Finishing his drink, Ted lighted a cigarette and wandered around the patio and out into the terrace where the tall trees had already hidden the sun. The air was growing crisp. A cloudless sky kept a slight aura of light against the sides of the mountains, splashing upwards until the snow caps were a deep pink and orange and violet.
Ted couldn't help but think that all this just didn't seem right for Betty Lindsay. It wasn't her bag-one didn't associate her with the clean freshness of the outdoors. She seemed to belong to a world stunk up with the smell of money and booze, cigarette smoke and smelly, sweaty sheets.
CHAPTER ONE
It wasn't a particularly loud ring, but for a man who had hung one on the night before, it sounded like a computer had suddenly gone berserk. He didn't want to wake up. He wanted that damn noise to stop so he could pull the sheet over his head and die in peace.
His wish came true. The phone stopped ringing. He pulled the sheet tighter around his head, prepared to leave the world and all its racket behind.
But he didn't die. A female voice suddenly made him realize he'd like to live at least a little bit longer. There was a foggy recollection as Tai Ro's soft voice-as soft as pussy hair-spoke into the phone. The soft pussy voice was only part of her. There was a lot more worth remembering. A waterfall of black hair that tumbled over her ivory shoulders and skirted the cone-shaped, firm, but somewhat small tits that he had found so tasty the night before. And her pussy hadn't tasted bad, either, if he remembered correctly.
She had slipped into one of Ted's sports shirts and was standing next to the dresser with the phone in her hand. A very serious look had widened her large brown eyes and her lips made little contortions that Ted recognized as an acknowledgment of some sort. He had been in the Orient long enough not to associate facial expressions with what was really going on. Sometimes they were exactly opposite of their true meaning.
He looked at Tai Ro. The shirt had not been buttoned and it hung loosely over her frail shoulders. His eyes trailed downward from her face. The red-tipped tits were still as inviting as he had remembered. The bulge of her belly now seemed lesser. A wisp of silken hair, slightly matted from their fuck and suck session of the night before, crouched between her legs. His eyes moved down the well-formed but slightly curved legs.
The anvil that had been pounding in his head lessened to a dull thud. His scattered thoughts began to collect.
Tai Ro observed his torment without emotion.
"Oh, God," he muttered. "Who the hell's calling me at this time of day?"
Tai Ro moved to the side of the bed, bringing the phone with her. She smiled down at Ted. "It is for you," she said.
Ted took the phone from her and heard himself say, "Hello. Who's calling?"
Another female voice, this one at the other end of the line, greeted him with a cheery, "Good morning, sir. It is eight o'clock. You asked to be called at this time." Her tone was clipped, precise.
Ted managed a semi-incoherent "thank you" and hung up. He handed the phone back to Tai Ro, who had remained beside the bed. She had pulled the shirt around her, but when she reached for the phone, it parted again.
Despite his miserable hangover, Ted appreciated her beauty. Even though everything was a bit vague, he had to admit that his taste in women had been exceptionally good the night before. He tried to remember when and where he had found this lovely Oriental who called herself Tai Ro. He was surprised he remembered her name.
It all came back to him slowly and a bit hazily. A few drinks before going back to the States. Somewhere along the line he had overdone it. He recalled some kind of a joint, old papers on the walls, a really crazy place even for Hong Kong. The International-that was the name of the place.
But those pictures on the wall-one in particular, one of his old man; the black headline, "Convicted Embezzler Commits Suicide." Things began to piece together. He stared at the girl, wondering where he was. He knew he was in Hong Kong, of course. Beyond that....
"Mind, telling me where I picked you up?" he asked.
"It does not matter. You pay very well. You very drunk. I bring you here. We make much fucky-fuck. You something," she said, her voice like velvet.
He studied her a moment. "And where is here?"
"This is my home. Is where I live. Okay?"
He looked around. "I must have really been loaded," he murmured. Then, realizing she might take his remark as a personal affront, he quickly added, "But I'm glad I found you. At least I wasn't so goddamn bombed that I lost my touch for beautiful women." He caught the young woman by the waist and pulled her down. His lips sealed away whatever comment she had been preparing to utter. Her tits pressed against his bare chest.
"I did not want to waken you," Tai Ro purred, sinking down beside him on the bed. She looked down at the lump that had started forming in his crotch. "Ah, I see he is ready again." She reached down and took hold of his cock, squeezing it gently. "Is very big one, very big. Almost too much to get in mouth." She opened her mouth and put her fist against it.
His hands went to her tits. She sighed deeply as he began to fondle them. He ran his fingers over the erect nipples, slightly sore now from the heavy workout he had given them the night before. She moaned with delight as she sank closer to him.
Her legs parted and he could see the silken black hair around her pussy. When her lips fastened on his again she pushed the bed covers away and took his rigid cock in her hand, running her warm fingers along its side. Fondling the sack that held his balls and moving her lips around on his, tongue darting, she eased down over his chin, his chest, until she was within inches of the throbbing head of his prick.
"You like me to suck it a little?" she asked.
His hand went to the top of her head; a slight pressure was his reply, an upward shift of his hips affirming his desire.
Her lips opened and their coolness met the hotness of his cock. She slid the huge head in and out, holding it with one hand while the other played with his balls. She slid it back and forth, nipped lightly at it, and licked at the swelling knob, her tongue flattening against the entire surface, then flicking with its pointed tip, exciting, teasing. With one lunge-one hungry, devouring gulp-the entire shaft disappeared into her mouth and her sucking motions began in earnest-diving onto it, retreating, dragging squeezing lips over the entire length, sucking the swelled head, then devouring once again. She knew. She knew what it took to satisfy a man.
Ted lay quietly, like a patient on an operating table, and let Tai Ro suck his cock. There was nothing he could do to assist. His movements were only indications that he was being satisfied.
His climax came with a suddenness. The explosion, then a groaning, writhing, clutching. A stiffening of legs, a clenching of teeth. Bliss. Sheer and utter bliss.
Tai Ro made slower and slower motions, sucking lightly on the spent cock, her rhythms matching the spasms as they died slowly. She fondled his balls, tickling the last drop from him.
Then she withdrew her mouth and laid the spent cock beside her face and held onto it. She spoke softly to it, patted it.
After only a short rest, Ted sought Tai Ro's pussy, moving downward to spread her legs, then probing into the soft hair to locate the moist slit of her cunt. He worked one finger into it gently, moved it about. He positioned himself so he could take one of her tits in his mouth. He sucked on it with a slow, deliberate motion.
She still held his cock, lovingly, "It is very big," she said softly. "It does not go away."
"The way you work, baby, I don't think the damn thing will ever go down," he said.
"Fucky-fuck now?"
He grabbed her hips and swung her over atop his body, spreading her legs with little nudges of his knees, then moving his hips so that the end of his prick was prodding impatiently into her cunt hair.
With a quick movement, Tai Ro had opened her pussy and settled his cock inside her, nesting it with urgent little movements from side to side, back and forth, until her insides had moistened and enlarged sufficiently to welcome his probing cock once again. A low moan of pleasure came from her as she impaled herself completely.
"Ooh, you still very big in me," she moaned, wincing slightly. She began a slow movement up and down, her hips matching his stroke for stroke as he raised to meet her on her upstroke, pulled away as her petite ass rose in withdrawal.
Her inner movements, a muscular contraction and release, milked from him whatever juices he had left; her wild gyrations proved he had satisfied her as he had been satisfied.
"You are a wonderful lover," she whispered. "You very good fucky-fuck. In my business, it is not often that I find such true pleasure with a man."
Ted lifted himself up on one elbow and looked at her. There was a sincereness in her eyes that he knew was genuine.
"There's nothing wrong with the way you handle yourself, baby," he said. "Jesus, I'm about as fucked out as a guy can get." He put his hand on his slowly shrinking cock.
"Good fuck, huh?"
"You better believe it! And that ... that...."
"Suckee?"
"Yeah," he grinned. "You sure know how to blow. You must have practiced quite a bit to be so good at it."
She shrugged. "I try. Mostly Americans like that. At first I don't like, but now...." She shrugged again. "I like okay now. Sometimes less trouble than fucky-fuck. Easier. Do in car. Do in alley. Quick job."
"You've got a point there."
"One time suck big man while in restaurant. But very dark. Nobody see."
"You swallow the stuff?"
She shrugged again. "Is okay, not poison, not bad."
Ted studied her for some moments. He had long ago gotten over being shocked over what women told him or caring about what they did.
"You don't mind doing it then?" he asked.
Another shrug of her shoulders. "Suck cock no matter. Man squirts either way. Satisfied. Pay all the same. Hah, sometimes even more for suck job."
"That's blowjob, baby, not suck job," he grinned.
Her brow furrowed. "No blow cock," she said slowly, "suck it. Blow no good. See?" She bent over and took Ted's prick in her mouth and blew, sending a slight film of spit over his belly. "Is not good, right?" she said brightly, feeling she had made a good point.
"It's just an expression, kid. I'm surprised you haven't heard it before."
She smiled at him, her face glowing with some inner contentment. "No hear before, but then not long in business, either. Only few months. Learn much more later ... maybe." She stopped and looked at him intensely. "That is, if you teach me." She followed close behind with a hesitant smile.
"Not me, baby," Ted said quickly. "I've got to cut out. Remember? I've got a plane to catch."
Her lovely mouth formed a pout. "You said last night you would not go. You were going to stay with Tai Ro ... for long time, maybe forever."
Ted grinned. "I probably said a lot of things. I guess I really drank too much." As he said the words, it dawned on him just how drunk he must have been. He shot a look toward his pants which were slung carelessly over a chair. He knew if his five hundred bucks were gone he sure as hell wasn't going anywhere.
Tai Ro caught the look. "I don't take nothing from you," she said. "I don't bring you to my house if I want to steal from you."
He thought about that for a moment. "Yeah, I guess that's right," he admitted. He was angry with himself for being such a damn fool. After kicking around the world for the past ten years, he should have known better than to get loaded in a dive. It would have served him right if the girl had rolled him for every buck he had.
"You will keep your promise?" Tai Ro asked.
"Huh? What promise?"
"You say last night I good singer. You say if you no stay here you take me with you to States. I sing there. I make much money for you. That's what you say."
Ted forced a laugh. "A guy says a lot of things when he's plastered, baby. The money in my pants is plane fare. That's all there is. There just ain't no more. Not enough for two. Sorry about that."
He tried to remember what she was like as a singer. Maybe she did have a halfway decent voice. She had the sexy personality for a singer, maybe even in the States. But even if he wanted to do it, it took rolls and rolls of red tape to get an Oriental out of Hong Kong, let alone get her admitted to the States. Marriage was an easy answer, but Ted sure as hell wasn't in the market for marrying right now.
Tai Ro shrugged. The faint hope she had carried through the night had vanished. In truth, she hadn't believed his story anyway. She was young but she had learned early that a man was quite free with his words when he wanted something from a woman. And most of the time it was her "poo-say," as Ted had explained to her the previous night.
"Poo-say? What is poo-say?" she had asked.
"Nat poo-say, baby, it's pussy."
"That's what I say, poo-say. What is thot?"
"Thot," Ted laughed, "is that little fur piece you got between your legs. Your pussy, honey. What you use to fuck with."
"Oh," she had said. "Poo-say. That is funny name for gi. Never hear poo-say before."
"Gi? What the hell is gi?" Ted had asked.
She had eyed him with a twinkle in her eye. "That is my little chicken. A gi is chicken. Okay?"
Most of the evening, he now recalled, had been spent in trying to get across to Tai Ro that he wanted to go to bed with her. She had accepted a dozen times, yet in his drunken stupor he had failed to understand.
"I wish to hell I could take you with me to the States, baby," he said, "but it just isn't in the books. I'll pay you for your services, then I've got to get my ass the hell out of here." He rose from the bed, went over to the chair where his pants hung and dug in the pockets. He was relieved to find that Tai Ro hadn't helped herself to his money. And he was relieved, too, to find he hadn't blown it in the bar. In his drunken state he could easily have been shortchanged out of the entire roll. He peeled off two tens. "This is for you," he said. "You really know how to take care of a man." He grinned as he watched her take the bills and walk nimbly across the room to place them in her clothes. A glow of pleasure had come into her expressive dark eyes as she accepted the money. When she returned to the bed, her undulating hips worked on him, but he was too tired for further action. Besides, he had to catch his plane.
