20 comments/ 32901 views/ 53 favorites Mulligatawny Soup By: eclare This is a copyrighted original work of fiction. All rights reserved. All characters featured herein are at least eighteen years of age, even if not expressly stated. Any resemblance between actual persons, living or dead is entirely coincidental. Many thanks to editor Tom Graham of Girls_cum_first. He suggested that I extend the story. I did. * My neighbor Julie sat on a stool at my kitchen counter making us ham and cheese sandwiches. Topless. I sure as hell hadn't seen that coming. I live in a country house just outside of town. The five and a half acre lot consists of about one and a half as a nice lawn and garden, the rest woodlands up the mountain behind the house. There is a mountain stream, rivulet really, that comes down partially on our property. It's a big four bedroom house with a nice fireplace and large rooms. I love the property. We've been here twelve years and raised a family here. 'We' being my wife and I. Now it's just me. She left me three and a half months ago. On the other side of the mountain stream are the Cavanaugh's. Bill died four years ago from Lou Gehrig's -- ALS, at age fifty two. It was horrible to watch Bill disintegrate. It was even worse to watch Julie cope with the inevitable. The Cavanaugh's have a similar slice of property to mine, but theirs is a big rambling two story, six bedroom home. A very nice home. Their three boys are gone now. Two are in university, one has his own place. Our kids, a boy and a girl are both away at university too. Before Bill died and before the ALS got really bad, Cora and I would get together with Bill and Julie and have a glass of wine or two (or nine) and a barbeque or pot luck. That's just the way things work in the country. Your neighbors are your neighbors and you've got to look out after each other. As their youngest boy is about three years older than our eldest, the kids didn't interact much and at first we weren't too close. Nevertheless eventually the friendship grew even though Bill and I were completely different. He was about a year and half older than me, an executive with a large bank -- VP maybe, and an avid golfer. I refuse to play the wretched game. I would motor around on my ride-on Lawn-Boy, he had a service. I have every conceivable tool in my garage shop, he had people. It seemed to me that Bill spent half his time away, either in New York, Montreal, Washington or overseas. Bill was the life of the party though. I really liked him. He was a larger than life character, physically big too. You couldn't help but be drawn in to him. It was no wonder that he was so successful at the bank. Julie and I were more similar. She was an artistic, free spirit type. And I'm...well I'm just nuts. The one thing that Julie and I had in common, we both had spouses that were doing very well, thank you. Cora has a very high profile position with an international pharmaceutical company. She looks after regulatory affairs. The other thing that Julie and I had in common was an inability to interact with each other without figuratively poking each other in the ribs. We were always playful and sometimes there was a little sexual innuendo thrown in for good measure. Lou Gehrig's changed all that. As soon as Bill was diagnosed his joie de vivre was gone. Julie's too. Not only did she have to remain strong and deal with Bill's degeneration, but she also had to deal with three teenage boys who had their own issues coping with their father's disease. When it was eventually over Julie was, not surprisingly, a changed woman. Long gone were the parties. Long gone was the close friendship we had. Long gone was Bill. We tried to comfort Julie as much as we could after Bill was gone. She was busy coping with the kids. Although we would occasionally get together to have a cup of coffee or a glass of wine, the spark was gone. It was just polite neighborly interactions that were left 'can you let the dog out?', 'we're away on holiday can you water the plants?' -- that type of thing. We still had to look after our neighbors. Being out of town, it's simply inconvenient for others to come and look after such trivial matters. That's part of living in the country. Julie still used a lawn service but did look after the flower beds and a vegetable garden. Basically I didn't know what she did to keep herself busy. Sadly, I just didn't see much of Julie any more, even though she was only a couple of hundred yards away. I separated from Cora after twenty six years of marriage. Cora moved out, leaving the house to me and the kids. Graciously she still supplemented my income with hers. There was no animosity between us. She definitely loved her kids. I still loved her, but in a different way now. I got back from town one day laden with groceries to find a voice message from Julie. I called her back. "I'm finally having the kitchen redone starting tomorrow, do you have room in your freezer for one fairly large bag of frozen things?" Julie asked. "Sure, no problem," I said, "do you want me to come and get it?" "No, I'll be right over." When she came over I asked if she would like a glass of wine. She declined explaining that she is still unpacking the kitchen into the dining room. Sure enough, bright and early the next morning there were a bunch of trucks in her driveway. I wished I had a new kitchen going in. At about nine in the morning Julie phoned, "Jim," she said, "this fucking dog will not stop barking at the workmen. Can I bring Lulu over?" "Sure," I said. Lulu her spaniel and Gomez my mutt, get along fine. Julie brought the dog over. She tried to just hand the leash through the kitchen door, but I said, "Come on in, have a cup of coffee." She pulled off her jacket and sat on a stool at the kitchen counter. She had jeans on and a loose knitted multi-colored sweater. As usual, she looked great. We sat at the counter sipping coffee as she explained she was getting all new appliances, new cabinets, counters, new floors, ceilings, the whole kit and caboodle -- in four days. "Cool," I said, "are you thinking of selling the house?" I wished I hadn't ask that question, but it was out. "No, I love it here. I can't imagine living anywhere else. The kitchen hasn't changed since we moved into the house," she paused to think for a moment, "eighteen years ago. It definitely needs to be updated." There was a bit of sadness to her eyes. "I wish I could afford to redo mine," I said almost half under my breath. "Well now I can look forward to cooking dinner for myself in luxury," she said in a voice that betrayed her emotions. She knew Cora had left me and that I too now shared the same fate as her. Living in a big house with a dog as a companion, waiting for the kids to come and visit. It hadn't even occurred to me to perhaps rekindle the friendship that we once had, or to even pursue it to another level. I knew I could never be half the man Bill was. Although Julie was about a year and a half older than me she was still a very striking woman. I'd say five eight, thin, shoulder length bleach blonde hair covering grey I'm sure, brown eyes, dark eyebrows, perfect teeth, high cheekbones and a winning smile. Aside from the chiseled lines on the face that middle age brings, she had very few wrinkles, just a few crow's feet around her