The Gift Horse

     The cool, slightly crisp brush of an early spring morning blew softly over the cheeks of Tonya Benet, as she stepped lightly on the cement walkway that led to the front door of Mr. Harper’s impressive townhouse. This was her first ‘call’ of the day and he would be expecting her in an hour or so, but Tonya had a penchant for arriving early on Mondays, if her first appointment was after 9 AM.  Somehow it made her whole day more productive to get a jump things and if the client purchased her security system, her week was made!  The commissions were that good!  Any following appointments could be breezed through without the stress and pressure of a sale hanging over her head and she was viewed by the prospect as so cool and collected, that it was often mistaken for confidence in herself and her product. Those were important perceptions to convey, when you’re selling $3,000 security systems.
 
     Of course, her appearance needed to be impeccable to be taken seriously, when the boom was lowered on the client.  That’s a lot of money and she needed to appear to be successful in this line of work to close the deal. Looking good wasn’t a big concern of hers, however.  She always wore a dress with heels to match, because they accentuated her long slender legs and she wasn’t opposed to sitting in a manner that showed them in their best light, if the benefits of her product weren’t keeping the client involved. She’d only been doing this for a short time, but the tricks of trade were revealing themselves more and more, as she unloaded her failures on the guys back at the office in the morning sales meetings, three days a week.  Most of her calls were on older people anyway and she often reminded them of someone in their family that was off at school or newly married; something that reminded the client of their empty nest .. always a daughter or niece with a bright future that was now missed greatly.
 
     Tonya was almost 22.  She had graduated with a degree in business, but pressing school loans had made working in sales a good job for the time being. She was unattached and had her own apartment and believed the world was her oyster.  The last relationship was still a little fresh and had left its own devastation for her to cope with.  "He was a jerk!" was all she needed to explain herself and her drive to sell. With a pretty face and long auburn hair to set off her flashing green eyes and creamy white complexion, she knew in time, she would be happy romantically again.  It was the loneliness of dining without conversation and waiting for her number, given with high hopes, to be called that made her shiver with neglect sometimes.   The job was  ‘the job’ and sinking into a hot bath, when it was over, didn’t leave her spirits with more than huge sigh to dream of better things.
 
     She pressed the pearl white button and stood straighter with shoulders back, as an Avon bell chimed her arrival. "Good Morning, Mister Harper .. Hello, my name is Tonya .. no .. " she rehearsed her greeting, while she waited. ".. Are YOU, Mr. Harper? I know I’m early .."  The door sprung open and a tall bare-chested man stood smiling in a heavy blue terry towel that was wrapped firmly around his hips with a hand holding it closed just below his belly button.  Water streamed down his face, dripping from his chin and ear lobes, and ran in trails over his chest, through a thicket of salt and pepper hair that enhanced the muscled contours of his chest. He had a handsome face and broad grin with perfect teeth that made his smile one that compelled you to return it. As he spoke, Tonya cast her eyes downward, being caught in total surprise by the wet beauty of a man much older than she. A man that made her feel weak and vulnerable in one moment and strangely wicked the next.
 
     "Ms. Benet?" he asked, with a full rich strength in his voice.
 
     "Ahem .. why yes! I am .. " she barely got out, as her eyes watched droplets of water dripping from .. somewhere! on to the plush carpet beneath him. Her belly felt suddenly empty and sour as her recent energy surge of a first impression drained from her and was replaced with a dull sense of need in her lower more sensitive areas. She could feel her face beginning to warm and a rapid throb became evident in her neck, as her heart’s pulse pounded in her temples. "You’re getting your carpet wet! she blurted and raised her eyes to his face for the first time. He looked straight into her eyes and stepped lively, somewhat animated.
 
     "OH! I’m sorry .. Please, come in".  She moved carefully over the dampened area in one large step, with a thank you, and stood observing the foyer, before glancing his direction, when he spoke again.  She didn’t want to appear easily swayed and moving inside broke his sensuous spell over her. "I JUST climbed out of the shower", he said. "I didn’t realize it was so late".
 
     "Oh, please forgive me .. I’m early, I’m afraid", she said. "A habit I may have to reconsider from now on" she chuckled. 
 
     "Think nothing of it! I was expecting a rather dull exchange with someone much less attractive this morning. You’re a pleasant surprise!" he said.  As she smiled at his remark, he turned to march toward the hall. "You’ll have to excuse me, I need to cover up! .. I’ll be right back! Make yourself to home".  She couldn’t stop watching him leave. It was her first gawking stare to gather his being in large luscious eyefuls. She studied the deep groove of his spine with its muscled borders running straight and long down to his blue towel .. the shape of him, from broad shoulders to narrow hips, with that cute little earthquake of an tight ass that shook under his blue towel and those legs, covered in light, barely visible, brown hair, so that the muscles of his calves could be imagined pressed  against a strong foot board, as his body battered her own relentlessly. 
 
     "Damn that Towel!" she thought. "Whew! .. Can I stay HERE today?"
Tonya no longer found her attraction to much older men a guilt trip. It used to concern her, back in high school and even in college, when she would get these irresistible urges to fantasize about being the lover of a teacher or professor. It was always a handsome one, maybe 15-20 years older. There was something in that, that intrigued her. She chalked it up to hormones, until Meredith, her college roommate made her confession one evening as they drank a smuggled in fifth and had margaritas on the rocks with two other girlfriends. Meredith revealed that she WAS having an affair and with one the professors. It became even more noteworthy, when she admitted it was Professor Martin .. the very same professor that made Tonya feel wicked with need to be pinned beneath him somehow. She pulled every detail from Meredith that she would comment on.   Tonya had never pursued her interests in these men, leaving it to simmer inside her, because .. well, they were taboo. She thought she was weird to consider a man that old ..  and her friends would give her hell over anything like that going on, if they found out!
 
