A Chance Meeting

[This story includes (but is not limited to) heterosexual relationships between a man and a woman, another man and the same woman and no cheating. No one gets horns hung on them in this story and no one gets divorced. The people in this story do not actually exist. The places mentioned in the story exist.]

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Now that I am ready to tell this story I find that it begins before I am in it. Julie starts the story fully a year before we met. She turned eighteen one year to the day before we met. July 24th. A Saturday.

She and a dozen or so of her friends drove to the Kern River and camped for the weekend. The trip was to celebrate summer, not specifically Julie's birthday. Of the dozen or so people gathered for the trip four had invited themselves along. Brian was one of the four. Julie had been watching Brian for over a year. He was a year older than her and had been dating Julie's friend Jolene for most of the year.

As she tells it now Jolene had shared with her friends that Brian was hung and liked sex with her. She shared with Julie her fear of Brian and the fact that he was sometimes violent and more often something of a sadist. As Julie watched she saw the way Brian treated Jolene and it was as if Jolene was his toy. He didn't give her presents or spend much money on her. He spoke to her as if being with him was reward enough for her to be satisfied with her lot in life.

On Saturday morning as the rest of the group were preparing breakfast Brian came out of his tent. He finished buttoning his shirt as he walked to their table and he said, "I'm done with Jolene. She needs to move into a tent with someone else. Anyone want her?"

An acquaintance, Sam, asked, "What do you mean you're done?"

Brian answered as he poured himself a cup of coffee. "Done. Finished. I don't want her any more. I told her a few minutes ago to pack her shit and get out of my tent."

Another acquaintance, Mark, asked, "Why? What did she do wrong?" Both Mark and Sam had been looking at Jolene with interest ever since they had arrived at the campground.

Brian said, "She didn't do anything wrong. I'm just bored with her. I want someone else. I want Julie."

Julie was stunned. She didn't think Brian had ever really noticed her. He made his statement and then sat next to Julie at the table. Sam asked, "What if Julie isn't interested in you?"

Brian put his arm around Julie and said, "If she wants a social life, she's interested in me. I'll kick the ass of anyone who dates her before I tire of her."

He faced her and kissed her. She struggled but could not stop him from kissing her. Brian was bigger than the other guys on the camping trip and they knew he had been in fights before and hurt the guys he fought, so they let him have his way.

After breakfast he had Julie move her things into his tent and for the rest of the camping trip he treated her as if she should be grateful he picked her. She confided in me that during that weekend she stopped being a virgin and got her first couple of lessons in sucking a cock. When she told Brian she didn't want sex with him or anyone he hit her and threatened her until she gave in.

When the campout was over Brian made it known in their social circle that Julie was his property and that she had given him the gift of her virginity. He let everyone know he was having sex with her whenever he wanted. She cried almost every day. She was humiliated and her friends all felt badly for her.

On the weekend of her nineteenth birthday Brian organized a birthday breakfast for her. The entire group would meet at a small café they frequented near Ojai. It wasn't a surprise party for Julie. He told her all about it. He also told her she was paying for the breakfast for everyone. He didn't have a job. Julie worked at the local wholesale produce distributer when she wasn't in school. She didn't make big money and she pitched in to help her mom with the household expenses using a big part of what she made. Paying for a big breakfast was not what she wanted to do, on her birthday or any other day, but Brian wasn't listening. He invited who he wanted and Julie knew the bill would come to her.

That brings us to the moment when I entered the story.

I had a new car. I picked it up Friday afternoon from the Honda dealer. A brand new Honda CR-V. I'm an outdoor kind of guy and the small SUV suited my lifestyle perfectly. I packed it up and headed away from Santa Monica early Saturday morning. I thought a road trip was a good way to enjoy my first days with my new car.

The weather was perfect, warm and clear. I drove north and took the road to Ojai figuring I would stop and get some fresh-off-the-trees oranges. As I drove past thousands of orange trees I saw the small café and it looked like a good place to have breakfast, so I stopped.

