This story contains the following:
(Mf,some ff,adult/teen,cons,romance,love,some violence (non-sex related))


WARNING!
--------
   Do not read this story if you are under the legal age in your country.
If any story of this sort is illegal in your country, please do not read
it.  Hey, what can I say?  Move.
   If you're one of those religious fanatics, or any other sort of person
looking to force your opinion on others, such as myself, go away.  You
aren't going to get me to "See God," or to "Make me repent for my sins."  I
don't believe in God, and I don't like people like you.  Leave me alone, or
you might be on the receiving end of unpleasantries.
   If you're one of the media looking for more evidence of porn on the
Internet, well, you found it.  Now go away and write your slanted, biased
articles or news clips.
   Any constructive criticism, suggestions, etc. direct to
alan@geocities.com.  Flames, Spam, religious spiels, offers to help me to
be saved by Jesus or any other religious character, and people who want to
whine about my or others' "immorality," direct your comments to
idont@givadamn.com.  My response will come in the form of a full quote of
your message, as well as an insightful message similar to "e-mail
undeliverable".
   I also read a.s.s.d., so DON'T post any comments to a.s.s.!  If you do
I'll get real pissed off and you'll never get a response. ;-)  We have
enough noise in a.s.s. already, don't contribute to it.

   Note:  Book One and Book Two of "The Watching Trilogy" is available at
Water's Edge in the "Archives" section,
(http://waters-edge.home.ml.org) along with other info about the series
and later more stories by me, Alan Mathews.
   All my work will also be available on the a.s.s. FTP Archive at
ftp://129.21.108.190/authors/alan.mathews.  If you are an author of any
genre, erotic, sci-fi, etc, I encourage you to submit any work you feel
comfortable submitting to Water's Edge.  The person who maintains the page
has been very accommodating for me, risking the wrath of those who run
Geocities.
   If you are a writer of erotic stories that you have posted to or plan to
post to a.s.s., please upload them to the a.s.s. FTP Archive when you do.
It's free for everyone, and I think once it gets going, it will be a great
place to find stories of your liking.















               This Page Left Blank To Protect The "Innocent".





















Author's Note For Watching: Book Two, The Return Of The Past
------------------------------------------------------------

I originally intended to release this book in mid-February.  But thanks to
the great response to Book One, I was pushed off my rear and forced to work
a bit harder.  This book is about 1,800 lines shorter than Book One, but
I'd like to think it's just as good.  I also had two Editors pop up after I
first posted Book One of Watching; thanks to both of them for helping to
make this story better, and for helping me to fix stupid grammatical
mistakes.  It also goes to show what your e-mails and responses to an
Author's work can do.  We do, after all, post these for free to a.s.s., and
we all need a little ego boost every once in a while.  We also need to know
that our stories are appreciated.

I also want to thank the ice storm that hit during the last six chapters of
this book, and disabled my power for three days straight.  I also want to
curse it, since it also caused me to loose chunks of writing whenever the
power blinked.  But it gave me a chance to sit down during the boredom of
having no computer and think of where I wanted Watching to go in the
remainder of Book Two and into Book Three.

While trees were snapping off under the weight of ice and three feet of
snow, it gave me a chance to also ponder life and death, as my stock of
firewood that kept the house warm in well below freezing weather shrank as
the days without power wore on.

But I'm still here.  And I'll keep writing, even after I finish Book Three.
I have too many ideas to quit now.

I've never considered myself a writer of erotica, but rather a writer of
emotional stories that have erotica in them.  So, once again, if you want a
constant sex type of story, look elsewhere.  No B&D, no S&M or TG, just
romance, love, and a little longing.

Alan Mathews (alan@geocities.com)
December 1996




Watching
By Alan Mathews



The Watching Trilogy Timeline
------------------------------

(January)
Book One: The Meeting begins, Alex and Jenny meet

(2 Weeks, Late January)
Jenny moves in with Alex for first time after parents kick her out
(13 Years old, Alex 18)

(1 Month, early February)
Jenny moves back in with parents

(3 Months, early May)
Alex leaves for college in New Mexico

(2 Months, July)
  o Jenny moves in with Alex again after parents abuse her

(2 Months, September)
  o Jenny turns 14

(3 Months, December)
  o Alex turns 19

(One Month, January)
  o Year turns
  o Jenny and Alex's first anniversary of their meeting

(1 Month, February)
  o Jenny and Alex find out Jenny is pregnant

(8 Months, early September)
  o Skyla born
  o Alex and Jenny get married 2 weeks after Skyla is born
  o Jenny turns 15

(9 Months, July)
  o Skyla starts talking (In recent drafts of Book One only)

(1 Month, August)
  o Skyla starts walking (In recent drafts of Book One only)

(1 Month, September)
  o Skyla turns 1
  o Jenny turns 16
  o First marriage anniversary for Alex and Jenny

(2 Months, December)
  o Alex turns 20

(1 Month, January)
  o Year turns
  o Alex and Jenny's 2nd anniversary of their meeting

(5 Months, April)
  o Alex meets and makes up with his Father
  o End Of Book One

(6 Months, September)
  o Skyla turns 2
  o Jenny turns 17
  o Alex and Jenny's second marriage anniversary

(2 Months, December)
  o Alex turns 21

(1 Month, January)
  o Year turns,
  o Alex and Jenny's 3rd anniversary of their meeting

(4 months, April)
  o Book Two Begins



Book Two
The Return Of The Past
----------------------

"Humans have a saying.  What is past, is past.  The Membari also have a
saying.  What is past is also sometimes in the future."
-Delynn, Babylon 5


Chapter One
-----------


   "Why do you want to take a year off school after you finish high school?
Don't you want to go on to college?" my husband asked, confused.  I love
him, but he can be so thickheaded sometimes.
   "I want to spend more time with you and Skyla, Alex.  I feel like I
barely know you two anymore.  I come home, get her dinner, and put her to
bed.  I hardly get any time to play with her-or you, for that matter."  I
tried to distract him by smiling seductively, tossing my hair back in the
way that I knew always turned him on.  He sighed.
   "But why not just the summer?  We'll have plenty of time then."
   "But I want a year, Alex.  Skyla is over two years old, and it seems
like I haven't spent half the time you have with her.  I see how close she
is to you, and want to be that close to her.  If I take a year off, you can
go back to going to college during the day and finish up school in only
three quarters instead of six.  You could get a better job that makes you
work fewer hours, and then we'll have more time together since you won't
have to go to school or work as hard."
   "But I like staying home with Skyla," he protested.
   I moved closer to him, snuggling up against him in the way that usually
made him melt, or at least distracted him.  "I know you do.  But don't you
think it's my turn to stay home with her for a while?  Before she goes off
to kindergarten in a few years?"
   "Kindergarten?"  He had the stricken look on his face that he always got
when he thought about his little girl growing up.  I laughed.
   "Don't worry, it's still three or four years away.  But I'd like some
time with her and you.  I haven't seen you as much as I would like either.
We hardly talk anymore.  We don't spend nearly as much...time...together as
we used to.  We're too busy, and I don't like it."
   "Maybe you're right.  I have missed you, with school and everything else
going on.  It seems like the only time I get to see you is after Skyla goes
to sleep.  Even then I have homework."  He paused, thinking.  "We do need
some time together, just Skyla, you and I.  We could go someplace for
spring break.  It's coming up in only a month or so."
   "Where could we go?  We aren't exactly rolling in money right now."
   "I don't know if you'll like the place I'm thinking of."  He had the
tone of voice he always had when he was worried about telling me something.
   "Where do you have in mind?" I asked cautiously.
   "Well, Kallie and Amanda have been bugging us to let them come down to
see us again.  It's been more than two years.  We could go visit them
instead."
   I opened my mouth to protest.  "Now hear me out, Jenny," Alex
interrupted.  "We have the house.  Kallie and Amanda would be overjoyed to
have us so close, and Skyla would get a lot out of being in the woods for a
week or two.  I have vacation time stored up.  The drive would be a long
one, but I think the car could make it."
   "But you know how I feel about being so close to my parents!" I felt a
little ill just thinking about it.
   "I know Jenny.  But they wouldn't get near you.  I promise.  I won't let
them hurt you again."
   "I know that, Alex.  But that doesn't keep me from being afraid."
   "I can't blame you Jenny, considering what they did to you.  But think
about it, will you?" he paused and stood.  "I have to go to school.  I'll
see you around seven."
   I gave him a weak smile and kissed him goodbye as he walked out the
door.  Skyla was still asleep, so I had some time to think.

   Alex and I had met on a school bus almost four years before.  The bus
broke down in early January, and I had forgotten my heavy jacket at home.
I was freezing, and he was kind enough to give me his coat when he saw how
cold I was.  I think I started to fall in love with him at that moment.  No
one had ever been so kind to me.  Well, people had, but it always seemed to
be because someone wanted something from me.  It wasn't that way with Alex.
   I felt bad when I saw how cold he was becoming, so I offered to share it
with him.  After all, it was his coat.  He was reluctant at first, but I
managed to persuade him.  After a few minutes, I was on his lap so the coat
could be closed in front.  Before I knew it, I was fast asleep.  I had
never felt as safe as I did when I was in his arms.
   A couple of weeks later my parents found out about a 'sexual encounter'
with my best friend, Kallie.  My mother called the school and told me I had
better find someplace else to live, because I was no longer welcome at
home.  I got on the bus that night not knowing what I was going to do.
Alex came to the rescue again.  He comforted me, took me in, fed me, and
gave me a place to sleep.
   I went into his room that night when I wasn't able to sleep.  Knowing
how well I had slept when I was in his arms last time, I hoped that I could
do the same thing.  I also wanted to show him how thankful I was that he
had taken me in.  I'd be lying if I said I wasn't attracted to him, even
before he shared his coat with me.  One thing led to another, and before I
knew it, I was coming under his fingertips.  He didn't seduce me; in fact I
think we seduced each other.  I had never been so forward before, even with
the one or two boys I had made out with before.  But something about him
made me feel adventurous, while still feeling safe at the same time.  Not
long after, we fell asleep together.
   The next day, I made a mistake in what I said to him about why I had
come into his room and he took it the wrong way.  We fought about it-one of
the few fights that we've ever had.  We patched it up, and I lived with him
for over a month, despite his father coming home and finding out about us.
We fell in love.  But then my parents came back after the rumors had died
down about Kallie and I.  I never told them that the rumors were true, they
were too religious, too morally "upright"; at least, that was the way they
saw it.  I knew they would never let me back in the house if they knew for
certain that they were true.  They invited me back home and I went, not
wanting to be a 'burden' on Alex, despite his protests to the contrary.
   Things were okay for a while.  My parents treated me fine, and then Alex
left for college.  I was lonely, and went to Kallie to help me with my
loneliness.  I never told Alex that I slept with Kallie a few times after
he left.  I didn't know how he would react, despite him telling me that he
supported me if I wanted to sleep with another girl.  Alex doesn't know the
whole story, but we were walked in on again, this time by Kallie's mother.
   She, of course, overreacted and blabbed it to everyone, including my
parents.  That's when things turned really ugly at home.
   When they came to pick me up, they didn't say anything.  But when I went
to my room, they locked the door behind me.  I tried to get out but
couldn't; they had boarded up the window as well.  I broke down crying when
the taunts started, day and night, being called through the door.
   They fed me very little, only letting me out to use the bathroom, and
sometimes not even then, leaving a pail in the corner.  They would either
throw me in the shed out back or in my room, depending on how they felt at
the time.
   Then came the worst part, the part that I could never tell Alex.  My Dad
would slip into my room at night when he was drunk, and...molest me.
   I couldn't stop him, he was too strong.  I begged him to stop, but he
would just taunt me, asking if that's what my girlfriends did to me.  He
never actually raped me.  That was too high above his 'religious
standards,' even when he was drunk.  Instead he and my mother raped my
mind, wore me down until I was little more that a crying heap of flesh on
the floor.  Then they started to beat me.
   One night they made a mistake, though.  When they tossed me crying onto
my bed after another beating, they forgot to lock the door.  I slipped out
and ran as fast as I could down the road, not knowing where I was going.
Some woman stopped and picked me up.  I refused her offer to take me to a
doctor, asking her to take me to Kallie's instead.  I snuck in the window
of Kallie's room and waited for Kallie to show up.  Kallie saw how I looked
and started sobbing.  I joined her, telling her the whole story.  She got
me on a bus to Alex, I moved in with him, and my life has been a dream ever
since.  I got pregnant, and we were married less than a month after Skyla
was born.  I've never felt any desire to go back.
   Only Kallie and Amanda know the true story of what happened.  If I had
told Alex, he might have gone and killed them both.  If he had, I would
have lost him too, and I wouldn't have been able to bear that.  So, I swore
Kallie and Amanda to secrecy.
   I know my husband well.  Better than anyone else does, I'm sure.  Alex
is a very gentle man, with a strong sense of justice and right and wrong;
at least what he considers right and wrong.  He grew up outside 'society'
in many ways, and lived mostly alone for many years, his father being away
working.  What he learned came from books from his father's library.  He
turned out very well considering he never got much love, even when his
mother still lived with him.  But he won't admit how much his childhood,
both before and after his mother left, still affects him.  He doesn't know
that he cries out in his sleep, calling out his mother or father's name,
asking them to come back to him.  Sometimes he even cries.  If I woke him
up, he would be embarrassed.  That's just the way he is.  So, I cuddle up
to him when he has those dreams, whispering soothing things in his ear, and
he eventually settles down.
   I know how he likes to be kissed, how he likes to hold me, and be held.
I know just the way to stroke his back until he purrs like a kitten.  I
know that if you kiss him between the shoulder blades, he'll shiver every
time.  I know that he likes it when I lick and suck on his nipples, even
though he'd never admit it.  I know how to make him come quickly, and how
to make him last a long time.  I know he likes eating me out more than
he'll ever say.  I know that he likes it when we're making love with him on
top, and I whisper in his ear how good it feels to have him inside me while
I lick and nip his earlobe.  And I know how much he loves Skyla and I.
   But sometimes it seems like he's holding back.  Every once in a while I
walk in on him while his mind is off somewhere else, with a look of pain in
his eyes that's so intense I feel like crying just looking at him.   I have
to snap him out of it by slipping my arms around him and giving him a hug.
When I look into his eyes then I can see the pain recede slowly, but it's
always there, lurking somewhere in the background.  I ask him what he's
thinking about, but he always evades my questions.  I let him, knowing that
if he doesn't want to talk about it with me, then he must have his reasons.
   Alex would never let anything hurt Skyla or I, if there was any way in
the universe he could stop it from happening.
   I remember a time a few months ago when we went to a nearby playground
with Skyla.  We put her in the sandbox and sat on a nearby bench, talking
and watching her out of the corner of our eyes.  Another little boy, around
five years old, seemed to think she was invading his turf.  Suddenly he
picked up one of those heavy metal toy dump-trucks, holding it over where
Skyla was playing happily in the sand.  Before I could even react, Alex was
gone.  He dived and tackled Skyla, protecting her with his body.  Less than
a second later, the boy dropped the truck on Alex's head, where Skyla had
been seconds before.  It dropped with a thunk, nicking his head, but he
didn't seem to notice.  By then, Skyla was crying.  I rushed over and
picked her up, dusting the sand off her.  I lost track of Alex for a few
seconds.  Then I saw him hauling the kid off by the back of his shirt,
apparently toward where his mother, the only other person in the
playground, was sitting reading a book.  I hurried over, hoping that I
could stop it if it got to ugly.  If someone tries to hurt Alex's family,
they usually end up regretting it.
   "Is this your kid?" Alex demanded.
   She looked up from where she was reading.  "Hey, let go of him!" she
yelled.  He did, and the kid ran to his mother and started to cry.  "What
did you do to him?" she demanded.
   "I didn't do anything but haul him over here.  Your son tried to drop a
toy on my daughter's head.  If I hadn't been as quick as I was, she could
have gotten seriously hurt."
   "So, your kid is your responsibility, not mine.  Next time make sure she
doesn't get around Alvin!" she said snottily.  By this time, I was getting
angry, but Alex was absolutely steaming.
   "So you're not going to do anything about this?" he demanded through
gritted teeth.
   "About what?  I don't see a problem!"
   Alex opened his mouth to say something uunpleasant, but I grabbed his
arm.
   "It's not worth it Alex.  People like that can't be dealt with," I said
quietly, cooling him down a little.
   "You're right, Jenny.  Let's just go home."  We turned away, looking
down at Skyla.  "Are you okay, honey?"
   "I'm okay, Daddy," she said, climbing into his arms and giving him a
hug.  He melted, as he always does when Skyla hugs him.  We walked away,
Alex still carrying Skyla.  He paused, turning back to face the mother and
the little boy.
   "It's parents like you who raise children to become adults like Hitler!"
he called angrily.  She ignored him, but the little boy gave us the finger
and snickered, his eyes suddenly dry of tears.  Alex growled under his
breath about irresponsible parents during the rest of the walk home.
   Alex doesn't know how to deal very well with ignorant or just plain
stupid people; he hasn't been around them much.  He doesn't understand why
people are so cruel to one another, or why people discriminate against each
other.  He doesn't really know why war or genocide exists, or why there are
evil people in the world.  He knows the facts about them-the reasoning.
But he doesn't understand the emotions that cause them.
   Alex has never felt afraid of someone because they were different.  He's
never felt the need to have control over someone else, like so many people
seem to.  He's much like a young child, so innocent and naive.  Maybe
that's why he and Skyla can play for hours at a time, working on something
as simple as a coloring book.  In many ways, Alex is a child trapped in an
adult world.  And that's one of the things I love most about him.

End Chapter One


Chapter Two
-----------

   I heard Skyla padding toward me from her bedroom, where she had been
taking her afternoon nap.  She'd grown so much in the last few years.  Her
hair was long now, reaching a bit below her shoulder blades.  Her
vocabulary had grown tremendously; sometimes it felt like I was talking to
a ten-year-old instead of a two-year-old.  She'd already lost the awkward
way of walking that a lot of toddlers often have.  She had such a sweet
face too, and those blue eyes of hers caught even me sometimes, and I'm her
mother.
   "Hi Mommy.  Daddy go to school already?" she asked, still rubbing the
sleep from her eyes and climbing into my lap.
   "Yes honey.  Just you and me for a couple of hours," I hugged her.
   "Good.  I miss you sometimes," she hugged me back.
   "I miss you too," I said with a weak smile.  I think that, more
than anything else, made me decide to go on the trip, as well as
solidifying my decision to take a year off from school.
   "How would you like it if all three of us went on a vacation to where
your Daddy and I grew up?"
   "Really?  All of us together?  Yay!" she squealed and hugged me again,
giving me one of her famous sloppy kisses that she tended to give to
everyone she met.  She embarrassed some of them, since she often kissed
them on the lips.  "When do we go?"
   "In a few weeks when your father and I get out of school on spring
break."
   "Not tomorrow?  Well, I guess I can wait that long," she frowned, a
little disappointed.  I smiled and kissed her head.
   I made Skyla dinner, while she was constantly talking and asking
questions about where we were going.  Alex came home a little after seven
thirty, as he always did.  The only time we ate together anymore was at
breakfast, and I missed being able to have dinner together, like we used
to.  But Skyla won't eat unless someone eats with her, so I usually have
dinner at the same time she does.
   When he walked in the door Skyla ran up to him, dressed in one of Alex's
old t-shirts to sleep in.  It was so long that it almost drug on the floor,
her arms disappearing in the sleeves.  She started drilling him with
questions about our trip.  He picked her up and kissed her cheek, walking
over to where I was standing.  Then he gave me a peck on the lips.
   "So I'm guessing you decided to go.  Are you sure?" he asked.
   "Well, I've told Skyla and I can't back out now, can I?" I smiled wryly
at him.
   "It'll be fun.  I promise," he said, hugging me around the waist.
"Well, Skyla, I think it's your bedtime."
   "Noooooo!  I don't want to go to sleep!" she complained.
   "Really?  Then why are your eyelids getting so heavy?" he teased.  I
followed him as he walked into Skyla's bedroom.
   "They aren't heavy.  I'm wide-awake.  See?" she said, holding her
eyelids wide apart with her fingers, making Alex and I laugh.  Alex set her
gently down on her bed, then Skyla tugged the t-shirt over her head and
rolled over. I pulled the blankets down so she could slide underneath.
   "What story are you going to tell me tonight, Daddy?" Skyla asked.
   Alex tells wonderful bedtime stories, usually centered on fairies,
knights, and castles.  I don't know where he comes up with them, but
they're good enough to entertain even me.
   I asked him once how he came up with them, but he just shrugged, saying
it was probably a result of reading too many fantasy books when he was
younger.  Skyla loves them.
   "Well, what kind of story do you want to hear?" he asked.
   "Mommy was talking about where we're going, and about the forest.  Tell
me about that."  She had never really seen a forest; New Mexico doesn't
have a lot of them, and we almost never travel.  Certainly it doesn't have
any on the scale of the ones in Oregon.
   "Okay," Alex sat back and thought, closing his eyes to get a picture of
it in his head.  He began to describe the forest that surrounded his old
house.
   "I doubt you'll ever see as many trees as you will when you're in the
forest around where your mother and I used to live.  Tall pine trees are
everywhere, with big leafy bushes crowded around them.  You've never heard
any place so loud, yet so peaceful.  You can wander into a forest and
you'll never hear a car, a door slam, or the sound of people talking.  You
just hear the sounds of the birds singing in the trees, the crickets
playing their song, and the sound of the wind in the trees.  Colors are all
around, and on hot days, you can smell the sharp scent of pine sap in the
air.
   "My favorite place was by the pond a ways behind the house.  I don't
think anyone ever went there but me.  I used to go there in the early
morning during summer break, and watch the sun come over the trees."
   Skyla had closed her eyes, imagining the place that he was describing,
with a small smile on her face.
   "Little water-bugs would skitter across the pond, the sun glinting off
its surface.  Once in a while a fish would splash as it tried to catch a
bug on the surface.  There was a big oak tree right beside the water, some
of its roots trailing into the water.  I would sit under that tree and read
a book during the hot days of August.  There always seemed to be a light
breeze rustling the leaves, tinted with the smell of water, plants, and
life.
   "When I was little and it had been hot for several days without a break,
I would run out in the middle of a heavy rainstorm, tear off my clothes,
and run around nude, letting the cool rain wash all the sweat and dirt that
had accumulated over the last few days off of me.
   "Sometimes when I'm tense, I sit back and imagine what the forest felt
like after it rained good and hard.  The sun would come out, and everything
seemed fresh and clean.  Droplets of water would act like miniature prisms,
spreading small rainbows all around as they dripped off the leaves and fell
onto your skin, leaving a cool wet trail as they ran off into the soil
below.  You couldn't help but breathe deep, getting all that city soot and
pollution out of your lungs.  You always felt better after it rained."
   Alex stopped and opened his eyes.  Skyla didn't.  She was sound asleep,
as she always was after one of Alex's stories.  Alex and I both gave Skyla
a kiss on the forehead and tip-toed out of the room, Alex stopping to shut
off the light and close the door.
   We sat down on the couch for our 'quiet time,', as we called it.  We
made sure we got at least an hour of it a night, no matter what else we
needed to do.  We cuddled together, enjoying the feeling of warmth and
closeness being wrapped in each other's arms gave us.  I love his scent; he
always smells clean and fresh, with a slight hint of after-shave.
   "You miss living in the woods, don't you?" I asked him.
   "Sometimes I do," he sighed.  "You just don't see much in the way of
green plants living down here.  At least not as many as where we grew up."
   "Well, you'll get a chance to see the woods again.  Just wait a month or
so."
   Alex turned toward me with a serious look on his face.  "Are you sure
you want to go?  I mean, you were almost dead set against it before I
left."
   I sighed. "I thought about it.  Then I decided that we needed to be
together more than I needed to stay away from that place."
   Alex sighed, running a finger around the rim of my ear and making me
shiver.  "I wish we had someplace else that we could go, but we don't,
unless we want to stay here."
   "If we stay here you'll get called away, no matter how much you want to
be with us."
   "I wish I could give you more, Jenny.  But we're just scraping by on
what I'm making now, and with school it's even more difficult."
   "Alex, all I ever wanted was you and Skyla.  Not a fancy house or an
expensive car."
   "I know that.  Still, I want to be able to give you those things.  But I
also want you to do more than just stay home with Skyla all day."
   "Alex, we've already discussed this.  I'm taking a year off, and that's
that."
   "Nothing's going to change your mind?" he probed.
   "Nothing."
   "All right," he gave in.  "But after that year, promise me that you'll
at least take a few college classes?"
   I gave him a quick peck on the lips.  "Promise."
   "Good.  Now, do you want to go to bed early?" he said suggestively.
   "If you think you're up to it," I purred, kissing his neck.
   "If you keep doing that, I will be in a few seconds."
   I giggled.  "Well, let's get you into the bedroom and out of those pants
before you burst your zipper."
   "Sounds like a good idea," he stood, still holding me in his arms.
   "You haven't carried me in ages," I said, wrapping my arms around
his neck.
   "I haven't done a few things in ages.  I plan to do most if not all of
them tonight."
   "Hmmm.  Sounds like we aren't going to get much sleep then."
   "If you want to sleep, we can always do it another time," he grinned as
he
kicked the door closed and lowered me onto the bed, kissing my collarbone
while he unbuttoned my blouse.
   "No way in hell are you getting out of it," I laughed.
   "I think someone's hormones are in overdrive," he chuckled as he
pulled my blouse open and began to suck on my nipples, making me moan.  I
don't wear a bra; they're too uncomfortable.  Alex has always told me I
don't need one anyway since they're firm enough.
   "What, you don't like your wife being horny?  Afraid that that cute boy
down the hall will steal me away?"
   "No."
   "And why not?  Am I not pretty enough?" I teased.
   "No, you're the most beautiful girl I know.  I just know that that boy
doesn't know where all the spots on your body are that drive you crazy with
pleasure."
   "Really.  You don't think I could teach him?"
   "I don't think you're patient enough.  Besides, all a teenaged boy cares
about is getting off.  I, on the other hand, know how to give you five
orgasms for every one I have."
   "Really?  Prove it!" I challenged with a grin.
   "Oh, I will.  I promise." he laughed, pulling my skirt and panties off
with one quick yank.  I moaned as he climbed between my legs and lowered
his face to my pussy.
   "My, you are wet," he said, burying his tongue in between my labia.  I
felt his tongue wiggle into my vagina, making me buck and moan again.  He
did know all the ways to drive me insane with pleasure.  Lucky for me I
knew all the ones that would do the same for him.
   I came quickly, releasing the lust that had been building up all day.  I
had to stop him from licking me to another orgasm.  Not that I'd mind it,
but I wanted him inside me.  I pushed on his shoulders, and he stopped with
one last flick of his tongue over my clit, making me gasp.  I motioned for
him to stand up and crawled over the bed to him, standing on my knees.  I
pulled his shirt up, stopping briefly to suck on his nipples until he
pulled it the rest of the way over his head while I went to work on his
pants.  I unbuttoned them expertly and pulled them and his boxers down.
His cock popped up, nearly hitting me on the chin.
   He moaned as I took it into my mouth.  After a few seconds of furious
sucking, I pulled my mouth off of him, giving the underside of the head a
loving lick.  I stood and kissed him.
   "I want you inside of me," I whispered in his ear, burrowing my tongue
into his ear as if trying to follow my words into his head.  He smiled and
took me in his arms, laying us both down on the bed with him on top of me.
I gasped as he pushed himself into me gently, gradually filling me up.  I
have a small pussy, at least Alex says I do, and when he thrusts into me, I
can feel every vein as he moves.  I moaned again as he began the long, slow
strokes that I loved so much.
   After a few minutes of constant lovemaking, I rolled us over so I could
be on top for a while.  It's my favorite position, since he gets so deep in
me it feels like he's trying to push his way into my womb.  Bobbing up and
down on his cock, he wrapped his hands around my waist and pulled me down
harder onto him.  I leaned over so the topside of his dick rubbed against
my clit every time one of us moved.  I came, shuddering on top of him while
my pussy contracted around him.
   When I went limp on top of him, he kept lifting and dropping my hips so
his cock continued to pound into me, obviously trying to make good on his
promise of giving me five orgasms for every one he had.  If he kept up the
way he was going, I had no doubt that he'd do it.  I lay on top of him,
letting him do all the work as I kissed his chest, reaching down to fondle
his balls -- another thing he loved me to do.
   Before long, I was shuddering my way though another orgasm.  Even Kallie
had never been able to make me come as many times or as hard as Alex did,
and she had a very nimble tongue.
   After I recovered from my last orgasm, I began to move as well.  I knew
he was close to coming, and I wanted to come at the same time.
   Then he had a surprise for me:.  Hhe slipped a finger into my ass,
something that always drove me up the wall.  I came almost immediately,
letting out a small cry as I did so.  When I collapsed on top of him after
I had finished, he rolled over on top of me again, driving himself hard and
fast into my pussy.
   'God, he is going to make good on his promise,' I thought to myself as I
felt myself climbing for yet another orgasm.  Enjoying the sensation of him
plunging into me, I listened to the sound of his balls slapping against my
ass on every thrust.  Suddenly he grunted and pushed hard into me.  I felt
his his cock expand, spraying his semen against the back wall of my vagina.
   "Oh god!" I moaned, then went into convulsions myself as my orgasm
exploded in my head.  Alex collapsed on top of me, nearly squashing my
110-pound frame under his 200-pound bulk, and rolled over to take his
weight off me.  Throwing a leg over his, I kept his shrinking organ inside
of me, feeling the last drops of his come leak into me.  I love the feeling
of warmth I get when he comes inside of me.  The month that we had to use
condoms before the birth control pills took effect after Skyla was born was
hard on me, and on him.  He loves to squirt inside me as much as I like him
doing it.  We kissed and caressed each other in the afterglow.
   "Still want to run away with that boy down the hall?" he chuckled.
   "No.  I think you're good enough for me," I said, snuggling up to
him and closing my eyes as his warmth soaked into me.

End Chapter Two


Chapter Three
-------------

   A month later, we were packing the car for our visit back home.  Skyla
ran around Alex and I as we tried to get everything crammed in.  We had
both decided to leave a day early since it would take us two days to get to
our hometown if we took turns driving and sleeping.  Alex had two weeks for
vacation, and I decided to skip school for the second week after Spring
Break ended, giving us a few more days for our visit.
   In the end, we decided to rent a minivan for the trip.  Our car was an
old clunker that usually barely made it to the supermarket and back, and we
didn't want to risk a breakdown.  Besides, it would save money in the long
run since it got better gas mileage, and we could use it as a mini-camper.
By taking out the first seat, we were able to get a big enough area for the
cooler, extra clothing, a couple of sleeping bags, and toys for Skyla.  At
night, we reasoned that one of us could sleep while the other drove until
they got tired.  I was glad that I had gotten my license when I had turned
sixteen.
   The trip was long and tedious as car trips usually are, especially when
you only stop for gas, bathroom visits, and food.  Skyla was a little
hyperactive for the first few hours, but quickly passed out on the
backseat.
   The air conditioning was on overdrive for the trip through the desert.
The scenery was dull for most of the trip through New Mexico, Utah, and
Nevada.  I spent most of the time lost in thought despite Alex's attempts
at conversation.  I had seen the same scenery when I had come down on a bus
almost four years before at age fourteen, beaten, starving, and in need of
someone to love me again.
   I went over the last four years in my mind, wondering at how much had
happened.  I remembered when I came in the door of what soon became our
apartment, falling into Alex's arms.  I relived the moment I had found out
I was pregnant with Skyla and the day she was born, one of the happiest
moments of my life.  Then our marriage, and the days of Skyla growing up in
front of my eyes.  More than once my eyes grew teary.
   Alex understood that I didn't want to talk about what I was thinking,
but drove one handed, with his other hand hholding mine, letting me know I
wasn't alone.

   Memories of my childhood began to surface as the desert turned into
prairie, and then into the forests of Oregon.  Our hometown was located
near the Cascade Range, bordering on Washington State.  Memories of picnics
and fishing trips, spending hours with my Father and little sister looking
out over the lake.  Memories of hot days spent canning preserves in the
kitchen with my mother, which I hated, and hours sitting in uncomfortable
Sunday clothes in the old church on the edge of town, which I hated even
more.  They hadn't been bad parents, at least up until the time I turned
ten or eleven.  After that, we started to grow apart.  Mom turned a little
odd, and Dad seemed to follow her example.  What happened between Kallie
and I went against their beliefs in a way that they couldn't possibly
handle.  That had been the end of what remained of our family relationship,
and the start of real trouble.

   Stops were the interesting part of the trip.  People would constantly
mistake us for two kids and their older brother when we walked in the door.
I've been told I look no more than fourteen years old, even though I'm
seventeen now.  It's frustrating for me, although I think Alex likes me
looking as young as I do.  But Alex looks his age at 21, and Skyla of
course looks like a two year old little girl, even if she doesn't act or
talk like it most of the time.
   In Nevada, we had stopped to get gas.  The station was nearby a
supermarket, so I told Alex I was going to get us a few snacks to put in
the cooler.  He told me to go ahead, he'd meet us inside when we were done.
Then we could go to a nearby restaurant for lunch.
   I picked up Skyla, since I didn't want to leave her in the car after
three hours of solid driving.
   Skyla got the usual smiles as we walked though the automatic doors into
the (thankfully) air conditioned store.  Skyla is always getting smiles
from people, especially older women.  She's one of those children that
seems to make people want to walk up to them and coo.  It drives me nuts
sometimes, but Skyla seems to take it well.
   I picked up a cart and sat her in the child seat then wandered the
isles, picking up a few things as I went.  Shortly after I was ready to
check-out, and stood waiting for Alex to show up while the woman at the
cash register rang up the food.
   "Your little sister is adorable.  Did your mother send you down to get a
few things for dinner?" she asked me, smiling at Skyla.  She smiled back.
   I saw Alex approaching from one of the doors and looked back at the
woman distractedly.  "What?"
   "I said..."
   "Hi hon," he said, walking up and giving me a quick kiss.  The
woman looked shocked.  Of course at that moment, Skyla decided to start
begging for a piece of candy.
   "Mommy, can I have some gum?" she pleaded.  The woman's jaw dropped.
   "Mommy?" she said incredulously.  I felt a little sorry for her, but
couldn't help feel that she deserved it.  Granted, I'm a little young to
have a two year old daughter.  I had her when I was barely fifteen, after
all.  But if she thought I was around fourteen... well, let's just say she
had a right to be shocked, considering how most people felt about underage
girls having children.
   "No Skyla, we're about to eat lunch."  For once she gave in without a
fight, thank God.  I turned back to the woman.
   "Yes, she's my daughter. This is my husband," I said, motioning at Alex.
He smiled at her, trying to figure out what was going on.  I decided not to
tell her my real age, just to give her a good story to tell.  She just
stood there, her mouth still gaping open.  I took the bags and handed them
to Alex.  "Would you take these out to the car Alex, and put them in the
cooler?  I'll finish up here and meet you outside the restaurant.  Oh, and
Alex..." I wrapped my arms around him and gave him a long kiss with plenty
of tongue.  I stifled a laugh as her eyes bugged out more, if possible.
   "Hmmm, I'm going to have to carry things for you more often," he grinned
and headed for the car.  I looked at the amount displayed on the register
and paid her.
   "Keep the change," I said, not wanting to wait for her to manage to
figure out the correct change.  It was only a few cents after all.  Picking
Skyla up out of the child seat and pushing the cart next to where I had
picked it up.  I walked out, Skyla waving at the woman at the cash
register, who hadn't even picked up the money I had left on the counter.
   "What was that all about?" Alex asked as we headed for a restaurant
across the street.
   "The woman at the cash register asked me if my mother had sent me down
with my little sister to get a few things for dinner," I said simply.
   "Why would she...oh.  So that's why you kissed me," he snickered.  "And
Skyla..." he started laughing.  I couldn't keep a straight face, and ended
up joining him.  The expression on Skyla's face told us that she obviously
thought her parents had gone insane, but that just made us laugh harder.

   Skyla came alive after a day and a half of sleeping off and on, playing
with her toys, and complaining about when we would get there.  The flat
land had suddenly gone hilly, then mountainous as we entered the wooded
lands of Oregon.  She began pointing out things that Alex and I missed,
such as a small waterfall pouring off a cliff face we were driving past, a
crick bubbling along its gravely bed, or a huge tree that towered over the
others.  We stopped more as the wilderness encroached at Skyla's pleading.
   We went wading in ice cold streams, or just went for a walk at a
historical site, smelling the fresh air.  It was the first time Skyla had
seen a 'real' forest, and she was fascinated with all the wildlife.  She
would squeal and chase a squirrel or rabbit, no matter where it took her.
She wasn't afraid of anything, and more than once Alex had to carry her so
that she wouldn't go running off into the woods.
    Seeing something through a child's eyes instead of an adult's is like
the difference between looking through a clean and a slightly dirty window.
You can see as an adult, but you don't have the crystal clear, unprejudiced
view of the world that a child has.
   The trip took three days instead of two, due to our stops.  But we
didn't regret it, for the things that we saw and learned were worth it.
   We arrived in town in the early afternoon.  The drive through it had
revealed that next to nothing had changed over the last four years.  Even
old Mr. Jenkins was still sitting drunk in front of the only bar in town.
   I have memories of seeing him when I was four or five years old, still
looking as prune faced and fall-over drunk as ever.
   A light cloud of dust hung in the stagnant air.  A few scruffy children
ran past laughing, heading for god knows where.  Twangy sounds of a country
western tune spilled out the open door of Alice's Diner.  The signs on the
stores  looked a bit more faded, a new pickup truck sat in front of the
barber shop, and the potholes were a bit deeper.  It it seemed to be as it
had always been, a small, poor backwoods town on the fringes of a
progressing society, slowly dieying as it's main industry --, logging, --
died.
   But soon it fell behind us, and we headed for Alex's old home, the house
that we had fallen in love in.

   The house looked a little overgrown.  The ivy I remembered had crawled a
few feet higher on the walls, and the grass out front needed to be mowed
more than ever.
   Skyla was sleeping in the back seat.  She woke up after I climbed in
back and shook her shoulder.
   "What is it Mommy?" she asked sleepily, sitting up and rubbing her eyes.
   "We're here," I told her tiredly.  She was wide-awake instantly.
   "Really?" she jumped out of the car, trying to take everything in at
once, from the tall pines surrounding the house to the gravel of the
driveway.  She ran up to the door and tried to turn the knob.
   "Daddy, open it so I can go inside and look around!" she demanded.  Alex
was busy unloading the car, but stopped long enough to reach into his
pocket for his keys.  Then he went a little red in the face.  "Oops," he
said sheepishly.
   "You forgot the key, didn't you?" I groaned.
   "I knew I forgot something."
   "Daddy forgot the key?" Skyla asked.
   "Yes honey," I turned to Alex.  "Would the Walkers have a key?"
   "They did when I lived here, just in case  I somehow locked myself out.
But I don't know if they have it anymore."
   "Well, we might as well ask.  Besides, we need some eggs and milk."
   "I wanted to introduce them to you anyway.  Mrs. Walker will go nuts
over Skyla.  If you think Dad spoils her, just wait.  Well, let's just walk
down there.  It isn't far, and we could use a good walk after that trip."
   We headed down the road, Skyla noticing and exclaiming over almost
everything we came across.  Finally Alex just picked her up and set her on
his shoulders so we could walk faster.
   It was usually a five-minute walk, but it was ten with Skyla.
   The Walker's home an old farmhouse bordering on a little over a
hundred acres of farm land.  The yellow paint was faded and was flaking off
in places, but overall it was well kept, with the small patch of grass out
front mowed and hanging plants ringing the front porch.
   "Wait here, I'll go see if anyone's home," Alex told us, setting Skyla
down next to me.  He climbed the creaking steps and knocked on the door.  A
few seconds later the door opened.
   "Hi Mrs. Walker.  Remember me?" Alex said.
   "Alexie!  I haven't seen you in years!  What are you doing here?" a high
pitched voice squealed.  "Come in!  Come in!  Have something to eat.  You
look so thin!"
   "Sure, in a second Mrs. Walker.  First I want you to meet a couple of
people."
   "Who?" The voice questioned.  Alex turned around and motioned us toward
him.  I took Skyla's hand and walked forward.  A short, stout woman who
looked to be around seventy came into view.  She was the classic
grandmother: soft and plump, wearing an old pink dress and a faded apron.
Her gray hair was done up in a tight bun, with a few stray hairs poking
through the sides.
   "This is Jenny," Alex said, wrapping an arm around my waist as I climbed
the stairs to the porch.  "My wife."
   "Wife?  So you finally got married, thank God!  It's nice to meet you!"
she exclaimed.  "And so young and pretty too!  Are you sure it's legal?"
   "I'm seventeen, Mrs. Walker.," I said, blushing.  "And it's nice to meet
you, too."
   "Ahh.  Wait!  Who's this little one hiding behind you?" she said.
   "Skyla, say hello to Mrs. Walker," I said.
   "Hi," she said softly, obviously a little frightened by Mrs.
Walker's bustling behavior.  Alex picked up Skyla and held her on his hip.
   "This is my daughter, Skyla.  She's two." Alex said proudly.
   "Oh, and a pretty little girl she is too!  Looks just like her mother,
except for those beautiful blue eyes."
   "You look just like the lady on those cookie boxes!" Skyla exclaimed,
obviously getting over her fear quickly.
   "Skyla!" I scolded.
   "Oh, I don't mind dear," she told me.  "But I make better cookies than
you'll find in any box at the store.," she told Skyla.  "I'll bet you'd
love to have one, if it's all right with your mother."
   Skyla's eyes lit up at the mention of cookies.  "Yes!"
   "I think it would be fine for her to have one or two cookies.," I said
with a smile.
   "Good!  Let's all go inside and I'll fix us all cookies and milk." She
turned around and waddled back to the house.  Skyla squirmed out of Alex's
hands and ran after her.
   "She's certainly nice," I said.
   "She always was to me.  But I'm guessing Skyla will wolf down a dozen of
her cookies.  She's not bragging when she says her cookies are better than
any you'll find in a store."
   "We'd better follow them before they miss us.  Alexie," I teased.
   "Please, don't ever call me that again," he groaned irritatatedly.
"It's embarrassing.  It makes me feel like a little kid."
   "What?  You don't like the name Alexie?" I teased.
   "No.  But I can take it when she calls me that.  From you, I can't."
   "Ohhh, poor Alexie.  Doesn't like his nickname.," I laughed.
   "Jenny, I mean it.  Stop!"
   I just grinned and took his hand as we walked in the door.
   The Walker kitchen matched Mrs. Walker perfectly.  The faded wallpaper
even matched her apron.  An old potbellied stove sat in a corner with a
more modern electric oven sitting next to the chipped pink Formica counter.
The smell of baking bread wafted from the oven, and a small battered table
with four chairs around it sat in the middle of the area.
   Skyla was already seated at one of them, with a big glass of milk
sitting in front of her.  Mrs. Walker was busy at the counter, pouring
three more glasses of milk and stacking chocolate chip cookies on a plate.
   "Sit down, sit down.  I won't be a minute."
   Alex and I took chairs next to Skyla.  Mrs. Walker bustled over to us,
setting a glass of milk in front of each of us, then set the cookie plate
in the middle.  Skyla immediately attacked it, seeing how fast she could
stuff cookies into her mouth.
   "Slow down, Skyla.  There isn't any hurry," Alex said.  Skyla smiled and
ate a little slower.
   "Just a minute, just let me call Marvin so he can meet you two."   She
walked to the back door and yelled.  "Marvin!  Get in here, you'll never
guess who's showed up!"
   A few minutes later a man a few years older than Mrs. Walker came in the
back door.  If his wife was the classic Grandmother, he was the classic
Grandfather: tall and lanky, nearly bald with fringes of hair along the
sides of his head, and a grin showing a few missing teeth.  He wore
overalls and an old flannel shirt that looked as if it was ready to come
apart at the seams.  Taking a squinting look at Alex, he grinned.
   "Alex!  I never expected to see you here!  How's it been?"
   "Great, Mr. Walker," Alex grinned back at him.
   "Marvin, this is Jenny, Alex's wife," Mrs. Walker said.
   "Wife!  Well I'll be damned!  Actually got married, did ya?  I thought
you'd hold out for sure!" he laughed.  He turned and looked me over.  "Nice
to meet you, Jenny.  Golly you're young!" he said, looking at me though
squinting eyes.
   "I'm seventeen, Mr. Walker.  Nice to meet you, too."
   Mr. Walker turned to where Skyla was still chomping down on cookies
ravenously.  "And don't tell me this is your daughter, too!  You been busy,
haven't you, you old dog!" he laughed, slapping Alex on the back.  Alex and
I blushed.
   "Don't be crude, Marvin," Mrs. Walker scolded.  Mr. Walker ignored her
and pulled up the last chair.  Noticing that Mrs. Walker had no where to
sit, I pulled Skyla onto my lap.  She protested until I pulled the cookie
plate closer and moved her milk over.  She  continued to munch happily.
Mrs. Walker smiled at me gratefully as she sat down, pouring herself a
glass of milk.  I tentatively reached out and took a cookie.  When I bit
into it, I found out that as Alex had said, she wasn't bragging.  I could
see why Skyla was shoveling them down.  But Skyla shoveled anything sweet
down.
   "Well, what have you been doing the last few years Alex, besides getting
married and having kids?" Mr. Walker asked.
   "Well, I've been working on college.  I'll graduate next year.  Other
than that and what you said that's about it.  I've been too busy to do
anything else."
   "How long have you two been married, and why didn't you invite us?" Mrs.
Walker asked Alex.
   "A little over two years.  We lived together for a year and ten months
before we got married.  I didn't invite you because I didn't think of it.
I doubt you could have made it, it was in New Mexico."
   "A year and ten months?  Ahh.  So why did you decide to get married so
young?"
   "I knew I was going to ask her eventually, but I wanted to wait until
she was a little older.  But as things turned out, with Skyla being born
and the rest of it, I figured that it was better to marry her sooner than
later."
   "But how did you two meet?" Mrs. Walker asked.
   "We met on the school bus when I was thirteen.  I used to live near
here," I said.
   "Oh, what's your maiden name?"
   "Baker."
   "Little Jenny Baker?  We used to know your parents when you were little!
I knew you looked a little familiar.  But I haven't seen you since you were
five or six years old!" Mrs. Walker exclaimed.
   "Well, I've grown up some," I said.
   "Really!  I haven't talked to your parents in a long time...there were
rumors a few years ago that you had run away from home.  Natalie Wood said
that she picked you up late one night, running along the road, looking
beaten up.  No one's seen you for the longest time.  Now I see why."
   I flushed.
   "Jenny's parents didn't treat her very well, so she came down to New
Mexico to live with me.  We'd like to leave it at that," Alex said firmly.
I smiled gratefully at him.
   "We understand.  They always were a little mean spirited and set in
their ways.  I can see why you left, especially to go to a boy as nice as
Alex here."  Alex blushed.  "So you came back up here to visit?"
   "Yes, and just for a vacation.  We've been busy, and decided it was time
to take a little quality time together.  We wanted to see one of our old
friends and Jenny's sister, too.  We just stopped by to visit with you for
a few minutes, and to see if we could pick up some eggs and milk."  I shot
him a look.  "Oh, and do you have the spare key to the house?  I forgot it
back in our apartment in New Mexico," he grumbled.
   "Ahh, forgot the old key again, did you?  You always did.  That's why
his Dad gave us the extra key, so he could get in if he forgot his," Mr.
Walker told me.  Alex looked embarrassed.  I looked at my watch.  "Alex,
we'd better go.  Kallie and Amanda will be getting out of school soon."
   "Yeah, I guess we'd better.  So do you still have that key?"
   "Yup.  I'll go get it while Jane here gets you your milk and eggs."
Mr. Walker hobbled off to get the key, while Mrs. Walker busied herself in
the fridge again, coming up with a gallon of milk and a carton of twenty
four eggs which she set on the table.
   "There, that should keep you a while," Mrs. Walker said.
   "Thanks, we'd better go, we have to meet a couple of people down at the
high school," Alex said.  He tried to give her some money, but she refused.
   "I haven't seen you in so long.  It's a gift.  Just make sure to come
back and visit again before you leave."  We thanked her.  Mr. Walker met us
at the door, handing Alex the key.
   "Just don't loose this one," Mr. Walker laughed, handing Alex the key.
   "I won't.  It would be a long trip to get a new one." Alex said.  Mr.
Walker laughed again, and we walked out the front door.  Mrs. Walker
touched me on the shoulder and handed me a bag of cookies.
   "These are for Skyla's desert tonight.  She's a sweet little girl.  A
reflection of her mother, I'm sure.  Just don't let your parents bother
you. I never liked them much, and neither did Marvin," she whispered.  I
smiled at her gratefully, taking the cookies from her.
   "Thank you," I whispered back.  "We'd appreciate it if you wouldn't tell
anyone we're back.  I don't want to have to deal with anyone from my past
except for the ones I want to."   She gave me a pat on the cheek.
   "Don't worry, we won't.  Now follow your family before they miss you,"
she said, motioning me to follow Alex and Skyla, who were walking ahead of
me already.  I hurried after them, waving to Mr. and Mrs. Walker as I went.

End Chapter Three


Chapter Four
------------

   We got back to the house in time to unload the car and get to the high
school to hopefully pick up Kallie and Amanda.  Their spring break didn't
let out until a week after ours, so we could, if we were lucky, just grab
them before they got on the bus.  We hadn't told them we were coming,
wanting it to be a surprise.
   We pulled up to the school five minutes before it let out.  Alex waited
in front of the bus, knowing that I'd be recognized faster than he would;
if we had to, we didn't want anyone to know that we were here except for
Kallie and Amanda.  We wouldn't have to deal with people talking again, or
worse, having my parents show up at the door.  But I was a bit nervous,
after all, I hadn't seen either of them in over two years.
   Looking at the school I was glad that I didn't go there anymore.  It
looked even more run down than before, and I'm sure the teachers hadn't
gotten any better.  I had learned more in a year in the schools in New
Mexico than in all the time I had spent in that school.  The only good
times were during lunch and when Alex and I used to slip into an old
storage room while skipping class.
   Luckily, Amanda and Kallie came out of the school together.  They both
screamed in delight when they saw Alex standing in front of the bus,
running up and nearly knocking him over as they both tried to hug him at
once.
   Alex just laughed and hugged them back.  Then they started to drill him
with questions.  I couldn't hear what they were saying, but Alex obviously
wasn't answering them.  He almost had to drag them over to the van.  I got
out of the passenger seat of the van and opened the sliding rear door,
allowing Skyla to get out.  Then Kallie and Amanda spotted me.
   Immediately I was surrounded by hugs, and a few tears.  I couldn't help
myself; I hadn't seen them in so long.  I started crying, and soon we were
just a 'mass of crying females,' as Alex would put it.
   Amanda had changed a *lot*.  She wasn't quite the little girl I had
remembered her to be.  Under her t-shirt I could see definite signs of
development, and she had cut her slightly-curly light brown hair to
shoulder-length.  Her wide green eyes seemed a bit wiser now, displaying a
sense of maturity and confidence that they had lacked before.  She was
definitely growing up.  She had a figure with a small willowy waist with
lightly flaring hips that filled her jeans well.  The baby-fat was gone
from her stomach, replaced by a nice firm but soft looking surface.  I was
impressed.  My little sister was turning into quite the beauty.  I almost
envied Kallie.
    Skyla climbed out of the van.
   "My god has she grown!" Kallie exclaimed when she spotted her.  Suddenly
Skyla was surrounded in people she hadn't seen since she was a little over
a month old.  She looked scared to death, until Alex stepped in and picked
her up.  She hugged him and buried her head in his chest as if trying to
hide from the overexcited doting of her aunt and godmother.
   "This is your Aunt Kallie, and this is your Aunt Amanda, Skyla.  You've
seen them before, but you were only a month or so old at the time," I
explained.  Skyla still looked wary.
   "Skyla, you've heard my voice over the phone, haven't you?" Kallie said
softly, finally figuring out that she was scaring her with her loud
squawking.  Skyla slowly nodded.  "And you've heard Amanda's voice once or
twice, too." Skyla nodded again.  "Good, then don't be afraid of us. We
wouldn't hurt you any more than your mother or father would," Skyla smiled.
   "God she's cute though, isn't she?" Amanda exclaimed.
   "So what are you three doing here?  You never told us you were coming!"
Kallie said.
   "We came up for a vacation.  We hadn't seen you two in a few years, and
you were bugging us constantly about seeing us again.  So we drove up for
spring break."
   "So how long are you staying?"
   "Nine, ten days at the most," I told her.
   "It's just so good to see you again!" Kallie said, pulling me into a hug
again.
   "It's good to see you.  You've grown, a lot.  Me, I haven't changed much
since you last saw me."
   Kallie pushed me back, giving me a once over.  "No, you haven't.  But
I'm sure Alex likes you that way.  Cute and still looking fourteen years
old."  I just smiled.
   "Well, are you two going to come visit with us, or are you going to
stand there like two idiots?" Alex demanded.
   "As courteous as ever, Alex," Kallie said, punching him lightly in the
arm.
   "Only to you Kallie," he said sweetly.  I sighed exaggeratedly.
   "Well, I suppose I can come out for a few hours.  I'd have to call my
parents.  I don't know what I'd tell them, though," Amanda said.
   "Just tell them you're over at a friends house doing homework.  They
won't care," I told her.
   "My parents won't even notice I'm gone.  They've got six other kids to
worry about." Kallie said bitterly.
   "I thought it was five?" Alex said.
   "They had another one.  A girl.  Now I have to share my room," she
grimaced.  "At least I can move out in a year."
   "Well then, let's go," I said.  Kallie, Skyla, and Amanda climbed into
the back while Alex and I climbed in the front.  We drove out of the
school parking lot.  I never looked back.

                                 *****

   Skyla ran inside to explore the house as soon as the car pulled to a
stop and Kallie opened the door.  We hadn't let her before since we didn't
want to have to hunt her down when we went to pick up the girls at school.
   Alex went to get us all something to drink while we sat down to talk
idly about what had happened since the last time I had spoken with them.
He came back a few seconds later and handed us each a Coke, and sat down in
an armchair across from us.  I could tell he was restless by how he
squirmed around in his chair, like an eight-year-old during Sunday mass.  I
guessed that he had been cooped up inside a car too long and wanted to do
something other than sit around and watch us women talk.
   "Who feels like a swim?" Alex asked suddenly, unable to contain his
impatience any longer.
   "Swim?" Kallie asked.  "The closest pool is in Sandville."
   "Who said anything about a pool?  There's a pond a ways back through the
woods that I used to swim in all the time when I lived here."
   "But we don't have our suits with us," Amanda protested.
   "Who needs a suit?  I never used one," Alex said with an impish grin.
   "Alex!" I scolded.
   "What?" he said defensively.  "I don't see a problem.  They've both seen
us naked doing...other things.  Skyla doesn't care one way or the other.
The only ones who could be squeamish about it are Amanda and Kallie."
   "I don't have a problem," Kallie said.  "Let's go."
   "But..." Amanda said weakly, then gave in when she caught a look from
Kallie.  "Fine, let's go before I change my mind."
   "Good," Alex said, nodding his head.  "I'll get some towels, why don't
you three see if you can find Skyla."
   It was a good thing he sent three of us to find Skyla.  It looked as if
she had disappeared into thin air (again) until Amanda found her in the
attic.   She'd found a trunk full of old moth-eaten clothes, and was
playing 'dress up.'
   "Well, it looks like she needs a bath anyway," I sighed when I saw her,
cheeks smeared with dust, her hair entwined with cobwebs.
   Alex was waiting impatiently in the living room when we came down, Skyla
still protesting about us breaking up her game.  But she forgot all about
it when I told her we were going swimming.  Amanda called our parents, and
we followed Alex out the kitchen door.
   A well-worn path led to the pond, winding between the tall trees and
through the thick underbrush.  Sunbeams slanted through the branches,
almost like spotlights on the life growing beneath them.  Then suddenly the
path widened and the pond came into view.
   "It's just like you told me it looked like, Daddy!" Skyla said.  We had
to stop her from running directly into it, clothes and all.  Not that it
would have mattered all that much, considering the coat of grime on them
already.
   Skyla and Alex quickly shucked off their clothes and waded into the
pond.  Kallie, Amanda and I were a little slower, unsure about undressing
in the middle of the woods, where anyone could be watching.  Alex whistled
obscenely as we stripped.
   "You'd better stop whistling or you're going to regret it," Kallie
threatened.
   "Oh no.  Can you three even swim?  I bet I could swim circles around
you, even if you do know how to swim," Alex called, paddling out to the
center of the pond with Skyla in tow.
   "Maybe me, but you're outnumbered four to one."
   "Oh, I doubt it.  My own wife and daughter wouldn't turn on me,"
Alex said, sounding a little unsure of himself.
   "Don't bet on your wife coming to rescue you," I called sweetly, peeling
off the last of my clothing and posing seductively against a nearby tree.
Alex gaped at my display, his jaw dropping.  But I was sure something else
was rising unseen under the water.  The three of us slid into the water and
paddled toward him, eyes glinting mischievously.
   "How about you, Skyla.  Will you help defend your Daddy?" Alex asked
desperately.
   "Skyla," I called.  "I have a cookie back at the house with your name on
it."
   "Sorry Daddy," Skyla said, giving him a quick kiss on the cheek before
trying to drag him under unsuccessfully.
   "Sold out by my wife and my daughter.  I feel so...used," Alex said,
feigning terror as we closed in on him.  Alex bolted, dragging Skyla after
him and depositing her in the swallows, only to dart back into deeper
waters.  He wasn't lying; he could swim circles around us, the obvious
advantage of spending nearly every day during the summer swimming.  But we
caught up with him once we organized ourselves and surrounded him.  Skyla
cheered us on from the shallows since she didn't know how to swim.
   He immediately realized he was cornered, and waited to see what we
intended to do, looking for an avenue of escape.  He watched me warily as I
swam up to him.  I decided to use one of my most powerful tools against
him: sex appeal.
   I swam slowly up to him and wrapped my arms around his neck.  He tensed,
ready to move if I tried anything more, but I just smiled sexily.  He
looked at me warily.  Then I kissed him, slipping my tongue into his mouth.
He wavered slightly, but I knew I wouldn't be able to pull him under unless
I relaxed him a little bit more; he could still toss me easily.  So, I
pressed my body against his, all my curves molding against him.  He moaned
and closed his eyes as I reached down and grasped his semi-erect cock.  I
was considering whether to go through with it and dunk him or not, feeling
my pussy get moist.  And not from the pond water.
   Then I decided I could have him later, and attempted to yank him under.
He tried to recover from his dive, breaking the kiss as he flailed his arms
and pushed me away.  But it was too late; Kallie and Amanda had already
moved
in on him while he was occupied with me.  They jumped on him and pushed him
under.  He came up sputtering, only to be hit again by Amanda, who wrapped
herself around him.  Not only was he overbalanced, but I think that having
her breasts pressed into his face while having her slick body tightly
against his
was also a factor in his plunging under the water again.
   After one more dunking, we decided that he had gotten what he deserved.
He swam toward where Skyla was and soaked in the shallow end.
   I swam up to him.  "Mad at me?" I asked, giving him my best sad look.
   "Mad at you?  No.  I just feel betrayed by my own family, and half
drowned," he grinned sarcastically, then pulled me into his arms and kissed
me as I had him right before his involuntary submergence.  I relaxed, and
before I had a chance to react, I felt my own body being pushed under.  I
squealed into his mouth in surprise.  Then he stopped, leaving my face
barely above the murky water, still kissing him.  He pulled away slightly.
   "Thought I was going to dunk you, didn't you?" he laughed.
   "Yes," I admitted.
   "You were right."
   "What?" his supporting arms dropped away, and I went under only to feel
his arms pull me back up again, sputtering.
   "Gotcha," he grinned.
   "Jerk," I murmured, then kissed him again.  A real kiss which was not
meant
to disarm.  I felt his erection poking my belly as we pulled each other
closer.  We hadn't really had a private moment since the trip had begun,
and we were getting...desperate.  Suddenly six arms reached out and pushed
both Alex and I under.  We came up choking on pond water, the mood ruined.
   "You two looked like you needed cooling off," Kallie snickered, Amanda
and Skyla standing beside her and grinning.  We glared at them.  I looked
at Alex.  "What do you think?" I asked him.
   "Let's go for it," he said, grinning evilly.  We dove together, swimming
through the murky water until we sighted the three girl's dangling legs.  I
took Kallie and Alex took Amanda.  If they had known what was coming, they
would have moved a lot quicker than they did.  But by the time they felt
our hands wrap around their legs, they were already flailing underwater.
Alex and I surfaced next to each other, still holding our victims under
while a giggling Skyla looked on.
   "Should we let them up?" I asked Alex.
   "I don't know.  It's actually almost quiet now," I said, struggling
to keep Kallie under.
   "Yes.  It is, isn't it?  But they are our friends and family, no matter
how noisy they are."
   "Yes, I suppose you're right," I agreed.  We released our hostages and
they floated to the surface, gasping for breath.
   "Maybe that'll teach you not to interrupt us while we're kissing," Alex
chuckled.
   "You looked like you were about to do more than just kiss," Amanda
giggled.  I blushed.  Alex just grinned at her.
   "Truce?" I asked, trying to change the subject.
   "Truce," everyone agreed.  Kallie, Amanda and I swam back to the
swallows near our clothes and watched as Alex attempted to teach Skyla how
to swim.
   "He's very gentle with her, isn't he?" Amanda commented.
   "He's gentle with everyone.  Especially her," I said, watching as
Alex got her to try to float on her back, careful to never let her head go
under.
   "And you, Jenny.  I've never even seen him yell at you," Kallie said.
   "He hasn't.  He's gotten angry, but he's never raised his voice to me.
He hasn't to Skyla, either.  In fact, the only person I've ever seen him
yell at is his father, after he more or less threatened me."
   "Well, he looks like he could do some damage if he wanted to," Amanda
stated, watching his muscles flex as he held Skyla easily above the water.
"He sure hit Dad plenty hard."
   I felt something cold sink into my stomach as I heard her talk about my
father.  Kallie nudged her under the water, nodding her head in my
direction.  "I'm sorry Jenny," Amanda said apologetically.
   "Don't worry about it Amanda.  It's in the past," I sighed, leaning my
head back to feel the cool water brush against my scalp, trying to shake
the old memories away.  Amanda nodded and changed the subject.
   We climbed out of the water an hour or so later.  You can't really call
yourself 'clean' after swimming in a pond, so we trekked back to the house,
not even bothering to dress.  Alex, Skyla and I shared the master bathroom
shower while Kallie and Amanda took the big tub in the bathroom down the
hall.  We didn't bother taking turns.  We knew Amanda and Kallie wouldn't
mind bathing together, and the three of us took showers together at home
all the time, in the name of 'saving on the water bill.'  But we all knew
the real reason; it was just a lot more fun with two other people to wash
your back.
   As soon as everyone was dry and back in their clothes, Alex drove the
girls home.  I stayed behind to keep an eye on Skyla, who was by now fed up
with driving around all day.  Frankly, so was I.
   By the time Alex got back it was getting late, so we put Skyla to bed in
Alex's father's room, and went to spend some time together on the couch,
just like old times.
   "I think today was pretty successful," I said sleepily, laying my head
on his chest.
   "A full day, yes.  Full of...interesting sights," Alex said, a slightly
lecherous tone in his voice.
   "I know what you were looking at most of the day," I giggled.
   "It was kind of heard not to look, with all that skin flashing in my
face, or better yet, pressed against it."
   "Hmmm.  Yes, Kallie is becoming well endowed, isn't she?"
   "Amanda isn't half bad either," Alex added absently.
   "Looking at my little sister again, are you?" I grinned at him.
   "Yes, I am.  But my eyes kept wandering back to you," he said,
kissing me.
   "Don't try to change the subject," I said, then kissed him back.  Alex's
hand slipped between my thighs, pressing against my clit through my jeans.
I pulled my mouth from his, gasping.  "Let's go upstairs, and relive a few
more memories.  I'll even let you fantasize that it's Amanda you're with,"
I laughed.
   "When I make love to you, you're the only person on my mind," Alex said,
nuzzling my neck.
   "Does that mean I have to give up my fantasies of Harrison Ford?"  I
joked, then sighed as his hand slipped up my shirt and cupped one of my
breasts, playing with the erect nipple.
   "Harrison Ford?  No wonder you drag me to every movie he's in,"  He
tried to pull my shirt over my head, but I stopped him.
   "Let's get upstairs before we lose all control, and Skyla finds a
surprise when she comes downstairs tomorrow morning," I said, pulling my
shirt back down.  Then the couch fell away as Alex picked me up swiftly
into his arms and headed for the stairs.  "You like doing that, don't you?"
I asked, wrapping my arms around his neck.
   "Yes, but I also know it turns you on."
   "Hmm, you know me pretty well, don't you?" I said, nipping at his
earlobe as he began to climb the stairs.
   "Let's see how well," he chuckled, kicking the bedroom door shut
behind us.
   "Sounds good to me," I said as he lowered me onto the bed.

End Chapter Four


Chapter Five
------------

   "We need to get some supplies," Alex said, peering into the fridge at
the years-old contents.  "I don't even want to think about the expiration
date on the sour cream.  I know for a fact that it was in there years
before I left."
   "Well, we'll just have to go into town and pick up a few things.  We
can't live off decade old sour cream."
   "Yeah, but Sandfield is half an hour away.  I don't want to drive all
that way just for some macaroni and cheese."
   I rolled my eyes.  Macaroni and cheese was Skyla's current fad in food,
and wouldn't eat anything else unless we managed to sneak it in with a bowl
of the stuff.  "I didn't mean Sandfield.  I said town."
   "Town?  I thought you didn't want to go into town.  Hell, I don't want
to go into town either.  And what about your parents?" he said grumpily,
plopping down in one of the chairs around the kitchen table.
   "I figure we have to come out in the open sometime.  I really don't want
to stay cooped up out here for two weeks.  Besides, we have to go into
town.  We don't have enough gas to make it much further than that."
   "Gas?  How do you know how far we can get on what's left?"
   "When the needle points to empty, it generally means you need gas.  You
don't go on a half hour drive when you're running off fumes," I said dryly.
   "Fine, fine.  You're right.  Let's go, before we all get hungry enough
to start thinking about that sour cream."

                                   *****

   "One of these days I'll learn to listen to you," Alex grumbled as we
coasted down the hill to roll up in front of the gas station at the edge of
town.  The engine had died just as we were cresting the final hill leading
into town.
   "Don't worry Alex, it's just those male hormones that tell you that you
can make it just one more mile further on an empty tank of gas,"  I grinned
at him as he climbed out to fill the tank.  I looked around and decided to
get a head start on shopping.  "Alex, I'll meet you down at Hamilton's when
you're finished.  I'll take Skyla with me."  Alex mumbled something, which
I took as a yes.  I gave him a quick kiss on the cheek and helped Skyla hop
out of the van.  We headed down the street, Skyla peering curiously into
every window.
   Main Street in Kendleston was really the only street.  No one had ever
bothered to pave it.  It would raise the taxes too much, and if there was
anything the townspeople hated, it was taxes.  It really wasn't worth it
for the pitiful offering of shops.  No more than eight buildings lined the
street, ranging from the barber's shop run by old Mr. Johnston to
Hamilton's, the 'grocery store' where everyone who didn't want to bother to
drive the distance to Sandville shopped.  It was, of course, run by the
Hamilton family.  No cars were visible on the street, and if it hadn't been
for the electric lights in the stores and the more or less modern dress of
the people, it could have been a scene out of the 1800s.
   By talking to the people you wouldn't know that you were living in the
late twentieth century.  Bible thumping god-fearing people lived here, and
if you didn't attend the local church, you were considered a social
outcast.
   The old morals and ways of thinking ran deep in this backwoods town.
Women were still expected to stay home and raise the kids, while the men
went out and worked.  Most girls got married at sixteen or seventeen.  It
was a feminist's worst nightmare.  I was glad that I had gotten out when I
did, remembering the lumbering jerks who had come on to me when I was still
in school here.
   But what really caught Skyla's eye was the sign with a bright ice cream
cone hanging from the front of the small diner run by Alice Mason.  She
immediately asked for one.  I told her later, which seemed to satisfy her,
at least for as long as a two-year-old can be satisfied.
   The bell over the door jingled as Skyla and I walked through it,
bringing back memories of when I was little more than Skyla's age,
wandering through and looking at everything from the viewpoint of a person
three feet tall.  The shelves seemed huge then, now they barely reached my
chest.  Shaking my head as if to clear the cobwebs of the past from my head
I wandered the small store with Skyla in tow, picking up this and that and
tossing it into the basket that I had picked up at the door.  I had to keep
Skyla's hands out of everything, which I was quite used to by now.
   As it was near noon, and the store was empty.  A small fan on a shelf
over the counter kept the hot air moving lazily through the store, rustling
the graying hair of Mrs. Hamilton as she watched amusedly while I
maneuvered Skyla expertly through the isles.
   Alex walked in a few minutes later.  Mrs. Hamilton eyed him critically
as he walked over to Skyla and I.
   "Hi hon, got everything yet?" he asked, not quite so grumpy as he had
been while filling the gas tank.  Mrs. Hamilton looked surprised.
   "Not quite yet.  I still need to pick up a few things here," I answered,
reaching into the battered cooler in the back corner of the store to fish
out a few soft drinks.
   "Daddy, can we get some ice cream?" Skyla pleaded.
   "I don't know, Skyla.  Depends on how long it takes to finish up here,"
Alex said, picking her up and holding her on his hip.
   "Why don't you take her over and get her a cone, it'll only take me a
couple of minutes more to finish up and pay," I told him.
   "Sounds good to me.  We'll get you a chocolate, right?" he said with a
humorous gleam in his eye, knowing my weakness for chocolate ice cream.
   "If you get anything else you'll regret it," I smiled and gave him a
peck on the lips.  He wandered out of the store, headed for the diner down
the street.
   I found the last few things I needed and set the full basket on the
counter.  Mrs. Hamilton began to ring them up as I pulled my checkbook from
my purse.
   "You're Jenny Baker, aren't you?  I haven't seen you in here for a good
four years," she stated, not looking up from her cash register.
   "I moved a few years back," I said, surprised that she remembered me.
"It's Jenny Braxton now, though.  I got married a couple of years ago."
   "Really?  You don't look nearly old enough to be married, even around
here."
   "I married Alex when I was fifteen, after living with him for a while.
And I had Skyla, the little girl you saw my husband leave with."
   "Braxton...I seem to remember that name.  Didn't they used to live
around here?"
   "Alex did.  His father still lives here theoretically, but he's out of
town most of the time.  We met here, then moved down to New Mexico.  We're
just up here for a couple weeks of vacation."
   She rang up the last item on the ancient cash register.  I paid her,
gathering up the bags of groceries as well as I could.
   "Well, have a good vacation.  Good to see you again," she said with a
smile.
   "Thanks.  See you," I said then walked out the front door.  I headed for
the van, intending to drop the groceries off before joining Alex and Skyla.
   "Well if it isn't Jenny Baker, the local lesbian," leered another
familiar voice.  I paused as the memories of torment flooded back of
bullies all through elementary and high school, of people who seemed to
think that by hurting others they could boost their own self-worth.
   Barely managing to recover, I continued to walk toward the van on shaky
legs, ignoring the voice.  Another voice, slightly higher than the first,
joined in.
   "What, you ain't even gonna talk to us, Miss Priss?  Come on, we just
want to talk to you, after all this time," the voice said mockingly.  I
turned to face them.
   "I have nothing to say to you," I said coldly.  It was all three of the
Maine brothers.  They had been bullying me since I was in second grade,
having only gotten worse in the last few years before I left.  Those years
that I wanted to forget.  A scruffy hand reached out and grabbed my
shoulder.
   "What, you can't even say hello to your old buddies?" Jack sneered.
   "Let go!" I shouted, pulling away from him.  A foot reached out and
tripped me.  I fell back, dropping the groceries and grating my hands on
the sharp gravel underneath me as I fell.  My hands slipped and my head hit
the gravel with a thud.  I lay on my back in the middle of the road, my
head swimming.  Suddenly I felt a weight on top of me.
   "Come on, give me a kiss for old times sake, baby," Harry growled.  I
tried to fend him off, but he pressed harder against me.  The other two
managed to grab my arms and pin me.  I screamed, but that only seemed to
egg them on.  Harry pressed his lips against mine, I nearly threw up as I
felt his tongue wash wetly against my lips.  I felt a hand grab one of my
breasts roughly and I sobbed, trying to push them away.
   Suddenly a thud followed by a sickening crack split the air to my left.
Jack screamed in pain, and my arm was free.  Harry looked up in surprise.
A fist met his face, and he tumbled off of me, holding his nose.  A foot
slammed into his crotch, making him double up in pain.  Jake, who had been
holding my other arm, managed to stand up.
   "All right motherfucker, whoever you are, now you're going to get it,"
he snarled menacingly.
   "I don't think so, asshole," a familiar voice snarled back.  Alex was
standing over me with his fists balled up at his sides.  His face was a
mask of fury and hate.  Jake swung and Alex blocked it, sending his fist
into Jake's belly.  He grunted but managed to stay erect.  He tried to
swing again, but Alex's fist intercepted his face before he could get any
power behind it.  His head flew back.  Alex's leg lunged out, catching him
in the kneecap.  One of Jake's knees bent in the wrong direction.  He fell
to the ground screaming, holding his knee.
   The three boys lay around me moaning in pain and cursing.  I tried to
sit up, but my head spun and I sank back.
   "Don't move," Alex said softly.  Strong arms lifted me.  I buried my
face in the crook of his shoulder and cried like I was ten years old again.
"Don't worry, it's over.  They aren't going to hurt you again," Alex
promised, carrying me over to the van and settling me into the passenger
seat.
   "I'll be back in a second," he said, wiping a tear off my cheek.
   "Don't go," I sobbed and held onto him.
   "Don't worry, I'll just be a second," he said, gently pulling
my arms off him.  Skyla crawled up and sat on my lap, hugging me.  I
wrapped my arms around her, grateful for the comfort.
   Alex reappeared a minute later, climbing into the passenger seat.  "You
don't need a doctor, or anything?" he asked worriedly.  I shook my head.
   Alex nodded and started the van, driving carefully around where my three
attackers still lay prone in the road.  A few people had appeared, looking
at them.  One or two of them had grins on their faces.  The Maine brothers
were not well liked, by anyone.
   I closed my eyes, and the next thing I knew we were pulling up to the
house.  Reaching out I opened the door when the car stopped, but fell back
against the seat when my head began to swim.  Alex hopped out of the van
and opened the passenger side door.  Skyla climbed out, and I tried to get
out on my own again.  My head thrummed and I nearly fell, until Alex caught
me.
   "Stop that," Alex scolded.  "You're going to hurt yourself more.
Just let me carry you."
   "All right," I grumbled, letting him pick me up again.  I watched the
scenery flow by as he carried me carefully upstairs and lay me on the bed
in his old room.  Skyla had followed us silently, watching with a worried
look on her face.
   "Skyla, don't let Mommy move, okay?  I'll be back in a second," Alex
said.  I started to protest but he silenced me with a 'no nonsense' look.
Skyla nodded obediently and climbed up on the bed beside me, watching every
move I made.  The way I was feeling, I didn't make many.
  Alex reappeared with a bowl of warm water, a couple of washcloths, a
small towel, and a tray of ice.  He set them on the dresser, then walked
over to the bed and began unbuttoning my blouse.
   "What are you doing?" I asked.
   "Taking your clothes off.  You'll be more comfortable, and I want to
make sure you don't have scrapes and bruises to match the ones on your
hands anywhere else."
   Sighing I gave in to his mothering, only moving to lift my hips to help
him pull my jeans off.  I at least felt cooler in the excessively warm room
when my clothes were gone.  He went to the dresser and fetched the
washcloths and water.  I grimaced as he wetted one of them and used it to
gently wash the dirt and imbedded gravel from my hands and elbows.
   When he had them clean to his satisfaction, he wet the washcloth again
and washed my face, wiping away the tear streaks that wound their way
through the dust and sweat which had accumulated on my face.  He finished
with one final swipe over my chin.  I smiled when he kissed me gently.
   "Think you can roll over?" he asked.  In response I rolled over, taking
care not to bump my head more than needed.  "Good girl.  Want a treat?" he
grinned.  I turned my head and glared at him.  He continued to smile as he
swept my long hair aside, pulling it into a loose ponytail which he lay to
my side.
   He examined my bump while I watched him out of the corner of my eye.  He
whistled.
   "Nice one you have there.  There isn't any blood, but I'm guessing
you'll be out of commission for a day or two."
   "But we're on vacation," I complained.
   "Well, vacations are for relaxing.  So you'll be relaxing here, with
Skyla and I as your humble servants."
   "Hmmm.  That has promise.  As long as my main servant is you," I giggled
and moaned as the motion sent a shock of pain through my skull.  "I'm told
I tip well," I grinned at him with a lusty glimmer in my eyes.
   "Are you flirting with your doctor, ma'am?" he said, acting as if he was
shocked.
   "Only with the cute ones," I failed to repress another giggle.  "Now
please stop making me laugh, it hurts my head." I moaned.
   "Yes ma'am," he smirked as I rolled my eyes.  He wrapped a few cubes of
ice in the towel and set it on the bump on the back of my head.  "Skyla,
hold this here please?" Alex said.  Skyla nodded, by now used to not
knowing what we were talking about half the time.  Her small hand gripped
the makeshift ice bag, holding it gently to my head, while Alex's hands
caressed my back.
   "Now I want you to take a nap for a while," he ordered, then kissed the
nape of my neck.  His fingers dug gently into the muscles of my back. I
moaned as he worked on the tense muscles, making me go limp on the
bedspread.  He certainly knew how to get me to sleep quickly.  My eyes
closed in a relaxed haze.  When his fingers went to work on the small of my
back, I went out like a light.

End Chapter Five


Chapter Six
-----------

   I woke with a gasp to find an ice cube slowly melting in the middle of
my back.  I reached back and swept it off, pressing my hand to the cold
spot it had left behind.  My head ached as if someone had pounded a nail
through the back of my skull, then used an axe to dig it free.
   As I slowly came to my senses, I realized that two bodies were pressed
against mine.  Skyla lay on my right side.  It looked as if she had fallen
asleep still holding the makeshift ice pack to my head.  Her hand had gone
limp as she fell asleep, and the towel that had been holding the ice in
place had come apart, spilling the few remaining unmelted pieces.
   I lay back down and tried to go back to sleep, but the room was
stiflingly hot.  The fact that my brain seemed to be trying to escape the
confines of my skull wasn't helping much either.
   'God I need an aspirin,' I thought.  I sat up, holding my head in my
hands, then moved to climb over Skyla.
   "Where are you going?" Alex asked sleepily, my movement waking him.
   "I need aspirin.  Bad," I groaned.  He took my shoulder and pushed
me gently back onto the bed.
   "Don't move.  I'll get it."
   "I'm not helpless," I grumbled.
   "No, you're not.  But you're also the one that's injured."
   I sighed.  "Fine, I'll let you get it.  But give me a hug first," I
said, pulling him against me.  He winced as my arm pressed into his ribs.
   "I'm the one that's injured, huh?  Take that shirt off, I want to take a
look."
   "It's nothing.  I'll go get that aspirin," he mumbled, then tried to
climb out of the bed.  I grabbed his arm and pulled him back down.
   "You aren't going anywhere until you take that shirt off," I commanded.
   "Jenny, it's nothing.  It's just a little bruise, that's all.  One of
them got a punch in before I...finished him off."
   "Let me see," I glowered at him, my arms crossed.
   "All right," he said resignedly, then pulled his shirt over his head.  I
pushed him onto his back, moving his arms over his head.  A large purplish
bruise on the right side of his ribcage showed where Jack must have landed
a punch before Alex broke his arm.  Alex winced as I tenderly probed it,
his breath hissing through his teeth.
   "Do you have to poke it?" he complained.
   "Does it hurt when you move?  Any trouble breathing?" I asked, ignoring
his complaints.
   "Only when you touch it or I bend over.  I don't have any problem
breathing."
   "Good," I said, pleased.  "Then you probably don't have any cracked
ribs."
   "Yes nurse.  Can I go get that aspirin now?  After all this I think I
need one or two myself."
   I nodded.  He moved to get up.  "Alex?"
   He groaned and flopped back against the pillows.
   "Yeah?"
   "Thank you," I kissed him and gave him a hug, careful not to touch
his bruise.  His skin felt wonderful against mine, and he hugged me back.
   "Hey, I told you I wouldn't let anyone hurt you.  Sorry I got there so
late."
   "You got there just in time," I smiled up at him.  He smiled back and
climbed out of bed, heading for the bathroom.  I heard him digging through
the medicine cabinet, cursing under his breath as he looked for the
aspirin.
   I lay back and pulled Skyla against me, who was still sleeping.  Then I
heard the front door slam.  I tensed, thinking unreasonably that the Maine
brothers were back, even though they would be in no shape to beat up on
anyone for at least a few weeks.
   "Anyone home?" Kallie's voice yelled.  I relaxed, thankful that it was
only Kallie.
   "Didn't you two ever learn how to knock?" I heard Alex call down the
hall.
   "Nope," I heard Kallie's voice retort. "Where's Jenny?  Is she okay?"
   "In the bedroom.  Down the hall first door on the right."
   A second later Amanda and Kallie walked into the room, then rushed over
and immediately began poking and prodding me.
   "Hey!" I protested as Kallie tried to roll me over.
   "You're all right?  They didn't hurt you?" Amanda asked.
   "Hurt me?  No, I just fell.  I have a headache and a little skin came
off my hands, but that's it."
   By now Skyla was wide awake and from the look on her face was wondering
how all these people got into the room.  I was wondering a little about
that myself.
   "Jack and Jake are in the hospital, and Harry has this big splint on his
nose!" Kallie blurted.  "Everyone's saying that Alex did it!"
   "So I did," Alex said, walking into the room with two glasses of water
and a bottle of aspirin.  "The bastards deserved it."
   Amanda and Kallie turned to gape at him as he walked in, his shirt still
off.
   "How did you manage to beat up all *three* of them?" Kallie gasped.
   "I was really pissed off.  They were hurting Jenny.  So I stopped
them," Alex said matter-of-factly.  The two girls just sat there staring at
him for a moment as he handed me a glass and a couple of aspirin.  I
swallowed them, then watched as Alex swallowed one himself.  Then Kallie
noticed the bruise.
   "They did that to you?" she asked wide-eyed.  Amanda and Kallie nearly
bowled Alex over as they rushed to give him a through examination.  Alex
protested mildly, seeming to condemn himself to being manipulated by the
two.  At least until Amanda tried to pull his pants off 'to give him a more
through examination' she explained.  Alex pushed them away.
   "I'm fine," Alex stated firmly.
   "You're sure?" Kallie asked.  She may argue with him at every
opportunity, but I know she cares about him.
   "For the thousandth time, yes!  First Jenny and now you two.  Why can't
women ever listen?" he said woefully, tossing himself back on the bed and
covering his eyes.  Amanda beamed as he called her a woman; he didn't seem
to notice.  But I did.  She always acted that way around Alex.
   'She must have a crush on him!' I was shocked at the realization.  Then
I smiled.  'And why not?  He's only treated her better than any other man
or boy she's ever known.'
   "What are you smiling about?" Kallie demanded, breaking me out of my
reverie.  "When those two talk to the cops, Alex's going to be in big
trouble.  They'll lie as much as they can get away with."
   "I doubt it," Alex grinned.
   "What did you do?" I asked, giving him a suspicious look.
   "Nothing.  I just explained the circumstances to him," he said
innocently.
   "What did you do?" I insisted.
   "They assaulted you.  They hit me first, so they also assaulted me.  So
I told them that I would have them brought up on charges of assault, and a
couple other charges,"  He was leaving something out.  I could tell.  He
never could hide anything from me.
   "What might be the 'couple of other charges' be?" I growled.
   "Does it matter?" he said defensively.
   "Yes, it does.  Now tell me, before I make you sleep on the couch!"
   He sighed.  "Attempted rape of a minor," he said in a small voice.
I gaped at him.  Amanda and Kallie seemed as shocked as I was.
   "What?" I gasped.
   "I had to have something besides assault to threaten them with, didn't
I?  And you are seventeen, and that means you're legally a minor.  You were
on the ground with one of them on top of you."
   "You still had no right!" I shouted in rage.
   "You were hurt.  I wasn't thinking clearly.  It sounded good.  And I
really doubt that they'll bother us again."
   "Fine," I groaned.  I was still a little angry, but I never could stay
mad at him for long.  He just gives me one of his sad looks and I melt.
"But don't do it again."
   "I don't go around threatening to charge people with attempted rape
every day," Alex chuckled.  I had to grin.
   "I think you're forgetting something," Kallie broke in.
   "What?" I asked her.
   "Those three may not bring charges against Alex, they're smart enough to
figure that out.  Barely," She added.  "But they'll convince themselves it
wasn't a fair fight.  Then they'll come after you again.  Especially Alex.
Jake may not be able to walk for a while, but the other two have friends
just as bad as they are."
   I paled.  "Alex, what if she's right?"
   "Don't worry.  We just won't go into town again," he said.  I was
grateful that he didn't mention that I was the one who made us go into town
in the first place.
   "They know where you're staying," Kallie said darkly.
   "There's a shotgun downstairs.  I doubt they'll try anything, and if
they do we'll just call the sheriff."
   "I don't know," I said worriedly.
   "Don't worry," Alex said, giving me a squeeze.
   "All right, if you say so," I squeezed him back.  I couldn't shake the
feeling that it wouldn't be quite that easy.

                                  *****

   I was feeling much better by that evening.  Alex all but forced me to
stay in bed all day, despite my protests.  By five o'clock that evening I
felt like a caged lion, and was in a similar mood.  Sure, it was a posh
cage, with people to tend to my every whim.  But I would have rather been
up and moving around.  So I did the next best thing; I annoyed my captors.
   After the tenth glass of water I called for, and the fifth trip to get
the water at just the right temperature, they were glaring at me. When I
asked Alex to hold the glass while I drank since I was 'Just too weak to do
it myself,' he broke.
   "Alright, alright.  I give.  Get up and do what you feel like, but don't
think I'll be there to catch you if you get dizzy and fall," he warned.
   I slid out of bed and kissed his cheek.  I wrapped my robe around myself
and smiled at him.  Despite his warning, I knew he would be there if
possible to catch me if I did fall.  Alex followed me as I walked out of
the bedroom, heading for the bathroom down the hall.  He followed me in.  I
sighed in exasperation.
   "Why are you following me?"
   "You might get dizzy, fall and crack your head again.  If you're
planning on taking a bath, you could get dizzy and slip, knocking yourself
out.  You could drown.  Or you could slip getting out of the tub, and crack
your head again.  I'm watching you so that won't happen," he said
matter-of-factly.
   "I think you're being a little paranoid, don't you?"
   "No.  I think that you won't stay in bed, so I'll make sure you don't
get hurt while being out of it.  No matter what you think, you still have a
nice bump on the back of your head.  You can't recover fully in just a few
hours."
   "Fine.  I was going to take a nice long bath.  I was going to invite you
anyway.  So you can satisfy your paranoia, and I'll have someone to wash my
back."
   "Sounds good to me," he grinned.
   "Well, then get out of those clothes.  I'll run the bath.  I think we
both need a good soak," I said, sniffing the air.
   "You'd still smell great even if you didn't take a bath for a week
during a heat-wave," he said lovingly, watching me bend over to stop up the
drain and turn on the hot water tap.
   "You just want to get in my pants.  But, since I don't have any on, I
suppose you'll have an easy time of it," I flirted, letting my robe fall
open slightly to his gaze.
   "Well, I'd better get out of mine then," he said, raising an eyebrow at
my display.
   I watched him undress with a sexy smile on my face.  His semi-erect cock
popped into view when he pulled down his boxers.
   "Now I think you're the one that's overdressed, madam," he said.  With a
quick step forward, he pushed the thin robe over my shoulders, letting it
drop to the floor.  I stepped back with a slight smile on my face, letting
my hand slip down his chest.  I stopped slightly after his navel and let my
hand drop, denying him the expected touch.
   I raised my hands over my head and stretched luxuriously, drawing my
breath in and holding it as my muscles pulled taught.  My stomach arched
toward him, breasts jutting firmly in front of me, pink nipples erect.  He
groaned.  I laughed silently to myself, knowing the torture I was putting
him through.  Alex says I'm beautiful, and I use it to my full advantage.
Or rather, to our advantage.  My body has the traditional lines; my hips
are slim despite having Skyla two years before, my stomach flat and firm,
my waist slim in proportion to my petite frame, tiny in comparison to the
average woman. Alex loved long hair, as he had told me once.  I had let it
grow long in our years together, and now it reached the small of my back in
long, dark brown waves.  It would have been a pain to take care of if Alex
hadn't been so willing to help me with it.  He loved to brush my hair,
letting his fingers trail through it as he worked it over with a brush,
gently working the tangles out as he came across them.
   The water was over a foot deep in the tub by this time, so Alex and I
stepped in.  He put his hands on my waist to steady me as I climbed in.
The sides of the tub were high enough to make getting in almost like
climbing over a fence, at least for someone barely over five feet tall.  We
both hissed in pain as the hot water washed against the skin of our feet
and shins, but quickly adjusted to the heat.  He didn't remove his hands
from my waist as he sat, pulling me down with him.  He supported me easily,
then gently lowered me until I was resting comfortably against his chest.
The water had risen as our bodies displaced the bath water.  Twisting
around in his grasp I turned and hugged him while the water lapped at the
small of my back, feeling like small wet hand flicking against the skin.
   I sighed and went limp against him, except for a gentle stroking with my
fingers along the sides of his torso.  I felt like purring as he wet a soft
washcloth and began to wash my
back, working with the gentle touch he always seemed to be ready to use if
you would just let him.  I almost protested when he paused.  Then I
realized that he was just turning off the water, which by now was rolling
in gentle waves over my shoulder blades.
   "I'm sorry I was such a witch today," I said, groaning as he worked the
knots out of one of the more complaining muscles.
   "I'm used to it," Alex said with a grin.
   "Used to it, eh?  What do you mean 'used to it'?" I giggled, splashing a
little water at him.
   "You must be a witch.  No one can be as beautiful as you are without
using some sort of spell."
   "Really?  And you don't think that the hours I spend in the bathroom
have anything to do with it?" I smiled, reaching up to wrap my arms around
his neck.  I rested my chin on his chest, looking up at him.  He paused in
his ministrations to my back.
   "You know as well as I do that you only wear makeup on special
occasions.  And you spend only a little more time than I do in the
bathroom.  Besides that, there is other proof to my suspicions."
   "Really?" I said, raising an eyebrow.  "And what proof is that?"
   He pressed his palms against my cheeks, staring into my eyes.  "I know
because you enchant me every time I see you.  All I know is that I can't
resist you, and I don't think I ever will be able to."
   "Does that scare you?"
   "No.  It makes me love you more, since I know you feel the same way
about me."
   "Why do you flatter me so much?  I'm already married to you.  I thought
men only used flattery when they wanted something."
   "You're right.  As always.  I do want something."
   "So what do you want?  Money?  Sorry, I left my purse on the bed,"
I said playfully.
   "Money?  No.  I want you."
   "Really?  And if I say no?" I used my arms to leverage myself up until
my face was only inches from his.
   "Then your body will say yes," he chuckled, sliding a hand between us,
searching for my pussy.  He found it.
  I groaned and kissed him, darting my tongue into his mouth.  I gasped as
his hand retreated, running smoothly over my pussy and clit.  I gave him
the sexiest look I could manage and slid myself down over his cock, its
length sliding through my wet pussy lips and over my clit in a very
satisfying way.  I slipped up and down his body, his cock spreading my
pussy lips like a hotdog in a bun.  A few seconds later I was panting, the
feeling of the hot skin from his cock brushing against the outside of my
labia was making me feel as if I was lost in a cloud.  Alex groaned as his
cock caught at the entrance to my pussy, then popped free before it
entered.
   'Sweet torture,' I thought hazily, continuing my slow motions. I was
getting close to coming, and from the look of concentration on his face, he
was too.  'But having semen floating in our bath water just won't do.' I
grinned as the thought flashed through my mind.  I lifted myself a little
higher on the next stroke and slid him slowly inside me.
   "Unnnnnghh..." I grunted as I felt him slide into my belly.  I felt full
-- delightfully full.  His cock rasped against my clit at the perfect
angle.
   "I think your body says yes," Alex groaned.  I answered with a gasp as I
buried him inside me completely.
   I rested for a moment, getting used to the sensation.  Then I started a
slow, rhythmic pumping.  My nipples drug over his damp chest hair, sending
little spikes of pleasure down my torso to join the waves from my vagina
and the bolts from my clit.  Closing my eyes, I let my mouth hang open
slightly, gasping in the hot, moist air of the bathroom.  I felt like I
could keep up the gentle pace for hours, feeling his hardness pushing in
and out of me, bumping against my cervix on the in-stroke.  Then I felt
Alex's hands on my waist.  I opened my eyes and looked at him questioningly
as he pulled me against him and refused to let me move.
   "My turn," he grinned.
   I was about to ask what he meant when he pulled me up until the head of
his cock was barely inside me, just nestled between my inner lips.  Then he
kissed me hard, almost sucking the breath out of me.  It certainly cut off
any questions I had, as I became absorbed in our kiss.  The kiss broke
slowly, until our faces were hovering inches away from each other.  I could
feel his breath brushing against my face, making my bangs move slightly in
air current.  Then he smiled, and impaled me sharply on his cock.  My eyes
went wide, and a small shriek of surprise escaped my lips which quickly
climbed to a cry of pleasure.  The sudden burst of ecstasy traveled my
spine and flashed into my mind, obscuring the sudden shock.  Suddenly I
found myself in a mix of raw lust.  Alex continued to thrust upwards into
me, while lifting me by the waist and bringing me down in sharp smack.
   Vaguely feeling the bath water rushing around our flailing bodies, I
lost all track of what was going on around me as we settled into one of the
most intense, fast, and hard love making sessions we've ever had.
   His rapid thrusts made me loose track of the out-strokes.  It felt like
we was plowing into me forever, my pussy somehow magically taking foot
after foot of cock inside me, with no end in sight.  Fireballs of pleasure
ripped from my belly and blasted their way upward through my body,
screaming along my nerves until I thought my head might explode.
   I vaguely remember myself wailing in pleasure until my lungs ran out of
air, breathing in, and wailing again. The animal centers of my brain
overran the logical centers, and I lost what little control I had left.
   My head thrashed in circles while my wet hair whistled through the air.
I instinctively writhed in Alex's gasp, trying to get deeper penetration,
faster thrusts until I could feel the orgasm growing in my belly.  Dim
sounds of Alex's groans filtered through the pleasure, and knew he must be
close as well.
   We charged onward, waves of water cresting the sides of the tub as our
bodies whipped it into a froth like hundred mile an hour winds on the open
sea.  One final scream built in my throat, slowly rising in volume as I
felt the force of orgasm cut through my mind like a laser through an ice
cube.
   "Aaunnnnggghhh!" I screamed, then my jaw clamped shut as the pleasure
spasms overtook my body.  Alex's cries joined mine, and then everything
went
black.

                                    *****

   I woke up what seemed to be a few seconds later.  Groaning, I shook as
an aftershock rolled through me.
   'God, no one pull the plug on the tub or I might just follow the water
down the drain,' I thought deliriously.
   "Mommy, are you okay?" I heard Skyla ask with a slight edge of fear in
her voice.
   "Skyla?" my head snapped up, looking up over the edge of the tub.  The
three girls stood at the open bathroom door.  Kallie and Amanda's mouths
hung open with a glazed look in their eyes.  Skyla stood wide eyed next to
the tub and looked down at us, her head barely clearing the rim.
   "I'm fine, honey.  I'm just feeling really, really good," I said with a
weak smile, letting my head rest on Alex's chest again.  She didn't look
entirely convinced.
   "What are you three doing here?" Alex demanded.
   "We were coming back from the pond, and we heard Jenny screaming.  So we
ran up here to find out what was wrong.  The door was unlocked, so we went
in," Kallie said sheepishly.
   "We thought you were being murdered or something," Amanda added quickly.
   "Hardly," I laughed.  Somehow I found the strength to get up on wobbly
legs.  Alex grabbed my waist again, steadying me.  He didn't look to steady
himself, either.  Looking around, I wondered how we managed to get so much
water on the floor.
   "Mommy, what's that white stuff?" Skyla asked innocently, pointing
between my legs.  I looked down to see a stream of Alex's semen and my
juices running down my thighs.
   "Ooops," I giggled, embarrassed.  I used a second towel to clean myself
up the best I could, then dried off.
   "I'll tell you later, Skyla.  It'll take a while to explain, and right
now I'm a little tired," I said, grimacing inwardly about trying to explain
the 'birds and the bees' to a two year old.  Skyla just nodded.
   "Well, if you're all done staring at us, we're going to go take a nap,"
Alex said, grinning at Kallie and Amanda, and then turned to Skyla.  "Come
on honey, it's about time for your nap too."  She nodded again and followed
us from the bathroom, looking like she was deep in thought.  Kallie and
Amanda looked after us, then looked at each other.
   We curled up on the bed together, and quickly fell asleep.  But not
before we heard the door to the bedroom down the hall click shut.

End Chapter Six


Chapter Seven
-------------

   The phone rang that night as the three of us sat eating dinner.  Kallie
and Amanda had gone home an hour or so earlier.  But I wondered how long it
would take my parents to find out that we were back in town, and for them
to figure out where Amanda had been going every night after school.  They
wouldn't approve of it, and would find someway to punish her, even if they
were afraid of what Alex might do.  I hadn't thought about her when I
decided to go into town, and I kicked myself for not thinking of her first.
But I told myself that their reasons for treating me like they did were
completely different than for Amanda lying to them about where she was
going.
   Somehow I couldn't quite convince myself of it, though.  If they could
do it to one daughter, they could do it to another.  And that had been
haunting me ever since I had left her behind.  Even more so when I found
out that she and Kallie were occasional lovers.  Buried deep was a fear
that they would be discovered.  I knew they were always careful; Kallie
always made sure that if she did something 'wrong' she wouldn't get caught.
But I worried that Amanda wouldn't be able to keep the secret as well as
Kallie had.
   I tried to turn my thoughts away from my parents.  It made it hard for
me to eat.  The cold lump in