Storiesonline.net ------- Honkytonk Hero by Joe J Copyright© 2008 by Joe J ------- Description: A coming of age story with a twist. Addle-brained Tommy works down at the feed store, stacking Purina and sweeping the floor. A Vietcong rocket scrambled his brains so thoroughly that was all he was capable of... or was it? Codes: MF FF slow harem rom 1st ------- ------- This story is my second try at one of Jake's challenges and is loosely based on the song, Yippie-Yi-Yo-Yo by the Amazing Rhythm Aces. Here is a note from Jake Rivers: This is my fourth semi-annual writing invitational. The previous three have been based on specific song titles: "This Bed of Roses," "El Paso," and "Maggie May." The theme this time is somewhat broader: any country western song. The various authors hope you enjoy the stories - Jake Rivers This story was edited by the incredibly talented Dream-Girl. ------- Chapter 1 Night fell early in the triple canopy jungle of South Vietnam's Central Highlands. During the short early evening nautical twilight, the second platoon of Bravo Company, 1st Battalion, 503rd Airborne Infantry, formed a perimeter on the military crest of Hill 887. Under the watchful eyes of their noncommissioned officers, twenty-seven exhausted soldiers quickly scraped out hasty one man fighting positions. At the center of the circle, Second Lieutenant Thomas Bledsoe plotted his platoon's location on his map and called the coordinates in to the Company Command Post eight hundred yards down the hill. As his NCOs supervised the redistribution of ammunition and cleaning of weapons, Tom keyed the radio again and spoke softly into the microphone. "Starfish one-six this is Starfish two-six, meet me on guard two, over." Guard two were the code words for a radio frequency that was only known to Tom and his fellow platoon leader and best friend Jerry Chang. The two men could talk on that frequency privately. Jerry was the Platoon Leader of First Platoon. Chang and his men were set up on the next hill to the south. Jerry had been Thomas Bledsoe's roommate at OCS (Officer Candidate School). Being best friends named Tom and Jerry left them open for considerable razzing from their contemporaries. Jerry responded immediately, "Two-six this is one-six, roger, out." Tom clicked the knobs of his AN/PRC-25 radio to his and Jerry's frequency then keyed the mike, "You there Jerry?" "I'm here bro, but I wish to fuck I wasn't. This mission scares the shit out of me," Chang replied. "Me too, man. I don't know what they are smoking back at Brigade, but it must be some good shit," Tom replied. The two friends carped on the stupidity of the brass in the time honored tradition of field soldiers everywhere for another five minutes. Then Tom walked the outside of his perimeter checking on the disposition of his men. As he moved from position to position, his concern over the mission increased. Bravo Company was split on adjacent hills between which meandered a small valley. The rest of the battalion was set up two klicks (kilometers) down the valley to the east. The two hills were only four klicks from the border between Laos and South Vietnam. The battalion was deployed in that manner, in the hopes of ambushing a Viet Cong regiment that the Intel pukes said was planning to infiltrate into South Vietnam from a safe haven in Laos. Bravo Company's mission was to let the VC unit pass by unmolested, then act as a blocking force to prevent their escape back into Laos after the ambush was sprung. First and second platoons were deployed forward to provide security against an attack from the west. The plan looked good on paper, but down where the rubber met the road, it was a different story. For one thing, the battalion was woefully under strength; for another, the troops were close to exhaustion from two solid weeks of continuous patrolling. In Thomas Bledsoe's estimation, they were ill prepared to take on a fresh, well armed and well trained VC regiment, even in an ambush. And all that was if you could believe the source of the intelligence on which the plan was based. Bledsoe returned to his position in the center of his platoon and dug a C Ration out of his rucksack. He sighed when he saw what he was having for supper: ham and lima beans, the most hated meal ever made. He fished his dog tag chain out of his shirt and used the P-38 hanging on the chain to open the beans and ham. Adding to Lieutenant Bledsoe's feelings of doom and gloom was the letter that rested like a lead weight in his top jungle fatigue shirt pocket. He didn't have to read it again, because he had the short 'Dear John' note memorized: Dearest Thomas, There is no easy way to break this news to you, so I'll just come right out and say it. I have fallen in love with someone else. It wasn't something I set out to do and I am truly sorry that this letter is the only way I can let you know that I am breaking off our engagement. You are a good man, Tom Bledsoe, and you deserve better than this. I will not insult you with any trite "I hope we can remain friends" spiel. What I will do, though, is wish you good luck in that horrid place and I will continue to pray for your safe return. Fondly, Cynthia He had felt this coming, based on the infrequency and vagueness of her letters the last two months, but that did not make the reality any less painful. Cynthia Taylor made his Basic Training Drill Sergeant's favorite marching cadence come true: "Ain't no use in going home; Jody's got your girl and gone..." Bledsoe shook those thoughts from his mind and reset his thinking back to the task at hand. There would be time to lament lost love later; right now he needed to focus on keeping thirty-two men and himself alive for another twelve hours. ------- All of Lieutenant Bledsoe's concerns became horrible reality shortly after midnight, when the top of the hill erupted with small arms fire. The first few rounds were from the M16s of the Observation Post he'd deployed on top of the hill. Their fire was returned immediately by a withering fusillade of AK-47 rounds. Bledsoe sat up quickly and turned to his radio operator as his platoon sergeant dashed off towards the uphill section of the perimeter. Sergeant First Class Wilson was on his way to assess the threat. Bledsoe would join him as soon as he informed the Company CP that the platoon was in contact. "Call the weapons platoon, Jimmy, and tell them we are under attack from the West. Tell them I need illum (illumination mortar rounds) ASAP and stand by with H-E (High Explosive) on RP (Reference Point) one," Tom told his radio operator, his voice calm as he could make it. The RTO nodded, keyed the mike and relayed the message while Bledsoe was talking urgently to his weapons squad leader. "Bring the other M-60 up on the left of second squad, Mikey, and have them lay it in for FPF (Final Protective Fire). I think this is going to get ugly quick, so I'm going to run our IAD (immediate action drill) for breaking contact." The young sergeant nodded curtly and took off down the hill. Bledsoe started moving in the opposite direction, his RTO one step behind him. They hadn't moved ten feet, when a couple of flares popped into life over the top of the hill. Both men froze in place as the brightening flares backlit dozens of VC guerillas boiling over the hill. Bledsoe grunted and grabbed the radio handset from his RTO. He took a breath to calm himself and keyed the microphone. "FDC this is Starfish two-six, fire mission, RP one, H-E, troops in the open, over." The fire direction center repeated his fire mission and Tom confirmed a good copy. Twenty long seconds later, a single 81 millimeter, high explosive mortar bomb detonated near the top of the hill. Tom did a quick estimate of the rapidly advancing guerillas and made a gun sight correction. "FDC this is two-six, drop two hundred, fire for effect." The FDC repeated his correction back and told Tom to stand by. Fifteen seconds later, a different voice was on the radio. "Two six this is four-six, authenticate danger close fire mission, over." Tom's blood throbbed in his temple as his adrenalin surged. "Goddammit Stew, I got a battalion of Charlies pouring over the top of this hill, and no time to dig out my authentication key list so quit fucking me around!" he shouted into the headset. Tom started moving forward again without waiting for a reply. He knew that Rick Stewart, the Weapons Platoon Leader would fire the mission, authenticated or not. That he was calling for a fire mission fifty meters in front of his position was bound to get everyone in the company's undivided attention. Rounds started dropping thirty seconds later, the explosions close enough to cause a shower of dirt and vegetation to rain down on the beleaguered paratroopers. Tom had a moment of hope as the wave of advancing VC faltered, but a lull in the mortar fire, coupled with the blossoming of illumination rounds on the opposite hill erased it. This was no accidental engagement, because it looked as if Chang's platoon was in the same predicament as Tom's. Since the weapons platoon only had three mortars, they were not going to be able to keep up the volume of fire the second platoon needed. The young lieutenant used the brief respite to make a decision and put it in motion. He waved over the platoon sergeant and the squad leaders for the weapons and second squad. Once assembled, he quickly gave them their marching orders, starting with the second squad leader. "Vasquez, on my signal, start pulling your men out of the line one at a time and beat feet down hill a couple of hundred yards. Find a place to cover the rest of the platoon so they can disengage." He turned to the weapons squad leader. "Mikey, you stay with the M-60 you brought up and control its movement. When I shoot off a green pen-flare, you disengage and move down with Sergeant Vasquez." Tom paused before he gave the order to his platoon sergeant. Sergeant First Class Wilson was an old veteran, hell, he'd even fought in Korea. He had probably forgotten more than Tom knew. In their IADs, the platoon sergeant normally controlled the screening element during the movement from contact. However, Wilson was only four weeks from his DROS (Date of Return from OverSeas) and he had a wife and three kids at home waiting on him. As of mail call two days ago, Tom had no one. He looked Wilson in the eye and addressed him, "Sergeant Wilson, you are the only person here that can get the platoon off this hill in one piece, so do it. I'll stay with the second M-60 and buy you some time." Wilson studied the young lieutenant for a few heartbeats then saluted smartly. "Airborne L-T," was all he said. Wilson did his job almost perfectly, suffering only a handful of casualties. Unfortunately, three of those casualties were Bledsoe and the two-man machinegun crew he was controlling. They became casualties when an RPG-7 rocket propelled grenade hit their position. The machine gunner and his assistant were killed instantly. Bledsoe survived, if you want to call it that. See, besides hurling him twenty feet into the trunk of an ironwood tree, a fragment from the rocket, ironically about the same size and shape of the lima beans he hated, penetrated the lieutenant's skull at his left temple. The white hot, fast moving piece of metal scrambled Thomas Bledsoe's brain just as effectively as an egg beater. ------- The unpleasantness on hills 887 and 895 was saved from being a debacle by a quick thinking Air Force Forward Air Controller (FAC), attached to the battalion headquarters. The FAC managed to divert an AC-130 Spectre gunship that was loitering over the Ho Chi Minh Trail to their location. The gunship's infrared sights had a plethora of targets, because the VC regiment knew where the battalion was deployed, and was executing a large scale envelopment. The whole exercise, intelligence included, had been part of an elaborate Viet Cong trap. Belching death at seventy rounds a second, the Spectre's four Vulcan cannons broke up the attacking Viet Cong formations and sent them scurrying back to Laos. Bravo Company suffered twenty six paratroopers killed in action, most of them from the first platoon. One of the KIA's was Jerry Chang. At first light the next morning, Sergeant First Class Wilson and every ambulatory member of the Second Platoon trudged back up the hill. The platoon was walking point for Alpha Company, instead of standing down with their own company, because they weren't about to leave three of their brothers up on that God forsaken pile of dirt. Wilson and his men did find their three missing soldiers. The two machine gunners were dead, but to everyone's surprise and delight, the Lieutenant was still alive. He was unconscious and unresponsive, but he had a strong pulse. The platoon medic and a medic from Alpha Company stabilized Bledsoe, started an IV drip, filled out a casualty card and called for a medivac. SFC Wilson went through the lieutenant's pockets and removed his personal effects so they wouldn't disappear when his clothes were disposed of, then he carried one end of Bledsoe's litter to the landing zone. Wilson watched as the Huey medivac flight rose into the air, spun 180 degrees and sped towards the 173d Airborne Brigade's headquarters near the city of Pleiku. When the chopper disappeared over the hill, Wilson formed up his men and once again started down the hill. Sergeant First Class Troy Wilson was a battle hardened career soldier. He had joined the Army when he was sixteen, partly to escape the coal fields of Eastern Kentucky and partly because he saw it as a duty. Wilson was mentally and physically tough. He was as hard as woodpecker lips, but he was fair and honorable. The men of his platoon respected the hell out of him, and were scared to death of him. The fact that Tom Bledsoe stayed in his place during the withdrawal was not lost on Wilson. He thought about it all the way back to the base camp. The combination of Bledsoe's unselfish actions and Wilson's strong sense of honor were probably what motivated him to fire off a reply to the letter he found in the lieutenant's pocket. Miss Taylor, As you are no doubt aware, Second Lieutenant Thomas Bledsoe was seriously wounded in action eight days ago. The latest information I have is that he is in a coma and on his way back to the States. What you probably don't know is that the lieutenant deliberately put himself in harms way to allow the rest of us to escape from an attack by a numerically superior force. Specifically, he stayed in my place because I have a wife and children back in Kentucky. I will leave it to your conscience to tell you if your actions might have influenced his decision. All that aside, I am returning to you the enclosed letter I found in Lieutenant Bledsoe's pocket right before he was med-evaced. I read the letter and all I can say is you must have found a hell of a man to have tossed Tom Bledsoe aside as you did. Sincerely, Troy A. Wilson Sergeant First Class US Army ------- Comatose Second Lieutenant Thomas Bledsoe was categorized as a critical care patient, and was quickly passed up the medical evacuation channels, all the way to Brooke Army Medical Center, Fort Sam Houston, Texas. He was evacuated to Brooke because it was the home of the Military Institute for Surgical Research. Some of the best neurosurgeons in the world practiced their craft at the Institute. The dual nature of the lieutenant's extensive head injuries would require the services of the very best surgeons, just to keep him alive. Bledsoe not only had the chunk of metal rattling around in his temporal lobe, he also had severe blunt force trauma to the cerebellum, from being hurled into the ironwood tree. ------- A Major from the Casualty Notification Branch telephoned the next of kin listed on Bledsoe's emergency data card, and broke the news to Lieutenant Bledsoe's sister, his only living relative. Telephone notification of the next of kin was standard procedure for those wounded in action; only dead soldiers rated a personal visit. Tom's sister did not take the news well. Beth Taylor was nine years older than her brother Thomas. She was married and had two children. Her husband was a firefighter and she was a stay at home mom. The home in which she stayed was the home of her and Thomas's deceased parents. Their mother had died five years earlier from breast cancer. Their father, a Station Captain for the Country Fire Department, had been killed two years later, when the roof of a burning warehouse collapsed on him. Beth had been having premonitions of something happening to Tom for two weeks, since that silly bitch Cynthia had handed Beth her brother's engagement ring. Cynthia had tried to smooth over her breaking of the engagement, because Beth was married to her oldest brother, Wayne. "I hope this doesn't affect our friendship, Beth. It would only hurt Wayne if you held this against me," Cynthia said. Beth gave her a withering look and pointed towards the door. "He'll get over it," Beth said through gritted teeth. As soon as she was off the phone with the Casualty Assistance Officer, Beth called Wayne. Wayne called one of his fellow firefighters to complete his shift, and sped home to be with his distraught wife. Beth wanted to rush off to Texas to be with her baby brother, but Wayne talked her out of that course of action. "He's in a coma Honey, and won't know you are there anyway. Why not wait until he regains consciousness, then go see him?" Beth understood right away that Wayne's suggestion was the way to handle it. She didn't like the idea of sitting home doing nothing, yet what could she do anyway? That afternoon, she and Wayne took turns on the telephone, until they tracked down her brother. She even felt a tiny bit better after talking to the compassionate sounding chief nurse on her brother's ward. Beth religiously called the nurses' station on the ward twice a week after that. ------- Thomas languished in a coma for almost four months. While he was unconscious, he underwent three brain surgeries to repair some of the damage from the shrapnel in his temporal lobe, and to relieve the pressure from the swelling of his cerebellum. Lieutenant Bledsoe also received what the Army euphemistically called 'facial reconstructive surgery' while he was on the operating table for surgeries two and three. It was, in reality, plastic surgery to fix up some of the damage to his face caused by the exploding rocket. The plastic surgery was at the insistence of the nursing staff on Bledsoe's ward. Thomas Bledsoe became a cause for the nurses on Ward 4B. For some reason, they all felt compelled to do their absolute best for the forlorn young soldier who seemed so alone in the world. The doctor assigned to do the facial surgery had been in the Army for only a few weeks. He was too new to know that in effect, females ran the military health care system. Doctors came and went, but nurses and administrative staff, ninety-eight percent of whom were women, stayed and kept the system running. So anyway, Doctor Irving Glickman received a copy of Thomas Bledsoe's chart and instructions to consult with the patient for facial reconstruction. All that was fine, until Glickman saw that his patient was in a coma that bordered on being a persistent vegetative state. Glickman reported that fact to Colonel Hunter, the Chief of Surgery. Glickman's argument was that it was a waste of the procedure because the patient might never regain consciousness. Hunter reviewed the chart and frowned when he saw that his counterpart, the Chief of Nursing, had actually requested the surgery. "I don't disagree with you Captain, but this operation was proposed by Colonel Phipps and I am not going to countermand her decision. If you really have a problem with this, you need to take it up with her," Colonel Hunter said. That is exactly what Glickman did. Ironically, he tracked down the Chief of Nursing as she was walking rounds on the same ward on which Bledsoe was a patient. In the medical world Glickman came from, nurses wielded much less power than they did in the military. With that mindset, he approached the three women standing in front of the nurses' station. He determined which one was Phipps by her insignia of rank. Using what he thought was proper protocol, he broke into their conversation. "Excuse me Colonel Phipps, but I'd like to speak with you about the extraneous surgery your staff seems to feel qualified to recommend for this patient named Bledsoe," he said. Sarah Phipps was a small woman, standing five foot one and weighing one hundred and five pounds. She was forty-four years old, and on the fast track to become the Commander of the Army Nurse Corp, one of the two Brigadier General positions open to women in the Army. Sarah's stature and delicate features made her look years younger than her actual age. The same traits also caused people to assume she was as delicate as she looked. Doctor Irving Glickman was about to find out that nothing was farther from the truth. Colonel Phipps looked up into Glickman's face and skewered him with her piercing blue eyes. "Really?" She said and then she turned towards one of the other nurses. "Margie, you recommended the procedure, didn't you?" Margie was Major Margaret Wilcox. Major Wilcox was married to Lieutenant Colonel David Wilcox, the Chief Orthopedic Surgeon at the hospital. Wilcox was about a foot taller than her boss and a few inches taller than Glickman. Glickman's eyebrows climbed into his hairline at the hostile tone of the nurse's reply. "Yes ma'am, I did. If the doctor had read the complete chart for Lieutenant Bledsoe, he'd have seen that the prognosis for regaining consciousness is very good. I thought doing the facial surgery while undergoing another procedure would save time, money and most importantly, discomfort for my patient later." Colonel Phipps thanked the Major and dismissed her and the other nurse. When her nurses were out of earshot, she fixed Glickman with that steely gaze again. "You just used up your one free pass with me, Captain. In the future, you had better be more tactful and respectful with my nurses, or I'll have you shipped off to somewhere cold, lonely and unpleasant ... got it?" Glickman gulped and nodded contritely. Four months after he was wounded and sixteen days after his third bout of surgery, Thomas Bledsoe woke up. He woke up in a panic, lying in a strange bed in a large room with three other head injury patients. Bledsoe was paralyzed on his left side and unable to speak. He had no memories past the age of twelve, and a mental age that corresponded to his memory. The paralysis and speech problems were a result of the trauma to his cerebellum; the rest was caused by the metal fragment that penetrated his temporal lobe. A year's worth of physical and speech therapy had him walking and talking almost normally. Unfortunately, there was nothing anyone could do about his other problems. Beth Taylor did not come out to San Antonio until two months after Thomas woke up. On the advice of the ward nurses, she forced herself to stay home until her brother could at least say hello to her. It was a strained meeting between the siblings, because Thomas was floundering over learning that his parents were both dead. His last memories were of being home with them, right before waking up in the hospital. Beth was shocked and saddened that her brother was so mentally challenged, but pleased that he at least remembered who she was. Thomas's memories of his older sister were from when he was twelve. Back then, she was just another adult with whom he had to deal. They had not become really close until he was an adult himself. Beth returned to Florida with a heavy heart. It would be a strain for her to take care of him and her own children, yet he was family, so she was determined to make it work. Seventeen months after he was wounded, First Lieutenant Thomas Bledsoe was discharged from the Army. He was officially classified as permanently medically retired. His departure from the hospital caused many mixed emotions, both for Bledsoe and for the staff of Ward 4B. Thomas was frightened at having to face a world in which he was at such a disadvantage, but determined to make his own way. The nurses, medics and orderlies on the ward were sorry to see him go. When the women discussed it among themselves, they were all amazed at the strong feelings they had for him. To a woman, they felt attracted to him as a man, yet protective of him as if he were a child. As a long term patient in a military hospital, Lieutenant Bledsoe was assigned to the Medical Holding Company for command, control and administration of his records. The Medical Holding Company did a very thorough job of activating his VA disability benefits, computing his pay and allowances, and documenting his awards and decorations for his military records. The only hiccup in the process was the actual discharge day itself. The captain who commanded the Medical Holding Company thought it would be easier on all involved if Bledsoe did not put on a uniform for his discharge. The Captain did not think it appropriate to put an officer's uniform on a mentally challenged man with the intellect of a twelve year old. The plan was to simply give him his awards, final pay and retirement paperwork, and send him home to his family in Florida. It was a plan that didn't stand a snowballs chance in hell when the nurses on Ward 4B got wind of it. Before the flag was lowered on that same day, Colonel Phipps met with the Brigadier General who commanded the hospital. The upshot of the conversation was that First Lieutenant Thomas Bledsoe, wearing a khaki uniform, was retired during a ceremony on the hospital parade field. During the ceremony, he was presented with the Silver Star and Purple Heart he earned on hill 887. After the ceremony, three of the nurses drove Thomas down to the bus station and waited with him as he purchased a one-way ticket to his sleepy little seaside hometown of Palmdale, Florida. Thomas was taking the bus because it was medically inadvisable for him to fly. The ticket he purchased required he change buses in Dallas, and again in Jacksonville, but the nurses had confidence in his ability to do that. Thomas's mind was slow, but he was very responsible, and he was excellent at following directions. That, my friends, should have been the end of the story. You've surely heard these sad tales before where only two things seem to happen. In one, Thomas goes back to his hometown and moves in with his sister. He finds a little job and carves out an existence for himself that brings him some limited happiness and satisfaction. In the other, he becomes just another tossed aside mentally deficient veteran living in a cardboard box under an overpass. Either way, it should have been the end, but it wasn't, and the fault lay squarely with Louis L'Amour. See, Thomas Bledsoe's brain had reverted back to the age of twelve, complete with an encyclopedic knowledge of cowboy lore, as espoused by his favorite writer, Louis L'Amour. L'Amour's tales of the old west fired young Tom's imagination from the age of ten, until he reached puberty and discovered girls. Now here he was in Texas, the center of the cowboys' universe. Yes, he planned on eventually going home, he'd promised too after all, but who could blame him if he made a stop or two on the way? That was Thomas's mindset, when the bus pulled into a small station about half way to Dallas. "Welcome to Brantley — the Cowboy Capital of Texas," Thomas read out loud..."Perfect," he said to himself as he stood on the curb with his duffle bag and watched the Greyhound pull away... ------- Chapter 2 Tommy effortlessly tossed the fifty pound sack of Purina fortified feedlot grain onto the pallet resting on the forklift's blades. Then he pulled the order ticket from the bib of his denim apron and compared the number of sacks on the pallet to the number on the ticket. The count matched, so he took his pen out of his shirt pocket and carefully made a check mark next to feedlot grain. The grain was the last item on the ticket, so Tommy climbed onto the forklift and carefully maneuvered it through the warehouse to loading dock two. Driving the forklift was something Tommy had been doing for only a couple of weeks. He was extremely proud that Mister Fricke, the owner of Brantley Feed and Seed, taught him how and then trusted him enough to let him drive it unsupervised. A mud splattered Silverado pickup truck was backed up to loading dock two. Tommy raised the blades and inched the pallet forward until it was suspended over the bed of the truck before he turned off the forklift. He climbed out of the driver's seat and hopped into the back of the truck. From the truck bed, he plucked the bags of grain, oats and cracked corn off the pallet, and stacked them neatly between the wheel wells. When Tommy finished loading the grain, Horace Fisher, the owner of the truck, stepped out of the cab with his hand extended. "Good job, Tommy, tell your stingy boss I said he needs to give you a raise," Fisher said jovially. Tommy only hesitated a second as he shook Fisher's hand. "I'll tell him that right away, Mister Fisher," Tommy replied with a grin of his own. Tommy had hesitated before answering Fisher, because he was trying to figure out if Horace was joshing him or not. Tommy still had problems with figuring out when adults were serious or just kidding around. Tommy checked the time on his cheap plastic Timex watch as Fisher drove off. It was five minutes before five in the afternoon, and Brantley Feed and Seed closed at five. Tommy pulled down both loading dock overhead doors, parked the forklift and disconnected the propane tank. Then he grabbed a broom and quickly cleaned up around the stacks of feed from which he'd been pulling bags. He swept everything up into a pile, scooped up the pile with a coal shovel, then dumped the sweepings into a twenty gallon trash can. Tomorrow, Mister Fricke would take the can home and scatter the dirt and feed mix around his chicken coop. Mister Fricke did not waste anything. It was five after by the time Tommy pulled off his apron, hung it in his wall locker and picked a few stray hay straws off his Levis. He walked across the warehouse and passed through a double set of swinging doors into the showroom, then down a short hall to Mister Fricke's office. It was Friday, and this particular Friday was payday. Mister Fricke waved Tommy into the office and pointed to the chair beside his desk while he finished taking a telephone order. Before he could sit down, the occupant of the other desk in the room stood up and hugged Tommy's neck. Fricke shot the breeze with his customer for another minute or two, before hanging up the phone. He picked a couple of envelopes off his desk blotter and handed one of them to Tommy. "You are the best worker I've ever had, Tommy, business has picked up since you've been here, and much of that is because of how good you treat folks. The raise is me and Missus Rita's way of thanking you. Oh, and here is your customer service bonus, I had some good reports on you this week," Fricke said, handing over the other envelope. The customer service bonus was only seven dollars, and was really just money people had given Fricke for Tommy, because Tommy absolutely refused to accept tips for doing what he was already getting paid to do. Rita Fricke beamed him a big smile and ruffled his hair. Harold and Rita Fricke, for all practical purposes, adopted Tommy three months ago, when he showed up with the help wanted sign in his hand that Harold had just put on the outside of the front door. Harold Fricke had been leery about hiring the young man because of the halting way he spoke. Rita Fricke had no such problem, as everything about Tommy and the story he told them tugged at her heart strings. Tommy ended up filling a big void in their lives, since their own children had grown up and moved off to Dallas and Houston. Tommy proved to be a tireless worker who needed little supervision. Harold or Rita simple gave him a list of things they wanted done, and Tommy made it happen. After he learned how the warehouse worked, Tommy started taking the initiative and the daily list grew shorter. Tommy also learned about the feed store's products and customers. His cheerful good nature was infectious. Tommy walked out of the Feed and Seed, crossed the street, doffed his brown straw Stetson hat and entered the Brantley Savings and Loan Bank. He stopped at one of the courtesy tables and carefully filled out his deposit slip, then stood patiently in one of the teller lines. The bank stayed open until six on Friday evenings, and did a brisk business. The line Tommy was in wasn't the shortest, but the teller at the window was his landlady and mother of his best friend. Her name was Betty Lou Grimes. "Good afternoon Mister Bledsoe, it slipped my mind that today was your payday," Betty Lou said with a smile. "Good afternoon to you too, Missus Grimes," Tommy said, barely stuttering at all. Tommy loved the way that his friend Bucky's mother talked to him. She never talked down to him or treated him like he was a dummy. Bucky didn't either, for that matter, but some other people sure did, including Bucky's older step sister. Of course, she never did it around Bucky or his Mom, and Tommy never ratted her out for it. How could he tattle on her when he was totally in love with the beautiful older girl? Tommy completed his transaction at the bank and headed home. It was only a couple of blocks to the Grimes's house over on Spring Street. In 1969, in the sleepy little town of Brantley, Texas, pretty much everything was only a few blocks away. Tom whistled the new Merle Haggard song that he'd been hearing on the radio lately as he walked home. He liked to whistle or sing, because the rhythm of it came effortlessly, unlike his speech. Tommy also reflected on the last three months as he swung down the sidewalk. Even a dummy like him knew how lucky he was when he jumped off that Greyhound bus in front of the Brantley Post Office. It seemed that good things just kept happening to him here. For instance, on the bulletin board at the post office, he found a three by five index card with a neatly typed message. The card said: Basement room to let. 400 square feet with private bath & entrance. $25 weekly-paid in advance. Apply in person to Mrs. Grimes, 27 Spring Street. Tommy pulled the card off the bulletin board, and after having to ask for directions twice, finally found the modest two-story home. When he rang the bell, the door was answered by a boy near his own mental age. The boy limped and had a brace attached to his right shoe that disappeared up his trouser leg. The brace was almost exactly like the one Tommy had worn for seven months when he first regained consciousness. ------- Back at Brantley Savings and Loan, Betty Lou was thinking along the same lines as she reconciled her drawer. Her spontaneous decision to take in the shy and soft-spoken young man was so completely out of character for her, that it defied logic. As a fairly young and attractive widow, she had always been very careful she didn't provide grist for the gossip mill. In fact, the boarder before Tommy had been a sixty-six year old spinster. At first there were some raised eyebrows, but once her neighbors met Tommy, their tune immediately changed. Tommy Bledsoe's indomitable spirit and gentle good nature in the face of all his adversity, won most folks over in one meeting. Then there was the positive effect Tommy had on her son, Bucky. Well, his real name was Richard James Grimes, Junior, but Bucky was the nickname his father hung on him while he was still in the womb. Bucky had contracted polio at the age of two. As polio went, it was a mild case, but that was a moot point to a young boy who could only walk with the aid of a heavy duty brace. Bucky couldn't do most of the things boys his age did, so he became an unhappy loner. Tommy cured him of that attitude in less than a week. It was hard to feel sorry for yourself when you were exposed to a person who was worse off, but didn't let it get them down. Betty Lou had been delighted when the Frickes took a chance and hired Tommy down at the feed store. Betty Lou and Rita talked almost every day when Rita came in to do the store's banking. She was as proud as if it were Bucky that Rita was bragging about. And why not? After all, she and Bucky considered him a member of the family within a week of his arrival. Tommy started eating every meal with them. He insisted on paying an extra fifteen dollars a week to help with the food. Also, at Tommy's insistence, she gave him chores like Bucky had. To Tommy, anything that gave him responsibility was a victory for him over those who thought he was hopelessly retarded. The only friction that Tommy caused in the Grimes household was with Betty Lou's step-daughter, Regina. Regina was her deceased husband's daughter by his first wife. When Richard divorced his ex for running around on him, the ex was awarded custody of their infant daughter. When Regina was ten, the ex suddenly decided a child was too much trouble, so she gave Richard custody and disappeared. Regina was sixteen now, and a beautiful young lady. Unfortunately, she was also a stuck up snob. She oscillated between being embarrassed by Tommy, to lording it over him as if he were a servant. Betty Lou kept a close eye on Regina, so she didn't try to take advantage of Tommy. She knew that Tommy secretly mooned over Regina; he was too guileless to hide it very well. For all his difficulties being a twelve year old boy in a twenty-four year old body, Tommy was as adaptable as a chameleon. He was talking and acting as if he'd been born and raised in Brantley by the end of his second month in town. If you didn't know him and you saw him walking down the street, you'd swear he was a cowboy fresh off the ranch. ------- Yes, Tommy was doing even better than he had expected in his most optimistic twelve-year-old moments. But there had been a few bumps along the way. One of those bumps was his sister. Beth was very concerned when Tommy called her and said he was staying in Texas for a while. After that call, Beth had tried to find a way to force him to return to his childhood home in Palmdale, Florida. She called the McCulloch County Sheriff, the Department of Veteran Affairs, and even Major Wilcox from Ward 4B at Brooke Army Medical Center. The VA determined that he was competent enough to make his own decisions. The sheriff knew Tommy was in excellent hands with Betty Lou Grimes and the Frickes. It was a shock to Margie Wilcox to find that Tommy had jumped ship. The very next Saturday, she gathered up a young nurse new to the ward and drove over to Brantley to personally check on Tommy. She had a year and a half invested on ex-Lieutenant Bledsoe; he was a most special case. Tommy only worked half a day on Saturday, so he was at home when the two nurses rang Betty Lou Grimes's doorbell that Saturday afternoon. Regina answered the door and left the women standing on the porch while she called for Tommy. "Some one's at the door for you, Tommy. I think they are here to take you away," she yelled before flouncing into the living room. Tommy came up the stairs from the basement with Bucky right behind him. At the same time, Betty Lou came dashing in from the kitchen. Regina's teasing hadn't really affected Tommy, but it had Betty Lou's undivided attention. She was just about to say something when Tommy gave a whoop and dashed out onto the porch. The young nurse with Major Wilcox, Second Lieutenant Barbara Owens, went moon-eyed when a big handsome cowboy burst out the door. Her eyes grew even bigger when he snatched the Major off the ground in a big bear hug and spun her around. Introductions were sorted out and the two nurses ended up having a very pleasant visit with Betty Lou as she filled them in on how Tommy was doing. By the time the nurses bid Tommy, Betty Lou and her family goodbye, Margie Wilcox was convinced that Tommy was in the right place. She told her young protégé just that as they drove off. "I think Tommy will do even better here than with his sister. I think his sister is too worried about something happening to him to let him blossom as he seems to be doing here," Wilcox mused. Lieutenant Owens nodded her agreement. "You are probably right about that. One thing I know for sure, though, is that is a terrible waste of a fine looking man." Margie snorted in laughter. "Take it from someone who has probably given him fifty sponge baths. It is a waste of a whole lot of good man." The second bump in the road was actually caused by someone taking advantage of Tommy's immaturity and trusting nature. That someone was a no account cowhand named Walter 'Shifty' Luznar. Luznar was at the bank one payday Friday, and saw Tommy take a hundred dollars cash when he deposited his check. Since he just spent his last thirty dollars on a money order to pay a traffic fine he had hanging over his head, Shifty decided on the spot that he was just the person to help the dimwit spend all that cash. Luznar hustled after Tommy as he left the bank and stopped him out on the sidewalk. "Hey Tommy Boy, rein it in for a minute," Luznar twanged. Tommy turned around and smiled when he saw it was a cowboy he recognized from the Trevino Ranch. "Howdy Mister Luzzer," Tommy chirped happily. Shifty kept the smile plastered on his face, even though it sounded as if the simpleton called him a loser. "That's Luz-nar, boy, but hell, we're friends right, so call me Walt." It only took a few minutes for fast talking Shifty to convince Tommy that it was a great idea for the two friends to head over to Dukes Place and shoot some pool. Tommy called home as soon as he arrived at Dukes. In the normal order of things, that should have ended Tommy's evening, because Betty Lou would have chivvied him home pronto. However, at that moment in time, Betty Lou was headed up Highway 271 with two fellow tellers from the bank. The three women were going to Brownwood to see the new Charlton Heston movie, Planet of the Apes. Regina was left in charge of the house, Betty Lou didn't dare say she was baby-sitting, or the boys would have had a fit. Whatever Betty Lou called it, the results for Regina were the same. She was stuck home with her brother and his creepy idiot friend. Not only that, but she had to break a date with the dreamboat quarterback of the Brantley High School Panthers to do it. Regina was feeling sorry for herself and mad at the world when Tommy called. "Gina, I'm goofing off with some friends," Tommy said. "It's Regina to you, stupid. And no one cares where you are, anyway," Regina replied as she slammed down the phone. So you can pretty much imagine how the evening went. Luznar poured the beer into Tommy while hustling the young man shooting pool. Tommy was having a grand old time, happily stupefied after only three beers. About nine o'clock that night, Dooley Parker slipped into Dukes Place to pick up a pouch of Red Man. Dooley was checking out the crowd while he waited for old man Dukes to notice him, when he saw his good friend Harold Fricke's hired man. Tommy was drunker than a hootie-owl, sitting at a table with some cowboy and two rough looking women. Dooley knew all about Tommy and liked the boy, so he dropped a dime in the payphone and called Fricke's house. Rita Fricke answered the phone, because Harold was down at the VFW hall, calling bingo. To say the news Dooley conveyed angered Rita Fricke was an understatement of Titanic proportions. Rita pressed the buttons on the top of the phone to break her connection with Dooley, then she spun Betty Lou's number on the rotary dial. Regina told Rita that her mother was at the movies in Brownwood, and wouldn't be in until after ten. She also said that Tommy was off with his friends somewhere. Rita mentally tsk-tsked the girls rudeness before dialing the VFW hall. Rita told the VFW Post's Sergeant at Arms what was happening and told him to tell Harold that she was on her way to Dukes. Dukes Place was a rough and tumble cowboy bar. Bob Dukes let his patrons do pretty much as they pleased, as long as it wasn't something that would attract the law. Dukes did not see anything wrong with the conduct of Shifty and his boisterous friends, so he kept selling them beer and changing their dollar bills to quarters for the pool table and jukebox. As a matter of fact, that was just what Dukes was doing when a very concerned Rita Fricke pushed through the door. Rita's eyes swept around the room, then narrowed to tiny slits when she saw sweet innocent Tommy sitting at a table with a Lone Star long neck in his hand and a skinny, forty-year-old, teased up, bottle blonde hussy perched daintily on his knee. Rita's mandibles crunched together and her jaw muscles knotted up when she saw Walter Luznar sitting at the table with an almost identical floozy. Rita spun on her heels and hot footed it back out to the feed and seed's pickup truck. She yanked open the drivers door, folded the seat back forward and extracted a mail order Sears and Roebuck, single shot, four-ten shotgun from a rifle rack mounted in the rear window. Rita broke open the barrel and plucked three loose rounds from the floor board. She stuffed a shell in the chamber, then expertly flipped the gun closed as she walked back across the dirt parking lot towards Dukes front door. Rita Fricke was a medium sized woman in her middle forties. That night she was wearing a blue gingham dress with a white cardigan buttoned over it. Her brown hair had a few strands of grey, but her face was surprisingly youthful. To go with her good looks, Rita was normally a quiet and cheerful person. She'd been born and raised in Brantley, so most everyone knew her. However, most folks knew that sweet and proper Rita was ruthless, fearless and mean as a snake when it came to the well being of her family. Her second entrance drew much more attention than the first as she kicked the door open and marched in, toting the shotgun at port arms. Who knows what might have happened if Harold Fricke and two of his fellow VFW members hadn't tumbled through the door a few seconds behind Rita. Harold managed to talk Rita out of the shotgun, but there was no way of stopping her from confronting Luznar and dragging Tommy out of the bar. Harold sighed and handed the shotgun to Mister Dukes. "Hang on to this for me, Bob. I'll pick it up tomorrow," Harold told Dukes. Rita, Howard and the two VFW men all walked back to the pool table. Tommy gave them a lop-sided grin of recognition when they walked up. "Hello Miz Rita and Mister Harold, did you come in to shoot pool with me?" Tommy slurred drunkenly. Rita gave him a gentle smile and shook her head. "No Tommy, we came to take you home. Tomorrow is a work day, remember?" Tommy muttered unintelligibly and started to stand up. The woman sitting on his lap stopped him with a hand on his arm. "I have my car here, Tommy, so I can take you home a little later," she said. Rita gave the woman a dirty look. "Oh no, Honey, he is leaving with us. I suggest you get off his lap and make yourself scarce, before I lose what little grip I have on my temper and snatch you bald-headed," Rita said. The woman's face blanched, and she hopped off Tommy's knee as if someone jabbed her with a cattle prod. She motioned to the other woman and they both hurried to the ladies room. Rita helped Tommy to his feet and walked the unsteady young man out of the bar. She left Walter Luznar for Harold and his buddies to sort out. Walter Luznar also had the sudden urge to visit the little boys' room, when he saw the looks on the faces of Fricke and his pals. Shifty knew Harold Fricke from down at the feed store. Fricke was about six feet tall and stoutly built from years of tossing around feed sacks. The second man, a wiry, not very tall fellow with a ruddy complexion, Luznar did not know. He knew the third man, though, and that's why the urge to pee came on him. See, the third fellow was Benjamin Amos Crawford, the toughest hombre in at least four counties. Crawford was about six foot six and weighed almost three hundred pounds. He was barrel chested, had muscular arms bigger than Luznar's thighs, and hands the size of a twenty pound Virginia ham. At the moment, one of those big paws was resting heavily on Shifty's shoulder as Harold spoke. "Give me my boy's money, Luznar. I ain't asking but once." Luznar gulped and nodded emphatically. "Sure Mister Fricke, I was just holding it for him anyway," Luznar said as he pulled a wad of crumpled up bills from his pocket. Harold took the money and counted it. There were thirty seven dollars in the pile. Harold nodded to the smaller man. "Make sure that's all he has, Ramon." Ramon snapped open a leather case on his belt and pulled out a brass bound, rosewood handled Buck folding knife. He flicked open the knife one handed, and with a lightning fast motion, cut off the button that held the flap closed on Luznar's shirt pocket. Luznar sat there dumbfounded as Ramon reached into the pocket and pulled out a ten dollar bill. Harold took the money and hustled after Rita and Tommy, while Ben Crawford and Ramon Salazar escorted a babbling Shifty Luznar out of the bar. Harold drove the feed store's pickup truck over to Betty Lou's house. Rita rode in the passenger seat as Tommy slept, sprawled out in the cargo box. The Frickes parked in the driveway and waited until Betty Lou returned home. Harold teased Rita about busting into the bar with a shotgun. Now that she was over being angry, Rita was embarrassed about it. "I'll bet everyone in church will know about it by Sunday morning," she moaned. The third incident was much more serious than the first two, although according to Tommy, it was worth all that happened. The incident occurred two weeks after the episode with Shifty Luznar. It happened at noon on a Wednesday while Harold and Rita were having lunch at the Bluebonnet Diner. On the second Wednesday of the month, liver and onions was the lunch special at the Bluebonnet. Tommy and Juan Luna were holding down the fort while the Frickes were at the diner. Juan was the store's delivery driver. Tommy was helping Juan load a big order which was scheduled for delivery that afternoon. Tommy was checking off the loading ticket while Juan was out in his car eating, when a truck from the Y Knot Ranch backed into loading dock one. In the back of the truck was a young, nondescript, medium sized, mustard yellow dog. The dog wore a choke chain attached to a short piece of rope that was tied to the side of the truck bed. A cowboy climbed out of the cab and called out to Tommy. "Hey, you got something for the Y Knot?" Before Tommy could answer, one of the cats that scavenged around the store walked by the truck, and the dog jumped out of the truck after it. The problem was that the rope was too short for the dog to reach the ground. It hung there, its paws scrabbling for purchase against the side of the truck. Tommy was horrified when the cowboy started cursing and kicking the dangling dog instead of helping it. Finally, Tommy jumped off the dock and knocked the cowboy off his feet. With the cowboy out of the way, Tommy heaved the gasping dog back into the truck. The ill-natured cowboy came off the asphalt swinging. Tommy was bigger and stronger than the cowboy, but only had the experiences of a twelve-year-old. Although he was game and got in a couple of solid licks, the cowboy was whipping him pretty good. When Tommy was too dizzy to get back up, the cowboy untied the dog and threw it out of the truck. "You like him that much, you can have the piece of shit," the cowboy snarled as he climbed back into the cab. Tommy was trying to get to his feet, the yellow dog licking his face, when Harold and Rita came screeching up in Rita's 64 Falcon convertible. Rita had already raised two rambunctious boys, so she was no stranger to scrapes and bruises. She had more trouble keeping Harold from running off to do something stupid to the cowboy, than she had treating Tommy. Rita wanted Tommy to stay in the office so she could keep an eye on him. He balked about it until she allowed him to bring the dog with him. Tommy was crazy about that dog and the yellow dog returned the sentiment. Tommy named him Rex, because that was the name of the magnificent German Shepherd whose picture adorned the bags of Purina Dog Chow. There was nothing faintly regal about the young dog, but you sure couldn't prove that to Tommy. Tommy bought Rex a regular black leather collar and tossed the choke chain into the trash. He also bought a leash, but never had to use it. Rex turned out to be much smarter than he looked. It was uncanny the way he seemed to understand everything Tommy said to him. From that first day on, Rex and Tommy were inseparable. So you can see that even with the rough spots, Tommy was living as good a life as was possible, given his circumstances. Even Tommy's sister Beth grudgingly agreed to that. Everyone was proud of Tommy and pleased at the way he had adapted. Tommy probably would have lived a perfectly adequate life, had he not met Ruth Silverman, the most disliked woman in McCulloch County. Ruth Silverman discovered what all the experts at Brooke Medical Center had over looked. Yes, the shrapnel that ripped through Thomas Bledsoe's brain housing had erased anything that had happened to him after the age of twelve. The shrapnel and surgeries to remove it had also laid waste to Bledsoe's ability to learn, at least in the conventional manner. Yet the affected area was only about fifteen percent of his brain. The other eighty-five percent was just limping along and getting by. To Ruth Silverman, that was unacceptable. ------- Chapter 3 Ruth Silverman was the head librarian at the Brantley Public Library. She was everything that self-respecting Texans in the nineteen-sixties loathed: she was a know-it-all, snobby, New York, liberal, Jew feminist. She was head librarian because she'd been foisted on the long suffering citizens of Brantley as part of President Lyndon B. Johnson's Great Society initiative. The federal government offered to expand and update the Brantley library and even pay for a head librarian, provided the person was who the Department of Education recommended. The cash-strapped county government jumped at the chance and, viola ... Ruth Silverman shows up on their doorstep, three-year contract firmly in place. Ruth was no better disposed towards the citizens of McCulloch County than they were of her. When she eschewed the Peace Corp for its domestic equivalent, the VISTA program (Volunteers in Service to America), she thought she would be helping disadvantaged Appalachian children learn to read. Instead, she ended up checking out books to a bunch of hardheaded, strong willed ranchers and farmers. In the fifteen months Ruth had been in charge of the library, she had done little to improve people's opinion of her. She constantly battled the county council and school board about their restricted books list. She was aloof while performing her duties, and unfriendly when she was not working. For her part, Ruth did not much care what kind of impression she made. Her complete focus was on making her library the best in the state. To that end, she worked tirelessly, sometimes as many as seventy hours a week to cover for not having enough staff. That particular Saturday afternoon was one of those times she had to work extra hours. Mrs Purdy, the middle-aged woman who normally worked Saturdays from nine to three, was at her daughters wedding. So Ruth was sitting at the circulation desk when a gaggle of young teens came bustling through the door. As the youths were swarming the teen book section, a man she figured to be in his mid to late twenties, the same age as she, walked in. Ruth frowned when she saw the man walk directly towards the youngsters. She frowned because she had just finished reading a cautionary article in The American Library Journal. The article was all about a new type of sexual deviants who used the library as a fishing ground for young boys. Ruth's suspicions were further heightened when the man seemed to focus on a particular boy. The boy was small in stature and walked with a pronounced limp. Ruth stood up and quickly followed when the man and boy disappeared into the stacks. Ruth did not find the pair right off, because they turned the opposite way she figured they would. Instead of finding them in teen and children's (young adult fiction, alphabetical by author) books, she found them in arts and artists (Dewey decimal classification 700). Ruth knew her instincts were correct when the man appeared to be pointing to a picture in a coffee table art book titled The Sensuous Nudes of Peter Paul Rubens. Tommy really liked the library, even without the nudie picture book. He couldn't believe it took him so long to agree to go there with Bucky. He would find out where the western story books were located, and maybe check one out as soon as Bucky finished showing him the pictures of naked ladies. The pictures were great; they were making his tallywhacker hard. Bucky was showing him a picture where the woman's naked breasts were really big, when someone suddenly cleared their throat. Both boys looked up quickly, and blanched at the stern looking woman standing in front of them. Bucky dropped the book as if it were radio active. The woman pointed at Bucky. "Pick that up, put it back on the shelf and go home," she ordered. Bucky gulped, nodded and with trembling hands, put the book away. As soon as the tome slid into its slot, Bucky hustled out the door. When the young boy was safely out of the library, Ruth turned her baleful glare on Tommy. "Okay you, what are you doing here?" Ruth asked in her rudest New York voice. The mean acting woman had Tommy quaking in his boots. The fear caused Tommy to lose the ability to speak. He opened his mouth to say something, but no words came out. He licked his lips and tried again. Ruth took the man's discomfort and silence as an admission of guilt. "Cat got your tongue? Doesn't matter, because I think I had better let the sheriff handle this," she hissed. Her statement put Tommy in even more of a panic. She was calling the sheriff on him because he was looking at naked pictures. He just knew he was going to prison. He gave a strangled moan and started sobbing. Ruth was nonplussed by the wailing sobs from the grown man, and flinched back a step. The other two kids that came into the library with Bucky were edging towards the entry door, trying to leave unnoticed. That was the tableau that greeted Betty Lou Grimes when she stormed through the door, Bucky holding tightly to her hand. Betty Lou had been across the street at the Piggly Wiggly. She had been loading her groceries into her car when her distraught son ran up and told her about the librarian. When Betty Lou came in, the other kids hightailed it out the door. Ruth recognized the woman as one of the tellers at the Brantley bank. She felt a flush of pride that she had probably saved the woman's child from molestation. However, Betty Lou's reaction was anything but grateful. "What did you do to him?" Betty Lou yelled as she stomped towards Tommy and the librarian. The angry look the woman was directing at her caused Ruth a few seconds confusion. "I stopped him from luring your son into who knows what deviant behavior," Ruth primly replied. Betty Lou stopped dead in her tracts, and if possible, she became even angrier. She gritted her teeth and willed herself to calm down for the boys' sake. She managed to put on a soothing smile and addressed Tommy. "Everything is alright, Tommy; you are not in any trouble. Why don't you and Bucky go outside and play with Rex." Tommy's face took on a look of relief so heartfelt, it was almost comical. He still could not control his speech, so he jerked his head up and down and bolted for the door. As soon as the door swung closed behind Tommy and Bucky, the smile dropped off Betty Lou's face, and she rounded on Ruth. She was still madder than hell, but she had control of herself now. "Explain yourself, Miss Silverman," she snapped. Ruth cited the magazine article and regurgitated her suspicions about the grown man's conduct. She even threw in her perception that the man had as much as admitted it by the way he reacted when confronted. Betty Lou looked at Ruth as if the librarian was insane. "That man is a highly decorated former Army Officer. He suffered a serious brain injury in Vietnam, and is mentally the same age as my son. Yet, even with that against him, he still has a job and is one of the nicest people you will ever meet. He is also my ward, and my son's very best friend. You have done a cruel and hurtful thing here today." Betty Lou spun on her heels and stalked out of the library before Ruth could say another word. Ruth could actually feel the color drain from her face as she watched Betty Lou's retreating back. Good Lord, what had she done? Tommy was over the incident at the library by late Saturday afternoon. He was in the backyard, giving Rex a bath and thinking about supper. It being Saturday meant that Betty Lou was cooking Bucky and Tommy's favorite meal, chicken fried steak, lumpy mashed potatoes, biscuits and gravy. Tommy had just finished rinsing the flea shampoo off the incredible Rex, when Regina came out the back door. "Someone is here to see you, Creep," she said. Tommy looked perplexed. "Who is it?" he asked. "The woman from the library, she and mom are in the parlor talking. Why are you wasting your time on that mutt? He'll never be anything except ugly and stupid, just like you." Regina recoiled at the look Tommy shot her and she cringed when he spoke. "I don't know why I ever thought you were attractive, because you are nothing but a vindictive bitch," he snapped angrily. Regina turned and fled into the house while Tommy finished toweling Rex. Regina was stunned at Tommy's steely voice and hateful choice of words. Actually, Tommy was stunned too. The words just popped out of his head and into his mouth. As he sat and thought about it, he wasn't even sure what 'vindictive' meant. He knew it was mean to call her the b-word, but she was even meaner for calling Rex ugly and stupid. Tommy sighed and walked into the back door with Rex. He did not know what the library lady wanted, but with Betty Lou in the house, he knew he was safe. Ruth Silverman was seated on an overstuffed Chesterfield in Betty Lou's parlor, the one room in the house reserved for company. Betty Lou was sitting on the matching sofa. Ruth had come to the house on Spring Street to apologize to Tommy. She had found Betty Lou Grimes's phone number and address in the master card file at the library. Ruth had called Betty Lou an hour ago to apologize, and to ascertain Tommy's last name. Betty Lou accepted the heartfelt apology and agreed completely with what the librarian wanted to do. Tommy walked into the parlor as the two women were chatting. The room was off limits to Rex, so the yellow dog stopped and sat down in the doorway. Tommy hesitated for a second, and then walked over to where the librarian was sitting. Tommy held out his hand, palm turned slightly to the side like his mama taught him. "Good evening, ma'am, my name is Tommy Bledsoe," he said. Tommy's parents had been sticklers on the subject of manners. As a result, politeness was ingrained with Tommy. Ruth Silverman's eyebrows rose in surprise at the gesture, but she lightly pressed her hand into his. Betty Lou beamed in pride from her perch on the sofa. "Ruth Silverman, and I am pleased to meet you," Ruth formally replied. Tommy dropped her hand and waved towards Rex. "This is my dog Rex, he's not allowed in here even when he is clean. Say hello to Miss Silverman, Rex." Rex gave a woof and thumped his tail on the floor. Ruth smiled at the dog, her smile an event as rare as snow in July, then turned her attention back to Tommy. "Mister Bledsoe, I am so sorry about how I acted today, it was rude and it was wrong. Please know that it will never happen again, and that you are welcome at the library anytime. Because you left before you could get your library card, I made one for you," she said as she handed him the card with his name typed on it. It was Tommy's turn to smile as he took the card and read it. "You mean I can check out books all by myself?" he asked in disbelief. When Ruth replied yes, Tommy thanked her profusely and proudly put the card in his wallet with his military retired ID and his social security card. The card meant more to Tommy than the privileges it granted him at the library. To Tommy, the card was another accomplishment that proved he wasn't as stupid as people thought. As a result of that fateful Saturday, Betty Lou and Ruth became friends; Tommy started to use the library regularly, and Regina started treating Tommy worse than ever. However, the most important result of all was that Tommy came into contact with Ruth Silverman at least two or three times a week. Tommy loved the library, because it was always peaceful, with no Regina and her mean friends tormenting him, or even worse, making fun of Rex. The library had a great reading room with comfortable chairs, but most important, they had a slew of Louis L'Amour abridged novels for young adults. ------- The second rebirth of Thomas Bledsoe began unremarkably on a Wednesday evening in September, almost exactly two years after he was wounded. Tommy was at the library, sitting at a table reading, while his best friend Bucky was researching a term paper for his seventh grade Texas History class. Tommy finished his book and stood up to return it to the shelves, when Ruth Silverman came strolling by. "Didn't enjoy the book Thomas?" she inquired. Tommy shook his head. "I enjoyed it just fine, I just finished with it, so I'm going to get another one. Lately, these books aren't as hard to read as they were before," Tommy replied. Ruth took a look at the book and nodded. "These books have been heavily edited to make them easy for young people to read. Why don't you grab one from the regular fiction section?" Tommy looked at her and shook his head again. "I don't think I can read one of those big books. I'm not smart enough on account of my injury and all," he said softly and sadly. Ruth nodded that she understood, but something made her not want to give up on the idea so easily. "That might be, but how will you know for sure if you don't try? Why don't you go pick out a book and bring it to my desk, and we'll see how you do?" Tommy was nervous about it, but he couldn't figure out a way to avoid the librarian's suggestion. He walked into the fiction section, and found a book by Zane Grey, titled: Lone Star Ranger. He walked up to the circulation desk and sat in the chair next to the desk. Ruth gave him an encouraging smile. "Read the book for your enjoyment, Tommy. This is not some sort of test and you don't have to read aloud. If you have difficulty with a word or concept, stop and we'll talk about it. Okay?" Tommy sat down and to his amazement, the book was terrific. It was about Texas Rangers, one of his all time favorite subjects. He quickly read ten pages and had found only one word he was unfamiliar with or couldn't figure out. "Miss Ruth, what does laconic mean?" he asked. Ruth smiled and pushed a dictionary towards him. Tommy shot her an embarrassed grin and flipped open the Webster's. Ruth went about her normal duties as Tommy sat beside her, lost in his book. Every once in a while, she'd sneak a peek at him as he read. She hid a small smile as she watched his expression change with the action in the book. He'd smile or frown or look excited, based on the action he was reading. When he finished the first chapter, he asked Ruth if he could check the book out and read it at home. Ruth took the three by five card out of its sleeve on the inside back cover of the book. She stamped the sleeve with the date the book was due back, and then she filled out and filed the card itself. When she finished the checkout procedure, she asked Tommy about something she was very curious about. "Tommy, when the doctors tested you to see how much you knew, did they say anything about your ability to learn?" Tommy squeezed his eyes shut and tried to remember what the doctor had said. When he remembered, he quickly nodded his head. "Yes ma'am, Doctor Giles, the brain doctor, said the metal thing that went into my head destroyed a bunch of my brains, and that was why I was slow. He said the metal erased everything that I'd learned after the age of twelve, and he said the damage was bad enough that I was probably always going to be stuck there." Ruth tried to mask her growing excitement. She chose her next words carefully. "Yet, you have learned many new things since you've lived in Brantley, haven't you?" she prodded. Tommy thought about the last seven months and had to agree. At work in the feed store, he'd learned all sorts of things. "Yes ma'am," he said. "I even learned how to drive a forklift." Ruth nodded happily and patted Tommy's arm. "Exactly. So if you can learn things, you aren't really retarded, you are just mentally and socially under developed. I think a tutor could help you with the first, and your friends and family can help with the latter." Tommy thought about what Miss Ruth had said for the rest of that night and all of the next day. As soon as he finished work for the day, he raced over to the library to speak with her again. He had an idea of what he wanted to do and he was excited about it. The first part, finding a tutor, was very easy, because the best candidate worked right there in the Library three evenings a week. Her name was Becky Deirdorf. Becky had graduated with honors from McCulloch County High School, and was working for a year to earn enough money to enter nursing school the next Fall. Becky also worked four days a week at the Bluebonnet Diner. Becky was almost painfully shy, but jumped at the chance to earn a few extra dollars tutoring Tommy. She quoted him the same rate she made at the library, four-twenty-five an hour. To her surprise, Tommy insisted she take six. "Mister Fricke told me that you get what you pay for, and I expect a lot," he said. Tommy and Becky settled on two hours on Tuesday and Thursday evenings. Ruth Silverman provided them a reading room for their classes. Ruth also made a visit to the junior high school library and borrowed a couple of copies of some outdated eighth grade text books. On the next Tuesday night, Tommy started school again. Tommy insisted that Ruth and Becky keep secret what he was doing, in case he really was unable to learn anything. In 1969, not much was known about how the brain operated and there were no MRIs or CAT scans to highlight brain activity. Tommy's case could have shed some light on the subject, had anyone known what was happening to him. They would have learned something about memory for sure. Tommy was missing the core of his memory that had resided in his frontal lobe, but bits and pieces of information were scattered around in uninjured locations also. It was as if Tommy was a damaged reference book with the index missing. There was still information available, he just couldn't find it. Sometimes, though, the information just popped out at him. That had been the case when he lost his temper at Regina for calling Rex stupid and ugly. Out of nowhere, his brain dredged up the term 'vindictive bitch'. While working with Becky, those bits of information came to him more often, especially in the area of mathematics. In his former life, Thomas Bledsoe had been somewhat of a math whiz. He had been a mechanical engineering student in his third year of college when his father died. Thomas had to leave school for a semester to take care of his father's affairs. Dropping out cost him his student deferment from the draft and naturally, his birth date was the third number selected in the next draft lottery. Tommy breezed through eighth grade pre-algebra in only three sessions. Other subjects were slower moving, but overall he was making excellent progress. A month of steady progress convinced Tommy that he was indeed capable of learning, and was not the dummy most folks thought him to be. That fact was also apparent to Ruth and Becky. They were simply amazed at his progress. People close to him, people like Harold and Rita Fricke and Bucky and Betty Lou Grimes, saw the difference also, although they didn't know the reason behind it. Unfortunately, one thing that did not improve was his speech impediment. Even when he spoke slowly and carefully, Tommy stammered and stuttered. If he was excited, he could hardly speak at all. The speech apraxia was not a result of the shrapnel; instead, it was caused by the blunt force trauma from when he hit the ironwood tree. The apraxia was especially galling to Tommy, because he knew exactly what he wanted to say, he just couldn't eject the words from his mouth. His speech still caused most folks to think he was addled. The other thing that prejudiced some folks was his lack of maturity. That was because no matter how much math and history he learned, or how many books he read, he still had the emotional development of a bright, precocious twelve year old. And nothing except experience and time was going to change that. So that was the way things stood until Betty Lou Grimes asked Rita Fricke and Ruth Silverman to lunch to discuss their boy. The three women met for a late lunch at the Bluebonnet diner on a brisk late October day. The little crisis that precipitated the meeting was the upcoming Halloween holiday and trick or treating. Betty Lou had to explain to Tommy why he couldn't go trick or treating with Bucky. Tommy understood easily enough, but he had broken her heart with his reply. "I'm too big for some stuff and too young for everything else. Why can't I be one thing or the other?" he wretchedly moaned. The talk with Tommy made Betty Lou face what she had been avoiding, the subject of sex. With no man in her life, she needed advice from her friends about how to handle the delicate matter with Tommy. As the women sat there and talked, Rita Fricke had the idea that saved the day. Who better to tell Tommy about the facts of life than her Harold? After all, Tommy considered him a father figure anyway. Rita passed the word on to Harold, who was overjoyed with the prospect of sharing what he considered his world class knowledge of all things relating to women. "That will be no sweat, Honey-Bunny. I'll take Tommy down to the VFW Hall with me Thursday night; it's time he joined up anyway. Then we'll have a few beers while me and Ben and Ramon tell the boy the facts of life. Afterwards, we'll take him over to Conchita Delgado's place and have her demonstrate what we discussed. It'll be perfect." Rita's eyebrows had climbed up into her hairline by the time her husband stopped gushing about his plans. There was no way on Earth that sweet Tommy was going to be exposed to any of that. Just when she was working herself into a good lather, Harold held up his hands and gave her a grin. "Just kidding, Rita Maude. I'll take him aside at lunch tomorrow, and we'll have a little heart to heart." Rita whacked Harold on the arm for riling her up, then gave him a smile. "If I even suspected you of doing something like that, my loving husband, I'd sew you up in the bed