Romance from the Personals

"Hello, Aaron. This is Terri," she responded when he answered the telephone. "It's nice to finally talk to you."

"Hi, Terri. I recognized your voice. Yes, it is nice to finally be talking to each other instead of some kind of machine."

This was followed by a brief, awkward silence. Neither of them was accustomed to conversation, except for at work, and only minimally there. However, Terri was aware of at least one shared interest and she started things going with it.

"You said you like cats. How many do you have?"

"None. The stupid landlord won't let me have any in my apartment."

"Yeah, same here. Cats are clean and quiet and affectionate but some people just don't like them. Some dumb people."

From their mutual love of cats the conversation segued into the unreasonableness of landlords and apartment managers and went on from there. Although lacking in social skills, both were intelligent and well-read and held firm opinions. He was usually too shy to want to express them and she had never thought anybody was interested in what she had to say, but they had no problem sharing their views with one another. As the conversation went on, both Aaron and Terri chatted as if they were long-time friends who hadn't seen each other for a while.

They discussed their dislike of office politics and of gossiping. Neither of them had ever indulged in either and they were disgusted by those who did. They both also had an aversion to people who were rude or inconsiderate and they spent substantial time roundly criticizing such persons. Aaron brought up another common interest, the cinema, and this provided still more for them to talk about. Finally, after more than two hours of talking, by far the longest conversation that Aaron had ever had with anybody, his voice was growing tired and he needed to go to the bathroom.

He was more certain than he had ever been about anything in his life that he wanted to meet her in person, and as soon as possible. "Terri, I'm all talked out and I need to go. I'd really like to get together, though. Tomorrow, if we can."

"How about meeting for lunch tomorrow?" Although Terri had immensely enjoyed the conversation, also the longest she could remember ever having, and was eager to meet Aaron in person, she wanted it to be in a public place. He didn't seem the least bit threatening but she didn't want to take any chances. He could still turn out to be some kind of weirdo. She mentioned a restaurant close to where she worked. Once in a while she went there for lunch, and she knew it was quiet, played soft background music, and otherwise had the kind of ambiance she thought would be right for a first meeting.

Aaron had never been there but he recognized the address and knew it was not far from his place of employment. "Okay. That sounds good to me. How about noon?" Noon was fine with Terri and, after determining how they would recognize each other, they said their good-nights and hung up.

That night Aaron dreamed of sitting in the uppermost row in a movie theater with the Angelina Jolie look-alike. They were sharing a tub of popcorn and neither was paying any attention to the screen. Terri dreamed of the same tall athlete but this time he was in the restaurant with her and he was wearing a dark blue shirt similar to the one Aaron had said he would be wearing. Her apartment manager was the waiter, and they didn't leave him a tip.

The next day was Friday, and when Terri went to work, wearing a light green blouse for identification, she felt like she was bursting with the knowledge of what her plans were for lunch. She kept the information to herself, however; she had never been one to share confidences with her coworkers, or ask for any, and she wasn't going to start then.

As a professional with a lot of seniority, she was not required to punch a time clock, not even figuratively, so she left long enough before noon to get to the restaurant before Aaron. She wanted to be there when he arrived and was sure she would recognize him, and not just by his shirt. They were not busy when Terri entered and she arranged to have the most private booth available. She could have gone straight there but preferred to wait for Aaron next to the front door. As she sat on the bench provided for waiting patrons, watching anxiously, she saw a man approaching, and he was wearing a dark blue shirt.

"He doesn't look as tall as I thought he would be," she said to herself. "And I expected somebody a little more athletic looking. Still, I think it's him."

It was about one minute before noon when Aaron approached the door of the restaurant. He saw a woman with brown hair and a light green blouse and she seemed to be waiting by the door. "Can that be Terri," he wondered. "She looks a little fatter than I expected. Her face is pretty, though."

The woman stood up as he approached. "Aaron?"

"Yes. Terri?"

Impulsively, she spread her arms in an obvious invitation. As he stepped forward, he observed how large her breasts were and when he hugged her, he couldn't help but notice how pleasantly they pressed against his chest. "What a terrific armful!" he told himself. "She doesn't feel fat. She feels...er...cuddly."

