Chapter 16

Early in the Carlson's visit Andy had called Barbara Cumings and arranged for her to come over for dinner and bring Terry Williams with her. It was arranged for the next night.

When she told Ellie that she would have to be dressed, the woman commented, "Prudes! Andy Taylor, why do you always have to invite prudes over here for dinner?" Then she told Andy how much she and Sam had enjoyed the previous few days.

Andy saw Ellie's expression change and she asked about it. Looking guilty the woman said, "Andy, our daughter is almost twenty-eight." When Andy looked skeptical — reminding Ellie that she was only forty-two — the woman smiled and said, "Sarah isn't really our natural daughter. She's my late sister's daughter. My older sister, Jessie, died when Sally was only twelve so Sam and I adopted her. Now she's a lawyer working for the Justice Department in Washington. Could ... Would ... Would it be possible for us to invite her to come up here and see us? We'll pay for everything of course..."

"You will like hell!" Andy exclaimed. "And of course you may. Jack and I would be utterly delighted to have your daughter visit."

Ellie looked into Andy's eyes and believed that she was being sincere.

Then they talked about the arrangements for their guests. Bobbie and Terry were coming to dinner that evening. Because of his being confined to a wheelchair, Sam was going to pick them up and drive them to the apartment. Recognizing the importance of the evening to Barbara, Kathy and Andy conferred on the menu and, over Andy's protests, Kathy insisted on doing the cooking herself.

Ellie was sitting with them while they talked and all of the women were naked. When the menu was set, Ellie rolled her eyes and ran her fingers lightly over her flat belly and wailed, "Why do you do this to me? Do you have any idea how many hours I'm going to have to work out to get rid of all those calories?"

"Oh, you poor thing!" Andy exclaimed with her eyes wide. Then she said, "Why don't you stand up? Let us see what you've been doing with that aging body of yours."

When she did, the two girls also rose and studied her body carefully. Finally Andy said softly, "Ellen Duncan, you are utterly exquisite!"

Looking thoughtful she asked Kathy, "Little sister, how old do you think she looks? I can't quite make up my mind. On the one hand, her body is so youthful-looking, I think she's eighteen. On the other hand, I don't think an eighteen-year-old would look nearly as fully ripe and juicy as she does. What do you think?"

"I agree with you, big sister," Kathy replied, "but does it really matter?" To Ellie she said, "What does Sam think? He's the important one."

Ellie just laughed and said, "Sam is getting worried. Andy, he wants to know what you're going to say when we have to buy a new bed in just a couple of weeks. We know the beds are the very best and strongest made, but..."

" ... But they were designed to be beds, not trampolines," Andy finished. "Don't worry about it. Jack and I figured that about four new sets a year ought to be about right." Then with a grin she added, "Unless, of course, you want to save the wear and tear on the bed by using the floor..."

"Mostly we do, but still..." In spite of her light-chocolate complexion, Ellie blushed bright red. Andy and Kathy both roared with laughter and hugged the woman. After completing their plans for the evening, they went out to the pool to swim.

Bobbie Cumings was apprehensive. To her surprise, a new outfit for her had appeared from Bergdorf's a couple of days earlier. She had taken great pains with her appearance and decided she looked as good as it was possible for her ever to look. Although she had agreed to pose nude for Terry she had not yet started, so he had not seen her body bare.

When they picked up Terry at his apartment, Bobbie was pleased to see how smoothly and easily Sam Duncan handled everything, assisting Terry into the car and quickly storing his wheelchair in the trunk. Clearly, he was practiced and very sensitive to Terry's feelings, handling everything so smoothly a passerby would be unlikely to notice that he had done anything.

When she opened the door, Ellie was wearing a new uniform that represented a compromise between what she wanted to wear — nothing — and a regular uniform. It was white with a skirt no longer than a ballerina's. It's neckline plunged down to her navel and the back dove down to the crease of her buttocks. It was held up by a wide band of fabric rising from the bodice that came together to become a white collar with which she wore a black bow tie. With the outfit she wore a tiny white lace bikini and her usual very large white bow set on the back of her head.

When Bobbie saw her, she took her into her arms, kissed her warmly and exclaimed, "Ellen Duncan, you look utterly spectacular!"

"That's all very well for you to say, Bobbie," Ellie replied with a raised eyebrow, "but if you look at this thing carefully you'll see it stays up mostly because of the starch. And if you touch it, it's likely to just fall apart." Looking thoughtful she added, "On the other hand ... Hell, I really didn't want to wear anything, anyway."

