Princesa

"I'd wind up a ward of the state, she'd be in prison for years and they'd just get someone else to roll over on my father. He wound up going away, we entered WitSec and moved next to you. Thirteen years later, local cops and the FBI burst into the house and took us away. Men had been sent to kill us. I don't know if it was at the behest of Dad or if it was a strike against him."

I sat there, jaw open, trying to comprehend what she just said. Amber reached across the table and took her hand.

"Yeah, it was... it was a difficult time." She put her bread down and leaned back. "What am I saying? It was the worst day of my life. They gave us new names and relocated us to Seattle. I tried to sneak off a handful of times. I had some romantic notion that I could live with you and your parents and everything would be fine. They finally sat me down and showed me pictures of women that had been killed by cartels. They asked me if that's what I wanted to happen to Mom, and I stopped running away."

Eyes closed, she shivered. "This... it was never supposed to be like this." As she wiped away some tears, Amber came around the table and hugged her.

My voice caught as I spoke. "Haley, I'm so sorry. We never knew. It was just so... You were there and then you were gone. It was like aliens came and scooped you up. I can't even imagine... So, he's not a threat anymore?"

"He's dead, Sam. Years back, actually. I moved down to Memphis to teach and I've been there ever since."

A pall settled over the rest of our meal. The food was excellent, the company wonderful and the mood was dark.

After the meal we enjoyed caffè macchiatos and some gelato. Amber tried to lighten the mood.

"So, is there a man in your life? Anyone special? Do you have any children?"

"No. No to all three. It... I was married for a few years. It was a nightmare. I married to be married, not because I loved him. There wasn't much to love. He wasn't the best of men. Then my girlfriend broke up with me the day before Valentine's Day. I've been taking stock of my life since then, hence, the whole 'pack up and move across the globe' thing."

This was breaking my heart. Princesa deserved better. "So, you live in Memphis?"

"I guess. My lease was up last week, and I didn't renew. I'm staying with Mom in Cincinnati until I figure out what's going on."

"She lives in Cincinnati? That's fantastic! We need to get her to drive down. My folks are going to flip. Amber, next weekend? That work?"

"I think so. Hold on." She scanned through her phone. "That'd be perfect. And plan on staying the weekend. We have plenty of space. You know, we have a guest house. It's really nice. You could stay with us as long or often as you'd like if you want to get away from your mom for a while. If I had to live with my mom, I'd lose my mind."

Eyes downcast, Haley smiled sadly. "I sort of need to stay close or get back to the area. I see someone once a week." She looked up. "Oh, no, I meant, you know, talk to someone. Why am I telling you all this? I'm sorry, I'm ruining our evening. Crazy girl from your past bringing everyone down."

Looking directly at her, I leaned forward. "Haley, look at me. This is one of the best days that I can remember. It feels like a piece of me that was missing has been restored. I feel, I don't know, whole. You're not bringing anyone down. This day is a gift."

She looked up, same chocolate eyes that I knew so well looking at me. "I... Thank you. I feel the same. It's just so, it feels strange. I've been angry for so long."

I leaned back. "At me?"

She looked at her plate again. "Look, it makes no sense. I know that. I'm not crazy. But it's still there. We... Sam, you were my knight, my prince. You were my hero and I was the princess. You were supposed to come and find me, make my world make sense again. It's not your fault. I know that here." She tapped her head. "But for the longest time I couldn't reconcile everything here." She tapped her chest.

Haley looked up at me. "After it was safe, I tried to... I didn't know what to do or how to go about it. I wrote to you via the Browns. I even wrote to Starbucks and the agency they use to make their commercials. Your old agent was useless. I tried to find your parents, but they had moved. Sam, did you, did you ever..."

"Haley, I looked. I spent so much time looking. I called the police, the CIA, the FBI. Everyone was polite to the kid too stupid to give up. I stole any mail that showed up for you or your mom. I went to the library and searched microfiche for your names. I did everything I could. We even hired investigators when I was playing in Miami."

She was crying. I was crying. My wife was pissed. "Why do I have to keep telling you to hug her, you goof?"

So I did. I went around the table and we hugged. I could almost feel the tension seeping out of her. When I let go, she continued the hug. Eventually she stepped back and sat down again.

