A Much Needed Vacation

Matheson made preparations to go to Williamsburg to check out the house there. He had plenty of good memories there. His father and mother would go there in the spring and they would ride the ferry from Williamsburg to Surry.

The property he found was worth quite a bit of money now as it had a wonderful view of the river. He hoped that it hadn't been vandalized. Mr. Webster, the man that watched out for the property for his father assured him that everything was fine. He checked on the property at least once a week and his father paid him well to do so. Matheson was looking forward to the trip. Both he and Val could use a break and get away from it all.

Mavis told him that most likely she would give the property back to him and Val as a wedding present provided that they would go there from time to time to spend some time together. It wasn't a hard promise to make.

After the incident with her grandmother, he could detect a sadness in VaLysia that he hadn't seen before. He knew that despite what he told her, that she was hurt by the things her father's mother had told her. She had been working so hard with her recent promotion and he didn't want to bring it back up. He knew that she needed a break also. The week together would do them both some good, but first he had to spend the first week getting the house straight.

He had talked to Mavis about their visit to Ethel Chamberlayne's house. She was emphatic that they were not to go back. Ethel was a bitter and vindictive woman. Matheson couldn't agree more. He had no desire to see her again.

He was all packed and ready to go and went by his parent's house to get the keys before he drove down. He wished that there was a way for Val to come with him, but he would make preparations for her to come the following week.

He pulled up to his parent's house and saw that they had company and used his key to enter the house. He could hear voices and walked back to the kitchen. He was surprised to see his aunt and uncle talking to his father and mother.

His Aunt Hannah who was named for the business and her twin William Jr. were fifteen years older than his father. Matheson hardly saw them growing up as it was rare that they ever visited more than twice a year. When they did see him, he felt that they both were formal and stiff. It seemed to Matheson that the two of them never approved of his parents' marriage and it was one of the few times his mother would hold her tongue for his father's sake.

They both looked up when he walked into the room. His parents were sitting at the kitchen table and his mother was looking none too happy about the visitors.

"Matheson" Hannah said coolly. "How are you?"

"I'm fine" Matheson replied looking around. "What brings you to Baltimore?"

Hannah looked at him over her wire framed glasses. She reminded Matheson of an old school teacher. Her hair was pulled back in a bun and he never remembered her smiling…ever! He was not surprised that she never married. She gave him a disapproving stare and he stared back at her with a look of boredom.

His uncle was a bit warmer. He did smile occasionally. He reminded Matheson of his father except he was older and his hair was totally white. He did marry and had two daughters and four grandchildren.

"We came to check on you." His uncle replied breaking the pause in the conversation. "I saw that picture in the paper about your engagement. I must say that we were totally taken aback."

"Well I'm going to work" Gregory was saying. He looked at his siblings. "You're welcome to stay here if you'd like. " He looked at Matheson. "Are you on your way to Virginia?"

"Yeah. I came for the keys" Matheson replied looking at his mother who was looking none too pleased with his father at the moment. The last thing she wanted was for him to desert her with the two of them there.

His father tossed the keys to him and he caught them with one hand. "Drive safely, son"

"So what's in Virginia?" Hannah asked looking at him. She crossed her arms across her chest.

"One of our properties in Virginia; I'm checking on it." He replied jingling the keys in his hand. His actions seemed to irritate Hannah so he did it again.

"Is your little girlfriend going with you?" Hannah said wrinkling up her nose at the thought.

"If you're speaking of VaLysia, the answer is no." Matheson replied. "She's working."

"So when's the big day?" William Jr. asked looking at him.

"We haven't set a date yet" Matheson replied.

"I'm sure your mother is ecstatic" Hannah replied. "She's good at throwing marriages together, you know."

Emily tapped her fingers on the counter top and didn't reply. Matheson knew that his mother was trying to hold her temper for his father's sake, but if Hannah continued, all bets would be off and the fur was sure to fly. He looked at Hannah who was giving him a challenging stare. He wasn't afraid of her! Who did she think she was fooling with?

"Why don't you just say what's on your mind" Matheson replied irritated. "Stop beating around the bush, Aunt Hannah!"

"Look" Hannah snapped. "You are the sole male heir in this family! Why in the world would you go and marry one of them? I mean really Matheson! "

"One of what?" Matheson snapped back. "She's a beautiful woman and I love her."

"I know these days it's not politically correct, but to hell with that! She's a black girl! How in the world would you think that this would be acceptable?" she replied fanning herself.

"I don't recall asking your permission and last I checked I am 31 years old, Aunt Hannah!" Matheson snapped. "My personal life has nothing to do with managing Hannah's!"

"No need to get testy" Hannah snapped back. "You are just as willful as that mother of yours, doing whatever comes to your head. That's how she wooed your father by stalking him since he was thirteen years old…disgraceful! My father went along with that madness back then and no one said a thing. However, I feel that something must be said and said now!"

