Two Guardians for Little May (26 page)

"You can squeeze as tightly as you like in this position,
Miss May," he said, spreading her simmering bottom cheeks and aiming for
her tiny hole.

Already lubed with the icy hot, plus the natural seepage of juice
from the root, her pucker easily gave way to the wide-based intruder.
"Owie!" she whimpered. "That burns!"

"It certainly does. Every time you squeeze that bottom, more
juice comes out and makes it burn again. I'm going to add one more thing,"
Layton said. "Caine! Give me your bootlace."

"Sure, why?"

"You'll see."

May begged some more, as Layton tied the long strip of cotton
around the end of the ginger root and then wrapped it around May's hip.
"There, that is not going anywhere until we want it to. Now, go clean up
your mess. The faster you finish, the sooner that comes out."

Tears dripped down May's cheeks as she hobbled into the kitchen,
her feet in a wide stance. She knew she looked ridiculous, and the ginger
burned with every step. There was no pleasure to be had either from the stiff,
irritating plug stuffed and anchored in her bottom, or the expulsion of its
juice with every involuntary muscle spasm. She grimaced as she cleaned the glob
of oatmeal from the table. Next time, she would politely refuse, that was for
sure!

"I don't wanna go home," May said, as
she hugged Sri. "I like it here. One week went by way too fast."

"We'll be back, baby. We both have work
waiting for us at home," Caine said. He hugged Sri. "Thank you so
much for everything."

"It's purely my pleasure. Do you think you
can stay out of trouble?" she whispered in Layton's ear as she hugged him.

He clapped her sharply on the rump, "Next
time we're together, you are going across my knee. Just be warned."

Sri's eyes twinkled as she winked at May,
"I'm not a'scared of you."

"Well, you should be. Thank you." He
kissed her cheek. He turned to lift May into the back seat of the small plane,
and started barking orders for Caine to board. May clung to her elephant and
waved goodbye to Sri as they started down the runway.

"Did you have fun?" Caine asked,
squeezing May's hand.

"Yeah, lots. Sort of. Not the trouble
day."

"You liked Auntie Sri, didn't you?"
Layton asked through the headphones.

"Yes, sir. She's nice. Nicer than you."
May giggled, kicking off her sandals and stretching forward to kick his thigh.
Layton captured her toes in his left hand and began to tickle her foot.

"No kicking, brat. What do you think of her
moving into the house?"

"What do you mean?" May yanked her foot
back with a frown. "No."

"Just to help Miss Clara with a new flock of
girls."

"No."

"Why not, honey?"

"It's my house. Mine! I don't want to share
my house or you with anybody. NO!"

"Calm down, May. We are going to move."

"I don't want to move. That's my
house."

"It was Pop's house. He wanted to use it to
help girls like you. Maybelle, stop your whining and listen to me," Layton
said. "We want to have a place of our own to share with you without the
eyes and ears of other people. We've already found a place."

"We are going straight there after we land.
We were going to just surprise you, but Madam Sri chewed us out and stepped on
us. She doesn't like surprises like that and thought you wouldn't either."

"Good! That is so unfair to make that
decision without me." May pouted unhappily.

"That's what she said. Of course, the fact
that this place has a huge rec-room won't make you be any less angry with us,
will it? You've always wanted one. It will have lots of toys in there to keep
you occupied."

"It will?" May's eyes widened.
'Rec-room,' typically understood to be furnished with items like a pool table,
darts, a bar and a big TV, was the public code they used for their own brand of
special 'playtime.' In this case, May knew he was referring to a shared
bedroom.

"Yes. Your room, of course, is going to be a
little different than the one at the lake house. We made sure to have it
decorated in a very special way."

"Is that supposed to make me feel
better?" May held the stuffed animal to her face.

"Give it a chance. You don't want Saber to
feel bad about leaving her home either, do you?"

"My horse is there?"

"We are having her moved as soon as you are
ready to spend some time with her. There are full, covered stables, a corral
and a training ring. Of course, if having access to your own practice area is
not wanted…" Layton teased.

"Really? My own practice yard?" May sat
up with excitement.

"That seemed to spark your interest. You
will have chores to do to earn riding time, though."

"Aww," May stuck her lip out.
"Yes, sir. I guess that's okay."

"Why don't you close your eyes and take a
little nap before we get home. You look tired," Caine said.

"I'm not tired. I'm excited."

"You're tired. Take a nap."

"Yes, Daddy." May yawned. The pilot
chuckled and announced their location, promising the 'sweet little girl' a tour
of her new home before they landed if she obeyed her papa and took a nap. May
giggled and pretended to snore.

***

"Wake up, Maybelle. Look out your window.
See that court yard?" Layton asked as the plane pitched to circle the
property.

"That's huge!" May gasped, pressing her
face to the glass. "Is that really ours?"

"It certainly is. Do you like it?"

She stared at the lush green yard surrounding the
two-story, waterfront home. A large pier stretched into the water with a
covered boathouse, and the riding ring was twice the size of the practice yard
that she had been going to.

"Which one is my room?"

"See the octagonal turret? That is the tower
for our little princess."

"I get my own tower? Wow," May
exclaimed.

"I think you two are going to have a very
happy young lady," the pilot chuckled. "I hope you appreciate what
your daddy and uncle have done for you, Miss May."

"Oh, I do!"

"It took my daughter a long time to show her
gratitude. I would have been a very happy dad, had I heard a thank you out of
her when she was your age."

