I eventually hung up the phone when the loud beeping finally got my attention. I returned to my room and threw myself on my bed, crying my heart out. I finally stopped, pulled myself together, and vowed to get on with my life. There was nothing more I could do. It would be up to Alessia to make the next move.
May 1965
Despite my resolution, I did send several letters to Alessia but never heard back from her. Each time I sent a letter, I counted the days it would take for the letter to first get to Alessia, then for her to write a letter in response, and then the days it would take for it to get back to me. As the days dragged on, I would slowly accept that I wouldn’t hear from her once again.
As the weeks passed, the feelings of loss and missing Alessia slowly ebbed, and I got on with my life. I settled into a routine of calling Aunt Sinéad weekly, allowing her to cheer me up. We grew closer as we talked about anything and everything, being able to discuss whatever was on our minds. Those calls really helped me feel better about myself as I dove into my schoolwork once again.
It was nearing the end of the semester, and I was acing all of my classes. Once I finished with my finals, I planned to head back home, stopping to visit with Aunt Sinéad for a week before going on home. My parents approved of my plans since they would be out of town visiting my oldest brother and his family in Ft. Worth, Texas. From what they told me, it sounded like I would be an aunt again soon.
I packed my car with my things before taking my last final, planning to head out as soon as I finished the test. I was giddy with excitement, looking forward to seeing Aunt Sinéad. We’d grown close over the semester, and it felt more like Aunt Sinéad was the big sister I never had rather than my aunt.
I was the first to finish my test, and my professor smiled at me when I handed it in. I had been his favorite student and enjoyed discussing the finer points of accounting with him after class. I hurried out to my car, buoyed up by how I felt I had aced the test, ensuring another semester of all A’s on my report card.
The trip took almost eight hours. The hardest part was getting over the mountains to Harrisburg, where I could get on the interstate. I took the interstates through Baltimore and Washington D.C. until I reached Richmond. I exited the interstate to head west to Plain View, Virginia, where Aunt Sinéad lived.
By the time I got to Aunt Sinéad’s house, I was tired and hungry. Despite that, I jumped out of the car and ran up to the door, where I saw her standing. As I approached her, I could see how we looked like we could have been sisters since she was only a couple of inches taller and, like me, had flame-red hair in a low ponytail that went down nearly to her butt, and fair skin sprinkled with freckles. Unlike me, she had the most incredible emerald green eyes that pierced your soul. I flew into her arms, and we held each other tight as we exchanged greetings, gently weeping for joy. By the time we separated, I was a bit flustered from the feelings I felt for Aunt Sinéad, loving the feel of her body tight against mine.
Our eyes locked, and Aunt Sinéad’s eyes were wide, only a thin rim of green visible from her eyes being so dilated. I’m sure my eyes were the same, and for a moment, I thought about leaning in and kissing her. Before I could act on my feelings, Aunt Sinéad said, “I’ve got supper ready if you’re hungry.”
The mention of food made my stomach growl, and we both laughed before I said, “I guess I am a bit hungry, Aunt Sinéad.”
“Please, Anna, just call me Sinéad,” she said, reminding me what we had agreed to during our many talks on the phone. “‘Aunt Sinéad’ just makes me feel old,” she said with a wide smile.
“Okay, Sinéad,” I said, a thrill running through my body from the sound of her name coming off my tongue. I returned her smile as I entered her house. “I don’t want you to feel old,” I finished as I followed her into the kitchen.
The table was already set, and I noticed that the two settings were next to each other rather than across from each other on the cozy kitchen table. A bottle of wine was also on the table. Sinéad got the food out of the warmer while I sat down and poured the wine. Table wine had been a staple for all family meals since I was old enough to sit at the big table with the adults. I then watched Sinéad, loving how her tight slacks hugged her ass and legs. My nipples ached and tightened, and my heart thumped a little faster as she bent over the table, giving me a peek down her blouse and noting her powder blue lacy bra.
I quickly looked back up and saw the slight look of amusement in Sinéad’s eyes, and I couldn’t help but blush at being caught. Thankfully, Sinéad ignored my fiery red face, stood back up, and came around the table to sit beside me. I don’t know if she did it on purpose, but our knees touched, and my breath hitched. Sinéad then crossed herself and bowed her head. I followed suit, and she said a quick prayer over the food.
I spent the next few minutes concentrating on eating and sipping the wine, not daring to look up and over to Sinéad. I was intensely aware of how close our bodies were, and every time our knees or elbows brushed each other, shocks zinged through my body. I fought to get my body under control. Once I did, I finally dared to look over toward Sinéad. I smiled and said, “This is delicious, Sinéad. Thank you.”
“You’re welcome, Anna,” Sinéad replied, returning my smile.
She had served a simple but Irish meal of corned beef, potatoes, and cabbage, something I had enjoyed eating since I could remember. It was comfort food for me as I recalled the uncounted times my family had sat around the table eating this very same meal.
It didn’t take long for me to finish eating since I had been so hungry. I was done before Sinéad and sipped my wine while watching her finish her meal. I intently watched her lips as they moved, and my breath caught, and my heart lurched. I must have had a silly grin on my face because Sinéad looked up at me and asked, “What?”
I blushed from her scrutiny before saying, “Oh, nothing, Sinéad. Just thinking about things, I guess.”
Her eyes flicked down to my chest and held for a moment. I saw a look of desire flash over her face before her eyes returned to meet mine. My nipples ached and tightened even more from the look I saw in her nearly black eyes. Her face filled my entire field of vision, and I again had to fight the desire to lean in and kiss her.
We both quickly looked away, breaking the spell. Breaking the silence that had fallen over us, I swallowed hard and said, “Well, Sinéad, I better go get my stuff out of the car.”
“Okay. I’ll clean up here while you do that,” Sinéad said. I hurried out to my car and started unloading my things, taking them into the guest bedroom. It took about five trips to get everything brought in and a few minutes to put things away. While I was doing that, a feeling of sadness came over me. Memories of why I had been here three years ago were going through my mind. I sat on the bed momentarily, fighting the tears that threatened to fall as I wondered once again where my babies were and if they were in a good home.
By the time I came out of the bedroom, Sinéad had finished in the kitchen and had gone into the living room to turn on the TV. Despite my efforts to hide my sadness, when I came into the living room, Sinéad saw something on my face and got a concerned look on her face. She patted the cushion beside her and wrapped her arms around me once I sat down. I leaned into her, my head on her shoulder as she stroked my hair.
I almost lost it again, but I gamely held on, comforted by Sinéad’s ministrations. It was the repeat season for TV shows, but she had found a Bob Hope Presents special on NBC that looked interesting. Bob Hope was his usual funny self, and as I watched the show, I started feeling better. Soon, we were laughing at the skits being performed, and I was back to my usual self.
I sat back up, pulling away from Sinéad’s embrace. I reached over and pulled her legs up, so they were across my lap. I started massaging her calves, remembering how nice it had felt when Sinéad had done the same for me three years ago. I glanced over and saw Sinéad’s eyes were tracking my hands as I worked my way toward her ankles instead of watching TV. The look I saw on her face made me tingle all over, spurring me on to continue my massage, knowing Sinéad was enjoying it.
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