Blue Ridge Romance Ch. 02: Darlene

I'd now been in town for three weeks and my hair was starting to get shaggy. One day after work I headed over to Top Hair and Nails to get a haircut. It was half an hour before they closed, and the three women inside were cleaning up. One was Darlene Fitch, the other two were older women. One with a nametag that said 'Mary Anne' looked up and spoke. "Hello, mister. How can we help you?"

"I'd like a haircut, please..." I began. She smiled, gesturing towards a chair.

"Why sure," she said, "Eva will take care of you."

"Actually, I was hoping I could get Darlene to cut my hair." Mary Anne looked at me, confusion on her face. Darlene busily swept the floor over by the entrance to the back room and staring at the ground, her cheeks turning red.

"Mister," she began gently, "Darlene is just starting out. Eva's been cutting hair for years." She gestured at Eva's station once more where Eva was waiting patiently.

"Thanks for the suggestion, but I prefer Darlene," I replied. Mary Anne's eyes narrowed. She spoke in a low voice so just the two of us could hear.

"Mister, if you want to get in Darlene's panties, it's pretty easy, just buy her a drink. Ain't no need to get a bad haircut."

I replied in an equally low voice, "I'll pay double the regular price, I'd like Darlene, thanks."

Mary Anne shook her head and whispered back, "If'n you don't like it, I can fix it later."

Ordinarily it takes 20 minutes to cut my hair -- Darlene took about 40 minutes. She cut very slowly and deliberately, as if afraid to make a mistake. I tried to get her to relax by making small talk. As she cut, I saw a small tattoo on the inside of her left forearm. It said "Bobby's Girl" in fancy cursive letters.

"Who's Bobby? Is that your father?" She froze for just a second, then stammered a response.

"N-no," she replied, "My father's name was Steve. Bobby Jenkins is my ex-boyfriend, 5 years back. Him and a friend both got fired from their jobs at the coal mine so they decided to rob a bank over in Griffithsville. They stopped to get a beer afterwards. They musta been easy to find 'cause the deputy sheriff walked in 10 minutes later and arrested 'em. Bobby and his friend got 7-10 years in the penitentiary over in Hazelton."

Curious now, I pressed her. "You two must have been pretty serious, if you got a tattoo."

"Naw, not really. I didn't want no tattoo, but one night we was drinking and on the way home from the bar we walked by a tattoo parlor and Bobby decided he wanted to let people know I was his girlfriend so he talked me into it. I'd like to cover it up or have it removed but I can't afford to." She cut the conversation off by, saying "Almost finished, Mr. Durling."

When the haircut was done and I looked in the mirror, I had to admit it wasn't bad. Even Mary Anne commented, "You sure must be special, Mr. Durling, that there's one of the best cuts Darlene ever give."

Since the shop was closing I invited all three women to have supper with me over at Hank's Hi-Life. Thankfully, Mary Anne and Eva took a rain check, so it was just Darlene and me. I was disappointed that Maggie wasn't working that night; I was still bitter about her shunning me and just out of spite I wanted to show her I was making new friends. At dinner Darlene and I talked, mostly me answering her questions about what my life was like before I came to Hanson.

I walked Darlene back to her little house. It wasn't much bigger than the one I was renting. There was on old Ford Pinto in the driveway that Darlene told me was hers but it broke down and she couldn't afford to have it fixed. I took her in my arms, held her close and kissed her; she smelled good, was feather light and had really soft lips. I could feel my cock growing hard, and I'm sure she could too. "Do you want to come in?" she whispered.

"Darlene, I've had a really nice time with you tonight but as much as I would love to, I have to go to work tomorrow, so I need my sleep. I'm afraid if I went in with you it would be a long night and I wouldn't get any rest."

She giggled, "All right then, rain check." As I let her out of my arms, she ran her hand down my chest, backing away seductively and flipping her hair before turning and going in her front door. Damn, I love it when a woman flips her hair.

Over the next few weeks I got to know Darlene better. Out of caution I wanted to take it slow, so we had lunch a few times and finally went on an official date -- we went to the movies at the one-screen theatre in Hanson. It was some kind of romantic comedy, and she laid her head on my shoulder for a while as we watched. I loved the smell of her hair and her $5 drug-store perfume. I don't think any fancy $100-a-bottle perfume could have smelled any better. I also realized that Darlene was very sweet, but also very timid. Looking back, I was amazed that she even approached me the night we met at Hank's Hi-Life. After the movie as I was walking her home, out of curiosity I asked her why she'd approached me that night. "I dunno..." she replied, "...you were cute and seemed lonely and it felt like the right thing to do."

