Tina Carson scanned the room as she waited patiently for her turn to be served at the bar. She was on another night out with the girls from work, organised as per usual by her friend Mandy who had decided that they should try out the new retro bar that had just opened in town. The theme was meant to be a fusion of the swinging sixties and the glam rock era of the seventies. Tina wasn't sure if the mix worked that well but it certainly appeared to be the general age of the people it had attracted!
It was when she turned back to see if she was any nearer to getting served that she became aware of someone standing close beside her. She looked sideways to see a man ogling her breasts. It took him a while to realise that she was now looking at him.
"Alright darling, come here often," he said leering into her face, giving her the full force of his beery breath.
"Hardly," Tina replied frostily, "seeing as this is the opening night!"
"Oh yeah ... right," he said, looking around desperately whilst he struggled to think of something more to say.
"Can I get you a drink?" he blurted out, an idea coming to him at last.
"I don't think so," Tina replied haughtily, "besides, I don't think my husband would be too pleased if you did."
"Oh ... right, see you later then," the man said taking his rebuttal as his cue to leave as quickly as possible.
Tina turned her attention back to the job in hand and after finally getting served she returned to her friends with their drinks.
"Managed to tear yourself away from Romeo then?" Mandy taunted, she being Tina's work colleague and best friend.
"Very funny, I don't think," Tina replied forcefully. "You know what; I always seem to attract older men, never the young hunks. I've no idea why?"
"Must be your motherly looks," Mandy said with a cheeky smile.
"Yeah, something like that," Tina replied sadly, not even bothering to respond to the mild ribbing of her friend. Her mind was already wandering and as the conversation around her turned to other things her thoughts drifted back in time and in particular to her first encounter with an older, married man.
TINA'S STORY
I looked at myself in the wardrobe door mirror. I was pretty sure that I looked okay but I wasn't certain if mother would agree with me.
I smoothed my hands over my black skirt, reaching the hem about mid way down my shapely thighs. It was short. I chewed on my lower lip and contemplated whether mother would consider it too short and therefore too revealing.
It was the day of the Astle's Christmas Charity Party. This was an annual event when the Astle's, a fairly wealthy and prominent family in our town threw open the doors to their large home and held a fund raising event.
Not only would they invite all their friends and business associates but also the entire neighbourhood that lived down Two Mile Lane. And that included our family. We lived at one end and they lived at the other. It was funny that it was still called Two Mile Lane as it was probably not even a mile long now. I suppose seventy odd years of urbanisation including splitting it with a trunk road had put paid to that bit of nostalgia.
I'd turned eighteen this year so I was hopeful that my parents would treat me as an adult for the first time and let me drink alcohol at the party. In reality I'd already tasted it but they weren't to know that. The only drawback was that these parties could be a bit boring for a teenager. I'd realised that a couple of years ago. Too old to play kids games and not old enough to be treated seriously as an adult. Maybe this year would be different.
I smoothed on my thigh high stockings, a first for me, and slipped on my brand new 4" stiletto heel shoes, a belated birthday present to myself, bought using money gifted to me. I thought I looked pretty good.
"Tina, are you ready yet?" The strident tones of my mother shouting up from downstairs made me jump.
"Yeah, nearly," I yelled back as I turned my attention to finding the sweater I had selected to wear. I finally located it and pulled it over my head. It moulded itself around my breasts. It was a bit tight and I wondered if I was still growing in the chest department. I messed about with my long blonde hair until I felt it was okay. Then I touched up my lipstick. I normally didn't wear much makeup.
"Tina, come on, we have to go ... now!" Mother's strident tones once more echoed up the stairs.
I had no idea why she was in such a hurry to get there. It was barely eleven o'clock in the morning and it was well known that these parties usually went on into the early hours of the following day.
BOB'S STORY
God but I was bored. We'd been the first here, as per usual. And no doubt we'd be the last to leave if my wife April had her way. It was almost embarrassing. The party invite said eleven am. We were stood on the Astle's front doorstep at ten minutes to eleven. Even the Astle's seemed embarrassed for us. Well for me really. The social faux pas just washed over my wife's head, as she said with a little giggle, "are we the first to arrive?"