Flossie's Revenge

by Lubrican

Chapters : Foreword | 1-2 | 3-4 | 5-6 | 7-8 | 9-10 | 11-12 | 13-14 | 15-16 | 17-18 | 19-20 | 21-22
23-24 | 25-26 | 27-28 | 29-30 | 31-32 | 33-34 | 35-36 | 37-38 | 39-40 | 41-42 | 43-44

Chapter 41

Bernadette was hugging her mother, when she suddenly jumped. Marian felt something wet splash against her ankles, and looked down. Bernadette's water had broken.

There was a contingency plan for this, and Luthor took over to put it into action. He was supposed to take Johnnie Sue and whoever went into labor first to the hospital, where Johnnie Sue would stay with whoever until a husband could get there. He simply substituted Marian for Johnnie Sue. Once they were there and people had taken Bernadette away, followed by her mother, Luthor went back to the car and dug out the bag of change that was stored in the car for just this situation. He found a pay phone and started calling numbers, spreading the word for Curtis Lee to get his butt to the hospital unless he was actually in a gunfight. Curtis Lee was delivered to the hospital by his partner, lights flashing and siren blaring, even though it was a KCMO squad car, operating on the Kansas side of the city.

In all the excitement, Luthor completely forgot about Marian. When Curtis Lee asked if Johnnie Sue had remembered to grab the suitcase packed for this event, Luthor suddenly looked shame faced.

"Johnnie Sue's not here with her," he said. "I forgot the suitcase. I'll go get it now."

Before Curtis Lee could stop him, he was gone. Curtis Lee set about trying to make sure his wife was all right. They wouldn't let him see her, and he started to get irate, until a nurse said "The woman with her has everything under control. Just sit in the waiting room!"

Eight hours later, Curtis Lee was nudged awake.

"You wouldn't by chance be Curtis Waggoner?" asked the doctor standing over him.

"Yessir," said Curtis Lee, prying his eyes open.

"You interested in seeing your daughter?"

"Another girl?" asked Curtis Lee, grinning.

"Your ... uh wife ... says you owe her a son or two," said the doctor, smiling slightly.

Curtis Lee was led to a hospital room. Bernie was lying back in bed, looking relatively refreshed. It had been a short labor this time. Her arms were empty. He stepped into the room, and saw movement in the corner. He almost fainted when he saw Bernadette's mother, sitting there, with a tiny blanket-wrapped bundle in her arms. She was staring down into its wrinkled brown face. She looked up.

"Good evening Curtis Lee," she said. "I'd like to introduce you to your daughter."

Curtis Lee went and leaned over. "Elizabeth?" he said softly. He turned to Bernie. "You wanted Elizabeth, didn't you?" Bernie smiled and nodded.

"That's my middle name," said Marian. "I'm honored."

It wasn't thirty minutes later that a nurse poked her head into the room.

"Anybody in here named Marian Wilson?"

Marian looked up, surprised.

"I am," she said.

"Could you come with me, please?" asked the nurse, looking harried. "Your daughter is screaming that she will not have her baby until you're there."

Marian looked confused. "But that's my daughter," she said, pointing at Bernadette, who was nursing her new baby.

"Well, I sure hope this is some kind of miracle, and that you have two daughters, because that girl is going to drive us to distraction with her screaming for her mamma! She got here about an hour ago and insisted that you were here somewhere. I will personally buy you a steak dinner down at the stock yards if you'll come shut her up."

Marian almost laughed out loud when the same doctor who had delivered Bernadette walked up to the door of the labor room at the same time the nurse led Marian there. They had let Marian stay with Bernie the whole way, even in the delivery room, so the doctor knew her.

"We've got to stop meeting this way," he said, smiling. "I don't suppose you have any more at home like these two?"

"This is it. They always did everything together," laughed Marian.

"Well this one's being a problem," said the man. "It's her first, and she's fighting it. I need her to relax."

"Let me talk to her," said Marian. "Then give her some drugs." She grinned.

By the time Hilda Mae gave an exhausted grunt and pushed Elijah Lee Finshaw into the world, Marian was on her last legs. She had driven almost a thousand miles, and then presided, more or less, at the birth of two of her grandchildren. It was afternoon of the 16th of June, and she hadn't slept since sometime late on the 14th. Flossie had called Nathan, to tell him his mother was there, and what was going on, and he had come to the hospital to wait with his brothers-in-law. Now, as Marian slowly dragged her feet into the waiting room, he took her in his arms and practically carried her to his car. She dozed while he took her back to the farm, and mumbled ineffectually as he actually carried her into the house and put her to bed. Then he kissed her on the forehead and left the room.

She slept for twelve hours, got up and staggered around until she found the bathroom, and then went back to bed for another four hours. When she got up, she found the suitcase she had packed into the car sitting on a chair near the bed. She felt filthy and took clothing to the bathroom, where she took a shower. Coming out of the bathroom, her hair wrapped in a towel, her nose was assaulted by the smell of food, and she followed her nose to the kitchen, where Flossie stood at the stove cooking pancakes and humming softly, while a little boy sat in a high chair banging a spoon on the wooden tray. He looked up at Marian and smiled.

"Mommy!" he said excitedly as he saw a new person in the house.

"I'm working on it," said Flossie. "Hold your horses. You're as bad as your father!"

"Hi!" said the little brown boy to Marian, brightly.

Marian went to him and bent over.

"You must be Nathan Junior," she said, smiling into his open and trusting face.

Flossie turned around, startled. "Gracious me!" she gasped. "I didn't hear you come in. I was beginning to think you'd miss breakfast too!"

Marian's stomach gurgled so loudly that they all heard it, and the baby laughed.

"I'm amazed I could get in here without falling down," said Marian. "What day is it?"

"Today is the seventeenth of June," said Flossie, looking concerned.

"I haven't eaten in three days!" said Marian, looking for a chair and sitting down heavily.

"Well, we can fix that," said Flossie. She scooped three pancakes from the griddle to a plate. There was already syrup and butter on the table, beside a pile of forks and knives. Marian wanted to pick up a pancake with her fingers and just stuff it in her mouth, but she forced herself to anoint it with butter and syrup first, and then took measured bites, almost swooning at as the delicious taste spread through her mouth. Flossie set a glass of milk on the table beside Marian's plate, and handed a small pancake to the baby, who took it in both hands and began taking bites out of it happily.

"He's just so precious," mumbled Marian, between bites.

"Thank you," said Flossie over her shoulder at the stove. "Your son makes rather good babies, I think." One hand drifted to her belly, which was large, and rubbed it gently.

"I see he's been busy," said Marian.

Flossie smiled. "She's due in another month. When Bernie and then Hildy went into labor early, I was afraid I might follow, but all I had was a few twinges. You certainly stirred things up around here."

