After spending the afternoon working out at a private gym I go to, I showered, shaved, and dressed casually. I chose a comfortable pair of button-down Levi's, and a soft cotton polo shirt, added a bit of cologne then headed to Candi's parents house which was an easy twenty minute drive away.
For twenty minutes I had time to recall the events that led up to this invitation to dinner with Candi and her parents. Seeing the van in my office parking lot that appeared to be kidnapping a woman, the chase, the fight, pulling a scared young lady from her captors and seeing the fear and hurt in her eyes, followed by an uneventful night in jail. Dinner with parents should be a piece of cake compared to that I thought, no reason to be nervous, so why was I?
As I turned into the neighborhood I tried to imagine living in one of these beautiful homes. The perfect landscaping and white picket fences seemed too nice to be reality for me. Most of my accommodations over the years had been pretty modest; some even with dirt floors and outdoor toilets. When I pulled up to the address I had been given, it led up a long driveway that wrapped neatly around a water feature, to a nice parking spot under a canopy.
I stepped out of the Hummer, rang the bell and waited just a few moments. The little ankle biter was the first to the door, followed by Candi's dad, Walter. Walter sent the dog away,introduced himself, and graciously invited me into the grand entry, where I handed a bouquet of bright, spring-like flowers to his smiling wife, Alice. I recognized them both from the picture on Candi's desk at the office. Walter was taller than I realized, with balding grey hair and a sturdy build, and his wife Alice had the long legs, black hair, black eyes, and a voluptuous chest that she had passed on to her daughter. It was apparent that they both worked at staying in shape, and I have to say it was working well for them.
Introductions were made with Walter and Alice thanking me for accepting their invitation and letting me know how much they appreciated what I had done for their precious daughter. It turns out Candi had been sharing an apartment with another student while going to school and working at my law firm, but since the night of the attack she had pretty much moved back in with her parents, not feeling safe enough to go back out on her own.
Walter let me know that if there was anything in their power they could do to help me out, they wanted me to say so, and they would do what they could; Alice reaffirmed his words with a smile and nodding of her pretty head. They offered a financial reward, which I declined as I had plenty of money, and really didn't feel right accepting theirs.
We made small talk for a few minutes until Candi came down the grand staircase in bare feet wearing a snug pair of bluejeans, a conservative turquoise blouse with toenails painted to match, and a delicate gold necklace with a matching ankle bracelet. She looked beautiful, even with tears welling up in her eyes, and we embraced. Candi cried in my arms for a few minutes, while her parents slipped away to give us some privacy. This young ladies perfume was intoxicating, and I felt a stirring in my own jeans as her young, perfect breasts molded around my midsection, head on my chest, nearly squeezing the breath out of me. She felt wonderful, and for a moment I thought that I might like to get used to this feeling.
Candi eventually pulled herself together, apologized for being emotional, and thanked me for coming to dinner. She stood on her toes and kissed my cheek, flashed her million dollar smile, then held my hand as she led me into the kitchen where her parents now were, still wiping an occasional tear from her eye.
Alice proved to be a terrific cook, and dinner was amazing. The conversation was easy, and for some reason I felt oddly comfortable and welcome, almost loved by Candi and her parents that I had only met a short time ago. I felt like I belonged here, more than I had anywhere else since leaving the team. The ladies left the table to clear dishes while Walter and I walked out to the back courtyard and continued to make small talk.
Walter eventually got a little serious, and asked what it was that I thought I would like to do with myself now that I had quit the law firm. He was genuinely concerned, and suggested since I had worked so hard to become a lawyer, that I should find some way to stay working in the legal field. He mentioned that Candi was nearly done with law school, and only had a few semesters left, but she had taken a break and hadn't finished the classes she was working on at the time she was attacked. It was too scary for her to go back to school just yet, especially for any night classes that she needed.
Being the wise man he is, Walter suggested that since I had been through some pretty traumatic events over the years, maybe I could spend some time talking with Candi and helping her through the range of emotions she had experienced since that terrible night. He hoped that I might influence her enough to convince her to finish law school.
