Chapter 9

Lyla rapped on Ray's door. "Yes?"

"The future Mrs MacNeil to see you."

"I'll be right out."

Ray took Rebecca's hand and they walked to Farley's for lunch. "How do you like your job?" he asked.

"I love it. You were right about the workload. But I think there is something to Kirk's notion of top talent. Everyone I work with knows their shit. Most of the accountants I supervise are much more knowledgeable about accounting than I am."

"Kirk wanted you for your leadership skills."

"It's an adjustment for me to ask someone to do something and, bang! it's done."

Their server approached the table for their order. "The usual?" Ray asked Rebecca.

"Of course."

"Two Reubens."

Ray regarded her. "I see you've gone back to wearing makeup."

"Yes -- Kamelya designed my look. What do you think?"

"I think it's restrained and sophisticated."

"I can't believe what's happened to me," she said. "It's like I walked into this place one evening and got a new life ... a whole, new life. And, I like it." Her eyes brimmed and she pressed her hand to her forehead. "I'd better stop it -- now I do have makeup to ruin."

He reached across the table to hold her hand and she squeezed his. "How about a sleep-over this weekend?" he asked. "I know the girls like watching movies on the big screen."

"Sounds good. I can't wait."

"How are the girls doing in school?"

"Good. Kamelya seems better every day. I sent a note to the school explaining her surgery and they've excused her from phys ed until she's fully recovered."

"And Sonay?"

"She's doing really well, too. The school is bending over backward to accommodate her."

"I'm really pleased, Rebecca. I'm pleased things are working out."

She finished her sandwich. "I'm sorry we can't sit and linger, but I have work to do."

"I understand. I know what Kirk expects."

Ray kissed her as she stepped of the elevator on the twelfth floor. He stepped into his office.

"How was your lunch?" Lyla asked.

"Good ... good."

She picked up a pink memo slip and handed it to him. "Cory called. Kirk needs to cancel that meeting with you tonight."

"That's okay. Now I have four hours of my life back." He headed into his private office.

Ray pulled into his driveway and opened the door. He heard the sound system in the family room playing. "Ken?" he said and headed in that direction.

He spotted Ken on the sofa with Kamelya on his lap. Her blouse was unbuttoned and they were kissing. "KEN!"

Kamelya jumped off his lap, turned her back to him and began buttoning her blouse. "Dad," Ken exclaimed. "What are you doing home?"

"What is Kamelya doing here?"

"She rode the bus with me. She was showing me her scar."

"Her scar doesn't extend past her sternum," Ray replied, "and certainly not up under her bra. Kamelya -- you'd better go wait in the car. I'll take you home."

Kamelya picked up her bag and backpack and headed for the door. Ken started after her.

"Where are you going?" Ray asked.

"I ... I was going to ride with you."

"Oh, no, you're not. You're staying right here. I'm going to have a conversation with Kamelya's mom and I don't need any static."

Ray picked up the phone and dialed a number. "Rebecca -- I'm brining Kamelya over. I'll see you in a little bit." He listened. "Yeah, something's wrong. We'll talk about it when I get there." He hung up the phone.

"DAD!" Ken exclaimed.

"What?"

"It's my fault. It's all my fault. Don't let Kami be in trouble with her mom."

"It takes two to tango, Kenny."

Tears began flooding down Ken's face. "Dad! PLEASE!"

"Please, what?"

"Please don't marry Rebecca. It'll ruin everything." He sobbed. "I don't want Kami as my sister. I want her as my girlfriend. We love each other. I want to take her places like the prom but I can't if she's my sister. Promise me you won't marry her. Please, Dad. PLEASE!"

"This is rather sudden. When did you arrive at this?"

Ken brushed tears from his cheeks. "During the ambulance ride to the hospital. Kami really thought she was dying. She asked me to ride with her 'cuz she said she needed to tell me how she truly felt about me before she died. She said if she died without telling me, she couldn't live with herself."

Ray regarded him for a long moment. "Is that really what she said?"

"Not in so many words but that's what she meant. And I thought she might be dying and I had to tell her how I felt, too."

"And, you pledged your undying love to each other."

"That's right, Dad," he said, sniffling. "And for a while, I felt a fraction of what you must've felt when you first knew Mom wasn't going to make it." He began sobbing again. "I was so happy when I learned she'd be okay. I love her and she loves me. That's why you can't marry Rebecca. PLEASE, Dad. PLEASE!"

"We'll talk about this when I get back."

