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Shepherdess without a Flock Ch. 01

By: tangentjoker



The characters in this work of fiction are all over the age of 21.

This series can be read on its own, although Frank Melar from The Happiest Day of Her Life makes an appearance in this chapter.

Votes and polite comments are appreciated. 

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Dani Van Cleef sat on the plane absently staring out the window and twirling her long golden blonde hair around her index finger. She didn't do things like this, she thought to herself. She couldn't believe she was flying down to Miami to meet a man she'd met only once before. 



Dani tried to remember the last few months to figure out how she'd gotten here. In May of this year, Dani received her Master's Degree in Divinity from Moravian Theological Seminary in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. Since the families of the graduating class of the seminary could not fit in the school's Bahnson Center, the Graduation was held at Central Moravian Church, which was almost the other end of Main Street from the seminary, about a mile away. It was actually called the Moravian Mile. Dani wasn't Moravian - she was Presbyterian - but she felt welcome at the seminary. Dani's mother was very proud of Dani. Their hug seemed to last for hours and still was not long enough. Dani's father, as usual, was unable to make the event. Dani was happy, though, to see her younger sisters and her step-father.

Dani's friend, Tori, had already accepted her first call and Dani promised to visit her at her new church in Seaford, Long Island, New York. It was a small church, but the congregation loved Tori. The first night of Dani's visit, in June, Tori invited her and a woman named Beth to a humongous bar in Wantagh called Mulcahy's. That was where Dani met Frank. While Tori and Beth were talking to Frank's friend, Chloe, Frank and Dani were on the dance floor. They danced for over an hour. Frank was also visiting Long Island, even though he was originally from there. They danced, they talked and they laughed. Before she thought things through to stop herself, Dani gave Frank her phone number. Since neither of them was living on Long Island, Dani never expected to hear from Frank.

Frank called her ten minutes after she interviewed with a church. Dani had just gotten back to Pennsylvania from Long Island the night before. The church itself was in New Jersey, but the drive wasn't that bad. Dani was still amped up from the interview when Frank called. She didn't recognize the number, or even the area code, displayed on her phone but answered anyway.

"Hello?" she asked as a greeting.

"Danielle?" asked a voice she didn't recognize. "This is Frank. Frank Melar; we danced together on Long Island the other night."

"Oh, yes, Frank," replied Dani, very glad he introduced himself the way he had. "What are you up to?"

"Just enjoying the beauty of the Sunshine State," he said amiably enough.

"You're not one of those Floridians who wears a very heavy coat in sixty degree weather are you?" she asked with a smile he could hear.

"No, of course not," said Frank. "In sixty degree weather I wear a hoodie over a thick sweater. I don't put on heavy coats until it gets to the high fifties."

"Lord help you," Dani said with a chuckle. "Fifty-eight degrees is still tee shirt weather up here."

"Uh huh," said Frank. "Where's 'up here' again?"

"Well, I live in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania," said Dani, "but I'm just leaving a job interview, actually a second interview, in New Jersey."

"Oh?" asked Frank, "where in Jersey?"

"Williamstown," said Dani. "You've probably never heard of it."

"I've never heard of it," admitted Frank. "What's it near?"

"Oh, let's see," said Dani, consulting her map, "Sicklerville, Glassboro, Turnersville, Sewell, Vineland..."

"Stop," said Frank. "You're not helping me. Is it near any big cities? Anything I may have heard of?"

"Hmmmm," Dani hummed as she loudly rattled her map and looked. "Have you ever heard of Cherry Hill, Camden or Philadelphia?"

"Yes, I have," answered Frank. "Oh, so you're in south Jersey. You're not driving, are you?"

"I was," said Dani. "I pulled over before I answered my phone."

"Oh, good," said Frank. "That's safe. I guess I shouldn't keep you too long, though. When's the best time to call you?"

"Wednesday nights around seven, I guess," replied Dani.

And that was how it began. Frank called her at exactly 7pm every Wednesday night for three months. It was a little creepy at first. After week five, it was expected and normal. He was "there" for her highs and lows. He called the Wednesday she was hired as the pastor of First Presbyterian Church of Williamstown. He called the Wednesday before she was ordained. He called the Wednesday before she moved into the Manse. He called her new number the Wednesday after she got it. He called the Wednesday before her installation as pastor. He called the Wednesday after her first sermon bombed. He called the day her father died. Frank was always very supportive. Dani appreciated that about him.

Dani's family wanted her to lead her father's funeral service. She wasn't sure if she should be so emotionally connected to her first funeral service. In the end, she gave in. Frank called her the day of the funeral to see how she was holding up. She had been frazzled all day, but the gesture of the phone call really helped to pick up her spirits. The elders at the Williamstown church, realizing what their new pastor just went through in burying her father, gave her two weeks off. Frank, upon hearing this the following Wednesday evening, invited her to his semi-private island off the coast of Miami.

"What is a 'semi-private island'?" she'd asked.

"There are only three other houses on this island and it's big enough that months go by before I see my neighbors," Frank explained.

She didn't know why she accepted. She'd met him once, despite how often they spoke on the phone. He was a stranger. Also, he was a single man inviting her to his home on an island. The obvious implication was that he wanted sex. Dani was not a virgin. At the age of 19, she was the proud recipient of the worst night of sex ever. Her then boyfriend rammed into Dani like he was trying to do permanent damage and lasted an astounding two minutes before he fired his load into the condom he used and soon thereafter fell asleep. In pain and unsatisfied, Dani had no idea why everyone else seemed to like sex.



Dani didn't look forward to sex, but thought she might as well give it one more try. After all, it didn't do for a pastor to be one sexual experience away from her virginity. She was the spiritual leader of a small church in New Jersey. Counseling sessions about sex would be awkward if Dani didn't know what she was talking about. Also, and Dani didn't want to feel she was naïve about this, but the possibility existed that he didn't want sex. There was the possibility he was trying to save her the money a hotel would've cost. Yeah, right, she thought. He was so concerned with how much she was spending and sex never entered his mind.

Dani napped briefly on the flight to Miami. Some of the fun had been taken out of air travel, she thought. Dani could remember how magical a plane ride used to seem when she was ten. She could remember the excitement flowing all through her body. These days, the emotion most connected to flying was annoyance. Every little thing related to flying was annoying. The lines, the security, the other self-absorbed travelers who insisted on making their presence known as often as possible; it sucked the fun out of the whole experience.

The plane touched down smoothly and there were people clapping somewhere behind her. Dani smiled and was tempted to join in on the applause. She chose not to. Dani followed the other passengers as they headed towards baggage pickup. She saw one of her bags busted open with tape wrapped around it and rolled her eyes. The other bag seemed ok. She'd have to take a look at the damaged bag later to determine what, if anything, was missing. 

Dani walked to the exit and saw a familiar looking gent holding up a sign with Dani's full name on it. It was Frank, she remembered. Frank was 6'2" and tan. He had a wide smile and large hands. Dani noticed the hands right away. He had broad shoulders and it was obvious in his tee shirt and shorts that he was physically fit. His dark brown hair was neatly parted to the side and there was the faintest bit of scruffy hair on his chin. Dani told her friends she preferred clean shaven men, but there was something about a scruffy man she had to admit was sexy. 



Dani walked up and gave Frank a friendly hug. She didn't intend to, but Dani smelled Frank's hair. He smelled good. He smelled really good. Dani released Frank from the hug and Frank reached for the handles of Dani's luggage. He moved slowly enough that she couldn't misinterpret his movements. Dani held on to the damaged bag.

"They busted open one of my bags and I want to check it as soon as we get to your car," Dani explained serenely.

Frank furrowed his brow and said, "I don't have a car here. We wouldn't be able to get to my house by car."

"Wait," said Dani, "you brought the seaplane you told me about?"

"Well, I do call it that because it's easier to say," said Frank with a sheepish grin, " but technically it's an amphibious plane. It has retractable landing gear as well as pontoons."

"So," said Dani, "I just got off one plane and you're going to stick me on another one?"

"This flight won't be as long," said Frank, "and you can sit next to me if you want."

Dani was very nervous about sitting next to the pilot of a plane. She mulled it over. She realized she would be nervous wherever she was seated on a small plane. There was a panic, ineffable to be sure, radiating through Dani's belly. After a great deal of thought, she found herself buckling in right next to Frank. It really was the only polite place she could sit. She'd be able to carry on conversations, at least.

It was interesting for Dani to learn that something could be exciting and tedious at the same time. This was the sort of paradox she regularly sought out to use as an example in a sermon. In this particular case, preflight checks were both exciting and tedious. It was an amusing contradiction. Dani thought she could look at the controls here for ages and never understand what half of them did.

A few hours earlier, Dani was sitting in coach on a large plane and did not really enjoy the takeoff as she felt as though her stomach had been left behind. At this particular moment, however, as Dani watched what went into a takeoff she was mesmerized. There was something enigmatic and fascinating about a man willing a large metallic craft into the air. Dani sat silently transfixed as Frank pulled back on the stick and got the bird up. Once he leveled off, Frank began talking to Dani and they chatted casually.

It was fairly surreal to be talking so nonchalantly while this veritable stranger almost literally had his life in his hands. It was astounding to Dani how casual they both were. She had to admit that Frank was easy to talk to. He was also very easy to look at. He had a very commanding presence as he flipped switches and tapped gauges. For all Dani knew, Frank could have been doing a ton of things that looked impressive but had no practical function. She was still very impressed. He hadn't mentioned he was a pilot when they met at Mulcahy's bar. If he could leave out something so incredible, what else did she not know about him? That thought made Dani pause, but she chose to focus on the positives.

The secret he kept from her, piloting, was a good thing. Hopefully, since she did know some negatives about him, any other secrets were also good things. She looked through what she could only call the windshield and saw the gorgeous blue color of the ocean. She didn't see the ocean very often in Williamstown. The good news, on that score, was that Ocean City was not very far away. She'd been to Ocean City, New Jersey, as a child and looked forward to taking day trips there. Typical, Dani, thought. She was on her way to a semi-private beach island and she was daydreaming about the boardwalk on the Jersey Shore.

She broke out of her daydream as she realized the plane was descending. She looked around for land and saw the beautiful island getting larger in front of her. She wondered what she was getting herself into, but was not frightened or nervous. She was trusting a stranger, yes, but she worked in a profession based on faith. Dani had faith that Frank would not turn out to be a date rapist. She had faith that God was there with her; protecting her.

Dani watched unblinkingly as Frank made the preparations for his water landing. Since they were getting closer to one house in particular, it became obvious that this was Frank's house. She couldn't see the entire building. What she could see was astonishing. The house was perfectly placed on a huge, nearly pristine, beach. Between the house and the beach was an Olympic sized pool. She looked carefully at the pool and discovered it went right up to the house and kept going. The outdoor pool connected to an indoor pool. Between the pool and the beach lived a volleyball court and a fire pit. There was serious money spent here and that was just the exterior.



The plane splashed gently into the water and coasted to the docks set up for the plane. The docks extended from the shore in a long strip. They walked the pier towards the house and Dani noticed Frank setting her luggage down and taking his shirt off.

"Excuse me," she said to him, "what the hell are you doing?"

"I'm stripping down to my swim trunks so I can get in the house," he replied calmly.

Dani looked at him incredulously and asked, "You're doing what, now?"

"The entrance over here is through the pool," explained Frank. "It's either swim our way into the house or go all the way around to the front door. Which would you rather..." Frank paused, seeing the look on Dani's face, and carried her bags to the front door.

The front of the estate was nearly as impressive as the back. There was a well-tended lawn that was larger than any yards Dani could remember seeing in her life. Off to the side, there was a tennis court. Dani thought it was strange that the only entrance on the beach side of the house was through the pool. She would later learn that wasn't at all what Frank was saying. The pool was the only entrance on the southeast corner of the house. The next closest entrance was in the front on the northeast corner. There were other entrances on the south side, but they were further away.

"This place is huge!" said Dani enthusiastically. "It's just you here?"

"Pretty much," Frank said. "I mean, I do have some full time staff who reside here."

"Do you have a butler?" asked Dani.

"I do," said Frank. "This house didn't always have a butler, though. My father had this... um... fetish. He staffed the house with buxom women in fairly revealing uniforms. He staffed every house he owned like that. Since his death, whenever a position opened up, my brothers and I generally filled it based on experience rather than appearance."

"Yes, experience is a much better qualifier for a job," Dani agreed. "So, where's my room?"

"Second floor," said Frank. "Right across the hall from mine."

Dani felt instantly better once she realized they would not be sharing a room. This meant that sex was not assumed. Her body relaxed and Frank noticed. 

He smiled. He knew it would have been a colossal mistake to rush things. Besides, with a house this large, there really was no reason Dani couldn't have her own room. Frank carried the bags up the stairs and brought Dani directly to her room. He turned on the overhead lights with his elbow and set her bags at the foot of the bed.

Dani looked around at the enormous bedroom. The room was styled perfectly. The dark tones in the room worked well with the light pinks and violets that worked together throughout the room. The centerpiece of the room, obviously, was the four poster canopy bed. There were two recliner chairs, one on either side of the bed, that matched the color scheme beautifully. There was an impossibly large flat screen TV facing the foot of the bed. There was a writing desk and a chair over in one corner. There were two doors in the room, other than the entrance they came through. Surely, they couldn't both be closets? Dani walked toward the closer of the two doors and opened it to reveal a walk-in closet. It was immense. She could lay down in this closet and still have plenty of room. Dani went to the other door. Thankfully, it was a bathroom.

"Could you excuse me, please?" asked Dani. "This is exactly what I need right now."

"Oh, of course," said Frank. "I'll, uh, just give you your privacy. I'll wait for you in the living room."

"That would be where?"

"The first room to the right of the stairs we used to get here," said Frank with a smile.

Dani was thankful for the time to herself. This was all lovely, but she needed to slow down and have a reality check. After finishing her business in the bathroom and washing her hands, Dani walked to the large bed. She sat down and enjoyed the softness of the bed. A wicked smile grew on Dani's face. She kicked off her shoes and stood up on the bed. The bed was so large that she did three bounces before she came close to hitting her head on the canopy. It was a very good stress reliever, but Dani stopped jumping on the bed.



Dani put her shoes back on and went down to the living room.

"Did you have trouble finding it?" Frank asked. He rose from his chair as Dani entered the room until Dani gestured for him to return to his chair.

"Nope," said Dani with a smile. "It was right where you said it would be."

"Are you hungry?"

Dani said, "Famished."

"Good," said Frank. "I had Chef make us a light supper."

"Thank you," said Dani. "That was very thoughtful."

"I'm just trying to be a good host."

"You're succeeding so far..."

"Thank you," said Frank. He settled into the chair he occupied as Dani took a chair that faced him. "So, do you prefer to be called Danielle or Reverend Van Cleef?"

"Well, it's actually 'Pastor Van Cleef," Dani said. "That's way too formal, though. Just call me 'Dani.' You're not one of my parishioners, so there's really no reason for you to use my title. I'm not used to being called 'Danielle' unless I'm in trouble."

"Ok, Dani," said Frank. "How's your mom dealing with your dad's death?"

"Well, they've been divorced for a long time and she's remarried," said Dani. "It really didn't affect her too badly. She only got involved at all to make sure I would lead the funeral service. She thought it would be a nice touch. My dad disappeared from our lives years ago. We'd already cried all of our tears. I tried to explain that to the elders at church, but they insisted I take time off."

"It's a lucky thing for me that they did," said Frank.

After dinner, Dani went up to her room and prepared for bed. She said goodnight to Frank before closing her door. She had no intention of seeing him again until morning.


Shepherdess without a Flock Ch. 01



The bed was incredibly comfortable. Dani was tempted to bounce on it again, but decided to go to sleep instead. She washed up for bed and changed into the tank top and boy shorts she usually wore to bed. Dani had brought her alarm clock, but decided it didn't need to be unpacked. She opened the window closest to her bed and sat on the bed before she turned off the light. The gentle sounds of the Atlantic Ocean lulled her to sleep.

She couldn't remember it once she was awake, but Dani had a very hot dream. She woke with two fingers in her pussy. This was not something she usually did, but she wasn't embarrassed. It felt very good.



Dani took a shower. The water was very relaxing and Dani soon found herself squeezing her tits and rubbing her clit. This was becoming a habit, at that point, and it worried Dani. What did it mean, she wondered. Was she desiring sex? Was she falling in love? Dani really didn't know the answer to either question.



Dani met Tim the butler on her way to try to find the kitchen. Tim led her downstairs and seated her in the dining room. He took her breakfast order and left her alone in the large room. Dani fidgeted in her seat. She was very uncomfortable in this room all alone. Dani was just about to get up from her seat when Frank entered the room. Dani relaxed demonstratively. She didn't realize how far out of her comfort zone she was until she had been left by herself. Dani cleared her head and drank in how Frank looked. He was wearing a button down shirt mostly open. He looked very good. Frank's breakfast was served at the same time Dani's was and she wondered how he pulled that off.

They chatted amicably about several harmless topics. Dani was under the impression he was feeling her out, so to speak. He seemed to be finding out how comfortable he would be fucking woman of the cloth. Some of his questions were of a sexual variety. They were veiled enough not to seem improper to be asked by someone who was still pretty much a stranger.

"So," asked Dani, "what's the plan of the day?"

"Nothing huge," admitted Frank. "After breakfast I was going to take you on a tour. I thought we'd have a picnic on the beach later and then I'd take you to Miami Beach, probably South Beach, for some dancing."

Dani asked, "We're going to fly to Miami to go dancing?"

"No, no," said Frank. "We'd take the boat, and Miami Beach is a separate municipality from Miami. There's a great place to dance on Collins Avenue."

"Oh," said Dani. "That sounds nice."

The tour was wonderful, but Dani was convinced she would need a map to negotiate this huge mansion on her own. Frank was flirty but not overly suggestive as he led the tour. The house had a lot of bedrooms. On more than one stop, he made a naughty suggestion about getting comfortable. Dani giggled and playfully punched Frank in the arm.

When the tour ended, the two retreated to their separate rooms to get dressed for a beach picnic. Dani was feeling very flirty and decided to wear a string bikini that left little to the imagination. The small panels of the bikini were a reflective silver that went nicely with her long blonde hair. It almost looked like silver lame, but the material could get wet. She wore a thin, white, button down shirt as a cover up, but did not bother to button it. Frank knocked politely on her door and seemed appropriately appreciative of Dani's clothing choices.



As they reached the bottom of the main staircase, Tim was waiting there with a large basket. It was the type of wicker basket that can latch closed. This basket seemed large enough to hold a litter of Terriers. Frank carried it with one hand and didn't seem to be struggling with it. The sun cascaded down and basked the pair in a warm glow. Frank was wearing the same open shirt as earlier but also wore a pair of board shorts. He seemed to know how good he looked. In addition to the picnic basket, Frank was holding a pullstring canvas bag. When they reached their destination, Frank removed a red and white checkered blanket from the bag. He held down the corners of the blanket with the basket, the bag and his sandals. 

Frank reached into the large canvas bag and pulled out a bottle of sunscreen. Dani graciously accepted the bottle when he offered it to her. She slathered the creamy lotion all over the front of her body. She lathered under her bikini to prevent burning where the material might shift over the course of a day. Dani returned the bottle to Frank and turned her back to him. The silent request for assistance was immediately answered. Frank gathered up Dani's long hair as if to prepare it for a ponytail. Dani held her hair for him as he squirted lotion into his palms and rubbed his hands to warm it.

Dani felt a cool sensation that became warm. It was not the lotion. It was Frank's lips. He kissed the back of her neck before applying the lotion. It was a tad creepy. Dani was about to say something when Frank repeated the process on her shoulders. It was similar to his Wednesday night phone calls in that it was really creepy at first but became wonderful once Dani got used to it. That seemed to describe Frank in a nutshell: a creep who becomes wonderful.

The kisses and the sunscreen application were very thorough. Dani's breathing had become noticeably faster. Frank pulled down the strings of the bikini top, slightly, with his finger to allow those spots to be kissed and lotioned. He kissed and massaged very slowly down each arm. Not an inch was missed. The lips and hands proceeded slowly and steadily down Dani's back. Dani laid down on the blanket to accommodate him. His fingers gently peeled down her bottoms to kiss and lotion her ass. Dani squirmed, but did not stop him. This was a very new sensation, but Dani liked having her ass kissed and then massaged.

Frank was very attentive to her legs. Dani actually cooed when Frank kissed her behind the knees. It all felt very pleasurable. Dani didn't realize she was getting wet at first. She noticed a dark patch on her bikini bottoms when she rolled over. She was amazed she could respond in that manner without being aware of it. Dani crossed her legs to hide the wet spot, turned from Frank and ran into the water. She dove into a wave, shook herself off and returned.

"Sorry," she said. "I wanted to make sure this stuff was waterproof. Are you ready for me to do your back?"

"Yes, please," said Frank. He had noticed the wet spot but was enough of a gentleman to allow her to jump in the water without comment. Besides, she looked very good when she was wet.

Dani did not kiss Frank's body, but she did lean in closely as she massaged the lotion into his back. A few times, her moist breasts slid against his dry skin. She did not rush the application of sunscreen. She was very thorough. Frank was already very tan so Dani wondered how effective, if at all, the sunscreen would be.

The picnic was lovely. Dani had no illusions that Frank had anything to do with the preparation of the food or the basket. He, most likely, told Tim what he wanted and Tim, most likely, told the kitchen staff. All of the food was delicious. Dani had small portions of everything so as not to be rude. Dani had forgotten to bring a book with her to the beach although there were several in her luggage. Instead of reading while laying in the sun, as she usually did, she and Frank walked along the shore after lunch. On his third fairly clumsy attempt to hold her hand, Dani allowed it. As with everything about Frank, the hand holding was creepy at first but became wonderful. 

After about twenty minutes of walking hand in hand and casually talking, Frank playfully scooped Dani up and tossed her into the water. She was giggling when she came back up, but Frank was not. Her top string had come undone and Frank looked, slackjawed, at her spectacular breasts. She was attempting to pull the strings back up when Frank raised a hand to stop her.

"Please don't," he said. "One glimpses true beauty very rarely in this life. It would be a shame to hide yours. No one else can see you and you look amazing, Dani."

Despite the heavy handed compliment, Dani left her breasts exposed until they turned around to go back to the house. She actually felt more confident than she had in all her life. Her body was exposed in public (sort of) and instead of feeling embarrassed, she felt beautiful and desired.



