Roz was a very attractive woman. Tall, stately, reddish
blond hair, blue eyes, really quite slim for her age. She knew
she was good looking, even though she had a grandson who was a senior in High School. She was active at her condominium. They had a large club house where she joined in on all the activities. Line dancing, yoga, cards, all of them. Everyone liked her and constantly called her to go out with them for dinner or a movie, yet, she felt lonely.
She had been single for about five years now, and she really felt she would like some male companionship. Someone to go out dancing with, or to a show, to be a couple again. She sighed as she thought about this while watching the TV again tonight, but bored with what they were showing.
Suddenly, the phone rang. She wondered who it could be and then thought, "It must be Debbie again, wanting me to baby sit for my granddaughter". She didn't mind doing that once in awhile, it gave her something to do when everyone else was busy.
It wasn't Debbie. It was her friend Angie. "Roz," Angie said, not even saying hello. "I know you don't like blind dates, but there is this man that I'm sure you will like." Roz laughed. "Matchmaking again, Angie? I didn't care for the others you matched me up with. What makes you so sure I'll like this one?"
"Because," Roz replied, "He is tall and goodlooking. He was over at the club house today and told us he just moved in. He's living in the A Section, down the street. He likes to dance and wanted information on all the classes here. He's going to be at the line dancing class tomorrow. You be there also and I'll introduce you to him."
Roz thought this over. She thought, "What harm could there be in meeting him?" Aloud, she said, "Okay, Angie, I'll be there. I like line dancing anyway, so I won't be wasting my time, if I don't like him." Angie laughed happily. "You'll like him. I guarantee it", as she hung up. Roz looked at the receiver and shook her head smiling. She hung up deciding to go read in bed before going to sleep.
The next afternoon Roz showed up at the line dancing class. Sure enough, there was Angie waiting for her. She practically dragged her over to the man standing in the corner talking to her husband. He was tall and goodlooking, just like Angie said. Angie introduced them, his name was Sam and he was very pleasant.
The class started and everyone was having a good time dancing. Roz liked him, he seemed like a good dancer and was fun to talk to. After the class was finished he asked her if she would have dinner with him. She agreed and told him to pick her up at 7PM. She gave him her address, telephone number and went home humming to herself. She was really looking forward to their evening together.
At 7PM the doorbell rang. She opened the door and he was standing there, smiling, and holding a pineapple in his hand. "Hi," he said, smiling. "I feel kind of embarrassed, but my social security check hasn't arrived yet, and I'm really short of cash."
"Oh," said Roz, sympathetically, "That's terrible. Look, why don't we have dinner here at my place. I can make some sandwiches, or pasta, whatever you like. Is that okay with you?"
He nodded and said, "I was hoping you'd say that. I brought along a pineapple for dessert". Roz made dinner and they had a nice time talking. At 10PM he left after asking her out for the
next evening.
The next night he arrived promptly at 7PM, looking sheepish and holding another pineapple in his hand. She looked at him suspiciously. He said, "Look, I'm really sorry, but I haven't received my check yet, Here, I brought another pineapple."
She took the pineapple and asked him to leave. She was not about to make him another meal. She was really furious. Her phone rang about ten minutes later. It was Sam. He asked her if she could
leave the pineapple outside her door so that he could pick it up. She hung up on him, wondering how many times he pulled that on other women.
Once again the phone rang. In a fit of anger Roz picked up the receiver before the second ring. Not waiting for a voice to speak to her she blurted, "I do not want to speak to you or even see you ever again!" "Oh! Iam truly sorry to hear that", Angie said in a startled voice.
Realizing her mistake Roz said, "Angie!, Oh! my god, Iam sorry, I thought it was that Sam you introduced me to."
"Doesn't sound like you have been having a very good time with him", Angie said, sounding disappointed.
"That's putting it mildly." said Roz as she retells the event of the last two nights. "Him and that stupid pineapple bit, he really has a lot of nerve".
"Gee Roz Iam sorry, he seemed like such a gentleman to my husband and me. We thought he was perfect match for you".
"Well, please don't do me anymore favors, matching me up, I mean, Iam fine and getting on with my own life, thank you". replied Roz.
