Number 2, Incorporated - Closed for JollyMon and Passionate Patty

[_JollyMon]

The day seemed to get hotter as the sun fell back against the city skyline. If that was possible, Jack Fowler pondered as he walked the two blocks from his office building to the Kick Back Club, it was certainly true today. It was 7:00 PM, and the temperature was still above 95 degrees. Well, at least the air conditioning in the Kick Back would be blasting as usual. There were few things Jack could count on in his life. The dark coolness of the Kick Back Club each night was one of them.

The bartender saw Jack enter and prepared his vodka martini without a word being said, other than a “thanks” from Jack. Jack wasn’t so much going to the club. The real truth was he was NOT going home. The club was his escape from that awful place. Several years ago, Jack’s wife Ella had begun to show signs of depression. As her condition became worse, two things were becoming evident. One, she wasn’t going to respond to any treatment and would eventually barricade herself in their house. Two, Jack would become the loneliest man in the world.

Ella didn’t require constant care, and Jack took advantage of any chance he could get to stay away from the house. Their son, Tyler, had learned to handle Ella’s illness by growing up too fast. He knew he could come to Jack if he needed to, but the two men just made the best of the situation. As he sipped his drink, Jack accepted his existence. He looked down, and for the last time, felt very alone.

As he glanced up, he saw her, and his life changed. She was beautiful, the stunning woman at the other end of the bar. At first, her sight made him a bit sad. In his present state, she was unattainable, but as he looked at her, possibilities came to light. Maybe there was a light at the end of Jack’s darkness, a way out of his life that felt like a trap. He continued to take her in with his eyes, and he could only laugh inwardly. How could a woman like that, so stunning, so classy, possibly understand his problems?

Suddenly, Jack could only curse at his own stupidity - she was walking over to him, obviously to object to the way he had been staring at her. He prepared his apology as she approached, but that all fell away when she spoke first.

“Hello, Jack” she said.

“Do I know you?” he replied, stunned that she knew his name.

It was then that she made her remarkable business proposition.

 

[PassionatePatty]

Barbara Romano had worked for Number 2, Incorporated, for 10 years now. She had been approached during her senior year of college by one of her professors. He was on the board of directors of the company and in charge of recruitment. He had noticed that she was able to be comfortable in any situation that came her way. Her ability to be able to "think on her feet" was paramount for their operations.

She never disappointed the company in any assignment they gave her. Barbara had a beauty that was natural, not unlike that of the Mona Lisa. Her warm smile and compassionate demeanor won the hearts and gained the confidence of her "charges." Her long dark hair attracted attention, and many men had called her a goddess or an angel because of the way it flowed as she walked. Barbara loved being a woman and everything it stood for, although it never slowed her down from being independant.

Jack didn't remember her, as was obvious by the look on his face, as she approached him. She smiled as she recalled how he had been staring at her tonight. He hadn't noticed her during the previous couple of weeks she had been observing him. Tonight was the night to make her move. He noticed her now, and it was because he was hungry and ripe for the attention she could give him.

“Hello, Jack” she said.

“Do I know you?” he replied, stunned that she knew his name.

"Yes, we met at the management seminar two months ago that was held at the Hyatt. My name is Barbara Romano."

She saw the look on Jack's face going from one of reflection and slowly remembering, and then saw the smile grow on his face. Barbara's assignment that time had been another corporate manager from another company, in a situation slightly different than Jack's but he was just as needy. Jack had almost undressed Barbara with his eyes the night of the cocktail party, and had to change position a few times to adjust the growth that was developing in his pants.

Jack was shifting in his seat tonight, and subconsciously, he put one hand down to adjust the growing problem. It didn't escape Barbara's notice and she smiled even more. "Of course, I remember now! You were with George Banes from Adelphi International. I thought you were his wife!"

"No, Jack, I was his escort. His wife is very ill and dying. He needed someone to accompany him to the party that night."

"Escort? I thought I saw you two interacting a little more closely than that!"

"Jack, you have to understand what he was going through. He had needs, if you know what I mean." Barbara sat in a chair that was next to him and placed her hand on his. " Actually, I think you more than understand and know, as you are in a similar situation. I would like to help you, in many ways, any time you need or want. Even tonight if you'd like."

Her dress was simple and tasteful. Not attracting too much attention, but just accenting her features in a proper way. The neckline just low enough to cause Jack's eyes to wander down but to hunger to see more. The hemline was just at the knee and rose slightly as she sat and crossed her legs. Her stockings had a slight shimmer to them to enhance her features and cause the eye to want to look up her dress.

From the way Jack looked her over, he didn't miss a thing. He even leaned a little closer to her, and she thought she heard him inhale a little deeply as if to take in her scent. Which scent he picked up was hard to tell. Her perfume, "Romance" was her favorite, and one she used for the special moments as this one was. However, she was a woman with needs, too, and found Jack appealing. Very appealing!

Barbara realized he was holding her hand in both of his. They gazed in each other's eyes as she waited for him to respond to her proposition.

 

[_JollyMon]

Jack wanted to stop her, ask her how she had come to know such things about him, and just how long she had been following him. From the sounds of things, she had been doing more than following him. She had to have been snooping around his house, his office...how else could she know that his circumstances were similar to those of George Banes?

Jack remembered him, George Banes. He didn't know him personally, but he certainly knew his story. He had been handed the merger negotiations with Adelphi International and Lord/Brownwell. It was a plum assignment and anyone connected to it could expect handsome bonuses. Banes,at the top, could write his own check.

But his wife had become so ill, so suddenly, and Banes' life seemed to be ending, too. His career sure was. The rumors started the same day of Mrs. Banes' gloomy prognosis that George was finished...to be taken off the merger and sent off to consulting purgatory. Banes didn't seem to care. Word was the sight of his dying wife took away his ambition, his drive, everything it took to make it in the land of sharks.

Just as suddenly as he seemed to be falling off the map, however, George Banes made an incredible comeback. And that comeback seemed to coincide with the presence of Ms. Barbara Romano. Jack had assumed she was Mrs. Banes. They seemed to go everywhere together, they were so affectionate....just so natural together. With George making the rounds with Barbara, George was his old self again, and the merger was a knockout. George Banes was on top of the world and he had a matching bank account. His wife did eventually pass away, but hopefully she did so knowing George was happy.

Is this what Barbara had in mind for Jack? Did Barbara know that, at this very moment, Ella was sitting alone in her bedroom, miserable? Did Barbara know how lonely Jack was? And if she did, was she here to fix it, or take advantage of it? After all, Mrs. Banes was dead and gone. Why wasn't Barbara still with George Banes?

Too many questions, not enough answers. But one truth was becoming clear. Jack was falling into her spell, if that's what it was. He knew it was happening, but he couldn't stop it and he didn't want to. Her hands. So smooth, so silky, warm....reassuring, comforting, welcoming. And they were right here, here for him to feel and touch.

"I would like to help you, in many ways, any time you need or want. Even tonight if you'd like."

Jack could sense alarm bells ringing his head that told him NOT to say what he was about to say, but his ability to chose had long since left him.

"Well, if you know about me and my wife, the way you're suggesting you do, then you know we can't go to my house." He studied her reaction, which was as consistently smooth as it had been since she took her seat next to him.

"Do you think you could offer an alternative venue for our meeting?"