Chapter 10

Andrea’s home was on a lake close to Kissimmee, Disney World and lots of restaurants. The lake is part of chain small and big lakes joined by small and medium sized canals that eventually emptied into Lake Okeechobee, the Intercostal, or the Gulf of Mexico by way of the Caloosahatchee River, or the Atlantic Ocean through one of the canals. The lake home seemed perfect for me as I reinvented myself all over again.

The mini estate turned out to be a spur of the moment purchase made by Andrea when she decided to consider life without me in her immediate circle. When I met the neighbors on the south side of the property, they informed me that the former occupants were, “not OUR kind of people.” That meant I wasn’t their kind of people either, a fact I was quite content to embrace. Stuck up snobs didn’t impress me, and their joy at acting superior was quickly tempered when they discovered the Rolls I bought at an exotic/ classic car center. Something about seeing the new neighbor chauffeured into the drive in a four-hundred thousand dollar car took the wind out of their sails – at least temporarily.

The neighbors to the north were delightful.

Nick and Emily Kirkland were young, happy, newlyweds, who struck it rich by way of the Lottery. Their decision to pay off the taxes and take the all-at-once hit meant they collected over one-hundred million dollars in one lump sum. The amazement hadn’t worn off any more than the joy of becoming one of the top one tenth of one tenth, of one percent had fully sunk in. Emily Kirkland was a beautiful, lively, girl-woman, who simply showered joy over everyone she met. Her blond hair was cut stylishly and framed a girl-next-door face that couldn’t help but smile all the time. They caught me as one of the fire hydrants held the door for me when we arrived back at the house after a trip to the Florida Mall.

“Hello Neighbor,” Nick was no slouch at sharing neighborly hospitality. His tanned face and exposed neck and arms radiated good vibrations. “We knew that someone new was moving in and hoped to introduce ourselves.”

He shook my hand and said, “We’re the Kirklands and we live right over there,” he pointed at their mini mansion. It was one of those faux Tudor homes that were beginning to pop up in new, upscale communities.

“I’m Nick and this is my bride, Emily,” He said as he presented his wonderful mate.

“I’m Carl,” I said, “and not very interesting. But I am extremely glad to meet a friendly neighbor after encountering frost bite from the Frankenstein family over there,” I said that indicating the home on the other side.

Nick smiled somewhat indulgently. “You have to kind of forgive those folks,” He said. “I discovered quite firmly that Emily and I aren’t...” He sputtered as if trying to find a kind way to say it.

I interrupted. “ ... their kind of people,” I finished for him.

That got Emily giggling and my heart nearly stopped. She was fabulous.

Emily was fabulous. She had to be somewhere south of thirty but closing in fast, and her eyes were truly alive with mischief and merriment. Her deep blue eyes glowed with vitality and health, which was a welcomed change from the sickness on the faces of Andrea and her girls. Nick seemed to want to ask me something but held back, so Emily charged ahead for him. “We are wanting to fire up the BBQ but hate to go to the trouble for just the two of us. Would you like to walk over about six and join us for dinner?”

I was thrilled and said so, then though quickly and asked, “I have a Collie named Benjamin. Can he come too?” Emily smiled sweetly and assured me it was great and they were looking forward to seeing us later.

Benjamin was anxious for an outing when I got back inside. I asked one of the fire hydrants to take us on a driving tour of the neighborhood. My boy spent the next hour sitting nearly on my lap, looking out the open windows of the Land Rover we chose for the trip, and greeting everyone we passed with a happy bark.

I spent the time thinking about Emily as the fire hydrants took us around the lake. Although she was the perfect girl-next-door, she seemed deeper somehow, or maybe she was holding on to some deep dark secret. Either way, there seemed to be more to her than meets the eye and I desperately hoped to get the chance to discover her secrets, or what was under her panties, whichever came first – pun intended.

At six o’clock Benjamin and I politely tapped on the front door of the Kirkland manse and were admitted by a smiling Nick. I could hear Emily calling out to us to join her on the lanai, where supper was just about ready. The grill was full of steaks, chops and chicken, along with the odd hamburger and six hot dogs. Emily pointed to the dogs and said, “We weren’t sure what you feed your puppy, and so Nick cooked up some of these.” Ben licked his lips and drooled with interest. He was already a big fan of the neighbors.

Emily stooped to pet Ben’s head and asked, “Where did you get such a sweet and pretty dog? What’s his name? Is he as sweet as he is beautiful?” All of those were good questions, and I briefly told them about finding him abandoned along a highway and taking him in.

We ate for over an hour, enjoying the warm evening and content to let the water drift by. It was a wonderful time and I was just about to thank them and excuse myself when Nick cleared his throat and said, “Thank you for spending the evening with us. Emily and I have been rather starved for company since moving in here. The neighbors are ... I guess you’d have to say that they are different. We don’t enjoy the same things, go to the same shows, or concerts and we certainly don’t have the same outlook on things that matter. What happens is we get together on rare occasions and have so little in common that we can’t think of things to talk about, or interests to share. You come into our home, talk with us like we’ve always known one another and generally just fit in. Thank you for that.”

Our evening passed pleasantly, and I greatly appreciated the human interaction. Emily was splendidly turned out, and I enjoyed just looking at her wondering about the possibilities. Nick, though welcoming and kind, seemed just a bit off center, and I wondered if he liked boys more than women. Emily seemed to adore him, so that muted my suspicion but not entirely.

Their home was gorgeous. The furnishings were just right in every room. Every piece of furniture, wall hanging and décor item was thoughtfully purchased to carry out an overall theme and it worked to perfection.

Emily proudly took me on a tour that ended in the master bedroom, which looked overwhelmingly like only she inhabited it. She saw the question on my face and said, “Nick and I have separate rooms, Carl. Things work so much better that way.” Her eyes reflected the sadness that those words conveyed, and I left it there without commenting.

The next week brought several surprises.

Danielle Stinson showed up bright and early ... well ... bright and noonish on Monday. She was full of energy and anxious to hand over some documents she hauled out of her briefcase. “Mrs. Waters sent these on her jet this morning,” she announced, “and I brought them right over.

“You are a licensed driver and a high school graduate, officially as of last week.” Danielle gave me a particularly hard look and continued. “Mrs. Waters also said to send her thanks in the form of your emancipation,” and she handed over judicial decrees declaring me an adult in the eyes of the federal courts and a fully licensed driver with an adult license.

“How did Andrea manage to make this happen,” I asked incredulously.

Danielle gave me that stare again. “I don’t honestly know, Carl, but I will tell you that Mrs. Waters used some serious power to get you those decrees. Nobody just waltzes into a courtroom and waltzes out with those types of orders. Whatever you did to earn Mrs. Waters’ favor must have been epic, because she manipulated the bench to reward you.”

Danielle was confused by the turn of events and obviously found herself having to re-evaluate me in light of Andrea’s actions. I guessed that Danielle liked things neat and orderly. Andrea giving me such unusual gifts must have tipped the scales far out of balance causing Danielle no small amount of distress.

The change in my status as far as Danielle was concerned, must have also seemed sexy because she set her briefcase aside and kissed me without warning. I love kissing and gave as good as I could to impress this luscious creature. Danielle moved into my personal space, pulling me tightly to her and grinding our pelvic areas together. Mr. Johnson was immediately impressed and stood tall and ready for anything, which was exactly what Danielle wanted.