Chapter 3

Friday started out with another hug and a kiss on the cheek. We didn't have much time to talk between classes but at lunch I went to the drive-thru at Arby's and we ate in the parking lot.

"I think that I've noticed a trend Nelson. Are you ashamed to be seen with me or something?"

"I just don't want to let you move away from me Lena, I can't believe how good you feel sitting next to me. I would be proud as all get out to be seen with you, but I would think that you might not like that too much. Why would you want to be seen in public with me? All your friends would probably run away screaming."

"You may not have noticed, but I don't have any friends here, and there is no one I would rather be seen with than you. Thank you for the compliment though. Are you all ready for tonight?"

"Sure, I'll be waiting for you at home with the car all spiffed up and ready. Where is Diane staying while she is here?"

"She'll be with me. I have a small apartment on Columbia St. Dad moved to Frankfurt after he lost the dealership so I had to have a place to live. Your mom offered to put me up and I did stay in your old room for my first year of classes, but I moved out when you were coming home."

That afternoon mom and I were sitting at the kitchen table when Lena arrived. She and mom hugged and they kissed like long lost friends. She then came over to me and gave me a hug as well.

As we got up to leave Lena spoke to mom. "Wish me luck Julie, everything hinges on tonight. Hopefully I'll see you tomorrow."

"I hope so honey, remember, hold his feet to the fire and don't let up when he tries to escape. My best wishes are with you."

Now what? She had to be talking about me, but in what concept, and how did Diane figure into this? As we drove I tried to get Lena to open up about her conversation with my mother, but she wouldn't budge except to say that she couldn't say anything until Diane was with us and it would be best to wait until I got them home."

Lena stayed snuggled under my arm all the way to the airport. While we stood waiting at the gate she held my hand. When Diane got off I almost didn't recognize her, her hair was cut shorter than she had ever worn it and she was nicely tanned. I had always thought of Diane as being slightly overweight or chubby, but now she was lean and a real knockout. Damn she looked good. I could finally see mom and Aunt Jean in her.

Lena was waving with the arm not in mine and Diane saw us. Now came the moment of truth, could I treat her the same as I had before?

"I'm glad to see you girl." Lena stepped away from me and grabbed Diane in a hug. Over her shoulder I could see Diane get a very satisfied expression with her eyes closed. I wonder if this is what mom was talking about when she hugged me? Her eyes opened and looked at me and her eyes got very wide. I could hear her whisper to Lena, "Is that??"

Lena stepped away and turned Diane to face me, "your turn Nelson, give your cousin a hug."

Diane looked up at me apprehensively as I stepped forward. I hesitated for a moment then said the hell with it and grabbed my best friend in a big hug. I picked her up and tried to squeeze her into me.

"Damn I missed you cuz, you look and feel fantastic. I hope you know how much I care about you and I always will, no matter what."

"I hope you mean that Ricky, but you might want to put me down now so we can leave."

"The heck with that, I'm not letting you get away from me again. Would you please get her bag Lena? Do you have anything checked Diane?"

"No, just the carry-on, but what do you mean to do?"

"This," so saying I swung her around a bit and got my left arm under her knees and walked on out of the terminal with Lena following behind.

"I never realized what a nice cuddly handful you were Diane."

"I'm jealous," Lena said, "he hasn't done that to me yet."

By the time we got out to the bus I had to set Diane down. I gave her a kiss on the cheek as I did.

"Boy you sure got big Ricky. Lena and your mom sent me pictures, but it didn't really show until now. I like the new look Ricky."

"I like yours as well Diane, you are a real knockout now. Please call me Nelson though, I really do hate the name Ricky. It always makes me feel like a little kid when someone calls me that. Lena has managed to adjust, I'm sure you can too."

By this time we were at the car and as I held the door open Lena pushed Diane in first. "You ride next to him for now Di, we'll change over after dinner in Lebanon."

I got in the car and Lena put my arm around Diane the same way it had been around her on the way here. I was so confused, I thought that Lena liked me, and now she was throwing me at my own cousin.

Dinner was at White Castle because Diane had missed them. I learned that Diane was in her fourth year of industrial design and had an internship lined up in Lafayette for this summer.

Lena was back beside me and as we got closer to home she started trembling like she was afraid of something. I looked over at Diane and she was the same way.

"What's going on girls, what are you two afraid of?"

"Don't worry about it Nelson," Diane said, "we'll tell you all about it at Lena's place."

Lena gave me directions and soon I was parallel parking in front of an old brownstone style house on the side of the hill. We got out and Lena led us around back to a stairway going up to her 3rd floor apartment. It was a pretty nice place with a large living and bedroom combination with a bathroom showing through an open door to the right of the stairs and a kitchen on the left. There was a large bed cattycorner on the right in front of a bay window and a couch and two arm chairs over on the left. Lena went to the couch and sat down pulling me down on her left and Diane over on my other side.

