Note: This story was dynamically reformatted for online reading convenience.
 
 Title: From the City to Simmons


Summary: Brother and Sister and Wife start a new life.


Keywords: inc,fic



   "Tina, you ought to let me give you a ride home."

   "Listen, Chris, you know I have a boyfriend.  Just drop it.  I only live
five blocks away and I can make it there just fine."

   Tina wasn't necessarily a bitch, but she seemed most of the way there
sometimes.  She was a pretty good looking young woman, and she knew it.  It
was her vanity that was causing her to believe that Chris was hitting on
her.  Though he certainly thought that the girl was attractive, getting in
her pants wasn't his motivation for wanting to walk her home.

   "I'm not trying to get a date.  I'm just worried about you, five blocks
is five blocks.  You ought to hear some of the things that those guys out
there say about you.  Why don't you give your boyfriend a call and have him
come pick you up?  At least on the weekends like this.  Half of those
drunk-asses that you served tonight can't think straight, and I don't trust
them."

   Chris and Tina worked in a small restaurant called Whitmore's.  It
wasn't fancy, but it was popular, considering it was was still open after
the bars had closed.  The hours led to a fair amount of business as well as
a building full of drunks at two in the morning.  There were three
waitresses, a cook, a dishwasher/busboy, and a manager.  They had the place
cleaned up and buttoned down, ready to call it a night.

   "I'm not calling Luke to come get me.  If I wake him up, he'll be mad.
Besides, it only takes a few minutes to walk home.  Relax, would ya?  Why
don't you give Erin a ride home?  Maybe if she got laid once in a while she
wouldn't be in such a bad mood all the time."

   Chris thought it somewhat amusing that Tina assumed that just because
you get a ride home with some guy that a woman was indebted to have sex
with him.  He just shook his head and gave in.

   "Fine, go get raped, kidnapped, murdered, whatever.  Don't say I didn't
warn ya."

   "Oh my god!  Are you my mother or what?" Tina responded, thrusting a
small wad of bills into his hand.  Chris, being the busboy, made a
percentage of her tips.  "Later." She took off out of the break room,
nearly running over Erin and Cindy, the other two waitresses.

   Chris counted his money and received his take from the other two.  He
frowned in disappointment.  "Twelve bucks, Erin?  Sixteen, Cindy?  Tina
gave me like thirty."

   "Yeah, well, I don't rub my boobs on people and dress like a total
whore," Erin replied.

   Chris and Cindy laughed.  "Whatever the reason, you two ladies need to
step it up.  I can't pay for my Grandma's kidney transplant with this," he
said.  Cindy stopped laughing.

   "We're on the top step already.  If you need money that bad, we could
always cut your kidney out and sell it," Cindy suggested.

   Chris raised his eyebrows and feigned shock.  "Well, if you put it that
way, I guess you guys did fine.  I'll tell Gramma that it's just her time.
Let me walk you out to the parking lot.  I haven't liked the look of the
crowd out there lately."

   Whitmore's wasn't located in the brightest part of town.  Unlike Tina,
Erin and Cindy were aware of the dangers of a lone woman out at night.  The
chances of getting killed on their way to their cars seemed slim, but they
still thought it was kind of nice that Chris always walked them out.

   "I wish Tina would let me give her a ride home.  I don't think it's safe
for her to walk, especially at night.  She seems to think that all I want
to do is have sex with her, though," he told the women as they walked to
the lot.

   "And you wouldn't?" Cindy asked, with a smirk.

   "Uh, she's not really my type," he replied.

   "Oh, so clueless sluts aren't your type?  I didn't think it got any
easier than that," Erin commented.

   "Don't get me wrong, I like clueless sluts just as much as the next guy.
I don't think Tina's really a slut, but she is clueless sometimes.  That's
why I'm worried about her.  You guys ought to ease up, she's not that bad."

   Cindy and Erin had worked with Chris for quite a long time, Tina was
somewhat of a new recruit.  The waitress before her had moved on to greener
pastures.  They didn't seem as eager to warm up to the new girl as Chris
was.

   "You're probably right, but she rubs me the wrong way.  See you guys
tomorrow?"

   The three of them parted ways and left in their respective vehicles. 
Chris drove back to his apartment that he shared with his sister.  Her car
was in the lot and he had talked to her earlier on the phone, so that he
knew that she was home, safe and sound.  She did the same thing every day.

   One of the reasons that Chris was so protective of the women that he
worked with was because of his sister.  When she was younger, in her late
teens, she was attacked while walking home from a friend's house late at
night.  She had never been the same since the incident, not that anyone
would blame her.  Since their parents had passed away and she didn't want
to live alone, she had moved in with Chris.  These days, they were both in
their late twenties, Carrie a year older than her brother.

   Even though it was pushing four in the morning by the time Chris let
himself into the apartment, Carrie was up waiting for him.  She usually
was. Carrie worked evenings keeping the books for a rather large department
store and tried to keep the same hours that her brother did.  They still
didn't get to spend much time together, though.  Chris worked during the
day in the office of a company that sold electronic components.  He was
saving up for his dream of buying a place out in the country.  They were
actually getting close to being able to swing it.  They had talked about it
a lot, Carrie seemed to be on board with the idea.  She liked the city even
less than he did.

   Carrie smiled up at her brother from her perch on the couch.  She was a
pretty woman, even if she did have a purplish, lightning-bolt shaped scar
running the length of her left cheek.  "I made some popcorn, if you want
some.  I'm watching a show about strawberries." One thing about four in the
morning, there wasn't much on television.  "I was thinking it would be nice
if we could grow some when we move."

   Chris kicked off his shoes and joined his sister on the couch. 
"Strawberries, huh?  I've never been a big strawberry guy, really.  I was
thinking maybe some potatoes and corn.  Have like a real garden, you know?"
He reached into the popcorn bowl and grabbed a handful.

   "That sounds nice," Carrie agreed.  "You know what I'm looking most
forward to, though?  A yard.  Nice grass that we can mow and walk around in
without our shoes on.  I want to feel it tickle my toes." "I can tickle
your toes," Chris said.  He grabbed one of his sister's feet and began to
tickle unmercifully, spilling a fair amount of popcorn in the process. 
Carrie howled with forced laughter.

   "Stop it, you ass!  Stop, stop, you know I can't take it!"

   "I thought that's what you wanted.  Just pretend that you're walking
through our new yard," Chris said through his gritted teeth.  It was taking
a fair amount of effort to keep hold of his sister's leg.  She was stronger
than she looked.  He made the mistake of letting up for an instant and
Carrie was able to wiggle free.  With some sort of a mixed-martial arts
move, she had Chris flipped over on the floor with his arm pinned behind
his back.  He groaned with discomfort as she held him down.  It was only a
matter of seconds before he was tapping out frantically.  All those
self-defense classes had clearly paid off.

   "Did you learn your lesson, yet?" she asked into his ear.  She had
stopped breaking his arm but was still laying on his back.

   "Probably not, but do you think you could let me up?"

   "I don't know, it's kind of comfy laying here," she replied.

   "You can lay on me all you want, but let's get off the floor.  It's
hard, and someone spilled popcorn all over it."

   Carrie sighed as she rolled off his back and onto her feet.  "Yeah, I
wonder whose fault that was.  I'll get the broom."

   After the popcorn was cleaned up, the two were back on the couch to
catch the rest of the strawberry documentary.  Carrie was leaning heavily
on her brother, her head on his shoulder.

   "Are we really gonna do it?  Move to the country one of these days?" she
asked.

   "Yeah, of course we are.  We've been saving our money up and living in
this dump, haven't we?"

   "I know.  But don't you ever want to get married and have kids?  I mean,
you don't want to just spend the rest of your life with me, do you?"

   "Na, I don't have time for that, and I have to have you to keep me in
line.  Besides, do you know what you have to do to have kids?  It's
disgusting," he replied.

   Carrie chuckled and put a hand on his chest.  "I bet with the right
person, it wouldn't be disgusting.  I imagine it would be wonderful.  I
want to be an aunt some day."

   "You don't ever want to be a mommy?  You'd make a good one."

   "That's not gonna happen.  I can't after..."

   "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have asked.  I didn't mean anything by it,"
Chris quickly cut her off.

   "No, don't worry about it.  It happened.  Sure, I don't feel all that
comfortable around men, but maybe I just haven't found the right one.  I
couldn't have a baby, even if I tried, though.  Can't make one anymore."

   Chris put his arm around his sister.  That was the first that he had
heard of that.  "I'm sorry, Carrie.  I didn't know that.  I'm just an
asshole." He felt like a piece of crap.

   "You just didn't know, is all.  Mom was the only one who knew.  You're
not an asshole, you're the best."

   Chris leaned down and kissed his sister on her temple.  "You are too,
Carrie.  We'll be out of this shit-hole before you know it.  The only thing
that we'll have to worry about is when to water the strawberries."

   "I love you, Chris."

   "I love you, too."

   *****

   It wasn't quite a week later, on a Thursday, when Chris found himself
alone with Tina in the break room.  Whitmore's wasn't nearly as busy on the
bar shift during the middle of the week, so the two actually had some time
to take their break.

   "So what makes you wanna work in a place like this?  You still going to
school?" Chris asked.

   "No, I ain't going to school.  I'm working here cause I needed a job. 
How 'bout you?  You going to college?"

   "No, I graduated a few of years ago.  This is my second job, I work in
an office during the day."

   "Damn, that must suck.  Why the two jobs?  Don't you ever get to sleep?"
she asked.

   "Sure, I sleep when I get out in the afternoon, take a nap when I leave
here.  Been saving up to get out of the city."

   "What, you wanna be a farmer or somethin'?"

   "Heh, something like that, I guess.  I just want to see some grass and
trees and not have to worry about getting run over every time I step
outside."

   "That would be nice, I guess," Tina agreed.  "You got a place picked
out?"

   "Not yet.  I was thinking maybe someplace with seasons, you know, like
winter and fall and all that.  I kind have gotten sick of getting fried by
the sun year round," he explained.

   "So it's kind of still in the dream stages, then?"

   "You could say that.  But it's a nice dream."

   "I dream about winning the lottery, but that's probably not gonna
happen." Tina glanced up at the clock.  "I guess I should get back out
there before Erin takes all my tables."

   It was a while later, Chris was finishing up a set of dishes and
listening to Hank, the cook, talk about his list of celebrities that he had
come up with that he would love to bang.  It was fairly interesting,
considering some of the reasons he was coming up with as to why.

   "Yeah, definitely Karen Gillian.  We could do it in a phone booth and
I'd make her call me the Doctor," Hank said.

   "I don't know who that is or what you're talking about, Hank."

   "Doctor Who?  He's a guy that travels through space and time and saves
the universe.  He always has some sexy little thing with him.  Plus, she
has a sexy accent.  Irish or Scottish or something.  You'd really dig her,"
Hank explained.

   "Well, I'll take your word for it.  Let me know how you make out," Chris
said.  It was harder for him to stay amused when he didn't know who Hank
was talking about.

   Hank set a plate of food on the counter and Tina came in just in time to
pick it up.  "Hey Tina, you watch Doctor Who?"

   "What the fuck is that?" she asked back.

   "You guys have no appreciation of fine, foreign sitcoms," was all Hank
had to say.

   Tina fixed her tray and prepared to leave.  "Oh, Chris, there's a girl
out there that wants to see you when you get a minute.  She's at six."

   Chris thought that it was probably his sister.  She came in once in a
while, usually when it wasn't busy so they'd have a chance to chat.  He
pulled his apron off and went out for a quick word.  Technically, he wasn't
supposed to, but his manager was cool about such things, especially when
the place wasn't packed.  "I've already taken mine, so I'm taking your
break, Hank.  Be back in five."

   Chris slid into a booth across the table from his sister.  She smiled
over at him, the way that she always did.  "So what's going on tonight?"

   "Nothing.  Feeling restless and too lazy to cook, so I thought I'd come
and see you," Carrie said.

   "I've got a few minutes, things are pretty much caught up.  How was
work?"

   "Boring, normal, I guess.  I was looking online at some places in New
York.  You still want to get snowed on?" she asked.

   "Sure.  Can you grow strawberries in New York?"

   "Oh yes."

   The two spoke for a while until Tina brought out Carrie's food.  Chris
retreated to the kitchen and told her he'd see her when he got home.  Tina
followed closely behind.

   "Hey Tina, you ever have sex in a phone booth?" Hank asked from behind
the grill.  Erin was there, picking up an order.  She got quite a chuckle
over the question.

   "Fuck you, Hank.  Got an order here," she said, putting a ticket on the
counter.  "So Chris, what did ya do to your girlfriend?  Break a beer
bottle over her face?"

   Chris didn't like the question at all.  He realized the girl didn't know
any better, but that was no excuse for being so rude.  Truth was, she did
get a bottle broken over her face, but it was a whiskey bottle and it
almost killed her.

   "She's not my girlfriend."

   "Oh, could have fooled me, the way you were drooling over her.  Just a
hooker then, maybe her pimp did that to her?" Tina was still joking, but it
was really pissing Chris off to no end.

   "You know what, Tina?  You don't know a damn thing about her.  She's my
sister.  If you wanna say something else about her, go ahead.  I'll come
over there and slap the bitch out of ya."

   Tina kept her mouth shut.  She wasn't used to actually feeling bad about
anything that she said to people.  She had to admit, though, it was a bit
embarrassing to be put in her place like that.  She walked out of the
kitchen and back to the floor.

   "You all right, Chris?" Erin walked over and asked.

   "Yeah, just got pissed for a second."

   "Want me to take her out back after our shift's over and beat the shit
out of her?  'Cause really, I was thinking about doing it anyway," she
offered.

   "Naw, it's not her fault, she just didn't know any better.  It probably
wouldn't do any good to beat her up, she wouldn't understand why.  I think
I got my point across.  I didn't really mean to yell at her like that,
though."

   "Aw, you got to get mad sometimes.  Otherwise you wouldn't be a human
being.  I've wondered about you.  You don't smoke, you don't drink, you
never go out.  All you do is work.  Nice to see that you're human," she
said.

   Chris smiled.  "Oh Erin, my dear.  Such words are poetry.  If you
weren't married I think I'd try to take you home with me."

   "Hey, don't let that stop you.  You never know when I might have a
moment of weakness." Erin smiled back.  He was pretty sure that she wasn't
joking but he had no desire to break up a marriage.

   Later that night, or early the next morning, depending on how you looked
at it, Chris walked Erin to her car in the pouring rain.  They hurried up
and said their goodbyes, then he jumped in his.  He was about to pull out
of the parking lot when he spotted Tina standing under the canopy in the
front of the building.  Feeling guilty, he turned around and pulled up
within earshot.

   "Hey!  Do you want a ride?" he called.

   Tina shook her head.  "No, I'll be alright.  I'll just wait until it
stops." The rain was coming down in buckets and vicious streaks of
lightening darted through the sky.

   "You could be standing there forever, let me give you a ride."

   Tina frowned, thinking about it for a second, then sprinted to the
passenger's side of the car.  She threw herself in the seat and shivered
from the cold of the rain.

   "It only rains like twice a year and it has to do it right when I get
out of work," she complained.

   "Yeah, funny how things work out sometimes.  Listen, I want to apologize
for yelling at you earlier.  Which way?" he asked, heading back to the
street.  Tina told him which way to turn.

   "You don't have to, I feel bad, I shouldn't have said what I said. 
Besides, Luke yells at me all the time, I'm used to it."

   "Why does he yell at you all the time?"

   "I don't know.  I do a lot of dumb things, I guess.  So, um, you're not
mad at me?" she asked.

   "Na.  I was mad for a second, but I know you were just joking.  It's
just that Carrie, she's my sister, is really a nice person, and uh, when
you called her a hooker it made me mad," he tried to explain.

   "I really didn't mean it, and I'm sure she's nice.  I'm sorry.  This is
me here," she said, pointing to a building coming up on their right.

   Chris pulled over.  "See you later.  No hard feelings, alright?"

   Tina opened the door and got ready to step out.  "No hard feelings. 
Thanks for the lift."

   Chris waited until he saw that she was safely inside the building and
headed for home.  Carrie was up and waiting for him in front of the TV
again.  He plopped down on the couch beside her.

   "You don't have to wait up for me all the time, you know." He had said
the same thing a thousand times.

   "You mean you don't want to rush home to see my smiling face waiting for
you?"

   "Of course I do.  You simply light up my life," he replied.

   "Oh please, do go on.  I like to hear about how wonderful I am.  I like
your new waitress, by the way.  She seems pretty nice," she said.

   "Yeah, I got in a fight with her tonight.  She called you a hooker."

   "Oh.  I mean I hate the new waitress.  She seems like such a bitch.  Why
would she do that?" Carrie asked, sitting up.  Chris went on to tell the
whole story.

   "Ah, she's just a dumb kid.  Besides, I can imagine some of the things
that you and Hank have probably said about people when you're back there in
the kitchen.  It's just human nature to be a jerk sometimes," Carrie
theorized.

   "Yeah, you're right.  Speaking of the kitchen, I think I'm wearing parts
of a lot of stuff that came out of there.  I'm gonna hit the shower and
take a nap."

   Chris woke up once a couple of hours before his alarm had gone off. 
Carrie was curled up beside him on his bed.  They never talked about it,
but sometimes during the night, his sister would sneak into his room and
sleep with him.  It didn't seem weird or sexual in any way, at least it
didn't seem weird to them.  It wasn't something that he talked about over
the water cooler at the office, though.  He never talked about much at the
office, really.  He just stayed tucked in his cubicle and typed away the
hours until it was time to punch out.  Judging from his alarm clock, he had
all that to look forward to in about two and a half hours.  He snuggled a
little closer to Carrie and shut his eyes.

   Friday nights at Whitmore's was always exciting during the bar shift. 
The police made two visits that night.  One to break up a fist fight
between two customers, and one to pick up an inebriated lady who had puked
all over herself and passed out.  Apparently, the people that she came in
with thought it was prudent to just skip out and leave her there.  Chris
had the honors of cleaning up the mess in both instances.  He did it
without complaint, it's not like he hadn't seen it before.  He was always
amazed that the manager, Sidney (everyone called him Sid) was able to keep
the place together and running somewhat smoothly.  He was always equally
impressed with the waitresses who seemed to somehow make sense of the
insanity around them and keep people, for the most part, pleased.  Far more
exciting than the office.

   "Well crew, we're alive," Sid announced.  They were all gathered in the
break room before they threw down their aprons and headed for home.  Except
for Hank, he did that a long time ago.

   "I am?" Cindy asked, raising her head from the break table.

   "Yeah, you made it.  You guys did good, too.  Now for the million dollar
question.  Who wants to stay and shampoo the carpets while I do inventory?"

   "Oh come on Sid, is it that time of the month already?  I'm going home."
Erin said.

   "I'm beat, I am too," Cindy said.

   "I'm afraid so.  Look it slipped my mind or I would have asked earlier.
How 'bout you, Chris?  You don't have to work in the morning, do you?  I
know how you like to scrub things." Sid turned to Chris with hope in his
eyes.

   "Heh, that's true.  There's nothing more that I'd rather do than soak up
human fluids and undigested food after a twenty-hour work day.  Count me
in, coach," he said.

   "That's the spirit.  I'll buzz through the inventory as fast as I can,
then I'll help.  We'll try to knock it out before daylight."

   "I'll stay and help." It was Tina.  No one really expected her to
volunteer.  She was usually the first one to leave.

   "Really?  Great.  Why don't you and Chris go get started?  He'll show
you what you're up against," Sid said.

   "Yeah, just give me second.  Let me walk the girls out and call home. 
I'll be ready in like five minutes," Chris said.  He left with Erin and
Cindy to the parking lot.

   "So, maybe you won her heart by telling her you would slap the 'bitch'
out of her," Erin suggested.

   "Yeah, I heard about that.  That's funny," Cindy said.

   "I doubt I've won her heart.  She probably just needs the extra money."

   "I don't know, she was pretty nice to you tonight.  You might be
softening her up," Cindy said.

   "Maybe, who knows?  Maybe tomorrow night I can tell you what she looks
like naked."

   "Oh, you pig!  Trust me, I don't need to know.  She doesn't leave a
whole lot to the imagination, the way she dresses sometimes.  Just wear
protection, I'd hate to have you miss work after your dick falls off,"
Cindy advised.

   "We don't want to have you miss a shift.  No one can scrape up a big
pile of puke like you," Erin agreed.

   "You guys are too kind, concerned about my health like that.  But
seriously, try to be nice to her.  She's not that bad."

   Chris bid farewell to the girls and called his sister on his cell before
heading back inside.  He found Tina and explained to her what they had to
do.  He had done it many times before.  They were in the process of
stacking chairs on the tables when Tina spoke.

   "So, do you have a girlfriend?"

   "No, don't have time for one," he replied.

   "Someone must be home waiting for you.  Who'd you have to call, then?"
she asked.

   "Aren't you the nosy one?"

   "Sorry, I don't mean to be nosy, just wondering I guess," Tina said in
her defense.

   "Naw, it's all right.  I just called Carrie, let her know I'd be late,"
he said.

   "Carrie?  Your sister?  You live with her?"

   "Yeah, she doesn't like living alone, so we share an apartment," he
explained.

   "Oh.  Is it because of...well you know, what happened to her face?" she
asked.  Chris looked at Tina.  This was starting to get fairly personal. 
He didn't detect any animosity, so he decided that he would answer.

   "Yeah.  She got hurt pretty bad when we were teenagers.  Got jumped
walking home from her friend's one night.  She stayed home 'til our parents
passed away, now she lives with me.  Makes her feel safe, she says.  I
don't know why I would make her feel safe though, she's tougher than hell.
Been taking defense classes and fighting lessons and stuff for ten years.
She tries them out on me once in a while and I'm pretty sure that I
wouldn't be able to take her in a fight.  No contest, really."

   "Really?  She's not very big," Tina pointed out.

   "Yeah, but she's like a ball of muscle.  And she's fast, like a damn cat
or something.  I try not to make her mad."

   "Yeah, I guess not.  I hope I never make her mad, I wish I was tough
like that.  It might be fun to learn how to fight," Tina said, as they
moved to the next set of tables.  She lowered her tone for the next
question.  "That's why you always walk Erin and Cindy to their cars and
want to give me a ride home, isn't it?"

   "Well yeah, I already told you that.  You got to be careful around here
after dark."

   "So, it's kind of both of your dreams to move out to the country then? I
think that's nice.  It's nice of you to take care of your sister like
that." Tina said.

   Chris had to smile at her.  "Why Tina, you're making me feel all mushy
inside.  I'll be shampooing with my own tears if you don't cut it out."

   "Don't make fun of me, I'm trying to be nice," she said.  She was
smiling, too.

   "You are being very nice, and I appreciate it.  You ever think about
getting out of the city?"

   "Not really, I guess.  Sometimes I...well it's silly," Tina began.

   "What's silly?  It doesn't hurt to dream a little bit," Chris pointed
out.  Tina chuckled a little.

   "I've always wanted a pony.  I saw some on a ranch when I was little and
I kind of fell in love with them.  They were ponies, not horses.  They were
just so cute.  I got to feed one an apple.  I didn't get a chance to ride
one, but I thought that one day, I might have my own and I could ride it
wherever I wanted.  I know it's silly, all little girls like ponies, right?
I still think about it sometimes.  I know it probably won't ever happen,
but like you said, it doesn't hurt to dream a little."

   "A pony's not a bad dream at all.  Sounds doable.  I'm not big on farm
animals, but I thought I might get a dog.  You know, something that could
bark and scare the bears away when we're working in the garden," he said.

   "You're weird."

   They spent the next couple of hours completing their assigned task.  Sid
never did make an appearance, he stayed hidden behind the scenes.  They
vacuumed, then Chris broke out the shampooer.  It was an ancient beast of a
thing that Dr.  Frankenstein had originally developed for cleaning castle
floors, though it worked just fine for the dining area.  They set up some
fans before they left so things would dry out before opening later.

   "Well," Tina began, looking out the window, "it's still dark.  I'd
probably let you give me a ride home if it makes you feel better."

   "Sure."

   *****

   It was just before dawn when Chris made it back to his apartment.  For
once, it seemed that Carrie wasn't waiting up for him.  He peaked into her
room to make sure the she was safely in bed before he took a shower.  She
was.  She was dressed only in panties and a bra, laying on top of her
covers.  Her chest was heaving gently in rhythm with her sleeping breath.
She was in amazing physical shape, as Chris could plainly see.  She
normally didn't dress like that for bed.  She had shoulder-length brown
hair that was usually kept in a pony tail or a bun, but here it was draped
across her face while she lay partially on her side.  He wasn't sure how
long it was that he stood in her doorway staring at her before he snapped
out of it and went in to shower.  Some things were just too difficult not
to look at.

   Chris finished his shower and retired to his room.  He flipped on the
light and froze in his tracks.  Carrie was there, in his bed, this time
under the covers.  He was naked.

   "Hi," she said.

   He quickly flipped the light back off.  It still wasn't light enough
outside to see clearly in his bedroom without it.  He covered himself with
his hands.

   "What are you up to, Carrie?  Come on, I'm naked here.  You were in your
room a minute ago." His mind was racing.  He was wondering just what it was
that she had in mind.

   "I heard you in the shower and thought I'd wait for you here.  I like to
sleep next to you.  Put on some boxers, then you won't be naked anymore. 
Or don't.  It doesn't look like you have anything to be ashamed of."

   "You're terrible," he replied, grabbing some boxers out of his drawer
and sliding them on.

   "It's not like you didn't just stand there for like ten minutes and
stare at me.  I ought to be able to get a peek every now and then."

   He felt his face turning red, knowing that he had been busted staring at
his sister in bed.  "Well, you at least had underwear on."

   "Do you want me to take them off so that you can get a better look?"

   "Carrie, come on.  I just wanted to check and make sure you were home
before I took a shower, then I just, I don't know.  Lost my train of
thought or something.  You're easy on the eyes, you know?"

   "I'm just picking on you a little bit.  You're allowed to look at me, if
you want.  It makes me feel pretty.  It's not like you have to tell anyone
about it.  Now come to bed, you must be exhausted."

   Chris crawled into bed without being sure exactly what it was that he
was feeling.  He wasn't all that sure about what he had just seen or heard,
for that matter.  Maybe the fumes from the cleaner that he had used on the
carpet had gotten to him.  He knew that he loved his sister.  He was sure
that he found her physically appealing.  He just wasn't all that sure that
he should combine the two feelings.  Carrie seemed relieved when Chris got
into bed.  She rolled over and put her head on his chest.

   "Are you okay, Chris?"

   "I'm alright.  Just feeling a little...conflicted, I guess."

   "Because we're in bed together?  I've slept in your bed lots of times."
she pointed out.

   "I know.  I guess I was just looking at things a little differently, is
all."

   "What do you mean?" she asked.

   "I mean, this could turn into like a sexual thing," he explained.

   "Do you want it to be?" she asked, running her fingers through the
short, curly hair on his chest.

   "I don't know.  I think so.  I love you, I know that.  I wouldn't want
to do anything that would possibly change that.  What would you think if we
did?"

   "Do you even have to ask that?  I'm throwing myself at you.  If we have
sex, I wouldn't love you any less.  I would only love you more because
you'd be pleasing me.  And you'd be letting me please you.  What's wrong
with that if we love each other?" she asked.

   What tiny bit of resistance that Chris had to the idea had melted away.
"Well, can I see you then?  You know, totally naked?"

   Carrie didn't say anything.  She rolled out from under the covers and
stood by the edge of the bed.  She studied her brother's face while she
unsnapped her bra and let it drop to the floor.  With a coy smile she
turned and bent at the waist while she lowered her panties.

   "You're so beautiful, Carrie.  I've wondered about how you would look,
but I never really thought that I'd have a chance to see it."

   "Is that all you thought about doing was getting a look?" she asked.

   "Well, if you get back in bed, I could probably show you what all I
thought about."

   Carrie slid back into bed and crawled on top of her brother.  "I've
thought about some things, too." She kissed the crook of his neck while he
wrapped his arms around her.  "I wondered if I would ever be able to make
love again and enjoy it.  I wondered if I would ever feel comfortable
enough with a man again to even try.  I wondered how on earth I was ever
going to find a man that I could love.  Then I realized, a long time ago
this was, that I was totally in love with you.  You feel it too, don't
you?"

   "I guess I've known for a while now that I love you, Carrie.  I mean
like really love you.  I never would have dared to try anything like this,
though."

   "I know you wouldn't, but I'm ready.  I am so ready.  You've always
taken care of me and made sure that I'm never scared or lonely.  You've
always come home to me every night even though I know that there's women
out there that would love to have you in their beds.  It's time that I take
care of you the way that a woman takes care of their man.  I love you,
Chris." She finished her speech by bringing her lips to his and kissing
with all of her might.

