CHAPTER EIGHT
StuckeyBowl
Friday, April 9, 2004
11:00 AM
Ed was at the shoe counter at StuckeyBowl putting away cans of shoe spray. He had just gotten a new shipment in and wanted to have a couple of extra cans at the counter. Seemed like Phil went through this stuff like it was water. Knowing Phil, he was stealing cans and selling them at the backdoor of StuckeyBowl as some sort of super deodorant.
As he stood up he looked over at the snack bar and saw Phil and Eli having some sort of argument.
'Well,' Ed thought with amusement, 'at least with how stirred up Carol has been with Nick's visit, its nice to see *some* things going normally'.
He could hear snippets of their conversation.
"What do you mean ... Ginger ... more than ... mind," Phil was saying.
"Nothing but ... t-shirt ... blank slate," Eli was replying.
Ed chuckled. It was obvious they were discussing the woman Phil had tried to impress with his "hero" story the other day. Ed had gotten the real story from Eli after Molly had left.
"So, that's it, StuckeyBoss," Eli had said as he finished recounting Phil's 'rescue'.
"Heh," Ed had said. "So, is that how you saw it, Shirley?"
Shirley had looked startled - as she always did when spoken to - and responded, "Yes, with one difference."
"Yeah?" Eli had asked with amusement. He knew that whatever Shirley came up with, it would be amusing. "What difference?"
"Your characterization of Phil's leap and fall as 'looking like Wiley Coyote'." Shirley had said. "It was much more reminiscent of Yosemite Sam."
Shirley had looked satisfied with her answer while Eli and Ed had looked confused - again, something they were used to when dealing with Shirley.
Ed chuckled again, then walked over to one of the lane tables to replace a couple of blown out bulbs. Ed looked up as the front door opened. An attractive redhead walked in and headed towards the shoe counter. Eli watched the woman walk in while Phil's back was to her.
Ed caught Shirley's eye and gave a head jerk towards the counter, indicating he wanted Shirley to help the woman. For once, Shirley seemed to understand what he was asking and headed for the shoe counter.
"Welcome to StuckeyBowl," Shirley said as the woman reached the shoe counter. The woman smiled slightly in return.
"Hi," the redhead said, "I need two pair of shoes, please. A woman's seven and a man's thirteen."
Shirley blinked once at the woman, then bent down to get the shoes.
"Wow," Ed said as he walked towards the shoe counter. "Size thirteen. That's some seriously big feet."
Shirley placed the two pairs of shoes on the counter, then said, "I knew a man who had size thirteen feet once."
Both Ed and the woman looked at her, which of course made Shirley self- conscious.
"It was in Scranton," Shirley said as if that explained everything. Ed and the redhead just continued to look at Shirley
"The weekend I went wild," Shirley said. She waited for some reaction from Ed and the woman. When she got none, she continued, "I guess if someone had been there to videotape it I would be able to show you. But no one was there to videotape it."
Ed continued to look blankly at Shirley for a moment, then suddenly turned to the woman and said, "That will be $3.00."
The woman blinked and looked at Ed in surprise, then reached for her purse.
While Shirley and Ed had been talking to the redhead, Eli had watched them for a moment. He finally turned to Phil and said, "Look, Stubbs, there's another redhead for you to rescue. Why don't you throw yourself at her to save her from athlete's foot."
Phil looked disdainfully at Eli for a moment before turning to look at the redhead standing by Ed. A slow smile spread across his face, "It was only a matter of time ..."
"What?" Eli asked.
"Eli. Eli. Eli. It's obvious isn't it? I knew she wouldn't be able to resist my undeniable charms!" Phil said with satisfaction.
"What are you talking about?" Eli asked.
"*That* (Phil pointed at the redhead) is the woman I saved the other day," Phil said smugly. "She obviously couldn't stay away from me. It must be my intense animal magnetism."
"What?" Eli said and looked more closely at the redhead. He hadn't gotten a great look at her on the street the other day, but Phil was right.
"Did someone hit you in the head with a bowling ball this week, Stubbs?" Eli continued. "You can not be seriously thinking that this woman is interested in you!?"
But it was obvious that Phil was thinking just that. He slowly stood up, smoothed out his t-shirt and puffed out his chest slightly, eyes fixed on the redhead the whole time. He started walking towards the shoe counter and the woman, whose back was currently towards Phil.
Ed watched as Phil sidled up and leaned on the shoe counter. Ed was still trying to figure what Phil was up to when Phil spoke to the woman.
"So," Phil said in his 'sexy' voice, "you couldn't stop yourself from finding me, could you? I knew fate would bring us together again."
"What?" the redhead said as she began turning to face the person who had just spoken to her. When she saw Phil standing there, she momentarily froze, then hissed, "You!!"
Ed looked back and forth for moment between Phil and the red haired woman, trying to figure out what Phil would have done to engender such loathing. 'Not that he couldn't easily do it,' Ed thought.
"Yes, its me," Phil said smoothly. "It was obvious to me on the street the other day that you were attracted to me. I knew it would only be a matter of time until you found me. And now here you are."
As Phil made the last statement, he reached out and took the woman's right hand between the two of his. He bent over to kiss her hand.
The redhead was so shocked by Phil's first two statements that she hadn't resisted Phil grabbing her hand. But she quickly recovered and jerked her hand back, leaving Phil to kiss his own hand.
It was now obvious to Ed who the redhead was and he shook his head sadly. 'This is not going to be pretty!' he thought.
Ed looked at the front door as it opened and a large - well, mountainous - man walked in. The man was at least six and a half feet tall and built like a weight lifter. The newcomer made his way towards the shoe counter - or more specifically towards the redhead standing at the shoe counter.
Ed winced, realizing that things had just gotten worse. He listened in shock as Phil spoke again.
"So," Phil said, ignoring the fact that the woman had yanked her hand away from him, "would you like to pick the restaurant for dinner tonight, or shall I?"
The redhead was again in shock, unable to believe Phil. The mountain of a man finally reached Phil and the redhead, and said, "Everything all right here?"
Phil looked up at the larger man and said in an annoyed voice, "Yes. Now please move along and let the lady and I finish our conversation."
The large man was surprised - few people spoke to him in that tone of voice. The redhead turned to the man.
"Honey ... this jackass," the redhead said as she pointed at Phil, "is the one who tried to tackle me on the street the other day!"
"I was simply trying ..." Phil trailed off. "Excuse, but did you say 'Honey'?"
