I had been divorced for two years when my friend Michael took me on a date. It wasn't supposed to end up the way it did, though...
Let me explain. My ex-husband and I started dating when we were in our teens, and were married for five years, so there I was: a twenty-seven year old who'd never dated as an adult. Michael pointed this out while he helped me repaint my kitchen.
"You're a babe in the woods, Jeanette," he said calmly, from up on the ladder. There was a tray of paint on the shelf. Michael hadn't let me paint from the ladder, not because I'd hurt myself, but because I would have knocked the tray off immediately, all over the hardwood floors we hadn't taped off.
"What is there to know?" I said. "They pay for everything and maybe I let them kiss me on the front porch."
Michael laughed. He looked like me, with dark hair and electric blue eyes, and pale skin. He was a carpenter, though, strong and methodical, and I was the art teacher. As kids, we'd been neighbors, and because he was slightly older than me, he was my protector. He'd been like a brother to me. My ex had been one of Michael's good friends, but the night after I called Michael in tears for the first time over my husband's infidelitiesβ well, Michael showed up at my parents' doorstep with a black eye and gave me a big hug. You should have seen the other guy, he said, and I knew it wasn't right, but it felt good to know he was there for me.
"How about this. Let me take you on a practice date. I'll pick you up at seven on Friday night. We act like we've just met."
Worst case scenario? I'd get to hang out with my best friend. I shrugged. "Ok. Why not."
***
Friday came, and by seven, I was surprisingly nervous. First off, I couldn't figure out what I was going to wear. There were two dresses I had picked out. My favorite was a flirty pink number that set off my tan skin, but the fabric was too thin to wear a bra and if I got even the slightest chill, my nipples were visible. The other was navy with a short hem that showed off my long legs. I got into the latter.
Don't laugh, but I'd taken a shower and for the first time since the divorce, I shaved my pussy. It took a while. That's how my ex-husband had liked it, rubbing his thumb over my bare mons. That's how I liked it, too. Visually it was nice, and shaving made it more sensitive. Sure, this was only a practice date, but I justified it because it made me feel like I was going on an actual date. It's important to be in the right mindset, I told myself.
I answered the door in my jacket, purse on my arm.
Michael frowned. "What are you wearing?"
"A dress," I said.
"Let's see."
After he made me unbutton my coat, he gave a nod. "What else do you have?"
"What do you mean?" I said. "I chose this."
After some discussion, he made me go change into the pink thing. The temperature had dropped from the open door, and my nipples poked out. I pointed out that this dress was a little...revealing. Michael waved away my objections without seeming to notice.
"This time answer the door with no coat. You don't want to look like you were waiting. That'll make you seem too eager, make it look like he has the advantage."
The doorbell rang. I opened it. "Hi. I'm Jeanette."
"Michael," he said, and we shook hands. I let him in, and offered him a drink. Walking to the bar, I got out the rocks glass for his customary whiskey, but he surprised me by asking for a martini. My hand hovered over the gin bottle. Walking around the house with his hands in his pockets, he looked at my art as if he'd never seen it before.
"Olive? Or onion?" I asked as he examined the still life hanging above the fireplace.
"Olive," he said, and lowered his voice. "And make it dirty."
As I sloshed a bit of juice from the jar of olives into the shaker, I blushed. How many secrets had we shared over the years? Yet this was the time I had heard that secretive voice. This is how he sounds to other women, I thought. He's dead sexy.