FicWad

The first night I stayed at Pete’s house, we took advantage of his large bathtub. The last time I took a good soak in a hot bath was the last time I stayed in a hotel. And that was at least a year before. Bathtubs and ovens are what I missed the most living in a van.

“Oh, nice tub.” I said when he first showed me around his house.

“You’re welcome to use it.” He assured me.

“It looks big enough for two.” I flashed him a flirtatious smile.

“It is.” He said as he flashed me his smile.

“Wanna join me later?”

“Absolutely.”

Once all the kids were in bed, I ran us a bubble bath. He poured us each a glass of wine and turned the lights down. It was very relaxing.

We sat opposite each other so we could see each other’s faces. He started to rub my legs.

“Oh, I haven’t had a chance to shave this week. They’re prickly.” I warned him.

“You don’t have to worry about that. I don’t mind. I haven’t shaved all week either.”

I laughed and said, “It’s ok for you to not shave. The beard looks good on you.”

“You like the beard?” He grinned at me as he asked.

“Yes. But I like you clean shaven too.”

“I can leave the beard if you want.”

“It’s your face. Shave or not, that’s up to you. But I like facial hair on men. So, take that as you may.” I told him, grinning.

He lifted my left leg out of the water and rested my foot on his shoulder. He ran his hands over my skin sending shivers up my leg.

“If you want, I can shave your legs for you.” He made the offer like he enjoyed this and wanted to do it for me.

“Ok. If you want to.” I’ve never had anyone else shave my legs. I’ve had them waxed, but never this.

He stood up and got out of the tub. Naked Pete was sexy as fuck. I couldn’t help but watch the water and bubbles cling to him as he stepped out of the tub, got his razor and a new head for it, then got back in with me. Lifting my leg back up he rubbed soap into my skin creating a lather. Then, slowly and with years worth of experience shaving his own face, he shaved my leg for me. Then he did the other one. He kept running his hands over my shins, calves, knees, and thighs to make sure he didn’t miss anything. It was the most intense and intimate non sexual experience I’ve had.

“Did you like that?” He asked as his hands continued to move over my legs.

“Yes,” I breathed out.

“Want me to shave anything else?” He asked as he cocked an eyebrow and gave me the look that told me he had ideas I was going to enjoy.

“Is there some place you want to shave?” I batted my eyelashes at him.

“Sit on the edge of the tub.” He instructed me in a deep husky voice.

I did as instructed sitting on the ledge behind me. The wall was close enough that I could lean against it.

He moved so he was between my legs pushing them further apart. He looked up at me and moved so he could kiss me. Then, settling down on his knees he took the soap and lathered up my lady bits. With a lot of care he shaved that part of me too. When he was done, he wanted us out of the tub and in his bed. I also wanted that. It was nice to have the space to move around in bed.

I have given up a lot of things to live in a van and travel all the time. Being with other people was one of them. Until I met Pete and the kids I hadn’t missed personal interactions. I was fine on my own. I hadn’t missed being touched or hugged or kissed. In fact, it had been nice to not be grouped, manhandled or touched in a way I was not comfortable with. However, I had grown accustomed to being alone and not being touched.

He was someone that needed physical contact with the people he loved. He’s very touchy feely. It was obvious with how he interacted with the kids. They hugged and kissed each other all the time. They would lean against him while sitting together. I had had more human interaction and touch in the past week and a half than I’d had in five years.

I didn’t really have a problem with that. I liked the hugs and cuddles I got from the children. I was enjoying the touches, kisses, and intimacy with him. But it did take some getting used to. It was taking me a little while to get comfortable with being touched again.

He must have noticed this because he brought it up that first night when we were in bed. We were laying together, I had my head on his chest, he was running a hand over my back and arm.

“Grace, are you alright with staying here in the house with me? With us?”

“Why do you ask?” I was startled by the question.

“Because you seem a bit on edge, kind of like you can’t let yourself relax fully.”

“I’m sorry.” I said. “I guess I’m not used to being around people so much.” I sat up and pulled the sheet up to cover my chest as I sat against the headboard. “I’m used to being by myself all the time. Or at least being alone at night. The past week and a half have been amazing with you and the kids. Truly amazing. I wouldn’t trade a second of it for anything. But I’ve had more human interaction and touching than I’ve had in the last five years. I think I’m just, a bit, overstimulated.”

Pete had sat up when I did. He had a frown on his face. “Would you be more comfortable if you slept in the van?” He sounded hurt and concerned.

“No. I don’t wanna sleep in Luna. I want to be here with you. I just have to get used to having you in bed with me. And with being touched.”

