Never Love A Stranger Part 3

On the other end of the line Annie heard a shriek of delight. Oh, no, here it comes, she thought as Kay whooped happily.

"You've got a man over there!"

"Sort of," Annie said.

"Sort of' What does that mean'"

"It means it's not what you think. Nothing is going on."

"He's over there at nine in the morning, but nothing is going on' You expect me to believe that' Annie,

how stupid do you think I am'"

Annie sighed. "He's a...." She paused. "A friend. That's all."

"Sounds like he's got one h.e.l.l of a s.e.xy voice."

"Yeah, well, I'll introduce you when you get back, okay'"

"I'll be looking forward to it. But now I've really got to get going. Clark needs to eat before we go to

the airport." Clark was Kay's four-month-old son. "You've got the keys to my place, right'" "Right. Don't worry, Kay. I'll take good care of Oscar." "Great. I'll see you on Tuesday." Annie hung up the phone. James touched it with a tentative finger. "Who were you speaking to'" "My friend Kay. She's the doctor I told you about. She's taking a short vacation, but she'll be back on Tuesday. Until then, you can stay here, but then I really want you to see her. Okay'" James picked up the telephone and held it to his ear. She grabbed it away from him. "What the h.e.l.l are you doing'" He blinked at her. "I wanted to know how it works." "The telephone' Are you kidding'" "I have never seen one before," he said, stressing each word slightly, as if repeating obvious information for the benefit of a child. Annie hung the phone back on its hook and decided not to argue with him right now. It was obvious her words were bouncing right off him anyway. "I think I'll go over to the mall and get you some clothes.

What do you think you need'" He shrugged. "I need to blend in." "I don't think you'll ever do that, James." She looked at him thoughtfully. "I wonder what size you are." "I have no idea." "I suppose I could measure you," she said doubtfully, looking at the too-tight pair of briefs. Somehow she couldn't imagine herself trying to measure his inseam. Just the thought heated her cheeks with a ferocious blush. "I guess you'd better come along," she said at last. James looked surprised. "In these clothes' Are they suitable to wear outside' I thought you said--" "You're right," she interrupted. "You'd get arrested." And start a riot, she added mentally. "Then I do not see how I can accompany you." "Come on upstairs. Maybe I can find something." In her room, she made a more thorough search of Steve's old clothes. "Ah-ha," she said at last. "Just as I thought. This should be okay." She handed him an old pair of gray sweatpants with an elastic waistband.

He held them up to his waist dubiously. The bottom of the legs only reached halfway down his calf.

"That's okay," she said, and retrieved a pair of scissors. She cut them off to shorts length, then held them up for inspection. "See' Cutoffs."

With the shorts on, he looked almost normal. Almost, but not quite. His shoulders, far more broad and ma.s.sive than Steve's had been, stretched the T-shirt, looking like they might burst the seams at any moment, and the shorts were tight around his waist as well, despite the fact that he was very definitely not overweight. Far from it. It was simply a matter of proportions. On a man his height, his waist was quite narrow. The shorts were also stretched tightly, bulging suggestively in the front and lovingly cupping his b.u.t.tocks in the rear.

She studied him thoughtfully. "Even with those shorts on, you might just start a riot."

"I beg your pardon'"

"Never mind." She shook her head. "You're decent enough, I guess. But you'll look better in clothes that fit correctly."

She took a quick shower and changed. Then she headed for the garage, James following obediently in her wake. She still had Steve's car, a bright yellow Mini Cooper, but she didn't drive it much, because she wasn't really the flashy type, and besides, she couldn't drive it without getting tears in her eyes. As she usually did, she headed for her little blue econ.o.box.

She opened the car door and ushered him inside, then went around to the driver's side and sat. He was clearly uncomfortable in her pint-sized car. His knees were drawn up and he seemed to take up much of the available s.p.a.ce.

"You need to put on your seatbelt."

