Mike's Story: Part 1

by Writerme (USA)

At 37 years old Mike was on his last tour of duty. In just over two years’ time, he would be ready to retire from the U.S. Army and this last sweet assignment as an advisor to the ROTC program at a University in Seattle was perfect for him.

After having been at the University for a couple of months, he was settled into his job, liked it and enjoyed the non-military setting he worked in. Other than having to wear his uniform, it was truly like being a civilian. His, what he later called “awakening”, began one morning as he, in uniform, walked down the hall of one of universities buildings where his office was located.

Smiling and nodding to the students he passed in the hallway, he saw a woman, decidedly not a student, come out of the door to his office. He shared the office with a civilian administrative assistant who supported him and an Army Lieutenant Colonel assigned like he was as an advisor.

As the woman turned and walked away from him, he noted she was older than the typical student, dressed casually but professionally and was attractive. Having never seen her before he wondered who she was, wondered enough to ask Mary, the 53-year-old admin assistant in his office who she was.

“You don’t know who she is?” Mary asked in reply to his question. “No” Mike responded, “should I?” At that Mary laughed, smiled kindly and told him she guessed not, that she doubted he did. Curious about her response, Mike asked her why she had asked if he knew who she was in the first place.

“Oh, no reason, none other than I am often amazed at how unaware you are of the attention you get from some of the female students and in particular, some of the female professors. Have you always been so unaware of women almost drooling over you?”

“What!? Me!? Come on nobody is drooling over me, that’s not happening” Mike responded. Again smiling, Mary shook her head in wonderment. “Sergeant McMaster, you are a dreamboat in uniform and at least a half dozen women both students and professors drool over you daily.

Alice in particular… she is the woman who you were asking about and she is a Lit professor. In fact, she was in here casually pumping me for information on your marriage and relationship status. I told her you were divorced, single and totally clueless. Anyway, she thought she was being casual in her questions, I caught on immediately.”

Somewhat embarrassed with the direction of the conversation, Mike waved her off, did “nonsense, I’m not clueless”, opened the door to his smaller private office off the reception area, and as he was closing the door, heard Mary call to him.

“Regardless Sergeant Clueless”, Alice will be back late this morning to talk to you about the lagging grades of one of your ROTC students.” Then he heard her chuckle and finish with “Alice is, by the way, single, 31, an adventurous soul and very attracted to you – ask her out.”

As he closed the door he responded with “I’m not clueless, I’m professional, busy and not inclined to mix business with pleasure.” As he sat down and looked at the worst part of his job, the mounds of paperwork, he got busy and soon forgot their conversation.

A couple of hours later, dying for a cup of coffee and nearly finished with the current stack of paperwork, he was surprised when he heard a knock on his door and even more surprised by the vision that immediately appeared as the door opened. “Mary said it was okay if I just came in and talked to you” the vision said. The vision was, if he remembered the name correctly, Alice, the Lit professor.

Mike had never been especially good with the ladies and had always been exactly what Mary had said, clueless about women and the signals they sent when attracted to a man. He was though, quick to react and even when surprised by her appearance, he quickly stood, walked out from behind his desk and offered her his hand. “It’s Alice, right? Mary said you’d be back to talk about one of our mutual students. Please have a seat” he said as they shook.

Alice standing before him was indeed a vision. Slightly mussed shoulder length brunette hair framing a strong but nonetheless delicate face, skin that glowed, green eyes, and lips that were now formed into a slightly quirky smile. She presented the picture of a healthy, vibrant woman.

Maybe the thought ran through Mike’s head, if her eyes were any clue, an intelligent person to boot. As she turned to sit in the offered chair, Mike couldn’t help but glance down and over the rest of her body. “Nice” he thought, and then his next thought was “Stop it Mike, she is a professional here on business.”

After introducing herself as Professor Alice Barnett, they discussed for next 30 minutes the student she had come to talk about, discussed his lagging grades, his need to bring them up and how Mike could as an advisor, encourage the young man, even mentor him.

The conversation was professional, but Mike couldn’t help but remember what Mary had said earlier. “Still”, he thought as they were finishing up, “this is business” and as their conversation came to a close, he decided it best to leave it at that.

