*****
She was standing at the grill when Eric saw her, seemingly lost in her own world. He smiled and walked outside quietly approaching her from behind.
Luck favored him, for as he approached, she hadn’t noticed a flare up on the grill.
“Need some help?” he said in her ear, causing her to jump with a start. The tongs she held went flying up and Eric caught them. “I got it,” he said as he moved the steak off the flame.
“Jesus, Eric. You scared the shit out of me.”
“Sorry, I thought you heard me shut the door.”
“No, I guess I was daydreaming. I’m kind of going to miss this place.”
Eric nodded and touched the steaks, testing their firmness. “Where are you going once you sell?”
She gave him a wan smile, back up by you guys. I wanted to go back home to Arizona, but I don’t really have anything there anymore. It’ll be nice to reconnect with my old friends.”
“I know my mom misses you.”
She smiled, “I miss her too.”
“What about Emily? Will she move with you, or…?”
“Her plan was to keep her apartment until school is over, and if she finds a job that can sustain it, she’ll stay on her own.”
“That’s very mature of her,” Eric said with more than a hint of sarcasm as he put the steaks on a plate.
She smirked and asked, “I’m sure she’d love to catch up with you. You stopped being pen pals when you started high school.”
Eric thought back to the last email she sent him. She told him that she didn’t have time to keep emailing a geek like him and he’d have to settle for once a month or so. She had to spend her time with her new friends. He was hurt and sent her a one-word answer, “ok.” He never heard from her again.
From his mom, he heard she became a cheerleader and got in with the ‘cool kids’ of the school. Once he heard that, he knew what happened. He wasn’t one of those kids. He was the opposite and was surprised Emily changed as she had the same interests as he.
Before she cut him out of her life, they wrote long exchanges about their mutual love for Doctor Who, Star Trek, and other sci-fi shows. He guessed she blossomed when she hit puberty. She was always cute, but she must have stepped up if she joined that kind of clique.
It took him longer to grow into his body. He was always tall and lanky, but when his friend started lifting weights, he dragged Eric along. Eric got addicted to it and before senior year, he bulked up and had transformed his body into a lean, muscular machine that college girls loved. He never lost his love for Sci-Fi, and he never changed his group of friends; he was proud of that.
*****
After dinner, he tried to help with the dishes, but he was shooed away. He took the time to walk through the family room and look at the family pictures that dotted the walls. He was surprised to see one of him and Emily playing in the sand on a joint family vacation. He smiled at the memory. Then, he saw what must have been Emily’s senior picture and was taken aback. She was beautiful.
She still had the cuteness, but she had blossomed. She was a younger version of Julia, and he was curious if she inherited her body as well as her pretty face.
“She’s beautiful, isn’t she?” Julia asked as she walked into the room and handed him a can of beer.
“Yes,” he answered. “She looks very much like you. I bet your senior picture is very similar.”
She laughed and said, “Here, this is the closest of me to that age.”
He took the wedding picture from her hand and smiled, “Told ya. You were a gorgeous bride and you’re still pretty hot.”
She was surprised at the comment and didn’t know how to answer.
He said, “Sorry. I shouldn’t have said that.” He looked at the can in his hand and raised his eyebrow.
“You’re not going anywhere, right? Besides, I let Emily drink a little bit when she comes home. I don’t mind as long as it’s in my house. And I’m sure it’s not your first beer, college man.”
He smiled and opened it. “No comment.”
They laughed together and she took a sip of her wine. She went on to tell him about the stories behind some of the pictures on the wall, which he loved hearing. She had refilled her glass twice and he matched her drink for drink. She began to feel good. Too good.
She knew when she poured the end of the bottle, she had to stop and remove herself from his presence. She was finding it hard to fight being flirty, and his occasional touches and compliments weren’t helping.
“Whew! I’m beat,” she said after she finished her last sip. “I’m gonna turn in so I can get an early start tomorrow. Feel free to use the shower or…”
“Do I smell? Am I offensive?” he smirked.
“You know what I mean, smart ass. The house is yours, feel free to use anything you want.”
His eyes glared into her soul as she realized the implication of that double entendre. He stepped closer to her. So close she felt the heat emanate off his body.
His voice changed into a low guttural, almost growl, “Don’t think I won’t take advantage of such an offer. I get pretty hungry.”
He leaned forward and kissed her cheek. “Good night, Joyce. Thanks for rubbing my back today.”
He spun and walked out of the room leaving her shocked, horny, and confused. “What the hell was that?” she whispered to herself.