eyes. "Julie, you've got a new kitchen happening. You should be happy about that." "I suppose." "Hey it's better than a kick in the ass Julie." "I'm not so sure," she countered, "at at least a kick in the ass can be construed as physical contact." "Now you're being silly." I said. What a bitter woman she had become. I wondered if I had morphed into a similar grotesque since Cora left. "I'm sorry," she said, "I'm just being miserable." "Yeah, you are Julie. And frankly I'm worried about you. When did Bill die, was it four years ago?" "It'll be four years next month." "You've got to move on Julie." She gazed at me. "And so do I." recovering quickly. "Tell me Julie, what do you do during the day?" "Oh I keep myself busy, I play bridge, I play tennis and I volunteer at the library. And I still do some of my painting. Although, I've been told it's all dark now." "That sounds to me like a slow slide into old age. Have you met anyone? Have you even considered building a new life together with somebody?" "Oh, I've thought about that. I've thought about that a lot." "And," I paused, "what have you done about it?" Julie looked down to the floor. "I...I...," she exhaled, "I don't know what to do about it." "Come on Julie," I said with perhaps a too optimistic tone of voice, "go on-line, go to a bar. Take a singles cruise..." "I've never dated in my life, other than Bill. I wouldn't even know how to act." "Come on Julie. You're a perfectly fine, intelligent, good looking woman." She stared at me. "I know you've been through a lot," I continued. "Before Bill got diagnosed you were a glorious, vivacious woman. Full of energy, funny, fun." She continued to stare at me, with no emotion to her face. "That woman is still inside you." "That was eight years ago." She said dismissively. "That's exactly my point Julie," I said to her, "before Bill died, you had to deal with Bill, the kids, the house. I know it was stressful and you didn't have a choice." I paused for a moment then added, "I suppose you could have simply run away from it all, but you didn't Julie. You did the right thing. What a loving wife and what a loving parent would do. I have a lot of respect for how you dealt with it. And I know Cora feels the same way too." Why did I bring her up? Julie continued to stare at me blankly. I didn't know if I was being too harsh, or too intrusive or just plain judgmental. Maybe I was way out of line. I continued, "When Bill passed away, it was sad..." "It was a relief," she cut me off. "To a degree only Julie. You lost your husband. You still had to go through a grieving process. Maybe you still are, or maybe you haven't yet." She sighed and took a sip of her coffee. "I'm sorry," I said. "I'd just like to see the old Julie back." A tear ran down her cheek. "I'm sorry Julie, I didn't mean to upset you, please forgive me." Now I felt bad. Clearly I was stirring things up that perhaps should have been left alone. She wiped the tear from her cheek, "No, you're right Jim. Even the kids have been bugging me." She stared into her coffee cup. Another tear rolled down her cheek. "Is it that obvious Jim? Am I just a sad, miserable, old woman?" "Hell no!" My voice perked up. "You're a beautiful, kind, intelligent, woman." She grinned at me dismissively. As if I was supposed to say that to make her feel better. "I'm dead serious Julie, and quite frankly I'm worried about myself too." Her eyes looked up to me, wondering where I was going with that last statement. "I'm not joining no frikkin' bridge club, I'm not volunteering for squat..." "Is Cora ever coming back?" She cut me off. "No," I said with some finality to the word. I paused for a moment before I continued my thought, "I'm not going to fall into a depression and become a miserable old man." "Like your miserable old woman neighbor," she stated, rather than asked. "Sorry," I said staring into her eyes. She sipped her coffee with downcast eyes, then lifted her head taking a deep breath. "Tell me Jim, are you seeing anyone new these days? "Sadly not," I answered. "I had one date as it were since Cora left. I think I did it out of spite or revenge or something. It wasn't going to go anywhere." I knew what she wanted to know. I could see it in her face. Did we have sex? I wondered when the last time Julie had sex. I wasn't going to go there. After a moment Julie said, "Listen, I've got to get back to see what they're up to. I'll call you before I come by to get Lulu. Thanks for the coffee." She stood up grabbed her jacket and headed to the door. "Julie." She turned back to me. "You don't have a kitchen. Come back for lunch." Before she had a chance to answer I continued, "But can you get the other Julie to come instead? You know the one that used to live next door, the one that used to always be laughing and joking." A smile broke across her face. "And," I continued, "can we not talk about history? Can we just move forward with our lives, you and I?" Her smile, got even bigger. "Okay," she said, her eyes twinkling, "but the other Julie likes a glass of white wine with her lunch." "Deal," I said. As she walked across the lawn I noticed that she held her head up higher and that her back was straighter than before. Maybe my little tirade worked. Maybe my brutal honesty with her could snap her out of her funk. I knew too, that I needed to snap out of one myself. There was no way that I was going to let us both wallow in misery and self pity. Enough is enough. Time to move on. Perhaps we could help each other? Hell, why not. Then self-doubt crept over me. Maybe she's just tired from all the work in unpacking the kitchen. Maybe I was the bitter one and she was just reflecting my mood. Either way, I resolved that when Julie comes back for lunch that I'll have to lighten up her mood somehow. And mine. I had bread, cheese, ham, mayo, lettuce and plenty of white wine. Lunch no problem. I didn't know when she was going to be over or what she wanted. I simply pulled out the groceries and left them on the counter. I decided I was going to make myself some soup for later on. I pulled out what I had. Tomatoes, frozen beef stock, onions, celery, green onions, garlic, green pepper, red pepper. What to make? I had some leftover cooked white rice in the fridge. As I popped the cork to a chilled Chablis Julie tapped on the kitchen door. "Come on in it's open!" Lulu and Gomez greeted Julie as she stepped into the kitchen. I handed her a glass of wine as she slipped off her jacket. She was dressed the same as before, in jeans and a multicolored sweater. Smiling she said, "Thanks." "Ahh...do we have old Julie back?" I hoped that I did. "I'm afraid so, that old broad from next door is here. I'm so sorry about this morning." "No I am Julie," She took a sip of white and put down the glass. "You're hardly an old broad. You're middle aged like me, and a damn fine looking woman. Remember, were not going there." "You're right. We're not. Sorry." She smiled after she said that, paused then added, "Do do really think that?" then gazed at me with a bit of a smirk on her face. "That you're good looking, intelligent and a fine woman? Yeah, I do," I said with I'm sure, honesty in my face. I washed the tomatoes in the kitchen sink. She smiled and sat herself down on the stool at the kitchen counter. I recognized that this was a make it break it