Gift of Life

Renee sat there staring at her phone for a good thirty seconds before setting it down then going back over the events of the day to try and sort through what she was feeling, and realized she hadn't mentioned Ben. In fact, she hadn't even thought of him since meeting Eric.

As for Eric, he was at least as confused as Renee as he tried to piece through their time together. He also knew he didn't even own a bicycle, so he was going to have to find a store that sold them then get some information on what to buy before he could ride one with the beautiful, older woman who'd left his head spinning like no other woman ever had.

When he got home, he did a quick search for bike shops and found one just a few blocks from the station where he worked. For now, however, the only thing he could think about was Renee Johnson. Around 8pm, he was still thinking about her to the point where he needed someone to talk to, and Randy was his first and only real choice.

"You busy?" he asked his friend who was still at work and who picked up on the first ring.

"No. We just got back in from a pretty nasty accident. What's up?"

"You know how that PI was snooping around and asking for information on the call we talked about in 2017, right?"

"No shit, Sherlock. I'm the one who told you he was looking for you."

Randy laughed but Eric didn't.

"Yeah, right. Sorry. My head's a little foggy right now."

"What else is new?" his friend quipped with a little laugh.

Eric ignored the friendly slam and quietly said, "She called me this morning and wanted to meet to thank me in person for, you know."

"For doing your fucking job?" Randy said with another laugh before noticing his friend was being unusually serious.

"Yes. Well, no. I mean, she was really just looking to meet anyone who'd had some kind of connection to her husband."

Now becoming more serious himself, Randy said, "So I take it you met with her?"

"I did. We met for coffee."

"And?"

"And. Wow. That's the problem. I don't know what the 'and' is."

"There's something you're not telling me, and that something is the key to all of this. So...tell me."

"Don't laugh, okay?"

"Cross my heart."

"She's...hot. Like...smokin' hot."

"Wait. How old is this widowed woman?" Randy needed to know.

"I didn't ask. She's older than me, and probably quite a bit older, but she's not only beautiful, she's...incredible."

"Okay, my phone says Eric Rust is calling, and your voice sounds just like his, but this can't possibly be my best friend. Beautiful? Incredible? Uh-uh. No way. The Eric Rust I know doesn't talk like that, and especially not about women. Ever."

"So you understand," Eric replied, still being very serious.

"I understand that something is very, very wrong. That's what I understand."

"I know how it sounds, but if you could just meet her you wouldn't think I was..."

Eric remembered the pic she sent him and told his friend to hold on.

He hit 'send' then waited.

"Holy...shit! This is her?" he heard his friend say after having a similar reaction.

"Yeah. That's her, and she's even more attractive in person."

"Damn! You weren't kidding. She's hot as hell, man."

"And she's...nice."

"Whoa! It sounded like my friend was back, but you just said 'nice' which is right up there with 'incredible'."

Randy laughed again hoping to lighten the mood a little, but Eric either ignored it or just wasn't biting.

"I can't get her off of my mind," Eric replied without commenting on the nonsense.

"Okay. I'll play along. For now. Are you...interested in this woman? As in, beyond getting laid?"

"That's the thing!" Eric told him, suddenly animated. "I'm not even thinking about that."

"That's it. You are NOT Eric Rust, because THAT is the ONLY thing he thinks about where women are concerned."

"Isn't this some crazy sh...stuff?" Eric said, the animation in his voice now gone.

There was a pause before Randy asked very carefully, "Are you gonna ask her out?"

"I already did. Well, kind of."

Eric explained the bike ride, and Randy told his friend he had a very nice Trek bicycle he almost never rode.

"Just borrow mine until you think you want to buy one. We're the same height, so it'll be work just fine. No offense, but the odds are you'll ride with her once, find out she's not what you thought she was, and that'll be that."

"Yeah. Maybe so," Eric replied, his voice trailing off.

"Listen, I really need to restock so I gotta run, but I'll bring the bike and my bike rack to the station tomorrow, okay?"

"Um, yeah. That'll be great. And...thanks, man."

Randy held his phone out at arm's length, looked at it again, and saw the same name. He shook his head then said, "Um...you're welcome?"

