Chance Meeting

Nosy old fart.

"I haven't seen your gal lately?" he asked.

"She left." I headed for my door.

I heard him mutter something as he turned away, something about "Head in his ass."

I started to offer a retort but he just went inside and shut the door.

One afternoon I stopped by a nightclub that I had frequented before, they featured dancers and the coldest beer in town. I was sipping a tall one when I looked up at the stage.

The dancer was familiar, it took me a few seconds to realize it was Joyce.

That startled me. Her breasts were bare, the first time I had even seen them. They were perfectly formed, smallish. There was no hint of the little roll I had noticed before, her stomach was flat as a board, rippled in fact. All she wore was a tiny thong bottom. Her movements were graceful, practiced as she moved across the stage.

Women don't stay chubby very long when they dance for a living.

She spotted me after a few minutes, she blushed but she kept on dancing, picking up a few dollars here and there. As the last tune started, her hands came up to the tie at her hip, she looked almost shamefaced at me but dropped the tiny thong.

She was shaven bare, something else I didn't know.

She danced around the stage, but there was none of the leg spreading or blatant displays so many of the dancers did.

She looked almost.....modest, if that is possible to be when fully nude.

Her set ended, she came out wearing a wraparound thing and sat down.

"Hi, Dan. How are you?"

"Fine. I never expected to see you....here?"

"Well, I am an accountant and this is August. I needed money."

I thought guiltily of the $100 in twenties I had stuffed in the purse I bought her. Not nearly enough, I realized.

"Well, you are pretty enough for it, I guess."

She laughed at that.

"Hey, how about after you get off...I buy you dinner?"

That just popped out of me.

She looked at me, smiled.

"OK. I would like that."

I waited around for a couple of hours, nursing the beer. Well, it turned out to be three of them, way more than I normally drank.

Joyce came out, she was wearing the blue dress I had bought her, it fit perfectly. She looked beautiful, hair fixed up, a hint of makeup.

My head was buzzing a little and somewhere deep down inside I wanted her.

I foolishly went into my pickup mode, holding the door of my old Volvo for her, complimenting her on her looks.

We had a fine meal, at the end I suggested that I would like her to come home with me.

"You want me now, is that it?" Her expression was fathomless.

"I..well..You are..." My hand came up and brushed at my hair, I was suddenly nervous.

"You had me once, all you had to do was ask."

Her eyes scanned my face.

"All right. Let's go!" She got up suddenly, I paid the bill and we made the drive to my house in thick silence.

Inside, she set down her purse, shrugged the blue dress off her shoulders. She reached back and tripped the lacy bra, then hooked her thumbs and stripped the thong panties down.

She was completely naked before I even got my jacket off. I realized again she was beautiful, what the hell had I been thinking?

I stood there feeling stupid.

"Well?" She just stood there, waiting.

I realized I couldn't...I just couldn't.

"I...this is...I made a mistake."

"What's wrong?"

"I don't know. Not like this."

I looked away.

"Get dressed, I will take you home."

"It's late. I will just stay here, you can take me home tomorrow."

"OK." I retreated to my bedroom, hopelessly confused.

I spent a fitful night, I woke up several times to dreams of Joyce in my arms, smiling at me. I thought of the several weeks we had lived together.

I liked my life, living by myself, coming and going as I pleased. I liked being able to just drop by Margie's to take care of my needs, no pressure, no one to be concerned about.

But I liked my house neat, the good meals, someone to talk to, too. The first night I had come home and she was gone the house seemed...empty?

The sun woke me up, shining in the window on my face. I got up and dressed, went into the other room expecting to see Joyce.

She wasn't there. I felt a shot of panic.

Looking around for her, I heard voices outside.

Joyce was in an animated conversation with Harold at my fenceline, Mrs. Harold, (I realized I didn't even know her name) was out there in a housecoat too.

I pulled on some shoes and a shirt and went out to see what was going on.

"Morning!" Harold said as I approached.

"Nice to see you brought this little gal back home."

I think I flushed a little at that.

"Dan is my hero!" Joyce told them.

"Without him, I don't know what would have happened."

She reached out and touched my arm, it was like an electric shock.

"Well, without you we don't know what he's got!" he looked right at me.

"You two folks are like peas in a pod."

We headed back to the house, giving Harold and his wife a wave. Harold had a big grin on his face. Hell, I barely knew them, but he was acting like some kind of matchmaker or something.

Inside, I began to prepare some breakfast, Joyce pitched in and helped. I was trying to put words into my head, trying to think of words to say about the night before.

I had wanted her, badly. But it was all...wrong somehow?

"About last night....." I managed.

"It's all right, Dan. I understand. I acted slutty, I was upset because you were..."

"Putting the make on you?"

"Yes. It's because...before...I was falling in love with you!"

I just stared at her.

"I was falling in love with you, too!"

That just came out of me.

We sat and stared at each other.

"My god." she muttered, tears flooding her face.

She poured into my arms and we kissed. It was like magic, that first kiss. Finally we seperated, she looked at me with a smile.

"So what do we do? Maybe date and see what happens?" she asked.

"How about you marry me and we see what happens?"

She smiled, more tears filled her eyes.

"Oh! Yes. Yes! I will!" We kissed again.

We married just two weeks later, Harold and his wife Annie were there, grinning from ear to ear.

Our first time making love was that same evening, and it was fine.

The house takes streaks of being neat as a pin in between the complete disruption caused by two strapping little boys and a girl that thinks she is a boy. The Golden Retriever adds to the mix, standing guard from dawn to dusk over the three of them.

Annie next door sadly passed, Harold soon after.

The surprise was they left us their house and property, some comment about him knowing that it would be kept up and taken care of because of Joyce.

My Joyce still calls me her "hero", but the truth?

She is mine.