Chapter 8
Jeff Marston ate a solitary breakfast. He felt certain Maria was awake. She was an early riser. But her door had been closed when he passed her room, and, if he judged correctly, it would be closed until he left the house.
He had never considered divorce before. But now that he had had extra-marital relationships with two women, it occurred to him that there was a great deal lacking in his marriage. He, liked Sue, did not feel remorse over having gotten sex outside his home. It was not a thing to be proud of, yet he did not feel guilty, either. He hated to think of sex with his wife as a legal right because that made it appear she was giving him something when, in a true marital relationship, the partners gave equally to each other.
And what about Sue? She was not satisfied at home. A divorce for her was inevitable. Were his feelings for her strong enough to drop everything he had and start over with her? He felt drawn to her, more so than he was to Peggy. Peggy was an attractive woman who could satisfy his sexual needs but did she have enough going for her to make it last a lifetime? He doubted it. Sue emerged bright and clear, like a picture being slowly and carefully focused.
He went to the office to learn that a tornado had touched down in nearby Springdale. It was news to Jeff. He had not read the morning paper or listened to the radio. He knew the town. He had driven through it several times. It was only twenty miles away.
Jeff went to his desk and checked his work sheet for the day, then left the office and headed for the project. He passed Arthur in the parking lot. The man's eyes gleamed with malevolence. Jeff had been checking his figures. They were correct in every detail.
He walked through the project, checking the progress of the workmen, then headed for the park. Indian Bow has its own park. It was a scanty one because the Colonel hated the thought of all that wasted ground.
Jeff went to the park whenever he had a problem to unravel. He frowned when he saw that his favorite bench was occupied by a woman. It sat well back among the shrubbery, giving one a sense of privacy.
He was about to turn aside when he recognized the woman on the bench. It was Sue. Staring straight ahead, she did not hear him approach. He was startled by the sudden tremor that shot through his body when he saw her supple body, her luscious breasts, her provocative smile. Yes, there was more to their friendship than just a casual fling.
"You're a long way from home," he said, smiling warmly.
She tried to smile but her eyes suddenly sparkled with tears.
"Something wrong?" he asked.
She nodded.
"Arthur?"
She nodded again.
"Want to talk about it?" he asked gently.
"Not really. I have no right to burden you with my troubles."
"Honey, you and I are in the same boat. We're outsiders."
"I know," she said softly. "I know you're not very happy with your marriage either."
"Happy? What's that?"
She brushed a hand across her eyes, sniffed, then looked up at him. "It's something you and I have had together," she said. "Those precious few moments were the happiest I've known for a long time."
He smiled. If she was happy with those two uncomfortable sessions, what would she think of a weekend in bed with him? He wanted to kiss her. Suddenly, he could restrain himself no longer. He reached out and pulled her to him. His lips found hers and as they met he felt little bolts of lightning streaking through his brain.
She pulled her lips away at last. A slight tremor ran through her. Her voice was muffled against his shoulder. "I feel so ... so good when I'm with you. Something just comes over me, some kind of strange feeling that I've never felt before."
He clutched her to him and kissed her again. He felt the twinge in his groin, felt her breasts pressing into his chest. It was still daylight and his mind was racing for some kind of plan where they could enjoy each other's bodies. But necking in public was bad enough. Sexual intercourse was out of the question.
"I need you, Jeff," she said against his ear. "I need that." She put her hand in his lap and grasped his hard cock.
"This is a hell of a place," he said, sucking in breath. "By the way, how did you know I'd come here?"
She smiled up at him. "I know a little more about your habits than you think," she said. "I wasn't sure you'd come, of course. I just thought I'd take a chance. If it was meant to be, it would be." She brushed his cheek with her lips. Her hand remained on his rock-hard rod.
"You keep that up and I'll be forced to rape you right here in the park," he said.
"I wouldn't mind. I came prepared. See?" She took his hand and pulled it up under her skirt. She was wearing no panties and he shuddered as his fingers felt the warm skin, then the hair of her pussy.
"Oh, God," he moaned.
And while he was toying with the dainty hairs on her pussy, her hand was busy with the tab of his zipper. He only noticed when he felt her fingers curl around his stiff prick.
"This is crazy," he said. "We don't dare do anything out here."
"Couldn't I ... sit on your lap?"
His rising passion had taken command of his senses. He did not wait. He lifted her bodily from the bench and placed her on his lap. The hot shaft burned against the soft skin of her leg. She trembled and raised herself so that one leg was on each side of him, her knees resting on the bench beside his thighs.