"OK, I promise, I'll leave those things to you from now on, meet Paul and me for lunch at the club tomorrow, about 2?" asked Angie
"Oh! all right, but no one else, right?" "Right" added Angie. "Good by for now." Roz hung up the phone, walked over to the sofa, and sat down. Exhausted from all the commotion and mental fatigue Roz seeks deep into the welcome cushion, laying back along the other long soft cushion, slowly placing her head on the arm rest, attempting to regain strength, mentally at least. Arms of Morpheus wrapped around her, as with ease she fell asleep.
She woke up near midnight, still on the couch, feeling stiff and
uncomfortable. She thought again of what happened to her with Sam and suddenly she burst out laughing. "Actually," she said to herself. "When you think about it. It's pretty funny. I wonder how the other women reacted to that? Oh well, I won't be seeing him anymore, thank goodness." She went to bed to read for awhile and finally fell asleep.
The next day she met Angie and Paul at the club for lunch. She told them how she thought the whole incident was funny and they all had a good laugh over it. While they were still laughing, a man approached the table. Paul stood up and shook his hand. "John!" he said, "It's good to see you. It's been a long time. How have you been?"
John smiled at him and said it was good to see him too. Paul turned to the others and told them that John and he used to work together. He had not seen him in over five years. He turned again to John and asked him what he was doing here. John told him he moved nearby and belonged to this club. Paul said, "That's great! Here, why don't you sit down with us and join us. Let me introduce you to my wife and our friend." Roz looked
suspiciously at Angie while they were being introduced. Angie gave her a look that said she knew nothing about this, it was not arranged.
John did sit down and the talk became general. He told them he was now retired and was enjoying his new lifestyle. He played golf almost every day and made a lot of new friends at the club. He was really enjoying himself. When Angie told him that Roz also played golf, he turned to Roz and said, "Really! Would you like to play 18 holes with me?"
She smiled at him and said, "Oh, I'm sure you're a very good player. I'm not that good and I wouldn't want to spoil your game."
"Nonsense." he said. "I would enjoy playing with you. I'm not that good myself. How about tomorrow?" She sighed inwardly, thinking to herself, "Here we go again." She told him she was busy. "You name the day," he said. "I can play almost anytime."
Roz didn't know what to say at this point. She was about to refuse again when Angie said "You're free on Friday, Roz. Why don't you play then?"
John looked at Roz and asked. "Is that okay with you?" She couldn't refuse now without hurting his feelings so she agreed. While Paul and John were talking she glared at Angie. Angie looked at her, smiling innocently, and didn't say anything.
Time began slowly to edge it's way thru lunch, normal chit chat, but in the last few moments Roz began feeling strange, starting to laugh a little easier, at the very humorus stories John was telling. Paul's laughter was starting to get out of line, till Angie gave him her patented glance, he then calmed down somewhat.
Yes, Roz was beginning to really enjoy herself, along time in comming. John seemed to know the exact words to say, phrases to use that caused her to once again be part of the party. Angie gave a womanly wink at Roz, meaning "Hey! welcome home", Roz almost blushed at the realization of how happy she was feeling.
As they left the club John walked over to Roz and said," Why don't I follow you home, if that is where you are headed, that way I will know where to pick you Friday morning, an 8 O'clock tee time ok by you?".
Surprized by the thoughtfullness she hesitated, "Ahh, Iam sorry, sure, good idea". Paul and Angie waved bye to them both as John walked along side of Roz toward her car. As they arrive Roz has her keys in hand, clicks off the alarm, which opens the door on the driver's side only.
"I notice you have had the automatic adjusted so all the doors do not open" says John, "great security idea, yours?"
"Why yes", replys Roz.
"Glad to see you are a wise woman" he adds.
"I usually am cautious, about everything", she assures him.
John holds the door as she slides in, with a solid closure he shuts the door, leanning in through the window, just slightly, almost in a wisper, near her ear, "Until Friday morning".
