Synchronicity for Six Pt. 10

"Okay, you're on. Thanks. I'll let Rose and Dad know you're coming in just for the night as a surprise for Maggie and to see the other house."

"Cool stuff. Hey, I've gotta go. Rob and Amanda just came in and I need to make myself a little scarce. We can talk tomorrow."

"That works for me, Dave. Thank you for talking me down off the ledge."

"I'd do the same thing for my favorite brother. I've got to go. Later, brah!" and David disconnected the call.

Shaking his head, wondering how David got so good at that. He still struggled with math and science, though, so that was a consolation for Tom.

Pocketing his phone, Tom made sure all the lights were off and the doors were locked, then began a slow climb up the stairs. At the top, he paused and listened at his father's bedroom door, but could only hear very low murmurs. Not what he expected to hear. Taking a deep breath, he knocked on the door, gently.

"Come in, Tom," came Alan's voice.

Tom slowly opened the door to find Alan and Rose sitting up in bed, still dressed, albeit in shorts and t-shirts.

"How did you know it was me?" Tom asked.

"Your brother just alerted us that you two had talked and that you needed to talk to one or both of us," Alan explained, waggling his phone. "We can talk either tonight or hold off until tomorrow. It's your call."

"I'd like to talk with you both now, please." Tom requested.

"Sure. Close the door, please, then come have a seat," Rose directed, patting the foot of the bed.

Tom closed the door behind him and went to sit where Rose had indicated. After a few seconds, he began to speak.

"Momma, I'm sorry that I yelled at you last night. I'm also very sorry for what I said." Rose's throat tightened up at Tom's use of 'Momma', just like David and Katie, and more recently Maggie.

Tom continued.

"I was completely out of line, and I wish I could take back all the hurtful things I said and did. I've recently been part of several discussions which have made me aware that some of the problems I'm having are my fault, while others may be due to poor communication. My memories of my mom have nothing to do with your relationship with my dad or this house. You are so good for him," and Tom's eyes flickered to indicate Alan, then returned to capture Rose's. "Please never let me or David come between you two."

Tom bowed his head and Rose leaned forward to wrap her arms around his neck. She pulled him into her chest and he quickly discerned a few things. One, she was naked under her t-shirt. Two, she wore a different perfume than Julie and his mother, one that smelled more like ... roses. She held him tightly to her bosom and kissed the top of his head in reassurance while 'accidentally' scraping an excited nipple across his cheek. Tom realized that he had interrupted their relations and started to pull back, but Rose held him tightly to her, so all he could do was breathe in her scent.

Alan, ever the observant father, caught something Tom had said.

"Tom, what did you mean 'hurtful things you did'?"

Tom pushed Rose away slightly and sat back. She kissed the end of his nose and let him go.

"I ... I threw a hiking boot last night after I stormed away, breaking Mom's free‑standing mirror. Julie cut her thumb while helping me to pick up the fragments, and it was all my fault that she got hurt. I was furious that I had not been consulted about your decision to buy a new place and sell this one. It seemed to me that you were getting rid of everything that reminded us of Mom, and I was not going to allow that to happen," Tom explained.

Alan was going to say something, but Rose placed her hand on his arm and spoke up.

"Tom, I have never wanted to try to replace Laura in anyone's life, especially not in yours, David's, or Alan's. You and your brother are the special creations of her and Alan, irreplaceable and unduplicatable. You have made a home for yourself in my daughter's heart and, consequently, in mine as well. So, I accept your apology and explanation for your words of last night, and I forgive you.

"But I think there is more that you need to talk about. You need to know why we've taken Katie into our lives, right?"

Tom's eyes widened in surprise, then his head dropped to his chest as he nodded.

"I've tried to give this some thought and here's the best thing I could come up with. You were six when you got Phideaux from the animal shelter, right? A boy, or in your case, boys with a dog is one of the pairings that God always intended. How do you think Phideaux felt when you adopted him?" She let the statement hang in the air for nearly a minute.

"Well, that's very much akin to our bringing Katie into this household. She was in dire need; it was obvious to anyone with eyes willing to see." Alan was nodding to Rose's words. "She was suffering from a complete lack of love, affection, and attention from her family. 'Adopting' her into our family was something your father and I agreed upon with very little discussion because it was the right thing to do. That she quickly befriended Maggie has served both girls so well. Any extra costs we incur to host her are negligible, and you need not worry about it. In a very short time, she is really starting to blossom. She calls us 'momma' and 'poppa', which shows how comfortable she is now. All she needed was some genuine, unconditional love from people who wanted her to be with them.

