Life in a Small New Hampshire Town

Life in a Small New Hampshire Town. Part 6

Love intensifies for some, begins for others.

As with the other chapters, this can be read as a stand-alone story, but reading the earlier chapters will give you a fuller understanding of the characters and their motivations.

Like its predecessors, I have attempted to develop a plot that grows with and integrates new and existing characters into the fabric of daily life in Appleton, NH: their joys, triumphs and accomplishments, as well as the trials and tribulations we all experience in today's complicated world. As in real life, there is drama, humor, romance, a bit of philosophy and, this being Literotica, sex.

If you are willing to let the story build, you'll be rewarded with romance, sex, drama, and, what I hope is an engaging storyline, with compelling characters. Everything portrayed in this story is a product of my imagination.

My gratitude and thanks to both my anonymous friend and Pepere for their editing skills and perceptive suggestions. This story was conceived and written by a real live human. No AI involved. Therefore, any and all errors are mine and mine alone.

Saturday, March 23, 2019

Erik

As usual on a busy Saturday night at The Beat, we were at or near capacity, the crowd was enjoying themselves, and the servers and bartenders were barely keeping ahead of demand. The upside for them was that tips were better on busy nights, so no one was complaining.

We feature local bands on Saturday nights and The Starlight Mountain Band had finished their first set and had just started their break. They were one of the first bands that we had booked when we opened and had become our de facto house band.

I filled in wherever I was needed since I was not DJ-ing tonight. I was relaxing at the bar at the moment, sipping a cup of coffee while taking a break from the evening's hustle, when I saw an old friend approach. Michael was the one who got me into therapy when I first arrived in the area. He also was ex-military and understood the issues I was dealing with after losing my leg to an IED.

"Nice to see you, Michael. What brings you to Appleton?"

"I heard about your new venture and thought that I'd come and see what you're doing. This place is impressive, just what the area needed."

"Thanks. How's your family? How're the newlyweds?"

"They're all fine, surviving the winter, but Jenny's the reason I'm here. She presented me with a dilemma. Is there a more private place where we can talk?"

"The restaurant next door should be pretty empty at this time of night. Let's go." I told Chris where I was headed in case anyone needed me. We sat in a booth, I waved the server off, and asked, "What's going on?"

"Jenny's friend, Jessie, confided in her that her boyfriend, who she's living with, has become abusive since she had the baby two months ago. Jenny brought her over to the house last night. Jessie had a black eye and her cheek was bruised. She wants out, but doesn't know what to do and is dependent on the creep since she doesn't have a car and can't work now that she has the baby. Her parents kicked her out when she got pregnant."

"Neither Jenny nor Mary and I have space or resources to take her in. I was hoping you could speak to Dr. Kate and see what assistance might be available for Jessie. You have a more recent relationship with her than I do.

"I'll call her Monday morning. Let me see what I can find out."

"Thanks, Erik."

Shiloh was already asleep when I got home. I took a quick shower and slipped into the bed as quietly as I could, quickly falling asleep.

Sunday, March 24

Erik

Shiloh woke up before me, made the coffee, and brought two cups back to bed. I awoke as she climbed in and snuggled up to me. We enjoyed the coffee, put the cups down, and embraced each other. She reached down and started stroking me until we heard Sierra calling on the baby monitor. So much for Sunday morning sex.

Shiloh got Sierra's breakfast ready while I dressed. We ate, cleaned up, then sat in the living room while Sierra played. Although she was the first child of that age that I interacted with on a direct basis, I was quickly learning what parenting was all about. She was approaching her third birthday on May 11

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, so she was in a very active phase, carrying on short conversations, engaging in activities with Shiloh and me, and playing with her toys by herself as she was doing now. Unbeknownst to Shiloh, I had taken it upon myself to read up on child psychology and development and Sierra seemed to be hitting all the milestones at the right time. I believed that I should be engaged in her life as well as with Shiloh. No, I wasn't that kind of 'engaged' with Shiloh. Yet.

