Chapter 8: Getting Closer

Gordon Winters grudgingly accepted the proposal offered by Miles Hoffman on behalf of Reese. I got the impression from Ali that Gordon was intimidated by Miles after he witnessed the pasting lawyer Huggins received in the family courtroom. The fact that Kim was present at the negotiations probably underscored he had little room to move. He signed the documents and the deed was done. Reese was out from under a bad potential marriage and financial hard times. Gordon left for Wenatchee at the end of February with little fanfare and no going-away party that he was invited to.

The one-time payment to Reese helped tide her over as she began her new career at Kimble Motors. She started on March 1^st and two weeks later when I arrived to pick up the kids for their time with me, I found a much different Reese.

"Hi, Graham. How are you?" she asked brightly. "The kids will be here in a moment."

"Hi, Reese. How's the new job?"

"Oh, Graham, I'm so lucky. Allison is a great person to work for and I'm really enjoying the job."

"That's great, Reese. I'm happy for you. I'm glad the bad stuff is behind you."

"Almost," she said, now showing a sad expression. "I won't forget what I did to you and our children. I was selfish and stupid. I know I'll never do anything like that again."

"I'm sure you won't," I said, wondering if I was right.

My connection with Ali hadn't moved very far. We were still at the introductory stage, it seemed. I didn't know if she was expecting me to make the first move or whether she would take the initiative. I'd learned more about her, but not from her. I learned from observation.

The first thing I realized was that she was very smart. Cunning, actually. I was certain that she engineered bringing her mother and Miles into the Reese-Gordon problem-solving equation. It's a solution I doubt I would have come up with, but it was exactly what was needed to fix the situation.

The second thing I noticed was that she was subtle in a very strange way. When I first met her, I thought she was quite outrageous. Her totally unexpected and aggressive moves at the New Year's party were an example. But that wasn't really her. She used her seemingly bulletproof self-confidence to ward off unwanted intrusion by others. Why I was invited in to her inner circle, I wasn't sure. Since that very forward introduction on her part we had barely touched other than some chaste kisses.

Yet, I felt she was committed to me in some way. She was dating no one else that I knew of. She never refused to be with me. She got involved with my home life and immediately went about winning over Jess and Matt. She encouraged me to connect with her son, Jack, and her mother, Kim. And now she had gone out of her way to help Reese, directly helping me as well.

For my part, I was falling for her. She was a breath of fresh air in my life. She was helping me to get over Reese and her betrayal more than she could understand. I felt she was the change and the inspiration that gave me hope that I could find someone to spend the rest of my life with. The only thing remaining for me was to decide how to move our relationship forward. Ali took the matter out of my hands.

"Jackie will be staying with his Gram this weekend," Ali announced on our usual evening phone conversation. "Does that give you any ideas?"

"Oh yes, it does," I answered immediately. "However, most of them are not for public consumption."

"Why you devil, Grime. I think you have evil intentions toward me," she smirked.

"I've had evil intentions toward you since New Year's Eve. I've just not had the chance to act on them."

"Why Grime, I never would have thought you would harbor such ambitions," she said impishly.

"I'm afraid I have to confess to being a closet cad. When taunted by such a temptress as you, I'm not likely to behave."

We were having a bit of fun with the word-play, and yet I was aware it wasn't all a game. I was trying to get Ali to make a move before I did. I wasn't confident that I could find a way to bring us together without screwing it up. That concern came from the fact that I had been out of the game for twenty years or more. In addition, the only woman I had ever been intimate with was Reese. I had a steep hill to climb.

"I'm planning on making you a very nice dinner on Friday night. I suggest you bring a change of clothes for an overnight stay," she said, plain as day.

"Are you serious?" I asked, stupidly.

"Of course I am," she said indignantly. "I don't play games, Grime. That's not me."

"Okay, then. I'll be there. What time?"

"As soon as you can get here," she said, reverting to a sultry voice.

"What should I bring?"

"A bottle of wine and a stiff cock," she answered immediately.

"Oh, uhhm, ah, I can do that. What kind of wine?"

"Red, just like your face is right about now," she giggled.

"Yeah. But I'll recover in time for Friday, trust me."

"You'd better. I've been waiting for this for over two months."

So there it was. The gauntlet had been thrown down. I was expected to answer the challenge and not be found wanting.

I wasn't exactly the picture of confidence when I walked up to her door and rang the bell.

"Hiya," she said brightly, grinning as she opened the door, standing back to allow me to pass.

"Hi," I replied, turning to her as she closed the door.

We looked at each other for a moment, me wondering what to do next. Once more, Ali took matters into her own hands, stepped to me, wrapped her arms around my neck, and kissed me soundly.

"Nervous, huh," she declared in a quiet voice.

