David* – Lawyer

Sometimes life throws you curveballs. Most of the time it feels like they’re bad but every so often, they are good. Life throws the unexpected at you. 

I had this recently. 

Life threw the very unexpected at me. 

A few of us from work were sat at a hotel bar having a drink. I noticed a group of guys who looked out of place at another table. We joked about why they were here. Possibly a stag do; more than likely work. I decided to ask them. 

I have no idea where this new found confidence came from! It took me a few ‘almost get up and then sit back downs’ before I dug deep and walked over. Butterflies in my stomach (because they were hot) and my sweetest smile. 

“Sorry to disturb you but my friends and I are trying to figure out why you guys are here. Can you put me out of my misery?” 

They all looked at me. Jesus they really are hot. Looking around at each other, they just laughed before the one sat down right next to where I was currently standing looked up at me and said “why don’t you join us and we can tell you?”

David*.

He had these eyes I could drown in (all the cliches) and a warm smile. I looked around for an empty seat and found one at the other end of the table. 

So, I sat down. 

Your girl strutted round the table with an air of confidence I don’t think I’ve ever had before. Inside I was shaking with nerves. That was it. Conversation was easy.

It flowed.

These guys were funny, intelligent, easy to talk to and… American. 

I kept looking over at David and he was looking at me. Many stolen glances while I was laughing and chatting with his friends. A few of them called David the mean one. I knew they were joking. 

They were here for work. 

Every so often David would get up and sit in the seat next to me. We would talk for a bit. Then he’d get up and walk over to the table behind us to chat to the people there; my colleagues. 

His friend who was sat next to me at the table said “he’s jealous. He’s jealous that we are talking to you and he’s not”. 

I figured he wasn’t interested. 

But as the evening went on, he made it clear that he was interested. He kept wanting to talk to me and at one point asked if I wanted to go to the bar with him inside so we were away from his friends. 

Whilst standing at the bar I looked up at him and he smiled. He had a little sparkle in his eyes which meant one thing. He leaned down and kissed me. 

In that moment I decided I wanted to spend the night with him. So I took him back to the hotel. Even if it meant we just had one night together. 

I didn’t care. 

One night. 

But it didn’t end up being just one night. 

Before we fell asleep I told him “if you plan on sneaking out in the morning, please can you just wake me up and say goodbye”. I am nothing if not honest. 

David laughed and told me he wasn’t sneaking out. He wrapped his arms around me and pulled me closer while we both fell asleep. 

I closed my eyes thinking I’d never see him again. 

But, sure enough, when I woke up, I could hear him breathing and felt his warm skin next to me. I lay there for a few minutes just looking at him and I couldn’t help but smile; his body heat radiating across the sheets.

After dozing for an hour or so, I opened my eyes to see him smiling at me. We spent hours just lying there, tangled in the bedsheets and each others’ arms, talking and laughing. 

We talked about everything. 

It was a morning like no other. (Yes, yes, this sounds very poetic and beautiful and the truth is, I’ve definitely had mornings like this with my ex but still). 

Then the hangover hit for both of us. At midday we needed the Holy Trinity of hangover cures; water, coffee and Bloody Marys. 

While brushing our teeth next to each other in my bathroom he looked at me in the mirror and said “is this a bit coupley?” I just laughed because it didn’t seem like a big deal to me. But he was serious. 

We sat downstairs at the hotel coffee shop and had all three drinks to cure the hangover while we continued chatting and getting to know each other from cover to cover. A few of my friends spotted us and I felt a little embarrassed that it was obvious he’d stayed the night.

But David didn’t care. 

He introduced himself. He wasn’t embarrassed. I think he could hear my heart pounding in my chest because he took the lead and just told them he’d popped over this morning so we could have coffee together. I wasn’t ashamed of it but let’s all be honest, society does still want women to feel ashamed of this! The internalised misogyny was still telling me to feel ashamed of myself. 

David chatted to my friends and spent time getting to know them. They were so interested in his work but he didn’t mind talking about it. He’s a lawyer. 

Anyway, after a few more hours of talking and laughing, we decided to go next door to his hotel for a pool party. We went upstairs and I put a few bits in my bag for the day. 

David looked at me and said “why don’t you put your toothbrush in there too? You know, just in case.” 

So I did. You know, just in case. 

We spent the afternoon by the pool with more laughs and conversation. He kept finding excuses to touch my hand or come over and kiss me. His friends started to join us and later, we all agreed to go for dinner together. 

After dinner, I did stay at his. We had another amazing night. More laughter and more conversation. 

It just sort of… clicked. 

The next morning we talked a lot more. We had coffee together and he kept kissing me and asking me about my life. Every time he looked at me he had the biggest smile on his face. I’d look up and see his face just grinning at me. He lit up whenever he looked me in the eye. 

David asked for my number. 

I hesitated. 

Realistically, I knew what this was. It was a perfect weekend with a perfect stranger. He lives in America and I live in the UK. With my job, the World feels much smaller and it’s possible, but I just knew it would be difficult. 

I told him my concerns and he optimistically replied that we’d figure it out. So, I wrote my number on a post it note on his desk. If he wanted to message me, he could. 

He dropped me back at my hotel and we said goodbye. David just kept saying he hoped my flight home would be cancelled and I could stay. He didn’t want me to leave. 

But my flight home wasn’t cancelled.

I had to leave. 

Just before I went to the airport…

He texted me.