Relativity Part C

"Aw. C'mon. That was just a dream. It didn't mean anything," he complained as he patted her butt.

"You sure came a lot for something that didn't mean anything."

He just shook his head. She put her head back down on his chest.

After laying quietly for a little while, Denae said, "I'm not sure which spot I prefer. Here or next to the pond up at your family's place."

"They're both good in their own way," he observed. "That was really hot."

"Doing it outside? Here and at the pond?"

"Well, yeah, that. But I meant you talking to those old people while you were naked. That was hot how you just acted like it was nothing."

"Really?? You thought that was hot, did you?" she asked laughing. "Are you some kind of candaulist?"

"Huh? What does that mean?"

"You like showing me off. Showing me to others."

"I don't know about that. But it was just hot that you were not trying to hide yourself from those people."

####

The next morning was Thanksgiving and they all had a big breakfast together. The parade was on the TV in the background. Sam commented that he always enjoyed Thanksgiving because it was a uniquely American holiday.

After breakfast all three ladies went to work in the kitchen while Sam and Bill watched TV in the family room, waiting for football to start. Sam explained to Bill that while he grew up watching futbol and still watched it, he had gotten acquainted with American football and become a fan. In the kitchen, Serena told Cheryl she was very glad to have an American help her with the turkey and dressing fearing that she, an immigrant and relatively new to the traditions and food, had never gotten it quite right.

Once Denae's part of the preparation was complete, she asked Bill if she wanted to sit by the pool with him. Anxious to see her in a bikini again, he quickly agreed and headed off to the cabana to change. Denae came back down in a different bikini than she had worn the day before. It was slightly more revealing than the previous one but did not raise the ire of her parents. She made herself a margarita and grabbed Bill a beer and met him out back.

Bill and Denae sat together talking, laughing, and enjoying the warm sun. Since they were alone, they talked about the sex they had the previous evening and Denae lamented not being able to have sex with him the night before that, remarking that she had to take care of herself after having taken care of Bill.

Inside, Cheryl had stopped for a moment to look out at Bill and Denae. Serena realized she was looking at the kids and joined her.

"Bill is crazy about Denae," Cheryl told her with a smile. "And I am too. She's wonderful."

Serena put her arm around Cheryl. "They make a good couple. And Bill is an amazing young man."

The Thanksgiving dinner Serena put on was as good and big and hearty and American as any ever served. The two families ate their fill and were at ease with one another at this point. As they dined, Denae mentioned that some of her old high school friends would be getting together Friday night for a mini class reunion and she would like to go and to take Bill. She wanted to be sure that Cheryl and her parents did not feel as though they would be abandoned. The adults all encouraged the two young people to go.

During the day on Friday, the ladies went shopping to see if they might find some early Christmas bargains. Sam and Bill chose not to join them, but rather went to the Rapallino's club and hit golf balls at the driving range. They did join the ladies for lunch.

After dinner that evening, Denae and Bill headed to a local sports bar where she was going to meet up with her closest high school friends. She put on a short dress and some casual shoes and suggested Bill wear some jeans and a nice shirt.

When Bill and Denae arrived, her friends were already there and had secured a table away from the dancefloor so they might have an opportunity to be heard as they talked. Denae introduced Bill to them all; Kelly who had been on the cheerleading squad with her, Paul who had played football, Seth who had not played football, Annie, another cheerleader, and Tyler, or Ty, who had played football and was her boyfriend the last two years of high school. The males stood and shook Bill's hand and all of them hugged Denae.

Bill recognized Tyler as Denae's prom date from the picture he had seen Tuesday night. He was a good-looking guy who was in obviously good shape. Bill tried to fight feeling insecure and it helped that Denae held his hand while she introduced him as her boyfriend. Once seated, she wrapped her arm around his, which also helped him.

Denae was the only one who had brought someone with her. Since Bill was not a member of their class and had just met them, he did not have much to contribute in the early conversation. The friends all asked how they were enjoying the long holiday with their families. Bill could tell this was a close-knit group by the way all of the friends inquired about their friends' parents.

Bill quietly tried not to like Tyler, but he found that difficult to do. Ty was friendly and was the first in the group to ask Bill about himself and asked several questions about being a basketball referee, seeming genuinely interested. Additionally, Ty now had a long-term girlfriend in college, whom he mentioned several times during the evening. Evidently, Denae had met the girlfriend at a previous mini reunion and had mentioned that Ty was lucky to have landed her. At one point, he pulled out a diamond ring to show the group. He intended to propose to her at Christmas. They all cheered and congratulated him.

After the initial catching-up conversations subsided, a few of the others talked to Bill; though not as graciously as Ty had, but warmly enough to make him feel less like a stranger. During a lull in the discussions, Denae suggested Bill ask her to dance and they headed toward the dancefloor.

"You're being a good sport, letting me visit with my friends. Thank you," she yelled over the loud, pulsating music.

"I'm glad you're getting to see them. I know people scatter after high school. It's good ya'll remain close."

They returned to the table after one song. As they took their seats, Seth looked at Denae and asked, "So, Denae, how's Suzy and her big tits?"

"She's doing good and they are still big, firm and beautiful," Denae replied with a laugh. "Aren't they, Bill?"