“I can not touch you if you want. I mean,”

I cut him off. “No. No, I don’t want you to do that. I like it when you touch me. I love it when you kiss me. You’re the first person I’ve let get close in years. Please don’t stop. Just, have a little patience with me. Please?”

He nodded and smiled. “Ok, but if it gets to be too much, let me know. I don’t want to overstep a boundary.”

“I’ll let you know if you do.” With that we settled back down, me on my back and Pete on his side facing me. He put an arm over my midsection.

“Is this alright?” He asked me as he touched me.

“Yeah, this is perfect.” I told him and snuggled closer to him. I did like his touch, it felt like electricity on my skin. I just needed a little time to get used to it.

Both of the boys had school each day and Pete took Marvel to preschool. She did half days and really liked going. I had to work while I was there. I had filmed on my way to meet up with them so I could just edit that and put out a video for Wednesday. But I was going to have to film something if I was going to have a video for Sunday.

I was sitting with the boys as they did their schoolwork and I was editing a video for Wednesday. Pete was picking Marvel up from preschool.

“Moon, what are you gonna do when Dad has to leave?” Bronx asked me out of the blue.

“I’ll go back to traveling. I promised my Mom I would be home for Thanksgiving.” I told him.

“Oh. Will you come back and visit again?”

“Yes, I plan to.” I told him.

“When?”

“I still have to talk to your dad about it. But I hope to come back when he comes home for Christmas.”

Both boys looked very happy about the possibility of me coming back for Christmas. I thought it would be nice too.

Pete and Marvel came home and we had lunch together. After we ate, she went down for her nap and the boys went back to doing their school work. I took my laptop to the living room and finished the editing for my Wednesday video.

Pete came in a few minutes after me and said, “I still want to take you on a real date. Bronx has agreed to babysit for us tomorrow night.”

Smiling at him I asked, “How fancy of a place are you taking me to? Will a little black dress be appropriate?” I have one dressy outfit with me. It’s a black dress, black pumps, and one nice black clutch purse. With the right accessories I can dress it up or down.

“A black dress is about perfect. It’s nice but not super fancy, not a jeans and tee-shirt kinda place. I’m taking you out for dinner and then I’m gonna take you to a place I like. You can see the whole valley from there. I think you’ll like it.” He proudly told me.

I smiled at him. The idea of an evening with just him was very appealing. We had only taken advantage of the late evenings once the kids were in bed to have any one on one time. I was truly looking forward to it, and told him so.

“I’m really looking forward to an evening with just you. It’s been a long time since I was on a date. And no, I don't consider going dancing with friends a date.” I knew he was going to say something about the cowboy in Oklahoma.

He gave me a look like he knew what I had just done, but didn’t comment on it. Instead of saying anything, he came and sat next to me on the couch. Not close enough to be touching me, but within a few inches. Since I had told him the night before about being a bit overstimulated with being around people and being touched, he had given me space. He was letting me choose when to close the distance and allow touch.

“What are you working on?” He asked me as he pointed at my laptop.

“Video for Wednesday.” I answered as I leaned over and rested my head on his shoulder. He turned his head and dropped a kiss on the top of my head. “I’m gonna have to do some filming if I want to have a video for Sunday.” I told him.

“Do you have a plan on what you want to do for your Sunday video?” He asked me as he put his arm around my shoulders.

I closed my laptop, set it on the coffee table and leaned back into his embrace. “I think I’ll have to spend a night or two parked up someplace.” I curled my legs up beside me on the couch and leaned heavily on Pete. He was so wonderfully solid and comfortable to lean on.

“Do you have a place in mind?” He asked me.

“No, not really. I’ll probably just look up a place nearby on iOverlander. I’ll find a safe spot to park, film for a night, and come back the next morning. But I’ll have to do it again for Wednesday.”

“We could take off for a few days and let you film us.” He said. “This weekend, just drive over to Joshua Tree or whatever. Camp with the kids. Just take my camper, and let the kids sleep in the tent. You could take us on a hike or something and you can film it. Use that for a video.” He offered.

“I like that idea. But you guys have a lot to do before you all leave. I don’t want to get in your way.”

“You’re not in the way. We only have a short time together before we all have to leave. I just want to spend as much of it together as we can. I really don’t have much to do before leaving. Most of my gear and wardrobe are already packed up and sitting with the stage and equipment, ready to be transported to the airport and loaded on the planes. I do have to pack up the kids. But, they’re only taking a few suitcases each. Mom and Dad have a lot of things there for them already. We have the time to go on another short trip.”

I pulled back from him when he said that so I could look him in the face. This man, this family, was pulling at my heart in a way no one else ever had. I was trying to think of how I could make my life work if I stayed with them for longer, past the next few weeks. I wasn’t ready to stop traveling. I wasn’t ready to move out of Luna and stay in one place. But, this was the first time since I started this, that a flash of “stay” had crossed my mind.

