Around mid-afternoon on Saturday I drove 40 minutes to Eric’s place in Lawrence.
It was a hot day so I wore a light patterned sun dress.
I had the car’s air conditioning cranked to maximum.
The dress material such that it was designed to be worn without a bra, the material being thicker up top with support.
I had never been to Lawrence before and I was very impressed with the huge houses on huge lots.
I’m not sure if Eric’s was typical or not, but as I parked in the driveway I guessed that the two story house with three car garage was 10,000 square feet, if not more.
The outside was grey stone, with lots of big windows and a solid wood double-door.
Truthfully, it was breathtaking.
The garages had doors with the same oak finish as the main entrance door.
Eric must have seen me drive up, because he opened the door as soon as I walked up the steps.
“Rain, so nice to meet you,” he said with a big smile while shaking my hand.
“Right on time.” “Nice to meet you Eric.
I love your house.” “Thank you, but the inside needs a lot of work by a professional,” he said as we walked inside to the wallpapered foyer.
“See?
It looks like Elvis lived here.
Why renovate the house, and then decorate like it is the 1970’s?” Eric gestured to the walls and the large mirror beside the door, opposite the coat closet.
It was full of gold velour patterns, something that went out of style two generations ago.
“Looks like that mirror has been glued to the wall,” I examined the edge of the mirror.
“My contractor can remove it no problem, but we might need to reapply some drywall.
Are there many other mirrors like this in the house?” “No thankfully.
The rest of the retro bits are drapes and old- fashioned lighting and chandeliers, plus some more awful wallpaper.” “Good.
This house offers a nice base to work from.
You and Pam made a wise purchase.” Eric smiled at my compliment.
He had a very nice smile with perfect teeth.
James had told me that he and Eric had gone to high school together, so they were about the same age.
Eric wasn’t in quite as good shape as James, but he was still very attractive.
His slightly receding blond hair looked very healthy and wavy, and the crow’s feet around his blue eyes actually added to his good looks.
“We got rid of most of our furniture before we moved here, which should make it a bit easier.” Eric showed me from room to room.
“One of the few things of ours that we moved here was our queen-size bed, which we want to replace with a King.
We’ll give you the name of the brand we like, and you can choose the headboard to go with whatever theme you use.” The living room had only a medium-sized couch and a couple of end tables, a coffee table and a television on a small stand.
The only thing new in the kitchen were the appliances.
There was a circular dining room table, which was too small for the room.
It was a much bigger project than I initially thought, and I was concerned it might cut into my other client’s jobs.
By the time we got back to the library room, I was genuinely concerned that the job might be too big.
“Um, Eric, what’s the time frame on this?” I asked.
“The main floor has priority, because it needs the most work.
If you like, you can take a break in between that, the basement, and the upstairs.
Say, a week off in between?” “That would be perfect,” I said, relieved.
A week off would allow me to visit other client sites, and to let me check on the progress of my employees’ work.
I had learned to trust their judgement, but I always liked to inspect the jobs at various points until they were complete.
“I’ll need to come by with a proper camera to take a few photos of the place,” I said.
“I meant to bring it, but one of my employees had signed it out for another job.” “Why not use your phone?” Eric asked.
“Phone cameras don’t have the zoom range or wide angles that I need.
It’s much easier with the SLR camera.
I can take measurements at the same time.” “How does Tuesday evening sound, after dinner?” “Perfect.” Eric touched me on the small of the back as we left the library.
I noticed that he was a very touchy person, and very charming.
I didn’t mind.
He was always a gentleman and very chatty, asking me about my work and Ethan.
The time flew by as we chatted about the project and this and that.
I told Eric about how my plans to be a doctor had morphed into interior decorating.
“Wow, the two careers couldn’t be more different!” he said.
“I think that may be a sign that you chose the right path after all.” We heard a car door slam.
“Is that Pam?” I asked, looking at my watch and surprised that it was now 7pm.
“No, she’s at her mother’s for the weekend.
I’m having a small dinner catered tonight with a few close friends.
Oh, why don’t you join us?
I always order more food than necessary.” he asked, touching my arm.
I thought for a moment.
