The Swear Jar (24 page)

Chapter Twenty-Eight

“Should we have these counted up?”
he asked.

“Sounds good,” she said,
breathless.

The woman behind the counter added
up their tickets and gave them their total.  As they looked at the prizes,
Duncan noticed a teddy bear worth a little beyond their total.

“Meara?  Why don’t we play some
more?  That little guy has your name on it.”  He pointed to the teddy bear.

“He’s cute.  Are you sure?”

“Let’s get our lanes back before
someone takes them.”

Getting more change, they returned
to their lanes.  The young couple waved to them.

“He’s addicted!” the young man
grinned.  “Welcome to the club.”

Duncan laughed.  “We have our eye
on a teddy bear.”

“Good choice.  The little lady will
love it,” said the young man.

Duncan turned to his Skeeball
lane.  He concentrated on his playing.  When he focused on winning for Meara,
his game improved.  When the game ended, he had the higher score.  He turned to
her triumphantly.  She was smiling.

“Duncan, great job!”  She put her
arms around his neck and kissed him.

He beamed as he gathered the new
tickets.  Soon, the teddy bear was hers.  She hugged it tightly.

“You’re going to smother him,” he
chuckled, wrapping his arm around her waist as they headed out of the arcade.

“I’m doing to him what I would like
to do to you,” she said, with smoldering eyes.

“We should get home as soon as
possible.”  He cleared his throat.  “If we’re on our way out, we need zeppoles
and sweets, right?”

The zeppoles were easy to buy.  The
sweet shop was an ordeal.  They couldn’t decide what they wanted.  Finally,
they bought a little of all the things they liked.  Fudge, chocolate-covered
pretzels, peanut butter cups, chocolate-covered cookies and chocolate-covered
cherries were wrapped up for them.  They left the shop drooling.  He offered to
drive because she looked tired.  As they pulled into the driveway of the house,
fatigue was hitting him too.  They walked sleepily into the house.

They stood in the kitchen looking
at each other sheepishly.  They unpacked their sweets and milled around the kitchen. 
They were trying to think of a way to not disappoint the other.

Duncan tried first.  “What do you
want to do now?”

Meara swayed back and forth. 
“Duncan, I hope you don’t take this the wrong way, but I want to go to bed. 
I’m tired.  I want to curl up with you and go to sleep.”

“Thank goodness.  I’m passing out. 
I didn’t want you to think I didn’t want to…you know…but I’m tuckered out
too.”  He shrugged his shoulders.

They made their way upstairs.  She
pulled down the bedclothes.  He closed the blinds.  She kicked off her
sneakers.  He looked for his pajamas.  She went to her drawers and rummaged
around.  He sat on the bed and took off his sneakers.  She sighed.

“What’s wrong?” he asked.

“My sister has a funny idea of what
pajamas are.”  She held up a pair of gray shorts and a low-cut, gray shirt with
spaghetti straps.

“I wouldn’t mind seeing you in
that.  Wear whatever makes you feel comfortable.  Go naked, if you’d like.”  He
tried not to sound so hopeful.

“Aren’t you tired?” She had her
hands on her hips.

“The thought of you in those pjs
perked me up.  If you wear them, I may fondle you a little.  I doubt I have the
energy for much else.”

She narrowed her eyes.  “I’ll make
you face away from me.”

“Not for long.”  He grinned evilly
as he took off his clothes, leaving on his boxer shorts and putting on his
pajama shirt.  “Is it my turn for a show?”

He climbed into bed.  She accepted
the challenge.  Her buttocks were facing him.  Moving her hips side to side,
she slowly slipped off her jeans shorts.  Wiggling her panties closer to him,
she bent over to pick up the shorts.  She heard a low groan.  She turned to
face him.  She pulled her shirt off over her head and tossed it onto the bed. 
She ran her hands over her bra and squeezed her breasts together.  He gulped
nervously.

Turning side to side, one hip at a
time, she pulled the pj shorts on seductively.  She lowered the shirt slowly
over her chest, pulling the material tight to show off her well-endowed
breasts.  He exhaled audibly.  She reached behind her back, thrusting her
breasts out, and unhooked her bra.  She pulled the bra straps through the
shirt’s arm holes and pulled the bra out from under her shirt.  Her breasts
swayed as the shirt came to rest above her belly button.  She pulled the
material tight, showing off her nipples, and gave a small bow.