"Love is additive, not exclusive. It expands to fill all the needs it can and it never gets any thinner. It's never a zero‑sum game. Time may be finite, but love is not. Ever. End of lecture." Rose sat back against her pillow, and once again Tom could discern her unsupported breasts and their slightly aroused nipples.

"Thank you both for this time to talk tonight. I see that I've interrupted your together time, so I'll wish you both a good night. I want to see what it is about this new place that has David enamored and Julie so fascinated. I'll try to make some time to talk with Katie tomorrow evening. Oh, did David tell you he's coming home tomorrow to surprise Maggie for Valentine's Day and to see the house after church on Sunday? We'll need that second expansion leaf to the table for the first time in a long time, Dad," Tom advised. He stood and stretched and made his way out the door, closing it behind him.

"Well, that was interesting," Alan observed. "Where were we when we were interrupted by David's text? Oh, yeah, you were going to fuck me into a stupor, weren't you?"

Rose grinned and her eyes held a mischievous glint as she quickly shed the t-shirt and shorts, as did Alan.

Katie and Maggie were sitting on the Queen‑size bed in Katie's room, reviewing vocabulary words likely to be encountered on the ACT exam. Katie was doing very well, knowing 19 out of 20 words that Maggie pulled from the provided list. A soft tapping at the door broke their concentration, and Katie called out for the knocking person to, "Enter!"

The door opened, and Tom partially stepped into the room. Maggie didn't hide her glare at him, but Katie missed it as she was looking at Tom's face.

"Um, Katie, I'd like a chance to talk with you tomorrow, once you get back from working, if you don't mind," he said, hesitantly.

"Okay, Tom. Sure. What about?"

"Just so I can understand and appreciate how it is that you've come to be part of this family. Last night was the first I'd heard about Dad considering selling this place coupled with your now living here. Maggie knows that I was surprised, and I did not react well to the news of those seemingly sudden changes. I'd like to hear things directly from you, if you would share some of them with me. Please?" He was unconsciously slowly wringing his hands with his worry.

Katie gave him a big smile and answered, "Sure thing, Tom. Maybe after supper tomorrow? It's promising to be a long and busy day for us both at the store," she said, gesturing to include Maggie. "Oh, could Maggie be there with us? I might need her support as I relate my tale of woe to you."

"That'd be fine, Katie. Thank you. You two have a good night. And, thank you, Maggie, for giving us the big bed as well. Oh, I'd like to talk with you in the morning, alone, before you head off to work, if you don't mind."

Maggie's gaze softened a bit with his kind acknowledgment, and she nodded her acceptance. Closing the door, he headed for his old room, being sure to stop in the bathroom along the way.

Julie was reading in bed when Tom entered his old room. His eyes caught the Kitsune picture of Maggie that David had created back at Thanksgiving. He had never truly appreciated his brother's talent as an artist. Tearing his gaze from the painting, he stepped towards the bed and dropped to his knees.

"I've been so wrong, Jules," he managed to get out, taking her hand in his.

Julie set down her phone and cupped Tom's cheek and chin in her closest hand.

"Oh, Tommy. I love you so. This has been a tough couple of days. Come to bed, my love, and things will seem much better in the morning."

= = =

Saturday, February 13

The delicious scent of bacon cooking wafted through the house. Its levitational properties encouraged Alan's bedmate to rise and investigate. As she descended the stairs in her robe, Rose detected the enticing fragrance of brewing coffee as well. Curious, she tiptoed down the hall and peered into the kitchen to see Tom in shorts and a t‑shirt cavorting about. She couldn't hear any music, so she figured he had his earbuds in. Smiling devilishly, she crept up behind him and tapped him on the shoulder.

"Oh, shit!" he exclaimed, placing his hand over his racing heart. Turning, he saw his prospective stepmother and mother‑in‑law with her hands on her hips, head cocked, looking inquisitively at him. He pulled an earbud out so he could converse.

"What are you listening to, Tom?" she asked.

"'Locomotive Breath' by Jethro Tull," he answered.

"You and your dad and your Jethro Tull fascination," she snorted.

"Hey, I think he's got great taste both in music and in women," Tom riposted, looking Rose up and down in her robe. Blushing slightly, she pulled it tighter around her, unconsciously emphasizing her breasts.

