Chapter 38

The next few months went by in a blur. Studying for and taking final exams, finalizing plans for my last summer break, and then my new life come August. Linda and I made several calls to Kim and her parents to narrow down our stay. We had decided that the last week of June and the first week of July would be best, which would give us about a week and a half not counting drive time.

Then right before graduation it was the seven of us going to the Memorial Day convention near LAX. This time I had a lighter plate than usual. Just a final test of my newest module, and a keynote that was a repeat of the con in the Bay Area.

This time however, I had my dad buy us six bottles of champagne, as there were more of us than usual. It was also a kind of pre-graduation party for Holly, Jack and myself. Peggy and Mike were going to be Seniors next year, Linda a Junior and Mandy a Sophomore.

Once settled in the room we all hit the floor, breaking into three groups. Jack and Holly, Peggy and Mike, and Linda and me. Mandy mostly bounced between being with us or with Peggy. For dinner we knew what to expect so we all went up to change into nicer clothes and ate in the restaurant in the hotel. And as before, as we were finishing up we heard the band in the main bar starting. So once we were all done we got our sodas and went into the bar.

Thankfully it was the same manager as last time, and he just smiled at us as we all went in. This time the band was more of an “Oldies” group, doing mostly softer songs from the 1960’s and early 1970’s. After a few songs Linda and I, then Holly and Jack went to join the adults on the floor. And it was a lot of fun, and shortly after Peggy and Mike joined us. Between two songs we stepped off and I took Mandy’s hand and dragged her out as Linda sat at the table.

“Pete, you don’t have to do this. Go ahead and dance with Linda, I don’t mind.” But I just wrapped one arm around her waist and gave her a soft kiss as I held her to me.

“Shush Mandy, I want to dance with you. I love you, and I love dancing with you. It’s funny, but the three women that mean the most to me in my life are all here together with me. And it’s not an imposition dancing with you, or being with you at all. I am always glad when you come with us.”

“Well, to be honest, you are the first guy Linda was ever with that welcomed me being along. Always before I was seen as the pesky younger sister that would stop the fun. Even Linda thought that way before you.”

“Well, that was then and this is now. We share the same interests, and you are just a super girl to be with. If not for the age difference and that I am with Linda, I would probably ask you out if I was single. You have grown into a real hottie Mandy.”

She smiled and kissed my cheek. “Thanks for that, Peggy keeps telling me that, but I’m not sure I see it. My boobs are already getting too big, and making it harder to do some of the movements when skating. And my butt is a bit bigger now also, not slender like it was two years ago.”

I was holding Mandy close, and looked across at Linda who I saw was watching us. I grinned at her across the dance floor and winked as I lowered my hand to Mandy’s waist from her middle back, then I reached down to caress her bottom for a moment before returning. Linda saw and smiled at us as I did. Mandy jerked a bit in my arms as I did this, and I chuckled.

“Mandy, you always had a great ass. And trust me, I love every part of a girl’s body. Even when I first met you, I thought you had a cute body. Yes, your butt is bigger now, but it is still perfectly proportional to your hips and the rest of your body. And it is on the tight side because of your skating.”

“So Pete, are you an ass man? You are still with Linda after all this time, so obviously you are not a tit guy.” She kissed my cheek softly as she said that, and giggled.

“Well, if I was I would have the wrong sister for sure. She is finally a B after all these years. You are what, a C Mandy”?

“Yep, took a while but I have unquestionably passed my big sister a few months ago. In fact, she threw a little hissy fit when I offered her my bras after I outgrew them. But she stopped that real fast when I said that if she did not want them, I would just throw them away.” She gave a giggle, and I chuckled along with her. I can imagine getting hand me down bras from your little sister was embarrassing, but then again I imagine she had some nice ones.

“But to answer your question, I am an ass man. I am a leg man. I am even a breast man. Mostly, I am a mind man. Look at all of the girls in my life. Your sister, Holly, you, Peggy, even Kimmie. What do you all have in common Mandy?”

“Uh, our minds?” she said, with an audible question.