sheet while you slept and beat you half to death with my biggest cast iron skillet," she said sweetly. Harold gulped and nodded contritely. Sweet voice and gentle smile aside, he knew his wife of twenty-five years meant exactly what she said. His buddy Big Ben Crawford was only the toughest person in four counties because Rita Maude Frick did not want the title. ------- Chapter 4 On Saturday afternoon, Rita Maude Fricke met with her friends Betty Lou and Ruth again. They met in Ruth's office at the library, because Ruth was once again filling in for an absent employee. Both Betty Lou and Rita were favorably impressed by Ruth's dedication to her library and her patrons. Newly divorced Margie Wilcox was also at the meeting. Betty Lou had called her the previous evening, and asked her to join them at Rita's request. As soon as they all had a cup of tea in their hands, Rita went straight to the heart of the matter. She provided background information for Margie's benefit as she went. "My husband Harold had a man to man talk with Tommy Thursday during lunch. We felt that it was time that someone had that talk with Tommy, because of how rapidly he is progressing. According to his tutor, Tommy is well on his way book learning-wise." Everyone nodded in understanding, so Rita took a breath and continued. "Harold said Tommy understood the mechanics of sex, although he has no experience, except for masturbation." Rita and the other women couldn't help but smile at Betty Lou's gasp. Rita patted Betty Lou's hand reassuringly, and looked at each woman, letting her point sink in. She had every one of the women's complete attention, including the furiously blushing Betty Lou, so she resumed her narrative. "So anyway, our boy knows the mechanics, now. What he doesn't understand, but wants to know, is how relationships between men and women work. Thankfully, Harold did not try to explain that. I mean, I love my husband to death, but like all men, he doesn't have a clue about relationships." Rita paused again while her friends all nodded emphatically in agreement. "So Tommy is making amazing progress. The Good Lord has seen fit to make things right by Tommy, I think. According to Becky, Tommy will be academically ready for college in less than a year. I think we need to make sure he is socially ready also. "So that's where we are right now," she said as she ticked off her points with her fingers. "One, our wonderful Tommy is a blank canvass. Two, he professed his love for each of us to my husband, so I know he will listen to us. Three, we all love him in return. Four, Tommy is mature enough now to learn about women. And five, who is better equipped to teach him how to treat a woman than the four of us?" The other women quickly signed onto Rita Fricke's innocent plan. They would take turns exposing Tommy to various social settings and teach him the proper way to respond in each situation. They would train him in how a woman should be treated when he took one out. Rita even had the first evening planned for that very night. She, Harold, Margie Wilcox and Tommy were going to the monthly first Saturday spaghetti dinner and dance down at the VFW hall. Tommy would be Margie's escort. Rita and Harold would be there for moral support. ------- When Tommy told Ruth Silverman about Doctor Giles's assessment of his ability to learn, he had told the absolute truth as it existed while he was in the hospital. The brain damage Tommy suffered was permanent and irrevocable. For a few months after his discharge, Giles's prognosis held true, as Tommy often had memory lapses. That was one reason the Frickies wrote his duties out for him each morning. Tommy's brain however, did not sit idly by while all this was going on. Instead, it created new memory pathways and established easily accessible nexuses to store incoming data. His brain could not repair itself, but it could adapt to make up for what had been destroyed. Because it was playing catch up for areas of the brain that had taken over twenty years to develop, Tommy's brain housing group went overboard when it created the new memory network. Madeline (Maddie) Dixon, the pianist and choir director for the First Baptist Church of Brantley, was the first person to notice the manifestation of Tommy's strange new talent. It happened the same day that Harold told Tommy the facts of life. What Maddie noticed was that Tommy sang along with the choir during practice, even though he was not a member and didn't even have a hymnal. Tommy attended Thursday choir practice, because Betty Lou and Regina were in the choir, so he and Bucky had to tag along. Madeline was always on the lookout for new choir members, especially males, so she called a ten minute break and talked to Tommy. "How do you know all the words to the songs we were singing," she asked. Tommy shrugged. "I remember them from p-p-practice last week," Tommy stammered. Madeline nodded and pressed on. "You don't stutter when you sing, just like that singer Mel Tillis." "I know," Tommy said brightly, "That's why I like to sing." That was good news to Maddie Dixon. "So sing with us, we could use a strong male voice." Tommy was pleased as punch. "Sure, who do you want me to sound like, Conway Twitty or Johnny Cash?" Maddie grinned at his response; he had picked out a couple of tough acts to follow. Maddie decided to humor him. "My husband Leo is the choir's basso, so why don't you try to be a tenor like Conway." Tommy's new memory processing apparatus not only allowed him to easily remember songs, it also internalized musical styles. As a result, Tommy became an amazingly accurate mimic. It was amazing, because using his real voice, Tommy could not sing a lick. His natural singing voice was horrible, it was raspy and nasal, and when he used it, folks cringed. It was fortunate for Maddie Dixon that Conway Twitty had released a couple of gospel albums that Tommy could draw on as a reference. In fact, two of the songs the choir rehearsed were on the Twitty records. When Tommy did Conway's version of Precious Memories, the rest of the choir fell silent in awe. Even Regina was impressed. Madeline moved Tommy to the front of the choir so he could sing the song solo, with the choir backing him. Of course, as soon as Tommy was by himself, he had stage fright so bad he couldn't make a sound. Finally, Maddie put Tommy back in the choir right next to Betty Lou. With his eyes closed and Betty Lou holding his hand, Tommy made it sound as if Conway was actually a member of the First Baptist Church of Brantley's choir. ------- It was exactly noon on Saturday, when Tommy locked up the feed and seed warehouse and trudged home. His step was slow, because his mind was working on a problem that came to his attention right before he left the store. It had started with a casual remark Rita made. "I expect to dance the first slow song with you tonight," she'd said. That simple little statement threw Tommy into a near panic, because he could not dance a step. He desperately dredged his mind for even a hint about dancing and could not find the slightest clue. He was still furiously thinking about that when he pulled open the front door and almost ran over Regina. Tommy backed up a step and started to stammer an apology when Regina smiled at him. "My fault Tommy," she said sweetly. Regina treated Tommy much better now for a few reasons. One reason was because Tommy no longer felt inclined to take any crap from her. Another was because Tommy no longer seemed such a moron to her. As a matter of fact, the guy she had called a drooling idiot was now helping her with her eleventh grade Algebra II homework. Finally, Tommy's singing in the choir Thursday night had impressed the hell out of her. Tommy had slowly changed from her little brother's retarded pal to a slightly goofy, handsome young man. "Uh, thanks, Reggie," Tommy said as he slipped past her. Regina shot him a smile at the use of her nickname and headed out. He was a couple of steps into the room and Regina was just out the door, when he had an idea. Tommy spun around and jerked open the door. "Regina," he called to her retreating back. Regina turned around and looked at him inquisitively. Tommy blushed crimson, but gathered up enough nerve to spit out what he needed to say. "Ah, do you know anyone I can hire this afternoon to teach me to dance? I'll pay them twenty dollars." Turns out Regina knew just the person he was looking for. She walked back into the house, called the friend she had been about to visit, and cancelled the trip. Then she ran up to her room and gathered up her Philco Hi-Fi portable record player and a stack of forty-five rpm singles. Regina was about the best dancer at Brantley High, and twenty bucks would buy her a very nice outfit. She moved the dining room table into the corner, pushed the chairs out of the way and set up her record player with six forty-fives on the spindle. Tommy had his doubts about the lessons at first, because the music Regina listened to was rock and roll, while the VFW crowd was into traditional country. Tommy told her that, but she dismissed his concerns. "Slow dancing is slow dancing, Tommy. Doesn't matter if it's Merle Haggard or the Beatles. Here, give me your hand and I'll show you." As in most things, Tommy was a quick study when it came to learning to dance. He was well coordinated and surprisingly light on his feet. Regina taught Tommy how to dance the way she knew old people liked, her left hand in his right, her right hand on his shoulder and his left hand slightly around her waist. Midway through the second stack, Tommy was moving smoothly enough that he actually took to leading her. It was about then that it stopped being a lesson and started being fun for Regina. When the next song started, Regina showed Tommy how to dance really close, putting her arms around his neck, placing both his arms around her waist, and snuggling up against him. "You need to learn to dance like this too, Tommy. If a woman likes you enough, this is how she'll want you to hold her," she said softly, her head resting on his muscular upper chest. Tommy felt the benefits of dancing like that immediately, as Regina's nice medium sized breasts pressed into his chest, and her coconut scented hair was right under his nose. Unfortunately, he also experienced the pitfall of such intimate contact, as his dick sprang to its full hardness in about five beats of his heart. He gasped in embarrassment and tried to step back from his partner. Regina, however, was into the dance and stepped forward, reestablishing contact. That's when she discovered what was going on. Tommy was mortified by his unwanted boner, but Regina took it in stride. It was a point of pride for her that she could make a boy pop one of those things any time she felt like it. And Tommy had the biggest she'd ever had rubbed against her. The only problem was that it tented out his jeans a good three or four inches down his left leg. This time Regina stepped back at the same time Tommy did. She glanced down and confirmed it was the largest bulge she'd ever seem. "I think you're ready, Tommy, but you better wear a jock tonight," Regina said straight-faced. Tommy gulped and nodded, his face the same color as the McCulloch County Volunteer Fire Department's new pumper, his hands fluttering uselessly down by his crotch. Regina smiled and patted his cheek. "Relax about that, Tommy," she said. "It happens to every guy I've ever danced with, and it will probably happen during your date tonight. Just don't grind it against her, and let her decide how to handle the situation. Okay?" Tommy bobbed his head up and down and dug a twenty out of his wallet. Regina declined the money with a wave of her hand. "No charge, Tommy, but tomorrow after church, you have to sing a song for Melody Graham and me." Tommy grunted and sped down to the basement, his face redder than ever. Regina smiled at his antics as he hustled away. "When," she asked herself, "did I start thinking of his shyness as cute?" She was still grinning as she collected up her records and her phonograph and headed upstairs. Melody was going to pee her pants when she heard Tommy sing tomorrow after church. Melody was Catholic, so she attended Mass at Sacred Hearts. Regina and Melody had been best friends since the first day of kindergarten. Because their last names, Grimes and Graham, were alphabetically close together, the girls ended up partners in everything. Regina kicked her bedroom door shut and put her record player on her dresser in its usual spot. She plugged it in and stacked the feed mechanism with the same songs to which she and Tommy had danced. While the record player was dropping the first disc, she locked her door and flopped down on her bed. She could not believe the tingles she was getting "down there," nor could she believe she was actually going to do something about it in broad daylight. ------- Tommy was as nervous as a gun shy dog at a turkey shoot by the time six o'clock rolled around. Betty Lou tried to calm him down, but he just couldn't sit still, and he had about a thousand questions. To make matters worse, Bucky was spending a couple of days at his grandparents' ranch, and Regina had already departed for her own date. At her wits end, she finally ordered Tommy to dust and vacuum the parlor in case someone came to visit. The clock had just crawled past six-fifty when Harold knocked on the door and dragged a suddenly very shy Tommy out to Rita's car. The Falcon was all shined up and the top was down. Rita was sitting in the passenger seat and Margie was seated directly behind her. Harold held the driver's seat forward and Tommy climbed in the back. Tommy said hello to Rita and Margie and slid onto the slick vinyl upholstery. Once he was seated, Tommy took a good look at Margie. As soon as he did, he was thankful that he'd worn his jock strap and a pair of Jockeys, because she looked really, really pretty. Margie Wilcox had invested some time in her appearance and outfit for their 'date'. Not only was it Tommy's first date since his return from Vietnam, it was also the first time she'd spent any time off-duty time with a man since she'd caught her two bit cheating husband using his dick to clear the airway of a young male medic. So Margie had a couple of items on her agenda tonight. Her primary mission was helping Tommy in his socialization skills, and the secondary was to validate that she could still capture men's attention. To make the second one a reality, she had traded her glasses for contact lenses and had worn her long, thick, chestnut hair hanging loose down her back. She wore a modest knee-length black skirt with a royal blue blouse and three inch heels. Her plan seemed to be working, because Tommy was looking at her in awe. "Gosh, you look beautiful tonight, Margie," Tommy said sincerely. Margie shot him a smile, took his hand and squeezed it. "Thank you, Tommy, you look very handsome too," she replied. Margie wasn't even aware that she never let go of Tommy's hand for the rest of the ride. Nor did it cause her any pause when Tommy took her hand as they walked to the door, letting go of her only to open the door for Rita and her. There was a good sized crowd already at the hall, but Harold led them to a nice table for eight near the dance floor, which had a reserved sign on it. Harold pocketed the card and he and Tommy seated the ladies. So far, Tommy's good manners were standing him in good stead. The other chairs at the table were for Ben Crawford, Ramon Salazar and their wives, all of whom showed up about ten minutes later. Ben Crawford's wife's name was Shirley, but everyone called her Cricket. She was all of five feet tall if she stretched, and probably weighed a hundred pounds. By contrast, Ramon Salazar was married to a good sized woman named Teresa. Margie thought that Rita had done very well in picking out the venue and table mates for Tommy's first date. The spaghetti dinner was only so-so, but the band was excellent, and the other couples at the table were a hoot. Tommy fit in, even though he didn't say much. With Cricket and Teresa at the table, the conversation never lagged. One thing that Tommy did to make the evening better was to honor Rita's request for the first slow dance. The band was still playing the song's intro, when Tommy stood up and extended his hand down to Rita. When Rita took his hand and looked up, Tommy regurgitated a line from a movie that was tucked in some cranial crevasse. "Missus Rita, may I have the please of this dance with you?" Rita's smile was Texas sized as she stood up. "You most certainly may, Mister Bledsoe," Rita answered. From that first song on, Tommy's dance card stayed filled. Rita went back to the table, bragging on Tommy's dancing skills, so Tommy had to demonstrate them to both Cricket and Teresa. Then it was Margie's turn, and she kept him on the dance floor for the rest of the set. Margie was from San Antonio, so she knew her way around a dance hall. Tommy's brain could mimic the rhythm of a dance as well as it could a song, so to Margie's delight, Tommy was soon doing the Texas Two-Step with her. Tommy had a great time that evening. Although he was slightly intimidated by the conversation that swirled around him, he remained polite and cordial. Rita was so proud she was about to burst. Margie felt the same way until the last set of the evening. Towards the end of that last set, the lights dimmed and the band strung together about five slow romantic songs. By the second of those five songs, Margie had unconsciously put both arms around Tommy's neck and draped her body on his. Since Margie was about five nine and only a few pounds short of being voluptuous, she fit against him perfectly. For some unknown reason, Tommy did not put both of his hands on Margie's waist as they swayed together. Instead, he reached across her back and played with her hair while her head was tucked into his shoulder. Margie actually purred when he did that. Tommy became erect just as quickly with Margie as he had with Regina, only this time, he did not call any attention to it. Margie held out for an entire song before she pushed her center against him so she could stay in contact with the large lump. She situated herself, sighed and kissed Tommy on the corner of his mouth. "This is perfect Thomas. It has been the best date I've been on in years and years." Tommy gave her a squeeze. Tommy had discovered earlier that he had no speech problems when he was dancing. "That's nothing," he quipped, "because it's the best date I remember ever having." Margie actually giggled at that statement. "It's the only date you've ever had that you remember, so it is by definition also the worst you've ever been on." It took Tommy a few seconds to figure out what she'd said. When he did, he laughed and squeezed her again, so that her surprisingly heavy bosom flattened against his chest. At eleven thirty, the last song faded away and the house lights grew brighter. The waitresses and bartender were sing-songing "last call for alcohol" when Margie reluctantly pulled away from Tommy. Between the dancing and the four or five cocktails she'd quaffed, Margie was flushed and breathing hard. She led Tommy back to the table, scooped up her purse and made a bee line for the bathroom with Rita in tow. After visiting the stalls, the women shared a mirror to fix their make up. Rita asked Margie how the evening was going from her perspective. Margie had to think for a minute to formulate her reply. "If how that man makes me feel is any indication, we can stop his training right this minute. Any woman would have a hard time saying no to anything he wanted tonight." Rita smiled and patted Margie's hand. "That's why we are doing this, Honey. Our Tommy deserves better than just any woman." The VFW hall shut and locked its doors at midnight, in accordance with the Texas Blue Law. So at five after midnight, Tommy and Margie were snuggled up in the back seat of Rita's 64 Falcon convertible, headed towards Spring Street to drop Tommy off. Margie glanced up front to make sure Rita and Harold were looking forward, then she turned Tommy's face towards hers and kissed him softly on the lips. Margie's plan was a short sweet kiss to show Tommy her appreciation for the wonderful date, but as soon as their lips met, that idea went out the window. Tommy was tentative in returning her kiss at first, but his lips seemed to remember what they should be doing, even if the rest of him was clueless. Margie reluctantly broke the kiss when she heard the steady click of the turn signal as Harold eased onto Spring Street. When they passed under a street light and she saw the look of adoration in Tommy's eyes, Margie suppressed a moan of frustration that they weren't alone. ------- There were a few new faces in the congregation of the First Baptist Church of Brantley that next Sunday morning. Two of the new faces were sitting with the Frickies. One of them was Margie Wilcox, and the other was Ruth Silverman. Both women were there because Betty Lou had invited them. "It concerns Tommy," she'd said mysteriously. "And you'll be glad you came." That Sunday morning, Tommy sat in the back row of the choir loft next to Leo Dixon, and dutifully added his voice to the regular hymns. When Brother Johnson reached the point in the service where a prayer was offered for departed loved ones, Maddie signal Tommy. Tommy nodded, moved forward to stand between Regina and Betty Lou, and held one of their hands. Maddie thumped out the intro to Precious Memories, Tommy closed his eyes and Conway Twitty took over his voice. One hundred and forty-seven sets of eyes swiveled to stare at Tommy in disbelief. One set of those eyes belonged to Rita Fricke. Around the third sentence Tommy sang, those eyes rolled up into her head and she swayed woozily. Thankfully, Harold caught her before she hit the floor. Rita almost fainted from the joy she felt when those beautiful sounds flowed from the young man she considered her son. She had a deep and abiding faith in her God, and every good thing that happened to Tommy renewed that faith. To Rita, Tommy was a miracle dropped into her life by a loving Savior. When Tommy started singing, Margie and Ruth looked at each other in disbelief. Not sharing Rita's faith, the two women were trying to come to terms with this newest amazing facet of Tommy. Nothing in Margaret Wilcox's medical experience could account for Tommy, nor could any of the Psych courses Ruth took as an undergrad at Vassar. ------- The four women met up again in the library at two on Sunday afternoon. They were all smiles because of the progress that Tommy had made in just three days. Margie and Rita described in glowing terms Tommy's conduct during his 'date' with Margie. Margie kept the part about the slow dancing and wonderful kisses to herself. Betty Lou told them all about the choir practice and apologized for keeping it a secret. "I wanted it to be a surprise for you, because I knew it would make you all feel good," she said. Ruth Silverman volunteered her services for the next 'date'. She had tickets for a production of Death of a Salesman for next Saturday night at the Brownwood dinner theater. The group went their separate ways after agreeing to meet next Sunday. Margie Wilcox drove back to Fort Sam Houston with much on her mind. The four days she spent in Brantley made her surer than ever that she wanted out of the Army. The people in Brantley and the tempo of life there called out to her. To top it off, the position of McCulloch County Public Health Nurse was open and waiting for her if she wanted it. She let those thoughts all run around the edges of her mind while she thought about the icing on the Brantley cake ... Tommy Bledsoe. She smiled to herself as she stared through the windshield and absent mindedly touched her lips. She was thirty-two years old and far on the other side of being a virgin, yet no one, male or female, had ever taken her breath away with a kiss as Tommy had. ------- While the women were meeting in the library, Regina Grimes and Melody Graham were providing another dancing lesson for Tommy. Melody talked Regina into the dancing, after Regina described the lesson the day before. Melody was the prototypical Catholic girl from a strict family. She was curious and awash with raging hormones. Melody's very devout Hispanic mother forbade dating, or even attending school dances, so she jumped at the chance to be held in the arms of her best friend's handsome boarder. Tommy thought it was a great idea too. He had loved dancing with Margie the evening before, and he thought the practice would do him good. He also liked the idea of having two cute girls to dance with. Melody was about the same five foot six as Regina. She had black hair and big brown eyes. She carried a bit more weight than was trendy, but those extra pounds were firmly packed and carried in all the right places. He dashed down to the basement, strapped on his jock and hustled back to the dining room. Regina was happy with the idea of dancing with Tommy again; it had felt very good being in his arms yesterday. She danced with Tommy first. They danced in the proper traditional way she taught him yesterday. When Melody took her turn, she surprised Regina by immediately throwing her arms around Tommy's neck and plastering her overripe body against his tall muscular one. When the song was over, Melody shocked Regina even more by grabbing her and dancing with her the same way. It was only natural for Melody to do that, because up until Tommy, Regina was the only person she'd ever danced with. Tommy watched the two young women dance with much interest. He noticed what each seemed to like. When it was his turn to dance with Regina, he put his hands on the swell of her hips and positioned her slightly to his right so she could move against his thigh. Regina's eyes popped open when he did that, then she sighed and adjusted herself so she could press against his hardness. By the end of the song, she was panting. Melody took Regina's place before the record had even dropped onto the turntable. Before they had taken two steps, Melody had her lips mashed against his as she swayed in his arms. For the next thirty minutes, the three of them changed partners and made out. Melody was indiscriminant with her kisses, and planted as many on Regina as she did Tommy. Once Melody broke the ice, Regina participated whole-heartedly. Who knows what might have happened if Regina hadn't heard the parlor clock strike the three quarter hour and broke up the make-out session before her mother caught them? ------- Chapter 5 The week after Tommy's dating and singing debut was just as full of wonder. The routine down at the feed store and his Monday and Wednesday tutoring sessions kept him grounded. Still, a lot happened that week. Tommy was on his way out of the library after his Monday night tutoring session, when Ruth Silverman stopped him and turned him into the reference stacks. Ruth led him halfway down the aisle then stopped and looked around to make sure they were alone. "Thomas, I have a problem I hope you can help me with," she said. Tommy's eyebrows went up that an adult would actually need his help. "I'll do anything for you Ruthie, you know that. Only you know I'm not very good at most things." Ruth smiled because Tommy loved to use nicknames. If a person didn't have a nickname, he'd worry with it until he came up with one for them. Ruthie was the moniker he'd hung on her. Had it been any other man calling her that, she'd have gone ballistic. "I think you'll be perfect for what I have in mind. See, I have a couple of tickets to the dinner theater in Brownwood for next Saturday night. I don't have an escort for the event, so I thought you might accompany me. You'll have to wear a suit, but I think you will enjoy the play and the meal." Tommy thought about it for a minute, then beamed a boyish grin. "I don't have a suit," he said, "but I'll bet Missus Rita will help me with that." Tommy's grin and enthusiasm shot an unexpected jolt of pleasure through Ruth's body. Without conscious thought, she stepped forward and gave him a lingering kiss on the lips. When she stepped back, her face was flushed with embarrassment and something else she found hard to identify. She recovered quickly and gave him a return smile. "That's great. Tell Rita I'm wearing a black cocktail dress. You'll have fun, Thomas, wait and see." The next day, Rita was more than willing to help Tommy shop for a suit. She knew exactly what Ruth was wearing, because Ruth had called her the night before to give her a heads up. Rita was ecstatic that Tommy had thought of her helping him all on his own. When Rita told Harold about the shopping expedition Tuesday morning, he bitched and whined that it should be his job to take Tommy to buy a suit. That cracked Rita up. "You know you have terrible taste, Harold Fricke. You can't even be trusted to pick out your own underwear." Rita took Tommy to the big JC Penney store at the Brownwood Mall that very afternoon. They came away with a very nice traditional cut, dark grey suit, along with a white shirt and burgundy paisley tie. Of course, Tommy then needed something to go on his feet that matched the suit. He was happy as hell when Rita agreed with his choice of a pair of black Dan Post cowboy boots. Tommy did not even flinch at writing out the check for two-hundred and fifty dollars. Rita thought Tommy was the most handsome young man in Texas when he modeled the suit for her. They took the suit with them, as Rita said she would hem the pants and coat cuffs herself. Tommy received more than a little good natured ribbing from Harold, Ben Crawford and Ramon Salazar when they all had lunch at the Bluebonnet Diner the next day. Big Ben was especially wound up. "You need a license, Tommy boy, so you can take your date sparking after the show. When you let the women drive, they head straight home," he teased. This was one of those occasions where Tommy couldn't differentiate between serious and teasing, so he nodded glumly. "I know," he lamented, "only who would give me a license?" Harold saw Tommy's dejected look and immediately had a thought. "Why the Great State of Texas, that's who," Harold declared. To match action to words, the three friends dragged Tommy down to the McCulloch County DMV, snagged him a study guide for the written test and secured him a learner's permit. Tommy started memorizing the traffic regulations and safe driving instructions before Ben could maneuver his big Lincoln out of the DMV parking lot. Harold had Juan Luna, the delivery driver, give Tommy driving lessons. The feed store's pickup was a two year old GMC with a straight six and three speed on the column. Tommy learned quickly as his muscle memory fell into the old patterns of lightly releasing the clutch while feeding the engine a little gas. Within an hour, he was driving around the block. ------- Tommy learning to drive was another step in his regaining his adulthood. The only real downside to him maturing so rapidly was his friendship with Bucky Grimes. Oh, he and Bucky were still friends, no question about that, but the number of things they had in common were rapidly dwindling. Bucky was much more stoic about it than Tommy was. One hugely important result of the friendship between Tommy and Bucky was the improvement in the strength in Bucky's polio atrophied left leg. Bucky was out of his brace by then, and into a high-topped walking shoe with a thickened sole and heel. Tommy and Bucky still walked up and down the stairs to the basement twenty-five times every morning and evening. They climbed the stairs backwards, forwards and both sideways. Then they sat on the bottom step and did leg lifts with progressively heavier weights. Bucky was psyched that he would start high school without a brace and just maybe, without a limp. Betty Lou Grimes thought Bucky's progress was nothing short of miraculous, and she credited it all on Tommy. Betty Lou was shocked at times by the strength of the emotions she felt for her handsome young boarder. Sure, she was grateful to him for what he'd done for Bucky, and his steady financial help had solved her money woes, but her feelings were well past gratitude. She actually had to avoid him at times to keep from appearing flustered. Regina's feelings were not nearly as complex as her step mother's. Regina and her best friend Melody were simply hot for Tommy's body. Melody and Regina started hanging out at the Grimes's house most of the time. The two were constantly conniving situations that put one or both of them alone with Tommy. Getting Tommy alone was much harder to do than the girls had planned for it to be. Bucky and Betty Lou seemed to always be around or else Tommy was at the library or work. Regina was the one to figure out the library angle. ------- In the evening of the Wednesday that Tommy was issued his learners permit, Regina schemed up a need to visit the library while Tommy was there with his tutor. She actually did need to do some research for a history paper anyway. So what if she had study hall in the high school's library five days a week? When Tommy walked to the door to head for home, Regina was waiting for him. "Can you walk me home, Tommy? I promised mom I wouldn't walk by myself." She asked sweetly. Tommy nodded, and even better, he took her books from her and carried them as they walked. Halfway home, Regina cut through a small park dedicated to the man for whom the town was named. That man was Confederate Colonel Rufus Reed Brantley, better known as 'Old Rough and Ready'. Colonel Brantley was the commander of the 46th Texas Irregular Cavalry during the Civil War. The men of the 46th called themselves the Rough and Ready Raiders. Colonel Brantley never had more than a hundred men in his command, yet he had been a colossal thorn in the side of the Union Army in the far west. It wasn't ancient Texas history on Regina's mind that night, however, as she led Tommy to a park bench under a drooping willow tree. "Let's sit here and talk for a minute Tommy, the evening is too beautiful to rush home." Regina said. Guileless Tommy agreed. It was in fact, a gorgeous early November night. The weather was unseasonably warm, and a huge Hunter's Moon seemed as if it were close enough to touch. Regina had plotted the exact place for them to sit, because the large statue of Brantley on a rearing horse and the low hanging willow branches hid the bench from passersby. As soon as they were seated, Regina snuggled up to Tommy and sighed contentedly. The thing that was so great about Tommy was that she felt safe with him. She knew that anything that happened would be at her speed and her instigation. She smiled to herself and instigated a scorching kiss. Tommy was so shy, he needed a little push to get him started, but his kisses made the blood sing in her veins. She liked the kisses enough that she grabbed his hand and put it on her breast, outside her clothes of course. Tommy's breath caught in his throat when she did that, but his hand seemed to know just how to knead her pliant orb. Regina moaned into his mouth when he gently squeezed her bullet-hard nipple between his thumb and forefinger. Melody was the only other person who had ever made her feel that good. As a matter of fact, all the evening was missing to be perfect was Melody sharing it. Regina had a solution to that for tomorrow night after choir practice though. Regina broke up the make out session after another five minutes, after she had a small but satisfying climax. It was the first she'd ever experienced with a boy and it was just from a little second base petting and kissing. She couldn't wait to tell Melody. On Thursday, Tommy spent his lunch hour with Juan Luna driving the feed and seed truck out on highway 931. Tommy was nervous, but focused on driving and remembering the rules of the road he'd memorized the evening before. Juan thought it was a hoot that Tommy gave hand and arm signals as well as utilizing the trucks regular turn signals. Choir practice that Thursday night was much easier on Tommy than the first one had been. Part of the reason for that was Bucky's decision to also join the choir. Tommy talked him into it by mentioning that Bucky would have more in common with petite and pretty thirteen-year-old Shelia Franklin if he did. Bucky and Tommy had spent an hour down in Tommy's basement room, talking about girls and sex earlier that day. Tommy shared Harold's explanation of the mechanics of sex with Bucky. Bucky filled Tommy in on all he'd heard about girls and getting some. Stuff like hickeys: were okay if they weren't on the neck, and girls with big boobies liked sex more. Tommy took it all in with wide-eyed wonderment. Madeline Dixon, the director of the choir, played a record of George Jones singing a gospel song call Uncloudy Day. Tommy loved the song and mimed Jones's soulful voiced perfectly. Maddie mixed and matched voices around him until she had a version of the song that sounded better than the recording. Melody Graham was at the choir practice because she was spending the night with Regina. They were out of school for some teachers' conference the next day. When the practice was over, everyone piled into Betty Lou's Chevy station wagon and headed home. As soon as they arrived at the house, Melody remembered she had (conveniently) forgotten her retainer. Regina volunteered Tommy to escort them the block and a half to fetch the errant dental device. Five minutes later, the three of them were back on Colonel Brantley's park bench, living out Regina's fantasy from the night before. As usual, Melody pushed the envelope. In only a couple of minutes, she had her and Regina's bras unfastened and everyone one had a hand under someone else's shirt. By the time they made it home, Tommy had to hustle down to the basement and wash out his one and only jockstrap. The girls were luckier; they just kicked their sodden panties under the bed. ------- At noon on Friday, Tommy proudly drove Rita and Harold to the Bluebonnet Diner for lunch. Tommy was a safe and cautious driver, who drove a couple of miles per hour under the speed limit. That had been fine with Harold, but Rita had a different opinion. "You need to speed up a little Tommy. In Texas, the posted speed limit is just a suggestion, no one will say a word if you are not doing more than fifteen miles an hour above it," she said matter-of-factly. Harold rolled his eyes toward heaven and groaned, because Rita was the last person in the world Tommy needed giving him driving advice. Richard Petty would not drive his Super Bird racecar at Talladega as fast as Rita drove the feed store's delivery truck on highway 931. Tommy was not too sure about Rita's assertion, but he sped up a bit anyway. Rita patted Tommy's arm reassuringly and stuck her tongue out at Harold. "That's better, sonny-boy," she said. ------- Harold and Rita picked up Tommy at Betty Lou's Saturday evening and delivered him to Ruth's small cottage. Rita was like a mother hen, fussing over him as they rode across town. Tommy was very happy that the Frickes had volunteered to give him a lift, because he was so nervous, he couldn't string three coherent words together. Harold made him feel better, but the only person who could really calm him down was Rita. "Relax and be yourself, Sweetie, and everything will be fine. Treat Ruth with the respect she deserves and make the evening nice for her. She is way too serious, she works to hard and she needs some fun in her life." Tommy listened intently to her every word. He knew beyond a showdown of a doubt that Rita Fricke would never give him anything except good honest advice. Tommy hopped out of the car when they arrived at Ruth's. Rita got out of the car and gave him a final inspection. She straightened his tie and kissed him on the cheek. "You look so handsome Tommy. Have a wonderful time, ok?" Tommy surprised Rita by lifting her off the ground in a hug. "Okay ... and thanks a lot Mom," he said as he gently lowered her to the ground. Rita's smile was a mile wide when he held the car door for her as she slid into the seat. ------- Ruth Silverman looked at herself in the mirror one last time before she went to answer her doorbell. She did not quite know what to think about the apparition that stared back at her. She could not remember the last time she'd worn make up or fussed so with her hair. She had even shaved her legs and underarms for the occasion, an act of outright treason for an avowed feminist. Then she drove a nail in that coffin by slipping her feet into a pair of Gucci black patent leather pumps with three inch heels. Ruth realized that it was not just her feminist sister who would be disappointed. Her wealthy and socially elite New York friends and family would be dumbstruck by her dating a man without even one polo pony. Ruth sighed, squared her shoulders and went to answer the door. It was also not lost on her that her feelings about the evening were more complex than her new friends envisioned. She did not consider this date an act of charity by any stretch of the imagination. When she opened the door, Tommy was standing there looking as handsome as any man she'd ever seen. He smiled shyly and pulled a flower from behind his back. "I picked this for you," he stammered. The flower was a small, perfectly formed, late blooming, dark red Confederate Rose. It was the sweetest thing she could remember a man ever doing for her. She returned his smile as she took the flower from him. "It's exquisite," she said touching his hand. Tommy blushed but nodded his agreement. "They are pretty, that's why I think of you when I see them." That Tommy sincerely meant every word he said was never in doubt to her. She turned to the hall closet for her wrap to cover up the sudden jolt of unexpected arousal shooting through her. The wrap was a black silk brocaded shawl that had once belonged to her grandmother. She expertly and artfully draped the shawl over her shoulders, took Tommy's arm and led him to her car. ------- Tommy could hardly believe how beautiful Ruth looked that evening. Her hair was down for the first time since he'd met her and she very nicely filled the black cocktail dress she wore. Her high heels elevated her to five seven or so and gave muscular definition to her long slim legs. He loved the way her legs flexed as she shifted gears in her VW Beetle. The dinner was actually pretty good and Tommy enjoyed the play, even if it did make him sad. He felt really sorry for Willy Loman and he didn't care much for Biff. Tommy thought that Biff was in serious need of Rita Fricke's guidance. He enjoyed even more discussing the play with Ruth as they made the forty minute ride home. Tommy eagerly accepted Ruth's invitation to coffee at her house so they could talk some more. Ruth was great to talk to, because she made him think, and when he was concentrating, he didn't stutter nearly as much. Ruth took Tommy's suit coat and hung it with her shawl in the front hall closet. She turned on a table lamp in the small living room and sat him on the couch while she whipped them up a drink. She was back in a couple of minutes with a weak rum and Coke for each of them. Ruth joined him on the couch, kicked off her heels and folded her legs up under herself. She started off sitting a couple feet away from him, but in fewer than ten minutes of conversation, she was right up against him. Two minutes later, she was in his arms. Ruth honestly did not know how things reached that point, because she could not recall a conscious effort on her part to make it happen, and poor shy Tommy was still pressed against his end of the couch. Tommy did take the initiative and kiss her though, and the kiss was not some sisterly peck on the cheek. Ruth would marvel at that kiss for days, because it was the best she'd ever had. She so thoroughly enjoyed the kiss, that she did not even question where he'd learned that skill until three days later. One kiss led to another, then to a third. By the third kiss, the bodice of her dress was down around her waist, the cups of her strapless bra were empty and Tommy's hands were full. By the fourth kiss, Ruth's hand was full as well. Unfortunately, what her hand was full of was something she'd never felt before and the size of it scared her back to regaining her common sense. She groaned and pulled away from Tommy, her eyes wild and pleading. "We need to stop, Tommy, before I do something I'll regret tomorrow." Tommy gulped and nodded. He loved every minute of what was happening, but he was scared to death of doing something wrong. So Ruth wanting to stop was just peachy with him. Ruth had him turn around while she put herself back together. She hustled to her bedroom and grabbed a pair of flat heeled shoes then drove Tommy home. She parked in front of the Grimes's and shut off the engine. Taking a deep breath, she turned to Tommy and confessed her secret. "Tommy, in my entire life, I've never wanted a man as much as I want you. The big problem comes in because I'm just as inexperienced as you are. Tonight is as far as I've ever been with a man, and I'm pretty sure you've never been any further with a woman, that you can remember. We didn't even think about birth control, if we went any further I could have ended up pregnant. We need to find out what to do before we try doing it." They shared a chaste kiss and Tommy hopped out of her Beetle. He couldn't wait to get to his room and relieve the pressure on his tally-whacker. Women were confusing the hell out of him. As best he could figure it, Regina, Melody and now Ruth all wanted to have sex with him and he was all for it. The trouble was that all four of them were virgins and didn't exactly know what to do. Tommy needed some advice and he figured that Harold Fricke was just the man to give it to him. He'd ask him after church tomorrow, Tommy decided. ------- Tommy was less nervous singing in church that Sunday, he even opened his eyes a couple of times while he sang. After the service, Tommy hustled out the front door to catch the Frickes before they went home. He screeched to a halt when he saw them apparently waiting for him at the foot of the church's wide steps. He exchanged greetings and hugs with 'Mama Rita', and solemnly shook hands with Harold. Rita linked her arm in his and the couple walked him a few feet out of everyone's earshot. "How was your evening, Tommy, did y'all have fun?" Rita asked. Tommy nodded and blushed beet red when he remembered exactly how much fun he'd had at Ruth's house. Rita Fricke's keen eye caught the blush, but she let it slide and patted his hand. "Well that's nice Sweetie. We'll see you at work tomorrow, okay?" Tommy nodded, but looked beseechingly at Harold. "Uh, Mister Harold, do you have a minute? I-umm- have a couple of questions." Harold was going to ask Tommy if it could wait until tomorrow, when Rita squeezed his hand. "Talk to the boy, Dear. I'll just wander over and gossip with Betty Lou." Harold shrugged and turned towards Tommy. "Shoot Luke, it's your nickel," he said. Tommy nodded earnestly and leaned forward. "I need some advice about how you do it the first time and I need some protectors so I don't get girls pregnant," he whispered conspiratorially. Harold rocked back on his heels in surprise. This was not the conversation he envisioned them having. Still, the boy was coming to him for help, so help was what he was going to get. "We can pick you up some rubbers tomorrow and I'll fill you in on the other thing too. Think you can keep it in your pants till then?" Tommy cut his eyes towards where Regina was waiting for him. They were going to walk over and visit Melody, because Mel's folks were visiting her great-grandmother at a nursing home two hours away. "I guess I better, if I don't want to be a daddy," Tommy said glumly. ------- Chapter 6 Harold Fricke shared Tommy's request with his wife as they drove home from church. He wasn't about to do anything that Rita disapproved of, at least not where Tommy was concerned. Especially not since Tommy started calling her Mama Rita. Harold did not worry about the conversation bothering or embarrassing Rita, even though it was about sexual matters. Prim and proper in public, Rita Maude Fricke was a wanton hellion in the privacy of her bedroom. Rita was not as surprised by Tommy's request as her husband had been. In fact, she had pretty much expected it, although Tommy was asking a little earlier than she had anticipated. She chalked that up to Betty Lou's daughter getting stirred into the mix. She already knew about Tommy's date last night, because Ruth had called her first thing this morning. Ruth's reluctant admission that she was so inexperienced was the one thing that really surprised her. Who would have thought that a liberal peace and love New Yorker would still be a virgin at the age of twenty-six? Harold had been right to suggest that a woman should teach Tommy all about sex, but that woman sure wasn't going to be Conchita Delgado, no matter how qualified she was. No, the person to teach Tommy needed to be someone who loved him and would be considerate and understanding of his special circumstances. Rita grinned, thinking that she, herself, was the perfect someone. Too bad she was a one man woman. There was someone else, though, that was almost as perfect. She was even pretty sure that Margie Wilcox would not be a bit against the idea, judging by her comments the night of the VFW dinner-dance. All they needed was a plan. She picked up the phone and called Margie to rectify that. ------- While Rita was on the phone with Margie, Tommy was in Melody's bedroom playing spin the bottle with Melody and Regina. The game was Melody's idea, and she had prepared for it in advance. The game was simple, the person who spun the bottle and the one it landed on went into Melody's closet for three minutes of anything they wanted. The person left out kept the time. Melody had even cleaned off the floor of the closet and thrown down a couple of quilts. Melody and Regina liked the idea because the dark closet would make everyone less inhibited, while the time limit would keep things from getting out of hand. Tommy loved the idea because at least half of the time he was going to be in a dark closet with a pretty and adventuresome girl. Melody was correct about them being less inhibited in the dark closet. Tommy was aware of that as soon as Melody impatiently pulled him into the closet for the first time. Once inside, she put her lips to his ear and whispered to him. "Do anything you can think of, Tommy. I'll tell you if I don't like it." Melody's plan seemed excellent in theory, but the execution turned out to be slightly frustrating, especially for Tommy. See, Melody and Regina, both being girls, at least knew what felt good to them, so they could try it on each other. Tommy did not know what they liked, and clumsily pawed at the girls in the dark closet, and they did not know enough about boys to know what he liked. The next time it was his turn to spin the bottle, he made a suggestion that changed everything. "Hey, let's do something different. How about if the person the bottle chooses shows me how to make them feel good? That way I'm not just fumbling around." When the bottle stopped at Melody, she smiled and shivered in excitement. Everything she'd hoped for was coming to pass. She jumped up and shocked the hell out of Tommy and Regina by shucking out of her blouse and skirt to stand proudly naked in front of them. "This is so much better than getting groped in the backseat of some dork's car," she sighed huskily as she flopped back on her bed. Tommy went home an hour later, but the girls stayed to 'talk' some more they said. By the time Tommy returned to his room, he was much more familiar with a woman's intimate anatomy, having received a guided tour of both Regina and Melody's nubile young bodies. He was very proud that he had made both of them climax with his fingers, following the instructions they gave him. He was also happy with the orgasms they gave him. It was much better when a pretty girl rubbed one out than when he did it himself. ------- Harold kept his promise to Tommy Monday afternoon, when things had finally quieted down at the feed store. He did that by driving Tommy over to the Walgreens located in the Brownwood Mall. Tommy wasn't the least bit embarrassed as they stood in front of the contraceptives display, while Harold explained the pros and cons of various means of pregnancy and disease prevention. Tommy was not embarrassed, because he didn't know he should have been. To him, it was the same as Rita helping him pick out a suit. Surprisingly, it was Rita who finally gave him the lecture on losing one's virginity. She did it because she felt Tommy would do better if he knew what it was like from the woman's perspective. Besides, both Rita and Harold knew Tommy would take whatever Rita told him as the absolute gospel truth. One unexpected, but very pleasant, result of educating Tommy was a revival of the Fricke's love life. For their age, Rita and Harold would have already been considered very active. With this thing with Tommy going on, they were going at it as if they were teenagers. Betty Lou Grimes received a telephone call from Margie Wilcox while Tommy was at the library Monday night. Margie was calling to let Betty Lou know that Tommy needed to come in to the medical center for a check-up, since he'd been out of the hospital over six months. Margie said the tests were routine, but necessary. Margie also casually mentioned that Tommy could stay at her place so he would not have to be by himself. Betty Lou passed the word on to Tommy that night. Margie would be picking him up on Wednesday afternoon, and bringing him back sometime Saturday. Betty Lou also called Rita and filled her in. Rita smiled when she heard the plan. Margie was a smart and resourceful woman. She was going to be a big asset to McCulloch County, once she was out of the Army and settled here. Margie had signed on to Rita's idea about Tommy's sexual education quickly and completely. The idea of seducing Tommy excited the tall statuesque nurse to no end. Margie's excitement was fueled by equal parts of love and lust. ------- Betty Lou did not understand why she was so sad about Tommy going to San Antonio. After all, it was only for a few days. But sad she was as she stood by his bed Tuesday night and helped him pack the suitcase on it. Tommy picked up on her somber mood as she packed a shirt neatly into the suitcase. He stepped over behind her and put his arms around her waist, pulling her back against him tightly. This reverse hug was different from any others they had ever shared. She stiffened in his arms then sagged back against him. "I'm going to miss you," she said, her voice trembling slightly. He kissed the top of her head and put his lips near her ear. "I'm going to miss you, too," he said softly. "But I'll be home Saturday." She nodded and unexpectedly spun around in his encircling arms. Then she shocked both of them by planting a desperately intense kiss on his lips. It was the most forward thing she'd ever done in her sheltered life. When she pulled back and looked at him, a tear was sliding down her cheek. "You better be, Mister Bledsoe, because I suddenly can't imagine my life without you in it." Tommy nodded and gently wiped her tear away with his thumb. ------- Margaret Wilcox arrived in Brantley at noon on Wednesday. She had lunch with Rita at the Bluebonnet, then headed over to Betty Lou's to pick up Tommy. By one-fifteen, they were rocketing down the road towards San Antonio. In contrast to Ruth's little VW Beetle, Margie drove a big four door 1969 Thunderbird luxo-boat. It even had suicide doors just like a Lincoln. Tommy loved that car; he thought it matched Margie's personality perfectly. They cruised into San Antonio around five-thirty in the afternoon. Margie stopped at a pizza place and picked them up a large pepperoni pie to go, before heading home. Margie's place was a mile from the gates of Fort Sam Houston and two miles from the big medical center. As soon as they polished off the pie, Margie gave Tommy some forms and medical questionnaires. "I brought this paperwork home for you to fill out so your day will go faster tomorrow, and also so I could help you if you needed it," she said. The hospital appointments were part of a full re-evaluation of Tommy's case for which Margie had lobbied. She had to call in a few favors and promise one date to a psychologist, but she eventually made it happen. She explained all that to Tommy. "Tommy, I arranged for these tests and interviews tomorrow to get your status changed with the Veterans' Affairs and the retirement branch. As it stands now, you are permanently medically retired for a mental disability that keeps you from holding a meaningful job. We both know that's not the case. You also don't need that 'mentally disabled' label stuck to you when it obviously doesn't apply. "I believe you should be placed on the Temporarily Disabled Retired List with the cause listed as resolving head trauma. Being on the TDRL means you are reexamined every few years and a determination is made to keep you on the list or change your separation code to Medically Discharged. You'll lose some of your disability compensation, but I know you wouldn't want it if you weren't qualified for it anyway, right?" Tommy emphatically shook his head. "Heck no, I don't need it anyway. Did you know I'm the warehouse manager of the feed store now?" Margie gave him a smile and a kiss on the cheek. She loved how he was boyishly enthusiastic one minute and grown-up serious the next. She hoped he never lost that. "I'm very proud of you, Baby, congratulations!" she said. They slogged on the paperwork together until Margie stood up at about eight o'clock. "I'm going to take a quick shower. When I finish, you can jump in next." Tommy absent mindedly acknowledged her as he reached for the last two forms. Fifteen minutes later, Margie called out the shower was all his, so he went to her guest room and pulled out his pajamas and a clean pair of Jockeys and headed towards the bathroom. He was in and out of the shower in fifteen minutes, including brushing his teeth. He pulled open the bathroom door and started to walk out, when he saw Margie standing in the doorway of her bedroom, holding a wine glass. He stopped dead in his tracks and his jaw literally dropped to the floor. Tommy's first thought was that he had never seen a woman look as beautiful or as sexy as Margie did in her diaphanous white nightgown. Margie gave him a coy smile as he stood there dumbstruck. She hadn't seen Tommy when he wasn't wearing a shirt for almost a year. She had to admit that he had filled out nicely since he was a patient up on the ward. She leaned back against the door frame in a sultry pose, and gestured with her hand so his eyes traveled down her negligee. "Like it?" she asked unnecessarily. Tommy's fixated eyes finally blinked, then he gulped and bobbed his head up and down. "You are s-sp-spectacular," he stammered. Margie took a sip of her wine and held her hand out to him. "I'm glad you like it, baby, because I wore it just for you. And in a little while I'm going to let you take it off me and demonstrate what a fast learner you really are," she said seductively. Tommy followed her into the bedroom, eager as a puppy. Margie gracefully sat on the edge of her queen sized bed and gestured Tommy towards her. When he was in front of her, she deftly reached into his pajama bottom and fished out his dick. Margie cooed at the size of him. He'd felt substantial when they danced, but in her hand he felt even larger. Tommy's knees almost buckled when she touched him, then his eyes flew open and he tried to take a step backwards. "We can't do this. I did not bring any rubbers, so I can't protect you," he yelped. Margie tightened her grip on him so he couldn't get away and smiled. Rita certainly had trained him well in that regard. "No problem Baby, I'm on the pill, so I'm protected. Now come here." She reeled a willing Tommy towards her by tugging on his throbbing hardness. When he was in the correct position, Margie leaned forward and without any sort of warning, engulfed his shaft in her mouth. Tommy's head spun when she did that and his knees sagged involuntarily. He felt as though he was on the verge of slipping back into a coma. After her initial onslaught, Margie backed off his titanium hard stalk, and smiled up at him. "You are going to be quick this first time, so let's get it out of the way now," she said. Margie matched action to words as she slurped him back into her mouth. Tommy matched action to prophesy a couple of minutes later, when he exploded in her mouth. Margie swallowed as fast as she could manage, amazed by the shear volume of his spend. She was proud as hell that she was able to gulp it all down. She'd only done that to completion one other time in her life, and her then new husband had been far less copious. Margie had done it for her husband as a special wedding present. She did it for Tommy because she loved the idea of bringing him pleasure. For his part, Tommy was so swept away by his orgasm that he collapsed heavily onto her bed, next to where she sat. Margie giggled and fell back with him. It took a second for him to catch his breath. When he could speak, he grinned hugely and hugged her to his chest. "That had to be the single greatest moment I've had since I woke up," he said, his voice filled with awe. Margie gave a sexy, throaty laugh and snuggled tight against his side. "And the night is just beginning," she purred. Margaret Marie Wilcox could not believe how sexy she felt and how wanton she was acting. Sure, she'd always been a sensual woman who enjoyed the hell out of sex, but with Tommy she had moved to a higher plain of sexual awareness. How else could she explain the small climax she'd experienced when he came in her voracious mouth? She shivered and turned her face towards Tommy. He took the hint and kissed her so thoroughly it took her breath away. The evening was indeed young, and Tommy was everything she could have ever wished for in a lover. He was eager to try anything she suggested, soaked up the instructions she gave him like a sponge, and had the stamina of a marathon runner. He had insisted on her teaching him how to return her oral attention, and proved to be better at it than any lover in her past on his first try. He kept her orgasming until she finally had to push him away so she could catch her breath. Then, instead of jumping on her, he held her until she was ready for more. Just when Margie did not think it could get any better, Tommy finally wedged his dick into her hot slick wetness and followed her directions for the love making she preferred. Tommy was slightly bigger than any man she'd ever been with, but she comfortably stretched to accommodate him. What really made it special, was that Tommy was no 'wham-bam-thank-you-ma'am' guy. He watched her and picked up her non-verbal clues and took them both to heaven. Margie was on top when they had their final climax of the night. When they finished, she simply fell forward onto his chest, too spent to move an inch. Tommy kissed her forehead and stroked her back. "Rita said my first time would be better if it was with someone I loved. She was sure right about that," he said softly. Margie smiled to herself and nodded her head on his chest. He was one hundred percent correct about that. Margie had no doubt whatsoever that he loved her, just as she knew he loved Rita, Ruth and Betty Lou. One thing was for certain: whatever happened to Tommy's brain as a result of his injuries, had made him about the most special man she'd ever met. ------- The medical exam at Brooks Army Hospital transpired as Margie had predicted. The only real change was that he was given more psychological tests and Electroencephalograms than planned, because of his extraordinary ability to memorize rhythmic sounds and strings of numbers. Doctor Giles, Tommy's neurologist, was especially gratified and excited about the fact that not only was Tommy learning, but he was absorbing information at an accelerated rate. Tommy was very pleased to see Margie when she came by to pick him up when her shift ended at four. He had cooperated fully with the doctors and technicians, and he was drained from the paces they put him through. Of course, that wasn't the only reason Tommy was happy to see her, but the other reason he had to keep to himself for the time being. Margie had briefed him before they left her house about public displays of affection while she was in uniform. So no matter how sexy he thought she looked in her starched whites, he kept his hands to himself. Once at Margie's townhouse, they showered together and dressed for dinner. Margie took Tommy to a steak house she enjoyed, then to a small nightclub that catered to the medical crowd from Fort Sam Houston. Margie took Tommy to the club to show him off as her date. She actually grinned when she thought about how the tongues would be wagging tomorrow over her being lovey-dovey with a handsome young cowboy. She knew that Tommy's existence in her personal life, plus the pending resignation of her commission, would feed the hospital rumor mill for weeks. Tommy did his part by being the perfect date; he was affectionate, solicitous and gentlemanly. After a couple of hours at the night club, Margie took Tommy home and continued his education. She was determined that when she delivered him back to Rita, all his questions would be answered. Of course it didn't hurt that Tommy was a natural when it came to pleasing a woman anyway. She had the best orgasms of her life with him thrusting slowly into her while he gazed into her eyes with complete adoration. ------- Friday was a much easier day for Tommy, as all he had to do was appear before the medical review board at ten in the morning. Margie was with him because he picked her as his advocate, instead of opting for a JAG lawyer. The board was most impressed with his improvement and recommended his status be changed from permanently to temporarily disabled. They also changed the category of his injury to drop the stigmatizing 'mentally disabled' label. The board took less than an hour. Next stop for Tommy was the big Post Exchange. Tommy went to the PX because he wanted to buy presents for his friends back in Brantley, to celebrate his new status. He spent longer at the PX than he did before the board, as he found the perfect gift for everyone on his sizeable list. While Tommy was shopping, Margie visited the beauty shop for a facial and manicure, so she had no idea of what he bought and how much he spent. Money was not a problem for Tommy, as he had lived frugally on his salary from the feed store, and had never touched his military compensation. All of his pay and allowances from his time in the hospital and all of his retirement checks were in the Fort Sam Houston Credit Union. Tommy's big finds were a mother's ring for Rita with a birth stone for her children (including him), herself and Harold. Tommy had to use the pay phone to call Harold to find out the months of everyone's birth. The pretty Filipino woman at the jewelry counter helped him decide on gifts for the other women. He loved the idea of gold ankle bracelets for Margie, Ruth and Betty Lou, when she showed him the one she wore. He had their names engraved on the little plate with 'Love, Tommy' on the back. He bought charm bracelets for Melody and Regina with personal little charms for each. Bucky and Harold received a Seiko diver's watch, while Ben Crawford, Ramon Salazar and Juan Luna got Ray Ban aviator sunglasses. In typical Tommy fashion, all he purchased for himself were a couple of spare jock straps. Tommy's little shopping spree cost him over seven hundred dollars, but it was worth it to him. Besides, he had over twenty thousand dollars drawing interest in the credit union, so he could definitely afford to splurge once in a while. Tommy and Margie repeated Thursday night, except the restaurant was an Italian place. The nightclub was packed when they arrived there, and Tommy was very pleased to see that many of the people who worked on him were there. One of those people was Doctor Irv Glickman, Tommy's plastic surgeon. Glickman walked Tommy into the bar's bathroom and examined his face under the bathroom's bright lights. "Damn, I do good work," he muttered. Glickman and his date, a petite surgical nurse that Margie knew and liked, even joined them in their booth. Glickman teased Margie some about tricking him into prettying up her boyfriend. Margie just laughed and clicked her glass to his. "You did an excellent job on him too, Irv. When you are in private practice next year, I'm coming to see you for a few lifts, tucks and snips," she said. There were no love-making lessons taught that night, instead, Tommy conducted a full hands-on review of what he'd learned the previous two evenings. When he finished with her at around one in the morning, she told him that he had graduated with honors. Margie did not say that to stroke Tommy's ego. She meant it sincerely. Margie could not get over how good Tommy made her feel when she was with him, and she wasn't thinking about only the sex. Tommy had completely erased the bitter taste that her ex had left her with. Tommy's upbeat disposition just didn't leave room for self-pity. ------- Tommy was up and out of bed Saturday morning at his usual six-thirty. He woke up Margie as soon as he hit the bathroom. Margie was not quite as chipper as Tommy, but she had to smile at how happy he woke up in the morning. Instead of hopping out of bed, Margie dragged him back into it. They made lazy love for half and hour, then jumped into the shower, dressed, packed and hit the road. They had breakfast at a truck stop outside of San Antonio and then yakked their way through the two hundred mile trip to Brantley. Margie drove up to the Fricke's house at twelve-thirty. Tommy had presents to give to the Fricke's, and Margie had news for Rita. Rita cried when Tommy gave her the ring, and that confused the hell out of him. It took Rita five minutes to tearfully relate to Tommy how much she loved what he'd given her. After Rita had hugged and kissed on Tommy for a minute or two, she suggested Harold take Tommy with him when he went down to the VFW hall so Tommy could give his presents to Ben and Ramon. When they got to the truck, Tommy gave Harold his watch. He hadn't been able to do that inside the house, because of the fuss Rita was making over her ring. Harold was due to meet the guys at the hall at one that afternoon to practice with the VFW's Color Guard. The following Tuesday was Veterans' Day, and the VFW Color Guard was leading the McCulloch County patriotic parade. Once at the hall, there was some interest with having Tommy join the marching unit. The suggestion died on the table, because Tommy remembered absolutely zero about anything having to do with the military and his time in it. Rita sent Tommy with Harold so Margie could tell her about the last few days she'd spent with Tommy. Rita smiled at the way Margie, an experienced woman of the world, blushed as she related her story. That Margie was happy about the entire endeavor was obvious by the way she gushed when talking about Tommy. Everything had happened pretty much as Rita guessed it would. The only real revelation was at how much Margie had enjoyed the exercise. Harold had Tommy back home with Rita and Margie at three. Tommy and Margie visited another few minutes, then headed to the Grimes's home. Margie was going to drop off Tommy and head back to Fort Sam, because she had to work Sunday thru Thursday of that week. However, she would be back on the following Friday, to find a place to live. Monday, the seventeenth of November, she started her terminal leave. Her official discharge date was exactly two weeks later, on December the first. After Tommy and Margie departed the Fricke's, Harold went out to the barn to change the oil in his two-year-old Massey Ferguson tractor. Harold loved the hell out of the bright red machine and spent an inordinate amount of time messing with it. Rita puttered around the kitchen, baking a chocolate seven layer cake for dinner tomorrow after church. Ruth Silverman was going to join them for Sunday dinner, and she planned on Tommy being there too. Rita smiled to herself about tossing the two of them together like that. If Tommy's time with Margie was an indication, little Miss Silverman would have a new outlook on life by Monday morning. ------- Chapter 7 Margie and Tommy walked into the Grimes' house at three-thirty Saturday afternoon. Margie said hello to everyone and goodbye to Tommy, then dashed back to her car. She was in a hurry so she could get back to San Antonio early enough to get some sleep before her Sunday tour of duty at the hospital. She also hustled away so she would not show how much she was going to miss Tommy. She had, however, let Tommy know that fact on the ride from the Frickes'. "I'm going to miss you like crazy, Tommy. Even though I know I'll see you again in less than a week, I hate to have to go." Tommy nodded his understanding and agreement. "I will be so happy when you are living here and I can see you all the time," he replied. Rex came bounding into the front hall when he heard Tommy's voice. Rex was wagging his tail so hard his whole body quivered. Tommy dropped to one knee and gave his dog a few pats and scratched behind his ears. "Miss me boy?" Tommy asked. Rex yipped in reply and fell on to his back at Tommy's feet to have his belly rubbed. Bucky laughed at Tommy's question to the dog. "All he did was lay around moping while you were gone, Tommy, except he'd go to the front door and wait for you in the afternoon. Next time you go somewhere, you have to take him with you." Tommy nodded his agreement to Bucky's suggestion. "Good idea, Bucky." As soon as Margie drove away, Regina, Bucky and Betty Lou dragged Tommy into the parlor, so he could tell them all about his trip. Rex lay down in the doorway, so Tommy couldn't escape. The Grimes family members were as happy to see him as Margie had been sad to leave him. Tommy told them all about the tests he took and the results of the medical review board. He kept to himself the private times he spent with Margie. One of the lessons that both Rita and Margie stressed, was the need to keep his love life to himself. Tommy had Bucky's watch in his pocket from when he took out the other guys' gifts, so he handed it to him. Bucky thought the watch was the coolest, and put it on straight away. While Betty Lou was helping Bucky with the watch's clasp, Tommy turned to Regina. "I have something for you too, Regina, but it's packed away in my suitcase. I'll give it to you later, Okay?" That was fine with Regina, so Tommy excused himself to go unpack. He had been in his basement room for about five minutes, when Betty Lou came down and joined him. She walked over to the bed until she was standing right next to him. "I'll take your dirty clothes now, because I already have part of a load of Bucky's..." she was saying, when Tommy turned and silenced her with a kiss. Betty Lou let out a squeak of surprise then suddenly threw her arms around his neck and kissed him