Widowsmate
a Novelette by Kellis
February, 2000
Sept. 25, 1934
Dear Sister,
��������� So �it� has happened to you, has it?� I wish I could talk to you about it, but I don�t have a telephone.� Maybe it�s just as well.� I�d probably say the same kind of things you said to me, about being a slut and a damn fool and wanting to know if I had my street corner picked out.� It hurt me when you said them, so I don�t want to say them to you.� Of course not!
��������� It worked out that Joe � you remember cousin Joe? � wanted me to see him win the prize at the livestock fair.� He picked me up and I spent the weekend with him and the other cousins.� For a farmer he�s a sheik.� And he�s only our third cousin, or something like that.� I think that�s legal in case anything comes of it, and it already has, if you get what I mean.
��������� Saturday night I steered the table talk around to you.� Martha said they invited you, she knew you were struggling in the city.� I said struggling with a man.� She said how�s that?� I said he�s jilted you and left you in the family way.
��������� They all perked up their ears.� Martha said then she�ll really need to come here.� George cussed the city slickers but grinned and said more hands on the farm.� So I guess you�ll be even more welcome.� You always were the lucky one.
��������� What are you planning to do with your house?� Joe�s tired of the country and wants to try his luck in the city.� The man that bought his prize bull offered him a job managing a breeding pen across the river from your place.� We�d need somewhere to stay.� Why don�t you let Joe rent it from you?� Or ask that banker you mentioned to figure out a way for him to buy it.
��������� You�re right, Betty.� We sisters have got to pull together.
Love, Charlene
P.S.� Pat Johnny�s bottom for me!
Beatrice�s windows proclaimed the all-clear.� Nevertheless he parked beside a vacant lot two houses down the street.� Standing on her porch, he knocked with trepidation, ready to ask for Silas Warner if a man answered.
But Beatrice opened the door, wearing a nearly translucent blue robe he had given her, with face lightly made up and hair free on her shoulders.� �Come in, Justin,� she invited.� Her lips curled in a smile, but her eyes were worried.� �I�m so glad to see you.�
He tipped his hat.� �Thank you, Beatrice.�� He opened the screen and passed by her into the empty living room.� She closed the door behind him.
The house was silent.� �Where�s your brother in law?� he asked.
�He had to go back to work.�� She laid a hand tentatively on his arm.� �Justin ��
�I came by for the bills,� he said shortly.
�Justin, please.�
�Please what?�
She looked up into his eyes solemnly.� �Please kiss me.�
She stood very close.� He noted clinically that she had even used a breath mint.� He said gruffly, �I haven�t dropped Betty, you know.�
The blue eyes flickered.� �You didn�t see her Thursday.�
�How do you know?�
�She had a doctor�s appointment.�
�You mean she�s sick?�
�She didn�t say why.� Do you ��� She swallowed.� �Do you feel strongly about her?�
�Yes.� The same as I feel about you.�
�And all the others?�
He opened his mouth to respond, but she gripped his arm.� �I didn�t mean that, Justin.� It�s none of my business.�
�That�s not how you felt a week ago!�
�I�m sorry for that.� I can�t tell you how sorry I am.� If you give me the chance, I�ll try to show you.�
�You no longer want to put me in jail?�
�Oh, Justin!� That was my period talking.� It�s been gone for two days.� What Tilly did �� She said it makes the flow end sooner, too.� I�m fresh for you again.�
�Or for Mark?�
�No.� He left Friday, had to sub on a passenger train.�� She grinned.� �I think he was disappointed.�
�Wants you, does he?�
�Yes.�
�But you don�t want him?�
She looked away.� �I want you.�
�Are you sure, Beatrice?� As far as I�m concerned, nothing has changed.� I still also support Tilly and Laura � and Betty.�
She took a step closer.� Her breast� impacted his chest softly and both arms went around his neck.� �I�m counting on nothing changed,� she murmured, turning up her head.
He stood still, looking at the moist, parted lips.� He sighed and bent to kiss them.� Her response was to suck his lips into her mouth, then press him with her tongue.� Hands at the back of his head pulled their faces tightly together.� His arms slipped around her soft and ample form as she strained against him.
His usual procedure had been to stimulate her orally first, but not today.� In the bedroom she helped him undress and pulled him impatiently atop her on the bed, where her hand guided their coupling.� She grunted and groaned almost immediately, hips beginning to roll.� Her legs wrapped around him, heels drumming the backs of his thighs.� He did not long endure.� She screamed when she felt his ejaculation.
