A Cold Day in Hell

This is my submission for the Annual Halloween Contest. I would be pleased if you read the story, then vote the number of stars you feel it deserves. Your vote tells me how well I'm doing. So it matters. Special thanks to PrivatesFirstClass for helpful comments. Thank you from an author with a warm heart, hands, and feet!

A COLD DAY IN HELL

By Rachel Anne Wallace

It was a cold morning in late November as I stood in the parking lot between the Hell General Store and Screams Ice Cream in the small hamlet of Hell, Michigan. The temperature had dropped to a few degrees above zero overnight as a cold front, an Arctic Express, came down from Canada. I was thankful there was no wind. Otherwise, the wind chill would have added to my discomfort with my head bare to ensure I could hear well enough to do my work. I was working as a Wildlife Ecologist, conducting the last of my ten-minute point counts for birds while standing outside my warmed car. The counts would allow me to conduct habitat specific analyses, if conducted over a period of years it would allow accurate assessment of population trends.

It's incredible how long ten minutes can be when you're uncomfortable for one reason or another. But there was another reason I was looking forward to finishing the count. Her face had appeared in the window of the general store with a smile, followed by a friendly wave before it disappeared.

It was Samantha, a name that seemed to fit so well with the theme of the area. I always wondered if her name alone had gotten her the job. My mind wandered back to the first time I met her, and I couldn't help but smile. It was warmer then—mid-summer. She had affected me from my very first gaze at her pretty face and attractive form. But it was her infectious smile and honeyed voice that had melted me.

The count finished, I placed my binoculars and paper forms on the warm seat of the car, then walked inside. I knew Samantha would be waiting for me with a warm drink and a breakfast sandwich from the small deli kitchen. I was a creature of habit, so after several months of my coming in for a mid-morning snack, she knew what I would order. Not that Samantha didn't take pleasure in teasing me about it. She had a wonderful personality, and we frequently engaged in friendly banter.

I remembered those early days. At first, I kidded her that she had a neck that begged a vampire to kiss it. It had made her blush red the first time I had said it. After several times she had gotten over that, so I switched to telling her she had the loveliest knees I had ever seen—she was the bee's knees. Making her laugh outright, and she had suggested I was looking at her all wrong. If she had only known it was far more than her knees that I was interested in. The slight wiggle of her behind as she walked away, the subtle bounce of her breasts within her bra and blouse when as she approached always grabbed my attention. She was a dream to watch in motion. Those are the kinds of subtle things a man can appreciate in an attractive woman.

Memories of how we had gotten comfortable with each other after several weeks flooded my mind. There was seldom anyone present during my stay and she seemed eager for the company. At the time, she was wearing a promise ring signifying her future engagement. At least, that was the explanation she had provided. Three days before Halloween I had noticed the ring missing from her finger. She never gave a reason, even though she knew I had noted its absence. All I knew, was that after that point, she joined me at one of the small tables when no one else was present so we could talk face to face, rather than across the counter.

*****

It was on Halloween day that had I picked up a pair of fake vampire teeth from the shelf, put them in, and then waited for her to sit down across from me. Then I gave a deep laugh, followed by a swooning—I need to drink your blood—bared my fanged teeth, and slowly bent down to kiss her bare neck. She gave a small shriek, regained her poise, and then giggled delightedly. She watched me as I sat back down with a broad smile. As I looked into her beautiful brown eyes they seemed to sparkle.

Then she said, "Grover. I can't believe you. Where do you come up with this stuff?"

"Guess you bring out the best in me," I countered with a smile, then reached over to take her delicate hand and kiss the top of it. She looked at me as her face flushed red. It was then I felt a surge of warm energy. My goodness! I had kissed her. I could tell it had affected her. We just sat across from one another, looking into each other's eyes, not saying a word. I couldn't help myself now, not after this acceptance of my spontaneous affection. I stood and stepped to her, extending my hand.

