A Friend in Need
Heathen57
Chapter 18
 
It was in early August when the subpoena for the trial of
  Steve Childers came for Mandy.  He
  had been out on bail for a couple of months since his parents had put up their
  house to make the bond.  Even
  though she had been expecting it, she still was shaken about being called to
  testify.
 
She called the number that was on the form and set up an
  appointment with the Assistant District Attorney.  They settled on the next morning, so it didn’t give her
  much time to worry.
 
Mandy showed up at the meeting right on time and she came
  by herself.  Greg had wanted to go
  with her but the ADA wanted to talk to her by herself.  So Greg was keeping Jenni for her and waiting on pins and
  needles.
 
Ms. Stone, the Assistant DA, was very supportive and set
  her mind at ease.  Since the time
  Steve had been arrested, the number of victims had grown to nine. 
  Mandy’s part would be only to establish a pattern of abuse by Steve. 
  That didn’t mean that the defense attorney wouldn’t grill her.  But it wouldn’t be as bad as the main victims.
 
Ms. Stone laid a hand on Mandy’s arm. 
  “I’ll try and make it as painless as possible for you. 
  For my part, I will ask you if you had been sexually assaulted.  
  Then, I’ll ask you  to
  briefly explain what happened.  You
  can answer simply, ‘I was held down and raped’. 
  Then I will ask you to identify the person who assaulted you. 
  You will then point at Mr. Childers.
 
“Now the defense attorney will probably ask why you
  didn’t report it.  That is
  something you will have to consider the answer to. 
  Tell the truth, but don’t volunteer any more details than what is
  needed.  If he tries to skew your
  answer, I will ask to redirect.  Then
  I will give you a chance to explain more fully.”
 
They spoke about the details of the trial. 
  Ms. Stone told her that they were going for multiple counts of first
  and second-degree rape, being a sexual predator, plus various counts of
  assault and kidnapping.  If guilty
  on all counts, he was looking at life without parole. 
  But there was still a chance that a plea bargain could avoid a trial
  for all the victims.
 
Mandy drove home in the Monte Carlo, going over the
  discussion that she had just finished.  Could
  she really get up on the stand and relive all that again? 
  Every time she thought she had put it back in her deepest memories,
  something came along and brought it back up. 
  Damnit!  It just wasn’t
  fair.  This will be the last time
  as far as she was concerned.  She
  wasn’t going through this ever again.
 
Her mind was still going around in circles with these
  thoughts when she arrived home.  She
  poured her heart out to Greg, who as usual tried to help calm her. 
  He reminded her that it was the last time she would have to deal with
  Steve.  Steve had already signed
  over all rights to Jenni in an attempt to get out of support. 
  She would finally be able to see him get his due for what he had done
  to her and the other women he had raped. 
  All of this helped to a degree but she still was dreading the hassle of
  the trial and just what the defense attorney would bring up about her.
 
 
 
As much as Mandy hated Steve for what he had done to her,
  Traci reminded her of a positive she was not considering. 
  Mandy would have never had Jenni or her relationship with Greg if Steve
  had not attacked her.  It gave Mandy something good to think about when she started
  feeling scared.
 
It was a week later and Mandy had put the whole thing in
  the back of her mind when something happened to cause the whole thing to come
  crashing back to the front of all their thoughts.  The phone rang at ten thirty and when Mandy answered it, the
  person on the other end started yelling obscenities at her. 
  Greg saw her face and had the sense to hit the ‘record’ button on
  the machine.
 
“You stupid slut!  If
  you think you can lie about me at the trial, you’d better think again! 
  You bitch, you know you wanted it. 
  You will find out just what happens to you if you think you can go
  against me.  Fuckin’ Bitch!”
 
Mandy slammed the receiver down, turned to Greg, and
  grabbed him tightly.  She was
  shaking and on the verge of tears.  He
  held her while he replayed the part of the conversation that they had
  recorded.  As soon as he heard it,
  he sat Mandy down with Traci and used his cell to call the machine to put a
  time stamp for the other conversation.  Then,
  he called the police and asked for an officer to come by and take a report for
  harassment.
 
Mandy was still shaken and was being comforted by both her
  lovers when an officer showed up at the door. 
  He took the basic information and then listened to the tape. 
  He stood there for a moment frowning, and then called in to his
  dispatcher.
 
“This is One-Delta-fourteen, requesting a case number for
  witness intimidation, harassment, and verbal assault.” 
  He waited for the information, and then repeated the number back to the
  dispatcher.  Then he turned to the
  trio as they sat on the sofa.  “
  I need to have the tape from your machine for evidence in this case. 
  This is something that the DA is very serious about. 
  Are you willing to sign a complaint against this man?”
 
