🎵 "What is love? 

Baby don't hurt me…

Don't hurt me... no more... 🎵 

Lisa quickly fumbled out of bed as she grabbed her cell phone that was on the bedside table. This she did while checking the time and without first checking to see who was calling. 'It was obviously an emergency,' she thought, "it wasn't even 5 am yet."

"Hello!"

"Hello!" Responded Lisa nervously, only to hear Pamela on the other end. 

"Lisa! You are not going to believe what happened" Pamela started. 

"Miss Pam, is that you?" She asked in a confused tone. Pamela was one of those friends who made you wonder why you guys were even friends anyways. She was only very efficient with gossip. 

Pamela didn't stop to acknowledge Lisa, but instantly began to tell her that Dane, her ex boyfriend, had gotten married over the weekend, to the girl he had left Lisa for. Dane and Lisa had been together for over 2 years and things were going well, at least that was what Lisa thought. Sure, there were the regular bickering but which relationship didn't have those?

After much back and forth they decided to move in together. So Lisa gave up her apartment and moved in with him across town.  When he didn't come home one Friday night, she spent most of the night pacing the floor and making phone calls. Calling his close friends and family members. No one could give her any answer, come to think of it: no one had seemed overly concerned about his absence. That night she couldn't sleep; replaying several scenarios in her head that had him being hurt somewhere. 

In the morning, he returned, with not even some half baked truths. Without any remorse, he told her that he was only there to get his things because he was moving out. 

Walking behind him and trying to make sense of the situation; Lisa got no explanation, except, " I wasn't happy and I found someone." That morning he sped off in the car she had helped him acquire, never looking back. The fact that he had brought chocolate and roses for her only 2 nights before made the whole event even more confusing.

"The pictures were beautiful," was what brought Lisa to the phone call conversation.

  Pamela continued to give an in depth description of the pictures she had seen; which included colour scheme, flowers type and a beach front hotel. 

Lisa had heard enough! That was not the type of news that she wanted to hear so early in the morning but she remained silent. Hanging up the phone was the only solution. As she proceeded to hang up the phone, Lisa could hear Pamela in the background saying "Lisa! Lisa! Are you there?" "Say something," no doubt she was looking for her next line of gossip.

Lisa couldn't imagine going back to bed after that. So she slowly continued off bed as she let out a loud sigh and walked to the kitchen. She had lost her appetite but she made herself the strongest coffee humanly possible. "This should do it," Lisa said as she took a sip and reflected.

She had long accepted that all the awful things that she had wished would happen to the new couple; wouldn't. But marriage? This information came as a great shock to her and as she relaxed; she couldn't hold back the flood of emotions that overtook her. She began to remember all the hurt and pain she felt. That's when she sat the coffee down and began to cry for a while.

She wasn't quite sure why she reacted in that manner. She knew she didn't want him back; but rose pink and baby blue was the exact colour scheme they had discussed for their wedding, that never happened. It was as if the only changes that were made were, "the bride and the month, "and who in their right mind gets married in October?" She thought as she left the kitchen and began to get ready for work.

The whole mood and atmosphere was set; surely this October morning wasn't going to be a normal one. "Not even the sun bothered to show up she thought as she parted the curtain," she whispered.

 The sadness she felt, turned into a weird feeling. You know- the feeling of utter despair and inadequacies; wondering if her life would ever get better. She could just tell that something bad was going to happen. She tried to shake off that feeling but it didn't help that it was also "evaluation day" and she wasn't the boss's favourite person. The day had just started wrong, thanks to Miss Pam.

To make matters worse, after she had finally gotten ready for work, she couldn't find her keys. "Where were the damn keys?" She asked herself as she lifted and moved everything that wasn't anchored down. Lisa spent most of the time afterwards searching for the house keys that she later found in the side of one of the chairs. By the time she walked out, she was already late and had completely lost faith in the day improving.

"This day cannot get any worse!" she exclaimed as she grabbed hold of the umbrella while walking through the door. She wasn't about to take any chances with the weather because it had rained the night before. 

 As she hurried towards her bus stop, she couldn't help but noticed that a lot of water was still on the road. This meant that she had to skip and jump to avoid the water that had settled on the road and in potholes.

Just as she was about to hop over a large puddle of water, a bus going above the speed limit, came out of nowhere and splashed her from head to toe. In disbelief she threw her hands in the air and made a loud screeching sound. 

Oblivious to her plight, the bus continued on its merry way.

She paused to examine the parts of her clothes that instantly clung to her slender frame like a glove. "Well at least it was clean water," she told herself as she defiantly continued towards the bus stop, consoling herself. 

After checking to make sure that her recently done hairstyle was not affected, she kept walking, even though she was soaked. There was no way that she was turning back to change, not today. As Lisa reflected on how unfortunate she was, she grumbled to herself about the incident and the lack of remorse of the bus driver. 