back. Tommy finally broke the kiss and pulled his head back so he could see her face. She reluctantly eased her grip around his neck so he could do so. "I missed you a lot Betty Lou," Tommy said. Betty Lou looked into his clear hazel eyes and saw nothing but openness and sincerity. She gulped and nodded her head a couple of times. She didn't dare tell him how she felt right then, so she kept her voice light and cheerful. "I missed you too, Tommy. I don't like it when part of my family is away from me." Tommy smiled in absolute delight when she said family in reference to him. He spun her around and reached into his suitcase. "I have something for you, but you have to sit down on the bed," he said over his shoulder. Betty Lou hesitated for a second, weighing the properness of being on his bed. In the end she shrugged and gracefully folded herself down on the thick tick mattress. Tommy snatched something out of his bag and dropped to his knees in front of her. Betty Lou gasped as he gently took her ankle and put her foot on his thigh. Betty Lou was wearing one of her standard three-quarter length dresses, the hem hitting her at mid-calf, so she wasn't revealing much leg, even when sitting. However, it had been years since a man had touched her leg, and never had one touched it with quite the reverence Tommy showed. Leaving her foot on his thigh, Tommy snapped open the black velvet box and extracted the finely-wrought gold filigree chain. "It's a bracelet for your ankle," he said, holding it up so it sparkled in the light. "And see, it has your name carved on it." Betty Lou took the proffered bracelet and sure enough, the small gold plate was inscribed 'Betty Lou'. Tommy then made a production of showing her the other side with its 'Love Tommy' inscription. Betty held the bracelet loosely in her hand and regarded him seriously. She thought the bracelet was gorgeous, but felt the gift was a little too personal. "It's beautiful, Tommy, but an intimate gift like this should go to some one you have romantic feelings for," she said cautiously. Tommy broke into a smile and plucked the chain from her hand. "Exactly," he said as he fastened it around her slender ankle. ------- Tommy enjoyed attending church on Sunday mornings. He had even enjoyed them before he joined the choir. Tommy did not agree with all the precepts of the church, but he strongly believed in the tenet that doing good was its own reward. Consequently, every Sunday he resolved anew to be the best person he could possibly be. It was easy for Tommy to do that, because he didn't have many of the life experiences that made most people jaded by the time they were adults. Tommy saw every person he met as a potential friend and a good person. It was surprising how often his treating it as a foregone conclusion actually made it just that. Tommy's enthusiasm, sincerity and basic goodness brought out the best in most everyone he met. After church that Sunday, Rita and Betty Lou were out front yakking about Thanksgiving, the holiday being only four days away. Rita had recruited Betty Lou and her other friends to help with the big turkey dinner that VFW Post 9802 held every year. The dinner was open to anyone who wanted to come, from skid row bums to county commissioners. Both women stopped talking when a long, white 1969 Cadillac Eldorado convertible drew up in front of the church. The stunningly beautiful black haired woman driving the big Caddy scanned the throng milling around the front of the church. She seemed to find who she was looking for, because she pointed at someone out of Betty Lou and Rita's sight, and gestured for them to come to her car. Betty Lou gasped and Rita's jaw dropped to the ground when Tommy came strolling over, pointing at himself. The woman nodded and said something. Tommy gave a serious nod of his own and climbed into the car. Before Rita or Betty Lou could react, the big Caddy smoothly pulled away from the curb and rocketed down the street. Harold Fricke was just as thunderstruck as the rest of the congregation, as he watched his boy jump in the car and take off with the notorious and mysterious Conchita Delgado. Harold spun away from the man with whom he had been discussing Thanksgiving, and hustled over to his wife. He skidded to a stop in front of her and held up his hand before she could go off on him. "Easy, Rita Maude, I didn't have anything to do with this. As far as I know, this is the first time those two have ever laid eyes on each other, so don't jump to conclusions." Rita smiled at her husband and lovingly laid her hand on his cheek. "I know that, Silly Man, and I know nothing is going to happen between them today, because our Tommy is not wired that way," Rita said serenely. Harold just gawked as Betty-Lou nodded her agreement. What the hell? Harold Fricke was partially correct, in that Tommy did not know who or what Conchita Delgado was. Conchita, however, knew a lot about Tommy, because of what she had overheard Becky Dierdorf, a waitress at the Bluebonnet Diner, was telling one of the other women who worked there. One of her ranch hands had also told her about the strange new man who worked at the feed store and sang like George Jones in the church choir. Out of idle curiosity, Conchita had driven by the First Baptist Church of Brantley, on her way home from Mass, just to get a look at the supposedly unique young man. Everything else that happened after that was a result of her over-the-top personality, flair for the dramatic and supercharged libido. Conchita took one look at Tommy, slammed on her brakes and gestured him over. Tommy sauntered up to her car, doffed his hat and politely asked what she needed. Conchita had heard enough about Tommy to know that blurting out she wanted to jump his bones was out, so she concocted a story on the spot. "I was wondering if you could help me, dear boy. See, I need some help with my pussy cat, she ran up a tree and I can't get her off..." Conchita said straight faced. Clueless Tommy took her at her word. He liked helping people and he loved animals, so he agreed and hopped into her car. ------- Conchita Delgado was the name she'd used in the twenty or so low budget 'B' movies she'd scream her way through. Her real name was Florence Pataki Baumgartner. During her acting career, Conchita had the bountiful bodice of her dress ripped open by vampires, mummies, werewolves, little green men, and three different Frankenstein monsters, all at the direction of her husband, producer and director, the cult legend Beau Baumgartner. Baumgartner had made a tidy living filming tight close-ups of Conchita's considerable creamy cleavage. When Beau had died (ironically, from the bite of a supposedly nonpoisonous snake on the set of her last movie, the aptly titled, 'It Slithered up My Leg'), Conchita had sought her healing at their Texas ranch. She was no longer in the movies, but she was still the tragic ingénue, and McCulloch County Texas was now her stage. One of the most persistent rumors about Conchita was that she was extremely over sexed. That was the reason Harold had mentioned her name to Rita as a possible teacher for Tommy. Everyone, it seemed, knew a guy who had a friend that Conchita seduced. The scenario was always her walking into a bar, picking out some lucky cowboy, and taking him to her ranch. The legend further had it that some three or more days later, the cowboy was found wandering down the road in some sort of daze, a goofy smile plastered on his face. She had an exotically beautiful face, but the really amazing thing about Conchita was her body. It was as taut, trim and gravity-defying as it had been when Beau 'discovered' her, fifteen years ago. Back then, he was a thirty-five year old B movie mogul in the making. She was a wild fifteen-year-old hormonal time bomb. Beau was looking for a new star for his thrillers, and Florence Pataki was looking for a way out of Arkansas. It was a match made in heaven. ------- Conchita and Tommy made small talk as she motored them towards her ranch. Conchita kept an eye on the young man as they rode along, and was flabbergasted that he studiously ignored looking at her legs or her barely covered, button straining bosom. Instead, he looked at her face, something even Father McManus couldn't pull off that day during Holy Communion. What's more, Tommy listened to her as if her opinions mattered to him. He did not assume she was some dumb broad with nothing to offer but a great set of tits. For the first time since she was ten years old, Conchita was off balance in the presence of a man. At least Conchita had a cat, so her story did not seem entirely fabricated. The cat in question had really belonged to her husband, and she'd inherited it with the rest of his estate. The cat was an ancient big black Persian named El Diablo, and he had hated Conchita from the day they were introduced. The cat reacted so badly towards her, that Beau had used the beast in a couple of movies to snarl and hiss anytime Conchita walked into a room. There wasn't an animal trainer in Hollywood who could get a cat to display one tenth El Diablo's animosity toward Conchita. Conchita smiled at Tommy when they saw the cat sunning himself on the porch. "Oh, thank goodness! I guess he was able to climb down by himself," she happily emoted. As they walked up onto the porch, Conchita bent as if to pet the fat black fur ball. The cat jump back in alarm, arched his back, and hissed menacingly. Conchita's smile turned to embarrassment as the cat cautiously backed away from her. "I guess he's traumatized by his experience. I'm so sorry I dragged you out here unnecessarily, how can I ever repay you?" she asked coyly, her eye lashes aflutter. Tommy shrugged and held out his arms. A microsecond later, they were full of over-fed purring cat. He petted the cat for a few seconds then handed the cat to a startled Conchita. Conchita was prepared to throw the malevolent beast down, when it purred and snuggled closer to her. "Seeing you and your cat back together is enough reward for me, Missus Delgado. I'd like to stay and talk to you but I have to be at Mama Rita's for dinner at two, so I need to be going. Next time you are in town, though, you can buy me chocolate shake at the Dairy Queen," Tommy replied. It only took fifteen minutes to drive from Conchita's rancho to the Fricke's Rocking R Ranch. Without her knowing it, Tommy coaxed most of Conchita's life story from her during the ride. Tommy was very good at getting people to open up. Part of the reason was because he was genuinely interested in everyone's story. He was interested because he only remembered being a young lad. Since he had no adult memories of his own, he reveled in those of other people. The second part of being a good listener was that he seldom interrupted the speaker. Tommy hated to talk because of his speech impediment, so he only interjected himself into the conversation enough to keep the other person talking. Conchita pulled up part way into the Fricke's drive and tried to let Tommy out so she could make her escape. Tommy, however, wasn't having a second of that. It would be rude not to introduce his new friend to Harold and Rita. Conchita finally relented and pulled up to the house. Harold and Rita were standing on the porch by then, wondering what was going on. Tommy took Conchita by the hand and tugged her up the steps. "Mama, Mister Harold, this is my new friend Conchita Delgado. It took me a minute to convince her to meet you, on account of her being very shy." Harold coughed to cover his laughter at Conchita Delgado being called shy. Rita gave him a nudge and a look, before turning a radiant smile onto Conchita. "I'm pleased to meet you, Miss Delgado," she said warmly, clasping Conchita's hand in both of hers. Harold said likewise, then Rita sent Tommy and him into the house to fetch everyone a glass of sweet tea. Rita seated Conchita into one of the rocking chairs on the porch and perched herself on the swing. As soon as the men were out of sight, Conchita tried to apologize for intruding on Rita's afternoon. "I'm sorry about this, Missus Fricke, I did not want to intrude, but I couldn't figure out how to convince Tommy of that. I have to tell you that he is a very strange, yet somehow totally compelling young man." Rita gave a tinkling laugh and nodded in agreement. "No apology is necessary, Miss Delgado. The fact that Tommy thinks of you as a friend is all I need to know to make you my friend also. Tommy sees the goodness in everyone and makes us all better people for knowing him, but you'll find that out on your own soon enough." Conchita spent a very pleasant fifteen minutes sipping tea with Tommy and the Frickes. It was the first social interaction she'd ever had with any of her neighbors in the two years she'd lived there. She turned down a refill on the tea, pleading a previous engagement. Tommy walked her to her car and opened the door for her. Without thinking, she reached up and kissed his cheek. "I'll come into town soon and take you for that milk shake," she promised. "I'd like that," he replied with a smile. ------- Ruth Silverman pulled almost all the way off the road to allow a big Cadillac barreling towards her on County Road 836 to pass. The black haired woman driving the car gave Ruth a casual wave of acknowledgement as she sped past. Ruth knew who the woman was of course, as Conchita Delgado's notoriety even penetrated the cloistered world of the library. Ruth shook her head and let her mind drift back to where it was before the flashy car caught her attention. As they had been for more than two weeks, those thoughts were about Thomas Bledsoe. Ruth was baffled that not only was she thinking about Tommy, but those thoughts were salacious enough to make a hooker blush. Being gaga over a man was not the way a proper feminist should be acting, especially one who had thought she was a confirmed lesbian until a few weeks ago. "Imagine that," she thought, "I'm twenty-five years old and just learning that I like men after all." Her fellow Vassar alumnae would have coronaries if they found out. Thomas was also a Gentile who looked as Arian as a Nazi recruiting poster, so her mother and father would have heart attacks too. Her head was chock-a-block full of reasons to stay away from Thomas Bledsoe. However, her heart and a few other choice pieces of her anatomy were not interested in reason or logic. Ruth just hoped her traitorous body would at least wait until after dinner before she stripped naked and begged to be ravished. Ruth arrived at the Fricke's spread while Tommy and Harold were out at the barn feeding livestock. Rita sensed Ruth's disquiet as soon as she stepped on the porch, so the older woman dragged the librarian into the kitchen to help put the meal on the table. When they were alone with just the warm homey smells of a southern Sunday dinner, Rita calmed her friend down. "Relax Ruthie, you are putting to much thought into this. Follow your heart for once," Rita said kindly. Ruth sighed, shook her head and spilled the beans about the reason she was still technically a virgin. Her face was red as a beet by the time she finished, and she couldn't look Rita in the eye. Rita calmly let Ruth finish her confession, and then hugged the younger woman. "Those things happened in the past, Ruthie, and it's the future you need to think about. Who knows, maybe you really are a lesbian and your feelings for Tommy are just an aberration. You owe it to yourself to find out one way or the other. Regardless of what you decide, I'll still be your friend and so will Tommy." Rita's speech helped Ruth somewhat, but it was Tommy who laid all her doubts to rest. When Tommy saw her, he let out a whoop of unadulterated joy, sprinted up to the porch and wrapped her in his arms. Far from being embarrassed by his display of affection, Ruth sighed contentedly and happily snuggled tighter against him. Dinner was wonderful for both Ruth and Tommy, as the sparks fairly crackled in the air between them. As soon as the meal ended, Rita laughingly shooed them away. "You two skedaddle before you burst into flames," she teased. Ruth's cheeks colored up again, but Tommy just smiled and gave Rita a hug. "Whatever you say, Mama," he replied. While Rita was hugging Ruth goodbye, Harold slipped a three pack of Trojans into Tommy's pocket. Tommy laughed and patted his other pocket, where he'd secreted two rubbers himself. Ruth was all set to head back to her small house, so she was taken aback when Tommy had her turn into a small rutted road past a fallen down cattle gate. He had her stop in front of an old but solid looking, medium sized ranch house. The house had a foreclosure notice from the Brantley Savings Bank nailed to the front door. Tommy hopped out of the Volkswagen and took Ruth's hand, and swept his other arm around, indicating the house and property. "I'm going to buy this one day," he vowed. Ruth nodded her understanding. She did not know how he was going to do that on his wages from the feed store, but she knew he didn't make promises he couldn't keep. Still holding hands, they walked around the property as Tommy excitedly showed her the barn, tool shed and corrals. In his halting stammer that Ruth barely noticed anymore, Tommy shared some of his dreams for the future. "There are 100 acres here, Ruthie. That's not enough to ranch, but it will be a great place to live. The bank wants twenty-seven thousand for it, I have the money saved, but I have something else I want to buy also. If it's here in a year from now, I should be able to afford both things." It was dark by the time they made it back to Ruth's small house, and Ruth was beside herself with love and lust. Like a brazen Jezebel, she grabbed Tommy's hand and dragged him to her bedroom. When Tommy left her bed four hours later, there was not the slightest doubt in Ruth's mind about her sexual orientation. She smiled wryly as she changed her fitted sheet and mattress pad, unbelieving that she had created that giant wet spot. Her smile grew bigger as she remembered how impressed Tommy was when she squirted all over his face the first time he made her orgasm. His absolute joy in the event stopped any thought Ruth had in the direction of mortification. Rita sighed as she shook one of her pillows into a new case. That had been nice, but when Tommy had finally rolled on a condom and entered her as he professed his undying love, it was the greatest single moment of her life. In one long steady loving push, Tommy had erased all of Ruth's doubts and worries. As a decided plus, Ruth found that her slender build and years of yoga training made her a flexible and tireless love machine. Ruth finished making the bed and squirmed in between the cool crisp sheets. She fell asleep deliciously tired, completely sated, and for the first time in her life, deliriously happy. ------- Tommy was in his usual good mood the next day at work, even though he was still tired and sore from his evening with his Ruthie. When Rita inquired, Tommy allowed that Ruthie had seemed to enjoy the evening quite a bit. Tommy had just finished unloading pallets of feed off a forty foot Purina semi-trailer when Harold, Ben Crawford and Ramon came into the warehouse. After handshakes all around, the three older men led Tommy out the small side entrance of the warehouse. Once in the parking lot, they stopped beside a dark blue 1965 Ford F100 pickup truck. "What do you think?" Ben asked, gesturing towards the truck. The truck had a superior paint job and highly polished chrome accents. What was not to like? "Very nice," Tommy admitted. "You just get it?" "Naw, had it for a while, bought it from a wildcatter up in Tremont last year for next to nothing. I finally got around to fixing the engine and Ramon here did the body work and paint." Ben owned Crawford's Texaco over on West Main, and Ramon worked with his father and brother at Salazar and Sons Collision Center, located on Austin Avenue, next to the train tracks. "I want a truck like this one day," Tommy said wistfully. Harold broke out in a big smile and handed Tommy a set of keys. "That's good Tommy, because this particular truck happens to be yours. We decided that the warehouse manager of Brantley Feed and Seed needed something besides a bicycle for transportation. It ain't a gift, although Ben and Ramon were gentle with you. You owe the bank sixty-eight dollars a month for two years." Tommy was even more speechless than usual as he took the keys and opened the driver's door. The truck had a floor mounted gearshift and even had a radio. Tommy turned to his three friends and choked out a thank you. "You have more people than us to thank, Tommy-Boy, because a bunch of your friends had a hand in this. Rita co-signed your bank note and Betty Lou did the paperwork. Your sister in Florida sent the down payment, Ruthie bought that fancy radio and Margie bought those Mojave seat covers," Harold told him. Tommy nodded and then started back into the warehouse. All three men gave him a weird look. "You ain't even going to take it for a spin?" the usually laconic Salazar asked. Tommy flashed Ramon a grin and dangled the keys in his hand. "Not without Mama, I ain't," he yelled as he bolted through the door. ------- Chapter 8 Tommy rushed home after work so he could show his truck to everyone. Regina seemed as excited by the vehicle as he was. "This is far out Tommy, if Melody can come over later, will you take us for a ride?" Tommy instantly agreed. "Sure Reggie, meanwhile, I'll take Bucky and Rex for a spin." It was a toss-up as to who was happier, as the three amigos motored sedately through Brantley. Bucky and Rex both ended up riding shotgun as Rex sat in Bucky's lap with his head out the window. Tommy honked and returned the waves of everyone he passed. When Tommy drove back into the driveway, Betty Lou was home from work. Tommy ran into the house and practically dragged her out to see his pickup. Betty Lou oh'd and ah'd appropriately, as Tommy beamed in delight. Betty Lou climbed in the passenger seat and put on a fake pout. "When do I get my ride Tommy? I can't go now because I have supper to finish, and Regina said you were taking her and Melody out after we eat." Tommy figured she was probably kidding, but her question did give him an idea. "I guess your first ride will be when I take you to the movies Friday night," Tommy replied. Betty Lou was startled by his suggestion and unnerved by her lack of objection to it. Bucky and Regina would be at their paternal grandparents from Thursday to Sunday, so she would be at loose ends anyway. Betty Lou reasoned there was no harm in them seeing a movie together. "I think that's a wonderful idea," she replied. It was seven-thirty by the time Tommy had the supper dishes washed and put away. Regina and Melody had even helped him with the kitchen so they could leave sooner. When they hopped into the truck, Melody slid across the seat to sit in the middle. Regina had not snared the prized cowgirl seat because she had to stop by the edge of the house and grab the blanket she'd secreted there earlier. Even though Regina gave her plenty of space, Melody stayed pressed up against Tommy's side. Melody's machinations were not lost on her best friend. "I get the middle on the ride home," Regina huffed. Regina and Melody both were amazed that their over protective parents let them out of the house with a man this late on a school night. If the male had been anyone other than Tommy, it never would have happened. Tommy won over Melody's father Charles, when the man pulled him aside at the feed store one day and point-blank asked what Tommy's intentions were. "Melody's my friend, Mister Graham, just like Regina, and I like her a lot. She makes me laugh and she helps me figure things out that I don't understand. I don't think it would be a good idea for us to date, because my body is lots older than hers and my brain is a lot smaller. Maybe when my brains come back and she's out of school, we could date ... only, gosh, she is so pretty, she'll probably have a million boyfriends by then," Tommy said earnestly. Charles was so flummoxed by Tommy's speech that he just nodded and walked away. When he relayed the conversation to his wife Claudia, she told him that she trusted Tommy much more than she did their daughter. "I'd rather see her with Tommy any day, than with some of those so-called nice boys with a future," she said. So now Melody had more freedom than ever, but only when Tommy was involved. That was just fine with Melody, so she stopped being such a witch to her parents. Melody was a very smart young woman, she knew that in less than a year she'd be at least half a state away at college, and she could do whatever and whoever she wanted. In the meantime, she had two safe playmates in Tommy and Regina, who were helping her decide what that 'whatever and whoever' was. Tommy pulled out onto Spring Street and headed toward the town center. He did not have a destination in mind, but figured the girls would at least want to cruise Dairy Queen. "Where to ladies?" he asked. "Cherry Hill," they squealed in unison. Cherry Hill was the name the local teens called their make out spot. Brantley teens had been going there for generations. Some wag once observed that probably half the women in Brantley lost their virginity up there, and half the children born were conceived there too. Oddly enough, it was the first trip to the spot for any of them. For all her talk, Regina had avoided the place like the plague. Melody would have been there already except her father had promised every boy she dated a thrashing if the guy even drove by the place. Tommy pulled up under a cottonwood tree with a nice view of Lake Brantley and killed the truck's engine. It was a school night, so the three had the place to themselves. Regina hopped out of the truck and spread the blanket on a patch of grass in front of the truck. As soon as the girls were seated on the blanket, Tommy turned on his dome light, reached into his glove compartment, and brought out the neatly wrapped presents he'd picked for them at the PX. The girls excitedly ripped open the packages and started a new round of squealing when they flipped open the velveteen boxes. Tommy had put some interesting charms on each bracelet, but the only ones he pointed out to them were the T-M-R initials. That touch earned him some smoldering kisses. And smoldering kisses led to some serious mutual groping. The high point of the evening was when Tommy showed Melody and Regina the pleasures of oral sex, both giving and receiving. The girls were tentative and shy the first time they tried it on each other, but they forgot all about that when it started feeling good. They played around for a long half hour, then straightened out their clothes and sat there chatting. Melody and Regina were full of questions concerning from whom he'd learned that trick, and had he learned anything else he could teach them. Tommy replied that the who wasn't important, but yes, he had a few more tricks up his sleeve. Melody whooped "Goody," but Regina floored him with her next comment. "You should use that trick on Betty-Lou. She's been the grieving widow long enough and she needs a man. Besides, I'll bet you ten dollars no one has ever done that to her." Tommy sputtered trying to formulate a reply, but Regina laughed and slugged him on the arm. "Don't even try to act as if that idea had never crossed your mind, Tommy Bledsoe. I am not blind, you know." Tommy had the girls home a few minutes before their nine o'clock curfew, and retreated to his basement room. He was tired enough that his left leg was dragging slightly. The occasional limp was one more lingering after effect of his head injury. Tommy stripped down to his boxers and crawled into bed, thinking about Regina and what she'd said about Betty Lou. Tommy loved Betty Lou. Next to Mama Rita, she was the nicest, sweetest woman alive. He loved Regina too, but the puppy love he had for her when he first arrived had turned to loving her like a sister. He was glad he and Regina were friends now. Tommy did not have romantic feelings for either Regina or Melody. ------- At noon on the Tuesday before Thanksgiving, Tommy was sitting in his truck, munching on a ham and cheese sandwich Betty Lou made for him. Betty Lou packed a lunch for Tommy nearly every day. Tommy had the little note pad he always carried flipped open, and he was studying a column of numbers he'd jotted down. The numbers were the balances of his three bank accounts. The first number was the amount he had in his checking account. That was the account where he deposited his check from the feed store. It wasn't a large account, but even considering his truck payment and the insurance for it, he would still be making more than he spent. The second number was the balance of his savings account at the Fort Sam Houston Credit Union. All of his accumulated military pay and allowances from when he was a patient at Brooke, plus his retirement checks since then, resided there. After buying everyone gifts, he still had over twenty thousand dollars in the account. The third number was what his sister Beth claimed his balance was in his bank account where she lived. The number she gave him was an unbelievable one hundred-ten thousand dollars. Beth said that the money was his savings, plus his share of his parents' estate and insurance. Beth gave Tommy a portion of her share of the insurance money to buy out his half of the family home. Tommy felt strange about that big pile of money, because the only memory he had of that account was depositing money he made from mowing lawns in it. Back then, he had been proud when he passed two hundred dollars. Tommy was not doing all that figuring just to count his money. Nope, he had an idea for it. His idea was actually the result of a conversation he overheard between Rita and Harold Fricke. In the conversation, Harold was lamenting being turned down for a small business loan to expand the feed store into a complete farm equipment and supply center. Harold had discussed the idea with Tommy on a couple of occasions, and Tommy thought it was a swell idea. To Tommy, the solution was simplicity itself: the Frickes needed money and he had plenty of it. His only problem was figuring out how to get his money from Florida. Tommy had just decided to let the good folks down at Brantley Savings and Loan figure it out, when a Chevy El Camino honked and pulled up next to where he sat. Tommy smiled and waved when he recognized his new friend Conchita as the driver. Tommy hopped out of his truck and walked over to her driver's side door. She rolled down her window as he approached her truck. "Hi Connie, what brings you to town?" Tommy asked. Conchita's eyebrows twitched at the name he called her. "Who is Connie?" she asked in return. Tommy grinned and leaned down to kiss her cheek. He liked the way she looked today with her hair in a long pony tail and her face freshly scrubbed. "You are. I give most everyone a nickname and Connie seemed just right for you." "Okay," she laughed. "Connie it is, now hop in and I'll take you for that milkshake." Tommy looked at his watch and nodded. "Sure, but first I have to tell the Frickes I'm leaving. Come on in and say hello, or you'll hurt Mama's feelings." Rita was not surprised in the least to see Conchita Delgado walk through the door. She had even made a bet with Harold about it. Rita smiled at how wholesome Conchita looked. The hair and minimal make up went well with the dark brown corduroy knee-length skirt and bulky pink sweater she wore. "Nice to see you again so soon," Rita said with a smile. Conchita knew Rita was referring to her prediction that Conchita would be looking for excuses to spend time with Tommy. She actually blushed before she answered. "I pick up mail from my post office box twice a week. Since I was in town already, I decided to buy Tommy his milkshake for helping me with my cat," Conchita hurried to explain. Rita winked at Conchita and said, "Whatever the reason, we are all glad you did. Now you two get out of here so us old folks can eat in peace. When you come back, drop by and let's have a little chat, just you and me, okay?" Tommy loaded Conchita into the passenger seat of his new pickup and zipped over to the Dairy Queen. ------- The DQ was near Ben Crawford's filling station, right on the corner of Main Street and the State Road 931 bypass. Texas 931 ran through the far western edge of town and was the main highway up to Brownwood. Tommy lived almost in the exact center of town, as Spring Street was only two blocks south of Main Street, and Betty Lou's house was one block east of Brantley Avenue. Brantley and Austin Avenues bracketed the court house and the city's memorial park. Both the Piggly-Wiggly and the library were on Austin Avenue, between Spring Street and Main Street. Conchita and the Frickes lived east of town, off of Route 836. State Road 836 passed through town, east to west, as McCulloch Street, and was one block south of Main Street. The Atchison Topeka and Santa Fe (ATSF) Railroad ran through the northern side of town. Brantley Feed and Seed was a block off the train tracks and a block from the big stockyard. Hundreds of head of cattle moved through Brantley each week on their way to meat packers in the upper Midwest. ------- Conchita had a wonderful time at the Dairy Queen with Tommy. It was the chilliest day of the year so far, so they ate their ice cream treats in the truck and yakked up a storm. Tommy made her laugh more than any man she'd ever met. He had a wicked sense of humor and an uncanny gift for mimicry that kept her in stitches. When Tommy looked at his watch and said it was time to go, Conchita was shocked that forty-five minutes had gone by so quickly. Back at the feed store, Tommy gave Conchita another brotherly kiss on the cheek and a big hug. "I hope I see you again soon, Connie. I like you a lot," he said. Conchita hugged him back, reveling in the feel of his strong arms around her. "Me too, Tommy. I have to come to town at least twice a week, maybe next time we can go to lunch at the Bluebonnet," she replied. "Cool," Tommy said. Tommy slipped into the side door of the warehouse and Conchita walked through the front entrance to see what Rita wanted to talk to her about. Conchita could not keep from smiling as she waved to Harold, who was standing at the cash register, as she strolled back to the office. Her smile was genuine and not the Hollywood actress model she usually sported. Rita greeted Conchita warmly again and pulled them both a Dr. Pepper from the machine in the hall. Rita sat them on the comfortable couch that was against one wall of the office and clinked her bottle against the neck of Conchita's. "Here's to a long and pleasant friendship," Rita said. When Conchita gave a tentative and slightly confused nod acknowledging the toast, Rita smiled and explained herself. "You are in Tommy's life now, so we are going to be seeing a lot of each other. Tommy has a bunch of other friends that you'll be meeting also. We have a club of sorts that looks out for Tommy and is helping along his redevelopment," Rita continued. Conchita's knitted eyebrows let Rita know the younger woman was still confused, so she took a sip of her Dr. Pepper, leaned back on the couch and filled Conchita in on Tommy's history. The story struck Conchita as being abjectly sad, yet powerfully uplifting. "That is an incredible story," Conchita said when Rita stopped talking. Rita nodded and patted Conchita's hand. "You see now why we are all so protective of him. Who knows what his real potential is? As I was saying earlier, a few women for whom Tommy cares greatly are helping him realize whatever that potential is. Like it or not, unless you can just walk away from him, I think you just became one of us," Rita finished. Conchita walked out of the feed store wondering what in the hell she had just signed up for. She had unhesitatingly agreed to do her part in Tommy's socialization, although to her, he didn't seem to need all that much help. She let out a bark of laughter as she was opening the door of her El Camino. She had to wonder what Rita would say if she knew that the trip to the Dairy Queen was the closest Conchita Delgado had ever been to a real date. Over the years, Conchita had a few affairs and since Beau's death, any number of one night stands, but until Tommy Bledsoe came along, she'd never been on an official date. ------- In nineteen-fifty-five, fifteen-year-old Florence Pataki married Beau Baumgartner. Florence's mother happily signed the parental consent paper work so her daughter could marry the debonair older man. Florence marrying was a huge weight off Magda Pataki's mind, because Flo had been physically mature and sexually active since she turned twelve. At the age of fourteen, Florence spent sixty days in a reform school for wayward girls for soliciting for the purposes of prostitution. She had been schooled at home, because she was unwelcome at the local junior high. Beau Baumgartner took her away from all that, as three days after they met, they were married. As soon as she said, "I do," her new husband whisked her off to Hollywood. The first thing Beau did when they arrived in Hollywood was to get her a Screen Actors' Guild card. The second was to legally change her name from the pedestrian Florence Pataki to the exotic Conchita Delgado. Although her official studio bio claimed she was Castilian Spanish, her stage name came about simply because she had black hair and brown eyes. Conchita was actually Hungarian. Conchita and Beau weren't Ozzie and Harriet, but they had an amazingly stable and long lasting marriage by Hollywood standards. Despite her lack of formal education, Conchita was a big help in running Beau's studio, and was listed in most of their movies' credits not only as the female lead, but also as one of the executive producers. The couple never became all that rich, but the residuals from late night television showings of their movies still brought Conchita a nice income. ------- The Wednesday before Thanksgiving was a hectic day for everyone involved in the big dinner planned for the VFW Hall. For the first time ever, Tommy was left in charge of the feed store for most of the day. Conchita, pressed into service by Rita, met the other women in Tommy's life that day. She couldn't remember ever being with a more diverse group than Margie Wilcox, the tall, voluptuous nurse, Ruth Silverman, the petite city girl and Betty Lou, the painfully shy and overly modest country girl. Conchita smiled to herself when she realized she made a damn good fourth because she was the loose woman with a past. At one in the afternoon, Rita swung by the feed store to give Tommy a lunch break. Tommy used the time to visit Otto Mills, the vice president of the savings and loan. Mills knew the procedure for transferring Tommy's money from Florida. He told Tommy to return on Friday to sign a few documents, and that it should take six days to affect the transfer via first class registered airmail. Mister Mills said that Monday, the eighth of December, looked like the most likely date. While Tommy was at the bank, Harold Fricke was sitting at the bar of the VFW talking to Horace Jenkins, the Post Adjutant. Harold had an open manila folder in front of him. Jenkins was sitting to his right, flipping through the papers in the file. Ben Crawford was kibitzing over Harold's left shoulder, and Ramon Salazar was peeking over his right. The paperwork in the folder was a copy of First Lieutenant Thomas Bledsoe's 201 file, his Official Military Personnel Folder. The Adjutant had requested a copy of the folder from the Department of the Army, because Tommy did not have a copy of his records for himself. Jenkins stopped flipping pages and tapped his thick, stubby index finger at the page he'd stopped at. "Your boy was a hell of a soldier Harold; he has a Silver Star, Bronze Star with 'V' Device (Valor) and One Oak Leaf cluster, and an ARCOM (Army Commendation Medal) with a V and two Clusters. Hell, he even has a Soldier's Medal (a military award for bravery that was not the result of combat); I've never met anyone with one of them. Citation says he pulled a couple of guys out of a burning chopper. The Soldier's Medal is worth an extra ten percent on his retirement." The four men studied Tommy's file for a few more minutes. They were just as impressed with his ASVAB (Armed Service Vocational Aptitude Battery) test scores. Tommy was an extremely intelligent young man. Harold finally closed the folder and leaned back on his barstool. Harold had spoken to Tommy about sending for his files, because Tommy had to sign a release. "It is a crying shame Tommy Boy doesn't remember even a minute of his service, because he has much to be proud of. Instead, he isn't the slightest interested in anything having to do with his time in the Army. Horace, can you check to see if Tommy is drawing the extra ten percent for the Soldier's Medal, and fix it if he isn't?" Horace Jenkins nodded his head. "No sweat Harold, I'll call one of the National Service Officers in Indianapolis. He'll run over to Fort Ben (Fort Benjamin Harrison, Indiana, home of the Army Finance and Accounting Branch) and take care of it." ------- Thanksgiving Day was a fantastic day for Tommy. He worked on the serving line from the first person until everyone was fed but him. The idea of giving something back to the very people who had made him so at home in Brantley struck Tommy as being perfect. Of course, having the people he loved working around him or passing by in the chow line made it even better. Tommy's enthusiasm was infectious, and soon everyone on both sides of the serving line were joking and chatting. Tommy clearly saw no difference between the county's elite and the drifters from the hobo jungle over by the railroad tracks. Tommy wasn't just talking the talk as far as everyone being equal in the eyes of God, he was walking the walk. Tommy also stayed after the meal and helped the members clean up the hall and set it up for Friday Night Bingo. Bingo was the biggest money making activity the post conducted. Money from the little old ladies on Friday night, allowed Post 9802 to fund events like the Thanksgiving open house and the annual Children's Christmas Party. ------- Friday was just another work day for everyone. For most, it was a let down after the holiday, but for Tommy, it was another chance to prove his worth as a person. Tommy dashed over to the bank at noon to sign some papers for Mister Mills, then he went to lunch with Rita and Harold at the Bluebonnet. The Friday lunch meal had become a family tradition for the three of them. Rita was thrilled that Tommy was taking Betty Lou to the movies that night. She smiled in delight when Tommy told her he had picked out a show with Regina's help. Rita admonished him to treat Betty Lou as special as he treated Margie and Ruth. "Just because you live in the same house with her and see her every day doesn't mean you should take her for granted," Rita said. Tommy rushed home from work, took a shower and changed into a nice pair of jeans, a white shirt and his new black boots. He left Betty Lou a note telling her he'd pick her up at seven, then zoomed over to the Frickes' house. Rita met him at the door and showed him into the house. Harold was down at the VFW hall calling bingo. The trip to the Frickes' was Rita's idea. She said that Tommy not being in the house would make it easier for Betty Lou to get ready. Tommy sat at the kitchen table with Rita and the two talked about Tommy going home to visit his sister and her family. Rita said the Christmas holidays were a good time to go. Tommy allowed that a visit was due, but it would not be over Christmas. "I'm spending Christmas with the family that adopted me here in Brantley. You all, the Grimes's, Margie, Ruth and Connie are my family just as much as Beth is. Plus, I promised Harold I'd be one of Santa's helpers at the Children's Christmas Party." Rita didn't try to argue him out of his decision, because she agreed with him one hundred percent. At six-forty-five, Rita handed Tommy a small bouquet of flowers she'd purchased for him at the Piggy Wiggly, and sent him out the door. Betty Lou giggled as she headed for the door when Tommy knocked. Tommy was a sweetheart for trying so hard to make her feel as if it were a real date. Betty Lou checked herself in the hall mirror and smiled at her reflection. The outfit Regina loaned her did flatter her figure and was completely different from what Tommy usually saw her in. Because Regina was slightly smaller than Betty Lou, the green plaid skirt just barely covered her knees and the dark green sweater was tight across the bust. With the skirt outfit, she was wearing her favorite penny loafers. The ensemble was a little risqué, without being trashy. Tommy presented her the flowers, told her how beautiful she looked and walked her to his truck. He drove across town to highway 931, then turned north towards Brownwood. Betty Lou and Tommy were chatting up a storm, so she didn't notice Tommy turn a mile before they reached the mall Cineplex. The first inkling she had that the evening might be different than she imagined, was when Tommy pulled into the entrance of the Starlight Drive-In Theater. She looked at Tommy in alarm. "We can't go here, Tommy, it wouldn't be proper," she sputtered. "Sure we can, I hear this is a very nice place and the popcorn is great. Besides, it's the only movie showing Cactus Flower, and Regina said you really wanted to see it." Before Betty Lou could formulate a reply to that, Tommy paid the man in the ticket booth three dollars and pulled into the lot. ------- Chapter 9 Tommy navigated between the whoopee-doop rows of speakers until he found the section of the drive-in Regina recommended to him. The spot was on the row left of the concession stand and projection room, and right up against the high wood fence. A huge live oak next to the fence dappled the ground with dark shadows. Underneath the tree, Tommy's dark blue truck was almost invisible. The spot was out of the way and private, yet it was less than a hundred feet from the concession stand, and had a clear view of the screen. A big part of Betty Lou was still in shock that she was parked at a drive-in movie with a handsome man. Another part of her was shocked that she was only surprised and not upset at his presumptuousness. As she thought about it, she realized that Tommy had not brought her here as part of some nefarious scheme to take advantage of her. His only purpose had been to find the movie she wanted to see. What puzzled her was Regina's involvement in the process. Regina certainly knew about the reputations of drive-ins, even if Tommy hadn't a clue. The speaker was on Betty Lou's side of the truck, so they hung it on her window. Trailers for coming attractions and advertisements were playing, so Tommy helped Betty Lou out of his door. Hand in hand, they walked to the concession stand, as dancing hot dogs cavorted on the fifty foot screen. They were back snug in the truck ten minutes later, their hands full of Dr. Pepper and sublimely sinful buttered popcorn. Tommy's movie plan had a couple of holes in it, one of which was the weather. As the evening progressed, it kept getting chillier. Betty Lou didn't mind the temperature a bit, however, as she ended up snuggled up to Tommy under a blanket he pulled from behind his seat. The movie was excellent and Betty Lou had to admit that watching it tucked up underneath Tommy's arm made the experience much better. As the evening moved forward, Betty Lou started to wonder why Tommy wasn't at least kissing her once in a while. Tommy had not tried to kiss her, even though he was dying to, because of a miscommunication between him and Rita Fricke. Since this was Tommy's first movie date, he went to Mama Rita for advice on how to comport himself. Because Tommy did not specify the movie was a drive-in, Rita gave him advice applicable to an indoor cinema. "Be on your best behavior, Honey, and don't embarrass her," Rita told him. "It's okay to put your arm around her if she doesn't object, but don't try to kiss her or get too familiar. You know how shy Betty Lou is." It was the usual excellent direction he expected from Rita; unfortunately, it didn't apply under the current circumstances. Yes, Betty Lou appreciated that he wasn't all over her, but even her strict moral code didn't rule out a kiss every once in a while. Away from anyone seeing her, she felt daring and adventurous. About half way through the movie, she decided, for the first time in her life, she would make out with a man in a car at a drive-in movie. She turned her head and pressed her lips to his ear. "This part is boring, Tommy, so why don't you kiss me?" she whispered. Tommy gave her a big smile and did just that very thing. Betty Lou kissed him right back without the slightest bit of hesitation. As the kiss progressed, Betty Lou moaned deep in her chest as a bolt of pure sexual excitement shot through her. Betty Lou had kissed a few boys in high school, and during her nine year marriage, she shared many kisses with her husband. Yet none of those that went before could hold a candle to the kiss she was sharing with Tommy. ------- That Betty Lou was so unfamiliar with passion was not that usual for a small town Texas girl raised in the nineteen fifties. She had been a good girl all through high school; pretty and popular though she was, she still graduated a virgin. She met and fell in love with Richard (Rick) Grimes the summer after graduation. She was a trainee teller at the savings and loan; Rick was a divorced deputy sheriff, five years older than her. Rick was a serious young man, devoutly Baptist, with traditional conservative values. They married a year later, four months before Betty Lou's twentieth birthday. Betty Lou was as unsullied as her snow white dress when she walked down the aisle. Betty Lou and Rick had what she assumed was a normal sex life. Both she and Rick saw intercourse as an act of love between husband and wife that transcended the rutting passion of wild animals. She and Rick shared that love once a week in a dark bedroom in the missionary position, her in a nightgown, him in pajamas. That Bucky was conceived so quickly after they married was all the evidence she needed of the goodness of their love life. Betty did not accept a date until two years after Rick's death. Unfortunately, both offers she accepted were from men looking to score with an attractive and lonely widow woman. The two cads were enough to convince Betty Lou that she was better off staying at home. After all, she had her children, her job and her church, what else did she really need? ------- Betty Lou began to have an inkling of what else she might need there in the front seat of Tommy's pickup truck. The inkling grew stronger as she wrapped her arms around his neck and pressed her body tighter against him. Tommy leaned back until he was semi-reclined against the door. He pulled her with him until she was on top of him as their lips and tongues continued to duel. Betty Lou was disappointed when Tommy gently broke the kiss. She raised her head and looked at him questioningly. "I want to touch you," Tommy said, as he gazed into her eyes. Betty Lou saw nothing but love in his look and he was so sweet asking instead of just groping her. She gave him a little nod and lifted herself slightly off him. Betty Lou gasped when Tommy insinuated a hand between their torsos and gently squeezed her breast. Far from being offended, Betty Lou gave a hum of encouragement and reattached her lips to his. His hands on her felt every bit as good as his lips. Betty Lou had firm, medium sized, half-grapefruit shaped breasts, wide spaced on her chest. They would never be competition for Margie Wilcox or Conchita Delgado. What set her apart was a set of overly large nipples that were a constant embarrassment to her. When they were erect, they were the size of a sewing thimble. Only her heavily stitched Maidenform Sweet Dreams bra kept everyone in the world from knowing that. She shuddered when Tommy unerringly zeroed in on her left nipple, because they were as sensitive as they were large. Betty Lou's breath caught in her throat when he gently but firmly rolled her fat nipple between his thumb and index finger. Tommy was the one to call things to a halt fifteen intense minutes later. Tommy stopping had nothing to do with Betty Lou protesting or him lacking the ardor. Instead, the mechanics of doing more in the cramped cab of the truck made stopping necessary. There was just no way to find a comfortable position, what with the gear shift lever and steering wheel constantly in the way. By the time they halted, Betty Lou's Maidenform was under her chin and her skirt was around her waist. She'd soared through two teeth clenching climaxes already from Tommy rubbing her mound through her pantyhose. Betty Lou had been as aroused as she'd ever been in her life. The erotic aroma of her ardor hung thick and heady in the confines of the truck cab. Betty Lou pulled her bra back down and straightened her skirt as Tommy situated himself behind the wheel. She rolled down her window, hung the speaker back on the pole, and slid over next to him as he fired up the engine. He rolled down his window and they sat there quietly as the defroster labored to clear the windshield. Tommy was quiet because he was afraid he'd gone too far and made Betty Lou mad at him. It was worry enough to make him lose the aching hard-on filling his jeans. She was quiet because she was still processing the new sexual feelings Tommy brought out in her. Tommy finally broke the ice. "I'm sorry if I made you mad, but you are so beautiful and sexy that I couldn't stop once I started," he moaned mournfully. Betty Lou jerked her head off his shoulder and looked at him in surprise. Of all the things she was feeling, mad wasn't one of them. She gave him a smile and patted his knee. "I'm not mad at you, Tommy, because you did not do anything I didn't want you to do. But we have more to consider than just what makes me feel good. I mean, look at us, Tommy, we live in the same house and my son is your best friend. What will Bucky think about you and me having that kind of relationship? Then there is Regina. What kind of example will I be setting for her?" Tommy nodded morosely as she ticked off her points. He had not considered any of that. All he had thought about was how much he cared for her and how much he wanted to share his love with her. What Betty Lou was pointing out was way above his ability to sort out. He'd talk to Mama Rita about it tomorrow and see what she thought. Until then, he was going to be on his best behavior. ------- Tommy had some help staying on his best behavior around Betty Lou that weekend, because Margie Wilcox kept him occupied on Saturday night, and Ruth Silverman invited him to dinner Sunday after church. It helped that Betty Lou wasn't making a big deal out of staying away from him. She treated him just as she always had. Monday evening Tommy spent at the library, huddled up with Becky Dierdorf. Tommy and his tutor were researching farm equipment stores in trade magazines geared toward farmers and ranchers. The American Cattleman magazine had some especially nice two page color ads for some of the bigger stores that catered to ranchers. Tommy was particularly impressed with the looks of the Tractor Supply Company, a chain of ranch and farm supply stores based out of Minot, North Dakota. Tractor Supply had a presence in Texas, but it was mostly up in the panhandle, there wasn't one within a hundred miles of Brantley. Becky Dierdorf smiled as Tommy excitedly told her of Harold Fricke's plans to expand the feed and seed into something similar to the store in the magazine. She smiled often when Tommy, or the thought of him, was involved. Becky was crazy about Tommy, but went to great pains to avoid showing it. After all, what would a handsome man like him want with someone like her? Yet Tommy wasn't like other boys or men she'd met. He didn't tease her about her frizzy mop of carrot red hair, her billion freckles, or the thick glasses that made her appear owlish. He'd never said a word about her big bottom or her tiny fried egg breasts. Instead, he treated her almost reverently, because he thought she was so smart. Other men had treated her nicely, but only as a ruse to get into her pants, a ploy she'd fallen for all too often. By contrast, Tommy treated her with respect and admiration, without any hidden agenda. Because of the way Tommy treated her since she became his cicerone, Becky had stopped putting out for any man who paid her the slightest attention. It only took half an hour to find everything Tommy needed to know about farm supply stores. He was more convinced than ever that Harold's idea for expanding his business was a great plan. Tommy carried the magazines they'd been perusing back to the periodical rack and plopped down next to Becky at the research room table. He was more than a little sad that tonight was Becky's last night as his tutor. She was leaving in a couple of days to start her registered nurse training at a big Dallas teaching hospital. Suddenly, an idea popped into his brain. He jumped to his feet and grabbed a startled Becky's hand. "Come on Becky, lets go celebrate you starting school," he said. Becky blinked a couple of times and her heart did a few flip-flops as he pulled her to her feet. Before she could marshal a good argument against going out on a work night, they were in Tommy's truck, headed up Austin Street. All she could think about was how glad she was that she had worn her most flattering skirt and blouse when Tommy pulled into the parking lot of Dukes Place. She was blown away that Tommy was taking her out in public right here in Brantley where everyone could see them. Usually her dates either took her parking or to a room at the Cardinal Motor Court out on the south bypass. Once inside the juke-joint, Tommy tugged her to the back of the room and sat her at a table. He threw a quarter on the pool table and challenged the two cowboys already there to a game of partners. Next, he flagged down the waitress and held up two fingers. Finally he plopped down in the chair next to her and put his arm around her slender shoulders. "I'm really proud that a smart woman like you would go out with a dummy like me," he said. Becky gave him an exasperated look. She had the temper that went with her flaming red hair. "We've had this discussion before, Tommy. You can't equate intelligence with experience," she snipped. "Why not?" he replied. "It all comes out the same. I don't know much, and everyone knows it." Before Becky could reply, the waitress brought their beers. Becky's anger evaporated when Tommy stuck a long neck Lonestar in one of her hands and a pool cue in the other. "Anyway, that doesn't matter tonight. Let's show these cowboys some geometry," Tommy said with a disarming grin. Becky thought shooting pool with Tommy as her partner was about the most fun she'd ever had. But she was forced to relegate the experience to second place when Tommy dragged her out onto the dance floor in front of the jukebox. She didn't offer a peep of protest when he put both hands on her waist. Instead, she threw her arms around his neck and snuggled up against him. She did not feel the least bit awkward as he shuffled them around the dance floor. Half way through the dance, Tommy moved his head slightly and whispered in her ear. "Do you have those freckles all over?" he asked. She stiffened slightly, but nodded her head yes. "That is so cool, I'll bet it's a lot of fun playing connect the dots with them." Becky shivered and squeezed his neck. "You can do that anytime you want, Tommy, all you have to do is ask." Tommy smiled and spun her around. Then Tommy did something that forever cemented her feelings towards him. He pressed his lips to hers and kissed her, right there in front of God and everyone in the bar. For Becky, the girl that guys shunned in public, it was ultimate proof that Tommy wasn't ashamed to be seen with her, and that this evening wasn't some act of charity. They danced and shot pool until nine-thirty, then Tommy drove her back to the library to pick up her car. He opened her car door and she slid onto the cold vinyl seat. Before he could close the door, she hopped back out and threw herself into his arms. "I'll be back on the twentieth for the holidays, Tommy. Can we spend some time together then?" she asked shyly. "Will you show me your freckles?" he asked teasingly. Becky smiled and kissed him. "Every single one of them," she promised. Tommy laughed, then his expression turned serious. "Yes, we can spend some time together when you come home. And you don't have to show me anything for that to happen. You are my friend, Becky, and I enjoy your company." ------- Conchita Delgado took Tommy to lunch at the Bluebonnet Tuesday, when she came into town to check her post office box. She was in a very good mood, because there were a couple of nice sized residual checks in her mail box. Beau's movies were under going a revival of sorts with the hippie crowd, and Conchita was reaping the benefits. Making her mood even more ebullient, was a telephone call she'd received from her agent the preceding night. Her agent related to her an offer from Hammer Film Productions, a British film company known for their Hammer Horror line of movies. Hammer was about to begin production on yet another Dracula sequel (this one titled Taste the Blood of Dracula), and had offered her a substantial role in the film. Conchita happily related the news about the film offer to Tommy as he munched on his country fried steak. Tommy cracked her up when he did a perfect Christopher Lee imitation. Tommy flapped his arms and in a crisp British accent, misquoted a line from the Hammer Horror 1958 version of Dracula. "I've got to go now, your blood is rushing to my head." He said sonorously. After lunch, the two sat in Conchita's El Camino in front of the feed store and chatted for a few minutes. While they were sitting there, Tommy asked her for a date. "Connie, will you go out with me Saturday night? We can go wherever you want." Conchita leaned across the seat and kissed him firmly on the lips. "I'd love to go out with you, Tommy. Can we go over to Brownwood instead of staying around here?" Conchita asked Tommy that because she did not want to cause Tommy problems with his friends, or the congregation of the First Baptist Church of Brantley. It seemed as if everyone in the county looked after Tommy and might not be that happy with him keeping company with the county's most notorious scarlet woman. Before Conchita went home, they made plans for another lunch date on Thursday, and Tommy told her what time he would pick her up Saturday night. Tommy had a plan for their date already, and luckily, it was to a place just north of Brownwood. Tuesday afternoon, Tommy was in the back yard with Rex, teaching the mustard colored marvel a new trick, when Regina tracked him down. It was the first chance they'd had to speak in private since she returned from her grandparents' farm. Tommy saw her and smiled. "Hey Reggie, watch this," he said. Then Tommy pointed his finger at Rex and went 'BANG'. Reggie almost fell on her butt laughing when Rex yelped and collapsed onto his back with his feet sticking straight up in the air. Tommy called Rex out of his dying cockroach pose and patted his head. Regina gave Rex a scratch also, then told Tommy what was on her mind. "What happened at the drive-in the other night? I know something must have, because Betty Lou asked Bucky and me what we thought about her dating you. She was all worried that we would hate you both if you went out together." Tommy avoided the question about the drive-in and focused in on the conversation with Betty Lou and her children. "So what did you all tell her? You know neither of us is going to do anything that causes you or Bucky any hard feelings." Regina smiled and stepped up closer to him. "Bucky thinks it's a terrific idea. He told her you were the best person she could pick to date. I agreed with him. What I didn't tell her though, was that I'm fine with it as long as you don't forget about Mel and me." Later that evening at about half past nine, Tommy was sitting on the sofa in the small sitting room area of his basement apartment. He heard the door at the head of the stairs open and the shushing noise of slippered feet on the stairs. He glanced up and smiled when he saw it was Betty Lou. She was wearing a pink full length fleece robe and fuzzy pink slippers. Her hair was still damp from the bathtub. Tommy stood up when she reached the bottom landing and stayed standing until she was seated at the other end of the couch. Betty Lou did not appear to be nervous or agitated, but Tommy could clearly see that something was on her mind. He sat there quietly as she marshaled her thoughts. Finally, she turned towards him and gave him a tentative, Mona Lisa-like smile. "If you still want me, take me to bed before I lose my nerve," she said softly. Tommy returned her smile and gestured for her to move closer. "Come here, Betty Lou, and kiss me, and we'll worry about bed later," he said. Betty Lou staggered back up the stairs an hour and a half later on legs as wobbly as a newly-born foal. During those ninety minutes, she had climaxed about as many times as she had in the ten preceding years. Amazingly, they had never left the couch, so caught up were they in their passion. Until that night, Betty Lou had not even dreamed that love could be made in so many different ways with so many different organs. Betty Lou idly wonder how long the aftershock tingles that rippled through her body would last. Leaving Tommy and returning to her own lonely bed was one of the hardest things she'd ever had to do. Thank goodness Tommy didn't put up an argument about it, or she'd still be snuggled next to him. Betty Lou knew she was going to have to strictly ration the nights she spent with him, because she could easily see herself becoming addicted to what they'd done. Tommy lay on his back and stared at the ceiling when Betty Lou left. He was pleasantly drained and totally relaxed. Making love to Betty Lou had been even more fulfilling than he'd thought it would be. The love he had for her made him almost obsessive toward making the experience good for her. If her moans and cries were any indication, he had succeeded. Tommy still could not believe how nice Betty Lou's body was, or how responsive it was to his touch. ------- Wednesday and Thursday flew by for Tommy, as he was busy both days receiving two semi-trailer loads of product from the big Purina mill over in Lubbock. It was the first time that Harold had ever ordered two trailer loads in one week. The Purina folks were very happy with Harold and had discounted him another six percent on the second truck load. The product was flying out the door almost as fast as it was coming in. Harold's new policy of free delivery of orders over five hundred pounds had the phones in the office constantly ringing. If Juan Luna was out with the big truck when a rush order came in, Harold would use the store's pickup truck to personally make the delivery. Harold gave a four percent discount for folks who picked up their own product, so Tommy was staying busy too. Mister Mills at the bank called the feed store for Tommy about eleven-thirty on Friday morning. Mills had received the interbank transfer of Tommy's money from Florida by Special Delivery Air Mail only a few minutes earlier. Tommy begged out of lunch with the Frickes, citing pressing business, and hustled across the street and down the block to the bank. The check from Florida was for a little over one hundred and eleven thousand dollars. Tommy had Mills prepare him two cashier's checks, one for thirty thousand dollars and one for fifty thousand. The balance he put in his savings account. The fifty thousand dollar check was made out to Harold and Rita Fricke, but the payee was blank on the second check. Tommy left the bank and drove over to Austin Street. He stopped in front of a building whose sign proclaimed it to be the home of Dixon's Insurance and Real Estate. Madeline Dixon greeted Tommy warmly and when Tommy stated his business, she called Leo, her husband and partner, out of his office. "Tommy says the Frickes want to make an offer on the old lumber yard property next to the feed store," Maddie informed her husband. Buying the three acre parcel that once housed Brantley Lumber was important for Harold's plans, because it would allow him to expand his store and still have a large area for parking and storage and future growth. From listening to Harold talk, the owner of the parcel would be happy to part with it for the check Tommy held in his hands. Tommy made the offer and Leo tentatively accepted for the out of town property owner. Maddie took the check from Tommy and gave him a receipt with Harold and Rita's name on it. The check would go into the Dixons' escrow account until the property closed. Tommy made it back to the feed store before Harold and Rita returned from lunch. He left the envelope with the cashier's check and the receipt for the purchase of the lot on Harold's desk, then hustled back to the warehouse. ------- Chapter 10 As soon as Harold Fricke sat down at his desk after lunch, he saw the envelope Tommy had left in the middle of his blotter. He opened the envelope, pulled out the check, realized what it was and sat back in his chair with a grunt. "Rita Maude, what do you know about this?" he asked, waving the check in the air. Rita walked over to his desk and plucked the check out of his hand. She gave it the once-over, her eyebrows arched in surprise. "I don't know a thing about it, but it's drawn on the savings and loan, so I'll call Betty Lou and find out." Harold didn't answer her immediately, because he had just discovered the receipt for the tentative land purchase. "What the hell, Rita, there is also a receipt for the purchase of the old lumber yard next door, made out to you and me. I'll call Leo Dixon as soon as you talk to Betty Lou," he said. Betty Lou pulled the cashier's check log and looked up the check number Rita gave her. When she came back to the phone, her voice was strangely subdued. "That check was purchased just a few hours ago by Thomas Bledsoe. Where in the world did Tommy get all that money?" Rita thanked Betty Lou for the help and gently put the phone back in its cradle. She stared at it thoughtfully for a minute, then spun her chair around and faced her husband. "Tommy bought that check earlier today. That must be the important business he had to take care of. He also purchased one for thirty thousand, so I have a sneaking suspicion that Leo's going to tell you Tommy bought the property next door." Harold called Leo and confirmed Rita's suspicion. He hung up the phone and looked over at his wife. "Tommy handed Leo a cashier's check for thirty grand at noon today. Leo thought we'd sent Tommy over there with the check, that's why the receipt is in our name," he explained. Rita shook her head and laughed out loud. "Our boy is full of surprises, isn't he? Let's go see what he has to say for himself," she said. Tommy was building two pallets of assorted grain for the Flying J Ranch, when Rita and Harold walked into the warehouse. When Rita waved to him, Tommy shut off the forklift and walked over to them. "Hey, Mama, how was lunch?" Tommy asked. "Lunch was fine, Tommy. Now what can you tell me about this check and receipt?" she said, waving them in front of his face. Tommy looked at the check and shrugged his shoulders. "That's money to expand the store the way Mister Harold wants. I heard him talking about how the bank wouldn't give you all of the money, so I did." Rita nodded and smiled that motherly smile that Tommy lived to receive. "Don't you think that maybe you should save this money for your future? Where did you get all that anyway? Don't tell me we are paying you that well." Tommy missed Rita's attempt at humor and shook his head emphatically. "You pay me plenty, even though everyone says Mister Harold is so tight he squeaks when he walks. That money belonged to old Tommy. Old Tommy is gone, and I don't need it, so why can't I give it to you if I want too?" Harold and Rita tried to reason with Tommy, but he was adamant about them keeping the money. Rita finally stopped Harold arguing when Tommy started to get emotionally upset. She had an idea that might work for all three of them. "Tommy, we can't take your money as a gift, it's just too much for us to feel right about accepting. But maybe you could invest the money in the feed store and become a partner in it. You are very good with math, so why don't we go into the office and see how that idea might work?" Harold looked intrigued at the idea and nodded his head in agreement. It took the three of them less than an hour to work out an agreement with which they all could live. In the end, Tommy ended up owning twenty-four point nine percent of Brantley Feed, Seed and Farm Supply, Rita Fricke owned twenty-five percent and Harold was the Managing Partner with fifty point one percent. "I'll run this down to Glenn Ballard and make it all legal and such," Harold said when they reached an agreement. Glenn Ballard was the town's only attorney, and was married to Harold's sister Inez. Inez was the Post Master for McCulloch County, Texas, Zip Code 76825. Harold had an excellent business plan, including blue prints for the expansion he envisioned, and now he had the money to make it happen. He also had five or six vendors lined up who were willing to stock his shelves on consignment for the first ninety days. Of course none of that made a difference to Tommy, he was just tickled that Harold was so happy. He went back to work and put the money out of his mind. He was actually glad to be rid of Old Tommy's money, and pleased that the new Tommy was doing just fine without it. ------- Tommy held the door open as Conchita Delgado hoisted herself up into the cab of his pickup. It was five in the afternoon, on Saturday, the six of December, nineteen hundred and sixty-nine. Conchita was beside herself with curiosity as to where they were going on their date. Despite all her wheedling, the only hint Tommy gave her was when he said she should dress western. So Conchita was wearing a nice pair of semi-tight jeans and a plaid shirt that was perfectly tailored to her fabulous figure. She had on red, white and blue cowgirl boots and a stylish white Lady Stetson. Since it was early December, she carried a butter soft, leather bomber jacket. Tommy took Texas 836 west, then turned north on Highway 931. Twenty-six miles later, and just north of Brownwood, he pulled into the Brown County Fairgrounds. Conchita smiled when she saw the sign proclaiming the evening 'Championship Night for the Texas Professional Rodeo Circuit'. Leave it to unpredictable Tommy to take her to something she'd never seen before. Putting aside the fact that he aroused her sexually, the more time she spent with him, the more she liked him. The rodeo events lasted until about nine, then there was an awards ceremony, as the champions for