Thrown Together (Closed for Opensesame54321)

[Gr8chtr]

"Being a history professor isn't exactly Indiana Jones," Matthew Jenkins thought sarcastically to himself as he surveyed his surroundings. Most 34 year old, reasonably attractive, single men would likely be out on the town on a Saturday night in early September, he presumed. Instead, here he was in a burg in rural Virginia that had three traffic lights, a Popeye's Chicken, a 7-Eleven, and not much else that Matthew could see. Except, of course, for the room in which he now sat in a dirt-cheap, local motel that wasn't even a part of a national budget hotel chain.

As an assistant professor in one of Virginia's less prestigious public universities, Matthew was focusing his research on local history in various parts of the Commonwealth. His research had brought him to this end of nowhere to search local church records for deaths in the immediate aftermath of the Civil War. Before he could finish his research and head back home, a monstrous flash flood had closed both the Interstate and all of the primary state roads as well, marooning him for at least three days until the roads could be reopened. He was not alone in his plight. He got the last available room in town.

The desk clerk, an amiable middle-aged local man, informed Matthew that Hank's Bar was the best place in town to get dinner. On top of that, the clerk told him, Hank's featured the best, local C & W music you were likely to find. "Oh, joy," Matthew thought; he was a classical music buff. Bodily necessities being what they are, Matthew headed over to Hank's Bar, food and music to follow.

 

[Opensesame54321]

Vanessa Vanguard
Age: 27

http://m.shutterstock.com/images/412109155/full

Vanessa beat on the steering wheel of her car, staring at the words below the motel sign. The NO VACANCY sign flickered before the "V" winked out, leaving her still staring at no place to sleep. Except her car.

"Crap, crap, crap!" she punctuated each word with a punch to the steering wheel. The man behind the desk had been nice but adamant. Like the Christmas story, there was no room at the inn. Apparently she wasn't the only one in this boat.

Three days stuck here? It was definite that she would be unemployed when she made it back home. She was pretty sure that Walker and Walker didn't accept a flash flood as a viable reason for missing work. And sleeping in her car would not be too bad. If she was in HER car, instead of this rental. Through some mixup, the car rental had her booked in a Scion and she felt as if she were actually wearing the car, instead of driving it.

No, life for the next 3 days would not be good. She looked up and down road, seeing very little in the way of options. The best place looked like some bar with crappy music playing, the tinny sound leaking out the door that occasionally opened to let the odd assortment of locals in and out. She "pedaled" her car over, finding a parking place in the busy parking lot.

Grabbing her purse, she headed inside. If nothing else, maybe she could get some peanuts and something to drink before she camped in her car.

 

[Gr8chtr]

The flash flood was apparently good for Hank's Bar's business. The place was full. Apparently the motel desk clerk had given the same advice to everyone. "Hmm...probably Hank, if there is a "Hank", is the desk clerk's brother," Matthew chuckled to himself.

Per his usual m.o., Matthew would have preferred to sit a the bar when eating and drinking just by himself, but there weren't any stools left empty. In fact, he discovered after quickly surveying the small room, there was only one table with any empty seats left. He hurriedly grabbed a chair before someone else could claim the table.

 

[Opensesame54321]

Vanessa picked her way through the collection of water-filled potholes that were scattered around the parking lot. By the sound emanating from Hanks, all the local yahoos were there too. Guess nothing like a toad strangler to bring out the thirst in someone.

The noise increased greatly once she walked through the door. Yep. The place was packed. She looked around for a vacancy and found nothing except a chair at a table with one other guy. The chair was probably for his date. Or his wife.

She wandered over to the bar, hoping that one of these guys would be a gentleman.

Her luck was 2-zip today. They all ogled her, a few openly licked their lips and she felt like a calf at a veal convention. She ignored them and ordered a white wine, leaning on the bar and frowning.

Shit! She could feel a headache coming on.

 

[Gr8chtr]

Matthew was trying his best to take some enjoyment out of his evening. It was a real challenge. Despite having a Ph.D. in the liberal arts and growing up in suburban Boston, he wasn't an elitist. However, sitting in a crowded bar, listening to bad, local C & W music, surrounded by tables of men who were only drinking Bud or Millers wasn't his idea of fun. There was one bright spot, though, Hank's menu featured a large Virginia ham sandwich, with fries and slaw, and a complimentary piece of down-home corn bread. Hank's also had Yuengling on tap, granted not a top-rated craft beer, but a definite cut above Bud.

Having placed his food order with Hank's only waitress, Matthew relished his draft beer. This was, he decided, definitely going to be a more than one beer night; he made no pretense of sipping slowly. Realizing that the chair at his table next to him was the only empty chair or stool in the house, Matthew concluded that he was duty-bound to share his table with another customer if one came in before someone left. When the waitress brought his beer, he told her such, and told her to feel free to offer the seat to another customer.