At his blank look, she sighed, thinking that it was like having a very large child. She would have to show him how to put on his seatbelt. Reaching across such a large man was not easy, but she managed it, aware of an odd heat that spread through her as she leaned close to his broad chest. She was uncomfortably aware that he was no child. Snagging the belt with her left hand, she pulled it across him and latched it, then fastened her own belt.

Pressing the garage door opener, she backed the car out of the garage and down the driveway. As she pulled out onto the street, she noticed a nondescript green sedan pulling away from the curb on the other side of the street. "That must be my new neighbor," she said, glancing in the mirror and seeing a dark-haired woman in the car. "About time she moved in."

"New neighbor'"

"Yeah, that house has been sitting vacant for a while. It was built almost a year ago, but I guess whoever built it had their mortgage fall through. I heard someone was finally moving in there, though." She put on her signal, waited, then pulled smoothly into traffic. The green car followed. Apparently her neighbor was heading for the city as well.

Her house was in a new neighborhood in southern North Carolina that was perched incongruously along a twisting country road, but it was only a five-minute drive to civilization. At the next intersection another car pulled in behind her, and she lost sight of the green sedan.

As her eyes flickered away from the rear-view mirror she caught a glimpse of James, staring out the window with deep interest. She could almost believe he really was from the future, she thought, seeing his wide-eyed gaze as he stared at the trees. Noticing her brief glance, he looked toward her and gave a slight smile.

"It is very different from what I am accustomed to," he said, almost apologetically.

"Uh-huh," Annie said dryly, trying not to sound too sarcastic. It wasn't the poor guy's fault he had amnesia, after all. "You already mentioned they don't have cars in the future. So what do they use to get around' Airplanes' Helicopters'"

"No. We have a much more efficient method of getting from place to place." He turned his head and looked out the window again. They were already entering the outskirts of the city, and fast food restaurants and gas stations lined the road. "Besides, we do not have large gatherings, ever. People live most of their lives in their homes. Most people even work from their homes, and there is little need to go elsewhere. Occasionally two or three families spend time together, but for the most part people simply do not group together."

Annie frowned, wondering how he'd produced such a vivid description of "the future." As far as she knew, amnesia simply caused a person to forget his past. He must be suffering from delusions as well. "So no one goes out of their house' That sounds kind of lonely."

"The trend toward staying at home started in the twentieth century," James explained, "when the videoscreen'no'" He broke off, frowning. "When what you call television was invented. Eventually people stopped leaving their houses for entertainment altogether, since they could obtain most forms of entertainment at home. At the same time, people began working from their houses."

Annie nodded absently as she maneuvered the car around a corner. "I work from my house sometimes," she admitted. She could easily imagine today's world leading to the society he described. But that made sense; he was simply extrapolating from today's trends, whether he was aware of it or not.

"Yes. Eventually most people will. With the advent of computers and what you call the Internet, children were able to learn at home as well. And once there was no need for people to leave the comfort of their homes for entertainment, work, or education, people naturally began spending most of their time at home."

"What happened to the cities'" Annie challenged.

James frowned. "We live in cylinder cities. Do you mean a city above ground'"

"Yes, like this. This is a city. An area where a large amount of people live."

James gazed out the window at the five other lanes of cars. "The aboveground cities are all gone. Indeed, everything on the surface is gone."

Annie gulped. She didn't like where this fantasy was leading. "Let me guess. Nuclear war."

"What' Oh, no. I spoke imprecisely. I meant all human-made artifacts on the surface are gone. Everyone lives underground, and the surface of the planet has been allowed to revert to its wild state, in order to preserve the native wildlife. People may only go to the surface with a permit, and those are issued extremely rarely."

"Everything is gone' What about the Pyramids' The White House' Important stuff like that'"

James shook his head slightly. "At first major historical landmarks were preserved. But eventually people lost interest in going aboveground, even to see significant landmarks, and it was decided that those buildings might as well be dismantled, and the area surrounding them permitted to return to nature. In my time, the surface of the planet is entirely pristine."

