The year after I finished college, I took a job as a junior management trainee in a stock market firm. I hated everything about the job, but it paid my share of the rent while I got my screwed up brain together.
One Saturday, a female showed at our door, asking if we would consider a girl for the roommate opening we had posted. She looked presentable, and I invited her in to meet Sean, my one remaining roommate. The lease was in my name, and it wasn't a good time of the year for finding someone, so I was feeling ambivalent. Women roommates were a curse, my friends had told me, running down a long litany of complaints that did not sound like the fair sex. The fact that this was occurring over a second or third round of beers at the corner establishment didn't mean anything, of course.
"My name is Laura Tompkins and I am new in town. Levy Brothers has hired me in their IT department. Your apartment is walking distance from the office, which is good. I was a runner in school."
Sean and I looked at her, warming up. Very trim. Tallish for a woman, maybe 5-10. Pretty, but not a stunner. Short hair, bobbed at her neck. She handled questions very well. I threw her a curve, "Laura, the gossip is that men and women don't mix well in a roommate situation. Would you be up for a thirty day, no questions trial?"
Her gaze was very direct. "I was in a mixed dorm at school and am used to dealing with that. I think I can be a good roommate with you and Sean."
On the far side of Laura, Sean was shaking his head, no. I smiled, "Ok, we'll give it a go. You can move your stuff in anytime. I'd like a check for first and last month's share of the rent. It's ok if you need to wait for a first paycheck."
Laura was a dream roommate. Never had to be asked about any chores. Didn't fill the bathroom with cosmetics and junk. Wore sweats around the apartment and didn't date anybody that we knew.
With the thirty days coming to completion, Sean sat with me at the local bar on Friday night and said, "She has to go." I took a long swallow of my beer and asked, "Any particular reason?"
"She makes me nervous. I'm used to being around guys."
"She's holding up her end of things and then some. Doesn't need reminding about chores, like you do."
"Eric, either she goes, or I go."
I looked at him and smiled, "I think you know the answer to that."
He swore. "Asshole, I'll be gone by tomorrow night. One of my buddies will put me up."
Laura did a full day of overtime that Saturday, and flopped on the sofa when she got home after five. I found a light beer and took it to her.
"You are an angel. Come here and give me a kiss."
Friendly pecks on cheeks had progressed to brief touches on lips. That day, she reached up with her hands and made it a long, hot kiss.
I sat on the floor next to the sofa with my own beer and asked, "What's that all about?"
"My thirty days is almost up. That was to thank you for letting me stay."
I kissed the back of her hand. "You are devious. I could bounce you this minute. Remember, it is no questions asked."
Her hands caressed my face. "You are a dummy, Eric. At least about girls. Come here for another kiss and tell me I am staying."
My arm pulled her into my lap. "You are going over my knees and out the door. I don't take smartass talk from anyone, especially not sexy women who don't know their place..."
"Oh god, thank you, thank you, thank you. I promise to be the best roommate ever. Please, let me take us to dinner to celebrate."
I needed a long kiss to think about that. As I stood and untangled us, she asked, "Where's Sean?"
"I'll tell you later. Dress up a bit. Dinner is on me at that fish place."
She folded into the passenger seat of my wreck and smiled across. The black dress did wonders for her figure. Laura was a new woman that evening. She'd passed her housing initiation. Her job was going well and she already had gotten a raise. Our conversation flowed rapidly and easily. She sipped from my martini, the first in months, and giggled. "I've always been in training, so gin is pretty new to me. If I have much more of this, who knows what will happen?"
"Sean is gone."
Her eyes widened. "He made you choose between us?"
I nodded and had another sip of gin. She held out her hand and I transferred the glass. More than a sip went down her throat.
"Hot damn. Why did I get to stay?"
I stared hard, with a thin smile she could interpret any number of ways.
After a minute of staring, she looked away. I reached for her hand and kissed it. "My reward is ice cream with you on the sofa."
We tried to cover over the fact that the topic of Sean had wrecked the dinner, but the conversation sucked. I paid up and we left.
On the way back, she directed me to what she said was supposed to be the best ice cream parlor in town and came out with a brown bag under her arm and a soft look for me.