"Yes," both the redhead and the large man said at the same time.
"Right," Phil said and started to turn away, "I believe I left something cooking in the snack bar."
A huge hand closed on Phil's shoulder, stopping him dead in his tracks. Phil looked around desperately and called out, "Bosco!"
"Sorry, Phil," Ed said, his backpack slung over his shoulder, "I've got a meeting with the Mayor. Handle things for me while I'm gone will you."
Phil wasn't sure, but he thought that Ed was grinning as he left. Phil looked over at Eli, who was still sitting at the snack bar, his head on the counter, his shoulders shaking, his right hand quietly pounding the counter, and something that sounded suspiciously like laughter coming from him.
***
Stuckeyville High School
Friday, April 9, 2004
12:00 PM
Carol had just finished straightening her desk and was walking out her classroom when she almost collided with Nancy and Molly. She jerked to a stop and blinked in surprise.
"Hey," Carol said.
"Hey, Carol," Nancy and Molly said in unison.
Before Carol could say anything, Molly asked, "So how was dinner with Nick Stanton last night?"
"Not much better than the one you were at," Carol said with disgust. "In fact, I think most of what Nick had to say last night was a repeat of what he said to you and me."
Molly winced and said, "That good, huh?"
"Yep," Carol said. "At least I had Ed with me this time."
"Not that having you with me last time wasn't a godsend, Molls," Carol said quickly.
Molly's only response was a soft snort.
"Yeah," Carol continued, "Nick talked on and on again about his life and accomplishments. Argh! That man is so self-centered and dull!"
"What made you stay with him for seven years, Carol," Nancy asked.
"Complete and utter stupidity," Carol said without a moment's hesitation. Molly and Nancy chuckled at her response.
"Well," Molly said, "at least he's gone again."
"Yeah," Carol said. "Let's hope it's for good this time."
"Hey!" Carol said with a snap of her fingers, "how did dinner with Shawn and your parents go last night?"
Nancy's eyebrows rose and Molly replied, "Good. Shawn and my Dad got along really well. And Mom was quite impressed with how much food Shawn packed away."
Nancy and Carol chuckled, knowing themselves the kind of appetite that Shawn had.
Carol said, "You know, given the way Shawn and his fireman friends eat, it's a miracle they all don't weigh 500 pounds."
The trio chuckled some more.
"Did you bring Ryan?" Nancy asked.
"Uh, no," Molly said. "Given his current attitude, we decided it wouldn't be a good idea. Scary enough that Shawn was meeting my parents."
Carol turned to Nancy and said, "Ed mentioned that Mike had another doctor in yesterday. How did *this one* go?"
"Okay," Nancy said noncommittally.
Molly raised her eyebrows, then said, "Do you think we could have some more details?"
"Oh!" Nancy said in frustration. "Its just that this doctor is a *gorgeous* 28-year-old who thinks Mike is the best thing since sliced bread. And the big moose doesn't even see it! He's thinks she's just great!"
Carol and Molly shared a look, then Carol said, "Well, this certainly seems to have struck a nerve."
"Sorry," Nancy said. "I shouldn't be bothered by it, but I am. It's not like I don't trust Mike, but its hard to ignore the fact that the pretty young thing that might be working with your husband all day long, day in and day out, seems to worship the ground he walks on."
"I completely understand," Carol said.
Molly looked at Carol in surprise for a moment, then realized the parallels between this young doctor and a certain young female lawyer who had almost stolen Ed's heart. Based on that, it was easy to see how Carol understood Nancy's situation.
"Ah, it'll work out," Nancy said. "After all ... it's MIKE. It won't be long before he does something typically "Mike"-ish and knocks himself of that pedestal all by himself."
"Only a matter of time," Molly agreed.
"Anyway," Molly continued, "Nancy and I came by to see if you wanted lunch, Carol."
"Absolutely," Carol said.
"Before I forget," Molly said, "I wanted to invite everyone over to my house next Sunday, the 18th, for dinner. Shawn and I wanted to have a little dinner party."
"Sounds good," Carol said. "I can't think of anything Ed and I have that day, so we should be there. I'll double check with him later and call you."
"Same here," Nancy said.
"Great!" Molly said as the three started walking down the hallway.
"So," Carol said, "what was the greatest thing before sliced bread?"
All three women laughed as they tried to answer the question.
***
The Medical Office of Michael Burton, MD
Friday, April 9, 2004
1:30 PM
As Mike finished a quick lunch, he groaned inwardly. 'I am not having *any* luck with finding a partner!' he thought wearily. 'First I get a guy that wants to be a clown, then an anal retentive neat freak. Vicky was a great doctor, but she looks so young I think some of the patients might have been a little worried.'
'And now Crenshaw,' Mike thought.
James Crenshaw had shown up a few minutes late that morning, not a big deal in Mike's book - as long as it wasn't chronic. He was about six-foot tall with black hair and blue eyes. He was well groomed, dressed professionally and had the nicest fingernails Mike had ever seen on a man.
Mike had been a little taken aback by their handshake. Crenshaw had a very limp handshake and withdrew his hand very quickly. But during their initial discussions Mike had been impressed with everything about Crenshaw. He was knowledgeable, articulate, and seemed genuinely concerned about patient welfare - both physical *and* emotional - which was a very good sign in Mike's book.
They began seeing patients at nine o'clock and there weren't any initial signs of quirks that Mike could see. The first patient was a middle aged woman whose allergies were troubling her - the pollen count this spring was very high. Crenshaw pulled on a pair of latex gloves and performed an examination of her ears and nose, just checking her sinus and ear canals for allergy related infections. Mike peripherally noted that Crenshaw had an unusual style with the Ophthalmoscope. Crenshaw had the woman tilt her head back as he placed the tip of the light into her right nostril without touching her, then looked into the Ophthalmoscope. He repeated the process on her left nostril, then both ear canals.
Then there was a young mother with her toddler who had developed a bad rash around his ankles. Crenshaw slipped on another pair of latex gloves, then did a quick examination of the little boy. Crenshaw never touched the rash area, obviously to avoid setting off an itching fit for the toddler. Crenshaw diagnosed the rash as exposure to poison ivy.
The patients had continued fast and furious during the morning and on until just after one o'clock when they broke for lunch. By the time Mike and Crenshaw parted to eat lunch separately, Mike was sure he had identified a major problem with Jim Crenshaw. Mike nodded as he realized that the next appointment would decide the issue once and for all.
