“You decide to get your hair wet after all?” Wiley asked, calm as could be. “Scoot forward.”
“What?”
“Scoot forward. I want to rinse off. And, since your hair’s wet I can wash it. I’ve always wanted to wash your hair.”
“You need to get dressed! You’re too…distracting like that. Plus, I’m mad at you!”
“Me? June, why are you mad at me?”
“Shh! Don’t say my name! He’ll hear!”
“So?”
“Oh, Wiley!” I half sobbed as I let my face fall into the palms of my hands.
The day had been too much. It was all becoming more than I could bear. I couldn’t help it. Despite the fear of being overheard, I started to cry.
“Shh!” soothed Wiley as he stepped into the tub behind me. “Please don’t cry, baby. Please don’t.”
“I’m sorry. I… Have you forgotten what it’s like? Wiley, this doesn’t look good. We’re in the midst of a bonafide crisis here! And you don’t seem to understand that—”
Wiley placed his hand gently over my mouth to silence me. “I’m gonna tell you something and I want you to listen. Okay?”
I nodded slowly and Wiley removed his hand.
“War changes a man, June. The things that used to scare me, cause me nightmares, they’ve changed. I’m not worried about people talking behind my back. I’ve been too busy trying to stay alive.”
“What if it matters to me?” I asked, quietly.
Wiley picked up a bottle of shampoo from the edge of the tub, squirted some into his hand, and started to work it through my hair.
He didn’t say a word. He just continued to work the lather through my hair in silence, his strong fingers massaging my scalp.
When he was done he leaned down and kissed my shoulder. “Scoot forward and lean back. It’s time to rinse.”
I moved all the way forward in the tub. My knees were pulled up to my chest. Then I looked back over my shoulder at Wiley.
“Trust me. Lean back.”
And I did. I did trust him. It was all those other people I didn’t trust. All those other people whose opinions I feared. I leaned back. Wiley’s hands reached underneath my head, cradling it, holding it just above the surface of the water. I felt my hair fan out and float around my shoulders.
I looked up at Wiley. He began to concentrate on the task of rinsing the soap from the ends of my hair, running his fingers through it. He lifted my neck up and the top of my head lowered a bit more. He continued to rinse, cupping clean water in the palm of his hand and pouring it over my head.
“You know,” he said, “before I left for Vietnam, I saw you one night, out at the lake.”
Wiley paused for a moment, then continued. “You didn’t seem to even know I was there. It was pitch dark and I was sitting on the edge of the dock. You and Tracy Garland had come for a late night swim. The night was hot. We were having a heat wave. You were wearing that pink two-piece suit. You floated right past me on your back. You’re hair was spread out around you just like this. You were the most beautiful thing I’d ever seen.”
Wiley lifted my head up out of the water and I sat up. He wrapped his arms around my waist and slid me closer to him. My back was right up against his chest and I could feel his arousal against me, hard and firm. He picked up the bar of soap from the side of the tub, dipped it into the water, and then began to rub it across my breasts and over my stomach.
“I knew that very night, June,” he said, releasing the soap.
He began to massage my breasts. Allowing the weight of them to rest fully in the palms of his hands. He squeezed them gently and then brushed his fingertips across my nipples.
I found myself relaxing against him. It was strange. On the one hand I felt complete languor and on the other I felt as if I was as tight as a bow. Wiley rolled my nipples between his thumb and forefinger, tugging on them.
“I knew it would just be a matter of time,” he whispered, huskily, before sliding his hand down between my legs and separating my folds.
“Time before what?” I managed to gasp, my voice hitching as the pad of his thumb began to circle my swollen nubbin.
Wiley kissed my shoulder again. “Before I’d make you mine.”
“Wiley? The coals seem hot enough. Do you want me to put the potatoes on?” yelled Jared from outside the window.
Hearing his voice right then was just like having someone splash ice-cold water in my face. Apparently, it was that way a bit for Wiley too. He sighed and released me. Then he used his toes to pull down the lever on the stopper.