Upon returning to the house, Frank told Dani they should shower and get dressed for a fancy night out at a place called the Opium Garden. Frank asked Dani if she had any rain scarves with her.

"I don't think so," said Dani. "Why?"

"Well," said Frank, "The wind will be whipping pretty hard on the water. It will be hard on your hair. Do you want to borrow a hat?"

"Um, sure. That would be great," Dani replied with a smile. She reminded herself that things that started out creepy with Frank became wonderful quickly enough.

Dani had a great shower and slid herself into her little black dress and her two inch heels. The dress hugged her curves perfectly. Dani felt very beautiful as she stared at her reflection in the full length mirror. She had a feeling that this date would be leading to sex. She thought about that. Frank was a dreamy looking man and he'd already seen most of her body. Dani was warming up to the idea of passionate sex with him.

The hat was a very good idea. Frank had given her a black Fedora that went very well with the rest of her outfit. Dani looked hot and the hat kept her hair from looking like a frazzled mess. She'd have to wear the hat all night because of how hard she held it to her head, but it was worth it. Walking around South Beach was magical. There was a frenetic vibe all around them.

The doorman at Opium wasted no time allowing Dani in. He was about to hassle Frank, but frank produced two bills and mentioned something about introducing the doorman to the "Franklin Twins". There was a twenty dollar cover in addition to the bribe. Dani was scandalized.

The club itself had an Asian feel to it and was immense. They ate a sumptuous meal before making their way to the dance floor. Dani loved to dance. Frank moved quite well, Dani thought. It was almost deafeningly loud in the club, but Dani was having the time of her life. She felt pretty. She felt attractive. She saw many different sets of eyes on her as she danced. After ten straight songs on the dance floor, Frank asked her if she wanted a drink. She didn't know much about drinking and asked for something with a bite to it.

Dani stayed on the dance floor. A guy in a tight fitting shirt took Frank's departure as his cue to sidle up to Dani. She politely gave him room at first, but he kept trying to rub against her. She slapped away his hands the first few times he reached for her. His hand managed to graze her ass. Dani was about to slug the guy. Frank appeared between them, holding drinks, and stared at the guy. The guy was about to reach for one of the drinks in an attempt to show he wasn't afraid of anything. Frank handed both drinks to Dani and marched towards the guy. Frank kept his hands at his sides, but pushed the guy back by walking too quickly into the guy's comfort zone. When he had been driven sufficiently far away from Dani, Frank returned to her.

"Why don't we sit this one out?" he asked her.

"Good idea," she said. "What is this?" Frank noticed she'd consumed most of one of the drinks.

"It's a Jack and Coke. I hope you stirred it first."

"Um, no," she said. "I didn't."

No one had claimed the table they'd sat at earlier and so they returned there. Dani finished off the first drink and was sipping on the second. Frank stopped a waitress and ordered one for himself. Frank found himself stopping the waitress again and again.

Dani, Frank discovered, became very flirty when she was drunk. She was being very, very, flirty. Dani was playing with her hair and adjusting her dress in a very drunk but nonetheless seductive manner. Frank suggested going back out on the dance floor, hoping she would sweat the alcohol from her system. She was a little too drunk to make that a viable plan. He walked her outside. The fresh air seemed to be doing her some good. He did his best to lead her back to where the boat was parked. He carried her the last fifty feet and set her down gently in the boat. She was asleep before they made it back to the island.

Frank carried her to her room and left her dressed. He pulled the covers over her and kissed her forehead before leaving the room. As desirable as she was, Frank would not take advantage. He jerked his cock silly once he was in his own room. It didn't take long to make himself cum.

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Thank you for reading. Please vote and send polite comments. Let me know if I should continue.



Shepherdess without a Flock Ch. 02



All of the characters in this work of fiction are over the age of 21.

This series can be read on its own. However, Frank Melar from The Happiest Day of Her Life appears in this chapter.

This chapter contains depictions of heterosexual sex.

In the previous chapter, Dani Van Cleef, a newly ordained Presbyterian pastor, agreed to fly out to the home of Frank Melar, a rich heir, after meeting him once. Frank was clearly attracted to Dani, but had (for the most part) behaved like a gentleman. Oh, and there were a bunch of crappy drawings that did little to help illustrate things.

Votes and polite comments are always appreciated.

Special thanks to my Beta Reader, FangsAnarchy, for her help and encouragement. 

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When Dani woke up, she had a bit of a headache. She massaged the sides of her head. She soon realized she was still in her black dress from the night before. Nothing had happened, obviously. Dani didn't understand why, but she was a little disappointed that Frank didn't take advantage of her. It felt, almost, as though he had rejected her on some level. She knew he was simply being a gentleman, but the feeling of rejection lingered.

She stood before the full length mirror and flattened her dress as she gazed at her reflection. She still felt pretty despite the state of her hair and makeup. She told herself, over and over again, that she was not rejected. It was an act of chivalry and not revulsion. Dani undressed and took a long shower. The hot water helped her to clear her head. She brushed her teeth and then slipped into a blue tank top and jean shorts. She didn't bother to put on a bra.

Dani went down to the dining room. Tim met her there and took her breakfast order. She was feeling hungry and ordered a Western omelette with juice and black coffee. As had happened the day before, Frank came to the dining room and soon thereafter, both his and Dani's breakfasts came out of the kitchen. At first, Dani thought it was simply the same order every day and the kitchen staff knew exactly what to serve him. Upon closer inspection, she saw differences from the previous breakfast.

She didn't bother to voice her question. She looked at Frank. He was still very dreamy.

"Thank you for last night," she said.

"How much of it do you remember?" he asked as he took his seat.

"Not all, but a lot," she admitted. Dani raked her fingers through her hair before digging her fork into her omelette. "I've pieced together most of the memories that are missing. I drank too much Jack and Coke. I danced a long time and a tool showed up right when you went to fetch drinks. We went back to our table. You brought me outside. I passed out on the boat. You did not molest me. Did I miss anything?"

"No, that sums it up nicely," said Frank with a chuckle.

"What's the plan of the day?" Dani asked.

"I thought we'd take it easier today. Veg out at the pool and later take the boat out."

"So we're going back out into the sun?" asked Dani.

"Not if you don't want to," said Frank. "It's an indoor/outdoor pool."

They went upstairs and to their respective rooms to change into their swimsuits. Dani was glad she'd brought more than one. She put on another string bikini. This one was all black and very tiny. Lately, Dani liked the way she looked in black. She walked out her door feeling particularly sexy. She remembered to take a book with her. Frank was waiting for her in the hall.

"Wow," said Dani. "You're quick."

"I'm a guy," said Frank. "I don't have as much to change."

They walked downstairs together and Frank led Dani to the pool room. It was almost directly behind the staircase closest to Dani's room. It actually would have been very convenient if they had come in that way the first day of her visit. Dani looked around the room. It was a very large indoor pool. The fact that it connected to a larger pool made it seem enormous.

Frank dove right in and began swimming laps. Dani tested the water with her toes. It was warmer than she expected it to be. Dani dove into the water, arching her body gracefully. She sliced through the water and stayed under until she was nearly at the other end of the pool. She emerged and flipped her wet hair out of her face. The water that cascaded from her hair flew through the air nicely.

"Wow," said Frank. "You look great when you're wet."

"Yes, well, I've been wet a lot the last few days," said Dani. She managed to get that out without blushing.

Frank wasn't sure how to answer that. This was a member of the clergy he was hitting on. He knew she wasn't a priest or nun. She didn't take any vows of celibacy. Still, this was outside his experience. He decided to go for charming rather than digging into his stores of double entendres. 

He said, "I guess that explains why you always look great."

"Aren't you the flatterer?" 

"Not a flatterer," he said, "just an admirer."

Dani was feeling bold and asked, "Would you like to do more than admire?"

Frank asked in reply, "What did you have in mind?"

Dani smirked and went underwater. When she emerged, she was right in front of Frank. She ran her fingers along his chest. Dani placed her hands on Frank's shoulders and kissed the center of his chest. She slowly worked her way up. She kissed the little notch at the base of his throat. She moved up his neck and trailed her lips there. She kissed that spot under his chin. Dani wrapped her arms around Frank as she kissed him on the lips. She pressed her body to his. She could feel his cock harden between them. She broke the kiss and tapped him on the chest.

"Tag! You're it!" she shouted before she swam away. 

She was underwater and quickly swam her way to the outdoor section of the immense pool. Frank found it difficult to swim with a boner. He finally managed to get himself outside, but Frank had no chance of catching Dani. His stiff cock continually slapped against his thighs as he swam. The slapping only succeeded in making the dick stiffer. Frank quickly gave up attempting to swim and walked towards Dani as quickly as the water allowed. Dani was very good at dodging, but Frank's persistence eventually paid off. He grabbed her by the shoulders and pulled her into a tight hug.

"Tag," he said. 

"Well, you caught me," a smiling Dani said. "Now what are you going to do with me?"

"I don't really know," said Frank. "How far can I go before I condemn myself to hell?"

"You're Catholic," asked Dani, "aren't you?"

"Well," Frank said, stretching the word out. "I'm a lapsed Catholic."

"In other words, you don't go to services but you still have guilt," Dani said.

"Something like that," agreed Frank.

"There's nothing to be guilty about," said Dani. "I'm a consenting adult and I'm a member of the Presbyterian Church, USA."

"What does that mean?"

"It means that we don't consider premarital sex a sin. It also means that Presbyterian pastors are allowed to date and get married," said Dani with a huge, sexy, grin.

"I guess I'm a little nervous," Frank admitted.

Dani slipped out of Frank's grasp and said, "Oh, are you? I'm pretty nervous myself."

"Why are you nervous? I'm the one attracted to a pastor," said Frank.

Dani smiled at that. She returned to his eager arms. 

Frank's experience with women was somewhat limited. He filled the gaps with things learned from movies until those things were corrected by his female friends. One thing still stuck in his head was the 90-10 ratio used in the film Hitch. Frank moved his head towards Dani's and gave his lips a slight pucker. He moved in a slow but steady manner and then he stopped a few inches from the goal. He held himself there. Dani, having seen the film, smiled and closed the gap. It was a soft kiss, but very nice.

Frank, after about forty seconds of kissing, broke the kiss and said, "I'm sorry!"

"What are you sorry for?" asked Dani. "That was very good."

"No," said Frank. "I'm sorry because I wasn't being very fair to you. I was thinking of someone else just now."

"Who were you thinking of?" Dani asked.

"My sister."

"Ewww!" exclaimed Dani. Her face was etched in a look of disgust.

"I know, I know," proclaimed Frank. "It's just that ever since my brother died, I've been very protective of her."

"Wait," said Dani. "You're talking about your brother's widow?"

"Yeah," said Frank. "It's pretty creepy, isn't it?"

"It isn't creepy at all," replied Dani. "It's Biblical."

"What do you mean?"

"In Ancient Judea, bloodlines were very important. They meant the survival of the Kingdom, after all. If a woman was widowed without producing offspring and the deceased had an unmarried brother, the living brother would take the widow as his wife. The first male child they had would be considered the heir of the deceased brother so that his bloodline would continue. Any additional children could be considered the offspring of the living brother at his discretion."

"Oh," said Frank. "Is that why, sometimes, in the Bible when it says 'brothers' it really means 'cousins'?"

"What do you mean?" asked Dani. "There's no such pattern in the Bible."

"Sure there is," replied Frank. "You know, when it says that Jesus has brothers it was really talking about cousins."

"Um, no," said Dani. "It was talking about his four brothers: James, Joses or Joseph Junior, Simon, and Judas. His cousin was John, the baptist, and John was never referred to as Jesus' brother."

"Wait. Judas was Jesus' brother?" asked Frank. 

"Not to be confused with Judas Iscariot, the Apostle. Only one of Jesus' brothers was an Apostle. James. You would probably know him as James the Lesser. James the Greater was the brother of John, the Evangelist."

"But wait a second. How could Jesus have brothers if Mary was a virgin?" Frank asked.

"Catholics," said Dani as though it were a dirty word. "What Bible do you read?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean what translation do you use?"

"I have no clue what you are talking about," Frank replied.

Dani cleared her throat and asked, "What's the name of your Bible? Does it say 'Holy Bible' or 'Good News Bible' or..."

"'Good News Bible'," Frank said excitedly.

"Ok," said Dani. "Do yourself a favor and throw that shit out. Go to the bookstore and pick up the NRSV translation of the Bible. That stands for New Revised Standard Version. Take that home and turn to the Gospel According to Matthew. You will see, right there in the first chapter, that Matthew says that Joseph and Mary had marital relations after Jesus was born. Then, turn to Matthew Chapter 13, Verse 55 and you will see that James, Joseph, Simon and Judas are listed as his brothers and not his cousins. The Bible never substitutes the word 'cousin' with 'brother'. Cain and Abel were not cousins. Moses and Aaron were not cousins. James and John were not cousins. Peter and Andrew were not cousins. Rufus and Alexander were not cousins. Jesus was not cousins with James, Joses, Simon and Judas."

"Hold on," said Frank. "If it's in the Bible, why would the church teach that Mary remained a virgin?"

"The Roman Catholic church teaches that false lesson because Augustine was a sociopath who thought that sex was dirty. Augustine had enough influence that the RC church actually taught people that sex was dirty and could only be used for good if it was between two married people and used only for procreation and not for enjoyment. Face it, son. 'You've been flimflammed. You've been hoodwinked.' Your church lied to your ancestors to keep them docile and compliant."

"Whoa," said Frank.

"Pretty heavy shit for a second date, isn't it?"

"Well, that and you quoted Malcolm X."

"Oops," said Dani. "You caught me. You know, it's hard to write 52 sermons a year and stay original. Not to mention sermons for special occasions like weddings and funerals. Some pastors do it by writing only 156 sermons and using them over and over again over the three lectionary cycles. Others, like me, just borrow liberally from great writers. I've killed the moment, haven't I?"

Frank said, "Well, this isn't very sexy but it is interesting. You know a lot about the Bible."

"It's kind of my job..." said Dani with a shrug.

"Come with me," said Frank.

He took Dani by the hand and led her out of the pool and to the pier. He helped her into the boat and he cast off soon afterwards. Instead of going west, towards Miami, they went east. Dani was amazed when the land disappeared behind them. She had never been so far out to sea before that the only things visible were water and sky. It was majestic. It was frightening. The boat rocked on the water gently after Frank turned off the engine. He walked to the stern, where Dani was. She had nowhere to go. It was too far to swim. She could not escape him if she wanted to. She didn't think she wanted to. He wrapped his arms around her and she replied in kind. He leaned his head in and she met him halfway. The kiss was soft at first and gained intensity. He did not pull away or act guilty.

His hands glided slowly up and down her back. After several pleasant seconds of this, he trapped the ties at her neck between his thumb and forefinger and pulled down and did the same with the ties at her back, pulling them up. In that simple motion, he untied both bows on her top and it popped off between their bodies. She rubbed her chest against his in a slow figure eight pattern as the kiss became more frenzied. She swirled her tongue around his. His hands came to her hips and untied the strings of her bottom as easily as her top had been undone.

She wanted balance. She lowered herself, breaking the kiss, and grabbed the waistband of his trunks on the way down. His cock snapped up at attention as she pulled the trunks down to his ankles. He stepped out of them. She kneeled on them and was eye level with his cock. She kissed the head. He was circumcised. She smiled at that. Dani wasn't sure what to do next. She'd never given a blow job. She didn't know what was expected of her. She stroked the shaft as she kissed the head again. Frank's moan told her that was good.



She licked the head and the shaft like an ice cream cone. She kissed his balls. Frank's hands rested on her shoulders. Dani could feel the heat of the sun on her back. She stopped licking.

"Did you bring lotion?" she asked.

"No," replied Frank. "Come with me."

Dani looked confused but stood up and followed as Frank opened the hatch to the boat's cabin. There were steps and at the bottom was a small bed. Dani smiled. They were out of the sun.

Frank laid down on the bed and Dani crawled up between his legs. She had just enough room to continue pleasuring his cock. She sucked on his balls, one at a time, and licked up his shaft in long, slow, strokes. She sucked on the head and tickled the small opening with her tongue. Frank's hands returned to her shoulders and his moaning was louder. Dani sucked very hard on the head while her hands stroked the shaft. She stroked him vigorously with her hand while she gave her mouth a break. She licked the lip where the head meets the shaft but did not stop jerking him off. She sucked the head again and bobbed her head a little bit as she did. She continued a shallow head bob as her right hand kept up with the hand job. His hands moved to the back of her head and pushed down. Dani breathed through her nose and allowed her lips to slide lower down the shaft. His hands did not push down as hard when Dani moved her lips closer to the base of his cock, so she tried to see how far she could go. She pushed herself until the head was pushing at the entrance of her esophagus, at least that's where she imagined it was. She turned her head to the side so she could break away without his hands pushing her back down. She looked at the shaft and saw the moisture from her mouth. She'd gone pretty far, but there was at least a three inch gap from where she'd stopped to the base. She jerked him hard with both hands as she sucked on each of his balls again.

Content that she knew what she was doing, Frank's hands came to rest at his sides. Dani returned to sucking and bobbing. She pushed herself hard and gagged a little bit, but pushed further. Dani relaxed her throat and took a big breath in through her nose before forcing her head forward and engulfing his prick. Her nose pressed his pubic hair to his skin. She held herself there for ten seconds and then went back to sucking and bobbing. When hew jaw needed another break, Dani popped off and jerked him off with both hands.



Frank's breathing became rapid and shallow. He knew he was close. He stopped her. He pulled her to him and kissed her lips. He traded places with her and crawled between her legs. She looked so beautiful to him. He pushed open her legs and gently licked at her pussy. He caressed her thighs as his tongue lingered over her labia and then slid upwards to circle her clit. He used the tip of his tongue to paint a wet trail around her nub without actually touching it. With each successive circle, his tongue drifted closer to her clit and yet never came close enough. This was magic to Dani. She'd never been touched like this. She'd never been teased like this.

This moment was about her pleasure. No one had ever seemed very concerned about her pleasure before. As the tongue continued to tease and taunt her, she felt fingers gently rub her folds. She arched her back and moaned as the fingers worked in tandem with the talented tongue. Dani felt a heat emanating from her core and slowly, teasingly, reaching out to the rest of her body. Her eyes opened as two of the lovely fingers that had been massaging her labia opened her. The tongue dragged down from its circuit and tasted her inside. The tongue pressed against her inner lips and lathed them majestically.

Dani wished, and then chided herself for being silly, that her hymen were intact. She wanted her virginity to be there for this man who deserved to take it. As painful as the act had been, she would have endured it for Frank. She suspected that with Frank it would not have been as painful.

The fingers left her labia and glided along her left thigh. They straightened and extended her left leg. The wonderful tongue left her snatch and pulled its way along her thigh and tickled behind her left knee before returning along her thigh. The fingers massaged her thigh as they lowered it. The tongue returned to doing laps around her clit and the fingers returned to massage her folds. She felt herself opening up to the touch. She wanted to see but she couldn't hold her head up. It kept falling back to the bed.

The rough tongue scraped her clitoris as a finger penetrated her snatch. The finger crooked inside her and twisted from side to side as though it were a key in a lock. Soft lips touched her nub and sucked on it greedily.

"Oooooooooooooooh. Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhh. Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh. OH! Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmm. Ohhhhhhhhhhhh. Oh. My. God. Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh. Mmmmmmmmmmmm. Mmmmmmmmmmmmmm. OH, FRANK! OHHHHHHHHHHHHH! MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM! OH MY! OH GOD!"

A second finger joined the first and they spread apart while inside her. Then they pushed in and pulled out, still spread apart. The lips tugged on her clit as the sucking continued.

"OH! OH! OHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! OH MY GOD! OHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! OH GOD! OH GOD! I'M GOING TO... I'M GOING TO... OH MY GOD, I'M CUMMING! OH! OH! OH! OHHHHHHHHHHH! OHHHHHHHHHHH! OHHHHHHHHH! OH SHIT! OH FUCK! OH CHRIST! OHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

Dani's body convulsed in ecstasy and the lips and fingers moved with her. She could not escape the tormenting pleasure as they continued their loving assault of her. She slammed her heels down on the mattress and arched her back. Her feet curled into tight fists. She had masturbated herself to orgasm before, but they never felt like this. Her body was alive with new sensations. She couldn't keep her back arched any longer and she fell onto the small bed. She was still breathing hard when the fingers and lips left her. Frank was standing up. He moved closer. Dani saw his cock as it neared her pussy. She looked at him with beckoning eyes as he approached her.




Shepherdess without a Flock Ch. 02



He climbed on the bed. His body hovered over her own. He looked primeval in the crouched state he had to assume in the tiny cabin. She had not fully come down from her orgasm when his thick cock entered her. She groaned as her empty pussy was filled. She was truly filled in every way she could think of. She felt his weight on top of her and it was so good. It brought a reality to these sensations that had been coursing through her being. He distributed as much weight as he could to his lower arms, but she still felt it as he pressed down upon her. She was frozen at first. She laid there dumbly as he entered her again and again and again. He drilled deeply inside of her and struck her core. Her hips bucked up to meet him as his relentless ferocity continued. Frank seemed barbaric suddenly. The sweet gentle person she'd come to know was not there in his eyes. His eyes were not smiling as they usually did. His eyes were possessive. They were claiming her.

Her body bucked as another climax ripped through her soul. She screamed louder than she thought possible and dug her fingernails into his back. He hammered her into the mattress. She slammed the back of her head on the bed as the hot throbbing pulse roared over her senses. She called out his name and made animalistic noises. He relented and gently pulled himself out of her and she whimpered.

He lifted her up like a rag doll. He turned her over and guided her onto her hands and knees. He pushed open her legs and knelt down behind her. He opened her pussy with his hard fingers and his heavy cock returned to her wanting snatch. He pumped her hard and shook her body with each impact. He grabbed her long hair and wrapped it around his fingers before he pulled hard. It hurt her but it hurt in such a pleasurable way that she wanted more of it.

His left hand rubbed her left ass cheek as his thrusts persisted. The hand lifted off her ass and then came back down hard. It rubbed her again. The rubbing spread out the heat and the sting of the blow and she could actually enjoy it. Just as it seemed like the sting was completely gone, the hand rose and fell again. Again, it rubbed where it had landed.