"Wash your step," said the most smoothing baritone voice she had ever heard or imagined. She raised her head and that's when she saw him. Walking towards her was a tall dark, handsome young man with an effervescent smile. His smile wiped away all thoughts about the disappointing morning she was having so far. Everything went out of her head and made way for admiration. 

His confident strides kept her attention for a while as he walked towards her direction. But, it was the fact that he was well dressed baldhead, had a nice and a clean shave, that made her palpitate.   

Without realizing it, she began to wish that he would speak to her again, or at least say, hi. Something more than; "watch your step!" 

Within minutes, she had pictured them together with their two children and a white dog. A smile flashed across her face and then she remembered that she was soaked. 

Her desires instantly made way for embarrassment. 

As they moved closer and closer toward each other, she began to hope that he wouldn't notice. She continued walking at a slower pace than before and they got to the bus stop at the same time. By this, the rain began to drizzle and they both sought shelter under the bus stop. She entered first and he came in and stood to her left. She watched him out of the corners of her eye.

He glanced at her and then turned around; then he looked directly at the side of her face. They weren't standing there for very long before her wish was granted, and in a friendly voice, he spoke to her. He said, 'you have mud on your face.' Not really hearing what he had said; along with the excitement that he had spoken to her; she began to smile nervously. 

He looked puzzled at first, but with a smile he repeated, 'you've got mud on your face.' 

This time she heard exactly what he said and began to fumbled with embarrassment to wipe it off. Lisa would wipe an area and he would say, 'no, not there.' She made several attempts to remove the mud without any success. Then, with a kind smile, he took his white handkerchief from his pocket and removed the mud for her. Lisa couldn't help but feel special and finally turned around to look directly in his face. 

Their eyes met and she realized that he was really quite handsome. His were hazel and his lips….Oh his lips looked so juicy." A closer inspection of his face revealed some new growth of a perfectly arched mustache. Lisa felt the urge to rub her fingers along his face. She then realized that she was staring at him intensely and she quickly turned back to face the road. 

Then he spoke again, "Where are you heading?' And why are you so wet?" He asked. After gaining her composure, she hoarsely said, "Wo, work." Then clearing her throat, she said, "a bus splashed me." I am sorry to hear that.' 'My name is Shawn Charles,' he said while stretching out his hand for a shake. 

"What's yours?"  

"I am Lisa DaCosta," she replied as their hands joined together for a shake. 

He held onto her hand too long for a shake and she smiled, then gently pulled her hand away. She couldn't help but noticed that his hands were very soft and she kept smiling.

"Aha! A beautiful smile," he said. "Well Lisa, you can't go to work looking like that, because your clothes are still sticking to your skin. 'It's also flu season, and you might get sick," he stated in a concerned voice. 

She stopped smiling and replied, "It will soon dry," As she looked down while turning to feel her clothes in different areas.

The rain stopped drizzling and without acknowledging what she said, he continued speaking. 'Well, I live right around the corner beside the Megastore. I can get you something there and you can clean up at my house.' 'What size are you....A size two or three?" Before she could respond he continued, looking at her from head to toe. 

"If you don't feel comfortable coming to my house, you can call someone and have them on the phone while you clean up and change. I won't give you any problems," he said as he smiled at her. She paused to think about the offer and after going back and forth in her thoughts, she finally agreed and they walked away from the bus stop.

She followed him to the Megastore and he went inside while she remained outside. 

She accepted the offer because she believed that she would be safe. Nevertheless, she decided to call her brother to let him know the situation and where she would be.

Her brother protested but she hung up the phone before he could finish. 

A few minutes went by and then Shawn came out of the store with two bags. He turned to the right of the store and beckoned to her to follow him. She complied and they walked to his house in silence as she, closely following behind his footsteps.

 "We are here!" he announced after a short while, as he opened the gate to a beautiful and well kept yard. Phone still in her hand, she texted the name of the street and the address to her brother. They entered the house and he led her down a narrow passage. Then he directed her to a fully furnished room that was almost as neat as the other areas she had seen. The only exception was that it had a few dust covered female items. She was curious about them but she said nothing.

It didn't take long for her to clean up and put on the clothes that he had purchased. To tell the truth, she thought that they were more expensive than the clothes she would normally buy; but she was grateful. 

After she got dressed, came back through the passage to meet him in the living where he had begun watching TV. He smiled at her and said, 'that was quick.' He got up and followed her back to the bus stop. Along the way, they enjoyed a lovely conversation that resulted in the exchanging of phone numbers. He told her that he was a business owner and told him that she worked in a canteen at a school.

Shortly after they got to the bus stop, a bus came and if it were possible to be double late, she was. Shawn remained at the bus stop and watched as the bus drove off. She pretended as if she didn't notice, as she texted her brother to let him know that she was okay and on her way to work. He responded with a heavily worded message that centered around the theme that she was taking too many risks with her safety and her life.

With little traffic on the road at that time, fifteen minutes later she was at work. Lisa couldn't wait to tell the other ladies who worked with her in the canteen about her encounter. She was smitten! 

