Blessings often come disguised. Those cloaked in angst often hold the greatest potential. Whether we recognize them or stumble over them makes little difference as long as we have the good sense to hold on once they're revealed to us. I was lucky. The sublime revelation bestowed on me struck so fast I didn't have time to screw it up, so I held on.
It started as a simple Friday night on the town. I had just broken up with my girlfriend, Kara, so my buddy Gabe took me out for a few drinks. "We'll go up to Boston," he insisted. "We'll get a room so we don't have to drive back."
Gabe and I started the night at a place called the Crystal Barn. It was a modern place at the time—half dance club, half dive bar with gaudy neon signs and mirrors everywhere. It seemed the place was designed to make the sad sacks like me stick out like sore thumbs. Everywhere I looked, I saw my own moping mug with gorgeous girls in the background. We staked out a round table toward the back with four chairs, hoping the other two might soon be filled.
It didn't take long before they were. A tall, gorgeous blonde clopped up in shiny heels. "Is anyone sitting here?" she asked over the thumping bass.
Gabe smiled. "You are," he boasted.
A sweet smile arced across her pouty lips. "Thanks," she peeped before dragging the chair away. A moment later, a bronze-skinned guy with a wedge-shaped chest walked over and nodded as he took the other one.
"Come on," said Gabe. "I wanted to go to a strip club anyway."
Half-heartedly, I sauntered along beside him on the crowded street. "Quit bein' a chump, Sari," he complained. "This shit happens. You musta done something to piss her off. You can be a real dick sometimes."
"Not with her," I argued. "I went outta my way to please her...ate her lousy cooking, even put up with her kooky sister for a weekend."
"You only dated her for a few months. What's the big deal? Haven't you ever been dumped before?"
"I didn't get dumped," I lamented, sticking my hands in my jacket pocket. "It was worse."
"You walked in on her?" he asked as we rounded a corner.
"Right as the guy bellowed. They didn't hear me cuz they were listening to music. I stood staring while she sucked him dry."
"Not to be an asshole, but did she...swallow as he unloaded or did she play with it?"
"Bite me, Gabe. She had cum dripping off her chin when she finally saw me."
"Eh," he grunted, scrunching his cheek. "I'd say ya got lucky. Most guys wind up picturing what their ex did with another guy. They lose sleep because their imagination gets the better of them. The anxiety eats 'em up. But you know exactly what she did."
"That's supposed to make me feel better?"
"Hell yeah. If you insist on feeling bad, just picture her doin' it to him as we speak." He stopped short and grimaced outside the Purring Panther Club. "I don't friggin' believe it!" he complained.
"What's wrong?"
He shook his hand at the marquis out front. "Whaddaya mean, what's wrong?" he asked. "Read the sign. It's Jack and Jill night. Every other act is gonna be some dude shakin' his schlong at us."
"Maybe he'll be shaking it at me," a playful feminine voice chimed from behind us.
A whiff of jasmine blessed my nose as a gust of wind brushed delicate strands of hair against my neck. I turned around to find two brunette beauties gracing the same square of sidewalk as me. They both wore jeans and knit sweaters—typical casual attire for a fall evening in New England.
One of them seemed as down in the dumps as I was. She was gorgeous—sleek and demure, with full auburn hair that seemed to play in the gusty air rather than frazzle. Even in the sidewalk lighting, her ruby highlights sparkled. As beautiful as she was, her chin was tucked to her chest, all but hiding her hazel eyes from view.
The other stood smiling beneath a French beret. She was slim of stature and glowing with an air of grace as a glossy smile arced across her lips. Her blowtorch-blue eyes fixed on mine, then Gabe. "You guys want some company?" she asked. "I'll bet we can hoot as loud as you."
I stood dumbfounded—too shocked to answer. As I searched for words, her reserved friend muttered, "I-I don't think I'm up to it, Holley."
"C'mon, Suzie," she urged in reply. "It's just for laughs. You'll lighten up once we get inside."
Suzie's eyes shifted my way as she batted her lashes and cracked an uneasy smile. "Okay," she offered in a meek tone. "But I may be a wet blanket."
"Wait!" I blurted. Unsure why I had spoken out, I stood blinking with the three of them looking at me. Gripped in confusion, I pictured myself trying to talk to Suzie while a guy in nothing but a bowtie wagged his meat in front of her face. What the hell would be the right thing to say? How could I compliment either of them with a pink g-string on my head? It seemed like a fun time, but not a good venue in which to ask either one to come back to the hotel.
