I'd been dating Carly for a few months. We first met on evenings out with groups of friends. After a few such meetings I decided I liked her quite a lot. When I asked her out she replied "Oh, yes, Ok. That'd be nice." Though I'd hoped for a little more enthusiasm than was embodied in that word "nice" I arranged a dinner date at a new and well-thought-of restaurant. The evening was a success in that we found much common ground; we both relaxed as the conversations progressed. The main interest we shared was music. I have a very wide musical taste veering towards Jazz. Carly was very strictly classical, and even then very definite and esoteric tastes, such as Stravinsky, Part, Ligeti and Schoenberg. I can easily listen to the first four, but Schoenberg? Not even for a modern jazz fan, though perhaps oddly, I like Glass and Reich, who were heavily influenced by him. When we said goodnight and I attempted a rather clumsy peck on the cheek, she failed to anticipate it and moved at the crucial moment so I kissed thin air. We were both able to laugh about it, so she then kissed me on both cheeks.
I phoned her a few days later asking for another date. This time she responded with a little more enthusiasm. We soon became firm friends, and after about six dates, lovers. She is a very good-looking woman, more handsome than pretty, tall, slender, dark-eyed and -haired with a very nicely proportioned body. Her breasts, in particular, are large, smooth-skinned and nicely firm in my hands. Her nipples responded well to my manual and oral ministrations I was delighted to discover, as I undressed her on our first night together. So, all ought to be rosy on the girlfriend front, except that...well... I don't wish to be unkind or judgemental, but to me she lacked passion. We made love two or three times a week but it always seemed to be very low-key to her, despite my best efforts to arouse her. This lack of sexual energy was definitely a barrier to me wanting to move the relationship on to a more committed and deeper level. It changed in a very unexpected way.
I bought two tickets to one of a series of outdoor concerts held each summer in the extensive grounds of a stately home near my flat and invited her to join me. When I told her what the programme was, her face fell, "Oh, well..."
"Carly, you're such a music snob! Excerpts from Carmina Burana, excerpts from the Planets, Beethoven's fifth and then finishing with the 1812 Overture. Your approach to music, you know, academic and technical is fine. After all, you're a trained professional. But music is meant to do more than just satisfy the rules of harmony, however they might be formulated. It's supposed to evoke emotion. Strong emotion. And it does for me. The pieces we're going to hear were composed to be highly emotional. The fact they've become slightly...er...cheesy just shows how successful they've been at engaging people over many decades, doesn't it? What's so bad about that? Come on it'll be fun!"
"You're right. I am a snob, But really, yes I'd love to come. I'm sorry I was a bit..."
"Snotty?"
She elbowed me in the ribs, "I was going to say 'thoughtless', because you've been so good as to buy me a ticket. I'd love to come, really."
"We'll take a picnic," I said, "Let's hope the weather's good."
It was. It was a glorious summer's day with no wind or clouds. I made us up a picnic stowing it all in a rucksack. Knowing the vagaries of English summers, I added a large blanket. Even on the hottest days, the temperature drop as the sun goes down can make it feel really chilly. The concert wasn't due to finish until after nine.
Carly looked very good in a yellow shirt top and short tartan skirt. Her legs were long and nicely tanned, looking good even in flat shoes.