The Gift

Kathy took a sip of wine and looked at the clock on the wall. It was one o'clock on Saturday. She did not normally drink this early and alone, but this was a special occasion. She stared at the thin red box on the coffee table. She had received it last Saturday. She had received many others over the years. Usually they were received with great delight. This one was different. This was not a happy one.

She picked up the box and went into her bedroom. She placed the box on the bed and opened her closet. She rummaged through the shoes and boxes of keepsakes she kept on the floor in the rear of her closet until she found shoe box sized plastic case. She opened the lid and saw the row of boxes inside. There were many white boxes, two were silver, one gold, four blue and one black box. She placed the red box at the rear of the line of thin boxes in the shoe box. She wondered why she kept the box and the contents inside. For some reason she could never part with them.

Randomly she picked up the third box and opened it. The contents of which were a card and a CD. She slipped the CD into a player and the tender melody of "When I Fall in Love by the Lettermen" came out of the speakers. She picked up the card and read what was written on it. The card did not say who it was from or to whom it was given. There was no need for it. She knew who had sent it to her.

She had received it at her work along with a large bouquet of flowers. All the girls in the office gathered around Kathy to see who sent her such a beautiful arrangement. She smiled confidently as she opened the box, took out the CD and slipped it into the player on her desk. The girls started teasing Kathy. Who is this guy sending you flowers and love songs at work? Some wanted to know what was on the card that came with the letter. Kathy waited for the appropriate part of the song to start reciting what was on the card. When the right place in the song came she started to read:

"WHEN I GIVE MY HEART

I GIVE IT COMPLETELY

OR I'LL NEVER FALL IN LOVE

AND THE MOMENT I CAN FEEL THAT

YOU FEEL THAT WAY TOO

IS WHEN I FALL IN LOVE WITH YOU"

The girls got quiet while she read the words printed on the card. When she was done and the music stopped the girls started in again.

One coworker named Grace said "This is a special guy. I'm jealous. Does he have a brother?"

As Kathy was once more listening to the music she looked up to see Grace absentmindedly moving the flowers about. She quietly commented to Kathy "You have received a wonderful gift today, from a special man."

"Thank you; the flowers are beautiful aren't they? replied Kathy. Grace looked at her surprised and was about to speak, instead she turned and walked away.

On it went till the girls finally went back to work. Kathy for the first time thought that maybe she did have something special. She was sure it would be if it weren't for John Williams.

John was her first love. He was her first boyfriend. He was the boy who took her to the prom. He was the boy who took her virginity when she was a junior in high school. They made love all the way through the last two years of high school. The last time was the night before he left to go to college. He was always in the back of her mind. He always had a little piece of her heart that made it impossible to commit to another man completely.

After graduation John went to Stanford in California to study medicine. Kathy went to a community college in her home state of Florida. At first they exchanged phone calls and letters. After a while the letters stopped and the phone calls became less frequent to be replaced by emails. Soon the emails ended as well.

After a while Kathy dropped out of school and took a job with Allstate Insurance Company. Now she worked 9 to 5 sitting at a computer. She answered phones, sold insurance, typed letters and any other duties that fell her way. Her day consisted of the same routine. Get up go to work and come home. It was not satisfying but it paid the bills.

The only relief was her nights out with her friend Lisa. She kept hoping to hear from John. Then she heard from some of Johns friends that he was dating a pre med student at college. She now knew why all contact had been broken off. For weeks she was depressed and cried herself to sleep every night.

Yet she still had a dream of what could have been. What would her life be like if John came back? She still had expectations of her knight in white armor returning to sweep Kathy out of her boring existence to enjoy the life of a doctor's wife. Kathy would then become Mrs. Dr. John Williams. She let her fantasy life as well as her real life self esteem center around John Williams. He became almost a mythological figure that no mere human could match. As weeks became months and John did not return she tried to put him out of her mind and move on, yet even if she did not realize it, he was always there.

