It Started in the Rain Ch. 06

"I didn't know you did that. I want it to end. I love Annie and when we get home I want to find her song on any of the J.D. albums and play it, loud. Annie helped me learn how to love. When she died I forgot how for a while. Now, I'm ready to let her name remind me to love instead or reminding me of how much I miss her."

Corine said, "Oh." We were quiet all the rest of the way home.

A blue BMW and a white Chevy Tahoe were parked in front of the house. Megan said, "Brian is here, but I don't know who owns the BMW."

I didn't either. Corine said, "I do. Captain Evans. He's early."

As we got out of the car Abraham Evans got out of the Beemer. He was in crisp chinos and a pull over shirt with a little horse on the chest. We shook hands and he nodded to Corine and Megan. As we turned for the house I said, "If you shake a single hand inside everyone will know you don't belong. We hug. We kiss. You may even get your butt squeezed. You left the Captain back at Point Mugu."

"I'll try to remember." He said.

We walked through an open door into the house. I heard water noises and knew someone was in the pool or the hot tub. I led us out to the pool while giving Abraham the tour. When I stepped outside I saw Brian dive into the deepest part of the pool. I didn't see his face, I recognized his butt.

I said, "Also, you might see nudity. That is Brian."

Brian surfaced and swam to the side, lifting himself out effortlessly. I got a wet hug and a couple slaps on the back. Then he backed away a foot and said, "Dad, I heard a rumor that you were back. I had to come see for myself."

I countered with, "You drove all the way from Costa Rica to see if I was here?"

"No! I flew from Costa Rica to meet the woman who brought you back! She has to be incredible!"

I realized Abe was standing there so I turned Brian towards him and said, "Brian this is Abe. He's not who brought me back to the living, but he knows them. They're back up at Point Mugu working."

Abe had been warned and was almost prepared for the wet hug Brian gave him. When he let it go he stepped back and said, "Career Navy, huh?"

Abe nodded. Brian turned back to me and said, "So when does... wait! You said "them". There's more than one?"

Megan and Corine came out of the house and the conversation was interrupted. Brian was almost dry when he hugged them both. They hauled him inside for food and left Abe and I alone out by the pool.

"Is it busy like this around here often?" Abe asked.

"Lately, yes. For about five years it was silent. I met Kat and the doors flew open. I haven't seen Brian since the day we buried Annie, my ex-wife. Now he's back too. Life is good."

Corine came out and said, "Rina just called. She had planned to take Pete home and bring him back tomorrow, but Megan convinced her to come for dinner first. I think Pete just became the fly to Rina's spider."

Brian came back out eating the last bite of something and trailing Megan and Corine a minute later. Megan stripped and joined Brian in the water. Corine looked at us and shrugged her shoulders, stripped, folding her clothes neatly on the table and dove in.

We watched them frolic in the pool and talk. Brian wanted details about Kat and Pam. Abe wanted to know more about the dynamic he was seeing. At the risk of ending Operation Mae West I told him the answers to his questions.

"Lee, did Megan and Brian grow up in a clothing optional environment?"

"Yes. Especially out here by the pool we wore our one-button suits. Around the house nudity was permitted with limitations. Bare butts don't sit on furniture. Boys don't walk around the house with an erection. Masturbation happens in private and never leaves evidence."

"So, they both saw you and your wife naked often?"

"I'd say it was pretty close to daily."

"You were openly affectionate with your wife in front of them?"

"Yes. In what you didn't ask I heard an inquiry about how open. We didn't engage in coitus, fellatio or cunnilingus when they were observing. They knew, by the time they were seven, what those things were but not from observation. It would be pretty hard to live with a sex educator and not know. Did we pat each other on the butt in front of them? Yes. Kiss in front of them? Yes. Did I fondle Annie in front of them? No, but I was caught a few times."

"May I speak to them about the way they grew up?"

"They are adults. What you talk to them about is between you and them. At the moment all Brian knows is you're Navy. Megan knows who you are and what your role is here. She knows you're a Captain."

"Are you staying dressed because I am?"

"At the moment, you're a guest. I want a guest to be comfortable, so I'm dressed. My guess is, that if you ask Corine to join us, she'll cover up on the way here."

"To really fit in and have Pete be comfortable around me, I should be in the water when he arrives." Abe said.

