Anne and Mary - Book II

by Robin Pentecost

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17 Fourth of July

“Alex, your folks get in this afternoon. Do we need to agree on anything? Clothing, screwing, whatever?”

“I´ve been thinking about it, Saul. I told them they have to accept that we sleep together, and that we don´t always have our clothes on. They say they agree to that.”

“You don´t sound all that sure about it,” Sigrid said.

“I´m not. I really don´t see Mom being able to deal with it.”

“Well, we´re going to find out,” Heather said.

“Let´s try to keep some clothes on, except in the sauna and the pool,” Anne suggested. “And if we get horny, let´s just plan to use a bedroom instead of the window sill.”

“Hey, that´s my fave!” Sigrid said with a grin. “But you´re right, we should try and meet them part way. I was glad when I heard Will´s folks are coming too. Pat managed to get along at Easter without much trouble.”

“She´s a very flexible lady,” Saul said. “Perhaps being an artist helps.”

“Going to be an interesting weekend, anyway,” Alex said, “I can´t wait to see how it turns out.”

.oOo.

At supper, Saul toasted their guests. “Welcome to you all. We´ve wanted to have you here for a long time, but as you know, our lifestyle has always seemed a barrier. I´m not sure if the problem has been yours or ours, but we wanted you to come here and see us and get to know us. Your children are our closest friends, companions and lovers, and we want to share our happiness with you.”

“I thought, if you don´t mind, Saul,” Anne said, “that I´d sort of sketch out for you just how we live here. Bluntly, you might as well know, if you don´t already, how we behave, or at least how we think we do.

“Your rooms upstairs are the ones Will, Saul and I share – that´s where Pat and Dean are. Tina and Fred are in Alex and Heather´s room and Judith and Pete are in Mary´s old room. Mary and Ken spend about half their time here and half at his house – they´re sort of honeymooning. You´ll see them tomorrow.

“Close your door at night or at any other time you don´t want to be disturbed, please. An open door means you´ll accept visitors.

“Now, of course, we will be sleeping in the Big Bed downstairs. We often sleep there together, but you should also know that we frequently sleep in our own rooms, too. I´m trying to say that while we are all lovers, we each have our special partners, and we like to spend private time with them.”

“For your information,” Saul added, “since you may hear a remark about it, we have a rule that anyone who sits or stands on the Big Bed is declaring that they are available to all from then on. I don´t think we´re going to be dogmatic about it this weekend. Please just keep it in mind. And of course, ‘No´ means just that.”

“As for clothing, you see us more completely clothed than usual, and mainly out of consideration for you. Clothing optional means just that. If we want to wear clothes, we do. We don´t wear bathing suits in the pool or when sunning, but that´s up to you. But, if you use the sauna, no clothes are allowed there for reasons of hygiene.”

“What about in the winter, what do you wear?” Judith asked.

Tom spoke up, “We keep the house quite warm in winter, about 75-80º. It´s cooler now than that, and we wouldn´t ordinarily be wearing much tonight. But, in winter – I guess it´s psychological – we tend to wear more clothes than in the summer at the same temperature.”

“Tomorrow,” Anne continued, “we´ll have Sarah Posito and Steve Halleck here. Sarah runs the stable next door, and Steve teaches humanities at the university. I think you´ll find them interesting people. They may stay overnight, and they´ll be downstairs with us.

“You mean you have lovers outside your group?” Tina asked.

“You´re referring to Sarah and Steve. Yes, we do,” Anne answered.

“And Ken? Him too?”

“Oh, certainly. He´s family. You see, we each have our number one lover – actually, I have both Saul and Will. Mary fell in love with Ken Chance some time ago and only realized it a few weeks ago. That makes him family. They´re still sorting out how they´ll live, but they spend a lot of time with us. I hope they always will.”

“Isn´t that dangerous?”

Judith interrupted, “Tina, it´s not, really. A lot of health-care people say that multiple partners is dangerous in itself. I think that´s mostly prudery; you need to look more closely. Yes, they each have many partners, but their circle is pretty well closed. The likelihood of catching some disease is not really worse than for you and Fred. I suppose the girls may exchange Candida now and then, but from what I hear, it hasn´t been a problem.”