   Chris was feeling light-headed after listening to his sister confess her
love.  He had certainly never heard a woman say such things to him before,
he was being hit with a feeling that he had never experienced.  He was able
to respond when she eventually broke her kiss.  "I think we were meant to
be, Carrie.  I love you so much right now it feels...well, I've never felt
anything like it.  I just love you."

   Carrie groaned her approval as she and her brother rolled on the bed,
switching places.  He quickly slid his boxers off and kicked them backwards
onto the floor, the sight of his naked erection causing her to sigh with
arousal.  She had been dreaming of it, hoping for it, now she was actually
going to get to feel it.

   He wasn't an overly large man physically, slightly less than six feet
tall, maybe one hundred and eighty pounds.  His penis, though not grossly
out of proportion to the rest of his body, looked large on his frame.  It
was around seven, possibly nearing eight inches in length, and what made it
look so large was its impressive girth.  Quite a transformation from when
it was flaccid.  She hadn't ever seen it when it was like it was just then.

   "Oh my god Chris, you're huge!"

   "Is that going to be a problem?" He sure as hell hoped not.  He never
had any complaints before, but he paused with the head resting against the
entrance to her pussy.  The slickness and heat coming from his sister was
causing him to use considerable will power to keep himself from just
plunging all the way in.

   Carrie had been mostly blinded and nearly unconscious during the
terrible assault that she went through all those years ago.  The memories
of the rape were foggy at best.  The last erection that she actually
remembered seeing belonged to her high school boyfriend and it looked
nothing like what Chris was about to put in her.  She wasn't frightened at
all, just kind of shocked.  Chris was definitely no kid, he was a man.

   "No, I just had no idea.  Don't stop now." She had a toy that she used
occasionally that was nearly comparable in size.  It would definitely fit.
She just never thought that she would see something like that attached to a
human being unless she was looking at it on her computer screen.

   That was the confirmation that Chris needed, still, he exercised some
restraint.  He pushed into her slowly, enjoying the silky sensation as he
filled her inch by inch.  His sister sighed with pleasure, gripping him
tight with her legs behind his once he was all the way in.  It felt amazing
to be stretched in all the right ways, she just wanted to keep him from
moving for a moment so that she could adjust to his size.  Chris showered
her with kisses while Carrie kept him clamped with her legs.  Her strength
always surprised him.  For her size, she was a force to be reckoned with.
"Okay baby?" he asked into her ear.

   "Better than that.  Just liking how it feels."

   "So do I."

   Eventually, Carrie relaxed her leg clamp which allowed her brother to
move.  He began to pump into her at a relaxed pace, looking down at the
contorting features of her face.  She was either a good actress, or she was
really enjoying herself.  If she felt anything like he did, then it was the
latter.

   As Carrie began to moan and move into each of his thrusts, he started
moving faster.  "Oh, right there!" she urged, "fuck yes." Soon he was
slamming into her, and she was convulsing in orgasm around his cock.  She
was staring up at him with half-closed eyes when she felt him shoot his
load deep into her.  Three massive spurts coated her insides and dribbled
out around the sides of her brother's cock and dripped from her pussy into
the crack of her ass.

   "Oh my god, Carrie.  Oh man." He slipped it in and out very slowly a few
more times, then rolled onto his back beside her.  He kissed her breasts as
he nuzzled into her chest.  They weren't large, not much more than a
handful, but they were exquisitely firm.  She cradled his head in one of
her arms while she reached down to feel what was oozing from her body.

   "Oh, I needed that," she announced, running the fingers of her other
hand through his hair.  She picked up her free hand and examined her
fingers covered with his sperm in the growing light of dawn creeping in
through the window.  "Do you always cum so much?"

   "It's been a while.  And you felt so good."

   "You'll never have to go a while ever again.  I'll be here to make you
feel good.  You just made me feel like a woman again.  A real woman."

   "You've always been a real woman, Carrie.  You just needed a little
reminder is all." He continued to suckle her breast.

   "Hmm.  Let me know when you're ready to remind me again."

   *****

   "Can't you just call in sick or something?" Carrie whined.

   "I can't.  I don't want to leave them hangin' on a Saturday night. 
Besides, all the money goes in the piggy bank.  We've got all tomorrow to
off.  I'm sure you'll survive 'til then, won't you?"

   "I guess so.  Don't work too hard," she advised, giving him a kiss
before he left.

   Chris was on a cloud all his own, his mind was a million miles away
while he slaved behind a giant pile of dishes.  He couldn't keep thoughts
of Carrie out of his head.  It was amazing how good it felt to actually
realize that he was in love with her.  That's why he didn't notice that
Erin was trying to talk to him until she was poking him in the middle of
the back.

   "Oh sorry, daydreaming.  What's up?" he asked.

   "I was wondering if you went through with your plan to slap Tina
around."

   Chris looked around to see Tina placing several plates onto her tray
from the counter.

   "No, I didn't slap her around.  Why do you say that?"

   "She's got a black eye.  I asked her where she got it from and she told
me that she didn't want to talk about it and hasn't said two words since,"
Erin explained.

   Chris shrugged his shoulders.  "She looks fine to me."

   "I can see through all that makeup, honey.  You ought to talk to her
when we die down a little.  She's kind of your project, she likes you. 
Besides, I'm dying to know how she got it.  Someone got sick of her
bitchiness, I bet."

   "Just when I thought you were starting to care about her.  All right,
I'll do it.  I'll get your gossip for you, you friggin' junky," Chris said.

   "You're the best, Chris."

   "I know."

   It was quite a while before Chris found himself alone with Tina so that
he could talk to her.  The restaurant was its usual circus for the first
part of the night.  They were in the break room again.

   "So, how's the world been treating you today?" he asked.

   "Fine."

   "I see our wonderful shampoo job lasted all of about one day.  A guy in
Cindy's section knocked a whole plate of chili fries on the floor."

   "Yeah, I saw that." She didn't seem like she really wanted to talk.

   "So where did that black eye come from?" Chris decided he should just
ask instead of fooling around.

   "How could you even tell that I have one?" she asked.

   "To tell you the truth, I didn't notice.  Erin told me."

   "That bitch!  Why can't she just mind her own business?" Tina spat.

   "Hey, calm down.  You got to expect her to be curious, I mean if you get
a black eye, people are gonna ask about it.  I'm curious about it.  Are you
all right?"

   Tina sighed.  "I guess.  I just don't want to talk about it right now.
Besides, if I tell you then you all will just talk about me behind my
back."

   "Fair enough.  We do like to gossip about one another.  Did you know
that Cindy saw Hank go into a strip club last week?" Chris said shaking his
head from side to side.  "The kind where they'll give you a 'special dance'
for fifty bucks in the back room."

   Tina smiled a little.  "That's not really gossip is it?  I think I heard
him bragging about it the next day."

   "Damn.  That's all I've really got.  If I hear anything juicy, I'll let
you know.  The girls saying anything interesting about me?" Chris asked.

   "I don't talk to them a whole lot.  I don't think they like me much
'cause I'm hot and they're old."

   Chris had to choke back his laughter, especially when he saw the puzzled
look on Tina's face.  She was serious.  She wasn't all that far off from
the truth, either.  "Wow.  You are very attractive, but I don't think
either one of them are even thirty yet.  I think they're still in their
late twenties."

   "Yeah, I know.  I just said they're old," said Tina, amused at his
reaction.  Chris couldn't control himself; he had to let the laughter out.
Tina watched him with a smile until he eventually calmed down.

   "How old do you think I am?  Like retirement age?  How old are you?" he
asked.

   "I don't know.  You look like you're twenty-five, twenty-six.  I'm
nineteen."

   "Well I'm twenty-seven.  Doesn't that make me old, too?"

   "It's different with guys.  You won't be old for a while," she
explained.

   "That's a relief.  Do you think that I should tell Erin and Cindy that
they're old?  I mean, they might not even realize it.  If they knew, maybe
they could make some adjustments so they wouldn't have such intemperate
dispositions."

   "What?  Are you making fun of me?  I think if you tell them they're old
they'll just get mad.  Especially if you tell them I said it."

   "No, I'm not making fun of you.  Well...maybe I am.  But only because I
think it's so damn funny.  I'm not gonna tell them they're old, I'm not
that brave.  Don't be too harsh with them, I think they're starting to like
you a little." Chris wanted the waitresses to get along, even if he had to
lie to them to get it to happen.

   "They are?" Tina asked.

   "Sure."

   "I'm not sure if I believe you or not." Tina squinted her eyes and
studied Chris, trying to get a read on him.

   "All right.  I like you and I want them to like you.  I like them and I
want you to like them.  It's just easier to work here when we all get
along."

   "You're weird."

   "I know.  I can't help it.  Hey, before I forget, I told my sister that
you seemed interested in self defense.  She said that she'd take you to see
one of the classes, if you wanted," he said.

   "Yeah, I don't know.  I don't think Luke would want me to do something
like that."

   He probably wouldn't want to let you get any ideas, like it's possible
to fight back.

   "Well, if he ever changes his mind, let me give you Carrie's number."
Chris scribbled his sister's phone number on the back of a napkin and slid
it over to Tina.  She started to reach for it, then her arm froze in
mid-air.

   "This isn't your number, right?"

   "No, it's Carrie's, like I said.  Why do you ask?"

   "I thought you might be trying to trick me into calling you," she said,
stuffing the napkin in her pocket.

   "Heh, I see you almost every night.  I don't need to trick you to talk
to you.  Now you're the one that's weird.  You don't have to call it if
you're afraid that you might accidentally talk to me."

   "No, it's not that.  I like talking to you..."

   Cindy came walking in and eyed the two suspiciously.  "Are you ever
gonna finish your break?"

   Chris sighed and looked up at the clock.  "I suppose it's about that
time.  Let's go Tina.  Get out there and make me some money."

   The rest of the night didn't go too badly, there were no fist fights or
vomit, at least.  Chris was walking the girls back to their cars.  Tina was
with them, apparently accepting the fact that Chris was going to give her a
ride home.

   "What are you guys up to today?  Anyone want to come over later, have
some beers, watch football?" Cindy asked.

   "Maybe Steve and I could drop by," Erin said.

   "I think I'm going to stay in bed," Chris replied.

   "How 'bout you, Tina?"

   Tina seemed surprised at the invitation.  "I'd like to, but Luke
probably has plans."

   "All right.  See ya."

   By the time Chris had dropped Tina off and got back home, he was ready
for that day in bed.  For the most part, his body had gotten used to the
schedule that he kept, but every once in a while it caught up to him. 
That's what Sundays were for.  Carrie was sitting at their tiny kitchen
table, staring at a plate of cupcakes.  Chris walked over and kissed her on
the forehead.

   Carrie smiled up at him.  "I've been waiting for you.  I made some
cupcakes.  I'm not sure why, but it seems like it took forever for you to
get done.  Are you okay?"

   "Yeah, I'm fine.  Tired.  How are you?" Chris asked.  His sister seemed
tense or nervous or something.

   "I've been thinking about us.  I was hoping that I did the right thing
yesterday.  Have you thought about it at all?  Have any regrets?"

   "I thought about us a lot.  It was about all I thought about.  I think
what we did was wonderful, I don't regret a thing.  If we're not allowed to
be in love, then I don't think anyone should.  Do you know what I thought
most about?  How nice it was going to be to come back home to you again. 
Are you having second thoughts?" he asked, rubbing her shoulders.

   "No, not at all.  I was just worried that you might freak out or
something after you had time to think about it for a while.  I'm glad
you're home.  Try a cupcake.  Don't worry, I had one a while ago and
haven't died yet." Neither one of them were what you could consider to be a
chef or a baker.

   Chris took a seat and grabbed a cupcake.  He didn't much feel like
eating one, but he did anyway.  "Hey, it's not too bad.  You know Tina,
right?"

   "Sure."

   "I gave her your number.  Told her that you would take her to see one of
your classes, she seemed interested in them.  She probably won't call, but
I thought I'd let you know."

   "Oh?  Anything else you got me set up to do that I should know about? 
What makes you think that I'd take her?" Carrie asked.

   "Because you're sweet and wonderful and I thought if I asked you nicely
that you would.  I like the girl or I wouldn't have said anything to her,"
he explained.

   Carrie sighed.  "I am sweet and wonderful.  Do you like her or do you
just like watching her tits bounce around?"

   "Both, really.  Those babies are earners.  You ought to see the tips she
gets.  But seriously, she came to work with a black eye tonight.  I think
her boyfriend's been slapping her around."

   "That's terrible.  Did she tell you that?"

   "No, but I'm pretty sure he had something to do with it.  You should
hear her talk about him, makes me sick.  'Luke wouldn't like that', 'I
can't go because Luke probably has plans'.  It just bugs me.  If she does
call, do you promise to be nice to her?" he asked.

   "Well, it would bug anybody.  Of course I'll be nice to her.  You got to
realize though, with girls like Tina, it's not likely that she'll just all
of a sudden decide to stand up to this guy.  It takes a lot of women a long
time to get out of an abusive relationship.  I've listened to a lot of
stories.  It might help her more to sit in on a group session or two."
Chris realized that Carrie knew what she was talking about.  She definitely
had more knowledge about abused women than he did.

   "That's why I was hoping that she would call and talk to you.  Before
something terrible happens to her.  I've heard enough horror stories from
you to know that she's headed down a bad road.  She's only nineteen."

   "I hope she calls.  You really like her, don't you?" she asked softly.

   "Yeah.  Not as much as I like you, don't worry.  Do you want to spend
the day in bed with me, or do you have something planned?"

   "You're the only thing on my schedule.  Especially after last night."
She got out of her chair and kissed his forehead as he swallowed the last
bit of cupcake.  "But you have to have your shower first.  I know you like
working at the restaurant and the extra cash it brings us, but you always
come home smelling like leftovers."

   "Yeah, one of the perks." The heat of the kitchen and the humidity that
he was exposed to by standing next to the dishwasher for most of the night
cooked a myriad of aromas into his clothing.  Not many of them were
pleasant.  Carrie knew better than her brother, probably.  His sense of
smell had grown mostly immune to it.  Hers didn't.  And she did the
laundry.

   "If you want, I could help you.  Make sure you're nice and clean," she
suggested.

   Chris thought that was a great idea.  They went down the hall to the
bathroom and stripped off their clothes.  They had a chance to fully
examine each other's bodies under the bright fluorescent lights.  Carrie
started the water, adjusted the temperature, and the two stepped inside.

   She was three or four inches shorter than her brother, so she had to
crane her neck upwards to receive his kiss, feeling his growing cock rub
against her muscled tummy.  It was a magnificent cock, truly worthy of
bragging about to the other girls at the gym.  Too bad she wasn't able to,
since it belonged to her brother.  Just as well, really.  If she did say
anything there would probably be a line of women waiting to break down
their door.

   They took their time in the shower, scrubbing and rinsing, lots of
gentle rubbing.  He loved how the water streamed down her pelvis and
dripped off the glistening folds of her pussy.  It was beautiful, her
muscle tone, the way she was waxed.  There was however, a series of small
blemishes.  In addition to the scar on her cheek from the bottle that was
smashed against her face, there was a cluster of scars on her lower abdomen
from being stabbed a half-dozen times with a small switchblade.  If he
hadn't known what they were from, they wouldn't have bothered him so much.
Some animal had done that to her when they were finished having their way
with her semi-conscious body.  It enraged him to think that anyone could
have done such a thing to his beloved sister.  She must have sensed a
change in his mood.

   "Is something wrong?"

   "No, everything is just right.  I guess I get a little overwhelmed if I
think about it too hard," he replied.

   She smiled.  "Doesn't it feel good?  When I finally felt brave enough to
go in your room last night and we made love I felt like the weight of the
world lifted off me."

   He grinned back at her.  "You're braver than I am.  I'm so glad you are,
too.  It does feel good.  It feels good to be in love with you, to have you
love me.  The best feeling in the world."

   Hearing those words made Carrie go a little weak in the knees.  She
decided that they were both clean enough.  It was time to dry off and get
to the nearest bedroom, get a start on the day in bed.

   *****

   Chris was finding it hard to believe that he had put himself through
business college just so that he could land a job as a data analyst.  The
job was mind numbing at best, and as he drew closer to having his nest egg
become big enough to fly the coop, it was becoming harder and harder to get
up the ambition to go to it.  Now that he had gotten closer to his sister,
in every conceivable way, it pained him that he didn't get back home in
time to see her at all after the office grind.  He did his best to suck it
up and get through the day.

   Not having to work at Whitmore's on Mondays made it the only day of the
week where Chris would sit around and wait for his sister to come home. 
She only worked twenty-five to thirty hours a week, but it was enough to
pay the rent and the utilities.  That allowed them to stash away most of
what Chris took in.  He was daydreaming about her while laying on the couch
when she called.

   "Hey, what's up?" he greeted.

   "Hi, baby.  I just thought I'd call and let you know that I'm going to
stop and pick up a pizza on the way home.  Your girl Tina's gonna come
over, too.  That's alright isn't it?" she asked.

   "It's fine with me.  How'd you ever get her to do that?"

   "She called and said that she wanted to talk about some things.  I
didn't really have to try and make her do anything.  I'm going to pick her
up on the way home," she said.

   "Okay, see ya in a few."

   It wasn't too long before Carrie came through the door, carrying the
pizza.  Tina followed behind her, carrying a couple bottles of soda.  Diet,
of course.  Carrie had no problem making her brother eat cupcakes and
pizza, but for some reason the added sugar of regular cola was against the
rules.  She set the pizza on the coffee table in the living room.

   "Hi kids.  I'll grab us some plates," he said, heading to the kitchen.

   "Hi Chris."

   "Hey Chris.  You guys have a lot of plants," Tina greeted.  She was
right, Carrie and her brother had accumulated quite a few house plants over
the last couple of years.  They had a multitude of shapes and sizes.  They
thought that they livened up the place.

   Chris came back from the kitchen and handed the girls each a paper
plate. "Yeah, I think it helps the place look like less of a dump."

   "This place isn't a dump, it's nicer than mine, anyway.  It's not some
place that I pictured you living in."

   "Oh?  Where did you think I lived?" Chris asked, taking a bite of his
slice.

   "I don't know, like a library or something.  Most of my friends' places
always look like they've just had a party.  Most of the time, that's true,
though."

   Chris laughed and Carrie had a little chuckle.  That caused Tina to
smile, as well.  Carrie poured herself something to drink and had to ask,
"Why on earth would you picture Chris living in a library?"

   "'Cause he's so smart.  I can just see him sitting around, reading all
the time.  You know, like the nerds in libraries do."

   "Well, he is kind of a nerd."

   "Thanks, Carrie," Chris said.

   "You know I love you," she replied with a wink.

   "So Tina, what brings you here to our happy home?  I didn't really
expect to see you, to tell you the truth.  I kind of got the impression
that you spent most of your free time with Luke." Chris was curious.

   "Yeah, well, Luke is...busy.  Hopefully, he will be for a while.  He got
busted last night with a hooker and a bunch of coke.  I hate that shit and
I told him to stay away from it.  When he was takin' the shit he felt like
he couldn't do any wrong, but he was and he got caught.  Called me and
wanted me to bail him out.  I think he's fine where he is.  He'll be pissed
if he does get out, but you know what?  I don't care.  I'm not gonna put up
with that bullshit.  One of his buddies stopped by and said he'd come pick
up his stuff tomorrow.  Probably be the last he'll ever see of any of that.
All of his friends are scumbags."

   "Wow, Tina, sounds like you had an exciting weekend.  You don't sound
too upset about Luke getting popped.  Seems like he'd be a good guy to stay
away from," Carrie said.

   Chris found it hard to believe that Tina could be so matter of fact
about her boyfriend, that she lived with, dealing cocaine, sleeping with a
hooker, and getting incarcerated.  He wondered if the girl was in shock or
traumatized or something.  He grabbed another slice from the box for
himself and set another on Carrie's plate.  "You better have another piece,
Carrie, you're getting too skinny." Chris directed his attention to Tina.
"I keep trying to fatten her up so I might have a chance to outrun her when
she wants to try out some of her moves."

   "That won't work if you eat the same way.  Besides, I never really hurt
you, much."

   "I think it's great that you two get along.  I had an older brother, I
don't think that I could ever stand living with him.  He was an asshole. 
My parents were assholes too," Tina said.

   "Carrie and I have always gotten along.  I don't know why, exactly. 
She's pretty easy to live with.  I take it you lost your parents, too?"
Chris asked.

   "I don't know if their dead or not, if that's what you mean.  I haven't
seen or talked to them in five years.  My stupid brother either.  I got
sick of it and walked out one day.  Lived with my cousins 'til I turned
eighteen."

   "I'm sorry to hear that.  They ever try to get a hold of you or
anything?" Chris asked.

   "Don't be.  As far as I know, they haven't.  Besides, I've done just
fine without them," Tina replied.

   "Geez, Tina, you get along with anyone?" Carrie asked.  Tina looked at
her a little sideways.  "I'm not trying to be mean, just sounds like you've
had a rough go of it, is all."

   "I get along with people that are worth getting along with.  We've all
been through some shit at one point or another, I bet," Tina replied.

   The three continued talking through the night.  Mostly it was about
lighter subjects, though Carrie did tell some bits about her attack when
she was younger.  Both she and Chris tried to glean as much information
about the arrest of Luke as they could; it was some juicy stuff even though
Tina spoke of it as if she was telling them of the weather.  Carrie also
demonstrated on Chris how effective some of the self-defense tactics were
that she had learned over the years.  Eventually, they decided to call it
an evening and Chris volunteered to drive Tina home.  They got into his
aging Toyota and hit the road.

   "You'd think that with all the money you make with the two jobs and all
that you'd have a nicer ride," Tina joked.

   "Saving for the future, Tina.  You can end up wasting thousands of
dollars for a fancy set of wheels.  This gets me from here to there just
fine."

   "You guys are really gonna do it, huh?  How long, do you think?" she
asked.

   "I'm hoping after the year's up.  Maybe in the spring."

   "That's cool.  Thanks for having me over.  I think Carrie's really nice.
She's a lot like you.  I felt kind of funny calling her, but I wanted to
talk to you.  I would have called you but Luke looks at my phone sometimes.
That's why I didn't want your number.  If he called it and you answered, he
would have been pissed," she explained.

   "You don't seem all that upset or even surprised that he's in jail. 
Aren't you worried someone might bail him out?" Chris asked.

   "It's like his third or fourth possession charge, this time with intent
to sell.  It's like fifty grand to get him out.  He doesn't know anyone
with that kind of cash.  Cops are supposed to call me if he gets out."

   "So, you think you'll be alright, then?"

   "Yeah, but uh, do you think I could get your number, too?  I mean, it
might be nice to hang out sometime and not talk about all the miserable
shit in my life.  I know you're busy all the time, so if you don't want to,
I understand."

   "You can call me any time you want, Tina.  Sundays are the only days I
don't work.  And Monday nights.  I'm not all that fun to hang with, though.
My favorite thing to do is just sit and relax," Chris said.

   "That's okay.  I don't really need any excitement.  Relaxing sounds fun,
actually."

   Chris pulled up in front of Tina's building and brought the car to a
stop.  The clock on the dash said that it was nearing three in the morning.
"Well, my dear, I guess I'll see you tonight.  You got my number, right?"

   Tina checked her phone to make sure that she had stored the number
correctly.  "I got it, and I will see you tonight.  Say 'goodnight' to
Carrie for me."

   Chris was having some very conflicting emotions on his drive back home.
Tina was young, hot as hell, and just screaming to be taken to bed.  Carrie
was hot in her own right, and they had just taken their relationship to a
whole new level.  There was no way that he wanted to do anything stupid to
ruin what he and his sister had.  Still, the horn-dog in him was cursing
his luck to have the two situations come together at the same time.  He
thought that it would probably be best to avoid being alone with Tina.  He
felt guilty just thinking about her.

   Chris had barely opened the door to his apartment when Carrie greeted
him from the couch.  "That didn't take you very long.  I was wondering if I
would have to worry about you or not," she said.

   "Yeah, no problems," he said, kicking off his shoes.

   "That's not what I meant."

   "Well, what did you mean then?" he asked.  He knew what she meant.

   "Don't be silly, Chris.  That girl never took her eyes off you all
night. It's not that hard to see what she wants."

   "Yeah, I get it.  I take it you don't like her much," he replied.

   "No, it's not that.  I like her just fine.  Believe me, I understand why
she's attracted to you.  The same reason I am, you're a wonderful,
good-looking man."

   Chris walked over and sat next to his sister, putting an arm around her
shoulders.  "And you're a wonderful woman.  A wonderful woman that I came
home to, and I always will.  I don't want to do anything to spoil what we
have."

   Carrie leaned into him and kissed his cheek.  "I know.  She has to be
kind of tempting to you, isn't she?"

   Chris groaned.  He thought that they had stopped talking about Tina. 
"She's tempting, alright?  What do you think I should do about her?  I
can't just start being mean to her.  Plus, I have to work with her every
night."

   "No, don't be mean to her.  I don't think you're capable of it, anyway.
Just be her friend.  She needs that more than she needs to get laid,
probably."

   "Yeah.  You're gonna have to help me."

   "Help you?  Help you what?  Help keep you from the clutches of a sexy,
horny, teenage girl?" She put on her best scolding face.

   "Oh, come on.  You know what I mean.  I can keep my hands off of her
without any help.  I want you to help me straighten her out.  She's a good
kid."

   "She's pretty top heavy for being a kid.  Looks pretty grown up to me,"
Carrie pointed out.

   "Listen, Carrie I love you, but seriously now.  Do you want her to spend
the rest of her life dating losers and getting smacked around?  She's
supported herself since she was fifteen years old, which is great but she
doesn't seem to go anywhere but in circles.  You and that crazy pack of
women that you hang out with could give her some serious guidance."

   Carrie had full confidence that Chris wouldn't cheat on her.  She still
wasn't too keen on spending much time with a chick that wanted to bone him
so bad that she might as well have been wearing a sign around her neck that
said just that.  She supposed that was a downside of falling in love with
someone who genuinely cared about people.  It was just too bad that Tina
didn't have the body of a linebacker or the face of a bulldog.

   "I think she's a good kid, too, Chris.  I'll see what I can do."

   *****

   "So, what do you have for gossip on your girl?" Erin asked.

   "Well, I think she definitely got that eye from her boyfriend, who
appears to be out of the picture now.  Jail." Chris told her from across
the break table.

   "Hmm, you'll be able to slide right in, so to speak."

   "Anything's possible I suppose, but I have barely enough energy to keep
the tables clean, I don't think I need to go chasing around a nineteen year
old.  I don't think I could keep up with her."

   "I know what you mean.  Especially after the weekend, my bed spoils me.
Human beings should be asleep at two in the morning," Erin said.

   Tina and Chris spoke with each other throughout the shift, she seemed to
be doing fine.  No sign of Luke, his friend came by the apartment to get
his things like he said he would.  All in all, it was a normal night of
dish washing and collecting stray french fries for Chris.  He did his
nightly duty walking Erin to her car, then he and Tina took off for her
place.

   "So Chris...uh, I know you don't have time to date or anything.  If you
wanted to, you could come in for a little while."

   Chris suddenly felt like it was very hot inside the vehicle.  He wasn't
sure how he was going to do it, but he was going to have to turn down
Tina's very generous offer.  "I think I'm just gonna head home.  It's been
a long day."

   "Okay.  You sure you don't want to?  Cause you know, I thought you
would." Tina seemed to be fairly perplexed at the thought that Chris was
basically turning down a chance to sleep with her.

   "I want to Tina, I really do.  Thing is, Carrie's waiting for me and I'm
tired, and it might not be the best thing for you if we jumped into
something.  You're not mad, are you?"

   "Maybe tomorrow?  I like you, Chris.  You do know what I mean, don't
you?" she asked.

   "I definitely know what you mean.  You don't need me to tell you how
incredible you look.  I like you, too.  Can we just take it easy?" he
asked.

   "You mean like slow?"

   "Exactly.  Let's work on being friends and take things nice and slow."

   "We are friends, aren't we?" she asked.

   "Yeah, we are.  All I'm sayin is that I'd like to get to know each other
better.  Maybe after you get to know me, you won't want to have anything to
do with me.  Who knows?"

   "Don't be silly."

   *****

   It was over a week later when Tina and Carrie were side by side on
treadmills at the gym.  Carrie had a few passes and had invited Tina to
join her.  She was keeping a far more aggressive pace than that of the
younger girl.

   "Chris said that he wants to keep things slow and just be friends.  It's
been like a week and we still haven't, you know, done anything.  Do you
think he really likes me or what?"

   "Of course he does.  Taking things slow takes more than just a few days,
you know.  He talks about you all the time," Carrie replied.

   She couldn't seem to not like the girl.  It was the second time that
week that they had hung out with each other.  Carrie had been wracking her
brain, trying to figure out ways to get rid of her without hurting her
feelings.  For some reason, when she actually spent some time with her, she
just couldn't bring herself to tell her to lay off her brother.  Tina was a
little ditsy, but she was far from stupid.  She said what was on her mind
and was just kind of refreshing to be around.  Carrie stepped off the
treadmill and toweled off.  Tina did the same.

