It is nice to be wanted.

“Shouldn't you be upset?” I asked before he could get too far. Ms. Romero still worked to distract me but now I was curious. Curiosity is an excellent way to focus my attention. Dr. Castillo's brightly beaming face returned to view. “Upset? Why should that be so, my friend?”

“Because your barely clad wife is sucking my neck?” Admittedly, it is nice to have someone targeting
my neck and not have to be worried about impeding vamprism.

“Patrick, I am sorry. You are such a clever man that I did not anticipate such an American viewpoint of the situation. Please forgive me if that sounds insulting in any way as I do not mean it to be such. It is such that our attitudes towards the act of intercourse are not so restrictive. It is an expression of affection, a joy to be shared.”

While I grasped the concepts he was expressing, they were just friendly people, it wasn't enough to change my opinion, not in the blinking of an eye anyway. There was just something weird about the idea of being that free with your affections. Dr. Castillo may have detected a sign of confusion yet on my face for he continued. “If it would help you put your mind at ease, I shall state this very directly: You have my permission to enjoy any and all of the charms possessed by my beloved Rosalind.”

During all this Ms. Romero became aware that I was paying little to no attention to her. She paused her efforts in order to wait for the discussion to cease, leaning on my chest in a manner indicating her boredom. At hearing her name, she perked up. “Did you hear that my dear? Any or all of my charms. Please go for all of them.”

She leaned in to kiss me but I politely resisted, made easier by the fact that my left arm had become free when she shifted her weight out of boredom. “Thank you but really, I shouldn't.”

Now it was Ms. Romero's turn to be confused. Wide-eyed, she observed me before resuming a more sultry expression. “I know you are not going to try and tell me that you are not attracted to me. I already have evidence to prove that you do.” In order to explain her point-of-view, she brushed her hand over a rather personal area and smiled.

“Oh no argument there, no, not at all trying to say that,” I burbled while I blushed. “If you are not the most beautiful woman it's ever been my privilege to see, and I believe you are, then at the very least you're in the top five. You have to be the the most beautiful woman to ever be so keen on me and thank you for that.”

“And yet?” she prompted. “I sense there is more for you to say.”

“I can leave the house if my presence makes you uncomfortable,” offered Dr. Castillo. “Alternatively, if you are so interested, I can leave and return in time to catch you in mid-congress. We have known some people interested in that type of entertainment.”

“No, it's not that but the consideration is appreciated,” I noted, striving to remain nice. “It's just that I have a girlfriend.”

Ms. Romero removed herself from my person as if I'd delivered an electric shock. “Oh my dear Patrick, I am so sorry. You should have mentioned this previously.”

“Yes, I am surprised you did not mentioned her previously, or bring her with you to the party,” Dr. Castillo observed.

“I wanted to bring her along,” I noted truthfully, even if I was fudging some of the details regarding my relationship with Sarah Jean at the moment, “but she travels a lot for work and was gone that weekend.”

Despite still being nearly naked, Ms. Romero was back to being sweet and friendly, as opposed to 'friendly'. “What a pity. I would have enjoyed meeting her. What does she do for a living?”

Dr. Castillo grinned. “More importantly, is she pretty?”

Playfully Ms. Romero swatted at his arm. “Do not be silly. Any girlfriend of Patrick will of course be pretty.”

As I sat up, I removed my mobcom unit from my pocket. I have a few pictures of Sarah Jean there, some of which do not feature silly faces or attempts to dodge the camera. I showed a few of these pictures to them. This seemed to seal the deal as I had proved that I at least knew a woman. The picture Harry took of us arm-in-arm didn't hurt either. “Patrick my friend, nicely done,” Dr. Castillo declared. “Is she a natural redhead?”

In retrospect, I'm more aware of what he was asking but at the time I didn't really think about it too much. “As far as I know, yeah.” He gave me a nudge and a “You dog you”, coloring my innocent response with more meaning than I intended.

“She looks quite lovely,” Ms. Romero stated, trying to act calmly in counterpoint to her husband's more 'locker room' mentality. “We should arrange for a dinner meeting. Do you have her schedule?” I shook my head no. I doubt Sarah Jean knows her schedule. She's an adventurer; they don't have regular hours. “We will arrange something,” she insisted.

