She was an English bride to an American man. They walked past my home about four times a week in the evening with their dog. Emily walked the dog by every morning alone.

I was in my mid-fifties when I met this unusual young lady. When she walked with her husband, they would either initiate or reply to my banter. Whether it was 'Good evening' or 'Nice weather' or some other such nonsense, we all offer to be friendly. However, in the mornings, when it was just her and the pooch, Emily was pretty stone-faced and rarely even acknowledged my chit-chat. I put it down to fear of being seen socializing with a single man and left it alone.

Several weeks later, as I was harvesting some veggies from the garden in the mourning hours, Emily stopped at the outside fence. I did my obligatory glance to see if it was someone that I usually spoke with and, upon seeing Emily, went back to my work. I'm not generally so dismissive, but given her lack of responsiveness lately, I wasn't even in the mood to try. Besides, she was probably paused there because her dog was either sniffing or peeing on my fence.

As I had my back to her, picking green beans, I could've sworn that I heard her eke out a 'Good morning.' Not really sure of what I heard, if anything, I finished the last vine before turning back to respond. However, by the time I did, she was already headed down the sidewalk with her head hung low as it frequently was.

I was always outside in the mornings before leaving for work and the late evenings afterward, especially during gardening season. That evening, Emily and her husband Henry passed by as I pulled a few broccoli plants that were finished producing.

Henry inquired, "Why are you pulling up those plants?"

"Because they are done producing. Broccoli produces one main head, which is what you buy at the grocery store. But once that is removed, it only creates smaller little florets. So it comes down to better use of the space after a while."

"I see. So you can plant something else there now and get another harvest before the season ends?"

"Exactly!" I replied.

"Could you teach my wife some of the basics? We were considering starting a garden ourselves, but I just don't have the time with work. She can get started without me if she can learn a little from you. Frankly, it's unlikely that I'd be able to help her much anyway with my workload."

Ignoring that his request was rather forward, I considered that his better half seemed quite shy and could probably use more personal interactions with others to open her up. The other problem was that I didn't have much time to teach someone. As I weighed all this, Emily finally lifted her head enough to make eye contact with me. Her hair was fiery red, and her skin appropriately pale to match. But her eyes were intoxicating. I'd only ever met one other person with eyes that pale of a blue. They drew me in like soul-stealing seducements.

"Sure, but it will have to be in the mornings. I don't have much time in the evenings. I only just got home a few minutes ago," I heard myself jabbering like a fool.

"Okay, Emily will be by tomorrow morning. About what time to begin her training?" Henry questioned while commanding simultaneously. None of it bothered me one bit as my eyes were still locked into Emily's.

Again I blathered, "I get started at six in the morning," while unable to escape her hold.

It wasn't until she lowered her head again as they walked away that I slowly recovered from her penetrating gaze. I seemed to be in a fog for the rest of the evening, and then there were the wild visions in my sleep. I say visions because I've never had such detailed and thorough dreams in my life. Waking from them, I was sure that she was right there in the bed with me and even swept the bed with my arm to confirm.

Rising from the bed at five, I slipped on some loose workout shorts and a t-shirt. With the coffee started, I grabbed a water and jumped on the exercise bike to loosen up the old body. After twenty minutes of biking finished, I moved to the bench and pushed through my regular routine of butterfly and bench presses. Then I followed up with a few sets of push-ups in different variations. The finale involved three sets of squats at varied leg widths. Feeling more worn down than pumped, I made my way to the coffee for a little lift.

It was a couple of minutes before six. Standing at the kitchen window, I noticed Emily at my front gate, waiting patiently. Taking my coffee, I opened the front door, offering, "Come on in, Emily. Would you like some coffee?"

Head staring down as she entered my yard, Emily replied, "No, thank you. I can't drink coffee."

"Okay then, let's head to the greenhouse and begin with the basics."