each event was crowned. Conchita and Tommy stayed for everything, including the fireworks display at the end. They were back on the road headed home by a quarter to ten. Conchita scooted over to the middle of the seat as soon as Tommy shifted up through the gears. She sighed contentedly when he put his arm over her shoulder and pulled her against his side. Conchita Delgado had slept with a lot of men, but she felt a more intimate connection with Tommy just riding in his truck than she had felt having sex with any of the rest. What, she wondered, makes such a thing possible? Maybe she was finally growing up, she rationalized, and as such, she was in the same boat as Tommy. She figured that both Tommy and she were at about the same place socially when it came to relations with the other sex. They were both bright and talented sixteen year olds feeling their way along the rutted relationship road. Conchita was startled awake when Tommy wheeled onto the dusty clay road that led to her house. She giggled and moved over so he could down shift. "I hope I didn't drool all over you," she said. Tommy made a production of checking to see if his shoulder was wet, then shot her a grin. "Not too bad, and I guess it's okay, because I drool anytime I think of you," he replied. His comment was the opening she had been waiting for. "So stay the night with me, Tommy, and we can do something about that," she said earnestly. Tommy shook his head. "I want to, but we probably better wait a while for that, Connie, this being our first date and all." Conchita thought about that for a minute and, strangely enough, she did not take his refusal as a rejection. Instead, she felt good that he respected her that much, and she was not about to do anything to lose that respect. Being thought of as a good girl was something new and alien to Conchita Delgado, in fact, it was exactly opposite of the reputation she'd worked so hard to earn. Conchita had more to think about when Tommy walked her to her door and laid a kiss on her that left her weak kneed and light headed. She said 'bye Tommy' in a daze and escaped into her house. She shut the door and sagged back against it as his headlights flashed by her living room windows. She must have stood there for five minutes before her heart slowed down to a normal beat. ------- During the second week of December, Joe Bob Flagler, the best carpenter in the area, started building a partition wall that would eventually turn half of the warehouse into a show room and sales floor. Once the new wall was in place, Joe Bob and his boys would tear out the old walls to the office and sales area and build shelving for products that were slated to begin arriving within a week or two. Harold was figuring that he could be up and running as a full service farm supply store by the first of February. To accommodate feed and seed inventories until the warehouse was expanded, Harold leased five of the forty foot long shipping containers used for transporting goods either by train or truck. The containers came from the Atchison Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad switch yard over in San Angelo. The containers sat on the ground behind the warehouse, but were accessible to Tommy and his forklift. Tommy found something to do with part of the rest of 'Old Tommy's' money that week, when Regina announced at the dinner table that she was filling out applications for colleges and scholarships. "I am applying to all the schools I'd like to attend, even though I know we can't afford them. Who knows, maybe I can win some other scholarships to go with the one from Daddy's union. If nothing else, I can work and attend Central Texas Junior College," she said. Tommy's ears perked up and he joined the conversation. "Where do you want to go to school if you had the money?" he asked. Regina didn't hesitate a second before replying. "That's easy. I'd go to Texas A&M. They have the best equine veterinarian program in the country. Melody is going to commit to going there, but then money isn't a problem for her. I applied there because Melody did, but I haven't heard from them yet." Tommy nodded his understanding and turned his attention back to his plate of spaghetti. He knew that both Regina and Melody were crazy about anything to do with horses. He was pretty proud of himself for acting so disinterested. As soon as he finished the supper dishes, he was going to go to the library and find out how much it would cost for Regina to go there. Tommy wasn't quite as sneaky as he thought he was, because Betty Lou picked up on the conversation and Tommy's sudden abandonment of it. Betty Lou also knew about what Tommy had done for the Frickes. It wasn't a giant leap for her to guess Tommy's intentions. She waited until he was up to his elbows in dish water before approaching him about it. "What were you thinking when you asked Regina about College plans? I don't want you doing anything crazy with whatever money you have left," she warned. Tommy laughed and flicked soap suds off his hands at her. "I was thinking it would be nice if Rex has his own personal vet. Besides, I'm tired of telling people that it's not my money. My money I worked for ... and I know where every penny of it is. I might as well have found this other money lying on the ground. Just because I don't want it, doesn't mean that it can't do something nice for my family, though." Betty Lou looked at Tommy in consternation and tried again. "But Honey, that money could help you make a better life for yourself. You could find a place of your own, or travel, or even go back to college yourself..." she tried to reason. As soon as she mentioned him finding a place of his own, Tommy drew back as if she had slapped him. "I like my life just fine, thank you very much. I have a good job and lots of friends. Besides, I can do most of that other stuff with my own money. If you want me to move out, though, just say so," he said stiffly. Betty Lou realized instantly that she had hurt Tommy's feelings. He was still not very good at hiding how he felt. She immediately pulled him into her arms, and for the first time she could remember, he didn't joyfully return her hug. That little omission on his part made Betty Lou very sad. "I'm sorry, Tommy; I did not express myself clearly. I do not want you to move, and neither does anyone else in this house. I was simply saying that one day, if and when you decide to move out on your own, the money would come in handy. Listen, after everyone is in bed, I'll come down and we'll talk some more, okay?" Tommy nodded, gave her a squeeze and returned to his sink full of dirty dishes. Rex, who had taken in the entire conversation as if he knew what they were saying, put his face back down into his food dish. Betty Lou stood there for a minute, looking at Tommy's back before she headed up the stairs to get ready for bed. For the first time in her life, Betty Lou was actively planning some make-up sex to heal hurt feelings. ------- Tommy went out with Ruth Silverman on Friday night. Tommy had to pull out all the stops to make the date happen, because Ruth was working herself to death down at the library. Ruth had yet to find anyone to replace Becky Dierdorf in the evenings, so she was working six days a week, including ten AM until ten PM on Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. Missus Purdy, the part-timer, worked Tuesday and Friday evenings, and Saturdays during the day. Ruth was off Saturday and worked the abbreviated Sunday shift by herself. Tommy picked Rita up at her house at seven in the evening on Friday. Ruth was dressed casually in a skirt and sweater, because Tommy had promised her a short, stress-free date. Tommy delivered just what he promised, by taking her to the Union 76 truck stop for a greasy but very good cheeseburger, and some homemade French fries. He drove her straight home from the truck stop, stripped her naked, gave her a glorious backrub, then lay down beside her and held her while she fell asleep. Ruth woke up the next morning, disappointed that Tommy wasn't still beside her. She yawned and stretched, then noticed it was only seven in the morning. She looked at the clock for a second, then giggled happily as she realized that she'd slept for at least ten hours. She popped out of bed and grabbed her robe, then hopped a couple of steps on the cold terrazzo floor until she tracked down her slippers. She felt great and was motivated enough to finally tackle the house cleaning she had let slide for the last ten days. When she had her feet mostly in her slippers, she made a dash towards the bathroom. Cleaning was going to have to wait until she took a major potty break. After sleeping for the better part of ten hours, she was about to explode. Ruth walked sleepy-eyed into the bathroom, spun around and sat down on the toilet with a sigh of relief. As she tinkled, her mind processed the fact that the bathroom was sparkling clean and her dirty clothes and towels had been carted off. After she finished in the bathroom, she discovered that the rest of her house was just as clean and tidy as the bathroom. She threw together a pot of Maxwell House, then headed for the shower while the coffee pot perked. The hot water felt sinfully good as Ruth lathered up her slender, toned and fit little body. She took special pains washing you know where, and she shaved her legs twice so they'd be silky smooth. Ruth then sorted through her closet and found a knee-length loose fitting cotton dress. She slipped the dress over her head, feeling naughty as hell that she was without foundation garments or underwear. She twisted her wavy black hair into a loose braid, slipped into some low heels, grabbed her London Fog trench coat and bolted out the door. It was eight-fifteen and she was headed for Brantley Feed and Seed. Ruth walked into the feed store and smiled when she spotted Rita standing at the counter next to the cash register. Rita returned her smile and gave her a hug. "What brings you down here so early on a Saturday morning, Ruthie?" Ruth regurgitated the story of her evening with Tommy and about finding her house spic and span earlier that morning. Rita smiled broadly at the story. She was proud of Tommy for thinking up the idea on his own. She was quick to point that out to Ruth. Ruth then added a surprise to the story by filling Rita in on her plans for Tommy's reward. "He is just too sweet for words, isn't he? Unless you have some objection to it, I'm going to march into that warehouse and show that boy how much I love him." Rita laughed and said Ruth was in luck, because Harold was on his way to Dallas to pick their daughter up at the airport, and Juan the delivery driver just departed with a truck full of feed. "Be my guest, Ruthie, but you are on your own if someone comes into the warehouse looking for some oats while you and Tommy are busy sowing some wild ones," Rita teased. ------- While Ruth Silverman was screeching her way through multiple orgasms draped across a pallet of cracked corn, Harold Fricke was motoring toward Love Field in Dallas to pick up his daughter Caroline. It was a trip Harold didn't mind making in the least, because Caroline had spent the last year as an exchange student in Switzerland, and Harold was tickled to death that she was finally coming home. Caroline Fricke was the pride of McCulloch County, Texas because she had won a Fulbright Scholarship. That's where she was returning from now, as her year at the University of Geneva just ended. As soon as the holidays were over, she would be starting medical school at the Baylor College of Medicine, located in Houston. The main reason Harold was turned down for his small business loan, was because the Fricke ranch was mortgaged to the hilt to pay Caroline and her two brothers' way through college. The boys were both settled now and were even repaying their parents a few dollars a month, but Caroline was years from being on her own. Harold was waiting in the arrival gate at eleven-fifteen, when Caroline walked off the new fangled air bridge and into the terminal. Harold was struck anew at how much Caroline resembled her mother of twenty-five years ago. Caroline was as happy to see him as Harold was to see her. She hugged him fiercely, then held tightly to his arm as they headed for baggage claim. Caroline did not ask many questions about Brantley or its residents, because she had moved well beyond that rural Texas mentality. No, Caroline considered herself to be a sophisticated woman of the world now. Harold repressed a smile when he thought about how Rita would react to this cosmopolitan woman who had outgrown her sleepy little hometown. By noon, Harold had her bags loaded in the backseat of Rita's Falcon and was heading out of Dallas on US Highway 377. They stopped for lunch at the Howard Johnson's right outside of town, where 377 intersected with US 84. They had a nice leisurely lunch, during which Caroline filled her father in on how progressive the Europeans were. Harold didn't have much to say to that, having spent two years fighting his way across France, Belgium and Germany as part of George Patton's Third Army. He had nothing against the Europeans, but he wouldn't trade two acres of Texas for all of France. Harold and Caroline arrived at the Rocking R Ranch at a few minutes after four in the afternoon. Rita met them on the porch and gave Caroline a big hug. Mother and daughter had a very good, although often tumultuous relationship. It was tumultuous, because Caroline had never been able to pull the wool over Rita's eyes the way she did routinely to her father. Also, Rita wasn't one of those mothers who wanted to be her daughter's best friend. Rita Maude Fricke believed that her children might need less mothering now that they were older, but they were still her children and she still had a duty to them. Although she protested some about it, Caroline was secretly pleased that her parents were throwing a welcome home party for her on Sunday afternoon. Her brothers would both be there with their families, and Rita had invited a bunch of her old friends from high school. With the prospect of the party to look forward to, Caroline didn't even mind attending church that Sunday morning. She was bored by the parochial nature of the hell and brimstone sermon, but she perked up when Tommy stood up and sang. "Who is that, Mother," Caroline asked Rita. Rita smiled and gave her daughter a partial answer. "Oh, that's Thomas Bledsoe. He moved here from San Antonio eight or nine months ago." Caroline nodded and watched him sing. He was an attractive man, but he was in the end, just another small town Texas cowboy. Caroline had seen hundreds of them in her short life, and her time on the European Continent had shown her just how little they had to offer. Twenty years from now, Thomas Bledsoe would still be in the same place, with nothing to show for his life except a pickup truck, a horse and a gun or two. No, the man for her was going to be refined and cultured, he'd know about the good things in life and have the means to obtain them. He'd be modern and progressive in his thinking, yet suave and debonair, with courtly old world manners. Instead of socializing after church, the Frickes rushed home to prepare for their guests. They arrived at the house about two minutes after Caroline's oldest (by one year) brother Robert and his wife Trudy arrived. Robert was a geologist with the Gulf Oil Company over in Houston. Trudy also worked for Gulf as a refinery reformulation chemist. Trudy and Robert were a very upwardly mobile young couple with a bright future. Thirty minutes later, her brother Dennis arrived in his sporty Jaguar convertible. Dennis was the family playboy. Dennis worked in the computer industry for a fellow Texan name Ross Perot. Perot's Electronic Data Systems had just gone public that summer, and young Dennis was suddenly holding almost a quarter of a million dollars worth of stock options he could exercise in three more years. Dennis did not have a wife or even a steady girl friend. Instead, he had a bevy of blonde, big breasted, long legged 'special friends'. One of those was sitting in the passenger seat of his canary yellow XKE. She was a Dallas Cowboy Cheerleader named Amber, and she was lobbying hard to be Dennis's one and only. Rita greeted her boys and their women warmly and they returned the love. Rita never said anything about it, but everyone standing there on the porch knew she was dying to be a grandmother. Of the three young women there, it was ironic that Amber was the only one actively trying to make that happen. Tommy arrived shortly after Dennis. Caroline smiled to herself when he hopped out of his pickup truck. These hayseed cowboys were just too predictable for words. Caroline watched as her brothers walked off the porch and greeted Tommy as if they were all long lost friends. Tommy knew both Bob and Denny from the brothers' frequent visits back to Brantley. She was flabbergasted, though, when Tommy sprang up onto the porch, hugged her mother and said, "Hi Mama." Caroline shot her dad an inquisitive look. He smiled and explained. "Tommy works for us down at the feed store. He is a special young man, and your mama and I sort of adopted him." Caroline nodded absently as she watched the handsome cowboy joke with her mother and brothers. Even for a cowboy, his conduct was juvenile. When her mother called her over to introduce them, she was somewhat taken aback by the man's manners and boyish charm. "I am pleased to meet you, Miss Caroline, you are just as beautiful as your mother," he said. Caroline was distracted away from Tommy when family friends and relatives started pulling up in the yard. Over the course of the next couple of hours, Caroline saw Tommy three or four times, and on each occasion, he seemed to be in intimate conversation with a different woman. Caroline recognized Betty Lou Grimes from church, and she recognized the librarian Miss Silverman. The librarian had been Caroline's heroine when she first met her, because back then, Ruth epitomized sophisticated coolness. She did not recognize the tall, full figured, Jane Russell looking woman, but someone identified her as the new county public health nurse. The fourth woman, Caroline only knew by reputation. That woman was the semi-retired actress Conchita Delgado. Caroline was curious about the women, because it was obvious to her that each of them were intimately comfortable around him. All four women also spent some time with her mother, some of them sharing what had to be an amusing story, and some of them very serious looking as they talked. Her curiosity was further aroused as the party wound down and Tommy walked each of the women out to their vehicles. He kissed each of them soundly before tucking them into their cars. Caroline finally cornered Tommy on the front porch as he was policing up empty cups and bottles. "What's the matter, Cowboy, run out of women to flirt with?" she asked sarcastically. Tommy looked at her with confusion written on his face for a few seconds before he answered her. "I'm not really a cowboy. I can't ride a horse, on account of its bad for my brains," he whispered conspiratorially. Caroline was still digesting that bit of conversation when she ran into her mother in the hall leading to the bathroom. "Mother, tell me more about this Tommy guy. He doesn't seem to be all there," she said, tapping her finger on her head. Rita laughed and told her daughter the abridged version of Tommy's story. Unlike Conchita Delgado, Caroline saw nothing uplifting about the story at all. In fact, she thought just the opposite. She set her jaw and challenged her mother about it. "What are you thinking being involved with a person like that? What if he turns out to be another Lennie Small?" Rita was shocked that her only daughter could even think such a thing. "That, young lady, is quite enough. Unlike Lennie, Tommy is just socially challenged, he is actually very intelligent. Tommy loves all of us and is about the most loyal person I've ever met. There is nothing he wouldn't do for any of us." Caroline walked away unconvinced. She would change her tune soon, though, when her mother's speculation about Tommy's loyalty and love became a sad, bloody reality. ------- Chapter 11 Caroline Fricke was not swayed by the gentle chiding she received from her mother concerning Tommy Bledsoe. Maybe the man wasn't another Lennie Small from "Of Mice and Men", but there was certainly something suspicious about how he had waltzed into town and insinuated himself into her parents' life. Not to mention he had seduced a number of town women. Maybe, she thought, he was another Charles Manson, the crazy eyed guru just arrested a few days ago for being involved in the murder of actress Sharon Tate. Actually, Manson did fit better, because Manson also had a bevy of mesmerized women doing his evil bidding. The Monday morning after her party, Caroline borrowed her mother's car and drove to the library to talk with Ruth Silverman about it. She chose the librarian, because Ruth was a sophisticated and educated young woman who was not likely to be swayed by the charms of some cowboy drifter. Ruth listened to Caroline's concerns and nodded understandingly as the younger woman expressed her misgivings. She could sympathize with Caroline's feelings, as she ruefully recalled her own assumptions about Thomas. "I understand what you are saying, Caroline, and I know all too well your qualms about Thomas. I had them myself when I first met him. However, your mother is absolutely right about him. He is the nicest, sincerest and sweetest man I've ever met. Yes, he is emotionally underdeveloped, and yes, he sometimes acts immature. But I don't think that's necessarily a bad thing, because Thomas doesn't have a big ego or a legion of bad habits and misconceptions. When he tells me he loves me, I know he is telling the unconditional, unvarnished truth." As a way of example, Ruth related to Caroline her date with Tommy on Friday night. She left out her trip to the feed store. Caroline smiled at the story; that's exactly how she felt a man should act if he truly loved you. However, she was still skeptical on several points. "What about the other women I saw him with? That's a strange way to show you he loves you," Caroline argued. Ruth smiled and shrugged her shoulders. "Tommy loves those other women as much as he loves me, that's the way he is. He is sweet and tender, and he makes us all feel special without stifling us with demands. As a matter of fact, we have to be careful what we say around Tommy, because he would literally give us anything we wanted or do anything we asked. What more could we want? Besides, we are all close friends and there is no jealousy between us." Caroline thought it strange that four women would so happily share one man, but her mind was at least at ease about Tommy being a danger to her parents. Her worries were suddenly replaced with curiosity. She did not like it that there was something about him the other women saw and she didn't. Her naturally inquisitive mind set about solving the Tommy problem as soon as she walked out of the library. ------- Tommy had fun the ten days leading up to Christmas, as he shopped for gifts for his friends and participated in community events that celebrated the holidays. Tommy delighted in volunteering for everything. He sang in the church Christmas program, acted as one of Santa's helpers at the VFW Children's Christmas Party, and rode on a fire truck dressed as an elf for the Elk's lodge parade. He rang a bell and watched over the donation kettle for the Salvation Army in front of the Piggly Wiggly for six hours, and collected gifts for Toys for Tots. Tommy also made two shopping excursions to Brownwood, and one all the way to Dallas to find gifts for his friends. By now, there were a lot of people who considered Tommy a friend, and Tommy wholeheartedly returned the sentiment. While they had been at Caroline's homecoming party, one of those friends invited Tommy to dinner for the following Tuesday. So as soon as he was finished with his day at the feed store, Tommy zipped home, showered, threw on some clean clothes and drove out to Connie's. He arrived at Conchita Delgado's Happy Endings Ranch at six-thirty on the dot. Tommy prided himself in always being on time. Conchita had been as nervous as a new bride as she carefully followed the recipes that Rita and Betty Lou gave her. Conchita Delgado was a lot of things, but a good cook wasn't among them. Still, she was motivated and determined, so armed with three times the quantities of the ingredients called for by the recipes, she had slaved away in the kitchen all afternoon. When Tommy rapped his knuckles on her door, she was just sliding the biscuits out of the oven. She quickly flopped the cookie sheet up onto the stove top, turned off the oven and dashed to the door. Tommy gave her a big smile when she threw open the door. He gave her a kiss and complimented her on how nice she looked. Conchita returned his smile and thanked him for the compliment. She was wearing a nice knee-length dress that flattered her figure without showing a lot of skin. She had two inch heels on her feet and her hair was loose and brushed until it shined. It was, however, a completely different story underneath the demure frock. Connie was loaded for bear in a Fredrick's of Hollywood bra, panty and garter belt set in hot pink satin. She was determined that tonight would be the night. Conchita sat Tommy down on the couch with a Lonestar and some peanuts, then swayed back to the kitchen to put the meal on the table. She was gratified that everything had turned out so well, until she saw the biscuits she'd just baked. Instead of light and fluffy perfection, she had created golden brown hockey pucks. Resourceful Conchita had been prepared for that eventuality, however. She dumped the flat, rock hard biscuits into the trash and deftly opened a package of Merita brown and serve rolls. She threw the rolls on the same cookie sheet and popped them in the oven. Conchita put the food on the table six quick minutes later, and fetched Tommy to the dining room. Tommy was probably the first person to ever have country fried steak and lumpy mashed potatoes by romantic candle light with a beautiful movie star. Tommy enjoyed the heck out of the meal, and went to great pains to make sure Connie knew that. Conchita acknowledged his compliment, then went about subtly seducing him. It was probably Conchita's most outstanding performance ever, as she acted the part of a perfect soubrette. It worked, though, so for dessert, Tommy had himself a heaping helping of hot Hungarian. How they ended up in the bed together was educational for Conchita. It was educational, because of the way Tommy orchestrated the event instead of vice versa. She was very pleasantly surprised when Tommy took charge and pulled her into his lap as he sat on the couch. Somehow he nimbly removed her dress while she wriggled on his lap. When she was down to her pink lingerie, he stood up with her in his arms. "Where's your bedroom?" he growled. She shivered and fluttered her hand weakly toward the hall. "Last door on the right," she cooed. In Conchita Delgado's actress mind, she was the stunningly beautiful Scarlett O'Hara, and Tommy was a most handsome Rhett Butler. Tommy adroitly maneuvered them through her bedroom door and gently laid her on her bed. She watched with wide and wild eyes as he started stripping off his clothes. When his shirt came off, she avidly took in how his broad shoulders and chiseled chest tapered down to a washboard stomach and narrow hips. She quickly sat up and twisted her hands behind her back to unfasten her bra. Tommy gave her a look and shook his head. "Uh-uh," he said forcefully. "It's too close to Christmas to let someone else unwrap my present." She fell back on the bed with a smile on her lips. Tommy wasn't smooth or suave, but his sincere honesty made her tingle all over. Soon enough, Tommy was naked and working on making her the same way. Conchita was a very sensual and highly sexed woman. She discovered masturbation at the age of eleven, and shortly after she turned twelve, she found that boys could make her feel even better. Conchita loved to fuck, and she was multi-orgasmic. Until she met Tommy, she had used and discarded men as if they were expendable sex aids. Her husband Beau had known about her nature and let her find satisfaction where she could. She became the predatory queen of one-night stands, and directed each encounter to suit her needs. Conchita's body was constructed in a manner that was a perfect compliment to her supercharged libido. Her clit was larger than normal, extending from its protective hood in a way that allowed it constant stimulation during intercourse, and yet it was not overly sensitive. Consequently, it did not take a Casanova to get her off multiple times. Her tried and true methods did not seem to work with Tommy, however, because instead of climbing on her and riding her hard and fast as she wanted him to do, he took his time and made slow gentle love to her. He took her to the very edge of an orgasm and then did just enough to keep her hanging on the precipice. Her groans of frustration soon turned to keening wails, though, as Tommy finally took her over the top. She could not remember ever coming that hard. Yet before she could really savor the moment, he started on her again. Two Trojans and forty-five minutes later, Tommy hopped out of bed and fetched her a glass of ice water. By then, she'd cum so much and so hard, her stomach muscles hurt. Her hair was plastered to her sweaty face and her body was limp as boiled spaghetti. She sat up and gratefully gulped the water, as Tommy used a warm, damp hand towel to gently wipe the sweat off her. She handed him the empty glass and fell back on the bed with a contented sigh. "You aren't leaving are you?" she asked hopefully. He smiled and took one of her large firm breasts in his hand. "Are you kidding? The night is young and we're just getting started," he replied. She looked at him incredulously and gasped as his head dipped down between her legs. After the second swipe of his tongue, she moaned and reached for his head to pull his face tighter to her core. "You are going to kill me," she hissed. Tommy popped his head up and gave her a grin. "Maybe, but you'll die happy," he said. Well, of course she didn't die, unless you count the ten or twelve 'little deaths' he coaxed out of her. At midnight, she slipped on her robe and walked him to the door. She had asked him to spend the night, but he reluctantly turned her down. "Next time, I'll bring a change of clothes so I can go to work from here, okay Connie?" She kissed him passionately and held the door for him. "You have no idea how happy that will make me," she said. ------- The trichotomy between Tommy Bledsoe's natural intelligence, physical age and emotional age, put him in some awkward predicaments. Sometimes it was just some funny embarrassing statement that slipped out of his mouth. However, other times, Tommy's reaction to something that an adult would know how to handle, caused him more serious problems. That was one reason everyone looked out for him. Thursday of the week before Christmas was the first of two incidents that proved the point. Tommy did not have any experience to draw from on how he should conduct himself, so he formed his values from reading and observing people around him. He read westerns, of course; he loved stories of the old west. He also read biographies of great men. In his choice of reading material, the story's heroes were brave, kind and resolute. They were protective of their friends, treated women and children with respect and kindness, and were loyal to a fault. Harold Fricke, Ben Crawford and Ramon Salazar, all of his adult male role models acted like that too. Tommy thought that if he could live his life half that well, he'd never be unhappy. So when the first incident took place at the Brantley Savings and Loan, Tommy acted in the manner he thought any of what Teddy Roosevelt's 'true men' would. A second cause for Tommy's behavior was the inability that most teenager boys have in understanding the consequences of foolish actions. For a time, many boys and young men think they are invincible, and that nothing bad could possibly happen to them. Tommy Bledsoe was one of those boys. On Thursday afternoon, Tommy took off from work a few minutes early and drove down the block to the savings and loan. He pulled up to the bank right before closing time to deposit a check from the Fort Sam Credit Union into his normal checking account. He needed more Christmas shopping money, because he still had a few gifts yet to purchase. He parked behind a nondescript, mid-sixties beige Impala. He rolled down his window and turned to Rex who was sitting in the passenger's seat. Tommy took Rex to work with him, now that he had a way to get him there. "Stay here boy, I'll only be a few minutes," he ordered. Rex woofed as Tommy slid to the ground and closed the pickup door behind him. Tommy grabbed the handle of the frosted glass front door of the bank, and grunted in surprise when the door refused to open. Tommy peeked around the door frame and through a gap in the drapes, saw a frightened Betty Lou walking towards the door. Behind her walked a man wearing a clown mask. The man was prodding Betty Lou along with a sawed off shotgun he held in his right hand. In his left hand was one of the bank's canvass money bags. Tommy hissed in alarm and flattened his back against the wall to the left of the door. Someone fumbled with the door lock for a second, then the door slowly swung inward and Betty Lou cautiously stepped through, the man in the mask peeking over her shoulder. When the robber didn't see anyone in front of the bank, he encouraged Betty Lou out onto the broad sidewalk. He was holding the door open with his left hand and the shotgun was at his side, semi-concealed by his leg. "You are doing real good here, missy. Keep your cool for ten more minutes, and this will all be over," the masked man said in a calm and reassuring voice. Betty Lou jerked her head up and down, bird-like, and took another tentative step. Meanwhile, Rex saw Betty Lou and started thumping his tail on the truck seat. Next to Tommy, Betty Lou was his favorite human. Seeing both Tommy and Betty Lou outside of the house was something new for Rex. Forgetting his last order from Tommy, Rex hopped out the open truck window to greet her. About the time Rex's feet hit the pavement, the masked man stepped through the door. When he did, Tommy grabbed the shotgun with both hands and yanked the man towards himself. "Run Betty Lou!" he yelled. Betty Lou screeched and lurched a few feet forward, just as Rex loped up. He barked a greeting, his tail wagging a mile a minute. Then Tommy struggling with the masked bandit caught his attention, and he growled deep in his throat. As he wrestled for possession of the shotgun, Tommy caught sight of Rex out of the corner of his eye. "Bite him Rex," he commanded the yellow dog. Rex was not a big dog; he only stood about 20 inches at his shoulder and weighed maybe forty pounds. He did, however, possess a full set of very strong teeth. At Tommy's command, he leaped up and grabbed hold of the masked man. Unfortunately for the robber, the anatomy Rex grabbed was of the reproductive nature. The man screamed and dropped both the moneybag and the shotgun as he tried to wrest his family jewels out of Rex's maw. Otto Mills came rushing out of the bank just then, a big 45 caliber Army surplus pistol in his hand. "I have him covered, Mister Bledsoe, so call off your dog." Mills said. Rex obeyed Tommy's order to 'drop it', but he took his time about it, administering one last squeeze before he let go. The robber fell to the ground moaning, both hands cupping his gnawed nads. Betty Lou composed herself and went back into the bank to call the sheriff's office. It took five minutes for a sheriff's patrol to arrive. That night, Betty Lou would not let Tommy out of her sight. "When I walked out of the bank and saw your truck, I knew you would rescue me, Tommy," she said, as she sat in his lap with her head on his shoulder. The Heart of Texas Weekly, McCulloch County's newspaper, bumped the Manson story off the front page of Friday's edition to report on the bank robbery. The headline read: 'Local Man and Heroic Hound Thwart Bank Robber'. There was even a photo of Rex and Tommy playing in the back yard that a reporter had finagled from Bucky and Regina. Tommy was embarrassed by peoples' reaction to the episode; after all, he was only doing what was right. He was happy for the attention Rex was receiving though. Rex's new found fame was more proof to Tommy that he owned the best dog in the world. Also on Friday, a pair of suit clad FBI agents took a statement from Tommy and told him that the man Rex had bitten was wanted for questioning in over twenty other bank robberies with the same MO. They called the man the Gentleman Bandit, because he was so unfailingly polite to his victims. In each robbery, the man took a hostage and promised to set the person free if the rest of the bank employees did not raise an alarm for ten minutes. He had always kept that promise. They also told him the shotgun had been a prop and was not loaded. Seems that the Gentleman Bandit had no intention of ever hurting anyone. The agent went on to relate that the desperado was still in the hospital, as Rex had put a serious hurting on his privates. He concluded the interview with a warning. "What you did was dangerously foolish, Bledsoe. You might not be as lucky next time." As it turned out, the agent was more correct than he could imagine. No one else took Tommy to task about what he had done, not even Mama Rita. The reason they didn't, was because everyone knew that it was probably impossible for Tommy to act any other way, especially if one of his friends was in danger. Caroline Fricke thought Tommy's actions were brash machismo, but she kept her mouth shut about it to avoid irritating her mother. Caroline had seen Tommy twice at her parents' store that week and both times he'd been polite but distant. Seeing Tommy at work, seemingly reveling in his menial labor, certainly did not raise her opinion of him. Tommy was toting a couple of one-hundred pound feed sacks on his shoulders, as he prepared a pallet for Juan Luna to deliver, when Becky Dierdorf came through the side door of the warehouse late on that same Friday afternoon. Joe Bob and his boys had the entrance to the sales area and offices blocked off as they were paneling the new dividing wall. Tommy saw Becky, effortlessly tossed the sacks onto the pallet, and walked to where she was standing. Becky looked pensive and uncertain, but visibly relaxed at Tommy's big welcoming smile. She felt even better when Tommy picked her up off the ground and kissed her right on the lips. When he sat her back on her feet, breathless from the kiss, Becky shyly said, "I came by to tell you I'm home for the holidays." Tommy was happy that she was back, and asked her if she'd go Christmas shopping with him the next day. "Mister Harold only needs me until ten tomorrow, so we can go early. We can catch a movie at the Cineplex while we are there, so it will be a real date," he said. Becky flushed crimson at that statement. Her heart was pitter-patting that Tommy was actually taking her on a date. She nodded her head and started to leave. Tommy gently grabbed her arm and stopped her. He leaned down and whispered in Becky's ear. "You can't leave until you show me some freckles," he said teasingly. Becky blushed even redder and glanced around to make sure they were alone. When she saw they were, she slowly lifted her sweater. A promise was a promise, she rationalized. Tommy stared raptly as she stood there with her sweater under her chin. She was wearing a very pretty bra with little blue flowers on it, but the bra was really just a formality, as her small A-cups needed no support. Becky had not exaggerated when she said she had lots of freckles. Tommy reached out his hand and put his finger on her chest, just below her right breast, then slowly traced his finger downward towards the waistband of her skirt. "Do they keep going?" he asked softly. Becky bobbed her head up and down. "All the way to my toes," was her whispered reply. Becky Dierdorf was not as unattractive as she thought she was. True, she was no raving beauty, but her features were nice enough. She had a cute nose, and her eyes behind her thick glasses were a clear bright blue. She had a small gap between her two top front teeth, but otherwise they were straight and pearly white. Yes, her bottom was larger than normal, but it wasn't huge by any means. It appeared larger because her chest was so small, both in circumference and breast size. Becky was working on her hips with a couple of her classmates in the nursing program. The three of them walked a couple of miles every evening, and were gradually increasing their distance and speed. She was thrilled that she'd lost an inch in her hips in only a couple of weeks. Tommy thought that Becky looked just fine the way she was. To him, she was beautiful on the inside and that made her pretty on the outside. Later that evening, Tommy took Ruth to the weekly art cinema presentation at the Majestic Theater up in Brownwood. Ruth loved the movie that was scheduled, and wanted Tommy to see it as part of his 'socialization'. Ruth took the duty of expanding Tommy's horizons very seriously. The movie was a 1946 French version of Beauty and the Beast. The dialog was in French, but it was subtitled in English, so Tommy had no trouble following the plot. He thought the movie was interesting, but Ruth thought it was terribly romantic. The movie was one reason that Ruth couldn't keep her hands off Tommy on the way home. The other reason was that she was flying up to New York the next day to spend ten days with her parents in Manhattan. Her family didn't celebrate Christmas, but they did take the holidays. She was already missing Tommy and she hadn't even left. Once at her house, Ruth practically dragged Tommy inside. Tommy slowed her down long enough to grab the gym bag with his clothes for tomorrow in it, then let her urge him along. "Hurry up, Slow Poke," she hissed. "You have to love me enough tonight to last me for almost two weeks." Ruth did not quite know how to handle her newly found sexuality. She had trouble understanding why she was a completely shameless strumpet where Tommy was concerned. She wondered if it was something about her that had changed and Tommy was just her available outlet. She doubted if that were the case, but based on her conversation with Caroline, had decided to test that theory while she was visiting the Big Apple. Tommy arrived at work right on time Saturday morning, even though Ruth had kept him up half the night. Tommy shook his head in wonder at his friend, the once virginal and reticent librarian. Since she began taking birth-control pills, she had become a sexually adventurous dynamo. Tommy only put in two hours at the feed store that morning, before dashing over to Becky's parent's house to pick her up for their date. Tommy really liked his former tutor. She was a great friend and lots of fun to be around. Just like with Connie, he loved to make Becky laugh. The mall was crowded that Saturday afternoon, but with Becky's help, Tommy put a serious dent in his list of gifts remaining to buy. Thanks to their good luck shopping, they were able to catch the one o'clock movie at the Cineplex. Only one of the four theaters was showing a matinee not oriented toward children, so they ended up watching a Jerry Lewis comedy titled Hook Line and Sinker. Tommy had held her hand the entire time they were shopping, and that had made Becky as proud and happy as she had ever been in her life. The movie could have been anything and Becky would have still been happy. She wasn't planning on seeing much of the movie anyway, as she led Tommy to the far left side of the very last row. The theater was nearly empty and except for the emergency lights in the aisles, almost totally dark. Becky did not let Tommy watch much of the movie, but she kept him entertained, nonetheless. She did that by spending most of the movie's ninety-two minutes with her lips somewhere on him. She also let him play connect the dots with her freckles to his heart's content. As a bonus for Tommy, Becky was majorly talented when it came to using those lips. When she unzipped him and slurped his rod into her mouth, Tommy thought he'd died and gone to heaven. Tommy could not repay Becky's oral homage, but he did use his fingers to turn her to gasping Jell-o. For Becky, his making her climax was a huge event, because until that afternoon, she was the only person who could do that. Becky had the exact opposite problem from Conchita Delgado, in that her clitoris was small and not prominent. Tommy was the only man who had ever taken the time to find it and figure out how to treat it. Tommy had a great time with Becky that afternoon, and was really sorry he had to take her home so early. He had to though, because he had the annual VFW member's Christmas party to attend that night. Becky was also sorry they couldn't be together longer, but she was thrilled to death when Tommy asked her for another date. ------- Chapter 12 The VFW hall was packed with members and guests for the annual Christmas party. The Frickes and their friends were sitting at three tables pushed together just off the edge of the dance floor. Sitting at the tables were the usual cast of characters. Rita and Harold were there of course, and so was their daughter Caroline. Ben and Cricket Crawford were sitting across from Ramon and Theresa Salazar. Tommy sat at the end of the table with new VFW member Margie Wilcox. Margie had served a six month tour on a hospital ship off the coast of Vietnam, so she was qualified for membership. Betty Lou sat on the other side of Tommy. She was there that night as his guest. As soon as the first slow dance started, Tommy walked up to Rita and asked her for the dance. It was an ingrained tradition now for Tommy to do that. Caroline watched Tommy speculatively as he presented himself to her mother. She had to give him credit for good manners, and the almost reverent manner in which he treated her mother earned him some bonus points. Caroline was surprised at how smooth and effortlessly Tommy danced. He courteously asked each of the women at the table to dance, and seemed to pick the particular song each enjoyed dancing to. After a turn with each of the wives at the table, Tommy asked Caroline to dance a waltz with him. As he lightly whisked her around the room, she admired how gracefully he moved. Big Ben Crawford was the only man present who was bigger than Tommy, yet for his size, Tommy was noticeably agile. He was no Rudolf Nureyev, (who she saw perform in Geneva with the Dutch National Ballet earlier that year) but he was fun to dance with. This was Tommy's fifth or sixth VFW dance, and he was a comfortably favorite partner to a bunch of women. Caroline didn't know that, though, so along about ten-thirty, when Tommy and her mother jumped up and started jitter-bugging as if they were high schoolers in the early fifties, Caroline almost fell off her chair. This time it was her mother who amazed her as she shook and shimmied as Tommy spun her around the floor. Rita Maude Fricke, the forty-six year old mother of three grown children, was as swivel-hipped as Tina Turner. Caroline looked over at her father goggle-eyed. Harold just smiled smugly and leaned across the table. "Your Mama is the best dancer I ever saw, and my rhythm is so bad, I couldn't carry a tune in a bucket. When she dances with Tommy, I swear she is eighteen all over again. Look how happy she is out there and tell me Tommy being in our lives is a bad thing." Caroline nodded as she watched them dance, her father had a point. Of course, Harold did not tell her that later tonight, her mother would bring some of those same moves to the bedroom. Harold had swigged down half a bottle of Geritol earlier that day, just so he could keep up with her even a little bit. There was mistletoe hung in the archway between the dance floor and the game room. The archway was located near the left hand front corner of the dance floor. All evening long, some of the women would maneuver Tommy under the mistletoe and kiss him just to make him blush. Caroline even tried the mistletoe trick, but at the last second, Tommy turned his head so her kiss landed on his cheek. When he did that, she jerked her head back and gave him an exasperated look. "Why did you turn your head like that?" she asked. He looked at her as if she was crazy. "I'm not kissing you on the lips without your parents' permission. That would be disrespectful and make me some sort of creep. Besides, I know you don't like me, on account of I aint hoity-toity enough." Caroline's anger flared red hot when he said that, and before she could stop herself, she snapped back at him. "I don't dislike you because you aren't 'hoity-toity' enough. I dislike you because you are an immature asshole with no prospects. I was being nice to you because my parents like you, for some unknown reason, and because I felt sorry for you, the same as everyone else," she said bitterly. Tommy winced a couple of times as she told him off, then shook his head and offered her his arm. "Let me walk you back to the table, and I'll make sure you don't have to worry about me and my poor prospects ever again." Rita noticed Tommy and Caroline walking back towards the table before the song had ended, and she couldn't help notice the expressions on their faces. Caroline's jaw was set and her eyes squinted in anger, while Tommy was trying unsuccessfully to hide his hurt feelings. As soon as they were seated, Rita stood up and motioned Caroline to follow her to the ladies room. Caroline grabbed her purse and trudged after her mother, steeling herself for the confrontation that was sure to follow. Once in the bathroom, Rita leaned against the counter and asked, "What's going on with you two, Caroline?" Caroline took a breath and gave her mother a fairly accurate version of the conversation she had with Tommy under the mistletoe, then told her why she reacted the way she did. "I'm twenty-two years old, mother, and I don't need parental permission to kiss someone. Plus, he had no right to call me a snob, just because I am not one of his concubines. I know you and Daddy think the world of him, but he is never going to be any more than he is right now, a hayseed Romeo with a menial job." Caroline braced her self for an explosion, but incredibly, her mother just looked at her sadly and shook her head. "I can't believe a child of mine could purposely say something that hurtful. And I can't believe a woman as smart as you could misjudge someone so badly. As far as Tommy's prospects are concerned, ask your father where the money came from to expand our business." As soon as Rita said that, she pushed away from the sink and walked out of the bathroom without saying another word. Tommy did not let Caroline's spiteful words ruin the evening for his friends. He avoided Caroline, but was his normal self for everyone else. He and Betty Lou begged out of further partying at eleven, because the next day was the Sunday before Christmas, and they both had to be at church early to prepare for the annual Christmas Pageant. Tommy was elated that he was playing one of the three wise men. Betty Lou leaned heavily on his arm as they walked to his truck; she was unsteady on her feet because of the two Long Island Iced Teas she'd quaffed. Betty Lou was buzzed for the first time in her thirty-three years. She was flirty and giggly as Tommy helped her into the truck. As soon as Tommy slid into the driver's seat, Betty Lou snuggled up next to him, put her hand on his thigh and her head on his shoulder. Ten minutes later, Tommy pulled into her driveway and switched off his truck. Betty Lou was still leaning against his shoulder, because she was fast asleep. Tommy managed to wake her up and help her down from the cab. Once on the ground, she held his hand and wobbled into the house. Regina and Melody were sitting in the living room, huddled under a blanket with a pan of Jiffy-Pop, when Tommy helped Betty Lou through the front door. The young women were watching a movie on the Dallas UHF channel. The movie was a Beau Baumgartner tour de force, titled 'Marauding Martian Monsters'. In the movie, Conchita Delgado played a scantily clad astronaut who crash lands on Mars and is pursued by green versions of Dracula, Wolfman, Frankenstein and the Mummy. Regina took one look at Betty Lou and grinned mischievously. "Looks like someone had a good time," Regina quipped. "I sure did," Betty Lou said with a giggle. When Tommy shot her a helpless look, Regina grabbed Melody's arm and stood up. "Me and Mel will tuck you in bed and you can tell us all about it," Regina said, giving Tommy a wink. Betty Lou pouted and clung to Tommy even tighter. "I want Tommy to tuck me in," she said sultrily. "He does that soooo good." Tommy shot Regina an alarmed look and blushed furiously. Regina grabbed one of Betty Lou's arms and Melody took the other. "Maybe next time, Mom. Tonight you both need to get to bed, we have the pageant tomorrow, and it's late." Tommy had just stepped out of his jockeys when he heard someone on the stairs; he spun around, clad in nothing except his jockstrap. Regina and Melody were standing at the bottom of the stairs, smiling at him. Reflexively, he dropped one hand down to cover his crotch and grabbed his robe with the other. "No need to cover up, Tommy. We've seen it all before," Melody said huskily. Tommy shrugged into his robe anyway, and belted it securely. "I thought we all had to go to bed early, on account of the pageant tomorrow," Tommy said. Regina gave him a smile and did a back flop onto his bed. "I said that so mom wouldn't do anything to embarrass herself. We don't have to be at the church until nine, and it's only eleven-thirty now. Besides, we aren't going to molest you ... much. We actually want to talk to you about something." While Regina was talking, Melody sat down on the bed, grabbed Tommy by the arm, and pulled him down to join her. Regina sat up and after a nod from Melody, started talking again. "I'll be eighteen next month, Tommy, and in August I'm starting college. The same is true for Melody, except her birthday isn't until March. We have both decided that we are not going to start college as inexperienced virgins. We are going to start the pill right after our birthdays, so sometime between when we go on the pill and us leaving for school, you need to make us women." Tommy's facial expression did not change as he nodded. Tommy had fooled around with both girls for months but never had intercourse with them. The request did not seem odd to Tommy at all, considering he had already performed the same service for Ruthie Silverman. "Sure Reggie, I'll help you out. After all, what are friends for?" Both girls squealed in delight and jumped on Tommy to shower him with kisses. Melody broke free of the tangle, tugged her sleep shirt over her head, and tossed it off the bed. "Make me cum Tommy," Melody yipped. "I'm all hot and bothered from watching your girlfriend strut around half naked on TV." ------- The church's pageant went off without a hitch and Tommy sailed into the last few days before Christmas as excited as a six-year-old. On Monday afternoon, Tommy took care of his last three presents, by meeting with banker Otto Mills, down at the Bluebonnet Diner. Mister Mills met Tommy there to keep their business dealings a secret from Betty Lou. Christmas morning found Tommy up and dressed by six in the morning. With everyone else in the house sleeping, Tommy snuck into the family room and put his boxed presents under the tree. When his neatly wrapped (thanks to Melody Graham) presents were in the pile with all the others, he put on a pot of coffee, grabbed up another stack of presents, and took Rex for a walk around the neighborhood. During the walk, Tommy stopped a couple of times to leave presents at the front door of several houses. The presents for the neighbors weren't all that much: a couple of Zebco fishing outfits for the Dawson children, an oversized maple rolling pin for the Widow Guthrie and a big bag of Florida oranges for the elderly Millers. They were gifts from Tommy's heart, though, and it made him happy to be able to give everyone something. Tommy was sipping coffee and watching 'It's a Wonderful Life' on television, when Bucky stumbled into the room, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. He took one look at the presents, then hustled upstairs to roust his sister and mother. Ten minutes later, the women, each with a mug of coffee, joined Tommy and Bucky, and the fun began. Bucky dove under the tree and started to hand everyone presents. The Grimes' tradition was that each person be handed one present, then everyone unwraps them at the same time. Tommy was very happy with the belt and buckle from Regina, the wallet from Bucky, and the low crowned black Stetson from Betty Lou. In turn, the Grimes family all seemed to like the practical gifts he gave them. After all the gifts were opened and oh'd and ah'd over, Tommy sprang his real gifts on them. He reached under the chair cushion where he sat, and took out three business-sized envelopes, embossed in the upper left hand corner with the Brantley Savings and Loan's name and address. He handed the envelopes to the person whose name was typed on the front. Before anyone opened theirs, Tommy cleared his throat and took Betty Lou's hand in his. "Before you open these, you need to know that I consider the three of you my family. These gifts reflect that. Also, you can do anything with these that you want, except give them back to me, because I am well and truly happy to be rid of the part of my life they represent." Regina and Bucky gave him confused looks as they tore open the envelopes. Betty Lou just held hers, looking at him thoughtfully. Regina pulled the single sheet of paper out of her envelope, read it and gasped. She waved the paper weakly towards her mother. "It's a letter from your bank, saying I have twelve thousand dollars in a college trust fund," she sputtered. By then, Bucky had his open as well. "I have the same thing for eight thousand. There is also a note saying that by the time I'm eighteen, it will be the same as Gina's." Betty Lou had been expecting something like that from Tommy, based on their earlier conversation. She didn't especially agree with what he'd done, but she couldn't do much about it. She looked at Tommy, and arched her eye brows. Tommy shrugged and held up his hands, as if to ward of a blow. "Both of the accounts are in your name as well. You have to countersign any withdrawal from them. The money can only be spent on education, until they reach the age of twenty-five or graduate from college. There is a copy of each trust document in your envelope, along with a little surprise for you," he explained. Betty Lou nodded her head and opened her envelope. True to his word, there was a letter from Mister Mills explaining the educational trusts. She gave them a cursory glance then flipped the pages to the last document. As she read, her eyes kept opening wider. The last document was a lien release, notifying her that her mortgage was paid in full as of twenty-three December. She was speechless for a minute, then blurted out, "What did you do?" Tommy smiled and pointed towards Rex, who was snoozing at Betty Lou's feet. "I paid Rex's rent for the rest of his life," Tommy answered. In spite of herself, Betty Lou smiled at the joke. According to her last statement, she had owed over seven thousand dollars on the house. That money, coupled with the trust, meant that Tommy had spent over twenty-five thousand dollars on their Christmas. "We'll talk about this later," she said. After a late breakfast, Tommy loaded up the rest of his gifts and made the rounds delivering them. It took him most of the afternoon to visit everyone. Amazingly, no one was surprised to see him, and there were presents waiting for him every where he visited. That made Tommy as happy as he had ever been in his life. ------- After the excitement of Christmas, Tommy was happy to get back to his job on Friday, the day after the holiday. Regardless of the occasion, the farmers and ranchers of McCulloch County needed feed and seed. Being busy was how Tommy liked it. That Friday evening, Tommy had his second date with Becky. Becky had invited Tommy to have dinner at her house, so Tommy cleaned himself up and trundled across town. He was nervous about sitting down for a meal with Becky's parents; it would be another first for him. Mister and Missus Dierdorf were at least ten years older than the Frickes. Becky was their youngest child by seven years, and the only one still at home. One of their sons was a cargo plane pilot in the Air Force, the other drove a truck for United Parcel Service up in Dallas. Becky also had a much older sister who lived with her husband and six children out in Salt Lake City, Utah. Mister Dierdorf was an auctioneer for the Texas Cattleman's Association. The Dierdorf were nice people and treated Tommy very well. They were thrilled that Becky had met a man in whom she seemed interested. Tommy was, in fact, the first male she'd ever introduced them too. After dinner, Becky told her parents not to wait up for her, and hustled Tommy out the door. When Tommy asked where she wanted to go, Becky gave him a shy smile. "I have an idea for later, but right now, I want to go shoot pool at Dukes," she said mysteriously. They shot pool and danced to the jukebox for an hour and a half and left Dukes about nine-thirty. As soon as they were in his truck, Becky gave Tommy a key. "Room eighteen at the Cardinal," she said huskily. Becky was squirming in her seat as Tommy shot out of the parking lot, headed for the Highway 931 South Bypass. The only reason for the trip to Dukes was so Becky would not appear as eager as she really was. She had been wet with anticipation since noon, when she rented the room and secreted her overnight bag in it. In all her times at the Cardinal Motor Inn, this was the first that was totally her idea. Tonight Becky Dierdorf was going to give her love to a man who returned it, instead of trading it for the companionship of men who cared for nothing except their own satisfaction. Once in the room, Becky ducked into the bath and put on the long black night gown she'd been saving for just such an occasion. The gown had its desired effect, as Tommy whistled when she walked out of the small bath. Tommy wasn't just whistling at the gown though, because Becky had foresworn her glasses, and had gelled her hair into a manageable set of curls. She was even prettier to him than usual. Becky could barely see him without her glasses, but his whistle told her all she needed to know. That night, Becky Dierdorf discovered her true sexuality, because Tommy took the time to help her find it. Becky was extremely relieved and happy that her body responded as a woman's should, when a man who wanted to please her did his thing. For his part, Tommy finally had the opportunity to play connect the dots with his tongue. Ironically, his lingual explorations led to one of the few places she was freckleless. Not that anyone minded, though, because by then, Tommy had discovered the sweetest tasting woman he'd ever sampled, and Becky discovered that when it came to lingual love, Tommy was way past her ability to tutor. After getting her off twice with his tongue, Tommy grabbed a Trojan and started to rip open the pack. Becky grabbed his hand and took the condom from it. "I'm on the pill, Tommy, you don't need that," she said. Tommy even found a way for her to orgasm from intercourse, when he pulled her hand down between them and instructed her to play with her clit. That worked, but it was hard to maintain their rhythm, so Tommy pulled out and flipped her over. Margie Wilcox had taught him this position, and she seemed to like it. In a flash, Tommy was reseated and sawing away. Becky had freer access to her clit like this, and he was hitting a spot inside her that was driving her crazy. There was only one more thing she needed, and she trusted Tommy enough to ask for it. "Spank me Tommy," she moaned. Tommy was surprised by her request, but like Margie had told him, 'different strokes for different folks'. He raised his right hand and brought it down crisply on her large, smooth, freckled butt. The smack reverberated in the room, sounding much louder than it was. Becky yipped and her ass went into overdrive. "More, Baby, I'm almost there," she begged. ------- The lazy week between Christmas and New Years passed by in a pleasant rush for Tommy, as he had a date or rendezvous every night. The year drew to a close for Tommy and many of his friends, with the annual VFW New Year's Eve party. That night, the Frickes' table of friends had grown to six couples. Tommy was there with Connie Delgado, and Margie was escorted by Cyrus Wagner, the County Sheriff. Caroline Fricke was there, as was Ben and Cricket Crawford's son, Brian, a midshipman at the Naval Academy. The two were there that night as friends, it was not a date. The hall was pretty well packed that night, as over two hundred members and their guests were there. Post 9802 was one of the VFW's most successful at drawing in young veterans of the Vietnam conflict, so the post had a nice mix of older and younger vets represented at the party. Besides Tommy, there were four other men under the age of thirty present that night who had served in Southeast Asia. One of those men was a troubled ex-marine tunnel rat named Hershel Tompkins. Tompkins had been in and out of the big VA hospital in Dallas three or four times, because he was having trouble readjusting to civilian life. The staff at the over-crowded VA facility had diagnosed him as suffering from schizophrenia with paranoid delusions. The paranoia seemed to respond to prescription antidepressants, so they pronounced him cured and sent him on his way. Unfortunately, Hershel was not that conscientious about taking his medicine. Not to mention that when Tompkins consumed alcohol, medicated or not, his paranoia worsened. Needless to say, Hershel Tompkins was drinking heavily to ring in the New Year. Everyone was having a great time, especially Tommy and Connie. Conchita Delgado could not believe her Tommy could dance as well as he did. When she found out, she dragged him out on the floor and kept him there. Conchita loved to dance, and had even taken lessons while in Hollywood. She'd often dreamed of being the next Ginger Rogers. Unfortunately, the closest she came to that was when she convinced Beau to produce a musical for her to star in. The movie, Frankenstein Goes to the Prom, was lambasted by the critics and was a dismal failure at the box office. No matter how she cajoled, Beau wouldn't do another. All evening long, Caroline Fricke watched Tommy and his Hollywood hussy. Conchita Delgado was sticking to Tommy as if he were covered in flypaper, and shamelessly kissing on him. Caroline was alternately filled with contempt and consumed with jealous envy. To show Tommy she could have just as good a time, she threw herself at Brian Crawford. The fun times continued as midnight rolled around right up through the count down to midnight. Kisses were exchanged by everyone, and Tommy, in the spirit of the occasion, even kissed Caroline on the lips. Harold and Ramon Salazar were busy pouring champagne for the traditional toast, when some drunken idiot decided to throw a string of Black Cat mini-firecrackers out onto the dance floor. When the firecrackers started exploding, Hershel Tompkins flashed back to Vietnam, and jerked a small 25 caliber, seven shot, Colt semi-automatic pistol out of his boot. He was looking around wildly when he spotted a Vietnamese mamasan pulling the pin on a grenade. He swung his body around and engaged the target. The target he was about to engage was really Caroline Frick, who was pulling the tab on a popper type noise-maker. A couple of people noticed Hershel drawing the pistol, and a woman screamed. Tommy, who had not had even one beer all evening, looked up and spotted the man right away. When he saw the direction the man was swinging the weapon, he yelled, "GET Down!" and dove across the table. Tommy dived a split second before Hershel fired. As a consequence, the bullet that was aimed at Caroline, hit Tommy instead. In one of those great cosmic coincidences, the small lead and copper projectile impacted Tommy in the exact same spot as the shrapnel from Vietnam. This time though, the bullet bounced off his head. It bounced, because the hole in Tommy's temple had been repaired by using a two inch square piece of Air Force surplus titanium, a left over scrap from building an SR-71 Blackbird spy plane. The bullet did not penetrate Tommy's skull, but the impact rattled his damaged brain enough to cause a seizure. Tommy fell to the floor, flopping around like a boated marlin. Some brave soul snatched the gun out of Tompkins' hand before he could fire another shot, and three other vets jumped in to help subdue him. Margaret Wilcox rushed to tend to Tommy, and Sheriff Wagner took charge of Hershel Tompkins. Both of them had their hands full as Tommy convulsed on the floor and Ben Crawford was about to rip Tompkins limb from limb. ------- Tommy woke up in the hospital, disoriented and dazed. He tried to raise his head to look around, but he could not move. When he tried to lift his arm, he had the same result. He licked his lips and tried out his voice. "Hello?" he called out weakly. He was relieved that he could at least speak. A figure moved into his peripheral vision, and his eyes focused on the beatifically smiling face of Rita Fricke. Of all the people in the world he could have seen right then, she was the absolute best. Rita stood next to the bed and put her hand on his cheek. "How do you feel, Honey?" she asked. "I think I'm paralyzed, Mama," he replied dejectedly. Rita's kind smile turned to a happy one as she pressed the nurses call button. "No you aren't," she said cheerfully. "You're just restrained to the bed in case you have another seizure." ------- Chapter 13 Tommy smiled in relief when Rita told him he was merely restrained instead of paralyzed. He would have figured it out on his own as soon as he was completely awake anyway, but knowing early saved him from any more panic. "Is everyone else okay?" he asked worriedly. "Everyone else is just fine, Sweetie. Conchita went for coffee, but she'll be back in a minute. Harold took Caroline home to get some rest. They'll be back later today. Margaret went to Fort Sam to fetch your doctor from there. She said she'd bring him back at gun point if necessary." Tommy was smiling at what Rita said about Margie when a nurse came scampering into the room to answer the call button. "Good morning, Mister Bledsoe, and Happy New Year. I'm Nurse Lopez. You are in the Intensive Care Unit of the Central Texas Regional Hospital in Brownwood. Let's see what the doctor ordered for when you regained consciousness." She unhooked his chart from the end of his bed and scanned it quickly. Then she hung the chart back on the footboard. "Okie-dokie artichokie, time to unhook you from the bed," she said cheerfully. Nurse Lopez's good humor was infectious. She joked and teased Tommy the entire time she fussed over him. Rita Fricke also smiled indulgently as she watched the nurse take Tommy's vital signs. She and Theresa Lopez had been talking all morning as they waited for Tommy to come around. Theresa had eased her and Conchita's worries. She was easy to talk to, and listened in amazement as Rita told her Tommy's story. Soon enough, Nurse Lopez cranked up the head of the bed, and Tommy was sitting up, sipping from a plastic cup filled with shaved ice and water. Connie was back by then, her relief palpable that Tommy was conscious and alert. Her eyes were red-rimmed from tiredness and crying. Tommy took her hand and reassured her that, except for a headache and blurry vision in his right eye, he was feeling just fine. Rita left the room to call Harold to tell him Tommy was awake, and Nurse Lopez went about her rounds, leaving Tommy and Connie alone. Connie pulled her chair closer to the bed and kissed Tommy on the lips. "I have never been as frightened in my life as I was when you got hurt last night, Baby. If it hadn't been for Rita, I think I would have had a nervous breakdown," she said softly. Tommy pulled her head down onto his chest and gently stroked her glossy black hair. "I think there must be a magnet in my head that attracts stuff to it," he said lightly, "I'm going to have the doctors check for that, first thing." Despite herself, Connie giggled and hugged him tighter. Even in a situation as unpleasant as this one, Tommy found a way to make her laugh. The bravery he'd shown last night humbled her. She knew for a fact that neither she nor anyone else she'd ever met would have acted that unselfishly. Connie (she no longer thought of herself as Conchita) sighed and snuggled closer to him, mindful not to jostle him too much. Margie Wilcox and Doctor Peter Giles walked up to the ICU nurses station shortly after one in the afternoon on New Years Day. Margie sagged against Peter in relief when the pretty thirty-something Hispanic nurse told her that Tommy was awake, responsive and acting incredibly normal, all things considered. Peter patted Margie on the arm reassuringly as he identified himself, and asked to see the doctor on duty. Nurse Lopez paged the intern who had drawn emergency room duty for the holiday as she covertly eyed the distinguished-looking neurosurgeon. She ramped up her considerable charm and turned in on Doctor Giles while they waited. In the fifteen minutes it took the intern to arrive, Theresa Lopez had ascertained that Giles was recently divorced, unhappily single and bored with his life. What he needed, she decided, was something hot, spicy and Mexican. Margie thought she was going to have to throw water on them when the intern walked up, just to get them refocused on Tommy. The intern was quite surprised that a high powered neurosurgeon would travel all the way from San Antonio on a holiday to examine the young cowboy. Giles complimented the intern for the fine job he'd done stitching up the scalp wound. Only an area the size of a quarter in Tommy's scalp had been shaved, and the six stitches closing the wound were small and tight knit. After a quick look at the wound, Giles gently teased Tommy. "Lieutenant Bledsoe, I'm disappointed that you've damaged the plate I put in your head. Do you know how expensive titanium is?" Tommy caught onto Doctor Giles's joking tone and shot right back. "I'll pay for a new one when you remove the magnet that keeps pulling metal things to my head." Of course, Giles's joking manner was his way of getting Tommy talking. Giles listened carefully for signs of slurring as he shined his penlight into Tommy's