Inside I sat at a table by myself and after I ordered I watched a group of young people sitting not far from me. They seemed to be faking having a good time. One of the men at the table seemed to be the alpha male, dominating the conversation and dominating each of the others at the table. He had his arm around one of the girls, with his hand holding her breast as if that were normal, acceptable behavior. I wondered why she would allow that. I wondered if she liked being used that way.

Shortly after my breakfast was delivered he got up from their table and said, "I'm gonna go take a dump. Julie, pay the bill and leave her a nice tip. When I get back your birthday breakfast is over. Don't forget to thank your friends for coming."

I watched him strut all the way to the restrooms at the back of the café. As soon as the door closed behind him the entire group got up and left the café. Julie got money out of her wallet and paid the bill. I saw a tear on her cheek as the waitress took the money and walked away from her. I motioned and the waitress came to me.

"You know those people?" I asked.

"Yup. They come in about once a month or so. The guy orders and she pays. Don't matter if it's just the two of them or a group, he orders and she pays."

I gave her money for my breakfast and asked, "What if she didn't pay, but left?"

"Then he'd have to pay or I'd call the cops."

"Write down the license number off his car and give her back her money. I'll pay for their breakfasts, but I want you to act like I didn't. Get him to pay, or call the police."

I gave her a hundred dollars, cash, and she thanked me. She and I walked to their table and I said, "Julie, she's going to give you back your money. You and I are leaving before that guy comes back from the restroom. That is, unless you like being treated like his servant."

Julie looked up at me for about three seconds and then stood up. She said, "I hate the way he treats me!"

She took the money and we walked out. We got in my CR-V and drove away.

When we were about two miles down the road she said, "Brian is going to explode."

"Brian is a bully." I said.

"He'll come looking for me and when he finds me, he'll hurt me."

I handed her my cell phone. "You live with him?"

"No! I still live with my parents. He doesn't want me to live with him, in case he gets tired of me. It will be easier to dump me when he's through if I live at home."

"Call your parents. Let them know that you're safe and that you won't be home this weekend. Let them know they are not to tell Brian where you are or who you're with. By the end of the weekend we'll have a plan for Brian."

"How do I know I can trust you?"

"You don't, but you already know what life with Brian is like. You can go back to him or we can find you a better way to live. However, if you say so, I'll take you back to him."

She called her Mom, gave her my cell number and begged her not to give the number to Brian. She told her Mom I had rescued her and we were headed for the desert. She hung up the phone and sat quietly looking out the window.

She sat quietly and still for five miles, then asked, "Where are we going?"

"Camping. I don't know where yet. We'll decide before dark. Don't worry, I'm not going to rape you. I'm a nice guy." She didn't say anything for three miles, when she spoke it was as if she was talking to herself.

"I've already been raped." She said. Her voice was soft and low, with most all the emotion drained out of it.

"I'm sorry it happened."

"Brian did it a year ago and seventy-three times since. He doesn't understand the word no." She said the words with almost no emotion. I stayed quiet and she eventually told me the story.

We were north of Solvang and it was mid-day. I saw a mall just off the highway and so I got off the highway and parked. I walked us into Wal-Mart and said, "You didn't pack for a weekend away, so there are things you need. We're here to get them."

"What things?"

"I don't know. Women need things to spend a weekend away. Lipstick, a toothbrush, deodorant, clothes for tomorrow."

"I can't spend money like that. Most of my check has already been spent by Brian. What I have left is what the waitress gave me back and it needs to last me two weeks. I need to be able to give my mom something towards the bills, too."

"I'm buying." I said.

Almost an hour later we were back in the CR-V headed north. Julie had feminine supplies and a new outfit for the next day.

"You told your mom we were headed for the desert. You knew when you said it we weren't. Why tell her we were?"

"If she tells Brian anything, he'll go looking in all the wrong places."

"Good thinking."

As we neared San Luis Obispo I said, "I've had enough driving for today. Let's check into someplace, get dinner and relax for the night."

"A campground? The first time Brian raped me was on a campout."

"Then let's stay in a motel."

"One room or two?" She asked.

"How about one room with two beds?"

"Ok." She didn't smile. She was resigned to the possibility that I was going to have sex with her. Given her year with Brian I understood her thinking. I also understood that she didn't know me.