"She?" asked Marian. "As I recall we were both convinced this one would be a girl." She waved her fork at the baby, who was pounding what was left of his pancake against the wooden tray in front of him.

Flossie laughed. "One can always hope." She sobered.

"I'm sorry for your loss."

"Thank you," said Marian, thinking that if she were Flossie she'd be dancing in the street.

"How in the world did you convince Jesse's parents to let him come up here?" asked Flossie, changing the subject again.

"I showed them a picture of Johnnie Sue Thorpe breast feeding a baby that obviously wasn't Luthor's," she said. "I hoped it was Jesse's."

"You hoped?" Flossie turned around.

"Well ... as opposed to some fellow she met when she got up here, I suppose. There was always that possibility."

Flossie shook her head. "Not if you really knew her. The sun rises and sets on those two young men."

"Two?" asked Marian, confused.

"It's complicated," said Flossie, piling pancakes on a plate and sitting down. She offered them to Marian, who took two more. "I know all this has been hard for you to take - I thought it was all craziness too, in the beginning - but there are some things that still leave me staring at the wallpaper, trying to figure out what in the world that girl is thinking."

She went on to explain about the blood brothers, and how they had grown up together, all for one and one for all.

"And she's just going to live with both of them, and not marry either one of them?!" Marian's jaw dropped.

"She's just as unrepentant about that as she can be," said Flossie, shaking her head. "We all think she's crazy. Well ... not all of us. Luthor and Jesse seem to understand it all perfectly. It's just such a different way of thinking that I suppose us normal people can't get our minds wrapped around it."

"Normal people," said Marian. Then she started laughing. All the tension of the last months, and of the trip, and of riding a thousand miles with a black young man who impressed her more and more with every mile they drove, and of her daughters going into labor ... all of it rushed out of her in gales of laughter as she heard Flossie Wilson characterize herself and Marian as "normal people".

Flossie was confused, at first, and as Marian seemed to fall apart before her very eyes, she replayed the conversation in her head. That, and Marian's last comment made her realize what was happening.

When Marian finally began to calm down, gasping for breath, Flossie took a few bites and then said, "Well, when you think about it ... we are normal. We love, and hate, and get tired and cranky, and have babies, and worry about things, and laugh. All people do those things. I think you're perfectly normal, and I think I'm normal too."

Marian blinked. On that level, the woman made all the sense in the world. She leaned back, sighing. "I'd love to think I'm normal, but here I am, a well-trained Southern Belle, who has blessed the unions of all three of her lily white children to black Africans, and I have all these strange colored grandchildren, and I find myself suddenly in the hated North, where, at least to present, I have seen only happiness and joy, when there should only be misery and shame. I couldn't feel normal if somebody paid me to!"

Flossie didn't know whether to say anything or not. Her own life had undergone some things that had turned it upside down too. All she could think about was that she was a thousand times happier now, than she had been four or five years ago.

"Well," she said finally. "Maybe it will grow on you."

In most situations like this, there would have been news exchanged, as people who were from the same area, but had been apart, caught up on events in both places. There was none of that here, though. Instead, Flossie offered to show Marian around. Marian asked Nathan Junior if Grandma could carry him, and he happily held up his arms. He promptly laid his head on her shoulder and fell asleep, while they walked through the house, and then outside, where Flossie described the others, and who lived in them. Marian was overwhelmed with what had been accomplished in three short years.

"It looks like everything is pretty full up," said Marian as they sat on a bench in the courtyard.

"We'll make some room for you. If I know your daughters, you'll be staying with us for as long as they can keep you here." She looked at her mother-in-law. "What are your plans?"

"I have no idea," said Marian, truthfully. "I've got some money from Harvey's insurance policies ... or will when the insurance company finally pries their greedy fingers from around it. I wanted to see my Grandbabies. I know I'm not going back there." She didn't have to stipulate where "there" was.

"You know you're welcome here for as long as you want to stay," said Flossie.

"We'll see," said Marian. "I suppose I could try to get a job." There was distaste in her voice, like she was thinking of rolling in the mud with the pigs. "I have no idea what I could actually do, but you never know." She brightened. "I helped the new teacher when she got there. I was pretty good at that!"

"Why don't you go to college and become a teacher then?" asked Flossie.

Marian looked at her like she had just stepped out of a space ship. Then she saw that Flossie was completely serious.

"Me?" she gasped. "College? I'm almost forty!"

"Okay," said Flossie, her face calm. "So, when you finish college you'll be forty-four. You'll still have twenty years to teach. You're healthy. If that's too long, then teach for ten and then do something else."

"This is how you put notions into my children's heads ... isn't it?" asked Marian, staring at this strange woman.

"Those notions have turned out rather well ... don't you think?" asked Flossie sweetly.

Marian didn't know what to think. Her mind had, in the last two years, undergone extreme stress, and change had resulted. Sometimes she had fought that change bitterly, but it had come anyway. Now she had another new and strange concept to grapple with. Yet, already, the reasonableness of what Flossie had suggested was seeping into her mind, soothing her terror and suggesting that much more was possible than she might have thought ... even ten minutes ago!

She looked at Flossie skeptically.

"You know ... you're a very dangerous woman."

"Why Mother Wilson ... " said Flossie, looking genuinely surprised. "I have no idea what you're talking about!"

The tenseness in Marian's body had, as often happens, transmitted itself to the sleeping child in her arms. Nathan Jr. woke and fussed. Flossie offered to take him, saying he probably needed his diaper changed. Marian held onto him.

"I haven't changed a diaper in twenty years," she said, standing up. "Let's just see if I remember how."

When Nathan Jr. had been cleaned up, and was lying happily naked on the bed, Marian ran her fingertips over his body, examining him from head to toes, gently pinching here, and tickling there, as the little boy laughed and wiggled.

"He's just so gorgeous," she sighed. "He should be out of diapers by now, you know."

"I know," sighed Flossie. "I've been so busy with school, and Nathan's hopeless when it comes to potty training. Johnnie Sue has no idea what to do."

"Well, then," said Marian. "I have my first job. Potty training it is!" she said, grabbing Nathan Junior's little brown penis and giving it a gentle tug. "We'll teach you how to control this little thing right smartly!" Her eyes widened as the child gurgled. His penis had gotten stiff. "Oh my!" she chuckled. "I'd forgotten about that part."

"It seems to run in the family," said Flossie, looking sideways at her mother-in-law to see her reaction. "His father's even worse."

Marian raised an eyebrow, but then, as women have done for millions of years, they began to compare notes on the man they both loved. Nathan, had he heard, would have been scandalized at the things his mother and wife said, and the stories they told each other about him.

He probably also would have gotten an erection.

While her daughters were yet in the hospital, Marian got to know her other grandchild, Juliet, who was being taken care of in the interim by Johnnie Sue, who had her own four-month old too.

