Act of Necessity Ch. 03-04

"Oh," I said, not knowing what else to say. "Uh, she doesn't have much experience at this, does she." It wasn't a question, it was a statement of my belief.

Samantha was shaking her head. "No ... you're right, she doesn't. I take it you don't feel the same way?"

"I don't exactly know how I feel," I confessed. "I really like her and there isn't anyone else I want to be with. I guess I'm still thinking she's out of reach. She comes from a big family ... a big, wealthy family. That's not where I'm from. I'm basically an orphan living in my own home. I keep feeling that I don't fit with your family. I keep waiting for the balloon to pop. I wish it wasn't so, but ... I'm afraid it is."

Both were shaking their heads at me.

"You're wrong, Dal," Giovanni said. "You fit just fine. We weren't always rich and we all were taught to remember that. Everything we have my parents and grandparents earned. Everything we've been told about you and our past says you're just like us. You aren't looking for a free ride.

"Wait!" he laughed. "Let me take that back. So, we know about the university thing, but that was an attempt to better yourself. You don't have anything to be ashamed of, Dal."

"You've done a hell of a job growing up without any help. You should be proud of that," Samantha added.

I sat thinking about what they said. I never felt proud of stealing those two years at UBC. I didn't think of what it took to survive after the death of my parents. I just did what I had to do. What was so noble about that?

"I think you're giving me too much credit. But I guess that's not the point of this, is it? I could easily fall in love with Francesca. Maybe I already have and don't realize it. I've never been in love before, so I don't know what it feels like. What am I supposed to do now?"

"Tell her how you feel about her," Sam said, "and ask her how she feels about you. You don't have to worry about the rest of the family. They already like you and accept you as Francesca's boyfriend. Take a chance, Dal."

I thought for a few moments before I spoke, addressing myself to Giovanni.

"What if I did fall in love with her? What if I asked her to marry me? What would happen then?"

He grinned. "Then, I guess there would be a party like we're going to have when Sam and I announce our engagement."

"Oh ... I didn't know," I said in surprise. "Congratulations, Gio. You couldn't do better," I said looking directly at Samantha.

"Here's a news bulletin for you," Samantha grinned. "I come from a middle class family, just like you. I'm not from some society page background. I'm just like you and I've been accepted. Take a chance, Dal. Take a chance."

~*~

I had a lot to think about. First and foremost, how did I feel about Francesca? If Gio and Sam were right, I didn't have to worry about whether I fit in their level of society. I could be accepted as who I was. If they were right. But it still left the question of my feelings for Francesca. Was I being pushed ahead of where I wanted to be? I could feel some pressure, although it wasn't coming from Francesca. There was only one way to resolve this and that was to talk to her.

She was in her last year of university, working toward a degree in business. I was going down the same path, but by a different route. I was a year or more away from completing my correspondence studies. And when I finished, I would be obligated to work with Carl Villano, since he had been my sponsor and paid my tuition. I was also grateful for the job that made all of my future possible.

We saw each other only on the weekends. We would date informally on Friday night unless Francesca was cramming for exams or had a term paper due. I had neither pressure, but if my girlfriend wasn't available, I would usually take the opportunity to do some homework. Saturday was our regular date night and Sunday was the family dinner. I was expected to be there.

I decided that the time to talk to Francesca would be the first Friday we were both free. It turned out to be the first one after my conversation with her brother and his fiancée. I thought about inviting her to my home, but changed my mind. I thought somewhere neutral would be better. I wanted privacy, but I was having trouble figuring out what would work. The weather had turned rainy and cool, making sitting in the car a less pleasant choice. However, I didn't have a better idea, so it would have to do.

My Cressida didn't have a bench seat, and there was a sizeable gap between the front seats, but they were comfortable and gave us enough space to not be cramped when the seats were all the way back. I hadn't said anything about where I was taking Francesca when I called her and I didn't want to make it sound like this was something serious even though, to me, it was. We ended up where Francesca had led me on our first date, Spanish Banks. We were the only car in the lot and, between the dark and the rain, there was little to see.

"Why did you come here?" she asked as I parked the car.

"To talk. Just you and I ... away from anyone else."

She looked concerned if her eyes were any indication.

"Are you going to dump me?" she asked in a timid voice.

"NO!" I responded immediately. "No ... nothing like that. No ... if anyone was going to do any dumping, it would be you."

"Then ... what's this about?" She still looked very nervous and uncertain.

Any idea I had about how to begin this conversation had evaporated with her worry about my breaking up with her. It wasn't at all what I expected to happen and I was stuck for a way to begin. I let out a big sigh.

"The other day ... last Saturday, I had a conversation with Giovanni and Samantha. They came to see me."

"What about?" she said, with a curious expression.

"They wanted to know what my intentions were toward you. They wanted to know if I was serious about you because they said you were serious about me."

"Oh."

"They said ... they said ... that ... you were falling in love with me," I managed, almost strangling on the last words.

"Oh."

She looked a bit bewildered I thought. I remained silent, hoping she would respond with more than just an "Oh."

"They shouldn't have done that," she said after a long silent period.

"Does that mean they're wrong?"

"You're not ready for that," she said, gathering strength in her voice. "You don't know how you feel about me, do you?"

I nodded. She was right.

"But ... yes ... I'm pretty sure I'm falling in love with you."

"How do you know?"

She shrugged. "I can't get you out of my mind. I don't think about anyone else. I wonder what you are doing when we aren't together. I want to be with you whenever I can. I feel good when we are together. I feel safe and wanted and ... maybe ... loved?" she looked at me questioningly.

