Chapter 4

So, home we went, making it in time to let Patty, Jenny, and Matt relax a bit before travelling off to prepare to make each of their Monday obligations. Patty took her clean clothes and took off back for school and a mid-morning Monday class. Matt and Jenny made their evening flight back to Maryland where he would go to work finalizing his part of our deal and Jenny would head back to school.

Jenny might have problems in school, mainly concentrating on her work, since meeting the girlstorm that was Patty. They hit it off famously. Maybe too much so, but they were both almost adults and still learning about themselves and their feelings. They were able to spend just enough time together to know they liked each other quite a lot and shared with Sandy that they intended to stay in touch with each other, especially after all the touching they did at our house Friday night and the Hotel on Saturday night.

We decided to host a big Thanksgiving dinner, hoping to invite Matt and Doris, and their girls, to spend it with us. Our hopes were answered. Everyone was able to make it, and there was a bonus guest.

Sandy had a friend at school whose parents were called away for a family illness, her uncle to be more specific, but the friend didn’t want to be taken out of school for an unknown period of time. Not to mention she wasn’t fond of the man in the first place, and she felt her schooling to be much more important than a predator that even her parents knew made a drunken lecherous sexual pass at her just recently, as in ... over the summer.

In any case, they’d left town on Monday, with an unknown return date. School was out on Tuesday and Sandy had the young lady in question follow her home that evening for a couple days of sleepovers and Thanksgiving dinner at a minimum. After that, she would make a decision whether to go home alone, or maybe stay with us a bit longer if she liked the company.

I had met Valerie before, naturally, since she was on Sandy’s softball team. Her mother, Audrey, was a bit of a meanie. She was older, highly materialistic, plastic, stoic, and could probably be described as uppity, while her little girl was just the opposite. Cute, natural, bubbly, thoughtful, and funny were just a few of her qualities. Cute was probably an understatement. She was probably model material at any time she wanted to be. A few inches taller than Sandy, she had a slim, yet hourglass figure. That pretty much meant she didn’t have an ounce of fat on her body. Her parents were well off enough that she too had a pool at her home and her tan, lean body showed that she spent a lot, if not most, of her time out in their pool and in the sun.

If I had a daughter, I might even want one just like her. She was that kind of girl.

She spent Tuesday night in the guest room after an evening of spaghetti, meatballs and Italian sausage, of course with the requisite garlic bread. Bright and early Wednesday morning, she was up in the kitchen when I went out to make coffee. She was wearing little to nothing; a semi-sheer baby doll and dainty little ankle socks with lace ruffles on them. She had just a little more going for her than I thought earlier. All thoughts of having a daughter just like her got put to the wayside. I wouldn’t want to think the same way I just did toward this vixen as I would about my daughter.

She looked delicious. Her hair was still a bit of a mess, but her smile and her cheery, “Good morning, Mr. Carter,” let me see her as a marvel, and made me grin as well.

“Good morning, gorgeous. Val, just call me Charlie, OK? Just Charlie, for now. I think under the circumstances, first names are quite appropriate. Aren’t you a sight for sore eyes this morning. Looking good, young lady.”

“I forgot a robe,” she said, grinning.

“I’m glad. Ooops, sorry. If my wife hears me saying things like that to a beautiful specimen such as you, she might do something rash. Good morning, baby. I see you back there by the fridge.”

Sandy started laughing. “He’s right, Val. You’re looking quite edible this morning. I hate to share that little tidbit, but my husband is right on. Do you need a robe or are you all right.”

“I’m fine. Speaking of tidbits, mine are appropriately covered, I think. I feel a bit liberated, if you can understand that. My house is so ... so ... so uptight, I guess I’ll say, I just want to cut loose a little bit. I hope that’s OK.”

“It is. I damn sure won’t complain. Thanks for putting the coffee on, Valerie,” I said to her, just then noticing she had a cup in front of her.

“No problem. Your main squeeze showed me where everything was last night just before we all crashed. I have a tendency to get up early. Probably a defense mechanism. It gets me out of the house early. You know, before all the nasty comments and accusations start flying.”

“Toward you?” Sharon asked. She’d just walked in, reaching for a coffee cup herself, then kissing me on my shoulder as she passed me.

