The Mining Town

Patricia

It was one of the best evenings of conversation she could ever remember having. John really listened to her and made eye contact while they spoke. There were no crude advances - no advances of any kind, actually. Was she losing her touch? What a stupid thought. One of the first men in as long as she could remember that didn't paw at her or make lewd, sexual suggestions, and she was almost sad he didn't. "You can't have it both ways, Trish," she thought to herself.

They discussed the town and how it had once been strictly a mining town. But as mines had all started to close, it fell on hard times. A revitalization was starting, led by out-of-towners moving in and fixing up the properties they had bought. A small art community was starting to flourish as well, fed by the beauty of the area and the inspiration it provided.

A burgeoning tourist industry had started to take hold, attributed to the many hiking trails and easily accessible waterfalls in the area. The town was still in transition, but most were happy about the seeming change in fortune as compared to some of the other mining towns.

*****

Patricia had performed her nighttime rituals, checked her emails - again - and climbed into bed. She stared at the ceiling and tried to convince herself that she wasn't going to do anything. "Nope, just going to lay here and fall asleep," she thought.

She could just check. Just a quick test to see what was going on down there. Probably nothing. Just a quick check of the oil. It was probably dry, and she could go to sleep knowing that it was nothing.

Her hand went under the covers and slowly down her belly. Pausing at her panties to dip under the band. Extending her middle finger, she brushed over her lips, still trying to convince herself that it was nothing.

Soaked. Drenched. She would probably need to change her panties. Who was she trying to kid. She could feel the heat between her legs building a few minutes after John had sat down next to her. "Fuck it, might as well make the most of it." She dipped two fingers into her folds to pull out some of her juices. She pulled her hand out from under the covers and licked her fingers clean. One of her past boyfriends had told her she was delicious when he went down on her, and she fully agreed.

She dipped her fingers in again, this time pushing them all the way into her. She pulled her fingers out and used the juices to coat her rapidly engorging clit. She started slow at first, making casual circles, occasionally dipping her fingers back in to coat them in the juices that flowed out and started to pool in her panties. She used her other hand to put two fingers into herself, gradually increasing the speed at which she rubbed herself.

It didn't take long, and it was a total, knee-shaking orgasm. Her ass lifted off the sheets as she came, slowly lowering down as her convulsions subsided. It had been a while since she had one of that magnitude and her body practically hummed afterward. After coming down from her euphoria, she threw off the covers and hopped out of bed. While pulling off her panties she noticed the wet spot she had made on the bed. "Damn. Well, at least it's a queen and I can sleep on the other side," she thought.

She went into the bathroom to clean up, returning afterward to get in on the other side of the bed and finally get some sleep.

John

John awoke before six as he always did. He performed his morning rituals and headed out the door, stopping at the local café for coffee. Even though the town was an up-and-coming tourist destination, it still hadn't attracted any of the coffee chains, for which John was thankful.

He arrived at his shop and caught up on some paperwork. He still had to find a solution to the dilemma with Mrs. Fertig's car. He put that to the side for the moment and scheduled the jobs he had to complete that day.

Finishing his paperwork for the time being, John grabbed the controller he had removed the night before and headed out to Patricia's car. As was typical with newer cars, the location where the controller was located was tight, and as the forums had stated, was way too close to the exhaust. After a bit of swearing due to how the controller was mounted, John had the unit replaced and all the cables plugged into it. He went into the shop and got a cover for the seat and steering wheel before he hopped into the driver's seat and hit the Start button. The car fired right away, much to John's relief.

John texted Patricia so he didn't wake her in case she was still sleeping. It was only a little past seven after all. He needn't have worried though, Patricia texted him back right away and he was soon headed to the lodge to pick her up. She was waiting out in front of the office when he pulled up with her car, wearing a slightly darker colored variation of the skirt, blouse and jacket combo she was wearing when they met. He got out and removed the steering wheel and seat cover, moving the seat cover to the passenger seat.

"Nice touch!" She commented.