My relationship with her quickly developed and, at least from my perspective, was very good. We had both experienced trauma and had moved on past it. As many kids naturally do, Sierra accepted me into her life, probably because her mother had. I more and more that felt I was part of their family. I never thought that I'd find myself in this position, especially when I first returned from the war, but here I was. I liked Shiloh a lot, but the word love had not yet entered into our conversations. I occasionally contemplated where we might end up.

I brought up my conversation with Michael from last night while Sierra was absorbed playing with her toys.

"What are you planning to do?'

"Call Dr. Kate in the morning to see if I can meet with her, get some referrals that I can pass along to Jessie, via Michael."

"Do you want me to come along?"

"Well, you've been with her more recently than I have, so yeah, that would be good. Your perspective may be helpful to have."

"Try to get a late afternoon appointment so that Maggie will be home from school and can watch Sierra."

Monday, March 25

Erik

I called Dr. Kate's office. The only two appointments she had open this week were at 11:00 today and 11:00 Friday. I took today's appointment. I asked Chris if she could babysit Sierra while we visited Dr. Kate, since it was her day off. Chris readily agreed as she's a genuinely nice person and Sierra already knew her from when she lived at Shiloh's. I called Shiloh and gave her the heads up. I also called Michael.

"Thanks, Erik, I'll pass that along to Jenny."

My phone rang, which I answered using Bluetooth, while we were driving to town.

"Erik, Michael. I just spoke to Jenny. She hasn't been able to get through to Jessie's phone since she saw her on Saturday. It goes directly to voicemail."

"We're on our way to Dr. Kate's right now. We may need Sheriff Farnsworth to do a wellness check. I'll let you know what happens."

Chris was waiting for us when we dropped Sierra and some of her toys and books off at The Beat. Shiloh voiced the opinion that, "Michael's call sounded ominous, Erik, while we were walking across the street to Dr. Kate's."

"Let's see what Dr. Kate has to say."

***

"Shiloh, Erik, how nice to see you both again. Come sit with me."

I recapped my two conversations with Michael.

"Based on what you've just described, Sheriff Farnsworth should definitely be notified. Let me call him.

"Elmer, Kate O'Sullivan here." She disclosed the reason for her call after pleasantries were shared, and handed me the phone. "He wants to talk with you."

I explained what I knew.

"He agrees a wellness check is in order. He wants me to get some more information from Michael and will meet us across the street in a half hour."

"The highest priority if she truly is in an abusive relationship, is to get her and the baby into a safe environment. Sheriff Farnsworth can get her admitted to the hospital in Greensboro for a couple of days, but that's probably it. The nearest shelter for battered women unfortunately is down in Merrimack County. Please tell Jessie that I'd be happy to take her on as a patient, pro bono, if she can find a safe living situation near here."

Shiloh looked at me, then turned towards Dr. Kate.

"She can have Chris' old room if she needs a place to stay. Between my farm, Olivia's, and The Beat, we can probably find her employment in the future if she wants."

"Do you know what you may be getting yourself into, Shiloh?"

"Probably not, but we'll work it out, especially with your guidance."

"Okay, we can revisit that offer if the need arises. How are you two getting on."

"I don't think that my life could be much better."

"Shiloh's the best thing to ever happen to me.' I quickly backtracked, "Besides your turning my life around, of course."

Dr. Kate laughed at my gaffe, but Shiloh just smiled.

"I occasionally have lunch at Olivia's. My husband and I have danced at The Beat several times. You folks have done a wonderful job over there. It has rejuvenated the heart of downtown Appleton. It's so nice to see."

***

Shiloh went to collect Sierra and thank Chris while I called Michael to get the information the Sheriff requested.

Shiloh

"Is everything all right, Shiloh?"

"Yes. Erik is trying to help a friend of a friend, and wanted guidance from Dr. Kate. How are you doing, Chris?"

"Life is good. I love bartending. Business seems to be booming. Tom and I are getting along really well. The sex is great. Amy seems to have brushed off her run-in with the Russells. Thank God that they're both in jail. She's got a hot date with Zack Bradford tomorrow. Do you know him?"

"Not well. Everyone's still talking about you taking the Russells out. I haven't spoken with anyone who's unhappy with the outcome."

Chris blushed and changed the subject.

"I can't believe how much Sierra has changed since I first met her. You can actually carry on a conversation with her, albeit a quite limited one. It seems like she has memorized those books that you brought."

