Chapter Twenty-one

   Jennifer grabbed her keys and ran out to the car.  She didn't want to be
late to work.  As she negotiated the turns to get to the accounting firm
where she worked as a receptionist and general Girl Friday, she wondered
for the hundredth time why neither she nor Bob had thought about taking her
car to go see her parents in the hospital.  And, for the hundredth time,
she thanked her lucky stars they HADN'T thought of that.  If they had, her
world wouldn't have changed, most likely.  She wouldn't have lost her
virginity and, she was thoroughly convinced, she would still be a
completely frustrated stutterer.

   As she entered the building, a slightly older and slightly more jaded
young woman, she thought about how easy it had been to get a job, once
she'd lost the stutter.  The man who'd interviewed her had looked her over
obviously and she'd been convinced, when he offered her the job, that he
had designs on her.  That was proven when he suggested they go out for
dinner, even though he was married.  One of Bob's frequent visits to town
solved that problem.  He came to see her at work (at her request) and she
introduced him as her boyfriend.  Her boss lost interest after that.

   But she was good at her job and she needed the income, so she stuck with
it.

   She had a lot of experience, in her own mind, of sticking with things.
Watching Bob drive away on the Babe Bike HAD been the hardest thing she
could ever remember going through, with the exception of not knowing if her
parents were going to be alive or not when she got to them.  But she had
survived that.  And she had survived keeping things in order until her
parents got home.

   She viewed having to keep the household going as the thing that had
saved her sanity after Bob left.  It had kept her mind occupied.  That and
her new job, anyway.  The only time she'd had to wallow in self pity had
been at night, when she was alone in bed, trying to go to sleep.

   Things had gotten better almost immediately, though.  It's amazing how
much one's perspective can alter what looks like a dismal situation.

   Bob had called her as soon as he got home.  They'd talked for an hour,
after which she'd felt much better.  The next night, he called again.  And
the night after that.  It turned into a ritual that was the anchor in her
storm.  She knew that no matter how frazzled she got, evening would come
eventually and Bob would call, and she'd be able to hear his voice again,
and all would be right with the world.

   The following weekend he'd come to the house.  He'd said it was to take
her out to celebrate getting a job, but they were in bed within ten
minutes. She'd kept him in bed until late in the afternoon, when she'd
finally been willing to let him take her out to eat.

   But the thing that had really brought her wallowing ship out of the
troughs of the hurricane-driven waves was something many people would
simply glance at and then toss in the trash.

   Bob had brought her a catalog from Georgia State University.

   Now, when she went to bed, she pulled the well thumbed magazine from
under her pillow and gazed once more at the stately buildings and course
descriptions, even though she'd seen them all dozens of times.  Had she
been a young man, it might have been a Playboy or Penthouse.  It basically
served the same purpose.  It gave her something to fantasize about...to
keep her dream alive.

   The rest of the time she had to spend on dealing with reality, which
kept her plenty busy during the day.

   Two weeks later Bob had brought her application forms.  She'd taken the
SAT in high school, but hadn't paid any attention to the score, because it
hadn't really mattered back then.  Now she had to go back to her high
school to get the information she needed.  She was both amazed and
delighted that they remembered her.  They were both amazed and delighted at
the changes in her.

   Her parents reported that things were moving along, if slowly.  Don was
scheduled to be released soon, if all went smoothly, and though he wanted
to stay with Susan in the hospital, he would be sent home a full two weeks
before it would be safe to move her. .  All in all, two months passed
before the Brazelton family was all back together under one roof.

   Her father had to use crutches, at first, and then a cane for months. 
Her mother came home in a wheel chair.  Over the months that it took for
Georgia State University to accept Jennifer's application, her mother spent
more and more time out of the chair, until it sat in a corner gathering
dust.

   At first Jennifer had been busy, but had seen Bob every weekend, which
had kept her sane.  Then with her parents return, she'd been even busier,
and a problem had emerged.

   Bob couldn't bring himself to stay the night.  He knew she'd want him in
her bed, and he just couldn't do that to Don.  He still came every Saturday
morning, and stayed all day, but he always left for Atlanta that night.

   Susan routinely invited him to stay.  Don said nothing.  Bob said he was
busy.

   ============================

   Susan hummed as she chopped vegetables for the salad.  Don would be home
soon from the last day of his first full week back at work.  She was almost
giddy with anticipation for him to get home.  She had plans.

   She'd been to the doctor again, earlier in the day.  He'd said it was
the last time she needed to come in, unless she was worried about
something. She'd told him she only had one question.  He hadn't blinked an
eye at her request for permission to try something.

