Chapter 4: Saturday

She woke the next morning refreshed and ready to face her two Saturday Advanced Placement classes. The wonderful thing about the Saturday AP's was that they were elective--the students in them had chosen to be there. The 9am algebra class was her personal favorite largely because it covered many of the concepts that had drawn her to mathematics in the first place.

Saturday classes were much less formal. No uniforms, and when the weather was nice enough, they often held class on the lawn. The format encouraged an exchange of ideas and sometimes supplied Elaine with information to assist with teaching the lower level classes. Today's discussion was focused on occupations that rely on algebra. They had strayed off-topic but that was ok--Elaine loved giving this class free range.

She did not notice Curtis slip in until she heard his laughter mixed in with the rest of the classes. Her heart skipped a beat but she managed to remain calm. When the class ended, she thanked him for joining them and introduced him to the few students that missed meeting him the night before. She watched him interact with them; he seemed to connect pretty well. She made a mental note to actually check with some of Friday's classes and see what they thought of him.

Since it crossed her mind, she rifled through her desk to find and actually read his resume. He was a recent Master's program graduate. Like her own background, Bachelor's in Mathematics, Master of Education, both from her alma mater GWU. That in and of itself was impressive. That he was cum laude both times was astounding. She tried to recall him as a student; single minded when he had a goal and virtually asleep when he did not. Outside of class, he was charismatic, focused, and seductive. She pulled her thoughts back to the resume. One year at a Montessori school--she would really have to ask about that--and five at a private high school. He was, at least, utterly qualified for the position. Which was a relief; Dan was very good about security backgrounds and Curtis would not be here if the resume had not checked out.

"Ms. Beaugoud?"

She realized he had called her name twice and looked up. "I'm sorry, Mr. Williams. Lost in thought." He had a drawn, worried look on his face, "I'm fine. Really."

"We were wondering how long we could use this room."

She checked the wall clock, "AP Geometry doesn't meet for another forty-five minutes or so. What were you planning?"

"A math fair."

Elaine blinked, "A what?"

"Oh not today," Zahir piped up, "For Spring Fest."

Then they all jumped in and Elaine could not make heads or tails of it all. She laughed and waved them silent, "Ok, ok! Do it! Who's going to write the proposal?"

"I will." Zahir's hand popped up with Massey's right behind it.

"Alright. Zahir and Massey are co-team captains. Do you want me as faculty adviser," There were several automatic agreements but she knew the real answer, "or do you think Mr. Williams should handle this one?"

Massey was first, this time, "Well he did help come up with the idea."

"Ok with me," Curtis beamed.

"Alright then, it's yours." Elaine stood and stretched, "you all have thirty minutes today then you have to find your own facilities. I'm going for coffee."

She took her time to the teacher's lounge and back. The students had left and Curtis was sitting on the desk making notations on a hastily drawn map.

"You're an evil woman." He said as she sat near him in one of the student desks, "I'll be tied up with this for weeks. Who do I call for facilities?"

"Joe Wilson or Gail depending on what you need."

He looked up, grinning, "I need to have my head examined."

"That would be Steve, in the health office."

"Cute." He leaned toward her then stopped, cleared his throat and pulled away, "How's your head?"

"Sore but mending."

"Take the braid out."

"I like it braided; less of a mess."

Neither spoke for a while; Curtis scrawled notes, Elaine sipped coffee. She wondered if she should say something then wondered what he wanted to hear. Instead, she watched him. He was beautiful. His hair was unclipped and it kept covering his face. He would move it unconsciously and reveal that statuesque profile and, occasionally, those piercing eyes that had not change a bit over time. She finished the coffee and took a breath. She could ask about dinner since she did not give him a moment to comment last night.

"Is Paulette's ok?"

"Fine." He said without looking up.

It was irrational, she knew, this sudden fear that it was too late and he was no longer interested in her. At least, this was normal relationship stress and not yesterday's panic. Still she wanted reassurance. Silly. "Would you like to join the next class?" She tried, "They'll be here in a few minutes."

"Whatever you'd like." He flipped the page and kept writing.

"What do you want to do?"

