Chapter 2
Elaine Samuels drank her coffee slowly, inhaling deeply on her fifth cigarette in a row. She was at once relieved and depressed. Her son Billy was now asleep in his bedroom, scared and tired after his near miss in the burning barn. That caused Elaine much relief. But Jack had not seen fit to lose any more time 'with the boys' and had returned to the game. After taking their son to the doctor, Jack had told his desperate wife that the only reason he had come to the fire in the first place was due to the fact that the other boys had gone also.
But at least the house was quiet and that was the way she liked it. Except for an occassional moment of fleeting happiness, Elaine's life had moulded itself into a pattern of intense and mind throbbing boredom. If it hadn't been for Billy she would have gone crazy a long time ago; and her fears of the time when Billy would leave her were based in the reality of her own life.
The knock at the front door was soft and friendly. Elaine puched out her cigarette nervously, anticipating company-even if it was Mrs. Bernard from next door. Mrs. Bernard was on of those women who always managed to show up in time of tragedy and to make those .useless attempts to console the victim. When things were going well, however, Mrs. Bernard was nowhere to be seen.
Ben Grant stood in the soft glow of the porch light. His eyes sparkled with the remains of the excitement he had felt while doing battle with the destructive flames.
"Hello, Ben ... won't you come in?"
Elaine watched him for a moment then closed the door. Suddenly her evening had changed. She could feel the night around her, the stillness and the sense of anticipation which the young teenagers of the town must feel on those Saturday nights. She also became acutely aware that she was naked beneath her thin bathrobe.
"I just thought I'd drop by and see how Billy was doing. That was one Hell of a close call!"
"Would you like some coffee?"
"Yes, that would be nice." Ben watched her move beneath the cloth material of her robe. He remembered with amazing clarity the bodies of every woman he had ever had. Elaine had never been of the starlet quality because she was small all over. But still, thought Ben to himself, she was about as sexy as a woman could get.
"Billy's asleep now," Elaine called out from the kitchen. "We took him to Doc Manson's. All he needs is a lot of rest ... and to stay away from fires for a while."
She appeared in the doorway with two steaming cups of coffee. "Jack's gone. He went back to his game." She said the latter in a very soft voice.
Elaine handed the cup to Ben and sat down on the floor directly in front of his knees. It was a habit she had developed when they had been lovers, and now, she reverted into that mode of behavior.
"I'm glad everything's all right, Elaine ... I mean, with Billy." Ben took a long swig of his coffee and watched her blue eyes intensely.
Suddenly, her face lit up and she smiled up towards the man she had once slept with. "You remember the time we went down to the lake together?"
"Fifty degrees outside and you wanted to go swimming!" Ben laughed softly at the memory of this woman who had been so animated and child-like.
"I just wanted to see what you looked like without any clothes on ... it certainly wasn't to go into the water!"
Ben dropped his eyes and fiddled with his cup, turning it around over and over again in his hands. It was always difficult to start again, no matter how strong or good the experience had been. It was becoming apparent to both of them that they were, indeed, about to start again and it was churning like a molten piece of steel inside.
Then Elaine did something which was very much in character with how she used to act. Her eyes alighted with a mischievous fire as she stood up directly in front of Ben. Slowly, she untied the knot on her robe and slid the garment off her shoulders. "Do I still look any good?"
She was a very bony girl. Her shoulders were a little too wide. But her body was long and lean, the kind that could tie a man into knots. Her brown hair hung down across her shoulders and were the hair stopped her breasts began. They were small, pointed and the nipples still came up at a fine angle. Even though Elaine was not large there Ben had always felt that her breasts were the best he had ever seen.
"You still look great," Ben commented softly.
"Why thank you, Mr. Grant!"
It always made her feel better when he looked at her in the way he was looking now. His head was cocked a little to the side and a smile worked its way slowly across his mouth. His eyes remained steady, taking in every inch of her naked flesh-her nipples, her long flowing hair and the patch of hair which now tingled beneath her rounded belly. Elaine began to grow excited and she knew that even through Jack might return home while they were doing it she would still go through with it nonetheless.
"Come here, you little bitch!"
Elaine giggled softly and with relief. She sat down on his lap, feeling the bulge against her ass and squirming so that his meat would fit snugly between her cheeks.
"Getting closer, eh?"
"Always wanted to," replied Ben, remembering how she liked it two years ago. They had developed a system, a manner of making love whereby Elaine would always reach orgasm. It would start with her on top, playing with Ben as though he were her personal slave. But after a little of this, Ben would turn the situation around and become the dominant factor. By the time the final thrusts were made he would be humping her from the back and she would be squealing like an inflamed animal. That had been their method. And it had worked for both of them with astounding regularity.
The old couch in the small living room began to squeak as Ben pulled the naked woman down on top. She allowed her leg to hangover the edge and pushed her mound snugly against his groin.
They kissed long and hard. Their tongues traded blows in a manner long practiced and now remembered. Elaine became loose and felt herself swimming as her body seemed to mould into Bens'.
"I've missed it terribly," she moaned as they broke their kiss. "What about Jack?"
"Never! I mean, once in a while he'll roll me over, stick it inside and shoot his wad. But he never makes love to me."
"That's a shame," Ben whispered, resting his hand on her smooth, firm ass, "he doesn't know what he's missing!"
Ben then moved his hand underneath her belly and brought it down into the jungle of her warm cunt. Elaine lifted herself so that his fingers could work easily into her crack. She kissed him exitedly on his neck, then blew warm air into his ear and flicked her tongue into the hole.
