Mike, who went back to re-stocking the bar when she approached me, walked back over to us, and with his wise perceptive ways, he lacked warmth when he asked Dawn, “Can I get you a drink, Miss.” I had wondered if he had sensed my unease with her presence and had followed suit.
“Ummm…well, that depends…on whether or not Mr. Jacobs here is buying,” she attempted to charm with her witty sense of humor.
“Honey, if you’re walking in this establishment at this hour to see Mr. Jacobs, I doubt if you’re concerned with who’s buying.” He gave her a stern, paternal glare. Dawn’s eyes peeled from Mike and bounced quizzically to mine when I gestured I’m out of it with the pouting of my mouth and took another swig of my drink. She then went back to Mike, who waited patiently for an answer.
“Errrr…gin and tonic…dry, please.” When Mike turned to concoct her order, she took a deep breath and turned back to me. “So, did you enjoy your night?” I knew she was referring to the after party.
“Some points of it less than others,” I said before sliding my glass back down the bar to Mike. “Hit me again, Big Mike.”
“You got it, Mr. Jacobs,” Mike called with his back to me.
Dawn gave a nervous laugh. “Now that I see you’re here, I am hoping that we can talk…privately. Perhaps after you give me a tour.”
Mike returned with her drink and didn’t go too far to pour mine.
“We can talk here. What’s up?”
She used her eyes inconspicuously to motion to Mike.
“Don’t worry about Mike. It’s his job to hear no evil, see no evil, or repeat it.” Her neck snapped at my resistance.
Mike served my drink and went back about his business.
“Well…errrr...I didn’t have the most pleasant encounter with your friend.”
“Rayna,” I chided sternly. She would not disregard my lady and pass her off as a jump-off. That shit ended here.
“Rayna,” she settled with, sounding reproved. “And I wanted to dispel any misreporting that you may have gotten from her.”
“Misreports?” I chuckled silently while staring straight ahead before taking a nip of my drink.
“Yes, she came out of the bathroom stall and walked into a private moment between an associate and me. It was a little emotional and I can only imagine the impression she got.”
“Why are you anxious about what impression Rayna may have gotten from a conversation between you and an associate that didn’t concern her.”
“Anxiousssss,” she threw my word back to me contemplatively, in a whisper.
I took another sip of my brandy, but said nothing to let her know that I was awaiting an explanation.
“That’s the thing, Azmir.” She ran her hand over the back of her neck, expressing nervousness. “I’m still confused as to the nature of your affairs with her. You told me last night she was a roommate, but you didn’t say she was a girlfriend or a significant other of some sort. Is there an arrangement in place that I should be aware of?”
She echoed Rayna’s complaints about my choice of words describing who Rayna is in my life. What the fuck is up with women being all literal and shit?
“That you should be aware of? Is this for business reasons?” I asked as I dropped ice cubes from the tumbler into my mouth. Dawn was going to have to come better than that.
“In Connecticut, you advised that I be clear with my intentions, so here we go: Are you in a serious relationship with her? Is she a girlfriend? Or are you just fucking her and she’s living with you as a professional beard? Is there some arrangement in place?” Dawn barely took a breath in her string of questions. I couldn’t decide between being concerned or entertained. “I want to know so that I can see how I can gain your attention. And before you ask, I’m speaking on a personal and intimate level.” Her eyes stayed upon me as she sipped from her drink, I supposed to help with her nerves.