He paused but still did not look up, "What I want to do," he stressed 'want' in a way that made a warm rush flow through her, "We don't have time for and would be inappropriate in the class room. So please allow me to work on this in peace." He flipped another page. "How much of a budget does this thing get?"

She squelched the desire to ask what he meant by that since she could hear the students coming down the hall. Instead, she stood and began pulling her books and notes for the next class, "The budget is usually pretty generous but, of course, it's defrayed somewhat by the income. The estimate will be in the proposal that Zahir and Massey write up."

He did look up then, "Income? These are revenue projects?"

"I'll give you the full run down later. Over dinner. But, yes, it's a kind of community day. A couple of local elementary schools come out and the AP classes have to entertain them." She greeted a pair of arriving students, "It's become quite popular over the last few years."

"Ye gods." He moaned shaking his head.

Shortly, the class started and this group quickly drifted off the topic of occupations and on to what their Spring Fest project would be. Elaine shook her head when Curtis enthusiastically suggested an idea and the group began drafting the proposal in class--with Curtis already listed as the Faculty Advisor. Elaine enjoyed her opportunity to watch him and grin. He worked well with the students; guiding them instead of telling them what to do. And he loved every minute. It was in his face and his body language. At one point, he saw her and grinned back.

"You could help, you know." He teased.

"Oh no," she put up a mock defense, "I wouldn't dream of interfering. You all wouldn't mind if I grade some tests while you work with Mr. Williams?"

They did not. Elaine actually giggled as she reached into her desk--his desk as of Monday--for Wednesday's poor forgotten tests. When she looked up again, he was leaning toward her still grinning. He was close enough to kiss; it was hard to resist.

"Was that a giggle, Ms. Beaugoud?"

"I don't giggle, Mr. Williams."

"You should." They both froze for a moment, warring with the attraction.

The taunting 'ohhh' of the students broke the moment and Elaine blushed as she gathered the papers into her arms, "Alright you all," she tried to sound severe which doesn't work well when you can't stop smiling, "You have work to do. I expect to see progress when I return."

There was some progress when she returned an hour later; a nearly complete proposal. Elaine nodded approval. This time, the students left with due speed as the lunch bell rang.

She and Curtis stood on opposite sides of the desk. Looking at him, she had the strange feeling that he was the elder, more experienced man with whom she was too young to be involved.

"So." He said softly.

"So." She felt herself blushing again and looked away, "So. This is your desk now. These are your graded tests. I don't have much personal stuff here."

"We don't have to do dinner."

He caught her off guard, "What?"

"Tonight. Yvonne said you need time. I can wait." He took a deep breath, "If you don't want to go, it's ok." He seemed somehow subdued.

"No, it's ok." She thought about it and realized that it really was, "I want to go."

"One more thing," He seemed reluctant to tell her, "and I hope you understand why I, well, what I've done--why I do it, I mean."

"Do what?"

"Well, Ok." His stare pierced her, "I don't want you to misunderstand me. I want you to be very clear on my intent but I also need to be clear about yours. I plan to have a lovely evening with you--I know we will. We'll have dinner and I want to take you dancing. But after that, I want to make love to you."

The statement arrested her; she had not expected such a frank admission. She was not sure how to respond but he went on before she had to.

"I made a reservation at the hotel where the club is--it's in your name. You don't have to say yes or no to me directly. When you're ready to go home, I bring you home. If you want to be with me--to sleep with me--all you have to do is get the key."

"Wait." She could feel her ire rising as she digested this information, "You got us a room?"

"You decide if there's a room or not. If you don't want one, you go home, end story." He paused, "See, I had this problem once with a woman who was reluctant to give me a clear yes or no. She caused me and some other guys a great deal of trouble. So, I started doing this. I tell my dates up front what I want and let them decide over dinner how far things are going to go."

"With you holding the idea over her head all night."

"I assure you, I won't mention it again."

"Oh, come on." Elaine snapped, "How is this 'my decision, no pressure'? You have a vested interest in my saying 'yes'. Of course you're going to force..."