"OW! Oooooooooooooooh. Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh. Mmmmmmmmm. Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmm. Ohhhhhhhhhhh. OW! Ooooooooooooooooooooh. Ohhhhhhhhhh. Oh yeah. Oh yeah. Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhh. Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhh. Mmmmmmmmmmm. OW! OW! OW! OHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! OHHHHHHHHHHHHH! OH! MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM! OH GOD! OH I CAN'T TAKE... OW! OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOH. OH, GOD, YES! PULL MY HAIR! OH, SPANK ME! OUCH! OUCH! OH SHIT! OWWWWWWWW OHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH OHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! OHHHHHHHHHH GAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHD OHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! OH! OH YES! OH YES! OH YES! OHHHHHHHHHH!"

Dani fell onto the bed as a third orgasm tore through her like a runaway train. She had never had multiple orgasms before. She was sure she would pass out. She didn't. Frank held her ass up as he continued feeding his dick to her hungry cunt. Her face was in the mattress and her moans were muffled by the covers.

Frank pulled out suddenly, flipped Dani onto her back and came on her flat stomach. She even felt a few drops on her tits. He fell next to her on the bed and she scooted herself to give him more room. He turned and laid his arm over her still quivering body. She grabbed him and held him tightly as the earthquakes in her body eventually settled. His fingers were lazily wandering over her thigh and it was the anchor to reality her mind needed. She cherished that gentle touch.

"Oh, I get it now," she said quietly.

"Get what?" he asked curiously.

"I get why people like sex."

"Yep," he said. "I guess that would be why."

They rested together. Dani closed her eyes and was sure she drifted off to sleep but had no idea for how long. It was darker in the cabin when her eyes opened again.

Eventually, they went on deck and got dressed. Frank never dropped anchor. The boat had drifted during their activities. Frank checked his compass before starting the engine. The boat fired up and he headed west. The currents must have pushed them west because there was soon land on the horizon. Dani didn't recognize it and asked if Frank did.

"Yep. That's home. It's just not my side of it. Feel like visiting my neighbors?"

"Not particularly," Dani replied. She rubbed the back of Frank's neck with her fingertips.

He steered to port and rounded the island. Dani felt better when his house came into view. She felt safe. Frank pulled up to the pier and reached over to grab the line. He secured the boat to the pier and helped Dani climb out.

"Are you hungry?" he asked with a smile on his lips.

She paused for a second and checked herself before answering, "I'm starving, actually."

He scooped her up and threw her over his left shoulder and ran towards the house. Once he reached the pool, he set her down and dove in. She smiled and followed him. They swam inside the house. Frank climbed out and lowered the glass partition that separated the two pools. He picked up a towel and held it up. Dani stepped out of the pool and walked up to Frank. He wrapped her in the towel before stepping away to fetch one for himself. He handed her a second towel for her hair and she wrapped it up in a few seconds.

"Would you like to take a shower with me or are you not ready for that yet?"

"I... I'm not quite ready yet, though it sounds very interesting."

"Ok," he said. "I'll walk you to your room. We'll shower for lunch in our own rooms and go down to eat."

"That sounds like a plan I can handle," said Dani.

The water from the shower felt so wonderful on Dani's skin. She must have stayed in for forty-five minutes because of how luxurious it felt. In time, she turned the heavenly water off and dried herself and her hair. She dressed casually in a tank top and jean shorts. She had felt exposed earlier and so wore a bra and panties to make herself feel more clothed, realizing at once that didn't make any sense. 

Once again, Frank was waiting for her as she left her room.

"You look wonderful," he said.

"Flatterer."

Frank smiled and said, "Not at all."

Lunch was a chicken topped Caesar salad and Dani was amazed how hungry she was. She was never one to scarf down food but she'd finished her salad before Frank was halfway through his. She sipped her iced tea and looked at him thoughtfully as he ate. She watched the way his muscles moved. She inhaled deeply, remembering the tangy smell of him as he rode her. She felt a slight ache in her thighs. It was a good ache. She was tempted to rub her thighs. She knew once she did she'd start rubbing other places.

He looked up from his salad and she smiled.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"Absolutely nothing," she said in a voice that was huskier than usual.

Frank straightened his back and asked, "What would you like to do after lunch?"

"You're going to think I'm a horrible person, but I'd actually like more of what we did on the boat."

"Why would I think that?" asked Frank. "What we did on the boat was incredible."

Dani brushed some hair behind her ear with her fingertips and bit her lower lip. She studied his movements carefully. She looked at his eyes. His smiling eyes were back. He was, once again, gentle and considerate.

"What happened to you out there?" she asked.

"What do you mean?"

She shrugged her shoulders and said, "I don't know. You changed. You seemed wild; primitive. You were a little scary."

"I'm sorry," he said quietly.

"I'm not," she said as she bit her lower lip again. "It was really sexy. You scared me in a way that made me really horny. I don't know if you can understand that. I'm not sure I do. This was my second time."

"You're kidding me," said Frank. "You were very good. Yeah, I think I understand what you mean. I didn't mean to be scary. You are just so damned sexy I... I couldn't control myself."

"So," Dani said, looking at his salad, "are you gonna finish that?"

"Two more bites?"

"Oh, ok," said Dani. "I guess you do need to build your strength up..."

Two bites of salad later, Frank led Dani upstairs to his room. It was somewhat larger than hers. The bed was larger as well. It was not a canopy bed, as hers was. The room was very clean. Dani had a feeling that was more because of the house staff than Frank. Frank pulled Dani in for a hug and crushed her chest against him. He kissed her on the lips. This wasn't the gentle kiss of earlier. This was a needful kiss full of fire. Dani felt the heat from it. She felt his hands pulling up on her tank top. They broke the kiss and she raised her arms. The garment was quickly banished to the floor. The kissing returned, but something strange happened. Time lost all meaning.

Dani was naked before she realized it. Frank shed his own clothing and she was suddenly on the bed being covered by his warm body. They had rough passionate sex. She groaned and cooed and moaned. They changed positions several times. Eventually, Frank three the bedspread on the floor and fucked Dani while she laid upon it.

Every so often, there would be a knock at the door. Frank would answer, "We're ok," and there would be no further noise from the door until much later. Dani eventually noticed the number of knocks changed. After a very long period, Dani concluded that the knocks represented the time. This came to her at eight knocks when instead of his usual answer, Frank said, "Thank you, Tim. Please bring us some food."

Sometime later, there were eight knocks followed by a pause and then two more knocks. Frank got up and headed for the door. Dani grabbed her cell phone and saw that it was 8:20 at night. Frank opened the door and brought in the tray that had been left in front of it. He pulled off the metal cover to reveal two bowls of soup and a small pile of sandwiches. There were also two glasses of skim milk. The food was delicious but did not last very long. Frank returned the tray to the hall and lifted Dani off the floor and threw her onto the bed. The barbaric look had returned. He pulled her by her legs to the edge of the bed and thrust himself inside her.

The knocking returned. At twelve knocks, Frank said, "Goodnight, Tim. Thank you." A very long time later, there were seven knocks. Frank said, "Good morning, Tim. Please bring us some breakfast."

Frank, soon thereafter, stopped fucking Dani. He collapsed next to her and left them both breathing heavily. Dani had no idea how many orgasms she'd had. They had begun to merge to the point where she wasn't sure if she'd had seven small orgasms or one long one. She wrapped her body around his and kissed his shoulder. He turned and kissed her forehead.

"Good morning," she said almost inaudibly. Her voice was very hoarse. It made her remember how much screaming she'd done in the last eighteen hours or so.

Thankfully, at seven plus two knocks, there was soothing throat tea on the tray. There were also eggs, pancakes, scrapple, sausages and bacon. Again, the food quickly vanished from the tray. They rested after breakfast. Dani's joints were very stiff and she ached all over her body.

Eventually, she managed to say, "I think I'm ready to take a shower with you."

Dani stood up with Frank. He put the empty food tray in the hall and led Dani to the en-suite bathroom. Again, it was larger than hers. Frank let the water run in the shower and kissed Dani at the point where the back of her neck meets her spine. She hummed softly in happiness. When the water was hot enough, they stepped in the tub and let the wonderful water rain down upon them. Frank washed Dani's back and she returned the favor. She had had enough sex for the time being and did not allow Frank to wash her front. When the shower was over, she wrapped herself in a towel and scooted across the hall to her room to get dressed. It was the last day of her visit here, so she put on the clothes she would be traveling in.

Frank was waiting for her when she emerged from her room. She told him she would like to take a walk on the beach. They took the long way around. Dani didn't want to use the pool. When she was certain they were away from everyone's range of hearing, Dani spoke to Frank.

"Let me ask you something," she began. "When you zone out and become Conan the Barbarian, you're thinking of her. Aren't you?"

He said, "I... uh... What do you want to hear?"

"The truth."

"Yes," he admitted. "I've occasionally thought about her while you and I were being intimate."

"I understand," Dani replied. "It's not exactly a compliment to me, but I get it. You're not planning to leave this island any time soon, are you?"

"No," he said. "Why?"

"Just checking. I just started my job in Jersey. I can't quit it. I won't quit it. You're staying here. I'm guessing it's not going to work out between us," she said. "It's ok. You have done an amazing thing for me, Frank. You got me to open my eyes to new possibilities. Thank you. I really wish this was the start of something between us, because the sex was fantastic, but I understand. There's just one thing you have to do."

"What's that?" Frank asked.

"Tell her. Don't let this be a crush that you never act on," Dani implored. "Talk to your sister and tell her how you feel. You never know. It might just be the thing that opens up her eyes and sees you as someone to love."

They hugged there on the beach and then returned to the house. Dani packed her bags and got a surprise. Frank had replaced the bag that had ripped open on her arrival. She had no idea how he managed that since they spent almost every waking moment together. She finished packing and carried her bags to the bedroom door. Tim was standing there.

"May I take your bags for you, Miss Dani?"

"Yes, please, Tim. Thank you," she said. "Oh, and thank you for the new suitcase. It's perfect."

"You're quite welcome, Miss Dani. We hope you had a pleasant stay."

"Oh, yes," said Dani. "It was very relaxing."

They walked to the pier and Tim carefully stowed her bags on Frank's plane. She shook her head in disbelief but had a smile on her face. She couldn't believe she was going to fly to the airport. It seemed a little surreal.

The flight to the airport was calmer for Dani than the flight to the island. She trusted this man and knew he would get her there safely. He walked her to the security checkpoint and they kissed goodbye. She took his cell phone, pulled up her number, and made sure it was the one for her cell. She told him to text her if he ever got blue and reminded him to talk to his sister. Frank waited until Dani got through security and then he headed back to his plane.

The next day, Frank received a text message telling him his friend Chloe was hit by a car. He packed a bag, ran to his plane and got a flight plan en route. 

Dani's flight back to New Jersey was relaxing. She didn't twirl her hair. She put her seat as far back as it could go and she rested most of the trip. Her bags escaped the luggage pickup carousel intact. She paid for her long term parking and drove back to Williamstown. 

Dani did not go directly to the manse. She drove around the neighborhood to get a feel for what was around. Right next to the manse was a funeral home. Just up Main Street from the funeral home, on the other side of the road, was the Grand Theatre. It was a community theater that performed plays and musicals. One block up from the theater was a Chinese restaurant that had take-out. There were four other churches on Main Street. At one end of Main Street, where it joins with Black Horse Pike, was a shopping center with a CVS. Within walking distance of the church - on Black Horse Pike - were a Burger King, a McDonald's, Geet's Diner, a Shop Rite, a liquor store, a Walgreen's and two ice cream parlors. There was also a liquor store/bar combo one block up from the Walgreen's. If she needed alcohol or junk food, she was all set.

Dani opened an account with TD Bank. There were a ton of them in the immediate area and one was within walking distance from the church on Sicklerville Road. Dani pulled up to the manse's garage. It was a two-car garage, but the church stored a lot of things in there, so she had to park outside. The manse, the house she lived in that was owned by the church, had four entrances. There were two in the front, one in the back and one through the attached garage. One door in the front led to the residence side of the manse and the other door led to the Pastor's office. Dani didn't understand why she had an office in the manse when she also had one in the church not twenty feet away. She supposed the one in the manse was for private counseling. The church had a small parking lot and a small graveyard. The manse had a few trees on the property. There were two cherry trees and some berry bushes. There was also an apple tree, but that was on the funeral home's property.



The church was small and instead of a steeple, had a bell tower that looked like the turret of a castle. There was a sign board that faced Main Street. The message on it read: "WELCOME BACK, PASTOR VAN CLEEF". Dani smiled when she read that. Dani took out her keys and went in the Main Street entrance of the church. The door she entered had a mail slot that fed into a wooden box attached to the door. It was a great idea unless the mail didn't get picked up and new mail slid out onto the floor of the church. There was quite a bit of mail on the floor. Dani picked it all up and headed to the office.



There were two offices. There was the secretary's office - even though the church did not have a secretary - and the Pastor's office. You had to walk through the secretary's office to get to the Pastor's office. Dani opened the door to her office and jumped. There was someone sitting at the desk.

"Who are you?" the stranger demanded.

"Uh, I'm Dani Van Cleef. I work here..."

"Oh, Pastor Van Cleef!" said the stranger as she took her feet off the desk and stood. She turned on the light and Dani finally got a good look at her. "I'm Melissa Masters, the Session Moderator. We met at your interviews. I'm so sorry about your father."

"Thank you, Mrs. Masters. I'm sorry for my reaction. I wasn't expecting anyone to be here."

"Oh, I come in from time to time to see how things are going, Pastor Van Cleef," Mrs. Masters said. "No need to thank me."

"Yes, of course," Dani said. "Is everything alright?"

"Oh, yes," Mrs. Masters replied. "I trust you had a restful mourning period, Pastor Van Cleef?"

"Yes, thank you. I am very well rested. Now I'm ready to get to work. Oh, and please, call me Dani."

"Thank you, Pastor Dani. That's very kind of you. You may call me Melissa."

"Thank you, Melissa."

"Pardon my nosiness, Pastor Dani. What is that you're carrying?"

"Oh, I was just about to sort through the mail."

"Please allow me to assist you, Pastor Dani."

"Thank you, Melissa. That would be great." Dani fanned out the mail and began stacking it according to the church department specified on each letter or notice.

"Did you cry during your entire sabbatical, Pastor Dani?" Melissa was mostly observing how Dani was organizing the mail. She would occasionally pick up an envelope simply to put it back in the same place.

"Hmmm? Oh, no. Not at all," Dani said. "I actually spent a few days relaxing on a semi-private island."

"'Semi-private,' Pastor Dani?"

"Um, yes. The friend I was staying with lives on the island with three other properties but we never saw any of his neighbors."

"'His' neighbors, Pastor Dani?" Melissa stopped pretending to work.

"Yes. My friend, Frank, is a 'he.'" Dani continued sorting the mail.




Shepherdess without a Flock Ch. 02



"I see," Melissa said coldly. "Well, Pastor Dani, I trust you had your own room."

"Why, yes, I did, Melissa," Dani said with a smile. "Right until we slept together on my last night there."

"Oh, I see. Well, it was very nice meeting you, Pastor Dani. I'm afraid it's time for me to go." Melissa pulled an envelope from the unsorted stack and held it.

"Oh, that's a shame," said Dani. "I would have invited you over to the manse for tea once we were done here. I'll see you on Sunday, I hope?"

"Oh, yes of course, Pastor Dani. I never misses services." Melissa tore the envelope she was holding into small pieces and carried the shreds with her.

"What was that you just tore?" Dani asked.

"Oh, just some junk mail, Pastor Dani. Every church gets it. I'll see you Sunday." Melissa walked away with the shredded bit of mail. Dani tried to see what it was but could only make out a printed return address with a green and purple logo.

"I look forward to it," said Dani. She waited to see if Melissa would use one of the trash cans in the church. Melissa, however, carried the shreds with her to her SUV.

"That's an odd duck," Dani said aloud to herself. "If she called me by my name and title one more time I was going to toss her out a stained glass window..."

Dani finished sorting the mail and delivered the stacks to the appropriate departments. There was quite a bit of junk mail and Dani wondered why Melissa didn't take all of it. She wondered if it was porn or something similarly embarrassing that was delivered to the church.

Dani locked up the church and went home to the manse. She put on a kettle for tea and turned the television on for background noise. She pulled up her blouse a little, so that she could take off her bra. She was not planning to leave the manse for the rest of the day. She had just pulled her bra off through her sleeve when she heard a knocking on her window. She looked at the window and saw a man standing there staring at her. She pulled her blouse down and went to the front door. The man saw her moving and met her there.



"Hi. Can I help you?" Dani asked as she opened the door.

"Hello, Pastor Van Cleef. I'm Dave Amoroso. I'm one of the Elders here. We met at your installation."

"Oh, hi Mr. Amoroso. Please, call me Dani. What can I do for you?"

"I just spoke to Melissa Masters on the phone and she said you had sorted the church's mail. I checked my mailbox but I didn't see something important we've been waiting for. Did you happen to see a letter from St. John's Cemetery?"

"Yes, I have it on my kitchen table," Dani said. "Please wait here a moment, Mr. Amoroso." Dani went to the kitchen, which was only a few steps from the front door, and picked up the envelope. She brought it back and handed it to Mr. Amoroso. "Is this it?"

He inspected it for a second and said, "That's the one. Thank you, Pastor. Have a good night."

"Um, sorry. If you don't mind my asking, what is that?" Dani asked.

"Oh, it's just the check the cemetery sends us in payment for maintaining their grounds," he replied.

"Oh," said Dani. "Ok. Well, have a good night, Mr. Amoroso."

Dani closed all of the blinds on the first floor and took the kettle off the stove. She made herself a cup of Earl Grey and watched television for a half hour before she began making dinner. Just as she sat down to eat her dinner, the doorbell rang. She got up and walked the few steps from the kitchen to the front door.

"Pastor Van Cleef?"

"Yes?" Dani answered in a question.

"Good evening, Pastor. Dave Amoroso said you were home. I'm Tom McNulty. I'm one of the Elders at the church."

"Hi, Mr. McNulty. Did Mr. Amoroso tell you I like to be called Dani?"

"No, he didn't, Dani. Please call me Tom, by the way. I just wanted to make sure you were settling in ok."

"So far so good. Uh, Tom, I was just about to have my dinner. Would you like to join me?"

"I'd love to but my wife would kill me. I'm at church every week. If you find there's something you need here, just let me know."

"Thank you. I definitely will."

"Well, have a good night, Dani. Enjoy your dinner."

"Thank you, Tom. Have a good night."

After that night, Dani got used to keeping her blinds closed after sunset. She found that whenever the blinds were up, visitors would come to the windows rather than the door.

Dani checked the lectionary for Sunday's text before she began writing her sermon. The Hebrew Bible lesson came from the Book of Ruth and the Gospel lesson was the story of the ten lepers. Dani wrote a sermon about being a good companion. She wondered about opening with a joke. Most of the jokes she knew were pretty dirty. That obviously wouldn't go over well with this crowd. Dani began to wonder how long it would be before she swore during a sermon.

Sunday's service went fairly smoothly. Her sermon went over well and most of the people stayed awake. She shook hands after service and Tom remembered to call her Dani. She was surprised there wasn't fellowship after the service so she asked Tom about it.



"Oh, that," he said. "Yeah, well we haven't had a full time Pastor in years. We've been living off supply preachers so the church decided only to have fellowship on Sunday where communion is served."

Dani thanked him and shook the hand of the next person in line.

When he called Wednesday at his usual time, Dani told Frank about her experiences with her congregation.

"Ok," said Frank. "You're speaking a foreign language. Explain some things to me. What's fellowship?"

"It's like a coffee hour. There's cookies and other snacks. People eat and talk to each other."

"That sounds nice," Frank said. "So what's the problem? Don't you have communion every Sunday?"

Dani laughed. "Um, no. We only have communion about sixteen times a year."

"16?" asked Frank. "That's it?"

"The first Sunday of every month and certain church holy days."

"Wow. That sucks. Ok, so what's a supply preacher?"

"Well," said Dani, "in some smaller churches they can't afford to pay a Pastor so they hire a supply preacher. The supply preacher only shows up on Sundays. He or she leads the service, gives the sermon, and that's it. The supply preacher doesn't do counseling or funerals or weddings. Really they just do the sermon and communion."

"That also sounds sucky. Now, what's an Elder?"

"The elders are the leaders of the church," Dani explained.

"I thought you were the leader of the church."

"I'm the spiritual leader. The elders are in charge of the practical things, the politics of the church. When there are things that affect both sides of the church, it goes before Session. Session is the elders and the Pastor of the church. If the Pastor isn't there, it isn't Session; it's an elders meeting. Decisions come up and Session or the elders vote on it. If it's a really big decision, it goes to a congregational meeting and all of the registered members of the church get to vote on it."

"Ok, that part sounds pretty cool. The Pastor can't just change things overnight without reason."

"Nope," said Dani. "Changes have to be voted on."

"So what kinds of things get voted on in Session?"

"New members get voted on," said Dani. "People come to join the church and they attend a new members class. They meet with the elders and Session votes on whether or not to accept them."

"This sounds like some really complicated shit," Frank said.

"Yeah, it can be."

"So, wait. Why didn't your church have a full time Pastor before you?"

Dani answered, "They couldn't afford to pay the salary. They just started getting a grant that would allow them to pay for my services."

"You get paid?"

"Of course I get paid. I'm doing a job..." Dani said.

"You don't take a vow of poverty?"

"No, I do not," said Dani. "The congregation takes care of that by voting whether or not I get a raise."

"How does your church get money?"

"The same way every church gets money. From their tithes and offerings."

"You're speaking that foreign language again. What's a tithe?"

Dani sighed and said, "It's an agreement church members make to give ten percent of their income to the church."

"Net or gross?"

"That's the ongoing debate. The church would prefer gross," said Dani.

Frank scoffed and said, "Yeah, of course they would."

They talked a bit longer until Dani got off to begin writing her next sermon.

Thursday, Dani was in the snack aisle of the Shop Rite when she heard someone from behind her ask, "Pastor Van Cleef?" 

She visibly flinched before putting on a bright smile, turning and saying, "Yes. But when the robes are off, my name is Dani."

"Fair enough. My name is Josh. I caught your sermon on Sunday," said the young man facing her.

"I'm sorry," Dani said. "You caught it? I'm guessing you're not a church member."

Josh chuckled and said, "No, that was my first time in a church in a long while."

"So what made you pick that service?"

"I have no clue," he admitted. "I was walking up Main and I heard the church bells and went in for the hell of it."

"Not the best choice of words," said Dani with a smile, "but I'm glad you caught it. Why didn't I see you after the service?"