“That sounds like fun.” I stood up, preparing to make my exit while I could. “We have each other's email addresses. We'll figure something out.”

“If your lady friend is out of town, are you sure she would not mind...”

I cut Dr. Castillo off with a friendly smile. “She's understanding but not that understanding.”

Dr. Castillo laughed as we shook hands. “More for me then!” Ms. Romero insisted I kiss her on the cheek and responded in kind without mischief. I thanked them again for the money as well as the offers of a physical nature. As if a switch had been flipped, Ms. Romero went back into sultry mode. “If you two were to break up, you know where I can be found.”

It is nice to be wanted.

That...That I Was Not Expecting

Have you even been told a story where someone was falling asleep, was shocked by some event, and was left wide awake? Or perhaps someone that was very, very drunk who is surprised by some piece of news and they sober up on the spot? It doesn't seem credible but it happens.

When I heard Dr. Castillo call out, the hormones disappeared from my bloodstream in the speed of the snapping of fingers. I went from a haze of hormones to a plethora of panic. The lady squirming about me was something to be removed with haste, like a leech. Despite the energy I abounded with at that moment, Ms. Romero managed to prevent me from escaping. If I was the bucking bronco, Ms. Romero was the cowgirl out to break me, and she was winning. “Patrick?” she pondered. “What are you doing?”

“Your husband is home!” I whispered, still searching for escape.

Oddly enough, this news relaxed her. “Is that all?” For whatever reason, she began massaging my inner thigh with her knee at this point. Looking back, I think this was meant to relax me back into the 'mood' but at the time it felt like a threat.

I could hear the door open and Dr. Castillo walk into the room. My left arm was still pinned and the efforts of my right arm weren't enough, even with terror on my side. “Where are you my pet?” The footsteps grew closer. Ms. Romero's knee climbed a bit higher. I stopped squirming for the moment.

Dr. Castillo's face peered down over the side of the couch. “Oh. Hello my friend Patrick! Having fun I see. If you require a few moments yet, I can entertain myself elsewhere.”

Wait a minute. What?

Oh Dear

The door opened far too easily. If it had been stuck or locked, I could have gone for help, but it just popped open and, hesitantly, I stepped inside.

There was Ms. Romero, lounging casually on one of the couched sat before the roaring fireplace, stretched out like a cat absorbing warmth. A silk white robe covered her form but not much of it. The robe managed to be short and loose at the same time. As I entered, she looked up from her book, a smile quickly forming on her face. “Patrick!” Quickly she sat up; the motion briefly opening the robe to reveal quite a lot and yet not as much as it might have done. It did make clear that she was without a supporting undergarment. This, I knew, was trouble. She patted the couch next to her. “Sit here.”

I approached slowly, like a young child meeting a mascot, like Greg the Goat, for the first time, scared of the concept of a giant personification of an animal standing before them. Shuffling my feet, I chose to sit on the other couch, directly opposite her. “Spoil sport.” She tucked a lock of long dark hair behind her ear. “Now then, you are here to collect the donation, is that not so?”

Rather than chance misinterpreting her different diction, I simply responded with “I am here for the check, yes.”

Ms. Romero smiled warmly. “If that is the case, then I should give it to you.” She reached inside her robe, once again revealing a bit more of herself than might have been necessary, and from there produced a check, leaning over to hand it to me in a manner that readily displayed her free flying cleavage.

I would like to say that I calmly retrieved the check and coolly departed but would be unlikely, wouldn't it? Whether she was married or not, she was putting on quite a show for me and I was unable to prevent my eyes from straying too far from her bosomy display. As expected, it was a top notch display.

My hand shook slightly as I reached out to accept the check. She handed it over without issue; no playful tug of war or attempts to gain some physical attention from me in exchange for handing it over. I had the check, she returned to her couch, all was well. I glanced briefly at the check to insure that it was made out correctly and that it wasn't made out to me for a hug and a kiss. There were a lot of zeros.

I relaxed. Standing to place the check in my wallet, I began to give me speech. “On behalf of the University, may I express our gratitude for your contribution. Your desire to assist us in our endeavor to educate is surely noble, as well as being tax deductible. We will strive to use these fund effectively and efficiently. Thank you.” Ms. Romero also stood, watching me intently as I spoke, making me politely uncomfortable.

