Seated at a polished oak table with George and the tech team, Maddy gazed through the glass walls of the conference room, out to the wide-open workplace. Strings of colored lights hung from the ceiling and wrapped floor lamps, transforming them into modern sculptural Christmas trees.
Young techies wearing earbuds and makeshift Santa hats sat cross-legged on colorful velour couches, laptops open, fingers blazing away at their keyboards. The environment bore no resemblance to any workspace Maddy had ever seen. Kendall Pitman would strongly disapprove of the profusion of sweatpants, hoodies, t-shirts, sneakers, jeans, and shorts.
In the conference room, the team manager, Jiang, wrapped up the meeting. "Harnessing available digital technologies to Davenport's legacy assets is challenging. But let me assure you, we are making progress. I'm glad we have you, Ms. Taylor, on the user interface side."
"Digital integration," Maddy replied, packing up her laptop. "That's what I do."
"So, we'll see you in a few weeks." George pushed his chair back. "We'll see ourselves out." He followed Maddy out of the conference room, past a pool table to the elevators.
Given the fact that she had contributed absolutely nothing to the meeting, Maddy was convinced that the only reason George brought her along was that he preferred not to travel alone.
The elevator door opened inviting them into the car. "So?" George said, pressing the Lobby button. "What language were they speaking in there?"
"I think it was C++," Maddy replied. "I warned you. Ninety percent of what the tech team said went way over my head."
"You could have fooled me."
"I got my Masters in nodding and smiling." They rode the elevator to the ground floor.
Crossing the lobby toward the front door, George said, "You feel like doing a little more sightseeing?"
"I think I can squeeze that into my busy schedule."
"Awesome." He called an Uber. "How are you at climbing stairs?"
"Been doing it since I was a toddler."
"I'm talking about a lot of stairs."
"Define a lot."
"About four hundred to get to Coit Tower."
"But what about your knee injury?"
"You're not going to use a flimsy excuse like that to get out of stair climbing, are you?"
There was no way Maddy was backing down from this challenge. The daily workout regimen on her apartment building's grueling eight flights of stairs had prepared her for this event.
"400 stairs," she said with conviction. "Bring 'em on!"
As the compact Uber stopped at the curb, she enjoyed a self-congratulatory grin. "Sensible shoes," she thought. "I was right! I was right! I was right!"
They squeezed into the back seat, his thigh pressed right up against hers. "If you're uncomfortable sitting this close," he said.
"Fine with me." She smiled, hoping he didn't feel her trembling against his firm leg. In close proximity inside the small car, she inhaled his scent. Self-conscious and fearful that he might detect her arousal, she turned away, looking out the window, enjoying the contact of his body. Suddenly, his chin was on her shoulder, his face nearly brushing hers.
He tapped on the window. "See that? That's the Good Vibrations Antique Vibrator Museum." He laughed. "Maybe you've heard of it."
She cleared her throat. "Guess I live a sheltered life."
Twenty minutes later, the Uber made its way up Telegraph Hill and stopped at the base of the Filbert Street steps. Maddy got out of the car then tilted her head back, trying to get a view of the summit. "That's a lot of steps," she said.
"On the way to the top, you'll see the famous wild parrots of Telegraph Hill." He loosened his tie. "You're not afraid of parrots are you?"
"Not exactly Jumanji, is it?"
With a sweeping gesture of his arm, he said, "After you."
They began their climb.
The further up the steps they ascended, the greater the variety of plant life surrounding the staircase. Maddy marveled at the grape hyacinth and iris, the hills carpeted with a thick lush plant called baby's tears. Wisteria climbed the walls of nearby homes and Fuschia grew everywhere. Yellow, white, and pink angel's trumpet blossoms bobbed in the breeze.
Maddy noticed that George carried his folded suit jacket over his arm and was cuffing up his sleeves.
"Do you need me to call a medic?" she asked.
George cracked his crooked smile, enjoying her competitiveness. A little out of breath, he said, "Look at that view."
When she turned, her eyes widened at the sight of the bay and the Bay Bridge stretching out below them. Before she had a chance to take it all in, a colorful streak flew by, startling her. She followed it with her eyes to a tree where a few wild parrots perched, cackling loudly. It was almost too much to process.
