Out of the snow and into the warmth, part I
There are two people alternately narrating the story. A change of person is marked by three asterisks. Nils begins.
*** Nils:
November has been unusually warm and also relatively sunny. At least the first part. Then came the fall, dark and cold. The snow falls in heavy flakes to the ground, gathering in drifts that go over my shoes. The cold goes through my marrow and bones. I see a hotel in front of me, good there I can warm up for a while, get something to drink.
I go into the reception and see the bar. A single woman, about 40 years old, stands at the bar. She looks nice, dark hair that goes down over the shoulders. It is otherwise empty this afternoon. The woman looks like she doesn't know what she wants. I go over and stand next to her, but with a little respectful distance between us. I order two glasses of red. The girl behind the counter pours, I pay and take one glass. I nod to the woman and walk over to a table, take off my jacket and sit down.
The glass remains on the counter. The woman looks a bit uncertain. The girl behind the bar says something and the woman finally takes the glass. She turns around, looks over at me and raises the glass a bit like a toast. We drink. Look at each other again. She looks nice and very neat, about 165 cm tall, slim figure and curves where they should be. Will she come over to me?
*** Maria:
The company I work for has its headquarters in Stockholm. Now I was in town for a day and night to update myself on the new products. I had come in the morning and sat in meetings until three o'clock. It was nice to get away for a while from the man at home, who seems increasingly absent. I need some time to myself for a while. Now I want to relax and get something to drink. Was cold after pulsating in the snow from the company to the hotel. I just went up to the room and put my bag away.
I stand at the bar and breathe out a little. A man comes up to the bar orders two glasses of wine, takes one and leaves the other. I look at it, questioning. The pretty girl at the bar nods to me and suggests that the glass was probably for me. But... why? Carefully taking the glass, I turn around and look at the man, who is now sitting in an alcove some distance away. He nods to me, lifts his glass.
We drink, looking at each other again. What should I do? He looks nice, a little older, but it feels much safer than a young man, right? But nice to talk a little, see who he is. I hesitate, but go over to him anyway, glass in hand.
"Hi, thanks for the wine. My name is Maria and I'm only here temporarily." Oh, that was so lame.
The booth he's in is just a bench with a table in front of it.
"Don't you want to sit down and talk?" I hear him say.
I take off my coat, it's nice and warm in here and I feel warm all over, probably blushing a bit. I sit down next to him. We look at each other, clink glasses and drink. What am I doing, getting picked up in the hotel bar? My body gets all warm, it feels strange. I'm sitting here, I can't just storm up and run. At the same time, exciting and a little nervous.
*** Nils:
She sits down next to me. She looks a little insecure and blushes beautifully, sexily. Her name is Maria, she says, and I introduce myself.
"Nils, I live here in Stockholm, but it was so rough outside that I wanted to warm up a bit, get something to drink. You looked a bit unsure at the bar and wanted to see if you wanted some wine. Warm you up too."
We look at each other, she actually blushes.
"Always exciting to meet completely new people, talk a bit, understand what they are like. Maybe it leads to something else - you never know," I say and put a hand discreetly on her thigh, as if by coincidence. She looks at me again, does nothing to remove my hand. She feels warm under my hand.
I hear her say something about it being exciting, that she doesn't usually accept invitations from strange men. But, it is not the words that matter, it is something else, much more primitive that communicates between us.
*** Maria:
My God, I am sitting next to a complete stranger. I feel that he is putting a hand on my leg, my thigh. Feels a bit odd but at the same time natural, strange. I am once again flooded with warmth in my body, the tingle is there.
"But you seem nice and also older, could almost be my dad. You feel kind of safe, somehow," I stutter.
What am I doing? Answer his invitation? Put my hand over his, it feels quite big and...smooth? Wanting him to feel me. I want his hand, oh my God, I feel like I'm getting a little wet. This can't happen, I'm always in control, but his hand feels so good. I want him to move it a little. Just a little. Unconsciously, it feels like, I move his hand a little back and forth on my thigh. So nice. Now it feels like I'm burning, getting even hotter, wetter. Ohh... God what is happening, what do I do?