When I stopped, she spoke. “You are very welcome. Does that complete your speech?” I nodded.”The check is safely in your wallet, which has been returned to your pocket?” I agreed that this was the case. “Then our business is complete, is it not?” It seemed that she had summed up the situation very well. “Excellent. It is not right to mix business with pleasure.”

It took me a moment to realize what occurred next. Once again cat-like, Ms. Romero pounced upon me, knocking me down to the couch. Stunned by the impact, not only of her person but of the couch, I provided little resistance as she curled up atop me and began playing with my ear and neck area, presumably recalling the reaction she previously received when doing so. Flat on my back, pinned beneath her firm silky form, I found my limited resistance fading. This proved to be a very cozy position to be in. There were still parts of my consciousness that fought to resist, pointing out the wrongness of fooling about with a married woman, noting all the negative consequences of such an action, as well as how horrible I'd feel telling Sarah Jean about it. Yet I did not resist. Hormones are powerful things and she had finally triggered them beyond my ability to reject their opinion.

My left arm was trapped in the couch but my right was free. Did I do something with that freedom to further release myself? It was too late for that. My right arm raised up and began massaging the small of her back. At this, she stopped nuzzling my neck in order to look at me or, more accurately, she gave me The Look. The Zone was open again and she moved in to successfully close it.

In the midst of this haze of fascination and joy, my ears demanded attention. Footsteps. “I am returned my dear!” Dr. Castillo!

Picking Up the Check

For the record, saying 'weather permitting' during Winter in Wisconsin might as well mean 'we will reschedule'. As I watched the snow fall later that afternoon, I could think of nothing but being snowed in at the mansion, a mixed blessing to say the least. I called to say 'tomorrow okay?' and there was no problem with that concept, apart from Cuthbold and his eagerness to get that check.

By Friday evening, the snow was no longer falling and the roads were mostly cleared. I didn't really want to have a large check in my possession over the weekend but it's not like someone could steal it and cash it in. It's a check. It's not like I could cash it and run off to Mexico with the money.

Mental note: Make no such joke while there. If Ms. Romero were to hear such an idea, she may insist upon it happening.

Unsurprisingly, the roads in River Hills were clean, the snow perfectly removed as if it had never fallen in the first place. The path to the mansion door was also meticulously clean. It still felt like I was stepping into something. Feeling nervous seemed logical despite there being nothing to be nervous about. I'd go into the hallway, Dr. Castillo would give me the check, we'd chat for a moment, and I'd be off. No problem.

Except that I knew it would never be as easy as that.

The Butler greeted me at the door and bid me to enter, no different from my arrival to the party except I'm not dressed as nicely, having come directly from work. This made the Butler seem that much better dressed. “If you would just step into the living room, the Mistress of the House will take care of you.”

Mistress? “But I'm here to see Dr. Castillo,” I protested.

“Unfortunately, the Master of the House has yet to return from his day of business.” The Butler gestured again towards the living room. “Just through there sir.” Then he walked away! Back to wherever Butlers go hide when they're not needed, but I needed him to protect me. For a moment, I considered saying something, but he disappeared before I could think of anything beyond 'help'.

Looking at the living room door, I knew to be nervous. This was going to be interesting.

Making the Call

How long does it take to find the gentleman? I understand it's a large house but the butler has been gone for five minutes now. Who has a house phone these days anyway? I'm surprised they didn't provide their mobcom numbers. I understand they like an older style but they aren't that old where they wouldn't have mobile communication devices out of unfamiliarity with the devices. If they are such busy people, you think they'd be glued to them. Maybe that's the problem, maybe Dr. Castillo is on his mobcom and isn't free to talk on the landline. Then why hasn't the butler just said so? He could just call me back. There isn't even boring music loops to listen to, just silence, tedious, tedious silence.

Except when there's the sound of footsteps and the clunking of a receiver being picked up. “Hello?” I ask, hoping for a voice, any voice, to make this process progress.

“Ah, Patrick my sweet.” Did I say 'any voice'? I didn't, didn't I? Well that was stupid. I should have hoped for any voice bar Ms. Romero. That would have been a better choice. “How are you this morning?”