"Not force!" The word upset him, "Never force. Yes, I want you to say 'yes' and I'm not going to hold back. I'm going to try to sweep you off your feet. But, I'd rather pay for a room and have you say 'no' before anything happens than have you tell me afterwards. Because that's what happened. She was coy and teasing before hand and afterwards, wept in the car."

He looked away, his jaw clinched. When he looked back at her, he was visibly upset, "She said later she was ok about it but I wasn't. I never want to go through that again. It was as close to suicide as I've ever come."

Elaine let her reservations about the idea drop and circled around the desk to hold him. He pulled away at first but she pulled him back and would not let go. They stayed like that for a while.

"Elaine," He whispered, "I can't hurt you. I can't lose you again. I can't live without you."

"Thomas..." She began but he pulled back and stopped her with a kiss. She did not have the will to resist; she gave in to it passionately. She savored the cool taste of his lips and tongue, and moaned softly when he nipped her lips gently. She could feel his hardness pressed against her leg. He pulled away from her with a longing moan.

"I need to go."

"No. Wait." She tried to pull him back down--she did not remember lying back on the desk--but he took her hands and kissed them.

"Not here." He kissed her lips again, "Not like this and if I don't go now, I'm not going to want to stop myself."

She nodded, knowing he was right. She closed her eyes and pulled her hands away from him. "Go" was all she trusted herself to say. She could not remember ever wanting anyone as much as she wanted him now. Even her first lover in college had not evoked that much passion in her and after him...

A cold wave swept through her body and she opened her eyes with a start.

Gary in college had been her first lover.

He had also been her last lover.

She was not sure whether to laugh or cry. The longer she thought about it the sillier it seemed. She had not been dateless--Yvonne had seen to that. But she never did more than dance. Masturbation. Her outlet of choice had been masturbation. She could not help it; she had to laugh aloud. She was still laughing when her handset chirped. Curtis called her name.

"Yes." She tried to settle down but the laughter kept bubbling over.

"Are you eating lunch or should Gail bring a tray to your office?"

"Well, since I'm not in my office, that wouldn't be helpful, now would it?"

"Elaine, are you ok?"

"I discovered something entirely absurd which I don't think I will share at this time."

"Alright." There was silence for a moment. She imagined Curtis and Gail trying to decipher that statement.

"Tell Gail, I'll meet her in my office. I'll see you around 6."

"I'll be there."

Gail did not talk much during lunch, which was unusual, but a nice change of pace. Elaine was fairly certain that any conversation would quickly round to Curtis and at the moment she did not want to study that subject too closely.

"Ok." Gail finished the last of her sandwich and curled her feet into the chair under herself, "Dish."

"Dish?"

"Come on. Fess up. Has he rocked your world yet?"

Exactly the conversation Elaine did not want to have.

"No."

"Never?"

"No!"

"Why not? What are you waiting for? What's it been for you two, three years?"

Elaine tried to sound nonchalant, "About that." Years, decades, whatever.

"He's a nice guy, he's gorgeous and he's crazy about you! If you don't do him, I will."

"Gail!"

"Hey, you maybe all virtuous but I'm not. And if I were you, well, we wouldn't be having lunch right now, let's just say."

Elaine threw a napkin at her, "Hands off. I don't know if I'm ready yet, but I'm not open to claim jumpers."

"I know, second dibs." Gail flung her blonde hair round in an exaggerated manner, "Just let me know when it's my turn at bat." Then she turned serious, "Elaine, the truth is, I tried the first night. Really tried. He's really in love with you. I got exactly one kiss. And he was very polite when he said goodnight at the front door."

Elaine remembered her jealousy that night and was foolishly relieved--as if it really mattered. "I do want him, but, it's been a while. I think I've forgotten what to do."

"It couldn't have been that long! Trust me, you'll know what to do." Gail frowned and bit her lip, "Speaking of doing, are you, you know, prepared?"

Elaine started to say she did not follow then realized her friend meant protection. The idea took the romance right out of the picture. "Oh. Well. I, uh..." Then she remembered, "Oh, yes! I have an IUD. It's not the sort of thing I tend to think about but it's there."

"Yeah, well, love or not, I know a hound when I see one so I have a few 'somethings' you can slip in your purse."

She was right. Elaine thanked her.