moment with Julie. I had to take the initiative. Maybe she recognized too that we had come to some sort of emotional Rubicon. "What's for lunch?"she asked, looking over the groceries on the counter, clearly changing the subject. "Nothing yet," I answered, "ham and cheese with lettuce and mayo okay?" "Sounds ideal," she said, "can I help?" "Sure, you make the sandwiches, I'm making some soup for later." "What kind of soup are you making?" Julie asked in an upbeat voice. "Mulligatawny." "Mulligatawny? I've heard of it but I've never had it." "Well I've not had it in a while," I said. "I've not had it in a long, long while." "Ah, let's not go there Julie." I said holding my arms out, face up to the ceiling. "I'm sorry I can't help myself," she said. She straightened her back and drew a deep breath. "Right, no more of that." As she said that I could see that she was putting a brave face on. There was a steely determination in her eye. Maybe my harsh tirade had forced her to come to grips with herself. I hoped it had. "Good. We're moving forward Julie, you and I. Even if I have to drag you kicking and screaming. I'm not going to let the two of us wither and grow into cranky old farts." I picked up my wine glass and held it towards her, "Do I have to drag you kicking and screaming or are you going to come along willingly?" She picked up her wine glass, clicked my glass, smiled bravely and said "I'm going to come willingly." I think we both blushed at the same time, then both burst out laughing. After the laughter subsided, while wiping a tear from my eye, I said, "I've got the old Julie back." "Yes, you have the new old Julie." She replied with a huge smile on her face. We clicked our glasses together again. Still chuckling to ourselves I picked up a tomato and started slicing one up as Julie applied mayo to a slice of bread. At least I got her mood in an upswing. She eyed what I was doing and said, "Those are really nice tomatoes, juicy and ripe." There was no way I was going to drop the sudden shift in mood, "I like your tomatoes, too," I stated calmly with tongue firmly in cheek. "What these?" she fired back, pressing her breasts upwards with her wrists, knife with mayo in one hand, slice of whole wheat in the other. "I'll give you that they're ripe!" "Yeah -- those tomatoes," I said. I couldn't help but grin at her. She had a look of shock and disbelief on her face, but stilled pressed her boobs up, "I hardly think they're juicy anymore." Her eyes brightened up. I liked where the conversation was going. "I think I'd be a better judge of that," I answered right back to her. "Really?" She put the knife and bread down. With both of her hands, in one motion, pulled her sweater right off revealing her very nice, ample breasts encased in a white sports bra. In a second single motion, the sports bra came off revealing a great pair of boobs, albeit a little saggy, but with large, dark brownish-pink areola and thick long nipples pointing up and out. My eyes bugged out, "Wow!" "Well, what do you think of these tomatoes then?" she asked with glee in her voice. "I think they are lovely, luscious, obviously very juicy," firmly tongue in cheek now. "You really think so?" she asked, her voice had a tinge of apprehension to it. "Yes I do," I answered back with certainty, "and I'm liking this new Julie a lot." Julie couldn't help but smile as she sat back down on the stool. Topless. She picked the knife and bread back up, "Did I shock you?" she asked. "Well, I'm seeing a different Julie yet again today. How many of you are there?" "Mmm...maybe there are a few more you haven't met yet," she answered with a devilish grin while placing the ham on the bread. She's probably right. I'd not seen this coming. This conversation was definitely going in the right direction. "You know you're staring at my breasts," Julie said breaking my reverie. "I'm sorry," I answered giving my head a little shake, "well, they are very nice though." "Would you rather that I put my top back on?" "Hell no!" I snapped, perhaps a little too crudely. "Oooh, okay...we'll just leave it off for now," she came back with a giggle. She passed me my sandwich. "So, how do you make this soup?" she asked as she bit into her sandwich. After clearing my mouthful I looked her in the eyes, rather than her tits, and replied, "I can't show you, unless you agree to try some." I thought I was being clever. "But it won't be ready until tonight. So Miss Julie, seeing as you don't have a kitchen -- would you care to come to dinner tonight?" With a smirk on her face she answered, "I suppose you would expect me to dress the way I am now?" I wasn't expecting that. "Something not too far off...it is a tomato based soup after all." I said chuckling. "So are we going on a date then?" she asked, with a little uncertainty in her eye. Mulligatawny Soup "If I recall Julie, you said that you don't know how to act on a date. The truth is, I've forgotten too. So why don't we just think of it as a practice date?" Julie had a definite look of astonishment in her face. "Seriously Julie, we'll go through all of the motions of what a date is supposed to be like, without all of the trauma that a real date would have with someone that we've just met." I thought she was buying the idea as one corner of her lips curled up. "And if we blow it, so what? We're still neighbors." Julie was smiling. "I do have to come over to get Lulu at some point." "So is that a yes?" "Okay, Jim. I'd love to. Thank you so much," she said with a funny grin and a twinkle in her eye. We finished our sandwiches, cleared the plates away and refilled our wine glasses. Julie was topless the whole time. We started on the Mulligatawny soup. "Mulligatawny is an Indian soup created during the British raj to satisfy the needs of the army officers, who demanded a soup course with their dinner," I stated matter-of-factly. "Here's how I make it, chop two onions into the soup pot with a little olive oil." "I'm not getting anywhere near frying onions without my top on." "I'm not asking you to do anything, all you have to do is just sit there and look pretty and watch." "Okay," she said, pushing her chest out, "I like cooking with you." She had a huge grin on her face. I added a daub of butter into the pot. "One sliced celery stalk...one chopped red pepper...one chopped green pepper." She just sat there and watched, her wine glass in her hand. She smiled. Clearly she enjoyed this. Certainly with her boobs hung out like that, so did I. I slipped a large chopped garlic clove into the pot. "Now we have to spice things up." I reached into the spice drawer and pulled out jars of cumin, powdered coriander, turmeric and cardamom. I looked over to Julie, she was rolling her big nipples between her thumbs and index fingers. "I'm just trying to spice things up here," she said with mock innocence in her eyes. What a tease. Yet another friggin' Julie. Maybe the wine was getting to her? I handed her a small can of tomato puree and a can opener, "How about twisting this open instead?" As I added spices to the pot I said, "Easy with the cardamom though." I ground some fresh black pepper too. At that point Gomez and Lulu came into in the kitchen. Volunteer help. "Next we add the chopped tomatoes and..." I reached back into the spice drawer, "a little Herb de Provence." "Very