Days of Darkness

Chapter 17

Betty held onto Teegan as I helped a groggy Natalie into the cabin.

"It's wonderful," Natalie said sleepily. She leaned on me heavily, hugging as much as needing the support. I found comfort in her reliance, adding to my self-worth.

"It has a nice fireplace," I suggested.

"Mmmm," Natalie hummed sensuously. I took her to the main bedroom and sat her in one of the chairs. I dug sheets and blankets out of the closet and made the bed. She didn't struggle at all when I stripped her down to her skivvies and tucked her in. Her eyes closed as soon as she hit the pillow.

"I love you," I whispered softly, thinking her out for the night. She smiled, and her eyes opened again. "I thought I get that out before I forget to tell you." Tired or not, her hand had enough strength to pull my lips to hers. A soft kiss, the passion more understood than enacted.

"Me too," Natalie whispered back, "remind me again in the morning." We shared a smile and another quick kiss. I let her snuggle into the blankets and kissed her forehead for good measure. I left the room the happiest man alive. It was only a few words, but they meant more than any others I had ever uttered, or heard.

"Got her tucked in?" Betty asked.

"Well tucked," I replied, unable to hide my joy.

"You told her," Betty said, reflecting my happiness.

"None of your business," I said, my smile answering for me. The 'me too' was making it hard to hold a straight face. I took Teegan from Betty's arms and did a little dance with the one that made it all possible. Betty laughed at my silliness, and I didn't care.

.13 - Sam

There is nothing that will squelch one's euphoria like easy crib assembly. I think they put the word 'easy' on the outside so you would feel like a fool calling up the manufacturer and bawling them out. Teegan was on a blanket spread out on the floor exercising her ability to roll over and almost crawl. Betty was on a supply run. Just stuff for a few days, her contribution for our helping her escape. She was going to spend the night; then we would drop her off at her sisters, who was a good two hours away, the next day.

"I should just let you help me," I said rhetorically to Teegan as I tried to figure out which screws were As and which ones were Bs. Teegan surprised me by moving her knees forward as if she could crawl. Unfortunately, she neglected to move her hands and went down face first in the blanket.

I began to smile at her trials, then my chin and left cheek suddenly felt as if I had dragged them along a rug. I rubbed the area with my hand, no damage, but the feeling was real. Teegan pushed herself back up on all fours and bounced her butt back and forth, seemingly unaffected by the face plant. I dropped the instructions and crawled over to my smiling girl. Her chin and cheek were slightly red, exactly where the pain had graced my face.

"Sympathy pains?" I asked Teegan, who just gave me her best laugh in reply. She liked my attention, no matter what the reason. She rocked back and forth with more enthusiasm now that she had my eye. I laid next to her, watching her exercise and her aborted attempts at crawling. She didn't go down again and maintained her balance on all fours. She eventually gave up and laid down and rolled to her back. I played tickle the belly for a few minutes before I went back to the crib assembly.

Betty returned with six bags of groceries, more than I was expecting, enough to get us through a week or so. I checked on Natalie before we made a late lunch. She was still sleeping soundly, recovering from the stress of the aggressive bonding. I gave her a light kiss on her forehead noting how peaceful she looked. I could only hope that there was no lasting damage from such use of Teegan. For her sake and mine.

As usual, Teegan was starving. I gave up trying to dodge her ever quickening hands and learned to work with her help. If you time it right, she would grab the handle of the spoon instead of the bowl, allowing most of the food into her mouth. Betty thought the whole operation was hilarious. Teegan acted like we never fed her. Afterwards, I gave the little monster a bath that she seemed to enjoy. Hard to tell, since she was always smiling.

"Good morning," a sleepy Natalie said as she strolled from the bedroom adding a yawn. She was back in her jeans and shirt from the morning.

"Actually, it's night," I responded with a smile. Betty and I were watching an old TV that could only pick up three channels. Uncle Dave had jury-rigged some makeshift digital antenna into a converter box, not wanting to absorb the monthly for satellite. It was reasonable since the cabin was expected to be empty a good portion of the year.

"Anything good on?" Natalie asked as I scooted over to make room for her on the couch. Teegan smiled in my lap and pumped her arms at Natalie's return. Natalie bent her head down and gave Teegan a peck on the cheek. Her lips moved higher, and I received much more than a peck. Betty looked away with a blush as Natalie lingered longer than appropriate for public consumption. I closed my eyes and enjoyed the brief interlude.

"It looks like they gave up on Flagstaff," I said when Natalie cosied into me, "not even a mention on the news."

"Is that good or bad?" Betty asked.

"Who knows," Natalie replied, "I doubt they'll give up. It may just mean they weren't fooling anyone anymore. Maybe they think we're still there."

