I learned about it at dinner one night, just a few days before my horrible sophomore year ended. High school was not the grand adventure I had hoped it would be, but I thought that at least everything was set for a great summer. I was fifteen, too young to get a driver’s license, which made getting a job difficult. Instead, to keep my parents happy, I volunteered to mow the lawn whenever my dad said it needed cutting and other chores assigned by Mom. That was how the last two summers had gone. That left plenty of time for my usual summer vacation activities, consisting of a lot of reading - books I wanted to read, not required reading, and even some writing. I had dreams of becoming a professional writer. So, reading, writing ... and masturbating.

Yes, that last part was a major part of my plan. For the last couple of years I had successfully shoplifted a lot of girlie magazines from the biggest newsstand in town. I usually managed to get three or four a month. I would peruse each issue (careful not to get any pages sticky) and then cut out the best pictures. I had accumulated a large collection of blondes, brunettes, and my favorite, gingers. I looked forward to spending part of my vacation sorting, comparing, and rating them. Since my parents both worked, I expected to have a lot of free time to devote to my hobbies. It looked like it was going to be another great summer. Then Mom popped my bubble when she casually mentioned that she was hiring a housekeeper.

“Why?” I asked, immediately embarrassed by how whiny I sounded. “I’m going to be here. I can do whatever this ... housekeeper can do, and you wouldn’t have to pay me.” Of course, my main concern wasn’t saving my folks money but having a stranger invade my privacy.

“Danny, that’s what you said last year, and I had to nag you to do almost everything. My last promotion came with a nice salary increase, so now we can afford it. And don’t panic, she’s only going to be here on Tuesday and Friday morning, from nine to twelve. You’ll probably be asleep when she is working anyway.”

What I didn’t want to admit was that, unlike most teenagers, I hardly ever slept late in the summer. I had too many things I wanted to do. When I heard my mom leave each morning, I was up, ready to start indulging myself.

“And, as long as you promise to keep your room clean, I’ll tell her to stay out of it. I know how much you like your privacy,” Mom added. I hoped she didn’t know about my secret life, but she must have had some idea.

“Okay,” I sighed, resigned to having part of my summer ruined. Two mornings a week wasn’t too bad, as long as she wasn’t someone who liked to babble and wanted to bother me with small talk. Maybe sleeping in on those days wouldn’t be a bad idea. I settled back, eating my pork chops and listening as my parents talked about the housekeeper.

“Her name is Hannah,” Mom said, “Kristen recommended her. She must be good because those two mornings were all I could get her for. She already has three or four other families she works for, and she’s a full-time college student.”

Dad, always practical, asked, “Can she do everything you want in just those few hours?”

“I think so,” Mom said “It’s not that much. Vacuuming, dusting, and laundry on Friday so I don’t have to worry about doing that on Saturday. Kristen says Hannah can cook, so I might have her do that occasionally. I’ll see how that works out.”

I had almost zoned out during that conversation, but when I heard Mom say that Hannah was a college student, it got my attention. I had already visualized her as being a middle-aged or older cranky lady, possibly with some strange accent. That was what I thought of when I heard the word ‘housekeeper.’ Of course, she could still be unattractive, overweight, and cranky, but at least there was hope.

“Next Tuesday will be her first day. Don’t sleep late that morning, Daniel. I want you to meet her, and be nice.”

Anytime Mom called me Daniel, I knew she was serious. “Sure, Mom, you know I’m always nice.” All that got me was an eye roll from Dad.

True to my word, I made sure I was up and even had my bed made early Tuesday. I kept my door closed because that’s how it always was. I was sitting on my bed, reading an Isaac Asimov book I had checked out from the library, the first of my summer reads. I checked my watch, and it was almost exactly nine o’clock when I heard the doorbell ring. Then I heard voices. Mom sounded excited as she greeted her new hire. I heard Dad’s voice too. I had forgotten that he was going in to work late so he could meet the new housekeeper.

