Tricia

"After that hot dog, I shouldn't be hungry again until Tuesday, but, I'm about ready to eat a horse. Let's eat first."

Jared smiled and pulled out his cell phone. "Our table will be waiting when we arrive," he said, grinning as he finished the call. They headed south on Lake Shore, then just before entering the Loop, turned west for a few blocks, and were lucky enough to find some on street parking.

Jared led his companion to what looked like an alley, and in the alley, a storefront which apparently had once been a bakery. A line was forming and had already reached the entry to the alley. Jared led his companion to the door where he gave his name and was granted entry immediately.

"Jared, you old horse doctor!"

"Hey, Mike! Looks like the hotdog cart is doing well. How is the restaurant?"

"We're struggling to get everyone fed. It's amazing what you can do with chili beans and oatmeal. Oh ho! Who's this?" he asked, catching sight of Tricia.

"Mikail Mykelos, Patricia DiMaria, a new neighbor. Mike owns this diner and is responsible for the food. What'd you cook for tonight? Something good, I hope."

"Nice to meet you, Patricia. For you, we have stuffed sole, lamb shanks, or vegetarian pastisto. For those individuals who have problems making up their mind, we offer a sample plate, with a small portion of each. For Jared, I think I can scare up a box of mac and cheese." He turned, pointing. "Your table is right over here. Can I bring you some wine?"

Tricia confessed to being one of those who had trouble deciding on a meal in restaurants she was unfamiliar with, and ordered the sample plate, a popular choice, she gathered, looking around. Jared passed on the mac and cheese and had the lamb shanks, braised with seasonal vegetables. The food proved to be superb, and the servings, large enough to be satisfying, small enough so there were no leftovers.

Although it was a busy Saturday night, when they finished their entrees, Mike came out to personally deliver their dessert and sit with them for a few minutes. Dessert was a piece of pistachio and cashew baklava flavored with lavender and cinnamon, sweetened with clover honey, served with a dollop of sweetened Greek yogurt.

As Mike sat down, Jared asked him, "Mike, do you remember the M.A.S.H. episode when Hawkeye phoned a place here in the city for an order of ribs?"

"Yeah. Adam's Ribs. It's a real place. Out on West Washington."

"Really, still in business? Do you know where?"

"Not exact, three, four miles out. Around the 900 block, maybe a little further, I think. Why? You going to abandon me again?"

"No, trying it is one of the items on Tricia's list of touristy things to do while she gets to know the city, just like you were."

"Thank you, Miss Tricia, I'm honored. Yeah, Adam's is still there, and, I hear, just as good. Call me when you decide to go. If I'm free, maybe Penny and I can join you."

"Sounds like a plan. How is she? And the kids?"

"All fine. You should come out and see for yourself sometime. When I tell her you came in tonight, she'll have a fit because she wasn't here."

"Tell her I promise to come out soon. It depends on this new contract."

"'Kay. Eat up, before the flies carry it away. See you soon?" he asked, getting up.

"Promise."

Tricia and Jared both complimented Mike on the fine meal. When they got out of the eatery, it was twilight.

"Hopefully, the lights on the Picasso are working this week," quipped Jared as they walked to the car.

"Thank you for a lovely day so far. Have you known Mike long?"

"His mom was my first baby sitter. She was pregnant with him then, when I was three, I think. Must be, I'm four years older. Sometimes I tease him and remind him I was his first boss in the food business. I was working in the bakery his dad ran there when he started. I introduced him to Penny, and was his best man when they married."

He was quiet for a long time, concentrating on driving in the suddenly dense traffic, then, "All day, something has been nagging at me. I know I saw you one night at McG's, and I saw you one morning on the El, but have we met someplace else?"

"Just the night you tried to run over me, and wouldn't let go."

"The grocery store! I'm an idiot. Forgive me. That night I had just returned from Cincinnati and was thinking about what I had got done and what still needed doing. And when I saw your face, I could have sworn we had met somewhere, that I should have known you, and couldn't place you. You sort of look like your cousin, Carole, but not enough to recognize her in you."

