Oasis In The Desert Ch. 01

By the time she was done it was time to leave for my interview. Again we rode in the limo we had used the day before. Julie was surprisingly quiet through the ride and I though I had done something the night before to distance her.

As we were getting close to the college I said, "Julie I'm sorry if I did anything last night to offend you. As you can tell I'm not used to drinking and I may have done something I should be sorry for."

Julie though for a moment the said, "No you were a perfect gentleman, But that also forces me to asked a personal question. One you don't have to answer if you don't want to. Also if you do answer I will never tell anyone what your answer is." When she didn't ask the question I told her go ahead and ask. "Well I was wondering are you gay?"

I just about choked on my tongue before answering, "NO I'm not gay but why would you ask. Does the school have a problem with gay teachers?"

Julie blushed deeply and said. "This is going to sound really conceited but I was wondering why you didn't try to hit on me. Even when you were six sheets to the wind last night you didn't try. I mean I've been told I'm a hot looking chick and I've had lots of guy hit on me but you never did."

I laughed and said, "To tell the truth I have though about it but seeing I don't live here yet and you are quite a bit younger then I am, I didn't think it was a good idea to pursue it."

Julie giggled and said, "That didn't stop the last three applicants that were interviewed." Before we could continue the limo pulled up in front of the administration building and we got out.

Julie took me straight up to Dean Mitchell's office and I was taken right in. I quickly found out just how efficient the college was when I found out the application that Julie just filled out at the hotel was sitting on the Dean's desk along with my high school, college and graduate school's transcripts. He even had a copy of my doctoral thesis.

After we went over some of my background he went on to tell me about the school. He told me they had no sports program and they received very little in the way of grants. In fact they survived mostly on student tuition and generous donations from alumni. They did pay well, but not as well as other schools and universities. But any teach could live well on what they made in the Phoenix area.

After I had asked all my questions and he had asked what he needed we stood and he escorted me to the door while saying, "I like what I see so far. Why don't you go down and talk to the Mathematics and Sciences Chair?" When he opened the door Julie was standing out side the door waiting for us.

Julie took me down to Professor William's office and he too had the same paper work that the Dean had. We also discussed quite a bit of my background but mostly he centered on my graduate studies and the work I did at my last job. We also touched on any teaching experience I had which was little except for the assistant teaching I had done during my graduate studies.

After the interview was over he showed me to the door and told me he would be in touch. Julie was waiting once again and asked if I wanted to see the campus. We walked around and she showed me all the buildings before stopping for lunch at the student cafeteria.

Before we ordered our meal Julie got a call on her cell phone and after talking on it for a few minutes she said to me, "The dean would like to see you again. Do you want to eat first or go see him?"

"Let's go see him first," I told her. I really didn't want to eat cafeteria food anyway. She told whoever was on the phone that we would be right there before she hung up.

It took just under five minutes to walk from the cafeteria to the Admin building. When we got there we went straight into the Dean's office. This time Julie sat next to me while the Dean told me what he wanted.

"Ted, I hope you don't mind me calling you Ted," I told him I didn't. "After looking over your paper work and your interview. Plus the report that Julie gave to us I would like to offer you the position. The only problem we have is your inexperience at teaching. To combat that Professor Williams would like you to move down here as soon as possible so he can work with you to get your class syllabus up to snuff before the school year starts. Would that be possible?"

I thought about it for a few moments and finally said, "I think it would be possible to move down in a week or two. I'll just turn my condo over to a realtor and let him sell it. But I would have to find a place here. I can't live in a hotel for long."

"You can stay in one of the visiting professors apartments here on campus till you find a place. We'll move you down at our expense. Julie you will see to that wont you?" She told him she would. "Good, then we'll see you when you get here: until then good luck. Oh by the way your doctor told me this was the best move you could make."

I was shocked that he had time to talk to my doctor. But what I really wanted to know was what Julie said to him. I mean I was pretty drunk last night and I still wasn't sure what I did.

