Chaperone

I cringed at the way she said it. Not that it was unexpected, grandmother was very critical in her opinion of most men, which also extended to the women who slept with them, and she didn't pull her punches. Looking at Helen I wondered who handled her social calendar.

"I have a manager with the association my love."

"Which costs you too much in both money and missed socializing opportunities." Grandmother told her. "Gregory has offered to control your calendar for you so you don't have pay someone to do it."

"Wait, you pay someone to handle all of your appointments? Why don't you just do it yourself?" I was confused. Why would anyone pay someone to do that when there was software available that could do it for free?

"I cannot my love. I am not allowed access to the necessary files in order to make the determination on whether the requested liaison is a suitable match."

Vaguely I remembered that she'd told me that already. Something to do with her not needing to know so she wouldn't ask questions.

"I can do it for you if you want." I made the offer. "Or Kelsey could."

"Kelsey cannot." She informed me as my sister vigorously shook her head to tell me she didn't want the responsibility. "She would not be allowed access."

"Oh. Ok, I'll do it. That way you don't have to pay someone."

"Very well my love. I will inform my manager to transfer my calendar to you and forward the files." She looked at grandmother. "One unrelated but still unreasonably difficult training issue down, many, many more to go."

"Hey!" I objected. "Three on one isn't fair."

They just blinked at me.

"Whatever." I turned back to the computer. I had an entire list of things to buy for grandmother so I'd better get working on it.

"Ahem." Someone cleared her throat.

I looked up. In unison all three of them looked at the phone on the desk.

"Wade." Kelsey reminded me.

"I'll send him an email. He'll get that but he might not answer the phone if he's involved in a gaming session."

They waited.

"Fine." I snarled at them and composed an email asking if Wade could design and build me a professional website for a fashion consulting business. I also mentioned that I'd pay him for it if we could agree on the cost.

"Three down." They said it together.

"Why do I feel like I'm being taken advantage of?" I groused and sent the email to Wade.

I was in the middle of buying grandmother's things when I got the notice that I had a new email. Clicking on it I read the message. It was short and sweet and just said Sir, and Yes. It was when I read the signature after the message that I smiled; Lady Tabitha Mede.

"What?" Kelsey asked.

"It's from Wade and says he can do it." I pointed at the computer screen. "It's signed by Tabitha."

None of them said anything so I pulled the keyboard closer and replied that I was letting them know I would get back to them as soon as I knew when I had some time to talk to Wade about it. The reply was immediate and just as sparse as the first. Thank you, Sir. It was also signed by Lady Tabitha Mede again but this time there was a small addition on the end. Afiancé.

"What?" Kelsey asked after I read the last email.

"Nothing." I closed that window and went back to shopping.

"Kev . . ."

"In." I verbally riposted. "Kev . . in."

"Kevin! What did it say?"

"Wade said that he could design a website for me. Well, actually Tabitha said he could, but it's the same thing."

"And what else?" She narrowed her eyes at me. "I know there's something more than just that from the look on your face."

"Wade and Tabitha are getting married."

"What?" Kelsey stood and knocked me out of the way. Snatching the mouse from my hand she clicked on the email and read it. Done, she threw the mouse down onto the desk.

"It doesn't say that."

"Yes it does." I retrieved the mouse and went back to work.

"All it says is three words; Thank you sir. There's nothing in there about Wade getting married."

Finished with my buying chores, I pushed away from the desk.

"There are none so blind as they who will not see." I turned to grandmother. "Your things should be here in a couple of days."

Grandmother stood up and kissed my cheek, pausing to breathe in gently before letting me go. I rolled my eyes. Which got me a gentle pat on my other cheek.

"Rosewater Design and Consulting." She said after the pat. "It has a nice sound to it."

"Grandmother!"

ELEVEN

Grandmother's fitting went well but it really consisted of nothing more than her trying on the clothes I'd ordered for her to make sure were what I thought and that they fit. I could see I needed to get some kind of full length mirror system so that anyone else I did the same thing for could see themselves better than in just the flat wall mirror. I also needed to find some kind of dressing room screen so, if I ever actually had any, my fashion consulting clients could change behind it instead of having to use the bathroom underneath the stairs. Which meant that even more money I didn't have just flew out the window.