“We like to think it´s because we don´t wear panties much,” Heather said. “Forgive my putting it this way, but air in the crotch seems to stop rot.”

“However you put it, it´s good news,” Tina said.

“Cappuccino anyone?” Anne asked.

“I´ve heard you have to take your clothes off for that,” Tina said.

Heather responded, “We serve all kinds, Tina, and cappuccino nudo has always been a gag. What do you want, plain or nudo?”

“Plain, please. Two.”

.oOo.

“Heather, you had some nerve, asking for nudo after dinner.”

“Shit, Anne, I figured the fat was going to be in the fire sooner or later. And, I was suffocating in that dress.”

“You just wanted to show off your new design,” Alex said.

“That, too. I did manage to change the subject, didn´t I?”

.oOo.

When Anne and Saul went swimming in the morning, Fred Jefferson joined them, swimming fewer laps, but getting a good workout. He was a good swimmer and his body showed it. They were laughing and chattering when they came in for breakfast.

“Fred. Get your clothes on,” Tina snapped as soon as they appeared. Fred went upstairs and put on shorts, returning to find Anne and Saul, still naked, sitting on the breakfast cushions.

“Saved some corn muffins for you, Fred,” Saul said. “They go fast.”

Fred took his muffins and sat next to Tina, who did not speak to him. She was dressed in a crisp shirt and slacks. Her displeasure was evident.

Pat and Dean came down next, wearing tee-shirts and shorts, followed by Judith and Pete. Both of them wore only briefs. Once the new arrivals had gotten food, talk resumed and discussion turned to the day´s events.

“Mary´s doing a demonstration with the Riders this afternoon, and we thought you´d like to go to it with us,” Sigrid said, then explained that the Riders were teenage girls.

“You all work with these girls?” Judith asked.

“I saw their first show at Easter,” Pat said. “They are really impressive. Especially, I understand, if you know horsemanship. I thought they were remarkable, and I don´t know anything about riding.”

“What does Mary do?”

“Tina,” Anne answered, “Mary and I sort of started this whole crazy thing. She´s studying to be a Certified Financial Planner. In her spare time, she teaches riding at the stables next door. She´s a girl who grew up on horseback and is a championship horsewoman. She´s gotten this group of young girls together to learn Western Pleasure Riding. The idea is to give the girls something healthy to do and get them away from the boys who harass them at school. Build their confidence and improve their grades. It´s also a lot of fun.”

“And you go to these shows?”

“Yes. You see, all of us at Still Waters take part in the program, helping supervise the group when Mary´s not there teaching. Saul and Sigrid teach aerobics, and the rest of us help with school work and general support ... So, we´ll be going to the show this afternoon, but there´s nothing special to do this morning.”

Judith said, “I, for one, am going to get some sun.”

“Alex,” Fred said, “Pete and I´d like to see what you´re doing with the Still Waters catalogs. And Tom´s network applications. We can get some sun, too, and a swim.”

After breakfast, Judith and Pat found Tina in the living room, looking at The Goddesses.

“What do you think of them, Tina?” Judith asked.

“I´m sure the work is very good. I don´t know much about it, but I can see they are beautifully done. I just can´t relate to the subjects. I like the first one of Sigrid; it makes her look very nice. But the others ...”

“As an artist and a teacher of art, Tina, I can tell you the work is outstanding, even if Will is my son.”

“And, I think the pictures are wonderful,” Judith said.

“Even when he makes your daughter look like…?”

“How do you see it, Tina?”

“Why, she looks like she´s ready ... Well I don´t know, she´s either ready to rule the world or to jump in bed with the next man she sees.”

“Tina, that is my daughter exactly. She´s always been like that and I love her for it.”

Pat said, “I nearly died last night, when she took off her dress. It was so natural, and she looked so gorgeous wearing nothing but that bouquet of flowers. I´m really sorry you don´t see the fun and beauty of it, Tina.”

“Judith, please don´t misunderstand me. Heather is a beautiful girl. I guess I should say, ‘woman´. And those designs are lovely. I just can´t handle this other business.”

“You mean you can´t handle sex and nudity,” Pat said.