Though her body quieted as his did, she only tightened the arms and legs around him.� Her lips sought his for another long kiss.� When he raised his head at last, her eyes were brimming.
�What is it, Bea?� he asked.� �Did I hurt you?�
She shook her head, flinging tears onto the pillow.� �Anything but that!� It�s just a hard lesson, Justin.�
�Lesson?�
�How to share you.�
�Is that what you call it?�� He grinned.� �Seems to me you�re almost as passionate today as you were the last time.�
Her eyebrows rose.� �But � we only did what everyone does.�
�It�s not so much what you do, it�s how.�
�I hope � you�ll forgive me for the bank.�
�Of course I do.�
She kissed his chin, then opened her arms and legs.� He rolled off her but pulled her against him.� They lay together peacefully for a few minutes.
�Justin, can I ask you for advice?�
�Go ahead.�
�Mark wants to marry me.�
�What do you want?�
�I�ve already told you that.� The point is, I don�t want to marry him.� Am I stupid?�
�I wouldn�t say that.�
�Tilly and Betty say it.� They say grab him while he�s holding still for it, before some other girl sinks her hook.�
�That�s a consideration.�
�Maybe not.� According to him the other girls won�t give him the time of day.� He�s only 25.� I�m 36 with two kids.� They get along with him all right, although ��
When her voice trailed off, he commented, �That�s eleven years.� I had an aunt who was nine years older than my uncle, but she�s still going strong in her seventies while he�s pushing up daisies.� Before he died he said an older woman appreciates a younger man.� He also said marrying her was the best thing he ever did.�
�So you think I might be good for Mark?�
�You might.� Hmm.� Although what?�
She didn�t ask what he meant.� �My daughter � she�s eleven, you know � likes to sit in his lap at night to listen to The Creaking Door.� Wednesday night I noticed, when she got up, his penis was standing up under his clothes.� So I took care to notice them again Thursday.� During a scary part she put down her hand and he didn�t complain.� His penis was right up there again when the show was over.� Friday night he saw me watching them, blushed and made her sit further forward.�
He chuckled.� �Bea, that�s a fairly common reaction to a squirmy little bottom in your lap.� Didn�t you ever make things hard for your own father?�
�No! �� Well, maybe.�� He felt the cheek on his shoulder expand in a smile.� �Now that you remind me, I did wonder about a lump in his britches that seemed to come and go.� You think it�s nothing to worry about?�
�Well, I know girls at that age are very curious, but they haven�t yet noticed what everyone else thinks about it.� Maybe you just ought to suggest she sit somewhere else.�
�But if I�m going to marry Mark, I want her to love him.�
�Thought you said you didn�t like him.�
�No.�� Her voice dropped.� �I didn�t say that.�
After several seconds she continued, �He wants to move in here, whether we get married or not, and take over my mortgage payments.� You�ve been making them for a good while, haven�t you?� How much do I owe you, Justin?�
�Nothing.�
�You�re quick to say that!�
�Because it�s true.�
�Then ��� He heard her swallow.� �Then Mark could just start making the payments?�
�Well, if he marries you, he�ll probably want to get the house and mortgage in his name, too.� Bea, what will you say if he asks you how you�ve been making them?�
�Huh!�� She laughed harshly.� �Or how I�ve been feeding and clothing the children?�
�He�s pretty young.� Maybe he won�t ask.�
�He has already, Justin.�
�Has he!�
�I told him I had a sugar daddy.�
�A what?�� He laughed self-consciously.� �Do I look so old?�
�I made a joke of it.�� She sighed.� �Justin, I know the sure way to scare off a man is to tell him how much you need him for yourself, but if our � love life can survive what I did to you last week ��
�What are you trying to say, Bea?�
�Will you keep seeing me even if you don�t have to support me any more?�
She seemed to quit breathing.� He sighed.� �If you plan to live with Mark, why don�t you give him a chance first?�
�I don�t need to.� Six months after his brother died he lived with me for a month.� We made love every night, sometimes twice.�� She took a breath.� �I didn�t tell Tilly and Laura the truth.� In all that time Mark didn�t give me a single climax, except once the night before my period started.� He�s no match for you, Justin.�
�Thanks.�
�You�re even better than my husband was, and I didn�t think anything could be better than that!�
�Thanks again.�
Her hand enclosed his shriveled organ.� �You know what a woman needs,� she said softly.� �And this one needs you.�
�Where does Mark work?� he wondered.
