Still, Haley was a woman still in her twenties, and she had the normal cravings of a woman her age. She did not need a man in her life to make her complete, but there were times that it would be nice to have a little excitement. Her dating life since the divorce had primarily consisted of a few dinners out that were nothing more than a prelude to quickie sex with someone who would not call in the morning. Far from satisfactory; Haley had chosen to focus on her and her daughter and let the romantic stuff sort itself out.
"So where is the little Princess this evening?" It was her neighbor, Anthony. Jazzy had taken to him almost immediately after they had moved in, and he never seemed to mind.
"It's a Daddy weekend for her, so she is probably on her way to her grandparents by now so that he can have a little fun." The bitterness toward her ex would probably always be there. "It's just me and the exciting life that I lead."
Anthony was quite a bit older than she; Haley guessed he was probably around forty-five. She liked the maturity that she saw in him, a trait lacking in men her age. Jazzy had taken to him immediately, fascinated with the fact that he was a police officer and then captivated by the fact that he was always a willing guest for her frequent tea parties.
"Well, then I guess that with your busy schedule it wouldn't be a good time for me to invite you to dinner on the patio. Pity, a couple rib-eyes, a few glasses of wine, and some adult conversation would make a perfect start to a relaxing weekend."
Their two townhouses shared a common patio, and Anthony was always out cooking something on the grill. The invitation was tempting. Why not? she thought. She could let it go further if she chose, and if not... well she was used to meeting her own needs, wasn't she?
"Since you put it that way, I suppose I could rearrange some things and fit you in." Haley chuckled. "An invitation like that might tempt me to break out the sexy underwear." She blushed as she heard the words escape her mouth. It had been a long time since she had been this flirtatious with anyone.
"It's settled then. Say an hour and a half or so?"
Getting ready for a date was something that now seemed unnatural to her. Haley had not been this nervous since she was a schoolgirl going out for the first time. The folks back home would have been shocked, even appalled to know that she was having dinner with a black man, no matter his standing in the community. In the little redneck town that she was from 'good' white girls stayed with their own race; anything else was taboo. That, along with the stories about size, simply insured that Haley was curious about the prospects of being with a man of color. Unfortunately, by the time she had met one that she was attracted to, she had been a married woman.
It surprised her that she was so boldly open with Anthony. Hopefully she didn't set false expectations with her verbal faux pas. Oh well, she decided, you only live once and at the very least it would scratch one of her fantasies off the list. There were much worse things that she could be doing.
It took some searching through her lingerie drawer, but at last she found the tiny bits of purple lace that she had been saving for an appropriate occasion. Regardless of Anthony getting to see her or not, for tonight Haley intended to feel sexy. Her choice made, it was off to the shower.
She could smell the aroma of dinner as she completed her primping. Tanning was the one luxury Haley did not deny herself. Her bronzed skin contrasted nicely with the purple bra that held her best assets on full display.