Are You Decent, My Dear?

But an evil, seductive thought gradually began to dance around the edge of Lewis' mind. He tried to resist, but eventually it bloomed: this creature before me could be Julia. She too has a cunt; I know because I've seen it. Lovely and pure she may be, but Julia's body could give a man the same pleasure as Meg's. And it would be utterly divine to mount my cousin!

The thought was mortifying. At long last Lewis felt genuine shame, even disgrace. I cannot think of Julia this way, he said to himself. I cannot! But he did.

The idea was as well electrifying. Lewis had thought his cock to be hard, but the mental image of Julia on her knees, offering herself in such an unladylike fashion, caused his manhood to swell into a raging beast. Tossing his wine glass onto the bed, he began to drive into Meg like an animal in heat. One brutish thrust followed another as he tried to bury himself ever deeper in the woman's cunt.

Within moments Lewis felt an ecstatic rush as he reached orgasm, crying out, "Ah yess!" as a great flood of semen gushed out of him. His climax seemed to go on and on, as if he were imparting some essence of himself, an offering to whatever spirit ruled the animal nature of a man.

Eventually he was drained, still gasping for breath. But even now he could not abandon the sheath that so warmly held him. He leaned forward, sliding his hands under Meg's camisole and cupping her great loose breasts in his hands.

"Not yet, darling Julia," he whispered, as in a trance, "not yet. I want more of you, my pet, all of you!"

Like a man possessed, Lewis continued to pound into Meg, subjecting her to powerful thrusts that revived his flagging cock and again gave him the rapture he craved. Now he was utterly under the spell that had come over him; taking a man's pleasure with the virgin Julia.

He held Meg in a fierce grip. "Ah, savor the cock, Julia my love. Does is not satisfy! Your delicious cunt is pure heaven, my darling! How perfect we are together!"

All too soon Lewis felt again the rush of semen that sent chills of electricity throughout him. So enthralled was he that his second orgasm seemed no less sublime than the first. For a long time he held Meg, relishing every moment of this bliss.

Breathing hard and now covered with oily sweat, he finally released the whore and sank back upon the bed. Meg rose and turned around. Still on her knees, semen oozing down her legs, she gave him an amused look.

"Well laddie, ye got yer money's worth of pussy tonight. And ye called me Julia!"

At last coming to his senses, Lewis murmured, "Oh my God, I did, didn't I? I don't know what came over me. I'm sorry, Meg old girl. Truly sorry."

The woman chuckled, leaning forward to tousle his sand-colored hair. "Ah, never ye mind. Ye've always been an excitable laddie. Tain't the first time I've been called another name. One of me whoremasters, as soon as he buries his cock in me, starts calling me Mother. Fancy that."

Meg got off the bed and began to cleanse his semen from her thighs and cunt, as nonchalantly as if she were washing her hands for dinner. Glancing to Lewis, she smiled as she said, "And all that from just seeing yer sweet angel's bum. Hate to think what might happen if she spread her legs and gave ye a good look at her royal puss!"

Lewis' embarrassment over his behavior now flared as anger. "Meg, no! Don't you dare say anything disrespectful about Julia! I will not stand for it!"

"Ah laddie, but yer're the one wha .."

"No, no! I just lost control, that's all! But I can't!" He grabbed the bottle of port and filled his glass, draining half in one swallow. "Julia Bannister is everything that is pure and noble about this world. I must not think of her any other way!"

"Remind me, is this delicate flower blood kin to you?"

"No, we're only related through marriage. I must treat Julia with respect and dignity, and I want to. But oh, Meg, if you could see her! Her face, her body, she's a vision! I guess I've always had feelings for her. Only today have I realized it. And to think she'll probably never speak to me again."

Meg sat back down on the bed, patting him on the thigh. "Seems to me yer're over head and ears in love, laddie, that's for sure. So what are ye goin' to do about it?"

Lewis drained the last of his port. "I have no idea," he murmured.

*******

It seemed so innocuous at the time. Lewis had entered Julia's bedchamber in the spirit of wanting only to admire a wonder of nature, as one might enjoy a glorious sunset or a meadow of flowers. Or in this case, a young woman's nude figure.

But the effects of that rash act continued to ripple through his life. He was now a pariah to his relatives. At least once a day, his mother Wilma would launch into a tirade about how shamefully he had behaved, his worst offense being that his action reflected badly on her. "You're just like your late father Raymond!" she declared, which for Wilma was the ultimate condemnation.

