When the Unexpected Comes Along

"May I ask you a question, Danica?"

"Sure, Cody, ask away."

"Were you ever married?"

I smiled. "I was married when Susan was born," I assured him. It seemed so long ago that my daughter had been born.

"Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to insult you, Miss Witkin."

He was so upset he'd slipped back into my "former" name.

"No problem," I assured him. "I wasn't married when you were born, so I understand your curiosity." I didn't understand why he'd ask that question.

"Still, it was stupid, and I'm sorry. I guess I forgot about Susan..." He paused and chuckled, "which is weird since I've had a crush on her for as long as I can remember."

"Really? Did she know that?"

"I doubt it. I was always enough younger than she was that I was just a pain in the ass, pardon me."

"I don't know. I seem to remember her talking about you several times." I did remember that, although some of her talk wasn't exactly complimentary. Still, if I could do something to boost his adolescent ego, I thought I'd feel better.

"Really?" he said, I guess willing to accept my boost. "She's really pretty," he added out of nowhere. "Not surprising, I think."

Now it was my turn to decide how to handle a subtle compliment. I smiled. If the nearly five years between him and Susan had made him a "pain in the ass," the twenty-five years between Cody and me erased all of that.

"You're sneaky, but thank you, Cody," I said, smiling at him.

"Both of you are pretty ladies, and thanks for the pie," he added.

"You earned it. What flavor for the next mowing?"

"Wow, I don't know. How about apple or pecan? Which is your favorite?"

"Doesn't matter; it's up to you."

"Well, if I'm going to share, I need to know your favorite."

I wasn't sure just what kind of game Cody was playing with me, but I was willing to play along with him.

"Pecan," I said.

"Then pecan it is."

I handed him the plate with the remainder of the cherry pie, and Cody headed home. My lawn was beautiful.

***

I squealed loudly as something grabbed me from behind. I twisted around, breaking loose.

"Marla, you scared the crap out of me." My heart was pounding, my breath coming in gasps.

"Sorry," my best friend said, unable to squelch her giggle. "It's my, well, my thing. I inherited it from my dad, who loved to tease, scare, and otherwise torment anyone he could. It made my young life always exciting because I fit right in. So, when I saw you coming around the bush, my DNA took over, and I had no choice but to scare you. Somehow I've restrained myself in the past, but..."

My heart was slowing down, and my lungs were functioning normally again, but I realized, from what Marla had said, that it probably would be happening again.

"So, I need to learn to retaliate then?"

"It's open season now," Marla said, laughing, "but if I tell Cody about it, you may be in big trouble. He's worse than I am. Way worse."

I laughed. I felt comfortable having a friend who could do what Marla had just done. I wasn't worried too much about Cody since he still seemed to picture me as Miss Witkin, although "Danica" seemed to come out of his mouth much more easily lately.

"I guess I'll just have to be more alert... and aggressive." I chuckled.

"Yup. I'll try to use a little restraint until you get used to it." She eyed me. "Or, maybe not," she added. "Anyway, Cody loved the cherry pie."

"Oh, that's great. I really appreciate him mowing for me, and baking a pie is ridiculously cheap to get that done."

"You should see him with that pie. He cuts little slivers when he decides to eat some. He says it'll make it last longer. And, he has a huge smile on his face when he eats it. I think you've really hit the mark with him. If a boy like him can gush, that's what he does about that pie."

"You know, if he enjoys them that much, I could just bake one every once in a while and give it to him. It's not that big of a deal."

"Listen, Danica, we can't expect you to do that. Make him work for it."

I laughed. "Okay, but I'll think about the other. Maybe surprise him on special occasions like his birthday or anything else you can think of."

"If you really want to do that... do you?"

"It'll be fun and exciting for him. If you want, make a list and give it to me, and I can plan ahead. Plus, anything special at school like an 'A' on a paper or something like that."

"You're going to spoil him."

"Or encourage him. Call it a sort of bribe if you want."

"That might work."

***

It was four days later when I saw Cody standing in my backyard, looking down at the grass, and shaking his head.

"I'll start the pie," I called out the back door.

"I love the sound of that," he called back to me and headed to the little outbuilding to get my mower.

I heard it roar to life and could see that Cody was wasting no time; anxious, I was sure to dig into the pecan pie I'd promised for this mowing.

