The Odd Ballerz (41 page)

“So this is the Jones I’ve heard so much about,” he said, all smiles and pulling her in for a hug.

“Where’s Candice?” Z asked, scanning the area.

“Too close to the delivery date for air travel,” Jeremy said.

“Candice is Jeremy’s wife. See the tattoo?” Z said, pointing to his brother’s chest.

“Like father like son,” Jeremy said, and yes, there was a tattoo, different from the red script that marked Tim’s chest. The word Candice, in big black lettering, with yellow roses somehow interwoven into it, completely spanned up the top half of his brother’s chest.

“Uncle Cleo and his wife are here. Roger and Nick, Ben, Wynona, and some of the cousins. Friends of Tom and Sonora they knew from their trips to Hippie Hollow back in the day showed up this afternoon with their trailers dragging along behind them. Here for your opening, yes, but Mom and Dad have been telling everyone about Memphis, so they are probably here to see you too,” he said, smiling at Memphis. “You ready to take on us Sloans?”

“I am,” she said, smiling. And she meant it; was going to do the nude thing too, her first time outside of Z’s presence, but what the hell, ride or die, ’cause she loved him.

# # #

“Don’t overthink it, Jones,” Z said, one big-ass smile on his face. The same one he’d worn when he realized that she would be without clothing this evening. “In for a penny, in for a pound,” she’d said, and he’d laughed and hugged her close.

“You are such a coach,” she said, laughing, sliding her hand into his, as they walked over to the pool together.

“Look who’s back from town. How was the scrimmage?” Tim said, standing up to greet them.

“Good,” Z said.

“Glad to see you’re joining us, Memphis,” Sonora said, smiling.

Memphis scanned the faces of the twenty or so people staring back at her. Most of them were seated in the pool, or leaning against the back of it. A few were sitting in the lounge chairs a little ways back. She smiled and returned the waves from those that greeted her, moving her eyes around to greet them all. She stopped in shock when she encountered her sister Charlotte’s big-assed grin, who from all appearances was nude along with everyone else, including her brother-in-law sitting beside her. Charlotte lifted her margarita glass in salute. Memphis laughed, shook her head in amazement. She loved her sister and brother-in-law so much at this moment. Ride or die, ’cause her family loved her, too.

“Everybody, this is Memphis,” Z said, starting in with introductions, and apparently no other explanation than that was required, Memphis thought.

“Memphis, this is my uncle Roger and his partner Nick, and you’ve met my brother already. That’s my aunt Wynona, who gave me my start, and that’s my uncle Frank…” and on and on he went, calling out names, and it was a bit before he finished. But eventually he did, and she and Z split up. Memphis slid into the pool beside her sister, while Z went over to sit beside his brother.

“Thank you,” she mouthed, meeting Charlotte’s gaze, who gave her a wink and squeezed her hand underneath the water.

“Hello, Memphis. I’m Z’s Greatuncle Bobby, his grandfather was my brother, and as the oldest member of the clan, I wish to bid you welcome,” he said. He was old, she could see, wrinkled and brown from the sun. Blue eyes twinkled, to match the full smile on his face, as he met her eyes.

“You should take this opportunity to ask us whatever you want to know about Z. He’s never been the most communicative, keeps his cards close to his vest, and that’s not an easy thing to do around us, as you can see. We’re here for his opening, yes, but also because he’s serious about you, and we wanted to be here to meet you,” he said.

She met Z’s eyes, and he smiled.

“We have found, from doing this at least thirty or so times before, that the best way to meet our family is to just dive in. What you see is what you get, and I know you have questions, so ask away. Right, guys?” he said, looking around at the others.

“Yep, ask away.”

“Why are you a nudist?” Charlotte asked, squeezing her sister’s hand.

“Good question. I can only speak for myself, but I’m gay and born in a time when that wasn’t easy to be,” Bobby said, serious now. “Being a nudist helped me not to hide.
Clothes make the man or the woman
is something we hear all the time. Get your party clothes on to become the wild person at parties, change into business wear and be the smart, intelligent person to be admired, or the athletic wear and we become the jock. But really, who are we underneath all of that is the question we have to answer for ourselves. Being a nudist allows me to be closer to that me, unadorned and honest.”

