Chapter 9

My bay window was dam' near uninhabitable. In fact my whole apartment smelt of paint and floor varnish, so I'd moved upstairs while Jose finished up. The weather was fuckin' ace and I'd slung a hammock between two trees, was swaying gently, beer in one hand, small joint in the other, book on my chest in case I got bored doing nothing, the whole afternoon ahead of me. Slacker's heaven.

The joint was a memory and the beer was way too warm when I heard footsteps. A slim dark hand appeared with a cold bottle dangling from its fingers. I twisted my head and squinted up at her.

'Shit, girl, you do that one more time, I'll have to marry you.' I grasped the bottle and put half of it where it belonged while she smiled down at me.

'No need to get emotional, ' she said. 'My ancestors were house slaves. But I never seen a man enjoy food and drink like you do. How come you don't weigh three hundred pounds and grunt when you walk?' I shrugged.

'I do some gym time, cut down on the beer a little when the mirror gets too small. How come you're the way you are? I seen you put away food like you wanted to start a famine and there ain't an extra ounce on you, except where it's meant to be.' She looked at me sideways, then pulled my old lounger round and sank onto it.

'Been checking, have you?' Her voice was smooth and slightly husky, like good liquor over ice.

'Candice, I check you every fuckin' time I see you and it just gets better. How come you ain't studyin'? You goofin' off?' She smiled cheerfully.

'Five days a week is enough and the weekend's here. Thought I'd catch a little sun if I'm not disturbing you.'

'Shit, that's for sure gildin' the fuckin' lily. You get any more sun you're gonna be dam' near invisible at night.' She stared and then started giggling.

'You telling me to lighten up?' That got me laughing too and I dam' near fell out of the hammock. She wiped her eyes and tried to sound serious. 'There are some very correct people in this town who'd arrest you for saying what you just did.' I finished my beer.

'Fuck 'em. Friends can say what they like. You work on your tan, Candice. I'm just thinkin', readin' some, wonderin' when the hell Jose's gonna finish.' She closed her eyes, her fingers fiddling with the gold chain she always wore.

'I've talked to him. Asked him why he was doing two jobs and he told me what you did for him and his sister and her kids.'

'Well, shit. Now I gotta deal with ethnic fuckin' gossip. You gonna sunbathe or what?' She nodded absently.

'I had a bet with myself you wouldn't talk about it. Is this yard overlooked at all?'

'Trees are old and tall. One reason I bought the house.' She stood up gracefully and began to unbutton the white shirtwaister that was her usual summer outfit. She had a dozen, all different, and I'd kinda been having fun guessing which one she was gonna wear next. She was being real careful not to look at me and her fingers were having a little trouble with the buttons, but she persevered and slipped out of the dress sorta nervously. She lay down on the lounger, naked except for her panties. I was having a real problem not leaping out of the hammock and barking. Controlled myself though. She'd been pussyfooting about the past three weeks. No point in pushing her now she was getting serious. Never push the smart ones or they get real skittish.

'Better not be tellin' me you need sun cream, ' I said, 'and I don't see any tan lines either. Kinda suspicious.' I was having fun. No stress, no clicks, no nothing: just taking it easy with a beautiful girl I was gonna go to bed with one day soon. Pure heaven. I rolled over and looked down at her. Hell, she was the one that had undressed. Her body was lean and toned, small pointy breasts sitting high on her chest, capped with jet black nipples, fat and puffy; long legs flaring from narrow hips, the fork of her body outlined by the thin material of her panties, pussy lips making a tidy little cameltoe under the sheer fabric. She watched me looking at her and I gave her a thumbs-up.

'Excellent package, Candice. You want another beer?' I swung outa the hammock and went to fetch them. When I came back she looked to have relaxed some and reached out and pulled at my wrist as I put the beer down

'Are you alright with this, Doug? I'm not teasing deliberately. I mean, you're being pretty calm about it... ' Women always dick about some, but the wait is generally worth it.

'Shit, Candice, I'm calm. I mean I ain't exactly restin' comfortable, but that's my problem. I might lose a little weight, sleep badly, get the shakes mebbe, while you make your mind up, but I'll kinda leave that to your conscience. Three things: one, you know I'm a volunteer regiment; Ellen told you that. Two, you're the one at the wheel and one driver's plenty. And three, try to think of me as a lesbian trapped in a man's body. That might relax you some. I'm gonna take a siesta. Three beers sorta provoke a nap, this weather.' I turned to get back into the hammock but she jumped up and grabbed me, hugged me hard, her breasts pressing against my chest. She was struggling not to laugh.

