Cupid turned to the other two and they talked among themselves for a few seconds and decided the extra fifty bitcoins in the kitty would be nice.
“Alright, Frigga, you’re in, but you go last,” they told her.
“That’s hardly fair.”
“But you just said you were sure we couldn’t do it, so going last shouldn’t be a problem for you,” answered Val. “Are you in or out?”
“OK, I’m in, you suckers, and I’m gonna take it all,” she laughed. Odin will love it when I bring home an extra one-fifty in bitcoin. He wants to remodel the east wing of Valhalla and this should help. So, when are we scheduled?”
“I’ve got July, Cupid has September, Eros gets November, so you get January.”
“OK, let’s do this,” she answered as they all put their drinks together over the middle of the table and shouted their own enthusiastic toasts:
“Toast!”
“Skål!”
“τοστ!”
“Praebibo!”
Once the drinks were downed, they raised their arms into the air shouting as one, “Hoo-ya!”
—–
July — St. Valentine
Now as we all know, St. Valentine isn’t really a god, but he has a lot of pull with the one upstairs. A simple email request is all it takes for him to get what he needs to carry out his duties. He decided that Joe was a moral man and an occasional church goer. He figured he would try to get Joe to mass and introduce him to a wonderful Christian woman about his age by the name of Maria.
On Sunday the first, Joe woke up early and suddenly decided to go to mass. He realized he’d not been in quite some time and felt he should go, not knowing his actions were directed from above. Wearing a nice summer sport coat and slacks, he drove to St. Mattress in the Springs. There on the steps stood a dashing older fellow and a rather attractive, younger woman. As he climbed the steps her eye caught his and she smiled.
“Hello, welcome to St. Mattress. I’m Maria and this is Val,” she said as she reached out and shook his hand.
“Hi, Maria. Val. Nice to meet you.”
“We’ve not seen you before. Are you new to the area?”
“I’m embarrassed to say I’ve lived here several years. I admit I haven’t been real faithful in my attendance. I’m Joe, by the way.”
“Never mind. You are here today and that’s what counts. Why don’t you come and sit with us, Joe?”
She ushered him down the aisle and had him sit between her and Val. During the service there was the moment when everyone was instructed to greet others around them. The three were the only ones in their area so they greeted each other again, shaking hands and chatting for a few seconds.
After mass Maria invited Joe to the community room for refreshments. Joe stood there talking with her while he ate a donut and drank some wicked tasting coffee. Maria was quite attractive. She had straight black hair and slightly tanned skin suggesting some native or south-of-the-border blood. Her eyes were slightly almond shaped, her nose had a cute little upturn and she sported straight, white teeth.
He discretely looked at her figure. Under her modest dress with a high collar, she seemed to have nice breasts and her hips were full and womanly. The modest hem was just below her knees preventing him from seeing her thighs.
As they talked, she would smile and occasionally lay her hand on his forearm while emphasizing a point. Val strolled up and politely interrupted their conversation.
“Joe, our little church could certainly use some new blood. Would you be interested in our Wednesday evening bible studies? We kick around a quote or two, talk about them and what they might mean for our modern society. After that we break for refreshments. It’s a great way to get involved and meet people.”
“Yes, Joe, you should come,” smiled Maria as she touched his arm again. I’d…Uh, we’d love to see you.”
Joe wasn’t super excited about the idea but he did see Maria as an attractive woman. Maybe it was time for him to get out a bit more and mingle with the folks in Centerton. He agreed and even offered to give Maria a ride.
Although he couldn’t hear the groans from the spying Cupid, Frigga and Eros, Val was silently elated at the quick progress made right on the very first day.
Joe picked up Maria promptly at six thirty and drove her to the church in his newly vacuumed ’91 Ford F-110 truck. After a thirty-minute bible session the small group broke for refreshments. Maria stayed close to Joe the entire time, hanging onto his every word. She readily agreed with him on most everything, lightly rested her hand on his forearm and even brushed imaginary lint off his shirt. On the way home she scooted across the bench seat to sit nearer to him, but not touching him.
“That was so inspiring,” she sighed. “Thank you for coming.”
“Yeah. Nice. I really liked what Val had to say about community and love. Sometimes I feel we don’t help each other enough and our community suffers.”
“Yeah, I agree one hundred percent. Oh, here we are. Thanks for the ride. Uh, would you like to come in for a few minutes?”
“Thanks, but no. I have a ton of work to do tomorrow and I need my sleep.”
“Will I see you on Sunday, or maybe sooner?” she asked with an anxious voice.
“Uh, well, I guess. Maybe. Uh, when you say sooner, I, uh, well, would you like to get together maybe Saturday?”
“Oh, I’d love to.”
“I like to get outdoors whenever I can. You interested in a little hike?”
Maria was not exactly an outdoorswoman but was so desperate that she agreed. They set up a time for him to pick her up for a short hike in the forest outside of town.
Eros, Frigga and Cupid were livid. Within four days Joe was taking the woman out on a date! Val could possibly pull things off.
The hike was, to put it simply, a disaster. He had originally planned for a five-mile stroll on an easy loop trail. Maria had poor quality shoes and appeared to be struggling within the first half-mile. At about a mile, Joe could see her limping and he suggested they turn around. When they got to the truck, he had to help her get up onto the bench. Again, she scooted over, this time a bit closer. For much of the trip back she apologized for ruining the hike.
“I had no idea that hiking was so difficult. I’m sorry I ruined things for you.”
“Hey, no big deal. If we are going to do that again, you’ll need some real hiking shoes.”
“Uh, could I make it up to you? How about you come in and we can get to know each other a bit better? I have a couple of beers or a bottle of wine, if you’re interested.”
When Joe agreed, she smiled to herself. It worked! Her fake walking woes got him into her house. Unfortunately, Joe drank just the one beer and declined any more, frustrating her attempt to lower his inhibitions with alcohol. When he went to leave, she went up to him and apologized once more before giving him a big hug. She reached up seeking a kiss, but Joe smiled and turned away saying he’d see her in church the next day.
At church he sat alone until Maria slid into the pew next to him, lightly squeezing his hand. They whispered a bit until the sermon started. As the week before, after the service she invited him to the community room where she stayed glued to his side. She was disappointed when he left without any definite plans to get together again but was tickled the next day when he called and offered her a ride to the bible study.