"Am I?"

"So, who's Joey?" Nina asked.

"My step-brother," Brooke said, then giggled. "Bet he would have loved catching me in just my undies; I mean, you know, he's like been trying catch me for years."

"So, what you doing for your birthday?" Nina asked again.

"Probably nothing," Brooke admitted. "I mean, I'd be shocked as shit if my dad even remembers. Jenna, my step-mother? I mean, I'm the one working, I'm the one paying rent, Joey ain't never paid penny one, but somehow, her precious baby boy's this angel and I'm just this piece of shit."

"You could do anything, what would you want to do?" Nina asked.

"I don't know, I guess, I guess I'd like to you know, get a Brick's Pizza, get what I want, not what Joey wants, go to Connor Park; they got this slide? Thing's ninety feet tall and you go through all kind of curves and turns and it's just so cool, but Joey don't like it, so we don't ever, really? I mean, I think he's kind of scared of it, but..." Brooke enthused.

"You working tomorrow?" Nina asked.

"No. You?" Brooke asked.

"This Connor Park open tomorrow?" Nina asked. "Tomorrow's Sunday; they open?"

"Yeah, it's this park right around the corner; it don't never close. Well, I mean, at nine o'clock, they kind of tell people they closed, but no one ever listens to them," Brooke said.

"Here, finish this," Nina said, handing Robin her drink. "I'll be back."

Robin gave Nina's crotch a look and Nina squealed, then giggled and zipped her jeans. She then ran from the back patio to the garage. Robin sipped the remainder of Nina's drink, then sat, enjoying the solitude of the back patio.

"Okay, tomorrow morning? You're on your own. Unless you want to go back to Myndee," Nina bubbled, returning an hour later with a few bags in her hand. "I'm going be maybe, what was it? About an hour away?"

"I. Never. Ever. Want to go back to Myndee," Robin declared. "But what, why are you..."

"I got a date with that Brooke girl," Nina enthused and ran up the stairs. "Shit! Hope I still got wrapping paper!"

While Nina was wrapping Brooke's five pound jar candle and simple silver heart silhouette and twenty inch chain and matching silver heart silhouette dangle earrings, Ronald James was staring hatefully at the two police officers that stood in his house. He could hear Stephanie slamming open doors and drawers and marching back and forth overhead.

"Well, Officer Brundette, Officer Dawson, believe me, you will be hearing from my lawyer; ever hear of Bobby Fletcher?" Ronald blustered.

"Ever hear of Tammy Dawson? Used to be Tammy Fletcher before I married her?" Officer Mike Dawson smirked.

"Okay," Stephanie announced, entering the living room. "I got everything I brung."

"Uh, what about my phone? Huh? I paid..." Ronald demanded.

"Oh yeah, here," Stephanie said, taking the phone out of her purse and putting it on the coffee table. "Officer? You can see? It's not damaged or nothing, right?"

"You were a dead fuck, know that?" Ronald snarled.

"Maybe you knew how to fuck, I'd come to life," Stephanie suggested and smiled when Officer Brundette laughed.

"Sir? Make sure you stay away from her, stay away from her place of business," Officer Dawson suggested. "We get called out?"

"That loan," Ronald called out. "Huh? What about that loan start up that salon, huh?"

"I'll pay it back," Stephanie said. "Don't worry about that."

Leaving Ronald's luxurious two story home, Stephanie felt like she was escaping a prison. She nodded her thanks to the two police officers. Officer Rodney Brundette sauntered over to Stephanie as she was putting some clothing into the trunk of her car.

"I uh, listen, you, that guy shows up? Starts hassling you? Give me a call; cell's at the bottom," Officer Brundette said, handing Stephanie his card. "Hear? Anytime. Okay?"

"Yes sir, Officer," Stephanie agreed, putting the card into her purse.

"You ain't nothing but a dog," Officer Dawson congratulated his partner.

"Just giving the dog a bone, just giving the dog a bone," Officer Brundette smiled as they both watched Stephanie's cute backside as she bent to rearrange some items on the back seat of her sedan.

From Powell Street, Stephanie drove to the Home Comfort Inn and got a room. She smiled when the clerk informed her that there were free movies in her room. The clerk's meaning was clear; the movies were adult entertainment.

In the room, Stephanie did turn on the television and scrolled through her choices. Oral, Gang Bang, Straight, even Shaved were selected before Stephanie settled on Lesbian. She left the television on, showing images of women satisfying women as she went to take a shower. A shower that did not have Ronald barging in and joining her under the needle spray. A shower where she was not trying to wash away her disgust.

Nude except for towel turban around her wet hair, Stephanie sat on the bed and watched two women making love to a third woman. Stephanie slowly rubbed herself as she watched the brunette being serviced by a red head and a blonde.

