Chapter 6
Dale looked after his wife and Mitch going off together hand in hand. It gave him a peculiar feeling. He wanted them to be friends but it disturbed him. He shook it off, not wanting to be disturbed. It was good that Mitch liked Kathy-very good.
As for Kathy she hadn't given Dale a thought. She was in it now and she'd see it through all the way. Mitch led her into a den. The first thing she noticed was that there was no bed or couch and she thought that was strange.
She realized she had said something stupid when she asked Mitch, "Are you going to surprise me?"
Mitch only said, "No. I want to know you better."
In the meantime when everyone had gotten over the surprise of Mitch and Kathy leaving the room so unceremoniously, Liz said to Dale, "Everybody's so damn formal tonight. Why don't you take off your jacket. Get comfortable. I assure you Kathy's going to be comfortable pretty quick."
"Yeah," Natalie added, "are you cold or something?"
She helped Dale off with his jacket. Liz kissed him on the cheek. Natalie put her hand in his shirt and scratched his chest.
"What a man," she sighed. "This should be a pretty good evening."
In the den Mitch pushed a button and a portable bar spun out of the wall. "First," he said, "I'm going to mix you my special little warmer-upper. It turns sweet kittens into man-eaters."
He mixed the drinks, measuring small amounts meticulously. "Ah," he said after sipping it, "this is just right." He handed it to her.
"Quite good," she said pleasantly, after a swallow.
Mitch thought, "I love Liz and we're in it for life. But if ever I were to marry again, this is the kind of girl I'd love."
To Kathy he said, "Did you notice how we shook them up out there? Pretty good."
Kathy pouted. "That makes us even." She thought of how upset she was an hour before when she felt she was being sold into slavery. Yet now it all seemed natural. Maybe it was the drinking. And maybe it was because she liked Mitch.
Mitch didn't understand the remark. "You mean you got something against sex?" He always came to the point.
Kathy thought about that "Not at all. I like sex. But there are some things people don't do. I can't explain it but sex has always been such a private thing. I think I react against some forms of sex."
"Like what?"
"Like ... well, I suppose anything in public." Mitch laughed. He was sophisticated but he under- stood. "You're okay people." He changed the subject. "The color of your drink is just a smidgeon too brown. So we add a dash of...." and he poured something else into the drink. "Now how is it?"
Kathy sipped it. "Mmmm. Sweet."
"It's called Mitch's sneak punch. It sneaks up on you."
Kathy responded boldly "Like you?"
"You bet," Mitch answered with enthusiasm.
Kathy was flirting now. Not with anything in mind. She was just being feminine. "Is that a promise?"
"You know," Mitch said with enthusiasm, "when I make love to you, the way I'll make love to you, there won't be anything left but your smile."
Kathy thought about that. "That might be very interesting," she said. "I think I'd like to take you up on that."
Mitch kissed her lightly on the cheek. "Let's see what happens, eh?"
In the living room Liz and Natalie continued to gang up on Dale.
Liz with both hands inside Dale's shirt was cooing, "You're bigger than you look, big boy. So big and so strong, too."
Dale couldn't help but be flattered. These were two attractive girls after him. He said, he thought modestly, "I try to keep in shape. I work out every morning."
"You must promise me," Natalie giggled, "not to hurt anything. Promise."
Dale was a little square. "I promise. I'm always careful."
"You're worrying about the wrong thing," Liz said. "I just hope everything is proportionate with this big boy." She laughed. They were having fun putting Dale on.
"Oh, I'm very muscular," Dale said. "You see I specialize in muscular tension exercises like this." He showed them a couple and they "oo'd" and "ah'd." He remembered what Liz had said. "I'm proportionate," he boasted.
Natalie felt his arm muscle and he flexed it.
"Wonderful," she said. "So hard." He smiled.
"Now wait a minute," Liz said firmly. "My prerogative as a hostess. I have firsties on him."