'Trapped in a man's body? You are absolutely outrageous. You really don't mind what I am, do you?' I put my arms round her, kissed her good, and her mouth opened, her tongue sliding hesitantly out to find mine, her arms tightening round my neck. After a minute I pulled back; hardest fuckin' thing I've done for a long time.

'I gotta tendency to focus on who, not what. Shit, Candice, forget the goddam labels and plan on bein' taken out to eat tonight. My kitchen stinks and yours is unworkable. Jose's got all the furniture from Nick's room piled in it.' Didn't say I'd suggested he do that. 'You feel right about it we'll try some more of that after.' Doug, dominant but kind, not pushin' any. I'm a fuckin' saint sometimes. She was breathing kinda fast and her eyes were sparkling.

'Whatever you say, boss. Will I need to dress up?'

'Nudity ain't acceptable in this town. No leather though, OK?' She rolled her eyes.

'No leather. Right.' She lay down again and I tried to get into the hammock without catching the end of my cock in the mesh. If she didn't put out tonight I was gonna go fuckin' crazy. When I glanced over at her she was lying quiet, eyes closed, legs parted a little, one hand on her plump little mound, her fingers stroking it real slow. Way to go, Candice. I hoped she was thinking of me and not Ellen.

When I got settled I finished the beer and dropped the bottle on the grass and closed my eyes. The smell of paint and the fainter scent of Candice's perfume tickled my nose, and the sun was warm on my body. Like the first summer I bought the house.

Shit, looking back I can see that McCarthy's death and Kelly splitting shook me up some. Only time in my life I been paranoid. I kept kinda thinking that someone would find out about why McCarthy had crashed, or that Kelly would come back and start carrying on again, or the fuckin' IRS would come asking where I got the money from. I guess if it hadn't been for Annie I might have cut and run.

'You gonna tell me what's buggin' you?' she asked me one day. We were at my apartment, her stoned on her ass and me not far behind. She was stretched out with her head on my belly, nuzzling my cock occasionally and trying not to be impatient. I thought about what she'd said.

'You really wanna know?' She bit me gently.

'You ain't gonna shock me Doug. We're more alike than you think. Probably why I'm crazy about you. Tell me the bones so I stop worrying.'

'Shit, Annie, you put it like that. I kinda got Kelly's confidence so I could make a bunch of money for myself, and she found out and was real angry and told McCarthy, and McCarthy was on his way into town to ream my ass when he crashed. And she's split, like gone. So it was dumb fuckin' luck one way, result of what I did the other, and I'm caught between pleased and wonderin' if there's any shit waitin' to land on me.' She thought about that.

'You won't let any fuckin' thing stand in your way, will you? To hell with her feelings, same as with that poor Judy. I swear I don't know how you can do it. Hell, Doug, six months and no shit hittin' you, I guess you're home clean. How much fuckin' money?' Straight to the heart of the matter.

'McCarthy already gave me the bonus for the legitimate stuff I was doin', so it totaled out a little over a million. I ain't ever gonna work again, Annie. Only reason I did it, tell the truth.' When I said "million" she whipped round and stared.

'You shittin' me?'

'Nope'.

'Jesus, Doug, you're a fuckin' millionaire? You mean I been screwin' megabucks and never fuckin' realized? Whaddya gonna do?'

'I been sittin' on it while I thought.' She snorted and grasped my cock.

'You can spend some on me or I'll pull this out by the fuckin' roots. I wanna go to Florida again, get away from winter.' I groaned, then realized that telling her had lightened the load some. A trouble shared is a trouble halved, my Mom used to say when she wanted me to 'fess up about something.

'How come I get the only hippy in the country who don't despise money? You want to go to Florida you're gonna have to work for it. High season down there right now.' She scooted round again and cupped my balls.

'Hippies only despise money because they fuckin' don't have any, and the work is gonna be a labor of like. For two weeks in Florida I'll blow you twice a day and some more at night.' Her head dipped and her lips began their teasing dance over the head of my cock. I was kinda touched. It was her turn by rights, and she knew I'd have done my party trick if she'd asked.

