It was agreed we would take a taxi so we could have a good drink. My folks were away at friends that night so I could head out with my neighbour without what would have been some tricky questions. He called for me at 7.30 sharp as arranged, looking incredibly confident and relaxed in just jeans, boots and a white patterned shirt.
I had gone for the typical night out gear that girls could wear, with a short skirt and low cut top to compliment. If I say so myself, I looked fabulous, my summer tan and long hair really setting off the effect I wanted. A mocking wolf whistle and ‘wow’ told me that he approved.
We chatted excitedly in the car, laughing and teasing each other. He made out that he had no idea how to behave at something like this and that I would have to look after him, and for my part I said he was there to protect me.
But it was now that it dawned on me what we were doing. I began to worry about how it would look when we arrived to the event together; I thought about his wife and my folks and what they would have said if they had seen us; but somehow it just all felt so easy I couldn’t stop myself. I wasn’t flirting like a little girl, just talking like an adult, feeling every sensation and emotion that flowed through me.
My first worry went out of the window within seconds of arriving. The company was a mix of the hip cool single crowd, all incredibly self obsessed to a man and woman, the couples almost all made up of older guys with younger trophy girlfriends. Little did they know that he was my trophy!
Unlike the other guys there, he didn’t try to be the stand out guy in the place. He seemed super confident in who he was, how he was dressed and what he was doing here. He didn’t constantly survey the room for approval or curiosity. He simply carried on where we left off in the taxi, talking to me and those who came to talk to us. Everyone seemed to leave his company with a smile a pat on the back.
He sorted our drinks, granted they were mostly free, but I felt cosseted and special. When I spoke to people he stood back and left me to hold the limelight, when he spoke to them he included me in the debate. I felt fabulous. By the end of the night I was unconsciously holding him round the waist when we spoke, and I am sure the admiration was now verging on adoration as I looked up to his eyes. For his part he just kept smiling at me, stoking the warm fire that glowed inside.
Time to go home came too soon and we spilled into the street to seek a taxi home. I was having the best night of my life and didn’t want it to end. The offer of coffee back at his place was never going to be turned down by me. I also knew now how I had to end the night.
I had asked about his wife and he had confirmed my first impressions. She had gone cold on him, insecure about his confidence, more stressed than his relaxed nature would react to, but he did not make a play of it. He simply shrugged his shoulders with resignation and the comment that it would all work out. How could she not appreciate all of the qualities of this beautiful person? He had not mounted a charm offensive on me, just treated me as an individual, been calm, considerate and well mannered.