He dropped to his knees and placed his hands on either side of her left thigh.
“Right,” she corrected, unable to avoid the tears forming in her eyes.
“God, it feels like a lump of concrete,” he said, gently massaging the trembling muscles. “Relax. Relax. Relax, baby."
“I'm trying."
“Relax, Delilah. Think of the afterglow—after Boyd has taken you to the top of the mountain."
She closed her eyes and felt the muscle tension ease. “It's ... it's better, now."
“Sit still while I pay the tab."
Annie began to cry and Shelly hugged the child. “Mommy has a little cramp in her leg. It'll be okay. I promise."
Sam returned, smiling broadly for Annie's benefit. “Goldilocks, do you think I can carry your mother in my arms?"
“I don't know,” the little girl replied seriously. “She's kind of big."
“I can walk,” Shelly insisted, but her leg betrayed her.
Sam caught her and quickly swooped her into his arms. “It's just next door,” he reminded her.
“You ever think of going on a diet?” he joked as they crossed the parking lot separating Papa John's and the Dollar Building.
“The Dollars do own the damn town,” she said, noting the placard as Sam pushed through the swinging doors.
“This used to be a hotel,” Sam explained, crossing the corridor towards the brightly-lit clinic. “Now the clinic occupies the bottom floor, a mall is on the second floor and the top three floors are apartment units."
Seeing the trio approach, a nurse met them with a wheel chair and quickly pushed Shelly to an examining room.
“Is mommy going to be okay, Uncle Sam?"
“Sure, honey,” he said, pulling her onto his lap after sitting in an uncomfortable plastic chair. “Doctor McGee will take good care of her."
“Uncle Sam, do you love my mommy?"
“I sure do, Goldilocks."
“Mommy doesn't love you, but I do."
“I know,” he said sadly. “Hey, do you like to play with blocks?"
“Yes."
“I see some on the table in the corner."
She followed the direction of his head, smiled and slid out of his lap. “Here,” she said. “You take care of Lucky."
Twenty minutes later Shelly approached, walking unsteadily. “The doctor gave me a shot and told me to stay off my feet for a while,” she explained.
“How did you explain..."
“I told her I am a stripper and duck walk around the stage with my knees widely separated. Sam, if you are going to continue to drag me to your neck of the woods you must find a way to accept the fact that I am not ashamed of my profession."
“Want me to carry you?"
“I can make it to the car I think."
“What you need is a long soak in my Whirl Pool."
She nodded.
“Want company?"
“Annie will be disappointed."
“You're right. Annie and I will play golf while you take care of yourself."
As she strapped on the seatbelt, Shelly asked, “Did I see a Bi-Lo Supermarket back at the traffic light?"
“Yeah,” he said while buckling Annie into the kiddy seat. “It's so new you can still smell fresh paint on the walls.” He slid under the steering wheel and reached for the seatbelt.
“Would you mind buying me a bunch of bananas?"
Sam smiled at her wickedly.
“Asshole,” she mouthed.
* * * *
“How do you like miniature golf?” Sam asked as he helped Annie from the back seat of his Taurus.
“It's fun. I golfed good,” she said proudly.
He laughed. “Especially the last round we played."
“I got a hole in one."
“You sure did. I'm proud of you."
Holding the stuffed Lucky in her right arm, Annie clutched Sam's index finger with her left hand as they headed for the front porch.
“I liked riding the horsie too,” she said.
“Better than the car?"
Annie giggled. “I liked it all, Uncle Sam. Thank you for taking me."
“You're welcome, Goldilocks. Look, maybe we'd better not tell your mother I let you have two ice-cream cones."
She giggled. “I won't tell.” She yawned.
“Sleepy?"
“A little bit,” she admitted. “Look!” she squealed. “There's Lucky!"
Sam glanced to his left and saw Lucky approaching slowly, head low and tail wagging furiously. The mixed breed came straight to Annie, sniffed the stuffed animal, balanced on his hind legs and licked her face.
“Can I play with the real Lucky for a few minutes, Uncle Sam?"