�I told you, didn�t I?� He�s a railroad engineer.�
�At 25?� That�s a responsible job.�
�I believe he�s actually called a relief engineer.�
�Does he come home at night?�
�No.� He�ll be gone for several days, then home for several.� He�s coming back Wednesday morning.� Why do you �� Oh.� I have a telephone.� If that fails we have your signal.�
�You warned that he�ll shoot me.�
She shook her head.� �He�ll never know about you, Justin.�
Her hand had done its work.� He rolled up to his knees, spread her legs and bent between them, extending his feet toward the footboard.� She shivered at the touch of his tongue.
�Oh, yes!� she hissed.� After awhile she added, �Neither brother knew about this.�
He looked up curiously.� �Did you ever suck one of them?�
�No!� They�d think I�m wanton.�
He laughed.� �And you aren�t?�
�You bring it out in me.�� Her knees parted further and she turned her pubes higher invitingly.
�Perhaps you only need to bring it out in Mark.�
Her eyes narrowed thoughtfully, then drifted shut as he renewed the tormenting touch.
��������������������������������������������������������� *� *� *� *
�Oh, hello, Justin.�� Sherry looked up from the kitchen table as he pushed open the back door.� A book was open in front of her.� She was barefooted, wearing a sleeveless blouse and skirt with her brown hair done up in a bun.
�Good afternoon, Mrs. Cox,� he retorted jocularly, closing the door before passing behind her in the direction of his coat rack.� �What�re you reading?�
�Are you really interested?�
�I like to read, too.�� He began to undress.
She held it up.� According to the dust jacket it concerned The Case of the Sulky Girl.
�What�s that,� he asked, �something on psychology?� Maybe I ought to read it!�
�That�s what I thought, too.� But no, it�s a very interesting murder mystery and the hero is a lawyer, if you can believe that!�
He chuckled.� �Must be written by a lawyer.�
She flipped it around.� �Somebody named Earl Stanley Gardner.� Ever hear of him?�
�Never.�
�Hmm.� You�re right.� Says here he went to law school.�
�That explains it�� I saw Tilly on the side porch.� Don�t you like to read in a rocking chair?�
�I love it � if nobody insists on talking when I want to read.�
�Uh-oh.� A tiff?�
�No tiff.� This book is very interesting.� The girl�s uncle controlled her money and wanted to control her life.� She may have killed him.�
�No wonder she�s sulky!�
�That�s because everybody is pushing her around, including this Perry Mason, the lawyer.�
�I can understand its fascination for you.� Where�s Laura?�
�Ah.�
��Ah,� as �something�s stuck in my throat?��
��Ah,� as I don�t really know.�
�Is she taking a nap?�
�Umm.� Actually I don�t think she�s here.�
He paused to regard her.� She reopened her book and turned her face away, but not before a last furtive glance.
He undressed completely, finally donning the robe and slippers always left for him on the coat rack.� He came up behind the woman, immersed in her book.� Lifting the bun off the back of her neck, he leaned down and kissed her in its place.� She shivered violently.� Goosebumps popped up prominently on her arms.
He chuckled, running his hand lightly over the suddenly rough skin.� �I love this reaction.�
She said with a touch of asperity, �It�s a sensitive spot, especially when you�re not expecting it.�
�Lifting your hair should�ve warned you.�
�It will next time.�
He slipped his hand under her armpit, through the large armhole of her sleeveless blouse, and clasped the swelling breast, thumb and forefinger seeking the nipple.� �Another sensitive spot?� he asked teasingly.
She sighed and turned the book face down.� �Yes, sir.�
�Sir!� We�re very mannerly today, aren�t we.� Tell me:� is it cooler to leave off the brassiere?�
�Cooler?� Huh!� I�ve yet to put one on in this house.� Panties either, as you�ll probably notice in another minute, but I haven�t quite accepted the style here, else you�d find me naked or in just a housecoat.�
�You really want to read, don�t you?�� He stood up and laid his hand on the woman�s shoulder.� �Did Laura take a walk, Sherry?�
She took a breath.� �I hope she comes back soon.�
�You didn�t answer me.�
She sighed.� �More of a ride.�
�A ride?� With whom?�
�The grocery man.�
�When did she leave?�
�Before lunch.�
Justin thought a moment.� �What store was he from?�
�Tilly might know.� She put up the groceries.�
He turned away and made his way through the house to the far side porch.� He found Tilly sitting back in a rocker, her feet up on the porch rail, housecoat open indifferently over her pubes.� Untrimmed boxwoods grew high as the rail and concealed her display from the ground floor of the neighbor across the vacant lot.