“Yep, you got it. You are all really smart, and funny. You all have a lot of interests, and are into a lot of things. Sex is great, do not get me wrong. But before and afterwards, what would I talk about with somebody who really was like you Valley Girls pretend to be? We lie in bed afterwards, sweaty and relaxing, and she goes ‘Like oh my god dude, I am so grody! Let’s blow this place and like go to the mall, ya know? I gotta check out what Joanie is wearing and get my nails done!’. No, I don’t think so”

Mandy moved from giggles to outright laughter as I said that, and pulled back and looked into my eyes. “Yeah, you’re right there Pete. I guess like you and Julie. I like her, and she is one of my sister’s best friends. But I can’t really imagine you being with her. Not like you and Kimmie.”

I sighed, and nodded. “Yeah, although remember, Kimmie is more your sister’s girlfriend than mine. I am still very much a ‘one woman man’ kind of guy, but if including Kimmie in our relationship makes your sister happy, I’ll do it for her. But if she had instead suggested Julie, you are right. I probably would have insisted it would only be a one or two time thing. Julie is better than she was when I first met her, but I kinda think it’s a passing thing. She talks about becoming a vet, but I have a feeling she will only do a year or so then stop. I just don’t think she has the drive and smarts to complete it, if I was being honest.”

“Yeah, you’re probably right there. Kinda like Linda, to be honest.”

“Wait, Linda?”

“Pete, have you asked her what she wants to do after graduation? We talk about it, and once she wanted to be a teacher. Now, mostly she says she just wants to be your wife. Not that being a wife and mother is not a great thing, but she’s not even thinking of college anymore, or what else to do. Like, just working until you two get married. That’s her goal now.”

“Thanks, I never knew. How about you, what are your goals Mandy?”

“Oh, that’s easy. I plan to go to Pierce, and get my AA in Business, then either continuing there or at a full college for a degree in marketing. Honestly, I want to get a job for a company in their purchasing department, or working with them in laying out new stores. That is why I’m going to enroll in Japanese when I start school next year. I think Japan is going to be a force for decades in business, and I want to be able to jump in fast on the ground floor.”

“Wow, you are thinking ahead. I’m proud of you Mandy, and I will be watching you I promise.” Not that I minded that at all, Mandy was a fox.

The song ended and we agreed to take a break, so after a hug and soft kiss we stepped off the floor. When we got to the table Linda told us that Holly and Jack had already headed up to the room, and suggested that Mandy go next so she can get a shower when Holly finished.

Linda and I got two more sodas and sat there sipping them as we talked, and I asked her what she had planned for after her graduation. “After all baby, you still have two years left. I will be who knows where then, and even if we want to get married, it may be another year or more until I am sure we can. We may have to put off that until after I get out, when I am 24 and you are 22. What will you do until then?”

“Well, I guess you’re right. I just never thought of it that way, I kinda imagined we would get married as soon as I graduated. But yeah, if you are in like Cuba or North Carolina, that would be a bit hard. I just never thought much past graduating and us getting married. Pete, we are going to be married, right?”

I smiled as I looked deep into her eyes, and leaned forward to give her a deep kiss. Then I held her left hand, and said “Baby, look at your finger. I meant what I said, this is a promissory ring. If in another year we are both in agreement, the first time I can I am going to make a proper proposal, and replace this with an actual engagement ring. But I also realize that is two years away. You may change your mind about me while I am gone. Something may happen and I will be overseas for years in some conflict with the Soviets, like World War III. But so long as nothing changes from now to then, we will be engaged, then married.”

She gave me a huge hug and then a deep kiss, and I could feel her tears on my cheeks. At that point Peggy and Mike came back up, and asked what was wrong. “Oh, nothing. I was just reminding Linda here what exactly this ring means, and how serious I take our commitment when I gave it to her last year. It is kind of a pre-engagement ring, and that unless something changes between now and then, we will get engaged, then married.”

Peggy went and hugged her, and Mike just smiled. “Sorry, I was just getting a bit anxious when Pete here asked me what I wanted to do when I graduated. I had only thought as far as being ‘Mrs. Pete Culver’, and never thought further than that. I guess I need to start thinking of other things now.”

“And baby, don’t forget that just because you are my wife, that does not stop you from doing something else. My recruiter, his wife is a nurse. Wherever he goes, she follows and is still a nurse. I’m sure most military wives have their own careers, about the only one you could have problems with is probably real estate, if I am stationed overseas.”