As she put it, she had only read or heard about gentle and kind men like Shawn. She reflected how just one encounter had completely transformed a day that was hell bent on being disastrous. Not to mention, the evaluation went better than she anticipated.

Later in the day she got a call from Shawn- saying that he was calling to ensure that she got to work safe and to find out how her day was going so far. As she hopped around and did a little happy dance, she told him that her day was going great. 

This marked the beginning of the over-the- phone conversations. Their conversations took place at various times of the day and lasted for hours. They spoke about any and everything as they tried to get to know each other. It felt different; the conversations were easy and just flowed. It was as if they had known each other forever. When either one called the other, the first thing that could be heard was laughter; a genuine happiness to hear each other's voice. 

They continued corresponding over the phone for a while, and then they began to date exclusively. The dates weren't limited to any particular day, place or time. The planned dates were mostly done by Shawn and he would "go all out." They always included something special: roses, chocolate covered strawberries, a live band and her favourite; exotic desserts. They enjoyed each other's company and they made it known. 

Shawn was the gentleman. He would open the door for her and pull out her chair if she needed to sit. They had a solid respect for each other, enjoyed regular hands holding and walks in the park. There was even a mini vacation to Montego Bay, Jamaica included. Lisa told all of her friends and family about the wonderful man she had met. Even her brother grew to love and respect him because of the way he treated his sister.

Shawn and Lisa were happy together. After dating for a while they declared their love for each other at a family dinner, they hosted. Their love developed into a solid relationship that was unlike any other. Admittedly, they had been in other relationships before but this was different. It was magical! 

They couldn't believe their luck although most of their dating was centred around getting to know each other better. They had decided to stick to a 'three months rule,' which meant "No sex before the end of three months of dating!" This wasn't easy to live by especially when the desire for each other was great. Lisa and Shawn had to literally fight off the urges. This also meant that they couldn't engage in heavy petting or deep, deep kissing. So there were nights they had to actually pry themselves away from each other. 

The struggle was real, but they also didn't want their first sexual encounter to be a chance type of event. So the couple continued dating for over three months before the issue of sex was fully addressed. Sure, they had mentioned it before, even joked about it but nothing concrete was discussed. This time they really spoke with the intention of making it happen. They were even discussing marriage and after several enquiries; they decided it was time.. 

With the discussion completed: they decided that they would keep their individual apartments BUT it was definitely time for love-making.

The day was set and Shawn was his usual romantic self. They went all out; dinner then movie followed by lingerie, grapes, champagne and chocolate. That Saturday evening, he picked her up at her place, her hair was nicely done and nails were well manicured and tipped. When he arrived he phoned her and she met him outside. He had already opened her and was standing there waiting for her to get in. He too was well dressed and groomed. 

She came out, they kissed and he hurriedly placed her in the car. She was about to mockingly say, "are you going to lift me up and put me in." But she decided against it, he was way too flustered. The drive to dinner was mainly filled with compliments; he would say, "your dress looks lovely,"  and she would reply, "your clothes look lovely too." It went on for a while and that was the most awkward they had been since they met. When she said "I love your newly arched beard" he had had enough and responded, "I loved the taste of your lips." They both laughed and the awkwardness was broken.

       The restaurant he chose was La Carino, a new Spanish Restaurant that she had mentioned once that she would like to visit. The ambiance was great, they were seated in a little secluded area within the dining hall, with their own chef, servers and a live band. Dinner was delectable and for dessert they served a whole Baked Alaska Flambe. Shawn and Lisa got to take the uneaten portions. The whole evening and presentation was breathtaking. 

    As they drove to his place she kissed him and thanked him for a lovely evening. He smiled and said, "you are welcome but it's just beginning." 

    When they got to his place they decided that they would relax for a while and watch the movie that he had prepared. This part of the night saw them enjoying a glass of champagne and playfully feeding each other grapes. Halfway into the movie they began the deep kissing and heavy petting, they type that they had consciously avoided before. He assisted her to stand while they continued kissing and moving towards the bedroom. When they got in the bedroom, she couldn't believe her eyes.There were petals of her favourite flowers all over the bed. Along with chocolate covered strawberries cut in wedges of four in a crystal clear box on the bedside table. 

They paused kissing every now and again to help each other remove their clothing. He completely removed her dress only to expose one of the sexiest full lingerie he had ever seen. The only thing he could say was, 'wow.' 

As he slowly began to kiss her all over as they moved closer and onto the bed. He placed a wedge of one of the  strawberries in her mouth and then he used his mouth and tongue to take it back into his. He chewed it and swallowed while she stared lovingly at him. They both began to kiss and caress each other. 

  Then he entered her. She slowly eased her bottom off the bed as she received all of him. That night, their bodies melted into each other. They made love as if there was no tomorrow. When they had finished they had some more strawberries, spoke, laughed and then went to sleep.

Needless to say, the first time they had sex, it was amazing! The second time they had sex was the following night and they did no planning. It was as if they read each other's mind. When their body touched each other it was electrifying. From then, it seemed as if they couldn't keep their hands off each other.