She was so excited and revved up I let her have her way. Hell, I guess I owed her some anyway. She sent her dad off to some commune in New Mexico, packed her best hippy dresses, and closed the shop. I booked first class, just to show her I could, and we had fun upsetting the rich snowbirds. Same fuckin' problem as before though: she wouldn't go on a public beach, so we had to go looking for seclusion.

I thought to rent a boat so we were able to find secluded. A week into the holiday I was laying on white sand while she balanced on my cock, her dark eyes huge and bloodshot. Damned if I know how she managed, but first thing she'd done when we arrived was score some Jamaican grass and we were both kinda relaxed. One part of me was tense though and she didn't mind that. She was getting a pretty good tan and it was sorta strange to see her body pinky-brown instead of white. She exhaled happily and handed me the joint.

'Sun and sea and good grass and a fat cock to sit on. Everythin' a girl could wish for. You been thinkin' some Doug, I can tell. Whaddya gonna do with all that money? You for sure ain't gonna just spend it.' Girl was a goddam mindreader.

'You're a goddam mindreader, Annie. I guess I oughta have visible means of support, so I'm gonna buy a property near campus, big one, rent rooms out to college kids. That'll cost, time I've converted the place and all, but it'll earn pretty good, pay its own way and then some. And I'll leave the rest with Uncle Sam, collect the interest. Read, sleep, stay in shape a little so you don't start bitchin' at me, take you away once in a while. That's as far as I got.' Her pussy tightened over my shaft and she went a little bit pinker.

'I was hopin' you'd say somethin' like that. You decided to leave town, I'da been kinda pissed. You mind me bein' pleased?' Fool woman. Who minds anyone being pleased?

'Gonna make you help me, Annie. Choose the curtains, stuff like that. No fuckin' flower power stuff though. I wanna go for mature but cool.' She leaned forward and kissed me hard, grinding her fat clit against my pubic bone.

'Bet I can make you come before I do, Mr. Mature but fuckin' Cool.' Wrong again.

So I spent the next few months looking at properties, thinking about how they'd convert. Annie came with me a coupla times, but mostly she left me to it. Said she didn't want me blaming her if I bought the wrong one. Funny thing though, once I started thinking again I re-upped my gym membership, worked out for an hour, two or three times a week. Still boring as hell, but it seemed like my body wanted it.

The one I found was almost right. Outside was in good shape, needed some work inside, bathrooms and kitchen upgrading. Yard was good, pretty secluded, and a coupla plantings would make that completely. Half a mile from campus, quiet street. Price was a little high, house was a little bigger than I'd planned, but it was the only one I'd seen that said hello to me, so I bought it quick, before I started wanting it too bad. I moved in that June and spent the summer doing nothing, just getting the feel of the place. Next year was plenty soon enough for renters, and quick conversions cost way too much. Annie and I christened every dam' room in the place, and the yard too. We had a pretty nice time.

Something cold landed on my chest and I opened my eyes in a hurry. Candice was standing over me laughing, another beer in her hand. She'd put her dress back on but it was still unbuttoned and her body peeped through. Her eyes flicked down to my crotch. Thinking of Annie had got me kinda hard.

'You look cute when you're asleep, ' she said, 'and you got something in your shorts.' She looked a little startled at her own daring and I gave her a silent cheer.

'I wasn't asleep and if I was I was dreamin' of you. That beer for me or you just goin' to go on teasin'?' Subtle line. She grinned, white teeth bright against her dark face, looking like a woman who's finally made her mind up.

'All for you, and no more teasing, I promise.' Like I said, smart woman. She smiled again. 'If the privileges are as good as the friendship part I'd be a fool to turn them down. What time do you wanna eat?' What about a snack right now? I didn't say that.

'When you're hungry, Candice. You mind if we go upscale, make an occasion of it?' I drank beer. 'What's the time?' I stopped wearing a watch when I bought the house. She looked at her wrist.

'Four. If we eat about six-thirty, that suit you?' I nodded. I was wondering whether to shave again or not. I mean, some like it smooth and some think twelve hours growth is kinda nice. Shave, I decided: less she's been with any bearded ladies recently she's not used to stubble.

'I'll call Casa Italiana, ask Tony for a booth: that good?' I like to do that sorta thing before the first time. Nothing wrong with anticipation, and it'd make Tony kinda jealous too. She nodded, shy but determined.

'If we're going that far upscale I'm going to start getting ready now.'