"You!" she scoffed and turned to leave. "I'll be back for the coffee. Thank you for making it."

She scurried back upstairs to put on some clothes after she realized she was naked beneath the robe. Her nipples were hardening as she thought back to his quick up‑and‑down scrutiny. She had a man in her bed who she needed to fuck. She quietly opened the bedroom door and inched in, silently closing it behind her. Alan was still in bed and dozing. The clock showed it was only 6:45.

Padding around the bed, she dropped the robe in a heap and cautiously crawled under the covers. Alan was still deliciously naked, and she took him in hand and got a nice rise out of him. He was bucking his hips when she pulled off and straddled him, taking him where she wanted him most.

"Good morning, my love. Now, take your woman!" she declared.

Alan rolled her onto her back and he "took his woman", much to her great delight.

= = =

While the bacon scent didn't work as well on Maggie as it had on Rose, the coffee fragrance made up for what the meat couldn't quite achieve. She had heard the parents' bedroom door close just as she was exiting the bathroom. She quietly strode to the top of the stairs, just in time to hear her mother's muted words: "Take your woman!"

'Well, they'll be occupied for a few minutes,' Maggie thought, and she continued her quiet trek to the source of the coffee aroma. She was not as surreptitious as her mother had been, and Tom spied her from the corner of his vision. He turned to face her and smiled as he removed his earbuds.

"Have a seat, Maggie. I'll get your coffee for you. I'd like to talk with you for a few minutes, if I may," Tom offered.

She sat at the table and waited while Tom properly fixed the mug of coffee for her. She cocked her head slightly as she sipped the proffered mug's contents.

"How did you ..." she began.

"Just like Jules likes hers," he answered.

Smiling into her cup as she drank more deeply, she waited for Tom to get out whatever was on his mind.

"Mags, I wanted to apologize to you for getting you so defensive about Katie. I don't bear her any ill will. I just didn't understand why she was now living here."

"And now you do?" Maggie inquired.

"Not totally, but enough for now. I hope that our discussion this evening will help me to truly understand why. With the way we were informed on Thursday about selling this house and her living here, it seemed to me that she was the catalyst for this whole big change that Dad's considering. I was under the misapprehension that memories of my mother were being trampled on or cast aside. Not that she was doing it; it just seemed to be a by‑product.

"I'm very sorry for getting you all riled up about Katie last night."

Maggie sat her now empty coffee mug on the table and stood. She walked over to Tom and gave him a hug and a sweet kiss on the cheek. "I accept your apology."

"You'd best check on the bacon and not let it burn, Tom," she admonished him as he sat there for a moment, surprised at her affection. Maggie walked over to the refrigerator and extracted the orange juice. Pouring a glass, she explained that Katie didn't 'do' coffee, but she liked fruit juice to get her going. "We'll be down in a few minutes to help you find a new home for that bacon, Tom," she advised as she walked out of the kitchen.

Tom watched her behind wiggle as she left, then shook his head. 'Was she doing that on purpose?' he wondered. Unable to answer his own question, he turned his attention to the oven. Nobody, but nobody, liked burned bacon. Just in time, he removed the baking sheets from the oven and set them on the cooling racks he had set up. He had just let go of the second pan when arms wrapped around his waist and he felt soft lips on the back of his neck. He jumped slightly at the surprise.

"Are you feeling better this morning, my sweet man?" Julie asked.

He removed the oven mitts and turned around to pull her close. Lips were locked and arms were wrapped around each other. A somewhat‑tubular lump pressed against her sensitive area, and Julie grinned as she thought about how to use that to her advantage.

"Did I cause that?" she asked, fluttering her eyelashes, trying to be coquettish.

"It's yours and only ever yours, Jules, my jewel," Tom answered.

"Well, then, I'll have to see about keeping it around until I can put it to very good use," she informed him, her hand grasping it as much as his shorts would permit. She stroked him to an even harder state, then had to pull back as she heard Maggie and Katie coming down the hall. Julie busied herself in preparing a mug of coffee while she gestured for Tom to place the bacon on a paper towel on a platter to soak up any excess grease.

"Yummm! Extra crispy but not burnt! I knew I liked you for a reason, Tom," Katie stated, filching a strip of bacon. That little flippant remark caused his face to flush in shame at the way he had treated her presence. Maggie and Julie shared a brief look while Katie refilled her juice glass. Katie continued, "I hate droopy bacon."

