Life in a Small New Hampshire Town Pt. 03

"But what if people stare? Ask what happened?"

"First, most people won't even notice. They are so tied up in their own little world. In my case, most people would quickly look away if I appeared in public in shorts."

"You go out in shorts?"

"Sometimes, but not when I'm working my profession. I know, a double standard. Like everybody else, I'm not perfect. I have my own quirks. We all do. If anybody is rude enough to ask, I just say 'war injury'. That shuts up most. You could say 'accident' and leave it at that."

"Besides becoming a friend, I think I now have a third therapist."

"Third?"

"Dr. Kate, Chris and now you."

"I feel honored."

"Mommy."

"Sierra's awake.

I pulled on one of my long hippie dresses, my slippers and headed for her room.

"It may be best to pull up some covers. I don't mind that she sees you in my bed, or that she sees your prosthesis. I'm not ready to explain what a penis is just yet."

Erik laughed and pulled up the comforter. I picked up Sierra and headed for the kitchen. Several minutes later, he appeared, fully dressed although somewhat wrinkled. I made breakfast for the three of us. We ate and retired to the living room with coffee. Sierra was in an active phase, so our conversation was disjointed, interrupted by Sierra's needs. Eventually she was running out of steam, I read her a couple of her favorite books and she settled in for a nap in her bed.

"I've become very comfortable with you Erik. I like you a lot. It's happened so quickly. Sometimes I can't believe where I am, what I'm doing.

"We can slow down. I like you a lot also. I don't want to screw things up by going too fast."

"That's not where I was taking this conversation. I want to see you regularly. I'll even be your photographer if it means I get to spend more time with you. Qualifier: I still have other obligations, so it can't be every event, but some. I also want to spend more personal time with you."

"Personal time?"

"It's called dating, Erik. Remember, you asked me. Now, you're stuck with me."

"I hardly think 'stuck' is an appropriate word."

"Well, you'll be dating a single mom with a two-year-old. Not everyone would consider that a great idea."

"I am dating a wonderful woman who happens to have a child. What's the issue?"

"I can see one, but it's easy to address if you agree."

"Go on."

"I'm guessing your place isn't set up to accommodate Sierra and me overnight."

"You guessed right. It's a small efficiency that works for me, but, yeah, it isn't really set up for any guests. Or entertaining in general."

"I'm not comfortable leaving Sierra here with a sitter, even if I could find one willing to stay the night. Therefore, any overnight stays would have to be here. And I do want some more sleep-overs."

"In that case, one thing I would want is to leave a set of crutches here. I keep a pair next to my bed for bathroom or kitchen runs, when I don't want to put on my prosthesis, only to take it off a couple of minutes later. It's given me back my freedom to do most things, but it's not very practical for very short needs."

"While you're at it, why don't you bring a couple of changes of clothes, underwear, toothbrush, any other necessities."

"Are you sure you're up for this? That's a lot of changes for a new relationship."

"If we're going to do this, we might as well make it easy for ourselves. There is one other thing I want you to bring. Condoms. I don't know when I'll be ready, but I want them available and I wouldn't know what to get.

I was blushing with that last request.

"I'll take care of it. But we won't use them until you're absolutely ready.

"Deal."

Chris walked in at that moment.

Chris

I saw Erik's DJ van in the yard.

"Morning Shiloh. Although we technically haven't met, I know you're Erik. I'm Chris, Shiloh's housemate."

"Nice to meet you, Chris."

I headed up to my room. 'Boy, do we have some talking to do after he leaves.'

Shiloh

"That's probably my cue to leave. Shiloh, I really enjoyed this weekend."

As soon as he drove off, Chris was down the stairs.

"Spill it. All of it."

"Nothing much to say. He's a friend."

"And..."

"We had a nice date, went to the fair, had dinner at the Café Amalfi."

"And?"

"He brought me home."

"I can keep this up all day. And..."

"We had some wine left over from dinner, so we enjoyed it here. And he stayed the night."

"He stayed the night.... on the couch?"

"No. With me. In my bed. Naked.... eventually."

"Did you...?"

"No. Not really."

"There has to be an explanation behind that. Not really?"

"You are pretty nosy."