As they hugged, Terri was looking up at Aaron. It seemed so right to him, that he bent down and kissed her on the lips. It was the first time he had kissed anybody in years and he was badly out of practice. Basically, he just pressed his closed lips against hers for a second before raising his head again, but he felt incredibly good about it.

When Aaron wrapped his arms around her in an embrace, Terri noticed how strong they were and how comfortable she was as they encircled her. She felt completely relaxed and protected and at home there, even more than she did in her own apartment. When she looked up at him, she realized he was just tall enough for her. She had not kissed anybody for years either, and when he bent his head and their lips pressed together briefly, Terri relished it more than if it had been one of the ultra-romantic kisses she had seen so often on the silver screen.

They stood hugging for almost a minute, each reluctant to end the embrace, until they realized how peculiar they must look. Even when they separated, they continued having their arms linked, and they walked into the restaurant that way, Terri steering him to the private booth she had arranged. Menus were waiting and, after sitting down across from each other, they scanned the bill of fare. They both expected to enjoy their lunch but they were tacitly aware that food was strictly incidental to the meeting.

"I really like Italian food," Aaron commented. "I think I'll order the cheese ravioli. With salad."

"That sounds good. Why don't you order that and I'll order the lasagna and we can share. The salad will come in a big bowl, family style." Terri liked the idea of doing that. Not just the idea of being able to enjoy some of her favorite foods but the idea of sharing them with Aaron. The thought, one she relished, briefly occurred to her that she might soon be sharing much more than pasta with him.

He liked her idea too, and they folded their menus and nibbled on breadsticks while waiting for someone to take their order. Aaron mentioned other things on the menu that sounded good and suggested they might return another time and do more sharing. Terri agreed and started describing some of the times she had been in the restaurant. When the waiter arrived, they were leaning across the table, so absorbed in each other that he had to clear his throat to catch their attention.

"They must be newlyweds," he told himself, smiling as he wrote down their orders.

After the waiter left, they resumed their discussion and both decided they liked everything abut the restaurant, including the breadsticks. As Terri steered the conversation into cats again, she placed her hand in the center of the table and Aaron absent-mindedly put his on top of it. A burst of embarrassment hit them both as they realized it but neither wanted to move, and they left their hands together until their food arrived.

When they thought abut what they were eating, the meal was quite tasty, but, mostly they concentrated on each other. Aaron did not believe in love at first sight, but he did believe there could be an immediate attraction that could, given the right circumstances, quickly evolve into love. As he looked across the table at the woman who was sharing salad, lasagna and ravioli, he felt such an attraction, and it was a strong one. Part of it was the creamy breasts that peeped out over the neckline of her blouse; part was her smile and her pretty eyes. However, he was even more taken by her charm, as they chatted about a variety of subjects. Since they had never seen each other until less than an hour ago, it was amazing that they had so much to say to each other.

Aaron knew, as surely as he knew the difference between assets and liabilities, that he did not want this to be their only meeting. He wanted to see more of her, and soon. For one thing, he wanted to find out if her breasts were as firm and bouncy as they looked but, even more, he wanted to hold her in his arms as he had earlier but not have to let go.

The waiter set a leather wallet containing the check in front of Aaron, but Terri snatched it away before he could pick it up. "Oh, no," she said. "This is my treat. I invited you to lunch and I picked the place. You can treat next time." She enclosed her credit card and the bill inside the wallet and slid it to the edge of the table.

Aaron acknowledged that she had a point and he was not macho enough to argue about it. Mostly, he was entranced by the last two words she had said. "Next time." They had mentioned possible future meetings earlier and, although he didn't say so, he fervently hoped there would be a "next time" and many more times after that.

Terri hoped so too but she also didn't want to jinx their chances by saying anything. After signing the bill, she and Aaron walked to the front door, arm in arm again. They stopped just outside and turned to share another hug. Once again, she felt that being enclosed by his arms was the nicest and most comfortable place she had ever been. She hated to leave, but needed to return to work. Terri looked up again and this time, when Aaron bent his face toward her, they kept their lips slightly parted. The kiss ended quickly; it was an improvement but they both needed practice. Although neither said so, they were both hoping to do a lot of practice with each other in the very near future.

