The Experiment

My husband and I had a dinner date with a couple friend of ours planned for friday evening. Our friends live in the same part of town as A and his family and as it turns out, had made reservations at this cozy little italian place very close to A's house. I know enough about A's habits and schedule to know for a fact that he takes his family out to dinner every friday night. As I got ready for the evening, I purposely glammed up a little more than I normally would for a dinner with friends. I curled my long and otherwise pin straight hair into flowy waves and pinned one side up so that it wouldn't fall on my face. I applied a little more makeup than I do normally and I wore the jeans that A loves to see on me with my prettiest and most romantic top which is all lacy at the back. 

I grabbed my husband's hand as I stepped inside the bustling restaurant. The place was packed with families, couples and groups, it was busy, noisy and as I scanned the room looking for our friends, my eyes locked with A's. He was sitting at a booth near the back and he had positioned himself so that he was facing the door. We quickly found our friends and as I was hugging them hello, I could feel A watching me. I sat down and exchanged pleasantries with our friends but my mind was focused on the fact that A was in the same room and that we were seeing one another in our ''real lives''. 

At one point, my friend and I wanted to discuss something without our husbands hearing and so we made our way to the bathroom together. As I walked past A's table, we locked eyes again for a brief moment. There were six people at his table, one of which I recognized right away as his brother because of the resemblance. Although I was curious to see his wife and wanted to know what she looked like, how she dressed and how she carried herself, I couldn't see anything but A. He looked so handsome underneath the warm lighting of the restaurant, he was smiling and making faces at the children sitting with him. As we stepped out of the ladies room, A was just entering the men's bathroom and we crossed each other in the hallway. I was laughing at something that my friend said and he didn't look at me but I know that he got up only to be close to me. Although we were in the same room, pretending not to know one another, I felt so connected to him. The situation was twisted and slightly perverse but it was also exciting. I felt like I had a naughty secret that only he knew about. 

We moved our chairs around during dinner and towards the end of the evening, I was sitting next to my friend and her husband facing the hallway that A walked down as his family and him were leaving the restaurant. Our eyes locked once more as he walked out. 

When I got home, in my inbox sat an email from A that read: ''You look positively stunning''