"Wonder what the fuck that bitch wanted?" Stephanie asked herself, thinking of Nina Crowder.

A scene that showed a black girl and white girl disgusted Stephanie and she switched over to bisexual movies. Her pussy twitched as she watched two women and a man making love.

The scenes that showed to men and a woman amused her; Stephanie could tell that the two men would have been just as happy had the woman left the bed.

In the morning, Stephanie woke up, glad to not have the smell of Ronald's stale beer breath and intolerable gas assaulting her nostrils. She awoke to the soft murmurs of simulated passion and throbbing bass as two men thrust hard against each other while a well-endowed blonde sodomized one of the men with a large strap-on cock, not to the sounds of Ronald's grating snores.

Stephanie rolled onto her back and stretched languidly. She wasn't being pinned in place by Ronald's gnarled hands. Her leg wasn't numb from lack of circulation as Ronald's pale, hairy leg pressed against her.

Her new phone gave a chiming sound and Stephanie smiled wide; she'd set the alarm so she had time to wake, dress, do her make-up and eat before Kevin Dorchette, the Gold Standard Real Estate agent came to show her some listings. Idly, she applied her foundation and watched two women sharing a double-headed dildo, then watched as they took turns servicing a man with the same dildo.

While Stephanie was enjoying a cinnamon raisin bun and orange juice in the motel lobby, Nina was happily complaining about how far away Brooke lived as she sped along Highway 119. Her phone gave a distinct 'buzz' that let her know she had another text message from Brooke. It was simply a repeat of the previous message; Brooke couldn't wait to see Nina, how much further did Nina have to go, again, she lived in the third trailer on the left after the water tower.

"Pinewood Park?" Nina verified as she turned onto the gravel drive.

"I got it!" Nina heard Brooke scream from inside the trailer.

"I, hi," Brooke said, suddenly very shy.

"Hi," Nina smiled, heart hammering in her chest.

In her brown polyester Newhart's uniform, Brooke March had been a cute girl of five feet, one inch. Standing in pink blouse and khaki short shorts, pink canvas shoes on her feet, Brooke March was both innocent and sexy and her warm blush just added to that allure.

Who's there, Brooke, who is it?" a woman's voice ordered.

"It's Nina; a friend of mine, all right?" Brooke said, hard edge coming to her voice.

"Well, either let her in or get out; you're letting in all kind of bugs, huh?" a bleached blonde demanded, pulling her tee shirt down over large breasts.

"Bye," Brooke said and stepped out of the trailer.

"Hi," Nina said again, grabbing Brooke's hand. "Come on; I haven't even had breakfast yet. Where you want to go?"

"We go to Twisters? They're these doughnuts? They're kind of..." Brooke asked, getting into Nina's car.

"It's your birthday; we can go anywhere you want," Nina said.

Brooke gave Nina directions to the small shop nestled among other shops. Nina smiled when Brooke happily took Nina's hand as they waited in line to place their order.

"Two chocolate and a chocolate milk," Brooke told the girl behind the counter.

"One vanilla and one chocolate, large coffee with two cream," Nina said, sliding a twenty dollar bill across the counter.

As they waited, they watched the worker making the doughnuts, dredging the hot doughnuts through either the vanilla vat or the chocolate vat. Nina couldn't help but smile at Brooke's enthusiasm.

"When they're hot like this? Ohmygod, I mean, they're the best!" Brooke declared, quickly eating her hot treat.

"Is that, so that's where Gratchley's comes from," Nina said, looking at the brewery located across Switchback Road.

"My dad drinks that stuff all the time," Brooke said.

"Hell, Honey, we all do," an older man smiled at the two attractive women, revealing tobacco stained teeth.

"Just never knew where it came from," Nina politely said.

"Comes from right here, Gratchley, in the great state of Arkansas," the man said, then turned to help his son with his carton of milk.

"So, ready to go to Connor Park?" Nina asked as they left the small shop.

"Yeah!" Brooke agreed.

Nina thought it was a rip-off, but paid a young man four dollars, two dollars apiece for cardboard sheets. Then, watching Brooke's cute buttocks peeking out of Brooke's very short shorts as Brooke led the way up the stairs of the tall slide, Nina shrugged. She'd pay four dollars all day every day to have a view of Brooke's sweet backside.

Finally at the top, Nina took one lane and Brooke took the lane next to her. Their first kiss was right before they shoved off, sitting on their cardboard sheets.

"Oh! My! God!" Nina squealed and laughed as they whizzed down the long, twisting metal slide.

"Aieegh!" she screamed as she entered a long, dark tube.

"I mean, isn't that the best?" Brooke squealed when they came to a skidding stop on the soft foam rubber bumpers at the bottom.

