Chapter 8: Allegro Affetuoso

I had taken the day off, and on Thursday morning, we were at the airport waiting for them. I was delighted to see them come out early: first-class passengers have certain privileges! Ellen looked tired, but she seemed to be better off than when she had left. She looked out for us as Allan held onto her, supporting her as she walked slowly from the exit. Then Jenny appeared, dressed in a light top and a comfortable baggy trouser; I recognized a light blue cashmere sweater on her shoulder. I turned to Maureen, but she laughed.

“I’ll explain later.”

I took a deep breath and stepped forward.

“Ellen, we’re so happy that you are back. We’ll make certain that you have everything you want, and whatever you need, just call us.”

I bent down and kissed her lightly and she smiled faintly.

“I saw your face when we arrived. Have I really aged so much?”

I looked at her once more, and her face showed the strain of the last weeks, but her eyes had still the same shine and amusement. I did not know what to say, and she took my hand.

“Don’t lie, James. I know how I look like.”

Shaking my head, I said that it did not matter how much the body aged, but it was more important to see into the eyes and soul of a person, and she was the same Ellen we had started to love and admire. She told me to stop this nonsense; she did not have the force anymore to cry, but pulling me down to her, she whispered: “I always wished I had a son, but now I’m happy since I have you. Now come here and hug me!”

I obeyed, and she embraced me warmly; it was difficult to explain, but I felt her affection and love, like coming from a mother. I had never felt something like this since my mother had died when I was very young. It was strange, but it was beautiful.

“Maureen and I talked a lot about you, and when Jenny came, this continued. James, you must be a good man to have two women who love you so much!”

Before turning to compliment Allan, I nodded but had to wipe my eyes. Germans do not cry, and there must have been some pollen in the air. He was looking at me: even at this moment dressed in a dark suit, light blue shirt, and a striped tie (old military connection?). He was standing straight as if he had not flown for many hours - he had lost some weight, however, but still was trim as the athlete he had been for a long time: an almost scratch golfer and runner up in the Sydney Senior tennis championship.

“Welcome back, Sir Allan!”

“James, did you not hear what Ellen said? You are family now, as Maureen and Jenny, so behave like family.”

“Welcome back, Allan!”

“That’s better, James. Now we’ll head home, but I expect you – all of you – to be tomorrow at our house at five o’clock for tea and a serious discussion about what we’ll do. Is this OK?”

My only reply was: “Yes, Sir! “ and I smiled. He smiled back and hugged me, too.

“James, you don’t realize what you’ve done for us: agreeing that Maureen and Jenny could stay with us, looking after my job so that we could relax, and helping to improve Ellen’s health. Thank you, son, for everything you and your girls have done for us. Well, never forget this.”

I did not know where this comment had come from but was proud to hear it.

Finally, I could look at Jenny; she was waiting behind Allan, and when she saw me turning to her, a huge smile appeared on her face; she jumped forward, embraced Maureen, and then turned to me.

“Hello, Count de Winter, how are you? Did you miss me? A little bit? A lot?” and she flew into my arms. We did not care what people might think – we just wanted to hold each other and never let go. I believe that Maureen greeted Ellen and Allan, but I did not watch; all I wanted was to feel her in my arms. After a moment, Maureen called us back to real life.

“James, people are watching us. Stop it: at home, you can kiss her all the time you want.”

Jenny stepped back reluctantly, but with her eyes sparkling, she hugged me back.

“Wait until we are back home, and I can kiss you properly, my love!”

Reluctantly I let her go, but she stayed glued to me; Ellen looked at us, amused by the genuine love between us. Her face showed more animation now, and perhaps she might recover more with a few nights of good sleep in her home. She told us to come and see them the next afternoon, but she also wanted us to visit them on Saturday afternoon and have tea; Maureen agreed immediately. Allan had his driver take their luggage to his Bentley, and I took Jenny’s cases to the car we had rented. She had left with one luggage case and came back with three, and a new handbag, too! Maureen had warned me that there might be more luggage than when she went to Cleveland! Then the Bentley left in his stately pace.

