Marianne Surrenders (2 page)

Once the initial excitement died down and Marianne had recovered from the shock, she sat back down and found herself reverting back to her usual self-conscious and shy self.

She longed to gaze unashamedly at Tommy, and admire how he had grown. He was always so pretty as a child, but his new found maturity had caught her completely off-guard. His body was now athletic and manly. His limbs now lean and muscular, and his smooth and supple tanned skin seemed to radiate. She found it difficult to look directly at him for too long before feeling compelled to divert her eyes; surely it must be wrong to stare so selfishly at one so perfect? She couldn't help but feel incredibly attracted to him, and it went beyond the physical. Something about him made her feel safe in his presence. She instinctively trusted him, and she liked that.

Tommy broke the awkward silence, “So, what have you been up to all these years? I wanna hear all about it. Fill me in.”

Marianne thought for a moment. “Wow. What to say? Well, um... nothing really exciting I suppose. A disaster of a marriage, and really messy separation are probably my greatest achievements in the last decade or so,” she said in a self-depreciating tone.

“
I heard about that. It can't have been nice for you.”

“
You can say that again,” Marianne looked down ruefully at the glass of orange in her hand. “I guess we were doomed from the start. We married much too young. I think he just got tired of the whole relationship,  tired of me.”

For the first time since their meeting, Tommy's smile disappeared. “Hey, come on now,” he said, leaning over to give Marianne's knee a reassuring nudge with his hand. “That doesn't sound right; Grow tired of an amazing girl like you? Gimme a break. He must be an idiot.”

Marianne gave a wistful sigh and smiled. “Well that's very kind of you,” she said. “I'm not so sure how amazing I am, but he definitely
is
an idiot.”

They both laughed, and this seemed to ease the tension.

“
Anyway, the last I heard he'd got himself banged up in prison,” she said. “Keeps him out of my way I suppose.”

Marianne was starting to relax. Michael watched how she became animated. Her tiny hand waved about as she spoke, flashing the tender white skin of her inner wrist.

“
How about we swap that glass of orange for a glass of white wine, and you can tell me all about it? It might feel good to get it off your chest?” he said, standing up in anticipation. “Sarah's got a couple of bottles in the refrigerator so they should be nice and chilled.”

“
I suppose a glass of wine would be nice, but I don't want to bore you with any of my problems.”

“
You won't be boring me Marianne. I'll be glad for the company,” he said over his should as he left the room and headed for the kitchen. Marianne took the opportunity to give him the once over as he walked away, without the fear of being caught.

When he returned this time Marianne was standing up and gazing out the window, lost in her thoughts. Behind Sarah's house there was a ancient apple orchard. It wasn't the largest of orchards, no more than an acre at best, but playing there as a child it seemed to go on forever. She remembered how each summer they would gather apples for Sarah's father. He would make the most wonderful apple cider.

Tommy handed her the glass of wine. A shaft of light from the window caught Marianne's dress and, just like it had done outside, it become almost completely transparent. The darker tone of her nipples was clearly visible. Tommy's eyes widened. He could feel his blood pressure rising. As a boy he had fantasised many times about Marianne's naked body, and imagined how beautiful it must be. Now, he found himself taken aback by how the mere suggestion of what lay beneath her dress had aroused such excitement within him. She, of course, was blissfully unaware.

“
Sarah and I used to have such good fun in the orchard. In fact, I remember the time when, just behind that tree with the crooked branches over there, your sister and I...” Marianne turned to finish her sentence when she caught a glimpse of her reflection in the mirror across the other side of the room. “Oh God,” she said horrified. She stepped out of the light, and attempted to cover her chest with her hands, one of which was wielding the glass of wine. “I had no idea this dress was see through. I can't believe I've been walking about in public like this!”

Suddenly a thought occurred to her, and it was enough to turn her crimson with embarrassment.

“
Tommy, did you know? I mean, could you see through my dress all this time?”

Tommy, with an expression similar to that of a naughty school boy, was keen to save her anymore blushes. “No, I didn't notice anything, honestly. Well, not until you just pointed it out that is,” he lied, eager to move the conversation on to something else. “Look, why don't you take a seat again and we'll catch up?”

Marianne remembered how enthusiastically he eyeballed her when they first met. Now she knew why. Usually she would have been a little offended had a guy ogled her like that, but with Tommy it was different. The thought of him finding her desirable made her feel quite excited. The idea that her humble body, as she thought, could give him pleasure, she found reassuring. She didn't mind he was telling her a little white lie either. In fact, she found it quite sweet that he was trying to save her blushes.

She sat back down and readjusted the top of her dress, as if it in some way resolved the transparency issue. She took a large sip of her wine. “This is delicious,” she said, holding the glass up to the light. “Perfect for a beautiful, sunny day like today.”

He agreed, relieved they had moved on. “So, where were we? You were telling me about Michael.”

Marianne thought for a moment and said, “Well there's not really much more to say. Michael was very controlling. I believe a lot of guys are like that. They put you down, say horrible things about how you look, make you feel bad about yourself, and then they leave you for a younger model.”

Tommy watched her closely as she spoke. “Well, you certainly look lovely today,” he said, which took Marianne a little off guard.

“
Thank you,” she replied.

The unexpected compliment had left her a little flustered. Again, she felt her face burning and hoped he would not notice.

“
What am I doing,” Michael interjected. “You know what. I'm sorry. You probably don't want me raking up all this stuff about Michael and the past. Tell me about you. Tell me what you do now where you live, that sort of thing.”