Suddenly he pulled over next to a concrete paved plaza. "Close your eyes," he ordered. She complied and heard him open his door and then close it. She heard her door open and then Jared was taking her hand. "Keep them closed until I tell you to open them." His arm went around her waist and she felt him lead her around the front of the car. "Step up." Then he stopped and his hands on her waist turned her slightly.

"Open." And there, lit by floodlights, was the magnificent sight. Fifty feet tall, 160 tons of what–some said it was P's mistress, some said his dog, some said it was Peace, others said it was a waste. Tricia thought it was beautiful, awe inspiring.

After taking several photos of the sculpture and of her and the tall figure, they got back in the car and drove the short distance to Grant Park. It was nearly dark, stars plainly visible over the park, in the dark sky over the lake. He took advantage of a lull in the oncoming traffic and, utilizing the capabilities of his British sports car, executed a U-turn on Michigan Boulevard. Again, he was fortunate and found some parking at ground level not far from the fountain.

It had been a few years since he had been down here; he hoped he was correct. As they neared the fountain, the crowds started to thicken. Suddenly, the fountain started spouting water into the air, just barely visible in the dusky light. Then the pool surrounding the founts began to glow; then, as if the glowing water were being shot into the air, the individual founts began to glow as they danced in the air.

Jared heard Tricia's gasp of amazement, then they both joined the round of applause which went through the crowd. He pulled her in front of him and wrapped both arms around her waist, to hold her to him while they watched the light and water show. When it was done, she turned in his arms and lifted hers to go around his neck.

"Thank you. This was a lovely end to a fantastic day. I can't remember the last time I enjoyed a day this much." She reached up and captured his mouth in a light kiss, which Jared returned.

"My pleasure," he said when they separated. "It has been years since I've been down here for this, or visited Old Town. And way too long since I've been to Mikes'. His arms were still around her waist, hers, around his neck. He bent to kiss her again, saying "Thank you, for giving me a reason."

This kiss lasted longer than the first, and while tongues were not involved, lips yielded and opened. Both were slightly breathless when they separated. "Uh, we should get back to the car," he stammered.

"Take me home," she whispered, her arms still around his neck, their bodies separated by an inch.

As they stepped off the elevator, Jared put his arm around Tricia's back, his hand just grazing the underside of her breast. He was slightly surprised at the firmness he detected. At her door, she turned and smiled at him. "Coming in?" she invited, handing him her keys.

Inside, in the living room, she continued, "If you'll give me just a few minutes, there's beer in the fridge, port in the decanter on the sideboard. Would you pour me a glass of wine, please?" She then disappeared downstairs. A few minutes later, she called to him, "Jared? Bring our drinks and come down, would you?"

Puzzled, nervous, arousal beginning, he made his way down the stairs. There were lights in only one of the rooms on the lower level. Entering, he was met with a wondrous sight. Only the bedside lights were on. Tricia was sitting in bed, a tentative smile on her face, covers around her waist. Her long strawberry blonde hair was falling over her shoulders, almost to the top of the bra she still wore.

She patted the side of the bed, next to her. As he sat, he handed her the glass of port he had brought for her. She took a sip, then looked at him. "There are about six dozen things I want to say, and I don't know where to begin. First, thank you again for today. I had a marvelous time."

Jared started to reply, but was shushed. "I need to get all of this out now, or I never will. Please believe that I am not usually this forward," she said, gesturing to indicate the room and her dress, "but I really like you, and want you to know me, the me nobody else knows.

"Nine years ago I was engaged to be married. My fiancé and I were living together in Madison. One night, when we were making love, he found a hardness in my breast. Over the next several weeks, after all the usual tests, my doctor and I decided to do a simple lumpectomy. One of fate's dirty tricks, the morning of the surgery, on the way to the hospital, he was in an auto accident, and broke his leg.

"The surgeon who replaced him was totally unfamiliar with the case, and instead biopsied the lump; the pathologist mixed up my sample with somebody else's and called down that it was worse than it really was, so the doctor started a radical mastectomy. About the time he finished removing the breast, pathology called back, with the correct result." She leaned forward. "Unhook me please."

