Days of Darkness

Chapter 12

I'm not good around smart women," I admitted, "I always feel a bit behind the eight ball."

"What about smart men?" Natalie asked, "do they fluster you when you sleep with them?" I laughed at her attempts to dig deeper. Her mind moved so quickly, I knew I would have trouble keeping up with the banter without more practice.

"Only the ones who wear baby blue panties," I replied. That got a chuckle out of her.

"Have you been thinking about my panties all night?"

"Pretty much," I answered truthfully, "It's Stinky's fault. The little tattle tale." I liked the way that Natalie was looking at me. Deep comfortable eyes and a warm smile. There was no fear or apprehension a woman of her caliber should be feeling with someone like me this close to her.

"What has she told you about me?" Natalie smiled as she spoke.

"Nothing," I said with surprise. I looked over at the crib. The little traitor has never let me see one thing about Natalie. I hadn't tried, but you think I would see what I needed to see. "It's a little unfair when you think about it."

"Oh, I don't know," Natalie continued, "maybe she thinks I need an advantage."

"What would I see?" I delved, not expecting an answer. I just wanted to set Natalie a little off kilter as she had me.

"That I find you attractive as well," Natalie said, not missing a beat. It threw me off kilter.

"Why?" I asked. The question came out of my mouth before I could stifle it. It sounded unconfident, something only an i***t would ask. Natalie's eyebrows raised as she pondered the question.

"Why not?" she retorted.

"You're a lawyer," I argued against myself, "I'm unemployed with no college degree." Natalie smiled, waiting patiently for me to finish. "I don't even own a suit. I wouldn't know where to take you to dinner or could afford it if I knew. I would probably embarrass you at the first party you dragged me too." I took a deep breath and let a million other reasons float away and just summed it up, "We come from different worlds."

"Are you finished?"

"Well...yes, I sighed, "That's the gist of it."

"No suit, huh?" Her faux pondering made me rethink my argument.

"It's a metaphor as well as the truth," I insisted, "it means I am not ready for your world."

"Metaphor is a really big word for someone so uneducated," Natalie joked. She was toying with me again, but this time, my anger was climbing. She knew exactly what I was talking about. We could never be a we.

"You know what I..." Natalie moved quicker than I thought her capable of. Just as I was reaching my boiling point, her hands wrapped around my neck and pulled me down to her. I almost pulled back when her soft lips touched mine. Luxurious lawyer lips yanked the anger from my body and replaced it with something non-thinking. Social standing disappeared as her tongue tickled my upper lip. I could feel her smile as I let myself go, my hands roaming her curves over the covers. She c****d her leg, letting me run my hand down that magnificent thigh I had seen last night. So soft with a hint of firmness that begged to be squeezed. My hand ran back up, lightly finding her baby blue encased bottom. She giggled into my mouth, enjoying my uncontrolled exploration.

A grunt from the crib broke the spell. A second grunt, followed by Stinky's tell tale gurgling had me flopping onto my back.

"Damn," I said to the world. Natalie was laughing as the smell began to fill the room. She rolled on top of me and kissed me hard. I wrapped my arms around her, enjoying the feeling of her t-shirt encased breasts pushing into my chest.

"Counselor, I wanted it noted that I tried to warn you off," I said with a grin. I had no intention of holding back anymore. She was way too desireable to be given another chance.

"Duly noted," Natalie agreed and kissed me again, "I changed the last diaper," she laughed, "this one is all yours."

"You c***k the windows," I said, sitting up, "and I'll brave the sewer butt."

It only took a few minutes to clean the smiling Stinky. It took a good fifteen minutes to clear out the smell. I donned some pants and found a dumpster to toss the diaper in. I came back into the room to find Stinky in Natalie's arms. Natalie's smile was incredibly attractive.

"I love how you see me," Natalie said. Her hand was covering Stinky's bare foot. Trying not to think was impossible. I immediately imagined Natalie in various stages of undress and then beneath me in bed. I moved quickly and snatched Stinky from her arms.

"She's not a toy," I said, trying to find cover for my thoughts, "and I can't stop thinking about you." Natalie stood smiling and moved into my personal space. Her hand found mine and brought it to Stinky's foot. The tingling began, and my mind opened.

