Their relationship had gradually become something more, and not even she could claim that they were "just friends," any longer.
In all honesty, she would have sworn in a court of law that they would only ever be friends, if she'd been asked even as little as six months ago. But, the fact was that they were becoming a couple - the kind of couple who may very well still be together in their senior years. It was mind-boggling, though, in a very good way.
This was something she had wanted for a very long time, but the day of Matt's wedding to Elizabeth had been her wake-up call, and she had finally come to terms with the fact that anything more between them would never happen. So, she had gone through the hurt, rallied back, and headed for new pastures. She was intent on meeting a good man and settling down; there was no longer any reason to keep putting it off.
She was living without the lingering mental attachment to Houston, when suddenly, things shifted. It was almost as if someone had ordered a plot twist because he subtly - but surely - began pursuing her. It was nothing over-the-top, but she couldn't question that his intentions had changed.
As time went on, she was discovering him to be respectful, kind, caring, and one of the most attentive men that she had ever been with. This was saying something because Carl had been an exceptional man, and she would have considered herself lucky to find a someone with half of his good qualities. She still missed him dearly, but Houston was filling the rather large shoes that Carl had left behind in her heart and mind.
They were currently driving north on the PCH, heading to a favored restaurant in Santa Barbara, when she let out a little laugh. She was remembering the day that started this change in their relationship. Looking back, she couldn't help but laugh about it.
Houston had been at her house. It had been a long tiring day, and he had driven her home to let her relax a bit, instead of dealing with rush hour traffic. She was hurrying to get ready for a business dinner with potential clients and was so frazzled that she couldn't think straight. Because her mind was scattered, she ran into the hallway facing her living room - clad only in a satin bra and matching bikini underwear - holding up a choice of two cocktail dresses.
"Which one?" she called to him, making him look up from a business magazine that he'd been reading.
She saw his Adam's apple bob and barely puzzled over it because it wasn't like he hadn't seen her in a bikini many times over the years. To her, this wasn't much different.
"Well?" she prompted, when he hadn't answered. "Navy or black?" she asked as she shifted one dress, then the other, in front of her body.
"Um...I think you'll look great in either, but I prefer the black one."
He prefers? That was a little odd, but she quickly said 'thanks' and turned back to her bedroom to finish dressing. She could have sworn she heard a sharp intake of breath, as she turned and walked away, but shrugged it off.
In the last minutes that she was finishing up, she heard Houston pad down the hall towards her bedroom. He called out a warning, "Are you decent?"
She chuckled and said yes, as she was putting in her last earring.
He appeared in the doorway with his hands in his pockets and smiled when he saw her. "You look beautiful."
She turned, smiling. "Thank you." She reached for her clutch, which was laying on the dresser, and said, "Thank you, too, for being patient. I tried to hurry," she said while walking towards him.
Instead of moving to allow her to pass, he stayed rooted and said, "I'll never rush you, CJ."
Not certain what to make of his response because she was confused by the inflection in his voice, she opted to brush it aside and said, "Aren't you the gentleman, this evening? Thanks." She gave him a chaste kiss on the cheek in appreciation. He smiled briefly, then moved aside for her to pass.
"What time are we supposed to meet the Rosens?" she asked. "Are we going to be on time?" she worried.
"About that..." he started.
She turned to look back at him with a brow raised. She had the distinct feeling that she'd gone to the trouble of changing for nothing, and he'd sought her out to tell her so. "Are we not meeting them, now? Did they cancel?"
"No, we are not meeting them, but I want to take you out. We do have reservations, after all."
"Hmm," she pretended to ponder, "I think I could stand to be in your company a little longer." She winked to let him know that she was teasing.
"You say the loveliest things, Ms. Parsons," he replied, as they headed out the front door.
She laughed, while he made certain that the front door was locked behind them.
As the night progressed, she realized that they were on a date and that their relationship was on a different wavelength. It wasn't overly blatant, but she couldn't ignore that he was paying attention to her as if he was a new beau, interested in everything about her. It disconcerted her, at first, because she didn't know what to make of it. But, they talked more than they had in a long time - about themselves and the important things that had influenced their lives.
He asked personal questions about her and the times in her life that he hadn't been privy to, until now. She answered willingly and asked him a few of her own questions, which he had no problems answering. There was a level of comfort between them that hadn't existed in a long time, if ever, and they were entering a new phase of their relationship.
When he took her home, he walked her inside but didn't stay. He did, however, kiss her like she was the most revered thing in his life and left her speechless, as he said his goodnight.
She went to bed feeling elated but also questioning what, exactly, was happening.
When Matt heard her laugh, he asked her, "What's so funny?" She didn't immediately answer, so he prompted her, "CJ?"
That seemed to do the trick. "I'm sorry. What?" she asked, smiling.
"I asked what's so funny."
"Oh," she snickered. "I was just thinking about the night we went to dinner, after the Rosens canceled on us. Specifically, when I came out and asked you which dress I should wear."
He snorted. "You mean the time I nearly got to second base without touching you?"
It was her turn to hoot. "Houston! You'd seen me in bikinis over the years, so I didn't think it was a big deal! How was I to know that you were planning to woo me?"
He smirked. "Be that as it may, I'm a guy. How could I not be turned on by seeing you clad only in your skimpy satin underwear?" A sudden thought occurred to him, "You haven't done that very often, have you?"
"Done what often?"
"Come out in your unmentionables to ask your dates which dress you should wear."
She hit him in the arm. "Argh! You are such a turkey. NO, I have never done that before, but 1) you were my best friend...and I reiterate, who had seen me in bikinis for years, and 2) we were only friends, at the time. How was I to know that I was unintentionally teasing you? You didn't even tell me that you'd made up the Rosens," she threw at him.
He jerked a glance her way. He'd never told her that the potential clients who'd canceled had never existed. "How did you know?"
"I'm a woman, Houston. I have my ways," she said, cheekily. "Besides, your choice of phrasing about how we weren't meeting them, but you wanted to take me out made me think something was up. By the end of the night, I just knew." She gave him an indulging smile.
"And, you never called me on it?"
"I just did."
"But..." He sat for a few seconds. "Why now?"
"Because you were criticizing me for coming out in my underwear. At the time, I thought it was harmless, especially in my frazzled I've-got-to-hurry frame of mind. In a way, you did it to yourself," she joked. "There weren't even clients."
"No, but we did have reservations," he said smugly.
She harrumphed.
"And, I'm hardly criticizing you for displaying your body for me. If I could've spoken clearly, at the time, I might have thanked you."
She roared with laughter. "Lord..."
She she figured that she was one of the only women in the world who was happy about her relationship beginning with a lie. Who could care, when you're this happy?