Marian examined Juliet from stem to stern too, and found her to be just as perfectly put together as her cousin. Juliet was darker than Nathan Jr., but definitely had Bernadette's fiery temperament. As far as Juliet was concerned, the world belonged to her, and all the people in it had been put there to cater to her every whim. Marian spoiled her hopelessly, and by the time Bernadette came home with her little brother, Juliet tended to reach for her Grandma, instead of her mother.

Then her daughters were back, and she went into Grandma overload as she helped them with her infant Grandbabies. All things considered, Marian was on cloud nine.

"I never thought I'd get to see either of you again," she sighed one time, while Hilda Mae suckled young Elijah. "Much less my grandbabies. I'm so happy now that if I followed your father I'd go with a smile on my face."

Hilda Mae ignored the reference to her father. She looked down at her first child. She had already forgotten the rigors of childbirth, and stared at her baby lovingly.

"Elijah Lee Waggoner," she whispered. She looked up. "I can't tell you how happy I am that you get to see him."

"You know," said Marian, wondering if she was about to open a can of worms. "Your father's middle name was also Lee."

Hilda Mae blinked. "I never even knew he had a middle name!"

"He hated it," said Marian carelessly. "Something about a boy who beat him up when he was little. He didn't talk about it much."

Hilda Mae looked like she didn't know whether to be unhappy or not.

"Imagine that," she said finally. "Isn't it odd that I'd pick a man with the same middle name as my own father?"

"There's a lot of your father in you," said Marian carefully. "He did have some good points. They might have been muddled up with his bad ones, but all the good that was in him went into all three of you, I think."

"You miss him," said Hilda Mae, looking serious. "I don't know how I feel about him."

"I'm trying to remember the good," said her mother.

"I will too," said Hilda Mae. She couldn't think of anything like that right this instant, but she was determined to try. Thinking good things about her mother was easy. She looked up.

"I can hear Elijah's thoughts," she said, her voice teasing. "He's saying thank you to his Grandma for letting me come up here so he could be born."

"Well," said Marian, standing up in preparation for going to see her other brand new grandbaby, "we'll see about that. Children have a way of being very ungrateful sometimes." She smiled to show she was joking.

Hilda Mae didn't smile. "I love you, Mamma. I love everything about you. You let me be happy, and I'll never, ever forget that."

Before she started crying, Marian leaned over and kissed them both on the head, and then scurried out of the room, where she could wipe her eyes with the hem of the apron she was wearing.

Nathan and Curtis Lee got their heads together. Things were moving along even faster than they had planned. Both of them felt like it would be wise to get the rest of the gold out of Catfish Hollow, and up to Kansas City, where it would be avaialable instantly, if it was needed. Both also agreed that only Nathan, and Luthor should be the ones to go get it. Nathan would have gone by himself, but they needed to get there and get back without stopping. Two drivers were needed.

Both were tired when they got back, but everything had gone perfectly. Moses and Curtis Lee lifted the still-heavy chest from the trunk of Nathan's car, and carried it to its new resting place in a specially constructed hidey-hole in the barn. One of the rear wheels of the tractor parked on the cover to the hole, so even if someone came snooping around, they'd never uncover it.

In the month it took Flossie to get to the point where her second child demanded to be born, Marian settled into the spare bedroom in Nathan's house. She basically ran a nursery, while the men worked, and the women helped care for their children, slept, and began working in the garden and orchard again. Jesse helped her endlessly, saying he "needed educating on babies". Sometimes they helped plant fruit trees, placing children on blankets spread on the ground, while their mothers, father and grandmother dug holes and carried pails of water to soak the newly planted soil. When Curtis Lee found them thus engaged, one day, when he came home from work, he promptly went out and found a used tractor and water tank on a trailer. It was delivered the next day, and then they had to figure out how to fill it. Nathan and Luthor took on repairing the windmill, replacing the head and bent blades with new ones, and running the pipe up so that a canvas hose could be put into the fill hole of the water trailer. By the next week, Johnnie Sue was teaching the others how to drive the tractor, and things went much faster.

Marian's daughters also came up with a plan to build their mother a bungalow, in the space at the top of the ( ) configuration of the houses. It would only be a one bedroom structure, but would have huge closets, and its own kitchen. Marian tried to argue with them, but they insisted that she was going to live with them "forever" and needed her own space. They had also joined Flossie in urging their mother to go to college and get a degree of some kind.

In mid July, Flossie gave birth to a nine pound, one ounce boy who, other than being heftier looking than his brother, was the spitting image of Nathan Jr. when he was newborn. They finally decided on Abraham, in honor of the man who had started the emancipation of a people who now, at least in this small microcosm of society, were able to enjoy a measure of freedom that that long dead President would never have dreamed of.

Marian added him to her crèche of cherished grandbabies.

Johnnie Sue stretched the limits of Marian's belief, sometimes. Most of the time she was as normal as the day is long. But, when the mood took her, she would engage in long, passionate kisses with either Luthor or Jesse, often right in front of the other. Neither man seemed to think a thing about it. She was also immodest to a fault, leaving her shirt unbuttoned three buttons, and exposing her breasts to anyone who happened to be looking her way. Her men didn't mind in the least, sometimes slipping a hand inside that open shirt while they kissed her. She was as carefree as a young colt, frolicking in a meadow. Everyone else but Marian ignored them all, as if such bawdy behavior was perfectly acceptable.

One day in early August, Johnnie Sue asked Marian if she'd watch Jeremiah for an hour or two so that Luthor could relax when he got home from work. Marian had been playing with the five-month old for an hour when he soiled his diaper so badly that it got into his clothing as well. She took off his clothes, put them in the wash, and then carried the naked baby over to Johnnie Sue's house. Her intent was to walk in quietly, get some clothes, and then leave, not bothering anyone.

When she opened the front door and stepped in, she was faced with Johnnie Sue, stark naked, on her hands and knees on the living room carpet. Luthor, also naked, was lustily pounding his penis into her from behind, while Jesse stood in front of her, his dark body gleaming with sweat. Johnnie Sue's nose was pressed against his curly black pubic hair, and his penis was obviously clear into her throat.

That Johnnie Sue was having the time of her life was made clear by the sounds she was making in that throat.

Jesse's eyes opened, and then went wider as he saw Marian standing there in shock.

"Oh my word!" said the woman weakly.

She tried to move, but couldn't. Harvey had taken her this way sometimes, but it hadn't felt like this looked. And, while she had heard whispered rumors that a man's penis could be loved this way, she had never really believed it.

"Johnnie Sue!" choked Jesse, stepping back. His long, black penis slurped out of her mouth and became visible to Marian, who stared at it. She felt her knees start to weaken, and stepped to lean against the door jamb. The door was still open.

Johnnie Sue moaned with unhappiness as the thing she loved to suck was taken from her. She looked up at Jesse, saw his wide-eyed stare, and looked over her shoulder to see Marian, equally wide-eyed, holding her son.

