Chapter 01 (Dan Meets Kelly)
Being one of the last big summer events before Labor Day, the Chicago Air and Water Show always provided for a fun weekend. Marc, one of Dan's best friends, owned a condo in Bucktown just north of Division Street, and every Saturday of the Air and Water Show, he threw an all-day party. He lived on the top floor, and a stairway from his living room led up to a private deck that spanned the entirety of the roof. The party would usually start in the late morning and continue throughout the afternoon and evening. The great thing about Marc's Air and Water Show parties was his proximity to one of the flight paths: his condo sat just below one of them, and throughout the afternoon, all manner of planes – from streaking F-15 fighter jets to World War II-era prop planes – passed directly overhead.
True to form, Marc's party for the 2004 Air and Water Show was another great one. Dan went over early on Saturday to help him at the grocery and liquor stores, and then to set up. Several trunk-sized coolers on the roof deck supplemented a beer refrigerator inside. A large gas grill smoked most of the day, laden with hamburgers, brats, chicken and steaks. From beginning to end, about seventy five people would attend this party.
Midway through the afternoon, Dan was sitting at one of the tables on the roof deck, talking with a group of friends. Some of these had gone to college with him and Marc, others they knew from their respective jobs. Marc's older sister, Belinda, was also at the table talking with some of her friends. As a lumbering Air Force C-130 passed overhead, Dan turned west and watched its image recede.
He was about to turn back to the conversation at the table when a striking blonde walked through the door and out onto the roof deck. She glanced around, as though looking for someone, and a bright smile took over her face as she waved in Dan's general direction. Looking behind him, Dan heard Belinda shriek, and saw her wave back, and get up. Dan leaned toward Jeff, who was sitting next to him. "Who's that?"
Jeff turned to look toward the blonde newcomer, and said, "Not sure. I've seen her before. I think she's friends with Belinda." Dan turned his attention back to the athletic body bearing an angelic, almost regal, face, and felt a stirring in his groin. As she walked toward the table, he took in the tanned and toned legs that protruded from beneath a white, pleated tennis skirt; footy socks and Nike tennis shoes covered her feet. She wore a pale blue polo shirt that hung loosely but still was insufficient to conceal the fact of her large breasts. Her flaxen locks were pulled back in a ponytail, and her face appeared freshly scrubbed.
When she and Belinda met on the other side of the table from where Dan was sitting, they embraced in a big hug. "Hey, Kel, what took you so long?"
"I had a long session with my tennis pro. I thought I'd get here earlier, but he kept me longer than I thought," Dan overheard the girl reply in a soft, sweet voice.
"Well, let me introduce you to everyone. Everyone, this is Kelly, a good friend of mine from college. Kelly, this is Nancy, Marie, Jeff, Dan, Christian and Matt. I think you may have met Nancy and Marie before; the guys are friends with my little brother." Kelly gave a shy wave to everyone at the table; Dan could not help but notice how strikingly blue her expressive eyes were. After everyone said their 'hellos' and 'nice to meet yous,' Belinda said, "Hey, let me get you a drink. What do you want? We have Miller Lite, Bud Light, Bud? There's also vodka and whiskey, mixers, too."
"Miller Lite sounds good." Kelly moved to a vacant chair at the table and sat down while Belinda went to get her beer. Crossing one trim leg over another, the Nike tennis shoe bouncing to the rhythm of the music coming from the stereo, she struck up a conversation with Nancy and Marie, who she had in fact met before. Dan stole a few quick glances her way but, not wanting to be obvious, returned to his conversation with Jeff, Matt and Christian. When Belinda returned a few minutes later, Dan saw, from the corner of his eye, Kelly reach out for the bottle. He turned his head her way, and watched as her long, tanned fingers gripped the dripping bottle. The light pink polish on her nails appeared almost transparent, but what Dan noticed more immediately was the huge diamond gleaming on her left ring finger.
