Authors Note: First attempt at writing. Constructive criticism is welcome. All characters are over 18. I would like to sincerely thank HeyAll for editing and guidance thru the process! Very much appreciated to get some help from one of my favorite authors.
Chapter One: House Hunting
After being snowed in for 3 days in early December, and living in Virginia, outside of Washington DC, I decided that I had enough. I had always wanted to move south to the warm weather but never did anything about it. This time I pulled out my computer and launched my browser and searched for nice warm places to live in the south.
I started to click open the search results. There are a lot of states south of Virginia. I was thinking of several, North or South Carolina, Georgia, Florida? All have great weather for the most part. Doing some more searching I settled on moving to Florida. Now, to narrow down the options.
I wanted to live at the beach but could not really afford it. The next best thing was to find somewhere close that was not expensive but had lots of amenities. A good university, as I wanted to keep working on my MBA. I also wanted an outdoor lifestyle. A decent airport so I could get in and out when needed was also a must.
A little about me as an aside... I have always worked long hours with lots of travel involved. Despite the travel and work, I have always been a committed runner. I love to bike and generally always make it a point to find a gym in the city I am in and work out. I have kept in good enough shape to keep my 6'2" body down around 210-220 lbs. I have "finished" a couple of marathons. Yes "finished", two Marine Corps Marathons while living in Virginia. At that weight and size, I am not a speed demon! I am proud of that accomplishment. Now being 35 years old and with traveling less, I wanted to find a place to keep my desire to be fit, a year-round event. Enough about me and back to the story.
Over the next few days, I searched some more. I talked to friends, relatives, and anyone who's opinions I valued and then settled on the Orlando area. I contacted a real estate agent I found online. I explained to her what I was looking for. A nice 3 or so bedroom place. Working at home, I needed a room for an office. A bedroom for me that would fit a king-sized bed of course, and a spare bedroom for when parents, friends, or family wanted to come down for a break during the winter. I then booked a flight for the following weekend to continue my search.
The agent, Ms. Kim Bradford met me at baggage claim at the airport, holding up a sign with my name on it, Jason Bryant. I noticed her right from the start. Her bright smile, blonde hair, and impeccable dress made her stand out. She looked just like her picture on the broker's page. The clothes she wore were just tight enough to show off her toned body and firm breasts. I noticed her smile get bigger as I approached her, holding out my hand and introducing myself.
"Hello you must be Ms. Bradford, I'm Jason it is a pleasure to meet you. Thank you for picking me up."
Ms. Bradford replied with that big smile.
"It's nice to meet you also, but please call me Kimmy, everyone else does. We have a busy couple of days in front of us, lots of places to look at. If you just have a carry-on, let us get started."
"I can't wait to see what you have for me."
With that, off we went. We climbed into her new white BMW and off we went to house hunt.
We spent several hours going from one area to another, one house to another. With each successive house, our conversation grew more and more relaxed. Kimmy continued to narrow in on what I was looking for.
After the sixth house, Kimmy said, "I think I got it." She made a U-turn and started off to what she thought would be a perfect fit.
During our ride, Kimmy said she knew about a home coming on the market in the next several weeks. Turns out that the couple selling the house were moving out of the country.
Kimmy had been referred to sell the house by Kimmy's close friend. Her friend and her dad lived next door. They were sad to see their next-door neighbor go and wanted to make sure the "right" people bought the house. So, they arranged for Kimmy to be the agent.
Off we went.
"Have you heard of Altamonte Springs?"
"What is an Altamonte Springs?" I replied with a smile on my face.
Kimmy smiled her bright smile looking at me as she accelerated onto I-4.
"I think you are going to love it!"
We exited I-4 on E. Altamonte Drive and made our way to 1010 Mariners Way.
Pulling into the driveway way I noticed a nice peaceful neighborhood. Well-kept houses, nice front lawns, and pools in the backyards. I had not had a pool in mind when I was thinking about my new home. Having seen them, I now liked the idea. A nice dip in the pool during those days working at home would be a perfect break.
We got out of the car and I noticed Kimmy wave to a woman out front of the house next door. It looked like she was looking down at a package left at front of the door. She was shaking her head with her hands on her hips.
Kimmy called out to her, "Hey you. What are you doing?"
The woman looked up and waved back. Kimmy made her way over to her.
I followed.