“That was absolutely amazing.  A
little bit of a cheat at the end, but amazing.  Come to bed.”  He patted next
to him.

She jumped into bed, snuggling
against the pillows.  “Why don’t you read to me?  That should keep us out of
trouble.”

He reached for his reading
glasses.  He hated wearing them.  They made him feel old.  He opened the book.

“You wear reading glasses?  All
bets are off.  If you’re going to fondle me because of my pjs, I’m going to
fondle you because of those glasses.  My boyfriend is a hottie.”  She stared at
him hungrily.

“You’re joking right?” he laughed. 
“No, you’re not joking.  If I had known, I would have worn them months ago.”

“Quick.  Read the book.”

He read the book.  She cuddled
closer and listened intently.  His voice was deep and mesmerizing.  He could
make the phone book sound dramatic.  She was spellbound.  As he read, he could
see her chest rise and fall.  While extremely tempting to touch, he restrained
himself.  When her breathing deepened, he stopped reading.  He placed the book and
his glasses on the night stand.  Turning off the light, he shifted until she
was tucked into his embrace.  He kissed her forehead.  He fell asleep thinking
he should have set the alarm so they could see the sunrise.

He woke up a few times overnight. 
He trying to get used to having someone in bed with him.  The first time he
woke up, his arm had gone numb, so he shifted her to rest on the pillow.  He
spooned behind her.  The second time he woke up, she had buried her face in his
chest.  He needed to move her so she wouldn’t smother herself.  He was also
becoming aroused.  If he woke her up to make love, he would be wiped out
tomorrow.  It would ruin his surprise.

He lowered her onto her back.  She
stirred, but continued to sleep.  He placed his arm on her waist.  He nodded
off again.  He woke up a third time and glanced at the clock.  It was about an
hour to sunrise.  He wondered if he should wake her up with kisses and a little
fondling.  He thought better of it.  He needed to prove he wanted to be with
her even if they didn’t make love three times a day.  He was still amazed by
the fact they had done that.  He wasn’t complaining, only amazed.

“Meara?  Do you want to keep
sleeping or do you want to see the sunrise?” he whispered.

Immediately, she opened her eyes. 
“I want to see the sunrise with you!  Let’s go!”

Gathering her in his arms, he
kissed her neck, cheeks and lips.  “Good morning, my love.”

She put her arms around him,
hugging him even tighter than he had her.  “Good morning, sweetheart!  Last one
to get dressed makes breakfast!”

Meara bounded out of bed and
grabbed her clothes.  She faced away from Duncan as she pulled her shirt off. 
He pulled his jeans on and tripped over his sneakers trying to watch her
dress.  A glimpse of the sides of her breasts distracted him.  He put his
sneakers on and sat on the bed.

“Done,” he said.

“What?” she asked, turning with her
bra half on, half off.  “I can’t believe you’re done!”

“I’m completely dressed.  You
lose.  If you don’t get dressed soon, we may not make it out of this room for
the sunrise.”

She giggled and turned away.  He
watched as she dressed.  She turned to him.

“Breakfast now or later?”

“Later,” he said, holding out his
hand.  “Let’s go.”

It was cool outside, so they
grabbed light jackets.  They walked hand in hand until they found a bench on
the boardwalk.  With no one else around, he nuzzled her neck and kissed her. 
She touched the side of his face.  He toyed with the idea of leading her onto
the sand and making love as the sun came up.  Kissing discreetly on a bench was
acceptable, but he knew getting naked in public was not something she would
enjoy.  People walked by their bench and she giggled as he snuck kisses.  She
put her head on his shoulder.  The sun came up.  It was a beautiful morning. 
Although quiet, the beach was slowly waking up as people began their day.

“Ready to go?” she whispered.

“Sure, I have breakfast waiting for
me,” he laughed.

They walked home hand in hand.  She
hip-checked him and tried to push away.  He pulled her back and kissed her on
the forehead.  She swung their arms, playfully pushing him again.  When they
reached the front porch, he pulled her onto the stair above him.  Her chest was
level with his chin.  He kissed her deeply.

“What do you want to do today?” he
asked, holding her on the stairs.  “After you make me breakfast?”

“I’d love to go to the beach,” she
said.  “What do you want to do?”

