The sun was shining, there was a soft breeze blowing, and the air smelled sweet of grass and flowers. Mary and Grant walked slowly hand in hand; Mary slightly blushing watching her feet as she walked. Grant looked over at her and was warmed. He was so amazed with this young lady. After all she had been through, she was opening up to new experiences with leaps and bounds.
"Mary, what do you think about this spot?"
Mary looked over at the grassy null and thought it looked welcoming. So she nodded and they spread Grant's blanket across it. They both sat and looked at each other, idly smiling. And as if a light bulb went off in her head, she realized that though she knew Grant as a person, she knew nothing about him and his past. She wanted to know everything that made him tick.
"Grant, tell me some about you, please."
"Should I just start anywhere?"
"Everything that makes you is important to me."
Grant blushed a little at her candor and decided to start from the beginning. "Well, let's see. I had a really nice childhood. My dad was fairly affluent so I wanted for nothing. My mom was just wonderful. I don't think I have a single bad memory about her. She died when I was 13 of cancer. It wasn't so bad as one would think though. She had really prepared me for it. So when she was gone, I missed her, but there wasn't uncontrollable grief or anything. However, I was left with my dad. He isn't a bad man, but he was more or less detached. No playing catch in the yard or anything. And when mom died, well, he secluded himself even more. So, I was basically left to my own devices, got into a hell of a lot of trouble all throughout high school."
"So how did you ever turn out so wonderful?"
"Ha! Well, after experiencing all that, I knew I wanted to live life differently. I did the drinking and tripping and the sexin' and then I'd had enough. I really don't regret it though, I had a good time then and it led to who I am now. So, I went to college, but since my dad was putting me through, he basically checked the courses I signed up for to make sure I was on the right path: his path."
"So, I take it you didn't follow that, huh?
"No, definitely not. And I don't regret it a bit. Dad was a lot of things, but he never seemed very happy. All I know is that I haven't been happier." Grant looked at Mary seriously and Mary's heart twittered as he reached his hand up to her cheek. "Mary, you make me so happy. I want to share so much with you. You're the only girl...woman I know who has ever made me feel satisfied the way you do."
Mary blushed. She scooted closer to Grant and tasted his bottom lip. Grant moaned putting her insides into frenzy. Grant laid back and Mary leaned over him looking down into his warm eyes.
"Grant, there is something more I wanna tell you. About...about what we talked about earlier."
Grant reached out to pull her down into the crook of his arm. He kissed the top of her head and petted back her hair. He silently stared into the sky.
"Well...the man who raped me...was my father."
Grant snapped up straight and a look of disgust and anger washed over his face. He wanted to destroy that man. He wanted to break his face on the pavement. He felt like he needed to get up right now, track him down and make his life as miserable as he had made Mary's. And then, like a strike of lightning, he realized just how hard Mary had been trying.
"Mary, you are the most amazing person I have ever met. I wouldn't even be able to function properly, and you are...amazing."
Mary's eyes were filling with water and Grant could see that. He brought his hand to her face and left a tender kiss on her lips. As the tears streamed down, she continued, "But, I just wanted to ask you something, a favor. Would you, someday, make love to me? I mean, just that, be patient with me and show me how?"
"Mary, I don't want you to ever have to cry anymore and if that's something you want to share with me, I wouldn't rush a thing. I wouldn't want to rush anything with you. You know what? I have a great idea. I'm not going to tell you but you're going to love it. So how about I take you home, you get yourself all dolled up and I will pick you up in a couple hours. How does that sound?"
Mary was so relieved and calmed by his response. It was obvious he cared about her past and how terribly it affected her, but more importantly, he wanted to help her get past it and be there when she did.
"That sounds wonderful, I'd love to do that."
They picked up their things and made the journey back to her house. In the car, Grant leaned in and gave her another soft kiss before she hopped out. She was so elated that she nearly bounced to the door, opened it, waved him off and leaped into her house. In as long as she could remember, she hadn't been this purely happy and excited. Grant was definitely one of the best things...the door wasn't locked. Mary's heart skipped a beat as she turned to look at the doorknob. She ran to the door, opened in and looked outside hoping more than anything that Grant was still there. But he wasn't. She looked around the neighborhood and saw nothing suspicious. She closed the door and ran through the house in search of anything out of place. She found nothing. Everything was completely as she had left it.
It was possible, she thought to herself, that in her excitement before, she had left the door unlocked. It seemed probably actually. She hadn't really been herself lately and perhaps all this excitement got her a little silly. She tried to breathe in some calming breaths and made her way to her bedroom.
It was difficult to refocus her attention, but she decided to start with picking out her clothes. She opened her closet to search through her clothes, but she really knew just what she was going to wear. Luckily, amongst the many unwanted gifts from her sister was a little black dress. Mary thought that was precisely the thing she should wear. She laid it on the bed along with a satin thong, a garter belt, and stockings. She blushed at the way they looked, lying there on the bed. But, she knew they would look good so she trotted into her bathroom and started the shower.
She walked back out of the bathroom and again admired her outfit. She giggled imagining the look she expected to see on Grant's face. Still, the door being unlocked was nagging her. She walked through the house one more time to check everything thoroughly, but she found nothing wrong. Feeling more confident after this check, she strode into the bathroom, and nearly fainted.
Written plain as day on her mirror, in the steam, was, "Hey baby," written inside a heart. Her blood ran cold in her veins. She just stood there, like an idiot, staring at the mirror. She willed her legs to move and ran to the phone. Quickly, she picked up the receiver and began dialing for the police when she slowly put the receiver down, thinking to herself.
It could easily have been Grant. Boy, she just wasn't used to being around someone else. It had to be Grant; he was in the bathroom when she was taking a shower. Duh, how could she be so paranoid? She mentally chastised herself for being so lame and returned to the bathroom, hastily blurred out the message, and took a shower.
After getting out and getting dressed, she began to work on her make-up. She was by no means a make-up artist; she just never used the stuff. But, tonight was a special occasion. She decided to completely avoid the eye-liner to make sure she didn't end up looking like a Goth or some hussy, and ended up just putting on some lip gloss, eye shadow, and a touch of blush. She looked into the mirror and decided that she did a pretty damn good job.
Just then, the doorbell rang, causing her to jump. She again chastised herself and opened the door to greet Grant. He was clearly stunned and the lusty, surprised look on his face excited Mary.
"Wow, you look stunning. You really look so stunning, and sexy."
"Thank you, you look wonderful too."
And he did. His smell was intoxicating and Mary couldn't control the thoughts of throwing him into her bed and ravishing him. But, it was time to go, and she definitely wasn't about to do all that.
He was the perfect gentleman the whole evening. He opened the car door, the ritzy restaurant door, pulled out the chair, the whole deal, and Mary was in heaven. The food was delicious, the ambiance was romantic, she couldn't have asked for more. But she got more. Grant brought her to the local community theatre and she had the most wonderful time. They whole night had been perfect.
"I have one last little surprise for you."
"And what's that?"