The line went dead without any response from Eric, and all he could do was wait to find out what was really going on with his best friend. He still wasn't overly concerned, but in all the time he'd know Eric, his friend had never talked like that about any woman. He almost laughed when he thought about Eric Rust, the legend, settling down and maybe even having kids. But because he'd been so serious during their brief conversation, Randy not only didn't laugh, he wondered if this hot, older woman could possibly be the one to finally tame him.

For the time being duty was calling, so he put the phone away and headed for the supply locker before the next emergency popped up.

Eric had no idea he'd hung up on his friend without saying 'goodbye', and he was already on his laptop looking for riding trails in the area. The first place that came to mind was Bear Creek Nature Park that wasn't too far from where they'd had coffee. It had miles of scenic trails, and he couldn't imagine finding a better place, so for the next half hour or so he scrolled through the 330+ photos of the park posted on its website even though he'd been there several times.

"Perfect!" he said when he finally shut the lid and tried to think about something else.

The next day, Randy was once again leaving when Eric arrived, but that would soon change when they'd both be working nights together for a few days.

"So this is an FX2," Randy explained when he showed his friend the bicycle he'd brought for him to use.

"Geez. Do you actually like the color, or did you choose it to keep would-be thieves from stealing it?"

The bike was green, and while Eric didn't care, it was the kind of smart-ass banter they always engaged in.

"Dick," Randy said before saying, "what's wrong with it?"

"Nothing. If pea soup is your thing," Eric told him as he checked it out.

"You're welcome...asshole," Randy shot back.

The bike was one of Trek's lower end models, but it was more than adequate for a ride around the park. Randy pulled the bike rack off of his car and showed his friend how to put it on his vehicle then explained how to dog it down to ensure it wouldn't come off.

"Yeah, we don't need EMTs causing accidents," Eric mused as he paid careful attention to the simple task.

"So have you talked to her?" Randy asked once the bike was firmly in its new place.

"No. I'm gonna call her tomorrow and see if Bear Creek Park is okay."

"Wait. You didn't call or text her at all today?"

"No. Was I supposed to?"

"Okay, Mr. Love e'm and Leave 'em. This may come as a surprise to you, but when you like a girl—or a woman—you call her. If you don't, she'll assume you were blowing smoke up her as...skirt. So yeah, you should have called her. Today."

Eric ran a hand through his hair and made a face that caused Randy to laugh.

"No worries. Just make sure you touch base with her as soon as possible. A text, even now, wouldn't be a bad thing. You know, just to let her know you're thinking about her."

"Wow. So that's what a relationship is like, huh? Eric replied with a laugh.

"Well, so I hear. I'm not exactly an expert on that topic, but unlike you, I have at least had a couple of girlfriends over the years."

"Right. I remember. I just never paid any attention, because just hearing 'the R word' scared the sh...scared me."

Randy laughed at his friend's newfound reluctance to swear then explained why he was chuckling.

"And so the domestication process begins," he told his friend before saying he was going home.

"To shower then go have a few beers, right?"

"What can I say? I don't have a hot, older woman waiting for me to call her."

He paused then wryly added, "Or...any woman...for that matter."

Eric thanked him for the bike then went inside and took care of everything that had to be done before the first call came. He finished, and when it didn't, he sat down and pulled out his phone.

"Renee. Hi. I'm really sorry for not calling today, and I know I probably shouldn't be texting this late at night, either, but I wanted you to know I've been thinking about you. I also wanted to run a possible location by you for our bike ride. Is Bear Creek Nature Park okay? If not, I'm flexible. I'm at work right now, but I'll have the entire day off on Wednesday. Anyway, I'm sure we can work something out here soon, and again, I apologize for not touching base earlier. Eric."

Renee was still awake when she heard the swoosh sound of an incoming text and assumed it was Desiree. But when she picked up her phone, her heart skipped a beat.

She sat down and read every word then read it again before sitting there and digesting it while also analyzing it for meaning. She felt terrible for being the 'typical woman', but when Eric hadn't contacted her since their meeting, she couldn't help but wonder if he was really even interested in doing something together. She now felt terrible for even thinking it, but she was also pretty sure he was nothing more than a 'player' in the worst sense of the word who'd just been nice to her.