Ethan had a get-together of his own with some work colleagues, which meant I would be having dinner alone.
Still, I was reluctant to intrude on a group of friends that knew each other intimately.
“Thank you so much, but I don’t think so.
Perhaps another time.” “Are you sure?
James will be joining us.” That was different.
I was intrigued to see how my father in-law behaved with his friends, as opposed to when it was just me and Ethan.
I don’t think I had ever seen James without his wife present.
“All right, I would be delighted.
Thank you.” Eric opened the door for the caterer, who was carrying several white cardboard boxes.
After he stacked them on the kitchen counter I unpacked them as Eric helped the caterer with the final packages, which included several bottles of wine.
Almost as soon as the caterer left, the doorbell rang again.
“Could you get that, Rain?” Eric had his arms full as he walked back to the kitchen.
I opened the door to see two very attractive middle-aged men.
“Wow, do we have the wrong house?” the first man smiled broadly, extending his hand.
“Not if you’re here for Eric’s dinner,” I said with a smile.
“Good.
I’m Tom, and this is Joe.” Tom had close cropped brown hair and a very nice smile.
He was fairly big, probably 6’3″, and his handshake was very strong without being overpowering.
I had expected him to relinquish my hand so I could shake hands with his friend, but he held onto me.
“I’m Rain, nice to meet you.
Eric hired me to decorate his home.” “Oh, you’re James’ daughter in-law!” Joe said as I led them into the hallway.
Tom’s hand was replaced by Joe’s, who also touched my elbow with his other hand.
“Yes.
I think I remember James mentioning you both.
You were in the army, weren’t you Tom?” “That’s right,” Tom said with pride.
“Retired as a Captain.
Now I own a security firm.” I could tell that Tom was a military man.
He stood very straight, but also had a bit of a confident swagger.
“I work for the City, planning department,” Joe said, momentarily taking my attention away from Tom.
Joe was a tall African American, with nice brown eyes and an easy going smile.
I felt comfortable with both men immediately.
“Joe is one of those bureaucrats that makes it hard for working folk to get building permits,” Tom slapped Joe on the back.
“Where’s Eric, did he leave you to entertain us alone?
Hope so.” “I’m in here guys, c’mon in,” Eric said from the kitchen.
Eric was putting the white wine in the fridge.
“So Rain, I should warn you of Tom’s reputation with the ladies.
Tom, this is James’ daughter in-law, so behave yourself.
“How in the world did I get that reputation,” Tom said, holding up his hands.
“Must be when you slept with the base second in command’s wife,” Joe smiled.
“Hey, she told me she was separated,” Tom said quickly in mock defense.
“James should be here soon,” Eric said.
“We can set the table.” The four of us set the table with plates and cutlery, but left the packaged food in the kitchen, as we would wait for James to arrive before eating.
Eric brought a bottle of red and a bottle of white to the table.
I was hoping that James would arrive soon, but after about twenty minutes I realized I was having a good time, and the conversation flowed as easily as the wine.
I glanced at my watch and was surprised to see that over a half hour had passed since Tom and Joe arrived.
“I hope James gets here soon.
I can tell you guys are hungry,” I said.
“We sure are.
And for the food, too,” Tom smiled at me.
I blushed.
Just then, Eric’s phone beeped.
“It’s James,” Eric read from the text.
“He sprained his ankle playing tennis, so he will be getting, his wife to drop him off here.
He’ll be late, so we should go ahead with dinner.” I was disappointed that James wouldn’t be here for dinner, and that I might not see him before I left for home.
But if I was afraid the conversation would be centered among the three friends, I needn’t have worried.
I was practically the center of attention.
They were all quite friendly, and yes, there was some mild innuendo and flirting going on.
We each served ourselves in the kitchen and then returned to the small dining room table.
The table was small enough to make the setting very intimate.
I was sitting in between Tom and Eric and true to the warnings about his reputation, Tom touched me on the arm whenever he made a point.
“I hear your husband Ethan is doing quite well on Wall Street,” Tom said.
“I bet that’s a relief to his mother Irene.
She’s such a worrier over finances, though I think James has made them a comfortable life.” “I think so,” I agreed.