'Don't go overboard. Tony's pretty susceptible.' She giggled and leaned over and gave me a peck on the lips, her breasts just brushing my chest.

'Me too. You make me feel safe though. Nervous, but safe, and kinda excited as well. Nice combo.' She straightened and went across the lawn to the house and I watched the dress floating behind her and thought dirty thoughts.

When Maria had knocked I was having dirty thoughts too. Fact is, Annie had started having them, I'd kinda joined in, the dirty thoughts had led to dirty bodies, and the dirty bodies had segued into more dirty thoughts in the shower. I was planning rounds three and four as I opened the door, sure wasn't prepared for a little Mexican lady with a strained expression. Turned out she was a widow, wanted cleaning work, had a brother wanted yard work, any kinda work, usual stuff. Outside the house was a cruddy looking Valiant with a guy in the drivers' seat and two little kids in back, surrounded by bundles. I guess it was the Valiant that made me ask the question.

'Where you livin' ma'am? I might have some cleanin' work soon.' She didn't answer, and her eyes darted round helplessly. Annie had joined me and was looking at the Valiant too.

'Shit, Doug, she's livin' in the fuckin' car with two kids. That's right, lady, ain't it?'

Once that was established I let Annie talk to her while I thought; then I went to fetch a calculator, did some figuring. No doubt about it. I could put up with the kids, I'd save a fuckin' bundle. The woman was looking at me, wondering what the hell I was doing, would it be bad for her. Annie was looking at me too, sardonic smile on her face, like she could read my mind. Well, fuck her: two birds with one stone.

'I'm Doug Taylor, ma'am. What's your name?' Maria, it turned out.

'OK, Maria, I'll make you an offer. You all come live here. You and your brother work on the house, paintin' and stuff, sort out the yard. Get the kids in school so they're outa the way. I'll cover food and bills, give you five hundred a month.' Beans and rice were cheap, I reckoned. 'Job's gonna last till Spring. You save some, you'll be able to get an apartment, move outa the fuckin' car.'

Well shit, she was suspicious, and so was her brother; don't blame them for that, but it was a better deal than anyone else was offering and the car smelt real bad, so Annie showed them the house, admired the kids, domestic shit, and they finally said they'd do it for a month, see what happened. Annie made me pay them half the month up front so they could get basics.

Worked out pretty good: I gave them the third floor, let them settle down for a couple of days, then cracked the whip. Jose couldn't do the complex stuff, I still had to get fuckin' electricians and plumbers and stuff for that, but he was hell on wheels with plaster and paint, floors too, and after the first week Maria was gonna do anything she was told. They loved goddam plants too, yard started to look real nice. It's in the genes, I guess. Kids were pretty well-behaved, almost cute. Annie was in and out like a fuckin' yo-yo, looking at paint colors and fabric samples, tried to keep showing me fuckin' furniture catalogs. I kicked back until my new front room was done, then I went kinda mad, had one entire wall covered with fitted bookshelves, set about filling them. Amazon dam' near gave me a loyalty card.

That time was about as domestic as I've ever been, and parts of it were real fun. Meals round the big table, kids playing in the yard at weekends, knowing I was saving money and being a boy scout at the same time. Tired me some though, and I was getting sick of the smell of Mexican food, so I was kinda glad when Jose found a proper job around Christmas. Even stuck my neck out, gave him a written reference, dam' good one too. They moved out soon after that, but Maria had decided I was God's younger son, so poor ol' Jose kept coming round evenings to finish up the jobs and Maria kept coming round to keep an eye on him and clean. Annie shamed me into paying them by the hour, but that was still cheap as shit and I wasn't in a hurry.

'You wanna practice this kinda stuff a bit more, ' she said one evening. 'You manage to combine bein' real selfish with bein' a real human person too, the results are fuckin' ace.' We were walking round the house admiring it. It sure looked good. Everything clean, rooms furnished cheap but tasteful, new bathrooms shining. Inspectors had passed it fit for renters and I was feeling pretty proud. My apartment on the first floor was exactly the way I wanted. Even the height of the mirrors in the bathroom was right. Come in under budget too. Working with McCarthy taught me how to cost stuff.

'Shit, Annie, don't you go mushy on me. You know it don't suit ya.'