“
Ok, well I live in a pokey apartment about a thirty minutes walk from here, where I run a small online business.”

“
Oh, wow. An online business? That sounds interesting. What sort of business is it?”

“
I make and sell my own jewellery. Business is tough, but I manage enough to keep a roof over my head, just about.”

“
I'd really love to see some of your work sometime. Is that a piece of yours?” He pointed to the gold coloured necklace Marianne was wearing, the pendent of which nestled between her cleavage.

“
Yes it it,” she said, and lifted it with the tips of her fingers so that Tommy could get a better view.

To her delight, he left his seat and came over for a closer look. He knelt down next to her and took hold of both the pendent and Marianne's hand. The pendent was decorated with a deeply intricate floral design.

“
That's really beautiful,” he said. “Did you actually make this yourself? It must have taken you days, weeks even. It's so detailed.”

His deep voice resonated even more now he was closer – Marianne could almost feel its vibration in her chest.

As he examined the necklace, he gently caressed her soft hand with his thumb. Marianne felt a pang of excitement in her belly. She watched his face closely as he admired the necklace. Although she now recognised him as Sarah's younger brother, she was still stunned by his transformation. Gone was the slender, pretty boy, and in his place a man. His immaculate chiselled features. The light stubble which adorned his strong jaw. The irresistible dimple that was sending shivers down her legs. There was something godly about him now.

“
You're really talented Marianne. I wish I had the skills to be that creative and artistic,” Tommy said, as he stood up and walked back to his seat.

Flattered, Marianne replied, “It's nothing really. I'm sure you could be if you put your mind to it. A lot of it's down to practice and hard work.”

“
Hmm, I'm not so sure,” he said, and sat down.

An air of trepidation fell across his face. He looked apprehensively over to Marianne and said, “So, is there anyone special in your life at the moment?” He cleared his throat. “What I mean to say is, are you dating anyone now?”

“
Well, not really,” she replied. “I'm so busy these days. You know, with the business and what not. I guess I just don't find the time.”

Marianne daren't not reveal the truth of how she had not been on a single date in the three years since the split from her husband. It wasn't that she didn't want to date and to find love, it was that she couldn't. Her confidence had been left in pieces when Michael left. A sensitive girl to begin with, Marianne now had close to zero self-esteem. She'd convinced herself that she was unattractive; why else would Michael have left her?

“
I know how you feel. Sometimes life can be a little hectic,” Tommy empathised.

Marianne continued, “I'm 33 now. When I do manage to get out and meet new people I find I'm competing with girls little more than half my age, and they're wearing a lot less than me! Most of my friends have settled down with husbands and have children so, as a single person, you kind of get left behind.” Marianne paused for a moment. “Well, that's my excuse anyway, and I'm sticking to it!” she said with a smile and a sigh of resignation, then meekly brushed a few loose strands of hair behind her ear.

“
I find that hard to believe,” Tommy said. “A women as good looking as you? You should be fighting them off with a stick. You must be looking for love in all the wrong places.” He paused for a moment, then said mischievously, “Maybe you should wear your 'see-through dress' more often? You might have a bit more luck!”

Marianne feigned a gasp of horror, then raised a smile and said, “Hey! I see you're still a cheeky boy then. You haven't grown out of that have you?” Then added, “Even if you have grown out of your shirts.” Alluding to his tightly fitting top.

“
Touché.” he replied, putting his hands in the air as if to surrender.

“
That's enough about me anyway. What about you Little Tommy Ryan?” Marianne said, turning the tables on him. “Any special ladies in your life?”

Tommy raised an eyebrow in surprise at Marianne's sudden feistiness. “Well, you know, I'm in much the same position as you. A little too busy to find myself a woman at the moment.”

“
It's hardly the same Tommy,” she replied. “You're still young – you must be around 22, 23? – there's plenty of time left for you.”

“
I'm 26.”

“
Well, there you go. That's still young.”

“
Sure, I know,” Tommy conceded. “It's my job really. It takes up all of my time and I have little left for anything else.”

“
I remember Sarah telling me you work abroad a lot. Is that true? What do you do exactly?”

“
Yes, it is. I run an organisation that helps rebuild communities in third world countries. We establish infrastructures, set up schools, help them get access to clean drinking water. Any number of things really.”

Marianne suddenly felt the work she does with jewellery seem very humble in comparison to what Tommy was doing. “That's really amazing Tom. You must be helping to change so many lives. Are you abroad often then?” she asked.

“
Yeah, I actually only got back from Rwanda just two days ago. We were helping build a school for war orphans there. I came home for a break and to visit Sarah. It's a shame she's been called away. I was hoping to spend more time with her.”

Marianne sat up in her chair. “Called away? But you said she'd popped out on an errand!”

For the second time, Tommy's face took on the appearance of a naughty school boy. “Yeah, sorry about that. Looks like you caught me out.” He scratched the back of his head sheepishly and said, “It's just that when I saw you outside, it was a nice surprise. I really wanted to talk to you, but I could tell you didn't recognise me. I wasn't even sure you would remember me at all. So I just thought...”

Marianne interrupted, “Hmm... You just thought you'd trick me? You could have just told the truth you know, I would have came in anyway.”

Marianne couldn't help but find the situation amusing. She was flattered and thought it quite endearing that he had contrived to gain her company. She toyed with the thought that Tommy may actually be interested in her in more than just a platonic way, then she quickly dismissed the idea. Surely not, she told herself. A man as young and handsome as Tommy could have the pick of the bunch. Why would he even look twice at her?