Mike looked at the clock and decided it was time. He exited his office and walked out to the front desk. He looked around and saw Bill Knox waiting. He waved and Mike waved back, indicating it would be another minute or so.
He asked Julie, "Where's Dr. Crenshaw?"
"He's washing his hands ... again," Julie said with a glance back towards the staff restroom.
"Thanks," Mike said noncommittally.
Mike waved towards Knox again and said, "Come on, Bill. Let's get this started, huh?"
"Sure, Dr. Burton," Knox said as he stood up. Just as Knox reached Mike, the door to the staff restroom opened and Crenshaw walked out. He saw Mike and Knox and walked over. He pulled out a pair of latex gloves and started pulling them on.
As Mike lead Knox towards the exam room, he said, "Bill, this is Dr. Crenshaw. He's going to do the physical on you, if you don't mind? I'll be in the room with you."
"Uh, sure, Dr. Burton," Knox said as he nodded to Crenshaw.
Mike caught the wince Crenshaw tried to hide at the mention of a physical, but said nothing.
They went into Exam Room #1 and began the physical. While Crenshaw took a variety of initial statistics - weight, height, blood pressure, heart rate, etc. - Mike made notations in Knox's file. Mike paid more attention as the standard exam portions were completed.
Mike watched as Crenshaw performed a hernia test on Knox. To Mike, it looked like Crenshaw hadn't even touched Knox.
"Excuse me, Dr. Crenshaw," Mike said, "I'm not sure that you really gave Mr. Knox proper time to cough. Bill, could you please cough for, say, three seconds while Dr. Crenshaw performs his exam?"
"Uh, sure, Dr. Burton," Knox said a little uncertainly. Crenshaw looked at Mike for a moment, paling slightly.
Crenshaw placed the two fingers of his right hand back onto Knox in the appropriate spot and waited while Knox coughed. As soon as Knox was done coughing, Crenshaw whipped his hand back and stood up.
Some other minor examinations were conducted. Mike looked at the chart and smiled evilly inwardly.
"Okay," Mike said, "we just have one more test to do."
Knox and Crenshaw looked at him in confusion. Knox said, "What's left? I think we've done all of the tests you usually do on me."
"Well, Bill," Mike said with a quick glance at Crenshaw, "now that you're over 40, we should do a prostate exam every year."
Knox looked confused, not knowing what that entailed. Given Crenshaw's suddenly green coloring, *he* certainly understood what it entailed.
Mike handed Crenshaw a clean pair of latex gloves. Crenshaw slowly peeled off the one set of gloves and slowly put the clean set on while Mike explained the exam to Knox. Knox looked a little green himself.
Crenshaw performed the exam quickly - again, maybe a little too quickly - and certainly not as gently as he could have. Knox gave a small yelp at the speed with which Crenshaw had done the exam.
A couple of minutes later, Mike let Knox out of the exam room. He closed the door behind Knox and turned to look at Crenshaw.
"I think we have a problem, Jim," Mike said with a sigh.
"What problem," Crenshaw asked, unable to hide the fact that he knew what the problem was.
"Come on, Jim," Mike said. "You wash your hands after every patient, you wear latex gloves the entire time, you try to avoid touching patients, and when you do touch them its like they've got the plague!"
Crenshaw looked down at the floor, embarrassed. He sighed and said, "I know, Mike. I know. It started in the last couple of years, but I am deathly afraid of touching my patients. I don't know if I'm afraid of catching something or what. I don't know why, its just that way."
"Jim," Mike said, "you can't be a doctor and be afraid to touch your patients."
Mike waited for Crenshaw to respond. When he got no response, Mike said, "Jim, I'm sorry. But if this is something that you can't change then this isn't going to work. I'm sorry."
"Yeah," Crenshaw said, "me, too."
Although Crenshaw was upset that this didn't work out, Mike could see the relief on his face that he wasn't going to be seeing anymore patients that day.
***
The home of Ed Stevens and Carol Vessey
Friday, April 9, 2004
6:30 PM
Carol looked around the dining room, verifying that there weren't any more dishes to clear. She was wearing a pair of jeans with a button-down denim shirt (not tucked in) and socks - she had kicked off her shoes just before dinner. She headed towards the kitchen but stopped in the doorway.
Carol leaned against the doorframe leading into the kitchen, crossed her arms in front of her, and smiled in contentment. She watched Ed as he washed the dinner dishes. He was cleaning one of the plates, a small stack of pots and dishes off to the right, and a rapidly filling dish drainer on the left.
She stood there watching him for several moments, noting the movement of his back muscles through the light-weight cotton t-shirt he was wearing, the way his buttocks flexed in his jeans when he shifted position to grab another dish, his bare feet. With all the turmoil that Nick's return had caused, she had forgotten at times just how *good* it was to just *be* with Ed. Ed's sudden aid the previous night had reminded her of that.
Which is why she had decided to cook dinner for him tonight. She wanted to thank him in some way for being... well, for just being Ed.
She sighed silently and thought, 'Come off it, Carol! You didn't want to just thank Ed, you wanted to set up a romantic dinner for the two of you to see what would happen. Well, to see if Ed would maybe ask you something important - oh, something like asking you to marry him maybe.'
She grimaced for a moment, then closed her eyes in frustration. She needed to get beyond this. Ed was so good to her ... so good *for* her. He would ask her in his own way, his own time. She couldn't rush it. A small part of her mind, though, thought 'Well, we'll see about that!'
She snorted at that stray thought. Ed heard her and started as he reached for a platter. As he began washing the platter, he turned his head so he could see her and said, "Anything else out there?"
"Nope," Carol responded, "all clear."
"So," Ed said, "Nancy is a little freaked by this female doctor that Mike had in the other day, huh?"
"Yeah," Carol said. "She's just worried about them working side by side all day long - you never know what it could lead to."
"Oh, come on," Ed said as he grabbed a pot, "this is Mike we're talking about. Nancy doesn't have a thing to worry about. Mike won't cross that line."
"You're assuming Mike is the one crossing the line," Carol said. "What if the woman doctor comes onto Mike?"
Ed put the pot in the dish drainer, looking truly surprised by that thought. "What if *she* comes on to him? Like I said, this is Mike we're talking about."
"I don't know, Ed," Carol said playfully, "Mike looks pretty handsome in that doctor's coat of his ..."
Ed snorted as he grabbed another dish and said, "Oh sure! The old 'doctors are just so handsome' bit, huh?"
