The halls of the stately old building were full of students and professors, chatting and laughing, some looking worried, others hurrying, brushing past the slower moving traffic. The walls were adorned with large red foil hearts, streamers and cute little Cupid cutouts in honor of Valentine's Day. She thought they looked rather tacky against the rich wood and elegant decor. Amber stopped before the large, double doors of Auditorium C, and checked the notice on the door. It had a border of red hearts around the words, "Prehistoric Anatomy, Professor Stewart Marsdale, 5 P.M." She was in the right place. The class wasn't scheduled to start for another 40 minutes, but that was okay. She'd planned to arrive early. It was vital that she be the first to arrive.
The door creaked a bit as she opened it and looked inside. The huge space was empty of other people. Rows of dark wood chairs with green padded seats stretched out to either side of the steps leading down to the front of the room. There was a stage, with a podium, a small table and a large screen on the wall behind it. She slipped inside and hurried down the center stairs to the bottom, up the four steps to the stage, and across to the podium.
The podium was an old style upright box of polished mahogany, with fancy trim and a dark green curtain covering the opening at the back. Amber parted the curtains, then reached in and removed the single shelf, bracing it against the front wall of the box. Then she crawled inside and tugged her little bag of supplies in after her, grinning in anticipation. Making herself as comfortable as possible, she pulled the curtain closed, stifling a nervous laugh when she heard the door open and several students entered the auditorium, talking loudly. Their voices echoed in the cavernous space, but to Amber, secreted inside the podium on the stage, they were too muffled to understand. That was close, she thought, I barely made it here in time!
She settled in to wait, remembering how she'd met Dr. Stewart Marsdale. It was right after Thanksgiving and she'd driven all night from her parent's house, arriving in the parking lot of her condo building a little after 6am. As she parked, she saw a man she'd never seen before exiting her building. He was tall, with thick dark hair, and he wore an expensive looking suit. He moved with an easy kind of masculine grace, and she watched him curiously as he unlocked and got into a silvery gray Mercedes. She figured he'd stayed the night with some lucky woman in the building. He wasn't her usual type, but she found herself strangely jealous of that other woman. The next afternoon, as she was coming in lugging bags from the grocery store, he'd entered the lobby right behind her, arriving in time to hold the door for her.
"Need some help?" he asked, and she looked up into the most beautiful blue eyes she'd ever seen on a man. His lashes were sinfully long and full, which gave him a sensual look, but the rest of his face was masculine and strong. Except for his cute little gold framed glasses. Amber had stared at him in silence for several seconds, then forced herself to speak.
"Oh, no, thanks, I've got it."
She nearly swooned when he smiled. It did something to his features that lit her up like a roman candle.
"Let me at least press the elevator buttons for you." He walked over and pressed the up button, then turned to face her. "Which floor are you on?"
"What? Oh, um, fourth floor. Thank you." Inside, she was going crazy. Not only was he gorgeous, he had an accent! She loved men with accents.
He smiled again, and she noticed that it was a rather shy smile. When the elevator doors opened, he stepped half-way in and pressed her floor, then held the door so she could board.
"Thanks," she said, and realized she'd thanked him three times already. Get a grip! Say something witty! But her mind was functioning as well as frozen lava.
"Have a nice day," he said, and stepped back so the doors could slide shut.
During the following week, she'd seen him from her window several times, always alone. In fact, she spent an inordinate amount of time looking out her window that week. He was always dressed in a suit, and she figured he was a lawyer or a corporate big-wig, and that he must have moved in while she was on vacation. She kicked herself for not noticing if he wore a wedding ring.
On Saturday, she decided to go for a run. She left by the rear exit, which opened onto a narrow parkland area, beyond which were the docks on the lake. There were 12 slips, and with 40 units in the building, they didn't come available very often. A variety of craft lined the narrow walkways, and though Amber didn't own a boat, she loved watching them. She usually took her runs out this way, running along the lake shore. She did some stretches to warm up, while she checked out the boats. She wasn't surprised to see several missing as it was an unusually warm day. There were people moving about on several of the remaining boats, getting ready to head out. Right up front was a new one, a real beauty. It was about 30' long, white with bright red trim and gleaming brass rails. A man was hunched over on the far side of the deck. When he stood up, Amber froze. It was him.
She watched him move around the boat as she began to walk towards the jogging trail. Just as she was about to turn off onto the trail, he saw her.
"Hallo! Did you get your groceries up safely, then?" he called. So, she thought, he remembered her. A little thrill went up her spine.
"Yes, thanks," she answered, and winced. Thank you, once again. She sounded like a broken record.
"Beautiful day," he said. His fingers drummed against the rail of the boat, a surprisingly nervous looking gesture.
"It is. I'm going for a run around the lake. You have a beautiful boat."
He smiled, and looked more comfortable. "Thank you! She's my only real self-indulgence. Would you like to come aboard for a tour?" The words seemed to rush out of him, as if he had to say them quickly or they wouldn't come out at all.
Amber looked at him. He was even better looking today, in his cut-offs and blue t-shirt. His thick hair ruffled in the slight breeze as he stared down at her, waiting. His hands had a fierce grip on the railing. He was nervous, she realized, nervous asking her aboard. She thought about what he was seeing. She was 5'6' tall, with long straight blond hair, currently pulled back in a pony tail. She wore snug cotton shorts and a fitted t-shirt, which showed off her generous curves to perfection. She wasn't the shy, retiring type, and loved to show off her great body. She smiled at him and accepted his offer.
She smiled again now, remembering that day. He'd taken her out on the lake, and they'd talked and talked. He'd told her he was a professor at the local college, and had just moved here from Austria. Best of all, he wasn't married, and he was as nervous as she'd suspected. For such a good-looking, intelligent man, he was amazingly shy around women. She'd delighted in flirting with him, and even managed to make him blush.
They made love on the second date, which he confessed was out of character for him. Despite his shyness and reserved manner, he'd turned out to be surprisingly creative in bed. He was inexperienced in a lot of things, but was open to trying just about anything.
