Chapter Seven

The school term started and Anna was hard at work with her new students. She had forgotten, like she always does after the summer holidays, just how long and tiring the days could be. However she would drive home happy and exhilarated for the next day, lesson plans filling her head along the way. The sun was already casting long shadows in the street as she pulled into her driveway. She yawned and grabbed her overloaded bag from the passengers seat. She would definitely run a bath and pour a glass of wine for herself tonight.

She ate dinner as she worked, the TV droning in the background for company. After she ate, she loaded the dishwasher and tidied up. The minutiae of another day.
It's amazing, she thought to herself, that even being on the other side of the world, the work life routine always ends up being the same.
She took a mental note to check the newspaper for some social events. Maybe she could join a club, or learn to dance or even get back into playing guitar. She would ask the music teacher at school tomorrow if there was a spare guitar she could borrow. She went to the bedroom and undressed before wrapping herself in her dressing gown. She thought about one of the dads at school who had asked her out, slipping her a business card with his number on it.
Going on a date would be nice, she thought to herself. She wondered what Alec was doing.
Wine glass in hand, she turned on the tap ready to fill the bathtub, her body aching and ready to relax. An icy flood of water gushed from the tap. She cranked the hot water tap further and waited. Still icy.
Shit, she thought with a sigh. She turned on the hot water tap in the shower, again icy water trickled down the drain.
There's something wrong with the hot water tank.
After investigating the tank herself and trying to restart it, she pulled out her phone and called her landlord, who promised to arrange a plumber for her ASAP.
The upside of living in a small town is everyone is quick to help out. She paced around the house and drunk her glass of wine while waiting to hear back.
So much for a relaxing night, Anna thought disappointedly.

She nearly jumped out of her skin when her phone rang a few minutes later. The plumber was booked for tomorrow afternoon, the soonest time he was available. Anna couldn't believe it, was there really no one else able to come sooner? As in now? The landlord explained that the plumber was operating on his own and was loaded up with work. He could look for a plumber out of town, but they'd likely be available much later than the local guy.
Great, Anna thought.
The downside of living in a small town is things can't always be fixed quickly.
I'm going to need a proper wash before work tomorrow. Think Anna, think. I could book a hotel room for the night. But how much would that cost? I could ask a neighbour if I could use their shower. But I don't really know any of them well enough yet.
Then she thought of Alec.
Not that she really knew him either, but he was probably going to be her best chance. Would it be weird going over to ask to use his shower? Yes. But, it would also be a chance to see him, to talk to him.

Anna quickly got dressed again and walked over to Alec's house. The wine was giving her the courage to follow through with the plan.
She cleared her throat and knocked on the door, which flung open quickly.
"What did I tell you about that bloody spare key…" began Alec before stopping mid sentence when he saw it was Anna. "Oh, it's you. Sorry, I thought you were Daisy," he said, running a hand through his hair, flustered.
Alec was wearing a pair of glasses and a jumper over his work shirt. He was clearly in the middle of something. Work probably.
Anna tucked her hair behind her ear, her courage quickly fading.
"Sorry, I, uh, didn't mean to interrupt you."
"You're not interrupting," he replied, softening. "Can I help you with something?"
Anna bit her lip. "This is going to sound ridiculous, but my hot water system has stopped working and I can't get a plumber here until tomorrow afternoon. I wondered, and you can absolutely say no, would you mind if I used your shower?"
Alec looked at her. Anyone else and he would have said a very quick and firm no, but Anna was different.
"Oh, uh, yes. Did you want to use it now? Daisy's out so it's all yours if you want."
"Would the morning be okay?" she asked, not wanting to push her luck.
"Okay." Alec nodded.
They arranged a time that would suit the three of them.
"I guess it's a date then." Anna said with a playful smile before they said polite goodbyes.
Alec closed the door and stood still for a moment. A strange situation for sure, but a welcomed chance to see Anna again.
He quickly went to check if the bathroom was clean.