"I went out the Main Street door and you were shaking hands on the other side."

"That makes sense," said Dani. "How was the sermon."

"Very good," Josh said. "I had no idea the name Ruth literally meant 'companion'. So you think the entire book was really a metaphor?"

"An allegory," Dani said as she ran her fingers through her hair. "It's possible although Ruth was the great-grandmother of King David and, therefore, an ancestress of Jesus. So, it's probably not a good idea to suggest that she's fictional."

"Still, that's pretty cool," Josh said with a smile. "So, what are you up to, Dani?"

"Oh, I'm trying to figure out how to lead service and set up snacks for fellowship at the same time."

"Can I help?" asked a very sincere looking Josh.

"Did you have any plans to catch this Sunday's service?" asked Dani.

"Are those cookies in your basket what you're planning to serve for fellowship?"

Dani smiled and said, "Yep."

"I'm in."

Sunday's sermon was about the woman at the well. Dani pursued what it was like for the woman to meet this man who should have been her enemy who knew all the details of her life. Dani admitted that she would have freaked out on Jesus. The woman, instead, tells everyone in town about this man. This woman was not even Hebrew and she was a believer.

When Dani led the congregation in the Lord's Prayer, Josh set up a table in the narthex and put coffee, lemonade and cookies out. When the service ended, Dani announced that there would be fellowship in the narthex. The food and beverages quickly disappeared. Dani didn't get any because she was at the parking lot side door of the church shaking hands with members as they left the church.

Melissa Masters made no secret of the fact that she was not pleased. She passed Dani without shaking her hand.

Dani and Josh continued doing fellowship. He would come early on Sundays and set things up in the kitchen in the basement. He would be in the sanctuary for the service and would head downstairs after the sermon. The majority of the church members seemed to like weekly fellowship. Only a few of the elders ever participated in the fellowship. Dani bought more snacks each week until she reached a point when there was enough for her to have some.

Josh joined the new members class and would be ready to join the church in October. 

In September, the new confirmation class met. There were six teenagers who would be confirmed; three boys and three girls. Towards the end of the first confirmation class, Jimmy Amoroso - Dave's son - raised his hand.

"Yes, Jimmy?" invited Dani.

"Pastor Dani, you're supposed to show us how to be better people, right?"

"Something like that," Dani replied. "We make that journey together in this class."

Jimmy frowned and said, "Then how come when you took your leave of absence to mourn your father what you really did was fly to a tropical island and have sex like a whore?"

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Thank you for reading. Votes and polite comments are desired and appreciated. 



Shepherdess without a Flock Ch. 03



All of the characters in this work of fiction who engage in sexual activity or the consumption of alcohol are over the age of 21.

This chapter contains depictions of heterosexual sex and masturbation.

In the previous chapters, Dani Van Cleef, a newly ordained Presbyterian pastor, agreed to fly out to the home of Frank Melar, a rich heir, after meeting him once. The two had passionate sex but realized they would not be able to maintain a long distance relationship. Dani returned to work at her church. She found herself at odds with several of the Church Elders. One of her confirmation students accused her of being a whore. Sort of. Oh, and there were a bunch more crappy and poorly lit drawings that did little to help illustrate things.

Votes and polite comments are always appreciated.

Special thanks to my Beta Reader, FangsAnarchy, for her help and encouragement. 

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Dani looked at Jimmy and reminded herself that he was a child. She would not scream at him in anger in front of the other confirmands no matter how much she wanted to. The only person at church Dani had ever mentioned the details of her trip to was Melissa Masters. Melissa had, no doubt, told Dave Amoroso who was apparently just as good at keeping secrets as Melissa.

"Jimmy, it's incredibly rude to discuss someone's personal life in public. However, we're going to use this as a teachable moment. You confirmands are all growing up. You are going to learn that everyone has their own way of grieving. No one way is definitively better than any other way. Some people cry and pray. It's certainly wonderful that people pray when they grieve. That's a very good thing. Some people turn to alcohol or other drugs. That's never a good decision. That just paves the way to a mountain of bad choices and regret. Some people find someone to talk to.

"That's a very good thing to do. I want you all to know that I'm always available if you guys need someone to talk to. You are very important. I'm never too busy. Ok. So, there are some people who face their grief by doing physical things. They run. They box. There is a lot of good that can come out of that. In my case, I chose to have sex. Now, it is none of your business that I did, but we're talking about the things adults do. You will soon be considered adults in the church. I'll leave the details about sex for your parents to discuss with you.

"What I will tell you is that when a woman has sex, it does not make her a whore anymore than having sex turns a man into a gigolo. A gigolo is a male whore. If you think you need to shame a woman for having sex, it only proves your own immaturity. We don't want to be immature, guys. We want to be adults for the church. I'm not talking about the building when I say 'church'. I'm talking about our community. We need to be mature to serve our community.

"There are consequences to everything we do. After sex, there are a lot of possible outcomes. There could be pregnancy, disease, hurt feelings, immature people calling you mean names. You have to be very mature and decide you are ready for the possible results before making a decision like that.

"Are you ready to make that decision? Of course not. You all live with your parents. Those of you who have jobs only work part time. You're all in school. You wouldn't be able to support a child if you were pregnant or if you impregnated a woman. You'd be embarrassed if you had to deal with a disease. You're not ready for the ramifications, so the mature thing is to wait until you are ready. As for me, I live alone in a large house. I have a full time job. I have health insurance. I was ready to make that choice and I made it. I had sex with someone I love. That's very important. I did not get pregnant. I did not get a disease. I talked to this man, this friend, that I love so that our feelings did not get hurt. We were mature.

"I am an adult and this was my choice and my choice alone. If people think less of me because I chose to have sex, they need to get over themselves. I wear a pastoral robe on Sundays but I am still a human being. Grown up human beings who are ready to face the aftermath of the act occasionally have sex. If they didn't, none of us would be here right now.

"Getting back to maturity, let me talk about how rude and immature it is to pass judgment on other people's personal lives. Remember Chapter 7 of the Gospel According to Matthew: 'Judge not lest you be judged.' It's God's job to be our judge, so mind your own business. You don't want God's job."

"Pastor Dani," one of the girls of the group spoke out, "what if you really, really, love a boy? Is it ok to have sex then?"

"Again, this is a discussion to have with your parents, Sierra, but if you really, really, love a boy and he really, really, loves you then that love should be strong enough to sustain you until you're mentally, physically, financially and morally ready to face the repercussions of having sex. You aren't ready. This is a huge thing. Please. All of you, talk to your parents. They know you so much better than I do. Talk to them and discuss this. Together, you'll get a better idea of when you will be ready.

Paul, the boy sitting between Sierra and Jimmy, asked, "Pastor Dani, so you're saying that girls who have sex aren't whores?"

"Paul, do you know what a whore is?" Dani asked.

"It's a woman who has sex for money," he said.

"Close," Dani said. "It's person who has sold their body into sexual slavery. As I said, there are male whores. If a person has sex for payment, they are making themselves sexual slaves. Is that payment always money? No. Sometimes, it's the promise of love. Sometimes it's material goods. Some people are whores and don't even know it. But Paul, if we call a woman a whore because she had sex, do you know what that makes us?"

Paul asked in answer, "Immature?"

"Misogynists. It is an act of hatred to shame women for doing things we would praise men for doing. If you would think a guy was so great because he had sex, why would that same act make the woman a dirty slut? You need to be mature about this, guys. If we use words like 'whore', 'skank', 'slut' and all those other horrible terms to shame women for doing the things men do without being judged, then we need to grow the hell up. Men and women have to be treated equally in all things. God made both genders, after all. Well, it's seven and I already see some parents through the door. Grab your stuff and I'll see you all at worship on Sunday."

The kids filed out of the meeting room and Dani used the door that connected to the secretary's office to get back to her office. She gathered some notes and was about to turn out the light when there was a knock on her office door.

"It's open," Dani called through the door.

Roger Masters, Melissa's husband, entered. Roger was the Church's Treasurer. Dani was constantly vexed that every single Elder at this church, except for Tom McNulty, was or was married to a person with a position in the church. The Musical Director was an Elder. Dave Amoroso's wife, Helen, was the chair of the Education Team. This was a huge conflict of interest and would never be tolerated at a larger church. As all of these positions were voted on by the congregation long before she got there, however, there was nothing Dani could do to correct it until each person completed their term of office. Roger was an accountant and well suited to his position. Despite how much she disliked Melissa, Dani usually got along with him.

"Hi, Roger. Is there something I can do for you?" Dani asked.

"I don't know how to tell you this, Pastor," Roger said, "but we can't afford to pay you. That grant money we were counting on hasn't come in and your salary and the electric bills have drained our savings."

"Ok," said Dani. "So we'll turn on the lights in the sanctuary ten minutes before service and turn them off right after the attendance sheets are collected. We put the heat on thirty minutes before service. When service starts, we'll close all the doors and we'll turn the heat off thirty minutes in. Would that do any good?"

"A little," said Roger, "but it won't stop the bleeding. It'll just slow it down a little."

"Huh," said Dani. "I guess I could go to three-quarter time for a few months. I'll take off Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays. If a funeral happens on one of those days, I'll take another day off that week. We'll take twenty-five percent off my salary. I would just like to keep my benefits as they are."

"Well, that would certainly buy us some more time, Pastor. Thank you," Roger said.

"You're welcome. Oh, Roger, do you have the number of the company bestowing the grant? It might not be too late to call them tonight."

Dani called and put the phone on speaker. After finding their account, the phone representative was able to tell them that the grant for that year was not awarded because the church failed to submit their renewal form. Dani made arrangements for a new form to be sent out. They would not get any money for this year, but they would be reconsidered for the grant when the grants were issued again in June. Dani thanked the representative and hung up.

She asked Roger, "If we cut everything to the bone and I worked at three-quarters, would we be able to limp on until June?"

"If the offerings from the congregation stay consistent, we might. It'll be really close, though."

On Sunday, after worship, a congregational meeting was called to explain the situation to the church members. Many of the members were concerned. There were quite a few members who liked Pastor Dani. She spoke honestly. She knew the Bible very well. She was a real person. Dani was not another starched collar pastor. Many members enjoyed the weekly fellowship. It gave them a chance to talk to some people they only saw once a week.

Dani began to explain what steps they were planning to take. She explained the reasons for conserving electricity and let people know how long the church would need to do this.

"I won't lie to you, folks. We're in crisis mode. The easiest thing to do right now would be to point fingers. We don't have that luxury. I don't know exactly how we got here but we're here. We need each other. We need to work together until June. If you can think of ways for us to save money or to raise money, don't keep it to yourselves. There are no stupid ideas."

Members of the congregation asked questions and Dani did her best to answer them. When they reached the point where the same questions were being asked with slightly different wording, Dani had Melissa end the meeting. The rest of Sunday was relatively quiet.

Monday evening was the Session meeting. The financial crisis was not on the agenda but was certain to be brought up during New Business. Dani checked off each item of the agenda and waited for them to reach that line. She wondered what insights the elders might have about their situation.

Dani straightened herself up in her seat when they reached New Business. Melissa turned towards Dani and Dani smiled. She was ready with a list of things the church could do to survive.

Melissa said, "Pastor Dani, a number of parishioners have come up to me with some grave concerns. Did you tell the confirmation class that it was ok to have premarital sex?"

All eyes turned to Dani as she pushed aside her list and said, "I told them that they needed to talk to their parents about sex and that it was rude to discuss the details of someone else's personal life in public."

"I see," Melissa said. "Pastor Dani, do you feel it's fair to spend church money on a weekly fellowship that the congregation did not vote on?"

"No," Dani replied, "but I'm not using church money. I am using my salary."

"Pastor Dani, that money comes from the church," Melissa said in what she felt was not an overly patronizing way.

"Yes, of course it does. However, once it reaches my bank account it is no longer church money. Surely you wouldn't let your job dictate how you spend your paycheck."

"We're not talking about my job, Pastor Dani. We are talking about your responsibilities to our church." Melissa remained calm as she spoke. She would not allow this whore in front of her to convince her fellow elders that she was a religious leader. She would break this tramp and get a qualified minister in the pulpit.

"Yes," said Dani. "One of my responsibilities as pastor is to sow the seeds of good will. People are getting to know each other and I'm certainly getting to know people here."

"Very well," said Melissa, changing tactics. "I have heard from several families that they are troubled by some of the subject matter in your sermons, Pastor Dani. The Pattersons, the Weiblys and the McDermotts have all left our church today. I took the liberty of calling Pastor Tressler. He was our supply preacher and the members of the church adored him. He said he would be more than happy to give you lessons on appropriate subject matter for sermons. In the meantime, he could even write some sermons for you."

"It's very nice of you to go to all that effort on my behalf, Mrs. Masters," Dani said as calmly as she could. "I would be more than happy to speak to those families and find out what their concerns are. I can, then, better tailor my sermons to the specific needs of this church. I would hate to drag Pastor Tressler out here to teach me something I got straight As in at seminary. I think it would be more appropriate if I visited all of the families and found out what they find objectionable." A slip of paper slid in front of Dani and she stopped to read it. The note informed her that the Pattersons, Weiblys and McDermotts were the most consistent and generous contributors to the church and the loss of their weekly offerings would be substantial. She looked over to the side of the table the note came from and met the eyes of Roger Masters. He had warned her that keeping the offerings where they were was important to the church's ability to make it to June. "I will make sure these families are heard. We need to know what caused them to leave our church without them giving me any indications they were not satisfied here."

"That's very good of you, Pastor Dani," said Melissa. "Now then, we should talk about steps we need to take to keep the church solvent or at least not irretrievably indebted during our crisis. Pastor Dani, we accept your proposal to go from a full time employee of the church to three-quarters time and take a 25 percent decrease in salary. I would suggest you go to part time, take a 50 percent decrease and give up your insurance benefits. That would help our church greatly."

"I'm sure it would but I'm a little concerned about not having health insurance and not being able to afford any medical care I might need in the future." Dani considered looking into the Affordable Care Act but wasn't ready to offer that as a possibility at that point. "Is there any other source of revenue we can use? What about the stipend from St. John's Cemetery?"

"Absolutely not!" said Dave. "Every penny of that money is used to supply staff and maintain equipment for the upkeep of the cemetery. In fact, the gas for the mowers comes out of my pocket."

"Well then," Dani said, "once we're able to climb out of our financial crisis, we can call a special Session meeting to see about reimbursing you. At our moderator's discretion, of course."

"Of course," said Melissa. "Thank you, Pastor Dani for your input, but let us not close the books on what you can do to save our church money. I suggest it would help our church if you were to take over paying the utility bills for the manse."

"Just so we're clear," Dani said, "you want me to go down to twenty hours a week, with the subsequent loss in pay, pay my own medical expenses and all of the utilities for the manse."

"Yes, Pastor Dani," she replied. "That is correct."

"I'm sorry," Dani said. "That's just impossible. There would be almost nothing left to feed myself."

"Pastor," Dave said, "I can't believe you're not willing to compromise."

"Pastor Dani," said Melissa, "if you're not going to compromise with us, this is going to be a very long meeting."

"Well, first of all, we shouldn't be trying to have a compromise. The word implies that we're on opposite sides and one side is trying to get the other to capitulate. We don't want to compromise. Let's stop using that word altogether. What we need to do is cooperate. We need to work together and find a mutually acceptable solution. If we can't do that, this meeting is just a pointless activity."

The pointless activity carried on for another three hours.

==================================

On Tuesday morning, Dani received the new form from the company bestowing the grant. After she filled out the form, Dani jogged to the Post Office which was in the same shopping center as the Burger King. She mailed the form and jogged back to the manse. Dani was about to put the envelope the form came in into the recycling bin when she noticed the distinctive green and purple logo on the return address.

"Oh, that bitch," Dani said aloud to her empty house.

Later that day, Dani went to visit the Pattersons to find out why they left the church without warning. As was becoming her custom, Dani walked there. After she had closed the front gate behind her, but before she made it to the porch, Dani found herself staring down the barrels of a shotgun.



"That's close enough," Mrs. Patterson yelled as she aimed at Dani's face.

Dani raised her hands in the surrender posture and said, "Mrs. Patterson, I'm Pastor Van Cleef from First Presbyterian..."

"I know exactly who you are, you whore, and you cannot have my husband!"

Dani scrunched up her face and said, "I have no idea what you're talking about."

"The hell you don't! I've heard the stories of you taking men from the congregation to a private island in the tropics for sex and I know exactly how many men in the parish could afford to do that!"

"Mrs. Patterson, there's been a huge misunderstanding," Dani said as calmly as she could. "If you would just allow me to expl..."

"You get your bony ass off my property before I put a new hole in it, skank!"

Dani hurriedly got herself on the other side of the closed gate and headed home to the manse.

Dani was reasonably sure she knew who spread these rumors. "Oh, that bitch," she said aloud to the streetlamp she passed.

When she got home and poured herself a calming drink, Dani realized she had no direct proof against Melissa Masters. It was hearsay at best. Dani never actually saw that it was the grant renewal form Melissa tore up so completely. She had no evidence it was Melissa who was rumor mongering. It was essentially her word against Melissa's and she had a feeling she knew which way the church would vote if it came to that. Dani had no idea what to do, so she called the Presbytery.

She gave the factual details first. The renewal form, for whatever reasons, was not sent in. The three largest contributing families left the church. The church could not afford her and were considering cutting her to part time and taking away her health benefits. She would be little more than a supply preacher who counsels and teaches the confirmation class, except she would make less money than a supply preacher. The representative from Presbytery that she spoke to informed Dani that they would be sending members of the Committee On Ministry and that COM would investigate the situation first hand and make recommendations. Dani thanked the representative for her time.

======================================

Friday night, the church was empty except for the Pastor's office. The only sounds were of a moaning woman. With her hands holding on to the desk, she rode the man sitting in the chair.




Shepherdess without a Flock Ch. 03



"Ohhhhhhhhhhhh, yes! Slap my titties! Slap my titties! Harder! Harder! Fuck me harder! Mmmmmmph! Oh! Ohhhhhhhhhhh! OH, YES! There! Right there! Fuck me right there! Don't stop! Don't stop! Yes, yes, yes!"

She lowered her head and put more weight on the two arms that were supporting her. The man in the chair grabbed her dark hair and pulled hard. She bellowed in pleasure as her right hand knocked a picture the Pastor liked off the desk. It did not break but the sound of the thud it made was lost under Mrs. Masters' moans and yells.



"Fuck me! Fuck me! Pull harder! Yes, like that! Ohhhhhhhhhh, fuuuuuuuuuuck! Mmmmmmmmm, yes! Slap my ass! Fuck me hard! Fuck me hard!"

At that moment, it did not occur to Melissa that she was doing what she hated the Pastor for doing: She was having sex with a man she was not married to in a place she should not be having sex. She had no regards for Roger in that moment. She saw no hypocrisy in what she was doing. All she knew was that while the Pastor was at a play at the Grand Theater with the confirmands, she would take this opportunity to have her brains fucked out at the Pastor's desk. There was no right or wrong. There was a thick cock filling her. That was her entire world at that point in time. The lights were out and the curtains were open. She faced the windows and watched the street carefully. No one would see her even if they did hear her. She was tucked away in the shadows. The theater did not have a parking lot. Patrons of the theater used the parking lots of the funeral home and the church. Melissa watched carefully, as she bounced on this cock, for signs that the play was over.



She rode the cock harder and harder until she felt the small blast of semen inside her. She climbed onto the Pastor's desk, naked, and knocked other items off as she fingered herself to a loud release. She laid on the desktop for a few minutes before sitting bolt upright, gathering her clothes from where they'd been tossed, and getting dressed. She left the church quietly, but not before telling Dave Amoroso to wait five minutes before making his escape.

===============================

On Sunday, members of COM were in attendance at the service. The committee members took note of things such as the heat being turned off during service.

Janet, the team leader for these members of the Committee On Ministry, sat with Dani after service in the kitchen of the manse to have a quiet chat. Janet was holding the empty envelope the grant re-application form had come in.



"So, Pastor, you're not entirely sure this is the same logo as the envelope you saw the Session Moderator destroy?"

"It's the only other green and purple logo I've seen in the mail, but I didn't get a very good look at the one she destroyed. Oh, and please, call me Dani."

"Thank you, Dani. So you admit it's entirely possible that the envelope she tore up was completely unrelated to the renewal of your grant?"

"Of course," said Dani. "The only reason I even bring it up is that no one ever saw the renewal form come through and that was one possible explanation."

"Very good," said Janet. "Thank you for your candor, Dani. These things often have a tendency to get overblown."

As Dani was about to respond, the phone rang. Dani excused herself and answered it. The speaker on the other end was quite loud and angry sounding. Janet was impressed that Dani did not lose her temper with the caller.

When the call was over, Janet asked, "If I might inquire, who was that?"

"Oh, that was the cemetery," Dani said casually. "Excuse me one more moment, please." Dani called Dave Amoroso and explained to him that the cemetery was complaining, again, that the grounds needed tending. Dani thanked Dave and hung up.

"Now what was all that about?" Janet asked.

"Oh, we have an agreement to tend to St. John's Cemetery. They call every now and then to remind us. Dave Amoroso, one of our elders, is in charge of that. He's asked me to call him whenever they call me."

"How often do they call?" asked Janet.

"Oh, once or twice a month, I suppose," Dani replied.

"Hmmm. Perhaps you should just remind Mr. Amoroso to check on the grounds every other week. The people from the cemetery wouldn't sound so angry then."

"Thank you, Janet. I'll do that," said Dani.

==============================

Each of the elders had an informal interview with the committee members. Many concerns about Dani were brought to the committee's attention. The committee members listened patiently to all of the complaints and anecdotal information they were given. They compiled their report while staying in a hotel on Black Horse Pike.

===============================

In October, Josh and six other new members were voted in by Session. Melissa, Dave, and two other vocal elders were not in attendance at the meeting, but a quorum was established. Upon their return, when they found that the man responsible for setting up fellowship every week was voted in, the four elders demanded a new vote be called.

Dani told them that it would be unfair to single out Josh. If they wanted to, they could interview all seven of the new members and then vote on all seven to determine whether or not they should be retained. The new members were called in after service one Sunday. Six of the members had three minute interviews and were voted on unanimously by Session to be retained. Josh's interview lasted for forty-eight minutes. When the vote came in, he was retained as a new member by a single vote. Melissa and Dave had abstained.