"Well, I'm sure you wouldn't be happy if I fixed it, but then left dirt stains on your interior."

"Good point," she responded as she got into the driver's side and pressed the seat memory button to get it back to her preferred position.

Fully situated, Patricia pulled out of the parking lot onto Main Street. "So, what's on your agenda for the rest of the day?"

"Just some standard repair jobs, and I have to figure out what to do with one client who needs a new motor."

"That sounds expensive."

"It is, and the lady doesn't have the money to fix it, so I'm trying to figure out a way to lessen the bill for her. I tried getting a used motor from the same scrapyard I got the part for your car from, but he's already given me a couple of motors below list for other clients that were in need. He can't afford to keep doing it, which I understand."

Patricia was quiet after that, scrunching her nose up ever so slightly as if she was still considering the dilemma. When they arrived back at his shop, she paid her bill, thanked him profusely and left to continue her journey. John gave a lingering look as she left his shop, appreciating the beauty he saw, and got back to his list of jobs for that day.

Patricia

As she drove back toward the interstate, Patricia thought about the story John had shared regarding the woman whose car needed a new engine. She's heard stories of how the closing of so many mines had devastated local economies, so had a slight understanding of some of the hardships endured. But this was different. Having met someone from the area who dealt with this daily and tried to do what he could to help really brought it home, and it made John even more attractive to her.

She thought about the moment after she had paid her bill and shook his hand. How she had hesitated for a moment. What should she have said? She had no idea, but she felt that she was not finished with John Patterson.

Back on the interstate, she relaxed a little more. Her GPS said she would arrive in plenty of time for her appointment. She settled a little further back in her seat and daydreamed about a quaint wooded town and a sexy auto mechanic.

*****

Patricia sat in the expensive restaurant, in her expensive clothes listening to her firm's wealthy client drone on about the lawsuit he was pursuing, which in Patricia's opinion was frivolous. He continued on about the judges he knew and how he hoped his case would be seen by one of them, then mused on finding a way to ensure it was assigned to them. It all seemed designed to impress her, yet it had the opposite effect. Why would he try and impress her, anyway? She was one of the junior lawyers in the firm and was frankly shocked they asked her to take this meeting in the first place.

She paid enough attention to the client's words that she would not be caught short should the one-sided diatribe actually turn into a conversation. But she could not stop her mind from drifting back to the small town and how much more appealing it would be to help folks there instead. She did not consider herself an idealist. Most of her firm's clients were wealthy, some extremely so. Many of them had legitimate legal issues that required qualified representation. Then there were the clients like the one with whom she currently sat. A man who used his wealth and connections to bully and humiliate anyone who crossed him. The fact that he crudely propositioned her at the end of the meeting, despite her knowing that he was married with children, only added to her disgust with the man.

Once on the road, it occurred to her that it was typically a more senior lawyer in the firm that dealt with this man. She had met him in the firm's offices about a week prior and was immediately put off by him. His entire demeanor screamed 'sleazeball.' It would be entirely in line with his personality to request she be assigned to him for this lawsuit. He had to know it was frivolous and would be thrown out. He had the money to waste, whereas the other party did not. Her mind spun as she started putting the pieces in place as to what was happening. Since the outcome was already known, he used it as an opportunity to get her assigned. The realization made her a little sick to her stomach. Her supervising partner in the firm also should have been able to figure out what he was doing, yet he had gone along with it.

Patricia was kicking herself over her revelation. She was smarter than this and should have known. She had let herself be blinded by the firm assigning her to such a high-value client. She had worked hard and assumed he was rewarding her. Instead, he handed her on a platter to a predator. She felt like she needed a shower.

Her anger and anxiety at the situation were growing and Patricia wanted to push it away for a bit. She had the whole weekend to figure out how she would handle the situation and she just wanted to have some pleasant thoughts for a bit.

She thought of a handsome man and a small town. Patricia picked up her phone and changed the route in her GPS.

John

John was behind the counter while Rob described the issue he was having with a variance on his property when Patricia walked in the door. John just stared at her as Rob continued a moment longer. Stopping as he realized John was no longer paying attention to him.