   "What's he say?  Anything good?" Tina asked.  They were walking out to
Carrie's car.  She had to get home and get ready for work.

   "Oh, it's all good.  You're gorgeous, you're a good waitress.  He really
likes you.  He doesn't say so, but he worries about you."

   "He's sweet like that.  You know, he walks the other girls out to their
cars when our shift's over to make sure they get out okay.  He kept trying
to give me a ride home when I first started working there.  I thought he
was just trying to, you know, come on to me, but he's not like that," Tina
said.

   "He's a good man, there's no doubt about that.  Look, Tina, he and I
have lived together for five years.  He's never had a steady girlfriend."

   "Why not?  He deserves one, don't you think?" Tina asked.

   "He does.  He needs a woman to make him happy and take care of him. 
He's never had one because of me.  I need him, and I don't know what I'd do
without him.  He knows that and I don't think he'll ever leave me for
someone." Carrie suddenly found herself on the edge of tears, wondering how
the hell she had become so emotional.  She had a hard time putting the keys
in the ignition.  Tina's hand was suddenly covering hers.

   "What's wrong with you?  Why are you shaking like that?" Tina asked,
concerned.  "You all right?"

   Carrie could only turn and look at the girl with her eyes watering.  She
opened her mouth to speak, but no words came out.  After trying to come up
with something to say for a moment, she gave up and just covered her face
with her hands.

   Tina's eyes opened wide as a realization struck her.  "You're in love
with him, aren't you?  Like not brother and sister love, like IN love? 
I've seen the way you look at him." Tina's voice was soft and low.

   "He means everything to me.  Please don't take him away from me," Carrie
pleaded.  She was crying now.  Never in her wildest dreams did she think
that she could be reduced to a basket case so easily.  She had been
worrying herself half to death wondering what people would think if they
ever found out about her and her brother, and here she was blabbing about
it the first chance that she got.

   "Hey, take it easy.  I don't wanna take him away from you.  Is he, you
know, in love with you too?" Tina asked.  She wasn't sure what to think of
this.  She had been thinking it was odd that a grown brother and sister had
been living together for so long, but she had just chalked it up as an
innocent living arrangement.

   Carrie couldn't say anything.  She just nodded her head and looked at
Tina with tears coming down her cheeks.

   "That's why he couldn't just tell me he was seeing somebody.  He's
seeing you," Tina said.  Carrie nodded in the affirmative again.  Tina
slumped back in her seat and put her hands over her face.  "I really
thought that I had a chance for something good.  I should have known that
he was too good to be true.  I should have known that this was going to
turn out to be just as shitty as everything else that's ever happened to
me."

   "Tina, I'm sorry.  You're a nice girl.  I like you, Chris likes you. 
I'm sorry, I'm just so sorry," Carrie whined.  "What are you going to do?"

   Tina spoke through her fingers.  "There's not much I can do, is there? I
fell for a weirdo that I never had a chance with from the start."

   Carrie didn't like hearing the word 'weirdo', huge sobs erupted.  It
took a moment for her to compose herself.  "Are you going to tell anyone?
About Chris and I?"

   "No, I won't tell anyone.  You two are a couple of the nicest people I
know.  I couldn't do anything to hurt you or what you got.  Fuck!  Why
couldn't he have just told me so I wouldn't get my hopes up?  It hurts, you
know?  He made me feel like he cared about me," Tina said.

   "He does care about you.  Can you forgive him?  Forgive me?  Do you work
tonight?" Carrie asked.  She wasn't sure how things would go down at
Whitmore's after Tina's insightful revelation about her and her brother.

   "No, Erin and Cindy are on.  And I don't know.  I just don't know.  I'm
gonna walk," Tina replied, opening the door and stepping out.

   "Wait!  Let me give you a ride home at least!"

   "I need some space.  Let me walk." Tina shut the door and stomped off.

   Carrie banged her forehead against the top of the steering wheel. 
"Shit, shit, shit!" With more than a little trepidation, she grabbed her
cell phone and dialed her brother.

   *****

   It was a long walk home for Tina.  The heat of the afternoon had
basically cooked her through and she wanted nothing more than to grab a
bottle of water and hit the shower.  When she pulled out her key to unlock
the door, it took her a moment to realize that it had been kicked in.

   Fuck!  I got to get robbed, too.

   She pushed the door open and took a look inside.  It looked kind of like
a small tornado had just swept through.  Just when she was thinking it
might be prudent to alert the authorities, a hand locked around her wrist
and pulled her inside.

   "Luke!  What the fuck are you doing here?" she screamed.

   "This is where I live.  You forget that?  You think I was just gonna rot
in a cell forever?  I know that you wanted me to, you fuckin' bitch. 
Hopin' I'd spend the rest of my life in jail?"

   Luke appeared to be upset.  He was a large man and towered over the
girl. He had no problem keeping a grip on her wrist, even though she was
struggling to get away.

   "I couldn't make your bail.  Your lawyer said you were going away for a
long time.  I couldn't even talk to you.  Come on!  You're gonna break my
arm!"

   "Where's my stuff?  This is fucking important, where's my speakers?" He
twisted her arm, causing Tina to cry out in her new-felt pain.

   "Bobby came and picked up your stuff yesterday.  He said he'd hold onto
it 'til you got out!" she cried.

   "I talked to fucking Bobby and he didn't say anything about picking up
my stuff.  He's been out of town.  You know what was in those speakers? 
The rest of my fuckin' stash, that's what!  So you better think fucking
hard about where it is.  You understand me?" Luke pulled her further into
the apartment and kicked the door shut.  "I need that shit back.  I owe a
lot of money to people that you can't afford to owe money to.  The kind of
people that make going to prison seem like a trip to Disney Land.  That
shit is my ticket out of here."

   Tina knew that she was in serious trouble.  By some strange act of God,
or Satan, or some other unexplainable mystic force, Luke was out of police
custody and was asking her a question that she just couldn't answer to his
satisfaction.  His friend Bobby had come and taken his things away.  Luke
didn't believe it and she couldn't think of a thing to tell him that would
possibly appease his rage.

   "Luke, you gotta believe me!  Bobby came yesterday with his van and got
all your stuff!  What do you think I could have done with it?  I don't have
any place to take it to.  I sure as hell don't want anything to do with
your stash!"

   "So, you want to make this hard.  That's fine.  You've had this coming."

   *****

   "Did you happen to talk to Tina at all?" Chris asked his sister.  He had
just gotten home from the restaurant that night.  He'd tried to call Tina a
few times with no luck.

   "No, I called, but it goes right to her voice mail," Carrie replied.

   "She's got to be pissed.  I kind of led her on, I guess.  I didn't mean
to.  I didn't know what to say to her." What he said succinctly summed up
his feelings.  He knew what the situation was with Tina, yet he couldn't
seem to be able to do anything to diffuse it before it blew up in their
faces.  He felt like a criminal.

   "It's my fault.  I don't know what happened.  We were just talking, she
was asking about you and I guess I just broke down.  I didn't mean to tell
her anything.  It just all came out," Carrie tried to explain.

   "It can't be your fault, Carrie.  I think that all belongs to me.  I
didn't want to hurt her feelings, but I kind of feel relieved in a weird
sort of way," he said.

   "'Cause you don't have to worry about it anymore?" she asked, her voice
pained.

   "Yeah."

   "Well, I feel like shit.  It broke her heart, Chris."

   "I'm sorry, Carrie.  But between you and her, I have to pick you.  You
know that." Chris took her hand and kissed the back of it.  "I shouldn't
have done that to her, she shouldn't have found out about us.  I'm a
terrible person, babe."

   "You're not a terrible person.  I think we've both done a terrible
thing, though.  I haven't even known her that long.  There's just something
about her...I don't know what it is.  I hope she doesn't end up hating us."

   "Me too."

   The two didn't do much more talking that night.  They retired early (for
them).  It was shortly after lunch the next day when Chris noticed his cell
phone vibrating while he was sitting in his cubicle.  He was hoping that it
wasn't his sister with more bad news and was surprised when the screen told
him it was Whitmore's that was calling.  It wasn't like the restaurant to
call in the middle of the day.

   "Hello?"

   "Hey Chris.  It's Sid.  Got a call from Tina.  She's in the hospital. 
Mercy General.  She asked me to let you know, says she lost your number,
lost her phone or something."

   "Holy shit.  She alright?" Chris asked.

   "I don't know.  She didn't sound too great.  Said she might be out for a
while," Sid replied.

   "What happened?"

   "Don't know for sure.  She wanted me to tell you she's there.  I assume
that she wants you to go find out for yourself."

   "Alright.  Thanks, Sid.  See ya."

   Chris ducked out of the office early and drove over to Mercy General. 
His mind was racing with thoughts of things that may have happened to her.
Hit by a bus?  Tried to kill herself?  Whatever it was, guilt was eating
away at him.  His belly felt full of acid, the kind that wasn't supposed to
be there.  He was selfishly hoping that he had no blame in whatever it was
that happened; he felt bad enough that she was in the hospital without him
being the cause.  He checked with reception and they told him what room she
was in and that he could go see her.  He was surprised to see a police
officer standing outside the door to her room.

   The officer looked at him suspiciously and made sure he was who he said
he was before he allowed Chris into the room.  Even then, he waited for
Tina to give the okay before he went back to his post in the hallway. 
Chris stood by the side of the bed and looked down at the poor girl.  Her
face looked like one huge bruise, he barely recognized her.  Her left arm
was in a cast from her elbow down to her hand.  Her eyes brightened a bit
when she saw Chris.

   "Chris.  You came.  I didn't know who else to call." He could tell that
it was painful for her to speak.

   "I came as soon as I heard.  Sid called me.  What the heck happened to
you?  It looks like you got run over by a truck."

   "It feels kind of like I did," she admitted.  Chris pulled a chair over
and listened as she told her story.

   Tina told him of arriving home from the gym and finding her door kicked
in, then everything that followed.  The police had later told her that Luke
had been bailed out but wouldn't tell her who bailed him out.  Had to
respect his privacy.  Luke had beaten the piss out of her, trying to get
the location of his precious speakers.  When his hands got sore from
punching her, he started kicking her instead.  He either finally believed
that Bobby had taken his stuff or just thought that she was dead, Tina
wasn't sure.  She fell into unconsciousness for quite a while.  When she
came to, she made her way out to the street where a woman called 911.  She
had too many broken ribs to count, and was going to need some extensive
dental work.  Luke, at the moment, was at large.

   "I hope they catch the motherfucker." Chris was sick to his stomach that
someone could do this to another human being.

   "I hope they just shoot him.  I need to take a break from talking, my
face hurts.  Stay with me for a bit?"

   "Sure.  Would it be okay if Carrie came to visit?  I haven't called her
yet." The subject of Chris and his sister hadn't come up and he was in no
hurry to bring it up, either.  Apparently, Tina wasn't so sickened by the
situation that she never wanted to see them again.

   Tina didn't say anything, but she nodded her agreement.  Chris stepped
out into the hall to make his call just as a nurse was coming in to give
Tina some pain medicine.  He got a hold of his sister and informed her of
the situation.  After the call, he went back in the room and took a seat
while Tina dozed.  As he watched her chest rise and fall in shallow
hitches, it fully occurred to him why he hated the city so much.  Tina
didn't deserve what happened to her any more than his sister deserved what
happened to her all those years ago.  Neither woman would ever be the same.

   He wasn't sitting there very long before there was a light rap at the
door and Carrie stuck her head in.  Chris motioned for her to come in and
stood to greet her.

   "How's she doing?" Carrie asked.  She could plainly see from the looks
of her that the girl had seen better days.

   "She spoke with me for a little while after I showed up.  I think she's
conked out on something pretty strong right now."

   "Oh my god.  If I would have just given her a ride home, maybe none of
this would have ever happened.  I can't believe this happened to her."
Carrie buried her head into her brother's shoulder.

   "That didn't have anything to do with it.  That bastard was already in
her apartment waiting for her.  It wasn't your fault."

   "I think she ought to come home with us when she gets out of here.  She
shouldn't be alone," Carrie said.

   "I'll tell you one thing Carrie, we're getting out of this hellhole of a
city.  I don't care if we go to New York, Wisconsin, or friggin' Nova
Scotia.  I've had enough of this place.  I can't take it."

   *****

   Tina ended up spending the next three days in the hospital, which wasn't
bad considering the beating that she had endured.  She had to have some
surgery done on her teeth and had to wear something that looked like a
bullet-proof vest to protect her ribs.  It hurt every time that she took a
breath, and she'd have to eat soft foods for a month.  Just standing up was
painful, something that she was reminded of when she rose from the
wheelchair to get into Carrie's car.  Carrie helped her get situated in the
back seat for the ride back to her apartment.  They were going to grab some
of Tina's things, then go back to Carrie's.

   "Nice, the landlord didn't even fix the fuckin' door," Tina noted.

   Carrie led the way into Tina's, brandishing a can of mace in the off
chance that Luke had decided to make a return.  It was a can of the real
deal, too.  Not the stuff that you can get over the counter; it was the
stuff that would melt your eyeballs.  Thankfully, she didn't have to ruin
anyone's face as the place proved to be empty.  Besides having no people,
it was empty of all electronics and anything of close to marginal value as
well.

   "Looks like you've been pretty much cleaned out," Carrie said.

   "Not surprised, I guess.  I didn't really have all that much to start
with," Tina said.  She may not have been surprised, but she was shaken.  It
wasn't easy to see her entire life trashed in front of her eyes.  Carrie
placed a hand on her back gently.

   "Do you want me to call the police, honey?"

   "What good would it do?  I hate this fucking place.  Would you just help
me round up some clothes so we can get the hell out of here?  I'm going to
get my makeup and crap out of the bathroom, not that I'll be able to use
any of it for a while," Tina replied.

   It didn't take the two girls very long to pack up all of the things that
Tina deemed worthy of taking with her.  It wasn't much, a couple of garbage
bags worth of clothes, and a few personal items.  They had her unpacked and
at Carrie's in no time.

   "I just wanted to say thank you.  I mean, you haven't even known me that
long and you're letting me stay.  Are you sure it's okay?" Tina asked.

   "I told you, it's fine.  You can stay in here, I'll sleep in Chris's
room.  I do that anyway," Carrie said with a slight blush.  She was a bit
shy talking about sleeping with her brother, especially considering how
things had gone the last time that they were together.  They were in
Carrie's room, making some space in the closet for Tina.

   "It's kind of weird, you sleeping with your brother.  I don't know
anyone else that's done that.  It's alright, I guess, if you love each
other," Tina said.

   "Yeah, I don't know anyone else that has done it either.  I've heard of
it and it's never really thought of as something good.  In our case, I
think...it's not really easy to talk about for me, but we do love each
other.  I can't really describe it.  It's..."

   "It must be wonderful to be in love.  To have someone like Chris that
loves you.  I can't judge you for it.  I think you're lucky.  I think Chris
is lucky to have you," Tina said.  She sounded a bit dejected.

   "That's very nice of you to say.  You'll fall in love, one of these days
you'll find the right guy.  You're young and beautiful, Tina, don't sound
so depressed."

   "So far, I haven't done so hot.  I think my face kind of shows that.  I
don't look so beautiful now, do I?  I think I'm just gonna take a pill and
lay down for a while.  You don't mind, do you?" Tina asked.  She did have a
point; most of her face was colored a greenish-yellow, making it somewhat
difficult to see the beauty underneath.

   "All right, honey.  I'm gonna have to leave for work here in a couple of
hours.  Chris ought to be home a bit after I go.  Don't be afraid to help
yourself to anything in the fridge, though I'm not sure what you can
actually eat right now.  Chris is going to bring home some stuff that ought
to be easy to swallow.  You go ahead and get some rest and I'll see you
later, okay?"

   "Thanks, for everything."

   Tina took her pain medicine even though she didn't really like the
thought of putting anything into her system that she could end up addicted
to.  She knew too many people that abused things like that.  The problem
was that her teeth that had to be repaired, and in some cases replaced,
were aching like a bastard.  There was only so much of that she could
tolerate, as tough as she tried to be.  She lay back on Carrie's bed and
closed her eyes.

   The street lights shining through the blinds on the bedroom window told
Tina that she had been out for quite some time.  A combination of the pill
and that it was difficult to get any real rest in the hospital had her dead
to the world.  She made a quick stop in the bathroom, then went to the
kitchen where she found Chris.  He was having a cup of coffee.

   "Hey kid.  How you feelin'?" he asked.

   "Like shit.  How was work?"

   "Long and boring, as usual.  I've been worried about you.  I picked you
up a present," Chris said.  He pointed to a small box on the table.  It
contained a new cell phone.  "It's probably not as fancy as the one you
had, but it'll work.  I know your old one got busted up.  We don't have a
land line, so I figure you could use one.  I got you some yogurt and some
applesauce and some pudding.  There's a bunch of different soups in the
cupboard.  I don't know exactly what you like, I could grab you something
different before I have to go in to Whitmore's if you want."

   Tina took a seat and studied the box to her new phone.  "It's great
Chris, you didn't have to do that.  I can eat just about anything I don't
have to chew, I'm not that fussy.  I'm starving now that I think about it."
She tried to smile but her face was too sore.  "You're too nice to me. 
I'll pay you back."

   "Don't worry about it right now.  It'll probably be a while before you
can carry a tray.  Sid says that there's gonna be a spot for you whenever
you're ready to come back.  Just take some time and try and relax.  And get
better, okay?  In the mean time, I'll be as nice to you as I want."

   "Why, you feel sorry for me?" she asked.

   "Hell yeah, I feel sorry for you.  Have you taken a look at yourself
lately?  I start crying every time I stub my toe.  I can't even imagine how
much pain you're in.  Plus, I like you, I can't stand seeing you like
this."

   "If you like me so much, why didn't you tell me about you and Carrie? 
You could have at least made something up so that I wouldn't have fallen
for you so hard.  You shouldn't have said that we could just take it slow.
I thought you were just being really nice."

   Chris sighed with dread.  He was hoping that maybe she could just let it
slide.  "I'm sorry, Tina, I really am.  I...I didn't know what to say.  I
didn't want to hurt you.  I'm sorry.  What I did was terrible.  Do you
think you could forgive me?"

   "Chris, I think you understand where I'm coming from.  You of all people
know what a mess I am.  You should have just told me, but I forgive you.  I
should probably hate you, but I don't.  I can't.  I wish things were
different, not just between you and me, I mean my whole life.  I've fucked
up my whole life," she whined.

   "You're whole life is ahead of you, Tina.  You're a teenager, for
Christ's sake.  Most kids your age have no idea what they're gonna do with
their lives.  Stay with us for a while, get back on your feet, and relax. I
don't know what all went on between you and Luke, or what when on before
that.  Guess what?  You can't do anything about it now, just move on." He
paused for a moment.  "Uh, that's my inspiring speech for the day."

   "You're weird, Chris.  But I appreciate it."

   *****

   It was several weeks before Tina declared herself well enough to return
to her job at the restaurant.  Her teeth had healed up nicely and the
bruising on her face had gone away.  The cast on her arm didn't bug her all
that much, it was her ribs that were giving her problems.  The damn things
seemed to remain in a perpetual state of tenderness, but they did mend
eventually, the cast came off as well.

   Tina had blended into the household rather seamlessly.  She had no
problems getting along with Chris and Carrie, especially after it was
discovered that she could cook.  She was damn good at it, too.  It was
something that she had picked up while living with her cousins, and
something that Carrie and her brother could never seem to muster the
patience nor creativity to do well.  Tina treated them to a nice meal on
Sundays when they all could sit down and eat it together.  She rode to and
from the restaurant with Chris and spent a lot of her free time with
Carrie.

   It was a happy, peaceful time for Tina, and her attitude showed it.  She
smiled more, and with less stress, her bitchiness slid to the back burner.
She had started to get along much better with the crew at Whitmore's.  Erin
and Cindy seemed to grow genuinely fond of her, though there was a fair
amount of snide comments when they found out she was living with Chris.

   *****

   Tina was home on her night off, watching television with Carrie.  Chris
was at the restaurant, scheduled to come home in about an hour.  They were
watching an entertainment news program that informed them which famous girl
was dating what famous guy and what their houses looked like.

   "Ever wonder if any of those people know what the real world is like? 
Some of them are famous, but I'm not sure why.  I mean, she's got a great
ass and she's on a bunch of commercials, but I don't think I've ever seen
her in a movie or anything," Tina said, referring to a woman on the screen.

   "Some of them might have an idea, but I bet they don't want to think
about it too much.  You look just as good as they do, ever think about
becoming a movie star?" Carrie asked.

   "Oh please.  I know I look good, but I don't think I'd make much of an
actress.  I wouldn't mind spending some of their money, though."

   Carrie laughed.  "Half of them aren't much good at acting, either.  They
just look good in their underwear."

   "You look good in your underwear, and I don't see you on the T.V.," Tina
pointed out.

   Carrie was dressed only in her underwear and tee shirt.  She slapped her
thigh and giggled.  "Why thank you.  I try."

   "I did have a guy ask me if I wanted to be in a movie once.  I don't
think it'd be one that you could go to a regular theater and see, though,"
Tina said.

   "Like a skin flick?  Oh my god!  Did you do it?"

   "Hell no.  I didn't want to become instant spank material for a million
pervs.  I don't have a lot of morals, but there are some things I just
won't do.  Besides, he only offered me two hundred bucks.  I'm worth more
than that, right?" Tina asked.

   Carrie continued to laugh.  "Definitely worth more than that.  So what
would you have had to do, I mean if you went through with it?"

   "I don't know all the details.  It would have been with another girl and
a guy, though.  I don't think there was much of a story line, really.  I
could have used the money, but I don't think I would have done it no matter
how much they guy offered.  He was creepy, and like I said, there's some
things that I just won't do," Tina said.

   "Those are the perils of being young and gorgeous, I suppose," Carrie
said.  She paused for a moment before continuing.  "You wouldn't do it
because of the camera thing or you wouldn't do it because you wouldn't
sleep with a guy and a girl at the same time?"

   "God, I don't know.  Is this twenty questions about my sex life or
what?" Tina asked with a laugh of her own.

   "Oh come on, I'm just curious.  I've never had a wild sex life of my
own, Chris is the only person that I've slept with in the last ten years,
and it's not like I can talk about that to anyone.  What good's a
girlfriend if I can't gossip about sex?"

   "Oh, all right.  You're bad, by the way.  I've never had sex with a guy
and a girl at the same time.  I've never been in a threesome.  I guess I
don't have anything against it, but getting paid to be filmed by some creep
just isn't my thing.  I made out with a girl once, but that was about it.
We probably would have went further, but her parents came home.  We never
got together again after that," Tina said.

   "Did you like it?"

   "Sure.  It didn't last very long, it was kind of a spur of the moment
sort of thing.  How about you?  You ever kiss a girl?" Tina asked.

   "No, not seriously," Carrie replied.  "I'm not going to lie, though.  I
gave it some thought at one point.  When I never thought that I could find
a man that I could stand to be with again.  When I was really doing some
heavy duty training, there was this girl that I know I could have probably
hooked up with if I wanted to."

   "Why didn't you?"

   Carrie shrugged her shoulders.  "Cold feet I guess.  I wasn't really
ready to be with anybody.  I couldn't work up the courage to try anything,
anyway."

   "It's hard sometimes to have the right courage for the right time.  How
did you and Chris first get serious?  Was it his idea or yours?" Tina
asked.

   "Yeah, courage is a funny thing.  With Chris and I, we just had lived
together for so long, and it was like perfect right from the start.  We've
always been really close.  One night after he came home and got in the
shower, I waited in his bed for him.  I figured I would find out for real
if he loved me the way that I loved him, and he did," Carrie explained.

   "That was pretty courageous.  And sexy.  I bet he couldn't resist that."

   "Yeah, I kind of ambushed him there.  It was great though," Carrie said.

   "I wish there was someone naked waiting in my bed.  I'm starting to get
a little hot and bothered here," Tina said with an anxious giggle.

   Carrie giggled a little bit, herself.  She looked over at the younger
girl with a mischievous glint in her eye.  "Well, Chris is going to be home
in a few minutes.  How courageous are you feeling?"

   *****

   When Chris arrived home he found Carrie waiting for him on the couch. 
She appeared to have just come from the bath, her hair was still damp and
she was clad in a thin cotton robe.  A sexy smile appeared on her face when
she saw her brother.

   "Chris, I never thought you'd get home.  I've been waiting," she said,
rushing to him to embrace.

   "I see that.  If I'd have realized how uh...frisky you were feeling, I
would have tried to get out earlier," he said, returning the embrace and
enjoying the subtle scent of her freshly bathed body.

   "Well, I am feeling a little frisky, and I have something very special
planned for us.  Now go take your shower and meet me in the bedroom.  Don't
keep me waiting too long, though."

   "I take it Tina's in bed?"

   "Yeah, she's in bed," Carried said.  Technically not a lie.

   "Something special?  Sounds mysterious.  Don't suppose that you could
give me a hint?" he asked.

   "No, now get going," she replied, giving him a playful slap on his butt.

   Chris wasted little time in the shower, he didn't want to keep his
sister waiting.  He had no idea as to what it was that she was up to, but
he was certainly looking forward to it.  He wrapped himself in a towel and
walked down the hall to his bedroom.  As he opened the door and stepped in,
the candlelight revealed a sight that he thought could only be seen in his
dreams.  Both Carrie and Tina were in his bed, laying naked on the covers.

   Other than their wide eyes and nervous smiles, the two women were quite
different in appearance.  Carrie was taller, thinner, with more muscle tone
than the younger girl.  Her breasts were smaller with tiny pink nipples,
Tina's were much larger and darker, matching her darker skin complexion. 
She had also just trimmed her pubic hair into a small, neat triangle
whereas Carrie was waxed smooth.  Whatever their physical differences, they
were certainly amazing looking to Chris.  When he started to feel
light-headed, he suddenly remembered that he had to breathe.

   "Well?" Carrie asked.

   "Please tell me you guys aren't just messing with me," he said in a low
voice.

   "We're not messing, we're just waiting for you.  Get rid of that towel
and come over here and we'll show you," Carrie tried to reassure him.

   "And I didn't get in a car wreck on the way home and this isn't some
coma-induced delusion?" he asked.

   "No, silly.  You know that I've wanted to sleep with you since I invited
you in that night.  Now it's rude to keep a lady waiting and I've been
waiting a long time."

   Chris looked from Tina to Carrie, as if to seek her approval.  He was
still having a hard time believing that this was actually happening. 
Having sex with Tina was something that he considered would only take place
in his fantasies.  The two girls in front of him were causing some sort of
short circuit in his brain.  Carrie snapped him out of it.

   "Go ahead, Chris.  She won't bite you," she said.

   "Unless you want me to," Tina added, gnashing her teeth.

   "Sorry.  I was just thinking that I must be the luckiest man alive,"
Chris said.

   He let his towel drop to the floor, Tina's mouth formed a silent 'oh' as
he slid into the bed between the two.  Rolling to his left, he kissed his
sister and felt Tina's hand rubbing his bare back.  The bed wasn't quite
big enough for the three of them, so he had to be careful not to crush Tina
when he rolled back over so that he could face her.

   "Hi," he whispered.  "How's your ribs?" The last thing that he wanted to
do was hurt her if she was still sore.

   Tina giggled.  "Hi.  Just don't do anything crazy like jump up and down
on me and we'll be fine."

   Chris silenced her giggle by pressing his lips against hers.  Tina's
arms automatically wrapped around the back of his neck as he held the kiss
and maneuvered his body so that he was straddling hers.  When their kiss
finally broke, Tina pulled him tight against her and just held him for a
moment before working her legs to the outside of his.

   Carrie lay on her side and fought an unexpected pang of jealousy as she
watched her brother penetrate Tina.  When she was talking with the girl
earlier and the idea of the three of them in bed together had first
occurred to her it seemed erotic and terribly exciting.  It was all of
that, but she didn't give enough thought as to any of the other feelings
that would spring up watching him have sex with another woman.  It wasn't a
show-stopper, but it was eye-opening.  The two appeared to have some
serious chemistry.

   The way that Tina was moving and moaning showed the depths of the
passion that she was feeling.  Like she had said to Chris earlier; she had
been waiting for a long time.  Living with him and working with him without
actually being able to sleep with him had been making her lustful cravings
almost unbearable.  Not to mention that she could sometimes hear the other
two making love at night.  As with Chris, she thought that she would have
to be content with only fantasizing about how it may be in his arms, to
have him inside of her.  She was experiencing a flood of emotions and
pleasure escaping from her that she never thought that she would be able to
release.  It was like taking a pin to an over-filled balloon.

   Carrie could see that Pandora's Box had been opened.  There was a
certain tenderness between the two that were making love beside her that
she could not deny.  The initial spark of jealousy remained, but was fading
the more that she watched.  She found their intercourse to be beautiful and
intensely arousing at the same time.

