Chapter 13

The next day, Tracy wasn't there to great David when he got to the store, and looking around, he actually grumbled. He'd gotten used to having his coffee there waiting for him when he showed up for work. He also suddenly realized that he missed seeing what Tracy was wearing, and he realized that he missed looking at her hot young body as well!

"Fantasies," he told himself again. The hot young thing was always inspiring new fantasies.

"Well if anyone else shows up, they'll just have to wait until I get back," he mumbled. "I'd gotten so used to having that cup of coffee waiting for me, that now I want one!"

It took little time for him to walk over to the donut shop and get the coffee. He kept glancing around as he went, expecting ... no--hoping to see Tracy at any instant, but she didn't show.

David was surprised to find how disappointed he was that she wasn't there when he got back to the store either.

Ten minutes later, the other employees began to filter into the store, and David sat in his office where he kept looking up to see if she came in. Nearly all of the employees were already there when David finally saw her strolling into the store. She wasn't late, but she'd just gotten there in time not to be late.

Actually, David was hoping that she would be late, just so he'd have an excuse to go and ask her where she'd been. Unfortunately for him, she wasn't, and he had no choice but to sit in his office and wonder about it. He could just imagine what the other employees would say if they saw him going up to talk to her about where she'd been for no reason.

It wasn't until lunch time when he finally had a chance to ask her about it. He was just about to get up to grab something to eat when Tracy waltzed into his office.

"Hi, Mr. Derrelli!" Then with a demure look on her face she said, "Sorry I wasn't here this morning to get you your coffee."

She was wearing a pair of white capris that she had pulled up tight enough to show the outline of her young slit. 'A camel toe', thought David, looking at her appreciatively. A small portion of her mid section showed beneath the pink halter top that she wore, and her pink sandals with her pink painted toenails completed her outfit.

David tried to act nonchalant. "That's all right; I did miss my coffee though. I guess I got a little spoiled."

It was exactly what Tracy had hoped for. She wanted to make him miss her, and David immediately saw it in her face. 'All part of her little game, ' he thought."

"So where were you this morning anyway?" he asked lightheartedly, thinking it would be a little fun to play along with her for the moment.

"Oh ... a ... I don't know, Mr. Derrelli. Maybe I shouldn't tell you."

"Why? You didn't get into any trouble did you?" It was because she was still a teen that made him think of that first. He hoped that whatever it was, he wouldn't have to fire her over it. 'I hope she wasn't arrested for anything serious, ' he thought.

Tracy grinned, and quickly glancing around to make sure that no one was close enough to see or hear her, she leaned in a little closer and whispered, "Well, if you must know. I met this cute boy yesterday, and I was too busy fucking him to get up early enough to get your coffee."

A sudden image of the hot little teen screwing some lucky boy flashed into David's mind. He suddenly felt a whole assortment of feelings, not the least of which was jealousy! That in itself surprised him!

'After all, it's not like she belongs to me!' he told himself. 'What do I care if she has sex with some kid? She's not my wife!' That thought made him stop a moment. 'Bonnie's my wife! Tracy's just a little slut who works here.'

That's what he told himself, but he could not make himself shake the jealousy that he felt almost as keenly as if the young girl did belong to him!

Tracy had been watching his face very carefully, gauging his reaction. Even though he tried to hide it, she could plainly see the emotions in his eyes and surprised face. She had won this round of the game, and she knew it.

Not wanting to lose the moment, she leaned in even closer and whispered, "It could have been you, you know." Then looking down at her crotch and the tightness of her capris, she said, "It's here whenever you want it, Mr. Derrelli." She then gave him a wink, turned and sashayed out of his office, leaving her almost stunned boss to his thoughts.

Sandy did show up that morning with new bruises. Not only was her left eye blackened, but her lip was split as well. She wore sunglasses and looked down in an attempt to avoid Bonnie's prying eyes, but it was to no avail.

"Oh Sandy!" she exclaimed, shaking her head. "Not again! I thought you said for me not to worry and that you could handle it."

"I'm sorry, Mrs. D," replied the babysitter, without looking up. "Andy was a lot more angry than I expected, and he wouldn't listen to me. It'll be all right though. He didn't hurt me that bad, and he told me he was sorry this morning."