It wasn’t too long before I heard a knock on my door. “Danny, please come out and meet Hannah.”

As soon as I saw her, my preconceived notions of what a housekeeper should look like were blown away. Hannah appeared to be in her late teens or early twenties. She was short and slightly overweight, but the extra pounds were nicely arranged. The way her butt filled out her tight jeans was most enjoyable. A quick check of the mounds under her t-shirt (I was fifteen, remember) showed a pair of boobs that matched the impressive display her ass was putting on. She had light brown hair tied up in a high ponytail, and a cute smile with a dimple in her left cheek. She wouldn’t win any beauty pageants, but she was more attractive than some of the girls whose pictures I had hidden away in my room. I was, I think the expression is, gobsmacked. The idea of having her in our house for six hours a week had gone from a nightmare to a teenage boy’s fantasy.

When Mom introduced us, she said, “Hi, I’m Hannah.”

I knew what I was supposed to do next, but I found myself tongue-tied. I finally managed to say, “I’m Danny.” My voice quivered, displaying my nervousness.

“Your mother told me that your room is off-limits. No prob, I’ve got two older brothers, so I get it,” Hannah said. Even her voice was soft and warm, just like I envisioned her breasts might be. I had to quickly turn off those thoughts because I felt the beginning of an erection coming on, a frequent occurrence at that age.

Then I noticed Dad standing behind Mom. He had a goofy smile on his face, so I knew he was as impressed with our new employee as I was. That made me feel better. It wasn’t just me who was entranced by her. Like father, like son, or vice versa. When he saw me watching him, he grinned back, a silent guys-will-be-guys communication. He probably envied me for getting to spend a few hours a week with our new housekeeper.”Gotta go to work,” he announced. “Have a good day, Hannah.”

After Dad left, Mom showed Hannah around, telling her what chores she wanted done. I followed them, not because I was that interested in what Mom was saying, but just to watch the twitch in Hannah’s jeans as they walked around the house. There wasn’t that much to show. Our house was a small bungalow with two bedrooms, one full bathroom, and a half-bath, another reason I didn’t understand why Mom felt it necessary to hire a housekeeper, but my attitude had changed. Now I thought it was a great decision.

After the tour, Mom left for work, and Hannah started working on vacuuming. I retreated to my safe space, wondering if I should close my door like I usually did or leave it open to try and catch glimpses of Hannah as she worked. I decided that would be creepy, so I closed it and went back to reading my book.

I stayed in my room most of the morning, only coming out to get an energy bar for breakfast, and a snack later. Each time I saw Hannah, I smiled, hoping I was coming across as friendly, not weird. About noon, I heard a knock on my door. I opened it, and Hannah said, “I’m done for the day. Guess I’ll see you Friday?”

She made it sound like a question, so I said, “Yeah, I should be here.” Oh god, I was already admitting to her that I basically had no life. Nice move, Dano.

By the time Friday came around, I had decided on a new approach. As soon as Mom left for work, I opened my door. When Hannah showed up a little later, I let her in, and instead of hiding in my room, I sat in the living room, pretending to read, when actually I was watching her as she did her chores. That day, she was wearing shorts and a tight t-shirt. I wondered if she was trying to show off for me, then realized how unlikely that was. Hannah was a college girl, for Christ’s sake, and I was a lowly high school student. Still, I indulged in my fantasies as she bustled around the house.

When Hannah started doing the laundry, I moved to the kitchen so I could have a better view. I sat at the kitchen table, eating some Eggos. She was working in the small laundry room across the hall. It took all of my willpower, which I didn’t have much of, not to gawk at her ass and legs as she bent over to take clothes out of the washer and move them to the dryer. By the time she left that day, if I was not in love, I was at least in lust.

I left my door open again the following week while Hannah was working. That led to us talking more. She told me about growing up with two older brothers and asked me what being an only child was like. She brought me up to date on her love life - one serious boyfriend in high school, two not so serious in college, but currently, she wasn’t seeing anyone. I was hard-pressed to match that reveal since I didn’t have a girlfriend and never had. That led to the most personal conversation I had ever had with a girl.