"Well,' Carol said teasingly with a smile, "Yeah. We women are programmed to think doctors are sexy, especially in their white lab coats. Didn't you watch St Elsewhere when you were a kid? Or what about George Clooney on "er" .... Oooh, now that's SEXY."
"What am I ... chopped liver?" Ed asked.
"Well ... it's hard to call you sexy when you're wearing a ..."
"What?" Ed looked down to notice he was wearing Carol's yellow dishwashing apron, and that his hands were in thick rubber kitchen gloves. He unconsciously dropped into his rapid fire speech mode, "Its impossible for a man - even a handsome man like myself - to look sexy when they're washing dishes. It's just not very manly. No, not manly at all. A woman can look sexy washing dishes, but not a man. I'm doomed, doomed I tell you. You've seen me wash dishes - I'll never look manly in your eyes again."
Carol was laughing, enjoying the playfulness that had been missing from their relationship for the last couple of weeks. She had completely forgotten about her fears about Ed proposing.
"And speaking of washing dishes, you could get in here and dry some of these dishes!" He rinsed a plate and placed it in the dish drainer.
"Nah," Carol said with a smile. "I'm enjoying the view too much. I mean, how many women have a gorgeous hunk in their kitchen doing dishes every night? I don't care what you think. I think you look very sexy doing dishes."
"Gorgeous hunk, huh?" Ed asked clearly beaming at the compliment.
Carol gave a wolf whistle to emphasize her point.
Ed laughed and said, "Well, as I recall, we had a strict 50-50 division of duties in the roommate contract."
There wasn't really a formal contract, more of a verbal agreement to split household duties. After they had made the agreement, Ed had said that he would be responsible for dirtying the house while Carol would be responsible for cleaning the house. This suggestion prompted a "nasty" tickle fight that lasted for 15 minutes before they got...distracted.
"Yes, we did," Carol said. "I cooked, so you clean." She smiled.
"Hey!" Ed said indignantly, "I helped get dinner ready!"
"No," Carol replied with another smile, "you helped CARRY dinner to the table. I'm sorry to say that you had nothing to do with the actual preparation of dinner. I slaved over a hot stove for hours..." Carol placed the back of her right hand on her forward and feigned exhaustion.
Ed laughed, then said, "Spare me! How long does it take to cook pasta and sauce."
She laughed with him.
After a pause, he mock glared at her over his shoulder and said, "You know, Ms. Veseey, I think we're going to have to re-negotiate that roommate contract. I don't think the current arrangement is exactly equitable."
"Oh, no!" Carol exclaimed. "I'm not re-negotiating a thing, Mr. Stevens! I'd probably lose the shirt off my back - you being a lawyer and all."
"Mmm," was Ed's only response. He was looking at a pot, so Carol couldn't see his face.
"Mmm, what?" Carol asked.
"Oh, nothing," Ed said casually, then looked over his shoulder at her. She could see the twinkle in his eyes as he continued, "I just liked that thought."
"What thought," Carol asked, mildly confused.
"That shirt...off your back," Ed said in a sexy voice.
"Oh," Carol said, finally pushing off the doorframe and standing upright. She took a step forward and looked at Ed. He just continued to look at her over his shoulder.
She took another step forward, her right hand moving to the highest buttoned button. "This shirt? Off my back?" she asked, her voice playful.
"Mm-hm," Ed replied. His eyes never left her face.
Carol took another step closer to Ed, her right hand undid the first button. As she took another step closer, her right hand moved to the lower most button. She undid that one.
Ed turned around and leaned against the sink, his right hand still clutching the spray hose he had been using to rinse off a dish.
"Carol, what are you doing?" Ed asked. Not that he minded what she was doing .... not at all!
Carol stared seductively back at him, and placed her hand on the next button of her shirt "Is it hot in here? Or is it just me?"
Ed, still clutching the spray hose, turned around and leaned against the sink. "No," his voice squeaked, "it's, uh.... definitely hot in here."
Carol continued to walk closer to Ed, repeating the process. A small step forward. Place her hand on a button. Another small step forward. Undo a button.
Ed was so enrapt with Carol's actions that he wasn't aware of his hand beginning to tighten on the sprayer.
Carol took another small step forward, now about three feet from Ed. As she started to take another small step forward, she placed her hand gently against his chest
"Perhaps ... there's something *we* could do about that?" she said suggestively.
Ed's voice left him at that moment.
Then a spray of cold water hit Carol square in the face as Ed - who had been so concentrated on what Carol was suggesting - accidentally squeezed the spray hose trigger.
Carol gasped and stepped backwards. Ed released his grip on the sprayer. She was soaked. She glared at him.
"Ooops!" Ed said innocently, barely containing his amusement as a water- logged Carol pushed the wet hair back from around her face. "Carol, I'm sorry ... I didn't mean to ... it's just that I got distracted and ... when you started .... and I .... I'm sorry."
Carol continued glaring. Then when she was sure that Ed wasn't ready made a grab for the sprayer herself. "Oh we'll just see about that, Mr. Stevens!" she cried and with a playful grin soaked him from head to toe with the hose.
Ed responded by lunging quickly towards her – attempting to wrestle the sprayer away from her. Carol resisted but knew it was a losing proposition - he was just so much stronger then she was. Ed got the hose away from her, but she wrapped both hands around his right hand and squeezed. Fortunately, the nozzle was pointed at Ed at that moment and he got another face full of water.
Ed loosened his grip on the spray hose in surprise. Carol took advantage and yanked it from his hand. Ed tried to dodge out of the way, but he was too close and she easily managed to soak him from head to toe again. He grabbed one of the plates to use a shield against further attacks. Carol realized she'd lost the advantage and let go of the spray hose and took off. She started to bolt from the kitchen and got about a second's head start on Ed, who suddenly lurched after her. He would have caught her almost immediately, but he tripped on the spray hose.
By the time he untangled himself, Carol was out of the kitchen and heading for the stairs. Ed resumed the chase, barreling out of the kitchen and down the hallway. He almost caught her again as she made the turn for the stairway, but some of the water had run down his jeans and legs and made his feet wet. He skidded on the hardwood floor.
Carol made it up the stairs and into the bedroom and stopped. She turned around just as Ed made it into the bedroom. He playfully tackled her onto the bed, pinning her arms to her sides.
Carol looked up into Ed's big blue eyes and let herself get lost in them all over again. Ed looked down at her and thought, 'She's done it again – gone and taken my breath away.' Ed leaned down to kiss Carol passionately as, with his left leg, he gently kicked the bedroom door closed behind them ....
