Chapter 13

Thursday my dad and I picked up Katrina at the airport. She had a two-week leave for Christmas. She was spending ten days at home then going back to Colorado for a few days of skiing. We met her out on the concourse, just in front of the security checkpoint. She gave us both hugs, something I couldn’t remember her ever doing before. I guess she might have missed me. Katrina looked awesome in her cadet dress uniform. She looked like she had gained a few pounds, most of it in some interesting places.

Once we were home she went to shower and change and I went to my room to read. I was sitting at my computer reading my e-mails when she knocked on my open door. I turned around in my chair and told her to come in. She was wearing her favorite lounging attire, a pair of Joe Boxer silk shorts and a crop top t-shirt. Only both were much tighter on her now. She had a towel around her wet hair and her shirt was damp.

I couldn’t help blurting out, “Wow, you’ve filled out some!”

She looked down then gave me a grin. “Yeah, I’ve finally grown breasts like the rest of the girls.”

“Boy did you ever, they look good on you, too.”

“Thanks. You’ve grown, too. I certainly can’t call you Runt now. So how have you been? I didn’t get much information in our weekly telephone calls.”

I brought her up to speed about school and told her about our football season. I told her about my truck and mentioned that Dad had made sure her Camry was all set for her stay.

“That’s cool but I want to drive your truck once. What about your love life?”

I told her it was pretty excellent. I mentioned Caroline and Amanda. When I mentioned I had a second date with Shelia Cavanaugh I could tell she was impressed.

“Good for you, I remember Shelia from last year, she’s a cutie. You didn’t mention the married woman.”

I told her that Dee and I still talked but had called a hiatus on our relationship. I couldn’t resist mentioning that I was seeing another older woman but this one was a widow. Her eyebrows went up and down over that revelation.

“How about Rachael? Mom said she was at your birthday party.”

Moose didn’t look happy when I said I was seeing Rachael again, even though it was sporadically.

“I guess that it’s your business Baby Bro. But I don’t like the thought of you getting hurt again.”

Then she looked at me funny and cocked her head in thought.

“You know Johnny, something has changed between us. You seem so much more grown up now and I feel closer to you. I am starting to see Dad and Papa in you more and more.” She paused for a second as if gathering her thoughts. “This is going to sound weird but when I hugged you at the airport I had this feeling that I was safe in your arms. Like I was your little sister suddenly.”

I though about what she said and it slowly dawned on me that she was saying basically what women I was connected to said. I hadn’t felt any vibes from her when we hugged but that might have been because it was quick and our skin never touched. I walked over to the bed and sat next to her.

“Let me see your hands for a second,” I requested.

She held out her hands and I took them in mine. Sure enough, I felt a little electric current pass between us. More important, so did she. Her eyes widened a little and she looked at me curiously. She kept holding my hands as I attempted to explain the connection thing. I told her what I knew for sure, namely that a few women and I shared this bond. I told her that it didn’t happen with guys but that it seemed easier to deal with them now too. Finally, I told her about Amanda’s theory. There was no question about telling her everything she wanted to know, not when we were now connected.

“No wonder you are having luck with the ladies; trust, and a feeling that we’ll be protected is a big thing with us women.”

I agreed. I hesitated a few seconds then told her there was more to it than just that.

“More as in what?” she asked.

“Well, there’s a sexual component to it also,” I said.

“A sexual component? How does that work?”

“Like this,” I said and I sent her a small dose of arousal.

“Hmmm, that puts a sort of romantic glow on the feelings I get but it wasn’t really sexual.”

I laughed and said, “It might be the context. After all, you are my sister.”

She chuckled too. “Maybe, but I am a woman first, shouldn’t I have felt more?”

“Could be, but I held back because you are my sister, I didn’t want you to think I was perving you.”

“In the interest of scientific discovery, I’ll let you slide.’

“Thanks, Trina,” I said.

As soon as I called her Trina she squeezed my hands. Trina was what I called her when we were little.

“You haven’t called me that in ten years, Johnny. I forgot how cute I thought it was that you had a special name for me. So okay, show me what the big girls get.”

“All right, but this is just a demonstration. Close your eyes and think of something sexual you like.”

I waited a second or two after she closed her eyes then I leaned forward and touched my lips to hers as I sent her my best shot. The lip touching seemed to work on Elaine, so I figured what the heck. The difference was that Elaine had no experience to put what she felt in context and Katrina did. So the backwash of raw sex I got back was staggering.

I pulled back quickly. And dropped her hands. Her eyes popped open and she eyed me speculatively.

“I have seriously underestimated you, Bro. I felt that down to my toes. Do you do that to all the girls you meet and connect with?”

I looked down at her chest and her nipples were trying to bore a hole through the thin t-shirt. Katrina always had prominent nipples but they seemed even bigger now.

“I can see that you felt it at least partway to your toes,” I teased.

She looked down then chuckled, “Yeah, it’s hard to keep a secret with those puppies giving me away.”