"Do you have scars?" I asked. He nodded. "Emotional or physical?"

"Physical." He answered.

"If you wear a swim suit will they be covered?"

"Yes, mostly. Why?"

"Then wear a suit. Pete will probably ask you about them. My guess is he'll show you his scars and tell you his story. When you take the suit off it will build a bond between you that will last even after he finds out you're a Navy Captain. That's my best guess."

"I like the way you think. Let me get into my suit."

He got up. I didn't. I didn't go with him. Bathrooms and whatever else he might want are pretty easy to find. As soon as he was inside I dropped my clothes and jumped in.

Corine swam to me and gave me a kiss. "I thought he'd keep you out there, dressed, for the rest of the day!"

"No! I can't do it. After five hours in clothes I have an allergic reaction. The only cure is kissing naked women." We administered the cure. We were still administering the cure when Abe came back out. He had on surf shorts, almost knee length. A scar peeked out at about the spot where an appendix might have been, once upon a time. When he dove in I saw another scar on his back just under his shoulder blade.

Corine didn't let go of me. Megan and Brian swam over to Abe and began getting to know him a little better. I heard Megan ask about the scar on his back.

"Long ago when I was young I was in South East Asia I got stabbed in a fight. That scar is the memory I have to remind me to be grateful to be alive."

"South East Asia is a big place." Brian said. "Where in SEA?"

"Cam Ron Bay, in Viet Nam."

"I assume you weren't there as a tourist?"

"No. If I can ask, what were you doing in Costa Rica?"

"I take people adventuring. Scuba, snorkeling, rafting the rivers, surfing, hiking, all that stuff."

"That explains the muscles and tan, I guess."

Megan said, "No. Brian has looked pretty much like this since he was a senior in high school."

I whispered to Corine, "Pete is going to take a look at Brian and start talking about SEALS."

"Who will convert whom?" Corine asked. She turned in my arms so her butt was against my front. I wrapped my arms around her shoulders. Her left hand held my left forearm while her right hand snaked between us and held my dick. She didn't stroke me, just held me, tenderly.

A look at the clock and I knew we needed a conversation about dinner. Without breaking the holds we had on each other we got closer to Megan, Abe and Brian. I said, "We need to talk about dinner."

Megan smiled and said, "Done! Wasn't that easy?"

"I missed something. What did I miss?"

"When Rina called I asked if they could bring dinner for eight. She said "Sure". Dinner is handled.

"Eight? I only count seven." Abe said. "Lee, Megan, Brian, Corine, me, Rina and Pete."

Megan smiled and said, "You didn't meet Connie. We bumped into her at lunch. I'm thinking she'll be here pretty soon."

"You forgot Bonnie! So did I." I said, "She gets back today. She'll probably come here straight from LAX. (Los Angeles International)"

"It's Ok, we always seem to have enough," Megan said. "and Rina always bring extra."

"Who are Connie and Bonnie?" Abe asked.

"Daddy's lovers, my friends and Corine's friends too."

"Oh." I sensed some unease in his, "Oh." So I asked what the energy shift was all about.

"I've been Navy for a very long time. Like most military services we are conservative. There are rules of conduct and they are strictly followed. I'm learning that I have sent one of my people into an environment that, to say the least, is liberal. I guess I'm having a problem adapting my thinking to allow for this environment to be conducive to healing for one of my SEALs."

Corine moved closer and said, "I've been Navy quite a while, too. And, as conservative as the Navy is for men, it's been my experience it is more restrictive for women. Yet when I listened to Lt. Walters talk about Lee and how he treats her and then I listened to Lt. Dalby talk about him I decided I needed to see for myself. When he came to the base to pick up Pete he handed me a key to this home. He has some different ideas about how to treat people. The best way to understand where he is about people is to hang out and watch how he treats people. My counsel is to watch and learn, Sir."

Abe looked at the naked Navy Commander standing before him and he smiled. He waited a few more seconds and said, "I've just been taught a lesson by a Navy Commander who taught the lesson in her skin uniform. I'd better listen."

I heard the doorbell. I knew it was not to announce someone's arrival; it was a call for help.

"Someone needs helping hands!" I said, "I think dinner has arrived." The pool emptied and all of us went to help. Abe saw Pete leading the procession into the kitchen. He had a grocery bag in each hand, no limp and a big grin on his face. He was followed by Rina carrying two more bags. She said, "There are three more bags in the back of my car."

