Two Uses for a Glass of Merlot

It was about 7pm on a Friday evening when I strode into the popular city restaurant near my office. I had quickly showered at work and changed from my Zegna suit into a white linen shirt and dark chinos. I wore a musky cologne that women seemed to like. Remembering my wedding ring, I quickly slipped it off and slid it into my pocket to avoid awkward questions.

Looking for company last night here at the bar, I had met a woman. Her name was Sophie and she had been sitting alone. She was beautiful with long golden hair and I could see she had a great body. She smiled invitingly at me, and I had offered to buy her a drink. She ordered a glass of merlot, not the usual choice in my experience but it added to her air of mystery.

We chatted and flirted for a while, then when she had finished her wine, she said “I need to have an early night but how about dinner here tomorrow night? It will be Friday, so no need to get out of bed on Saturday.” She looked at me knowingly.

Of course I had agreed and here I was.

It appeared that I had arrived first, and as I waited to be seated, I noticed a large group of young women seated at a table, eating, drinking and laughing loudly. One of them saw me, said something sotto voce to the others and they all turned and gave me what could be described as a dirty look. I realised that I recognised them. They worked at my firm, and one of them looked like...Meg? Was it? Yes it was. I quickly turned away. The hostess arrived and showed me to our table which thankfully was a comfortable enough distance away.

OK, so let me explain. The last time I’d been here, a couple of weeks ago, it was with Meg, a hot brunette from accounts in the law firm where I worked. She’d been a bit of a mess that day which made it easy to convince her to finally agree to go for a drink with me - she was mid-divorce and the ex husband sounded like a nightmare.

I’d said all the right things - that she was beautiful and her ex must be crazy for letting her go, as I stroked her hair and held her hand gently. She knew I was married but I told her that I was unhappy at home, and hinted that a separation was imminent. She admitted that she’d always had a bit of a crush on me.

She was upset over her divorce case, and as a lawyer I gave her some tips. She was so grateful - and drunk - that she let me take her home and well...you know. A gentleman doesn’t go into details (except maybe over lunch with the guys). I got up to leave as soon as it was over. My wife had been asking questions lately so I couldn’t be too late getting home.

As I was dressing Meg had suggested we go out again but I felt there might be a danger of her thinking this was more than it was, so I made an excuse about the partners swamping me with work. After I avoided her for a few days and ignored her at work drinks, I think she got the hint. The air in the office was a little more chilly, and I don’t think it was the air conditioning. I really don’t know what her problem was, it was just a bit of fun.

“I hope you weren’t waiting long. Oh, I see you remembered,” Sophie said as she approached the table. I had ordered a bottle of the 2017 Californian Jetbird Merlot for us and her glass was poured and waiting.

I looked up, “I took the liberty of ordering a bottle of the same as you had last night”.

“So thoughtful,” she murmured.

Sophie sat down across from me and she was a feast for the eyes. She had on a slinky red wrap dress with just a hint of cleavage, and I glimpsed that her legs leading down to her high heels were amazing.

“You know, Cameron, I knew as soon as I met you that you were a really special kind of guy,” she said after we had ordered, appraising me and brushing a long blonde lock of hair out of her face. She brushed her leg against mine and looked at me seductively. Wow. Usually I had to do all the work but this one was really up for it.

We ate our dinner - filet mignon for me and rack of lamb for her - washed down with the full-bodied merlot, and made conversation while I pondered the right moment to suggest that we get out of here.

As I topped up her wine glass, Sophie asked me what I did for a living, and I told her I was a lawyer at a large firm and was expecting to be made a partner soon. I asked what her occupation was.

“Oh, I work in human resources,” she said lightly.

“Interesting. Which company?”

“A law firm actually. Richardson, Bryson & Pierce.”

I blinked, registering, my mind working. Should I tell her? The next moment, I realised that was not necessary.

“I know you work there too,” she said. “I know everything about you.” Her tone now had a slight edge which made me suddenly uneasy.

Before I could reply, she rose from her chair and picked up her purse. “Excuse me, I’m going to the powder room.”

Wow. Ok. We worked in the same firm. She worked in HR in the same firm. I had never seen her before, however it was a big place occupying several floors so that wasn’t unusual, but for a moment I reconsidered my plans for that night. I had recently decided to stay away from co-workers going forward.

A few seconds later the group of female work colleagues I had noticed earlier passed my table as they were leaving. Unable to help myself I glanced in their direction. To my alarm, Meg was walking towards me.

In one deft swipe, she picked up Sophie’s full glass of merlot, threw it in my face, and put the glass down again.

As she walked out of the restaurant with her friends who were laughing hysterically, the scarlet liquid dripped down my face and onto my white linen shirt that I suspected that was now unwearable. I was now the centre of attention in the restaurant.

Mortified, I dried off my face with the napkin that was on my lap and wondered how I could explain this to my date. How could things have gone so bad so quickly?

Not really in the mood for seduction any more, I now just wanted to get out of here.

While I was still attempting to clean myself up, the waitress, ignoring my plight, brought over the bill and placed it in front of me.

“The lady you were with asked me to bring you the bill.”

I opened the small black folder. There were two bills. One was for our dinner, the other one came to $823.00. What’s this? I wondered.

I called over the waitress.

“There seems to be a mistake, there are two bills here, and only one is ours.”

“Oh sir, your dining companion said that you would cover the bill for the group who were sitting over there”, she gestured to the table where Meg had been sitting. “She said that they are colleagues of yours.”

“What the...?” I looked around for Sophie.

“Your lady friend said she had to leave urgently. She left this for you.”

I looked at the waitress - I saw a hint of contempt in her face as she handed me a piece of notepaper that had been folded in half. What was this? I opened it and read:

“Sorry I had to run, I really appreciate you picking up the bill tonight for both us and my best friend Meg’s table. It’s the least you can do after you took advantage of her the other night. I know you won’t want to make a fuss about it.

PS. A copy of this note has been emailed to your wife. I’m sure she would love to know what you’re really up to.

PPS. The Managing Partner Mr Richardson would like a meeting with you at 9am on Monday to discuss several complaints that have been made against you.

Enjoy your weekend.”