It was still dark out when I woke up. Sherry was asleep next to me. I lay there looking up at the ceiling dreading my meeting with Sherry’s father. The thought of getting fired pounded at me. I wanted to keep my apprenticeship and I didn’t want to leave Sherry. What would I do if he said, “You’re fired! I warned you to stay away from my daughter.” The thought terrified me.

I decided to get up, go to the farm and do the morning chores. The only thing John knew was that I saw Sherry on the road and helped her get her car to the garage. I got dressed then sat on the bed, looking down at her sleeping so peacefully. I gently touched her hair, then her cheeks, admiring how beautiful she was. I touched her shoulder to wake her and tell her my plan.

She looked up at me then closed her eyes. “How come you’re up?” she mumbled, keeping her eyes closed.

“I’m going back to the farm to do the chores and hope your dad thinks I was in my cabin all night.”

“Cool idea, I’ll see you later,” she said, then lifted her head from the pillow, opened her eyes and looked up at me, “Don’t let him fire you. Be strong and stand up for yourself,” she said, giving my hand a squeeze then plopped her head back down on the pillow and closed her eyes.

It was still dark and I was certain that John would not see me drive my truck down to my cabin. I noticed the sun just coming up over the trees in the pasture. Sunday was a day off on the farm, but the chores still had to get done. The cow had to be milked, the pigs and chickens fed, the sheep let out of the barn so they could get to the pasture, shoveling manure and wheeling it to the compost pile. The whole routine took a little under an hour. I looked at my alarm clock then went to the window to see if there were any lights on in the house.

I knew Sherry was getting picked up at the motel by Jenny around nine and assumed she would come straight to the farm. My only worry was that John might have gone into town and saw my truck parked outside the Riverside Motel. I don’t know what I’d say if he happened to see my truck there. I shook that thought away as an unlikely scenario. Why would John be going to town on a Saturday night?

While I walked up to the barn to do the chores, I saw the light go on in the kitchen. The milk bucket was on the porch at the house. I grabbed it on the way to the barn. Chelsea, the cow was in the pasture and I saw her walking down the path from the pasture. I always milked at the same time each morning so her biological clock knew. It was uncanny how she and I arrived at the barn at the same time. She just waddled into her stall, while I poured grain into her hopper. I got my stool and leaned against the cow’s warm body and started milking. When I finished, there were four barn cats sitting in a row by the empty bowl waiting for me to pour some milk for them.

When I got up to the kitchen, Mary was sitting at the table with a cup of coffee. I put the milk on the counter, got the filter, a one gallon jar and poured the milk though the filter. While pouring, I noticed Mary had the flour out, a big mixing bowl and was getting ready to make bread.

“Have a nice night in town?” she asked.

“It was okay, nothing special,” I answered, wondering why she asked and hoped she wasn’t suspicious.

“I heard you helped Sherry when her car broke down,” she said.

“Yes. I just happened to be driving by when I saw her. I had a chain and hitched her Saab to my truck and pulled it to the garage in town.” I didn’t like lying but didn’t know what else to say.

“John’s pretty upset.”

“He shouldn’t be. I didn’t plan to be with Sherry. I just saw her car broken down. I couldn’t just keep going and not stop to help.”

“John’s suspicious about anyone that comes near Sherry--especially apprentices.”

Mary went to the stove and poured herself another cup of coffee then looked at me. “Pete, you’re one of the best apprentices we’ve had in years and we’d hate to lose you, but John is a man of his word and he can be pretty stubborn.”

“I don’t want to get fired. I love working here and I’m learning so much.”

“That’s good, but John’s very protective of Sherry. We homeschooled her and John has ideas about what he wants for her. She’s very precious to him, actually to us, but he sees her as someone special.”

“I see. Yes, she’s pretty smart and talented, but I don’t understand what he thinks I’m going to do to her if we’re friends.” It felt strange saying that while remembering what a wild time we had fucking each other.

“John worries about Sherry,” Mary said as she picked up the mixing bowl and moved it closer to the sink. “Well, I better get this bread started.”

“I love to bake,” I said. “In fact, I know how to make bagels.”

