Chapter 6

After leaving the house the next morning without breakfast, Jeff busied himself in the office. There was another confrontation with the Colonel regarding Arthur's mishandling of the specification reports, but Jeff avoided exposing Arthur.

Arthur accused Jeff of messing up his figures, Jeff denied it. The Colonel got mad. The bickering between Jeff and Arthur continued.

"All right, knock it off!" the Colonel thundered. "I won't have this arguing between you two. You'll stop or I'll stop it for you!"

The Colonel's meaning was clear. It was a threat of dismissal to one of the belligerents. He glared at the two men.

When Arthur had returned with the figures, the Colonel studied them carefully. The Colonel had a fast head for figures. He was anything but a stupid man. He raised his head and frowned at Jeff. "I'd say you were under ordering."

Jeff saw a glitter of triumph leap into Arthur's eyes. He said evenly, "Are you figuring a two-stall garage, Colonel? If you are, you'll realize we haven't built a house with a two-staller for six months."

A hungry sharpness appeared in the Colonel's eyes. He bent back to his figuring. Arthur looked as though he were on the verge of a nervous collapse. There was an anguished, prayerful entreaty in his eyes. Suffer, you bastard, Jeff thought. He knows now that I know. He knows his neck is on the line and he'll die a thousand times while he waits for me to bring the ax down on it.

The Colonel bounced his pencil off his desk. "You're right," he said. He looked at Arthur, and his cold eyes were waiting.

Arthur said frantically, "I never had new specifications made. I know how much lumber goes into the second garage. I subtract, that's all."

It was a lame excuse. It limped along like a three-legged dog. A suspicious man would have belabored that excuse until it screamed for relief. But Arthur was the Colonel's son.

"Of all the goddamn stupid things to do," the Colonel exploded. "Bring these specs up to date before you leave here."

"Yes, sir," Arthur said weakly. He had been given a reprieve. But a sword still hung over his head. Suspicion could enter the Colonel's mind at any moment. The agony in Arthur's eyes was pitiful to see.

It all wound up with Jeff suggesting to the Colonel that the two men check each other's work, then have the Colonel check the final work. The word "efficiency" was brought up by Jeff and that is what sold the Colonel. If there was anything he loved, it was efficiency.

Arthur realized his little game between himself and Grant Copeland was over, but if he did not keep his mouth shut, everything might be over for him, period.

Jeff walked back to his desk. Arthur approached, a murderous look on his face. "You think you're goddamned clever, don't you?" he snapped.

Jeff's face was the picture of innocence. "Just trying to be helpful, Arthur."

"I'll fix you if it's the last thing I do!"

That burned Jeff. Angrily, he asked, "Would you like to go back in there and reopen the matter? You're in no shape to fix anybody. You're alive because I let you be. Don't push your luck, Arty."

Arthur looked at Jeff with a stunned expression cementing his face into a mask of horror and disbelief. He whirled around sharply and strode back to his desk without saying a word.

Jeff smiled to himself. Sweat, you son-of-a-bitch, he thought. I hold the cards now, buddy-boy.

The thought of Peggy suddenly popped into his head. Could this affair with her possibly provide a source of danger to him? He did not think so. Of course, if he got caught, his ass would be mud. She was not the type to blab, but that look in her eyes scared him. Well, easy enough to fix that-he just would not see her, anymore. He was in a hell of a lot better position at work now that he had ever been and he would rather have that than a few pieces of tail on the side. Maybe she would satisfy herself somewhere else. Maybe Maria would change if he made a real try at it.

But Peggy Copeland had something that he longed for. And those parties ...

The day went by quickly for Jeff. Driving home that night, he felt good. It was one of those rare days when everything had gone good. It was a novel feeling for him.

He laughed as he remembered the bitter defeat in Arthur's eyes. And he had gained standing with the Colonel. Arthur had been the big objection to his job. With Arthur hobbled, would things get better?

No, they would turn suddenly worse, and he found it out as soon as he walked in the door. Maria was in the living room. There was enough poison in her eyes to destroy a dozen men. She said, "I suppose you're satisfied now."

"Huh? Satisfied about what?"

"Trying to get Arthur into trouble with his father by messing in his work."

"Oh, come on, Maria, who the hell told you anything as crazy as that?"

"Arthur."

"Well, you tell your dear brother Arthur that he's full of shit," Jeff snapped. He wondered immediately why Arthur persisted in needling him, knowing he could get himself in real trouble if everything came out in the open. "He's just trying to cover up some of his stupidity."

"How dare you call my brother stupid?"

"It's easy-he has a degree in it." Then he realized that he had had a very good day. Perhaps he could still salvage the part that was suddenly going sour. "How about going out to dinner tonight?" he asked cheerily.

"I wouldn't go any place with you!" she snapped.

He looked at her, shrugged. He went to his room, undressed and stepped under the shower. While the water cascaded over him, he tried to think of a good place to eat and how nice it would be if Maria would go with him.

"Are you going with me?" he asked when he had dressed.

"I am not," she clipped.

"Suit yourself."

