Donna from Day Care Ch. 01

All four of them relished their dinner at the same restaurant as the previous night, and once again Kevin appreciated the way Donna enjoyed her food. Self-effacingly, she commented on how she had gotten to be such a tub of lard because she enjoyed food so much. Kevin corrected her, telling her how she was no more than pleasantly plump, if even that. He was completely sincere. Although aware that the expression was more often than not a euphemism for fat, he rarely used such expressions, partly because of his training as an accountant, and partly because of his underdeveloped social skills.

Once again, on the way to his and the children's apartment, Kevin stopped at Donna's building and walked her to the door, which was only a few feet from where he parked. This time, while shaking her hand good night, she surprised him by holding both his hands in hers. Although she had been demurely looking down at her feet, she surprised him even more when she abruptly raised her head, stood on tiptoes, and kissed him on the cheek. Flustered at her daring, Donna hurried inside and closed the door after herself. She hoped that the very sweet, handsome man she had just met wouldn't think badly of her for taking such liberties.

Donna had never been one to take liberties with anybody, nor to allow anybody to take liberties with her. When she was 18, she married Daniel, a man she didn't really know very well. Both Donna and her bridegroom were members of a very strict fundamental Christian denomination, and they were virgins until the night of their wedding. On that same night, they set about trying to "make babies", as was expected of them by both sets of parents and by other members of their church. Donna had always loved children, and all the young members of her large extended family, and all the offspring of her fellow church members returned her affection. Everybody she knew believed her to be a natural mother, and encouraged her to have at least a dozen babies of her own, maybe even more if she could manage it. Donna liked the idea also, and eagerly agreed with Daniel that they should start a family immediately, and work toward that goal.

However, it was not to be. After a year of repeated attempts, Donna was still not pregnant, and she and her disappointed husband visited a fertility clinic to find out why. Daniel was found to be extraordinarily fertile, but she was found to have a uterus that had not fully developed, making it impossible for her to conceive. She was distraught, but her unsupportive and outraged husband and the other members of their church were even more than that. They were as unforgiving as they were strict, and it was decided, almost unanimously, that Donna's lack of fecundity was some kind of punishment from God for some truly dreadful transgression that she had always kept secret.

Undisclosed infertility was legal, if seldom used, grounds for an annulment of a marriage, and that was what Daniel decided was the thing to do. It eliminated the problem quickly and, since the marriage was considered to have never taken place, no kind of settlement was required. Because Donna was considered a vile sinner, maybe even a Jezebel, all the members of their church rallied behind Daniel and applauded his cleverness in removing a viper from their midst. Donna was shunned and essentially excommunicated, with no job skills and no future to speak of.

"Serves her right," was the general attitude of her former friends, and even of her family members, who also wanted nothing more to do with such a wicked person.

One member, however, marginally more compassionate than the others, and aware of the fully reciprocated love the pariah had for children, suggested that she make a career of day care. At the first place she applied, the management, amazed at the rapport she immediately demonstrated with their charges, hired her immediately. For five years, she worked there, ill-paid but enjoying her work, and gaining a reputation among the parents and other day-care operators who met her as the very best at what she did. Donna didn't care about all that; she was just grateful to be around the children she loved so much.

The day eventually arrived when Donna's employers retired and closed their doors. Mrs. Ortiz quickly heard of the availability of the paragon, and she offered twice as much in salary as Donna had been making. Mrs. Ortiz had several ways of running the best daycare operation in town, and one of those ways was hiring the best people. Surprised at her generosity, Donna accepted the new position. The first day there, she met Kevin.

From their introduction, Donna was quite taken with the tall, nice looking man with the two unusually sweet children. If she were ever lucky enough to marry again, she would want it to be with somebody just like Kevin, with his ready smile and regular features, but she knew better than to hope for anything as wonderful as that. It was obvious how much he loved his children. Somebody like him would almost certainly want more, and wouldn't want anything to do with a failure of a woman such as her, who would never be able to give him any.