StuckeyBowl
Friday, April 9, 2004
11:00 AM
Ed was at the shoe counter at StuckeyBowl putting away cans of shoe spray. He had just gotten a new shipment in and wanted to have a couple of extra cans at the counter. Seemed like Phil went through this stuff like it was water. Knowing Phil, he was stealing cans and selling them at the backdoor of StuckeyBowl as some sort of super deodorant.
As he stood up he looked over at the snack bar and saw Phil and Eli having some sort of argument.
'Well,' Ed thought with amusement, 'at least with how stirred up Carol has been with Nick's visit, its nice to see *some* things going normally'.
He could hear snippets of their conversation.
"What do you mean ... Ginger ... more than ... mind," Phil was saying.
"Nothing but ... t-shirt ... blank slate," Eli was replying.
Ed chuckled. It was obvious they were discussing the woman Phil had tried to impress with his "hero" story the other day. Ed had gotten the real story from Eli after Molly had left.
"So, that's it, StuckeyBoss," Eli had said as he finished recounting Phil's 'rescue'.
"Heh," Ed had said. "So, is that how you saw it, Shirley?"
Shirley had looked startled - as she always did when spoken to - and responded, "Yes, with one difference."
"Yeah?" Eli had asked with amusement. He knew that whatever Shirley came up with, it would be amusing. "What difference?"
"Your characterization of Phil's leap and fall as 'looking like Wiley Coyote'." Shirley had said. "It was much more reminiscent of Yosemite Sam."
Shirley had looked satisfied with her answer while Eli and Ed had looked confused - again, something they were used to when dealing with Shirley.
Ed chuckled again, then walked over to one of the lane tables to replace a couple of blown out bulbs. Ed looked up as the front door opened. An attractive redhead walked in and headed towards the shoe counter. Eli watched the woman walk in while Phil's back was to her.
Ed caught Shirley's eye and gave a head jerk towards the counter, indicating he wanted Shirley to help the woman. For once, Shirley seemed to understand what he was asking and headed for the shoe counter.
"Welcome to StuckeyBowl," Shirley said as the woman reached the shoe counter. The woman smiled slightly in return.
"Hi," the redhead said, "I need two pair of shoes, please. A woman's seven and a man's thirteen."
Shirley blinked once at the woman, then bent down to get the shoes.
"Wow," Ed said as he walked towards the shoe counter. "Size thirteen. That's some seriously big feet."
Shirley placed the two pairs of shoes on the counter, then said, "I knew a man who had size thirteen feet once."
Both Ed and the woman looked at her, which of course made Shirley self- conscious.
"It was in Scranton," Shirley said as if that explained everything. Ed and the redhead just continued to look at Shirley
"The weekend I went wild," Shirley said. She waited for some reaction from Ed and the woman. When she got none, she continued, "I guess if someone had been there to videotape it I would be able to show you. But no one was there to videotape it."
Ed continued to look blankly at Shirley for a moment, then suddenly turned to the woman and said, "That will be $3.00."
The woman blinked and looked at Ed in surprise, then reached for her purse.
While Shirley and Ed had been talking to the redhead, Eli had watched them for a moment. He finally turned to Phil and said, "Look, Stubbs, there's another redhead for you to rescue. Why don't you throw yourself at her to save her from athlete's foot."
Phil looked disdainfully at Eli for a moment before turning to look at the redhead standing by Ed. A slow smile spread across his face, "It was only a matter of time ..."
"What?" Eli asked.
"Eli. Eli. Eli. It's obvious isn't it? I knew she wouldn't be able to resist my undeniable charms!" Phil said with satisfaction.
"What are you talking about?" Eli asked.
"*That* (Phil pointed at the redhead) is the woman I saved the other day," Phil said smugly. "She obviously couldn't stay away from me. It must be my intense animal magnetism."
"What?" Eli said and looked more closely at the redhead. He hadn't gotten a great look at her on the street the other day, but Phil was right.
"Did someone hit you in the head with a bowling ball this week, Stubbs?" Eli continued. "You can not be seriously thinking that this woman is interested in you!?"
But it was obvious that Phil was thinking just that. He slowly stood up, smoothed out his t-shirt and puffed out his chest slightly, eyes fixed on the redhead the whole time. He started walking towards the shoe counter and the woman, whose back was currently towards Phil.
Ed watched as Phil sidled up and leaned on the shoe counter. Ed was still trying to figure what Phil was up to when Phil spoke to the woman.
"So," Phil said in his 'sexy' voice, "you couldn't stop yourself from finding me, could you? I knew fate would bring us together again."
"What?" the redhead said as she began turning to face the person who had just spoken to her. When she saw Phil standing there, she momentarily froze, then hissed, "You!!"
Ed looked back and forth for moment between Phil and the red haired woman, trying to figure out what Phil would have done to engender such loathing. 'Not that he couldn't easily do it,' Ed thought.
"Yes, its me," Phil said smoothly. "It was obvious to me on the street the other day that you were attracted to me. I knew it would only be a matter of time until you found me. And now here you are."
As Phil made the last statement, he reached out and took the woman's right hand between the two of his. He bent over to kiss her hand.
The redhead was so shocked by Phil's first two statements that she hadn't resisted Phil grabbing her hand. But she quickly recovered and jerked her hand back, leaving Phil to kiss his own hand.
It was now obvious to Ed who the redhead was and he shook his head sadly. 'This is not going to be pretty!' he thought.
Ed looked at the front door as it opened and a large - well, mountainous - man walked in. The man was at least six and a half feet tall and built like a weight lifter. The newcomer made his way towards the shoe counter - or more specifically towards the redhead standing at the shoe counter.
Ed winced, realizing that things had just gotten worse. He listened in shock as Phil spoke again.
"So," Phil said, ignoring the fact that the woman had yanked her hand away from him, "would you like to pick the restaurant for dinner tonight, or shall I?"
The redhead was again in shock, unable to believe Phil. The mountain of a man finally reached Phil and the redhead, and said, "Everything all right here?"
Phil looked up at the larger man and said in an annoyed voice, "Yes. Now please move along and let the lady and I finish our conversation."
The large man was surprised - few people spoke to him in that tone of voice. The redhead turned to the man.
"Honey ... this jackass," the redhead said as she pointed at Phil, "is the one who tried to tackle me on the street the other day!"
"I was simply trying ..." Phil trailed off. "Excuse, but did you say 'Honey'?"
"Yes," both the redhead and the large man said at the same time.
