THE YOUNG LOVER WHO MADE ME FEEL YOUNG AGAIN......5

I tried to hide my shock at this totally unexpected development. Uche looked up as if he was just noticing that I had been talking to someone before he arrived. He extended his right hand and said, "Hi, I'm Uche."

David had a very surprised expression on his face as he stuck his hand out as well. "Hi, I'm David ukandu." He had that same smug look on his face that I always hated. It was a look as if to say that he expected everyone to know who he was just because he had played in one of the top clubs in the German top football league for a couple of years.

Uche acted as if he didn't recognize the name and said, "Nice to meet you, Dave." He turned back to me, dismissing David, and said, "I hope you're not mad at me for leaving you alone for so long. Can we still have that dance?"

My mind was spinning. Somehow, I managed to nod my head and we were off towards the dance floor in an instant with Uche's arm around me. When we had gotten to the edge of the area where people were dancing, I turned to Uche and said, "You are one very strange young man."

He chuckled at this and replied, "You're not the first one to ever say that to me."

His smile was another thing that could only have been created in that secret laboratory. His entire face lit up with his smile and he had the cutest crinkle at the corners of his eyes. I almost had to shake my head to break the spell that he was casting over me.

"Well, thank you for saving me back there," I said.

Uche leaned down and whispered conspiratorially, "Let's just say that we are even."

I said thank you once again and turned to leave. However, Uche still had a hold of my hand. He spun me back towards him and said, "Where are you going? What about our dance?"

I felt myself blushing and laughed self-consciously, "I don't remember promising to dance with you." Then I added, "I'm not a very good dancer anyways."

Uche just smiled as he looked straight into my eyes. "That's okay. I happen to be a very good dancer." Before I knew it, he was leading me by the hand onto the dance floor. "Besides," he said, "think how jealous Mr. football Player will be when he sees you out here enjoying yourself."

Uche slipped his arm around me and we started swaying to the music. I leaned back and looked into his face. "You're quite an actor, too. You seem to be a man of many talents."

I was rewarded once again with that beautiful smile. One thing was for sure -- He sure wasn't lying when he said that he was an excellent dancer. He easily led me around the dance floor. When I complimented him on his dancing, he shrugged his shoulders and said, "Eight years of dancing lessons at Miss Achums School of Dance."

I couldn't help but laugh. "My niece goes to Miss ACHUMS. Somehow, I don't think you learned any of the steps that I saw in the other room at her school."

This time it was Uche's turn to chuckle. "Yes, I guess you could call me Miss Achums Bad Boy."

We danced a while more in silence until he went on to add, "Actually, Adanne is wonderful woman. She has always supported me in my dancing. She taught me so many things."

I thought about that last statement. Rumors had floated around these parts for years about Adanne Achums and her rather loose lifestyle. If it weren't for the fact that she was a former Broadway dancer in the UK, I doubt that anyone would entrust their children to her at all. It made me wonder what those many things were that she taught him.

The music finally ended. Even though a part of me wanted to go on dancing, I stepped back and thanked Uche for the dance. I may be dressed as a naughty nurse for the night, but the bottom line was that I was really just a forty-eight year old grandmother. The clock was striking midnight and it was time for the coach to turn back into a pumpkin and it was time for me to exit as gracefully as I could.

However, Uche held onto both of my hands to prevent me from leaving. "Where are you going?" he asked.

I smiled nervously back at him. "Listen, Uche," I said, "You are really a very charming young man, but I think it's time for this old lady to go back with the other adults for the night."

Uche didn't say anything for a moment. Then, he tugged me towards him while lifting one of my arms into the air -- making me spin around so that my back came to rest against his chest. He held my arms crossed in front of me as he leaned down to whisper in my ear, "First, tell me what you see, Sandra?"

I looked about puzzled at all of the partygoers in their outrageous costumes. The music had started once again and couples were dancing and carrying on all around us. I wasn't quite sure what to say. "I see a bunch of very drunk people that are really going to regret it in the morning," I joked.

Uche's lips were near my ear. He whispered once again, "No, look again. Really look this time."

I looked again. This time I thought that he deserved something more than a flip answer. "I see people dancing and having a wonderful time. It is a holiday after all."

Uche released his grip on my hands and slipped his hands down to hold me in place by the hips. His lips were still close by my ear. "No, Sandra. What you see are people who are allowing themselves to have a good time."

This was the third time today that I had heard this same sentiment. First my mother had said it about going on her trip to the calabar. Next, Maureen had said something similar when I had protested wearing this very outfit. Now, I was hearing the same thing from this stranger who was young enough to be one of my own children.

Uche whispered again, "It's okay to give yourself permission to have fun, Sandra. All of this is not just some kind of rehearsal. This is real life. You do deserve to enjoy life."

I turned around to face Uche. I took a good look into his face -- as if I were really seeing it for the first time. "How did you get to be so smart?" I asked, "What are you? Like fourteen or something?"

He chuckled and gave me that killer smile again. "I'm twenty-four years old," he said, "And I'm not smart at all. I've just been blessed with knowing some very wise people who have taught me patiently."

Uche's hands were still on my hips and without even realizing it, I began to sway with the music. My arms went instinctively up around his neck as we began to dance once again. I felt his hands leave my hips and his arms wrap around me. This is the moment when Normal Sandra would have excused herself and put an end to things. Tonight, though, I decided it was alright to give myself permission to enjoy the feeling of a man's arms around me. Maybe this young man was right -- maybe I did deserve to enjoy myself once in a while.

This dance was much different than our first had been. With our arms now wrapped around each other, our bodies were pressed together much tighter. I half-way expected the "Roaming Hands" to start at any second, but Uche was a perfect gentleman. There was no groping or mauling on his part at all. I liked that a lot.

