Page 11 of Vesper Martinis
Oh, now he admits he knows me.
“He works for me at Sweet Cocktails,” he explains. “Oh, and my name is Pierce Donnelley.” He sighs. “It’s such a nice day today, isn’t it?”
Wait, is Pierce engaging in small talk?
“Indeed it is,” Minnie says, then jabs her elbow into my side when I don’t say anything.
“Ouch,” I rub my side as Pierce narrows his eyes at the two of us.
“Everything okay?” he asks.
No. My boss, who I have a crush on but also kind of dislike, is casually talking to me, and it’s freaking me out.
“Yeah, I’m fine.”
Awkward silence surrounds us like smoke, and I wish I knew what to do. If I didn’t get so tongue-tied around this man, I’d probably come up with some quip to get us out of this, but nothing comes to mind. Unfortunately, Minnie comes up with something.
“Would you care to join us for lunch? Luckily, Wes here packed some extra sandwiches. Peanut butter and jelly, wasn’t it, Wes?” She looks at me and mouths, “Fucking say something.”
“Uh, yeah. I made two of those, but I’m sure Pierce—I mean, Mr. Donnelley—has better things to do,” I chuckle awkwardly.
Pierce shakes his head. “Not really. And peanut butter and jelly sandwiches happen to be my favourite. If you don’t mind, I'd love to join you.”
“Sure!” Minnie says. “We’re going to go down to the beach for a picnic,” Minnie points just off to the side, past the grass to the beach.
Pierce walks in front of us, and I pull Minnie to me.
“What the hell did you do that for?”
“What? You were looking at him like you wanted to eat him for breakfast.”
“Yeah, but he’s my boss,” I hiss as we follow Pierce down the stairs to the beach.
“Not right now. It’s the weekend. Plus, it’s just lunch.”
She’s right. It’s just lunch. Bosses and employees can have lunch sometimes. But Pierce and I are unique. He’s so hostile to me, and yet he wants to have lunch? Maybe it being the weekend has him relaxed and not in work mode.
I pull a blanket from my backpack and set it on the sand, where Pierce and Minnie get rocks to hold down the corners. Next, I pull out the sandwiches and lay them out in the middle of the blanket. I look at Pierce, who pulls out his water bottle from his pants pocket before taking a seat.
“So, you like peanut butter and jelly sandwiches?” I ask as I hand him one.
“Yes. Would you believe I had them every day as a kid?”
I can barely believe Pierce was ever a kid. He just seems like he was created in a lab as an adult. He has a perfect jaw bone, perfect hair, and a perfect body. His personality is a little robotic. More logical than emotional.
“Yes,” Pierce continues. “They were my favourite, and they still are. Though a close second would be this meat sandwich this guy from Brooklyn made. He had a little shop close to where my grandmother lived, and when he’d visit some weekends, I’d always go out and get myself one. I have no idea what he put in it. I just know it was good.”
Pierce looks at his sandwich, and a soft smile appears on his lips. I wonder if he’s thinking of those childhood memories, running off to the sandwich shop. I try and picture it in my mind. A little blond boy in a baseball cap, reaching up to place the money on the counter to get his sandwich.
“You’re from Brooklyn?” Minnie asks, pulling me out of my imagination.
“No,” Pierce shakes his head as he swallows his first bite. “I’m from New York City, but my grandparents were in Brooklyn, and we’d go there often.”
It looks like he wants to say more, but his eyes cloud with something dark, and he pulls back, giving us a smile that I can tell is fake.
“This is really good, by the way. You’re quite the cook.” He points at the sandwich before taking another bite. All I’m thinking of is how much I want to hear what he didn’t say.
His story about the sandwich made him seem… human. Which is a perception of this man that I lack. I’m wondering, if he were to open up a little, maybe I could understand him more. Understand why he’s doing what he’s doing to me because I know it’s on purpose. No one has a night like that, and in two months, just forget it. Do they?