Part 22 (1/2)
”I only wish we'd had a go at this months ago,” I told her.
She laughed again, then squeezed me hard. ”We couldn't, of course. Not with Grandma and Grandpa in the house.”
”They needn't have known.”
”I couldn't bring myself to take the risk. They would've thrown you out of the house. Besides...”
She didn't go on, so I asked, ”Besides what?”
”I...feared that I might frighten you off. I couldn't bear the thought of losing you. That's what I thought I'd done tonight, lost you. When you pulled away from me.”
”It was only Whittle.”
”The cure seems to have worked.”
”Splendidly.”
”We'll have such fine times together.”
In the morning, I dressed and crept out of Sarah's room without being spotted by any of the visitors. Later in the day, the last of them departed.
The house was empty, but for the two of us.
We didn't talk about last night. We didn't carry on, either. But I could tell she hadn't forgotten about it. She acted different. She hardly ever took her eyes off me, and stayed a lot closer to me when we were doing ch.o.r.es and such. She touched me considerable, but not in any needful way-more like how she might touch her best friend. Also, she couldn't stop talking. She chatted on and on about this and that, and laughed at near everything I had to say.
I felt mighty grown-up and happy, though I got a bit nervous at times, wondering what was to happen next.
After our evening meal, we went into the parlor. She had me sit in the General's chair. Then she filled one of his pipes with tobacco. She lit it up, smiling at me as she sucked the flames down into the tobacco. When it was going good, she handed it to me. She sat at my feet and leaned back against my legs. I puffed away. Every now and then, I reached down to stroke her hair and she'd turn her head and gaze up at me.
The only light in the parlor came from the fireplace.
It all seemed uncommon peaceful and nice.
When the pipe went out, Sarah got to her feet and hauled me up. Humming a slow, peaceful tune, she started to dance with me. We stayed right in front of the fire. There wasn't much room, what with all the furniture, so we more or less kept to the same place, hanging on to each other and turning in circles.
It was cozy and a bit exciting, the way we held each other and glided about and sometimes kissed.
She hummed one tune after another. After five or six of them, she began to unb.u.t.ton my s.h.i.+rt while we danced. We fumbled about and undressed each other and kicked our duds out of the way. After that, we went on dancing just like before. Only it felt quite different.
She was all smooth warm skin against me, sliding and rubbing. Sometimes, we danced far enough apart so our fronts hardly touched at all, just the tips of her b.r.e.a.s.t.s brus.h.i.+ng my chest and me prodding her belly a bit. Other times, we mashed ourselves together. The hand I had on her back drifted down, and I took to holding her rump, which was ever so soft but flexed up firm with every step. She did the same to me.
Eventually, we gave up on the dancing part. We stood there squirming and kissing and caressing each other till we couldn't hold off any longer, and ended up on the rug in front of the fireplace.
We went upstairs after we were done, and had a fine time in her bed, and then fell asleep.
In the morning, she woke me with a kiss as she'd done so many times before. I opened my eyes to find her leaning over the bed, wearing her nightdress. ”Your bath is ready, dear,” she said.
She'd brought my robe and slippers into her room. She walked out, the same as she used to do. I put on the robe and slippers, went downstairs, greeted her in the kitchen, and got myself into the tub.
Like always, she brought the coffee in. I sat in the tub, sipping mine, while she took her usual seat nearby.
”We'll be going into town today,” she said. ”I need to see our attorney about a few matters.”
”An attorney?”
”He'll be turning over the estate to me.”
”The house?”
”Oh yes. The house, everything. I'm Grandpa's only heir, of course. He was very well off. Not that he he earned a great deal. But he'd inherited a considerable sum from the family.” earned a great deal. But he'd inherited a considerable sum from the family.”
”I'm quite glad to hear that. So then, you'll be able to continue on without financial worries.”
”None at all.”
I considered asking if she might raise my weekly pay a trifle, now that she was coming into a certain amount of wealth. That would've appeared greedy, however. Besides, such a request would only serve to remind her that I aimed to book pa.s.sage for England if I could ever afford to do so.
Sitting in the bathtub with my coffee, I wished I hadn't thought about returning home.
I was not at all eager to leave Sarah.
Still, England was home and I sometimes missed Mother terribly.
I worried about her. She hadn't responded to any of the several letters which I'd posted to her during the past months. I'd received no message whatsoever other than the quick response to my cable just before Christmas.
It was perplexing, disturbing.
At times, I wondered if something terrible had happened to her. That seemed unlikely, however. Uncle William and Aunt Maggie no doubt knew my whereabouts and would've let me know if Mother had met with some sort of tragedy. But why hadn't she written to me? It seemed quite unlike her, and a day rarely went by that I didn't puzzle over the situation.
”Is something troubling you?” Sarah asked. I reckon my worry showed.
”It's Mother again, I'm afraid.”
She frowned and shook her head. ”You should've should've received a letter from her by now. It's strange.” received a letter from her by now. It's strange.”
”I do hope she's all right.”
”Oh, I'm sure she's fine.”
”Then why hasn't she written?”
”She probably did. Maybe her letters were misplaced. Such things happen. You shouldn't let it upset you.” With that, Sarah set her cup aside. She came over to the tub, knelt behind me, and rubbed my shoulders. ”Any day now, the postman will come by with a letter from her. You'll see. But the main thing is, she knows you're in good hands.”
”I am that,” I said, and looked over my shoulder to smile at Sarah. My worries about Mother faded out, right quick. Sarah didn't have her nightdress on, any more. ”I say!” I said.
She laughed and kissed me. ”Never you mind,” she said, and took to soaping my back. I was used to that, but liked it all the more knowing she'd stripped down. When she finished my back, she reached around with both arms and slicked my front, which she'd never done before. Not just my chest, but my belly, too. Then lower down. She had to lean in pretty good for that. She nibbled the side of my neck while she was at it. Sent s.h.i.+vers all through me. And so did watching her hands. They were up to their forearms in the water, one sliding the soap bar while the other rubbed and stroked me.