The Curse of the Scots Ch. 06

That's when it hit me; most of them, the ones that I knew or just knew of; still, even after fifty years had people who remembered them and loved them enough to plop a few measly flowers on a grave.

What is it about being a Christian; it's better to give than to receive. If you want something you had to do more than wait, I had to actually go out and do something. If I wanted Caprice and Angie to love me, then I'd have to show them I loved them. How was I going to do this?

Aunt Maggie, Aunt Olive, Uncle Mitchel, and Uncle John were all talking to me. They all had the same advice, "if you want love, you better be prepared to give them the love they're entitled to." That's when I realized all those old people; they loved me, they just didn't know how to show it. Hell, I thought about it; none of them ever hit me. Uncle Mitchell always checked the oil in my truck, and if I was low on gas he'd fill the tank. Once Uncle Johnny grabbed me real hard and yanked at me. Then he took a stick and killed a copperhead I almost stepped on. I remember him yelling, "Damn it Cayden, you could've got bit!"

Damn, if I wanted my daughter I had to tell her who I was. Giving her presents like a pony was just stuff. Buying Caprice a dress or fixing her vagina was just stuff. Getting Angie to let me care for her, maybe even marry me again meant me telling her how deeply I cared for her and how much I wanted her back in my life, in my house and in my bed.

That last thing kind of scared me. Sure I loved Angie, but I loved Caprice too. Could I marry one and keep the other? How was I ever going to be able to work that?

I got so excited; suddenly I knew what I needed to do. I grabbed my cell phone and called Del. By then it was close to 6:00 a.m. I was sure he was up. His phone rang, he answered, "Hello."

"Hello Del this is Cayden."

"Jesus Cayden do you know what time it is?"

"Del I need to learn to dance."

"You what?"

"Del this is Friday. Tomorrow night's the dance over at Rehoboth. I need to learn all the steps; I need all the moves by tomorrow night. Can you help me?"

"Why, what are you crazy?"

"No I'm not crazy. I just know what I need to do. How about it?"

There was a momentary silence then he answered, "Well I'm not much of a dancer myself, and my girlfriend just ditched me for an accountant down in Ocean View. But hey, wait a minute, there's Sally Monroe who works at the Starlight over in Bethany Beach. She might help."

I said, "Del I'd appreciate if you called and asked her."

Del answered, "I think she likes me. She might do it."

I was ecstatic, "Great! Get her and the two of you meet me at the horse barn today at say 12:00."

He replied, "No promises, but I'll try."

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Practice makes perfect!

I was waiting when Del showed up with Sally. I turned my cell phone off. I said, "Hi Sally, you're one of the Monroe's from Roxana." Roxana was another little town not far away.

Sally nodded, "Del said you want to learn to dance?"

I pointed to a cd player I'd bought that morning and a dozen cds I'd picked up, "There's a dance at the Rehoboth Fire Hall tomorrow night. I want to be the best dancer there."

Sally glanced at Del. I knew right away somebody had a hell of a crush on my nephew. She looked at me and smiled, "That's a pretty tall order; how about one of the top five?"

Del asked, "What's gotten into you Uncle Cayden?"

I told him, "That shit bird Barry is taking Caprice to the dance, and I'm sure Angie will be there with Chuck Norris. You know Devereau? I think if I showed them up on the dance floor it would be a good step in the right direction."

Del grinned and smacked his hands on his jeans, "Well I'll be damned. You mean you're finally going to step up to the plate."

I grinned, "I sure am, and maybe if your old girlfriend is there you might be able to throw some shit on her accountant friend," I saw Sally's reaction. If there'd been any doubt before I knew for sure now why she was here. I added, "Then again with a looker like Sally here you might want to put the past behind you as they say."

Del gave Sally a thoughtful look, "What do you think Sally? Would you like to go to the dance with me tomorrow night?"

She replied, "I have to work."

I stuck my two cents in, "Not if you don't want to. I've got a new market just off Route Fifty that needs a morning supervisor. Tell you what Sally. I'll match whatever they're paying you at the Starlight, and if you decide to hang around I'll give you percentage of what the place takes in."

Del was surprised, "Gee Del that's the first time I heard you make an offer like that?"

I looked at him then at her then back at Del, "I know I already like Sally. I'm not telling you what to do, but she could be more than a friend. I'm thinking family." I watched as Sally blushed.

