Righteous Obsession (49 page)

Alethea fussed with her roses then suddenly asked,
“Colin, why did you insist I take this assignment?”

He sighed and put his arm around her.  “I thought it
was a good idea if we both realized nothing’s going to happen to us if we’re
apart.”  He shrugged.  “Maybe, it was more of an attempt to convince myself.” 
Colin paused briefly before he continued, “I called my doctor and asked for a
referral to the psychiatrist he recommended.”

“What changed your mind?”

“Liam.  He had a horrendous nightmare last night.  I
realized I was feeling the same way he’s feeling.  I decided to give therapy a
try.”  He shrugged.  “I can always quit if I don’t feel like its doing it for
me.”

 “Well, I’m glad you’re going to give it a try,” She
replied, squeezing his hand.  “Did Deb and her friend get in okay?”

“Yeah.  Mom took them home.”

McGregor came back and motioned for them to follow
him.  They went outside and got into the Jeep.  “Are you going home or to your
parents, Colin?”  He asked.

“My parents.”  He looked at Alethea.  “I want to check
on Deb.”

“I’m anxious to meet her.”

Amanda opened the front door as she saw them coming
across the front lawn.  “Hello, Alethea,” she said, giving Alethea a hug.  “How
was your interview?”

“It went really good, Amanda; in fact one of the best
ones I’ve done.”

 “I’m glad.”  She smiled at McGregor, hovering in the
doorway.  “Hello, Mr. McGregor.  How are you?”

“Fine, Mrs. Matthews.”

“It’s Amanda, please.”

“If you’ll call me Buck?”

“It’s a deal, Buck.”

“How’s Deb, Mom?”

Amanda shook her head.  “That poor girl!  She cried
the whole drive home.”

“She’s had a rough time,” Colin commented.

“I know.  Diana was telling me about Deb’s mother.”

“Well, hopefully, she can start to heal.”

“Your dad and I are hoping for the best, Colin,”
Amanda replied.  “Are you two going to stay the night or just for supper?”

“We’ll stay over, Mom.  We’re both pretty tired.”

“Buck, the couch in Peter’s study folds out and it’s
very comfortable.”

“Thanks, Amanda, but I’m going back to Sausalito.  Do
you mind if I borrow the Jeep, Colin?”

“No, go ahead.  You’re welcome to stay, though.”

“Thanks.  I’ll be back about ten tomorrow to pick you
up.”

“Okay.  See you then.  Thanks for taking such good
care of Alethea for me.”

“Anytime.”

“Thanks for going with me, Buck,” Alethea said.  “I
really appreciate it.”

“It was my pleasure, Alethea.”

They went upstairs and Colin stretched out on the
bed.  Alethea cuddled next to him.  “God!  I missed you!”  Colin murmured,
burying his face in her hair.  “You smell so good!”  He kissed her mouth then
her neck.

“Colin …”

 “Shh!”  He undid the buttons on the front of her
dress and slid his hand inside and over the thin silk of her slip.  She wasn’t
wearing a bra and he began stroking her breasts.

“Colin, maybe…” Alethea began then suddenly gasped as
Colin bared her breasts and caressed her nipples, sending little shocks of
pleasure all through her body.  She felt his hand push her dress and slip up
and then gently tug at her already soaking panties, working them partially down
her hips.  Physically, Alethea was more than ready to make love.  Emotionally,
she felt doubtful.

Colin sensed her hesitation and stopped.  He looked at
her in confusion.  “What’s wrong?”

Alethea pushed her dress down and sat up in bed. 
“Nothing’s wrong.  I just can’t help thinking that you had major surgery barely
two weeks ago and I’m worried about accidentally hurting you.”

He sighed then lay back.  “I suppose it might be too
soon.”

 “If we could wait a couple of weeks more, I know I’d
feel much more comfortable,” Alethea admitted.

“Okay.”  Colin agreed.  “We’ll wait and do something
special.”

“Like what?”

