I finally got my hug

Wow.

She is remarkable.

We'll call her Elizabeth.

The first thing I heard of her, she was scrambling down a rough embankment.

In heels.

Backwards.

She had parked across the street from where we were to meet up, and she didn't realize that there wasn't a nice, convenient walkway from one side to the other, so as I sat on a fake-wicker bench waiting for her, I heard the click of heels on pavement, then a scuffling sound, and rocks being dislodged.

This... had to be my date.

She almost walked past me, until I called out, "that sounds like someone I should know." She visibly jumped, and we met.

In person, she's terrifically cute, but then again, both of us were trying to impress each other. After she'd told me not to worry about changing into a suit, she'd gone home and changed after work, so rather than the expected business suit, she was in a cute white linen dress with blue edging, and she was wearing a lot of blue topaz. Earrings, a pendant, a bracelet.

Did I mention that I really like blue topaz?

There was about a two-second silence, and then we talked nonstop for the next three hours, literally until they turned off the lights and the AC and we had to leave.

I like her. I like her a lot. More to the crux of it, she seems to like me, and we've made plans to see each other after she gets back from Colombia next weekend. We plan to email a lot this week. The cynical side of me pointed out to her that the US government is a wonderful thing, where they can't even get bottled water to New Orleans, but she can get email in Colombia.

Both of us enjoy that grand absurdity that is the government of the United States of America.

I could not stop looking at her. She has gray-blue eyes with a steady gaze, fine and strong hands that make points when she needs them to, a friendly and warm face, and a small but intense body. I feel like I need to explain that last comment, because we did nothing more than trade warm hugs, but she just... feels nice and I can't overstate how good that feels to me. She has a small chest which presented quite pleasant cleavage, and I'm still not sure whether that was the result of a Miracle Bra or simply a rather snug-fitting dress. I don't know, and I don't much care... it just felt very nice.

I liked being hugged by someone who meant it, even if it was a little tentative. It was most certainly not a "thanks for the date, I'll never see you again, good luck" sort of hug.

Smart, cute, really single, she has a cat, and... I think she likes me.

Fall might be good.