Del watched her too. She was pretty; maybe 5'4", red hair up in a ponytail, freckles, hazel eyes, nice shape. Del asked her, "What do you think Sally?"

She was as red as a beet, she murmured so softly it was almost impossible to hear her, "Think what?"

Del stammered out, "What Cayden said."

Sally was blushing even more, "I'll go to the dance. Let me think about the job."

I laughed, "All right, now let's get on with the lessons!"

Well I stumbled and bounced, and tripped around until nearly 6:00 that evening. She taught me how to cha cha, how to waltz, line dance, and how to two step. I even did a little jitter bugging; not very well though. I thought two stepping would be easy. It wasn't. It's way more difficult than it looks.

Del and Sally stayed right with me. I had a hell of a pleasurable time learning the dance steps, but to tell the truth I had a whale of a good time watching Del and Sally play the courtship game. It was like watching two eagles as they'd soar to the heights, clutch talons, and then circle their way back to earth. I was playing match maker, and it felt good.

By 6:00 we decided to call it a night, but we all three agreed to get back together on Saturday at 1:00 so I could polish off my routines. I told them not to worry about tickets. I'd take care of that at the door. Of course I wasn't going to wait till then to get tickets. I figured I'd call Mark Fleming as soon as I got home. Mark was in the Rehoboth Fire Department. I'd get him to save me tickets.

We all parted company a little later, and I started home. I knew I'd be up again before the sun. I still had a farm to run.

++++++++++

Anguish at home.

I got home a little after 7:00. Caprice was standing at the door. She didn't wait, "Cayden where have you been?"

I decided to play it cool, "I've been down at the horse barn most of the day why?"

She didn't smile or anything, "Angie's had a pretty bad day."

Well that got my attention, "OK Caprice, what's wrong?'

"Well first she had a horrible date last night with Matt Devereau. From what she told me it sounds like he used something, maybe Ecstasy, to try to get her in bed."

"Damn," I said.

"That's not the worst of it. She got a call this morning from Devereau. He said the grant they'd relied on to hire her had run out. He had to let her go."

"Sounds like a payback to me."

Caprice continued, "It got even worse. Not more than an hour after Devereau called she got a call from Social Services. Seems they found out she lost her job. They want to visit her next week. They said they'd been getting phone calls about her behavior anyway. They want to make sure Emily's in a safe and secure environment."

I had no problem with that, "Sounds like our Mr. Devereau has been a pretty busy bee," I smiled when I said that.

I could see Caprice wasn't as amused. She let me have it, "Cayden she's scared. She's afraid they'll take her girl away from her."

I wasn't worried; I'd heard a couple of the ladies at social services had been scheming to get at Angie for months. I bet Devereau knew too. Angie thought she had a problem but all I saw was opportunity, "That means Angie won't have a date for the dance tomorrow night."

I watched and then had to listen to Caprice's angry retort, "That's an awful thing to say. Who cares a damn about the stupid dance; she could lose her girl!"

I reached out, "Give me your hand."

"This is no time to play around."

"I said give me your hand."

Caprice gave me her hand.

I checked the clock, 7:30, I squeezed her hand softly, "Call Angie up. Tell her I'm on my way over. Tell her I intend to go in her mother's, sit down on that sofa they love so much, and that I'm going to tell her how things are going to be."

Caprice tried to pull her hand away, but I wouldn't let her, "Cayden let go."

"No, not until you agree to make the call."

"OK, I'll make the call, but you know her mother; she won't let you in, and Angie won't like it. Now let go of my hand."

I wasn't about to let go of her hand until I was finished, "Kiss me first."

It was Caprice's turn to blush, "Cayden!"

"I said kiss me," she leaned forward and gave me a quick peck on the cheek. Since I still had her hand I was able to pull her in close. I very gently twisted her hand around so that it was behind her back and she had to press her chest against mine. I loved the feel of her soft breasts. Her nipples were starting to firm up. I felt their insistent pressure. She smelled good, and she felt soft. I whispered "Now give me that kiss."

This time she leaned up and gave me a real kiss. I let her go, "Now go make that call," I picked up my truck keys and started for the front door again.

As I walked away I heard her tap in Angie's phone number. When I got to the front door I pretended to leave, but instead I waited to hear what Caprice was going to say.