"Right," Phil said and started to turn away, "I believe I left something cooking in the snack bar."
A huge hand closed on Phil's shoulder, stopping him dead in his tracks. Phil looked around desperately and called out, "Bosco!"
"Sorry, Phil," Ed said, his backpack slung over his shoulder, "I've got a meeting with the Mayor. Handle things for me while I'm gone will you."
Phil wasn't sure, but he thought that Ed was grinning as he left. Phil looked over at Eli, who was still sitting at the snack bar, his head on the counter, his shoulders shaking, his right hand quietly pounding the counter, and something that sounded suspiciously like laughter coming from him.
***
Stuckeyville High School
Friday, April 9, 2004
12:00 PM
Carol had just finished straightening her desk and was walking out her classroom when she almost collided with Nancy and Molly. She jerked to a stop and blinked in surprise.
"Hey," Carol said.
"Hey, Carol," Nancy and Molly said in unison.
Before Carol could say anything, Molly asked, "So how was dinner with Nick Stanton last night?"
"Not much better than the one you were at," Carol said with disgust. "In fact, I think most of what Nick had to say last night was a repeat of what he said to you and me."
Molly winced and said, "That good, huh?"
"Yep," Carol said. "At least I had Ed with me this time."
"Not that having you with me last time wasn't a godsend, Molls," Carol said quickly.
Molly's only response was a soft snort.
"Yeah," Carol continued, "Nick talked on and on again about his life and accomplishments. Argh! That man is so self-centered and dull!"
"What made you stay with him for seven years, Carol," Nancy asked.
"Complete and utter stupidity," Carol said without a moment's hesitation. Molly and Nancy chuckled at her response.
"Well," Molly said, "at least he's gone again."
"Yeah," Carol said. "Let's hope it's for good this time."
"Hey!" Carol said with a snap of her fingers, "how did dinner with Shawn and your parents go last night?"
Nancy's eyebrows rose and Molly replied, "Good. Shawn and my Dad got along really well. And Mom was quite impressed with how much food Shawn packed away."
Nancy and Carol chuckled, knowing themselves the kind of appetite that Shawn had.
Carol said, "You know, given the way Shawn and his fireman friends eat, it's a miracle they all don't weigh 500 pounds."
The trio chuckled some more.
"Did you bring Ryan?" Nancy asked.
"Uh, no," Molly said. "Given his current attitude, we decided it wouldn't be a good idea. Scary enough that Shawn was meeting my parents."
Carol turned to Nancy and said, "Ed mentioned that Mike had another doctor in yesterday. How did *this one* go?"
"Okay," Nancy said noncommittally.
Molly raised her eyebrows, then said, "Do you think we could have some more details?"
"Oh!" Nancy said in frustration. "Its just that this doctor is a *gorgeous* 28-year-old who thinks Mike is the best thing since sliced bread. And the big moose doesn't even see it! He's thinks she's just great!"
Carol and Molly shared a look, then Carol said, "Well, this certainly seems to have struck a nerve."
"Sorry," Nancy said. "I shouldn't be bothered by it, but I am. It's not like I don't trust Mike, but its hard to ignore the fact that the pretty young thing that might be working with your husband all day long, day in and day out, seems to worship the ground he walks on."
"I completely understand," Carol said.
Molly looked at Carol in surprise for a moment, then realized the parallels between this young doctor and a certain young female lawyer who had almost stolen Ed's heart. Based on that, it was easy to see how Carol understood Nancy's situation.
"Ah, it'll work out," Nancy said. "After all ... it's MIKE. It won't be long before he does something typically "Mike"-ish and knocks himself of that pedestal all by himself."
"Only a matter of time," Molly agreed.
"Anyway," Molly continued, "Nancy and I came by to see if you wanted lunch, Carol."
"Absolutely," Carol said.
"Before I forget," Molly said, "I wanted to invite everyone over to my house next Sunday, the 18th, for dinner. Shawn and I wanted to have a little dinner party."
"Sounds good," Carol said. "I can't think of anything Ed and I have that day, so we should be there. I'll double check with him later and call you."
"Same here," Nancy said.
"Great!" Molly said as the three started walking down the hallway.
"So," Carol said, "what was the greatest thing before sliced bread?"
All three women laughed as they tried to answer the question.
***
The Medical Office of Michael Burton, MD
Friday, April 9, 2004
1:30 PM
As Mike finished a quick lunch, he groaned inwardly. 'I am not having *any* luck with finding a partner!' he thought wearily. 'First I get a guy that wants to be a clown, then an anal retentive neat freak. Vicky was a great doctor, but she looks so young I think some of the patients might have been a little worried.'
'And now Crenshaw,' Mike thought.
James Crenshaw had shown up a few minutes late that morning, not a big deal in Mike's book - as long as it wasn't chronic. He was about six-foot tall with black hair and blue eyes. He was well groomed, dressed professionally and had the nicest fingernails Mike had ever seen on a man.
Mike had been a little taken aback by their handshake. Crenshaw had a very limp handshake and withdrew his hand very quickly. But during their initial discussions Mike had been impressed with everything about Crenshaw. He was knowledgeable, articulate, and seemed genuinely concerned about patient welfare - both physical *and* emotional - which was a very good sign in Mike's book.
They began seeing patients at nine o'clock and there weren't any initial signs of quirks that Mike could see. The first patient was a middle aged woman whose allergies were troubling her - the pollen count this spring was very high. Crenshaw pulled on a pair of latex gloves and performed an examination of her ears and nose, just checking her sinus and ear canals for allergy related infections. Mike peripherally noted that Crenshaw had an unusual style with the Ophthalmoscope. Crenshaw had the woman tilt her head back as he placed the tip of the light into her right nostril without touching her, then looked into the Ophthalmoscope. He repeated the process on her left nostril, then both ear canals.
Then there was a young mother with her toddler who had developed a bad rash around his ankles. Crenshaw slipped on another pair of latex gloves, then did a quick examination of the little boy. Crenshaw never touched the rash area, obviously to avoid setting off an itching fit for the toddler. Crenshaw diagnosed the rash as exposure to poison ivy.
The patients had continued fast and furious during the morning and on until just after one o'clock when they broke for lunch. By the time Mike and Crenshaw parted to eat lunch separately, Mike was sure he had identified a major problem with Jim Crenshaw. Mike nodded as he realized that the next appointment would decide the issue once and for all.