“Honey, it's dark outside."
“Can Lucky come in with us?"
Sam smiled. “If he wants to."
Lucky followed them through the door with no coaxing required.
“We're home,” Sam shouted. There was no response.
“I'll bet mommy is still in the thing."
“Whirl Pool,” Sam offered.
“Yeah.” Annie tossed the stuffed Lucky on the sofa and the real Lucky quickly retrieved it, dropping the toy at Annie's feet.
“Uncle Sam, Lucky likes Lucky too.” She again tossed the stuffed dog and Lucky raced after it.
“Why don't you play with Lucky down here while I go find your mother?"
“Okay,” she said, hugging the real Lucky.
Sam climbed the steps and paused at the bedroom door. Only the bedside lamp was on. Shelly lay in a fetal position, nude and asleep.
He eased down on the mattress beside her and allowed himself the luxury of visually enjoying her magnificent body. He touched her nipple and was surprise at how quickly it stiffened. Reluctantly, he leaned forward and kissed her cheek. “Time to wake up, Sleeping Beauty,” he whispered.
She opened her eyes and smiled. “Have fun?"
He nodded. “How are you feeling?"
“Much better. Where's Annie?"
“Downstairs playing with Lucky One and Lucky Two."
“Both Luckies?"
He grinned. “She's so sleepy I don't think she can hold out much longer. I'd better take my ladies home."
She touched his face.
He felt the tingle all the way to his toes.
“You said something at Papa John's—something about Boyd. How did you know?"
“You told me."
“I didn't say anything about the sex."
“It wasn't hard to figure out. He's the only one who rings your chimes."
“I'm sorry, Sam. I'm really sorry. You're such a sweet guy."
“You said I have a lot to learn. Can you recommend a good teacher?"
“Lock the door."
“What?"
“Do I have to draw you a damn picture?"
Chapter Four
Sam pulled the reluctant woman into his arms. “I was expecting you earlier,” he said, stepping aside so she and Annie could enter his home.
“I had to do a load of laundry this morning."
“Uncle Sam, may I see my room?"
“It's not your room, Annie,” Shelly corrected. “It's Uncle Sam's guest room."
“Uncle Sam said it was my room,” Annie countered.
“It's your room any time you want to use it, Goldilocks. Let's go upstairs and see what you think,” he said, swinging the little girl up so she could straddle his neck.
“Look, mommy,” Annie squealed. “It is my room. It has a little bed with sides so I won't fall out, and a dresser just my size. Wow! Look at all those toys."
As Sam lowered Annie to the floor, Shelly said, “You shouldn't have done all this."
“It was on sale,” he alibied.
“I wasn't talking about the expense. You're trying to get to me through Annie and I don't appreciate it."
“You agreed to spend the weekend, didn't you? It must be working."
She grinned in spite of herself and
shook her head. “You beat all. I guess it is working. We ate lunch together every day this week except Monday and now here we are for the weekend."
“Annie, you play with the new toys,” Sam said. “You mommy and I are going to bring in your suitcases."
“Okay, Uncle Sam."
“I'm not moving in with you, damn it. I just packed one suitcase."
“Whatever."
Lucky was scratching at the front door and, when Sam opened it, the dog, following Annie's scent, raced up the steps to her room.
“Did you have any trouble finding the place?” Sam asked as he waited for Shelly to open the trunk of her Escort.
“Dot is not that big."
“That's one of the things that makes it a great place to raise a kid."
“Sam, let's get something straight. You wiggled into my life through Annie. I have allowed it because Annie likes you and she needs a father figure. I'll screw you once in a while in appreciation, but if you ever hurt her, I'll tear your balls off."
“Ouch. I believe you would. Have you eaten lunch?"
“Yeah. I was so late getting away that I made Annie and me a peanut butter sandwich."
“With bananas?"
“Yes, damn it,” she said as she trailed behind him towards the house. “I've eaten so many bananas this week I think my skin is turning yellow."
“Is it helping?"
“Something is. My thighs still ache every night, but there have been no more cramps."
