Chapter 7

We talked through breakfast and four cups of coffee with a trip each to the bathroom. I watched Sharon as she walked to the bathroom. Every man's eyes were on her as well as a few women's eyes. I didn't blame them. I was watching her, too. She returned and was finishing her coffee. She said, "Take me home. I need more clothes. I'm not used to the heavy stares."

I smiled. "One pair of them was mine!" I smiled a little broader. "I'm proud to have such a hot babe with me. Of course, you'll still be hot with more clothes on."

"Thank you, Si. I will be more comfortable covered when we're out in the future. It's disconcerting when the staring is so obvious."

We went to the car and returned to her condo. She pushed me down on the sofa and straddled me. "I want desert. Kiss me and take your time. We have all day and all night. I talked to Jim and Wanda. We will spend time with them at church and afterwards tomorrow."

She came to me and we kissed. My hands began to roam and she didn't deter me but turned to make her body more available. I found that she wasn't wearing anything under her outer clothes! I was getting excited. She could tell because she was wiggling down there. I pulled back and said, "Sharon, this isn't quite how I imagined our first time."

"How did you imagine it, then?"

"In a bed after a meal knowing that we had a long time. It needs to be serious not just lust."

She looked at me for a long minute. "We just had a good meal. Now, we're going upstairs into my bedroom. I want you to make love to me. I lust for you, Si. Even more, I want to make love to you."

"You wore that outfit to seduce me."

"Si, I want you in my bed. No man has been there in a long, long time. I'm in love with you. We will work everything out because we want to be together." I pulled her tightly to me.

She stood up and pulled me up beside her. We climbed the stairs together stopping frequently. I carried her into her bedroom. When I set her on her feet. I helped her undress and she was pulling at my clothes. We tumbled onto her bed naked and tangling our bodies.

It was almost time for lunch when we truly stopped for any length of time. We lay together and I said, "We need to set a date. I love you, Sharon. Please, be my wife."

"Si, you don't have to. I mean, you don't have a duty. I'm still trying to figure out how we can see each other."

"Sharon, I understand duty. Marrying you will be a pleasure, not a duty. Once married, we will figure the rest out."

"Silas, I will marry you but it's not a rush. We have a lot to do and talk out."

"Sharon, it is a bit of a rush. I'm lying here with you doing and having done something that I would rake my children over the coals for doing. Besides, if you're married to me, there will be more impetus to work everything out."

"Silas, it's different!" I said nothing nor did I move. After a minute or so of silence, she quietly said, "You're right. It's not different. I'm sorry." She moved. "Come on. We are going to look up what it will take for us to be married. I know we meet the requirements for marriage but do we need to prove that?"

Epilogue

We did need to prove that we were free to marry. We gathered the kids that night and gave them the news. We married two weeks later. We married on a Saturday and honeymooned that night and the next day. On Monday morning, I drove to Tifton and Sharon had classes.

We made a trip down one weekend with the kids with us. Meg loved Sharon as did the members of my church. We will have a real honeymoon between Christmas and New Year's Day.

There is a lot to resolve but we are working on it diligently. I am planning to move my office to Atlanta and get out of the plant people's hair. It's time Mickey took a step upward. Megan received a promotion, too. The senior management wasn't happy about my moving but I explained that I am going to live with my wife, many of our customers were close to Atlanta, and I didn't have to work. It's officially a trial. I'm keeping the house in Tifton at Sharon's suggestion for us to use and for the kids' sake.

Being married to a college professor is a challenge but fun and the fringe benefits have been and are amazing!