Jared set his beer on the bedside table and put his arms around her, and released the hook and eye and closures. As she sat back, the bra fell down Tricia's arms, revealing one lovely breast, and one faded scar. "And guess who's apparently allergic to the material they use to make breast implants. When they tried to reconstruct the breast, my body rejected the implant in less than 48 hours. I was hospitalized longer for that than I was for the surgery."

"Your fiancé?"

"Couldn't handle it, especially after my body rejected the implant. He moved out while I was in the hospital, recovering from the rejection. Drove me home when I was discharged, and told me at the front door he had moved. I was still recovering from the surgery, sick as a dog, supposed to keep off my feet and limit my physical activity, and my planned caretaker was last seen disappearing over the hill. Which leads to the next thing I want you to know about me. He was the last person I've had sex with."

"There have been two others who have sat where you are, men I thought I was in love with, whom I thought loved me, or could. At the fountain, I knew this would come up sooner or later. Rather than be hurt and disappointed later, I decided to reveal myself to you early. If you can handle it now, then you're invited to stay for breakfast. If it's too much to ask this soon, I'm sorry."

Jared leaned forward, cutting off whatever else she was going to say with a tender kiss, his hand coming up to cradle her breast. Initially, she sat there, tense. As the kiss progressed, and his fingers caressed her nipple, she relaxed and sank back into her pillows.

When their lips separated, Jared dropped his head and traced her scar with his tongue and lips, covering the entire area with kisses. When he was done, he raised his head and asked her, "How do you like your eggs?"

In the morning, Jared was wakened by the strange sensation of a moist tongue circling his nipples in between small scraping nips at them while a small hand explored his testes. "Good morning," he moaned, "something I can do for you?"

Tricia moved her hand to his half flaccid prick. "Not with this, at least not yet. I thought guys always woke up ready to go. Did I wear you out last night?"

"Not that you didn't try, but no, three times isn't unusual for me. The five AM trip to drain my bladder is more likely why the old dog isn't up yet. How are you, this morning, besides, apparently, a little randy?"

"I am not a little randy! I object to that!" she pouted. "I'm a lot randy! Like I said last night, it's been over eight years since I've done this. Last night reminded me how much fun, and exciting it is, thank you. It was the perfect ending to a wonderful day." Her hand was busy, playing with his 'old dog,' with the expected result. "Does this mean you're ready to play some more?"

Jared laughed and pulled her onto him, her knees astraddle his hips. "Somehow, I think I will always be ready to play with you. Last night, in here, was one of the best times I have ever had." His hands were resting on her ass. He moved one to explore her lady and found it leaking dew. He pulled her forward so old dog was free and positioned for entry.

Tricia felt him knocking at her lady's door and grinned, sliding back down his body, swallowing his old dog in her quim. She pushed herself up on her knees and began her single breasted version of the mating dance. When he reached for her, she leaned forward so Jared could capture her nipple with his mouth while his fingers lightly caressed the faded scar marking the location of the missing mammary.

Like the five she had experienced last night, her first orgasm this morning came without buildup or warning. It was suddenly just there, immobilizing her as Jared continued his thrusting into her spasming sheath, extending the sensations she was having. She fell forward on to his chest, catching her breath, as he slowed his actions, allowing her to recover.

In a few moments, almost reflexively, her hips began to move with him, and soon they were back in sync, moving in reciprocation with each other, until, at last, Jared felt the familiar tingle in his sac, then the tightening, and the need to be as deep in his lover as possible.

Tricia felt the change in rhythm, the lengthening and swelling of him inside her and pushed back onto him as far as she could, then felt the spasming inside her, followed immediately by the heat of his cream as it splashed against her walls, triggering her own climax, so that her spasms milked the male member still spilling its seed.

She laid on his chest, recovering again, his old dog nearly spent, barely inside her. "I'm not at all sorry we did this, but it might have been better if I had waited until we had gone out a few more times," she said, her chin resting on his breastbone. "I think you may be addictive."

"Hmmh?"