"Hi Patricia, what's wrong? Did something happen with the car?"

"No nothing's wrong, I just wanted to speak with you for a moment when you're done."

"Ok, I'm just finishing up with Rob. Oh Rob, Patricia. Patricia, Rob."

Rob shook Patricia's hand.

"Rob owns the yard where I got the part for your car. He was just dropping some other parts off."

"Oh, nice to meet you, Rob."

"Nice to meet you, too." Rob grinned for a moment looking at the two of them...trying to decipher if there was more going on.

Patricia scrunched her nose for a moment in thought, "Wait, does Rob own the place where you were trying to get an engine for that lady's car?"

Rob started to look a little uncomfortable about where the conversation was headed.

"Mrs. Fertig's car, yes. Rob's was one of the places I called. But like I said, Rob has helped me out in the past a few times, so no fault of his." John replied. He didn't want Patricia to think Rob was a bad guy over this. Rob had a family to feed as well.

"No, no, I completely understand that. I wasn't trying to blame you, Rob." Patricia stated, looking off to the side, the wheels in her mind clearly in motion.

"Rob, did I hear you say when I walked in that you were having trouble with a variance?"

"Umm, yeah. The last lawyer I called wanted a three-thousand-dollar retainer for the work." Just seems like a rip-off to me."

"Do you think a free engine would be a rip-off?" Patricia asked. John looked on getting more and more confused with where Patricia was going with this.

"Huh? I don't know what you mean. A free engine?" Rob was as confused as John now.

Patricia now had and excited look on her face when she responded, "Simple, you give John an engine for Mrs. Fertig's car and I'll handle your variance."

Rob just stared for a moment. "You know how to do that?"

"Yes, I'm licensed to practice law in this state, and I've handled a few variances in the past."

Rob rubbed his chin in thought. John stared with his mouth open.

"So what do you say, do we have a deal?"

It was at this point that John's mouth decided to start working again. "Patricia, I appreciate what you're trying to do, but it's not necessary. I'll figure something out."

"Mrs. Fertig needs and engine and I'm willing to help with the variance. What is there to figure out?" There was a tone of finality to her voice.

"I'm ok with it if you are, John." Rob stated, as he was quickly warming to the idea of someone taking care of his variance issues.

"Umm, sure."

"Great. Rob, how quickly can you get an engine over here for John to install?"

"We have one in stock. I can drop if off tomorrow if that works for you John?"

"Yeah, sure. Tomorrow works."

"Great, now I have to be at my firm's offices on Monday, but I can be back here at say 2pm on Tuesday to go over your variance application?"

"Umm, sure. Tuesday is good for me."

"Great then we have a deal!" Patricia then shook Rob's hand again.

Rob said his goodbyes to both of them and left to head back to his shop. John just stood behind the counter staring at Patricia. It took him a bit to process all that had happened in those few short moments before he could speak.

"Patricia, I really appreciate what you just did, I really do...but I can't repay you for that."

"I didn't ask for payment. I wanted to do it."

"Yes, but why?"

"I don't really have an answer to that right now if I'm honest." She paused a moment before continuing, "but I can think of a way you can repay me."

John just looked at her quizzically.

"Take me to dinner?"

Patricia

She was happy to find out the Lodge still had rooms available and checked in again, both amusing and perplexing the girl behind the counter as she had just checked out that morning. She had originally planned to stay in the city a day or two after her meeting. But the encounter with the client soured her on that plan. She had another place she would much rather be. The original plan had ensured that she had plenty of clothes still though and she couldn't wait to get out of her suit.

Emerging from the bathroom in a robe and with a towel on her head, she laid on the bed and grabbed her phone. She stared at the icon for her parents for a moment before hitting the button to dial them. It rang twice before her mother answered.

"Hi Sweetie, how's your trip going?"

"Hi Mom. It was good, I actually started heading home today and stopped in a small town to break the trip up."

"Oh, I thought you were spending the weekend in the city?"

