Sunday, February 26, 2023

Mrs. Kenneth James Stevens Wants A Baby by Leanne Dyck (Ch 8)

 Chapter seven: Aster's plan to become pregnant has hit a snag. Is it a small obstacle or a roadblock? Can she use her womanly wiles to get what she wants?


photo by ldyck


Chapter eight

Aster sailed back to Vancouver the next day. She sailed back alone on the first available ferry. She sailed back without seeing Kenneth James’ property. She’d seen enough of those bug-infected woods. She’d seen enough of that i—.

A couple claimed the bench directly across from Aster. They kissed and cuddled and she found it hard to pull her eyes away.

Her mind filled with Kenneth James holding her and kissing her and—. But their weekend had been cut short; their romantic weekend was ruined because... because... She knew it was because of that island. She just wasn’t cut-out for that place. And he knew that. Why had he demanded that she go there with him? Why had he demanded that she change, adjust, try to become someone she wasn’t?

She liked what she liked and there wasn’t anything wrong with that. There was nothing wrong with her. But for him, she had tried to get used to that island. She had tried. He thought she hadn’t but nothing could be further from the truth. She tried and tried and tried. It simply didn’t work. And that wasn’t her fault.

And besides... Their jobs were in Vancouver. They lived in Vancouver. That didn’t need to have anything to do with that island. He could conduct his research somewhere else—somewhere more suitable.

The young couple continued to enjoy each other. It made Aster sick. Honestly acting that way in front of everyone. Didn’t they have any sense of common decency?

***

The following year Kenneth James started building on his Mayne Island property. Every year after that he left for the island in May and returned to Vancouver in August. And Aster always found some reason not to join him. She reminded herself that it was healthy for couples to have separate interests. 


photo by ldyck


Mrs. Kenneth James Stevens Wants A Baby

Chapter nine


Do you believe that Kenneth James is making unreasonable demands on Aster? Do you think that it's healthy for couples to have separate interests? Do you believe that Aster's marriage is in trouble? And if it is, what do you think should be done to repair it? Do you believe that their marriage is worth repairing? Who's responsible for repairing it?


Sunday, February 19, 2023

Mrs. Kenneth James Stevens Wants A Baby by Leanne Dyck (Ch 7)

 Chapter sixAster has shared her desire to have a child with her husband--which seems to have caught him off guard. Will he embrace the plan? Will he embrace her? Will it get a little spicy in the hotel room? 

photo by ldyck


Chapter seven


Kenneth James talked on and on about the wonders of Mayne Island as he maneuvered the car over bendy, twisty, narrow roads—made even narrower due to corrosion.

Aster said, “Really?” and “Wonderful!” but was only pretending to listen. She was too worried. She squeezed her eyes shut, praying that the other drivers were as careful as her husband because if they weren’t—. She shoved that thought out of her mind.

She kept her eyes closed without fearing that she was missing anything. She’d seen enough trees.

The car went around a bend that was so wide that Aster had to fight against her impulse to open her eyes. The car’s tires crunched gravel. The car rocked from side to side like it was a sailboat in stormy seas. She’d had enough. “Kenneth James, what are you doing?”

“Parking the car.”

“On boulders.”

“In the parking lot. Open your eyes, we’re here.”

The bed and breakfast...? Aster feared the worse but... But. It looked... It looked welcoming. There were a few too many unpainted wooden planks for her liking but the building and yard did look well-maintained. And as she was being forced to spend the night she preferred to think it was.

She let Kenneth James tend to the luggage because she knew it made him feel useful. She allowed him to open the door because she knew it made him feel manly.

They were met at the door by a staircase.

“Kenneth James, I’m feeling tired. I’d like to take the elevator.”

“There isn’t one. Wait here. I’ll be back in a sec.” He left their luggage with her and disappeared down a corridor. Friendly, happy, welcoming voices bombed out from... Where ever Kenneth James had gone. It sounded like he was being welcomed home after a long voyage. He returned before Aster could find somewhere to sit. He returned with a key, not a card. She thought that was quaint.

Without complaint, because how would that have helped, she followed him up the too-steep stairs. He led her to a door, explaining, “This is my usual room.” He pushed the door open. “After you.”