We finished our meal, paid and walked to the parking lot. Amber hugged Haley again, admonishing her. "Look, we're not taking no for an answer. You need to come down this weekend. Stay as long as you'd like."

The night was quiet as we drove back to the hotel.

"I feel so bad for her, Sam. No one should have to go through that. She lives wondering if her father tried to have her killed."

"Yeah. I worried about her, sure, but my concern for her was more in the abstract, you know? I was actually more concerned about me and my pain. And then she thought that I should have found her. It's... it's a lot. I don't know. And divorced from a guy, and her last relationship was with a woman."

"Yeah, I noticed. Does that, uh, bother you?"

I looked at her and smiled, a little puzzled. "Her being with a woman? Of course not. You know me. As long as they are consenting adults and no one's getting hurt, I'm fine with whatever people want to do."

"No, I know. I meant Haley. Specifically. Not in general, your opinion on, well, I don't know, bisexuals or gay people or whatever, but specifically Haley. Someone you care about."

This was getting weird.

"Honey, if there's no coercion or anything weird, if she's happy, I'm happy."

Amber was looking out the side window. "Right, sure. Of course."

The rest of the drive was quiet.

I stopped at the front desk to ask them to send up a couple of more towels for the showers after working out, and met Amber in the room. She was wearing a sheer black bra that barely constrained her ample breasts and a pair of midnight-blue boyshorts. After all those years she could still make me feel like that nervous college kid I was when we met.

I stood, staring and she walked towards me, her dark-red hair partially covering her face. She reached up and I leaned down as she shook her hair in place behind her. Looking up into my eyes, she reached her arms around my neck. With a strength that belied her size, she pulled me down and kissed me.

Keeping one hand behind my head, she slipped the other down, under my belt, into my pants, further, further. Light as a feather, her fingers teased just above the root of my cock. My hips shifted up and I moaned into her mouth. Fingers encircling me, she gently massaged and rubbed as I grew.

"Ohhh, I think Little Mr. Big Sam wants to come out and play."

She slipped to her knees in the poorly lit room, her titian hair obscuring her face while she slowly, slowly worked my belt loose. Thighs, forearms, buttocks and fists clenched and released, clenched and released as she teased me with her lack of speed, her palm and wrist occasionally brushing against my growing interest.

As the belt came loose and my zipper was lowered, Amber looked up at me with a wicked smile. She had some difficulty pulling the elastic of my Sunspel briefs over my constrained cock. With the underwear around my knees, she took hold of my shaft, four fingers below and thumb above, with a nail lightly running along the vein as she stroked me.

"Amber... Amber, please."

She didn't look up, but I could see her evil little smile. "Sam, did you want something? Was there something you were hoping I would do, dear?"

"Yes, dammit. Stop teasing me." I encircled some of her hair around my fist but didn't guide her head. She leaned forward and kissed behind her hand as it slid along my length. When she got to the head, she slipped it into her mouth. Her tongue took over the teasing; darting, flicking. I fought the urge to shove deeper and was rewarded when she put her hands on my ass and pushed her mouth down.

Amber went as deep as she could before pulling back. After a light, playful nip that used to scare the crap out of me, she went back down. Amber knew I wouldn't hurt or force her, which gave her the confidence to take her time and play. Her tongue worked miracles and I was convinced that no other man alive could have lasted as long as I had.

When I finally released a torrent of my love, she accepted it all. Looking up at me, she showed me what was left on her tongue, closed her mouth and swallowed the last of it. I collapsed onto the bed.

Amber went into the bathroom, brushed her teeth, used some mouthwash and returned to join me. We lay entwined while I recuperated and then returned the favor, getting her off twice. I awoke in the middle of the night to find her swallowing my cock again before straddling me and riding me for all she was worth.

I wasn't sure what had gotten her so riled up, but I wasn't complaining.

Maybe other people have, but I'd never experienced anything as awkward as a veteran in a wheelchair thanking me for coming to see them. I made millions of dollars playing a game for kids while they put their lives on the line for our country. I stoically accepted their thanks and felt like a fraud. Amber knew what I was feeling every time it happened. She'd step closer and touch my arm, my hand or my back. She'd engage the veteran in conversation in case I needed to step out of the room and collect myself.