Wheeling Terry into the living room, they were greeted by Andy and Jack, then by Kelly and Nita. After thanking Nita for the beautiful dress, they were introduced to Ken and Kathy Carlson.

Terry Williams was six feet tall and normally weighed about 175. Since his injury, his shoulders had broadened and were heavily muscled while his leg muscles had withered. He had light brown hair, blue eyes and laugh lines around his eyes. However, there was a constant overtone of pain or anguish in his eyes that Bobbie had determined was not connected with any physical pain. His doctors had assured her that he was really not in any pain at all. After greeting the Carlsons, they moved back and opened an alley at the end of which Mike Morris was standing.

The two men saw each other at the same instant. A look of incredulity came into Terry's widening eyes. At the same time Mike recognized him and in a parade-ground voice commanded, "Petty Officer Williams: Atten... TION!"

The power and tone of his voice shocked the rest of the people but Terry jumped out of his wheelchair and stood on his feet for an instant. When his weakened legs began to collapse beneath him, Barbara and Kathy instantly grabbed him and helped him back into his chair. When Bobbie looked into his eyes to see if he was hurt, all she saw was a look of stunned amazement.

By this time Mike was standing in front of him. Terry slowly shook his head and murmured, "But, Major, you're dead! I screwed up and got you killed!" The look on his face was that of a man who is seeing a ghost.

"Am I dead, honey?" Mike asked Judy with a grin.

"Well ... probably." But then she looked puzzled and added, "But I only killed you last night. How do you suppose Mr. Williams knew?" Ending the byplay she asked, "What happened, Mike? For some reason I think you know — or think you do."

"Honey," he said to Judy while really speaking for Terry's ears, "I'm almost certain that what happened was the SEALs and security. We're so damned security-conscious, it gets ridiculous sometimes. You know my most recent ... decoration?"

Judy knew he was referring to the still-pink jagged scar on his torso and nodded.

"As I know you guessed, that was a souvenir of our latest action. It was over a year ago, now. Terry was in the team I was assigned to and we encountered some trouble. I guess he thought I was dead. He took a hard knock on the head, but the guys got us both back on board and then we got the hell out. When we returned, Terry still wasn't playing with a full deck, so he was moved to the hospital. As I think about it, I guess I never did see him when he was fully conscious.

"But back to security: They never talk and they're trained never to ask. When he saw the explosion, he must have thought that I bought the farm." Looking at Terry he asked, "Is that about right?"

"Yes, sir, it sure is," Williams replied, now recovering. Then he realized what he had done and tried to move his right leg. To his astonishment, it moved.

"Terry, that was your problem all along, wasn't it?" Bobbie asked softly. "You thought you'd been responsible in some way for Major Morris's death and subconsciously you were punishing yourself with paralysis. Then she said, "How about if we celebrate? Let's go swimming!"

Terry looked at her in utter amazement. "Are you crazy? Have you lost it completely? How? And where?"

"How? You move your arms and legs in the water," she replied matter-of-factly. "I was under the impression that SEALs were supposed to be good swimmers. Where? Right out there," she said motioning towards the now-drapery-covered picture window at the end of the room.

Turning to Andy she asked, "Would you mind if Terry and I do a few laps before dinner?"

Since it was still very early in the evening, and dinner was not scheduled for two more hours, Andy grinned and said, "Of course not! In fact, it might be fun for all of us. I guess we'll just take our drinks out on the terrace and watch."

Turning back to Terry, Bobbie said, "I certainly hope you're not planning on swimming in your suit?"

Looking at Mike she asked, "Major, could you get your friend ready?"

"Sure can," Mike replied. Then he held out his hand and said, "But we never had the chance to be introduced. I'm Mike Morris, as a Marine, formerly assigned to Terry's team. And it's Mike, damn it! It's not major."

She grinned and shook hands, then saluted and said, "Yes, sir, Mike-damn-it!"

Morris immediately thought that Terry was very lucky to have a woman as lovely as Bobbie in love with him. And seeing the two together, he was certain that she really was. Mike wheeled Terry into another room while Bobbie scampered into the gym where she quickly shed her clothes.

Andy had turned on the lights on the terrace and in the pool, while the others got coats to put on. Although it was late March, the temperature was still near freezing and, as usual, the wind was whipping across the roof.

After helping Terry undress, Mike covered him with a blanket and wheeled him out on the terrace.