"No prob! Look, I've got laundry. I'll see you around four?"

"Two hours? I'm only getting dressed and we're not leaving until six."

"You're right, three would be better. I'll grab 'Vonne on the way." Gail pitched the napkin back at her and left.

Elaine spent the next few hours doing the sort of administrative paperwork she usually tried to avoid. When Yvonne called over the handset, she had to rush back to her room to meet them.

They loved the dress. They loved the gentle but cleave-revealing cowl neckline. They loved the elegant long bell sleeves. They loved the soft curve-hinting ankle length skirt. But more than anything, they loved the back--the exposed to the backside cleave, gentle cowl drape back of the dress. Yvonne lent Elaine a strand of pearls that set off the neckline perfectly. They vetoed the panties and stockings she bought in favor of a low-slung thong and garter set that Gail lent her. They eliminated the bra altogether.

"And ruin that view?" Yvonne was adamant, "Not on my watch."

Gail nearly cried when she saw the shoes, a pair of ankle strapped heels that Elaine was afraid might be too high to walk in but once she got her balance, they seemed ok. The easy decision, of course, was her hair--she wore it loose over her shoulders with only a small pair of clips to keep it from falling into her food all night.

They argued over her coat.

"It's still cold!" Elaine insisted.

"It's a little brisk," Gail took the cover up out of her grasp.

"And besides, you'll be inside most of the evening," Yvonne added, "You'll be fine."

The discussion ended when the doorbell rang and Elaine could have sworn they all turned 14. Yvonne and Gail actually squealed and Elaine was not much better with her panicked, "Oh my God! How do I look?"

Gail finally answered the buzzer, "Yes?"

"It's Curtis." The distorted voice responded, "Tell her I'm ready when she is."

"Ok."

They primped the last details even though Elaine knew no fussing would make a difference. Curtis would not know and likely would not care about all these last second efforts.

"Ok, ok, stop." She waved their hands away, "I'm ready. I think." She took another glance at the mirror. "Do I need more lipstick?"

Yvonne touched up her lips then dropped the gloss in Elaine's purse.

Elaine let out an overwrought gasp, "This is ridiculous!" Then hugged them both, "I love you guys!"

The trio went down together and peered cautiously out the window. Frank--another math teacher--and the facilities manager, Joe, were filling Curtis in on the school's athletics program. Elaine swore under her breath; she was nervous enough without parading like this in front of witnesses.

"Well," Gail finally said, "Go on."

"I need my coat." Elaine's nerves gave out completely but Yvonne got a grip on her shoulder.

"You look great. Get out there."

They opened the door and virtually shoved her out. She turned around to go back in but Gail locked the door. Elaine bang on it once then regretted the action immediately when she saw the reflection of all three men turn to look at her.

No one said anything.

She struggled for a moment to compose herself. Yvonne and Gail seemed to enjoy the whole thing from the safety of the lobby. She turned to face Curtis and carefully walked down the short flight of stairs.

Frank recovered first, "Elaine?" He exclaimed, "Hot damn, Elaine? You ... wow."

Joe let out and appreciative whistle. He mimicked Morris Day, "Jerome, I'm gon' need a drink."

Frank shook his head, "Oh lord, I know that's right."

Elaine realized that she did not care what either of them said; Curtis had not said a word yet. He also had not taken his eyes off her.

"Sorry to keep you waiting." Her voice was a little shaky.

"Yeah." was all he could muster.

It broke the spell. She smiled, "Your grammar is terrible. Yeah, I'm sorry or Yeah, you've been waiting?"

Like the first time, it took a second for him to process the question then he laughed and ducked his head. It was, to use his own word, fetching.

He opened the car door for her then ran around to let himself in. If Frank or Joe said anything further, Curtis did not appear to notice. She had to remind him about the road twice just getting off campus. After that, he kept his eyes on the window in front of him instead of on her.

"That's, um, quite a dress." He said after a while, "It's, wow! You've aged well."

She let the faux pas go by to see what he would say next. He looked suitably embarrassed.

"I mean, you look great for a ... shit!" he stole a glance at her, "How do I say this without sounding like a jackass?"

