The Greatest Gift

"Is that why you want to paddle Dixie's ass?"

"No, I just want to paddle it because it looks like fun."

"That's what I thought. She does have a nice one. Have you ever seen it naked?"

"Hell no? She told me her husband would shoot me if I looked at her cross eyed."

She giggled again, "She says that to the guys she doesn't want to hit on her. She told you because she wanted to hit on you but being next door neighbors made it kind of awkward. You've met her husband; he's a pussycat."

"Ok, she gets two now." I grinned and Tina met mine with a twinkle in her eye. I changed the subject. "Two questions: Are you Tina or is that short for Christina? And are you from this area originally?"

"Two answers: Actually, I'm Valentina. I have a long Italian ancestry but my mother was English and she got to choose my first name. My father was Italian; he provided the Maria and Scarlatti. I was born in New York but we moved the first time when I was three. My dad was a supervising engineer for an engineering company. As a result, we moved about every four or five years when a project was finished. We were here when I went to high school and started college. I've been here since. You read a short summary of my life since high school . What about you and how have you remained a bachelor?"

"Before I answer that, I want to say something. I read the letter very carefully and took it to heart. But I also realize Don is very much a part of you and I being together at all. You don't have to dance around and not mention his name. I don't want our time together to be all about him but you can say what you need to say when you need to say."

"Thank you. I put this in to make you feel comfortable. I also want this to be about us but if it doesn't bother you, I will just tell you what you need to know when it comes up."

"That would be better. About me, there's not a lot to tell. I graduated from the same place you did but I majored in Sales and Marketing. I fell in love with a woman and we got married. Two years later, she said she wanted an annulment because she discovered she was gay. I was doing well in my job but was totally floored by this. I threw myself into my work and didn't date anyone for a long time. The company got bought out and I had a choice of getting lost in a big company or going on my own. I went on my own as an independent sales rep and have done pretty well. Most of the time, I was traveling around the state for four days a week. I was here on Fridays to do my paperwork and unwind over the weekend. Now I still want to get out a couple days a week but most of my work I can handle over the phone or on-line."

"That's nice to know but you lightly skipped over your interest in being with married women." She grinned at me.

I grinned right back. "I didn't lightly skip over it; I intentionally skipped over it. I was afraid it might offend your sensitive ears."

She laughed and replied, "That's bullshit. Tell me."

"Since you twisted my arm...there really isn't much to say. While I traveled, there were lots of opportunities out there. I didn't avail myself of any for several years. Then I found I had a choice to make. I could hang out with clinging single girls who wanted something like an instant husband or I could enjoy an evening with a married woman who only wanted a little attention with little likelihood of tomorrow ever happening. For me, the choice was easy."

"I can see that and I understand. What about the neighborhood ladies? That's kind of important to know."

I knew this was going to come up and was prepared. I looked her directly in the eyes and said, "Let's just say my priorities have changed. I think I want to focus on one, particular married lady for a while."

Tina turned red but was smiling broadly at the same time. Finally, she said, "I think you made a wise choice. How about the one married lady you live next door to who isn't ready for you yet?"

"I don't think she will ever be ready."

"Don't be surprised if you are wrong. She's very ready but the time hasn't been right. When the time is right, I think you need to take advantage of the opportunity."

I knew something was going on behind my back but had no idea what. "Perhaps the married lady I am very interested in would like to share why I should consider this opportunity."

Her eyes sparkled and replied, "Because the married lady you are interested in will ask you to do her a favor for a friend. She might also offer to be there with you to make sure you do it right."

"My, my, my. What have a let myself in for?"

I felt her hand on my leg and felt it slide up until it rested on my aroused manhood. "You have let yourself in for a royally good time and you know it. You will also find it hard to refuse either of us."

"I think you just convinced me of that."

"Good. Now we can eat our salad and relax. The important things are out of the way."

"That's easy for you to say." She laughed and caressed my arm.