I heard her, "Angie? Cayden's on his way over there." Angie must have said something because Caprice paused. Then I heard her say, "I don't think that's going to matter. Just be ready. He's acting really strange." There was another pause so I guessed Angie was asking if Caprice had told me about what had happened. I heard Caprice add, "Yes I told him. All he wanted to know was whether you had a date for tomorrow night's dance." There was another pause, then Caprice again, "I know. He's not making any sense." After that I went on to my truck.

++++++++++

I got to Mrs. Bradford's about fifteen minutes later. I got out of my truck and loudly stomped up the steps to her front door. I knocked and waited. At first there was no answer so I knocked again really hard. Mrs. Bradford came to the door, "What do you want?"

I pushed by her, "Where's my wife?"

Mrs. Bradford answered, "You don't have a wife."

"All right my ex-wife. Where is she?"

Angie came out from the kitchen, "I'm here."

I pointed toward the sofa and said, "Sit."

Mrs. Bradford tried to interrupt, "You don't belong here, get..."

I glowered at her, "Shut up and go to bed," then I glared at Angie, "Sofa."

Mrs. Bradford frowned back but went back to the kitchen. Angie looked frightened. She went over and sat on the sofa. I followed her over, "I hear you don't have a date for the dance tomorrow night?"

She just kind of looked at me, and then she shook her head no.

I said, "Good I'll be by to pick you up at 7:00. I expect you to look nice. Get Caprice to take you to the mall tomorrow. I want you dressed to kill tomorrow night when I come for you." I paused and then added, "Now what's this shit about Emily and Social Services?" I could tell Angie was really scared. For some reason her discomfort made me feel good.

Her tone of voice just oozed fear, she said, "I got a call today. They told me they had complaints. They said they're stopping by one day next week to check on what's going on," her voice quavered; "Cayden I lost my job. I don't know what I'm going to do." She looked desperate.

I reached out, and before she could react I had both her wrists in my hands. I was firm but I was also very gentle. I pulled her close; she was so close I could feel her breath on my face. I told her, "Starting next week you'll be working for me."

She started to object, but I stopped her, "I'll decide what you'll do later. Don't worry about Social Services. They can't do anything; that's just Devereau trying to throw a little shit our way," I said 'throwing shit our way' to make sure she understood it wasn't just her; it was her and me. I told her, "I'll take care of him."

She started to say something again, but I stopped her, "Don't worry I won't try to fight him, not like last time anyway."

Mrs. Bradford yelled in from the kitchen, "What do you think you can do?"

I yelled back, "I told you to go to bed!"

I watched Angie; she smiled at what I had just said to her mom, but I could tell she was still very upset. I went to work to calm her down, "Let me make things perfectly clear sweetheart. You're a good mother, a damn good mother. No Matt Devereau and no Social Services is taking my little girl away from my little girl's mommy."

She sniffed and cried when I said mommy. I gently squeezed her wrists just a little more tightly. I rocked her hands back and forth the way a mother would a baby's hands. I pulled her even closer. I could feel her much smaller breasts and her tiny shoulders press against me. This was the second time in less than an hour I had a woman I loved pressed against me like this. It felt good.

I let go of her wrists, I wrapped my arms around her, and pulled her even tighter. I cradled the back of her head in my right hand and kissed her on her left cheek. Then I pressed my right cheek against her left. I felt her soft brown hair on my face. I whispered, "Angie, you're my girl. No one's taking anything from you, not ever."

I leaned so that our foreheads touched. I took my right hand and trapped her chin with my thumb and index finger. I leaned forward till my mouth was almost against hers. I got a whiff of her scent. Her body had an aroma I always liked so much. I smelled her breath; it was like nectar to a starving man. I felt her relax, "Angie you're my sunshine. Nobody's going to do anything to separate you from Emily, and you can take that to the bank!"

She just kept looking at me with those big brown eyes of hers. They were like big puppy eyes. I one upped what I'd just said, "You're my girl Angie. You trust me don't you?"

She nodded her head.

I let my lips cover the fraction of an inch that separated us and I murmured, "Lean over here and give me a nice kiss."

I could see the look of amazed disbelief. She leaned forward that last fraction of an inch, and we kissed.

God I remembered how sweet she tasted, how positively delightful she was to kiss. I realized how much I missed her. I concluded our little discussion, "Tomorrow new clothes, get something for Emily," I looked toward the kitchen and spoke more loudly, "and something for your mother too!" Then I finished, "Go to bed. Forget Social Services. I'm all you need. Just be ready tomorrow night. Now go to bed."

