The Reunion

by

Pioneer Woman

Kelli Preston picked up the scrapbook and dusted it off. She used to look through these books every day. Then it went down to once a week, then once a month. Now, she had put them away on a shelf and let the dust gather on them. High school. So very long ago, yet the memories were still so crystal clear.

She took the book to her big green sofa and opened it. Flipping through the pages of newspaper clippings and old photos, she turned to the page that she knew would make her heart skip a beat. There he was staring back at her with those blue-green eyes that sparkled with mischief. The soft locks of chestnut hair curling down over his forehead. That sweet, angelic smile that hinted of a dimple. The perfect bow on the soft lips. The slightest shading of whiskers along his square jaw line and the cleft of his chin.

Dustin Clark. The Wonder from Down Under they had called him. She untucked the picture from the tabs holding it in place and turned it over. Beautiful handwriting. She didn’t need to read it. She remembered it by heart:

She closed her eyes and remembered.

*

Mrs. Eitel, the drama teacher, was at her desk talking with a boy Kelli didn’t recognize. He turned around, and she thought he was the cutest guy she’d ever seen. Kelli was good at playing it cool though. There was a reason she was in drama – she was a good actress.

“Hi,” she smiled as he looked at her.

“G’day,” he greeted in a perfect Australian accent.

“Kelli,” Mrs. Eitel introduced them. “This is Dustin Clark. His family just moved here from Australia.”

“And I just thought he was putting on a good accent,” Kelli teased, and he laughed.

“I need to learn how to talk like you Yanks,” he grinned. “I’ll never make the lead in a play talking like this.”

“Well,” Kelli sounded as Aussie as he did, “if I can put on an Aussie accent, I’m sure you can sound like us Yanks.”

“You’re good,” he complimented her, then walked over, and sat at a desk in the front. “Maybe you can coach me.”

“Coach you, huh?” She sat at the desk next to him, while other students started trailing in. “Does that involve me saying ‘Go, Dustin, go!’?”

He blushed and shook his head. “I’m in trouble now, I can already see that.”

*

When she sat down with her lunch, he wasn’t far behind. “May I join you?”

“Sure,” she smiled, and he sat across from her. She saw several of the cheerleaders pointing and ogling at him and couldn’t keep from chuckling to herself.

“What’s the joke?”

“They can’t figure out why you’re sitting with me,” she confessed.

“Who are they?”

“Those girls over there,” she informed him. “Don’t look! They’re all cheerleaders – the ones that all the guys chase all the time. You’ve totally stumped them.”

“Is there some reason I shouldn’t sit with you?” He started eating. “You dating some big bloke who's going to kill me?”

“No,” Kelli admitted. “I just don’t have my name and number written on all the bathroom walls.”

“Well, then,” he smiled, “I won’t write it there, either.”

“So,” she changed the subject. “Why did your family move here?”

“My dad’s job,” he explained. “It’s just a temporary thing. A couple of years, then he goes back. He’s an engineer, and his company needs him here for some big project.”

“So you get drug half way round the world for it,” she observed. “That must be tough.”

“It’s getting easier,” he winked. “At least I have a friend now.”

*

Dustin Clark zipped his suit bag closed and sat down on the bed next to it. He ran a big hand through his thick chestnut hair and closed his eyes. She might not even be there. Worse yet, she might be there with her husband.

He got up and crossed the room to his closet. He opened it and reached up to the shelf for a box. Pulling it down, he shuffled through the envelopes until he found the photo he was looking for. There she was, smiling back at him with those perfect lush lips. Her eyes were such a deep brown they sometimes looked black. Her long brown silky hair fell down over her shoulders. He had always wanted to run his fingers through that hair, but he’d never gotten the chance. Her skin had a deep tan and he could recall vividly just how soft that skin felt to his touch. He put the picture to his nose. It still smelled like her, even after all these years. He turned it over:

He closed his eyes and remembered.

*

They were sitting there eating lunch in the school cafeteria, and he was trying to come up with the right words to ask her out. He already felt like she was his friend, and he’d only met her that morning.

“So,” he asked. “Seriously, is there some bloke that’s going to get mad at me for sitting with his girl?”

“No,” she smiled. “My parents won’t let me date, so you’re safe.”

“Oh,” he felt his heart sink. “That’s kind of rough, isn’t it?”

“Life’s rough,” she shrugged. “No sense pouting about it. Besides, with drama, I spend two months in the fall in rehearsals and another two months in the spring, plus I write for the newspaper. When do I have time to date?”

“Don’t you have Saturday nights here in the States?” he teased.

“Nope,” she joked, “we outlawed that right after slavery.”

She had always been able to make him laugh. After that, she had become his best mate. He had told her things he would never have told anyone else. She had known him better than anyone else on earth.

Kelli had turned those two years in the States into the best time of his life. He had never asked her out, never kissed those lips, never run his fingers through that silky hair. But at 18, when he had returned to Australia with his family, he had left his heart with her. No one since then had ever touched that place inside of him that she had, and he had come to realize that no one ever would.

*

She could still feel the heartache from when he held her in his arms and said goodbye. She had longed for him to kiss her, but he hadn’t. He had held her so close, though, and buried his face in her hair. She could still feel his breath and hear him whisper in her ear.

“I’ll never forget you, Kell,” he vowed. “You’re the best mate anyone could ever have.”

“I’ll never forget you, either,” she promised, “and wherever you go, a little piece of me will always be with you.”

*

‘Dustin Clark, author of a series of adventure novels set in the nostalgic Australian Outback, now treats his readers to a tale set in the American West. Filled with adventure, suspense, and a little romance, he weaves a tale that keeps his readers on the edge of their seats.

‘Clark resides in his home down under on a ranch not too far removed from the ones his characters bring to life. He spent two years as a teenager in the States and attributes those years with his decision to become a writer. He says it was at that crucial time in his life that he received the inspiration he needed to fulfill his boyhood dream.’

She opened the book. The pages were worn from use. She went to the front of the book where there was a dedication. She had read all of his books. Had even mail ordered some straight from Australia before they were available in the States. They all had the same dedication:

‘To my Muse, she knows who she is.’

Kelli had always wondered if those words were meant for her. This book was different, though. It was the first one published and widely distributed in the States. It had been on the New York Times Bestseller List. This one had more in the dedication:

‘To my Muse, wherever you are, My Love, you will always have my heart.’