"You are a kind man," she whispered to him as she sat beside him. "You pay me last night and now you pay me again. Tai Ro very grateful."
"You earned it." He looked at her, at the tawny smooth skin. The thought struck him that she would be very desirable merchandise on the sex market of any large U. S. city. Then a frown followed. A few years as a hustler and that innocent look would disappear; the firm breasts would begin to sag, broken down by countless men pawing; the face would become hard and rough if from nothing else than rubbing it against whiskered chins or between hairy thighs. A great picture.
At that moment Ted wanted only to remember her as she was. "I have a plane to catch. Suppose you get some clothes on and get your ass out of here?" he said roughly.
Tai Ro's lips trembled slightly as though she wanted to say something. Instead, she rose from the bed and started to dress. Her actions were almost enough to stiffen Ted's cock again, but he fought against it by searching for his shorts and socks.
She turned to smile at him, realizing she was making him uncomfortable, and before he was fully dressed she came over to him for a long, deep kiss.
"I like you," she said.
Ted kissed her soft lips. "I might be back in Hong Kong some day. I'll look you up."
She rubbed her body against his. "You take later plane maybe?" she asked. She gyrated her hips against his.
"The answer is still no," he said, catching her hands as they went back of his neck, unsure of his own control. The desire and the memories of her were still fresh in his mind. The trouble was, if he stayed, he'd never get back to the States. Hell, how many times in the past had he been that close and said the hell with it at the last minute, to shack up with some exciting woman he'd just met.
Tai Ro's face clouded with disappointment. Her last try had failed. Yet, had she known how close she was to success, she would have been just a little bolder and more persistent.
CHAPTER TWO
After Tai Ro had left, Ted showered and shaved. A glance at his watch made him almost wish he had let Tai Ro stay a while longer. He still had two hours to catch his plane and in two hours-well, a guy could get in a hell of a lot of fucking in that time.
Counting the money in his wallet, less the plane fare, he found he had damn little left. As he put the money back in his wallet, his eye caught a part of a newspaper sticking out of his coat pocket on the chair.
Suddenly, he remembered again-the waterfront joint. The paper was the front page of the only English daily in Hong Kong. He stared at the big headlines and read the account.
The front-page picture with the news item was a photo of his father. He looked a lot older, very haggard. Ted stared at it and felt no grief. He felt nothing at all.
Ten years had a way of dulling memories. Ted had never been very close to his father. They had seldom done things together when he was young, like fishing, swimming, or boating, as other fathers and sons did. His father always seemed to be too busy.
Ted looked hard at the photograph, which was fairly sharp for a newspaper picture. His dad still had the same flabby chin, the same weak lines to his face. Ted remembered these. Remembering the bad features was normal, because that's about all there'd been.
Little memories came back slowly.
His father had insisted he come into the firm when he graduated from college. Well, he tried. For four months he had tried to find something in stocks and bonds. Instead, he found himself hating the business, hating the daily trips to the office, hating the people he worked with, and as time went on, building up a hatred for his father.
What made it worse, he thought to himself bitterly, was his father's chasing of every secretary in the office. Maybe he had been a coward to run from the business, Ted thought. Maybe he should have stuck it out.
There was one secretary that Ted had dated. She had openly boasted about the gifts the old man had bought for her. Bold as could be, but fun, too, a real passion kitten under the right condition, which was just about any time she got near a man.
On their third date, driving by a motel on the edge of town, he had slowed down. He thought she might advance an objection, but she remained quiet, even after he made the turn into the driveway.
While she sat in the car, he registered at the motel office as Mr. and Mrs. Somebody-or-other. Inside the rather shabby motel room, he reached for her; she slowly came into his strong arms and submitted to his lengthy kiss. When they broke apart, without a word she immediately began to strip, much to his surprise. He watched her high, heavy breasts emerge from the confinement of her brassiere, and viewed the big nipples with undisguised lust, observing how far spread and deep brown the aureoles around them were. As she struggled with her slip and panties, the large breasts jiggled about.
Partially hypnotized, Ted sat on the edge of the bed and watched Lois do things to her body that excited him even more than seeing her almost nude.
The way she rubbed her hands under her tits, letting them flop over the backs of her hands as she scratched the area beneath; the way her hands trailed down her sides until they came to her hips, paused, then coursed downward to almost touch the hairy mound that sat defiantly between her ample thighs. Psychology. She was making him feel what she was feeling, making him think her hands were his. And when she neared her pussy, his shoulders twitched slightly, trying to put a little English on her hands so they'd come in contact with the silky hair of her cunt.
She smiled at him. She did not come toward him as his open arms invited. She stood still, away from him, out of reach, and taunted him with caressing gestures and movements of her hands up and down her body, pressing both sides of her pussy, then pulling it apart slightly.
Hypnotically, his hands moved to the buttons on his shirt, undid them, and stripped the garment off his shoulders. And all the while his eyes never left her. He stood up, undid his belt and pants, then dropped them to his ankles. In a trance, he stepped out of his pants and pulled off his shorts.
Then, and only then, did she move closer to him.
Hot fingers touched hot flesh, slid, then tightened. They kissed, slowly, and their bodies jammed together. The tip of his cock tickled her clit, then slid down to her wet lips.
"Baby...." he said.
She took her arms away, her lips, her body. She lay on the bed and tilted her head back as she slowly opened her legs. The reddish-brown of her inner pussy was revealed.
He looked down at her, momentarily puzzled. Her pink-tipped tits stood like two pyramids. Her long legs and thighs roused him to such an extent that he felt the head of his cock jump and expand.
He saw her lick her lips as she looked at the head of his prick pointed at her. Her hands reached out to touch his cock, felt it throb in response. She reached under it to fondle the ball sack, to caress it, to mold it lightly in her warm, eager fingers.
He moaned sharply and his hips began to undulate as she worked on him. He leaned forward and rested both hands on the bed, one on either side of her body, facing her feet. The dark nest of her snatch was directly below his face. He bent down and put his open mouth on the hair. His tongue probed through the entanglement of hair, searching, wetting, trying to locate the opening of her cunt.
She opened her legs wider. Her hand crept down and pulled the wet hair away so that his tongue found the slippery slit. Then she reached up and pulled on his ass so that he was directly over her face, his cock pressing against her chin. With one quick gulp, she took the head of it into her mouth and began to suck on it.
It was only moments before he took his face away from her cunt and whispered hoarsely, "I'm going to cum if you keep that up."
"Go ahead," she replied, removing his cock briefly.
And he did.
After he had stopped his spasms, a slight giggle came from her.
"What's funny?" he asked.
"Me," she said. "I forgot to move to one side when you came. You ran that thing almost down to my stomach!"
"Sorry. I didn't know I got that excited."
"I'd be disappointed if you hadn't. Don't get me wrong, I like it. Nothing like being choked to death by a nice big prick. God, how I love to do that!" She paused in thought for a moment, then added, "And I like someone to go down on me, too. I think it's great. I mean, really great."
"I don't make a habit of it," Ted said, somewhat glumly.
"Now, baby, come and put that nice big cock in me. I'm ready for it."
His entry was slow and easy and she welcomed his hot, rigid cock with a great heave of her hips and thighs. She sighed contentedly as he settled down on her and remained motionless for a few moments.
She smiled at him, her eyes clouding over every few moments as he thrust into her, starting the tantalizing love strokes that increased in tempo as they both worked their hips and lower bodies to bring a quick culmination.
A long, drawn-out sigh escaped her lips and she relaxed beside him. Her body was moist with perspiration. She looked up at him, eyelids fluttering. A slight smile crossed her lips, her arms tightened momentarily on him, then fell by her sides.
"Oh, God, lover, you're good," she murmured.
He kissed her. He wanted to ask her how the hell she knew he was good if she didn't have a hell of a lot of experience with which to compare, but he didn't. His own experience at the time was rather scanty. At twenty-two, he hadn't been in enough pants to count on both hands and he wondered about her comment about his being good. At the time, he didn't know what the hell was good and what wasn't.
Ted frowned now, as he recalled Lois. At twenty-two, things like that had a way of bothering him. Now it no longer did. Her brassiness by now was old stuff to him. He no longer looked at life as a bed of roses. There were too damn many memories of wondering where the next meal was coming from since he had been on his own.
He looked at the newspaper again. Maybe his old man had finally paid for all his sins, he thought. At least the old boy had finished up the way he lived. Ted wasn't sure he believed it was a suicide. It took guts to kill yourself. His old man never had guts to do anything except chase women.
Butler's Bonds and Securities had really been built up by Ted's mother. What the hell was it they say about a good woman behind every man? Well, she had been a long way in front of her husband. In his case, it was more like a good woman under a man.
Ted rubbed his chin thoughtfully. He went over some of the things mentioned in the news story, reread them to make sure he knew all the facts as the newspaper explained them. The more he read and recalled his earlier life, the more he realized why he had left in the first place. It turned his stomach to sit at a table and see his mother look at the old man and never say a word. She must have known what he was doing.
A bitter laugh rose in Ted's throat. He was damned glad he was more like his mother than the old man. She was a lovely woman with poise, a keen mind and sense of humor. She apparently understood her husband and put up with his extramarital affairs to keep the marriage intact for Ted's sake, or because she was really in love with Ted's father. When he was younger, Ted remembered how his father and mother exchanged kisses, caresses, and playful pets. But somewhere along the line, they had drifted apart. Ted couldn't recall any one thing happening.
Now he suspected she had caught him in one of his escapades and without saying anything about it just stayed away from him. He perhaps had found someone younger, and when he found he could get away with it, went even deeper into the affair.
Six months after Ted had left home his mother had died of cancer. It had taken almost four weeks for a letter to catch up with Ted in Brazil. He wrote back to his father and after that there was nothing between them. If there were any more letters, they had failed to catch up with him while he was roving over South America, the Orient, Paris, trying to prove he could write, with a dozen different jobs, even two long trips as a deck hand on an ocean liner across the Atlantic.
Ted laughed again. He had just under five hundred bucks to show for ten years out in the world. He had paid his plane fare, but even the five hundred wouldn't last long to feed and house him. For he had no intention of contacting his father, for a job, money or anything else. He had never counted on the old man for anything and now the old boy was dead and Ted was absolutely certain he couldn't get help even if he wanted it.
Now he was sick of bouncing around the world. The first few years had been fun, but the thrill was gone now. He had an itch to see Los Angeles again.
CHAPTER THREE
Ted was more than curious as he looked out the window of the jetliner as it circled International Airport. It had been a long time since he had seen the United States and he was particularly anxious to see L.A. again. The airport was a lot bigger than he remembered it.
"We trust you enjoyed the flight," the stewardess was saying to each passenger as they left the plane. She was a cute chick, a redhead with long legs and nice cheeks to her ass that reminded Ted of firm apples.
During the long flight, with stops at Midway Island and Hawaii, Ted had enjoyed watching her. Her little ass wiggling, reminded him of pleasant things he'd like to do with her, like maybe stick a hot cock between those cheeks. He had allowed his thoughts to drift more than once to that nice ass and to the nice pussy that was nestled in front of it.
What a change she would be from some of the cunts he had met. There were a hell of a lot of dogs in his imaginary line-up and he shuddered when he thought of them all lined up at one time, naked. "What a crew that would be," he muttered to himself. But that would all change now that he was back home. Maybe it wouldn't be anyone as nice as the stewardess, but almost anything would be better than what he was used to. He thought of asking the redhead for a date, thought better of it when he remembered how short his bankroll was.
A cab ride from the airport further depleted his funds. He went down three more dollars. He found a cheap hotel near the downtown area and, after paying a couple of days in advance, he counted his remaining money. When he got to fourteen dollars and twenty-two cents the counting was over.
It forced a rude awakening. He had to find a job immediately.
