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When Chloe moved in Monday afternoon, my son Jonathan was at a friend’s house down the street and Gerald was at the museum. Instead of using a moving van, a friend dropped her off in our driveway. She was only carrying a backpack and one suitcase. I felt sorry for her. I’d hate to be poor and have so little.
“Hi, Mrs. Anderson.”
I said, “Hello again, Chloe. Since I’m not your teacher anymore, you can call me Rochelle. Follow me to the guest house and I’ll show you around.”
I led her in and pointed out the rooms. “The kitchen is over there. The living room has an electric fireplace. There’s a tub and shower in the upstairs bathroom, but the downstairs one only has a toilet and sink. I’d suggest you use one of the bedrooms to sleep in most of the time and keep the other nice for when Gerald is here.”
“Holy cow! This is nearly as big as my mom’s whole house! I don’t have to share it with anybody?” She set her suitcase and backpack down.
I felt slightly jealous and started to reconsider my plan as I said, “Just my husband sometimes.” If I needed to let him sleep with her so he would stay I’d do it, but that didn’t mean I’d enjoy it. “You can use the pool in the back yard, and the hot tub and rec room in the main house basement. There are pool and ping pong tables over there. You can do your laundry over there too.”
She asked, “Where can I have a cigarette?”
She followed me outside as I said, “I don’t want you smoking indoors or around my son. I guess if the weather’s bad you can smoke in the garage, but not in the house or guest house.”
“Okay. Since we’re way across town, I think I’ll miss my family. Can I get time off to go see them?”
“Sure. If the house is clean, you only need to be here when Jonathan is home. You can go shopping, visit your family, or whatever when he’s in school or days when I’m off work. Your family can come visit on the weekends.”
“That’s nice. They would have a blast swimming in your pool!”
“I think one of your sisters is in the same grade as Jonathan, right?”
Chloe answered, “Yeah, Lora is 17. She mentioned him being cute. I think she likes him. Melissa is 18 and she likes him, too.” I smiled.
I got an old flowerpot from the shed and handed it to her. “Use this as an ashtray for the time being. I’ll get some the next time I go shopping.”
We sat at the picnic table in front of the guest house. She lit up and took a puff as I said, “I have some personal questions for you, since you’ll be intimate with my husband.”
“Yeah. I was wondering, should I ask him to sleep with me when he gets home?”
“NO! You need to be SUBTLE! He has to think it’s HIS idea. He’ll need to get acquainted with you first. I don’t think Gerald will approach you for at least a week. Just keep the house clean and let me know privately when he starts flirting with you.”
“But I still get paid, right? Or is that only when he starts fucking me?”
“Language! I don’t want you using words like that. My son shouldn’t hear it, and my husband won’t like it if you use vulgar language.”
“Sorry.”
“I’ll pay you every-other weekend, starting in about two weeks. Here’s a little to tide you over until then.” I handed her some cash.
“Thanks!”
“I need to know some things about you, like what birth control you’re on, your sexual history, and a few other things.”
“I use condoms most of the time.”
“MOST of the time? Or EVERY time?”
“Well, about a dozen condoms out of maybe twenty times. I’m probably fine.”
“PROBABLY? I’ll get you an appointment at the clinic. The birth control implant is simple, and it’ll keep you from getting pregnant for a couple of years. You need to be checked for diseases, too. You’ve really only had sex about twenty times?”
“Yeah. I’m not a slut! I did hand jobs for the three guys before him, but I didn’t give up the goods until my last boyfriend. He said he wanted to marry me. He got all angry and broke up with me when he saw his cousin kiss me, though.”
“You cheated with his cousin?”
“No! I just kissed her! It’s not like I sleep around a lot. She started it.”
“So, you like girls too, Chloe?”
“I uh… some are really pretty, but that was the only time I kissed one.”
“I tried it with a girl once, a long time ago. I understand.” Our eyes locked for a few seconds, then we smiled and giggled nervously.
She turned away as I asked, “Do you have any medical problems the family should know about, diabetes, allergies, or anything?”
“No.”
“That’s good. How much do you smoke?”
“When I was in school, I could only get away with three a day, sometimes four. Maybe six or seven on weekends.”
“It’s unhealthy, but about five a day isn’t that bad. My husband and I used to smoke in high school, so I know how hard it is to quit. I’ll help, if you want?”
“Maybe later? Once I get comfortable here?”
“Sure. I hope you like animals?”
“Um… big dogs kind of scare me, but most animals are okay.”
“That’s good. Jonathan has a hamster, a turtle, and a lizard. He wants to be a vet.”
“Does he need to go in the military? That’s where vets come from, right?”
I bit my lip a moment to avoid laughing, then patiently explained the difference between ‘veteran’ and ‘veterinarian’.
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