We had lived in the same duplex for about six months. Rachel had introduced herself to me when I moved in, and I saw her to speak to a couple of times each week, usually as she picked up mail or I took trash to the curbside. We'd indulge in some harmless flirting and go our separate ways.
It was a Saturday when I saw her struggling with a large plastic bag and a wheelbarrow.
"Need a hand?" I called.
"Hey, Cliff," she said. "I'd be fine if the wheelbarrow would fit through the gate."
"That would be a problem," I said. "Let me take it."
I headed over and reached for the bag. She watched me with amusement as I attempted to lift it nonchalantly.
"Oof," I said, "what's in here?"
"If it was light, would I have needed the wheelbarrow?" she asked. "Cow manure. Seventy-five pounds."
"I had no idea..." I hoisted the bag onto my shoulders, "that manure was so heavy."
"Gee," she said, "and I thought you were the expert on bullshit."
"Ouch," I said. "That hurts more than this bag on my back."
"Just pray it doesn't split," she retorted.
I dropped the bag where Rachel indicated, beside a few dozen plastic containers of bedding plants, stood upright, and stretched. "You don't look like you're dressed for yard work," I said.
She was wearing a white cotton shirt, tied beneath her breasts, and white shorts. The knot of her shirt exposed her navel and emphasized the fullness of her breasts.
Her tanned skin was darker than her strawberry blond hair. Working outside must have been commonplace for her. "Just old clothes," she said, shrugging. "They keep me cool."
"Oh, you're cool," I agreed.
"I hope you think so after I ask you to bring in the rest."
"There's more manure?"
"One more bag, two of peat, fifty pounds. Instead of trying to be macho, just help me carry them. I can handle half a bag."
Rachel's SUV was parked in the street at the front of the house, with the remaining bags. I dragged the bag of manure out to where she could lift it, and though she staggered a little as she took hold, we had little trouble carrying it into the back yard.
As close as she was to me, and stooped slightly forward with the weight we were carrying, her open shirt was very revealing. Her wide, round breasts were not held very tightly, and I could see where the tan faded, with no sharp lines that would have been left by sunbathing. My cock tingled with the beginnings of arousal at the sight.
"What are you doing with all this?" I asked, as we ferried the last bag of peat.
"Preparing a new flower bed," she replied.
"May I help?"
"Sure, if you like," she said.
"You know I'd always help you make your bed, Rachel."
She rolled her eyes, grinning, and set me to spreading the manure and peat across the new bed, while she turned the soil with a rented rotary tiller. We worked for an hour or so, then Rachel made lemonade while I took a turn with the tiller.
After raking over the surface, she pronounced it fit for her plants, and arranged them where she wanted them planting. Some she set up against the house, in a bed we hadn't worked. None of those were flowering.
"What are these?" I asked.
"Herbs, mainly," she answered.
"This thing you have growing on the frame, I thought this was a weed. I think I have some in my yard."
"No," she said, "what you have is a weed. This is moonflower. It's related, but moonflowers have much nicer habits."
"For all the color you have in the rest of your yard, this part seems very plain. Just green, and those white flowers. Petunias." I was proud of myself for recognizing them.
She nodded. "It isn't planted for color. Perhaps you'll understand later."
"Okay." I was puzzled, but I let it drop.
Next, Rachel set me to work digging holes in the newly prepared bed with a trowel. Crouching across from me, she bent down to set the plants out. Her shirt, loosened by work, drooped so low that her breasts were fully exposed to my sight.
My eyes were riveted to the view. I lost track of what I was doing, watching her boobs quiver as she worked. I found myself imagining how it would be to cup them in my hands, how I could excite her, with my tongue on those richly textured nipples, how I'd love to see them suspended over me, her lips parted in pleasure as her hips move against mine...
I caught the movement as she looked up at me, and I lifted my eyes to hers, hoping she hadn't seen the direction of my gaze.
"I caught up with you," she said.
"Sorry, I was... thinking about something," I said.
"But obviously not about this," she said, indicating the trowel.
I returned to my task, but as she leaned forward, I continued to check out the view.
When she was through with the last plant, she stood. "C'mon, let's do the ones under the window, and we're done."
She held out her hand for me, but I was still squatting to hide my erection. I took her hand, warm and soft despite its dusting of planting mix, and levered myself up slowly, hoping she wouldn't look down, trying to hold her eyes on mine so they wouldn't drift lower.
We couldn't work across from each other at the older flower bed, so I dug where she indicated and retreated while she planted. This time my view was of her butt, shorts pulled tight by her stance, and I traced the line of her panties with my eye.