Aaron had an attack of shyness but, fortified by the kiss, he firmly pushed it aside to say what he wanted to say. "I had a really great time today and I'd like to see more of you. A lot more. Do you think you'd have time for a movie tomorrow afternoon?"

"I had a great time too and I know I'll have time for a movie tomorrow. Do you want to meet somewhere? How about here?" As safe and as comfortable as she felt being held by his arms, Terri still had nagging doubts, and wanted to feel absolutely safe.

After agreeing, and setting a time, Aaron kissed her again, less ineptly, and they went their separate ways to their respective jobs, which were in different directions. As he walked, he felt as if his feet were not making contact with the sidewalk. In his logical mind, he knew that to be impossible but the feeling was so wonderful that he allowed himself to enjoy it. During his youth, he had experienced crushes on girls or women he knew, and the way he already felt about Terri was something like those had been but much more profound. He didn't know what to make of it but it felt too good to analyze.

Hi, Aaron. How was lunch?" It was Mel, who had been with the firm almost as long as Aaron, who was asking him.

"Pretty good. I had lunch with a girl I've started seeing. I'm taking her to a movie tomorrow."

"Way ta go."

Aaron hadn't referred to Terri by name and Mel didn't ask. Nobody else asked about her because Mel didn't say anything to anybody else, and it didn't occur to Aaron to mention her to anybody. He wasn't being secretive; nobody asked him.

Terri also had trouble keeping her feet on the sidewalk as she hurried back to work. She was smiling and her heart was light and it must have shown in her face because Nicole, the very young receptionist at the front desk, greeted her as she entered.

"Hi, Terri. You certainly look happy. You must have had a good lunch."

All morning she had been almost bursting with the desire to tell somebody of her telephone conversation with Aaron. Unfortunately, nobody had said anything to her that might invite the confidence and she hadn't known how to broach the subject. After her lunch with him, she absolutely had to talk about him.

"Oh, Nicky! I just had lunch with a really great guy." She then went on to tell the younger woman, who listened raptly, about her telephone conversation and today's lunch. Other women saw them chatting or heard parts of what was being said, and most stayed to hear more, insisting that Terri start over, which she was glad to do. For no apparent reason, some of the women seemed envious of her. Some doubted that a woman as fat as she was could interest a man, or were incredulous that a woman her age would want to be involved with a man, but most were very supportive. Questions were asked and suggestions were made until somebody asked the inevitable question.

"Where'd you meet him?"

Being naive and inexperienced in such matters, Terri told the truth, about how she had answered his advertisement in the personals section and how things had gone from there, and how they seemed to be going well.

For practical purposes, that ended the conversation. Every other person there shared the opinion that only the worst of losers placed such ads or answered them but they were too tactful to pass this opinion on to Terri. Two of them were considerate enough to caution her to be careful because sometimes sexual predators, or worse, used such methods. She assured them that she was taking every precaution, that Aaron didn't know where she worked or where she lived. That mitigated their concern, but not much. Except for Nicole, who was already at her work station, all the women went back to their desks, including Terri, who didn't get much accomplished that afternoon.

Aaron didn't get much work done either. Every time he started to do something, his thoughts would stray to Terri, and how good she had looked and sounded and felt in his arms. When he left at 5:00, he went straight home again. He didn't bother calling to check on any further responses to his advertisement until after he had wolfed down a few crackers and a can of Chunky Soup.

He intended to call Terri again but wanted to wait, believing that she got home later than he did. There were only two messages, one from an obvious prostitute and one from a woman who was either a gold-digger or also a prostitute. He deleted both, as well as the second, third and fourth from the previous day. Truth be told, if there had been outright sexual propositions from Jennifer Lopez, Angelina Jolie and Beyonce Knowles, either singly or as a group, Aaron would have put them aside and continued to concentrate on his burgeoning relationship with Terri.