impressive," she said. I popped the frozen beef stock into the microwave and put the timer on for five minutes. As I scooped the tomato puree into the pot I asked Julie, "Could you get the Worcestershire Sauce, it's in the cupboard above you just to your left?" She did. Her right boob hung down provocatively under her arm as she reached for the bottle. Her nipple was perfectly silhouetted. Beautiful, I thought. Nice ass too. Why had I not seen Julie in this light before? I stirred the pot as the microwave heated the stock. I added a couple of dashes. "Next the secret ingredient, Frank's Red Hot sauce." "Oh come on, that's not authentic Indian," she said with a mock accusing tone. "I disagree Madam, Frank's is a wonderful source of capsicum, that's all we need here." "Well, I'm impressed," she said. I turned to her, blatantly gazed at her boobs and said "And so am I." "Ha!...Now you're being silly." I just smiled at her, giving a couple of shakes of hot sauce into the pot. "Should I bring something for dinner tonight?" she asked sincerely. "Julie," I answered, "you don't have a kitchen. I'll make dinner, set the table for two. How about candles and soft music? I can make this all a very romantic dinner." Julie grinned a great smile at me. Her brown eyes sparkled. "I take that as a yes," I proffered. "I don't want you to go to any trouble for me," she answered. "Trouble? I would love to have you over for a quiet, little romantic dinner date," I said as I cracked black pepper into the pot. "Practice dinner date," I corrected myself. "I'm looking forward to this," I said as I gazed directly into her eyes. She smiled. The microwave beeped. I popped the stock into the pot and gave it all a stir. I closed the lid and said to Julie, "So we have a hot date tonight...and we're going to have some hot soup." Her face beamed. Coyly she asked, "Should I dress appropriately...for the hot date...and some hot soup?" "Absolutely." "It does smell good in here." Clearly Lulu and Gomez thought so too. She slipped on her bra and sweater, she sighed and said, "Thanks for lunch Jim, thanks for everything. I can't tell you how much I appreciate it, but I've got to go." She paused for a moment, I could see that self doubt was creeping back into her. She then added, "Are you sure you want me for dinner tonight?" "Oh, I want you...for dinner." That sounded stupid. I felt embarrassed for saying it. I closed my eyes, face flushed a bit. "Sorry," I said meekly. When I gained enough composure to look back up at her, she smiled at me with a bit of whimsy in her eye. "I'm not sure when the workmen will be finished, I'll call you when they're gone and I'll come and get Lulu. What time, do you think then for supper? Sevenish?" "Yeah, let's make it seven and if things change...well, we'll know. And you can leave Lulu here. I'll feed her." "Jim, thanks," she said as slipped her jacket on. She gave me a peck kiss on the cheek and told Lulu to 'stay' as she slipped out the door. What a sexy woman I thought as I watched her walk across the lawn in the light rain. Her bum swayed provocatively with each step. Her back was straight, her head held high. All of a sudden I became conscious of my dick pressed against my pants. Am I being seduced or am I the seducer? Before I could rationalize that question, two thoughts hit my brain simultaneously. 'Dress appropriately' for dinner and Mulligatawny ain't gonna be enough for dinner. I wondered what she would wear as I rummaged through the fridge to find something to make. I had one large boneless, skinless, chicken breast. Good start. Eggs. Cream. Yogurt. All kinds of vegetables. If Julie wants to have sex with me, I thought to myself, damn right I'll do it. She's an adult. She knows what's she's doing. It'll be good for her. It'll be good for me too. Good practice too. I knew I could set a nice romantic table for two. I'd get a fire going. Candle lights. Soft music. I knew I could do it right. The soup of course would be central to the whole meal. To stray away from the Indian theme seemed a little brutish, but I didn't know what Julie's tolerance of spice would be. I decided that the rest of the meal should be complementary to the soup, toned down in the spice department and not a huge quantity. Just enough to be elegant. The chicken breast was cubed and put into a bowl with a little finely chopped garlic and onion, tandoori spice and yogurt. As I covered the bowl with Saran Wrap and slipped it into the refrigerator to marinade, I tried to figure out what I should wear. From what she said, I expected her to look hot. And the new Julie certainly was not shy. I found frozen Indian naan bread in the freezer. Perfect. I turned the soup down to a low simmer. Cooked rice would be added at the last minute. Nice shirt and slacks? Boring. I continued to prepare the meal and planned for the evening. Julie rang. "The workmen are gone," she said. I asked Julie if she's okay with Indian food. "Love it! See you at seven then?" she asked with a little apprehension in her voice. "I can't wait," I answered. Even through the phone line I could tell she smiled. Beautiful. I had an hour and fifteen minutes. I turned the outside hot tub on to warm up the water. Just in case. I lit the fire and made my way upstairs. After I shaved and showered, I dressed up in my tux. Why the hell not? The round table was laid out with a white linen tablecloth, matching napkins, the best silverware and two silver candlesticks with white candles. I placed white china bowls overtop white the china plates. I placed crystal wine glasses and water goblets. I dimmed the overhead lights. Perfect. With ten minutes to go I dished the chicken satays and the spiced lentils into a two compartment chafing dish and lit the little tea lights underneath. Raita into a silver bowl. Serving spoons set. Silver platter ready for the naan. I pressed the button on the CD changer, the first CD came on. It was my own mix of classical music. I turned the volume down to just the right level. I lit the candles. Erik Satie's Trois Gymnopedies came on. Everything was perfect. I straightened my black bow tie. The fasteners on my pleated shirt looked sharp. I felt like a million bucks. I noticed it was pouring with rain outside. At exactly seven o'clock there was a tap at the kitchen door. I opened the door to find Julie wrapped in a raincoat with a hood over her head. She had rubber boots on and a plastic shopping bag in her hand. "Hi, come on in." "Oh my," she said as she caught a glimpse of me in my tuxedo. She stepped inside and smiled at me with bright red lips and lots of make-up. She slipped out of her sopping wet coat which I took from her and hung up on a coat rack. As I turned back to her she was bent over slipping high heeled shoes on. Wow I thought. She was dressed in tight little black dress, fairly short. The dress had wide straps which slung low on her shoulders, almost on her arms. A triple strand pearl necklace hung slightly off her neck. Somehow the dress really made her boobs look great, lot's of cleavage. I could see lacy stocking tops just peeking out from under the dress as she stood back up. Her legs were the same color as her arms but shimmered. "Wow! You look fantastic." I said. I'm sure my eyes bulged out. Something else too. She grabbed her little black clutch bag