“Is she okay?” Dean asked, still sounding worried.

“Oh yeah, I think she is. She’s just going to experience some awkward moments from time to time,” I responded. “In case you hadn’t noticed, she gets embarrassed pretty easily. I just don’t want her to experience any undue uncomfortably.”

“Given the situation, I’d say that’s pretty damn normal, and not too much to ask,” he agreed.

“Given the situation, it’s a miracle that she’s here at all,” I remarked.

“Listen, I’m having a party on the 4th of July. I’d really like both of you to come. I figured I’d bounce it off you first, and, you know, test the waters, in a manner of speaking,” Dean asked.

“Well, I’m going to leave that up to her. Now, I have no idea if she’d consider this to be an invitation to a “play-date” or just an invite to a social gathering,” I answered to clarify things. “That aspect I’ll leave up to her, as well.”

******************************************

Meanwhile, in the ladies' room:

Mallory stood in front of the mirror, thinking and fixing her makeup, even though it wasn’t really needed, trying to remain composed, with thoughts racing through her imagination.

“Well, everybody, there she is. There’s the woman who is having a casual dinner with both the men she slept with. At the same time! What am I doing?! What am I doing?! This is crazy. This isn’t me at all. So, why can’t I stop thinking about it? It's simple, I’ve just got to stop thinking about it, just put it out of my mind, but I can’t. Every time I look at Dean, I remember something else embarrassing, and I remember how much I like his “friend” too. Damn it! It’s making me wet.”

Mallory began applying new lipstick and suddenly stood straight up, placing a hand on her hip, looking at the person in the mirror. Still trying to rationalize her current state of mind.

“Well, you know, what if I were single, and just dating both of them, maybe I’d have ‘contact’ with both of them. It’s possible, right? It happens all the time. I’m just having contact with them at the same time. All four hands on me. Gosh, I love the way they take off my clothes. They’re both so different, and they both feel sooooo good. Oh crap, it’s so hot when Rick spreads me and…”

Just then, the door opened and a woman entered, startling Mallory out of her daydream. She gathered up her things and headed back to the table, as if everything was perfectly normal.

“I’ve just got to remain composed, that’s all. Nothing is going to happen. Nothing, I don’t care what my brain is telling me, nothing is going to happen. At least, not tonight.”

********************************************

Back at the table, Dean and I sat talking until we noticed Mallory crossing the restaurant floor.

“She just has a thing about her, doesn’t she?” I said quietly to Dean.

“You must be some kind of mind-reader,” he replied. “I think that’s what's called sex appeal.”

“Well, hello, Gorgeous,” I said in a sing-song voice.

“Geez, Honey, don’t say things like that.”

“If he didn’t say it, I would have,” Dean added. “Maybe not in exactly that way, but you know.”

“Alright, I get it. I’m outnumbered,” she said, blushing.

“Speaking of outnumbered,” Dean began.

“Oh My Gosh! Please don’t go there, please,” Mallory thought to herself. “I’m having a hard enough time.”

“I was wondering if you two would do me the honor of attending a 4th of July party at my home?” he asked.

“Oh!! Sure, we would. I mean, that’s okay, right, Honey?” Mallory replied impulsively and was relieved that the conversation didn’t go ‘there’.”

“Yeah, that’s fine with me,” I agreed. “We’re normally the ones to throw the party, so it might be nice to have someone else do the work, and we can just be guests.”

“Well, if you guys have other plans, you know, traditions to uphold, then it’s no big deal,”  Dean offered, giving us an out if we wanted one.

“No, no…,” Mallory said swiftly. “It would be nice to be a guest for a change.”

“Great! There’ll be all kinds of food, and there’s a huge pool and, of course, fireworks,” Dean said.

“Oh, there just may be some fireworks, okay,” Mallory thought.

“That sounds perfect,” I chimed in.

“You’ll have to remember to bring swimsuits,” he suggested. “You may want to take a swim or use the hot tub. Whatever you guys want,” he offered. “If you just so happen to have too much to drink or something, there are quite a few guest rooms too. Nobody ever uses them. So, you both would be more than welcome to stay.”

“Hmmm, I hope they have really nice, big beds in them. I’d really like one of those four-handed massages,” Mallory imagined.

“The party is going to start around 6:00, but you guys can come whenever you want. You don’t have to bring anything. That’s all taken care of,” he added. “Besides, I’d like an opportunity to show you the house.”

“Staying the night, huh? I’ll bet you’d like to ‘show us the house' just like you ‘showed us the room’ last time. Definitely not the worst idea…I think I’d really enjoy a chance to ‘see the house’…I might put on a little holiday fireworks display of my own,” Mallory thought to herself.

“Well, that sounds pretty damn good,” I said. “Are you sure we can’t bring anything?”

“Nope, just don’t forget the swimsuits,” Dean replied.

“I’ll be sure to remind him,” Mallory said, assuring Dean.

“And I won’t forget to wear the cutest, sexist underwear I have,” Mallory promised herself.

“Great, so I guess we’d better order dinner before they throw us out of here,” Dean remarked jokingly.

We ordered dinner and simply talked. No innuendo, nothing out of the ordinary, which I think served more of a purpose than might have been initially apparent.

Dean talked about his experiences growing up, which, if they were to be described in a single word, would be lonely. No siblings, a governess, boarding schools, and little, if any, family time.

He talked about being in a big hurry to marry and create the family he never experienced, and that didn’t work out as expected for any number of reasons.

Getting a little more insight into who he was/is certainly put me at ease a great deal, and placed him in a preliminary space of understanding.

Once dinner ended, he, of course, paid the check, and we left the restaurant together, standing by our car for a minute.

“Okay, now don’t forget, the 4th at around 6:00 pm,” Dean unnecessarily reminded.

“We won’t forget,” Mallory assured him. “Thanks for dinner.”

“Oh, my pleasure, don’t give it another thought,” he answered.

We all just stood there in silent awkwardness for what seemed like forever, and Dean spoke up.

“Okay, so, what do we do now?”

“What do you mean?” I asked.

“Do we have some secret handshake, hug, wave, what?” Dean questioned.

“I have no desire whatsoever to hug you, Dean. I hope you’re not too disappointed,” I replied. "But I do like the idea of a secret handshake.”

We all started to laugh, and it eased the uncertainty a bit.

I shook Dean’s hand and, upon Mallory, he bestowed a very brother-in-law type hug with the addition of a quick little squeeze of an irresistible butt cheek. It kind of startled her, but she did her best to conceal it.

“Okay, goodnight, you guys,” he said, turning and walking toward his car. “Don’t forget now…the 4th at 6:00.”

“We won’t forget,” I call out to the over-anxious FWB, shaking my head.