Nightingale

She couldn't cry in front of Roger. He wouldn't tolerate it.

"Did you get the quote?" he asked, surprising her. She blinked away the tears quickly.

He was getting up from his chair, so she did as well and rushed to collect the papers.

"Yes! Yes, I had someone come out and look at the yard. He went over my design and only made one small revision to add some support for the collapsing hillside."

"Yes, yes, let's see it!" Roger said in annoyance and snatched the forms from her.

"He gave me two. One full estimate with all of the changes I designed and one with some of the items removed to make it cheaper," she said, handing over the papers.

Roger frowned as he read through the quotes.

"Shit! This is expensive! The cheaper one isn't that much less!" Roger exclaimed. He glared at his wife.

It was time for her to play her ace card. "The landscaper said he'd seen the quote for the mayor's yard last year, and its cost was higher, but it wasn't as impressive as ours would be."

Roger went still as he studied her expression. He suddenly reached out, seized her right nipple through her clothes, and pinched it cruelly between his finger and thumb.

"AAAHH! Please, Roger! That hurts!" she whimpered but did not attempt to pull away or touch his hand as her punishment would just increase.

"Are you trying to manipulate me?" he said through gritted teeth.

"No! No, no, oh! Please! Please!" she cried quietly.

"Tell me exactly what this slick-talking salesman said to you," Roger demanded. He tugged his fingers away, and Emily clapped a hand over her mouth to stop her scream. She looked at Roger through tearing eyes. He was red-faced with anger. She'd have to be very careful now.

"It wasn't a salesman. They were all busy, so the store manager just sent one of the landscapers. He was a young man who does the actual work. He had no sales experience."

Roger brooded over this information. He could tell she wasn't lying now, not after he'd disciplined her. He liked the idea of having a backyard better than mayor windbag. Cheaper than his too. Sighing, he glared at her.

"Go with the full quote. But tell them it better be spectacular!" he insisted. She just nodded, averting her eyes, and held her tongue.

He looked away and yawned. "I'm going to bed." With that, he left, heading upstairs.

She sat for a moment, just holding her breast and fighting back nausea. When she'd recovered enough, she began taking the dishes into the kitchen. She scraped the plates into the recycling bin and stacked them in the dishwasher. Once she'd cleaned the pots and the counters, she shut the lights off and went into the dining room to collect the quotes. She allowed herself a little smile as she thought of working on her new backyard.

She also thought of the blunt-talking but genuinely nice young man who called her design brilliant and beautiful. She was looking forward to working with him again.

She turned off the main light and sat in the dim dining room to wait.

It was best if Roger was asleep before she went to bed.

-=-

Raphael was a smelly mess when he eventually went home as one of the manure bags broke open on him. People gave him a lot of space on the bus, and he didn't suffer a recurrence of the mugging as he walked through his neighborhood. He cleaned his boots outside his front door and shook himself to get the majority of the dirt off before unlocking the door and stepping inside.

"Raphael, is that you?"

"Yeah, mom. I'm just taking a quick shower; then, I'll get dinner going."

He carefully made his way upstairs, but he didn't see any more dirt fall from him. He grabbed a pair of ratty shorts from his drawer, went into the small bathroom in the hall, and closed the door. He stripped and stepped into the shower after dropping his clothes into the laundry basket. He washed quickly and rinsed the soap from his hair and body.

He heard the bathroom door open.

"Mom! I'm in here! Wait your turn! I'm almost done!" he growled.

"I was just going to get the laundry," she said plaintively.

"No, please, let me do that!" he asserted as she was a disaster when it came to household chores. He couldn't afford to lose any more clothes.

"I feel so useless!"

"You're not! Please wait for me downstairs," he said, softening his tone.

The door closed, and he listened to her descend the stairs. He sighed and quickly finished up.

Pulling on the shorts, he grabbed the laundry basket and made his way downstairs. Dotty was sitting on the couch. Light from the TV glimmered off the wet streaks running down her cheeks. His heart ached, and his frustration flared as he didn't know how to heal her pain.

He went down the stairs into the dark basement and stuffed the clothes, mostly her panties and bras, into the old washing machine with a little cheap detergent.