I handed my ladies into the limo, and when Maureen sat beside me, Jenny pushed her aside.

“Maureen, may I sit with James? Please?”

Maureen nodded, and when the car started to move, she threw herself into my arms.

“My love, I missed you so much! I’ll never be away from you again for such a long so find a way to make this happen!”

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Maureen grinning, and she winked at me; it was the same complaint she had made a few days ago. Then there was no more time for talk, and her lips were glued to mine. She squeezed me with all her force, and her tongue invaded my mouth, which I admit quite willingly accepted the invasion. After a while, she relaxed and leaned back to look at me.

“James, I didn’t know how much I love you! It was horrible to stay in Cleveland, knowing that you were on the other side of the globe. Please don’t do this to me again! Please? Promise?”

I had the same problem that I had had with Maureen: how could I promise something that I was not confident that I could fulfill?

“I’ll try my best, my love, but once in a while, I’ll have to travel.”

She nodded, wiping a tear from her eye.

“I know, but when you travel, I’ve Maureen, and we’ll support each other, but this time I traveled on my own, and I don’t want to do again!”

She kissed me once more and looked at Maureen.

“We’ve to keep better control. He has not learned yet what is good for him, and we’ll have to make certain that these things don’t happen again!”

Maureen nodded and blew her a kiss.

“Together, he doesn’t have a chance, darling” and I started to believe that I probably did not have any against these two!

Maureen wondered what Jenny wanted to do now, and with a mischievous smile, asked her: “Jenny, I assume that you want to go home at once, or do you want to stop and have dinner?”

Jenny just stared at her, obviously insulted by that question.

“I assume that this means you want to go home. Yes, Ma’am, at once, Ma’am!”

She told the driver to accelerate, and he obeyed immediately: the car accelerated violently. When we arrived home, I carried Jenny’s luggage up to the flat; I moaned about the weight, but she shrugged.

“Women do this, James, when they are on their own and the man they love is far away. Shopping is an excellent therapy!”

Finally, we could close the door, and Jenny turned to Maureen.

“Darling, can I have five minutes with James? I missed him so much!”

Maureen nodded, and Jenny came into my arms, hugging me as if she would never let me go. She lifted her face to be kissed, and somehow the five minutes passed in a second. When I discovered that I needed to breathe to survive and to be able to kiss again, I stepped back and looked at her. I was surprised about the strength of her emotion since she was usually a relatively controlled person. It seemed, however, that this time her control had snapped, and she needed the confirmation that I was really at her side. Maureen smiled and nodded.

“James, do what she wants, and I’ll take care of the luggage.”

Jenny was tired; even in first-class, the comfort is relative, and she was still suffering from the stress in Cleveland. One thing had not changed: the love in her eyes. I embraced her once more and then told her to relax; she was home now. I sat down on the couch, and she planted herself on my lap.

Maureen had already prepared a light breakfast, but Jenny declined; the food on Qantas was excellent. All she wanted was to shower, change, and get back into my arms again. She looked at me.

“James, come along!”

She got up and pulled me to the bathroom, and stopped.

“I don’t want to work – undress me, James?”

I always loved to see her showing me her body, but it was my turn this time. I pulled off the top and got re-accustomed to her pert breasts; then, I slowly pulled down her pants, and my lips followed my hands. She had re-done her little heart over her labia, and I kissed it reverently. Her arousal was visible; tiny drops glistened already when I pulled her pussy apart a bit, and a strong smell of a woman’s excitement filled my nose. She stepped back.

“My love, all I want at this moment is you are touching me, but preferably with some soap and water since I haven’t had a shower in almost twenty-four hours. Then you can do whatever you want.”

I also turned on the hot water and took off my clothes, and we stepped into the steaming water. She closed her eyes and murmured: “Do your duty, my love. Wash me, but don’t forget anything!”