"You remember my mouth around you?" She breathed.
"Yes," Ben moaned, feeling her moist, juicy cunt vibrating against his hand. "You planning another attack?"
"Elaine sucked hard on his earlobe, then drew her hand down between their bodies and grasped his sex firmly. "Yes," she moaned.
She rolled off of him and fell to her knees beside the couch. Ben lay back and waited. She had always liked to play with him and he enjoyed it. His secret had been that he could digit both ways from a woman and, because of this, Ben Grant always got the best of both worlds.
"They never get smaller, do they?" She had his pants down to his knees and was staring at his prick. The hard, heavy organ lay straight up against his belly and twitched every time Elaine blew onto it.
"Nope. Unless they fall off."
"Good." And then she lowered her mouth to him.
Her tongue was warm and smooth as she moved it up and down his flaming skin. She moved his legs apart and followed his ridge which led to his balls. Her mouth opened wide as she took one sac and sucked softly then repeated the gesture with the other.
"Oh, baby," Ben moaned, "you haven't lost your touch!"
Elaine held his cock in one hand and masturbated with easy strokes. Her eyes were wide open and slightly glazed. Ben knew that she was terribly excited, that she would be unable to sit through the kind of extended foreplay that they had practiced with each other during less needy times.
"Put your mouth to me, Ben...."
While Elaine lay herself down on the ugly green carpet-, Ben removed the rest of his clothes. He stood above her, and watched as she pushed her thighs together then spread them ... moving all the time.
He knelt down between her legs and she opened herself to him. Her pink lips were swollen and wet. He puched apart the smooth shiny skin and saw her pearl, throbbing and erect. Flicking his tongue at the clit, he reached underneath and pulled her cheeks apart. He liked it this way-wide open and vulnerable.
Elaine moaned and sighed while Ben drove his tongue deeply into her vagina then pulled back and stroked her pearl. She was moving wildly now, her hips thrusting into his face with intense energy and direction. Ben knew it was time.
She watched him through half closed eyes as he hovered above her. His prick found her immediately. She moaned loudly as he entered her easily.
"Oh my God, Ben!" she cried, pulling his body tightly into hers. "I've missed you so!"
"Easy, baby, easy...."
Ben worked her slowly and evenly. She was a rhythmic lover, a woman who through her own sense of self-possession had developed a concerted manner of moving which could provide her with the ultimate release. Ben had learned long ago just how to play with her movements, to extract the most from her and thus control her.
Their breathing was heavy but smooth as Ben shifted into high gear. With each thrust inside she grew closer and closer until finally she hit it. Her body vibrated under his as he came one second afterwards. Finally, they were both at rest ... their bodies having merged into one, their souls having united in a flight of supreme ecstasy.
"What the Hell do you do, Ben, keep a chart or something?"
Elaine knew that Ben was the kind of man who loved many women and could never be devoted to just one. She realized that if she was to gain any pleasure at all from him that she could claim no hold. There would never be room for jealousy in a relationship with Ben Grant.
Ben got up from the floor, lit two cigarettes and handed one to Elaine. She lay back on the floor, still naked, and her legs spread just slightly. Modestly had never been one of her hang-ups.
"You look distressed, Ben. Wasn't I good enough?"
"You were terrific! I don't know why I stayed away so long."
But he was upset. Something was eating at him and Elaine had to know what it was.
"The fire?" She asked, leaning up on her elbows and drawing her thighs together.
"Yeah," replied Ben, throwing her a quick look then letting his eyes move down to her patch, "we think it was arson. Jimmy found an empty gas can in the pasture behind the barn. He traced it down and found that it was from Ernie's station."
"Who bought it, then?"
"Don't know. Except that it was the kind of can that Ernie used for only a year ... and that year ended about six months ago."
Elaine could not decide what he was driving at. It was always difficult for her to think clearly when she was sitting around in the nude with a naked man sitting next to her. She had to laugh.
"What the Hell's so funny?" Grinned Ben, remembering how she was after a good lay.
"I just can't figure out what the fuck you're talking about!"
But Ben became very serious again. Fire was his business and the crime of arson to him was one of the most serious he could imagine. He was also somewhat irked with Elaine. She had almost lost her only son because of this fire, and yet she could laugh at his attempt to explain his theory of arson. He decided for the millionth time that women were strange after they fucked.
"It's simple, Elaine," he persisted, "that barn has been vacant for at least five years. When the Brownings moved, they cleaned up the place because I made them. That place was a hazard to the kids who always play there. So, that gas can couldn't have gotten there as a leftover ... besides which Ernie didn't have that type of can until a year ago. So, whoever set that fire had to buy it from Ernie somewhere between a year and a half and six months ago."
"Why would someone want to set a fire like that? It doesn't make any sense!"
Ben lit another two smokes. He watched Elaine's breast rise as she reached over to accept her cigarette.
"I don't know. Some people get kind of sick about these things. I mean, sometimes it's a sexual thing with them and they do it for no other reason than that."
Elaine rose and walked over to him. She arched her stomach towards him and pulled apart her sex lips. "Well look at you...." she chided, "you do both! you start 'em and you put 'em out!"
Ben pulled her to him and kissed her tuft of brown hair. He had become disturbed by the thought that possibly a sick and dangerous arsonist might be lurking within his territory. The idea was a direct threat to his own power, to his ability to protect those people who lived within Seaside. Without that power he would be rendered impotent-unable to affect anything.
"You look tired, Ben...." Elaine was kind and unconcerned. Ben looked down to her hand. She was holding his soft prick delicately.