When she stood, I leaned forward and rested my hands on her bare waist. Instead of pushing me away, she leaned back against me, then crossed her arms before her, taking my hands in hers and drawing them to her stomach, against the knot in her shirt.
"What do you think?" she asked.
"Lovely," I said. "Beautiful. Magnificent."
She looked around, frowning, to find me making a show of ogling her chest, its delights now fairly modestly displayed.
"The garden's pretty good, too," I added, and she shook her head, her lips curved in amusement.
Pulling free of me, Rachel unwound the hose. "Move the tiller and the rest of the trash, and I'll water the plants in."
I set the tiller by the back gate, then made a trip to the trashcan outside the yard. As I came back in, a fine spray of water landed on me.
"You were obviously in need of a cold shower," Rachel said.
"You know I can't let that go unanswered, don't you?"
Catching her, I tried to take the hose away from her, but she squeezed the trigger on the spray head and caught me full in the face. I wrapped my hand around hers, keeping the water on as I redirected the flow. She squealed and twisted the spray back to me.
When she managed to pry my hand from around hers and stop the water, we were both soaked, cold and giggling. Rachel's wet shirt was plastered to her boobs, which shook as she laughed, dark nipples erect. My cock strained against my shorts.
Rachel dropped the hose, holding my hands tightly to prevent me reaching for it. I turned my hands around in hers, to return the grip, and her eyes held mine, merry, but glowing with more than amusement.
"I need a shower, now. A real one," she said.
"Mine's big enough to share," I offered, and what I'd thought was a humorous comment scratched in my throat as I realized I wasn't playing.
Her eyes narrowed. "No, Cliff, I don't think so." Though I hadn't expected any other response, I was disappointed. "No," she continued, "my shampoo and conditioner are in my bathroom. I like my soap." Her eyes twinkled. "Let's share mine, instead."
"I..." I began, "y-y-you..."
"You're stammering, Cliff," she observed.
I took a deep breath. "I know," I said. "I can't explain it, but when a beautiful woman invites me to share her shower, I stammer. It happens every time."
"Every time?"
"Without fail."
"What a time to be deprived of speech," she said, freeing her hands and putting them on my shoulders. "So, are you going to join me?"
I tried to reply but she silenced me with a kiss. Her lips moved against mine, and I groaned at the sudden intensity of my response.
"I'll take that as a yes," she said, breathlessly, and took my hand.
In the bathroom, she started the shower, then turned to face me. She lifted my tee shirt over my head, and I think that was when the exercise shifted for me from a shared fantasy to something so real it sent a chill down my spine. She drew me to her, and we kissed again. She touched my tongue with hers, purring in pleasure, and I slipped my hands into her shorts, stroking her ass.
Then I drew my fingers over her waist, to the wet knot in her shirt, which I pried apart with trembling fingers. Her shirt fell open, and I ran my hands up her sides, then touched her breasts, my arousal now almost painful in its intensity.
Rachel bit my tongue, then pulled my shorts and underwear down, and wrapped her hand around my cock. "Mmm," she said, squeezing.
Then she stepped back. She slowly slipped off her shirt, and I feasted my eyes on her tanned breasts and rose-colored nipples, which had swollen to my touch. Then she slid down her own shorts and underwear, revealing her pale bush. Stepping out of her shoes, she climbed into the shower, with me just a second behind her.
After soaping my hands, I reached for the smoothness of her breasts. I fondled her nipples and squeezed the firm flesh, turned on by the feel of her skin. Taking the soap from me, she lathered it all over her body, then all over mine, stopping when she reached my rock-hard shaft. That she took in both hands, running them alternately along from the base to the tip, soaping and squeezing. Her lips fastened to mine as she kept up the rapid motion, my body tensing each time she gripped me.
Suddenly I found my response rise beyond my control. I tried to relax, but the tingling in my cock was too demanding, and I moaned as I felt it tense. I tried to pull back, but she freed one hand to hook around my neck, shaking the other along my shaft, dragging me to the edge of climax and beyond, as I ejaculated, spurting on to the shower wall.
"Mmmm, that was quick," she said, pulling her head back, but still stroking my cock.
"Well, you were quite insistent," I said, breathlessly. "Now I won't be much use to you for a time."
"Oh, don't say that," she said. "I'm sure we can find something for you to do."
She kissed me briefly, then washed her hair, her breasts lifting and bouncing as she lathered. I lowered my mouth to them, and sucked her nipples.
Kneeling for better access, I tongued and sucked each breast, squeezing her ass with my hands to hold her to me. Her pussy rubbed against my stomach as I sucked.
She ran her wet hands through my hair, holding me to her, and I slid my fingers around her thighs to stroke her labia. Then, lowering myself further, I kissed her stomach, then down to her legs, finally touching my lips to the space between.