“I know!” Colin sat up, too.  “Steve told me about
this bed and breakfast in Haight-Asbury he stayed at briefly while his place
was being repaired after the ‘89 earthquake.  I think he said it’s called The
Red Victorian
®
.  I remember him saying it had eighteen rooms and each
one’s decorated in a theme from the summer of love.”

“Sounds intriguing,” She replied, playing with Colin’s
hair.

“Yeah.  He told me about this one suite called the
peacock or the parasol suite, whatever; it sounded really exotic and sexy.”

“Steve stayed in it?” Alethea giggled.  “It doesn’t
sound like quite his thing!”

“No, but they let you tour the unoccupied rooms and
that’s when he saw it.”

“So, what’s your plan?”

“I’ll call them next week and if it’s available, I’ll
reserve it for the next weekend.  I’ll give you an insider’s tour of San
Francisco.  We’ll have dinner at an expensive five-star restaurant and you can
wear that gorgeous silk dress Vanessa bought you.”

“We’ll make love.”  Alethea added.

“First and foremost!”  Colin teased.

“Suits me just fine!”  Alethea declared.  She pulled
him close and kissed him.  “Thanks for being so understanding.”

Suddenly, there was a discreet knock on their door. 
“Colin, Alethea, suppers ready.”

“Okay, Mom, we’ll be right there,” He called.  He got
to his feet, straightening his clothing.  Alethea changed into casual clothes
then checked her hair and make-up.  They walked with their arms around one
another.  They saw Amanda knocking on the door of the guest room.  Diana opened
it.  “Supper’s ready, girls.”

“If it’s not any trouble, Mrs. Matthews, could Deb and
I eat supper up here?  Deb’s feeling kind of tired.”

“It’s no trouble at all, Diana.  I’ll fix trays for
you.”

“Thank you.”

Amanda saw them and shook her head.  “I wish there was
some way I could instantly make Deb feel better!”

Colin put his arm around her.  “I know, Mom, but it’s
going to take Deb a while to trust us and realize we really do care about
her.”  They went downstairs and into the kitchen.

Peter was just coming in from the patio, holding a
platter of grilled chicken, marinated in his secret sauce.  He looked around. 
“Aren’t Deb and Diana coming down for supper?”

“No, darling.  Debbie’s tired, which is
understandable, since she just got out of the hospital.  I’m going to fix them
trays so they can eat upstairs.”

“Darn!”  Peter said disappointedly.  “I was looking
forward to welcoming Deb into our family.”

“I’m sure by tomorrow she’ll be feeling much better,”
Amanda assured him. She fixed their trays and took them upstairs.

Alethea got the rest of the supper on the table with
help from Colin, Peter and Liam.

Amanda reentered the room and Peter pulled out her
chair for her.  “Thanks.”  She sighed.  “I hope Deb eats everything I gave her.
She’s so pale and thin!”

“Mom, she won’t be able to resist yours or dad’s
cooking and she’ll be fat and sassy in no time!”  Liam declared.

“I hope so.”

They finished eating and started on dessert.  Amanda
took two slices of her double chocolate supreme pie upstairs to the girls. 
Colin finished his pie and coffee and went into the living room.  He stretched
out on the couch.  Liam followed him in and sat down on the coffee table in
front of the couch.  “Colin?”

“What?”

“I’m still feeling upset about that nightmare I had
last night so I called Alison.”

“What’d she say?”

“She said what’s been happening is normal for people
who’ve been through a severe trauma.  She urged me to get professional help
with it.”

“Well, I called my doctor this morning and asked for a
referral to that psychiatrist he recommended.”

“Do you think they’d see me, too?”

“I don’t see why not.  I told Dad I’d ask them about
family therapy.”

Their parents, attired in their running clothes came
downstairs interrupting them.  Amanda came into the living room.  “Are you boys
going to be home for a while?”

“Alethea and I will be here.  Why?”

“I just wanted somebody to be here in case the girls
needed something.”

“They can ask one of us, if they do, Mom,” Colin
assured her.

“Okay.  Thanks.”

“No problem.  Have a good run!”

“We will,” Peter replied.

