“Sure, lay it on me,” Sam said. “Have you been in Ashland all this time?”
“Yeah. After I got laid-off at the Observer, I was totally directionless. So I moved back home sort of with my tail between my legs, you might say. Moved back in with my parents, got a part-time job at a jewelry store until I could get back on my feet. It’s been a drag, really. But at least I finally have my own apartment now,” she added with a shrug.
“That’s good. And I’m glad you’re sticking with it, Shelly. You have a lot of potential-I’d hate to see you waste it,” Sam declared sincerely.
Shelly beamed. “You really think so?”
“Of course I do. I’ve been telling you that all along.”
“It doesn’t hurt to be reminded once in a while, though. Let me show you my new stuff!” she said excitedly, springing up from the sofa.
Sam’s eyes were on her sweet little ass as Shelley scampered out of the room to get her portfolio. She returned in seconds, holding the briefcase as though it were filled with priceless jewels. She sat down and placed it on the coffee table then opened it up. Sam crouched forward and began examining the contents. The prints were all black and white eight-by-tens. The subject matter ranged from landscapes to portraiture and practically everything in between. The composition, lighting, and creativity were all quite impressive. Shelley had come a long way in the last six months, he concluded.
“Great stuff, kiddo! Excellent,” Sam said after he’d examined the final photograph.
“Really?” Shelley exclaimed. “You don’t think they’re too contrived?”
“Not at all.”
Shelley rested her elbow on Sam’s thigh and leaned forward. ”This is my favorite one,” she said, flipping back to the first page. It was a shot of an old abandoned well taken in the late afternoon sun.
“I love the lighting-the long shadows and the way the background just sort of blurs out behind the well. It’s got a nice mood, don’t you think?”
Sam nodded. Shelley’s face was within inches of his own and her soft blue eyes were wide as she gazed into his. He felt her other hand come down and rest on his knee. Suddenly, she threw her arms around him and kissed him hard. Sam was caught off guard but responded by embracing her and allowing himself to get lost in her soft, moist lips. His head started swimming as she brought her hand to the towel and inched herself away long enough to remove it and expose her flawless body. She then grabbed his hand and placed it on her breast, pressing his hand firmly as an invitation for him to take over.
Before long, Sam’s clothes were off and what had started out as a lonely, rainy and miserable Friday night soon turned out to be a whole lot better than he could ever have imagined.
CHAPTER 11
It hadn’t been more than five minutes after Jerry Rankin left when the telephone rang again. Ann hastily threw on her sweatshirt and ran across the hall to Amy’s bedroom to answer it.
“Hello?”
As quickly as she spoke she heard the click of the caller hanging up. Ann waited a moment before replacing the receiver, wondering if it was the obscene caller again. Then she decided against it. Not his M. O, she thought to herself sardonically as she hung up the phone.
Ann returned to her bedroom and put on her sweat pants as the sudden urge to call Amy at Amanda’s house came to her. She just wanted to hear her daughter’s voice and make certain that she was where she was supposed to be. After slipping into her house slippers, she turned off the light and went downstairs.
Ann found Amanda’s phone number scrawled on a note pad stuck to the refrigerator door and dialed it. On the third ring, a teenage girl’s voice came over the line.
“Hello?” the girl giggled.
“Hi, this is Ann Middleton-Amy’s mother. May I speak to Amy, please?”
“Sure,” the girl replied. Ann heard the clunk as she dropped the phone and began yelling Amy’s name. A few moments later, Amy got on.
“Hey, Mom, what’s up?” she said. Her voice sounded a little too cheerful.
“Nothing, sweetie. I just called to see how everything went tonight. Did you guys win the game?”
There was a long pause, some whispering, and then her reply: ”Yeah, we won.”
Ann had a sneaky feeling that Amy had never made it to the game. “I’m happy to hear that. What was the score?”
“Uh, I don’t remember exactly. It was close though… I think,” she stammered.
“You think?” Ann quizzed suspiciously.
“Well, we left kinda early.”
“And where did you go?”
“We came here, Mother! Why all the third degree?”
If Ann were a gambler, she’d bet her last dollar that her daughter had been drinking. “I was just curious, that’s all. Is Mrs. Givens there now?”
“Jesus, Mother!” Amy sputtered. “Of course she’s here! Do you want me to put her on just to prove it?”
“That won’t be necessary, I…”
“No, Mother. Let me go get her so you’ll know that I’m not lying!” Amy snapped. Then, after a long sigh, she said, “Why don’t you ever believe me, Mom? You never trust me!”
Here we go again, Ann thought. “I do trust you, honey. I’m sorry, It’s just been a long day and I’m tired,” she said, not wanting to start a fight.
Amy fell silent for a moment. Then she said, “I’m sorry, too. I shouldn’t have snapped at you like that-Hey, guess what!”
“What?”
“I got asked to homecoming!” Amy announced excitedly.
“That’s wonderful, sweetie! Who’s the lucky guy?”
“Jason Walborn. And is he ever a hunk!”
“I don’t recall you ever mentioning his name,” Ann said. “Is Jason a freshman, too?”
“Nope. He’s a junior! Can you believe it?”
Ann didn’t want to believe it. “Oh,” was all she could say.
“Don’t worry, Mom. He’s really cool. From a fine upstanding family, and all of that,” she added with a giggle.
Ann wondered what Sam’s reaction would be to his fourteen-year-old daughter going out with a junior. He simply wouldn’t allow it- she was certain of that. And she probably shouldn’t allow it either. But she didn’t have the heart to spoil Amy’s obvious excitement now.
“I’m really happy for you, honey. Isn’t homecoming next weekend?” Ann asked.
“Yeah, so we have to go out and find me a dress tomorrow!” Amy declared.
Ann sighed to herself and said, “Okay, I guess I can take you to the mall tomorrow. When will you be home? We’d better get an early start before the stores sell out of everything.”
“I don’t know. Probably around noon or so,” was her daughter’s reply.
“Well, try not to be too late, honey,” Ann said. “Be good and try to get some sleep tonight, okay?”
“I will, Mom. See you tomorrow.”
“I love you, sweetie.”
“Love you, too,” Amy said before hanging up.
As she replaced the receiver, Ann considered Amy’s sudden announcement that she was going to the school dance and realized she had mixed feelings about it. Although she was certainly less than thrilled that her little girl was going out with a boy who was two years older, she was nevertheless happy that Amy was so excited about something for a change. Recalling the child’s declaration that school dances were just for “nerds and jocks” brought a wry grin to her face. How quickly a teenager’s mind can change!
Ann realized that she no longer felt tired as she checked the time. It was just a little past eleven. Deciding that she could never fall asleep after all the excitement, she went over to the fridge, took out a can of diet Pepsi and went into the family room. After switching on the eleven o’clock news, she went over and plopped down on the sofa.
Ann began thinking about her date with Jerry Rankin and concluded that she had truly enjoyed herself. Besides his being handsome and a lot of fun, she had been equally impressed with Jerry’s impeccable manners and the way he had managed to comfort her after that terrifying phone call. His offer to be there for her whenever she needed someone had been awfully considerate of him, too. Although she could never see herself actually calling him up and bothering him with her troubles, it nevertheless gave her some piece of mind knowing that at least that option existed.