Julius decided to leave the reception. It was one of those charity dinners and a fellow barrister in chambers had persuaded him to contribute. The meal had been rather better than was usual at these functions and the wine had assisted the conversation, but nearly everyone seemed to be a couple or at least had a woman companion and being on his own meant that he stood out a bit. These black-tie events were usually OK for an hour or so once the dinner and the speeches had finished, but after he'd spoken to the people he knew, and exchanged all the usual pleasantries with some he didn't, boredom quickly set in.
Julius got his coat from the pretty girl at the cloakroom and got a smile and an interested look. Although nearing fifty, he still got glances from young women and that made him feel good; it would make any man feel good. As he pulled on his coat and crossed the hotel lobby towards the entrance he could see that it was still raining. Not heavily, but he didn't fancy walking back to his apartment building.
He stepped into the covered porch and signalled to the doorman to call one of the waiting cabs. He got in, gave the cab driver his address, sat back and contemplated the rather empty evening that stretched ahead. The prospect was dreary, and like most single men on their own in that situation he thoughts drifted towards sex, and the drift resolved itself with a thought. The thought had a name, and the name was Alice. Julius leaned forward to the driver and told him that he wanted to make a brief detour.
This was a detour that Julius had made once before, with rewarding results, and he hoped that that, with luck, she might be there. The cab quickly made its way though the dark streets and soon arrived in the rather run-down part of town that he'd requested. Julius looked out through the rain-spattered cab window for the alley where he'd found Alice before and got the cab to stop opposite. After a few seconds the slight figure of a young woman stepped out of the alley where she had been sheltering and peered towards the cab's occupant. Julius opened the door and beckoned. Alice recognised him at once. She tottered towards the open door on her three-inch heels and swung down on the seat next to him, slamming the door behind her.
Julius indicated to the driver that the detour was over, then turned and looked towards his young companion. He hadn't seen her for more than a month, but her presence had exactly the same effect on him as on the previous occasion.
She sat quite stiffly looking towards him, her eyes wide and expectant as if hoping for approval. Her hair was flattened and wet from the rain; wisps hang from her temples and stuck to her cheeks. Her unbuttoned thin coat hung damply from her shoulders. Alice was small boned and slender, almost thin, and looked not much older than nineteen or twenty.
It would be easy to conclude that the reason why Julius found her attractive was because of the way she was dressed. Alice's clothes made her look like a slut, and that word was printed on the front of her t-shirt, brazenly confirming her acceptance of the role. The t-shirt was cropped, revealing a naked waist and visible navel. Below was a low-cut denim skirt, so short that it was little more than a wide band. The hem had been attacked with scissors leaving trails of grubby white cotton threads that hung down untidily. So short was this apology for a skirt that, as she sat, it failed to cover the inch or two of white thigh displayed above the lacy, black stocking tops. Of course this calculated degree of exposed flesh, and the juvenile display of overt sexuality, was intended to arouse, but there was something else about her that went beyond its tawdriness.
It's hard to explain the nature of attraction between people, particularly the nature of sexual attraction. Although she had been next to him for only a few moments Julius was reminded that something about this young woman was unique. He had often been in the presence of desirable and scantily dressed women, but this was different. There was something about Alice's animal magnetism that almost made the provocative clothing redundant.
"It's good to see you again", said Julius, "how have you been?"
Alice turned sharply towards him, seeming startled, as if not expecting the question.
"I've been fine, thank you". She didn't look away but held his look as if daring him to respond. There was something of a rebuke in the way she had answered him, as if this formal exchange had broken a rule.
Julius recalled that a similar exchange had occurred on the previous occasion. Alice preferred not to talk. This casual pick-up was to do with having and enjoying sex. It was about what you did, not what you said. The other thing Julius recalled was that Alice had an elegant voice and part of her attraction was that her voice belied her appearance: Alice's background was clearly educated middle class.
If there is a puzzle in this, we need to know more about Alice to solve it.
There were two very distinct sides to Alice Tremaine. One of these was on display there in the cab; this was Alice-the-slut prepared for a sexual adventure with an older man. The other Alice was a smart, talented university law graduate who had recently started work with a long-established firm of solicitors.