chin. “I’m going to save it, Hadley.”
“For what?”
“For the right moment.”
He brushed the fur away. “What’s that mean?”
Lucinda covered his mouth with the muff. “Kiss it, Hadley.”
“Then what?” he asked against the fur.
Lucinda shrugged. “I guess you’ll have to wait for the right moment and find out.”
He eyed her over the snowy puff.
“Wait,” she cried, pulling the thing away from his face. “I want to see you do it.” She held the muff before him, smiling expectantly.
“You first,” he said.
Keeping her eyes on his, she drew it to her lips. The smack that followed was loud and wet. She offered it again.
Fearful it was a trick, Hadley lowered his mouth slowly to the warm white place that glistened with her kiss. Taking a deep breath, he pursed his lips and kissed the dewy spot.
###
One day, Spitbone the pigman told Hadley about a book so scandalous that his young wife burned it in the Dutch oven when she caught him reading it. Other than Lucinda, Spitbone and his wife were just about the only two readers Hadley even knew. Dracula was the name of Spitbone’s scandalous book, and the man said there was only one place in town daring enough to sell it— Pringles Second-Hands . Hadley made up his mind right then to save his money and buy a copy for Lucinda.
It took a long time. He was sixteen before he could afford the book, and the three dollars Spitbone wanted for walking into Pringles and asking for such a despicable piece of merchandise on Hadley’s behalf.
“You watch yourself with that, kid,” Spitbone warned when he handed over Dracula wrapped in brown paper. “That book’ll get you into trouble.”
Hadley didn’t tell Spitbone, but trouble was exactly what he hoped to get into when he read the book to Lucinda.
At first, she glared at it as if it was a shoe with dog poop stuck to the heel. They were sitting on the floor in the toy room, and Lucinda had been thinking they would read Ulysses . Ulysses was not even allowed in the country, she said. Lucinda had stolen it from her daddy’s desk drawer.
“A monster story?” she grumbled upon seeing Hadley’s new purchase. “Does anyone actually fornicate in this book?”
“Worse,” Hadley said. “They bite one another.”
“What’s the fun of that?”
“How about this,” he said. “You read me something from Ulysses, and I’ll read you something from my monster book, then we’ll decide which one is more fun.”
“All right,” she said. “But I’m skeptical.”
Lucinda read first, the odd, period-less sentences running into each other in a way that would have been annoying had Lucinda not pantomimed the action for him:
I’d let him see my garters the new ones and make him turn red looking at him seduce him I know what boys feel...
Hadley swallowed. Dang. He could certainly understand the appeal of garters. He just hoped Spitbone knew what he was talking about. As it was a stormy day, he reached over and tugged the curtain pull, casting the room in darkness. He switched on the flashlight he’d brought along for just this purpose, narrowed the beam on the words, and began to read . . .
I could feel the soft, shivering touch of the lips on the super sensitive skin of my throat, and the hard dents of two sharp teeth, just touching and pausing there. I closed my eyes in languorous ecstasy and waited, waited with beating heart.
When he shone the light on Lucinda’s face, she popped her monocle. “Give me that,” she said, grabbing the book. “What does it mean?”
“It means this girl with the sharp teeth is about to drink this fellow’s blood. And I think he wants her to do it.”
“Hadley,” she murmured in a shivery voice. “Where did you get this book?”
“ Pringles . Should I read another passage?”
“No!” she cried. “I might swoon if you do.”
“Really?” he asked, hopefully.
“The floorboards aren’t safe for a book like this.”
Not
“For what?”
“For the right moment.”
He brushed the fur away. “What’s that mean?”
Lucinda covered his mouth with the muff. “Kiss it, Hadley.”
“Then what?” he asked against the fur.
Lucinda shrugged. “I guess you’ll have to wait for the right moment and find out.”
He eyed her over the snowy puff.
“Wait,” she cried, pulling the thing away from his face. “I want to see you do it.” She held the muff before him, smiling expectantly.
“You first,” he said.
Keeping her eyes on his, she drew it to her lips. The smack that followed was loud and wet. She offered it again.
Fearful it was a trick, Hadley lowered his mouth slowly to the warm white place that glistened with her kiss. Taking a deep breath, he pursed his lips and kissed the dewy spot.
###
One day, Spitbone the pigman told Hadley about a book so scandalous that his young wife burned it in the Dutch oven when she caught him reading it. Other than Lucinda, Spitbone and his wife were just about the only two readers Hadley even knew. Dracula was the name of Spitbone’s scandalous book, and the man said there was only one place in town daring enough to sell it— Pringles Second-Hands . Hadley made up his mind right then to save his money and buy a copy for Lucinda.
It took a long time. He was sixteen before he could afford the book, and the three dollars Spitbone wanted for walking into Pringles and asking for such a despicable piece of merchandise on Hadley’s behalf.
“You watch yourself with that, kid,” Spitbone warned when he handed over Dracula wrapped in brown paper. “That book’ll get you into trouble.”
Hadley didn’t tell Spitbone, but trouble was exactly what he hoped to get into when he read the book to Lucinda.
At first, she glared at it as if it was a shoe with dog poop stuck to the heel. They were sitting on the floor in the toy room, and Lucinda had been thinking they would read Ulysses . Ulysses was not even allowed in the country, she said. Lucinda had stolen it from her daddy’s desk drawer.
“A monster story?” she grumbled upon seeing Hadley’s new purchase. “Does anyone actually fornicate in this book?”
“Worse,” Hadley said. “They bite one another.”
“What’s the fun of that?”
“How about this,” he said. “You read me something from Ulysses, and I’ll read you something from my monster book, then we’ll decide which one is more fun.”
“All right,” she said. “But I’m skeptical.”
Lucinda read first, the odd, period-less sentences running into each other in a way that would have been annoying had Lucinda not pantomimed the action for him:
I’d let him see my garters the new ones and make him turn red looking at him seduce him I know what boys feel...
Hadley swallowed. Dang. He could certainly understand the appeal of garters. He just hoped Spitbone knew what he was talking about. As it was a stormy day, he reached over and tugged the curtain pull, casting the room in darkness. He switched on the flashlight he’d brought along for just this purpose, narrowed the beam on the words, and began to read . . .
I could feel the soft, shivering touch of the lips on the super sensitive skin of my throat, and the hard dents of two sharp teeth, just touching and pausing there. I closed my eyes in languorous ecstasy and waited, waited with beating heart.
When he shone the light on Lucinda’s face, she popped her monocle. “Give me that,” she said, grabbing the book. “What does it mean?”
“It means this girl with the sharp teeth is about to drink this fellow’s blood. And I think he wants her to do it.”
“Hadley,” she murmured in a shivery voice. “Where did you get this book?”
“ Pringles . Should I read another passage?”
“No!” she cried. “I might swoon if you do.”
“Really?” he asked, hopefully.
“The floorboards aren’t safe for a book like this.”
Not
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