She looked up at the sound of the screen door, then looked silently away.
�Good afternoon to you, too,� he said, stopping beside her.
She took a deep breath and responded wanly, �Hello, Justin.�
�What�s the matter?�� He laid a hand on her housecoated shoulder.
�Nothing.�� She didn�t look up.
�Laura rode off?�
�Yeah.� Sherry told you?�
�With the groceryman, she said.�
�Jellico, from Parsons Market.�
�Jellico?�
�That�s what he calls himself.� He�s a dumb shit, but I guess he�s got what Laura wants.�� Her hand went to her face.� He felt her shoulder shake with a confined sob.
�What is it, Tilly?� You know she likes men.� But she loves you!�
�I�ve been paying too much attention to Sherry.� Oh, Justin!� I�m such a fool.�� With a moan she rose from her chair, leaving it rocking madly.� Her hands opened his robe and she slammed her body against him, arms encircling the skin of his back.� She buried her upturned face in his neck as his arms went around her.
Insects buzzed in the bushes and a bird trilled in a nearby tree.� He said comfortingly, �She�s done this before, hasn�t she?� What is it that worries you so much?�
Her voice was muffled against him.� �She ain�t run off like this since we came here.�� She backed away slightly and looked up at him through wet eyes.� �What worries me the most is what you might think about it.�
He grunted.� �Let me get it straight.� What exactly happened?�
�I called in the grocery order this morning as usual.� Jellico delivered it about ten-thirty.� Laura helped him unload it.� On her last trip in she told me she was going for a ride with him.� I was flabbergasted and tried to talk her out of it.
�I said, �You�re only wearing your housecoat, silly!�
�She said, �It�s more than I need,� and turned around and got in his truck with him.�
He grunted.� �Did she say where they were going or when she�d return?�
�I just told you all that was said.�
He thought it over.� �In just a housecoat, eh?� Not much doubt about what she�s doing, is there?�
�Except she�s been at it about three hours now.� Where could she be?�
�This Jellico:� what do you know about him?�
�He�s one of Parsons� delivery drivers.� He�s been fetching our grocery order off and on ever since you set up the tab.� He�s just a big dummy but he�s got nice swinging shoulders.�
�Does Laura like shoulders?�
The woman retorted dryly, �What she likes swings a bit lower!�
�I see.� You�re the one who notices the less� ��
His voice died away at the sound of an engine.� He danced the woman closer to the rail and peered over the bushes at a light covered truck turning into the driveway from the street.�� Parsons Market was emblazoned on its side.� With the screech of brakes it came to an unexpected halt.� The passenger door opened and a barefooted woman stepped down.� Laura, as he saw immediately, ran toward the house, long hair flying, holding her housecoat closed with one hand, while with grinding gears the vehicle backed out again into the street.
The truck pulled away without dawdling.� The woman ran up the sidesteps onto the porch but stopped suddenly at sight of the two standing embraced.� �Oh!� she murmured involuntarily.� She wore no makeup and her brown hair was tangled.
�Hello, Laura,� Justin said gravely.
Her breast heaved from her exertions.� A hand flew to her mouth.� �Oh, that�s right,� she exclaimed, �it�s Wednesday!�
Tilly declared, �I hollered that after you.�
Laura�s expression was aghast.� �I know it.� I didn�t think what you meant.�
Justin asked curiously, �What did you mean?�
Tilly turned wide eyes up to him.� �Wednesday is your afternoon!�
Laura added, �And Sunday is your day � when you want to use it.�
He commented dryly, �I didn�t realize I was getting into a rut.�
Laura added, �Not that you ain�t welcome any other time.�
�Thank you.� Where�ve you been, Laura?�
She stood straighter.� �Out for a breath of air.�
Tilly snorted.
�And a fuck,� Laura added, staring at the man.
�And did you get it?� he asked.
�Yes,� she reported quietly, eyes locked with his.