At first Lewis was unrepentant; for him it was water off a duck's back. But as time passed, Lewis' attitude changed entirely. The thought of what he had done gradually became intolerable, like a delicious apple that slowly but surely turns overripe and distasteful. Eventually the memory of it brought a deep sigh of regret.

His first thought each morning, his last thought every night, was of the lovely Julia Bannister. He was haunted by what he had realized, all too late, about his feelings toward her. At last the young man understood how little had been gained and how much had been lost on that June evening at Greenleaf.

On a cool afternoon in September, with clouds gathering in the west and the first rumbles of thunder, Lewis took a hansom cab to the two-story brick residence of Mrs. Alice Bannister and her only daughter Julia. Dressed in a blue worsted serge suit and ascot tie, he rang the heavy brass knocker on their front door. When a maid answered, Lewis gave his name and requested an audience with the lady of the house. He was shown to the parlor and told to wait for Mrs. Bannister.

That august lady shortly entered. Alice Bannister was wearing a dark silk day dress, all poufs and pleats and gathers, that covered her from neck to ankle. As this was a formal visit, the maid had not taken Lewis' derby hat; he held it behind him.

Mrs. Bannister gazed at him imperiously, saying in a cold voice, "Lewis, I cannot imagine why you came here. As you were not invited and sent me no note requesting an audience, I must ask you to leave at once."

The young man took a deep breath. "Mrs. Bannister, I beg you humbly for a few minutes of your time. It means so very much to me."

"Very well. Out of respect for your poor mother Wilma, you may speak your piece. But I can assure you, young man, that mere words cannot set right your outrageous behavior at Uncle Jesse's."

"Yes Madam. I just want to say that ..."

Waving her fan solemnly, Mrs. Bannister continued to lecture. "My Julia has not been the same since then, Lewis. In a constant state of nerves, that girl. Thank goodness only a few of us know the details of the scandal. May I assume that you have had the grace to keep silent about your shameful conduct?"

"Yes, Madam, of course."

Perhaps there are no accidents in life. Perhaps fate or synchronicity, as much as our will, decides our future. Now began to unfold a concatenation of little events, remarkable in their timing and sequence, that would change lives entirely. The first of these was that the sprinkle of rain outside without warning became a heavy deluge. Both the young man and the old dame paused to glance outside at the sheets of driving rain. Mrs. Bannister then turned her pale blue eyes back to Lewis to resume her sermon.

"You must know that you will never be ..."

Then came a horrendous racket from the back of the house. The clattering of metal on a tile floor could be heard, as well as the piercing sound of shattering glass and porcelain.

"Oh my word!" cried Mrs. Bannister. "If that silly goose Evelyn has broken my tea set .." She turned to the young man and said, "Lewis, I must go see what disaster my maidservant has visited on me. Let yourself out at once, sir. And never darken our door again! Goodbye!"

With that she drew up her silks and hurried off to the kitchen. Heaving a sigh, Lewis walked from the parlor to the front hallway. Just as his hand touched the doorknob, he glanced at the carpeted stairway leading upward. It slyly beckoned to him: this way leads to Julia's chambers; perhaps to the girl herself.

Once more displaying the impetuous nature that got him in trouble in the first place, Lewis dashed upstairs without a thought. He felt only the desire to look upon the face of she who now beguiled his every waking hour.

The upstairs was silent. Several doors were closed, however Lewis came to a room with the door slightly ajar. Taking this as an omen, he entered and saw that it was Julia's bedchamber. To the left of the entrance was a mahogany armoire, to the right was the girl's brass bed.

Lewis looked around, savoring the view and aromas of this, Julia's private sanctum. His eyes roamed over the floral print wallpaper; to the window opposite with lace ecru curtains. Beside it stood a writing desk on tulip legs. To the right of the bed was Julia's dressing table: on its surface sat perfumes and powders with which the creature made herself even more enchanting. His reverie was suddenly interrupted by footsteps at the door.

"Lewis?" cried Julia as she entered. "Oh good heavens, not again! Have you no shame! Must I look for you hiding under my bed every time I need to change clothing!"

The girl was wearing a wide-brim straw hat with a green silk band, but had been caught in the rainstorm without her umbrella. Her floral print walking dress was drenched and plastered to her body. She was soaked to the skin.