Three-quarters through his 16 oz. draft, his food still yet to come, Matthew noticed the door opening. Obviously at least one other customer was arriving. When he was able to see the new customer enter, scan the room, and walk to the bar, Matthew nearly choked on his beer. Here was a late-20s', very attractive woman, and clearly not one of the locals. The tight jeans and the loose top that she was wearing were definitely not from Walmart. Nice! Assuming that the waitress remembered his offer, he was about to be joined by a refreshing piece of humanity. And, he didn't even have to risk looking like a leech by going up to her and inviting her to his table. She was likely stranded here as well. Given the situation Matthew it would be nice to have a little female companionship for dinner and maybe another meal or two before the roads reopened.

"She's probably married to the former captain of the football team," Matthew mused as he watched her order a glass of wine, "or, engaged to a medical student from UVA - same difference." No matter, though, he thought. Just sitting and chatting with her before they both headed to their respective rooms would be fine enough.

 

[Opensesame54321]

She was surprised to find that the bar actually served food too. Maybe there was hope for her yet. She was looking at the short menu when someone tapped her shoulder. She bit her tongue, suspecting that the person was yet another guy hoping to buy her a beer for a quick roll in the hay.

She turned around, all ready to let the idiot guy know just what his chances in hell were. Instead, she found one of the waitresses trying to talk to her. The noise level in the bar, between the talking and the music, made hearing her difficult. But if she understood her correctly, the vacant chair at the tables where the man sat alone was available to the next patron to enter Hanks. She thanked the waitress and asked if her food could be delivered to the table.

Picking up her wine glass, she walked over to the one vacant chair in apparently the entire town. As she got closer she could see that the guy really was not bad. She may have to sleep in her tin can sized car, but maybe she could at least sit and have a meal like a real person.

By the times she reached the table, she found that the noise level was somewhat reduced, which did help her headache ease up a bit. The man looked up at her, and she felt that at least she could show some common courtesy to him.

"Hello," she held out a hand for a handshake. "I understand that you own the last seat available within the confines of this incredibly small town and that you are willing to share your table. My name is Vanessa, and I would very much appreciate it if I could sit here." If he was a local, then perhaps she had severely underestimated the qualities of being in a one-horse town.

 

[Gr8chtr]

"Hi," Matthew replied as this very attractive, young woman greeted him. Taking her hand he rose from his seat to return the handshake. Her hand felt damn good in his. He had to remind himself not to extend the handshake any longer than the typical greeting. "Matthew, here," he said while smiling, "Yes, you are welcome. I realized that there was only one chair left so I told the waitress that she could offer it to whomever came through the door."

Matthew hesitated, then decided that it wouldn't hurt to flit a bit. "Seeing you makes me think that I'm pretty lucky I was guessing that I would be joined by an overweight, Bud-light drinking local guy who actually thinks that this local C & W band is actually good. I'm guessing that you, like me, are stranded here for a couple of days."

By the time he had finished he flirtatious comment, Matthew had set back down, as had Vanessa. He realized, though, that he was still gazing at her more than would usually be true for just meeting someone for the first time. Matthew searched for another comment that would keep some conversation going, and found one. "Based on my extensive 25 minute experience with Hank's I suspect that you will be here for awhile if you ordered food. Mine has yet to come. I would suggest that you consider ordering a second glass of wine; it could be awhile."

 

[Opensesame54321]

Vanessa sat down, glad that at least the guy wasn't hitting on her before she had a chance to get comfortable. She smiled at the man.

"Hello Matthew. It's nice of you to share your table. And as for that overweight local, I've already had him AND his brother hit on me at the bar. I guess that a flash flood must be grounds for a holiday here." She grit her teeth for a second as a particularly bad song started up.

"If the food is anything like the music, we may wind up considering the slow kitchen a blessing." She stopped for a moment, before giving Matthew a half smile. "I'm sorry for being snarky. I don't handle misfortune well."

She took a sip of her wine, managing to snag the lone waitress and order a refill.

"So, how did you find yourself here?"

 

[Gr8chtr]

Matthew discovered very quickly that he was really enjoying this woman. Partly, he knew clearly, his enjoyment was related to the image of her in her tight, designer jeans and loose-fitting blouse that only hinted at what it covered, but it was also her demeanor. Vanessa apologized for being snarky, but there was an exuberant, youthful quality to her that was most attractive.

By the time Matthew was through with his story of the research that he was conducting and how that had led him to dozens of small, Virginia towns over the last six months, he was nearly finished with his second Yuengling. He was a pretty big guy; two beers had only a barely noticeable effect on him. A third beer, though, he had learned began to get a buzz on for him, sometimes leading to a fourth, at which point his inhibitions began to crumble. Glancing at Vanessa a thought ran through his mind, "What the fuck, this could be fun." What he said outwardly, though, as he motioned the waitress over for another beer was:

"So, that's my story, what's yours?"