   "Oh my god Chris!  I'm...oh Jesus, yes!" Tina cried out.

   Carrie bit her bottom lip as she watched orgasmic pleasure burst across
the girl's face.  From the look on her brother's, he was close to having an
orgasm of his own.  After a few more vigorous thrusts and some ecstatic
hissing, he lay back in the middle of the bed between the two girls and
caught his breath.  Tina immediately snuggled tight to his side, laying her
head on his chest.  Carrie leaned in to kiss him on the cheek.

   "That was beautiful, Chris.  You both looked so...amazing," Carrie said.

   Tina smiled at Carrie from across Chris.  "It was amazing.  I needed
that so bad.  Thank you, Carrie.  Are you okay?" she asked.

   Tina was a little concerned that Carrie may have had her feelings hurt.
The older woman looked as though she might be ready to cry.  Chris didn't
know what to say, he was still in post-coital recovery, and thought it
would probably be better if he kept his mouth shut instead of saying
something stupid.

   "I'm okay.  Just uh, watching that was a little more than I expected. 
I'm so horny right now that I'm about to lose my mind," Carrie replied.

   "Chris, you don't want Carrie to lose her mind do you?"

   Chris turned his head so that he was face to face with his sister. 
"Carrie baby, come up here.  Let me lick you."

   Carrie sat up and swung a leg over her brother as Tina slid down and out
of the way.  She maneuvered her body so that she was squatting over his
face.  Using the headboard for balance, she lowered herself until she felt
his tongue begin to probe her pussy.  Chris used his hands on Carrie's ass
to guide her into the perfect position for him to eat her.  He found that
she wasn't lying when she said how horny she was; she was slick from her
own fluids.

   Tina took the opportunity to help get Chris ready for action again, so
to speak.  She licked around his balls and up and down the insides of his
thighs.  There wasn't any wonder why she could sometimes hear Carrie crying
out through the walls and across the apartment; Chris was hung like a
pack-mule.  There was a stifled moan as she took his shaft into his mouth.
Carrie glanced briefly over her shoulder to see Tina sucking her brother's
cock and the sight nearly drove her to climax.  She shivered with
excitement as Chris worked over her clit, it was all that she could do not
to smother him.

   Chris was drunk with ecstasy, the taste and smell of his sister, the
sounds of her pleasure, and the unseen but undeniable work that Tina was
doing on his manhood fueled his lust.  He loved the view from the position
that he was in looking up at Carrie, but it was time for something more. 
He slid his sister down and back toward his cock, and as he did, Tina
released it from her mouth and guided it into Carrie's pussy.  She sighed
with the relief of being filled and leaned forward, suckling the stray
juices that she left behind on her brother's chin.  It was Tina's turn to
watch as Carrie rode Chris with wild abandon.  The ferocity of Carrie's
onslaught threatened the stability of the bed, her cries enough to cause
Tina's eyes to widen and her mouth hang open.  The only thing that Chris
could do was try to breathe and hope that his sister wasn't going to break
his back.

   After a few minutes of this, Carrie's body stiffened and her face
twisted in a silent scream as her orgasm took her.  She leaned forward and
collapsed on Chris as her pussy quivered around his cock.  It was only then
that the three of them could hear the old woman that lived below them
pounding on the ceiling, screaming about what time it was and that she was
about to call the cops if they didn't cut it out.  Tina could only smile,
Carrie was busy kissing Chris on the side of his neck, slowly riding out
the remnants of her climax.

   Chris was dumbfounded, but managed to speak.  "I think we disturbed the
neighbors.  Maybe we should tone it down a little," he suggested.

   "She'll get over it.  If she doesn't, I'll go to jail a happy girl,"
Carrie whispered.

   "If we're going to jail, I want to cum first.  Let's roll over so that I
can finish," Chris said.

   The two switched positions and soon Chris was pumping into her
furiously. It wasn't long before he was having his second orgasm of the
night, this time with his cooing sister.  She wasn't entirely limp, but it
was apparent that the fight had gone out of her.  She flashed a weak smile
in between the kisses that he was showering her with.

   "I don't think I've ever seen anything like that.  I don't think your
neighbor has ever heard anything like that, either," Tina said from beside
them.  Chris rolled off his sister so that he was between the two of them
again.

   "You were like a wild woman, Carrie.  I think I'm gonna be black and
blue," he said with a laugh.

   "I'm sorry baby, I don't know what happened.  It was like the biggest
orgasm of my life.  I told you I was horny.  I'll apologize to Mrs. 
Webster tomorrow." Carrie said.

   Chris was amused.  "You'll apologize to her?  What are you going to
say?"

   "I'll just tell her that Tina here is such a beautiful and seducing
temptress that my insatiable stud of a brother just couldn't help himself.
You got carried away and almost brought the house down," she replied.

   Tina was likewise amused.  "You're gonna blame all that noise on me?  I
wish it was me that came like that, it looked fantastic."

   "Relax, she's a nice old woman, she won't hold it against you.  I'll
take her some ear plugs in case it happens again," Carrie said.

   The three of them kissed and nuzzled and eventually fell asleep, even
though it was crowded on the bed.  When the alarm went off at eight, Chris
felt as though he had barely just closed his eyes.  Exhausted as he was, he
still had a smile on his face as he crawled out from between the two girls
and silenced the alarm.  They both groaned in unison, reluctant to be
disturbed.

   "Give me a kiss before you go, honey," Carrie said.

   "I love you," he said, after kissing her on the cheek.

   "I love you so much," Tina mumbled from the pillow.  She was still
mostly asleep and must have thought that Chris was talking to her.

   Chris raised his eyebrows while Carrie smirked.  "It's okay," she
mouthed silently.  Chris kissed her again and once again wondered to
himself how he could be so lucky.  He headed to the shower to rinse the
remnants of the night's love making session off, then was off to the
dreaded office.

   He had thought that it was tough enough to concentrate on his work
before, now it was near impossible as he replayed thoughts of what the
three of them had done the previous night sporadically throughout the day.
It wasn't clear to him if it was going to be an ongoing thing or not, but
he hoped that all three of them had enjoyed it enough that it wouldn't be
so quick to end.  He wasn't sure if his body could hold up to it or not
after what Carrie had done to him, but he was willing to give it a shot.

   He absolutely had to find out how Carrie felt about the whole thing, so
he called her on his lunch break.  If she had any sort of problem with what
they did, then that would be it.  As much as he had enjoyed being with
Tina, his sister was still the most important thing in his life.  He had to
make sure that she was all right.  She seemed to be in good spirits.

   "I'm fine Chris, really I am.  Better than fine, really," she assured
him.

   "I had to make sure that you're not mad.  You know, about what I did
with Tina," he said.

   "I told you, it was fine.  It was my idea anyway, remember?  Stop
worrying about it."

   "Okay.  Is Tina okay with everything?" he asked.

   "She's fine, now get back to work and stop acting like a little baby. 
I'll see you tonight," she chided.

   Chris and his racing mind somehow managed to make it through the day,
excruciating as it was.  He had spent a good portion of it thinking about
what he was going to say to Tina.  He realized that he was more nervous
about how she was feeling about things than he was his sister.  It was a
confusing time of reckoning for him, that was for sure.  She was home, as
usual, when he returned to the apartment.

   "Hi," she greeted.

   "Hi."

   "So, um, how was work?" she asked.

   "It was pretty long today," he admitted.

   "I'm always surprised to see you dressed in a shirt and tie, even though
I do almost every day.  I guess I'm just used to seeing you in your apron,"
she said.

   "Yeah, I know what you mean.  To tell you the truth, I think I prefer
the apron."

   "You know, I've been a little nervous, waiting for you to get home," she
said.

   "You have been?  I've been losing my mind wondering about you and
Carrie. Are you okay with what we did?" he asked.

   "Yeah.  I really liked it, you know?  Did you like being with me?"

   "Of course I did," he replied.

   "It felt kind of special, like it meant somethin'," she said, staring
down at the floor.

   "Hey, it did mean something.  I'd been dreaming about what it would be
like to sleep with you.  I never thought that I'd ever actually get the
chance.  It was a dream come true, Tina.  You've got to be one of the
sexiest women alive.  I care about you and it's hard for me to believe that
you're even attracted to me, out of all the guys in the world."

   "You're not the only one who has dreams, Chris.  You know that I love
you, don't you?"

   "I want you to know that I love you, too, but I can never leave Carrie.
She means too much to me.  Do you understand?" he asked.

   "I know.  I talked to Carrie for a long time today and I already
promised her that I'd never try to take you away from her.  I just need you
to love me just a little and I'd be fine with that.  I'm not asking you to
cheat on her or run away with me or anything.  Just...I'm no good at
talking about stuff like this.  I wish Carrie were here.  I think she
understands better than I do, sometimes," Tina said.

   Chris sat down on the couch next to her and put an arm around her
shoulders.  "I love you more than a little.  What we did was special. 
Don't be sad about it.  You liked it right?"

   "Oh god yes!  You were so gentle and nice, it felt really good.  Then I
thought Carrie was gonna kill you."

   Chris chuckled.  "Yeah, I never saw her quite like that."

   "She said that she was kind of jealous watching the two of us at first,
but it really turned her on," Tina explained.

   "She was definitely turned on.  Was it really her idea, last night?"

   "Yeah.  I don't think that I would have ever gotten up the nerve to
bring something like that up.  I've never done anything like that.  I liked
watching you guys, too.  She's really pretty, and you're just...so perfect.
I think that she likes me," Tina said.

   "Well, I should hope so.  She invited you into our bedroom, not to
mention that you live here," Chris pointed out.  "I've never come close to
doing anything like that, either.  I spent most of the day thinking about
what a lucky man I am.  She's an amazing woman.  She spent a long, long
time without being able to let anyone touch her, you know."

   "I know.  We talked about it.  That's why I was kind of surprised at how
crazy she got last night.  She's got a lot to work out of her system, I
guess.  She said that she wants to do stuff with me."

   "She did huh?  Like what kind of stuff?" Chris asked.  That would
certainly be interesting.

   "Like sexy stuff that girls do," Tina replied.

   "Oh my.  What did you say?"

   "I said that I'd do whatever she wants," she said softly.

   "Did you say that because you want to or just to make Carrie happy?"
Chris asked.

   "I want to make her happy, but I think it would be sexy, too.  You
wouldn't get mad if I do, would you?  I mean, you'd be there and
everything," she asked.

   "How could I get mad?  Especially if I get to watch.  Like I said, I
must be the luckiest guy in the world.  Only if you want to, though.  I
don't want you to think that you have to.  I want you to be happy," he
said.

   "You sound a lot like Carrie.  She wants me to be happy, she loves you
more than you can imagine.  Believe it or not, I think I'm probably the
happiest that I've ever been.  Even if I have to share you with your
sister."

   "There's nothing wrong with all of us being happy, is there?  Even if I
have to share you with my sister," he echoed.

   "We're so weird."

   Though all the talk of sex and thoughts of sex had his hormones raging,
Chris was dead tired.  He was able to get a decent amount of sleep before
he and Tina had to go in to Whitmore's.  He didn't feel quite right doing
anything with the girl without Carrie being around, anyway, no matter what
state his hormones were in.  Tina understood, as much as she wanted him
again, she agreed that he needed rest and that they should play it cool. 
She was even able to nap a bit before they had to go in, though she was
sharing many of the same whirlwind of thoughts that he was.

   *****

   Carrie was in a better place emotionally than her brother and Tina were,
though she was still plagued with nervous adrenaline while she was trying
to reconcile the accounts receivable and accounts payable.  She knew that
if they weren't careful that someone, perhaps all three of them could end
up getting hurt.  She also knew that she was the catalyst of the entire
situation.  Maybe she was being a little wild, but damn it, if there was
ever a time in her life that she actually felt wonderful and free sexually,
it was the present.  Maybe her brain had finally snapped and she needed to
start seeing her therapist again.  Hell, she didn't know for sure.

   About the only thing that she was sure about at the moment was that she
hated their overlapping work schedules.  She'd give just about anything to
be home with Chris and try to explain what she was feeling.  She already
had a heart to heart with Tina, but it wasn't the same without her brother
being there, nor did she want to do it over the phone.  It was something
that she could only do face to face.  She had bigger plans for Tina than
just using her for sexual pleasure.  She knew that the girl was hopelessly
in love with Chris and it was more probable than not that he loved her as
well.

   The biggest problem that Carrie faced when she got out of work was that
she still had another four or five hours to kill before Tina and her
brother came home.  She studied real estate on the computer, paced around
the apartment, watered the plants, tried to do anything that she could to
stay busy.  Sleep was out of the question, her nerves wouldn't allow that.

   After a restless many hours, Carrie finally heard a key turning in the
lock as Chris and Tina entered.  He was carrying a box with Whitmore's
written across the top of it.  He walked into the kitchen and set it on the
table with a smile on his face.

   "Hi, Carrie.  I had Hank whip you up a cheesecake.  He said that he left
the spit and hair out of it this time, but I don't know.  How ya doing?" he
asked.

   Cheesecake was one of Carrie's weaknesses.  Despite the comment that
Chris had just made about any extra ingredients that Hank may have added,
he made one of the best around.  Carrie returned his smile.  "You really
know how to make a girl happy.  Once you get settled and have a second, do
you think that I could talk to you alone?" She turned to Tina.  "It's
nothing bad, don't worry, there's just a few things that I want to say to
Chris."

   "I'm fine.  Just as long as I can have a piece of your cheesecake," Tina
said.  "It's one of my favorites."

   "Sure, help yourself."

   They left Tina in the kitchen and went to their bedroom.  Once inside,
Carrie closed the door behind her.

   "What's on your mind, babe?  Are you okay?" Chris asked.

   "I'm fine.  I've been doing a lot of thinking the last day or so.  I
imagine you and Tina have too.  It's not about the sex thing, that was
great, I'm sure you don't have any problems with that, do you?"

   "Well, no.  Last night was pretty amazing," Chris agreed.  He was
wondering where this was going.

   "I've been going through our finances and looking at things out there,
and there's some places in Ohio that I think we can afford with plenty to
spare.  Might not even have to get into what Mom and Dad left us.  They're
a lot cheaper than New York and the taxes are less, too.  I want you to
help me narrow it down and maybe we can get serious and go look at one,
make an offer, you know?"

   "That sounds great Carrie!  They're all like old farms and stuff, I take
it?" he asked.

   "Yeah.  Close enough to civilization to where we can find jobs,
hopefully."

   "Good.  I've been thinking about work once we get out of here.  I don't
think I can stand working in an office for the rest of my life.  Maybe I'd
try something different, if I could."

   "There's the issue of Tina," Carrie stated.

   "Yeah, there's Tina," Chris agreed.  He wasn't sure if he could stand
the thought of leaving her behind, but he was going to wait and see what
his sister thought.  It was her little meeting, after all.

   "Tina's in love with you.  I saw how you two were together last night. I
think that you might return that sentiment.  Am I right?" she asked.

   "I'd be lying if I said that I didn't have feelings for her.  I love you
more than anything, it's..."

   "I know you do.  It's complicated, I know.  aWhat you and I have is
complicated enough.  I was kind of hoping that we could make things a
little less complicated, I don't think I did that by having Tina join us in
bed.  What I'm trying to say is that I want her to come with us," Carrie
said.

   "We can ask her.  I have a feeling that she will, I mean, it's not like
she has a lot going on here besides us.  Neither do we, for that matter,"
he said.  He was glad to hear that Carrie was thinking about trying to fit
Tina into their lives, as messed up as that was.  Maybe they could figure
something out.

   "Yeah.  I want her to have our baby."

   Chris was not thinking about babies at all, just what you had to do to
make one.  His jaw nearly hit the floor.  "You what?"

   "You know I can't have one.  I really want to think about kids before we
get too old to enjoy them.  We'll be out of the city, and can you think of
anyone better than Tina to have a child with?  It would be perfect, Chris,
it really would!"

   "Man, that's something to think about, alright.  It's definitely not
anything that Tina and I have talked about.  I don't know if she even wants
to have kids, I mean I just don't know.  We'll have to see what she says,
she's not even twenty yet, she might not be ready for something like that."

   "I know I can't make her do anything that she doesn't want to do.  I
can't make you do anything that you don't want to, either.  It's just that
I want it so bad.  If you could just talk to her.  Please?" Carrie asked.
She felt relieved to finally get everything off of her chest that she had
been wanting to say.  She was still a long way from getting everything that
she wanted, however.

   Chris was more nervous now than what he was before he had went into the
bedroom with his sister.  He just wasn't sure how Tina would react if he
was to spring an idea like that on her.  The last thing that he wanted to
do was scare her away, not to mention that he was scared himself.  He
didn't take fatherhood all that lightly.

   "I have a say in this too, right?  I mean since I'd be the father and
all.  You can't just tell Tina and I to make a baby because you want one,
it doesn't work like that," Chris pointed out.

   Did Carrie detect some animosity coming from her brother?  She thought
that it was the perfect plan and she wasn't prepared for any resistance. 
"I'm sorry.  I've just been thinking about it a lot, and I thought that you
wanted a baby, too.  I guess that I was a little too caught up in my dream.
I just thought how great it would be and I'm sorry." She sat heavily on the
bed, dejected.

   Chris put a hand on her shoulder.  "Hey, don't be like that.  I'm not
saying that I don't want a kid, I do.  I do.  What I'm saying is that if
Tina does agree to all this, that she's probably not just gonna deliver the
baby and disappear.  I mean, she's going to be the kid's mom, she's gonna
be around for a long time."

   "I don't want to just use her and get rid of her, Chris.  I'm not saying
that.  I love Tina.  Not the same way that I love you, it's hard to
explain. I don't want to steal her kid and pretend that I'm the mother or
anything like that.  I know that I'd be Aunt Carrie and I'm fine with that.
I just thought it was such a great idea, I got carried away with it.  She
probably wouldn't want to do anything like that, anyway.  God." Carrie
began rubbing her temples with both hands.

   Chris frowned.  He didn't want to shoot down Carrie's idea off hand, but
they hadn't even discussed it with the key component, that being Tina. 
This wasn't just asking the girl for sex, it was more like a life-time
commitment.  "It is a great idea, it's just that it'll take all three of us
to make it happen.  Let's just go see what Tina thinks, okay?  Besides, you
look like you could use some cheesecake to get your smile back.  Things
will work out no matter what she says.  We've got each other, we always
have and we always will."

   Tina rinsed her plate off in the sink and sat back down at the table. 
Whatever it was that they were talking about in there, it sure was taking a
long time.  She wasn't necessarily worried about it until they emerged from
the bedroom and saw the look of dread on Carrie's face.  Chris didn't look
all that chipper, himself.

   "Is everything all right?" Tina asked.

   "I think so, but I don't know.  We've got some things to talk about and
now's as good of time as any," Chris replied.  He took a seat while Carrie
got them plates and served them each a piece of cake.

   "You're making me nervous, Chris.  What do you want to talk about?"

   "Carrie's been looking at places online.  We've got a real shot at
getting out of the city.  Ohio.  We want you to come with us.  You
interested?" Chris asked.

   "Would you really take me with you?  Is that what you want?" Tina asked,
looking at Carrie.

   "I can't imagine going without you, Tina," Carrie said.

   "I don't have any money, I can't help pay for it or anything.  I'm still
trying to pay off my hospital bills.  You guys work so hard and I feel like
I'm just taking up space."

   "There's gonna be a lot of space out there.  You don't have to come with
us if you don't want to, but I'd really miss you if you don't," Chris said.

   "Oh I want to, I want to!" Tina exclaimed.

   "There's something else.  Uh, we were thinking that Ohio would be a good
place to start a family," he said.

   "Like have kids and stuff?" she asked.

   "Yeah, like have kids and stuff.  The thing is, uh, Carrie can't have
kids.  You understand?"

   Tina thought that she had a pretty good idea.  She took a long breath
and thought about what it was that she was about to say.  Carrie wasn't the
only one that had ideas.  "I want to go with you, and I think it would be
wonderful to have your babies, Chris.  I like whatever it is that us three
have, I don't know if there's even a word for it.  The only times that I've
ever thought about getting pregnant scared me to death because I was never
ready for it.  With you guys, I think that everything would be all right.
But I want to get married."

   "Married?" Chris asked, his jaw dropping for the second time that
evening.

   "Married?" Carrie echoed.  The thought had never occurred to her.

   "Yeah.  If you want me to have your kids, then you have to marry me. 
You and Carrie can't get married and you can't have kids.  I can do both of
those things.  I don't want to just feel like the third wheel to you two. I
want to be your wife," Tina explained.

   "I guess I never thought about that," Chris said.

   Carrie didn't really know what to say.  She just looked at Tina, partly
shocked, partly bewildered.

   "Don't worry, Carrie.  I'm not trying to take him away from you or
anything like that.  We've already talked about how much you two love each
other.  Well, I love him too, and I want to get married.  Things can stay
just how they have been, only it would make me feel like I really belong,"
Tina said.

   Chris looked to his sister.  "Would you have a problem with that?"

   "I guess I thought that if you were ever going to marry anybody that
it'd be me.  Pretty silly since that can't happen, huh?  It makes me pretty
jealous that you can marry her and not me.  Would you hate me for being a
little jealous, Tina?"

   "I can't hate you, Carrie.  I'm the one that's jealous.  Chris won't
ever love me like he loves you.  Can you let us have this one thing
together?" Tina asked.

   Chris was thinking about how difficult it was, and was going to continue
to be keeping both of these girls happy.  It was difficult enough to plan
the lives of two people.  Add in a third and it made for quite a volatile
mixture.  He hadn't even agreed to get married yet.

   "I just want everything to work out for us.  Things have changed so much
for me in the past few months, for all of us, really.  Do you think that we
can make it work?" Carrie asked.

   "I don't know.  I hope so.  I have dreams too, you know.  Getting
married to the man I love is one of them.  I've never had a real family
before, I've always wanted one.  Growing up in a house with my parents and
my brother, it just wasn't real.  You guys are.  A family with you would
be...nice.  It's kind of like we're one right now." Tina replied.

   "Even if it's a weird one?" Chris asked.

   "Weird doesn't mean bad.  It can be pretty good, I think," Tina said. 
That was good, she'd been calling Chris weird for quite some time.  "I
don't want a huge wedding or an extravagant honeymoon or anything.  Just a
ring on my finger so that I can show people that Chris loves me.  That he
loves me so much that he wanted to marry me and spend the rest of his life
with me.  That's all I want, really.  It doesn't even have to be a real
diamond or anything.  Just something I can show people to prove that
someone really loves me." She was starting to tear up.

   Carrie could see the extent of the feelings that the girl had.  "I can't
argue with that, maybe it would be a good idea if you married Chris.  It
would be selfish to keep you from your dreams when I can't marry him,
anyway.  It would be good for the kids and would make us a real family. 
Like a legal real family.  Do you promise that he and I can stay like we
are now?" she asked.

   "Yes."

   "Then you two should get married," Carrie said, reaching across the
table to touch the back of Tina's hand.

   "Thank you, thank you so much," Tina said, smiling ear to ear.

   Chris wasn't averse to the idea of marrying Tina, but he found it rather
remarkable that the two girls had just made the decision for him.  They
were starting to develop a habit of treating him like a toy to be shared
between them.  He supposed that there were both advantages and
disadvantages to that, but still, it was the point.

   "Don't forget that I'm still here and I'd love to have a say in whether
I get married or not," he said.  He wanted to say it with a straight face
and sound stern, but it didn't really come out that way.  He was too happy.
The girls seemed happy, as well.

   "Don't be silly, Chris.  We'll tell you what you want.  Now say, 'Yes
Tina, I will marry you'.  Then we can all live happily ever after," Tina
said.

   "And have babies," Carrie added.

   "Yes Tina, I will marry you," he said.

   Tina practically knocked Chris from his chair when she leaped from hers
to throw her arms around his neck.  "I'll make you happy, I promise.  I
promise.  You too, Carrie."

   "You make me happy just watching you," Carrie said.

   Tina eventually released her grip on Chris and sat back down in her
chair.  "Well, what do we do now?"

   "I think I'm just going to sit here for a minute and see if my head's
going to explode or not," Chris declared.  "Maybe eat this piece of
cheesecake."

   *****

   The three of them continued to flesh out their plans during the next
couple of days.  Nothing was written in stone, of course, and they hadn't
set any dates for anything.  They had decided that Tina and Chris would get
married at a justice of the peace, there were certainly plenty of those
around.  The two of them drove by a place every night on their way to the
restaurant that offered the service twenty-four hours a day for the cost of
thirty-five dollars.  Not very romantic, but they weren't going for
romantic.

   They did decide to go on a honeymoon, however.  Kind of a business
honeymoon.  The three of them would take a trip out to Ohio for a few days
and investigate some properties first-hand.  Chris left most of the real
estate research for the women.  They seemed to enjoy it, and had more time
for it, anyway.  That's what they were doing huddled around the computer
one morning when Chris came through the door.

   "Chris, what are you doing home?  Is everything okay?  You feeling all
right?" Carrie asked, looking up from the screen.  Even though he hated his
day job Chris very rarely skipped out on work.

   "Yeah, I'm okay.  I've got like three weeks of vacation time.  I took a
day."

   After he and Tina had to decided to get married, Chris had taken a trip
to a jewelry store.  Even though spending money was something akin to
against his religion, he had decided to buy an engagement ring, especially
after hearing Tina's thoughts on the matter.  A real one with a real
diamond, and not something that you had to use a magnifying glass to see,
either.  The price was...painful.  He hadn't told Carrie about it because
he bought her one, too.  It was nearly identical to the one for Tina but
the stone was pinkish in color.  As for the money, he justified the
spending since it was for the women that he loved.  He'd been working
nearly eighty hours a week for over five years.  This was something that he
had to do.  He had burglarized the girls' jewelry collections for a couple
of rings, hoping he could somehow get the sizes right.  Now, all he could
do was pray that they didn't have to go back for resizing.

   "A day off?  Are you sure you're all right?" Tina asked.  She studied
him while he was standing there in the kitchen.  "You look kind of like
you're going to get sick."

   "I kind of feel like that, actually," he replied, taking a couple of
steps over to where she was sitting.

   He dropped to one knee and pulled a small box from his pocket.  He made
sure it was the right one, not wanting to look like too much of a fool.  He
didn't think it would be such a big deal, but he found himself shaking. 
Tina's mouth hung open in anticipation; she realized what was going on.

   "Tina, I know this is kind of after the fact, but will you marry me?" he
asked, opening the box and displaying the ring.  Tina gingerly reached for
the ring, feeling it's weight and noting the size of the stone.  She
slipped it onto her finger and held it up to the light, beginning to leak a
few tears.

   "It's beautiful, Chris.  And huge.  Is it real?" she asked, not taking
her eyes off it.

   "Yup.  So, does that mean yes?"

   Tina came out of her chair and wrapped her arms around Chris.  "Yes, oh
my god, yes.  I, I can't talk," she replied.  She let go of him and began
to fan herself with her hands, tears rolling freely now.

   Carrie was looking on with a smile.  She was happy for Tina and thought
it was a very grand gesture from Chris.  She wasn't surprised, but she had
kind of wished that he would have told her about it.  They had always been
a team, and that ring must have cost a fortune.  She felt that rotten,
stabbing pain of jealousy threatening to ruin her mood.

   Chris stood and helped Tina off the floor, sitting her back down in her
chair.  He kissed her forehead.  "Get a hold of yourself, now." He handed
her a paper towel.  "Here, wipe the snot off your face."

   "I can cry if I want to," she bawled.

   Carrie placed a hand on Tina's back.  "Looks like you made her a happy
girl, Chris." Tina nodded in agreement and held her hand out to Carrie so
that she could inspect the ring.  She watched as her brother lowered
himself to one knee again, this time in front of her, and pulled another
small box from his pocket.

   "Carrie, I don't really know what to say or how to say it.  I love you.
Will you be my...sister?" He opened the box, exposing the ring in the same
way that he had done for Tina.

   It was Carrie's turn to cry when she slipped her ring on.  She too, was
having a hard time finding words.  "I love you.  It's beautiful.  And it's
pink.  Is it a diamond?"

   "Yeah, it's a red diamond.  When I was picking the stone, I was thinking
of you and your strawberries.  I know that's silly.  Is it okay?"

   Carrie just nodded her head and showered Chris with kisses.  She sat
back in her chair and let Tina inspect her ring, the two of them weeping in
joy.  Chris was feeling rather manly, having such an effect on the two
woman.  After a while, he was feeling rather neglected, seeing as how the
two only seemed to be interested in hugging each other and waving their
rings in front of each others' faces.  Tina didn't seem upset at all that
Carrie got a ring, as well.

   "Well, I guess I'll get back to work then, since you two seem busy," he
said, stepping toward the door.

   "No!" they both shouted in unison.

