by Dan Dillard
Chapter 9
Slobber met Ethan at the front door, wagging his tail with his usually goofiness. They went for a quick walk, and then he called Emily to check on her. She had been quite freaked out by the ghost tale and he thought she might be checking under the bed right about then.
The phone rang, and rang, and just as he was about to hang up, a knock on the door caused him to leap out of his skin. He let out a breath of frustration before turning to open the door.
“Who the hell?” he said.
When he opened the door, Emily pushed her way in, sending Slobber scampering off to safety, and practically tackled Ethan. She smiled and shut the door behind her.
“I can walk the dog in the morning,” she said.
She held on to him.
“Story freak you out?” he asked.
“A little,” she said. “I didn't think I'd be able to sleep. My apartment creaks and groans a lot.”
She gripped his shirt and kissed him for a moment. He tried to pause for a breath, but Emilybit his lower lip playfully. He smiled and pulled her closer to him.
“I should scare you more often,” he said.
Emily pushed him from the doorway to his couch, only a few feet inside the small apartment. The kissing continued, growing longer and deeper. Every motion was deliberate and strong. Ethan sat upright, holding her in his lap and unbuttoning her shirt with one hand. He pushed her back so that he could kiss her chest. Emily hugged him tightly to her. They stood to remove their remaining clothes, stumbling and giggling into his room. She lay down, allowing him to enter and then Emily used her legs to pull him deep inside.
The intensity drained them as if they had just run a marathon. She lay her head on his chest as he stroked her hair.
Not a single word was spoken between them. They stood and walked past the dog, who cocked his head sideways in the confused way that dogs do, but didn’t move from his spot.
The excitement from the first round aroused Ethan again. He kissed and massaged her, exploring her body with more patience the second time. She was even more beautiful than he had imagined. It happened more slowly this time, each paying close attention to the other until each was satisfied.
One shared, naked snack of beer and sliced apple later, they fell asleep on the couch. Slobber sighed, disappointed that there was no room for him, and retired to his master's bed.
..ooOOoo..
Ethan's morning came late. He woke first and after she roused, they sipped coffee and watched each other, sharing playful smiles.
“You should hang something on the walls.”
He laughed at the notion, having heard it from anyone who ever entered that apartment.
“Why is that funny?”
“I don't know. I'm just happy, I guess.”
He mussed her hair as he walked by with a fresh cup of coffee.
“I have that effect on you,” she joked.
Then she gasped.
“What?” he said.
“I need to let my poor dog out!”
“Then he can finally live up to his name,” he said.
“You're hilarious,” she replied, stone-faced.
She wore his shirt home and carried her clothes in a bundle, which was fine with him. He enjoyed the way his shirt lay lightly across her chest, showing her curves, and thought it looked much better on her, anyway. There was one last kiss at the front door and he tried to pull her back inside.
“Save your energy,” she said, and walked to her car.
..ooOOoo..
An internet site on ‘dowsing’ caught his attention, and he spent an hour or so roaming around the apartment with two divining rods made from coat hangers. The method was well documented as crap, but managed to strike his fancy. Though he agreed it was crap, he decided to keep an open mind not toss any legend aside without at least one flagship test.
“This is one cubic-ass-ton of horse shit, Slobs.”
The dog followed every step he took with great interest, stopping to scratch only when his master would stand still. Ethan fashioned his dowsing rods from hangers in his closet, bending them in approximation to the pictures from the website. The he strolled slowly about the apartment, waiting for them to spin, or perhaps glow.
“Yep, total horse shit. Not to mention, I ruined two perfectly good coat hangers.”
Slobs wagged his tail and tongue at the same time, the appropriate amount of joy for the occasion.
“Maybe what we have is a ghost-free apartment. We just need to find some bait, buddy.”
With that, he scratched the dog and tossed the wire rods in the bathroom trash. Then he stood in his bedroom doorway, lost in thought.
Kay had said not to invite the possibility. She had been a scared little girl. He was a grown man. His decisions would be tempered with reason, and maybe a little wisdom.
Ethan went to the living room and sat down on the couch. The computer stared at him from the coffee table, but he didn't notice it that afternoon. His mind found focus in Emily. Resisting the urge to call her, he left his cell on the table and ordered some flowers online, scheduling them to be delivered to her at work that Monday. The card would simply say,
‘Wow, Ethan.’
That should be enough.