*****

I took Grover's hand as we stood in front of one another. The kiss on my neck had sent a powerful surge of warmth coursing through my body. His soft, moist lips on my neck matched my fantasy where he kissed me and held me close. I leaned towards him and closed my eyes. It was as if my body was on automatic, knowing what it wanted without me telling it. When our lips met, I felt my knees go weak, a masculine odor infused my nostrils, the soft swish of the overhead fan felt cool on my warm, bare skin as a jolt of electricity surged through me. He pushed his lips firmly onto mine as I gave him as much in return. When our lips parted, I took a breath and looked at him with a smile. It was all I could do, my entire body flushed. It had felt so wonderful, so romantic, standing in the dim light of the store, only the two of us.

It was as if one of my fantasies about him had come true. I had tried hard not to show how much I was attracted to him. The attraction was more than physical—his sense of humor, intellect, and the respect he showed me garnered my attention too. Whenever we spent time together, my fondness for him had grown. Each time I longed for an opportunity to see him other than at work. And now this, coming from out of the blue, completely spontaneous. It seemed to surprise him as much as it had me. My reaction had been instantaneous and unambiguous. There was no denying there was an attraction between us.

It was Halloween day and the store was going to remain open until eight-thirty as this was one of the biggest events of the year in Hell. After all, where else would you want to spend your time? The owner, Marge, had asked if I wanted the extra hours and I had agreed. After breaking up with my long-term boyfriend I didn't have any plans. I guess I could have, as two guys I knew from high school, who knew of the breakup, had asked me out. I had declined knowing where they wanted it to lead. I wasn't that desperate yet.

I had continued to wear my promise ring for weeks longer than I should have. The reason wasn't apparent to me at first, though as I thought about it, I recognized it was because it gave me cover from being hit on too often. It finally occurred to me, Grover wasn't going to ask me out as long as I was wearing it.

Grover was the man I really wanted to spend time with. Still, he hadn't asked me out after I took the ring off—that was, until this morning, when he stopped in as usual after counting birds. When he came in, it was quiet. The store usually didn't get busy until about eleven when the lunch crowd, such as it was, would come for the deli. This morning had fit the norm. Grover surprised me that morning in a most unusual way and we had shared our first kiss. Before he left, he asked if I had plans for the evening and I told him I was working. I could tell he was disappointed. I explained why and he looked at me with a wide, mischievous, grin.

"Samantha, I would be glad to come back and help you pass out candy to the kids. It sounds as if it would be a good time."

I was almost speechless. I mustered my wits after a few seconds "Are you sure? It gets a little wild with kids yelling trick-or-treat at the top of their lungs. I'm sure you have better things to do."

"What would be better than spending Halloween with you and a bunch of raucous, candy-crazed kids. You know, I wouldn't mind passing out sweets by helping the sweetest girl I know."

I wanted to simply grab him and squeeze him. Damn if I wasn't getting excited at the prospect.

"My, Grover you are quite the charmer today," I said with a shy smile. My heartbeat picked up again as he paid for his food and the pair of vampire teeth. I stepped out from behind the counter, hoping maybe we would share another kiss.

"Okay. I'll need to ask Marge if it's alright with her. Give me your phone number so I can call you if it's a go."

Grover handed me his business card after he wrote his private number on the back. Just then a customer came in the door, and I headed back behind the counter. My hopes for a kiss were dashed.

Grover called over his shoulder as he headed for the door, "Alright. We have a plan. I'll wait for your call. Behave yourself."

Marge told me she would come in and we would work together until about three when I got off most days. She was going to spend more hours at the store so I could go home and get some rest before coming back to hand out candy to the kids. When I asked if Grover could help she looked at me quizzically.

"Is that the biologist working on birds in the state recreation area?"

"Yeah. That's him. He comes in most mornings to get a sandwich and something to drink."

"Sure. No problem. I've talked with him a few times—he seems pretty nice. You know he's a good looking young man. If I were a bit younger..." She stopped with a laugh, "Okay, I'm going to stop now before I embarrass myself."

