I had just ended a relationship.  It ended badly.  Of course it ended badly, otherwise it wouldn't have ended.  I needed to get out of the city.  My friend Charlie lived in Lake Worth, FL and invited me down to spend a week.  I flew into PBIA and Charlie was awaiting my arrival.  He asked how I was doing.  I said, "I've been better."  He said, "She was making you miserable, Roman.  You are much better without her."  I agreed.  I picked up my bag and we got in Charlie's truck.  Charlie seemed to be very excited.  So I asked what was on the agenda.  He replied, "We're going to go look at a boat."  I said, "I didn't know you could afford a boat?"  He said, "I can't, but there was an ad in the paper and it sounds like a good deal."  He called and got the address and we were on our way.

   We pulled up to the house.  It was a nice house with a huge garage.  I followed Charlie up to the door and he rang the bell.  A tall, dark haired girl answered.  Charlie said, "We're here about the boat."  The girl seemed annoyed and motioned towards the garage.  Charlie whispered sarcastically, "She seems like a ray of sunshine."  I said, "I thought she was hot."  Charlie scolded, "Don't even think about it."  I nodded and followed him to the garage.  The door was opening.  The garage was full of belongings.  On one wall was a beautiful, 26', twin engine cabin cruiser.  Charlie's eyes lit up. The girl said, "There it is.  Have a look."  Charlie scurried over to it and climbed in.  I stayed behind watching the girl.  She was tall and athletic looking.  She had very dark gorgeous eyes.  I saw a pile of old jazz records sitting on a table.  I said, "Are these Coltrane albums for sale too?"  She walked over and said, "NO!  Those are mine.  They are going back in the house."  I said, "Oh!  Sorry.  I was just kidding.  I don't see a lot of John Coltrane albums."  She nodded in agreement and said, "It's not your fault.  My ex and I just finished a bitter divorce and I'm not too fond of men at the moment."  I told her I could relate because I just got out of a relationship too.  She said, "That's why I'm selling his boat.  By the time he gets bored of humping his new girlfriend and remembers he has a boat, it will be long gone."  I laughed and said, "He must have done a number on you."  She said, "Yes he did.  These Coltrane albums are a perfect example.  He didn't like to listen to jazz, so they were put in the garage.  God he was a dick."  I told her I could relate.  My girlfriend hated the fact that I "wasted" so much time writing and not making money.  So I had stopped writing.  I saw a glint of compassion in her eye. 

  Charlie popped his head out of the boat and said, "I hate to interrupt you and Miss Bitter, but I need a flashlight."  The girl glared at Charlie.  I said to her, "He's really a nice guy."  She did not look convinced.  She picked up a flashlight, flipped it on to make sure it worked, and handed it to me.  I walked over to Charlie shaking my head.  He innocently asked, "What?"  I handed him the flashlight and said, "Don't be a dick."  He smiled and took the flashlight.  I walked back over to the girl and said, "By the way, my name is Roman."  She shook my hand and I felt a thunderbolt pass through me.  My heartbeat faster and my stomach filled with butterflies.  She said sweetly, "I'm Lindsay."   We kept talking and I told her how my ex was so hung up money and how she didn't care if I was happy or not.  She told me how her ex smothered her passions with his and made her feel less than she knew she was.  We related well to each other.  Charlie climbed out of the boat.  He said, "It is in perfect condition.  How much do you want?"  She said, "5000 cash!"  I blurted, "Do you know how much that's worth?"  She winked and nodded that she did.  Charlie said, "I'll take it.  Let me run to the bank and you guys move this stuff out of the way so I can hook up to the trailer."  That's what we did.

   We started telling each other stories and we were laughing so hard.  It was so much fun.  I told her, "I'm really glad we met this way."  She put her hand on my arm and said, "Me too Roman."  Her touch felt so wonderful it made me blush and I couldn't put two words together.  She must have felt something too because she let go, turned quickly, and tripped on a box.  We both laughed some more.  Lindsay was so amazing and so fun.  I said, "Where were you 15 years ago."  She said, "I was thinking the same thing."  We had some awkward silence and then we both said, "I can't jump into a relationship though."  We laughed again.  We talked about how much we had in common and how we wanted to read each other's writing.  It seemed like a perfect friendship.  She grabbed a marker and my hand and wrote down her number.  She looked at me and said, "I thought I'd better do that before this cotton candy moment passed."  I said, "I'm so glad you did Lindsay."  We finished moving the boxes just as Charlie pulled back in the driveway.  He gave Lindsay the money, hooked up the boat, and jumped back in the truck.    I searched for something clever to say, but nothing surfaced.  I said, "Lindsay can I have a hug in case I don't see you for awhile?"  She smiled and said, "Of course, I would like that."  We hugged and the thunderbolt hit me again.  We smiled at each other and we parted.

   I had a good vacation with Charlie.  We had fun on the boat.  I talked to Lindsay a few times, but we never saw met up again.  I went back to NYC at the end of the week.  Lindsay and I kept talking.  We discussed everything.  We began sharing our writing with each other.  We listened to jazz together.  We watched television together.  We had a wonderful, unconventional relationship.  I looked forward to talking to Lindsay everyday.  We rarely missed a night.  This went on for six months.  We finally decided to meet again.  Lindsay had never been to NYC, so I invited her for a visit.  We had a terrific time.  We listened to live jazz, went to museums, and watched old movies.  We did things our ex's never wanted to do and it felt great. We were having a wonderful time.  We cuddled on the couch and we slept in the same bed, but we didn't rush the relationship.  We both needed an emotional bond more than we needed the physical bond.  We didn't really talk about it, but we both understood without discussing it.   It was nice to be that close to someone.  The week flew by and she had to leave today.  I took her to the airport this morning.  We didn't want to leave each other.  We waited until the last minute to say goodbye.  We hugged, I kissed her forehead, we rubbed noses, and we smiled at each other.  She whispered, "No Kiss?"  I smiled and said, "Nope!"  Lindsay grabbed my face, pulled me in close, and said, "Think again."  I laughed and we had our first kiss.  It was better than anything I could ever imagine.  Then she was gone.  I can't wait to talk to her tonight.