Chapter 14

"Mom, can I ask a favor?" asked Lucy while putting some eggs in a pot of water to boil. This was the first chance, since arriving at the house the previous evening, for her to talk to her mother alone. William and her father had gone fishing, leaving them alone in the house.

"Sure," answered Ann while peeling a potato. There were a handful of peeled potatoes in a water-filled bowl and a small pile waiting to be peeled. She was making a potato salad for dinner that evening.

"I was wondering if you could take me to a doctor," said Lucy. Her voice came out as a squeak. Her heart was pounding in her chest at the thought of what she was about to request. Her hands were trembling so much that she had to set down the carton of eggs before she dropped it.

"What's the matter? Are you feeling okay?" asked Ann suddenly concerned. She turned to look over Lucy trying to see if there were any symptoms of disease that she might have missed.

"Uh, I kind of want a prescription for, uh, birth control pills," answered Lucy. The last three words of her sentence spilled out one atop the other. She had butterflies begetting butterflies in her stomach and was beginning to get concerned where they would all live.

"What?" asked Ann in a near scream while turning to face her daughter with a look of shock on her face. She couldn't believe what she had heard.

Lucy cringed at the expected response and, timidly, repeated, "Birth control pills."

"Are you telling me that you've been having unprotected sex all this time?" asked Ann ready to explode. She'd thought she had raised her daughter to be more careful than to have unprotected sex.

"We haven't had sex," said Lucy dazed by the revelation that her mother had made that assumption.

"What do you mean? You've been dating that boy for years."

"It's been a year and month," corrected Lucy.

Ann had lost her virginity at fifteen. She hadn't been the first one among her friends to lose it. That experience made it difficult for her to believe that her daughter could have been with William for that length of time without having sex, Ann asked, "Are you telling me that you're still a virgin?"

"Yes, mom," Lucy answered.

"I'm shocked. I'm absolutely shocked." Mind reeling, Ann looked around for a few seconds and then made her way to the kitchen table. Taking a seat, she gestured to a chair across from her.

Following her mother, Lucy took a seat in the indicated chair. Confused by her mother's reaction, she said, "I don't understand why you're so surprised. I'm smart enough to know better than to have unprotected sex."

"I know that. I just figured you went to the university nurse and got the pills there," said Ann realizing she should have brought up the subject six months ago. Reaching across the table to take her daughter's hand, she said, "It must have been tough resisting his advances."

"Um, not so tough," said Lucy waffling on the issue. When they had their first real opportunity to do more than kiss, she hadn't resisted at all. It had been William who had done the resisting. She would never forget that when she lost control, William had kept her from making a mistake.

"Is everything alright between the two of you?"

"Everything's fine, mom. In fact, right now I expect that William is asking Dad's permission for us to get married," answered Lucy. Even as the words came out of her mouth, she knew she should have found a better way to break the news to her mother.

Ann stared at her daughter unable to believe what she had heard. This entire conversation had been one shocking revelation after another. Taking a deep breath, she said, "Let's start this conversation all over again, but let's start at the beginning."

"With the birth control pills?" asked Lucy not sure what her mother meant.

"No, with you and William meeting," said Ann.

"Well, you know how we met. I guess our first real date was a little after I moved into the private dorm. We went to a lecture sponsored by the music department on the works of Bach. After the lecture we went out for a bite to eat and then William walked me back to the dorm," said Lucy.

"Did he kiss you?" Ann asked.

"Yes, he did," answered Lucy blushing. The memory of that first kiss still curled her toes.

"Is that a typical date?"

"Well, we don't really date that much. Usually, we are together around campus and I spend time at his house. We spend a lot of time at his house," Lucy said finding it difficult to characterize their relationship.

"What do you do at the house?"

"We do our homework, read, and talk. When the weather is good, we play badminton, croquet, and swim in the pond. When the weather is bad, we play Monopoly, Chess, and video games."

"How about intimacy?"

"We talk about what's important to us. You know, our feelings, interests, and ambitions."

