For the Love of Lisa

by Callie Norse

  When he returned, Lisa had two glasses of wine on the marble hearth. “I thought we could use a little something to help us relax,” she whispered softly, as she gave Greg that special look—a look he knew. Lisa was a gentle, passionate lady. The original spark between she and Greg was still there. Greg lay down beside her, and handed her a glass of wine, taking the other for himself. They sipped their wine while enjoying the glowing fire. They talked of all they had accomplished throughout the day, and how pleased they were with the house and all its features.

  When Lisa emptied her wine glass, she set it on the hearth, and lay down beside Greg. Her hair was a bit mussed, she wore no make up, and was dressed in blue jeans and a simple cotton t-shirt. To Greg, she was still the most beautiful gal in the world. He kissed her neck and nibbled on her ear, which brought a smile as she leaned over to kiss him. The first kiss, which began soft and tender, quickly set the mood. Piece by piece they removed each other’s clothing. The glow of the fire sent a flickering, golden glow across their naked bodies as they made love. This, the perfect physical joining of a couple in love, was a very important part of their marriage. Their love grew and blossomed with each day. There was never a harsh word between them. The tenderness and kindness came natural for them. They truly had a wonderful love.

  It had been a long, busy day, and it felt good to relax in each other’s arms by the warmth of the fire. They lay there for hours occasionally dozing off. Lisa suddenly awoke from a dream, to the sound of a baby crying. It had to be a dream. There was no baby in the house. “Greg,” she whispered in his ear. “I think we should go up to bed now.”

  He snuffed out the fire, rose to his feet, and helped Lisa up. He stood still for a few seconds, as if he was listening, before going toward the spiral staircase. They again admired the grand drawing room as they walked through.

  The bedroom was quite large. Boxes were piled everywhere. This bedroom had the original marble washstand with both hot and cold running water, which most of the bedrooms originally had. Lisa was pleased that this one remained, as it added to the Victorian look. Many of the Victorian touches were now gone. The beautiful hardwood floor in this master bedroom was the original floor, which they had refinished. At first they had doubts whether it could be restored to be worthwhile. They were extremely pleased with the end results. It looked almost as it must have originally, except for a slight discoloration.

  The original cast iron fireplace had been replaced with one of Italian tile mosaic, with a fireplace screen of rosewood, inset with panels of embroidered silk. The ceiling was molded plaster in the Italian style. The walls were repapered with rose damask. There were wooden cornices of burled walnut with gold inlay above the windows. Interior shutters were installed here and throughout the house, when the house was built. They appeared to be in reasonably good shape.

  Lisa had chosen a bed cover that replicated the rose damask wall covering. This room was also a favorite of hers. She removed the beautiful bed cover, and placed it on a Victorian quilt stand she had found in a local antique shop. She folded the bed covers back and slipped in between the ivory sheets, with the delicate rosewood embroidery decorating the top casing. With Greg watching her every movement, thinking how beautiful her body was, he slipped into bed beside her. He knew he was an extremely lucky guy to have found a love like he had with Lisa. Her inner beauty equally matched her outer beauty. They lay in one another’s arms and soon fell asleep, feeling ever so loved.

  Morning came all too quickly. After their morning shower, Lisa went down the back staircase to the kitchen. Passing by Maggie’s room, she noticed Maggie’s dollies were still fast asleep on the window seat. Maggie was beginning to stir. As Lisa started down the back stairs, she got a whiff of baby powder. “How can this be? It must be a psychological reaction to last nights dream,” she thought.

  As Greg approached the back stairs, he was deep in thought trying to decide which of the remaining bedrooms to use as his office. With time so limited, only two of the bedrooms had been redecorated so far. Now the plans could begin for the other four upstairs rooms. Lisa had suggested tearing out the back wall of their bedroom closet. This could open into an adjoining bath with a Jacuzzi and walk in closet. It would break the Victorian theme, but it would add some romantic charm, which was very important to both of them. Greg decided the room at the far end of the hall might best serve as his office. It was far from the other bedrooms now being used and close to the back stairs, where he could easily slip down to the kitchen or out the servants’ entry to the carriage house.

