Chapter 63

As we walked into the house holding hands, Oliver said, "Santa's California Refuge Of Outrageously Gleeful Exuberance?"

I laughed at the expression on his face. "Sorry. Best that I could do on the spur of the moment. It seemed a little more apropos than 'Welcome to the Ramsey Mansion'."

"How about 'Welcome to Crystal's Palace'."

"Nah, sounds too much like the building in London."

"Crystal's Castle?"

"You didn't like 'S.C.R.O.O.G.E.'?" I asked, feigning sadness.

"It was great. I was just trying to come up with something that you can use all year long. You know, like the way that they used to name their estates years ago. Did this estate ever have a name?"

"None that I've heard of."

"How about Casa d'Crystal?"

"No, that sounds like an Italian restaurant. Makes me hungry for spaghetti."

"How would you say 'Crystal's Hide-away' in French."

"Um, I think it would be 'Cache-loin du Cristal'."

"Okay, from now on it's 'Cashy lion duh Crystal'."

I started giggling and was still giggling as we reached the living room where Dad was sitting with Mom and Aunt Jess. They stopped talking and looked up as we reached them.

"Oliver, this is my father, William Ramsey, this is my aunt, Jessica Tate, and you know my mom. Dad, Aunt Jess, this is my friend, Oliver Addams."

Oliver spoke first as Dad started to get up. "Merry Christmas, Mrs. Ramsey. Merry Christmas, Mrs. Tate. Merry Christmas, sir. You all look great. I can't get over that you're all dressed in holiday costumes. I feel a little out of place."

Dad had gotten to his feet by this time and he stretched out his hand. "Oliver, I'm pleased to meet you. Merry Christmas." As they shook hands, Dad added, "I was disappointed when your first series went off the air, but I've enjoyed your current show."

"Thank you. It's still doing pretty good. We've been picked up for a third season already. Did you catch the episode that Crystal was in?"

"Of course. I never miss anything that she's in. I enjoyed it very much."

"I enjoyed making it. It was like old times, and I hope to persuade her to come do another show this coming year."

I looked at Oliver. "That may not be possible. I'm booked solid for fifteen months starting in February. Unless it's just for a walk-on type part, I probably can't make it."

"Fifteen months? All movies?"

"Yes."

"I thought that you were going to take a break between pictures?"

"Things worked out differently than I planned. I signed to do two pictures and then a third came up that fit right in between the first two. I couldn't pass up the third."

"You're going to be the richest young star in the hospital. You can't keep up a schedule like that. Not when you're the lead in every picture."

"I'll take a nice vacation when it's done."

"I've heard that before."

"I mean it this time. Now go show my aunt your hat."

Oliver smiled at me and walked over to Aunt Jessica. She didn't understand what I was talking about but stood up when Oliver extended his hand to help her. As she reached an upright position, Oliver bowed his head so that she could see the mistletoe. She smiled immediately and pulled his head down to hers. He responded by taking her in his arms, bending her over slightly and giving her a Valentino style kiss. She was breathless when he stood her back up. Mom was giggling like a schoolgirl.

"Wow," Aunt Jess said. "That was some kiss. Give me a chance to catch my breath and we'll go again."

"Just one to a customer, Aunt Jess," I said smiling.

Oliver moved over to Mom and put his hand out. Mom looked at Dad who just grinned, then shrugged her shoulders and stood up. Oliver gave her the same kind of kiss as he had given Aunt Jess and she was flushed when he stood her back up.

"Thank you, Oliver," Mom said. "That was very nice."

"My pleasure, Mrs. Ramsey. Merry Christmas."

"Merry Christmas." Looking to change the subject, Mom added, "Why don't you men have a seat and relax. Jess, Crystal, and I should check on dinner."

I didn't think that I would have to referee between Dad and Oliver since their meeting had been so friendly, so I went along with Mom and Aunt Jess. Mrs. McGuire was just taking the turkey from the oven. The little thermostat thingie had popped up indicating that it was fully cooked.