'Mushy my ass, Doug Taylor. No shame in tellin' the truth.' She whipped her dress up round her waist and turned round, bent over the stair rail. No underwear, just her skinny little asscheeks framing her pussy. She spread her legs a little wider. 'Put your goddam cock where it belongs and stop fuckin' criticizin'.' I did that, just to shut her up. Nearly fell down the fuckin' stairs before I'd finished though.

All my stuff was downstairs, and I was sleeping upstairs, so getting ready was a dam' chore. I showered and shaved, climbed into the clothes, then needed a dump. That meant undressing some to wash my ass afterwards. Wasn't sure what Candice might get up to, and dingleberries ain't so good on a first date. I was wandering round my apartment, sniffing the paint smell and wondering when I could move back down when Candice appeared at the door.

'This OK?' I turned and checked. Jeez, she was an old man's wet dream. Simple cocktail dress, white, like everything she owned as far as I could tell, hair out of its rows and framing her face, gold winking at her neck and wrist, matching pale grey shoes and shawl. I was real glad I'd dressed carefully.

'Shit, girl, good enough to eat. You mind me sayin' that?' I thought I saw a trace of a blush on her cheeks, then she smiled shyly.

'I guess I'm glad you think so.' I looked at her more closely.

'You wearing makeup too?' She nodded.

'Holidays and special occasions. Are we going to walk or drive?' I looked outa the window.

'Weather's still excellent, and it's only eight blocks. Those shoes good for that far?' She cracked a proper grin.

'Women are born with the ability to walk in dumb-looking shoes. You can take my arm if we have to cross any potholes.'

'I'm gonna take your arm anyway, Candice. Bein' seen with you is gonna be so good for my rep, you wouldn't believe. Guys from the gym see me, they're gonna be shittin' blood.' She rolled her eyes to heaven.

'You are one foulmouthed, sweet-talking, weird, nice guy. Being seen with you is going to change my rep some, and I don't give a damn. Let's go.'

Nothing, I mean, fuckin' nothing at all, is better than strolling down the sidewalk on a warm evening, looking forward to an elegant dinner and then your first time with the most stunning girl in the state, who's currently on your arm. Candice glanced sideways at me as we waited for a light to change.

'You're really enjoying this, aren't you? I mean, taking it slow, trying to make everything right for me.'

'There's two people involved here, plus I gotta rep for bein' selfish but sophisticated, ya know? Gotta live up to it.' That went down real well, and she nearly fell off her shoes laughing, then squeezed my arm and said something foolish about sensitivity and self-deprecation. I was busy seeing if anybody was looking at me kinda jealous so I missed that, but I smiled appreciatively. Modest Doug. Amiable Doug. Safe Doug. Hornier than a fuckin' rhino Doug.

Tony fell over backwards when he saw her: ushered us into the booth, was all over her like a rash, making sure she was comfortable, finally gave us the menus and left looking regretful and envious. I smiled at Candice.

'See how you affect people? Guy could hardly control hisself.' She smiled a little sardonically and picked up the menu.

'Guys who control themselves are few and far between. Tell me what's good here.' I bit my tongue and sighed inwardly as I walked her through the menu, helped her choose, discovered she liked white wine, all the gentlemanly stuff. It's easy enough to do. Halfway into the bottle, with most of the starter gone, she was happier again.

'Ellen told me a little about you, Doug. She said you were at college here, and you somehow made enough money and started doing what you do, and that you're kind and lazy and don't seem to want very much, and you don't talk about yourself hardly at all.' Fuckin' girl talk. Sometimes I think it's a conspiracy.

'More or less right, Candice. What you see is what you get. The past is another fuckin' country.' Annie woulda been proud of me. She was polite enough to back off, and the wine carried on going down, and the evening carried on improving.

'Brandy a step too far?' I asked her finally. She'd had four glasses of wine, relaxed some, looked real comfortable with the situation. I half-expected her to start fuckin' purring. I didn't want brandy. What I needed was a heavy tranquilizer. Eight blocks home doubled over my own goddam crotch was gonna ruin my rep for sure.

'I'm just right. Except for your friend drooling it's been perfect.'

'You saw Tony's wife you'd be more understandin'. I told him I'd settle up tomorrow, so can I walk y'all home now, Ms Lincoln?' And into bed and about fuckin' time too. She gathered her shawl round her shoulders and stood up.

'You're the only guy I've ever met who would dare use phony Southern charm on a black girl called Lincoln. It's like being in another world. Lead on, Rhett.' She looked pretty happy though, and when we were back on the sidewalk she slipped her hand into mine. I promised myself we'd stay strolling, not galloping: no point in falling at the last fence.