“Sometimes, but more so just at each other. They don’t have the same relationship most of my friends’ parents have. They both work long hours, we rarely eat together, they sleep in different rooms, and stuff like that.” She lost her smile. “Father likes to accuse her of spending too much time with her male subordinates and me of dating too many different boys. He insinuates I’m sleeping around. It hurts. He doesn’t really know me very well. I’m actually looking forward to college. Living in a dorm with a hundred other girls seems like luxury compared to all the bickering and fighting I hear at home.”

“You poor girl. That sucks. Seriously sucks.” Sandy took her coffee and went to sit by her. They hugged and Sandy just held her for a while. “I’ll talk to my other half and see if he’ll let you come out here when you need to decompress or whatever they call it.”

“Thanks, Sandy. I used to spend a lot of time with Ellie, but...”

“Oh, jeez, that’s right. The bitch bailed out on you!” Sandy exclaimed, laughing.

“Yeah. She got tired of me, so she talked her father into taking a job in Florida.” They both started laughing at that.

“Yeah, right. Ellie told Renee and me she had really mixed emotions about leaving you behind but thought Florida might be fun. Did she show you a picture of their new house?”

“Oh, yeah! Talk about beachfront property. She has a sand shower outside her bedroom’s sliding glass door. I guess I should be more jealous of that than mad about her leaving. She cried. Timing was perfect though after Asshole Andy cheated on her with Heidi Hoe! Ooops! Sorry, Mrs. Ferguson. Sorry, Mr ... Charlie. I got a little excited there and forgot the company I was keeping.” She and Sandy giggled.

Sharon laughed and told her, “Don’t worry about it. We’re pretty loose around here. If Andy was an asshole to Ellie, and Heidi was the hoe in question, don’t be ashamed to call them that. We’ll be fine with it.”

“Thanks, ma’am.”

“Let’s have you call me Sharon, him Charlie, and cut the ma’am stuff. Makes me feel a bit out of my zone, if you will, you know, age wise.” Sharon got the girls to giggle again, which got me chuckling as well. She smiled and sat with them.

“I’m making toast to hold everyone over for a few minutes. Does anyone want anything else?” I asked.

I got nothing but headshakes, so I made half a loaf of bread into buttered toast and called it a morning. I enjoyed sitting at the table with them, admiring the assets in my kingdom and thanking God for what I had. I was going to offer up omelets or something, but decided if they weren’t in the mood, then neither was I. I checked some stocks on my iPad, checked my email, then sat back and just listened to all the pretty girls chatting about this, that, and yes, the other thing.

As I was leaving for work, Sharon did, too, hoping to close a deal with a couple on a townhouse on the other side of town. I was going into the office for a while, just to make sure I didn’t leave anything sitting undone over the Thanksgiving holiday. We were having exceptionally warm weather for the time of year, and since the pool was still open, almost unheard of this time of year, the girls were going to clean the leaves out and get some sun and swimming in while we were gone. I warned Sandy and Valerie that I didn’t plan to be gone long and might catch them in the act when I returned.

A meek, “I hope so,” was heard just before I heard my wife’s voice.

“No problem, babe. Come back and swim with us for a while. Maybe we can talk you into putting some oil on us. I know it’s only in the seventies, but the sun is still capable of causing problems and it’s supposed to be out in all its glory today.”

“OK, girls. I’ll be back in a little while.” All the way to the plant, all I could think about was seeing my wife and her friend in their suits. I’d seen Valerie last summer at the parties we held for the girls. She was an amazing beauty. She wore fairly conservative suits then, probably because her mother had something to do with it, but I wondered what she’d be wearing today after traipsing around the house in a mostly sheer baby doll nightie.

Once I checked in with everyone and knew everything was under control I left for home. I stopped at the store for some wine and club soda, though, and picked up a bottle of honeyed whiskey for myself. The stuff was growing on me. I remembered we had enough gin, tonic, and quite a bit of lemon lime soda, for Sharon, should she desire some, and we had plenty of other things at home for our guests when they started arriving that evening.

I saw someone in the store that looked vaguely familiar to me, but I couldn’t place them. They gave me a seriously dirty look as I turned the corner of an aisle, but for the life of me, I couldn’t figure out why.

Once back home, mid-afternoon, I looked out back to make sure the girls were still outside playing, then made us some drinks and took them out.

“Val, Charlie’s here!”