I went right to work, remembering he'd insisted he would share some with me. I baked a mean pecan pie and was anxious to try it out myself. It had to bake for forty-five minutes, and I wished I'd known ahead of time as I was sure Cody would be finished before it was done and had cooled.

That's exactly what happened, and I was ready this time with a glob of paper towels which he used to mop his face... and his chest, arms, and back, tossing his shirt out the back door as he'd done before. He smiled at me.

As he was wadding up the damp towels, I suddenly realized what I was wearing, not having expected company when I dressed this morning. I had on some old gray athletic shorts that I was amazed still fit and what amounted to a sports bra, although, technically, it was called an athletic top. A tiny bit of cleavage, a good bit of midriff, and a whole lot of leg were showing. Adding to my slight discomfiture, I seemed to notice something different about Cody.

"Have you been working out?" I asked, smiling.

"Um, yeah, a little," he said, looking at me out of the corner of his eye.

"It's working," I said, hoping to build his ego a little more.

Another slight smile from Cody.

"I can smell it," he said, glancing around the kitchen and changing the subject.

"Five more minutes, and then time to cool a little."

"I guess I'll have to wait then."

"Sorry," I said. "We'll have to plan a little more carefully in the future so the pie can be ready when you're finished mowing."

"We can do that," Cody said, then looked at me a little more carefully. "Have you been working out too, Danica?"

I had to grin, both at the look on his face and at the thought of me working out regularly.

"I work out, Cody, every once in a while," I laughed. "I think the old clothes I threw on this morning have confused you."

Cody glanced at me quickly from head to toe. "I don't know," he said, shaking his head. "You look like you're in pretty good shape."

"I try, Cody." My mind was working to analyze what he was saying and why he was saying it. I was probably being silly and maybe even enjoying the attention I was getting more than I should. I'd raised a daughter, and maybe I could help Marla raise a son.

"No kidding, Danica. I may be just a kid, but you're a pretty lady. Now, before I embarrass myself even more, how's the pie doing?"

"I think it's ready," I said, jumping up and grabbing the pie, careful to use two potholders. I set it on the table, picked up two plates, two forks, and a knife, and returned to my chair.

"You remembered," Cody smiled.

"I don't forget when it's pecan pie."

"It must be good then if you're that intense about it."

"I humbly admit it's wonderful," I chuckled.

I cut two narrow slivers of the pie, still a bit juicy, and we were ready. Cody looked at me, cut off a bite, and blew on it as it was almost still steaming. When he was satisfied that it had cooled sufficiently, he pushed it up and into his mouth. He closed his eyes, chewed, and swallowed.

"Danica, will you marry me and bake pecan pies for the rest of my life?"

What had happened to the timid boy, or man, from a couple of weeks ago?

"So, you're inviting me to a life of servitude," I answered, willing to play along with him. I could see he wasn't ready to reply to my question.

"I don't want that," he finally said, "just lots of great pies."

"You keep mowing, and I'll keep baking," I assured him.

"I shovel snow, too."

"Not going away to school?"

"Going to Otterbein," he said, smiling.

"Good luck."

"Thanks."

Cody finished his piece of pie, stood, and picked up the plate with the rest of the pie, which had cooled enough to be handled. As he was going through the back door, he stopped and looked back at me.

"You're the best, Danica. Thanks."

He disappeared.

***

It had been a difficult day at work -- too many tasks and too little time. It certainly wasn't unusual, but that never seemed to make it easier to handle. I stayed late to hopefully decrease the backlog enough to give me hope for tomorrow. With everyone out of the way, I accomplished more than I'd hoped and was proud of what I'd done, even if I was exhausted. Tomorrow might be manageable after all.

I climbed in my car and headed home, deciding I'd grab something in a drive-thru and take it home. As I pulled into the lot, I changed my mind, deciding to go inside and eat so that when I was finally home, I could kick back and relax. I went inside and ate.

Once home, I realized it was trash night, and I needed to put the container curbside for tomorrow's pickup. I noticed Marla's front door was standing open and assumed she was probably doing exactly what I was. Mine wasn't fully loaded, so wheeling it out wasn't an issue. I didn't see Marla but was anxious to get inside and relax.

As I rounded the corner of the garage, an arm went around my waist, lifting me off the ground and dragging me into the yard. I screamed, sure I was about to be raped. Before I could scream again, I heard the familiar laughter.