Aster took her time inspecting the room. There were hangers in the closet. Complimentary shampoo, conditioner, soap, and toothpaste were in the bathroom. Who would use them?  Surely people carried their own. There was a shower as well as a tub. When she was imagining the weekend, she speculated that the bathroom would be located down the hall and would be shared by the rest of the guests. The thought had made her squirm and so was she relieved. The dust-free surfaces, the lint-free carpet, care had been taken. So she declared the room acquit.

She stepped out of the bathroom just in time to see her husband deposit the luggage on the—. “No, not on the bed, Kenneth James. On the floor.”

He wheeled the luggage into a corner of the room. “Ready to eat?” He led her back downstairs. The restaurant was very busy—most of the tables were occupied. Aster was surprised. She didn’t think that there were that many rooms.

They ate their supper on the deck, overlooking the ocean. Between the main course and dessert, Kenneth James told Aster, “I fell in love with a piece of property. I can’t wait to show it to you.”

“You're not thinking of—.”

“Yeah, I bought it.” She opened her mouth but he stopped her with, “I needed a place to conduct my research.”

After supper, on too full stomachs, they went back upstairs to what was usually his but had just become their room.

She knew it would only be a matter of time before he scrambled onto the bed, prompt pillows behind his back, and buried his nose in his book. She was counting on it. She slipped into the bathroom, the negligee that she’d purchased especially for the trip in a tight ball in her fist. She primed and preened, fussed and bothered—had a shower, brushed her teeth, brushed her hair, shaved her legs. She shaved her legs again—this time with her electric razor. She believed doing it twice was worth the effort. It would allow her to find the spots she’d missed. She tried to find some other way to prepare herself but failing realized that she couldn’t delay the inevitable any longer. She slipped the negligee over her head. When she looked in the mirror all she could see was gray hair, wrinkles, and cellulite. The negligee only made her look like she was trying too hard.

But a baby...? Thoughts about her plan, thoughts about how much time she had left to execute her plan, drove her out of the bathroom. She felt awkward and was sure Kenneth James would view her that way but knew she could only play with the cards she’d been dealt. So she crossed the carpet using the only sexy walk she had. “Kenneth James,” she said in what she hoped was a sultry voice. 

He lowered his book. A look of surprise was replaced by an awkward grin. He grinned. What did that mean? Was he about to laugh at her?

She decided she looked ridiculous and went back into the bathro.

He caught her hand and pulled her to the bed. “Come here, sexy." They tumbled onto the bed—which hurt a lot more now that they were older. But he’d always been a good kisser—not too much saliva.

She didn’t think old married couple sex could be so passionate. Yet it may have been precisely because they knew each other so well that the sex was so good. They knew they had enjoyed this position so possibly this one and how about this one and this one and this one and this one and... By the sound he made and by the expression on his face, she knew it was time. He began to pull out. She locked her legs around him, holding him there. She needed his sperm and was determined to get it.

“What are you doing?” He growled and she felt him go limp.


photo by ldyck


Mrs. Kenneth James Stevens Wants A Baby

Chapter eight

Aster's plan to become pregnant has hit a snag. Is it a small obstacle or a roadblock? Can she use her womanly wiles to get what she wants? Or...?

Sunday, February 12, 2023

Mrs. Kenneth James Stevens Wants A Baby by Leanne Dyck (Ch 6)

 Chapter five: So she did find him. That's a relief. He was on a bench reading about Mayne Island--an island Aster hates. Her hatred of the island begs the question, why was she on that ferry sailing toward it?

photo by ldyck


Chapter six

Aster had agreed to spend the Victoria Day long weekend on Mayne Island only for the sake of their marriage. Kenneth James had begged her to let him show it to her. “I promise, you’ll fall in love with it.”

Aster had her doubts.

She enjoyed the ballet, the symphony, fine dining. What could a remote island in the middle of the Pacific Ocean offer her? What? She feared she already knew the answer. Nothing. Yet she had agreed to go with him thinking that it would be nice to spend time alone together without any of the usual distractions—but if this was an example of how he was going to treat her. Well, she didn’t know why she had come.

With a huff, she pulled her knitting out of her purse. Some of the stitches fell off her needle and she wasn’t surprised. That was simply how this nightmare of a day was going. Thankfully, she was a skilled knitter and was easily able to collect all the fallen.

Soon, the only sound the couple made was the clicking of her needles and the periodic turning of the pages of his book.

“What the—?” Kenneth James’ comment pulled Aster’s attention away from her knitting and down to the floor. A yellow plastic dump truck had bumped into his ankles.