   "Doctor, I haven't had sex for almost six months," she had said.  "I'm
about to go crazy, but I don't want to mess anything up."

   He'd looked at her calmly and said, "Go for it, Mrs.  Brazelton."

   She checked the oven.  The meatloaf was about done.  The mashed potatoes
were on top of the stove, staying warm.  Jennifer, clued into the plan,
offered to go to a movie and do some shopping.  Susan had laughed, saying a
movie would probably be plenty long enough.

   They'd eat, chatting about their day, and then she'd get what she so
desperately needed.  Don didn't know that yet, but that didn't matter. 
After all, he'd been without sex for the same six months.

   Her plan went flawlessly.

   She took his plate to the counter and set it on top of hers.

   "Oh, there's something I wanted to show you," she said.

   "What's that?" He stretched.  He was relaxed now.  It was Friday night,
he didn't have anywhere to go, and he wasn't in pain.  That was a lot to be
thankful for, in his opinion.

   "Stay there," she said.  "I'll go get it."

   "IT" was already on her body--under her clothes.  In the bedroom, she
stripped down to what was left of the black teddy she'd purchased secretly
just for the trip that had ended in disaster.  She'd planned to wear it for
him on that trip, and had never gotten the chance.  All that was left was
the thong and demi-bra, of course.  Jennifer had admitted, blushing, what
had happened to the jacket.

   Susan ran a comb through her hair and looked at her reflection in the
mirror.  She tweaked her nipples, though both were already erect.  She was
creaming already, too.  She'd lost a lot of weight in the hospital and was
afraid she looked skinny and pale, but she was pretty sure Don would
respond.

   She padded back down to the doorway that led into the kitchen.

   "Honey?" she called.  "I have this problem."

   "What's that?" he called back.

   She stepped into the doorway, putting a hand up and leaning against it,
feeling like she probably looked stupid.

   "I'm horny out of my mind," she said softly.

   ==================================

   Yes, her plan had worked flawlessly, Susan thought, as she lay almost
obscenely satisfied.  Don had been almost comical in his reaction.  He was
still Don, her remembered ardent and quite physical lover.  But he was also
afraid he'd hurt her.  It had made him stop and start, like some jerky old
reel of film, until she finally started issuing orders.  To be honest, the
relief she'd felt when he finally penetrated her was for more than just
lustful reasons.  She'd been so afraid, somehow, but those fears had been
abated.  She WAS healed, and now she could have her man back.  By the time
she'd finished with him, he wasn't being so terribly careful with her.

   "I needed that," she sighed, reaching out to lay a hand on his heaving
chest.

   "I'm the one who needed that," he panted.  "Remind me to send flowers to
the doctor."

   "This one's male," giggled Susan.

   "OK, then, a bottle of Scotch."

   "That's more appropriate, and I approve.  You made me very happy,
husband."

   "Wait a few minutes and I'll make you happy again," he said, turning his
face to her.

   It was time to move on to the last part of her plan.  She rolled over,
putting her lips against his briefly in a brushing kiss.

   "I'll take you up on that," she said softly.  "But there is one other
thing I need."

   "Anything," he sighed.

   "I need you to let Jennifer have a chance to get what SHE needs, too.  I
want her to be able to be as happy as I am."

   ==================================

   Bob showed up on Saturday morning, as usual.  Susan met him at the door.

   "They went out for breakfast," she said.  "Come on in and I'll make you
some."

   His eyebrows rose.

   "Father-daughter bonding kind of thing," she said casually.

   She fixed him bacon and eggs and then sat, nursing a cup of coffee while
he ate.

   "Jennifer got her acceptance letter from Georgia State," she said.  "I'm
not supposed to tell you, so act surprised when she does."

   He paused, the fork halfway to his mouth.

   "Why DID you tell me, then?" he asked.

   "She's going to need a place to live when she starts classes."

   Bob put the fork down and leaned back.

   "She told me about her dream, Bob," said Susan.

   "Why am I not surprised?" He smiled ruefully.

   "So?"

   "Susan, you know there's nothing I'd love more than having her close,
but..."

   "You're thinking about Don," prompted Susan.

   "Yes."

   "That's why you never stay the night, too," said Susan.

   He didn't have to speak.  His face said it all for him.

   "Why don't you just ask her to marry you?" Susan's voice made it sound
like she was suggesting he do something routine.

   His reaction wasn't one of astonishment, though.  "Because that would be
crazy, and you know it."

   "Well, mister mind reader, suppose you just tell me why I know it," said
Susan.

   Bob didn't catch the satire in her voice.

   "She's too young."