�A word of advice:� make your friends drive all the way to the back where the neighbors can�t see what�s going on.�
She nodded.� �I know about that.� I told him to go on back, but your big Packard spooked him and he wouldn�t go any further.� That�s why I ran.�
�Hopefully all the neighbors are at lunch.�
Laura smiled.� �He thinks every big maroon car is the cops.�
�Theirs are more brown.�
�He don�t know the difference.�
Tilly regarded the man wonderingly.� �You ain�t mad, Justin?�
He studied Laura.� �Should I be?�
The woman shook her head.� �I don�t think so!� I didn�t do anything for him I ain�t done for you.�
�What did you do?�
She shrugged.� �Frenched him.� Then he took me to lunch and screwed me proper.�� She hesitated.� �He wants to visit me here.�
Justin shook his head.� �Not here.�
�I told him that.�
�Did he do you any good?�
She shrugged.� �A little.� It was fun to get out of the house.�
�Did he compliment your frenching skills?�
�He didn�t let me finish that.� A lot of guys don�t appreciate it like you do.�
�Left you in the mood, did he?�
She smiled lazily and dropped into a rocking chair, pulling her housecoat wide.� Up to the rail went her feet.� She spread them well apart and turned a calculating gaze up to him.� �Wonder if it would hurt my back to get screwed like this.�
He cocked his head, estimating distances.� �The seat�s too low.�
�You think so?� When I was seventeen, I spent the summer in a mountain hotel.� It had big porches on every floor and hundreds of rocking chairs.� I got screwed in one four or five times a night.�
�Well, did it hurt your back?�
�It didn�t hurt anything!�� She shook her head.� �That was a long time ago when we wore long dresses, when everybody had lots of money, when I had a strong back.�
�Long dresses?�
�And nothing under them.�
Tilly slipped from his arms and knelt between the spread legs.
�Oooh!� Laura murmured, shivering.� Her eyes closed partly but she smiled up at Justin.� �Come a little closer, will you?�
Tilly raised up.� �A lot of juice in here!�
Laura explained, �That was Coney.�
�Who?�
�Jellico�s assistant.� He�s seventeen and full of it.�
�I reckon so, at seventeen.�� Tilly�s wet face disappeared again.
Justin asked, �You had two men at lunch?�
�Jellico parked behind the dump.� When he finished, he told Coney to get on.� Practically had to order him.� I think it was the boy�s first time.�
�Are you sure he was seventeen?�
�Jellico said he was, but maybe not.� Still has some growing to do.�
�His cock?�
�A little one, but full of juice.� On the way home I could feel it wetting my robe.� You would�ve laughed.� Jellico did.� When Coney finished, he fell over like he was dead, the way a buck rabbit does.� You ever see rabbits fuck?� He was just about that quick, too.� Jellico made me get in the front and leave him back there.� I hope he didn�t fall out.�
Justin smiled.� �Oh, I�m sure he came to his senses.�
�You gonna let me suck you?�
�The neighbors might see.� Let�s go inside.�
He heard Tilly snort.� Laura was grinning at him.
He asked, �What is it?�
She tilted her head and looked past him.� �You mean that kid in the upstairs window?�
�Eh?�� He turned to regard the house next door, a large boarding house about fifty yards away across a treeless vacant lot.� �Where?�
�That window up there under the peak.� There!� You see that?�
�You mean the flash?�
�Yeah.� He�s got a telescope.�
�How do you know?�
�He showed it to me.�
�He ��� Justin took a breath.� �He did what?�
�Powerful one, too.� Belongs to his uncle.� At night you can even see into that house on the other side of the street.�
�Or right over our bushes to your tits.�
�Yeah.�� She grinned.� �Terrible thing for a young boy to see a naked boob, ain�t it?�
�What else have you two showed him?�
�Everything he wanted to see.�
�Of course.� How old is he?�
�Fourteen.� Ain�t that what he said, Tilly?�
�Uh-huh,� the bobbing head agreed.
�What else do you know about him?� For example, what�s his name?�
Her eyes closed.� �I�m � coming, Justin.� Kiss me, at least.�
He knelt, pulled the sides of her housecoat together over her body and slipped his hand under it.� Only then did he kiss her, giving her his tongue but conscious of alien eyes boring telescopically into his back.� She quivered and moaning unintelligibly around her mouthful.� When she quieted, he released her and backed away to see Tilly wiping her face on her own housecoat.
�Let�s go inside,� Justin suggested.
Tilly�s hand snaked into his robe and caressed his genitals.� �Hot in the house,� she protested.