As soon as the kitchen door had closed, Aunt Jess exclaimed, "My god Crystal, did you put your boyfriend up to that? I've never been kissed like that in my life!"

"Really?" I said, feigning surprise. "It looked like just a normal kiss to me, Aunt Jess."

"Stop teasing your aunt, Crystal," Mom scolded me lightly. "You know that that wasn't any normal kiss. That was a Rudolph Valentino kind of kiss. Guys don't kiss like that normally."

I giggled. "Okay, okay, it was a normal 'stage' kiss, where you're exaggerating your movements. Or maybe over-exaggerating would be a better description of the way that Oliver just did it. Didn't you enjoy it?"

"If he was ten years older I'd be in there giving you competition for his attentions. On top of being able to kiss, he's the most handsome man that I've kissed in a very long time."

"He is cute. I could see that Mom enjoyed herself also."

Mom just smiled slightly without saying anything.

"Nothing to say Mom?"

"Yes, go call your sister. She's probably on the phone. We'll be eating in about fifteen minutes and the table hasn't been set yet."

I grinned. I knew an attempt to change the subject when I saw it so I walked over to the phone and buzzed Carol's phone using the intercom mode.

"Who is it?"

"Me, sis. Mom wants you downstairs to help set the table. We're going to be eating shortly."

"Okay, be right down. I'm talking to my friend Jackie."

"Okay. Bye."

I put the receiver back on the hook and walked to the formal dining room. There was a clean folded tablecloth on the table so I shook it out and placed it. Then I started to put out dishes, glasses, and silverware from the side cabinets where they were stored. I had almost finished the job when Carol came in.

"You're almost done?"

"I called you fifteen minutes ago."

"Oh. Sorry. I guess that I took longer to say goodbye than I thought. I'll do the rest."

"Just napkins and condiments left to put out."

"Okay."

I walked back to the living room where Dad and Oliver were engaged in animated conversation about some football team or other. They acted like they had known each other for years.

When they paused for a minute, I said, "Dinner will be ready in a few minutes. We can go into the dining room."

Carol had finished setting the table and several steaming dishes were already sitting in the middle of the large table. Dad took his customary place at the head of the table and Oliver sat in his normal place while I headed for the kitchen to see if I was needed. Mom was just carrying the turkey in as I reached the door so I held it for her. She put it in front of Dad and he stood up to carve it, using the electric knife that I had put by his place.

Within five more minutes the food was all on the table and we sat down to eat. A second turkey dinner had been prepared, and the staff, consisting of Mrs. McGuire, George, Des, and the other security people, was eating in the staff dining room in the servant's wing. Although they had their own small kitchen facilities, their meal had been cooked by Mrs. McGuire in the main kitchen.

Everything was delicious but, as expected, neither Carol nor I could eat very much, thanks to the corsets. Mom and Aunt Jess ate lightly also, but their costumes hadn't required using corsets. During dinner the main topic of conversation was show business. Oliver talked about television and I talked about the movie industry.

After dinner we cleared the table without disturbing Mrs. McGuire, and then we brought out the desserts and coffee. No one was really hungry so we just sat and talked for another hour before putting the untouched pies back into the refrigerator.

It was a beautiful, warm December day outside, so we all went out onto the patio and spent about an hour sitting in the sun. Oliver sat next to me and held my hand. While we were sitting there he handed me a wrapped gift. I smiled and opened it. It contained a beautiful gold necklace. Everyone oohed and ahhed and I gave Oliver a quick kiss before hurrying in to get a present for him from beneath the tree. He opened it and smiled as he removed it from the small jewelry case. It was a gold key ring with a gold fob, or whatever it's called. I had noticed that he was using a plastic one with the keys to his new Mercedes. On the front of the fob was engraved 'Oliver', and it was like a woman's locket in that it opened up. I had had a picture of me placed on one side and the other side was engraved with 'For Oliver, Love Crystal'. Oliver smiled and then leaned over and kissed me. His next act was to take his keys off his old ring and put them on the new one.