Even in her disheveled state, Lewis thought her a vision. After a little space of silence, he said, "Julia, I'm so sorry. I just wanted to see you again."

Her eyes now flashed with anger. "Oh sir, I think you've seen quite enough of me already! Far too much! How on earth did you get up here? Does Mother know?"

"No. I came to visit; to apologize to her and to you. But she was called to the kitchen. She thinks I left the house."

"Which I advise you to do now! That dreadful storm caught me in the back of the garden and left me drenched. I must get out of these wet clothes at once."

"May I be of assistance?" Lewis blurted, all thought driven from his mind at once again being in Julia's presence.

The girl gasped in shock. "Ooh, Lewis, you are incorrigible! Just go, sir!"

Thoroughly abashed and defeated, the young man bowed his head and made for the door. Just as he reached it, he heard from behind him, "Lewis, perhaps you might .. might undo the buttons on the back of my dress. They can be so difficult. But close the door first."

Lewis closed the door, turned, and stepped back to Julia. Her eyes were brighter than their wont as she gazed at him. They revealed nervousness mixed perhaps with a certain yearning. She turned around, removed her hat, and lowered her head slightly, awaiting the young man's touch.

Now the air in the room seemed to crackle with tension no less than in the tempest raging outside. As Lewis touched the first of her bone buttons, he reveled in an enchanting blend of fragrances: wet silk and cotton, Julia's lilac sachet, perhaps the scent of her woman's body as well.

Starting with the standup collar, he slowly unbuttoned the bodice of Julia's dress. As he did so, he began the speech he had prepared for her mother.

"Julia," he spoke, his voice just above a whisper, "since Mother married your Uncle Frederick, I've come to enjoy so much those family gatherings with the Bannisters and Garrisons. And this summer I realized that what I enjoyed most was .. was you."

"I?"

"Yes. Your smile, your quick wit, the sound of your laughter, which was music to my ears. I treasured those little moments with you, singing together at the piano or lifting a wassail toast. Only after what happened in June, and I saw you no more, did I fully realize just how much you had come to mean to me."

By now Lewis had completely undone Julia's bodice. He waited for an order to leave the room. Instead she murmured, "There's a clothes rack in my armoire. Unfold it so I can hang these wet clothes on it."

The young man retrieved and set up the rack as Julia undid the clasps holding the bodice to her skirt. Without a word she let the skirt and bodice fall, then handed them to Lewis to drape across the clothes rack to dry.

Lewis came to her again, once more awaiting words of dismissal. Instead Julia gazed intently at him, now beginning to breathe hard. Lewis then realized that it was she who awaited. With trembling hands he undid the ties to her outer petticoat, which then fell to the floor. She stepped out of it; he hung the petticoat to dry.

Afraid that at any second the spell might be broken, he began to untie the ribbon waistband to her linen corset cover. The girl was visibly trembling by now, yet obediently raised her arms to allow Lewis to pull the corset cover over her head and off. He continued to speak.

"Julia, when I saw you in the bedroom at Uncle Jesse's, your beauty clouded my good sense. But now I know that you mean far more to me than ever I realized. I've never been so fond of any woman as you. I think of you constantly. I've missed you so much. I .. I humbly beg you to grant me the pleasure of your company."

As he finished his plea, he undid the ties to Julia's under petticoat. As that garment fell to the floor, Julia, with arms crossed, spoke in a low voice.

"Lewis Wellman, are you making love to me?"

The young man blinked and said, "Why, I guess I am. I hadn't thought of it that way, but I seem to be doing so." Now Lewis began to understand. This was not merely a young man kindly helping a lady out of her wet clothes. Something else was going on as well.

He stepped back, viewing Julia in her most intimate underthings. By now she was clad only in her corset, knee-length chemise, drawers, and silk stockings. He came to her again and began to undo the front clasps of her white sateen corset.

It occurred to Lewis that scarcely any married woman in all Rochester would allow her husband the bold liberty of undressing her. Yet he had been granted that very honor by the one woman whose beauty and charm captivated him, whose amity he now deemed priceless. What magic spell has wrought this, he wondered.

The girl's great blue eyes now gleaming, she said in a trembling voice, "Lewis, sometimes I think you are a fiend. The devil incarnate!"

Lewis gave her a puzzled look. "But I could not resist looking upon you that day, Julia. I so want to tender my apology."