from the plastic bag, grinned at me and walked off towards the kitchen through the little hallway, as I stared with my jaw dropped as she flipped her bleach blond hair back. As she strode off she placed one foot ahead of the other, like a runway model, giving her bum a sultry wiggle. "Are you hungry?" she asked and turned her head as she stepped forward into the kitchen. Before I could answer, I watched in horror as Julie's right high heel snapped sideways. She lost her balance, fell forward to the floor on her right arm and shoulder and rolled onto her back. Her legs were splayed wide open and her naked pussy was on glorious display. No panties and clearly not a natural blonde. "Oh my god are you okay?" I rushed forward afraid she had banged her head. "I'm fine...I'm fine." As she lifted herself up on her elbows I slipped one hand under her neck. She noticed that her dress had ridden way up and struggled to pull it down again. "Are you hurt? Are you sure you want to get up? Does anything hurt? Is anything broken?" My heart raced. I was scared for her health. She lay back down flat having closed her legs and fixed the dress. "I'm not hurt. I'm okay. Nothing's broken, except my dignity." "And your shoe," I added. She kicked off her one and a half shoes and I helped her up. I tried to make light of the moment, I said, "That was the best entrance ever. You can come over at any time." "Shut-up Jim, I'm so embarrassed." "Bare assed is about right." I swiftly came back. Perhaps a little too quickly. Clearly she wasn't happy. She composed herself and brushed down her dress again. Foolishly I said to her, "I love your dress and your stay up stockings. But most of all I just love those knickers. They look so natural." I wanted to chuckle, but I realized what an ass I had just made of myself. "I'll take a double whatever," she said as she stepped forward, "Oouw!". She shook her right ankle as she led onto the counter. "Are you sure you're okay?" I asked, my face still flushed, I'm sure. "I'm fine," she replied, "I just twisted my ankle a bit." "Well then hobble on over to the living room, I've a fire going. What do you want? Scotch, vodka, gin, you name it." "Scotch and some ice." "I brought her a cut crystal tumbler of Johnnie Walker black with ice and a sealed plastic baggie with ice in it wrapped in a tea towel. "Thanks," she said as I handed her the glass and wrapped the cold compress around her ankle. Her leg felt extraordinarily warm to my touch. "Aren't you having a drink?" She asked. I whipped off to the kitchen and picked up my already started glass of merlot. "Thanks for having me over," she said sipping the scotch. "Cheers." I sipped at my wine. "Something smells very good here," she said as a smile crept back onto her face. "Something looks very good here," I answered as I sat down beside her on the couch. I reached out and touched her shoulder, "Are you certain that you are alright?" "Except for the em-bare-ass-ment, yes. I'm fine." She smiled her bright smile, a little strained I thought and reached for my lapel. "You look very handsome tonight and I saw the table that you set. Very romantic. You've gone to a lot of effort." "Well I do have a hot date tonight." I put my drink down on the low coffee table in front of us. "Practice date," she corrected me. "And Jim, you're absolutely right. If that happened on a real date...my god," she shook her head. "You see this is all working out just fine. Had it been a real date, I'd probably be slapped by now for saying the things I just did. Deservingly." I added. She gazed at me with a questioning eye. "I'm just making this up as we go along." I said. She took a sip of her scotch, tinkling the ice. "Tell me Julie," I asked, "would you have gone on a real first date not wearing panties?" "I don't know Jim, I'm making this up as we go along too," she sipped her scotch again. "Is a modern girl supposed to wait until the four or fifth date to have sex, or is that passé now." "I've no idea." We stared at each other but said nothing. Was she expecting to have sex with me? Between the missing panties and what she had just said, I'd say yes. It dawned on me, I had no idea how to go about it. I hadn't thought that part through. Should I play along with the charade and suggest practice sex on a practice date? What am I a fucking teenager? "Seriously Julie, how's your ankle?" "It'll be fine." "Did you bump your head or anything else?" "No. I'm fine." She paused for a moment, then added, "The ice is helping." I said, "It's melting fast, on my hot date." Her eyes had a kind of bewilderment to them. "You can slap me if you want." She smiled, then sipped her scotch again. "That music is lovely, very odd, but very lovely. What is it?" "Erik Satie...Six Gnossiennes." She had a very blank look in her face. I wished I could read her mind. I seriously wondered where this evening was going to go. "We have Mulligatawny to eat." I said optimistically. "Yes we have," she answered sitting up, smiling. "I can't wait, I'm starved." With that she downed the rest of her double scotch, leaving a few cubes of ice tinkling in the glass. "Right," I said getting up, picking up my wine glass. "Is there anything I can do to help?" "Julie, you just have to sit there and look pretty." "Last time you said that I wasn't wearing a top." "This time, you're not wearing underwear." I shouldn't have fucking said that. There was a bit of a silence. I wondered if I was going to get slapped. "I guess I gave the game away a little," she said in a low voice as she stood up too. "Just a little," I said trying to hide my grin, lucky that I didn't get slapped. "Don't be so sure of yourself Jim." "Julie, you've not had the soup yet," again trying to be up-beat, "one sip of that soup and you are mine." Why did I say that? What the fuck's wrong with me? "Oh, is there a secret ingredient you slipped in while I wasn't looking? An aphrodisiac?" she stated, rather than asked. She was grinning at me, which was a big positive. "Yeah, it's known as a panty-remover, I guess I didn't need to put it in." We both had a good laugh at that, which we both needed. I dodged a big one. "You can open some wine" I said, "Would you prefer red or white? Or both?" "Red please, how about you? "Red." I handed her a bottle of Amarone. "Oooo...very nice," she said with a smile. Julie was opening the bottle in the kitchen as I ladled the soup into bowls. As I reached for the microwave to pull out the naan, I gently swiped my hand across her firm bum, half expecting a swift slap. "You look very sexy Julie." "Mmmm," she gently moaned, turning her head to me, smiling. She didn't see the grin on my face. In the dining room I held her chair out for her. She slipped in, smiled at me and said, "Thank you." Clearly she was impressed with the slight gesture. I was delighted with myself for doing that. I brought the wine and the soup to the table and sat down. I poured the wine. "To our hot practice date." We toasted with our glasses, while grinning at each other like teenagers. "Mmmm...this soup is exquisite." "And so is my company," I replied with a smile. "Seriously Jim, I don't think I've ever been treated as romantically as this. You've gone out of your way to make me feel special. I could get used to this attention." "See Julie, I told you, one sip of soup and you're