Dan was alone. After many years of a very happy marriage he lost his beloved wife Mary to cancer. He had taken early retirement in order to look after in the last few months and now he missed her dreadfully.
Eighteen months had passed since the funeral and Dan had completed just about every bit of decorating and repair outstanding around the house, including the replacement of the shed and the building of a new summerhouse. Now he was bored. He had acquaintances, but no real friends so he hadn't really been out of the house in a year. That was why he was determined to find a way of escaping his prison.
*****
It was a messy divorce, as these things usually are. After 28 years Amy finally snapped and ordered her husband out. His drinking, philandering and ultimately his violence had made her mind up. Alas, his attempt to assault his wife backfired. Having taken a swing at her and missed, she promptly applied the pointed toe of her high heels to the sensitive organs between his legs. Subsequently, it took him a full thirty minutes to get up off of the floor, by which time Amy had called the police.
Jack contested the divorce, but lost. Amy got the house, but nothing else as they had no children. That was of little concern later as her father had left her comfortably well off when he passed away.
The exhilaration that came of the freedom from a loveless marriage soon faded. She hadn't been alone for thirty years. A Dating Agency was a desperate last step to find somebody new.
Two outings later, Amy wasn't sure she had made the right decision. She was neither attracted to, nor interested in the men that she had been introduced to. One was an accountant and talked of nothing but his work. The other had never managed to hold down a steady job for more than a few years. In fact, when they went for a meal at a cheap restaurant she ended up paying because he claimed to have left his wallet at home.
Both of her dates expected sex. She didn't.
It seems that a single woman in her early fifties was considered an easy target and probably 'gagging' for it. She wasn't. Oh, she enjoyed sex in a way, but was never fully satisfied by it. Her husband was not particularly skilled -- even though he had had a string of affairs. He had never brought her to orgasm. He liked oral sex as long as it was Amy doing it to him. Only once did he attempt to repay the compliment and that was when he was drunk. Within seconds he was asleep with his nose whistling through her pubic hair.
Amy figured she would try just one more time and then would give the Agency up as a bad job.
*****
Dan was scanning through the local free paper when the Dating Agency advertisement caught his eye. The idea of using one made him cringe, but he could think of no good reason not to try it. Within days a meeting had been agreed at a local restaurant. It wasn't a particularly expensive one, but it provided good food and a pleasant ambience. He figured that if she didn't turn up he'd at least get a good meal.
Looking through the menu, Dan was aware of a movement out of the corner of his eye and looked up to see the waiter escorting Amy to his table. He stood up to welcome her.
Dan vaguely recognised Amy having seen her around town. She was dressed elegantly in a simple black dress, cut to just above knee length, with a jacket to cover the thin straps. Her black patent stilettos brought her height to within a foot of him. They shook hands and he helped her to sit down.
Amy was immediately impressed. She knew that Dan was nearly ten years older than her, but he looked about the same age. He was tall, handsome, looked fit and had a lovely smile and a twinkle in his eye. His voice was soft, yet authoritative and his manners seemed impeccable. She was surprised to realise that she fancied him. Feeling a little flirtatious, she slipped her jacket from her shoulders and hung it over the back of the chair.
On the outside Dan appeared unflustered, but inside he felt like fireworks were going off. He had to concentrate on Amy's face to stop himself looking at her breasts. With the jacket on, the dress looked good, but with it off the broad 'v' shape revealed an eye-catching amount of cleavage. He only got a glimpse when she was removing the jacket, but she was clearly wearing it without a bra. He was glad that he was seated and with a serviette across his lap.
It occurred to Amy that Dan might be gay, as he showed no response at all to her still firm bosom. But she knew that it couldn't be the case, or the agency wouldn't have paired them up. Maybe he simply didn't fancy her?
Their initial conversation was polite and cramped, as you would expect from two total strangers. But before long Dan had steered Amy into talking about her life. He was attentive and interested and asked lots of questions. He laughed at her jokes and gently complimented her when the opportunity arose.
The waiter came and went. They ate their meal and drank their wine and then ordered another bottle. Finally, Amy managed to turn the conversation round to Dan. His life was fascinating; having left school at sixteen, he worked his way up through a company until he eventually became the Managing Director. When the company was taken over he not only got a premium price for the shares he owned, but was also given the opportunity to retire on a very generous pension.
He had always looked for challenges and found a wife who had been of a like mind. He didn't speak for long about Mary, but Amy was aware of the deep love that he had felt for her. Dan himself steered the topic back towards happier things, soon making her giggle like a schoolgirl.
When Dan asked Amy if she had been with the Agency for very long she told the truth about the previous two liaisons.
"The accountant almost bored me to sleep. When it came to paying the bill, he worked out our shares to the nearest penny, including the tip! I couldn't wait to get out of there. But then he insisted on escorting me home. We got to the doorstep and he asked if he could kiss me goodnight. I was expecting a peck on the cheek, but he went for my lips. I was so shocked that I opened my mouth to protest and he stuck his tongue in!
"And his hands! They were all over the place! It was pretty obvious that he was expecting to bed me. I put him straight, shoved him down the steps and slammed the door behind me.
"And as for Job Centre Man, well he didn't he even ask. We left the restaurant and he just grabbed me. I slapped his face and walked away. I mean, sex is OK, but not on a first date!"
She reddened as she realised that the wine had loosened her inhibitions to the point where she had admitted to a stranger that she liked sex. That little voice in her head piped up and asked what would be wrong about having sex with Dan. She flushed even more. She tried to explain.
"Look, I'm not really very experienced sexually. I only had one partner before my husband. Besides, those men must have been desperate. I mean, who would find a woman of my age sexually attractive?"