Surely, he knew where she was. She hadn’t gone anywhere. He must be referring to someone else. Still ….

*

Dustin stared at the screen of his laptop. It was useless. He couldn’t write anything now. He shut it and looked out at the night sky. The flight to the States was a long one, and he knew he should try to sleep. He also knew that was as useless as trying to write.

He closed his eyes and pictured her. Her long legs and delicate hands. Just that thought forced him to adjust his position. She probably had a husband and kids and a great life. She was the marrying kind, no doubt about it. Made to be a wife and mother. Some lucky bloke was going home to her every night, dinner on the table, laundry done up, the house immaculate.

He smiled at the thought of Kelli standing there in the kitchen fixing dinner for him. He would walk in and wrap his arms around her. She’d turn around and kiss him ….

What was he doing? Why was he doing this to himself? Even if she was at their high school reunion, she’d be there with her husband. It was going to turn him inside out to watch her with another man.

He sighed. He was going because he had to try. He had to see her again. He had to be sure she was OK. He wanted her to be happy more than anything else. God knows he’d never been happy; he at least wanted to know she was. It would be worth it just to see her smile. He could get through another 20 years on this earth if he could just see her smile one more time.

*

Kelli went to her computer and pulled up the file she had downloaded. It was an article from an Australian magazine about Dustin. There was a picture of him with his horse. He was in an old flannel shirt and soiled brim hat. The article was brief and talked about his ranch down under and his novels. It gave a summary of his family, all of which Kelli already knew. There was one paragraph that cut through her though:

‘He and his wife, Janet, split their time between the ranch and their apartment in Sydney. The couple met there while she was working on a photo shoot for a magazine, and he was researching a book.’

He was married. What did his wife think of the dedications in his books? She was on a photo shoot. Did that mean she was a model? Probably. He was certainly the kind of man who could have any woman he wanted.

Well, she told herself, the odds were against him even coming to the reunion. Why would he fly all the way from Australia just for their 20-year high school reunion? She wouldn’t get her hopes up. She would just go to see who was there and visit with her other old friends. She would dress to kill, though, just in case.

*

Kelli hadn’t gone to the 10-year reunion because she was working. She knew through the grapevine that Dusty hadn’t attended, either. She told herself again not to expect him. Then she reminded herself that even if he did come, his wife would be there, and she’d be forced to watch.

It was September, and the weather was near perfect. Just cool enough not to melt and warm enough not to need a jacket. Kelli had chosen a short black dress that made her legs look long and hid the extra pounds she had put on over the years. The neckline plunged just low enough to show that she still had an all-over tan. She left her hair down and hoped not too much gray showed.

She took a deep breath and walked in to see who was there. Immediately she was greeted by several old drama buddies and people from the newspaper staff, all of them bubbling with questions and stories about each other’s lives.

*

He ran his fingers through his hair, hoping to cover up the gray a bit better. He felt his beard. He had meant to shave it but hadn’t gotten around to it. He was just at that in between stage, not a full, honest to goodness beard, but definitely several days of growth. Well, it would have to do at this point.

He took a deep breath and headed for the elevator to take him down. When he got out, he could hear the laughter and loud voices, some of them familiar. He was listening for one voice in particular, but he didn’t hear it.

Just then, someone grabbed him, and he was pulled into conversation with a group of old friends.

*

Dustin felt her eyes on him, and he turned to look into the room. He swallowed hard when he saw her. She was beautiful, even more than he remembered. She wasn’t a school girl anymore. She was most definitely all woman. Every curve of her body was perfect. She was with a group of people, but he recognized them. Could it be that she hadn’t ever married?

Kelli saw his face light up, and she felt herself flash him a smile. She left the people she was with and hurried over to meet him. His arms were open wide, and she flew into them.

Dustin lifted her off the ground with his embrace and swung her around like a doll. She giggled in his ear, and he did it again just to hear her laugh. She felt so good in his arms he didn’t want to let go, but he had to put her down so he could look at her.

“God, Kell!” He let his eyes fall down her, “You’re gorgeous. There never was anyone that could hold a candle to you.”

Kelli felt herself blush. “You don’t look so bad yourself there, Mr. Bestseller.”

Everyone else seemed to step away to let them have a few moments on their own. Dustin reached for her hand and led her aside.

“Have you snagged a table yet?” he asked.

“No,” she squeezed his hand, “I just got here, too.”

“Well then,” he went for a table in the corner. “How about back here. Maybe we can have a chance to talk a bit before everyone finds us.”

He pulled a chair out for her and then scooted his own over close. “I didn’t know if you’d be here.”

“I kept telling myself not to expect you,” she confessed. “I didn’t think you’d fly all the way from Australia just for a high school reunion.”

“I didn’t.” He leaned close to her.

“Oh,” she gulped. “Business in the States?”

“No,” he was looking deep into those brown eyes. “I flew all the way from Australia to see you.”

Kelli blushed again. “Where’s your wife?”

He smiled and picked up her left hand. No ring. Maybe the gods were finally going to smile on him.

“I don’t have a wife,” he told her. “Looks like you’re without a husband, as well.”

“But, I thought …,” she started.

“I’m divorced,” he explained. “It’s a long story. So what about you? Why aren’t you married?”

“Several long stories,” she chuckled. “None of them worth repeating. Not to a storyteller like you.”

He reached in his pocket and pulled out a cigarette and lighter. “Do you mind?”

“No,” she shook her head. “I used to smoke, but I quit.”

“You?” He raised his brows, “I can’t imagine you smoking.”

“I’ve probably done a lot of things you can’t imagine, Dear,” she remarked. “Like I said, long story.”

He pulled an ashtray close. “I’m all ears, tell me.”

“Maybe later,” she reached over and put a hand on his knee. It sent shivers up and down his spine. He was suddenly glad he was in dress slacks instead of jeans. She was looking right into his eyes, “I’ve read all of your books …over and over. I’m very proud of you, Dusty.”

Those words washed away every bit of pain and heartache he’d ever felt. He wanted this woman to be proud of him more than anything in the world. She had been the one who had encouraged him to write. She had been the one who had helped hone his skills. She was his Muse.

