Roger parked the car in the driveway of the beach house as fat drops of rain came pelting down. The sun, obscured by the overcast sky and down-pouring rain, was setting and what little daylight they had was quickly being diminished. Roger noticed the other car in the driveway and was curious who it belonged to. Sitting next to him his sister Miranda was more interested in the torrent as she eyed the rain with obvious dismay.
“Maybe we should wait for it to let up some?” Miranda asked, looking to her brother.
“I don’t know about you, but I’m tired and hungry and my legs are cramped from the long drive. Who knows how long it will take for the rain to let up? I’m sorry, but I don’t want to wait.” He took Miranda’s hand in a comforting gesture, looked into her azure eyes, and smiled. “Anyway, a little water never hurt anyone, so let’s just get this over with, ok?” Miranda hesitated, but then gave her assent.
“I’ll get the bags, all you have to do is get to the house,” Roger said as he got out of the car. He quickly grabbed the two duffel bags, the one suitcase, and the bag of groceries in the back seat. Using the shoulder straps of the luggage, he managed to carry everything in one trip. He made it to the front porch as quickly as possible. Setting everything down, he then looked in his pocket for the key to the front door.
Meanwhile, Miranda was still in the car taking a couple moments to work up the nerve to brave the deluge. Finally she took a deep breath, opened the car door, quickly got out, slammed the door shut, and made a dash through the falling drops until she made it to the safety of the sheltering porch. As soon as she arrived, an intensely bright streak of lighting made a crack in the sky and not more than a second afterwards a loud boom of thunder exploded through the air so loud the vibration shook the ground and rattled their teeth.
Miranda yelped in fear and grabbed a firm hold of Roger’s arm. Roger stood silent for a few seconds, a little in awe of the power of the storm. He then turned to Miranda and gave her arm reassuring pat. He studied his sister in that moment. The humidity had added some curl to her normally straight ebon hair that beset her gorgeous face. Rainwater dripped from her damp shoulder length hair onto her pink tee shirt, the wetness on her shirt made it less opaque and allowed him to clearly see the black lace bra she wore under it and the nice shape of her small firm breasts. She probably thought she looked a mess, but she was breathtaking.
Miranda gave him a sheepish look and said, “Sorry, you know I’ve never liked thunderstorms.”
Roger smiled at her and said, “No problem; that lightning even shook me up some!” Roger stared at his sister brimming with the love he felt for her. Someday she was going to make some man incredibly happy. Not just because of her looks but for the amazing woman he knew her to be. The thought evoked a pang of emptiness inside him as he contemplated that he would never find the right woman for him. “I’m sorry I made you get out of the car, I just wanted to get inside before it was completely dark. Also, I’m curious as to who that car belongs to.” He said as he turned his head and pointed to the car with his chin.
Just then the door to the house opened and a woman stood in the doorway. She wore white shorts and a purple tank top. She was not too tall, and looked to be in her early to mid thirties. Roger thought she was a handsome woman. She had long auburn hair, hazel eyes, and full lips. She was a few pounds overweight, but the weight was distributed in good proportion, and the plumpness of her body added to an overall quality of ripeness about her. She had a voluminous bosom and clearly wasn’t wearing a bra as her nipples could easily be made out through her top. Roger, trying to be polite, managed not to stare at her breasts and focus on her face, though it was awfully difficult.
Before either he or Miranda could say anything, the woman spoke, “Oh my, I thought I heard someone out here!” Her voice had a deep seductive quality and was satiny smooth. “Please, come in before you get any wetter!”
Roger and Miranda shared a confused look, but the rain was coming down even harder and the wind was blowing, so they decided to quickly get inside. Roger grabbed the luggage and Miranda the groceries. Once inside, they set everything down in the foyer. The house looked pretty much the same as it did when they were here last year. The living room was spacious and stylishly decorated with white walls and carpeting, beige furniture, a big screen television, a grand fireplace, and large bay windows. Off of the living room was a set of double doors made of glass panels and brass knobs that led out to a broad deck and beyond that was the beach. The house had a very fresh and open feel.
To the left there was a large kitchen, pantry, and a dining room with a big glass table set in brass. To the right was a hallway that led to a game room, two regular bedrooms, and one master bedroom. Everything looked neat and tidy, but there was some evidence that the place was being occupied.
The mysterious woman handed each of them a towel. Roger and Miranda both thanked her and dried themselves off. “My name is Julie Thaliana,” she said offering a handshake to each.
“I’m Roger Sowell and this is my sister Miranda.” Roger said shaking her hand, and then Miranda did the same. Then he said, “Ummm…I am also confused. This is our beach house, at least for the next couple weeks…unless I am mistaken?”
“Oh dear, I was afraid that was who you were when I saw you.” Julie said looking a bit embarrassed. “I work for the company that owns this house and the past two weeks were my allotted time in the time share. A friend of mine at the company told me you would all be in Europe for the summer, and I thought since no one would be using it and I was having such a nice time here, I didn’t think it would hurt if I stayed.” Her cheeks turned a bright crimson.
“Our parents are vacationing in Europe,” Miranda explained, “but they told us we could come and stay here in their place.”
“I see. I am so sorry to have infringed upon your time. That was so wrong of me! I’ll pack my things and leave immediately.” She turned to go down the hallway to the master bedroom.
Miranda stared after her a moment then turned to her brother. “Roger, it’s pouring outside and the road conditions are terrible. We can’t make her leave in this!”
Roger nodded. “I don’t mind letting her stay a little while longer if you don’t.”
Miranda shook her head indicating she didn’t. “Miss Thaliana, wait!” Miranda said, meeting up with her at the door to the room. “The weather is just awful right now, we couldn’t make you leave in it. Please stay until the rain lets up.”
Julie gave her a big smile. “You two are so sweet! But I can’t impose on you, after what I’ve done.”
“Don’t worry about it. It’s no big deal, really!” Miranda assured her. “It’s not like we had any plans tonight or anything. Just stay until the weather improves.”
“Well, as long as you don’t mind, I would really appreciate that. That is very generous of you, Thank you.”
“You're welcome,” said Miranda.
“I’ll tell you what,” Julie said, “I was just about to fix dinner before you came, why don’t I make a nice home cooked meal for all us? It would be the least I could do for the kindness you showed me.”
Roger materialized out of no where. “Food?” he asked.
Julie nodded. “I make great crab cakes, and I just bought some fresh crab meat, there’s enough for all of us.”