As he neared the downtown bar where he was to meet his friend, Marty was less than enthusiastic about their meeting. His friend from college had been his roommate for the five years they had spent at Tech. They were put together the first day of their freshman year when they just happened to be randomly selected as roommates.

As so rarely happens, Marty and Nelson became fast friends almost at once. They were both business majors from relatively small towns on the opposite side of the state. Nelson was quite handsome and played baseball in high school. While certainly not a bad-looking young man, Marty tended to be a bit ‘chunky’ and had been a high school band member. Jock and musician seemed to be an unlikely pairing, but the two hit it off almost at once.

The young men had spent one year together in the freshman dorm before moving into a one-bedroom apartment off-campus during their second year. By their third year, when entertaining young women became more frequent, they upgraded to a two-bedroom apartment that they agreed improved their standing with the ladies. As they had often said, “the party lasted five years.”

Now, thirty years old, Marty had done quite well in his chosen profession. For the first six or seven years, he had routinely worked twelve-hour days in his attempt to move up the corporate ladder. All of that work and very little play had allowed Marty to make a mark with his employer while it left him forty pounds overweight.

When Marty spotted the sign for the bar where he was meeting Nelson, he couldn’t help but think of how many times this scenario had played out in the past twelve years. Marty knew that tonight would be like every other night they got together. The women would come by their table and only see the handsome and trim Nelson. They’d throw themselves at him before dragging him out of the bar or restaurant without looking in Marty’s direction. It was demoralizing, to say the least, not to mention the fact that Marty usually ended up paying the bar tab while some not-so-sweet miss was pulling Nelson’s pants off.

Each time Nelson called, Marty knew that this would be the time to tell his dearest friend. He had other plans to avoid watching it all happen once again. Today had been no different. Marty was expecting a call from Nelson and already had his excuse prepared.

But Nelson had insisted. “You gotta come with me, Marty boy,” his friend pleaded. “You’ve never been to this place. It’s new and I know you’re gonna love it.”

Marty was listening to his old friend while sitting in his new office. He had just received his third promotion in less than three years. Smiling as he looked at his new digs, Marty thought maybe a little celebration with his closest buddy would be good for him. A new office, new clothes and a big fat raise had done wonders for his attitude. “Sure, Nelson,” he had replied. “I’ll meet you there at 7:30.”

Stopping at the curb, Marty looked inside and saw that the place looked busy. He took a deep breath and pushed inside the door.

As he stood looking around the room, he heard the familiar voice, “Marty boy! I’m over here!”

Spotting his friend, Marty walked toward Nelson and was greeted by his friend’s warm, friendly smile.

“Hey, big guy,” Nelson said as he pumped Marty’s hand. “I haven’t seen you in two months. What the hell have you been doin’?”

“Mostly working,” Marty answered as he sat down.

“Workin’ my ass,” Nelson shouted over the noise. “You look great. That’s a fine lookin’ suit you’re wearing and maybe some new shoes. You been robbin’ banks?”

Marty laughed, not because of the joke, but because he did feel pretty good about himself. “Not really,” he answered shyly. “I got another promotion and invested some of my income in new clothes. In fact, I’ve even moved into a new apartment.”

“Get outta here!” Nelson shouted, genuinely happy for his old friend. “You get any more promotions and you’ll be runnin’ the place, buddy. Congratulations.”

Nelson ordered two beers from the waitress and turned back to Marty. “Where’s the new apartment?”

“I moved into that new place called Broadway 50,” Marty answered. I got a corner unit on the 14^th floor.”

“Get outta here!” Nelson shouted. “The Broadway 50 is just the hottest new place in town. Did you get pictures of your boss having sex with his secretary?”

“No,” Marty laughed. “The last promotion put me into a higher tax bracket and I decided to spend some of what I was making on a little better lifestyle. The place is really nice, Nelson. I hope you’ll come by to see it.”

“You bet. I’ll be there,” his friend said with a broad smile. I’ll be happy to drink your whiskey rather than pay the high prices at street level.”

“I thought that after we had something to eat, maybe you’d like to walk over and see the place. We can be there in five minutes.”

Marty noticed a very odd look on Nelson’s face when he answered, “Yeah. Sure. Right after we get something to eat.”

After they had finished their first beer, Nelson spotted a booth open and suggested that they move into it. Marty would have been happy to have stayed at the table. Due to his expanded waistline, fitting into a booth was no easy trick for him. But Nelson was insistent, so they moved.

Marty had just adjusted to fitting into the booth when a woman stopped at the table and began talking with Nelson. “Here we go,” he thought. “She’ll have her hand in his pants in under a minute and he’ll be gone.”

As the two talked, Marty had a chance to check out the woman. “That’s grade-A prime,” he said to himself. He summed her up by deciding that she was an improved version of a fine woman he dated in college. The woman was wearing a dress that only seemed to touch her breasts and shapely butt. It was short enough to show that she had great legs. He was about to get more details when he heard Nelson speak to him.

“Marty, boy. I want to introduce you to my friend Carla. Carla, this is the friend I was telling you about last week. He and I have been like brothers for the past twelve years.”

Marty extended his hand and the woman took it.

“So, this is the great guy you were telling me about,” Carla said as she held Marty’s hand. “You’re just as handsome as Nelson told me.” Without being invited, Carla slipped onto the seat beside Marty without letting go of his hand. “To hear him talk,” she continued, “You must be about the smartest, hardest working guy in town. Is that true?”