"You ever do it face first?" Nina enthused as they scampered up the stairs again.

"No! You going do that?" Brooke gasped, blue eyes dancing.

Nina gave Brooke a quick kiss, then flopped onto her belly.

"Augh! Aieegh!" Nina screamed and laughed all the way down.

"I wanted to, but I was too chicken," Brooke admitted as she came to a stop a moment later.

"No, no, you got to do it!" Nina ordered, laughing.

"Lady, you brave," one little girl complimented as she stood, looking up at Nina.

"You going do it?" Nina asked the little girl.

"Christine! God damn it! How many times I told you don't be talking to strangers?" a harried looking young mother cried out, running up and snatching the small girl away.

"What's wrong?" Brooke asked, seeing the tears in Nina's eyes.

"Cristine," Nina choked out, then turned and walked to the swings.

They sat, side by side on two swings. Brooke listened as Nina described her very brief love affair with a blonde drunk named Christine. Brooke reached a small hand up and gently touched Nina's face.

"You not over losing her, are you?" Brooke softly asked.

"Brooke, I, I don't think you ever get over losing someone like that," Nina admitted. "I mean, shit, she didn't have to die. She just didn't have to..."

Brooke leaned forward and gently pulled Nina's face closer. She softly kissed Nina's lips. With a soft smile, she kissed Nina again.

"You, I uh, I mean, I never, I ain't never," Brooke whispered, searching Nina's eyes.

"But you just want to, don't you?" Nina smiled.

"Ohmygod yes," Brooke whispered.

"Come on; we're doing that again," Nina said, picking up her cardboard sheet.

The two did ride the slide three more times. The last time down, Brooke allowed herself to be talked into belly down, face first. She screamed and laughed the entire way down.

"Nina Crowder, you got to be the coolest girl I ever met!" Brooke squealed when she came to rest.

The young man did not offer any refund when Brooke and Nina carried their cardboard sheets to him. So Nina kept one sheet and carried it to the trunk of her car. She drew a large heart and put her name, then had Brooke sign her own name, then wrote the date. Then she put the sheet into the trunk of her car.

"It, it's our first date," Nina said, slamming the trunk shut.

"O! That, that's so sweet!" Brooke said, eyes becoming shiny.

"So, where's this pizza place?" Nina asked, unlocking the passenger door.

"Remember where Twisters is? Brick's is right next to it," Brooke said, getting into the passenger seat.

While Nina and Brooke were waiting for their large Supreme, add jalapenos, Kevin Dorchette sullenly pulled away from Castlerook Condominiums. Next to him, Stephanie looked at her phone.

"Mr. Dorchette, I told you, fifty to seventy thousand," Stephanie quietly, firmly stated. "That was what? Eighty nine?"

Inside, Stephanie was anything but quiet and calm. She felt like she was on the verge of tears. Yet another man was trying to push and bully and intimidate her. Yet another man was trying to take advantage of her, was ignoring what she wanted.

"This is my money. This is my money. I have a right to get what I want," Stephanie kept repeating to herself as Kevin turned toward the next home on his list.

"This next one, on Hastings?" Kevin said, putting on what he knew was a seductive smile.

"You know where two sixteen Conway Road is?" Stephanie asked, seeing a listing for a three bedroom, two bathroom home at 216 Conway Road.

"I uh, yes, yes I do, but, Ms. Cimo, Conway Road? That uh, that neighborhood is kind of..." Kevin tried to lie.

Lori Knowles was the listing agent for 216 Conway Road. Just like Unit 105 at the Castlerook Condominiums, Kevin was the listing agent of 1412 Hastings Creek. If he could sell one of his listings, he would get double commission.

And the last time Kevin had seen 216 Conway Road, the home was going for sixty two thousand. Standard commission on sixty two thousand would hardly be worth his while. The suit he was wearing cost more than the commission on that sale.

"Mr. Dorchette, I really would like to look at it," Stephanie stated. "If you won't show it to me, I'll just contact, um, Lori Knowles and have her show it to me."

"But fourteen twelve Hastings..." Kevin argued.

"Is seventy nine, know what? Take me back to the motel," Stephanie ordered.

"Okay, okay, we'll go take a look at it," Kevin grumbled.

"Standard commission was better than no commission. Keven drove to the home.

"Now, what's wrong with this neighborhood?" Stephanie demanded, looking at the homes around them.

True, many of the homes were older structures. Some looked quite weathered. But none of the houses had cars in the front yards, cars sitting on cinder blocks. Stepping out of Kevin's Mercedes-Benz, Stephanie did not hear loud rap music booming. Instead, she heard two lawnmowers whining and whirring. She heard someone playing a violin somewhere. Playing it badly, but it was a violin, not an electric guitar or electric bass or a set of drums.

