I raised my hand to signal the waiter. He returned and collected my order, removing some of the empty plates from our table. Petra leaned forward, folding her arms in front of her. “So do you have a family?”
“We have to wait for the beer,” I sidestepped the question.
“I have one already.” She held up her glass. “Ask me a question.”
“Do you have a family?” I repeated her own question, already knowing the answer.
She took a sip, regarding me playfully over the top of the glass.
“Do you have any pets?” I asked.
She took a sip again.
“Did you ever have a one-night stand?” The question was out before I could stop it. I hadn’t wanted to veer into the sexual realm, but how could a drinking game remain PG? I began to reconsider my suggestion when the beer arrived.
Petra did not take a sip, and the lack of action was intriguing. I wanted to ask her a follow-up question or three, but she beat me to the punch. “My turn,” she said. “Do you have a family?”
I took a sip of foam off the top. The more questions we asked each other, the more intimate it became. What started out as a mistake in asking her about a one-night stand became the focal point of the exercise.
“Was your one-night stand in college?” I asked.
She took a sip.
“Was it in Paris?” I continued.
“My turn,” she neatly sidestepped the accusation. “Have you ever been married?”
I took a sip, licking my upper lip before repeating my original question. “Was your one-night stand in Paris?”
She looked down at her glass without making a move.
“So, it was in Paris. Was it with a Frenchman? Can you speak the language?”
“That’s two more questions,” she pointed out. “Do you like dogs?”
I wasn’t sure how to answer that. Gazing at my beer, I considered take a sip, but then decided against it. “I don’t dislike dogs. I don’t have one.”
“Okay.” She prepared herself by shuttling around in her seat. “Ask me one.”
“Was he French?”
She took a sip.
“I’m dying to know,” I said, allowing myself to get dragged down into the raunchiness of the activity.
“You’ll have to keep guessing,” she said. “My turn. Have you ever slept with anyone at the office?”
I grinned. We were on even footing now that she’d zoned in on illicit things I was doing while I was on the clock. I didn’t want to answer, but I knew she deserved the truth. Wrapping my hand around the base of the glass, I pretended as though I would take a sip. But at the last minute, I relaxed, releasing the tumbler and leaving it sitting alone on the table.
Petra gasped, covering her open mouth with her hand. “Now I have so many questions.”
We played the game for an entire hour, ordering two more drinks and getting tipsy. At the end of the activity, I knew that she had spent one night in Paris with a student from the same culinary arts school. They were both in town for the educational exchange and decided that a little bit of fun wouldn’t hurt. They never dated or hung out together afterward. The trip had come to an end shortly thereafter, and they both went their separate ways.
Petra found out that I’d had a fling with a girl from the accounting department when I worked for a large legal firm. We’d taken our clothes off in the supply closet and got busy once or twice without getting caught. It wasn’t something I wanted to advertise. There was enough of a stigma around politicians and sex that I didn’t want to contribute to. But for some reason, I felt comfortable opening up to Petra.
When the game came to an end, we both finished our beers in one deep gulp, racing to see who would be the first to complete the drink. I beat and slammed my glass down with more force than necessary. Petra was a close second, and she followed my lead, announcing her achievement by dropping the glass to the table with a dramatic thud.
She licked her lips, and I don’t know what came over me. Giddy from the alcohol and from the knowledge I had gained, I leaned forward to kiss her. It came as a surprise to me more than to her. She reacted without a modicum of embarrassment, leaning into the exchange as if she had been expecting it.