Chapter 14

That was the last time they would see each other for a few weeks. They had tests to prepare for, and Ben and Josh had an influx of business to attend to. Their North Carolina customer was so thrilled with the new press that they asked for the others to be delivered and installed as soon as possible. They loved that all the machinery from Josh and Ben could be hooked up to a central computer system. From there, the managers could get almost instant feedback on production. If that wasn’t enough to keep Ben and Josh busy, Ben got his security clearance, so Josh brought him up to speed on the various military projects.

Josh and Becky constantly texted each other and usually had a video chat every few days. To say it was frustrating for them would be an understatement. Becky and Josh were getting hornier every day, but neither could get any time on the weekends to do anything about it. To make matters worse, Josh was going home for Thanksgiving, and Becky was already committed to going to her grandmother’s place.

Finally, it was Thanksgiving break, and Josh was eager to get home. He had to help Gretchen finish the harvest; then, it was time to eat and eat and eat some more. This was Josh’s favorite holiday, and he always ate his fill. It would have been better if Becky had been able to come up with him, but she was with her grandma. Gretchen was hosting it this year, and Josh wouldn’t miss it for the world. It was late Wednesday when he arrived and started his farm work immediately, which took up the rest of his time until early Thanksgiving morning. Then, it was time for a short nap before he and Gretchen began cooking dinner. This year, it was ham and turkey with all the fixings. Josh just really wished that Becky could be with him.

Becky’s Thanksgiving break started okay. Her grandma picked her up after her last class on Wednesday afternoon and told Becky that there was a surprise at her house. Becky asked, but her grandmother wouldn’t tell her, so Becky spent the rest of the trip thinking of what the surprise could be. When they got back to Grandma’s house, Becky was surprised.

“Hello, Rebecca.”

“MOM!! What are you doing here?”

“It’s a long weekend, and I wanted to see you. How are you doing? How’s your shoulder after being attacked by those worthless pigs?”

“I’m doing well and on track for a perfect GPA. Assuming I keep up through finals.”

Knowing her mom, Becky whipped her shirt off and turned around, showing Jane and Grandma the scar on her shoulder. Jane expertly ran her fingers over it; she was a surgeon back home.

“Looks like the doctors here did a decent job on it. If you want, dearie, I’ll get you in to see a plastic surgeon when you come home next.”

“Thank you, Mom, but I’ll pass. The scar doesn’t define who I am, and I’ve completely recovered from the attack.”

“You have? I know you, and I doubt it.”

“Well, believe it because I have. I don’t have nightmares anymore, and a couple of weeks ago, I walked back into that alley without panic. I’m good to go.”

“Still, I wish you would see a therapist.”

“If I need one, then I will. Now, how are you, Mom?”

“Busy as always. How’s your dating going?”

“I don’t have time to date, mom. I try to spend all my time studying when I’m not going to the gym. I’m also considering joining a self-defense class, just in case.”

“Well, let’s go clubbing tonight.”

“Mom, I’m tired, and I have studying to do. I don’t want anything to come between me and a perfect GPA.”

“Becky, it’s just one night. You’re in college and need to live a little.

“No, mom. I’m going to study, and I left my fake ID in my dorm.”

“Oh, well, do you mind if I go?”

“No, go, mom. Have fun.”

Becky, Jane, and Grandma spent the next couple of hours talking about current events, Becky’s classes, and what was going on in their lives. As much as Becky enjoyed talking with her family, she was lonely because of a hole in her life named Josh, and he was working hard a couple of hundred miles away. Eventually, Jane left to go clubbing, and Becky got some studying done before bed. Before lying down, she told Josh: “Good night.”

It was very early the next morning when Jane got back after bagging a MILF and her nineteen-year-old daughter. Jane figured that the daughter and Becky could hook up while Jane was entertaining her conquest. Alice, the daughter, was looking forward to getting some from Becky because Jane had shown her Becky’s picture, and Alice was instantly attracted to her. Alice tried to wake Becky up, but Becky screamed bloody murder when she woke and saw Alice next to her bed. Jane ran in and explained to Becky what was going on. To say that Becky was pissed was an understatement, and she demanded to be left alone, making such a scene that Alice took it upon herself to sleep on the couch. However, she looked forward to seducing Becky and fucking her brains out. Becky was the best-looking bitch that Alice had ever come across, and badly wanted to get into her panties. She fell asleep with visions of Becky’s lips locked onto her tits and her fingers in Becky’s fire crotch.