She very much enjoyed Kevin's company and that of Kate and Kerry the first evening he took her to the restaurant and drove her home. That evening with them was the best in her experience since her husband dumped her, and she fervently hoped there would be more in the future. After suffering the hypocrisy of the members of her former church, she had stopped attending services or doing much of anything along that line but, that night, Donna thanked God for the wonderful time He had allowed her to have, and asked Him for more like it.

Surprisingly, her prayer was answered the very next night. Once again, she was privileged to enjoy the company of Kerry and Kate until late in the evening, and their apologetic father was kind enough to offer her dinner with the children and him, and a ride home. Because the youngsters had lost the miniscule amount of shyness they had toward her, and because she and Kevin were more acquainted with each other, the evening was even better than the previous one. Afterward, when Kevin was shaking her hand goodnight, in a prim and proper manner, she stood on tiptoes to kiss him on the cheek. After her impulsive move, she rushed, embarrassed, into her building and up to her apartment.

"How could I have done such a stupid thing?" Donna asked herself. "Just when it seemed like we were getting to be friends. That's probably the last time I'll get to see him, except for the few minutes it'll take him to drop off his kids in the morning and pick them up in the evening."

She was mistaken. On Wednesday evening, the apologetic Kevin once again came in after all the other children had left, and once again wanted to make it up to her.

"I'm really sorry that the kids and I are keeping you here so long. I've had to work late every day this week." That wasn't true. Kevin had actually sat at his desk reading the newspaper for the last hour, so he could be late enough to offer dinner and a ride home again. He felt no guilt whatsoever about the fib. "I know you must have better things to do, but at least I can take you to our favorite restaurant and drop you off at home again."

"Thanks, Kevin, but I really have nothing I would rather do than stay here with Kerry and Kate. They're great kids." That was true enough, and she didn't even consider the last part to be an exaggeration. She also liked the reference to "our" favorite restaurant.

After another extremely enjoyable meal, Kevin parked in front of Donna's apartment building again. Again, after she had unlocked the door and they were shaking hands goodnight, she held his right hand in both of hers. This time, he moved closer, and carefully placed his other arm around her back, avoiding her hip and ass, or doing anything else that might be considered even remotely sexually aggressive. Kevin was finally becoming aware of his feelings toward Donna, and he would do nothing that might scare her away, or cause her to think less of him.

Almost as a reflex, Donna moved in closer to lean up against him, feeling warm and protected against his strong, but gentle masculinity. Her right hand released his hand, and that arm slipped around Kevin's lower back. They stood that way, enjoying each other's presence, for almost a minute, until Kevin remembered what he had been wanting to ask her.

"Donna, do you work on Saturday?" His voice was husky when he asked, and he cleared his throat, excused himself and asked again. He knew Mrs. Ortiz did not operate her center on weekends, but he thought Donna might work somewhere else then.

"No, I don't." Donna stood in place, her feelings for Kevin growing stronger the longer they stayed there together.

"Well, I was wondering it you'd care to join the kids and me for a barbecue on our balcony. I cook a mean steak, or chicken or whatever you want."

"Either is fine and, yes, but only if you let me bring something. How about if I bring a salad?"

"That sounds good. Okay, I'll pick you up about noon, if that isn't too early."

"Noon is fine."

"Good. Okay, I'll see you tomorrow, but now I'd better get the kids home."

Kevin and Donna disengaged but, instead of moving away, she turned her smiling face up to him. Although lacking in certain social skills, and not always knowing how to act toward women, Kevin was not completely inept. He leaned forward, and lightly kissed Donna's lips, before hurrying back to his car, where both children were sitting, impatient and wide-eyed, wondering what was taking so long. He drove home with no further incident, although he felt like filling the air inside the car with silly love songs.

