Chapter 8

Two weeks of routine, anyway. I'd go to work, just like I had for years, except there was this lithe female form catching me at the door for a kiss before I left, and she'd hand me a little paper bag with a couple of apples or a banana or grapes or something, and unless the gang at the office shoved me out the gate for lunch, I had Nina's snack.

Nina was at the library three days a week, reading stories and helping corral a bunch of rambunctious pre-schoolers.

And when I'd get home, if she'd had a library day, we ate out. If she hadn't done the library, I'd walk in to the smells of food cooking on the stove, and a smiling, jeans-clad wife. After dinner we walked or used a new membership at the gym. I was serious about not wanting to gain weight and that required a bit of effort.

Happily I had Nina. And TWO bicycles. And TWO kayaks.

Yeah, the kayak thing. I wasn't a nut-case "take a kayak over Niagara Falls" kayaker, but I was plenty competent for the slow-moving rivers and lakes around the area, and I brought Nina along with me. The first time. After that, it was "Let's go take the kayaks to the lake." And two kayakers can find some really secluded places to play.

And we were approaching the last weekend of June. Time for Sandy to show up for her month with Daddy. And Nina.

Nina, I'm happy to say, started prepping for the vacation at the beach two weeks in advance, making lists, showing them to me, refining, organizing. We went shopping and bumped up both our summer wardrobes. Included in hers, in addition to her normal, very conservative one-piece bathing suit, I watched her choose a couple of bikinis. Not tiny bikinis, but bikinis nonetheless.

I threatened to buy a speedo. It was an empty threat. I bought baggy trunks.

At work I tried to get as many loose ends tied up as I could. Jannie noticed. "I never saw you that excited about your vacation, Dan. She's really got you, huh?"

I smiled at Jannie. You don't work in the same office with somebody for years and not form a friendship. "Yes, I guess she does, Jan," I said.

Jannie turned away from her computer. "You know, all those times I tried fixin' you up, Dan? And you didn't..."

I laughed. "And you DID try, Jan. And so did some of them."

"Oh, I know," she laughed. "Women talk. I know all about it. But then Nina comes along..."

"Yes, she did," I said. "I wasn't looking, Jan. Really. I was more surprised than anything else."

"Well, I ain't the only one who says you look happier since you're married." She smiled. "So, you know, good for you. And Nina. She's a doll."

"Thank you, lady. So are you and Robert comin' over Saturday?" Yes, the barbecue I'd promised was scheduled for Saturday.

"Uh-huh. We farmed out the kids to grandparents for the weekend. Robert figures that if we survive your barbecue we can have Sunday to recuperate. Want me to bring something?" she smiled.

"Your 'tater salad?" Jannie's cooking was a frequent feature of our impromptu office 'feeds'.

"Done. How many people?" she asked.

"Uh ... four couples from the office here, Nina's grandma and her husband to be, my brother and his wife, me and Nina. Fourteen?" I said.

"Okay. Big batch," she said.

"Good! I've got the meat covered. Big brisket starts in the smoker, ribs, sausage..."

"No chicken?" Jannie questioned.

"Nope. Texas style barbecue. Texans say barbecue has FOUR legs..."

Jannie laughed. "Yeah, you and that bunch of knuckleheads you work with, and their barbecue..." An annual barbecue contest was a staple of our company's social season. I was a participant with the other guys from our division.

"The barbecue will be memorable, lady," I laughed. "And if you want, I'll toss a dead chicken on it for you..."

"Yeah, that's nice," she laughed. "And there'll be beer. You know how that works..."

We both laughed. I walked down the hall to my office, sat at my desk and fired up the computer. While it was booting, I looked at the smiling picture, now framed on my desk. I closed my eyes and replayed the kiss I'd gotten before walking out the door this morning, then went about my day's work, a mess of email, a couple of reports to review, the obligatory staff meeting, almost on autopilot.

That wasn't indicative of my lack of care, though. Things were going pretty good right now. My big projects were in the hands of an engineering company, and we were doing a good job on maintenance, staying ahead of problems by a careful regiment of inspection and testing. I didn't feel bad about my mind wandering for a change.

Home! And Nina! "Come on, sweetie," I said. "We need to go to the meat store." The 'meat store' was pretty close to an old-fashioned meat market, with a couple of real butchers who took pride in their craft. I knew that if I needed something special, they'd be the ones to set me up. The barbecue was coming in a couple of days and I needed something special. A phone call at the beginning of the week made sure that they had it waiting for me, and Nina and I walked out of the place with a couple of properly trimmed beef briskets.

Nina was giggling. "I can't believe you're making this much of a production out of this, Dan."

"You need to understand, sweetie," I stated, "We've been goin' at one another over barbecue since I hired on. You've seen my smoker." The smoker, safely stowed in a corner of the garage, was hand-fabricated, microprocessor-controlled, electrically heated, and I could stick meat in there and guarantee that the temperature in the box would track within two degrees of the temperature I chose. It was the subject of much mirth, but I could turn out perfectly cooked, perfectly smoked meat.

"Yeah, I know what you say, but still..." She laughed.

"Laugh if you want, but wait'll Saturday. See if it ain't the best barbecue you've ever had..." I told her how we'd have to start the brisket the evening before, low heat, smokey, all night.

"You're gonna wake up every two hours to check on that?" she asked.

"Oh,, no," I said. "It's fully instrumented. It's got a wireless transmitter that'll hit a receiver by the bed if it needs tending."