"I was going to but decided to leave early."

Patricia decided against telling her about the sleazeball. She had handled it and didn't feel like reliving that encounter right now.

"Hey Mom, I have a question for you...how did you and Dad decide to leave your old life?"

Patricia's parents had both been lawyers in big firms. They lived in a large house in the suburbs of the city. One day, when Patricia was in her early teens, they sat her down and explained that they were moving. They told her they wanted to slow down and live a different lifestyle. They sold their home and bought a modest sized farm with a fixer-upper house on it. Patricia was sad about leaving her friends, but she was a friendly and outgoing child, so making new ones was easy for her.

There was a pause on the phone before her mother answered, "Your Father and I just had a discussion one day where we both admitted that the lifestyle we were living was unfulfilling. Don't get me wrong, we both felt that we did good work in that life, but at the end of the day, it still felt soulless I guess. Why do you ask?"

Patricia took a deep breath before explaining to her mother about her car breaking down. How she was helped by a handsome, honest man. She explained about the town that seemed to call to her when she left, and then she explained how her current life felt...unfulfilling.

She could almost hear her mother smile on the other end of the phone.

"You knew, Mom. But you never said anything to me when I said I wanted to go to law school, to work at big firm, to be like you and Dad were when I grew up. I mean, I still want to be a lawyer. I just don't want to do what I'm doing now. I'm not complaining, mind you, I'm just curious why you never tried to stop me?"

"Because Sweetie, that's a lesson you had to learn yourself. If we had pushed you down a different path, you would have always wondered."

Patricia could not fault her mother's logic. She was definitely headstrong growing up and trying to push her to do something else most likely would have ended with her doing exactly what she ended up doing, just with hard feelings.

She started getting ready as she was meeting John at 7 at the Greenwood Tavern again. John had suggested he could take her somewhere else, but Patricia liked the charm of the place and stated she was more than happy to have dinner there again.

She wore a pair of comfortable jeans and a blouse, a pair of flats completing the outfit. She headed out the door and to the restaurant.

John

He had finished his work for the day and gone home to shower and change. He spent the entire time trying to figure out what he was missing. Every indication Patricia was giving him screamed she was interested in him. His mind just wouldn't be convinced that was it true. It wasn't that John lacked confidence; he was very comfortable in his skin. He just couldn't understand what she saw in him. He had zero experience with intelligent, beautiful women that worked at powerful law firms. He just assumed she wouldn't be interested in an auto mechanic from a small town.

After his shower, John decided to push the thoughts away. It was obvious that if there were something else going on, he wasn't figuring it out. He resigned to just go with it this evening and see what happens. It's not like having dinner with a smart, sexy woman was a hardship.

His truck parked in front, John walked in and saw Patricia at the bar. She looked over as he entered. As he walked up, she tilted her head and gave a smile. John found it both adorable and sexy at the same time. His mind starting to warm to the possibility of Patricia having an interest in him.

"Would you like to eat at the bar again, or get a table?"

"Let's get a table this time." She replied, still smiling.

They were seated in a booth by the front windows. They ordered drinks and then just stared at each other. Patricia looking at him with her lips curled in the faintest of smiles. There was a small pause that Patricia broke before it got uncomfortable.

"So I guess I owe you an explanation."

"No, I don't think you owe me anything. I'm just curious why you would do that. I mean, it's wonderful that you are, it's just not something I've ever seen before."

"Yeah, I get that. It's not something I've ever done before."

"So you don't sweep into towns, helping older ladies you've never met get their cars fixed?"

"Ha! No, this is a first, and frankly I'm a little unsure where I should start. I think some of it's going to sound a little crazy."

"That's ok, some of my fondest memories are doing something that I later thought was crazy."

This news excited Patricia a bit, she crossed her arms on the table and leaded forward, "Oh! Give me an example! That way I'll feel better about spilling my crazy."

He pondered for a moment before beginning, "I had a partial scholarship to go to college for engineering. I went for two years and was doing well. Left it all behind to be an auto mechanic."