“I'm, ah, well this morning.” I tried not to stammer but failed. “How are you?”

“I am excellent. Actually,” she paused to stretch, “I just woke up a few moments ago so I am still in bed.”

Must be nice. It's already after ten. Now, at this point the best thing for me to have said would have been nothing. Second best might have been to ask about her husband as I had hoped to pick up the check from him. I would feel more comfortable collecting the check from him.

Did I select either of these vocal options? Of course not. I was nervous and still not quite over the surprise of hearing her voice. I stuck with my traditional response while under similar circumstances. I began to babble.

“Still wrapped up in a nice warm bed?” I echoed. “Good choice on a miserably cold day like today.” This is the point when I became completely stupid. “I wish I was still wrapped up in bed.”

She purred. “There is plenty of room for you here.” Her voice found a way to become more sultry. “It would be much warmer with you here Patrick. You would be toasty rather quickly. I'm still naked.”

I nearly dropped the phone. This was not helping. Apparently I responded to her in some way, a grunt or a whimper, as she continued. “That's right Patrick: I sleep naked. Summer or winter, it makes no difference. There's just no point in having a garment get between your body and silk sheets, don't you think?”

“I, um, the purpose of my call was to set up an appointment to pick up your donation to the school.”

“That sounds like excellent timing to me,” she answered. “Stop by now and you can get what you are looking for.”

“Er...” Intelligent response that 'er...'. “I'm afraid I'm at work at the moment.”

“Would not collecting our donation be considered school business?” Unfortunately that was a good answer. “I promise that it won't feel like work.”

“I, I, I wouldn't want to bother you so early in your day. I'm sure you would want to wash up...”

“You can scrub my back.”

“...put on your face...”

“I don't really wear makeup.”

“...have breakfast...” At which point our conversation completely broke down. She didn't even bother with single entendres. Starting with her description of breakfast, which involved a type of 'sausage' not normally served at the table, she began to weave a tale of debauchery, describing what certain parts of her physiognomy looked like, felt like, as well as which parts of my person they would best match up with and how this arrangement would benefit the both of us. To summarize her story, she made a very good case for me to run over to her house.

I didn't know how to respond. I mean, she had delineated a very specific course of action for me to take but, apart from actually following her idea, I didn't know what to do. “Thank you” just didn't seem like the appropriate way to respond to a story as filthy as hers had been. Intelligently I gurgled into the phone.

There was the sound of fumbling, the sound that accompanies the collecting of a receiver from a table or desk. “Ah, Patrick my friend,” declared Dr. Castillo. “How are you on this chilly day?”

“Surprisingly warm,” I responded before really considering it. “Yourself?”

“I am very well, thank you for asking.” He inhaled deeply. “Very productive start to the day, many things accomplished on both business and personal levels.” I swear I heard him wink at this point. “Now then you were calling in regards to the donation, yes?” I confirmed this was the case. “You need not have waited on my availability my friend. I believe my wife was free to speak to you. Between the two of you I am sure you could have scheduled something.”

I coughed, momentarily unable to speak. After apologizing, I noted “I was of the understanding that I was collecting the check from you sir.”

“It is hardly necessary for me to be here. You can come by most any time available to you. Now if it is convenient. I do much of my work from home but you would not be disturbing me.”

“I was hoping to stop by on my way home from work some night. I'm still playing catch-up from being busy all Monday.”

“My friend! I am sorry that I never considered such a possibility. Your work ethic is truly commendable. That would be acceptable, more than acceptable. What time period are we discussing?” I clarified it for him. I could hear the smile in his voice as he continued. “I see no issue with that plan. Tonight? Excellent. I believe I should be here at that time. If not, my wife can always give it to you.”

“I'm sure she would,” I mumbled. “Tonight then, weather permitting.”

Of Course There's a Wrinkle

“Good news.” Cuthbold wasted no time in visiting me next morning. He's big on face-to-face contact. Either that or he's mooching my coffee again. “Your tour did the trick; we are getting the money.”

I immediately relaxed. Success! Evidently my rejections of Ms. Romero were not an impediment to the donation. Excellent. I would be safe now, at least for awhile, at least until the next fundraising effort.