   "Lots of women her age get married," said her mother.

   "OK, then...I'm too old."

   "Bob, lots of men in their forties get married, too," she said
patiently.

   He'd been beating around the bush and they both knew it.  He finally
said what she expected him to say.

   "Don would never go for it.  Besides, I don't know how to be married. 
I'm a loose cannon...a maverick.  She needs somebody stable."

   "How many women have you picked up on the Babe Bike since you got back?"
Susan asked suddenly.

   "What?"

   "How many?" she insisted.

   He frowned.  "None.  I don't even ride the damn thing anymore."

   "And how many women have you had sex with since we got in that wreck?"

   "You can't ask me something like that!" he groaned.

   "How many, Bob?"

   He actually blushed.  "One," he said.

   "And how many bar fights have you gotten into?"

   "None," he snorted.  "I don't go out and get into fights on purpose,
Susan."

   "Some loose cannon you are," she scoffed.  "Fathers everywhere must live
in terror of you despoiling their tender young daughters."

   "My sex life is not the point," said Bob.

   "Yes it is!" barked Susan.  "And so is Jennifer's." She stopped, feeling
her face get hot.  She'd gotten impatient and hadn't chosen her words
carefully.  "At least it's one point," she said.  "Another is that BOTH of
you want to be together...to make each other happy...to have a LIFE, Bob!
Marriage won't kill you!  And what my husband thinks about it shouldn't be
the determining factor as to whether you try or not."

   "He's not just your husband," said Bob.  "He's my brother...my best
friend...and Jennifer's father.  I can't ignore all that and I can't throw
that away.  And I'm fully aware that marriage wouldn't kill me.  BELIEVE
me, I've thought about this...a lot!  I wasn't exactly anti-marriage
before, but I never thought it would be the right thing for me.  Jennifer
changed that, or at least I THINK she changed that.  I'm confused a lot
these days."

   Susan felt hope blossom in her chest.  She felt the strangest urge to
kiss this man and blushed again.

   "Jennifer has been acting more and more froggy," said Susan.  "You're
not helping by coming here, staying all day and then going home.  She's all
excited about college.  She's practically beside herself to find a way to
get Don to agree to her living with you.  She needs to get laid, Bob.  And
don't look at me like that.  I just got laid two days ago for the first
time in six months.  I know what I'm talking about when I say she NEEDS her
man!"

   "I NEED HER, TOO!" yelled Bob.  "WHAT THE FUCK CAN I DO ABOUT IT,
THOUGH?"

   Don and Jennifer chose that particular moment to open the kitchen door,
having returned from their breakfast trip.  They were laughing at something
one of them had said, and both were smiling.

   "What's all the yelling about?" asked Jennifer.

   =================================

   Don's demeanor was as surreal as Bob's.  Bob, having just shouted at
Susan, sat stiffly, his face frozen.  The smile didn't fade from Don's
face. He said, "Hey, dude," and kept moving, to reach and kiss his wife. 
He acted like he had every time he'd seen Bob for the last five or six
years, not counting the last six months.

   "Bob was just expressing some frustration," said Susan, returning her
husband's kiss.  "I'm glad you're home.  I need to talk to you about
something."

   "Shoot," he said.

   "In private," she said.  Her cheeks got pink.  "In the bedroom."

   "Really!" He leered.

   She stood up.  "Really." Her voice was sultry.

   "What brought this on?" asked Don.

   "Bob," said Susan.  "It's a good thing I met you first.  You should
count your blessings about that."

   Don groaned.  "I should have known." He shot a glance at Bob, grinned,
and led his wife out of the kitchen.

   "What the fuck just happened?" asked Bob, confusion in his voice.

   "Scoot back," said Jennifer, coming to the table.

   He did so, automatically, and she swung a leg over to straddle him,
sitting on his lap.  She kissed him long and hard, insisting he give her
his tongue.

   "Daddy had a talk with me," she said when she was done.

   "What?" Bob felt helpless.

   "He's old fashioned," said Jennifer.  "He explained to me how he doesn't
believe a woman should live in sin."

   "What?" Bob was still frustrated and it seeped into his voice.

   "He says he can't give me his blessing if I just come live with you when
I go to school," she said patiently.  "We have to be married.  Or at least
engaged.  He said engaged would be OK, though I don't get that, because his
definition of living in sin is..."

   "Stop!" Bob's voice was loud.

   Jennifer sat, staring into his eyes.  She waited patiently.

   "Your mother was just talking about this," he said.

   "Living in sin?" The bare beginning of a smile touched the corners of
her lips.

   "No...marriage," said Bob.

