Her First Time Ch. 32

I told her where I was parked, the gold-colored Accord, then sat in the car waiting, a huge weight off my shoulders, looking forward to this lunch more than I had for a long time. Dani will be proud of me, I thought.

She found me in my car, and I watched her walk, a pretty smile on her face. She doesn't float like Jenny, nobody else does, but it's a very self-assured type of walk. I liked that. She slid into the passenger seat, and I kind of regretted that she wasn't wearing a skirt instead of pants. Pervert! First order of business, where to go? She's not a fast-food fan, she said, so McDonald's, my mainstay, was out; so was Taco Bell, red salsa speckles wouldn't look good on her pink, blouse. Neither of us are particularly fond of the Red Lobster, and I mentioned that I like lasagna. She loves Italian, so it was Olive Garden, only a few blocks away.

The hostess seated us, and I ordered lasagna, Leslie shrimp something or other -- scampi, that's what it was. Leslie asked me about Dani, and I explained that she'd just auditioned for a movie part and is in Montana preparing for it. "Wow, that has to be exciting for her, how did that come about? I never knew she was an actress."

I laughed, "She isn't... or wasn't. It's such a long story," I didn't want to get into the real story, that would be almost impossible to explain in an hour. No, not 'almost'.

"It's something we got wind of, and she had this feeling it was her," I told Leslie, instead of the truth, it was sort of, kind of, maybe a tiny bit. "She auditioned for it, they agreed it was perfect for her and gave her the part, said they wanted a new face and she was it." I didn't mention about Alan Ryder being her costar/on-screen lover, either.

"She's a rancher, she has to be able to ride like she was born in the saddle, that's what she's doing now, riding lessons on the ranch where the movie's going to be filmed."

"And she doesn't mind you taking another woman to lunch? My ex-husband would have had a jealous fit, probably killed me... before..."

I smiled at her, "No, she was planning to be here, hoping to ask you out to lunch herself. Once she realized who you were, she wanted us to renew a friendship, you're one of the few people from high school still around." She wants me to make love with you. No, I didn't say that!

I wondered if Elle had any idea just how sexy she was in her pantsuit and silky blouse. It was obvious she was going for the professional look and she'd succeeded, but it was a very 'sexy' professional, with her hair the way it sexily curled around her face. Or maybe it was just me. Dani had only been gone a single night but after the sex life we'd been living the last several weeks, even one night without her was turning me into... I'm not sure what, but already horny as hell. I wondered if Dani was in the same boat.

What kind of underwear was Elle wearing? I'd bet money it was a matching pair. Dani's words came popping into my mind, 'Matching pair -- wants to get laid.' Did her nipples get hard and pointy when she was aroused? Were they now?

"Hello, you there?" a feminine voice said, Leslie, across the table.

I blinked, "Sorry, I guess we'd talked about Dani and it made my mind wander off to Montana, I'm not used to her being gone." Elle was oblivious to what she was doing to me. But it was Dani's fault, she's the one who'd put it in my head, 'I want you to want her so bad...' she'd said. Well, if she hadn't meant it, she damned sure hadn't ought to have said it!

Lunch with Elle was wonderful, she told me a little about her life, her one son that's a career guy in the Navy. It was obvious from the way she talked how proud of him she is, he's on an aircraft carrier somewhere in the Atlantic. I gave her a very brief, two-minute version of my accident and four-month coma, without the dreams, of course, or how it had changed our lives so much, especially Jon. I told her he'd taken over management of my store while I was 'gone' and was doing so well, then about Jodi, following in Dani's footsteps to be a teacher, agricultural science, in Pullman.

Before we knew it, Leslie's lunch hour was up, and she had to be back. When I parked alongside the bank, she spent just a moment looking in the mirror, fixing her makeup, and I walked around the car, opening her door. She smiled, "What a gentleman," she said, "it's been a long time since a man's opened my door."

I smiled, happy that such a little gesture could make an impression. I took her hand and helped her out, getting a 'bit too long' hug for my efforts. "I enjoyed lunch," she said, "thank you."

"So did I... I'd like to do it again sometime... soon," I told her.

She smiled, taking out her cell phone, calling mine on it, then pressing the disconnect, "Now you have my number, I'd love to, too," she said.

I wanted to kiss her -- badly, but gave her another quick hug, instead, and she turned to the back door of the bank. I watched her go, wishing I hadn't been so shy in high school. Of course, then there might not have been a Dani in my life, which I would not want to change. Sure as hell woulda made high school more fun, though!

