Chapter 1

I was just a regular country boy. I graduated high school, worked on my parents' farm and lived pretty much a country life. All through school I dated Sally May Perkins. I just called her Sal most of the time. We were always a couple since we grew up together. Kind of best buds I guess. We always talked about getting married, having a family and a farm of our own. When we were older, we had sex, and she felt good. I still remember how we went down to the holler and swam in the pond naked. Then there were the times in the barn on top the hay bales. She was quite the filly. I really never pictured life without her.

I didn't go to college because I was going to help Dad and Mom with the family farm. My brother and sister went and furthered their education. It just wasn't for me. I liked farming. To work with Mother Nature, till that soil, and watch the crops grow out of nothing but seed has always amazed me.

We were a country family, not necessarily a poor one. Most of the money from our farm went back into buying equipment and animals. We raised cows, beef for slaughter. Of course it took a lot of hay to raise over a hundred head at a time.

Back to Sal, she was a cute gal. I watched her grow up right along side of me. If you saw one of us, you saw the other. Sal said she was going to college to study agriculture. Then when we got married, she would be able to help me more. Her parents were a little against it because they wanted her to become someone important and marry a doctor or something. They let her go to college since she got a full ride scholarship for four years. Looking back I guess they just wanted to separate us figuring once Sal tasted the big city she wouldn't care to return and marry a farmer. They got their wish.

I should mention that Sal's dad worked in the local factory and her mom was a cashier at the local grocery store. They had two other kids beside Sal. There was Hank, who was a couple of years older and became a truck driver. Then there was Millie, the youngest. I often remember how we would chase Millie away so we could be alone.

Sal was going away to college about two states away. Of course we gave our undying love like two young people do. We weren't engaged or anything like that. In fact I never even gave her a going steady ring. I was working the farm and she was off to college. The first year she wrote me all the time. She would come home about three times a year and we would spend a little time together. Her parents wanted her with them. I could understand that, because they loved her too. She seemed to have changed some to me. More big city instead of country girl.

We had sex again before she went back for the second year. It was different, like she knew new things. I asked her about it and she started crying. Right then and there I knew she had sex with someone else. She wanted to try and explain but to me there wasn't any explaining to do. She fucked another guy, that's all the explaining I needed. I asked her to leave. She left and that was the last I saw of her.

I hardly got any letters after that and then one day she wrote me a 'Dear John', letter. I guess it's a 'Dear John' letter even though we weren't going together. She had met a man and would be getting married. She told me how she would always remember our special times together. She did sign it "Love, Sal."

The letter didn't tell me anything. All I knew was that I had lost my lifetime sweetheart. I was devastated for a young man. My plans for the future were pretty much gone, at least with Sal. My parents and family stood beside me and I got over it. I had so many unanswered questions. My parents did explain when people are apart, their hearts grow fonder or they go the other way. I guess mine grew fonder and Sal's went the other way.

I decided to hell with women and worked the farm and in my spare time I enjoyed hunting and fishing. The country is a beautiful place. Why anyone would want to live anywhere else is beyond me.

I talked to Mrs. Perkins - that was Sal's mom - a few times at the grocery store. She was a nice lady and just told me we all have changes in our lives. "There will be someone else for you, Bobby; just give it time."

About three years had passed since I received that letter from Sal. One day I was out fishing and I saw someone across the cove fall into the water. I watched for a few seconds and the person seemed to be struggling. I quickly kicked of my shoes and dived into the water. When I got there, I found Millie caught around the fishing line and it got wrapped around a tree stump in the water. I told her to quit splashing and that I would get her loose. She held onto my neck as I was able to loosen the fishing line and set her free. I carried her up to the bank and set her down. She had a nasty cut on her leg so I ripped off my t-shirt, tore off a piece and wrapped it around her leg.

I couldn't help but notice her wet body. Her blouse clung to her breasts and her shorts were wet clear through, showing her blue panties. She wasn't a kid anymore; she was all woman.

About that time some guy showed up. "What the hell is going on here?" he asked.

Millie looked up at him and said, "I fell in and nearly drowned, while you went to get your beer, you big oaf. By the way, this is Bobby, my sis... a friend of the family."