“It’s not about sex either. That’s the assumption others make about us,” Nick said, smiling at Memphis now. “Take off your clothes and it’s one big orgy. It’s not, at least for us it’s not. Family-friendly and community, without clothes, just as we entered the world.”

“Okay, people, it’s time for the fun part of our program,” Tim said, grinning at Memphis now. “In honor of you joining our clan, each of us is going to share with you our favorite Z story. It’s what we do to new members of the family, since all of us can see that’s where you two are headed.”

“I want to start,” Jeremy said, waving his hand in the air like a little kid, grinning at his brother. “Z was known for his crushes, for falling in love at the drop of a hat, at least when he was younger, early teen years. Anyway there was this one girl that he loved, and unfortunately for him, whenever she was around he’d get this big old erection,” he said, and they all laughed.

“I felt bad for him, poor dude. The girls either took off in the other direction when they saw him coming or they teased him mercilessly,” he said, chuckling at his brother and the conversation continued with other Z stories. Memphis looked over at her sister and smiled.

# # #

Saturday, early morning

The party was over somewhere around four. Charlotte and Joshua were tucked into the room next door. Others from the party had found spots on the couch, or on the floor, or even outside in sleeping bags under the night sky.

“They are interesting, your family,” she said, sitting astride his lap as he lay flat on his back in his bed, tired but not sleepy.

“I like their stories about you. The one about you with your crush is my favorite,” she said, teasing him now. He laughed. “Did you really? Every time you saw her?” she asked, recalling Jeremy’s story.

He laughed. “I really did, every time,” he said chuckling.

“Your family is so very different from mine. I feel practically Amish around them,” she said.

“I used to. We nude weed smokers, the lot of us,” he said, chuckling.

“Try not having them around for a good chunk of your life… it gives you some perspective,” she said.

“You miss them?” he asked, meeting her eyes.

“You don’t even know how much,” she said, touching her lips to his.

“You have mine now,” he said.

“I’ll take them. I like them, very much,” she said, and placed a kiss on his chest. “I also like your tattoo,” she said, touching it softly. It was the state of Tennessee, the outline, a heart in the center, or in the place where the city of Memphis would have been.

“Me too,” he said, smiling.

“I think it’s cool that you guys do this,” she said, gazing at it still. “I’m your one. You love me?”

“Yep. I love you and you are my one.”

“Wedding and all?”

“Yep.”

“When?”

“Whenever you want.”

“Soon then,” she said.

“You plan it, and I’ll show up,” he said.

“Sort of like the opening. A test run or something,” she said, smiling.

He laughed. “Thanks for becoming a naturist for a night.”

“It wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be. Ride or die, ’cause I love you too,” she said, laughing. “I wanted you to know that.”

“I did. I do.”

“Seeing body parts all the time, the novelty wears off quickly,” she said, chuckling.

“Yep, and speaking of body parts,” he said, pulling her forward, his mouth settling over hers, starting to feel a need again, “I really love yours.” He held a breast in each of his hands.

“So you say,” she said, chuckling, but getting into the spirit of things too. She rubbed her hips against the part of him, leaning forward, allowing his erection to spring up a bit, and then she settled herself on his tip, before she slowly slid backward, both of them moaning at the touch and the desire and their mutual need. She smiled down at him, this man she loved.

Tonight there had been lots of love on display and hopefully a preview of the many years ahead of them, putting each other’s needs before their own. The opening tomorrow would be perfect, and not because of anything she’d done, but because the people they loved the most in the world would be in attendance. It was good for the soul to be surrounded by love. She had learned from the best, her parents, her examples of love and commitment. Z had learned the same lessons from Tim and Sonora. Both sets of parents had demonstrated love in their very different ways. So, with or without clothes, she and Z would be just fine.

THE END

RUTHIE ROBINSON resides in Austin, TX with her family. She holds a bachelor’s degree in economics from Clark College and a master’s degree in economics from the University of Texas in Austin (Hook ’em horns!). She worked for more than a decade in the banking industry before turning her love of stories into a second career.

She may be contacted at her website—

www.ruthierobinson.com
.