eyes. Tommy's speech was no worse than Doctor Giles remembered. His pupils reacted equally to the light, but his right eye tracked slightly slower than his left. It was the same story all down the right side of Tommy's body. His grip strength on that side was weaker, and his reflexes were diminished. All in all, Giles reflected, Tommy was in about the same shape as when he was dismissed from the hospital. The bullet's impact and the resulting seizure had effectively erased the nine months of slow healing that had happened to his brain since he was discharge from Brooke Medical Center. That was certainly not good, but it could have been far worse. Giles very professionally pulled the intern aside and explained his findings. The intern appreciated the professional courtesy, and asked Giles to annotate Tommy's chart with what he'd found. Truth be told, the intern and Nurse Lopez were both relieved by Giles's visit, because they were ill equipped to treat a major brain trauma. Of course, Theresa Lopez had other reasons to appreciate Giles' visit, especially after the private chat they ostensibly had about Tommy's care. By the time Giles and Margie left, Theresa had accepted the neurosurgeon's invitation to spend a few days in San Antonio as his guest. Tommy hadn't missed the flirtatious interaction between Doctor Giles and Nurse Lopez. When she walked back into the room, Tommy started teasing her. "So Terri, when is he taking you out?" Tommy asked with a wicked grin. Theresa laughed and gently ruffled Tommy's hair. "Week after next," she answered, "but I'm only going out with him to thank him for seeing you on a holiday." ------- A slightly different conversation was happening in Margaret Wilcox's big Thunderbird as it rocketed down State Road 931. "Thanks for doing this, Pete, I really appreciate it," Margie said. "Not a problem, Margie, I'm happy Bledsoe wasn't any worse than he was. By the way, who was that striking black haired woman leaving his room when we arrived? She looked familiar somehow." Doctor Giles said. Margie laughed and shot him a look. "Jesus, Pete, you've developed a one track mind since your divorce. She looked familiar because she is Conchita Delgado, the actress. You won't have any luck with her, I'm afraid, she's in love with Tommy." Pete's eyebrows went up in surprise. "Of course," Giles said, snapping his fingers. "I've seen three or four of her movies on late night television. She's not Katharine Hepburn, but she has a certain appeal. Wow, our young lieutenant seems to be doing very well for himself. I thought the young woman he saved was his girl friend." "Actually, Tommy and Caroline, that's the girl's name, barely get along. Tommy was just being Tommy. He is quite an amazing young man, no matter what criteria you use. He has overcome so much adversity, that I don't have many concerns about him getting over this latest setback." Giles looked at her questioningly as she went on about Bledsoe. Her voice contained something else besides admiration. Margie glanced sideways and blushed when she caught his look. She quickly changed the subject before he could ask her anything else. ------- Rita Fricke's brow darkened when Harold returned by himself later that afternoon. She was all set to express her anger, when Harold defused it by holding up his hand. "Relax, Rita Maude. If Caroline doesn't want to be here, that's her business. She has a right to be upset, because she faced her mortality last night, the same way I did on Omaha Beach. She is also mortified that she treated him so badly and he still did something like this for her. Let her work all that out for herself," Harold said firmly. Rita's frown immediately vanished as her husband spoke. As his words sank in, all the emotions she'd been holding in check for the last fifteen hours came flooding through. She gave a gasping sob and stepped into Harold's open arms. Harold held her and rocked her gently as she cried. That seemed to be his job today, as he had done the same thing for his daughter. When Rita regained her composure, she sent Harold into Tommy's room and headed to the ladies room to freshen up. Tommy was happy to see Harold, happy in general, and specifically happy, because he was worried about Mama Rita. After they exchanged pleasantries, Tommy voiced his concerns. "Mister Harold, can you take Mama home so she can get some rest? I'm fine now, so she doesn't need to be here worrying over me. Doctor Giles says I should be able to go home tomorrow, and Connie said she would come and get me. I'm sorry I'll miss tomorrow and Saturday, but he says I can go back to work on Monday." Harold nodded and held out his hand for Tommy to shake. "I'll do just that, Tommy-Boy, and I sure want to thank you for what you did." Tommy clasped Harold's hand firmly and shrugged dismissively. "Heck, Mister Harold, I only did what I knew you'd have done if you had been facing the right way. You taught me that a man takes care of his family, no matter what." Rita caught the tail end of the conversation as she walked through the door. "Like father like son," she said as she kissed them both on the cheek. Connie Delgado and Theresa Lopez were yakking at the nurses' station while Tommy said his goodbyes to the Frickes. They were waiting on an orderly so Tommy could be moved to a regular room on the second floor. Connie was going up with him for a while and catching a ride home later. While he was being examined by Doctor Giles, Connie had made a phone call for Tommy. Betty Lou was thrilled with the news that Tommy was doing so well. In turn, Betty Lou called Becky Dierdorf and passed on the glad tidings. Tommy was snug in a semi-private room on the second floor of the hospital by four o'clock. The second bed in the room was empty. At five, an orderly brought Tommy supper. Regardless of what else ailed Tommy, his appetite was just fine, so the friendly orderly snuck in a couple of extra deserts for Connie and him. Just after supper, Tommy started getting visitors. The Crawfords stopped by for a few minutes, along with the Salazars. The two buddies and their wives were going to dinner at a new restaurant they'd heard about. Betty Lou showed up with Regina, Melody, Bucky and Becky Dierdorf right before Ben, Ramon and their wives departed. The newcomers all crowded around Tommy's bed, everyone talking at once. Everyone except Bucky also kissed him on the lips. Connie watched it all in bemused good humor. She knew she wasn't his only woman, and she was fine with that. She knew Tommy had it in his unique character to love them all equally. Nurse Lopez walked in to tell Tommy goodnight as soon as her shift ended at seven. She did a double take at the five women grouped around his bed. All of the women were unconsciously touching him as they talked. Tommy saw her standing at the door and waved her in to make introductions. "Nurse Terry, these are my friends. That's Betty Lou; this is her daughter Regina and Regina's best friend Melody. This is my friend Becky; she is studying to become a nurse, too. This guy is my best friend Bucky." Theresa exchanged greetings with everyone and told Tommy she'd see him in the morning before he was discharged. As soon as she was out of the room, Nurse Lopez shook her head in wonder. It was obvious to her that Tommy had a relationship past just being friends with all four of the new women she'd just met. Too bad she wasn't the sharing type, she thought, or she'd be right there among them. Betty Lou flipped up the third seat of her station wagon to make room for Connie, and they all headed back to Brantley at eight-thirty. Tommy had given Connie his truck keys, so Betty Lou dropped her off at the VFW hall to pick it up. At eleven the next morning, Tommy was finally released from the hospital. The ward doctor had written him a prescription for a weeks worth of Darvon, and admonished him to take it easy for a week or so. Tommy had no trouble telling the doctor he would do just that, because his body still ached all over. Connie had returned at nine that morning, so Tommy didn't have to wait for a ride home. An orderly pushed him out the door in a wheelchair and Connie drove up to the front of the hospital so he could hop into his truck. They drove home in near silence, their relationship mature enough where constant conversation wasn't necessary. Tommy sat in the passenger seat with his hand on her thigh as her strong legs pumped the foot pedals. Connie had dressed up for him in a slightly above the knee skirt and a nice v-neck sweater. She knew she looked wholesomely sexy, just the way Tommy liked. Connie had a second reason for dressing as she had, a thirteen-year-old reason named Bucky Grimes. Tommy told her that Bucky was probably her biggest fan in the world, so she decided that the boy needed a special reward. Tommy and Connie were barely inside the front door of the Grimes' house, when Rex came tearing in from the kitchen. Tommy dropped to his knees and gave his dog a hug as Regina and Bucky came down the stairs. When Connie saw Bucky looking at her, she bent at the waist and petted Rex also. Bucky's heart nearly stopped at the unobstructed view of her gorgeous cleavage he had down her sweater. Connie held her pose for a while longer, then stood up and nailed Bucky to the floor with a dazzling smile. "Hi Bucky," she cooed sexily. Bucky's tongue tripped over his teeth as he stuttered out, "Hi, Miss Delgado." Connie put on a little pout for his benefit. "I thought we were friends, Bucky. If we are, you should call me Connie." Bucky blushed down to his toes, but nodded happily. "Sure we are ... Connie," he managed to say. Connie beamed him another one of her million dollar smiles and extended the manila envelope in her hand towards him. "Good. Tommy said you are a fan, so I brought you a little something," Connie purred. Bucky shot Tommy a look, but his friend wasn't paying the slightest attention. He was too busy with a joyfully yipping Rex. Trembling only a little, Bucky reached out and took the envelope from her hand. "Go ahead, open it," Connie said encouragingly. Bucky unfastened the metal clasp and opened the envelope's flap. His eyes bugged out of his head for the second time as he feasted them on the photo in his hand. The photograph was a publicity still from one of her most popular movies. In the movie, titled Beach Bunny Blood, she played a California beach bunny who drew the eye of a certain vacationing Transylvanian Count. Her wardrobe for most of the movie consisted of the smallest bikini that the censors would allow. She had penned a note on the front of the photo, being careful not to write over the good parts. The note said, 'To my boyfriend Bucky, all my love and kisses, Connie'. "Thanks, Connie," Bucky gulped. Connie devastated him with another of those smiles, stepped forward and lightly kissed him on the lips. "No, Bucky, thank you for being my number one fan," she said. Bucky left then, dashing upstairs with a hurried goodbye. "I have to put this some place safe," he lied, holding the photo up. Starting that day, Bucky flogged his log dozens of times staring at that picture. He also won six dollars in bets with it, when his friends disputed his claim that Conchita Delgado, sex goddess, said she was his girlfriend. Betty Lou drove Connie home. As soon as the women departed, Tommy went down to his room to catch a nap, Rex hot on his heels. Tommy hadn't slept well the night before. Being in a strange bed away from his friends and family had kept him awake. Tommy shucked down to his underwear and crawled into the bed. Before he could wiggle into a comfortable position, Regina came bouncing down the stairs, waving a newspaper. She plopped down on the bed with him. "Did you see this?" she asked, pointing to the front page of the Heart of Texas Weekly. On the front page, just below the fold, in bold sixteen point type it read, "Honkytonk Hero Does It Again." The article was the first full accounting Tommy received about what had happened on New Year's Eve. Tommy, being who he was, was saddened when he read that his assailant was being held in the high security wing of the Texas Hospital for the Criminally Insane up in Fort Worth. Tommy thought that what the war had done to Hershel Tompkins's brains was about a thousand times worse than what it did to his own. Later that night, it was Betty Lou who came down the stairs and crawled into bed with him. Her intentions were to hold Tommy and help make him feel better, but just the opposite happened as she began sobbing against his chest. "I was so scared, Tommy," she moaned. "The thought of losing you makes me sick to my stomach." Tommy didn't reply to that, instead he stroked her trembling body and held her tight. Tommy slept great Friday night, and woke up early Saturday morning feeling pretty darned good. He was alone in his bed, Betty Lou having left sometime during the night. The muscle aches from his seizure were about gone, and his right eye wasn't blurry at all. Tommy took a shower, got dressed, then he and Rex were out the door by seven o'clock. It was a cold, crisp morning in Central Texas, the hoar frost crunching beneath his boots. Tommy waited for Rex to water the flowers then headed out to his truck. He stopped at the Bluebonnet and picked up a large coffee and four fried egg with mayo sandwiches to go. A lot of people Tommy knew were in the diner that morning and they all inquired about how he felt. He liked that; he liked it a lot. Tommy and Rex ate their fried egg sandwiches, sitting in the truck out side the feed store, before Tommy unlocked the side door to the warehouse and went in. It was chilly in the unheated space, so Tommy put his apron on over his denim jacket and grabbed the big three-foot push broom. The place had obviously not been swept since he'd done it three days ago. Tommy was heated up enough to be out of his jacket when Harold came bustling into the warehouse at ten till eight. "What do you think you are doing, Tommy? Rita would kick both our asses if she caught you working." Tommy laughed and pushed the pile of dirt and feed onto the coal shovel he used for a dustpan. "Probably," he agreed, "but I'm finished now, so unless you tell her, she'll never know." Harold doubted that, because Rita Maude Fricke didn't miss much. "So come on into the store where it's warmer. We'll have a cup of coffee and talk about stocking the new sales area," Harold said. The shelving units were mostly built by then, and the room had been painted. Quarter inch plywood and new linoleum was already installed over the heart pine plank floor, and bright fluorescent lighting was suspended from the ceiling. Harold was even talking about air conditioning the store with a swamp cooler that Ben Crawford had designed. Ben's idea used a big industrial five horse power electric motor, the propeller from an old airplane and a tower of cascading water. Ben reckoned that the thing would cool the building twenty degrees during the dry summer months. Tommy came up with the idea of hiring Bucky Grimes as a stock boy. He figured that Bucky could work a couple of hours after school every day and all of Saturday morning. With Tommy, Juan the delivery driver and Harold pitching in when they could, they should be able to stock the shelves in only a couple of weeks. After that, Bucky should be able to do it by himself, working Saturdays and one or two afternoons a week. "I know how tight you are, Mister Harold, so I'll pay Bucky out of my salary," Tommy said earnestly. Harold laughed and clapped Tommy on the back. He delighted in his reputation for being close with a dollar. "That's a great idea, Tommy! To show you I am in this with you, I'll only take half his pay from you, and pay the other half myself. We are partners after all." Of course, Harold had no intention of doing that, but the story would really add to his reputation when Tommy started spreading it around. Rita came into the store at nine and shot Harold a fish-eyed look because Tommy was there. Harold quickly informed her that Tommy was just visiting to discuss the new store. Then in a moment of high deviltry, Harold decided to torment his wife. "Tommy had some really good ideas, too," Harold oozed. "Tell her about your idea for the stock boy position, Tommy." Tommy nodded happily and laid it out for Rita. "We are going to hire Bucky Grimes to help us after school every day. Mister Harold is going to pay half his salary and so am I, on account of we're partners," Tommy stated. Rita looked back and forth between Harold and Tommy a couple of times, her expression unreadable, then sat down at her desk. As soon as she was comfortably seated, she picked up the phone and dialed a number from memory. Tommy and Harold couldn't help but overhear Rita's side of the conversation. "Hello Madeline, this is Rita Fricke." Pause... "He's doing fine; as a matter of fact, he's sitting here with me at the store." Pause... "Sure, I'll pass that along to him, but you'll be able to tell him yourself at church tomorrow. Listen, Maddie, the reason I'm calling is I seem to have misplaced Harold's life insurance policy, and I can't remember if it pays double indemnity or not." Pause... Thanks, I thought so, but I wasn't sure, and I've been worried about him lately. Who knows when one of his practical jokes might go awry and get him killed?" The conversation was way over Tommy's head, but it caused Harold's face to contort as if he were Red Skelton portraying Clem Kiddlehopper. After putting Harold in his place, Rita asked Tommy to have supper with them Sunday evening. It was Caroline's last day at home, as she was leaving for Houston and Baylor Medical School Monday morning. Tommy agreed because he could not refuse Mama Rita anything. That night, Tommy took Becky Dierdorf to Brownwood for some Chinese food. Becky was returning to Dallas the next day to continue her nursing training. Between the Moo Goo Gai Pan and the Sweet and Sour Chicken, Becky told him how much he meant to her and how much she appreciated him. Then she took him to the Cardinal Motor Inn and showed him. She was gentle with him, but she drained him as dry as the Mojave Desert before she let him take her home. At church Sunday morning, Tommy was relieved that everyone treated him as they usually did. In fact, New Year's Eve wasn't even mentioned, thanks to some advance work by Rita and Betty Lou. Tommy drove directly to Connie's house after church. Sundays at Connie's were sort a tradition now. It was the most relaxing time of the week for him, as he and Connie just lounged around doing whatever struck their fancy. That particular Sunday, Tommy fancied making slow sweet love and Connie, mindful of his recent injury, was all for it. By the time he left at five that afternoon, Connie had done about the same thing to him that Becky had. Supper at the Frickes was an enjoyable affair, because Caroline was acting more like the daughter Rita raised. She was polite to Tommy and she even displayed some of her mother's wit. After the meal, Rita shooed Tommy and Caroline out onto the porch while she and Harold saw to the dishes. The young couple ended up sitting next to each other on the swing, Caroline tucked up under half his jacket. As they talked, Caroline saw what her mother had meant about Tommy being much smarter than anyone gave him credit for. She also began to understand that Tommy's contentment with his life wasn't because he lacked ambition. Tommy was content with his life because it made him happier than anything else he could think of doing. Part of that was the healing nature of the serene and uncomplicated pace of life in Brantley, and the rest was the people who made him part of their lives. "You know Caroline, I don't see myself stacking Purina and sweeping the floor for the rest of my life, but I don't see me ever moving to the big city for the excitement either. I've never been to all the places you have, at least not that I remember, but you will have a hard time convincing me that those folks over there are better human beings than those around here. This place ... this life ... suits my soul. Why would I want to be anywhere else?" Caroline Marie Fricke could only nod her head when she realized that, at that moment, she couldn't think of any place in the world she'd rather be than sitting next to him on that swing, huddled up in his jacket and looking up at the bazillion stars shining on Texas. "I can't believe I waited until my last night to talk to you like this, Tommy. Now I want to spend more time with you, but I'm leaving tomorrow," she said dejectedly. Tommy leaned over and kissed her softly on the lips. "You'll be back, and I'll still be here. When that happens, we'll start over again with a clean slate." "Promise?" she asked. "I swear," he replied. ------- Chapter 14 Ruth Silverman returned from New York City on the Tuesday after New Years. She had to wait until Tuesday because of all the college kids traveling on Sunday and Monday. She picked up her Volkswagen at the long term parking facility at the Dallas airport and sedately chugged towards Brantley. Her forty-five horse powered bug was not exactly burning up the pavement. As she drove, she had time to reflect on her visit with her parents. All in all, she admitted to herself, it had been a nice trip. Her parents were overjoyed that she was home. Both of her parents noticed that their only daughter had changed while she'd been away. They appreciated that she was calmer and less eager to spout militant feminist rhetoric. In turn, Ruth was much more comfortable with her parents. For the first time in years, their wealthy lifestyle and social status didn't bother her. Her father had accepted Ruth's behavior change as a function of her maturing, but her mother wasn't so sure. Rose Silverman was an astute and no-nonsense woman in the same vein as Rita Fricke. Rose went looking for answers the first opportunity she had alone with her daughter. "I am pleasantly surprised at how serene you are now. Texas must be good for you," was Rose's opening gambit. Ruth gave her mother a smile and decided to make it easy for her. "It's more like someone in Texas is good for me," Ruth corrected. Rose, who knew of her daughter's penchant for the company of other women, approached the subject delicately. "Ahhh ... and this someone ... do they have a name?" Ruth laughed, leaned over and hugged her mother. "Relax, Mother, his name is Thomas Bledsoe." Ruth laughed again as Rose's face lit up in glee. Ruth could almost see the visions of grandchildren dancing in her mother's eyes. "Really!?" Rose exclaimed. Ruth nodded, then gave her the bad news. "Really. Thomas is an amazing young man, but I'm pretty sure he is not who you and father envisioned for me. His story is long and complicated, but for one thing, he is not a Jew. For another, he is firmly blue collar. He is the warehouse manager and part owner of a feed store." Rose gave Ruth a slightly chastising look. "You are the only one in the family raised in wealth and privilege, Ruth Ann. My father was a cobbler and Saul's was a butcher, as you well know. As for him being born Gentile ... well that is something I'm sure can be worked out with a Rabbi. He could convert, but regardless, since our lineage passes down from the mother, my grandchildren will be Jews anyway." Ruth gaped open-mouthed at her mother. Never in a hundred years would she have expected her mother to accept the idea of Tommy so easily. She sat down with her father that same evening and told him the same story. Her father nodded and expressed his fatherly concerns. "He sounds like a good man, Munchkin. Does he know about your trust fund?" Ruth's grandparents started the trust fund at her Bat Mitzvah. In the thirteen years since then, her parents and grandparents had substantially added to it. Even though she could have started drawing from the fund when she turned twenty-one, she'd never touched it. Ruth smiled and shook her head. "No, Papa, but even if he did, it wouldn't influence him. Tommy won't even let me buy him lunch, although I make probably twice what he does. He is stubbornly proud and determined to make it on his own." ------- In trying to solve the riddle of her sexuality, Ruth went out on three dates while she was in New York. The first date was with a young arbitrageur at her father's investment bank. His name was Stuart Moscowitz, he was thirty years old and well on his way to becoming obscenely wealthy. Fifteen minutes into the date, Ruth knew Stuart was a mistake, but she pasted on a smile and endured dinner and drinks afterward. Luckily, it didn't matter to Stu that she was quiet, because he dominated the conversation by expounding on his favorite subject: Stuart Moscowitz. The only time Stuart included her in the conversation, was when he mentioned how appropriate it would be for him to win the hand of the boss's daughter, since he was destined to one day take over the bank. He dropped her off at her parents' Manhattan apartment with a hand shake and a jaunty, "Till next time." Ruth figured next time would be about fifteen minutes after hell froze over. After the Stuart calamity, Ruth instigated the next date. It was with a man with a reputation for being a skilled and discreet lover. He was fifteen years older than Ruth, and only a few years younger than her father. Ruth had to admit that Ronald Platt, Esquire, was everything he was touted to be. He was more technically proficient than Thomas Bledsoe, and had little trouble wringing numerous orgasms from her. The orgasms were numerous, but they were no better than she could do with her own fingers. Her climaxes with Ron had lacked the gut-wrenching intensity that Thomas evoked, but the experience was not unpleasant in the least. Ruth's third 'date' was with Rachael Simms, her first real lover. Rachael, two years older than her, had been her roommate during her freshman and sophomore undergraduate years. Rachael was now a well respected psychotherapist, plying her trade among the affluent housewives of Manhattan. Ruth's reaction to Rachael's lovemaking was identical to her reaction to Ronald Platt's. It felt good, but lacked the intensity she shared with Tommy. As a bonus, Rachael helped Ruth clear up any confusion about her sexuality by explaining the concept of bisexuality. As Ruth drove into Brantley late that Tuesday afternoon, she was at peace about who she was, and she was more certain than ever about her feelings for Tommy. She was going to share those feelings with him the first chance she had. She was also going to tell him about her sexuality so there would be no secrets between them. With that in mind, Ruth drove straight to the feed store. Ruth ran into Rita Fricke right inside the door of the sales portion of the store. Rita was working with Bucky Grimes, hanging display hooks on the peg board portion of a shelving unit. The first shipment of product was due to arrive the next day, and the hooks were the last preparations needed. Ruth commented on how nice everything looked as Rita excused herself from Bucky so the two women could talk. Rita quickly, but carefully, informed Ruth of what happened to Tommy on New Year's Eve. Ruth was appalled at the unfairness of something like that yet again happening to Tommy. "Tommy probably saved my daughter's life when he dove across that table, Ruth, so how do you think it makes me feel? But, anyway, Tommy seems to be doing fine and recovering from this set back, so tell me about your trip home." Rita listen with undisguised approval as Ruth told her about the New York trip. Ruth trusted Rita enough that she left nothing out. When she wound down her narrative with the decision she'd made about Tommy, Rita gave her a hug. Rita was very proud of Ruth for taking the bull by the horns and working things out on her own. The big city girl was starting to act as if she were a Texan. "Tell you what," Rita said with a grin, "why don't you go grab Tommy and tell him all that. It's close enough to closing that you can drag him home with you, for all I care." Ruth practically sprinted out to the warehouse. Tommy broke into a gigantic smile when he saw her. Ruth was about to launch herself into his arms when she remembered his recent injury. She stopped in front of him, unsure of what to do. Tommy laughed and pulled her to him for a kiss that left her breathless and unsteady on her feet. "I missed you like crazy, Ruthie," Tommy whispered as she clung to him. She nodded into his chest. "I missed you too, Tommy. We have so much to talk about," she replied. Tommy didn't leave the feed store with Ruth. Instead, he took Rex and Bucky home at five, but he hot-footed it to her house as soon as he took a shower and changed clothes. Ruth jumped into the shower also and was set to go when Tommy arrived at her door a little after six, just as the early winter night fell. The couple had a quick supper at the Bypass Truck Stop and was back at Ruth's bungalow by seven-thirty. Ruth wanted nothing more than to race him to the bedroom, tearing off their clothes as they went. That's what she wanted, but what she did was sit him down on the couch as she made them both a cup of hot chocolate. When the cocoa was ready, she took two mugs into the living room, handed one to Tommy and took a seat next to him on the couch. While Tommy sipped his cocoa, Ruth carefully and completely explained what she had done in New York. "Tommy, I went out on a few dates while I was visiting my parents. The second man I went out with took me home with him and we spent the night together. I also went out with my college roommate and she and I slept together." For Ruth, the most embarrassing, and she thought, potentially trouble-causing part of her story, was her admission to having sex with a woman. She watched Tommy carefully as she talked. Tommy's face contorted into a frown of confusion when she finished speaking. All of this was completely over his head, as he had no experience or frame of reference to understand what she was saying. Finally, he made the only connection he could think of; he related her story to what he felt for the women in his life. "So you found some other people you love, besides me. That's good, but I will miss you when you go to be with them in New York," he said sadly. Ruth looked at him in horror. "That's not the case at all, Tommy!" she exclaimed. "Why I thought I needed to have sex with them is complicated, but love wasn't the reason. As a matter of fact, being with them convinced me how much I really love you. I told you what I did because I always want to be as truthful with you, as you are to me." Ruth's heart soared at the look of relief and love that Tommy beamed her after her remarks. She also marveled that he didn't think she was some sort of pervert because she liked women. His comments about that intrigued the hell out of her. "I have some other female friends who like to do things to each other, too. The three of us have had some great times together," he said sagely. Ruth tried to worm names out of him, but Tommy wasn't about to do that. So instead, she dragged him to the bedroom and let him show her how much he had missed her. Since he'd brought a change of clothes with him, he showed her twice more that night and once more in the morning before he hustled off to work. Ruth stayed in her warm and cozy bed after Tommy departed for work. She felt too gloriously satiated to move an inch. As she lay there cocooned in her flannel sheets, she gave the future some serious thought. Her well-ordered mind completely understood the challenges that would come in her relationship with Tommy. She could marshal orderly rows of reasons for forgoing all that. In addition to all Tommy's mental and emotional problems, was the fact that at least four other women also had a claim on his affection. All those good arguments were pointless to her heart, however, because to it, all that mattered was the love she felt for Tommy. Decisions made, Ruth jumped out of bed and dashed to her shower. ------- With all the attention he was receiving from his friends and family, Tommy should have been his usual happy self. That, however, was not the case. Tommy became more discouraged with every day that passed because of the sudden erasure of all the progress he'd made since coming to Brantley. His right leg tired easily now, and his right arm was weaker than before. In addition, his speech that had been slowly improving was now actually worse than before he arrived. Tommy's solution to physical problems was to work even harder at the feed store. His rationale was that the more he exercised his muscles, the quicker they would recover. Most days when he left the feed store, his right foot was noticeably dragging. He took a different approach to his speech impediment by speaking even less when in public, but practicing like crazy when he was alone. Rex was the beneficiary of Tommy's oratory, and the yellow dog thought he spoke just fine. Rita Fricke watched Tommy beat himself up for four days before she'd seen enough and called another Saturday afternoon meeting at the library for Tommy's lady friends. When she laid out the problem as she saw it, Ruth, Margie, Betty Lou and Connie were all eager to help. Margie Wilcox, their resident medical expert, pointed out that Tommy's exercise and hard work wouldn't cure his right side weakness. As it was with stroke victims, only time and his brain healing again would do that. Rita nodded her understanding. "You need to tell him that as soon as possible. He'll listen to you about anything medical. I'll slow him down at work and Betty Lou can keep a watch out for him at home, just to make sure he remembers what you tell him." Ruth and Connie came up with a scheme to help Tommy with his speech. Connie actually had the idea a few weeks ago, but had been waiting for Ruth to return to discuss it. Connie's idea came from remembering the voice coach Beau had hired early in her acting career. The dialog coach taught her to speak with whatever accent the role required, from California beach bunny to Transylvanian princess. Connie figured that the librarian would know where to find books that would allow them to become Tommy's speech coaches. Since Connie had the free time and Ruth had the resources, they were going to work on the project together. Margie broke the news that she had another date scheduled with Cyrus Wagner, the county sheriff. Since New Years, she and Cy had been to lunch together twice. She liked the lanky, laconic lawman, and he seemed very interested in her. After the meeting, Connie stayed at the library so Ruth could find some speech therapy books. The McCulloch County Public Library's reference section was thin on the subject, with only a couple of old textbooks, so Ruth used the state library catalog to inter-branch transfer a selection of more up to date volumes. Connie was taking one of the on hand books home to study and Ruth kept the other. Their working together was the first time they had been in a one-on-one situation, and Ruth thoroughly enjoyed Connie's company. Ruth thought that Connie was vivacious, beautiful and very alluring. Connie was very aware of the affect she had on most men and some women. She picked up on Ruth's interest right away, even though the diminutive librarian tried to hide it. Connie's time in Hollywood had included a couple of liaisons with other women, one of them a very well-known leading lady, so Ruth being attracted to her didn't bother her a bit. She smiled to herself and started a little innocent flirting. ------- Tommy felt better about things when he started work that third Monday of January, 1970. His talk with Margie Saturday afternoon about his rehabilitation made him feel much better. Margie told him that he needed to work and keep his normal routine, and his strength would return soon enough. Tommy would do exactly as she recommended, because Margie had always given him good advice. His morale received another boost on Saturday night when Connie and Ruth came by to take him to dinner. Tommy was happy and pleasantly surprised that both of his friends came for him, because he thought it would be just him and Connie that night. The trio had dinner at a steak house up near Brownwood that was first-rate. Tommy had a rib eye steak the size of a garbage can lid. The conversation at the table was as good as the food, with Connie regaling her friends with some of the funnier things that she'd seen in Hollywood. Although both Ruth and Connie engaged Tommy in conversation, they didn't make an effort to keep him talking. They figured that could wait until they were alone, so he wouldn't be embarrassed. Tommy didn't know it yet, but a big part of the rest of his evening was going to be spent working on his diction. When they left the restaurant, Connie casually tossed Tommy her keys and asked him to drive because she and Ruth had drunk a few cocktails. Since Connie had driven them there in her big Cadillac Eldorado, Tommy was all for it. After all, it wasn't every day that a boy had the opportunity to drive around with two gorgeous women in a Classy Caddy convertible. They all three climbed in the front seat with Ruth in the middle. A minute later, they were roaring down the highway, Creedence Clearwater Revival's Bad Moon Rising blaring from the eight-track. The three cosmopolitans she'd consumed put Connie in a playful mood. With a wink at Ruth, she hitched the petite librarian's skirt halfway up her thighs. "Tommy, doesn't Ruth have the nicest, prettiest, muscular legs you've ever seen?" Tommy glanced down and whistled at the sight of Ruth's pale thighs softly lit by the instrument panel. "She sure does, and she can bend them every which a way because she knows that yoga stuff," Tommy replied. Connie squealed and dropped her hand casually onto Ruth's thigh. "You know yoga? That is so cool. I saw a demonstration once at an ashram in the mountains where we were filming a movie. Do you think I could learn, being all overdeveloped like I am?" Ruth was just tipsy enough that her inhibitions were forgotten. She looked pointedly at Connie's chest and giggled. "I don't know, Connie; those things might make some movements difficult." Connie grinned impishly and took a deep, bodice-straining breath. "Oh, I'll bet you know how we can work around these," she said suggestively. "And besides, I'm fairly limber anyway, huh Tommy?" Tommy thought Ruth and Connie sounded just like his friends, Regina and Melody, so he good-naturedly chipped in his feeling on the matter. "You bet she is, Ruthie. Connie is also really strong. I'll bet you she could even learn that trick where you put your foot behind your head if you helped her." Connie slipped her hand further up Ruth's thigh. "Oh yeah! I really want to see that!" she exclaimed. Tommy casually dropped his hand on Ruth's other thigh and nodded his agreement. Ruth closed her eyes and sighed. The contrast of the two different hands on her was electrifying. Connie shot Tommy a wink just like Melody's, and slipped her hand an inch further. Tommy smiled and did the same. By the time the big Caddy glided to a halt in front of her house, Ruth was about to explode. She was sodden 'down there' and her arousal hung in the air like Confederate Jasmine on a still summer night. Ruth wasn't sure what was planned, but so far, she was enjoying the hell out of the evening. Connie opened the door and tugged Ruth out of the car. "Come on Ruthie, time for Tommy's first speech lesson." Just like that, Connie reverted to being all business. Ruth blinked in confusion, but nodded her head. The three of them worked out an excellent method for Tommy's voice training that evening, and Tommy was thrilled about the whole process. He saw immediately the benefit of the exercises that Ruth and Connie patiently practiced with him. Working with his friends was great, in that Tommy was relaxed and comfortable. As a result, his speech was at its best. He stammered and stuttered less through the repetitious exercises. It might have been wishful thinking on his part, but he felt his speech was already improved after the hour and a half of reading aloud and reciting lists of tricky words. Connie came up with a novel way to keep Tommy motivated as she and Ruth shared a bottle of Merlot. It started with kisses for a reward and progressed to show and tell. By the time the women started on the second bottle, they were topless and giggly. Ruth looked at Connie's gravity-defying breasts with unconcealed admiration. The wine loosening her inhibitions even more as she was swept along on the tide of Connie's raw sensuality. Tommy took his friends' actions as more proof that they wanted to have fun with him just like Regina and Melody, so he acted accordingly. He shocked both women when he pulled them together in front of him. "Now kiss each other. I know you want to." Ruth froze in disbelief at Tommy's request, but Connie grinned and pulled the smaller woman into her arms. "You heard the man, Ruth. We better cooperate or we might set his recovery back." Connie didn't wait for Ruth to answer before dipping her head down and cementing her lips onto the dumbfounded librarian's. Ruth hesitated for a moment, then avidly returned the kiss. When Connie finally broke the kiss, Ruth gave the actress a disappointed pout. Connie laughed and pulled Ruth towards her so that their breasts were mashed together. "Back to work, Tommy has two more lists to read," Connie chided. The evening might have heated up even more if Ruth hadn't gotten sick from mixing her booze. After a bout of prayer to the porcelain goddess, Tommy and Connie tucked her in bed with a trash can next to her. Tommy walked home at ten-thirty and Connie spent the night on Ruth's couch. The next day while Tommy was in church, Ruth and Connie had a serious talk about him and them. By the time Connie drove home later that afternoon, she and Ruth had pretty much decided that a three-way relation ship between them and Tommy was a goal worth striving for. There was just too much attraction between the three of them for it to be any other way. ------- While Tommy was having a good day at work that Monday, Ruth Silverman was taking the first step toward realizing her and Connie's future with Tommy. She took that step down at the Brantley Saving and Loan, sitting at a conference table with Otto Mills, the bank's president. Spread out on the table in front of them was a map of the county and a plat for large parcel of property off Highway 836. Otto was explaining the property to Ruth. " ... so as you can see, the original Maldonado Ranch was sixteen hundred acres. It has been subdivided into four separate parcels, in the hope it would sell better in smaller pieces. There is the hundred acres parcel that you are interested in and three parcels of pasture and trees encompassing about five hundred acres each. This northern-western most tract butts up against Miss Delgado's property. Mulberry Creek is the property line and water rights are deed restricted, so if the creek changes course, both properties still have access to the water." At first her intent had been to buy the parcel Tommy wanted so it wouldn't be sold to anyone else. Learning that Connie's ranch was adjacent to the property immediately changed Ruth's plans. "How much will you discount the price if I buy the original tract in its entirety?" Ruth asked. Mills raised his eyebrows and scanned the folder that listed the bank's exposure from the failed first mortgage. "$159,900 and half the closing costs," he replied. Ruth gave him a look then glanced back at the map. The proce Mills quoted seemed fair and was well in the means of the trust fund she'd never touched, but she was her father's daughter. "$158,000, you pay for the closing, and we have a deal." Otto Mills smiled and stuck out his hand, "Sold!" Ruth used Mills' phone to call her father to put transferring the money in motion. Saul Silverman was pleased as punch that his daughter was finally taking some responsibility for her ever-growing trust fund. He told Ruth to stay near the phone and rang off so he could call a bank in Dallas with which he had conducted business in the past. Saul knew that in Texas his man's word on the phone would be enough to guarantee his daughter's ability to pay. Thirty minutes and two phone calls later, all arrangements for closing had been completed. The actual closing would be seven days from now, but with everyone's word given and taken, it was just a formality. Ruth had one more bit of business with Otto before she went back to work. "Mister Mills, I would appreciate you letting Tommy know that the price on the property he wants has been reduced to twenty four thousand dollars, and he is preapproved for twenty percent down, thirty year mortgage at six percent. I want the sale handled strictly between the bank and him. He doesn't need to know I was involved in this in any way." Otto Mills was a happy man when Ruth walked out of the bank. The Maldonado foreclosure was the biggest of six that he'd been struggling with for almost a year. Getting rid of the property at a slight profit was a huge weight off the small savings and loan's balance sheet. Otto felt good enough to splurge on lunch over at the Bluebonnet; and who better to have celebrate it with him than Betty Lou Grimes? Yes, Otto had feelings for his long time employee, especially since she'd become so much happier in the last few months. Otto and Betty Lou had much in common, including being widowed early and extreme shyness. Otto used the excuse that he needed Betty Lou to pass a message to Tommy as his excuse for asking her to lunch. For her part, Betty Lou hoped she hadn't broadcast the pleasure she felt at being asked. She'd had a secret crush on Otto Mills for at least two years, and this was the first inkling she had that he might be similarly disposed towards her. ------- Betty Lou relayed Otto's message to Tommy that night at supper. Tommy smiled big at the thought of being able to buy the ranch without spending all his savings. Tommy promise to take everyone to visit the place before he committed to it, and the conversation shifted to the next thing on Betty Lou's mind. "So Regina, your birthday is less than a week away. It's going to be difficult to find a gift for you after the haul you made at Christmas. Got any ideas?" Regina smiled sweetly and fixed her eyes on Tommy. "Actually, there is something I've had my eye on for a few months now, and it won't cost much at all..." ------- Chapter 15 Betty Lou relayed Otto's message to Tommy that night at supper. Tommy smiled big at the thought of being able to buy the ranch without spending all his savings. Tommy promise to take everyone to visit the place before he committed to it, and the conversation shifted to the next thing on Betty Lou's mind. "So Regina, your birthday is less than a week away. It's going to be difficult to find a gift for you after the haul you made at Christmas. Got any ideas?" Regina smiled sweetly and fixed her eyes on Tommy. "Actually, there is something I've had my eye on for a few months now, and it won't cost much at all..." It took Betty Lou a few seconds to catch Regina's cryptic meaning. When it dawned on her, she looked at her step-daughter goggle-eyed. "We'll talk about that later!" Betty Lou yipped. "Good idea, Mom," Regina cheerfully agreed. Even Tommy caught the gist of Regina's meaning. He blushed furiously and turned his complete attention to the meat loaf on his plate. Bucky was oblivious to anything other than wolfing down his food. He was in the middle of a growth-spurt, and puberty was on him like mange on a hound dog. Consequently, all he could think about was eating and pounding his pud. As a matter of fact, as soon as he finished supper, he had a hot date with his right hand and a fourteen by twenty inch poster of Conchita Delgado in a tiny yellow polka dot bikini. The last member of the family was dozing on a rug next to the kitchen door. Every once in a while, his legs twitched as he dreamed about chasing big, fat, tabby cats up tall, skinny trees. Rex only had the good dreams when Tommy was in the same room. Funny, but Ruth and Connie shared that trait with the nondescript yellow dog. ------- Regina and Betty Lou retired to Regina's room as soon as the supper dishes were washed and put away. Regina had decided a few days ago that she was not going to sneak behind her stepmother's back in sleeping with Tommy. "I am not going to college a virgin, Betty Lou, and I'm not losing my cherry to some grunting high school Romeo in the back seat of his father's car. You've been a great Mom to me and I love you to death, but you might as well know that I am going to ask Tommy to be my first lover as soon as I'm eighteen. On the other hand, I'm not interested in being one of his girlfriends, like you, Connie and Ruth." Regina's candidness left Betty Lou pretty much speechless. She finally forced out the first thought that came to mind. "Then we need to start you on the pill right away." Regina nodded and smiled. "Yeah, and Melody, too," she replied. ------- Tuesday morning, Tommy excitedly told the Frickes about the message he received from Mister Mills about the ranch he wanted. Rita and Harold were both thrilled for him, and sent him over to the bank as soon as it opened. Otto Mills confirmed everything Betty Lou told him. Tommy did not have the experience to doubt that paying his car note on time for three months qualified him as a good prospect for a mortgage. Mills even helped Tommy with the paperwork to transfer his money from the credit union to the Brantley Savings and Loan. While they were at it, they also did the forms to have his retirement check deposited into his Brantley account. Tommy was fine with the idea that it would be a week to ten days before the property was available. Tommy kept busy that third week of January. On Monday and Wednesday, he worked late at the feed store, helping Bucky finish stocking the shelves. Tuesday evening was spent at Ruth's bungalow, working on his diction. Unlike Saturday night, the two women were all business. The friendship between Ruth and Connie was growing by leaps and bounds. The more time they spent together, the more they liked each other. Also, every minute they spent together with Tommy reinforced the feeling that the three of them were made for each other. They were three people with completely opposite backgrounds and personalities, yet they complimented each other perfectly. Thursday night was the first choir practice Tommy had been able to attend since the incident at the VFW hall. He almost didn't make this one either, because he had a doozy of a headache. It took a six pack of Goody's Headache Powders to ease the pain enough so he could go. Tommy had a headache of varying degrees of severity since he had been discharged from the hospital. Today's was the first that was severe enough to concern him. Tommy took his place in the choir loft next to Leo Dixon. He and Leo had just enough time to shake hands before Maddie Dixon started pounding out the intro to the first song to be practiced. They were two lines into Nearer My God to Thee, when Leo cocked his ear towards Tommy. He stopped singing to verify what he thought he was hearing. Tommy's voice, normally a thin, slightly off pitch tenor, was suddenly a very pleasant baritone. Tommy raised his eyebrows at Leo's antics. Leo grinned and leaned towards him. "Sing louder, Tommy. You sound real good tonight," the older man whispered. That night, Tommy found out that the latest insult to his brain housing group had restored his normal singing voice, but had erased his ability to mimic other singers. That pretty much ended his solo career, which didn't bother him a fig. Friday night was another speech class with Connie and Ruth. Tommy's headache was back with a vengeance before they'd been at it thirty minutes. Tommy stopped reading and opened a new packet of Goody's. Both women looked at him worriedly. "What's wrong, Baby?" Connie asked. Tommy explained about the headaches. It was the first time he'd mentioned them to anyone. Connie thought that Tommy needed to go back to the doctors as soon as possible, but Ruth just looked at him speculatively. Something in his explanation was giving her a different idea. Ruth picked up a Life Magazine off the coffee table and thumbed through it until she found a small print advertisement. "Read this for me, Honey," she said. Tommy took the magazine and squinted at the small print. He leaned over so that the magazine was under the lamp on the side table and read the ad. Ruth was standing by his shoulder as he read. She reached forward and covered his left eye. When she did that, Tommy stopped squinting. When she switched and covered his other eye, he held the magazine a little further in front of his face and continued to read. As a librarian, Ruth had been trained in resolving reading disorders, bad vision included. "I think you need glasses, Tommy. Your eyesight is probably giving you these headaches." Since more reading would only make Tommy's headache worse, he decided to take his girlfriends to Duke's Place for a change of pace. For Tommy Bledsoe, a trip to Duke's with a pretty woman was a sort of therapy; it always cured what ailed him. Ruth hurried into her bedroom and put on a nice cashmere skirt and silk blouse. She wiggled into a pair of smoky grey pantyhose, slipped on a pair of flats, and brushed out her curly black hair. A smear of frosty pink lipstick and she was ready to go. Connie was wearing a pair of snug jeans and a green cable knit sweater that draped alluringly over her prominent breasts. Her hair was in a ponytail secured with a green ribbon that matched her sweater. Her make up was minimal, save for crimson lipstick and a dab of eye-liner. Tommy thought they both looked fantastic. There was a nice sized, Texas honky-tonk, Friday night crowd at Duke's. Tommy received a rousing welcome from Duke and his patrons as they all greeted him and inquired about his health. Tommy greeted everyone in return and politely introduced Connie and Ruth, even though everyone probably knew them already. They strolled back to the pool room and found an empty high-top table. It was Ruth's first ever trip to a honky-tonk, so she wasn't sure what she was in for. Connie had never been in Duke's Place, but she'd trolled for cowboy bed partners in dozens like it. Ruth's feelings of being out of place lasted only a couple of minutes as she was swept up in the fun everyone seemed to be having. Ruth was amazed at how much fun it was for her too. She was also gratified that everyone accepted her because she was there with Tommy. She somehow knew that showing up at Duke's with Tommy was the first stage of her status changing from outsider to transplanted Texan. Soon enough, she was swilling down a deliciously sweet Long Island Iced Tea with a pool cue in her other hand. Ruth smiled to herself as she realized that shooting pool and flirting with Connie and Tommy in the nondescript Texas honky-tonk was more fun than an evening at the Copacabana in New York. The three friends were at the pool table shooting a game of rotation, when Connie remarked, "Too bad you have a headache and we don't have the word lists with us, because this is a perfect place to practice speaking. All this noise would help you develop your concentration." Ruth nodded in agreement, but Tommy just shrugged. "We can still do that if you want, I remember the words on the lists," Tommy replied matter-of-factly. Both women gave him that look women reserve for husbands and boyfriends who say something stupid. Tommy was familiar with 'the look', and chuckled as he lined up his shot. "There were four lists, Tommy, and over one hundred words. It would take hours to memorize them," Ruth patiently explained. Tommy sunk the seven ball and walked around the table to where the cue ball rested against the rail. " ... aardvark, Arapaho, Amarillo..." he recited in a sing-song voice. " ... badger, bison, Biloxi..." he continued. Connie and Ruth looked at him in wonder as he kept talking and shooting. Tommy had a rhythm going between his pool shots and his recitation. " ... llama, languid, lexicon..." he flawlessly regurgitated. Tommy was on a roll, both at the pool table and speaking the words from the list. He sank the last ball and finished the list at the same time, not missing a beat in either task. " ... zoology, zydeco, Zeus..." he finished with a flourish as the last ball dropped into the side pocket. Ruth was the first of the gape-mouthed women to regain her tongue. "That's incredible, Tommy!" she exclaimed. "How in the world did you remember all those words?" Tommy had a theory about that and was happy to share it with his friend. "Mama Rita says that sometimes, when something is taken from us, the Lord makes up for it by giving us something else. I think that when all my memories were erased from my brains, it made lots of room for me to remember other stuff, so the empty places would have something in them. Only I don't have as many brains as I use to have, so I don't know how long remembering will be so easy." Ruth started to say something, then shrugged and nodded. For a second, it had been on the tip of her tongue to point out the illogic of Tommy's assertion. She didn't, though, because, with as little as was known about the inner workings of the human brain, Tommy's theory was probably as good as anyone else's. Connie had a different take on the subject as she clapped her hands delightedly. "That was marvelous, Tommy. Ruthie, did you notice that he didn't stutter or stammer even once? I think when we get home, that he needs a big reward for that," Connie raved. Ruth, halfway through her second long Island Iced Tea, giggled and waggled her eyebrows. "Or maybe one big reward," Ruth said, staring pointedly at Connie's generous bosom, "and one littler one," she continued, looking down at her more modest décolletage. Tommy gave her a grin, leaned towards the women, and whispered conspiratorially, "Good idea. And while we're at it, maybe a little reward for Connie, too." Connie smiled and nodded enthusiastically. Ruth shivered and took another gulp of her sweet, potent drink. "I think that could be arranged," she said huskily. The trio headed to Ruth's house as soon as they finished their drinks. This evening, Ruth and Connie were much more sober than they had been on the previous Saturday's date with Tommy, and they planned on staying that way. Ruth and Connie made hot chocolate when they arrived back at Ruth's bungalow. While the women were busy in the kitchen, Tommy fiddled with Ruth's stereo until he found a station playing romantic favorites from the fifties and sixties. Tommy figured the women might want to dance with him and each other, just like Regina and Melody. The women walked into the living room, Ruth carrying a steaming mug of cocoa, Connie carrying two. They placed the mugs on the coffee table and sat down, one on each side of him. Tommy picked up his cocoa, blew across the top and took a sip. He was pleasantly surprised that it tasted of rum. He looked over the rim of his cup, looking back and forth at the women. "This is tasty, but too hot. What say we dance while it cools?" Both women smiled in agreement, but Connie put her hand on his arm when he tried to stand up. "We'd love to dance, but we need to talk to you for a minute first," she said. Tommy nodded and settled back onto the couch. He was too inexperienced to know that 'we need to talk' were the scariest words a woman could utter. Connie took a deep breath, exhaled and started the conversation. "We both love you, Tommy, and we know you love us. We also have feeling for each other. We are happiest when we are with you, and we want to make that permanent." Tommy turned and looked at Ruth for verification. Ruth blushed and bobbed her head up and down in agreement. "Connie and I have discussed this quite a bit over the last week. We are attracted to each other and that attraction is multiplied by ten when you are involved. I know the three of us are going to cause some raised eyebrows, but in today's world, plural relationships are not that uncommon," Ruth added. Tommy was silent for a few seconds as he thought out what to say. Finally, he hugged both women to him and replied. "I do love you both like crazy, but what about my other friends? I love them, too, and I have promised a couple of them I'd help with something personal." Connie leaned forward and kissed him on the cheek. "Baby, you are forgetting that most of your friends are our friends, too. We aren't asking you to neglect them. But listen, most of them don't want or need you in their lives full time like we do. If it becomes that way for someone else ... well ... I know anyone you take to will be a good person, and there is room for more love in all of our hearts." Connie was repeating the mantra of the late sixties and early seventies with the 'more love in our hearts' speech. But that's actually how she and Ruth felt about it. After all, it was the generation of love, and Tommy made it easy to feel that way. Tommy was the innocent personification of that elusive, pure, unconditional love the gurus touted. Tommy was excited by the idea of establishing his own family, and he loved that he even had a home for them. He wouldn't know how much work the house needed until the following day when Mister Mills was going to show him around, but according to the banker, the place was in good shape. He shared that information with the women and they enthusiastically volunteered to help him fix and decorate the house. With the talk out of the way, it was finally time to dance. Tommy stood up and extended his hand out to Ruth first, because she was the only one of his friends he'd never danced with. Soon enough, they were swaying to the Platters as the group sang about The Great Pretender. As soon as Tommy and Ruth started dancing, Connie stood up and walked to the bathroom. Standing in front of the mirror, she contorted her hands behind her back and unfastened her bra. She slipped the straps off her shoulders and pulled the Playtex 'Cross Your Heart' bra out of the sleeve of her sweater. Connie returned to the living room just as the song ended. She smiled when Ruth sighed as she stepped out of Tommy's arms. Ruth started to sit back down on the couch, but Connie stopped her, leaned down and whispered in her ear. "Lose the bra and pantyhose, Munchkin. You'll be more comfortable." Ruth didn't even blush as she gave a quick nod and hustled towards her bedroom. When she emerged two minutes later, she could only stare at Connie and Tommy as they swayed in the nearly dark room. She tingled all over as she watched Tommy's right hand busy under Connie's sweater as she nibbled on his neck. The song ended a few seconds later, but Connie stayed in Tommy's arm as her lips sought his. When the pair came up for air, all three of them were breathless. Connie turned and gave Ruth a wink. "Next," Connie said, her voice betraying her excitement. Ruth stepped forward towards Tommy, but Connie stepped in front of the diminutive librarian. "You've already danced with him; it's our turn now," Connie said huskily. Ruth had no problem moving into Connie's welcoming arms, especially with Tommy standing there nodding his approval. Ruth realized that this dance was the start of the relationship that all three of them wanted. She and Connie had purposely waited until Tommy was with them before exploring their sexual attraction to each other. They did that because it was Tommy's unquestioning and unconditional love that gave them the courage to explore their feeling for each other. There was no shyness in Ruth as she responded to Connie's seduction. She willingly - no, make that eagerly — opened her lips to Connie's probing tongue. When Connie pulled up one side of her sweater, Ruth attached herself to the large firm breast like a leech. Connie motioned Tommy over while Ruth was occupied, and mouthed for him to take off Ruth's blouse. Tommy winked and reached around Ruth, using both hands to nimbly unfasten the pearl buttons on her silk blouse. Tommy tugged the blouse out of Ruth's skirt and separated the last button from its hole. He separated the two haves of the blouse, exposing Ruth's small perky breasts to the cool air. Ruth moaned as her nipples hardened to crinkly pink bullets. She dropped her arms from around Connie's neck so Tommy could remove the blouse completely. Connie, her hands tangled in the thick curly mass of Ruth's hair, guided Ruth's talented tongue to her other breast. "Now the skirt, Baby, I want to see more of our little girlfriend," Connie ordered. As soon as her skirt hit the floor Ruth pulled her head away from Connie's breast. "Bedroom," she moaned, burning with lust. Tommy scooped Ruth up in his arms, stalked to the bedroom and tossed her in the center of her queen-sized bed. Before Ruth had bounced once on the firm Serta mattress, Tommy was tearing off his clothes. Connie was already shimmying out of her bikini panties while Tommy was still struggling with the buttons on his shirt cuffs. A trail of clothing littered her wake from the living room. For the next couple of hours, the three lovers cemented their new relationship. The three-way synergy was all that any of them could have hoped for. Ruth proved to Connie that she was as flexible as Tommy had bragged. Tommy and Connie ganged up on Ruth first, and then Ruth helped Tommy wear Connie out. After a rest and some water, the women took care of their man. They spent the night snuggled up in Ruth's bed. Surprisingly, for three people accustomed to sleeping alone, Ruth's bed was plenty big enough. They all discovered that they loved sleeping snuggled up to one another. ------- Tommy went to work at the feed store at seven-thirty Saturday morning with an indelible grin on his face. Friday evening's activities were partly responsible for the grin, but the major reason was the conversation over coffee he and the women had before he departed for work. In that twenty minute conversation, they made their initial plans for a life together. As soon as he finished work for the day, the three of them were going to meet at the house Tommy was buying. Betty Lou and her kids, the Frickes, Ben Crawford and Ramon Salazar had also promised to drop by. Mister Mills gave Tommy a key on Friday afternoon so everyone would have there first look at the inside. Tommy arrived at the ranch at twelve thirty, but he didn't unlock the house. He wanted everyone to be there before he did that. Instead, he and Rex walked around the place. Rex was in heaven with all the room he had to run around in. When the yellow dog wasn't racing around Tommy in big looping circles, he was peeing on everything that didn't move, emphatically marking his new territory. Tommy's friends started showing at ten minutes before one. Ruth and Connie were the first to arrive. Both women were dressed in jeans and western shirts they bought just that morning at the mall up in Brownwood. The outfits were Connie's idea; the denim Levis were the first pair Ruth had ever owned. Ruth was slightly embarrassed that Connie found her size in the boys' section of Sears Roebuck, but Tommy thought the jeans looked good stretched snugly across her small solid butt. Everyone else arrived almost simultaneously about five minutes later. Even Margie showed up, dragging Cyrus Wagner along. Mister Mills also showed up to answer any questions Tommy might have. Rita Fricke noticed the shy looks that Otto and Betty Lou exchanged and smiled to herself. Tommy Bledsoe was the best thing that ever happened to Betty Lou, but long term, Otto Mills was better suited for their shy, old fashioned young friend. Tommy shook hands with the men and hugged all the women, then sidled up to the door and unlocked it. Once inside, the men gravitated in one direction, looking at what repairs might be needed, while the women breezed through the rooms with decorator's eyes. Everyone except Mister Mills was surprised that the house was partially furnished. The dining room had a walnut table with six chairs that matched the built-in china cabinet and side board. Two of the three bedrooms had double beds with sturdy brass headboards, and all three bedrooms had dark walnut chifforobes. The largest bedroom, the one without a bed, had a roll top desk that matched the chifforobe. The living room was bare, except for a couple of round end tables in the same dark wood. Mills explained the furniture when Connie asked about it. "When Mister Maldonado died, his heirs didn't want most of this old furniture. They said it was too dark and old fashioned. These are some well-made pieces, so I couldn't see scrapping them when I had the house cleaned for resale." Tommy loved the furniture and so did Ruth and Connie. It fit the house perfectly. In addition to the furniture left behind, the kitchen had a serviceable range and refrigerator. Harold Fricke summed up the work he thought the house needed. "All it needs is some paint and refinishing on these heart-pine floors. The chimney might also need cleaning out and chinking to make it draw properly. You might need to fiddle with a couple of windows, and they all need new screens. Other than that, the place is in good shape, Tommy-boy." After checking the inside of the house, Tommy and the rest of the men folk went out the back door to check the out buildings. The thirty by sixty, twelve stall pole barn was in reasonable shape and dry inside. It didn't need much more than a good cleaning. The second, smaller building was a combination workshop and storage area for tools and equipment. The former owners left a good selection of the hand tools and equipment needed to maintain a ranch. Behind the workshop building were a few farm implements, including a brush hog, hay rake, disc harrow and back blade. All that was missing was a tractor to pull them. The inspection took nearly an hour, although everyone didn't stay the duration. By a quarter of two, only Connie, Ruth and the Frickes were still there. While the women were standing on the porch gabbing about curtains and rugs, Harold was telling Tommy what he thought of the place. "You got yourself a nice piece of land and a solid house here, Tommy. What are you going to do with the place?" Tommy had already given that some thought and had even researched the idea. "Connie wants us to buy a few horses. I can't ride now, but when my brains are healed, I want to learn. There isn't enough land to run cattle, so I'm going to buy some goats." Harold raised his eyebrows in surprise. "Goats!?" he said. "Yeah," Tommy replied, "Angora goats, the kind that you get mohair from. They aren't easy to raise, but the government has subsidized raising them since World War Two." Harold and Rita left a few minutes later. They were both impressed with Tommy's choice of the property and his plans for it. Rita was also happy that he would not be living there alone. After everyone else was gone, Tommy, Connie and Ruth stood on the porch and discussed how they would clean, paint and furnish the house. They set a goal of being moved in by Valentines Day, a little over three weeks away. Connie had a list of notes of what they needed to do. Number one on the list was buying a king-sized bed. ------- Chapter 16 After church on the Sunday following the visit to their new place, Connie and Tommy started cleaning the house. Ruth wasn't there, because she had to work at the library. They had not been at it more than thirty minutes, before the Frickes, Crawfords and Salazars showed up with cleaning equipment to help. Having such good friends plastered a smile on Tommy's face a mile wide. With four couples working, the house was spic and span in only a few hours. Tommy enjoyed razzing the other men at how well they operated mops, brooms and dust rags. Harold waited until they were out of earshot of the women before he replied, "Tommy-my-boyo, a dozen roses makes a woman feel well disposed towards you, but cleaning the kitchen will get you laid quicker than Spanish-fly." Ben and Ramon nodded like a Greek chorus. "It's a fact, Amigo," Ramon seconded. "My Theresa starts getting horny the minute I start up the vacuum cleaner." "Windex does it for Cricket," Ben added. "If she comes home and I'm washing windows, she jumps my bones in the living room, even if the blinds are up." Tommy took everything they said to heart, even though he thought they might be gilding the lily. At the same time that the fellows were briefing Tommy, their wives were giving Connie the real scoop. When Connie mentioned how well the husbands cleaned, all three wives chuckled. "Yeah," Rita said, "they are like those dogs that Russian guy Pavlov trained. If I put on a peek-a-boo blouse and high heels, Harold turns into Mr. Clean." ------- The following Monday was the grand opening of the Brantley Feed, Seed and Farm Supply. About everyone in the tri-county area dropped by to take a look. Harold had done a heck of a job lining up suppliers, most of them on consignment. His biggest coup was convincing John Deere to make him their official dealer for McCulloch County. The regional Deere representative even fronted Harold a couple of green and yellow tractors and some other machinery to display. Business at the store increased dramatically as farmers and ranchers from neighboring Conch and Menard Counties started coming to Brantley instead of traveling twenty-five miles further up the road to Brownwood. Tommy was especially proud when the hunting and fishing supplies he'd lobbied for sold like hot cakes. While Tommy was slaving away cooking hot dogs for the grand opening, Connie was at the Sears and Roebuck store at the Brownwood Mall. Her first stop was the furniture section, where she ordered a king-sized bed frame, foundation and mattress. The box springs and mattress were special order, because she wanted the new California King model that was six inches longer than the standard king. Connie visited the home furnishing section next. She found everything she needed for the house, except for linen for the new bed. Those she ordered from the big Sears wish book, with a promise that they would arrive about the same time as the bed itself. Connie smiled as she threw in a set of red satin sheets with the order. She knew she looked good in red. Later that afternoon, Tommy did his part for making the new place a home by hiring a handyman to do the repair work Harold said the house needed. The handyman was the uncle of Jose Luna, the delivery truck driver. Tommy hired the man, sight unseen, on Jose's recommendation. "My uncle is old," Jose said. "He takes his time, but his work is most excellent. He is very busy, but I will ask him to do your work as a favor to me." Jose Luna and his wife Belinda thought the world of Tommy. They became his friends for life when he and Rex showed up at Jose's modest house on Christmas Day with presents for them and their four children. ------- On Saturday, the last day of January, 1970, Otto Mills and Betty Lou hosted an eighteenth birthday party for Regina at the VFW Hall. Otto was a member of Post 9718 by virtue of his service with the 187th Airborne Regimental Combat Team during the Korean War. The bashful, bespectacled, balding banker was the guy who proved the rule, "Don't judge a book by its cover." Mills was the most decorated soldier at the VFW post, and a