=========================

Seven weeks after their arrival, on a Wednesday evening, the COM members met with Session at the church. All of the church's issues were discussed at length. Janet made it clear early on that this was not a Session meeting. Janet was in charge and would not tolerate anyone else trying to steer the meeting.

Janet revealed that COM had kept a close eye on Pastor Dani and had concluded that the reports of her uncontrolled promiscuity were false. The Committee On Ministry found the Pastor to be studious, concerned for the well being of her congregation and open minded in general.

COM was looking into several issues the church had and would not make comment on those issues, or even what the issues were, until a conclusion had been reached.

As for the church's financial crisis, the committee members suggested a series of congregational meetings in which the church members would be informed of the details and allowed to vote on possible solutions. COM would be returning to the Presbytery and thanked the members of Session for their time and assistance in the investigation.

===============================

During the first congregational meeting, on the second Sunday in November, there reached a point where Melissa asked Dani to excuse herself so that the church members could freely ask any questions about the crisis without any feelings of intimidation. Dani excused herself and had tea in her kitchen, happy to be away from Melissa.

One of the members asked Melissa and Dave, who were running the meeting, what steps were being taken to abate the money crisis.

"Well," said Dave amicably, "we're doing everything we can, but we're meeting so much resistance from Pastor Dani that it's hard to move forward. We made the suggestion that the Pastor should go down to part time and cover some of the manse's expenses and she absolutely refused to compromise with us. In fact, she wouldn't even let us use the word compromise. I forget what word she wanted to use instead, but the point is she won't compromise. Every single time we had a possible solution to get us to June, when the grant will kick back in, Pastor Dani dug her heels in and refused to compromise.

"I do have to tell you how much I respect those folks from COM, though. I thought they were just going to cover up Pastor Dani's tracks, but it looks like they really did investigate the reports of her wanton behavior. The committee members were very easy to talk to and they actually listened to us when we explained how difficult Pastor Dani has been."

Another member asked why Pastor Dani wasn't kicked out.

Melissa answered, "COM is leaving that up to us. Next week, we will have another congregational meeting and we will vote on whether or not this church can, in good conscience, afford to keep Pastor Dani. We all love Pastor Dani, I'm sure, but we have to bear in mind that she refuses to compromise with us when we suggest reducing her pay slightly and having her assist with some expenses. She has spent church money on these weekly fellowships she forces us to have, despite our asking her to address the congregation's concerns of our finances. We have to decide if, perhaps, it might be smarter just to go back to having a supply preacher."

When the meeting ended, Melissa was confident things would go her way.

Pastor Dani was away the following Sunday. She would be performing a wedding in New York State and needed to meet with the people she was marrying for premarital counseling. They had a lay service, which Melissa led, followed by the congregational meeting.

"It's time for us to vote on whether we should continue to shoulder the burden that Pastor Dani puts on this church. It should be noted that Pastor Dani did not deign it important enough to attend the congregational meeting today. Were there any questions before we commence the vote?"

There were no questions.

"Very good. All in favor or releasing Pastor Dani from her contract on the grounds that we cannot afford her please signify by saying 'Aye.'"

===============================

When Dani returned from New York State, a few days later, she found two letters for her in the mailbox mixed in with the actual mail. The first letter informed her that she was voted out of the church by a margin of 52 to 7. The second letter informed her that she had until 5pm on Saturday of that week to leave the manse. It stated if she needed more time she should contact Melissa Masters for an extension no later than a date that had already expired. It also mentioned that on that Saturday at 5, two elders would inspect the manse before taking the keys from her.

Dani made several phone calls.

She dug into her savings to hire movers and a cleaning service as well as rent a storage unit. She went to the two liquor stores near the manse to get empty boxes. She packed up all of her books and most of her clothes. All the little things were packed and ready to go by Friday.

The movers arrived Saturday morning at 7. Dani had all the furniture prepped and began packing her car with the little things.

The cleaners arrived at 9am. The movers had already emptied two rooms, and Dani sent the cleaners to those rooms first. Around 11, she made a quick run to the Shop Rite and picked up cold drinks for everyone. At noon, she picked up Chinese food for everyone from the place by the theater. The movers were done by 3. Dani led in her car to the storage facility she was renting from. The movers filled her unit, she paid them with a decent tip and they were on their way. The cleaners finished at 4:30. Dani paid them and gave them a nice tip.

She was all alone in front of an empty and clean manse when Tom McNulty and the Music Director showed up. Dani led them room by room through the manse so they could see she had left it in better condition than it was given to her. Tom took the keys and hugged Dani goodbye.



Dani got in her car and drove away. She didn't look in her mirrors. She needed as much distance as possible. She drove to the Hampton Inn on Black Horse Pike in Blackwood. She fell on the bed and closed her eyes. She was free of that church and the horrible people who didn't know how to be Presbyterian.

She wasn't sure when she realized her hands had slid into her pants and then into her panties. She had been gently rubbing her pussy without a conscious thought. This wasn't about sex, it occurred to her. This was simply a pleasurable way to relieve tension. She unbuttoned her top and pulled her tits out of her bra. She rubbed her breasts with her left hand as her right rubbed rapidly at her labia. Dani moaned softly as the delectable sensations echoed throughout her body. She undressed further to give her hands better access. Her breathing was rapid and shallow.



She slid two fingers inside her wet pussy and let them explore. She rubbed the inside of her channel and compared the sensations. When she found the place that felt best, she concentrated on it. Her two fingers moved in and out with the fingertips rubbing that amazing spot. She put her thumb on her clit as her fingers moved faster inside her.

Dani pinched each of her nipples hard and gasped at the amazing feeling that radiated from them. Her body wriggled around on the bed. She felt herself getting close to orgasm. She grunted with horniness as she redoubled her actions. She worked her fingers hard inside her and pulled on her nipples.

She was desperate to feel her orgasm. She needed it. She had to use it to wash away the crap from the church that had stifled her for so long. She dug her heels into the bed and humped her fingers hard. She was screaming in pleasure when the first rough wave of her climax overtook her. She did not slow down her motions. She fucked herself harder as the heat spread through her body like an uncontrolled fire. Her hips jerked up madly as her fingers pushed deeper inside. Sweat trickled down her forehead as she felt her second orgasm. She cried out in ecstasy and thrashed all over the bed. So many pent up emotions came flooding out of her and she was panting when she finally stopped touching herself. She basked in the afterglow in relative silence.

==============================



At 7pm on Saturday, Sierra from the confirmation class came over to the manse. She needed to talk to Pastor Dani desperately. No one had told her the results of the vote. She had been watching the little kids of the church in the nursery during the meeting. She saw the blinds were up at the manse and looked in the windows. There was no furniture. The entire ground floor was empty. Sierra got her cell phone out and scrolled for Pastor Dani's number.

"Hello?" a sleepy voice answered.

"Pastor Dani, where are you?" demanded Sierra. "The manse is empty."

"I'm not your pastor anymore. The church voted me out."

"Oh, but I need you. Scott said if I didn't have sex with him he would leave me."

Dani asked, "How soon can you get to Geet's Diner?"

==========================

A special Session meeting was called for 8pm at the church. No one bothered to point out that, without a Pastor, it was really just an Elder's meeting. Melissa Masters meticulously and mercilessly expunged every change Pastor Van Cleef had made to her church. The session voted to end weekly fellowship. They voted Josh out as a member. They voted that Helen Amoroso would take over teaching the confirmation class. They voted that Pastor Tressler would return as supply preacher. They voted that the manse would be used for storage. Melissa was satisfied, at the end of the meeting, that her church was back to the way she liked it.

When the meeting was over, Melissa and Dave stayed behind and fucked all over the former Pastor's office. Dave sat Melissa on the Pastor's chair and rubbed her shoulders. His right hand let go of her shoulder after only a few minutes. He reached forward and lifted up her skirt. His fingers grazed her thighs. He rubbed the front of her panties. He kissed her neck as his fingers did their work. He bumped her clit through the panties and she gasped. Dave kissed her mouth while it was still open and slid his tongue inside. He swirled it in her mouth for a few seconds and withdrew. His fingers moved in a slow circular motion on her panties. This elicited another gasp. He turned the swivel chair so that she was closer to facing him. His fingers never left her pussy as he did this. She put her left foot on the desk as he knelt down before her with the wall on his left and the desk on his right. He tugged the panties off her hips and let them glide along her legs. They nearly snagged on her high heels. She spread her legs for him. He slowly, teasingly, lowered his head toward her snatch. Dave licked and sucked on Melissa's clitoris as she moaned and unbuttoned her blue blouse. She felt up her breasts through the bra as he lapped at her slit and clit.

His hands caressed her thighs. She struggled to open the last two buttons of her top, but ultimately succeeded. She grasped the back of the chair with her left hand to hold herself steady as she used her right hand to push on the back of his head. He took the hint and sped up his licking. She tossed her head back and held on to her rolled up skirt with her right hand to keep it out of his way. The heel of her right shoe scratched at his back. Her moaning became louder. She held the back of the chair with both hands. She felt the heat radiating inside her. Her knuckles turned white as she tightened her grasp on the chair. He slid his right index finger, with his palm up, inside her wet pussy as he sucked on her clit. Her breathing hitched. He slid a second finger in her and stood up. He continued to rub her channel and leaned in for a kiss.

"Oh, fuck," she whispered as his fingers left her pussy.

She scooted out of the chair and on to her knees. She looked up at him as she opened the button on his jeans and slid down the zipper. She fished his dick out of his tidy whities with her right hand and licked the tip. She stroked the dick at the base with her right hand and let the dick enter her mouth. She massaged his balls with her left hand. Dave pulled off his shirt. She let go of his dick and opened her mouth as he fucked it. She gagged and he pulled out. She coughed, briefly, then licked the side of the shaft to the balls and back several times. Eventually, she returned to stroking, sucking and ball massaging. As she bobbed her head, he pushed her open blouse off her shoulders. Impatient to get the blouse off, she shook it off her arms. Her engagement ring and wedding band hit against the desk loudly. She didn't even think of Roger. She grabbed the backs of Dave's thighs as her bobbing gained enthusiasm. She soon took a break and licked his shaft while she reached back to unclasp her bra.

She slid the straps off, let the cups fall on her thighs, and sucking him while stroking his dick with both hands. He then pulled his dick away and stepped forward to tit fuck her. She was happy to help. Slick with her saliva, the dick jammed rapidly up and down the valley of her soft peaks. He held the back of her head with his left hand and steadied himself with his right hand on the desk as he repeatedly thrust into her cleavage for about five minutes. He threw her back into the chair. As he removed his shoes, jeans and skivvies, she played with her clit. He got down on one knee in front of her and guided his dick into her pussy.

He held onto her rolled up skirt for balance as he drove into her like a man possessed. He took off his glasses and threw them on the desk. The swivel chair rolled against the wall. Dave shifted himself and continued to fuck Melissa at a steady pace. She slapped her palms against the wall behind her. Melissa was overwhelmed as her orgasm took her by surprise. Dave leaned against the desk and fucked her harder. Melissa gasped the chair tightly for support because a second orgasm hit as the first one faded. Dave leaned in and sucked hard on her tits. A third wave of pleasure crested over Melissa. Dave grunted loudly and Melissa felt her insides splashed by his wet load.




Shepherdess without a Flock Ch. 03



+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Thank you for reading, voting and commenting! 



Shepherdess without a Flock Ch. 04



All of the characters in this work of fiction who engage in sexual activity or the consumption of alcohol are over the age of 21.

This chapter contains (in no particular order) depictions of heterosexual sex, lesbian sex, interracial sex and masturbation.

Although this chapter contains characters from The Happiest Day of Her Life, it is not necessary to read that series to enjoy this chapter.

In the previous chapters, Dani Van Cleef, a newly ordained Presbyterian pastor, agreed to fly out to the home of Frank Melar, a rich heir, after meeting him once. The two had passionate sex but realized they would not be able to maintain a long distance relationship. Dani returned to work at her church. She found herself at odds with several of the Church Elders. One of her confirmation students accused her of being a whore. Two of the elders, Melissa Masters and Dave Amoroso, broke several commandments and did everything in their power to get Dani voted out of the church. They succeeded. One of Dani's former confirmation class students, Sierra, called for help a few hours after Dani moved out. Oh, and there were a bunch more crappy and poorly lit drawings that did little to help illustrate things.

Votes and polite comments are always appreciated. Thank you for all who voted for, commented on and favorited the previous chapters as well as those who marked me as a favorite author. This is the final chapter of this series. Thank you for reading it. I was feeling a little immature and decided to do something different this time. The drawings are all in pencil and crayon. I didn't stay within the lines, either.

Special thanks to my Beta Reader, FangsAnarchy, for her help and encouragement. It's good to have a friend who can tell you when a scene needs more or when something doesn't fit with the story. Thanks for everything, Fang!

I'm sorry this has taken so long. I wish I had a good excuse. I simply got bombarded by life. I hope you enjoy it. You may need to re-read the first three chapters to get everything straight. 

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Dani drove along Black Horse Pike, unsure of what she would say to her former student once she arrived at the diner. She had asked the students of the confirmation class to talk with their parents about sex. It seemed fairly obvious that Sierra did not do so. There was a balance scale tipping from side to side in Dani's mind. She loved helping others but she was still stung by the rejection of the church. She needed to be there for this young woman but the pain in her heart was still very raw and she didn't want to add to that pain. She knew Sierra had nothing to do with her being voted out but the dark cloud was hanging over this tiny town just down the road from her.

As she came closer to Williamstown, Dani felt a weight growing on her chest. Just a few hours earlier, she thought she was free of this place. She thought the burden was lifted from her shoulders. This was not how she wanted to spend her evening. She could think of any number of places she would rather be. The scale tipped hard towards driving away.

Dani knew she needed to speak to her former student and parishioner. She certainly couldn't leave the poor girl to fend for herself. It just seemed very ill timed. The people of her church had voted her out by a very wide margin. An overwhelming majority was against her. The diner they were going to meet at was within walking distance of the church. There was also a strong possibility that someone from the church could be there.

That would be a lovely occurrence. Dani wondered how she would explain why the recently voted out whore of a Pastor was meeting with one of the church's teenagers. That would go over exceptionally well. Dani imagined a concerned church member calling the police and reporting corruption of a minor.

Dani was contemplating jail time when she saw the large sign for the diner. Her hand was slow to put on her turn signal. There were so many other options open to her. She could follow Black Horse Pike to Atlantic City. She could turn left on Sicklerville Road and head towards Cherry Hill. The scale tipped back in favor of doing the right thing. She signaled for a turn and went to the diner.



Sierra was pacing in the parking lot. She smiled when she recognized Dani behind the wheel. The Pastor emerged from her car and the teenager ran up and hugged her. Dani rolled her eyes but Sierra did not notice this. Dani was under the impression that this display was an attempt to mollify the Pastor. It was an interesting tactic, if that was what this was, since Dani was no longer Sierra's Pastor. She did not hug Sierra back. She simply placed a hand on Sierra's shoulder. She led the young girl into the diner and they were led to a booth after a short wait. Sierra seemed happy to shed her heavy coat. She was wearing a long sleeved tee shirt underneath.

"So," Dani said finally, "Scott is pressuring you to have sex. I'm assuming you didn't have that talk with your parents."

"I tried to, Pastor Dani. I really did," Sierra replied. "They just wouldn't understand."

"First of all, I'm not your Pastor anymore. I'm here as a friend, not as clergy. Please call me Dani. Second of all, as a friend I have to tell you that your parents already know about sex. After all, you exist. That's pretty big evidence that they've had intercourse. You can talk to them about this..."

"Eww!" said Sierra.

"And there it is!" exclaimed Dani. "You're too embarrassed to talk to your parents about sex. So it suddenly becomes my job. Ok. Sierra, you have to stop being timid."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean you have to have real conversations with people. You can't shy away from them. You have to talk to your parents. You do. You even have to talk to them about the icky parts. You also have to talk to Scott. If you're not ready to have sex, and my being here would indicate that, you have to tell him. Tell him you're not going to stand for his bullshit ultimatums. If he cares more about banging you so he can prove to his buddies he's really a man than whether or not you're ready, it shows how immature he is. You don't need that. The more a guy rushes a girl to have sex, the crappier it's going to be. My first time was horrible. I didn't want to have sex ever again."

"What about your second time?" Sierra asked.

"My second time got me branded a whore and ultimately got me kicked out of my first job as a Pastor," Dani said directly. "So, lesson learned. Not only do you have to be careful about who you have sex with, you have to be careful who knows."

"Wait," said Sierra. "The sex you had after your father's funeral was the second time you'd had sex, like, ever?"

"Yes," Dani admitted. "We did it more than once, though, so it's not like I've only had sex twice. I've just only had two sexual partners."

Sierra asked, "So, you're not a slut?"

"Never do that. As easily as you did that to me someone could someday do it to you. This should be a good lesson for you. 'Shaming the slut' is wrong. It's even worse when you don't know the whole story. The elders used finances to get me voted out but I suspect many of those who voted think I am a slut. I doubt I'd be kicked out this quickly over money. I'm not even close to being a slut and yet they tried to shame me," Dani relayed with a bitter smile. "There's another lesson learned for you, though. Patience. Here I am in my twenties and I've been with two men. It's not impossible to wait for the right sexual partner."

No sooner than those words left Dani's lips than the waitress, Sandy, walked up to take their order. Sandy had obviously heard the last thing Dani said but chose to act professionally. Dani was silently thankful for this professionalism.

"Do you ladies know what you want?"

"Yes, please," said Dani. "I'd like a grilled cheese sandwich with tomato and a lemonade."

"Uh, I'll have a burger, fries and a Diet Coke," said Sierra.

Sandy thanked them for their order and went quickly to the kitchen to place it. Dani did not get right back to where she'd left the conversation. An Eagles game was playing on the large television screen in the dining room and Dani watched the birds complete a pass play before she spoke again. It wasn't live. One of the sports networks was showing a close game from last season. Sierra was uncomfortable with the silence.

"So, you think I should wait to have sex," Sierra said. It wasn't a question.

Dani stopped watching the game and said, "Of course I think you should wait! My God, Sierra. Didn't you listen to me in confirmation class? You're not ready. You're not even ready for the gossip that follows. Not to put too fine a point on this, but I've had two lovers and you know all the things I've been called. The more you tell people that your love life is none of their business, the more involved they choose to be. It's hard to be a woman. You can be attacked by a rumor and they use your denial as proof."

"Why didn't you tell the church you've only been with two men?"

"Because, as I said, my denial wouldn't mean anything to them. Besides, it's none of their business how many men I've had sex with as much as they think otherwise," Dani replied. Sandy came over with their drinks and, again, acted professionally even though she obviously heard Dani. She set down the lemonade and the Diet Coke without a word and walked in the general direction of the kitchen. Dani continued as though she never paused. "Frankly, it's none of your business, either, but you need to understand the consequences of having sex. Name calling is the easy stuff. It can get a lot harder to deal with than being called a 'whore.' I don't think you want any of that and I'll tell you again that you're not ready. Scott's not ready, either. He has, I'm sure, buddies who are putting the screws to him about losing his virginity. They'll tell him that he isn't a man until he has sex. This is dangerous. Partly because sex is not going to mature him. He's going to stay a boy even after he loses his virginity. The other reason this is dangerous is because boys do crazy things to keep from looking bad in front of their friends. You should find out if Scott is already telling tales about you."

"You think he would?"

"He's a guy," Dani said with a shrug of her shoulders. "Some guys think that if they convince enough people that they're having sex with a woman, the woman will just go along with it and have sex with them."

Sierra looked puzzled and asked, "Why would they think that?"

"Do I know how guys think? Men have, throughout history, tried to outsmart women and trick them into having sex. Apparently, they never thought about being open and honest with us. Either that, or they chose the wrong women to be open and honest with the first time and came to the conclusion that we're all like that. Even in the Bible, men are underhanded when they think it'll get them laid. King David saw a woman taking a bath. He found out she was married. Did he do the honorable thing and back off? Absolutely not. The woman's husband was one of his soldiers so he sent the poor bastard to the most life threatening duty there was and consoled the young widow by sleeping with her."

Their food arrived and Dani ate in silence. Sierra followed along and did not speak while eating. This gave her the opportunity to think about everything Dani said to her. She knew in her heart that she wasn't ready for sex. She wondered, silently, if she would have the courage to dump Scott and accept the gossip he would spread about her once she did. She thought about Dani who never verbally denied being a slut. She just went about her business and tried to show, in her actions, who she really was. It was obviously a colossal failure since Dani was now unemployed. There was something noble about that, though. She stuck to her principles and didn't let people think they had to know about her private life even though it cost her a job.

Sierra thought it over.

Dani didn't ask Sierra to tell her what decision she'd made. She just wanted Sierra to think about it all. Sierra respected that. She wasn't pressured to have all the answers at that precise moment. She was given the time and freedom to make the best choice possible.

Since Sierra walked to the diner, Dani drove her home. Sierra lived on South Main Street, so Dani had to pass the church. Dani avoided looking at the building. Had she looked, she would have seen movement in the window of her former office. She might have even seen two hands and a pair of breasts pressed against that window.



She never looked, however, and Sierra was lost in her own thoughts and didn't realize they'd passed the church until after they approached the firehouse. Sierra lived between the firehouse and the Catholic Church just down the road from First Presbyterian. The proximity to her house snapped her back into reality. They pulled up in front of Sierra's house and she thanked Dani for the ride and for the talk. Dani waited outside Sierra's house for the girl to get inside before she drove back to her hotel in Blackwood.

==========================================

Dave and Melissa continued to have sex all over the office that once belonged to Pastor Dani. To Dave, this was the final insult to the uppity bitch who tried to change his church. To Melissa, this salacious act was much more. This was not only a reclaiming of her church from that whore in black robes. This was a baptism of the office of Pastor. This was Melissa stepping into the role of Pastor and using the supply preacher as a puppet. She would be the power behind the throne. She would lead this church back to its former glory. She would mold her church into what it should be.

If anyone got in her way again, Melissa now knew she had the power to get them voted out. It was the best of both worlds. She was the leader of the church without having all eyes on her.

Dave had Melissa pressed against a file cabinet and was fucking the daylights out of her. Neither one of them knew how long they'd been going at it. Dave just knew he was very close to cumming.

"Oh, God. I'm almost there.... Uh... I... I'm gonna..."

Melissa pushed Dave off and turned so she could jerk him off. She aimed his dick at one of the walls and he shot his load. Melissa watched in fascination as the spunk dripped down the wall. She walked over to the desk and collapsed on it. She'd had her orgasms. She'd had her moment of clarity where she realized she could run this church from behind the curtain. She smiled, naked on the desk, as she thought of all the power at her fingertips.

