Page 46 of Triton

Aria whispered into my ear. “Wow, this place is so fancy. Reminds me of being in Europe.”

“I’ve been around the world, but never to Europe.” I flashed a grin her way. “I’d love to take you there someday, sweetheart.”

“I’d . . . likethat.”

The hostess took my name and led us to the dining room. Mr. Johnson, a distinguished looking man with gray hair, a white beard, and sea blue eyes stood up to greet us. He introduced us to his wife, his business partner, Mr. Bradshaw, and his partner’s wife. Then his eyes fell onAria.

“Mr. Johnson, I’d like you to meet Aria Clements.”

His kind eyes brightened when he saw her. “The Aria Clements? The Olympic Gold Medalist? What an honor to meetyou.”

He kissed her hand. “Thank you, sir. Thank you for inviting me. What a beautiful restaurant.”

Mr. Johnson winked at me, and I smiled back. He was definitely impressed with mydate.

We sat in a massive booth, and the waiter explained themenu.

The sommelier came by to go over the wine list, but we all decided to order the tasting menu with wine pairings.

I had prepared a long business spiel, but Mr. Johnson focused his attention onAria.

“So, Aria. Do you live in San Diego?”

She took a sip of her champagne. “No, I still live up in Marin. I’m the celebrity Mermaid fitness instructor at the Del. This is, unfortunately, my last weekendhere.”

Mr. Johnson shot a glance at me. “Now Erik, you aren’t going to let the mermaid swim away, areyou?”

I placed my arm around her. “No, sir. I’m doing everything I can to make herstay.”

Aria gave a forced smile, and I could feel her shift in herseat.

Mr. Johnson continued his line of questioning, clearly enamored with Aria. “Do you plan to compete in the next Olympics?”

“Honestly, I’m not sure. So many wonderful opportunities have been presented to me. The only thing I’m sure of is that I’m up for a new challenge.”

I eyed her hard. What did she mean bythat?

Our first course arrived—four Kumamoto oysters with uni, caviar, a champagne foam with a hint of lemon. They tasted like pure ocean bliss.

Over the next six courses, we only briefly discussed business. But once the wine started flowing, the topics of conversation mostly fell to my thoughts on ISIS, North Korea, and the boastful SEAL who bragged about killing Bin Laden.

One whiskey cocktail, one glass of champagne, and six glasses of wine later, and I was definitely buzzed.

Mr. Bradshaw swirled his wine glass. “So Erik, what do you think of the rumors that the Navy SEALs are going to allow the first woman to try BUD/S?”

I almost choked on the glass of water I was sipping. Great. This was the last conversation I wanted to have in front of Aria. “Well, we haven’t heard of anything in the pipeline yet.” I looked over at Aria, her face turning red. “But, I’ll be honest with you. No woman will make it through. And even if one could pass, she would ruin the cohesiveness of the Teams.”

Aria stood up. “Pardon me; I need to go to the ladies’ room.” She hurried toward the back of the restaurant, and my stomach dropped. I had pissed her off again. I just hoped she would forgive me and come back. But this was a business dinner. They were interested in hiring me because I was decisive and had convictions. I always said what I thought, even if it wasn’t politically correct.

Mr. Johnson leaned over to me. “Son, you really impressed me tonight. For such a young man, you are very well spoken and intelligent. Mr. Bradshaw and I are also, wise but we find that our younger employees need someone that is more relatable. We would love to hire you to conduct a week-long training program for our employees.”

Yes! I wanted to scream with elation as the warmth and pride radiated through my body. “Thank you, sir. I have some leave coming up next month. I’d be honored. This means a lot to me. I won’t let youdown.”

“I know you won’t. One more thing,” he leaned in close, “don’t let a woman like that get away. If you are as smart as I think you are, you’ll marryher.”