veteran of two combat parachute jumps in Korea. The birthday bash was held in one of the activity rooms of the hall. There were tubs full of sodas, plenty of food, a record player and thirty teenagers standing around yakking when Tommy walked in with Connie, and Regina's brother Bucky. Otto and Betty Lou were chaperoning and Rita Fricke was there, providing moral support for Betty Lou. Tommy was not thrilled about being there with some of the high school crowd that had called him a retard and dummy, but it was Regina's night, so he plastered on a smile strictly for her. Regina and Melody made a fuss over him showing up, as they grabbed his arm and dragged him around to meet their friends. Tommy went around the room nodding politely to the young women and shaking hands with the men. When they were back at the record player, Regina whispered something to Melody, then tugged Tommy into the middle of the room. A few couples were on the dance floor, but most of the teens were standing around looking uncomfortable as Tommy and Regina took up station in the center of the floor. Tommy grinned when Regina's phonograph dropped Jailhouse Rock onto the turntable. The song was Regina's favorite to dance to and Tommy was her favorite jitterbug partner. The other teens looked on in surprise as Tommy and Regina tore up the floor. Regina's dance with Tommy broke the ice and soon enough, all the teens were on the floor gyrating wildly. Tommy danced once with almost every female there before the lights dimmed and the first slow dance started. Tommy turned to find Connie, only to see her leading a grinning Bucky Grimes out onto the floor. Tommy smiled and shrugged just as Regina caught his arm. "My birthday, so I get first dibs," Regina said. Tommy waltzed Regina around the room, just as they had practiced all those months ago. Tommy thought back to that time, and whispered into Regina's ear. "Paying you to teach me to dance was the best investment I ever made," he said. After about an hour of dancing, Betty Lou called a halt to the music for ice cream, cake and presents. Regina blew out the candles on her cake and started opening presents, as Betty Lou and the other adults passed out plates of cake and ice cream. After Regina had opened all the presents on the table and read aloud all the cards, Betty Lou pointed her daughter towards the side exit door. "You might have one more gift out there," she said. Sure enough, right outside the door, parked up on the grass was a cherry red 1966 Chevy II Nova. Betty Lou was probably as excited about the gift as Regina. Otto found the car at an auction barn, Ben Crawford tuned it up, and Ramon Salazar fixed a couple of dings. The six cylinder economy car had belonged to an elderly couple, and had less than twenty thousand miles on it. Betty Lou paid seven hundred dollars for it by taking out a loan secured by her savings account. Thanks to the college money from Tommy, the savings weren't committed to anything now. Regina and Tommy shared another slow dance right before the party broke up. As they danced, Regina informed Tommy that she expected her special present from him in April. She and Melody had everything planned out to happen during their spring break from school. "We are going to Dallas for a weekend and you are going with us," she whispered in his ear. ------- The two weeks between Regina's birthday and Valentines Day flew by. Tommy closed on the house on February the second, and Pablo Luna started working his magic on the third. Tommy did not even make the man a list, he just told him to fix what needed repairing. He gave Pablo a couple of hundred dollars for materials and let him have at it. Pablo became a Tommy fan when the young man stayed away from the house and let him work in peace. With carte blanche, Pablo lovingly restored the fifteen-hundred square foot house as if it were his own. Pablo finished up on Wednesday the eleventh. Tommy, Connie and Ruth were all amazed at the transformation. Freshly varnished floors, new egg-shell paint on the walls, and gleaming white wood work made the inside sparkle. The exterior had received new white paint with green accents and trim. Pablo had even applied new silver paint to the house's metal roof. The three lovers were standing in the yard, profusely thanking Pablo when Connie came up with an idea to finish the place off perfectly. She took Pablo by the arm and walked him out of earshot of the others. "Mister Luna, the only thing lacking for this to be home is a white picket fence. Can you do something like that for me?" Connie asked. Sears delivered and set up the bed the next day. Connie had picked up the linen a few days before. Ruth took Friday off from the Library so she and Connie could spend the day turning the house into a home. Tommy worked Saturday morning and spent part of the afternoon moving his clothes and other possessions out of the Grimes's basement. Tommy's excitement about having his own place was tempered somewhat by a little sadness that he was moving away from Betty Lou, Bucky and Regina. It was tearful for all of them really, but they all realized that it was time. The year that Tommy spent with the Grimes had been good for all of them, and because of Tommy, everyone's circumstances had changed for the better. All four of them eagerly looked forward to their new futures. Besides, Tommy never forgot his friends, so they would all remain close, regardless of what happened down the road. Moving was a much bigger deal for Connie and Ruth, and in the end they did not move completely into Tommy's new place. There needed to be some more discussion before that happened, but they did move some clothes, personal items and some furniture. They moved enough to make them comfortable. The reason they were keeping their own places was primarily to keep the gossip at bay as much as possible. In a town of four thousand and a county of eight, blending into the background was hard to do. It certainly didn't help that almost everyone either knew, or knew of, both women. Tommy went out of his way to make Valentines Day special for Connie and Ruth. That night, on a slippery sea of scarlet satin, a simple and humble man showed two sophisticated women of the world what love was all about. The women's response to his efforts made the event fabulous for Tommy, and spurred him toward the performance of his life. The trio went at it until one in the morning, before dropping in exhaustion. They fell asleep as sated and as happy to be together as it was possible to be. Tommy woke up at seven Sunday morning feeling great. Unfortunately, the only one who shared his joyful mood that morning was his buddy Rex. Neither Ruth nor Connie saw any reason to be out of bed before the chickens, so Tommy slipped into his clothes and took Rex for a walk. Tommy went out the kitchen door and into the back yard. Since he had a few hours before church, he decided to walk his fence line and see what repairs it needed. Tommy opened the zinc-plated livestock gate that butted up against one exterior wall of the barn, and followed Rex through it. Once the gate was closed and latched, he turned left and set out. Before they had walked a hundred yards, Rex had flushed a covey of quail and two jack rabbits from a scrub oak thicket. The thicket was part of nature recovering the fallow fields. The thickets that dotted the once cultivated portion of the ranch would need to be cleared to graze his goats. The fence on the south side of his property was in good shape, his neighbor on that side having maintained it. The west and north side fences were fairly stout as well, with only a few breaks and rotted posts in them. Those fences bordered the abandoned and unused parcel Mister Mills said he'd recently sold. Tommy figured he'd need about fifty fence posts and six rolls of barbed wire to fix everything. He'd pick the wire and posts up tomorrow at the feed store. Tommy had a running inventory of every item in his warehouse inside his head, so he knew exactly how many fence posts and rolls of wire were in stock. The chilly early morning February air made Tommy feel especially alive. He and Rex explored for over an hour. A portion of that time was spent poking around in a ten acre stand of pines and hardwoods at the northwest corner of the property. Tommy and Rex both loved that little wooded corner. Tommy was going to leave it exactly as it was even if it meant he could graze fewer goats. Tommy found another gate that let through the northern fence line. The gate split a rough-hewn road that ran south to north. Tommy guessed that the road led to cattle pens and loading chutes out in the big pastures. Ruth and Connie were sitting at the kitchen table drinking coffee and talking, when Tommy and Rex tumbled into the house a few minutes after nine. Both women wore terrycloth robes and fuzzy slippers. Tommy grinned at how domestic the scene looked. Ruth returned his smile as she popped up and checked the oven. "I'm making some cheese toast," she explained. Tommy nodded and poured himself a mug of coffee from the new Kenmore electric percolator Connie had picked up at Sears. He'd started the coffee brewing before he went for his walk. He pulled out the chair across from Connie and sat down. "Good morning, Sunshine," he said happily. Connie looked at him dolefully and gestured with her cup. Connie was not a morning person, but she was not really as grumpy as she pretended to be. She just acted that way as a counterpoint to Tommy's first thing in the morning cheerfulness. Ruth pulled a cookie sheet out of the oven and frowned at the burnt edges of the pieces of toast. The loaf bread toasted much quicker than the bagels she normally fixed. "I'll pick up some bagels at the Piggly-Wiggly," she thought, as she slid the toast onto three paper plates. She placed the plates onto the table and sat down with her lovers. Connie picked a burnt piece off her toast and took a bite. She didn't comment on the well done and seriously dry toast, because her cooking skills were even more limited than Ruth's. Tommy munched on his toast and made a shopping list in his mind. He was used to a more substantial breakfast than a couple of slices of cheese toast, even if it was only a big Jethro Bodine bowl of Raisin Bran and Grape Nuts. Tommy polished off his toast after slipping a corner of one piece under the table to Rex. Rex had a policy of never turning down people food, and burnt cheese toast was still a lot better than peas and carrots. Tommy put his paper plate in the trash, thanked Ruth for breakfast, and headed for the shower. He had to be down at First Baptist at ten, because he was helping teach Sunday school that morning. Rita Fricke taught a group of the younger children and had asked Tommy to help her because the class had grown. Ruth and Connie were still sitting at the table when Tommy kissed them goodbye and rushed out the door. Connie's Mass at Saint Cecilia wasn't until eleven, and Ruth didn't have to open the library until noon on Sundays. As soon as she heard his truck accelerate onto the highway, Ruth cleared her throat and looked over at Connie. "I'm sorry about last night," she said, blushing beet red. "I don't know what possessed me; I've never done anything remotely like that." It was Connie's turn to blush as she looked down at her coffee cup. The worldly and experience woman's cheeks were aflame as she recalled the way tiny Ruth had so aggressively dominated her the night before. "No need to apologize," Connie said softly. "I enjoyed every minute of it. I can't believe how strong you are. What brought that on anyway?" "I don't really know. You and Tommy had me so excited, I just decided to let go and do what I wanted." Connie looked up at her friend and grinned crookedly. "Well, I don't think I could stand that every night, but don't be surprised if I try to get you to do that again sometime." ------- Tommy made it to the church fifteen minutes early so he could help set up the classroom. Rita was already there, putting activity books, construction paper, glue, scissors and crayons on two banquet tables. She gave Tommy a hug and a buss on the cheek, then handed him the stack of art supplies. "Finish passing these out, Tommy, then erase the chalkboard and clap the erasers." Tommy, not much removed from being a kid himself, was a big hit with the youngsters. The kids didn't mind that Tommy had a speech impediment, because all of them were challenged in one way or another. Tommy made a particularly strong connection with two of the kids. The first connection was with a little blonde-haired, blue-eyed angel with a slightly cleft lip and worse cleft palate. The other was with a terribly reticent young boy who stuttered severely. Rita watched Tommy work with the kids with a satisfied smile on her face. When Dell Spangler, the deacon in charge of the Sunday school program, had asked her to take over the 'slow' children's class, she jumped at the chance. After the first session the prior week, she knew Tommy could make a positive impact with her kids. And here he was, proving her right. Rita also knew that the children were good for her Tommy. She knew that it made Tommy feel good to help others; and what better way to do that than by working with these wonderful children? Looking at Tommy smiling and joshing with the children brought truth to the saying, "No man has ever stood so tall as when he stooped to help a child." Between the end of Sunday school and the start of the church service, Tommy quizzed Rita about the little blond girl and the stuttering boy. Rita told him what she knew. "The girl's name is Molly; she is the youngest of the six Snyder children. Ross Snyder drives a cement mixing truck for some outfit up in Brownwood. They aren't very well off, but they are a good Christian family. The boy is Jamie Dunn. He stays with his grandparents over on Austin Street. His mama was a classmate of Caroline. She had the boy at sixteen, then took off and no one has heard from her since. She never did say who fathered Jamie." Rita stopped, faced Tommy and took his hands in hers. "They are both bright children Tommy, but most folks think they are retarded because of how they speak. In that regard they remind me of you. I think being around you will help them immensely." Tommy thought about Jamie and Molly all through the church service. As soon as Maddie dismissed the choir, Tommy jumped into his truck and sped over to the library. Ruth was just about to take her seat behind the circulation desk, when Tommy came bursting through the front door she'd just unlocked. He was so excited, his speech was atrocious. It took two tries for him to explain about meeting Rita's special kids. Ruth finally sat him down and made him take a couple of deep breaths. When he had calmed down some, she asked him how she could help. "Molly has a hare lip and a hole in the top of her mouth, so I need to read up on that. Jamie stutters like me, only he has all his brains. Do you think the speech therapy you and Connie do with me could help them?" Ruth smiled at Tommy's enthusiasm and pointed him toward the card file. "Your new little friend has a cleft lip, Tommy, and probably a cleft palate as well. Hare lip is not a very nice way to describe her problem. Look those terms up in the reference card files, the books should be in the six-tens, under 'medical science'. Tomorrow I'll call the central library in Dallas, I'm sure they have speech therapy practice books for children." Ruth shook her head bemusedly as Tommy pulled out the 'Ch-Cm' reference card drawer and took it over to the research table. "What in the world is he up to now?" she wondered. ------- Monday morning, while Harold manned the sales floor, Rita called Tommy into the office for a chat. Talking to Tommy was something the Frickes had discussed the evening before. Seeing Tommy work with the Sunday school class brought to Rita's mind the troubles he'd faced, the progress he'd made, and the things he still needed to do. Rita seated Tommy on the old comfortable couch that Harold loved to nap on, fixed them both a cup of instant cocoa, and told him what was on her mind. "You've been with us for almost a year, Tommy, and every day you've been here has been a pleasure for Harold and me." Rita paused and beamed Tommy a misty-eyed adoring smile. "So anyway," she continued, "before your year is up, you have eight days of vacation to use." "Where would I go? Give it to Jose," Tommy responded with a shrug. "Jose earns his own vacation, besides, you do have somewhere to go. You need to visit your poor sister in Florida. She worries about you, and a weekly phone call is not enough," Rita replied firmly. Tommy half-heartedly protested, even though he knew she was right. Rita was determined, and she had an answer for his every objection. She gave Tommy his marching orders. "Now that you're settled in your new place, there isn't any reason you can't go next week." Rita's voice softened and she took Tommy's hand in hers. "We all love you, Tommy. You have a family and home here, but Beth is your blood, you need to do this for both of you." Ruth and Connie were one hundred percent behind Rita on Tommy visiting his sister, but they were not about to let him go alone. As much as she'd like to go herself, Ruth had used up her vacation at Christmas. Connie, though, did not have anything scheduled, so was elected by default. With the women riding herd on the trip, planning and preparation happened quickly. Ten days later, at eight in the morning, Tommy and Connie pulled out onto Highway 836. They were riding in Tommy's freshly tuned up truck, their bags packed in the cargo bed under a tarp. Ruth was on the porch waving goodbye. Her new best friend Rex sat beside her, his tail thumping against the floor. ------- Chapter 17 The first leg of Tommy and Connie's road trip was a two hour jaunt south on US Highway 84 to the newly completed section of Interstate 10. Tommy merged eastbound on the Interstate and motored to San Antonio. Sections of Interstate 10 were still under construction, so they spent as much time on US 90 as they did the Interstate. They rolled into San Antonio at noon and stopped for a leisurely lunch at the Officers Club at Brooke Army Medical Center. It was early in their travels for a lengthy stop, but Tommy needed the break. Riding in a vehicle for a prolonged trip was hard on Tommy, and four hours at a time was about all he could stand. They pulled out of San Antonio at two in the afternoon. Connie drove the second leg of the trip. Connie did not feel constrained to drive the speed limit and Tommy was tolerating the trip better as a passenger, so at seven in the evening, they drove into Lafayette, Louisiana. Tommy was surprised when Connie made a couple of turns off the highway and pulled up in front of a small Gothic-looking hotel a number of miles outside of town. "Why are we stopping here?" Tommy asked as Connie opened her door. Connie turned in her seat and gave him a reassuring smile. "It's okay Baby, I know the family that owns the place. We'll eat supper and get a room for the night. I figure if we leave by seven in the morning, we can be at your sister's this time tomorrow night." Tommy nodded his understanding and exited the truck with her. Tommy's feet were barely on the ground when a small wiry man wearing a white ruffle-front shirt and dark trousers appeared as if by magic in front of his truck. The man had cruelly handsome features, glossy, slicked back ebony hair and piercing brown eyes. Tommy guessed his age to be mid-twenties, but it was hard to tell for sure. "Welcome back, Miss Delgado," the man said in a surprisingly soft Creole voice. "Thank you Pierre, it's nice to be back. This is my fiancé Thomas Bledsoe; Tommy this is Pierre Arcenaux, his family owns this charming inn." Tommy stuck out his hand. Pierre grasped it firmly and looked up into Tommy's face. "You are a very lucky man, Thomas," Arcenaux said with envy in his voice. Pierre's firm handshake and disarming honesty caused Tommy to like him immediately. "Yes I am," Tommy replied sincerely. Connie sorted out which bags they'd need for the night, and the two men lugged them up the broad front steps. Connie knew the area and the Arcenauxs because of a movie she'd made here in Lafayette. The inn was a prominent location in the production. The movie was the only one in which she'd appeared cast as the villain. Connie thought her work in Voodoo She-Devil was some of her finest. The movie was also one of the few in which she actually wore different costumes, even if all the gowns were exceedingly low cut, tight and revealing. In the movie, she played a Cajun Voodoo Priestess whose followers were tormented by a bunch of loutish Yankees down from New York on a bayou hunting expedition. After the hunters sexually assault and kill a teenage girl, the Priestess extracts her revenge. She seduces and kills the hunters, one at a time, in cruel and unusual ways in and around the Hotel Arcenaux. Pierre led them into the lobby and up to the ornate reception desk. A petite and attractive older woman, dressed in a long black skirt and a black off-the-shoulders peasant blouse, was manning the desk. The woman also had shiny black hair, but hers had a striking white stripe on either side of her face. Her eyes were a mesmerizing caramel color flecked with gold. She greeted Connie as if she was a long lost relative, and then cast those hypnotic orbs on Tommy. "And who is this big gorgeous man, Cherie? My girls will eat him up." Connie giggled and once again made introductions. "This is Thomas, Marie. He belongs to me, so tell your daughters he's off the menu. Tommy, this is Marie Arcenaux, she is my late husband Beau's cousin." As soon as Tommy took her proffered dainty hand is his big paw, Marie's pupils widened and she rocked back on her heels. Marie, locally renowned as a seer, quickly dropped Tommy's hand, performed the Sign of the Cross, and looked at Connie in doe-eyed wonder. "You have honored us, Cherie. Not since I met my children's father have I felt such gentle goodness. He is one of the blessed!" she exclaimed. Before the thoroughly startled Connie could react, Marie spun on her heels and fled out of the lobby through a set of double doors. "Pierre, show our guests to the bridal suite. Cherie, dinner is still served promptly at eight," Marie said over her shoulder. Pierre shrugged when Connie shot him an inquiring frown, but he looked at Tommy with new respect. "Mother sees things in people no one else can see, but I've never seen her react that strongly to anyone. The only other person she has ever said was blessed was my father." Tommy and Pierre picked up the suitcases and the three of them walked over to an old-fashioned elevator set in an alcove off the lobby. As Pierre operated the controls of the creaking old Otis, he told them about his father. "According to Mother, my father was a kind and gentle man. He refused to use a weapon, yet he volunteered for service when the Korean War broke out. He was a Navy Corpsman with a Marine unit at the Battle of Chosin Reservoir, and his bravery saved a number of men. He was killed when he dashed out into the open to pull two wounded men to safety. Even though he was mortally wounded, he managed to save both men. Mother says my father was incapable of not doing what was right." Tommy was silent through all of this, but he nodded his understanding and agreement with how Rene Arcenaux lived and died. Tommy, better than anyone, knew how Pierre's father felt. He shared the man's aversion to weapons, yet Tommy, like Rene, was a long way from being a coward. Connie noticed Tommy's sad expression and took his hand reassuringly. Pierre led them to a lavishly decorated room with a large round bed, reminded them about dinner and disappeared. Tommy looked around, awestruck at the gaudy red and pink magnificence. Still holding his hand, Connie sat down on the bed and pulled him down next to her. "What are you thinking, Baby?" Connie asked solicitously. "They remind me of the Addams Family," Tommy replied with a sheepish grin. Connie laughed delightedly and kissed him on the cheek. "They are unusual, Baby, but like you, it is in a good way," Connie said. Then she looked at Tommy's watch and hopped to her feet. "We better hurry, we need to dress for dinner and we only have twenty minutes." Dressing for dinner at the Hotel Arcenaux meant a coat and tie for Tommy and a calf-length red cocktail dress for Connie. Tommy dressed distractedly as he watched Connie transform herself in a focused fury of motion. At five minutes before eight, they were on the elevator as it groaned its way down to the lobby. The dining room was small and intimate, with six tables scattered around. There were only two other couples in the dining room, both older and prosperous-looking. A young woman in a sassy French maid's outfit showed them to a table near a large bay window. The woman was the spitting image of Marie, right down to the double white stripes in her long inky tresses. Tommy and Connie were having a cup of coffee after an exceptional meal, when Marie swept into the room. To be such a tiny woman, she had a commanding presence. Marie greeted her other guests, then walked over to Tommy and Connie's table. Tommy stood up and pulled out a chair for her. "Please join us," he said, his voice steady and clear. Marie gave him a sweet smile and gracefully folded herself in to the chair. Connie watched the two of them with an amused smile. She could already see the Tommy magic working on the usually aloof and serious Marie. Cousin Marie was a kind and pleasant woman, but according to Connie's late husband, the spark had gone out of her life when her beloved Rene died in Korea. As they sat talking, Connie had an idea. "Tommy, I'm tired and ready for bed. Marie, why don't you show Tommy the gardens, and I'll just head on up to the room." Tommy took one look at Marie's eager expression, and any thought of protest died on his lips. They all walked to the elevator and Marie continued to the desk to pick up her shawl. Connie stood on her tip-toes and kissed Tommy on the cheek. "Make her laugh, Tommy. She deserves it more than most people," she whispered in his ear. Tommy did just that as he and Marie sat under a small gazebo in the center of the beautiful, well-tended garden. He had her in stitches as he comically related his life as a small town cowboy who couldn't ride a horse even if he owned one. After his stories, Marie told him about her one and only love. It amazed Marie to find herself telling this virtual stranger embarrassing, yet amusing tidbits about her and Rene. At ten-thirty, she walked him back to the elevator and kissed him on the cheek with a promise to see him off in the morning. When Tommy sauntered into the bridal suite, he was surprised to find Connie still awake. He was even more surprised when she whipped off the covers to show she was also gloriously naked. "Get undressed and join me," she said urgently. "Seeing you with Marie reminded me exactly why I love you so much; and you know how needy I am when I think about that." Even though they made love until midnight, Tommy was still up at his normal six AM. He cajoled Connie out of bed with the promise she could sleep in the truck while he drove. They were showered, dressed, packed and down in the lobby by six-forty-five. Pierre helped Tommy load the suitcases into the back of his truck, while Connie stood on the wide front veranda talking to Marie. When the suitcases were secured under the tarpaulin, Tommy and Pierre rejoined the women. "Tommy, I promised Marie we'd stop by here for a night on our way home, too. They are having a cotillion next Saturday night that should be lots of fun." Tommy smiled and nodded enthusiastically. "Sure, as long as Marie wears something pink and saves a few dances for me," he said teasingly. Tommy helped Connie into the truck and handed her the bag of pastries and thermos of coffee Marie had made them, and then started to walk around to his side of the truck. He glanced up towards where Marie was standing on the porch. She looked so small and forlorn that he changed course and bounded up the steps. He stopped a step below her and pulled her into his arms. Marie wrapped her arms around his neck as he hugged her tight. Tommy turned her head towards his, kissed her firmly on the lips and blew a little puff of air into her mouth. "That was a piece of my happiness, Marie. Be a good girl and I'll give you some more when we come back," he whispered in her ear. Marie's pupils were huge when she looked into his eyes, but she nodded and gave him a tentative smile. The drive from Lafayette to Palmdale was smooth and uneventful. Tommy drove for the first four hours again, then Connie took over and chauffeured them the rest of the way. They pulled into the yard of Tommy's childhood home just before eight that evening. Tommy stepped out of his truck and was leaning to the side to stretch his back, when his sister Beth barreled into him as if she was Dick Butkus on a blind-side blitz. Tommy wrapped his arms around her in self defense and held her as she cried. The frozen scene of Beth sobbing and Tommy looking bewildered highlighted the one big emotional tragedy of Tommy's head injury. To make it worse, Beth was the only one with a memory of what they'd lost. Beth's husband Wayne came down off the porch and shrugged apologizingly to Connie. "Beth has been in a state for days over Tom coming home. I'm Wayne Taylor, and these big lugs are our sons Joseph Thomas, who only answers to JT, and Bradley Wayne, who has decided he wants to be called Gator." Wayne Taylor was even bigger than Tommy's six-three, two-twenty and Beth was just shy of being six feet tall, so their boys at ten and eleven were bigger than most teenagers. Connie gave Wayne and his sons a devastating smile, and stuck out her hand. "I'm Connie, and it's a pleasure to meet you all." Wayne made an effort not to stare at the beautiful young woman as he tried to recall where he'd seen her before. He finally put her out of his mind and went to rescue his brother-in-law. It took a minute for Beth to compose herself, but she still kept a tight grip on Tommy's arm. Wayne introduced her to Connie and Tommy solemnly shook hands with his nephews as they walked into the house. After a few minutes of getting acquainted seated around the kitchen table, Wayne stood up and grabbed a blue uniform jacket off a hook next to the kitchen door. Wayne, recently promoted to lieutenant, was the weekend duty officer for the country's central fire command. Wayne kissed his wife and boys, bid their guests goodnight and headed off. Connie and Beth sent Tommy and the boys out to fetch baggage. Beth wanted Connie alone so she could talk about her brother. Beth struggled uncomfortably for a way to tactfully start her questioning. Connie saw her discomfort and took her off the hook. "I'm Tommy's girlfriend, Beth, if that's what you are wondering, and some day I plan on marrying him." Connie noticed Beth's expression turn to shocked concern, so she held up her hand to stop Beth from interrupting, and continued to talk. "I guess I better go back and explain some things you probably don't know about your brother..." Connie proceeded to tell Beth all about what Tommy had accomplished in the last year, as well as the set backs he'd suffered. Beth's facial expressions displayed a gamut of emotions as Connie talked. She knew almost none of this from her weekly calls from Tommy, and none of his friends she'd spoken with had clued her in either. She was sad that Tommy had established a life for himself so far from her, but felt proud and pleased that he was doing so well. She even had to admit that she included this beautiful and caring woman in front of her as one of those accomplishments. Beth felt very comfortable with Connie, and didn't question for an instant the woman's love for her brother. She could see it in those big brown eyes as plain as day. By the time Tommy and the boys returned from putting the suitcases into the guest room, the women were laughing and joking like old friends. Neither woman demurred when Tommy suggested taking the boys to the Dairy Queen. While her brother and sons were gone, Beth pulled out the scrapbook she'd made about her brother, and even dug out his high school yearbook. Connie smiled as Beth bragged about her little brother, and held her hand when she cried about losing the wonderful relationship they'd finally established. Connie decided right then that she was going to help the siblings regain what Tommy had forgotten. Lieutenant Taylor finished the stack of paperwork the Captain had left on his desk shortly before midnight. The rookie lieutenants always drew the worst jobs and shifts, and doing the captain's paperwork was torture for Wayne. With the paperwork out of the way, Wayne could do what he really enjoyed; he could go hang out with his fellow firefighters. He uncoiled himself from the desk chair and stretched out his bulky shoulders, then grabbed a cup of coffee and wandered upstairs to the day room. As luck would have it, the boys down at County Fire Station Twelve were watching the Saturday midnight madness movie sponsored by Turner's Furniture. As Wayne walked in, Helen Turner, the attractive and classy wife of the furniture store's owner, was extolling the virtues of a four piece living room set in 'wet-look' Naugahyde. Wayne was greeted by a few catcalls about the 'brass' ruining their fun, then it quieted down as the movie flashed back onto the screen. Midnight movie madness showed cheap-to-lease 'B' movies, and the firemen had discovered that 'B' movies showed a lot of skin. Wayne had hooted through dozens of these movies with his friends. Tonight's offering was titled Dracula's Bloody Bride. Ten minutes into the movie, Wayne nearly choked on his coffee when he finally realized why his brother-in-law's girlfriend looked familiar. Wayne knew Beth would have a fit when she found out, but that didn't stop him from ogling a scantily dressed Conchita Delgado. Wayne had to wonder how his brain damaged brother-in-law managed to end up with a beautiful movie star while working in a feed store in Hicktown, Texas. Sunday morning, Tommy kept adding to his sister's surprises by attending church with her and the boys. Thomas Bledsoe had been a rare fixture in church since the death of their mother. It didn't matter to Tommy that Beth's church was Methodist, because he was pretty much nondenominational. The unbiased fellowship of the congregation and an opportunity to continue thanking a higher power for the blessings of his life were what put his bottom in a pew every week. Connie attended church with them also. Connie was nominally a Catholic, but her views were very similar to Tommy's. The fact that Thomas walked into the church with his sister caused more than a few whispered exchanges, as old members explained to new ones who he was. Most of the congregation remembered Tommy and knew something about his situation. Tommy had been mentioned in the church's prayers for the 'sick and shut ins' for over a year while he'd been hospitalized. Tommy also received much attention because of the absolutely stunning woman with whom he walked hand-in-hand into the church. Connie had put some extra effort into her appearance that morning, and the results were spectacular. Connie was wearing a loosely fitted, knee length aqua dress with a high neck line. Her hair flowed down her back like shimmering black lava and her make up was perfect. She looked as if she'd just stepped off the cover of Vogue. One of the people who openly gawked at Tommy and Connie was Cynthia Taylor Newbury, Wayne Taylor's sister and Thomas Bledsoe's former betrothed. Cynthia did not feel any remorse about breaking her engagement to Tommy, despite the horrid letter from that awful sergeant. Kyle Newbury was a successful businessman with a bright future, who absolutely adored her. How could she not love a man like that? Yet Cynthia still felt a twinge of jealousy that Tommy had so quickly found such a beautiful replacement. Cynthia knew the extent of Tommy's injuries and had used them as self-justification for marrying Kyle. Now here Tom stood, bigger than life, and more handsome than she remembered him ever being. Cynthia was standing in the church's parking lot after the services. Kyle was about fifty feet away from her, talking with one of his Rotary Club buddies, when her sister-in-law, her nephews, Tom and the dark haired woman came strolling up. Beth saw Cynthia standing between them and her car, so she put on her polite face and greeted her sister-in-law. Beth really tried to get along with her husband's only sibling because Wayne loved his self-centered and vain sister like Beth loved her brother. "Hello Cynthia," Beth said pleasantly. Cynthia turned on her most winsome smile and returned the greeting. "Hello Beth, and hello to you too Tom, it is good seeing you again." Tommy looked at Cynthia in confusion as he drew a blank trying to remember her. "Um-uh, hi," he stuttered in reply. Cynthia gave Beth a sympathetic little look before refocusing on Tommy. "Beth told me you don't remember anything from your past, but you and I were once engaged to be married." Tommy emphatically shook his head. "No we weren't. That was old Tommy and old Tommy is dead," he said with calm finality. Cynthia frowned and was about to say something else. Connie squeezed Tommy's hand and shot Cynthia a baleful glare. "Tommy has new friends now, and a new fiancé. And you can bet this one isn't going to dump him on some whim," Connie said haughtily. Beth valiantly suppressed a delighted smile as she herded everyone into her Vista Cruiser. The look on Cynthia's face brightened her day. Beth had actually worried that seeing Cynthia might trigger in her brother memories of her sister-in-law's betrayal. Or even worse, that he'd recall how much he'd been in love with her. As she drove away from the church, Beth idly wondered if her brother had subconsciously chosen Connie because she was just the opposite of blue-eyed, golden haired Cynthia. Tommy spent the day playing football with his nephews and their friends, while Connie and Beth yakked and prepared a big Sunday dinner. Connie was much impressed with the way Beth managed her kitchen. Connie could see herself doing the same thing in a few years, only Tommy would be outside playing with their children, not Beth's. Wayne returned home long enough to have dinner with his family, his Motorola walkie-talkie keeping him linked to the fire station. As the weekend duty officer, Wayne had to respond to any call-out in the county. Thankfully his radio remained silent as the family enjoyed Beth's traditional Sunday pot roast. As they ate, Wayne thought about how he was going to tell Beth what he'd learned about Connie. As usual, his wife was way ahead of him. "Honey, did you know Connie was an actress? She hasn't made a movie in a few years, but her agent is negotiating a deal for a film being made in England. Isn't that exciting?" Wayne nodded and smiled in agreement and turned his attention to Connie. "I thought you looked familiar. You were in some horror films, right?" Connie laughed and bobbed her head up and down. "Yep, I've been chased and pawed by every creature ever invented. My late husband produced and directed low-budget thrillers. None of our films made it big, but thanks to television and drive-ins, they are still being seen," she replied. Tommy and Beth spent a lot of time together that week, rehashing their lives and reestablishing their bond. Beth told Tommy about the years he couldn't remember. Tommy was full of questions about things that extended from the memories he had now. He had questions about his childhood friends and his parents mostly; anything outside of those two areas didn't interest him in the least. Beth was happy to fill him in. Even though she knew his memory was completely erased, she had a small lingering hope that something would trigger him to remember their adult relationship. Although that didn't happen, they did have a breakthrough of sorts after Tommy gave her an embarrassed confession. "I used to try to peek at you when you didn't have any clothes on," he said, his ears burning brightly. To his confusion, Beth giggled instead of acting angry about it. "I remember those days, Baby Brother, because I tried to show you as much as I could without being obvious about it. One of the things that brought us closer together was me helping you navigate puberty. I was living at home, working part time and going to college when puberty hit you. You had tons of questions and I had some of the answers." Tommy's eyes widened when a thought popped into his head. "Erogenous zones," he blurted. Beth laughed delightedly and kissed him on the cheek. "You remember that?" she exclaimed. Tommy tempered her excitement by telling her about the disjointed and out of context memories that sometimes popped up. "I remember the words and somehow they are attached to you, but that's all. Why do I recall that anyway?" It was Beth's turn to blush. "I came home one night buzzed from a keg party over on the beach. You asked me what girls liked and I'd had enough to drink, that I showed you a few things. I didn't know you had a specific reason for asking the question, until a few days later, when you informed me that Lisa Manning was sensitive in all the places I showed you." Beth was quiet for a minute, as she reflected back on that time a dozen years in the past. She looked at Tommy from under her bangs and blushed again. "I was more than a little jealous that she benefited from what I shared with you. But, anyway, that really broke the ice, and we grew closer after that. Even after Wayne and I fell in love and married, you sought me out whenever you had a problem." By the time Tommy and Connie departed for home on Friday morning, Beth and Tommy had reconnected and Beth was ecstatic about it. Tommy and his nephews had also bonded. The boys remembered their uncle from before, but this new version of him was ten times as much fun. In the end, it was easier for Beth to let Tommy go because they made arrangements to get together during the upcoming summer school vacation. Beth and Wayne were taking the boys on a three week camping excursion throughout the west. The Taylors were spending a few days at Tommy's place in Brantley, and Tommy had agreed to spend a week with them at Yellowstone Park. Tommy was very happy as he drove up I-95 with Connie snuggled under his arm. Connie was even happier than Tommy that things had worked out so well. In addition, she'd made a friend for life in Beth Taylor. Connie's face took on a wicked little grin as she thought about springing Ruth onto the unsuspecting Taylors. Connie did not mention Ruth to Beth during the visit, and Tommy only mentioned her in reference to the speech therapy. Connie wasn't trying to hide anything, she just felt the nature of their complicated relationship would be a distraction to Tommy and Beth reconciling. Connie sighed contentedly, pulled Tommy's arm over her shoulder and pressed his hand onto her substantial breast as her thoughts segued to the moonlight beach stroll they'd taken the previous night. Tommy made it the most romantic and magical night of her life when he stopped at a deserted lifeguard stand and kissed her until she saw stars even with her eyes closed. When he broke the kiss, he leaned back and looked at her with so much intense love that she almost fainted. Then he made the evening perfect by telling her how he felt. "I love you, Connie, and I'll never forget what you did for me here. Don't you think Beth would be the perfect name for our first daughter?" Having children had always been the furthest thing from Connie's mind ... until Tommy mentioned it. Now, it was all she could think about. ------- Chapter 18 Tommy and Connie stayed in good spirits as they made the drive westward towards Lafayette and the Hotel Arcenaux. They once again split the driving duties and with some cajoling from Connie, Tommy actually drove a few miles an hour over the speed limit. They made even better time on the return trip and pulled up to the hotel at seven that evening. Pierre met them in the parking lot again, this time his sudden appearance didn't startle Tommy. Pierre seemed genuinely happy to see them as he grabbed one of their bags and escorted them into the lobby. Marie was not manning the desk this evening, instead, a young woman, obviously another of her daughters, was there. "Hello Salmarie, I missed seeing you last week," Connie greeted the woman warmly. Salmarie gave Connie a big smile and returned the greeting. "I was up in Baton Rouge on business," she replied, "but I heard all about your visit." The woman then turned her attention toward Tommy. "And this must be the man who has my mother all atwitter. I see why now, he's yummy," she said as she licked her lips suggestively. Tommy was nonplussed for a second by her outrageous flirting, but Connie gave an amused snort. "I've already told Marie that you and Michelle needed to find another man to snack on. Where is Marie anyway?" Salmarie tried to look disappointed, but ended up giggling. "You are so selfish, Conchita, keeping him all to yourself like that. Mama is in the kitchen supervising dinner. We have an almost full house tonight because of guests in town for the Cotillion party. Mama did reserve the honeymoon suite for you again, though." While Salmarie was speaking, Tommy was surreptitiously comparing her to her mother. He was amazed that all three Arcenaux women shared the white streaks in their hair, and wondered if it was natural or something they did themselves. Salmarie was about the same height as Marie, five-three maybe, but she was slimmer and less well developed in the hips and chest. She had eyes a shade darker than her mother's, and her skin was the same dusky Creole olive. She was wearing a tailored black knee length skirt, crisp white blouse and a form-fitting black Bolero jacket. She was a very pretty young woman, but Tommy didn't feel the attraction for her that he did towards Marie. Dinner that night was served in the hotel's large dining room, and there must have been a dozen tables occupied. Tommy and Connie arrived at the dining room a few minutes after eight. Connie looked radiantly beautiful in the same aqua dress she'd worn to church. The addition of three inch heels and some strategically unfastened buttons turned the demure frock into a sexy cocktail dress. Salmarie seated the couple at a table in front of a bay window that overlooked the rear garden. As soon as they were seated, Michelle, again dressed as a French maid, swooped over and poured them each a glass of wine. Tommy took a longer look at Michelle this time, again comparing the young woman to her mother. Michelle was the tallest of the Arcenaux women. She was probably five-six, although she appeared much taller in her impossibly high heels. She had Marie's hair, but her complexion was lighter and her eyes were green. Michelle's figure was also more robust than her mother or sibling. Connie smiled when she noticed Michelle position herself in a way that allowed Tommy to look down the front of her costume. Michelle was an exhibitionist of the first rank. When Tommy did not take the bait, Connie could almost feel Michelle's disappointment. Connie made up for Tommy's good manners by taking a lingering gander at Michelle's creamy orbs as the woman leaned over to pour her wine. When Michelle peeked to see if she was watching, Connie shot her a wink and leaned forward. "Lobby bathroom in five minutes," Connie whispered in her ear. Michelle's head bobbed up and down and she blushed furiously as she backed away from the table. Connie smiled to herself as she turned her attention back to Tommy. Connie knew very well that being an exhibitionist was not Michelle Arcenaux's only kink. Connie was making idle chatter with Tommy when she saw Michelle slip out of the dining room. Connie put her napkin on the table, excused herself and casually followed her. When Connie pushed open the bathroom door, Michelle was standing in front of the vanity, a pensive look on her face. "What are you going to make me do?" the Cajun girl asked in a small voice. Connie chuckled and stepped closer to the woman. Although Michelle acted as if she was worried, her expressive green eyes shone with excitement. She was sexually submissive to the right person, and for some reason, Connie was at the top of that list. From the minute they met, Michelle couldn't say no to her new cousin. She shivered when Connie reached forward and touched her cheek. "What I'm going to let you do tonight, my little Cajun Minx, is continue to flirt with my man. Then for your mother, tomorrow night you are going to..." Michelle's eyes grew larger and brighter as Connie outlined her plan. When Connie finished, the younger woman nodded her head vigorously in agreement. "Oh yes," she said excitedly, "Mama is going to love you for that!" Tommy looked at her funny when Connie returned to the table wearing a big smile. Before he could ask her about it, she kissed him on the lips then whispered in his ear. "Michelle is showing off for us Baby, so be nice and pay her some attention." Tommy sat back in his chair, gave Connie a confused look and leaned toward her again. "I thought it was impolite to stare at a woman," he said sotto voce. "It usually is Honey, but then again, sometimes a woman wants you to notice her. You are just going to have to learn to read the signs she gives," Connie replied. Tommy very much doubted that ever happening, but he took Connie's word for it and openly ogled whatever Michelle showed him the rest of the evening. With Connie egging her on, Michelle showed him a lot. The game was fun for all of them, especially when they were the only three left in the dining room. Tommy liked it that Michelle flirted with Connie as much as she did with him. Tommy was excited when they left Michelle in the dining room at ten that night, but Connie was on fire. The flirting, combined with her anticipation of the next night, had her libido in overdrive. Tommy cried 'uncle' at midnight, as worn out as he'd ever been. Connie slept in the following morning while Tommy went downstairs to breakfast. Breakfast was buffet style, so Marie sat with Tommy while he ate. Marie was all smiles as she watched Tommy pack away the food. She was incredibly attracted to this sweet young man, and she felt as if she was a teenager when she was around him. He made her giggle and blush and she adored him for it. After breakfast, Pierre took Tommy to a men's store in Lafayette so he could rent a tux. The fitting went smoothly as the fussy sales clerk discovered Tommy was a perfect forty-four long. There were even off-the-rack trousers that fit him, so he was out the door with his ensemble in less than an hour. From the men's shop, Pierre took Tommy on a tour of Lafayette Parish and stopped for lunch at the Thibodaux Cafe. "This is the heart of Cajun country," Pierre explained as they were chowing down on bowls of gumbo. "My people have lived here since the 1750s when the British drove my French ancestors out of Canada and the French aristocrats sent us packing when we landed in New Orleans. We settled here in the bayous with the Indians, run-away slaves and Spaniards." Tommy was fascinated by history of any type, since he really didn't have one of his own. "The menu says this place serves Cajun and Creole food. What's the difference between a Cajun and a Creole?" Tommy asked. Pierre smiled and shrugged. "A Cajun is a person descended from the French speaking people from the region of Eastern Canada called Acadia. The word Cajun is derived from the name Acadian. As a matter of fact, this part of Louisiana is sometime called Acadiana. Creole is from a Spanish word meaning born in the colonies. Immigrants from the East and West Indies brought the word here with them. All Cajuns are Creoles, in the sense that we were born in the colonies, but a Creole is only a Cajun if they are an Acadian descendent." Pierre laughed at Tommy's bemused look. "We are a strange mix, us Cajun Creoles," he said. "We are the real melting pot of America. Just like this gumbo, we are a mix of different things that when stirred together is wonderful." Tommy nodded enthusiastically at that. He had been as well treated in Lafayette as he was in Brantley. "Yeah," Tommy said reverently, "and your mother must be the Queen of the Cajuns." Pierre's eyebrows shot up at that heartfelt proclamation, then he laughed again. "You have no idea, my friend, but you'll see how true that statement is tonight," Pierre said mysteriously. Tommy arrived back at their hotel room at two-thirty in the afternoon. Connie was conspicuous by her absence, so Tommy closed the drapes, shucked his clothes, and took a well-deserved siesta on the round gaudy bed. Tommy woke up an hour later. Sometime while he was sleeping, Connie had slipped into bed with him. Tommy guessed that Connie wanted him awake because her hand was inside his Jockeys, lightly scratching his now rigid tool as he slept on his back. "Wakey, wakey, my big handsome man," she purred in his ear. Tommy tried to pretend that he was still asleep, but his lips twitched in a smile. Tommy grunted in surprise when Connie swung herself astride him. Connie was naked again, a state of dress she seemed to prefer here in Lafayette. She giggled as she pulled his turgid staff out of his underwear. "Come to Mama, you big bad boy," she moaned as she notched him at her hot slick center. Tommy moaned right along with her as she worked her way down his erection. When she was fully seated, she sat up straighter so she could look him in the eye. Connie seldom used sex to get what she wanted from Tommy, and she knew she probably didn't have to this time either, but she was hot as a firecracker. She had spent the day plotting and flirting with Michelle, so she decided to let Tommy in on her plan while he scratched her itch. She wiggled her hips until she was in the perfect position, then rippled her internal muscles and started talking. "I'm going to beg off from attending the dance tonight, Baby," she said. Tommy gave her an inquisitive frown, then groaned when she squeezed him again. "I'm not going because I want you to escort Marie there. Michelle, Pierre and Salmarie all agree that it would be great for there mother. Salmarie and Pierre have dates, but Michelle is going to stay here and keep me company." Connie swiveled her hips in a figure eight as Tommy reached up and squeezed one of her big firm breasts. She shuddered, already on the verge of an orgasm and they'd just started. With a conscious effort, she stilled her gyrating hips. "I want you to promise me that you'll treat her exactly as you would any of our female friends. Make her feel special ... whatever it takes, make the night magical for her." ------- Tommy, dressed in his rental penguin suit, was down in the lobby at seven-thirty that evening. In his hand were a dozen pink roses that Salmarie had scrounged up for him. Tommy didn't really know why he wanted things pink for Marie, but when he thought of the dusky beauty, that color kept popping up. Marie kept him cooling his heels for another fifteen minutes. Tommy forgot all about that, however, when she gracefully glided down the grand staircase that flanked the registration desk. The woman knew how to make an entrance. Marie was wearing a formal gown with a snug bodice and a floor length full skirt. The gown was predominantly black, but it did have a vivid pink sash at the waist. Tommy smiled at that and also at the pink hibiscus flower tucked into her hair. The hair the flower was tucked into was woven into a complicated French braid that hung to the middle of her back. A shy little smile played across her lips as Tommy looked at her in unabashed awe. Tingles ran through her as Marie stood there and let Tommy admire her. She paused a second and locked her eyes on his. Then she descended the last three steps and stopped in front of him. She reached up and brushed an imaginary piece of lint off his lapel, then laid her hand on his cheek. "You like, Mon Cher? I wore pink just for you." Marie's golden flecked eyes had Tommy mesmerized; he couldn't for the life of him look away. "Tu es magnifique," he said in high school French that popped unbidden into his head. Marie arched her eyebrows in amusement at his compliment. "Merci monsieur," she replied as she took his arm and aimed them out the door. The cotillion dance they were attending this night was one of three dress rehearsals for the Lafayette Grand Cotillion Ball that was held every June. The grand ball was a traditional rite of passage for young women that marked their first public appearance as adults. The venue for the event was the Acadiana Country Club, located about fifteen minutes from the Hotel Arcenaux. Tommy drove them over in Marie's midnight blue Buick Electra. Tommy was nervous and slightly intimidated as they walked into the country club's ballroom. Marie sensed his unease and squeezed his arm reassuringly as she led them to a table at the front of the room. Tommy looked around as they walked, his eyes taking in all the elegantly dressed women and the debonair men. Tommy blushed when he realized that almost every one of the sixty or so couples in the room was watching Marie and him. Seeing Marie on the arm of a big handsome man, not much older than her son, surprised the hell out of the adults. For the young women in attendance, Tommy in a tux was the big attraction. Tommy began to have an inkling of what Pierre had been talking about when he noticed the respectfully deferential treatment that Marie received from everyone at the dance. Marie was a legendary figure in these parts, well known for her ability to see glimpses of peoples' future. Not a person there could recall a time when Marie's advice was incorrect. Tommy and Marie took the two empty chairs reserved for them at a table for eight. The other officers of the cotillion committee and their husbands occupied the other six. Marie made introductions all around and Tommy put to good use the manners he'd learned as a lad. Before long, Tommy had everyone at the table laughing. He was glad about that, but he was ecstatic that Marie seemed to be having as much fun as anyone there. At a quarter after eight, the twelve piece band finished tuning up and launched into the first waltz of the night. Tommy automatically sprang to his feet and extended his hand down to Marie, just as Rita Fricke had trained him to do. "Miss Marie, may I have the pleasure of this dance?" he asked in his most dignified voice. "J'ai le plaisir, mon amour," she replied. What happened next delighted everyone in the ballroom as, for the first time anyone could remember, Marie's smile reached her eyes. Marie's smile grew brighter when Tommy started waltzing her around the floor. Connie had informed Marie that Tommy was an excellent dancer, but the reality of how they fit and moved together surpassed all of Marie's expectations. From Tommy's point of view, she danced so well he felt like a clod. That is he felt that way until she locked eyes with him again. After that he felt feather light as they swept around the room. The evening became magical for Marie, Tommy and everyone watching them. The only reason either of them danced with anyone else, was because politeness dictated it. The band took a break at nine-thirty, so Tommy and Marie walked out of the ballroom and onto a large verandah that overlooked part of the golf course. It was a glorious pre-spring evening, with the temperature in the low sixties. A slight breeze blew in off the Gulf of Mexico, and the cloudless sky was splattered with stars that winked like diamonds spread on black velvet. Tommy took off his tux jacket and gallantly draped it over Marie's bare shoulders. Marie tugged Tommy down the steps and onto the paved path that led to the first tee. When they arrived at a bench just outside the tee box, she pushed him down on it and perched on his lap. Marie put her hands on either side of Tommy's face and tilted his head so that they were eye to eye. "Look at me, Thomas," Marie softly directed. Tommy eagerly fastened his eyes on hers and once again, he fell into them. "That's right ma chérie, look deep, open up your mind for me and show me your heart," Marie crooned. See, Marie's gift was the ability to judge a persons character by reading them through their eyes. Because she knew a person's real character, she could accurately predict how they would respond to a situation or even whether they were telling the truth or not. Sometimes she actually even saw little snippets of those events in her mind's eye. Staring into Tommy's clear, hazel eyes confirmed her initial feeling about him. Tommy's soul was unblemished by the normal scars that comes with growing up. He also had not developed any of the bad traits everyone picked up as they age. Tommy had been a good kid at twelve, so when he reverted back to that age, all the bad had been erased. Amazingly, as he grew up this second time, there seemed to be no room in his heart for the negative things of life. Rene Arcenaux was the only other person she'd ever met like that. As Marie gazed at the enthralled young man, one of those little snippets played itself out on her brain. In it, she saw herself playing with a little Hazel eyed boy with a sweet innocent smile. Marie shivered and broke their connection. Tommy blinked a couple of times to reacquire his bearings. Marie kissed him softly on the lips. "We better go back inside, sweetie. I hear the band retuning." Tommy, awash in the most contented feeling he'd ever experienced, nodded compliantly. The rest of the evening passed as a sweetly remembered blur for Tommy and Marie as they danced and socialized. They even joined Salmarie, Pierre and their dates at a long, half-filled banquet table. Both of Marie's children were thrilled to see their mother having such a good time. The dance ended at a few minutes before midnight, in accordance with the Parish blue laws. Tommy drove back to the hotel with Marie contentedly snuggled against his side. Tommy parked the car, then held Marie's hand as they walked into the lobby. Marie kept a firm grip on Tommy's hand as she led them past the elevator and onto the wide carpeted staircase. "I don't want the night to end yet, Mon Cher, and I have a good bottle of Cajun wine up in my apartment." Tommy felt the same way about the evening. He looked up the staircase to the landing, then impulsively swept Marie up in his arms. Marie squeaked in surprise and held on tightly to his neck. "I agree, Scarlet," Tommy said, as he bounded up the stairs, Clark Gable style. Marie actually giggled at his crazy antics and bad accent. "Why, I do declare, Rhett Butler, you do give a damn," she vamped right back at him. Once in her three room apartment, Marie sat Tommy on the couch and uncorked a bottle of homemade Muscadine wine. She poured two glasses and handed one to Tommy. Tommy took a sip and gasped as the fiery purple liquid burned its way down his gullet. Marie laughed and clinked her glass against his. "My cousin Boudreaux made this. I think it is more wild grape brandy than anything else, but Boudreaux calls it wine to keep it legal." Before Tommy could catch his breath to reply, Marie drained her glass in a gulp. Tommy watched in amazement as she polished off the glass, there was no way he could do the same. Marie put her glass on the side table and her hand on Tommy's shoulder. When he made eye contact with her, she squeezed her hand. "We are wasting valuable time, Thomas. Come to the bedroom with me so you can show me how Conchita says you honor your women friends." The words were barely out of her mouth before she was in his arms again, headed towards the bedroom. Marie Arcenaux was a very sensual woman. Consequently, a good number of men had possessed her body over the years, but Tommy was only the second to touch her heart. Tommy spent thirty minutes learning her body with his lips and tongue, before positioning himself above her. Marie had enjoyed everything he'd done, and climaxed a number of times, but this union was what she craved. When he was lost in her eyes again, she gave a slight nod and he slowly filled her with his steely shaft. They never lost eye contact as they languidly moved against each other. Neither wanted anything more than the slow sweet pace he set. When Tommy picked up the pace as he neared his completion, Marie stayed right with him, shuddering through one small orgasm after another. Then his moment arrived and he stiffened rigidly above her. As Tommy's face registered his ecstasy, Marie had the largest climax she'd ever experienced. Marie Arcenaux was forty-three years old, in perfect health, and ovulating like crazy. Her eyelids fluttered as she imagined the millions of sperm swimming strongly towards her patiently waiting egg. Marie knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that she'd become pregnant tonight. It would be a little boy of course. He'd be sweet and hazel eyed like his father ... and she'd name him Rene... ------- Tommy returned to his room an hour later, a contented smile etched on his face. He had done exactly as Connie had asked, and in the bargain, had found another woman he loved. Marie had walked Tommy to the door and returned to her warm and tousled bed. She snuggled under the covers and hugged the pillow Tommy laid on to her breast. Tommy had filled her twice with his potent seed that night, but he had also filled her heart with joy. During the intensely emotional love making they shared, more of Tommy's uncomplicated soul had been exposed to her, and what she saw made her even happier. When he told her he loved her, she had almost passed out from the shining intensity of the truth she read in his eyes. He'd promised to come back and visit for a weekend in April and she was satisfied with that. Being five hundred miles away didn't bother her at all, because with her sensitivity to his aura, she wouldn't be able to survive being with him all the time. Besides, she could almost feel the tangible proof of their shared love taking shape in her womb. ------- Tommy unlocked the door to the honeymoon suite as quietly as he could, so as not to wake Connie. As he slipped through the door, he saw that he had nothing to worry about in that regard. The bedside lamp was on, and Connie was kneeling naked on the round bed facing away from him. Tommy was not surprised to see an equally naked Michelle also in the bed, but his eyebrows rose when he saw she was tied to it. Tommy chuckled as he took in the thoroughly disheveled Michelle. Her hair was matted to her forehead, and her face was shiny with sweat and Connie. Connie heard his chuckle and turned her head towards him. She gave him a sexy smile, her eyes shining with lust. "Hi Honey," she greeted him perkily. "We've been waiting for you." Tommy chuckled again and started removing his clothes. He could not imagine his life ever being dull with Connie in it. ------- Chapter 19 Tommy showed up for work at seven-thirty on the Monday morning after his vacation, refreshed and relaxed, even though he'd only slept for four hours. His vacation had been great, but he was glad to be home. He was the first one in that morning, so he unlocked the side door to the warehouse and he and Rex slipped inside. Tommy heaved a satisfied sigh as surveyed his realm, noting with pleasure that it was almost as neat and orderly as when he'd left. He went to his locker, shed his jacket and put on his denim work apron. He plucked the pending orders clipboard off the wall near the doors that led to the store, then walked over to the forklift and fired it up. He had five orders that needed building: three deliveries and a couple of customer pick ups. Local farmers were gearing up for spring planting as the winter ebbed. The Farmer's Almanac was predicting a wetter than normal spring this year, so the farmers wanted cotton and corn in the ground early. Ranchers also wanted an early start on alfalfa and red clover to fatten up their cattle after the winter. As he stacked bags of fertilizer, seeds and feed onto the pallets he'd spaced around the floor, Tommy thought about his vacation. Even Tommy's biggest fans would have been surprised at how complex his thought processes were. People, including those that loved him, assumed that Tommy was a simple man because he expressed himself simply; however, that was not really the case. Tommy had a much better grasp on the world now, and every day his healing brain grew stronger. Tommy's simplicity of nature was how he acted by choice. Tommy had learned a lot during the week he'd spent with his sister, and he was well pleased at having reconnected to her as he had. Beth was no longer just another adult to him, now she was a complete and wonderful person who loved him fiercely. He was also happy that she filled in the holes in his history for him. It was wonderful learning how he'd spent some of the years between what he remembered and where he was today. Tommy knew his history now, even if he couldn't recall living it. In addition, he had answers as to why he knew certain things, even though he didn't recall how he learned them. Meeting Marie Arcenaux had also been good for him. It was Marie who finally made him realize that being different was not necessarily a bad thing. Tommy's friends accepted his being different, but Marie celebrated the fact. To Tommy's way of thinking, his friends loved him in spite of his being different, while Marie loved him because of it. Tommy was distracted from his musings when he saw Mama Rita standing by the door looking at him. He dropped what he was doing and sprinted over to where she was. He skidded to a stop in front of her and stepped into her wide held arms. Tommy sighed when she squeezed him tight; no one's hug could hold a candle to Mama's. When she let him go, he stepped back and gently took her small hand in his big calloused one. "You were right, Mama. Beth is a hundred times better than the sister I remember," he said. Rita smiled at him and nodded. "I talked to her on the phone just yesterday. You made her very happy Tommy, and she is really excited about coming out here this summer. I'm proud of you for doing that, I know it took a lot of courage on your part to go face your past. I hear you even saw the girl you were engaged to," Rita replied. It was Tommy's turn to nod. "Yeah, her name is Cynthia. She is very pretty, but old Tommy was pretty dumb getting involved with her. She loves herself too much to love anyone else." Rita laughed delightedly. "Beth said Cynthia's asked a thousand questions about you, so you better watch out if you see her again," Rita teased. Tommy didn't quite catch the tease in her voice, so he bobbed his head in agreement. "Connie said the same thing. I overheard her telling Beth that if Cynthia tried anything, she was going to get a boot up her butt, because cowgirls didn't put up with that game." Rita laughed and hugged Tommy again. That Connie was a hoot and it suited Rita just fine that she had converted from Hollywood starlet to Texas cowgirl. Tommy walked back into the retail store with Rita to say hello to Harold. Harold was at the sales counter, ringing up a sale while three farmers and a couple of townspeople browsed the aisles. Harold looked up and gave him a genuine happy smile. "Bout time you got back, Tommy-boy. It's been crazy around here with you gone." Nothing Harold could have said would make Tommy any happier than that one little statement. Tommy thrived on being needed and productive. ------- Tommy stayed a few minutes late that first night, inventorying his warehouse and preparing an order for Harold to place, then he hustled home. He was anxious to see Ruth, because he and Connie had arrived home too late for them to really spend any time together. He walked into the front door of his house to the wonderful smell of garlic and tomatoes wafting on the air. When he made it to the kitchen, Ruth was at the stove stirring a big pot of spaghetti sauce, while Connie was at the sink, draining noodles in a colander. Rex flounced over to the new doggie bed Ruth had bought him and curled up in it. Tommy stood in the doorway grinning goofily at the bliss that enveloped the kitchen. The scene was so sweetly domestic, it made his eyes tear up. Ruth saw him standing there first and let out a surprised yip. Tommy laughed and stepped into the kitchen with his arms open. Ruth dropped the spoon on the stove and jumped into his embrace. Ruth had missed Tommy more during this separation than she had while she was in New York at Christmas. Sure, she was with her family during the holidays and that counted for something, but still, the emptiness she felt without him around had more to do with Tommy's sweet love than it did with loneliness or boredom. She mashed her mouth to his and conveyed her feelings through her lips. They sat around the kitchen table discussing their day over some very decent pasta. Ruth excitedly told them that the library volunteer program she'd started a few weeks ago had taken on a life of its own. The volunteer program took off because Rita Fricke and Madeline Dixon had been talking it up among their circle of friends. Suddenly, there was a women's reading group and a friends of the library committee. As a result of all the volunteer help, Ruth was now able to actually perform her head librarian duties in a forty-two and a half hour week. In addition, book circulation was up by twenty-five percent. Ruth was thrilled with that, because the more the library was used, the easier it was to request funding from the state. After all her effort, Ruth finally had the viable community library she envisioned. "They might even give me a bookmobile so we can serve more customers," she enthused. When Ruth finished her update, Connie gave hers. "I have some news too," she said blandly. When her roommates were focused on her, she gave it to them. She tried to remain nonchalant, but it was hard to disguise her excitement. "When I went home this morning, I had a message on my machine from my agent. I called him back at noon, and he told me that Hammer Films in England wants me for a role in their new Dracula movie. The actress they originally cast is too pregnant for the part, and someone thought of me. The money is good and thanks to you two, I'm ready to act again, so I jumped at the opportunity. It's a rush job, so I'll be flying out Wednesday. It is not a lead role, and Hammer shoots their movies on a tight schedule, so I should only be gone a week to ten days." With so much good news in the air, Tommy decided they needed to celebrate. So as soon as the supper dishes were washed and put away, he piled everyone into his truck and headed for Dukes' Place. There were only a few of the regulars parked on the bar stools at Dukes', so Tommy sent the girls back to the pool table as he sidled up to the bar. "Name your poison, Tommy," Mister Dukes said jovially. "We're celebrating. Do you have a bottle of Champagne?" Mister Dukes smiled and slid back the lid of the cooler on his left. "Got a couple of chilled bottles left over from New Years, as a matter of fact. It ain't imported from