**FOR ROBERT ~ THANK YOU FOR YOUR INSPIRATION**
Kathy laughed at herself repeatedly for what she had done. Really, it wasn't all that amusing, people had been doing it for years but for her it all seemed so strange to her, and highly laughable! Signing herself up on an Internet dating site was a thing she had never imagined herself doing. But working long hours combined with raising her two children on her own, left little time to find a man. When her best friend dared her into it, she took up the challenge. And to her surprise within a week she was inundated with potential suitors. Yes, there were many, many oddballs included in the replies, but eventually she found a couple of men that suited her rather high standards.
The first man, Roger, was a legal student, who modelled part-time. He WAS incredibly gorgeous and had an affable nature. They corresponded through email for several weeks; he said the right things and seemed almost too good to be true. And unfortunately he was. When they finally met up for a simple coffee, he was not at all the same man she had been chatting online with. Yes, still gorgeous but he was actually socially inept, and to be perfectly blunt, a chauvinistic pig!
Kathy's next try was with James. He owned his own business, and like her, just didn't have the time to get out and meet people. As it turned out, he shouldn't really have even been trying. His wife and four kids at home should have been enough to keep him busy.
Finally came Robert. Just as Kathy was about to give up on the whole Internet thing, she received a short email from him. He described himself as in his mid thirties, with short brown hair and brown eyes and that he had been married but his wife had one day told him that she was having an affair and was leaving him. This instantly tugged at Kathy's heartstrings. Her husband had done the very same thing 18 months earlier, and she still carried the horrid mixed bag of emotions that came with such betrayal. Not a great start to anything, she thought, the only thing they seemed to have in common was their heartbreak. But still she emailed him back, and they began writing to each other regularly.
Their emails were usually nothing more than brief exchanges of how their days had been and what their plans were for the rest of the week. Nothing there to set a girls heart a flutter! But she did look forward to reading Roberts notes. He had a great sense of humour and she felt very comfortable sharing herself with him.
After a few weeks, Robert asked that she perhaps phone him. She wasn't at all expecting it, but then she quickly came to realise that Robert was full of all sorts of surprises.
Kathy nervously dialled his number and breathed heavily. She needn't have worried; from the time Robert picked up the phone and said hello to her in a deep voice (that incidentally sent a shiver right to her groin) they were completely comfortable with each other.
The emailing between them slowed while there phone calls grew more regular. He didn't push for them to meet up, and for that Kathy was extremely grateful. They enjoyed an cosy friendship, albeit only over the phone. Kathy did worry that perhaps Robert was looking for more than she was offering him, but he was ever the gentleman, and if he did have more on his mind he never gave anything away to Kathy.
There relationship was not quite what Kathy had expected. She did not sit and fantasize over him, nor did she gush to her friends what a wonderful person he was. Instead it gave her a warm feeling of comfort, and oddly enough, strength. Just knowing Robert was in her life, no matter how or where, she felt really at ease.
One Friday night while sitting at home Kathy's mind began to wander to her ex-husband. Only a few hours earlier he had come by to pick their children up. It was a rare occurrence, and Kathy didn't know it was going to happen, so found herself at home, alone, and feeling a little sorry for herself.
She decided that she would log on to the net, maybe just for an hour or so, and then head off to bed.
Checking her emails she was surprised, but rather excited to see one from Robert. They had discussed exchanging pictures this way, but only when they felt comfortable enough with the idea. And now it was obvious that Robert at least was happy to show himself to her.