Valerie climbed up the steps, dripping wet, nothing on but an itsy bitsy teeny weeny hot pink bikini and approached me. “You brought us refreshments, Charlie?” She looked up at me holding the tray, smiling. “Thank you!”

“Val, you look astonishing in that outfit.”

“Wait ‘til you see your wife.”

I looked over as Sandy was coming up the pool steps and over toward us. My grin must’ve been their clue. Sandy started laughing. “Welcome home, husband. Are these half and halfs?” I nodded. “OK, Val, these are half wine and half club soda. Is that going to be okay? Charlie doesn’t mind, but I don’t want you to get into any trouble.”

“Trust me, babe, no one will know. No, the ‘rents don’t allow it at home, but my aunt has, back in California, so I’m familiar with the concept. I’ve also seen my parents too far gone, you know, down too far into a bottle, so I understand the ramifications, as well. I’ll be careful.” Sandy handed her a glass of Moscato and soda. She took a sip and smiled. “That’s pretty good!”

They took their drinks, kissed me, one on the cheek and one on my lips. That one was my wife. They turned, and arm in arm walked back to the pool steps.

“Join us, hon. Please.” I was watching two perfect asses wiggling their way back to the pool when I heard the invitation. I would join them, but I was busy. Very busy, in fact, admiring the view. There was almost nothing behind those girls in the way of fabric. A string to hold the top and a string leading down from a tiny patch of material above the butt crack. I’m the kind of guy that appreciates legs more than breasts. Those four legs topped out perfectly.

“Coming, darling.” I almost was. In my suit. I took my drink and went over with them, setting mine with theirs and moving around in the water a little. I had the heater running for the pool, although I generally closed it before this but hadn’t because of the gorgeous weather. I’m so happy I made that decision now. Otherwise, I would have seen these girls running around inside, probably in baggy sweatpants and loose t-shirts. Must be my lucky month.

I told Sandy that I saw someone in the store that looked a bit familiar and asked her if she had any ideas. For the life of me, I couldn’t place them.

“Work, maybe?” she asked.

“No, honey, I don’t think so. I have just about everyone accounted for. The guy looked at me kind of hatefully, too, so ... No, not work.”

“Well, it’s someone local, so we can disregard your travels. How about those guys from when my sperm donor beaned you with that pipe?”

“Oh, God, girl, you just solved it. It was the older cop. The detective. The older guy in the suit.”

“Charlie, he’s not a cop anymore, so you might want to keep your eyes open. He might be pissed off still. Especially if he was looking at you dirty. Mom said the lawyer told her they were fired after that. Your shopping buddy evidently still has friends around and they are no longer gainfully employed by the city, or county, or whatever. Supposedly, they lost their future retirement benefits, too. Just be careful.”

“I will, sweetie. I will. Remind me to make those calls this evening. We have friends coming in this afternoon, though, so we need to take care of them.”

“Baloney. Val and I can help with our friends coming in. You need to take the time to make those calls as soon as we get inside.”

“OK, doll. I’ll make the calls. Let’s swim a bit more then we can head inside. The sun is getting a bit weak.”

“Shucks, and I wanted him to oil me!” Valerie pouted.

“Believe it or not, Val, if you stick around, it’s supposed to be eighty on Friday, then snow three- or four-inches next week. The Weather Channel said Friday we’ll be warmer than Texas on a beautiful spring day, then next week, colder than New England during a Nor’easter. Weather here is fickle, at best. Stay with us until Saturday or Sunday, and I’ll see what I can do about getting you a lube job in between fantastic meals made out of turkey dinner leftovers. We got a twenty-six pounder, so we’ll be eating off that bird for days!” She laughed causing Valerie to do the same.

Valerie shared her true feelings about this time of year. “I love turkey. I love stuffing. I love gravy. I love cranberry sauce. I love pumpkin pie. This is MY holiday.”

I had to snicker and add my two cents. “You don’t go back for seconds, though, do you? Look at you, sweetie, you’re gorgeous. I doubt if you have an ounce on you that is unaccounted for.”

She blushed. Deeply. I saw it and Sandy most certainly saw it. “I eat more than you might think. I exercise a lot, too, and my doctor says I have a super-duper metabolism. She said super-duper is a medical term for ‘lots and lots’ or ‘really high’, but they don’t share it with their patients a lot. She’s a hoot.”