   "You can't leave us like this," Tina said.

   Carrie rushed over to him and held him firm in her arms.  "No, I need
you to stay.  We need you to stay."

   Chris really hadn't planned on going anywhere, he just wanted to see
their reaction.  He supposed it was okay, he was kind of hoping for some
nudity, though.  If a giant diamond wasn't a pantie dropper, he didn't know
what else to do.  He really didn't have any other cards to play.

   Tina came over and joined the hug.  "It's just what I always wanted,
Chris.  I love you."

   "I love you, too, kid.  Are you guys all right with each of you getting
rngs like this?  All right with each other?  I mean, we've got kind of a
love triangle here."

   "Tina and I are good with it, if you are.  We've done a lot of talking
when you're not around, you know.  We just are what we are and we're going
to go with it.  It's your fault that we're both in love with you so I
figure if there's any problems you're going to have to figure it out."

   "Are you okay, Tina?  Any problems with us?" he asked, mentally crossing
his fingers, hoping for none.

   "Carrie just about said it all, I guess.  We need a bigger bed, though.
That's a problem." They all got a laugh out of that as they untangled and
stood in the kitchen.

   Carrie spoke.  "You know, we all laughed at that, but it is a real
problem.  Your bed's tiny, Chris.  I don't want to sleep alone, and I bet
Tina doesn't either.  We can't be all cramped in there like sardines.  We
need to be comfortable and have room for sexy time."

   Tina giggled.

   "I do like sexy time," Chris agreed.

   "Well then, why don't we go get an early lunch and pick out a new bed?
You've already been spending money like the end of the world's coming, we
can get something decent without spending another fortune.  Then maybe we
can come home and break it in.  What do you think, Tina?  Does Chris
deserve sexy time?"

   "I say 'yes' to sexy time," Tina replied.

   "Yay.  Everyone, to the car, let's go!" he cheered.

   They enjoyed a light lunch in town and then paid a visit to a discount
furniture store that had same-day delivery.  Tina and Carrie used a
combination of charm and cleavage to insure that the store wasn't going to
waste any time in getting the bed and mattress that they picked sent to the
apartment.  They had to race home to beat the truck.  Carrie and Chris
scrambled to clear a space for the new bed while Tina waited for the
delivery guys.

   It didn't take long for the guys to put the bed together and get rid of
the old one, all the while they were casting envious glances at Chris and
sizing up the two girls.  By the time that they left, it was still early
afternoon.  Chris and Tina still had several hours before they had to go in
to the restaurant, Carrie had a couple before she had to go to the store.

   "California King, baby.  You know what?" Tina asked as she flopped
backward onto the new bed.  "We didn't get any sheets."

   "I'll pick up some at work tonight," Carrie said, flopping beside the
other girl.  "This is nice."

   Chris looked at the two girls laying in front of him.  "It looks really
nice with you two on it.  Really completes the room."

   Carrie smiled while Tina giggled.  Their hands touched briefly while
they were laying there, and soon they were holding them.  Tina turned her
head to face Carrie, then wiggled closer.  Carrie understood what she was
doing and did the same.  They kissed each other briefly on the lips, before
breaking and going back to a much deeper, passionate one.

   Chris groaned inwardly at the sight, once again one of his fantasies
coming true before his eyes.  Instead of ripping his clothes off and
jumping on the bed, he was content to stay put and watch.  He wanted to see
what they were up to and how far they would go.

   As Carrie and Tina continued to kiss, they got a little more into it. 
Carrie crawled on top of the younger girl and pinned her arms down to the
mattress by her wrists.  She continued to kiss her, working her lips up the
side of her neck so that she could whisper into her ear.

   "Do you think that we're getting his attention?"

   Tina kissed back and answered.  "Yeah, you've got mine, too."

   Carrie giggled.  "Let's give him a little show."

   Tina had no problem with that, was actually looking forward to it.  She
knew that sex between her and Carrie was inevitable, especially since they
planned on sharing their lives, and their bed, with Chris.  Besides, Carrie
was hot as hell, it wasn't exactly a hardship.  "You've got too many
clothes on if you want to show him anything."

   Carrie sat up a bit and quickly had her top off and her bra unsnapped.
She leaned forward and sighed with satisfaction as Tina took one of her
nipples into her mouth.  She, like Tina, had no problems at all with what
they were doing.  The two had become close over the last few months and
this just seemed natural.  She hadn't ever even kissed a girl prior to
this, so this was all going to be new territory, and she was looking
forward to exploring.  Kissing Chris was great, kissing Tina was too, but
in a different way.  Everything about the girl was fantastically soft and
sensual.  It was going to be fun.  She sighed again as Tina moved to her
other breast and her hands caressed her back.

   The two worked together, managing to get Tina naked from the waist up.
Carrie worked on her breasts for a few minutes, all the while getting
seriously aroused.  She backed off the bed and pulled down Tina's shorts
and panties in one swift motion.  She spread the younger woman's legs and
brought her lips down to taste her pussy.  It was slick and smooth, with a
taste that she was vaguely familiar with.  She had experienced something
similar while kissing her brother after he had eaten her.  This wasn't
exactly the same, but close.  Tina seemed to like what she was doing, so
she kept at it, burying her face in the wet cunt, loving the scent, loving
the flavor.  Tina was moaning with the pleasure of the contact.

   "Do you see that, Chris?  Your sister likes eating pussy," Tina pointed
out in between moans.

   Carrie decided that she did, indeed, like eating pussy.  Before Tina had
said anything, she had temporarily forgotten that Chris was even in the
room.  Now she understood why he liked doing it so much.  She felt her
shorts being tugged down, and she worked her body to wriggle out of them.

   Chris couldn't take any more.  Seeing his sister go down on Tina, and
listening to it, was just too much.  He needed to get in on the action. 
Seeing as how Carrie was kneeling at the edge of the bed with her ass
pointed right at him, she was the obvious target.  He got her shorts off
and the two girls were wearing nothing but the rings he had given them
earlier.

   He reached out and caressed the taught flesh of Carrie's ass, letting
his fingers glide to the softness of her sex.  She seemed to be very
aroused, but didn't react much to his touch, concentrating as she was on
Tina's pussy.  Having already removed his clothing and at a monumental
state of arousal himself, Chris lined the head of his cock up and slammed
all the way into his sister.  She groaned into Tina, suddenly feeling
herself filled with his rigid dick.

   Carrie welcomed the sensation of having Chris inside of her, it was just
what she needed.  She kept crying out into Tina's magnificent pussy while
he worked her from behind.  Tina liked watching the look of ecstasy on
Carrie's face while she was being fucked.  It was incredibly sexy, though
it was interrupting the rhythm they had going of getting her snatch eaten.

   "You like getting pounded by your brother's big cock, don't you?" Tina
teased, using the flat of her hand to rub her own clit.

   "God yes!" Carrie cried out.  He started to really hammer into her.

   Christ, this is hot!  Chris was in heaven.

   "You're a naughty girl getting fucked like that and licking me at the
same time.  It looks so hot." Tina reached out and put a hand on the back
of Carrie's head, pulling her face tighter against her crotch.

   Carrie began to cum and started whimpering something that no one could
understand as she tried her best to keep licking Tina.  Tina just giggled
and relaxed the grip that she had on the girl's head.  "There you go
sweetie, that looked like a nice one.  Did that feel good?" she asked,
running her fingers through Carrie's hair.

   "Mmm-mm," was the reply.

   Chris could last no longer and began to spray his load into his sister.
He slowed his pace as he emptied his balls, looking at Tina's face as he
did.  The girl was wearing a wicked grin while she stared into his sister's
eyes.  She spoke again.

   "Why don't you take a break from that and lay here on your back," she
suggested.  Carrie complied, sliding away from her brother and then up to
lay next to Tina.  Tina kissed her on the lips and she felt the younger
girl's fingers rubbing softly around the entrance to her vagina.  "Chris
has made you all messy."

   Chris joined the two on the bed.  Carrie looked as though she was really
digging the 'girl on girl' thing.  Tina, he didn't really even recognize
Tina.  Where did this filthy talking little vixen come from?  When she
rolled from Carrie to him, delivering a smiling kiss, he spoke.

   "So where did you get that dirty mouth young lady?" he asked.

   "Born with it, I guess.  Was it too much?"

   "You're fine, baby." He glanced over at Carrie.  She was laying with her
eyes closed, lazily circling a couple of fingers around her breast.  "It
may have been too much for Carrie.  She's in a sex coma." Carrie grinned
ever so slightly.

   "You might have had something to do with that," Tina replied.  "Have
anything left for me?" She wrapped a hand around his semi-erect penis.

   It would seem as though he did.  He pulled Tina close enough for a
hungry kiss, closing his eyes and enjoying the feeling of her tits crushing
against his chest.  Chris didn't know if he was man enough to satisfy two
women at once for the rest of his life, but if it was going to be anything
like this, then he was going to die trying.

   She slid on top of him, reaching down to line him up with her.  After
Carrie's licking, she was more than ready for his cock.  What Carrie had
done had felt wonderful, but she still hadn't cum yet.  Chris was what she
needed.  Watching him drill his sister only moments before was pretty
intense, and now he was inside of her.  On their new bed that was big
enough for all three of them.  They were sharing something special and it
was the best feeling in the world.

   She didn't like things as quick and rough as Carrie, as much as she
liked watching it.  She took her time riding Chris, enjoying the look on
his face as she brought him pleasure, eventually bringing herself to a
long, slow, climax.  Chris made her roll over after that and finished
inside of her while they were in the missionary position.

   Carrie had been fingering herself while watching all this take place and
was soon having her second orgasm.  Together, they lay on the new bed and
recovered.

   "I declare this bed broken in," Chris said, breaking the silence.

   "I feel broken in," Tina said, reverting to her sexy giggle.

   "I do, too," agreed Carrie.  "I hope we didn't stain up the new
mattress. I'll try not to forget those sheets."

   Chris wasn't thinking about the mattress or lack of sheets.  "I love you
guys."

   Carrie had to get cleaned up and go to work, as much as she would have
liked to stay home and be lazy.  Chris was enjoying his normal nap time,
Tina was about to as well, she was just throwing a robe on after stepping
from the shower when she heard a banging on the door.  She looked through
the peephole to see a detective on the other side.  It was the same fellow
that she had spoken with at the hospital and a couple of times after that.
She invited him in.

   Chris had only just closed his eyes when he had heard the knocking on
the door.  He had thought about just going back to sleep, but figured he
ought to at least see who it was, especially when he could hear a man's
voice.  They weren't expecting any visitors.  He threw on some clothes to
make himself presentable and went to investigate.

   "There's the lucky man," the detective said extending his hand.  Chris
shook it, trying to remember the guy's name.  He had encountered him
briefly at the hospital.

   "I am a lucky man, that's for sure.  I'm sorry Detective, I don't recall
your name, I'm terrible with things like that."

   "Lopes.  I was just telling Tina here that we have some new information
that I wanted to share with her." Detective Lopes looked at Chris as though
he was expecting something.

   "Oh, uh, do you want me to go back to the bedroom?" he asked.

   "No, whatever you have to say you can say it in front of Chris.  I don't
want to keep anything from him," Tina said.

   "Fine then.  We found your boyfriend, Luke."

   "Oh, thank god.  So he's gonna stay in jail this time, right?" Tina
asked.

   "Not exactly, he's dead.  Someone beat him to death and took him out to
the desert.  His remains were recovered a few days ago."

   "Jesus." Chris uttered.  It was the kind of thing that you saw on
television when someone rubbed a mobster the wrong way.

   "He probably won't be meeting Jesus," Tina said.  "Had it been long, you
know, since he was killed?" It was surprising to her to hear that he had
been murdered, but the news didn't come as a complete shock.  She just
assumed that he was dumb enough to where the cops would catch him before
something like that happened.  Besides, she couldn't think of a better
person to be murdered.  Who did she know that deserved it more than Luke?

   "Don't know for sure.  Probably not that long.  A week perhaps.  We know
about the drugs and you told us about him owing people money.  Can you
think of anything at all that would help us figure out who these 'people'
are?"

   "I really can't.  The only thing I know is that he wanted his speakers
because he said that's where the rest of the drugs were.  And like I told
you before, his friend Bobby come over and got all of his stuff.  I never
had anything to do with his friggin' coke habit, I hated it.  I hated how
he acted when he was using it and I hated how he acted when he didn't have
it and wanted it.  I don't know where he got it from or who he did it with.
Except for Bobby.  They were pretty tight, I'm pretty sure he would know
something about it."

   "Right, well, we're having a hard time finding this Bobby.  Any idea
where he might be?  Maybe his last name?"

   Chris wasn't liking the detective's tone.

   "The last time that I saw Bobby was when I was throwing Luke's shit into
his van.  I have no idea what his last name is.  I tried to stay away from
the creepy bastard.  I'm not gonna lie, I'm happy that the fucker's dead. I
didn't do it, though, and I have no idea who did."

   "I see.  Well, if you think of anything else, you've got my card.  And
please, if you see Bobby or anyone out of the ordinary hanging around, give
me a call.  Even if you think that it's probably nothing." Lopes began to
walk back to the door.

   "Hey, wait a second.  Is she in danger?  Are people gonna come after her
or something?" Chris asked.

   "It's doubtful, but I don't know who we're dealing with or what all Luke
was involved in.  If he owed money, a lot of money, to the wrong people,
then they would want it back.  If he didn't have it, say if someone took it
from him, then they would look elsewhere."

   "Jesus." Chris uttered for the second time.

   "But you guys probably don't have anything to worry about.  Good luck
with the wedding.  That's quite a ring, by the way.  Must have set you back
a pretty penny."

   Lopes departed, leaving a foul taste to the air.  Tina shut the door
behind him and locked it.  "What a dick," she spat.

   "Yeah."

   "He was making it sound like I was making up the whole thing.  Like I
took Luke's drugs or his money or something.  Like Bobby wasn't even real."

   "Yeah, I don't like what he was saying at all.  You know how many plates
I had to clean to buy that ring?  How many hours my ass had to endure stuck
in that little freakin' cubicle?"

   "Fuck!  Should we be worried?" Tina asked.

   "Well, not about the cops, I wouldn't think.  I'm pretty sure that you
didn't steal anything from Luke, and you sure as hell didn't take him out
to the desert and beat him to death.  I didn't either, though that's
probably what he deserved.  I'm worried about what Lopes said about people
looking for their money.  I don't want anything to happen to you."

   "Why would anyone be after me?" she asked, biting her bottom lip.

   "The same reason Luke attacked you.  They think that you're the one who
took the shit.  They either can't find Bobby or he somehow convinced him
that he didn't do it."

   "Well if the cops can't find Bobby, maybe it's because the other people
did," Tina reasoned.

   "That's true.  Kind of makes sense.  Whatever's going on, let's just
keep our eyes open.  I won't let anything happen to you, I promise. 
Besides, we have Carrie on our side, she's like a ninja.  She can rip their
balls off before they even have a chance to beg for mercy."

   Tina put her arms around Chris and held him tight.  "I love you, Chris.
If anything does happen to me, I want you to know that I really, truly love
you."

   "Nothing's gonna happen, kid." Deep down, he was uneasy, not quite as
sure as he was trying to sound.

   "I hope that whatever they did to Luke fucking hurt, because he deserved
it.  Even from the fucking grave he's making me miserable."

   Chris returned the embrace and rocked her gently back and forth.  "I
don't want one of my girls to be miserable." He kissed the top of her head.
"How are you and Carrie doing looking for places?"

   "Oh, I don't know.  We've got a bunch of them.  We're working on a list
to narrow it down, so we can visit some of them."

   "I don't think that I can do any sleeping right now.  Why don't I put on
some coffee and you and I can work on that list?  Did you happen to tell
anyone where we planned on going?  Think about it."

   Tina did think about it.  Everyone at the restaurant knew that Chris and
Tina were pretty close.  They all knew that he was someday planning on
buying a house in the country.  She had never mentioned anything about them
getting married or that they were beginning to get serious about Ohio.

   "I haven't told anybody anything about Ohio."

   "Good.  Let's keep it that way."

   "They're gonna know when we get married and go on our honeymoon.  If
they ask where we're going should I tell them it's a secret?"

   Chris thought for a moment.  "No, the girls are nosy.  If we tell them
it's a secret, that will only make them want to find out even more.  Let's
not give them anything to snoop about.  We can say we're going to a spa in
Miami or something.  Tell them you always wanted to go to a nude beach."

   Tina brightened a bit at his attempt at humor.  "I'm not gonna tell 'em
that.  That does kind of sound like fun, though.  Okay, we'll use Miami.  I
should call Carrie."

   They finally let each other go.  Chris went to make coffee while Tina
called his sister.  Carrie didn't take the news about the police visit very
well; she wanted to come home and stand guard duty.  Tina eventually calmed
her down and told her of the new plan so that the three of them could keep
their stories straight.  Carrie insisted that she talked to her brother
before she hung up.

   "Yeah?" he answered.

   "Listen to me, Chris.  Don't let that girl out of your sight.  Do you
understand?"

   "I won't, we're probably just getting all worked up over nothing."

   "You know what happens to people who say things like that?  They end up
out in the desert with buzzards pecking their guts out."

   Chris shivered at the thought.  "Calm down, now."

   "No, you listen.  You keep your eyes open and your guard up until this
crap gets sorted out.  You call that cop back and you show him every bank
statement and every pay stub that we've got and convince him that we had
nothing to do with this shit.  If there are people looking for Tina, then
they need to focus on that, not wonder if you were involved.  They're
probably not gonna spend a lot of time worrying about what happened to an
asshole like Luke, but if we're all they've got, they're gonna waste time
looking at us.  Do you understand me?"

   "I do.  I understand, Carrie."

   "Do you want me to come home?"

   "No, don't do that.  We'll be okay," he reassured her.  He felt similar
to when he was little and being scolded by his father.

   "Okay.  I want you to call me when you get to work, and when you get out
of work.  I'll call when I get home."

   "Okay, we will."

   "I love you and I want you to be safe.  Please."

   "I love you, too, and we will.  I promise."

   Chris ended the call and gave the phone back to Tina.

   "Well," he began, "I have new orders from the boss."

   *****

   Chris had done what he was told by his sister and contacted Detective
Lopes.  He came back to the apartment, rather irritated that he couldn't
have just gotten the information from Chris the first time he was there. 
He relaxed, however, when he realized how sincere and how scared the two
were.  Having listened to the story of how Chris had worked two jobs for
years and wanted nothing more than to get out of the city with his bride to
be and his sister to start a family, he sympathized with their concerns. 
Unfortunately he had nothing further to add.  The police would continue to
hunt for the elusive Bobby and try to figure out who pulled the plug on
Luke.  At least this time when he left, Chris felt like the guy was on his
side.

   By the time that the two of them arrived at Whitmore's that night, they
were feeling like they were nothing but bundles of raw, exposed nerves. 
Every car that they passed on the street was a possible threat, as well as
every guy that walked into the restaurant.  Chris didn't even like being in
the kitchen while Tina disappeared from his sight and delivered food.

   Tina's ring was immediately spotted by Erin, and she and Cindy were soon
drooling all over it.  They hammered her with questions about the pending
wedding and future plans.  Chris was a little more fortunate when it came
to that sort of thing, but he still had Hank to contend with.

   "I knew you two were probly datin', but I didn't expect you to tie the
knot," he began.

   "Yeah, well, life's short, you know.  I figured what the hell?" Chris
replied.

   "That it is, brother.  You know, a girl like Tina prolly has some wild
oats to sow before she settles down.  Know what I mean?" Hank was staring
directly at Tina's ass as she carried a tray out to the dining area.  "If
you want, I could give her my number if she's got anything to work out of
her system."

   Chris followed his gaze.  "That's kind of you, Hank, but I think she'll
be sowing whatever oats that she has back on old Rancho de Chris." He knew
that Hank couldn't help but be a pig.  It was one of the things that he
liked about him.  "Besides, you wouldn't know what to do with something
like that."

   Hank laughed.  "I bet I could figure something out.  What's up with you,
anyway?  You haven't said hardly two words all night.  If I just proposed
to my girl, I'd want the world to know about it."

   "I haven't gotten any rest since I gave her the ring this morning.  I'm
exhausted," Chris replied with a shy grin.

   Hank laughed again.  "I hear that."

   They both made it through the night mindful of Carrie's instructions to
keep their guards up, though neither one of them detected any threats. 
When they got back home, both their minds and bodies were yearning for the
comfort of the new bed.  Carrie had other ideas, wanting them to go over
more real estate with her.  They had tried for a while, but eventually they
had to give it a rest.  Tina put an end to it.

   "Carrie, babe, I know you're trying to speed this process along, and I
know we need to come up with a plan for places to look at, but we'll have
to work on it more tomorrow.  Poor Chris can't keep his eyes open, and I'm
not far behind.  It won't do us any good for us all to be exhausted," she
said.

   "I know, but I just don't know what else to do.  I'm worried about you,
worried about us.  I'd feel so much better once we get a solid plan to get
our asses out of here," Carrie replied.

   "I know you're worried, and I love you for that.  And I'm so sorry that
you two are part of my mess.  You guys don't deserve it, and I probably
don't deserve you.  Maybe I should just stay someplace else for a while,
until the police catch whoever's out there."

   "Don't you even dare to think of something like that!  You're not going
anywhere," Chris shouted.

   "Okay, okay, we're all tired.  Our nerves are shot.  Let's get some
rest, okay?  Whatever we have to do to keep you safe, we'll do it.  We're
family now, Tina.  We won't let anything happen to you," Carrie assured
her.

   Tina was calmed and warmed by the support of Carrie and her brother,
though she would have felt a heck of a lot better if she didn't have the
whole mess to worry about in the first place.  They made their way to the
bedroom for a much needed rest.  Carrie had the bed made, having gotten new
bedding like she had said that she would.  Tina and Chris got into the bed
and under the covers first.  Carrie came into the room last carrying a
small box that contained a .45 caliber semi-automatic pistol.  She tucked
it under her side of the bed.

   "What's that?" Tina asked.  Chris knew what it was.

   "Security." Carrie didn't visit the range as much as she used to, but
there was no doubt that she knew how to use what was in the box.  If
someone was going to get in the bedroom, they would either have to cut the
bars off the windows or break down the door.  Either method they chose,
they would end up with several holes ventilating their bodies when they
were done.

   *****

   Jorge wiped the side of his shoe off on the pant leg of the bloody sack
of garbage on the floor in front of him.  There was a new stench in the
air, the little bastard had shit himself.  They did that sometimes.  The
narcotics trade was a messy business, part of that was cleaning up after
guys like Luke and Bobby.

   The two of them combined didn't have enough working brain cells to
warrant a position of any real responsibility, but they did have their
positions.  Selling cocaine was risky, but getting large quantities from
across the border was even more risky these days.  That's where people like
Bobby and Luke came in.  They would go meet the mules that actually came
across the border and taxi the stuff further into the country.  They were
both citizens of the state with valid driver's licenses and a vehicle that
the authorities weren't looking for.  They wouldn't stand out on the roads,
in other words.  They were also expendable, knowing very little of the
actual operation so if they did get caught they had next to nothing that
they could rat about.

   One of the problems when it came to guys like Luke and Bobby was that no
matter how loyal they seemed, no matter how many threats and assurances
that were leveled against them, they would inevitably find a way to fuck
things up.  These two did it on their very first try.  Tied for the record,
you could say.  They decided, with their combined I.Q.  of less than the
average human's body temperature, that they would cut the product with
enough baby laxative to make it only useful if you needed to have a good
bowel movement.  They resealed the packages, made the drop, and kept a
couple of hundred thousand dollars worth of uncut cocaine for themselves.

   A couple of things gave away the scheme of the two would-be master
criminals.  First of all, the packages sent from the supplier had clearly
been opened and tampered with.  They contained junk.  Secondly, neither one
of the two had waited around to get paid for making the drop.  One of them
was arrested the very next night with enough pure coke on him to kill a
blue whale.  The other one skipped town.

   What to do if you were a major drug runner and you just got ripped off
by a couple of boneheads?  Call someone you can trust, like your old buddy
Jorge.  The chances were slim that you would get the drugs or the money
that they were worth back, but in the absence of that, revenge was
something to be settled for.  Guys like Jorge would make good on promises
of torturous slow-death or the murder of an entire family.  Sometimes, he
would even recoup some of the losses for you.  Sometimes there were quick
results, sometimes it would take a bit of patience.  Either way, after
Jorge was called, there were results.

   The little turd machine pooling blood onto the concrete in front of him
was the one called Bobby.  He was a bit less forthcoming with his answers
than the first one had been; it was like pulling teeth.  Literally.

   Luke had told him, eventually, that even though the cops had taken some
of his stuff, that most of it was hidden in his speakers at home.  From
that the boy sleuth had determined that his girlfriend Tina must have taken
it, even though she wouldn't admit to it after beating her half to death.
She seemed to think that Bobby had it.  Jorge, though not Sherlock Holmes,
was inclined to side with the girlfriend since Bobby was the one that knew
the shit was there in the first place.  Luke seemed to think that there was
no way in the world that his most trusted friend would betray him in any
way.  Jorge did not lend himself to such notions.

   Bobby, though still quite feeble in the head, was probably the
mastermind of the plot.  He had conceded that he and Luke had indeed gotten
away with a large chunk of the product, but insisted that Luke was the one
that was supposedly in charge of redistributing it and holding it.  When he
had heard that his partner was in lockup, he went to retrieve the stash,
collecting all of Luke's possessions as a cover.  By the time he realized
that it wasn't there, he was unable to locate the girl.

   Jorge was disappointed with Bobby.  It took a long, long time to get
that story out of him, and he just wasn't convinced that he was being
truthful.  Why sit around getting your insides pureed to eventually give up
a girl that he had no real ties to?  Was he trying to protect her?  Not
likely.  More likely was that he was just trying to survive so that he
could live to enjoy the spoils of his robbery.  He was sure that Bobby had
the shit stashed somewhere.  He just would not give it up.  Unfortunately,
that happened sometimes, as well.  Bobby may have realized that he was
going to die anyway, so he wasn't giving away the location in order to
prolong his doomed existence.  If Jorge knew where it was, then bye-bye
Bobby.

   Giving every opportunity for Bobby to clear his conscience, Jorge had
stayed with him for days.  Sadly, it had gotten to the point where Bobby
just wasn't making sense anymore.  English was not Jorge's first language,
but he was pretty sure that most of what Bobby was saying weren't real
words.  Then, the poor fellow stopped talking all together.  Jorge hated
having done all that work without anything of value to show for it.  He
took a couple of pictures, just to prove that he tried.

   Sighing, Jorge put his phone back in his pocket.  He would have to go
talk to the girl, next.  He'd been doing this job for a long time, and he
was good at it.  Although it was doubtful that the girlfriend would be able
to shed any light on the situation, he was still obligated to pay her a
visit.  One of the things that he had learned, since he had been doing it
so long, was that even though his instincts were almost always right,
sometimes you got lucky.  She might not have had anything to do with the
dimwitted-duo's caper, but she still might know something.

   *****

   "Okay, so seven o'clock, flight to Columbus.  From there, we pick up the
car at the airport and head to the Holiday Inn at Freeport.  Like a two
hour drive.  After we check in we meet the agent and check out a couple of
houses.  After that, there's a couple of places in town we can get dinner.
The next day, we'll drive over to Simmons and meet with the agent there. 
We've got a bunch of places to look at there.  Then..." Carrie was cut off.

   "We got it, babe.  Take a breath.  It's all right here on the paper." It
was the third time that they were going over the plan.  Carrie and Tina had
put forth an incredible effort during the preceding couple of days and had
come up with a real estate tour that was sure to open their eyes to
something.  Chris was impressed, but he was tired of going over the same
thing a thousand times.  "I was thinking that at 2:43 on the afternoon of
the second day that I may have to excuse myself and take a leak.  Would
that be okay, or should I plan on holding it?" he asked.

   "Maybe you should just wear a diaper and go in your pants," Carrie
suggested.

   "Don't be a jerk, Chris.  We worked hard on this," Tina added.

   "I know that you have, and I'm pretty impressed.  I'd never be able to
put together something like this.  I'm very proud of you both.  The point
is we have to stay flexible.  If something goes wrong and the schedule gets
messed up a little bit, I don't want you guys to get all uptight and fall
apart."

   "No one is going to fall apart, that's why we're going over the
schedule. If we miss an appointment or something gets canceled, then we'll
move on to the next thing on the list.  If things go well, then we might
even have a little time for fun," Carrie said.

   "Oh good," Chris pouted.  He hoped that they remembered that at least a
small part of their trip was supposed to be their honeymoon.

   They all had been a bit tense since the visit from Detective Lopes. 
Tina felt kind of like she was at fault for taking what should have been a
happy time for them all and setting them instead on edge.  She wanted the
happy back.  She placed a hand on his shoulder.

