Tim is calmer now, but it is six already, and Les is coming soon. She will be expecting dinner to be ready. Tim’s insecurities are out entirely. Having taken in so much in the last few hours, he is reverting to how he was before Abbie.
Abbie hugs him and tells him to let her get out her ‘recipe book.’ This at least makes Tim laugh a little as Abbie speed dials a local Italian restaurant. Three orders of spaghetti with marinara sauce, which she tells them, can be put all together. Same with the salads, and actually upgrades it to an antipasto salad with dressing on the side. A small pizza with pepperoni and bacon finishes the order.
When asked for the address, Abbie realizes that she does not know her new home’s number. Tim comes to her rescue, and she tells the restaurant. They promise to have it there in forty-five minutes.
Tim chuckles at Abbie’s skill. Tim thinks, ‘Okay, this is not helping her learn to stop depending on to-go food. But for this evening, it the answer.’ Abbie smiles at her love, back in a better mood, and ready to move forward.
Tim watches as Abbie changes her address on her phone, saying, “I didn’t think about how many places I will have to adjust my information. At work, my mail, identification, and other places. And I should probably legally change my name as the banker suggested.” Together they set the kitchen table for three and get out the serving bowls and plates for the food when it arrives.
Tim opens a couple of bottles of wine. Abbie, seeing the wine racks in the pantry, is impressed. Tim suddenly realizes something from the letters he read. Tim hurries upstairs to the spare bedroom and packs all the letters back in the satin-covered box. Except for the one to him, which he puts in his pocket. Then he goes to his dresser where he had placed the two rings of his mother.
Tim knows the one his mother wore for years was from his father. But now, understands when and why she replaced it with this other one. The ring has to have been from Leslie, well Les. Tim carries the ring and the box down to the kitchen. He puts them out of the way for now, on the counter.
oOo
At six-thirty, Leslie arrives promptly at the kitchen door. Abbie lets her in, and Tim greets her a bit stiffly. Abbie brings her to the table and pours wine for all three. She thanks Les for all the help she has offered the last two days and how nice it will be to live close to her.
Tim knows Abbie is doing this to pave the way to what he wants to talk about. He does thank Leslie also for her help – he had been brought up correctly. His mind is whirling with how to bring the matter up.
In the end, he says stiffly, “Leslie, we were cleaning out some of my mother’s things after getting unpacked, and I found this letter to me from her, which I never knew about. I think she intended me to see it eight years ago when she died, so it is a bit of shock to take it all in this long after the fact.” Tim just hands the letter to Leslie to read.
Les takes her time reading it, going back over it again to understand what Cyn was telling Tim fully. Leslie sees the anguish in Tim’s eyes and realizes that he had no idea about the relationship Les and his mother had. Tears form in the corner of her eyes, partly from almost hearing Cyn's voice from the letter, and trying to think how she can gently tell Tim what he seems to need to know now.
Taking a couple of sips of the wine, Les begins to tell Tim things that he had not known or acknowledged about his mother.
Tim, I don’t know how much you know about your mother, but I will share all I knew.
When your mother found herself pregnant with you, her parents shunned her, and she had to find an apartment for herself for the first time in her life at forty. The company she had worked for did not want an unwed mother on their staff, no matter how good she was, so they released her.
Cyn knew that for several years after you were born, she would have to find somewhere to work, which would allow her to do so from home as to also care for you. She found a couple of part-time jobs that would enable that and fell into an isolated life. You were born, and except for outings for groceries or necessities, it was just you two for four years.
Your father, Thomas, helped some during this period, but his wife became aware of Cyn and her condition, which made it hard for him to help much. I am not sure how much you know about Thomas Bradley. He was older than your mother and in a thankless marriage, which he could not, no matter how much he wanted to, get out of.
He did keep in contact with your mother until you were about seven, then things changed, and there was not much further contact.
He was the one to find this house. He knew it was dreary, but it was on the market at an exceptionally good price. I think Thomas imagined that Cyn might brighten the place up, but that was not her inclinations. He put a substantial down payment on the house, so your mother was not strapped with unreasonable monthly payments.
It was around this time that she was offered a new position. It was full-time, able to work from home, outside of weekly check-ins to get the bills and receipts. It paid more than the two part-time jobs combined. Cyn jumped at the chance to have something stable and workable for her and you.
The only downside, considering Cyn’s upbringing and disposition, was that the job was for a strip club. She was to keep their books proper as the owner had no wish to have any problems with the authorities about how the club was run. It was a rather lovely club, all things considered.
Over the years, the owner opened two more locations, and your mother’s salary increased to include those books. The owner, a kind man really, did not want Cyn to be exposed to the club much. She would go in during the day in the middle of the week to pick up and deliver new records.
Though Cyn did tell me that when she went there, she would often see some of the strippers practicing on their poles and such, and seeing these almost naked women held her spellbound, Cyn got to know some of them over the years. After a couple of years working there, Cyn started doing all of their taxes each year also. Which, in turn, she was paid for.
That was all before she and I changed our relationship.
When you were young, Tim, Cyn would take you with her when she did her weekly check-in. All the strippers did fawn over you—even the drag queens who performed there. When you got about seven and in school, Cyn knew she should stop taking you along. Instead, did that during the day while you were in school.
At about this time in the story, the food arrived. Abbie collects it, dishes it out, and serves. Both she and Tim are mesmerized by the tale Les is unfolding. Glasses are refilled.