"Or they know we left," I added, shrugging my shoulders, "you hungry?" I asked Natalie.

"Mmm," Natalie responded with a smile. For Betty's sake, I tried not to respond to the double meaning in Natalie's eyes. I shifted Teegan onto Natalie's lap and stood.

"Spaghetti?" I asked. Natalie nodded, her smile and eyes holding the same promise of her desires. I moved off to make the meal. I was just adding the noodles to boiling water when I caught Betty and Natalie sharing a chuckle that I thought was at my expense. They had moved closer and were In a deep discussion that obviously pleased them both. It was nice thinking that I was, at least, a small part of the discourse. I couldn't remember the last time two women discussed me in a positive way. I shook head. They could have been discussing hairstyles for all I knew.

Natalie called her mother while the noodles boiled. I could hear the concern in her voice as she told Rose where we were and the events that transpired. She skipped the altercation at the motel, which I thought was done to save Rose concern. I liked having a kick-a*s girlfriend and would have told Rose if Natalie would have let me.

Later that night, after two bottles of wine, Betty wheeled the crib into the second bedroom. I raised my eyebrows to Natalie who returned a sultry smile. Things had been discussed between the two of them. Teegan would spend the night with Betty, leaving Natalie and me alone. Teegan was calmly lying on her back, looking up at the both of us. I reached out and caressed her tummy making her giggle.

"Are there plans I don't know about?" I whispered to Natalie, my eyes and smile on Teegan.

"She offered," Natalie answered, her hand softly running down my arm to Teegan's belly, "I simply agreed. Did you want me to decline?" My eyes shifted quickly to Natalie's in fear she thought my desires weaker than her own. Her smile instantly convinced me she was teasing. Didn't matter, I couldn't have her living with any doubts.

"Absolutely not," I responded as I leaned in. My fingers wrapped in her hair at the nape of her neck as I pulled her lips to mine. The softness of her lips sent a warmth coursing through my blood. Our desire was shared, and want grew as lips parted and our tongues became intimate.

"Jeez," Betty interrupted as she reentered the room, "way to contribute to the delinquency of a minor." Natalie laughed into my mouth before our lips separated. "At least, let me get her out of the room and protect those innocent eyes from such debauchery."

"Sorry," I said, not meaning it.

"Teegan and I are going to retire," Betty said with fake formality, "we intend to spend the night talking scandalously about the two of you."

"Thank you," Natalie said sincerely. I could hear the gratefulness in her tone. It was still so alien to me, the way the desire went both ways. Here was a successful woman, beautiful, with a life well above anything I had envisioned, wanting me alone. Love was such a brutal uneven thing, slanted so heavily toward me.

"Make good use of it," Betty said without any shame, "After tomorrow, you'll be at her mercy," She picked up Teegan off the floor who smiled at the attention. Betty turned Teegan to us, grabbed her arm and made her wave goodnight. Teegan added a laugh to the game.

"Goodnight, sweetie," I said, unthinking. Damn if I wasn't getting more fatherly by the moment. Natalie tried to hide her smile at my unbidden honorific. Betty was smiling as she headed to her bedroom.

"I thought I was your sweetie," Natalie stated, her eyes alight with humor.

"You're one of my sweeties," I joked back, "sometimes it's hard to keep them all straight." I moved closer, trying to pull her into my arms.

"Light a fire, Casanova," Natalie said, pushing me away lightly, "I'll be right back." I laughed then sucked it back as I watched the cute butt slink away in those jeans. Again, she was teasing, her hips promising me things I didn't deserve, but desperately wanted. I did what any man in my position would do; I lit a fire as instructed.

The flames were just beginning to take on a life of their own when the lights went out. I turned to find Natalie in a robe, a couple of blankets in her arms and a smile on her face. She tossed me a blanket that I instinctively knew needed to be spread out on the floor in front of the fire. She walked around the couch, flipping me the other blanket which I spread out as well. When I looked back up, Natalie had opened her robe and had dropped it off her shoulders. Underneath the robe, she wore nothing but a pair of socks that climbed nearly to her knees.

"You're cheating," I breathed, barely able to contain the l**t that was building. She had seen the visions in my head through Teegan. I kicked off my shoes and moved forward, my hands not knowing where to touch first. She was like fine art that I couldn't afford to touch.

"You told me something earlier," Natalie whispered as I neared. Her robe dropping further. I ran my hand gently down the side of her neck, across her shoulder, and along the side of her perfect breast. My eyes were feverously trying to take all of her in.

A feeling of complete relief invaded my mind. It was so sudden and its meaning so apparent. I laughed at the absolutely wrong time. Natalie eye's went wide, and she began closing her robe. A mix of anger and shame crossed her face and my heart sank.

"No," I said quickly, almost begging "it's not you." Thankfully, Betty came to my rescue.