Kelsey got hired at the bookstore. I knew she would but what I hadn't figured into the equation was the gusto that Ian put into it. He took on the task of her orientation himself, spending long periods of time with her as she learned the various aspects of her new job. They smiled and laughed a lot when they took breaks together in the café too.

I wasn't jealous. I wasn't. Honest.

A week after that I got a wedding invitation in the mail from Wade and Tabitha. Kelsey gave me a nasty look when she came into my office while I was trying to figure out the crazy software Helen's association had for setting and cancelling appointments. I still had no idea what criteria they were using and really needed to talk to someone about it. Granddad was probably the best source of information if Helen and Marjory weren't allowed to know anything. I was getting ready to call him when Kelsey literally threw the announcement envelope at me.

"What did you do that for?" I looked at the envelope, it was addressed to me from Wade and Tabitha and somebody had already opened it.

"How did you know?" She plunked into the other chair and crossed her arms.

"Know what?"

"That they were getting married."

Oh, that. I tossed the announcement on the desk.

"First of all, I'm the one who introduced them. Second, Tabitha called him my love right after meeting him, you were even there when she did it. That means she tied herself to him emotionally almost instantly. There's something in that more than just her need to have someone to come back home to. You'd have to ask mom if you really want to know the details because there's no way I'm going to ask her what it is."

"None of that says how you knew they were getting married before that came in the mail." She pointed at the silvery envelope.

I shrugged.

"I got the announcement because I asked to be put on the guest list if it happened."

"That still doesn't tell me how you knew."

"The emails told me."

"Kevin! How?"

I waggled a finger at the computer screen.

"The first one was signed Lady Tabitha Mede."

So?"

"When I first met Tabitha she called herself Starling."

"Get to the point Kevin."

"I think that Starling is a title. Mom goes by Lady and grandmother uses Dame sometimes. I haven't figured out why they only say that sometimes but that's not relevant. What I think is that Starling also means something more than just being new on the scene after Tabitha got her tattoos. I think it means she's still single. It could have meant that she still hadn't given birth, but it's only been a few months, and the last time I saw her she was still pregnant, so that's out."

I explained how I'd come to the conclusion I had.

"From there, the first email told me that what I was thinking at first is probably true. The last one confirmed it."

"There wasn't anything in the emails to tell you that." She growled the words at me because she thought I wasn't telling her the truth.

"There was." I gave another finger waggle at the screen. "The first one was signed by Lady Tabitha Mede. Something changed and she no longer refers to herself as Starling. The last email was signed the same way but there was an addition to the signature."

"Kevin!" Kelsey nearly exploded when I paused. "Tell me!"

Rather than just say it, I opened the email and gestured for her to come around the desk and read it again. I pointed at the last word.

"Tabitha is very reserved. She isn't the type to be in your face about anything. The things she does are very understated but she does tell you what you ask about if she feels you should know. You just have to be really paying attention to catch the nuances when she does. It's not always immediate and it's almost never obvious."

Kelsey leaned on the desk with both hands while she read the email then looked at me.

"Why are you paying that much attention to her if you're not interested in her like you say you aren't?"

I reached and pulled her bodily into my lap. Boldly running my hands over her body to make my point clearer, I whispered in her ear.

"I'm a guy. Whenever there's a beautiful woman around, I'm paying attention to her even if it seems like I'm not. That doesn't mean I'm sleeping with her, it just means that I can't help but pay attention. Because I'm a guy."

I stopped roughing her up her with my hands.

"Plus, she needed help. That kind of focused me on her more than it would have otherwise. I don't know why I still am to a certain degree other than it's possible that I subconsciously think I'm still responsible for her for some reason."

Kelsey looked over her shoulder at me. I shrugged. I really didn't know why. What I did know was that whatever fixation I had for Tabitha, it wasn't sexual.