“Normally, he just tells people that I’m his old fat friend,” Marty chuckled.

“Oh God, Nelson,” she said as she turned, “You didn’t tell me that he was funny too.”

“He’s a gem, Carla,” Nelson replied with genuine sincerity. “I don’t know if he’s stayed in shape since our college days, but the girls that hung out in our apartment used to say he was a damned fine kisser.”

Marty watched her honey blonde hair flow across her shoulder as she turned to look back at him. Her dress couldn’t have been covering her sex by more than an inch and if he wasn’t mistaken, her nipples were beginning to show through the soft covering fabric. Marty couldn’t remember the last time he had seen a woman this hot, this close to him.

“Are you still a good kisser, Marty?” she asked. Before he could say a word, Carla leaned over, put her hand around the back of his head and pressed her beautiful red lips to his.

Marty was simply too shocked to move for the first thirty seconds of the kiss, but his hand came up to hold her shoulder as her tongue invaded his mouth.

Carla pulled away from Marty when the kiss ended, showing large, bright eyes. “Oh yeah,” she whispered. “I got a tingle that went down to my toes. You know how a girl needs to be kissed.”

“I generally practice with my teddy bear at home,” he told her with his shy smile.

“Stop it,” she said as she slapped his arm. She hesitated before putting her hand on his bicep and squeezing. “You’re a lot of man, Marty.”

He didn’t have a quick comeback for her remark. Marty wondered if she’d just figured out how overweight he was. Carla leaned over and kissed him again before he could think of something witty to say about being fat. This time he heard a little noise escape her mouth. It was a sound Marty hadn’t heard since his college days, but he knew it meant that she was pleased. It hit him like music, sending a bolt of electricity through his body. Marty felt a twinge in his long-neglected need.

When Carla broke the kiss, she let her hand drift down from his shoulder to the middle of his round belly. She rubbed it and smiled. “There’s a lot here for a girl to enjoy.”

There were several seconds of silence while Carla looked into his eyes. Finally, Nelson leaned across the table, saying, “I’ve got something I need to do. How ‘bout I leave you two here to get acquainted while I take care of it?”

Without taking her eyes off Marty, Carla held up her hand and waved. “We’ll see you later, Nelson. Don’t be in a rush to come back.”

After she was confident Nelson was gone, Carla said, “You know, your friend is really impressed with you. He told me all about you last week and wanted me to meet you here today.” She gave him a radiant smile and suggested, “Why don’t we leave here and find someplace better for us to get acquainted.”

Marty may have been out of circulation for a long time, but he completely understood Carla’s suggestion. “I think I’ve got just the place for that.”

“Great,” she answered with a big smile. “Let me get my purse and we’ll go.” Then, popping out of the booth, she waited for Marty to squeeze out before pointing at a table in the corner. “My purse is with my girlfriends. Come with me while I get it.”

When they approached the table, three charming women greeted them with smiles, but all three seemed to be giving Marty the ‘once over.’

“Girls, this is Marty,” Carla announced to her friends. “Isn’t he just hunky?”

“Hiya, big boy,” one of the women said as she looked at Marty.

“Marty, these are my girlfriends,” she told him. “This is Zoe, Margie and Rachael. We’ve come here every Friday night since the place opened.” Leaning over to grab her purse, Carla told her friends, “We’re gonna take a little walk and get better acquainted.”

“We’ll see you next week,” Rachael replied, giving her friend a knowing nod.

Once outside, Carla took his hand in hers. “So, where are we going?”

“As it happens, I have an apartment five minutes from here,” he told her. “I think it would be the perfect place to get acquainted. I believe that I have a bottle of wine or two made for that purpose.”

“I like a man that’s prepared,” she giggled as she tightened her grip on his hand.

True to his word, it was less than five minutes before Marty escorted Carla through the main door at Broadway 50 apartments. The doorman nodded as Marty swept her into the elevator and pressed the button for the 14^th floor.

“You live on the 14^th floor?” Carla asked, sounding a bit excited.

“I’ve been here a little over two months,” he told her. “It’s very convenient to where I work and I rather like the view.”

When the elevator doors opened, Marty led Carla by the hand down the corridor, stopping at his doorway. Pointing at the impressive silver numbers 1404, He said, “That’s me.”

Opening the door, he let Carla enter first and heard her sound of excitement as she took in this apartment. Slipping off her coat, she said, “Oh Marty, what a beautiful apartment. And look at that view! You can see the entire city from here!”

“The place was a little pricey,” he admitted, “But the view convinced me that it was worth it. I’ve got two bedrooms, one at each end. I’ve got a good-sized kitchen and dining room. For my purposes, the living room is just perfect.” Taking a few steps, he opened the door to his bedroom and said, “This is the ideal bedroom for me. It’s large enough for a king-sized bed, nightstands, a large dresser and a comfy chair. The bathroom is large and modern ... just the way I like it.”

Carla peaked into his bathroom and walked back through his bedroom. She tugged on his tie as she reached him and said, “This place fits you perfectly. Now show me where you keep your wine.”

Marty led her into his kitchen and pointed out his built-in wine cooler. Reaching into a cabinet for the proper wine glasses, he told her, “Buying here early, I was able to add the touches I wanted. This wine cooler was at the top of my list, along with a large walk-in shower in the main bathroom.”

Before he could open a bottle, Carla coaxed him out of his jacket. He set about opening the bottle while she went to hang up his coat. “I’ll just put this in your closet,” she said over her shoulder and went back into his bedroom.