France, but it ain't horse piss either," Duke replied as he busied himself uncoiling the wire that held in the cork. "What you celebrating anyway?" "The women had good things happen to them today," Tommy replied. Then he leaned over the bar and pushed his Clark Kent glasses up onto the bridge of his nose. "As for me, I work in a feed store, and yet here I am with two of the prettiest girls in Texas. I reckon I have even more to celebrate than them," he whispered conspiratorially. Old Mister Dukes glanced up at the two women just in time to see Connie lean across the pool table, her formidable cleavage on full display. Dukes gave a chuckle, reached under the bar and pulled out three plastic stemmed glasses. "I guess you do at that," Dukes said wistfully. Tommy tried to hand Dukes a ten-spot, but the old man waved his hand dismissively. "It's on the house if you send that Conchita over here to get it. I need me a closer look at them cantaloupes she's smuggling in that shirt." Tommy chuckled and nodded. Conchita loved showing off, so he figured Mister Dukes would get his money's worth. Tommy walked back to the pool table and relayed Mister Dukes' offer to Connie. She grinned impishly, unfastened another button on her tight madras plaid shirt and pulled back her shoulders. "One bottle of free bubbly, and one happy old geezer, coming up," she giggled. ------- Connie Delgado slipped off her high heel pumps and tilted her seat back as soon as the British Overseas Airways Boeing 707's pilot turned off the seatbelt lights. She flagged down a passing stewardess and requested a pillow and blanket. The pretty blonde stewardess reached into the overhead bin above Connie's seat and passed the items down to her with a cheerful smile. Connie thanked the woman, put the pillow against the bulkhead and covered herself with the blanket. Connie was tired; it was almost midnight and she'd been traveling since noon. Besides, she needed to catch a few hours sleep on the plane during the six hour flight. Because of time zone changes, it would be ten in the morning when they landed in London, and she was expected on the set at noon. Connie closed her eyes and let her thoughts drift as she waited for sleep to catch up with her. Sleep didn't come immediately, but she was relaxed and cozy, so that was okay with her. While she waited for the sandman, she thought about the radical changes her life had undergone over the last six months. This very trip was irrefutable proof of that. The Conchita Delgado of old would have insisted on the star treatment, limos and a seat in first class. The woman she'd become had ridden to the airport in a pickup truck and was flying coach. Before Tommy, she thought of herself as an actress and celebrity, now acting was just a way to make some money. Connie was mystified by the effect Tommy Bledsoe had on her. Before she met him, she slept with any man that caught her fancy, but never more than once. The day after meeting him, she was a one-man woman. It was as if Tommy had found a switch that instantly turned off her out of control wildness. Connie shivered under her blanket as thinking about Tommy sent a flare of arousal coursing through her body. It was, she decided, going to be a long ten days. "Or maybe not," she thought, as the blonde stewardess suddenly slipped into the empty seat beside her with a shy smile and a couple of mixed drinks. Connie knew that smile, because it was the same one Michelle Arcenaux wore just for her. Sleep forgotten, Connie glanced around at the darkened, partially filled airplane. When she saw no one was paying them any attention, she lifted up the armrest that separated the two seats and leaned closer to the stew. "Grab another couple of blankets," she said imperiously. The young woman's eyes grew big and round but she nodded eagerly. "Yes ma'am," she said excitedly. ------- While Connie was in Jolly Old England, Tommy started working toward stocking his ranch with the Angora goats he had been researching. Tommy had consulted with everyone, from the county's agricultural extension agent, to the Angora Breeders Association down in Rocksprings, Texas. Based on the advice he received, Tommy was going to start with twenty goats the first year and work his way up to a herd of two hundred in three years. He was starting small so he could learn on the job how to take care of his goats. Angoras were generally raised in the same manner as sheep, except the goats were not as hardy and required more care. What made the Angoras worth the effort was the amount of mohair they produced. Unlike sheep, Angoras were shorn twice a year. An adult Angora produces about fifteen pounds of mohair a year. Mohair was price-supported by the US Department of Agriculture, with a guaranteed price currently at two dollars and fifty cents a pound. Angoras were also less active than dairy goats, and more easily confined. In addition, they were excellent browsers; they even grazed on weeds and leafy bushes. Tommy located a Tejano rancher in Edwards County, whose goats were sturdier than most, and bought two billies and fifteen nannies from him. Tommy paid forty dollars a piece for the billies, thirty for the pregnant nannies, and twenty-five for the remaining nannies. The goats were at the upper end of the current price range, but hardier stock would pay long term dividends. On Saturday, Tommy borrowed a stock trailer from Ben Crawford and the big two ton delivery truck from the feed store to pull it. Juan Luna insisted on driving the truck. Harold cut them loose from work at eleven, and they headed south on State Road 931. Juan already owned half a dozen milk goats and was fascinated by the idea of the Angoras, so he wanted to check them out. Juan owned twenty acres of good bottom land. His bother Carlos owned the twenty acres next door, and his uncle Pablo owned thirty on the other side of him. The three of them farmed about thirty acres of the property; they raised corn and Serrano chilies they sold at the weekly farmers market. Juan thought that goats might be an excellent way to make some additional money for the three families, so he quickly volunteered his services to learn more about them. Tommy and Juan made it back to Tommy's place with the goats about an hour before full dark. Ruth came out of the house and helped them herd the placid animals into the coral next to the barn. Tommy had nailed wire field fencing around the inside of the three rail coral so the goats couldn't escape. Ruth thought the shaggy white Angoras were too cute, and she was tickled that they were so tame. "They act like someone's pets," she said, as she patted a very pregnant nanny. Tommy gave her a happy nod in reply as he watched Rex and the larger of the billies get acquainted. Rex wasn't all that sure about what to make of the new arrivals, but he was giving them the benefit of the doubt for now. Juan hung around for a few minutes as the goats quickly adjusted to their new digs, then departed for home to discuss the Angora idea with his family. Ruth went back into the house to finish cooking supper. She was surprised by how much she liked cooking, and with the help of her Betty Crocker cookbook, was becoming pretty good at it. As a special surprise for her man, she was making Betty Lou's country fried steak and lumpy mashed potatoes that night, along with biscuits and gravy. Betty Lou had written out the recipes for her, and she'd picked up the ingredients on the way home from the library. Tommy opened a fifty pound bag of Purina goat chow and dumped it into a couple of five foot feeding troughs he'd set up in the barn. He'd also spread a few bales of hay in the eights stalls for bedding. He finished at last light and carefully shut and barred the barn door, before walking quickly back to the house. He'd been thinking about what Ruth said about the goats being like pets, and he had an idea he wanted to run by her. ------- Tommy put the idea that Ruth enthusiastically endorsed into action the next day after church. With considerable help from Mama Rita, Tommy convinced the parents and grand parents of his little buddies from Sunday school to let Molly and Jamie spend the day with him. Ruth had lunch waiting on them. After a quick sandwich and some small talk, Tommy and Ruth took the children out to the barn to see the goats. Jamie and Molly were leery of the goats, until the gentle animals convinced them they didn't need to be. The children were thrilled when Tommy told them that they each could pick a goat of their own to help take care of. Jamie immediately latched onto the smaller of the males and gave him the not very imaginative moniker Billy. Billy didn't seem to mind his new name though, as he bleated happily while Jamie hugged his neck. Molly took longer to make up her mind as she walked among the goats, scrutinizing them as if she were actually buying one. Finally a short and very chubby nanny made the decision for her, when it started following the little girl around. Molly named her new friend Princess. Ruth walked back to the house and came back with a couple of her old scarves. She helped Molly tie one of the brightly-colored squares around Princess's neck, and offered to do the same for Jamie. Jamie declined the offer with a shake of his head. "Billy ain't no s-s-sissy," Jamie explained. Ruth was perched on the top rail of the corral fence as Tommy taught the children about the goats. He had two bright and eager students as he went about his chores, because he had hired them both as his first official ranch hands. Ruth thought she even looked the part of the rancher's wife in the tight denim jeans and red checked gingham shirt Connie insisted she wear. She even had a straw cowgirl's hat and tall heeled, pointed toe boots, courtesy of a trip to a western outfitter up in Brownwood. Ruth had a warm feeling inside as she watched Tommy interact with his little friends. Her man had the patience of a saint and would make an excellent father. As she thought about him and her and a baby, the warm feeling migrated south with a force that had her rocking back and forth. She finally hopped of the fence before she fell off and walked back to the house. Ruth absent-mindedly squeezed her unfettered breasts as she stood in the kitchen. They had that ripe, almost oversensitive feel to them that meant she was at the peak of her cycle, and her nipples were painfully hard under her cotton shirt. She groaned in frustration when she saw it was only three in the afternoon. It would be another hour before Tommy took Jamie and Molly home, and probably an hour after that until he was back here with her. She'd be climbing the walls by then. Ruth thought for a few seconds, then strode over to the crock pot and unplugged it. The pot roast would have to wait until tomorrow, because a filling meal was suddenly off the menu for Tommy. Instead, he was having dessert first, then if he was a good boy, she'd make him a grilled cheese sandwich and a bowl of tomato soup later. Tommy walked into his house at a few minutes after five. He kicked off his boots at the front door and walked towards the kitchen. He was in a great mood, thanks to Jamie and Molly. The afternoon had been such a success that next week he was going to invite the entire Sunday school class. "Honey, I'm home," he called out. When he didn't receive an answer, he continued on into the cozy kitchen. He scratched his head in confusion when he saw the kitchen empty and no longer filled with the delicious smell of roast beef. He turned and cut through the dining room, headed for the bedrooms in the back of the house, his curiosity turning to concern that Ruth had taken ill. Tommy skidded to a stop at the bedroom door, when he saw Ruth lying seductively in the bed. She was lying on her right side, elbow on the bed, head propped on her hand, left hand on her hip. She was wearing a cream-colored chemise, her long wavy hair draped artfully over her breasts. Ruth was taking a page out of Connie's book of seduction. She was freshly bathed, shaved and as hot as a Texas Tech bonfire. "Strip, shower, hurry," she commanded. Tommy gulped and nodded, his manhood already harder than Superman's kneecap. "Y-y-yes dear," he stuttered as he shucked out of his shirt. ------- Tommy arrived at work at eight-twenty Monday morning, his first time ever being late. He had a good excuse that he unfortunately couldn't share with anyone. After all, who would believe that a man as big as him had been held love prisoner by a five-foot two inch librarian with a hyped up libido? Tommy need not have worried though, because Ruth had called the feed store as soon as Tommy ran out of the house. "Tommy is going to be a little late this morning," she told Rita matter-of-factly. "I had him busy trying to make you a grandmother." Tommy took a break from work at ten to make a phone call. Rita gave him permission with a smirk on her face that Tommy couldn't fathom. He took a card out of his wallet and carefully dialed long distance to Fort Sam Houston. Tommy lucked out when the phone was answered on the second ring. "Glickman," a clipped voice said. "Doctor Irving, this is Tommy Bledsoe." Captain (Doctor) Irving Glickman, facial reconstruction surgeon at the Brooke Army Medical Center, smiled into the phone at hearing Tommy's voice. Irv considered Tommy his most special patient, and cited the young man's success when dealing with other severely wounded patients. "Hello Tommy, haven't heard from you since Chanukah. How's life?" Glickman was still awed that Tommy had sent him a Chanukah Card and a small clay Dradle for the holidays. "Life is great for me Doc, but I need to hire you to help someone whose life is not so good. Can you fix a cleft palate and lip?" Glickman was taken aback by Tommy's out-of-the-blue question. Then he smiled and leaned back in his chair. "This ought to be good," he thought. "I'm familiar with the procedure, Tommy. Who is the patient and how old are they?" "Her name is Molly and she is eight. Her parents can't get her problem fixed, on account of them being too poor. I have some money saved so I figured I could pay you to do it." Tommy replied. Glickman frowned and flipped open his Day Timer. He glanced at his schedule and penciled in a note beside Saturday. He'd have to cancel a golf date Saturday morning, but other than that, his weekend was open. "I'll come down Saturday, Tommy, and meet with Molly and her parents. Don't get your or her hopes up, though, because I might not be able to do anything. And even if I can, I won't be allowed to operate on her here. I'll need to find a hospital that is willing to extend me a courtesy." Tommy was silent for a minute while he digested that bit of news. The hospital angle was something he hadn't considered. He was disappointed it wouldn't be as easy as he thought, but he wasn't about to be deterred from helping Molly. He had plenty of money from his disability checks laying around in his bank account, and he had a stack of saving bonds at home, so he figured he could hire whatever Doctor Glickman needed. "Thanks Doc, I'll see you Saturday. We'll meet up at the library." he said. Tommy hung up the phone and glanced over at Rita. Rita was staring at him with eyes as big as saucers. Hearing his side of the conversation had her in shock. "Uh, Mama, can you talk to Molly's folks so they'll meet with Doctor Glickman next Saturday? And we need to talk to Margie to see if she can find a place to do the surgery if Doctor Glickman says he can fix Molly's lip." Rita nodded her head slowly in understanding, but she had to put off picking up the phone until she had control of her emotions. If she tried to talk to anyone right now, she'd end up blubbering like a baby. Just when she thought that Tommy couldn't possibly do anything else to make her love him more, he came up with something like this. ------- Chapter 20 The rest of the week after Tommy talked to doctor Glickman passed quickly. Tommy was amazed at how quickly time went by when you were happily busy. And Tommy was a very busy boy now that he had the goats. He was waking up a half hour earlier now, hopping out of bed at five-thirty to check over his goats and put them out to pasture. The morning inspection was an important part of raising angoras, because of them not being the hardiest of animals. Checking the Angoras for signs of skin problems was especially important, because their fleeces were thick and matted, making them susceptible to parasites and biting insects. The goats required a bi-weekly dip in a Malathion solution to control parasites. Tommy half buried a hundred gallon dipping trough for that purpose, and was building a cattle chute leading up to it. If things worked as planned, he would march the goats into the chute and through the dip this coming Sunday. Wednesday, Harold sent an older Mexican man back into the warehouse to see Tommy. The man, Pedro Colón, and his sons, raised sheep for a living and sheared sheep for other herders as a side business. Pedro was sharp around a dollar and he made Tommy a good deal. He would shear the goats and pay Tommy two dollars a pound for the mohair. Mister Colón made his profit by selling the mohair to a buyer from one of the big mills for the subsidized price of two dollars and sixty-five cents. They agreed on the Saturday after next and shook hands on it. ------- Irv Glickman walked into the McCulloch County Library at a few minutes before noon on Saturday morning. He was happy he'd made it on time, even though he over slept and had a late start. Being a native of New York City, Glickman drove his Jaguar XKE like a maniac anyway, so he'd made the three hour trip in less than two and a half. Irv was very surprised when a cute and petite woman with an arm load of books greeted him just inside the door. "Shalom, Doctor Glickman, I'm Ruth Silverman, a friend of Tommy. He'll be here as soon as he gets off work at noon, and the Snyders will be here any minute," she said. Irv could hear just the hint of a New York accent in Ruth's pleasant voice. "I am pleased to meet you, Ruth, and call me Irv. I know a man back in New York named Saul Silverman, he handles my investments," Irv said. Ruth laughed and sat the books down on the circulation desk. "It's a small world Irv; Saul Silverman is my father. Wait until I tell my mother I had to move to Texas to meet a nice Jewish doctor." Ruth walked Glickman back to the small conference room next to her office and retrieved a couple of bottles of Doctor Pepper from her office fridge. Irv laughed and toasted her with his bottle. "Don't tell me you are hooked on this stuff, too," he chortled. Ruth shook her head and looked chagrinned. "I'm afraid I'm addicted after three years drinking it. I even drink it hot sometimes when the weather is cold," she replied. Ruth and Irv discovered they had a few mutual acquaintances besides her father. One of the people they knew in common was Rachael Simms, the psychotherapist. When Irv mentioned that he thought Rachael was a beautiful and intelligent woman, Ruth's match-making gene kicked in. She thought Rachael and Irv would be perfect together, and all she had to do was scheme up a way to get Rachael to visit her. Their conversation came to an end when Rita Fricke and Margie Wilcox bustled into the conference room with Sheriff Wagner in tow. Ruth was curious about the sheriff being there, but shrugged it off and made introductions. Irv knew Margie from her time at Brooke Medical Center. After their horrible initial meeting, they'd become friends of a sort. One thing for sure was that Glickman had a much healthier respect for nurses after his run in with Margie's boss, Colonel Sarah Phipps. Ross and Cora Snyder arrived with Molly a few minutes after high noon, and this time, Rita made the introductions. The Snyders were just as Rita had described them to Tommy; they were good-hearted, hard working country folks. Ross Snyder put his family first, period, end of discussion. Cora Snyder was a fourth-generation cowgirl, and a mother in the mold of Rita Fricke, sweet natured and caring, but with a backbone of iron. She loved her man to death and doted on her children. Anyone who messed with either was in for a serious ass-kicking. Tommy arrived just as Irv and Margie were about to take Molly into Ruth's office to examine her. Margie had picked up Molly's school health records and had her nurse's bag with her. Molly squealed when she saw Tommy and ran over to him. Tommy knelt down and she hugged his neck. Ross solemnly shook his hand and Cora gave him a warm hug. It was obvious right away that Cora was the talker in the family. "You and Princess is all I've heard this week," Cora told Tommy. Tommy grinned and tousled Molly's pretty blonde hair. "She's one of the two best ranch hands I ever hired," he replied. After the commotion of Tommy's arrival died down and the flurry of handshakes and hugs dispensed with, Doctor Glickman finally had the opportunity to examine Molly. Irv saw that repairing her palate was straight forward, but that her lip would be a challenge. He felt he could do it though, and told Molly and her parents that. "I can make Molly's lip ninety percent normal, but she will have a small scar above and over her lip right here. The scar above the lip will fade with time, but she'll have a noticeable crease on her lip. When she stops growing, even that might be repairable," he said. The Snyders nodded, wearing big grins and Molly whooped. Glickman smiled at the Snyders' happiness. He seldom was the bearer of such joyful news when reconstructing the faces of severely wounded soldiers. "I'll take your reaction as approval of the idea, now all we need is a hospital that will loan me an operating room. I think I can con a couple of nurses from Fort Sam to assist me. I'm worried about Tommy being stuck with a big hospital bill though." The Snyders looked alarmed at that; they didn't know Tommy was footing the bill. Margie smiled at them reassuringly. "Let's go talk to Sheriff Wagner before anyone becomes discouraged, he might have some good news for us," Margie said. The Snyders, Doctor Glickman and Nurse Wilcox trouped out of Ruth's office and took seats at the conference table where Tommy, Rita and Ruth were waiting. They'd heard Molly's whoop so they figured Irv had good news at his end. It turned out that Sheriff Wagner had a hell of an idea. As a matter of fact, he had the solution for everything. Cyrus cleared his throat and gave it to them. "When Margie told me what Tommy wanted to do, I called a friend and fellow Shriner who is the Illustrious Potentate of the Hella Temple up in Garland. He made a call on Molly's behalf, to the Houston Shriner Hospital. The hospital has agreed to accept Molly as a patient, and provide Doctor Glickman with anything he needs for the surgery. All we have to do is get you all down there. The local Temple in Houston volunteered to provide Missus Snyder, Doctor Glickman and anyone else Molly needs, a place to stay, again, free of charge." There was stunned silence at the table for a couple of heart beats, then bedlam as everyone started either laughing or crying with joy. When the hubbub died down, Tommy stood up and grabbed Molly's hand. "This calls for a celebration, so let's go to lunch at the Bluebonnet, my treat. We can work out the details there." Over lunch, Irv Glickman told Cy Wagner he would put in for a seven day leave starting in two weeks. If it was approved, Cy would set everything up with the Shriners. Cora Snyder said her mother would be happy to take care of Ross and their other children while she made the trip to Houston with Molly. After the discussion about Molly's surgery, the conversation swung around to Tommy's plan to have all nine kids from Rita's Sunday school class out to his ranch the next afternoon. The consensus was that Tommy's good heart was over taxing his ability in this instance. "You are going to need help, Tommy. None of the children are helpless, but all of them have needs you can't look after at one time. I'll come over and bring someone with me to give you a hand. Besides, I want to see your goats. Maybe you'll let me pick one out and Molly can teach me how to take care of it," Mama Rita said. Molly and Tommy liked that idea just fine. Tommy liked it well enough that he didn't think to ask who Rita was bringing to help them. ------- Ruth and Rita had Tommy much better organized Sunday afternoon when the children from the Sunday school class started arriving. For one thing, Rita insisted the children go home from church and change clothes first. Then either the parents dropped the kids off, or Ruth picked them up. One of the kids had a nasty cold, so only eight made it out to Tommy's ranch. Tommy started the afternoon off by cooking hotdogs on the small grill he'd bought. Once the children were stuffed with Oscar Meyers, Tommy led them into the pasture to help him herd the goats into the corral. Rex romped joyfully between the goats and children, thrilled to death to have eight little new people with whom to play. Once the Angoras were in the corral, the fun of choosing one to take care of began. Tommy had picked up a half dozen neckerchiefs at the feed store for the boys, and Ruth purchased a like number of inexpensive scarves at Mc Crory's five and dime for the girls. The docile goats seemed to like the attention, and followed the children around like puppies. In a matter of minutes, the children made their choices and Tommy was teaching them how to tend to the animals. Tommy was out in the pasture surrounded by children and goats when Rita pulled up at two with the help she promised. The helper Rita had been intentionally vague about was her daughter Caroline. Caroline had arrived home the evening before on spring break from the Baylor School of Medicine. Caroline Fricke was not thrilled with being at Tommy's place, regardless the nobleness of the reason. Caroline had strong feelings for Tommy that she kept tightly under wraps. She no longer thought of Tommy as some sort of hayseed Romeo, but the fact remained that he was not the man she thought she wanted for the long run. She tried to beg out of going, but her mother wouldn't hear of it. "This is not about you," Rita said sternly. "It's about those sweet, unfortunate children." Caroline forgot all about her reasons for not wanting to be there within the first ten minutes of arriving. The children were amazing. Their excitement and happiness, despite their infirmities, blew away her bad mood like so much chaff in a windstorm. Molly shyly took Caroline by the hand and helped her pick out a goat of her own. Tommy welcomed Caroline home with a big smile and a hug that stirred her to her toes. His simple, heart-felt and sincere, "I've missed you," almost erased all the reservations she had about him. To her, sweet and innocent Tommy was as dangerous in his own way as a cobra ... and just as mesmerizing. Rita and Ruth sat on the back porch of the ranch house and watched Tommy and Caroline interact with the children and each other. Ruth didn't feel an ounce of jealousy towards Caroline, she was too sure of Tommy's love for her for that to happen. Besides, Caroline was in Houston most of the year, and would be for the foreseeable future. If Tommy shared his magic with the young woman, it would not happen often. Rita Fricke was also watching her daughter and adopted son as they walked around the pasture. She thought that, despite all her daughter's academic achievements, Caroline was astoundingly bereft of common sense for fighting her attraction to Tommy. Tommy was happy to see Caroline, even though she was not a really close friend. Caroline's behavior confused the heck out of him, because one minute she was his friend, and the next she acted as if she hated his guts. Tommy let those ideas stay in the back of his brain as he worked with the children and his goats. Tommy's objective today was to keep the children talking. He didn't much care to whom they talked; it could be him, each other or the Angoras, as long as they interacted. Tommy didn't make any distinction between the children like Jamie and Molly, who were normally intelligent with speech impediments, and those like Jimmy Preston, who were slow learners. Neither did the goats, as with heads cocked to the side, they listened to their new friends as they jabbered away. Up on the porch, Ruth and Rita smiled as one of the unattached goats playfully chased Rex across the pasture. "In another week, those goats will think they should sleep in the house with us," Ruth said. Rita nodded and laughed. "And Tommy's so soft-hearted, he'd probably let them," she said. Ruth chuckled briefly, turned to face Rita squarely, and asked the question on her mind. "So why is Caroline so stand offish around Thomas? You'd think after all that's happened, she could at least be friends with him." Rita Fricke frowned and nodded her agreement. "My daughter has big city plans for her future and doesn't want to be tied down here in Brantley. She's attracted to Tommy, but knows he'll never leave here, so she tries to remain aloof to keep from getting too close to him." "She doesn't know what she's missing," Ruth said softly, then blushed crimson when she realized Rita had heard her. Rita chuckled and patted her hand. "He's an amazing young man, so I agree with you a hundred percent." Ruth and Rita cut their conversation short when Tommy hailed them from the corral fence. "Mama, can you and Ruth keep an eye on my ranch hands while Caroline and I cut up some rope to make leashes?" While Rita and Ruth wandered around among the children and Angoras, Caroline and Tommy were alone in the barn's tack room, cutting six foot pieces off a hundred foot half inch jute rope. Caroline was holding the rope as Tommy cut it with his pocket knife. Tommy's pocket knife was a Barlow that Harold Fricke gave him for Christmas. As Tommy cut a section of rope, Caroline would loop it around his neck and then measure out the next piece. "It's wonderful what you are doing for Molly," Caroline remarked. Tommy shook his head negatively. "I'm not doing anything, Doctor Glickman and Sheriff Wagner are," Tommy corrected her. She looked up at him in exasperation at what she perceived as his 'aw shucks' false modesty. When she spoke, her tone was sharper than she intended. "You know what I mean, Tommy. I know you made it all happen. It irritates me when you act all modest like this." Tommy was taken aback by her tone of voice and what she said, because he was telling her the absolute truth as he knew it. Yes, he had the idea of helping Molly, but his smarter friends were really the ones who were making it happen. He did not know how to communicate that fact to her without making her even angrier, so he kept silent. It made Tommy sad that it would probably always be that way with Caroline, no matter what the subject. ------- Four days after having the children from Sunday school at his ranch, Tommy stood at the international arrival gate at the Dallas airport. He held a single red rose in his left hand and his Stetson in his right. It was Thursday, the 19th of March, 1970, and Tommy was patiently waiting for Connie to clear customs. Instead of a week to ten days, Connie had stayed in England over two weeks, and Tommy had missed her. Connie's return had been delayed because the director of the movie liked her performance enough that he had expanded her role, and she had a number of additional scenes to shoot. As a result, her billing went from featured performer to co-star, and her salary doubled. Even after paying her agent his ten percent, Connie netted over twenty-five thousand dollars. It was an obscene amount of money, considering how little she did to earn it, but she wasn't about to turn it down. Connie had plans for that money. Connie's Happy Endings Ranch had once been a working horse ranch, so she had stables, paddocks and five hundred acres of pasture that were so far nothing but a drain on her to maintain. She loved horses and had been seriously thinking about actually turning her ranch into a money making enterprise again. Connie had been toying with the idea of an upscale dude ranch for some of her Hollywood acquaintances. She knew any number of Hollywood types that needed an out of the way place in which to decompress from the stresses of their careers. What better way to do that than as a cowhand on a working ranch? ------- Connie swept into the waiting area and made a beeline towards Tommy. She was both laughing and crying as he swept her up in his arms. "Oh Tommy, am I ever happy to see you!" she yelped as she smothered his face in kisses. Tommy hugged her fiercely and agreed whole-heartedly. They caught each other up on their lives for the last couple of weeks while Tommy piloted them back towards Brantley. Tommy was very happy that Connie's trip had been so successful, and he was even happier at her idea of putting her ranch to its intended use. He even speculated about buying the piece of property that separated their ranches. Connie knew that Ruth owned the property, but was sworn to secrecy about it, so she could only say that it might be possible. She had already planned on discussing that possibility with her little librarian lover as soon as possible. Connie listened in amazement as Tommy recounted his adventures while she was gone. She laughed at his stories of goats and children and marveled once again at his simple goodness and compassion when he told her about little Molly. That so many other people had jumped in to help Molly didn't surprise Connie one bit, because Tommy brought out the best in people. Ruth was already home waiting for them when they pulled in the driveway at five-thirty. She was as excited about Connie's return as Tommy. She had missed Connie's friendship for sure, but the last week or so, Ruth had mostly been yearning for Connie's plush body. Connie was not put off by Ruth's eagerness. If anything, she was as ready as her little friend when Ruth grabbed her and Tommy's hands and dragged them towards the bathroom. "I want a short warm shower and a long hot night," Ruth explained. There wasn't room in the shower for the three of them, so Tommy volunteered to take his last, so the women could shower together. While they were in the shower, he lit a couple of scented candles in the bedroom and headed towards the kitchen to fetch a bottle of white wine he had chilling in the fridge. Tommy had picked up the wine down at Big Al's liquor store. Since his ladies drank wine, he had been making himself smarter on the subject through reading a couple of books and talking to Al. Big Al's selection of French wine was thin, but Tommy found a dusty bottle of Moulin Rouge Chablis and carried it to the counter where Al presided over the cash register. Al Plotnick was all of five foot eight inches tall and weighed a skinny one-thirty. His stature is not why they called him Big Al. According to Harold Fricke, he earned the moniker because his Johnson was about the same size as a Jumbo Hickory Farms Summer Sausage. Al had buck teeth and big ears, yet, again according to Harold, women actually fought over who got to go home with him on Saturday nights. "I once heard a woman say that he was not only big but he was also tireless as well. She said he was a veritable love machine," Harold confided. Tommy didn't know about all that, but he had to admit that the pretty, heavy set young senorita sitting next to Al looked awfully contented and she looked to be half his age. Al looked at the bottle with disdain when Tommy plonked it down on the counter. "You would be paying a lot of money just for the label on this one, Tommy. I have a nice Spanish Chablis that costs half as much and tastes twice as good. It's an unpretentious little wine, with a nice bouquet and a slight zest of fruitiness. You want a couple of bottles of it instead?" Al was the wine connoisseur that Tommy hoped to become and always keen on saving money, Tommy quickly agreed. "Sure, Al," he replied. Al smiled and turned to the young woman sitting on a stool next to him. "Juanita, run back to the storeroom and pull a couple of bottles of the El Cid please." "Okay Big Daddy," she said cheekily. Al pretended to swat her on her broad derriere as she walked by. Juanita giggled and swished her hips saucily. "That's a mighty fine woman right there," Big Al allowed. "She's built for comfort, not for speed, but she is always in the mood, she doesn't talk much and treats me like a king. I'm seriously considering making her my next future ex-wife." His thoughts back to the present, Tommy smiled wryly as he expertly uncorked the bottle. It was ironic that he was learning all about wines, yet all of them tasted about the same to him. He was the same way about beer and whiskey, to Tommy, none of them tasted that great. Tommy did not drink much other than socially, because he'd read that alcohol destroyed brain cells and he figured he didn't have many to spare. Tommy walked into the bedroom, bottle in one hand, stemmed glasses in the other, just as Ruth chased a giggling Connie out of the bathroom. Both were naked as jaybirds, silvery drops of water still glistened on their bodies. Connie dove onto the bed and Ruth piled in behind her. The women were locked in a passionate kiss as Tommy hustled to the shower. ------- Tommy hopped off the forklift and groaned as he stretched his back. It was Friday morning after Connie's return from England, and Tommy had some strange aches and pains from the workout the women put him through the night before. Connie and Ruth had been insatiable and he was both the beneficiary and the victim of their ardor. It was after nine before they let him out of bed to secure his goats in the barn. They had stayed lost in each other and their passions for three hours. While Tommy was easing his aching back, Connie was across town telling Ruth about her dude ranch idea. Ruth liked the idea and quickly agreed to lease Connie the four hundred acres that separated the Happy Endings Ranch from Tommy's property. Connie went from the library to the feed store. Connie needed the name of someone who could bulldoze a road between her and Tommy's place and put in a couple of gates. Since Rita and Harold Fricke seemed to know everyone in the county, Connie thought they'd know someone. They did, and at two that afternoon, Connie met with Antonio Salazar, Ramon's brother, at her ranch. Antonio and his wife's brother had a land clearing and excavation business. They owned a D-8 Caterpillar bulldozer, a medium sized backhoe and a ten cubic yard dump-truck. Antonio brought a map and compass with him and spent about an hour and a half walking through the woods and fields between the two properties. When he returned, he gave Connie his estimate. "Missus Delgado, if you aren't dead set on an arrow straight road, there is an old logging road about five hundred yards into the woods that snakes almost all the way over to Tommy's fence line. I could cut a road from here to the logging road without much trouble. I'll clean up and smooth out the logging road, put in a couple of three foot culverts so you can go across the creek, and install both gates for nine hundred dollars. You buy the gates and gate posts." Connie quickly agreed and wrote him a hundred dollar check for the gates and posts. When Antonio left, Connie went into her house and sat at the antique desk that dominated her home office. She pulled out a notepad and a pen and started listing things she needed to do to open a dude ranch. The list grew longer and longer, but that didn't discourage Connie in the least. She had overcome too much adversity in her life to let a hard job get her down. ------- The following Wednesday, April 1, 1970, Cora Snyder drove her daughter Molly to Houston for surgery. The operation was scheduled for Friday morning. Doctor Irv Glickman was also speeding toward Houston. He would be there with Molly while she underwent some mandated testing in preparation of her surgery. Glickman had spoken twice to the Chief of Surgery at the Shriner Hospital and both times had been assured that everything would be ready for him Friday. Irv was very impressed with the level of courtesy the hospital was extending him. The Shriners were incredibly generous when it came to children. Tommy was also going to make the trip to Houston, but he wasn't leaving until Friday morning, and planned to return Saturday night. Tommy realized that there wasn't much he could do to help anyone, but he felt compelled to go see Molly anyway. Rita had insisted that Tommy stay at Caroline's while he was in Houston. Caroline shared a four bedroom rental house with two other female medical students and, according to Rita, they had a guest room. Caroline was unhappy about the idea, but her mother shamed her into agreeing. "Caroline, you were raised better than that," Rita scolded. "Tommy was willing to spend all of his saving so Molly could have this surgery, and you don't want to share a house for one night." Staying at Caroline's house was no big deal to Tommy. He figured he'd be at the hospital most of the time anyway. It was a big deal for Caroline though, because she was scared of what might happen if they were alone together. No, she wasn't worried about what Tommy would do; he was always a perfect gentleman. Instead, she was worried about controlling herself when she was around him. She hated it that every time she was near him, she either wanted to jump his bones or murder him. ------- Chapter 21 After extensive cranial surgery to repair the damaged caused by a super heated metal fragment, six percent of Tommy Bledsoe's brain resided in a glass specimen jar at the pathology lab at Brooke Medical Center. The missing gray matter contained Tommy's memories after the age of twelve. Although Tommy was missing a portion of his brain, he was an intelligent young man with a much better than average ability to learn. Tommy caught up to adulthood academically in less than a year. In that same year, his physical strength returned and he rediscovered females and sex. The area where he did not advance was socially. The years during which a young person learns social skills were eradicated from Tommy's brain, and he could not go back and regain them as quickly and easily as he had history and mathematics. The lack of social sophistication was what made some people think Tommy was a simpleton. Tommy knew that he did not make a good first impression on most people. He accepted that fact and didn't worry about it much. He didn't worry, because at home in Brantley everyone knew and accepted him. The few times he had traveled outside of Brantley had always been with one of his friends or family. That was not the case when Tommy departed for Houston on Friday morning after tending his goats. He was by himself because Ruth had to work and Connie was tired of traveling after her trip to England. Tommy was going to miss being snuggled in between them later that night, but Molly was important enough for him to make the sacrifice. Tommy thought making the trip by himself was one more milestone in his road to becoming a functional adult. Tommy went straight to the hospital as soon as he arrived in Houston. Molly was already awake and fairly alert when he arrived at the recovery room. Big smiles on the faces of the nurses and Molly's mother let him know the operation had been a success. Tommy handed Molly a neatly wrapped 'get well' present and Molly eagerly ripped off the colorful wrapping paper. Molly gave a bandage muffled squeal when she saw it was a picture of her and Princess from the weekend before. Cora Snyder gave Tommy a kiss on the cheek for his thoughtfulness towards her daughter, and left them to chat while she went for lunch. With a promise to return the next morning, Tommy left after supper and headed over to the house Carolyn shared with two other co-eds. Tommy rang the door bell a few minutes past seven o'clock. A tall, slender young woman wearing an ankle length granny dress opened the door. The woman's hair was black and straight; it was parted in the middle, encircled by a tooled and beaded leather band and hung down to the small of her back. She had big brown eyes partly hidden behind pink tinted, wire-framed glasses. The glasses were perched part way down a slightly hooked nose. Her full red lips were curved in a small smile as she arched an inquisitive eyebrow. Tommy doffed his Stetson and introduced himself. "Hello, I'm Tommy Bledsoe, a friend of Caroline and her family. Is Caroline here?" The young woman's smile grew bigger, showing her blindingly white, perfectly straight teeth. "Groovy, come on in Tommy, I'm Paloma. We were expecting you earlier. Caroline and Janet, our other roomie, are primping; they both have hot dates, so you are stuck with me for the evening." Tommy nervously twisted his hat in his hands as he looked at the young woman. She was the first genuine hippie he'd ever met, and he didn't know how he was supposed to talk to her. In addition, she talked about as fast as anyone he'd ever heard, it was all he could do to keep up with what she was saying. He finally found his tongue. "Uh ... Miss Paloma, maybe it would be best if I found somewhere else to stay, I don't want to keep you from doing anything you had planned." Again the dazzling smile, as she grabbed his arm and started tugging him through the door. "Nonsense, Tex," she said, "I don't have anything planned so everything is copacetic. Besides, from what Caroline's told me, we have lots to talk about." Tommy didn't know what to make of that statement, so he nodded, grabbed his dufflebag and allowed her to pull him into the house. She sat him on the couch in a nicely furnished living room, then excused herself to fetch them a Coke. Tommy looked around while she was gone. The couch he was sitting on and the matching overstuffed chairs were covered in buttery soft, burgundy leather. The walls were an off white and the floors were oak inlaid with cherry. Thick burgundy and gold paisley drapes covered the large picture window behind the couch. A glass topped walnut coffee table with a couple of casually displayed art books was in front of the couch. A big Magnavox console television/hi-fi dominated the opposite wall. Iron Butterfly was growling out the Psychedelic Rock anthem In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida on the turntable. The only light in the room was from a couple of large, cinnamon scented candles on the glass topped end tables that bracketed the couch. All this was fascinating and more than a little scary for Tommy, but he was determined to hold his own as an adult. Paloma returned with a couple of ice cold bottles of Coca-Cola. She set the bottles on the coffee table and folded her lanky frame down onto the couch about a foot away from Tommy. She tucked her bare feet underneath her and turned to face him. Her real name was Susan Compton, her mother was an Osage American Indian from Oklahoma, and her family was oil money rich. The house the women lived in belonged to her parents. Paloma was not a medical student as were Caroline and the other roommate. Instead, she was a graduate student working towards a master's degree in psychology, a task she'd been idly pursuing as her Paloma persona dabbled in the counter-culture, hippy life style. She was very interested in talking to Tommy because Caroline had briefed her on his unique situation. With that in mind, she eased into a conversation. "Caroline told me you were wounded in Vietnam," she said for openers. Tommy bobbed his head up and down once. The subject wasn't his favorite topic of conversation, but he didn't shy away from answering honestly. "I was. Something went into my brains and messed them up," he said. "Now I'm not so smart about some things and can't remember anything from since I was twelve until last year." "Caroline says you are doing well, considering everything. She told me you own a ranch and are partners in her parents business." Tommy smiled and shrugged depreciatingly. "That's because of Mama Fricke and all my friends, they helped me a lot." Paloma didn't ask Tommy any more questions because he began regaling her with stories about his friends and life in Brantley. They were both laughing at a story about Rex, the yellow wonder dog, when Caroline and another woman walked into the room. Caroline's heart beat a little faster when she saw Tommy, and she felt a pang of jealousy towards Susan as the two canoodled on the couch. For a few seconds she regretted the date she had arranged so she could avoid spending any time with Tommy. She shook that idea out of her head, pasted a smile on her face, and introduced the third roommate, Janet Longrie. Caroline had no sooner made the introductions, when the doorbell signaled the arrival of their dates and off they went. As soon as Caroline slipped through the door on the arm of a nattily dress young intern, Tommy turned to Paloma and once again asked her if it wouldn't be better if he found another place to spend the night. "We are all cool with you staying here, Tommy, and I'm enjoying your company. Say, I made some killer double chocolate brownies; what say we eat a couple and rap for a while." Tommy agreed and Paloma scampered into the kitchen to snag a couple of her special recipe brownies. Paloma giggled as she cut her new friend a large slab of the marijuana-laced chocolate confection. She was usually pretty stingy with her reefer, but her new friend was so up tight, she couldn't resist. Besides, she was bored, she was between lovers, and the big handsome cowboy was yummy looking in his white shirt, tight Levis and shiny cowboy boots. She figured the grass would relax him enough to make him susceptible to being seduced. Thirty minutes later, Tommy was slow dancing Miss Paloma around the dimly lit living room when the Acapulco Gold snuck up on him. Tommy had no memories of being high with which to compare what he was feeling, so he chalked it up to the company and the music. Whatever the reason, though, he felt incredibly good. His body seemed to tingle and he felt vibrantly alive. And he was suddenly hyper aware of the tall willowy woman molded against him, her head on his shoulder, and her strawberry scented hair tickling his nose. Instantly, he was hard and throbbing. Before he could disengage enough to keep from being embarrassed, Paloma started grinding herself against him. "Is that your six gun I feel poking me cowboy?" she whispered teasingly in his ear. Tommy grinned and shook his head. "Nope, it's more like a seven and three quarter gun, and if you keep rubbing on it, it's subject to go off," he replied, the grass making him loquacious. "Then we better put it somewhere safe so we don't put an eye out," she said with a throaty laugh. Tommy didn't need any clearer an invitation than that. "I know just the place," he said as he whisked her up in his arms. Paloma yelped in surprise, her arms that were already around his neck instinctively tightening. Tommy spun around and started heading down the hallway past the bathroom she had pointed out earlier. Paloma giggled and languidly gestured toward the second door on the right. Tommy sat on the bed to remove his boots, as Paloma stood in front of him swaying sexily. When she knew he was looking, she unfastened a couple of buttons and shimmied her upper body. Her dress fell to her gently swelling hips, hung there for a moment, then slid down to the floor. The long dress was all she had been wearing. Tommy forgot about his boots; he was transfixed as her copper colored body seemed to shimmer in the soft light spilling through the door from the hallway. Paloma's breasts were small, but her areola and nipples were dark and puffy like Hershey Kisses. Her hips were slim but feminine, and her legs were the longest he'd ever seen. But the thing that riveted his attention was the fact that she was completely hairless below her eyebrows. "I've never seen a bald one," Tommy said in wonder. She smiled coquettishly and struck a pose with her hand on her hip. "I started shaving what little hair I had down there when I lived on a commune in Colorado. Swami Madras insisted on it as part of maintaining a healthy body. I moved away from the ashram to start grad school, but I still shave and practice my yoga faithfully. Do you like it?" Tommy nodded enthusiastically as he kicked off his boots. "Oh hell yes!" he exclaimed. "Hop on this bed and I'll show you how much." She did ... then he did. Tommy was at his absolute sexual best that night as the THC coursing through his damaged brain put his libido in over-drive. He was a veritable sex machine from the minute he joined her on the bed, until midnight when he finally ran out of steam. He made love to her for three hours with only two short drink and snack breaks. Amazingly, she stayed right with him, contorting her long and yoga limber body into positions Tommy didn't think a snake could replicate. Even better, Paloma was a squirter like Ruthie, and she was as noisy as his friend and former tutor Becky Dierdorf. For Paloma, whose sex drive bordered on insatiable, Tommy was the first person of either sex to completely satisfy her without help. Paloma thought Caroline was insane for choosing some stuffed shirt intern over him. Paloma didn't mind that Tommy was unsophisticated. Instead, she thought his uncomplicated personality and his goodness made his karma certain to end him in Nirvana. And amazingly, Tommy was that way by nature, not through years of meditation and study as had been the case with her former guru, Swami Madras. Paloma happily snuggled against her handsome new lover's muscular back and sighed contentedly as she imagined his aura enveloping her. Caroline could stop worrying about Tommy getting in her way, because Paloma had every intention of monopolizing his time until he went home. Tommy woke up the next morning with Paloma wrapped around him like a tetherball rope. He raised his arm gently so as not to awaken her and squinted at the luminous dial of his watch. He smiled in relief when he saw it was about half past six; he had plenty of time to get ready and be at the hospital by nine for the start of weekend visiting hours. Tommy tried to ease his way out of Paloma's grasp, but she wasn't having any of it. Her eyes popped open and she tightened the grip of the hand that had been loosely holding his morning erection. "Not so fast cowboy," she said as she rolled over on top of him. Tommy grinned in surprised delight as she mounted herself on his turgid member. He was delighted that Paloma was a kindred morning person, and pleased as punch that she liked eye-opener sex. Her long straight black hair whipped around wildly as she bounced up and down on his woody. When he reached up and squeezed her passion puffy nipples in his big calloused hands, she froze on her down stroke. "Harder!" she hissed. Tommy was swept along with her arousal and they climaxed simultaneously a few minutes later. She fell down on his chest and quivered for a minute or so, then hopped off him and grabbed a silk kimono from the foot of the bed. "Come on big boy, let's take a quick shower and make some breakfast, I'm famished." Tommy popped out of bed after her. He shucked on his boxers, grabbed his AWOL bag and followed her into the bathroom. Paloma sent Tommy out the door forty-five minutes later with a sweet kiss and a belly full of ham and cheese omelet. She cleaned up the breakfast dishes and was sitting at the table drinking coffee when a bleary-eyed Caroline stumbled into the kitchen. Caroline was wearing pajamas and a thick robe in case Tommy was in the kitchen, so she noticed Paloma's skimpy kimono right away. "You shouldn't be wearing something so revealing, did you forget we had company?" Paloma looked down at her robe and shrugged. "I'm decent; besides, he's long gone. He was in a rush to be at the hospital as soon as visiting hours started." Caroline nodded as she poured herself a steaming mug of coffee. She eased into the chair across from Paloma and gave her roommate a small grateful smile. "Thanks for entertaining him last night. I know he isn't that great a conversationalist, but my parents think the world of him and I ... well, he is sort of family, I guess." Paloma cocked her eyebrow and nodded her head, clearly expecting Caroline to say more. Caroline sighed as she made a production of putting sugar in her coffee cup. Expressing her feelings about Tommy was difficult for her. "So anyway, if you two got along okay, would you mind if I went out again with Roger tonight? He wants to take me to some charity function. He thinks it will be good for both of our careers if we attend." Paloma pretended to mull the question over, but that was just for show; she loved the idea of spending another night with Tommy. Finally, she lifted her shoulders in a nonchalant shrug and smiled. "Tommy might have plans of his own, but if he doesn't, I'll be here." ------- Tommy spent the morning and early afternoon with Molly and some of the other children on the ward. Molly was sequestered on the orthopedic ward and most of her fellow patients were bed bound. Although there were plenty of volunteers helping on the ward, Tommy was the only young man there, and the children took to him quickly. Tommy had wrestled half a dozen hospital beds in a semicircle and was reading an abridged version of Gulliver's Travels to the bed's occupants, when Sheriff Wagner, Doctor Glickman and some of the officers from the Houston Shrine walked into the ward. Cy Wagner made the introductions; Tommy blushed at the glowing terms the Sheriff and Irv Glickman used to describe him and his part in bringing Molly here. The Potentate of the Houston Shrine was a gregarious fellow named Frank Quimbly. Frank was the quasi-retired senior partner of a prestigious Houston law firm and the Shriner Hospital's biggest booster. Quimbly grabbed Tommy's hand and started pumping it. "Good job, son, damn good job; say, we're having a little barbeque at my spread this evening and we would love for you to be our guest. Dress is western and it starts at six." Tommy nodded and asked, "Can I bring a guest?" Quimbly smiled and slapped him on the back. "Sure, the more the merrier and there'll be plenty of other young people too, so you won't be stuck with us old fogies." Tommy was pleased that Paloma readily accepted his invitation to the cookout. Paloma thought it was major karma that Tommy had been invited to the Quimbly's soirée. It was a gas to her, because her father was a member of the Houston Shrine, and her stodgy parents would probably be there also. She figured that the shock value of her turning up at the party with someone as clean-cut and all-American as Tommy would make it worth putting up with the other square old fossils. Paloma loved her parents, but they were hopelessly square and old fashioned. They tolerated — barely — her journey of self discovery, but they were beginning to pressure her to grow up and settle down. Caroline had already departed with her date and Janet was out and about when Tommy and Paloma exited her room. Tommy was delighted with the outfit Paloma chose when he said 'dress western'. She was wearing a buckskin dress, the soft buttery leather cinched at the waist with a beaded belt. The bodice of the dress was decorated with some beaded rick-rack that matched the belt. The dress was short and fell to a few inches above her knees; her feet were shod in matching tall leather moccasins that came up to mid calf. She had ironed her hair arrow straight and the flowing mass of it tumbled down to the middle of her back. Her trusty leather headband kept her face clear of her thick tresses. While Tommy thought that Paloma's outfit was the coolest thing ever, the genteel guests at the Quimbly's cook out had varying opinions. However, because they were genteel and hospitable, no one made a fuss about it, especially Paloma's staid parents. They might not have been thrilled with her choice of clothing, but they sure were with the date she chose. Paloma could almost see her mother picking out wedding invitations in her head, and her father was calling Tommy son within fifteen minutes of meeting him. Caroline was very surprised to see Tommy and Paloma when she arrived with her date at the charity function. She had no idea that the event was for the Shriner Children's Hospital. The surprise was not all that pleasant when she saw the way her roommate was hanging on Tommy. She was annoyed as hell at herself for letting it bother her. After all, she was here with Justin, a man who was everything she wanted. Justin had a bright future and he was urbane, cultured and a more than adequate lover, so why was she jealous of Paloma for being with Tommy? ------- Tommy and Paloma left the cookout around eight. As they departed, Tommy handed Frank Quimbly a check and thanked him profusely for taking care of Molly. Quimbly was astonished at the twenty-five hundred dollar check. "This is most generous, Tommy. Are you sure you can afford this?" Tommy shrugged and nodded. The amount of the check was what Doctor Glickman estimated it cost for Molly's stay at the hospital, plus a few hundred dollars. Instead of heading home, Paloma took Tommy to a house party. She thought the exposure to her counter-culture friends would be enlightening to him after his dealings with the capitalist establishment types. Tommy, although a little shy and awkward, did enjoy meeting Paloma's friends. They were an unusual group, but they all seemed nice enough, although a little stand-offish. For their part, Paloma's friends were leery of Tommy at first because he looked more than a little like a young clean-cut cop. Once they decided he wasn't, they loosened up around him. The party was at the pad of a young man named Roger Taylor. Taylor claimed to be an anarchist and a member of the weather underground, but in reality he was an opportunistic drug dealer making a good living off the idealistic hippies. Roger also had his sights set on Paloma and her money. He thought he was making good progress too, as she had shared her body with him on a couple of occasions. So he was more than a little pissed that she was draped all over the square cowboy. He didn't let his anger show though, instead, he pretended to befriend Tommy. While Paloma was catching up with her friends, Roger took Tommy into the kitchen and during an unguarded moment, he dropped two hits of LSD in Tommy's Doctor Pepper. The acid was a new formulation he'd just found named New Improved Sunshine by its creator. The acid was extremely potent, and laced with a hint of strychnine to give it an extra kick. After Tommy had downed over half his soda, Roger prevailed on him to drive to the Seven-Eleven for more beer. "It'll only take a couple of minutes, Tom, and I'll tell Paloma where you are," Roger told him. Tommy thought it was great that his new friend needed his help, and hustled out the door. He jumped in his truck and drove the three miles to the convenience store. Tommy walked into the store, bought a case of beer and headed back to Rogers. He was a mile from the house when the LSD hit him. The strychnine-laced LSD hit Tommy's fragile brain with the wallop of a sledge hammer. Tommy had just enough presence of mind to pull over seconds before his brain was blasted with a seething flashback of disjointed memories from his forgotten past. Tommy screamed, yanked open the door of his truck, and fell to the roadside, writhing in fearful agony. To add misfortune to misery, the first people to spot Tommy were a car load of Chicano street toughs out cruising for trouble. The four young men pulled over, jumped out of their car and joyfully kicked Tommy into blessed unconsciousness. As a final insult, they poured beer and urinated on him before stealing his truck and wallet. A passing sheriffs' patrol found Tommy fifteen minutes later and called in an ambulance to transport the unconscious and ID-less man to the County General Hospital Emergency Room. The emergency staff revived Tommy, only to find that he was incoherent and uncontrollable. They affixed restraints to his arms and legs, injected him with a strong sedative, and wheeled him up to the fourth floor mental ward. Tommy was placed in a padded cell and the deputy sheriffs took his fingerprints. Back at the sheriff's patrol station, they submitted the prints to the FBI's National Crime Information Center. Meanwhile, Paloma was out with a concerned acting Roger trying to find Tommy. They started their search at the Seven-Eleven and confirmed he'd been there and purchased a case of Lone Star long necks, but they found no trace of him afterwards. Paloma finally had Roger drive her home, hoping Tommy had gotten lost and went there when he couldn't find Roger's house. Panic set in when Tommy failed to materialize by Sunday afternoon. Paloma was worried sick by then, and Caroline was not much better. They called the police and reported him missing, then Caroline had the unpleasant duty of calling her mother. The call connected and her mother answered. Caroline took a deep breath. "Mama, Tommy is missing. We haven't seen him since last night." Rita Fricke patiently wrung the whole story from Caroline, then she called Connie and Tommy's sister Beth. Rita was worried, but she was not a person prone to panic. She passed some of that calm on to Beth, Connie and Ruth when she called them, but nothing in the world could stop Connie from hurriedly packing a bag and aiming her big Cadillac towards Houston. By eight that night, she was sitting on the couch between Paloma and Caroline, receiving the story of Tommy's disappearance first hand. The Houston PD got lucky late Monday morning in identifying the John Doe they'd found by the road when the NCIC put a name to the fingerprints the Houston police had faxed. The patrol sergeant thought his men had acted correctly when the John Doe turned out to be a brain-damaged disabled veteran. He was happy to put the case to rest by picking up the phone and calling the next of kin, a sister in Florida. A very relieved Beth Taylor immediately called Rita Fricke and Rita called Caroline. In only minutes, Caroline, Paloma and Connie were speeding towards County general. ------- The staff of the mental ward of County General Hospital stopped dosing Tommy with sedatives Monday morning on the orders of the Chief of Psychiatry. Doctor Raeburn made that call after reviewing Tommy's latest blood work. The laboratory report confirmed that the high concentration of psychotropic Lysergic Acid Diethylamide present when he was admitted had been flushed from his system. Doctor Raeburn dropped in to visit his newest patient right before lunch. He immediately knew the patient had bigger problems than just drug use when he found the large robust man fearfully cowering behind his bed. "I want my Mama," the man plaintively wailed as soon as Raeburn walked into the room. ------- Chapter 22 When Tommy started wailing for his mother, Doctor Raeburn stopped in his tracks. He flipped the patient's chart to the next of kin section and read the information provided by the police department. He scanned the page and turned his attention to the man cowering on the other side of the bed. Mister Bledsoe," he said soothingly, "I don't see your mother listed on your chart. It says here your next of kin is a sister in Florida." Tommy nodded, somewhat calmed by the man's soothing voice. "Mama Rita is in Brantley, am I still in Houston?" Raeburn nodded, so Tommy continued. "Something happened to my brains and I saw some really, really bad things. Then some men beat me up. Then I woke up here in this bad place, so you need to call Mama Rita so she can come get me and take me home." Raeburn nodded his understanding. "Do you know her phone number?" he asked. Tommy was about to spout out the number when a burly orderly peeked through the door. "Ah, Doc, there are three women at the nurses' station demanding to see this guy. One of them says she's his fiancée." Raeburn looked over at his patient inquisitively and Tommy looked at the orderly. "Which one?" he asked. The orderly shrugged his massive shoulders. "I didn't catch a name, but she is very pretty, with long wavy black hair." For the first time in two days, Tommy felt the least bit more at ease. "That's Connie; Mama must have sent her to get me." Raeburn glanced at the orderly and shrugged. "Might as well bring them down, maybe it will help us understand this mess." Even though Tommy thought the doctor might end up being his friend, he still kept the bed between them. After what had happened to him lately, he wasn't about to trust a stranger. A couple of minutes later, Connie, Paloma and Caroline came steaming into the room. Paloma and Caroline stopped at the doorway, but Connie charged across the room and took Tommy into her arms. "My poor baby," she cooed as she gently traced the vivid purple bruise under his swollen right eye. Tommy sighed and sagged against her. He felt safe for the first time in a couple of days. Raeburn's brow furrowed in concentration as the beautiful young woman held his patient. The woman looked familiar, but he couldn't put a name to the face. His concentration turned into something else when the statuesque woman turned toward him looking seriously irate. "Why is Tommy locked up in here and what happened to frighten him so badly?" she asked heatedly. Raeburn held up his hand in a stop gesture. "Whoa, there, Miss, we are on the same side. Now just who are you three?" Connie blushed at her rudeness and rushed to correct it. "Delgado," she said, "Connie Delgado, and these are two of Tommy's friends, Paloma and Caroline. Sorry for the outburst, but we've been worried sick." The name Delgado caught Raeburn's attention, and he quickly put the name and face together. Conchita Delgado films had been a staple for him when he was a struggling young intern living in near poverty. That a woman of Conchita Delgado's beauty and stature was engaged to his patient, made him reevaluate what he thought of the man. "I'm pleased to meet you ladies, I'm Jeffery Raeburn, head of psychiatry for the hospital," Raeburn said with a slight bow. "And to answer your question, Miss Delgado, Thomas Bledsoe was admitted to this ward when he became uncontrollable in the emergency room. The fright he exhibits now is only a small fraction of what he felt when he was admitted. The fright was cause by flashbacks he was having of some unpleasant experiences he must have had in Vietnam." Connie looked at the doctor in surprise. "Tommy doesn't have any memories of Vietnam. In fact, he doesn't remember anything after the age of twelve, until he awoke from a coma two years ago." It was Raeburn's turn to be surprised, and the case just became much more interesting. He thought for a minute before replying. "Research conducted over the last few years indicates that the mind spreads little snippets of memory in various locations besides the prefrontal lobes. Maybe the large quantity of LSD your fiancé ingested triggered painful snippets he'd been suppressing," Raeburn suggested. "LSD!" Connie exclaimed. "I've never seen him have anything stronger than a glass of wine." She grabbed Tommy's hand and looked up into his confused expression. "Did you take LSD Saturday night, Tommy?" she asked softly. Tommy shook his head emphatically. "I don't even know what that is! All I had Saturday night was the Doctor Pepper my new friend Roger fixed me. You can ask him if you don't believe me." Connie soothed Tommy and looked pointedly at Paloma. "Roger Taylor is an old boyfriend. In fact, he's the one who drove me around Saturday night looking for Tommy. He has also been bragging lately about this new acid he found. But why would he send Tommy on a trip without telling him?" Paloma said. Connie's eyes narrowed at that bit of news. Connie Delgado did not share Paloma's view that peace was the answer. Roger Taylor would soon find out that fucking with her man was a very bad idea. Although seething inside, Connie pasted on a smile and exercised her considerable skill as an actress. In no time, she had charmed Doctor Raeburn into releasing Tommy to her, with the caveat that she either bring him back in a few days for a follow-up visit, or get him in to see a VA specialist. By the time Tommy was discharged from the hospital, it was too late to drive back to Brantley, so Connie and Tommy spent the night at Paloma's house. After supper, Janet and Caroline locked themselves into their rooms to study while Tommy, Connie and Paloma watched television and chatted. Connie liked tall slender Paloma, and the two women openly flirted all evening long. Under normal circumstances, Connie would have dragged both Tommy and Paloma off to play, but in Tommy's current condition, that wasn't an option. It hurt Connie's heart that her guy was suffering so much. After a tough night of Tommy fitfully dozing in between heart-wrenching nightmares, Connie felt even worse for him. As they sat at the kitchen table having breakfast with Paloma and Caroline, Connie had a sudden inspiration. She hopped up and asked to borrow the telephone. An hour later, she and Tommy were on the road. But they weren't headed west towards Brantley and the heart of Texas. Instead, they were pointed east towards Lafayette, Louisiana and the Hotel Arcenaux. Connie had a strong feeling that somehow, the seemingly supernatural bond Tommy shared with Marie Arcenaux was the solution to his problems. It was only a three hour drive from Houston to Lafayette the way Connie drove, so the couple pulled up to the gingerbread Victorian Inn right at lunch time. Salmarie was working the desk when they arrived. "Ahhh, you brought him back so that I could have my turn, eh Cherie?" Salmarie said teasingly. Connie guessed that Marie hadn't shared with her daughter that there was a problem with Tommy. "Sure Salmarie, provided your mother can make him better," Connie replied. Salmarie gave her an inquisitive look as she spun the register around for Connie to sign. Connie shrugged and mouthed, "I'll tell you later," as she signed her name. Marie made her entrance just as Tommy was picking up Connie's pink Samsonite week-ender suitcase. Marie gave Connie a firm hug then stepped into Tommy's arms. Maria understood the nature of Tommy's problem as soon as they touched and his aura enveloped her. Before, his aura had been strong and golden-hued. Now it was weaker and shot through with inky patches of hurt and small tendrils of malice. The only good thing about his damaged aura was that it was not as overwhelming as it had been during his last visit. It hurt Marie deeply that Tommy was suffering so much, but she also knew that she could change that if they had some time alone. Marie knew exactly how Tommy's aura should look, because she had its clone growing in her womb. Decision made, she turned to face Connie. "Tommy and I are going to spend a couple of days at the bayou house. Can you help the girls and Pierre while I'm gone?" Connie grinned and said, "Sure Marie, no problem." Marie drove Tommy out to her family's little Cajun cottage that was situated two miles off US 90 on Bayou Laveau (pronounced La-voe). Laveau was Marie's maiden name. The Laveaus were a small family by Acadian Louisiana standards, yet they were legendary for their pretty but strange and mysterious women. Bayou Laveau was a pristine, undisturbed waterway that