Chapter 3

"Oh God," I yelled for the third time. Every nerve in my body was screaming with a heightened sense of euphoria as Bobby made one last thrust then held himself inside of me; sporadically my pussy muscles tightened around his incredibly hard cock as I was hit with another mind blowing orgasm, this time, being joined by the man of my dreams.

Together we sang out with the sounds of passion as our bodies convulsed in a symphony of lust for one another. It looked as though every ounce of energy had been drained from Bobby as he collapsed on top of me then rolled over on his back. We were both still breathing hard when I looked over at him. His eyes were closed, and across his face, was the biggest shit-eating grin I'd ever seen. As far as I knew there was only one thing that made a man smile like that, making love to his woman; that was me, his woman. My smile matched his.

As much as we hated to do it, it was getting late and we had to go home. I looked for Eileen's car in the lot when we pulled in but I didn't see it. Bobby walked me to the door and kissed me good night before I snuck in and went to bed.

It was two in morning, but after the evening's events, I wasn't really tired. I lay in bed thinking about everything that happened. I never really got a chance to talk to Bobby; from the house we went straight to the motel. He already felt so bad, after tonight I guessed he felt even worse; then, talking about feeling worse, my thoughts turned to mom. I wondered how she was doing after finding out how Steve and Gwen actually felt about her. I don't know why it took so long for their rage to come out; I would imagine it had something to do with their age.

I was getting depressed so I let my mind wander to happier thoughts. I pictured Bobby and I together, living as man and wife; I felt so warm and safe just thinking about it ... to be able to make love whenever we want ... to wake up wrapped in one another's arms every morning; Oh how glorious! Then I wondered if that was the way mom felt when she married dad and what changed. I thought of everything she lost; I'm pretty sure I haven't seen her smile since dad walked out on her. I compared their lives; yeah, she broke his heart, no doubt about that, but he still has the love and respect of his children; he still smiles, sometimes even laughs; he still has friends and enjoys doing things with them; he even has a girlfriend and gets some loving pretty regularly. Mom has none of that; why did she do it?

I hoped to be able to discuss some of this with Eileen; she seemed to be a very smart lady. I finally drifted off into never, never land.

I woke to the smell of bacon and fresh coffee, "Brea, if you want breakfast you'd better get up," I heard dad yell. I slipped on my robe and stumbled to the kitchen table just as he put our plates down.

"Thanks, dad;" I said still trying to open my eyes.

"Don't get used to it," he said, "I knew you and Bobby hadn't ... ah, been together for a while so I figured you'd be getting in pretty late. How'd it go at your mother's last night?" I thought I detected a little sadness in his voice but chalked it up to him having to sleep alone.

"Oh, dad, it was a disaster; Steve took a punch at Bobby as soon as we walked in, then he screamed at mom saying he hated her; on top of that Gwen called mom something too, I forget just what she said, but it wasn't very nice."

Dad looked just as shocked as the rest of us. "Steve took a poke at Bobby?"

I nodded my head; "Yup; later Bobby talked to him and smoothed things over but I felt sorry for mom; you know how Donna treats her, now it looks like she's going to get it from everybody."

Dad took a big sigh; "Okay, I'll talk to them again, all of them, and see if I can't get them to lay off of your mother. Right now, though, I have to get to work; what about you, any summer job prospects?"

"Yeah, I'm going back to the boutique where I worked last summer. When I had to go back to school last year, Mrs. Weller, she's the owner, told me I could work there again when I came back. I have to go down there today, fill out some paperwork and take a drug test; she makes everyone do that. I can start as soon as she gets the results back, probably Wednesday or Thursday."

"Very good, honey; how about Bobby, does he have anything lined up?"

"Yeah, he's got a job with Vidycom. He'll be working there during the summer and they've already given him a full-time job after he graduates. He's going to be developing computer software for big businesses, he starts today."

"I'm getting to like that boy more and more," he said before wishing me luck as he left; I sat there for a while with another cup of coffee before I hit the shower.

I went down to the boutique to fill out the papers; they took a sample of my hair for the drug test then I called Bobby to see if we could have lunch together but his boss was taking him out, so I went to the Denny's where mom works. Of course, since it was lunch hour she didn't have time to talk but I saw moisture in her eyes when I kissed her on the cheek as I left. I could only imagine how all alone she felt and I thought just seeing me there gave her a little lift. When I returned home I called dad and asked if Eileen was coming over tonight. He said he didn't think so and wanted to know why I asked.

"I'd like to talk to her," I told him, "you know, girl stuff."

"Isn't that something you should discuss with your mother; I'm sure she'd love a chance just to be a mom again."

"Yeah, I know; I'm not excluding her; there's just some things I think Eileen would know more about," I said.

Dad said she wouldn't be over but didn't think she would mind if he gave me her cell number. She was surprised when she heard my voice. Dad was right, she wasn't planning on coming over so she agreed to have lunch with me the following day.