He reached down and took hold of his cock while she put her fingers into her twat and opened it. He could feel the tremendous heat of her box as the head of his cock neared it. His eyes darted across the park and studied the area for any sign of a human being.
"You'd better keep an eye out over my shoulder for anyone coming through the park," he said. "I'd hate like hell to get caught like this."
She was sinking lower on his rigid shaft, gritting her teeth and sucking breath through them. Once she had settled on it, she began to move herself up and down slowly. He took hold of her at the small of her back and held her. He could barely move his own hips from his slouched position but he tried; he wanted to get it over with as soon as possible.
"Oh, darling, this is so wonderful," she sighed. "Oh, you feel so good inside me. You don't know what it does to me." She increased the tempo of her movements and hugged herself against him.
He could feel his cock deep inside her. She was incredibly hot, her chapel of love inflamed with her wild passion. He could feel minute twitchings in the walls of her cavern of ecstasy and he returned them with slight expansions of his glands.
There was no time for finesse, however. With her passion increasing with every stroke, she began to virtually bounce up and down on him, dropping her ass heavily onto his legs as she impaled herself on his prick, then rose from him with a soft sucking sound, then dropping again and making her knees clomp hard against the wooden bench.
The bench tilted crazily, then righted itself as Jeff threw his weight forward. But Sue was slamming down on him with such force that the bench rocked again, hanging just on the verge of tipping over, then falling back again.
Jeff's heels were digging in the ground as he tried to steady the bench. His arms flailed out to bring more weight forward. With her wild jouncing up and down on him and his arms flailing about, they gave every appearance of having a terrific brawl.
Then Jeff felt the familiar tingle in his groin and was swept with a sense of relief. It would be over in a moment.
But what was over was the bench. It rocked backward, Jeff tried to draw himself forward, stretching his arms out and pulling his legs off the ground. But Sue was rocking violently. She had lost herself completely, passing into some kind of delirious half-coma that made the tilting of the bench seem only as the spinning of her brain. She was brought sharply back to reality as the bench fell backward and she thudded heavily atop Jeff. But even then, there must have been some doubt in her mind as to what had really happened for she continued pumping up and down on his cock until he put his hands on her shoulders and shook her violently.
"Sue! Sue! For Christ's sake!"
"Huh? Wha ...?"
"It's over, baby. Get up." He said the words sharply.
"I-I didn't know ... I thought ... "
Despite his anxiety, he was forced to see the humor in their ridiculous situation. He wanted to lay there and laugh, but could not afford the luxury. Instead, he helped her off him, then quickly got his clothes back in order.
She was giggling by then.
"What are you laughing at?" he asked. "As if I didn't know."
She shook her head. "I don't know if I should tell you or not," she said, still laughing lightly.
"I'll bet I know," he said, grinning. "You figured you were having one of the wildest climaxes you've ever had. Right?"
She brushed at her skirt, fluffed lightly at her hair, looked around to see if anyone was near. "Something like that," she said. "Wow, I thought, this is really sensational. I think I-I, ah, came when we hit the ground."
"A stunning climax to a slow beginning," he laughed.
"You know," Jeff said, "one of these days I'm going to get you into a nice comfortable bed. If we keep this up, either one or both of us is going to get killed."
"I'd better run. I've been gone over an hour." She moved close to him and took his hand. "But it's been a wonderful hour."
"I'd like to make it a lifetime," he said.
Her eyes brightened. "You would? Oh, Jeff ... " She flung herself into his arms and turned her face up to him. He kissed her warmly.
"I think we've taken enough chances for one day," he said, easing her away. "Go home and ... and take a cold shower or something." He patted her playfully on the fanny.
She smiled at him, then turned and began to cross the park.
He watched her until she was out of sight. He had a warm feeling inside him. He remembered how wonderful her body had felt, the look in her eyes, the sweet smell of her. He felt his heart beat a little faster. He sighed and shook his head.
When Arthur returned from lunch that day, he saw the Colonel standing in the door of his office. There was a kind of urgency on the old man's face. The bottom dropped out of Arthur's stomach. He knows, he thought, he knows all about my little deal with Grant Copeland. Jeff must have told him.
"I've been waiting for you," the Colonel said gravely. "Come into my office."
Arthur's first reaction was to turn around and run. He steadied himself with an effort, then stepped into the head man's office.