"And you are my friend. When you asked me to stay here you self-described yourself as, and I quote 'a man-hating, lesbian, hippie, bitch.' And you said you didn't mind if I had male friends as long as they didn't come in the house. From that to a man staying overnight after a couple of dates?"

"I believe I said that people saw me that way. Because of the rape, that was the persona I protected myself with."

"Still, Shiloh, big changes. I like you. I don't want you to get hurt."

"Erik is different, a very special person, very kind and gentle."

"And...?"

"Erik has his own scars. War scars. Worse than mine. And he has overcome them. With help from Dr. Kate. And he has helped me face my own past. And I probably told you some confidential information."

Chris came over and gave me a hug.

"By now, you know I can keep my mouth shut."

"We didn't have actual sex, but we were both fully naked, he gave me an orgasm, just from my boobs, I gave him a hand job this morning. I asked him to get some condoms so we'll have them when I'm ready."

Chris

I gave her another hug.

"I'm sure my sex life, what there is of it, must be pretty boring to you. I don't imagine there are many girls my age with so little experience, then falling for someone so fast."

I left her thought hanging in the air for a bit. If you only knew. 'Fess up, Chris. She just shared some incredibly intimate details with you.'

"Uh, Shiloh, you're not as unique as you think. I was a virgin until last Saturday."

Her mouth dropped open. She looked stunned.

"Close your mouth, Shiloh, before you swallow a fly."

"With Tom? Didn't you meet at the wedding?"

"Yes, to both. Unlike you, I've wanted to have sex for a long time, just didn't have much opportunity on a dairy farm, long days, seven days a week. Tom's also a very caring and gentle guy."

"Wow."

Later that evening, after dinner.

"Chris, I assume the lawn care business must be slowing down."

"Yep."

"I understand that Derrick does some construction work in the colder months."

"True."

"I have a small project I want done. Do you think he'd be interested?"

"Let me call him and ask?"

"Derrick?.......Chris.......Do you have any construction projects lined up yet, other than your own?.......Nothing definite?......Shiloh has a small project she wants done. Are you interested?.......Hang on. Let me ask her."

"He can come over anytime that's convenient for you."

"The sooner the better."

"You heard that?.......Tomorrow morning at 8:00?.......She's shaking her head yes........Okay. bye."

Monday, Oct. 1

Shiloh

Derrick arrived right on time.

"Derrick, come in. I was just having my second cup of coffee. Care for some while we talk?"

"I never turn down good coffee."

I poured his and led him to my bathroom.

"I have a friend who will be staying with me. I need to make this handicap accessible. I assume this once was another bedroom that was converted to a bath sometime in the past. It's quite large, so I assume it can accommodate what I propose. Basically, I want to keep the sink and toilet the same, just add grab-bars. Keep the claw tub as is. Replace that small corner shower with a two-person, barrier free one, with built in seating, a hand shower as well as a wall shower, the most slip resistant floor possible. If you can find a unit with a sliding glass door with barn door style hardware, that would be my preference, but only if it is readily available. Do you know the type I mean?"

"Yep. Sure do. We did one like that last year."

"I'd like to build out a linen storage closet against that wall, nothing fancy, just functional. Maybe four feet wide. Those wire closet shelving units are fine. Finally, I want to tile the floor with the most skid resistant, when wet, tile you can find. What else do you need from me?"

"Nothing. I need to take some photos, take some measurements, make a sketch of the floor plan."

"I'll be in the kitchen."

Fifteen minutes later, he came out to the kitchen.

"Can I get into the basement to see what we're dealing with."

"Through that door."

He returned shortly.

"The drains are all PVC, not cast iron, so any new connections will be easy, relatively speaking. The floor joists all seem sound and well supported so the extra weight of the tiles shouldn't be a problem. I'll get back to you as soon as I get back quotes from suppliers. When did you want to do this?"

"As soon as you can. Once you get started, how long do you think it will take?"

"Assuming everything comes in when the suppliers say it will, a couple of weeks."

Later that afternoon.

Shiloh

"Hello.......Hi, Derrick.......That was fast.......Sure come on over.......Bye."

Derrick arrived a half hour later, carrying a pad and a lap top, and a piece of tile.

"First, Olivia chastised me for not asking about getting together to look at the wedding pictures. Let me give you her number as my schedule is more flexible than hers, although weekends are probably best.

