Dear Diary - First Date

May 16^th, 2018

Dear Diary,

I don't know who this man is that I'm married to, but I think I like him! Last night Jim did something so out of character. He took me on a date, but not just any date, an anniversary date, and not just any anniversary date, but extra special anniversary date.

It was almost like the movie Groundhog Day. He went all out to impress me, and it worked. Then, when we got home, he worked me over but good! We sure didn't do that on our first date!

The damn dog interrupted, wanting to go out, just when things were getting interesting this morning, but with the kids gone to Grandma's for the weekend, I'm hoping there's more to come! Hope hell! I think I'm going to go jump his bones in the shower right now!

As the garage door rumbled up, I was surprised to see Jim's blue and silver Dodge pickup in the garage. He's normally not home this early. I crept my 3 Series to a stop in its customary place, switched off the car, and gathered my stuff before opening the car door. Hands full, I bumped the door closed with a nudge from my ass. I juggled my files and purse to get the door open and stepped into the kitchen. I'd have to shut the garage door after I put my purse down.

Jim was waiting on me, standing in the kitchen with a big smile on his face. He was dressed in a dark blue sport coat over tan pants, a powder blue shirt, and a bold red tie. I stopped, shocked to see him dressed like that. Jim was a civil engineer for the City of Charlotte, which meant he normally wore work boots, jeans, comfortable shirts, and a hard hat. Coats and ties were reserved for weddings and funerals.

"What's the occasion?" I asked, forcing my feet back into motion to step around him, nudging the dog out of the way as I walked into our bedroom and tossed my purse and files onto the bed. Bentley, our Old English Sheepdog, bounded onto the bed for his customary greeting scratch of the ears.

"Our twenty-fifth anniversary," he said, following me into the bedroom.

I snickered as I scratched. "You goof. It's not our anniversary. Where're the kids?"

"Mom's got them."

"She drove down from Asheville?"

He nodded. "She was waiting for them when they got off the bus. She'll bring them back Sunday evening."

My eyes narrowed. "What's going on?"

He grinned. "I told you, it's our anniversary."

"Our anniversary is in September, and it's not our twenty-fifth." While I appreciated his effort, it annoyed slightly me he couldn't remember the month or the year.

His smile broadened. "Our wedding anniversary is in September, but I didn't say wedding anniversary, did I? Twenty-five years ago today, you went out on a date with me."

I looked at him. "Really?" He nodded. "How can you remember that?"

His smile spread even wider. "It was your first day of class, our senior year, remember? Classes at NCSU started this week, and we went out that Friday."

I smiled in memory. His friend was dating my friend, and we met at a charity event. Every year, North Carolina State University had the various departments build shelters in an expansive common area that were occupied twenty-four hours a day, for seven days, to raise money and awareness for the homeless. Jim was in the engineering department, and they always had the best shelters, complete with batteries charged by solar power, lights, a fan, and television. I'd been sitting in the finance department's shelter, bored out of my mind, and ran the batteries in the Game Boy I'd gotten for Christmas down. Anna, my friend and roommate, who was sitting with me to keep me company, took my batteries over to the engineering shelter where Kevin, her squeeze, was sitting, to recharge them. Three hours later, Jim brought the batteries back.

Jim was cute enough, but not really my type. He was a little nerdy for my taste, one of those guys that would always be slim, but would never muscle up, and I tended to go for guys that were a little bulkier. He'd asked me out several times after that, but I always found a reason not to go, much to Anna's annoyance. She was always bugging me to give him a chance. She was a hopeless romantic and had visions of four best friends marrying and living happily ever after in side-by-side houses. I expected nothing less from a woman majoring in textiles.

Jim was from Asheville, I was from Greensboro, so when we broke for the summer, I thought that would be the end of it. I was wrong. When we'd returned to school for our senior year, he'd tracked me down and showed up in my Advanced Corporate Finance class, a dozen red roses in his hands, just as class was starting on the first day.

He boldly asked me out in front of the entire class, but then more quietly said if I told him to go away, he'd never bother me again. Every eye in the class was on me, and as I looked around, I could sense if I turned him down, he'd have a dozen women asking him out before he reached the door. He stood, roses in hand, waiting for my answer. It felt like I'd agonized over the decision for hours, but people later told me it was only a few seconds.

