La Belle Etrangère [beautiful stranger].
Jonas liked the name of the restaurant Sierra took him to. The decor reminded the man of old bistros in thirties movies.
"Bonsoir."
"Bonsoir, une table pour deux s'il vous plait." [ good evening, a table for two please].
Jonas's eyes wandered about and settled when they sat. The waiter brought and talked them through the menu before giving them a few minutes to choose.
"It's pretty quiet."
"Yeah, it wasn't the last time I came," Sierra replied while she threw a glance around the room where only two other couples sat.
"When was that?"
Sierra returned her focus to Jonas, "a year ago."
Jonas nodded.
The woman could have taken him anywhere; Jonas was glad to have a one-to-one with her.
Jacob's words came to mind. Sierra was a nice person, and she was going to show to what extent, "so what will you have?"
"I'll have a gratin Dauphinois and a boeuf bourguignon."
"Aren't you vegan?"
"I said I preferred fish. I didn't say I was vegan. I don't eat fish in restaurants; it can be a risky enterprise if the fish isn't fresh."
Sierra nodded, agreeing to the statement.
"What will you have?"
"A fondue."
"Okay."
They both ordered the time had finally come for Jonas to dig for information, "how was work?"
"Good."
"Have you always wanted to sell cars?"
"Well, it wasn't my dream. I kind of fell into it. Cars, clothes, oranges, the product doesn't matter. What I like is the sales process, creating the mood, making people dream and desire."
"So you swindle?"
"No, people want to buy. I just show them the possibilities."
"You give them opportunities to pollute."
"Hey, Mr. Greenpeace, it's work."
Jonas realized he went in the wrong direction. He made a U-turn, "how long have you been working there?"
"Four years, what do you do?"
Sierra did not know Jonas' profession, and the man found himself wishing for the woman to be more curious.
"I'm an architect."
"You design buildings."
"Buildings, interiors, furniture, sculptures, etc. I prefer to say I'm creative."
At this moment, the waiter arrived with their dishes.
"Merci," Jonas said.
The waiter smiled and left.
"Where did you learn French?"
Jonas spoke with Sierra in English, but he expressed himself well when outside.
"I did an Erasmus; that's when I briefly met Cecile."
Jonas remembered the girl who climbed into his dorm room thinking he was Thomas Fribourg, the campus dealer. Shy Jonas almost died to see Cecile crawl into his room like Sadako in the Grunge hair dripping with the winter rain. She ended up spending the night, and the next day she left while the man slept. Jonas told Sierra, who laughed.
YOU ARE READING
SIERRA'S LEONE
ChickLitSierra becomes the mom of six months old Leone, her deceased best friend's son. The baby's grandparents want his custody and conspire. Who else has more rights than Leone's father, but Mr. Potsmann has a plan of his own. Sierra finds herself whiske...