"Well, I'm glad you did," I told her. We reached her front door. I took her face in my hands and kissed her, long and soft and slow.

Shyly, she asked "You want to come in?"

"Why yes, I believe I do." Inside, it was a nice little house, two bedrooms, one bath, a little kitchen. Little fireplace. Very quaint.

"I really love it," she said, "Rent is $150 a month, but I know Mrs. Paxton would sell it if she got a good enough offer. I'm saving up, and one day I hope to have enough money to buy it."

She took me by the hand and led me into the bedroom. "Wait here," she said. "Get undressed and then turn the light off. I'm going to get undressed in the bathroom."

She walked into the bathroom, while I got naked and got into bed. "Is the light off?" she called out.

I switched off the lamp. A little moonlight came in the window, but it was fairly dark. I heard the bathroom door hinges creak, then the sound of her sliding under the sheets. I reached for her and pulled her close and kissed her. Our tongues intertwined gently, doing a slow dance of love. I was hard instantly. I sought out her neck and kissed it, my hands roaming her body as if reading braille. She would gasp each time I crossed a tender spot, like her nipples or her labia. It was heavenly.

"Darlene," I whispered, "Why don't you want me to see you naked in the light?" I kissed her lightly and affectionately on the lips.

She lay silent and unmoving for a minute, then responded. "Ray, I haven't told you all the details, but I have all kinds of ugly scars and marks on my body. I hate looking at them because they remind me of bad things. I don't want you to see them, either. I'm ashamed of what you might think." I gently spread her legs and positioned myself between them. Slowly I began to kiss my way down her stomach until my mouth was poised over her moist pussy.

"Darlene, your past doesn't matter to me," I whispered. "I think I'm in love with you, and I can only see our future." I plunged my mouth onto her moistness. She gasped, then gasped again as I began to circle her clit with my tongue, teasing it. She thrust her hips upward, not saying anything but groaning as I fed on her juices. Finally I penetrated her vagina with my tongue, pushing it as deep as it could go. She shrieked and put her small hands on the back of my head, pushing me against her mound and grinding against my face as I pleasured her.

She uttered little sounds of pleasure, quietly at first, then louder as she orgasmed. Her legs shook and her torso quivered as she climaxed. I moved up a bit and lay my head on her belly above her womb, feeling her orgasm aftershocks.

As her breathing returned to normal, I moved up further, sucking and nibbling on her nipples until her breathing got erratic again. Then I moved all the way up so my pelvis was between her legs and entered her. I began to fuck her firmly, trying not to get too rough. Before long, she came again, a blessing because I followed shortly thereafter. I felt so good, it was only during the afterglow that I realized I had forgotten the condom.

"Darlene," I whispered, "I'm afraid I've not been a responsinble lover. I was so excited I forgot to put on a condom."

She pulled her face to mine and kissed me deeply. "Don't worry, I just got off my period," she replied. "I'm not near ovulating yet, we should be OK."

Remembering Mrs. Swensen's warning, I said, "I'll use one next time, OK?"

Darlene giggled, "OK, I guess that makes sense." She kissed me again and, feeling her firm little body pressed against mine, it turned out I was wrong about the next time.

++++++++++

Darlene and I dated for a few more weeks and I found I enjoyed being with her so much that although we hadn't discussed it, I could foresee us moving in together and even getting married. I went over to Mrs. Paxton's house around noon one Saturday and knocked on the screen door. Mrs. Paxton came out from the kitchen and saw it was me. "Well, if it isn't Mr. Durling, how nice to see you!" She unlatched the screen door. "Come in, come in, would you like some lemonade?" I admitted that I would. I sat on her couch as she brought me the lemonade. I'd heard that her lemonade was the best in the county and it was. I told her as much. She grinned, but then her expression got serious.

"I'm always glad to have the company of a handsome young man, Mr. Durling, but I'm sure you didn't come over just to sample my lemonade. What's on your mind?"

"Mrs. Paxton, I'll get to the point. I've come to talk to you about your rental property on Quarry Ridge Road."

"The one that Darlene Fitch is renting?"