Emily followed me along dutifully like the little puppy dog she walked every morning. Upon entering the greenhouse, she seemed a little hesitant due to the limited room available from the overcrowding of dirty pots. Mid-season as it was, in late June, left me little time to tidy up between planting a second crop and harvesting the first. Therefore the limited space for two.

"I won't bite," I advised. This brought a glimmer of a grin to her dainty young face as she moved inside. Once she was next to me, I asked, "Have you had any experience gardening or potting plants?"

"Yes, we had a small flower garden that I tended when I lived with my Mum. It was beautiful. With several different plants, it had something blooming all season long. Mum and I were constantly weeding and digging up bulbs for winter and replanting them in the spring. Of course, there was mulching and light fertilizing with compost from our bin. It was all so enjoyable and relaxing." Her face lit up like a Christmas tree as she spoke.

"Okay. So why are you here 'learning' from me? It seems like you'd have no problem starting your own garden."

"Henry doesn't believe that I can do a vegetable garden since I've never done one before."

"When it comes down to it, plants need the same basic things, whether they're vegetables or flowers. Didn't you tell him that?"

The light drained from her face as her head once again lowered.

"I see. So he doesn't have any faith in your abilities then?"

Head still lowered, Emily eeked out a quiet, "No."

"Well, we can go about this two ways as I see it. Either you can continue to come by here, pretending to be taught by someone that likely doesn't know any more than you do, or you can plant a garden."

Emily turned into me and grabbed me in a needy hug. I returned her closeness and held her for several minutes allowing her to break away first. When she finally did relinquish her hold, Emily mumbled a congested, "Thank you."

I realized that she'd been crying during our hug, and I raised her face to say, "I'm sorry that he has so little faith in you. But, maybe that will all change once you show him what you can do."

Emily gave me an obligatory nod as the tears continued their quiet streaming down her childlike face. I released her chin that I'd propped up so delicately, and it quickly lowered to its resting position. Trying to come up with a way to cheer her up from her partner's apparent lack of belief in her, I suggested, "Why don't you show me what you know about starting seeds, repotting plants, and cultivating a garden. Maybe we can learn a little from each other. I'm certain that I don't know it all! What do you say?"

While not entirely lit up like she was earlier, Emily did perk up a little while exuding a firm, "Okay! Where do you want to start," she asked.

"How about we start at the beginning and start some plants from seed. I have some vegetable and flower seeds that we can use to begin."

With a firm but soft "Okay," Emily took a long look around the greenhouse, finding everything she'd need to get started. I stood by and watched as she went about the job of planting some seeds in the pots. With several pots sowed, she watered everything before walking outside and into the garden. "Are you coming? I certainly can't weed your garden without your permission."

I followed her perky little backside into the garden. We worked on weeding for another thirty minutes until it was time for me to get ready for work. Looking at my watch, I stated, "Well, it's time that I head inside and get ready to join the rat race. So, same time tomorrow?"

"Oh, yes. That would be lovely. I'll see you tomorrow then." Emily said while smiling broadly.  

I watched her walk away with her head up and that fabulous ass wiggling the way women's do. And that's the way things went for the next couple of weeks. We grew some new plants for her to start with and tended my garden in the interim. Emily taught me some new techniques for pruning my plants and helped me set up a compost bin. I helped her pick a spot at her house to start her garden. We even spent a few mornings breaking the soil so that I could come back with the tiller on a Saturday.

Through all of this, we slowly became closer. I could tell that her and Henry's marriage was on rocky ground. It was also evident that he was very controlling. I couldn't figure out why she stayed with him when there seemed to be nothing holding her there. They had no children. She was already a citizen and had no fear of deportation, not that that was a problem anyway. It wasn't like she would be sent back to the likes of North Korea.

I spent several evenings lying in bed trying to figure out what she was so afraid of that she would stay in such an unhappy marriage. Maybe he was blackmailing her somehow? Unable to come up with a satisfactory answer, I decided that I would ask her in the morning.