�The idea of that kid puts me off,� he complained.� �Have you met him?�
�Alvin?� Yeah.� He�s the one that fixed the broken window.�
�Broken window?�
�The one the baseball came through.�
�This is the first I heard of it.�
�I guess we didn�t bother you with it.� Alvin fixed it the same day he broke it.� He�s a good kid.�
�With a powerful telescope!�
�It really is.� We watched his neighbor pluck her eyebrows.� You could almost count every hair.�
�His neighbor?�
�The window on the upper right is her room.�
�What else did you see?�
�Me?� Not much.� Alvin�s the one with the telescope.� I told you:� he�s a good kid.� This ain�t nothing to worry about.�
He sighed.� �I guess you girls are getting to know the neighbors.� Some of them.� But watch out for Alvin�s mother.�
�Dead.� He lives with his aunt and uncle.�
�The aunt, then.�
�They both work.�
�What�s he doing out of school at this hour?�
�Now that�s a fair question!�� She turned around and squinted at the distant house�s upper reaches.� �Probably that flash you saw was just window glass.�
�Maybe.� You want to stay on the porch, eh?�
�If you want to,� Tilly said quickly.� �It�s so much cooler.� Feel that breeze!�
�Then let�s go on the other side.�
The entire front was a porch that enwrapped half the house.� A thick stand of trees closed within fifty feet on the other side.� Justin led the two women around there.
Laura showed him her �rocking chair� pose.� The seat he had thought too low proved adequately high with the chair rocked far back, supporting her shoulders while her elbows rested on the chair arms.� The edge of the seat supported her buttocks and her heels hung on his shoulders.� Tilly stationed herself again approximately as she had before:� between Laura and the porch rail.� Now she put a hand between them to grasp his shaft at the root and another to stroke his scrotum.� Soon the grasping thumb slipped into Laura beside him.
He admitted, �I like that, Tilly.�
�So do I,� Laura averred.
A finger joined the thumb, then another.
�Keep that up,� he suggested, �and it�ll get crowded in there.�
Tilly sniffed.� �The next time you do me I�ll show you crowded!�
Laura arched her back, pressing her clitoris against the plunging shaft.� The group exercised itself vigorously until she moaned and her sphincter tightened.
�Coming again!� Tilly observed with a note of envy.
The man said tightly, �So am I this time.�
Male and female voices sang a brief duet.� Justin soon backed away and, straddling Tilly, passed beyond her to sit on the porch rail.� The chair rocked forward.� Laura�s feet fell to the floor on either side of Tilly, who leaned forward, face plunging again into the exposed pubes.� Laura writhed in the chair.� �Oh, god!� she moaned, face contorted.� �Not right on the button!�
She rocked the chair back but Tilly rose with her, face buried in the hairy juncture.� Laura twisted, hands gripping the chair arms.� Her legs passed over Tilly�s shoulders, thighs gripping the woman�s head.� Her eyes flashed on Justin.� �Give me your dick!� she ordered.
He shrugged, marched around Tilly and threw one leg over Laura�s hips until the foot rested on the chair arm.� He presented his wet knob to the open mouth, which gulped it in.
He noted, �Sucking doesn�t work for the second pop.�
Laura grunted but demonstrated her indifference to that claim.� They stood thus for some time, his hips and Tilly�s head alone moving, aside from Laura�s occasional quiver.
He was aware when Sherry, still in sleeveless blouse and skirt but without book, rounded the turn from the front porch.� She strolled up behind Laura, peered over her shoulder, chuckled, shook her head with a grin at Justin, then scanned around the scene beyond.� Suddenly she stiffened.
�Don�t look now, but there�s a boy watching you from that weeping willow.�
Justin froze.� He turned his head slowly to the tree in question, the only one nearby of its kind.� It was located in the yard near the street, readily seen through the front porch railing.� A human figure, perched in a low fork, was visible through the breeze-tossed willow streamers.� Again Justin saw the flash of a lens.
�I�m fast,� Sherry declared.� �Bet I can catch him before he gets down.�
�Think you�re big enough to bring him here?�
�Bet a dollar.�
�Go get him, then.�
Long legs brought her quickly to the front rail, which she vaulted with flying skirt and a flash of white buttocks � indeed she was panty-less!� Landing lightly on the grass, she streaked across the yard like a bounding doe.