Angie looked at me with her great big eyes. She nodded and in the softest whisper answered, "Yes Cayden."

I got up. As I stood I leaned down and kissed her again, "Goodnight Angie, and not to worry, understand?"

She nodded again. She had great big tears in her eyes.

I got up and walked toward Mrs. Bradford's front door. I hesitated for a second and heard a deep sigh. As I walked a little further I heard Mrs. Bradford and Angie whispering.

Mrs. Bradford said, "I don't know what that was about. I don't know who he thinks he is."

I heard Angie whisper back, "Oh shut up mother."

I walked on out to the truck; yes by God I felt good, really good! This worm had finally turned!

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When I got home Caprice was awake and waiting for me. She gave me what I could only call a kind of diffident glare. She just stood there, hands on hips, eyes aglow, lashes aflutter, lower lip quivering and extruded in an unconscious pout. Her hair swept out in curls around her pink freshly washed face, and her breasts pressed against the filmy fabric of her pajama blouse. Her camel toe was visible through the crease of her panties. She asked, "What's gotten into you tonight?"

I slipped out of my boots and started for my bedroom. As I walked by I told her, "You'll go to the dance tomorrow night with Barry, but you'll be coming home with me."

She started to open her mouth. I shut her up, "You're going to the Oyster Supper on Sunday with me; that is right after we leave church. I'll straighten things out with Barry tomorrow night," I walked toward my bedroom, then stopped and turned to look at her. I was horny. I said, "Go get a fresh shower. Put on something sexy. Put on some more of that perfume. Then wait for me in our bedroom." I gave her a half smile, "Kind of kneel in the center of the bed. You know sort of resting your weight on one hand."

I'd said our bedroom, meaning the bedroom she slept in. I watched as she jumped up and hurried to her shower. She was smiling. I strode back toward where I'd been sleeping. I went on in and started the shower. I took a really hot shower. I felt great!

++++++++++

I got up extra early. I glanced over at Caprice as she lay sleeping. She looked like an angel all curled up in a ball, hands resting at her chin. We'd had a good night; not a lot of sex, but certainly lots of cuddling and kissing.

I slipped out of our bedroom and crossed the hall to where my stuff was. It was the Saturday of the dance at Rehoboth. I had a lot of work to do around the farm, and then after lunch I'd be busy practicing my dance steps with Del and Sally.

While I dressed I decided I really did like Sally. I'd met Del's other girl, and though I thought she was pretty she reminded me of someone who was always on the lookout. My guess was she thought an accountant was a 'trade up' from a common farmer. The poor girl didn't know what I knew.

Del had a good head on his shoulders. He was a competent steady worker, but most of all he had creative bent that I was confident would lead him to some real financial success. His only handicap was his lack of ready capital; that was where I would come in. I had the capital. I'd hitch my star to his, and watch my earnings grow with his.

I didn't think Sally had Del's pecuniary potential in mind. I'd seen her around Del long before my request for help dancing. She looked like a girl who wanted to make babies and raise a family. Yeah, she looked like the anchor, no the guidance system, that would propel Del in the right direction. I was going to do all I could to encourage that relationship.

I stepped from the bedroom I'd been using. To my surprise Caprice was up. She'd made coffee. I smelled bacon and eggs on the stove. All she had on was her pajama top and a pair of very low heeled shoes. I couldn't exactly tell, but it looked like her pussy lips were a little damp. The shoes didn't quite fit the circumstance until I realized she'd most likely worn them because they forced her heels up slightly and that gave her legs better definition.

'Yeah,' I thought, 'the former prostitute still knew all her little tricks.' I strode over to where I'd left my boots. They looked clean; she must have tidied them while I was getting dressed.

I stepped to the kitchen counter, "You're up early."

She smiled and handed me a cup of coffee. She wrapped her arms around her waist. The pressure on the top of pajamas forced her breasts up and out; her nipples stared out at me. She softly murmured, "A man needs a good start on his day."

I took a sip of coffee, put the cup down, reached over and pulled her close.

Not surprising she stepped into my arms, wrapped her arms around my waist, and glued her lips to mine. Before I could react she took her right hand, lifted it to the back of my head and pulled it down so that her right cheek was pressed snugly against my left cheek. She nuzzled me and whispered, "I love you Cayden McLeish."