Becky woke up the following day with a start, hoping that the previous night had been nothing but a bad dream. Walking into the living room, she knew it wasn’t because she saw Alice sleeping on the couch. Becky checked the time and knew that Josh wasn’t up yet. He had told her he was working late on the farm to help Gretchen finish up and would text when he woke up. Before Becky got the text from Josh, her mom woke up and started pushing Becky into a relationship with Alice. Jane’s deal with Alice’s mom, Amber, was that Alice would get Becky, and Jane would get Amber, so Jane wanted Becky in this relationship. Finally, Becky had enough and slipped into the bathroom to call Josh. She needed serious help and didn’t know who to turn to. Her grandma supported Jane, and Becky had no way to run away.

“Hello?” Josh sounded drugged.

“Josh, It’s me! I need your help badly! My Mom is here and brought home a mother and daughter last night, and she wants me to sleep with the daughter. Can you rescue me? PLEASE?”

She was expecting Josh to give her some crap for waking him up, but he surprised her again.

“Yep. Give me the address.”

Becky gave Josh the grandma’s address, and he looked it up, telling Becky:

“I’ll be there in about four and a half hours. Can you hold out till then?”

“Yes, I think so, and thank you so much. I don’t know how I can ever thank you.”

“Not breaking up with me would be a good way.”

“Ha, ha, Josh. You know damn well that you’re stuck with me. Oh, one more thing, can you bring some real food with you. There’s nothing in this damn house but rabbit food, and I WANT MEAT.”

“I’ll see you soon, sweetheart. Just try not to say anything so that we can surprise everyone. And yes, I can bring some real food. Do I need to bring a grill as well?”

“Yes. Grandma doesn’t have one, and I could use a steak and a long, hard, cream-shooting sausage.”

“Okay. On my way, naughty girl,” Josh chuckled.

“You love me, and you know it!!”

Becky was so relieved that Josh was on his way down. Now, she just had to keep away from Alice and Amber until then. For the next few hours, Becky constantly worked to keep Alice at bay. Not only Alice but Jane, Grandma, and Amber as well. Everyone in the house was a lesbian but Becky. Finally, her prayers were answered when she heard a diesel pull up outside. She sprinted to the window to check, and sure enough, it was Josh, with Becky’s steak and a couple of bottles of wine.

“Who’s here?” asked Jane, hearing Becky go to the door.

“My absolute best friend,” Becky chirped.

Becky threw open the door, ran out, and jumped into Josh’s arms while wrapping her legs around Josh’s waist and arms around his neck. He got rid of the sling by this time because it hurt worse with his arm in the sling than out of it. Now, he could wrap both arms around Becky, and it felt good.

“I missed you so much, Josh,” Becky whispered in his ear with a tear running down her cheek.

“I missed you too, Becky. I missed you too.”

They got a good kiss with their tongues slipping into each other’s mouths before she let go and held his hand as they walked back to the house. Thankfully, nobody had seen them embrace. Walking in, Becky yelled at everyone in the house:

“Hey everyone, I have someone here that I want you all to meet.”

The other women entered the living room and gave Josh the stink eye. None of them trusted men. Once everyone was there, Becky took a deep breath. It was time for her to cross the Rubicon:

“Everyone, I want to introduce Josh Kretschmer. My boyfriend.”

You could hear a pin drop as the other women looked at Becky like she had become a monster while introducing everyone to Josh.

“What do you mean, boyfriend?!” demanded Jane once she had recovered.

“Well, he’s a boy who I love and who loves me.”

“REBECCA MURREY!!!” cried Jane. “he’s a guy! He’ll just hurt and leave you like every other guy. What are you thinking?!?!”

“Mom, I think I’m the luckiest woman in the world to have this MAN in my life, and I’m not giving that up. Do you know that he has killed five people to protect me? Those two who put me in the hospital, it was Josh who killed them and took me to the hospital. The friend I skipped school to help was Josh after he caught a 2x4 to his shoulder defending me from three thugs who had been terrorizing other girls and me the whole semester. They tried to kidnap me while attacking Josh.”