We ate at the Apple Farm Restaurant and then drove maybe two miles from there and into a small motel. She stayed in the car while I registered. As I filled out the card in the office I realized I didn't know her last name, just Julie.

I carried my backpack and the bags from the mall into room five. Julie followed me inside.

"What's wrong?" I asked, after I closed the door.

"I've never been in a motel room before."

"I have and this one is about average. It's clean and that's the best part."

She looked at the two beds and asked, "Which one is mine?"

"Either one. You choose."

She sat on the one closest to the bathroom door. She smiled at me and I said, "Ok, that one is yours." I opened my backpack and found one of my t-shirts. I tossed it to her and said, "Here's your nightgown. We forgot to buy you one in Wal-Mart."

She stood and held the t-shirt to her, we both noted that it was long enough to cover her panties. She sat back down and said, "It feels strange being here with you. I don't even know your last name, what you do for a living or anything about you."

"You still have my cell phone?"

She nodded, holding up the phone. I said, "Pick any speed dial number on the phone. Call the number and tell them I handed you the phone so you could ask questions about me. Let the people I know tell you who I am."

She opened the phone and hit the speed dial. She spoke into the phone, "Hi. My name is Julie and I'm... I'm on a date with Pete. He's letting me call you on his phone and ask questions about him." She paused and asked, "What does he do for a living?" Her eyes got wide and she asked, "Has he been married? What happened? How long have you known him?" As she listened she looked at the floor for a while then back at me.

She thanked whoever she had called and ended the call. Her eyes were full of tears and she said, "I'm sorry your wife and son died. I'm sorry you have been alone for three years."

"You don't need to tell me who you called. Whoever it was is probably on the phone right now to tell my other friends that I'm on a date. They have all been after me to get back to living."

"A date? Is that what this is? I thought a date was when a guy took a girl out to dinner and a movie."

I turned on the TV in the room and surfed through the channels until I found a movie. I said, "We had dinner and here's a movie."

She smiled and said, "This doesn't count. On a date someone buys popcorn."

I picked up my room key and said, "I'll be right back." I left the room and walked half a block to a 7-11 where I bought a box of microwave popcorn and a six-pack of sodas. When I came back into our room Julie was in bed, wearing my t-shirt and covered to her waist. I smiled and popped a bag of popcorn into the microwave in our room. When it finished popping, I opened the bag and gave it to her. I popped a second bag and while it popped I took off my shoes and sat on my bed.

The movie was funny and we enjoyed the popcorn. When the movie and popcorn were finished I gathered the trash and threw it in the small trashcan by the bathroom door.

I said, "I'm going into the bathroom to get ready for bed. When I'm ready to come out I'll tell you. I usually sleep nude, but since this is our first date, I'll keep my underwear on."

"I won't look." She sounded like a girl when she said it, not like a woman.

I closed the door with me inside the bathroom. I showered, shaved and drained my bladder. As I shaved I realized I hadn't shaved at night since my wife and son died. I felt a painful pressure in my chest thinking about them. I heard a voice in my head saying, 'It's Ok to heal. It's Ok to love again.' The voice in my head sounded a lot like Sarah's voice. Sarah had been my wife.

I opened the door when I was ready and said, "Ok, I'm coming to bed."

Julie had a hand over her eyes as I exited the bathroom and I quickly made it to my bed. Once I was covered I said, "I'm in" and she uncovered her eyes.

I shut off the light and we settled in for the night. I listened to her breathe for a long time. It was a comforting sound. I realized I had been missing the sound of someone else's breathing ever since Sarah and Michael died.

I did fall asleep. I woke suddenly to the sounds of an argument in the dark. A male voice said, "Get your ass back in this room, Darlene!" The voices were just outside our door.

A female voice said, "Not on your life! First, you apologize, then maybe."

"I wasn't flirting with that woman! She's no where near as pretty as you and I love you, not her!"

"Then, why did she ask you to dance with her?"

"You'd have to ask her!" I got out of bed, pulled on my jeans and opened our door. The couple looked at me and I said, "I don't mind if you argue, but could you whisper? We're attempting to sleep."

The female voice said, "What, you gonna call the cops?"