  By now, he could hear Maggie moving about in her room—more than likely, waking her babies and dressing them for the day. In the kitchen below, he could hear Lisa preparing breakfast. He stood in the center of this back room trying to decide how to decorate his office, when he heard Maggie instructing her dollies as she was leaving her bedroom to take the spiral staircase down to the kitchen, “Now eat all your breakfast, and be good little children.” She preferred to take the long way to the kitchen to get another look at the grand drawing room. She peeked into each room as she strutted through the large house, which she loved more with each passing minute. She appeared in the kitchen wearing her favorite little jeans and cute pink shirt, which she had persuaded Lisa to buy for her, saying it would be her new house shirt. On the front of the shirt, there was a large heart with a smiley face inside the heart. She had begged, “This makes me think of how our new house will make my heart happy.”

  Greg could smell the sausage from the top of the stairs. He entered the kitchen while Lisa was flipping the last pancake onto the serving platter. Maggie was placing the silverware beside each plate—there being nothing consistent about where she placed them. No place setting was identical, although each had the necessary pieces. Greg grabbed two coffee mugs and poured coffee for the two of them. Lisa poured a small glass of white milk for Maggie. Chocolate was Maggie’s choice. This, she was allowed only occasionally.

  No one was in any rush today. Greg had taken the day off to help unpack. They sat around the table in the family dining room discussing where to put what. There were many boxes to unpack yet. They now wondered how they had managed to store all these things in one small apartment. They had known it was crowded but hadn’t realized quite how much they had packed into such little space.

  After breakfast, Greg helped Lisa with the dishes. They enjoyed small conversation until Maggie wandered off to the sewing/craft room. Being alone with Lisa made Greg want to enjoy her to the fullest. He reached out to her as he put the last dish in the cupboard. He pressed his body close to hers as his lips met hers. Oh, those breasts! He hadn’t stopped admiring them in all the years since he caught his first glimpse of them in high school. Lisa felt him swell as they embraced. There was much work to be done and Maggie was near.

  Soon, Greg was back upstairs measuring for the renovations in his office, gathering ideas in his head, while Lisa went to the sewing room to check on Maggie. She was unpacking her little books and placing them on the bookshelf as she sang a little tune, “Clean up, clean up, everybody everywhere. Clean up, clean up, everybody do your share”…the Barney clean up song. She loved watching Barney when she was younger. Her interest in Barney was now fading a bit—she was outgrowing him. The tune still stuck in her head, especially today, as she happily worked to help make this their home. As Lisa listened to her sing, she began to empty a box of fabric, placing each remnant neatly into the window seat. Each one held a special memory.

  When the boxes were emptied, she stood back and studied the round braided rug she had purchased. “Just a little more to the left will be better,” she thought, as she centered it with the cast iron fireplace. Next, she placed the wooden rocker on the rug, arranging it to her liking. This reminded her of a framed picture she had once seen in a store, and now regretted not buying it. It was one of those items you never seem to forget and always wish you had purchased. She had gone back to the store later, only to find it had been sold. Th
e memory now enabled her to replicate the picture in her own home. Her sewing machine sat in the opposite corner of the room, where she could look across the room and see this replication. She smiled, “Yes, this is definitely the coziest room in the house.” She could tell that Maggie felt the same.

  Greg was falling a little short on the unpacking. He had a moderate number of tools in boxes, which he had taken to the carriage house and left there, until he could make a decision as to which room to use for his workshop. He now found himself on the back steps headed for the carriage house to look over the tack room as a possibility. He would help Lisa unpack boxes when he returned. The carriage house was set back a ways further from the house than one would like a garage to be. The uniqueness made up for that. The tack room looked to Greg as if it could make a substantial workshop. It wasn’t very large, but his tools were fairly basic and wouldn’t require much room. He checked the boxes to make sure all the tools were there. Not much could be done until the house was more unpacked.

