Megan dreaded the thought of another week alone at the condo. The holidays were always tough for a laid off legal secretary because the law firms simply weren't in need of people. The temporary agency she relied on for work had warned her December would be bad.
Not having an income wasn't the only reason Megan dreaded being stuck in the condo. She had good reason to be afraid because of something she had little control over...her looks. A beautiful, blonde, thirty four year old divorcee known to be alone for extended periods of time was like a neon sign telling the young, single guys in the community to 'hit on Megan.' Hell, she'd even been approached by a couple married men lately.
Their methods were numerous and varied, though seldom creative. Megan could spot an unwelcome advance from a mile away and she was very good at being abrupt in her dismissal of the superfluous suitor.
This time it was a condo association maintenance man who alleged that a pipe was thought to be leaking near Megan's condo. In spite of her better judgment, or perhaps in fear he may be right, she let him proceed. She watched from behind a bedroom curtain as he walked back and forth across her back yard with what looked like a miniature metal detector better used to find rings at the beach.
Megan soon tired of watching the parade and went back into the kitchen. Eventually, the man knocked on the sliding door. Megan opened it just enough to talk.
"Think I found something," the man said in a deep southern accent. "Let me show you."
He held a roughly sketched map in his hand and practically forced his way inside before Megan could even say, 'Show me from there.'
"What is it?" she asked when he was half way in.
"Let me put this here map on the table."
He had propped the metal detector up against the back wall of her porch and, dirty shoes and all, made his way to the kitchen table. Megan figured he was about forty, with a mental age of fifteen. He looked rough. He smelled rougher.
The man slapped the paper on the table, stabbed at a point close to her back porch with a dirty finger, and said, "I got a really weak signal right thar. From thar to the back of y'alls lot, it sounded fine. We might need to dig."
Megan's mind was not on the map. She was kicking herself for choosing this day to wear her most revealing tank top. The man's eyes were more often on her tits than the map. He never once made eye contact with Megan. She sensed trouble.
"Listen. Have the condo association get hold of me. We'll discuss it," she said hastily.
"Oh, but ma'am, I might be able to save you all kinds of money here," the man said. "What do you say we bargain a little."
Now he was looking at her with a nervous look filled with craving for something she wasn't likely to give.
"No thanks," Megan answered. She took a step backwards.
He matched her step and reached out for her. Megan was expecting it.
She lurched away with the athleticism of a teenager. Megan pulled a chair over behind her and ran for the front door, grabbing a butter knife along the way from a dinner plate still sitting on a coffee table. As they approached the door together, she turned and held the knife in front of her.
"Don't touch me or you'll die."
Just as the man opened his mouth to speak, the doorbell rang, causing both of them to jump with surprise. The man saw a face outside the little glass window next to the door and he returned to the kitchen in a hasty retreat.
Megan quickly opened the door.
"Megan, are you OK?" the woman outside asked.
"Oh my God, Nataly. Get in here."
As Nataly entered, the man exited the same way he had come in.
"I saw Wilson come over a little bit ago and knew I better check on you," Nataly said, noticing the knife still in Megan's hand. "Did he..."
"Don't worry about it," Megan said as they walked into the living room. "He wouldn't have lived to talk about it."
"Geez. I just knew it. He's such a retarded ass."
Megan plopped on the couch, trying to get her pulse back to normal. Nataly sat beside her.
Megan's savior was a gorgeous twenty six year old brunette that she befriended soon after moving in. Nataly knew of Megan's home alone status and often acted as an unofficial security force of one. Nataly had spied on the maintenance guy until he entered Megan's condo. After waiting an appropriate period of time, she came to the rescue.
"I'm the ass for falling for it," Megan sighed.
"Nah. You never know. That's the scary part."
Megan looked over at Nataly. "Hey, you want a drink? I need one."
"Sure."
"Wine?"
"Sure," Nataly replied. "Any work lined up?"
Megan talked while collecting glasses and her favorite pinot grigio. "I haven't heard from the temp agency in over a week. I suspect I won't until after the first of the year. Not many law firms need people right now. You're out until January, right?"
Nataly nodded, although Megan wasn't looking. "Yeah. The kids come back the first week of January. The little brats will be all hyped up after Christmas."
Megan returned with the drinks. "I'm not sure what's worse. An attorney or a second grader."
Nataly took a sip. "Can't have sex with a second grader."
Megan giggled with a mouthful of wine. She swallowed and said, "So neither one of us is getting lucky. Maybe I should have let Wilson have his way with me."
"Nah. You can do better."
A prolonged pause was broken when Megan asked, "Any men in your life lately?"
Nataly grinned. "Nope. Haven't been looking. I rely on my virtual friends, my plastic pals, and other artificial means."
"Virtual friends?"
"Online. I have people I chat with. Watch videos. You know...," Nataly said sheepishly.
Megan was intrigued. There was an awful lot about one of her best friends that she did not know. Neither of them prodded the other into revealing 'secret' stuff. It wasn't their style. But curiosity abounded.
