head stuffed almost between his knees he nearly didn't hear the woman's voice say, "Excuse me, this is my seat."
Straightening up to remove the WSJ to accommodate his fellow traveler, Will nearly gasped out load. Standing there waiting to take the adjoining seat was no sweaty auto mechanic, but one of the most attractive, young woman that he had seen in some time, clearly at least 10 years younger than his 42. Whether it was just raw lust or something more, Will wasn't sure, but he was sure that he was flooded with feelings that he had not experienced in quite a long time.

 

[Kaligurl222]

"thank goodness!" Was the only thought running thru Kali Riley's head as the gate attendant informed her that there was an open seat on the flight and they let her board on stand by. She had used a decent portion of her monthly budget to make the trip to begin with... But your college best friend only got married once, or so she had been told repeatedly.

Kali made her way down the aisle and when she found her seat to acknowledged her seat mate since it seemed he had his paper in her seat. She was a little thrown off when he looked up, he was a very attractive man, dressed in business attire, Kali felt a little under dressed in her yoga pants and sweatshirt, but hey it was a short flight and it was fairly late already. She smiled at him as he moved the paper and she took her seat, "thank you."

 

[Gr8chtr]

thank you

Will realized that the conversation could end right there unless he did something to keep it going. It wasn't like him to strike up conversations with strangers, but he was so drawn to this woman, despite her overly casual dress, that he didn't want things to end right there. He decided to use one of the standard, airplane conversation lines.

"So," Will began feeling just a little awkward, "are you going to DC on some trip, or are you returning home to the DC area?"

 

[Kaligurl222]

She settled into her seat, relieved that he wanted to have a conversation, he didn't look like the type to want to chit chat on a flight and she wasn't wanting to annoy him. "I'm actually flying home to DC. I was only here in Boston for a friends wedding.. How about you?- you heading to DC for business or pleasure?" She buckled her seatbelt as the plane started to taxi out.

 

[Gr8chtr]

How about you?- you heading to DC for business or pleasure?

"Business", Will said, then in an unguarded moment added, "I don't get much pleasure these days."

"I'm in the investments business, and I'm going to DC to evaluate a business that my investment firm is considering putting money into. I will be in town for 3 to 4 days meeting with the executives from that business, going over their books, that sort of thing. Kind of boring, really."

 

[Kaligurl222]

She listened as he talked about his plans while in town. "Aww come on now, everyone needs at least a little pleasure." She smiled, "but I'm not one to talk. I teach dance and bartend at night so I don't have much of a life outside of it.... Not real glamorous but hey, gotta pay the bills right?" The plane started to take off and she leaned back into her seat.

 

[Gr8chtr]

teach dance and bartend at night...gotta pay the bills right?

Will's mind jolted a little. The women in his life - past and present - his parental family, the women he met through work, his ex-wife, these were all women who dressed in business suits during the day, expensive casual wear after work and on the weekends, and would probably be customers in this woman's bar. They might give the bartender a good tip, but they wouldn't otherwise give her much thought. Not the kind of girl that Will's mom had in mind for her oldest son.

Still, Will was attracted to her, no doubt about it. Taking a quiet, deep breath, he took the plunge. "Will, here. Will Werner. Nice to meet you. I'm sure that you meet lots of people in your line of work."

 

[Kaligurl222]

She smiled at him, "I'm Kali. Kali Riley." She nodded her head, "yeah, I definitely meet a lot of people... It's one of the perks I suppose. Especially in a city like DC, people from all over constantly coming and going.."

She was genuinely interested in this man.. And she couldn't help but to be attracted to him... But then again, she had to be crazy, he was way out of her league. He was a big city guy... he probably had some big house, a wife and 2.4 children... But there was something about him.

"So do you do a lot of traveling being in your business?" As the plane had continued to climb in its accent they both settled back into their seats, at the same time they both attempted to use the arm rest separating their seats. She laughed as she pulled her arm back, "oops, sorry.. Go ahead."

 

[Gr8chtr]

Will was heartened by Kali's warm response to his brief introduction. "She's just being friendly," he told himself, "don't start thinking she's interested in you."

Will decided to reveal something of himself through answering Kali's question about his business travel. "Yes, I do travel quite a lot. Not typically much to DC, though, even though I like your city. I go to New York a lot - usually taking the Amtrak's Acela train - Chicago, LA., some of the Texas cities. I also travel a lot these days to China. Man, there's a lot of business opportunities in that country! The flights, though, are so fu...I mean so darn long. What I don't like, though, about my business travels is that, traveling by myself, I end up spending boring nights at the end of days full of meetings. Some of my business friends take their wives or husbands, or even their kids, but since I don't have any of these I end up having lots of dinners by myself."

