Chapter 1
Mick Meets Keri For A Walk
It was Presidents Day weekend. I usually sleep in on Sunday mornings when my team doesn't have a competition and I was looking forward to sleeping in on Sunday and Monday because of the holiday. There is just something magical in getting to sleep until you wake up. No screaming alarms, no pesky obligations, no plans.
However, on this Sunday, Keri wanted to go for a walk. She called late Saturday afternoon, just after I got home from work, and said that she really needed to walk and talk and asked if I was up for a walk on Sunday AM.
"I really need to get up and move and I think I am going to need someone to talk to," she said sounding sad.
"Well, ok. What time did you have in mind?" I was hoping for a noon time walk.
"Like you always say, 'get it in, get it done, and get it over so the rest of the day is free', right?"
Sometimes I hate myself!
"Right. So, when and where do we meet?"
"I'll make it easy on you. Let's meet at the 13
th
Street entrance to the Greenbelt at 7:00 AM."
"I'll be there. Um, are you ok?" I asked, concerned for my friend.
"Yeah, I just need to sort some things out. See you in the morning," hen Keri hung up.
I know what you are thinking. Why would I just agree? What did I owe Keri that I could not ask for a later time or just say no? Did she have great oral technique? No, to all of them.
Now don't get me wrong, Keri is a good-looking woman. She is as fit as a woman her age can be. She is just a few years younger than I am, with long, thick, black hair. She worked for a local investment company as an account exec; a very, very successful account exec, it seemed. Her figure is slightly full in the hips; the first time we went for a walk, I stopped and pretended to tie my shoe as she walked ahead and let me tell you that her ass moves really well.
We'd begun to walk together once a week, and then twice. Now we usually walked on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday mornings and on Sundays when I was in town. We always walked in the early morning so we could get the day underway. Get it in and get it done, right? We would walk for an hour or an hour and a half, then Keri would get in her black Lexus and drive home and I would walk the three blocks to my apartment, shower, have breakfast and start my work day.
My interest in her was strictly platonic. She and I shared a love of blues music and met at a jam session. Keri had never been married, as far as I knew, and I've been married twice. The first one I messed up being a workaholic and my wife fell out of love with me. The second should have never happened. Now, I didn't want to get into another relationship. I didn't want to deal with the pain of a breakup. I was convinced that love was no longer an option for me.
I hadn't had sex in over seven years and had come to the conclusion that at this stage of my life I was never going to have sex again. However, it was nice, at my age, to be seen, even if only in my own mind, in the company of a beautiful woman. Besides, she was a hell of a piano player. When we got to jam together it was always fun.
The alarm went off at 6:15 AM, way too soon considering I had just set it at 3:00 AM! I was in the middle of a really cool dream having to do with flying around a city and enjoying the weather. I looked out of the window of my 3
rd
floor apartment to check for rain or snow or wind or blizzard or the apocalypse or anything else that would allow me to stay in bed.
Nope!
The early spring sky was bright black and full of stars. The American flag hanging across the parking lot was hanging straight down. It was a beautiful cool morning in the valley. I went to the kitchen and got a pint glass of water and downed it. I had been drinking rum last night and really felt dehydrated. I finished off one more glass as I put a cup of oatmeal in a bowl with some water and honey. I popped it in the microwave and nuked it while I poured and finished a glass of cranberry juice.
Back in the bedroom I looked at the unmade bed and decided to leave it unmade and hit it again when I got home. I walked into the closet and grabbed a long-sleeved t-shirt and some fleece socks. Scratching my balls, I noticed that my dick was slightly chubby. I gave it a few whacks as it jumped to life. After deciding that I'd take care of that thing later, I pulled some underwear up over the semi-erection and walked out of the closet.
Out in the living room, I sat down in my computer chair and pulled on my fleece socks. Ahhh, feet warm, feels good. In the kitchen I grabbed the now rested and cooling oatmeal. My dick was now back to normal which made sitting at the table more comfortable.
After finishing the oatmeal, I put on my pants and shoes, donned a pull-over fleece and a wool hat and headed out the door. I stopped for a second to put the headphones in my phone and set the buds in my ears. As the tunes kicked in, I walked down the three flights of stairs to street level and kept step to "Come and Get Your Love" as I turned left to head for the Greenbelt.
The air had that great fresh chill to it that early spring mornings in the valley are known for. The sidewalk took me past the Post Office and towards the park entrance. Rounding the corner, there was the black Lexus and the tall, black haired, woman that had called me the night before. I removed my earbuds.
"Morning Mick," Keri sounded less than enthusiastic, and she did not look "right".
She was not wearing her usual tight yoga pants and instead of a low-cut top she was wearing a hoodie with the zipper pulled up to her neck. Something was definitely wrong.
"Morning. You ok?" My hopes for a short walk and a long sleep back in bed were fading as concern for my friend rose.
"After I called you yesterday, I told Ryan that he needed to be gone," she quietly explained.
"Who is Ryan?" I asked as calmly as I could.
She had never spoken of other guys or relationships before; we always talked about music or our work.
"Oh. I'm sorry. This is so embarrassing. He is the younger guy that has been living with me for the past 10 months," Keri was looking at her feet as she spoke.
She went on to explain that he had gone from a hard-working professional to a leech. For the past few months she suspected that he was sleeping with another woman, someone his own age. On Friday night she came home early and found him banging his girlfriend in her bed; in her own home. They hadn't seen her, so she left and got drunk.
After a few shots of courage, she had called his cell phone and told him that she had been home and seen him and that she was tired of him. She told him to get out before she got home and to have all his stuff out by noon today.
"When I got home, he was gone, and I called you and asked to go for a walk. I figured that if things went badly with him, and I didn't show up this morning, that you would call me or look for me or check on me."
She looked at me with a weary expression and let out a sigh, "You were my emergency plan."
"Do you still want to walk?" I was asking out of concern for her now. My selfish needs had just gone out the window.
"I don't know. I'm pretty hung over," she seemed very worried, almost scared, and looked like she needed a walk and a friend.
"Well I do! I was drinking a lot last night....rum! And I need to walk it off. Let's start easy and see what happens. East or West?"
Keri smiled and finally looked me in the eyes. Her expression changed, she nodded and seemed to have found a calmer place.
"West," she said quietly.
"West it is. Let's walk to the bridge and when we get there, we can figure the next step."
We turned left and headed towards the bridge that crossed the river to the university. It was a quiet and beautiful morning. The sun was not going to come up until close to 7:45 so we walked in silence on the path lit only by the solar powered pathway lights that were beginning to fade as their batteries ran down.
Keri's hoodie and baggy sweatpants were a far cry from her usual yoga tights. I loved it when she wore the tights. She was 50 years old and had the ass and thighs of an athlete. She had a little swish and sway to her stride that made her ass dance when she walked. But her ass was not her best feature and if she had not been wearing the hoodie, I would have been happy to walk backwards in front of her.
One night at a blues music jam, she was playing piano when I was singing. She was wearing a low-cut top and every time she hit the keys with some force her tits would jiggle and shake. I almost popped a hard-on right on stage. Her breasts were not the firm hard breasts of a young girl and they were not filled with silicone. They were the soft natural tits of a woman that was 50 years old and had the time and money to take care of herself.
We walked in silence, but my mind was screaming. Who was this Ryan guy? Was Keri going to be safe? What could I do, after all shouldn't a friend do things to help? After a few hundred yards I had to say something.
"Um, if I can ask, what is the next step for you?"