   "Chris, honey, it will be fun.  Have you ever even been to someplace
like Ohio?  There might even be some snow on the ground out there.  We
could even see some Amish people, and we can make fun of them like we do
when they're on T.V."

   That brought a small smile.  "Yeah, I do like picking on people that I
don't really know a whole lot about."

   Carrie looked up at the clock.  It was time for them to get moving if
they wanted to keep their schedule for the evening.  It was the big night.
A trip to the fifteen-minute wedding shop and a dinner at Whitmore's. 
Things didn't get much more special than that.  And they were going to be
late unless they got underway shortly.

   "I hate to say it," she began.

   Chris turned to her, knowing what she was about to say.  How much would
she have to hate saying something before she really didn't say it?

   "But we have to get moving to stay on schedule," she finished.

   "Of course, my dear.  Are we all ready for this?" Chris asked.

   "Ready," acknowledged Tina.  She wasn't the least bit excited about the
paperwork that would make them legally married.  As far as she was
concerned, they were married when Chris had given her the engagement ring.
They were going to wait and pick out wedding bands sometime in the future.
Also something she was not worried about.

   Chris was feeling more emotional about the whole situation.  He was
nervous as the realization began to strike him that marriage was a rather
permanent thing.  Of course there was divorce, but that was a messy,
painful process.  Having a wife would be a serious responsibility, for him
it was basically like having two.  He didn't know what to expect, and for
some reason, he couldn't help but project all sorts of different disastrous
outcomes in his mind.  With his mind elsewhere, Carrie's touch on his back
while they were walking through the chapel's parking lot startled him.

   "Chris, honey, it'll be all right." She kissed him on the cheek.  She
could sense his trepidation.

   He managed a small smile back at her.  "Thank you."

   Tina put a hand on his shoulder, noting the discomfort in his face. 
"You're gonna be a wonderful husband.  Still sure you want to do this?"

   "Yeah, yeah.  Just getting hit with some butterflies, you know?  Let's
get in there and get this done."

   Tina thought that was a good answer.  She would have hated for Chris to
become her second boyfriend in a row to end up beaten to death and thrown
out in the desert.

   Once they got in the building and the process began, the butterflies
left and the magic of the moment seemed to dissipate.  The ceremony was
conducted by an elderly gentleman behind a counter that was framed with
bullet-proof glass.  He was dressed as though he had come straight from the
set of Gunsmoke, and Chris suspected that he may have been more than a
little intoxicated.  Chris forked over the cash and they signed some
papers. A copy for them and a copy for the state.  Then it was over, man
and wife.

   "That wasn't so bad, was it?" Tina asked as they were getting back in
the car.  "You feeling better?"

   "I feel fine, it wasn't bad at all.  The drunken cowboy really made the
butterflies go away," he replied.

   "Well, I think you make a lovely couple.  Let's go get a wedding
burger," Carrie said.  Tina and Chris didn't realize it, but everyone at
the restaurant knew that they were coming.  They thought they were just
going to stop by and grab something to eat.  Carrie had organized an actual
party, complete with traditional wedding cake, and whatever else she was
able to throw together in a couple of days.  They had agreed that they were
going to spend the least amount of money as possible, but Carrie thought
that they deserved a real party.  Besides, she thought it would be a nice
wedding present, and Chris wasn't the only one who was able to squirrel
some money away.  What good would it do if she wasn't ever going to spend
it on anything?

   "Do you think Sid will charge us?" Tina asked.

   "Probably.  I was thinking we could just walk out, take our meal as a
wedding present."

   "Heh, we'll get fired."

   Chris knew something was up as soon as he stepped out of the car.  There
was a sign on a pedestal by the front door.  "Closed for Private Function".

   "What the fuck?  When have we ever closed for anything?" Tina asked.

   "I don't know.  How 'bout you, Carrie?  You know anything about this?"
Chris asked.

   Carrie smiled.  "Maybe.  Just get your butts in there."

   None of the three had a huge amount of friends outside of their
respective places of work, but each had a few.  Most all of them were there
and let out a collective cheer when the newlyweds entered the building. 
Chris and Tina had to fend off congratulations and well wishes from all
sides as they were ushered to a table by Cindy.  There, they were seated
alone while Carrie wandered off to check on all of the arrangements that
she had made.

   Though neither Chris nor Tina had really wanted a reception, they made
the most of it and enjoyed themselves.  They were treated to some of Hank's
finest burgers and sipped champagne and made silly poses while they were
being photographed cutting the cake.  Thanks to a DJ, they were even able
to have a wedding dance.  After a few songs, Chris was able to get a dance
with his sister.

   "I can't believe you put all this together.  Can't argue about who the
master planner is in the family," he said while they were moving to a slow
tempo.

   "I couldn't help myself.  I thought it could be like my present to you,"
she replied.

   "I think it's great.  You picked a good spot."

   "Heh, I thought it would be easy enough to get you guys to come here. 
We're gonna have to wrap things up in a bit, though.  I only got the place
for three hours.  Sid likes you guys, but not as much as he likes the bar
rush."

   "Figures.  Look at that pile of presents we got.  Think they'll fit in
the car?"

   "Maybe.  I don't know.  I'm surprised how many people showed up."

   "They wouldn't have if it wasn't for you.  This is your party, too, you
know.  I love you, babe."

   "You better," she replied with a grin.

   When the dancing was over, Chris and Tina mingled with everyone.  Of
course they all wanted to know where they were headed on their honeymoon,
and they all got the same answer: Miami.  No mention was made of their
plans of totally moving out of town soon after.

   Hank found Chris shortly before everyone was about ready to bounce from
the party.  He gave his hand a mighty shake.

   "That was some good food, Hank."

   "Hey, that's what I do," Hank replied.  He reached into his pocket and
withdrew a small vial, handing it to Chris.  "I got you a little something
for your honeymoon.  That shit's powerful, I wouldn't take more than one
unless you plan on entertain' all the ladies that you meet down there."
Hank advised.

   Chris looked at the vial with some skepticism.  It contained six rather
large tablets.  "What exactly is this, Hank?"

   "Magic, my brother.  A little bottle of magic.  One of those and your
pecker won't go soft even if gets cut off.  Gives you a little more feelin'
to what you're dealin', too."

   "Well, let's hope that it stays attached.  Is this shit safe?"

   "They ain't exactly approved by the FDA, if that's what you mean.  But
trust me, if you want to give your girl a night she won't forget, it's the
stuff."

   "Thanks, Hank.  I'm sure Tina will thank you, too." Chris didn't really
know what to think of the gift, but he wasn't just going to toss it away,
either.  It was intriguing and potentially rather useful.  If anyone knew
about things like that, it would be Hank.

   Eventually, the final 'goodbyes' were said and the last hand was shaken.
The night was growing old by the time they had lugged their haul of wedding
presents up the stairs and were safely inside the apartment.  They were
admiring the pile of spoils that they had on the coffee table in their
living room.

   "Should we open them?" Chris wondered allowed.

   "Let's save them until we get back from our trip," Tina suggested.

   "You've more patience than me, I want to see what you got," Carrie said.

   "I think it would be more fun to wait.  It'll give us something to look
forward to when we get home.  What do you think, Chris?"

   "If you want to wait, then that's fine with me, babe.  There's something
I want to show you guys, get your opinion." He pulled the vial of pills out
and showed the girls, explaining what all Hank had told him.

   "Very interesting," Carrie said.  Tina just giggled.

   "So, should I use one, see what it does?" Chris asked.

   "Well, it is our wedding night.  Hank wouldn't give you anything too
dangerous, right?"

   "I, for one, think that you're man enough without something like that,
but it's up to you.  It might be interesting to see what that thing of
yours would be like on steroids.  You sure you don't want to wait for the
trip?" Carrie asked.

   "Heh.  I don't want to take these things through the airport.  I don't
really even know what they are, I don't want to get busted with them.  I
haven't been on a plane since I was a little kid, I have no idea what it's
like these days."

   "Take one, don't take one, it's up to you.  I can tell you one thing,
I'm going to go get out of these clothes and freshen up a little.  I'll be
ready to consummate this marriage in about ten minutes." Tina patted Chris
on the back and began walking off toward the bathroom.

   Carrie handed her brother a bottle of water.  "Just take one.  I know
you want to.  All the cool kids are doing it."

   Chris let out a nervous chuckle and consumed one of the tablets.  He'd
soon find out what Hank had gotten him into.  Hopefully, it wasn't going to
be a ride in an ambulance.  Carrie sat on the couch and flipped the
television on.

   "Aren't you coming to bed?"

   "I figure you and your bride would want a little privacy."

   "That doesn't seem right, not if you want to come in.  We said that
things weren't going to change.  You went through all the trouble of that
great party, I don't even know how you had time to plan it.  I don't want
you to be left out of anything."

   Carrie half-smiled at her brother.  "You and Tina just got married, for
goodness sakes.  You're allowed to have a little time alone with her, you
never have before.  It's fine, honey, it is.  Besides, if that pill works
that way that Hank said it would.  you ought to have plenty left in the
tank for me.  I'll be in after a while, okay?"

   "You're an amazing woman, Carrie."

   "I know.  Now go before I change my mind and want to keep you all to
myself." Chris smiled and went off to their bedroom at her urging.  Carrie
was smiling, too.  It was a little tough to think of Chris having sex
without her, but she had decided as soon as the two got married that they
deserved to be together alone for a while.  She wasn't the sex police and
if the three of them were going to be spending the rest of their lives
together, there would be times when there would only be two of them
together at once.  She knew that she wouldn't have a problem being alone
with Chris, that was for sure.  That rotten old jealous pang was creeping
up again, but she was doing a decent job of beating it back.  If this was
going to work, she would have to.

   Chris waited in the bedroom for his bride, stripping most of his
clothing and sitting on the edge of the bed.  He wasn't feeling any
different, so he assumed that the pill hadn't kicked in yet.  He was
reflecting upon his good fortune to have two beautiful women that loved him
the way that they did when Tina came into the room.

   Tina was wearing a sexy little outfit that she had picked out just for
the occasion.  Nothing over the top, just a blue, silky bra and matching
low-cut panties.  She was smiling, as was he as he stood from the bed to
greet her.  She walked over to him and slipped her arms up and around the
back of his neck.

   "You look incredible, Tina.  I still can't believe how lucky I am."

   "I'm pretty lucky, too.  Where's Carrie?"

   "She's gonna give us a little space.  Being our wedding night, and all."

   "She's so sweet.  We'll have to do something really nice for her when we
get a chance.  That was a nice party."

   "She is, and it was.  I took one of the pills that Hank gave me.  Get
ready to call 911."

   "It won't come to that, I hope."

   Conversation time was over.  Their lips came together and kissed. 
Gently at first, then with more urgency.  His hands slid down her back and
massaged the blue fabric of her panties against the wonderful, soft flesh
of her ass.  She moaned with his touch and began to slide slowly down the
front of him.  She continued until she was on her knees, taking his boxers
down with her.  His erect member was leveled somewhere around her forehead.
She wrapped a hand around it, still impressed with his size after having
seen it quite a few times.  If anything, it seemed a bit larger than she
remembered.  She kissed his thighs as she imparted soft, tickling strokes.

   "I haven't said anything before, but you have an incredible cock.  And
now, it's mine." She licked up from the bottom of his shaft and then took
it into her mouth.

   Chris released a groaning sigh and set his legs to a more comfortable
standing position.  He wasn't going to correct what she had just said about
his penis.  Technically, it was only about a third hers.  Some of it
belonged to Carrie.  He still wanted to think that a piece of it was his
own.  For now though, for what she was doing, Tina could say whatever she
liked.  He didn't know if it was the pill starting to take effect or what,
but the sensations he was receiving were somewhere near the top of the
charts.

   "Oh, that feels amazing, Tina," he hissed, looking down at her.  She
smiled back up at him from around his cock and took him deep into her
throat.  He didn't want to think about how she might have gotten so good at
it, but she was good at it, and at the moment, that was all that mattered.
"Holy shit." There was definitely something more going on down there than
what was normal.

   Tina was taking some pride in the pleasure that she was providing for
her new groom.  Though he was rather large, she knew what she was doing. 
She fucked him with her mouth, making loud gurgling noises as she picked up
the pace.  Sloppy strings of saliva dripped down over his testicles and
down her chin.

   Chris wasn't used to such oral treatment.  He had never been
deep-throated like that before, it felt as though his penis was being
engulfed by a soft, orgasm-inducing vice.  It was mind blowing, and after
just a few minutes, something else was going to blow.  "I'm gonna cum, oh
fuck, I'm gonna cum," he sighed.

   Tina didn't stop, she instead went faster.  She felt his body tense and
the first blast of semen rocket against the back of her throat.  She was
forced to pull off of him to swallow, more of his load landing on her upper
lip and around the base of her nose as she did.  Regaining her breath, she
milked the last of him out while he whimpered with his release.  She smiled
up at him as he finished and was released from her mouth.

   He ran a hand through her hair as he regained a little composure.  His
cock twitched as he looked down at the girl kneeling in front of him with
half his orgasm on her face.  "I know it may not be dignified, but the way
you look right now is just, so, so sexy.  And that was amazing."

   Tina giggled.  "I like looking sexy for you.  It's fun to be dirty
sometimes." Reaching up with her tongue, she collected as much of the stray
sperm as she could and sucked it into her mouth, making a display of it for
Chris.  There was an impressive amount of it, considering how much sex that
they'd been having lately.  She would have figured that his reserves would
be low, so to speak.

   He extended a hand and helped her to her feet.  With a handful of
tissues from the nightstand, he carefully wiped the rest of her face clean
while she stood patiently.  Then he pulled her into his arms once again and
kissed.

   "I still have spermy breath," she said, pulling away slightly.

   "I don't mind, as long as it's from me," he replied.  He lifted her up
and onto the bed, his erection still as strong as ever.  Hank had come
through.  He paused while reaching to remove her panties.  "I love the
outfit, by the way.  My favorite color, but these are covering one of my
favorite things, so they have to go." Tina just smiled and let him pull her
panties off and toss them to the floor.

   He loved eating his sister's pussy, but he loved Tina's as well.  They
were both beautiful things, but distinctly different.  Tina's was much
darker in color, her clitoris much more prominent.  Chris took it between
his lips and nibbled gently.  Tina started to giggle again, but switched to
a low moan as he really went to work.  He wasn't being nearly as aggressive
as the girl was with him, but he was getting the job done.

   Tina loved the way that he licked her, clearly trying to bring her as
much pleasure as he could.  There were a lot of guys that just had no clue.
They just whipped their tongue around for a bit and figured that was good.
Chris did not fit into that category.

   Chris had to stop what he was doing, as much as he was enjoying himself.
If he didn't get his cock inside of her soon, it felt like something was
going to burst.

   "I'm sorry baby, I want to finish you like this, but I just got to put
it in," he told her, a bit of urgency in his voice.

   "Put it in," she urged him.

   She had no sooner gotten the words out when he was lifting himself up
and over top of her.  He slid past her entrance with little resistance,
causing them both to gasp for air.  Chris hadn't ever felt anything quite
like it.  It was the normal pleasure feeling of being buried inside of a
fantastic pussy, but it was being chemically amplified by Hank's magic
pill. He hoped that he wasn't going to be totally spoiled after the effects
wore off.  Chris had never been a big fan of drugs, but this one got his
vote.

   Tina could see the difference in Chris, as well.  It didn't feel any
different when he was fucking her, which was a great feeling, but she could
tell by the looks on his face and some of the noises that he was making
that he was really enjoying himself.  "It feels good, doesn't it, baby? 
It's your pussy now, whenever you want to fill it up.  Your wife has never
been fucked so good."

   She knew that he liked it when she talked dirty.  It had an effect on
him, that was for certain.  She used her filthy mouth as a tool to inspire
an increase in his actions.  He groaned his approval, slamming into her
over and over.  She was in the middle of an explosive orgasm and he showed
no signs of slowing down.  "Oh fuck, that's good!" she shouted.

   Chris could do little more than growl his acknowledgments.  He was too
busy focusing on his own impending orgasm.  It felt like he was right on
the edge of having one, but it was taking an awfully long time to get over
that edge.  It was intense pleasure, but it was driving him into a frenzy.
Tina could only lay back and absorb the onslaught, not that she didn't
enjoy it.

   When he finally did cum, after what seemed to be an impossibly long
period of time, it felt to Chris as though some sort of a biological bomb
was set off in his body.  It was an explosion that started in the base of
his cock and made its way through most every nerve ending that he had,
ending with his eyeballs where he was seeing stars for a moment.  He was
growling again without realizing it through this process, then lay on top
of his new wife to catch his breath.  She covered him with kisses and
helped wipe some of the sweat from his brow.

   "Are you okay, baby?" she asked.

   "That was intense, and you felt...you felt just divine, Tina." He rolled
over and off her before he crushed her to death.  Taking a deep breath and
blinking the stars from his eyes, he continued.  "Oh man.  Are you all
right?  I got a little carried away there."

   "I'm better than all right.  That was eye-opening." She had cum at least
twice during that exchange, never in her life had that happened within such
a short period of time.  She had never been pounded quite like that,
either. Laying her head on her husband's chest she noted that his erection
showed no sign of going down.  She reached down and stroked him a few
times, feeling the slickness of their combined juices on his shaft.  "It
looks like it still wants more."

   Indeed it did, much to the amazement of Chris.  Tina's lazy stroking was
feeling great, like it was time for round number three.  The problem was
that the rest of his body wasn't as eager as his cock to step back into the
ring.  He was still a little wobbly.  As they kissed and Tina continued
with her stroking, she solved the problem by climbing on top of him, easing
herself down onto his rigid pole.  She braced herself with her hands flat
against his chest and rode him with a steady, grinding motion.

   "Oh my god, Tina.  That feels so fucking amazing," he told her, managing
to reach up and brush some of the hair from her eyes.  She still had her
bra on at this point, so he reached around her back and unhooked it,
wanting to see her luscious tits bounce while she fucked him.  "You're
beautiful, every bit of you," he told her, tossing the bra off in a random
direction.

   "Tell me how much you love me," she said, slamming down onto him hard
and grinding.  She kept the position while she waited for an answer.

   "Ahh," he moaned.  Damn, she was feeling good.  "I love you so much that
I don't think I could live without you."

   Tina resumed motion for a little bit, then slammed down again.  "That's
good.  What else?" She liked this little game.

   "I love you so much that I want you to have our babies and I'll never
let you go!" He was having a hard time thinking of things to say.  He hoped
that there wasn't going to be many more questions.

   Tina resumed once again.  "You better not let me go.  We could be making
a baby right now, you know.  Every time you put your little spermies inside
me you could be putting a baby in me."

   Chris didn't know if what Tina was talking about was particularly sexy
or not, but she seemed to be enjoying herself.  The more times that he made
love to Tina, the more apparent it was how different that she was than
Carrie.  Carrie wasn't so much into talking and fucking at the same time;
to Tina it seemed to be part of the process.  Except for a few words here
and there, Chris wasn't usually much of a conversationalist during
intercourse.

   The questions and teasing by Tina eventually ceased as she was gripped
by the slow burn of another climax, a smaller, softer version of the first
two.  Still incredibly satisfying, however.  She kept fucking from her
position on top until her strength began to wane.  "We've got to do
something different, baby.  My legs are going to give out."

   Chris had recovered most of his strength by that time.  He had Tina lay
with her belly down on the edge of the bed so that he could stand and enter
her from behind.  He was able to really get after it while on his feet,
thrusting into her cunt with his thighs slapping against her ass.  Tina,
for the moment, seemed to be tongue tied.  She could do little more than
moan and sigh while Chris went on his second orgasm-seeking rampage.

   By the time that he had actually climaxed, he was dripping with sweat
from the effort.  Tina, though feeling as well fucked and satisfied as she
had ever been was starting to feel a little raw.  She was actually relieved
when he came, thinking it might not ever happen.  He flopped on the bed and
pulled her into a kiss.

   "I just don't think I have the words to describe that," he whispered. 
They lay there, feet dangling off the side of the bed for a few minutes.

   "I want to go get a drink of water, but I can't get my legs to work,"
Tina said.  She looked down at his pulsing manhood.  It was angry red in
color and pointed at the ceiling.  She pushed it down with the tips of her
fingers and watched as it sprang back into place.  "I don't know if I can
handle having that thing back in me right away.  I might have to call in
for back up."

   "Heh.  It seems to have a mind of its own tonight."

   "I like the way it thinks, but I need a break.  Want a drink?"

   "Yes please.  I'm gonna lay here and suck up some oxygen."

   Carrie had been sitting in front of the television, not really paying
much attention to what was on.  One thing that she couldn't help but pay
attention to was the moaning and growling and slapping sounds coming from
the bedroom.  It seemed as though the newlyweds were really going to town
in there.  That wasn't all that surprising.  What was, however, was the
length of time that it went on for.  It was starting to get late, and she
kind of wanted to get to bed.  They had a plane to catch in the morning. 
Still, she didn't want to interrupt.  She was half-asleep when Tina came
walking naked through the living room and out into the kitchen.  She
stopped on her way back through, carrying a couple of glasses of water.

   "How's it going in there?" Carrie asked.

   "It's been...something else.  Would you like to come in?  It was nice
that we had a little time alone together, and I think that was very sweet
of you.  I feel a little guilty though.  Just a little." Tina looked down
at Carrie with a mischievous glint in her eyes.

   Carrie couldn't help but smile back.  "Are you sure?"

   "Yeah.  Besides, I need your help.  He's still, uh, ready and I can't go
again.  Maybe you could finish him off and we could get some rest."

   "Oh my.  I take it the pill works, huh?" Carrie couldn't help but
giggle. She was feeling a little randy, especially after listening to them
go at it for the past couple hours.  Seeing Tina standing in front of her
all naked and sweaty didn't exactly curb the horniness she was
experiencing. "It is getting kind of late.  We've got a lot to do tomorrow.
Maybe I'll go see what you've done to my brother and see if we can't get
him to sleep.  Plus, I could hear you guys from out here and you got me a
little worked up."

   Tina gave a weary smile.  "Oh, it works all right.  Come to bed, babe."

   Chris gratefully accepted the water when Tina handed it to him.  He had
toweled off so he wouldn't be so slimy with sweat.  Carrie noted his
condition, mainly his raging erection.

   "All that and the big boy still wants more, huh?" she asked.  She
started to get undressed.

   Chris looked up at his sister while he sucked down the entire contents
of the glass.  It was possible that he had a little fight left in him, he
supposed.  It's not like he was ever able to say 'no' to her, anyway.  "It
could never say no if the more is you.  I have to warn you, though, the
rest of my body doesn't have the same amount of energy left in it."

   Tina had escaped to the bathroom to get cleaned up before she got back
into bed.  No sense leaking fluids all over the place while she slept. 
Carrie took his empty glass and set it on the dresser.  She slid on top of
him, onto the bed and kissed his neck.  He was still a little salty with
sweat.

   "That's okay, baby.  You can let me do the work.  I haven't been able to
get to the gym in a couple of days, anyway." She wiggled around a bit and
eased him into her, feeling that wonderfully full sensation that she had
become so accustomed to when he was totally inside of her.  He was hissing
and gasping the entire time.  "Are you okay, Chris?  Are you sore or
something?"

   "I'm not sore, I'm just sensitive.  It feels good, it really does, it's
just that I can feel like ten times more that I usually do." Ten times may
have been a bit of an exaggeration, but it was a truly unique experience.
His sister felt much different than Tina.  Tighter maybe?  Maybe they were
put together a little differently on the inside.  He couldn't really tell,
but whatever it was, it still felt amazing.  She didn't move in quite the
same way that Tina did, either, making things feel a little different.

   "You're never going to stop loving me even though you're married,
right?" she asked, in the middle of riding her brother, hard.

   What was it with the sex talk?  Must have been something contagious that
she picked up from Tina.  "I would never stop loving you, Carrie.  I can't.
It's in my blood, I'll always love you." Didn't they realize how his mind
was scrambled while they were having sex?  How hard it was to...think?

   Carrie seemed satisfied with the one question and happy with the answer
that Chris gave.  She decided to concentrate her efforts on the physical
act of the sex that she was in the middle of having.  She had no idea how
many orgasms that her brother may have had prior to her arrival on the
scene.  She was starting to question if he was actually going to have
another one or not.  He was acting like he was about to, but he had been
acting like that for quite a while.  She already had one, that was for
sure. It was getting to the point where it was far beyond the normal amount
of time it took for him to cum.  He finally did, but it took one hell of an
effort on her part.  She thought it was worth it, though.

   "There, baby.  You saved one for me and it was very, very nice." They
kissed for a bit and it was very clear to Carrie that her brother was
exhausted.  All for except about seven inches of him that she was still
connected to.

   Tina had watched most of what went on from the doorway.  She had wanted
to go lay down, but figured that she would let them finish first.  When
they did, she crawled into bed with them.  "I love watching you two fuck,
but we probably should get some rest.  We got our plane early in the
morning."

   They were all able to fall asleep fairly easily after that and get a
decent amount of rest before their journey.  Luckily for Chris, his
erection subsided at some point during his slumber.  He was worried for a
bit that he might have to walk around the rest of his life with one.

   Their bags were packed, so the only thing that they had to do in the
morning was call a cab and go to the airport.  The flight was short and
uneventful, they passed the time with light conversation.

   "So, you bring any of Hank's presents with you?" Carrie asked.

   Chris turned to her with a raised eyebrow.  "No, I don't think so.  It
was cool and all, but I think we ought to save them for special occasions
or something.  I'm not sure if I could take that sort of thing all the
time."

   "Quitter," she chided, poking him in the ribs.

   "I was thinking about getting a butt-load of them.  Then I could crush
them up and put it in your food," Tina said.

   Carrie seemed to think that was hilarious.  She reached across Chris and
gave Tina a high-five.

   "Ha ha.  Seriously, that shit was powerful.  No telling what it actually
did to my system.  Prolly pretty stupid of me to take it."

   "Believe me, I know how powerful it was," Tina said.  "And I would never
do something like that to you without you knowing about it.  You're still
alive and your..." she lowered her voice as not to alert any wandering ears
to what they were talking about "package was still attached when you got up
this morning.  I think you ought to mellow out."

   "Yeah, mellow out, Chris," Carrie agreed.

   That's what he had to look forward to for the rest of his life.  Getting
ganged up on.  "I'm mellow, I'm mellow," he tried to assure them.  He did
his best to crank up some fake tears.  "It's just...you guys don't know
what it's like to be thought of as nothing but a sex object.  Having people
look at me, undressing me with their eyes.  I'm more than just a piece of
meat.  I have dreams, I..."

   Carrie cut him off with a finger held to his lips.  "Calm down there,
Tom Cruise.  We're flying to Ohio, not Hollywood."

   "Oh my god, you're weird," Tina added, stifling her laughter.

   *****

   Jorge had just finished his burger.  It was pretty good, actually.  His
hopes weren't all that high when he had first gotten a look at the place.
He was sipping his coffee when the waitress brought the bill.

   "How was everything?  Can I get you anything else?"

   "It was good.  I'm all set with that, thanks, but maybe you can help me
with something," he replied.

   "What's that?" Erin asked.

   "I was looking for my cousin Tina.  We haven't been in touch for a
while. I stopped by her place, but I guess she moved out.  Does she still
work here, by any chance?"

   "If you're looking for Tina, you're out of luck, hun.  She just left on
her honeymoon."

   "Honeymoon?  She got married?"

   "Just last night.  Had the reception right here," Erin confirmed.

   "Huh, just to make sure we're talking about the same girl, uh, about
twenty, kind of short, good looking, Mexican."

   "That's Tina, for sure."

   "I had no idea she was getting married.  I wish I was here for the
party. Told you, I was out of touch, I missed it." Jorge frowned in
disappointment.

   Erin reached into her pocket.  "I've got some pictures on my phone." She
brought one up of Chris giving Tina a playful kiss on the back of her left
hand.  "That's Chris there, the new groom.  He took her to Miami."

   "Wow, that sounds fun.  Lots of things to do in Miami.  They coming back
or are they just going to stay out there?" Jorge couldn't help but notice
the huge diamond on Tina's finger.  About a year's salary for a guy that
worked in a restaurant.

   "Oh, they're only gonna be gone a few days or so.  You want me to tell
her you stopped by?"

   "You know what, Erin, is it?  Would you do me a favor and not mention
it? I think I'm just going to drop in and surprise her one of these days.
She still do the night shift?"

   *****

   The first day in Freeport went more or less according to Carrie's
schedule.  It was a heck of a lot colder there than what they were
expecting.  There was snow, plenty of it really.  It was making it somewhat
of a white-knuckled driving experience for Chris, but they made it to the
hotel just fine.

   They met with the real estate agent and looked at a total of four places
that afternoon and early evening.  None of them seemed to leave much of a
mark.  They got back to the hotel feeling somewhat disappointed.

   "Maybe it's because all the snow," suggested Tina.  "Makes everything
seem so dreary."

