Page 14 of Boxer Next Door

“I’m sorry to bother you,” I said, once I’d collected my bearings. “I’ll be going back down, just come as soon as you’re done. I wanted to talk to you about something.”

My feet hesitated, but I forced them to move as I turned to walk away.

“Ken, wait!”

I sucked in a sharp breath as I went completely still. She’d said my name before, but suddenly, I liked the way she said it. I could imagine all the ways I could make her say my name as I took her and made her beg for me to give her more.

Stop it! Control your thoughts, boy. You’re not a teenager anymore.

“What is it?” I asked, turning my head to the side without fully turning around. I didn’t want her to see the slight bulge at my crotch.

“Sorry. I know this is a little awkward, but we’re both grown-ups, so can we just act like we are, please?”

There was this pleading tone in her voice that I couldn’t help but react to. I turned around to face her. She had her arms crossed over her chest, making sure the towel wouldn’t fall, but also emphasizing the size of her breasts.

“Look,” she said. “If you’re going to be working on my fence, no matter for how short a time, we’re going to have to be around each other, so we might as well... try to relax in each other’s presence. Why don’t we go out for dinner tonight? And I’ll drive this time.”

My eyes had drifted down of their own accord, but at her asking me out to dinner, they shot up to meet hers. I hadn't expected that.

“Um…”

She smiled. “We’re neighbors, after all. We’ve been next door neighbors for a while now, and we only just started talking to each other yesterday. You know, eventually, you’re going to run out of work on that house of yours, and we’ll be living beside each other for a while, probably.”

True. I’d barely seen or talked to her before yesterday because I was always busy, and because of her schedule. But when I started to relax, we might run into each other more in the future.

I was hoping for it, so why refuse the invitation?

“I would love to go to dinner,” I told her.

At the same time, a part of me wanted to scream.

Why am I agreeing, knowing that I’m into her? I’m too attracted. I should be pulling back, not rushing straight ahead!

But there was no way I could say no. And not just because she was asking while half naked. She was acting all shy, her eyes dropping down as she tucked a lock of hair behind her ear, even as she smiled and let out a little laugh, her gray eyes sparkling when they met mine. And the sound of her voice… it was all just too fascinating to me. Another reason why I should stop, but I knew I wasn’t going to.

I knew I would only get hurt if I pushed this thing any further. Lydia was an amazing woman. Some years older than me, with a professional job, though I wasn’t exactly sure what it was that she did. She was an independent woman with a child to look after, the world at her feet. I knew, though, that I couldn’t bring myself to say no to her.

Lydia waved shyly at me, and we both seemed to remember our positions. She went back to her room to change, and I went downstairs to work on her backyard. We’d surprisingly taken much of the day already, and it was a surprise how quickly evening was drawing in.

It didn’t feel like long at all before she was at the back door, calling for me so we could go. I slapped my hands together to get rid of any dirt and followed her to her car.

We went back into town, but to a different restaurant this time. I thought it was better than the last one, somewhat larger, the ambiance better. There were some families around, but it looked like a pretty good dating hang out. There were a few couples around when I checked.

“So,” Lydia was saying as we sat down. “Can you tell me the progress you’ve made with the fence?”

I remembered what I’d wanted to tell her before. “There was something I wanted to tell you about that… But why don’t we talk about something else over dinner? We can talk about your yard later.”

“Oh.” She looked surprised, and I couldn’t blame her.

But there was no way I could focus on work right then. If she had ideas and she told them to me, I’d probably just have her repeat everything for me until she grew sick of me.

Instead, Lydia chattered as I stared at her.

She’d changed into a different set of clothes from what she was in earlier. Although the outfit had been nice, she looked even more amazing now. She’d switched the pants and a blouse for a dress that tightened around just the right curves. It was black, falling to just above her knees, with a V-neck that had my eyes dropping to her breasts now and then. I told myself it was inappropriate to stare at her like that and to look away, but my eyes would drift again.

Why are you sitting here with me, Lydia? I thought. Surely, you must have something better to do than sit here with me talking about nothing important.

The way she was dressed, she looked like she was going to a function somewhere, not just catching dinner with me at a semi-formal restaurant. I waited for her to say that she did, to suddenly declare that she had to go, then just run out on me.