"Hi, glad to meet you, Oaf. Can I have that beer you have in your hand?" I asked.

As he handed me the beer, he said his name wasn't Oaf. Millie just called him that when she got mad. He said his name was Elliot. We all kind of laughed as I took the beer and poured it over the scratch on Millie's leg.

"Millie, not to ruin your date, but you should let the doc take a look at that. I think it will be fine but you need to be on the safe side. Also you need to get out of the wet clothes. Do you have a change of clothes with you?"

"Just my bathing suit. If you will keep Oaf here, I'll go change."

She was back in a flash in a one piece suit, but she looked sexy. She told Elliot to take her over to the clinic to get her leg looked it.

"Thanks, Bobby. You always were like a big brother. Too bad..." She stopped and said she would head over to the doctor's. She kissed me on the cheek.

I told Elliot it was nice meeting him and I might see him again some time. As I walked away to swim back over to where my fishing equipment was, I began thinking of the things Millie had said. "My sis..." and then stopped. Then she said "Too bad..." and stopped again. I guess we all let our minds wander. Could have been about Sal or maybe even about her. Damn, she was a cutie, just like her sister.

I got a call from Millie the next day. She wanted to thank me for saving her life.

"The water was only four feet deep. I think you would have been alright but glad I was able to help. By the way, your boyfriend seems like a nice guy."

"Bullshit, Bobby. We both know he's an idiot and he's not my boyfriend. He's just a neighbor. He asked me if I wanted to go fishing and I like to fish, so I said yes."

"Okay then, do you want to go fishing with me?" I asked.

"Are you serious? Sure! You name the time and place and I'll be there," she replied.

"Why can't I pick you up at the house? You're over eighteen now, aren't you?"

"Yes, I'm nineteen. I don't know what Mom and Dad would say or even Sally."

"Wait a minute. You can go out with this big oaf, but not with me. What's everyone got against me? Geez, Millie, I'm sorry, it's just that your family just seems to be against me." It went quiet for a few seconds. I knew she wanted to say something but held back.

"It's okay, my parents know I don't have any feeling for Oaf, I mean Elliot. But, when Sally wrote you I was really pissed. You see, I always thought of you two together. I even had a light crush on you myself for awhile, but you only had eyes for Sally. I guess I had said too much about how stupid Sally was and, well... my parents might see it as me going after you."

"Look, Millie, I need a pal, not a girlfriend. I like to fish and hunt and it's nice to have a friend with me. You remind me too much of someone I know to get serious about you. She dropped me like a hot potato when she found her lover in the big city. It's been three years now and I'm not completely over her, damn her. She just sends me a fucking Dear John letter and that settles it all. Well, fuck her. Oh God, I'm sorry, Millie. I didn't mean to hurt you. I know it's not your fault."

Millie sounded a little teary eyed but she said to come pick her up after I did my chores tomorrow. She'd tell her mom and dad that we are just friends and that's all. Besides, she told me her big crush used to be on my younger brother Billy.

We did go fishing the next day. We even caught a couple of big ones. We did get along like two pals. In the coming weeks we went fishing and even hunted rabbits and ground hogs together. The only problem was she reminded me too much of her sister.

My younger brother was home from college and I know he hadn't seen Millie in a couple of years. The last time he saw her she had pigtails and braces. They hardly knew each other being a couple of years apart in school.

"Millie, I have a surprise for you. My little brother is home from college and asked if I knew any nice girls that he could ask out. Are you interested?"

"Which brother? Billy? Oh, my God, he would always pull my pigtails."

"Yes, it's Billy. He's the only brother I have." I knew she was flustered. "He's grown into a pretty decent guy. I think you two would get along fine. Besides, since he is now in college, your parents should be happy and approve of him." Millie knew that was a dig because of Sal and me.

"Bobby, I'd like to go out with Billy. Like most girls we have crushes on a lot of boys growing up. I know I had a crush on you and since you were taken I kind of watched Billy, but he never really noticed me."

"Believe me, Millie, he'll notice you now," I smiled.

She smiled and then slapped me. "I have something to tell you that I should have told you long ago. I promised Sally that I would never tell you, but since you still have strong feelings about her, you deserve to know."