   "That could be part of it," Carrie agreed.  "They all had plenty of
space, but I didn't like any of the houses.  I mean, we don't want to have
to spend a fortune fixing a place up."

   "I kind of like the snow, but it is hard to picture what someplace will
look like without it.  Don't care for driving in it much, glad it finally
stopped," Chris added.

   Nobody felt like going out, so they just ordered a pizza, staying in to
get to bed early and an early start on the next day.  They were hoping that
the area around the town of Simmons would offer them something that grabbed
their attention.

   After a decent night's rest and a gourmet hotel breakfast of cereal and
muffins of questionable freshness, they made the hour long drive to
Simmons. The town was a little bigger than they thought, more of a small
city.  Still, the surrounding rural areas were definitely the types of
places they were looking for.  That being said, they just couldn't fall in
love with any of the places that they looked at.  They sorely wanted to
find a place and make a deal, but it was a big decision.  They intended to
spend a good chunk of time, if not the rest of their lives in the location
that they picked.  It didn't look like they would just be able to flip a
place if they weren't satisfied, some of them had been on the market for a
long time.  It was good for them, being buyers, but they were going to make
sure that they were happy before pulling the trigger on anything.

   As the morning gave way to the afternoon, they found themselves back in
Simmons proper, looking for a place to stop and grab a bite to eat.  They
pulled into a little restaurant aptly named "The Simmons Diner".  It was a
neat little place dressed with fieldstone and smoke coming from a central
chimney.

   "Check it out," Tina said as they were walking up the the entrance. 
"This place is for sale." There was a small, hand-written sign in the
corner of the window near the door.

   "I don't really want to live in a diner," Carrie said.  She was feeling
rather down, not having any of the places that she picked to look at pan
out.

   They went in, seating themselves in a booth were they all could see the
fireplace.

   "I like the fire.  Makes it feel cozy," Chris commented.

   A young lady came by to take their orders, and they soon were enjoying
their meals.  Even though the food was good, it did little to raise their
spirits.  The waitress tried to get them to bite on some desert, but no one
was in the mood.  She dropped off the check and told them that they could
pay in the front when they were done.

   Chris grabbed the check and headed to the register behind the counter to
pay.  An old man was there, cleaning off the grill.  It took a moment to
get his attention, the fellow must have been getting a little hard of
hearing.  Chris had to reach out and tap a little bell by the register. 
The old man spun around and smiled at him.

   "I didn't even see you there.  How was everything?" he asked.

   "It was pretty good.  Like the place here," Chris replied.

   "Yeah, me and the missus built this place from the ground up.  Opened
over forty years ago."

   "Is that so?  Why you sellin', business slowin' down?"

   "Naw, we've got a steady business.  Nothin' to make me a millionaire,
but pays the bills.  Raised four children on it, we did.  No, my wife
passed this last fall and without her, the place just isn't the same," the
old man explained.

   "Really?  A shame to hear that," Chris replied.

   "Oh, it happens.  You're probably not from around here, are you?  Don't
recall seeing you before."

   "No, my wife and I are taking a little trip.  Just got married, lookin'
for a place out in the country.  Sister, too, she's part of the package."
Just then the two girls joined Chris at the counter.

   "What a fine looking couple of ladies.  Which one's the bride and which
one's the sister?  Not that you could go wrong with either one, mind ya,"
the old man said with a wink.

   They all got a chuckle out of that and introduced themselves.  The old
man was named Roger, they found out.  "What kind of place you folks looking
for, then?" he asked.

   "Oh, someplace outside of town.  A few acres, house big enough for a few
kids, when that happens," Chris explained.

   "We looked at about a dozen places between Freeport and here," Tina told
him.  "Just haven't been able to find one that we can call home yet.

   "That so?  You ought to come have a look at my old farm.  I wouldn't
want to get your hopes up or anything like that, but it sounds somethin'
like what you might be lookin' for.  Big old house, too big for me these
days.  Always thought that I'd live out my years there and leave it to the
kids, turns out the kids don't want nothin' to do with it."

   "Really?  We could take a look.  We still have some daylight left and
it's too early to go back to the hotel," Carrie reasoned.  "Before we head
out there, though, why don't you tell us what you're asking?  We wouldn't
want to waste your time if we're not roughly on the same page as far as
what we're looking to spend."

   Roger gave Carrie a curious look, as if he was wondering why the sister
would be involved.

   "She's our financial advisor," explained Chris.

   Roger said a number that Carrie didn't even blink at.

   "We'll take a look, then."

   "Sounds like a plan, then.  Why don't you folks have a seat, have a
piece of pie, I'll wrap things up here and you can follow me.  I'm only
about twelve miles out."

   The three did what Roger suggested and each tried a slice of pie while
they waited for him.  They weren't all that excited about going to look at
another place, but a lead was a lead.  Roger seemed excited, he ran around
the diner shutting things down like he lost about twenty years off his age.

   They followed his Jeep Cherokee out of town and down a little lane
toward his house.  "Would it jinx us if I asked if anyone else has a good
feeling about this?" Chris wondered aloud.

   "Probably, you dork," Carrie said.  She didn't want to get her hopes up,
she liked Roger, but there was no telling what his place was like.  They
had already heard the phrase 'this is just what you're looking for' enough
times that day that it was starting to sound like foul language.

   Roger turned off the lane and down a dirt track that led them through a
grove of maple trees on either side.  They pulled around a bend and came to
a stop in front of an enormous stone house.  It was by far larger than
anything that they had looked at.  Beyond the house was an old barn and
several other out-buildings.  The price that Roger had quoted them didn't
seem to be adding up with what they were looking at.  Still, they hadn't
seen the inside yet.

   They got out of the vehicle as Roger did his.

   "Well, here she is!" he exclaimed.  "Years ago, this used to be a turnip
farm.  Still a lot of them around, but I never grew a turnip.  Had a garden
lots of summers, but I spend too much time at the diner to ever go wild
growin'.  Had two brothers that were masons that put the stone on the
house. Did it back in '78 I think it was, got all the stone out of the
creek that runs out back there."

   "It's beautiful, Roger.  Can we look inside?" Tina asked.

   "Sure, sure, let's go." Roger led them into the house and showed them
around.  The front door opened into a large living area dominated by a huge
fireplace.  The kitchen was dated but functional, same with the bathrooms.
There was one upstairs and one down, a total of five bedrooms.  "You'll
have to excuse the mess.  I'd fire the maid but I never had one."

   They continued on with the tour for some time.  Roger even lent Chris a
pair of boots and took him out to show him some of the other buildings and
the rest of the property.  They girls were left alone to look at whatever
they felt like inside.

   "This place is amazing, Carrie," Tina told her.  She was bubbling with
joy.

   "It sure is.  It makes me wonder why he's not asking more.  I mean, is
it built on an Indian burial ground or something?  About to fall into a
sink hole?  Got to be something."

   "You think so?  Doesn't seem like he's trying to hide anything.  I mean,
we just saw a pile of his dirty underwear in the bedroom."

   "Yeah, that's true," Carrie agreed with a giggle.

   The girls continued poking around the house until Roger and Chris
eventually came back in, shaking the snow off their feet.

   "Well, what do you folks think?"

   Tina and Carrie borrowed Chris for a moment and they had a short
discussion in the kitchen while Roger built a fire in the living room.  The
main source of heat was a coal furnace in the basement, but the fireplace
saved on coal and put out a good amount of warmth.

   "I think we should make an offer," advised Chris.

   "I do too, but I wonder why he's not asking more," Carrie said.

   "Why don't you ask him?" Tina asked.

   "All right, I will." Carrie went out to meet with Roger, the other two
following close behind.  Roger looked up at her from his kneeling position
by the fireplace.  "Roger, we have to admit, we love the place.  I've got
to ask, though, how come you're not asking for more?  It kind of makes me
think that there's something we don't know about here."

   Roger laughed.  "Well, young lady, what you see is what you get.  In
case you haven't noticed, we're not in the middle of what you would call a
real estate boom.  How many places have you looked at just around these
parts today?  Simmons isn't exactly a thriving metropolis, you know.  Some
of these places around here have been on the market for a long time.  I'm
an old man.  I want to sell out and move to Colorado with my daughter and
enjoy some time with my grandkids before I end up in the ground.  I don't
want to wait around here forever hopin' somebody like you folks come along.
I can tell you one thing, though, I ain't comin' down any lower."

   "Just out of curiosity," Chris began to ask, "How much are you asking
for the diner?"

   *****

   The ride back to the hotel was a hopeful one.  The girls chatted
incessantly about things that they could do to the house while Chris mainly
kept his mouth shut and stuck to driving.  He was thinking about the diner.
They would be able to afford it, though it would make things kind of tight.
They would have to use all of the money that they had saved in addition to
a healthy chunk of what his parents had left them.  He and Carrie had
always considered that part of their retirement savings, but this was the
opportunity of a lifetime.

   "I think we ought to make an offer on the diner, too."

   "You were serious about that?" asked Carrie.

   "Well, yeah.  I have to do something for work, it would be perfect. 
Tina and I could run the place, I don't want to go back to an office."

   "Boy, I don't know, Chris.  It would be kind of risky, especially if the
place doesn't make money," Carrie replied.

   "I think it would be awesome to have our own diner, but it's your money.
You're the ones that have been slaving away to save up for something like
this.  I know that if it's what Chris wants then I'll do all I can to make
it work for us," Tina added.

   "If we can convince Roger to show us some of his financials and it looks
like the place will stay afloat, what do you think, Carrie?"

   "I think it would be worth looking into.  Maybe it would be a good place
to go have breakfast tomorrow.  We have to set up a meeting with him and
his lawyer, anyway."

   "Yeah, I know that we've got a heck of a lot to think about, even just
about the house.  It kind of feels like we're rushing right into all of
this," Chris said, doing his best to navigate the treacherous roads.  If
they were like this all the time during the winter, he would have to make
sure to update his life insurance policy.

   "Rushing into this?" Carrie asked.  "We've been working on this for
years.  And I'm not just talking about the money part.  Do you know how
many places that I've looked at online?  How many phone calls that I've
made?  More than I can friggin' count is how many.  I don't feel like we're
rushing into anything.  I feel like we're finally getting something done
after running in place forever."

   Tina glanced at Carrie, a little alarmed at the ferocity of her comment.
"Like I said, you guys are the ones putting up the money, I don't think
that my vote should count as much as yours.  I have to say that Roger's
house is totally what I think we're looking for.  I mean what else could we
want?"

   "Thank you, Tina," Carrie told her.

   "God, calm down.  I'm just a little nervous, alright?  It's like all our
money.  I know you've worked your ass off on this, I'm not trying to say
that you haven't.  I love the house, too.  What I'm not loving is driving
around on these roads.  Can we keep the conversation kind of light until we
get back to the hotel?  The only ice that I'm used to comes in my tea,"
Chris said.

   In reality, the roads weren't all that bad, he was just being overly
paranoid.  His speech was enough to keep them all from arguing about
anything for the rest of the trip back to the hotel, however.  He sighed
with relief once safely in the parking lot.

   "Made it," he declared.  "I might have to consider trading in the old
Toyota for something with four wheel drive."

   "I'd consider trading it in for anything that doesn't smell like old
feet and french fries," Tina said.

   "What?  He picked out that air freshener himself.  I think it's named
after him," Carrie added.

   "You two are so hilarious," he said with a smile.  They didn't appear to
be thankful at all that he had just saved all of their lives, braving the
elements and bringing them back to their place of shelter.

   "Isn't it supposed to be spring time?" Tina asked, once they were back
in their room and had shed their coats.

   "It is, but I guess the weather doesn't really get more friendly 'til
April or so.  It would be nice to see what everything is like once there's
leaves on the trees and things, but we'll just have to wait," Carrie
replied.

   "Yeah, I don't think there's normally this much snow on the ground this
time of year.  I heard some guys talking in the diner about some big storm
that came through that no one was expecting," Chris added.  "Are you
worried that your hot body won't be able to take the cold?"

   Carrie snickered, Tina raised her eyebrows.  "Did you really just say
that?  I used to think that you were so smart."

   Chris wrapped an arm around Tina's waist.  "Mmm, yes my dear, I did just
say that.  You may jest, but I am clever enough to have the two most
beautiful women in all of Ohio staying in the motel room with me."

   "Well, that certainly sounds a little better," Tina conceded.

   "How do you know that this isn't just some elaborate plan for us to lure
you out of town and drain your bank account?" Carrie asked, playing along.

   "I saw a pig farm on the way here.  They eat bodies, right?  I saw it in
a movie once.  It would be a good place to get rid of him," Tina suggested.

   "Oh man.  Is there going to be any romance involved before I get fed to
the pigs?  'Cause really if there's not, I'd like to have a chance to run
away."

   "I 'spose we could work in a little romance first," Carrie said.

   "Oh good.  It's all worth it then.  Go ahead, have your way with me."

   Tina giggled her sexy, playful giggle and kissed her husband on the
underside of his neck.  They hadn't done anything sexually the first night
that they had stayed, both she and Chris were more than a little worn from
their wedding night.  She thought that one night off was enough, though. 
It was hard to ever get enough of Chris.

   Carrie felt the same way, she didn't think that she would ever get tired
of her brother.  She had dreamed so often of moving out to the country with
him, it was a bit hard to believe that it was really going to happen. 
Everything that she had dreamed about was coming true.  Tina hadn't always
been a part of her dreams, she was a new addition.  Having Chris marry a
younger, beautiful woman wasn't something that she fantasized about, but
now it would be difficult to picture life without her.  Things were
actually working out better than she could have ever hoped.  It was funny
how things happened sometimes, she reflected.

   She was starting to zone out in her happy daydream of life in Ohio when
she realized that Tina was saying something to her.  "What?  I wasn't
paying attention."

   Tina gave her a funny, pouting kind of look.  "I said take your clothes
off and get on the bed, I'm going to eat you like a Carrie sandwich," She
told the other girl slowly and clearly.  It wasn't at all what she had
actually said the first time, but it seemed to get her attention.

   "Oh my," Chris said with a chuckle.  God, he loved his girls.

   Carrie snapped back to reality after momentarily forgetting that they
were about to have sex.  She turned toward Tina and grinned.  "I agree.  Oh
my."

   As they all began to undress, Carrie realized how thrilling it was, the
anticipation, Tina's beauty, her brother's gorgeous body ready to please
her.  She hoped that sex never got so routine to where she didn't
appreciate those things.  She laid back on the bed and spread her legs for
Tina while Chris laid down beside her.  Two sets of lips converged on her
body at once, one set belonging to her brother on her left breast while
Tina's began nibbling upward on her inner thigh.  When the younger girl's
tongue began to swirl around the entrance to her vagina, she started to
squirm with pleasure, then even more when she added a couple of fingers. 
Whatever Tina was doing to her felt good, but it was also tickling the hell
out of her.  She was about to say something when her brother kept her in
silence with a deep kiss on the lips.

   "You might have to hold her down, Chris.  She's getting a little
squirrelly," Tina advised.

   Chris leaned heavily on his sister and held both of her wrists to the
bed above her head.  "Sounds kind of like you might be in trouble," he
said, breaking the kiss momentarily.

   Carrie thought that if she had to be in trouble, then that was the kind
to be in.  Chris had never really used his fingers on her much before, so
what Tina was doing was an entirely new sensation.  That and what she was
doing with her tongue.

   "Are you okay?" Chris asked in a whisper in her ear.  He didn't want her
to be uncomfortable.

   "Mmm...Hmm," came the muted response as she leaned her head in for
another hungry kiss.

   Eventually, Tina ended her licking and tickling onslaught, leaving
Carrie bucking her hips in the air, craving to be finished off.  She
switched places with Chris who quickly penetrated his sister, much to her
hissing delight.  He lifted her legs together and held them against his
chest and over his shoulder while he drove into her.  Tina tried to keep
her cries to a minimum by keeping her lips locked on Carrie's.  She knew
how loud Carrie could get and didn't see any reason to alert the entire
hotel as to what they were up to.  Besides, kissing Carrie was fun and she
liked to see the sexy expressions on her face while Chris was fucking her
up close.

   As Carrie's orgasm gripped her, she dug her nails into Tina's back and
pulled the girl tight to her chest.  Chris didn't last much longer than his
sister, and whimpered with pleasure as he released inside of her.  He knelt
on the bed and kissed her ankles as he recovered.

   "Fuck," Carrie uttered.

   Tina giggled as she slowly licked one of Carrie's nipples.

   Chris smiled down at his sister.  "We love you, babe."

   *****

   The three lay about the room in various states of recovery after what
turned out to be a fairly lengthy sex session.  "I don't know about you
guys, but I'm starving.  What do you want to do for dinner?" Chris asked.

   "I guess I could eat, I don't really care what we do," Tina said.

   "There's a bar right across that street that has a big 'RIBS' sign out
front.  Want to try that?  Then Chris won't have to worry about crashing
the rental car," Carrie suggested.

   They all thought that was as good as place as any.  After cleaning up
enough to make themselves presentable to the rest of the world, they threw
on their coats and made their way across the street.  Carrie stopped them
before they entered the bar.

   "Suddenly, I'm not in the mood for ribs," she declared.

   "Why not?" Tina asked.

   Carrie nodded at a smaller sign hanging below the one that said 'RIBS'.
This one said 'Karaoke Tonight'.  Chris followed her gaze.

   "Yeah baby!  We're havin' some ribs!" he shouted, holding the door open
for the girls.

   "Sure you don't just wanna go back to the room and order a pizza?"
Carrie wondered.

   "Oh come on.  You love it, you know you do.  Besides, Tina hasn't had a
chance to experience the sound."

   They wandered over to an empty table and took a seat.  The place wasn't
crowded, but there were a fair amount of people present.

   "What the heck are you two talking about?" Tina asked.

   "Chris has some sort of mental problem that makes him want to sing
Karaoke and dance around like a monkey," Carrie explained.  "You'd think
he'd be all tired out, but apparently that's not the case."

   They placed their order with the waitress that came around and Tina
resumed her questioning.  "So, you're a singer, then?"

   "I prefer the term 'artist'.  You probably noticed when you signed the
wedding papers that my middle name is Elvis."

   "Yeah, I was gonna ask about that..." Tina began.  Chris cut her off.

   "Even though I was just born, my parents could see the talent inside me.
I was in a band, you know.  We were pretty famous around town.  'The Stiff
Six', you probably heard of us."

   Tina was smiling now, she couldn't stop.  "The Stiff Six, huh?  Sounds
pretty small time.  Can't say as I ever heard of ya.  Were they any good,
Carrie?"

   Carrie looked down at the table in shame.  Chris answered for her.

   "Of course we were good, the best!  Carrie was part of it, she was the
drummer."

   "Oh my god.  So I'm sitting here with two of the founding members of The
Stiff Six.  I can't believe it.  I mean really, I can't," Tina confessed.

   "There were some issues of us actually getting gigs to play, I always
assumed it had something to do with our name," Chris continued on.

   "Oh please!  You wanted us to be called Bulging Package!"

   "No, I wanted to be called the Raging Johnsons, but it turned out there
was already a band with that name.  It was Elliot that wanted Bulging
Package."

   "Well, uh, with issues like that right to start with, I can see why you
guys didn't last.  What did you want to be called, Carrie?  You come up
with The Stiff Six?" Tina asked.

   Carrie once again looked down at the table.  "Yeah, that one was mine."

   Tina shook her head, taking a sip of Diet Coke.  "I just don't know what
to say.  That didn't happen like right before I got to know you, did it?  I
mean, I'm hoping you were in like elementary school."

   "High school, actually.  We only got together for one show, but we
killed it.  Like an all-star band or a 'save the world' concert," Chris
replied.

   "Yeah I bet.  Was there any videos taken of it, or anything?"

   "God, I hope not," Carrie answered.

   Chris began looking through a song book while Tina laughed.  Carrie
addressed the laughing girl across the table.

   "Laugh it up, funny girl, but you're married to it now.  When you see
him flopping around up on stage, you can tell people: Yeah, that's my
husband.  No, he's not drunk, he just acts like that.  No, no need to call
an ambulance, he'll be fine."

   Tina continued to laugh.

   "I'm ready," Chris announced, rising from the table clutching the song
book.  "The Stiff Six is ready to unzip and show itself to the world." He
walked off to speak with the fellow operating the machine.

   "You know," Tina began, "if you were going to name the band after his
penis, you should have been called like The Stiff Eight."

   "I didn't know that back then.  Besides, it wasn't his penis we were
named after, just a general abstract thought of a penis.  Plus, there were
six of us."

   "God, I wish I could have seen you guys," Tina lamented.

   "Good evening," Chris greeted the crowd through the microphone.

   "Well, you're about to see the legend grow right in front of your very
eyes."

   Chris may not have totally lived up to his middle namesake, but he did
give a heart-felt performance of Gimme Shelter by the Rolling Stones that
would have made Mick Jagger proud.  He pranced around like the Mick would
have, gyrating and dancing to the music.  Tina wasn't a big fan of the
Stones, but she clearly got a kick out of watching Chris on stage.  Carrie,
even with all of her warnings and protestations of embarrassment enjoyed it
most of all.  When they were younger, he used to sing her songs to try and
cheer her up whenever she was in a bad mood.  It worked most of the time.

   He returned to the table while the bar patrons applauded and the women
whistled.  He sat down and wiped the sweat from his brow with a napkin.

   "Being a rock star's hard work," he said.

   "Can I have your autograph?" Tina asked.

   "Sorry babe, fans are important, but I need these fingers for my air
guitar.  You understand, don't you?"

   "Oh god, can't we skip the part where you pretend you're famous?" Carrie
asked, still grinning.

   "Who's pretending?  You heard that crowd.  They can't get enough of The
Stiff Six.  As a matter of fact, I'd be tempted to say they want more."

   Their food arrived before Chris returned to the stage, not that he
really would have.  He was more of a one and done type show.  They ate
their ribs in a festive mood, happy to be out and enjoying themselves.  Now
that the show was over, Tina thought they could talk some business.

   "So, uh, are we going to make an offer on the house tomorrow?" she
asked.

   "I think we should," Chris replied.

   "I think we should, too.  We all in favor of the house, then?" Carrie
asked.  The other two nodded their heads in agreement.

   "How long would it take us to get it if Roger agrees to sell it to us?"
Tina wondered.

   "I don't know exactly, but not long.  We don't have to go through a bank
to get financing, so we're talking maybe a day or two.  We'd have to give
him time to move out and we'd need time to move in, but it would happen
pretty fast, I think," Carrie replied.

   "That fast?  A day or two, wow." Tina tried to wrap her mind around the
concept.

   "Pretty exciting," Chris added.

   "I assume that we'll talk to Roger and his lawyer tomorrow and sign some
sort of purchase agreement.  Then, one more trip out here with the money
and the place is ours."

   "He's expecting to see us tomorrow, right?" Chris asked.

   "I told him we would definitely get in touch with him one way or the
other.  I thought if we were serious that I would call him in the morning
and let him know that we're coming."

   "What about the diner?" Tina asked.

   Chris looked to his sister with hope in his eyes, licking sauce from the
tips of his fingers.  She already could tell how much he wanted it.

   "That's tough.  I mean I love you, Chris, but we're gonna have to look
into that a little more before we make an offer.  Restaurants are a risky
business.  I know it looks good from the outside and Roger seems like he
made a good living off the place, but I need more information.  I mean,
maybe it used to be super popular and now business isn't so good.  Maybe it
never did all that well and Roger just used it as a front to hide the
profits from the marijuana grove on the old turnip farm.  We just don't
know.  It's a little scary to me," Carrie replied.

   Chris looked disappointed, maybe even a little angry.  He didn't say
anything.  Tina continued to ask questions before Chris could say anything
to sour the mood.

   "But you're not saying no, right?  If we can look into it and decide it
makes money, I think it would be awesome.  I know it's kind of selfish of
me, but I kind of fell in love with the place.  I never worked anywhere but
a restaurant, anyways.  I know Chris and you went to college and could
probably get good paying jobs somewhere if you wanted.  But all I know how
to do is cook and take orders.  If I could work for you and Chris, it would
be great."

   "You'd be working with us, not for us.  It'd be part yours," Chris
pointed out.

   "I kind of know that, I guess, but it still would be your money that's
buying the place.  I know that we're married now, but I didn't have
anything to do with all the work you guys did before I came along.

   "I know it's scary for you, Carrie, and I really don't have anything to
lose.  You do.  I don't know why, but Chris would rather be wearing an
apron and covered in food slime than be dressed in a suit and tie in an
office.  Please, at least give it a serious look, okay?"

   Carrie sighed and relented, still not having been sold on the idea. 
"Okay.  I'll give it a serious look, I promise.  But I did go to college so
that I wouldn't have to work in a place like a diner, whether I own it or
not.  I wasn't dropped on my head as many times as Chris was when we were
little, I don't like to clean up puke and scrape people's half-eaten food
off of plates.  Not my thing.  And about the only thing I can cook is
toast."

   "Look at you, all proud that all of your cognitive functions were intact
after childhood.  Someone's still gonna have to keep the books, pay the
bills, do the taxes.  That part could be you.  It's not like it would be a
full-time position, either.  That's all the help we would need from you.  I
wouldn't ask you to wash dishes or clean the bathrooms or anything," Chris
said.

   "Yeah, I know.  I can tell how much you want it.  I just don't want us
to lose our asses.  You went through all the trouble of buttering me up
with The Stiff Six routine, so like I said, I'll take a serious look,
okay?"

   "You both have real nice asses," Chris added.

   Carrie smiled.  "You don't have to pile it on, I already said you'll get
your chance."

   *****

   Roger was happy to hear from Carrie in the morning and delighted to
learn that they were on their way over to have breakfast.  He had invited
his lawyer, a man named Harold over to dine with them.  The five were
seated at a back table, discussing the business at hand.  Chris thought
that it was odd at first to have a lawyer come to the restaurant and be on
the case so quickly, but it was apparent that Harold and Roger were
friends. It just happened that he ate breakfast at the diner every morning.
He didn't know if that was good or bad, but he seemed trustworthy enough,
as far as lawyers went.

   Harold was at least as old as Roger, perhaps even more so.  He eyed the
three of them from over top of his glasses.  "No financing, that will speed
the process considerably.  I suppose you just need to work out how long
you'll give Roger to move out." He shifted his gaze to his friend.  "How
long do you think you need to get your junk off the farm, Roger?"

   "I don't know for sure.  It's been near fifty years since I've moved
anyplace.  Been collectin' stuff all that time."

   "Well, you ain't got fifty more years to get rid of it.  How 'bout two
weeks?" Harold asked.

   Roger suddenly looked frightened.  "That seems a little quick."

   "Now's not the time for cold feet, you old fool.  You want to hold onto
the place 'til it's time to bury you, or do you want to see your grandkids?
These folks got the money, and I'm telling you that's enough time," Harold
insisted.

   "You gonna come over and help me pack?  Who's side are you on here,
anyway?  You make more money if it happens faster or what?" Roger asked.

   "No, but I'll make it quicker.  You will too, you old bat."

   Chris, Tina, and Carrie sat in silent amusement as the two old-timers
bantered back and forth.  They whispered a little amongst the three of
them, then Carrie spoke up.

   "Excuse me."

   "Yes, young lady?" Harold asked.

   "Two weeks is fine and all, but if Roger needs a little more than that,
then it's no problem, really.  We all have to give our notices at work and
get our stuff out here.  We'll need at least that much time," she told
them.

   "Fine, I don't think Roger's old bones were up to it, anyway.  He's been
slowin' down, that's for sure."

   "Goddammit, Harold!  I said I could do it.  And I know how old I am, you
don't have to remind me every time you open your mouth."

   "Good, two weeks it is.  I'll have Amy draw up the paperwork," Harold
said with a smile.  He gave Carrie a wink and looked as though he was about
to rise from the table.

   "There's something else before you take off, Mr.  uh..."

   "Just call me Harold, Miss."

   "Harold, then.  We're interested in this diner, too.  Same deal, we've
got the cash for it.  I'm just not totally convinced that it's right for
us. My brother and Tina here have a pretty good working knowledge of the
industry, but I want to see some numbers.  I need to be convinced that it's
just not a money pit."

   Harold sat back in his chair and took a long look at the three and then
looked back to his friend.  "That is interesting, isn't it, Roger?  What
you think about that?  You wouldn't have to worry about trying to run the
place from Colorado, or God forbid, shutting it down."

   They all could see Roger's wheels spinning.  "I don't know what to tell
you about it really.  It's not a gold mine, but it's a steady income.  Lot
of work keepin' it goin', but if you two know something about the business,
then you already know that," Roger replied, nodding to Chris and Tina.

   "I think the young lady wants to take a look at your books, Roger.  And
not just the ones you cook up to show the IRS," Harold told him.

   "I don't do any such thing.  I run a legitimate business here," Roger
spat at the old lawyer.  "You don't work for the government, do you?" he
asked Carrie.