Feeling a bit more comfortable, I laid my head against his chest. He was much taller than me, so I had to reach up pretty far to get my arms around his neck. This meant that my too short nurse's dress was pulling up in the back. I wondered if the tops of my silk stockings were showing, but I quickly put the thought out of my mind. Tonight I was a naughty nurse and a naughty nurse certainly wouldn't care if she was putting on a show for everyone else.

I closed my eyes and let Uche lead me around the dance floor. It felt wonderful to let go of my worries and just let a man take control like that. I closed my eyes and enjoyed the moment of being held close. I tried not to think about the fact that the man holding me had been on stage earlier in the evening, stripping off all of his clothes in front of hundreds of screaming women.
The soft music and lighting must have started to affect me. Without really thinking about it, my arms began to slowly tighten around Uche's neck. He didn't react at first. Maybe he was waiting to see if I would continue this or not. I really liked the fact that he was letting me decide how comfortable I was with the way things were going before trying to press the issue any further with me.

I gave myself permission to go a little bit further. This time I pressed myself against him a little bit harder. I wasn't rubbing myself up against him like some desperate old woman in heat, but I enjoyed the feeling of his chest pressed more firmly against my breasts while we danced.

After a few moments, I could feel Uche's hands hold me more firmly and begin to move ever so slightly on my back. He didn't get as gross as some men have with me and reach immediately for my bottom or press his hips against mine. It was more of a gentle caress and I have to say that it did feel very nice.

I could hear Uche saying something over the top of my head, but I couldn't make it out over the sound of the music and the other dancers. I leaned my head back and looked up into his face so that he could repeat it for me. I was surprised at how much I missed the warmth of his chest against my cheek in that instant.

"I can't remember the last time that I had such a fun evening," He repeated.

I was acutely aware of the possibility that this was just a well practiced line that he may have used hundreds of times on hundreds of other women. Some parts of my self esteem would probably never recover from the divorce and I couldn't quite believe that this man who was half my age was being totally sincere.

Yet, as I looked into his face for some clue that he was being less than honest, I couldn't find any trace of deceit. I was very touched that he would say such a sweet thing to me. The truth was the first thing that popped out of my mouth...

"It's been years and years since I've enjoyed myself more," I confessed.

We each looked into one another's eyes for a long moment. I distinctly saw his face begin to lean down towards mine. Surprisingly, I found myself tilting my face up towards his at the same time and raising up slightly on my toes.

Alas, the music ended at that very moment. People were applauding for the musicians all around us. I sank back down off of my toes and we removed our arms from around each other. We clapped right along with everyone else. I didn't need a mirror to be able to tell that my face must have been flushed several shades of red more than usual. My heart was beating hard in my chest and I could feel myself breathing harder than normal. I wasn't sure about what had almost happened, but the moment had passed and our opportunity slipped away.

The band struck up another number and Uche looked at me questioningly. It was very tempting to accept another dance with this charming young man, but I thought that I had better take things a little more slowly -- give my head a chance to clear some.

I looked at Uche apologetically and said, "Maybe I had better sit this one out. My feet are starting to really kill me."

To my surprise, Uche followed me off of the dance floor. I had expected him to use this opportunity to bow out gracefully. I wouldn't have blamed him for wanting to go and mingle with any friends that might be here or at least to seek the company of people more his own age. However, he placed his hand gently on my back and guided me towards some empty chairs that were lined up along the wall. I smiled to myself, but tried my best to not give it away on the outside.

When we arrived at the unoccupied seats, Uche pulled one chair out from the wall to face one of the others. He indicated with his hand for me to take a seat in the chair that he had pulled out, while he took a seat in the chair opposite. When we were both seated, Uche gestured with his hands for me to lift my foot up to him. I wasn't quite sure what this young man had in mind, but I hadn't been kidding about my feet hurting. I slipped my foot from the unfamiliar high heel and offered it to him.

He took my foot in his gentle hands and began to massage it. Oh my Lord, did that feel good! I had never had a man offer to do this for me before and I thought to myself that I could really learn to like this a whole lot. Without even realizing it, a soft moan escaped my lips.

Once again, Uche was a complete gentleman. There was nothing overtly sexual in what he was doing -- there was no hand "accidentally" sliding further up my leg or placing my foot against his lower body. He simply used his fingers to ease the pain from my tired foot.

After a few minutes, he gestured for me to lift my other foot. I willingly obeyed and I tried to stifle another moan as his fingers began to work their magic once again. I was really enjoying this unexpected pleasure when I heard Uche say softly, "Don't look around, but your ex hasn't been able to keep his eyes off of the two of us for the past ten minutes."

This statement shocked me back to reality. With my back turned to the rest of the ballroom, I had somehow been able to forget all about the crowd of people who were still enjoying the party.

Uche looked at me and asked, "Does it make you uncomfortable to have me do this to you in front of your ex-husband?"

I was surprised that he had thought to ask me that question. He could have just as easily not mentioned the fact that David was watching and I never would have known the better. I was touched that he cared so much for my feelings.

"No," I replied, "He can live his life and I'll lead mine."

I didn't bother to add that David could just eat his heart out for all I cared. I would be lying if I didn't admit that it felt nice that maybe I was making him a little bit jealous, but the truth was that this wasn't entirely just about him. I was enjoying spending time with a handsome young man who seemed to enjoy my company. This was a pleasure that I hadn't experienced with any man, young or old, in a very long time.

Uche said something else softly that I couldn't quite catch. He shifted his chair slightly closer to mine and repeated, "I'm happy that you feel that way. I wouldn't want to cause you any discomfort and I certainly want to spend more time with you."

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