GROCERY SHOPPING
Holding two cantaloupes in my hands, I asked the woman who was looking at the vegetables, "How can you tell if these are ripe?"
She stepped closer. Her eyes were intriguing. She had a pretty smile. I couldn't help but notice the gap between the unbuttoned top of her white blouse. Her pale skin looked soft and inviting. I was holding the cantaloupes near my chest in a suggestive manner.
She said, "Well there a number of things to look for. How do they feel in your hands? Are they nice and firm? Are there any blemishes on the skin? They say the bigger they are, the better."
I hefted the two melons, weighing them in my hands, but looking at her chest. "They seem to be very nice to me, but I've had limited experience and don't know what to look for."
She took one of them and held it close to her face. "You should put the little stem part up to your nose and sniff to see if it smells fresh and fruity."
I lifted the other melon and inhaled the scent. "I see what you mean." I was gently stroking the melon's surface.
She continued, "You should use all your senses. How do they feel; how do they smell and are they appealing to look at." She handed the melon back to me. "Put your tongue on the little stem to see how you like it."
I said, "I like the texture of these." Still looking at her chest, I added, "They are very nice to look at." I put my tongue on the stem.
She smiled and said, "I'm glad you like them."
I put them in my shopping cart.
Damn, she was pretty. We were in the produce section of the neighborhood grocery store when I had recognized her. She was young, in her thirties, with a nice figure. Her blouse was undone enough to be sexy in an innocent, housewifely way. I'd taken a chance coming on to her and was pleasantly surprised when she responded.
She moved over to the vegetable area and asked, "Do you know anything about these?" She was holding a cucumber in her hand. "I'm not sure what to look for."
I said, "Well, you want one that feels nice in your hand. The texture is important. Squeeze it to be sure it is fresh and healthy."
She squeezed and asked, "Is size important?"
"They say it's not, but it's more a matter of individual taste. Girth is maybe more significant."
"This one looks like it's about eight inches long. Would that be a good guess?"
I smiled and said, "Sometimes size gets exaggerated. Six inches or so is usually a good size."
She picked up another cucumber, a long curly Asian type. "Look at this one."
I said, "It's nice, but the American ones taste better."
"Hmmm." She said. She held the two vegetables side by side and said, "I don't see the difference."
I said, "What's important is how juicy they are. You have to taste what's inside to really tell which ones are best. A good one can be really satisfying."
She said, "Well I can't tell that in the store, can I? Maybe after I get home."
She licked the cucumber with her pretty pink tongue, sensuously teasing along the length of it. She put it in her cart.
I had seen her at neighborhood events and knew her name was Amy. I said, "You're Amy. Remember me, I'm Ben."
She said, "Of course I remember you, Ben." That was nice to hear.
Amy is married, I'm not. We live in a condo complex near the grocery store. I had seen her going in and out of her place and had admired her figure. I'd had only had a few brief conversations with her. I mostly listened to her talking with others. She had a sexy voice and, I swear, my tongue got hard when I spoke with her. One time I thought I saw her looking at me and irrationally wondered if she was interested.
We pushed our shopping carts a bit farther. She picked up a bag of those little carrots. She held them up and said, "I already have these at home." She put them back.
"Do you?" I said. I held up a full-sized carrot and said, "I would've thought you might like the longer ones."
She said, "Well, sometimes, you have to be happy with what you can get."
I replied, "Well, sometimes it's nice to experiment and try new things."
She picked up one of those mini-watermelons and held it against her belly like she was pregnant. She said, "Experimenting can be dangerous, though."
She put it back on the pile.
We continued to walk together, each of us putting up a few things in our carts.
We came to the fish, meat and cheese counter where the attendant would prepare things specifically per order.
I said, "I like the tuna fish." I asked the man to cut a half-pound from a big slab of the dark reddish-pink fish.
As he was doing that, I said, "I like to eat it raw, like the Japanese do. Sashimi."
She said, "I've never heard it called that. Do you really like it?"
"It's one of my favorite things. It just seems to melt in your mouth."
"Interesting. I've never tried it."
We watched the butcher slice the slippery red flesh of the tuna. It glistened and jiggled.
I said, "I could show you how to prepare it. Presentation is important. It's so juicy. I like to just suck on it before I swallow."
She said, "I have a friend who likes it. She's invited me to her house and said we could try eating some together."
"You should accept her invitation. I'm sure you'd like it."