A few minutes later, he became too impatient to wait and picked up the phone to call. If he reached the answering machine, he would hang up and call later, but at least he would hear her voice. However, he was rewarded when Terri answered after the second ring.

"Hello."

"Hi, Terri."

"Oh, Aaron! I was hoping you would call. I had a great time at lunch with you today."

"Me too. I mean I had a great time with you. I expect to have an even better time tomorrow at the movies."

"I do too."

After a brief discussion, it was confirmed that they would meet at one o'clock at the Italian restaurant where they had lunched. He would bring the movie section from the Friday newspaper and they would decide which one they wanted to see. Since it would be Aaron's turn to be host, he would drive to the theater and pay for the tickets. The conversation turned to events after lunch, the minutiae of the day's work, which would have been surpassingly dull to anybody eavesdropping, but was of vital interest to the two who were talking about it. At that point, anything about either of the pair was fascinating to the other. By the time they had spent two extremely pleasant hours exchanging news and compliments, Terri needed to heed a call of nature. They were both through talking anyhow, so they said their affectionate good-nights and hung up.

The next day, Aaron parked his car in front of the restaurant and waited next to it. Terri arrived minutes later, parked in an adjacent parking lot and hurried to join him. She was wearing a dark skirt and a pastel blouse again, showing off what he thought of as her sexy figure. There was nothing tentative about their embrace or the several kisses they shared. Both of them kissed with their eyes closed and their lips pursed, making for softer and much more enjoyable kissing. They were learning together.

He held the door for her to get into his car and then went around to enter the driver's side. Aaron's car had a bench seat in the front, rather than bucket seats and they met in the middle to spread the newspaper section over their laps. The most natural thing in the world was for him to put his arm around her shoulders. The second most natural thing was for her to lean forward so his arm encircled her waist and snaked around to leave his hand resting on her soft thigh. She also slid her arm around him so they could each hold one side of the cinema section and peruse it to see what was being offered.

As they pored, cheek to cheek over the newsprint, he was acutely aware of her hair brushing against his face and of the faint, flowery scent of her cologne. She was aware of his gentle breathing and the piney aroma of his after-shave lotion. Aaron wondered how such a sweet, beautiful and sexy woman could have remained single for so long. Terri couldn't understand how the handsome, gentle, intelligent man next to her had escaped the clutches of designing females such as some of her coworkers.

They quickly decided on a film they wanted to see. It was a romantic comedy starring a man and a woman who were among the favorites of both of them. Even better, the theater was a just a short distance away and the show was scheduled to start in 40 minutes. They wouldn't have to leave their present location for a while.

"We have plenty of time to get there," Terri pointed out. "What do you want to do in the meantime?" She was smiling as she asked because she had a very definite idea of what she wanted to do.

So did Aaron. The restaurant wouldn't open until late afternoon that Saturday and the street was almost deserted. His arm was still around Terri's waist and he raised it slightly and started pulling her toward him. She realized immediately what he had in mind and, since it was what she wanted also, put her hand on his shoulder and turned her body toward his. This was their best kiss yet and the next one was even better.

Aaron remembered something he had seen in one of the movies he hadn't told her about. He opened his lips farther and extended his tongue. When their mouths met again, he inserted his tongue between her lips and moved it slowly, looking for an opening. His free hand, which had been resting on her left thigh, moved upward and he reveled in the feel of her soft, smooth skin through the fabric, as well as the touch of her tongue against his.

Terri felt a sudden thrill from the touch of what she realized must be Aaron's tongue. His hand moving on her leg sent a pleasantly warm sensation radiating from where it traveled. She opened her mouth to let her tongue seek his and spread her legs so his hand could wander where they both wanted it to. She remembered something her mother had said decades before on what would happen if she allowed a man to do what Aaron was doing. Almost all the advice she had gotten from her mother had turned out to be wrong and Terri was positive that particular piece was too. She was certain that what they were doing couldn't possibly be wrong because it felt so good. She turned her body, moving closer, to allow his hand even freer access and pressed her face more tightly against his so they could kiss harder and longer.