After duly chastising herself, she began working on her reply which conveniently omitted her insecurities.

"No worries! After all, it's only been a day, right?" she began.

Before continuing, she realized she hadn't made it clear that she and Phillip had gotten into mountain biking rather than street riding. The only bicycle she had was a mountain bike, and while it could be ridden on pavement, it wasn't ideal. But she wasn't about to bring that up, either, because she was really looking forward to seeing him again.

"Bear Creek sounds perfect! It's one of my favorite places on earth, and I'm free on Wednesday anytime you'd like to get together."

She stopped, reread what she'd written, then finished with, "I'm really looking forward to seeing you again."

Satisfied, she hit 'send'.

Eric got it seconds later and nearly knocked his phone halfway across the room when he lashed out to grab it.

"Yes!" he said when he saw her reply.

He sat there smiling for a few seconds then wrote, "Great! I was thinking about 10am or so, if that's not too early. And if you don't mind, I'd like to buy you lunch after."

He looked at the words then realized he was actually excited about this date or event or whatever it was. And it was that excitement that caused him to end the text with:

"After all, I did promise I'd pay on our first date."

He put some smiley-face emojis after it, then hit 'send' only to immediately start worrying about scaring her off.

Renee laughed happily when she saw his reply then typed, "I didn't know we were calling this a date. Are we????"

This text got an even bigger, "YES!" response from him before he wrote, "I'll leave that up to you, Renee. All I know is I'll be happy spending time with you no matter what we're doing."

Within seconds he read, "Same here, Eric. See you then!"

Not even he could have missed the little red heart that followed her words, and with that he put the phone down just before the first call of the night came in.

Wednesday morning, Eric was up early, hit the gym, showered, ate, then got ready to head to the park. In Lancaster, Renee was also up early, and she laughed after putting on even a little bit of makeup to go bike riding. But because she expected a leisurely pace that wouldn't cause her to sweat, she felt like looking a little bit nicer was worth it.

Eric showed up at 9:45, certain he'd be there before her, only to see Renee taking her bike off of the back of her car. He immediately noticed the spandex riding pants and cute top but made sure not to get caught staring this time.

He pulled in beside her, got out, and said, "Good morning!"

"Eric! Hi!"

"You beat me here."

Renee laughed then told him she was a lifelong early bird.

Eric laughed too, then walked around and told her she looked amazing. Again.

"Almost too amazing to go bike riding."

"Oh, I hadn't really even thought of that," she replied, not wanting to mention the makeup or the reason she was wearing it.

"Oh wow. You have a mountain bike," Eric observed when he saw the knobby tires.

"Um, yes. It's the only bike I have," she said without any hint of any kind of hidden agenda. She looked over at his and told him he obviously had a street bike.

"I do," Eric told her, not wanting to mention it wasn't even his.

Neither of them said anything more about the bikes. They just locked their cars, put on their helmets then hopped on their bikes and started riding.

"It's so beautiful out here," Renee said after they got a couple of hundred yards into the park.

Eric looked over at her and smiled, then while looking right at her, said, "Yes, it is.From my vantage point it's very beautiful around here."

Renee understand he meant her, and as she smiled back, she realized she hadn't felt the way his sweet words made her feel since Phillip was alive.

As they rolled along at a very modest pace of about eight miles per hour, they talked about Eric's job, how he got into it, how much he liked it, and what his future plans might be. He answered all of her question honestly, and when it came to his future plans, he was equally forthright about them, too.

"You know, I can't imagine ever doing anything else, so as far as work goes, I'd like to stay an EMT. But the more interesting thing, at least to me, is how I've recently had a change of heart where the possibility of maybe settling down is concerned."

"Oh?" Renee replied in a way that told Eric she was genuinely interested in what he was about to say.

"Yeah, I've considered myself an unwaveringly confirmed bachelor since I was maybe 19 or so. But recently..."

He looked over at her again, smiled, then continued.

"But recently, and for the first time ever, I've found myself thinking how great it might be were I to say, you know, find the right woman."

"Ah. Okay. And do you know what this 'right woman' might look like?"