Morning came, and I started my routine by getting the coffee going and then descending into the basement to begin exercising. I was about halfway through the day's workout when I noticed something at the basement window. This wasn't the first time that I'd thought I saw someone, but this time I stopped to look, and there sat Emily on my front steps. She waved when I noticed her, and I waved back, then gave her the five-minute sign. Emily nodded but continued to watch as I finished off my routine.

I climbed the stairs and grabbed some coffee before opening the front door. There she sat as pretty as could be and smiling from ear to ear.  

"Would you like anything to drink before we get started?" I asked.

"No, thank you," she beamed.

We moved toward the garden, and there was a spring in her step that didn't exist a few weeks ago when we first met. Entering the greenhouse, Emily made sure that our bodies touched from our shoulders all the way down to our bare legs. Not wanting to deflate her too much, I asked, "May I ask you a question that's been eating at me? And feel free to tell me it's none of my business."

"Why am I with him?" she proffered.

"Yes."

"There is something about me that is eccentric, and Henry is the only one that would accept me as I am."

"I doubt that it is as unusual as you believe, but even if it is, that is no reason to allow him to treat you the way he does."

"You don't understand. It's embarrassing," she uttered while beginning to wither.

Grabbing her hands in mine, I continued, "We are friends, yes?" Emily nodded affirmatively.

"Very good friends, I believe, that share a common love of plants and earth," I added.

After a short pause to draw her eyes back to mine, I continued, "I accept you no matter how irregular you believe you are. And as a friend, I'm telling you that Henry does not treat you like a person, but rather as a thing that he owns. There is nothing that abnormal about you to deserve that kind of treatment."

Emily wrapped me in a hug and held me closely for several minutes before beginning to speak. "I knew that you were better than most the first day I came by here to teach you to garden," she offered with a snicker through tear-streaked eyes.

Releasing me and turning away, Emily pulled the greenhouse doors closed. Turning back to me, she grabbed my hands and held them firmly. "I have lived my life feeling used to belittlement and torment. I am about to show you something about me that only a handful of people know. You are only the second on this continent to see me as I truly am."

With that said, Emily released my hands and removed her t-shirt and then her shorts. Standing there in only her sneakers, her head lowered as I took in the sight of her splendid nude form. Emily was part she, with perky medium-sized breasts, and part he, with small, hairless, male genitalia. I lifted her chin and kissed her softly on the lips. Emily responded by holding me close and returning the kiss. It remained soft and loving but not at all tentative.

My hands wandered her naked back before I slowly sank to my knees. Looking up for permission, I received a stare of pure disbelief. Taking that as a yes, I sucked her tiny penis and scrotum into my mouth. I heard her coo in delight as I rolled my tongue all over her silky-smooth sex. Letting my hands roam up and down her magnificent thighs and buttocks only increased her enjoyment.

Feeling her penis harden, I gripped her ass firmly while I sucked her even deeper while my tongue circled every inch. Emily's coos turned to all-out moans, and I knew she was close. With a sealed lip, "Oh, God," Emily came in my mouth. I continued to lavish her gently as she gradually settled from her climax.

Kneeling down, Emily kissed me again with purpose. This time it was hungry and desirous.

Breaking away after a pulse-raising few minutes, she said, "You're amazing! You are the first person to ever do that for me, and it was magical. I'd heard rumors about you from the ladies in the neighborhood but thought they were just that. Are you bi?"

"No, I just love women in all forms. And yes, I consider you a woman. You present as one, kiss like one, and hopefully, I see if you do other things like one," I answered with a sly grin.

"How is it that an open-minded, sexy bastard such as yourself isn't married?" Emily asked.

Staring into her Carolina-sky-blue eyes, I stammered, "I was once... then she left me. I promised myself to never allow another in like that again."

Emily, all too familiar with pain herself, recognized it immediately in my eyes. "I'm so sorry. You are obviously a deeply caring person and likely the one I was supposed to meet when I came to this country. Fate doesn't park you in the same neighborhood as such a warmhearted person as yourself if you're not supposed to meet. I don't know where or how far you want to take this thing between us, but I'll go wherever you want.

To be continued...