“But they´re so blatant about it. They don´t even think there´s ... They´re shameless!”

“I wish I could believe you meant shameless in a positive way, Tina. Shame is what tells us we´re doing something wrong.  Nothing I have seen them do since we have been here is in any way shameful, at least to me, Tina. They told us up front what to expect. They´ve been considerate of our sensibilities. They´ve gone out of their way to meet our needs because they want us to be a part of their happiness and love. There´s no shame in loving each other, and there´s no shame in enjoying sex.”

“I´ll tell you something, Tina,” Judith said, “You´d better find a way to deal with it. Our children – these people – have built a solid, loving family. And they´ve done it while going to college, getting top marks and building a really successful business. You may not agree with their sex lives or their taste in clothes or art, but those things aren´t any of our business any more. If we want to be part of their lives, we have to accept them as they are and love their ability to love and do things that succeed.”

“Well, I´m not taking my clothes off.”

Pat said, “Nobody asked you to. So don´t. And nobody asked you to sleep with anyone but your husband. So shape up and join the party.”

Pat pulled off her tee-shirt. “Judith, how about some of that sun?”

.oOo.

After the horse show, Mary returned to Still Waters with the others. She had planned the dinner, and after showers and a sauna they all pitched in to get things ready. When all the women were in the kitchen, Mary made an announcement.

“Since it´s a holiday, I thought it might be fun to dress up tonight. We´ve got a while before dinner´s ready, so why don´t we get some things on and compare notes. Perhaps some of our guests would like to try some VeeJays or VeeCees.”

In a short time, they convened in the living room. Anne wore her snakes and The Lovers earrings with a low-riding, long, full skirt of light cotton, shot with gold and silver. Mary wore jeans and intricately worked conchas at her breasts. Heather had on a flirty mini-skirt and the doves Mei-Ling had made for her, and Sigrid wore a squash blossom at her navel above a light, Spanish-style skirt. Two slithery snakes dangled from her nipples.

“One thing´s sure,” Pat said, “Even total nudity couldn´t top this.”

Heather said, “Would any of you like to try something virtual?”

The three women disappeared into Heather´s workshop. Pat selected a virtual replica of a strapless evening gown with a pleated bosom that had a matching skirt. Judith opted for a fireworks display above low-cut short shorts.

When she had looked the others over, Tina said to Heather, “Heather, this stuff is fantastic. Do you suppose you have something an old prude like me could wear?”

“Try this, Tina.”

It was a set of Breastworks that covered Tina´s breasts with an ornate but fragile structure of multi-colored foil. There was a skirt of similar cloth that hung low on the hips, but rose in front to point at the colorful display above. It showed her good figure to advantage but left her body well covered.

When Ken and the rest of the men came in from finishing up at the stables, there was an uproar of praise for the women´s outfits and a rush to the showers.

At dinner, they talked and ate hungrily. The food was excellent.

“Mary,” Tina said, “I´m really impressed with this meal. You put it all together like a pro. And, it´s delicious.”

“Thanks, Tina. I´m used to cooking for crowds. My Aunt Bessie taught me how to cook for a whole gang of ranch-hands and half the time we did it over an open fire. Mostly simple stuff. When we first moved in here, I did most of the cooking until Sigrid and Anne learned how. Now, Sigrid is our nutritionist and she comes up with some great recipes. A gang like this needs lots of good food. Oh, and there´s still apple pie with ice cream for dessert. I made them yesterday.”

“And you still had time to go out and win the show today. I don´t know how you all do it.”

Mary replied for all of them. “Tina, we do a lot, all of us. And we all have a great time doing it. That´s the secret. If you like what you do, you´ve got the energy to do more of it. And with eight – nine, now that Ken´s with us – with nine of us, there´s lots of energy and skills to put together.”

.oOo.

In the night, Sigrid turned to touch the couple next to her. They had just finished making love, and Sigrid put her hand on the woman´s shoulder.

“You really enjoyed that, didn´t you? Oh, hi, Judith. I didn´t expect to see you here.”

“Pete and I got talking about it upstairs after we went to bed. We decided that, since you all seem to have so much fun, we should give it a whirl. We´ve never done this before. Sorry if I woke you.”