Caine winked at May, who made an 'oh' with her
mouth. The pilot really thought she was a teenager.

"I always show my gratitude, don't I,
Daddy?" May winked back.

"You certainly do. No more fits about the
move?"

"No, sir. Thank you." May cuddled
against his arm. "You too, Uncle Layton."

"You're welcome, honey."

***

May fidgeted in the truck, holding both her
elephant and the stuffed bear that Layton had made her leave during their
vacation.

"Do I have my own bathroom? Is there a hot
tub? Can I have my own phone? Do I get a TV? Do I have to share a
computer?"

"Maybelle, you need to calm down, please.
You have everything you need. No, you do not get your own television and we got
you a laptop." Layton said, reaching behind to the back seat and patting
her leg.

"But Daddy is a TV hog! He never watches
anything I like."

"Are you going to start complaining before
we even get there? There might still be some workers in the house. Do you want
them to hear you get spanked?"

"No, sir," May giggled.

"Liar. You would love that. Have you ever
milked goats?"

"No. Are we getting goats?"

"We are. We're also getting a milk cow and
chickens. Layton and I plan on planting a vegetable garden that you will be in
charge of," Caine said. "We might even get a couple of steer for the
pasture and raise our own steaks. Maybe even some pigs."

"I like steak and ham."

"Me, too. You can practice your lasso work
on them."

"You really are going to make me work,
aren't you?"

"We both miss ranching and want to get back
to our roots. We were also raised with good work ethics, and now it's your
turn," Layton said.

"Your urban cowboys are going to take a step
back in time a bit and simplify life. Layton has even agreed to put away his
work after five and on the weekends," Caine added.

"No way!" May was shocked.

"And I am going to focus my practice on home
visits and consulting. I also decided to quit the hospital to be at home with
you."

"Can you afford that? Caine?" May
looked worried.

"We sold the old house and have a very
healthy inheritance from both of our parents. Pop also made some wise
investments that cover retirement."

"But the lake house…"

"It's all paid off, and there is a
maintenance fund to cover anything needed, remember? Sri is also working on
getting funding from the state. With her there to supervise, it guarantees a
funded program even more than what we could do privately, including home
schooling, counselling, group sessions, and skill training. With her
credentials, and me as an on-call physician, it's in the bag."

"That's pretty cool. It's like you are
really fairy godfathers."

"Fairy godfathers?" Layton asked.

"Auntie Sri told me a bedtime story about a
fairy godfather and his two sons. And that she was a fairy godmother who will
make all our dreams come true."

"Well, if anyone can do it, it's Sri. She
will be a formidable house mother." Caine clucked. "She will be there
full-time too, which means she can babysit you whenever we go away."

"You're not going anywhere without me,
Mister!"

"Then you'd better learn to like
fishing," Layton advised, turning down a hard-packed gravel road.

May jumped out of the truck before it had pulled
to a complete stop, and both men shouted at her as she raced first to the
water's edge, clapping her hands at the sandy beach. She zoomed around them to
the doorway and impatiently rattled the locked knob.

"Hurry up!"

"Give me a chance to get the keys out."

"Hurry!"

May skidded on the tile floor as she ran inside,
spinning around to gaze at the vaulted ceiling and loft balcony. A semi-spiral
wooden staircase was nestled to the right side of the entry way and May pounded
up the stairs, her stuffed animals hanging limply in both hands.

"May?" Layton called.

"My room! I love it!" she screeched.
"I love it!"

"I guess she loves her room," Layton
said to Caine as the two leaned against the doorway to May's room. "Do you
have something to say to me, Bro? Starting with, let's see, oh yes! Layton, you
were right!"

It was the perfect princess room, if the princess
was a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle fan. Caine sighed. "Yes, Layton, you
were right. We have a tomboy for a little girl, and she would have hated a
frilly, sparkly princess room. Happy?"

"I'll be happy watching you do my chores for
the next month. That was the bet," Layton reminded him.

"I love you!" May threw her arms around
Layton's waist and then transferred her hug to Caine. "You, two,
rock!"

"Did you see your bathroom?"

"No. Where is it?" She looked around
the room in confusion.

"You know how the mutant turtles live in a
sewer? Look around," Layton chuckled.

May squinted her eyes and looked around the room.
She went to a large round mirror located between a set of windows, and touched
the pewter-colored frame. Layton nodded, and May pulled. The hidden door opened
like a submarine hatchway, and she stepped into a stainless steel and gray
stone bathroom. The Jacuzzi tub had an alligator head faucet next to a dark
stone wall. Layton flipped on a switch, and May ahhed over the flickering amber
lights that peeked out from the walls.

"It's just like the movie," she sighed.
"Only better and no sewer stink."

"So you approve?"

"I'm amazed. This is going to be so much
fun!"

"Let's show you our room," Caine
smiled, holding his hand out to her.

May's reaction to the grand bedroom was just as
enthusiastic. It was elegant but still masculine, with red and black leather,
white tiles and a giant, custom bed with thick, heavy posts that stretched up
to the ceiling. The bathtub was large enough to fit six people and had a rain
shower nozzle hanging over the center. May elbowed them with a suggestive
smile.

"Before we engage in any play," Layton
said, "There are some more things to see. First, compliments of Sri."
He opened a wall closet with a myriad of implements stacked inside it.

"Wow," May whispered. "I don't
know if I should be excited or scared."