When Terry saw the pool on the apartment house roof, he just whistled softly. He looked up with a start when Bobbie said, "Are you going to get in the water, or do I have to just stand here freezing my boobs off?"

Looking up at her, Terry's eyes widened and he whistled softly. "My God! Bobbie, you are gorgeous!" When he looked up at her, she had ignored the cold and just stood up straight. Her body was now a slightly-smaller-scale version of all of the other women's.

Mike rolled the chair to the edge of the pool and Terry dove in. At the same time Bobbie entered the pool in a racing dive and proceeded to power up and down. Terry had been a very good swimmer, but like Mike, was really outclassed with respect to speed against the girls.

Moreover, because of the muscle atrophy in his legs, his arms were doing virtually all of the work. At the end of the first lap he stopped and just watched Bobbie in the next lane moving in the water like a porpoise with the same speed, power and grace. After whistling softly, he resumed his progress in the water. He swam four lengths and then quit. In the same time Bobbie had swum ten laps and was not even breathing hard when she jumped from the pool and gratefully accepted a blanket.

After Mike helped Terry out of the pool and back into his wheelchair, Bobbie opened the blanket and asked, "Terry, do you like what you see?"

His eyes widened. Although he had seen Bobbie's figure for a moment before she got in the water, this time she was standing just a few feet away and the full beauty of her body was revealed — and highlighted — by the blanket that served almost as a frame. "You are exquisite!" he exclaimed. "And this is what I get to paint? You are still going to pose for me, aren't you?"

"Sure am," she replied as she wrapped the blanket tightly around her body.

"There's one more thing," she added softly. "I'm sure that Andy will let us continue to use her pool and her exercise equipment. It's clear to me that you recovered the use of your legs. I guess it was psychosomatic paralysis to begin with. At any rate, when you can beat me in the pool at 200 meters you can have my body for whatever you wish, for as long as you wish."

Terry just looked into her eyes with an expression of stunned incredulity on his face. Before he could think of a reply, she bent over and softly placed her lips on his in a kiss in which she concentrated on just conveying her love. When her lips made contact — it was only their lips, because her hands were still holding her blanket tightly around her — there was an immediate flash of electricity between them.

Slowly she eased away and said, "That will have to hold you until you can beat me swimming." Then with her eyes flashing she asked, "Did I give you an incentive to recover your leg strength?"

He just shook his head and murmured, "Bobbie, you are utterly unbelievable!" Then with a grin he added, "As for your question, the answer is hell, yes!"

She just winked, returned his grin and scampered for the shower room.

At dinner that night, Mike tried to explain as much as he could, within the limits of security, about what had happened that fateful night. The team had been on a mission — location classified — and were supposed to rendezvous at the beach at a preset time. Terry was late getting back. Even though standard procedure was to leave without him, Mike decided to wait for him anyway after first sending back the rest of his team.

A few minutes later Terry appeared, chased by an enemy patrol. Mike used his automatic weapon to take out most of the patrol while the survivors dove for cover providing the opportunity for Terry to get clear. He had been nicked by a bullet, but Mike helped him into the water and together they swam as fast as they could out to where they hoped the pickup boat would still be waiting.

Although they were quickly out of range of small arms from the beach, apparently the enemy patrol called for artillery support because high-explosive shells started to fall in their vicinity. It was apparent that such a shell exploding between them wounded Mike with shrapnel while its concussion rendered Terry unconscious.

Nevertheless, the pickup boat came roaring over and both men were rescued. Subsequently, the unit secrecy resulted in Terry never learning that Mike was all right, and Mike never learning of Terry's paralysis.

After a spectacular dinner, they adjourned to the library. At the dinner table Terry had felt odd because for the first time in months, he had feeling in his lower body, legs and feet. The result was tingling sensations that were very disconcerting. When they were all seated with after-dinner drinks, Bobbie unveiled her portrait of the Taylors.

Although the others had all seen it, Terry had not. When he saw it for the first time, he whistled softly and said, "Bobbie, that is utterly fantastic! I knew you were good, but I had no idea you were this good."

He looked from the portrait to Andy, and then at Jack and Kelly. Finally he shook his head and said, "My God! You really got it all! After looking at the painting I can see the overwhelming love and goodness that Mrs. Taylor just radiates. I can see the incredible love she has for her husband and he has for her. And I can see Kelly's love for them and their love for her."

He continued to study the painting and then said to Kelly, "You are a wanting virgin, aren't you?"

Kelly just nodded.