“Ethan and I are happy that we never had to rely on anyone else financially, even when we had those huge student loans.” “Tell me about it,” Eric said.
“I don’t know how young people can own property these days, with student loans to pay off, and high real estate prices.” We were all on our third glass of wine when I noticed that Tom had moved from touching my arm to touching my bare knee.
His hand never lingered for more than a second or two, so I figured it was harmless, as all three men were wearing wedding bands, but there was a moment or two when they seemed to forget that I was James’ daughter in-law.
“What was that base commander’s wife’s name, Tom?” Joe asked.
“Suzanne,” Tom responded with a grin.
“She was fifteen years older than me, and one of the most insatiable women I have ever met.
Her husband must have been impotent, or something.
She acted as if she was just discovering sex, and wanted everything in one night.” “You guys,” Eric sighed, “don’t tell that story in front of Rain.” “Why not,” Tom smiled at me.
“She’s a grown woman.” He placed his hand on me knee once again, only this time his hand lingered longer than usual.
I had feeling that Tom had told this story many times, and that Joe had set it up so that he could tell it again.
In spite of myself, I smiled back at Tom as he kept his hand on my leg.
I started to feel wet between my legs.
I told myself that it was only harmless fun.
“Let’s go to the living room,” Eric said.
“I’ll put on a pot of coffee for whoever wants it.” “Who needs coffee when we have this excellent wine,” Tom said as he got up and pulled the chair out for me.
We made our way to the living room.
I was surprised at how tipsy I was, not being used to drinking very much.
I realized by now that Tom had been very quick to refill my glass with wine, and I was now on my fourth.
I was beginning to wonder how I might get home.
Ethan would be out very late with his friends, and I was in no shape to drive.
I was glad that Irene was dropping James off.
I could get a ride home with her.
Eric brought the remaining bottles of wine and placed them on the coffee table.
Tom and Joe sat on either end of the small couch, which left the middle seat for me.
I settled in, my hips touching both men on either side of me.
I thought both of them had a little room to move over, but they remained where they were.
I must admit that I enjoyed feeling our hips and thighs touch.
Tom had his legs spread a bit so the contact was definitely on the firm side.
Eric brought a chair from the kitchen for himself.
“You’ve got your work cut out for you Rain,” Joe said.
“This place looks as if a drug lord decorated it.” “Come on,” Eric almost shouted in mock anger.
“Rain, it isn’t that bad, is it?” “Um, yes it is,” I giggled.
All the men laughed.
“I have to say, most of the places I’ve redecorated, but this place…” I was smiling, and Eric brought his hands to his face as if to cry.
“I know, but what can you do?” he shrugged.
“I hope he’s paying you well,” Tom said.
I didn’t reply, partly because the financial part of the deal hadn’t been discussed in detail yet.
“So I’ve talked about my past sex life,” Tom changed the subject.
“Now it’s someone else’s turn.
Joe?” “Forget it.
I was a virgin to an older age than I want to admit.
But when it finally happened, it was mind-blowing.” “That was the woman who cut your hair, wasn’t it?” Eric asked.
“Yeah.
She was married.” “Huh!
Common theme.
I don’t think men have cornered the market on cheating,” Tom said.
“How about you Eric?
Any cheating wives in your history?” “Nah.
But back in college I slept with a girl that was cheating on her boyfriend, if that counts.” “You get half a point for that,” Tom said.
“Now it’s Ethan’s turn.
Have you slept with a married man?” “No!” I said.
“At least not that I know of.” That got a laugh from the men.
I wasn’t sure why at first, but then I realized my statement made it sound as if I had slept with many men.
I blushed, but smiled too, not bothering to correct their assumption.
Tom pressed me on it.
“Ah-ha, Rain!
Just how many are we talking about, during your college years?
You met Martin during your graduation year, didn’t you?” “Yes,” I felt my face flush a bit.
I was embarrassed, but only a little.
“So?” Joe prompted.
“What’s the magic number for Rain?” CREATORS’ THOUGHTS Patel_Palace “If you’re enjoying the story, please add it to your Library/Collection!”