Caleb 34 - An Ex

"Done," she said.

"One more condition," he said.

"He'll be first on the list," she said, smiling at him. "Tell me his name."

Hoss grinned. "You're quick," he said, "I'll give you that. Clive and me'll get this cleared out over the weekend. It'll be available starting Monday."

Mary nodded. "I'll let you and your friend know when we need the room." She got the name, too. Having a secretary was fantastic.

Friday passed without incident. I was dreading the weekend, and that, of course, made it rush up to meet me like an eager puppy.

I was awake at my usual time. Since there was no training on at the dojo on weekends, I decided to go out onto the deck. It was still cool, but not cold, so I dressed in only shorts and a T-shirt.

As I was working through the first of my katas, something that Alan had said when they'd been over suddenly triggered in my mind. He said he had seen me training, and that Anna liked to watch. I had felt a slight wash of arousal from Anne when he had said it despite her embarrassment.

How, though?

Our yard was not overlooked by anyone. Our fences were eight-foot-tall vertical planks. I started looking for cameras, and immediately saw some of ours. Had they found a way to tap in? Seems risky, given the previous owner. A ladder near the fence?

I finally did something intelligent and just scanned for people with my powers. I was surprised to find two people just on the other side of our joint boundary fence, a little way down the yard. They weren't on a ladder though. There was one person apparently bent over against the fence, peering through at me. The odds were good that that was Anne. Alan was most likely the one behind her, fucking her quietly. Since the only lights were on the deck, I couldn't see the fence that far away, but anyone looking through the fence would have had a clear view of me.

I focused my psychic attention on them while pretending to be oblivious. Anne was panting, desperately trying to keep quiet while Alan quietly but firmly slid himself in and out of her. I continued to train, surprised at the thoughts that were screaming from her mind.

She wanted me to notice them. More than that, she wanted me to walk over to the fence, discover the glory hole they'd cut into it, and slip my cock through. They had liked to watch the previous occupants, who'd often had drug-fuelled orgies in the hot tub and the backyard; I imagined, then, that the hole had been there for quite some time. Alan had said that he had seen me training when he was on his way to bed at night. That had been true the first time. He had been in his yard and had noticed our deck lights come on. He had peeped through the hole and then gone and woken his sister. That had been the first time they had watched me. Since then, they had seen both me and Josh in the backyard, and I could tell from both their feverish thoughts that they weren't fussy about whose cock might come through to their side. They just wanted cock - both of them.

I wondered how I hadn't noticed a three-inch hole in the fence. I determined that I would examine the fence later to find out. I didn't want to do it just then; I didn't want to spoil their fantasy; I was fine with them watching. Also, the thought of using that gloryhole did actually appeal to me. Anne, although older, was by no means ugly. Even if she had been, I found myself rather enamored of the thought of 'anonymous sex.' It was novel.

I might have imagined the squeak of her reaching her orgasm just as I finished training. I smiled to myself and went inside to shower. When I told the girls about the gloryhole over breakfast, Amanda was for going to investigate immediately. I dissuaded her.

"They may see you," I said, "and then they will be embarrassed, and it will spoil it for them. I haven't decided what to do about it yet, but I want to keep my options open."

"You are considering using it," said Mary with a grin.

"Why not?" I said. "It will help toward my 'sharing' quota and help fulfil their fantasies. Win-win."

"Are you going to tell Josh?" asked Amanda.

"Let's get this weekend over with first," I said. "Josh has enough to think about just now."

"I wonder," said Jules thoughtfully, "what the HOA rules say about this."

We all fell about laughing, and were still chuckling when Josh and Louise came to the table.

"What's funny?" asked Josh. He looked like he hadn't slept.

"Jules," I said. "She was telling us a joke."

Jules looked panicked that she might have to come up with a joke at short notice, but relaxed a little when they didn't insist on her telling them. They were obviously in no mood.

"What time will your parents be here?" I asked.

"They said about eleven," Louise said. She looked at her watch. "They should be on the road now."

"After breakfast," said Jules, "I'll take next-door's cable box back."

"You fixed it then?" I asked, and she gave me a 'puhleeze' look. I grinned back. "Never doubted you for a minute."