"Oops!" she yelped. She tried to crawl forward, off of Luthor's pounding prick, but his hands held her hips in an iron grip.

"Luthor!" she yelped. "Somebody’s here!"

Luthor looked over his own shoulder, and literally jumped backwards, his penis making a sucking, wet sound as it was jerked out of Johnnie Sue's sex. Marian stared at his penis too, which looked almost sickly white after the smooth ebony of Jesse. Luthor covered his groin with both hands, and darted for the bedroom. Jesse followed.

Johnnie Sue got up, looking like a marble statue, and walked toward Marian. She had a pretty good idea why Jeremiah was naked.

"Did you poop your pants again?" she cooed to the little boy, who reached for his mother. When she took him he immediately tried to latch onto a nipple. "Hey!" chided Johnnie Sue. "No snacking between meals!" She pried his mouth off her nipple and then shuddered as her milk let down. "Now look what you did, you naughty boy!" she scolded, as drips of white seeped from the nipple the boy had sucked. She gave him the nipple with a sigh, and looked at Marian, who was still standing there in complete shock.

"Sorry," said Johnnie Sue, not sounding sorry at all. "It's Luthor's turn to get me pregnant. We didn't expect anyone to come in."

"Luthor's turn?" Marian's voice was dry and husky. Seeing those two manly penises had made something twist inside her, and she wasn't happy about it.

"Jesse got to do it the first time. Now it's Luthor's turn," said Johnnie Sue, like she was talking about someone taking turns washing dishes. "I'm in love with them both, you know. I can't marry either one of them because of it." She didn't seem to think that was strange, or that she was standing there naked, talking to Marian. "I know it probably seems odd to you," she acknowledged, "but I've loved them both since we were about eleven."

"Odd." The word even felt strange in Marian's dry mouth.

"I hope this won't cause problems between us," said Johnnie Sue hopefully, but with a frown on her face. "It's just the way we are. I mean we didn't set out to be this say," said the young woman. "But I can't do anything about the way I feel."

Jeremiah spat out the nipple. Johnnie Sue tried to encourage him to take the other, but he turned his face away.

"See!" she scolded the baby. "I knew you weren't really hungry. Now the other one is all full and Luthor or your Daddy is going to have to ..." She stopped, and flushed bright red. "Oh my!" she moaned. "I'm just making things worse!"

Marian realized her own nipples were tingling. With a start, she cringed, acknowledging that her body was betraying her with sexual excitement. The image of the two men making ... love? ... with this girl was stark in her mind. It was, at the same time, the most erotic and most disgusting thing she had ever seen. Her mind flitted back to memories of things she and Harvey had done. No, this wasn't the most disgusting thing she'd ever experienced. Her mind warred, but all Johnnie Sue saw was the cringe, and the twisted look on the woman's face.

"I'm sorry," she said softly. "I'll take him now. You don't have to have anything to do with us if ..." Her eyes glistened as they began to fill with tears, and she turned and fled to the same bedroom door the men had gone into. The door slammed, but couldn't keep out the "Shit ... shit ... shit!" that issued from Johnnie Sue's tortured throat.

Marian wandered around the farm in a daze for the next hour. She didn't pay any attention to where she was going, only that there were no people there, wherever she went. She found herself in the orchard, full of young trees, reaching into the sky, trying to become what they were intended.

Eventually she recognized the heaviness in the pit of her stomach as unhappiness, and her mind worked at that. Why was she unhappy? She had seen something ... disgusting? But why would that make her feel like something she loved had faded? Her mind kept going back to those first few seconds, as she grappled with what was happening in front of her when she walked in that door. What had been going on? Sex. That's what had been going on. Perverted, unnatural sex. Why did something in her want to put a question mark at the end of that? Perverted? Unnatural? The first epiphany that assaulted her mind was about the word "sex". That wasn't just sex she had seen. Johnnie Sue had been making love. She was being made love to, not just having sex. That's what Harvey had done to her. She and Harvey had sex. Its purpose wasn't for love, not in the sense that she had seen in that room. It was to punish her. It was to release the flood of self doubt and self hatred by letting her scream into a pillow while her body made something happy out of all those negative thoughts.

But that's not what had been going on in that room. She saw that clearly now. As strange as it had looked, Johnnie Sue had been making love with her men, not just having sex. She had been sharing something precious with them, and they with her.

The second epiphany that assaulted Marian's mind left her feeling like she wanted to vomit. The look on Johnnie Sue's face when she turned and fled ... it was a look of self loathing that Marian knew well. She'd seen that look on her own face a thousand times. By her judgement, Marian had killed something precious and beautiful, crushing it in the fist of a woman who had never had what was lavished on Johnnie Sue by the two men she loved. If she hadn't killed it, she had dealt it a mortal blow. Never again would Johnnie Sue feel free and good about doing that with the men she loved.

The thought that she had killed something so beautiful finally brought up lunch, and Marian gagged on it intentionally, punishing herself for her crime.

She sank to the ground, crying, mourning for herself, and all those years, and for Johnnie Sue, and for everything that had gone horribly wrong in her life.

Johnnie Sue got dressed. She felt like she had to make amends for what had happened. She went out, ignoring the men, and looked for Marian. She saw her, and then saw her vomiting. She felt dirty for the first time in her life. She couldn't go out there now. The woman hated her. Shoulders slumping, she went to find Bernadette.

Marian felt hands on her shoulders, and a towel was thrust in front of her. She looked up, vomit clinging to her lips, and through tears that made the image waver, she saw her older daughter. Even the shimmer of tears couldn't cover up the look of concern on Bernadette's face.

Bernadette took the towel back from her mother's limp fingers, and sat down on the ground. She dabbed at her mother's face, but didn't say anything. Marian finally leaned over, spat to clear her mouth, and took the towel to wipe at traces of lunch that had spattered her clothing.

"I'm sorry, Mamma," said Bernadette uncertainly.

"No, I'm the one who should be sorry," said Marian, taking a deep breath. "I should never have come here."

Bernadette's face was stricken, and her own eyes filled with tears.

"No, Mamma, you can't leave! She feels terrible, Mamma. She didn't mean for you to see that! Please don't leave us Mamma! Johnnie Sue said they can go somewhere else." Now tears spilled down her cheeks.

Marian felt another wave of self contempt. Not only had she killed something beautiful, she was killing another relationship.

She didn't think she had anything left in her, but suddenly she was gushing out self hate, telling her daughter all the things she had done wrong, all the sordid things she had done to punish herself, and how worthless she was for making trouble here. Bernadette leaned further and further back, her mouth open as she heard her mother say horrible things about herself, things Bernadette hadn't imagined, despite what she had heard through her parents' bedroom door. When Marian wailed that seeing Johnnie Sue with two men had made her want to be loved like that too, Bernadette goggled. She had never heard such pain in a voice, even when Curtis Lee had told of the things whites did to blacks when he was younger.