Mandy was more than willing to sign the complaint. 
  That meant that a warrant would be issued for his arrest. 
  She felt a little bit more at ease knowing that the police were taking
  this seriously and that he would have to pay for the harassment. 
  The cop also informed her that in cases like this where threats had
  been made, it was automatic to have a temporary restraining order sworn out on
  the offender.
 
“Can we prove that it was Steve on the phone making the
  threats?”  Greg was trying to
  think of how he could weasel out of it.
 
“It won’t take much to match the voice prints with
  interviews we have done with him.  We’ll
  get the comparison done by tomorrow.  Don’t
  worry, you shouldn’t have any more problems from him.”
 
The patrolman left after promising to make a patrol through
  the area as often as he could for the next few days. 
  Mandy was still shook up, but said that they could turn in anyway. 
  She did fall asleep but her slumber was broken by any little noise that
  she could possibly hear.
 
The next day, Ms. Stone from the DA’s office called and
  assured Mandy that they were charging Childers with witness tampering and
  intimidation.  She would have to
  testify to getting the phone call and that the tape was what she had heard. 
  But that part of the case would be almost open and shut.
 
Fortunately, the trial would start in two weeks. 
  Steve was picked up and the judge revoked his bail because of the
  threats he had made against Mandy and the one other witness he could get the
  phone number for.  So he would sit
  in jail until the trial.
 
The trial went just about how Ms. Stone had predicted. 
  Mandy made it through her testimony but it was close. 
  The defense attorney badgered her as to why she didn’t report the
  crime when it happened, hinting that she had been a willing partner, and that
  she had a reputation for being rather free with her sexual favors.
 
Though the attorney tried to brush off her explanations,
  the jury seemed to believe her.. Her story was supported when two other girls
  testified to being in the same church and that the policy of the church was
  that it was always the girl’s fault and the shame of admitting to such a
  thing would be cause for being thrown out of the church and their homes.
 
The actual trial took just over a week. 
  Steve did not testify himself, but a couple of the church elders took
  the stand to vouch to his character.  Ms.
  Stone got them to admit that what Mandy and the others had testified to was
  true.  One of them exploded on the
  stand stating that all women were sinful and that it was in the Bible that
  they were to blame for any shortcomings of men.
 
The day before the case was to go to the jury, Steve’s
  attorney asked to make a deal.  His
  client was looking at life without parole. 
  He was hoping for a deal to help get the time reduced and he was pretty
  sure that the jury would not go his way. 
  Ms. Stone offered to reduce the time to twenty-five to forty years and
  violent sex offender status if he was to get parole.  He said he would give the offer to his client.
 
That meeting didn’t go very well. 
  Steve’s arrogance would not allow him to believe that he could ever
  be convicted.  His lawyer kept
  trying to explain it to him that since the last rape had happened when he was
  seventeen and that he was being tried as an adult, the penalties were much
  more severe.  In addition, if he
  didn’t plead, he would be in the general population and in danger because of
  his age and his attitude.  He
  still refused the offer so the lawyer reluctantly called Ms. Stone with the
  answer.
 
The jury was out for only five hours before they returned
  with a verdict.  Steve and his
  attorney stood for the reading and his arrogant smirk dropped off his face
  when the word “guilty” was read for all counts. 
  He then gave an outburst swearing at the witnesses and threatening them
  along with the jury and the judge.  His
  lawyer was trying to get him to quiet down even as they were leading him out
  the door.
 
It was a couple months later when Mandy got the news that
  Steve would never be able to carry out any of his threats. 
  It seems that Steve’s attitude got him in trouble as soon as he got
  into prison.  He ended up in
  solitary for disobeying the rules.  While
  he was in solitary, the brother of one of his victims talked to a friend who
  was in the same prison.  The next
  time Steve was in a group situation, several of the cons gang-raped him and
  beat him almost to death.  He
  would spend the rest of his life in solitary, bound in a wheelchair and
  wearing a bag to collect his waste.  Mandy
  really tried to feel some remorse for her assailant, but the best she could do
  was to think that he really got what he deserved.
 
Jerry’s trial came up shortly after Steve’s. 
  In fact, there never was a trial. 
  Jerry pleaded guilty to assault in exchange for dropping the charge of
  murder of Olivia.  The DA wasn’t
  sure if he could make the murder charge stick, but it was a good bargaining
  tool to get a plea from him.  He
  was sentenced to five years in prison and another five of probation. 
  He was also ordered to get counseling for his problems with stalking
  and abuse.
 