Sam set the suitcase beside Annie's dresser and watched silently as Shelly placed the little girl's clothes in the top drawers.
“Honey,” Shelly said. “Put on your bathing suit and play with the toys some more. Uncle Sam and I need to talk a few minutes and then we'll go to the swimming pool."
Shelly led the way to the master bedroom, leaving the suitcase for Sam to carry, and closed and locked the door behind him.
“Okay,” she said as she pulled off her shirt, “we have time for a quickie.” Her bra dropped to the floor and she bounced her breasts for his enjoyment.
“No,” he said simply, opening the suitcase.
“No?"
“My love for Annie is not for sale. Yes, initially I used her to get to you, but that's no longer the case. She won my love just as I hope to one day win yours."
“Don't tell me that you..."
“Put your clothes on and let's take Goldilocks to the pool."
“If you don't want to fuck me, why did you invite me to spend the night? Damn it, Sam. I went to a lot of trouble for you this weekend. Hell, I have to drive back to Charlotte tonight for the show and then drive all the way back out here during the wee hours of the morning."
He looked at her for several seconds before replying. “I don't want to fuck you, Delilah. I never have. What I want is to make love to you. Someday I hope you'll allow it."
* * * *
Annie loved the water wings Sam bought her and quickly learned to paddle her way back and forth between Uncle Sam and her mother. The trio was soon joined by Tim Dollar Junior and his parents. Junior was wearing a white flotation devise around his waist and the two children quickly became friends.
When the adults tired of the water, Annie enticed Junior to join her in the kiddy pool. The adults gratefully retreated to the poolside chaise lounges.
The polite conversation bored Shelly. She searched the pool, hoping to find Ron. Failing to do so, she mentally undressed each decent looking male swimmer and imagined what it would be like to have sex with them. Unaccountably, she found herself frequently stealing glimpses of the thin strip of cloth that wrapped around Sandra Dollar's all but flat chest.
Suddenly, she realized that conversation stopped and the eyes of her companions were on her. “I'm sorry,” she said. “My mind strayed there for a minute. What did you say?"
Sandra smiled. “I frequently daydream too. I asked if you've ever tried fishing?"
Shelly shook her head. “The thought of impaling worms on a hook turns me off."
“I'll bait the hook for you,” Tim laughed.
“Tim,” Sam interceded, “we appreciate the invitation, but we don't have any fishing equipment."
“Not a problem,” Tim said. “Dudette has enough to furnish half of Dot."
“If Annie likes it half as much as Junior, she'll have a wonderful time,” Sandra added.
Realizing she missed the details of the invitation, Shelly said, “Whatever you say, Sam."
“Then it's settled,” Sandra said, quickly sitting on the edge of the chaise lounge and leaning towards Shelly, offering the stripper almost a full view of her pert little breasts. “We'll have lunch together at the Korner Kafe and spend the afternoon fishing in our pond. Wear your bathing suit, Shelly. You can use some more sun."
Shelly tried, but could not pull the focus of her eyes from the thin woman's chest. “Okay,” she managed to say. You stupid slut, Shelly admonished herself. You know good and well you are not a lesbian. Quit staring at that woman's tits.
Sandra stood and stretched, pulling the cloth of her bikini tight around her labia. She looked deeply into Shelly's gray-green eyes while saying, “Tim, it's after four. We need to head for Double D Acres. That's what we call our farm,” she explained to Shelly.
“Double D for two Dollars?” Shelly asked, her eyes still drawn to the apex of Sandra's legs.
“That's what everyone thinks. Actually, it's for Dude and Dudette, the nicknames we have for each other."
Failing to catch Junior's attention with his voice, Tim waded into the kiddy pool and Shelly stood up. “I think I'll go to the dressing room with you, Sandy. I need to pee."
Sam laughed. “Why don't you just jump in the water and pee like everybody else?"
“Sam!” she said indignantly.
When they entered the dressing room, Sandra whispered, “You want me to help you pee or would you prefer to shower with me?"
“What the hell are you talking about?"