Natalie grimaced. Then she had a thought. "I can't have Irv-remember no husbands at parties so I automatically get Dale and you get Irv." She was gleeful.
Irv overheard it and said, "It's great to be appreciated."
Liz's answer was, "It's not your fault, Irv. You know I appreciate you. Remember last time? It's all Mike and Thelma's fault. You can't have a good party with just three couples."
Kathy and Mitch were walking back into the room. Mitch had his arm around Kathy's waist. Kathy balanced her drink. This time Kathy looked at Dale with his shirt unbuttoned and the girls all over him. She had no reaction at all. She was just happy.
Liz noticing Kathy's glance at her own husband insisted the men take off their jackets. She collected the jackets and took them into the bedroom.
Natalie kissed Dale hard and long and then said huskily, "Come, lover, let's dance."
They danced very close and Kathy acted oblivious to the tableau. Everyone in the room had a drink in his had and was belting it pretty good. The music was louder and so was the conversation.
Natalie pressed hard against Dale and her backside seemed to grind in a circle. Dale wasn't resisting.
Irv watched his wife dance with hypnotic interest. "Hell," he said, "if Arthur Murray gave lessons like that they'd close him up." Irv had long ago forgotten how to be jealous. He enjoyed Natalie now whether it was with another man or himself.
Mitch was looking searchingly at Kathy. "Well," he muttered, "there's no turning back now. We're off." He lifted his glass in a toast. "To fun and games," he said.
Kathy clicked her glass against his and giggled, "To fun and games-your fun and games." They drank.
Natalie and Dale just about as one, danced slowly past Kathy, close enough to touch her. Kathy watched them with keen interest.
She turned to Mitch. "That's my husband," she said drunkenly.
"Yeah, I know," Mitch answered. "If he isn't careful he'll get her pregnant right on the dance floor."
Kathy laughed hysterically. "Oh Mitch," she laughed, "you're so funny. So funny!"
But when Dale and Natalie passed a second time, Kathy cocked her head and asked Dale, "Having fun, you old wolf?"
"Are you?" Dale asked.
"Am I? I am having a marvelous time." Even though Dale danced out of hearing range, Kathy kept talking. "I expect to have even more fun than I'm having now. Mitch promised me I would. Right?"
"You never said such truth," Mitch said with fervor.
Kathy thought for a moment. "When is everything going to start?"
"Very soon," Mitch said huskily.
Kathy squeezed his hand. "Damn it, Mitch. You don't drink enough. That's what's wrong. If you want to have fun you gotta drink like I do." She drank her drink down and held out her glass, "Filler up," she commanded and Mitch poured for her.
She weaved a little. "Tell you what, Mitch, I gotta sit down on something comfortable." She pulled Mitch along to the divan where she rested her head on Mitch's shoulders.
She thought everything was so vague. She couldn't quite remember or understand everything. Let's see. Dale wanted her to sleep with some other men but she couldn't remember why. The thought frightened her but she thought if Dale was in the house, there'd be no cause for fright. She wondered when she had to do this. She wished it could all begin because she was getting sleepy.
"Hey Mitch," she said, "do you like me?"
Mitch kissed her daintily on the cheek and Kathy thought that didn't feel so bad. In fact it was comforting and warm. See, she was starting to get into the spirit of the whole thing.
Mitch was whispering to her. "Convention has a lot to do with time and place. Take the Eskimos. With them it is perfectly moral and friendly to exchange wives. Everyone approves of it. Yet when Americans do it, it is considered unusual and even immoral. I assure you it is moral and good. I mean good because it helps the marriage of all who try it. It makes you human and takes the jealousy out of marriage. That in itself is worth a lot. But more important, it's fun. We all look forward to Friday nights."
It sounded okay to Kathy. "I'm game," she said. "You know, like Dale says, I'd try anything once.' And if I like it a lot, more than once."
Mitch put his arm around Kathy. "Don't worry. You'll like it and you'll be happy."
