Evelyn works too damned hard. Five days a week, she works as an auditor at a local grocery store, scanning items to see that they ring up the price marked on the shelf. On her two days off, she commutes over an hour to attend the university, in hopes of someday getting out of retail all together.
In any case, Evelyn has little time for herself and is often very tired. This leaves her little to no time for a social life, so Evelyn gets the majority of her peer interaction via e-mail and Yahoo Pager.
Among the names on her buddy list is Eric, a guy she met at a party a few months back. He lives in the Bay Area, and she, being a Tahoe girl, doesn't see a lot of possibilities developing with so much distance between them. But he is so hot. He's hot in a whole different kind of way than the other guys Evelyn has dated. He has a bit of a biker look going for him, with short, disheveled hair, a rusty goatee, and a thick chest.
Eric is also a bit on the unique side. He belongs to a historical re-enactment group, and plays medieval warrior on the weekends, complete with armor, weapons, and combat. Knowing nothing would ever come of it, Evelyn has always felt free to flirt relentlessly with Eric. He flirts just as relentlessly in turn. He tells her what he would do to her if he were with her; that he would man-handle her, because he knew that's what she really wanted. Evelyn often takes long hot baths after conversations with him, pleasuring herself under the suds while imagining that her fingers were his tongue.
One afternoon while Evelyn was finishing a paper for a humanities class, a message popped up from Eric.
"Guess what!" it said.
"What?" she typed back, feeling a flush of warmth in her face as she realized how pleased she was to be hearing from him.
"My group has a two-day event in Tahoe next weekend," Eric answered. "We'll be camping and everything. I'd like you to come hang out with us. Can you make it?"
Evelyn breathed deeply. She would love to see him. But maybe she shouldn't.
It won't work with him so far away. And I'm no good at one night stands. But he's so sexy and he says all the right things. Maybe I could just go hang out. It doesn't have to get sexual.
"Hello?" sounded the next message from Eric.
"Sorry," Evelyn typed back. "I'm trying to remember what my schedule is for that day." She was lying. What she was really trying to do is talk herself into meeting him. Or out of meeting him. Or just make a decision for heaven's sake!
"I have to work until 4:30," she finally answered. "Is it all right if I meet you after that?" "That would be perfect!" he assured her. "That way combat stuff will be over and it will just be music and food and mayhem!"
"What should I wear?" she asked, nervously.
"Nothing," he answered, with an emoticon wink.
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The next night after work, Evelyn stopped by the fabric store and bought a medieval costume gown pattern and some deep blue slinky fabric. She spent the next few nights sewing when she wasn't doing homework, and by the following weekend, she had passable medieval attire. She pulled the top of her hair back into two braids and pinned it back with a barrette. She threw a white, crocheted afghan over her shoulders for warmth and headed out the door to the event.
The event took place on a ranch. When Evelyn arrived, she was amused to see all the people in the garments of the medieval period milling about with the sounds of the highway right behind her. Some of the people played the part and some did not. The illusion was often disrupted by the sight of a woman in full regalia chatting on a cell phone, or some other such business.
Evelyn walked around, trying not to draw attention to herself. She just wanted to check things out before she made her way to Eric's encampment.
As it was early autumn, the sun was already beginning to fade as she made her way around. Candles and lanterns were burning in this tent or that pavilion. Shadows and silhouettes were falling around her. Over there, she could see a woman belly dancing in front of a fire, in nothing but her chemise. Evelyn could see the woman's naked body through the thin fabric and found herself slightly aroused. "I could never do that!" she thought.
The sounds of laughter and singing filled her ears from all sides until finally she saw the red and gold pavilion flying a red flag with a black bear print. This was what Eric had told her to look for. It was a large pavilion, obviously sleeping quarters for the entire group of ten warriors and their ladies if they had them. There were dozens of people gathered around outside, preparing food at the fire, singing, and joking.