To celebrate Julie suggested that we go out for lunch, My treat since she paid last night at the restaurant seeing I couldn't find my wallet. Hell I probable couldn't find my ass with both hands but of course I didn't tell her that.

We went to a small restaurant near the campus. After we ordered Julie took out her lab top and asked, "When would you like the movers to come?"

"How about Monday? But what I want to know is what did you report to the Dean and when?"

Julie closed her laptop and said, "When you were talking to the Dean I talked to the Chair. When you talked to the Chair I talked to the Dean. I told him you weren't a skirt chasing drunk. Well that's the short of it."

When I asked why she told them that, she said, "It's part of my job. I act as decoy. Lets face it any one knowing that they have a interview would behave themselves in front of their betters as well as their colleagues but in front of a low level office worker, not a chance. That's why you're the tenth applicant for this position. You didn't come on to me and you refused every drink I gave you at the luncheon."

I laughed and asked, "I thought it was strange that you had alcohol at a school luncheon. What about last night? I was pretty drunk as I remember."

Julie giggled and said, "Yes you were but that was partly my fault. I should have told you about the salsa before you ate so much of it. But I also realized that you weren't a drinker because you were so drunk after only four glasses of beer. Any one that drinks a lot should have been able to drink that pitcher and still walk away. You see our school runs on a tight budget. If we lose one benefactor or our enrolment isn't at a hundred percent we would lose a lot of money. Two years like that and the school would close. We really can't afford a scandal and we need the best teachers we can get."

I thought it over and said, "I can understand that, but you have to make me a promise. You have to take me back to that restaurant again. I don't remember much but I think I liked the food there."

Julie smiled and said, "Mr. Fenton are you asking me out on a date?"

I took her hand in mine and said, "Would it be inappropriate if I did or am I too old for you?"

"MM definitely not too old and it would be appropriate now that you're a member of the faculty. Too bad you're leaving tonight, I would take you back this evening. Now before this goes too far let me get to work on moving you down here," She told me as she opened her laptop again.

Julie asked all kinds of questions before she finally asked, "Will you be driving down or flying?"

"Definitely flying down, I don't own a car."

This surprised her, she said, "Well you're going to have to do something about that. You can't live in Phoenix and not own at least one car. I think the school would cosign a loan if you need it."

I chuckled and said, "I don't think I'll need that. I may need someone to take me shopping for a car as well as a house. Do you know anyone that would be capable at that?"

Julie giggled and said, "We'll see how things go when I take you back to the restaurant. Maybe this time you won't try to sing to my music." I'm sure I blushed at that but like I said I don't remember it.

After we had lunch Julie took me back to the hotel to collect my bag and then on to the airport. By five that afternoon I was in the air on my way back home. By midnight local time I got into my apartment just as the phone rang. It was Julie calling to make sure I got home safely.

Okay so maybe moving to Phoenix wasn't such a bad idea. It was a nice quiet school just like I was looking for. Julie seemed like a nice girl. In fact everyone I met was nice, unlike the people in New York City. I even felt better than I had in a long time.

By noon the next day I had called a friend that sells real estate and he was only too glad to sell my condo seeing he would make a great commission on the sale. I also called my ex-wife and told her what I was doing and why. I did it mostly because she still worried about me and she always called me once a month to see how I was doing. She was sorry that she was right about working myself into an early grave, but she was glad I saw the light and that I was doing something about it.

By Sunday I was just sitting and waiting for Monday to come. The movers where scheduled for eight in the morning and I had a flight out at seven that night. I thought about going shopping for clothes to wear but Julie told me to wait and she would take me shopping. She wanted to make sure I had the right sort of clothes that I could wear in Phoenix.

The flight out of Kennedy Monday evening was almost like a sigh a relief. I actually felt good about leaving now that the day finally arrived. I had sent all my clothes down on a separate freight carrier seeing all my belongings would be going into storage until I found a home to buy.