"The only reason it took so long is that I had to order a component. Otherwise, it would have been done in an hour. The new microscope made things so much easier."

"You want me to come with you?" I asked, but she shook her head.

"You can check the fence while I distract them," she sent to me. I thought that was a great idea.

I cleared the dishes away and Jules went to get the cable box. She allowed me to look through her eyes as she approached the neighbors' house and knocked on the door. Anne answered it. She was invited in. Like me, she removed her shoes as she entered.

Alan, once more, was sat on the sofa, reading his newspaper.

I stopped watching and went out into the yard to examine the fence. Just where I had noticed them this morning, I found a circular hole at waist height, about three inches across. It had been cut out carefully and the edges smoothed. There was a corresponding plug of wood of the same colour blocking the hole. I assumed that it was held in by some mechanism on the other side. It didn't move when I pressed against it gently.

Unless you were looking for it, it would be virtually impossible to spot even in daylight. In the dark, even open, the hole would be invisible. The lighting situation on our side had sealed the deal. I would've been oblivious if I hadn't remembered what they'd let slip.

I went back into the house. Jules was still chatting with the couple. She set the box up for them and demonstrated it working. They offered payment, and she refused. The component she had used, she said, cost pennies. It was all good experience for her, as she had taken photographs and could write it up and use it as a case study for her course.

"Did you find it?" asked Jules when she got back.

"Yep," I said, and gave her the memories of it.

"Sneaky!" she said with a grin. "When are you going to..."

"I don't know that I am," I said, "but we'll see."

Since it was only nine, I decided to go and wash the cars - and not just because I had time before Louise's parents were due. I could see our HOA neighbour peering through his window at us; I could almost hear his teeth grinding as he watched. I pretended to ignore him, and we finished off the cars. It was just after ten.

It was half past ten when the doorbell rang.

We were all sitting in the living room. The atmosphere in there was like that of a principle's waiting room on punishment day. Josh and Louise looked miserable; Louise was actually shaking.

I went to answer the door.

There were three people standing on the doorstep: an older couple and a younger man, perhaps a year or two older than me. I almost laughed. He was the spitting image of Prince Charming from Shrek, complete with the pout and the flowing golden locks.

"Mr. and Mrs. Brown," I said. "Pleasure to meet you. I'm Caleb."

They both smiled and shook my hand.

"This is..." started Mrs. Brown.

"I know who he is," I said, "and he is not welcome here. You, however, are. Please come in."

I stepped back to allow them entry. They didn't move.

I waited.

They looked at me.

Eventually, Mrs. Brown moved to enter, and Mr. Brown followed. When Keenan went to follow them, I stepped into his way.

"I already said you are not welcome in my home," I repeated. "Please leave."

He looked me up and down with disdain. I chose not to engage, stepped back, and closed the door.

"Just through here," I said pleasantly to the stunned couple, leading them into the living room.

I could feel Keenan standing on the doorstep, not sure of what to do. He had travelled down with Louise's parents, and so had nowhere to go. I could feel his desperation to get Louise back, and I wanted to know more, so I dug a little. I found out why.

"Don't you think that was a little rude?" asked Louise's father.

"Can I offer you coffee?" I asked, ignoring his question. They looked nonplussed.

"Yes, please," said her mother.

I went into the kitchen. When I came back with the coffee, Louise's parents were trying to persuade her to let Keenan in.

"It's not my house," she said. "It's Caleb's. I can't invite people in that he has already said are not welcome."

"But he only said that because you told him to," argued her mother.

"She said nothing of the sort," I said. "As well as being my housemate, Josh is my friend. Why would I allow someone who treated him with such disrespect into my home? Were you not Louise's parents, I would not be so welcoming to you either."

"Now listen here young man..." said her father, and I waited for him to finish.

"Yes?" I asked. I think he'd thought that I would interrupt. I hadn't, and he hadn't thought that far ahead.

"This is between us and our daughter," said Louise's mother. "You have no right getting involved."

"I am not getting involved," I said, "but I have every right to say who does or doesn't come into my home."

"Come on, Louise," said her father. "We need to talk. Here is obviously not the place. I'll book us a hotel for a night, and we can talk there."

He stood up, expecting her to follow.

"No!" said Louise.