“I’m glad you like them,” he put his cigarette down and took her hand into both of his. “I wouldn’t have done it if it hadn’t been for you.”

“Is it my vain imagination,” she asked, “or do I see traces of myself in some of your characters?”

He grinned, “It’s not your imagination. I can’t write a story without putting some of you in it. After all, you’re my Muse.”

She caught her breath. There were so many things she wanted to say to him. So many questions she wanted to ask. She looked at his large strong hands holding hers. She had always loved his hands.

“You can’t hide back here!” Bruce, a longtime friend walked up. “This is a mixer – you're supposed to mix!”

“Hey Mate!” Dustin greeted him. “I haven’t seen this little sheila for 20 years. Give me a break, will ya?”

“There you are!” Connie came over and sat next to Kelli. “You always were hanging around the Kangaroo Kid!”

All was lost from there. No more private conversations. No more intimate gestures. Back to best mates as if they had never been apart.

*

She excused herself from the group she was talking to and made her way to the door. She briefly wondered if the hotel clerk would tell her Dusty’s room number. Then she scolded herself for even considering it. She had no business going to his room alone with him. She had no illusions about the type of man he was and what he expected from a woman. She had heard too many details in high school to think he would settle for a goodnight kiss. Of course, it was different with them. Always had been. She was just his friend, so she’d probably be completely safe. Safer than she wanted to be. He would probably treat her like his sister.

“Trying to sneak out?” Dusty called from across the foyer. His eyes were bloodshot, and he had a drink in one hand and a cigarette in the other.

“No,” she went to him, “I was looking for you to tell you goodnight.”

“You can’t leave yet,” he insisted. “We’ve barely had a chance to talk.”

“It’s late,” she told him. “My feet are killing me.”

“Stay right there, Luv,” he requested, before going into the ballroom. He put his cigarette out, set his glass on the table, and waved everyone off that got in his path. He’d played life of the party long enough. Time to play prince charming now.

Dusty came back and put his hand on the small of Kelli’s back. “Come with me now, Luv.”

“Where?” she asked, walking with him and savoring the warmth of his hand on her back.

“Celebrity has its perks,” he chuckled. “I have the penthouse suite.”

“Ooo,” she looked sideways at him as they got onto the elevator. “'Step into my parlor,' said the spider to the fly.”

He laughed and slid his arm around her waist, putting his lips next to her ear. “Yes, I’m going to tangle you in my web and devour you.”

“What you’re going to do is start all sorts of wicked rumors,” she giggled. “Do you know who saw us get on the elevator? Tracy Meyers! She was standing right there watching us.”

“Loud Mouth Meyers!” he recalled. “Well, with any luck we’ll make the morning papers.”

“You’d just love that, wouldn’t you?” she teased.

They stepped off the elevator and onto the top floor. He opened the door to his suite and let her in. She gasped. It was ornately decorated and had a view of the city. There was a large living area with an entertainment center and a bar. A door led off to another room that she assumed was the bedroom.

“I’m not the only one who reads your books!” she remarked.

“Even you couldn’t buy enough copies to get me on the bestseller list, Luv,” he laughed. “Someone else had to like them.”

She went to the plush sofa and sat down, slipping off her shoes. She hadn’t even realized this hotel had a suite like this.

“Can I get you something?” He tossed his jacket aside and went to pour himself another drink.

“Actually,” she admitted, “water sounds wonderful right now. I’ve talked until my throat hurts.”

“Well,” he pulled out a bottle, “we even have Evian. You know, that’s what Kim Basinger washes her hair with.”

“If it’s good enough for her hair ….” Kelli laughed and took it from him. “Thanks.”

He sat down next to her and picked up her feet. He took them onto his lap and started massaging them with amazing expertise.

“Ooo,” Kelli closed her eyes and leaned back into the corner of the couch, “that’s definitely the way to keep me here.”

“So,” he kept rubbing, “tell me your stories. I didn’t fly 10,000 miles to make small talk. I want to know what’s happened to you over the past 20 years. What do you do for a living? Where do you live? Why aren’t you married? Talk to me, Luv.”

She sighed, relaxing as he massaged her feet. “I’m a veterinary technician, which is roughly the equivalent of a nurse, only for animals. And I bought a house not too far from my parents. They live in that same house where I grew up.”

“That sounds like a job that suits you,” he observed. “You always loved animals. You know, I have a ranch and a couple of horses. You’d like it there. So did you have to go to college to learn how to do that?”

“No, I just learned on the job.” She sank a little deeper into the sofa, and he gently pulled her legs onto his lap. “You’re very good at that, you know.”

“So I’ve been told.” He chuckled and slid his hands up her calves to massage them. He loved the feel of her legs in his hands. She wasn’t wearing hose, and her legs were smooth and supple. He had to fight the urge to bend down and kiss them. If it were any other woman in the world …but not Kelli.

“So,” she asked, “what happened to your marriage?”

“It was doomed from the start,” he reflected. “She was pretty, a model. But, she had a few ‘roos loose in the top paddock, if you know what I mean. The worst part was that she was insanely jealous. Which didn’t sit well with me. I can be a bit of flirt, you know.”

“Oh, no! Not you!” Kelli laughed. “Did you give her any real reason to be jealous?”

“I guess,” he shrugged. “It took her a while – like I said she wasn’t that bright – but she figured out that those dedications at the front of my books were not written to her.”

“So she left you,” Kelli surmised.

“Um-hmm,” he grinned. “For a body builder. Reckon I deserved that.”

“Did you get my letters?” Kelli sat up straight and pulled her legs away. “I wrote you when you left. I wrote you for a long time ….”

“I got them,” he admitted. “And I read every one of them. Over and over, Kell. In fact, I’ve still got them. They’re in a box at the top of my closet at the ranch. That’s how Janet put it together. She found the letters and figured out you were my Muse. Luckily, I caught her reading them and kept her from burning them. I think I might have killed her if she’d done that.”

“Why didn’t you write me back?” She scooted closer to him and tucked her legs up beneath her.

He sighed and looked down at his hands. “I did write you back. I wrote you a lot of letters, Kell. I just never mailed them. You sort of became my journal. I wrote all my thoughts down to you. Told you everything, just like when I was here. No, I told you even more. I didn’t keep anything from you when I was writing it down.”

