I left yet another boutique tired and grumbling. I'd been at the mall for two solid hours and still hadn't found anything to buy my sister for her birthday. I sat down on a bench in the center of the mall to rest my tired feet and to try to be inspired about which shop to try next. After a couple of minutes, I just kind of zoned out and started people watching. That's my favorite part of the whole shopping experience.
I watched a group of elderly mall-walkers shuffling by, getting their daily exercise. I smiled sympathetically at a woman with a chattering five-year-old and a screaming toddler in tow. I found myself studying a young couple who were having a hard time keeping their hands off each other. I felt a little envious of their youthful passion and the way they touched and kissed constantly. They sat down a couple of benches away from me, with the teenaged girl sitting on her boyfriend's lap. They started making out lustily, not caring who was watching them. I smiled to myself when I realized I was becoming mildly aroused watching the young lovers, and I wished for a moment that I could be seventeen again too. I also wished Tony was there to kiss me for everyone to see, but my husband hates shopping even more than I do. He had stayed home to watch a football game on television instead.
I turned away from the kissing couple and sat back on the bench, hoping I'd suddenly come up with a wonderful gift idea for my sister. I was deep in thought, and jumped with surprise when someone came up behind me and put their hands over my eyes. A male voice whispered into my ear, "Guess who?" It sounded like Tony's voice, and that was definitely Tony's cologne. He'd decided to spend the afternoon with me after all!
I answered back, "Well, any man who smells as good as you do must be the sexiest man at the mall." I expected a laugh or a kiss on my cheek. Instead, the hands slowly moved away from my eyes, and I turned around to look at...a complete stranger who was blushing furiously. "Oh, I'm so sorry! I thought you were somebody else!" he stammered. Flustered, I stood up too quickly, managing to dump the entire contents of my purse on the floor.
I felt my own face growing red with embarrassment. The stranger was still apologizing profusely, and he rushed forward to help me pick up my stuff just as I bent over to do the same. We met in the middle, and our heads conked together with a painful thud. Both of us were momentarily stunned and we sat down on the bench holding our foreheads, trying to get rid of the little birdies and stars that were created by the impact. He looked at me with a horrified look on his face, and started apologizing again. I interrupted him with an attack of the giggles. I was temporarily overcome by the humor of the situation, and my giggles turned into a full blown laughing fit. It took about ten seconds before he was laughing hilariously right along with me. In no time my side was splitting and I realized people were starting to stare at us, and that struck me as funny too and I laughed even harder.
In an effort to regain my compusure, I leaned over and picked up the spilled contents of my purse. He reached down and grabbed a tube of lipstick and some change that had landed near him. When he handed them to me, his fingers brushed mine, and the laughing fit suddenly evaporated with the unexpected contact. Still smiling, I took a closer look at this man who had mistaken me for someone else. My overall impression was that he was very attractive, a well put together package in his early forties. He had dark wavy hair that was graying slightly at his temples, and his lively bright blue eyes still sparkled with good humor. I noticed that he had an absolutely adorable grin, which at the moment was enhanced by his still-reddened cheeks. He also appeared to have a nicely trim body for a middle-aged man. He was comfortably dressed in a pair of blue jeans and a gray short-sleeved polo shirt.
I felt his eyes giving me the once over as well. I was excessively relieved that I had taken the time to fix my hair and put on my makeup before I'd left for the mall. I was wearing a simple peach colored sundress and my favorite pair of tan sandals. My long auburn red hair was curled and held back out of my eyes by a pretty gold barette. I noticed his eyes pause briefly to study the swell of my full breasts, and again as his gaze continued downward to my bare legs. I realized I was enjoying his visual assessment of me. When our eyes met again, we were both smiling.
He apologized again, and offered me his hand in a "no hard feelings" gesture. I took his hand and briefly shook it, and he introduced himself as Jack. "And from the back, you have the most remarkable resemblance to an old girlfriend of mine! But you're even prettier than her from the other side." he said, grinning. "I'm Tess. And I'm sure it's your old girlfriend's loss that she won't have a huge bump on her forehead tonight!" I replied, rubbing the sore spot on my head. Jack gestured at the wedding ring on my hand. "Is there going to be angry husband showing up any second to kick my ass for assaulting his wife?" I told him I thought he was safe since my husband was probably propped up on our sofa watching football.