"It isn't just that. Shall I tell you what I dare tell no one, not even Mother? That since that day, whenever I am undressing for bed, I imagine that you are watching me, Lewis. Saying those things you said at Uncle Jesse's as I bare myself! And oh it pleases, even excites me! The thought of you gazing upon me, it gives me warm sensations in places I dare not mention. I try to resist thinking of it, but I cannot!"

Now the girl's voice was tinged with anguish. "There's more. Do you know what I dream at night?"

"I cannot imagine."

"I have this dream where the families are gathered in Uncle Jesse's parlor. I walk in completely naked and take a place on the settee, hoping no one will notice that I have nothing on! I wake up mortified, with that same warm feeling in my body. Sometimes when I'm drifting off to sleep, I find myself wishing I may have that dream again, Lewis! I feel such a shameless hussy! And it's all your fault! I'm a nervous wreck and can tell no one why!"

In response, Lewis undid the last clasp of Julia's corset and drew it away from her, adding it to the clothing on the rack. The girl gave a gasp, a faint "oh!" as he quickly drew the knee-length white linen chemise up and over her head.

Now she was nude from the waist up. After clutching her bosom for a few seconds, she let her hands fall away and looked into Lewis' eyes, her face now crimson. He gazed in awe at Julia Bannister's bare breasts.

Her bosom was not so large, yet it was perfectly formed. The girl's pear-shaped mounds were crowned with swollen pink areolae and only a hint of the nipples that would one day suckle an infant.

It occurred to Lewis that when a woman has bared herself to a man for the first time, that man must choose his words ever so carefully, down to the inflection in his voice.

"Julia," he whispered reverently, "you are divine. I never imagined anything so lovely as you could exist."

"Are they as lovely as what I show the world?" she asked, a hint of a smile on her lips.

"Yes. You are Aphrodite in the flesh. Truly an angel!"

Now the girl turned her back to Lewis. He knew what to do. Stepping to her, he untied the stays to her drawers and drew them down. As she stepped out of them, he once more gazed upon her magnificent derriere. The girl then took another deep breath and turned to reveal to Lewis a vision. Julia Bannister was now nude except for white silk stockings that extended to just below her knees.

Lewis let his eyes wander over feminine perfection. This view of the fully nude Julia was a transcendent experience, inspiring both awe and carnal desire in equal amounts. Her thatch of ginger-hued pubic hair formed a rich luxuriant triangle where her alabaster legs joined her torso. Julia's body glistened from the moisture that even now covered her flesh.

Lewis took a cotton towel from the girl's washstand. "You are damp from the rain," he murmured, struggling to speak. "May I?"

"If you would be so kind."

He began to blot the moisture from her shoulders and back, roaming from there to more fascinating regions of her body. Julia in turn stood with her hands clasped in front of her, trembling like a leaf in the wind. Her eyes were partly closed.

When he had finished, the girl opened her eyes, now breathing hard and trembling more than ever.

"You are cold." Lewis remarked.

"Ye .. yes," she murmured, "quite."

"May I .. may I perhaps hold you? Only to help warm you of course." They gazed spellbound into each other's eyes. Each now ached to be in the arms of the other, yet neither dared admit it.

"Yes," Julia whispered, her voice tremulous. "That would surely warm me."

Now again certain that it was a dream, that he would soon awaken in his back porch hammock, Lewis embraced the nude girl. She in turn put her arms around his waist.

Julia was almost as tall as Lewis, so that their eyes were now inches apart. He felt himself falling into her deep blue pools. As well, the faint scent of the girl's body left him more certain than ever that these delectations must not be real but rather a product of his feverish imagination.

Both sensed what must happen now. "Julia," he murmured, "may I have the pleasure?"

The girl swallowed. "Yes .. if you insist."

Now their lips came together, lightly at first, barely touching; then, more firmly as their bodies joined. Lewis' wayward hands roamed down and glided over Julia's buttocks, savoring the ineluctable silkiness of her fleshy mounds. He marveled at the many ways a woman's derriere could delight a man.

For long moments the young man and woman kissed, reveling in pleasures that up to this point in their lives they had never tasted. They would temporarily pull away to kiss a cheek or neck, but always returned to the rapture of lips firmly pressed against lips.

Finally Julia drew back slightly to look at him, her eyes dancing with excitement. The woman's forehead was damp with perspiration, her cheeks crimson. Now the true Julia was revealed: beneath her demure façade beat the heart of a woman of the most intense emotions; the most fiery passions.