Suddenly she was on her knees, holding her crying mother, rocking her and telling her she was wrong ... that things weren't like that any more ... that everything would be okay. The universe twisted as daughter became mother, and soothed her thirty-nine-year old child.

"But I've ruined everything for her," cried Marian, talking about Johnnie Sue.

"It's just a misunderstanding, Mamma," crooned Bernadette, hugging her mother's head to her chest. You think Johnnie Sue hates you, and she thinks you hate her, but neither of those is really true!"

"But the way I looked at her," wailed Marian. "I can't take that back! I can't take any of it back!" she cried.

"Mamma," said Bernadette soothingly. "We love you, Mamma. It doesn't matter what happened in the past. You raised us all so well, Mamma. We're all so happy, and you have the grandbabies you always wanted. You helped with all of that, Mamma. It doesn't matter about Daddy, or any of that. You can be happy too, Mamma." she insisted.

Like a child, who wants to believe, Marian felt hope seep into her bones.

"Just talk to her, Mamma," urged Bernadette. "It was all just a misunderstanding. We're all used to them. It was only normal for you to be shocked. Talk to her. Nothing bad has to come from this."

After all was said and done, Marian went to her room and changed clothes. Bernadette waited, and walked with her to Johnnie Sue's house, where Johnnie Sue was sitting on the couch, looking miserable. She jumped up, saying she was sorry, when they walked in. Bernadette held up her hand to stop her.

"There has been a misunderstanding," she said firmly. "You two just need to have a chat." She went to the bedroom, where Jesse and Luthor were lying on opposite sides of the big bed they all shared, also looking miserable. "You two come with me," she ordered. They followed her like puppy dogs, cringing when they saw Marian, who was already leaning forward, talking quickly in low tones to Johnnie Sue. Johnnie Sue blinked at whatever Marian was saying, and Bernadette hustled the two men out. Then she had a long talk with them too.

Chapter 42

It would be a lie to say things were all better immediately. But the long talk Marian and Johnnie Sue had did help a great deal. It took a couple of weeks, but then things were back to normal. Bernadette got Hilda Mae and her brother together and shakily repeated some of what she had heard their mother confess. The other two were shocked as well, but it was different coming from a third person ... not quite so personal.

"Mamma needs to find herself another man," said Hilda Mae at one point. "She needs a good man in her life ... somebody to treat her like Moses treats me."

That thought was a little weird for her older brother and sister, and they scoffed at first. But that thought stayed with them.

Flossie continued her crusade to get Marian into college, especially after what Nathan told her when they were in bed together one night. He only told her part of what Bernadette had relayed, but she agreed immediately with Hilda Mae's take on things. Over the next couple of days, she got together all the information that would be needed to enroll Marian as a Freshman at the University of Missouri at Kansas City. UMKC had a teacher's program, specifically designed to supply teachers to the rapidly growing population of Kansas City. A number of veterans of the Korean Conflict, disillusioned with blue collar jobs after they came home, had sought teaching jobs as an alternative, and the University had put in place a program that welcomed older students. There was every likelihood, she insisted, that Marian wouldn't be the only person over twenty-five if she attended.

In April Johnnie Sue practically squirted out a Caucasian baby in a labor that only lasted four hours. He was named Thomas Thorpe, after Luthor's paternal grandfather. By the time he was born, little Thomas, had a forty-year-old Godmother who had completed almost two semesters of study toward a Bachelor's degree in Elementary Education.

It hadn't been as easy as any of them had hoped. Marian's children had to help her with her homework much more often than she had ever helped them with theirs. But, as time passed, her confidence level rose, and by the time she was able to hold Thomas in her arms, she was convinced that she would, in three years, be a real, live teacher.

She was, to her chagrin, the oldest student in her class. She reminded Flossie of that regularly.

The next year, she came home one day all a-flutter. One of her professors from the previous year, had calmly informed her that her course of study would not bring her back to any of his classes, and that he was therefore free to ask her to have dinner with him.

"Too bad he probably has warts and no hair or something," said Hilda Mae, as they gathered for one of their weekly communal suppers.

"Not at all!" said her mother. "He's gorgeous!" She blushed. "I mean he's a perfectly normal looking man." She was flustered and went on. "He has that dark Mediterranean look, like he's from Greece, or Spain or something."

"So did you accept?" asked Johnnie Sue.

"Well, I couldn't just dash the poor man's hopes," said Marian in a dignified voice.

"Is he married?" asked Nathan. When everyone stared at him he shrugged. "You know how many domestic disturbances I've been to where some married guy was getting a little on the side and his wife found out?"

"Nathan Wilson!" said his mother, her voice horrified. "I do not plan to ... give some man a little on the side!"

"Just make sure he isn't married before you go out with him," counseled Curtis Lee sagely. "Just in case."

"In case what?" asked Marian.

Nathan grinned. "In case he's like Curtis Lee and me. All us men are the same, you know. We only have one thing on our minds."

Marian spluttered and blushed, while Bernadette glared at her husband, and brother.

"You two shut up!" she said forcefully. "If my beautiful Mamma wants to go out and have a good time, you leave her alone!"

"All I'm saying is that men ..." Curtis lee was grinning, but Bernadette cut him off like a weed.

"We all know what you're saying! You just hush your mouth. I'll talk to you later!" she said indignantly.

"In the bedroom?" The hope in Curtis Lee's voice matched the grin on his face.

The men were shouted down by the women, and dinner progressed. If the men would have heard the women talking after supper, as they got Marian into a bedroom and began instructing her on how to dress, and act, to get a man so horny that he'd be wrapped around her little finger, they would have cackled.

But they didn't hear.

They didn't see Marian blush as her daughters gave her explicit tips on exactly how to enslave a man in bed. She was practically panting when they finally stopped. Just talking about it had gotten them all excited, and they left to go find their men ... to have a little talk. Marian, unfortumately, not having a man, just stayed horny.

Robert Gates was not, as it turned out, married. He was divorced, and had been for five years. The turmoil of that divorce had convinced him that women weren't worth the pain.

But Robert Gates was a man, and both Nathan and Curtis Lee had not mispoken. When Bob heard that sybilant Southern accent that flowed from Marian Wilson's mouth in his class, he felt his nuts tighten. She had fascinated him the whole semester. She had a presence about her that made the young girls in his class seem like puppies, scampering about with no idea of what life was all about, and not caring. Her maturity was so refreshing that she captivated him. She wasn't hard on the eyes either. She wore her hair in an older style, and dressed the same way, but her clothes couldn't hide the lush figure under them. When he compared that to the relatively flat-chested young women he had been surrounded by for years, his fingers itched to see what she would feel like under them.