"Okay," I'd said softly, my face burning in embarrassment.

He'd beamed as he stepped closer. "I'll call you," he'd said quietly as he placed the flowers in front of me.

I wasn't pleased he'd put me on the spot like that, but Anna had nearly swooned when I told her about it later, and by the time we met for our date, I'd decided it was a rather sweet, if daring, gesture on his part. If I'd turned him down, fifty-odd people would have seen his failure. The rest, as the saying goes, is history.

I hadn't thought of that moment in years. Jim and I were happily married, while Anna and Kevin had broken up less than a year later. It just goes to show you can't judge a book by its cover. Where Anna and Kevin were always hanging on, and slobbering all over, each other, Jim was far more reserved, claiming smart people didn't advertise when they had something precious. He kept our growing affection discreet, his touches and kisses simple and inconspicuous. Anna and I shared an apartment our junior and senior year, and when Jim stayed with me, he was an intense, giving, lover, but he wasn't given to histrionics, in contrast to Kevin and Anna. Some nights I could hardly sleep for them banging in the next room. If I hadn't been holding the pillow over my head to muffle their over-the-top moaning and cries of passion, I'd have stuck my finger down my throat so I could puke.

"You're sure today's the day?" I asked with a smile. Knowing Jim, it probable was.

"Actually, it's not. I looked it up and the actual date was this Wednesday, but it was the first Friday after classes started, twenty-five years ago, and that's today. I could have waited a few more years, until the day and date lined up, but celebrating our twenty-seventh anniversary doesn't have the same oomph, and I wanted to do this on a Friday so I could have you all to myself for the weekend." He grinned and waggled his eyebrows, causing me to snicker.

"Where are you taking me?"

"Someplace special, so dress up."

"When are we leaving?"

"As soon as you're ready."

I held his gaze a moment until he made a shooing gesture. I undressed and then stepped into my closet to select something to wear as he propped and watched. When I bent over to pick up my shoes, he tickled me on the ass, making me jump and shriek in surprise.

"God, I love making you scream," he said, his voice low, sexy, and teasing.

"Oh, stop it!" I scolded.

Jim and I had been married almost twenty-two years. We'd had our ups and downs, but now that the kids were a freshman and junior in high-school, things were easier. He'd been a doting father. I sometimes felt like I played second fiddle to the kids when they were young, but I couldn't complain he hadn't done his share raising the kids, and as the kids needed him less and less, he'd devoted more and more attention to me.

The last two or three years had been as good as any I could remember. Our love had matured along with us, and what we missed in our once explosive sex life had been more than made up for by the depth of our love.

I wriggled into a dress. Like most couples, we'd put on weight after we'd married. After two kids, my hips had broadened and I was carrying a few more pounds, but Jim claimed to like my fuller figure more than my slim build when we married. Ten years ago, he'd started hitting the gym, and while nobody would mistake him for a bodybuilder, he'd dropped some of the weight he'd put on, and what he hadn't lost, he'd turned into muscle.

I didn't know if he was telling me he liked my fuller breasts and rounder hips more than when we dated just to make me feel better about myself, but there was no doubt he was a serious stud-muffin now. Gone was the lanky kid I'd married, replaced by this walking beefcake that rarely failed to turn female heads.

I looked at him in the mirror as I brushed my brown hair. I had a few silver threads here and there, but not many, and the silver Jim was getting in his dark hair at the temples only made him sexier. I held his gaze for a moment before he smiled. When he smiled, the twenty-odd years of our marriage disappeared, and he was the same guy I married so long ago.

Thirty minutes after I stepped into the kitchen, I was hitching myself up into his truck. He shut the door behind me and crawled in under the wheel.

"So, where did you say we were going?" I asked as he backed out of the garage.

"I didn't."

"But it's someplace I have to dress up for?" I wheedled.

"For tonight, yes."

That was a strange answer, but I decided to let it slide. We rode along in companionable silence, our hands resting on the center console with fingers intertwined as he piloted the truck. As we began to leave the city, I looked around.

"Where are we going?"

"To dinner."

"Yeah, but where?" If you couldn't find it in Charlotte, you probably couldn't find it anywhere.