"Sit down, Arthur," the Colonel said. He stared at Arthur in a queer way. When Arthur had virtually collapsed into a chair, the Colonel said, "I don't know how to tell you this." He fumbled for words, an unusual circumstance in any event. "It's about Sue."
Arthur straightened in his chair. An accident was his first thought.
"And Jeff Marston," the Colonel added.
Then the Colonel went on to tell Arthur how he had happened to be going through the park and had seen Jeff and Sue kissing. He had caught only a glimpse of them before Sue went out of the park, he told his son, but they were definitely kissing. Furthermore, he went on, Jeff had patted her on the back side just before Sue left. Arthur seized the opportunity with a quick lie. He told the old man he had known of it for some time but did not do anything because of little Steve, and he didn't want the disgrace of divorce against the family name.
The Colonel saw the sudden burst of rage on Arthur's face. His hand tightened on his son's shoulder. "Easy, boy," he said.
Arthur feigned shock and sadness, but inside himself he was filled with joy. Sue and Jeff had played right into his hands. All that remained was to rig up the final scene and it would be all over.
"Arthur," the Colonel said solemnly, "if you need me ... "
"Sure, Dad."
Under this great emotional strain, Arthur felt he could do no more work. He left the office, ostensibly to go home. He went, instead, to Peggy Copeland's house.
Peggy answered the ring. She took one look at who was calling and sunk into an immediate mood of disappointment. She had hoped Jeff would be her caller. "What do you want?" she asked irritably.
"I want to talk a little business with you, dear."
"Not like the last time I hope."
A broad grin spread over his face. "I'm here to talk, not make love."
"Come in," she said resignedly.
He entered, closing the door behind him. His arms reached out for her. She stepped back.
"Oh, no, none of that this time," she snapped.
"Not even a kiss?"
"Nope."
He shrugged, sighed. "Things have changed, Peggy. Everything's going to work out all right."
"How thrilling."
"Is Grant giving another of his parties this Saturday?"
She thought for a moment, gazing past him. "Yes, I believe he is," she said slowly.
"Good. Sue and I are coming."
Peggy's eyebrows rose in surprise. "Your wife. She'll only run out like your sister did."
He shook his head. "She'll have a special reason. She's got the hots for Jeff Marston."
"Whaaaaat? Sue and Jeff. I don't believe it. When did all this happen?"
"I don't have time to explain, but it's all perfect-just perfect. The important thing is that it happened. Now what we've got to do is fix it so the Colonel will find them together in bed. The old boy will blow his top. He'll throw both of them out on their asses. Then it'll be clear sailing for you and me, baby."
She wanted to protest, but found herself asking, "What do you want me to do?"
"Just get Jeff to the party Saturday night. Everything hinges on that."
She found herself breathing hard. She had given Jeff everything a woman could give a man. It had not been enough, apparently. The fury of a woman scorned surged within her. Although she had not seen Jeff to confirm what Arthur had just told her, she found herself believing him. She was angry. She felt somehow that Jeff belonged to her.
"You get Jeff to come and I'll see that Sue gets here. The Colonel saw them necking in the park, but that's not enough. If he finds them in bed together, that'll clinch everything," he said, even more excited now.
"Are you sure your father saw what he said he saw? He could have been mistaken."
"He saw, baby. When that old boy makes with a statement like that you can be sure it's the truth. All I've got to do is tell Jeff that Sue is here and he'll come, believe me."
"And where will you be while he's taking your wife to bed? Standing there showing them the way?"
"I'll bring her and then leave. I'll wait for your call to tell me it's time to bring the Colonel. I can make some excuse to duck out of here."
She looked away. She did not like the idea of setting Jeff up for a deal like this.
"Something wrong?" he asked.
"A lot of things could go wrong. Maybe neither one of them will fall for it. Maybe your father has had enough of our place and refuse to come. You know how he left here the last time."
"We'll just have to think of some way to make sure he gets her into bed. Once I tell that to the old man, he'll come running to get a first-hand look. Hell, even if Jeff isn't, the one in bed with her, it wouldn't matter. In that case, he'd be paired off with some other woman. Both their asses would be mud."
"I'll see what I can do," she said weakly.
His face brightened. "I know," he said. "We'll have all the women retire to the bedrooms. No man will know who he's going to get until he walks into that bedroom. We'll leave it up to Grant to see that Jeff gets Sue. Simple."
She looked at Arthur. His face was beaming. A flash of hate went through her. Why did jackasses like Arthur always seem to be holding all the aces?
"All right," she said. "I'll try to arrange it."