Liam went upstairs and came back down in a few
moments.  He peeked into the living room.  “Colin, would you tell mom and dad I
went out, but I’ll probably be home early.”

“Sure.  Try to have some fun, okay?”

“I’ll try,” Liam promised.

Alethea came into the living room, climbed over Colin
and settled herself beside him on the couch.  He gently massaged her shoulders
and back then lightly caressed her ass.

“Hmm …” she purred.  “That feels really good!”

“Tired?”

“Maybe, a little,” she admitted.

“Why don’t you turn in early?”  Colin suggested.

Alethea burrowed her face into the front of his
shirt.  “I’m not that tired.”

“Okay.”  He picked up the remote and turned the
television to CNN.  Like his dad, Colin was a confirmed CNN junkie.  He watched
the top stories; relieved to see that his stabbing was apparently old news.  He
was thankful for that much.  He was going to comment on it to Alethea, but saw
she had fallen asleep.  He smiled, put his arms around her, shifted his
position slightly and turned off the television.  The house was very quiet and
there wasn’t a sound from upstairs.  Maybe, the girls decided to go to bed
early.  He thought back to the first time he’d ever seen Deb.  She’d been a
startling attractive young woman who’d walked with her head held high.  Now,
she walked with her head down and her body slumped – her whole demeanor, saying
she wasn’t worth it.  He hoped they could help Deb reclaim her self-confidence
and self-esteem.  He heard the front door open and his parents, flushed and
laughing, came into the living room.  Colin put his finger to his lips,
motioning to Alethea.

“Sorry for making so much noise,” Amanda apologized. 
“We always feel so invigorated after we run.”

“Have the girls been downstairs at all?”  Peter asked.

“No.  I haven’t heard a sound out of them.  I thought
they might’ve gone to bed early.”

Amanda touched her husband’s arm.  “I’m going upstairs
and see if they need anything.”

He nodded.  “Okay, Mandy.”

“Liam’s went out, but he asked me to tell you he
wouldn’t be too late.”

Peter sighed.  “You know, Colin, your mother and I
used to worry when he stayed out past midnight.  Now we worry because he’s
coming home so early.”

“I know, Dad.  I also know from what Liam’s told me,
he realizes he’s not behaving in a normal manner and he wants to get
professional help.”

“Well, I’m glad to hear that.”

Amanda came back into the room.  “Deb and Diana are
both asleep.”

“Well, it’s been a long day for them,” Colin remarked.
 “I’d better get Alethea to bed too.”  He shook her gently.  “Alethea?”

She gave a little start, opened her eyes then sat up
groggily and shook her head wearily.  “I don’t even remember falling asleep!”

Colin got up and helped Alethea to her feet.  “I’m
going to take you upstairs and put you to bed.”  They both said goodnight to
Peter and Amanda and went upstairs.  Alethea went into the bathroom, washed
then moisturized her face.  Colin helped her to undress then undid her braid
and started to brush her hair.  “It’s a hundred strokes, right?”

“Yes,” She murmured.

“Let me know if I’m being too rough, okay?”

“No, you’re doing fine and it feels wonderful!”

When he finished brushing her hair, he helped her into
bed.  He got undressed and slipped into bed beside her.  She squeezed his
hand.  “Has anybody told you lately you’re a wonderful husband?”

Colin smiled, tossed his hair over his shoulder and
joked, “Well, not for a couple of days!”  He kissed her then rested his cheek
against her silky hair and closed his eyes.  He drifted into a semi-conscious
state where he was vaguely aware of Liam coming up to bed followed by his
parents.  A scream suddenly reverberated throughout the house.  He sprang
upward, a sharp pain lancing his side and his heart beating wildly.

“It’s one of the girls,” Alethea said, laying her hand
on his shoulder.

They heard his parents’ door open and heard footsteps
hurrying down the hall to the guest room.  When the door opened they heard
sobbing.  It became muffled as the door shut again.

Colin lay back.  “Fucking Father Michaels!”  He
muttered.  “It’s amazing how many lives one person can fuck up!”