“So, you won’t make out with me because you’re with this rapist bastard?!?!” yelled Alice

“Yep. And he’s not a rapist bastard; he’s my stud. If I hear you call Josh that again, I’ll kill you, and don’t think I won’t.”

“You fucking bitch!!!” shrieked Alice, “your mom promised that I could have you, and I’m going to have you!”

Now, Alice made the same mistake others had made; she came at Becky. She figured that Josh would slink away like every loser male she had ever faced. First, he tried talking her out of her attack, but she wouldn’t listen. Alice got to Josh and tried pushing him out of the way, but 200+ pounds of muscle and bone just doesn’t get pushed out of the way. Josh picked her up and threw her back onto the couch, knocking the wind out of her. He was trying to avoid any bloodshed. As Alice got back off the sofa to charge again, Becky pulled Josh’s gun out and pointed it at Alice. This caused Alice to freeze and the others to scream. Once Alice stood down, Becky put Josh’s gun back. Becky was glad because she didn’t know how to use a gun and didn’t want to shoot anyone.

“Now, Alice, let’s get this straight right now. Josh is my boyfriend, and I love him with all my heart. I am no longer a lesbian; I don’t think I ever truly was. If you have a problem with this, then that is your problem. I’ve made my bed, and Josh is the one who gets to sleep in it.” Becky then turned to Jane and her grandma. “Do you two understand? I’m not a lesbian, and my heart is spoken for; no more trying to find dates for me.”

Her grandma nodded, but Jane exploded:

“Rebecca, you ungrateful little bitch! You ignore all my warnings because you want a cock!”

“The cock is only the icing on the cake, mom. Josh is kind, loving, caring, supportive, patient, smart, and motivated. He is part owner in a robotics manufacturing business and owns half a farm with his older sister.”

“He’s a capitalist TOO!” shrieked Jane.

“Yep,” said Josh proudly, “I’m part of the reason why people today are so much better off than they were in the past. Capitalism has lifted more people out of poverty than any other system. This happens because businesses create wealth, not unions or consumers, and definitely not governments. At best, governments are black holes for wealth; they just suck it up and give nothing in return.

All socialism does is make everyone poor. If you don’t believe me, look at Venezuela, Cuba, North Korea, or China. China was dirt poor until it started to embrace capitalism. And before you say it, the Nordic countries are not socialist. They are more capitalist than we are. They can have large safety nets because they have small populations and large oil and gas reserves, like Norway and Denmark. Iceland has its banking and cheap, unlimited energy. Sweden has their hydro and nuclear power plus raw materials. Also, none of them have large militaries because they are under US military protection.”

“You fucking bastard! Break up with my daughter, or she is cut off. You can also be sure that I’m calling the cops because I know you raped her!”

“Go ahead with your threats because I’m not breaking up with Becky. I love her, and if you cut her off, I will put money in her account every week for her to use. She works for the robot firm on a contract basis to earn her own money. Also, anything that we do in bed is between us.”

“So, you admit to raping her! YOU BASTARD!”

“MOM! Shut the fuck up. Josh has never raped me. I am a VERY willing participant in all of our sexual adventures, and if you call the cops, I’ll tell them the same thing. Mom, face it, you have two choices, disown me or accept that I’m straight. I’m nineteen, and there’s nothing you can do. I can vote, go to war, sign contracts in my name, and own firearms, so I can pick who I want to spend the rest of my life with. I am thrilled with my boyfriend here and refuse to give him up. Also, if he did rape me, why did I call him this morning and ask him to come down here to rescue me?”

Jane just stood there, paralyzed. Becky had never stood up to her before and wasn’t sure if she liked it. More pressure was added when Amber spoke up:

“Becky, you know, you’re right. Jane, either accept that your daughter is her own person right now, or I’m leaving and taking Alice with me.”

Jane was now between a rock and a hard place. She didn’t want Amber to leave but wanted Becky to give up her being straight nonsense. The problem was that nobody was supporting her, not even her mother. Looking around, Jane knew she was outnumbered and backed down for the time being.

“Okay, Becky, I still believe you are making a massive mistake, but I won’t disown or cut you off. Now, how about you introduce us to your boyfriend properly.”

Becky ran up to Jane and threw her arms around her:

“Thank you, mom, thank you.”