Ray headed for his car and sat behind the wheel. "Are you buckled up, Kamelya?"

"Yes ... Mom's gonna kill me."

"She won't kill you, Kami."

"Oh, yes she will. She's gonna kill me."

Ray made the short drive and parked outside the townhouse. Kamelya ran to the door, flung it open and pounded upstairs to her room. Rebecca approached Ray. "What's going on?"

"Kamelya thinks you're going to kill her."

"Why would she think that?"

"Did you know she was coming to the house today?"

"Yes ... I wrote the bus pass for her. She's in some class that Ken had last year and she said he was going to help her with her work. She said Kenny cleared it with you."

"Kenny told me that he loves Kamelya."

"I sensed that," she replied. "I'm delighted. It seemed like a long, uphill haul, but that hospital business seemed to cement it."

"It cemented it, all right. I didn't know anything about Kami coming to the house. In fact, I was scheduled for late meetings with Kirk tonight but they were cancelled. Ken's not talking brotherly-sisterly love, Rebecca. He means loverly love. When I came home, I found them in a liplock. Kami's blouse was undone and I think her bra was unhooked. He said she was only showing him her scar, but it sure looked like second base to me."

Rebecca's eyes narrowed. "She's right. I AM going to kill her."

"That's your prerogative as a parent. But, before you go postal on your daughter, please listen to what I have to say." He pulled up a chair to her table and she sat across from him. "Ken told me he loves Kamelya. When we're done here, you need to have a heart-to-heart with her and see if she doesn't feel the same way."

"I definitely will have a talk with her."

Sonay trotted into the kitchen. "Mom..."

"Not now, Sonay. Go to your room."

"What did I do?"

"Nothing. Ray and I are talking. You need to go to your room."

"Awww..." She headed out of the kitchen.

Rebecca watched her daughter climb the stairs. "Ok -- I'm listening."

"Rebecca -- I was about Ken's age when I started dating Maggie. When he realized I was serious about her, my dad started having a series of conversations with me about life and love, about women and sex. They were the best talks a father could deliver on the topic of the birds and the bees. I wish I had them on tape so I could play them for Kenny."

"What made them so good?" she asked.

"Because they were a blend of the moral and the practical. Above all, my dad was a practical man. I'll give you an example of his practicality. Maggie and I lost our virginities together. It was on Prom night."

"That's not really so unusual -- is it?"

"It happened in our living room ... with my dad's tacit approval."

"Your dad approved of what you were doing?"

Ray sighed. "He never said, 'You know, Ray, Prom night's coming up and that's a great time for you and Maggie to have your first fuck. Why don't you use the living room? I'll make myself scarce.' He knew that no matter how many lectures he delivered on the importance of abstinence, we were apt to do it anyway. And, if we were going to do it anyway, he'd prefer we'd do it under his own roof, in the safety of his own house, rather than on some deserted lovers' lane somewhere. He also made sure I knew how to use a condom, and he made sure we had a supply in the house and he made sure I knew where that supply was located." Ray looked at the ceiling. "He also gave me pointers on how to make love to a woman -- he emphasized the importance of foreplay..."

"A lesson you took to heart," she replied.

"I'll accept that as a compliment. He explained how, when it was the first time, I could stretch her so when the moment came, it wouldn't be as painful for her. That's what we did -- and there wasn't any blood. It became part of our routine. Maggie's hymen was intact until the day Kenny was born. We used to joke about him being her virgin birth."

"Not all women are built that way," Rebecca remarked.

"I know. I brought it up because it illustrates the sort of education I got from my dad. Maggie was my first and only girl... 'til death parted us. I think Kami and Kenny have a shot at that same kind of love. Think of it -- Kami and Kenny ... Kenny and Kami ... even their names sound like they go together. At fourteen, wouldn't you prefer Kami have a steady guy like Ken rather than playing the field?"

"Most definitely," she replied.

He chortled. "I've heard it said that a grandchild is a parent's reward for not strangling his teen. If there are to be grandchildren, Rebecca -- wouldn't you want them to be ours?"

Rebecca regarded him and nodded. "I think you're right."

"Their love needs gentle encouragement and subtle coaching. We mustn't do anything to jeopardize it." He held her hand and looked into her eyes. "Even if it means we need to put the brakes on our own plans. Kenny and Kami can't be both lovers and siblings. They're too young and immature to live as lovers, and living as brother and sister would be intolerable for them. It would destroy what they have ... and that would tear us apart."