Irv came over and sat on the other side of Kathy. "You're very beautiful," he said to her.
Kathy glowed.
"Go away," Mitch growled. "Kathy and I are trying to become friends. You're spoiling everything."
"You see," Irv said, "I'm charming, witty and attractive and yet I'm not wanted around here."
"Yes, you are," sympathized Kathy. "I want you." She kissed Irv on the cheek.
"You see, you boor," he gloated to Mitch.
Mitch got angry. "Damn it, Irv, go find someone else to bug. Go ahead!"
Mitch stood up but didn't move. Irving walked off.
As Irving turned around Mitch accidentally or on purpose he let his fingers slip from Kathy's shoulder to her breast just for a split second, then he excused himself. Kathy started at the contact. It was so sudden. It gave her a peculiar dizzying feeling. It was the first time since her marriage that any man except for her husband had touched her breast.
Kathy was particularly sensitive in her breasts. For one split second she had a fantasy of Mitch kissing a nipple. She shuddered, part in fright and part in thrill.
Kathy remembered back to her fifteenth birthday party. That was a first all right. She smiled to herself. The party was on the family's large lawn and when it got dark small lanterns were lit.
There were some more lanterns needed and Joey, her boyfriend at the time, and she went to the garage to get the lanterns. The garage was dark, tucked away from the gaiety going on. They fumbled their way to a storage bin with the help of one match. Once in the bin Joey kissed her and excited by the party and her birthday gifts she returned the kiss with gusto.
Joey's hand crept into her dress and bra and two fingers fondled her nipple. She said, "Don't" but she never wanted him to stop. It was wonderful. Joey moved his hand from one breast to another and she just folded into Irm.
She was weak with thrills. They sat on the bin floor, he undid her shoulder straps and bra and with two firm but small breasts staring him in the face he kissed and fondled her breasts until she had an orgasm. He never touched her below the waist. He didn't have to.
After that she made up some nonsense about how a girl must have her breasts massaged in order that they be firm. So Joey massaged her several times a week until he went off to college. What wonderful times they were. Never could she relive those thrills.
Then many years later she met Dale. She thought he was the handsomest man she had ever seen. At first she thought it would be hopeless to pursue him or lay out the bait for him. She met him at parties and he was always with a gorgeous girl.
Then one night while she was washing her hair, the phone rang and it was Dale. He was looking for a girl friend of Kathy's. Kathy didn't know where the girl friend was. It seemed her girl friend was going to talk to Dale about insurance. Kathy had never known what Dale did. Now she knew he sold insurance. They talked on the phone and he asked Kathy if she had enough insurance.
Kathy figured it was a small price to pay for getting closer to Dale. She invited him over to the house. Her parents were out and she met him with a bandana on her newly washed hair.
She stared into his serious brown eyes for an hour while he enumerated the advantages of twenty-year life insurance. She said yes to everything and signed everything he wanted.
She knew all she wanted was to lie next to him on a bed forever and ever.
They made a dinner date for the following Saturday night because she'd have to get her medical check-up and then see Dale again.
They had dinner and then went back to Kathy's house for some papers. It was late and that's when he kissed her the first time, a goodnight kiss. She held onto him and the kiss gained power as the seconds ticked off.
They were standing up, yet by mutual consent sat down to continue the kiss.
It was then for the first time he put his hand on her bare breast. Dale had a light touch. It was thrilling. She pressed into him so that the touch became heavier.
She knew she shouldn't be responding as she was but she was so passionate she couldn't stand it. He knew how he was affecting her and he took advantage of the situation.
Her passion had reached such heights and her breathing was so heavy that she was ashamed but beyond control.
What a night that was!
The passion had settled now. She didn't lose control of herself anymore with Dale. It had become a quiet love. She had always been faithful and now she was on the brink of her first infidelity. And with her husband's consent. It was all very strange. She waited and wondered.