This is a story I have never told anybody. The reason is simply that I told her I would not tell anybody. I was only eighteen and I never thought I had a chance at anything happening with her or, at that point in my life, anybody really. I thought that she was gorgeous the moment I saw her. I also thought that her husband had no right being with her. He was the most apathetic man I have ever met. It seemed like all he cared about was his computers. I would always imagine that he never slept with her, but who knows for sure? Her name was Katherine, she was forty-two, and I was secretly in love with her.
I knew her because her son, Eric, was one of my best friends. I'm sure she noticed me, but only in passing. I admired her because she was very intelligent and gifted. She played the piano very well, and gave lessons too. She was very well read and had a college degree. She was unusually tall, had to be at least 5'11", while her husband was probably two full inches shorter. She had dark black hair with pale skin. Her breasts were at least DD, but she was always hiding them in sweaters. When she smiled her eyes sparkled and her nose twitched and blushed a little as the corners of her mouth turned up. This is where my infatuation with older women began.
For four years or so of hanging out with her son at her house we never had more than a typical teen-adult conversation. Then they got a swimming pool. One hot August day Eric and I were swimming and she was working in her flower garden. I kept checking her out because she was wearing a loose-fitting shirt and was bending over and kneeling down a lot, as one does when gardening. I had just finished my high school football career the previous year and still had my youthful six-pack abs and nineteen-inch biceps. I didn't think she ever even took a glance at me, but later events showed that I must have been wrong. I was 6'3" and completely tanned from being at the beach all summer, so maybe she took a peek now and then. Anyway, after we got done swimming we went inside, and I noticed that Eric's mom was showering. This quickly filled my head with some pleasant thoughts. I was enjoying the air conditioning and drinking a can of Pepsi when she came out dressed in her usual sweater and khaki pants combination. She sat down at the table and offered me some chocolate-covered coffee beans. When I took them I noticed that she was looking at me differently than normal. I had to get going though, so I quickly thanked her and left wondering what that was about.