Chapter One-1
Chapter One
Loving the Wrong Sister
Blind dates, in my opinion, were always designed for the desperate. My name is Daniel Alexander. I’m 6 foot, 2 inches tall with black hair and an athletic build. I lettered four years in college playing football. I began dating seriously when I turned eighteen years old. At the tender age of thirty one years, I have managed to remain intimate with several attractive young women. In other words, getting a woman to have s*x with me has always been at my beck and call. The institution of marriage was not something, until recently, I ever considered.
***
My friend, Frank James, called me at work one Friday. He wanted to know if I was available to have dinner that evening. I always enjoyed his company, so I agreed to meet him at an upscale restaurant. What he failed to mention during that initial call, he was bringing along a young woman who was anxious to make my acquaintance. My reputation had preceded me.
When I entered the restaurant, I mentioned to the Maitre d that I was part of the James reservation. I followed him to Frank’s table. Frank, along with two attractive women, stood to greet me. Frank made the introductions.
“Dan, I would like you to meet Lola.” She held tightly on to Frank’s arm. That signaled to me she was with Frank for the evening. Turning to the other woman, “I would also like to introduce Sharon Medici. Sharon and I work at the same company. She’s in our accounting division.”
Sharon was a very attractive blond. She extended her hand to me. I immediately had the feeling I was going to become very involved with this lady. “It’s very nice to make your acquaintance,” as I took her hand in mine.
“Frank has told me all about you,” she said. “He said the two of you have been friends since high school.”
“Please sit down everyone,” Frank suggested. Frank began telling the girls that the two of us attended college together, and then went on to mention some of the crazy things we did. The waiter came and took our drink orders. I was immediately infatuated with Sharon. She informed me she was from a small town in Michigan. She came to Philadelphia, about a year ago, to take a job with the firm where Frank is employed. They met on the job. Her division supports his division in the area of accounting. She has been assigned to support Frank and two other managers. The other day they had lunch together. Sharon told Frank, she had little time to meet people socially. Frank offered to introduce her to some of his friends. I was the first of Frank’s friends she had met.
“Frank told me all about you. I told him I would like an introduction. And here we are,” she said with a smile.
I could tell from her demeanor, she was attracted to me. It was little things through dinner that had me arrive at that conclusion. At one point, she reached over and put her hand on mine. When she touched me, I got a rush. Sometime during the dessert, I began to fantasize. I imagined the two of us in bed for the first time. Sharon said that she had an apartment in the downtown area. It allowed her to walk to work. She didn’t want to bother with maintaining a car in the city. When the dinner was over, Frank suggested that we all go to a Club. We took separate cars.
Sharon complimented me on my new MAZDA MX-5 sports car. I put the top down as we drove to the Club. It was a beautiful night. I was close to suggesting that we skip going to the Club and take a long ride. Somehow, I didn’t think she would consider that idea very polite. After giving it a little thought and weighing the pros and cons, I drove to the Club. Frank was just pulling up. We met on the parking lot and walked into the Club together. Lola was still holding tightly onto Frank’s arm. There was no doubt about it; she was announcing to the world that Frank was her man.
When we got inside, it was crowded and noisy. Every table was taken. We moved to the bar and found seats available. After a round of drinks, Frank suggested that we go back to his condo for drinks and conversation. His condo was about fifteen miles away.
On the way to Frank’s place, Sharon and I didn’t make much conversation. I did question, however, if she would like to see me again sometime in the near future. Her answer was a resounding “yes”.
Frank’s condo had underground parking. We took the elevator to the 14th floor. Frank had arrived just before us. He had left the door of his condo ajar. As we walked through the portal Frank handed us a drink. Frank had Lola assist him by putting some snacks on the coffee table. If I had met Lola on another occasion, I would have immediately been interested in dating her. I wasn’t aware of her age, but I suspect she was around twenty five years old. She had long auburn hair and a beautiful smile. Her figure was perfect. In addition to that package, she was very friendly and warm. I imagined she would be dynamite in bed.
We sat on the sofa and indulged ourselves. Frank served a variety of mixed drinks and wine. We had a four way conversation, but eventually my questions turned toward Sharon. I learned that she was not dating anyone at the present time. She inquired about my status in the dating department. I lied and told her that I wasn’t seeing anyone. In a way, it was a true statement. I wasn’t seeing anyone exclusively, although, I did spend the night with Jenny a few days ago.
After a while, Frank made a move. He took Lola by the hand and stood. “It’s late. We’re going to bed.” As he was walking down the hallway toward the master bedroom, “If the two of you wish to spend the night, you’re welcome to use the guestroom.”
“That may be a good idea. I probably shouldn’t be driving after everything I’ve had to drink,” I sheepishly stated.