The deal made Greg feel like Olivia didn’t get the
  justice she deserved but there wasn’t anything he could do about it. 
  He had to settle for the idea that the foundation that was set up in
  her memory would give her the rememberance she deserved. 
  He set it up so any restitution from Jerry would be sent to the
  foundation.  It wasn’t enough in
  his eyes but it was the best he could do. 
 
 
College orientation came rushing up, signaling the end of
  their last summer as high-schoolers.  Mandy
  and Greg both arrived at the student union where they would be getting their
  schedules along with the rest of the incoming freshmen. 
  Among the people milling about, they both saw people who had been in
  their graduating classes.  They spent the time in the long lines catching up on how the
  summer had gone for many of them.
 
“Greg, what are you doing here?  I would have figured you to be at Harvard or one of those
  other fancy schools.”  Greg
  turned around and to his surprise, the person addressing him was Melissa
  Smith, the girl he had lusted for since eighth grade. 
  She had always been cordial to him, but had been in a different clique. 
  He figured that she didn’t even know who he was.
 
Before he had become involved with Mandy, he had been
  tongue-tied around this girl.  But
  with Mandy’s help, he had matured past his fear of pretty women. 
  He gave her a warm smile and even gave her a friendly hug. 
  “It’s good to see you Melissa. 
  I wanted to stay close to home so I wouldn’t be trying to keep two
  houses going.  Besides, my girlfriend and our house mate are both going
  here.”
 
“The girl that you took to the prom? 
  Wow, you sure did get over your shyness. 
  She is very pretty.  Before,
  you wouldn’t have come to the prom at all, much less have a looker like that
  on your arm.”
 
Mandy walked up then, having just finished getting her
  schedule changed.  Greg introduced
  the two women, and while Melissa felt a little awkward, Mandy soon had her
  talking as if they had known each other for years instead of minutes.
 
It was Greg’s turn in line to pick up his schedule so he
  left the two women talking.  The
  teaching assistant gave him a long-suffering look as Greg told him his name. 
  He shuffled through a stack of papers until he found the correct one
  and then gave the same speech that he had performed at least a hundred times
  that day.  When the spiel was
  over, Greg knew where he would find the important buildings, what to do if his
  schedule wasn’t correct and how to find his dorm. 
  Greg thanked the man, not bothering to tell him that he already knew
  his way around and that he didn’t have a dorm.
 
He did find that they had put him in remedial English when
  he should have been in a more advanced class. 
  After pulling a transcript from his pack, he found the English
  department and was placed in a class better suited to his needs. 
  As he turned to leave, Traci waved to him and he went over to her. 
  She said that she was already settled on her classes but wanted to take
  him and Mandy out for lunch before showing them around the campus to their
  various classes.
 
Since Traci had taken care of Jenni while they were getting
  through registration, Greg took the child and started toward where he had left
  Mandy and Melissa talking.  They
  were still there when he and Traci walked up. 
  Jenni squealed out “Mama!” and held her chubby little arms out
  toward her mother.
 
Greg wasn’t sure if Melissa was more surprised about
  Jenni or Traci.  She stared at the
  older coed for a moment before she remembered to speak. 
  Greg did the introductions, telling Melissa that Traci was their
  housemate and that Jenni was obliviously Mandy’s daughter. 
  
 
Melissa shook Traci’s hand and was polite but somewhat
  taken aback that Greg would be involved in any way with such a beautiful
  woman.  She had always been the
  best looking girl in high school and while she didn’t flaunt it, she felt
  almost homely around this woman.  But
  Traci gave her a warm smile and talked with her like the other two, even
  inviting her to come along to the student cafeteria. 
  Though she begged off saying she still had some things to do, Melissa
  was glad to have met these other two women and accepted an invitation to their
  house later on.
 
After a lunch that made them glad they had the option of
  eating at home, Traci gave them a tour of where they would be going next week. 
  A couple of the professors were in their offices so they introduced
  themselves and Greg got to meet with the martial arts coach. 
  Finally, they went to the campus day care center and met with the women
  who would be watching Jenni.
 
Jenni had no problem with staying there, tottering off to
  the toys that were sitting on the floor while her mom found out the schedule
  and what the rates were.  When
  they were ready to leave, Jenni started to cry because she was having fun with
  a big fuzzy ball.  Mandy knew she
  would be happier about staying there during classes than Mandy would be
  leaving her.
 
