"Okay. I know Eric is your youngest, but who's Julie?" Joyce Carlson, William and Martha Anderson's new friend and lover asked them.
"Julie Stovall. Eric's fiance," explained William, even as Martha tried calling him again. "She was his date for our Skulk induction ceremony."
"Oh. I thought I recognized her there, but not having any children of my own, I don't have much dealings with the high school," replied Joyce.
"Eric isn't answering," Martha said, hanging up. "It still keeps going straight to voicemail."
"They could be swimming and he just doesn't hear it right now," suggested her husband, not knowing that Eric's cellphone, along with his Halloween costume, were strewn across the Stovalls' backyard in the young lovers' haste to get to the pool last night. "Besides, it's a good walk from our street to the Stovalls. Whatever's going on near our house might not even be heard over there."
"Nate is safe with Alex, but I'd still feel better if we go check to make sure," replied Martha, putting her phone up.
"Okay. If we cut through these woods, we can save a good 10 minutes travel time, instead of taking the formal paths," suggested Joyce.
"Lead the way," said Martha.
A fox, a cat, a wolf, and a mer, thought Joyce, showing the Andersons the shortest path. Talk about a blended family. For newcomers, the Andersons have certainly taken to Moon Lake. Then again, both Martha and William are great sex partners, Joyce thought with a smile, recalling their escapades so far, both in and out of their fursonas.
MEANWHILE...
"Okay Julie. How about you get dressed while I try to find Eric something to wear from your father's things," suggested Melissa Stovall, as she hung up her cellphone. "It seems quiet outside now," she observed, since the sound of ambulances died down.* "But I'd rather wait until your father calls back and let's us know just what has been going on before you kids leave the house."
"Okay mom," replied Julie, before giving the man in her life a quick peck on the cheek.
Mrs. Stovall had already turned to head into the master bedroom, so Eric was thankful that she didn't see Julie drop her towel and give him a nude smile before closing the door to her room.
Inside the master bedroom, Eric took note of the king size waterbed and the walk in closet that his future mother-in-law entered, figuring that the other door led to the master bathroom.
Julie said her parents, being were-mers, remodeled the place before she was born. I wonder if they have their own private Jacuzzi tub like Julie says she does in her bathroom?
"Eric? Did you hear me?" Melissa Stovall ask, coming back out of the closet.
"No Melissa," Eric replied, knowing that he had her permission to use the adults' first names when they were alone.
"I asked if you were hoping I could find shorts or regular pants?"
"Whatever's available Melissa."
A couple of minutes later, she came back out with a handful of clothes.
"Here. See if any of these will fit you," Melissa Stovall suggested, before handing the clothes to Eric.
Eric started looking over what she offered, but then paused, remembering that having just come in from the pool from his overnight stay, he was only wearing a towel at the moment.
"Weres have no nudity taboos. Remember?" asked Melissa. "Besides, I've already seen you naked a few times as it is with my daughter."
With that, Eric just shrugged his shoulders, dropped the towel from around his waist, and started trying on the old clothes that no longer fit his future father-in-law.
"While we're alone, there is one thing I'd like to ask you," said Melissa, as she picked up her hair brush and started combing out her long blonde locks.
"What's that?"
"I see how you look at me sometimes. Especially when I'm in my were-mermaid form. Care to tell me why?"
Eric Anderson's face turned a bright shade of red, as he paused trying on a pair of pants. "I'm sorry if I've done something wrong or made you feel uncomfortable Melissa, but I meant no harm. It's just that sometimes when I see you, I think that's how beautiful Julie's going to be someday and I'm thankful that I have her in my life and she loves me so much."
"Really?" said Melissa, stopping in mid-brush stroke to stare at her future son-in-law as she smiled. "I'll let you in on a secret Eric, but you have to promise not to tell Julie."
Eric just nodded his head affirmatively, before Melissa spoke again. "Before the two of you got together and acknowledged, let alone declared your love for each other, you were the only thing Julie could think of. Even her school work started to suffer, going from Straight A's to A minuses and B pluses because the only reason she wanted to go each day was in hopes of catching another glimpse of you in some hallway or have the chance to sit with you at lunch."
"It was a rough time for me too," admitted Eric, "before my brain realized what my heart already knew."
"Love can be like that, and unfortunately it takes some of us longer than others to make that realization," replied Melissa, thinking once more about how—between wanting to establish a career and her own stubbornness—it took her ten years to finally concede that she loved Martin Stovall and wanted to be his were-mermaid wife for the rest of her life.
But all Eric saw at that moment was the far away look on the older woman's face and the fact that she was gingerly rubbing her stomach.
"Thinking about the possibility that you might be pregnant again?**" he carefully asked her.
"Among other things," confessed Melissa, before going back to brushing her hair.
"When will you know for sure?"
"About a month at the earliest, but it's definitely something I need to talk to Martin about. Privately," she answered.
Eric just nodded his head in agreement as he continued getting dressed.
"Oh, Eric?"
"Yes?"
"While it wasn't the proper time to bring it up, Julie was right. Maybe you should start leaving some clothes over here for your private times together," suggested Melissa. "Besides, when winter gets here, her Jacuzzi tub is like the one I share with Martin. Big enough for two," as the older woman winked at the boy with a smile on her face.
Eric felt himself start to blush in embarrassment again, but any verbal response he was going to make was lost as the Stovalls' doorbell began to ring.
BACKTRACKING A BIT...
Although in their human forms, William and Martha Anderson had no problem keeping up with Joyce Carlson.
However, each thought it would have been much quicker and easier if they could have resumed their respective fursonas before running through the woods.
Yet the Public Display Rules for Weres wouldn't allow that unless they were either at a sanctioned event or in a life threatening emergency, and even Martha couldn't justify motherly concerns as any kind of life threatening emergency.
"We're near," said Joyce, pointing to a wooden fence ahead of them. "While no were would mind another were crossing through their backyard or using their pool, within reason, we still have to honor zoning and safety ordinances, so any aquatic were who has one has to maintain a fence around their pool so no one, especially a normal, is at risk of injury. But this is the Stovall's fence," she added, leading the way around it.
Considering that neither of the Stovall's neighbors were aquatic based weres, let alone had pools, the anxious party quickly made their way through unfenced adjoining property to the front of the house.
Martha was the first to reach the Stovalls' front porch and began ringing the door bell, even as William came up to join her while Joyce, just being a concerned friend, stayed nearby.
TO BE CONTINUED...
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*In the aftermath of the police department's confrontation with Dymixious Drake in our companion Moon Lake, Tad series.
**A suspicion she's had since our recent episode "Finding Mom Worried".—tmw.