On the drive home, her mind was flying in all directions. He was a client…. she had an obligation to him as such. He was married, albeit separated. Did she need to get involved with a married man? His touch……… oh, how it had thrilled her…… his lips on hers, gentle and non-insistent…. It was all she could do not to throw herself at him. Could she mix business with pleasure? She laughed as she rolled to a stop at a red light, putting her forehead on the steering wheel and squeezing her eyes tightly closed. Well, if the choices are EITHER/OR, pleasure was gonna win and the bills be damned!
A week passed with nothing - not a word from him. She was waiting to hear his thoughts on her proposals and praying he would invite her to dinner. Just dinner. A DAMN DINNER!
She spent her time working on her OWN business plan… holy krap! One client, no matter how heavily invested, would NOT pay for her expenses, her employee, her room and board! So she put her mind and energies into growing her own little company. Head down, notes all over the place, she was totally immersed when the phone rang.
IT WAS HIM! ‘Grab your purse and meet me at the Crab Shack, at 7:30,’ and after giving her the address, he was gone. She sat there looking at her watch, which said 6:20, thinking of his call - hurried, insistent, almost demanding, a drive-by invitation!!! But she knew she would be there at 7:30. Panic! She was wearing a cream colored silk dress and matching shoes - hardly the proper dress for a ‘crab shack’. Knowing she didn’t have time to go home and change, she dashed into the bathroom to freshen up. Then she looked in the tiny bathroom closet. Ah damnit! Jeans and a T. Well, no time to shop either so it was silk or cotton. She stepped out of her high heels and stood flatfooted on the floor, wiggling her toes. Then she unbuttoned the dress and slipped it off her shoulders and let it fall in a puddle at her feet, followed by her matching petticoat. Next she slipped her nylons down her legs and tossed them in the bag on top of her dress. OMG! No panties! Well that’s just too damn bad. She slipped on the jeans – wriggling her ass to get them seated halfway comfortably. Then grabbing the T off the hanger and sliding it over her head, she smiled as she looked at her reflection in the mirror. The T was a red ‘oh crap’ T…… said….. ‘OUT OF WINE – LIFE IS CRAP!’
Well, THAT was true! And she laughed out loud. Reaching into the closet and plundering around on the floor, she withdrew a pair of red sandals. Again, laughing nervously, she wondered if anything at all could be sexier. She slipped her feet into the sandals, noting with a smile that at least her toenails matched the red shoes. She tucked in her shirttail and did a turn in front of the mirror and said a quick prayer of thanks that she kept a change of clothes in the office. Stuffing her dress, slip, heels and nylons into a grocery bag, all she could think of was ‘Holy shit – I paid $400 for that dress!’ but at that moment, she couldn’t have cared less. Glancing at her watch, she turned back to the mirror over the tiny sink! No time to touch up her makeup so she grabbed her toothbrush and cleaned her teeth.
‘I’ve lost my mind!’ she thought, as she left the bathroom, clothes in a paper sack, trying to breathe normally as she gathered her purse, cell phone and computer. Walking out of the office, flipping off the lights, she smiled. Well, Anna - you actually have a DATE tonight - a real DATE. Looking down she could see her hard nipples poking thru the red Tshirt and a shiver ran thru her. ‘yeppers – I have lost my mind!’. She grinned and closed the office door after flipping the alarm on. She turned the deadbolt and walked to her car.
She entered the address of the restaurant into her TomTom – oh geez – all the way across town…. Ok…. Not a lot of traffic… you can make it with time to spare. She started her car and pulled out of the parking lot on to the boulevard. At the first stop light, she yanked open the glove box and took out a tiny bottle of Joy and dabbed just a drop on each wrist and at each ear. As the light changed, she dropped the bottle into the console and was suddenly struck with a horrible thought! FISH AND JOY! Dear Lord! She started laughing so hard she didn’t notice the driver in the adjacent car smiling at her.
Anna entered the parking lot at the restaurant 28 minutes later, and spotted him immediately standing by the front door, wearing jeans (thank God) and a sweatshirt……. He spotted her and as soon as she pulled into a parking place, he headed in her direction, arriving almost before she finished turning off the car. She reached for her purse as he opened the driver’s door. She turned and swung her legs out and as she stood, he took her in his arms and found her mouth, kissing her tenderly as she leaned back against the car.
‘I’ve thought of nothing else but that,’ he said, as he pulled back and looked into her green eyes. Trying not to gasp for breath, she cleared her throat and said…. ‘so have I.’ And with that, he pulled her hard against his body and kissed her with a passion she had only read about, her knees nearly buckling as she wrapped her arms around his neck and held him. He kissed down her throat and nuzzled gently around her jaw, inhaling her exotic scent, and when he released her, she felt the dampness in her jeans and wished to God she was wearing panties. As he stepped back just enough for her to close the car door, she clicked the lock and turned back to him. Smiling with a confidence she didn’t feel, she said ‘Now that’s what I call a hello, John’, and he smiled and replied ‘I have been waiting all day to do that – I hope I didn’t overstep.’