As I approached, I noticed a beautiful young lady, twenty or twenty- one with the most beautiful smile. Silky-smooth below the shoulder blonde hair topped her beautiful face. A stunning, proportioned athletic body. I wondered if she was an athlete or cheerleader. The woman was clad in pink shorts and a white top that was stretched across her breasts, nipples slightly protruding the top. My heart skipped a beat as I got closer.
The woman replied, "Oh my gosh Kimmy, it is another delivery of ammo!"
It was easy to see the frustration on her face as she further said, "UGGGG! He knows I can't lift this box and it seems like they get bigger each time he places an order."
"I have to break the box down and carry the small ammo boxes in one at a time," she sighed.
Kimmy started to laugh and as I came closer, Kimmy said "Jason, this is the friend I mentioned, the one who gave me the referral."
"Jason meet Tammi, Tammi meet Jason."
Tammi reached out her hand, I took it in mine and as our hands touched, I felt a spark. I smiled and almost stammering said, "it's a pleasure to meet you, Tammi. Did you say that box was heavy? Can I help you with that?"
"After all, if Kimmy does a good job selling me, we may be neighbors. I want to get off to a good start just in case," I said.
Tammi smiles back replying, "Oh my gosh that would be so great - would you? My dad expects me to bring the ammo into the house and it takes me forever and my muscles get sore."
"Of course, Tammi let me grab that. Where do you want it to go?"
Well, she was right, it was heavy, but I sucked it up and with some effort got it inside to the kitchen. That was the first time I met Tammi. Kimmy did sell me on the house, but honestly, I think it was Tammi that closed the deal. I moved in about 75 days later, the weather was warm the sun bright. Little did I know at the time just how hot things would really get.
Chapter 2
Moving In
During the 75 days before moving down, Kimmy and I spoke often and developed a great professional and working relationship. Her cheery disposition made those cold Northern Virginia winter days go by quickly - and made me look more and more forward to living in sunny Altamonte Springs.
To be honest, I was also looking forward to seeing more of my soon to be next-door neighbor, Tammi.
She seemed to pop into my mind often during those days leading up to the move. I did sneak in a question or two about her with Kimmy. After all, Tammi would become the girl next door. I hoped that Kimmy would not suspect the interest I developed in Tammi from far away.
Kimmy was happy to respond not only about Tammi, but also about her dad. It turns out to be just the two of them living there. It also turns out, that Tammi and her boyfriend Chuck were towards the end of a breakup. That tidbit of information further piqued my curiosity about the girl next door. Kimmy was a wealth of information about the other neighbors and the entire area. By the time the moving trucks pulled up to Mariners Way, I felt that I already knew the area like the back of my hand.
The move was uneventful, Kimmy was there at closing on Friday and the next day to make sure that everything was perfect. I moved in on a bright sunny Saturday morning. I was more than pleased that Tammi and her dad came by with coffee and bagels to round out a perfect start to the move.
Kimmy and Tammi got more than their share of looks from the movers. That did not go unrecognized by Tammi's dad, Joe Jackson. As we chatted more, I learned that Joe, who was himself well built and confident, is a police officer in Orlando. The pronouncement of his involvement in law enforcement was loud enough to be heard by the movers and while they still stole glances of Tammi and Kim, they became less obvious.
It seemed they, Kimmy and Tammi both loved the glances the strong muscular movers were throwing their way. While I could not hear them, I caught them whispering to each other a couple of times as they watched the movers carry my belongings into the house. I thanked Joe and Tammi for the warm welcome and gave Kimmy a big hug for all the hard work she put finding the perfect location for me. The day wrapped up! I was moved in, did some unpacking of essential things. I was so ready to take a dip in my new pool and looking forward to relaxing and sleeping the first night in my new home.
The next day, Sunday, the real unpacking would start.
One room at a time. I made it thru the bedroom, my new office and living room. I sorted thru box after box, unpacking and putting things away in either closets, drawers, or back in the box to donate to Goodwill.
About mid-day I felt it was time for a break and put on my bathing suit and I was off to another dip in the pool.
Looking over at the Jacksons, I noticed Tammi laying out by their pool taking in the sun. She was in a pink bikini top and a black bikini bottom that left nothing to the imagination. My eyes moved from her beautiful face, to her blonde hair (now with purple highlights) then around her athletic body. I instantly noticed her nipples poking thru her top. A smile grew on my face.