Courtesan Ch. 47

Keisha nodded. "I understand. It's his tongue that interests me, not his cock." Hugging Antoine, she added; "I already get all the cock I need."

Tonya laughed. "And she doesn't only get it at home."

Nodding, Helen said; "Variety is the spice of life." And then she turned to Kelly and asked, "So, who is your third slave?"

Kelly placed her hand on the small of Mandy's back and gently nudged her forward. "This one, her name is Mandy; but you should call her Nymph."

Helen looked at Mr. Jackson. "Martin, when introductions were being made didn't she say that you were her fiance?"

Martin smiled at her. "Yes, you and Lawrence aren't the only ones who appreciate a sophisticated relationship."

Smiling back at him, Helen said; "Nicely stated, I think I'm going to have to insist that Lawrence renew his relationship with you. It appears that we have a great deal in common."

Brenda stepped forward. "I think that Helen has just done an excellent job of establishing why Barry wanted to get us together and I thank him for it. It does appear that we have a number of common interests."

She looked at Stevie."Speedy, do you have the big coffee pot going?"

"Yes Mistress Brenda, I do. Footboy, Peewee and I also made a large batch of chocolate chip cookies this morning."

Brenda looked at Sandra. "May we?"

Sandra smiled. "Of course."

Turning to us, Brenda said; "Would you like to come in for coffee?"

Tonya looked at Mr. Jackson.

He nodded and said, "Yes we'd like that very much."

Sandra waved towards the house on the right. "Everyone come with us. We're going to our house." She turned and all three groups began to follow her up the sidewalk to the front steps.

As we started walking, Brenda said to her husband. "Quicky, make sure that their slaves understand the rules of conduct in our houses. I will hold you personally responsible for any errors they might make."

Bobby bowed his head. "Yes Mistress Brenda, I understand."

We had been standing in three reasonably well defined groups, but now as everyone filed into Sandra's house the boundaries broke down.

Kelly immediately approached April Hansen and introduced herself. Maddie, Keisha, Antoine and Jamal Wright started a conversation. Julie and Roxanne walked over and introduced themselves to Elvira. Tonya joined Helen and Jessica. Kirby attached himself to Mark and Bobby. Mandy went straight to Lorraine and of course, Mr. Jackson, Mr. Tyler, Jason Mathews and Morris all got together."

I hung back while everyone walked up the front steps and entered the house. I was suddenly feeling a little overwhelmed and I wanted a moment to myself.

Standing on the sidewalk, I surveyed the neighborhood where I would soon be living. The houses were large and luxurious. The street was lined with stately oak trees and all of the front lawns were immaculately groomed.

I thought about the events that led to my being here. The past year had been filled with heartache and pain and then there were the last sixteen days.

I was amazed when I realized that it had only been sixteen short days since that fateful night when I huddled in the doorway of Smithson's Jewelry store so that I could follow Kelly to the Calvert Hotel.

Those sixteen days now seemed like a lifetime and when I thought about the incredible onslaught of events that transpired during that time period, I realized that they were life changing.

Kelly and I both grew up during those sixteen days. Kelly learned that she has to be true to herself. She has to be the person she wants to be rather than the person that others want her to be. I gained confidence and found myself. Seventeen days ago I could never have flown to Chicago, dressed in a power suit, so that I could meet with a group of distinguished architects. Tuesday, I was going to do exactly that and I wasn't frightened, I was excited.

All of the wonderful people that I met during the last sixteen days certainly helped us.

Kirby and Elvira, could there be two finer people in this world?"

And Mr. Jackson, when I first met him he terrified me. Now, I realize that he's an angel. He spends as much time trying to help people as he does trying to make money. He was the engineer of my reconciliation with Kelly. He saved Kirby and Ellen and he took care of Elvira. I will always be in his debt.

Then of course there were Tonya, Mandy, Keisha, Antoine, Mr. Tyler and John Reynolds. It's funny, there are times in life when it seems like the whole world is trying to beat you down and then there are times when you're surrounded by a group of people who love you and nurture you and life becomes so much better. The past sixteen days made up one of those times.

Suddenly I realized that I was getting cold. The November air was invigorating, but it was also chilly. It was time to go inside and have a hot cup of coffee.

As I walked up the sidewalk, the front door opened and April Hansen stepped out. When she saw me she smiled and walked down the front steps to meet me. "You're Kelly's husband Timmy, right?"

"Yes."

"You went to Kelroy with Kelly."

"Yes I did.

"I went to Kelroy too."

"I know, everyone at Kelroy has heard the story of April Hansen."