Mike looked at the clock and decided it was time. He exited his office and walked out to the front desk. He looked around and saw Bill Knox waiting. He waved and Mike waved back, indicating it would be another minute or so.
He asked Julie, "Where's Dr. Crenshaw?"
"He's washing his hands ... again," Julie said with a glance back towards the staff restroom.
"Thanks," Mike said noncommittally.
Mike waved towards Knox again and said, "Come on, Bill. Let's get this started, huh?"
"Sure, Dr. Burton," Knox said as he stood up. Just as Knox reached Mike, the door to the staff restroom opened and Crenshaw walked out. He saw Mike and Knox and walked over. He pulled out a pair of latex gloves and started pulling them on.
As Mike lead Knox towards the exam room, he said, "Bill, this is Dr. Crenshaw. He's going to do the physical on you, if you don't mind? I'll be in the room with you."
"Uh, sure, Dr. Burton," Knox said as he nodded to Crenshaw.
Mike caught the wince Crenshaw tried to hide at the mention of a physical, but said nothing.
They went into Exam Room #1 and began the physical. While Crenshaw took a variety of initial statistics - weight, height, blood pressure, heart rate, etc. - Mike made notations in Knox's file. Mike paid more attention as the standard exam portions were completed.
Mike watched as Crenshaw performed a hernia test on Knox. To Mike, it looked like Crenshaw hadn't even touched Knox.
"Excuse me, Dr. Crenshaw," Mike said, "I'm not sure that you really gave Mr. Knox proper time to cough. Bill, could you please cough for, say, three seconds while Dr. Crenshaw performs his exam?"
"Uh, sure, Dr. Burton," Knox said a little uncertainly. Crenshaw looked at Mike for a moment, paling slightly.
Crenshaw placed the two fingers of his right hand back onto Knox in the appropriate spot and waited while Knox coughed. As soon as Knox was done coughing, Crenshaw whipped his hand back and stood up.
Some other minor examinations were conducted. Mike looked at the chart and smiled evilly inwardly.
"Okay," Mike said, "we just have one more test to do."
Knox and Crenshaw looked at him in confusion. Knox said, "What's left? I think we've done all of the tests you usually do on me."
"Well, Bill," Mike said with a quick glance at Crenshaw, "now that you're over 40, we should do a prostate exam every year."
Knox looked confused, not knowing what that entailed. Given Crenshaw's suddenly green coloring, *he* certainly understood what it entailed.
Mike handed Crenshaw a clean pair of latex gloves. Crenshaw slowly peeled off the one set of gloves and slowly put the clean set on while Mike explained the exam to Knox. Knox looked a little green himself.
Crenshaw performed the exam quickly - again, maybe a little too quickly - and certainly not as gently as he could have. Knox gave a small yelp at the speed with which Crenshaw had done the exam.
A couple of minutes later, Mike let Knox out of the exam room. He closed the door behind Knox and turned to look at Crenshaw.
"I think we have a problem, Jim," Mike said with a sigh.
"What problem," Crenshaw asked, unable to hide the fact that he knew what the problem was.
"Come on, Jim," Mike said. "You wash your hands after every patient, you wear latex gloves the entire time, you try to avoid touching patients, and when you do touch them its like they've got the plague!"
Crenshaw looked down at the floor, embarrassed. He sighed and said, "I know, Mike. I know. It started in the last couple of years, but I am deathly afraid of touching my patients. I don't know if I'm afraid of catching something or what. I don't know why, its just that way."
"Jim," Mike said, "you can't be a doctor and be afraid to touch your patients."
Mike waited for Crenshaw to respond. When he got no response, Mike said, "Jim, I'm sorry. But if this is something that you can't change then this isn't going to work. I'm sorry."
"Yeah," Crenshaw said, "me, too."
Although Crenshaw was upset that this didn't work out, Mike could see the relief on his face that he wasn't going to be seeing anymore patients that day.
***
The home of Ed Stevens and Carol Vessey
Friday, April 9, 2004
6:30 PM
Carol looked around the dining room, verifying that there weren't any more dishes to clear. She was wearing a pair of jeans with a button-down denim shirt (not tucked in) and socks - she had kicked off her shoes just before dinner. She headed towards the kitchen but stopped in the doorway.
Carol leaned against the doorframe leading into the kitchen, crossed her arms in front of her, and smiled in contentment. She watched Ed as he washed the dinner dishes. He was cleaning one of the plates, a small stack of pots and dishes off to the right, and a rapidly filling dish drainer on the left.
She stood there watching him for several moments, noting the movement of his back muscles through the light-weight cotton t-shirt he was wearing, the way his buttocks flexed in his jeans when he shifted position to grab another dish, his bare feet. With all the turmoil that Nick's return had caused, she had forgotten at times just how *good* it was to just *be* with Ed. Ed's sudden aid the previous night had reminded her of that.
Which is why she had decided to cook dinner for him tonight. She wanted to thank him in some way for being... well, for just being Ed.
She sighed silently and thought, 'Come off it, Carol! You didn't want to just thank Ed, you wanted to set up a romantic dinner for the two of you to see what would happen. Well, to see if Ed would maybe ask you something important - oh, something like asking you to marry him maybe.'
She grimaced for a moment, then closed her eyes in frustration. She needed to get beyond this. Ed was so good to her ... so good *for* her. He would ask her in his own way, his own time. She couldn't rush it. A small part of her mind, though, thought 'Well, we'll see about that!'
She snorted at that stray thought. Ed heard her and started as he reached for a platter. As he began washing the platter, he turned his head so he could see her and said, "Anything else out there?"
"Nope," Carol responded, "all clear."
"So," Ed said, "Nancy is a little freaked by this female doctor that Mike had in the other day, huh?"
"Yeah," Carol said. "She's just worried about them working side by side all day long - you never know what it could lead to."
"Oh, come on," Ed said as he grabbed a pot, "this is Mike we're talking about. Nancy doesn't have a thing to worry about. Mike won't cross that line."
"You're assuming Mike is the one crossing the line," Carol said. "What if the woman doctor comes onto Mike?"
Ed put the pot in the dish drainer, looking truly surprised by that thought. "What if *she* comes on to him? Like I said, this is Mike we're talking about."
"I don't know, Ed," Carol said playfully, "Mike looks pretty handsome in that doctor's coat of his ..."
Ed snorted as he grabbed another dish and said, "Oh sure! The old 'doctors are just so handsome' bit, huh?"