Before Les continues, Tim speaks, “I remember going there to the club. Yes, I was young, but all the people working there were so friendly and nice to me. I do remember watching who now I understand were probably transgender people as they would practice their acts. They would be dressed as some famous actress or singer. It was wonderful and mesmerizing for me to hear them practice singing their songs.”
Abbie pushes this little fact to the back of her mind. Is this where Tim’s interest began?
The three eat as Les goes on.
Cyn did enjoy that job and told me later that seeing the stripers practice did, for some reason, stir her juices. I am jumping ahead some. When you were older, a couple of times a year, she and I would go to the club for an evening. It did really excite Cyn to see the full performance, and it was fun for me too.
The women so fully appreciative of the help they got from Cyn, as was the owner, made sure we had an impressive ringside view. Many of the strippers came over to give us a special show or lap dance. Your mother loved those evenings,
But back to what you want to know.
Your mother did suffer from bouts of depression. They would come on for no reason about three or four times a year. Some only lasted for a day, and she would be okay. Others could last for over a week, which was hard. I tried all I could from the start to keep you from having to see or deal with them.
When they did, she would stay in bed all day, but then feeling guilty she had not gotten the work done, stay up half the night doing the books. She was aware of these spells and did all she could to work through them. However, she would not see a doctor about it. I tried to push her to do so and get medication to help, but she was stubborn and wouldn’t. I think she felt it would put other negative images on her to acknowledge she had a problem.
I am wandering some from what you want to know, but I feel you need to know your mother better. The abandonment of both her parents and lover, having no real friends, she thought was hard for her. Scared, she would not have enough money to care for you. All these things were built up so deep in her. It isn’t surprising that she did retreat from the world.
Even after you moved here, Cyn was always over worried that something could happen, leaving you destitute. I think that is why, to put it not quite nicely, but accurately, she was a miser.
Now to us. We did become friends soon after you moved it. We would have tea together and just talk most mornings before I had to be off to lecture at the university and your mother to her account books. We did share a warm feeling for each other, but nothing more.
Cyn did know I was gay and even met my partner at the time, but that relationship petered out over the next year or so. Your mother was a sympathetic friend when I broke up with the woman. But nothing more was considered between us.
That, though, was when Cyn started telling me details about her job and her strange feeling seeing the strippers practice. But it was left just at that.
Until one fall day. You had started school, Tim, so were gone from about eight until three-thirty each weekday. For the season, it was so delightfully warm with the sun shining. Your mother came out on your back patio and spread her work out to enjoy the day. I was off work that day and was clearing out flowerbeds for the winter.
Oh, Tim, you would not believe how beautiful your mother looked that day. She had on a light floral dress, and her hair was loose and blowing a bit in the breeze. Working, not realizing I was watching her yet, she let out the loveliest laugh over something. It was like tiny bells jingling in the wind.
I called over to her something silly about she seemed to be enjoying her work. We chatted across the yards for about fifteen minutes, and then I ask her if she was ready for a break and to have some tea with me. Cyn readily accepted. She put her work in your house, and I quickly put a kettle on.
I got back to my patio in time to see Cyn walking toward me and the gate between our property. The sun was shining on her sending a gold glow around her. To say the least, my panties were getting wet watching her. Which was a surprise to me as I had never thought about Cyn that way before.
I welcomed her and had her sit at my patio table as I went and got the tea and biscuits. Sitting down next to her, our legs brushed against each other, and I could not believe that small thing could send the electric shock I was feeling run through me. When I looked at Cyn, she had a similar expression on her face.
We had tea and just talked, though our hands and arms seemed to be repeatedly grazing against each other. Even though it was only past twelve, I suggested we finish off our tea with a little sherry, which Cyn said sounded like a wonderful idea.
She was in such a happy mood that day. Never had I seen her as yet being this lively and cheerful. I brought the glasses and the bottle to the table. After a couple of sips, it happened. Our thighs had been rubbing together again, and she had laid her hand over mine when making a comment, and she did not remove it. We stared into each other’s eyes, and suddenly both of us moved in, and we kissed.
It was just a light brush of our lips against each other, but we both were feeling tremors through our bodies. It was noticeable that we were both shivering. The second kiss was the real one. Deep and longingly, we kissed. Our arms found their way around each other’s necks, holding us tight as we did.
Before long, Cyn was on my lap, her legs spread around my hips, her dress ridden up to almost her waist so I could see her panties. I moved my hand over the crotch and felt how wet and wanting she was. We just stayed that way for almost a half-hour, just kissed and hugging each other.
Les snaps out of her remembrances. Realizing what she is saying. A bit much to share with Tim about her and his mother. Tim, while this reveal is a bit much, understands how the two women could come to lust for each other. They have also finished eating.
Abbie stands and clears the plates, rinses, and puts them in the dishwasher. She can see Tim has mixed feeling over what he has just heard and needs some time to comprehend this much for now.
Abbie comes and puts her arms around Tim’s neck and suggests, “Tim, you know what would make the dinner complete? Some fresh ice cream from the dairy. Why don’t you get us a quart? It should only take you a few minutes?”
Tim jumps at this chance to step away from this for a bit. To digest what he has heard so far. Tim hugs and kisses Abbie to let her know how much he understands and appreciates what she is suggesting. He tells them he will be back soon with ice cream and is out the door.
Les smiles at Abbie, understanding what she did also.