Kathy had always been an attractive girl. Not a beauty in a classic sense, but she had an earthy sensuality that drew men to her. Even when she was dating John, it did not stop other boys from trying to hit on her. She stood five foot five inches tall. She had long brown hair, usually parted down the middle of her head and flipped back towards her face just under her chin. She possessed flawless olive colored skin with brown eyes that sparkled when she laughed and belied her Italian heritage. Her breasts were a full 34C and she liked to wear low cut tops that showed lots of cleavage. She was a little thick through the waist and her butt was a tad small. Long lean dancer's legs finished off the package. When viewed together it was a very enjoyable sight.

After she was sure that John was out of her life for good she had a number of relationships with men. Only one turned sexual and lasted for five months before she broke it off. Incredibly she felt guilty, as she was still carrying a torch for John. Her guilt over what she considered cheating broke up most of her relationships with men. Her reputation was not that of an "easy" score.

She was twenty five years old when she met Tom. He was not like all the other men she had dated in the past. Tom had enlisted in the Army when he was 18. Six years later, including one tour each in Iraq, Germany and Afghanistan in that order, he separated from the military. He was an infantryman and had seen his share of action. Upon returning home to Florida he opened a small automotive repair shop not too far from Kathy's work.

Tom thought it was Kismet when he saw Kathy and her dancers legs walk into the shop. He was sitting behind his desk in his office at the rear of the shop and she did not see him. She was with her best friend Lisa who she had driven to work that morning. She had on a white low cut top with black polka dots. A short black mini skirt and black high heels finished her look. Tom was mesmerized. He had never seen a woman as exquisite as this.

"Hello" Kathy called out, "Is anybody here?"

Tom walked out of the office and said "Can I help you Miss?"

Kathy explained that her car would not start and it was in the parking lot of the insurance company right down the street. It was around closing time and she knew he must want to go home. She hoped he would be like all the other men she had met in her life and would do anything she wanted if she showed a little of what she had. As she was telling him where her car was she "accidentally" dropped her keys from her hand and bent over to pick them up. This caused her breasts to roll forward in her blouse to give him a good view of her breasts. When she stood back up she knew she had him by the look of desire on his face.

She laughed to herself that this was too easy. He could barely get his eyes off her cleavage. When he finally tore his eyes away from her breasts she gave him a pout with her lips and asked if he would help her. Tom looked at those soft full lips and wondered what kissing them would be like. Tom stuttered when he told her that he would take the tow truck and pick up her car and bring it to the shop to look at it. As the two girls walked behind him to the truck they gave each other knowing looks. They had both used their looks to manipulate men many times.

He walked her to the passenger door and helped her manage the high step to get into the cab, getting a good look at her sculpted calves and thighs. He received the same show from Lisa when he helped her in the truck as well. When Tom got in the truck and started down to her car it gave Kathy a chance to give him the once over. She noticed his muscular arms. His muscles rippled when he shifted gears. She could tell he had short but muscular legs by the tightness of his pants. He had black hair cut short and combed straight back. She noticed he had kind green eyes and full soft kissable lips when he turned to give her a reassuring smile.

She could feel an attraction and thought it might be fun to play with this one for a while. She was sure it would not go too far as he was a grease jockey and his job was not up to her standards. Yet, it might be fun for as long as it lasted. When they arrived at the parking lot Tom opened the hood on her late model Camry. After looking inside for awhile, he noticed that the ground wire had come loose. A few turns with a screwdriver and Tom told her to try to start the car. Much to Kathy's surprise it started right up.

Kathy gave Tom a huge smile and he smiled back. He was furiously thinking of something to say, trying something, some way to spend some more time with this attractive woman but could not come up with anything.

Kathy got out of the car and asked "How much do I owe you for the quick fix?" Tom would not take anything for this small service.

He said "just getting that big smile was payment enough."

Kathy looked into those green eyes, walked to this handsome mechanics side and gave him a kiss on the cheek as she said "Thank you so much." When she backed away she could see his face turn three shades of red. As she walked to the car door an idea came to her. Quickly turning to face him, she asked if he would like dinner at her place tomorrow night as payment for the repair.

With widened eyes and a smile he replied "Yes, I would like that, a lot".

For a second Kathy thought about John and had an inkling of regret but as soon as it came it went away. She had a good feeling about this man who was a stranger no more than an hour ago. She felt she could trust him. She actually found him intriguing. She had a hunch he would not be a mechanic for long and her hunches were rarely wrong.