For the rest of the meal we just talked about things. I discovered our tastes in music and foods were very similar. She said she had learned from her grandmother about Italian food and knew the difference between good and bad Italian but she wasn't a purest. She liked to cook and would enjoy sharing cooking duties with me. She told me about all of the opportunities available at the university for music theater, art, and sports and that she took advantage of many of them. I had to confess while I enjoyed the music, I had never been to an opera and only a couple of musicals. We both decided this would be something we would share together. I also mentioned I might be interested in signing up for some continuing education classes. As I traveled less, I felt the need to diversify my interests. That one earned me a huge hug.

When we finished dinner, I took her two floors down to a nightclub which played very nice dance music at a sound level we could enjoy. For the first time, I took her in my arms and we fit together like we were made for each other. Our feet moved as one to the frequent slow songs and we quickly discovered we danced best with her arms around my neck and mine around her waist. We also shared our first real kiss on the dance floor.

When we finally left at eleven and were riding down the elevator, she asked quietly, "What's next my wonderful date?"

I said, "I thought we might go to my house for a coffee and brandy and see what comes up."

She grinned and replied, "That line is already on my list and I think we both know what has already come up." She squeezed me gently.

I didn't have an answer so I replied, "When are you going to show me this list?"

"I told you, never. You don't need any pickup lines anymore. The list is to share with other women."

"I can dress in drag." She laughed all the way to the car.

As I started the drive home, I realized I needed to say something to her but would save it until we got there. She once again possessed my hand but this time held it on her leg while resting her head on my shoulder. With the traffic light at this time of night, we made it home much faster than the drive into town.

Once inside, I turned the coffee pot on and turned to put my hand on her waist and looked into her eyes. "Tina, this might sound kind of pathetic but for most of my adult life, I have been very absorbed in my career. I haven't really had a normal social life to speak of. I have borrowed people for a short time but that's all. You are the first person I have ever met who I felt totally comfortable being with regardless of what happens in the future. I am looking forward to everything we can share and experience together."

She looked in my eyes and with a light moisture seeping out. "I...I want you to know a couple of things too. When I first dated and then married Don, I was in awe of him. It took me five years to get over the awe and realize he was a wonderful person. We have had a wonderful life and I have been content and happy. When I first met you, you scared the crap out of me. You were Don but with the added element of sexual attraction I never felt before in anyone. You probably didn't notice but I never let myself talk to you alone. There always someone with us. Dixie is the one who told me to pull my head out of my ass and accept how strongly I felt about you. It took a while before I accepted it. Don knew and told me it was ok for me to act on it. There is a lot of hanky-panky going on at the university and he wasn't shocked. When this latest thing came up, he insisted I find someone to be with, he knew it would be you but we didn't know you personally very well. He suggested we look at other potential candidates to just to make sure. Last night I told him there was no one even close to you. He sat down and started the letter to you last night. Then he got sick and had to finish it early this morning. I still wasn't sure how you would respond so I added those rules to give you some outs if you wanted them. I was scared all day until you called. And I'm glad Dixie was smart enough to make you call early. I would have been climbing the walls all afternoon.

She kissed me warmly and pressed her tongue between my lips. When we broke the kiss, I looked into her eyes and realized she was telling me the truth. I only had one more thing to say, "My only concern is what might happen six months or a year from now. The way I feel about you, I'm not sure I can leave you."

Now the tears began flowing down her cheek. She finally said, "Honey, let's don't talk about it or worry about it now. The truth is the percentage Don told you was very optimistic. That's the percentage for the first six months. The odds for a year are almost non-existent. In fact, Don's efforts have been for me to find his replacement. He knows what will likely happen and he wants me to have a support system in place when the time comes. I shouldn't have told you this now until the end but I want you to know there are no barriers to the future for us if this is where we find we want to go."