After they disappeared into the master bedroom, Sharon said, “I would rather not. I have to work with Frank. I don’t want rumors being spread around the office about my immoral behavior. If it’s alright with you, I’ll drive. We can go to your place and sober up.”
What could I say? I just met this woman. I don’t blame her for protecting her reputation. We left the condo and made our way to the car. I was impressed when she slid in behind the wheel and began to drive toward my condo. She was right at home in a sports car environment.
During the ride, I dozed off. When we entered the garage, the increased noise from the car engine startled me awake. We took the elevator to my floor. That morning, the cleaning service had been there. I knew the place would be spic and span.
When we entered the condo, Sharon said, “This is very nice. I see that you’re a good housekeeper. Do you have any coffee?”
I walked into the kitchen and she followed me. I opened the refrigerator and took out the bag of coffee. Sharon took the bag from me and proceeded to make a pot. When the water was hot, she made two cups. Then we walked back into the living room. Several minutes passed in silence without either of us saying anything.
Sharon broke the silence. “I’m not going to sleep with you tonight. I would, however, like to stay here if that’s alright with you. I noticed you have a guestroom.”
“Yes, of course. We just met each other. I don’t think either of us is ready for a physical relationship.” Again, I was lying. I’ve had many first night physical encounters with women on first dates. I thought, under the circumstances, it would be better to play along under her rules. We drank the coffee and had some mundane conversation that I can’t recall.
Finally, I suggested that we call it a night. I stood and led the way to the guestroom. I took some additional blankets from the closet and placed them on the bed. I had a new toothbrush that I donated to her, and then I let her explore the bathroom. “This one is yours. I have another bathroom off the master bedroom.” I leaned in and gave her a quick kiss. Then I left her standing in the middle of the room.
***
The next morning was Saturday. When I opened my eyes, I could smell the eggs frying on the stove. I hurried out of bed and took a quick shower. I put on a pair of jeans and a tee-shirt. Then I walked into the kitchen. Sharon had set the table. She was putting the finishing touches on the breakfast.
“Sit down; I’ll have the breakfast on the table in a minute.”
I did as she commanded. She immediately poured me a cup of coffee. Then she placed my breakfast in front of me. Within seconds, she was sitting across from me.
“Did you have a good night’s sleep?” she inquired.
“Yes, but I think I drank too much last night. I hope I conducted myself as a gentleman.”
“You were perfect. You were everything Frank told me about you.”
I would have to query Frank on exactly what he told her. As we were sitting there having this casual breakfast, I couldn’t help noticing what a beautiful woman she is. Then I decided to ask some personal questions. “Did you have any serious relationships before you came to Philadelphia?”
She took a few moments as she collected her thoughts. “Yes, I had two. The first relationship was while I was attending college. That ended when I graduated. The second was with someone I met on my first job. He was my immediate supervisor. We began to have an affair. That ended when his wife learned what we were doing. She came to the motel where we were rendezvousing after work one day. She had the manager open the door with the master key. We were caught in the act of making love. It was an ugly scene. She threatened to expose us to the president of the company. When someone was hired at that company, the prospective employee was required to sign a moral clause as a condition of employment. A breach of that moral clause would result in termination. I didn’t want my supervisor to lose his job, he had two children. So, I promised his wife I would resign my position and leave town.
Shortly thereafter, when I was offered my present position, I moved here. That was more than a year ago. I try not to repeat my mistakes. I’m more cautious about what I do and to whom I get involved.”
I don’t know why, but I got the feeling there were other things she was failing to tell me. Let’s just call it my sixth sense. We finished our breakfast. I cleared off the table and put the soiled dishes in the washer.
When we finished, Sharon said, “Why don’t you pack a bag for the weekend and we’ll go to my place. I would like to change these clothes.”
I took her direction and threw some casual clothes into a bag. I collected my toiletries and we took the elevator to my car. She had previously told me she lived in the downtown area. That was an understatement. Her apartment was located a block from the University of Pennsylvania campus. The apartment was in an old building that had been completely renovated. It was a large living space. I estimated it to be about 2000 square feet.
***
When we entered the apartment, Sharon directed me to a large bedroom. There was a king size bed with four posters. Jokingly, I said “Those posters are convenient for restraints.” She gave me a strange look as if I had read her mind. There were two empty drawers she pointed to where I could stow my clothes. I just met her yesterday and already I felt like I was moving in.
After I was situated in the bedroom, we moved into her living area. She invited me to sit down and offered me a drink. “I’ll take a glass of red wine if it’s available?” She took a bottle from a liquor cabinet and poured two glasses. We sat there for a few seconds drinking the wine. “That’s quite a guest room where you’re putting me up. I can hardly wait to see the master bedroom.”
“That is the master bedroom. This apartment doesn’t have a guest room. As I previously stated, I normally don’t go to bed with someone on the first date. I consider our second date began this morning at breakfast. I intend to sleep with you for the rest of the weekend.”