He turned his head to her, “Like I said she got hit in the face with a bat. The neighbor kids brought her home and I immediately set to pressing her while my wife called the doctor. She was struck on the jaw all the way up to her temple and she was beginning to swell. I spent an hour pressing her face—jump to the next morning. Her face was tender to the touch with no swelling, but the only bruising was up in her hair where I didn’t press her. Funny thing, next week she was hit on the opposite side of the face with a swing while I was at work. Sure enough when I got home, I got cried at by her for not being there to press her, she kept pointing to her huge shiner. That was the day I began to teach her, uh the right way. Halo… what it boils down to is the energy of love…”
“Love?” Halo blurted out.
He looked away, cursing himself for the slip then replied casually, “Uh, yes. It can get metaphysical. For instance you don’t want to use your own energy normally. You want to use the energy from around us…”
“So you mean there is love around us?” Halo asked purposely.
“Uh… well, yes I like to think so…”
“That’s it?” She asked and she could hear her dejection in her reply. “So I take it you used your own energy…”
“Yeah… something like that. Knowing where to place your fingers or hands is another.” He could not help but smile, hoping she did not read too much into it.
“You really are a Mystery man, aren’t you?” Halo stated.
“Nope, just a guy, Halo. Just a regular guy.”
“Yeah, right.” Halo reached her hand over and caressed his arm, “So now what?”
He turned to her, “How’s your back?”
“Better, and back to my question. So now what?”
“I’m just trying to not stray too far past the line, Halo. I hope I haven’t…”
“Um, so you get to do this for me, and I can’t reciprocate?”
He turned to her and got lost in her beauty for a moment. He blinked a few times then answered, “Trust me on this, you being right here, right now? Is doing more for me than you can ever, ever imagine. Can you understand?”
She sighed, “I think so…”
Halo watched him close his tired eyes and soon his breathing deepened. Sure, she knew what he meant, but she also knew that he wanted her and badly, no matter how much he tried to cover it up in front of her. She heard what he said about his wife, she caught the slip and the change of subject. His heart was up for grabs and she wanted his heart to love her. With that thought, she scooted close and cuddled up to him.
She listened to him breath and wondered if she could ever sleep again without him next to her. She could hear JJ’s voice in the back of her mind reminding her that he is taken and not hers to have. She started thinking about how good he had just made her feel… without actually having sex. It was something crazy for sure. She bet her mom would know. What if she did steal him from his wife, what would her mother say? Oh hell, she thought at that mental picture.
Evie
Athena looked out of the front door’s peephole. She sighed as she partially opened the door, “Hi Eric.”
Eric did his best to hide his sadness with a smile, “Hello Athena, how are you doing?” She shrugged at him.
“Fine.” She replied, “What brings you here… again?”
“Oh, I have some papers for your mother to sign.”
“What are they?” She asked looking at the thick manila envelope in his hand.
“Court papers from the attorney, I told your mom I’d drop them off.”
“Court papers? What are they for?” Athena probed.
“I, uh maybe you should talk to your mom about it? Would you give them to her as soon as she gets home?”
“Eric, what are they?” Athena asked as she opened the door a little more.
“Athena, I—I’m just trying my best to help you guys out. I owe it to your father…” Eric looked down and shook his head slowly, “I’m the one who got him the part… and now he’s dead.”
Athena’s eyes flared wide, “He’s not DEAD!”
Eric took a small step back at the intensity of her shout. He watched silently as she worked to control her anger, “I’m sorry. I forgot how you feel… it’s just that when they found the second raft all torn up last week…”
“Eric, my dad is not dead!” She urged, “I know it in my heart and I don’t care what you or my mom says… even what that asshole, Joel Miller said on TV! He’s a liar! My father would NEVER, EVER hurt Halo! You know that!” Athena clenched her fists tightly and caught herself before she blurted out the facts of her secret letter.
“I—I agree with you on that. I know your father would never hurt Halo or anyone else unless he had to.”
Athena heard wet tires of a vehicle coming down her street, she looked up and saw it was her mother’s van, “Here she is. Give her the papers yourself.” Athena began to shut the door and Eric stammered for her to wait.
“Athena! Please, if you need anything… I just want to help.”
Athena shot him a glare, “Then you can start by believing me, just because I’m a kid no one wants to hear what I feel!” She watched as Eric stared at her for a long moment, he ignored Evie’s car as it pulled into the garage.
“Ok… but your mom doesn’t and she won’t. I have to tell you that and that I will do everything I can to help your mom through this. I owe it to her, do you understand?”
It was Athena’s turn to stare at Eric. After a long moment, she gave him a single nod. She heard her mother come inside the house as she came up to the door she opened it wide for her mother.
“Eric!” Evie said with an upbeat tone.
Athena gave her mother a glare and without a word retreated upstairs to her room.
Once there she slammed her door and went immediately to her dream box her father had made for her sixth birthday. She stared at the folded envelope that contained the letter that came postmarked from New Zealand. There was no signature or return address but she guessed that Jenni Jones had sent it to her, as the media reported she was hospitalized there. The letter said not to believe the media and her father did it right. The letter also pleaded with her to keep it secret as it could endanger herself and others.
