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"Oh no, it's fine, sir," she said. "So, Mr. Sloane, what have you been up to here in sunny old London?"
I laughed at her comment because it had rained the entire week I'd been here. "Actually, I've been all over Europe in the past month. I'm in banking and, well"—I shrugged—"just meeting with directors from different companies my brokerage is thinking about investing in."
"Wow. That went completely over my head, but it all sounds very important. Okay, sir. I've got you in 3A." She handed me back my passport. "I'll print out the tickets for you. Are you checking any bags today?"
"I’ll be checking one suitcase, please."
"No problem. And, of course, that's free, seeing as you are one of our preferred customers."
"Hey. Well, I'm glad to hear that I'm preferred." I gave her a warm smile.
She giggled slightly. "Sir, I don't normally do this, and I could get in trouble, but my break is coming up in thirty minutes."
"Okay." I smiled at her warmly, not quite sure where she was going with that information. I didn’t want to upset her and have her change my seat, though.
"It looks like you don't have to go through to the gates for a good hour or two...so..." She paused and took a deep breath. "That would give us thirty minutes."
"Hmm, thirty minutes for what?" I said, knowing exactly what she was intimating.
"Well, you know…I mean, I don't know if you're married." She looked at my left hand.
I wiggled my fingers and shook my head. "Nope, not married."
"You're not engaged or have a girlfriend?" she asked hopefully.
"Nope. Nothing." I thought about Amelia, my ex-hookup, and shuddered.
“So you’re not engaged then?” Matilda was looking positively blissful as though she’d just won the lottery.
“No. I was seeing someone casually but ended things a long time ago. She was just a little crazy.” I shuddered, thinking about all the texts and calls Amelia was still leaving me. I really needed to figure out how to stop hooking up with psycho women. I needed to find a good girl like Alice. I frowned as Alice’s face came to mind.
"Great. I mean, this wouldn't be anything really, except for thirty minutes of fun." She winked at me. "I mean, there's the mile-high club, which everyone has heard of, and then there's the airport club."
"Never heard of the airport club," I said, grinning at her. "Are you suggesting we join one of those clubs?"
"Well, I can't get on your flight today, so the mile-high club's out, but I can take you to a private area reserved only for employees. You look like you could really make the girl come in thirty minutes." Her voice lowered as she sucked on a pen.
I stared at her, surprised at her words and shocked at how forward she was being. I wasn't sure what to say. Matilda was an attractive middle-aged lady, maybe even slightly younger than middle-aged. I appreciated that she was shooting her shot, but I was excited to go home and just relax. I didn't want to ruin my months-long abstinence for a quickie in an airport with an unknown lady.
"I think I'm going to have to pass only because I have some work to do, but it was very nice meeting you today, Matilda."
Her face crumpled, and she looked disappointed, but then it changed quickly. She stiffened her shoulders and nodded. "Well, you're very welcome, sir. Have a nice flight."
"My bag?" I said quickly, nodding toward my suitcase. I hadn’t expected her to change in attitude and demeanor that quickly.
"Oh yes. Put it on the scale, please." I felt a little bad that she was taking my rejection so personally, but I had decided to forego casual sex for the time being. Having gone out with someone who was slightly crazy made you rethink your life choices.
Alice suddenly popped into my thoughts again, and I shook my head quickly. It had nothing to do with Alice. I knew that. Yeah, she was beautiful, and yeah, we had a history, but she was my sister's best friend, and I knew my sister would kill me if I did absolutely anything with her. I also knew that I wasn't like Oliver. I wasn't looking to settle down. I wasn't looking to get married or start a family. Not now, and I wasn't sure if I ever wanted to. I knew that anything short of a full commitment would not be right for Alice, and it certainly would not be approved by my sister, Rosalie. I mentally reminded myself that I would have to talk to Rosalie soon because Oliver had just texted me about the possibility of their wedding being in South Africa on a safari. I rolled my eyes as I thought about my crazy sister and her antics. Only she would plan to have a wedding on a safari.
"Is there anything else, sir?" Matilda's voice interrupted me from my reverie.
"No. Sorry, I was just—"
"Well, you have a good day. Other customers are waiting." She cut me off, and I nodded.
"You, too, Matilda." I smiled politely at her. “I hope that—”
"Next, please," she said, looking away from me, and I moved off to the side, pressing my lips together as I walked away.