mine." "I can't wait to see what comes next," she said. The comeback would have been too easy and too crude. I looked into Julie's eyes with as blank an expression as I could muster. I bit my tongue and said nothing. Julie blushed and took another sip of soup. "This soup really is something else Jim. It's spicy, but not raw. The flavors are exotic, yet comforting. It's rich but not heavy. You are a fantastic cook," she said with a blank look in her face. "The culinary arts, my dear Julie," I said with as straight a face as I could manage, "are just one small facet of basic sorcery." "So there is a magic potion in the soup?" she asked with mock surprise in her eyes. "No magic potion, no incantations, no spells. It's just cause and effect. Basic sorcery." "Whatever it is," she said with a grin while holding her spoon up, "I'm feeling enchanted." She sipped her soup, "Mmmm." I lifted the silver platter with the bread, "Would you like some naan, Ma'am?" "Naan-maam?" "Yes Ma'am, naan." I couldn't help but giggle. She dropped her spoon into the soup bowl splashing soup everywhere, "Damn!" "Damn - Ma'am -- naan?" my eyes like saucers my back stiffened up. She burst out laughing. I started howling too. There were tears in her eyes as she tried to regain her composure. "I'm sorry about that," she said picking up her napkin trying to contain the red damage on the white tablecloth. "This soup is having funny affects on you, isn't it Ma'am-naan?" "Stop it Jim!" she gasped clutching her side. "What? This is sorcery one-oh-one," I said holding my hands out to the side, trying to keep a straight face. After calming herself down a little she fished her spoon out of the bowl, cleaning it off in her napkin, "You are funny Jim." "And you are lovely Julie, especially sprawled on the kitchen floor with your legs wide open." She dropped her spoon into the bowl again and burst out laughing. This time there was a cackle and a gasp for air to her laugh. The ice had broken. Her hand slammed down onto the table catching the edge of the bowl with her wrist. The bowl flipped up dumping whatever was left in it onto her hand and the tablecloth while jettisoning the spoon clear off the table. Her face was red as she struggled for breath between cackles. Of course I was almost off my chair in a hysterical fit of laughter. Mulligatawny Soup "What the hell did you put in this soup?" she screamed between gasps. "Rice...nice?" "Stop it!" she said gasping for air while brushing her eyes and her cheeks with her palms, completely unaware that one hand was saturated with Mulligatawny. The right side of her face was red, soup dribbling down her neck. I burst out laughing again, almost slipping off my chair. This was all too much. "It stings!" she screeched clenching her right eye. She ran hobbling down the hall towards the powder room, opened up the hall closet instead and tried to step in. It's wrong to make light of someone else's misfortunes. But that was too much. That was slap-stick comedy. I clutched my sides in near hysterics. Damn good that this was a practice date. I should have felt pity for her and tried to help. This was another Julie again. This one was hilarious, but a menace. As I replaced the tablecloth with a fresh one, Julie hobbled out of the powder room in her stocking feet. Mascara ran down her face, her hair was a mess. Lipstick smeared. One nylon was half down her leg. She looked absolutely possessed. She picked up her clutch bag and flashed me a grimacing look. "How's the hot date working out tonight Julie?" I couldn't help myself. This was all too funny. "Fuck-off Jim," she said as she opened the closet door again, "shit." After five minutes or so Julie returned completely composed, refreshed. The table had been reset. All traces of the previous mishaps gone. The music shifted to Vivaldi L'Inverno by Il Giardano Armonico. Perfect again. I stood and held her chair for her. As she sat I asked, "Care for some more soup Julie?" "She smiled with a clearly forced grin, "No, I think I've had quite enough thank you." "Very well Ma....Madam." I served up two short tandoori chicken satays to each of us, spiced lentil dahl, a salad of tomato cucumber and onion in yogurt. I was a little worried. This wasn't going as smoothly as planned. I needed us to get back to Realville. So far the evening was too silly. Too dangerous. "We have a mango chutney here and of course if you wish, some naan." I tried to keep a straight face when I said that. "This all looks very nice Jim, thank you very much." We ate politely and quietly for a moment, only interrupted by the occasional "mmm" and complement from Julie. "May I ask something personal Jim?" Whew...good...back to Realville. Even if it was stepping back. "Sure," I answered. I knew what it was going to be about. "I don't want to pry and I don't want to be dwelling on the past." "No, that's fine Julie." "I know that you and Cora have separated now, but you never told me what happened. You seemed so happy together." I swallowed my mouthful, "She left me for another woman." Julie eyes widened. "I'm sorry, I had no idea." "Neither did I." "You were married for...how long had you been married?" "Twenty six years." "You were married for twenty six years, raised a family together, in this house, you always appeared to be a stable loving couple and you never saw that other side of her? "Nope," then I added, "neither did Yvonne's husband." "Wow, that's incredible." "What's incredible is that both Rolf, Yvonne's husband, and I didn't see anything coming. Neither of us had a clue." "Yes, yes I met Yvonne," she said staring off above me, "I never got that impression..." "Of course not. No one did. They hid it well. Cora and Yvonne had been best friends for years. Since college. Even when Rolf and Yvonne moved to Albuquerque, they must have been there for fifteen years or so, the two remained best friends. Lovers as it turned out. They'd always find a reason to see each other, whether it was girls shopping to New York, a week in Paris, they went down to the Caribbean together a couple of times. Not only just the two of them, sometimes with a small group of ladies. Then Rolf and Yvonne moved back here. I guess, in hindsight, so that the two of them could see more of each other." "And no one suspected?" "If anyone did, they never hinted anything to me or Rolf. Both remained seemingly faithful in their marriages, both raised families. Rolf and Yvonne have three kids to our two and as soon as their kids were off to university and more or less on their own, Cora and Yvonne said 'that's it we're done waiting, we've done our bit, now it's our time together.'" "Incredible." "We were both told, separately on the same day, January sixth. I was told 'it's over, I've had a lesbian relationship for thirty years, I love you, but I love Yvonne more. I've been a good wife, a good mother and a good provider. It's our time together now'. And with that they both moved into an apartment together in town." "Wow." "They planned it, they waited until just after Christmas, when all the family had left. Then boom. Outta nowhere. They even had the wherewithal to furnish their apartment with the after Christmas sales. " Julie sat and watched me. She was shocked. I could see it in her eyes. "Are you bitter about it? It must have hurt an awful lot. You must