"Yes, that's the one. I'd like to buy it. Darlene and I are dating, and lately I've been thinking about the future. She doesn't know yet but if all goes well, I'm thinking of proposing sometime soon. Since she loves the house so much I think it would make a great wedding present."

Mrs. Paxton beamed a huge smile. "I think that's a lovely idea, Mr. Durling. Mrs. Swensen tells me that poor girl's had a rough life. Having a husband like you would do her a world of good."

"One thing -- I don't want her to know, so I'd like it if you could continue to collect the rent until she and I are officially engaged. You can keep 15% of the rent to act as my property manager. Will that be OK?"

"Perfectly fine, Mr. Durling. Your secret will be safe with me. Now, what price were you considering?"

I pulled out a piece of paper in my pocket with a number on it. The number was based on local properties with similar square footage, then to seal the deal I added 20%. Given this was rural West Virginia, it wasn't a fortune compared to a major city, but I thought it was a generous offer. I had a healthy inheritance from my grandfather, so I didn't need to get a mortgage. "Mrs. Paxton, I'm not one to dicker. Here's my best offer, in cash."

When Mrs. Paxton looked at the number, her eyebrows raised in surprise. She smiled broadly. "I do believe that will be acceptable Mr. Durling. Quite acceptable." We shook hands; in a few weeks, papers were signed and I was now officially owned property in Hanson, West Virginia.

At this point, my feelings for Darlene were very strong. For the first time in my life, I was deeply in love and actually thinking about marriage. My feelings for Maggie had been more of a crush; she was so sweet and beautiful, but I never really got to know her because, after all, she was married. In spending time with her Darlene had grown on me so much that I asked her to drive to Charleston with me to spend a weekend.

I had planned out every detail. I took that Friday off and, after renting a nice convertible, we left mid-morning to drive to Charleston. Once there we checked in to the Marriott Town Center. After a nice steak dinner, we went to the movies -- I asked her to choose the film, and she chose a scary one about a haunted castle. I didn't really care, I was more interested in sharing popcorn and smelling her hair.

When we got back to the hotel, I ordered a bottle of champagne sent to our room; while we talked about the movie, I poured a glass for each of us. "Here's to my princess," I said as I gallantly bowed. "One day, it is my hope she may be my queen!"

Not sure what to make of my thinly-veiled hint, she drained her glass, raised one eyebrow and giggled. I poured her another. I kissed her neck and whispered "Darlene, let me make love to you." I reached up to unbutton her blouse, but she took my hand and stopped me.

"Ray, no, not in the light please."

On the one hand, I was rather frustrated that she didn't yet trust me enough to see her body; on the other hand, the element of mystery was a little exciting, made me yearn even more for her. "As you wish, my princess," I said. "How shall this knight proceed to your pleasure?"

She giggled and played along. "I wish you to go into yonder bathroom, and I'll prepare myself. You may come to me in the darkness."

I thought to myself 'My God, how I love the sound of that voice.' Standing up, I bowed in a knightly manner. "So it shall be, maiden fair. This day I make hence to the royal room of the bath. When thou art prepared, call out the magic word 'Shakespeare' and I shall return with wings upon my feet.". I took her hand and kissed the back of it, then strode into the bathroom and closed the door. It crossed my mind that my Professor of English Literature in college would have been proud of me.

I stripped down and put on one of the fluffy robes provided by the hotel. In what seemed a decade to my now-throbbing hard cock but was in actuality, about 5 minutes I finally heard her utter the word "Shakespeare". I turned off the bathroom light, came into the room and literally walked into the bed, stubbing my toe and falling forward.

My toe throbbing, I tried to make light of it. "Forsooth good madam, that drawbridge is formidable."

"Oh you poor thing, where does it hurt? I'll kiss it and make it better." I heard her slide the bedsheet back and make her way in the dark down to my foot. Her body brushed against mine in several places, and suddenly my toe was not the only thing on my body that was throbbing.

"My left foot, good lady. I must have forgotten to wear my boot armor." She took my left foot in her hands and began lightly kissing and sucking each toe.

"Is this helping?" She kissed her way up my ankle to my calf, then my thigh.

"Yes, my lady," I gasped hoarsely. Her mouth moved on to my balls, her tongue dancing around them, then she kissed the base of my rigid cock. I groaned with pleasure.

"Do you want me to stop?" she teased.

