Chapter 6

We'd been in Tucson for four days, and Tess and Kim had been playing for all four. It was December 17 and our plan was to head back to Chapel Hill for the Holidays no later than December 22.

"I haven't gotten gifts for anyone!" Tess said that morning. "We have to take a day off from golf and go shopping!"

"I'll need some help," Kim said. "This is somewhat new to me."

"No sweat," Tess said. "We'll all go together, and then we'll split up so we can surprise each other on Christmas. But you, Kim, can stay with one of us whenever we're split up. Will can help you shop for me, and I'll help you shop for Will."

"As usual," Kim said, "I'm short of cash."

"We're not going to blow each other away with expensive gifts," Tess said. "Don't worry. If you want, we'll put a limit on the cost of all the gifts."

"You two don't need to limit your gifts to each other," Kim said, "but, yes, I'd be happier if I knew how much you were going to spend on me."

We won't go crazy," Tess promised. "And I'll help you buy gifts for my family. We'll get them stuff that's modest-but-nice, and that I know they'll like -- and it won't cost you an arm and a leg."

"We need to get something special for the Spencers, too," I suggested. "A combination Christmas gift and a thank you for their hospitality."

"Already working on that," Tess said. "I consulted with Lola about Andy and the kids. Wait until you see what I've ordered for Andy."

"Golf clubs," I said.

"Shit!" Tess said. "How did you know?"

The shopping was, if anything, more strenuous than walking the local golf course in the thin local air. When we finally called it a day, very late in the afternoon, I was exhausted. We returned to the house in our borrowed Spencer car and, once again, retired for a late-afternoon nap.

"I thought sure we would have gotten it on with Kim by now," Tess said when we'd both slid into the bed.

"Right now, I couldn't get it up for Jessica Alba," I muttered.

"I didn't know you were big on Jessica Alba," Kim said.

"I just named the first Hollywood type that came to mind," I said.

"I guess she is pretty hot, at that."

"Who?"

"Alba. Who else?"

"You know who's hot?" I asked her.

"Julia Roberts?" Tess said. She knew I was hot for Julia Roberts.

"Well, yeah. But I was thinking, Helen Mirren."

"Helen... !... She's like -- what? Sixty?"

"She's older, but, man, she's still really got it, Tess. Damn!"

"So you're saying, if Helen Mirren were here in bed with us, you'd want to do her -- even though you're all tired out. But you're too tired to do me and Kim."

"Hmmmm. Yeah, I guess that about sums it up... But -- I might be able to get it up for Helen and Kim."

I expected that one to get me hit by a pillow or worse, and I wasn't disappointed. But I wasn't worried. Tess loved this kind of stuff. And if Helen Mirren had been there, Tess would have dived right in. Or Julia. Or that Alba chick.

But after a brief pillow fight, we both subsided and fell asleep, hoping that Kim -- or somebody -- would wake us for dinner.

We said our goodbyes, and our repeated thank-yous, to the Spencer clan and flew back to Raleigh-Durham on the 22^nd. Tess' father met the plane and drove the women back to Chapel Hill. I caught a cab to my own family's house -- bearing gifts.

My plan was to spend the next couple of days with my parents and two young sisters, including Christmas Eve, and then to head over to Henderson Manor for Christmas Day. I would then spend the week between holidays with Tess and her family.

And Kim.

Sitting in the cab on my way home, I wondered whether -- this trip -- Kim and Roy Junior would become an item. Tess didn't think so, although she'd spoken to nobody about it, other than her mother. Tess' attitude was that if Kim and her brother didn't get it on over the Holiday period, then we -- Tess and I -- had to come to Kim's aid. The poor woman had to be lonely. She was a stranger in a strange land, with nobody to love her.

If "love" wasn't exactly what Tess wanted the two of us to offer Kim, we were certainly ready to give the young woman the next-best thing.

My attitude? Hell, I was just a guy. Tess was plenty enough woman for me, but, like almost any guy, the prospect of bedding Kim wasn't exactly on a par with being tortured in a military prison in Iraq. If Tess really wanted me to fuck her friend Kim, well, hell, I was willing to make the sacrifice.

Who am I kidding? By now, the prospect of sex with Kim Young Sun was on my mind at least once an hour. But I was determined that I wasn't going to be the instigator, or even the co-instigator. I wouldn't even bring the subject up again in a conversation with Tess. Tess had to do all the heavy lifting on this project.

Waiting was pretty easy, however, because I had the definite impression that I wouldn't be waiting for long.

My past six months with Tess had been financially profitable for me. A modest percentage of her Futures Tour winnings had been shared with me, and, by season's end, the total amount had been considerable. My regular salary had gone on through it all, and most of my day-to-day expenses were being paid for by my employer and lover. For example, all those Lean Cuisine dinners in the RV went on her tab, as did the RV park space rentals, fuel -- you name it.

I already had more money salted away than I'd ever had in my young life, and this year, on the Big Girl's Tour, promised to be even more profitable.

Any thought I had once nourished, about breaking away in the fall to attend graduate school, long-since had left my mind. I was going to stick with Tess for the entire tour season -- which would take us well past registration days for any college in the country.

Next year? Who knew? If Tess and I were still enjoying each other's constant company, I figured I'd be right here at the same old stand.

I wondered what Tess' intentions were, about Kim. I knew the initial plan was for all three of us to fly to Hawaii in February for two consecutive weeks of tour events there, starting the LPGA season for "my ladies." After that, there had been no discussion. Perhaps Tess would invite Kim to stay with us in the RV for the entire season.

Whether Kim would accept such an invitation, I couldn't be certain. On the one hand, it was a tremendous bargain for Kim, greatly decreasing her need to lay out money for room, board and travel. This would be true even if Tess eventually agreed to allow Kim to contribute toward expenses.

On the other hand, I knew that Kim had a strong independent streak, and might simply prefer to make her own way in the world.

As it turned out, the two of them got together and planned a scenario that provided Kim with a little bit of both worlds. Tess and Kim had discussed the matter and had agreed that the best way to go was for Kim to travel with us often, but also frequently to break away and motel it with the other touring pros -- particularly some of Kim's friends and fellow golfers from Korea.

"She'll be with us, more often than not, when we're in the bus," Tess told me. But there are lots of long-distance locations -- Hawaii and Mexico -- where it won't make sense for us to drive. When we're flying, Kim says she'll be staying nearby, but she doesn't want to be a third wheel all the time. When we're using the RV, and both of us are going to be playing on a particular week, she's very happy with the idea that we want her to stay with us."