"We can't really count you running over me, or the times we saw each other in passing, so we've only known each other, what, eighteen hours or so. And I'm contemplating tying you to the bed so I can play with you whenever I want," she said with a big grin. "If we had gone out a few more times, then maybe I wouldn't have to tie you down. You might want to stay."

"Trish, I..."

"Hush. I said I'm not sorry, and nobody owes anybody more than breakfast. I had a good time, and I think you did, too. I hope we can repeat it, sometime soon." She started to push away from him, only to be caught and pulled back. Jared lifted her chin and pulled her to him for a kiss.

"Trish, when it comes to relationships, I'm usually pretty conservative. Unless it's someone I've known for a bit, I don't kiss on first dates, and sometimes, not even by the third. When it comes to sex, my rule has always been, based on what I know, is this a person I could marry and be happy with. From Old Town on, I felt the answer to that question was yes; and I knew at the fountain that I wanted to make love to you.

"Right now, I can promise you two things. When I'm in the City, you are welcome to the old dog whenever you want him, and, with one exception, you are the only one he'll be available to."

"Suzanne?"

"How'd you know?"

"After your last trip to L.A., she called and said you two had talked about your moving out there. She wondered if we had met yet. She wanted to know what I thought about you."

"I need to call her..."

"Wait a minute. How often will you need to go there, and for how long?"

"For a week, week and a half, every four or five weeks, probably for the next year."

"Other than what you just said, and I thank you for that. But, that aside, I don't have any real claim on you, and if you want to continue sleeping with Suzanne, then I don't object. If we're going to be exclusive, as you implied, then I'd rather know what you're doing, and who with, than not know, and wonder. And, she's been a good friend, even if her brother is a shithead. She can't help that. I wouldn't want her to feel like I stole her guy."

"Her brother?"

"Was the second guy I showed my scar to. It was about four years after the operation, and it still looked kinda raw, I guess. He vomited, on the bed." She smiled. "I prefer your reaction. Want to shower with me?"

"Delighted."

Jared's left hand covered her scar as his other hand maneuvered the wash cloth over her back and buttocks. "Don't misunderstand. I like your body as it is, but how long has it been since you've talked with anyone about reconstruction. They have made some marvelous progress in materials, and in anti-rejection medications."

"Not since it happened. The hospital assumed the cost, and promised life time care related to the mistakes. When they tried to reconstruct the breast with an implant, the doctor said they tried the latest and best implants available. Is there a way to try without going through the surgery?" She looked at him, her expression a mixture of hope and fear.

He took down the handheld shower head and directed it at her body, rinsing away the soap. "It sounds, from what you said about the speed of rejection, that what happened was really just an allergic reaction to the material the implant was made from. It would make sense to talk with an allergist, and with a plastic surgeon familiar with the materials in use at the time." He turned the water off and opened the shower. "You said the hospital agreed to pay costs for care related to the mistakes. Seems this would qualify," he said, wrapping her in a towel.

Tricia made rock buns for breakfast while Jared put together the fixings for a bacon, mushroom and cheese omelet. After breakfast, they went out for a paper then back to share it. After a matinee at a neighborhood cineplex, the pair stopped at McG's for a drink.

Two of his frequent partners were there, as part of a group of couples. He saw them as soon as he and Tricia entered the bar, and made his way to their table. He was greeted warmly by the two women, not so warmly by their dates. He acknowledged the others in the group, then introduced Tricia, "I''d like you all to meet my fiancé, Trish DiMaria."

Tricia's only reaction was to squeeze the hand she was holding harder. The two old girlfriends blinked and let their mouths fall open in a mixture of amazement and disappointment. All the men relaxed and smiled. Room was made for them at the table and a round of drinks ordered. After the second round, the couple made their excuses and left. Once in the street, Jared heaved a sigh of relief. "Well, that was good luck, and it went well, don't you think?"

"Did you mean it? About me? What you said?" He turned to her and took her in his arms.

"In the words of my Marine-Sergeant-turned-Priest-cousin, fuckin' A I meant it! Was I wrong?"

"Then, Jared Wilkins, I only have three words for you." She pushed her crotch into his. "Take me home!"