“Why didn’t you mail them?” She put her hand on his shoulder, “I even finally wrote you a letter that said it was my last if I didn’t hear back from you.”

“I know.” He still didn’t look at her. “And not writing you back that time was the hardest thing I ever did in my life …next to leaving you behind …Kell, I didn’t want to give you false hope. I wanted you to move on with your life.”

“False hope?” She reached down and took hold of his hands. “Dusty, I was your best friend.”

He looked up now, emotion showing in his eyes and in his voice. “There was a lot more between us than friendship, Kell. There always was. But when I had to leave, I knew I’d probably never see you again. Knew I couldn’t get back here. I thought letting you go was the best thing I could do for you.”

She wanted to crawl into his arms and soak up the comfort that she knew was there. Instead, she touched his face. “Dusty, you were the best thing for me. You were the best thing I ever had in my life.”

He turned his face and brushed her hand with his lips, sending shivers down her spine. She had never wanted a man so badly in all her life.

“But you and I were half a world apart,” he spoke softly. “I just wanted you to be happy. When you said you’d stop writing, I knew if I just held firm, you’d give up and move on.”

“And I did.” She reached up and brushed a lock of hair from his forehead. “But I’ve never forgotten you or stopped missing you.”

“Tell me what happened after you stopped writing.” He swallowed hard and leaned back on the sofa to listen.

“I got a job working for a vet,” she recalled. “And I started running around with girls from work who were pretty wild. I figured being a good girl hadn’t gotten me anywhere so I’d try being bad for a while.”

“You could never be bad, Kelli,” he smiled.

“I started smoking and drinking and hanging out in bars,” she continued. “And I took up with the lead singer in a band. He was drop dead gorgeous, and he was great for my ego. All the girls wanted him, and he was mine. Of course, he cared a lot more about himself than he did me. He did cool stuff like dedicate songs to me from stage, though. He was fun and exciting and a wild ride.”

“What happened?” He tried not to imagine Kelli with this guy she described. The thought of some bloke using her was more than he could handle.

“The band broke up, and he left town,” she relayed. “It should’ve hurt a lot more than it did. I mean, when he was in town, we practically lived together. But when he told me he was leaving, I remember thinking that it didn’t hurt nearly as bad as watching you leave.”

“God, Kell.” He reached over and put his hand on her cheek. “I’m sorry. I never meant to hurt you.”

“I know.” She smiled, fighting the tears she felt rising to the surface. “Anyway, I was alone for a while after that, and I settled down a bit. Then Katy, remember her?”

He nodded. He wanted to gather her up in his arms and cradle her against him. How could any guy have just dumped her like that?

“Well,” Kelli told him, “she had a younger brother who I’d known since we were kids. She told me he’d been married and gotten divorced. He was asking about me. So she set us up. I remembered him being a good kid, and he grew up to be a very nice handsome man. We started seeing each other, and he really did care about me and treated me very well. We even got engaged.”

“But?”

“But his ex was psycho,” she shook her head, “and they had kids and there was a big custody battle and he came to me one day and told me he couldn’t marry me. He said the case might drag on for years, and he didn’t want to put me in the middle of it, and it wasn’t fair to ask me to wait. I had to respect him for that. It was a very unselfish thing for him to do. I remember that hurt a lot more than the other guy, but it still wasn’t like losing you.”

Kelli got up and walked over to look out at the skyline. “And then I just quit. I quit everything. I stopped smoking and drinking and going to bars. I just worked and went home. I just tried to stop feeling anything. I just wanted to be numb.”

“I can relate to that.” He got up and walked over next to her. “Did you succeed?”

“Almost,” she reported. “But then you walked back into my life and wouldn’t let me.”

“Now, you mean?”

“No,” she shook her head. “Someone told me you had been published, and that some of your books were available in the States. So, I went looking and found one.”

“Which one?” he quizzed.

“The Drifter,” she smiled. “I read it from cover to cover in one night. I couldn’t put it down, and I couldn’t stop crying.”

“Crying?” He stepped behind her and took hold of her shoulders. “It’s not a sad story.”

“I know,” she felt tears on her cheeks again, “but it was like having you there on my sofa telling me a story. I could hear your voice spinning a tale, just like you used to do for me. I found a way to get all your books after that. Even ordered some straight from Oz. I read them until the pages were falling out. It was almost like having you back.”

He couldn’t handle her tears. He turned her around gently and pulled her into his arms. She melted into him, and he felt tears in his own eyes. He had only dreamed of holding her like this. He wondered if she could feel how hard he was. He had been that way most of the night. Seeing her was all it took, now holding her close like this made it almost unbearable.

“Please don’t cry,” he finally whispered. “You know I can’t stand to see you cry.”

She put her hands on his chest and slid them up to his shoulders. She was looking up into those eyes, more blue than green now. She could feel him pressing against her belly, hard and throbbing. She had already felt the dampness growing in her panties. She couldn’t let this turn into a one-night stand. She couldn’t bear to lose this man again.

He bent to kiss her, so very gently at first. Her lips were so soft and sweet that he wanted to savor every tiny sensation. Then she put her fingers into his hair and that sent a sudden rush of emotion through him that pushed him over the edge. He pressed hard against her lips, and they parted to let his tongue delve deep into her mouth.

Everything in him wanted to pick her up and carry her to the bed. He wanted all of her, and he wanted it now. He had waited for this for 22 years.

She pulled away from him and caught her breath, “Please, Dusty. Don’t do this.”

He swallowed hard and cuddled her face against his chest. “I’m sorry. I thought you wanted me to do that …I would never ….”

“Don’t be sorry,” she assured him. “I did want you to do that. I want you to do a lot more than that, Dusty …but I ….”

“It’s all right,” he comforted her. “I won’t hurt you. I didn’t use you all those years ago; I have no intention of using you now.”

“Can I be completely honest with you?” She looked up at him.

“Of course you can,” he kissed her forehead. “You know that, Luv.”

“I made a promise to myself,” she confided, “that if I ever saw you again …had the chance …that I would tell you how I feel about you. Dusty, I’ve loved you all these years. Longed for you to come back into my life. Now, here you are holding me in your arms the way I’ve always wanted you to hold me. I want to be with you, Dusty, but I don’t want to mess this up.”