“I want to see you in your swimsuit
and then see you out of it,” he murmured.

“That sounds good.  What do you
want for breakfast?”

“I don’t want to waste a minute of
this day.  How about a slice of birthday cake?”

“For breakfast?  It’s up to you.”

He led her into the kitchen.  While
she got out the cake and a large knife, he found plates and spoons.  She turned
on the coffee pot and tea kettle.  When the coffee and tea were ready, they sat
down to eat.  He raved about the cake and the extra strong coffee.

“Sorry, I don’t make coffee often.”

“No, it’s great.  I like it strong. 
I’m fully awake now.  What do we need for a full day at the beach?”

“We’ll need chairs, an umbrella,
towels, a blanket, and food.  Plenty of liquids, sandwiches, and snacks.  I
think I saw a small cooler we could use.  And you found the chairs and umbrella
yesterday.”

He grinned.  “Yes, on the side of
the house.  I can put them on the patio when we’re done.”

“I’ll work on the cooler.”

They finished their breakfast.  He
kissed her cheek.  He was looking at her very seriously.

She frowned.  “What’s wrong?”

He led her out to the patio.  He
pulled her down onto a double chaise lounge chair.

“You like taking care of me, don’t
you?”

She tried to look away, but he held
her gaze.  “Yes, I do.  I like fussing over you.  You’re kind and loving.  You
deserve to be treated well.  I hope I’m treating you well.”

“Yes, you are.  I’ve never been so
spoiled.  I could get used to this.”  He looked serious again.  “I want to take
care of you too.  If you’ll let me.”

“You have been.  I feel like I’m in
a fairytale.  Whisked off by the knight and protected from the dragon.”

“You may feel like I’m trying to
control you.”

“I never said that.  I don’t think
that.”  She was panicking.

“I’m not trying to control you. 
I’m trying to take care of you.  Not that you need to be taken care of, but
fussed over you like you do for me.”

“All right.  If I feel you’re
trying to control me, I’ll tell you.”

“We’re having a great time and I
don’t want it to end.  We won’t have a full day tomorrow because we’ll have to
travel home.  I want to stay here with you for the week.”

Meara blinked.  “You want to stay
here all week?  Not just the weekend?”

“Yes.  I want to be with you.  I
don’t want to go home yet.  I want more time with you.  I know it sounds
selfish, but I don’t want to share you again just yet.  Will you stay with me?”
Duncan asked, pleading with his eyes.

Opening her mouth, she shut it
again.  She remembered what Yoli had said.  She agreed life was short, but she
still had responsibilities.

She sighed.  “It’s not an easy yes
or no.  Do I want to stay with you?  Yes, of course.  Should we?  I’m not so
sure.  Let’s think about the obstacles here.  I don’t have any vacation time. 
I have the meeting on Friday.  What will our friends at the library think? 
Will they think you’ve gone crazy or I kidnapped you?”

“But you said you want to stay with
me, right?”

Her eyes misted over.  “Yes, I do. 
I’ve never been happier.”

“Then let’s figure out how to make
this happen.”

“We’ll run out of clothes.”

“We’ll walk around naked.  That’s a
problem?”

“I guess not.”

“I can call the library and tell
them I’m taking vacation.  I can tell them you’re taking unpaid leave.  If
money is an issue, I can help you there.”

With an angry look, she pulled away
from him.  “You’re willing to pay me to stay with you?”

He shook his head.  “I didn’t say
that.  If you take unpaid leave, but need to pay your bills, I would help you. 
I would be taking care of you, not paying you.  Meara, you know I didn’t mean
that.”

She relaxed.  “I know.  It was a
knee-jerk reaction.  I’m sorry.  Technically, I don’t have to work so money is
not an issue.”

“What?”  He was confused.

“I work because I want to, not
because I have to.  Hank made sure I would be comfortable if he passed away.  I
pay Diana and Ben rent because it’s the right thing to do.  I want my privacy,
not charity.”

“Then taking a week of without pay
is acceptable to you?”

“Yes.  What are you going to tell
them at the library?”

“I can tell Lucy the truth.  She’ll
make sure we have our privacy.  The Board won’t mind or ask.  I haven’t taken a
vacation in a long time.  They’ll be happy I did.  I can tell them you need
some time off and if they aren’t paying you, they won’t mind.”