“Well, you don’t look like someone who eats much. Come on, girls. Let’s go inside. I’ll get the glasses and tray and such. Mind if I follow you?” Sandy laughed. Valerie turned red again. “The view from back here is really interesting.”

“Don’t mind my husband, Val. He’s a typical perverted man. One of his many qualities.”

“Goodie,” she said, almost under her breath. Sandy laughed. Valerie just giggled. I got confused. That was the second quiet reference to me and what could be considered to be my perviness toward this lovely creature.

I wasn’t a perv, a pervert, so there was no real perviness, and I wasn’t a stalker, but no one could avoid complimenting and looking at the two beautiful young women in front of me. No one, male or female.

Once we were inside, I went to the office while the girls went to our room to change. I put a towel down in my X-chair, sat on it, and called Sam Travis.

“Hey, Charlie,” he said knowing it was me when he answered.

I explained the sighting in the store earlier and told him of Sandy’s ill feeling toward the whole thing.

“She’s a very bright girl, Charlie. I need to check this out. From what I remember gleaning, his organization, if you want to call it that, won’t help him take you down, but they won’t keep him from doing it either, I wouldn’t imagine. In any case, check six often, and I’ll see what I can find out.”

“Thanks, Sam. I’ll tell her you’re on it.” We signed off and I went to share the call with Sandy.

I walked into the bedroom, most assuredly a little before I should have. I wasn’t thinking nearly enough about their privacy as I should have been.

“Hi, Charlie.” Valerie was pulling a pair of shorts up over a thong panty, above that only her bra.

“Oh, hey, babe. How’d it go?” She was just clipping her bra in the front, nothing else but her little lace panties on, as well.

“Oh, I’ll wait out...” I started to say, but Valerie interrupted me.

“No! Stay, Charlie, it’s fine. I’m wearing more now than I was outside. I know that.”

“I know it, too, Valerie, but it wasn’t lace, and although it was smaller, it wasn’t as attractive as what I just saw. I’m sorry. That was crude.” Valerie giggled. “Sandy, baby, your friend is amazing. So are you, but ... Never mind. Sam said he’d check it out. He also said you’re pretty smart for thinking that way. Not his exact words, but that was his point. I think he used the term bright. In any case, I need to go in there,” I pointed toward the ensuite, “and change before our guests arrive. We have four more showing up from three different directions. Are the washer and dryer empty? You know, just in case Patty needs them?”

“Yes, honey, they are.” Both of the girls were dressed by then. “I’m going out to make you another drink and get you to settle down.” She kissed me as I passed by her. Valerie reached out to pat my butt. I tried to dodge it but didn’t quite make it. I saw a different kind of look on her face when I looked at her over my shoulder. Teasing? Hungry? Yeah, one of THOSE kind of looks. Sandy laughed. “Val, come on.” They left me to change.

Sandy came back in with my drink, just a couple of shots of honey whiskey over a couple of cubes of ice. I took a sip. “Mmmmm, thanks, baby cakes.”

“She’s infatuated, Charlie. Remember when I discussed sprinkles?” I did, so I nodded. “If it happens, it happens. I’ll be there. Don’t fret about it. We’re close enough and she’s smart enough. You like her. She likes you. I like her a lot. Again, if it happens, don’t make a big deal out of it. Let it happen organically, as they say. It may not. She’s not flighty, honey. I’ll guarantee you that. If it does happen, she’s been wanting it. If it doesn’t, I’ll bet it will later. Just promise me you are mine, first and foremost.”

“Big promise. Majorly big promise.”

She kissed me and walked out. “Same here”, she said over her shoulder.

After I changed, I went into the kitchen to find Sharon just coming in from the garage and heard the front doorbell ring. I heard feet running toward it, so I opted to let someone else handle the door.

Sharon hugged me and gave me a scorching kiss. “Hey, mister. I love you. I did it. They signed a contract on that townhouse. I’ve been hoping someone would buy it. It’s not in a very good location, but the guy works just a few blocks away. They are young and both of them work, so they’re not worried about schools and such yet. What’s happening around here?”

“Sprinkles, I think.”

She looked at me like I was losing a lug nut, but carried on, saying, “Okay, I guess that sounds about normal around here.” She put her things up and went to the room to change. I’m sure her daughter would clue her in on Valerie and the new girl’s infatuation with the old guy in a timely manner.