As the sun started to go down, we moved indoors. Oliver and I went to the den so that he could ostensibly check the football scores on the television, but it was really just an excuse for Oliver to be alone with me. I somehow wound up on the sofa with Oliver half lying on top of me as he made the kisses that he had given to Mom and Aunt Jess seem like simple pecks on the cheek. I never had to stop his hands from wandering below my waist but he spent a lot of time trying to massage my left breast, the only one easily accessible to him due to our positions on the sofa. Each time I corralled his hand he would stop until I relaxed my vigilance, and then he would return. Although the breast nipple responded to his touch, my medicine prevented the rest of me from becoming aroused. That was not true of Oliver however. I could feel his arousal against my leg.

After an hour of serious kissing, Oliver slowed his romantic advances and we began to talk a little.

"I have something else for you."

"What?" I said guardedly.

He reached into his pocket and brought out a small jewelry box. He moved so that I could get my arm out from under him, then handed me the box. Still lying on the sofa, I opened the box and saw a beautiful diamond engagement ring. It had an enormous diamond in the center and three diamonds of decreasing size on either side of the large one.

"It's beautiful, Oliver, simply beautiful," I said breathlessly, "but I told you that I can't marry you."

"I was hoping that you might have reconsidered."

"I genuinely care for you, but I'm not getting married for a long time."

"I can wait until you're ready. I love you and you're worth the wait no matter how long it takes. This way I have the ring all ready when you are. I had to guess at the size. It is right?"

"I don't know. It looks about right."

"Try it on so we'll know."

"Oliver, the ring is beautiful, but I'm not ready for marriage."

"I know. I just want to know if it's the right size. I'd hate to carry it around for six years only to find out it's the wrong size and would have to be altered before you could wear it. Try it on. Please?"

"Isn't it bad luck or something to try on an engagement ring when you're not getting engaged?"

"Don't be silly. Do you think that seven wraiths on horseback are suddenly going to appear? It's just a ring."

"Oh, okay." I took the beautiful ring from the box and looked at it. It was perfection and must have cost a small fortune.

I guess that I hesitated a little too long because Oliver reached over and took it from me and said, "Look at it on your hand instead. That's really the only way to look at a ring."

He held the ring between his fingers as I put up my ring finger, and slid it up until it reached the larger joint. It wouldn't go any further so he pushed hard while twisting and it slipped over.

"Owwww," I said.

"Perfect fit."

"Perfect? I thought that you were going to slice all the skin off my finger," I said as I rubbed the joint."

"It's supposed to be a little tight so that it doesn't fall off. Hold it out so that you can see it."

I held out my hand and looked at how the light sparkled inside the stones. It picked up the bright red color of my nails and reflected it back. "It's really beautiful, Oliver. You have wonderful taste. Too bad I can't accept it."

"I understand. I'll keep it until you're ready."

With that, Oliver grew amorous again and launched a new bout of kissing. I barely managed to drop the empty ring box on the coffee table before I was smothered in his affection.

The over-stuffed sofa was very comfortable and our relaxed posture eventually took its toll and we dozed off. I awoke to find Carol gently shaking my arm. Oliver had shifted position and was using my chest as a pillow.

"It's after seven, sis. Mom and Aunt Jess are getting out the leftovers for dinner. They sent me to get you guys."

"Okay, thanks. We'll be there shortly. I just have to wake Oliver."

Carol handed me a lipstick and hairbrush, then smiled and winked before leaving the room. I shook Oliver's arm and he shifted position but didn't wake up so I shook him harder. He opened his eyes sleepily and said, "Wha?"

"Dinnertime. The food is getting cold."

"I'm fine right here."

"Wake up, Oliver. We have to get up."

"Just ten more minutes."

I waited twenty seconds and shook his arm again. "Okay, time to get up."

"Ten more minutes."

"You already got to sleep a little more. Now wake up."

Oliver opened his eyes halfway and looked around. "Where am I?"

"Cashy lion duh Crystal."

He looked and me with a silly smile on his face and said, "Oh, yeah," before propping himself up on one arm and then twisted around and sat up.