   "It's a conspiracy," whispered Jennifer.  "They're trying to marry me
off.  I think it's so they won't have to pay for college."

   "This isn't funny, Jen!" he barked.

   Jennifer quit playing with him.

   "Will you marry me, Bob?  Daddy says you will and he's never lied to
me."

   "Your father..." said Bob, unbelieving, "your father...said that
I...would marry you."

   She tensed.  "Yes he did, Bob." Her face looked wary and her upbeat
attitude seemed to slide away, like fog before the sun.  "I told him I
thought you were very resistant to the idea of marriage and he laughed.  He
said he was quite sure you'd jump at the chance to marry me." She scooted
back on his lap and something like fear came across her face.  "Bob?"

   His mind was whirling.  The complete turnaround in Don's attitude was
something he hadn't expected and didn't understand.  Don was hardheaded. 
It was part of why he was so dependable.  When he made up his mind about
something, you knew what to expect.  He was solid.

   "Bob, please don't tell me he was wrong." His mind was jerked back from
his puzzlement by the sound of tears in her voice.

   "Of course not," he said impatiently.  "I'd love to marry you." He
frowned.  "That's not what's bothering me."

   "You would?!" The fear was gone and excitement...no ECSTACY was in her
voice now.  The tears still came, but now they were the result of a
different emotion.

   "Sweetheart, I've wanted to marry you ever since you told that motel guy
that you weren't a hooker."

   "WHAT!?" Jennifer's jaw dropped.

   "Remember?  You said that he couldn't have you at any price, and that IF
I could have you, it would be at no charge."

   "THAT made you want to marry me?!" she gasped.

   "At that instant I wanted to be the man who could have you."

   She stared at him, amazed.

   "It's supposed to be about love, Bob!" she said, almost sounding hurt.

   "I already loved you," he said.  "I'd loved you for years.  I just
didn't love you as a WOMAN until that moment."

   "Oh," she said, tilting her head.  "OK then."

   "That's it?" He smiled.  "I'm not in the hot seat any more?"

   "Well..."

   "What?" he asked.

   "You said you'd love to marry me..."

   "Yes."

   "But you haven't asked me yet."

   "Didn't YOU ask ME?"

   "Yes, but that doesn't count.  I had to bring it up somehow.  I TOLD
you, Daddy's old fashioned.  YOU have to ask ME.  That's just how it
works."

   "He SAID that?!" Bob was astonished.

   "No, of course not, but I know him.  It would actually be better if you
ask him for my hand."

   "You're kidding."

   "Nope," she said.  Then she wiggled closer to him and kissed him again.
"And would you please hurry?  He DID say we can't have sex until we're
engaged."

   "He said THAT?"

   "Well, he said not in my room, anyway."

   "Well I'll be damned."

   ==================================

   It never occurred to Bob that what might be going on in the bedroom
between Don and Susan was...very private, which is why he just opened the
door.

   His eyes took in husband and wife, nude on the bed.  Susan was on her
back, her knees thrown wide while her heels dug into the bedspread, her
hips engaged in a classic "fuck back at him" movement.  Her white breasts,
tipped with bright pink and very erect nipples, rolled gently on her chest
as Don lunged between her legs.  He was in a modified pushup position and
he wasn't being gentle.

   "Oh my!" squeaked Jennifer, from behind Bob.

   Her parents' heads swiveled and all motion on the bed stopped.  Their
eyes were wide in their faces.

   "What the fuck?" gasped Don.

   "Can I marry your daughter?" Bob blurted.

   "I already TOLD her you could!" exclaimed Don.

   Susan's hands came up to cover her nipples.  Jennifer giggled.

   "Right!" said Bob.  "Sorry."

   He backed up, trying to pull the door closed, but ran into Jennifer, who
was peering over his shoulder.

   "It's not nearly as bad as I thought it would be," she said and giggled
again.

   Bob shoved her backwards and closed the door.

   He wouldn't find out for almost twenty years that their interruption,
rather than cooling the ardor of the lovers, actually made that lovemaking
session--and others that followed it-a lot hotter.

   ===============================

   Standing in the hallway, another pair of lovers reacted to what had just
happened.

   "I accept!" Jennifer panted as she grasped Bob's hand and pulled him
toward her bedroom.

   Half an hour later, Jennifer's panting voice produced a day's late echo
of her mother's words, spoken in another bedroom in the same house.

   "I needed that so much." And, like her mother, she rolled toward her
lover to cuddle, get kisses and tell him how happy she was.

   And, some dozen or so minutes later, like Don, Bob responded by giving
her more of what had just made her so happy.  


  
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