19. Les - The Dancer
Chapter nineteen
Les - The Dancer
S ummer was nearing its end and business was calling. Edie had flashbacks of Christopher’s visit to the island followed by the FBI. She knew something was amiss with Christopher. She had never seen him like that and she hoped he was getting the help he needed. It was still hard to let him go after all these years. Some of the most beautiful, loving, yet tragic occurrences had happened involving Chris. When she pushed the memories from her waking hours, she was wooed and tormented in the night by her dreams. She wondered if they would ever truly let each other go.
Her mind would randomly drift to Christopher and guilt ate away at her. Somehow, she felt responsible for his issues. He was well aware of each situation they experienced together and it was always his choice to move forward or step away. She became even more aware of the power that we, as women, have. She knew the scenarios were various and sorted but she had many encounters where she knew she dominated the relationship and could tip the scales any way she chose. She simply couldn’t accept all the blame (or credit) since men should be held responsible for their actions as well.
There were minor relationships between these chapters that Edie and I agreed not to write about to keep things moving along. If you could read between the lines that aren’t written, you would probably realize what a force a strong woman is. If a man would read this he would be wise to take notes, run away screaming like a little girl, and avoid women who take command. Edie didn’t feel that she ever intended to take advantage of a man and eventually, she would pay the piper, but men are often easily manipulated. Her mantra was women give sex to get love and men give their interpretation of love for sex. Just sayin’.
Mornings were hinting a slight breath of coolness and shopping for school supplies and new school wardrobes was taking precedence. The girls loved these outings planning their new looks for the year. After days of shopping, several lunch outings, and discussions they had about their clothes being ‘age-appropriate’ they each put outfits together to hang in their closets labeling them so they didn’t wear the same clothes too close together. That would be humiliating.
Back in Edie’s world of interior design, Fall was always a busy time with clients wanting their homes ready for holiday entertaining. Hardly a minute to breathe, the money was good, the girls were doing well in school and her oldest daughter had her first boyfriend at thirteen. Of course, Edie had thoughts of sweet Carl who had so lovingly cared for her at that age after her major surgery. Her daughters would do well to find boys who treated them with as much respect as she had encountered.
She got an unexpected call from a girlfriend on a Friday afternoon in mid-September. “Edie hi, this is Sarah. I’ve got a favor to ask.” Honestly, Edie is not the best person to ask for a favor. It’s not that she doesn’t care but she’s not one to bake cakes and casseroles for ailing neighbors or the PTA. A little of that goes a long way for her but she also wouldn’t expect people to go out of their way for her. Not saying she doesn’t appreciate kindness but just knowing someone cares is all she would expect. Besides, she usually hates those casseroles people drop off even though the thought is generously kind.
“Okay, Sarah, whatcha got?” She was trying to think of a quick excuse for whatever it was she was going to ask so she could duck out gracefully without sounding like she made something up on the fly.
“My husband Rich has a big boss coming into town tonight for dinner. He’s up for a promotion and his boss asked if we knew someone who liked to dance and you were our first choice. I know this is last minute but we’d appreciate it and it will be fun to get out for some socializing.”
Edie wheezed and tried to decline before she continued with her proposal. “It’s just this one night; he rarely comes here and if he could have fun, it might help Rich’s chances of the promotion. Besides, we know how you love to dance.” Edie couldn’t turn her down since she was always her ‘go-to -girl’ when she needed a safe place for her girls.
A blind date. She should have hesitated longer than she did but Sarah had her at ‘dancing’. She gussied up, put on a short skirt that would twirl when she did, and a good pair of dancing heels. She hoped he wasn’t a slow dancer looking for snuggles because that’s certainly not what she was looking for. They went to the nicest hotel in the area with a live band, great food, and atmosphere. Now to meet the mystery man, Les. She had no idea what to expect and she was certainly surprised.
Les was an unassuming gentleman. He offered his hand when they met and said, “Pleasure to meet you, ma’am.” She wasn’t used to being called that but she wouldn’t judge him until she experienced his dance moves. Edie was thirty-one and Les was forty- six. Not a handsome man by any stretch but clean-cut, smelled good, and had good leather-soled dancing shoes on. That was a plus. She was hopeful that was a good sign. His light hair was thinning and he was big on the top and small on the bottom and reminded her, as she thought back, of Ferdinand the Bull. They enjoyed cocktails before ordering dinner and then the music started. He excused himself and talked to the orchestra leader.
La Bamba! She loved that song, the rhythm, and the many options for dance moves. He gently offered her his hand and they were off. He was dancing a modified salsa with a few West Coast Swing moves thrown in for good measure. He was a great leader, easy to follow and she didn’t care about anything but the dance. She did manage to eat a few bites and he was attentive to her desire to dance and that’s exactly what they did. They laughed, twisted, rhumbaed, did the cha-cha, fox trotted, and danced the night away. He was a trained dancer and Edie was thrilled.