The bags hid Rina's most striking assets. Abe and Brian went to Rina's car and brought in the bags. The rest of us started setting out dinner. We rounded up a few chairs and gathered around my big table. Rina must have thought we were feeding the U.S. Navy. She brought enough food for at least twenty people.

When Abe got a look at Rina without the bags of food he was stunned. Rina saw the look and whispered loud enough to be heard, "Has he been out at sea a long time?"

Pete answered, "No Ma'am. That's Captain Evans. He runs the hospital on base."

Rina looked him in the face and said, "Navy women have tits, too. I know. I've seen a few lately."

Abe said, "I'm very sorry. I stared. Please accept my apology." He focused on her eyes as he spoke to her.

Rina looked at me and asked, "Friend or foe?"

"Friend." I answered.

Rina smiled and said, "Apology accepted, on one condition." She lifted the camisole up and off. "You have to apologize to the both of these by kissing them and me."

She stepped closer and Abe stepped across the distance as well. He knelt and looked over at Corine, saying, "Corine, please close your eyes for a minute."

Corine said, "Is that an order, Captain?"

"No. Watch if you want." His hands held Rina's sides and he buried his face into her left breast. His face disappeared to his ears in her soft mound.

Rina said, "Oh, he's good!"

A few seconds later, he emerged and pressed into her right breast, just as deeply. Rina's hands held the back of his head and she moaned. When he emerged he stood up and kissed Rina. It was obvious Rina was doing her best to swallow the Captain. I glanced at Pete. His mouth was hanging open and his eyes were wide.

I moved closer to Pete and when Rina and Abe broke their lip-lock I quietly asked Pete, "How you doing?"

"Two days ago I'd have been jealous. Now, I'm happy for both of them. They shared something wonderful." He looked at me, directly and said, "Thank you." It was a prayer.

I asked, "Are we going to eat this feast or watch Rina administer breast therapy?"

Abe said, "We'd better eat. Breast therapy could take days."

Megan added, "Especially if we use Rina's breasts." As we all laughed we moved to take seats at the table. Somehow Megan had organized seating for fifteen. When the eating started there were seven of us at the table. Ten minutes after we started passing plates and bowls the front door opened and Connie joined us. She had found and brought two friends with her. I recognized them as having had lunch with her at "On the Beach."

They brought a huge cake. A carrot cake. Connie remembered dinners from years ago and brought half a sheet cake. I hoped lots of people ate it. Connie introduced everyone to her friends and I introduced the rest of the table to Connie and her friends.

Fifteen minutes later the door opened again and Bonnie walked in with two more friends. Intros were made and more food passed. One of Bonnie's friends looked at Rina and said, "That's incredible! Pardon me if I'm rude, but are those home grown?"

Pete blurted, "They are! I checked." Everyone laughed while Pete blushed, and smiled.

Rina added, "I grew them myself. There is a secret to growing wonderful tits like mine. Unfortunately, I don't know the secret."

During the meal Abe and our new friends asked lots of questions and friendships grew. Connie's friends had heard about her time with Lee and willingly shared with Abe about what she had said.

"She told us that Annie, Lee's wife, had introduced her to Lee and he had helped her with a relationship she was..." Helen said.

"Entangled in." Fran added. "He helped her see that the man she was with was using her, controlling her and she was giving away herself bit by bit."

Helen resumed her tale, "Connie was able to end the relationship and come out stronger. She told us how painful it was to watch Annie get sick and then..."

I added, "Annie died. She divorced me before she was sick enough to know she was dying. She let me care for her the last months of her life."

Connie stepped in. "You are talking about me as if I was a thousand miles away, or worse. Here's the story in a nutshell: Annie introduced me to Lee. I watched how he loved her and how he was towards everyone. I discovered I wanted to love him and when Annie moved back in and Lee took care of her those last months I did my best to take care of Lee,"

Megan asked, "So, why did you go away when Mom died?"

I answered, "She didn't go away. I asked her to go. I knew I wasn't able to love her or anyone the way I wanted to be able to love. She told me she would stay here and take care of me..."

"For as long as it took." Connie said. "I meant it."

She came to me and we kissed again. Not the kiss of the parking lot at "On the Beach", or the one the day five years before when I sent her away. This was the kiss that washed away the years of pain, the years of solitude and loneliness.