Later that night I was going to talk to Bobby about what happened at mom's, but decided to wait until I had a chance to talk to Eileen; she just seemed to know about relationships and I was sure I could learn some things from her.

We met at a little café not far from where she worked. I had already grabbed a table by the time she walked in. "Well, this is a pleasant surprise, Brea," she said sitting down. We exchanged pleasantries and I thanked her for meeting me. I asked if I could talk to her about a few things. "Sure," she said, "Don't tell me you missed your period?"

"No," I said a little surprise at the question, "what ... why would..."

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to shock you, it's just that the last time a young lady like you wanted to talk to me about something over lunch it was my daughter telling me she was pregnant."

Again I was shocked. "I didn't even know you had a daughter," then I had a terrible thought, "you're not married are you?"

She chuckled a little, "Do you really think your father would sleep with a married woman?"

Wow, now I was ashamed of myself; I hadn't really thought before asking the question, "No, of course not, I'm sorry."

She smiled, "That's okay, after what you went through, I think that would be the first thing I'd ask as well. No, like your dad, I caught my spouse cheating on me. We've been divorced for over twelve years."

"Jeez, I'm sorry," I told her, "I didn't know. How old is your daughter?"

"Her name is Nancy; she'll be twenty one in November; she and her husband live in Michigan. They got off to a rocky start but they're doing better now, I think they're going to make it. She got knocked up when she was seventeen. The father wasn't much older than she was but they said they were in love with each other and he wanted to marry her. I was pissed at both of them and considered making Nancy have an abortion but I just couldn't do it. After the baby was born they got married. I didn't think much of him at first but he straightened himself out and got a good job with one of those little companies that make car parts near Detroit. Brenda, that's their daughter, is three years old now and they're both absolutely crazy about her; almost as crazy as grandma," she said with a big smile.

The waitress came over and took our order then left with our menus. "So, I doubt that you wanted to have lunch to talk about my daughter; what's on your mind, Brea?"

I gave her a blow by blow description of what occurred at my mom's house. She met Steve and Gwen a couple of times when it was dad's turn to have them for the weekend and was shocked to hear what happened. I asked if I should talk to Bobby?

"Absolutely," she said, "communication is vital in a marriage. Don't do what most couples do and wait until it's too late; start right now, get used to talking to your spouse from the very start, but don't try talking to him when he's driving or working on something for his job. Most wives try talking at the dinner table because they think he's a captive audience, don't do that either; select a location where you won't be bothered and there are no distractions. Set aside enough time to be able to fully discuss what you want, and have a good idea of what you want to say."

"Somehow I knew you'd have the answers," I told her. "This is great advice. Thanks." Just then the waitress came with our food. As soon as she walked away I picked up where I'd left off. "Eileen, can I ask you a personal question?"

"Sure, if it's too personal I just won't answer you."

"Fair enough," I responded, "Are you and dad going to get married?"

She didn't hesitate; "No, honey, I'm afraid not."

"Really; why? You guys seem to really get along well together. I'm surprised he hasn't asked you yet, or at least asked you to move in with him."

Eileen took a moment looking pensive as she chewed her salad; it looked like she was thinking about telling me something but wasn't sure if she should. She finally spoke. "He has," she said softly, "twice."

"Has what ... asked you to marry him?"

"No, not marry him, but he has asked me to move in with him a couple of times. The second time was just the other night; Sunday night, probably about the same time Bobby was ducking punches."

"That's why dad looked so sad Monday morning; I wondered. Did you guys have a fight or something?"

"No, no fight; I hated to say no, actually..."

"Then why did you? You guys seem to be good for each other."

She gave a little sigh; "Brea, please don't ever repeat this; I love your dad, I love him with all my heart."

"I don't get it," I said with a slight edge to my voice, "if you love him so much why won't you move in with him; God, Eileen, he's been through so much, he deserves to be happy, really happy."

"I agree, Brea, that's exactly why I turned him down; he's in love with another woman; a woman with whom I can't compete," she said.

"Who; I didn't know he had any other women in his life?"

"Your mother," she said sadly, "he's never stopped loving her, Brea, and I don't think he ever will. I'm not sure just how much he's even aware of it, the pain keeps getting in the way for him to see it, but as someone who loves him very much, I see it." She was starting to tear up. She opened her purse and took out a tissue to dab her eyes.

"If I thought I could make him happy, like you said, really happy, I'd do it; I'd move in, marry him, anything he wanted, but I don't think he'll ever be truly happy with anyone except your mother and if I'm in the way they'll never get back together."

"Eileen, that's just it, I don't think mom and dad will ever get back together."

"Brea, believe me, if and when the day comes that she's lost him forever, I will be right there to snatch him up, but that day hasn't come yet."

"Wow," I said, "this isn't what I expected at all; I'm not sure what to say. I'd love to see dad and mom back together and happy, like they used to be, but I really like you too; if they don't get back together I hope you two get married."