He laughed bitterly. It seemed like the story of his life. Short of money, cheap hotel rooms, the smell of dirty bodies and sweat in the air, worn carpets underfoot. A great life. He'd been everywhere and done everything and this is all he had to show for it.
He looked in the slightly distorted mirror. He was thirty-two but the mirror image looked a little closer to thirty-seven. Some deep lines had etched themselves into his forehead while two more skirted his mouth. He had somewhat large but even white teeth. His hair, light brown and slightly wavy, was still growing amply. His ruggedly handsome face was divided by a straight, slightly blunt nose. Blue eyes, appearing darker than they were and filled with more than just casual looking, held forth in a setting of only slightly crinkled crow's feet frames. A thick neck sprouted from broad shoulders that seemed just a bit too wide for his five-foot-ten frame, yet lent to him the appearance of being able to take care of himself. After studying himself for a time Ted decided that a few good meals, some rest and clean clothes would erase a few years from the looks of the character who stared back at him from the mirror.
After picking up his cigarette pack and mulling over whether or not to light one of the few remaining in it, he decided one more or less wouldn't make much difference. He lit one, then headed for the street.
The warm sun and fresh air outside made Ted feel a little better and his spirits rose. As he walked, the city looked different than he remembered, perhaps more active, more life to it than he recalled.
Deeply engrossed in reacquainting himself with his old home town, Ted didn't realize he had walked clear uptown until he stood opposite the Butler Building, the building that housed the firm his father had once headed. It looked the same as it had ten years ago. It still reminded him of a many-tiered layer cake. Unconsciously, he counted the rows of windows in the impressive stone and glass structure.
Turning, he examined his reflection in the store window. His clothes could stand a pressing and the way his hair curled over his collar made him want to dash to a barber shop. He decided that could wait.
He crossed the street and went into the main foyer of the Butler Building. The directory board listed a lot more offices than he remembered. The last time he had been here, Butler Bonds and Securities occupied only the first floor. Now it seemed to be spread over at least five of the building's floors.
Selecting the floor number marked Personnel, Ted took the elevator to the fifth floor.
A big buxom blond sat at the reception desk. She looked up at him as he entered, first with a trace of curiosity, then friendliness. Very friendly. Her moist, full lips curled into a smile. "Can I help you?"
Ted saw the bold, deep hollow where her blouse clefted, leaving no doubt as to the authenticity of what was beneath. A half-bra was visible through her sheer blouse, and Ted virtually hooked his eyes onto the area.
"Yes, you can help me," Ted smiled. "But I don't think we have time right now."
She arched her back slightly as she noticed his interest in her partially hidden charms. Her breasts lunged out from the slight effort.
"Yes, it does take time, doesn't it?" she smiled. Her shoulders wriggled with the mere thought of their innuendoes. Her breasts bounced with equal delight.
"I'd like to see the man in charge," Ted said."
"Ohh-hh ... and I thought you came to see me," she pouted playfully. "What is it in regard to?"
"Personal business," Ted replied.
"Mr. Lindsay is in charge of personal business," she smiled. "How personal did you intend to get?"
He ignored her question, asked one of his own. "Is that Dick Lindsay?"
She nodded. "Dick is right."
"I suppose you're in a good position to know that," Ted said. But he didn't care to pursue the little game he and the receptionist had started. He was just a little surprised to hear the name Dick Lindsay and the fact that he was in charge of something. Dick had been a junior executive when Ted left, but he certainly hadn't impressed Ted as a man who was going to go much farther. The girl's next words surprised Ted even more.
"Mr. Lindsay is president of Butler's in case you're interested," she said. "Are you a friend of his? I can ring his office and see if he's in."
"No, never mind," Ted muttered, half to himself, and started for the door.
"If it's in regard to a position, you can fill out an application," the girl said.
Ted turned and forced a laugh. "No thanks, baby," he said. "But I have a job for you. If you're interested in an interview, I'll call you."
"I'm right here every day. Just whistle." She formed her lips into a rosebud, half closed her eyes, and let out a very tiny whistle. "Just like that," she said softly.
"I'll think about it," Ted said. "Right now I've got to go. See ya."
He filed the receptionist away for future reference. Right now, there were some answers he had to find, and they had nothing to do with a big-titted blond.
His thoughts turned to his father and the embezzlement. He decided the best place to get the full story was from a newspaper. So he walked to the public library and a clerk showed him the old files of the Los Angeles Times.
The front page Ted had found in Hong Kong was close to six months old. He backtracked to that issue and read it over again. Then he started to work backwards, searching each issue for the account of his father's trial on the embezzling charges.
From the way it was splashed across the front pages of most of the issues, Ted could see it hadn't been a penny-ante deal. A whistle pursed his lips when he read that the old man had embezzled close to a quarter of a million bucks over a period of three years.
Ted frowned deeply and muttered to himself when he read the account of the trial. The name Bob Ross caught his eye. It wasn't too surprising. Bob had been a damn smart guy when they were together in college. It had been Bob's ambition to become a lawyer and that's exactly what had happened. And he'd become a good one, too. It was only natural, being such a close friend of the family, that he'd be the attorney to handle the old man's case.
It hadn't been a victory for Bob Ross. The jury had found the old man guilty after only a few hours of deliberation, following a relatively short trial. Most of the evidence presented consisted of documents, letters, and statements, with little spoken testimony. The spoken portion consisted mostly of explanations of the papers that had been presented.
Cross-examination by Ross did bring out a few things that had escaped the prosecution, but Ted had to admit from just reading what the paper said, such statements helped his old man very little.
Ted was no fool, nor was he naive. He had to accept the fact that his father must have been guilty. Ross must have taken the case because of his friendship and nothing else.
Paging still further back in the newspaper, Ted found the article where his father was indicted. Two paragraphs near the end gave him a shock. There was' a statement by Dick Lindsay. It said that Sam Lindsay, a junior partner now vacationing in Europe, was flying home to the defense of his old friend.
The second paragraph included a statement by Mrs. Ralph Butler. She refused to believe her husband was guilty of the charges. Mrs. Butler, distraught, was under the care of a physician.
Mrs. Butler? This was a distinct shock to Ted. He had no idea that his father had remarried. He read the article over several times. It still left him feeling empty.
He wondered what kind of a woman his father would pick for a second wife. He knew his father as a man who wasn't too particular when it came to women, his only requirements being that they were female and willing to prove it. Ted wondered where his father had met his new wife, when and where they had been married, her background, her age, looks, and all the other things than can cross a man's mind when he learns he suddenly has a new "mother."
He went through the paper again, seeking more clues and evidence that might be mentioned in the embezzling case. There was nothing more.
He did find a small article that lit up his face and sent him looking into issues further back. It mentioned only a date but that was enough to help him find the write-up on the wedding.
There was a picture on the society page. Below it was the usual society-type jargon. Mrs. Ralph Butler, the former Mrs. Hansen, was lovely in a pale blue knee-length gown. Her only attendant at the ceremony was her lovely daughter, Linda. Mr. Richard Lindsay was the best man.
Ted stared at the photograph. The bride didn't look a day over thirty-five. The face was beautiful, but there was a hard, cold look in her eyes.
A strange premonition caught at Ted. He had a strong feeling that the woman his father married was in some way connected with his suicide. And he wondered, too, if she was involved, even if indirectly, in the embezzlement charges.
Ted painstakingly read through most of the accounts a second time. One thing stood out like a sore thumb. There wasn't any question that the old man was guilty. A bitter laugh rose in his throat. Theoretically, the woman was his stepmother. He had a strong desire to meet her. He wanted to see for himself just what kind of a woman hooked his father.
Maybe she was a widow or even a divorcee who was having a rough time financially and decided the best way out of the dilemma was to find a new husband. Naturally, the new provider would be all the more desirable if he was a man of wealth.
And, in a way, Ted really couldn't blame his father. After all, he was a widower, alone, perhaps lonesome in his waning years. What better thing to do than take a young and attractive woman for a wife?
Ted put the papers back and left the library.
Tiny suspicions lurked in Ted's mind as he walked back to his hotel room. The old man was guilty, he reasoned, but why was everything so cut and dried? And where the hell did the old man get the balls to steal a quarter of a million bucks?
Ted's thoughts turned now to his old man's friend, Dick Lindsay. It was possible there might be something behind this character. Dick Lindsay was a leech type, a bastard who would ride on someone else's back. He was a beefy, florid-faced man. He couldn't buy the idea that Dick Lindsay was a guy who could get to the top on his own.
His eyes caught sight of a barber shop across the street from his hotel, and he spent some of his remaining money getting a haircut. The improvement in his appearance was remarkable. Some of the aging process had been snipped away by the simple expedient of getting his hair cut.
He entered the hotel and climbed the two flights of stairs to his room. The smell of food was even stronger now but not as unpleasant and Ted realized suddenly that he was hungry. The meal on the plane had worn off long ago.
He walked down the long, dimly lit hall to his room and fished for his key.
"Hello-o," a voice close to him said.
Ted turned. A woman was opening the door next to his.
"You're new here, aren't you?" she asked, smiling.
"Yeah, I guess you'd say that," Ted muttered. He caught the reek of cheap perfume as she moved a step closer to him. She was wearing a thin robe, an un-subtle badge of her trade. Her hair was stringy, matted, and her body was thin and bony beneath the robe.
She moved up close to him as if she were going to whisper something, but planted a kiss on his ear instead.
"Perhaps you'd like to join me for a drink," she offered in a low, sensuous tone.
Ted tried to move away, annoyed by the acrid odor of the woman's perfume. "You ought to be paying me," he said.
The insult didn't stop her. "I can show you a real nice time for ten, honey."
Ted studied her for a few moments, then said, "Like I said, you're the one who should be paying me."
"How about five?" she pursued.
Ted laughed openly. "The old saying, eh? Take whatever you can get." He turned his back on her and put the key in his door.
"And you can go fuck yourself, too!" she snorted through puffed lips. "Or jack yourself off! You cheap bastard!"
"You're right, lady. I'd rather pump myself off than stick my nice clean dick in something like you. Beat it! Get lost! I'm not interested."
Inside his room, Ted found himself thinking about Tai Ro. What a difference between her and that old piece of baggage he had just encountered in the hall. But his thoughts wouldn't stay tied down on women. Right now his stomach told him there was another need.
He went out again. He found a joint that advertised the biggest hamburger in town and even though the meat may have been loaded with bread crumbs, he found that tney weren't bad. Two of them filled him completely.
After buying a pack of cigarettes with some of his last loose change, Ted crossed the street and went into a drugstore. The phone booths in the corner gave him an idea. The phone book listed Butler Bonds and Securities and a few dozen other Butlers, but no Ralph Butler.
He frowned and paged through the R's. A grin creased his face when he found a Robert Ross with the notation attorney after it. He jotted down the address on a slip of paper. He wanted to contact Bob. First, because he was an old friend, and second, to see if he could find out more about his old man's embezzling case. He felt sure Ross would be able to give him quite a bit more dope than he'd been able to get from the newspaper file.
The Stratford Arms Apartment Hotel was a long way downtown. He frowned. If Bob Ross was living there he must be in the chips. Would his former college roommate want to have anything to do with him? People were like that sometimes. There was only one way to find out, and that was to go there and see how Bob received him. If nothing else, maybe Ted could float a small loan to tide him over until he got established.
Ted mulled over the idea as he walked back toward his room. The more he thought about his predicament the more disgusted he became. Maybe he should have stayed in Hong Kong with Tai Ro. He'd still have his five hundred and he could live a long time on that. Besides, Tai Ro was bringing in some loot and...."Oh, Christ!" he muttered out loud. "What the hell kind of thinking is that? Balls!"
Ted knew damn well he could never live off a woman and he was annoyed with himself for allowing such a thought to enter his mind.
Bob Ross was worth a try. Bob would remember him. They had been damn good buddies in college. Besides, Ted wanted to hear the facts about his old man from the one man who was on the inside at the trial.
CHAPTER FOUR
"Stratford's in the next block," the bus driver said in answer to Ted's question.