Surprisingly enough, it was Patty at the door, complete with her laundry basket and backpack. I watched as Sandy introduced her to Valerie, then the three of them headed for the laundry room. I heard Patty specifically ask if Jenny was coming, to which I’m sure I also heard a little tiny happy screech when my Sandy answered in the affirmative and that they were expected at any time.

Next one in was Doris, who brought her overnight bag. Sharon showed her to the guest room giving them some time to talk. I heard “townhouse” and “Oh, thank goodness” in that conversation. I also heard something about good riddance, and references to how hard that wonderful townhouse was to sell in that neighborhood. They talked about how the block of ten of them were sold as they were built, just a few years ago, and that is the only one that has been up for sale since then. As the real estate mumbo jumbo continued, I lost interest. I was not in the market for a townhouse.

Matt and Jenny showed up around an hour later. Doris and Patty met them at the door and pretty much took control of the situation. Sandy and I were putting a light dinner together making salad and finger sandwiches for the masses. So, we were fine with them handling the arrival of their dates for the holiday festivities. It just made for less congestion around the kitchen. Valerie sat at the bar drinking a half and half chatting with us about her parents, school, boys, or should I say the scourge that was boys, as well as less important topics.

It was nice to hear that Valerie was one of the minority of teenagers that thought of TikTok as a detriment to society. She was vehemently against the app after reading an article about it. The article was written by a conservative investigative reporter and columnist, but after doing some research, the girls found the information substantiated by other sources. Patty and Jenny came into the room after hearing the buzz about TikTok, and the four of them had a very profound conversation. Patty agreed with my wife and Valerie.

I could see Jenny messing with her phone. “Whatcha’ doin’ Jenny? Loading TikTok?”

“Nope! Actually, Charlie, I’m deleting it. If these three women don’t see anything good about it, I’m not even going to try to find something. I’ve never posted on it, but I’ve burned a lot of time watching stupid shit. The more I think about it, the more I realize that is true. Sorry about the use of the S word, but it really is.”

“You mean ‘Stupid’?” I asked her. The other three started laughing loudly enough to get Doris’ attention.

“What in the world is going on in here?” she asked.

“Jenny used the S word, Momma,” Patty said, snickering.

“Jenny!” Matt chastised.

“Dad, all I said was that I was watching too much stupid shit on TikTok, and Charlie made fun of me for using the S word. You know, ‘Stupid’?”

“Well, Matt, saying TikTok and Shit in the same sentence is rather redundant, wouldn’t you say? I think Stupid was the operative word here,” I shared with the group.

Matt shook his head and waggled his finger at his daughter. I’m pretty sure Jenny knew what his scolding was about, funny or not. The conversation about the platform wound down and changed to something more appropriate. Sharon shared that she was happy all of us could be together and welcomed Valerie into our home. “Sprinkles always make for better donuts and ice cream.” She looked at me, smiling, watching me turn pink. “As well as friends and family get-togethers for special occasions.”

Sharon and Sandy giggled. I looked at Valerie while blushing like a youngster. She shrugged. I shrugged. She smiled at me. I smiled back. Sprinkles indeed. I was being set up.

Jenny was lost in love, holding Patty’s hands and playing with her fingernails. It was like she didn’t want to let go for fear the older girl would disappear. Hopefully it was a pairing that wouldn’t turn sour. I needed to talk to Sandy, and maybe Matt, about that. Their relationship is none of my business, really, but still, I would hate to see that go south. After all, it did start in my realm.

We fed the masses dinner, each of the four younger members of the crew sitting all over various furniture offerings in the family room, talking and eating at the same time. Patty and Jenny were, naturally, sitting close together. It warmed my heart to see Patty feeding a bit of something to Jenny, making me think it wasn’t just a one-way street. I’ve seen one-way relationships, and this didn’t appear to be one of them.

I heard my name mentioned, heard a gasp, then a “Wow”, and noticed Valerie and Jenny look my way. I think Sandy had to try not to look so that it wouldn’t be obvious, but she had a grin on her face, as did Patty. Sharon elbowed me. She was looking and listening in the same direction. Oh, shit. Valerie was grinning. Jenny was surprised to some degree by what she just heard. I didn’t hear the part that surprised her, but I heard her response.

