Charity Begins Next Door

I spread my legs and straightened them, raising my hips high before plunging down into her. She gasped and I smiled, pummeling her from above, fucking her fast and hard, her wide open pussy screaming out to be filled.

For the first time that night I felt her responding deeply, shivering. She released her feet and clutched her legs behind her knees, her shins bracketing her pretty face.

I rose up to my knees, leaning over and pushing down on the back of her legs, screwing her as fast as I could, feeling the need to cum growing in me.

"Harder," she gasped, "harder."

I slowed down just a bit and put some more weight behind my strokes, pulling her forward to meet my onslaught. She was gasping continuously, her toes curling up and her feet stretching out. I watched in delight as her head tilted back and her eyes rolled back into her head, while she came on my cock, her entire body quivering, her chest blushing bright red.

Just as she appeared to be settling back down, gasping hard, I grabbed her thighs and fucked her as fast as I could, feeling my own need peaking. I couldn't hold back any longer and buried myself deep inside of her, shooting hard, my hips jerking forward of their own accord, filling her.

Sandy cried out, releasing her legs which kicked out and trembled while she came with me.

I stretched out over her, while her legs slowly wrapped around me. Her eyes were large, staring at me in ego-soothing wonder. I kissed her softly.

"You are amazing," I told her.

She blushed. "I...I never...not like that," she murmured.

I was exhausted, from head to toe, and my legs and arms were trembling from my exertion. The front of my hips were sore from pounding against her, and my cock felt like it had been run through a wringer. I rolled off of her, lying on my back, breathing hard. She rolled over and leaned her upper body into mine. I reached around her, holding her close.

There was so much I wanted to say, but I didn't know how, or where to start. Instead I just kissed the top of her head while she held me. I reached across with my opposite hand and stroked her side before allowing my hand to settle over her breast, holding it gently, my fingers idly toying with her nipple. She moved closer, lifting her leg over mine, laying half on top of me. It allowed my arm holding her to wander, touching her, feeling her. I could feel the wetness of her crotch pressing into my hip, cold and wet.

I closed my eyes, my arm stretched across her back, my hand holding the warm flesh of her ass cheek. Her breathing was slow and steady, her arm thrown across my chest. I pressed my lips against her hair one last time, leaned back and relished holding this sweet, sexy, troubled woman.

* * *

I woke abruptly, confused. I was alone in a strange bed, the covers pulled up to my chin. Daylight was streaming in the window, and I sat up, disoriented. It took a few seconds for me to recall the previous evening, and I looked around for Sandy. I started to get out of bed, and realized I was naked, my clothes were still somewhere downstairs. I pulled the covers over my waist, and looked around for something to cover up with, before spotting my clothing from the night before folded on a chair nearby.

I pulled on my shorts and ducked into the bathroom for a much needed leak. I splashed some water on my face and borrowed her brush to run it through my wild hair. I took a swig of mouthwash and did my best to look partially human before heading back to the bedroom. I was pulling on my sweats when Sandy appeared with a cup of coffee. It smelled delicious.

She smiled and passed it to me. She was dressed in pyjamas, and had clearly showered and cleaned up. Her hair was still moist. "Hurry up. There's a little girl downstairs almost bursting with the need to open her presents."

I took a sip of the coffee, hot and strong, then passed it back to her for a second while I pulled on my shirt. I straightened it out and retrieved my coffee for another sip.

She was watching me intently, a sad little smile on her face.

I started to speak but she cut me off.

"No. Let's not talk about it right now. It was something we both needed, but it doesn't have to mean anything. It just happened. I don't regret it. Right now we need to go downstairs."

I moved to her and grabbed her chin. I saw she was nervous and wondered if she'd practiced that little speech. I leaned over and kissed her softly, continuing until she responded.

"I just want to say you are amazing. Really."

"So you keep saying," she teased.

"What is Erica going to think?"

"I told her you had a sleepover. She probably has a good idea what that means, kids are so precocious these days, but she seemed alright with it."

"Shit. I feel like a jerk, spoiling her Christmas with you."

She hit me, her little fist landing solidly on my chest, almost making me spill my coffee. "Shut up. It's because of you that she's having a Christmas worth mentioning at all."