After closing the front door behind herself and making sure it was locked, Donna floated up the stairs to her apartment. Actually, of course, her feet did touch the floor and the stair treads, but she didn't know it. Kevin was the first man she had kissed since just before getting the bad news about her female organs, and she had forgotten what it felt like. She definitely wanted to spend more time with him and, although she loved his children, sometimes they could detract from a budding relationship. She needed to figure out how to get their father to herself for a while, and thought she knew a way. Although racked with guilt about the terrible secret she was keeping from him, Donna still wanted to enjoy her time with Kevin, until she was finally forced to tell him. She was certain he would want nothing more to do with her after that but, until then, she wanted to take as much pleasure in his company as she could.

Thursday and Friday were much the same to Kevin as the first three days of the week had been. He pretended to work late on both days so he could show up late, take Donna to dinner with the children and himself, and drive her home after that. On Thursday, after she unlocked the front door to her apartment, Donna turned, stepped forward and wrapped her arms around Kevin's waist. Without hesitation, and without even thinking about it, he put his arms around her. They stood silently, cuddling together and simply enjoying the moment. Their goodnight kiss went on for a long time, with either of them clinging to the other to make it as good and long-lasting as possible.

Kevin finally broke it off. Although he very much wanted to continue kissing this sweet and wonderful woman, maybe even entering her apartment to do so in private, he knew it was not feasible. For one thing, he certainly couldn't leave the children by themselves in the car; it was dangerous besides being illegal. For another, she was arousing feelings in him that no other woman, certainly not his former wife, ever had. He believed Donna's feelings for him were somewhat the same, although almost certainly not as strong, and he didn't want to move too fast and spoil what seemed to be a good thing. After saying goodnight and sharing another kiss, he got into his car and drove home.

On Friday, Donna put her plan into action. She actually began in the morning, getting up early and making sure her apartment was as clean as possible. That was fairly easy, because it was just a small studio with a kitchenette. She made her bed, raised it with the legs folded, and swung it into the closet behind, followed by closing the folding door, something she hardly ever bothered doing. With that door closed, the room was in the shape of an "L", with the bed concealed in the end of the short leg, and the door next to it leading to the closet.

Donna had only a few pieces of furniture, because she almost never had any company. Next to the sliding door to the kitchenette, was a small sofa, actually what is sometimes called a love seat, because it comfortably seats two. Across from it sat a television on a stand, and in the corner where the two legs of the "L" came together was a writing desk and chair. Next to that was the only window in the place, and it looked out on the blank wall of the neighboring apartment house. The studio was small and strictly utilitarian, but it was also cheap and fitted her needs quite well. With all in readiness, she left to catch a bus to work.

Once again, Kevin was late getting to the day care center, and Donna was eagerly anticipating his arrival. She had asked other teachers about his punctuality, and had been told he usually arrived on time in the evenings. Their replies made her wonder whether he actually had to work late, or if it was some kind of a ruse. She hoped it was the latter, because it would mean he might be interested in her, although not possibly as much as she was in him. Her yearning for Kevin seemed to be increasing every day, even though she considered her chances at any kind of long-term relationship to be nil, because of her inability to give him the children she knew he would want.

That evening after dinner, when Kevin parked in front of her apartment building, Donna unbuckled her seat belt and turned to him instead of opening the door. "Kevin, tomorrow is Saturday, and I doubt if any of us have to go to work tomorrow. Why don't you and the kids come up to my apartment for a while?"

"Can we Daddy?" Kerry asked. Kate turned to her father too, waiting to hear what he would say. Both children liked Donna even more than they had on Monday, and really wanted to spend more time with her.

"Well, I don't see why not," Kevin answered. His feelings mirrored those of his children, but in a more adult way.

He and Donna got out of their respective car doors and assisted the children in exiting the vehicle. Donna held Kerry's hand and Kevin carried his daughter while they walked the short distance to the front entrance. After she closed the door and locked it behind them, Donna led them up one flight of stairs to her studio. She was a little bit embarrassed at its small size and Spartan furnishings, but that didn't keep her from continuing with the plan that was working perfectly so far.