"Okay Nelson, it is time for us to talk. After you left my world fell apart and I suddenly had to fend for myself. I went over to your house to see if you could help me and you were gone. Your mother found out what was going on and took me in. I stayed in your room until I got a job lead in Vegas. I went out there to be a dealer in one of the clubs and found out that that was just a prelude to being a prostitute in one of their brothels. At that point my self image was very low and I decided to do it. I entered my first working house and found Diane already there. We became close friends and lovers. We had so many things in common, and the biggest was that we were both in love with you and you wouldn't give us the time of day. I worked there for two years and Diane a year and a half until we had enough money to pay for school. The big question is this. Can you handle having two whores for girlfriends?"

I just sat there stunned. What could I say that wouldn't be misinterpreted? I had always loved Diane and had been getting very strong feelings for Lena. Now I found out that they had been working as whores and wanted me to be their boyfriend. I was silent for so long that they started to cry.

"Stop that. What happens if I say yes?"

"You get two girlfriends that will do everything they can to please you Nelson."

Suddenly I realized something and broke out laughing; in fact it was that kind of manic laughing where you can't stop. I laughed so hard that I was having trouble trying to catch my breath. When I started choking Diane jumped up and slapped me right across the chops.

"What the hell is so goddamned funny Ricky? If you are going to tell us no then do it, you don't have to insult us."

"No, no Diane. That's not it at all. I just realized that there have only been three girls in this world that I could talk to and be myself with, you two and the hooker in Germany who got my cherry."

"So you can only talk to sluts, is that what you mean?"

"No, no, don't misunderstand. I never knew anything about any of you until after I felt at ease with you. Margo was just the bartender at a club I would frequent to listen to music and drink beer. When she wasn't busy she would talk to me about the world and the USA and to practice her English. I didn't know what else she did until the guys in the unit took me to a bordello. I continued talking to her at the bar after that and it didn't seem to make a difference. I never went back to the house and she was still my friend. Her other job didn't make a difference."

"I don't know if I can handle this or not. I have no experience with women and I know that I'll be a disappointment to you. Every time you sleep with me you will remember some one who was better. How can I compete with that?"

Lena was crying full out now, "Oh god, you hate us, you hate what we did."

"No Lena! Stop it, I don't hate you. I don't know what to do, I've never even had a girl friend and now you propose that I have two, and one of them is the girl I had a crush on for years and the other has always been my best friend. I don't understand what you want with me. I was never good enough for either one of you, let alone both."

"I love you Diane, and I really think that I love you too Lena. If you can be patient with me I'll try to be good for you. I only did it with Margo the one time and I don't think that she got much out of it."

"At least she didn't hurt you like that bitch Susan did. I was so conflicted when she dumped you Nelson. I watched you bring her out of her shell and then throw you to the side like road-kill, and she killed you for romance for a while. I was so glad that she dumped you because then I still had a chance but at the same time she hurt you so badly and I hated to see that. I wanted to be her, but I couldn't make you see that. When you danced with me that night she left you I was so happy, for the first time I knew that you were the man for me. I had danced with other guys before, but you just felt so good, and then prom night and I got to do it again, that night at the roller rink was another conflict. You loved your cousin so much, and it was plain to see that she loved you too. I thought that it was all lost; you were going to be with her. Then when I talked to your mom, I found out what the real plan was, and I felt even worse."

"What do you mean the real plan?"

Diane spoke back up, "Our moms were trying to get us together Nelson. They had seen how much we care for each other and they were hoping that we could see past being cousins to be lovers. They were hoping that you would settle me down and that I would teach you about love. They wouldn't have minded if we got married either. Mom had looked it up and sex between cousins is not considered incest. The poor dears had good intentions; they just should have been more open with me. I screwed so many men because I thought that I couldn't have the one man I wanted, you. If I had known what their plans were I would have gone along with them whole heartedly, and I would have known enough to tell you about it as well. If I had told you at that prom that I wanted to be your girlfriend, for life, what would your response have been? Include that our parents would have been okay with it."

I sat and thought about it for a moment, "I would have been overjoyed Diane. I always have loved you and several times in my dreams I wished that we weren't cousins. Why didn't they tell us? It would have saved so much pain and confusion."

"The poor things out thought themselves dear. They thought that if we believed ourselves to be getting away with something we would do better. I'm kind of glad that it didn't work, because if it had then I never would have become so close to Lena. I would have missed that. Are you going to stay Nelson?"

"I got to tell you girls, I'm so scared I can't spit. I'm so afraid that you will be disappointed with me. This last week with Lena has been heaven, but I don't think that I am prepared for this, let's wait a week or two and give me time to be ready."

"No Nelson, it has to be now. I am so horny I can't see straight and being with Lena will only handle part of it, I need a man and I want him to be you. Whores don't do it for the sex Nelson; there is very little joy in it. They are there for the man's pleasure, not their own. It is just a job. Poor Lena has never had an orgasm with a man, only with me. I already told you about when I was in school and most of the guys did nothing for me, well being a whore was even worse. The only way you will disappoint us is if you leave. If you are willing to listen, we will train you in how to please us."

Once again I was stunned. All I could think of was that even in my wildest dreams this situation never developed.