“What are you talking about?” I glared at him. “What laughs?”
“All the laughs you and your friends had when you told them what a fool I was for believing all your lies.”
“I never thought you were a fool.”
“I was a fool.” He sighed. “I don’t know how I didn’t figure out you were 18.”
“I guess I was a good actress.”
“That’s the problem, you weren’t.” He chuckled. “When I think back to everything now, it’s all so clear to me. How eager and happy you were all the time to see me, how open you were with your feelings. The fact that you were a virgin and the fact that you were always willing and eager to do whatever I wanted to do sexually.”
“Not everything.” I shook my head.
“That’s true.” He licked his lips as he stared at me. “I never got you to agree to anal.”
“Would you like to see the wine menu?” A waiter appeared at our side and I looked at him with a small smile, while dying of mortification inside.
“Thank you.” Brandon took the menu and opened it so we could both see.
“Mr. Kai, would you like me to order the wine?” Brandon addressed the only person in the business party who appeared to speak English.
“Thank you, Mr. Hastings. We would like that very much.” Mr. Kai nodded and then spoke to the others rapidly in Japanese.
“I don’t think I’m going to be able to help much.” I whispered to Brandon. “I don’t speak much Japanese.”
“Your presence alone is enough.” He squeezed my knee and smiled at me. I tried not to pull away from him, but every time he touched me I felt like I was flying and it was hard for me to come back down to earth.
“I think we’re all going to have a less fatty steak tonight. I’m guessing everyone will have a filet mignon, don’t you think?” Brandon spoke out loud as he studied the wine menu. “So I guess I’ll choose a bottle that has a bit less tannin.”
“How do you know?” I asked, interested.
“I tried to be a sommelier when I was in my twenties.” He looked up at me. “And I worked at a couple of wineries in Napa and Sonoma.”
“I never knew that before.”
“There are a lot of things you don’t know about me, Katie.”
“Have you decided on your wine?” The waiter reappeared, and I sat back while I waited for Brandon to order.
“Let’s see, we’re definitely going to go with a cabernet sauvignon.” He studied the menu and looked up at the waiter. “Will you check and see if you have a 2002 Abreu cabernet sauvignon from the Thorevilos Vineyard Napa Valley in the cellar, please.”
“Wines in the cellar start at $500, sir.”
“That’s fine.” Brandon shrugged. “That’s the wine we want, if you have it. Two bottles would be better than one.”
“I’ll go and check now, sir.” The apathetic-looking waiter’s eyes lit up as he departed the table quickly.
“That’s too much money.” I whispered at him. “You can’t spend $500 on wine.”
“If they have a bottle, it’ll be about $850, actually.” He smiled at me and his eyes crinkled. “I’ve got billions, Katie. There’s no need to be worried. Consider it a catch-up drink for all those nights I took you out to dinner and you only got a water.”
“Yeah, but we’re not dating anymore.”
“Whose fault is that?” His fingers caught mine and he squeezed them until I looked up at him. “Don’t tell me what to do, Katie.”
“I’m not telling you what to do.”
“You made me lose control in my life once, I’m not going to let you do that to me again.”
“What?” I frowned, but then Mr. Kai started talking about business, so I just sat back and smiled at the other women in the group. They smiled at me politely and I smiled back, not knowing what else to do.
The waiter hurried back to the table with a huge smile. “Sir, we’ve found two bottles for you. Would you like to do a tasting?”
“Yes,” Brandon nodded and raised his glass, and the waiter popped the cork and poured a sampling into his glass. Brandon gave it a quick sniff, swirled it in his glass and then sipped. He allowed the wine to sit in his mouth for a moment, and then swallowed. “Delicious.” He nodded at the waiter. “I like it a lot. The wine is deep, well-balanced and complex.” He turned to me. “Just like I like my women.”
“So you two married, yes?” One of the women on the other side of the table leaned forward. “Happy couple?”
“Yes.” Brandon nodded and I sat back with a fake smile on my face.
“She is younger than you?’ Mr. Kai questioned and looked back and forth at us. I was surprised at the bluntness of his question.
“Much younger.” Brandon nodded. “But what does age matter when it comes to love?”
Mr. Kai didn’t respond, but instead seemed to explain the conversation to the others at the table. Some of the women’s eyes changed from polite to accepting and I realized that now they thought I was the wife, everything was okay.
“What sort of business dinner is this?” I whispered in Brandon’s ear. “Only one of them speaks English and I can’t imagine this is a setting where any deals are going to get made.”