After locking the apartment door behind the small group, Donna motioned Kevin to the only reasonable place for him to sit, which was the love seat across from the television. She led the younger members of his family to the writing desk, where she had some things she had bought especially for them. Kate's blue eyes lit up when she saw the toy there, exactly like the one that she found so fascinating at the day care center. Donna had noticed how she could, if allowed, sit for hours playing with it, and had bought it especially for her on that night. After setting it down on the floor in front of the doors that enclosed her bed, Donna smiled as she watched the little girl eagerly start to play. Happily, she picked up the brightly colored balls from the channel, dropped them into the plastic hopper on top of the toy, and watched as they rolled down the curving transparent tube, to come back out into the channel, only to be picked up and dropped into the same place again.

Donna had also observed Kerry's attraction to coloring books, and she had picked out two large ones, along with a box of large crayons, just right for his little fingers. She watched, smiling lovingly, as he eagerly sat down at the desk and began turning the first pale sheet into artwork of his own personal choosing. With the children preoccupied, just as she had planned, Donna joined their father, sitting as close to him as she could reasonably get. When he put his arm around her, she got even closer, cuddling against him and looking up at him with a smile on her face.

When she did that, Kevin, marveling again at what a sweet, cuddly armful she was, squeezed her more tightly and bent down to kiss her lips. It felt so good, he raised his lips briefly, and leaned down to kiss her again. Donna eagerly kissed him back both times, and hoped there would be more, although maybe not right away. Kevin hoped the same thing, but there were other things that had to be done also. They would have loved to sit there and smooch like high school sweethearts, but they both knew there were more important things. The mutual attraction was obvious to both of them, and they both felt great about it, but they really needed to get to know each other better. Kevin thought it was lucky that the kids were preoccupied. Donna considered it to be good planning.

Kevin started. "You know, we've only known each other five days, but I feel so comfortable around you that it seems like longer. But we really don't know much about each other."

"Well, this seems like a good time to learn more. The other night, you said you were divorced. You seem like such a sweet guy, I can't imagine your wife leaving you. Or did you leave her?"

"She left me. I was pretty naïve when we met, and she must have seen me as a gold mine to latch onto. I think she got pregnant with Kerry just so she could do that."

Kevin went on to describe the very unpleasant scene with him and Carla and her young lover. He even told how he had secretly recorded the whole discussion, especially the way she had reviled him and expressed disdain for her own children and bragged of her lesbian affairs. Kevin had always thought it was vaguely dishonorable to take advantage of her like that, but he had never regretted it. He knew the recording had prevented Carla from demanding, and probably getting, a much larger settlement, including alimony and probably even child support. Without her avowed dislike of the children, she very likely would have won custody of them and gouged him for more money. What would have been even worse, she could have continued to abuse or neglect those whom she would have claimed were so dear to her.

Donna agreed with Kevin's assessment of his ex-wife's actions and intentions, and wondered how anybody could treat such a sweet man in such a despicable way. She also expressed her abhorrence of anyone who could fail to at least like children, especially her own. Then it was her turn. She described her early life in the fundamental church, the marriage she and Daniel were pressured into, and the subsequent annulment after a year. She hoped she wouldn't be questioned about the grounds for annulment, but her hope was in vain.

"That's odd," Kevin mused. "An annulment after a year. Usually it's in a couple of days, for underage, or somebody lying, or bigamy or something that made the marriage illegal." Although he didn't ask, Kevin waited expectantly for Donna to describe the grounds for annulment.

She knew she almost had to say something, but Donna wanted to delay it. She stood up and looked at the children to see if they might provide a distraction, but there was no chance of that. Katie was still fascinated by the colored balls she was dropping into the plastic hopper and Kerry was still scribbling in his coloring books. Donna sat back down, took a deep breath, and started confessing her failure as a woman, even though she was afraid Kevin might grab the children and stalk out the door once he found out.