“You ever made it with a woman?"
“Shit, you're crazy, Sandy."
“I thought it'd be repulsive too, at first. Actually I've done it with only one other woman, but it's ... it's ... different—nice."
“No thank you,” Shelly said coldly as she marched towards the row of cubicles. She slid the lock in place and wiggled her one-piece suit to her ankles. After completing her business she blotted with cheap, rough, tissue and moaned at the touch on her engorged clitoris. How can that skinny, flat-chested bitch turn me on like this?
There was a soft wrap on the toilet door. “Are you okay, Shelly?"
Shelly took a deep breath, flushed and stepped out of her bathing suit. Very softly, she replied, “I'll meet you in the shower."
Nude, she carefully locked the shower door and turned to face Sandra.
“Plenty of room in here for two,” Sandra said quietly, her voice nearly drowned out by the water cascading from the showerhead.
“I'm not a lesbian."
“Of course not. Me either."
“I don't know what to do."
“Do whatever you like—nothing more—nothing less."
Shelly stared at the beautiful little mounds so proudly jutting from the honey-haired woman's chest. The deep red tips seemed to be beckoning. Tentatively she touched one, then the other of Sandra's nipples.
Sandra placed her hands on either side of Shelly's face and moved her head towards Shelly's trembling lips. It was a gentle kiss—almost a caress—followed by another and then another.
Breasts ground against breasts as Sandra's hands slipped to Shelly's buttocks. Sandra's lips touched Shelly's right nipple—then the left. Shelly felt the tip of Sandra's tongue probing her navel.
Shelly sighed as she felt Sandra's tongue gently prying apart the lips of her labia. She stepped away and turned her back on the richest lady in Dot. “I'm sorry Sandy. I can't do it."
“It's okay,” Sandra said soothingly. She stood, wrapped her arms around Shelly, pushed her rock-hard
nipples into Shelly's back and licked her neck. “I know you like it, but we need never mention this again."
Shelly turned. “Sandy, I don't understand it, but you're the sexiest woman I've ever seen. If I were going to do it with a woman, you'd be my first choice."
Sandra smiled and began to lather her body with a bar of soap. “I consider that a big compliment, coming from a professional artist."
Shelly wiggled on the tight bathing suit and felt Sandra's hand on her buttock while the other hand zipped her up.
I have to get Sam back to his place now. I'm on fire. She rushed from the dressing room and crashed into a stunned customer.
“Hi, there, Shelly,” Ron said when he recovered from the surprise encounter. “I know I'm good, but I didn't expect you to bowl me over,” he joked.
“Is your van air-conditioned?"
“Sure."
“Let's go."
* * * *
“You look bored,” Sandy said.
“I'm afraid I'll never be a fisherman,” Shelly agreed.
“Your daughter is not bored,” Sam laughed.
Shelly glanced towards the end of the little fishing pier, built out over the pond beside the Dollars’ house. Annie and Junior were sitting on the end of the pier, feet dangling over the edge and eyes concentrated on corks floating a few feet away. Suddenly Annie squealed, jerked back on her line and shouted, “Got another one."
Junior sprang to his feet and encouraged Annie as she reeled in a small crappie.
Sandra laughed. “Why don't we let the guys look after our kids. The ice chest of beer will keep them happy. I want to show you my spring."
Tim laughed. “Dudette's favorite spot on all the earth."
“It's not far,” Sandra said, pointing. “It's just on the other side of that hill."
“I'm not up to walking that far,” Shelly hedged.
“You can take the golf cart all the way,” Tim encouraged. “It's the sweetest water you've ever tasted."
When the women were seated in the golf cart, Shelly said, “Look, Sandy, about yesterday afternoon."
“Hold that thought, Shelly. Did you hump my husband when he took you to the house to show you the bathroom?"
Shelly looked at Sandra in surprise. “No, of course not."
“Didn't think so. You weren't gone long enough. Besides, your boobs are too big for Tim's tastes—not for mine, though."
Sintown Chronicles II: Through Bedroom Windows Page 56