"They're beautiful," she said with a gasp.
A curious parrot swooped from a branch and landed on the handrail, not three feet away from her.
"You are a pretty boy," she said, extending her hand. The parrot hopped from its perch, landed on her finger for a moment, then flew back into the foliage.
"Wow," said George. "They usually keep their distance from people."
"Usually." Maddy smiled. "Parrots might be my spirit animal."
It took them another thirty minutes to reach the top of the stairs and make their way inside Coit Tower. They rode the elevator up to the observation deck. Getting out of the car, George took Maddy by the arm, escorting her out onto the balcony. "Behold! A 360-degree view of the San Francisco Bay and five surrounding counties."
The morning fog had burned off and the clear skies afforded a spectacular view.
"Look," George said. "You can see Lombard Street from here, the crookedest street in the world."
"I recognize it from movies," she said, watching cars very slowly navigate the eight hairpin turns.
When they left Coit Tower, they traveled to the Presidio for a view of the Golden Gate Bridge, then to Fisherman's Wharf, the Embarcadero, finally ending in Chinatown.
Browsing through a gift shop, Maddy's eyes were drawn to a small wooden sculpture of a wild parrot. The craftsmanship was as remarkable as the detail. She glanced at the sticker on the base.
"Fifteen hundred dollars!" she gasped. The red-alert alarm in her head blared, "Put it back!"
In one sudden motion, she spun on her heels, lunging for the display case. In the process of returning the parrot statuette to the shelf, she knocked over several other pieces, scattering them on the floor. Luckily, nothing had broken.
As she gathered up the fallen trinkets, George knelt beside her. "You okay?"
"I hate that you had to see that," she said, setting the little sculptures back in place. "Probably a blood sugar thing."
"Has all the sightseeing made you hungry?" George asked.
"Dangerously hungry," she replied.
"I know this awesome wine bar not far from here."
"Wine bar?"
"When you're in Norway, drink vodka. When you're in Kentucky, drink bourbon. When you're in northern California, drink wine." He winked.
She grinned. "When you're in Wisconsin, drink milk."
His smile wilted. "Something like that."
"Sounded better in my head."
.......
As the sun settled over the bay, they finished their dinners. The second glass of wine had settled Maddy's nerves. She sighed, dabbing her lips with a napkin. "Those were the best fish tacos I've ever eaten."
"We burned a lot of calories this afternoon."
"Yeah, I guess we did."
"That was a fun day," he said. "Best day I've had in a long time."
She nodded. "Me, too."
"You're a lot of fun."
Caught off guard she said, "You, too." She finished her wine.
"Another glass?" he asked.
"No. I probably shouldn't."
"Because?"
"Just. I don't know. I have some work to do when I get back to the room."
"That's a pity. Don't tell your boss we were out on an all-day date."
"Date?" Her eyes widened.
"We'll call it a team-building exercise if it makes her feel any better."
"Uh, sure."
"It didn't feel like work to me." He sipped his wine.
........
When the Uber dropped them off at the hotel, they entered the lobby. The glow of white lights on the Christmas trees and the red velvet ribbons on the walls reminded Maddy that it was the holiday season.
They made their way to the elevator. George pressed the button marked 24. "I'm on the same floor," he said.
"It's such an awesome room, I mean suite," Maddy said. "It's a shame to only have it for one day. And I wasn't even here to enjoy it."
"If you'd have rather stayed here than seeing the city--"
"No, no. That's not what I meant."
When the elevator door opened, George walked Maddy to her room. There were no other guests in the corridor.
"Thanks again for bringing me along on this trip," she said with a schoolgirl grin on her blushing face.
He stepped closer. "I needed someone from our digital integration team to... integrate."
"Digitally," she said.
She could feel the sexual tension building. There was an uncomfortable pause before... George kissed her. When they separated, he looked gently into her eyes. "Good night."
She slipped into her suite, her knees shaking as she nearly collapsed against the door, the taste of George still on her lips.
"What a weird day," she sighed.