I said, "I don't need to. I am a police officer. Please, let me go back to sleep." I closed the door. I padded back to bed, dropped my jeans on the floor and climbed in. When I was in I moved to settle in again when I felt a hand on my shoulder.

"Move over a little, would you?" Julie asked. I moved. She lifted the covers and slid into bed with me.

"Could you hold me for a while?" She asked.

"Sure." I wrapped her in my arms and she molded herself to my side. It didn't take her long before she was making breath sounds that told me she was asleep.

Holding her against me in the dark was something else I had missed. She felt a lot like Sarah used to feel and yet different. After a few minutes I realized I was crying. I missed Sarah more than I would admit, even to myself. Julie had opened me to the feelings I had suppressed for years.

I did sleep. When I opened my eyes it was light in the room. It was daylight. Julie was still holding herself against me. We hadn't moved in hours.

Without moving she said, "I like sleeping with you. I felt safe and ..." She hesitated.

"And?" I asked.

"Safe and loved. I know it's too soon for me to feel loved from you, but it is what I felt."

My grip on her tightened a little and I said, "I won't say I love you, but I can say I love holding you just like this."

"I've slept in bed with Brian seventy-three times and he's never said anything like that."

"I'm not a bully."

"He is. So is his father. His mother is scared all the time."

"That part of your life is over. Con su permiso, We're moving you away from Ojai and finding you a job and a life without Brian in it."

She lifted up and looked me in the eyes. "You can do that? You're willing to help me that much?"

"Maybe you can help me at the same time."

"How?"

"Wake up beside me every morning."

Her pause lasted what seemed like hours. Then she said, "I need to go home, so I can pack."

I breathed. I hadn't known I was holding my breath, but I had been. I moved a little, starting to get up and start our trip to her mom's house.

She stopped me. She crawled up on top of me and when her face was inches from mine she asked, "Are we going to be roommates who share a bed?"

"I'd say my intention would be to live with you as if we were married, with all that entails. I won't rush you but when you're ready I want to include sex between us as part of our life together."

"Yesterday was our first date. I don't like sex on first dates. Brian raped me on our first time together. This is our second date. I trust you won't rape me. I'd like it if we could include sex on our second date."

We kissed and I'm sure she felt my penis swelling and letting her know how interested I was in sex with her. She sat up, peeled off my t-shirt and her panties, then she lifted my hands to her breasts. "Brian complained because they are small."

"They look and feel perfect to me." I sat up and kissed her, still holding her breasts in my hands. As I kissed and explored her body I found bruises in various stages of healing. She told me about each one. What Brian was upset about, what he had been drinking, or what had set him off that had included her because she was available.

When I scooted down on the bed and my face got close to her mound she said, "You'll be the first to kiss me there."

"This date may have a lot of firsts in it." I said as I breathed on her mound. Then I kissed the inside of her thighs and she shuddered. I didn't hurry. When I finally licked along her slit she moaned loudly and shook. Her hands grasped my head and held me to her pussy.

"Oh Pete, that's Heavenly. Please don't stop."

Stopping was not on my agenda. I licked, kissed and probed her with my tongue. I felt her body quiver and her back arch as the orgasm swept over her. I hesitated, waiting for her to calm just a little so I could join with her towards another orgasm.

I started to move up along her body when she rolled us both over and she mounted me. As she lowered herself, impaling herself on my cock she said, "Oh! Oh yes!"

Her hands locked fingers with my hands and she rocked, lifting until my cock barely touched her and then lowering herself slowly until our bodies crushed together. She held her eyes closed for a long time and when she started shuddering again they opened.

"I can say it now. I love being here with you, Pete." She leaned forward and as our orgasms swept over us, we kissed. We kissed many times and only paused when I popped out of her. She untangled herself from me and raced into the bathroom.

I said, "You don't need to go. I'm willing to clean up the mess I made. Come back Julie."

She came to the doorway of the bathroom holding a washcloth to her pussy. "Are you sure?"

I nodded and motioned her back to the bed. "Don't gauge the world by the opinions of a bully. He's never been in love, never intended to love someone other than himself. He thinks fucking is what women are for and he's wrong."