Linda and I went up to take our showers, and Mike and Peggy said they would be on the floor for a bit longer, and would probably be up in an hour or so. I reminded them that there would be champagne in a half-hour so to be up by then if they wanted any. And with a wave Linda and I headed upstairs.

When we got upstairs, Mandy was sitting on the couch with her headphones in, wearing a short blue T that barely covered her breasts, and a pair of tight gray cotton shorts. She waved as we came in and said Holly and Jack were still in the other room. We laughed, and decided to take a shower together. We only messed around a little, mostly helping each other make sure we were clean. Then with me in sweat pants and Linda in one of my large dress shirts I went to prepare the champagne as she knocked on the other door to tell the other two to get their asses out here.

Holly was only lightly disheveled when she came out, and we were just enjoying our second glass when Peggy and Mike returned. They excused themselves to take their showers as we chatted. It was kind of fun, as I had both Linda and Mandy cuddled up against me. It was rather enjoyable, and I would occasionally give each of them a soft kiss or hug.

Finally the other two joined us, and with glasses in hand we talked about how much fun we had all had. “So, how is this going to work tonight?” Mike finally asked.

“Well, I really only see it working 1 way to be honest. Mike, you and Peggy are not quite ready to spend the night together yet, are you?” They both looked at each other, and while Peggy gave a nice blush, she shook her head no. “I didn’t think so. And if Linda and I used one room and Jack and Holly the other, I can’t see you two and Mandy being out here together.” Mandy shook her head no at that.

“So, that means at a minimum us guys out here, and the girls getting the rooms. And that will probably be Linda and Peggy in one and Holly and Mandy in the other, or Linda and Mandy in one, and Holly and Peggy in the other.”

“Not Linda and I?” Holly asked.

I smiled, and shook my head. “Holly, that would leave Peggy and Mandy sharing a bed. Do you think that would be fair to them, or Mike? All of us here know they had been lovers in the past, that would be cruel to all of them I think.”

Mike agreed, as did Mandy and Peggy. Once the champagne was finished, we all decided to do some kissing. Jack and Holly, Mike and Peggy. And I ended up being shared in kissing the Carol sisters. Now, this is not the first time I have kissed Mandy, but she had grown more than a bit since the last time we did this.

As I kissed Linda, Mandy would press herself against my back and caress my arms as Linda wrapped her arms around my neck. And when I kissed Mandy, Linda would do the same thing. And Mandy was far better at kissing than she was last time, and the feeling of her breasts against my chest was impossible to ignore. She even had this way of moving her body so they pressed snugly against me, and she would move in circles around my chest that felt amazing.

Finally we all knew it was time to call it a night, so Mandy and Linda took one room, and Holly and Peggy went in the other. Meanwhile, we guys pulled out the couch bed and Jack and Mike flipped for the floor. I offered to join in but they both refused. “Pete, this is all because of you dude. You and Linda can’t be together because of me, I’m not gonna add to that by making you sleep on the floor. Jack and I will flip, and the winner tonight gets the floor tomorrow night.”

So that night was Mike and I in the bed, and I drifted off to sleep pondering what the next day would bring.

And as usual, I woke up first and got the coffee going. I told the guys to wait 15 minutes and get the girls up as I ran out for doughnuts. I remembered a place on the way down, one I had seen many times from the freeway but never stopped at. It was a small doughnut shop a few miles away, with this gigantic doughnut on top. “Randy’s Doughnuts” was written on the fiberglass doughnut the size of a giant mining tractor tire, and I went inside and bought two dozen. I got back as everybody was drinking coffee and the second pot was being made. So with doughnuts for everybody we chatted and had coffee and doughnuts. And once again, I had Linda on one side and Mandy on the other.

We all headed down, and I decided to run a quick improvised game. We had eight people playing, and Jack and Mike just sat back and watched. And with the four girls, they were in their regular full vamp modes. Holly was playing a mage, but she played it like she was Kaos. Peggy and Mandy picked one of the guys and flirted with and teased him mercilessly. Linda was aloof and acting like a bitch. And it was a blast. No real plot, just go to a dungeon and kill everything.