“You do,” Mary said. “I’ve always wanted to learn. John loves bagels, but we hardly ever buy them because we make our own bread.”

“I worked as a baker when I was in college. We made great bagels everyday. If you want, I’ll show you how. We can make bagels and surprise John.”

“Okay, let’s do it. I really want to learn. This is exciting.”

I could see from her reaction, how much she and Sherry were alike.

“We have to boil water in that big pot,” I said pointing to her canning kettle. “Making bagels is pretty easy, but they get boiled in sugar water before they get baked. These are whole wheat and honey bagels. I know the recipe like the back of my hand, but we’ll have to adjust for a smaller amount than we made at the bakery.”

We got started. Mary was a good baker and it was easy to get the dough mixed and let it rise. I then showed her how to roll and shape the bagels. Then we put them in the boiling water until they doubled in size, then onto a baking sheet and into the oven.

“There’s nothing like the smell of fresh bread baking,” I said.

“John is going to be impressed when he sees these bagels. Thanks for showing me.”

We were just taking the bagels out of the oven when John came down the stairs and into the kitchen. It was a little after eight. I had on a white apron that Mary lent me and was spilling the golden brown bagels from the baking sheets into a big wooden bowl.

John walked over surprised to see what we were doing. “Bagels,” John said. “They look great.”

“Pete just taught me how to make them,” Mary said. “Don’t they smell delicious?”

“So you’re a baker,” John said, lowering his nose to the bowl of bagels then stood up and looked at me. “We’ve got to talk,” he said. “I know you were with Sherry last night.”

“You’re right. I was heading into town and saw her car broken down so I helped her.” I was disappointed that the bagels didn’t get his mind off of his concern about me and Sherry.

“That’s not all you, did, Pete.” John said, his eyes narrowing, his smile gone.

“What do you mean?”

“I drove into town after I talked to Sherry and saw your truck.”

“You did. Where did you see it?”

I was sure he was going to say he saw it at the Riverside Motel, then I decided to tell him, “Sherry and I had dinner at the Bangkok after we dropped off the car. She wanted to treat me to dinner for helping her.”

“And then what?” he asked.

“Nothing, that’s it,” I lied. “Her friend, Jenny came and got her.”

I don’t believe you, Pete,” he said.

“You don’t.”

“I know something is going on with you two and I don’t like it.”

Mary was listening, but then she sliced a bagel and spread butter on it. She took a bite, “Wow, this is the best bagel I’ve ever had.” She handed John the other half, “You’ve got to taste this bagel.”

John took a bite and stopped talking while he chewed, looking at it then at me.

I don’t know where I got the courage to say what I did, but I decided I had nothing to lose. While he was chewing, I took my apron off and threw it over the chair. “I have to say something to you, John, so please hear me out.” I cleared my throat. “I know you don’t want me hanging around Sherry and I’m not sure what the problem is, but I don’t want to leave the farm. I love being an apprentice and learning from you.”

John looked at me surprised.

“I don’t want to be lumped in with all apprentices. That’s not fair. I want to have my own farm and homestead one day and I know you want to protect Sherry, but you’ll never find as dedicated an apprentice as me. You would be making a huge mistake, if you fired me.”

“Really,” John said, holding the bagel away from his mouth and listened.

“Yes, I’m serious about farming and I’m a hard worker and now I want you to tell me what you’re so worried about? What do you think I’m going to do to Sherry that worries you? I want to know why I should stay away from her.”

Mary looked at me with her mouth wide open. John looked stunned by my questions, his eyes widening. . I don’t think he had ever been challenged like this before and I could not believe the words pouring out of my mouth.

John looked at Mary then at me then at the bagel, an inch from his mouth. While I was waiting for him to respond, I heard a loud engine outside and turned to see who was coming. I saw a motorcycle drive up to the house and saw it was Sherry sitting in back of a girl wearing a black leather jacket and tight black jeans. Sherry took off her helmet and then the two girls hugged each other. Mary went out on the porch and waved. “Hi Jenny, come on in and get a fresh bagel we just made.”

“I only have a minute,” Jenny yelled back and the two girls walked up to the house.