He was further taken by her stubborn intent to do this thing she was trying to do. That it was hard for her was obvious. She hadn't been in school for decades, and she was far behind the times, but, with dogged determination, she did what it took to pull herself along. On the other hand, her life experiences gave her the edge over her younger classmates. She understood real pain, and real love, and all the other emotions that the eighteen-to-twenty-four crowd just flirted with. She understood sacrifice. She had character, and he found her irresistible.

Somewhat unconsciously, he had kept himself in shape, as his subconscious mind tried to compete with men half his age for the nubile young things that surrounded them all. He'd had an almost-fling or two with his younger female students, but they always left him feeling like there had to be so much more. His wife had been self-possessed and opinionated in that way that didn't require rational support for one's opinion. She felt that way, and that was good enough for her. She had also been a ladder-climber, constantly harping on him for not seeking a higher rung on his own scholastic ladder. She wanted to be married to the President of the university, not just a professor. When he found out she was fucking the Dean of Students, he cut her loose, and had been more or less bitter ever since.

It was for all these reasons that he was astonished to find that, when Marian Wilson glided into his classroom, his prick misbehaved badly.

It was, in fact, misbehaving badly now, as she sat across from him, in a dress that showed way more creamy cleavage, and was way more up-to-date than anything she had ever worn in his class. In addition to looking positively ravishing, she also looked distinctly uncomfortable.

"I'm sorry," he said instinctively. He had been looking at her breasts. "I find myself having difficulty behaving like a gentleman."

"Oh, never mind," she said, looking surprised that she'd said it. "I'm just not used to men paying any attention to me."

Bob knew, from looking at her records, that she was a widow, and had been for more than a year. "I find that incredibly hard to believe," he said, meaning it.

They hadn't even ordered yet.

She fanned her face with her hand and blushed. "Dear me," she said in that gorgeous Southern drawl. "It appears that my children might have been right." The look in his dark eyes ... the naked desire there ... made her feel faint.

"Your children?" he asked. His ex-wife had hated children. She'd have had her perfectly healthy uterus cut out if she could have found a doctor who would do it.

"I have three," she said, feeling a little less light headed. "They're all grown now. I have grandbabies!" she said.

"I'd like to hear about them sometime," he said. "What did your children say?"

"My son," Marian blushed at the fact that she was actually going to tell this man, "reminded me that all men are alike, and only want one thing."

"Your son is a wise man," commented Bob.

Marian felt her eyes open wide, and her stomach do flip flops. He was so open about all this! A Southern man would never have been so blatant!

Bob saw that he had shocked her.

"I apologize again," he said, leaning back. "My only excuse is that you fascinate me."

"Me?" she squeaked. She was ... fascinating? "Why, you hardly know me!"

"Which is why we are here," he said smoothly. "I want very badly to get to know you better ... much better."

Marian felt her nipples start to tingle. What he had said could be taken in so many different ways. No man had ever told her, in so many words, that he wanted to make her squeal in bed. In all the things she had ever done with Harvey, never had they talked about what to do, or why to do it. It had just progressed, each able to see, in some mysterious fashion, what the other needed.

"I'm making you uncomfortable," he said, looking downcast. "Perhaps we should do this another time?" It was obvious he meant just being together on a date, rather than anything intimate.

Marian felt panic. She didn't want to leave this man's presence. She liked how open and honest he was, even if it made her feel wiggly inside.

"Nonsense," she said, getting control of her voice. "We're both adults." She had a thought. "Even if I'm only a helpless Sophomore," She smiled tentatively. "Are all Northern men as ... comfortable as you are with a woman?"

He laughed, and Marian felt her insides melt at the beauty of it.

"I don't know that I'd characterize myself as comfortable with you. You make me feel things that are definitely not appropriate for a first date ... with a Sophomore or any other woman."

Marian was only mildly shocked to feel herself becoming ... damp. It made her feel naughty, somehow.

"You want to know a secret?" she whispered across the table, suddenly feeling free to be naughty. "My ... thoughts are not so pristine either." She leaned back to see how he dealt with honesty that was completely out of line for a dignified Southern woman.

His dark eyes glinted, and his smile was feral. She recognized that hungry smile, and was astonished to find that it didn't bother her. She felt desirable for the first time in a long, long time.

"Do they have hamburgers down there in ... wherever you came from?" asked Bob.

She giggled. "Of course they do. It's not a foreign country! It's called Catfish Hollow."

He only raised one eyebrow. "I have to hear about that too," he said.

He looked around. He had chosen this place because it was posh, and they let you take your time. He hadn't wanted to be rushed through dinner. He felt differently now.

"You want to get a burger?" he asked.

"You sound like you're in a hurry to get this over with and take me home," she pouted.

"I can't take you home. I don't know where you live," he said.

She had been unsure about whether seeing the farm ... or the people at the farm ... would get things off to a bad start, and had therefore driven into the city to meet him there. His next comment interrupted her slight feeling of guilt at hiding who her children were.

"If we got this over with, as you characterize it ... the only home I could take you to would be ... mine."

Marian fanned her face again, blushing furiously. "Oh, my dear!"

"Of course we could stay here and spend the next two hours dining peacefully, if you prefer," he said gently, realizing how flustered she was. He didn't normally behave this way. He blamed it on how he reacted to her mere presence.

Marian realized she was making a fool of herself. If she stayed here, like this, for two more hours, they'd have to throw out the chair she was sitting on.

"A hamburger would be delightful!" she blurted. She wanted to cover her face with her hands.

Before she could, though, he was out of his chair and pulling hers back as she stood automatically. She resisted the impulse to look at the seat of her chair. She needed to change her panties. They had been unashamedly supplied, along with the matching bra and garter belt she was wearing, by her younger daughter. They were lacy in the extreme - you could actually see through them - and the panties were of the new bikini style, that rode high on the hips, and covered as little as the bra. When she'd first put that on, she had to tug and pull to get it to completely cover her nipples, and the brown circle of flesh around them. The undergarments were black, too, which made her honey-colored hair seem to gleam in the light. Still, when she'd stared at her reflection in the mirror, her thought had been "Not bad for an old girl!"

His hand, in the small of her back, pressing gently as he guided her toward the front of the restaurant, made her feel like she was running a fever. When they stepped out into the evening air she welcomed the cool breeze. Spring came late around here, at least by her reckoning. He took her to their cars, which were parked side-by-side. He had been standing negligently beside his, leaning on the fender, when she pulled into the parking lot and parked beside him.

"Yours or mine?" he asked. His was probably only three years old. Her dusty old station wagon looked like a mongrel dog next to his, but he was sweet for asking.

"Yours," she said. "I'm practically a stranger here. I had to have them draw me a map to find this place."

"Ahhhh," he sighed, heavily. "You tempt me to get you hopelessly lost. Then you'd be dependent on me and I could have my way with you."

He grinned to show he didn't mean it, but it didn't do any good. Marian felt almost panic as she felt the urge to throw herself on this man who made her feel so attractive and ... yes ... even sexy!