"Now wait a minute!" Emily hissed angrily. 'You will not disrespect me in my own house. Do not talk about me like I'm not even here! Gregory was a grown man when we started dating! You wouldn't know since you and William Jr. were long gone! You two ran off to do your own thing while your father struggled to make your namesake work. I invested heavily in his dream and you two are now reaping the benefits of my hard earned investment!"

"You didn't invest in Hannah's for the business!" Hannah spat. "You had your eyes on my brother and for all I know you could have been carrying on with my father as well!"

"That's enough you two!" Gregory snapped. He glared at his sister. "You will respect my wife, Hannah. I don't know what your problem is-"

"God, Gregory!" Hannah said cutting him off. "When will you wake up? The reason your son is with this girl in the first place is because she's the granddaughter of your wife's housekeeper! She probably set the whole thing up just like she set my father up to get her hands on you!"

Matheson walked over to his aunt and his mother grabbed his arm stopping him.

"Don't pay her any attention, Matheson."

"What's wrong Emily? Don't you want your boy to hear the truth! You don't know whether he's Gregory's or my father's son!"

Emily gasped and quickly attempted to slap her sister-in-law but William Jr. grabbed her hand.

"Your father was my business partner, nothing more!" Emily growled. "How dare you make such a statement in front of your brother and my son?"

"Hannah, that's enough" Gregory replied. "I don't appreciate your overly vivid imagination."

"Look Aunt Hannah" Matheson said standing in front of his mother. "You need to check yourself. This is really none of your business! As for my paternity, I know who my father is. Keep your lies to yourself! My pending marriage is also my business. You don't like it, so just get over it!"

"None of my business?" Hannah replied laughing. "It's family business! The business is named after me. Of course we all will be affected by your bad choice! The business will suffer and I still have a part in that, you know! I sold most of my part to your father, but I still retain ten percent and so does your uncle!"

Matheson looked at her and gritted his teeth. His aunt reminded him of Ethel for a moment and it was then that he realized that she too was jealous! She was jealous of his mother and father's relationship!

"You need a man, Aunt Hannah" Matheson replied. "Maybe if you got some personal male attention every now and then, you wouldn't be so sour! You could put that imagination of yours into more productive ventures…like pleasing your man if there's one out there who'll have you!"

Hannah gasped, shocked at his words.

"How dare you, boy! I'm old enough to be your mother! You will not talk to me in such a guttural manner! Male attention indeed!"

Gregory began to snicker. He turned to Matheson. "Apologize to your Aunt" he said trying to maintain a straight face. "That remark was inappropriate. I'm sure that some man out there would be willing to take the task in hand."

"Maybe it was" Matheson replied "I apologize, Aunt Hannah. However, it is the truth. You need some man to clear the cobwebs from up under your skirt. "

Hannah rolled her eyes as she stared back at Matheson. Who did he think he was? She could see that she would get no help from her two brothers.

"I don't accept your half baked apology, Matheson. Has all the world gone to hell?" She looked at her brother William. "Say something, William!"

William looked at his nephew. "Are you determined to do this thing?"

"Yep."

William shrugged his shoulders. "What's there to say? The boy's mind is made up."

Hannah threw up her hands. "You are absolutely no help!"

William shrugged again.

"I'm outta here" Gregory said walking towards the door. "Hannah, I'm not responsible for what'll happen to you if you continue to antagonize Emily."

Matheson watched him walk out and turned back to his mother after he heard the door shut.

"Do you need me to stay?" he asked ignoring Hannah. "I don't want to hear that the police had to be called here after I've gone on the road."

"No son. You need to get going" Emily replied. "Your aunt and I have an understanding. We understand that we totally dislike each other. I only tolerate her because I love your father."

"I'm the only sane one in this family" Hannah replied pouring herself a cup of coffee.

"That's a matter of opinion" William Jr. replied. He walked over to Matheson and patted him on the back. "So I'm a lawyer, you know. Have you got a pre-nup?"

"That's the first productive thing you've said since we arrived here" Hannah replied.

"I don't need a pre-nup, Uncle William. " Matheson replied. "It's about love, not money."

"It's always about money." William replied.

"I don't want to hear this" Matheson said. "If it's just about money, then I'll give it to her up front. "

"You're crazy!" Hannah replied. "You probably don't even know what your portion of Hannah's is worth!"

"I'm well aware of my net worth, Aunt Hannah. "he replied patiently.

"Besides" Emily said crossing her legs. "He is the beneficiary of my entire estate, which is twice as much of what he'll get from Hannah's."

Hannah's eyes got big. "All the more reason for a pre-nup."

"You know, when you get good sex that's worth more than any amount of money" Emily replied.

"Oh good God!" Hannah snapped.

"Why your brother….you know he had to be trained when we first got married, but he was an excellent pupil" Emily continued.

"I don't want to hear this!" Hannah snapped. "Sex isn't everything, Emily. Good god!"

