“Why is she upset?” Kristen asked, quite surprised. “I injured her almost as badly that first time.”
“Lynette is completely head-over-heels in love with you, Kristen. When she realized how much you were injured, it was as if somebody ripped her heart out. Think about how you’d feel if you did something similar to my dick!”
Kristen thought about this, and nodded. “I know she is in love with me. I just never realized that she’d react that way.”
“I know Lynette, Kris,” I said gently. “She will feel a need to demonstrate how sorry she is to you. Just saying the words won’t be enough for her. My hope is that she has a long talk with Patty today. Patty is a good tonic for a guilty soul.”
“We have wonderful friends,” Kristen said.
“We sure do,” I agreed. “Just realize that Lynette will feel a need to prove that she’s sorry. I want you to understand that.”
June came back from the apartment. “Those guys sure work quickly!”
“Got offers for dates, Juicy?” I asked.
June smirked at me.
Kristen asked, “Juicy?”
I laughed.
“That nasty boy called me ‘Juicy June’ when he was fondling me between my legs in front of my mother as he was getting me ready for my ass fuck. He whispered that to me yesterday in the shower as well.”
Kristen laughed. “That’s a great nickname. Too bad we can’t call you that at school.”
June smiled. “I don’t know. It might help tarnish Jim’s reputation even more.”
We all laughed at that.
June got serious. “Patty and Lynette will be getting back here in a bit, Kris. I know for a fact that Lynette really feels bad about your injury.”
“Jim and I were talking about that,” Kristen said.
“I’m afraid that Lynette might leave,” June said.
“What makes you think that?” I asked.
“Lynette was shattered this morning. She looked as if somebody sucked her soul from her body,” June said. “She was crying when she left with Patty.”
“I’m not angry at her,” Kristen said.
“Lynette is angry with herself,” June said. “I don’t know if she’ll ever forgive herself.”
I sighed. I was starting to love Lynette, and I felt bad for her. June was right about who was angry with Lynette, though. I couldn’t see much that any of us could do about that, though.
I noticed that the two girls were actually late now, but I didn’t said anything. I got up and tried to think. I walked toward the apartment, but when I got out of the house, I decided to go back to where June and Kristen were in the living room. Before entering the living room, I took a side trip into the Solarium, walked around the pool, and then exited and went back into the living room.
“Stop that, Jim,” Kristen said.
“Stop what?” I asked.
“You pace when you’re worried,” Kristen said, knowing my moods. “What are you worried about?”
“Lynette.”
Kristen nodded.
As if on cue, Patty arrived at the main house. Lynette was notable in her absence.
“Where’s Lynette?” June, Kristen, and I said simultaneously.
“She’s in the car. She’s thinking about going to her family’s home.”
“Lynette’s home is here,” Kristen said. She started to get up from the sofa where she was sitting but winced in pain very quickly.
“You should have a doctor look at that,” Patty said.
“Harry took us earlier,” Kristen said. “I’m going to be sore, but there’s no permanent damage. I have some codeine that I can take for the pain. No wine while I’m on medication, and no driving.”
Patty nodded. “Jim insisted, huh?”
“How did you guess?” June asked.
“I know Kristen, and I know Jim.”
“Jim, can you and Patty help me outside?” Kristen asked.
“Sure,” Patty and I answered.
June looked a little left out, but she said nothing.
I got the wheelchair and put one of the pillows on it.
When Kristen was in the chair, I signaled to Patty to push Kristen to the front door.
I saw a look of determination in Kristen’s eyes, and she pushed herself up from the chair, her face registering none of the pain that I know she was feeling.
“Thank heavens for codeine,” Kristen muttered.
Patty signaled to me that I should accompany Kristen. I went over and put my hand around her. I felt part of Kristen’s weight shift to me, but it wasn’t overwhelming.
Together, the two of us walked over to Patty’s car. Lynette was crying in the passenger seat, and didn’t even notice us approaching.
I knocked on the window, startling Lynette.
Lynette saw the two of us outside, and she opened the passenger window.
“I’m so sorry, Kristen!” Lynette cried.
“Stop it, Lynette. I’m not angry at you,” Kristen said.
“I hurt you!”
“I did almost exactly the same thing to you, Lynette,” Kristen said. “I apologized then and you accepted my apology, telling me it was nothing.”
“You looked terrible this morning!”
“And you could barely walk for twenty four hours,” Kristen replied. “I’m walking. It’s not that bad. The bruising just makes it look bad.”
“I’m so terrible,” Lynette said, not wanting to listen to reason.
I sighed. “Lynette, please come upstairs. This is your home.”
“I don’t belong here, I’m a horrible person!”
“If you leave, you’ll really hurt Kristen, and unlike the bruising, that hurt won’t heal.”
Lynette was silent, but showed no sign of wanting to leave Patty’s car.
Kristen moved closer to the car, and then bent down, very slowly, until she was able to plant a kiss on Lynette’s face. “You didn’t do it intentionally,” Kristen said softly.
“I did. I wanted to get even with you…”
“No, Lynette,” I disagreed. “Sure, you wanted to get even, but you never set the pressure before. It was obvious that you didn’t realize what you were doing. You didn’t even put on the hot water!”
“I didn’t?” Lynette asked.
“You could barely reach the knobs,” I said.
“I guess…”
“I know. Please come inside.”
Lynette looked at me, and then for a long time at Kristen.
Finally, the door opened, and Lynette stepped out.
Lynette threw her arms around Kristen and kissed her. “I’m so sorry!”
I saw Kristen wince as Lynette did this, but fortunately, Lynette was crying on Kristen’s shoulder and didn’t see this.
“Come inside,” Kristen urged.
I allowed Lynette to lead Kristen and me to the apartment.
When we got into the entrance, Lynette asked, “What’s all that noise?”
“We’re trying to get a new bedroom down here before tonight,” I answered. “Want to take a look?”
“Separate bedrooms?” Lynette asked, crushed once again.
“Recovery room. For females that find it difficult to walk upstairs.”
“Huh?”
There was a water hose that led from the shower room into a door across the hallway that hadn’t been there the last time I had been in the building.
We all gasped when I opened the door completely. What once was one of the garages was now a bedroom complete with a water bed that was still being filled, four comfortable chairs, a dining room table, and even a miniature refrigerator. There was even a love seat and a padded bench without a back. The floor was newly carpeted with a worker finishing up the tacking, and two walls were bare sheet rock with white patches to cover the nails. There was another worker in the room monitoring the filling of the water bed.