 

[Opensesame54321]

"I spent a couple of days visiting a friend. I was on my way back home when I apparently made a wrong turn, misread the map, and wound up here. I was given a couple of days off from work if I promised I would be back in the office by day after tomorrow. So after beating my steering wheel for a while, I decided to come drown my sorrows." She laughed, thanking the waitress for her wine refill.

She looked at the man across the table from her. He did have a nice smile. In fact, he was quite good looking. And he had actually looked her in the eyes as opposed to staring at her chest the entire time he talked to her. He was intelligent, and was stuck here like her. She could actually feel her headache backing off despite the noise level in the bar.

 

[Gr8chtr]

Vanessa's laugh was infectious; Matthew joined right in as she told her story. His mood was beginning to lighten, and it seemed that hers was also. As she spoke he noticed that she seldom took her eyes off of him. Interesting, indeed. He enjoyed it.

Something that Vanessa said while telling her story rolled around in Matthew's mind. She talked about "beating the steering wheel for a while" then coming to Hanks to "drown my sorrows," but she didn't make any reference to checking in to the motel. Since she was here by accident, she wasn't staying with friends. Most likely, Matthew thought, she didn't mention the hotel room because doing so might seem too suggestive.

The food arrived soon for both of them, but not before Matthew had downed most of his third beer. Vanessa herself was almost half way through her second glass of wine. He was now feeling pretty perky, sporting a pleasant buzz. Matthew snagged the waitress as she walked by, "Another beer, please, and I'm treating my new friend to another glass of wine."

A wild idea raced through Matthew's mind. "Hey, Vanessa. Let's play a questions game. You know, for example, I ask you a question which you can decide to answer or not, but if you do, I have to answer my own question as well. Then it's your turn to initiate a question, and so on. I mean, Vanessa, what the fuck, what else are we going to do in this God-forsaken place before bedtime?"

 

[Opensesame54321]

Vanessa thoughtfully ate her sandwich, which surprisingly was edible. As she took a bite, weighing Matthew's challenge to play this "Question Game," she had one question for him.

"Is there a penalty for refusing to answer a question?"

As she waited for his answer, she watched the man. Though he seemed a relatively congenial, she was a bit apprehensive. He seemed too good to be true: good looking, witty, and nice. She noted that the waitress was serving her a 3rd glass of wine and she knew that she needed to be careful. After all, sleeping in her car could get very uncomfortable if she found that a trip to the bathroom necessary in the middle of the night when she had no motel room, much less a bathroom.

She slowly chewed her sandwich, waiting to see what his answer would be.

 

[Gr8chtr]

Is there a penalty for refusing to answer a question?

Matthew laughed with a twinkle in his eye, "Well, I don't know. Is there a penalty that appeals to you?"

He welcomed the opportunity to be flirtatious, and he had taken advantage of it. "OK," Matthew said, "I'll take your answer and question for a "Yes". So, here's my first question to you: If we were on a first date, where would you want me to take you?"

 

[Opensesame54321]

"Is there a penalty that appeals to you?"

He answered her question with a question, and as she noted the gleam in his eye, she suspected that she may have just stepped into a situation that she had not anticipated. She wanted to chalk it up to the wine, but she knew that she would have to take some responsibility for finding herself
in this "game."

If we were on a first date, where would you want me to take you?

Damn, the guy believed in cutting right to the meat of the meal, didn't he? She thought for a moment.

"I would want you to take me somewhere that had a special meaning for you, somewhere that you enjoyed go to."

She smiled back at him, waiting to hear his answer.

 

[Gr8chtr]

Matthew realized that he may have underestimated this woman. He had not anticipated such a subtle and thoughtful response to his somewhat leading question. Matthew wanted to keep up the flirtation, but he somehow couldn't help but respond truthfully.

"Well, in truth," Matthew began slowly, "one of the most special places to me is the Boston University library where I did the research for my dissertation. Now, that wouldn't be a very romantic first date, would it?" He paused, then continued, "Of course, just a block or two away there's tons of bars and restaurants, so after we roamed the stacks in the library, we could have a fun dinner."

He was about ready to hand the questioning over to her when he thought of a mischievous comment, "Although, there were always those rumors about late-night couples having sex in the stacks after the library closed....But...of course...that would probably not be a first date event."

Trying not too grin too lasciviously, Matthew prompted her, "OK, Vanessa, your turn to pose a question."

 

[Opensesame54321]

She had a feeling that if she wasn't careful, she could get in over her head. She started trying to think of a good question. She could see that this meal was turning very flirtatious and with a man as good looking and charming as Matthew was, she could find herself falling for him.

"What is your favorite thing to do?" She looked at him, waiting to see which way this game was heading.