"Please don't," I gasped. My lust for Darlene was so intense that even the room's fire alarm going off at this moment would not have distracted me. Her mouth took the tip of my dick in, sucking it playfully before taking the whole thing in. Her nose was suddenly buried in my pubic hair, and I felt the tip bump the back of her throat. My lover did not gag but proceeded to expertly move her mouth up and down my dick. I moaned as I felt my orgasm building, I was not going to last much longer.

Suddenly she pulled her mouth off. Slowly stroking it with her hand, she said "I can tell you're close. Where do you want to cum? On my face, on my tits, or on my belly?"

In a flash, I twisted around and changed our positions; she was now under me and my cock was at her pussy lips. "I want to cum in you, darling." I quickly slid my hardness into her, and she gasped. "Please say yes!"

She grabbed my head and pulled my lips to hers, kissing me deeply. I began to pump, my orgasm seconds away. "Yes, Ray, come in me! I want you to come in me!" With a deep growl I pumped her ferociously and felt my balls empty themselves. My orgasm was a 9.9 on the Richter scale, shaking my whole body. I lost count, but it must have been eight spurts I shot into her. It occurred to me afterwards that the condoms I'd brought with me remained still unused and safely stored in my shaving bag. At that moment, I was so happy I didn't care.

After I caught my breath and recovered, I tried to straighten the thrashed sheets as best I could in the dark. I made a mental note to leave an extra-large tip tomorrow for the housekeepers, because we totally wrecked the bed. Darlene and I now lay face-to-face in each other's arms. I found her nipples and began to softly kiss and suck them, murmuring how wonderful she was. Our breathing gradually slowed, and we fell asleep.

Saturday morning, I awakened her with kisses and a gave her a greeting card that said that I loved her, and that this Saturday was officially Princess Day. I told her my goal was to make feel like royalty for the entire day. We had a nice luxurious room-service breakfast in bed and then showered, (separately at her request), then I took her to an appointment I had made at the Waterstone Spa and Salon. I got her the full 4-hour "pamper package" -- a massage, mani/pedi, and hair styling. When I picked her up four hours later she emerged looking totally relaxed and her hair was fantastic. The women at Top Hair had always cut it nicely, but this was a real professional styling, costing about $170 more than Top Hair charged. It was worth every dollar; Darlene truly looked like a princess.

We had a small lunch at a fancy place with linen tablecloths and wine, and Darlene looked so happy I had a hard time myself not crying with happiness like a little kid myself. I took her down to Macy's to buy a couple of pairs of shoes, and then down the road to a tiny shopping center called the Bridgeroad Shops. I had scouted ahead while she was at the spa and found a little women's boutique called "Ooh La Lucy" to buy her some really nice clothes. She picked out a nice yellow long-sleeved sun dress, a long-sleeved red evening dress, a silver sequined clutch purse and some dressy red high-heeled shoes. I sent her outside to wait while I paid. The bill came to just over $1400, more than my annual bonus the previous January but I didn't care. I wanted my princess to be happy!

We went back to the hotel, and she went into the bathroom to get dressed in one of her new outfits. My heart was fit to burst because she looked so overjoyed. We had a light supper, then went to the Charleston Light Opera Guild to see a presentation of Gilbert & Sullivan's 'Pirates of Penzance'. I wasn't sure if she'd like it, but she seemed delighted by the hammy acting and the silly songs.

After the show we stopped in a dessert place and shared a tiramisu. Darlene's eyes went wide. She'd never had anything like it. I told her, "It's a dessert fit for my princess. It's also an easy recipe my mom taught me. I promise when we get back home, I'll make it for you as often as you want." She smiled and went quiet on me. It looked for a second like tears were welling up in her eyes. "Darlene, are you OK?"

"Yes, Ray, I'm fine," she replied. "It's just that everything is so perfect right now, I can't believe it."

I was ecstatic to hear her say that. I took her hands in mine. "Believe it, Darlene. It's all real. You deserve to be happy."

When we entered our room back at the hotel, I gently took her chin and kissed her. Using my most knightly voice I proclaimed, "It's been a long day, my princess. If you want to get a good night's sleep, you have my word that you will rest well and remain unmolested." Then I bowed.

When I arose from my bow she wrapped her arms around my neck and passionately kissed me. "You silly, wonderful man," she said. "Take off your clothes and sit on the edge of the bed. I'll be right back." She slipped into the bathroom while I rapidly undressed, throwing my clothes in a pile on a chair and taking my place on the bed as instructed.

"Shall I turn the lights off?" I asked.