Dave looked at the woman he was cheating with. He mistakenly assumed the smile on her lips had something to do with him.

Melissa had all but forgotten Dave was still in the room. He was a cock to fuck. He was a means to an end. He was nothing else to her.



===========================================

Dani spent two nights in the hotel and then she drove to Long Island. Frank Melar, the man who had reawakened her sexuality, was getting married and Dani would perform the ceremony. Frank would be, there was no other way to say this, marrying two women. Dani searched her soul before agreeing to be the officiant. This was not simply polygyny where Frank would be married to two women. This was polyamory. All three people were in love and would be married to each other. Polygamy was illegal, obviously, but Dani saw the touch of God in this union. She was willing to go to jail in order for this wedding to happen.

She knew Frank well enough to give him the benefit of the doubt as far as meeting his fiancées. She also found a church in his area and started the preliminaries. When Dani spoke to Frank on the phone and listened to the way he talked about the women he intended to marry, she could hear the love in his voice. She could not explain it but when Frank talked about his fiancées, there was a voice in the back of her head telling her she needed to perform this wedding. That voice was what stopped her from advising Frank to marry one of the women and to consider the marriage open. The more her friend and former lover spoke, the more she heard what she interpreted to be God's plan. As wrong as it sounded on the surface, there was something right about this wedding. She heard the love and she would have the opportunity to see it firsthand.

====================================

Dani had made an appointment to meet Gene St. Vincent, the Pastor of Bridgehampton Presbyterian Church the Friday before she was voted out of First Presbyterian Church of Williamstown. Pastor Gene was nine years older than Dani but she thought he was sexy as hell. He was African American and had a deep voice that made her quiver inside. He was the sort of Pastor who got right down to business but wasn't above using profanity if the situation called for it. Dani was glad to know that she wasn't the only one. Pastor Gene was an impressively sized man despite being an inch or two shorter than Dani. Pastor Gene had a presence. Dani wasn't entirely sure why she was attracted to him, she only knew that she was. She melted a little when he spoke.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Dani," he said with a warm smile. "You said over the phone that there were issues to this wedding that could only be discussed in person."

"Yes, Gene, there are," replied Dani. She tried not to appear like a young woman who was crushing on him at thier first meeting. "There are several issues. One is that two of the participants are of the same sex."

"'Two of the participants'?" asked Pastor Gene in surprise. "Exactly how many participants are there?"

"That's another issue. There are three," said Dani. "A man and two women and the three would be married to each other. If you cannot allow the wedding to be performed here, they have a house on the beach less than a mile down the road from here and I'll happily bless the wedding there."

"Why on earth would I allow this farce of a wedding to happen here?" asked Pastor Gene in a demanding voice. "It's a clear violation of church law!"

"Oh?" asked Dani. "Which law does it violate? Church law instructs us to follow the examples of God. You know as well as I do that Christ said several things which implied he had nothing against polygamy. Consistently in the Bible, God and Jesus selected people who were not accepted by polite society. Whom did Christ select to be his twelve closest? No fewer than five fishermen, a tax collector, a zealot and at least two scholars whose works were shunned by the priests and scribes. These were outcasts and now we call them Apostles. We shouldn't be so quick to shun this.

"These three people love each other. God is love and God came to us in three persons. I feel the love of God in this union. I can't explain it."

"Have you met with the three of them?" asked Pastor Gene.

"No, just the man," admitted Dani. "I'm actually on my way to see them for premarital counseling."

"Well, I'll admit I feel better that you'll be counseling them, Dani. You have a very exciting and interesting interpretation of the Bible. I will let you use the church building for the wedding if, after the counseling, you still feel God's presence in this marriage. But make no mistake, I am not condoning this. This is your blessing to bestow. If anything goes wrong, if there are any lawsuits or arrests, I'm not getting involved. It's all on you."

"Understood," said Dani.




Shepherdess without a Flock Ch. 04



===============================

Dani, now that she no longer had a church, was allowed to stay at the house Frank and the two women he was betrothed to lived in. It was an estate called Tarabella and it was enormous.

Dani settled in to life at Tarabella. There was horseback riding and several rituals the trio took very seriously. Dani was a big believer in rituals. Rituals were not only a reminder of the past, they were a way of making the past new again. Every time a ritual is performed, it brings with it the memories of past rituals and as such is a renewal.

She reported the progress of the wedding to Pastor Gene. He sincerely appreciated the updates. After Dani's first call, Pastor Gene insisted they meet in person on a regular basis. Gene did not really trust cellphones all that much. He preferred to face a person and see what they were thinking in the look in their eyes. He had other reasons, however, for meeting in person.

Gene enjoyed his meetings with Dani. As a widower, he had tried to deny his physical attraction but it was a fait accompli. He was hooked. Her smile and her long blonde hair had ensnared his heart. Dani had also captured his mind. She had a very unique understanding of the Bible which was fresh and alive. God was clearly still speaking to Dani. Her love of God was transparent and contagious. Even a jaded sceptic of a Pastor like Gene could feel Dani's excitement for the church. On their last meeting before Dani would be performing the polygamous wedding, Gene made Dani an offer.

"I've been thinking about giving you a job, Dani. Protestant churches are destroying themselves lately and sometimes I feel like I'm the only one who sees it. We have these great theological minds like you in our seminaries and what do we do with them? Do we tutor them and encourage them? No. We throw them to the sharks. Instead of putting the newly ordained into large churches as Associate Pastors where they can safely learn the ins and outs of a church under the protection of an established Pastor, we chuck them into the deep end of the pool and forget about them. We ship them off to these small churches. The newly ordained see all this potential for growth and the small churches see any sign of change as a personal attack on their morals. The churches always win. The pastors limp off, after getting voted out, to lick their wounds and most of them wind up leaving the church. The Moravian Church is really bad at that but we're not much better. We need to help our newly ordained."

"Are you offering me an Associate Pastor position?" Dani asked.

"Hell, no," replied Gene. "My church would eat you alive if you were on the books. No, I want to hire you under the table."

Dani smiled when Gene used profanity and nodded before asking,"To do what?"

"Well, I don't know if you know this but there aren't very many black Presbyterian pastors out there, especially in the Hamptons," Gene said with a smile. "People tend to associate Presbyterians with the term WASP. I'm actually a PK. My poppa was a dyed in the wool Baptist preacher and as a typical Pastor's Kid, I looked for a way to rebel."

"So, you became Presbyterian?" Dani asked.

"Yep," he replied with what looked like pride in his eyes.

"And which part of this has to do with the job you're offering me?"

"All of it," he said. "I'm in a position to effect great change but I have to be careful how I do it. Now, if I let you do all the dirty work, I can become a progressive Pastor without actually getting my hands dirty. I want to pay you to perform all the same sex marriages I would normally turn away. I talked to our church secretary and she has a bedroom she's not using. You could stay there for free and I'd give you a nice stipend for each wedding you perform here."

"Off the books."

"Of course," Gene said. "If you're comfortable with this, I can even spread the word to other pastors on Long Island. You bless all the same sex marriages and they just play host."

"You're crazy," said Dani.

"That goes without saying," admitted Gene. "What do you think?"

"Same sex marriages are legal in New York State so the only thing stopping you and the other pastors is that the Presbyterian Church hasn't officially permitted them. So I take all the heat and you all share in the glory of having these couples who can now actively participate in your churches."

Gene smiled and said, "Gay and lesbian church members who are legally married can be fully accepted as a family by the church. One of our elders is legally married to a person of the same sex. It would be good to have more diversity in our congregations."

"I'll do it," said Dani.

"Good," said Gene. "I'll call the other pastors."

====================================

Dani moved in with Lisa Mohr, the secretary for Bridgehampton Presbyterian Church. Lisa was a lovely woman in her mid-forties with a great sense of humor. She also had a loving but peculiar habit of addressing Dani as "kiddo". She and Dani would cook together in the kitchen and regale each other with stories over dinner.

Lisa was shorter than Dani by about eight inches. She was toned and thin. Lisa ran ten miles every single day regardless of the weather. When she ran, Lisa pulled her long auburn hair into a ponytail. She was graceful in motion. Dani found her eyes lingering on Lisa's body from time to time.

Dani had a lot of weddings to perform almost immediately. There was a lot of business and Dani was happy to help. As promised, Gene had given her cellphone number to a large number of pastors on Long Island. Dani's name was soon well known in Suffolk and Nassau counties. The pastors all paid Dani under the table but they were fair about it. They gave her three hundred dollars plus gas for each wedding performed.

Occasionally, Dani would come back from a wedding and lock herself in the bedroom Lisa had provided for her. She would strip naked and begin rubbing herself. She usually managed to keep quiet but there were evenings when the moans simply would not be contained. Her fingers would idly rub her clit while her other hand would rub her nipples or squeeze her breasts. Dani wasn't fingering herself with anyone specific in mind. Not usually, anyway. She would, from time to time, imagine what Lisa or Gene looked like naked while she touched herself. Dani couldn't explain to herself why these weddings prompted the need in her to masturbate. Was it the love she bore witness to? The passion in the eyes of those she married? Dani wasn't certain. She only knew she felt an ache between her legs that had to be rubbed away.

When Dani began thinking of specific people as she pleasured herself, it started innocuously. Her eyes had lingered a little too long on Lisa as she made her way to her room. She unbuttoned her blouse and popped her breasts out of her bra as she sat on the bed. She grabbed her breasts more roughly than usual and the thought of those being Lisa's hands on her tits just manifested in her head. She twisted her nipples as she imagined Lisa would.

She pulled on her nipples until they ached. She slapped her breasts. She pinched her right nipple while her other hand removed her blouse and bra. The hand then slid slowly down her body. Her fingertips roamed under the waistband of her slacks. Dani moaned as she imagined the lady of the house touching her body softly and roughly at the same time. Dani was discovering that she liked rough treatment on her breasts but a gentle touch on her pussy and clit. At least at first she liked it to be gentle.

She tried to stay quiet but there was something about the way her imaginary lover was touching her that was exciting and uncontrollable. She rubbed her labia after wetting her fingers in her mouth. She pinched and pulled on her nipples. She tugged on her own hair as she envisioned herself pulling Lisa's reddish-brown locks. Her pussy was greedy for attention and she deftly slid her middle finger in and twisted it inside. She gasped as she pleasured herself in ways she normally would not. She was touching her in ways she supposed someone else would. There was a part of her that was very curious how Lisa, were she so inclined, would actually touch her.

The unknown is a very sexy quantity. Dani explored her pussy with a passion that normally did not exist and she realized she was making a bit of noise. She couldn't stop. She inserted another finger in her pussy and she rubbed her clit with her other hand. She could neither stifle her moans nor her desire to get off. She pistoned her fingers inside her faster and faster until her orgasm arrived with a loud gasp that evolved into cooing. She lay naked on her bed imagining her copper-haired friend resting beside her.

Dani purchased a dildo one day on a whim. It was an interesting exercise to talk about religion to the other patrons of the adult bookstore she visited. It was scary that some men were not scared off by a religious woman.

Upon arriving back at Lisa's with her newly purchased toy, Dani found she did not think of Lisa when she used the dildo. Her thoughts were firmly and keenly on Gene. It was a large dildo. Dani found herself sucking on it. She thought of the blowjobs she gave to Frank but imagined what it might be like to blow Gene. There was something so intrinsically hot about giving head to a Pastor. She idly fingered herself while sucking on the large toy. As soon as she thought she was wet enough to handle it, she stuffed the toy into her pussy. She found it interesting that she masturbated differently and like different things depending on who she imagined to be with her. She used two hands to ram the fake phallus into her hot pussy. She was very happy that Lisa was out doing errands because there was no way to keep quiet with this monster in her snatch. She howled as her cum drenched the toy that drilled her so deeply and so well.

After that, if she was imagining herself with Lisa she used her fingers. She used the dildo anytime she thought of herself with Gene.

After living in the older woman's house for three months, Dani accepted Lisa's invitation to join her on her morning run. The first run lasted eighty-two minutes longer than the secretary was used to because Dani kept asking to stop. She stuck with it and kept improving, however, and was able to keep pace with Lisa by the time Spring arrived.

One night in April, Lisa said, "I think what you're doing for the community is wonderful."

Dani was a bit puzzled by that and asked, "What am I doing for the community?"

"The weddings, silly," Lisa replied. "You don't know how important it is to have legal church weddings. It makes us feel accepted even if it is a loophole. We accept the facts. This is the best game in town for now."

"'We'?" asked Dani.

"Dani, you knew the reason I offered you a place to stay is that I'm a lesbian, right?"

"No, actually," said Dani. "I didn't even think about why you let me in."

"That's because you instinctively accept people and you expect others to do the same. The world isn't like that, honey. I mean, you accepted polyamorous people, same sex couples of every imaginable ethnic combination and I get the feeling you're straight."

"Yeah," said Dani.

"You aren't at least bi curious?" asked Lisa.

Dani replied by asking, "Why do you ask?" Dani wondered if Lisa saw how Dani had often looked at her. She wondered if Lisa knew she occasionally starred in Dani's masturbatory fantasies.

"Because I think you're sexy as hell, kiddo," Lisa answered with a lascivious smile.

Dani blushed and said, "Thank you. I don't know how to respond to that. I think you're a beautiful woman, Lisa. I have a lot of respect for you."

"Aw, shit," said Lisa.

"What?" Dani asked defensively.

"You respect me? That doesn't pave a very direct path to you fucking the shit out of me, now does it?" the auburn haired secretary asked with a smile.

"I wouldn't even know what to do," the young Pastor said. In her mind, this was true despite the fact that she did see Lisa's face from time to time as she fingered herself.

"Of course you would," Lisa said firmly. "I've heard you masturbating in your room. You know how to touch yourself. You'd just have to do that to me. Touch me the way you'd like to be touched. Lick me and spank me the same way."

"Spank you?" Dani was shocked enough that she's been busted. This latest wrinkle was enough to raise her eyebrows.

"If you wanted to," replied Lisa. "As the song goes, 'Pain is so close to pleasure.'"

"I've never heard that song," Dani admitted.

"Haven't you led a sheltered life? It's called One Year of Love and it's by Queen. Anyway, if you ever felt like it I would never say no to you." Lisa looked at Dani in a way the blonde had only seen in her masturbatory daydreams.

"But what would that do to us? What if things didn't work out?"

Lisa chuckled and said, "Dani you're overthinking this. I'm not talking about a long term relationship. I'm not looking for that right now. I'm talking about sex. If you don't like it, we stop. If I don't like it, we stop. If we both like it, maybe we do it again. No pressure, no complications."

"There are always complications," Dani replied.

"Not if we're smart about it. Besides, how can you counsel same sex couples if you've never been with a woman?"

Dani laughed and said, "Your logic is incredibly flawed but you've got me curious."

"I'll take curious," Lisa said. She moved quickly toward Dani and was about to kiss her on the lips. As their lips made contact, barely, Dani stiffened and backed away from the auburn haired secretary.

"I'm sorry,Dani," Lisa said. "I really thought you were ready."

"Intellectually, maybe. I just..." Dani sighed. "I like you, Lisa, and I don't want to disappoint you."

"You won't," Lisa said with a smile. "Come here."

Dani moved closer to Lisa. She was nervous but Lisa's smile was very reassuring. They each leaned in for a soft kiss. Dani smiled and they kissed again. Lisa ran her fingers through Dani's hair during their third kiss. It was longer and tongues were involved. During the next kiss, Lisa slowly unbuttoned Dani's blouse. She kissed Dani's neck and the blonde Pastor moaned softly. The open blouse disappeared off Dani's shoulders. They quickly stripped each other down to their underwear and Lisa pulled Dani down with her onto the large area rug on the floor.

Surprisingly, Lisa went on her back and pulled Dani on top. As they exchanged kisses, Dani's hands traced gently over Lisa's soft skin. Dani pulled down the left cup of her bra and gingerly sucked on the secretary's tit. The areola was puffy and the nipple felt good in her mouth. Lisa instructed Dani to lick her there. Dani licked from the bottom of the areola to the top a few times.

"Like that?" she asked.

All Lisa could manage as a reply was a fervent nod of the head.

Dani began licking the areola clockwise, sucking on the nipple for a few seconds and then repeating the sequence When Lisa moaned in approval, Dani pulled down the other bra cup and treated the right tit to the same pleasure. Lisa arched her back and unhooked her own bra. Dani needed no cueing. She pulled the bra off Lisa's arms

"Mmmmmm," Lisa said. "Bite them."

Dani sucked the left nipple into her mouth and gave a gentle bite. She sucked on the nipple and pulled on it with her teeth a few times before she moved on to the right nipple.

"Oh, I like that," said Lisa. "Slap them."

After only a moment's hesitation, Dani slapped both breasts at the same time then sucked hard on the right nipple while fondling the left one with her fingers. She pulled on both nipples, slapped them once at the same time and shook them in an alternating pattern so one was going up while the other went down. Dani sucked and chewed on the left nipple while pulling on the right one. Her left hand slowly slid lower on Lisa's body.

"I know where that hand's going," Lisa joked.

Dani continued moving her hand until her palm was on Lisa's panty-covered crotch. She rubbed in long slow sweeps from Lisa's asshole to her clit as she sucked harder on Lisa's left nipple. Lisa moaned loudly and her head tilted back. Dani rubbed faster and sucked harder. She paused for air and moved to the right nipple. She sucked hard on it and tugged it with her teeth. The next time Dani stopped to breathe, she moved to the left nipple and dragged her tongue over it.

"OK," Lisa said loudly. "My nipples don't need any more attention!"

Dani chuckled and pulled down Lisa's panties with a big yank. Once they slipped out from under Lisa's ass, the blonde Pastor pulled them all the way off and chucked them over her shoulder.

Lisa smiled and said, "For someone who didn't know what to do, you're blowing my mind."

Dani didn't respond. She pushed Lisa's thighs further apart and dragged the flat of her tongue over the hood of Lisa's clit. She circled the clit with the tip of her tongue. She teased the nub and coaxed it out from its hood. Once it was out in the open, Dani sucked hard on the pearl. Lisa massaged her breasts with her right hand as she sucked on her left pinky finger.

As her mouth worked the clit, the young Pastor's index finger slipped inside Lisa. Dani moved her mouth and rubbed the clit with her thumb as her finger slid in and out of the wet pussy. Dani spat on the clit and rubbed it harder with her thumb.

"Ohhhhhhhh, shit," said Lisa, who was barely able to lift her head.



"You are so wet," Dani said with a smile as her thumb rubbed harder on the clit. When her thumb needed a rest, Dani pistoned her index finger faster and sucked on the clit. She alternated between sucking on the clit and rubbing it. Dani pushed in a second finger and plunged them harder and faster. She rubbed Lisa's clit with the tips of of the fingers of her other hand. Lisa pinched her own nipples as waves of pleasure surged through her body. Lisa's body bucked and Dani held her down and kept up her onslaught. Lisa's head jerked around. Her fingers went into Dani's hair as the orgsasm flowed through her. Having a new supply of lubrication from Lisa's cum, Dani inserted another finger.

"Mmmmmmmmm," said Lisa, "that feels nice. Can you fit in four?"

Dani felt resistance as she pushed, so she twisted her fingers as she thrust them in to take advantage of Lisa's nectar. She got the thumb in as well.

"Oh, yes. Go deeper," Lisa coached her.

Dani pushed forward and Lisa yelped loudly.

Dani yelled, "Oh my God!" and pulled her fingers out. Lisa laughed hard.

"I'm kidding, I'm kidding," she said. "It actually felt really good."

Dani pushed her hand back in and Lisa encouraged her to go deeper and harder, Dani fisted the ginger secretary until she couldn't take it any longer. Lisa told her to slowly and carefully remove her fingers and thumb. Lisa pulled the blonde Pastor up for a kiss. Dani extended her tongue and Lisa sucked on it to the point of pain. Lisa wrapped her arms and legs around Dani and rolled them until she was on top. She kissed Dani passionately. She got off Dani and guided the Pastor onto her hands and knees. Lisa kissed Dani on the back of the neck as she pulled her long blonde hair. She ever so slowly licked her way down Dani's back. She paused briefly to unhook Dani's bra. It fell sharply and Dani lifted her hands out of the loops of the bra straps. Lisa licked a straight line down Dani's spine. She reached Dani's panties and licked back up the spine to the halfway point. She curled her fingers inside the waistband and pulled the panties to mid-thigh in a single motion. Lisa arranged herself so that she was next to Dani but facing the other way. She licked Dani's asshole. Dani squirmed, but Lisa held on to her. Lisa repositioned herself behind Dani and licked the Pastor's pussy with rapid up and down movements of her tongue. Dani sucked in air hard and adjusted her weight on her arms to prevent herself from collapsing. Lisa would make three long slow licks on the labia, follow with short flicks of her tongue and then repeat.




Shepherdess without a Flock Ch. 04



When she felt Dani was wet enough, she pushed her middle finger inside. Dani's heavy breathing became bona fide moans. Lisa curled the rest of her digits and punched her way deeper and deeper into Dani. Lisa pleasured her mercilessly. Her long middle finger pushed in again and again. Lisa occasionally licked Dani's back as she finger fucked her.

"Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes," Dani chanted.

Dani felt her orgasm build inside of her like flames growing from tiny sparks. The flames spread quickly through her body. She called out hoarsely that she was coming and Lisa's long finger moved in and out of her even faster. Dani could no longer support herself on her arms. She dropped to the floor and Lisa rolled her onto her back. She spread Dani's legs and licked her pussy rapidly, flicking with her tongue. She pushed her tongue inside and Dani moved her hips to get the tongue deeper. Lisa stopped to breathe. She slapped Dani's clit and kissed her way up the Pastor's body. She kissed and sucked on the left side of Dani's neck. Dani turned her head and the two women kissed each other deeply. Lisa made Dani sit up as they kissed. She carefully arranged her legs so her pussy could touch Dani's. They leaned back on their arms and slammed pelvises. Dani had never done this before. It felt fantastic. She put her weight on her left arm so she could massage her right breast with her right hand. The friction from the area rug was painful and pleasurable at the same time. Dani would have to listen to that Queen song. Lisa was positioned so that Dani got the brunt of the friction. Lisa grabbed Dani's left thigh with her left hand to pull herself in closer. She started to grind herself against Dani in a small figure eight pattern.