She turned and headed downstairs, and I had to pull my eyes away from her cute little butt, before I had a physical response that would be almost too much to bear. I realized she was walking tentatively, and wondered if she was as sore as I was this morning. Probably. Maybe more so.

We headed straight for the living room, and sat back on the couch about a foot apart while Erica waited for us, standing beside the presents almost shaking. She watched her mother anxiously, glancing my way long enough for a quick smile. When her mother nodded she dove into the presents grabbing the closest and tearing it open.

She oohed and aahed over each new gift, while the pile of unwrapped ones grew smaller and an ever growing field of toys gradually overtook the room.

She shrieked and jumped up and down when she opened the iPod touch, pulling off the $50 iTunes gift certificate. She'd been pretty quiet up until then but she climbed over to her mother and gave her a big hug.

"He knew, Momma, he knew!" she shrieked in joy, stopping her present opening to crack open the iPod box and pull it out, looking it over, holding it reverently in her hands.

I felt a warm hand settle onto mine, giving a soft squeeze. I turned my wrist and held her hand in mine, interlocking our fingers. I looked over to Sandy, and saw the tears in her eyes. With a sniffle she carefully brushed them away.

As usual, the new clothing got short shrift, being tossed into a growing pile, but she did look each one over, holding it up against her body, asking her mother's opinion on several before moving on.

I listened to Sandy laugh at her daughter's antics, and thought it was the most beautiful sound I had heard in ages.

Erica was about halfway through the gifts. I watched her reach for a big box, and I gave her mother's hand a squeeze. "Maybe that one should be last," I whispered.

"Erica, darling, that one's from Mr. Reed. Why don't you open it last?"

Erica looked up, her surprise matching my own. She moved it to the side and continued her quest to eliminate the pile of wrapped presents.

The small purse with five $10 bills was another big hit, as were the rollerblades, each calling for another shriek and a visit to her mother's lap, bringing forth more giggles and laughter from the woman beside me. Sandy was smiling hugely, taking the wrapping paper from her daughter and filling a garbage bag with it as we went.

I was torn. Each gift I'd so carefully picked out for my girls was disappearing. I couldn't help but think about how I should be spending my Christmas, if I hadn't received such a kick in the teeth from fate. A couple of times I felt myself tearing up, my breath catching in my chest. Sandy moved closer, her leg pressed against mine, holding my hand in both of hers, tightly, in her lap.

Then I would see the joy on young Erica's face, and I'd wipe the tears away, taking a deep breath, knowing that it was what my daughter's would have wanted. Their hearts had been as big as the world.

I felt Sandy's head lean into my shoulder, and I gave her hand another squeeze.

Finally the presents ran out. There were two gifts remaining. The one that had been there on that first day, which seemed so long ago but had only been three days earlier, and the big one.

She looked over at us, then starting peeling away the paper off of her mother's present. There was a book sized jewelry box inside, and she opened it shrieking. "Grandma's necklace?" she asked.

"You always liked it," Sandy said.

Erica came over and sat between her mother's legs, lifting her hair up out of the way so her mother could attach the chain behind her neck. I could now see it was an old-fashioned locket and Erica was clutching at it like she'd never let it go. Sandy finally got the chain latched, and gave her a little shove.

Erica stood up and ran to the mirror, looking at herself. She came and stood in front of us, striking several poses. It was so damned cute. I couldn't help but laugh.

That got Sandy's attention, and she giggled as well, cuddling up next to me and pulling my arm around her shoulders.

We watched Erica go to the last big box, glancing back at us as if waiting for permission.

"Go on," I teased, "you can't stop now!"

She grabbed the edge of the wrapping paper, and tore into it. She ripped large chunks of paper off, tossing them toward her mother, before suddenly coming to a complete stop. She screamed out, stood up and danced in place. I'd never seen anybody so excited. She bent over and tore the paper away roughly exposing the PS3 and the piles of games taped to the top.

"Mom! Mom! It's a PS3!" she cried out, bending over and lifting the box, twirling around with it, before stumbling and dropping it to the floor.

