Knight in Shining Armour

"You know something Andi, you've been bloody brilliant today -- you should add wedding organiser to your CV! On top of that I've only just heard about the situation with Sarah's parents that you diffused earlier and I wanted to thank you again for looking after her so well today; mind you -- I guess it doesn't hurt that she's of your persuasion?" And she winked theatrically.

"I'm glad you had a great day Babe and the way you look in that dress, I'm guessing David is looking forward to ripping it off you!"

"He better not rip this dress, it cost a bloody fortune." Julia laughed but then her face turned serious "I'm sorry to have to say this but you won't break her heart will you?"

I was confused at this point as I had no idea what she was talking about, prompting Julia to sigh loudly and explain herself.

"Sarah, you dolt! I know you've helped her and all but I think she's a bit fragile and the way she's describing you to the rest of my family it sounds like there's a bit of hero worship going on there. I don't think she could cope with you shagging and dumping her."

"Woah there! I haven't so much as laid a hand on her! I offered her my spare room for tonight and a lift to the station tomorrow but that's it -- I honestly hadn't even considered anything else."

"Why? What's wrong with me?" Julia and I both turned to see that Sarah had overheard the end of our exchange and now looked royally pissed off. "You know what? Forget it; I'll just get a cab to the station." And with that she stormed off toward reception.

"Oh hell! I'm sorry I got it wrong, I better go after her, I think she's drunk."

"No, you enjoy the rest of your night and say goodnight to your guests; I'll make sure Sarah is ok."

I found Sarah impatiently standing at the empty reception desk, so I walked up behind her and wrapped my arms around her waist. It was a fond gesture but I also wanted to stop her being able to bolt again.

"There is absolutely nothing wrong with you Sarah." She started to try to squirm out of my arms but I held her fast "but the last thing I was going to do was take advantage of you tonight. One -- because you've obviously had a lot to drink; two -- because you've had a traumatic day; three -- because this is Julia's special day and to be honest, I've been so focused on making sure everything went smoothly that little else has crossed my mind; lastly -- I'd actually prefer to get to know you better than have a night of meaningless sex with you. Now, if I let you go do you promise not to run away again?"

Sarah nodded and turned in my arms as I released my grip, burying her face into my shoulder to hide her embarrassment.

"Sorry, you're right. It has been a stressful day and I am drunk and being silly, can you forgive me?"

Having steered Sarah into my spare room, I made sure she had something to sleep in and provided water and some paracetamol, then I wandered back into reception to make sure everyone was ok with the cleanup.

Julia and David were just saying goodnight to some family in the foyer before they all headed to their rooms and when she saw me, she gave me a sheepish grin.

"Is she ok? I'm sorry I assumed you were going to sleep with her tonight and I'm also sorry I assumed that wouldn't be a good thing for her, it's just that I know she's had a tough time and didn't want to see her hurt any more than she has been."

"Yeah she's fine, all tucked up in my spare room and snoring like a warthog! I understand your concern but you know me -- I don't lead people on about my intentions; I'v always made it clear that I'm not up for a relationship. Having said that, I really think I'd like to get to know Sarah better, even if it's only as friends. Is that ok with you?"

Julia and David both hugged me and confirmed that it was absolutely fine whatever I decided, as long as I tried not to break her heart along the way, then gave each other an unmistakeable look of lust before heading off to their own room for some wedding night passion.

The next morning was obviously tough for Sarah and her embarrassment was palpable in her tentative greeting as she emerged from her room, wearing a robe I'd left hanging on the door for her.

"Hey, how are you feeling? Tea? Coffee? Breakfast?"

"A cup of tea would be lovely and maybe something to eat would help this hangover. I really am sorry about the hassle I put you through yesterday; I knew I should have stayed away."

"Nonsense! Julia was really pleased you came and you managed to enjoy yourself despite everything, so it's a good thing you came along; after all, you can't avoid them forever. Why don't you grab a shower while I find you some clothes to wear, then we can wander over to the dining room and let the chef cook us breakfast?"

