Chapter 14

The days had grown to only a few before the lovers left on a vacation alone for the first time. Joe made the arrangements to fly into New York City on Saturday afternoon before her meeting with Wall Street Global. He planned on showing her a bit of New York that night and after her interview, if time allowed. He worried her by telling her that she should tell the group whom she was dating and planned to marry, and what he did. He wanted to be sure there was no conflicts involved with her input on policy and decision making. She proposed scenario after scenario, sure that she would be lifted from the program. Each time Joe proved her wrong and insisted she had become paranoid about the situation. When she told him that she was not going to tell them about her connection to Joe Johnson, he insisted that it would then be a conflict, hiding details. Joe felt sure he could fix any problems, and if it meant shutting down his mini brokering business, so be it.

In the 4 days since she had gotten her car, she had made 2 late night trips to Joe's. Each of those nights she crawled into bed with Joe and slept in his arms, waking early to make love, and get back to her dorm by 7 a.m.

To assure the grades she wanted, and to impress her professors, Selena was always more than prepared for any quiz, test or exam. She rarely compromised her study habits and the few weeknight dalliances with Joe didn't seem to have any effect. Ever since the second review and interview at Wall Street Global she had become very cognizant of her professors image of her. She wanted to appear confidant and in control. So far she had done that. Now, she was beginning to feel that if she were to move in with Joe, she would be more in control of her situation. He was on her mind constantly to the point of breaking her concentration from time to time. They had discussed it at times, but Joe was not about to make this move, especially during the school year, without her fathers' knowledge.

It was Thursday and Joe had a labor dispute to settle with a local union for Johnson Construction. As much as he was hands-off with the company he owned, the bottom line and labor problems got him into the mix quickly. He was confident of all the people who ran the company for his father and now him, with those exceptions.

When Selena finished her last exam before break she went to her dorm and packed up a few things she might need until she returned after the Spring Break. Campus roads were jammed with the exodus of students beginning their 10-day vacation.

Selena had to get to Joe's and check the day's prices and the buy and sell sheets of stocks they were looking at. While somewhat removed during mid-terms and their prep, she still had a finger on what Joe was doing in the markets.

She and Joe had to finalize their buy and sell lines of the stocks he owned for the broker handling the portfolio while Joe was away. Selena wanted Joe to have a true vacation from work and worry. Setting prudent markers would probably mean no transactions for the broker to proxy for Joe, unless the market made a major adjustment. All of this was going through her mind as she was about to lock up the dorm and leave.

"Leave it open!" she heard from down the hall, looking up to see Lucy hustling up the hall.

Selena stopped and waited for her, setting her duffle down.

"Before you go," Lucy began, "I want to tell you how much I appreciate you and the help you gave me a few weeks ago. Lots of people would have just kicked my ass out. Being away from home, you are the sister I need. Umm, I've been to therapy and I'm working on a few of my problems. Just knowing what they are is a relief, so thanks very much. You should know that I wanted them to cure me of being attracted to women, but instead, they have made me accept it. I've learned to call myself bi-sexual, but I really do want to marry and have a family, having a normal relationship with a man. Without getting into it, let me just say that my family is pretty fucked up and I had an uncle who abused me when I was small. Before you go I should also tell you that I might not be your roommate after break. I feel like I've burdened you and distracted you enough."

Selena took her hands in hers and spoke directly. "Lucy, don't leave on my account, because I may move in with Joe for the rest of the year, maybe forever. If anything, I don't think I'll be here much. Don't upset your life any more than you have to, especially for me, OK?"

"Are you sure?" Lucy asked.

Selena's only response was to hug her. As the hug broke Lucy embraced her again and broke into tears. When she loosened the embrace Lucy kissed her on the lips, saying "Thank You".

Selena smiled and picked up her duffle and went on her way. The kiss made her feel uncomfortable at first, but it was also reassuring because of the affection it implied. Lucy truly looked up to her and suddenly the role of a sister felt good.

Although her mind was on the task at hand of preparing Joe's portfolio for the proxy, she was beginning to get nervous about the evening. She and Joe were to go to her home for dinner with her parents. There was going to be a lot of air clearing tonight. Her father didn't know about the car, and he also wasn't aware of the enhanced living arrangement she had planned for the summer with Joe.

As Selena sat at the computer screen and rolled through the telexes and over seas transmissions of the day, comparing one to the other an over whelming confidence swept over her. She smiled as she thought of the trust Joe had put in her, and her own self-assuredness. She made decisions confidently and surely as she went through the portfolio, leaving only a few for Joe to call himself. More and more everyday the he and she of their relationship was becoming we, and it felt good. Good and natural, as well.