Ted nodded and leaned back. He tried to think just how he was going to greet his old friend after ten years.
After leaving the bus and walking the half-block to the apartment house, Ted stood in front of the imposing structure for several minutes, hesitant about going in.
Ruefully, Ted noted the Stratford had considerably more class than the upholstered sewer in which he was living. He walked through the beautifully decorated lobby toward the elevators at the far end. A panel on the wall indicated Bob Ross lived in Suite 300. He took the self-operated car to the third floor. His steps were noiseless on the deep carpeted hallway floor as he approached Bob's residence.
He paused at the door to read the card, then pressed the button firmly.
The door opened to his second ring. Ted's mouth opened in surprise. The person who greeted him was the same blond receptionist he had encountered earlier that day in the Butler Building.
A quick smile formed on her ample lips. "My, but you do get around," she said. A set of dimples burrowed into her cheeks.
"I could say the same about you," Ted replied.
"You a friend of Bob's?"
"We went to college together," he said. "What's your connection?"
Her quick laugh was a luxury of sound. Her ample bosom seemed to enlarge as she sucked in breath for the laugh, and when she chuckled there was a deep, musical ring that seemed to reverberate down the hallway.
"I didn't go to college with him, but I did have a date with Bob for tonight. At least I thought I did. You may as well come in." She moved back from the door and swung an arm to indicate he should enter.
Ted made a quick study of the blond. She was about five feet seven, weighed probably 125 to 130 and a hell of a lot of that concentrated in her chest. The dimples came and went with her facial expressions but a tiny settlement of freckles across her nose remained in permanent residence. The way she was dressed tonight left little to wonder about except perhaps what color her hair really was. Most of the rest of her was no mystery.
"There lies our mutual friend," she laughed. "A polite thing to say would be that he's resting. If you want to go beyond that just a little you could call him bombed out of his skull. Lately, it's about the only way I see him."
"He looks comfortable," Ted said, grinning as he looked down at his old friend lying, passed out, on the couch. A glance at him showed he hadn't changed much in looks in the last ten years. A bit older, naturally, but still quite handsome and from the looks of the company he kept, still quite charming as he had always been.
Ted looked around the apartment. Bob Ross must have built up quite a business to be worth enough to have a layout like this, he thought. He eyed the big buxom blond again and grinned to himself. He had an idea this broad didn't come too cheaply, that she wanted and got only the best.
"What happens now?" Ted asked, poking a thumb at Bob.
She shrugged, bounced her big chest. "He sleeps, we have a drink. How's that for openers?"
"And...?"
Another shrug. "We put him to bed, have some more to drink. Right about then you proposition me and I make up my mind whether I'm going to let you take me to bed or not. How does your plan read?"
He looked at her amused. A smile crept over his face. Now he shrugged. "I think you stole my plan," he said.
"It's everybody's plan, isn't it? I mean, what else?"
"You've got it pinned down pretty tight," Ted said. "There's no elbow room for maneuvering. Where do we start?"
"Have a drink." She looked at Bob Ross, winced. "He sure doesn't look too pretty, does he? Maybe we'd better get him into bed."
"Is that something you do often?"
"I feel like Bob's mother," she grinned. Then the smile disappeared and she looked evenly at Ted. "By the way, my name is Beth. What comes after that is unimportant. Who are you?"
"Ted Butler." He watched her face for a reaction.
It wasn't much, just a slight lifting of her eyebrows. "You're the wayward son who's come back to save the family home from the sheriff?"
"Not exactly," he said with some seriousness. "I'm just back to look around."
"Where've you been? I mean lately?"
"Hong Kong. I ran across a newspaper account of what went on here and thought I'd come home and take a look."
"The ball game's over, as you probably know. The scheming widow was left with all the marbles and got herself another playmate. That sorta leaves you as a member of the knothole gang, doesn't it?"
Ted shrugged. "So?"
Beth was a woman who hated disappointments. Finding Bob drunk had been one. When the doorbell rang, she was just about ready to leave. She could always find a man and it wasn't her nature to sit around an empty apartment and look at a passed-out man. She walked over to the couch and looked down at Bob Ross. "Let's get him out of here," she said, a disgusted look on her face. "He cramps my style."
Ted looked at her curiously. "You and Bob ... like that?" He held up two fingers.
"Sometimes," she smiled. "Other times I'm oh top."
"Serious?"
She laughed. "Bob has an office in our building. We ... ah ... get along."
Ted didn't have to guess anymore. It was written in rather bold letters across her face and, if there was any doubt, her eyes reassured him. There was invitation in her eyes, too, an invitation Ted was sure would be there any time he wanted to accept it.
"Maybe this isn't the time or place, but maybe it's as good as any that I'll get," he said. "I'd like to ask you a few questions."
"About what?"
"My dad. What the hell happened."
She shrugged. "I'm just a working girl, but I wasn't even doing that when your old man had his problems. I wasn't working there or anywhere else at the time. I think the person you want to talk to is this one right here." She pointed down at Bob Ross. "He's been around the place a long time and, as you probably know, handled the case in court."
Ted nodded. He stared at the inert figure on the couch. Ten years had written some lines in Bob's face. There was strong evidence of the young lawyer's drinking habits there, too. "Does he get like this often?" Ted asked.
"Not this early, as a rule. He must have had a hard day at the office." There was a hint of sarcasm in her voice. "I wouldn't mind having a job like he has. He comes and goes as he pleases." She pulled her lips to one side of her face and shook her head in a gesture that was more one of disgust than of envy.
"And what does that mean?" Ted asked. He gave her a curious look.
"Lindsay has him on the payroll ... I think. At least, Bob doesn't take any outside cases."
Ted frowned. "He sure as hell never drank like that in college. I wonder what the hell got into him." Ted's thoughts nudged an idea into place-something must be bugging Bob Ross to make him fall apart as he apparently had.
"Don't ask me," she shrugged. "But lately it's getting to be the only way I ever see him. Come to think of it, I haven't even seen him at the office for a week or more."
"What do you think is bugging him?"
"Who knows?"
"A woman?"
"Him? Hell, no! He's never been serious about any one woman as far as I know-and I've been with him enough to be in a position to know all the little pussycats he plays with. No, there's nothing like that bothering him. Hell, who knows, maybe he just likes to drink."
"Where's the bedroom?"
Beth looked up and grinned. "For you and me ... or for him?"
"For him."
She pointed. "You pour him into bed and I'll pour us some booze. Can you handle him all right?"
"I've done it before," Ted said.
Bob Ross's eyes opened in a bleary stare as Ted hoisted him to his feet and started toward the bedroom Beth had indicated. Ted stretched his drunken friend out, pulled off his shoes and loosened his tie. By the time Ted got to the door, Bob was snoring blissfully again.
Ted stopped at the door and looked back at his old college buddy. A frown crossed his face. Bob Ross was a far cry from those hectic days in school when he was a varsity fullback, and a pretty good one, too. He had been mentioned on several all-league teams and even received one honorable mention in a national rating. He was quick, strong, and well-built. Ted was afraid a lot of that was being drained out of him by all the liquor he was consuming.
And he wondered why.
Now Ted let his eyes wander around the bedroom. A partly opened closet revealed a row of suits, at least thirty. Ted's frown deepened. All this just didn't add up. There wasn't much question that Bob had made it but there must be something bugging the hell out of him, either by the manner in which he'd made it or what he was doing now.
Beth was sitting on the divan, twirling a half-filled glass in her hand when Ted returned to the living room. One leg was curled beneath her and the other offered only a trace of mystery for it was nearly completely exposed.
Ted looked at her and grinned. "That's corny," he said.
"It's the way they do in the movies," Beth grinned. "Cheesecake, you know."
"I didn't say I didn't like what I saw. But under the circumstances, I don't think you had to ham it up like that."
"Oh, come on, let's not be all business," she pouted, a feigned hurt look crossing her face for a moment. "Have a drink."
Ted looked at her and smiled warmly. "I was just kidding. You acted like you wanted to play the hard bit earlier so I just thought I'd go along with it." He liked what he saw. His gaze moved upward from her long legs to her rounded titties, his cock lurching just a bit as he pictured Beth without her clothes. Her breathing, more pronounced than seemed necessary, made the mounds rise and fall tantalizingly. Even the nipples could be made out through the blouse, an indication that her cunt was aching for a cock.
Ted picked up the drink she had prepared for him and sat down beside her on the wide divan. She laid her head back and looked at him with half-closed eyes. Her lips were parted slightly. She knew all the tricks, that was for damn sure.
But there were things to talk about before Ted got down to the business of sticking a dick into this gorgeous doll. He was getting a hardon and he figured he'd better get his questioning out of the way soon.
"You date Bob often?" he asked.
Her laugh was gay. "You keep getting off the track, don't you? Sure, I date Bob quite often but there's nothing serious between us. Let's just say I'm one of Bob's girls. He doesn't have any particular preference as far as I know."
Ted grinned. "That's Bob. He never did have a yen to tie himself to one chick, even in college. I'd have to say, though, that his taste has improved considerably."
"I'll take that as a compliment, Ted. I wouldn't be too hasty with my judgment, though. I've seen Bob with some really weird ones, too. Betty Lindsay, for instance. I sure as hell can't see what he sees in her. She's way too old for him."
Ted frowned. "Betty Lindsay? Dick Lindsay's daughter?"
Beth's laugh now was deep and throaty. "His wife, Ted. You must have been a long way from civilization if you don't know Betty."
"I-I saw a picture of her in the paper," Ted said, hesitantly, as he tried to fit things together that somehow weren't fitting too well. "Suppose you fill me in."
Beth eyed him evenly for some moments, in fact, long enough to make Ted fidget slightly. "Okay, here goes. Betty Lindsay was married to your father before he ... he knocked himself off. She married Dick Lindsay not too long afterward."
Ted's eyebrows lifted, a slight smile crept onto his lips. "That means that Dick Lindsay's wife is my stepmother, doesn't it?"
Beth laughed. "Yeah, that's about it. And isn't that a gas, though?"
"I'm beginning to think I've walked into more of a jungle than any of those I got into overseas," he said. "Tell me more."
Beth leaned closer to him. "I don't know any more. Like I said, I wasn't around when all the action was taking place. I can only tell you what I've heard and seen and that sure isn't much." She paused to sip from her drink. "Anyway, do we have to talk about such serious things now?"
Ted caught the musky odor of her perfume which seemed to emanate from everywhere on her luscious body. As she leaned forward to put her glass on the coffee table, her criss-cross blouse parted, offering him a generous view of flesh down to her navel.
"You've got something else in mind?" he teased.
"And I suppose you haven't?" she said huskily, eyeing him with a practiced, eyes half closed look. The tip of her tongue made a brief apppearance as it sampled her lower lip, then retreated so that her eyes could re-create their devilish look.
"Of course I have," he said. His hand fell on her thigh and caressed it gently. He felt the tremble in her lower body as she moved closer to him.
"Let's turn on," she murmured huskily. Her arms shot around his neck and brought him crashing to her. "Let's forget about all your problems and let's forget about Bob and Betty and Dick. Concentrate on love, baby. That's what's important. You and me and love." Her hot breath caressed Ted's ears and neck as she wove back and forth over his face with urgent nipping kisses that now began to course down on his neck. Her hands were busy on his back, snatching at his shirt, then ironing it flat with careful, pressing strokes.
Suddenly, Ted eased away from her. "You belong to Bob," he said hoarsely.
"I belong to no one," she said quickly. "Nobody owns me, lover."
"Won't he ... ah, get sore if he should happen to find us like this?" Ted asked.
"Right now there's no one else," she whispered. "It's only you and me. No one else ... you understand?" She tilted her head and her mouth invited his.
Ted caught her mouth in a harsh, bruising kiss. He had an idea she was the type who liked to be treated roughly. Her response to his kiss and his wandering hands proved the point. The fire was instantaneous as her red, full lips parted and her tongue was like a hot serpent exploring his mouth.
Their tongues fenced with each other for several moments. When his hands touched her hips and thighs, seeking her nest of hair, she grabbed his tongue with her teeth to keep from moaning aloud.