"You could try 'you look lovely tonight'. That's pretty safe."

"You look lovely tonight." He was grinning.

"Thank you." She was far more pleased by his reaction than she expected to be. "So do you." Which was true; he must own a fleet of well-cut suits. Somehow, the color of his shirt and tie brought out just how rich the brown of his eyes were.

They rode in silence. After a little while, he asked if she wanted the heat adjusted. Then they flipped through the radio dial looking for a good station. When Curtis commented on the clear weather, Elaine laughed out right.

"We're finally alone and we can't find anything to say to each other. Oh, we're a fine pair."

He laughed as well, "Yeah that is pretty sad."

"I have a question, actually."

"Is it dirty?"

"No." Elaine still blushed "Why 'Curtis'?

He laughed again, "Actually, I've always been Curtis. 'Thomas' is the odd part; no one calls me that at home."

"Really?"

"Yeah." He glanced at her, "I was named for my Father but Mom always liked Curtis better so that's what they called me. But when they registered me for school, Dad wrote in 'Thomas C' instead of 'T Curtis' and 'Thomas' just sort of stuck around here."

"Why didn't you ever say anything? We would have changed it."

He shrugged, "I tried. It was too hard to fight. It was on all my records, so it was just easier to go with it."

It made sense. "Ok." Elaine nodded. "Your turn."

He paused for a moment then shook his head, "All the things I've wanted to share with you, and I can't think of a damn thing."

"Like what?"

"What, you mean in the past?" she nodded. "Well, everything. If I needed advice or an opinion. When I just wanted to talk. I mean, I love Ray but she isn't you."

"Who's Ray?"

"Ray. Oh." He looked a bit guilty, "Ray--Rachael--was my fiancé."

"Fiancé?" Elaine tried to keep her tone neutral despite the distaste that word left.

"Yeah. For three years." He glanced at Elaine, "Don't worry, it's over. She dumped me."

"Why was that?"

"Oh, little things; I stayed out late, left the toilet seat up, kept calling her 'Elaine' when we made love, stuff like that. I think she got tired of correcting me."

"Oh."

"When I pushed the wedding date back for the third time, she told me to drop her a line when you and I set a date." When Elaine did not respond, he went on, "She's really great, though. Smart, funny, pretty. She just finished her master's in criminal psychology. She's applied to Georgetown for her PhD work."

"Wow." She tried to be nice but, truly, she did not want to hear this.

"She has the most amazing..." he glanced at Elaine and stopped short, "You really don't what to hear about my ex-girlfriend, do you?"

"Not particularly, no."

"Sorry." He drove in silence for a while. Thankfully, it was not long before they reach town. Elaine directed him to the restaurant without getting lost and they parked a few blocks away. There was a slight breeze and Elaine shivered as she got out of the car.

"Here." Curtis put his jacket around her shoulders, "Come on." Half a block down he stopped, "Tell me about yours."

"My what?"

"Your last boyfriend. Turnabout's fair play; I told you mine, you tell me yours."

Elaine sighed and began walking again, "I'm sure everyone has told you I don't date much."

"Not much is not never. There has to be someone."

"Why?" she stopped and stared at him, "Why 'has to be'?"

"Well, uh," he sputtered taken aback.

"Nobody." She barked, and then added, "Gary. Gary was my last boyfriend, my last actual relationship. Lasted two years, no engagement." She stalked down the street cursing herself for blurting it out like that. It was not Curtis' fault that she has avoided relationships; there was no reason he should have done the same. What she did and why was past. There was no need for her to snap at him about it. Still, she hoped he would let the topic drop.

He caught up with her in time to open the restaurant door. As they waited for their table, he reclaimed his jacket. Neither the Maître d's nor the waiter's compliments improved her mood any and apart from ordering an expensive bottle of wine, Curtis stayed quiet. She began to feel more than a little foolish.

"I'm sorry." She said finally.

"My fault." He pretended to review the menu again, "I brought it up."

"No, it's me." She sighed, "I don't..."

" ... date much." He finished for her, "I got it."

"No." She pushed the menu down so that he could look at her, "I've gone out with a couple guys but I haven't 'Dated'--I haven't had a relationship--since college."

