The woman's name was Scarlet, which also happened to be the color of her hair. Not that you could tell, from the bandana covering her head, tied neatly behind her. The only substance harder to remove from hair that chewing gum was paint, as far as she was concerned. So far, the cloth on her head had saved her hair, but not her clothes- she was freckled in white and green paint she noticed, kneeing down to fix a silver dollar sized hole in the wall. The jeans and shirt were old and faded anyway.
The house was in an advanced state of disrepair, though that suited Scarlet just fine. It was cheaper to finance anyway, and the room for improvement made this home an investment that could prove useful if she ever decided to refinance. The only down side is the house was quite unlivable upon habitation, but she was doing her best to make it work, and for the present that meant the bedroom first. Scarlet had barely finished applying the spackle to the hole in the wall when she heard a voice across the house.
Rising and dusting off her torn jeans now covered in plaster and dust, Scarlet moved quickly to the door, wondering who could be calling on her. Her family had already flaked on helping her, so surely no one was coming today. She was surprised to see a man at the screen door, holding food and trying to look in the dark house without appearing to do so. He was taller and heavier, but his face had a ready smile and he seemed non-threatening as he stood on her porch.
"Hello, welcome to the neighborhood. I'm Cedric, from across the street." He said, pointing and stepping back to allow the screen door to open. It didn't. "I guess I'm the welcoming committee."
"Hello.... and thanks." She said from the door. After a few seconds of awkward silence, Cedric remembered why he was there.
"Oh," he said, "I'm sorry. I wanted to invite you to lunch." Cedric held up two large grease-stained bags and some bottled coca-cola. His smile never left his face for the three seconds it took Scarlet to determine that whether his intentions were honorable or despicable, it was probably safe to let him in the house...
Cedric breathed a little easier when she opened the door for him and he stepped inside after wiping his feet. It was a muggy day outside, with oppressive overcast clouds insulating the ground with warm, wet air. Inside the house it was cooler only because every door and window was open, and there wasn't much in the way of insulation to start. The house looked like a disaster, gray spackled walls everywhere, plastic sheets and tools covering the hard wood floor and not one creature comfort, save for the plastic covered bed in the next room.
"It's a local place," Cedric said, "One of my favorites. I didn't know what you'd prefer, so I got chicken and beef sandwiches."
"I don't suppose it ever occurred to you that I'm a vegetarian?" Scarlet asked,, enjoying the look of terror and embarrassment on his face before grabbing the pastrami sandwich and chowing down on it. "I'm Scarlet, by the way."
"Well, again Scarlet, welcome." Cedric said, reaching for the other sandwich.
"And again, thank you Cedric." She said giggling. It came out very naturally that, no, she doesn't live alone and yes, she has kids but no, no man and the kids are with grandma until the house is in better shape.
"Well, uh, I could help you out on weekends." Cedric offered, placing the wrapper into bag and frowning. "I'm afraid you have some mustard there. May I?" He said, reaching out with a napkin and wiping the yellow dribble from the corner of her mouth before smoothing her skin with his thumb. It was a forward move and he was rewarded by her smile. Scarlet shivered ever so slightly at the touch of his finger gliding across her lip. It brought a heat to her cheeks as she gazed at his friendly face and wondered if all his touches were as gentle and graceful.
The experience seems as enjoyable for him as it is for her. The look on his face priceless, one of mixed terror and enjoyment, his eyes arched wide in anticipation for a positive response...
"Thank you..." she replied from behind closed eyes and pursed lips.
"I really appreciate lunch," Scarlet finished, "You're very sweet, but I have to get back to the wall."
"Well, I can help if you like!" Cedric offered a bit quickly. Anything to stay in her company.
Scarlet considered this for a moment, thinking about some work she has to do before tonight...and another consideration that she'd hardly thought about at all. He was cute, in an awkward kind of way. Very eager...and very sweet. Probably a worthy and powerful lover, if he knew what he was doing...and that was a risk worth taking.