Another moan came from her parted lips as he found the fullness of a rounded hot breast and caressed the pink nipples. She was young enough so that the flesh was still firm, almost hard, and the nipples stood rigid, like tiny sentinels, awaiting his lips, his touch, his caress.
When his fingers eagerly sought the warmth of her pussy, her hips jerked with pleasure and her thighs parted. She had to pull her mouth away from his to let out a low moan. Her hands tightened on his shoulders and moved down his body to grasp the stiff prick that strained at his pants.
His body shook in tune with hers as she continued to fondle the hard cock.
When her fingers began to move up and down on his cock, he pushed her away. He sought the holding snap of her blouse, but she pushed him away. He lay back on the divan and watched her undress. The zipper made a coarse, hollow sound in the stillness of the room. The blouse came off about the same time her skirt drifted off her hips.
"Tell me, lover, doesn't this send you?" she asked as she turned around slowly and undulated her ample hips in a silent rhythm. Her hands spread out over her body, sliding under her panties to peel them off, but turning just enough so that he couldn't follow her movements completely. Then she turned toward him when she had stepped from the black lace panties but her gracefully long hands moved in front of her to shield the black hair of her pussy from his view. A teasing, wicked sort of smile was on her lips.
Ted stared at her hotly, his breath coming in short gasps and his hands moistened with the sweat of sexual response. An urgent hunger dug at his insides. Except for high heels, Beth was now completely naked. Her long, slender legs blended perfectly with her creamy thighs and the fullness of her ass. Her tits rose from her chest, quivering slightly now from excitement.
"Is this being hammy, too?" she asked as she twirled around the room with graceful movements.
"Hell, no!" Ted said loudly. "Christ, look what you've done to me!" He took hold of his pants with a firm grasp and made a jiggling motion up and down.
"There's another bedroom," she said. "I'd like to see what you've got there."
His quick response surprised him as much as Beth: he virtually leaped from the couch, strode to her, and picked her up. Without a word, he carried her into the bedroom. He wasn't gentle about it, either, holding her so tight she felt his fingers on her body, squeezing, digging into the soft flesh. And instead of laying her gently on the bed, he bounced her twice. She moaned with delight, writhing on the bed with her eyes closed and her arms and legs spread wide to welcome him.
"Cock, baby ... cock, cock, cock ... that's what I want," she murmured so soft he had to bend over the bed to hear. "A nice big prick ... a hot prick...."
She made a lunge for his pants, tearing at his belt buckle, snatching for the zipper. Impatient. Mad. She tore at his clothes. "Prick ... prick ... prick. I want it. I've got to have it."
Ted looked down at her twisting body, heard the moans of uncontrolled desire rise from deep in her throat. He moved back a few steps and quickly undressed.
When she saw she could not reach him she rose on one elbow and watched him get out of his clothes, her eyes focused on the hard prick that rose sharply from between his legs. There was a sudden light in her eyes, a crazed look that could have frightened him except for the fact that he was almost as mad for her as she was for him.
He moved closer to the bed, somewhat wary, but anxious too. When he was near enough, she made a lunge for him and took his cock in both hands and drew him roughly to her. Her lips went immediately to the bulbous head. Her tongue licked for a moment. One hand went to his balls, the other held his cock in place so she could steer it into her mouth. There was a slurping, guttural sound as she virtually swallowed the entire cock. Her motions were urgent, hungry. And just the least bit painful.
"Hey, hey, take it easy, baby," Ted said. "That's the only one I've got."
"Ummmhmmm," she murmured. She couldn't seem to get enough of it,. She wrapped her arms around his ass and pulled him to her, then eased him away to put her hands back on his balls and his cock again. She took the stiff prick in both hands, brought it to her mouth, then swallowed it eagerly.
Finally, when he felt he could hold out no longer, he pulled away. "You keep that up and you're going to have a mouthful," he said. "I can't hold out any longer."
"I want it ... I want it," she said eagerly, reaching for him. "I want you to shoot it in my mouth. Oh, come on, sweet one, let me have your wonderful juice...." Her hands took hold of his cock and pulled it to her lips. "Ummm-mmmm."
And when he exploded in her mouth, his knees went weak and he had to brace himself on the end of the bed. He hadn't intended his first sexual contact with her to be a blowjob, yet he wasn't unhappy about it. When he finally lay down beside her, she became frantic with lust for him. She clutched at his ass and tugged at him to get him on top of her. Her hips moved up and down in urgent anticipation for the hot cock, which had not shrunk at all. I
"Let's have it, lover," she hissed. "Now put it where it belongs. Baby's waiting for you. Right in my nice warm cunt. Slip it right in there and see how nice and warm I am inside." She kissed him.
"Okay, sweetheart," Ted heard himself say. "Let's see if the boss likes your pussy as well as your mouth...."
"Oh, he will ... he will. Put that nice cock in there. I want it so bad. Right in my pussy, dear."
"Open it up for me, baby. Open your cunt up for me. I want your nice hairy cunt wrapped around my hot prick. I want to fuck it. Let me fuck it...."
He took one of her nipples in his mouth and felt the tremor stiffen her body for just a moment. He licked the hard knob, took it in his teeth, nibbled gently on it. Then he flattened his tongue against the aureola and licked her with long, easy strokes-. He switched to the other breast and repeated the performance. He let his tongue sink between the luscious tits, then shot it out of the warm crevice, then in again, in lightning-like strokes.
"Ooohhhh ... you hideous man," she groaned. "You terrible creature! Ohh, how you make love...."
She pawed at her pussy, almost roughly, then stuck the throbbing head of his cock into her sex. She wriggled her hips until she had it securely in her, then churned upward to capture its entire length.
"Oh, baby, you're hot inside. Oh, man, that feels like nothing I've ever felt before. You're great ... just great."
"Talk to me, sweetie. Tell me about pricks and cocks and balls and fuckin'...." She rolled her head from side to side, eyes pinched shut. Perspiration had already beaded her forehead.
"I need your cunt so bad," he murmured. "It's been so long since I've fucked a good pussy ... too damn long."
"Take it then. It's all yours. Fuck it all you want. Dammit, fuck the hell out of me!" she cried. He then took the initiative, moving over her heaving body to probe deep inside her, with circular motions that ground her lips against the base of his cock. He moved with such eagerness that he feared he might be hurting her, but the look in her eyes and the deep moans of delight told him she loved every moment of his deep penetration. Her moving hips, deep sighs, moist mouth, rigid nipples-all spelled satisfaction.
His strokes became deeper and deeper, leaving her breathless and making her respond so often that he wondered if she had ever stopped cuming.
Her legs thrashed about, opening wide, clamping shut against his sides, then opening again. The sounds of ecstasy mounted from both of them, and then he spewed his hot fluids into her churning body with spurt after spurt that made her moan with delight.
His fingers dug deeply into her writhing ass but she was beyond feeling pain. Her undulating hips, twisting torso, quick muscular contractions by her cunt on his spasming cock were sheer heaven. She let out a low moan of delight again, a deep, sensuous sound.
He drove forward, sunk completely into her. His cum went into her in a gushing, spurting flood that she could not retain and it ran beside his cock and out onto the bed. His balls crouched tight against the base of his cock, wet from their own discharge.
A long time went by. His rigid cock began to slink back to regular size, a bead of cum clinging to its tip. The hard nipples on her tits molded themselves into flatness and the fires of passion were now only slightly glowing embers.
"That, my dear lover, was something I needed ... real bad," she said as she lay back on the bed after pulling herself out from under him. She reached down and patted his limp dick. "He did a good job. Nice boy."
"I enjoyed it," Ted said, not knowing what else to say.
"I'd kill you if you hadn't," she said. "I knew you would."
"You seem pretty sure of yourself."
"I figure if you're going to do a thing, then do it right. My grandmother used to tell me that, but I don't think the old doll had fuckin' in mind," she grinned.
"I wouldn't be too sure of that," he said. "That's where we make a mistake sometimes, thinking because a person is up in years that they're stupid. What we forget is that they've been through the mill ahead of us and anything we know, chances are they know more about it themselves."
"Ooh, a philosopher, too."
"Oh, bullshit!" he took a pinch of her pussy mound and pulled. She made a grab for him, but he rolled away.
Ted stretched to the night table and pulled two cigarettes from the pack he had thrown there earlier. He lit them and handed one to her.
She leaned back in the bed, still naked, and inhaled. "I like you, Mister Ted Butler," she said. She blew a puff of smoke out of the side of her mouth. "You're a hell of a lot of man."
"As long as you're praising me, let me say that you're quite a woman."
"Did I surprise you?"
"No," he said slowly. "I don't think so. When I first saw you today I figured you'd make one hell of a playmate in bed. I think it was your knockers that got my thoughts on that track."
"Oh, so you noticed."
"Noticed? Jesus Christ, who wouldn't notice? I thought they were going to pop right out of your blouse while I was talking to you."
"That's what I was trying to do," she said, smiling broadly. "You know, a little twitch and out they come. I did it to an old guy once and I thought he was going to have a heart attack right there. I mean, I popped both of them out right in front of him."
"Shame on you."
"Oh, hell, I was just having a little fun. That's what men want to see, isn't it? Why not give them a little treat?"
"You're a brazen little bitch, aren't you?" Ted said.
"Inhibitions I don't got," she laughed. "Hey, you going to be ready for another session or are you out for the night?"
Ted wasn't sure that he could muster up the strength, but he wanted to give it a try. He wasn't one to turn down a piece of ass no matter how fucked out he was. He eased closer, his fingers massaging the huge tits that occupied most of Beth's chest. A new fire had kindled, for her nipples were already becoming hard.
Beth came to him again, this time even more sexually wild than in their first go-round, driving him hard at all points. Ted tried to fight her back, but it was no use. She was a wild, fuck-crazy animal and he knew no one man could ever completely satisfy her.
Exhaustion for him came in waves and the best he could do for her at that moment was to eat her pussy, a deep, sensuous tonguing that brought a scream from her as she fell back on the bed in exhaustion.
Ted felt none of the exuberance of the early sexual bout with her, although she worked on him, too, until the final moments when she couldn't keep her torrid body still. He enjoyed watching and hearing her reactions to his licking her cunt.
When she finally shuddered with release and tried to pull herself free from his close embrace, he held onto her and let her fall back in his naked arms for a moment of rest, a brief respite that saw her in a virtual coma. She twitched and twisted some time, even after completion.
"Ooh, lover-r-r," she moaned after a long time. "I just knew you were the type who could do things for me. Oh, yes-s."
Ted only muttered. He was spent. Through glazed eyes, he looked at the swollen breasts just inches from his face; they held no appeal for him now. But when he glanced up into her eyes, he saw a misty passion that frightened him.
"You like me, don't you?" she asked, snuggling closer.
"Yes, I like you, Beth, but let's not try for any more right now. I've had it for a little bit. Besides, what would happen if Bob came in?"
"I told you earlier-he doesn't own me. With me it's who's awake and with me at the time. The live body, you know. I worship mine and I like men who can do something for my body. And, baby, you do it."
"You sound damned honest about what you want," he said.
"I don't pretend. I'm built a certain way and it takes a man to please me ... thoroughly. So, why should I deny myself a pleasure that's available? I had my first boy when I was fifteen. I'm twenty-four now, so there have been a few in between. Not many good ones, either. Somehow, men don't seem to be able to learn what it's all about. You're one of the few that I've really enjoyed."
"You could start a school and teach men how to screw," he said, smiling. "Fuck properly, that is."
"I'd go broke. Most men think they know what it's all about. The hell of it is that they don't. Just because they've got a cock and poke it into a woman doesn't mean they've done a man's duty. Far from it. It takes more than just running their damn pricks in and out until they cum. A woman is like a delicate flower and should be handled the same way. Most guys handle a woman like they'd knead a batch of dough. Rough, crude."
"Hey, wait a minute," Ted broke in. "You seemed to like the rough treatment when we first started."