     What Tonya also realized that night of drinking and soul searching was that Meredith, like herself, grew up without her Dad.  Both of their mothers never gave them another father figure. Tonya’s father was killed in an auto accident, when she was four and she grew up seeing her mother manage with only pictures of him.  Meredith never knew her father at all. He left when her mother got pregnant and it was a miracle that she’d been able to get Meredith into a college, working two jobs.  With her new insight, Tonya was relieved to know there were logical reasons for her behavior. Until this bright spring morning, she didn’t have a reason to give herself permission to explore the possibilities, however.

 
     Jack Harper tromped down his hallway and emerged in a white T-shirt, skimpy dark blue shorts and leather Old Navy flip flops. His hair was combed back, obviously still wet somewhat and the scent of a sports body splash, lightly filtered its allure through Tonya’s nose. "Care for something to drink?’ he offered, ".. my poison is mango juice and Sprite this early.  How about you?" Tonya turned to answer, but was cut off. "Ahh, I have Sprite! .. Mango juice! .. Perrier! .. Milk! OJ! .. too early for wine? .. The wine threw her off.  That sounded real good! "What’ll it be, myLady?"
 
     "Uhmph .. a Sprite is good, I guess", she said, fighting the wine issue while working, in her head.  She turned to watch him bent in half behind his refrigerator door, searching for her Sprite. His tight curved ass was positioned perfectly for her scrutiny, slightly at a 3/4 angle. She ran her eyes up and down the form of his legs, tanned and athletic. "How old IS he?" she wondered.  "He’s in better shape than some of my girls’ boyfriends!" Again, she felt the throbbing pulse of her heartbeat overtaking her. This time its pounding was centered more in the middle of her mint green lacy panties and its pressured beat, made her feel the need to stretch and sigh. She arched her back and extended her arms, while her head rotated until her neck cracked. She dropped her arms and relaxed her posture and began to feel confined in her professional outfit. She unbuttoned her suit jacket and removed it, laying it folded beside her.
 
     "You don’t mind if I get a little more comfortable, do you?" she asked.
 
     "Hell no! I insist!" he said, just then, stepping around the arm of the couch she had seated herself on, with her drink in hand. She took it from him and swallowed a quick sip.  "Mmmm, good," she said.
 
     "Are you sure you won’t have some wine?" he asked.
 
     "I thought about it, but I’m working and wine is too .. "
 
     "Relaxing?" he interrupted, as he sat across from her in a chair.
 
     "Yeahhh" she smiled .. "relaxing".  She watched him turn his glass up in the air and finish his drink without stopping.  She realized this guy already had her full attention. Each moment seemed to draw her to him more. She sensed she was vulnerable. The chemistry connection had been made physically. How on earth was she going to spend another two hours with him and sell him with this aching want to know him better without selling him on HER? 
 
     He lowered his glass from his lips and placed it soundly on the coffee table between them with a quiet rap on the tabletop. She resigned herself to the task at hand half-heartedly and was willing to begin in spite of her thoughts otherwise, when he said .. "I wanna make you a deal!"
 
     "Uh-oh" she thought. "He’s wants to negotiate already without letting me build value .. Shit!  I’m so lame!" Her business nature kicked into place without skipping a beat. She sat quietly, ready to hear his offer, but cooling down her romantic jets, as quickly as she could.
 
     "I’ll buy it .. and sign the bottom line right now, if you’ll hang out until you have to leave. Whatta ya say?" He didn’t move a muscle, but waited for her reaction.  Tonya sat stunned. Her mouth dropped open slightly, as her mind jammed it’s thoughts into a train wreck. She felt numb. This wasn’t in the training. Slowly, she grasp what she thought she heard.
 
     "I don’t understand. You’ll buy my system and I haven’t even explained it to you?!"she asked. 
 
     "Yes!" he said. 
 
     "Whhy?! .. Why would you DO that?!" she asked.    
 
     "Well .. because I CAN!  I need one", he declared.  "But, more than   that. I wouldn’t hear a word you said, if you tried to explain it to me.  I would be watching you.  From the moment I opened my front door and spoke to you, you had me." he said.
 
     Tonya sat in shock, listening .. trying to grasp this explanation stated so matter-of-fact, from a guy that she was beginning to think might be a ‘nut case’. 
 
     In her silence, he continued to reason with her.  Thinking that perhaps, he had spoken too soon. "I didn’t mean to alarm you. If you feel you HAVE to, go ahead. Do your job." Still, she sat quietly thinking .. pondering her options, questioning his motives, asking herself what she should do .. what is he saying?
 
 
What if this happened to YOU?  What would you do in Tonya’s place? 
 
     I know a lot of females that HATE to play games or so they say.  Is romance a game?  When faced with what you want, how would you react if it was given to you?  I can give a male point of view.  But first, I’d like to hear what your thoughts are. Please note me privately. 
 
     Consider this in your thinking.  No hassles!
 
     Being given .. the man of your choice
                         the house of your dreams
                         your dream job
                         all pay, no work
                         free food
     I could go on and on, couldn’t I. What’s your answer?                      
 
    
                                               The Gift Horse