“Truck. Truck. Truck.” A curly blond-haired toddler ran after his toy but stopped about a foot away from the strange man.

“Well, hello, there.” Kenneth James smiled. “Is this your truck?”

“Mi-ne.”

“Here you go then." Kenneth James turned the truck around and rolled it to the boy. “Vroom.” 

“Truck. Truck. Truck.” The boy used his entire body to stop the truck and rolled it back. Back and forth the truck travelled between the man and the boy.

Thoroughly entertained by the game, Aster set her knitting on her lap.

Few men would have the patience or the aptitude to play with a child but Kenneth James did. Aster found herself fantasying that the boy was their son. She ran her hand across her knitting. She considered ripping it all out, re-casting the stitches, and knitting a baby blanket. After all, they weren’t growing any younger. If they were going to have children, they needed to start soon. What better time than this weekend.

“Daniel, what are you doing all the way over here?” A woman said, coming to collect her son. “I’m so sorry about this,” she apologized to Kenneth James.

“Not at all.” He offered the woman a smile and she returned it.

Aster waited until she was once again alone with her husband before broaching the subject. “I watched you with that little boy. You’d make an excellent father.”

“Say what now?”

“We’re not getting any younger, you know. We could start trying tonight or tomorrow morning. I can’t remember do you like it in the morning or at night?”

“It? What it?”

“You know.” Her voice fell to a whisper. “It.”

“Oh, you mean sex.”

Kenneth James don’t be vulgar.”

“Sex isn’t vulgar. Not if you’re doing it right.”

Kenneth James Stevens would you please lower your voice.”

“The movies. The TV. The Internet. Everyone screams,” With a smirk on his face, he mouthed ‘sex’, “and you want your husband to lower his voice?”

“Yes, please.”

photo by ldyck


Mrs. Kenneth James Stevens Wants A Baby

Chapter seven

And so Aster has shared her desire to have a child with her husband--which seems to have caught him off guard. Will he embrace the plan? Will they become parents? Will Aster make a good mother or...?


Sunday, February 5, 2023

Mrs. Kenneth James Stevens Wants A Baby by Leanne Dyck (Ch 5)

 Chapter four: Aster has lost her husband on the ferry? Will she ever find him again? Or is that how she ends up on-- ? (I've said--or written--too much.)


photo by ldyck


Chapter five

Children came running at and almost directly into Aster, thankfully, at the last minute they veered off. Were they wild? Did no one own them? Clearly, they weren’t being properly supervised. What if they injured themselves? What if they fell down the stairs?

“Stop running,” Aster called after them but they paid no heed. She’d tried to correct their behaviour and was the only one on the entire deck who had bothered. If something happened—. When something happened it wouldn’t be her fault. Her conscience would be clear. No guilt. That thought only lasted a second. It lasted long enough for Aster to realize that of course, she would feel guilty if or when the children got hurt. When that happened she knew she would scold herself because she hadn’t done enough. But what could she do? Only hope for the best. She decided to stick her head in the sand like the rest of the passengers.

This deck was much more populated and Aster was confident that she would find Kenneth James amongst these passengers. And sure enough, she found him on a blue vinyl bench at the front of the ferry, in front of an ocean view. How ever beautiful the view it was lost to her husband. His nose was in a book. But when was his nose not in a book? In the early years of their relationship, she’d thought it charming.

She charged up to him. “Kenneth James why didn’t you—.”

He ignored her, and just kept reading.

But others, strangers, looked at her.

Not wanting to create a scene, she abandoned the carefully prepared speech she’d planned to deliver and—.

The part of the bench he’d left for her was torn and once again she found herself face-to-face with proof of how little he thought of her. Having no choice, she joined her husband but her bottom didn’t thank her for the predicament she’d been forced to accept. Her gaze drifted from the ocean to the book her husband held in his hands.

Mayne Island and the Outer Gulf Islands: a history by Marie Elliot. Of course, he was reading about that island. He was obsessed with it.

And she? She had grown to hate it for the same reason other wives detest gulf or hockey. The island was a rival for his attention.


photo by ldyck

Mrs. Kenneth James Stevens Wants A Baby

Chapter six

So she did find him. That's a relief. He was on a bench reading about Mayne Island--an island Aster hates. Her hatred of the island begs the question, why was she on that ferry sailing toward it?