The first days of college were challenging for the two
  freshmen, but they both looked them as a start to something new and exciting. 
  Mandy had never thought she would ever get into college at all. 
  Her father considered advanced education for a girl to be ‘worldly’
  and something that would just take her away from her duties as a homemaker and
  mother.  The classes were more
  difficult but the challenge caused her to blossom. 
  She took to her assignments with gusto, working hard to do her very
  best.
 
For Greg, the classes were closer to his expectations. 
  He had taken advanced classes in school but even with that experience,
  he found that he really had to apply himself. 
  With Calculus, English Lit. and two history classes, he was carrying a
  pretty full load.  When he added
  his daily workouts for the martial arts team, he was constantly reminded that
  he was no longer in high school.
 
He was surprised when his Martial Arts Coach asked to talk
  to him after his second workout.  Greg
  had used the kata from another form before he went with the forms of Tae Kwon
  Do for the actual practice.  He
  walked into the Coach’s office still drying his hair from the shower.
 
“Tolkin, I noticed that you were using Shoto-Kan as a
  warm up.  When did you learn that
  form?”
 
“Well Coach, it was the first style that I had ever
  practiced.  It is also my first
  black belt.  I still try and keep
  in practice and for me, the movements are more fluid so it allows me to warm
  up easier.”
 
“That I can understand. 
  The why I am asking is that Shoto-Kan is also my first discipline. 
  
  What I am asking is if you would care to have a sparring
  partner to keep your skills up?  I
  don’t wish to damage your integration with the team and I do not wish to do
  the playing of favorites.  However,
  I do not have a partner here at school with the skills that are up to my
  standards.  You would provide
  those skills.”
 
Greg gave a bow to the Asian gentleman. 
  “It would be a great honor, sensei.
 
  I too miss the thrill of practice, but I understand that Tae Kwon Do is
  the form that is recognized as a sport at the college and Olympic level.”
 
So with that meeting, Greg added an extra hour of training
  to the days scheduled for team practice. 
  After the rest of the team understood that Greg and Coach Li were both
  experts at a style they had little to no experience with, they would come in
  early to watch.
 
It would soon become a training class in the new form as
  more and more of the team wanted to learn. 
  And Coach Li was very satisfied. 
 
Traci was more degree-driven this year and was taking
  classes she would need for her bachelor’s in education. 
  Like Mandy and Greg, she too was carrying a full workload. 
  If not for the antics of Jenni and their own sense of adventure, they
  would have quickly been overwhelmed.  
 
Jenni was learning new skills at an unbelievable pace. 
  She was trying to walk and her attempts at staying upright were quite
  comical.  She figured out that by pressing on the remote she would
  eventually hit the power button for the television.  The first time she did it, Mandy was in the kitchen and Greg
  was at the table studying when they both heard Jenni giggling in the living
  room.  When they walked in, she
  had crawled up on the couch and was laughing at the antics of some characters
  on a cartoon show.  She was really
  proud of herself for figuring it out all on her own.
 
The adults made a big deal out of it, telling what a smart
  little girl she was and decided that if she wanted to see cartoons that bad,
  it wouldn’t hurt to let her watch for a while. 
  They decided to make a conscious effort to leave the television on
  child-friendly channels when they turned it off.  It might not be a good idea for Jenni to turn it on and find
  a porn movie playing.
 
They revived the study groups at their house a few times
  during the week.  It had worked
  well last year and many of the same people returned for this term as well. 
  They had a few new additions including, to Greg’s surprise, Melissa
  Smith.  She was in his Modern
  History class as well as Introduction to Political Science. 
  He was surprised by the change in her from high school. 
  She had been a member of the popular crowd and seemed to just skate by. 
  Now, she had become a serious student and intent on getting good
  grades.  She still enjoyed a good
  party though and was still popular on the dating scene.
 
It was midway through the quarter when Mandy came home in a
  bad mood.  Traci and Greg both
  avoided her while she went into the kitchen and banged around on the pots and
  pans for a while.  When the noise
  died down a bit, Greg ventured into the battle zone to find out what was
  wrong.
 
“I just can’t believe that fool that I have for the
  Comparative Religions course.  You
  know that he assigned us to write about our own religious experiences and then
  find the differences within another one. 
  Well I wrote just exactly what my father and his church is like and
  Professor Kincaid marked me down for embellishing what it was like for me. 
  He told me that there is nobody that believes like that anymore.”
 