Sarah and I weren't too dissimilar in shape and size, so I managed to find her some three quarter length jeans and a tee shirt to wear, along with some walking sandals that were adjustable enough so that a small disparity in size wouldn't be too much of a problem as long as she wasn't planning on doing any serious hiking in them.

By the time Sarah emerged from the bedroom, her hair still wet from the shower, she looked much better than she had and seemed to have regained some of her confidence. I looked her up and down, trying to gauge the fit of the clothes but as my gaze reached her face I found her smiling coyly.

"Like what you see?" and a smile crept onto her face.

"I was actually checking your clothes; it's kinda weird seeing someone else wearing them. Having said that, I'd be lying if I said you were hard to look at, especially since the shower seems to have brought you back to life; ready for some breakfast?"

Sarah linked her arm through mine, "lead on White Knight!"

"White Knight?" I chuckled "Where did that come from?"

"Well you did make a serious habit of rescuing me yesterday; first from the church, then from my parents and lastly from myself, so yeah -- I'd give you a seat at the round table and if you can handle my dad, you're not going to have any problems with dragons!"

We were both howling with laughter as we sauntered into the dining room arm in arm and caught quite a few stares from some of the other guests. We howled even louder when Sarah overheard one obviously hungover woman mutter something about complaining to the management if we didn't keep the noise down.

It was nice to just sit and chat with Sarah over breakfast without the ghost of her parents looming over us and we got along fabulously. I have to admit that I kept topping her tea up in an attempt to prolong her departure but it had to come to an end at some point. Sarah had a train to catch and the service was limited on a Sunday, so after a quick check online to confirm times, I drove her to the station.

We sat on the platform drinking bad coffee from paper cups when Sarah suddenly blurted out "I should have taken your clothes off."

I snorted so hard I nearly had coffee dribbling out of my nose and when I glanced at Sarah she was blushing furiously as she dissolved into fits of giggles.

"Your jeans! I should have taken your jeans off!"

This didn't make the situation any less funny and by now we were both crying with laughter.

"These!" She managed to splutter out between gasps for air, tugging at the jeans I'd loaned her. "How will I get your clothes back to you?"

"I'm sure you'll think of a way. I'd really like to see you again if that's ok with you?"

The next thing I knew Sarah had thrust her phone into my hands and ordered me to type my number in, which I managed just as the train was pulling into the platform. After a brief hug goodbye, Sarah boarded just as the doors were closing and I stood alone as the train slowly pulled out of the station, a strange and unaccustomed sense of loss, or maybe loneliness settling on my chest as I watched it grow smaller.

I was roused from my reverie by my phone vibrating and pulled it from my pocket to find a text from an unknown number.

"Dear Galahad, thank you for being my knight in shining armour, you really are a very special person -- I can see why Julia picked you as a best friend. Can you be free next Saturday night? If so, please allow me to say thank you properly by cooking you a sumptuous banquet? Sarah x"

As I walked back into the hotel lobby, still chuckling about Sarah's text, Julia bounded up to me like an over-excited Labrador puppy.

"So how did it go last night?"

"Huh?" was my none-to-eloquent reply.

"With Sarah you dolt. So did you two get jiggy with it or not?"

"No, we absolutely did not. She's a nice girl; I just drove her to the station and she's invited me for dinner next weekend."

"Is she cooking? You know she's an absolutely fantastic chef right? She could have her pick of any restaurant kitchen to work in if she wanted, but for some reason she prefers to work in product development for a brand. Anyway, I need to pay our room bill and we need to get going if we're going to catch our plane, I just wanted to thank you again for everything you did yesterday, for us and for Sarah. I'll give you a call from the Bahamas to make you feel jealous!"

I was about to tell her that their bill didn't need settling, that I was covering it as part of their wedding present. I was also about to ask her several questions about Sarah and to tell her that the last thing I wanted was an update on how their honeymoon was going, however I learnt years ago that when Julia was excited about something, keeping her still was about as easy as herding cats, so I watched her bound off and decided to let the receptionist deal with her.

