Chapter 1: Discovery

“Dammit!” Marie said, struggling to comb her hair after getting out of the shower because she was out of detangler. She put on body lotion and stared at herself in the mirror. She had never been married, but thought about someone who would love her and how it would feel. She thought she was pretty, and the only thing she didn’t like about herself was her 32A bust size. “I wish I were bigger,” she thought. In her mid-20s, Marie worked for a construction company. One of her favorite hobbies was yoga, and she and a few co-workers went to yoga class on Monday evenings.

She thought, “What should I wear today?” Which reminded her it was Monday, and she needed to take her yoga pants with her. That day at work was very uneventful. Working in the accounting department, there wasn’t much going on. She went to yoga that evening. The secret to yoga is to clear your mind and focus, but she couldn’t. All of her thoughts were about Brent.

Brent Miller was a burly man, the construction manager at the same company she worked for. He was five years her senior and was in charge of all the construction crews. She looked forward to Tuesdays because that was the day of the progress meeting. Brent would be there dressed in his jacket and tie. His six-foot-two-inch frame towered over her, and she would imagine being in his arms and how secure it would be. She would sit across the table from him, riveted by his voice and his powerful presence. He was so ruggedly handsome and intelligent, with beautiful blue eyes and an incredible jawline. His muscular, hairy arms and chest intrigued her, and she was attracted to everything about him.

She would only glance at him because she didn’t want to be too obvious, and she thought, “Damn, if only...” She would doodle during the meeting, writing her name “Marie Miller.” A girl can dream, right? Although her job at the company did not give her much opportunity to be with Brent, she would make up excuses to come over to his department, making up some story about an accounts-payable problem. But she could hardly ever get one-on-one with Brent, because of his personal assistant, Darla.

Marie always found Darla to be so annoying with her impossibly high heels, tight skirts and cloying perfume. Her nickname in the office was Plunge, because she always wore a plunging neckline. But secretly, Marie was jealous of her bust size. There was even talk in the office about Darla being fake in the bust, but no one could tell for sure.

Brent wore the most subtle cologne. But Marie would have rather smelled the scent of him hot and sweaty. She even offered to do his laundry for him once, since he lived alone, just so she could take his sweaty work clothes home and spread them out on her bed. She imagined crawling in bed under them and falling asleep savoring his scent. Brent had gone through a nasty divorce the year before, and was rebuilding his life. Marie dreamed that she could be part of that new life. Not a day went by, when she didn’t think about him.

One Friday afternoon, he invited everyone to dinner at the sports bar. There was a very exciting game on that night. Marie wasn’t so much into sports, but she was really into Brent. When she got there, he was sitting next to Darla, who was dressed for the occasion that evening, complete with her low-cut blouse and her twins hanging out. Marie glared at her. Darla was sitting where she wanted to be, next to Brent.

Darla had the total package, Marie glanced at her and felt inadequate. Dinner was typical for sports-bar fare, and even though Marie didn’t drink very much, when she did, it really affected her. Beer after beer went down so easily, her staring and thinking about Brent. Soon she was too intoxicated to drive, and Brent offered to drive her home. An offer she gladly accepted.

Perhaps it was the beer, or perhaps it was the feelings that she had kept inside, but when they arrived at her apartment, she leaned over and kissed him.

Brent pulled back and said, “What was that for?”

She said, “It was for dinner, the ride home, and for keeping me safe.” Suddenly, their eyes locked, and instantly Brent knew her feelings. She felt his fingers running through her blonde hair, Brent pulled her closer and deeply kissed her. It was even more incredible than she ever could have imagined.

With the scent and the feeling of his hands, she felt so safe and secure in his arms. Marie wished that feeling would last forever. She briefly thought about inviting him inside, but instantly she remembered that they were co-workers—this was completely inappropriate. She got out of the car and said goodnight to Brent. That night, she lay in bed thinking about him and let her hand wander. Her body shuddered in ecstasy.

It was Saturday of the following week. And Brent phoned her for the first time ever. He asked her to go to dinner, and her heart leaped. Her heart was pounding, and she quickly answered yes. But she had nothing to wear. Her meager income kept the lights on, but that was about it. It had been a long time since she had gone to have dinner with anyone. She looked through her sparse closet for something to wear that night, and after trying on several outfits, she found one that she could wear and a pair of shoes that would match.