"I, sir, am a Southern lady, and as such, am reserved and proper at all times," she almost panted. "You would be a cad of the worst stripe to take advantage of little old me under circumstances, such as you have described. I must warn you, Sir, that I have my limits." She waited for the faint look of disappointment to register on his face, and there were more flip-flops in her belly. Then she went on. "And if you keep talking to me like that, I will not be responsible for any indelicate behavior I may display. Now, I must really insist that you buy me a hamburger before I throw myself at you like a hussy!"

The disappointment flashed into a wide smile.

"A hamburger for the Lady, most quickly!" he barked, as if he were yelling at an invisible fry cook. "Then ..." he paused dramatically and twirled imaginary moustaches, "I shall let you ravish me most thoroughly ... heh, heh, heh." His eyes slowly dropped, plainly with full intention, to the deep cleavage below her chin.

In the car, Bob intended to be the consummate gentleman. As he calmly negotiated through traffic that terrified Marian, he peppered her with questions about her children. He approved volubly when he found out Nathan was a policeman. He got out of her roughly where Catfish Hollow was, and was disappointed when she didn't know how it got its name. Then he volunteered that he had been raised in Massachusetts.

"A damn Yankee," she said with false disgust.

"Of the worst type," he agreed amiably. "My Great Great Grandfather fought in the Civil War." He grinned. "On the winning side, I might add."

"And now you seek to reap the spoils of war?" she arched an eyebrow.

"It is my due!" he said confidently. "Men who wage war and win, always take the best women for themselves."

"But you didn't fight in the war," she pointed out. "It is only your Great Great Grandfather who has the right to claim me!"

"Surely you've heard of inheritance!" he shot back. "Back then you could inherit a man's slaves. At least I should be able to inherit a simple woman."

"Women are never simple," she said drolly, enjoying this verbal battle. "Men have never been wise enough to recognize that."

"That's why my Great Great Great Great Great," he took a breath, "and so on Grandfather just whacked the woman he wanted on the head with a club and dragged her off to his cave."

His comment reminded Marian of Harvey. That's how he'd been. She shook off the memory, but not before he saw the pain on her face.

"You needn't worry about that," he assured her. "I don't have a club ... or a cave. I prefer to lure the unsuspecting lady into my modern day lair, with all the creature comforts to make her want to stay."

"I thought you were just going to claim me as spoils of war and be done with it." she said, the sparkle back in her eye.

"Somehow," he said, his eyes ahead on traffic, "I get the feeling you're not the kind of woman who is easily claimed. And besides, if you're involved in whatever is going to happen, I want to draw it out ... not be done with it."

He had done it again, she thought to herself, feeling the warm glow of a sincere compliment. How did he do that? She was ready to rip her clothes off right here in the car!

He suddenly turned off the street and into a parking lot.

"Zesto?" she said, reading the sign. "What in the world is a Zesto?"

"Only the place where you'll find the finest hamburgers, the most decadent chocolate malts, and fries worth fighting over," he said easily. "Perkins gives them a run for their money, but Perkins is a little high brow for this evening." He pulled into a parking spot. "Trust me, when you're finished with this meal, you'll want to ravish me just because you're so satisfied." He grinned. "In fact, I risk a great deal by bringing you here. Some women have been known to be so completely satisfied after eating here that they lost all interest in ravishment completely!"

She laughed. "I don't know you well at all, but I think I know you well enough already to know you wouldn't risk that." She dimpled. "They probably put those aphrodisiacs in the food here. That's probably why you brought me here."

"I hope not to need aphrodisiacs," he said, almost seriously.

It was only twenty feet to the front door of the small establishment, but he took her hand.

She suddenly wished it were much further.

Marian sat back and groaned, putting both hands on her stomach.

"I know why women can't think about ... what did you call it? Ravishment? I know why they can't think about that after they eat here. I'm so stuffed I don't know if I can get up!"

"It was good, though, huh?"

"I have to admit, I've never had a better burger," she sighed.

"I'm right about most things," he said easily. "You should make it a habit to believe everything I say and do ... whatever I tell you to do." His eyes sparkled.

Marian, who had calmed down completely during the meal as they chatted about everything, and nothing, was astonished at how this man seemed to know where her switches were. The clear innuendo in his voice sent electric shocks through her body, and she felt her nipples again.

"Such as?" she asked.

He wiggled his fingers in front of her face. "You are getting very sleepy," he said, his voice in a drone. "You are feeling quite warm. You want to take your clothing off to get cool. You know it would be delightfully cool if only you didn't have on all that heavy, hot, clothing."

She giggled, and he shrugged. "Sometimes it works, and sometimes it doesn't. I don't think you were trying hard enough."

She laughed, and then felt suddenly awkward.

"So ... what now?"

He slumped. "I guess ravishment is out. How about I take you somewhere as beautiful as you are? Have you seen the Plaza yet?"

Her face told him everything he needed to know, and his face lit up.

"You, are in for a treat," he said confidently.

She was bowled over by the collection of Spanish looking architecture that made up that part of Kansas City known as the Country Club Plaza. There were brightly lit shops of every kind, and her mind whirled at the variety available. He walked her around the fountains, and took her into Halls, which scandalized her when she found out the cheapest thing in the store was a ten dollar handkerchief. He took her to the Nelson Art Gallery, which was closed, but still lit up, and walked her through the gardens there. she felt like she was in a fairy tale. The sounds, sights and smells were intoxicating, and she felt twenty years younger. When she looked at her watch and saw it was ten, she felt like Cinderella hearing the clock strike midnight.

"Lands sakes," she sighed. "It's late. I should be home in bed by now!"

"My Uncle Bob, after who I am named," said Bob, "had a saying he used to tell me when I was a teenager. 'A good girl is always in bed by ten'." He waited just long enough for Marian to nod, and went on "'and home by midnight.'" He grinned. "I had hoped you were a good girl, but I see it's already ten."

"You are insufferable!" said Marian, again ready to take her clothes off for this man. "I should find a phone and call my children. They'll be worried about me."

"It just so happens that my house is about five minutes from here," he said hopefully. "I have a very nice phone."

"Flossie?" Marian said into the phone. "I'm sorry to be calling so late, but we sort of lost track of the time and I didn't want you to worry."

"We weren't worried," said Flossie, yawning. "Bernie and Hildy swore they were going to wait up for you, to hear all the juicy tidbits, but they dozed off. I sent them home half an hour ago."

"Is Nathan there?" asked his mother.

"He's got the graveyard shift tonight," said Flossie. "Don't be speeding around town or he might be the one to stop you and give you a ticket," she joked. "Are you having a good time?"

"Absolutely," said Marian, glancing at Bob, who was sitting on the couch, sipping at an inch of good Bourbon. She didn't want him to know what she was talking about. "But it's getting awfully late."