“I love to hear another woman come, Judith ... Heather, your mother´s here.”

Heather came and hugged her mother and dad. “I´m glad. Just don´t forget, how far you go is up to you.”

Sigrid snuggled up to Judith. “Pete, how are you doing? You okay?”

“Oh, yes. I feel wonderful. I´ve always wondered what it´s like to make love in public.”

“Well, you didn´t seem to have any problems. I could see you looking around. Isn´t it great to watch while you´re doing it yourself?”

“I think so,” Judith said, “and I can´t remember when he´s been so eager.”

“That´s for sure,” Pete added. “And with her looking like she´s still dressed ...”

“Just remember that, now you´re here, you´re fair game for anyone.”

“Is that a proposition?” he grinned.  

“Not right now, later. Right now, I want Tom. Then you. Wanna watch?”

“Well, at least until something better comes along.”

.oOo.

Friday breakfast saw Tina come downstairs topless when Fred came in naked from his swim. He stopped and stared for a second, and settled down next to her with a long and tender kiss. When he finished, Tina´s nipples were erect and she was blushing all the way to the top of her shorts.

“Welcome, Tina,” Anne said.

“This is as far as I´m going, Anne. But after the way we dressed for last night´s dinner, and how great we all looked ... and it was so much fun. I just couldn´t stay quite so ...”

“Well, you can stop wherever you want. And it´s good to have you feeling more friendly.”

Mary said, “Tina, just be sure and use lots of sun-tan goo. We´re all used to it, but you could get a nasty burn.”

“Thanks, Mary. I´ll be careful.”

.oOo.

Ken, Mary, Sarah and Steve walked to Ken´s house in the afternoon. Inside, they stripped, got drinks and settled around the pool.

“I´ve got a pretty good idea why you wanted us to come this afternoon. It isn´t just to see the house – which I love, by the way. You want to buy the stables from me, don´t you?”

“Yes. I figured we could talk better here.”

“Thanks for asking Steve.”

“He seems to be a part of your life; I figured you´d want him. No point in making you ask.”

“Sarah, Ken´s talked this over with me, but I told him it´s his deal, and he has to make it with you.”

“He made it with me last night, and as for a deal, if we can agree on terms there shouldn´t be any problems, Mary. I know you keep things to yourself, and I appreciate it. Ken, what do you have in mind?”

“Sarah, I want to buy the stables, but I want to do it in a way that will mean you´ll stay on and help me run it. Not just as a paid hand, but not as a partner. I haven´t quite figured that out yet.”

“Why not as a partner?”

“I plan to make you an offer that will be fair, maybe generous. You´ll have a fair profit after you pay off the bank. If I make you a partner, you´d have to match a share of what I put in, and I don´t think you should have to do that. You´ve earned whatever you make from the deal, and shouldn´t have to match my mistakes.”

“I doubt if you´ll make many mistakes, Ken. But tell me what you have in mind. Then we can fight.”

“I´ll buy the stable as it stands, with everything in it.” He named a generous price. “If you prefer, I´ll assume your indebtedness and give you the lump sum. I want you to stay on, on any terms you name, to run the day-to-day operations, the way you do now.  I also want you to take on a new thing I´m going to start.”

“Which is?”

“I´m going to be doing a good bit of breeding. Both for my own account and for customers. The foals will need looking after, and I need someone who will work with them so that, when it comes time to put a saddle on them, they´ll accept it without fear. I want you to run a nursery where horses grow up thinking people are part of the herd. We can´t change heredity, instinct, but I want them to grow up trusting people as much as possible. Meanwhile, I´ll be expanding the facilities and setting up a stud. Will you do it?”

“Well, first, I´m going to take a swim and think about it.”

Sarah slipped into the pool and the others sat in the sun, talking and sipping their drinks.  

After a while, at the edge of the pool, Sarah hoisted herself up on her elbows, her breasts on the deck.

“Ken, in principle, you´ve got a deal. I´ve got some things I want.”

“Shoot.”

Sarah pulled herself up on the deck and sat cross-legged. “I´ll deal with the bank myself. You pay me a salary. I guess you meant to say that, but forgot.”