Once it was started, he made his way back upstairs and sat on the couch next to her. She looked up into his eyes. He'd always thought his mom was lovely, which made seeing her so sad all the time so hard to deal with.

"I'm sorry about last night," she whispered, her bottom lip trembling.

"It wasn't your fault. Just... be more careful with some of the assholes at the club." He wanted to tell her to quit, but she wouldn't, and he'd long ago exhausted his arguments.

"I meant... after I was home," she said quietly.

So, she remembered. He sighed and wrapped his arm around her, pulling her against his side. He felt her tremble then relax as he rubbed her scalp with his fingertips as he knew she liked.

She sighed and snuggled in closer to him. They sat like that for a while, watching nothing in particular on the old TV. They got maybe three channels on the antenna, and none of them were very clear, but it was something.

When he heard the cranky buzz of the washer, he looked down at his mom and saw she'd fallen asleep. She finally had a peaceful smile on her face. He eased her back on the sofa and tucked the blanket up around her. Then he went downstairs to move the load to the dryer. It would take two or three cycles to dry the clothes, but they couldn't afford to repair or replace the machine.

He went back upstairs and took a frozen pizza out, and put it in the oven. She'd be hungry when she woke up. Pizza before bed wasn't such a great idea, but he hadn't had time to pick up anything decent on the way home.

He sat at the kitchen table and frowned with worry as he watched his mother sleep. She'd also be wanting a drink when she woke. He made sure there was no booze in the house, but he had two shifts this weekend, and he couldn't keep an eye on her. He wished he had someone he could rely on to watch over her. Roxy wasn't an option. Roxy's mom Janice worked evenings as a cleaner in the hospital, so she'd be asleep during the day.

There was nothing he could do. She'd go out and bring some bottles home. If he hid her cash, she'd earn some on her back. He ground his teeth in frustration, then closed his eyes and took some deep breaths. It hurt, but he couldn't help her if she didn't want to be helped.

All he could do was stay the course as he'd promised her. He'd get that scholarship. He'd get out of this stinking town and make something of himself.

Then he'd get her out too.

Chapter 5

Malcolm Harris was an important man. Sadly, he discovered that being the most important man in an unimportant town left him with the same lack of satisfaction he'd struggled with his entire life. It wasn't enough. He craved... more.

Actually, what he craved right now were painkillers. The previous evening's entertainment had left him with one doozy of a hangover. That was three nights in a row. He was hosting out-of-town investors who were promising to bring industry in to boost the economy. All he had to do was look the other way as not all of their business was... completely legitimate. Hell, he'd been compromising for years in many ways when he thought about it. It had been a long time since he got what he wanted.

He opened his eyes and remembered it was Saturday. No real need to get up early. He turned his head and saw the clock read eleven-fifteen. Okay, so not so early.

Then he saw a bottle of aspirin and a glass of water.

A present from Suzanne. Shit. She really was a good woman. He gently eased himself up to sit on the edge of the bed and moaned as the pounding in his head surged. He opened the bottle and swallowed three pills before sipping at the water.

He felt the pills slowly make their way down his throat and tried not to gag.

Suzanne. Lovely, intelligent, and cold. He wondered where her passion was these days. His passion was almost out of control recently, and his wife wanted less and less to do with him. He needed excitement and wanted her to join in! No, he needed her to. He had a marriage contract with the woman to remain faithful. But, he needed to do things that excited him, and she was definitely not on board with that.

Reggie LeBraun, the businessman he'd wined and dined last night, had offered to host him and Suzanne at one of his couples-only resorts in Jamaica. He said they knew how to have a good time on the island and at his club, especially. He let him know this particular club catered to swingers.

Fuck! He was almost desperate to go. He wanted to take Suzanne there and get her high on some local weed so they could both get freaky! He'd fuck the black bitches Reggie was flaunting last night, and Suzanne would ride the biggest black cock he could find for her. He could be generous too!

He sighed, looked down at his boner, and gave it a half-hearted tug. He knew it was all a pipe dream. Suzanne would never agree to go on a holiday to a swinger's resort.

Of course, Reggie did say he had another family-oriented resort, which was just a short taxi ride away from the fun one. They could fly down to stay at that one, and if he were to get her to loosen up, perhaps they could make a side trip to visit. For dinner and dancing... and fucking.