John still hadn’t spoken. I turned to him, “Sorry, if I sound disrespectful, but I think you are being unreasonable. I don’t want to give up this opportunity to learn from you because you’re worried about me and Sherry.”

Sherry and Jenny came in to the kitchen and it was obvious John was upset with me. Sherry’s eyes met mine then quickly darted away. Jenny was taller than Sherry and had black curly hair that went down past her shoulders. She looked tough and sexy in her black leather jacket, tight black jeans and boots. Sherry had on the flowery sun dress she wore to the restaurant. Both girls then went over to the bowl of bagels. “Wow, these bagels look beautiful,” Sherry said.

“Pete and I just made them,” Mary said. “He’s an expert bagel maker,” she added.

“Marry me,” Jenny said, smiling at me and picked up one of the bagels. “By the way, I’m Jenny.”

“Hi,” I said. “Maybe you should eat one first before you talk about marriage.”

“Did we interrupt something?” Sherry asked. “It looks pretty serious in here.”

“Pete thinks I’d be making a mistake to fire him even though he’s been ignoring my rule about you,” John said.

“Dad, you can’t fire Pete. He was helping me with my car,” Sherry said.

“You also had dinner at the Bangkok,” John said. “And I wouldn’t be surprised if he did more.”

“DAD!” Sherry shouted. “What do you think he did? Why are you being such a jerk? You’re being ridiculous.”

I couldn’t believe Sherry was calling her father a jerk.

“Wait a minute,” Jenny interrupted. “Sherry was with me,” she said and unzipped her black leather jacket. I could see a tight black polo shirt and no bra. “I picked Sherry up at the Bangkok and Pete had already left.”

I hated how Jenny was now getting caught up in our lie. This whole story was getting out of hand.

“These beautiful bagels are going to waste,” Mary said. “John, why don’t you lighten up,” Mary continued. “And Pete’s right, we’ll never find an apprentice like him. You’re letting your fear that someone is going to ruin Sherry blind you to the reality, so lighten up. You can’t control her life.”

“I won’t lighten up,” John said. “I know what I’m doing.”

I couldn’t stand the way this conversation was going so I finally yelled, “Stop! This is nuts.”

Everyone looked at me, stunned. I took a breath and looked at everyone’s eyes staring at me. “I can’t stand this lying.” I turned to John. “You can fire me if you want. I can’t stop you, but I want you to know that I think Sherry is the most fantastic person I’ve ever met. I’ve only known her for a few days, but I will not sneak around to be with her because you think I’m not good enough for her.”

John just looked at me, then at Sherry and Mary. Suddenly, Sherry came over to me and threw her arms around my neck. She kissed me then turned to her father. “You can’t make me be in your movie,” she said then looked at me.

“What?” John said, shocked at what she said. “Sherry, I’m not doing that. What are you talking about?”

“Yes, you are, Dad. You think you’re protecting me from your apprentices, but all you’re doing is making me sneak around and I hate doing that. Pete’s right, your stupid rule is making all of us lie and sneak.” Sherry took a breath. “I’m not your ‘jewel,' Dad. Give up that idea and it will make things much better”

John sat down heavily on the chair. He shook his head and looked up at Mary. Jenny came over to Sherry and gave her a hug. “I’ve got to go, but call me later. I love you.”

I was standing next to Sherry. Jenny shook my hand and then gave me an embrace. “Thanks for speaking up,” she whispered. “I hope you get to stay. Sherry told me all about you.”

Mary took a few bagels and put them in a bag then handed them to Jenny.

“Great, thanks,” Jenny said, slipping them into her jacket pocket then ran down to her motorcycle.

Sherry was still holding my hand and looked at me then back at her John. “Dad, Pete’s not like the other apprentices. I mean, he’s different. I’ve already learned so much from him like how wrong it is to put someone in your movie and that’s what you’re doing.”

“No I’m not,” John said.

“Yes, you are,” Sherry said.  “You have my whole life planned out for me. You want me to come back here and work on the farm. You don’t listen when I say I want to join the Peace Corp and travel to Third World Countries.”

I hadn’t heard Sherry talk about the Peace Corp and traveling. I was surprised because that was something I had thought about doing sometime.