She heard her mother voice as she spoke with Eric. She sounded happy and that disturbed her, but not as much as recently, her mother has stopped calling him a ‘Malaka’. She listened and heard them talking quietly in the kitchen. Then a pot clanked on the stove and she shook her head, her mother was making something to eat for Eric.
Thoughts of the manila envelope made her tummy feel weird, as if it contained something bad. She remembered her father always telling her to pay attention to her intuition. She decided to wait until Eric left before she confronted her mother… it was past due anyway. She was not going to ‘toe the line’ like she made her father do so many times. She knew he did it to keep the peace. She felt her eyes mist up and she angrily wiped them and waited for Eric to leave.
It took Eric an hour to start making excuses for leaving. She finally heard the front door close and with a deep breath, she sprinted out of her room and downstairs.
She entered the kitchen and glared at her mother who was clearing Eric’s plate off the table… from the place where her father sat. Bile shot up in her throat and without a care, she angrily spat, “SO! What’s in the envelope that your Eric brought?”
Evie spun towards her daughter with a glare, “None of your business!”
“Oh yes Manah, I think it is my business! It’s about dad and I know it came from the attorney.”
Evie set the plate down hard on the table and pushed a dark lock of hair from her forehead, “Fine! You want to know?” She shouted back. “I’m having your father declared dead as fast as the court will allow!”
Her mother’s words hit her like kick to her tummy, “Wha… what?” She stammered in shock.
“Your father left us for that Skeela and that movie! He shamed us in front of the world an
d is rightly dead and gone! There are bills to pay and Social Security benefits for you!”
Athena ground her teeth together hard and felt the anger rise like hot lava from her core. She worked hard to keep from exploding and recalled her father’s words to her about keeping calm. She took in several quick deep breaths. “Oh?” She spit back, “What else? I know we have money, you are so tight with money dad always joked you have Fort Knox buried in the back yard.”
“So you are all big and grown up now to speak to me like this? You think you know it all? You are still my daughter and live in my home! You will not speak to me like that!”
“Fine! I’ll go stay with Yiayia and tell her what you are doing!” Athena turned around quickly to leave and felt her mother come up fast behind her. Instinctually, as her father taught, she waited until she sensed it coming then quickly side stepped and watched as her mother’s hands grab hard at thin air where she just was. Surprised at the violent grab, she ran to the dining room and put the large table in-between them.
“YOU will not leave this house! I forbid it and you will keep your mouth shut to Yiayia!” Evie yelled at her daughter from across the table.
“Manah! What is wrong with you? You were going to hurt me!” Athena yelled back, “You never will sit and listen to what I have to say! DAD IS NOT DEAD!”
“He is dead! He’s gone and left us all alone!”
She shot back, “No, you just want him dead! Why?” She screamed.
Both mother and daughter stared at each other for a long moment. Evie finally broke the tension, “I need to move on. That’s why!”
Athena could not believe her ears and suddenly pieces from the past two years began to fall into place. In shock she raised her hand and pointed at her mother, “You think I don’t know what you did to dad? You forgot I speak Greek too?”
“I never did anything…” Evie pulled up short and her eyes shot open wide at her daughter.
“Yes Manah, I’ve heard you and dad arguing. I remember his birthday a couple of years ago when you took me to Yiayia’s… I know you hit him and he lied to me about running into the door!” She watched her mother’s mouth open and close wordlessly. “Dad never raised a hand to you and here you believe that he hurt Halo, killed her even! So why did you hit him mom?” She watched as her mother’s face paled to a deathly white.
Seeing her mother not responding and not really knowing the full truth, she cut to the chase with a ruse, “I know why… and what you did.” She accused pointing at her.
She saw tears begin to flow down her mother’s pretty face and a look of shame followed the tears. Athena felt her heart lodge in her throat as her mother covered her face with her hands and slumped against the wall in despair.
“I’m sorry, I’m so sorry…” Athena heard her mother mutter from behind her hands.
She felt her face flush hot as she got more than she bargained for from her ruse. Now she realized why her Yiayia was so angry with her mother back then. The truth hurt like a knife in her heart, “M-mom… why?” She watched as her mother looked up at her with red puffy eyes and smeared mascara.
“People make mistakes Athena… I’ve made mine.” Evie swallowed hard and a quiet sob escaped her lips, “Your father deserves better than me… someone beautiful, someone who could love him like he deserves.”
“What?” She paused confused, “But, but mom… dad always said how pretty you are! I know he loves you… he tells you all the time.”
Evie’s lips tightened and her eyes squinted, “Pretty? You know what I see in the mirror? Do you?” Evie watched as her daughter gave her a slow cautious shake of her head. “I see a fat Greek peasant lady! You, my mother and your father say I’m pretty, you all just lie to me!” With her hand over her heart and her voice deep with emotion she continued, “I’m so relieved that you took after your father’s looks.”