He took her hand and they started walking to the restaurant, as she replied, ‘no… not at all…….. it’s a greeting I could get used to,’ and she blushed.
While they waited for their table, John apologized for the late and hurried invitation. He had been out of town all week and his flight was late arriving. He had called her from the airport just before running to grab a shuttle bus to the long-term parking lot. She smiled and assured him it was fine, as she had had no plans for dinner and his call was perfect timing.
They sat in the bar while waiting for their table. They were surrounded by the clink of glasses and the sounds of laughter. There was a baseball game on a gigantic flat screen high up on the wall at one end of the room, and several patrons were standing around laughing and watching the game. John order a beer and Anna decided to have a glass of white wine – just one tho….. she was determined to keep her head about her. After about a 10 minute wait, the hostess came for them, so they collected their glasses and followed her to a tiny booth along an exterior wall. It was dim and quiet there, compared to the noise that filled most of the room. As they squeezed into the seats, John slid around next to her until their legs were touching. That was fine with her and she put her purse on her right side as she felt his leg against her left thigh. The waiter came with menus, she ordered sweet tea and he got another Sam Adams, and as the waiter left, they glanced at the menu. She said that the snow crab legs worked for her – small order – two clusters - no sides, just melted butter. He nodded and said he’d have the same, only a large order….. and as if by magic, the waiter came with their beverages and John ordered for them both.
Alone finally, he rested his right arm on the back of the banquette seat and lightly touched her soft auburn hair - his eyes boring into hers. She relaxed against the back of the seat and tried to breathe evenly, without a lot of success.
‘How have you been, John? And how was business?’
He laughed softly, saying this wasn’t a business dinner but he had dropped a signed contract in the mail for her only yesterday, and he looked forward to a long and positive association. And as he spoke, he took her left hand in his right hand and placed it on his right thigh… leaving his hand covering hers. She felt her face warming in the dim light as she turned to look at him, and she felt the strength in his touch, so gentle yet so firm. She thanked him for the contract and assured him he would receive her very best and before she could finish the sentence, he leaned in and kissed her, his right hand still twirling her hair as he pulled her head gently towards him. She tilted her head and met his lips, wanting nothing more than to kiss him forever. His tongue tickled her lips as his hand squeezed hers, sliding it slowly up his thigh and over to his crotch. The pressure was so gentle she hardly noticed, but she felt his arousal as he pressed her hand over his groin. Little nibbles as he sucked her lip between his teeth, as his tongue searched for hers, she pressing back, her tongue dancing with his. She trembled in spite of her determination to remain calm, and she felt her warm juices dampen her jeans again. She squirmed a little in her seat, trying to ease the pressure the jeans were causing.
The waiter’s untimely arrival with their picks, crackers, and a bucket for the shells broke the intensity of the moment and Anna inhaled deeply, trying to regain her composure. Though her hand still rested under his on his bulging jeans, neither attempted to move their hands, like this was the most natural thing one could imagine. The waiter left and another arrived with a huge platter of crab leg clusters. John lifted her hand from his crotch, brought it to his lips and kissed her fingertips and whispered ‘Enjoy, pretty lady,’ and they began to eat.
The dinner was messy and fun, and totally delicious. They talked and laughed like old friends, butter dripping down their hands and chins. Once, he leaned over and licked her lips, tasting the creamy warm butter oozing down her chin. She kissed him back playfully, licking his bottom lip. The crab legs were huge, and perfectly cooked so the meat was easily removed from the shells. And more than either could finish. Neither wanted dessert so John signaled the waiter for their check, handed him a credit card, and after signing the bill he turned to her and said, ‘I’ll follow you home, if that’s ok – I want to make sure you get there safely since you’re still new to the city.’ She smiled and said she would like that but only if he would come in for coffee. He agreed, and they slid out of the booth and headed for the door, his hand once again possessively in the small of her back. He let his eyes take in the room and saw how many of the men there were watching Anna as she walked in front of him, and he smiled. God, she was stunning! He swallowed hard and pressed a little closer to her as they made their way to the door. He felt so proud to be walking with her, and yet so protective.
When they exited the restaurant, the night air had turned a little cool, so he pulled her against him, his arm around her shoulder as he pointed out his car. As they arrived at her car he told her he would follow her – and he clicked the doorlock and opened her car door for her, holding it as she slid into the seat. He tried his best not to run to his car, but he jumped in and turned the key and pulled in behind her as she eased out of the parking lot and into the flow of early evening traffic.