“They want you to come pick up the check in person. Apparently it's of a size that they won't trust the post office with it. Of course I offered to collect it myself but Rosal... I mean Ms. Romero was quite insistent that you be the one to collect it.” His expression grew suddenly serious. “Don't mess this up Patrick. We do need this donation very badly. While the timing is not critical, well, the sooner we have the check, the better I'll feel. Understood?” I nodded. “Excellent. I'm sure you won't delay in arranging for its collection. The number's just there.” That was that.

So much for it being over.

Then This Happened

We were headed into the next room to see the spot where I was once rained on indoors. Somehow Dr. Castillo got ahead of us, entering the connecting hallway first. Ms. Romero was behind me as we headed to join him. I thought nothing of this until pow!

With speed and power a hand connected solidly with my posterior. The shock, as well as the impact, lifted me from the ground, drawing a loud squeak of surprise from me. Somehow, I'm still not sure how exactly, she managed to slip a finger into an area where I really don't think it should have been but that's why I jumped as extra high as I did.

When I landed, I spun round to face Ms. Romero, needing to confront her. Now I don't dance as my feet are not that skilled. I get the impression that she is a skilled dancer as she managed to move with me as I turned, maintaining her hold upon me as well as wrapping herself about me and pinning me to the nearby dry erase board. She squeezed the part of my person most within her grasp. “You're very firm,” she breathed in my ear. “You must do a great deal of walking.”

I began to panic immediately. Trust me, I would have liked to have just stood there and enjoyed the situation but her husband was mere steps away and I was sure that my expression of shock would certainly draw his attention. “What are you doing?” I whispered.

She laughed. “You have yet to figure it out? You are an innocent boy, are you not?” She blew in my ear, jellying my knees. I managed to protest further, pointing out the proximity of her husband, just in case that concept had escaped her in the heat of the moment. She did not seem very concerned by this reminder. “I am not worried about him so why you be bothered?” To emphasize her lack of concern, she began to nibble at my ear lobe. Had she not been pressing me so firmly to the wall, I would probably have fallen down then as my legs were no longer a visible means of support.

“I feel I am missing out on something!” Dr. Castillo declared loudly. “You are not keeping a story from me I hope.” From the sound of it, he was returning to the room, just as Ms. Romero had given up on my ear and was coming around to my face, opening up the Zone.

There is a closeness that people get, a specific distance from one another, when they are about to kiss. It's often accompanied by a Look. They stare deep into each other's eyes from maybe six inches away from each other, no more than a foot apart, and then each person's personal gravity draws them to the other. You can feel the Zone open up. There's a tingle that accompanies it. Normally this is a good thing. As Ms. Romero gave me the Look, I swore I heard her husband's footsteps drawing nearer and nearer.

Rightfully, I think, I panicked. I managed to shove her away from me, which didn't appear to please her. This had the unfortunate side effect of making me collapse as she was supporting me more than I believed, my earlier jokes aside. When the brightly smiling Dr. Castillo returned to the lab, he found his wife leaning back on the long, dark lab table and myself hovering over my shoes. Concern appeared on his face as I looked up at him. “Is all well?”

“Well? Oh yes very certainly all is well,” I burbled. “Just a little problem with my shoelaces, no big deal.” I kept fidgeting with the ear that had been toyed with by Ms. Romero as it felt very warm.

Dr. Castillo's smile faded in intensity. “Patrick my friend, your shoes have no laces.”

“That's the problem,” I quickly clarified. “They were loose and I had to adjust this tongue bit here, well, nevermind, they're all fixed now.” I popped back to my feet somewhat successfully. “Now then, where were we again? Oh yes! Where I sat, Na'Dar lady on my lap and raincloud above my head. Right this way.”

I scurried away in a manner I hoped would look casual but I'm sure didn't appear so to my observers. I made sure I kept a good distance from Ms. Romero. She made no further efforts to approach me as I told my story fragment; she just stood next to her husband. However, this did not mean she left me alone, far from it. When she knew my eyes were upon her, she blew kisses, she winked, she would gyrate ever so subtly. Once she made a gesture with her tongue that was impressively rude.

Thankfully, we were nearly done. We wandered back to my office to collect their coats. I shook hands with Dr. Castillo. I politely kissed the hand of Ms. Romero. They thanked me once again and they left me.

I collapsed into my chair. I had survived.