There was so much wonder in our shared thoughts. I could see how Natalie saw me, better than I was and oh, so much more virile. We made love in our minds, so intimate and very naughty at the same time. My breath caught in my throat as her carnal images warped into mine. I broke the connection before my body betrayed me.

Natalie's eyes were all dreamy and fixed on mine. I suspected mine were no different as I caressed her lips with mine. The desire we felt was no longer hidden behind self-imposed barriers. It was Stinky's laugh that broke the spell. She thought we were playing and waved her arms at the fun. Natalie broke our kiss and laughed with Stinky, which only encouraged Stinky more.

I laid Stinky on the bed and began tickling her. "Was that us, or is she doing it?" I asked as Natalie sat on the opposite side of Stinky.

"Does it matter?" Natalie responded. She reached up and lovingly stroked the side of my head. I leaned into her hand. I looked into her eyes and knew I didn't care how it happened. Natalie was what I wanted in life. If it was all Stinky, then I was addicted, heart and soul.

"No," I replied, "it doesn't matter at all." I leaned over Stinky and kissed Natalie. Stinky loved the kissing game.

.11 - Sam

"Those guys at the truck stop," Natalie said as she sipped her coffee, "they weren't government and didn't seem to care about things like laws." I finished chewing the bite of the breakfast burrito I picked up at a drive-thru. We had already decided to stay another night in the motel to recover and get our barrings.

"They knew about Stinky," I said, "they were apprehensive about hurting her, almost a fear of what would happen if they did." I took another small bite as I thought. "They were just two of many, that much Stinky showed me. It was just chance we picked the stop that they had staked out. I think every road out of Flagstaff was being watched."

"So, someone with a lot of money but less political pull," Natalie surmised, "maybe criminal."

"Or big business," I added, "I did sense they had little concern for our well being."

"I thought you were going to kill that guy," Natalie said. There was a curiosity in her eyes as she spoke. The matter-of-fact tone she used was cover for finding out my intentions.

"He was hurting you," I admitted, "Stinky and anger don't mix well." I took a sip of my coffee as Natalie watched me carefully. She deserved the truth. "If you hadn't stopped me, he would have died."

"I'm glad I could stop you then," Natalie said, reaching out for my hand. I let her take it. There was forgiveness in the way she held me. "The way it drained you scared me. I guess Stinky wasn't meant for aggression." Stinky smiled in my lap at the mention of her name. She had been trying to get to my burrito, so I knew she was hungry as well.

"I don't know if it is aggression or just forcing results," I pointed out, "she has a flow, and if you go outside of it, you pay a price." I absently wiped my nose, "b****y nose, headache, and exhaustion. Maybe worse if you go too far."

"I don't get headaches when I see you," Natalie said with a sly grin. I smiled back remembering what was in her mind last night. I took another bite of my burrito. Stinky's eyes followed it to my mouth and reached out with gusto to try and grab it. "Someone else is hungry," Natalie pointed out. I nodded as I chewed watching what I could only describe as a jealous face on Stinky.

Feeding Stinky was the usual battle. Neither Natalie or I were as skilled as Rose at getting the maximum food into Stinky's mouth. Stinky was getting quicker and becoming more insistent on helping.

"Do you think she knows when we bond?" Natalie asked as she tried to get the spoon out of Stinky's grasp.

"Maybe...probably," I hedged. I was following up with a washcloth trying to keep the bulk of the food off her clothes. We would have to get better at feeding or buy some bibs.

"What happens when she gets older?" Natalie continued her thinking. I stopped for a moment and looked at Stinky. She was intent on eating, the one time when smiling was not in her repertoire. Her focus was on the jar of mashed carrots, a single-minded desire. What happens to those desires when she gets older.

"I don't know," I admitted, "if she could control her power, she could probably rule the world if she wanted too." At that moment, her innocence didn't make it a scary thought. Thinking out into the future, it was frightening. Natalie stopped feeding and looked at me.

"We don't have a clue what we're doing, do we?" Natalie asked rhetorically.