"That's a different kind of roughness. Besides, I'm just a little different than most women, I suppose. A little bit of rough handling revs me up. But don't go too far with that bit. There comes a time when you have to handle me-or any woman-like a finely tuned piece of machinery." She stopped to take a drag off a cigarette he had lit for her. She jiggled her glass, found it empty, and frowned. "But let's forget about the goddamn philosophy, okay? How come you came to see Bob other than that he's an old pal?"
"Because he's an old buddy is the main reason-only an old buddy would lend me some money. I'm about broke and I figured maybe he might float a small loan in my direction."
Beth smiled. "I could see that this afternoon, lover. I see you managed to get a haircut. How about clothes? You got anything else?" She reached over the side of the bed and began to pull some of her own clothing toward her.
"Not a hell of a lot," Ted said.
"When will I see you again?" she asked. "You're just too damn talented to let get away."
He shrugged. "I'll be around for a while. As soon as I get organized, I'll look you up."
Both of them were dressing now. At the door, she pressed hard against him, her lips soft and with a lingering touch.
"Just don't make it too long, Ted Butler," she said.
"I'll give you every inch I've got," he grinned.
"You dirty-minded thing," she smiled. "And I'll take it, too."
"Too bad you have to go," Ted said, realizing suddenly that he was going to be alone with a passed-out buddy.
"I'm a working girl, you know. Have to go home and get some rest. Recharge the batteries, as they say." , "I don't know what to do about Bob," Ted said. "How long does he usually stay out?"
"Forget about him until tomorrow," she frowned. "He's good till nine or ten at least. Why don't you sack in here and see him when he wakes up?"
"I may just do that."
"Goodnight, lover."
"So long."
Ted closed the door and went to the small bar in Bob's apartment and fixed a drink. This done, he plopped down in a chair.
"Talk about recharging batteries ... Jesus!"
CHAPTER FIVE
Ted checked Bob Ross in the other bedroom after Beth had left. Bob was still snoring heavily. Ted threw a light blanket over him after rejecting the idea of undressing his drunken friend as too much trouble.
He went back to the living room and mixed another drink. His eyes traveled over the room and its expensive furnishings. Ted felt just a bit envious of the wealth spread so freely before him. He knew Bob would make it but he had never impressed Ted as getting into the really big money bracket.
It occurred to Ted that had he stayed at home instead of traveling to the far reaches of the world over the last ten years, he, too, might be sitting in luxury somewhere instead of having to come crawling back to try to borrow a few lousy bucks.
Compared to what Bob had his own lot looked rather pitiful. The old man a suicide, even his name meant nothing. Even if he could stomach the securities business there was nothing for him at the firm his father had once owned. No doubt the grieving widow had control now and no matter how you figured it, there was no connection legally or any other way between Ted and the new Mrs. Butler, rather Mrs. Lindsay. Hell, he thought, maybe it would be best to touch Bob for a loan and get moving again.
But Ted Butler was not the kind who would walk away from something unfinished. He knew if he ran away from all the questions in his mind now he would be haunted by them wherever he went. Oh, sure, he could drown them for a time with booze, but they'd still be there, nagging at him, taunting him. There was deep curiosity in him about Bob Ross, too. He'd like to find out why his old college pal had turned so completely to liquor.
Ted couldn't quite dispel the feeling that everything was connected in some way with his father, though he had no strong reason to substantiate this line of thinking.
Ted wondered, too, why Bob hadn't married. He was a fairly good-looking man, obviously successful, and he had never been a strong advocate of bachelorhood. In fact, he had spoken often of what type of home he would like to have, how many children he wanted and how he would bring them up; generally, he gave the impression that he would settle down immediately upon graduation from law school.
Ted drained his drink and went into the bedroom where he and Beth had scrambled earlier. He undressed slowly, his mind preoccupied. It didn't make much sense to go back to his cheap hotel room when this beautiful and comfortable bedroom wasn't being used. If there were any answers to his many questions, chances were they lay in the next room with Bob Ross.
He dropped onto the bed, rumpled and still strong with the scent of Beth's perfume, and lit a cigarette. He stared at the ceiling. He had the strange feeling of being on the brjnk of something big, yet couldn't understand why. The fatigue of Beth's violent lovemaking soon clouded his thoughts, however. He put out his cigarette and switched off the light. He was asleep within a minute.
The ringing of the telephone near his bed gradually aroused Ted awake. It rang several times before he located it beneath the clothes that he had carelessly thrown over it the night before.
"It's eight o'clock, Mister Ross. I trust you slept well," a masculine voice said.
Ted noted a touch of irony in the man's tone. "Yeah, thanks," he muttered and hung up.
It took him several minutes to orient himself, several more minutes deciding what his first move should be. He dragged himself out of bed, crossed to Bob's bedroom, and looked in. Bob was still sprawled in almost the same position in which he had been left last night. And he was still snoring loudly, his mouth open slightly so that the snores had a sort of wheeze as embellishment.
"Jesus, when he goes out, he really goes," Ted muttered.
Ted discovered he was ravenously hungry. He went into the kitchen and scrounged until he uncovered a tin of coffee and some bacon and eggs. Within a few minutes he had his morning meal started. While the bacon simmered, he went back to Bob's room to see if he could rouse his friend.
A persistent shaking finally wakened Bob. He cursed mildly, spluttered as he tasted his mouth, then rolled over and groaned as his lips continued smacking.
"Ahhherrr ... uhmmmmm ... what a head," he moaned. He focused his eyes on Ted, alternately squinting and frowning, tilting his head slightly to put the blurred image of Ted into the proper perspective.
"Good morning, Bob," Ted grinned.
"Hey-y-y ... you are for real, aren't you? I thought I was still gassed. Well, goddamn! Ted! Ted, ole buddy. What the hell you doing here?" He sat up and rubbed his eyes.
"Just happened to be going by and thought I'd drop in," Ted grinned. He stuck out his hand. Bob's hand rose slowly.
"Well, I'll be....Ted, you old son-of-a-bitch! My ole cock-hound buddy. Hey, you need a broad?"
"No, not right now. Later maybe. Man, you were really out last night. I dragged you off the couch and put you to bed and you didn't bat an eyelash."
"Last night? You were here last night? Christ, I must have been gone." He shook his head slowly, winced, and put both hands to his forehead. "I wonder if I had a good time before I crapped out."
"I spent the entire evening here and you were out the whole time. Your girlfriend let me in."
Bob looked up. "Beth? Yeah, now I remember. I was supposed to have a date with her. I'll bet she was pissed."
"Let's say she wasn't overjoyed," Ted laughed. Bob studied Ted for some moments. A slow smile formed on his lips. "How'd you make out with her?" Ted shrugged, looked away.
"Why, you horny bastard! I hope she gave you the full treatment, ole buddy. And don't tell me you didn't get in her pants, because I know Beth well enough to know she wouldn't leave without getting laid. Crazy broad. Nuts about sex. Likes to blow better than any broad I've ever known. How about it, Ted, she give you the works?"
"Well, we, ah...."
"Oh, come on. Hell, I don't care. In fact, if you got in her pants I'm glad it was you instead of me. That damn cunt just about kills me every time we get in bed. Wild, man, wild."
Ted frowned slightly. This sure wasn't like the Bob Ross he had known. The old version was more serious, more discerning. This new model didn't seem to give a damn. Could success burrow that deeply into a man's character?
"I found some bacon and eggs. Why don't you get yourself cleaned up and we can eat together. And talk a little, too."
Bob winced. "Please don't louse up my day by mentioning food. Maybe a little coffee...."
Ted watched Bob head for the bathroom and a minute later heard the sound of the shower.
The frown still clouded his face as he broke a couple eggs into the pan, then added two more when he realized how hungry he was.
The coffee was perking and Ted was halfway through his eggs when Bob came into the kitchen. Clean-shaven, in a pin-stripe suit, he looked much better. But he still couldn't hide the dissipation that had been worn into his face.
"The coffee should be ready in a couple of minutes, so sit down before you fall down," Ted said.
Bob didn't answer. Turning, he took a bottle from the cupboard and poured a sizeable shot into a glass. After downing it, he turned back to Ted. A grin hovered on his mouth. "Hair of the dog or some trite bit like that," he said. "It helps get a new day off on the right foot."
"What's with all the booze, Bob? You never hit the sauce too much before."
"So? What's a little shot?" Bob shrugged. He tried to be indifferent but the look in his eyes revealed he was more than just casually concerned.
Ted gave him an even look. "Yeah, what's a little shot? And what's passing out for the entire evening?"
Bob poured himself a cup of coffee and sat sipping it, his eyes carefully averting Ted's. "Times change, Ted. Everything changes. We do things today we wouldn't think of doing a few years ago." His tone was an even, amost dull drone that drifted the words into the room without inflection. "I live a whole lot differently today than I did, say, five years ago. Maybe it's all part of the aging process. Maybe it's the way the world is moving. Hell, who knows?" He looked at Ted suddenly. "Hey, what brings you here, anyway? It's been a hell of a long time. Where've you been?"
"All over," Ted said. "All over the world. I happened to run across an L.A. newspaper in Hong Kong and read about my old man. It was kind of a shock, really. I never figured him for an embezzler, for one thing, and I sure didn't figure he had enough guts to end it like he did. That part really surprised me. I had to come back and see if I could find out any more. You know, like what really happened and who was involved. The papers don't give you all the behind-the-scenes stuff like that. The papers covered it pretty well, but there are still some things I'm puzzled about."
Bob shrugged. "It was a hell of a mess. I did what I could for your dad, but there wasn't much to work with. He had himself wrapped up pretty tight."
Ted frowned. He didn't like the haunted look in Bob's eyes.
"I just don't understand how my dad worked up enough guts to do what he did," Ted shrugged.
Bob shrugged, lit a cigarette. "You've been away too long. You say you read about it. That means you know your father remarried after your mother died." He paused. "Betty is the kind of woman who can make a man do almost anything. Like a lot of older men who are attracted to a younger woman, your dad couldn't see Betty for what she really was."
"Meaning she had something to do with the embezzlement?"
"No, I wouldn't go so far as to say that, but she's a woman who can be damned demanding. When she sets out to get something, she usually gets it. No, you can't actually say Betty was directly involved in the embezzlement, at least not enough to charge her with it in court, but let's just say maybe your dad wouldn't have done what he did if he had never seen Betty. In that way, yes, you can say she caused it."
"Beth told me she married Dick Lindsay right after dad killed himself," Ted said.
Bob nodded. "A couple of months later."
"Dick Lindsay is now president of Butler's, I understand. My brief stepmother seems to be partial to executives of the Butler Company, doesn't she?"
"The board of directors voted Dick in. It was all perfectly legal," Bob said.
"What's legal sometimes isn't morally right, you know. Being a lawyer, you always look at everything from a purely legal attitude. But that's beside the point. I'm a little curious over why you're drinking the way you are. Does it, by any chance, have anything to do with what happened?"
"I happen to like to drink. It has nothing to do with Butler's," Bob said quickly, his eyes dancing away nervously as he spoke.
"Beth mentioned that you handle all the legal work for the company. That's quite a plum, isn't it?"
"And Beth seems to have done a lot of talking, too," Bob laughed. "You shouldn't have wasted time talking when you could have been dickin' her."
"I didn't fuck her, if that's what you're hinting at. I just asked her a couple of questions. According to her, she hasn't been around long enough to know anything."
"That's right. All she's got on her mind is cock and more cock," Bob said.
"How about my ex-stepmother? You playing around with her, too?" Ted asked.
Bob grinned slightly. "There's a dozen guys who play around with Betty Lindsay. She's about as cock-happy as Beth."
"What about Dick?"
"He's a mouse, just something she thought she should have around the house. He doesn't say a damn thing about what she does."
"Why?"
Bob shrugged again. He seemed ill-at-ease. To compound his discomfort, he was also hung over.
"I wouldn't know," he said. "That's something between them that really shouldn't concern me or you." He looked at Ted directly for a moment. The implication was clear. Mind your own business, it said. "I only work for Dick Lindsay."
"And shack up with his wife as part of the deal, eh?"