Sandy laughed, "Careful! You don't want to break it before you get a chance to use it."

Erica scrambled across the coffee table between us and launched herself into my lap. She gave me a huge hug, squeezing me so hard I thought she might break something.

I felt her breath against my ear. "Thank you, Santa." I felt her soft lips press against my cheek, bringing a tear to my eye.

I hugged her to me. "I hope you enjoy your present." I could feel the tears welling up, threatening to overflow, and I clung to her for a few seconds. "Go on now, open it up."

She jumped up and started tearing at the box, peeling off the games, instantly separating them into piles. So much like her mother. I felt Sandy shifting on the couch next to me, and I turned toward her, just as her arms wrapped around me. She kissed me on the cheek. "Thank you."

I hugged her. "I should be thanking you. I never thought I could enjoy Christmas again."

She smiled. "That would be horrible," she said softly, "if Santa couldn't enjoy Christmas."

I thought we were finally done, but Erica went behind the tree and returned with two gifts wrapped in newspaper comics. She gave her mother one, and gave me the other.

Sandy and I looked at each other, then she opened her gift. Inside was a hand-made ornament, a picture of their little family, Sandy, Erica, and the missing father, smiling as if everything was perfect in the world. The picture was framed in popsicle sticks, with pipe-cleaners glued to it. It was too cute for words.

"If we hang it on the tree, then Daddy can share Christmas with us from heaven," Erica explained.

I saw Sandy choke up, then give her daughter a big hug. "It's beautiful."

"Hang it up, mom!" Erica insisted.

Sandy got up and placed it in the middle of the tree, carefully arranging it so it faced the room. "I love it Erica, thank you."

Erica was standing in front of me, hopping from foot to foot. "Your turn," she announced.

I opened the paper carefully, and saw a hand drawn picture, colored in crayons on some light colored cardboard. It took me a second to realize what it was. "It's us painting the door, isn't it?"

"Yep. And that's momma, trying to look angry." She pointed to a stick figure at the side.

It must have taken her a while. The picture was pretty big, more than a foot tall, and she'd carefully drawn the door in great detail, coloring it blue, and she had little Christmas decorations all around it. She was kneeling down painting the bottom, and I had this ridiculously long body, bent over at the waist, painting the door just above her head.

I pointed to the figure to the side. "If she's angry, how come she's smiling?" I asked.

Erica laughed. "She's only trying to be angry. She's really happy. She just isn't allowed to show it. She has to act sad because Daddy's gone."

I held the picture up, then made a show of hugging it. "It's my very favorite Christmas present. I'm going to frame it and put it on my desk."

Erica climbed up on the couch and hugged me. "Will you hook up my PS3?"

"Of course I will," I told her, returning her hug.

"And I'll start breakfast," Sandy announced. I looked up, and she was wiping tears from her face again. What a roller-coaster of emotions.

It only took a few minutes, and we had the game system hooked up and Erica was debating which game to start with. She barely got it loaded before we were called over for breakfast.

"Mo-om!" Erica pouted.

"It's not going anywhere. You can play after breakfast."

It was surrealistic, sitting there at the table, with eggs, toast and sausage on my plate, and a glass of orange juice at the ready. Erica had cereal in her bowl and a tall glass of milk. Like a normal family.

I was still stunned by how talkative Erica had become, as she told us all about her gifts. "Can Taylor come over later and play?" she asked.

"We'll see," Sandy told her. "It's Christmas, her parents may want her to stay at home today."

"What are your favorite gifts?" I asked.

She seemed to think about it, and I watched her hand move up to the locket around her neck. It was cute watching her face scrunch up as she really thought it over.

"I think it was your sleepover," she finally announced, catching me off guard and almost making me spit my orange juice across the table.

Sandy was just as surprised, "Really? Better than the PS3?" she asked.

Erica nodded vehemently. She looked at me, "Momma's happy."

I looked over at Sandy, and saw her blushing furiously.

I reached over and tousled Erica's hair. "I'm happy too. Happier than I thought I could be."

Erica nodded solemnly. "I know. Your girls went to heaven too. These were their presents, right?"

I nodded. "I knew they'd want you to have them."