I ran my tongue over her, and inside, her warmth around me. She moaned as I kept working, her muscles tense as she supported herself with her thighs parted.
As I opened my mouth further to kiss her labia, the water running down her body filled it, and I coughed. Rachel pushed me away, and turned off the water.
"Will you do that some more when we're dry?" she asked.
"You'd better believe it," I said.
We dried each other, touching and playing. Knowing what Rachel wanted me to do turning me on so much that I felt my cock start to stir. Then she ran out of the bathroom, and bounced onto her back on her bed.
Lowering myself along her, I kissed her lips, squeezing her breasts with my palms as our tongues met. She ran her hands over my back as I kissed her neck. Then I moved down the bed, sucking her breasts. Her knees were lifted, her thighs parted against my stomach, and I ran my hands along them to squeeze her ass.
Trailing my tongue down her stomach, I could feel my erection growing. I parted her pussy and slid my tongue into her. She was wet inside; I could sense her excitement as my tongue penetrated. I sought her clit, touching against it with my lips, then pressing my nose against her as I squeezed my tongue against it, moving slowly.
As I worked on her clit, I heard Rachel's breathing change, beginning to rasp in her throat. Her thighs pressed against my head, and I squeezed her ass, lifting her to my mouth. She picked up the rhythm, lifting her pelvis to press herself to my mouth, groaning as I sucked.
For several minutes she rocked against me, her moans growing in intensity. Then, suddenly, she started panting. "Oh!" she cried, lifting her back to push herself more insistently against me. I rocked my head, the back of my tongue firmly against her clit, and she cried out and shook herself against me.
Grasping her butt, I squashed her against me, bearing down against her clit, then sucked, shaking my head quickly.
Rachel's back lifted still further as she tensed and came, gasping for breath. I lowered her back to the bed as her muscles quivered, keeping pressure against her as her cries continued.
My tongue was tiring as she relaxed, but I kept licking her clit, and was soon rewarded by Rachel's sounds of joy as she built towards another climax. I lapped my tongue against her, sending her over the edge, and she yelped in pleasure as her body responded.
Raising myself back onto the bed, I lay along her, kissing her ear. My cock was hard against her, and as I lifted up, she angled herself for me to slip inside.
The warmth that I'd felt on my tongue now enveloped me, and I moved against the exciting furnace of her passion. Our bodies slapped together as she eagerly chased another climax, relaxing against me after I felt her come. She sucked my earlobe as I felt her still quivering around me.
Pushing me away from her, she rolled me onto my back as she squatted, taking my length inside her. Then she lowered herself, her wonderful breasts brushing my chest as she rested on her elbows, her eyes caressing mine.
I stroked her breasts as she moved slowly against me, content to let the excitement build as it would. We rocked together, passion growing. I lifted my face to hers, and she met my tongue with her own, then lowered herself down, her lips wide against mine.
As I squeezed her against me, I felt her breasts pressing against my chest, recalling the exciting view in the garden, when I fantasized about doing exactly this. Rachel seemed to sense the growth of my arousal, pushing harder against me with her hips as I felt the relentless approach of orgasm.
We were both gasping as she lifted her face from mine again. I grabbed her breast and kissed it, and she squealed and thrust more strongly against me. A moment later I felt her shudder, and I sucked hard as she moaned. She froze for a moment, on the edge of her climax, but I pushed even harder, feeling the rush of my own orgasm as Rachel groaned in passion.
Pulling her breast from my mouth, she sought my lips with hers, and we kissed breathlessly as we found fulfillment in each other.
I lay back, spent, as Rachel slid off me to lie against my side.
"That was... intense," she said.
"You're an intense person."
"I'm not, really, I've just... You've seemed especially interested in me today. It turned me on."
"And you would have no idea why, of course."
She frowned. "Meaning?"
I reached over and fondled her firm, round breast. "Oh, nothing, really."
"So," I added, a few moments later, "all it took was paying attention to you?"
"Do I leap into bed with anyone who pays attention to me, you mean? No, but this was... overdue, I think."
"Worth waiting for, though."
"Worth waiting for," she agreed.
The sky was darkening as Rachel left the bed. My eyes took in her lean, lively form, firm muscles in her thighs, breasts shaking, her hips swaying as she walked over to the window. I felt desire forming anew in my stomach.
Thinking she was going to close the curtains, I was surprised when instead she opened the windows wide. The outside air was cool, and drifted over me in a refreshing wave as Rachel rejoined me on the bed.
She fitted herself around my body, her pussy pressed against my hips, left knee between my thighs, right leg on the bed, sandwiching my left leg between hers. Her left breast lay against my chest, the right pressed against my left arm as she nestled her head against my shoulder.