“I’ll figure out something for Sunday’s video that doesn’t take me away for a night. I won’t leave until you guys have to. And I can be back in December when you get home.” I told him.

He smiled his tender smile at me and pulled me in for a soft kiss, still letting me have space if I needed to pull back.

“Yeah, I want you back for Christmas. I want you back for as long as you want.” I kissed him back at this. After the kiss I settled back down next to him on the couch.

Saint finished his school work shortly after and he joined us in the living room. We watched some TV together while we waited for Bronx to be done with his work and for Marvel to wake up.

We read together when she was up. We were going through book 2 almost as fast as we went through book 1. I had already decided that while Pete was away we would not continue with the Potter books. I was still going to call the kids every night and read to them. But since Pete and Bronx wouldn’t be able to join us on the regular, I didn’t want to leave them out of it. I had picked Alice in Wonderland and Peter Pan to read to them. And if we needed another book, I had a few others in mind.

On the morning of our date night I had an idea of what to do for my Sunday video. I’d never done one before, but I thought I’d do a Q&A video. I could film it in Luna in Pete’s drive way. I put a post up on my social media asking for questions. I decided to pick some of the more frequently asked ones and ones I felt comfortable answering.

When Pete got back from picking up Marvel that afternoon, he told me he would let me have the master bedroom to get ready for our date. And he would pick me up at the bedroom door at 7. I felt like a schoolgirl again, all fluttery belly and excitement before a date. We had lunch together with the kids, went about the rest of our day as normal until I decided to go take a shower and get ready.

I took the time to actually curl my hair and do my makeup. Marvel had knocked softly on the door as I was curling my hair. She wanted to come in and watch as I got ready. I let her in and she sat with me as I did my hair and makeup. I went into the bathroom to pull on my outfit. I had one nice bra and panty set that I had picked up a year or so ago. I had bought them in a fit of wanting to feel more girly. I wore them once under the same dress I was going to wear that night. That had been to a friend's birthday party. No one else saw them on me. But I felt pretty with them on. The dress was knee length and had cap sleeves. It was pretty plain, but it fit me well and looked good on me. I accessorized it with my nicer silver jewelry and a blue silk scarf I had. I liked that scarf because it matched my eyes.

When I came out of the bathroom Marvel said, “Moony, you look so pretty.” She was so sincere that it was one of the nicest compliments I’d gotten.

“Thank you Miss. Marvelous.” I said as I smiled at her. I was ready when Pete knocked on the door at 7.

I opened the door to a dressed up Pete. He was freshly shaven, had his hair slicked back in a bun, and was dressed in a shirt, tie, and slacks. He looked good too. He also held a bouquet of roses.

He looked me up and down and said, “Wow. You look beautiful.” The smile he gave me showed his approval of my appearance.

“Thank you. You look very handsome.” I told him truthfully. I’m sure the smile I was giving back showed just how true that statement was. He is a good looking man, even with age and the crows feet and gray hair. He was aging like a fine wine. He was charismatic, charming, and confident in himself. That alone would have made him sexy, but his natural good looks only made him more desirable.

“These are for you.” He said as he handed me the roses. It was a huge bouquet, made up of pink, white and red roses. They were beautiful. I hadn’t been given flowers by anyone in so long I couldn’t remember the last time. For decades if I wanted flowers I had to buy them myself. The gesture touched me deeply.

“Thank you, they’re lovely.” I said as I took the flowers from him. I had to lean in and smell them. I made eye contact with Pete and smiled. “I love them.”

“Daddy, those are pretty! Just like Moony.” Marvel said in her sweet little girl voice.

Pete grinned down at her and agreed with her. “Yes, Moony is very pretty, just like a flower.”

He offered me his arm and asked, “Are you ready?”

Slipping my arm through his, I nodded. We headed downstairs to the kitchen. There was a vase there with water in it ready for the flowers. I was touched by his thoughtfulness. As I put the flowers in the water, Pete went over everything with Bronx.

We left the house after that and Pete walked me out to his car. He opened my door for me, before getting in himself. He took me to a very nice restaurant for dinner. He was right, what I had worn was perfect for the place. The food was excellent. We talked about our childhoods. He told me how it felt to be the only mixed race kid/family in a very white neighborhood. How difficult he found it at times. But, he also had a pretty good childhood with the ability to run around with his friends and know it was safe. Something he didn’t realize until he was a parent himself.