still hurt." "Of course it hurts," I said, then paused. My eyes were downcast. I really didn't want to be talking about this shit. But forward I went. "At first I was confused and certainly upset with myself for not seeing what should have been obvious. Naturally I second guessing everything that transpired in our marriage. I'm pissed with her for not confiding in me. Maybe we could have worked through it somehow? I don't know. But in the final analysis I still love her, but not in the way I did before. I want her to be happy. If living and sleeping with Yvonne is what makes her happy, then so be it. To ask for any more from her would simply be selfish on my part." Julie simply stared at me with wide eyes as I finished off my plate. "Would you like more?" I asked, "some more wine?" "Just some wine," she answered. I stood up cleared the plates and refilled our glasses. I brought dessert. "Mmm....this looks yummy." "Cardamom crème brule." "Ohhhh!" Julies eyes widened as she dug in. "Ohhhh...this is exquisite" she said as her eyes rolled around her head. "Careful Julie, that's what you said about the Mulligatawny." "Are there any secret ingredients in this?" she asked with a devilish grin. This was great, things were turning around again. "You bet, lots." I answered unable to contain my smirk. We finished our desserts. She put her teaspoon down with obvious relish and said, "Jim that was sooo good. You really do know how to make a girl feel special." Then she added, "I'm so sorry Jim." "Sorry for what?" I asked. "Sorry for what happened to you and Cora. If you treated Cora half as well as you've treated me tonight...all I can say is...she didn't know how lucky she was." I cleared the plates away to the kitchen and helped Julie up from the table by offering her a hand. "Thank you," she said and smiled at the gesture. "Come on, let's sit next to the fire." I opened another bottle of Amarone and we sat in front of the fire. I was very conscious of the fact that both Julie and I had had a few drinks already and that things had progressed very quickly that night and indeed that day. I was also very conscious of the fact that she wasn't wearing underwear. We sat in front of the fire with fresh glasses of wine. It was an uncomfortable, awkward moment. Was she expecting me to make a move on her? Was she thinking that I'm waiting for her to make the first move? I didn't think it was right at all. Too much, too fast. She spoke first. "Is this the part on the practice date that we get lovey-dovey?" She was very unsteady in her voice and her eyes. Every fiber in my body wanted to pounce on her, kiss her and slide my hand up her black dress. I took a deep breath. "Maybe I'm a bit old fashioned Julie, but I was just hoping for a good night kiss." A huge smile washed across her face. I reached out to her hand and picked it up with mine. I knew there was a big smile on my face as I kissed her fingers. "Julie, I really enjoyed our practice date. Thank you so much." She smiled sweetly at me as she looked into my eyes. Her bleach blond hair and brown eyes sparkled in the firelight. She looked lovely. "We have to admit Julie," I carefully selected my words, "that if this had been a real date," she eyed me carefully, "that our performances could be considered less than stellar." "That's not true Jim, not our performances, my performance. I dressed like a slut. I embarrassed not only myself but you too. I made a complete mess of the lovely table that you set." She paused for a moment, "Then I told you to fuck off, pried into your life after you had specifically asked me not to dwell on the past and now I'm sitting in front of the fire trying to figure out if we will have sex or not; and I'm wondering if you think I'm a total idiot or if I really am a total idiot." She paused and before I could say anything she continued. "You Jim, have been a perfect gentleman, a wonderful cook, a gracious host and a good friend." I was a little shocked. "You did nothing wrong Jim. I blew it." "That's not true Julie. I shouldn't have made fun of you, I should have been more sympathetic." "Get off it Jim, I blew it." "Julie, I had a great time. I haven't laughed so hard in a long time." I still held her hand. I gave it a gentle squeeze. A grin swept her face. Her hand squeezed mine back. She looked into my eyes. "I've not had so much fun in years either." There was sincerity in her eyes that left me in no doubt that what she had just said was completely honest. I felt sorry for her and at the same time thrilled. Thrilled that I'd been able to turn things around for her, at least in a first small step way. Or maybe I was just fooling myself. She cuddled a little closer to me. We watched the fire for a few moments. "Jim, I'm sorry." She said. "There's nothing to be sorry about Julie." We watched the fire quietly. "It's been so long Jim. I really didn't mean to put you into a position where you're uncomfortable. I must really seem a desperate woman." I chuckled at her. She looked up to me to try to understand what I thought was funny. "At least you didn't describe yourself as a desperate old woman. We have an improvement here. And I already told you what I think about you." She gave me a little squeeze a bit of a smile. "I'll take that good night kiss now, though," I said with optimism in my voice. "Does that mean I have to go home now?" "No, I just want to collect early, in case you decide to run howling out of here." She sat up, then climbed up onto her knees right next to me. The hem of her little black dress rode up a bit exposing a bit of stocking top. She cupped the back of my head with her hands and slowly lowered her red lips to mine. Her lips were soft, warm, quivering. She pushed her lips a little harder onto mine and ever so slightly brushed them side to side. I reached and put my hands onto her back and pulled her tight to myself. We continued to kiss. I opened my eyes. Hers were closed. I gave her back a little rub. She broke the kiss and lifted her face from mine. She looked into my eyes for a moment then lowered her lips to mine again, closing her eyes. Her lips parted a bit as did mine. I touched her tongue with mine, just momentarily, but it was enough to convey a message. Her tongue plunged to find mine. I could feel my cock swell. She lifted her face from mine. Her breath was heavy. Warm. Her eyes were open, steely. Her expression hard. Yet another Julie. This one was hot. I so much wanted to plunge my hand up her skirt. "Our practice date all of a sudden got very real," I said in low voice. "Yes," she whispered, then lowered her lips back to mine. My hands slid down her back and cupped her bum cheeks. I felt a wiggle in her bum and a moan through our kiss. Our tongues rolled around each others. My cock strained in my pants. Slowly she lifted her face from mine. I thin line of saliva stretched between our lips before it broke. I could taste her lipstick. I gently stroked her sides, hips and thighs. I could see nipples straining through her dress. "Julie, are you sure you want to do this?" I whispered to her. "Yes," she whispered as she lowered her lips back down to mine. I brought my right hand underneath her skirt and gently caressed the inside of her right thigh, softly stroking her stocking top. Her lips barely lifted off mine, she whispered, "Yes," again. My