Chapter Two
The Nun
Dorothy D’Bennedeto… What a lovely name. Just the sound of it brings a sense of peace to my soul, like a wave breaking upon the shore. I pace the Mission grounds, looking forward to the meeting and whispering her name just under my breath over and over: Dorothy D’Bennedeto, Dorothy D’Bennedeto… At the appointed time, I walk down the corridor to where the meeting is scheduled to be held. The door to the Fellowship Room is half open and I look in. The young woman is already inside, kneeling on the floor in quiet contemplation below a statute of Jesus. I pause in the doorway and look around the edge of the door to drink in her beauty. Her eyes are shut and her hands are clasped tightly together in her lap. Her pink cheeks, painted lips and light blue eye shadow bring a much needed burst of color and life into the musty old room. Her long brown hair is very thick and pretty, sweeping over her arms and covering her shoulders and breasts like a prayer shawl. She is well endowed and… strikingly attractive. It’s as if the fantasy woman I’ve tried so hard to repress has somehow burst out of my mind and come vividly to life, right before my astonished eyes. In her kneeling position, the hem of her short skirt has slipped all the way up her legs, revealing her pale upper thighs. She bends forward in fervent prayer, a Madonna in the flesh.
When I see her breasts between the buttons of her blouse, I stand absolutely still. I try to cast my gaze discretely downward, but my eyes inevitably creep back up to her bosom. Through the material of the blouse I notice she isn’t wearing a bra. My lips part and I breathe out a quiet sigh. Not only is her cleavage showing, but I can see a portion of the light brown rings of her areolas as well. Her swollen nipples are clearly protruding through the thin material, standing proudly erect and pointing heavenward. My eyes drift up her elegant neck to her pretty face and I watch as her red lips move in silent prayer.
I assume no one noticed Ms. D’Bennedeto when she entered the cathedral. Sucked dry of life, with receding hairlines and shuffling gaits, the Priests of the Mission greet tourists with sad, half-smiles and look out at the manicured gardens through sad, sunken eyes. I suppose my sexuality will be gone soon as well, whisked away in the smoke of devotional candles and incense. But at this moment at least, in the presence of such a lovely creature, my heart pounds in my chest, blood courses through my veins. Like the earthquake which toppled this Mission many years ago, her beauty shakes me to the core. I feel a weakness in the knees, a slight dizziness and… God help me… I become physically aroused.
Mortified by my reaction, there is nothing whatsoever I can do to stop it from happening. There I stand, like the cliché of a sexually deviant priest, a laughable figure, peering through the crack in the doorway at the young woman’s breasts, my erection creating a perverse tent under my cloak. One glance at the comely young woman and twenty nine years of Hail Mary’s, a Theology and Divinity Degree as well as a lifetime of homilies and bible study are forgotten. Even the cold marble eyes of Jesus seem to admire her beauty.
I don’t know how long I stood there gawking at her. It could’ve been less than a minute or more than five, I have no way of knowing. Suddenly, the Mission bells begin to ring loudly. The woman opens her eyes and glances up at me. She doesn’t appear in the least bit startled by my presence; as if she knew I was there the whole time. Even after she catches me peering in at her I continue to stand in the doorway. What’s wrong with me? Have I lost all sense of morality? The thought crosses my mind I should ask one of the nuns to conduct the tour of the Mission, but it’s too late. I don’t want to leave her now.
After the ringing fades, I immediately intertwine my fingers and push the diso