The following Saturday I pulled up outside a quaint little cottage, in a delightful village, 15 minutes before I was due. I climbed out of the Jeep and stretched my back and legs. The journey had only been about 2 hours but I found myself getting increasingly nervous the closer I got and my body felt coiled like a spring. I'd been doing a lot of thinking on the drive and I still hadn't decided whether this was a date or just a friendly thank you. We'd texted a few times during the week but I really wasn't sure if the jokes and innuendo we'd shared was flirting or just banter. Oh well, I would just enjoy myself and take it step by step.

I was about to ring the doorbell when I saw a note pinned to the doorframe.

"Dear Galahad,

Welcome to my castle. This is a dragon free zone, so please leave armour and swords in the car. I'm around the back -- just follow the path at the side of the house.

Sarah x"

Chuckling, I followed the instructions and found myself in a large, well-tended garden; a small permanent gazebo about a third of the way down and off to one side. Looking around I could see no sign of Sarah, so I started to head toward the gazebo, when a noise caught my attention, so I stopped and listened.

"Son of a bitch, how the fuck did I get myself in this situation? This really can't be happening, not today of all days, way to make an impression you imbecile..." the muttering continued but too quietly for me to make out the words, so I stepped around the gazebo and instantly burst out laughing at the scene before me. Sarah was lying down on a wide tree branch and looked like she could have climbed down easily, if her shirt hadn't snagged on the branch above, which was effectively keeping her stuck in position.

"Have you been up there long?" I called out as I walked toward her.

"Oh crap! I was hoping to have extricated myself before you got here. Erm, just a few minutes fortunately but I do seem to be rather stuck."

I initially wondered if she'd set the scenario up in order to be rescued again but she was obviously mortified, so this had to be a genuine mishap which was just hilarious.

"Some fucking Knight you are. Are you going to lend me a hand or just stand there laughing at me?"

Eventually I wiped the tears of mirth from my eyes and hoisted myself up onto the branch behind her, leaning over her back until I could reach far enough to unsnag her shirt, then jumped down before extending my hand to help her down. Her descent was less than graceful and she ended up in my arms, slumped against my chest.

"What on earth were you doing up there?"

"I was trying to rescue my stupid cat, which as you can see didn't need rescuing at all. He jumped down and buggered off, leaving me stranded! Thank god you didn't change your mind about coming; I could have been stuck up there for days!" Sarah laughed

She pecked me on the cheek and took me by the arm, leading me into a spacious kitchen via the back door. All at once I was surrounded by wonderful aromas that had me salivating instantly and moaning in anticipation.

"Oh my god, something smells divine; Julia told me you were an amazing cook -- smells like she wasn't kidding. So what are we having?"

Dinner turned out to be Asian spiced duck breasts, served with sesame chilli noodles and a crunchy coleslaw of mooli, carrot and bean shoots in light sweet / sour dressing. I had missed lunch to make sure I wasn't delayed, so I demolished mine in record speed, sitting back and wiping my mouth as I watched Sarah finish her meal.

"You look like you would swoop on my plate if I turned the other way." Chortled Sarah "Can I assume that you enjoyed it?"

"That would be a serious understatement. I can manage to feed myself but my cooking is pretty basic; no way could I cook something like that."

Sarah laughed heartily but said no more until prompted by a raised eyebrow from me. "I was going to cook something complicated and fancy but ended up having to work this morning, so I chose this to cook instead because it's actually really simple. I could show you how sometime if you like?"

It took a while for me to register the offer because I was too busy watching the way the last forkful of food was making its way between 2 plump lips and suddenly, completely out of the blue, the urge to feel those lips against my own was almost overwhelming.

Still unsure of just where our relationship was heading and not wanting to be presumptuous, I took a hasty swallow of wine to alleviate the dryness in my mouth and excused myself to visit the bathroom.

Looking into the mirror as I washed my hands I silently shook my head at my reflection. I couldn't fail to notice how damp my panties were when I'd used the toilet and it seemed that my thoughts were travelling at a million miles an hour.

In the past I would happily have acted on my baser instincts. I would have kissed Sarah and taken it as far as possible, regardless of consequences. I didn't do relationships. Did I? Now I was nervous, was worried about Sarah's opinion of me, wanted Sarah to like me, didn't want to fuck things up for the future. WHOA THERE!! Future? Just where the hell had that little gem sprung from? Apparently my reflection didn't have the answers either, so I finished up and walked back to the kitchen to join my host.