Roz hesitates. "Oh! Ahhh yes, Friday morning, she stammers, he seems to be able to catch her off guard. Silly girlish goose
pimples tingle her arms, face again begins to flush, as he pulls back, she says "On second thought, why not meet me at the club at seven thirty, we can have a quick cup of coffee first".
"Fine, till Friday morning at seven thirty", he says, turns around, heading for his car, parked only one row over.
"Yes!!!", she assures herself, "that is much better". She places the key in the ignition, realizing that perhaps the car is not the only thing starting up in her life.
As she went to bed that night she wondered if perhaps this man might be different. She hadn't really gone out with many men since she became a widow, but those she had gone out with always turned out to be losers, at least in her eyes. She sighed. He did make her feel good though. "Let's see what happens tomorrow." she said to herself. And with that thought in mind, she fell asleep.
The next morning she met John at the club. He was there waiting for her. Over bagels and coffee, they talked about their backgrounds. He told her he had lived in Boston and was divorced twice. He never had any children. He worked as a consultant for computers, and because of this he traveled a great deal. "I guess my ex-wives couldn't take my being away so much." he said, ruefully. "Not that I blame them. But, I loved my job, besides I couldn't change my job, that was all I knew." Now that he is retired, he didn't plan to travel at all. He asked her if she had any children. She told him she had two. A girl and a boy. Her daughter was married with one child, whom Roz adored. Her son was still single and enjoying that lifestyle.
"I hope he meets someone soon and settles down." she said. "I worry about his running around and living alone."
John laughed and said, "I'm sure he can take care of himself. He's probably enjoying his life very much." She nodded, smiled and agreed with him. They talked about so many things and found that they had many things in common. Roz was really enjoying herself. "What a nice man!" she thought to herself. "He seems so considerate and understanding."
John suddenly looked at his watch and burst out laughing. "What?" asked Roz, "Why are you laughing?"
John said, "It's 9:30. We missed our tee time." Roz laughed too.
"Oh, I hope you don't mind. I, for one, was having such a good time, I forgot all about the golf game".
He shook his head, smiled at her and said, "Of course I don't mind. I really enjoyed our conversation. What do you say we
go for a drive instead?" She nodded in agreement and they decided to take a drive to the beach.
As they snaked their way thru tables toward the entrance John was leading. As they approached the doorway he pushed the door with his right hand allowing his arm to extend outward, stepping aside to have Roz pass in front of him, as she did, another couple were coming into the vestibule from outside. Roz stepped to the side and out the front door, glancing back to see John
stopping, placing his back to the wall, arm still outstreached, as the couple proceeded into the club. "Yes", she said to herself, "he seems so considerate".
9:45 AM was always a time of activity for Roz. She would always have been well into her daily life by now. Going here, dashing there, calling Angie, others, yes by this time each day she was already well on her way. But this morning seemed so strange, like a bud about to burst upon the scene, adding to a bouquet of enjoyment.
John's hand upon her arm brought her back to the reality of now, as he led her toward his car. A classic looking Gran Torino. Roz half expected to see Starsky and Hutch step out of it. She was not actually aware of the name at first, but there it was in her memory of television shows. "This is your car?" she asked in disbelief.
"Yes," responded John, "for the last 2 years anyway. It does seem to have an effect on people when they see it the first time".
Roz was slowly being escorted to the rider's side, door opening, her sitting, John walked around front, to the driver's side. While he strapped himself in, he explained, "It is a 1976 Gran Torino, with a 460 V8, which was an option, bored .030 over and hopped up with some goodies, such as hot cam and Holley 750 cfm. I took off the original Magnum 500 wheels and Iam running slotted mags instead."
"Yes", Roz again said to herself, "considerate, but full of surprises". "You seem to know a lot about cars." Roz said.
"Yes, I know a lot about cars." John nodded. "One of my hobbies since I retired."
"What other hobbies do you have?" asked Roz looking at him curiously.
"Well," he said hesitating. "I don't know if you'd call this a hobby, but my brother is on the police force. He's a detective, and a darn good one. Anyway, I've always been interested in crime and mysteries. I read all the books on that subject that I could find. I'm really just an amateur, but Ralph and I talk over a lot of his cases. He likes to get another point of view and he seems to think I'm a big help. Of course, I don't know half of what he knows, but I learn from him and he says he learns
from me. Whichever way it is, I'm grateful that he talks to me about it.