“Shh,” he put his finger over her lips. “It’s OK. I made some promises to myself, too. Come over here …sit back down with me.”

He led her back to the sofa and pulled her onto his lap. She curled up just like a child and rested her head on his shoulder. He was not about to lose this woman again.

“I promised myself,” he revealed, “that if I ever found you again, if you weren’t happily married to some other bloke, I would tell you how much I’ve always loved you. That I’ve ached for you all these years. The real reason my marriage didn’t work was that I didn’t love her. How could I? I was still in love with you.”

“Dusty,” she wiped her eyes, smearing her makeup, “I don’t want a fling with you. I’d rather just go on being your best friend than ….”

“I don’t want a fling either,” he told her. “We’re not going to rush things. I’ve waited for 22 years. I can wait a little longer.”

“It’s late,” she sat up straighter. “I should leave. We both need some sleep.”

“Are you OK to drive?” He brushed her cheek. “You can stay here if you like. I’d even take the sofa and let you have the bed.”

“I have a Boston Terrier at home who is crossing his little legs about to burst,” she grinned. “I’m OK to drive.”

“I want to see you again tomorrow,” he requested. “Can we spend the day together?”

“Yes,” she nodded. “Do you want to go on the school tour, or do you want to skip it?”

“I’ll go for you, if that’s what you want to do,” he sighed, “but what I really want is to just be alone with you.”

“I don’t want to go,” she confessed. “I don’t want to share you. How about if I come back over here and pick you up after we both get some rest?”

He pulled her back into a kiss, and she felt herself drowning in the same flood of emotions she had felt earlier. She wasn’t wearing a bra, and she felt his hands cupping her breasts. Her nipples immediately responded, and she wanted his lips on them, his teeth nipping at them. Instead, his thumbs caressed them as he continued to kiss her.

He took his lips from hers, and she arched her neck back, letting him trail his tongue down the side and to the little hollow at the base of her throat. He could smell her perfume, and he let his hand slide away from her breast down to the hem of her dress. He started to edge up the inside of her thigh.

She put her hand over his to stop him and opened her eyes. If this went any further, neither of them would be able to stop.

“I have to go,” she whispered.

“I know,” he sighed. “Be careful. Shall I walk you out?”

“We’ll never make it out of the elevator,” she eased herself up and smoothed her dress, looking for her shoes. “I’ll be fine.”

“I’ll see you later then,” he got up and followed her to the door. “Kell?” She turned, and he was right there against her. “I meant what I said. I do love you …and I won’t hurt you.”

“I believe you,” she touched his cheek, “and I don’t know how, but we’re going to make this work. I’m not going to lose you again.”

*

“OK, OK,” she pushed him back. “I love you, too. Let’s go potty.”

He jumped down, and she looked at the clock. It was after 9:00. She was amazed he had let her sleep so late. Of course, it had been nearly 2:00 before she had gotten home. She smiled as she remembered being in Dusty’s arms. How she longed to be there right now, waking up next to him. She giggled. Yes, she’d much rather wake up to Dusty licking her face.

*

Dustin groaned as he clawed his way to consciousness. The bright sun hurt his eyes, and he squinted against it. His head was throbbing, among other things. Nothing like waking up with a hangover and a hard on all at the same time. He dragged himself out of bed and pulled the blinds to shut out the sun.

He blinked at the clock. It was nearly 10:00. He needed to shower and eat something. He needed coffee. Surely, there was a coffee maker in this room somewhere. He went to the living area and opened cabinets until he found it. He fumbled around and got a pot started.

The phone rang, and he thought his head would split from the sound. He grabbed the one on the coffee table before it could scream at him again. “Hullo?”

“Morning, Glory,” Kelli’s voice lilted to him. “How bad’s the hangover?”

“Bad,” he confessed. “Jet lag doesn’t help any.”

“Do you want me to bring you anything?”

“No,” he told her. “I’ll be all right. I’ve got some coffee started. Are you on your way already?”

“Unless you don’t want me to come,” she informed him.

“No, it’s OK,” he assured her, then suddenly had a question. “How’d you get this phone number?”

“You gave it to me,” she stated. “Don’t you remember?”

“No, I don’t.” He lit a cigarette and sat on the sofa.

“Well, you did,” she spoke in a seductive tone, “right after you fucked my brains out!”

A cold wave of nausea went over him. Could he have done such a thing and not remember it? With Kelli? He tried to focus on last night. He had obviously drunk too much, or his head wouldn’t be killing him now. He did remember being very passionate with her. He remembered wanting to, but ….

“Dusty? Are you still there?”

“Yes, Luv,” he stammered.

“I looked at the number when I was there, Dusty,” she revealed. “I’m teasing you.”

He let out a breath of relief. “That was mean, Kell …very mean.”

“I’ll make it up to you,” she giggled. “Go get a shower. I’ll be over in a bit.”

*

“You said you had coffee,” she handed him the bag and stepped in, “so I brought you a bottle of aspirin, some orange juice, and a bagel. That should hold you until we can go somewhere and get some real food in you.”

He opened the bag and pulled out the orange juice, “Is this your idea of making it up to me?”

“No,” she came over and took the bottle from his hand, setting it down. “This is.”

She ran her hands up his bare chest, sending shivers down his spine. She managed to just barely graze each nipple, and he caught his breath at the sensation. Her hands went up to his shoulders, beneath the fabric of his shirt, and she wrapped them around his neck, pulling him down into a kiss.

He couldn’t keep from pulling her against him and delving into her mouth. His head wasn’t hurting anymore, but the throbbing had only been diverted to other areas. He certainly wanted to fuck her brains out. His hands went down to her ass, and he pressed her against him.

She let her lips drift off his and rubbed her face against his chest, speaking softly, “Now, am I forgiven?”

“Yes,” he was breathing hard. “You even got rid of my headache.”

“You’re welcome.” She looked up at him and winked. “You don’t really think you could forget me, do you?”

“Never,” he vowed. “And if we don’t go somewhere else very soon, we’re going to start making some major memories.”

She chuckled, “You say that like it’s a bad thing. All right, button your shirt, put your stuff in your pockets, and let’s go.”

“Where are you taking me?” he asked, doing as she had requested.

“Are you hungry?” she wondered.

“Famished.”