When Anna knocked on Alec's door the next morning, he greeted her with a slice of toast in one hand and a dark blue tie draped around his shoulders. She had clearly caught him mid morning routine.
"Thank you again, Alec. This is really kind of you." Anna said gratefully as she carried in a bag of her things.
"It's no trouble." he replied as he chewed a mouthful of toast.
"Well I hope I'm not making you late."
"It's fine." he replied, appreciative of the fact that as the boss he could arrive late if he wanted. In fact his colleagues would probably enjoy him being late for once. "Can I get you anything? Tea? Toast?" He was being on his best behaviour, but he also thought it would buy him some more time with Anna.
"No thank you. I'll just be in and out. I really don't want to hold you up."
They stood together in Alec's living room and looked at each other for a moment. He realized she was wearing a dressing gown. He let himself wonder if she was naked underneath.
"Um, where abouts is your bathroom?" Anna asked with a tilt of her head.
"Right. Um, down the hall. Second door on the left." he replied, thoughts interrupted.
She looked at him and smiled before trailing off down his hallway.
He took another bite of toast and watched her leave.

In the bathroom Anna stared at the lock on the door. She decided to leave it unlocked. Daisy had already left for school, it was only Alec in the house and she really wouldn't mind if he came in. In fact, she would really like it if he did. As she undressed she allowed herself to imagine the two of them together in the shower, their bodies wet and hot, pressed against each other, hands all over, mouths kissing deeply.
She turned on the tap, and as she waited for the water to warm up (finally, a hot shower) she looked around the bathroom. She observed Daisy's makeup messily laid out next to the sink, their toothbrushes together in a cup, his bottle of cologne. She picked it up and sniffed it. It was something fresh and clean.

After she had showered, she reached into her bag, pulled out her clothes and dressed quickly. She tried to hurry as she braided her hair, brushed her teeth and applied some makeup. Then she put on her mother's bangle bracelet with a small safety chain at the clasp. Since her mother had died she had taken to wearing a piece of her jewellery every day. Sometimes earrings, a necklace, ring or a bracelet. Today it was the bangle. Lastly Anna put in some hoop earrings.
As the last earring went in, the chain of her bracelet got caught in the hoop.
"Shit, shit, shit," Anna muttered under her breath as she tried to untangle herself from this awkward position.
She turned her wrist this way and that. Even looking in the mirror didn't help her to see how to untangle herself. She could feel her hands begin to shake. It was no use. She would need Alec's help. She called his name and asked him to come into the bathroom.
He slowly opened the door, not sure what to expect, his eyes cast down low, just in case.
"I need your help," Anna said, a look of embarrassment on her face. "I've gotten tangled up."
Alec smiled softly at Anna.
The bathroom was still steamy and smelt of the nice smelling things that women use. It reminded him of Tess.
"Let's see what's going on here," he said, coming closer to Anna. "Is this okay?" he asked her as he stepped closer.
She nodded in reply. He was conscious of his proximity to her. He didn't want to make her uncomfortable.
Alec is a gentleman, she thought as she tilted her head to the side.
She could feel his breath on her neck, his warm fingers working gently and carefully to untangle her jewellery.
Alec furrowed his brow and narrowed his eyes in concentration.
Why was jewellery so fiddly, he wondered.
He tried to focus on the task at hand, but was very aware of Anna's soft cheek so close to his own. He could smell her hair and longed to run his fingers through it.
"There you are," he said triumphantly, as he successfully untangled Anna.
Anna looked deep into Alec's eyes, her lips parted.
Against her better judgement, she gave into her desires and leaned forward, pressing her lips softly against Alec's.
It took Alec by surprise to have her there, softly kissing him. She pulled back and touched her lips, staring into his eyes.
"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have done that…"
He stared back at her, lips soft, breathing quickening.
Then at the same moment they both moved forward and again their lips were together, this time harder, faster. She held her hands to his cheeks, feeling his rough stubble against her fingers. He put his hands around her back, pulling her closer to him. When their lips finally parted, they continued to hold each other close, their hands holding each other's face, both wanting to hold onto each other and this moment.
Both silently cursing the time, if only they didn't have to work. The things they could do instead…
"Come to my place on Friday for dinner. I'd like to say thank you properly to you and Daisy for your… hospitality." said Anna softly, still catching her breath.
Alec nodded in reply, unable to look away from Anna.
A date. Kind of.
Things were definitely looking up.