“No shit? You’re serious? You go, girl,” Jenny said, then Valerie nodded and the surprised look on Jenny’s face turned into a smiling head shake.

Doris and Sharon talked about the townhouse again, then about the possibility of Doris visiting Maryland over the Christmas break. Sharon looked at me, in question. I could only nod. Nothing mentioned out loud, but I thought that would be a bang-up idea. We could fly the Feral Princesses out to the east coast for, or between, the holidays, or all of us go somewhere.

“Valerie, what are you doing over the Christmas holidays, doll?” I asked.

“No plans that I know about, Charlie. As far as I know, the ‘rents were going to do one of those ‘let’s work on us’ things, but to be honest, I doubt they’ll ever get around to doing that. Just lately, I get the feeling that neither one of them care that much anymore.”

“Well, I know it’s early on, but keep your calendar open. WE may have a one-time good deal to offer you. Nothing firm yet, but before you leave here this week, or weekend, as the case may be, we’ll know. Sound good?”

“Yes, it sounds very good. Hell would freeze over before they could make me an offer I would take over anything from you and yours. Thank you, sir.” I scowled at her. “Thank you, Charlie.” I smiled at her, getting one in return.

Sharon nodded, then shared a look with Sandy. Sandy nodded and smiled. They were probably telepathic.

We all trundled off to bed after several conversations on several topics. Several drinks were also consumed by several people. Four of those several people wound up in my bed that night. I had Sharon on one side of me, Sandy on the other, and Valerie behind her. The two usual guest rooms were occupied by couples, and anyway, she just didn’t want to be alone. Those were the two reasons Valerie gave as she climbed into bed with us and snuggled up behind my wife. Sleep came. Not nearly early enough to keep me from worrying about the future of my love life, but it finally came, nonetheless.

It wasn’t until the next morning, over waffles with strawberries, that the Christmas holiday trip was opened for discussion.

Sharon asked Doris what she had planned. “Check the MLS listings and watch Hallmark movies. Nothing special.”

Sandy asked Patty what she had planned. “Study and eat. Nothing special.”

I asked Matt what he and Jenny had planned. “Sit around the house. Nothing special.”

Hearing all of that, I queried Matt to see if we could arrange something between us to take all these forlorn, no special plan having women and make some type of vacation happen. We heard cheers from all of them. We were at the dining room table, and all of a sudden, it sounded like a busy travel agency.

Before the waffle iron was cooling off from Sandy’s and my waffles, the last ones made, I thought we had a plan. We were going to find an ‘off the beaten path’ southern Caribbean location with vacancies for eight. While the turkey was baking in the roaster, or roasting in the roaster, more accurately, Sandy and I discussed the arrangements.

“Charlie? Don’t make reservations until tomorrow, please. We may only need three rooms.”

My look must’ve scared her.

“Look. Matt and Doris need a room. Jenny and Patty are old enough to bunk together even if they aren’t (she air quoted) ‘legally entangled’, and you, Mom and me will have Valerie with us if I can help it. Please keep an open mind?”

I nodded and checked the turkey. Then I checked the stuffing. Then I checked a million other things trying to keep myself busy enough not to have the thought of my cock in that gorgeous little girl while my wife was sitting on my face. Oops, too late. Just thought about it. Oh, Lord, what have I done?

Sharon caught me in the kitchen prepping the green beans for the casserole. “Charlie, are you all right? You seem a little distant.”

“Sprinkles are going to be the death of me, Sharon. I jumped, headfirst, into a relationship with my wife. You followed. I’d consider that chocolate syrup on my ice cream. Now I’m being offered sprinkles. I’m afraid my world is going to explode, and I’ll be left alone, with nothing.”

“That is NOT going to happen. Sandy loves you and wants to keep you happy. What she does to make her friend happy, and her mother, as well, is ... well ... sprinkles. You have a point, but don’t think for a minute your world is going to come crashing down. Simply stated, it just isn’t.”

“I’m going to hold you to that, Sharon,” I said, holding her in my arms and praying she was right.

“I hope you do, Mr. Carter. I hope you do. You won’t be disappointed. Guaranteed. Help me get these potatoes cleaned up. We have guests. We have things to do, young man.” She giggled, then kissed me. “Charlie, you’re fine. Please, please, please, trust me on this. It’s going to be just fine.”