They had an amazing time and when the evening ended, he respectfully asked if he could kiss her. Les kissed her on the cheek, gave her a friendly hug, and asked if he could call her if he was in the area again. She knew he had a good time so there was little doubt she would see him again. That was the beginning of her relationship with Les. It was a surprisingly fun evening and she couldn’t remember having so much laughter and dancing in a long while.
The next day was their girl Saturday catch-up day around the house of cleaning and doing laundry. The Bee Gees were cranked up throughout the house while they were dusting and scrubbing to Stayin’ Alive. The doorbell rang so Edie peeked out and a delivery van from the local flower shop was in the driveway. Opening the door, Josh had all he could hold. It was several gigantic bouquets of exotic flowers and ferns. “Hi Miss Edie,” he said. “I don’t know who sent these to you but we had to go to the next county to fill this order. He didn’t mind spending the money and he wanted to make sure everything was fresh. There’s four more like this in the van so it will take a few more trips,” he said.
She was shocked and couldn’t imagine who would send such an extravagant display of flowers. Josh came in and began placing them on the island between the kitchen and dining room. “I don’t know if you could carry these so I’m happy to set them here for you. You must have made quite an impression on someone,” he said as he winked.
Slipping her fingernail inside the small envelope, she pulled the card out. It read:
Edie, thank you for the most fun
evening I’ve had in a long time.
Maybe you’d do me the honor of a
repeat in the near future.
Fondly, Les.
Well now, that was unexpected and an incredibly nice gesture. She’d have to think it over before giving him an answer because, knowing herself and men in general, this could quickly get out of hand. She didn’t feel any special attraction to Les although he seemed harmless and she loved dancing with him. From her growing experiences with men, she knew eventually if she went down that road, she would end up in a bed someplace with him. Edie and I talked many times about the lovers she had experienced but it seemed to me, in most cases, she was looking for love that escaped her many times. To offset her desire for comfort, she fell into waiting arms probably a few times more than she should have, but it’s not for me to say.
In the end, Edie and all of us, answer for our decisions and she was never cruel in ending a relationship, in my opinion, though I felt she got the raw end of the deal a few times. Sex is a natural progression to a physical relationship after familiarity, sharing common interests, and kissing. If a man is a good kisser, (or dancer) there’s a chance they might both get lucky. I see Edie’s mom was right. “Kissing leads to other things.”
Sex is usually more trouble than it’s worth considering all the hoops you have to jump through to get to the end whether it’s good for you or not. Then you’ve got the cleanup which is one chore that slams reality in your face. I realize men do nice things for women for mostly one purpose. Don’t you think when someone does a great job they deserve a reward? As simple as this concept is, if he gets the leaves raked up, some nice warm cookies are waiting for him. Though we talk about romance and candles, sweet whispers and foreplay, sometimes we just want slam, bam, thank you, ma’am, and done. Crude but true. We don’t always have time for the fanfare of doing it just right and often we just don’t give a damn.
Enjoying the magnificent flowers Les sent, a few weeks later she met him for several nights of dancing and getting to know him. He had three grown sons and had been divorced for five years. He was very open about wanting a permanent relationship but Edie was careful not to lead him to the conclusion that she could be that one. His home was three hours from her and he traveled often so she didn’t see him much, but he always seemed to be a presence. There were flowers, cards in the mail, current records for the girls, and a new color TV for their family room. After weeks of his gifts, she decided it was time for “warm cookies”. The girls were spending a long weekend with their aunt so she cautiously invited him for a couple of days.
Despite being a very nice man, he was as dumb as a fence post in the art of lovemaking. Though sex isn’t the ultimate criterion for a relationship, it should be somewhat enjoyable. Edie traded good kissing and good sex for good dancing. However, he was so generous it was difficult to turn down his offers. He invited them to meet his family in Huntsville, Alabama for Thanksgiving. Concerned it was the formal ‘meeting the family’ thing and she was not ready for that and probably would never be, he assured her it was nothing like that, no strings attached and he planned to rent a big beautiful Prevost motor coach for the trip. It was hard to resist, so she didn’t.
Their relationship, if she put a label on it, was not one she dreamed about developing, as he did. She continued to make it clear that she wasn’t going to be his life partner while he continued to take her on exotic trips and offered her a brand-new Cadillac and a custom home. She traveled with him and enjoyed his company and their dancing was always the highlight of their time together. He spoiled them at Christmas with outrageous gifts though she insisted they couldn’t accept them.
As Spring approached, he stayed a couple of days and helped her till the garden and do cleanup in her three-acre yard. He was flying to Croatia for a job that would keep him away for six weeks. He left before daylight and whispered he loved her as she feigned sleep. When she got up, she noticed an envelope on the nightstand. A note inside took her breath away.
Dear Edie, I hate leaving you for so long.
These funds are for you and the girls to use
while I’m gone for anything you might
need- no strings- now or ever. Love, Les.
Inside was a receipt for a large six-figure amount that he had deposited into her checking account. That was an extremely generous gesture but she didn’t feel she was worth a gift like that, if you get my drift. She wouldn’t say if she accepted or rejected his gift so feel free to make whatever assumption you desire. And just like that…Les was gone. He thought it was for six weeks but she knew it was forever.