She punched her TomTom for ‘home’ and twenty minutes later they were pulling into the parking lot of her townhouse. They found adjacent spots right at her door and he hopped out to grab the car door for her, offering her his hand as she exited the car. He reached in and grabbed her computer off the seat, and handed her the bag of clothes, smiling as he peeked and saw the dress she had apparently worn to work. He took her keys, clicked the locks, and draped his arm around her shoulder again as they walked towards the entrance to her unit. She lightly wrapped her free arm behind his back as they walked, neither saying a word…. there was no need for words…
He unlocked her front door and stepped aside for her to enter. Then he went in and pushed the door shut, flipping the deadbolt into place. She dropped her purse on the hall table and he laid her keys next to it. She walked to the stairs and set the bag of clothes by the bottom step and pointed to the same spot for the computer. As she turned towards him to say ‘the kitchen is this way. he took her tenderly into his arms and kissed her, softly at first, his tongue searching, his hands caressing, exploring. She slipped her hands up his arms to his shoulders and around his neck. The kiss became more intense by the moment as he began to devour her, pulling her closer, tightening his hold and pressing his body against hers. When he finally released her, they both smiled and cleared their throats. She took his hand and they started towards the kitchen in the back of the house.
He walked slowly, taking in the wall of family photos displayed down the corridor – young kids, a soldier and his family, more military pictures, teens, graduation pictures. He wished he had time to ask her about them – perhaps another time, for she was asking him how he took his coffee. ‘Shot of cream – no sugar,’ he replied. He leaned against the counter watching her as she prepared the pot, ground the beans and hit the ‘start’ button. Then she set out two mugs, packets of pink stuff, a carton of cream, and a couple of spoons. He looked around the kitchen as she busied herself getting everything ready. Each little thing he looked at told him about her. The Chinese characters over her stove: PEACE LOVE TRANQUILITY. The blue artisan pottery vase filled with daffodils, slightly drooping as their days of splendor had passed…. the big old pot on the dish drainer, obviously from another generation and one that had seen many a meal of ‘comfort food’… the tiny legal pad with the beginnings of a grocery list and a ‘to do’ list at the bottom: cleaners, bank, wine mart…. He walked around the kitchen, touching surfaces, picturing her here, there, wondering what she would be wearing, as if he were making notes in his mind of her space. She was watching him from the corner of her eye, taking in his grace, his movements, the way he held his head, the way he smiled as he looked around.
The coffee pot beeped and she jumped, startled out of her reverie. She placed two cloth napkins on a small tray, set the cups on it and poured the coffee, added a dollop of cream to each one and two sweeteners in her cup. As she turned with the tray, he was there to take it from her hands, and she indicated the sunroom as she led the way around the corner.
As they entered this room, he stopped in the doorway. The room was elegant yet casual, warm and welcoming - everything carefully planned to create a place of peace… a cocoon of serenity. Plants blooming, neutral colored, plush sofas that begged you to sit and get comfortable, elegant rugs on shiny wood floors, windows looking out into manicured gardens barely visible in the ambient light. A few more photos scattered around in frames of assorted colors and sizes. He realized that he was holding his breath as she flipped on a dim lamp and sat down on one of the couches. He approached her and set the tray on the glass table in front of her and then sat down beside her, leaning back against the lush cushions. She leaned forward, picked up his cup and turned to hand it to him, and as he took it from her hands, their fingers touched and a silent spark passed between them. It took all her strength to turn back to the tray and lift her own cup, and as she rotated to face him, slipping off her shoes and sliding one foot under her ass, she looked at his smile and knew that they had come to a place, a place of no turning back. They sat silently, sipping their coffee, each lost in thought. The aroma of the coffee filled his nostrils as he felt all the tension of the past week leave him. She watched him begin to relax and she knew instinctively that this was right - it just was.
After several sips, John leaned forward and replaced the cup on the tray. Standing, he walked towards the front door and Anna gasped, afraid he was going to leave. Instead, he checked the lock again and turned out the hall light, and walked back to where she was sitting. He leaned down and took her cup from her hands and placed it on the tray, and then he extended both of his hands to her. She gripped them and he gently pulled her off the sofa and into his arms. With a passion he had thought long gone from his persona, he bent and kissed her, wrapping her frantically in his arms, closing them around her slender body as she melted against him, returning his kiss with equally swelling passion. Lips still crushing hers, he bent and put his arm behind her legs and lifted her slender body off the floor. She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him harder as he turned and walked to the stairs with her in his arms. Pulling back slightly, he nipped at her bottom lip and then slowly began to ascend the stairs, his heart pounding loudly in his chest as she laid her head on his shoulder and inhaled him.
…………. to be continued…………
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