   Carrie let out a nervous chuckle.  "No, I'm an accountant for a
department store.  Believe me, I wouldn't ask unless we were serious.  This
is a pretty big deal for us.  We've saved just about every penny for as
long as I can remember.  Chris works over four thousand hours a year
between his two jobs.  I'm not going to let us dive into something that I
think is gonna fail."

   "It's no joke what you folks are doin', that's for sure.  Give me a
minute, and I'll get you something to look at.  Don't run off, now." Roger
excused himself and headed off to a back room, presumably an office.

   "I give Roger a hard time, but we've known each other goin' on sixty
years now.  Been my brother-in-law for almost fifty.  Married my sister,"
Harold explained.

   "I'm sorry to hear that she passed away," Chris said.

   Harold shrugged.  "Yeah, she was a good old girl, but what can you do?
Happens to the best of us.  I think the best thing for Roger would be to
unload this place and spend some time with his kids before he gets too old
to enjoy it.  He put his heart and soul into the place, and it's been good
to him.  I just don't want to see him spend the rest of his life peddling
apple pie and worrying about what tomorrow's special's gonna be.  I hate to
keep beatin' a dead horse, but once you get to be our age, you just don't
know how much time you got left.  If you're hard workers and smart, both of
which you appear to be, I don't see any reason why this place wouldn't work
for you.  That's just my opinion, though.  You do what you think you
should."

   "Well, I value your opinion," Chris said.  "You must still be working,
though.  You said you'd have someone named Amy draw up the paperwork.  You
still keep an office?"

   "Hardly.  I do a little now and then, mostly for people like Roger that
I've dealt with forever.  Amy's my daughter, better lawyer than I ever was.
Got a lot more ambition than I ever had.  I've been more or less retired
for almost ten years now."

   "Congratulations.  I figure I've only got another forty or fifty years
before I retire," Chris replied.

   "Well, son, you're probably right, but you better not plan on working no
four thousand hours a year all that time.  You'll drop before you get to
enjoy it.  Workin' hard and being dedicated is one think, but if all you do
is work, then it kind of defeats the purpose, don't you think?"

   "I can't argue with that."

   Roger returned to the table with a rather antiquated looking ledger and
a bunch of manila folders.  He set them down in front of Carrie and went
back to his seat.

   "That's everything from the last few years.  Keep in mind that I run a
cash business here, and it's easy to miss recording a sale every now and
then," he said.  Harold scoffed and received a dirty look.  "Sometimes
those sales that get missed being recorded as sales end up as an expense
for food waste."

   "That's understandable," agreed Carrie, scanning the numbers.  "I
imagine that you get audited from time to time.  Not that I see anything
definitely wrong here, but if your entire accounting system is done by
hand, by yourself, and all your sales are cash, those are two pretty big
red flags."

   Harold stepped in, saving Roger from having to provide explanation.  "It
is true that the diner has fallen under the scrutiny of the Internal
Revenue Service on a couple of occasions.  Each time, it has been proven
that there has been no wrong doing on the part of Roger, nor has there ever
been any evidence to indicate any direct mishandling of business capital."

   "I see.  So you've never been arrested or charged with anything, is what
Harold is saying?" Carrie asked.

   "That's right.  Everything's legitimate," Roger agreed.

   "Hmm, yes, well, as you can see the system has worked well for Roger,"
Harold added.

   "Hmm," Carrie nodded.  The group sat in silence while she took the next
several minutes to go over the numbers.  After a bit, she put down the
ledger and began to scan the folders.  "So, I would take it that that if
the business were to be transferred to a new owner that these numbers could
perhaps a bit different."

   Harold nodded in agreement.  "That would be a reasonable assumption,
especially if you happened to be referring to yourself or someone with a
similarly strong background in accounting."

   "Would it also be reasonable to assume then that the general direction
that the numbers would shift would be in an increase in recorded sales? 
Possibly a decrease in recorded expenses?  An overall increase in recorded
profit before taxes, but not after?  Hypothetically speaking, of course."

   "Hypothetically, of course.  The sales don't change much, it just
depends how strict you are about writin' it down.  I'm a little forgetful
sometimes, but I do the best I can," Roger said.

   "Even with Roger's brief bouts of forgetfulness, I would venture a guess
that his accounting is not all that far off.  We are not hypothetically
speaking about massive amounts of cash."

   Chris thought that there were lots of things that they weren't
hypothetically speaking about.  His nut sack, for example.  He was growing
bored with this game, and wanted to know what some of the numbers actually
were.  He was remiss, however, to interrupt the weird negotiation his
sister was having.  Tina must have been feeling the same, she just looked
at him and shrugged her shoulders.

   "Okay," Carrie began after another long period of silence.  "We'll do
the diner as well."

   "You don't want to discuss this with your brother or sister-in-law?"
Harold asked.

   "We already have discussed it.  You may not have noticed, but they were
drooling thinking of getting their hands on this place.  I'm still scared
to death," she confessed.

   Harold raised an eyebrow.  "That's a pretty good reason for further
discussion."

   "Carrie, if you don't think it's a good idea, then we won't do it,"
Chris told her.  "If you're scared, then that's it.  We trust you."

   "I know Chris has his moments, but you're still the smartest person I
know, Carrie.  Whatever you say goes," Tina said.  She reached across the
table and patted her hand.

   "Why don't we give these folks a minute, Harold?  Let's go to the
counter and I'll get you a piece of pie," Roger suggested.

   Harold thought that was a good idea.  He walked toward the front of the
restaurant with his friend.  He spoke once they were out of earshot.  "I
think they're gonna go for it, Roger.  You notice the rings those girls are
wearing?"

   "No, what about them?"

   "Well, not to mention the fact that they're huge and probably worth a
fortune, they're nearly identical.  The one on the wife has got to be an
engagement ring, but why would the sister have one?" Harold asked.

   "I don't know and I don't care to ask.  I've met a lot of people in my
day, and I think they're good people.  I'm not just saying that because
they're about to make the rest of my life easy.  You got a bad read on
'em?"

   "Naw," Harold said, taking a seat on a stool at the counter.  "Just
curious as to what makes people tick sometimes.  They're just kids trying
to start something good.  You got to remember what that was like.  They're
willing to drop the money for the house without a second thought, once we
add in the cost of this place, though, it's making them sweat a little.  I
hope they buy the place, otherwise I wouldn't have anywhere to go to get my
free pie."

   "Pie's not free, Harold.  Come to think of it though, you haven't ever
paid for it, have you?  Probably could've retired years ago."

   "I've been saying that for almost as long as I've been stealin' your
pie."

   Meanwhile, back at the breakfast table, Carrie was trying to explain her
feelings to Chris and Tina.  "I'm sure that you guys got the gist of all
that silly hypothetical talk.  What it boils down to is that the business
is bringing in more money than what's written down here." Carrie slid one
of the folders across the table and pointed at the number on the bottom of
the paper that it was opened up to.  "That's the after tax profit from last
year."

   "Not huge, is it?" Chris asked.

   "No, but it's more than what you made at the office last year," Carrie
replied.

   "But there'd be two of us working full-time and you part-time.  Is that
enough money for us to live on?" Tina asked.

   "It would be more than that, actually.  This number represents the
income that Roger ended up with.  If we go back to being hypothetical, we
could pretend that this would be what Chris would make.  Then, if we go
back through the payroll, we could pick this girl and say that would
roughly be what you would make.  If we add those two together, that would
be my best guess as to what our total income would be," Carrie explained.
"It's about the same for the past few years."

   "That's quite a bit better, right?" Tina asked.

   "Yeah, not bad."

   "How much do you think Roger skims?  Not that I would want to do that,
but would it be a lot?" Chris asked.

   "I doubt it from what those two were hedging around.  There's only so
much book-cooking that Roger could do before it would become ridiculous.  I
would definitely recommend that we not fuck around like that.  Roger was
lucky."

   "So what is it that makes you so scared, then?" Tina wondered.

   Carrie sighed.  "It's a change that's going to affect the rest of all of
our lives.  If you guys aren't at least a little scared, then there's
something wrong with your heads.  I already said that I think we should go
for it.  Are you guys in or what?  As Harold keeps reminding us, those two
aren't getting any younger."

   *****

   After a bit more research, Jorge was able to figure out where Tina and
Chris lived.  He didn't expect them back right away, didn't know when they
were coming back either, but he took the opportunity to have a look around
the apartment.  He didn't find a stash of drugs, or cash, or anything else
to indicate that they had been living extravagantly.  It could mean that
they weren't involved, it could mean that they were just being careful.

   His instincts had told him that the girl had nothing to do with whatever
went down, but he was operating under a specific set of instructions now.
There was no more time to waste on this affair, his talents were soon going
to be needed elsewhere.  He was going to wait for a few days for Tina.  If
she came back, then he was going to find out for certain what she knew.  If
she didn't, then lucky her, she would be able to enjoy the bliss of
marriage for however long something like that lasted.  He wasn't going to
traipse across the country looking for her, it wasn't worth it.

   The home inspection yielded some interesting bits of information.  He
found that there were at least three people living in the apartment, and it
appeared as though they all stayed in the same bedroom.  At least one of
them was concerned enough with their safety to keep a loaded handgun under
the bed.  He disabled that, no need to have bullets flying, especially at
him.  Another thing that he found odd was the pile of what he assumed to be
wedding presents in the living area.  They must have been in one heck of a
hurry to get on their honeymoon, didn't have enough time to open any of
them.  From the state that they had left the place, though, he still
figured that there was an above average chance that they had planned on
returning.

   Jorge did not like the fact that there was now three people that he
would likely have to deal with here instead of two, nor did he like the
fact that he was running out of time to do what he had to do.  He didn't
care if they were innocent or not, his job was just to find out.  There was
no problem with the torturing or killing, it was just that the job grew
more difficult to perform cleanly and quickly when you starting adding more
and more subjects into the equation.  It was all that much more likely that
something could go wrong, there could be an escape, authorities could be
contacted, things along those lines.  Jorge wasn't scared, nor ready to
throw in the towel, it was just all the more variables that he would have
to deal with.  That's why he got paid the big bucks.

   It was nearing dark on the last day that Jorge had allotted for his
fact-finding mission that he observed the three exit a taxi in front of the
building.  He watched them lug their bags through the entrance and decided
to give them a few minutes to get into their apartment and relax before he
set to action.  Let them go into recovery mode from their trip, gain the
advantage of surprise and their lack of energy.

   He had a fresh batch of flowers in his hand, the third one of its kind,
and was about to leave his vehicle when the husband came out of the doors
and went into the parking lot.  He jumped in an old sedan and took off. 
That could possibly make things a little easier, he decided.  No need to
change his plan now, besides there wasn't time.

   He went inside and climbed the stairs, landing a series of heavy knocks
on the door.

   Carrie looked through the peephole to see an older, well-dressed fellow
holding an armful of roses.  Something about the guy seemed off.  He looked
more like an executive than a delivery boy.  The fear that someone might
still be looking for Tina suddenly sprang to the front of her mind.

   "A little late for flowers, isn't it?" she asked through the door.

   "Yes, it is.  We tried earlier, but there was no answer, so I thought I
would try again on my way home," came the reply.

   "You don't look like a delivery boy."

   "I'm not, I'm the owner of the shop, Madam.  It would just be a shame to
have these go to waste.  They are never the same after the first day."

   "Who are they for?  What does the card say?" Carrie asked.

   This bitch was seriously starting to get on his nerves.  He didn't want
to spend more time standing out in the hall than he absolutely had to.  She
was definitely spooked about something.

   "Uh, one moment." He didn't actually have a card, but he maneuvered the
flowers so that it looked as though he was reading one.  "They are for a
Tina.  It just says best of luck, and it is signed from the restaurant. 
This is where she lives, yes?"

   "I think you have the wrong apartment.  Goodnight." Carrie just wanted
to get rid of the guy.  There was something about him that was creeping her
out.

   Tina was sitting at the kitchen table and heard most of what was being
said.  She was puzzled at Carrie's reaction, but could read the concern on
her face.  Something was wrong.

   Jorge would have agreed with her.  Something was wrong.  He knew that he
had the very right apartment.  He also knew that the woman on the other
side of the door was suspicious as hell of him, why, he could not be
certain.  One thing that he was fairly certain of, no one acted that
paranoid without having something to hide.  He had to act fast, this would
be his last chance.  He dropped the flowers and threw his shoulder into the
door.

   "Get in the bedroom and call the police!" Carrie shouted.

   Tina immediately did what she was told, with the other woman right
behind her.  Carrie slammed the door to the bedroom and flipped several
locks into place.  She dove under the bed to retrieve her gun while Tina
dialed her cell phone.

   Jorge slammed into the door again and again.  Damn that paranoid woman
and the thousand locks on her door.  He should have probably done something
about them when he was inside the apartment, but he had taken it for
granted that he would somehow be able to charm his way past them.  That's
what he got for being cocky; a sore shoulder.  It took far too long to get
inside without having someone at least call the police.  He figured that he
had maybe four or five minutes at the most to get what he needed.  He went
straight to the bedroom, having heard Carrie's plan.  Of course there were
more fucking locks on that door.

   "You tell me about the cocaine and I leave you alone!" he shouted,
slamming his weight against the door.  "Tina, you a smart girl, you let me
know.  Your gun, that don't work no more, mine does.  You tell me and you
get to live.  You don't and I'll find out my way.  My way hurts, Tina.  You
and your husband and your paranoid friend with the scar on her face.  She
going to have a scar on her whole body." Again, he threw himself against
the door.  It gave a little.

   Carrie raised her weapon and pulled the trigger, aiming at the door. 
Nothing happened.  The rotten fucker was telling the truth, he had done
something to the gun.  "The police are on the way, motherfucker!" she
screamed.

   "I don't have your drugs!  I think Bobby got them, I don't know!  I
never saw the shit, didn't have anything to do with it!" Tina wailed.

   "I know you went to Ohio, not Miami.  You think you can hide in Ohio? 
I'll find you.  I'll find where you go!" Jorge shouted.  He was being
reduced to using intimidation rather than a truly hands-on approach.  He
was running out of time, and the fucking door was rugged.  He was just
hoping that by some chance that the girl would tell him something useful
before he was forced to retreat.

   "I don't know anything!" Tina sobbed.  She was still on the line with
the 911 operator.  Some robotic-voiced woman was telling her that she
should remain calm and that help was on the way.  Hard to stay calm when
one more hit and the door frame was about to come out of the wall.

   "He gets in here, I'm gonna attack him and get him out of the doorway.
You run!" Carrie told her.  All of her training had come down to this, a
fight for her life.

   There was a grunt, a slam, and the door came crashing down off its
hinges.  Tina screamed, Carrie steadied herself.  Then nothing.  Nothing
happened for a brief moment that seemed to be frozen in time, then Jorge
collapsed on top the fallen door, blood spraying in a macabre fountain from
his head and neck.  Chris stood in the doorway with half of a broken bottle
in his hand.  With a savagery of his own, he followed Jorge to the floor
and plunged the jagged end of the bottle into the man's throat, twisting
the broken shards through cartilage and flesh.  He stood and turned to see
the two girls staring at him in shock.

   "Tina, Carrie!  Oh my god!  Did he get to you?  Are you okay?" he asked
frantically.  They seemed to be stunned.

   "We're okay," Carrie managed to reply.

   Tina rushed over to him and threw her arms around him, sobbing with
terror and relief at the same time.

   *****

   "So, you were on your way back from the liquor store when you saw your
door broken down and heard the shouting," Detective Lopes repeated.

   "Right, we wanted to have a little drink to celebrate the purchase offer
that we had just signed but didn't really feel like going out.  We had just
got back from our flight from Ohio.  We don't normally do much drinking, so
we didn't have anything at the apartment.  I decided to go down to the
store around the corner and get a bottle of champagne.  I was only gone
maybe fifteen minutes.  The guy was almost into the bedroom, he just busted
the door down.  I still had the bottle in my hand, he never saw me coming,"
Chris told the detective.  It was the second time that he had been through
the story.  He was tired of being treated like a murder suspect.  He wanted
to be alone with his girls.

   "Almost took his head off," Lopes commented.  "Then you stabbed him in
the throat for good measure." The detective sighed.

   "You're god damn right I stabbed him in the throat!" Chris shouted,
slamming his hands down on the desk in front of him.  "What did you want me
to do?  Ask him to have a seat and wait for the cops to come?  Those were
my girls in there!  I'd kill the motherfucker again if he were here right
now!"

   "Hey, hey, relax.  I'm on your side here," Lopes tried to assure him,
holding his hands palm-out in front of him.  "You did what you had to do. I
would have taken the guy out, too, if I had been there in your shoes.  Do
you think I have any sympathy for a scumbag like that taking his last
breath?  I don't.  I'm not gonna lie, though.  I kind of wished that you
hadn't killed him."

   "Why not?"

   "Information.  This guy is involved in a filing cabinet's worth of open
cases.  He'd eventually get the needle, I'm pretty sure, but it would have
been nice to hear what he had to say."

   "You think he'd really confess to anything?" Chris asked.

   "Who knows?  Probably not.  Sometimes you get lucky, though."

   "Are we gonna have to worry constantly about another guy like this
coming after us, or what?"

   Detective Lopes smiled.  An unsettling look.  Chris wondered what it
took to make the man happy, it surely didn't seem natural.

   "I have a little information in that regard.  Not likely that you'll
have to worry much about that.  We know who your attacker's employer was.
They're soon going to have a little more on their plate to worry about than
a little of their product that went missing a few months ago.  Drug cartels
aren't the only ones that have operations going on.  That's about all I can
say about that for right now, but I'm sure that if you keep an eye on the
paper for the next couple of days that you'll find out all you need to
know. I'll stay in touch, and you all have my number if you need me."

   After a painfully long night at the police station, the three were able
to leave and check into a hotel during the early hours of the next morning.
All mood of celebration had long since vanished.  Chris was shaken to his
core.  He had just killed a man with a broken bottle.  Tina and Carrie had
just come within a hair's breadth of having their own lives cut short in
addition to having seen the man that they love kill someone.  It hadn't
been a night that they would soon forget.

   "You guys saved my life again," Tina stated flatly.

   "I didn't do anything.  Chris saved both of us," Carrie replied, hugging
the younger girl fiercely.

   "Carrie didn't let the guy in.  Tina, you called the cops.  They were
right behind me.  You saved yourselves," Chris told them both.

   "He broke the door down.  He had a gun.  He would have shot Carrie and
he would have got me," Tina stuttered between tears.

   Chris didn't know what to say to that.  He stepped over to the girls and
took them both into his arms.  Somehow, they had all lived through a
nightmare.

   They did little for the next couple of days than remain as close to each
other as they possibly could.  None of the three felt a burning desire to
return to the apartment, even after the police had told them that they
could, so they stayed in the hotel room.  They made plenty of love, slowly
and quietly, more for comfort than anything else.

   It was on the third day of their self-imposed exile from the rest of the
world that they had seen on the news what Detective Lopes had been
referring to during his last chat with Chris.  They also ordered a
newspaper from the front desk to confirm in print what they were seeing on
the television.

   There had been a massive, state-wide, drug bust that had taken place. 
It would seem as though it was years in the making and several dozen
arrests were carried out in the process including what appeared to be many
top-ranking members of the criminal enterprise.

   "That had to be what Lopes was talking about, right?" Chris asked the
girls.

   "Fuckin' A.  I'm calling him," Tina announced, bouncing up from the bed.
She grabbed her phone from the top of the dresser and punched his contact.
It was a brief conversation, but one that brought a smile to her face. 
"Those were the guys.  The one that they sent after me worked for them. 
Now they're all fucked!"

   She wasn't quite joyous, but she surely was relieved.  Carrie and Chris
were, too.  They weren't prepared to let their guards down by any stretch
of the imagination, that probably wasn't ever going to happen.  But, as
Detective Lopes had said, the people that were after information from Tina
surely had more pressing matters at hand than trying to track down some
girl like her.  It made the possibility of an assassin around every corner
seem much less likely.

   They never did return to the apartment again to stay, though they
certainly spent a lot of time there packing during the next week or so. 
They were able to leave their jobs on more or less amicable terms with
their former employers, especially when it was made known the drama that
the three of them had just went through.  Chris had no problem leaving his
job at the office, it took him all of about ten minutes to clean out his
cubicle and say goodbye to the friends he had there.  He thought of
Whitmore's and the people there more fondly, but he had no desire to stay
there, either.  He and Tina were moving on to learn a new menu.

   *****

   It was a long, lonely drive out to Simmons, Ohio.  Long because of the
distance.  Lonely because they were in three separate vehicles.  Tina and
Carrie were driving the cars, Chris was in charge of the large Ryder truck
that they had rented to move the bulk of their possessions.  They were able
to chat amongst themselves by way of their cell phones, but the trip still
proved to be tedious and boring.  It was a relief when their caravan pulled
into what was then, still Roger's driveway.

   Roger emerged from the house to greet them.  The weather was still quite
chilly, but the majority of the snow that had been on the ground the last
time that they were there had melted.  Chris hopped from the truck and
stretched his legs.

   "Nice to see you made it," Roger said.  "I was worried that you might
get cold feet."

   "Naw.  I think my ass might be asleep after driving for two days, but my
feet are fine," Chris assured him.

   "Good, good.  How about you ladies?" Roger asked, turning to the girls
who had walked over next to Chris after parking.

   "About the same, I guess," Tina said.

   "I'm sure not about to turn around and drive back right away," Carrie
agreed.

   "Good, good.  The old homestead's a better lookin' place with you two on
it, that's for sure.  Harold's inside, complaining about getting older, no
doubt.  All he's really good for these days.  Are we ready?" he asked them.

   "Sure," Chris replied, as they walked toward the front door.  "You get
all your stuff out okay?"

   "Yeah, yeah.  Knew some boys in town that could use a few bucks to help
me move the heavies.  Sent everythin' I wanted to keep off to Colorado. 
Had a heck of an auction.  Gave away a lot.  You don't know what you got
'til you start goin' through stuff you've been savin' for fifty years."

   "Hope you didn't get rid of anything you wanted to keep," Tina said.

   "Aw, hell.  Stuff is just stuff.  Most of what I did keep probably
wasn't worth keepin'.  Some of the furniture and things like that that's
left in the house we talked about is yours.  Unless you find a bag of gold
coins layin' around, then that's mine and you can mail it to Denver."

   "You lose a bag of gold coins?" Chris asked.

   "No, but if you find one, then I did."

   "Oh.  Heh.  You got the number for those guys that helped you with the
heavy stuff?  I wouldn't mind some help with some of the stuff in the
truck. The girls are nice, but they're more for lookin' at than real work."

   The words had no sooner left his mouth when a rather forceful smack was
delivered to the back of his head from his sister.  Tina shot him a
sinister look as Roger held the door open for them to enter.

   "There's a lot of other buildings for you to sleep in here other than
the house," she reminded him.

   "Lots of space," Roger agreed.  "Perfect for when you get into little
spats.  Before you do, though, Harold's got all the papers in the kitchen.
Let's get them signed and then you can fight all you want."

   The house seemed much larger than they remembered it, walking through to
the kitchen.  That was probably due to the absence of Roger's belongings.
Carrie voiced what they all were thinking.

   "The place really looks huge now that it's empty."

   "Yeah, kind of sad for me really, to see it like this," Roger said. 
"I'm sure you folks will fill it up nice, though.  Lots of room for little
ones, if you're interested in that sort of thing."

   Harold was sitting at the kitchen table, one of the pieces of furniture
that they were getting with the house.  It was a massive thing, made of
thick chunks of oak, and must have weighed close to a ton.  Wouldn't have
been any fun to move, in other words.  He lifted his head at their arrival
and looked as though he was about to speak.

   "Yes, I know, we all've gotten ten minutes older since I saw you last.
But they're here now and they're ready to sign.  So stop your complainin',"
Roger told him.

   Harold chuckled.  "I think your nerves are making you jumpy, Roger. 
Hope you didn't pack all your pills and send them on ahead, looks like you
could use one.  I was going to say that I'm glad to see everyone."

   Carrie and Harold had spoken a few times over the phone during the week
prior, ironing out whatever details there were to iron out.  The actual
paper work that they were doing during their current meeting didn't take
long.  Carrie produced a cashier's check, Roger and Chris signed a few
documents.  That was that.  Harold inspected the signatures and added a
notary stamp, which he initialed himself.

   "That's interesting," he began.  "I see your middle name is Elvis."

   "It's not all that interesting," Carrie told him.  "As a matter of fact,
I say we should forget that you ever mentioned it and never bring it up
again."

   "I was just going to say that the name used to be much more popular, you
don't see it around much these days.  Everything's in order.  You have your
copies, I'll file these with the county clerk in the morning and we'll
transfer the business license and help you get set up with the bank.  Other
than that, deal is done, everyone." Harold stood and went around the table
shaking everyone's hand.

   "Like I told ya on the phone, Manny can keep things runnin' down at the
diner while you settle in.  He's a good man, and he's be a good one to keep
around, even if you plan on makin' some changes.  I can't tell you how
pleased I've been to meet you folks," Roger told them.

   They returned his sentiment and wished him well.  Whereas they had more
papers to fill out in the morning and a huge van to unload, he was headed
to Colorado.  They made plans to meet Harold for breakfast and bid the
older gentleman a goodnight.  Then, they found themselves alone for the
first night in their new home.

   Tina and Carrie brought some stuff in from the cars while Chris built a
fire.  He didn't know if it was just the novelty of it, or what, but he
enjoyed the thought of being able to start a fire right in his own living
room.  They built a little camp in there with sleeping bags, not finding
the thought of hauling the bed upstairs and setting it up all that
appealing at the moment.  Tina made them some hot chocolate and they sipped
it while sitting in front of the fire.

   "Almost doesn't seem real, does it?" Chris asked.

   "Like we're on a vacation to some far-off cabin in the woods," Carrie
agreed.

   "Like a permanent vacation where we all have a ton of work to do for the
rest of our lives," Tina added.

   Chris grimaced.  "Don't bring me down, woman."

   "I'm not trying to bring you down.  This is a wonderful place and
there's no where else I'd rather be than here with you two."

   "That's better.  Me, too," Chris agreed.

   *****

   Despite the fact that they were having their dreams realized, it was a
tough adjustment from city life to their new ones in Ohio.  That first
spring was toughest on Chris.  With significant help from manager Manny, it
didn't take him all that long to get a handle on the diner.  What plagued
him was a lack of sleep and what sleep that he did get was filled with
images of Jorge.  Tina and Carrie did their best to comfort him, but there
was little they could do but keep him company while he lay restless and
awake.

   Things gradually began to get better for him as spring threatened to
turn to summer.  The diner turned it's first quarterly profit under his
ownership and he was able to get a reasonable amount of sleep at night. 
They celebrated the success of the business by buying themselves gifts. 
Chris got a dog.  An adopted, mixed-breed mongrel puppy from the pound that
he named Hank, after an old dog that he once knew.  Carrie got a lawn
tractor that she faithfully put to use at least once a week to keep the
grass at bay.  Tina's present was more expensive and complicated than the
other two; she got the pony that she had always wanted.

   They actually ended up with two ponies.  The fellow that sold them the
first one convinced them that a pony would not do well alone.  They needed
another animal to keep them company, and what would be better than another
pony?

   "Aren't you the one supposed to keep it company?" Chris had asked Tina.

   "I will, but I can't all the time," Tina had pointed out.  "We can't
raise a lonely pony."

   "I want a pony, too," Carrie had pouted.

   Chris had relented, feeling as though the girls had once again worked
together to get what they wanted out of him, though he did threaten to put
pony burgers on the menu if they proved to be too difficult to take care
of.

   Things had taken an air of normalcy for them in Simmons until one sunny
Sunday morning.  The diner was only open for half a day on Sundays, and
Manny ran it for them.  Chris and Carrie were inspecting the garden while
Tina was taking some feed to the ponies.  They didn't need much while there
was grazing to be done, but she liked to give them a little treat every
day. Carrie spotted her, bent over by the corner of the barn.

   "What's she doing?" Chris had asked.

   "I think she's throwing up."

   They trotted over to see what was wrong, asking her if she was all
right.

   "I don't know what it is.  The last couple of days when I've gotten up I
feel like my guts are rotten.  I'll be okay," she assured them.

   "Why don't we take you inside so you can lay down?  You might have the
flu or something," Chris suggested.

   "I might know what it could be," Carrie began as they walked back toward
the house.  "Have you taken a pregnancy test lately?"

   Realization struck Tina and she whipped her head around to face Carrie.
"No.  My last period...I don't know.  Oh my god, I might be pregnant!"

   A quick trip to the drug store and a subsequent doctor's visit proved
Carrie's intuition to be correct.  They were going to have a baby, the last
piece of the puzzle to complete their new lives.  Or the first of the last
pieces, they hadn't decided yet.  What they did decide was that Simmons was
a good place to start their family, and whatever convoluted route it had
taken the three of them to end up there together, it was worth it.


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