My Ex is My New Boss

Part 6

I found myself sitting at the bar, sipping an apple martini.

The bar where Paula worked, was pretty close to our apartment and was already quite full.
I loved the place in the early hours of the evening, before it started to get too crowded and noisy. The best music was played then.

Paula was at the bar, Juggling between gracefully serving drinks and flirting with male customers.
Her light purple hair was standing out against her black skimpy outfit and fair skin.

I, too, was wearing a black top, whose neckline was more open than I would have liked, but was relatively simple and paired with my favorite pair of jeans, radiated the effortlessness I was hoping for.

My hair was pulled back in a high ponytail, and my hazel eyes were very lightly made up.

I did not want him to have even a shred of thought, that I was trying to look good for him.

Paula signaled me to come closer, she wanted to tell me something

"I decided that you have to hook up with someone tonight, after your boss goes home! There are a lot of cute guys tonight..
you probably have spider webs down there by now! how long has it been since you had sex?" She screamed in my ear in a decisive voice.

"Paula!!" I scolded her with an embarrassed laugh, trying to check if anyone around had heard her.

But she was probably right, it's been too long since I dated anyone.
I discovered that one night stands were definitely not for me.

I did it once, the night after I got my divorce papers, at the very young age of twenty-two, and I deeply regretted it the next morning.

I guess I tried to prove something to myself, but failed miserably, I did not enjoy it at all, we were both drunk and I just wanted the guy to disappear from my sight, as soon as possible.

"Hi Dani, how are you? Long time no see, you've not been here lately, I missed you!"
Alberto, the bar owner, and Paula's boss, happily approached me. He was wearing a sleeveless tank top, designed to emphasize the inflated muscles of his arms.

"Nice to see you Beto, I've been busy with work lately .." I said, while we greeted each other with a kiss on each cheek.

He scanned me appreciatively, "Looking good Baby! What are you drinking?
Paula, another martini for Dani!" He shouted.

Alberto has been trying to hit on me, ever since Paula started working at his bar.
He was a pretty nice guy, but since his favorite topic of conversation was his muscle development program, it kind of put me off.

"Thanks, no need, I still haven't finished my first drink.." I protested.

Alberto placed his knotted hand on my shoulder
"So Dani, what have you been up to? Are you alone tonight?"

"Daniela!" There was a deep, familiar voice from behind me.
I turned around to see Andres towering over me, wearing the same black suit, he had worn earlier in the office.

He examined Alberto and me with a hard look in his eyes.

"Sorry for being late, I was delayed at work" his words were casual, but his voice sounded irritated.

Alberto tried to give him a condescending look, but the power and energy radiated by Andres, was stronger.

"It's okay. Order yourself a drink and we'll go sit at a table" I said to Andres, looking at him questioningly. I have never appreciated such demonstrations of masculinity.

Paula approached us again and I almost burst out laughing, seeing the look on her face. Her eyes looked like they were coming out of their sockets...She examined Andres in complete surprise,

Then she said with an appreciative smile "Are you Dani's new boss ?! I'm Paula, her roommate and friend, what can I get you, honey?"

"Nice to meet you, Paula. Scotch whiskey on the rocks, please" Andres' hard expression softened and he grinned at the sight of the funny facial expression Paula made.

"Coming up!" She said excitedly, flashing a particularly wide smile at him, her brown eyes sparkle.

This time it was my turn to grim in annyness, Paula had just joined, in the blink of an eye, Andres' drooling army of fans.

"Okay, I totally get it!"  Paula whispered to me, as she placed our drinks on the bar.

Then we took our drinks and sat down at a corner table, that was relatively secluded.

Andres was sitting with his back to the bar, so I glanced in Paula's direction. Her lips said to me soundlessly: 'OMG! He's hot AF!' accompanied by matching hand gestures.

I returned my gaze back to Andres and we looked at each other in silence for a few moments, as we drank our drinks.
I, because of the anger mixed with awkwardness I felt, while Andres seemed to be trying to find the right words.

"Look Daniela, Like I said, I asked you to meet with me now, because I'm going to be out of the country for the next few days, maybe longer.
I don't want you to do something drastic while I'm gone, like quitting your job".

I sipped my drink in silence, my mind still trying to digest the fact that he was actually here, sitting in front of me, at my neighborhood bar.

"I really think we can work together" He continued with his confident voice, "We are both adults and it's time to put the past behind us"

"Maybe it's easy for you to do that..but not for me. It's still hard for me to look at your face, let alone work under you!" I said, my expression angry.
He decided I should ignore everything that had happened in the past, just because it was convenient for him!

"I understand you're still mad at me and you have a right, but I explained to you that I had my reasons for doing what I did, I didn't want to hurt you. Too bad you still insist on not seeing it!"

"Andres, you have taken advantage of me! You have taken advantage of an innocent twenty-one-year-old girl for your business needs, you have turned my feelings towards you into a tool for achieving your goals.
Am I supposed to forget this and stay working for the company you just bought, like nothing happened?!" My tone of voice rose and my eyes flickered at him angrily.

He took a deep breath, his expression annoyed and unsatisfied.
I was well acquainted with this mood of his, things did not go as he wanted and he did not like it.
Andres Moreno was a man who was used to getting what he wanted.

"I need a smoke. I'm going out for a moment, with your permission".

"Are you back to smoking? Don't you know how harmful this shit is ?!" I could not resist commenting.

"Yes, unfortunately. It helps me relax from .. things .."

He looked into my eyes for a second with a penetrating look, and then took out a box of cigarettes and a lighter from his pocket, and walked towards the exit door.

Obviously, he attracted looks from all over the place, especially of the female sex.

Despite the relatively large amount of cute and handsome guys around, a man like Andres received attention on a different scale.
He had a kind of magnetizing and self-assured aura, that made him attract attention wherever he was.

.