Sierra piped up, "Can we go home now, Mommy? I'm hungry."

"How about if we go eat with Aunt Olivia?"

"Goody. Bye, bye, Chris."

We left The Beat just as the Sheriff arrived with two Deputies.

Erik

I gave Sheriff Farnsworth the information that he had requested that I got from Michael. They left for Big Falls and I joined Shiloh and Sierra for lunch.

***

2:45 PM

Erik

Shiloh was in her office, preparing for the upcoming growing season. She already had several plant varieties started in her greenhouses although we still had some patchy snow cover left. I was watching Sierra since it was my day off. She moved on to her alphabet puzzle after we had read four books. She had mastered most of the letters and could fit about half in their proper places. She moved on to the dump truck and front-end loader, gifts of Derrick and Olivia, two of her current favorite toys.

A knock on the door announced the Sheriff's arrival.

"Come in. I assume that this is about Jessie. Care for some coffee or tea?"

"Thanks, only if you 're having some, then whatever you make is fine with me. It's still cold out there, especially this late in March."

Shiloh had heard his arrival and our conversation. She put a pot of coffee on and sat down next to her daughter.

"My phone died, so I couldn't call first. Sorry for just dropping in like this. I had to resort to old fashioned detecting to find you."

"Old fashioned detecting?"

"I stopped by the Appleton Country Store. Samantha knows everything that's going on in town, probably more than I. She told me that Shiloh bought the old Benoit farm and that you would probably be here. Storekeepers, the local priest or minister, and the local bartender were primary sources for law enforcement before the age of the internet. I'm old enough to remember those days."

"That makes sense to me."

I heard the coffee pot gurgling, signifying that it was ready, so I got up and served it. Sheriff Farnsworth got to the point of his visit.

"Jessie was living with Gordon Soutiere. She let us in. He was drunk. She did have a black eye, and bruises on her face. We had EMS standing by and they evaluated her and took her and her baby, Abigail, to the Greensboro Hospital. Jessie had more bruises on her arms, but no broken bones or other visual damage. The abuse evidently was directed only at Jessie. Abigail was evaluated and appeared not to have been touched. Thank God that she wasn't harmed."

"Mr. Soutiere was laid off when the mill closed in January. He couldn't find work with so many others laid off at the same time. He used most of his unemployment compensation to buy beer. He's on the verge of eviction. He had no prior run-ins with law enforcement. While his abuse of Jessie is despicable and criminal, I believe that his circumstances make him a reasonable candidate for court diversion. No priors, gainfully employed until the layoffs, just another person caught up in circumstances beyond his control who turned to alcohol for comfort."

"I've worked with DA Peterson on similar situations in the past. She's receptive to the idea. Better to have a productive community member than someone come out of jail with huge chip of his shoulder and mad at the world. My brother owns a construction firm downstate. I've sent him three other diversion cases and they've all worked out. While Jessie has a restraining order against Gordon Soutiere, getting him a paycheck and moving him a few hours away will arguably be the best outcome for everyone."

"That brings me to the real reason I'm here. The hospital is ready to discharge Jessie and Abigail tomorrow morning. With Gordon being evicted, Jessie faces a dire future without a job or car, especially after her parents kicked her out. There is not a good social services support network in New Hampshire, especially up in this corner of the state. Dr. Kate told me of your generous offer to let Jessie stay here. I'm not sure that you are aware of the trauma that abuse victims suffer if you haven't been down that road yourself. Jessie may have a difficult time adjusting. I hate to even bring this up, Erik, but just having a male presence in the house may make her uncomfortable."

Shiloh

I looked at Erik but couldn't read his expression. Only Erik, Chris, and Dr. Kate knew about my past. Correct that: they were the only ones in New Hampshire who knew. I kept to myself when I got here. I did everything in my power to avoid any interactions with men. My reputation was a man hating lesbian bitch.

Erik has been living here for five months. We both triumphed over trauma in our past. He is the kindest, most understanding person who I've ever known. I know that he likes me and Sierra. He may even love me at this point. I know that I love him and how much he's helped me.