The plane landed just as the sun was setting and I reset my watch once more. Julie was there to meet me, this time she wasn't holding a sign with my name. This time she didn't just directed me on which way to go but she slide her arm around mine and led in the right direction.

Julie wasn't dressed up like she was the first time she met me at that airport. This time she was wearing a blue denim skirt that was ultra short and a very tight white polo shirt that clung to her breasts like a second skin. She had sandals on her feet though this time they had a slight heel to them. On her head she was wearing a beat up old cowboy hat that looked like it had fallen out of her jeep a few times or she had driven over it. But all in all she looked extremely attractive just the way she was.

After picking up my suitcase at the baggage claim area we walked out to her Jeep in the parking lot, no limo this time. After getting the suitcase strapped down in the back of the jeep we climbed in and Julie drove me to the campus apartment I would be using for a few weeks.

Once inside the apartment Julie ordered a pizza before she started putting my clothes away. She said she was doing it to see what I had. Once that was done we sat on the sofa and waited for the pizza to arrive.

"Just so you know Professor Williams had to leave town for an family emergency. He'll be back next Monday. Until then it's my job to show you around and help you any way I can. I think we should find you a car first and then get you some comfortable cloths to wear." Julie told me as we sat down to eat the pizza.

"Maybe you can show me some of the housing around here so I can start looking for a place to live. This is nice but I would really like my own place with my own furniture." I told her as I looked around the apartment.

"Okay but tonight I want you to relax. The Dean told me you need to relax and not become stressed out."

Julie and I finished the pizza then sat and watched TV for an hour or so before she left to go home. I really wished she had stayed but I knew it was too soon for that. I knew if I waited, it would be worth it.

By six the next morning I was already out of bed and sitting on the balcony having my first cup of coffee. Julie told me she would be here by nine in the morning to take me shopping for the first car I would own since I was in college. In New York you didn't need a car and there was no place to park it if you had one.

I was quite surprised that the morning was as cool as it was seeing how hot the day before had been. It must have been over a hundred when I landed but this morning it felt like it was in the low seventies. I later learned this was common for the desert region.

Julie arrived by eight thirty and was ready to go. She told me it was going to be hot out and we should get an early start. We got an early start all right, but it didn't help. We spent the next six hours looking at cars and dodging sales men. She told me we needed to find the right car first before we talked with a sales man. She wanted me to get a jeep like she had or at least a truck but I was looking for something a little smaller.

After six hours of finding nothing that she thought I could use and me disagreeing on everything she thought I should have, she said, "Look none of these smaller cars will get you very far in the desert. I know you don't think you want to go out into the desert, but that's because you've never been out there. Why don't we make a trip out there this weekend and you can see if you like it. Then you can decide on what you want to drive."

"You really like it out there don't you?" I asked. Julie nodded her head enthusiastically so I said, "Okay I'll try it once and see what you like about it so much." Julie was so happy with my decision that she jumped for joy and landed in my arms. But she quickly jumped back out saying she was sorry for getting so excited.

I wasn't sorry because she was the first girl I had in my arms since my wife left me six years ago. And it had been a few years before then since my wife and I was intimate. I knew it was my fault because I worked too hard and for long hours. Even when I was home at nights and on weekends I was still working. My ex-wife tried everything to get me to relax, but all I could think about was work. I really drove her out of my life because she needed someone to love. She never cheated on me that I knew about but I couldn't blame her if she did. God knows I wasn't much of a husband to her.

I thought about this while Julie pulled me to her jeep while she was saying that we needed to go cloths shopping since we weren't buying a car. It only took us a few minutes before we were strolling through a mall. Thankfully it was air-conditioned and being inside was quite a relief.

Julie knew where she was going and in minutes we were in a store that catered to the out doors. She immediately went to where they had shorts. She simple asked my waist size and in seconds our basket was filled with ten pair of shorts in several colors and seven pairs of denim jeans. We next moved on to the shirts. At once she started to fill the basket with shirts from tee shirts to button down camp shirts.