April slowly nodded. For brief moment I detected a hint of sadness in her eyes as she whispered a soft, "Yes." But then the sadness quickly disappeared. Looking up at me she smiled and said, "That's all in the past. Now I try hard to live in the present and dream about the future."

"Does it work?"

"Oh yes, I was very fortunate to meet all of these wonderful people. They're the best friends a person could ever ask for."

I nodded. "Sixteen days ago Kelly and I almost broke up. I thought my life was over and then I met all of the wonderful people that are here with us today. Now my life is better than it's ever been."

"We call it serendipity. It's happened to all of us."

"Serendipity? I've heard the word, but I really don't know what it means."

April smiled. "Sometimes, when you're least expecting them, you stumble across the most important treasures of your life. That's serendipity."

I grinned at April. "For me, the last sixteen days have been filled with serendipity."

Suddenly the front door opened and Mandy popped out. "Timmy, you have to get in here. It's wonderful. We're staying for dinner. All of us are staying, even Martin. He wanted to go back to work but Wendell convinced him that there was nothing that they had to do that was actually all that important so he's going to stay. He's really going to stay. Isn't that amazing!"

I smiled at her. "Yes Mandy, it is."

Noticing April, Mandy quickly bowed and said; "Hello Mistress April. I didn't realize that you were out here. May I have your permission to speak to Bunny?"

"Yes Nymph, go ahead."

Turning back to me, Mandy said; "They have very strict rules about how slaves behave in the presence of their superiors."

April nodded. "Yes we do. Everyone enjoys the rituals."

"Timmy; Sandra, Julie and Roxie are calling up some guys so that all the women will have dinner dates. Martin's going to be Helen's date. We're going to be slaves and serve the dinner. Stevie and Lorraine want you and Kirby to help cook. I get to help too. Everyone is so nice."

Mandy grinned. "Ricky, he's Julie's husband. His slave name is Footboy. He's an English Professor at Maple Hills Community College. Brenda, Maddie, Roxie and Julie all went there and now they're finishing their degrees at the University. Ricky told us that he'll help us get started there. Tonya, Keisha, Elvira, Kirby and I are all going to go. Martin said that he'll pay all of our expenses and give us time off."

She giggled. "Sandra, Julie, Roxie, Brenda, Maddie, Helen and Jessica all volunteered to fill in for us as hostesses."

I laughed. "I'll bet they did."

"Timmy, Sandra's husband Stevie was some kind of whiz kid stock broker. He can tell you all about it while you're cooking the dinner. They have an investment group here and Martin and Wendell are thinking about joining them. Wouldn't that be wonderful?"

"Yes it would."

"Timmy, I'm getting cold. I have to go back inside. When you come in go right to the kitchen so that Mark and Bobby can teach you the rules. I don't want you to get in trouble."

Mandy turned to April and bowed to her again. "Mistress April, may I please be excused?"

"Yes Nymph, go inside and help the others. As soon as we come in, I'll bring Bunny to the kitchen so that he doesn't get into trouble before he has a chance to learn the rules."

"Thank you Mistress April."

Mandy turned and went back inside the house.

After she was gone April asked, "Is she always that exuberant?"

"Mr. Jackson asked her to marry him last night."

April smiled. "I see, I guess I'd be exuberant too. Are you ready to go inside?"

"Yes."

"Keep your head down and stay one full step behind me."

Bowing politely, I said; "Yes Mistress April."

April grinned at me."Timmy I think that we're going to become very close friends."

"I'd like that."

I opened the front door and held it while April walked into Sandra, Julie and Roxanne's house. Once she was inside I took a deep breath and started to follow her, but then I hesitated for a moment. As I stood on that threshold I suddenly realized that I was about to begin a new adventure.

Life is a series of adventures. Some of them are joyous experiences that leave us with fond memories that we savor for the remainder of our lives. Others are challenges, grueling trials that we are forced to endure. All of these adventures, good or bad, constantly recast us into new and hopefully wiser and stronger people.

The adventure of the past sixteen days was over. What had started as an arduous test eventually turned into a joyous experience that strengthened both Kelly and me. Now that incredible adventure was finished and relegated to the status of a fond memory. It was a memory that Kelly and I along with Mandy, Kirby, Tonya, Elvira, Keisha, Antoine, Mr. Jackson and Mr. Tyler would be able to cherish for the rest of our lives.

While I didn't know what experiences this new adventure would bring, I was excited. I was certain that it was going to be an adventure that would turn into a great story. Sadly, it's a story that will have to be told at another time. This story was about the events of the last sixteen days and those days are now part of the past.

I took another deep breath and then I stepped into the house.