Dani shouted, "Oh, my God!"

Dani found herself grinding back. It took less energy, required less friction on the rug and it felt really good. Lisa's grinding soon became frantic. Dani understood she was about to have an orgasm and felt her own building. Lisa definitely got off first but Dani came nonetheless. While the two women recovered from their orgasms, Dani leaned in for a kiss. Instead of kissing her, Lisa pushed Dani onto her back. She got up and prepared to straddle Dani's face. Dani wasn't sure about this. She didn't want to be a disappointment at this point. She gave Lisa's labia a little lick and was greeted with a moan. This encouraged her to continue. She licked and sucked on the labia and was given more encouragement. Dani's hands traveled slowly up Lisa's body and came to rest on her breasts. Lisa reached down and slid her fingers into Dani's hair. She pulled hard and forced Dani's tongue to push inside. She did not stop pulling Dani's hair. Dani wasn't comfortable. The pain didn't bring any pleasure this time. It was just pain. She tried to indicate her discomfort by squeezing Lisa's nipples, but the secretary liked that. She began to bounce on Dani's face. This was less comfortable. Lisa paused suddenly and all of her weight sank on Dani's face. She was being smothered. This was intolerable. She slapped Lisa's sides frantically. Lisa snapped back to reality after being lost in her own pleasure and climbed off Dani a few seconds later.

====================

True to Lisa's word, there were no complications. Dani told Lisa she didn't like the end of their session and they never had sex again. It was for the best. Dani felt Lisa put her own pleasure first and Dani did not like that type of lover. If nothing else, it was a very hot experience even if she never again made love to a woman. Dani was no longer bi curious. This was only her third lover and she was learning so much about herself. She realized she was straight. She was also starting to learn what she did and did not like in a sexual partner.

======================================

In July, after a session meeting in the church, Pastor Gene had his regular meeting with Dani in his church office. Dani was dressed for warm weather and not a visit to the Pastor's office. She had been flirting with Gene for some time now and had been dressing to show her interest in him. She had a tight plain tee shirt that left her midriff exposed, a pleated miniskirt and a pair of Birkenstocks. Pastor Gene glanced at her more often and longer than he should have and became aroused. He spent the next ten minutes of their meeting trying to hide his erection. Unfortunately, since his chair was pushed out from his desk, the more often he crossed his legs and shifted his weight, the more he drew it to Dani's attention. Her eyes kept drifting back to his crotch. They were both checking each other out but Dani was better at not being obvious about it.

Dani decided to tease Gene. She had been taking notes during their meeting. She tore a page out of her notebook and crumpled it into a ball. She threw the ball toward a wastepaper basket near Gene and missed. She walked over to the crumpled up ball with her back to Gene and bent over to pick up the wad of paper. Gene watched the small skirt rise. He saw Dani's lacy black panties. He saw her shapely ass. She lingered there longer than she needed to and then slowly walked back to her seat. Gene's cock was throbbing. He tried to distract himself with work. He looked at the report of the weddings Dani had officiated. There was one entry he could not make out. He was about to hand the file to her but Dani walked around the desk and read the report over his shoulder. She smelled so good to Gene. He lost his professionalism for a moment and kissed her cheek.

"What the hell was that?" Dani asked in an angry tone. "My mouth is right here."

In that instant, neither Pastor debated how inappropriate this was. Dani was physically attracted to Gene and it seemed to be mutual. Their kiss was long and soft. Gene was the one to break it.

"I'm sorry," he said.

"I'm not," she replied.

"It's been so long. My wife died seven years ago, not long after we moved here. I guess I became married to the church after that. I just became so invested in every tiny facet of our community. I never even look at women normally. I don't know what came over me," Gene said with a guilty heart.

"I don't care what came over you," said Dani. "I like you, Gene. You're funny, you're nice and you're very sexy. Also, you rescued me after Williamstown rejected me. I trust you." With that, Dani removed her tee shirt to reveal a lacy black bra that matched the panties Gene had glimpsed earlier. Dani reached up to her shoulders and grabbed the straps of her bra. She pulled the both down to the middle of her upper arms.

"Aren't we forward?" asked Gene.

Dani frowned and asked, "Are you saying you don't want to see my tits?"

"No, no," said Gene. "I never said anything of the sort."

Dani smiled and reached behind her back to unhook her bra. It slid slowly down her arms and fell at her feet.

"Oh, my God..." said Gene. He knew what was coming but, for some odd reason, Gene did not want to have sex in his office. He stood up from his chair and led Dani to the sanctuary of the church. He brought her to the furthest pew from the chancel table and removed her skirt. Dani laid back in the cushioned pew and massaged her breasts. The way she lay showed off a very nice camel toe in the lacy panties.

"Show me your pussy," Gene said.

Dani asked, "Who's being forward now?" but without hesitation her fingers deftly pulled the lacy black material to the side. Her right hand continued to rub her breasts.

"Nice," said Gene. "Touch it for me."

Her index finger moved gracefully over from the panties and touched her clit. She left that finger there and licked the fingers of her right hand. Those fingers went to the base of her pussy and dragged their way slowly up to the finger on her clit before returning down. Dani spread her legs as much as the pew would allow and arched her back for comfort as she slowly masturbated for Gene. She locked eyes with his, looking to see if this display was pleasing to him. Once Dani realized her panties wouldn't snap back into place, she caressed her breasts with her left hand. This felt so good to Dani. She let the middle finger of her right hand slip into her pussy and then drew it out to continue rubbing her labia with her other digits. She was not rushing. She enjoyed this. She was touching herself and watching Gene's reactions. Gene moved closer and Dani sat up. She licked the large bulge in his pants through the material. She unfastened his belt, unbuttoned his pants and slowly pulled down his zipper. She tugged down on his boxers and revealed a very large cock. Her eyes grew wide. She held it in her hand and gave a long lick to the shaft while maintaining eye contact. She licked the underside of the shaft. He moaned as she engulfed the head with her lips. She held there for a second and then drew back. She used her tongue as she moved her head forward again. Her head went further this time. She broke off to give his shaft a lick and then took his cock in her mouth again. Her nostrils flared as she breathed through her nose. She rubbed the shaft with her left hand as she slowly bobbed on his large cock.



Dani did not try to deepthroat him. Her lips had claimed a little more than half of his cock and they both seemed ok with that. Dani's hand left Gene's cock and rubbed her pussy through her panties which had slid back into place. She moaned on his cock and the sensation was pleasing to Gene. The material annoyed Dani. She stopped sucking Gene's cock so she could pull her panties off. She kicked off her Birkis and returned passionately to his cock. She rubbed her pussy as half of his dick disappeared in her mouth to return and disappear again a moment later.

Gene looked around. No one else was supposed to be coming, but he'd forgotten to lock up the church before they entered the sanctuary. There was something terrifying and exhilarating about that. There was something equally wrong and right about having sex in a church. This was, as many put it, God's house. God is love. It was love, Gene decided, and not lust that motivated his actions. Any lingering guilt faded quickly.

Dani smiled as she popped the cock out of her mouth and got on all fours on the seat of the pew. This was all the invitation Gene needed. He slowly pushed his way into Dani's tight, hot and wet pussy. She grimaced at first and then moaned loudly as the cock slid in to the hilt.



Dani rubbed her clit as the cock slid in and out of her. It entered her faster and faster. Dani grunted rhythmically as the cock tunneled its way inside her. She pushed back against her pussy's invader. Gene stopped thrusting and let Dani impale herself over and over again. Dani slowed the pace down. This was the largest dick she'd ever had inside her and she wanted to savor it. Gene became impatient, however, and started thrusting again. Dani couldn't complain. It really felt amazing. She loved when his balls flipped up and slapped her clit. Gene was ramming her and she loved it. It was unbelievable how deeply inside her Gene was. He filled her. She felt complete. His cock slipped out of her at one point and Dani used the opportunity to lay on her back. Gene slid slowly in and steadily increased speed as he pistoned into her hard. Dani grunted and groaned as he hammered her. These sounds turned into long moans as he fucked her harder. They both moved spastically as incredible sensations flooded their bodies. Dani was whelmed by the strong tide of her climax. She was riding the massive waves of ecstasy when she realized Gene came inside her. She wasn't mad. It was hot. It catapulted her into a second orgasm. Once their bodies stopped twitching, Gene carefully pulled out of Dani and collapsed next to her. They cuddled in the pew. Their embrace did not completely make up for the emptiness in her pussy but it felt wonderful to lay in his arms.

Dani spent the night in the manse.

Shortly after midnight, Lisa called Dani to make sure she was ok. Dani was honest. She told Lisa whose bed she was sharing.

"Oh, my God! That's so great! You two are perfect for each other. Are you a couple now?"

"I don't know," said Dani. "It just happened. Don't spoil it with questions."

"Right, right, right. I'm sorry," Lisa said. "I'm just so excited for the two of you!"

"That's sweet," said Dani, "but there is no 'us' at the moment so please stop freaking me out."

"Right, sorry. Have a good night, kiddo."

"Good night, Lisa." Dani pressed the red hang up button and set her cell phone down on the night stand. She closed her eyes and listened to the sounds of the evening. She felt that sleep was about to overtake her.

"There is no 'us'?" Gene asked in the darkness.

"Jesus!" shouted Dani in surprise. "You were listening in?"

"I wasn't trying to, but you're right next to me and the volume on your phone is maxed out," he replied.

"Shit."

"I'd like there to be an us. I want there to be an us. Would you go out on a date with me?" Gene asked.

Dani sarcastically said, "I don't know. This is all so sudden..."

"Well, we did already have sex in a church..." replied Gene.

"And that is one hell of an ice breaker," agreed Dani. "Is it kosher for you to date me? Won't your church members get pissed at you?"

"You're thinking of your church members. I've been a widower for seven years. My people will understand."

================================

Gene took Dani out to dinner at a five star restaurant in Southold called North Fork Table. The atmosphere was amazing. Everything was so clean. The staff was friendly and professional. The food was perfection. That was all in the background, though. Gene was a perfect gentleman. He pulled out Dani's chair for her. He found out exactly what she wanted and placed her order for her. It didn't seem patriarchal when he did it. It was charming.

They went out dancing after dinner. Gene was incredibly graceful on his feet. Dani never would have guessed. He was a great date. He kept the conversation light and he had a dazzling and distracting smile.

When the end of the evening came, Gene drove Dani to Lisa's house. He walked her to the door and gave her a spectacular goodnight kiss. Dani went inside and slumped against the door seconds after closing it. Her heart was beating like a jackhammer. She felt so relaxed around him. He made her feel comfortable yet he was still very desirable. The bonus was that he did not assume they would be having sex. It wasn't a perfect date but it was the closest Dani had ever been on.

She sent him a text thanking him for a lovely evening.

Three minutes later, she got the response, "You're welcome. When can I see you again?"

=================================

They dated again a week later and soon Gene no longer had to ask on Saturday nights. It was implied they would be out together. Dani became a regular fixture at church functions. Anytime the church had a charity dinner, Dani was hanging on Pastor Gene's arm. The church accepted her warmly. They loved their Pastor and she made him happy. It was also obvious that she had sincere feelings for him. This acceptance was unfamiliar to Dani. She waited for the other shoe to drop but it never did. The church members actually liked her.

When it happened, Dani should not have been surprised. It was a spaghetti dinner to raise money for a youth group trip. Dani should have expected it. She didn't. It was a complete shock to her when Pastor Gene dropped to one knee in front of what felt like the entire congregation and held up a ring box.

Loudly, he asked, "Dani Van Cleef, would you marry me?"

There was silence in the air. No one moved. There wasn't a single person there who wanted to be the one who inadvertently made a noise at this moment in time. All eyes were on Dani.

She smiled brightly and said, "Yes. Yes, of course I will."

Lisa was the first to clap. She was smiling but there were tears in her eyes. They were tears of joy. She was not the only one happy for the couple. Fellowship Hall had filled with applause. People moved quickly forward to congratulate the couple.

Dani was amazed at how quickly this church had accepted her. It gave her hope in the Presbyterian Church that was not there for her for almost a year. For the first time since she left the seminary, Dani felt like she belonged somewhere. It was an amazing feeling. Acceptance is a remarkable drug and Dani could see herself becoming quickly addicted to it.

One of the older church members, Warren, talked very seriously to Dani. The man was easily seventy years old but he obviously had all of his faculties. He had that look of a man who clearly loved his church. Dani looked warily at him. The people who had that look in her old church were quick to despise her and this was not what Dani needed at that moment in time.

"I'm very glad Pastor Gene found you, Pastor Dani," he said. "We're very attached to him. We'd hate for him to get hurt."

"I wouldn't hurt him for the world," said Dani.

"I can see that," replied Warren. "It also doesn't hurt that you're a Pastor."

"Why is that?" Dani asked.

Warren smiled and asked, "Don't you know? When a Pastor marries another Pastor who isn't already attached to a church, they generally become Co-Pastors."

"'Co-Pastors'? No, I didn't know that," admitted Dani. "So, I'm marrying all of you?"

"In a manner of speaking," said Warren with a laugh. "We're a very loving church. I don't think it would take you very long to get used to us."

"I could handle that." Dani thanked Warren with a hug and moved on to the next person wishing to congratulate her.

As the evening progressed, Dani made her way over to Gene. She gave him a kiss on the cheek as she hugged him.

"Some of the church members have this wacky idea that you're trying to make me your Co-Pastor," Dani said in his ear. "What happened to your church eating me alive if I were on the books?"

"That was if you were an Associate Pastor," said Gene. "Co-Pastor is much different. No one would try to bully my Co-Pastor."

"But wouldn't that mean I'd have to stop performing same sex marriages?" Dani asked. "It would be against the orders of the Presbytery once I was yoked to the church."

"Do you know how many young pastors are being eaten up by small churches these days? We'll find someone suitable to keep this going," Gene assured her. "I'll even let you pick your replacement. You know this is important to me and I know how important it is to you."

Dani smiled at that. She wasn't entirely sure why. Pastor Gene had rescued her. She was tossed out like a fifty pound bag of rancid flour and Gene had scooped her up from the abyss and saved her. She now had an opportunity to pay that forward. She knew she couldn't give this great position away to just anyone. It had to be someone worthy.

===========================================

The following day, Dani called her friend Tori. Tori was the young Pastor Dani was visiting with when she met Frank Melar. She had let a lot of time slip by between them and something in her gut told Dani it was time to reconnect with her old friend.

"Hello?" Tori answered her phone.

"Hey, Tor, it's Dani. How are things?"

"Not great," Tori answered. "How's the church in Jersey?"

"I actually don't know," Dani replied. "They kicked me out months ago."

"Holy shit. You too?" asked Tori.

"Yep. When did you get kicked out?"

"Six months ago," Tori replied. "I've been teaching Philosophy at a community college but I'm living paycheck to paycheck. What are you doing?"

"Well," said Dani, "I was performing a lot of same sex marriages in churches but I'll have to stop that soon."




Shepherdess without a Flock Ch. 04



Tori asked, "Why's that?"

"I'm about to be yoked to a church as Co-Pastor."

"OH. When's that?"

"As soon as I marry the existing Pastor," replied Dani with a soft chuckle.

"Holy shit, chica!" shouted Tori. "You're getting married?"

"Yep," responded Dani. "I was hoping you could officiate."

"Hells yeah, I can!"

"And, say... While I have you on the phone... Do you have a reliable car?"

"Yeah," said Tori. "It's a Volkswagen."

"Are you ok with same sex marriages?" Dani asked.

"People are people," replied Tori.

"Are you still in Nassau County?"

"No, I'm in Riverhead now. I'm about ten blocks from the college," Tori reported sadly.

"Oh, my God," said Dani. "You're only about forty minutes away from here. I'm in Bridgehampton now. How would you like to make three hundred dollars per plus gas money performing same sex weddings?"

"When can I start?" Tori asked excitedly.

"How soon can you get to Bridgehampton Presbyterian Church?" Dani asked.

"I have a Morals class in twenty minutes," said Tori. "I can't ditch that. It wouldn't be ethical. I can be there in two hours."

"Great," said Dani. "I'll treat you to lunch."

==========================================

Dani was standing in front of the church when Tori pulled up in her Jetta. She directed her friend to pull in front of the Manse. They hugged each other tightly once Tori emerged from her car.

"I can't believe you're getting married, chica," Tori said.

"You ready to meet my hubby-to-be?" Dani inquired.

"Shit, yeah, hermana. Lead the way." Tori had a smile plastered on her face. She was very happy for her friend. She was even happier that her friend's good news was also good news for her. Tori loved performing weddings. To make a small fortune performing them would be a wonderful thing. "I am so glad you called me, hermana. This whole thing is a fucking milagro."

"Milagro... milagro... um, miracle?" asked Dani. "How do you figure?"

"I was getting ready to give up," Tori said. Her head drooped a bit.

"And now you won't have to, Tori. Girl, this is a great gig I'm handing over to you. You get to be a church leader without having a church to worry about."

They entered the manse and Gene was waiting for them in the living room. He was wearing a polo shirt and jeans and was seated in the easy chair. He had a closed Henri Nouwen book on his lap. As soon as the ladies entered the room, Gene put the book aside and stood up. He smiled and extended his hand.

"You must be Dani's friend, Tori," he said. "She speaks very highly of you. It's nice to meet you. I'm Gene. You're living in Riverhead these days?"

"Yes, sir. Just outside the eastern campus of SCCC." Tori didn't know why she was suddenly so nervous.

"I see," Gene said. "The highway didn't scare you too much?"

"It was fine," Tori assured him.

"Excellent."

Gene was wearing his poker face. He was not letting any emotion appear on his face. Dani had grown accustomed to this look of his but she knew how unsettling it could be to those who weren't used to it. She looked over at Tori and relaxed as she saw that her friend wasn't phased in the slightest. They spoke about weddings. At first, it was all very general and Dani couldn't tell if Gene was leading up to talking with Tori about the off the books job or about being the officiant at their wedding. Gene could be inscrutable when he wanted to be. It was for this reason Dani never played chess with him. He could be impossible to read.

"You're comfortable with same sex unions?" he finally asked.

"Yes, of course," Tori replied. She earnestly felt that point had already been made clear or there wouldn't have been any point of speaking about the soon to be open position.

"And you're OK with mixed marriages?" he asked in turn.

"Yes," she replied. "All people have the right to happiness."

"That's all I needed to hear," Gene said with a dazzling smile. "You two enjoy your lunch and let me know when we need to start our pre-marital counseling."

The two female pastors went to a small bistro not far from Bridgehampton Presbyterian Church. The atmosphere was light and the ladies took turns catching up. Dani was so happy her betrothed had accepted her friend so completely. Acceptance was still not a familiar concept to Dani and she had been worried that Gene wouldn't like Tori.

It eventually occurred to her that she needn't have worried. Gene loved Dani as much as Dani loved Gene. Gene trusted Dani and her decisions. She should have known he would have been fine with her choice.

Tori seemed to be able to read Dani's thoughts and said, "I'm glad that went well with your novio, hermana. I'm really looking forward to this."

"The job?" Dani asked.

Tori smiled and said, "That, too. I want this job very much. How often do you get paid well for doing the right thing? No, hermana, what I'm really looking forward to is to marry you and your novio. You two love each other so much. I saw it in your eyes and in his. It's exactly what I would have wished for you. A strong, intelligent, man to spend your life with. I'm so happy for you. Have you picked out your bridesmaids yet?"

"Yep," said Dani. "My sister Connie has agreed to be my maid of honor. The other bridesmaids will be my other sister, Betty, and this girl, Sierra, from my old church in Jersey."

"You mean the church you got kicked out of? You're crazy, chica."

"You already knew that," Dani said with a smile. "Sierra just turned 18 and she's wanted a way to thank me for some advice I gave her once."

"So she's going to thank you by coming out to a wedding in the Hamptons. Nice."

"There are worse favors I could have asked her," Dani replied.

"That's true," agreed Tori. "Although this favor has the potential to be pretty bad. Are the bridesmaids going to be in neon pink dresses with puffy sleeves and hoop skirts or something horrendous like that?"

"Sleeveless floor length gowns in burgundy with spaghetti straps."

"Oh," said Tori. "That's not bad at all."

==========================================

Tori and Dani spent the next two months making the transitions to their new roles. Dani co-officiated several weddings with Tori so the latter could see exactly what was expected of her. Tori's calendar was quickly filled and she made arrangements to be exclusively an online instructor at Suffolk County Community College. She was given two classes per semester. One was Morality and Ethics and the other was On Death and Dying. The online format was easier for Tori to do than to perform a ton of weddings and try to attend the college at specific times.

Dani spent a lot of time with the elders of the church to learn what was expected of her. She had been fearful at first that these elders would be like the others she had known but it simply wasn't so. These were affluent people, surely, but they had respect for others. They were, as the expression goes, God fearing people. They saw their place in the world and they treated others accordingly. Dani made friends with many of the members of her new church. She never felt friendship in the New Jersey church. She'd always felt like she was naked on a glass slide under a microscope there. She grew to love her new congregation. She never saw judgment in their eyes.

The week before the wedding, Sierra and her mother came to town for Sierra's final dress fitting. Sierra's mother was cordial but somewhat cold to Dani at first. She was, after all, concerned about all the things she'd been told about the blonde Pastor. It took the entire fitting for her to see the truth and dismiss all of the lies.

After the dress fitting, Dani took Sierra and her mother, Charlotte, to lunch at her favorite bistro.

"Oh, Pastor Dani," Sierra said. "You wouldn't believe how much the church has changed since you've been gone."

"Oh?" inquired Dani. She wanted to say something along the lines of, "You mean since you threw me out," but she held her tongue. Instead, she said, "Did Mrs. Masters erect a large statue of herself in the front yard?"

"I'm sure she would have," said Charlotte, "if the Committee On Ministry hadn't come back."

"COM came back?" asked an intrigued Dani. "Why?"

"They did some digging," Charlotte replied. "They found out some interesting things about our elders."

"They found out about the embezzling," piped in Sierra.

"Embezzling?" asked Dani. "Who was embezzling?"

"Who wasn't?" Charlotte and Sierra asked in near perfect unison.

"Do you know how Mr. Amoroso was in charge of maintaining the grounds at St. John's Cemetery?" Sierra asked.

"Yes," Dani replied. "That's why he collected the stipend from them. He used it to maintain the equipment and pay the groundskeepers."

"That's what he was supposed to do," said Charlotte. "Instead, he fired the groundskeepers, sold the equipment, cut the cemetery lawn with his own riding mower, pocketed the monthly stipend and charged you extra for the gas he used."