“Peace Corp?” John asked. “That’s the first I heard of that idea.”

“No it isn’t. You just don’t listen. I’ve talked about that before,” Sherry said and noticed she was starting to cry, her voice trembling, her eyes tearing. “Dad, I love you so much. You taught me so much while I was growing up, but you’ve got to let go.” She wiped a tear away with her knuckle.

I wanted to put my arms around Sherry and just hold her. It hurt to see her cry, but I was admiring her honesty and clarity.

“But,” John said.

“There’s no ‘buts!” Sherry interrupted, shaking her head. “There are no God damn buts,” Sherry shouted then turned to Mary, “Mom, you know my plans. Dad didn’t even want me to go to college, now he doesn’t know about the Peace Corp and now he wants to fire Pete. Talk some sense into him, Mom. You know what I’m talking about.”

Mary went over to John and put her hand on his shoulder. “Sherry’s right, you’ve got to let go and trust her,” she said. “We know you want to build a house for her on the other side of the farm and let her take over the farm, but that’s your plan. It has to be her plan, something she wants not something you want.”

John stood up and looked at me and then at Sherry. “Sherry, I’m sorry you think I don’t listen to you, but I just want what’s best for you.”

“Dad, you’re not hearing me or Mom.” Sherry was crying. “I can’t stand this. I’ve got to get out of here,” she shouted and dashed out of the kitchen, slamming the screen door. She started running.

“Come back,” John said, moving to the door, but she kept running.

I wanted to run after her, but turned to John. “Are you going to fire me?” I asked. “Cause if you are, tell me now and I’ll be gone by noon.”

John looked at me then at Mary, running his fingers through his hair then sat back down on the chair, shaking his head from side to side. “No, Pete. I’m not going to fire you. I’ve got to think about what just happened.”

“Thank you, John,” I said. “I’m really sorry I’m putting you through this, but…”

Mary interrupted me, “Pete, you’re not putting him through this. John’s putting himself through this mess because of his worrying about Sherry and his plans for Sherry. It’s not your fault.”

“Thanks, “I said to Mary then turned to John. “I’m going now. I’ll see you later.”

“Come on up for dinner at six Pete and thanks for the bagels,” Mary said.

I walked back to my cabin wondering where Sherry was. I wanted to tell her I wasn’t getting fired. When I walked in my cabin, I was so glad to see her sitting in the chair but could see she was still upset.

“Your dad is not going to fire me,” I announced.

“Wow, that’s great. That’s really great,” Sherry said, leaping from the chair. “I’m so relieved. I was sure he was going to fire you,” she added. “He can be so fucking stubborn.”

She hugged me and held me tight, expressing with her strong arms and body how happy she was. I hugged her too, holding her as close to me as I could. I loved the way her tits felt against my chest, how her hair smelled as we embraced.

“I’m so happy we don’t have to sneak around,” Sherry said. “This is great news and I was really impressed how you spoke to my dad,” she added and then we kissed. I put my hands in her hair and she put her hands on the back of my head, pulling me harder against her lips, her tongue opening my mouth and we kissed passionately, our bodies expressing how happy we were that we could be together. Sherry moved her lips to my ear and whispered, “Make love to me.”

She backed away, lowering the straps of her sundress, revealing her beautiful tits. I leaned down and kissed them, feeling her hands on the back of my head pulling me to her, my mouth kissing, my tongue licking her nipple while my hand grasped her other tit, and kneaded it, loving how warm and soft they felt.

“That feels so good,” she said. “Keep doing that. I love it.”

My cock was already bulging in my jeans and Sherry reached down and started rubbing it up and down while my mouth devoured her tit.

“You’re so hard,” she said, her hand holding my cock through my jeans.

I then put my arms around her back and she did the same and we started slowly rotating our bodies, my hard cock pressed against her pussy then with both hands on her ass, I pulled her into me, grinding my cock harder against her pussy.

Sherry reached between us, unbuttoning and unzipping my jeans, pulled my cock out then coating her hand with her pussy juices grasped my cock. “Oh Pete, I love your cock. I want to play with you.”