I answered her question about how it worked with other women. I explained that usually it occurred naturally and we fed the feelings back and forth as we made love. I told her the big jolt of sex I sent her was a recent discovery. I said I had never tried it as a seduction tool and probably never would. I even told her about trying to send Shelia a cut down version of the feeling but didn’t know if it worked because we weren’t connected, and I didn’t get that obvious feedback.

We talked about it for a while longer then Katrina said she was turning in but would give this thing some thought. Then she fired her parting shot.

“I’m going to get myself off for the first time in seven months alone in my room. Just think Baby Bro; it will be the first time you caused me to have to masuturbate after all the ones I gave you. Oh, and speaking of that, I’ll be taking my shower at about seven tomorrow morning.”

I was floored, she had been teasing me all those times, knowing exactly what I had been doing in the shower every morning.

I felt myself blushing as she sashayed out the door, giggling. I couldn’t remember hearing her giggle since she was in grammar school. I was going to be in the hall when she came out of the bath, and I was going to ogle her blatantly to get even. I really enjoyed talking to my sister, and I was very pleased with our new relationship. Anything sexual — anything more than a little teasing — was strictly off limits in my mind, but being closer to her was great. It made me think about when we were little. It was nice to have my Trina back.

At seven fifteen the next morning I was leaning against the wall next to her bedroom door as Katrina exited the bathroom. True to tradition, she was wrapped in a bath towel that was knotted between her breasts.

“Your growth spurt sure made it easier to hold up that towel,” I remarked.

“It did but it also made it shorter,” she replied turning around. “My butt almost hangs out.”

You could see the barest hint of the bottom of her cheeks.

“Luckily you have the nicest ass on the planet so you won’t get many complaints,” I said sincerely.

“You really think so? Caroline has a gorgeous butt and although I’m loathe to admit it, so does Rachael.”

What the hell was happening at that Air Force joint I wondered? Here was my totally self-assured sister fishing for compliments. Well, she was talking to the right guy because I was speaking with conviction. I laid my hand on her arm and answered her.

“Trina, both of them have great asses but yours is in a category all its own,” I said sincerely.

She looked at me and smiled, “I could feel that you really meant that Johnny, thank you.”

I continued to watch her as she walked to her room, her hips swishing a little more than was natural. I almost fainted when the towel fell to the floor and I got a short glimpse of her naked butt before the door closed.

“Oops,” she giggled.

I took my shower and, of course, thumped on the Kongster. I dressed and headed downstairs. Katrina wanted to go see Papa and Nana so I went with her. She wanted to drive my truck so I tossed her the keys. Katrina immediately readjusted the seat, steering wheel and mirrors I’d had carefully set to perfection. When she was comfortable, she cranked the engine and backed out of the driveway. Katrina fell in love with my truck in less than a block. Instead of driving straight to our grandparents she took it out on the interstate. I didn’t make a peep as she gunned it up to a hundred. I wasn’t about to let my sister wimp me out. But my pucker factor was at its max when she passed one-twenty. I had a death grip on the armrest when I told her to slow down. I used the automatic fuel shut off as my excuse, even though it only kicked in at one-forty.

She eased it back to ninety and gave me a grin.

“Think Dad could find me one of these?” she asked.

My grandparents were on cloud nine seeing Katrina. Nana fussed over her and Papa couldn’t quit telling her how proud he was of her. Papa asked about the academy and Katrina told him all about her training. She came across as if she were really happy there in Colorado Springs. Yet with my heightened awareness because of our connection, I could tell that she was hiding something. I resolved to find out what it was. You know the deal by now, the connection made her happiness extremely important to me. Add in the fact that she was my sister, and it was even more imperative.

I didn’t get to ask her that day though, because I had the long anticipated second date with Shelia. I think Katrina had other things on her mind also. My first clue was when she nonchalantly asked me if I thought Richie Caldwell was doing anything that night.

For my second date with Shelia I was pulling out all the stops. I asked Nana for advice and she came up with the idea of taking Shelia to a live performance of the Nutcracker by the Orlando Ballet Company. It cost me eighty dollars a ticket but I got primo seats that even included a back stage tour and a chance to meet some of the dancers. I didn’t tell Shelia where we were going in advance, I just told her she needed to dress up. I told her I was wearing a suit to give her an idea of what to wear.

I pulled up to the Cavanaugh estate at six. Curtain time wasn’t until eight but I had to get us all the way to downtown Orlando where the Performing Arts Center was located, in holiday traffic no less. I told Mr. and Mrs. Cavanaugh where I was taking Shelia while sitting in the family room waiting for her to finish getting ready. Mr. Cavanaugh said I was stealing his thunder because he had matinee tickets for the same production for Sunday. I apologized profusely and both he and Mrs. Cavanaugh said not to worry about it. He said that I would have to amuse Shelia Sunday while they were gone, though. Had I known what that would involve, I’d have turned around right then and gone home.