"It's a surprise. We have a couple hours, so you might as well get comfortable."

"Two hours... for dinner?"

He looked at me and smiled, but said nothing.

It wasn't long before I thought we were going to Greensboro, but as we bypassed that, I realized it had to be Raleigh. As we drove, we talked about our good times. Our first kiss, on our second date. The first time we slept together, after our tenth or eleventh date, neither of us able to remember for sure. How he'd left his job in Asheville once I landed a position in Charlotte, just so we could be together. Our marriage. Our first house. The birth of our kids, Molly and Drake.

As we spoke, a warmth filled me. Jim was a good man, a devoted husband and father. He'd sacrificed for his family without complaint, performing almost all the late-night feedings so I could sleep, sitting up with the kids when they were sick, doting on me when I was sick, and never asking for anything in return.

I gripped his hand, his return squeeze as he glanced at me and smiled telling me of his love better than words ever could. He exited the interstate and weaved through Raleigh before pulling into an apartment complex. It took me a moment to realize this was where Anna and I lived. I looked at him, my brow furrowed. He smiled and pointed ahead. I didn't know what he was pointing at until he pulled into a parking place beside a bright yellow VW Beetle.

"Oh my God! Is that your car?"

He shifted the truck into park and switched it off. "No, but it's as near as I could find." He opened his door and stepped out, hurrying around the truck to close my door behind me. "I tried to find my car, but I couldn't. I've... borrowed... this one. It's a '72, where mine was a '73, but..." He smiled and shrugged.

"Oh my God!" I exclaimed again. I had so many fond memories of that little car, like the time he taught me to drive a manual, or us shivering in winter while we drove to Asheville over Christmas so I could meet his family for the first time, the little Bug's heat as warm as a baby's breath, and almost as powerful. He'd driven it for years after we graduated, the money he could have spent on a new car for himself going to help me replace my car, a house, and finally, baby expenses. He opened the door for me.

My eyes opened wide. "Are we taking this?"

"It'd be a shame not to, considering all the trouble I went through to arrange it."

"How?" I gasped as I fell into the seat. I took a deep breath, the smell of vintage Volkswagen Beetle bringing back so many memories.

He settled into the driver's seat. "When I couldn't find my car, I checked around, and got in touch with B.O.R.—he pronounced it 'bore'—Beetles of Raleigh. I told them what I wanted to do, and they made it happen."

I sniffed, fighting back tears, and I didn't know why. I looked at him, his smile so soft and loving. "This is great," I whimpered as a tear ran down my cheek.

He pulled me to him and kissed me gently on the lips. "I hope you don't mind this one isn't all rusted out," he whispered as our lips slowly parted.

I sniffed as I shook my head. "No," I mewled.

He started the car, and I barked out a laugh, the spluttering putter sounds of an air-cooled Volkswagen unmistakable. He revved the engine and smiled, before notching the car in gear and backing out of the parking space. He turned right out of the parking lot, and less than ten minutes later, he pulled into another parking lot. I whimpered and began to cry.

When he took me out for the first time, we were both poor college students, and he'd taken me to a local hangout that was popular with the college crowd because of its tasty pizza and cheap beer. Pizza Italia looked exactly as I remembered it, and it appeared to be as popular as ever.

He stopped the car and held my hand until I got my emotions under control. We could certainly afford to eat better now, but having him do this, to go through so much trouble, touched me at a deep and profound level. I leaned over and he kissed me softly.

"This is the best anniversary ever," I sniffed.

"Every anniversary is the best one ever," he replied softly, making me whimper and start to cry all over again.

It took me a couple of minutes, but I finally got myself under control, dabbing at my eyes to dry them while trying not to smear my makeup. During the last few seconds of me getting myself together, he left the car and opened my door for me. Hand on my hip, he escorted me inside.

It was like we'd stepped back in time, the place exactly as I remembered it, the only difference being the hair styles and clothing of the customers. Everyone was staring at us as the hostess guided us to a table, Jim in his coat and tie, me in my slinky dress, his hand holding me close, but I didn't care.

"Your server will be with you in a moment," the hostess said as she turned on her toe and walked away.

"Is this the same table?"

He snickered. "I'm good, but I'm not that good. I don't remember. I had only one thing on my mind that night."