Seth looked stupefied and glanced at Bill. Bill, while he had seen Suzy's breasts and knew them to be big and beautiful, had no idea what to say and looked as stupefied as Seth.

"Oh yeah. Of course he's seen 'em," Denae continued. "Bill's over at our place a lot. It was bound to happen."

Seth looked disappointed and then followed up, "Too bad tonight is not the night for the wet t-shirt contest. You could try again."

Denae rolled her eyes. "No. I took my shot."

Bill recalled hearing about Denae's entry into a wet t-shirt contest the night he played Never Have I Ever with Denae and Suzy. "Were all ya'll here for that?" he asked the group.

They all nodded; most smiled or laughed, remembering the event. Seth laughed and said, "Oh yeah. Us and some of the others. It was awesome."

Looking at Denae, Bill said, "Sorry I missed that."

Denae just shook her head and announced she had to go to the restroom and started to get up. Kelly and Annie also jumped up and said they were going with Denae. This left just the guys sitting around the table.

As soon as the girls were out of site, Ty got up and moved around the table to Denae's empty chair and sat down next to Bill. While Seth and Paul began talking among themselves, Ty put his beer on the table and looked at Bill. "So, you and Denae?"

"Yes, I guess so."

"What do you think of her, Bill?"

He was not sure what Ty's interest in this matter was. But out of respect to Denae and hoping to avoid an argument with her friends, he told Ty that he thought Denae was wonderful and he was lucky to be in her life.

Ty smiled. "That's good. You know she's really serious about you."

"Really?"

"Oh sure. She and I talk periodically. Not too often, but we share stuff. I can tell she is more serious about you than any of her other boyfriends."

"Wow. I'm glad to hear that."

"I'm glad you're glad. I would hate to think you would ever break her heart. Part of me thinks that won't happen and I hope it doesn't. You seem like a good guy and we both know how special Denae is. So, please just always treat her well."

Bill assured Ty that Denae was important enough to him that he would always be good to her, even if she broke up with him, which he admitted to Ty he was afraid would happen eventually. Ty doubted that would happen based on how happy Denae seemed to be with Bill. On one hand, he was impressed that Ty wanted to be sure Denae would always be happy; but on the other, he wondered why her ex-boyfriend would care. But he assumed the best rather than the worst and was pleased that Denae had several people who were always in her corner; her parents, Suzy, and now Ty.

Denae and the girls returned from the restroom and Denae returned to her chair, which was now occupied by Ty. "Uh oh. Are you both talking about me?"

"You bet," Ty responded, as he got up from Denae's chair. "I was just offering Bill some advice on how to handle your temper tantrums."

"What are you talking about?," she exclaimed. "I don't throw tantrums. You're crazy."

Ty looked and Bill and smiled. "See what I mean?"

Both Bill and Denae laughed.

"Actually, I was just hoping Bill would help me work up the courage so I don't back-out on proposing to Paige."

Denae put her hand on his arm, "If Paige loves you even a bit as much as you love her, her saying yes is a foregone conclusion. I expect to hear from you after she accepts."

He thanked her kindly and told Bill and Denae he would definitely report the news -- good or bad -- as soon as he popped the question.

The high school friends and Bill stayed until the bar closed and said their goodbyes. Once again they all hugged Denae and the boys shook Bill's hand. This time around the girls hugged Bill. While he was still an outsider, spending the evening with them all and their understanding that he was with Denae helped him feel accepted.

On the ride back to the Rapallinos, Denae thanked Bill again for going with her to see her friends. He was curious about how many of her friends had seen her participate in the wet t-shirt contest, so he casually asked. She responded that about four or five others had been on hand, in addition to those present tonight. Bill wondered out loud if that caused her any embarrassment. To his surprise, she responded that all their friends had seen all the girls' breasts more than once, explaining that during high school they had frequent bonfires on the beach and it was common for girls to shed their bikini tops.

She asked if he got together with his high school friends during college breaks. Bill was evasive in his response. The truth was he did not have any close friends from high school and Denae sensed this, recalling the lack of autographs in his yearbook. She artfully changed the subject to lamenting Bill and Cheryl's departure the next morning.

As they approached the house, Denae said, "If I know Papa, he's waiting up for us in the family room. We will need to say goodnight in front of him and head off to our own rooms. But don't be surprised if I sneak out to the cabana once I give him enough time to fall asleep."

Denae unlocked the door and they walked in. As expected, Mr. Rapallino was in the family room, but he was asleep on the couch. Denae turned to Bill and kissed him before waking her father up. When she was able to rouse her father, she let him know that she and Bill were home safely and Bill had gone out to the cabana to go to bed. She encouraged him to go to bed as well. He got up from the couch and they walked upstairs together.

Denae did wait a little while before going out to the cabana, where she found Bill awake and waiting for her. They made love again; quickly and quietly so Denae could get back to the house undetected. Neither realized that Bill's mother had seen Denae tiptoe out across the pool deck to the cabana and then return to the house eighteen minutes later. Had either noticed Cheryl looking down from her window, they would have seen only her silhouette; they would have been unable to see the smile on her face.

--End Part C