Perhaps I was afraid of what I might say in the presence of such gorgeous women. Holley's outward charm had a strong appeal. It would have been fun to watch her howl at the dancers, but my mood was more in tune with Suzie's. I found her enchanting in an apprehensive, depleted kind of way. Turning to her, I cleared my throat and asked, "My name's Sari...l-like the emotion. Would you like to get something to eat?"
She looked to Holley as if seeking permission. "I think I'll take Sari up on that," she proposed. "I'd just spoil your fun. You go ahead."
"Perfect!" Gabe interjected. "There are great restaurants all around. You two could talk about what's got ya' down...give each other a pep talk. Sari, I'll text you in an hour or two and we can take it from there. We'll meet back here if everyone's up to it."
Suzie's smile seemed to ease as she nodded. I offered her my elbow as we walked off. To my surprise, my gloomy mood lifted as her hand grasped my forearm. It was like whatever mighty cosmic gear was grinding at my consciousness had just clunked into synch. We strolled along light-footed until we came to a cozy little place with a bustling but homey atmosphere.
Even better, Suzie's reticence lifted during dinner. Our conversation went from cordial to casual, and we even shared a few laughs by the time our entrees arrived. As it turned out, she and Holley worked as X-ray Technologists in D.C. and had stayed in town a few nights after a three-day seminar.
As things progressed, I found in her a caring, sensual beauty—one I wished I could know better. Her angular features and dainty hooked nose offered a cute, tender appeal. I had seen many shades of hair—any color modern chemistry could conjure, but nothing as magnificent as the natural color of Suzie's auburn halo. It glowed with electric shimmers, framing her hazel eyes in wavy curtains that teased her cheeks. In short, she was beautiful, and I was falling for her fast.
That proved to be a stumbling block when she told me she was engaged to some guy named Dirk. "He's only the second guy I've ever been with," she admitted, twirling her spaghetti. "Holley insisted I should know what it's like to just...you know...go out and do it just for fun. I-I guess I was expecting it to be...easier."
I fumbled for words like a schoolboy. "Maybe you'd just like to talk...you know...for awhile...see how things go. Gabe and I got a suite, so there's two...you know...rooms."
Suzie took a sip of water. Her gaze dropped to the table as she set her glass down. "We could try it," she offered. "They'll know where to find us."
The hotel was less than a block away, so we were in the room within ten minutes. As we walked in, Holley's laughter rang from Gabe's bedroom. Light from the open door shone on the hallway of the suite as she peeked around the corner and smiled. "You made it!" she cheered. "Give a knock if ya wanna mix things up." She giggled as the door closed and the hallway darkened.
Suzie's lower lip trembled as she dropped her gaze to the floor and shook her head. "I'm sorry," she lamented. "I can't go through with it." With a sniffle and a quick sob, she bolted for the door.
For a moment I thought of running into the hallway and asking her to reconsider, but desperate as I was, I couldn't bring myself to call down the corridor to an engaged woman. With a deflated sigh, I sauntered over to the love seat, plopped down and turned on the television.
To add irony to insult, Gabe had paid for the adult channel. The set turned on to show the hilt of a meaty shaft twitching between two fleshy labia as a pearly ribbon leaked over its jewel sac.
Meanwhile, sounds of sex play rang through the bedroom door. Holley's squeals and coos alternated with Gabe's deep, hardy groans. Moments later, he let out a wanton cry, then murmured something in the tone of a question.
"Yes!" she squealed. "Come inside me!"
I turned up the volume on the set as Gabe cried out, but all I got was insult in stereo. Holley sang with him as he wailed. "I feel it!" she proclaimed. "Shoot your seed in me!"
With a deep sigh, I rested my cheek on my palm, clicking to an old syndicated sitcom as the bedroom door opened. I tried not to flinch as Holley stepped out, but from the corner of my eye I could see she was not only naked, but more beautiful than I had imagined. Her fair skin glistened in the room lighting, accentuating the curves and cambers of her firm, fit torso. Two curved dimples defined the edges of her tummy, set between the crests of her capable hips. A pearl set in gold with an inch-long chain adorned the pit of her navel.