I was okay with all of her selections until it came to the cowboy hat. She tried to get me to buy a black Stetson that I wasn't comfortable with. I mean I wasn't a cowboy and I doubt I would ever be one. Hell I was never even near a cow or a horse for that matter. I tried to talk her into a baseball cap but she insisted that it wouldn't give enough protection from the sun in the desert.

We discussed the choice of hats rather heatedly until my eyes fell on a dark green bushman's hat. It had a wide brim like a cowboy hat but it didn't make me feel like a fake around all of the real cowboys that seem to infect Phoenix. Julie agreed that it was better than a baseball cap and if I like it then she was okay with it.

We next moved on to shoes. She knew with out asking I wouldn't even put on a pair of cowboy boots. She suggested that I buy hiking boots, as they were the best to wear in the desert and I could also wear them with shorts. She also suggested on a pair of running shoes for in town and sandals when it was really hot out. I also needed white crew socks to wear with the boots and the running shoes.

After we were done at the outfitters and we had but an eight hundred-dollar charge on to my bankcard Julie said, "Oh my god I didn't realize that we had spent so much. This isn't going to hurt you is it?"

"Well I'll have to eat soup from a can for the next three weeks but I should be okay," I told her. When I saw how serious she was, I chuckled to let her know I was kidding. Julie slapped my arm before picking up some of the bags and walked out of the store.

We made one more stop on the way out of the mall. This time it was for three shirts made of a silk and three pairs of loose fitting trousers. Also a pair of black shoes that had an inch and a half heel on them.

When I asked what these were for Julie told me, "When you take me out dancing I expect you to look as good as I do. Some how I doubt you would have the right cloths for salsa dancing."

She was right I didn't and except for some jumping around to music when I was younger I didn't know anything about dancing. I had heard the salsa dance was very fast and could be very erotic if done correctly. Knowing I couldn't dance like she wanted I said. "You may want a different partner to dance with. I dance like I have two left feet and one of those feet is lame."

Julie laughed and said, "Well you're honest. Don't worry, I can teach you to dance. That's if you want to learn?"

"If that means I'll spend more time with you, I'm all for it. Besides I heard dancing is great exercise," I told her.

Julie smiled and said, "It can be, especially the way I do it."

After the shopping trip Julie took me back to the apartment I was using and she told me to put on one of the new outfits that we had just bought. She also told me I had about two hours to get ready before she would be back.

It didn't take me very long to get showered and dressed and in the meantime I only thought about Julie. Julie was the prettiest and sexiest girl I've met in a long time. Whereas most of the other girls I had know used their clothes and their make up to make themselves appealing to men Julie did it naturally, as if she did it without trying.

God knows she didn't use her clothes as they seem to be well worn. Also they looked like she just threw them on with out thinking about it. The clothes she wore when she was working were something else entirely. They were elegant and they seem to proclaim her femininity.

While I waited for her to return I sat and watched a news show, mostly to see what the market was doing. Even though I wasn't in the game any longer most of my money was and I still needed to keep abreast of the market to know when to buy and sell stocks. It was nice to know that even though the market was in a recession my money was still safe with the position I took just before it started to fall. I also knew that it was time to move some of my money around to take advantage of the low stock prices. But that could wait for another day as I still had some time before I thought the market would start to rise again.

Exactly two hours after Julie had dropped me off I heard a knock on my door. When I answered it I found Julie on the other side of the door. She had also changed and now she was dressed to kill.

She had on a very short dress that seemed to barely cover her bottom and the V between her legs. She was wearing stockings and four-inch stiletto heeled pumps. Her hair was loose and free flowing with tons of long curls. Her makeup was superb though not over done. Her neckline plunged deeply down her chest giving me an exquisite view of the sides of her well-tanned breasts. On her neck, instead of the ever-present bandana, she was wearing velvet choker that matched her dress perfectly.