The occupant of the tree was slow to credit what his eyes disclosed.� When he decided to move, it was clearly too late for flight on the ground.� Another fork was just in reach above his head.� Jamming the telescope into his belt, he levered himself up into it as Sherry broke through the dangling streamers to the tree trunk.� She lunged and almost caught his foot.� She settled back and stood looking up, studying him and the tree.
He already knew the next fork again to be too high.� Her cleavage and the swell of her breasts, heaving from her exertions, were readily visible, though at that moment he failed to appreciate the view.
On the porch the intimate tableau had dissolved.� All three participants were standing to watch the drama in the front yard.
Justin asked, �Is that Alvin?�
�I can�t tell for the streamers,� Tilly responded, �but it�s likely.�
�Laura,� he asked, glancing at her, �has he fucked you?�
�Um ��
�Was that a �yes?��
The woman heaved a sigh.� �He has.�
�Several times?�
�Two or �� Yeah.� Several.�
�You, too, Tilly?�
The black haired woman nodded.� �He�s got a cute little dick.�
�When was the last time?�
�I think it was Monday.�
At the tree Sherry took a turn around the trunk, then said conversationally, �You�re not going any higher.�
The boy � her initial estimate had been correct � watched her warily.
�Mr. Ross wants to see you,� she added.� �You might as well come on down.�
�Who�s Mr. Ross?�
�The man you�ve been spying on.� The man who owns this tree I�ve treed you in.�
�You didn�t tree me!�
�No?� Well, come on out then.�
�Back off.�
Her eyes narrowed.� She grinned derisively, but did indeed take a few steps backward.� With a small shower of loose bark he slid down the trunk, dropped quickly from the last fork and sprang instantly away in the direction opposite her side of the trunk:� that is, toward the woods.
But he had hardly covered half the distance to the next nearest tree before her hand closed on his collar from behind.� She brought him up short.� With a jarring thump he sat involuntarily on the ground.
Her hand transferred from collar to ear lobe.� Agonizing pressure elevated him to his feet.� Amidst searing pain in his ear, he found himself marching toward the front steps.
�Please, please let go my ear!� he cried, grasping the wrist that held it but not daring to jerk it away.
�All right,� said the woman, adding ominously, �but if you make a break I�ll twist it off.�
The terrible hand dropped to his shoulder instead.� He released the wrist and stumbled docilely in the indicated direction.
When Sherry reached the side porch with her captive, she found the erstwhile orgiasts primly arrayed in three adjacent rocking chairs, man in the middle, housecoats and robe demurely closed.� Approaching them, she said to Justin, �You owe me a dollar.�
�Agreed.�
He added admiringly, �You must have raised a younger brother!�
�I did.�
�Tilly, is this Alvin?�
�Yeah.� Hello, Alvin.� This is Mr. Ross.�
The man studied the boy.� He had tousled brown hair, brown eyes and a dusting of freckles on his cheeks.� He wore a checkered short sleeve shirt and ragged blue jeans whose fly was unbuttoned.� His eyes dropped under the man�s gaze.� With a snap of his head he flung away the tears engendered by the pain in his ear.
Sherry asked, �Where are your manners, Alvin?� Say howdy to Mr. Ross.�
He flared back at her, �Who�re you?� You ain�t my sister!�
She retorted firmly, �My name is Sherry.� Say howdy, unless you want your ear twisted again.�
The boy ground his teeth, took a breath and glowered at the man.� �H-howdy, Mr. Ross.�
�Hello, Alvin.� What�s your last name?�
The boy was silent until Sherry�s fingers touched his ear.� He declared, �Groton!�
�Alvin Groton, is that right?�
�Yeah.�
�Say, �Yes, sir!� hissed Sherry.
�Yes, sir.�
�Were you looking for something in my tree, Alvin?�
The lad licked his lips nervously, looking from the man to the flanking women.� Sherry advised in a low but ominous voice, �Answer him, Alvin.�
�I was watching what you were doing with them.�
�And jacking off, too, were you?�
The boy�s eyes fell.� He blushed furiously.
�Oh, I don�t blame you for that,� Justin said, waving a hand negligently.� �Let me see your telescope.�
�You won�t � k-keep it?�
�Keep it?� As far as I know, it�s your property.� Powerful, is it?�
�Oh, yeah!� I mean, yes, sir.�� The telescope barrel emerged from his belt.
Justin raised the small end to his eye and focused it on the house 200 yards across the street.� �Indeed it is!� I can see Mrs. Rawlings washing her tit.�
�You can?� murmured the lad in awe, spinning around to squint at the indicated house.