Greg sympathized with her, but there was not much he could
  do about it.  It was true that her
  parents’ church was far from being in the modern mainstream. 
  She could try and convince the professor that she was telling the truth
  but he doubted it would help.  Professor
  Kincaid was known for being set in his opinions. 
 
 “I can tell
  you Honey, that from what I have heard that guy is immoveable as far as what
  he thinks.  The best you can do is
  to try and tone it down to please the old fart. 
  You know the truth and that’s what counts.”
 
“I know,” she sighed as she wrapped her arms around
  him.  “It just makes me mad that
  he won’t believe me.  It’s
  attitudes like his that allows religions to get away with what many of them
  do.”
 
“Come on sweetheart, you go on out and start your other
  homework.  It’s my turn to cook
  tonight, so I will call you when it is ready.” 
  He gently pushed her out the door handing her a can of Pepsi on her way
  out.  By the time he had dinner on
  the counter, she was much better.  She
  was even able to laugh about it, commenting that her father would have a hissy
  fit if he knew she was learning about all the religions that he had labeled as
  “false” and ‘evil’.
 
Melissa Smith had become a regular at the study group at
  the Tolkin/Carson/Broomfield household even though she was only in one class
  with Mandy.  The two of them had
  become pretty good friends over the first couple of months of the semester. 
  Mandy found out just how shy her fiancée’ was in high school as well
  as how important his morals were to him. 
  Melissa told her friend how impressed she had been when Greg had stood
  up to the principal and the rest of the office staff when another guy had been
  accused of stealing from a teacher’s desk. 
  The boy had come under suspicion because he was from an immigrant
  family and was very poor.  
 
Greg had taken on the whole system just because he knew the
  boy was innocent.  The school
  finally dropped the charges for lack of evidence but still tried to punish the
  boy.  It had been Greg’s offer
  to help the guy sue the school that got the charges dropped.  The rest of the time Greg had been there, the staff had him
  labeled as a troublemaker.  He may
  have been a nerd due to his grades, but he was the most respected nerd the
  school had ever had.
 
Greg had gotten over his crush for Melissa as well. 
  He was no longer nervous around her like he had been in school. 
  They could now tease each other without Greg blushing clear to his
  chest.  Melissa turned out to be a
  big cut-up and entertained the group with her stories and jokes.  In general, the whole group helped each other make it through
  what would be a tough year otherwise.
 
One evening, Melissa hung around until after the rest of
  the group had gone.  She had been
  quiet over the past few meetings and it seemed to Mandy and Greg she was ready
  to talk about whatever was bothering her.
 
They all went into the kitchen where Mandy put on a pot of
  coffee for the rest of them and water for her tea.  They all talked of school and classes until Melissa came to
  the point.
 
“Greg, since you are a guy; do I look and act like I am a
  slut or something?”  The other
  three stared at her for a moment before she continued.  “I mean, in High School, I was the perpetual virgin. 
  I didn’t go all the way with a guy until prom and then it has only
  been once, but every guy that I meet seems to think they can get in my panties
  as soon as we get out the door of the dorm. 
  Now one of the TAs offered me the “A for some ass” deal.”
 
Greg looked down at his cup still half full of coffee.. 
  The women could see that even his ears were turning red. 
  “Errr...I might not be the best one to ask. 
  But I saw you as untouchable in school and even now, I try very hard
  not to look at you with any thoughts like that at all.”
 
Melissa looked to her friend in confusion. 
  His answer didn’t cover what she had asked at all. 
  Greg looked up long enough to see the confusion in her classic features
  and figured out that it probably time for some confession.
 
“Melissa, you probably didn’t know it but you were my
  major crush all through high school, at least until I fell in love with Mandy. 
  We were in opposite cliques so I did nothing but admire you from across
  the room.  You were kinda on a pedestal for me.  Though I am not that bad any more, I still don’t think I can
  give you an honest opinion.”
 
Melissa got up from the counter and after getting a nod
  from Mandy, gave Greg a tight hug and a kiss on the cheek. 
  “I had no idea at all, Greg.  It
  must have taken a lot to admit that and I’m sorry I didn’t know. 
  But thank you for your honesty.”
 
“I don’t know if this is your case or not, but it
  sounds like somebody has been bragging,” said Traci. 
  “You are pretty enough to have guys hitting on you all the time, but
  even the frat boys usually have a little more class.  Unless they’re drunk, of course. 
  Then all bets are off.”
 
