The violent storm quickly swept through the countryside, uprooting trees, downing power lines, and sending sheets of rain almost sideways. Heather was caught in the downpour, wishing she would have left for home earlier in the morning. Travel was treacherous, she could barely see out the windshield, and could not pick out the center line most of the time. It did not help the she took the scenic route through the country side. And even though she had slowed to nearly a crawl, she did not see the tree in the road until it was too late to stop. She swerved to avoid the obstacle, but the wet road did not allow her car to adequately respond, and it glanced off the tree and into the ditch.
Though shaken up, Heather was unhurt; however her poor car was stuck. She tried to gather her thoughts, but was nearly overwhelmed by her predicament. She got out her phone and prepared to call for help, but then hesitated. Almost simultaneously, she had two realizations: water in the ditch was rising, and there was a long driveway leading to a house just across the road. She grabbed her purse and sprinted up the driveway toward the house.
There were no lights on, and no sign of life at the place, but at least the porch offered shelter from the still driving rain. As Heather got out her phone again to call for help, the door of house opened, and out stepped a concerned looking man. "Can I help you?" was quickly followed by "my lord young lady, you are soaked through."
As he surveyed the scene, he started to put the pieces together. "Is that your car across the road?" he asked.
"Yes" Heather responded, "I didn't see the tree across the road until it was too late" she continued.
"Are you all right?" he asked with concern.
"I am," she replied, "but my car is stuck, and the water in the ditch was rising when I had to abandon it."
"Well, don't worry about your car. The water drains into the creek at my property line" he said. "It may run swiftly during storms, but it never gets more than a foot high" he continued.
When he turned back to her, he could tell that the incident had shaken her up. Then he said with a worried voice, "I am not concerned about the car, but I am concerned about you. Please come inside. You can get out of the wet clothes, calm down, and we can see about retrieving your car."
It was then that Heather realized what he had seen: she was trembling. She also noticed that her bra was plainly visible through her soaked blouse and her nipples were protruding through the fabric. And though he tried not to stare, she noticed that he saw it too.
He opened the door and led her inside. "My name is Jason; welcome to my home. Unfortunately, the storm knocked out the power." He then continued, "the laundry room is too the left, I will meet you there with a change of clothes and we can put your wet things in the dryer, once the power is restored."
"My name is Heather, and thank you for inviting me in." She wandered past the dining room and found the laundry room. She felt bad that her wet shoes had left a path through the house. And she was thankful that the small room had door so she could change in private.
After a moment, Jason appeared with a towel, a terrycloth robe and an armful of clothes. "I brought you a towel and a selection of clothes so you can be comfortable" he said sweetly, almost embarrassed. "I live alone, so I brought what I think would fit," he continued. And with that, he shut to door. "I'll be in the kitchen," Jason said as he departed down the hall.
Heather pealed her wet clothes from her body and tossed them into the dryer, toweled off her body, and put on the robe to take off the chill. She chucked to herself upon close inspection of the items he had brought: silk boxer shorts, briefs, short pants, golf shirt, and button down shirt. "There are no women in this man's house," she thought. She slipped on the boxers, secured the belt on the robe, wrapped her hair in the towel on her head, and left the remainder of the clothes on the washing machine. "These will do for now. Once the power is restored, I'll get back into my own clothes" she thought to herself.
As Heather entered the room, Jason looked up and then smiled. "My robe has never looked so good" he said with a chuckle. "I wish I could offer you a hair dryer, but I obviously don't need to own one," he continued rubbing is close cropped hair and bald head. This brought a smile to her face, but she was still subdued by the day's events. Then Jason's expression again changed to concern as he said "The storm was pretty bad. Emergency services are swamped with calls, and there are trees and power poles blocking many of the major roads. I am afraid it may take some time to get someone out here to retrieve your car, if they can even reach us today. I have called in the request, but there is not much we can do but wait." His tone then changed to that of a hospitable gentleman as he said "Heather, you are a guest in my home, and I will do whatever I can to make you feel welcome." Though still apprehensive about being in a stranger's home, Heather found some comfort in Jason's statement.
"I have to prepare for the approaching darkness of a house without power, please make yourself comfortable on the couch while I get candles and such" he said motioning to the living room. Heather settled on the couch and worked on her phone to let everyone know she was ok while Jason lit candles around the house. As he pasted the living room, he could not help but notice her shapely legs exposed from the "V" of the robe. He was quite taken by her beauty. At the same time, she thought about the recent events and what a gentlemen Jason was. He was so different from men she normally encounters: confident, but not egotistical or arrogant; caring, giving, and compassionate, not self-centered; but most of all sweet, and a nice person. These thoughts stirred emotions that were confusing to her.
He was working in the kitchen when she finished texting on the phone, so she made her way to join him, speaking as she entered the room. "I have not thanked you for your hospitality" she said with a smile.
His robe on her was slightly undone, exposing her soft skin like a plunging neckline of a cocktail dress, the sight of which made him stammer as he spoke. "I certainly was not going to throw you out in the street. And besides, it has always been a fantasy of mine to rescue and damsel in distress," he said with a smile. He made a conscious effort to maintain eye contact as she sat down on the stool next to the counter. "I hope you like omelets," he said as he sliced mushrooms.