Freshly showered after my mid-morning gym session, I lay on the couch with a bowl of cereal, determined to catch up on all the TV shows I had missed during the past week. Setting the air conditioning at full blast, I gazed lazily through the window and could already feel the temperature outside rising. Summer had fully settled in Sydney and today promised to be a scorcher.
A sharp knock on the door awoke me from my dazed state and I shuffled towards the noise, jingling through my keys to open the lock. As the door opened, I was greeted with a familiar face. Standing at an average 5'6" with her brown hair in a ponytail, Amanda, my next door neighbour, gave me a warm smile. Barely into her early to mid-thirties, her slim figure and sunny disposition belied the fact that she was a stay-at-home mother of one girl and two sets of twin boys.
'Hi Vincent,' she said, with a tinge of tiredness in her voice.
'Hi Amanda, how've you been?' I replied, glancing at the light flowery sundress that hugged her pleasing form. On her feet were a simple pair of black Havaianas flip-flops, and I could not help but notice the thin gold anklet that shimmered on her left ankle.
'Fine thanks,' she said, 'I just left the kids at their grandparents' and thought I'd drop by to discuss the strata plans, if you're free that is.' The unit block I lived in was undergoing front yard renovations and needed approval from the home owners before going ahead with construction.
'Sure, I've nothing planned all day. Please come in!'
As she entered the cool environment within the house, she shivered slightly and let out a huge sigh of relief.
"Sorry," she said wearily, "David is out of town for the week and it's been a hectic couple of days. To top it off, the air conditioning in our house is spotty and won't work properly on hot days like these." David, her husband, worked as a sales executive and was often out of town on business.
I guided her through the hallway towards the lounge area. As she passed me by, the scent of her light perfume mixed with her faint womanly aroma was intoxicating. She had obviously spent an hour or two outside and her slightly tanned skin glistening under the light was a sight to behold.
Her swaying hips accentuated her tight bottom pressing against the sheer dress, revealing the outline of her panties. My gaze drew slowly downward towards her toned calves and ending at her beautiful size 7 feet. With every flop of her thong, those deep arches, creamy instep and soft looking soles flashed in all their glory. Her unpainted toes were flawlessly straight and dainty, gracefully balancing each step with the litheness of a seasoned dancer.
My eyes must have lingered for a couple of milliseconds too long as I looked back up to see her looking back at my face with a curious glint in her eye.
"Uh...here we are, have a seat anywhere." I stammered, picking up my pace to arrive to the lounge area. "Can I get you something to drink?"
"Any cold drink would be great, thanks." I scampered towards the fridge to get a couple of cans of coke.
"Ohh," she groaned in relief as she plopped down onto the plush couch, crossing her legs and dangling her flip flop from her raised foot. "It's nice to finally be able to sit after running around all morning. My legs and feet are killing me!"
My ears immediately perked up. This beautiful woman, whose feet I had pined for ever since meeting her about a year ago when moving into my house, was sitting on my couch and presenting me with an opportunity too perfect to pass up. I placed the two icy glasses onto the coffee table, steeled myself and said:
"Here, let me help with that. Would you like me to rub your feet?" I extended a hand towards her feet without reaching, but positioned my body to indicate that I was indeed serious about the proposition.
Her face became slightly perplexed and confused.
"Oh...That's kind of you to offer but it's ok, thanks. It's really not that bad and my feet are probably quite sweaty and dusty. You wouldn't want to touch them."
"Really," I assured her, "it's no trouble at all. I can do it while we discuss the plans." "Plus," I added, "I am experienced in reflexology and am really quite good at it. I might be a little rusty, but I can promise you that you'll feel better in no time." The truth is I had only taken an introductory reflexology course as an elective back when I was studying for my undergraduate studies, and the latter had not only taught me a few basics of massaging feet, but was finally paying off as the perfect clutch.
Sensing her lingering apprehension, I gazed at her knowingly and gave her a slight nod, with a smile that let her know that it wasn't a burden to me at all, and inviting her to accept my offer.