Kelsey read the email again then pulled my hands up to her breasts. I could feel her nipples standing up through her shirt and bra from all the manhandling I'd just given her. I squeezed her breasts because she obviously wanted me to.

"Males!" She rolled her eyes as her nipples hardened even more. "Is that all you ever think about?"

I used one hand to move her hair out of the way so I could kiss her on the back of her neck.

"Shh, it's supposed to be a secret." I whispered and kissed her on the neck again."Don't tell anyone."

A moment later I patted her on the butt to tell her to get up.

"Go. I have a lot of things to do before we have to be at work and you're distracting me."

Kelsey got off my lap then turned around to lean against the desk right in front of me. A twinkle lit her eyes as she slowly unbuttoned her jeans and pushed them down a few inches. Reaching, she grabbed the scissors from my pencil cup and cut through the sides of her underwear before pulling them slowly out from between her legs. Done with that, she leaned back on her arms and looked at me invitingly.

"I'm distracting you? Is that what you're saying? Are you trying to tell me you don't like being distracted?"

As distractions go, this one wasn't bad. Gently I kissed her stomach and rubbed a finger between her legs. She pushed her crotch forward and bit her lip to stifle a moan as I slipped my finger into her. The restriction from her pants being around her hips didn't let her spread her legs to give me enough room to get a good angle to massage her G spot, so I used my tongue on her clit until she gasped and tried to pull hanks of my hair out. I tenderly bit her right in the middle of her pubic triangle and shook my head gently before letting go and sitting back up. After a quick wiggle of her hips to pull them up, she was buttoning her pants on the way out of my office.

With an internal sigh at being left unsatisfied and now horny, I put the scissors back into the pencil cup and reached for the mouse. I needed to order new underwear for Kelsey and add them to her list of things to buy after either she or I got paid. It was my own fault, but I was starting to feel like a servant.

I called my grandfather so I could talk to him about the scheduling software and the files the association had emailed to me. Those were filled with details about men I didn't know and I had no idea why they'd been sent or what to do with them.

Grandmother answered the phone and told me that granddad was out cleaning the leaves out of the gutters around the house. She'd just gotten finished explaining that to me when there was a loud crash and the horrible sound of someone bellowing in pain. I didn't get to ask what was happening before the phone went dead.

I tried calling back but there was no answer. It rang but no one picked up. I tried again a few minutes later but the line was busy. Obviously something had happened but I didn't know what.

TWELVE

I tried calling a few more times but still had no luck. Giving up I went to get changed so I could go to work. Kelsey met me at the bottom of the stairs wearing the violet dress along with the lavender hose. Ian had been scheduling us for the same shift so that she didn't have to worry about how she was going to get to the bookstore. Neither of us wanted her taking the bus alone.

She looked very pretty and I told her so.

"Thank you sir." She turned completely around once so I could see the entire effect. She'd stuck a yellow number two pencil in her hair to hold it up.

"A pencil?" She had lots of barrettes and other assorted hair clips, she didn't need to use a pencil.

"Think librarian." She touched her hair with one hand. "Someone once told me that's how it works."

Kelsey was working the front register while I was stuck in the café again. It looked like that was where I was going to be for awhile if not permanently. Kelsey did better on the main bookstore floor because of the way she looked and her clothes weren't really suitable for cleaning up trash and wiping down tables. Not that I minded.

Ian was often where she was. After a week of training, he wasn't right at her shoulder anymore while she was doing a checkout, but he was still behind the counter because occasionally something would come up that she didn't know how to deal with. With him nearby, that got taken care of quickly and she learned at the same time. It was an effective system.

Giz and her sister came in, Giz giving me a wave while Lucy told her to knock it off. The contrast between them was remarkable. Alike in looks with maybe two years between them, one was outgoing and friendly, the other taciturn and demanding. I wondered what had caused them to be so different.

They were sitting at a table looking through the latest fashion magazines when Kelsey stopped in to take the box of returns for the bookstore to reshelve them. She paused as she went by the two girls.

"Hello. I'm Kelsey."

"Hi. Where do you get your clothes?"

Kelsey nodded at me.

"My brother picks them out for me."

