Jack and that fine package was more than she was capable of until she’d snapped out of it and embarrassed herself even further while measuring his inseam. Coming face-to-face, sort of, with his erection through the fabric of his dress pants had brought her to one eye-opening conclusion.
She had been robbed. Robbed! All these years, she had foolishly believed that Owen liked the bedroom pitch black because of her physical deficiencies. He never wanted her to get a good look at how small his dick was. Owen was the first and only person she’d ever had sex with, so she’d never had anything to compare him to. No freaking wonder she’d never been able to get off with him. His tiny cock was needing both a magnifying glass and a road map to find it kind of small. All this time, she’d thought there was something wrong with her.
Oh, baby, some changes are coming!
The house cooled off overnight, and she got up early, showered, and dressed with relative comfort. It was the end of May, and the mornings were 26
a little muggy but not too hot yet. The thermometer outside read seventy-five degrees. Owen had never come home, and that was fine by her. He could sleep off his drunk somewhere else.
She checked her outfit in the mirror, hoping it would do. She was dressed traditionally for a funeral in a lightweight skirt, with a black blouse over a black camisole. She opted to go bare legged, detesting the thought of pantyhose in this heat. She slid her feet into her favorite heels.
When the time came, she locked up the house, got into her car, and drove out to Warner Ranch, which was just a little farther down the road from the Divine Creek Ranch. She parked in the row of cars lining the long driveway. She was feeling a little sad, a little tired, and slightly wilted as she walked down the drive to join other friends and family in the house.
* * * *
Jack stood with Ethan and Adam, talking in the living room, when Ethan nudged Jack and gestured toward the window with his head. Grace walked down the drive, looking like an angel of mercy come to comfort them. Each graceful stride brought her closer to him.
The long black skirt clung slightly to her legs as she walked, her sheer black blouse rippling in the breeze over the camisole underneath. She was modestly dressed, but there was just something about the way she moved and the style of the clothes she wore that set off her feminine curves. The sight made him wish for a chance to see the bare, sweet flesh that filled out that outfit so perfectly. Sometimes showing less really was more. As she came closer, Jack noticed sadness around her mouth and wanted nothing more than to kiss those soft lips and make it better. Ethan nudged him again and nodded his head at Adam, who was also staring out the window. Adam was tall, greater in height than either of them, but he seemed to stand a little taller, and his eyes took on a fierce glint as he asked, without taking his eyes off of her, “That’s Grace, isn’t it?”
A wide, knowing grin spread over Jack’s face. “Yes, that’s Grace. Come on, I’ll introduce you.”
* * * *
27
By the time Grace made it to the steps, she felt her chin wobble slightly.
On the walk up the drive, she had reminisced over many of the fun times she’d had with Rose Marie in the years she’d worked at Stigall’s. Grace had waited on her frequently, but what she loved about Rose Marie was that she would stop just to chat with her. She’d even invited her to lunch on a couple of occasions. She had been so wise but not pushy in giving advice.
Once, Rose Marie had found an outfit she thought Grace would look good in and insisted that she try it on right then. She had told the manager she wanted to see what it would look like on someone else, and Juliana had sent Grace right into the dressing room so she could model it for Mrs.
Warner. What a hoot she was. Rose Marie had bought the outfit just to cover for her lark and told Grace she