drained into the Vermillion River, south of Lafayette. Legend had it that the bayou was untouched because a Laveau woman bewitched an Army Corp of Engineer surveyor into moving further to the south a drainage canal needed for the construction of US Highway 90. The four-room house had been in Marie's family since the 1840s. It was so old it didn't have nails in the original rough hewed cypress timbers that made up the framework. Marie and Tommy settled in and put away the groceries they'd bought for their stay. Tommy was infatuated by the quaint old house, and spent an hour exploring in and around it. The house was on creosoted cypress pilings that put the floor four feet above the ground. It was oriented north-south for better cross-ventilation, and had a wide porch that extended end to end across the front. A set of stairs on the porch, or galerie as Maries called it, led up to an attic under the steeply pitched roof. Marie said the attic was commonly referred to as the grenier and was often used as a bedroom for male children. While Tommy was poking around, Marie bustled about opening the cabin and letting the delightful mid-April air freshen the place. When she finished, she joined Tommy on the short dock that jutted into the bayou. When she walked up, Tommy was examining a small flat bottomed boat turned upside down at the end of the dock. He looked up and gave Marie a small smile. "Can we take your canoe out on the water? I'll paddle so all you have to do is ride." Marie was encouraged by his smile, even weak as it was. "Sure we can, Tommy, but it's a pirogue, not a canoe. Canoes don't have flat bottoms," she said. Tommy was an enthusiastic oarsman, but he couldn't keep the boat headed in a straight line until Marie gave him some instructions. Soon enough, they came to a wider portion of the bayou where the water was shallow enough to make paddling ineffective. Tommy was amazed when Marie stood up and used a long pole lying in the bottom of the boat to effortlessly push them across the water. Tommy insisted on taking over the poling, and twice, he almost tipped them over before he got the hang of it. Marie smiled indulgently at Tommy as he paddled them back towards the house. So far, the serenity of the peaceful bayou was having the desired effect on him. See, her plan wasn't that complicated, she just needed him alone in a peaceful setting so the special connection they shared could work undistracted. When Tommy had the boat back on the dock, Marie took his hand and led him back through the house to the front galerie. She sat him down on a sturdy cypress bench then straddled his legs with hers, so she was sitting in his lap facing him. Next she put her hands on his cheeks and turned his face until they were eye to eye. "That's it Baby," she crooned. "Look into my eyes and listen to me. Those memories you've been having aren't yours, Honey, any more than Old Tommy's money wasn't yours. And just like that money, you need to get rid of those bad thoughts. Understand?" Lost in her amber orbs, Tommy nodded. "Good. So here's how we are getting rid of old Tommy's nasty memories: every time you have one, you are going to throw it into the bayou so that it can drift out to the ocean and be gone forever. If you do that, they will all be gone by tomorrow night." Even though he hadn't tried it yet, Tommy knew that what Marie said would work. He knew that because her words poured through her eyes and into his soul. It was unscientific, so Doctor Raeburn and his professional ilk would say that what Tommy felt was actually the power of suggestion and Marie was manipulating Tommy using his love and trust for her. Tommy didn't think that way because he knew Marie was magical. In actuality, both Raeburn and Tommy were correct. Marie smiled when she felt Tommy's aura brighten slightly. She kissed him sweetly and jumped off his lap to fix them supper. ------- Back at the Hotel Arcenaux, Connie was working the registration desk while Salmarie took her mother's place as hostess for the restaurant. Since she wasn't busy, Connie called Rita Maude Fricke to update her on the status of her quasi-adopted son. Rita also had news for her. "I was leery of that woman when Tommy described her, but if she helps him get better, she has a friend for life," Rita began. Then she changed gears. "Oh yeah, the police over in Houston called here this afternoon. They found Tommy's truck. It was stripped clean of anything of value, but at least the police say the thieves didn't torch it. Ben and Ramon are taking Ben's flatbed wrecker to pick it up tomorrow. Maddie and Leo Dixon have already filed a claim with his insurance, and Ben says there is enough in the settlement to fix Tommy's truck good as new." Connie thought that was great news, because the loss of his beloved truck was just another thing weighing heavily on Tommy's mind. So Connie was in a good mood when Michelle Arcenaux strolled out of the restaurant dressed in her usual French maid's outfit. "All of the guests are taken care of, Miss Conchita; may I make a plate for you?" Connie grinned wickedly, motioned Michelle closer and whispered teasingly in her ear. "Sure, little one, make me a plate. And while I'm eating, I'll provide a little snack for you." ------- Marie and Tommy spent a fitful night that night as he kept waking up from nightmares. Every time it happened, Marie sent him out back to throw the memory into the bayou. By five in the morning, Tommy had purged enough bad memories to actually fall into an exhausted, dreamless sleep. Marie put Tommy to work when they woke up later that morning. She had a list of deferred maintenance items, and now was the perfect time to work some of them off. The routine physical labor helped Tommy, because it left his mind free to dredge up more memories to join the ones already in the bayou. When Marie freed him from his indentured servitude just before dark, she was elated to see his aura glowing brightly and free of the inky black blobs of residual memories. Almost as good as seeing him free of his torment was the realization that his aura no longer overwhelmed her as it had when they first met. Marie guessed that was because she now had a piece of that aura growing inside her womb. Further proof that Tommy was back came when he pulled her down in his lap and laid a kiss on her that left them both breathless. It was the first sign of sexuality from him in five days. Marie reluctantly broke the kiss and leaned back in his arms. "Later for that, young man," she mock admonished. "Before I let you plunder my body, I need a bath and then you are going to wine and dine me." Marie wasn't being coy or cruel; hell, she wanted him so bad it hurt. But she did want a shower and she was hungry and even more importantly, they needed to test how Tommy would do in public before she could consider him cured. She knew just the place to both satisfy her hunger and see how Tommy would react being around a crowd. So after a warm shower for Marie and a cold one for Tommy, they headed down the road to Boudreaux and Charlene's Bar and Grill. Tommy liked the place and the friendly people in it immediately. This was more his type of crowd, because they were warm and gracious, yet fun and down to earth. One of the first people Tommy met was the owner of the bar, Marie's first cousin, Boudreaux Laveau. Tommy was proud that he remembered Marie mentioning her cousin's name once before because of the powerful wine he made. Tommy used that memory when they shook hands. "You must be Marie's cousin, the vintner," Tommy said, remembering his wine lingo. Boudreaux looked at Tommy in bewildered surprise, because he'd been accused of a lot of things, but vintner wasn't one of them. Marie barked out a laugh and explained things to her cousin. "I shared a glass or two of that muscadine concoction you gave me last Christmas. It made quite an impression on him." Boudreaux grinned and nodded, he remembered that batch because it had started out as an attempt to turn the wild grapes into brandy. Boudreaux had been trying a number of different fruits in his still, because the feds had started snooping into his corn and sugar purchases. Boudreaux did okay with his lively little juke joint, but he was a wealthy man from his bootlegging activities. When not dodging the revenuers, Boudreaux Landry cooked up moonshine that was strong enough to fell an ox, yet smooth enough for your mama to serve at her Bible study group. Tommy also met Boudreaux's wife, Charlene. Charlene was a big, good-natured, dark skinned gal with a ready laugh, while Boudreaux was short and wiry. Tommy liked them both and he was amazed that the couple had seven children, the oldest in college, and the youngest in kindergarten. Charlene brought Marie and Tommy heaping bowls of delicious gumbo and fresh baked bread. Tommy ate two big helpings of the spicy gumbo, which pleased Charlene no small amount. He was doing some serious damage to a big serving of banana pudding when Boudreaux climbed up on a small bandstand at one end of the room and rift a few notes on a button accordion. Charlene was sitting with Marie and Tommy when Boudreaux started messing around on the stage. She jumped up at the first note and scooted to the stage, faster than you'd think possible for a woman of her generous proportions. Once on the stage, Charlene grabbed up a fiddle off a music stand and plucked a few notes to make sure it was in tune. When she was satisfied she was ready, she swatted Boudreaux on the ass with her bow. Boudreaux pretended to jump and then launched into a fast waltz. Tommy couldn't understand the French lyrics of the song that Boudreaux was warbling, but he loved the Cajun Zydeco music nonetheless. He watched the first two couples on the dance floor until he was satisfied that he could copy the waltz they were doing, then he turned to Marie. "Miss Marie, may I have the pleasure of this dance?" he asked, just the way Mama Rita had trained him. Marie smiled and nodded. "J'ai le plaisir, mon ami," she replied, just as she had at the cotillion. And just as it was at the cotillion, they moved together as if they had been dance partners for years. Tommy danced with Marie three times before she handed him off to Charlene's eldest daughter, Desiree. Like her mother, Desiree Laveau was a big healthy girl. Tommy guessed she was about six-one and weighed close to two hundred pounds. Desi shared her mother's dusky Creole complexion, but her midnight black hair was wavy like Connie's, rather than tightly curled like Charlene's. Her facial features were strong, but not unattractive, and although Desiree was a large woman, her curves were in all the right places. Desiree gingerly stepped into Tommy's embrace in a very proper dancing position. Tommy commented on how far she danced from him. "Miss Desiree, if you were any further away, we'd be part of a different couple," he said teasingly. She looked him in the eye for the first time and sighed. "Sorry, I just know you are dancing with me because mama put Cousin Marie up to it. Lets just finish this out so you can be with someone petite and pretty again." Tommy was intrigued that Desiree's eyes were much like Marie's, in that they were flecked with gold. But unlike Marie's, Desiree's eyes were hooded, and he wasn't falling into them. He was also surprised at the resigned tone in her voice. As it was with Marie, Tommy instinctively knew what to say to Desiree. "You aren't petite," Tommy confirmed, "but you are smaller than me, very graceful, and from what little of you that is near enough for me to feel, you are every inch a pretty woman." Desiree instinctively knew that Tommy was not spewing a line of bullshit, and she certainly liked what he was saying. She didn't object when Tommy pulled her close enough for them to dance cheek to cheek. He waltzed her over by the far corner of the bandstand right below where her mother was fiddling, then he pulled back from her a little as his left hand slipped down and touched her large firm ass. "I like this..." he said softly. Then he pulled the hand off her butt before she could react and moved it up until he could cup one of her very big breasts. "And these are nice too..." he continued as the hand kept moving upward until he touched her right between the eyes. "But this is what I think makes a woman sexy ... and I'll bet you have a big one." As she stood there gawking at him open mouthed, he trailed his index finger down and tapped her on the sternum. "I also think a good one of these is essential ... and I'll bet yours is fantastic." Desiree stopped dancing and she just stared at him. She was staring because he'd just put into words what she'd been feeling inside for the last four years. Until her sixteenth birthday, she'd traded sex on the chance it might bring her love. But on that birthday, she vowed that she wouldn't sleep with another man until she was convinced he loved her for what was in her heart and mind. It only took a couple of seconds for Desiree to process her thoughts, and then she blinked slowly and looked into Tommy's eyes again. Tommy grinned when he saw she was now wearing a junior version of Maria's mesmerizing gaze. When he pulled her back against him to resume dancing, she slipped both her arms around his neck and draped herself on him as if she were a second skin. This all happened right below Charlene, so she had a bird's eye view of the couple. She almost lost her place in the song she was bowing, when Tommy put his hand all over her daughter, and Desi didn't kick his ass into next week. Charlene glanced over at Marie when Desi molded herself to Tommy. Whatever he'd said to her must have been good, because Desiree had never danced that close to a man in her life. Marie caught the look and returned her a wink. Marie was very happy to see the attraction blossom between Tommy and Desiree; they were two of her favorite people, after all. Marie wasn't jealous, because she knew a full time relationship with Tommy was impractical for her. Of course, there wasn't much of a chance of Tommy and Desi being permanent either, but he sure looked like just the man to bring Desi out of her shell. That wasn't going to happen tonight though, because Marie had plans for the boy that didn't include Desiree. Tommy danced once more with Desi, then happily agreed when Marie suggested it was time to go home. Tommy waited at the table while Marie and Desi made a trip to the bathroom. They were gone for a good fifteen minutes. Marie took Desi with her to explain a few things about Tommy to her niece and God-child. Desiree was disappointed he was leaving so soon after they met, but she was very happy that her cousin wasn't laying claim to him. Tommy held both women's hands as they walked out to Maries dark blue Bonneville. Then at the car, he gave Desiree a sweet kiss. "Can I come back and visit you sometime, Miss Desiree?" he asked. She nodded and gave him a dazzling smile. "I'd like it a lot if you did," she replied. ------- That night, as the dappled light from a full moon caused the swamp to eerily glow, Tommy and Marie made sweet and passionate love in the little house on Bayou Laveau. It was a great night for Tommy, because Marie was a skilled and passionate lover. But for Marie, the night transcended superlatives. Yes it was outstanding physically, but the emotions of making love in her ancestors' house for the first time made it ten times better. Marie and Rene had never made love in the house, because for some reason, he'd been impotent there. And until Tommy, she'd never found another man worthy of bringing there. See, Marie was the sixth Marie Laveau in an unbroken line that stretched back to 1791. Every one of those Maries had been born in either the present house or the one that sat here before it. The first two Maries (historically known as Marie I and Marie II) were free women of color who had been powerful and well known voodoo priestesses based in New Orleans. [Hey, this part (I&II) is true — you can get the details by checking the name on Wikipedia]. Marie III did not move to New Orleans or travel much at all. She was born in 1850, so she reached adulthood during Reconstruction after the War Between the States. Marie III used her talents to make life better for the newly freed black population of southern Lafayette Parish. Marie III also did not practice voodoo, as her mother and grandmother had. The result of not practicing voodoo made it so that people respected her abilities and sought her help instead of fearing her as they had her mother and grandmother. The next two generations followed Marie III's example. The current Marie broke that tradition when she fell in love with Rene Arcenaux and moved to Lafayette to help him run his family's hotel. She also broke with tradition when she took her husband's name instead of keeping Laveau. She did those things because of the love she felt in him when they touched and the love that she felt for him. Rene was uncomfortable with Marie's talent and her family's reputation, so she suppressed one and moved away from the other. One thing she couldn't break with though, was the gift that ran in her family. The Laveau women were blessed (or cursed) with an uncanny ability to read the slightest things about a person and fairly accurately deduce what they were thinking, regardless of what they were saying. After Rene died in Korea, and while the children were young, she used her talent sparingly. She was just too busy for more, what with three young children all a year apart and a hotel to manage. Once all three children were in school, she had more freedom of movement, met more people and even started visiting Bayou Laveau again. Word got around about the quality of the advice she gave, and it wasn't uncommon for two or three people a week to seek her out. Still, she'd carefully kept her Arcenaux persona and mostly suppressed the Laveau. Now though, after two days here with Tommy, the Laveau was starting to reassert itself. She could actually sense the lingering presence of her deceased ancestors' essence. As she lay there is her blissfully sated state with Tommy's strong arms wrapped around her, she suddenly had the clearest glimpse of someone's future that she'd ever had. And that someone was her. The vision or dream or whatever was so clear and correct, that it jolted her wide awake and she sat up with a gasp. She'd had it all wrong. It wasn't a little Rene in her womb, it was a little Marie. And her daughter would be born in this very house with the name Marie Laveau on her birth certificate. Best of all, the daughter in her vision had all of her mother Marie's talents and all of her father Tommy's goodness. Marie VII would be born bound for greatness. ------- Chapter 23 Tommy and Marie returned to the hotel Thursday morning. Connie eyed them anxiously from her station behind the registration desk, as they walked in holding hands. Her anxious look was replaced by a relieved smile, when Marie gave her a surreptitious thumbs-up. "Welcome back you two. Did you have a good time?" Connie asked. Marie left the telling to Tommy, and took off to make her morning rounds of the hotel. Tommy eagerly told Connie about his visit to Bayou Laveau. "Guess what?" Tommy asked excitedly. Without waiting for Connie's reply, he answered his own question. "Marie helped me throw all of Old Tommy's bad thoughts into the bayou. Now they are gone, just like Old Tommy's money. I sure hope he didn't leave anything else for me to take care of, because I want to be done with him forever." Connie smiled, leaned across the counter and planted a quick kiss on his cheek. "That's wonderful, Honey. I have some good news for you too, because the Houston Police found your truck. A bunch of parts were stolen off it, but it was still worth saving. Ben and Ramon picked it up yesterday, and will have it fixed in a week or so." Tommy thought finding his truck was great news, because he was certain he'd never see it again. Connie took advantage of his cheery mood. "So listen, Tommy, I need to head back to Houston to take care of something. Will you be alright here until I come back for you Sunday?" The 'something' Connie needed to take care of in Houston was Roger Taylor, the drug dealer who slipped Tommy the LSD. Paloma was going to take her to a few places Taylor frequented on Saturday nights, and Connie would take it from there. Surprisingly, peace loving earth mother Paloma was all for Connie extracting some cowgirl revenge. And Connie had some serious revenge in mind for that weasel. "Sure I will, Connie. I met some new friends at Cousin Boudreau's bar, so I'll go there and dance with Miss Desiree and eat gumbo," Tommy replied. Salmarie, who had been standing behind the registration desk yakking with Connie when Tommy and Marie walked in, jerked her head up at the mention of her cousin Desiree. "You danced with Desiree Laveau?" Salmarie asked incredulously. "Sure I did," Tommy replied. "She likes me, so we danced a couple of times. She even asked me to come back and see her again. Maybe someone will take me back there Friday night, since Connie will be gone." Connie looked confused for a minute, then snapped her fingers. It took her a minute to associate names and faces, because she hadn't been around Lafayette in almost six years. But before that, she and her husband had been frequent visitors. Her husband, Beau Baumgartner's grandmother, had been a Laveau, so Marie and Boudreau were his kissing cousins. As a matter of fact, his grandmother's stories about the Marie Laveaus were Beau's inspiration for the movie Voodoo She-Devil that he'd filmed on location around the hotel Arcenaux and the Bayou Laveau. They had even filmed a scene at Boudreau's bar. "Desiree is Boudreau's oldest daughter, right? Last time I saw her she was only thirteen or fourteen, but I remember she was a big girl and fully developed," Connie said. Salmarie nodded that Connie's recollection was correct, and then turned to Tommy. "Rudy Landry and I are going to Boudreau's Friday night, and you are welcome to come with us," she offered. Tommy accepted the offer before wandering off to help Pierre work around the outside of the hotel. Once he was out of earshot, Salmarie filled Connie in on her cousin. "Desi is a very sweet girl most of the time, but she has a really bad temper. She has had bad luck with men and usually ignores them, so it's nice that she seems to like Tommy. If she gets mad at him, though, she will beat him up worse than those guys did in Houston." Connie gave Salmarie a reassuring smile and said, "Oh, don't worry about her getting mad at Tommy. He is too polite and will treat her too well for that to happen. Now I wish I didn't have to go back to Houston, so I could go with you all. I remember how much fun Boudreau's place was." ------- After supper that night, Connie took Tommy up to the Honeymoon Suite and let him show her how much he'd missed her. Even though she'd spent a couple of entertaining nights with Michelle, and was planning on seducing Paloma when she hit Houston, nothing compared to spending time in Tommy's arms. It took him a couple of hours and three tries, but he finally reduced her to a puddle of endorphins, too deliciously sated to move. Lying there snuggled up with her head on his chest, Connie was surer than ever about how much she loved him. He was kind, gentle and caring out of the bed, and a tiger in it. And with Tommy being uniquely how he was, she didn't have to worry about him playing games. Connie knew men, she'd used them for her amusement and gain since she was twelve, but she understood Tommy. He was so open and sincere, any woman who took the time could do the same thing. She knew Tommy thought it was perfectly natural to be in love with more than one woman at a time. Understanding that about Tommy kept her from being jealous of the other women in his life. In fact, she'd discovered that having Tommy in common with another woman brought her and the other woman closer. It had worked out that way with Ruth, and she was positive it would happen with Paloma. Ruth said that Tommy gravitated towards women who were out of the norm, because he was so different. And as Connie thought about it, she realized Ruth was exactly right. Tommy seemed to be attracted to slightly damaged women who had big streaks of independence, and they to him. Tommy complemented the lives of those women instead of dominating them. He did not demand their attention all the time, so they could have a life that wasn't centered on him. She could have her acting, Ruth could have her library, Marie could have her hotel and Paloma could have her causes. Because the women had so much in common, it was easy for them to become friends ... and more. It was a great way to have a relationship, except that society frowned on the notion. Then again, the women concerned had never been ones to let what society thought bother them. Tommy didn't see a problem and knew he was doing the right thing, so he didn't care either; he just wanted to be there for them. All of this led her back to the reason for her trip to Houston. Tommy was a rare and special person, and that son-of-a-bitch Taylor had almost destroyed him. Without Tommy, there would be some very unhappy people, chief among them Conchita Delgado and his other women. Taylor had hurt their man badly, and it was up to her to make him pay. Connie Delgado had grown up in the Ozarks where feuding was second nature, so she wasn't interested in justice, she wanted revenge. Connie departed for Houston the next morning, right after a late breakfast with Marie. Tommy had been up for hours by then, working hard with Pierre, planting flowers in the little park behind the hotel. Tommy knew Marie loved the little garden, so he was happy to help. Connie tracked him down and gave him a kiss. "I'll see you Sunday baby. Stay out of trouble until then, okay?" she admonished. ------- That night, Tommy's feet had barely touched the gravel parking lot of Boudreaux and Charlene's Bar and Grill, when Desi came hurtling out of nowhere and slammed him against the side of Rudy's brand new Grand Torino. "TOMMY!" she squealed, then she attached her lips to his and proceeded to suck what little air he had left from his lungs. When she finally let up the pressure enough for him to catch his breath, Tommy held her at arms length, took an exaggerated look up and down her body, and whistled. "Wow, Desi, you look fantastic. I don't know how you expect me to keep my hands to myself when you look like this," he said. Tommy was his usual truthful self, because even Salmarie was amazed by how good Desi looked. Desiree was wearing a knee length red skirt and a white blouse that exposed a hint of her ample bosom. Her wavy ink black hair was caught up in a red ribbon that matched her skirt. At the other end of her body, oxblood Bass Weejun loafers adorned her size eleven feet. Desi looked Tommy dead in the eye and replied, "Cherie, I will be disappointed if at the end of the evening there is a place on me you haven't touched." Desi gave speechless Salmarie a hug and nodded hello to Rudy. It took Salmarie seeing Desi all over Tommy to believe his story. For his part, Rudy always tried to keep Salmarie between him and her cousin. Rudy had a healthy and well-earned fear of Desiree Laveau that he developed after the first time he'd seen her lose her temper and kick the shit out of some fresh mouthed bayou coonass. A lot of men felt that way about Desi; her imposing size, well documented temper and meanness in a fight were enough to scare anyone. Tommy and Desi led the way into the bar. Desi had both her hands wrapped around Tommy's left arm, as if she expected him to try to escape as they walked through the door. Tommy said hello to a few of the people he'd met last time, and Desi introduced him to some other folks that hadn't been there the other night. Charlene gave Tommy and Salmarie big hugs before showing them to a table. Even when they were seated, Desi kept a possessive grip on Tommy's arm. The special in the restaurant that night was a spicy Jambalaya that teetered on the edge of being too hot. Tommy loved it and burned through two bowls in a hurry. After peach cobbler for dessert, Tommy was ready to dance. Desiree had more on her mind than dancing, but for appearance sake, she took Tommy up on his polite offer. As soon as they hit the floor, Desiree was on him like Superman's tights. Tommy had not one problem with her being plastered against him, despite her size. Desiree had an hour glass figure of the extra large variety, with wide hips and shoulders and a surprisingly small pinched in waist. Her breasts were large and her butt stuck out prominently. She also had fairly muscular legs and arms that were in proportion to her build. Because she was so uniquely different, Tommy felt for Desi the same strong attraction he felt towards Connie, Ruth, Paloma and Marie. Desi obviously felt the same attraction, and that worried Salmarie. So like her mother had on Wednesday night, Salmarie took Desi into the ladies room to discuss it. "Desi, Tommy is a good guy, but you know he has other women, including my mother, right? I know you like him, but I don't want you to get hurt." Desi's answer was a surprise. "That's all fine with me Sal, your mother explained all that when she told me about him Wednesday night. I don't need a full time man anyway. Not while I'm in college, and maybe even not after that. You know how I am, I like living alone after sharing a house with six brothers and a sister for so many years." Salmarie gave a sigh of relief as they went back to join their men. She had dreaded the thought of a heartbroken Desiree Laveau running amok. Desiree made it to the first break in the music before she grabbed Tommy's arm and pulled him to his feet. "I'll bring him home in a day or two," she tossed over her shoulder to Salmarie, as she dragged Tommy towards the door. Desiree didn't care that every eye in the place was fixed on them as they made their exit. She was burning with passion she didn't know existed until tonight, and she needed Tommy now. She gave her parents a wave as she and Tommy ducked through the door. With a firm grip on Tommy's hand, Desi stalked around the building that housed the bar and grill and headed up the driveway to her family's home. Boudreau's moonshine money had built the family a big rambling ranch on a rare piece of high and dry bayou land. When Desi was sixteen, Boudreaux had built a detached three car garage to house his speed boat and souped up 64 Plymouth hemi powered, full sized sedan. Both vehicles were pleasant hobbies that were well adapted for running shine. Above the garage he'd built a nice little apartment for Desiree. Boudreau and Charlene loved Desi to death, but worried that she'd gotten too much of the wrong kind of Laveau blood, because of the strange way she acted some times. The apartment let her have her freedom and privacy while keeping her near the family. The couple had only taken a few steps up the slightly inclined driveway, before Tommy suddenly jerked them to a halt. Desi gave him a vexed look until he pulled her into his arms and kissed her passionately. When he broke the kiss, he leaned back and looked into her eyes. "Where are you taking me, Desi?" he asked. "To my apartment so we can make love," Desi replied. Tommy continued to look her in the eye. "I'd like that, Desi, but you don't have to for us to be friends," Tommy said. Desi squirmed out of his grasp and grabbed his hand again. "We are going to be much more than friends, silly man," she said firmly as she pulled him up the hill. The first fifteen minutes Tommy and Desi spent in her apartment looked like a heavy weight professional wrestling match, as Desi was in a hurry to get down to business and Tommy tried to slow her down so she'd enjoy it more. In the end, Tommy finally got his way, but it had been a close thing, as Desiree was almost as strong as he was. By the thirty minute mark, Desi was very happy she gave in, because Tommy was doing things to her she didn't know could be done. Tommy seemed to instinctively know where every responsive place was on her body, regardless of how small. Tommy thought the way she responded to him was very cool, as the normally loud and assertive young woman cooed and sweetly moaned out her pleasure. She seemed to enjoy every place he touched her. Tommy also thought her body was fantastic. Sure she was big, but that just meant there was more for him to love. She wasn't flabby at all, instead, she was firm and smooth, and her breasts, although about twice the size of Connie's substantial pair, stood up proudly from her chest with only a slight sag to the side. Desiree decided she really liked this slow and languid love making technique, because it stretched out her pleasure, and at the pace Tommy was setting, she could enjoy this all night long. As Tommy brought her to another wonderful climax, she decided her flip comment about bringing Tommy home in a day or two was on the short side of being correct. ------- While Tommy was being held a prisoner of love by the delightful Desiree, Connie Delgado had her hands full with the insatiable Paloma. The tall, slender young woman turned Connie everyway but loose for three solid hours. Yet she still seemed as fresh as a daisy when Connie called it quits. Connie knew the next time she took on Paloma, she was going to have some help. She shivered at the thought of double-teaming Paloma with Tommy, or better yet, Ruthie, when the little minx was in one of her dominant moods. Connie slept in the next morning, then huddled up with Paloma to work on her disguise for that night. Although Roger Taylor didn't know her, she wanted to make sure the description he gave of her was off the mark. Being an actress would help in that regard, as she could alter how she acted and spoke. Paloma really helped the cause when she dug out a high quality, long blond wig. The preparations included a trip to a nice boutique that catered to mod college women. Connie put on the blond wig and drove to the Holiday Inn, where she rented a room for the night, using a fake name, address and tag number. The male desk clerk was so busy staring at her, he didn't ask her to verify any of the information she gave. She took her new clothes and her make-up to the room and transformed herself into Lorelei, a southern belle visiting from Alabama. Paloma picked her up at seven-thirty when it was fully dark. At eight-thirty that night, Paloma spotted Roger's new Dodge van in the parking lot of a hippie hang out named the Red Rooster Club. She pulled her Karmann Ghia convertible around the corner and dropped Connie off. Roger Taylor did a double take when the beautiful stacked blond sauntered into the Rooster and coolly looked around. He continued to watch her as she shrugged, walked to the bar and draped herself onto a stool. Connie was wearing a dark green and black tartan miniskirt and a medium weight dark green sweater. She was braless under the sweater, but her amazing breasts proudly stood up and out on their own. Her long legs were bare and she wore tall, high-heeled black boots. The long blond wig hung loosely down her back. Her makeup was flawless, but barely detectible, making her appear ten years younger than she was. Roger was smoothly beside her before the bartender arrived. "Hello Gorgeous, can I buy you a drink?" he asked. Connie was thrilled he had taken the bait so fast, even though Paloma had informed her Roger was quite the ladies man. Connie deliberately flicked her eyes up and down him before giving him a dazzling smile. "Thank you kind sir, yes you may, a rum and coke, please," she replied in a sexy southern drawl as she extended her manicured hand. "My name is Lorelei, by the way." Roger was a handsome and self-assured seducer of impressionable young college women, but he was light years out of his league in dealing with someone like Conchita Delgado. Within fifteen minutes, Connie had him half way in love and totally wrapped around her finger. He completely bought her story about her boyfriend dumping her out of his car over some silly argument, and eagerly agreed that he was just the guy she could use to teach the errant boyfriend a lesson. Thirty minutes and one drink later, the couple was in his tricked out van with the love bead curtains and three quarter sized bed. Connie gave him a scorching kiss to get his attention, then coyly suggested her motel room would be more comfortable than his van. AJ Foyt couldn't have made it to the Holiday Inn any faster than Roger. Roger grabbed her as soon as they were in the door of the room and kissed her again. She returned the kiss and endured a few seconds of him pawing her breast, before she broke from his grip and danced away from him. "Slow down, lover," she said with a girlish giggle. "We have all night." She grabbed the ice bucket off the dresser and handed it to him. "I've got some rum, so get us some ice and a couple of cokes, and we'll party," she said. Roger had a boat load of recreational pharmaceuticals in his van, but she'd declined his offer of anything she wanted. So he figured if this goddess got off on rum, he wasn't going to argue about it. He took the bucket and dashed out the door. As soon as he was gone, Connie opened the pint bottle of Bacardi and splashed some into two of the motel room's cheap plastic glasses. Then she fished a small brown medicine bottle out of her purse and poured about half the contents into one of the glasses. Marie said the potion would knock him out for at least an hour. Connie let things proceed normally, to allay Roger's suspicions while she waited for the knock out drops Marie had given her to work. So when he finally passed out, she was perched in his lap, wearing nothing but a pair of French-cut pink panties. Connie pulled the unconscious man onto the bed and efficiently stripped him naked, then she tied him spread-eagled to the sturdy motel room bed frame. After double checking her knots, she turned on the television and sat in the room's easy chair to wait for him to wake up. Roger came around an hour and a half later, just as the opening credits of her movie Rock and Roll Frankenstein appeared on the television. Connie hadn't seen the movie in ages, but it was one of her favorites, because she played the singer in a rock and roll band and actually performed the songs that she and Beau wrote. She reluctantly turned off the TV and stood by the bed as Roger groaned and tugged against his bonds. When he saw her looming over him still almost naked, he relaxed somewhat. "I'm not into this kinky shit," he snarled menacingly. Connie smiled and stepped out of her panties. When Roger gaped at her (thanks to Paloma) newly-shaven nether region, she stuffed the panties into his mouth. She took his belt and looped it around his head a couple of times to keep the gag in place, then took a bag off the dresser and put it on the bed. "That's too bad," she said sweetly, "because if that's true, you probably aren't going to enjoy this much." Connie made a production out of reaching into the bag and pulling out a piece of surgical tubing about eighteen inches long. Roger kept looking back and forth between Connie's face and the tubing in her hand, as she sat astride his knees and looped the tubing twice around his scrotum and penis. Any hope that Roger had about this being some kind of kinky sex act was dashed when Connie leaned forward and looked him dead in the eye as she pulled on the ends of the tubing, stretching it tight around the base of his scrotum. When the tubing was as tight as she could make it, she tied it in a neat square knot and sat back with a smile. "This is the way my granddaddy use to castrate pigs, only he used strips of rubber he cut from old car tire inner tubes. Of course, granddaddy never tied up their dicks too, but I figure it must be about the same principle. After a surprisingly short time, the lack of blood flow starts killing the tissue on the other side of the rubber band. I figure in a few hours, these things aren't going to be of use to you anymore. But then again, you probably won't need them in prison anyway." Connie climbed of Roger as he started to fight against his bonds. She smiled when she saw he was only pulling the knots tighter. She unhurriedly dressed in an outfit of her own clothing and then collected all of her props from the evening; Lorelei's clothes, the pint of rum, the cokes and even the glasses went into her shopping bag. She checked the room twice before she was satisfied that she'd sterilized it, then she took a sheet of the motel stationary and wrote a note in big block letters. I AM A DRUG PUSHER FOR PROOF LOOK IN MY VAN She stuck the note in between the dresser mirror and its frame, threw the pen into her shopping bag and strode out of the room without a backwards glance. She disposed of the shopping bag in a dumpster about a mile from the motel, and drove back to Paloma's house. Connie slipped into Paloma's spare bedroom at two in the morning; she was tired but satisfied with her night. She figured the maid would find Roger sometime after check out, so she didn't think Roger's dick and balls would actually have time to fall off, but the thought that they might, brought her more satisfaction than the idea of him going to prison for the drugs in his van. Connie's only regret was that she couldn't tell Roger why she was doing what she did, but to identify Tommy would have pointed suspicion towards her, and she couldn't risk that. Nevertheless, she'd extracted her revenge, and that's what counted. ------- Connie arrived back in Lafayette around two in the afternoon on Sunday. A serenely smiling Desi brought Tommy back at three-thirty. Tommy insisted that Desi come in and meet Connie. Desi still remembered her cousin by marriage. She'd been star struck by the exotically beautiful woman when she was a young teen, so there was no friction between Desi and Connie. Instead, they greeted each other as if they were sisters, which because of Tommy, in a way they were. Connie was very happy when Desiree said she was coming to spend some time with them in Brantley as soon as the college semester ended. Connie and Tommy loaded their bags in the cavernous truck of the Eldorado and were rocketing back towards Houston by five. Tommy didn't feel bad about saying goodbye to Marie or Desi, because both women made it clear he'd be seeing them again soon. For once, Caroline didn't have plans for the evening when Tommy and Connie arrived at Paloma's. Caroline was incredibly relieved to see that Tommy was back to his usual self. She felt largely responsible for what happened to Tommy, because of how she had avoided being near him. And in her heart of hearts, she was envious and jealous of the time that Paloma spent with him. Tommy's other women were part of the reason her head kept her heart from having its way. Connie saw immediately how conflicted Caroline was, and privately told Tommy to take the girl for a walk so she could talk to him in private. Caroline didn't protest a peep when Tommy took her hand and started strolling around the block. She took the opportunity to immediately apologize to him for the way she acted. Tommy's reaction was not what she expected. "You don't need to apologize to me, Caroline. I wasn't expecting you to act any different than you did. Heck, I know you are only talking to me now because you feel sorry for me for what happened. I know how you feel about me, and I'm okay with that. You want someone who I can never be, but regardless, you are family and I'll always be here for you." Caroline was taken aback that he summed up the situation so completely. She tried to muster a counter argument, but it really did all boil down to her stubborn pride and unrealistic expectations. She loved him; she just couldn't accept him the way he was. Connie would have loved to spend the night with Tommy and Paloma both, but the situation wasn't right, and Tommy nixed the idea when they retired to Paloma's guest room. When she crawled out of bed the next morning, Tommy was already dressed and sitting in the kitchen, drinking coffee and perusing the sports section of the paper. Paloma was across from him with her nose buried in the local news section. Tommy saw Connie shamble in, and jumped up to fix her a cup of coffee as she slid into an empty chair. Paloma shot her a smile as she sat down. Paloma knew Connie wasn't a morning person like Tommy, and she couldn't resist teasing her. "Good morning, Sunshine," Paloma chirped good-naturedly. "What's good about it?" Connie grumped. Paloma smiled wider, folded the newspaper in half and slid it across the table. "This!" she said, tapping an article with her forefinger. Connie's eyebrows went up as she picked up the paper and read the title of the article. Narcotics Arrest Made at Local Motel, it read. Connie quickly scanned through the two inch column. A suspicious activity call from the Holiday Inn on Central Avenue led to the arrest of Roger Thorne Taylor, a student at Baylor University and a native of Camden, New Jersey. Houston Police charged Taylor with multiple counts of possession of illegal narcotics, after finding a large assortment of drugs in his vehicle. Witnesses at the scene related that a hotel maid found Taylor bound and gagged shortly after eleven AM, Sunday morning. Officers responding to the call transported Taylor to Houston General Hospital for treatment of unspecified injuries. Sergeant Gann of the Houston PD vice squad speculated that Taylor was the victim of retaliation for a drug deal gone awry. Connie smiled, in spite of the early hour. She had hoped that the details of Roger's predicament would make the paper, but the Chronicle had taken the high road and omitted the salacious details. She knew though, that stories like this were hard to suppress, and it wouldn't be long before Roger's plight was public knowledge. Tommy's appointment with Doctor Raeburn was short and sweet. Raeburn was pleased that one member of the seemingly endless stream of damaged veterans passing through his ward came out alright, and happily sent Tommy home after only fifteen minutes. Raeburn did not have the luxury of being curious about Tommy's miraculous recovery, because he had six new admissions from over the weekend, three of them homeless Vietnam Vets. Connie had them back in Brantley by four that afternoon. Tommy was elated about being home, and insisted Connie drive him around so he could thank all his friends for the help they'd given him while he was away. Jose Luna and his brother had tended his goats, Bucky Grimes had pitched in extra hours at the feed store, and Ben and Ramon were fixing his truck. Connie and Tommy made it home a few minutes after Ruth. It was a toss up as to who was happier to see Tommy, Ruth or Rex. After hugs and kisses with Ruth, Tommy hustled out back to tend his goats, with Rex right on his heels. As was his habit, Tommy talked to his amazing yellow dog as they herded the goats toward the barn. "You know, Rex, Houston is a nice place to visit, but I wouldn't want to live there." ------- Chapter 24 As with every adversity he'd encountered since leaving the hospital, Tommy learned from his trip to Houston. He had answered the question he had about dealing with strangers, and he'd met some wonderful new friends. Sure, he'd had the misfortune to run into Roger Taylor, but his not being smart with people had nothing to do with what Taylor did. Heck, Taylor had even fooled Paloma, and his slender friend had known him for longer than a year. Ruth said that in bigger cities, more people got away with being bad like that because they were constantly meeting strangers to take advantage of. In Brantley, where everyone knew everyone else, that didn't happen so much. Connie learned some things from the trip too, and sat down with Ruth and Rita to discuss them Tuesday at lunch at the Bluebonnet Diner. Once they ordered, Connie spoke her piece. "This past week made me realize how much Tommy means to me. I mean. I knew I loved him before, but I didn't know exactly how empty my life would be without him." Connie paused and took a sip of her sweet tea. Rita nodded her understanding, so Connie pressed on. "And you know I'm not the only one who feels that way. We women who love Tommy need to band together to protect him. But we need to do it in a way that we don't smother him. And we also need to decide how our relationships with each other are going to work." Connie had expected Rita to figure something out, but it was Ruth Silverman, the quiet librarian, who spoke up first. "We'll make it work, I'll see to that," she said forcefully. "Next weekend, Tommy is going up to Dallas with Regina and Melody, so why don't all of us women meet up in Lafayette and work this out?" And that's exactly what happened... ------- On the last Saturday in April of 1971, while Tommy was up in Dallas helping rid Regina and Melody of their pesky technical virginities, seven women met up at the Hotel Arcenaux dining room. The women were all wildly different from each other, yet all connected by their bond to Tommy. Conchita Delgado, the beautiful and sultry actress, was one of the women, as was Ruth Silverman, the petite librarian. Becky Dierdorf, Tommy's former tutor and now a nursing student in Dallas, had also made the trip from Brantley. Paloma (Susan Compton), the hippie American Indian, drove in from Houston. Marie Arcenaux, the owner of the hotel and her cousin Desiree, a student at the University of Southwest Louisiana, were numbers five and six. The seventh woman was Rita Maude Fricke, Tommy's adopted mother, and the only one at the table not in a sexual relationship with Tommy. Ruth had suggested the meeting, so it seemed only natural for her to take charge of it. Next to Becky Dierdorf, Tommy's presence in her life had changed Ruth the most. His calm and unwavering support of her gave her the self-confidence to become more assertive. At work, the new attitude had bulldozed right through the bureaucrats of the state library board's objections to her expansion plans. The result was not one, but two new bookmobiles and a five thousand square foot addition to the Brantley library building. At home, she'd shed her inhibitions and discovered that she had a kinky side when it came to being the dominant partner when with another woman. Introductions were made all around, then Ruth took the floor. "Ladies, most people would say that Thomas Bledsoe was about the luckiest guy on earth. How could he not be, with six of the finest women on the planet in love with him, and a mother as great as Rita?" Ruth waited for the laughter to die down, then continued. "But I think we are the really lucky ones, because we have him and we know that he loves and respects each of us completely and without reservation or expectation. "With a couple of exceptions, we all don't know each other very well yet, and an outsider looking at us would see six really different women. Yet from knowing Tommy as well as I do, I know we all have much in common. For one thing, I know we are all strong minded and independent women. For another, we aren't that concerned how society views us. We are who we are instead of whom society wants us to be. Having said that, society is changing and more and more people are moving away from antiquated ideas, so what we have might become the norm in a few years. Whatever happens though, a relationship based on love and respect can't be a bad thing." With so many exceptionally bright women working on it, they quickly came up with an agreement. Tommy was best off being right where he was they decided, so they would revolve around him in Brantley. The only major change to what was going on in Tommy's life now, would be an expansion of his house to accommodate the women not living there, so they could move in. Ruth and Paloma's trust funds would pay for the expansion. Ruth had guessed that the women had so much in common, they would all become better than good friends, and she was absolutely correct. It was amazing how quickly they bonded. And given all that commonality, it shouldn't have been much of a surprise that there were groups of them that related to each other separate from the group. Desi and Becky hit it off immediately, because they were the same age and because they both had thought themselves unattractive until they met Tommy. Rita and Marie as the oldest and mothers of grown children, had much to talk about, too. Connie, Ruth and Paloma also had much in common, although they weren't ready to talk about it in a public forum. Connie was tickled that Paloma was practically swooning over Ruth. Ruth saw the looks, and made a point of making plenty of eye contact and casually touched the tall woman every chance she got. That night, the seven of them dressed up and met at Boudreau and Charlene's Bar and Grill to continue their bonding in a strictly social setting. Charlene and Desiree pushed two tables together and the women sat around and talked. As they became comfortable with each other, each of them told the group what they wanted in a relationship with Tommy. There were some surprises. For instance, Paloma was moving permanently to Brantley to be with them as soon as she finished the two courses she was attending. She was going to help Connie with her dude ranch idea. Becky Dierdorf planned on moving to the ranch also. She was scheduled to complete the hospital registered nurse program and take the licensing exam at the end of June. Becky was crazy in love with Tommy, and was giddy with the idea that all these other women thought it wonderful that she felt that way. Her big problem was finding a job near Brantley. Connie told her not to worry about it, because she would need a person with medical training at her dude ranch. Becky would be perfect for the job, because she was an excellent horse woman, and could do double duty as a riding instructor. Desiree planned on visiting for a month, and both she and Marie hoped Tommy could come spend a week or two in Lafayette with them. The group split up at eleven. Marie and Rita headed out together in Marie's Bonneville, towards Marie's house on the Bayou Laveau. Marie had some things to tell Rita in private; chief among them, the fact that Rita was going to be a grandmother in about six months. Becky and Desiree stayed at the roadhouse, yakking. They were amazed at how similar their experiences with men had been. They were also thrilled to have found a best friend. Connie, Ruth and Paloma headed back to the hotel, but they weren't leaving just so they could talk. Ruth made that clear when she pushed Paloma into the backseat of Connie's Caddy and slid in behind her. As Connie pulled out of the parking lot, Ruth crawled into Paloma's lap, grabbed a fistful of her hair and pulled her mouth down for a blistering kiss. Paloma moaned in lust when Ruth broke the kiss by jerking the tall woman's head back until they were eye to eye. "I think I'm going to keep you," Ruthie growled. Paloma's eye lids fluttered and she shivered. "I'd like that ... a lot," she whispered huskily. When Connie spent that wild Friday night with Paloma, she'd fantasized about Ruth, Paloma and her being together, but the reality was ten times better. Ruth seemed to know exactly which buttons of Paloma's to push, and Paloma eagerly did whatever the small librarian demanded. Hell, for that matter, so did Connie. When the women parted ways Sunday morning, they were a family. As they said their tearful goodbyes in front of the hotel, they vowed that they would all get together at least twice a year. ------- Tommy returned from his long weekend in Dallas on Monday night. He'd had a great time with Mel and Gina, but he was happy to be home. Melody and Regina were his friends and he was more than glad to help them experience sex with a man before they started college, but because he did not have that special connection with them, it wasn't as satisfying for him. Tommy and both girls knew it was a one time thing. After all the excitement in April, Tommy's life settled down into a routine that suited him just fine. He worked, tended his goats, took care of his women, and on Sundays, he hosted the special needs kids from his Sunday school class. That was enough for him. While Tommy basked in his simple life, the people around him seemed to explode into a frenzy of activity. Connie moved her dude ranch forward quickly during the month of May. The road between her spread and Tommy's was completed and the new gates installed. Pablo Luna had refurbished the bunk house into four, two man rooms, and a single room for the ranch foreman. He also subcontracted a plumber to install two modern bathrooms. Connie had furnished and decorated the four guest rooms in the bunk house and reconfigured the main ranch house so that she had an additional three guestrooms and a nice suite. Then she turned her attention to upgrading the stables and sprucing up the corrals that flanked it. In town, Brantley Farm and Ranch Center was doing better than Harold's wildest expectations. Business was so brisk, he had eight full-time employees now, plus Bucky Grimes and another part time high school student. Harold was in the process of expanding the business yet again by building a rental center so farmers and ranchers could rent equipment they couldn't afford to buy. Harold's vision of providing farmers and ranchers a one stop place that met all their needs was coming to fruition. Ruth was also busy that month as she hired an architect to design a new house around Tommy's existing one. Tommy went along with her expansion plans, because she let him think he was financing the new digs with a home improvement loan from Brantley Savings and Loan. Even though Ruth secretly backed the loan, Tommy could have afforded it anyway, what with the money his one-third interest in the expanded feed store was generating. The remodel was centered on a huge master suite with a cavernous walk-in closet, a large bathroom with three sinks, and a separate shower big enough for six people. The bedroom would be twenty-five feet by twenty feet, so it could house the double king-sized bed Connie had ordered from a custom furniture builder in San Angelo. The living room was growing by fifty percent, and the kitchen was doubling in size with all the latest modern conveniences installed. The outside of the house was receiving a brick façade and all new windows. Ruth was also having central air-conditioning and heat installed. French doors leading out to a new patio and pool were going into the expanded living room and the new master suite. Paloma arrived with bag and baggage during the second week of June, and moved right into Tommy's house and bed. She had been spending most weekends at the ranch anyway. Paloma's two classes at Baylor were on Tuesdays and Thursdays, so she drove up Thursday night and went home Monday afternoon. Paloma had been working with Connie on the dude ranch during those visits, so when Connie took off for an acting gig in the middle of June, the conversion of the Happy Endings Ranch didn't miss a beat. Desiree arrived a week after Paloma. She would be staying with them for a couple of months before classes started in late August. Desiree moved into one of the spare bedrooms instead of Tommy's room. She did that because she wasn't yet comfortable about making love with an audience, and she wasn't sure how she felt about sex with another woman. She wasn't inherently against the idea; it was just something beyond her experience. She had to admit, though, that when tiny self-assured Ruthie flirted with her, it made her heart beat a little faster. Desiree turned out to have an affinity for dealing with Tommy's goats, so she helped him tend them. She went with Tommy in July when he purchased another thirty nannies from the same breeder down in Edwards County. Including the kids birthed by the pregnant nannies he bought in February, Tommy's herd now numbered sixty-one. Tommy was surprised that it didn't take much more effort to raise sixty goats than it did for twenty. The plans for the remodeling of Tommy's house were ready by the time Paloma and Desiree moved in, and Ruth had hired the contractor her architect recommended. Construction began on the first of July. It was inconvenient living in the house while construction was going on all around them, but they managed. The construction crews were the first people to glimpse the communal lifestyle Tommy lived, and his relationship with the women was a constant source of speculation to the workmen. Tommy and the women were careful to moderate displays of affection around the workers, but still, he lived with four attractive women and that was worth talking about. Connie returned from Hollywood in mid July. She wouldn't be needed at the studio lot again until it was time to do voiceovers and to film any rewritten scenes. Connie was excited about her role as a major supporting character in the Warner Brother's film, because it was her first serious role for a major studio. That she received her biggest paycheck ever was icing on the cake. She won the role because of her strong performance in the Hammer Studio's Dracula movie she filmed in England. The film opened in American theaters in May, and had been an instant success at the box office. A few days after Connie returned from California, newly minted Registered Nurse Becky Dierdorf showed up at the door, her car loaded with her belongings. Because of the construction, Becky and Desi ended up sharing a room with twin beds. Becky was of about the same mind as Desiree about making love in front of the others because she was so body shy. Even though she had lost thirty pounds and her body was fit and toned, Becky still thought her ass was too big. She was also embarrassed by her small breasts and freckles. She knew Tommy liked the way she looked, although she didn't understand for a minute how he could feel that way. The other women were a different story, though, as they were all so attractive and seemed so self-confident. With five women in the house, it fell to Ruth to organize Tommy's schedule. It wasn't that difficult a task, because three of the five shared a bed with him anyway, and the other two simply told Ruth when they felt like having his company. For those wanting privacy, there was the third bedroom, with its queen size bed. Surprisingly, the women weren't that sexually demanding of Tommy. All of them except Paloma had very normal sexual appetites, and a couple of times a week with their man was fine for them. Ruth, Connie and Paloma also helped each other out. Ruthie was especially adept at keeping Paloma in check. Despite the bedlam associated with the remodel, July and August were wonderful months for Tommy and the women living with him. Tommy's heath was the best it had been since he had been wounded, and he was surrounded by women he loved and who loved him right back. He also had a job that he enjoyed going to each morning, and more friends than he could count. Tommy was sincere when he thanked the Lord every morning for his blessings. Tommy's sister Beth and her family came out to visit the first week of August. They had to wait until so late in the summer, because her husband Wayne, as the fire department's junior lieutenant, had last pick of vacation days. Because of the construction going on at home, Beth, Wayne and the boys became the first guests of the Happy Endings Working Ranch. Putting his sister and her family up at the dude ranch also avoided any questions from Beth or embarrassing situations around her sons. In addition, all the dude ranch had to offer was available to the Taylors in dress rehearsal form. Becky Dierdorf and her livestock auctioneer father played a big part in the ranch being ready so quickly. See, Clem Dierdorf knew about every rancher in the state, so he knew who had stock for sale that would fit into Connie's plan, and Becky knew horses better than most full time cowboys. Clem would hear of someone needing to sell a few horses and tell Becky. Becky would visit the rancher doing the selling and evaluate his stock. Becky was very picky about the horses she selected, because they had to have gentleness and patience to go along with their working skills. She was picky, but by the end of July, she'd managed to find a dozen very good quarter horses. Clem was also thrilled to take his daughter and Connie to a couple of cattle auctions. He was too ethical to interfere in the auction process in their favor, but he did point out in advance which lots they should be interested in. Connie bought a hundred head of excellent cattle for a reasonable price as a result of Clem's advice. Becky ended up running the equine side of the operation with the aid of a stable hand. For the cattle operation, Connie hired a semi-retire cowboy, named Jacobo Rios, as her foreman. Since Jacobo was Spanish for Jacob, he went by the nickname Jake. Jake was semi-retired, because he was getting a little long-in-the-tooth to boss a big operation. Connie told Jake to hire them one cowboy and a cook, both with personality and an easy going nature. Jake hired his nephew, a cowboy working on the huge Pitchfork Ranch up in King County. His nephew was an excellent vaquero, but he was disgruntled working on the Pitchfork because of the lack of any sort of social life. Not surprising, considering the population of King County was fewer than three hundred, and it was a fifty mile trip to Lubbock, the closest real city. To top it off, King County and every county around it practiced prohibition. Since young Julio Rios thought tequila and senoritas were a big part of being a vaquero, he was ready for a change. Jake knew just the cook too, only he had to get him out of jail to hire him. The man's name was Bert Felton, but everyone called him Cornbread. Cornbread Felton was a great trail cook and a damned fine fiddle player. Cornbread could have been a professional chef or musician, had it not been for his penchant for drinking to much and acting like an idiot. Like Otis on the Andy Griffith Show, Cornbread had a reserved cell in the McCulloch County Jail where he spent most weekends. Cornbread was between jobs after being fired by the Bluebonnet diner for missing work two Sundays in a row. Jake was still scratching his head over the whole concept of the weirdly named ranch owned by the beautiful Conchita Delgado. When he hired on, the señorita had him do a complete assessment of what needed to be done around the rancho. Jake completed the survey in three days, and delivered it to the boss lady. "Miss Connie, here's your list. I rewrote it so the important stuff is at the top. I'll have me a helper in a week or so, then me and the boy can start working the list," he said respectfully. Connie gave him a fond smile as she took the list. She liked Jake, rough edges and all. "That won't be necessary, Mister Rios. Instead, I want you to break the list down so our guests can do some of what's needed everyday, without doing the same thing two days in a row. For instance, one day they repair some fence, and the next day they brand a few head of cattle they have to round up. I only plan for each guest being here for a week. But you should plan your work so that you are doing something different every day for ten days, in case someone stays for two weeks. The week will start on Monday morning. The first day will be for outfitting and riding lessons. Day Seven will be a trail ride up to the fire lookout tower on Bryson Hill and a picnic. The rest of the time they are your ranch hands." Jake gave her a frog-eyed stare. "You mean someone will actually pay to be a no-account cowboy?" Connie gave him a rich laugh and nodded her head. "You bet they will, Mister Rios, and the more we charge them, the better they'll like it." ------- True to her words to Jake Rios, the Hollywood types ponied up a thousand dollars each for the chance to actually live the cowboy life. A surprising number of her guests were women. The only difference in how women were treated was that they bunked in the main house when the group wasn't sleeping out on the trail under the big Texas sky. Connie used Tommy's sister's family as a dress rehearsal for her staff, and the entire family raved about the experience. So Connie was feeling good when her first ten guests showed up early in the morning on the Second Monday in August. When the guests left Sunday afternoon, they were a tired and saddle weary, but amazingly happy bunch. Not a single one of them even hinted that a thousand dollars a week was too much to pay. As word of the ranch spread through the Hollywood grapevine, reservations poured in and soon they were booked solid for two months in advance. ------- Desiree went back to Louisiana on the twenty-fifth of August to get ready for her third year as a Ragin' Cajun of the University of Southwest Louisiana. Desi wasn't thrilled about leaving, but she put a very high value on her education, so there was never a question of her not going. She was a chemical engineering major, attending college on a full academic scholarship that was being paid for by the Texaco Oil Company. When she graduated, she had a job with Texaco as a petro-chemical engineer waiting for her. The remodel was finally completed in the middle of September. Furnishing the house took another week, but by the twenty-second, they were all ensconced in their new digs. With the new bigger bed in place in the master suite, Tommy and Ruth cajoled Becky into spending the night in it with the rest of the family. Becky's last thought before she fell asleep snuggled between Tommy and Ruth was that this was where she truly belonged. Summer in Central Texas grudgingly gave way to autumn. Time passed rapidly for Tommy and his family, because everyone was busy and happy. September faded into October and October gave way to November. And on Friday, the seventeenth of November, Tommy's family and all of his friends threw him a surprise birthday party at the VFW hall. Tommy was lured to the hall, thinking he was there to help plan the VFWs big Thanksgiving Dinner. At least a hundred people crowded in the hall's ballroom to wish Tommy a happy twenty-eighth birthday. Tommy had made a lot of friends in the last two years. Even Rex was there, his tail thumping against the hardwood floor a mile a minute. Tommy had tears in his eyes as he went around the room greeting his friends. It was incredible to him that they'd all showed up just to be with him on his birthday. It was a diverse group celebrating with him. Yet, from Irv Glickman the plastic surgeon to Jose Luna the delivery truck driver, everyone there was a better person for knowing Thomas Bledsoe. Tommy had overcome tremendous adversity and achieved more than anyone believed possible, and he did it with grace and dignity. Tommy had changed in many ways, yet he was still the kindest, most generous and humble person any of them had ever met. Rita Maude Fricke also had tears in her eyes as she watched her son take time to talk to everyone there. When she thought back to the lost boy standing in the doorway of the feed store with the help wanted sign in his hand, and compared him to the gregarious and self possessed man talking and joking with his many friends, she had to glance skyward and silently thanked her Lord for the miracle that he'd performed. ------- Epilogue One person very close to Tommy was conspicuously absent from his birthday party that evening in 1972. That person was Marie Laveau, who, until recently, had been using the name Marie Arcenaux. She missed the party because she was busy giving birth to me, Marie Felicia Laveau. Tommy Bledsoe was my father, and the one responsible for my middle name. See, I'm the seventh Marie Laveau and Felicia means lucky in Latin. I'm also the reason you are reading the amazing story of my father. I wrote what you just read when I was fifteen. I interviewed dozens of people to get the story. The story is a result of a college admission essay I wrote about the person I admired most (yes, I graduated high school at the age of fifteen). I picked my amazing Daddy, of course. Writing the essay piqued my interest in his life story, so I went about finding out all I could. Daddy was reluctant to talk about himself, but Grandma Rita and all my aunts were glad to help. I dragged this story out of storage after Daddy passed away because I thought it inspirational, and the more people who knew about him the better. Daddy was too modest to let the story see the light of day while he was alive. Daddy died suddenly and peacefully in his sleep in 1995. He was fifty years old. It was his brain that killed him, as a blood vessel burst in his damaged left frontal lobe. The pathologist who performed his autopsy said that it was a miracle that the stroke hadn't happened twenty years earlier, given the trauma his brain had suffered. I knew the exact second he died, even though I was in Louisiana and he was in Texas when it happened. I sat straight up in bed from a sound sleep and knew he was gone. Daddy's funeral was huge, because he had even more friends at the age of fifty than he did on his twenty-eighth birthday. Because he wanted it that way, his funeral was a celebration of his life instead of a mourning for his death. After the graveside service, three or four hundred people jammed into the VFW hall to laugh and joke and reminisce about daddy. Grandma Rita, my aunts and my mother sat at a big table at the front of the room. All of them were sad of course, but they were also grateful for the twenty plus years they were able to spend with him. They knew from the start that his ravaged brain was a ticking time bomb. My two brothers and three sisters were also there. The two people who took Daddy's passing the hardest were Aunt Ruth's sixteen year old son Joshua and Aunt Becky's fifteen year old daughter Katie. My other two sisters were Rachael, Ruth's daughter and Paloma's daughter Karma. Aunt Connie and my cousin Desiree were childless by choice. My second brother was Aunt Caroline's three-year-old son Tommy, Jr. Yes, Caroline finally followed her heart and moved back to Brantley to be with Daddy. Only it took fifteen years and three husbands for her to admit that glitz, glamour and high society husbands could never make her as happy as the uncomplicated manager of the Brantley Farm and Ranch Supply Center. My father died a very wealthy man, but he still hopped out of bed every morning and opened the store at eight. With him, it was never about the money. Daddy was rich because he still owned one third of Farmers and Ranchers Supply, and the store he managed was one of twenty scattered throughout Texas. He could have held a corporate office job or just sat back and let the money roll in; Daddy could have also lived the life of a kept man because all of his women were very well off and they would have loved him being home taking it easy, but Tommy Bledsoe wasn't wired that way. Daddy overcame seemingly insurmountable adversity to live the life he wanted, so I know he died happy. I also know that, because he was on it for a while, the world is a better place and the lives he touched are better for it. What better legacy could any man leave behind? Bayou Laveau 1996 ------- The End ------- Posted: 2008-07-14 Last Modified: 2009-06-10 / 08:47:50 pm ------- http://storiesonline.net/ -------