�No, but I bet I could if she was.�
�She wouldn�t do that in the parlor,� Alvin concluded dryly, turning back.
�You�d know about it if she did, eh?�
�Her bathroom�s on the other side of the house.�
�So it is,� Justin agreed, returning the instrument.� �Tell me, Alvin, why you aren�t in school today.�
The boy tucked the telescope back into his belt and answered without looking up, �Got expelled last week.�
�For what?�
He shuffled his feet.� �Mr. Dodge said I was looking into the girl�s bathroom.�
�How?�
�Through a hole where the pipes come out.�
�Everybody knows about it, eh?�
�Yeah.�
�But you�re the one who got caught.�
�Because Jane MacDonald told on me.�
�You like to look at the girls, do you, Alvin?�
�Oh, yeah!�
�Why?�
�Huh?�� The lad�s expression eloquently conveyed his opinion of the question�s intelligence.
�Tell me why you like to look at them.�
�Cause it makes me feel good!�
The man chuckled.� �Well, yes, I suppose it does.� Do you know what an obsession is, Alvin?�
�A what?�
�An obsession is when you do something so much it starts to get you in trouble.� You�re showing signs of it, spying on neighbors and into bathrooms.� People don�t like to be spied on, as Jane MacDonald showed you, as you�ll see for yourself if anybody spies you jacking off.� When people catch you spying, they�ll tell on you, which is about the least that can happen, or they�ll go so far as to cut your prick off, which is what I intend to do if I ever catch you spying on me again!�
The boy shrank back, eyes wide.� Tilly gasped.� Sherry glared at Justin.� Laura chuckled.
�Furthermore, if you�re using that telescope, I�ll smash it over your head.� Do you understand me?�
�Y-yes, sir!�
�Now, that�s if you bother me.�� Justin waved his hand to take in the neighborhood.� �If you keep it up, you�ll get caught again and again.� It depends on where you do it from.� So long as you�re only looking out your own windows, they can�t really complain.� But if you spy from the street or, worse, from their property, they�ll make you hurt bad.�
The boy swallowed audibly.
�I understand you live with your aunt and uncle.�
�She ain�t my aunt.�
�Isn�t she married to your uncle?�
�No.�
Tilly grunted thoughtfully.
Justin grinned at her.� �Tilly, this young man looks thirsty.� Take him in the kitchen and give him a glass of water.� And dig a little deeper, will you?�
Alvin growled, �Don�t want no ��
�Yes, you do!� Tilly declared, jumping up and capturing his hand.� �Come on.�
Looking back to see if Sherry objected, the boy followed the woman into the house.� Laura grinned at Justin.� �Tilly�s sweet on him.� She won�t exactly give him a paddling.�
Justin grunted.� �What�ll she do?�
�Tell him to watch for your car.�
�And?�
�And stay away then.�
�But otherwise?�
�She likes little dicks.�
�Does she!�� He chuckled.� �That�s certainly contrary to the folklore!�
�She can mother them.� We all like to play mother.�� She glanced up knowingly at Sherry.� �Or big sister.�
�Isn�t that against the law?� asked Sherry.� �Isn�t there a law about �Statutory Rape?��
�Of girls,� agreed Justin, �by men.�
�Oh.� But what if he tells what he saw?�
The man sniffed.� �Such words in his mouth would horrify most people.� If they ask, we all deny it, of course.� Everyone knows how children exaggerate.� Sherry, that was quite a performance!�
�I could always outrun all the boys.�
�I�d love to see you run across that yard naked!�
�I was naked enough.�� She cupped hands on her blouse.� �Even that made them a little tender.�
�Hmm.� Does bouncing ever bruise them?�
She grinned.� �They don�t turn black and blue, not from bouncing.�� She looked at Laura.� �I meant to ask, how did you like your ride?�
�A change of scene,� submitted the older woman, rocking back in her chair.
�A change of men,� corrected Justin, regarding her with cocked brow.
Sherry peered at him.� �You don�t object?�
�Long as she comes back.�� He shrugged.� �I�m not her husband.� Or her keeper.�� He smiled.� �Just her lover.� And yours.�
Laura returned his smile lazily.� �You�re my best, Justin.�
�I�m glad you think so.�
Sherry�s voice was suddenly purposeful.� �I want to answer the question you asked when you brought me to this place.�
�What question?�
�I wouldn�t mind if you were running a brothel here!