“You’re hair’s already wet,” he pointed out. “Get on up. I’ll start the shower so we can rinse off.”
I did as he asked. I stood up and turned to face him. He smiled at me, then leaned down and kissed me on the tip of my nose.
“I’ve waited a long while for you June. I suppose I can wait a bit more.” Then he shouted so that Jared could hear, “Go ahead. We’ll be out in a minute.”
“I can’t go out there!” I whispered as we switched places.
Wiley didn’t say a word. He just started the shower and went about washing. It was almost as if he’d forgotten I was there. I watched him as he leaned back under the spray of the water. The taut muscles of his abdomen were stretched and they flexed pleasantly as he lifted his arms to rinse the last of the shampoo from his hair.
“I’m going to shave,” he said. “Are you through?”
I hadn’t really finished washing. So I shook my head. Wiley nodded. Then he stepped out of the shower, leaving me alone. He was just on the other side of the curtain, but he might as well have been on the other side of the world I felt so alone. I soaped up my body and quickly rinsed. My stomach was in knots as I turned off the taps.
The curtain flew open and I must have jumped a mile. Wiley was standing there, freshly shaven with a towel wrapped around his waist and another in his hand.
“Towel?”
“Thanks,” I replied, accepting it. I wrapped it around my body and then took a moment to squeeze the excess water from my hair before stepping out of the tub.
Wiley walked up behind me, a wide-toothed comb in his hand. “Your dress is still wet,” he said, running the comb through my hair, taking care with the tangles. “I guess you’re stuck wearing my shirt. Not that I’m disappointed.”
He set the comb down and then he opened the door. Wiley picked the shirt up off the floor of the hallway and then held it out for me, holding it open so that I could slip my arms into the sleeves. When I didn’t step out of the bathroom, he came to me. I reached for the shirt and made short order of putting it on, buttoning it up to the very top and rolling up the long sleeves.
“I—I’ll just wait in the bedroom until it’s dry.”
“Nonsense, that’ll take all night,” he said, bending over. Wiley grabbed me and threw me over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes.
I squealed and began to squirm in an effort to get him to release me.
“Have you gone round the bend? Put me down!”
“Keep moving like that and you’re likely to give Jared a free show,” he said, opening the door and walking down the hallway, through the kitchen and out to the back yard.
“Jared, you remember June,” said Wiley as he set me down. You’d have thought we were standing outside of the Piggly Wiggly, that’s how normal he sounded. You never would have guessed that he was standing there in nothing but a towel and me in only a shirt. I was mortified, totally and completely mortified. And Jared? Well he was just gaping at the two of us like a big ol’ fish. His mouth was wide open with surprise.
“Close your mouth, Jared. And stop staring,” said Wiley, walking over to test the temperature of the coals. “It’s not polite. You’re going to make June uncomfortable.”
I looked away. I wasn’t focusing on anything in particular. I just couldn’t look at Jared.
“Always a pleasure to see you, June. How’s the family.”
I looke
d over at Jared. He seemed determined to act as if everything was ordinary. Well, then so was I.
“Fine,” I replied. “Just fine.”
“That’s good.”
“Except Sam’s number got called yesterday, they’ve gone down to Houston so that one of the Army doctors can check him out. They should be home tomorrow though.”
Jared nodded and took a long pull on his beer. He lowered the bottle slowly. “Um, Wiley?”
“Yeah? Want another beer? It’ll be a minute or two before I can put the steaks on.”
“I think that old Mrs. Mason’s about to faint. Maybe you and June should go put some clothes on.”
I looked over and there she was. My third grade teacher was standing in the middle of her vegetable garden, a basket of tomatoes tucked under one arm, staring at me and Wiley. Oh, God. What she must have been thinking.
“Dear Lord!” I gasped, my hand flying up to cover my mouth.