  On the way back to the house, he saw a strange streak of light move across the lawn in front of him and disappear at the edge of the house by the servants’ entrance. This was puzzling, to say the least. Could this have been lightning? There was no storm. The sky was clear for the most part, only a few white cumulous clouds—the kind that he and Lisa loved to have fun finding faces and figures in. Maggie would giggle as they pointed out each one. The carriage house was rather dark since there were few windows. “It must be my eyes adjusting to the sunlight,” he thought.

  As he opened the door at the servant’s entrance, he could hear giggles coming from the formal dining room. Lisa and Maggie were unpacking dishes and placing them in the buffet. “Be very careful, Maggie. These were Grandma’s dishes. They are very old. They were your great grandmother’s before she passed them down to Grandma.”

  Greg gathered up the many boxes they had already unpacked and carried them outside to burn. By the looks of all the boxes, he guessed he was gone longer than he had thought. He placed the boxes in a large burning barrel, one at a time, watched them ignite and burn rapidly, and then returned to the house.

  The pantry had not yet been unpacked. Greg decided this would be a good place for him to start. It should be simple enough. There were pine cabinet doors and drawers with storage space for spices and herbs and bins for flour, meal, and sugar. He knew by now that in Lisa’s kitchen, the spices and herbs were to be stored alphabetically. He proceeded to wash out the bins. Being unsure what he should put in the meal bin, he left this for Lisa to decide.

  The small room at the end of the kitchen intrigued Greg. This contained an oak icebox, which in earlier years was supplied by the iceman through a small door, which opened from the outside. A servants’ call box was mounted on the wall beside the kitchen door. Years back, when members of the families wanted service, they would press a bell that dropped a tab into the call box to show the servants in which room the call originated. This room definitely showed the era from which it was built.

  Much time had passed by the time Greg finished investigating all the proprieties of this room. After the last spices were placed in order on the shelf, he realized the house had become silent. He first peeked into the formal dining room where he had last seen Lisa and Maggie. The room looked to be in good order, with empty boxes stacked in one corner. There was no Lisa, no Maggie. He continued toward the front of the house looking into each room. “Where could they be?” he wondered, as he stepped onto the front porch hoping to find them there. Nothing. Two baby bunnies were chasing one another through the yard. Greg didn’t notice. He was too concerned as to the whereabouts of Lisa and Maggie. He quickly mounted the spiral staircase, taking the steps two at a time. There on Maggie’s bed, they lay fast asleep with a book of Cinderella face down on Lisa’s chest. “They have worked hard this morning,” he thought to himself, as he continued down the hall thinking this was a good opportunity to get back to his office plans. He stopped in the doorway, looking over the room, picturing his furniture in various places, and trying to decide how he wanted the finished room to look. Wainscoting on the lower portion of the walls would give the room more of an office look. “This will be my room, my present day room!” He had seen some great furniture at a local office supply store. The moment he saw it, he knew his office would be an exception to Victorian. He would paint the walls a dark blue above the wainscoting. There was much pink throughout the house. This was his room, and he planned to make just that statement. Greg did a bit more measuring, and then went back downstairs to see what boxes he could attack next.

  After awhile, he heard Lisa and Maggie coming down the back stairs. Lisa was soon mustering up some lunch of left over chili. They all loved chili, so no one complained about the leftovers, especially at such a busy time.

  The wind began to howl as darkness crept in. The lights were flickering. This large old house seemed less cozy than it had earlier. They decided to gather in the parlor and forget about work for the evening. There would be plenty of time for that tomorrow.

  Greg noticed Lisa yawning. Her nap obviously had been too short. The three of them lay on the floor, in front of the fireplace, just as they had the night before. The fireplace was comforting in the storm. Maggie babbled on about this and that until the lights would flicker—each time, she drew her small body closer to Lisa. Lisa fell asleep long before Maggie. Greg again carried Maggie upstairs and put her into bed. He returned to find Lisa still fast asleep—no wine on the mantel. Greg so desired the romance they had shared the night before. He reached for a throw on the arm of the sofa, lay down beside Lisa and drew the blanket up over them. He lay there thinking how much Lisa meant to him and how much her love for him meant. They were so fortunate to have found their true love the first time around. Many couples never find it.