“Then we’ll go eat,” she answered. “It’s Saturday, and around these parts, that means all day breakfast buffets at several good restaurants.”

*

“Hello, Jake,” she greeted. “This is Dusty. You be nice to him.”

Dustin squatted down, and Jake wiggled and waggled all over him, as if he were a long lost friend, “You’re vicious, aren’t you?”

“You’d be surprised.” She opened the door to let him out, “Go potty, Jake. When someone comes around that doesn’t belong, he can seem pretty fierce.”

“So is he going to attack me,” he put his arms around her from behind and kissed her neck, “when I kiss you?”

“Only if I scream for help,” she giggled. “He’s ready to come back in – just a minute. OK, Jake.”

She opened the door and let him back in, and then she opened the door that led into the kitchen. It was small but neat and cheerful. It was an older house, built with all the rooms connecting, rather than a hall, and he could see her bedroom off to the side. She went straight, and he followed her through a simple dining room and around into the living room.

There was a green sofa and matching loveseat and an entertainment center. He could see the front porch through the pane of the front door. Next to the dining room was a set of closed French doors.

“What’s in there?” he asked.

“Books,” she smiled. “It’s a spare bedroom, but I made it my library/office. See?”

She opened it, and he saw a desk with a computer and bookshelves packed full. His eyes immediately recognized a whole section of the ones he’d written. They were very worn, just like she’d said.

“No bathroom?” He suddenly needed one.

“Off the kitchen,” she informed him. “It’s an old house. The bath and utility were added on.”

“Be back,” he turned and noticed there was another door to her bedroom off the living room. Convenient, he thought. He might need that later.

When he returned, she was sitting against one corner of the sofa, and there was music playing softly on the stereo. He recognized it immediately. The Carpenters. He hadn’t heard them in years.

“That brings back memories.” He smiled and sat on the couch, reaching for his pack of cigarettes. “Do you care if I smoke in here? I don’t see any ash tray.”

“I’d rather you didn’t,” she admitted. “It makes me want one.”

He put the pack back in his pocket, “I’ll wait then. How long’s it been since you quit?”

“Three years. Last night was the first time I’d had a drink since then, too.”

Three years, he thought. She said she’d quit everything at once. Had it been that long since she’d been with a man?

“Yes,” she said.

“Yes, what?” he asked.

“It’s been three years since I’ve had sex, too.” She answered his thoughts. “Don’t you know I can still tell what you’re thinking?”

He blushed. How long had it been since a woman had made him blush? Kelli was one of a kind, no doubt about it.

She moved over next to him and leaned on his shoulder, “You haven’t changed that much, Dusty. I can still see right through you.”

“Yeah?” He put his arm around her and looked into her eyes. “What am I thinking right now?”

“That if you just keep your mind blank I won’t figure it out.” She reached over and kissed his nose. “And now, you’re thinking, ‘Damn! She’s good!’”

He busted up laughing, partly because she was right, and partly because it felt so good just to be with her again. Then, while he was laughing, she started tickling his ribs, and he only half-heartedly tried to stop her. She was laughing, too, and Jake started barking and trying to help, which made both of them laugh even harder. Soon, they had slid to the floor with tears in their eyes.

“Jake!” Kelli scolded her beloved, canine companion, still laughing. “Stop it. Go lay down.”

The dog laid his ears back and went to a bed in the corner to lie down.

“Aw,” Dusty moaned, “you’ve hurt his feelings.”

“Do you want him to pounce in the middle of us?”

He was in the floor, his back against the sofa and his legs stretched out. She eased herself over to straddle him and put her arms around his neck. He grabbed her ass and pulled her up against him, their noses almost touching.

“God, Kell,” he spoke softly, “it’s so good to be here with you.”

“Dusty,” she kissed his nose, “I don’t know if I can handle you leaving this time. It nearly killed me before, and the only way I got through it was by telling myself you had no choice. You couldn’t stay, and you didn’t know how I really felt about you. I knew you didn’t hurt me on purpose. I told myself that if you had known, you would have found a way to stay. That’s how I kept from hating you, Dusty.”

He reached up and put his fingers into that silky hair the way he had always longed to do. She was absolutely beautiful. So sensuous and seductive in just her natural mannerisms. She didn’t have to try; she just was.

“Kell,” his voice was getting that husky sound to it that men get with arousal, “when I got home, I hated myself. I realized too late that I should have stayed. I was so conditioned to believe that we could only be friends, that it didn’t dawn on me that we had both turned 18 by then. I could have insisted on staying in the States, and you could have insisted that your parents let us date.

“But by the time I realized that,” he went on, “it was too late. I was already home, and I couldn’t get back. I was young and stupid. Will you forgive me, Baby?”

“Honey,” she kissed his forehead, “there’s nothing to forgive. I was just as young and just as stupid. Now you’re here, and I wish to God that I would’ve been patient and waited for you. Instead, I wasted years of my life with men who made me miserable.”

“Kell,” he pulled her head against his shoulder, “will you give me a chance now to make it up to you? Will you give us a chance to make this work?”

“Yes,” she whispered, “but I know you have to leave again. Tell me how long I have with you before you walk away again.”

“I’m not going to walk away,” he put his lips against her ear. “I’m staying. I bought a one-way ticket. I’m here as long as it takes to make things right. We have time to get to know each other all over again. I’ll look for a flat or a house. I’ll stay in the States.”

She pulled back to look in his eyes. “You mean it? You’ll stay? What about your ranch?”

“I have a foreman who runs it for me,” he explained. “I told him I might be gone for a while. I brought my laptop. I can write wherever I am. I will need to go buy some clothes before long, though. I didn’t bring very much.”

“Let’s go right now!” She started to get up. “And you can live here.”

He laughed and pulled her back down, “Wait. It’s not that much of an emergency. And you don’t want me to just move in, Kell. That’s not your style, and I know it.”

“I love you, Dusty,” she squeezed his shoulders. “That’s more than I can say about any of the other men I’ve been with. Brett, the rock singer, he lived here most of the time, and I didn’t love him.”

“And you were miserable,” he reminded. “Kelli …was he your first?”

“No,” she looked down, avoiding his eyes.

“I know you were still a virgin when I left.” He tipped her chin up, forcing her to look at him, “Tell me. Who was? What happened?”