I don't think Annie ever took my hand except once, and that was after her dad died, right before she left town. Turned out he'd been kinda sick for a while, was getting worse, some kinda blood problem, and when I found that out I was real pissed, her not saying anything to me about it. Hell, we'd settled into a real nice relationship, spent a coupla evenings a week together when ol' Ray was off traveling, laughed some, screwed a lot, felt kinda comfortable with each other; like an old-fashioned couple I guess, except no shouting matches, nor arguing over whose turn it was to the dishes. When Ray was around I went scouting for fresh, but when he was gone it was just Annie. Shit, I respected her plenty, so when she didn't say anything about her dad I was kinda sore. Made her accept the car for her own use so's she could take him up the hospital for his treatment twice a week and that pleased her some. Car had no trade-in value and I was planning on buying the truck, so it wasn't no great sacrifice.

He died in the end, of course, and she was kinda down after that. Ol' Ray was around more than usual so I didn't see so much of her, and when I did it was like something had changed, almost like she was waiting for me to say something, but she never said what it was, so I let it slide. I guess I thought she'd cheer up some in a coupla months, get back to normal.

Last time I saw her was a night in October, four months after the funeral. I was doing not very much, reading and sipping beer, when she arrived. Something different about her as she came in. I noticed that straight away. She was looking real tense, didn't want to be hugged.

'Shit, Annie, I was just thinkin' about you. You wanna beer?' She shook her head.

'Came to tell you somethin', Doug, see what you think.' I didn't have a clue what was happening in her head, but it was for sure important to her.

'Siddown and tell me, Annie.' So she did that, and started going on about how she'd been thinking since her dad died, and how she was thirty-four and not getting any younger, stuff like that. Minute she said her age I knew what was happening. When a woman over thirty tells you how old she is, it's because she can hear that clock ticking, wants you to hear it too. Only clock I heard was a fuckin' alarm clock. She carried on for a bit, then looked at me real careful and did a weird thing: took my hands and closed them round hers. Tiny little hands she had, and mine kinda hid hers completely.

'Reason I'm tellin' ya, Doug, I been talkin' to Ray some, and he said he wants for us to get married, move up to Idaho, some land he's got up there, raise a family maybe. So I told him I'd need to think 'bout that, and I been thinkin' some, and I thought I'd ask you, see what you thought.' Shit, I didn't want her to go to fuckin' Idaho with some dumb-ass hippy. Didn't want to say that straight out though: danger of being misunderstood.

'Jeez, Annie, what can I say? You gotta follow your heart, I guess. You love him?' Her hands twisted in mine.

'I guess I could. He loves me, has done for years, and I ain't made it easy for him, given him plenty of reasons to walk away, but he ain't done that. I guess I'd be followin' his heart mostly, and trustin' it. He's a good man, real patient. Not as smart as you, but not dumb either. He makes me feel kinda safe.' Didn't know what to say to that either, so I settled for a big sigh, like life was too complex for me. She sat quiet for a while, her hands still in mine, then pulled slightly. When I let her go her face changed a little, and she sighed too.

'Just checkin', Doug, and it's like I thought. I guess I'll follow Ray's heart and miss the hell outa you in private. I been crazy in like with ya a long time now, but I'm sure glad I didn't fall in love. You pissed at me?'

'Hell, Annie, I'm not pissed. I was kinda happy the way things were though.' She leaned over and kissed me on the cheek, like she was my sister or something.

'Remember you sayin' that when I was explainin' stuff about Judy to you, but you never really understood.' She stood up, looking sorta miserable, disappointed mebbe. 'I told Ray I'd give him an answer tonight, so I guess I better do that.' Everything was happening so fuckin' fast.

'You gotta leave right now?' She was putting her coat on.

'If I don't leave now, then I never fuckin' will. That what you want?' When I didn't reply she nodded to herself, then managed a smile. 'Always said we were alike. We had a great time for a long time, Doug. I wouldn'ta missed it for anythin'.' She reached up and gave me one quick hug, face turned away so I couldn't kiss her, and was gone. I thought she might have been crying as she went out the door but I never been sure. Next time I went past the shop, a few days later I guess, the shutters were down and there was a realtor's sign in the window. I can still remember how her hands felt when I let her pull them out of my grasp.