"CODY!" I yelled as his arm loosened. Once more, my heart was pounding, my breathing labored.

"Mom said you were in the game, so I just waited for my chance. Are you okay?" He took hold of my hand.

I wasn't sure I could speak and wanted to be angry... but I couldn't be.

"Cody, that scared the shit out of me," I finally gasped, my chest heaving, a big smile forming on my face. "I thought I was going to be raped or something."

The look on his face changed suddenly, and I wondered if what I'd said had triggered some thoughts in his mind.

"I guess it wasn't that funny, then." He looked chagrined.

"I was fair game, Cody. Your mother warned me."

He smiled. "You're a good sport, Danica, and a neat lady. If I was a little older... "

Now I wasn't sure how to look at Cody. Thank heaven it was mostly dark, and he couldn't see me clearly, but something clicked in my brain. I leaned forward and kissed him on the cheek.

"Thanks for the very nice compliment, sir," I said, realizing I meant it.

He was silent for a few seconds.

"I'll have to scare you more often," he said softly, still holding onto my hand.

"I think it's my turn to get you guys somehow. I've had two heart attacks, so I need to get even somehow." I couldn't keep from laughing.

"That's the way it works," he answered, finally releasing my hand.

"I'll get you," I assured him, not sure how that was going to happen. I needed to put some thought into that as it was very foreign to my nature.

"I hope I didn't ruin your evening," he said, very apologetically.

"You didn't, Cody. Just be ready." I gave him an evil grin.

"I sure will," he said. "Night now." He turned and jogged toward his house.

I watched him until he disappeared through the front door. I chuckled. It was fun having Cody next door as he added a bit of excitement to my life. As I thought about what had just happened, I remembered his arm going around my waist, lifting me off my feet and carrying me into the yard. I'm not a small woman, but he did it easily. If he'd wanted to do me harm, it would have been easy for him to do it. Thank goodness he didn't want that.

***

As always this time of year, it seemed you could almost hear the grass growing, and Cody was mowing, and I was baking pies regularly. He always wanted to share them with me, and we would sit and talk while we ate. I was learning interesting little tidbits about his life and his character, enough that I knew that some young girl would hit the jackpot when she grabbed hold of Cody.

Marla had called and said that Cody had been officially accepted into the freshman class at Otterbein, and I suggested a pecan pie might be in order. I baked and Marla texted me that he was home, so I took the pie and headed to their house. He was totally surprised and thanked me vociferously, and then we sat and shared the pie, delicious as always.

When our plates were scraped clean, Marla whispered something in Cody's ear and he jumped up and went into the next room.

"Do you like Phantom of the Opera music?"

"Love it, why?"

"Okay," she called toward the other room.

The familiar tune began, a sound so melodic and pleasing I jumped up and ran in there to see Cody at the piano, a smile on his face as his fingers danced over the keys. It was a side of him I'd never seen and had totally forgotten even existed.

"Sing along," he said over the sound of the piano.

I shook my head. I was a shower singer and nothing more.

He continued to play, smiling at me the whole time, and when he was finished, he looked at me; I was sure waiting for my reaction.

"You think I'm going to tell you it was good, don't you?" I teased and watched his smile begin to fade. "I haven't scared you in the yard yet, but I sure got you there, didn't I?" Now, I couldn't keep from laughing.

"Miss Witkin, my heart almost stopped. I thought --"

"That I didn't like it," I interrupted. He was shaking his head. "It was gorgeous, and I had no idea." I gestured toward the piano.

"It's fun," he said simply, "and thank God you enjoyed it. I've been waiting for a chance to play for you."

"And the pecan pie gave you that chance."

He nodded; the full smile returned now.

"And now I owe you another one for entertaining me."

I caught the change in his look and wondered if Marla had seen it too. From where she was sitting, I didn't think she had.

"If you bake pies, I'll play for you all day," he said. There was no smile now, just a very intense look.

"I think Cody would do anything to get one of your pies," Marla threw in, not having seen the look on her son's face.

"You got it, Mom," he answered, the smile returning.

Things had suddenly turned down a slightly different path, and I couldn't help wondering where that path was headed. Of course, all I had to do was turn around and head off to where we'd been if I wanted to stop whatever it was that was happening. But I didn't do that.