As she finished the final draft of his portfolio buy and sell points she sat back into Joe's leather chair, smelling him, his scent that she knew so well, in the leather. She crossed her legs and leaned back getting a rush as she thought of the way he loved her, and made love to her. She could not possibly be happier with her love and her life. She answered a little tingle she felt within herself by reaching up under sweater and pinching one of her nipples, and then the other. This was usually the way she would begin a masturbation session if she were alone and she wondered if this would turn into that, as she thought of her lover. But then the phone rang.

"Hello, Joe Johnson residence." She politely answered.

"Hi lover! How are you making out?" Joe asked.

"I just finished. Don't tell me you're way over at the office still." Selena whined.

"Don't get your panties all in a bunch there Essy. I'm at the Cheese store to get something to go with the wine tonight. What did you pick out?" Joe asked.

"Nothing real fancy, a Gladstone Porto, Ruby Red. My Mom and Dad don't appreciate the real fancy vintages. They just appreciate that you and I have them doing wine and cheese as an appetizer a lot. Get a creamy Swiss, that would be good." Selena offered.

"You are getting good. You read my mind on that one." Joe laughed.

"No secrets for you Joe Johnson!... and what was that about panties being in a bunch? They couldn't be, I'm not wearing any tonight. I'm changing into a long knit dress to the ankle that's real clingy and sure to drive you crazy, with NO underwear at all." Selena teased.

"I may have you bent over your fathers pool table before the night is over." Joe said with a wanting ache in his voice.

"Well, maybe not that, but I'm sure we can work something out before the night is over." She chuckled with a tease.

"OK, before I get all aroused here, let me get the cheese and get home. I know we have to get here in 15 minutes. We'll be OK." Joe said.

"Park beside me in the drive, I want to take my car, OK?" She asked.

"ooooooKKKKKKKKKK!" he sing-songed, hanging up, knowing the gift of a car would raise her Dad's eyebrow.

Selena had just slipped into her long clingy dress when she heard the elevator whirr. She ran to the doors and when she saw them start to open she did a pirouette in front of them.

When she turned back to face the elevator and get Joe's reaction he was there, hands on hips with a big smile.

"Awesome, just awesome! My God! You look simply delicious, and I know you are." Joe said as he stepped off and extended his arms for her.

He hugged her tightly as she put her arms around his neck making it easy for him to lift her and spin around.

She giggled and put her feet down to pull back and look at him.

She mouthed "I Love You!" and kissed him. Standing nose to nose, Joe said the same back to her.

After another squeeze Joe said he needed a few minutes to change so they could get going.

He busied himself in his closet looking for the right shirt as he stepped out of his pants and hung them on the dressing chair.

"Hey stud! Cute ass!" Selena called from the doorway.

Joe swayed his hips and pushed the sides of his underwear down as he still looked for the shirt he wanted, flirting with her.

Selena belly laughed as Joe finally found the shirt he wanted. He fixed his shorts and took a pair of pants from the closet and stepped in them. He turned and asked, "Enjoy the show?"

"Very much so. I wish we had more time." She said with a sexy leer.

Joe slipped into loafers and grabbed a coat and they were on their way.

Just remember that I can put up with your Fathers little comments, but when he says something that is just plain wrong or insulting, I can't let it pass. I think we agree that we have gotten passed the "put up with" stage and he better start to accept me." Joe said to warn her that he wanted put himself straight with her Dad.

"I'm going to speak to that issue tonight, so trust me on this one." Selena said as she swung her Mustang into her family's drive.

"What are you going to say?" Joe asked hurriedly as the alit from the car.

"Didn't I say trust me?... and you do, don't you?" she said as she met him in front of the car and she pecked him on the lips.

The garage door began to go up to let the couple in through the kitchen, but Selena's parents came out the door from the kitchen to the garage to see the new car in the driveway.

"Hi Joe," Selena's Mom yelled, "Did you get rid of that little sports car for this?"

"This is my car Mom," Selena said. "Joe bought it for me so I could quit borrowing Lucy's car and taking the bus."

"He BOUGHT it for you? A pretty expensive gift, don't you think?" Scott Hanson, Selena's Dad remarked as he leered at Joe. "What happens to it if you two break up?"

"It's her car Scott. I sold it to her for $1. It's something I thought she needed to make our life's a little more convenient. Plus she runs half my stock business most of the time with the labor problems I've been having at Johnson Construction taking up so much of my life." Joe said trying to put out a fire before it started.