"Holy crap!" Dani said a little too loudly in the restaurant and the three ladies giggled when heads turned in their direction.

"Yeah, so there was Mr. Amoroso... And they, um, they took his computer to check for pay records and they found a bunch of dirty pictures," said Sierra.

"Dirty pictures of what?" Dani inquired.

"Mostly of him and Mrs. Rogers having sex in the church but there were three pictures of you."

"Me?" Dani asked incredulously.

"Yeah," Sierra answered. "I guess it was obvious from where you were facing that you didn't notice Mr. Amoroso taking your picture through the Manse window as you took off your bra one night."

"Oh, God. I think that was my first night in the manse. I remember him addressing me through the window instead of knocking on the door."

"Could have been. Then, Mr. and Mrs. Masters got caught," Sierra said.

"What did they do?" asked Dani.

"Oh, they were a little subtler, said Charlotte. "They stole money from you and the Supply Preacher. The salary they had listed as what you were being paid did not match up with the money that actually went out. It also looks like they were skimming from the weekly offering. The contribution cards didn't match up with the church's income. Terry Blakely, the Musical Director, was charging too much for weddings and funerals, nearly twice the established rate."

"It looks like Mr. McNulty was the only Elder who wasn't stealing from the church in some way," Sierra added. "Mr. Amoroso admitted his guilt when COM asked him about it. Mrs. Masters denied everything and tried to blame it all on her husband. They looked into it and found her involvement. COM pressed charges and most of our elders went to prison."

"So, what's going on with the church? Did you have to close?" Dani asked. She was incredulous. She had often thought the elders in Williamstown were evil. She never expected it to be true.

"No," said Charlotte. "The Committee On Ministry hired a new Supply Preacher for us and oversaw the election of new elders. The Committee would not allow nominees who already served a vital church function. Tom McNulty was made the new Moderator of Session. The church members Melissa had sent away came back and soon we were taking in enough in the offering to pay the bills."

"Wait," said Dani. "Who did she send away?"

"You know," said Sierra. "The three families she told that you were a whore."

"SIERRA!" Charlotte shrieked.

"What?" said Sierra. "Pastor Dani knows what Mrs. Masters called her. Anyway, the families came back and new families joined and soon COM helped us hire a new pastor right out of Princeton Seminary. Pastor Carley. She's really cool and she established weekly Fellowship."

"Oh, my God, I can't believe it," said Dani. "Why didn't anyone tell me all of this was going on?"

"You had a new life and we figured you were done with our church," said Sierra.

The ladies had a lovely afternoon and Dani hugged her guests before saying goodbye to them. Charlotte could now see what a good woman Pastor Dani was. She felt proud that her daughter had always seen it.

=========================================

The wedding was a simple one. Dani's mother and stepfather gave her away. Tori's sermon was, thankfully, short and heartfelt. Much of the ceremony was a blur to Dani. It was funny. She had performed countless weddings and knew the words of institution by heart but she got lost during her own wedding. She almost jumped when the ring was slid on her finger. When her mind returned to earth, she was emotional but loving as she said her vows. The church was filled with love and it resonated through her. Not only was the entire congregation there but so were the friends she had made at Tarabella and the two friends she had from Williamstown.

The reception was held at Tarabella. The wedding photos were taken at the estate's private beach. Dani didn't realize at the time she was doing it but, during the photos, she bent her knees slightly and it almost looked as though she and Gene were the same height.



The love shared between the bride and groom was obvious to all.

Tarabella had been decorated for the reception by Jayne, one of Frank Melar's wives. It was elegant. The wedding colors were prominent and the tables were not crammed together in the ballroom. There was room to walk around and plenty of room for dancing.

Dani and Gene's first dance as wife and husband was to Never Alone by Lady Antebellum. Dani listened to the words as they danced and she cried. She realized she was surrounded by friends and she really was never alone. It touched her. Her sister, Connie, ran up to hug Dani after the dance. She did this to cover up the fact she was cleaning up the makeup Dani smeared with her tears. She looked beautiful for the rest of the reception. That is, of course, until the cutting of the cake when she and Gene smashed cake in each other's faces. This damage to the makeup required Connie to lead her sister out of the ballroom.

When the Van Cleef sisters returned from damage control it was time to toss the bouquet and garter. The bouquet went to a lovely young girl from the Bridgehampton church. She appeared to be nineteen. Dani didn't know her very well because the girl was away at college and did not spend much time at home. She came home for the wedding because she felt she owed her success in life to the teachings of Pastor Gene. The garter was caught by an older man from the church and the girl was a little embarrassed when the garter was slid up her leg. The girl's mother politely stopped the man before his hands went too high up her daughter's leg.

Dani and Gene did their best to greet everyone who'd come to the reception but it was a daunting task. Everyone wanted to sit down and talk to them at great length and there simply wasn't enough time to talk to everyone. There were some people Dani didn't mind sitting down with. Her friends from Tarabella, obviously, had done so much for her that she knew spending thirty minutes talking to them would not be enough. The Melars had given her a roof when Williamstown kicked her out. Friends of the Melars, such as Judge Holly Sullivan, had welcomed Dani with open arms and she could never repay such generosity.

The wonderful thing about having a wedding reception in a mansion is that there is plenty of room for people to sleep over. Marie Melar, Frank's other wife, assured everyone that there was no need to end the reception early. They had prepared a bedroom for the bride and groom and there was plenty of room, food and drink for everyone else. This good news gave the newlyweds the time they needed to sit down and talk to everyone in turn.

It was well after two in the morning when Dani and Gene finally took their leave of the reception and walked to the room the Melars had prepared for them. It was enormous with a gigantic yet comfortable bed in the center. Gene carried Dani over the threshold and they sat on the edge of the bed kissing. They were soft kisses that conveyed all manner of different meanings. We did it! I love you. I adore you. I finally have everything I need.

Dani's hands travelled to her husband's jacket, shirt and tie which she skillfully removed in that order. Dani had never known such love as she felt for Gene. He filled her heart and made her feel complete. She kissed her way down his chest and unbuckled his belt. Gene stopped her and Dani looked confused. He kissed her passionately on the lips and slowly removed her clothing. He kissed her all over her body as he undressed his wife. When Dani was naked and she had been kissed on every part of her body, Gene let her return to removing his belt.

His pants dropped and the new bride tugged hard on his underwear. His cock sprang up and she kissed and licked the head as she teased it out of its foreskin. Dani took her husband's huge cock in her hand and jerked him off as she blew him.



Dani loved the taste of her husband's cock. It was the third dick she'd ever known and it was clearly her favorite. It wasn't just the size, although that was a wonderful factor. She loved the cock because she loved the man so much. He was her entire world now. She wanted to show him exactly what he meant to her. After a slow and loving blowjob had sped up into a passionate celebration of love, Dani relaxed her jaw and throat and took in her husband until her nose was buried in his pubic hair. She remained there for the count of three and then returned to her enthusiastic fellatio.

Before she could get Gene off, he lifted Dani up and carried her to a white sofa that was on the side of the huge room. He laid her gently on the sofa and ate her out. He didn't rush. He was patient and loving. His tongue and fingers worked in tandem to bring Dani some of the greatest pleasure she had ever known. He was gentle but he was passionate. He explored her body carefully, determined to find every secret spot on her and in her that brought her enjoyment. His fingers and tongue delighted, charmed, enchanted, captivated and enthralled her. She lost count of her orgasms.

Dani didn't know if Gene was experimenting on her or if he already knew how to pleasure a woman. Quite frankly, she didn't really care. She had never felt like this before and there was the lingering promise that this was only the beginning of a lifetime of such feelings. During one particularly incredible orgasm, Gene pulled his tongue out of Dani's pussy and his fingers left her clit. Before she had a chance to complain, he slid his middle and ring fingers into her twat. His palm rested on her clit. He curled his fingers inside her and rapidly plunged his hand in and out of her. His index finger and pinky were straight and rubbed her thighs. This new sensation caught the tail end of her orgasm and extended it. More than that, the orgasm changed. It intensified and felt like nothing that had ever built up inside her before. She was sure she was going to pass out. Gene pulled his hand out of her quickly and she squirted. She was breathing hard and wasn't completely certain whether it was cum or pee that had just escaped her. Gene's fingers entered her again in the same way, with the same rapid motion. The overwhelming sensations reemerged and, once again, when Gene removed his fingers she squirted.

"Oh God," was all she managed to say. No one had ever made her feel like that before. This was more intense than any orgasm she had ever known. What power did this wonderful man have over her that he could make her squirt twice in a row? It obviously wasn't an accident.

She wanted to rest but she also wanted to feel more. What Gene did next, Dani never saw coming. His lips headed for her pussy. He kissed her there but did not linger. He lifted her butt and began licking her asshole. His tongue circled her rim and penetrated her in little pushes and flicks and rimmed her again. It was weird but it felt amazing. It was added to a quickly growing list of things she'd never felt before. Frank Melar had licked her ass, but it was not like this.




Shepherdess without a Flock Ch. 04



This wasn't simply bringing Dani enjoyment. Gene was claiming her. He was possessing her. It wasn't a misogynistic claim of ownership or male dominance. It was the loving and forthright claiming of one's soulmate. They, from that moment on, belonged to each other for the rest of time. Gene spent a great deal of time with his tongue in Dani's ass. The tongue was joined by a finger and then another finger. Dani knew what was coming next.

Gene spat on his fingers and twisted them inside her ass. He worked her sphincters until they were relaxed enough for his ultimate goal. Gene stood up and he pulled Dani to her feet. He kissed her passionately. She knew where his tongue had just been but it didn't matter. She loved him and she loved his kisses. He sat on the sofa and he guided her to sit on his lap. He held his cock and positioned it into her ass. She lowered herself slowly and carefully on to the beast of a cock. She liked this method. She was the one who determined how much of his cock was in her ass and how long she would wait before letting more in. There was no pressure to go quickly. She was actually curious to see if she could take it all.

Dani pushed herself lower bit by bit until she was sitting on his lap, facing away from him, with a huge rod up her ass. She momentarily thought of the expression, "She has a stick up her ass." This was much more than a stick. This had a pulse. It was alive inside her.

When Dani began to repeatedly impale herself on her husband's cock, and only then, Gene placed his hands on her hips and assisted her. She was very pleased with his tempo. He wasn't trying to fuck the shit out of her, literally or figuratively. He was following her pace and helping her.



She hated to admit it, but Dani was getting tired. She rested her hand on the back of the sofa and pushed down to help her fucking motion. Gene's dick was so big and it was imbedded in her ass again and again and again. She pushed herself until she couldn't ride him any longer. She got off and turned herself to give him another blowjob. She knew the cock in her mouth had just been in her ass but she wanted to please her husband.

This wasn't about being owned. This was about sharing wonderful sensations with the man she loved. After a minute or so, Gene pushed on Dani's shoulders and she stopped sucking his cock. He scooped her up and carried her to the large bed. He laid her in the center of the bed. He attached his iPod to the stereo in the room and started a playlist. The first song was Do I Wanna Know? by Arctic Monkeys. It had a deliciously dirty rhythm to it. He smiled at Dani, moved forward and climbed on top of her.

He sucked on two of his fingers and slid them inside her pussy. He pumped them a few times to make sure she was wet enough and then he guided his cock to her entrance. He did not ram it in. He was loving. He kissed her as he entered her. Gene did all the work. He knew Dani was tired but he needed to share this moment with her. He developed a steady rhythm and Dani was only able to articulate her appreciation in grunts and moans.

They were so in love. They looked deeply in each other's eyes as Gene fucked Dani. She tried to wrap her legs around him but she just didn't have the strength. The day had just been too long. Fatigue was claiming her. Gene increased his tempo and Dani was aware that he was about to cum inside her. She welcomed it. She wanted this. When Gene erupted inside her it triggered a short but intense climax and Dani had a very hard time keeping her eyes open.

Gene carefully pulled out of his wife. He went to the en suite bathroom and brought back a wet washcloth and some towels. He gently and lovingly bathed and dried his wife before he tucked her under the covers. After placing the used linens in a hamper, Gene slipped under the covers with his gorgeous bride and spooned her. Dani fell asleep with a smile on her face. Gene listened to a few songs on his playlist before sleep overcame him. He wrapped his arms around his wife, closed his eyes and drifted off.

=================================

Not quite one year after the wedding, Dani was in the Manse waiting for the greatest miracle of her life. Dani was in her bedroom with Gene and with Marie Melar. Marie had gone back to school and had become a Certified Nurse-Midwife. She had agreed to help Dani with her home birth. Marie had gotten the permission of the hospital she worked for and there was quite a bit of medical equipment she had borrowed standing by.

They all knew that Dani was having twins, but they did not know the gender. Dani had instructed the Ultrasound Technician and her Obstetrician/Gynecologist to keep that a secret.

Marie had a talent for keeping her patients at ease. This woman was part owner of a huge corporation in New York City and she was still willing and able to make her friends feel as though they were the only people on the planet. It was a wonderful gift and Dani was thankful for it.

Gene held Dani's hand and kissed her forehead once all the pillows had been arranged to put Mrs. St. Vincent in the proper position for childbirth.

"How are you doing, Dani?" he asked tenderly.

"It hurts, but I'm good. I can do this."

"I know you can," he assured her. He gently held her hand.

"And I don't hate you for doing this to my body, so that's a good thing..."

"That is good," he agreed. "Thank you."

Marie was a mother and had talked to Dani about what to expect. Marie was able to prepare Dani for things that reading a book was incapable of doing. One can read about having contractions and that's one thing. Marie told Dani where she'd be likely to feel it and what the intensity would be like. Marie had even advised Dani and Gene to have sex to speed up the labor time. It was little things like that which made Dani feel prepared and ready to deliver her twins.

The last year had been a huge one for Dani and those in her circle of friends. She was warmly accepted as Co-Pastor of the church. She was treated as though she'd always been there. Gene and she alternated giving the sermons and the attendance never went down on her weeks. In fact, the congregation was always very generous in their praises of her sermons. It was almost like living a whole new life. Dani St. Vincent was far more successful a Pastor than Dani Van Cleef had ever been. She was well liked and approachable.

Tori and Lisa had met and hit it off immediately. After three months of dating, Tori moved in with Lisa. Six months after that, the lovers were married by Holly Sullivan, the judge Dani was friends with. Word had spread that the Pastor marrying couples on Long Island was, herself, in a same sex marriage. It made more couples want to be married by her and Tori had to quit her job at the college. She was simply too busy to do anything other than weddings. The couples loved Tori because she wasn't simply someone dispensing charity. She was one of them.

Tori and Lisa had joined Dani and Gene in the circle of friends at Tarabella. The two couples saw each other every Friday for an event there called Dinner and Board Game Night.

Sierra went away to college in Penn State. She met a young man there who was willing to wait until she was ready for sex. Sierra and Dani had become Facebook friends so that Sierra could keep her friend and former Pastor posted and to ask for advice from time to time. Sierra and her man, Jeff, had gone away together for Spring Break and Sierra told him she was ready. She made him wear a condom and he made gentle but clumsy love to her. He got better as he got more practice and was eager to try things Dani had suggested to Sierra in private messages.

Dani's mind snapped back to the present when a new contraction twinged within her. Gene was still holding her hand. She squeezed his hard.

"Another one?" he asked. Dani nodded in reply and Gene turned to the Nurse-Midwife. "Mrs. Melar, she's having another contraction."

"Well then," said Marie in a calm voice, "let me take a look." Marie was very gentle as she touched Dani's vagina and looked at her there. "Yep, she's fully dilated and the first baby is getting ready to come out. Let's get to work."

Marie had a very commanding presence without ever having to shout. She remained very calm at all times and this was exactly what Dani needed from her. She gave Dani and Gene very clear instructions in a way that was unperturbed while still showing the importance of the command. She was very easy to take orders from. Marie told Dani when to breathe and when to bear down. She told Gene when to support his wife's back, when to rub her shoulders and when to wipe the sweat from her brow. It was obvious to both soon-to-be parents how much she cared.

Dani had been concerned, when Frank Melar had first suggested using the services of his older wife. After all, Dani had slept with Frank the week after her father died. Marie never made an issue of it. She not only treated Dani professionally, she treated her like a friend. It really helped. Dani was in pain, certainly, but she never felt overwhelmed. Marie talked her through every push and every cycle of recovery breaths.

"That was terrific, Dani," Marie said at one point. "We just need one more good push. Start taking your deep breaths. Good. Now focus. Ready... Push. Push. That's good, keep going a little more... The shoulder is almost clear. It's... clear. The first baby is out. Let's get the baby clean. Gene, would you like to cut the cord?"

Gene was a little nervous but Marie guided his hand and he cut the chord. Marie put the baby on Dani's chest.

"The baby is a girl," Marie said. "The second baby isn't quite ready to come out so take some nice, calming, breaths and try to relax with your daughter for a few minutes while I keep looking down here. Have you picked a name yet?"

Gene said, "Her name is Eden. It's Hebrew for Paradise." As Presbyterian pastors, both Gene and Dani were required to study Hebrew and Konoi Greek, the languages the Bible was written in.

"It's beautiful," said Marie as she smiled at her friends.

"It is," Dani agreed softly. "It just doesn't go with our last name very well."

"What do you mean?" asked Marie.

"I don't mean to sound like a Calvinist," answered Dani, "but the name Eden St. Vincent makes her almost predestined to be a stripper."

"I have no idea what a Calvinist is, but I think you're being silly," said Marie. "Your daughter has a very pretty name."

"John Calvin was a major shaper of what has become the Presbyterian Church," Gene explained. "He began what is known as the Reformed tradition. Calvin emphasized the rule of God over all things and assumed the total depravity of mankind. One of Calvin's beliefs was in Predestination. He believed that God has already decided exactly what is going to happen to us."

"It's a bit of a sticking point with people who believe in free will," Dani interjected. "Do you really think Eden St. Vincent sounds pretty?"

"I really do," said Marie. She looked down suddenly and said, "Ok, kids. Break time is over. It's time to deliver the second baby. Gene, hold Eden. Dani, start your breathing. Deep and relaxed. Very good. You're doing fine. It looks like you've done this before."

"Yeah," said Dani, going with the joke. "Just a few minutes ago."

"Ok, now. Take your deep breaths and get ready to push, Dani. Gene, get ready to support her back with your left hand. Are you comfortable doing that or do you need to put Eden down?"

"I think I'd rather put her down," he admitted. "I'm not the greatest multi-tasker and I don't want to hurt my wife or drop my child because I was paying too much attention to one and not enough to the other." Gene carried Eden to the two cribs that were set in the room. He gently placed her in the one on the right and carried it closer to the bed Dani was in. Gene returned to his position at Dani's side and supported her as she pushed.

"That was excellent, Dani. The head is almost out. Take your breaths and get ready." Marie studied the head of the child carefully and waited for the right moment to have Dani push again. There was a rhythm to birthing a child and they needed to stay on the beat.

Eden seemed to sense she was no longer the center of attention. She cried just as Marie told Dani to push again. It was hard to concentrate on the task at hand with the shrill cry of her daughter just to her left but Dani focused on Marie's voice telling her what to do. She gave everything she could to pushing out her second child.

"The head is out," said Marie. "I'm going to turn the shoulder... Gene, please pick up Eden and give her to Dani. I'll bring your son over to her in a moment."

"Our son?" Dani asked. Her voice was cracked and she was breathing heavily.

"Yes, he's a boy. Do you have a name for him?"

"Zion," Dani replied softly.

"Zion St. Vincent," said Marie respectfully. "That sounds very powerful. Isn't Zion the word Rastafarians use for Africa?"

"Yes," said Gene, "but that's not how we're using it."

"Zion is the hill of Jerusalem on which the city of David was erected," explained Dani. "It's a stable foundation."

"Geez, you guys don't have any expectations for your kids, do you?" asked Marie sarcastically. She cleaned up Zion and placed him on the right side of Dani's chest as Eden was returned to the left. Marie filled a basin with hot water and carefully washed Dani's vagina, perineum and legs. She dried Dani and removed the pillows that had been set up to support her. Several of the pillows had blood stains. Marie took some clean pillows, placed fresh cases on them and tucked them under Dani's calves so that her heels were no longer touching the bed. She carefully turned Dani and the babies as she changed the sheets. Mother and children soon fell asleep and Marie led Gene out of the room. "You two did very well in there. Congratulations."

"Thank you."

"Let your family get some rest," said Marie. "I'll help you make dinner for Dani and we'll see how well the twins do with breastfeeding. As a matter of fact, I'll take care of dinner. You should probably take a nap. It might be the last time you get sleep for a few days."

Gene thanked her and went to the Living Room sofa to take a nap. He wanted to be with his family but did not want to disturb their rest in any way.

There was a small blessing in having fraternal twins that you never had to worry about telling them apart. Eden had skin that was almost as dark as her father's and hair that was the same blonde as her mother's. Her eyes stayed blue long after she was six months old. Zion was light enough to look caucasian. He had jet black straight hair and eyes so dark they appeared to be black. The babies babbled happily with each other and often cried when separated.

It was Tori who performed their baptism. Neither parent wanted to be a Pastor on this special occasion. They wanted to dote on their children and let someone else do all the work. The twins knew Tori and behaved themselves during the baptism. There is a tradition in Presbyterian churches of carrying a newly baptized child down the center aisle of the church so that the entire congregation could get a good look and feel a connection with the church's newest member. Tori doubted her dexterity and chose to take the children one at a time down the aisle.

Eden was carried first. She seemed almost regal. Dressed in a gorgeous white baptismal gown she looked very much like a newly crowned queen inspecting her people as Tori held her over her head for the congregation to see. She watched passively as the young Pastor carried her down the aisle and back to her parents.

Zion's trip was a tiny bit noisier than his sister's. He didn't cry, exactly, but he babbled loudly as Tori carried him down the aisle. He squealed when he was handed back to his father. The church members giggled as they listened to the vocal PK. There were several people in the congregation who had not yet seen the twins. Since both parents were needed to lead the church services, the children were usually in the church nursery. This was the first service where they remained in the sanctuary. They behaved very well and the members of the church were happy to see them.

Dani could feel the joy of the congregation as they looked at her children. She felt accepted and loved. She felt complete in a way she could never imagine before this day. She felt at home.

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Thank you, all, for reading this series. Please vote and comment. Please keep the comments polite but let me know what I need to improve on. This is how I learn. Thank you for taking the time to read my words.