Chapter 33: EVERYTHING COMES TO A HEAD

I think you may have been truthful when you suggested I might become addicted to your cock. My guess, it’s already occurred.”

“When I’m fully convinced you’re completely tamed, I’ll take you to bed with me and Susan as a threesome.”

“Sounds tempting. When do you believe you’ll consider me sufficiently tame?”

“Not yet. I’ll let you know when.”

Stephanie climbed off the lower wing after exiting the cabin of the small two seater biplane. Waving goodbye to the pilot, Ray, she shouldered her duffel bag he’d tossed her, and walked hesitantly towards the hanger buildings. Which one? An Idaho Power and Light truck careened around the corner of the furthest building and raced towards her position. No need to walk to meet it, it would be with her in a minute. No need guessing who the driver is, either.

“Hello Slim.”

“Is that all the greeting I can expect? I’ve waited a long time for this day, Honey None.”

They embrace, hug, rock each other in their arms, clutch at each other. But when Slim tries to kiss her, Stephanie avoids his lips.

Things are moving bewilderingly fast. Time to brake. Slow things down. The road ahead for their relationship looks bumpy to her. Strewn with old baggage and unresolved obstacles. Time for a talk. Maybe kissing later. Maybe not. Stephanie desperately needs reassurances there will be no repetitions of the painful past.

Slim takes her to eat at the commissary. There’s no alternative unless you cook at home and Slim doesn’t beyond a canned fish sandwich on occasion. They’re late for lunch and way early for supper, but Slim thoughtfully arranged for luncheon plates to be saved for them.

Typical of prior and post apocalypse government fare, Stephanie thought the effort wasted. The cooking at the Franklins spoiled her...

The meal reminds Stephanie of a large chapter in one of the two books Mrs Franklin gave her. The particular book is complete and annotated by Mrs Franklin herself. The chapter is titled, Tasteless but Filling. The book is titled Foraging for Wild Foods.

The second book is titled Cajun Cooking, with most of the original contents missing. It resembles more a scrap book than any other description. Mrs Franklin filled it with loose pages from magazines, other cookbooks and hand copied recipes. She devoted hours to assembling the collected kitchen wisdom. Stephanie is grateful.

Stephanie immediately begins plans for home cooked meals for herself and Slim. An accomplished cook she isn’t yet but she’s got the basics and can stick to a proven recipe without being too tempted to experimentally embellish upon it.

Next on the agenda is Slim’s house. It’s apparently his overflow office. Stephanie has a near overpowering urge to organize the hills of documents. Knowing nothing of his record keeping, she dares not. There’s a bedroom where he sleeps the few hours he isn’t working.

Slim announces a pressing need to get back to the office. Stephanie announces she is either going to the office with him, or back to Idaho. They return to business hand in hand.

Stephanie immediately begins familiarizing herself with the files and filing system, which is rudimentary humorous.

Slim knows where every file in every pile is. He demonstrates his system. After plucking a sought file from the bottom of one pile, when he finished with it, he tosses it on top a different pile. Stephanie asks for an explanation. That last pile is for files most recently seen or used. The recently fucked with pile. Stephanie barely avoids giggling. Slim is serious and not joking. She can only imagine the overflow pile names filling most of the house.

She asks if there is any pile she can alphabetically arrange. Slim indicates a pile destined for the house. There are several files that don’t seem to go with the others geographically. She asks about them. Slim is glad to see those files. He had recently searched for and been unable to find them. Stephanie receives permission to organize the other files into geographic area piles and alphabetically stacked. Stephanie is now Slim’s unpaid volunteer office staff.

Dinner at the commissary is a slight improvement over lunch. Just barely. Stephanie asks if raw food stuffs and ingredients are available for staff to take home and self prepare. The commissary is the only source and only recipient of groceries in town. The kitchen staff cheerfully boxes her requests, except those items they lack.

Calling in a day, ready to leave, they have a bit of a tiff. Slim offers to sleep apart, he on the sofa at his office, Stephanie at his house. Not happening. He wanted to cuddle in bed with her when she was a twelve year old. Now she is nearly fifteen, and he damned better show an appropriate level of interest in her as a woman in love.