She took a bite of her cereal. "Allora was nice. We made a poster for her in class. I drew an angel."

Hearing her name was tough. Suddenly everything felt wrong. I should be sitting at a table with her and Briana, listening to them chatter. Watch them fight over playing with each other's gifts. No chance of that now. The room was becoming blurry, tears for my lost girls filling my eyes.

"Don't be sad," Erica said, reaching out and touching my arm. "They're in heaven now, and they get to watch us. They wouldn't want you to be sad."

I forced myself to smile. "I bet the poster was beautiful. I wish I could see it."

"Mrs. Viola would probably let me take it home for you," she said.

"I'd like that."

Erica was eating her cereal as fast as she could, and she pushed the empty bowl away. "Can I play now?"

Sandy gave her the go ahead, and she made a beeline toward the TV.

Sandy and I looked at each other. "She's become quite the chatterbox," I mentioned.

"Thank God," Sandy said, standing up and taking up the plates. "Let's hope it sticks."

I cleared my own stuff and joined her at the sink. "I should go home soon."

"I understand," she said softly.

"I have to stop by the in-laws. I promised. But I'd like to come by later if you don't mind. Maybe we can have dinner together."

She seemed a little distant. "You don't have to. You've done enough already."

I put my arms around her, and felt her stiffen. "Don't tell Erica, but her drawing was only my second favorite Christmas gift."

I felt her relax a bit, and she turned toward me, allowing me to hug her properly. I leaned down and kissed her softly.

She giggled. "Oh, really?"

"Really. The sleepover was my favorite."

"That gift will have to hold you over for a while. Another sleepover and I don't think I'd ever be able to walk again. You beast." Her smile took any sting out of the words.

"No kidding. I'd have to learn to talk with only one lip."

Her eyes opened wide, and she raised her hand to her mouth. "I'm sorry," she whispered.

I kissed her again. "No apologies, remember."

She smiled. "Alright. Dinner would be nice, but I didn't have anything special planned."

"Let me take care of the dinner."

She grinned salaciously. "That's right. You did promise to feed me."

That made me blush.

"As a matter of fact, if you're not in a huge hurry, maybe you could feed me again, before you have to leave."

I looked over at Erica.

"She'll be fine. You won't be able to tear her away from those games for hours." She took me by the hand, and drew me over to the stairs.

Half-an-hour later, I'd fed her, but not before proving to us both that we fit each other perfectly. It was quiet, and gentle, and just what I needed to make it clear that the previous night wasn't a one-time accidental thing.

* * *

It's been a year since that first Christmas. Things weren't always easy between us, we still had sharp edges and wounds that weren't quick to heal, but we stuck to it.

Any talk of holding Erica back in school ended quickly. She's an A student, smart as a whip, and even talking about playing volleyball. Her quiet spell snapped that Christmas.

Within six months I'd moved in with Sandy and Erica, and we'd become landlords, renting out my two houses, and using our new found wealth to buy a few foreclosures, renovate them and rent them out as well. Sandy quit her jobs and was relishing her new real-estate magnate career. Even if the rentals can be a headache sometimes.

By September we were talking about marriage, and decided to forgo any big ceremony and flew off to Vegas for a mini-vacation and a quick wedding. We even conned Cathy and John to join us for a couple of days. Cathy was our matron of honor. Steve and Darla surprised us by showing up as well. He insisted that if I was going to put on the noose again willingly, he'd be my best man. He always was.

We're wrapping Erica's gifts now. I guess overdoing it at Christmas is one habit I'll never get over. Every once in a while I can't help but reach over and rub Sandy's belly. Erica's excited by the idea of having a new baby brother by summer.

Me? I'm excited by our new Christmas tradition. I get to re-enact our first Christmas sleepover. Sandy's even wearing that silly, ratty old robe. She's promised never to get rid of it.

Christmas will always be bitter sweet to me, and sometimes I still get the blues and need some time to myself to think about those little girls that had their lives cut short so unfairly. I miss them terribly, and think about them every day.

Christmas will never be the same. But I'm not complaining.

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I hope you enjoyed this little story. Votes and comments are always welcome and appreciated.