With Oliver off of me I was able to move a little myself but I was still prevented from getting off of the couch by his form. "Slide over a little so I can get up also."

Oliver moved but then the corset prevented me from bending enough to sit up. He took pity on me and stood up, extending his hand towards me and then pulling me up.

"I don't understand why you're even wearing that thing," he said, shaking his head.

"I had to. I couldn't fit into the costume without it. The waistline of this costume is about nineteen inches. I'm getting old and fat, I guess," I said smiling.

"Fat? Your waist is smaller than any girl I know. Any fat that you do have is in just the right places."

"You're sweet, but my waist has swelled over the past year. I used to be a twenty-one and now I'm almost up to twenty-three."

"You're also older than you were. You can't expect to have the waistline of a teenager forever."

"I know, but I was a teenager until five months ago. Also, I have a Victorian era movie to start in the fall and I'll have to wear a corset for six months. At some point I'll have to start training my waist again so that I'm ready for it."

Oliver, who was still holding my hand from having helped me from the sofa, pulled me to him. He bent his head down to mine and I let him have another long kiss before pushing him away.

"Dinner is waiting. Let me fix myself and then we'll join everyone in the dining room."

Oliver sat back down and waited as I brushed my hair, fixed my makeup, and applied a fresh coating of lipstick. I also took a tissue and wiped some lipstick off of Oliver. As I was removing the lipstick, I noticed the ring that I was still wearing. I finished with Oliver and put the tissue down to remove the ring, but it wouldn't come off. I pulled it, and twisted it, and twisted it some more, but it refused to pass over the finger joint.

"I can't get the ring off. It shrunk."

"It can't shrink."

"It did. It won't come off."

"Let me try."

Oliver took my hand and tried twisting the ring off but it began to feel like my finger would come off first.

"Stop, you're hurting me."

"Sorry, honey. I'd never hurt you intentionally. I was only trying to get the ring off."

"I know. Let me try again."

I tried pulling the skin back and twisting the ring, and then I just tried pulling on it until I couldn't stand the pain, but I couldn't budge it over the joint.

"I'll have to leave it on for now. Maybe Mom will know how to get it off later. My finger is throbbing. I'll give it to you as soon as I can get it off."

"No problem. It's only going to sit in the box until you're ready for it anyway."

We walked to the dining room with Oliver's arm on my shoulders. I tried to keep my left hand out of sight as much as possible without looking like I was hiding it. The food was all out on the table and we took our seats and ate some of the leftovers, followed by the desserts that hadn't been touched earlier. Again, Carol and I could only pick at things, but I knew that there would still be plenty left tomorrow, and that I wouldn't be wearing the corset.

After we finished eating, Mom said, "That's a lovely ring, Crystal."

Leave it to Mom to notice everything. I almost choked on the piece of pie that I had just put into my mouth.

"Oliver asked me to try it on and I can't get it off."

"Oh, I thought that you might have something to tell us."

By now everyone was looking at me. I had instinctively dropped my left hand to my lap when Mom had mentioned it. Now I lifted my hand and placed it flat, palm down, on the table.

"Is that an engagement ring?" Dad asked.

I nodded. "I was just trying it on. I told Oliver that I wasn't ready for marriage but he wanted to know if he had picked the right size."

"Let me see."

I stood up and walked over to where Dad was sitting and put out my hand for him to take.

"Wow, that's a beautiful ring, Oliver. I don't know sweetheart, it looks like the finger has swollen."

"Is the ring too tight?"

"No, it 's probably from your efforts to remove it. I think that you'll have to wait until tomorrow to get it off. Don't yank on it anymore, Okay?"

"Okay, Daddy."

As I sat down, Dad said, "So you want to marry my little girl, eh Oliver?"

"Yes, sir, very much. I keep asking but she says that she's not ready to settle down yet. I bought the ring so that I'm prepared when she's ready."

As Oliver was talking, Carol and Aunt Jess were looking at the ring.

"Oliver," Aunt Jess said, "that's one of the most beautiful engagement rings that I've ever seen. You're such a lucky girl, Crystal. Congratulations."