"It's ok." He went back to perusing the menu, "You don't have to explain to me."

The waiter came with the wine and took their dinner orders. Elaine waited for Curtis to say something more. Then two things dawned on her. First, that Curtis' dates routinely included hotel stays--he was not likely to connect her implications--and second, that this dinner was just as unnerving for him as is was for her. For some reason she found comfort in both of these thoughts; inside the suave, clever 'Curtis' she found her sweet, charming 'Thomas'. She watched his hand shake slightly and confirm her suspicions as he picked up his wine.

"You are nervous, aren't you?"

He nearly choked, "What?"

She helped him dab the wine he spilt on his sleeve and laughed, "I'm sorry. I just realized you're just as stressed as I am and neither of us has any reason to be."

He seemed to relax a bit, "You're right, of course. Well, nearly so--I want this evening to be perfect for you. I want you to feel like a princess."

"I'm a little old for a princess; maybe a queen mother."

"Elaine, in that dress you'd pass for 21."

"One look at my face would fix that."

He leered, "I don't think anyone has gotten that far."

"Stop that!" she blushed and flicked a drop of wine at him.

"If you want a food fight, wait for the soup--it's the best ammo."

"No food fights; not in this dress, thank you."

"Maybe I can get one going at this spring fling thing."

"Spring Fest." She told him the details as the appetizers arrived--how it got started and what sorts of projects the student do. The conversation moved smoothly over to how they had spent the last few years. Elaine was suddenly painfully aware of how empty her life had become. When school was in, she was on campus; when it was out, she was usually in DC with her brother. It was a small life; especially in comparison with Curtis who had traveled a great deal in between finishing two degrees and starting a teaching career. Still, somehow, he seemed to find her annual bike trip to the lake almost as interesting as she found his biking through Tuscany. By the time the dessert tray appeared, they were laughing and at ease. While they were talking, he had done it again--made her feel warm and loved. She was not sure she could live without that anymore.

He finished telling her about his last job and grinned, "God, I've missed you. No one else makes me feel this way."

"How?" he made her giddy.

"Like--like I'm saying something meaningful instead of just bitching about my ex-boss. It's not even just that you listen; you actually care." He reached across the table and she joined her hand to his. "I know I've seem a little pushy these last couple of days. I've just been so sure of our feelings. Sorry! My feelings. I haven't given you a chance to sort out your feelings, yet. But, I just can't imagine not being with you anymore."

She almost said 'I love you' but it stuck between her lips. Instead, she looked down at his hands and noticed, for the first time, his class ring. It was a massive square shaped diamond in a very traditional style ring. She turned his hand over to get a better look at it.

"What do you think?" He asked, "Like it?"

"It's..." gaudy she thought but said, " ... stunning."

He took it off and handed it to her. "A gift. From my Grandfather."

"Quite a gift. Zirconia?" She knew better but had to ask.

He laughed, "Hardly. 26-caret diamond. The setting is platinum. It's custom. My Bachelors degree is on the right and my Masters on the left."

It was an impressive piece of jewelry; Elaine had never seen a stone that big outside of a museum. "Grandfather must have been very proud." And very wealthy.

"He was actually. He didn't expect me to amount to much so the teaching career impressed him."

"And just what did Grandfather expect, pray tell?"

"Me to spend a great deal of time and money chasing many pretty women and drinking massive quantities of alcohol."

"So why aren't you." That had to be more fun than teaching.

"I did, for a while. I don't know," he shrugged "I got bored."

"Bored? You couldn't have chased that many women if it got boring. Quantify; how many is 'many'?"

"More than 'not much', let's say. A lot." He frowned, "Too many."

She remembered Gail's comment about knowing a hound when she saw one. 'Got it in one.' She thought.

Curtis suddenly laughed, "All those women. And I was looking for you the whole time."

He had been waiting for her, in his own way; over-indulgence was no healthier than her choice of repression. He was looking for her. She could almost cry. She looked back at the ring.

There was an inscription inside the ring. It read, 'TCW LIVV'. Elaine thought for a moment then asked, "I don't get it. 'LIVV'? 56, 5, right?"