A while back my wife shot through. I wasn't earning enough to keep her in the way to which she felt entitled, so she found someone else. I wish him luck. He's going to need it.
Naturally, when she left, Gloria took everything that had any sort of value at all. This saved us any problems with dividing the property when we got divorced. She was considerate, that way. Mind you, she did want the house, but as I explained to her lawyer, it was a rental. I couldn't give it to her, even if I wanted to.
She's history, and the only reason that I mentioned her is that when she left one of the few things she didn't take was a stack of chic lit. Mills & Boon romances and such. I'd initially just stuffed them up on top of a wardrobe in case she came back for them. Noticing them up there one day, I decided that the time was right to throw them out.
Being at heart a thrifty type, I just couldn't see myself throwing a few dozen perfectly good books in the rubbish. Neither could I bother loading them in my car and taking them to a charity shop. Too much work. My solution; I packed them in a box and took them next door.
The guy next door was in his forties and had twins, a boy and girl, nineteen years of age. While the boy wouldn't be interested, I thought there was a fair chance that Sharon wouldn't mind taking the books.
It was a Friday evening when I stepped around to offer the books. Sharon answered the door, dressed in a pink fluffy dressing gown, and showing a freshly scrubbed face. She was quite happy to take the books, dumping the box on a little side table in the hallway.
She apologised for answering the door in her dressing gown. Her father and brother had already gone out and she was getting ready for her own date. It so happened that the architecture of the place had resulted in the bathroom being directly in front of the front door. Still talking, Sharon edged back into the bathroom, standing in front of a big wall mirror, doing her hair and applying makeup.
It had been a while since I'd watched a woman dolling herself up for an evening out, and I just leant against the front doorway and enjoyed the show. I didn't need to contribute much to the conversation, Sharon easily handled the load, only requiring agreement and a few casual observations from me.
Now I'm not a totally insensitive clod. It did occur to me that maybe she was running off at the mouth because she couldn't think of a polite way to tell me to push off while she got ready.
"You don't mind me watching you get ready, do you, Sharon?" I asked. "I've always found it fascinating watching a woman doing all these little bits and pieces when they're getting ready."
She looked at me, shaking her head, her face alight with silent laughter.
"Doesn't worry me," she said. "I'll let you know when you have to leave."
Taking her at her word I continued to watch as she prepared for her night out.
When Sharon finally turned away from the mirror the magic had been wrought. She'd started off looking like a fresh faced eighteen year old, requiring ID before anyone would admit her to a pub or club. Now she looked to be in her mid-twenties, a sophisticated and attractive young woman who would walk in anywhere, unchallenged.
"Very nice," I said. "You look superb."
"Thank you," she said with a giggle. "Now you're going to have to go as I'm going to get dressed."
She moved towards me with the obvious intention of shutting the door. I, I should point out, was still outside. I hadn't actually entered the house. Another thing I have to admit is that I had been wondering just what she had on under the dressing gown. Her legs were bare, and it was extremely unlikely that she was actually dressed. The most she'd have on would be her undies.
Sharon stepped closer to me, door starting to swing shut when I reached over and pulled on the bow of her dressing gown belt.
"You'll have to excuse me," I said quietly, "but I've been itching to know what's under the dressing gown."
Before Sharon could react I'd caught the edges of her gown as they started to gape and swung them wide. I'd been right about the clothes, but wrong about the undies. She hadn't put them on yet. She was standing there, effectively naked, blushing, one hand on the door and the other on the door frame, looking shocked. She was breathtaking.
The pair of us just froze like that for a few seconds. A few seconds where my eyes were very busy, trying to take all of her in at once. Sharon suddenly gave a little gasp and twitched, although she didn't try to pull away or cover herself.