Bob's head jerked up. He stared at Ted. "I never said anything like that, Ted. I don't know where the hell you got an idea like that."
"You didn't have to tell me. I just smelled it, Bob. I could always read you pretty good. You haven't changed that much that I still can't do it."
Bob frowned and took a sip of his coffee. He didn't seem pleased by Ted's remarks. "She's a nympho," he said at last, as though that was the only explanation needed.
"And you couldn't turn it down," Ted said.
"You know I've always liked women. She's hot. I like it. It's as simple as that, nothing more."
"I suppose that should satisfy me," Ted said. "Anyway, I didn't care to get all involved talking about my old man's doll or the business or anything else like that. At least, not this early in the day. The real reason I looked you up was to put the arm on you for a hundred or so. Oh, I wanted to see you, too, but I'm flat broke and the only person I know who can remedy that situation is you. I don't mean it as a touch, just a loan. I'll pay it back as soon as I get myself straightened out." Ted paused and laughed. "I didn't mean to get involved with your broad last night, but," he shrugged, "you know how it is ... cunt is cunt."
"Yeah," Bob grinned wryly, "with her I know how it is. You couldn't have gotten out of that if you'd tried. As far as the money goes, hell, that's no problem . How much you need, five hundred? A thousand, maybe? You name it."
Ted grinned, but the grin was only lip deep. Bob's generosity sounded vaguely like a bribe. Yet, with Bob's apparent affluence it appeared whatever he offered was only chicken feed.
"All I need is a hundred or so, Bob. I'm living in a rat trap that I'm not too proud of, but it was all I could afford when I got in. That damn plane fare all the way from Hong Kong cleaned me out. I'd like to find a better place and get my clothes in shape. Soon as I find a job I'll pay you back."
"You're going to stay in L.A.?" Bob asked. There was a hesitancy in his voice, a rather guarded, skeptical tone.
"May as well," Ted said. "Right now I have no choice anyway. Like I said, I'm about broke and I don't want to use what I get from you for more traveling. Hell, I'm sick of chasing. I've got my degree in business ad which might come in handy. Maybe you might have some connections...." Ted looked hopefully at Bob. He didn't like the position he was in, yet he knew he'd have to have help in getting started with a job.
Bob was studying Ted carefully. "I guess-I can help. But there's no sense in rushing things. You and I have a lot of catching up to do, old buddy, so suppose we take a few days and have some fun. I know all kinds of broads. And don't worry about money. Hell, it comes in faster than I can spend it. You and I may as well have some fun with it. A guy never forgets his real friends, Ted. I remember a lot of times when you loaned me money when you didn't have a pot to piss in yourself." Impulsively, Bob rose and reached in his pocket. His hand came out with a roll of bills. He peeled off ten twenties and handed them to Ted. "Here, loosen up a little with this."
"I appreciate it, Bob. I wasn't too sure how you'd receive me. You know, a lot of guys might not like to make a loan, regardless of how close they were in the past."
Bob clapped him on the shoulder. "Forget it, old buddy. This is one guy who's not going to turn his back on his friends."
Ted recalled their college days. Neither of them had been avid bookworms. They liked their good times but managed to keep their grades up so they were able to graduate. They had kept in touch when Bob had gone to law school. Bob had opposed Ted's planned trip when Ted told him he just had to get away from the confining atmosphere of an office job. Bob thought Ted should stay in the country, settle down, marry, become a real citizen of the community.
But even Bob had no idea that Ted's adventures abroad would take so long. He thought Ted might be gone for a year or two, have his fill and then return home, especially when news reached him about his father. Yet, deep down, Bob envied Ted for all the adventures Ted had had.
"I have to get to the office. I wouldn't go in at all but I have some important things to take care of. Help yourself to anything you want. There should be plenty of food here. Booze, too. If there isn't, order some and charge it to my account. The number's up there on the wall by the phone. You need clothes? Man, I've got a mountain of them. Help yourself. You see something you like and it fits, put it on." He looked down at his slight paunch and grinned at the slimmer young man who laughed in return.
"Yeah ... thanks," Ted said. He caught the meaning. Bob was offering him charity and veiling it in a joke. But he certainly could use the clothes until he could buy some for himself. What he had on was on the seamy side, although pressed and clean.
An hour after he left Bob, Ted had checked out of his hotel room and found a better place close to the Stratford Arms.
He managed to kill time getting settled in his new quarters, putting away clothes, shaving, cleaning up and trying on some of Bob's clothes during one of his trips back to Bob's apartment. He had little trouble locating a good-looking suit that fitted fairly well. The shoes were the latest style, shirts were about the best one could buy. Added to this wardrobe were socks and underwear and, for a bit of flair, a nifty pocket handkerchief in gay colors. Ted felt he was ready for whatever was to come and as time passed, he became restless. He paced his new room continually, thinking about his father, Bob, Beth, Betty Lindsay, Dick Lindsay, Tai Ro, and the mess he was sure he would uncover once he got to digging.
Promptly at five, he went back to Bob's apartment. Beth opened the door and motioned him inside with a ravishing smile. A small, dark-haired girl sat on one of the divans, sipping a martini.
"Where's Bob?" Ted asked immediately.
"In there." She pointed to the bathroom. "Shaving or something. How about a drink?"
"Yeah ... okay," Ted replied. He looked quizzically at the girl on the couch.
"Oh, excuse me," Beth said. "That's Carol. You want a second name for her, it's Haines. Mine's Aldrich, by the way. I thought you might want our last names in case you wanted to marry one of us." She made stirring sounds with a long-handled spoon, then handed the finished product to Ted.
"Thanks," Ted grunted. He looked for a place to sit.
The girl on the couch --edged to one side. "You can sit here," she said. "Don't be afraid ... not of little ole me." A slashing red smile opened her face and white teeth gleamed out.
"Yeah, lover, go and sit with Carol. She's house-broken," Beth laughed. "And if you do, I'll slit your miserable throat!"
"Pig!" Carol said.
"I told you he was good, dearie, and you're not going to get him until I've finished with him," Beth said.
"Or finished him," Carol said. "Trouble with you, Beth, is that you want to kill a guy when you get him in bed. Kiddo, you've got to save them. At the rate you're going, there won't be any men left for the rest of us."
"Hah, and isn't that just a bit of tough titty, though. Come here, lover ... kiss me. Make this goddamn hot-pants broad eat her heart out." Beth opened her arms to Ted and stuck out her chest. When Ted hesitated a moment, she muttered between clenched teeth, "You big, horny son-of-a-bitch, kiss me!" She made a lunge for Ted, gripped him with powerful arms, and smothered his mouth with hers.
Carol giggled. "Look who's calling who horny. Look out, Ted, or she'll rape you right here."
Ted pulled away finally, wiping his mouth. "Jesus, Beth...."
As yet Ted had no idea who his date was to be. He assumed it would be Carol. She was cute, a slight thing with a very slim waist and breasts that seemed too large to be real. She had short dark hair and wore it casually, fluffed a bit. Her eyes were a vague color, perhaps grey-green, and she had outlined them with a set of over-sized lashes and hovering over the top was purplish type of eye shadow. Upside down quotation marks appeared at the side of her mouth each time she smiled, which during the brief period Ted had been with her, was most of the time. Her fingers were long and tapered, miniature versions of her legs, and false opalescent tips were pasted on the ends.
The evening was spent going from one spot to another. By midnight, Bob was well on the way to being drunk, and Carol, who turned out to be Bob's date, wasn't too far behind.
Beth suggested they head for home when they left the place called the Golden Gull. She also suggested that Ted drive. He was ready for that as Bob's driving now was anything but acceptable.
Ted slid behind the wheel. "We'll drop Carol and Bob off at her place, then I'll take you home," he said.
"Exactly what I had in mind," she murmured.
"I'm glad you're not the type to want to play games," he said.
"Huh? I thought you liked...."
Ted felt the pressure of her thigh against his. Her closeness and the thought of her hot pussy brought an inner excitement to him. "That's not what I mean," he said. "What I meant was that you're so direct. No bullshit about what you want. I like that."
Beth put her hand on the hard knob in Ted's lap. "I like that, " she said, squeezing hard. "A nice big cock, that's what interests me."
"Hey, what are you two whispering about?" Carol's voice came from the back seat. In a moment, she was directly behind them, her lips close to Ted's ear.
"Oh, just talking," Ted said. "How's Bob?"
"Out ... as usual. How else?" Carol said disgustedly.
"Think we can bring him around? I hate to unload him at your place like that. A dead body's no good to anybody."
Carol leaned a little closer. Her tongue swabbed around in Ted's ear. A whispered invitation followed. "Why don't you stay at my place? Make some excuse, then come back."
Ted, of course, couldn't answer. He knew enough about Beth to know she wouldn't put up with any bullshit like Carol had suggested.
"Ah, ah, ah," Beth said, waggling a finger. "None of that."
"How about you two coming in for a drink?" Carol asked, quickly.
"No," Beth said curtly. "We've got things to do." She patted Ted's leg, craned her neck around to look at Carol. "It's getting late, sweetheart," she said cattily. "And there's so much to do...." She sighed as though she had already done it.
"Oh, damn!" Carol said.
"You can sit with the body while lover and I do what comes naturally," Beth leered.
"That's all Bob is lately-a body," Carol said. She flopped back in the seat and looked at Bob who was snoring heavily. "Oh, shit!"
At Carol's apartment, Ted and Beth unloaded Bob and virtually carried him into the place. They tossed him, not too gently, on the couch. Carol stood and glared at him.
"Have fun," Beth said. She took Ted's arm and moved to the door.
Outside, Ted asked, "Why didn't we just take Bob home? Hell, he's not going to come around up there."
"Oh, don't kid yourself. Sometimes he's a ball of fire after he's slept a little. He gets horny as hell, likes to eat it and, well, you know how a woman likes that sort of thing...."
"Some of them don't," Ted said thoughtfully.
"And some men don't like blowjobs, either," she offered.
"Right."
"You do."
"You better believe it."
Beth's hands went quickly to Ted's zipper. In a moment she had dug his cock out and put her head in his lap. The lower half of the steering wheel denied her full access to his rapidly growing dick and he quickly moved the seat back.
She stuffed his hard cock into her mouth, her head bobbing hungrily on it as Ted drove.
After only a few blocks, he said shakily, "I'm going to have to pull over. I-I'm ready to blow .my nuts already." He slowed the car and swung to the curb.
"Ummmhmmm," she murmured.
By now his prick was as hard as it could get, the head swollen so that it almost filled her mouth. He put his head back on the seat and closed his eyes. He moved his ass up and down with her movements, fucking her in the mouth as well as getting sucked off. He could feel the tingle in his crotch, felt his cum getting ready to spew into her mouth.
He twisted and writhed as the explosion came. He gritted his teeth as she sucked harder and harder on his cock, drawing every drop of hot fluid from him, slurping, sucking, gobbling.
Then she moved her mouth off the throbbing cock, and swallowed. She patted him lightly, kissed the head, and zipped him up.
Ted reached for the ignition. As he did, a sudden pounding on the front window opposite him echoed through the car. Two grinning faces were looking in on them, young faces, teenagers.
"Hey, lady, do that to me, will ya?" one of the faces said.
"Yeah, we got a couple of nice pricks for you to suck," the other leered.
When Ted recovered, he twisted the key in the ignition, and shot away from the curb. "Balls," he said.
Beth shrugged. "So? Maybe they learned something."
"You mean that doesn't bother you?" Ted asked, incredulously.
"No ... why should it? Everybody does it, even the kids. So what's the big deal?"
"Maybe things have changed more than I thought," he said. "I remember a girl who got caught going down on a guy one time and she had to leave town because of the embarrassment."
"That's old stuff now. People did it all the time before, only they never talked about it. Everything's changing today, and thank heavens. Say, did you ever get involved in any three-party sex?"
"You mean with two broads at one time?"
"Well, either that way or two guys and a broad."
"Nope, never did. I don't know if I'd like that. Two girls maybe, but
"Prude."
"I suppose you have."
She shrugged. "A few times."
"How? Two girls or two guys?"