“I don’t know who would have said anything like
  that,” was Melissa’s response.  I
  mean that I like to make out.  I
  mean I REALLY like it.  But I
  don’t even get that anymore.  It
  is like they think I’m gonna jump in the back seat as soon as we pull away
  from the curb.  And it’s been
  like that ever since I started college.  I’m
  just not that kind of girl.”
 
Melissa was still standing next to Greg and when her eyes
  started to fill with tears, he put his arm around her and pulled her head
  against his shoulder.  She sniffed
  a few times, but managed to keep the hurt she felt from taking over.
 
“Listen Melissa, now that I know about it, I will put the
  word out as best I can that whatever they have heard is a bunch of crap. 
  I don’t know what else we can do, but if I ever find out who started
  these rumors, they will have to write an apology since he couldn’t talk with
  a broken jaw.”  Greg had really
  come to like this girl for a friend and he wanted to right the wrong done to
  her.  He knew he really couldn’t
  do much, but he wanted her to feel better.
 
“Thanks Greg.  I
  know you would stand up for me and I love you for it.  I just don’t know what to do. 
  I almost don’t want to go on dates any more.”
 
Mandy moved over and put her hand on Melissa’s shoulder. 
  “You are always welcome to come over here with us any time you want
  to.  And maybe you could double
  date with me and Greg or Traci and a friend of hers. 
  Hell, you could just come along with the three of us if you don’t
  have a date.  That may be one way to get your reputation built back up.”
 
Melissa felt a little better.  It didn’t help her reputation, but she at least had some
  friends who understood.  She gave
  them all a hug, lingering just a little longer with Greg, which gave him a
  definite stirring in his jeans.  Then
  she headed back to her dorm room.  The
  trio decided to listen and see if they could find out just who or what had
  started the rumors.
 
They didn’t get much accomplished about Melissa’s
  problem before Jenni’s first birthday which was a couple of weeks later. 
  The day fell on Saturday so Mandy made cupcakes to take to the day care
  for that Friday.  Jenni really didn’t understand what was going on except
  that she was the center of attention and that suited her just fine.
 
The next day, the adults had planned a party at their house
  to include the girls from Mandy’s school as well as some of the people from
  their study group who had become enamored with the little girl.
 
The party was not supposed to start until about two in the
  afternoon, but the guests started showing up at noon to help. 
  There was to be a cookout for the adults and the people who came early
  were bringing dishes to contribute.  By
  the appointed time, the grill was full of meat and everything was displayed on
  the picnic table.
 
Grandma Heather and her beau, Adrian, had shown up before
  the parents were hardly out of bed.  They
  all had met Heather’s lover and found him to be a very caring person under
  his ‘Latin lover’ facade.  He
  made a very good match to Heather’s willowy good looks. 
  He was just over six feet and carried around one hundred-eighty pounds. 
  His olive skin contrasted well with her Nordic complexion.
 
What impressed the trio the most was his devotion to Jenni. 
  He doted on her and she was always glad to see him and tried to say
  “Grandpa” whenever she wanted his attention. 
  He may have been eight years younger than Heather, but it didn’t seem
  to matter.  Mandy had asked him one time why he enjoyed a baby so much
  that wasn’t his blood.  His
  reply was that family had always been important to him and that he had taken
  care of his three younger brothers and sisters when he was still in Italy.
 
It took two trips for Adrian and Greg to get all the
  presents in from Heather’s car.  She
  always spoiled Jenni, but this was more than her usual level of extravagance. 
  Jenni didn’t understand just what was happening, but she sure about
  what to do with all the packages that had all the ribbons and bows on them.
 
‘Grandma’ and ‘Grandpa’ spent the morning playing
  with Jenni while she played with all her new toys. 
  This gave Greg, Mandy, and Traci time to finish their preparations
  without having to keep tabs on the birthday girl.
 
The party went very well. 
  The children all played together without any major squabbles and the
  adults enjoyed the cookout and talking with people that they didn’t get to
  see very often.  Even though, by
  the time everyone had left, Mandy was feeling weary. 
  She had been so anxious for Jenni’s first birthday to be perfect that
  she was exhausted by the time the party ended.
 
Jenni had gone without a nap so she was tired as well. 
  Mother and daughter stretched out on the adult’s bed and took a nap
  together while Greg and Traci finished cleaning the place up. 
  Greg brought in the last bag of used paper plates and plastic forks and
  spotted Traci bent over, putting away a baking dish that she had taken out of
  the dishwasher.  Watching her
  perfectly shaped ass move as she shifted the pots and pans, he was feeling a
  definite rise in his jeans.
 