Just as Will finished his rather long answer Kali's question about his business travel, their arms bumped as they both attempted to use the same armrest. It was almost like he had stuck his elbow in an electrical socket; a jolt seemed to pass through his body. Will laughed along with Kali as they both withdrew their arms, catching and holding her gaze as they did. "Kali," Will quipped with a twinkle in his eye, "no need to apologize. You can use any armrest of mine anytime you like."

 

[Kaligurl222]

Kali nodded as he explained his travels. So we was unattached, did he mention that on purpose or was he just explaining why he didn't like all the traveling?

"Wow, that's crazy how many places a job can take you. I mean, I can count on one hand the amount of times I've flown, ever. But I can see why it would lose its charm- being by yourself in different cities all the time. I'm kinda a homebody... It's pretty much me either going to the bar for work or to the studio to a dance class and then right back home... I watch a lot of Netflix." She laughed at that admission. "Wow I sound like a real pathetic person now don't I?"

When he told her she could use the armrest she smiled, "well thank you." She let her arm rest on the little divider. "Well at least you have a short flight this time, you won't be stuck on this plane for hours and hours huh?"

 

[Gr8chtr]

"Hey, Netflix is cool," Will replied with an unfortunate large dose of truth, "when I'm stuck in a hotel waiting for the next day's meetings, or sometimes if I have a long layover in an airport, out comes my laptop, up come's Netflix. " He smiled, trying to hold Kali's attention. "So," he continued, "I guess either both of us are 'real pathetic', or neither of us are. I choose to believe the latter."

Will could see that Kali wasn't wearing a ring, but that certainly didn't necessarily mean that she was unattached. If he had been sure of that, God, he would have been very tempted to ask her for a date, maybe even for tonight. He needed to figure out a way to ferret out that information without being too obvious. He had a thought.

"Well, Kali, " Will said trying to convey a light tone, "because I don't come to the DC area very often I don't know the area very well. Where, may I ask, do you and your family, or you and your roommates, or you and your boyfriend live in the DC metro area?"

 

[Kaligurl222]

She smiled and nodded her head in agreement, "that's a good way to look at it! At least I know I'm not the only Netflix junkie out there."

As he asked her about where a outs she was located she smiled to herself, thinking how he was quite clever, finding out if she was single or not without just asking. "I'm on the upper east side. I picked an apartment located at a middle point, about twenty my minutes to either of my jobs and about thirty minutes to visit my dad.... It's just him and I here. He's in assisted living now so I try to go visit when I get a chance. I'm pretty familiar with DC and its surrounding areas- where abouts are you staying?- maybe I can reccoment somewhere, I mean, somewhere that won't be filled with too many tourists that is." She smiled at him.

 

[Gr8chtr]

Not being that familiar with DC, Will didn't know where the "upper east side" of that city was exactly, but it didn't really matter. She had answered the real question that he had; he knew now that she was single. And, her offer to help him find a hotel had a very warm feel to it. That idea emboldened him.

"I'm sorry to hear that your dad is at the point of being in assisted living. That must be hard to see, " Will offered sincerely. Lightening his tone, he continued. "Well, gosh, thanks for the offer of help, but I already have hotel reservations not far from where I will be having my meetings over the next three days, and the reservations were made late enough that they are not refundable."

Will paused. He didn't want to tell her that he was staying at the St. Regis hotel, one of the best luxury hotels in the city, where his room would cost him a cool $550 per night. Some women would be wildly attracted to a guy who could afford such luxury, but Will was afraid that this might be a turnoff for Kali who was obviously working two jobs, and who apparently had such a modest background that she had only taken a handful of flights in her entire life.

"What the fuck", Will thought to himself, "take the plunge." Will cleared his throat, obviously a bit nervous. "But...I could always use some advice on a good place to eat. If you're free, dinner would be my treat."

 

[Kaligurl222]

She wasn't sure what she had expected when she had brought up his arrangements, of course he had reservations! But then he suggested dinner and all disappointment was lost. "I would love to join you for dinner while you're in town. DC has a lot of hidden a gems to offer.. You just need to know where to look." She smiled. She knew the two of them couldn't be from more different worlds but there was something about him.... "So what type of food do you like?- and please don't pull that- whatever you like or something like that, I will pick the place but I need some direction to narrow it down." She teased him

 

[Gr8chtr]

Will broke into a broad grin when Kali exclaimed "...please don't pull that...". She was teasing him, poking him a little. They were making some connection. This was really nice; he wanted to keep that connection going, maybe push it just a little bit.