That was the last concern I had and said, "Let's have a cup of coffee to settle down and then go to bed." She nodded and I poured us each a cup. We sat on the sofa next to each other and she easily nestled into my arms. When she kissed me again, I put our cups down and carried her into my bedroom. I slowly undressed her and discovered she had an almost perfect body which her clothing had only hinted at. She undressed me and kissed her way down until I was in her mouth. Then perhaps for the first time in history, our first coupling was simply making warm and tender love. The passionate fucking happened the second and third times followed by the one we had the next morning when we woke up.

We had just settled down for coffee at the breakfast table with me in my underpants and Tina in her panties when the back door opened and Dixie walked in wearing a similar pair of night wear as she had worn yesterday. "God, it smells like a whorehouse in here. I need some coffee." She went to pour herself a cup.

I smiled and looked at Tina, "I have no idea what she is talking about."

Tina grinned and said, "Me either. But since she came in, I notice a strange smell. Maybe she brought it with her."

Dixie replied as she plopped down next to me. "Haw-haw. Both of you are a barrel of laughs in the morning. So, lover boy, how was last night?"

I said, "You're a little over dressed for us this morning, you could at least undo that button again."

She quickly undid the button and threw the sides fully open as she muttered, "Fucking men. They're all tit freaks. Now, take a good look and tell me about last night."

I smiled and said, "We had a really nice night. We have a great Italian dinner and talked. Then we went dancing and talked some more. We came home and kissed a couple of times and had coffee. Overall, it was a very wonderful night."

"Fucking prick! Just like all men, you're barely worth having around."

"I did learn one thing though. I learned you have earned second paddling. Do you want one of them this morning?"

"Not no; but hell no! Did you forget about my husband and his gun?"

"That's what earned you your second paddling. Tina tells me your husband only has a pop gun and is really a pussycat."

"You're worthless. Ok, cunt. Quit giggling and tell me what I need to know. Oh, you forgot to wipe that fresh cum off your lips."

Tina replied, "I had to clean him up afterwards, didn't I? Ok, since you are being nosey this morning. We made love once and fucked three times. I came five times and now have at least three bruises on my tits. He has a couple of little ones too but they are much lower. But I hate to tell you this, you can't have your turn until I get a little bored with him."

"Greedy bitch. All right, the deed is done; what's next?"

I said, "I was thinking about breakfast soon. I had a great dinner last night but for some reason, I'm famished this morning."

"Bastard! Tina, tell me what I want to know."

I looked at Tina for her to respond. She surprised me by saying, "Lean over and suck on one of her tits. That will shut her up for a while so we can talk." Being the good lover, I did as my lover asked.

Dixie fought back a little. "Don't you dare. Stay away. Oh, shit! No wonder you love him. Oh, crap, I'm going to come."

"Ok, lover; that's enough. She can play with herself while we talk."

I heard a barely audible voice say, "Bitch."

Then Tina said to me, "This week will be easy. I have my classes and need to work on my research. Unless you object or have to go out of town, I want to spend every night with you. After next weekend, I'm not sure what things will be like but I want to spend every night I can with you."

"That's fine with me. I don't need to travel this week and can do a lot of things here. I will adjust my travels to fit your schedule after that."

"Good; I like that idea. If you don't mind, I'd like to bring some clothes over here so I don't have to wander home in the morning when everyone else is leaving for work."

"I'll clear out space in my closet for you. What would you like for dinner tonight?"

"I'll leave it to you but let's pass on Italian for a while. Dinner last night satisfied that need for quite some time." She turned to Dixie who was still somewhat stunned, "Would you like to have dinner with us tonight since Pop Gun will be gone until tomorrow?" She put emphasis on the words "for dinner."

"I don't know if I can stand to be around you two pathetic people that long. I want your grilled fish, Seth."

"Fine. Come over when Tina does. We all know you can't control yourself when you are around me alone."

"Bastard! I don't stand a chance around either of you. What time should I be ready, Tina?"

"Around three thirty, I think. I need to do some research today."

"The only research you want to do is how often he can get it up."