I drove to Moses Lake. I had the address for the Alvarez's, 4319 Quinault Street, and still hadn't heard back. I thought about the possibilities, what we could do with the farm, as I drove past the road turning off to it. I couldn't help but smile at the thought of teenage Jenny and Daniella cavorting in the hay with a couple of neighbor boys, letting them feel their boobs, and obviously more that neither would admit to. The thought went through my head that that was about the age when I was too bashful to talk to Leslie.

The Alvarez's street was in a quiet neighborhood, fairly old with all the big trees growing in the yards. The houses weren't the cookie-cutter sameness of so many newer subdivisions, either. They were all different, very nice, and nicely maintained. I knocked on the door with '4319' alongside it and heard noises from inside. A moment later, a man opened it, older, probably seventies, obviously, since he'd been born in 1949. Duhh! "Mr. Alvarez?" I asked.

He nodded, "Yes, young man, may I help you?"

I smiled, pleased that I'd actually get to talk to him about the farm in person. "I called and left a message about some property... on Davidson Road, my wife and I..."

"Yes, I know the place you're talking about. Sorry I haven't called you back, I've been taking care of my wife, she just had a knee replacement surgery a few days ago. Please... come in."

He led me into their living room, there was a white-haired woman in a recliner, a walker and an ice-pump machine adjacent. I recognized the machine, not sure what it's called, but it circulates ice-cold water through a wrap around her knee. She had a smile and very friendly eyes. "Well, David, don't be rude, offer the young man something to drink," she said.

I laughed, "He was being anything but rude," I told her, "but I am a little thirsty, I was anxious to find your place."

"We have a selection of anything you could want, long as it's water or ice tea," he said with a chuckle.

"I love ice tea, that'd be perfect," I told him, "with sweetener, I hope?" I added.

So he motioned for me to sit on the sofa and was off to the kitchen.

"I heard that you're interested in the old Sampson place," she said, "may I inquire why?"

"Certainly," I told her, "it was my wife's grandparent's farm when she was growing up. We'd like to get it back in our family, hopefully restore the house, maybe even the barn."

She smiled, "I loved that barn when I was little, hoped we'd be able to do the same, but my health..."

My face must have shown the shock, "You... lived there...?"

Mr. Alvarez came back in the room, handing me a glass of ice tea. I took a sip, "Thank you, this is perfect." It was, too, lots of ice, sweet, just the way I like it.

He sat in what must have been his easy chair opposite me, "No, Lori was a neighbor, good friends with Marianne and Kirk, so sad what happened to Kirk," he said.

Kirk would have been Dani's uncle, if not for the fact that he was killed in an accident long before she was born. All I know is that it had to do with a boat, I've never heard any details.

"Your wife, she must be... Daniella?" Mrs. Alvarez asked, "I remember the little girl, precocious little thing, so pretty, Marianne's daughter."

"Dani mentioned their wonderful neighbors, you must have been one of them. She'll be thrilled when I tell her."

"So, you're interested in buying the property, eh?" he asked.

Before I could answer, Mrs. Alvarez explained, "We bought it hoping to do the same. When Jonathan sold it way back so he could be in town, closer to Jan (Dani's grandparents), we hadn't even thought about it, but then it came for sale again, and we couldn't resist. I'd have loved to buy my parents' place but weren't able to..."

Mr. Alvarez went on, "We wanted to do what you're talking about, but Lori got cancer and kidney disease, and we had to stay close to a hospital. I know what I'd like to get out of it, but let me get it appraised, and we'll let you know. I know it's going to be up pretty significantly since we bought it, but we'd both love to see the place lived in again, you and Daniella?" he asked.

I shook my head, "Maybe... probably, eventually, but we'd like to surprise her parents, they're retired, and I know would be so thrilled... I bet they'd love to meet the two of you, too," I added, "I know Dani will." We chatted another hour or so, I explained that I hadn't even known about the farm until recently. I didn't mention Dani's recent financial windfall from the movie. Mr. and Mrs. Alvarez seemed like very nice people, but he is in the business of making money off real estate. I had no doubt he'd have every intention of squeezing every penny he could from this as well.

The drive home was interminable. I was looking forward to talking with Dani later, finding out about her first full day in Montana, and telling her about mine, pretty sure she'd be thrilled. And that all made me wonder how her first day with Alan Ryder had been, any romantic revelations? I shook my head to clear it, I was driving, after all.