They both looked at me then back at her in disbelief.

"He does. Really." She used her chin to indicate the magazine on their table and lowered her voice like she was telling a secret. "Page eighty seven, ask him if the color is right for you. And make him explain why."

"Kel?" I stepped over. "What are you doing?"

"Just making girl talk." She twitched a corner of her lips at me, hefted the box, and headed back into the bookstore.

Giz looked at me then began leafing through the magazine. Stopping at a page she started to show it to me when Lucy lurched in her chair.

"Ow!" Giz bent and rubbed her leg then looked at her sister. "What'd you do that for?"

"Giz, shut up."

"You're not mom, and I'm eighteen anyway so even if you were I don't have to listen to you." She turned to me like she was going to ask again but I pointed at their trash before she could say anything.

"Are you done with those?"

"No, we aren't." Lucy snapped at me. It was an obvious lie because they'd put their food wrappers into the empty drink bottles.

Giz looked at her sister with an open mouth. Lucy stood up and grabbed her handbag.

"Let's go Giz."

"Sorry." Giselle whispered the apology and scrambled to follow her sister. Catching up she leaned close and said something. Lucy chopped sharply with one hand but kept on walking. Giz looked back over her shoulder at me.

Kelsey returned with the empty box and put it on the counter next to the register.

"What happened? Why'd they leave so suddenly?"

"Lucy doesn't like Giselle talking to strange men." I tossed the trash and grabbed the wet bar towel. "You telling them to talk to me was too much for her. She kicked Giselle to stop her from asking about the magazine."

"Oh." She looked at the front door to the bookstore. "Is that normal?"

I finished wiping down the table and tossed the bar towel back into the wet sink.

"They're people. Some are nice, some aren't. I try not to upset the nasty ones because it's not good for business."

"What about the nice ones?"

"Same thing." I stepped behind the register as a customer headed our way. "Treat them nice because you never know when they won't be."

She waited for a few seconds like she wanted to ask more questions but caught Ian waving at her out of the corner of her eye. He was pointing to the other register up front. She gave a short wave back and headed that way.

We were on our way home when Kelsey pulled the pencil out of her hair and shook her head. Next she stretched her legs and groaned.

"Now I know why you look so tired sometimes when you come home. It's not physically demanding, it's just tough to be on your feet all day and stay mentally sharp."

I nodded. I was used to it but it'd still been a long shift.

"Kev?" She slid over next to me and leaned on my shoulder. "Is that why you're the way you are?"

"Is what why the way I am? What way is that anyway?"

"You're really accepting. It's almost like you're passive but I know you aren't because I've seen you take control and lead. And I've seen other people follow you when you do it."

"I can't change how people are. When thing happen I just roll with it and do the best I can to not screw up too much."

"Do you think your job is what makes you that way?"

I thought about it for a little bit.

"Maybe, but it's probably more that the job requires a certain mindset and I have it. That's why I'm still there and other people aren't. There's a big turnover because people burn out and quit or don't bother to come back."

"Ian's been there longer than you have."

"Ian's the manager. His job is different than mine or yours. It's more stressful but he can take breaks in the back of the store to get away from the customers if he needs to. I can't."

She sat up and scratched her scalp before yawning behind one hand. Shifting back across the seat she remained silent as she looked out the window.

"Kel? You okay?"

She nodded her head.

"I'm just tired."

"Well, I still have to go to class but other than that we're both off tomorrow so you'll be able to catch up with yourself."

She nodded before leaning her head against the side window and closing her eyes.

Mom wasn't home when we got there. There wasn't a note either. I looked at Kelsey and couldn't find anything to say.

"She'll be home eventually." Kelsey dropped her bag on the hall table and headed for the kitchen. "Are you cooking or am I?"

She stopped when I didn't say anything and poked her head back around the corner of the wall. I just looked at her. After a moment she disappeared again.

"Two servings of my world famous genuine gourmet can-opener chili coming up."

That got through to me.

"Don't you DARE!" I ran and snatched the can opener from her. "I can't afford to replace your clothes if you splatter grease on them, so go change."