"Thank you, Brea," she said wiping her eyes again, "that means a lot to me."

It was almost time for her to go back to work so we talked a little more about Bobby and me but kept the conversation on the lighter side.

I went straight home after our luncheon. Since dad made me breakfast I figured I'd have a nice dinner waiting for him when he got home; besides, I had a lot to think about. I had given up on my parents ever getting back together a long time ago, but Eileen is a pretty smart lady, and if she thought there was a chance of that happening, then maybe there was.

I also had a date with Bobby. I knew he couldn't afford another motel room right away but I wanted to hear about his first day at work; I was sure he invented some software that would save the world someday.

He picked me up at seven-thirty and we just went out to a restaurant for pie and coffee so he could tell me about his job. If it had been anyone else sitting across the table talking about algorithms I would have been yawning within the first three minutes, but of course it was Bobby, and I intently listened to every word; not that I understood it, but I listened just the same.

When he finished I told him about my conversation with Eileen. "She really believes there's a good chance they could get back together; so, how do I do it?"

"Hold on," he said immediately, "how do YOU do what?"

"Get them back together," I replied.

"Honey, you can't, only they can do that and only if they both want to; it's like falling in love, you can't make someone do it, it has to be a natural process. I understand how much you'd like to see your folks back together, but you have to stay out of it."

I hated to admit it, but he was making sense. "I just want to see them happy again," I said a little teary eyed.

"I know, honey, I do too, believe me. Everyone's been so nice to me telling me it's not my fault, but I don't care what anyone says, I have to take some of the responsibility; not a night has gone by since you told me what happened, that I haven't laid in my bed thinking about how those stupid phone calls caused you and your family so much misery. Maybe if they were back together I could forgive myself, so I want to see it happen too, honey, but you have to let them find their way back to each other on their own, it's the only way."

Well, he pretty much answered the question I was going ask. I wondered if he still felt responsible ... obviously, he did.

When Bobby brought me back home I was happy to see Eileen's car. Dad heard me as I closed the door and shushed her ... like I didn't know they were in bed together. "Don't mind me," I said a little loud, "I'm going to bed." I heard Eileen laugh; I don't know what dad was doing. The next morning we had breakfast together and talked before they both had to go to work.

I was just starting to clean the apartment when my cell rang. It was Mrs. Weller; the results of my drug test were in; she said I could start the next day or at the start of the following week, it was my choice. I needed the money and should have started right then but I still wanted to talk to mom; I had to know why she cheated on dad, so I told Mrs. Weller I'd start the following Monday. That gave me four days to figure out how to get mom alone so we could talk without being interrupted like Eileen said.

I also had to come up with a time; she always worked so late on the weekdays and was so tired by the time she was done that it had to be on Saturday or Sunday; she got home early both days. I decided on Saturday; I'd call and tell her I wanted to get together, there was no way she'd turn me down, but I still had to find a quiet place ... of course, I was sitting in it; all I had to do was make sure dad wasn't around.

I called Eileen to see if she planned on coming over; she said yeah, they usually did something during the day. I told her my plan and asked if she couldn't get dad out of the apartment for a few hours that night. "No problem," she told me, there was a movie she wanted to see.

That night Bobby and I went out for pizza. I told him I wouldn't be able to see him Saturday night; I could see he wasn't real happy. I explained my mother and I were going to have a talk and it was only one night; he told me it would be two nights in a row because he had promised Steve he would take him to the gym and teach him a little about boxing. I told him I would make it up to him Sunday and he should plan on keeping the whole day open.

I talked to mom over the phone and told her I would pick her up when she was done with work and that I wanted to go someplace where we could have dinner and talk. I didn't tell her what I wanted to talk about yet, which I know made her very uneasy, but I didn't want her backing out of it so I left her in the dark.

Saturday I was at the restaurant to meet her at the end of her shift. Again she inquired as to the subject of our talk but I told her we would discuss it after dinner. She had no idea where we were going. She was obviously expecting a restaurant so she was inquisitive when I pulled into the lot at the apartment complex.

"Honey, where are we?" she asked as I stuck the key in the lock. I didn't answer her; I just walked in and told her to come in as well. She took one look around and recognized dad's taste in furniture.

"Brea," she spoke in a panic, "Is this your father's apartment? Oh, honey, I shouldn't be here; please, let's go some places else, what if he comes home and catches us? Please, honey, let's get out of here; take me back to Denny's, we can eat there, it'll be my treat."

"Relax, mom," I told her, "dad is out on a date tonight and won't be back until late." I could see the sadness in her eyes when I said he was on a date.

"Still, honey," she said softly, "I'm sure he'd be angry if he knew I was here; please, let's go somewhere else."

"No, mom, I have dinner all ready for us and I want a nice quiet place where we can talk and not be interrupted," I told her. I had fixed a nice pot roast with all the trimmings and had it timed perfectly. We sat down to eat and mom complimented me as a cook; that was something I learned from her. After dinner we sat on the couch.