Was she a virgin?
Was she old enough?
He tried to stop thinking about her. She was too good. She didn’t deserve some older guy perving on her.
He thought about the weird encounter he’d had with Mrs. Hildegard, the way she’d come on to him, practically thrown herself at him, but he couldn’t stop his mind from jumping back to Autumn.
She was the opposite of Mrs. Hildegard.
He shut his eyes as his hand ran up and down his shaft, pumping his cock forcefully, getting increasingly rapid.
As the pleasure built up, his mind refused to picture anyone but Autumn, and when the first surge of cum flew from his tip, landing in the sink a foot in front of him, it was Autumn’s name he gasped in his ecstasy.
He opened his eyes and looked at himself in the mirror. His cum gushed, flying into the sink and then dripping down over his hand in weaker spurts. He gasped as the orgasm subsided, then wiped his hands clean and got dressed.
The baby was still asleep and he didn’t want to wake her.
There was a television in the corner across from the bed and he was going to turn it on but without knowing why, he went to the desk instead and picked up the phone. He dialed nine for the front desk and it was Autumn’s voice that answered.
“Front desk.”
“Autumn, it’s me, Grady.”
“Oh, Mr. Cole, how can I help you?”
His mind went to all the ways her body could help him, could bring him to the deepest depths of pleasure, but he forced himself to behave.
“Do you have a laundry service?” he said.
He didn’t even have any dirty laundry, but he wanted to see her again.
“Of course. I’ll be right up to collect your things.”
“Thank you,” he said and put down the phone.
The window was set into the wall in an alcove and there was a wooden bench there. He sat in the sunlight and admired the view of the forest as he waited for her.
A minute or two later there was a knock on the door.
“Yes,” he said, unable to hide his anticipation, but when the door opened it wasn’t Autumn at all.
It was Mrs. Hildegard.
“You have some laundry?” she said.
With a sigh he nodded. The clothes he’d worn the day before were in the bathroom and he went and got them. Then he thought of the pillow case on Destiny and he picked her up, took off the shorts, untied the pillow case, and added them to the pile. Destiny was still asleep and he laid her back down before handing the clothes to Mrs. Hildegard.
“Is that one of my pillow cases?” she said.
“Yeah, sorry about that. I didn’t have a diaper.”
“I’ll thank you not to use hotel property in such a way in future, Mr. Cole.”
“Of course,” he said. “You can add the cost of the pillow case to my bill.”
“I most certainly will,” she said. “And I shudder to think how that poor baby will turn out if that’s your idea of taking care of her.”
“I’m sorry,” Grady said.
“Where’s the mother, if I may ask?”
“She’s …” his voice trailed off.
He looked at Destiny and it was as if all his deepest fears struck him at once. A week earlier, he didn’t even know he was a father, now he cared more about taking care of this child than he’d ever cared about anything. He prayed he’d be able to raise her properly.
The door shut and he turned to see Mrs. Hildegard was gone.
He got down on the bed and pulled the baby close, wrapping them both in the warmth of the blanket.
“I’ll be a good father to you, little Destiny,” he said.
Chapter Seven
Autumn
The next day was Sunday and Mrs. Hildegard told Autumn she could have some time off once she was finished her morning chores. By the time she’d lit the fires, cleaned the toilets, mopped the floors, cooked and served breakfast, vacuumed the carpets, and brushed down the curtains it was already noon. She was just on her way to her room to change and go explore the town when Mrs. Hildegard caught her with one more chore.
“Girl, I almost forgot, Mr. Cole’s laundry has been waiting since yesterday. I’m sorry but you’ll have to do that before you head off.”
Autumn had been excited to go into town but the thought of doing Grady’s laundry pleased her even more.
“Yes, Mistress.”
“Oh, and in future when you polish the silverware, don’t forget the vases in the dining room.”
“No, Mistress.”
She hurried to the laundry room and found the small pile of Grady’s laundry. There wasn’t much to wash. Just a pair of jeans, the brown t-shirt he’d been wearing that said Harley Davidson across the chest, two pairs of boxer shorts, and some socks. Autumn recognized the one pair of boxers as the ones Destiny had been sporting the day before. The second pair must have been the ones Grady had been wearing.
She picked them up fondly and looked at them before throwing them in the washer. They were tartan, like a Scottish kilt, and Autumn imagined what Grady would look like in them. She felt a flurry of desire at the thought.
She put on the laundry and then found herself with a little time to relax while she waited. There was a big bookcase in the entrance hall and she went to it and browsed the books. It seemed Mrs. Hildegard had a healthy reading appetite and there were hundreds of books that Autumn knew she’d enjoy reading. Everything from historical romances set in regency England to paranormal romances about sexy men who could turn into wolves or bears and seduce women in the forest.
There was one book about a bear shifter she liked the look of. It was called Cabin Fever. She picked it up and examined the cover. It sported a sexy hunk with a huge grizzly rising up from the forest behind him. A log cabin sat in the distance.