If you were to measure my strength against my wife's, it would be no contest. On a daily basis she dealt with children who were in dire need of surgery, many of whom she knew wouldn't make it to see the new year. She was my rock, my hero. I tried not to lean on her strength too much. She needed it much more than I did.

The gentleman from the VA who was working with us had the title of Senior Leadership Assistant. A tall middle-aged man, he managed to be simultaneously friendly and professional. Towards the end of the day, he pulled us into a side room.

"Sam, the last group we're going to see are with our homeless veterans. They served in Korea and a lot of their family is gone or are too old to come by too often. It's... well, it's a little heartbreaking. They're going to talk to you about athletes and games from when they were young. Whatever you answer is fine. To be honest, they just want to talk, to have someone pay attention to them. At least one of them is going to ask you when you're coming back. I'll jump in when that happens. Let me take that question, it's what I'm paid for."

It wasn't my first visit to a VA, so I knew what he was talking about. Some had housing for homeless vets, some didn't. It always wrecked me to think that someone who served didn't have a permanent roof over their head.

He was right. Part of our time with them was heartbreaking. They were friendly and excited to see us. I wanted to have it catered, but the facilities dietitians nixed that idea. We were supposed to be done by 4:30, but we ate dinner with them and stayed until 7:00. A few of the residents asked me to call their children for them to let them know that they were okay.

Staring out the window, I pretended not to cry as Amber drove us back to the hotel. She pretended not to notice.

I was always a bit embarrassed when new friends first visited our house. It could be a bit much when you arrive, but it was our home and we loved it. It was considerably more awkward when Mrs. Alverado pulled up in her VW Beetle. It wasn't a new car. It wasn't a car that was close to being new. Her luggage was a bit threadbare and worn.

There were grey streaks in her once black hair, but she was still a lovely and attractive woman. Mom and Dad stepped out on the porch as I walked out to greet her.

"Look at you! My Sammy, all grown up and so big. You won't be needing that chair to steal the cookies anymore." She smiled and wrapped her arms around me.

Pulling back, I looked down at her. "I told you, it was the dog. He loved cookies."

"Yes, the dog. Did you ever find him, 'cause we never had a dog."

"No, he was way too smart for that. I'm sure he was breaking into other houses so more kids could blame him."

We laughed, and I carried in her bags. She hugged Mom and Dad and they immediately started talking as if no time had elapsed. Amber had some crudité set up, and we sat around in the kitchen and talked.

"So, Mrs. Alverado, you still working for an art dealer? Did they hook you up with a new one in Seattle?"

"It's Sylvie, dear. If people in their thirties are going to call me Mrs. Alverado, I'm going to feel ancient. No, I'm actually a social worker. With, well, with everything that happened with Haley, I'm just so grateful that we didn't fall through the cracks. I wanted to do what I could for children that don't have other resources."

"Wow, that's wonderful. Do you enjoy it?"

"Sometimes. It might be better to say that I find it rewarding. It's difficult, emotionally. Draining. But I feel better for having done what I could. I'm back to school, though. University of Cincinnati for my doctorate in Clinical Psychology. I want to work with the children that they place in WitSec. I saw what it did to Haley and, well, it pushes me."

I smiled, a little sadly, and pulled her in for a hug. "Well, we found each other again. Things are looking up. It sounds, I don't know, noble. What you're doing and what you want to do. It's sort of crazy, though. Stumbling into Haley while getting coffee. Like a needle in a haystack."

"It wasn't quite that random, but still against the odds. After seeing your commercials, Haley never went anywhere other than Starbucks for coffee. It was silly. I mean how many Starbucks are in Ohio and what were the chances that you would be in that same one at the same time, but it was something she could cling to until it became a habit. And then... well, look what happened." She reached up and cupped my cheek. "We found my little Sam."

Things got a bit lighter as we talked about my career, old mutual friends and what had happened over the past two decades. She held my son on her lap as she spoke, constantly talking to him and asking questions during breaks in the conversation. I'm a bit biased, but in my humble opinion he's the most brilliant and handsomest boy on the planet.