Standing and again coming out from around his desk, Mike offered his hand and smiled. “I think I’ve got it and I think I can help with our mutual problem… in fact, I’ll speak with him later today. We’ll see where it goes from there and maybe touch base with one another every few days until we see progress. Deal?”

As he stood less than an arm’s length away shaking her hand, Mike sensed a difference in the way she has holding his hand as they shook goodbye… it felt more personal, more intimate. “What the hell?” he thought, “am I dreaming this?” Then her grip tightened ever so slightly and she gently pulled him towards her. “Deal? Maybe” she said, and again that smile, quirky, cute but somehow decidedly no longer professional… and her eyes. “Challenging?” he thought. “Then her voice changed ever so slightly. “I think the deal is that you pick me up for dinner tonight, we can discuss the deal then. Deal?”

Mike had been in combat, been madly and hopelessly in love, experienced loss, seen it all and experienced so much; but at that very moment, he was as near to dumbstruck as he’d ever been in his life. He hesitated, her eyes had him captured and frozen in time and place.

Her smile changed and her eyes lit up. “I’ll take that as a yes. Let’s say 6:30 this evening, Mary knows my address. Mike, I can’t wait, dress casual.” Then she was gone, and Mike stood there with his heart pounding. “What in the hell just happened” he thought, “that was unreal, but I guess I have a date tonight.”

Finally coming out of what he felt was some sort of trance, he stuck his head out of the open office door. “Mary, do you have Alice’s, I mean Professor Barnett’s address?”

Mary jotted something on a piece of paper, got up and smiling walked to Mike’s door and handed him Alice’s address. “I do have it, now you have it.” Then with a wink, she turned and over her shoulder said “And Alice has you… I mean your number. Enjoy Mike, you’ve been a loner for too long.”

Looking down at the address Mike was again shocked. The Professor lived in the same apartments in downtown Seattle as he did… one floor up from him. “Kismet?” he wondered. Anxiously anticipating the date… or was it really business? He couldn’t make up his mind but decided, as he knocked on her apartment door at precisely 6:30, he would go with the flow.

The door opened and the smile, one that was now inviting and confident, was followed by “I like a man who is punctual. Come in Mike, let’s have a glass of wine or maybe a beer if you prefer, then we can decide upon where we want to have dinner.”

Alice was dressed as she had suggested, casually, virtually no makeup, which was something Mike had noticed earlier in the day and liked. She had changed out of slacks and a blouse into a skirt that showed off her legs and her lower thighs and a simple button up top, “linen” he thought. She was barefoot, her hair that same missed appearance… like she had gotten out of the shower and towel dried her hair and hadn’t gotten overly concerned with brushing it out into some flawless style. He liked what he saw.

Taking his hand, she pulled him in and walked him over to the couch in her living room. “Have you decided on what you want?” A simple question, but Mike wasn’t sure what she meant. He knew in that instant what he wanted… it was her and it was now. Unconsciously, he let that exact thought escape. “It’s you I want” and as he said it, he realized what he had been thinking and what he had let slip.

“Uhhh, I mean I want whatever you want. Wine or beer is fine.” Alice had, as he let his thoughts slip, stopped, continued holding his hand and turned to look directly into his eyes. “Good” she breathed. “Maybe it’s time for you to take what you want.” As the words escaped her lips, she moved closer to him, so close their bodies almost touched. The look in her eyes said it all. “That’s the deal Mike, the deal I want to make” she breathed.

Suddenly their lips came together, the kiss hungry, searching, tongues immediately dueling, his arms going around her, his hands immediately sliding down her back “no bra straps” flicked through his mind as he cupped the cheeks of her ass in his hands and pulled her to him. As they greedily embraced the kiss broke, “It’s about time Mike”, I thought you’d never notice me.”

Mike heard the voice, not the words. He kissed her neck, ground himself against her, felt himself harden against her and felt her hands at the back of his head pulling his head downward. Alice realizing her blouse was in the way, released his head, unbuttoned her blouse and dropped her hands down to pull his hands down and under her short skirt, then up so his hands were filled with the firm, bare cheeks of her ass.