Taking a business card from her purse she smiled and handed it to him saying "Call me tomorrow and I will give you directions to my apartment." As he took the card she caressed his cheek with her other hand and said "Thank you again for helping me today." She turned to leave and put a little more sway into her hips as she walked back to her car. When she looked back she was pleased to see her little display had worked. Not a muscle moved as he watched her walk away. She smiled once again and drove off down the street.

Finally Tom regained his composure and smiled to himself as he got into his truck. He would definitely be calling her tomorrow. In fact he could hardly wait.

Lisa tore into Kathy when she left the parking lot "What are you thinking? You hardly know this guy. What if he is an ax murderer or something like that? Besides I know you. A mechanic is not the type of guy you typically date."

Kathy was unruffled, "You know where he works. If anything happens you can tell the police who I was with. Beside I am sure he is OK." reluctantly Lisa agreed.

"You have to promise to call me when the date is over to make sure you are Ok. Lisa quipped "Getting the juicy details is just a bonus." Both girls laughed as they sped down the street.

She told him to be at her apartment at 7PM. He was there at 6:45 but waited outside till 7 before entering her apartment building. He did not want to seem too eager even if he really couldn't wait to see her again. He knocked on the door and waited for the door to open.

Kathy was at the stove stirring the pot of sauce she had made to go with dinner when she heard the knock. She went to the mirror on the wall to check on her outfit one last time and waited. She smiled as Tom knocked again. Outside he was wondering where was she? Had she had a change of heart? Anxiety overcame him and he knocked again. At the third knock Kathy smiled again to herself. Making the guys wait always took some of the confidence and swagger out of them.

Kathy called out "Be right there." Tom was relieved when the door swung open and Kathy was there smiling at him. She invited him in and he gave her a bottle of wine and a small bouquet of flowers. She thanked him for the gifts and made a big deal about the flowers and placed them in a vase on the table where they would be eating.

He took in her beauty as she cut the flower stems and placed them in the vase. She was wearing a white blouse which buttoned up the front with the three top buttons undone. The blouse was tucked into a pair of tight black jeans. She was barefoot. Somehow she seemed so erotic walking barefoot in her tight jeans that Tom was suddenly filled with desire for this woman that he had really known for only a few moments in time.

Dinner was chicken cacciatore with spaghetti. It was made with her own homemade sauce. The food was delightful. It had been a long time since he had a home cooked meal. As good as the food was the conversation was enchanting. They told each other about where they had been and what they had done and where they wanted the future to take them. Tom learned that Kathy had some college and an artistic bent. She took some art courses in college and was quite good at watercolors. In fact she had some well done pieces hanging in her small home.

Kathy listened to stories about his time in the Army, some of them graphic enough to make Kathy wince. She could hear the pain in his voice and it brought tears to her eyes.

She found that he was not a mechanic in a small shop but that he was the owner of three shops' around their town. He had signed contracts with one of the large auto rental companies to provide maintenance and repair work for their fleet of cars. He had contracts with the US Government to provide them with similar services as well as the insurance company Kathy worked for, plus others. That was the largest shop and had ten bays in it. One shop did nothing but customizing work and the other, the one she walked into worked on late model high end automobiles like Ferrari's and Lamborghinis. It was his favorite shop as it was the first one he opened. He had a small office in the rear where he took care of all the accounting work for all three shops. He stayed late to do some paperwork when she walked in. Usually he locked up the shop before starting and did not know why he had forgotten that day. Tom told Kathy he was very happy to have forgotten.

He told her where he lived. He was proud of the three bedroom house he had purchased on the outskirts of town two years prior. It seemed that Kathy's hunch was correct. They ate dinner, drank wine, talked and drank more wine, played some games while drinking still more.

The evening was drawing to a close and Kathy made the bold move of asking Tom to stay a little "longer." He wasn't sure what a little "longer" meant but he quickly came to his own decision.

Tom went to Kathy took her in his arms and gave her a passionate kiss, then backed away and told her he could not stay.

