Some Protection Would Be Nice

Part One, Chapter 3

Within the next two weeks, Rosemary managed to get accustomed to her new, temporary home. But God knows I was hoping that my house would eventually become her permanent home. I'm not kidding when I say it was love at first sight for me when I met her for the first time. Ever since then, I just couldn't keep her off my mind. Every time I woke up or went to bed, every time I took a shower, or cooked a meal, or went into town to run errands. I had no clue how to put an end to all the daydreaming, whether it be about her voluptuous body, her cheery personality and adorable voice, the nuances of her mannerisms, or the way she seemingly knew exactly how to dress in order to turn me on.

Oh man, don't even get me started on that. It seemed every time I laid eyes on Rosemary, she was wearing something attractive. Like the morning after she first arrived, I entered the kitchen to find her already preparing breakfast, all the while dressed in nothing but a sky blue sports bra and panties. Or the week after that, when she joined me at the pool in nothing but orange Brazilian-cut bikini bottoms and a sleeveless red polo shirt that could hardly stretch over her gut. I remember I had to wade in the pool for the entire afternoon just to conceal how aroused I was.

Part of me wondered if she was purposely doing that. Like, maybe she'd caught on to my crush on her without me realizing it, in that odd way most girls do. Or maybe she was like my mother: the type of chick who liked to show off what she had and couldn't care less if anyone was staring. Either way, it was all but driving me insane.

At the end of that two-week stretch, Rosemary and I busied ourselves at the dinner table one evening. We'd just wrapped up a meal of authentic Neapolitan pizza which we'd both customized with our choice of toppings, alongside cans of orangeade and a fresh, room-temperature salad as per Rosemary's request.

"Er... seeing how you were nice enough to cook dinner, I'd like to do the dishes tonight if that's okay with you," she said, wiping her mouth. "Where I'm from, everyone pitches in and helps out. I was raised that way for so long that I'm just not used to being waited on like this."

"If you say so," I shrugged. "I mean, I do try to avoid putting burdens on my guests."

"Oh it ain't a burden, I swear!" Rosemary reassured me.

I had no problem having someone else do the dishes for me. It was a nice change of pace from my usual routine, plus it would give me more time to check out my witness as she stood up and treaded towards the sink. Today's outfit of choice consisted of black capri-length leggings with the word "Classy" on the butt in copper sequins, and a short-sleeved, multicolored cardigan with pale hues that reminded me of sherbet. The latter could hardly reach the top of her pants and had the top three buttons undone, with nothing underneath except maybe a bra, though there was no evidence either way. Her trademark bandana and necklace were still the same as when we'd first met, as was the case with every single outfit she wore, barring her pajamas.

Let's just say it was pleasing to watch her walk around, constantly bending over and raising her arms as she worked. Repeatedly adjusting her top only for said adjustments to all be for naught just seconds later.

"Hot damn, I don't think I've eaten pizza this good since my days in New York. I remember I went to this really good place the day before I... oh yeah," Rosemary said out of the blue, a sigh escaping her lips immediately after.

"Is something wrong?" I asked.

"...I'm fine. Just talking to myself," Rosemary replied at a somewhat lower volume, a look of sadness forming on her youthful features.

"You know you can always talk to me if you have anything to get off your chest," I offered. "And I really do mean that."

"Well... I guess I might as well, so I don't have to think about it as often. I never really got the chance to vent," Rosemary sat back down after finishing the dishes. "So I know I said I was from Alabama, but I actually went up to Queens, New York for college..."