Here's a sketch of what I came up with. It's only a first draft, so consider it a starting point. If we move the toilet to this corner and the sink adjacent to it, we can mount a grab bar securely to this wall, have a common one that serves the toilet and sink here, and another one on this side. I didn't ask, but gathered your friend is not in a wheelchair?"

"Correct."

"Then this should work well."

He pulled up a photo of the sink grab bars on his laptop.

"Now here's a listing for the shower unit. It seems to fit what you described."

"Derrick, that looks exactly like what I envisioned."

"Well, this is your lucky day. This was special ordered two years ago, the project was cancelled for some reason, the wholesaler wouldn't take it as a return, so the dealer is stuck with it. They've been sitting on it all this time, so are willing to sell it probably below their cost, just to get rid of it. I suspect they had a deposit on it, which they kept, so they're still doing okay. It's still in the original packaging, just collecting dust.

"I installed this shower head at Olivia's. This part is a traditional shower, but the hand held is secured with a magnet, here, to the bottom of the main head. You can use either separately, or both together, by moving this lever. I think it's pretty clever engineering.

"By relocating the toilet and sink, we can put the linen closet anywhere along here. The tile people said this tile is rated with the highest wet slip resistance. It's in stock. Actually, everything is in stock, except the grab bars, and they're in stock at the wholesalers, available in one or two days."

"What's the total, Derrick?"

He showed me. Much less than I expected.

"Maybe I should install a new low flow toilet and vanity. Get everything updated. When can you start?"

"As soon as tomorrow."

"Do it. What do you need as a deposit?"

"Half."

I wrote him a check.

"I think that Chris, John, Randy and I will be here most days. Darryl can probably handle most of the mowing this time of year by himself. Growing season has pretty much ended. We'll be here at 8:00 tomorrow. I gathered that time is of the essence."

"Within reason, yes."

"We may be able to work next weekend."

"Thanks, Derrick."

Chris drove in just as Derrick was getting to his truck. They talked for a few minutes. He left and she came in.

"Derrick said I'm working here this week, that you're expecting a guest who needs a handicap accessible bathroom. Care to share?"

"Again, I need your discretion. Erik lost his lower left leg to an IED. He uses a below knee prosthesis. It works well most of the time, but is a little impractical for a quick trip to the bathroom to pee, or when taking a shower."

"I never would have guessed. You're really investing a lot into this relationship, so early."

"I know it seems like it, but I've wanted to upgrade my shower since I got here and the flooring is decades old linoleum. So really, the only thing that doesn't specifically benefit me is the grab bars, probably the least expensive part of the project.

Changing the subject, do you have plans for Saturday afternoon? I need to upgrade my wardrobe, get away from the 'hippie girl' look. I was thinking of going down to Manchester after the farmers' market closes, to shop for clothes."

"You know, I'm in if Derrick doesn't need me. I bought several outfits earlier, but colder weather is coming. I need some more warmer items."

Saturday, Oct. 6.

Shiloh

"Ready to shop, Chris?"

"Let's hit the road."

"Sierra almost always falls asleep when she's in the car seat. Sometimes she's cranky when she wakes, other times she's fine."

"We'll find out."

"Hot date tonight?"

"Probably not. I told Tom we had to go down to Manchester and didn't know what time we'd be back."

"I put Erik off with the same reason. I don't want him to see the half-finished project. How's it coming, by the way?"

"Derrick thinks we will finish grouting on Thursday, clean up Friday morning. You do know he's coming over tomorrow morning, right?"

"Yes."

Thursday evening, Oct. 11.

Shiloh

"It's beautiful, Derrick. I can't believe you did all of this in 10 days."

"On this job, the stars aligned perfectly. All the materials were here on time, we didn't run into any unforeseen structural problems, I had a crew of four most of the time. I never told you; I negotiated a better deal with the plumbing supply house. I told them we would take the shower off their hands if they threw in the toilet, and vanity for the price they originally quoted me. After a quick conference in the front office, they agreed. I guess they really wanted to get rid of that shower unit. Anyway, we'll be back tomorrow to clean up. Everything's functional now, but you need to keep off the tile until tomorrow night, better to wait until Saturday night then treat it gently for the first couple of days."

"We've used the upstairs bath for the last couple of weeks. Another couple of days won't be a problem. Thanks for everything, Derrick. Bye."