"Do you have anything to do in the morning?" asked Flossie.

"Well ... no ... not really ... but ..."

"Well, you know what they say," said Flossie. "If you don't have anything to do, don't do it around here. If you're having fun, I say keep having it until you're tired. Just don't fall asleep on the way home."

"Well, if you think it's all right," said Marian, unsure quite what Flossie was suggesting, and whether it was what she was thinking or not.

"You're a big girl," said Flossie. "You've been working very hard. If he's fun to be with, then have some fun."

"All right," said Marian. "I'll see you in the morning."

Marian froze as she realized what her last comment to Flossie might have sounded like to Bob. She turned to find him looking at her interestedly.

"What I meant was that, when she got up in the morning, I'd be there and see her," Marian said.

"What else could you have meant?" He smiled.

"I didn't mean I'd spend the night here," she said, panic edging into her voice.

"I didn't expect you to," he said.

"But you've been teasing me all night!" she said.

"That's only because I'm besotted with you. I'm like a seventeen year old out on a surprise date with the prom queen. I haven't felt like this since ... you know what? I don't think I've ever felt like this. I look at you and I want to shiver. I hear your voice and I want you to talk forever. That's all. I'm not usually like this, believe me. I also know that you are a true lady, and that I'm probably ruining any chance I ever have of ... well ... you already talked to your son."

Marian just stared at him. He had laid himself open to her. He was so incredibly open. He said what he thought, and it was delightful.

"Tell me three things about me that could be improved," she said, suddenly. "Three physical things."

He kept looking at her, his eyes darting up and down her body.

"Okay, you obviously work hard, because your hands are dry and red. That's one." He pretended to think hard. "Your hairstyle is about ten years out of date, I imagine. I'm sure there are a whole bunch of people who would think you looked more modern if you updated that. On the other hand, I kind of like it the way it is, so maybe that doesn't count." He looked at her for a ruling.

"It counts," she said.

"Okay ... what else? Hmmmmm. I don't suppose I could get away with saying you're way overdressed ... could I?"

"Nice try, buster. Come on, one more thing."

"I get a reward for this, right?" he asked hopefully.

"Maybe," she said.

"You're not going to like this one," he warned her.

"You let me be the judge of that," she said, stepping toward him.

"Okay, but I warned you." He stood up, and came to stand right in front of her. "You've got the teensiest little bit of extra flesh ... right ... here." His finger went to her abdomen, and he ran it from one side to the other, just about where her panties crossed high over her hips. "It pooches a little when you're not holding it in, which you usually do."

As his finger drifted across her abdomen, Marian repressed a shiver. No man had touched her like this, not even Harvey, with such a light, sensitive touch. And certainly no man other than Harvey had ever touched her there. He walked around behind her, and then stepped up to press his front to her back. His hands went to her waist and his mouth came to her right ear. He spoke softly - not a whisper - his voice almost liquid.

"Of course that might not count either, since I find that very attractive. I was thinking of what that might ..." His hands began to move forward, splaying out over her abdomen to cup and squeeze that extra flesh ever so lightly. "feel like in my hands," he finished. "And I was expecting it to feel very good. I like it. It makes you a real woman, not some phony who works out six hours a day."

Her hands came up and covered his, as she leaned back into him.

"You don't play fair," she breathed. "You don't play fair at all."

"Do I get my reward?" he asked, his hands beginning to slide upward. It was obvious where they were heading, and she sucked in her stomach as her upper lungs filled. To her dismay that just made her breasts push out in front of her even more.

"Please?" he asked.

The edges of his fingers were touching the bottom of her breasts now, and his thumbs had come up to press lightly against the bra where it went under her arm.

"I can't let you do that," she moaned. "This is our first date!"

"It's just a teensy little reward," he breathed into her ear. "Just this once. Didn't I do what I was supposed to? You're studying to be a teacher. Aren't you supposed to give me a gold star?"

The fact that he had stopped his hands ... had not forced them upon her ... made Marian actually feel like she had almost complete control. Had he pushed her, she would have pulled away and left. But the control he exhibited made her feel safe, even though he was pressed up against her, and his hands were on her.

"You're asking for TWO gold stars," she murmured.

"I admit I am a little greedy," he said.

His openness, even to criticizing her without fear, was almost puzzling. What kind of man was willing to look at your faults - and the ones he had mentioned were legitimate faults - and then make it crystal clear that he wanted you naked and under him? What kind of woman, for that matter, gave serious thought to getting naked and under him on their very first date? He was that man, and she was that woman, at the present, but what did all that mean?

"I need to ask you a question," she said, breathing deeply. His hands hadn't moved.

"I just answered a question," he said.

"Please?" she asked.

"Okay."

She turned to face him, raising her arms to go over his, and his hands stayed where they were, ending up on her back.

"How many women have you done this with since you got your divorce?"

"Do you mean how many women have I taken on a date? Or how many women have I tried to fondle on the first date? Or how many women have I lusted after shamelessly and almost in public?"

"Yes," she said. "How many?"

He looked up and mumbled. She heard him say "carry the two" as if he were adding large numbers. Finally he looked into her eyes and said "One."

"Oh," she said, feeling let down somehow. "Who was she?"

"She's you, silly," he said, not smiling.

"Honestly?" She was thunderstruck. "You haven't gone out with anyone since your divorce?"

He brought a hand to hit himself in the forehead with, and then put it back.

"Okay, there were a couple of girls. They kind of came on to me in class. I did take each of them out on a date, but nothing happened. Young women these days are so plastic, or something. I don't know what it is, but they don't seem like real people. Did you ever see 'Invasion Of The Body Snatchers'?"

She shook her head.

"Well these aliens came to earth and they took over people's bodies. It's like that. It's like college girls are acting out some role that they think is supposed to be how they think I want them to act. There was just nothing there. They were cute and all, but all I could think about was how much work it was going to be just to be around them."

"You never had sex with them?" she asked.

"I never even kissed them." he responded.

"But you feel differently about ... me?" she asked.

"Marian, if you left here right now, I wouldn't be able to walk normally for a week. People would think I was a cowboy because I'd be walking bowlegged. Right now my balls feel about the size of grapefruits because I think I'm more turned on than I've ever been in my whole life. I know I shouldn't feel that way, or say what I just said, but it's the truth. I know this is the first time we've spent any time together outside of class, but I'm not going to lie to you. You're the first real woman I've met since I don't know when, and that just makes me so horny I feel like an eleven year old looking at my first Playboy Bunny."

He never broke their gaze, and she didn't either. He finally subsided.

"You Northern men are so bald-faced about this," she said. "If a Southern Gentleman ever said anything like that to me I'd slap his face. I am therefore, surprised beyond measure, to find that what you said is very pleasing to me."

She turned again, raising her arms, until his hands were under her breasts.

"You may have two gold stars for being truthful" she whispered.

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