The house itself had recently been painted a striking goldenrod yellow with dark brown trim. The garage door had been painted beige and the front door was a rustic red.

As Kevin sullenly entered his number into the digital lock box, the violin stopped. Kevin removed the key from the lock box and unlocked the front door.

The interior still had that fresh paint smell, but it wasn't overwhelming. Stephanie liked the soft eggshell color and the honey colored woodwork as well as the pale blue short pile carpeting.

"Knock knock," a woman's voice called out as Kevin and Stephanie entered the kitchen.

"Hello?" Stephanie asked, peering into the living room.

A striking strawberry blonde woman entered, wearing a short robe over a bright red, white and blue bikini. The bikini top was struggling to contain two round globes and the bikini bottom was just a scrap of patriotic colors barely dangling around the woman's round hips.

In the woman's arms was a small girl with strawberry blonde hair, dressed in a short dress. Behind the blonde woman and girl was a tall, handsome man with short brown hair and hazel eyes. The man was dressed in swim trunks and wore no shirt.

"Hi, we're the Jensens; we live at," the strawberry blonde woman smiled, then squealed. "Oh my God! Who does your hair?"

"Hi, Jack Jensen," Jack said to Kevin, then mock-squealed. "Oh my God! What did you think of the NFL Draft? What about those Blue Jays baseball team? And who does your nails?"

"Oh, shut up," Nadine laughed at her husband. "Hi, like I said, we live right next door. I'm Nadine, this is my husband Jack, and this beautiful little violin player is Jadine."

"That was you I was hearing? You're very good," Stephanie lied.

"But seriously, who does your hair?" Nadine asked, even reaching out her free hand and combing her fingers through Stephanie's hair.

"I uh, I do," Stephanie stammered, oddly titillated by Nadine's intimate touch. "B But, where do you get yours done?"

"I don't," Nadine screwed up her face in displeasure. "I haven't found anywhere I like ever since moving here from DeGarde."

"you. Are. Kidding. Me!" Stephanie squealed. "I worked at T. Dayton! In Bender?"

"Get out of here, you did not! When? I never seen you there," Nadine squealed, putting Jadine down.

"Last, oh God, I moved here four months ago, opened up my own place,," Stephanie said, digging out a business card.

"Salon...right next to Zydeco's?" Nadine squealed.

"Come on, buddy," Jack said, guiding Kevin toward the kitchen. "We'll be deaf we hang around them much longer.

"What?" Kevin said and the two men chuckled.

"The owner just had this place painted; you ever hear of Pearl Painters? Owner lives right up the street; that really cute pink house," Nadine said, guiding Stephanie toward the hall bathroom. "And in here? I keep teling Jack I want one of these; he put in a Jacuzzi tub."

"Swimming pool and hot tub right there in the back yard," Jack called out. "We don't need a whirlpool tub."

The light blue paint and the gleaming white sink, commode and tub were accented by the pale blue ceramic tiled floor.

"Miss Stefnee, you got any kids?" Jadine asked.

"Oh, I'm sorry sweetheart, no I don't," Stephanie smiled down at the four year old girl.

"Want to steal her?" Nadine joked.

"Fee to take her," Jack said as the three females came out of the bathroom. "Five thousand for us to take her back."

"Daddy, that's not very nice," Nadine smiled and took Stephanie's hand to guide her to the kitchen. "And in here? "All new appliances; oh my God, should have seen the ugly avocado green stuff he had in here before. Can you say 'Seventies?'"

Nadine sold the house; Kevin just stood and let the beautiful woman take Stephanie from room to room, pointing out the upgrades and features.

"And we live right next door to you," Nadine pointed again toward their home. And as you heard, we have a swimming pool."

Nadine leaned close to Stephanie after verifying that Jadine was chattering to Mr. Kevin about violins and horsies. Nadine put an arm around Stephanie's waist.

"It's clothing optional; we have an eight foot privacy fence around the yard," Nadine whispered into Stephanie's ear.

"I uh, I..." Stephanie stammered, wondering if the crotch of her shorts showed her interest in the 'clothing optional' features of the Jensen pool.

"Okay, they're asking sixty two?" Stephanie asked Kevin after looking at the large walk-in shower in the master bathroom.

"Yes; originally listed for..." Kevin said.

"Offer them sixty two," Stephanie ordered. "I can put down twenty percent right now."

(As Stephanie was tapping out the transfer on her phone, Ronald James was discovering that his fuck toy had changed the password on her bank account, preventing him from taking her money. The password had been R -- S and his eight digit birthday. He tried several different possibilities, never imagining F for Fuck, Y for You R for Ronald, N for Nina, I for I'm and F for Free and yesterday's date.)