Sierra was getting tired, so I took her in for her nap. I brought the baby monitor out from our bedroom. She seemed to settle right down. I sat on the couch next to Erik, looked directly at the Sheriff and started to tell him my story.

"Only three people know what I'm about to tell you, Sheriff. I'd like it to remain at four.

He nodded his head. Erik put his arm around me, and I started. "I was a rape victim when I was at college in Montana. It was violent. He slashed me in an almost continuous line from this breast to that ankle as part of it. The physical cuts fortunately weren't deep and didn't hit any organs. Dr. Kate, and now Erik, helped me get past my trauma. Sierra is the other result of that rape."

"I'm so sorry, Shiloh. I obviously had no idea. Jessie staying here is probably not a good idea."

Erik stood up and pulled up his pants leg enough so that the Sheriff could see his prosthesis.

"War injury. Not many people know about this either."

Sheriff Farnsworth nodded again.

"Erik showing me his injuries was the beginning of my real recovery. I think that it was then when I realized that I wasn't the 'damaged goods' that I believed I was, that others may have worse trauma, and were able to overcome it. The way Derrick treated Olivia and Chris, and how Erik treated me made me realize that there actually are good men in this world.

"I think that we can give Jessie the support she needs working as a team with Dr. Kate. I believe that Erik and I can be used as an example of what her potential could be, and that there is a future for her."

"You've convinced me. I thought that you folks did a great job with The Beat and Olivia's. I now realize that there is much more to admire about you. Why don't you go to the hospital tomorrow morning and meet with Kaitlyn Jankowski. She's the social worker there. She's a hard worker doing a good job with very limited resources. I explained Dr. Kate's involvement and her endorsement of you two while talking with Kaitlyn. Both Dr. Kate and Kaitlyn are in favor of Jessie and Abigail staying here. There is one little technicality though. I need to file a report and document where Jessie would be staying. Is it okay to take a picture of the room she'll use?"

Erik

Shiloh made us some tea and we settled on the couch when the photo was taken and the Sheriff had left. I pulled her into a hug and kissed her.

"Telling the Sheriff about your past was very brave."

"I don't want to be the poster child as the rape survivor, but I've become very comfortable with the Shiloh who has emerged in the last year."

"I only glimpsed the 'old' Shiloh, but I do like the current version. I like her a lot. Maybe more than a lot."

"What are you saying, Erik?"

"I ..... have fallen in love with you."

"Oh, Erik! I feel the same way about you!"

I pulled her tightly against me. We engaged in a very long, very passionate kiss. Lots of tongues dancing with each other. Her hand moved down and found the bulge forming in my pants when we broke for air. A few strokes and I was definitely hard when she said, "Sierra's still asleep, but probably won't be for much longer. Maybe we should cool it."

Right on cue, we heard, "Mommy."

"How did she do that?"

"I don't know, but I'll go get her. I'm sorry to leave you in that state."

"Give me a minute and it'll settle down. You know that it's Tuesday, my night off, that Sierra goes to bed before us, and that I plan to ravish you tonight?"

Shiloh looked over her shoulder with a big smile as she was walking away, and asked, "Is that a promise?"

"It's a 'money in the bank' promise."

***

5:30

Elmer Farnsworth

It had been a long day and, since I had been patrolling in Appleton late in the afternoon, I found that my car seemed to steer itself directly into my own driveway. I parked and headed into the mudroom. I was taking off my boots when my wife, Laura, came out of the living room.

"You're early. Is everything alright?"

"I was close by and decided to knock off early today. Something smells wonderful. What's cooking?"

"Pot roast. I wasn't expecting you until your normal 7:00ish, so that's when it should be ready."

"Not a problem. I'm going to take a shower."

I finished, put a robe on, and went to find Laura.

"You're rather informal for dinner, El."

"Dinner's not for over an hour." I took hold of her hand and steered her toward the bedroom. I peeled my robe off and said, "You're way overdressed."

Laura had jeans, a turtleneck, and a sweater on, practical garb for this time of year in New Hampshire. I removed her sweater and cupped her left breast with my right hand and pulled her ass towards me with my left. I could feel her nipple harden, so I started nibbling on her right breast through her turtleneck and bra.