He slipped up behind her as she stood up and put his arms
  around her just below her breasts while he nuzzled her neck. 
  She responded by tilting her head to the side and moving her hair out
  of the way to expose more of her neck to his kisses.
 
“Mmmmmm...  That
  feels great.  But what brought
  that on all of the sudden?”
 
“I just found... (Kissing her neck) you so damn
  attractive...(nibbling on her earlobe) that I just had to show you how much I
  wanted you...(pushing his hard cock into her ass)”
 
“Slide your hand under my skirt and you will find out
  just how much I want you too.  Ahhhh.” 
  The last was caused by Greg taking her suggestion and slipping his hand
  under her skirt to run his fingers lightly over her wet panties.
 
“Please take me quick, Greg.  Do me bent over the counter. 
  I’ve always wanted to have a hard passionate fuck just like this.”
 
Greg took her advice. 
  He slid her skirt up over her hips and hooked his fingers into the
  waist of her bikini panties.  He
  slid them down until her ass was fully exposed and then slowly revealed her
  very wet pussy.  Once they were
  down past her thighs, he let go so they would fall to puddle at her bare feet. 
  He then maneuvered her backwards until only her shoulders and head were
  supported on the counter.  She spread her legs fully exposing her swollen vulva.
 
Greg knew she was anxious but he couldn’t resist tasting
  her.  As he unbuckled and dropped
  his pants, he ran his tongue along her entire slit, eliciting a loud moan from
  her.  Traci started moving her ass
  in circular motions showing her need to him.
 
Without any further foreplay, Greg moved forward and slid
  his cock into her with one smooth motion. 
  He took it slowly enough to allow her natural lubrication to coat him
  as he pushed deep into her.
 
Traci held her breath as he slid into her, only letting it
  out in a groan when she felt his pubic hair touch her bare vulva. 
  “Now grab my tits and fuck me hard!”
 
Greg always wanted to please his partner and since this is
  just what he wanted to do as well, he pulled back out about half way before
  thrusting into her with more force.  This
  set up the rhythm and soon she was pushing back into his every thrust. 
  He grabbed her breasts as they hung down from her chest and mauled them
  through her silky blouse.  When
  Traci got in this mood, she loved to have her breasts roughly handled and he
  didn’t disappoint.
 
As she started toward her orgasm, he found her hard nipples
  and started to pinch and twist them between his fingers. 
  Her left hand moved down over her damp patch of fur to find and then
  strum her clit.  She cried out as
  her orgasm built higher and higher before she went over the edge.
 
With the excitement and the feel of her tight pussy, Greg
  couldn’t hold out any more.  He
  shortened his strokes prolonging his pleasure until he couldn’t hold back
  any longer.  With a low growl, he
  slammed into her dumping his load of semen as deep into her as he could, her
  ass cheeks bouncing with the force of his thrusts.
 
He continued to thrust into her when he felt her internal
  muscles start to massage his cock.  Traci’s
  legs started to shake with her explosion of bliss and Greg barely had enough
  sense to grab her and hold on tight as she shook from her orgasm.
 
As she started to come down from her peak, her legs gave
  out and Greg was weak enough from his own exertions to be able to do nothing
  more than to follow her down onto the tiled floor, both of them still panting
  from their exertions.
 
They both heard a noise and turned to see Mandy standing in
  the doorway grinning at them as they lay in a heap. 
  Greg’s cock had slipped out of Traci’s pussy and his spend was
  trickling out, coating her lips before it dripped off her hip and onto the
  floor.  Their lover couldn’t
  help but giggle at the sight in front of her. 
  
 
“You two really put on quite a show, you know that? 
  We could get rich selling tickets.”
 
Greg rolled away from Traci and started to get up on his
  knees.. Unfortunately, his pants were still around his ankles and he only
  succeeded in ending up back on his butt. 
  Traci moved at the same time to her hands and knees, which caused more
  of their combined juices to drop from her still-open vagina onto the floor.
 
All of this caused Mandy to dissolve into laughter and she
  was soon on the floor with them, pointing and giggling at their embarrassed
  faces.  The two lovers saw the
  humor in the whole situation and joined her in her laughter.
 
As soon as they got themselves together, Mandy stood up and
  went to the counter where she grabbed a couple of paper towels. 
  She handed one to Traci so she could wipe herself off and with the
  other, she cleaned off the remains of their lovemaking from the floor. 
  Traci stood on trembling legs and made her way to the bathroom so she
  could clean herself off.  
 