  Greg missed her. His desires were strong, although he wouldn’t wake her. He knew she was exhausted. The move had been more stressful for her than he had known. They would sleep there until she awoke.

  When Morning came, Greg began to get uncomfortable on the floor. He got up, leaving Lisa still sleeping soundly and went to shower and change. He then began searching for the waffle iron and the waffle/pancake mix. He soon found them and began making breakfast.

  The smell of coffee and waffles began filtering into the parlor, waking Lisa. She strolled out to the kitchen and wrapped her arms around Greg’s neck, “What a wonderful aroma to wake up to. Thank you, honey.” He drew her close. Their lips met in a kiss. As he pressed his body to hers, she felt his thickening flesh. She regretted falling asleep so quickly. “After breakfast, Maggie will be busy waking up all her dollies and feeding them breakfast,” she whispered.

  “I was thinking the same thing,” Greg winked. “Our breakfast is ready now.” They sat quietly talking, making plans for the day. One thing certainly seemed to be planned out before the first bite of waffle!

  Maggie came traipsing into the kitchen, her face bright and cheery. “Did you leave any for me?” Greg got up from the table and took a glass of orange juice out of the refrigerator and put more batter in the waffle iron. She downed the juice and helped herself to the sausage on the table. As she swallowed the last bite, Greg put a waffle on the table in front of her. She talked about the dream she had. One of her babies had been crying. She assumed the storm had scared the baby. Greg and Lisa found this quite interesting.

  They all went upstairs when Maggie was finished eating—Maggie to get out of her jammies and get dressed for the day and to tend to her babies. Lisa explained to her how she and Daddy had slept in front of the fireplace. Therefore, she needed to take a shower and change clothes.

  Greg closed the bedroom door behind them. Finally, they were alone. Desires had been rising since before breakfast. Greg’s fingers couldn’t unbutton Lisa’s blouse fast enough. Her C-cup bra fell to the floor exposing her luscious breasts. In her excitement, Lisa ripped Greg’s shirt off—a few buttons were now missing. He leaned her back onto the
bed and removed her jeans and panties. Oh, the desires… His masculine hands gently and slowly moved over her, tracing the curves of her bottom, her hips, her breasts—igniting in her a restless craving to get closer, to touch and be touched more intimately. There was little time, as Maggie would soon finish with her dollies. Greg’s belt buckle clanged as his jeans hit the hardwood floor. He lay down beside Lisa, holding her curvaceous body closely, drawing his thumbs across her nipples hardening them into tight little peaks, increasing desires. He so wished there had been more time. He wanted to enjoy everything wonderful that making love meant to them. This was not the time. He slowly entered her, watching her facial expressions, and listening to her quiet moans as her passions rose, and climaxed. He loved pleasing her.

  Maggie’s footsteps were heard coming down the hall. Lisa grabbed a robe and headed for the shower. Greg clutched the covers and pulled them up over his nude body. Lisa and Maggie met in the hallway. “I’ll be out of the shower in a minute.”

  Maggie entered their bedroom. “Daddy, what are you doing in bed?”

  “I thought I would lie here until Mommy finished with her shower. This bed feels so good.”

  “I know,” Maggie said, “you’re being lazy. My babies need me. They are a little fussy today.” She turned and left the room.

  Greg was out of bed and dressed by the time Lisa finished showering and returned to their bedroom. She approached him and put her arms around him. “Oh, my! My girl wants more,” he teased.

  “Well, it was awfully quick you know. I love having Maggie at home with us, although at times like this I wish spring break was over.” As she spoke, she drew her body closer to Greg. Oh, my! He apparently still had desires, too. It would be a long day unless Maggie napped.