Twelve people watched Connie and I kiss. Not a sound was made by any of them. When the kiss ended thirteen people took a collective breath. Megan waited about five seconds and asked, "What does this mean?"

I didn't let go of Connie. We looked at Megan and she asked again, with more clarity in the question, "What does this mean for Kat, Pam, Bonnie and Me? Is it going to be like when Mom was alive? You loved all of us, but you held back because Mom wanted to be the only one you touched?"

In her voice I could hear the pain of living like that, and the pain of knowing what would happen if I pulled back from all of them. I didn't answer, Connie did.

"Megan, if Lee offered to shut down that part of him to be with me, I would say no. Part of why I love him is that he was willing to love all of us and care for Annie like he did. I saw how it hurt him. Annie saw it, too. We even talked about it, when Lee was working or being of service somewhere. She freed Lee so he could love others. I only want to be loved fully and completely like each of you is loved. Lee isn't my man alone. He loves us and that's the way it should be."

Megan came to my arms and Connie's and we hugged. Tears fell. We didn't care who shed them. I knew some of them were mine. I looked up and saw Bonnie and Rina crying. The smallest movement brought both of them to me.

Brian joined the hug and said, "It was worth the trip. Welcome back, Dad."

Abe and Corine joined us, too. When I looked up again I saw Helen, Fran and the two women Bonnie had brought to dinner crying and watching from a few feet away. I said, "You are family, if that speaks to you. You are already loved. Come, join us."

The hug expanded to take us all in. More tears fell and more bodies embraced. After a minute Megan left the hug saying, "Please don't break the hug. I'll be right back."

She ran out of the room and in less than a minute she was back. We all heard the music start, then the tenor voice rang through the house for the first time in over five years, "You fill up my senses, like night in a forest..." Annie's song, John Denver's voice. We all sang, softly at first, then loudly with kisses, laughter and play between the words.

When the music ended the hug broke apart and people moved to various places in the house and back yard. Connie, Megan and I moved to a couch in the living room. We talked, touched and reunited.

A while later Pete came in and asked if we could talk. I motioned him to a chair.

"Lee, Thank you. Thank you for bringing me here and including me in your family. You asked me to stay a while and discover what was here for me, then decide. In the last half and hour or so I've talked with Brian and with Corine and Captain Evans."

I leaned forward, maintaining contact with both Connie and Megan as I leaned. "And?"

"And, I'm going to requalify for SEALS and finish out my enlistment. Sixteen months from now I'll be getting out and looking for work. Brian has offered me a job with his company. I already know we'll do well together as business partners and brothers."

I stood and hugged him in congratulations for picking a path. Connie and Megan hugged him too. He went back out to the pool.

Megan explained Pete to Connie. As she explained Abe and Corine joined us, stopping the explanation. Corine said, "We're going back to the base. Next weekend we want Pete back. We've talked about who's next and if you're up for another project we have one for you, whenever you're ready."

I asked, "How soon can I have Kat and Pam for a couple of days?"

"It's possible I can swap shifts around and give them both the next two days off." Corine said. Abe nodded agreement.

"If you work it out, call me. I'll come get them."

"You want it that way? I can loan them my car."

"I want to come get them." I said. Abe hugged me and went around saying, "Good-bye, for now" before he left. Corine dressed in starched whites, kissed a dozen people and she followed Abe out and gone.

We made the rounds making sure everyone was being taken care of, comfortable and not falling apart. Connie talked to her two friends and let them know they were welcome in my home anytime. Megan and I talked with Bonnie and her friends.

Megan said, "I don't know how that was for you both. We aren't a normal family."

Judi said, "No worries. Bonnie has explained Lee and his life to us before. I just didn't believe her."

Debbie added, "For a long time I thought you were her imaginary friends. She talked about you but none of us had ever seen you."

"And?" I asked.

"If what we just saw is an example of what loving is really all about, I want in. Being loved by you has changed Bonnie's life. I didn't know Connie before today, but I want to be treasured like that." Judi said. Debbie nodded. Tears flowed as they spoke.

I said, "I seldom, if ever, lock the front door. You are welcome here. There is a rule here. This is a loving space. Please only bring loving energy here."

Debbie got her courage together and asked, "How many times do I need to come here and hang out before I get a kiss like the one Connie got?"