I reached for her. "I feel the same way. I've never been in love before, so I don't know anything about how I should feel. I just know you are the one I want to be with and that I think of you all the time and care for you."

She leaned across the gap between us and we kissed. It was a long, deep, warm kiss.

"So, maybe we are in love," she said when we broke.

"Sounds like it," I grinned. "If we are ... then ... we are."

"How profound, Mr. Larson," she teased.

"There's just one thing, though," I said, hoping not to spoil the mood. "We aren't ready to get married yet. You have school to finish and I do too. I haven't figured out what my career path is going to be. We have a lot to learn about each other. And then, there's your parents. What would they think?"

I saw a self-satisfied smile on her lips as I spoke.

"You let me worry about my parents, Dallas. I think they will welcome you with open arms, and so will my brothers' families. My little nieces and nephews already think you're one of us, so what's to worry about? But you're right about one thing. We aren't ready yet. We do need to finish school and we do need to get to know each other better. We haven't even made love yet," she finished.

We kissed again, and I'm sure she must have felt me sigh in relief. What I thought was going to be very difficult turned out to be much better than I'd hoped for. Better still, she agreed that we weren't ready for marriage or a lifetime commitment. Yet, we seemed to be in complete agreement. And then, there was her comment about not having made love yet. How was I going to open that subject?

"Are you a virgin, Dal?" she asked out of nowhere.

"Uh, no, I'm not. It's not like I've had a lot of experience, but I have had some."

"Good. I'm not either and I haven't had a lot of experience either. If you want to, we can add to our experience whenever you're ready," she suggested timidly.

"I wanted to make love to you the first time I met you at the restaurant. You are the most beautiful girl ... woman ... I've ever known." It wasn't the most refined comment, but I meant what I said.

"If you took me back to your house, we could spend some time getting to know each other better." She had a devilish glint in her eye.

"Let's go," I said without another thought. I was going to get my fondest wish by the sound of it.

My house was near the baseball park on Little Mountain and only fifteen minutes or so from where we were.

"I'm on the pill, Dal," she said as I drove.

"Oh ... okay. That's good," was all I could think of to say.

"This is all a bit sudden for you, isn't it," she said, this time in a serious voice.

"Yeah." I wasn't able to think of anything else to add to her comment.

I unlocked the front door and flicked on the lights as we walked through the house. "This is very nice, Dal. You keep it very tidy for a bachelor."

"I have a housekeeping service come in once a week. That makes it easy for me. All I have to do is make the bed and do the dishes."

She turned to me and wrapped her arms around me and kissed me deeply.

"I've been waiting for this for some time now. I had a feeling I would have to make the first move," she smiled.

"Yeah ... well ... like I said, I was being careful."

"Well, tonight's the night to throw caution to the wind and find out just how well we get along together."

We had worked our way down to my bedroom. For some reason, I could never bring myself to move into my parents' bedroom. I had replaced my single twin bed with a queen sized mattress and box spring, not because I needed the extra width, but because it had extra length. There already was a supply of sheets and blankets for that size.

Francesca began unbuttoning my shirt and I just stood like a dummy as she did so. The idea that I was going to see all of her was just now beginning to seep in. She was wearing a pullover tucked into her skirt and I reached for the button that would loosen the waist of the skirt. I was nervously fumbling with it until I felt her hand help me. I slowly pulled down the almost invisible zipper and the skirt dropped to the carpeted floor. The sweater was soft and stretchy and I was easily able to pull it over her head. Now she stood before me, wearing only a bra and panties.

I had imagined dozens of times what her naked body might look like, but the reality was better still. The magnificent golden tone to her lovely body only accentuated her curves. A patch of dark hair covered her sex, trimmed neatly into a nice delta. Her breasts weren't large, but were tipped with dark brown areoles and small nipples. She was a picture of perfection and, as she removed my pants and shorts, she could see my erection as proof of my arousal.

When we were both naked, she embraced me once more and I could feel her hands running up and down my body from shoulders to cheeks. I was doing the same, trying to remember every single curve and hollow of her torso. She turned away to pull down the blanket and sheet on the bed while I dimmed the lights to just a single table lamp that I moved to the floor. I wasn't going to forget a single moment of this if I could help it.

Both of us were showing our inexperience that evening. The first joining was hurried and brief, but not disappointing. I think we both knew that would happen and it made the second time much better. I took my time with foreplay, some of which she had never experienced. Oral sex was part of my experience, but not hers. I think she might have been shocked that I would try something like that, but within a couple of minutes, she realized just how much pleasure she felt, and she relaxed and allowed herself to enjoy it.

When I was restored to full readiness, I entered her slowly and began a measured, deliberate pace that set her off on a trip I suspect she had seldom experienced. She rewarded me with moans and little cries of ecstasy that were unmistakable evidence of my success. I didn't pay attention to how long I lasted, but it was long enough that I knew I had accomplished my goal of giving my new lover the joy of our union.

"That was wonderful, Dal. I've never felt as loved as you made me feel. I think you must be much more experienced than you admit."

"No, not really. But it was a labour of love, I admit. I wanted it to be perfect for you."

"It was. It really was. We are really good together, aren't we," she said, smiling happily as she lay beside me.

"If tonight was any example, we are great together."

"I have an idea for our date tomorrow," she said. "Why don't we plan to have dinner here and then we can watch television ... or something."

"Sure. I'm fine with that." I was grinning when I agreed.

That set a pattern for us over the next few weeks. With the exception of the Thanksgiving long weekend in October, Friday night was "study night," and Saturday night was "date night." Of course, Friday night was largely dedicated to the study of anatomy. The long weekend gave us an extra day to be together.

To Be Continued