To my gentle readers: I'm sorry it's been so long since I've contributed. Life manages to get in the way. I do have some more material that I hope to share in the near future. I hope you enjoy this and aren't too disappointed that I remained true to what happened. Please feel free to vote, comment or contact me. I love to hear from you.
Jen
This whole thing started out about as innocently as you could imagine. Jen had updated her profile picture on social media and I 'liked' it. My wife Paula has a stepbrother and Jen is his daughter so she's technically Paula's niece, but I guess you could call her my niece as well. I don't know what else you could call her but pretty. I've known her now for 34 years and through family events have watched her grow up from an 8-year old kid to the divorced mom of 42.
Jen always had big eyes, she really had to grow into them and they're still big. Think Jennifer Love Hewlitt's eyes and it would be a close match to Jen. Except for the dark hair and eyes, Jen doesn't otherwise look like JLH, but she is still attractive.
So, since we're related and such when I joined social media she was suggested as a friend. I offered and she accepted. We are both very kind to each other's postings and like each others photos. So, like I said, she updated a photo of herself drinking from a famous-Seattle-coffee-company cup. Everyone liked it, including me, but I had to comment, "The cup hides your pretty smile."
She commented back, "Thanks."
Pretty simple right? Everything totally appropriate. Acceptable communication between an uncle and niece. But I guess, you can find the beginning of everything somewhere, and that's where I found the beginnings of what later I'm sure many would view as far from acceptable conduct between an uncle and his niece. At least some would say that. We never did. I know I came to believe that it was wrong, but that only comes from experience, and thinking with the big head and not the little head.
Now, like I also said, Jen is divorced, for like a LONG time. Maybe 10 years. I don't know if she's too picky, or there just aren't enough guys out there that meet her requirements. I don't actually have any idea of her relationship needs, but a normal chick of her age and situation would probably want a single or divorced guy from perhaps 3 years younger to 10 years older than her, financially at least stable, preferably sound, weight and height within at least normal, preferably fit/athletic range, and likes kids. (especially hers) I'd think sober, maybe social drinker, disease free, average or better intelligence, heterosexual. (although I have no ideas what her fantasies could be) You get the picture.
So for whatever reasons over these last 10 years, boyfriends for Jen were very rare. She always seemed ok with it. I mean, it's not like we hang with her 24/7, but when we saw her she never seemed depressed about the dating scene. She always said how many losers and liars were on the dating sites. I felt bad for her. She was wasting 10 of the most valuable years of her life she will ever have. At get-togethers I would often find myself near her and I strived to always be someone who would listen and empathize. Hello and goodbye hugs/kisses were always totally proper, but that didn't mean I didn't treasure that very brief moment of bodies and lips touching. I wondered if she ever felt the same. At the pool or beach I always enjoyed looking her over, but I have no idea if she ever felt the same towards me. I guess you could say I had the hots for her, but they were always well hidden and my conduct totally appropriate.
The next day I got a photo with caption from her. She had the cup below her chin and now had a bright smile. The caption read, "Better?"
"Much Better!"
So I thought that would be the end of it. Until the next day when another photo arrived. A selfie in the car. Jen's smiling.
"Just beautiful, but I sure hope you took that while stopped."
"I did. I'm the safety girl."
"Isn't that a line from the Julia Roberts character in 'Pretty Woman'?
"OMG! You're right!"
"That's OK, you look just as good as her."
"I wish! But thanks. Now I'm so embarrassed, copying a hooker."
"Well, if you had to copy something from a hooker, her speaking would be the least I'd worry about."
"LOL!"
The next day another smiling selfie arrived.
"Another bright smile!"
"Thanks!"
This continued, - here let me check the date - for about a month at this level. Just a smiling selfie and I'd acknowledge it. I was running out of positive adjectives! She would thank me. Somewhere late in this month she asked me to send her a selfie back. Well, I had to make sure I had as least combed my hair and didn't have food in my teeth, but I did. She thanked me for it. She still sent me one every day.
Until one late Saturday night. It was almost 11 and she hadn't sent one. At first I blew it off. Everything comes to an end sometime. Maybe she's tired of it. Maybe her phone died. Maybe she forgot. Maybe she's on a date. So then I'm like, don't be a pest, but then got to thinking the worst. Maybe check to make sure she's not kidnapped. Crazy right?
I send her a message, "Missed your smile today. Hope everything is OK. Don't want to be a pest."
No reply. Should I worry? She's a grown woman. I'm not her husband, in fact, I'm nothing. Who would I call? Her son? Her mother? Paula? The police?
"Uhhh, Officer, you see my niece sends me a selfie every day and today she didn't." Like THAT would go over well.
At 1:15am she messaged back. I hadn't silenced the phone like I usually did so I heard it.
"Sorry. I got all frantic getting ready to go out, and then was out and the music was loud and it slipped my mind."
"Glad you are OK."
"Missed it huh?"
"Of course. One of the highlights of my day."
"You're too sweet."
I got a weird sense that she almost added, "if only." I don't want to talk myself up too much, but I'm a nice guy, have always done right by my family, keep myself in shape, have always been nice to her and have always been, shall we say, significantly more financially well off than she and her folks. If I were to guess, if I was in the market I would check off every box on what I'd guess are her requirements list. Every one except I'm not available, and I exceed the upper age number.
Of course, it's possible she has hidden 'Daddy Issues' and is attracted to older guys, but historically her boyfriends haven't been significantly older than her.
But maybe in her mind I don't fall into that category. I keep fit. I think I could maybe pass for younger.
I press my luck just a little. "Why don't you send me one right now?"
"Right now? I look like hell."
"I doubt that."
"I just got in. I was getting undressed."
"Oh, sorry. Forget it then. I didn't realize."
Seconds later her selfie arrived. It wasn't sexting (yet) maybe more like a boudoir shot. She was undressed, holding her bra over her chest, so you couldn't see anything and she had her head down, looking up with those big, big eyes.
"So gorgeous. I won't even deduct points for no smile. You look smoking!"
"Well, thanks. I'm glad someone finds me attractive. The losers at the club tonight all had their eyes on these young chicks. In fact, all the guys had their eyes on the young chicks."
"They have no idea of what they are missing out on. Those young chicks are probably airheads, you have so much more to offer."
There was a long pause and I thought she had gone to bed. Turns out, she was typing.