He went out. It was a cloudy evening. The air was oppressively sultry. June was only a few days away. It was a month of violent heat and equally violent storms. June was also the month of the dreaded tornadoes. This section of the country had been hit with such savage intensity and frequency that it had come to be called Tornado Alley.

He ate his meal in silence, then stopped at a lounge and had three drinks. He thought of Peggy Copeland. He thought, too, of Sue Drake. He wondered how dangerous it would be to call either of them. A married man making calls to married women would be frowned upon by the Colonel. He thought about Arthur and his connection with Peggy Copeland. That was a mismatch if there ever was one. He wondered what Arthur had that Peggy wanted because, as he saw it, Sue was in need of something that Arthur was not giving her. Or did Sue just have hot rocks for him?

He got up and went to the pay phone in the vestibule of the lounge. He dropped his dime in and dialed every number except the last one. He debated briefly, then dialed the final number.

Sue was elated. Yes, she would be more than happy to meet him at the lounge. No, Arthur was not home. He had gone out to some kind of meeting and would not be home until late.

"What did you have in mind?" Sue asked coyly.

"Well, if you don't bring little Steve along, I have a lot of things in mind," Jeff said.

"I can take him next door. Madge has a sitter at her house tonight. I'm sure the sitter can watch two kids as easily as one."

"Good. I'll see you in half an hour."

Jeff did not think much of the idea of meeting Sue in a public place after he had made the arrangement. He shook his head as the bartender offered him another drink. He got up and went outside. He waited for Sue in front of the place.

While he waited, he thought of the wooden bench in Peggy's yard, then the lounge. Neither had been comfortable. The back seat of the car was a teenage thing. This time, he thought, he would get comfortable. If he was going to have sexual relationships outside his home, there was no use going at it like an amateur, he told himself.

"I've got just the place picked out, Sue," he said when she strode up to him some forty minutes after he had called her. He had already reflected on that ridiculous affair on the bathroom floor with Sue. "Don't ask any questions, don't say a word. I'm taking you somewhere where we can be comfortable."

They walked to the parking lot where Jeff had parked his car. He kissed her lightly before seating her in the passenger's seat. He clicked the door shut, went around to the other side and got in. Within seconds, they were on the highway heading out of town.

He put his hand on the seat and felt for Sue's. He wound his fingers into hers, felt their warmth. There was a slight, instinctive motion of withdrawal, but then she relaxed and let her hand lie in his. He felt suddenly very close to her, as though this was the most natural thing in the world to do.

"Sue, I hope you're not against going to a motel," he said.

There was a long period of silence. He thought that she had not heard and was about to repeat what he had said when he felt her hand pull out from under his.

"That's cheap," she said.

Now it was his turn to be silent for a time. She had surprised him. "What do you mean, cheap?" he asked.

"I couldn't do anything like that, Jeff. It would make me feel cheap. Isn't there some place else?"

"There's always a bathroom floor back at the project."

"Oh, don't be silly," she said. "Do we have to go anywhere? I mean, we're in the car and ... "

Oh, no, not again, he though. "The car is uncomfortable," he said. He wanted to tell her doing it in the car was even worse than going to a motel.

"Yes, but it's a lot safer. I wouldn't want to take a chance on someone recognizing me checking into a motel. What we did in the project was bad enough. Afterward, I was scared to death."

"Okay, Sue, have it your way. I'll see if I can find a good place to park."

The excitement of what he was about to do seemed to keen his eyesight. Within five minutes, he spotted a narrow little lane off the main highway and pulled the car about a half mile into it. The underbrush was sparse on either side. He plunged the car into it, virtually burying the car in the foliage.

In feverish, almost hysterical passion, as though they had both thought of the same thing at precisely the same time, they clung together, their lips alive, trembling, sliding, tremendous shudders gripping them as they remained in that frozen embrace. Her lips were warm, smooth, eager. Their bodies strained to move closer, their mouths gasping, grinding, devouring each other.

"Sue ... Sue ... " he murmured when they finally managed to tear themselves apart. But it was only for a moment, for she clutched his face to hers, circling his neck with her arms, holding him tight.

"Don't say anything, Jeff, darling," she whispered. "Don't talk." She drew his mouth to hers again. He felt his heart lurch and pound as the desire drove at him, turning his body into a cauldron of liquid fire.

The pressure mounted to fever pitch, and she abruptly tore her lips away. "Oh, Jeff, I don't know what's come over me. I can't seem to help myself, anymore."

And with that, she tore away from him viciously, as though afraid her conscience might make her change her mind. But she tore away for a reason, and it was to struggle out of her dress, bra and panties. She tossed her clothes aside, then sat erect in the seat, her arms folded under her breasts. "Jeff," she said, her voice throbbing as she turned to him and lifted the nipples so that they pointed at him, "these are yours. Please kiss them."

He needed no urging. He went willingly, helplessly enthralled by her calm insistence, and bent his face to her titties, kissing them, his lips closing on the erect nipples. Above him he heard Sue's pleasured sighs, felt her arms tighten on his head. He sensed new tremors beginning in her legs. Her breathing was gasping, struggling.

"Oh, that feels too good," she sighed. She adjusted her body at an angle across the seat. She moved her fingers in his hair, twisting as though trying to wind something up.