Fuck, he was throbbing just thinking about it. Imagining those two hot bitches wrapping their fat lips around his cock while he watched Suzanne moan in ecstasy as a thick Jamaican cock stretched her wet pussy wide.

He pumped his hand up and down his stiff cock as the image played over and over until he came, grunting with relief. He rested back on the bed, panting with the effort, and his head began to pound again. He closed his eyes to get through the worst of it.

Shit. He shouldn't have done that while he had a hangover.

He finally opened his eyes and looked down. Ugh. He'd made a mess of himself and the sheets.

He wiped his belly and legs clean with the top sheet then pulled them all off, dumping the quilt on the floor at the end of the bed. Then he dragged the dirty linens into the bathroom to shove them into the laundry basket. Suzanne would put new ones on the bed.

He needed a shower.

Then he'd work on his plan to convince Suzanne that a vacation in Jamaica was a great way to rekindle their relationship.

-=-

Emily stood before the Customer Service desk of Beckett's, waiting to speak to the clerk who was dealing with a customer on the phone. She was getting impatient as she knew she had to get home soon to begin preparing dinner.

She looked around and saw the shop was busy with other customers. They did good business, so she took that as a good sign.

Finally, the young woman hung up and turned to face her. "How may I be of assistance?"

"Yes, hello. My name is Emily Manning, and I had a quote done for some landscaping. I'd like to proceed with the work."

"Ah, okay, let me look for the order." She turned to her terminal and punched in Emily's name. She frowned. "I see two quotes here under your name."

"I'd like to proceed with the full one—the more expensive one," she corrected herself.

"Sure, let me see who's available to schedule," the clerk said, pulling up a calendar.

"It has to be the young man who did the quote for me!" Emily suddenly blurted. She surprised the clerk and herself, for that matter.

The young woman looked at her then back at the order. "It says, Raphael Graves. He's not—" She stopped talking when she caught her boss waving at her as he hustled over to the counter.

"Ah, Mrs. Manning! Lovely to see you again!" Jackie said with a smile, slightly out of breath.

Emily smiled at him, as well. "I'm here to proceed with the full quote."

Jackie's smile widened again. "That's wonderful."

"She was just asking to schedule Raphael Graves to do the work," the clerk said, holding her boss' eye.

He paused momentarily. "Ah, yes, well... we have several excellent landscapers working here—"

"It has to be Mr. Graves," Emily said firmly. She was trembling at her boldness.

"Oh? Is there any particular reason?" Jackie asked carefully. If he heard that Raph had manipulated the customer to make her ask for him, he was going to be out on his ass today.

She paused to think about that, and it came to her easily. "He-he immediately understood what I was attempting to create in my backyard and knew how to accentuate my design without diminishing it or overwriting it with his own will. He's an excellent designer." Emily gushed then reigned in her enthusiasm.

"Oh! Well... that's excellent! Let me see what I can do to expedite this then," Jackie said as he spun the clerk's monitor around. The calendar showed all available shifts. He wasn't looking for an opening for one of his other landscapers but the equipment's availability as he was going to send Raph out on this job. "I see we have an opening next Saturday. Does that work for you?"

Emily flashed a broad smile at the man. "Yes, that would be perfect!"

Jackie nodded and looked at the clerk. "Schedule it in. I'll go speak with Raphael to let him know."

"May I-may I speak with him as well?" Emily asked. She felt a little dizzy for being so uncharacteristically forceful, but she kept her smile on her face.

The older man looked at her curiously then nodded. "I'll send him out to speak to you."

Jackie left the desk and made his way into the stock room. He found Raph at the back, stacking bags of cedar chips onto a cart to bring outside for a customer. Jackie waited until he was done and walked beside him as he pulled the cart towards the side door.

"Mrs. Manning returned to place the order for her landscaping," he said, and Raph looked over at him and nodded as he breathed hard from the effort of pulling the weight. Jackie saw no signs of hesitation or guilt on the young man's face, so he didn't appear to be hiding anything. "She wants you to do the landscaping." That made Raph's eyebrows go up.

"Me?" he asked curiously.

They'd reached the lot outside, and Jackie watched him load the bags gently into the customer's trunk after putting a plastic liner down to protect the interior carpet.

