The benefits of being rich and good looking are plentiful and obvious, there is no sense in rehashing them. But we are going to anyway. These benefits have allowed Theo to enjoy a very prosperous sex life, one that has seen sleep with hundreds of women, and in all that time Theo never had any desire, never had a single thought about settling down. Ever. Monogamy was not in Theo’s vocabulary. And then Theo stepped into Aces and Eights and it all changed.

Last night was the most wonderful and fun night that Theo has ever spent with a women and it didn’t begin, or end with sex. In fact, there wasn’t even any kissing or foreplay of any kind. There was just talking, and laughing, and some drinking, but not a lot. And there really didn’t need to be. People drink to either bury awkwardness or lower inhibitions. Last night wasn’t about that, and Theo couldn’t be any happier. He also couldn’t be any more confused. 30 years of thinking one way had all come crashing down in one moment and now he is left to pick up the pieces of his confused psyche.

At about 4am, the young blonde woman, who was a Senior at Arizona State, and double majoring in Applied Physics and Chemistry and moved to the area 4 years ago from New York to enroll at ASU had decided that she needed to get back to her off campus apartment. She did have class at 8am after all. Theo insisted that he be allowed to walk her back to her place, and he wouldn’t take no for an answer. After a few protests from the clearly independent woman, she acquiesced to Theo’s persistency. At about 4:45 am Theo returned to Pryce Towers, got into bed, slept for approximately two hours and then got up, showered and dressed with time to spare so that he could make a previously scheduled 8am meeting in his office with his sister Erica.

Theo is now at his desk reading over a briefing that his sister put together as a precursor to the mornings meeting. In his right hand is a cup of coffee that Theo’s new P.A, Isabel Jacobs had waiting on Theo’s desk as he stepped into the office. What a fantastic hire she was turning out to be. And while Theo admittedly hired her for her looks as well as her ability to do the job, it was her ability to do the job that was setting her apart from the Jimmy Durance’s of the world.

At approximately 8:04, Erica walked into the office, imagine that, walked, instead of burst into, Theo’s office and rather than a sheepish grin or a pissed off look, Erica actually seemed happy. Maybe it was because things with her boyfriend were finally starting to settle back down, or maybe it was because Theo had really stepped up to the plate over the last few weeks and taken the reigns back of a place that he had almost lost.


“Good morning Erica. You seem rather spritely this morning. Everything going ok for you?”

“Yes it is thanks for asking..”

"Absolutely."

“And how about you, did you have a good night?”

“The best.”

“Really? Care to tell me about it?”

“Absolutely. Have a seat. Would you like me to have Isabel get you some coffee, perhaps some pastry?”

“No I’m good thanks. I had a cup on my way in this morning. So tell me about your night.”

“Well, I went down to the Aces and Eights, just to get a drink…”

“The college bar?”

“Well it’s not exclusively a college bar…”

“No but it is generally filled with college kids right?”

“So I am told. Anyway, do you want to hear about my night or would you rather ask me a bunch of questions instead?”

“You’re right. Sorry. Go on.”

“So I went to the bar, just to get a drink, just one drink and then maybe walk around downtown a bit, it was a nice night out and I just wanted to do something different for a change. Unfortunately, or fortunately depending on how you want to look at it, that didn’t happen.”

“So what did happen?”

“Well I got there, ordered a drink and was kind of just looking around, checking out the crowd, people watching, you know. Anyway there was this woman there, absolutely gorgeous and she looked completely miserable. Like someone had just drowned her family pet right in front of her. So I approached her, asked her to buy her a drink. Her wannabe bodyguards, presumably 4 ASU football players tried to make it into a thing. Thankfully it didn’t become one. Anyway, we left the bar and I brought her back here.”

“Here?”

“Yes here.”

“You brought a girl you picked up at the bar back to your office? How romantic.”

“No Erica, I didn’t bring her to the office, I took her up to my place upstairs.”

“Oh right, that place. The place I still haven’t seen yet and can’t verify it’s actual existence, that place?”

“Yes, that’s the one. Look if it’s really that big of a deal I can take you up there later and show it to you. Will that make you feel better?”

“It might. So you met a girl at the bar, took her back to your place and slept with her. Sounds like par for the course with you.”

“That’s just it. We didn’t sleep together. In fact the extent of our physicality was holding hands for a few minutes as I brought her up to my place.”

“What? You’re joking.”

“I’m not.”

“You spent the night with a woman and didn’t sleep with her?”

“Why are you so amazed by that?”

“Well it’s not your general M.O. that’s why.”

“Ok that’s fair I suppose but no there was no sex, no kissing nothing.”

“Well then what the hell did you two do? Knit?”

“What? No. We talked.”

“You talked? You spent hours chatting with a woman and it didn’t lead to sex? Is everything ok down there?”

“Ignoring your condescending tone for a minute, you are correct, we just talked.”

“About what?”

“Everything. Her upbringing, what lead her to Arizona, how she liked college…”

“Wait…she’s a college kid?”

“She’s 22, so she’s not really a kid.”

“But she’s in college?”

“She graduates in May.”

“So she is still in college then. Don’t you think a college kid is a bit young for you? You just turned 30, and she’s 22. That’s 8 years.”

“Yes Erica, I can do simple subtraction. Yes, she’s a little younger than me but so what?”

“I suppose you are going to say that “age is just a number right”?”

“Hardly. But it is you know.”

“It is what?”

“Just a number. Look she may be 22, and yes, she’s still a college student, for a few months but if you were in the room with her for 15 minutes you would never believe it. She seems so well educated, so versed in what is going on in the world around her, unlike just about everyone else from her generation. I’m serious Erica. She’s like any other woman I’ve ever met.”

“So you say. So, you met at a bar, you talked for several hours but nothing ever progressed past talking, how did she get home?”

“I walked her home.”

“And they say chivalry is dead. So when are you going to see this woman that has stolen your heart?”

“Tonight. I am picking her up and taking her to that Italian place in the Valley.”

“Sorrentos?”

“That’s the one.”

“Great place. Have you ever been there before?”

“No, this will be a first, but the reviews have all been good.”

“You will like it. Try their Veal Saltimbocca. And their Prosecco is fantastic.”

“Good to know.”

“One last question, what is this girls name? I assume you guys got to that during your marathon sharing session.”

“Lila. Lila Laroque.”


To be continued.