“Milestone,” Hannah replied simply. I could not believe that that ONE WORD had such a phenomenal effect on her sister. Haley closed her mouth and looked abashed before she too carried her burden over to the table and set it down.
Hannah approached us with her right hand extended. She obviously intended to shake hands with the stranger sitting next to me. Chelsea cautiously reached out was well, but remained firmly attached to me like a remora on its host. The two females shook hands affably as Hannah proceeded to make introductions all around.
“Hello there! I’m Hannah and this is my sister Haley. I’m Skip’s girlfriend so I am guessing that you’re either his best friend or an ex. I already know that he doesn’t have any sisters, so that is totally ruled out.”
“You must have read my mind,” Chelsea responded with a grin. “I was just thinking about trying to pass myself off as his sister just as a joke. I’m Chelsea, by the way. I’m an ex, but Skip has referred to me as his best friend to several people over the past year or so. I guess that maybe I can fit into both categories then.”
“Well, it is certainly a pleasure to meet you Chelsea! I am absolutely famished, so lets all move to the dining room and sit down to supper together.”
“I see that you and Haley brought additional food for our supper,” I intoned. “I guess that my cooking doesn’t please you.”
That caused an uproar out of all three girls with both Hannah and Haley giving me light love swats across my upper shoulders and Chelsea spanking my ass playfully. They were all yelling and speaking at the same time, but I did manage to hear each individual comment just the same.
“You know better than that!” Haley exclaimed.
“Don’t you dare put yourself down like that, Skip!” (from Hannah)
“Bullshit, bullshit, bullshit!” Shouted Chelsea, a swat on the backside synchronized with each word.
They had me dancing in a circle and laughing out loud as they all tried to get in a swat or two. Then it struck all three girls nearly simultaneously that they were all together on the same page. I thought that I was just being my usual sarcastic self, but as it turned out I had provided the most important women in my life a bonding moment. In an uncharacteristic move, Haley gathered a virtual stranger, Chelsea, into her arms and held her close for nearly a full minute. Chelsea didn’t hesitate to return the hug. They stared each other in the eye for a moment. Strange as it sounds, I think that something passed between them as they held one another closely.
“So, in case you’re wondering what we brought in the pot, Haley was kind enough to make up a double batch of Pork Flavor Stove Top Stuffing mix. It’s just a little something to show our appreciation as well as contribute to the evening. I also know how much you like your Texas wineries, so we brought over a couple bottles of Llano and Messina Hof for tonight.”
“Thanks, babe!” I leaned down and gave Hannah a kiss. What I originally intended to be a short kiss on the lips turned into a steamy, open-mouth, french kiss as Hannah reclaimed her territory. She wrapped her arms around my neck to prevent my escape, opened her mouth and pushed her tongue into mine. I closed my eyes, so I didn’t catch the reactions of the other girls. But after we broke our kiss, I glanced at both of them in turn and each was wearing a pleasant smile as if nothing were out of the ordinary.
All four of us worked together to set the table and plate up the food. I put three of the bottles of wine in the fridge and opened the fourth. All four bottles were properly chilled before arriving at my residence. I took the bottle with me into the dining room and made my way around the table as I poured a glass for each of the ladies present. That one pass effectively emptied the entire bottle, so I was thankful that I had several more in my fridge for the evening in addition to what the girls had brought with them. Haley teased her sister about being under the legal drinking age which again brought laughter. I brought up the subject of my promotion at work and informed Hannah and Haley of all of the details. Naturally, they were thrilled with the news.
Looking back now, there was absolutely nothing awkward or strange about the four of us being together for the first time. We all fit together as a well rounded crowd. The minutes leading up to the Fletcher sister’s arrival had me on pins and needles, shaking with dread over the potential explosion that was coming, but it never came to pass. After dinner, we all had a bowl of Blue Bell Old Fashion Vanilla Ice Cream for dessert with Messina Hof Chocolate Fudge Sauce and Port Wine for the topping. The two bottles of Llano ‘Moscato’ and two bottles of Messina Hof ‘Angel’ wine had been consumed during dinner, so I brought out my Double Barrel Reserve Papa Paulo Port. It is intended to be a dessert wine for serving after a meal anyways.
In the mean time, while I was getting the Port, Hannah had gone into one of the end table drawers by my couch and pulled out both of my card decks. When I returned to the table, the cards had been dealt setting us up for a game of spades. When I inquired about the presence of the second deck, Hannah simply replied that she had it in case we decided to play Crazy 8s or something else that would require additional cards.
Everyone was having a great time and the evening passed far too quickly. The witching hour chimed on the grandfather clock in my living room, which caused Chelsea to fold her hand and stand up on slightly wobbly legs.
“I’m sorry ladies, Skip,” Chelsea said. “But I didn’t realize how late it was. I really need to get home and go to bed.”
I intercepted her as she staggered over to where her purse was and gently stopped her progress.
“Babe! You can’t even walk straight right now! I’m not about to let you drive home drunk like this!”
“Come on, Skip,” she whined. “It’s just a couple of blocks away.”
“No, sweety. We’re not risking it.”
“I need to get going too.” Hannah said. “The thespians have a rehearsal tomorrow. I’ve only got a small, bit part in the play, but I have to be there. Attendance is mandatory.”
“No one is driving away from this house tonight!” I was furious at the lack of good sense these girls had suddenly developed. “I’ll get my cell phone and order a Lyft® and you can share a car together. I’ll use my copy of the keys that Hannah gave me to use her car and come gather you all up in the morning. That way you can be sober when you retrieve your own vehicles. Okay?”
The estimated time for the ride to arrive was showing fifteen minutes on my app after I placed my order. I helped Chelsea get her shoes back on and made sure that she had all of her possessions intact before the ride arrived. The Fletcher sisters were having a quiet conference between themselves this entire time.
“Skip, hun,” Hannah said as she approached me. “I’m going to need my car pretty early in the morning, so Haley and I are just going to borrow your second bedroom and crash here tonight if that is acceptable to you.”
“Sure, no problem.” My app dinged indicating that the ride was lass than three minutes away from my door. So I gathered up Chelsea’s hand and escorted her outside to the curb.
“So, she’s rather young,” Chelsea said to me as we were walking down the sidewalk. “High School Thespians? I never pictured you for a cradle robber, Skip!” She giggled an inebriated laugh. “Fifteen will get you Twenty, babe!” She tried to hold in her laughter but it still came out in snorts.
“Cool your jets, woman. She’s eighteen and a Senior this year. Yes, she is still in High School, but the legal age of consent is Seventeen in this state. I don’t have to worry about the Police coming to lock me up over sleeping with her.”
That bit of revelation seemed to take some wind out of Chelsea’s sails. She kind of choked up and her voice got distinctly quieter.
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