She took it back to the laundry room and read the first twelve chapters while she waited for Grady’s laundry. She took the clothes from the washer and put them in the dryer and read another four chapters before taking the warm clothes from the dryer and folding them neatly. She took her time while folding the boxer shorts, thrilled at the thought they’d touched Grady’s naked body.
When she was finished, she brought them up to Grady’s room, which was empty, and left them on his bed. She glanced one final time at his underwear before leaving the room.
Then she went to her own room and grabbed her bag. She put Cabin Fever in it and intended to go into town and finish the novel at the diner.
On her way past the reception desk, Mrs. Hildegard stopped her.
“Going into town?”
“Yes, Mistress. I thought I’d treat myself to a coffee at the diner.”
“Mr. Hildegard will drive you.”
“Oh, that’s okay,” Autumn said, none too thrilled at the thought of sitting in the pickup alone with the old man. “I’d like to walk.”
“Nonsense. You’ll catch your death out there dressed like that. He’s going into town anyway.”
Autumn waited by the door for Mr. Hildegard, who came down the stairs dressed in a tweed suit that made him look like an English country gentleman.
“Come on, honey,” he said, leading the way to the pickup.
Autumn followed and climbed into the cab. Mr. Hildegard climbed in on the driver’s side and put his arm along the back of the seat. It was a bench for seating three people and his hand was painfully close to Autumn’s back. She leaned a little forward as Mr. Hildegard turned the ignition and pulled out of the driveway.
“You’re a pretty little thing, ain’t ya?” he said as they drove along.
Autumn didn’t know what to say to that so she said nothing.
“The old lady isn’t giving you too hard of a time, is she?”
“Not at all, Master,” Autumn said, and the word master stuck in her throat.
She felt strange saying it. She didn’t mind working hard, and she didn’t mind having a boss, but calling him master was too much.
> “I could get her to let up on you a little,” he went on. “Make it so that you have a fine old time.”
“I like working,” she said.
“But you like playing too, don’t you?”
“I’m sorry?” Autumn said.
She looked at Mr. Hildegard and he leered back at her with a lecherous grin on his face. Autumn started to feel claustrophobic in the truck with him. It was as if the cab had suddenly shrunk in size and there wasn’t enough air to breathe. Her seatbelt rubbed against her neck and she tried to loosen it but it was stuck. She edged against the door, trying to create what distance she could between herself and Mr. Hildegard, but there was little she could do.
When his hand slipped down from the back of the bench and grazed her neck she almost expected it.
“Come on, I know you modern girls. I know how you like it.”
“Please, Mr. Hildegard.”
“Master,” he corrected.
His hand was on her shoulder, caressing it, and he lifted it to rub her cheek with the back of his fingers.
“Master,” she repeated. “I don’t want to get in any trouble.”
“Trouble? I’m just offering you a little fun.”
He ran his hand down her arm and she pressed herself even tighter against the door.
“Please don’t touch me, Mr. Hildegard.”
Mr. Hildegard looked at her, eyeing her breasts and the place in her lap where her pussy would be found. He patted her on the knee and then put both hands back on the wheel.
“I get it, you’re a tease. Well lucky for you I like playing games.”
Autumn didn’t say a word, she hardly dared to breathe, and when the truck finally came to a halt outside the diner she leapt out without saying goodbye. She stood on the sidewalk and watched Mr. Hildegard drive off.
What had she gotten herself into?
She’d been looking forward to leaving her mother’s cramped home and making a life of her own for months. She couldn’t remember now what she’d been so excited for. School and her home life hadn’t always been easy, but they were a walk in the park compared to life at Raven’s Nest.
She took deep breaths until she felt a little calmer and then made her way straight for the store across the street.
“Can I help you, Miss?” the clerk asked as she entered the store.
“Do you have diapers?”
“Right there, second aisle.”
She grabbed a pack of diapers and used her only twenty dollars to pay for them. She had enough change for a coffee and spent the next three hours in the diner, sitting alone in a booth by the window, getting lost in Cabin Fever. When she finished the last page she let out a sad sigh. She looked at her watch. It was time to go back to the hotel. She wished she was the girl in the book, locked away in that cozy cabin with a man who turned into a massive grizzly bear at night. They seemed to do nothing but have fun, make love, and go on adventures.
She, on the other hand, had nothing but the reality of the hotel to look forward to.
It felt more like a prison.
She trudged through the snow for the three miles up to the hotel and her entire body was numb with cold by the time she got home.
“Where were you?” Mrs. Hildegard’s grating voice demanded as she came in the door.
“I was at the diner, Mistress.”
“I was worried sick.”
“I’m sorry. I was just enjoying my day off.”
“Well, you’re not free to simply come and go as you please. What if I needed you?”
“I’m sorry,” Autumn said, unsure what more she possibly could have been needed for that day.
“What have you got there?”
“I bought some diapers for Mr. Cole. I noticed he was using a pillow case as a diaper yesterday.”
Mrs. Hildegard nodded.
“Quite so, give them to me. I’ll see he receives them.”
Chapter Eight
Grady
Grady spent the day driving around, exploring the town, and it was already dark when he got back to the hotel.
