Pleasant Suprises

Sarah rushes in the door, runs upstairs, turns on the shower. She steps over a pile of work clothes, immersing her entire body under the pulsating showerhead. She cleanses the workday fodder in her mind, allowing herself to relax. Sarah sighs loudly while telling herself to slow down. Two hours is plenty of time to get ready. Then begins her familiar routine of shampooing, leaving in the conditioner while shaving unwanted hair off her neglected body. Sarah scolds herself for not exercising and practicing self-care without a man in her life. She reminds herself not to get attached to the outcome. The addiction to self-help books for the last year should be stopping her from attempts to control everything in her life.

John was standing in line at the coffee shop across from her boutique every morning for months. Sarah barely noticed him in the sea of regular coffee customers until the day he smiled and spoke to her at the cream and sugar bar. Sarah caught his blue eyes and smiled back. Since the encounter, she found herself looking forward to seeing that smile every morning. Soon John expands the conversation to inquire if she works near the coffee shop. Sarah points to a storefront through the window and says, " That is my Boutique over there." John smiles and says, " That explains why you always dress so stylish." To which Sarah returns the compliment, " You're quite the sharp dresser yourself. Do you have an office near here?" " Two blocks south on Meridian." John held the door open while they exited onto the sidewalk and said. "Enjoy this beautiful day." Tossing words over her shoulder, Sarah crosses the street to open the shop, "Thank you, have a great day."

John and Sarah began an informal exchange of banter every morning for the next week. Last Tuesday, Sarah was in the stock room steaming some garments for the window display when she heard the door chime. John was standing at the checkout counter with a brown bag from the local Deli, " Thought you might want to share my Rueben, Dan's makes a gigantic sandwich." Sarah smiled and said, " Perfect timing. I'm famished; forgot to pack a lunch." John opens the bag, two bottles of water, napkins; Sarah gets some paper plates from the back. They shared some personal facts and the sandwich while establishing that they shared the status of single. Before John left, Sarah gave him her phone number after asking if she would mind if he called her. John called later that evening and asked if she would like to go out for dinner on Saturday night.

Sarah noticed that she felt butterflies in her stomach for the first time in a long time as she dried her well-toned body. Grabbing the pile of clothes, she threw them in the hamper and began to revisit her outfit choice for the first date with John. Three outfit changes later, the decision is made to wear a fluffy white sweater, pencil skirt and, black heels. She lays the choice on the bed for later. Sarah throws on an old t-shirt and sweats, wraps her damp hair in a towel, then hurries around the condo, picks up, and shines the week's mess. Sarah demands Alexa to dim the lights and play some light jazz. She enjoys the ambiance, Glances at the time, returns to her bathroom, fluffs, and buffs her best look forward. Examining the finished look in the full-length mirror, she says to her reflection, " Looking pretty good, girl!"

Back in the living area, she fluffs the pillows on the couch and takes in the blessings of her home. Sarah begins a self-dialogue in her mind anticipating how her first date with John will be. Will he be on time? Where is he taking her? Am I ready to trust another man? It is just a date; don't make more out of this than it is! Stop it! Relax. Get out of your head. The bell rang startling, her into the moment. Opening the door to John's smile, a bottle of merlot, a bouquet of violets, and question, "Too much?" Sarah reaches out for the flowers smiling, and says, " Perfect, thank you. Let me put these in some water. Come in." Closing the door behind him, John followed her over to the kitchen island to sit the merlot down. "Our reservations are not for an hour. Would you like to have a glass before we go? You look fabulous this evening. I'm a lucky guy." "We will see about that; the evening has just begun." She handed him the wine opener sits wine glasses on the counter to fill. John obliges, raises his glass towards her's to toast, "To a fabulous evening." Sarah tinks his glass then says, "May your friends find you witty. May your lovers find you pretty. May you learn from your mistakes and count your blessings when you wake. Cheers. That is a toast, my grandmother wrote." She sat down on her couch. John took a seat on the chair across from her. Wine and conversation flow easily. Sarah relaxes. He pulls out his phone, "Ordered a Lift; about twenty minutes." The couple takes empty glasses to the sink. Sarah gathers her purse and keys. Outside waiting for the ride. Sarah asks, "Where are we going?" John replies, " You will know when we get there."

Sarah is sitting across from John at one of the Top Ten restaurants in the city. She observed that it felt surreal. "This seems too good to be true,' I bet he's a serial killer!' startles her thoughts. Sarah says to herself, "What the hell is wrong with you?" John interrupts her back to reality, " Have you done online dating?" Sarah nods her head yes with an exaggerated eye roll, "I have, but it gets exhausting sifting through scammers and married men. My friends tell me wild stories about their meet and greet's. Last week, my friend Melody met a guy for a cup of coffee and noticed he kept fidgeting on his stool like a two-year-old who can't sit still. She asks him if there is something wrong with his circulation, to which he replies, " I wasn't going to tell you but, my legs are not getting circulation. I see my doctor next week; I might have to get them amputated. Don't worry; I have my eye on those mechanical legs I've seen on the Discovery channel." John almost spits out his water, laughing, "He is trying to get a woman before he gets his new tv legs?" " Not a very good opening for a relationship. I would need to have a lot more involvement before I would take on that major challenge! My friend told him just that and wished him well." "You can relax. I can assure you that I do not have bad circulation, and my yearly checkup doesn't reveal any issues." John assured her. Sarah responded, "Good to know." They agreed the reviews had been correct. The food is fantastic; one of the best meals ever. Sarah keeps the conversation away from any history lessons on their former love lives. It is shaping up to be a great first date. She invites, " Want to go back to my place and finish that lovely bottle of Merlot?" John gently reached and held her hand on the ride home, took her keys, and opened the condo door.

John walks over and fills the glasses handing one to Sarah; collision occurs, wine splashes on the front of her fluffy white sweater landing in a pattern resembling a Jackson Pollock painting. They immediately begin the 'OMG, how do we fix this?' dance, running around like keystone cops. John is franticly shouting out apologies while blotting her sweater with wet paper towels. Sarah is assuring him it is her fault, not to worry; she has other sweaters. Panicked blotting continues. Sarah takes off the sweater, throws it over her head over the couch, "Forget about it!" She falls back on the sofa and laughs. John joins, laughing next to her. Tension replaces laughter, and after a short hesitation, they scoot closer, releasing hormones. Protocol pushes aside; pure passion takes hold.

Sexually spent, lying naked on top of strewn clothing. Breaking the silence, " Wow, I sure didn't expect that!" John said. "No, that was out of character for me and impulsive." Sarah replied, leans over, lightly kissing him, " I guess you're a lucky man after all." " Yes, and I was right; you're fantastic," moving over to wrap his arms around her, " Does this mean you will go out with me on a second date?" John asks.