“You don’t want to know,” she tried to look away, but he held her face there.

“I need to know,” he insisted.

“It was before I met Brett,” she remembered. “After I turned 21 and started running around with my wild friends, going to bars. Guys would hit on me, and I was reluctant to go out with them because I was a virgin. I was ashamed of it.”

“Why?”

“Because no one else was,” she reasoned. “So I finally told one of the girls my situation, and she said she’d fix it for me.”

“She would?”

“Well,” she smiled, “not her personally. She had a brother. So she set me up with him and basically told him that I just wanted to lose it. He took me to his place one night, and that was it. No dinner and a movie or anything. I didn’t care about him or even really know him. Never saw him again.

“When he brought me home,” tears started flowing down her cheeks, “I went and found your picture. I sat in here and held it close to me and cried the rest of the night.”

He pulled her close and comforted her, “Shhh. I’m so sorry, Kell. It shouldn’t have been like that.”

“I know,” she sobbed, “and I knew it then. I wanted to hear your voice so bad that night. If I had known your number …I hated myself after that. I felt like I’d betrayed you. I put your picture away, and I quit looking at it. I couldn’t look you in the eye anymore …not even your picture.”

He held her close. He wanted to wash away all her pain and heartache. She had been so precious and innocent when he left her. Now she was so bruised and brokenhearted. He blamed himself for all of it.

His beard was rough against her cheek, but she loved the sensation. She wanted to feel him rub that beard all over her. Her panties were drenched, probably even her jeans. She didn’t care anymore. Even if he did leave, she wanted to be with him.

Kelli scooted back and looked him in the eye now. She didn’t say anything. She didn’t need to. He could read her almost as well as she could read him. She stood up and reached her hand down for his. He took it and got up, as well.

He gently led her into the bedroom. He sat on the edge of the bed and slid her shirt up enough to kiss her tanned stomach. She let out a gasp as he rubbed his beard across the tender flesh of her abdomen. He caressed her back as he reached to loosen her bra ….

*

“Baby,” he finally whispered, “are you OK?”

“Oh yes,” she sighed and pulled herself off him. “I’m better than I’ve ever been in my life.”

He smiled and tucked her in next to him. “That was incredible. Worth every bit of the wait.”

“Mmm,” she purred and snuggled up, “let’s not wait that long again, OK?”

“No argument here,” he chuckled. “Why don’t we gather up your things and go back to the hotel to get cleaned up for tonight? There’s a Jacuzzi tub in the room.”

“Ooo,” she stroked his chest, “I like that idea. Can we lay here for a few minutes first?”

“Mmm,” he kissed her forehead, “yes. Why don’t you pack some extra clothes, and you can stay with me tonight? Then you can drink, and I won’t worry about you driving home.”

“What about Jake?” she reminded.

“Shut him in the laundry room with some newspapers,” he suggested. “He’ll live, and I’ll help you clean up the mess tomorrow morning.”

“A man after my heart,” she giggled. “Willing to clean up dog poop for me.”

“I’d do anything for you,” he sighed, “and I want to sleep with you in my arms tonight.”

“You’ve convinced me,” she rose up and looked down into his eyes, “I don’t want to spend a moment away from you. I love you, Dusty …with all my heart, I love you.”

*

She then insisted that she had to get in the shower to properly wash her hair. He insisted that she could not properly get in the shower without his assistance. Washing her hair turned out to include her bringing him to the point he almost passed out. This, of course, required her to administer mouth-to-mouth to him.

They finally managed to get dressed, and when he caught sight of her, it almost caused a complete relapse. She was in a long sleeveless red dress, with sequins on the bodice and a satin skirt that was slit halfway up her thigh. The neckline scooped just low enough to hint of the cleft between her breasts.

She saw his face light up when he looked at her. She had hoped he would like the dress. She certainly liked the sight of him in a suit. It was supposed to be a black tie affair, so he had gone all out, even a white shirt with little pleats down the front, a vest, and a bow tie. All the ladies would be drooling over him, even the married ones.

“Kelli,” he smiled, “you are absolutely breathtaking.”

“Thank you,” she walked toward him. “You look very handsome, yourself. I’ll have to keep a club handy to beat the other women off of you.”

“What other women?” He ran his hands down her bare arms, “You’ll be the only woman there in my eyes.”

“Let’s go,” she winked, “or we’ll get sidetracked and never make it.”

*

“What are you grinning about?” he whispered, his hand on her back as they found a table.

“Just thinking how many of these ladies I could embarrass if I wanted to,” she giggled.

“Lucky for them,” he pulled out her chair, “you would never do such a thing.”

“Did you see the look on Linda’s face when we walked in together?” She referred to one of his old conquests.

“I saw the look on Jeff’s face,” he remarked. “He always wanted you.”

“Jeff?” She was surprised. “How do you know?”

“He told me,” Dusty shrugged. “Wanted me to set him up with you. I told him your folks wouldn’t let you date.”

“You never told me!” She scoffed. “You rascal.”

“Didn’t want to take any chances,” he chuckled. “If you were going to sneak around, I wanted you to do it with me.”

“Dustin,” another old conquest, Melinda, came up, “I brought a copy of your latest book with me. Could I get you to sign it?”

“Sure,” he pulled out a pen and scrawled something on the inside cover. “Did you like it?”

“I loved it,” she smiled, “and I’ve told everyone I know that I knew you way back when!”

He winked, “Glad you liked it.”

“Dustin,” someone else came up, “will you sign my book?”

*

“Stay right here, Luv,” he requested and headed for the stage. He motioned for the lead singer to come over, and she saw him nod. Dusty stepped up on stage and took the cordless microphone from him.

She felt awkward standing there alone on the dance floor, but he looked her way and smiled, so she stayed where he had left her. Whatever he was up to, she would play along. She was just as good at improvisational acting as he was writing.

“G’day.” He spoke into the mike and grinned at the laughter that spread through the crowd. “You can all relax. I’m not going to sing. I do want to say a few things though, so you’ll have to put up with me for a few minutes.

“First of all,” he pulled a stool over and sat down, and someone put a spotlight on him, “Thank you. I just want to tell everyone how good it is to see you again. I’ve been to the States, but this is the first time I’ve come back here for 20 years, and it’s good to see everyone. Those two years I spent here were the best time of my life, and you all made me feel a real part of this class. I never really had a chance before to tell you how much I appreciated it.”