"God, I would love to solve a mystery someday!" She smiled at him and told him he certainly had interesting hobbies. By this time, they had reached the beach. Not many people were on the sand.
They both decided not to walk on the sand but to take a walk on the boardwalk. It was a small beach and to walk from one end of the boardwalk to the other end would only take about fifteen minutes.
It really was a beautiful day. There was a slight breeze and the air smelled so clean. They walked slowly making small talk, sometimes in silence. Roz was having a wonderful time. It had been years since she felt this comfortable with anyone. It
was as though she knew him all her life. She hoped he felt the same.
Suddenly John stopped, grabbed her arm. "Look!" he exclaimed. "Am I wrong or is there something or someone lying next to that dune? It looks like it's half buried in the sand!"
John almost lost his shadow as he quickly ran to the site. Roz was also quickly on the move, the need to know pushing her forward. As Roz arrived at John's side they viewed an upper torso of a little boy. His naked body from the rib cage down was covered with a thin coating of the sandy beach. Lying half upright, back against the dune, arms outstreached, reaching for safety, eyes wide open, showing the fear his mind invisioned. John reached down with two fingers extended, touching the eyelids, slowly closed them, brought his hand to Roz's, holding her's. Two people standing in bewilderment, woundering why? why?
Sound of the waves brushing against ever present sand brought the two back to reality. "Roz", John says, "go back to the car, use the phone and call the police, I feel we have that mystery you wanted".
Roz turns slowly away from the site, with questions bombarding her mind she thinks with each step, "Why?, who is he?, how old is this child?, was he alone?, where are his parents?, did he fall off a boat?, and on, on, on.
She called 911, gave them the information and went back to the beach. Johnvwas standing near the body. He had not touched it. He did not want to disturb any evidence that might help in solving this mystery. As Roz approached him, she saw that he was looking out at the ocean as though looking for something.
"What is it?" she asked. "Do you see something out there?"
"No." he said. "I was just wondering if he fell off a boat, but I don't see any out there. Of course, we don't know when this happened. We'll just have to wait for the police to come." At that moment they both heard the sirens from the police cars and the ambulance.
As everyone milled around the body, John and Roz stood aside and waited for them to finish. One policeman walked over to them and asked questions. Did they touch the body? Have they any idea how it happened? Did they see anyone near the body? John and Roz answered their questions and gave the police their names and addresses in case they were needed in the future.
They finally walked to Johns' car and drove back to the club. All thoughts of a pleasant day together vanished from their mind. All they could do is wonder how it happened. "I'm going to call my brother, Ralph, when we get back." John said thoughtfully. "I'd like to keep in touch with him on this case. I have a feeling this was not an accident. I don't know why I feel that way, something about that look of fear on that boys' face. It was as though he knew what was going to happen to him."
Roz looked at him and nodded. "I felt the same way. I'd like to know more about it also. Do you mind if I go with you while you call him?"
He smiled at her. "Not at all. I'm glad you feel that way."
As they arrived at the club, John noticed an empty space next to Roz's car, so he parked there. Getting out of the car they continued their conversation with verbal actions as their bodies went thru the paces of closing the doors, walking thru the lot toward the club.
Approching the curb leading to the club's doorway they stopped, looked into each other's eyes, together their heads lowered as mechinical, men would, their eyes seeing that they were holding each other's hand. This realization brought knowing smiles to their faces, a slight gasp of awareness to Roz, and a surprised sound of, "Oh! my" to John's lips.
Temporary embarrassment was replaced with knowledge that they both were enjoying this familarity, smiled at each other, as they began to slightly swing their arms in matching rythum to their steps as they arrived at the club house doors.
After being seated John ordered his usual bagels and coffee, Roz felt more like Little Miss Muffet, ordered curds and , ok, she just felt that way, but ordered an English muffin with a side of marmalade and hot tea. It seemed that this mystery filled their stomach as much as their mind, nothing else was needed.