“Yeah. Thought it was understood.”

“You set the thing up as a joint stock company, closely held. I get 10% of the stock as a key employee, and we work out a scheme of options based on performance. And I´m on the board.”

“That makes an even number.”

“Who else?”

“You, me, Mary and Sigrid. Forgot to mention she´s agreed to be Treasurer.”

“Why not Mary?”

“Not going to have my lover hold the purse.”

“Sarah, pay no attention. I wouldn´t do it, that´s why. And for the same reason. ‘Sides, I hardly know this guy.”

“That won´t last,” Sarah said. “Okay, how about Steve? Two for you, two for me – maybe – and Sigrid as the casting vote.”

“Okay with you, Steve?”

“Sure, Ken, but I don´t know anything about the business.”

“Well, if you don´t want to be Sarah´s ‘Yes´ man – and from what I see, you´re not – you´ll learn it. Then we´ll all be better off.”

“Okay, then.”

“Well, Ken, if we work out salary and options, you´ve got a deal.”

“Shall we shake on it?”

“Sure, but I´ve got a better idea. Those glass walls on the bedrooms are driving me crazy. Take me to bed, will you?”

“You want us to stand out here and watch?”

“I don´t care what you do. Join us if you want.”

“Chance, you did it again.”

“I know.”

“Better not marry me, Chance.” Mary grinned. “I´ll divorce you the first time you say that.”

Ken smiled and opened his mouth to reply, but Mary closed it with her own.

.oOo.

“Morning, Judith. Have fun last night?”

“Sigrid, you know I did. You were right beside me the whole time. Do you mean, do I have second thoughts? No.”

“That´s good. I don´t see how you could have, but people are funny.”

“True. No, Pete and I were so turned on after dinner in those silly outfits, we talked it all out before we came down. I wanted to be sure neither of us had a problem with whatever might happen. After all, Alex and Heather were there, and we had to know how to handle that. Actually, nothing happened with them.”

“Still might.”

“Well, we´re ready for it. I´ll let you know.”

“You talk a lot.”

“So do you. I always have. You?”

“I only lost my virginity – wrong! I only became a woman this winter. Tom taught me to talk about it when he was teaching me how to do it. I love it, and it was wonderful listening to you. Did you mind my talking to you while Tom ...”

“Is that why you asked Tom to come over?”

“Sure. Turns him on big time.”

“The four of us were really having a party.”

“Yeah. You´re going to get more attention tonight, I guarantee.”

“Wonderful.”

.oOo.

“Tina,” Anne said, “I want to tell you that I really appreciate the way you´ve changed your attitude since you came here. I´m sure Alex is proud of you, too.”

It was Sunday, after breakfast; the guests would be leaving in the afternoon.

“Anne, I got some help from Pat and Judith, and Fred had a lot to do with it, too. You won´t find me on the Big Bed ever, I don´t think. But I have discovered that topless is nice, and I may try out bottomless at home and see if I like that.”

Sigrid said, “Tina, I think we´ve all done a lot of thinking about things. I told you yesterday how I changed my point of view, and it´s a step-by-step thing. And finally, you come to the place where you don´t go any further. That´s how it seems to work.”

“You´re right. And thank you all for being patient with me.”

“Mom,” Alex said, “I´m glad to have you a part of our lives and I know it took a big change for you. Thanks.”

“Now, Alex, don´t make me start to cry ... Heather have you got a few minutes after breakfast? I have an idea I want to try out.”

.oOo.

When it came time to leave for the airport, the families put their things in the van. Tina was the last one to come out the door. She was wearing a plain white Virtual Tee-shirt and slacks.

“Mom, are you really flying like that?” Alex asked doubtfully.

“Honey, of course not. This shirt comes with pockets.” Tina grinned and held up two white knit patches to cover her nipples. “But I´m not wearing them, either. I have a blazer.” She slipped it on, tucking the patches in a pocket. You could hardly tell that her shirt was only color on skin. “I think I´m going to have some fun from now on, Alex. Your sister´s going to think I´ve lost my mind.”

“Do you care?”

“Not as long as I´m having fun.”

 

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