I was bringing up a case of bottled water and two twelve-packs of beer when Mom called down the stairs.

"Honey? Haley's here."

"I'm on my way up."

It seemed that Amber and Haley had been speaking every day since we had met the previous week. They made plans for us to visit Germantown, take Sammy to the COSI science museum, the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium. She was staying until Wednesday, so we had time to fit in everything.

I was in the kitchen when the women came through the front door. Haley was holding Sammy in her arms. "Sam, he looks just like you! He's your mini-me."

Laughing, I replied. "Except he's not a goofy looking kid growing out of his clothes every other month. He got his mother's looks, thankfully."

"Don't say that, you're both very handsome."

We spent the weekend together, the seven of us laughing, getting to know each other again and playing the tourist in our hometown. Sylvie and Haley took the guest house and Mom and Dad used a spare bedroom.

Amber toned down her bathing suit selection while we had guests, and we spent time in the indoor pool, Sammy urging everyone to jump in. The kid swam like a fish. I would be ecstatic if he got my athleticism and Amber's looks and brains. She looked amazing. The man, and it had to be a man, who invented the bikini must have been a modern Nostradamus. It was created for my wife.

She played her role as the professional, demure doctor to a T, but there are times when that woman radiated pure sex. If she was wearing her black microkini she couldn't step out of the pool without me getting hard. She'd shake that wet, dark-red hair behind her and slowly walk out, large breasts high on her chest, nipples hard. Her hips moved as if to some unheard music and I'd stare, unable to pull my eyes away.

Amber wore one-piece suits when we had company, but still looked great. Haley was dark where Amber was light. Her olive skin absorbed the light, always making you wonder what was being hidden. She was mystery and seduction where Amber was raw sexuality. I wondered if Amber would lend her a bikini after the parents left. Twenty years of life had done nothing but improve her body. She had put on some weight in all the right places and what had been physical promises at sixteen became promises fulfilled at thirty-five.

Sammy's new Aunt Haley quickly became an obsession. He had great taste. Sammy was always holding her hand, pulling her this way or that. Whenever we had a minute to sit down, he'd whip out a board game, a Disney movie or a book.

I was walking past his room on Monday evening when I heard her voice. Poking my head into Sammy's room, he was lying in bed, recumbent under his Wall-E blankets, propped up on extra pillows, legs straight out. Haley was sitting on the end of the bed, carefully not jostling him.

"You are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think," Her voice was full and rich, lilting like I had remembered. "said Christopher Robin to Pooh."

Stepping back into the hall, I leaned against the wall as she read to him. I didn't know how much time passed as I listened to her voice recite the words I knew so well. I was happy and sad, confused and fulfilled. All that time wasted, but she was there, and she was with us.

As I lay in bed, Amber rolled over and rested her hand on my chest, slid it down and held my hand in hers. "Sam, what's wrong?"

I sighed. "This isn't right. This isn't the way it's supposed to be. With Haley. It's like life took a left turn and went off the rails."

I felt her hand tighten and her sudden inhalation. Rolling over, I kissed my wife. "That's not what I'm talking about. Haley's a beautiful, peaceful pond holding my childhood memories and the essence of who I was. There's a tire swing hung from a branch. There's a rowboat and fishing rods. She's my childhood. You're the ocean. All-consuming. Every part of me is wrapped up in you. I love you more than I can express.

"What I'm saying is that Haley should be married and living down the block from us. She should have kids of her own and we'd have BBQs and movie nights. I love your sister, but Haley should be Sammy's godmother. I feel like she was stolen from our lives and now she's leaving again."

She relaxed. "I get that, Sam, but that's the way life is. If that idiot hadn't hit you in the head, we'd never have met. It doesn't make it any easier, but you have to take the good with the bad."

Lifting my hand in two of her own, Amber kissed my knuckles and held my hand to her cheek. "We'd have two godmothers, 'cause my sister's perfect and I don't want to hear anything else about it. I love you, my husband. It kills me that you're losing Haley again so soon after finding her but think about where you were 90 days ago. Now you know. There's no more mystery. She's okay, she's safe and she'll stay in contact. She's in our lives."