"Aunt Jess, I'm not ready for marriage."

"You don't have to get married right away," she said. "Make it a long engagement. There's no sense in keeping that beautiful ring in a drawer somewhere. I know that you love Oliver. I can see it in your eyes."

Aunt Jessica was not making this easy. I was trying to figure out if she was teasing when Mom spoke up. "Crystal is very fond of Oliver but she's not ready for marriage so everyone stop teasing her. Oliver, just ignore them. You two will decide for yourselves when the time is right. Let me see your ring, dear. I mean the ring."

Oliver stayed until after ten o'clock. I walked him out to the car.

"I had a great time today," he said. "Thanks for a wonderful Christmas. It was the nicest that I've had in years. I'm not sorry about the ring. It was nice seeing you wear it, even if it was for only a few hours. I know that someday it'll be on that finger for good."

"I'm glad that you came to share our day. You're always welcome here, even though I'm not ready for a marriage commitment. Thanks for the beautiful necklace."

Oliver pulled me to him and spent the next five minutes kissing me. I was glad that he had gracefully ignored the teasing at the dinner table about engagements and I responded to his kisses as a twenty-year-old girl should. Later, as his car disappeared over hill, I waved.

I stayed outside for a few minutes as I thought about the events of the day and then walked back into the house to join the family in the living room. Now that Oliver was gone, Carol, Mom, and Aunt Jess crowded around me to get another close look at the ring again.

"Are you serious about that young man, honey?" Dad asked.

"I like Oliver a lot. We've been close friends since I first came out here to work. Do I want to marry him? I'm not looking to marry anybody. I told him that at Thanksgiving when he first proposed. He said that he's doesn't accept my refusal and that he intends to keep asking me until I relent."

"That seems clear enough. You're obviously not just leading him on."

"I like him too much too lead him on, Daddy. He's my friend."

"Good. I like him, too."

We spent about another hour talking about the day and then Carol and I went upstairs to go to bed, going first to my room together so that we could help each other undress. The first thing to come off were the vinyl belts, followed quickly by the dresses and then the slips. Before even thinking about the boots we relaxed the lacing of the corsets. It felt so great to be able to draw a full breath again.

Once the corsets were gone, the boots lasted just seconds. Then we massaged our aching feet before removed the rest of our clothing.

"How about a bath in my tub?" I suggested.

"Sounds great. I need a soak."

Ten minutes later we were relaxing in the tub as it filled with warm to hot water. The large oval tub was large enough to easily accommodate two people, or even three. I just laid my head back and enjoyed the sensation of the rising water. It was so wonderful to be naked after being trapped in clothes all day that reshaped my body and restricted my movements.

"Sis, I have a favor to ask," Carol said.

"Ask away."

"Would you help me with my class movie project?"

"Of course. What do you need?"

"You."

"Me?"

"I want to star you in my senior project."

"Okay. What do I have to do?"

"I've been working on a script for the past few months and I want to shoot most of it right here at the estate. Do you think that you could get Sharon to be in it also? And the twins?"

"The twins? They're just babies. What kind of script is this?"

"It's a comedy. A spoof of sci-fi films."

"How much shooting time will be required?"

"I estimate about three days for you and Sharon, and about two weeks for the babies. They won't be in the shots when you are."

"Okay, I'll ask Sharon this week and let you know, but I'm sure that she'll be happy to help if she's not working. Tell me about the script. I'm sure that she's going to want to know."

By the time that I climbed out of the tub I knew everything about the project and I had even made a few suggestions. If everything went okay, we'd begin shooting in January.

*****

In the morning I got up early and looked at my ring finger. If anything, it was even more swollen so I didn't irritate it further by tugging on the ring. To forget about the ring I went for an early morning swim. I had finished my laps and climbed out of the pool before I saw any other stirrings of life in the house. Carol was the second one to come down and I rested by the side of the pool while she did her stretching exercises and then swam some laps.