The intimacy of her body-length contact overcame my depletion, and my cock began slowly to expand. Rachel ran her fingers along it.
Her perfume was sweet, a scent I didn't recognize... no, it wasn't her. The air itself was scented, the slight breeze flowing in from outside.
"I think I understand about the flower bed by the window," I said.
"Figured you would."
"Is that the... moonflowers that I can smell?"
"Mainly," she said, "but the other flowers add their own flavors. Petunias especially. And the herbs. Basil is faint, unless you've just watered it, but it adds a freshness to the air."
The fragrance was a sensual heaviness to the air, adding zest to my desire for her. I lifted her fully onto me, her body in full-length contact with mine. I ran my hands down the small of her back, stroking her ass. She lay her head against my shoulder, her breasts squeezed against my chest.
"This is lovely," I said, quietly. "The scent, the fresh air, the feel of your skin... it makes me want you all the more."
"Mmm," she agreed, kissing my ear.
"When you said," I began, a thought just coming to me, "that I'd understand later, about the flower bed, did you know we'd be doing this?"
"I figured you wanted me as much as I wanted you," she breathed into my ear. "So yes, I thought it was likely."
She sucked my earlobe, then lifted her face to mine, and as we kissed I felt my erection stretching against her pussy. She lifted her hips, and I pushed myself into her, moist heat around my cock.
We lay together, barely moving, as I became harder inside her. In a slow, slow rhythm, I squeezed my hips against hers, pushing me deep inside her, then relaxed. For many minutes we moved like this, until I felt her sex tighten around me each time I pressed against her. I squeezed her ass with each movement.
Rachel released my lips, lowering her head back to my shoulder, kissing my earlobe, her breathing heavy. "Oh, God," she whispered. "Oh, God, this is incredible."
Now she seemed to shudder with each stroke, bearing down hard on me. Still, I sensed that she hadn't come, and was hovering right on the edge. She gasped each time our bodies pushed together.
"Ohhhh!" she moaned suddenly. "Oh, God, it's... happening." She pressed down against me, not relaxing this time, and I felt the tension against my thighs and around my cock.
"OHHHH!" Her body started to shake, her sex spasming about my cock. I released her ass, grabbing her breasts, squeezing and lifting her to get my mouth on her nipple.
"Oh!" she said as I sucked, "Oh, Cliff. Keep doing that. It feels so good."
"They sure do," I whispered, then moved to her other breast.
She collapsed against me, still quivering in orgasm, her thighs still moving sporadically against mine. We kissed, her tongue pressing against mine.
Eventually she lifted herself off me to lie on her stomach on the bed. "Come on," she said, with an upward shake of her head, lay down on top of her, my cock hard against her.
Lifting her hips, she reached slid a hand under her stomach and back, finding my shaft. I felt her rub me between her labia, then I slid into the warmth of her sex, and she sighed as she withdrew her hand and lowered herself.
Her arms were stretched out and forward, and I ran my hands along them to her wrists, pinning her against the bed, as she turned her face back to me, lips parted. Joining my mouth to hers, I began to rock my hips, sliding further into her, and she sighed.
After a time she began to pant. I wouldn't release her lips, and she grunted into my mouth, then started shaking her ass against my stomach. Then with a "Mmmmm! MMMMM!" against me she shuddered and came, her breath labored and her body shivering.
Her excitement was infectious. I was becoming unbelievably aroused. I moved my hands back to her shoulders to press myself more powerfully into her, breaking away from her lips to kiss her neck as she lifted her butt into my stomach, gasping.
Rachel groaned as I rammed into her. Her eyes were closed, the shin sheen of moisture on her face visible even in the dark of late evening. "Nggg!" she groaned. "Oh! God. I think you.. Oh! You... found it. Mmmgh!" she cried out as we picked up the pace.
Her ass was gyrating wildly, her legs squeezing as we pushed against each other, and I knew I was ready to come with her. I released her shoulders, setting my elbows beside her stomach. Roughly I forced my hands under her breasts, and squeezed them hard.
"Oh, God," she called out. "Oh, God, Cliff. Yes!" I squeezed her even harder between my hands and my hips. My own need overwhelmed me, and my cock tensed in spasm even as she shrieked, her body going rigid.
I came explosively within her, dimly aware of Rachel's cries as we connected at a level beyond words, beyond pleasure, beyond passion.
I still associate the sweet smell of moonflowers with Rachel's naked body in the evening, and with making love. And when it's raining hard and I know we won't be able to open the window, I stop by the grocery to buy her flowers. Freesias, when I can.
They haven't failed us yet.