Hugs and kisses to my editors, Pete and Dave. I'm sure I've still misplaced a few commas. :)
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She first saw him working outside. She wasn't sure what he was doing, but it appeared he was checking some wires that connected to the back of the house. From a distance, she could see he wore a uniform of standard-issue work pants and a clean, collared shirt. His back was turned to her, giving her a nice view, and when he leaned down she scolded herself for letting her eyes travel downward. Brushing aside her wanton thoughts as the distractions to which she had only recently grown accustomed, she decided to ask him what he was doing, since it was her house he was kneeling behind.
She hesitated for a minute, contemplating what might happen if she confronted a stranger alone. It was her day off and she didn't exactly live near anyone. The closest neighbor was at least a mile away. She thought it would be OK. She was a woman of considerable size and strength. She decided she could hold her own if he turned out to be up to no good. Besides, she wore a .38 revolver neatly tucked into a leather holster she kept clipped to her waistband.
Jessica possessed qualities men found intimidating. However, most of her friends were men and she learned early in life how much she preferred working with them instead of women. She had worked in health care and didn't mind the occasional filthy mouth you'd hear when working around the younger doctors. She openly enjoyed making a few of her co-workers blush with her own version of trash talk. Jessica understood completely how her impetuous and brazen personality might seem to others, but there was no changing who she was, despite having tried and failed to be more ladylike.
She was easy to talk to and inherited her father's ability to listen. She was "comfortable" to confide in, took no shit from anyone and gave her honest opinion about everything. Though everyone was friendly with her, it still hurt deeply that no one showed any interest in taking advantage of what she could offer behind closed doors. She hated herself for being sensitive about this. It was a ridiculously feminine flaw and she envied how men could seemingly so easily separate emotion from sex. She might have been taken to task more frequently if she wasn't obsessed with the need to be wanted wholly for who she was, not just because she had a functional hole between her legs.
As a result, her sex life had ranged from mediocre to nonexistent. She had only been with a few men in her lifetime. It wasn't exactly for a lack of desire, but years of rejection had erected a sound proof box around any libido she may have had. Jess let that part of her scream itself to sleep behind the walls until it had finally given up and left her alone. It was only recently that she had noticed a stirring that threatened to reawaken a sleeping giant.
She turned her attention back to the young man obviously absorbed in whatever it was he was doing. Since he didn't seem to notice her, Jess leaned against her porch door and took the opportunity to admire him a little more. By all accounts he was very good looking. He looked to be only a few years younger, perhaps in his thirties, but she had never looked her age so he could have been older.
She was a physical match for him. Her plump cheeks were smooth and soft. Only a few fine lines around her clear, blue eyes might have betrayed her true age. She wore her dark blonde hair up in a knot most of the time, secured with a hair stick she had purchased as a souvenir one year while vacationing at the beach. The vendor had told her it was carved from teak wood and imported from Africa. She doubted very seriously the claimed origin, but she agreed it was teak. It was strong, very sharp and she had really liked the little zebra carved into the top. Since it held her hair nicely, she never regretted the purchase.
Jess continued to observe the man. As she approached she could hear him cursing under his breath. From where she stood she saw him quickly bring his hand up to his mouth and begin sucking. He had obviously cut himself and was trying to stop the flow of blood. She ignored how her breathing changed when he took his finger out of his mouth, looked at it and then slowly replaced it. She shook her head and walked over.
"Hello?" she sang out in her usual, cheery voice. "Would you like some help? Can I get you a bandage?" She hoped he didn't notice the flush spreading across her face.
The man turned around, a bit startled, and looked at her. "Hello. Yes, that's very kind of you. My clamp slipped while tightening this connection and I think I may need stitches. Damn it. I'll have to call the office and tell them what happened. They'll probably make me come in and call it a day. I hate contract work. I won't be able to make my next appointment."
"Well," she said, "it would really do no good to have you bleed to death in my back yard. Please, come in. I can probably take care of it for you. I work at the clinic in town. Let me clean it up and have a look."
He smiled and the smile traveled to his eyes. Oh yes, she definitely noticed his eyes. He had long eyelashes. Women have tried for centuries to get lashes like the ones that gracefully surrounded this man's eyes. They were a deep brown with just a bit of gold in them. The stubble on his face indicated he may have forgotten to shave the last few mornings, or perhaps he was trying to grow a beard. Either way, Jess found herself thinking of how nice and rough it would feel against her skin.
They went inside and Jess motioned for the gentleman to sit at the kitchen table. She ran over to the sink, grabbed a bowl and filled it with warm water. She reached over and found an unused bar of soap in the basket where she kept it. As she leaned over to open the cabinet to find a clean washcloth, her shirt draped down in the front. She reached her hand up and quickly but absentmindedly tucked the top into her bra strap to keep it secure.
The man cleared his throat. "My name is Geoff by the way. Thanks for helping me out. I'd prefer not to call the accident in, if possible. This is the first day in a week that my schedule is actually full of appointments, and with work being so hard to come by these days, well, you can probably imagine."
"Call me Jess. Yes, I can only imagine what contract work is like at the moment. What, may I ask is it that you do?" She hoped to find out what this man had been doing behind her house, and was trying not to just come right out and ask.