Before he could reply, Renee said, "Not physically. But what would she be like?"

"While the physical wouldn't be my primary concern, it would help if she happened to be attractive."

"Well, that seems logical. Who'd want to marry someone they didn't find attractive, right?" she agreed.

"That's how I see it, anyway."

He looked her way again then said, "So were she to say...look a lot like...you...that would be a huge plus."

When a loud laugh that sounded more like a cackle came out her mouth, Renee was embarrassed, but because she was having such a nice time, she didn't let it bother her.

"Just 10 or 20 years younger, right?" she said, trying to sound like she was stating the obvious.

"Or not," Eric told very seriously when she looked at him.

He not only wasn't smiling, there was no hint of lightheartedness. He was as serious as serious could be, and the only thing Renee could think of to say was a very lame, "Oh. I see."

"From there, I think it would be important to find someone who's truly committed to being committed. I know that sounds like a kind of tautology, but I think that's pretty important."

"Sure. Why bother getting married if you don't intend to spend the rest of your life with that special someone, right? If both people aren't fully committed, the normal ups and downs of married life can easily cause someone to want out," Renee replied, now sounding more serious herself.

"Beyond that, I haven't had much of an opportunity to think it through. I guess there are probably things that would be huge problems that could make the most beautiful woman seem unattractive."

Renee told him she understood before they discussed some of the kinds of things that often caused divorce including being polar opposites on the political or religious spectra or with regard to spending money or having and/or raising children.

When children came up, Eric asked, "So tell me about your daughter who's in college. You said you're very close, right?"

Renee bubbled away about Desiree from the time she was pregnant with her until their most recent conversation.

"Oh. So you told her we met?"

"I did. I also told her we were going bike riding together."

"How did she react to that?" Eric asked, before quickly saying, "not that it's any big deal to, you know, just ride a bike with someone."

"She thought it was great," Renee replied, not mentioning the part about that changed when she told her daughter Eric was younger than her.

"I think I'd like her," Eric told her after hearing the condensed version.

"She's been my rock through this whole thing after her father died."

"I can't even imagine, Renee."

"It's funny, but neither could I. I never once thought I'd ever lose my husband at such a relatively young age. And then just like that...he was gone."

Eric told her again how sorry he was, and she thanked him.

On a lighter note, the conversation turned to common themes like favorite movies, songs, and hobbies. It was the hobby theme that got them talking about mountain biking.

"I had no idea you were such an enthusiast," Eric told her after she seemed to become very animated while explaining how much fun she and her husband had bombing around various courses.

"It took me some time and enduring a few nasty spills to warm up to it, but at some point I began enjoying it as much as he did."

"So this slow little stroll around the park is probably boring you to tears," Eric offered rather apologetically.

"Uh-uh. Not at all," Renee told him.

She smiled as she looked over at him and said, "But I think that may have a lot to do with the person I'm riding with."

Eric smiled back then said, "You know what? I was thinking the same thing."

He got a very nice smile back as Renee again told him, "Oh. I see."

They'd made a very large loop and were coming back around to the parking lot when Eric said, "Would you take like to go mountain biking together sometime?"

"I'd love to, but are you sure that's something you really want to do?" she asked.

He laughed quietly then said, "If it's with you, then...yes. Definitely."

She looked over and smiled again then said, "Okay. But you're going to need a bike that's a little more rugged than what you're riding."

"I can probably arrange that," Eric told her. "But I might need some help finding just the right thing. Would you happen to know anyone who could maybe give me a little guidance?"

Now Renee laughed and told him she thought she might.

"I'll just have to give him a call and see if he's available," she said as seriously as she could.

The look on Eric's face was priceless, and when she could no longer hold back, she laughed much too loudly again.

"Oh, okay. I see how this is going to go," he replied as they coasted to their cars.

"This?" Renee asked as she braked to a stop behind her vehicle.

"Yes. This," Eric said as he pulled up alongside of her.

"So there's a...this?" she asked, her eyebrows raised in expectation.

"I wouldn't mind that," Eric said. "With 'that' being a 'this'."

"So a little of this and a little of that?" Renee replied with a warm smile and little laugh.