"Oh?" I purred. "What was that?"

"Not screwing up."

It wasn't the answer I expected, and I barked out a brief laugh as a girl that had to be at least twenty-one, but looked twelve, approached our table. "Welcome to Pizza Italia. Can I take your drink orders?"

"We're ready to order," Jim said before I could say anything.

"Okay. Go ahead."

"Large everything and a pitcher of Bud Light."

The girl nodded. "Anything else."

"That's it." As she walked away, he looked at me. "It's what we had that night."

"You can remember that, but you can't remember the table?"

He grinned. "The food is easy. We always got the same thing when we came here."

I smiled again. He was right.

As we waited on our order to arrive, we reminisced, sipping our beer and talking about the years since we'd first shared a pizza. We'd had a good run. Even when Jim was busy with the kids, I'd never doubted his love for me, and in the past few years, he'd once again made me feel like the most desirable woman in the world, just as he had so many years ago.

"Special occasion?" our waitress asked as she delivered our pizza.

"Yes," Jim said without hesitation. "Twenty-five years ago today, she made me the luckiest man in the world."

"Wedding anniversary?"

"No. First date. This is where we came, and this is what we ordered."

Her eyes flicked between mine and Jim's. "That's so cool! My boyfriend can't even remember my birthday."

Jim grinned. "Dump him!"

The girl giggled. "I'll be back to check on you in a few minutes."

We hot-fingered pizza onto our plates, and after blowing my slice cool, I took a bite. I almost moaned. Not only was the pizza as good as I remembered, but a flood of memories bubbled to the surface. Jim tromping through the rain with a pizza so I didn't have to go out in the weather. Jim bringing me a pizza when I was cramming. Jim bringing me a pizza when I sick. I looked at him as I chewed, my eyes welling with tears again. We didn't only eat pizza, but the flood of memories reminded me of all the times Jim was being... Jim. I'd forgotten how he'd doted on me before the kids arrived.

"Are you okay?"

I nodded, not trusting my voice. I cleared my throat. "I love you."

He smiled. "Love you too," he said as he took my hand in his, his strong, warm, grip making me feel safe and loved.

As we ate, we laughed as we remembered the good times, the birth of our kids, my promotion to CFO, and other memories that filled me with joy. We also recalled the rough times, the sleepless nights as we worried over sick children, the time when Jim was working odd jobs to make ends meet after the engineering firm he worked for failed, and worst of all, the death of Jim's brother in a car accident that took his entire family.

"Are you ready?" he asked as we sat in companionable silence.

I smiled at him. "Yes."

He paid and escorted me to the Bug, opening my door for me as he always did when it was just him and me. We spluttered our way back to his Dodge, parking the little car in the same spot it was in before, and tucking key back under the bumper where he'd found it.

"I had a great time," I murmured as we drove home, my hand resting comfortably in his.

"So did I."

"How long have you been planning this?"

He smiled in the darkness. "Seriously? About three months. Thinking about it? About a year."

"And you never said anything?"

"I wanted it to be a surprise."

"Well, it was. Thank you."

He brought my hand to his lips for a kiss. As the miles passed, we spoke little, and I was content in our silence, the soft stroking of my hand with his thumb saying more than words ever could. We arrived home, and as the garage door rumbled down, I could hear the occasional woofing of Bentley.

As Jim took the loveable mutt out, I shimmied out of my dress and into something more suitable for what I had planned. It wasn't often we had a night without the kids, and after Jim's surprise, I was feeling especially close to him. After a few minutes, he stepped into the bedroom, Bentley panting happily at his heels. I could understand. While he was out with the dog, I was thinking about all the things Jim was going to do to me tonight, and the things I was going to do to him in return, and now I kind of wanted to pant myself.

"Wow!" he said, stopping in the doorway.

I smiled. "Like it?"

"Not as much as I like what's in it."

I melted a little more. He never failed to make me feel good about myself. "Since you didn't try to get into my pants after our first date, I thought you might want to give it a try now."

He grinned as he began loosening his tie. "Trust me, it wasn't because I didn't want to, it was because I didn't want to screw up any chance I had with you."

"Well," I breathed as I stepped in a little closer. "You don't have to worry about that now, do you? So what are you going to do?"