Becky then introduced everyone to Josh. He gave the wine to Jane, who took it and put it in the fridge. She noticed that the wine choices were excellent and were some of her favorites. Being a high roller from California, Jane knew her wines, and Josh made some fantastic selections. Josh explained what he did for a living, studied in school, and how he and Becky met. The more Josh talked, the more impressed Jane was with her daughter’s choice. She wasn’t sure about Josh being a guy, but she did begin to admit that her daughter seemed to have good taste. As Josh talked, Becky sat on his lap and curled up in his arms, promptly falling asleep.

While Becky napped, Josh continued talking with the rest of the women.

“Josh, with all the blood in your past, do you ever get nightmares?” asked Amber.

“Not from the bastards I killed. They got what they deserved. Before you ask or Becky tells you, I will say I have far more kills than five. I took out most of a gang in Detroit, defending my best friend and his girlfriend. I also spent some time in Afghanistan doing research and added more to my total. I get nightmares from the one that I didn’t save.”

Josh then told the story of his gay friend who committed suicide. He could swear that he saw tears in Amber’s eyes.

“Damn religious nuts. They hate all of us gay people,” commented Jane.

“Just like you hate that Becky is straight?” The four ladies had their mouths open but couldn’t find any words. “What? It’s the same god damned fucking thing. My friend’s parents hated that he was gay and tried to force him to change to their liking. You tried to force Becky to be a lesbian to be like you. How are you any different from my friend’s parents? The only difference here is that Becky was able to correct herself in time.”

“Are you trying to tell me that my baby was getting close to suicide?”

“I don’t know, and I never asked. What I do know is that Becky is much happier now than before. At least, according to her roommate.”

Josh then closed his eyes and quickly fell asleep as well. Now that Becky and Josh were sleeping, the four women could talk, which they did in the kitchen.

The subject of the discussion was Josh and Becky. Jane was having a tough time wrapping her head around the fact that her little girl now had a boyfriend instead of a girlfriend. Also, the boyfriend in question wasn’t afraid to stand up to anyone. Grandma had her concerns, but they ran more toward can they go the distance. She still remembered the man who gave her Jane. She had loved that man with all her heart, but he cracked when Jane was two. Drugs and alcohol did him in. He had been a Vietnam vet, and his ghost plus the pressure of being a parent were too much for him. She turned to women to protect herself from having her heart crushed again. That way, she couldn’t get pregnant. Amber decided that she didn’t have any problems with Becky and Josh. She wished that someone would have told her before getting her daughter involved. But then again, Becky didn’t tell anyone she was dating a guy.

Alice, however, was deeply hurt. She had fallen in love with Becky at first sight and had no interest in guys. Everything about Becky amazed her, from how she moved to how she talked to her incredible intelligence. Maybe there was enough lesbian left in Becky for Alice to get her for herself. She was going to have to plan this carefully.

Josh and Becky woke up after napping for half an hour. Becky stretched like a cat and returned to leaning against Josh, purring while Josh stroked her hair. Becky’s growling stomach broke the spell, causing them to giggle. This giggling brought the other four ladies back out.

“What’s you two giggling about?” asked Amber.

“My stomach is saying that it’s time to eat.”

“Yep, time for me to go out and get our food,” said Josh as he stood up and worked the kinks out.

“Get your food?” asked Jane.

“Yes, mom. One of the other changes in my life is that I eat meat now. I asked Josh to bring down some steaks with him.”

“I brought deer steaks with all the fixings. If you will excuse me, Jane, I need to go out and fire up the grill.”

“One-shot. One kill. Fire up the grill,” teased Becky. Josh smiled warmly at her and stuck out his tongue. “Josh does a lot of hunting, and I went with him when I went home with him back in October. It was amazing to watch him take down a large buck, and I hope to go with him again,”

After Josh had walked out, Alice sat beside Becky while Jane tried to wrap her head around her new daughter. She had changed so much in just one semester that Jane felt she didn’t know her anymore. Becky told everyone about her first weekend with Josh and how she got blackmailed into it. Then Jane asked:

“So, what about the Cynthia lady?”