 

[Gr8chtr]

What is your favorite thing to do?

Vanessa's question posed a challenge for Matthew. Being really crass with a response like, "fucking all Sunday afternoon" would probably ruin the small party that they apparently had going, if it didn't get her wine thrown in his face. On the other hand, talking about reading history books or listening to jazz on Youtube might lead them off into a "serious" conversation. Matthew had suggested the game as a way to continue being flirtatious, but, so far, Vanessa was not taking the bait.

A solution to his dilemma, and one that was not entirely untrue, presented itself to him. "I don't have one exact favorite thing," Matthew offered, "but one of my favorite things is playing silly, made-up games with a beautiful woman, especially after a few beers."

Grinning, Matthew pressed on, "Now, Vanessa, since I answered you must answer your own question, "What is one of your favorite things to do?"

 

[Opensesame54321]

'Shit!' She thought. 'Hoisted on my own petard.' She grinned back at Matthew as he flirted shamelessly with her and she found that she was enjoying herself. Though she may need a can opener to pry herself out of the car in the morning, at least right now, her headache was gone and she was finding herself getting turned on by this man. She didn't know if he would notice the flush in her cheeks from his answer.

"My favorite thing to do," she hesitated before plowing ahead. "My favorite thing to do is spend an entertaining evening with a charming man."

She smiled back at him, wondering if she had gone too far.

 

[Gr8chtr]

My favorite thing to do is spend an entertaining evening with a charming man.

"Well," Matthew observed while continuing to smile and make eye contact with Vanessa, "It seems like right now we are both doing one of our favorite things. How nice!"

"But wait," Matthew said as he suddenly thought of a great quip, "I need some clarification on your answer. You said that your favorite thing is to 'spend an evening' with a man that you find charming, right? So, what does 'spend an evening' mean in this context? Half an hour? Several hours? Or, might 'spend and evening' also be interpreted as 'spend a night?'"

Matthew realized that he had just pushed way beyond mild flirting. Probably the combination of several beers and Vanessa's hot body sitting so close to his. If he had gone too far, and probably he had, well, too late now; he couldn't take it back.

 

[Opensesame54321]

Damn, he worked fast! She thought fast trying to stay ahead of him!

"Is that your question?"

 

[Gr8chtr]

Vanessa had responded with a quick dodge, reinforcing Matthew's new-found view that he was dealing with a woman who was at least his equal. The response was pretty obvious, although he thought of a clever twist.

"Sure, Vanessa, you may consider that to be my question. Of course, you can refuse to answer, but since we have not agreed to a penalty for refusing, we'd have to enter into serious negotiations under those conditions."

Matthew tried reasonably successfully to continue his smile, but his growing arousal began to stoke other feelings that might start to show on his face.

 

[Opensesame54321]

She hesitated. Not that the answer was bad, but it could lead to more problems than she was willing to handle. She smiled.

"I think that I choose to pass on this question. "

 

[Gr8chtr]

I think that I choose to pass on this question.

Matthew laughed as he reached over and placed his hand over hers. "Chicken! I was getting the sense that you were bolder than that. But, OK, let's just say no penalty this time. So, it's your turn to ask me a question. Please try to make it a fun one. After this many beers I'm not in the mood for a heavy, serious discussion."

 

[Opensesame54321]

She had her reasons for the pass. She smiled at his hand on hers, and made her move.

"Okay. What is the one thing that you look for in a woman?" She waited, watching through mischievous eyes, her lips with a slight smile. She was enjoying herself, like a game of sexual chess, she was somewhat surprised at the turn of events for this evening. Perhaps the next 3 days would not be a total loss.

 

[Gr8chtr]

Matthew was excited by her question. This time she had not backed away from what seemed to him like the beginning of sexual tension between them. Again, he didn't want to throw a blanket on these possible beginning embers by saying something really vulgar, like "big tits", but he didn't want to back away from the tension either.

"Well, first I presume that you mean what do I look for in a woman with whom I might have a romantic relationship, because my answer would be different if we were talking about being co-workers or platonic friends. To be honest, for non-romantic relationships I look for the same things in both men and women. I don't want to sound "holier than thou", but I really do believe in complete equality of men and women, professionally and otherwise."

The first part of Matthew's response surprised even himself. He had said just a moment ago that he didn't want to slide into a heavy, serious discussion. His honest statement about his views of women wasn't particularly flirtatious.

"But, with regard to dateable women," Matthew continued while sporting a grin, "one of the first things I look for is sexual energy. I mean why go through all of the work and difficulty of dating if that's not there to start with?"

Matthew tried to suppress his self-satisfaction with his response; he thought it was pretty good. He pressed on, "OK..that's my answer and, of course, you now must answer your own question." He paused, then laughed, "I mean, of course, with regard to what you look for in a man.