"You have a boyfriend, too, don't you?"

Again she nodded. Then she brightened, but immediately said, "At least I did! The bum should have been here almost an hour ago!"

Terry grinned back and said, "Don't worry about it! If he's still alive, he'll be here! Kelly Taylor, no guy who is still breathing would miss the opportunity to date you. You are unbelievable!"

"Thank you, kind sir!" she replied with a grin. "I think I'll tell Kevin exactly what you just said." Then she looked puzzled.

"What's the question?" Terry asked.

"I'm trying to figure out whether to tell him before or after I kick him in the balls for being so late."

"Bullshit!" Bobbie interjected. When Kelly asked why she said that, Bobbie explained, "You wouldn't dare take such a risk with your future love life. Kelly Carmichael Taylor, I dare you!"

Kelly just shook her head ruefully, grinned and said, "You're right of course, Bobbie. But what can I do?" she wailed. "He needs to be punished."

Nita came into the conversation and commented, "Sister, with that incredible imagination of yours, I'll bet that you'll think of something."

During the days and weeks that followed, Bobbie worked out in the pool and on the exercise machines with Terry. In addition she spent hours working on his legs to restore their withered muscles. She never told him that she had consulted with orthopedic surgeons and physical therapists regarding his exercises. Correctly, she concluded that no professional would be either willing or able to devote so many hours each day to a single patient. Bobbie could and did.

Between their workouts, Terry worked on her nude portrait. Although they had met each other at school only a few months earlier, Terry was now convinced that Bobbie was the woman with whom he wanted to spend the rest of his life. His painting of her had become a work of love. However, he refused to let her look at it in spite of her entreaties; when he wasn't working on it, it was always hidden under a cloth draped over it.

An impressive aspect of Bobbie's character, Terry noted, was that, although she kept begging him to let her see what he had done, and in spite of having myriad opportunities, he knew she had never even sneaked a peak. He realized the only way she would look at it was with his permission.

Even when he finished his painting, he refused to let her see it. When she asked, he told her she would see it for the first time at the annual student art show where all of the student projects plus any other interesting pieces were put on display. The student show was to open on Friday evening.

On the day before the show opening, he and Bobbie had worked out and closed with their regular 200-meter race. As a result of his own work and all the work she had done on him, his muscles were now almost back to normal. From a wheelchair, Terry had progressed to crutches, then to a cane, and now was walking without assistance. When it was time for their race, Bobbie asked Andy, who was sunning herself on the deck with Kelly, to give the starting commands. She did and the two went off the boxes in flat racing dives.

Watching from the pool deck, Kelly turned to Andy and said, "Mom, what's wrong with Bobbie? She can move faster than that! She's ... She's ... My God! She's letting him win! She's cheating!"

"Why is it cheating?" Andy asked quietly.

"Because she's letting him win!" Kelly protested indignantly.

"I know that, dear," Andy replied in the tone of voice one might use with a small child. "But why is that cheating?"

"Well ... It's not fair," Kelly said, modifying her earlier accusation.

"And why isn't it fair?" Andy persisted. Then she took Kelly into her arms, kissed her soundly and asked, "If you were racing Kevin, and he had to win that race to be able to marry you, how hard would you try to beat him? Remember, it's your only chance. Now what do you do?"

"I let him win," Kelly conceded. "In fact, I would probably stay on the edge of the pool, throw him a line and pull him up and down!"

"My darling daughter," Andy explained, "that's exactly what Bobbie's doing. Only she's smarter than you are. She doesn't want Terry to feel badly by thinking she's letting him win — even though that's exactly what she's doing."

They watched as the couple continued to power up and down the pool with Bobbie retaining a very slight lead. As they neared the finish Terry put everything he had into his finish and beat her to the wall by less than a second.

Bobbie had performed brilliantly in the race. Maintaining the illusion, she held onto the pool edge and seemed to be fighting to regain her breath and her strength before pulling herself out of the pool. Andy made a mental note to congratulate her on her acting ability because she knew the girl could have easily beaten Terry by two pool lengths in the four-lap race without even breathing hard.

Terry pulled himself out of the pool and then reached down to give Bobbie a hand. When he pulled her out, he retained his hold on her hand and pulled her into his arms. With one arm around her, he gently stroked the wet hair off her face, then pulled her beautiful body close to his. She lifted her face and he melted his lips on hers. It was the finest, most perfect kiss the couple had ever shared and was only the second one following the night he recovered the use of his legs.