"Yeah, I'm with you on that, Kat," Maggie chimed in. "There's very little worse first thing in the morning than something droopy." She cast a sly glance at Tom's crotch which still evidenced his previous excitement.

"Margaret!" Julie exclaimed, her face flushed with embarrassment and shock at her sister's language.

"Julia! Don't tell me you like droopy things‽" Maggie's voice was a combination of snarkiness and incredulity. "Oh, Tom, I'm so sorry for you."

To keep Julie's and Katie's faces from spontaneously combusting, Tom held up his hand in a stop gesture in front of Maggie. His ears were rosy‑hued themselves. Taking his refreshed mug of coffee, Tom left the kitchen and returned to his old bedroom.

Once they were sure he was out of hearing range, the girls snickered and carried on as young women often do.

"C'mon, Kat. Let's go get ready for today. I hope it's busy but not too busy," Maggie opined as they too headed upstairs. Julie was left sitting at the kitchen table, drinking her coffee and absentmindedly chewing on several pieces of well‑cooked bacon.

Rose and Alan appeared just before 8:00 and each had a very satisfied look on their face. Alan made another pot of coffee and toasted some bread to go along with the bacon Tom had so graciously prepared. They sat comfortably at the kitchen table to enjoy their breakfast.

"So, Mom, what's the plan for today?" Julie asked.

"I guess a lot depends on what you and Tom wish to do, Jules."

"He may not be as consumed with curiosity about the new place as I am, but I'm pretty sure I could convince him to go see the place," Julie remarked. "What else can you tell me about the place?"

Rose related how the daughter of the previous owners had grown up in the house but couldn't bring herself to live there. That Steve and Helen Waters were living near Blacksburg, Virginia but she really wanted to get back to her roots near Middleburg. Then Rose got into describing the wraparound porch with the swing and the large garage with the hopes of an apartment above. She waxed rhapsodic about the mature tree in the front yard and the small grove at the rear. Alan chimed in with the little bit of acreage and the pond at the rear of the property.

Maggie and Katie popped their heads in to bid the three a farewell as they were heading off to herd the beast of commerce, hopefully only having to sacrifice a chosen few that day.

"I thought we might have supper out at Los Tres Amigos," Alan offered, and the delighted looks on both Maggie's and Katie's faces were assurance enough for him. He laughed and asked the girls to play nicely with the paying customers. Smiles abounded as the girls departed. 'So much for needing the extra leaf in the table,' he thought. "Since we'll have the whole family together, do you think we ought to invite Jack and Maeve to join us? Either way, I'll call ahead and make reservations."

"We have the whole day in front of us," Rose observed. "Do you want to go see the outside of this place, Julie? Because your sister is working today, we won't get to see the insides until after church tomorrow."

"Hell, yes, Mom! Let me go up and get dressed and get Tom moving in that direction."

"That's fine. Let's meet at the front door at 9:00 and we can take it from there," Rose planned and received nods from Alan and Julie. At 9:05, the four exited the house and got in Tom's Jeep, as it was most easily accessible.

"Where to?" he asked as the ladies got into the back seat and Alan in the co‑pilot's seat.

"It's out Millersville Road, just beyond where the city's sidewalk ends. I'd like to cruise by the Johnson's jewelry store on our way, just to see what the girls may be dealing with," Alan supplied.

Driving slowly downtown, they could see nobody standing outside the store, but there were a couple of pairs of people already inside. Tom gave a short honk of the horn, and Katie looked up at the sound. Belatedly, she waved at the passing car, then returned her attention to her hostess duties.

Heading west from downtown Middleburg, it was only a few minutes until the city's sidewalk ended. Alan directed Tom to turn into a gravel driveway leading to a larger house and a garage with three bay doors.

"This is the place?" Tom asked. Despite the descriptions he'd heard, this place already exceeded his expectations.

"Yep," Rose answered right into his ear. "Are you starting to feel it, Tom?"

"Oh, yeah," he muttered. "I'm feeling it, Momma." He shifted into Park, engaged the hand brake, and sat there collecting his thoughts while the other three swiftly disembarked. The sunlight poked through the clouds, and the world seemed crisp and clear that February morning. Tom got out and closed the door, still resting his hand on the vehicle. 'Is this what you wanted, Mom?' he thought.