“Of course she won’t mind. You’re her best friend. I've tried calling her, but she's not answering.”
"Okay, well, I have to run home first, so you go ahead and check with Heather. If it isn't okay or she’s made plans or anything, call or text me," Lisa said, walking with Tristan out to her car.
Heading home, Tristan thought about how enjoyable the day with Lisa had been. He had always liked her and was amazed that they had so much in common. They both enjoyed baseball, loved to play badminton and squash, and Lisa hated shopping, which Tristan found quite interesting in a woman.
Seeing Heather’s car in the driveway, he jumped out and walked towards the door.
"Hey, beautiful. Where are you?” he called out, throwing his keys on the table.
“In the kitchen,” Heather called out. “Just poured myself a glass of wine.”
“Where were you today? You didn’t answer any of my calls or texts,” Tristan said, going over and giving her a kiss on the cheek.
"I left my phone at home, and I was gone all day. Sorry hon,” Heather said. “I didn’t mean to worry you. How was your day?”
“Actually, really good. I was beside Lisa all day. She had a table there selling candles. I didn’t know she made candles.”
“Oh, that’s cool. Yeah, she started making them a few years back. So you had someone to talk to then? That’s good.”
“Yeah, and I invited her over for dinner. Is that okay? I tried to call.”
Relieved that she wouldn’t have to spend the evening alone with Tristan, Heather smiled. “That’s fine. I haven’t seen Lisa for a few days. That’s just great.”
“Perfect. She was a bit apprehensive, not wanting to intrude on us, but I said it would be fine,” Tristan said, pouring himself a glass of wine too. “How was your day?”
Heather looked at him and shrugged. “Kinda boring. I went to the gym and did a two-hour workout, then one of the girls and I went shopping and had lunch. After that, I stopped in to see my mother and ended up going back to the gym for a quick run on the treadmill,” Heather said, not quite sure why she was lying. “Came home and had a shower cause I didn’t want to have a shower at the gym, and here I am.”
“Sounds busy. You don’t mind if Lisa comes then? She told me to text if her you weren’t okay with it,” Tristan said, sitting down at the table.
"Perfectly okay," Heather said, smiled. It would be a welcome distraction, and chatting with Lisa would keep her mind off the kiss with Troy − something she couldn’t stop thinking about no matter how much she tried.
Chapter 7
It was Wednesday night, and Tristan had just gotten home from work. It had been a busy day for him, and he was exhausted. He wanted nothing more than to get home, have a beer, and cook dinner with Heather, then cuddle on the couch.
Hearing the front door open, he smiled to himself. He is always happy to see Heather at the end of the day.
“Guess who got a promotion!” Heather sang, bouncing excitedly into the kitchen.
“Really?” Tristan said, looking at her in surprise. “It finally came through?”
Heather nodded her head. “Yup, I found out this afternoon. I got a big bonus and a nice raise.”
"Oh, sweetheart, I’m so happy for you,” Tristan said, picking her up and spinning her around. “We’ll have to celebrate this weekend.”
“I’m not waiting for the weekend. I want to go out tonight. I’ve already made the arrangements. Dinner is on me.”
Tristan’s shoulders sagged. "I really don't feel like going out tonight, hon. Could we not celebrate another time?”
“Don’t be such a party pooper. I’ve made all the arrangements. I've invited Lisa, Chris, Jeff, Anna, and Pam, and I bumped into my trainer Troy and a few others from work. We are all meeting at Zorba’s at six.”
Sighing, Tristan realized how important this was to Heather. “Okay, let me go shower first. Maybe that will wake me up.”
After grabbing a quick shower, Tristan looked at himself in the mirror as he got dressed. As much as he didn’t feel like going out, he’d do it for Heather. After all, he was planning on popping the question to her soon, and he wanted to show his support for her career any way he could.
✽✽✽
Zorba’s was the only Greek restaurant in town and was known as the place to go when you had anything to celebrate.
Walking in, Lisa looked around to see if Heather and Tristan were there yet.
“Can I help you?” the waiter said as he approached her.
Smiling, Heather said, “yes. I’m part of the Master’s party.”
“Oh yes, please come right this way,” he said, walking ahead of Lisa but turning slightly to make sure she was following.
Heather had reserved a small party room away from the main dining area. Sitting at the table was a good-looking man with two rather athletic women beside him.
“Hi. I’m Lisa,” she said as she sat down on the opposite side of the table.
“Hi, Lisa. I’m Anna; this is Pam and Troy. Are you a friend of Heather’s?” one of the women asked.
Nodding as she glanced at Troy, Lisa said, “Yes. We’ve been friends for years. How do you know her?”
“I’m her personal trainer,” Troy said, picking up his beer and taking a swig.
"We met Heather at the gym," Pam said, pointing to her and Anna.
Lisa nodded as some of Heather’s colleagues came in.
Ordering herself a white wine, Lisa sat listening to the chatter as the other people made their introductions, surreptitiously glancing over at Troy. Heather had told her that her trainer was incredibly handsome and sexy, but Lisa was struggling to see what Heather saw in him. He was definitely handsome, but she thought he was too muscular, and as she listened to him talk, Lisa noticed that he thought quite highly of himself.
“Oh, you guys all made it,” Heather squealed as she and Tristan came into the room. Going around, Heather hugged and kissed everyone, then introduced Tristan and finally sat down beside Troy. There wasn't an empty seat beside Heather, and Lisa noticed Tristan looked a bit lost as he stood behind her chair.
"Come and sit beside me," Lisa said, pulling out the empty chair beside her.
“Thanks,” Tristan said, smiling at Lisa. “Have you been here long?”
"Long enough," Lisa said, sipping her wine. “To be honest, I was already in my PJs when Heather called. It was a long day.”
“I hear ya. I was ready to put my feet up when she came in,” Tristan said, pouring the beer he had ordered into a glass. "I'm happy for her, though. She deserves this, and she's worked hard."
Lisa smiled as she saw Heather blush when Troy whispered something into her ear. “What do you think about the trainer?”
“Troy?” Tristan said, looking in his direction. “He’s okay, I guess. Quite attractive, but Heather told me he's gay, so nothing to worry about there."
"Really?" Lisa said, biting her lower lip before picking up the menu to look it over. She had a lot of gay friends, and there was one thing for sure she knew about Troy, he was not gay.