After she had finished her swim, and rested, we went to the kitchen to make some breakfast. I was surprised to find Mrs. McGuire there already. She had heard us in the pool and begun breakfast. The coffee was ready and the griddle was hot. She had made pancake batter and was all set to pour as soon as we told her what we wanted. I ordered blueberry pancakes and Carol ordered a cheese omelet. We took the pot of coffee and a pitcher of OJ and headed for the small family dining room.

The food was delicious and we had finished eating by the time that Dad came down.

"You girls are up early. Big day?"

"No, just normal time. Carol normally has early classes and I always have to be on the set early."

"What are we doing today?"

"I don't think that we have any plans. Do you Carol?"

"Nope, not me. Did you want to do something?"

"I'd kinda like to do a little sightseeing. I didn't have time last year because I was only here for one day. Now I have two days before I have to leave."

"Where do you want to go?"

"I don't know. This is your hometown now. What should I see?"

"There are the usual tourist places such as the amusement parks, tar pit, museums, and piers. There are also the state parks, marinas, beaches, and other places. Carol could give you a tour of her campus. I'm not working so I can't take you on a set."

"I'm not crazy about amusement parks so I'll pass on those. I'd like to see Carol's campus, and I'd like to see that sign that always appears in the movies about this area. The one that says 'Hollywood'."

"We can take you on a tour of Beverly Hills also," Carol offered. "Most of the houses can't compare to this palace, but it's a nice ride."

"Okay," Dad said, "What time should we leave?"

"How about ten o'clock?" Carol asked.

"Okay."

"Fine by me, but maybe we'd better check with Mom and Aunt Jess," I said. They might want to go also."

"They should be up soon. What would you like for breakfast?"

"Couple of eggs, over easy, toast, and bacon, ham, or sausage."

"Okay," I said, "I'll go tell Mrs. McGuire."

*****

We left just after ten a.m. for the trip to the USC campus. It was almost deserted but we had a nice walk around with Carol as our tour guide. Des walked a discrete distance behind. We had to take two cars because there were six of us and the BMW would have been too crowded.

When we had walked all over the campus, we returned to the cars and continued on our tour. We went to Beverly Hills and then to Hollywood. We stopped to eat lunch at a nice little restaurant with outside tables during our ride around the Hollywood area. After that we continued north and visited the condo. Dad hadn't seen it and it needed an airing out anyway.

"You mean that you don't rent this out now that you're not living here anymore?" Dad had said.

"I use it when I'm working down here, rather than commuting every day. It's a lot better than renting a hotel room because this is like home. I was here four nights a week while I was making my last picture so the condo is being used. Carol uses it also when she has to get away from the campus and doesn't feel like driving up to the estate."

"Seems like a waste of money."

"I make enough now that I can afford a few small extravagances in the interest of comfort, and it's cheaper than renting hotel rooms for Des and myself. I own it so I don't have any mortgage costs. It's just the taxes and condo fees."

"Is this the only one?"

"One what?"

"The only extra house that you own. Any others in New York, London, Paris, or anywhere like that?"

"No, this is the only one," I said smiling. "I haven't done enough work in those other places to justify buying a place there."

After the place was aired out we closed it back up again and left. I stopped by the pool area to see if Bud or Chet were around but there wasn't anyone out there. It was a little too cold for swimming.

We finished our day of sightseeing and returned to the estate in time for dinner.

*****

For Dad's last day we took a nice drive up the coast through Santa Barbara and on to San Luis Obispo before returning. We found a nice little seafood restaurant near the shore in Santa Barbara for lunch. The waitress recognized me but didn't make too much of a fuss. They were used to seeing celebrities up there. After the end of the meal she did politely ask for my autograph and I gave it to her, and then also signed the charge card form.

*****

On Sunday we said good-bye to Dad. It might be another year before I saw him again, although he promised to come for Carol's graduation in May. George took him down to the airport for us.

I still hadn't been able to get Oliver's ring off. The swelling was going down but I wanted to wait until it was back to normal before I risked damaging the area around the joint again. Mom had told me that liquid dishwashing soap would probably be the best thing to use as a lubricant to remove the ring.

 

(continued in chapter 64)

 

 

 

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