"Oh, come on ... You're nuts." She smiled. "And I just LOVE nuts..." I got a kiss out of that.

"Just remember, cutie, if it's worth doin', it's worth overdoin'...

Girlish giggle. "Just remember that after we get out of the shower, baby!"

"Oh, I'll remember, doll!" We pulled into the driveway. "All we need to do is put this meat in the fridge. Where do you want to go for dinner?"

"Italian?" she asked.

"Excellent choice." I ran inside with the meat and returned to the car. "Let's go!" Back on the road, as soon as my right hand was freed from driving tasks, it was being held by her left hand.

"And one week until summer with Sandy," I said.

"You know, Dan, I know you're nervous about that, but don't be. We'll do just fine. I mean, Sandy and I are talking twice a week now. She calls you and talks to you, and then she talks to me. Honestly, I think I'm looking forward to that whole 'big sister' thing. You know I like kids that age."

"Uh-huh," I admitted. "You get what, a dozen, dozen and a half every day at the library?"

Giggle. "And some of them are, uh... 'unrestrained' is a kind choice of words.'

"Yes, sweetness, but you've got Sandy's daddy. That's..."

She interrupted. "That's something that she and I have talked about at length. And she understands that adults have mates. Her mom..."

"Yeah, her mom walked right out of my house into her new hubby's," I said. Nina knew the story. She'd asked me and pried out some manner of detail.

"Oh, don't think about that. You're with somebody who loves you more than anything else in the world, and we've got each other."

"Okay, princess," I said. I glanced away from the road to that pretty face, framed by dark hair, blue eyes smiling. For me. I felt much better. This was helped along by a great presentation of pasta alla putanesca for me and a veal scallopini for Nina, and we split the customary tiramisu for dessert.

Walking out into the humid gulf Coast summer evening, she stopped in front of me and I wrapped her in my arms from behind. She tossed her head back against my shoulder and I nuzzled her ear, eliciting a giggle. "What?!?!?" I asked.

"Well, hon, if we're going to have the First Annual Dan 'n' Nina Barbecue Blast Saturday, and we had Italian tonight, we better do a salad something tomorrow. And Sunday we'll take the kayaks to the river."

"You're wise beyond your age, my dear," I said as I pushed her to the car. She had her door open as I opened mine, and we both entered at the same time from opposite sides. And met in the middle for a kiss.

"Let's get home, love," she said. "If it's worth doin', it's worth overdoin'"

We hurried home, straight in the door, and as soon as it locked behind us, clothing started fluttering to the floor. And we hit the shower in a tangle of naked arms and legs and our arms tugging us together under wonderfully hot water, enjoying the tactile symphonies of soapy skin and excited partners. Our ardor toned down a little as we shifted back to the pre-bed routine, me shaving, her drying and brushing her hair to sassy brown exuberance.

THEN to bed. I was pushed backward onto the mattress, my arms spreading to receive an eager, laughing vision. Her hands clasped the sides of my face, her blue eyes inches from mine.

"Darn you and your blue eyes, Dan," she sighed.

"Darn me? I thought I was being all adorable and things..."

"Yeah, that too. Sometimes I just NEED you..." Her lips brushed mine, finding the angle she wanted and then she pressed mine with ardor. Our tongues met, dancing. I slid my hands down from her shoulders, caressing her waist, then feeling her hips, finally resting at the juncture between her legs and her butt, tugging her against me.

Giggle. "I feel that," she said. "You make me lust, Dan. For YOU."

"I love you, Nina. You're still a dream to me." I kissed her, then kissed her neck, causing her to wiggle delightfully. She moved sideways off me and her hand slid down my stomach to grasp my erection, giving it a squeeze, then her fingers curled under my balls in a perfect motion. She slid her torso away from me as her head moved downward. I let her suck me for a moment then gently tugged, indicating that I wanted to taste her delights.

"Oh, yeah," she said. "I love this..." she lost the capability for coherent speech when my tongue slid between the moist lips of her youthful pussy, savoring musky, juices. We worked each other joyously for some minutes until her hip motions took a rhythmic motion that I knew signaled an approaching orgasm. She gave my erection one more langorous suck then pulled it out of her mouth and held it against her cheek as her breath came in gasps and little mewing sounds, and then "Ohgogohgodogod ... Dannnn ... Nnnnnggghhhh! Ahhhhh!" and then a collapse.

I slowed my play, my tongue gently lapping her pinkened lips, gathering juices for my own pleasure.

Then she raised a leg to roll off me. I reluctantly let her go. She turned in the bed, her face near mine again, then kisses. And she was back atop me, this time her hot, wet pussy searching for the head of my dick. It wasn't a long search at all, ending in me sliding into nirvana. I raised up to a sitting position, holding her in my lap, those long legs of hers wrapping around me, us coupling with playful kisses.

The smile on her face was angelic. "I love you, Dan," she said, then her hips moved.

My turn to moan. "Mmmmmmmmbaby..."

She silenced me with her lips covering mine, her body moving against mine, driving me towards orgasm. When she pulled her lips from mine, her eyes had changed from giggling to serious, and she was biting her bottom lip, the corners of her mouth turning up ever so slightly, her 'I'm getting ready to come' face.

I could only add slight movements to hers as we mated, her hips pushing down on my hardness insistently as I spurted deep inside her. I held her as her own orgasm surged and ebbed, her eyes squinched shut. When her eyelids fluttered, I kissed her on the nose.