Kali's arm was still resting on the armrest between them. Twisting around part way so that he could come closer to facing Kali and making clear eye contact with her, Will gently laid his hand on Kali's arm, letting his fingers rest just far enough toward the end of the sleeve of her sweatshirt that his fingers grazed the back of Kali's hand. "Well, since you asked," Will began cheerfully, "some of the people that I know who travel to DC a lot tell me that there are many good Ethiopian restaurants in town. I've never had Ethiopian food. I'd love to try it."

Will could see that Kali was considering his request. Before she could speak, he chuckled, "Of course, wherever we go I would want someplace cozy where we can continue getting to know each other."

 

[Kaligurl222]

She listened as he expressed a desire to try Ethiopian food. "I think I know the perfect place... There have been a few experiences that I have learned from the hard way.. But I have found some great places in the process!" She felt his hand touch hers ever so lightly but she knew better than to look down at it for fear that he would pull away.

"We will have a great time, I'm sure of it." She smiled, still trying to figure out why she was so attracted to this man sitting in the seat next to her.

 

[Gr8chtr]

We will have a great time, I'm sure of it.

Kali's words were music to Will's ears. She had accepted his offer of a date! Who knew where this would lead? Will didn't know, but he was certain that at the very least he would have the company of this lovely young woman for a few hours that he would otherwise have spent in some boring fashion.

Will realized, though, that he was faced with a bit of a dilemma. They still had about 70 minutes left on their flight. Of course, they would need to make arrangements, but the question was whether to lay back and miss the fun and the opportunity to flirt with Kali and see where that went, or to forge ahead and risk overdoing it and turning her off.

Will decided to keep pushing. "Excellent!", Will proclaimed while trying not to seem too eager. He pulled out a little piece of paper, wrote down his cell number, and handed it to Kali. "So, before we get into discussing time and where to meet, tell me this: What's one thing that I should know about Kali Riley before we go on our date?"

 

[Kaligurl222]

She took the paper with his number on it and slipped it into the pocket of her purse. "One thing you should know huh? Hmm good question.." She considered it for a minute before she responded, "alright, well I love to dance. Any type of dance... I love it all... So just be forewarned that if someplace has music on that has a good beat, don't be shocked if dancing comes out." She laughed as she watched his face momentarily, "but lucky for you, Ethiopian restaurants aren't known for their music so you're probably safe..." She winked at him playfully. "What's something I should know about you?"

 

[Gr8chtr]

What's something I should know about you?

"You should know this," Will said playfully while locking his gaze with Kali's, "most of the time I am a very careful, deliberate kind of guy, but when I am with a woman that I find very attractive, I kind of lose my head."

 

[Kaligurl222]

Kali smiled and nodded her head, "well you can't be calm cool and collected all the time can you?- everybody needs to let loose every once in a while.. Right?" She patted his hand in a friendly gesture, "I promise not to talk you into doing anything too crazy." She teased him as she smiled

 

[Gr8chtr]

I promise not to talk you into doing anything too crazy.

Will returned Kali's teasing smile. "But, suppose I want you to talk me into doing something crazy? What then? Would you? What would it be?"

 

[Kaligurl222]

She laughed and shook her head, "it doesn't work like that... It wouldn't be considered crazy if you were able to prepare for it now would it?" She winked. "Plus I suppose it depends on your definition of crazy anyway..." She smiled, "but honestly I'm not a super crazy kinda girl... I like to be a little more- low key."

 

[Gr8chtr]

Kali's light and witty come-back to his tease made Will feel even more attracted to her. She might be a woman of modest origins and means, Will realized, but she was just as quick and just as sharp as any of the high-achieving, professional women with whom Will typically interacted.

"OK, OK," Will quipped, "you win that round. I can't even begin to challenge your point." He thought a little before continuing. Laying his had completely over Kali's on the armrest, Will continued. "So, we'll plan on a low-key evening with dinner at the 'perfect place' that you have in mind. If a miracle occurs and there's an opportunity to dance, well we'll do that. If not, we'll see how we want to spend the rest of the evening."

Will ended his little speech by squeezing Kali's hand warmly, wrapping one of his fingers around her hand so that he could gently stroke her palm.

 

[Kaligurl222]

It was hard to focus when his hand was touching her's. She smiled and nodded her head, "sounds like a good plan to me." She lightly squeezed his finger that was now in her hand, " now the true test will be if you answer the phone when I try to get ahold of you after this flight.." She winked at him playfully

 

[Gr8chtr]

Will simply smiled at Kali's playful comment. There was no question that he was going to answer his phone when she called! Short of getting run over by a truck, he was going to take her to dinner.

Kali and Will set back quietly, hands touching, as the captain announced that they were beginning their descent into Washington. As they touched down, Will turned to Kali and finally replied, in equally playful form, to her quip. "No, the really true test is whether you call me at all, knowing that if you do follow through with our plan that I will take that as a sign that you are at least as interested in me as I am in you."