"Yeah, I am," I admitted.

"Been a while, huh?"

"Yeah, it has."

"Me too. If you're nervous it means you think this is important ... us, I mean."

I nodded. "Yeah, exactly right."

"It is important ... to both of us."

"Good to know," I said, ever the brilliant conversationalist.

"I think you could use a drink," she smiled, still with her arms around my neck.

"I think I could," I agreed.

I was still holding my overnight bag. She took it from me and put it on a wing chair, returning to me. Instinct took over and I held her and kissed her. It was a passionate effort with some tongue involved. She responded in kind. When we broke, she ran her hand over the front of my trousers. She got a predictable result. She had my complete attention.

She moved away at that moment, showing a seductive smile before turning to the kitchen. I opened my bag and took out a bottle of very good Columbia River Cabernet-Syrah blend that was recommended to me by my local wine store. I walked to the kitchen and put it on the counter. Ali had already opened a bottle of red, and I laughed when I saw the label.

"You must go to the same store I do," I said. "It's the same wine I brought."

"You see how much we have in common, Grime? It was bound to happen, you and me." She gave me another sweet kiss as she began to pour the wine.

"What's that wonderful smell?" I asked.

"That's our dinner in the oven. I cooked up something special for you."

"I already know I'm going to love it," I said.

"Here's to us," she said, clinking the glasses and taking my hand, leading me back to the living room and the sofa.

I dismissed the idea that she was nervous. If she was, it certainly didn't show.

Ali had turned on her compact stereo and it was playing some very nice music in the background. She'd gone to a lot of trouble to set the scene for this evening. The wine glasses were on the coffee table in front of us and Ali was curled up into me, my arm around her. It was a very comfortable way to spend time with her. Once in a while she would turn her head up and kiss me, and once in a while I would return the favor. We weren't in a rush to do anything but enjoy each other's company.

"I don't know where to start," I said as I kissed her neck. "I'm such a rookie when it comes to being with you. I've only ever been with one woman."

"You're doing fine, Grime. There's no rush. We haven't had dinner yet. Between the two of us, I'm sure we'll figure out what to do."

We heard the oven bell sound and Ali reluctantly broke our embrace and headed off to the kitchen. It was just as well that the meal was served just a couple of minutes later. I wasn't sure I could have restrained my urges much longer if she had stayed in my arms.

If a man can be seduced by a woman, he can also be seduced by food. Ali had prepared a roast leg of lamb basted with a mint glaze, surrounded by rosemary potatoes and parsnips. Some fresh garden peas, carrot coins and an aromatic gravy completed the presentation. It was magnificent and easily the equal of anything The Europe House might have prepared.

"God, woman, you have me at your mercy. This is something fit for royalty," I said with reverence.

"Just as I'd planned it, Grime. I weaken your resolve with my culinary talents, then take advantage of you in your defenseless state."

It might have been said in jest, but the undertones of her comment were quite evident. I knew what she had in mind for me and, being honest with myself, I offer no resistance.

"I surrender," I said, looking at her with a wicked smile.

"A wise decision," she said as she carved the meat and began serving.

The superb meal and the wine disappeared over the next hour and I sat back with a contented smile as I finished the last morsel on my plate.

"Wonderful," was all I could think to say.

"Thank you," she smiled. "I'm very happy that you enjoyed it."

Whatever the dessert might have been, it didn't get served at that moment. I helped Ali clear the dishes and together we washed and dried the items that didn't go into the dishwasher. It was a domestic scene that was common to me, but apparently not to Ali. When the last pot was dried and put away, I got a very fine thank you from Ali in the form of a kiss.

"You are so different from Pete that it's not fair to compare you. You're not just putting on an act to impress me. This is who you are. You really did love the dinner I made and you didn't think twice about helping me with the clearing up. This is normal for you, isn't it?" she suggested.

"It was a simple formula in our house. If Reese went to all the trouble of making a special meal, I would take care of cleaning up afterwards. Seemed like a fair trade to me."

Ali was shaking her head. "You aren't normal, Grime. Men don't do those kinds of things."

"Yes, for the woman they love, they do."

She seemed flustered at that point and I didn't try and explain that I was referring to Reese only. On the other hand, perhaps I was telling her something that I was beginning to feel about our relationship. I chose to say nothing.

We sat on the sofa, a glass of wine at hand from the bottle I had brought.

"I was thinking, Ali. I haven't felt this comfortable in a very long time. Being with you is easy. I mean, I'm relaxed and feeling good. It wasn't just the wonderful meal ... I just feel good being here with you."

"That was my plan, Mister Rideout," she whispered into my ear. "I would calm you with food, dull your mind with wine, then take you to my bed and satisfy my craving."