"Hi! I'm Samantha!"
"I'm John," he responded, not quite believing that this gorgeous creature had actually approached him.
"Hey, I'm sorry to be really cheeky, but I couldn't have a few drops of that water could I? Its really hot our here."
She flashed him a smile like the California sunshine as she spoke.
This made more sense. There was no way such a beautiful young woman would willingly approach a middle aged man like himself unless she wanted something. Still, if a few drops of water were the price for thirty seconds in her radiant presence, he had no problem with that.
"I'd be happy to," he replied and passed her his water bottle.
She took the bottle and took a couple of little mouthfuls, he couldn't help noticing the way she tossed back her long blonde hair and the way her throat moved as she swallowed. When she was done, she passed the bottle back.
To John's surprise, she didn't immediately make her excuses.
"Thanks so much. Its so hot and well... no pockets," she gestured to her bikini clad body.
With great effort, John didn't stare down at her but images of smooth, taut, sunkissed skin and soft curves were already filliing his brain.
"No, I see that. So you came down here just like that? No bag or anything?"
She shook her head.
"No, its much easier this way, I live close by and come here a lot to just relax. Its just easier if I want to swim if I don't have anything else with me."
"So, you come here alone?" he asked and immediately regretted asking such a loaded question, but she didn't seem to mind, she just shrugged dramatiically to indicate no one else around.
"Just me," she said. "How about you, are you with anyone?"
"Just me," he replied.
"Thats cool, I love to come here with friends but I like to come down here and relax by myself some times too."
She paused and looked a bit uncertain for a moment. John was pretty sure this was the moment she was going to turn and make her goodbyes, but she had already made his day so he would have had no regrets.
Instead of which though, she turned back to John and asked, "How about you? Are you local too? I've never seen you here before."
"No, I'm not local. I'm from pretty far actually."
"How far?"
"London."
She gave a low whistle, "Thats pretty far. Say, I thought I noticed something with the accent. Are you British?"
"Guilty," he replied.
"For real? Sometimes guys try to put on a British accent because they think it impresses the girls. Its so dumb."
"Does it?"
"Does it what?"
"Impress the girls?"
"Well, not when they fake it! But, yeah, I like a British accent, but its not like it's the most important thing.
"Hey," she said, suddenly full of enthusiasm, "say something British to me."
"Erm, OK, like what?"
I dunno, something British. Like 'Bloody Hell Guv'nor'".
"OK Samantha: 'Bloody Hell Guv'nor'"
He felt slightly ridiculous saying it and, for some reason, he felt the need to put an exaggerated and not very good cockney accent, as if that were somehow more 'British' than his native Surrey tones. But Samantha seemed delighted and clapped her hands in girlish delight.
"Whats it like, London? I've never left California. To be honest, I've never even been to San Francisco or LA."
"You're kidding?"
"No, I'm a hometown girl. I still live with my parents and they can be difficult about me spending too long away from them.
"How old are you Samantha?"
"I'm twenty three." He breathed a sigh of relief. "How old are you?"
He briefly considered lying but then decided against it, "I'm forty two."
"Really, you don't look it? Do you work out?"
He wasn't sure he believed her but he couldn't help but be flattered, "I try to look after myself." He was just glad that she didn't seem scared off by the information.
As they were talking, they had started walking down the beach together, their feet occasionally washed by the surf. John talked about London and about other places he had been in Europe and Asia.
He kept glancing over at her face to check that he wasn't boring her and falling into the trap of just talking about himself, but everytime he looked at her she looked back with a look of genuine interest.
A bit of him was still quite wary, this all seemed to good to be true, but if she was working an angle, he didn't know what it was. He half expected her to start mentioning a cult or a large debt she needed paying off but nothing like that came up.
"Is it true that all the women in Europe sunbathe topless?"
He swallowed, trying very hard not to picture Samantha with her bikini top off.
"Well, not all the women and not so much these days but, yes, some women do."
"Wow. I can't imagine that. But I guess it would be kinda cool, to feel that free."
John said nothing and just concentrated with all his might on not looking at Samantha's round curves or to imagine them free of her bikini top.
They kept walking and talking until they reached the edge of the beach where the cliffs came down to the water, cutting off any further progress. A large blue house was perched on the edge of the clifftop above them.
"Wow, you've been so many places. It must seem pretty sad to you that I've lived all my life just here."
She looked out over the vast blue ocean glittering as the sun was lowering in the sky.
"Not at all. Travel's great but it's not the most important thing. And its so beautiful here."
"It is beautiful, isn't it?" she turned to him with an eager face and large shining eyes. "I'm so glad you think so."
Despite himself, he leaned in to kiss her. She looked so beautiful and she smiled at him so warmly, he couldn't help himself.
Fuck it, he'd join her cult, he'd pay her drug debts, he just wanted to kiss her so badly.
For a moment she kissed him back, her soft lips parted slightly and he could taste the wetness within, but then she pulled back from him.
"I'm sorry, Samantha, that was uncalled for."
She looked back at him, her eyes still eager but concerned now. "No, John, that was beautiful but not here, my parents might see," she indicated the blue house on the clifftops.
John looked at it properly for the first time.
"Wow. That's your parent's house?"
It was a proper mansion, bigger than the whole building John's flat was in in London.
"Yes," said Samantha, brimming with pride. "Do you like it?"
"Its beautiful," he replied.
"It really is, my parent's have just finished decorating it and its great inside, lots of room and lots of cosy little corners. I'd love to show it to you."
"I'd love to see it, Samantha."
"You would?" her eyes were as keen as ever, surprised for some reason that he'd show such an interest in her. But then they were downcast, "I don't think my parents would like that, though. They can be a bit funny about having people they don't know in the house."
"That's a shame, Samantha, but never mind."