"Well,' Carol said teasingly with a smile, "Yeah. We women are programmed to think doctors are sexy, especially in their white lab coats. Didn't you watch St Elsewhere when you were a kid? Or what about George Clooney on "er" .... Oooh, now that's SEXY."
"What am I ... chopped liver?" Ed asked.
"Well ... it's hard to call you sexy when you're wearing a ..."
"What?" Ed looked down to notice he was wearing Carol's yellow dishwashing apron, and that his hands were in thick rubber kitchen gloves. He unconsciously dropped into his rapid fire speech mode, "Its impossible for a man - even a handsome man like myself - to look sexy when they're washing dishes. It's just not very manly. No, not manly at all. A woman can look sexy washing dishes, but not a man. I'm doomed, doomed I tell you. You've seen me wash dishes - I'll never look manly in your eyes again."
Carol was laughing, enjoying the playfulness that had been missing from their relationship for the last couple of weeks. She had completely forgotten about her fears about Ed proposing.
"And speaking of washing dishes, you could get in here and dry some of these dishes!" He rinsed a plate and placed it in the dish drainer.
"Nah," Carol said with a smile. "I'm enjoying the view too much. I mean, how many women have a gorgeous hunk in their kitchen doing dishes every night? I don't care what you think. I think you look very sexy doing dishes."
"Gorgeous hunk, huh?" Ed asked clearly beaming at the compliment.
Carol gave a wolf whistle to emphasize her point.
Ed laughed and said, "Well, as I recall, we had a strict 50-50 division of duties in the roommate contract."
There wasn't really a formal contract, more of a verbal agreement to split household duties. After they had made the agreement, Ed had said that he would be responsible for dirtying the house while Carol would be responsible for cleaning the house. This suggestion prompted a "nasty" tickle fight that lasted for 15 minutes before they got...distracted.
"Yes, we did," Carol said. "I cooked, so you clean." She smiled.
"Hey!" Ed said indignantly, "I helped get dinner ready!"
"No," Carol replied with another smile, "you helped CARRY dinner to the table. I'm sorry to say that you had nothing to do with the actual preparation of dinner. I slaved over a hot stove for hours..." Carol placed the back of her right hand on her forward and feigned exhaustion.
Ed laughed, then said, "Spare me! How long does it take to cook pasta and sauce."
She laughed with him.
After a pause, he mock glared at her over his shoulder and said, "You know, Ms. Veseey, I think we're going to have to re-negotiate that roommate contract. I don't think the current arrangement is exactly equitable."
"Oh, no!" Carol exclaimed. "I'm not re-negotiating a thing, Mr. Stevens! I'd probably lose the shirt off my back - you being a lawyer and all."
"Mmm," was Ed's only response. He was looking at a pot, so Carol couldn't see his face.
"Mmm, what?" Carol asked.
"Oh, nothing," Ed said casually, then looked over his shoulder at her. She could see the twinkle in his eyes as he continued, "I just liked that thought."
"What thought," Carol asked, mildly confused.
"That shirt...off your back," Ed said in a sexy voice.
"Oh," Carol said, finally pushing off the doorframe and standing upright. She took a step forward and looked at Ed. He just continued to look at her over his shoulder.
She took another step forward, her right hand moving to the highest buttoned button. "This shirt? Off my back?" she asked, her voice playful.
"Mm-hm," Ed replied. His eyes never left her face.
Carol took another step closer to Ed, her right hand undid the first button. As she took another step closer, her right hand moved to the lower most button. She undid that one.
Ed turned around and leaned against the sink, his right hand still clutching the spray hose he had been using to rinse off a dish.
"Carol, what are you doing?" Ed asked. Not that he minded what she was doing .... not at all!
Carol stared seductively back at him, and placed her hand on the next button of her shirt "Is it hot in here? Or is it just me?"
Ed, still clutching the spray hose, turned around and leaned against the sink. "No," his voice squeaked, "it's, uh.... definitely hot in here."
Carol continued to walk closer to Ed, repeating the process. A small step forward. Place her hand on a button. Another small step forward. Undo a button.
Ed was so enrapt with Carol's actions that he wasn't aware of his hand beginning to tighten on the sprayer.
Carol took another small step forward, now about three feet from Ed. As she started to take another small step forward, she placed her hand gently against his chest
"Perhaps ... there's something *we* could do about that?" she said suggestively.
Ed's voice left him at that moment.
Then a spray of cold water hit Carol square in the face as Ed - who had been so concentrated on what Carol was suggesting - accidentally squeezed the spray hose trigger.
Carol gasped and stepped backwards. Ed released his grip on the sprayer. She was soaked. She glared at him.
"Ooops!" Ed said innocently, barely containing his amusement as a water- logged Carol pushed the wet hair back from around her face. "Carol, I'm sorry ... I didn't mean to ... it's just that I got distracted and ... when you started .... and I .... I'm sorry."
Carol continued glaring. Then when she was sure that Ed wasn't ready made a grab for the sprayer herself. "Oh we'll just see about that, Mr. Stevens!" she cried and with a playful grin soaked him from head to toe with the hose.
Ed responded by lunging quickly towards her – attempting to wrestle the sprayer away from her. Carol resisted but knew it was a losing proposition - he was just so much stronger then she was. Ed got the hose away from her, but she wrapped both hands around his right hand and squeezed. Fortunately, the nozzle was pointed at Ed at that moment and he got another face full of water.
Ed loosened his grip on the spray hose in surprise. Carol took advantage and yanked it from his hand. Ed tried to dodge out of the way, but he was too close and she easily managed to soak him from head to toe again. He grabbed one of the plates to use a shield against further attacks. Carol realized she'd lost the advantage and let go of the spray hose and took off. She started to bolt from the kitchen and got about a second's head start on Ed, who suddenly lurched after her. He would have caught her almost immediately, but he tripped on the spray hose.
By the time he untangled himself, Carol was out of the kitchen and heading for the stairs. Ed resumed the chase, barreling out of the kitchen and down the hallway. He almost caught her again as she made the turn for the stairway, but some of the water had run down his jeans and legs and made his feet wet. He skidded on the hardwood floor.
Carol made it up the stairs and into the bedroom and stopped. She turned around just as Ed made it into the bedroom. He playfully tackled her onto the bed, pinning her arms to her sides.
Carol looked up into Ed's big blue eyes and let herself get lost in them all over again. Ed looked down at her and thought, 'She's done it again – gone and taken my breath away.' Ed leaned down to kiss Carol passionately as, with his left leg, he gently kicked the bedroom door closed behind them ....