Bethany sat by herself in the quiet darkness of the office, trying to decide exactly what she would say when the youth pastor, Brother Joe came in. She'd thought about it a long time and although she didn't exactly have all of her ducks in a row, she certainly knew what she thought she would do. Sweat was starting to bead up on her forehead as she sat there, planning her strategy.
Bethany, at 18 years old stood 5 feet 10 inches tall was with long, straight blonde hair that hung almost to her waist had a gangly, lanky look. Her face was somewhat round, much like a child’s and the fact that she was thinner than most girls her age made her stand out. Her father was the pastor of the biggest church in town. Most of the time it was great to have a father who was so well known, but like most ministers, he was hardly ever home, always seeming to have time for every family in the congregation except his own. Brother Joe, the youth pastor had hired on the staff when she began to reach puberty and over the years she had confided more than a few of her problems to him. He'd been a confidant as well as a friend over the years and she had managed to get the nerve to even tell things that she would never dream of telling anyone else. Now, she wished she hadn't but that was, as they say, water under the bridge!
She felt herself jump slightly when the beep, beep, beep, beep and whir of the electronic lock warned her that someone was coming. Oh how she hoped it was Brother Joe! On the other hand, something inside made her hope it wasn't him either. Goose bumps moved down her spine as she recognized his familiar footsteps coming down the hallway. It was Joe alright! She'd studied everything about him, from his short-cropped black hair, neatly trimmed black beard and every square inch of his 5 foot 11 inch frame. He had become the focus of her attention over the last few years. She'd become visually familiar with every square inch of his gorgeous body. Many nights she had lay in bed dreaming of the day when he would look at her as a woman instead of one of the youth. She dreamed of his broad, muscular shoulders, and imagined how his 40-inch chest would feel against her young fingers. Not only were his shoulders broad, they tapered down to a 30-inch waist. And his ass in those blue jeans! That ass that was just waiting to be freed from the confines of his heavy denim Wranglers! It wasn't only the way that his ass was packed in his dungarees that intrigued her. His jeans fit so tight that she could swear that she could see which direction his cock was lying!
Joe was whistling a tune, almost in time to the clack, clack, clack of his cowboy boots as they pounded the tile floor. Bethany took a deep breath and waited until the carpet in the waiting area of his office muffled the steps. Walking past her, Bethany could smell the heady fragrance of his manly odor as he walked past her in the reception room, not evening noticing her there in the darkness. Hormones that had only a few years ago been dormant were now causing her to become aware of every part of her body.
Pushing his office door open, he flipped on the light and pushed it almost shut, leaving it slightly less than half way open. Bethany could see him move past the door occasionally, taking care of his business as he went. Joe pushed the button on his answering machine and the voices that she had become familiar with started with their problems.
How boring, she thought to herself as she eavesdropped on what were supposed to be confidential conversations. Bethany stood up and walked closer to the door and pushed it open slightly. She could see him better now, and she almost drooled as she spied on the young man. Bethany felt a slight envy as she heard the voice of one of the young college girl's voices come over the speaker. It was that slutty little Verlyn. She was such a nasty little thing. At least that's what all the jocks in town were saying. If only he knew, he'd have her defrocked, or excommunicated or whatever it was that they did with town whores for disobeying the strict rules that were laid down for them.
Loosing her nerve, Bethany slowly turned and silently crept across the dimly lit office. She'd almost made it to the door when suddenly her world seemed to come out from under her and she stumbled and fell against the wall.
"What the....." she heard Brother Joe say as he rushed into the reception area and flipped on the light. Time seemed to stop for the girl as she looked up to the handsome young preacher. "Are you alright Beth?" he asked as he reached down and took hold of her arm.
"Uh, yeah," Bethany said, her face red from embarrassment. Beside her, a small trash can full of crumbled up papers was lying on it's side.
"Here, let me help you kid," Joe said as he scooped his hand under her lanky body and stood her on her feet. Her face became a little redder now, but not because she felt embarrassed about falling over the trash can. What bothered her was that she absolutely hated it when he called her "kid"!
Joe helped Bethany to a chair and then started to pick up the scattered paper. Bethany watched his butt in his tight blue jeans as he quickly finished the task at hand. "There we go," he said turning to face her. "What on earth are you doing here at this late hour Beth?"
"Um," she paused, "I was just going to chat but I think I probably should be going!" Bethany stood and once again began to leave. Joe chuckled and touched her shoulder. "It's ok Beth," he said. "If you need to talk, I have time for you."
Bethany felt a lump begin to form in her throat as she listened to his deep baritone voice. Everything about this young preacher was all man! "It's really nothing Brother Joe," she said. "It wasn't anything that couldn't wait."
"Come on Beth, I told you to just call me plain old Joe when we're alone. Now what's bothering you kid?"
"Ok Joe. I would like to talk about some things but I know that I am no longer a member of the youth," she said as she gave him her best little girl look.
"It's ok Beth," brother Joe said as he smiled at the young girl. "We've been friends a long time. You can stop by and see me any time you need to chat."
"If you're sure you have time Joe," she said, the nervousness welling up inside her once again.
"Of course I have time Beth. Come into my office." Bethany followed Joe through the door and sat down in the chair in front of his desk. "Why don't you take your coat off and relax a little Beth," he said as he moved behind his desk. Instead of sitting behind it like she thought he would, he moved his chair and sat beside his desk instead.
Bethany shook her head. "I'm a little chilly tonight. I think I'll just keep it on a while."
"Very well Beth." As was his custom, Joe began the regular conversation that he went through with everyone that he saw. He asked her how school was going and all the other things that most people talk about. He sensed that Bethany was beginning to relax a little and then he finally paused. "Now is there anything in particular you wanted to talk to me about?" he asked.
Bethany sat silently for a moment and then she forced a small tear to form in her eye. She'd practiced this for so long, she almost believed the lie she was about to tell the youth minister. "It's," she paused, "it's my dad," she said acting embarrassed.
"Your dad?" he asked. "What's up with your father?"
"I think he hates me Joe," she replied, working on the man's sympathies.
"Now how in the world could anybody hate you," he asked?
"We had a fight," she continued. "A BIG fight!"
"Wait a second Beth, he's out of town isn't he," Joe asked looking confused.
"Um, yeah," she said nervously. She'd almost forgotten that he wasn't in town. "The fight was a few days ago. It was an ugly fight too."
"Aaah. I see. And may I ask what the fight was about?"