“Are you afraid of girls?” Hannah asked after I confessed to my lack of experience.

“Not afraid,” I said, “just not sure of myself.”

“And you don’t want to take a chance on being rejected.”

I nodded. “I guess so.”

She smiled, and that one dimple grew deeper. “That’s perfectly normal. When I was your age, I remember most boys were just basketcases. School dances were so uncomfortable. They usually ended up with girls dancing with girls.”

“I haven’t even gone to one of those,” I admitted.

“Do you know how to start a campfire?” she asked.

I didn’t see that coming. I wondered why she had changed topics so fast. Maybe she had just grown tired of hearing about my dull life.

“Uh, no, my dad’s not really into camping.”

“You’ve never been a boy scout?”

To make myself seem more interesting, I told a joke. “I was a Cub Scout for a while, but I got kicked out.”

“Jeez, I never heard of anybody getting kicked out of scouting. What happened?”

“I got caught eating a Brownie,” I said, trying to keep a straight face, and wondering why I had gone with a dirty joke. Was I trying to show her how mature I was?

She was drinking a soda when I said that, and she almost choked. Then she laughed, loud and boisterous. “Danny! I didn’t see that coming. See, if you can tell me that joke, you should be able to talk to girls your age.”

“So why did you ask me about campfires?”

“It’s a metaphor. You know what that is?”

“Yeah, I learned about them in English this year.”

“Okay, so to start a campfire, first you need some kindling. Then, you use a spark to get it going. In your case, just being a teenage boy is kindling. All you need is some nice girl to give you a spark to get you going. So, when you go back to school, walk up to some girl you like and talk to her. Just don’t tell her that joke,” she laughed. “Be friendly, and act confident even if you’re not feeling it.”

“Okay, I’ll try,” I told her.

She looked at her watch and said, “Gotta go, I’m due at my next job in half an hour. Say hello to your mom for me. And think about what I said.”

I thought about it a lot over the weekend. I pictured myself starting a conversation with Sally Miller. I had known her since sixth grade, but other than saying hello and smiling at each other, I had found it difficult to go further. Hannah had inspired me, and in a way, I couldn’t wait for school to start again.

Monday was usually the day I went to the library, but the Monday after I talked with Hannah, it was closed for some repairs. So, even though I was looking forward to seeing her on Tuesday, I had books to return. As soon as she showed up, I said hello, then got on my bike and went to return my books and get some new ones. Mom had also asked me to pick up some seeds for her new garden, her latest hobby, on my way back, so by the time I got home, it was almost 11:00. It didn’t leave me much time to spend with Hannah.

As it turned out, she was waiting for me. I parked my bike and headed for my room. Even though I had closed my door when I left, I noticed it was open. When I walked through the doorway, I saw Hannah sitting on my bed, with some of my pictures spread out around her.

“What are you doing?” I asked. I meant to sound angry, but my voice sounded more like a scared kid. It was almost as embarrassing as if my mother had found them.

“Take it easy, Danny,” she said. “After we talked last week, and knowing how sensitive you are about your privacy, I wondered what your secrets were. Remember, I have older brothers, so I know what boys are like. But I have to say, I’m surprised. I was expecting to find a couple of girlie mags under your mattress, but this,” she said, looking at the pictures she had discovered, “ ... this is amazing. How long have you been collecting these?”

“A couple years,” I said.

“How could you afford that many? You must have a good allowance, and I didn’t think they would sell things like this to kids.”

“I stole them,” I told her, bushing a little at my confession.

“A horny little thief!” she exclaimed like I had just confessed to murder. “There’s much more to Danny than I could have guessed.” She started gathering the pictures on my bed, trying to put them back in the folder. “Sorry, I probably messed up whatever arrangement you had these in, but I guess rearranging them back like you want is something you enjoy anyway.”