When Raph waved at the customer and returned with the cart, Jackie pulled him aside before he could take the next order.

"I'm going to send you out to do the work next Saturday. You told me you were a good landscaper. Are you? This is an important job. It's up on the hill." Jackie watched his eyes.

Raph nodded. "Yeah... I'm an excellent... landscaper," he said between breaths.

Jackie relaxed and smiled. "Great! Mrs. Manning wanted to speak with you, so make it quick, then get back to the order picking." He pointed to the inside doors. He got a surprised look for that, but he could only shrug. He felt assured that Raph hadn't manipulated the customer. He seemed like a straight shooter.

Still, he'd keep an eye on him as he did with everyone else.

Raph pushed through the doors and spotted Victor's mom waiting for him by the customer service desk. He walked over. "Mrs. Manning? You wanted to speak to me?"

"Oh!" she squeaked as he's surprised her. A smile splashed across her face as she turned to look at him. He noticed her eyes moving to his sweaty arms, pumped from all the heavy lifting. Her eyes widened, and she bit her lip as her eyes swung back to his face. He gave her a questioning look, and she smiled vacantly back for a moment, then jolted. "Yes! I-we're going ahead with the full quote. You said-you said you had the armor stone in stock?"

He nodded, wondering where she was going with this.

"Could I see it?" she asked timidly.

"Oh! Uh, sure. Come this way," he said and led her to the stock room doors. "We don't normally let customers back here, but you're with me, and you're confirming your order, so it's okay."

She smiled at him, and he nodded to her.

They walked over to the large building's right side, where they saw all kinds of stonework. He pointed out the light grey slabs he intended to use.

"These will be laid out end to end in three rows going up the slope like stairs. We plant the tall grasses at the top and bottom to absorb the water and stabilize the soil, and we have stability on the slope and the soft look you wanted with the grasses," he explained.

She was clasping her hands together and grinning as she pictured these stones on that troublesome spot in her yard. "It's going to be beautiful!"

He smiled in return. "The slabs are wide enough to lie down on, so when the grass grows in thick enough, you could slip through it and sunbathe on the stones in privacy. Your own little getaway."

She laughed happily at the image and turned her lovely eyes on him.

He gave her a happy smile as well and saw her eyes were practically sparkling. Then he saw his boss gesturing to him to wrap it up. "Oh, it looks like I need to get back to filling customer orders. Is that everything?"

She looked at him in surprise. "I thought you were a landscaper?"

He didn't want to screw this up, so he smiled at her. "I am, but I only do that for special customers." He saw that she liked that answer. He guided the happy woman back out to the store, said his goodbyes, and rushed back into the stock room.

Emily watched the darkly handsome young man move off, and her eyes automatically and scandalously watched his firm ass in his tight jeans as he walked away. Her pulse was pounding in her chest, and she wasn't sure what was happening to her. When he was no longer in sight, she glanced to the left and saw the young clerk watching her with a knowing smile. She turned and made her way out of the store with as much dignity as she could muster.

Once outside, the feelings came rushing back. Emily couldn't get over how light she felt and how... young she felt, and how freeing it felt to be... happy. She could feel the grin on her face and relished the feeling of being genuinely happy. She hadn't felt that emotion in so long!

She was so looking forward to next Saturday!

-=-

"Jamaica?!?"

Malcolm saw this was going to be a tougher sell than he expected. They were all sitting down for dinner on the patio enjoying some wine, the lovely meal Suzanne and Sam prepared together, and the great weather. Everyone was relaxed, and Suzanne looked happy. It seemed like the perfect moment for Malcolm to introduce the idea of their getting away.

"Sure! Sam is old enough to take care of herself here at home for a week, and we haven't had time to unwind in a long time. What do you say? I could make the arrangements, and we could be on a plane tomorrow!"

Suzanne laughed and shook her head in dismayed disbelief. "Haven't you heard me talking about what I've been going through at work all week? It's budget time! I can't just up and leave now!"

He did recall her mentioning something about that. He backtracked a little. "Okay, how about next weekend? You need to set aside some time for us."

Suzanne was giving him her disappointed look, and he knew he'd done something wrong again. He didn't know what, but he was sure she was going to tell him. He sighed.