Slowly, she slid her soft, warm body down on the seat. She applied pressure to the back of his head and he knew immediately what she wanted. But he was cramped, could barely move.

"I'm going to have to open the door," he muttered. He reached behind him and undid the latch. As he slid out, he tugged her with him until her ass was on the very edge of the seat.

"Jeff," she said softly, "do you mind doing it to me that way?" She asked the question while his lips were just starting to move across the top on her pubic pad of hair.

"Do you like it?"

"I-I don't know."

"What does that mean? That you've never had it done to you before?"

"I've often wondered how it was."

He thought a moment as he blew his hot breath into the coiled hair and felt it return in a wash of sexual aroma. "What about Arthur? Didn't he ever go down on you?"

"A-Arthur and I don't have a very good relationship when it comes to sex. Sometimes he doesn't want me for months at a time."

He moved his lips to the tender skin on the inside of her thigh. He took a portion of the flesh and touched it with his tongue. She smelled fresh and clean and he laid his face onto her pussy and inhaled the sweet aroma of her.

"Do you ever do it to Maria?" she asked.

"She's not interested in sex.

She thinks it's dirty."

"You mean ... everything?"

"She and Arthur would make a good pair."

Sue giggled as he blew a puff of warm air against the lips of her pussy. He did not move away as he talked. "I'm in the same boat as you are, Sue. Sometimes I can't get anything for months, either. And I'm not talking about anything but plain, ordinary sexual intercourse."

"Do you like to do things different?"

"At first I thought there was only one way," he said, still not moving his face from her crotch. "Then I got around a little and found out there were things to enjoy that I never knew about. Yes, I like to do different things. I like doing this to you."

He flicked out his tongue and touched the lips of her pussy, then burrowed until he felt the liver-slick inner membranes. She gasped and he drove his tongue into her as far as he could, then withdrew it slowly. Just before taking it out, he thrust it upward to tickle her clitoris, and as he did, he felt her fingers snatch harshly at his hair and her nails dig into his scalp. He slid his hands under the twin balloons of her ass and lifted her slightly. He paused over her cunt for some moments, looking down into the dark patch nested on a sea of shimmering white skin that seemed to shine with a spectral glow, reflecting rays of moonlight, seemingly radiating a luminescence of its own. As he held her cheeks, little spasms raced through her, the movement making her ivory mounds dance and quiver on her chest.

"Kiss me there again ... please," she whimpered.

He did. He lashed out with his tongue and ate at her hungrily, dipping his head up and down as his tongue washed over her pussy from its very bottom to the padded pad at the top. He felt her entire body shake and tremble, and her breath was mixed with soft moans of ecstasy. He moved the tip of his tongue upward and found her clitoris. He stabbed at it with a new pressure and a new urgency. He was snorting and moaning. His fingers kneaded the flesh of her ass and he raised and lowered her to coincide with his own rhythm.

"Ohh, Jeff, Jeff ... "

He tried to take the little knob into his mouth but could only agitate it with his tongue. It was enough. She clutched at his hair and thrust her hips upward in one giant surge. She rammed her wet pussy into his face.

"Lick, lick, lick," she said rapidly. Her hips slammed up and down just as quickly. "Ohhh ... Ohhhh ... yes-sssss ... "

He lay with his face between her smoldering thighs for a long time. Then he realized that his knees hurt from being pressed onto the twig-strewn ground beside the car. He swiped his hand across her pussy to remove some of the wetness, then struggled to his feet. His cock stood out in front of him and he moved between her legs and prepared to sink it into her wet box. He opened the lips with the fingers of one hand as he held his throbbing cock with the other. Then he stopped suddenly.

"Did you ever think about kissing it?" he asked, sounding timid.

"You mean sucking on it?" she asked. "Yes, I have."

"Yeah, I know-Arthur wouldn't let you," he said wryly.

"Do you want me to?"

"Yes-just a little."

She pushed her body into a sitting position on the seat. Her legs were still dangling out of the car and he stood between them. She reached out and took hold of his cock, then looked up at him. "I-I've never done it before," she said. "If I do it wrong, will you show me how to do it?"

"Yes."

She moved her face forward. She held the stiff cock in both hands and studied the plum-like head. She touched the hot head against her lips and held it there for some moments. He could feel her hot breath on it and he snaked one hand around her neck and drew her toward him. Her mouth opened, then closed on the thick muscle. He moved his hips back and forth to make it slid in and out, then put his hands on the sides of her face and held her in place.

"Just relax, baby," he soothed. "Don't bite. Just let your lips slide over it and press your tongue against it. When you learn that, you start sucking."

"Ummhmmm," she murmured.

Jeff worked with her for some time. He winced as her teeth scraped the tender skin, he felt sorry when he moved forward too quickly and heard her gag. But after a time, she seemed to be able to suck it without instructions from him and he held her head and fucked her mouth with a slow and gentle movement of his hips.

"That's enough," he said at last. "I don't want to ... "

She fell back on the seat and waited for the hot prong to invade the lovely heaven between her legs.

"Fuck me," she whispered.

And he did.