The day following Cody's concert was wash day, and since I worked all day, and often well after my normal quitting time, washing was done in the late evening, usually just before I went to bed. The clothes spent the night in the washer and the next day in the dryer, not the best plan for sure as that method tended to produce wrinkles, at least more of them than I liked to deal with.

I'd gathered my pajamas and was going to my dirty laundry basket, and was ready to begin. I usually waited till the last minute, stripped off my clothes, and jumped quickly into my nightwear. It was a system that had worked for years and was the plan for tonight as well.

It was early dusk outside, clouds swallowing the last remnants of the sun when I started the wash. The water on, clothes loaded, I stripped the things I was wearing and tossed them in. As I did, I realized I hadn't loaded soap in the dispenser, and when I looked, it was half-full of some old cloudy water that needed to be tossed. I slid the little drawer out and turned to the back door. Everything was clear outside, so I opened the storm door to dump the water, but...

The wind grabbed the door, jerking it out of my hand and pinning it to the back wall of the house. Another look told me the coast was clear, so I foolishly took a single step outside, reaching over to retrieve the handle of the errant door. I heard a loud bang when the wind caught hold of a second door, slamming it behind me. I didn't need to check -- I knew the door was locked.

I made a quick decision, right or wrong. I was naked and couldn't stand in plain view outside the back door, so I jumped off the porch and ran to the big bushes that grew next to the fence that separated me from Marla's yard. There was a key hidden at the front of the house, but I couldn't stroll out there, naked, and get it. If I waited till dark, it would be better, but there was a street light nearly in front of the house, so it might as well be daylight.

I finally decided I could call for Marla when I heard her back storm door close. I waited for long seconds and finally decided.

"Marla," I called softly. "Marla."

"Is that you, Danica?" Cody's deep voice said back to me.

Here was an answer, but was it the one I wanted?

"Is your mom there, Cody?"

"Naw, she's gone for the evening."

I could hear him moving along the fence.

"Don't come over here, Cody," I said more decisively, wondering how he might react. The footsteps stopped.

.

"Are you okay?"

"Yes and no," I replied, my mind racing.

"What do you mean?"

I wondered how long I could hold his curiosity at bay. "I... well, I'm okay. You don't need to worry."

"Something's going on. I'm coming over, Danica."

I could hear him moving, and I had to decide.

"Don't! I'm naked."

The footsteps stopped abruptly, and I could imagine the turmoil my eighteen-year-old neighbor was going through.

"I was doing my washing and, well, the wind grabbed the door, and when I tried to get it, the other door slammed behind me, and I'm locked out."

"No key?"

"There's one hidden in the front yard, and I'm hoping you'll get it for me."

"Tell me where and I'm on it," he said, and I could hear the gleeful sound in his voice.

I described where it was and told him to get it, unlock the door, and leave the key in the lock. When he'd done that, I'd run inside. I thought about asking him to promise me he wouldn't look, but I couldn't do that. I knew he'd look, and there was no sense forcing him to break his promise. I wasn't going to die of embarrassment if he saw me naked.

I watched through the branches as he jogged around the house and was quickly back. He unlocked the big door and pulled the storm door closed -- I hadn't even managed to get that done. He walked back toward his yard, looking at the bush that was hiding me as he walked. I was sure his mind was creating very vivid pictures.

"I'm behind the fence now," he called softly.

"I owe you two pies for this," I said.

"No charge, Danica. Just happy to help out."

And grab a quick view of lots of skin. I took a deep breath, deciding to jog to the back door. If Cody was going to get a full view of my body, it might as well include my breasts swinging from side to side. Plus, he'd have a perfect view of my ass. Finally, at the door, I opened it and stepped inside.

I was amazed at myself. Standing behind the bush, I had debated with myself about whether to walk, giving him a longer view, or to jog, showing him my swinging boobs. I wondered if things were getting weird. Or if it was just me?

***

Despite his protest, I'd given Cody a cherry pie, not telling Marla why. I just said he'd done me a big favor and, thank goodness, she'd let it lie. I wasn't sure how she'd feel about him seeing me in the altogether.

About two weeks had passed since my nude debacle, and Cody and I had only talked briefly. I'd wondered how I'd react the first time we talked, but everything seemed normal, and I didn't get a leer or a knowing look from him. I wondered if it was possible that he hadn't watched me run to the back door, a tinge of disappointment coloring that thought.