You Had Me With Your English Accent.
*This memory is a continuation of the 'My Quest Began On Quest' memory.
Once I started out on my own, the first thing I did was to determine what day my contract would be ending on. Ironically it would be on Bonnie’s 40th birthday, June 8th 2001. That would be the Friday when my five years, my 260th week would be completed. I figured that if I played my cards right financially, I should have a pretty good chunk of change put away for our future.
What’s that old saying about best laid plans?
Naturally, I had no idea back in June of 1996 when I signed the contract just how much my life would be changing before I turned my truck off on that Friday for the last time. I had no idea whatsoever that Bonnie would be pulling the plug on our marriage. It always pissed me off when I would hear people say how there had to have been some kind of sign that Bonnie wanted out. All I can say to those assholes who said that the writing must have been on the wall and that I had to have seen it coming.
Think what you want, you're all wrong, dead wrong.
Back in the summer of 2000, I started making plans has to what I wanted to do for Bonnies 40th. I had decided on having a custom diamond ring made as well I would taking her on a cruise. I wanted to really surprise Bonnie on her upcoming milestone birthday. With me being an owner-operator it didn’t provide us with any real holiday time together and I figured it was about time for us to go on a once in a lifetime holiday. We had always talked about going on a cruise together anyway so it was the least I could do. During the previous five years Bonnie had put up with a lot of my nonsense with me being self-employed.
I am sure it wasn’t easy.
I had already gone to a jeweler to have her custom diamond ring made and I had even gone so far as to put down a deposit on the ring. The ring would be a one carat solitaire diamond encased with small pearls which was Bonnie's birthstone. The stones would all be set in a raised platinum gold band and the ring would literally be costing me a small fortune. So it was quite obvious that I did not see my impending divorce on the not too distant horizon.
Surprise!
Obviously once Bonnie pulled the plug weeks later in October, my cruise and ring plans went right out the window. I threw all the cruise brochures that I kept hidden in the basement into the garbage. Since the jeweler had not even started making the ring, I was lucky and he returned my deposit.
“Shit happens,” he told me after I had told him that I would no longer be needing the ring.
During the week leading up to June 8th, 2001, I received a phone call from a woman named Janine. I was immediately attracted to her English accent. Janine also had a profile on Quest and she was returning the message I had left her. She too said she was intrigued after reading my profile just like I had been after reading hers. Janine was forty-two years old; she lived in Mississauga and owned her own home. She was divorced and had two grown sons both living at home. The youngest was still in high school and the older one worked full-time. We chatted a couple times that week and decided we wanted to meet. I knew just by chatting with her that Janine was much more than a simple coffee date.
I asked her out for dinner.
We both agreed that dinner at Canyon Creek on Friday at 8 pm would be a great starting point. For me hopefully a starting point to perhaps the elusive second date. The elusive second date I had not yet experienced with any of the eight other women I had already met online. I eagerly looked forward with much anticipation to meeting this English sassy lassy named Janine.
Friday evening quickly arrived and I was not nearly as nervous as I would've expected. I guess with Janine being the ninth woman I was meeting, I was now used to the routine. I figured if we both liked each other we would probably see each other again. And if not, I would presumably be meeting an attractive British woman while having a pleasant evening chatting over dinner.
No harm no foul.
I had never eaten at the newly opened Canyon Creek restaurant, but it seemed like a very popular place as I arrived twenty minutes early for my date. It was a beautiful sunny evening; I had my sunglasses on while sitting on a bench just outside the front door. I saw an extremely attractive woman approaching the restaurant from the parking area. I had no idea she was the woman who I was waiting for because she was ten minutes early. Janine introduced herself; her English accent confirmed she was indeed the woman I was waiting for.
I took off my sunglasses, kissed her on the cheek and we went inside the restaurant.
I have always been a very visual person and I can often recall very memorable moments during my life in pretty good detail even decades after they happened. Meeting Janine on that first evening would be one of those moments. I remember almost everything about that night. Where we sat in the restaurant, what we ate and what we were wearing.
Right away from what I could see, I knew Janine was a true yummy mummy. She looked fit and in very good shape. She was blonde, had a nice smile and she was nicely tanned. She was a taller woman with the most amazing set of pins which were only exemplified by the shorter skirt that she was wearing. She wore a small ring on her thumb and she was also wearing a watch.
We had no problem finding things to talk about. It was almost as if we had known each other for years and were simply getting reacquainted. I loved the fact Janine was very independent and went regularly to the gym.
She seemed to really have her shit together.
Before we knew it the staff at the restaurant was asking us to leave. It was close to 11 pm and it was now closing time. We had been there since we arrived at 8 pm and had no idea that three hours had passed by so quickly. I paid the bill and left a fifty dollar tip. Afterall, it probably cost the waiter that much anyways in potential tips had we not spent the whole evening talking and laughing the night away.
After we left the restaurant I went and sat for another hour in Janine’s car. She drove a new 2001 Nissan Maxima; it was a beautiful car with every option imaginable. Janine opened the moon roof; I vividly recall the moonlight highlighting her strong, smooth and tanned thighs contrasting with the car's black leather interior.
It was well after midnight when I finally got out of Janine’s car to head home. I was spending the rest of the weekend with Stephanie. The only reason why I was free on that Friday night to meet Janine was because Bonnie wanted to celebrate her 40th birthday with Steph.
I kissed Janine goodnight and we both agreed we wanted to see each other again. We decided that our second date would be on Monday evening after work. I invited Janine over to my condo to show her where I lived. I could tell on that Friday night both of us felt the same way about each other. Perhaps our new friendship had the potential to develop into something more serious.
Anyways time would tell soon enough, but for now June 8th, 2001 had lived up to its billing. It was indeed a very special and memorable day in my life. Although, it was for none of the reasons I had originally assumed. However, Bonnie wanting to celebrate her 40th birthday with Stephanie left the door wide open for me to have my first date with Janine.
Finally after a first date, I was now looking forward to my first second date.
I was forty years old and I was starting to feel like a teenager all over again.
Blimey.