"I meant sex. I mean, if you're over at his house all of the time then you must be doing something."

"Well, we kiss and touch each other," answered Lucy blushing at telling such details to her mother.

"So you've been engaging in mutual masturbation and oral sex?"

"No!" answered Lucy energetically.

Thinking that she had raised a prude who was afraid of sex, Ann asked, "Why not?"

"Are you kidding? With Ken and Lisa at the house all the time, there just isn't a chance to do that kind of stuff. It would be like doing it here at home with you and Dad in the house," said Lucy blushing brightly.

"So when did he start talking about marriage?" asked Ann wondering why he had decided that it was time to propose. Given his wealth, she would have expected them to live together for a year before getting married.

"We went swimming after my last final. Tim was off at a party so Ken and Lisa decided to go out for dinner. Realizing that we'd be alone, I finally went swimming without my swimsuit."

A year before, Ann and her husband had been in the pond without their swimsuits. The entire Carter Clan had been present. Her daughter had seen her parents swimming naked in front of everyone. She couldn't believe that her daughter hadn't ever done it given that kind of permission from her parents. Ann interrupted, "Are you telling me that two days ago was the first time you went skinny-dipping with him?"

"Yes."

"Is that the first time he's seen you naked?"

"Yes."

"Go on with your story," said Ann shaking her head. She had no doubt that William had been naked in the pond on every occasion when they went swimming.

"Later that evening, William got news about the White Buffalo. He went outside to think for a while. When he came back in for hot chocolate and brownies, he announced that he was going to ask Dad for permission to marry me." Telling it in that fashion, she realized that he had never asked her if she would marry him.

Ann listened to the story wondering if teenage boys had changed since the days when she was young. She had jokingly referred to her time spent dating as the years she had participated in octopus wrestling matches. The idea that William would wait for more than a year to pursue any kind of sexual relationship was incredible and demonstrated a respect for Lucy that she didn't think possible. Amazed, she sat back and said, "I didn't think that kind of relationship was possible in this day and age."

"What kind of relationship is that?"

"One based on respect," answered Ann. She wondered if the respect was only in one direction. She asked, "Are you willing to do things for him?"

"What kind of things?" Lucy asked.

"Things like handjobs and blowjobs."

Blushing, Lucy answered, "I'd like to do them, but I don't know how."

Reaching over to the fruit bowl for a banana, Ann said, "We need to talk."

William and Dave were in an aluminum fishing boat that had three bench seats with an outboard motor on the back end and a trolling motor on the front end. Seated at the front of the boat, William cast his line beside the cattails growing along the shore. He smiled when the lure plopped into the water right where he had been aiming. As he cranked the reel, he said, "Mr. Wilkins, I have something to discuss with you."

"What?" asked the man while looking through his lures. He hadn't had a bite in the last hour and figured that a lure change was definitely required. He was seated at the rear of the boat where he could control the motor.

"I'd like your blessing," William said.

"For what?"

"I'd like your permission to marry your daughter," answered William still reeling in his line.

"Ouch," screamed Dave as a hook embedded itself in his finger. He pulled the lure out and checked his finger. Satisfied that the hook had not embedded itself to the barb, he removed it. A small bead of blood welled out while he stared at it. He muttered, "Shouldn't tell a man something like that when his hand is in a tackle box."

"Pardon?" asked William as the lure left the water. He reached back and cast again.

"I stuck my finger on a hook," answered Dave. Looking over at William, he frowned and asked, "She's not pregnant, is she?"

"No, sir."

"You are taking appropriate precautions, aren't you?"

"We haven't done anything," answered William.

"Huh?"

"We haven't done anything."

"You and her have been swimming naked together all this time and you haven't done anything?" asked Dave incredulous.

"Two days ago was the first time we were both naked when we swam. She has always worn a swimsuit," answered William wondering why they were talking about such a personal subject.

"So you want to marry my daughter. When are you expecting to do this?" asked Dave wondering what the rush was all about.