She got out dishes in the kitchen and said, "I should get out of this dress before I make a mess on it."
While she was gone, I opened the bag and discovered a pint of blackberry sorbet, and a pint of vanilla fudge swirl. I was trying to make up my mind when she pressed against my back, whispering, "Are those ok?"
"We are going to break training with two kinds of ice cream?"
Her arm was tightly around me, tongue licking my ear and other places. "It's a special day."
The next thing I knew, she had lit a candle across the room, turned out all the lights, arranged us on the sofa under the throw blanket, and was handing over a dish with some of both. She had old fashioned pajamas on and I was in my workout pants for the sake of decency.
She licked my lips with a cold tongue and said, "You are pretty quiet tonight. Is it really ok for me to stay here?"
"Maybe we don't need a third roommate."
That got her tensed up. "Damn."
I ate several spoonfuls of ice cream while she waited for me to say something more.
Finally, she put the empty dish down and buried her head in my chest. I ran my fingers gently through her hair and massaged down her back as far as I could reach. It was warm and cozy under the blanket and I didn't feel like saying anything, just enjoying her warmth and the breathing of a woman lying on me.
She mumbled, "This is very bad," and stretched up for a kiss.
After a while of resting there with my hands on her firm behind, the front of which was pressing on my erection, I realized it wasn't fair to hold back.
My voice was low, almost a mumble. "If you haven't guessed, it would be nice if we were more than roommates."
After a long silence, she said, "I'm having trouble figuring you out. I've only had a couple of boyfriends up to now, and they were very physical. Hands everywhere. Never asked, just took what they wanted unless I put up a fight. How come you treat me like you do?"
"I don't really know. Before my parents divorced, mom got knocked around a lot. I was young enough to cry, watching her get hurt. Her dad found out and beat the devil out of him. Got a court order keeping him away. I could never figure out why some guys like to hit a woman."
She pulled me to my feet and to the bathroom. "Brush your teeth, I'm sleeping in your bed tonight."
She must have guessed I was messed up about women, because after she was snuggled in the bed, her back to my front, she said, "This has possibilities. We have to talk." After a pause, she added, "In the morning."
There is something special about waking up with a warm body in your bed, even if it does have pajamas on. I stretched and she put her teeth lightly to my shoulder muscle. "I woke up in the night wondering if you were going to come after me."
I turned into her. "I might have if I wasn't sleeping off the gin."
We were face to face and her hand was finding my morning hardness. "I think you are a faker. I think there has to be a class in advanced sex education. A naked class."
"What about a run and some breakfast? Sean's not going to be gone until tonight."
She gave me her back again and pulled my hand to her chest. "Hold that for me. Keep it warm." And underlined the order with a push of her rear into my crotch.
I realized the soft Laura was disappearing, and the smart, aggressive Laura was emerging. Maybe if she got to order my body around, she could put some order into my head.
I pushed her flat and got a thigh between her legs to keep her there. A few buttons later, my tongue was warming the stiff nipple on her very pretty freckled boob.
"That's better. I thought maybe there wasn't anything happening with us, even after that nice evening."
I kissed her quickly. "I'm not sure I am boyfriend material. I want to write in the worst way, but the stupid job pays the bills. Why should I ask you to deal with a screwed up guy?"
She sat on my chest, leaving the pajama top hanging open. The face and eyes were serious. "I get to decide if you are boyfriend material. So far, things are looking good. At the moment, the only thing on my 'don't like' list is the fact that I want sex with you and you haven't delivered. Can we fix that?"
I rolled her off and walked toward the kitchen. I muttered, "This is bad, really bad."
Her arms caught me at the knees and I went down hard. Where did she learn to tackle? My head hurt from hitting the floor. Or maybe it was the booze last night. Things were not working in my brain cells.
"Damn, you are messed up. Can't we have a simple boy-girl roommate deal? That's what you were talking about yesterday, wasn't it?"
I buried my head in my hands on the hard wood floor. "Just leave me. Time heals all wounds, doesn't it?"
"What the hell has wounded you? I promised you my body. I promised to be a good roommate. Is there more I need to do?"
"Go work some more overtime. I will be better by dinner time."
"Fuck you!"
She left, cursing to herself.