Someone called something out that Kelli didn’t quite understand.

“What’s that?” Dusty asked.

Someone else yelled. “She wants you to sign her book.”

“All right,” he grinned, “but only if you behave and let me talk now. I have the mike, so I get to talk. That’s the rule.

“So anyway,” he went on, “some of you know that I tell stories ….”

There was laughter all across the room.

“I occasionally even scribble them down ….”

More laughter.

“Right now,” he explained, “I’m going to tell you all a little story, and then you’re going to help me write the ending …I know you folks – you have very vivid imaginations, and there’s not a shy one in the lot, so you can do this, OK?”

They laughed and several people yelled out, “OK!”

“So,” he started, “here’s how the story goes: A long time ago, there was a beautiful princess who lived in a tower ….”

“Rapunzel!” someone shouted.

“It’s not your turn yet,” Dusty scolded. “And there’s a word for that – plagiarism – and they take away all your money for doing it. No, her name was not Rapunzel …so, she lived in a tower up above all the other people in the kingdom, and she was very lonely. But she was the kind of princess who looked for the bright side, so she found happiness in the little things around her, instead of moping and feeling sorry for herself.

“Then one day, there was a young pauper who came traveling from a far away land, and he saw the princess up in her tower. He thought she was the most beautiful girl he had ever seen in all his travels …and let me tell you, he’d been around.”

Lots of laughter.

“He waved at the princess, and she smiled down on him. He called out and asked her to come down. She told him that her father, the king, had locked her in the tower, and she couldn’t come down.

“Now, this made the young pauper sad because he wanted the princess for his own. However, he was the kind of person who looked for the bright side as well, so he decided to stay in the land for a while, and he came to visit the tower every day. Each day, he would call out to her, and each day she would give him the same answer. So, he would tell her stories about what he saw in the kingdom, and he would paint her pictures of the people he met and the places where he had been. This made the princess happy, and she wasn’t lonely anymore.

“Then one day, when he came to the tower and called out, he found the princess weeping. She told him that her father would never let her out of the tower and seeing him every day made her sad. She told him to leave her land and go back to his home. She asked him to be happy and told him that knowing he was free and happy would give her joy.

“This broke the young pauper’s heart, but he loved the princess, so he did as she bid him do ….”

“Then what?” someone yelled.

“I should tell you to go buy the book!” He laughed. “But I’m a nice bloke, so I won’t do that to you …. Many years passed, and the old king knew that he was dying. He unlocked the tower and let the princess go free. The princess came down and lived among the people, but she found that she was still lonely. She missed the pauper whom she had sent away.

“Meanwhile,” he sighed, “back in his own land, the pauper had become rich. He had painted pictures of the princess and the beautiful kingdom she lived in, and sold them to the people of his land and became very wealthy from it. But he wasn’t happy, either. He missed the princess.

“One day,” he told them, “he packed his bedroll and started off to find the princess again. He traveled all the way back to her kingdom, but when he got there, the tower was boarded up, and no one was there.

“He began to look for her throughout the kingdom, until one day he found her, weeping in a rose garden. She didn’t see him standing there, but he knew, in spite of her now tattered gown, that she was the same beautiful princess he loved.

“OK,” he got up, “now, this is where you come in. I need three volunteers. Let me see some hands.”

Hands went up all around the room.

“Gena,” he called, “Greg, and …Kim. You three come up here.”

Kelli was still standing alone on the dance floor, wondering where she came in. The three volunteers climbed up on stage, and Dusty put them in a little line. He was having way too much fun with this.

“So,” he looked at them, “here’s the deal. I need three different endings. You’re each going to tell me what you think the pauper should do now that he has found his princess again. Each answer has to be different, and I’m going to ask the folks out there in the audience which one they like the best. Think for a minute …. Can we get some of that music playing from that game show you chaps like so much back here in the States?”

The band started playing the Jeopardy music, and Dusty gave them a thumbs-up.

“OK.” The band stopped. “Gena, you’re first.”

“Well,” she spoke into the mike, “he should marry her, of course.”

“You’re not very creative there, Gena,” he teased. “Greg, what do you think?”

“He should sweep her off her feet and whisk her off to his land.” Greg was animated.

“Whisk,” Dusty smiled. “I always liked that word. OK, Kim, your turn.”

“He should purchase her own kingdom and give it back to her and make her the queen,” Kim suggested.

“He’s rich,” Dusty chuckled, “but he’s not Donald Trump, OK?”

Laughter.

“All right,” he looked back at the audience, “Let’s see a vote – who thinks he should just marry her and be done with it? I thought you folks had more imagination than that. Who thinks he should whisk her to his own land? Ah, you like that word too, I see. Who thinks he should turn himself back into a pauper and land himself in debtor’s prison to make her a queen? You people are sick, aren’t you?”

Kelli was trying not to laugh.

“Well,” he told them, “now let’s find out what really happens. We’re going to all find this out together because there’s one other player here. The princess and, believe me, she has a mind and will of her own.”

More laughter from the audience as he jumped down from the stage.

“Can someone follow me with that spotlight?”

The spot followed him as he walked over to Kelli. After a wave of murmurs went through the crowd, the room fell silent. She felt her heart racing.

“Kelli,” he took one of her hands in his, still holding the mike with the other, “you are that princess in the tower. You are still the most beautiful woman I have seen in all the world. You have been my inspiration for all these years, and I owe everything I am to you. I love you, Kelli, and I always have.”

He bent down on one knee and looked up at her, “Kelli, will you marry me?”

There was a collective gasp from the crowd. Kelli didn’t know if she should laugh or cry. She was vaguely aware of cameras flashing as she looked down at him.

She reached out, and took the mike from him and smiled, “Yes, Dusty, I’ll marry you.”

A cheer rose from the crowd, and he got up and caught her into his arms and swung her around several times. The lead singer came down and took the mike from her.

“I think they need a song, don’t you?” The singer called out, “We’ll do something just for them.”

Dusty reached down and kissed her, and the crowd cheered again as the band started to play their rendition of “Faithfully” by Journey.

“I love you, Dusty,” Kelli smiled up at him, “and I’m forever yours.”

He held her close and finished for her, “Faithfully.”