"He gives excellent head. He really knows how to eat a girl out, my Gregory" Emily continued. "I lost my voice the other night from all the screaming he made me do. God, I'd gladly sign over my entire estate for him to eat me and pound into me like he did the other night." She closed her eyes for a moment reliving it and Hannah stared at her with her mouth ajar.

By now William was laughing uncontrollably and Hannah had turned red as a beet. Matheson stared at his mother not believing that she was sharing so much with his aunt.

"William, does your wife give good head?" Emily asked looking at her brother in law. "You can be so stiff and stuffy at times. A good blow job will loosen you up for sure!"

Matheson stared at his mother in total disbelief and William began coughing.

"Really Emily-"

"Well does she?" Emily insisted. "Did you get a pre-nup out of her all those years ago when you married her?"

"Well, no…"

"I bet she doesn't even give you head, right?" Emily continued. "Maybe you should have gotten a pre-nup that included a provision for blow jobs…once a week. You'd be a different man, I guarantee it!"

"What has this got to do with anything?" Hannah snapped. "We should be discussing Matheson and this interracial marriage of his!"

"If you had ever had a man's tongue exploring your vagina, you'd know my point" Emily replied patiently. "Sex is always a part of everything between a man and a woman in love! You're both talking race and pre nups and all that. You're worried about money and business. All I want to know is if it is good in the bedroom. That's not everything, but it's a big part. If it's not right there, nothing in the marriage will be right!"

She turned to Matheson.

"So, is it good, Matheson?"

He stared at her a moment and didn't reply. All eyes were on him.

"Is it good, Matheson" she repeated patiently with emphasis. "Do you give it good, and do you get it just as good?"

Matheson stared at his mother and didn't say anything still trying to process everything that had been said.

"Well?" Emily repeated her voice rising. "Is the sex good or not, Matheson? Answer me!"

"Yes "he heard himself saying. "Very good."

Emily turned to William and Hannah. "There! "

"That doesn't prove anything!" William replied. "It's foolhardy to let your sex drive make all your major decisions for you. That doesn't make a marriage. Lots of people have good sex and end up divorced."

"I said that it wasn't everything, just a big part" Emily replied. "Communication is a big thing. You've got to communicate in and out of bed and you've got to be willing to compromise."

She turned to Matheson. "You understand that, don't you son."

"Yeah, Ma. I understand" he said. He couldn't believe that they were talking about sex as casually as they would talk about the weather. He never knew what his mother was going to say!

"Good. Then we're done talking about this." She pointed to her cheek and he kissed his mother dutifully as she indicated.

"Have a safe trip and call me when you get to Williamsburg" she said turning from him.

She turned back to Hannah. "You know it's still not too late for you. A good orgasm can do wonders for your temperament you know."

Matheson walked out of the house shaking his head. He didn't know what to think about his mother sometimes. He knew that she bought up the conversation about sex just to irritate his aunt. He snickered to himself. He was sure that his father wouldn't appreciate her telling his brother and sister about their sex life, but nothing seemed to surprise his father when it came to his mother.

He pulled off and began to wonder what in the world was going to happen at his wedding. Val had her own crazy relatives to deal with and when he thought about his aunt, he wondered if they would be able to get through the ceremony without a major blowup.

He had been on the highway for about an hour when Val called and he related the conversation that had occurred earlier. Her laughter was catching and he found himself laughing at his mother's antics right along with her. Val said that she couldn't wait to meet his family and he told her that he was sure that she would eat those words when the time came.

He hung up from her and then his phone went off again and he saw from the number that it was his mother calling.

"I want you to know everything is fine" Emily was saying. "I don't want you to be worried about me and Hannah."

"What is it between you and Aunt Hannah, Ma?" Matheson asked.

"Oh, I don't pay her any attention" Emily replied. "She's just jealous because of the close relationship I have with her father. That's why she makes those ugly remarks. While she was running off being a socialite, I had rolled up my sleeves and invested in Hannah's. Her father always called me his 'other daughter' and that always stuck in her craw. He doesn't even call me Emily. He calls me Daughter."

"I could see that she wasn't too happy about that little sex soliloquy you gave earlier. I thought she was going to faint for sure." Matheson replied laughing.

"Oh well I heard her say once that sex was something a woman had to tolerate. I don't know if she's ever had sex because if she had, she'd never make such a statement. Then again…maybe she had someone that didn't know what they were doing!"

"I don't want you two clawing each other's eyes out" Matheson replied.

"Tsk! No chance of that!" Emily replied laughing. "It's much more fun to use words. I think they're both going to stay at a hotel. I eluded to the fact that Gregory and I can get quite loud when we make love so they opted to stay at the Holiday Inn."

"You really know how to get what you want, don't you?" Matheson said snickering.

"Of course!" Emily replied.

Matheson hung up the phone and continued to laugh at the situation as he drove down Interstate 95.