"Both ways."
"And?"
"It's great."
Ted thought about Beth's remarks for a few moments. "What do you do when the extra party is a girl?" he asked.
"Whatever comes natural, baby," she laughed.
"You mean you go down on the girl or have her go down on you?"
"Sure ... why not? It's all sex."
"And when the extra party is a man then I suppose they go down on each other."
"If they feel like it. Maybe the girl likes to have two of them in her at the same time. One fucks her the regular way while she takes the other one in her mouth. Hell, don't ask me so many questions about that. Better for you to just go out and do it. Then you'll know what the hell I'm talking about. You may have been all over the damn world but the way you talk you sure haven't been around in the world of sex. Hey, come to think of it, I've got something to show you when we get to my place."
There was a strange gleam in Beth's eyes that both intrigued and frightened Ted. He didn't know if he should allow himself to become involved with Beth any more than he already was. Besides, she had taken care of him with that blowjob and he wasn't too anxious for sex at the moment. And, there was that cute little Carol Haines waiting for him....
When they got to Beth's apartment, she wasted no time. She grabbed him tightly and rammed a kiss onto his mouth as she tugged at his clothes.
"Come on, honey, I've got to have it," she snorted.
"You said you had something to show me," he said.
She stopped suddenly. "Oh, yes," she said. An evil grin spread over her face. "Why don't you make yourself a drink. I'll call you when I'm ready." She disappeared into the bedroom.
Ted did what she had suggested. He made a drink, lit a cigarette, smoked, and drank impatiently. What the hell is that crazy broad doing, he wondered. Then he heard a stirring in the bedroom.
"Beth?" he called softly, standing in the entrance, craning his neck. She had turned out all of the lights.
"In here, darling," she answered from the bedroom. "But don't come in yet. I'm not ready. Take another drink while you're waiting."
Ted shrugged. He returned to the living room and fixed a drink. He downed two shots of brandy and was just pouring another when Beth called, "Ted ... lover, I'm ready. You can come in now." Rapidly, he swallowed the third brandy and went into the bedroom.
She had made him wait so long he had built up a desire for her that bulged his pants with a throbbing hardness. When he saw the weirdly flickering candles, caught the pungence of the thick aroma in his nostrils, saw the ghostly apparition lying on the bed, his heart thumped. He was frozen to the doorknob, his blood seemingly turning to water all at once. Good God, what the hell is this?
Beth was lying on the bed, her body propped against some heavily brocaded pillows, the pose wanton and seductive. She was barely discernible through the strange haze of smoke that filled the room. The scent, heavy and musky, was overpowering-its purpose unmistakingly aphrodisiacal. It seemed to Ted that he had stepped, quite by mistake, into someone else's bed chambers-or another world! His eyes darted everywhere at once, trying to pierce the murky gloom, his brain awash in a tidal wave of confusion.
The bed upon which Beth lay, completely naked, was swathed in a coverlet of pure, white glistening silk, while beneath her body was a pad of sheerest gold lame. On each side of the bed, and at the foot, on small, fragile stands, stood tiny, saffron-colored bowls, the flame in each shedding the barest minimum of light. In the farthest corner of the room, simmering slowly on a table, its cover decorated with what appeared to be cabalistic symbols, stood an oddly shaped, candle-heated vessel which rolled a thick cloud of smoke. The pungent odor-
Gradually, his eyes became accustomed to the shadowed, haze-dimmed room, and he regarded Beth with an incredulous stare. Still she did not speak, but remained motionless, a nameless taunt on her lips.
Through the thick clouds of smoke, which were infused with an eerie orange glow, he studied Beth Aldrich. His heart haltingly revived, commencing an irregular rhythm. He was shaken by the shudders which raced along his spine. He had been around enough to know about fetishes, but this ... this was outright insanity.
His eyes fled down her divinely formed figure, taking in the cunningly placed blue eye shadow, the stark darkened eyebrows, the garish lip coloring, the intense whiteness of her skin. In the silken hair between her legs he could see small beads twinkling in the fluttering light; strange fluorescent designs trailed across her stomach and outlined her breasts. On her head, hiding the beauty of her real hair, was a black wig, the strands long, stiffly lacquered into precise plaits, one draped on each side of her breasts.
The false bangs, clinging closely to her forehead, added an old-world charm.
Rapidly, he took in the wide, gold collar that circled Beth's fine, proud neck, the gold thong sandals gracing her feet, the symbolic gold jewel-embossed lash she held in her hand. He knew! It was the costume from the secret annals of time-the costume from the ancient courts of the courtesan from Egypt.
Egyptology.
Her body was the most fantastic of all. Artfully, painstakingly, she had painted it, plucked it, and shaved it. Then he remembered how long she had spent by herself as he drank in the living room. She had prepared well. His heart froze. Had this goddamn kook shaved her head, too?
Frantically, he searched her face with his eyes, relieved when he saw a strand of brown peeping from beneath the wig on one side. She hadn't carried her caricature to its ultimate extreme.
The nipple of each of Beth's perfect breasts was painted a brilliant crimson, the scalloped design seemingly enlarging each nipple. A border of white flesh, and then the blue again. Emanating from the tip of each nipple, was a sunburst of turquoise coloring, its points streaming upwards, downwards, outwards, two of the main points converging, traveling along her stomach, intermingled with the fluorescent, joining in an unmistakable, erotic invitation. Two thin lines traced the top of her legs, extending from the hips to her feet.
And beyond this weird, surrealistic desecration of her beautiful body, was a peculiar whiteness, giving the reclining figure an almost radiant appearance. Beth had thickly powdered her entire body before commencing to paint the inflaming designs.
"Good Christ almighty!" Ted burst. "What in the fuck is all this about?" His frown was even deeper than before and he waved his arm over her, sweeping from her head to her toes. Only a minute or so had passed since he had entered the room, but to him it seemed much longer. He had studied the complete fantastic scene in that time.
"Something special, lover," she said softly, her voice weirdly enchanting, fitting her get-up. Slowly, she slid her legs apart, the directional lines drawn on her body compelling his eyes to follow. "Do you think you'll enjoy it Egyptian style?"
He didn't answer. Looking down at her, his body still rigid, unmoving, he felt an unmistakable surge of desire constrict his stomach, travel into his legs. Suddenly, he was trembling, almost gasping for breath, as a spasm of lust gripped his entire being.
"Darling," Beth intoned hollowly. "You didn't answer me. Are you all right?"
"Yes," he murmured. "I'm just sort of confused, I guess."
"You needn't be, Ted. Undress and come to me. I'll straighten you out in a hurry. I'll show you what love was meant to be...."
In the drifting skeins of smoke, Ted threw off his clothes as though helpless to do otherwise, feeling suddenly to be a part of this strange happening of Beth's. Then, his body pebbled with goose flesh, he advanced to the bed. The smell of the strange perfume became maddeningly insistent, and it was all he could do to keep from throwing himself upon this apparition from the past, to brutally violate her. But he restrained himself, knowing that Beth expected their love play to be prolonged, ecstatic on this occasion.
She rose when he reached the bed, silently indicating that he should lie on the golden pad, already indented and warmed by her own body. Obediently, Ted arranged himself, beginning to feel self-conscious now, his body quivering. He covered himself with his hands for no good reason he could imagine.
"You know, sweet one," Beth intoned, her hands cool and smooth as she lightly stroked his chest, "Egyptian courtesans believed that the object of life was to give pleasure to men. They were trained by priests in specially ordained temples of love. To them the submission of their bodies was something sacred. There was no limit to the means they used to excite their men, to the ways they brought the sex act to a glorious climax. So, please, my love, for tonight, don't be shocked at anything I do. Pretend we've been transported into the past. Enjoy me, enjoy yourself. Don't protest. Only submit ... as I'll submit to you."
Then, with a dreamy, hypnotic look in her eyes, Beth leaned over Ted, her lips busy on his face, his neck, his chest. Gently, but firmly, she removed his hands from his sex and patiently placed them at his sides. Then her hand closed on the cock that was only half-hard, and her other hand went to his balls. Together, in a sort of rhythmic movement, she worked on the flesh she held in her hands. Gradually, the prick began to rise and separate itself from the ball sack so that it was a definite and distinctive thing.
Slowly, she rose upon him, her wildly painted breasts dancing in the sepia gloom. She held each shadowed mound separately, leaning over his head, her fingers manipulating the dark rosettes to hardness, her hands offering them alternately to his lips. "Don't be afraid of the coloring, lover man. It's special. Won't come off. Take them. I offer them to you to eat. They're yours."
And there, amidst the weaving, heavy pungence, bathed in an erotic sweat that threatened to grow, ferment and expand into a fiery explosion, Ted submitted to undreamed-of excesses of love, kissing and enveloping the rosebuds, his mouth moving from one to the other, then finally taking them together as Beth compressed her breasts with her hands, and brought both nipples to his lips at once.
Strangely, he felt no compulsion to climax. He did not have to struggle to hold back. Now his heart was filled with new wonder at what this kooky woman had brought to him.
And Beth, trembling violently, her eyes rolling in an insane frenzy, began to whimper. Gently, she removed her breasts, again placing Ted's hands firmly at his sides, her touch commanding him not to move.
Tenderly, deliberately, she moved down on his body, kissing his neck, his shoulders, lingering on the navel and taking nips of hair in her mouth as she nudged his rigid cock aside with her face, her hands caressing, stroking him with a controlled frenzy that told him she had practiced this at some length.
For a brief moment, his body made a single convulsive shiver of protest as her arms gently pried his legs apart and her tongue danced its way down the crevice of his buttocks. And then it found the tightened opening and probed and poked at it impatiently, until she had sufficiently lubricated it to allow entry. She went into his asshole then, licking, poking.
He squirmed, pulled his hips into the mattress trying to get away from the insistent tongue.
Her hands went beneath his ass, raising him roughly. "Submit," she chanted, barely lifting her lips. "Submit to me, man."
A thunderstorm of passion held Ted in a death-like grip. Then awe possessed him. Finally, he relaxed, permitted the wild thing that he had never known before-this Egyptian courtesan's willing and eager sacrifice to holy love.
Gradually, Ted Butler felt the inhibiting bonds of civilized passion being taken from him. And, for the remainder of the hour that Beth worked him over, he felt himself lifted from present day and delivered to a fathomless, distant land where love and gratification of the flesh are everything.
After what seemed like ages, Ted found himself dressed and standing beside the bed. He looked down at Beth, sprawled naked, her heaving breasts slowing their movements but her hips spasmodically heaving as they completed the final act in the passion play in which they had just engaged. A real fuck session, he thought.
Her eyes fluttered open. "Where are you going?" she asked.
"To pick up Bob."
"You mean you're going to leave me so soon?"
"Bob has a job to go to tomorrow and I've got to start looking for one. If I want to get an early start, I've got to get some sleep."
"We've just about shot the hell out of this night already," she said. She propped herself up on one elbow.
"Yeah, we sure have."
"Will you call me?"
He looked down at her and grinned. "It looks like I don't have to. You're always around when I need you."
"That's old Beth-always around," she said wryly. "That's the way I like you, beautiful-nice and handy when I need you."
"I like the way you say need. I feel like a damned doctor or something." She put her hand between her legs, winced. "Ooh, let's cool that screwin' business .for a while. My little pussycat's complaining."
"Yeah? And what the hell do you think I've got in my pants besides raw hamburger. Jesus!"
"Aw, poor thing. Maybe mommy should kiss it for you."
"Go to hell. Mommy damned near chewed it off tonight. Like you said, let's cool this stuff for a few days."
"Okay, lover. Good luck in finding a job. Keep in touch." With that, she flipped over on her side, pulled the sheet up over her, and fell asleep.
Ted managed to find Carol's apartment without too much trouble. He found Bob sleeping in Carol's bed, completely naked.
"How'd he get that way?" Ted asked.
Carol shrugged. "He came around a little after you left and between us we managed to get him down to his birthday suit."
Ted smiled. "Well, at least you had a little fun."
"Yeah, fun-in a pig's eye! That's as far as I got with him. