AWLL 3 - Book 1 - Suzanne
Michael Loucks
Copyright © 2015-2020 Michael P. Loucks
First publication date: 2020-01-01
First revision publication date: TBD
You may contact the author at: author@michaelloucks.com
https://a-well-lived-life.com/
For JJ
Prologue
Summer of 1999
“This is very nice,” I said, walking up the driveway of the house that Eduardo and Elyse had built in Aurora, but in the Oswego School District.
“I thought you would approve,” Elyse replied. “Hardwood floors throughout, and an unfinished basement for now.”
“Sauna?”
“Obviously!” she said.
“Matthew will be fourteen in two years, which is when Melanie and I…”
Elyse laughed, and nodded, “And so long as Chelsea isn’t here, there is ZERO to worry about with that kid. She’s just biding her time. She turned fifteen, but she’ll have to wait a couple of years for her intended to go through puberty!”
“Show me the rest of the house?”
We walked through the two-story house which had paper covering the new wood flooring. At the top of the stairs was a large master bedroom with a walk in closet, and a private bath with a whirlpool tub and large shower. Down the hall were three bedrooms, one each for Matthew and Michael, and a guest room as well, along with a shared bathroom.
We went back downstairs to the living room, then through the dining room into a large kitchen with a central island, and then into a den with a beautiful fireplace. Down a short hall was a bathroom and laundry room. Completing the circuit of the floor we came to a study. We traced our way back to the door to the unfinished basement which was large, though not quite as large as the one in the house in Kenwood.
We opened the sliding doors of the walk-out basement and stepped into a modest back yard, where workmen were installing a fence.
“When do you plan to move?” I asked.
“Next Saturday. There really isn’t much to move. All the beds and other furniture belong to you, so it’s really clothes, books, games, photo albums, computers, video game consoles, and that kind of stuff. Eduardo is keeping the townhouse, so the furniture stays there. We’re getting all new stuff for the house, and it’ll be delivered this week. Eduardo hired an interior decorator to help us with that, and a kitchen consultant to deck out the kitchen with everything we’ll need.”
“A good application of money! Where’s the school?”
“K through 5 is about a mile away, the Junior High is about two miles away, and the High School is close to downtown Oswego. They have land for the new High School selected, but it won’t be built for a few years. The new land is about three miles from here.”
“And the train?”
“Metra’s Route-59 Station.”
“I know where that is. How long to get there from here?”
“About twelve minutes. The express is 39 minutes to Union Station, and then it’s a six minute walk.”
“And the drive?”
“Don’t fucking ask!”
I chuckled, “The ‘Hillside Strangler’ strikes again. You should have waited for three years. They’re supposed to fix that starting in 2001!”
“The train is awesome, though. I can read, work, or snuggle with Eduardo. When he’s not traveling, he’ll take the same trains.”
“Too bad there’s no ‘bar car’ on the BNSF line,” I chuckled.
“So, Dad, is everything fine here for your boys?”
“It is. They both told me they love the house, and I got week-by-week construction updates from them when you brought them home on Sundays.”
“I’ll probably bring them into the city on Saturdays and then back here after the family dinner on Sunday.”
“I’d appreciate that.”
"Your boys wouldn’t tolerate any less! How is Albert handling it?'
I chuckled, “You mean Mr. ‘I have my own room now’?”
“Birgit must be climbing the walls!”
“She’s laid claim on your room, but Kara, Jess, and I haven’t decided what to do just yet.”
“Liz? Natalie? Some other girl from your harem?” Elyse teased.
“What harem?” I chuckled. “Liz is the only girl outside the house I’m involved with. I’m mentoring Natalie.”
“Uh-huh, ‘mentoring’.”
“She and her mom had a VERY long talk about what happened in Russia, and to coin a phrase, ‘what happens in Russia stays in Russia’. Natalie has a boyfriend. Steve-approved, of course.”
“Of course. You’ve been very circumspect about new girls.”
“I was on that trajectory,” I said. “Jesse, Birgit, and I did visit Sweden last summer, and I saw Magda, but she was involved with someone, and you know my rules. Elena and I haven’t managed to get our busy schedules together. And, I didn’t tell you, but Karla has a steady boyfriend. Also Steve-approved.”
“You don’t tell me ANYTHING about your girls, and haven’t for over a year!”
“That part of our relationship changed once you and Eduardo started looking for a house, and you agreed it was a good idea.”
Elyse smiled, "And taking me around the world twice a night for a week was a VERY good way to end it!'
“Don’t forget YOU getting your last good peggings in!”
“As crazy as Sean was, he never let me do anything like that to him.”
“Because it was about control for him,” I replied.
“I know I’m not supposed to talk about this, but aren’t you a bit overdue for your regular dose of virgin blood?”
I smiled, "There may be a ‘deflowering’ in the offing.
“Anyone I know?” she teased.
“That, my dear Elyse, has to remain confidential.”
I. Second Verse, Same As The First
January 10, 2000, Chicago, Illinois
“How much trouble am I in?” Birgit asked with trepidation from the door of my study.
My precocious eleven-year-old daughter had truly outdone herself. I’d laughed, then spoken to her mom, then called Birgit in to talk to me.
“Come in, close the door, and sit down.”
She did as I asked and sat down in one of the wingback chairs. I got up from my chair behind the desk and went to sit in the second wingback chair next to her.
“Was it meant to be funny, serious, or both?” I asked.
“Both, I guess. Are you angry with me?”
“How about ‘somewhat annoyed’?” I proposed.
“I bet you thought it was funny,” Birgit said, gaining some confidence.
“That’s beside the point!” I said, doing my best to suppress a laugh.
The suppressed laugh was necessary because it HAD been funny. Kara and I had laughed very hard together before deciding how to handle our not-so-little troublemaker. And what to do about her cohort in crime, or as I was going to try to find out, innocent victim; willing, mind you, but potentially innocent.
“Was this your idea?”
“Yes.”
“And she didn’t put you up to it?”
“No. I mean, I knew what she wanted, but the birthday present was my idea.”
“Why don’t you tell me the story?”
Dad wanted the story, and I knew I had to tell him everything. He always knew when I didn’t. I still wasn’t sure how, but he always knew. I never lied, I just sometimes didn’t tell him everything, or told it in a way that was less likely to get me in trouble! Dad loved me, but there were things he couldn’t ignore, and things he couldn’t do. I kept my journal, which I started writing when I was eleven, locked away, because if anyone read it, I’d be in huge trouble!
“You know I love you, right?”
“Of course, Pumpkin,” Dad said.
“And you won’t be mad?”
“I said I was ‘mildly annoyed’,” Dad replied.
“And you know that’s what she wants, right?”
“I’ll talk with her after. Right now, YOU have some explaining to do.”
“I know,” I sighed. “But wasn’t it cute?”
“Which won’t save you this time, young lady.”
“She and I were talking, you know, ‘girl talk’, and she asked me what I thought about what she wanted and I told her I thought it would be really special. She was afraid to ask because she thought she might get in trouble and someone might tell her mom.”
“That cat is out of the bag, too,” Dad replied, sounding stern.
“Oh!” I gasped. “How?”
“You two little terrorists aren’t quite as smart as you think you are. Keep talking.”
When Dad called me a ‘terrorist’ it meant he thought what I did was OK, but that one of my moms or some other adult didn’t like it. My mom was usually pretty cool, but Mom was difficult sometimes. And most other adults were a bigger pain in the butt than Jesse!
“I remembered a joke you and my mom made about me selling tickets and that’s when I got the idea to make the coupons.”
“Plural? As in there are more of these?”
“Yes,” I admitted knowing he was not going to be happy.
“How MANY more?”
“Nine fit on a sheet of printer paper,” I said, trying to avoid telling him, knowing he’d be too smart to fall for it.
“And how many sheets?”
“Three.”
“You made TWENTY-SEVEN coupons that say, ‘Good for one Expert Deflowering?’”
“Yes,” I replied quietly.
Dad looked like he was going to smack his head on his desk repeatedly. I might have misjudged how cute the idea was.
“And how many of these did you hand out?”
“Just that one! The others are birthday gifts for other girls!”
“Pumpkin, you need to shred those, and promise me NEVER to do that again. I already have a bit of a mess to clean up.”
“I’m sorry,” I said, meaning it.
“Come sit in my lap,” Dad offered.
I scrambled out of my chair and into his, and he held me in his strong arms and cuddled me tight. I always felt safe and loved in my dad’s arms, and wished he could do what I wrote in my diary, but I knew Mom would never allow it.
“Pumpkin,” Dad said, stroking my hair, “it was a cute idea, but I could get in a lot of trouble. And you could get in a lot of trouble, too, and so could your friends and your girl ‘cousins’.”
“I’m really sorry, Dad.”
“I know. Promise me?”
“I won’t do it again.”
“Or anything like it.”
He was very good at that. It made him ALMOST as annoying as my moms or Jesse. But cuddles made up for it.
“Or anything like it,” I said.
“Good. How about I tell you a secret?”
I loved hearing Dad’s secrets. They were always about him doing something that got him in trouble or was crazy. I was never allowed to tell, and except for my journal, I never did.
“I like it when you do that,” I said, snuggling close.
“When I was seventeen,” Dad said, “there was a girl who lived down the street. She wanted a very special birthday present, so I gave her a card on her birthday which had a coupon in it which said, ‘Good for one Expert Birthday Fuck’. I gave it to her in front of her parents.”
“The coupon?” I giggled. “Or the expert birthday…”
“You don’t have to repeat it!” Dad said interrupting me. “And both.”
“No way, Dad! You’re teasing me!”
“Well, the second one wasn’t on purpose. Her mom spied on us. Her mom really wanted to do it with me, too. But I wasn’t interested.”
“How old was the girl?”
“Fourteen,” Dad replied with a silly grin.
“But if you did that, why are you annoyed with me?”
“Because I knew her parents would be OK with it. They were OK with having sex with other people and they were OK with their kids having sex.”
“You mean like you and my moms?”
“Not quite the same, but close enough. Do you see the difference?”
“I guess,” I replied. “You knew it would be OK and I didn’t.”
“Yes.”
“One more reason why I love you so much, Dad! You tell me all the crazy or dumb things you did! My friends' moms all pretend like they’re perfect and they never did anything at all wrong or fun in their lives!”
“But that’s not license to misbehave, Pumpkin. I want you to know why I give you the advice I do and why I tell you not to do things.”
“You don’t get mad when I do them,” I said. “You just tell me I messed up and remind me to learn my lesson.”
“Do you?”
“Uhm, not always.”
“Life is like that,” Dad replied. “Your Aunt Stephanie still calls me a ‘dumb boy’ because it was so difficult for me to learn my lessons.”
“Because your mom is a bitch!” I declared. “She’s still mean and nasty to everyone, even if she doesn’t say anything to us.”
“But you love your grandpa.”
“He’s the best! I like Paul, too. I know he’s not my grandpa because my real grandpa died before I was born, but Paul is really nice. I like when he and Grandma Nancy visit.”
“There’s one thing you need to do still.”
“What’s that?” I asked.
“Go talk to your mom.”
“How bad is it?”
“You’ll need to go talk to her and find out. I need to talk to a very confused parent now.”
“Sorry, Dad,” I said, lifting my head.
Dad kissed my forehead, I kissed his cheek, and slipped from his lap. I went to the door, opened it, and went to find my mom who was in the ‘Indian’ room with mom.
“Dad said I need to talk to you,” I said.
“He’s right,” my mom said. “Jess, do you mind?”
“No, I don’t mind. I need to get Albert and Ashley ready for bed.”
She left and shut the door behind her.
“What did your dad say?”
“That I had to shred the papers and not do it again.”
“Remember our talk about keeping our family safe?”
“I do, Mom. I’m sorry. I messed up.”
“You need to be more careful. May I tell you a secret?”
I almost laughed because when she did that, it usually meant she thought what I did was funny, but I wasn’t supposed to tell anyone. I didn’t, except for Dad, who I told EVERYTHING. I think mom knew I did that, but I wasn’t not sure.
“Yes.”
“I laughed about it! It’s really cute. I was thinking of making coupons like that for your dad for me!”
“But you guys already have sex!”
“So? They can make it even more fun! But you can’t do that with your friends, young lady. Do you hear me?”
“Yes, Mom. What’s my punishment?”
“You tell me? And remember how this works.”
I HATED when she did this! I had to guess what a good punishment was, and if I was too easy on myself, she gave me a HUGE punishment. And she NEVER reduced the punishment I gave, even if it was more than she would have given. And she always told me! Sometimes Mom was more annoying than Jesse and my other three brothers combined!
I knew Mom and Dad weren’t angry, but I also knew they thought I could have caused a lot of trouble. But I didn’t know how serious they wanted to make this. All I could do was guess and hope I got it right.
“Grounded to my room for a week except for meals, morning cuddles, and if I need a computer for homework,” I said, hoping I got it right.
“I think that’s about right,” Mom said. “What’s Dad going to do?”
I giggled, “He’s Dad! What do YOU think?”
“I think you need to get to your room, you little turkey. We’ll come kiss you goodnight before lights out.”
“Yes, Mom,” I replied.
I got a hug, then went up to my room. MY room! It had taken months after Aunt Elyse and her boys moved out before Dad had let me have my own room. He’d moved my sisters to Aunt Elyse’s old room, and I had my pink room. Sometimes I missed my sisters sleeping in the same room, but I liked having my own place to go when I wanted to be alone or with my friends. And I wondered what was going to happen with my friend.
“Shut the door, please,” I said with a careful smile.
Carla Rizzi shut the door and came to sit in the wingback chair which Birgit had recently vacated.
“What are you going to do?” she asked.
“That really depends on you,” I replied.
“Me? It’s not like I can stop you or stop her!”
“On the contrary,” I said. “You may not be able to stop her, but you can stop me. This can’t happen without at least your tacit approval, no matter what she wants.”
“I’m still trying to figure out how answering a want-ad for a photographer’s assistant led me to lose my virginity to a guy and then fifteen years after that, for my daughter to want to lose her virginity to the SAME guy!”
“A force of nature known as Birgit Elizabeth Adams, which can no more be tamed than the winds or the waves! And you know why Birgit took Rachel under her wing, despite Rachel being two-and-a-half-years older.”
“Because I was a first-class idiot,” Carla said. “I should NEVER have let Uncle Peter talk me into that stupid scheme. And once the DNA test came back negative, I should have called it quits. I’m sorry.”
“You said that years ago, and I accepted your apology, and forgave you. And now we’re friends, and your daughter is in a tight-knit trio with my daughter and their friend Tiffany. I do need to apologize for Birgit’s behavior. We give her free rein, and sometimes she decides to go out of the paddock. Way out.”
“Imagine my shock when I was looking through the cards after tonight’s birthday party.”
“Oh, I can imagine!”
“Fortunately, everyone had left and it was just Rachel and me. I didn’t see Birgit give Rachel the card, but it was on Rachel’s desk when I carried the rest of her gifts and cards upstairs.”
“Did you talk to Rachel about it?”
“Yes, before I called you. She’s at home right now. What should I do with this coupon?”
I shrugged, “Shred it or give it back to her. Those really are the two choices.”
“I know you have something of a reputation, but I find it hard to believe you can sit here and look me in the eye and suggest I give my daughter what amounts to a ‘lose your V-card coupon’.”
“And you know my reputation, so you know I take things like this seriously, but I also recognize that it’s a decision every person has to make for themselves. I remember your struggle.”
“Me, too. Do you regret what happened between us?”
“Only the aftermath,” I replied. “Do YOU regret it?”
A wan smile appeared on Carla’s face, “The aftermath, obviously. And that I didn’t ask you to stay to do it a second time! I wasn’t lying when I told you it was better than I’d expected. And that it was the right thing to do. My real mistake was sending you away so quickly, and then having that ill-advised one-night stand. But do you know my biggest regret?”
“No.”
“That had I come to you, honestly, you would have gone out of your way to help me. Once Birgit decided to be friends with Rachel, you simply included her as one of what I hear your kids call the ‘cousins’. Rachel became a very happy girl at that point, and once I got used to the idea, you let me into what I guess you would call the ‘extended family’ of ‘aunts’ and ‘uncles’. I didn’t need to struggle for eight years. Or lie to Rachel for eight years. I actually apologized to her for that right before I came here.”
“And she forgave you, didn’t she?”
“In her true practical self she said that it turned out just fine and she knew I was only trying to do what was best for her.”
“Which is the decision you’re facing right now.”
“You know how much I struggled with it, and how it drove me to distraction, making me act crazy?”
“I do,” I replied.
“I was a bitch, wasn’t I?”
“You were confused.”
“And there’s my conundrum,” Carla said. “Rachel is NOT confused. She wanted to come over and give you the coupon tonight! I only wish I’d been that sure of myself when I was her age. But she’s awfully young. The thing is, I know if she’s determined to do it, I can’t stop her. I don’t mean you, because I take you at your word that if I tear up this coupon, you’ll tell her ‘no’ yourself, and not blame me.”
“That’s true. I won’t make you to be the ogre. I can easily explain why I shouldn’t.”
“But I think you can also explain why you should, can’t you?”
“Among other things, a gentle, patient, expert lover who will make her first time memorable. Someone she apparently wants to do it with, because if she didn’t, you wouldn’t say there was a conundrum.”
“We had a very interesting talk. She obviously knew you and I had been together, and from what I told everyone about not being with anyone else, well, lied to them, she knew you were my first. We talked about how confused I was and that’s when I realized she had no second thoughts and no reservations. I actually was jealous of her, because I think my life might have turned out quite differently if I’d been so confident about sex.”
“Society is doing its level best to destroy that kind of confident thinking in teenagers about any topic, not just sex. It’s what I and the other parents are trying to help all the kids we call the ‘cousins’ avoid. Society would frown quite seriously on the way we raise our kids, and that was my real issue with my precocious daughter.”
“Not the fact she was offering what amounts to stud services to a fifteen-year-old.”
I chuckled, “That’s an internal family matter. The coupons made it far more public than it should have been.”
“I’m curious, and I know you’ll tell me honestly, but if I hadn’t found it and she had showed up here tonight and presented it, what would you have done?”
“Honored her request.”
“Without consulting me?”
“May I ask a very blunt, very direct question?”
“I suppose so.”
“Was it anyone else’s business, besides yours and mine, that we slept together? Did you need your mom’s approval?”
“No, but I was a lot older.”
“Do you think your daughter is acting immaturely?”
“That’s not a fai..proper question.”
I chuckled, “Birgit has you well-trained!”
“Rachel and Tiffany, too. They hate that word with a white-hot passion.”
“Good! Then they’ll hate participation trophies and everything they imply.”
“I heard Jesse led a rebellion against those in ice hockey.”
“He did, and it lasted about a year. Then a bunch of idiot parents forced the issue and now refusing the participation medals will get you suspended for bad sportsmanship. Jesse and his team have a party when they get them and make a show of tossing them in the trash. The parents are pissed about that, but because the kids accept them at the rink and don’t disrupt the awards, there is nothing they can do about it. I swear to Loki, if we don’t teach kids how to lose, the world is going to be a seriously fucked-up place!”
“Do you think Rachel is mature enough to make this decision?”
“If I didn’t, I’d have told you so before, when you asked me what I would do.”
“I’m afraid that if I interfere, she’s going to end up like I was, but I’m also afraid of the step she wants to take.”
“The parent’s continual dilemma about just about everything. My theory is that if you make them hold the apron strings, they’ll never let go and never become proper, independent adults. And I think that starts the minute they are able to express themselves.”
“I’ve heard that idea from you and your friends many times and in many different ways. She’s a young adult, even if I don’t necessarily see her that way.”
“So who has the issue? Rachel? Or you?”
“Me. You’re confident this won’t mess her up?”
“No, because nobody can know for sure. That said, I do think she’s prepared to deal with it.”
“Why do you say that?”
“She talked to you about it, confidently, calmly, and practically, didn’t she?”
“Frighteningly so, yes.”
“Again, whose issue? Rachel’s? Or yours?”
“Mine. SHE isn’t scared or nervous or confused. I am.”
“Again, something every parent confronts.”
“You?”
“Yes, of course. But I don’t let MY fears or my confusion interfere with my kids' decisions.”
“And when the time comes for Birgit? You’ll be OK with whomever she selects?”
“I have a pretty good idea who it’s going to be,” I grinned. “And the lucky winner is a young Swedish boy she fell for last summer when we visited Stockholm. It’ll be a few years, but I’m pretty sure they’ll manage to get together.”
“And if it were one of your friends?”
“Carla, we’re talking about perhaps the most personal decision anyone can make. I’m confident Birgit will make a good decision, whether it’s Kjell or some lucky Naval officer or some other guy. Or girl, if she discovers she’s a lesbian, but I highly doubt that given her extreme interest in boys.”
“And you’d be just like, ‘whatever’, if she was a lesbian?”
“You do know Jesse’s moms, right?”
“Sorry, it’s just not something I can contemplate.”
“So, like anything else in life, don’t do it! Society would be far better off if people who didn’t like stuff simply didn’t do it and left the rest of us alone unless we were doing actual harm to someone. You don’t want to have sex with girls? Don’t! You don’t want to have an abortion? Don’t! But make those decisions for yourself, not for everyone.”
“Rachel was adamant she wanted this to happen on her birthday.”
“If you’re granting permission, or at least looking the other way, then I could manage that, but there’s a consideration.”
“The STD test? Someone, and I think we both know who, told her about that. She had one and it’s clean, obviously.”
“I may have to kill a certain pint-size human!” I chuckled. “And just so we’re clear all around, I had a vasectomy, so there’s no risk of pregnancy.”
“Come by the house in a bit. I don’t want this any more public than it already is.”
“You know she’s going to talk to Birgit and Tiffany about it. And you need to let her do that.”
“Seriously?”
“Don’t you think it might have helped if you had a friend to talk to? Before AND after?”
“Probably.”
“Then let me go say ‘good night’ to my kids, have a word with my wives, and I’ll be by in about thirty minutes. Give her the coupon, please. She needs to hand it to me if she wants to.”
“I must be out of my mind,” Carla said, shaking her head.
“If you are changing your mind, it has to be now, not later. You’ll hurt her severely if you handle this incorrectly.”
“I’m not sure there’s a way to handle this kind of thing correctly.”
“Yet another thing which confronts every parent eventually. Trust your daughter, Carla.”
She nodded and got up and left my study without a word. I wondered exactly what was going through her mind, but it wasn’t likely I’d find out.
Dear Diary,
Well, you’re a journal, not a diary, but I just like writing that! Have I told you how much I love my dad? Oh, wait, I see the last time I wrote I told you how much I love my dad!
I got in trouble today because I did something cute but Rachel’s mom found out and complained. Dad even thought it was cute and told me he did the same thing when he was seventeen! But I think I goofed because Rachel’s mom isn’t like the mom to whatever girl got an ‘expert birthday fuck’ from my dad when she was fourteen. I wonder what that’s like? Mom says it makes her all tingly and that after I get my period, I’ll know. I wish it would come already!
Jesse was dumb again today, but I think I write that every day. Well, that’s because he’s dumb every day! Lucky for me he was dumb in front of Aunt Jennifer and she told him to stop being a brat! I don’t think he can, because he’s a boy, and boys are REALLY dumb!
Oops, I hear my moms and dad in the next room. I need to put you away!
Bye until next time!
I put my journal into a box I’d bought and used the key on the chain around my neck to lock it. Dad had the spare key locked in his study, but I know he wouldn’t use it because he loves me too much. There was a knock at the door.
“Come in!” I called out. “I’m dressed for bed!”
Mom, Mom, and Dad came into the room to give me ‘good night’ kisses and hugs.
“Good night, Pumpkin. Sleep tight. Don’t let the bed bugs bite!” Dad said, using the same dumb line he uses every night! He thinks it’s cute and I let him think that, but BOY is it dumb!
“I love you, Dad! Good night!”
“Good night, Birgit,” my moms said.
“Night, Mom and Mom! I love you both.”
I got into bed and pulled the covers over me. Dad blew me one extra kiss the way he always did, then he turned off the lights, closed the door, and I fell asleep.
“She really pushed the limits today,” Jessica said as we walked downstairs.
“No more than her dad!” Kara laughed. “Do you remember the episode with Debbie V’s little sister?”
“I never met any of those people, so much of it is a fog,” Jessica replied.
“She wanted to lose her virginity on her fourteenth birthday, and Steve, who was seventeen, agreed. It was after we were first together, and I knew about it because he had planned it before we went to bed together and he told me it was going to happen. Anyway, he made a coupon, hand-drawn, I think because he didn’t have software like he does on his Mac. If I remember, the coupon read ‘Good For One Expert Birthday Fuck’ and she opened it in front of her parents.”
“Oh, wait, I remember this one, then her mom spied on them and watched them fuck!”
“That was more than a little weird,” I said. “But Debbie V’s mom had the hots for me from the time I was fourteen or fifteen.”
“You never were into older women after Jenny Saunders, were you, Tiger?”
“No. Melanie’s mom was the only real temptation, and you know how close that was.”
“About the thickness of a foreskin!” Jessica said with a soft laugh.
“Basically.”
“Will we see you later?” Kara asked.
“I’m not sure what’s going to happen,” I replied.
“Besides a shredded hymen and your first dose of virgin blood since St. Petersburg about two-and-a-half years ago?”
“You know she could change her mind. There’s a certain point when reality sets in and you have to confront the thing you thought you were ready to do.”
“Did that happen to me?” Kara smirked.
“Not everyone is a sex fiend, Kara Adams!” I chuckled.
“And you love it!” she declared. “Go get your fix! And we want a FULL report!”
“Video?” I chuckled.
“Don’t tease!” Kara growled with desire.
I kissed both my wives, then put on my shoes, my winter coat, my fedora, and my gloves, and headed out into the crisp winter night. Six minutes later, Rachel let me into the small but fashionably decorated house where she lived with her mom.
“Hi!” she said excitedly.
“Hi! Is your mom here?”
“No. She came home, gave me the coupon Birgit made for me, and said she was going to visit her mom.”
I took off my hat, coat, gloves, and shoes, and followed Rachel into the small living room.
“You have something for me?” I asked.
“I do!” she said coquettishly. “But you mean the coupon?”
“Yes.”
She pulled it from the pocket of her jeans and said, “I want to redeem this coupon I received for my birthday, please!”
I took the coupon and smiled, then read it aloud, “‘Good for one Expert Deflowering’. You know what that is?”
Rachel laughed softly, “Birgit had to explain it! I never heard that word before. Mom knew it, though, and she kind of freaked out. I was surprised when she came back and gave this to me and said you were going to come over.”
“If you’re sure that’s what you want, we can go up to your room.”
“I gave you the coupon!”
“You did. And because your mom found it, I had to talk to Birgit about it.”
“Is she in trouble? She knew this is what I wanted.”
“Not a lot,” I said. “She and her mom discussed the appropriate penance for her mistake in judgment.”
“I didn’t want to get her in trouble!”
“You didn’t,” I grinned. “It was the twenty-six OTHER coupons that were the real concern.”
“Whoa!” Rachel laughed. “That would be like the entire girls' soccer team; varsity and JV!”
“And not something I’d put past Birgit, either! You know you can’t tell anyone about this, right?”
“Yes. Mom said it could cause trouble. But she said I could talk to Tiffany and Birgit.”
“I’d prefer you withheld details from my daughter,” I said.
“Mom said talking to Tiffany was a better idea.”
It was, but I also knew that the trio was thick as thieves and they’d talk about it amongst the three of them.
“Good. And talk to your mom, too, if you need to.”
“What are we going to do?” Rachel asked.
“I think that’s up to you. You had sex ed, right?”
“That class was SO dumb. I knew almost all the stuff they told us and they barely talked about actually doing it. Mom and I talked about it a little bit, but not much. All your kids know like everything. And I talked to Doctor Bethany, too.”
“So?” I asked.
“I want you to make me feel amazing and I to make you feel amazing. If it’s as good as everyone says, I’ll want to do this again, lots.”
“I suspect so!”
She took my hand and led me up the narrow staircase to her room. I had a minor flashback to Becky van Hoek - right down to the lavender scented candles and the canopy bed, which was turned down invitingly. Had there been any doubt in my mind, it would have vanished at that instant. Rachel closed the door behind us, and turned the key in the lock.
“Do I just take off my clothes?” she asked.
“You could, or I could do it. Do you want to unwrap your birthday present?”
“Oh yes,” she breathed.
She’d seen me in the sauna, but it had always been with a towel, and she’d always had on a bathing suit, as her mom had insisted. Now we were going to get to see what we’d been missing, and I was sure, having seen her in her one-piece suit, that I was going to very much enjoy seeing her lithe body. Rachel wasted no time in unbuttoning my rugby shirt and pulling it over my head and off my arms, then removing my t-shirt, leaving me bare-chested. She smiled and her hands moved to my belt. She unbuckled it, and instead of pulling it from the loops, unbuttoned my jeans, pulled down the zipper, and wasted no time pulling them down. I sat on the edge of the bed so she could remove them, which she did, pulling off my socks as well. I stood up and without any hesitation, she carefully pulled down my briefs.
“Awesome!” she exclaimed when my quickly hardening shaft popped free.
I stepped out of the underwear and kicked them to the small pile of clothing.
“Should I undress you?” I asked.
She nodded her head quickly and there was a hitch in her breath when I pulled her sweater up and over her head. I unbuttoned and removed her blouse, then unbuttoned and unzipped her jeans and pushed them down over her firm butt. She sat down so I could remove her jeans, along with her socks, then stood again. I took in her form, now covered only by a black bra and matching panties. I deftly unhooked her bra and pushed the straps from her shoulders. It fell away revealing wonderful conical breasts topped with small pink nipples. When my fingers touched the waistband of her panties, Rachel shivered in anticipation I was sure given how warm the room was. I hooked my fingers in them and drew them down and Rachel stepped out of them.
Rachel’s mons was completely bare, something which I’d noticed becoming a trend, though some girls left thin strips as well. I knew I’d have plenty of time to explore the gorgeous body in front of me, so I held out my arms. Rachel flew into them and pressed her body against mine, sighing deeply. She wrapped her arms around me and squeezed tightly. I put my arms around her and held her, allowing her to enjoy the contact.
“You feel so strong,” she said.
“And you feel wonderful,” I replied.
“Can you just put it in me? We can do the other stuff later! I just need to feel it!”
“You turned in the coupon, so you get to decide!” I said.
The only real consideration was whether she was wet enough, but teen girls tended to have copious lubrication, with nature doing her best to ensure that the species would propagate easily. Rachel got into bed and unabashedly spread her legs, revealing plump labia glistening with her juices. I got into bed and knelt between her legs, placing my glans against those labia. Rachel gasped at the contact, and I moaned softly as I drew my glans up and down to ensure it was slick enough to enter her.
I positioned myself, lodging the tip of my glans between her slick labia, and pushed forward slowly, splitting them and entering her, spreading her for the first time. Rachel raised her hips in encouragement, and I pushed slightly further forward, the tip of my glans contacting a thin membrane which guarded her tunnel.
“Please,” she begged, rolling her hips again.
I nodded and pushed forward, easily breaching the barrier. Rachel gasped but bucked hard, so I continued pushing forward until I was completely inside her tight, warm tunnel.
“OK?” I asked.
“Holy f…wow!”
“I think you can say that word given that I have my dick completely inside your pussy!” I grinned.
“Holy fuck!” she giggled. “Holy fuck! Holy fuck! It feels so big and warm! What do I do?”
“Wrap your legs around me and move your hips,” I said. “I’ll go as fast or as slow as you want.”
She nodded and wiggled her hips, “Do it! I want you to fuck me really, really nice!”
I pulled back and pushed forward again. Rachel moaned softly and wiggled her hips, and the next time I pulled back, she moved her hips upward to meet my thrust. We developed a nice slow rhythm and I watched her face as pleasure began to overtake her. The tight grip of her walls suddenly became like a vise, her eyes flew open wide, and she groaned deeply.
“Oh my God,” she gasped as her body shook in response to her first orgasm. “Oh my God! Oh my God! Oh my God!”
That first tremendous orgasm encouraged her to move faster and our rhythm picked up and a few minutes later we were rewarded with her second orgasm, which was followed by a third. She was almost frenzied now, seeking pleasure and I obliged with a fourth and fifth orgasm before I pushed deeply into her, groaned, and fired jet after jet of hot, sticky cum into her spasming pussy.
“Oh God!” she gasped. “Oh fuck! Oh God! Oh fuck!”
Me cumming inside her set off her sixth, and strongest, orgasm and she groaned loudly as her muscles clamped tightly around me, milking the last drops of semen from my shaft. Rachel was breathing hard and clinging to me, so I lowered my head to the pillow next to her. As I did so, I realized I hadn’t even kissed her, similar to what had happened with Tina Hoff. I decided, if Rachel didn’t object or force the issue, that our first kiss would be AFTER I licked her to several orgasms and after she gave her first-ever blowjob.
After a few minutes, I softened and slipped from Rachel, causing her to whimper softly. I raised my head, shifted, and lowered my mouth to one of her beautiful breasts and gently licked and sucked. I was rewarded with a soft moan and a hissed ‘Yes!’, which made it clear she was enjoying the attention. After a few minutes I switched to her other breast, and then kissed my way down her chest and flat stomach, and over her mons.
I moved my hands under her firm butt, lifted a bit, and pushed my tongue as far into Rachel’s tunnel as I could, then proceeded to orally pleasure her. Her reaction to my attention was similar to when we’d been fucking - moans, groans, uttered profanities, and references to God. After I gave her three good orgasms, I moved up next to her and turned on my back.
I didn’t need to say a word as Rachel mimicked what I had done to her, sucking gently on both my nipples, running her tongue around them, and then kissing her way down to my groin. I wondered if she’d need any guidance, but after a bit of trial and error, which was quite pleasing, she took me into her mouth and began sucking and licking, while tracing a finger up and down my shaft. She hadn’t hesitated, so I assumed she knew what was going to happen.
Rachel’s efforts were rewarded when I groaned and shot into her mouth. She didn’t stop bobbing, licking, and sucking until after the last spurt had left my glans, and I felt her swallow before she released me. She turned and moved up next to me. I pulled her on top of me, cupped her butt in my hands and moved my lips towards hers. She hungrily kissed me, our tongues dancing and sharing each other’s flavors. She broke the kiss after a couple of minutes to take a deep breath.
“Happy birthday!” I grinned.
“Can we do it again?” she asked.
I nodded, “Yes, and you can be on top. It’s different that way.”
“Cool. How long can you stay?”
“Until morning if you want.”
“Really?”
“Yes.”
“And we can do this all night?”
“If you aren’t sore.”
“Are you kidding?” she gaped. “I barely felt it when you broke my cherry! And then it was just like, the most unbelievable feeling. And your tongue just made me want to scream!”
“Screaming is OK,” I chuckled.
“Did you like the blowjob, Mr. President?” Rachel smirked.
I laughed, “Did you know what one was before that happened?”
“Yes, of course. Mom freaked out because she didn’t have to tell me what it was!”
“Do you realize that before we kissed, we fucked, I licked you, and you sucked me?”
Rachel giggled, “Oh my God! My first kiss was AFTER my first fuck! And after my first blowjob! And after the first time I had my pussy licked! And I even had some of your stuff in my mouth!”
“Tell your mom that one,” I chuckled, knowing just the effect it would have on Carla.
“Later! I want to have sex all night!”
“You read my mind!” I grinned.
January 11, 2000, Chicago, Illinois
I got up early, as I always did, took a shower, dressed, then went downstairs to find Dad. He was just coming back into the house with his newspaper.
“I’m allowed morning cuddles,” I said.
“We’d never take those away,” Dad replied.
He got his coffee and we went to the sunroom to cuddle. I loved cuddling with my dad. He smelled like, well, my dad. His soap, his deodorant, and his shampoo were the same as when I was little and it was just him. I liked having his arms around me, holding me, because I felt safe and loved.
“I’m sorry I messed up,” I said,
“It’s OK, Pumpkin, as long as you learned your lesson.”
“I did,” I said, snuggling closer.
We cuddled for about ten minutes before Mom came to the door and said it was time for breakfast. We got up and went to the kitchen. My sisters and Albert weren’t up yet, and I liked this time with just Mom and Dad, though sometimes Winter was up, too. I sat next to Dad and Mom sat across from him and we ate, though dad didn’t eat any waffles because Doctor Mary won’t let him. But he liked his bacon and eggs, so he doesn’t complain.
We finished eating just as Mom and my sisters and Albert came to the kitchen, and I went back upstairs to my room because I was grounded. I brushed my teeth, then got out my history book to read the lesson again. I’d read it the night before, but I wanted to get good grades, so I liked to read it again in the morning. Usually I sat in the sunroom, but I couldn’t because I had made the coupons.
When it was finally time to go to school, Albert, Stephie, Ashley, and I went out the back to meet Jesse. Next year he’d be in High School, and wouldn’t be able to walk with us. Rachel couldn’t walk with us because she was already in High School, but Tiffany met us about a block away, and right after that, Nicholas, Peter, and Nicky met us. Some other kids joined us as well, along with a mom because some dummy had complained to the school again, and this time Dad couldn’t convince them we were safe without an adult. It was SO dumb because I could walk to school blindfolded, even crossing the streets!
At school, Tiffany and I put our coats in our lockers, got our books and went to homeroom. We said the Pledge, listened to announcements, and then went to history class. I raised my hand for every question but the teacher had to call on other kids, even when they didn’t know the right answer! Tiffany and I thought that was dumb because why call on someone who doesn’t know?
After history, we had math, then science, and then lunch. After lunch we had English, library time, and geography. When the final bell rang, we bolted to our lockers and headed to Rachel’s house. She got out before we did, so she was home. She let us in and got us hot chocolate and cookies, which I wouldn’t tell Mom about because I wasn’t supposed to eat too many cookies.
“What happened last night, Rache?” I asked after scarfing three Oreos.
“Oh my God!” she gasped. “I like didn’t sleep at all!”
“Why?” Tiffany asked, but I giggled because I knew!
“I had sex all night!” Rachel said sounding really happy. “And guess what?”
“What?”
“I let him put it in my mouth and shoot! And I swallowed all his stuff!”
“No way!” Tiffany exclaimed, scrunching up her face. “What does it taste like?”
“Like him!” Rachel said happily. “And guess what else?”
“What?”
“He licked me! And put his tongue in me! And, oh my God, it felt SO good!”
“Did you do it? You know? Really have sex?”
“Four times! And guess what?”
“What?”
“He fucked me, then he licked me, then I sucked him, he shot in my mouth, and THEN I kissed him!”
“No way! Who was it?”
“It was Birgit’s dad!”
“Whoa! He’s SO fine! But how?”
“I let him know I wanted to, and he said I was old enough. So we did! In my own bed! It was the best birthday ever!”
“Are you going to do it with him again?”
“If he will! If not, I’m going to find a boyfriend! Because, oh my God!”
My moms were always really happy afterwards, and so were Maria Cristina and Katy, just like Rachel was now. I was jealous. But I couldn’t say so, I could only tell my journal.
II. I know a 3L
January 14, 2000, Chicago, Illinois
“How does it feel to be starting your last semester of law school?” I asked Liz as she served us dinner in her small loft apartment in the West Loop.
“Weird. But what’s weirder is that I’ve known you for seven years now! Well, not quite. It’ll be seven years since we first ‘adulted’ at the end of May!”
“Seven years later, you still call it that.”
“It’s safer than saying the other words,” she sighed. “You know why.”
“Because you fell in love with me that day.”
“But before, really. I think it was with the first words you said to me, but if not, that very first French kiss during the game. Do you remember our second kiss?”
I smiled, “You had unhooked your bra.”
“And the third one?” she asked with an impish smile.
“I discovered you shaved! Though you’ve kind of gone back and forth on that until recently.”
“You’ve never expressed a preference, really.”
“Nearly every girl had pubic hair when I grew up, so it’s normal for me, but I know that’s changed now.”
“I still vividly remember seeing you, and then feeling you inside me as you took my virginity.”
“We shared it,” I replied gently. “I didn’t take it.”
Liz smiled, “That’s so ‘you’ to put it that way.”
“You know I fell in love with you, too, right?”
“I do. Do you ever wonder what it might have been like at a different time or place?”
“It’s one of the very few daydreams I allow myself,” I replied. “For the same reason you call our lovemaking ‘adulting’.”
“What would you call it?”
“Making love, because that’s what it is. Neither of us has ever lied to the other, and my wives know where I am right now and how I feel about you and how you feel about me.”
“I’m not looking forward to this ending,” she sighed.
“Me either, but you want kids and that is one thing I can’t ever give you, even if my wives would agree to something like that.”
She nodded and we ate in silence and when we’d finished, wordlessly went to her room and made slow, gentle love. The dishes didn’t get done until the next morning.
January 20, 2000, Chicago, Illinois
“Do you have a moment?” Deborah asked from the door of my office late on Thursday morning.
“Pennyfull or Penniless?” I asked.
“Hardy-har-har,” Penny deadpanned as she always did when I said that.
“Penniless,” Deborah replied.
“I’ll give you the room,” Penny said. “I need to run some errands and I can do them before lunch instead of after.”
“Thanks, Pretty Penny!” I said.
She got up, kissed my cheek, then left the office. I was surprised when Deborah closed the glass doors, and we went to sit on the «zabuton».
“This must be serious,” I replied.
“I’m not even sure how to explain it.”
“One word at a time, in a logical sequence, usually works best, Counselor,” I replied
“You are SUCH a goofball!” she laughed.
“But I got you to laugh.”
“You did. Krissy is a finalist for a tenure-track professorship at UC.”
“As in University of Cincinnati?”
“Yes.”
“I’m not going to be happy at the end of this story, am I?”
Deborah sighed, “Probably not.”
“I assume she’s going to take the position if it’s offered? And that you’re going to move with her?”
“Yes.”
“I’m further assuming it would be for the Fall semester?”
“Correct.”
“I’ll call Ben van Hoek. I’m sure he’ll bring you on board.”
“I swear, you are the most emotionless, cold-hearted bastard in the history of cold-hearted bastards!”
“You’d prefer a temper tantrum?” I asked. “Or begging you to stay even though it’s not in your best interest? I could throw myself on the «tatami» mats, pound my fists and kick my feet, but I don’t think it’ll do me any good.”
“No, but saying you’ll miss me and that NIKA won’t be the same without me and that I’m very important to you would be nice!”
“Do you believe I believe all of those things?”
“Yes.”
I shrugged, “So?”
“Argh! I swear, I’m going to talk to your wives and borrow the floggers!”
“Get the strap-on, too!” I suggested with a smirk. “Mistress Elyse knew the proper way to discipline me!”
“You are IMPOSSSIBLE!”
“I am. And you know that as much as I wish the best for you, and want you and Krissy to be happy, I will miss you and wish you would stay. How certain is this?”
“It’s between Krissy and a guy from Texas. I know you’ll hate me saying this, but they want to hire a woman, so she’s going to get it.”
“If she’s the better qualified, which I suspect she is, then it’s no big deal. On the other hand, if he’s better qualified, then, yes, my opinion about across-the-board non-discrimination would come into play. When will she know?”
“In the next week. She had her final interview last week.”
“OK. When she finds out, let me know, and I’ll call Ben van Hoek. Will you be able to stay through the end of July?”
“I don’t see why not. Transition?”
“Yes. I have a 3L in mind who I am sure will jump at the chance.”
Deborah laughed, “Your twice-a-month Friday assignation? I think she’ll do great! But the New World Order?”
“Will continue,” I replied. “She and I were going to draw things to a close sometime after graduation. That was always the plan. I can’t start sleeping with NIKA people again; the risk is just too great.”
Deborah laughed, “Well, if you decide you want to, Charlie and I can give you a list of the new girls who would drop their panties for you in a heartbeat!”
“I do NOT want to know!” I chuckled. “My sister has enough headaches with business development and we’re all VERY nervous about the insane run-up in tech stock values. It simply can’t hold and nobody knows what will happen.”
“The proposed AOL-Time Warner deal just seems wrong to me. $160 BILLION? I don’t see it.”
I nodded, “That’s what has Elyse and my sister VERY nervous. The amount of money is staggering, and doesn’t remotely reflect a rational price. So many of these dot-coms have no revenue and people are betting on growth. That’s like saying you’re selling an item at a loss and you’ll make it up in volume! The other concern is something Samantha says is coming - interest rate hikes by the Fed. With everything leveraged to the hilt, increasing borrowing costs could create insane volatility in the market.”
“House of cards?”
“Could be,” I replied. “Think about the knock-on effects - suppliers, advertising, office space, computer equipment, support, consulting, and so on. And a glut of computer professionals out of work.”
“Suddenly your slow-growth strategy, and ultra-conservative approach looks genius.”
“It should! I am a genius, after all!”
“You can’t pull that off the way Penny does, Steve!”
“True. I didn’t ask, but what about John and James?”
“That’s the one thing that really bothers both of us, but Jake and Joyce are raising their kids similar to how you are, and Tony and Connie just had their baby, and according to Joyce they’re with the program, too. And we can visit, just as they do. It’s not perfect, but it’ll work OK.”
“You know you guys will always be welcome. I’ll miss you, a lot.”
“And I’ll miss you.”
We stood and I took her into my arms and held her.
“You’re not bad for a straight guy,” she teased.
“And you’re a lot of fun for a man-hating lesbian chick!”
“Oh, please!” she protested, swatting my butt. “You know that’s not true!”
“Just let me know when you know. I’ll leave it to you how to tell everyone.”
“It’ll have to be the ‘Kitchen Cabinet’ first. I’d just feel terrible if one of them heard some other way.”
We hugged again, exchanged a chaste kiss, and she left the office.
January 23, 2000, Chicago, Illinois
“NO! FUCKING! WAY!” I exclaimed.
“Actually, fucking WAS the way!” Elizabeth laughed.
“But you? A mom?”
“I know, right? But I’m not giving up my career! Does your co-op accept people who work in the Loop but aren’t working for you?”
“The co-op is actually legally separate from NIKA. We rent them space and neither Valerie nor Carey work for NIKA.”
“Cool. Who do I talk to?”
“Cindi Spanos. She’s still the head of the co-op even though her son is in school now. You know her, right?”
Elizabeth laughed, “Everyone knows ‘Tits’!”
“Congrats, by the way.”
“Thanks. I assumed that ‘NO! FUCKING! WAY!’ meant ‘congratulations’!”
“It did. Where’s Ben today?”
“Business trip. He left for California about an hour ago.”
“I take it you’re intending for your munchkin to become a ‘cousin’?”
“Damn straight! The rest of the world is going to hell in a handcart! The compound is an island of sanity in an insane world!”
“Something I would NEVER have expected ANYONE to say!” Claire exclaimed, coming up to where Elizabeth and I were standing.
“That’s the sick part, isn’t it?” Elizabeth asked. “What the entire rest of the world thinks is insane is actually sane, and the people who think they’re sane are actually the crazy ones.”
“As the old saying goes,” I replied, “the inmates are running the asylum.”
“Speaking of inmates running the asylum, are we going through with Kara’s proposal?”
“The last of the ‘rap session’ kids turned eighteen last week, so I think so, yes. We’ll see who shows up.”
“Everyone,” Henry said from behind me. “They’ve been properly prepared.”
“Then I’ll stoke the fire to make sure the room is plenty warm!” I grinned.
I went over to the fireplace and Kara came to stand next to me.
“Everything OK?” she asked.
“Yes. Elizabeth is pregnant.”
Kara laughed softly, “Wow! There are three words I never expected to hear in the same sentence!”
“No kidding. Any changes to your plan?”
“Other than drawing cards for random sex partners? No.”
I laughed, “That is NOT happening, and you know it! I do have one concern.”
“Natalie?”
“Yes.”
“I talked at length with Elaine and in the end, she gave Natalie the option, though counseled against it. Natalie will be here.”
“I’m assuming Chris doesn’t know?”
“And still doesn’t know you and Natalie were having sex in Russia!”
“Things dads don’t know!”
“You’ll know! Your Pumpkin will give you a full report minutes after it happens!”
“Actually, I don’t think so,” I replied. “I think she’ll talk to me about it, but she’ll be circumspect about it. I think she learned a valuable lesson from the ‘coupon incident’.”
"True.
“Though when Rachel suggested there were enough for the entire Varsity and JV soccer teams…”
Kara laughed, “That would be extreme, even for you, Snuggle Bear!”
“But oh so fun!” I replied.
“Let’s go get naked!”
I chuckled, “I’m glad the girls are next door and Albert is at scouts!”
We called the rap session together, and as we had the first time, talked, and each time the timer rang, removed clothing until everyone was buck naked. There were a couple of ‘embarrassing reactions’, but they subsided fairly quickly. We finished the session with all twenty-two of us in the sauna, naked as the day we were born.
“Any thoughts?” I asked as steam wafted through the room and sweat poured from our bodies.
“It’s scary AND liberating,” Holly said. “But it’s weird that the first time I’ve been naked with guys is before I ever…”
“Remember,” Kara said, “nudity isn’t about sex. That’s a lie told by society because of all the hang-ups people have about sex. And if you’re concerned about the guys who had reactions, those are completely normal; teenage boys get hard in a soft breeze!”
Everyone laughed.
“Not to mention,” she continued, “usually you get naked and see each other before you do it!”
Everyone laughed again.
“Well, yeah, obviously!” Holly said.
“You aren’t the only one,” Sophie said quietly. “I’ve never…either.”
She was one of our new students and had been VERY sheltered before she attended her first ‘rap session’ just after her Senior year began the previous Fall. She’d totally come out of her shell, which was exactly what the ‘rap sessions’ were intended to facilitate.
“If it’s ‘true confessions’,” Bill, another Senior, said, “Neither have I, and now more than a dozen girls have seen me naked! AND they all saw the reaction Kara mentioned!”
“Kara has that effect on everyone!” Becka said. “Including ME!”
Everyone laughed.
“She is the PILF!” I grinned.
“PILF?” Matt, another Senior asked.
“Like MILF,” I grinned. “Only ‘Professor’ instead of ‘Mom’!”
“And that doesn’t bother you?”
“Bother him?” Elizabeth interjected. “Not a chance! He GETS OFF on it!”
“It excites you that college kids want to have sex with your wife?” Sophie asked.
“It amuses me,” I replied, “especially because I know they’ll be completely frustrated!”
“But you…”
I nodded, “As we’ve said, Kara, Jessica, and I each manage our own sex lives. They elect to only have sex with me and each other. But there is no obligation other than what they’ve pledged to themselves. That’s our agreement. Remember, fidelity means keeping your word, whatever it is, not conforming to any social norms. Kara, Jessica and I have defined our relationship and we are all faithful to the promises we’ve made to each other.”
“Is it true you can do it with anyone?”
“No. There are rules, and I stick to them very carefully. For example, anyone who works for my company, works at the hospital, or works at the university is completely off limits. Being with anyone who works for or with us could cause all kinds of awkward situations, but also potentially legal ones at my work. Another rule, which has been my own personal rule since High School, is that I won’t be with someone who is in a relationship.”
“Wait!” Sophie protested. “You’re married, to two girls, but you wouldn’t be with a girl who is married?”
“Because it’s nearly impossible for me to understand how that would affect their relationship. Not completely impossible, but generally not worth the risk. I know exactly how Kara and Jessica think and will react to my dalliances, and we discuss every girl, usually before, but always after.”
“Can I ask you a question that might be totally out of line,” Matt asked.
“You can ask any question. If I can’t answer for some reason, I’ll tell you why.”
“How did you become so successful at getting girls?”
Everyone laughed.
“You can blame two of my female friends from High School. I won’t name them, but they brought girls to me and coached me on how to find girls. And I got a reputation, but ONLY amongst girls. I kept my mouth shut and didn’t brag. The girls did that for me. And that brought even more girls to me.”
“Seriously? I can’t get a girlfriend and you had girls bring you girls to have sex with?”
“It still happens,” Mattie laughed. “I was introduced to Steve by someone who had a VERY good experience and let me know I could have one, too. And it was beyond anything I could have imagined!”
“Seriously?” Matt asked incredulously.
“Seriously,” Mattie said with a smirk, “And, if you want to step next door into a guest room, I’ll pay it forward!”
There were gasps and expressions of surprise from the students, and soft laughter from the older crowd.
“You mean…” he asked, blushing bright red.
“I mean exactly!” Mattie said.
She got up and took his hand and led him, eyes wide like a deer caught in the headlights, from the sauna. She was safe, because Bethany had, when she’d attended a session in December, encouraged everyone in the group to be tested, even if they weren’t sexually active.
“She’s just going to do it with him?” Sophie asked after they left.
“Yes,” Claire said. “Why not? He wants to, and she wants to.”
“That’s just strange,” Sophie said. “I mean, sure, if you loved someone or were a boyfriend and girlfriend and had been together for a while, but just doing it randomly?”
“Everyone has to decide for themselves,” Patricia said. “If you want to wait until your wedding night, that’s up to you, and nobody here will criticize you or look down on you. But you should think about Mattie and Matt the same way, and not criticize them or look down on them.”
“That’s the most important lesson you can learn here,” Gabby said. “Don’t judge others, and so long as everyone consents, mind your own business.”
“I remember you guys teaching us that, and talking about it,” Sophie said, “but what just happened seems extreme. Just casually having sex? Without any kind of relationship?”
“If you don’t want to, then don’t,” Claire said gently. “But don’t tell anyone else what to do.”
“Is that how you raise your kids, Steve?”
“Yes,” Kara responded before I could answer. “They have to make this decision for themselves when they decide they’re ready.”
“Can I ask how old you were?”
“Sixteen.”
“And Steve?” Sophie asked
“Fourteen,” I replied.
“Whoa! Seriously?”
“Yes. Remember, each of us has to make our own decisions. Do you remember the very first session you joined? At the very end of your Junior year?”
“What about it?”
“When we did the questionnaire, the average age for those who had done it was seventeen-and-a-half. In the past, it’s been closer to sixteen. And in the past, there were fewer virgins at eighteen than now. Society is doing everything it can to treat teenagers as toddlers and to discourage them from doing something that comes naturally. And worse, denying them information that is vital to their health, and sometimes even to their lives. Some of you had ‘abstinence only’ sex ed, and frankly that borders on criminal. It doesn’t give you the information you need and creates all kinds of potential problems.”
“And you’ll be OK if your kids just do it with anyone?”
“It’s their choice,” I replied. “But to be honest, and I can say this because the kids are so obvious about it - Stephie will be with Nicholas Evans, Albert will be with Jane Todd, and Matthew will be with Chelsea Sanders, and there’s a very good chance none of those six will ever be with anyone else.”
“Wait!” she protested. “How do you know?”
“Well, Stephie asked Nicholas to marry her four years ago, and he said yes. Albert asked Jane to marry him two years ago, and she said yes. And Chelsea declared she was going to marry Matthew even before that and he’s come around to the idea! As for the others, I’ll wager that my eldest daughter’s first lover is her Swedish friend Kjell Andersson. Ashley and Michael haven’t picked out their mates just yet, and Jesse, well, I think that all depends on whether he and Francesca can sneak off together before one of the other girls decides she’s not going to wait!”
“That is SO weird!”
“What’s weird?” I asked. “That kids raised in a sexually free environment would mostly be monogamous? Or that kids that young have basically picked their partners.”
“Both, I guess.”
“Because you assumed that my sexual freedom would somehow corrupt my kids?”
“Yes,” she said, looking down.
“Sophie,” I said gently. “Look up, please.”
She did.
“Our situation here proves my point about ‘abstinence only’ sex ed - my kids have known since they were little how intercourse works, and we’ve had serious talks with all of them. And yet, having that information hasn’t given them a promiscuous philosophy. And that’s because information is neutral. THAT is what society doesn’t understand. And I can prove it.”
“How?” she asked.
“You know, from our talks here, especially the one Bethany gave, a lot about sex, including about birth control, STDs, and sexuality, right?”
“Sure.”
“Did any of that, or anything we’ve said today, make you want to have sex with me? Or anyone, for that matter?”
“No.”
“«Quod erat demonstrandum»,” I grinned.
She laughed softly, “I hadn’t thought of it that way.”
“All this talk of sex has made ME want to have sex with you!” Kara teased.
“You aren’t the only one!” Becka added.
“Life is just NOT fair!” Bill complained.
Becka winked at me and I smiled back. She got up and moved over to him.
“I’ll forgive the use of the ‘F’ word and solve your complaint if you want!”
His eyes went even wider than Matt’s, taking in the tattoos and piercings. Becka took his hand and led him, stunned, from the room.
“Did that REALLY just happen?” Holly asked.
“It did,” I replied.
I was a bit concerned about the developments, but everyone was at least eighteen, and the girls involved were quite a bit older, and were doing with younger guys what I’d done with younger girls for twenty years. That said, it did tell me that my caution about Kara’s proposal had been warranted, and waiting until after the last of the kids turned eighteen had been a very good idea.
We’d been in the sauna for about the limit for people who weren’t used to it, so I turned off the heat and turned on the exhaust fan. Everyone wrapped towels around themselves and filed out, the girls going up to use Winter’s shower with her permission, and the guys using the basement shower. Kara and I went up to our room to use our shower.
“I take it you see why I felt we should wait until everyone was eighteen?” I asked as Kara rinsed the sweat from her lovely body.
“That was NOT what I expected at all!” Kara laughed. “I thought Holly might finally decide to ask you to fool around, but I sure didn’t think Becka and Mattie would decide to do what they did!”
“Holly isn’t ready,” I replied. “Just as Sophie isn’t.”
Kara got out of the shower and grabbed a towel to dry off as I moved under the spray.
“True,” she replied. “And I do think you were right about waiting until they were eighteen. If that had happened when they were seventeen, publicly, parents might have had a complete hissy fit.”
“Not just parents,” I replied. “Even though the age of consent is seventeen, I could see DCFS or the police having a cow about it, too.”
I got out of the shower and dried off, and then Kara and I went into the bedroom to get dressed. When we finished dressing, we went downstairs and brought refreshments into the great room. Everyone except Matt, Bill, Mattie, and Becka filtered in within about ten minutes, and I figured the others might not surface for a few hours. I was proven right when everyone else left, and the four lovers finally came upstairs just after 5:00pm. The guys left, but Mattie and Becka stayed behind.
“They looked VERY happy and you two are SO bad!” I said with a grin.
“Us?” Mattie smirked. “All we did was follow in your footsteps! In fact, if I remember right, you had an older woman teach YOU!”
“True,” I replied. “But Becka is older than my first was!”
“You were only fourteen,” Becka said. “He’s eighteen. And if I remember, it was nine-years difference, right?”
“Right. I wasn’t complaining, by the way, just making an observation.”
“Every eighteen-year-old boy should have a twenty-eight-year-old girl teach him the ropes! And you know eighteen-year-olds!”
I chuckled, “Minus the usual first-time misfire!”
Both girls laughed.
“Easily solved!” Becka exclaimed, running her tongue over her lips.
I nodded, “As it was for a fourteen-year-old. I lasted about five seconds, which she knew was going to happen, and was why she used her mouth.”
“I just find it hilarious,” Mattie said with a smirk, “that you can fuck for an hour, but you lost it in five seconds!”
“I was fourteen!” I protested. “And according to my first, I accounted well for myself after that!”
“We need to get going,” Becka said. “But we’ll be MORE than happy to fuck you within an inch of your life if you’re interested.”
“I’ll keep that in mind!” I chuckled.
I hugged them both, and they left, just as Stephanie, Ed, and their kids arrived for our usual Sunday dinner. Kara and I went to the kitchen to help Winter with dinner, and Stephanie joined us as well. Just before 6:00pm, when nearly everything was ready, Kara and I left to walk to the hospital to get Jessica.
“Going to take them up on that?” Kara asked.
“Probably not,” I replied. “I’m content with how everything is going right now.”
“Liz, Maria Cristina, Jess, and me? And your recent dose of ‘virgin blood’?”
“Yes. And you get your jollies because Maria Cristina is OK with making love with me with you watching!”
Kara squeezed my hand, “I do. It’s just that other fantasy…”
“That’s a fairly difficult ask,” I replied. “Very few girls, in my experience, are OK with losing their virginity in front of someone else. Becka and Mattie were different because they wanted to be deflowered by a guy and a girl working together. A couple of my sister’s friends did lose their virginities in front of each other, but that was a strange situation, too, for a host of reasons.”
“I know your general feeling on this, but if there were a girl who was willing, and I brought her to you, would you be OK with it?”
I took a deep breath and let it out, “For you, Kara, yes. But this is me fulfilling a very special request, not a change in our agreement. And Jess would have to approve of the girl. And me, too, obviously. Did you have someone in mind?”
“No, but I wanted to know if it were even possible.”
“For you, it is, because I love you, and I know this is your number-one fantasy, besides making a pornographic movie together, which we agreed we can’t do because of the risk of it getting out.”
“And your fantasy?”
“I’m living it!” I chuckled. “I’m married to two extremely beautiful women, have what the world would call two gorgeous mistresses, and have the opportunity to fuck anyone I desire!”
“Maybe a tenth-anniversary trip to St. Martin with twelve eighteen-year-old girls?” Kara teased.
“I’ll be forty! I might not survive!”
“Oh, please!” Kara said with a laugh. “You’ll be virile at ninety!”
“And at some point, in the next five or six years, teenagers, even eighteen or nineteen, aren’t going to be interested in me because I’ll be too old.”
“Some of the ‘cousins’ might,” Kara said. “But I think you’re probably right about girls in general.”
“And you know my trend now has been for more stable relationships, right?”
“Ever since you and Liz agreed to your long-term affair, yes. What about when it ends?”
“I’ll worry about that this summer,” I replied. “I have Maria Cristina and that’s developed into a very, very solid relationship. She’s suggested she’ll want to continue through at least her first year of Residency.”
Kara laughed, “Because Jessica told Maria Cristina that having you fuck her brains out helped keep her sane during that year!”
“It is a good stress reliever!”
We arrived at the hospital and stepped into the ER to wait because it was about 5°F outside. Jess saw us and waved, then finished talking to the ER clerk before going into the lounge to put on her winter gear. When she came out of the lounge, she hurried towards us, we all exchanged kisses, and then we headed for home.
“Kara made two High School boys VERY happy today,” I said. “They both had their first time!”
“You can’t get me that way,” Jessica laughed. “I know better. Who?”
“Becka and Mattie had sympathy for two of the guys, though it was at least partly to prove a point to Sophie.”
“So two VERY satisfied High School boys who had a twenty-eight-year-old or a twenty-two-year-old initiate them?”
“Pretty much,” I grinned. “But Kara was the instigator with her ‘naked rap session’.”
“Kara is ALWAYS the instigator!” Jessica declared.
“SO true!” I agreed.
“And neither of you have ever complained!” Kara said primly.
We arrived home and after Jessica took a quick shower, we had our family dinner with my sister and her family, Samantha, and her family, Winter and Kendall, plus my entire extended family. After dinner, we watched the latest episode of The Sopranos - Do Not Resuscitate. It was a show all of us enjoyed, especially Jesse and Matthew.
“If the Chicago Outfit were that dysfunctional, even OUR government could have run them to ground!” Samantha said when the episode finished.
“They’re damned close,” I replied. “Given who the Feds have locked up, I think it’s only a matter of time for someone to break «omertà» and turn stool pigeon. Then the whole thing comes crashing down, unions and all.”
“Why do you think that?” Eduardo asked.
“Because all the guys from the Old Country, the ‘Mustache Petes’, are dead, and most of the first-generation Italians are retired or dead. The younger ones are just street hoods now, with no real loyalty to the cause. And all it takes is one guy who knows a few things to tell the Feds. Once the dam breaks, it’s all over. Then we’ll just need to worry about corrupt cops and corrupt politicians.”
“I think I agree with Steve that we’d be better off with the Outfit than Chicago cops and politicians,” Samantha said. “Or state politicians! Two recent governors went to jail, Kerner and Walker. And of course, we have Rostenkowski, too. So yeah, there actually isn’t much difference!”
“When New Jersey and Maryland look well-governed by comparison, you know you’re in deep shit!” Ed said. “And yes, I know, I work for the City. And I don’t like what I see.”
“We need to get the kids to bed,” Kara said.
“And we need to get ours home,” Stephanie said.
Everyone left, and my wives and I got our kids to bed, and then Maria Cristina and I went to her room, as we usually did on Sunday nights. We made love gently, and then moved into our usual cuddling position - her on top of me, with my arms and legs wrapped around her, and her chin resting on her crossed arms on my chest.
“How does it feel to be in your third year of your undergraduate degree?” I asked.
“Totally crazy!” Maria Cristina exclaimed. “But really, not much will change in eighteen months. I’ll have more difficult classes, more focused on medicine, but everything else stays the same - same university, same house, same mentors, same lover!”
“As long as you’re happy,” I said. “And making straight A’s.”
“I’m very happy, and you know I’m making straight A’s because you demand to see my report cards, Dad!”
I chuckled, “Role playing?”
“Is that something you think would be fun? You know, shaving my pubic hair, pulling my hair back in a ponytail and pretending to be a timid young virgin? Not your daughter because that would be weird, but maybe your innocent niece?”
“Interesting,” I grinned. “Where did you come up with this idea?”
Maria Cristina smiled, “In our human sexuality class we talked about fantasies and fetishes. For example, you have a fetish for girls who are fifteen to seventeen, specifically virgins.”
“You did NOT come up with that on your own! Who told you that?”
“I cannot reveal my sources!” she smirked.
“That means Kara and Birgit,” I replied.
Maria Cristina laughed softly, “No comment. But I’m right, aren’t I?”
“Yes, yes, you’re very smart! But would YOU enjoy that?”
“Perhaps I have my own fantasies!”
“I’d be curious to hear what those might be.”
“I want to make love, on a beach, under the stars, with the ocean flowing around us.”
“I know a secluded beach in St. Martin where that could happen,” I said.
“And I can bring six friends?” she teased.
“Somehow that sounds like what you think MY fantasy might be, not yours! And if you want what you asked for, we should go alone, just you and me.”
“Would you? This summer?”
“Let me talk with Samantha. We’ll call it a pre-MCAT vacation.”
“Thanks.”
She wiggled and wriggled, and when I was hard, she slowly pushed herself onto me and lay still on my chest.
“Let’s fall asleep this way,” she whispered.
And we did.
January 27, 2000, Chicago, Illinois
“I suppose you’re wondering why I gathered you together here today,” I said to the ‘Kitchen Cabinet’ on Thursday morning.
The women all laughed at the clichéd line.
“Actually,” I continued, “I simply asked Kimmy to call you on Deborah’s behalf.”
“Krissy was hired as a professor,” Deborah said. “In Cincinnati. We’ll be moving in late July. I’m taking an associate’s position with van Hoek, Mills, and Associates.”
There was dead silence for a good fifteen seconds.
“Well, that came out of left field,” Elyse finally said.
“I didn’t expect to be leaving this soon, but Krissy had this opportunity she can’t pass up. She’ll be practicing and teaching, and you guys know we’re basically married, even if the state won’t recognize it.”
“She’s going to join the new compound Jake and Joyce are forming in Cincinnati,” I said with a grin. “The first mission of the ‘Church of Steve’!”
The girls all laughed.
“I haven’t been allowed to worship there since I got married!” Kimmy mock-complained.
“NOBODY here is allowed to worship there at this point!” Eve declared.
“And with good reason,” Deborah said. “The world is changing and even though Steve wasn’t taking advantage of anyone, nobody outside our circle of friends would accept that, no matter how many of us defended him. But he’s right about hanging out with Joyce and her family. And we’ll come visit regularly.”
“Steve, do you have a candidate to replace her?” Cindi asked.
“Deborah just told us she was leaving!” Charlie protested.
“And how long has Steve known?” Cindi asked with an arched eyebrow.
Charlie laughed, “Good point. And that means he has a plan. Steve?”
“I know a 3L,” I replied with a grin. “I’m going to have lunch today with Liz Carullo and offer her the role. Deborah will be here for two months to get her up to speed and to help her study for the Bar Exam.”
“What about Bob?” Elyse asked.
“This is my decision, and mine alone,” I said firmly. “The role may be General Counsel, but you all know the person in that role is also my closest advisor. I’ll clear it with my sister, but this doesn’t go through Bob except to process her paperwork.”
“I’ll handle him,” Elyse said flatly. “Again.”
All the girls laughed.
“Eve,” I said. “we’re having a blowout going away party for Deborah. Make it happen!”
“Aye aye, Sir!”
“My dad was enlisted, he and I both work for a living!” I chuckled. “Speaking of which, Charlie, did Clayton get his next assignment?”
“Yes! His detailer got him a position at RTC, starting in July!”
“Good news! We all miss him.”
“Not the way she does!” Cindi teased.
More laughter and teasing ensued. The meeting broke up about ten minutes later, and I left to meet Liz at Maxim’s. We went to the basement, which I preferred, and were seated in a booth. I waited until we’d ordered before I made my offer.
“I’d like you to come work for me immediately after graduation,” I said.
“What?!” she gasped. “But what about Deborah?”
“She’s moving to Cincinnati because Krissy accepted a tenure-track professorship at UC. Deborah is taking an associate’s role with my friend Ben van Hoek’s firm, with a promise she can join the partnership in the future.”
“But I have no experience!”
“You actually have more than Deborah did when she started right out of law school.”
“But all I’ve done is internships and summer clerking.”
“The difference is, you have seven years of experience with me. She had to get to know me and that took time. You already do, which gives you a serious head start. You won’t have to bill hours, you won’t have to slave away on research, and you won’t have to put up with partners treating you like a second-class citizen. The salary is very good, there’s a significant bonus when you pass the bar, and you’ll work very closely with me.”
“A way to continue our intimate relationship after we stop ‘adulting’.”
“Yes.”
“I’ll take the job,” Liz said. “And you know I’ll never leave you.”