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“What do you mean he doesn’t want you working? Do you have kids?” Her situation sounded odd. Most couples these days were two-income households, at least until children came into the picture.
“No,” she answered after the waitress brought her a third Chablis. “No, no kids, but he won’t let me.”
“I don’t see what I can do to change that for you.” There was no way I was becoming a marriage counselor.
“I thought I could do a little work from home without him knowing and show him it didn’t interfere with anything. Then go from there.”
Interfere with what? His nookie time?
“I was hoping,” she said, leaning forward, “that you might need a little paralegal work on the side. Or maybe you know someone who does? You see, I can’t go on a bunch of interviews. He’d find out about that.”
Her husband was sounding more and more like a controlling jerk, but it wasn’t my place to tell her.
“I can talk to Celia——she’s our in-house lawyer——and have her talk to you, but I’m not sure if she’ll know anybody who needs help or not.” I lifted my glass. “It’s a plus that you have boobs.”
She jerked back.
I smiled. “What I mean is we’re a women-run business——not quite a testosterone-free workplace, but almost——and Celia’s pretty hard core about it.”
Natalie giggled. “So your building is a penis-free zone?”
“Not quite, but close.” For a moment I considered how we might want to get signs for the doors that said that. It was a good line.Caution - entering penis-free zone, or maybeCaution - entering low testosterone zone. The second sounded a little more acceptable. We did have male visitors, after all.
Natalie slid a card across to me with a phone number on it. “That’s my number, and she can reach me between nine and eleven in the morning.”
I put the card in my purse and grabbed another calamari ring.
“Thanks so much, Amy. I’m going nuts at home.”
The door to the street opened, and even backlit by the afternoon light, I could tell it was my Liam. I waved him over.
“Liam,” I said as he strode up with his usual swagger. “This is my friend Natalie. Natalie, this is my boyfriend, Liam.”
It seemed quite normal to be able to introduce Liam asmy boyfriend, and a warmth spread through me as I uttered the words.
Natalie offered her hand, and Liam surprised her by kissing it instead of shaking.
“Natalie,” he said slowly. “You wouldn’t happen to have a birthday in December, would you?”
Natalie nodded. “Yes, the fifteenth. How did you guess?”
“Natalie is such a beautiful name,” he said. Liam was in charisma mode again. “It comes from the word for Christmas, if I’m not mistaken. I like it. A very pretty name for a very pretty woman.”
Natalie’s smile was about to break her face, as Liam’s charm took its usual effect.
“Nat and I were roommates in college,” I told him.
He nodded and waved for the waitress. “What are we drinking?”
“Chablis,” Natalie told him, raising her glass. She wasn’t slurring her words yet, but I hoped she didn’t order another one.
Liam ordered another round for all of us before I could stop him.
“Natalie was wondering if I knew anybody who needed paralegal-type work done that she could do from home——you know, contracts and that sort of thing,” I told Liam.
Natalie leaned forward and speared another calamari ring.
I touched Liam’s arm. “Maybe you guys have a little work you could steer her way? Don’t you need some contract help sometimes?”
