Pretty Much Everything

As Emily savored her well deserved shower, Daniel hurried back downstairs, not wanting to waste any time. He couldn't believe his luck! He'd been prepared for a boring evening of surfing the internet, watching whatever caught his eye and really just killing some time. But somehow this random mud soaked woman had shown up on his doorstep! Suddenly, Daniel's night had gone from a complete bore to potentially one of the most interesting of his life. And he didn't intend on wasting this chance.

As it turned out, Daniel hadn't been entirely honest with poor Emily. It was true that Nat lived there, but Daniel wasn't her boyfriend. He was her cousin. In the moment, he'd just blurted out the boyfriend comment in an attempt to help put Emily at ease. After all, she must have been terrified expecting a woman she knew and then finding a strange man instead! It was to help make Emily more comfortable, of course. And besides, he didn't have any intention of hurting the poor woman or anything nefarious like that! He just knew she'd be less likely to accept his help if he hadn't given that small white lie.

Speaking of which, he'd also fibbed about Nat's whereabouts that night. She wasn't out with her friends for a few hours, but halfway across the country visiting some relatives for the next week. She'd asked Daniel to do a bit of house-sitting while she was away. And the young man had been more than happy to spend a few days and nights away from his horrible slob of a roommate. But once again, that was to help put Emily at ease. She might've started panicking if she found out Nat wasn't going to be returning any time soon, poor thing. Still, he'd figured it best not to actually text his cousin. Surely he could handle this on his own.

Daniel reached the kitchen and hastily yanked open one of the drawers. He found the small tray that had various keys on different rings. He picked up the one clearly labelled "Emily" and began looking for a place to hide it. Then, after a moment's thought, he decided to do the same with all of the keys, lest finding the rest of them might look suspicious.

Ah, another small but necessary lie he had told. He had, in fact, known where Emily's spare key had been hidden. Nat had kindly pointed out where she kept all her own spare keys before departing. But if he had just handed the key over right away, then Emily would have been tempted to leave right then! And he couldn't have that. It was surely much safer for her if Daniel let her get warm and cleaned up first. Perhaps later, when she was feeling nice and safe, he could escort her home. But who knows how long that might take? Perhaps it would even be best if she stayed the night. For her own sake, of course. Just to be safe!

Daniel had stashed the keys away in one of his bags and spent the next few minutes hurriedly touching up the place. He tossed out a few of the discarded snack bags and wrappers he'd left lying around, and made sure to stuff his bags and things up in the spare room, tucking them all out of sight. He didn't want to make it obvious that he was staying there as a guest or anything. Just as he had finishing, he heard the shower stop running upstairs. Daniel threw away the last few things, then began opening every drawer and cabinet he could find. He wanted his new guest to believe that he'd been looking for her key this whole time, after all!

A few minutes later, he heard footsteps slowly making their way down the stairs.

"Daniel?" Emily's voice nervously came as she came into view. She was still fairly wet and wearing only a white towel. It certainly seemed to be a bit small on the curvaceous woman. Most of her breasts were easily visible, and the bottom of the towel only came down to her upper thighs. Her face was a light tinge of red, and she kept her gaze on the floor.

Daniel nearly sputtered as his stunned mind took in the sight before him. He knew she was attractive, but seeing her now with all the mud gone... She was downright gorgeous! His very own beautiful blonde angel. He felt like he'd won the lottery.

"I, um, couldn't find any clothes outside the door..." Emily quietly said, nervously tugging on the hem of the towel.

Yet another small lie on Daniel's part. But after all, it was in Emily's best interest that he hadn't left her any clothes! Because... Well, of course that was because... Okay, Daniel had actually just forgotten about leaving her some clothes to wear. But looking at her now, barely wearing anything and clearly embarrassed about it... Well, would it really be the worst thing in the world if she stayed like this for a while? She was safe and sound while she was with him, after all!

"Oh, Emily!" he cried, "I'm so sorry! I was looking all around for the spare keys and I forgot all about it!"

"Oh!" Emily said, looking a bit relieved, strangely enough. "You've been looking all this time? That's so thoughtful of you..."

Apparently that was enough for her to trust him a bit more, as she finally looked up and met his gaze. Another wise move on his part, Daniel reasoned. The more this beautiful girl trusted him the better. Since the more she trusted him, the more he could help her, right!

"Would you, uh, care to help me look?" Daniel offered.

"Um... maybe it would be best if I got dressed first," she replied, already starting to turn around. "Then I'd be more than happy to help. I'll just go find something to wear from Nat's room."

"No!" Daniel said, a bit louder than he intended. Emily froze and looked back at him, perplexed. He had to think fast. Of course Emily would feel more comfortable around him if she were properly clothed. That made sense. But... well, was it so wrong of him to want her to remain in just the towel? She was safe with him, and he wanted her to learn that as quickly as possible! Therefore... it would happen quickest if he kept Emily at her most ****, while at the same time demonstrating that he held her safety in the highest regard, right? Yes... Yes, that made some sense. So really, it was for her own good that he keep her in the towel! That's right, it was all for Emily's own good, at the end of the day. But he couldn't tell her all that, naturally. So, Daniel thought on his feet.

"I mean," he recovered, "I just thought you'd like to get home as soon as possible. And therefore finding your spare key would be your top priority..."

"Well, I suppose it is. But I think finding the key can wait five minutes," Emily giggled.

She had the most beautiful laughter Daniel had ever heard. And even more beautiful to him, she was comfortable enough around him to laugh already! Unfortunately, she was already looking back towards the stairs. If he didn't do something quick, she was going to go put something on, and Daniel couldn't have that!

"Oh!" he said loudly with a snap of his fingers. "You know what? I think I've just remembered where Nat keeps the spare keys!" That got Emily's attention.

"Really?"

"Yes, they should be right over here. But, hmm... I think I'll need your help to get them, Emily."

"Umm..." Emily said, a bit torn. True, she desperately wanted her key to finally get herself safely home. But, like she'd said, surely it could wait just a few minutes while she made herself decent? She appreciated Daniel's dedication and enthusiasm, and she knew he was Nat's boyfriend, so he wouldn't try anything untoward. But, well, she wasn't exactly thrilled to be walking around with him in just a flimsy little towel. "I'd really rather-"

"It's just over this way," Daniel said as he wrapped an arm around Emily's back and, softly but firmly, ushered her into the kitchen. Emily was so taken aback by the move that she simply let herself be ushered along, soon standing barefoot on the cool kitchen tiles.

She reasoned that if Daniel had remembered where the keys were, then maybe it was for the best just to grab them first after all. That way she could go get dressed without illiciting such a fuss from Daniel. Poor guy. He'd been ever so nice to her since she arrived unannounced. Emily knew that, deep down, his insistence that they find her key first was coming from a place of caring about her. She sighed. Would it really be so bad to keep wearing the towel for just a few minutes longer?