That was so obviously impossible she couldn't help but challenge it. "What about food' People have to grow crops, don't they'"

"All our food is grown on satellites and then shuttled to distribution centers," James explained. His voice was so even, so lucid, that it was hard to believe he was nuts, even though that was clearly the case. "They keep cows on satellites'" she said, unable to keep the skepticism from her voice. Definitely delusions as well as amnesia, she thought grimly, wishing rather desperately for Kay to return. Although Kay probably couldn't do much but refer this poor guy to a psychologist.

"Cows'" James paused for a moment, as if what she'd said made no sense. "Oh, I understand what you mean. The spaghetti I ate last night had cow in it, didn't it'"

"Beef. It had beef in it." James frowned. "But I thought it was dead cow."

"It's called beef."

James shrugged. "No one eats genuine meat in my society. We eat synthetic meat based on fungus, as well as soy or other vegetables."

"Bleah," Annie said.

He ignored her reaction and went on. "There are certain ethical issues involved in raising animals for slaughter, and at any rate it is much more efficient to eat only plant products." Everything he said seemed to hang together. It was all so logical. So rational. So totally insane.

Annie realized arguing with him was a big waste of time, since she clearly wasn't going to manage to sway him from his beliefs. She strove for a bright, interested tone. "So everyone lives underground, huh' Sounds depressing."

"It is what we are accustomed to." James pressed his nose against the window, reminding her again of a golden retriever, and tilted his face up. "I have never truly seen the sky before." "I'd think you'd find it scary," she said, playing along.

"No. If I were'" James came to an abrupt halt and flashed a fleeting, sidelong glance in her direction. "If I were someone else, perhaps I would be frightened. But I find the cloud formations extremely interesting. I have, of course, seen it on holovideo, but that somehow failed to prepare me for the genuine experience. It is quite ... beautiful."

It was barely ten o'clock when they arrived at the mall, and she was able to find a s.p.a.ce not far from the building. She helped James unlatch his seat belt, then found he didn't know how to open the car door. She walked around to his side, opened the door, and waited for him to stand up.

As they walked toward the mall, she noticed the same green car pulling into a s.p.a.ce. She thought about walking over to introduce herself, but a glance at James made her think better of it. The woman was bound to a.s.sume he was a boyfriend, and the last thing she wanted was to have the neighbors gossiping about her. She settled for a friendly wave, then walked on into the mall with James at her heels.

Inside the mall, James paused and stared at the stores, and the people already beginning to crowd the mall. He looked bewildered, almost frightened, and she hesitated, feeling a pang of pity. "Are you all right'"

He nodded and glanced at her, and she saw that his eyes were wide and anxious. "I've never seen this many people at once," he said softly. "It's rather overwhelming."

"Well, I don't like shopping much myself. Come on, let's get it over with."

She started forward, but James didn't follow. Glancing back, she saw he was still staring at his surroundings with that lost, vulnerable expression. Unable to help herself, she reached out and took his big hand in her own, wrapping her fingers around his. She saw his mouth drop open with shock, as if no one had ever touched him before.

"It's okay, James," she said gently.

He hesitated a long moment, then followed her, clutching her hand as if it were his only link to sanity.

They walked on through the mall, with James staring at everything, no matter how mundane, as if it were all utterly new and mesmerizing. Annie noticed women pausing to gape at him as if he were a movie star in a tuxedo, rather than an anonymous guy wearing poorly fitting clothes, and she felt a small, proprietary stab of irritation. He was, she had to admit, an extraordinarily nice-looking man, but that was no reason for women to drool over a complete stranger. He seemed oblivious to their stares, more fascinated by the sights of the mall than by the stunned women he pa.s.sed.

Suddenly he paused and pointed. "Look!"

Annie followed the direction of his finger. "Uh-huh," she said, unimpressed. "It's a fountain."

"It is beautiful," he breathed. He went toward it slowly and walked around it, staring transfixed at the gurgling, splashing water. Annie followed him, perplexed. He looked, she thought, as thrilled as a three-year-old. It was as if he'd never seen a fountain before.

Definitely amnesia, she told herself again.