Athena felt her mouth fall open and she gripped the back of the dining table’s chair in shock. She shook her head hard a few times, as she processed her mother’s words, “But mom… we never lied, you are very pretty.” She saw the slight shrug of her mother’s shoulders but she knew instinctively that her words were meaningless.
Thoughts of her father shot into her mind, then of Halo… and now how her mother was suddenly happy around Eric lately. She felt as if she was going to throw up and she looked up at her mother and the final nail struck home in her mind and she knew.
“You don’t think dad is dead either…”
White Sands
Xander watched as Halo walked towards him across the white sand. The sky behind her was a magnificent deep blue without a cloud in the sky. She had to have been in the surf he thought. Her hips were swaying slowly back and forth and he could feel her eyes on him. She was wearing her pink bikini and he could not help but lose his breath at how sexy she looked.
Her hair was down and past her shoulders; it was messy and reminded him of sex hair. As if on cue, he watched as she ran her hand through the soft, golden strands that he knew smelled heavenly. Her eyes focused on his and she bit at her lower lip. She stopped outside the tent and smiled… this smile was one he had not seen before. It looked like it held a promise, a promise just for him. The tip of her tongue slowly moved over her lips. He tried to imagine how soft they would be kissing his lips.
She caught him glancing at her breasts. She raised one blonde eyebrow then reached behind and unfastened her top, as it fell away she covered her breasts from his view with her arm. She glanced down at her obscured breasts then back to him in silence. Kneeling down to him she was less than a foot away, he could smell her perfume mixed with her scent. My God, she smells so sexy he thought as he breathed her in deeply.
She moved slowly closer, her eyes on his. He was distracted from her gorgeous electric blue eyes as she moved her arm away from her breasts and reached out and took his face in her soft warm hands. Her full, perfect breasts with delicious pink nipples, were hard in the hazy sunlight. He felt his manhood pushing through the opening his boxers—she glanced down and smiled. He tried to protest as she pulled his face and lips closer and closer to hers, but no words of ‘stop’ would come from his mouth. Just as her lips were about to touch his, he felt her hand leave his face and trace its way down his chest, down past his flinching abs, down slowly to his manhood…
Halo woke up from Xander’s otherworldly massage to him spooning with her. She opened her eyes and saw it was morning. Something was different… by this time she would always be wrapped around him, not him around her. He must really have been tired she thought. Then as if on cue, she felt his hand slide up from her belly and gently cup her breast in his warm calloused hand. Her breath caught in excitement and she listened closely to his breathing, it was deep and methodical. She sensed a heat radiating at her bum… it was from Xander. She let out a little pleasurable gasp as she realized it was his manhood and he was hard, hot and pressing up against her bum.
“Oh my!” She panted breathily. It felt so good, she couldn’t help but rock her hips ever so slightly back and forth, getting a good feel of him up against her. She brought up her hand and pressed it against his, pushing his hand firmly onto her breast. She then squeezed his fingers, making his hand squeeze her breast. Her breath began coming in short and quick, she started grinding her bum on his hardness then she felt his hardness twitch up against her.
“Uh oh!” She muttered. She felt his manhood suddenly get hotter and harder and in a panic she knew it was already too late to move. He was going to cum, “Oh no!” Escaped her lips. Before she could move away, she heard him emit a sexy deep groan and his hot wetness exploded over her bum and up her back. “Oh my!” She moaned excitedly as the sensation set her on fire. She was flustered and was not sure what she should do, so she lay unmoving in his arms thinking he was going to be so upset.
She felt his breathing stop short then his hand on her breast stiffened, his body followed suit and went rigid as a board. She was frozen, unsure of what to do or say as
he suddenly jumped up.
“Oh! No, no, no!” She heard him mutter in terror.
She quickly turned to him to explain it was her fault. She saw him look at her with a mix of shame and shock, his mouth worked hard to say something but nothing came out. Before she could say anything, he grabbed a blanket and fled the tent. Jumping up she went after him.
“Xander! Stop! Please!” She yelled as she caught his arm. She tried to turn him towards her but he would not budge, so she moved in front of him to explain but he was looking away with his hand over his face in embarrassment.
“Halo! I—I’m so, so sorry! I—I was dreaming… Oh God, I’m so sorry!” He choked out as he pulled the blanket tighter around himself.
“Xander!” She exclaimed and tried to look at his eyes under his hand, “Its ok! Really!” She wanted to tell him it was her fault, but she could not get him to look at her. “Xander! Look at me, please!”
He kept his face covered and away from her. His guts were in knots at what he did, he cursed himself for not taking care of things… it had been weeks since he had any kind of release. He cleared his throat, “Halo… it’s not ok, not with me.” He shook his head in shame.
“Xander, if you won’t look at me, listen please! I—I could have moved away, I didn’t. I know you don’t want to hear this, but it felt so damn good with you up against me! I look forward…” She said drifting off at her poor choice of words.
“What? What do you mean!” Xander asked and dropped his hand to look at her face.
“Promise me you won’t get mad?” She asked.
Xander backed up a half step, “No!” He said with panic, “This hasn’t happened before, I’d know! Or has it? So what do you mean?” He demanded.
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