Wiley waved to Mrs. Mason and then strolled over towards me, leaned down, and kissed me square on the mouth. “You’ve sullied my reputation now, June,” he said solemnly when he broke off the kiss. “I hope that you’re prepared to do the honorable thing and marry me.” Then he walked into the house, leaving me standing out in the back yard with Jared.
A few seconds ticked by.
“So,” said Jared, breaking the silence. “You’re folks are in Houston, huh?”
“I know this doesn’t look good—”
“Actually, you look quite fetching.”
“Wiley and I…”
“It’s none of my business, June. Wiley’s my best friend. It’s obvious he’s crazy about you. He’s a bit fragile, June. Just…just don’t toy with him. If you and Peter had some sort of fight, or you’re just looking for a way to sow some wild oats before getting married I just—”
“I am not seeing Peter Johnson!” I practically shouted. “Why on earth does everyone assume that I’m going to marry Peter Johnson? Good Lord!”
“Well, you and Peter went out all through high school.”
“Peter’s a homosexual!” I finally yelled out in frustration.
Mrs. Mason gasped.
Jared looked horrified.
The screen door banged shut. Wiley walked past me, dressed in a fresh white t-shirt and clean blue jeans. He was carrying a plate with two big rib eyes on it.
“I always knew there was something funny about that boy,” he said.
“Please don’t say anything!” I begged Jared.
“About?”
I smiled. “Thank you, Jared”
“No sweat, Junebug. I’d best be going. Can I at least spread gossip about the two of you?”
“No!” Wiley and I said in unison.
Wiley looked at me and asked that I show Jared to the door. Then he put the steaks on the grill and began to walk over to the Mason’s. I said a quick goodbye to Jared. When I came back out, Wiley was walking back towards me and Mrs. Mason was dabbing at the corners of her eyes with the edge of her apron.
“Maybe I should go,” I said quietly.
Wiley picked up the spatula off the grill, flipped the steaks, and casually asked, “Why?”
“There’ll be gossip, Wiley.”
“Jared won’t say anything. Neither will Mrs. Mason. She’s a good woman. We’ve come to an understanding.”
“What does she understand, exactly?”
Wiley looked up at me and smiled.
“How do you feel about me, June?”
“How do I—”
“Wait! No, that’s not right. You’ve told me how you feel in your letters, haven’t you?”
Wiley walked over to me and ran his hand over my still damp hair.
“I’m in love with you June Monroe, crazy in love with you. I intend to marry you, if you’ll have me that is. Lord, I’d take you to Vegas right now, except I know you deserve better than that. Plus, my momma would kill me.”
I just stood there in the back yard. My feet bare, my hair damp, my face freshly scrubbed, dressed in nothing but Wiley’s dress-shirt. It was possibly the most important moment in my life and I’d never be able to share it with anyone. Not with it happening like this.
“Well?”
“Are you asking me to marry you?”
“Did you want me to wait until I had the ring? I can do it again if you want tomorrow. I’ll get down on one knee and everything.”
“No. That’s alright,” I said. My gaze traveled slowly about the yard. I breathed in the scent of the steaks cooking on the grill. Then I closed my eyes and listened quietly for a moment, committing everything about the moment to memory.
“June? You okay?”
I nodded and smiled, then I opened my eyes.
“Say it again.”
“I love you, June,” he repeated without hesitation.
“I love you, too, Wiley.”
“I don’t want to wait, June. I feel like we’ve been waiting forever for one another.”
“I’ve always thought that August was a fine month for a wedding. Too many people get married in June.”
“August it is, then.”
~
I fell asleep in a man’s arms for the first time that very night. And, except for the two weeks that followed, the two weeks leading up to our wedding, I’ve spend every night since in Wiley’s arms.
The world has changed since then, and so have we. In some ways for the better, and in some ways for the worse. But there’s one thing I’ve come to realize I can count on, my love for Wiley and his for me. We were meant to be, that’s the plain truth of it. Up till this very day, when Wiley and I make love everything seems so simple, as simple and pure and right as that very first time.