After some time she got James to leave the fountain, but only with the promise of stopping back to see it before they went home. They walked into the men's department of a clothing store, where a saleslady was only too happy to help them. At least, she was happy to help James. She stared at him as if she were starving and he was a steak dinner. Considering she was at least fifty, her reaction struck Annie as amusing. She wondered if every woman in North Carolina would react to James the same way.

"What size are you'" the saleslady asked, eying him from head to foot.

James looked blank, and Annie jumped in hastily. The absolute last thing she needed was for James to start telling the salesclerk that they didn't wear slacks in the future. "You know how men are," she said, smiling at the salesclerk. "They never remember little details like sizes."

"Hmmm," the woman said, looking James over carefully. "Well, why don't you try these and see if they fit'" She handed James a pair of khaki slacks. He stared at them thoughtfully, then his hands went to the waistband of his shorts.

Annie grabbed his hand before he could begin to disrobe in public. "The fitting room is right over there," she said, pointing in the correct direction.

He blinked at her. "The fitting room'"

Annie slid a glance at the salesclerk, whose blandly courteous mask had slipped a bit. Some of the hungry interest had faded from her eyes, and she was staring at James with alarm. "Yes, the fitting room," Annie said in an intense whisper. "You know, where you go to try on the pants and see if they fit."

To her relief, James seemed to understand. He walked away from them and disappeared into the fitting room. Annie risked another glance at the salesclerk, who looked wide-eyed. "I think I'll go over there and wait for him," she said, a little too brightly. "Thanks so much for your help."

The salesclerk mumbled something incoherent and fled, probably in search of more normal customers.

When James emerged, Annie looked him over critically. The slacks were just about the right size. "They look pretty good," she said. "Go ahead and try these on." She handed him an armful of shirts she'd picked out.

A half hour later they were on their way back to the car, James loaded down with several bags containing slacks, shorts, shirts, underwear, and a.s.sorted other necessities. They stopped by the fountain, as promised, then made their way through the parking lot to the car. James carefully placed the packages in the trunk, then sat in the pa.s.senger seat. This time he was able to fasten his own seatbelt.

"This is very kind of you," he remarked.

Annie waved a disparaging hand. "Don't worry about it."

"But I am concerned," he persisted as she backed carefully out of the parking s.p.a.ce. "You have spent a good deal of currency on me. I have no way of repaying you."

"You're in trouble. I'm trying to help."

"But why'"

Annie slid him a wry sideways glance. "Don't people help other people where you come from'"

He hesitated, then looked away, out the window. "No one would ever dream of giving me a.s.sistance," he said softly.

She was startled to hear bitterness in his voice. "Well, I'm not like that, okay' You needed help, and I didn't mind spending a little money to help you. Since Steve died, I've got more money than I need, anyway. I may not be rich, but I'm not broke either. No big deal. So let's forget about it."

She saw his jaw tighten. "I have no intention of forgetting your kindness to me."

She accelerated as the speed limit went up to forty-five. She lived out where there had been fields of cattle and corn only a few years ago. They were leaving the city, with its sprawl of fast food restaurants, movie theaters, and shopping, and heading for the suburbs.

"So don't forget it," she said. She turned onto the old country road and accelerated smoothly. The speed limit out here was fifty-five, but only a fool would drive it that fast. There were deep ditches along the road, a narrow bridge that crossed a creek, and some sharp twists that had claimed a few reckless lives. There was discussion about straightening out the road and reducing the speed limit now that a good many houses had been built down it. "Maybe you'll be able to pay me back someday."

"I intend to pay you back now," he said. "I believe I have formulated a solution. I will work as a housekeeper for you."

Annie did not take her eyes off the road. "Say what' I don't need a housekeeper, James."

"It appears to me that you do. Your house is not very neat."

Annie gritted her teeth. "I don't like my house to look like something out of Architectural Digest. Anyway, I can't afford a housekeeper."

"You need not pay me. I will work for room and board."

"The way you eat I'm not sure that's a bargain," she said under her breath. Shooting a hasty glance at him, she saw the hope in his eyes. "Oh, h.e.l.l," she said. "Fine. Okay. You can be my housekeeper."