He was halfway out the door before he realised what she'd said.

"What?" he asked, astounded that she had refused him.

"I said no," said Louise quietly. "I am not going with you; I am not dumping Josh, and I am most certainly not getting back together with Keenan. I love Josh, and I am staying here."

"Listen, young lady," said her mother, "we only want what's best for you. Keenan has..."

"Keenan has nothing I want," said Louise. "Josh, however, has everything I want. I'm staying here, with him. You can either be happy for me, or not, but you are not going to change my mind, and you are certainly not going to force me to leave Josh just because you want a go on Keenan's nine-inch cock. Trust me, he has no idea how to use it."

Louise's mother went white and stood. Her father went puce. He went to grab Louise's arm. I intercepted him.

"You will not lay hands on anyone in my home," I said, directing him back into a chair.

I felt Amanda's power flare, and tensions in the room relaxed a little.

"Maybe," I said, "if you spent some time actually trying to get to know Josh, you might learn what it is that Louise sees in him. Louise is not going to change her mind. All you are going to achieve in trying to force her is to alienate your daughter. Is that what you want? Never to see your daughter again, or grandchildren, if and when she has them?"

Louise's mother sat down again, chewing her lips.

"Louise, be reasonable," she said. "Keenan is..."

"Keenan is not the man I love," interrupted Louise. "Josh is. You could stand them side by side, and find every flaw that Josh has - and believe me, he has enough - and point out every virtue Keenan has - although you would struggle to find many - and it still would not change my mind. I love Josh, and I am with Josh, and there is nothing you can say or do that will change that."

"Oh yes there is," said her father. "I'll stop the rent checks, for one. How long will your landlord here allow you to stay if he is not getting his rent money?"

"I'll pay her rent," said Josh. He looked almost as surprised as Louise did that he had said it. That was fair enough, since it hadn't strictly been his idea.

"What about her car insurance?" asked her father.

"That too," said Josh. He relaxed, recognizing the Compulsion.

"I suppose you are going to keep her," said her father, "and give her money for her incidental expenses too?"

"I have a job offer," said Louise. "That will take care of that. I'm not going to change my mind. Josh will look after me if my own parents won't."

"I never said..." said her father, blustering.

"You did," Louise said quietly. "You have threatened me several times with withdrawing your support if I didn't do what you wanted me to do. That was the only reason I stayed last week instead of leaving when I saw Keenan there. That was the reason I stayed when Josh left. That, and the fact that you practically imprisoned me. If you really want to alienate me, then do your worst. Stop paying my rent, my car insurance and my allowance. Then say goodbye, get back into your car and go home.

"When I graduate, I will come and collect the rest of my things - if you haven't already thrown them out by then - and I'll be out of your lives forever. It's up to you. I'm tired of it, and I'm not playing this game anymore."

"I think we have said all there is to be said," I interjected. "I would like you both to leave now. Take Keenan with you."

Her mother looked at her father, and they both stood.

"Louise," her mother said, "we only want what's best for you."

"What's best for me," answered Louise, "is for me to decide. I have decided that Josh is what is best for me. If you want to be a part of my life going forward, then you'll have to accept that."

Her parents moved to the door. I stood to show them out. It had been a long three-hour drive for a very short confrontation, but I felt that it had gone just about as well as it could have.

Keenan was sitting on the porch when I opened the door. He stood, moving toward the door as Louise's parents walked out. They glared at me, but didn't speak as they got into their car. After a moment, and with a puzzled expression on his face, Keenan climbed into the back. They drove away.

I closed the door softly. I turned and was engulfed in Louise.

"Thank you, thank you," she said.

"I didn't do anything," I said. "...yet. Tell me about Keenan's grandmother."

"Nana Babi?" she asked. I saw images of an old lady flash through her mind; surprise made her her mental self-discipline lax. In those memories, she and 'Nana' were as thick as thieves, the pair of them, and spent a good amount of time together. I could feel the love that Louise had for the old lady, and could see from her memories that she had believed that love was reciprocated.

"Never mind," I said. "Give me a minute. We might be going on a little trip."

I went into the den and made a phone call. It lasted just under twenty minutes. When I came out, everyone was waiting for me.

