The Woman of my Dreams

Jim’s throat was dry and he had a strong desire to cough as he sat at the bar of the smoky tavern. He was not one to spend a lot of time in taverns or bars, but he had just moved into town, his car was still on the trailer behind the moving van and he needed something to eat and drink. This tavern was the closest place, about a mile from his new home, the next place was five miles further down the road.

He had ordered a burger and a glass of milk, which made the waitress look at him funny, as well as some of the other folks at the bar. But Jim just minded his own business and ate his food. He had never been a smoker and the smoke filled air was starting to get to him. He just wanted to finish the burger, drink the milk and get out of this place.

He was about to do that when the tavern door opened and a woman walked in, immediately everyone in the place called out, “Hey Val,”and the woman headed for the bar.

Jim’s heart skipped a few beats as he watch her walk towards him. There were other women in the tavern, most of them Jim found to be attractive, but Val was much more than attractive to him. In his thirty-five years, he had never seen a woman like this. Beauty seemed to radiate from her and as she smiled and waved at the patrons, Jim could swear he saw a sparkle in her smile. She wore a yellow tank top, blue jeans and black cowboy boots. He had never believed in love at first sight, he thought it was a foolish notion, but now he felt it, and it was real.

She walked up right next to him, did not sit down, and asked the bartender for a gin and tonic. She then looked straight at Jim, “you must be new here.”

Before Jim could answer, someone sitting at a poker table with four other men called out, “come on Val, we been waiting for ya.”

She looked over at the men at the table and held up a finger, indicating she would be there soon. Then she looked back at Jim, “Do you play poker? You should join us so we can all get to know you.”

Before he could respond, Val grabbed her drink from the bar and walked over to the table. Jim’s desire to leave the smoke filled tavern was suddenly gone and he finished off his milk, wiped his lips with a napkin and headed for the poker table. He introduced himself to the five men and then to Val, “I’m Jim, I just moved in down the road.”

Val looked at him with beautiful dark brown eyes that matched her long, straight hair, “so you’re the one who bought the Palmer’s place, welcome!”

Jim sat down next to Val, at her insistence, and the game started. Jim was not a great poker player, he enjoyed the game, but didn’t play regularly; mostly friendly games with little money involved. His heart was still racing as the game began and he could not believe he was sitting next to the most amazing woman he had ever seen. He found it difficult to focus on the game and he wondered if the others could see his heart pounding in his chest.

The group, including Val, asked him questions as the game was played, and he gave them short and concise responses.

“I work for the First National Bank.”

“I’m just starting as the new manager.”

“I’ve been in banking most my life.”

“Just moved in.”

“Still unpacking.”

“Single, never married.”

“No kids”

…and so forth.

Before Jim realized how much time had passed, he heard the bartender call out, “last call.”

Jim looked at his watch for the first time since he sat down next to Val. “Oh wow, I need to be going. I had no idea it was this late.” He picked up his money and placed his cards down on the table. “It was nice meeting each of you,” he stammered as he got up. “And it was nice to meet you Val.”

She stood up as he did, “we play every Wednesday and Friday night. I hope to see you again, Jim.”

“I’ll be here Friday,” Jim responded with a shaking voice. And he quickly left the tavern. It felt great to be outside in the cool, fresh air, but as he walked all he could think about was Val. Every time he closed his eyes, her image came into his mind. He knew he had to learn more about her, he had to get to know her.

The next day Jim removed his car from the trailer and unloaded the sixteen foot moving van. It took him most of the day and by the time he returned home from taking back the rental, he was exhausted. There was very little food in the house, just the stuff he had packed and he planned on doing the grocery shopping Friday morning. He looked through the kitchen cabinets to see what he had available when the doorbell sounded.

To his surprise, it was an old lady with a casserole pan in her hands. “I’m Darlene Wallthrop. My husband, Blaine, and I live just up the road. I thought you might need some supper.”

Jim took the pan and invited her in as he took the warm food to the kitchen. They talked briefly, he told her about the people he had met in the tavern and asked if she knew them; he described each of the five men and Val.

“We’re not the kind that goes to taverns. But most of the people in this town are good people,” Darlene responded. A few minutes later she walked out of his front door, welcoming him to the neighborhood again.

The chicken casserole was delicious. Jim thought it was the best he had ever tasted. He went to sleep that night with boxes all around the house, but he had a full stomach.

Friday morning Jim went into town to buy groceries and a few things for the house, like a shower curtain. He saw two of the men he had played poker with on Wednesday. He talked with them for awhile and told them he would see them again that night. He learned from them that the only time they saw Val was on Wednesday and Friday night at the tavern, for poker night. She was never seen in town, and they both said that she was a very private person. Whenever anyone asked her personal questions, she changed the subject and made them laugh with some remark. Finally, they all saw she didn’t want to talk about herself, so they stopped asking; they were just happy to have her around for the poker game. They are all older men and just enjoy her company. Jim also learned that they have been playing these twice-a-week poker nights with Val for nearly a year.

That night, Jim showed up early and once again sat next to Val for the poker game. She asked him how the moving was going and later he asked her what she did for a living. Just as the men had said, she didn’t respond, told him what a nice shirt he was wearing and changed the conversation to football.

When it was near closing time Jim got up, and just like the previous time, Val rose as well. Jim asked her out for the next night, she thanked him but claimed that she couldn’t and she would see him Wednesday.

Jim left the bar dejected and climbed into his car. But instead of driving home, he moved his car into the back of the lot, where it was completely dark. He watch at waited. Soon, there were just three cars left. An old jeep, a Corolla and a TransAm. Finally, Jim saw Val leave the bar, climb into the TransAm and drive towards town. He kept his lights off when he first started to follow her, and only turned them on once he was on the paved road.

He had never done this kind of thing before, so it made him extremely nervous and he started sweating as he followed her from a distance. She turned north just before she entered the town and took a small road that had no traffic on it, so once again, Jim turned off his headlights as he turned the corner and followed. About a mile down this narrow road, he saw the TransAm pull into a long driveway with pear trees lining both sides of the drive. Jim pulled over and watch, as she pulled the car into a two car garage and he watched the garage door close.

Well, at least he knew where she lived. He sat there in the darkness for a few minutes trying to get a good look at the house. It was difficult to see in the darkness, but it looked like a comfortable home, probably built in the sixties. Just one story and spread out a little, with the two car garage on the south side of the house, closest to where Jim was parked.

To his surprise, the garage door started to open again and Jim started to panic, if she came back out and turned towards him, she would see him and know that he had followed her. But then, his panic lessened when he saw an old Chevy Citation come out of the garage and it turned away from him, heading further north.

Jim pulled back out onto the road and followed the Citation. They drove for another five miles and then he saw the old car pull into the parking lot for Mother Mary’s School for Girls. Jim pulled over, still with his lights off, and watched as the car parked and a woman got out of the car. The woman was the same height as Val and she walked like Val, but the rest was hard to tell; she was dressed in a nun’s habit.

Jim continued to watch the nun as she walked across the parking lot, towards the red brick school. He saw her pass under a street lamp and the light shined on her face. With his car window down, he had a good view; Jim gasped in a gulp of air, it was Val. The woman of his dreams is a nun.