On finding the kitchen empty, I was just about to call out when I heard "Out here Galahad" from the garden, so I headed out and steered toward the flickering lights I could see coming from the gazebo.

"Wow. This is beautiful!" The gazebo was a brick built hexagon with removable windows on 6 sides and doors on the remaining side, which were folded back leaving the interior open to the elements. In the middle was a small fire pit set into a table and there were candles flickering from holders on the walls, making for a cosy and intimate setting. The table was laid out with various cheeses with

fruit, crackers and chutney and as I slid into the bench seat next to Sarah, she handed me a glass of deep red port.

"I'm glad you like my little castle, I spend a lot of time out here in the evenings, it's a great space to think in. In fact I've been doing a lot of thinking out here in the last week."

Sarah turned to face me and looked deeply into my eyes before continuing, her face a strange mixture of trepidation and hope.

"I've been asking questions about you and I'm not sure what to make of the answers."

I raised a questioning eyebrow. "What sort of questions?"

Sarah downed her port and topped our glasses up before continuing.

"You seem like a genuinely kind person and you are extremely physically attractive, so I was wondering why a couple of Julia's other friends warned me off you last weekend."

"Like who?" I must have visibly bristled at this; I had a fair idea of who it might have been but wanted to hear it for myself.

"Karen for one. She basically told me that you are a dynamo in bed but a total heartbreaker. She called you a player with no sense of commitment."

My mood slumped instantly and I laughed inwardly at my earlier debate about my feelings for Sarah. It seemed like my reputation had preceded me and doomed any chance I may have had anyway.

"Andi, look at me." I lifted my eyes to meet Sarah's, not sure whether I should try to defend myself or just leave. "I didn't say I believed her; you have been nothing but fabulous to me and the way you looked after me at the wedding was nothing short of heroic. It did prompt questions though because I like to know what I'm dealing with."

"Maybe you should believe her -- it's what she considers to be the truth and yes, I did break her heart apparently, so what can I say?"

"But if you were such a horrible person, why would Julia's parents be singing your praises at every opportunity? Why would her brother be complaining that 'all the best one's are gay?' if you're such a lothario?"

I couldn't help laughing at that and it helped to lighten the mood immensely, allowing me to drop my defensive stance and just talk honestly.

"I knew Julia's brother had a massive crush on me when we were at university but I had no idea he still felt that way. He was only 17 when I first met him and he was apparently devastated when Julia told him I was gay. I have always got on really well with Julia's parents. Julia had an issue with an abusive stalker when we were at university and I looked out for her; in fact we always looked out for each other and we got really close. I think initially they thought we were a couple and kept waiting for Julia to come out, so they were really surprised when they came to understand that we were just the best of friends.

As for Karen, well she is a different story. She is telling the truth that I have never wanted or sought commitment in the past but I have never hidden that. I have had relationships that have lasted quite a while but they were never serious or monogamous for either party. I have always been up front and honest in my intentions and have never led anyone on intentionally. Karen and I got together at university for a while and despite me telling her otherwise, she thought she could change me. She decided that we were a couple after just two dates and demanded that I stop seeing anyone else. I refused and told her I didn't want that type of relationship with her but she was like a dog with a bone and wouldn't let it go.

It got to the point where I just started avoiding her because every time we saw each other we ended up fighting, then she'd be all apologetic and we'd end up having make-up sex, then the whole cycle would start all over again. I was twenty years old for Christ's sake and I didn't want to be tied down. Eventually it all came to a head when I was out at a local gay club with a girl and Karen came storming onto the dancefloor, drunk as a skunk and started attacking the girl I was with. Oh she yelled and screamed obscenities at me but she was physically attacking the other girl, so I lost it at her. I grabbed her and dragged her outside and said some pretty nasty things that left her in no doubt that I never wanted to see her again let alone have any kind of relationship with her. She spread some pretty shitty rumours about me after that and it appears she still hasn't let it go all these years later."