I called Grover after I got home and he told me he was looking forward to seeing me. I was certainly looking forward to seeing him. The memory of our kiss had stuck with me all day, and it warmed me each time it came to mind. Marge was right—he was an attractive man. It wasn't like it had entirely escaped my attention, but it had never been uppermost in my mind as he was simply fun to be around. That, and the fact I was already involved.

But there was another reason I hadn't considered a serious relationship with Grover. We were talking over a month ago when he told me he had applied for another position farther north that would be a promotion for him. He hadn't mentioned it but once after that, saying the decision was still pending. He lamented the fact that Civil Service procedures took so long. He was sure it would be a while before the final decision would be announced. He clearly enjoyed his work and I was a little envious—who wouldn't want to be outside most of the time watching animals.

It was well after supper and I was busy with a customer when Grover walked in. Though I didn't know it was him at first, as he was wearing a very convincing gorilla mask and a pair of gloves that went in under his shirt sleeves that mimicked ape hands, hair, and all. It was only after he approached me and asked if I had any fresh bananas that I recognized his voice.

I quickly came up with a reply, pretending not to recognize him, "Yes. We have no bananas. The chimpanzees came in earlier and wiped us out," I replied flippantly.

I couldn't see his smile, but I knew it was there.

I was just about to make another wise-crack when he spoke again, "No. Banana. I take the woman with great appeal."

He took me by the shoulder and leaned me back as if to give me a kiss. I started laughing and said, "Get your hairy paws off me you big ape."

At that point, he couldn't keep from laughing and stood me back up.

"Geez Samantha, I thought you were an animal lover," he said, as he removed his mask. His face showed a wide grin.

I placed my arms around his neck, "Oh, animals are okay. But when I want some lovin' I want a big, strong biologist to show me how it's done."

He looked at me for a moment, placed his hands on my hips, and said softly, "Samantha, I had no idea you could be such a tease."

"Give the right girl a kiss and you can learn a lot of things about her you didn't know before," I said seductively.

Before he could say anything, we heard the high-pitched voices of children as their feet stomped noisily on the wooden front porch. We quickly disengaged and I walked towards the table where the buckets of candy were placed.

"Okay, ape-man. Put that mask on and prepare to hand out candy. One piece to each kid."

A pack of five children and two mothers walked in, the kids yelling trick-or-treat loudly. I laughed as Grover held out a piece of candy to each child, grunting as he dispensed it. The kids loved it, not sure they liked his hairy hands or not. As fast as they had arrived, they left only to be followed by another group. I donned my fake elf ears and mask over my eyes and we both handed out candy for the next hour. We had fun with the kids and I was touched with how careful Grover was with the very small children being held by their mothers or fathers, making sure to move slowly and not grunt. Not a single child cried the entire time.

I turned on the closed sign at eight-thirty and locked the door so no one could come in. I had made a few sales of souvenir type items and went about closing out the cash register while Grover packed up the table the candy had been sitting on and placed it near the door to the backroom. When finished, I turned off the main lights and locked the door behind us once we were outside on the porch.

"Okay. Are you awake enough to come to my apartment for a little while or do you need to get going because you have to get up early?" I asked.

I was hoping Grover would spend some alone time with me. I really wanted a few more kisses and maybe a little more. But I knew his survey work started before dawn.

"Samantha, I can come over for about an hour. It's still half an hour home and then an early start in the morning."

He followed me home, less than half a mile, so it didn't take long. We walked into my small rental house, and I led him into the living room.

"I had a good time at work tonight. Thanks for helping me out. It was fun. You know the kids really liked having an ape give them candy."

"Do you see that cute little girl in the Ewok costume? She was such a darling. Bet you looked as cute when you were that age."

I looked at him. I couldn't resist. It was the perfect opportunity, "And now?"

"You look pretty enough to kiss," he said confidently.

I liked his confidence. He wasn't going to be shy about it and neither was I. I smiled sweetly and moved over next to him on the sofa. I wasn't going to play the shy, innocent girl. I wanted to feel the exhilaration I had experienced this morning. I wanted the warmth of arousal to infuse and warm me.