"Actually, I will gladly take it whenever he gets it up. But I do need to do my other research. I kind of want to finish my degree and get tenure. Bring your swim suit. We might let you wear it."

"Bitch."

I stepped in. "Enough. I'm going to start breakfast. You two can conspire about me behind my back while I fix it."

They both giggled at my manly outburst. They did whisper a lot while I fixed breakfast. When I set their plates in front of them, I noticed Dixie's top was now resting on the back of her chair. We were all topless while we ate.

When we finished, Dixie picked up her top and left because she was expecting a call from her husband. I led Tina back to our bedroom and we made slow and tender love again. When we were back in our afterglow, I said, "I think it's time for you to tell me about your relationship with Dixie." She blushed. "Don't worry, if you tell me you are lovers, I won't get upset or even mind."

She kissed me and said, "You are too good to be true. I don't consider us lovers but that's not impossible. We're very close. With my things and her husband traveling so much on his project, we talked a lot about the sex we missed. One thing led to another and we began kissing and caressing each other's breasts. Then we began fingering each other. I used to do that with my roommate in college. It wasn't making love but it was helping each other release the stress of not getting any satisfaction. That's all we've done but like I said, it wouldn't take much to go beyond this. By the way, her husband knows about us and approves. He also told me he knows about her fixation about you and said it was all right for you to fuck her while he was gone. He'll be tied up on this project for six more months and then might be home more often. If you want her, it's all right with me."

"I won't say no but right now, I'm fixated on you. The two of you enjoy each other when you want even if I'm around. But I'll leave it to you to arrange it when you want me to have her. My attention is all on you until you decide it is time to help our friend out."

"Thank you, lover. You have no idea how good this makes me feel. I said before I would be with you when you do make love with her and that's the way it will happen. We might even make love with her together."

"If I'm with you, I will probably enjoy her even more if we did it together."

"Ok; that's settled. I am going to go on home and do some research. We'll be back later."

"I'll go to the store to get the fish. The back door is open; I'll probably have a key made for you to use when I'm not around."

"I'd like that. I may find it easier to study if I was alone and not subject to distractions."

She went home an hour later which left me time to clean up and check the pantry before I went to the store. When they came over at 3:30, the fish was marinating. Dixie stayed outside while Tina came in and told me a couple of things.

"Honey, I love you. I just wanted to tell you Don had several of the neighborhood men over last night and told them what was going to happen. They aren't going to tell the others about the details but everyone will know what to expect at our party next Friday night. I told Dixie and, of course, she's fine with it. Don also said he wouldn't be there Friday night but to enjoy ourselves. I'll be taking him to Houston Saturday morning for his first treatment and will stay until I bring him home Monday or Tuesday depending on how he responds. Is this ok with you?"

"That's more than ok with me. I will relish every moment with you but you decide on what you need to do and take care of it. Just tell me what I need to know. I may travel on Monday and be back Tuesday to give you the time you need."

"That would be perfect. They expect he will be down for a couple of days this first time. After that, it might be different."

"We'll work around anything which comes up."

Then we went outside to join Dixie. I brought iced tea for all of us. We talked and very quickly the teasing between Dixie and Tina rose with a variety of grins and laughs. I quickly became the center of lots of the teasing. I thought I would defuse it by asking if they wanted to take a swim. Instead, Dixie upped the ante. "I'd love to get wet. Does this pool allow clothing optional?"

I looked at Tina who was trying to keep a straight face while looking at me for my response. I grinned at her and said, "The house allows for clothing optional; however, the lady of the house has the right to accept or reject all requests." I wrinkled my nose at Tina.

That actually might have been a mistake because Tina instantly said, "Strip Dixie. He's been dying to see your naked butt to size it up your paddling. Oh, and for the record, the lady of the house also says if the majority of those present accept clothing optional, the others must also comply." She grinned at me in return.

Dixie replied in her usual demure way, "Good move; I want to see this thing that's making you so happy. Strip, dumbass."