“Will you be taking dinner in your room, Mr. Cole?” Mrs. Hildegard asked on his way in.
“That would be lovely,” Grady said, relieved he didn’t have to go back out to the cold to find food.
“I’ll have it brought to your room in an hour,” Mrs. Hildegard said.
Grady looked at her. She made no sign of being embarrassed about what had happened when she came on to him and he was glad to put the whole awkward event behind him.
“Thank you,” he said, wondering if it would be her or Autumn who’d be bringing it up. He knew who he hoped it would be.
Once in his room, he bathed Destiny and took a quick bath himself. Then he turned on the television and flicked through a few channels. It wasn’t long before he heard the knock on his door.
“Come in.”
His eyes lit up when he saw Autumn’s face.
“I have your dinner here, Mr. Cole. I brought a bottle for the baby too.”
“Oh, thank you, Autumn. You’re so thoughtful.”
She stood at the door for a second as if thinking of something to say. He let his eyes drift down over the small mounds of her breasts. She looked perfect in her little dress. He knew her employers were hard on her and felt an overwhelming desire to look after her and rescue her from them.
“Would you mind if I fed the baby?” she said.
He smiled.
“I’d love it, Autumn.”
Just like breakfast the day before, Autumn held the baby and fed her while Grady ate the food she’d brought. It was a heaping plate of roast beef with gravy and mashed potatoes and he devoured it.
“This is great. Did you make it?”
“No, Mrs. Hildegard did.”
“She can cook,” Grady said.
Autumn nodded. “My mother used to cook the most amazing roast beef. It would literally melt in your mouth.”
“Yum,” Grady said.
“That was before she got ill, of course.”
“You mentioned she was sick.”
Autumn nodded. “Cancer.”
“That’s a tough one,” Grady said.
“She had it coming. She smoked like a chimney for as long as I can remember. I tried to get her to stop but you know how it goes.”
“I do.”
“I just hope she responds better to the new treatment she’s on. It’s not cheap but apparently it can work wonders.”
“It’s in God’s hands,” Grady said.
He finished his food and sat there, admiring the angel that sat before him. He was at the desk and she was on the bed, her pretty legs crossed demurely. The baby had finished her bottle and was sleeping peacefully in Autumn’s arms.
Grady thought how easy it would be to lie Autumn back on the bed, pull down her panties, and slide into her.
He’d been burned in love before, he’d all but given up on ever finding someone to share his life with, but looking at Autumn, the sweet smile on her face, the serenity in her gaze, he realized he’d found someone who could bring his wounded heart back to life.
“What age are you?” he said without thinking.
Autumn smiled. “Nineteen. Almost twenty.”
Grady nodded. She was young, ten or eleven years younger than he was, but was she too young? Maybe not. He’d known couples who were ten years apart. He even knew girls as young as Autumn who’d settled down with men in their thirties before. It wasn’t outside the realm of possibility.
“Are you a long way from home?” he said.
Autumn nodded. “I’ll say. My aunt put me on a train at five in the morning and it was after midnight by the time I arrived here.”
“If you wanted to go home to see your mother, or if you wanted to get away from here, would you have anyone to help you?”
Autumn looked at him a little skeptically.
“I’d have to ask the Hildegards for money.”
“Are they paying you well to
work here?”
“Supposedly. But they send the money directly to my mother. She needs it for the meds.”
“You don’t get to keep any?”
Autumn shook her head.
“I don’t need money. I only need my mother to get better.”
Grady looked at her. He wanted to offer her help. He wanted to give her money. But he knew he couldn’t. Men like him couldn’t simply go around offering cash to pretty girls. It wasn’t proper. People would think he was up to something.
He tried to think of a way he could tell Autumn he’d help her if she needed it, but they were interrupted by a knock on the door.
The door opened and Mrs. Hildegard appeared.
“You still up here?” she said to Autumn.
“I was just leaving, Mistress,” Autumn said, handing Destiny to Grady.
Grady wanted to protest, he wanted to tell her to stay, but she was gone in an instant, leaving him alone with Mrs. Hildegard.
“I see you liked my roast beef,” Mrs. Hildegard said, taking his empty plate.
“It was delicious. Did you make it?”
“I did, and I thought of you the entire time.”
“That’s very kind,” Grady said.
“I could give you lots of delicious things,” she said, holding his gaze.
“I bet you could Mrs. Hildegard, but I’ve had my fill, really.”
She nodded, resigned to the fact he wasn’t going to jump into bed with her, at least not yet.
“Oh, I thought of you while I was in town too,” she said, holding up a package. “I picked you up some diapers.”
“That’s so thoughtful,” Grady said.
Mrs. Hildegard put the diapers by the bed.
“It will save my pillow cases too.”
Grady laughed.
“I said I’d pay for that.”
“Oh, I’m just teasing you,” Mrs. Hildegard said.
“Well, thank you for the diapers.”
Mrs. Hildegard nodded and made her way to the door.
“I’ll leave you be, Mr. Cole, but there’s one more thing before I leave.”
“Oh yeah?”
“It’s about the girl.”
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