Date Night on Union Station Read Online Free PDF Page B

was looking for a woman with very long black hair and black fingernails with gold stripes. Since he hadn’t gotten around to checking with Eemas about the process for resetting the subscription, Joe was curious to see what kind of woman the service had picked out for the former owner of the suit.
    Wading through the tightly packed tables, Joe focused on the gold striped black fingernails angle, as many of the female patrons favored long black hair. Finally he spotted a tall, imperious looking woman with an elaborate ponytail as long as his arm and a sleeveless top made out of gold metallic mesh that extended right up her neck to the underside of her jaw. She was standing in the entrance of a private cubby off to one side of the service counter, and after making eye contact, she entered it without waiting for him to approach. For some odd reason, his brief glimpse of the gold stripes on her long black fingernails reminded him of the warning coloration sported by some poisonous creatures on Earth.
    “Hi, I’m Joe,” he said and mustered his best smile as he entered the private cubby. “Sorry if I’m a bit late, got held up in the Little Apple.”
    His date fixed him with a cold glare as he pulled out a chair and sat down across from her at the tiny round table. This wasn’t going well at all. “Oh, here, I brought you these,” he added, extending the bouquet as a peace offering.
    “How sweet of you,” she purred, taking the flowers. “I am the Lady Talia.” As soon as she found her grip on the foil wrapped around the stems, she leaned across the table and lightly slapped him across the face with the blooms. The rose petals mainly held together, though he got one stuck in his teeth, which might teach him not to open his mouth in surprise.
    “What the hell!” Joe exploded.
    “I don’t like it when a man isn’t on time, Joe,” she answered, pronouncing his name with undisguised disdain, as if it didn’t come up to her standard of sophistication.
    “I said I was sorry. I hope you don’t let this spoil the evening,” he replied after a short staring contest, during which he didn’t like what he saw. “Why don’t we order something? I know I’d feel better with some food in my stomach.”
    “I ordered for us already, Joe. I’m sure that was your intention in any case,” she added with a cold little chuckle.
    “Am I missing something here?” Joe asked, not sure if he was more annoyed with Lady Talia, the Eemas service, or the former owner of the subscription who he was beginning to realize may have had some quirks.
    “Let’s get right to the point, Joe. You tell me why I should accept a badly dressed man who doesn’t arrive on time into my harem,” she replied, tapping the long black nails of her free hand on the tabletop. “I’m waiting.”
    “Look, you’ve got this all wrong,” Joe protested. “You see, I got this suit and the dating subscription in a trade with a guy for a fuel pack, and I didn’t get around to informing Eemas of the change.” Then he laughed and broke into the wide, open smile that had cracked the defenses of more than one woman in the old days. “It’s kind of funny when you think about it. I mean, we’ll both have a good story.”
    “Joe, Joe, Joe,” she drawled slowly, as if she was trying to provoke him. “You don’t expect me to believe that hogwash. I could see from the moment you entered the restaurant that you crave a strong hand on the reins. I could see it in the way you crossed the floor, and how you squirm about on your seat like you’re afraid somebody will touch you. And I will touch you, Joe, but only when I choose to do so.”
    “Now, just set that shuttle down, lady, I mean, Lady Talia. I don’t like sitting with my back to a roomful of people, that’s just common sense, and I can order my own damn food if it’s all the same to you.”
    “You’re fighting me, Joe,” she reprimanded him, but the corners of her mouth turned up and her eyes