***

"Erik, Shiloh.......Yeah, it's been a couple of crazy weeks for me.......Now that things are back to normal, I'd like to make dinner for you Saturday......Why don't you come over for 7:00......Great. Bye.",

Saturday, Oct. 13.

Shiloh

I was wearing one of the new dresses that I picked up in Manchester. It was dark blue with large colorful flowers, knee length. And, being brave, I was wearing nylons. Black, so they provided some camouflage, but never-the-less my legs were exposed.

Dinner was going to be roasted beet salad with goat cheese, maple glazed walnuts and assorted greens, traditional baked potatoes and grilled steak. I had roasted the beets earlier and just finished assembling the salads. The potatoes were baking and the steaks' marinade was made.

Erik arrived, bringing a bottle of wine and a bouquet of flowers.

"Pretty flowers for a pretty lady. That dress looks stunning on you. Those nylons are perfect.

"Thanks, Erik. Set the flowers on the counter while I get a vase, but first, things first."

I closed the distance between us and pulled him into a hug, raising my face up in anticipation of a kiss. I was not disappointed. He pulled me against him, one arm just below my shoulders, the other firmly on my ass. He kissed me, lightly at first, increasing the pressure, finally advancing his tongue to play with mine. By the time we separated for air I could feel a prominent bulge against me. I reached down and squeezed it, saying,

"Later. Promise."

"I uh, have an overnight bag and a set of crutches in my van. I'll go get them."

I found a suitable vase, arranged the flowers and set them on the table. Erik returned and took his things into the bedroom. His bulge had receded. I started the steaks marinading.

Dinner was enjoyed along with a glass of wine; dishes were taken care of and we adjourned to the living room. Sierra had long since fallen asleep and was tucked in her bed.

We sat next to each other on the couch, sipped our way through the rest of the wine and had a pleasant evening, relaxing in the way that two people who are comfortable in each other's company can experience. I'm amazed at how easy it has been to reach this state of comfort with Erik.

We were snuggling on the couch. I was in the corner, shoes off, with my legs up on the cushion, feet tucked against my ass. Erik was to my right. He reached down and started caressing my legs, starting at my feet and working up to my knee, both legs. Surprisingly, I didn't mind him running his hands over my scar, perhaps because it was covered. Next, he slipped his hand under my dress and massaged my thighs, right up to my panties, briefly, lightly touching them as he passed over from one leg to the other.

"I like how you make me feel, Erik. Maybe we should move into the bedroom?"

He stood up, reached down for my hand and pulled me up into a hug. His erection was clearly back.

"We need to take care of that. Come with me," I said as I took his hand and led him to my room. He laughed as we started walking.

"What."

"Nothing."

I stopped.

"What am I missing?"

"Clearly noticing to my erection, you said 'come' with me as we headed to your bedroom."

I blushed bright red.

"That's not what I meant and you know it. But... now that you brought it up, it's not a bad idea. Now, come with me."

He laughed again. I blushed again. Or maybe continued the first one.

"Let me use the bathroom first."

He sat down and started unbuckling his belt.

"Please, can you wait? I want to do that for you."

"Okay."

I did what was necessary. When I returned, the light on my nightstand was on, the room light was off. He obviously paid attention to what I did last time. There was a box of condoms next to the light, opened for easy access, next to a bottle of lube. His side of the bed was turned down.

Erik left for the bathroom. I was sitting on the edge of the bed when he returned. I was nervous about his reaction to the bathroom, but couldn't read his expression. He sat next to me, pulled me towards him, but not a hug and looked directly at my eyes.

"Your bathroom is not as I remembered it."

"No, it's not."

"Care to explain?"

"I've wanted to upgrade it since I've owned the place. The shower was small, dark and uninviting. The linoleum was old, worn and ugly. It's much nicer now."

"And the grab bars?"

"I had a friend visit a couple of weeks ago. I wanted to make it easier if he wanted to visit again."

"You've invested an awful lot in a relationship that's barely begun. I want it to work out, but we both know there's a chance it won't."

"I'm going to do my best to make sure it does work out. Really, the only thing that's specific to you are the grab bars."

"So, I'm only worth a couple of grab bars to you?"

It took me a minute to realize he was joking. He pulled me into a hug.