After the game of Truth or Dare, the four young people just sat talking, getting to know each other before drifting off to their beds. Saturday morning saw Liam and Sandy leave the kids in their parents' care for the day while Brent rode off to hang with his local buddies. Emily had a double shift at the hotel, so her day was completely shot. When she got home Saturday night, she found Graham and Lydia having a party with their grandchildren, so she went to bed early. The next morning she was up early around daybreak and found Brent sipping coffee at the kitchen table wearing a UMKC t-shirt and shorts. "Morning, Emily."
"Morning. Spare a cup?"
"Sure. It's gonna be a nice day."
"Yeah. You have a good time yesterday?"
"Yup, but it's not the same. Guess a couple of weeks in the city have changed me."
"That's what I thought the first time I went home. It's normal."
"Darn, I was hoping I wasn't. . .normal." She poured herself a cup and sat across from him as he fiddled with his iPhone. "Not much going on in the world this morning. Hey I wanted to do some drawings this morning when the sun comes up. Interested?"
"In what?"
"Posing for me. No, this isn't a come on: the blow job the other night was nice, but you're older than me, we hardly know each other, and I'm goin' back to KC after lunch. Got an assignment due Tuesday."
"Since you seem remarkably mature for you age, okay."
"You'll be naked."
"No problem, but no pictures online of any kind. A creep in Knoxville put my drunk, naked body on the Internet a few years ago, and he's singing a bit higher right now." She shivered at the memory: it was a sorority party and one guy caught her and several of her sisters passed out naked in the back yard. Even since, she was careful how much she drank.
"Message received. I can remember what you look like. How about we go behind the shed? That way nobody'll see us when they wake up."
"Fine." She went behind the shop, remembering the magic machine inside, and waited for him. He was a minute behind her, still wearing just his bedclothes and carrying an artist's sketch pad. "What don't you sit by that little tree? Prop yourself on your right arm, your left leg raised. Oh shit, it's too damn early, would you take your clothes off? Nice, real nice. Now look off at the horizon, kind of a pensive look. Fine, damn I'm gonna get an A on this. Too bad your hair's a mess."
"Sorry, I don't have a comb with me. Do you?'
"Nope, just have to be natural." The light was starting to turn the sky a series of lighter shades of blue and a red ball started to emerge over the Eastern horizon. "Great, I'm gettin' it. I'll leave out a few freckles if you don't mind. Great. Glad your nipples are hard. Damn, they're cute." He said the last bit under his breath, hoping she wouldn't hear him, but she did and smiled a little. His pencil moved frantically over the page as the wildlife started their morning boot up ritual and the sun rose. The growing light made her body glow, and for a moment she wished he had brought a camera.
They were undisturbed for an hour before the back door slammed and she scrambled to put her clothes back on. He closed his pad and put his finger to his lips before scurrying around the far side of the building back toward the house.
"What the hell are you doing out here?" Lydia said, inquiring her best matronly voice.
"Sketching, Momma." His voice was a bit sheepish: a kid who knew he'd been busted.
"Sketching what?"
There was a pause of several moments; she imagined he was looking down at his feet or off in the distance to avoid answering her. Why he didn't have a line made up, she couldn't understand. "Emily. She was posin' for me."
"Show." There was a pause. "Okay, I know you weren't doin' anything else, but don't show this to your Dad. You come on in the house and Emily can slip in when she wants. He's watching cartoons with the kids right now, so you're all right. I trust you don't have a crush on her."
"No, Momma. Got some prospects back in KC."
"Fine, I believe ya and I trust her." The last bit was louder than the rest; Lydia knew Emily was lurking out of sight. A moment or two later, Emily heard the back door slam again, and assumed they were in the house. From the sound of Lydia's voice, it seemed like Brent could never lie to her, which made her giggle to herself a little. After a pause, she came back inside and spent the morning surfing on her iPad.
The week was as full as the previous one, and Graham was gone the next weekend. When he came back, he had news: "Tricia's coming down next weekend for some debate and a little fun. She gets along pretty well with Lydia, but I may need you to run a little interference for me ."
"No, don't have to. She's going to KC to visit Brent and check in on Sherry's family."
"Oh yeah, Sherry just moved to Overland Park. Well, that'll be nice for them. Trish is fine with you being around, so I can let you be part of the fun."
"What kind of fun?"
Graham sat at the kitchen table after pouring a cup of coffee. "She likes clothespins, lots of clothespins, the cat and the riding crop. Not into stuff like the nail boards or anything sharp. A little juice is good for her, so she'll love the shocking tit suckers."
"What does she do for a living?" she said, pouring herself a cup.