hand slid upwards. "Wha..." "Auughh!" Julie twisted to the side. "Lulu!" I hadn't seen the dogs come in. Neither had Julie. Her hand pressed her chest. Face white. "I wasn't expecting something cold and wet there!" "Impeccable timing," I said as Julie eased her back to the cushion, her feet were tucked under her bum, the hem of her skirt rode up exposing her pussy again. "Go away stupid dog!" she blurted as she tried to wiggle her hem down. Lulu stood there wagging her tail. Gomez was right behind getting whacked in the face by Lulu's tail. "Go on get out of here you two," I said as I stood up to shoo them away. Julie adjusted herself on the couch. The dogs took off. We both stared at each other. I grinned, she grinned and then we simultaneously burst out laughing. "We can't even get that part of the date right!" she gasped trying to contain her laughter. I had to hold on to the mantelpiece, my chest hurt from laughing so hard. Eventually we settled on the couch next to each other. Julie's mascara was running from tears. We both had to clean our cheeks off. I know my chest hurt. I refilled our wine glasses. Suddenly I saw a sadness in her face as she looked into my eyes. Did she perceive a missed opportunity? I reached and took her hand in mine. "Don't worry Julie you're still under the influence." Her face turned to a puzzled look. "Of Mulligatawny Soup." "Yes of course," she said smiling. I continued my charade, "Sorcery, even through the lowly culinary arts..." She sipped her wine, "Mmmm?" "...Is all about cause and effect." "Okay." She sipped again as she pretended to believe my nonsense. "Certain ingredients are blended together in a precise manner..." She put her glass down, shifted to the side on the couch and extended her left arm out behind my shoulders. Her eyes were wide open. "...to produce a desired result." She stared at me blankly for a moment, then asked, "And what desired result is that?" she couldn't help but grin with that question. I picked up her right hand and with as innocent a look in my face as I could manage, I said, "I can't tell you, but I can show you." "Show me then," she said grinning. "Okay," I said, "cheers." Julie picked up her glass, we clicked glasses and each took a good sip. "Hand me your glass," I said as I stood up. I placed both of our glasses on the mantle. I took off my jacket and lay it on the couch. "Stand up," I said as I reached for both of her hands. "On the table." Julie stood up holding both of my hands. She had a questioning expression on her face, "On the table?" "Yes." I held one hand as she stepped up onto the low sturdy coffee table in her stocking feet. I stepped in front of her and placed both of her hands on my shoulders. She stood a whole head above me and looked down into my eyes with a slight grin. I placed my hands on her hips and held her for a moment. Her expression turned to puzzlement. "Julie, can you feel the warmth of the fire on your back?" I asked with innocent eyes. "Yes," she answered with a slight grin again. "Can you feel warmth anywhere else?" I asked still with innocent eyes. She smiled as she responded, "Maybe." "Good." I said as I gently pushed and pulled each of her hips back and forth. "Now Julie, how does it feel as your spine gently twists?" With that she started to rock her shoulders back and forth too. After a few more twists a smile came across her as if she had a sudden revelation. "It feels good." "Close your eyes Julie." Slowly, gently I caressed her back and her thighs, my hands staying on the dress at all times. Her hands remained on my shoulders. Her eyes were closed and there seemed a quiet grin of satisfaction on her lips. I couldn't help stare at her boobs, they were right in front of my face. I felt a pressure growing in my pants again. "Does my touch feel good?" I whispered as I continued to caress her gently. "Yes," she almost hissed back. I stepped forward a few inches and eased my hands onto her bum, gently sliding my fingers over her tight black dress. "Yes," she said breathlessly, her spine still twisting to the music. Strauss' Blue Danube was on. It was perfect. I pressed forward a little more and pulled my chest towards her. My hands pulled her bum slightly towards me. I let one hand trail down the back of her thigh to her lace stocking top. I rocked my shoulders into the same rhythm as hers. Together we performed a slow hypnotic dance. Her right hand strayed from my shoulder onto my back pulling me towards her. Almost imperceptibly she moaned. I could feel her heart beat as I lifted my head up and kissed her neck softly. Her red lips parted as her head tilted back. "Can you feel the warmth anywhere else?" "Yesss..." I slipped my right hand under the back of her dress, caressing her cheek. "Ohhh..." she gasped pulling my head into her chest. Each boob ground into me with the rocking motion of her shoulders. We continued our tantric dance. Both of my hands were caressing her ass, the back of her thighs over her stockings, the small of her back and her hips. The little black dress rode up onto my wrists. "Kiss me Julie." She opened her eyes, leaned forward and cupped the back of my head with her hands. I could see that her brown eyes were dilated and glassy as her slightly parted red lips lowered to mine. Her lips pressed firmly as her head tilted from side to side grinding the kiss. My left hand was on her back pulling her towards me as I dragged my right hand along her soft pussy. She was wet. Julie moaned into my mouth and plunged her tongue into me. I was stiff as a rock. I needed to adjust. We broke the kiss. Julie gazed at me with a look in her eyes which was almost frightening. She looked as if she was about to bite me. We embraced again as the slow motion dance continued, my hands on her backside, softly caressing, her breasts pressed to my face. Her hands slid over my shoulders, back, neck and upper arms. She leaned down and kissed me again. My tongue entered her. She moaned under her breath. "I think we need to get that dress off you before you get overheated." I said adjusting my crotch. She caught me doing it. Without saying a word Julie placed one hand on my shoulder and stepped off the table. While gazing in my eyes she reached back and unzipped her dress. In one quick motion the shoulder straps were slipped off and the dress was around her ankles revealing her trimmed brown pubic hair. She sat down onto the coffee table then slipped one stocking off, then the other tossing them to the side. With her legs parted in front of me as I sat on the couch before her, she leaned back placing her palms on the coffee table, arms straight. Her pussy glistened at me. Soft dark pink folds parted to reveal a deep pink interior. I could see her clit. She was breathing heavily. "Look what you've done to me," she growled, her eyes crazed, "you really are a sorcerer." Her chest rose up and down. Her long nipples stiff on scrunched up brownish-pink areola. The triple strand of pearls glistened in the firelight. I dropped to my knees in front of her. I undid my black bow tie and tossed it aside. One by one I undid each little black and silver fastener that kept my pleated white shirt together. Matching cufflinks were unfastened one at a time as Julie gazed at my slow strip tease. I couldn't believe the hunger in her eyes.