~
“I suspect that my dress is dry, now,” I said, softly as I rinsed the last dinner plate.
“I imagine it is,” replied Wiley, taking it from me and drying it off.
“It’s getting late. You should take me home.”
“Stay.”
I looked up at Wiley. He carefully placed the last dinner plate back in the cabinet and then walked up to me, repeating his request. “Stay.”
“I can’t.”
Wiley place his hands around my waist and lifted me up onto the counter. We were eye to eye.
“You can,” he said, leaning forward and kissing the corner of my mouth as he undid the top two buttons on the shirt. He placed his hands under my knees, and separated my legs so that he could step closer. His hands were sliding up my thighs, up underneath the edge of the shirt. His touch was almost scalding. “I drove your Daddy’s truck back over to your place. It’s in the driveway. No one will be home tonight. I’ll take you back before the sun comes up, I promise. Stay with me, June.”
Now whoever said, “Temptation, thy name is woman” has clearly never met Wiley Patton. I had never seen such hunger in a man before.
“I’m beginning to think that you suggested the wine with dinner so that I’d lose all sense and give into your wicked ways, Mr. Patton.”
Wiley grinned, then leaned down and kissed my neck. “I’m gonna make it so good for you, June, I promise,” he whispered into my ear. His hand reached up and molded itself to my breast.
I felt my resolve crumbling. My legs spontaneously lifted and wrapped themselves around his waist. Wiley slid his hands underneath my bottom and lifted me up into his arms. He crushed his lips to mine with such passion that it stole the breath right out of me. I was dizzy and felt for a second as it I were falling. Then I realized I wasn’t falling at all. I was wrapped tightly in Wiley’s arms, my legs around his waist, my arms around his neck. He broke off the kiss as he walked through the bedroom door and over to the bed.
Wiley was breathing heavy as he lay me down on the bed. He stood up and pulled his t-shirt off over his head and then he was on me again. Wiley stared into my eyes as he began to unbutton my shirt.
“I love you, June.”
“I love you, too, Willey.”
“I�
��ve never been with a girl for her first time. I hear there’s some pain. I don’t want to—”
I placed my hand over his lips and smiled up at him, trying to look confident. “Shh, it’s all right.”
Wiley leaned down and softly kissed between the valley of my breasts, his right hand working at the buttons and opening the shirt. I felt my back lift off the bed, my body seeking out more of is touch. His kisses became more ardent, his mouth was wet and hot. He palmed one breast in his hand and lifted it up slightly.
“You’re breasts are beautiful,” he said, then he latched on. I was startled at first, embarrassed too. I could feel his strong sucks down to the tips of my toes. It was making them curl and causing me to tingle. Wiley rolled my other nipple, the one he wasn’t sucking on, between his thumb and index finger.
“Oh!” I gasped.
Wiley released my breast with an audible pop. “Too much?” He moved to my other breast and started to lick around the areola.
“I…I…”
I tried real hard to put what I was feeling into words, but I just couldn’t. So I gave up.
Wiley grinned from ear to ear. “I do believe I’ve left you speechless,” he said as he slipped his hand between us, sliding it down between my legs.
I wanted so much for him to touch me again, just like before. And he did.
“You’re already so wet for me, baby,” whispered Wiley placing his hand over my mound and sliding the tip of his finger between my folds, rubbing up and down, causing those sweet sensations to grow and grow.
“Oh, Wiley!” I gasped as he inserted the tip of another finger.
He was sliding his fingers in and out, getting a little deeper each time. My hips started moving on their own accord pushing him in even further. Wiley was kissing me the entire time. When he wasn’t using his mouth for kissing he was whispering in my ear, whispering words of encouragement and love, words that set me on fire.
I heard the rasp of a zipper and felt a sudden coldness. I opened my eyes and saw that Wiley was standing at the side of the bed. I watched his jeans slide to the floor revealing him to me. My stomach clenched.
June in August Page 4