One kiss followed another, and as we kissed and snuggled against one another, I grew warm as my arousal grew stronger. It had been too long since I was treated to this much physical contact, and it felt so damn good. He whispered sweet nothings into my ear, things that urged me onward, my desire growing. I glanced at the clock, then grimaced. I didn't want him to leave, but I also didn't want to have him too tired to get up on time.

"Grover, I wish I didn't have to say this, but you should probably go if you're going to be ready for work tomorrow."

He rose and smiled, "Samantha, I'm going to go to sleep tonight with visions of you in my mind."

We slowly disentangled ourselves from our prone position on the sofa. I walked him to the door and we shared another passionate kiss. He looked at me so tenderly making it almost impossible not to pull him back and continue where we left off.

"I'll see you in the morning. Please be careful driving home."

"I will. Happy Halloween, Elfin Princess. Thank you for being the best treat ever."

I closed the door and watched out the window as his car disappeared into the night. What a difference one day had made. What a difference a single, sweet kiss had made. I walked into the bedroom and changed my panties, our make-out session had definitely gotten me hot and bothered. The feel of his hard member against me as we lay together came back to me. It had been a while since I had felt that reaction from a man.

***

The weeks passed and Grover and I started spending more time together. I now knew on what days he would be in as we talked every night on the phone for at least half an hour. We had gone out a few times, to a movie, to a party with his friends, and one time we had gone back to his apartment to... well, enjoy one another more intimately. We hadn't gone very far, kissing and hugging, a little groping of each other through our clothes; I had enjoyed every single minute.

Grover seemed to be willing to go slow and I found it fit me just fine. I had never told him my ex-boyfriend had gotten terribly possessive and had gotten to the point that he had abused me physically. All it took was one time and I walked away. I wasn't going to be treated that way. My ex called me from time to time and had stopped into the store one time to ask me to forgive him. Saying he still loved me, I told him I forgave him, but that it was over. I wasn't sure he believed it.

*****

I was trying not to get too attached to Samantha, but I found myself drawn in by the power of her personality. I knew if I got the position I had applied for, I would be too far away to see her regularly, if at all. I didn't want to lead her on, to have her believe we had something we didn't have. More than once I had thought I wouldn't be entirely disappointed if I didn't get the position. It would allow me to continue my relationship with her. I should have recognized the danger signs. When you start thinking you're willing to make a career choice based upon your feelings for someone, it should tell you something. I worked hard to dissuade myself my feelings weren't that serious.

I made the slip-up of taking Samantha to a party with my friends. After that experience, I was often asked how things were going with her. My friends all thought she was wonderful. She had made quite an impression on them. I had to endure a lot of ribbing from the guys if I told them I wasn't available to watch a ball game with them from time to time. I had a lot of guy time and my few nights with Samantha didn't dent it all that much.

A female colleague months before had been hinting strongly we should do something together. Gloria was nice enough and we had gone out two times and it was okay. I chided myself for violating my own rule about dating someone I worked with. Gloria hadn't said much to me but had told several others she had really enjoyed herself. It put some pressure on me to see her again and I had resisted. It was uncomfortable for me and I found myself avoiding her when I could. That was precisely why I shouldn't have dated her to begin with.

Gloria was at the party I took Samantha to, and she had given me several hard stares. Of course, she was the only one who didn't take a liking to Samantha. I felt bad about it, but what was I going to do, date her instead of Samantha? Not a chance. That should have told me something too. It should have told me Samantha already had a hold on my heart. I was just too dense at the time to know it.

It was a Wednesday and I was finishing my counts. With the shortened day length I was finishing later in the mornings, not getting to see Samantha until almost eleven-thirty. Daylight determined my work schedule more than I wished. That meant I ate with people around while Samantha and Marge were busy serving lunch. No time to talk or sneak a kiss.

Two days later, I was pleased the weather had held off. It was just below freezing, but a front was due to move in—another blast of Arctic air that would send the temperatures below zero. I had to go back to my Lansing office and enter data into my database so I smiled and waved to Samantha as I left. We had plans to spend the evening together eating out, and maybe a trip to the mall to window shop. Though I had something else in mind too.