With a surge of confidence from her actions, I
said, "Thanks, I needed that." I squeezed her
shoulders in close to me. She smiled. Fantastic. Maybe I need to
relax, keep my thoughts in the present, not concentrating so
much upon the past or future. My thoughts were graced with a
tingle up my spine and I knew it was the right thing to do.
We pulled up to the Palace, probably the most
chic and ostentatious place in Austin. Just the drive up into
the long circular driveway, around the flowing fountains, past
the Rolls and Lamborginis to get to valet parking, was an
experience for most. If you weren't a state legislator or
senator, you normally would have to wait a week to get a
reservation. Luck must have been on my side or I wouldn't have
succeeded with such little notice.
We approached the uniformed doorman and
exchanged good evenings. He opened the doors as if he were
presenting royalty. When we entered, I understood why. The
restaurant was extremely elegant. Huge windows overlooked the
lake; grand crystal chandeliers hung from the ceiling; each
table sported a complete service of fine china and crystal
glasses in place. All were covered with starched white linen
tablecloths, adorned with a different colorful floral
centerpiece, and came complete with a smiling waiter in a
tuxedo, attached.
A large flowing fountain centered it all, and
beyond, the rear windows overlooked the valley with a grandiose
view of the lake and the city in the distance. A string quartet
was softly playing chamber music in the corner. The scent of the
flowers filled the whole restaurant. Our arrangement,
coincidentally, was a bouquet of four dozen red roses.
"Oh, James, isn't this just beautiful?"
Gina said as the maitre d' showed us to our table. We did,
indeed, have one of the best tables with a beautiful view of the
city.
"I had heard so many good things about this place, but it’s
more elegant than I ever imagined. Thank you again for bringing
me," Gina said.
We then exchanged some more small talk
concerning the ambiance of the restaurant. I was almost afraid
that we'd run out of conversation, but the waiter was soon there
and I took the privilege of ordering the wine. Gina was somewhat
impressed by my expertise. Fortunately, I had prepared myself
for just such an occasion, years ago, by attending an adult
education class on fine wine tasting. But I had almost never
used the knowledge that I had gained from it and up until that
moment thought that it was a waste of sixty bucks. The nearest
to ordering a fine wine for me was a trip to the Ale House to
pick from the ninety-eight different varieties of beer. At the
time I took the class I hoped to meet someone like Gina. Who
would have thought that it would have taken this long to have
the opportunity to order a decent bottle of wine?