I told him what it was like growing up in a wealthy southern city where social standing was important. How my first step-father was wealthy, and helped my Mom’s social standing, but wanted nothing to do with Scott and I. How we ended up going to Dad’s for winter break because Christmas was hosted by his mother and only family was invited. Scott and I weren’t family so we weren’t welcome. And how when Alex, my youngest brother was born, even Thanksgiving was full of “FAMILY ONLY” but Mom hosted Thanksgiving so her children were welcome. That marriage didn’t last very long thankfully. Alex was only about four when Mom had enough and kicked the jackass out of our home.

“Um, I know you don’t have any issues with my, um ethnicity, but what about your family?” He asked me during our meal. I was actually a little shocked by the question. I guess the stereotype of being racist because we’re southern was on his mind. But then I realized, I'd never shown him a picture of my family.

Smiling at him, I set my fork down and pulled my phone out of my handbag. I opened the picture gallery and pulled up a picture of my niece. Handing him the phone I said, “This is my niece Abby, my brother’s daughter.” Abby is a beautiful girl of mixed race. My sister in law is African American. Then I showed him a picture of my brother and his wife. “This is Scott and his wife Lisa.” Then I showed him a picture of my Dad and his long time girlfriend Amy. Amy was born in Hong Kong and moved here with her family when she was five. “This is Dad and Amy. She was born in Hong Kong.” Then I pulled up a picture of my Mom and her best friend. “This is my mom’s best friend Maria. They’ve been BFFs since they were six. Maria’s family is from El Salvador and she taught Mom, Scott, Alex, and myself to speak Spanish. I was never very good at picking up the language, but I can get by when I need to. I don't think it’s gonna matter to any of them.” I told him.

He was visibly relieved when he realized I might be fully cacassun but my family, the people I loved, weren’t. And that we welcomed the diversity in the family. Family isn’t just DNA. Family are the people you chose to love, related by blood or not.

“Oh, and this is Tim, Amy’s son from her first marriage. His wife April and their two kids. My other niece Katie and my nephew Robby. I didn’t grow up with Tim, we were adults when our parents met, but he’s awesome and I count him as a sibling and his kids as niblings.”

I took my phone back and slipped it back in my purse. I smiled at him and said, “Please don’t worry about my family accepting you or the children. We have a lot of love to give, and both of my parents will want to spoil the kids rotten if they get the chance.”

He smiled that tender smile I've been seeing when he’s with the kids. “I’d like to meet your family. I’d like you to meet mine. Maybe after the tour is over next summer we can arrange that.”

“I think the kids would have a great time on the farm for a few weeks over the summer. I know Dad wants us to come out so he can meet you guys.”

“I’d like to see where you grew up.” He told me.

I realized that just a week ago we had agreed to go slow, and here we were talking about next summer, and our plans to integrate our families. In his mind, we were looking at being permanent. I wasn’t sure how to feel about that.

When we had finished our meal, and he had paid, we left the restaurant. He took my hand and walked me to the car. Once again, he opened my door for me. He took us to the Griffith Observatory. It’s open to the public until 10pm. They have public telescopes that you can use to view the night sky. I had a wonderful time with him that evening. We headed home when the observatory closed.

We were home before 11pm. The little kids were asleep and Bronx was up watching a movie in the living room. He asked if we had a good time, then said good night to both of us and went to bed. Once Bronx was out of the room Pete crossed back over to me and gently reached up and cupped my face. Without saying anything, he leaned in and kissed me. I was still wowed by them.

“Would you like a glass of wine?” He asked when the kiss was over.

“Yeah, that sounds nice.”

He opened a bottle he had in the fridge and poured us each a glass. He led the way out to his backyard. He had a covered porch area that was cozy and private. We sat out there on the loveseat and sipped our wine. I leaned against him, resting my head against his shoulder. He rested his head against mine.

“I had a great time tonight. Best date I’ve been on in ages.” I told him.

He chuckled a little and said, “Me too. Best first date in a very long time.”

We sat out back until we had finished our wine and then headed in for the night. He locked up and we went to bed. That night in bed he was slow, gentle, and loving. It was different than the other times. Those were more rushed, or just needy, lustful. This wasn’t. We took our time and enjoyed the night together.

The Wednesday of that week I uploaded the video I had to YouTube. The next day while Marvel was at preschool and the boys were working on their school work, I locked myself in Luna for a few hours and filmed the Q&A video. I spent the afternoon editing it to be ready on Sunday.

Friday, after the kids were done with their school for the week, we packed up in their camper and headed east to the Joshua Tree National Park to spend Friday night and Saturday night there. We were coming back on Sunday.

I filmed enough to make at least two videos out of the trip. That would be enough to get through the rest of my stay with them. I took them on a hike on Saturday. We wore the kids out and they went to bed early on Saturday night.

Pete and I stayed up around the campfire and enjoyed some adult recreational items. We had fun and I was able to work at the same time. It was way better than I had hoped for.