“I love how that feels,” I said, feeling her hand moving up and down my cock. “I want to play with you, too,” I whispered into her ear, licking her earlobe then kissed her throat just above her collar bone, then went back to sucking her tit while moving my hand up her thigh, lifting her dress, placing my hand on her mound, rubbing her wet pussy with my palm, feeling her grinding harder, moaning into my ear, “Oh, Pete, that feels so good. I love how you touch me.”

Her pussy felt so wet and hot, her hand rubbing my cock, my hand rubbing her dripping pussy, “Let’s go slow,” I said. “I want this to last forever.”

I loved feeling her wet pussy, hearing her deep moaning sounds, how she rubbed my cock with her hand. “You’re so big and hard,” she whispered in my ear as we looked into each other’s eyes.

“Do you like how it feels? Tell me. Tell me you like it,” she said, moving her hand from one end of my cock to the other.

“I love it. You’re going to make me cum,” I managed to say.

“That’s what I want. I want to make you cum all over me. I want us to make love all afternoon. I want to drive you crazy.”

“I want to drive you crazy, too,” I said, inserting my middle finger in her wet pussy.

“Ohmygod. Ohh God. That feels soooo good,” she said, pushing her pussy harder against my hand and finger, “That’s it. That’s it, ohhhhh I love it! I love it!”

She was rubbing my throbbing cock harder, moving her slippery fist up and down faster causing me to thrust harder, wanting to cum so bad, “Oh, Sherry, you’re going to make me cum.”

I put another finger in her pussy, squeezing it in, moving it up and down like it was my cock. She was fucking my fingers, faster and harder, “Ahhhhh,’ she screamed. “That feels so fucking good,” I could feel her clit rubbing against my hand as my fingers went deeper, getting her even more excited, riding my fingers faster then shiver and shudder and scream, “I’m there! I’m there! Here it comes! Oh, god, don’t stop,” she screamed, letting go of my cock and fucked my fingers harder, “Ohhmygod I’m cumming. Oh, fuckkkk, I’m there,” she screamed, her whole body shaking violently.

“Wow that was intense,” she said, panting heavily then rubbing more of her cum on her hand, gripped my cock again and continued jerking me off. “Now, I want to make you cum,” she said, rubbing harder and faster. “I love playing with your cock. Come on, Pete, cum for me, give me you cum. I want your cum on my tits.”

Suddenly, she stopped rubbing, got down on her knees and started licking my cock, moving her warm tongue up and down like a lollipop from one end to the other then circled the head of my cock with her lips, licking the sensitive tip with her tongue, gripping my cock with her fist, driving me insane. I could feel my sperm boiling in my balls when she swallowed my cock, bobbing up and down as I fucked her mouth. She was giving me the most intense blow job I’ve ever had.

“I’m going to cum,” I yelled, feeling her warm mouth, the sound of her slurping, my cock swelling as I got closer and closer. Suddenly, she took my cock out of her mouth and started jerking me off with a wild intensity. My cock was in front of her as she moved her hands over my cock, squeezing it, sensing I was about to explode then place my cock between her warm soft breasts. “Fuck my tits. Fuck my tits!” she yelled, squeezing my swollen cock between the hot softness as I fucked them, “I’m cummming!” I shouted.

“Cum in my mouth!” she yelled. “Come on, give it to me! I want it in my mouth,” she said lowering her head, getting the tip of my cock just below her lips and that was it. I exploded in an overwhelming orgasm that ripped through me from my toes to my head seeing spurt after spurt go into her open mouth, white on her tongue, cum dripping out and down her chin.

“Ohhhh God, you’re amazing,” I said, holding my cock between her tits as she licked it, cleaning it with her tongue.

“That was delicious,” she said, looking up at me and licking the remains of my sperm from her lips.

I got down on my knees and hugged her. We were both breathing heavily and couldn’t speak. We fell over and lay on the floor, looking up at the ceiling, trying to catch our breath. After a minute she rolled on top of me. I could feel her wet pussy against my deflated cock. She kissed me gently, “This is just the beginning of a wild afternoon,” she laughed. “We’ve got a lot to celebrate."