“Well, she goes to IU as well and is a senior. She wants to be a psychologist when she gets done and is smart enough to be one. Cynthia is Josh’s best friend’s girlfriend, and hopefully, this spring, we all get a house near IU, so Cynthia and I don’t have to live in the dorms anymore. Josh’s best friend is a large black man named Ben, and he’s a very cool guy. He’s into robotics, just as nerdy as Josh, and they own the robotics firm.”

“So why does Cynthia want to be a shrink?” asked Alice.

“I know the reason, but I’m not going to tell because I promised Josh that I wouldn’t. I can tell you that it’s not a pretty picture.”

“Probably raped.” sneered Jane. “Fucking men!”

“No, she was not raped, mom. It was far worse than that. And while we are on the subject, what the fuck is your problem with guys. In case you haven’t fucking noticed, I love Josh, and I know that he loves me the same. If he had raped me, do you honestly think I would love him?”

“Oh honey, he doesn’t love you; he’s just using you.”

“You know what, Mom; FUCK YOU! He showed me that I’m not the lesbian you tried to force me to be. He cares for me, protects me, listens to me, and LOVES me. That’s far more than you have ever done for me. Hell, that’s far more than any woman I’ve ever been with. I’m not leaving Josh no matter what you say.”

Becky jumped up and ran out the door, crying. She had enough of her mother and just couldn’t take anymore. Alice then got up and went to follow Becky but stopped before stepping out:

“Jane, bitches like you give lesbians a bad name,” and she went out the door.

Amber was the next one to stand up:

“I have to agree with my daughter, Jane. You are a bitch, and we’re done here.”

She went back to where she had slept and started packing.

When Alice got out the door, she could see Josh with his back to her, and he looked to have his arms around someone. Alice could see Becky’s legs and some of her hair blowing in the breeze, so she knew that Josh was hugging a very emotional Becky. Alice had to admit that she would have been emotional with all the shit Becky had thrown at her. Alice walked up to the couple while wishing that it had been her arms that were comforting Becky:

“Becky, Josh, I’m so sorry about all that. All the shit she said was uncalled for, and I don’t think I have ever met a woman who harbored so much hate.”

“Alice, let me tell you something. Women harbor just as much hate as men do. It’s just that men and women express that hate in different ways. While I don’t know why Jane has so much hate, I’ve met people with far more. Take my best friend’s girlfriend, Cynthia, for example. She hates trans people with a passion, but in her case, I know exactly why she hates them. It’s more that she hates the community rather than the individual people. I’ve watched her go psycho on a trans group when they tried to drum up support on campus a couple of years ago.”

“What did the trans community do to her?”

“They cost Cynthia, her older sister. Suicide.”

Then Josh told Alice the abridged story of Cynthia’s sister. By the time he was done, Alice was close to tears. She had heard of stuff like this happening but had always thought it was just a myth. Now, she had a connection to someone who lived through it and was stunned and ashamed. She had been one of those who always pushed for unlimited medical intervention for trans people. Now she had an actual case where that medical intervention had cost someone their life in the worst way possible, where if the person had been sent to go to counseling first, she would probably still be alive. As Alice was about to say something, her mom walked out:

“Alice, I’m leaving. I can’t stand being anywhere near that fucking bitch. I just can’t believe I was stupid enough to come home with her.”

“Okay, mom. Can you give me a few minutes to pack my stuff, too?”

“No problem.”

Alice took off to pack her stuff. Amber came up to stand next to Becky and Josh.

“Josh, make sure that you take good care of this angel. She deserves it.”

“Yes, she does. She deserves all the love in the world.”

“So, what are you two going to do now?”

“Probably find a hotel room for the night and go back to Josh’s for the rest of the weekend,” Becky responded.

“Well, do you mind if I make a suggestion?”

“Go ahead.”

“Come stay at my place tonight. Alice and I have an extra bed where you two can sleep. That way, you can save some money.”

“Money is no issue, Ms.”

“It’s Amber. Please”

“OK, Amber. As I was saying, money is no problem for me at all. The farm I run with my sister is thriving, and the robotics business is picking up speed.”

“Well, can you two stay at my place for Alice? She has fallen head over heels in love with you, Becky and I’ve never seen her so in love as she is now.”

“Oh wow,” said Becky, “I don’t care, but she needs to realize that I love Josh with all my heart, and that isn’t going to change. He completes my life and fills in parts I didn’t even know I had. Also, since I’ve started going out with Josh, I’ve lost interest in other women. What do you think, Josh?”