A Blue Angels F-15 streaked above the roof deck, casting a fleeting shadow as it did. When the plane had cleared the area and people could talk again, Dan again joined his conversation, but still heard Kelly say in response to an unheard question, "Yeah, he's pretty wonderful," as she took a ladylike pull from the beer bottle.
"Where is he now?" Nancy asked.
Swallowing, Kelly said, "He's down in the Carolinas with some friends playing golf. Some sort of guys' weekend, I guess. I can't wait for him to get back, though. He's been gone since last Saturday."
"When is he getting back?" This from Marie.
"Tomorrow afternoon sometime. Thankfully, my parents have Evelyn for the weekend, so I've had some peace and quiet." From there, the conversation among the women at the table devolved into babies and work, and Dan's ears stayed attuned to his own conversation.
Over the next several hours, Dan mingled with various groups of people, sometimes sitting at the table, but moving around the roof deck and into the condo. He would occasionally see Kelly talking with this group or that, and often stared too long at her classically beautiful features – or her generous breasts, or shapely legs, or tight little ass.
By the time nine o'clock rolled around, Dan was pretty beat. He'd gotten up early to help Jeff with this party, and started drinking around eleven that morning. The alcohol, combined with the hot, August sun, left him ready for bed. He found Jeff and said his good-byes, and talked to a few other people before bounding down the stairs and into the condo. Approaching the door, Dan ran into Kelly, almost literally. She had a tennis bag and racquet slung over her shoulder, the strap crossing between her enormous breasts, accenting their prominence for whoever wanted to look.
"Takin' off?" he asked, as he held the door open for her.
"Yes. I've had a long day and just want to get home and relax," she responded, as she descended the stairs, Dan following her down. "Too much alcohol and sun whipped me," she said over her shoulder.
"I know what you mean, baby. That's why I'm outta here with you."
On the sidewalk, Kelly looked both ways, as did Dan, and failed to see any cabs coming up the street. "It's always difficult to get a cab in this neighborhood at this time of night," she muttered.
"Not really. They just don't come up the side streets. Come on; let's walk down to Division. Should be easier there." As they started walking, Dan asked Kelly where she lived.
"Lincoln Park, right around Armitage and Sheffield."
"Huh. I'm just north of there. If the taxi situation doesn't look good, why don't we share one. I'll have him drop you off first."
"Ah, sure, thanks." After they reached Division, they waited about five minutes for a cab. When it pulled to the curb, Dan opened the door for Kelly to get in. He marveled at the way her tennis skirt swooshed back and forth over her firm bottom as she leaned in to put her tennis bag and racquet on the back seat. When she climbed in after her bag, Dan started shutting the door after her. Kelly reached a manicured hand out and stopped the door from shutting all the way, her mesmerizing eyes cast upward toward Dan.
"Jump in, Dan. We waited a while for this one. Who knows when the next will come?" Dan shrugged his shoulders and got in the cab beside her. Kelly put her bag on her lap, and slid over next the door on the opposite side of the cab as Dan shut the door. "Armitage and Sheffield," he instructed the driver.
On the way over toward Lincoln Park, Kelly and Dan made small talk about their lives, comparing notes on their neighborhoods and rising real estate prices. As the taxi neared Clybourn and Sheffield, it got snarled in traffic. Dan peered through the security screen and sighed. "We could be here all night." After a pause, "Tell you what. You're not far from here, let's just get out and walk. It'll probably be faster."
After the driver pulled the cab to the curb, Dan and Kelly got out and started walking up Sheffield. A few blocks on, Kelly pointed toward an alley and veered that way. "Let's cut through here. I'm on the next block over." Dan followed her into the alley and marveled again as her tennis skirt swish over her rear end before he caught up with her.
"It's not safe to walk through alleys at night, you know," he said in a playful tone as they walked through the garage-lined alley.
"I know that. But I've got you as my protector, right?" she giggled, lightly bumping her shoulder into his arm. Her soft voice was almost rousing. "Thank you for paying for the taxi, by the way. That was very nice of you. When we get to my house, I'll dig my wallet out of this bag and pay you back."