Kathy whispered "Don't you like me?"

Tom replied, "Yes Kathy I do like you. In fact I like you a lot. But I see more in you. I know I have only known you for a short time but I see a future for us. I want to get to know you better. I want to take it slow so we both can know what we will be getting into. I don't want a sexual relationship to complicate things. Besides, anticipation will just make it better if we do decide to take it to another level. Do you understand?"

Kathy had never been turned down before. But this did not feel like a turn down. This was a promise of something more. It was for a chance at something solid and real. For the first time in a long time she felt good about a man. This man knew what he wanted and she felt sure he wanted her. He wanted to make sure she wanted him.

She took a leap of faith and told him "Not many men who turn me down get a second chance. You however, you just might be the one to get another chance. Oh and just so you know I do understand." she added.

That night Tom went home and went to bed. He tried to sleep, but sleep would not come. All he could think about was the beautiful woman he had turned down tonight. His mind was occupied by visions of what they might be doing right at this moment. He tossed and turned thinking what a fool he must be to turn her down. Sleep was a long time coming.

Kathy got dressed for bed but first she had to keep her promise to Lisa. Kathy told Lisa all about the evening and the chemistry they shared. Kathy then revealed "I kind of asked him to stay over."

"You asked him to stay over? Have you lost your mind? You just met him today." Lisa thundered.

Kathy groaned "Don't worry, he turned me down." Lisa was more shocked that he said no.

Lisa joked "He must be gay."

Kathy laughed "Not from the goodnight kiss he gave me. I can definitely confirm he is not gay."

Tom tossed and turned while Kathy slept like a baby. She did not feel like she was alone, she felt like he was there with her. In a sense he was. Somehow he had gotten into her heart. She could still feel his strong arms around her and felt safe enveloped in them. Her lips still tingled with the passion of their kiss. It took four months for Tom to come to the realization that he was in love with Kathy. She was sure much sooner. One year later Tom and Kathy were married. It was a small service with only a few friends and relatives attending. They moved into Tom's house on Kensington Street and started their life together.

The CD stopped playing. Kathy did not seem to notice, she was too wrapped up in her pleasant memories. She ejected the CD and slipped it into the case along with the card. She bypassed the next two white cases and went for the gold case. The gold and silver cases were special. They held the fondest memories for her. She opened the box and took out the CD and the card. She had received the box on the morning of her wedding day. She, along with her bridesmaids was getting ready for Kathy's big day. The doorbell rang and one of her bridesmaids opened the door. It was a Fedex carrier delivering the gold box. She took it to Kathy. They searched all over until they found a guest with a small portable CD player. They all watched as she opened the gold box and put the CD into the player. Kathy started reading the card and then pressed play. An old tune by the Thymes called "So Much in Love" started playing. Soon Kathy read the lines on the card:

WHEN WE WALK DOWN THE AISLE TOGETHER

WE WILL VOW TO BE TOGETHER TILL WE DIE

SO MUCH LOVE HAVE WE TWO

JUST CAN'T WAIT TO SAY "I DO"

SO IN LOVE SO MUCH IN LOVE

Tears welled up in Kathy's eyes when Lisa started yelling "don't start crying, it will ruin your make up." Lisa waved her hands in Kathy's face to blow cool air across her.

One of the bridesmaids cracked "With a card and song like that if you cant make it down the aisle I wont mind filling in for you."

Kathy snorted 'Don't you even think about it. I sure as hell will make it to that alter. I don't know why I ever made you a bridesmaid." They all started laughing at that and the make up crisis was averted.

When Kathy got to the church, right before the bridal march started she peeked into the church to see Tom standing at the altar talking to his best man. He looked so good in his Tuxedo. She was filled with pride for her man and wondered how she ever got this lucky. She made a vow to do her best to make him as happy as possible. Kathy was smiling when she thought about how she felt just before her wedding. Then the smile vanished as she realized how badly she had let Tom down. She certainly did not make good on that promise. She slowly shook her head, wondering how she could have hurt him so badly. What should have been a wonderful memory no longer was. Kathy quickly slipped the card and CD back into the gold box and placed it back in its place among the row of boxes.