Greg stood as well and started to pull up his shorts and
  pants.  Mandy stopped him when he
  had them about half way up his thighs.  “I
  think I should clean this off for you,” she said as she touched his limp
  member.  Putting her words to
  actions, she pulled his shaft into her mouth and ran her tongue around his
  cock until she had cleaned all of the fluids from it. 
  He was almost hard again by the time she finished with his shaft and
  continued to his balls.  Looking
  at him with mischief in her eyes, she slid the tip of his cock back in her
  mouth and started to suck on him.  He
  leaned his bare ass against the counter while his fiancée’ vacuumed his
  member until he could feel his balls rise up in anticipation of another
  climax.
 
He warned her that he was about to come and she started to
  work harder on his cock.  She felt
  the spasms in his cock as his semen came rushing up and out of the tip. 
  This load was much smaller than the one he had recently placed in
  Traci, but it was enough to satisfy him and Mandy both. 
  She pulled her lips off the head of his cock, making sure she didn’t
  lose any of his come.  Then, she
  stood and looked right at him.  Mandy
  swallowed, showing him that she had taken it all down her throat. 
  Then she gave him a smile and walked to the doorway. 
  One more quick glance over her shoulder and she headed to the living
  room, her ass swaying seductively.
 
Greg shook his head in disbelief at just how lucky he was
  to have not one but two beautiful, loving women who enjoyed sex with him and
  were not jealous of each other.  Grinning
  to himself, he buttoned up his jeans and finished the cleaning that had been
  interrupted.
 
Over the next couple of weeks, the trio kept an ear out for
  any clue about Melissa’s problem.  The
  girl seemed to be holding up just fine, though there were a couple of times
  when her eyes would be swollen and red when she would get to class, and Mandy
  knew someone had said something to her.
 
Traci finally found out just what had been going on. 
  She had talked to a friend who was in the Sorority that Melissa
  belonged to.  Traci found out that
  one girl, who was also Melissa’s roommate, had not made it into the sorority
  and held Melissa responsible.  The
  truth was that the girl was such a total bitch that the Sisters had voted
  against her.  This girl had been
  spreading the rumors about Melissa being easy and that she would do anything
  for a guy.
 
Traci also helped by setting up Melissa with a sophomore
  that she knew was a complete gentleman.  She
  explained just what Melissa had gone through to him and asked that he treat
  her well.   The guy took
  Melissa out to dinner and a performance of a play put on by the college. 
  He didn’t do anything more than get a goodnight kiss for several more
  dates.  Melissa was ecstatic. 
  Just before Thanksgiving Break, she stopped over at Greg and Mandy’s
  to let them know how well things were going and to thank them all and
  especially Traci for all the help.  She
  also promised to get her new beau to show up for the study groups after the
  break.
 
Thanksgiving was a small affair for the trio that year. 
  Heather and Adrian came over and they all had a very nice meal thanks
  to Mandy and Traci.  They had
  decided that they would do it all themselves and other than to get Greg to
  help carve the turkey and mash the potatoes, it was all their efforts. 
  Greg did take on the job of cleaning up and Heather gave him a hand. 
  When Heather and Adrian left late that night, they had enough leftovers
  to last them well past the weekend.
 
The rest of the holiday was spent relaxing and studying. 
  Jenni was sick Friday night and Mandy stayed up with her until Traci
  relieved her around dawn.  It was
  just a stomach virus that she had picked up from the day care but it caused
  her mother some anguish.
 
After that short break, it was time to really crack down
  and study for the upcoming finals.  The
  evenings were spent doing assignments and studying what they were sure would
  be on the tests.  Jenni, being the
  good child she was, would either sit next to one of the adults quietly playing
  or she would pull her trick and turn on the Television.  Mandy felt like she was neglecting the child but Jenni seemed
  to be very happy playing by herself.. She would only come in for reassurance
  that the adults were there and to get a hug and kiss.  That was one trait where she was like her mother; she loved
  to get all the affection she could con them out of.  Of course, the adults were more than happy to supply all the
  love she could ever need.
 
The week of finals was very hectic and all three were on
  edge.  The grades were finally
  posted just before they were to leave for the trip to Italy to see Greg’s
  grandfather.  All three were very
  pleasantly surprised with the marks they had earned.  Traci was the only one to make the Dean’s list, but the
  other two were not far behind.  And
  considering that they had both taken heavy class loads, it was quite an
  accomplishment.  They had two days
  to pack before they were to be on the plane to visit Mr. Nicholas Scheffield,
  Greg’s grandfather.  
 
Greg was not sure how he felt about that visit.