"I know why Keenan is suddenly interested in you again," I said, "and why he won't stop."

"Why?" asked Louise.

"Nana Babi," I said. "She liked you - loved you, even. It appears that Keenan didn't tell her that you and he broke up. He just said that you were away at college and could not get away to visit. Apparently, she told him that she would give him a sizeable sum for a wedding gift when you married - in the region of twenty million. If she dies before you marry, then that money will be divided up between all the beneficiaries of her will, and there are a lot of those. If he can convince you to marry him, he will get that twenty million as well as his portion of the estate. His parents aren't nearly as wealthy as they make themselves out to be; they're effectively borrowing against their expected inheritance. Twenty million directly to a grandson, skipping a generation entirely, would be no small thing."

"The fucking bastard," said Louise. "Fuck! He and his family dangle 'their' money like it should melt my panties, and I'm his meal ticket - and my parents' too, I guess? That is so fucked up."

"Come on," I said. "You, me, and Josh are going for a ride."

"Where to?" asked Louise.

"There's an old lady who misses you," I replied.

The girls wanted to come, and I couldn't dissuade them, so we set off in two cars. Nana Babi lived part way between Louise's parents and us, but it was still a two-hour drive.

We pulled up to a house a similar size to Jules' parents'. It was definitely more old-world. The driveway had a fountain in it. We parked and walked to the door, our feet crunching on the pea gravel.

I rang the doorbell. One of the two oaken doors swung open. I expected Jeeves to emerge, but it was a young woman, wearing suit pants and a blouse, who faced us.

"Yes?" she enquired.

"Caleb Sto..." I began, but then the woman spotted Louise.

"Louise?" she said, breaking out into a grin. She stepped forward and folded the young girl in a hug. "We've missed you. Nana Babi keeps asking when you are coming over. Keenan keeps making excuses."

"I spoke to Ms. Babi..." I began.

"Don't call her that," said the woman. "Everyone calls her Nana Babi."

"I spoke to her on the phone," I said. "She said to come over."

"There are a lot of you," she said.

"We can wait in the car," said Mary.

"Nonsense," said the woman. "I'm Claire, Nana Babi's great niece. I look after her. Come on in."

She led us into the house. The entryway was everything one would have expected from the outside. There were two staircases leading up, one on either side of the black-and-white-chequered lobby. There were several doors.

"Nana Babi is in the drawing room," said Claire. "Please, this way."

"We followed her through a large door, and into an equally-large room. It looked like a stately home I had once visited. The furniture and the decoration were, however, pristine. I almost felt like we had gone back in time.

"Look who's here," said Claire.

Nana Babi was a little woman, maybe five feet tall. Her hair was completely white, but she had piercing blue eyes which peered at us over half-moon spectacles. She had been reading a book when we'd entered.

"It had better be Louise," said Nana Babi. "It is too long since I saw that girl."

Louise rushed to the old woman and embraced her, and the old woman returned it.

I could feel the love that they had for each other. Claire directed us to seats while the two got reacquainted.

By the time Nana Babi released Louise, Claire had returned with a tray, laden with cups and a big pot of coffee. There were cakes and biscuits too.

"Which one of you is Caleb?" asked Nana Babi.

I raised my hand.

"You wanted to talk," she said, "so talk."

I explained the situation in much more detail than I had over the telephone. The most important bit was that Keenan had another girlfriend - one just as vacuous as he - that he had no intention of breaking up with.

Then I told her about Josh - how I knew him to be a good person, and how perfect and happy he and Louise were together, and how unhappy Louise was being made - not only by Keenan, but by her parents, who he had managed to get onside. That naturally led to a recap of the stunt her parents had literally just pulled.

She looked at Louise with tears in her eyes.

"Louise, I am so sorry," she said. "I didn't mean to cause you so much trouble. Keenan didn't tell me you had split up. I just thought he was dragging his feet. I knew he would regret it for the rest of his life if he let you go, so I wanted to light a fire under him. I would never have told him that if I'd known you had separated."

"It's not your fault, Nana Babi," said Louise. "I did try to come and see you after we split, but Keenan told me that you were furious with me and had told him to tell you never to come here again. I cried all night. I hated the fact that I had hurt you so much."