Chapter 5

I drifted in and out of sleep until the lines between the two became hard to recognize. Bits and pieces of my erotic dreams began to scroll through my mind at random. Each of them held together by a single common thread: Jenny. She was everywhere, in my thoughts, in my heart, and now in my dreams. I gently squeezed her hand, still in mine, watching a tiny smile appear on her face while she slept.

The full moon was like a bright car headlight shining through my window. Getting up to draw the shade would mean letting go of Jenny's hand, something I wasn't about to do. I wanted to wake her up and tell her how beautiful she was and how much she was loved. Just thinking about it made me feel so soft and feminine all over. Lately I'd been having more of those kinds of feelings than ever before. It was like Jenny had awaken something deep inside of me, something intensely emotional, almost overwhelming. Feelings that seemed to wash through me in waves and carry me away, helplessly losing myself in them. I could feel that intense desire rising up inside of me for more.

Inching my way toward her, Jenny looked like she was made for snuggling, just the right size for me. But I just had to wake her up didn't I? That token fragment of guilt quickly faded in her warm glow.

"I'm sorry sweetie," Jenny's ear lingering of perfume as I whispered in.

She answered, still half asleep. "Is this a dream?"

"*You* are a dream" I touched the tip of her nose with my finger. "A dream come true!"

The arms around me squeezed a little tighter. "You're *so* cuddly," gushed Jennifer.

Ocean waves rumbled in the distance, hardly seeming anything more than so much background noise. Pleasant, they were only occasionally noticeable like the soft din of elevator music. They had gotten my attention again.

"Do they seem louder to you Jenny?... the waves."

She paused, concentrating on the sound. "It might be foggy out there, It always sounds louder to me when it's foggy. You want to look?"

Her hand tugged mine until both of us were running over to the window like a pair of Christmas children waiting for Santa Claus to come. The view from my window was nothing more than the blurry light from our walkway lamp. A thick blanket of fog had covered our little world reminding me of a snowstorm as I watched the mist swirl around. Sometimes I would get up at night and go out when it was snowing. I felt that sudden urge again now.

Jenny liked the idea too so we bundled up for the cold and headed outside. Walking arm in arm along the sleeping streets at 2 in the morning, we expected to see no one. Only the long intermittent pulses of a foghorn punctuated the silence as we made our way through a ghost town of dimly lit store fronts, empty streets, and a lone blinking stoplight. It somehow really struck me that this was such a nothing little beach town, that's all it was.

"So how did you end up moving here?" I was afraid she'd get around to asking that eventually.

"Well," I answered reluctantly. "My parents had this farm in Nebraska that had been in the family for who knows how long. As time went on the big corporation farmers, as my dad called them, gobbled up all the smaller farms as they ran them out of business. But not my dad, he managed to hold out. It was like when you play monopoly and someone has that one property you need for a monopoly. That was dad. Every year they offered more and more for our land until this year... that's when he decided that he wanted to retire."

Jenny smiled that smile. The one that told me she had finally put two and two together. "I guess your parents are rich, aren't they?"

"I wish they weren't. I don't want to be treated differently because of that. It doesn't change anything with you, Jenny. Does it?"

That starry eyed smile of hers was really starting to worry me. "No, it doesn't. But it explains a few things. Like how your parents could possibly afford that house overlooking the ocean."

"Well that's not *all* they bought in this town." I looked around at several of the rentals they now owned without actually pointing them out. "They bought quite a bit of real estate here, it's no wonder they're already good friends with the mayor and who knows who else. I don't want any part of their money and influence, it all makes me sick."

Jenny looked me straight in the eyes, finally replacing that silly grin with a serious look. "I just want to know one thing... do you think your mom can take us shopping some time?"

We both burst into laughter, scaring away the seagulls next to us on the boardwalk railing. I watched as they disappeared into the thick fog. When I turned back to Jenny she was busy doing something on the railing, cupping her hands around the secret so I couldn't see.

Finally she opened them up, revealing a small heart carved into the railing. Inside were the initials "J" and "S".

I wrapped my arms around and squeezed her tightly. "I really love you, Jenny."

Wanting so much to kiss her right then, I felt silly thinking someone might see us. With visibility down to about arms length, it was hardly what you would call kissing in public. We both looked around nervously as if synchronized by the same desire. Then we slowly moved closer to each other. It seemed as though we were kissing for the first time. Kissing in our special spot on the boardwalk where we met, a place now engraved with a memorial to our love. I shoved my hands into her pants pockets, redoubling my efforts on her lips. More than just the kiss was turning wet as our tongues approached each other, meeting, touching, then intertwining in an intimate dance. My nipples too had figured out that something was going on, judging by the warm tingly sensations they were having.

"Are you getting all *hot* and bothered?" I was asked.

I grabbed her hand and jumped off the boardwalk, taking her along. "Yes, you are... heating and bothering me!"

We ran to the water's edge, swallowed up by the dark misty night. The waves rolled ashore while we sat just out of their reach and held hands.

"Jenny, what are your parents like?"

My question was greeted by a sad frown. "Oh, they're OK, I guess. My dad kind of scares me sometimes, he has this problem with his temper." Jenny stared down at her fidgeting fingers. "My mom says we all need to try harder not to get him upset, especially my brother Jim. He's always doing things that get my dad angry. I think most of it is his fault."

While she was talking I flashed back to that sad, broken figure on the sand. The pain all seemed connected in some way. Jenny looked like she was going to cry any minute, just like she had yesterday. The small beads of water that had formed on her hair made me think of tears.

Putting my arm around her shoulder, I spoke softly. "It's OK if you don't want to talk about it."

The conversation turned abruptly to the new school year. Not exactly my favorite subject, but it was such a relief to see Jenny's mood pick up when she talked about being a senior in high school and graduating. That was my main regret about moving in the first place, why couldn't they wait one more year?

There were more than a few things about my parents worthy of complaint, but the wet sand soaking through my pants distracted me. And back home, there was that nice warm comforter waiting.

Without any warning the lack of sleep had caught up with me again and the long climb back home drained the last bit of energy I had left. Jenny looked tired too, her pretty blue eyes now drooping with puffy bags under them. When we finally settled into bed, I fell fast asleep the minute my head hit the pillow.

The morning had brought with it incredible winds that seemed to shake the house to its foundation. The walls creaked and cracked as if they were alive. This house had seen 50 years of weather that was as rough as the jagged rocks to which it was attached. Surely it would survive what the folks back home would call tornado weather.

None of it seemed disturb my dearest Jennifer who lay asleep while I caressed her face gently. The first rays of sunlight dimly lit up my curtains, shedding just enough light for me to see her. That sweet face looked even more beautiful in the warmth of the morning light. I wanted so much to wake her up, so much to tell her how much I loved her.