“I guess we can spend the night at Amber’s. I just hope that she has industrial-strength hearing protection because you tend to get loud.”

“JOSH!!!” Becky exclaimed while she blushed scarlet.

“Well, then it’s settled. Why don’t you two pack up, and you can follow us back to our house?”

Becky ran to pack her clothes while Josh packed his grill back up. He hadn’t had a chance to get the meat on, so packing up was easy.

“Oh, Josh, by the way, I have a nice grill at my place that you can use.”

“Thank you, Amber. That will make cooking easier.”

Josh picked up his cooking stuff while Alice and Becky came out of the house with their clothes. Becky threw her things into Josh’s truck, and within minutes, they left. Becky would be happy if she never came back. Her mom insulted her repeatedly, and her grandma said nothing about it. It only took them twenty minutes to get to Amber and Alice’s house. It was a lovely brick home located in a beautiful suburb.

“Your house is so lovely,” commented Becky once she exited the truck.

“Thank you, dearie.”

“Amber, if you don’t mind me asking, what do you do for a living?” asked Josh.

“I’m a doctor, pediatrician.”

“Hey, cool, I’m just starting my studies. I want to be a surgeon,” chirped Becky.

“That’s what your mom was telling me when we met.”

“Yep, that sounds like her. Using someone else to get what she wants.”

“Oh, I’m so sorry, Becky.”

“No, that’s okay. She’s been doing that since I can remember; I’m used to it.”

At this moment, Josh stood beside her, put his arm around her, and pulled her tight against him. While he did that, Becky rested her head on his shoulder and sighed as she closed her eyes. Nearby, Alice couldn’t watch. The girl she had fallen head over heels for was pleased with a man, and Alice knew she couldn’t compete with that. So, turning to the next best thing, she would try to destroy Josh and Becky’s relationship. All that was needed was an opening.

“Josh, the grill is around back.”

“Thank you, Amber. And thank you for allowing us to stay here tonight.”

“No problem, Josh. I just can’t believe that Jane tried to force Becky to be a lesbian.”

“Yep. Kind of ironic if you think about it. She’s preaching about the religious nuts trying to force gays to be straight, and she is trying to force her daughter to be gay. The big question is, why are people so worried about who someone else loves.”

“I don’t know, Josh. I just wish that it would stop.”

“It won’t, and you know it. Humans can’t stop fighting each other. We are hardwired to desire power above all else. By telling someone that they can’t love who they want, it feeds that need for power. It’s the same as telling someone that they are an oppressor or the oppressed because of their skin color or gender. My best friend and business partner is named Ben, and he is black as the Ace of Spades. If you try to tell him that he’s oppressed, he will laugh in your face the first time. The second time, you would be lucky to have a face. His girlfriend, Cynthia, is even worse. She sometimes scares me to death, so I have no desire to get into it with her.”

“Well then, I guess all we can do is keep from doing that shit ourselves.”

“Yep. Now, back to important things; where’s the grill?”

Amber laughed as she showed Josh where the grill was, and he got started on his and Becky’s dinner. Amber asked if Josh minded grilling something for her, and he eagerly accepted. She brought some chicken, and Josh seasoned it and threw it on with the steaks. When everything was cooked, Josh took it inside and found Alice flirting with Becky.

Josh quietly sat the food down and came up behind Alice while motioning Becky to be quiet about him standing there. From the look in Becky’s eyes, Josh knew that Becky understood what he was up to. He stood behind Alice for a few minutes while she tried to tell Becky how she would be better than Josh. Finally, Alice went too far, and Josh got his cue from Becky. He cleared his throat, almost turning Alice inside out.

“You know it’s amazing how sneaky a big guy can be.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about. I was talking with Becky about school.”

“Alice,” growled Josh, “I know exactly what you were talking about, so don’t start. I’ve been standing here for the last couple of minutes. Remember that I’ve killed to protect Becky, and I’m more than willing to kill again.”

Alice was terrified. She knew enough about Josh to realize he was a very dangerous man should he choose to be. That was confirmed by the look of death in his eyes. The problem was that she still wanted Becky, so Alice would have to try something else. Her terror grew in a few minutes when Josh took his sweatshirt off.