"Sandy, he told you that the last time, and the time before that. Don't you remember? Was he drunk again yesterday, too?"

"Yeah, but he said he was trying to quit drinking. You don't know how hard it is to stop, Mrs. D. He's really trying hard, and he doesn't drink as much as he used to."

"It doesn't matter Sandy. There's no excuse for him to hit you--ever!

"Well, Andy's not like Mr. D, you know. You guys never have any problems, and Andy's dealing with an awful lot. He just can't help himself sometimes, but he is getting better!"

Bonnie looked up at the ceiling for a moment. 'Do you think Andy and you are the only ones having problems? Just because you're not here to see the problems doesn't mean we don't have any!' She thought about telling her that, but after thinking that it wouldn't help the situation any, she changed her mind.

Turning her attention back to Sandy, she asked, "What are you going to tell the boys if they ask you what happened?"

"I don't know; I guess I'll tell them that I got in a car accident or something."

Bonnie shook her head. "I don't like you lying to them like that, Sandy. It sets a bad example."

"Come on, Mrs. D; they won't know I'm lying."

"Oh yeah? What will you tell them the next time? How many stories can you come up with before they figure out that something else is going on?"

"But it won't happen again, Mrs. D. Andy really is getting better you know."

"No, I don't know. All I can do is see, and what I see is every time he tells you he won't do it again, you come back with more bruises on your face."

Sandy was getting exasperated and suddenly blurted, "What do you want me to do, Mrs. D? Do you want me to tell Tommy and Corey that Andy hits me?"

"No! Of course not! I just want you to get away from him so you don't keep coming here covered with bruises--at least for a little while. You need to stay away from him long enough to take a step back and decide what you want to do."

Sandy was close to tears, and Bonnie was afraid that she might quit right there on the spot. That would not only leave her to watch Tommy and Corey instead of going to work, but it would leave Sandy in an even worse position than before. She'd still have to deal with Andy, and she wouldn't have a job either.

"Look Sandy, I didn't mean to upset you. It's just that I worry about you, and it makes me angry that Andy abuses you like that."

Hearing herself made her feel like a hypocrite.

'After all, ' she thought. 'I let David abuse me! But at least he's trying, and he is getting better. Gawd! Now I even sound like Sandy!'

Bonnie's words may have made her feel like a hypocrite, but they were exactly what her babysitter needed to hear just then. Looking back down at the floor, Sandy spoke in a subdued voice. "I know Mrs. D."

Bonnie looked down at her watch, and spoke quickly. "Well, I have to get to work; Are you sure you're alright?"

"Yeah, I'll be fine; You just go to work, and don't worry about the boys. I'll take care of everything."

Bonnie's conversation didn't go quite as well as she'd planned, and as she drove to work, she thought that she just had to find a way to get Sandy to go to some counseling. 'Maybe she should even go to the shelter for battered women.'

Traffic was heavy, and she knew she wouldn't have time to stop at the gas station. 'That's okay, ' she thought. 'Greg's not going to be there anyway. Besides, I can grab a quick cup of coffee at the cafeteria in the office building. It's more expensive, but it will save me some time.

'But Greg! What am I going to tell Greg when he gets back? He's been so nice to me, and he spent all that money on that hotel room for me, too!' Then with a firm look on her face, she thought, 'Even so, my marriage has to come first!'

She asked herself the same two questions several times that morning: 'Why did I ever let him take me to lunch that day? And why did I ever let anything get started between us in the first place?'

Each time she asked herself those questions, the same answers popped into her head. 'Because there wasn't anything wrong with it! Greg and I are just friends. Shelly, with her dirty mind and Liz, with her suspicions are wrong! They both have it all wrong. Not only did Greg and I not do anything, but he never even tried to do anything!'

Unfortunately, each time she thought that, Greg's words came back to her that day at the hotel. "If I did go up with you, I'd be tempted to stay, and I brought you here to rest remember?"

'But he didn't come up, ' she kept telling herself. 'And he didn't even ask to!' She then told herself that Greg had only said that because he was trying to put her at ease, since she was so distraught that day. That's what she told herself, and that's what she made herself believe.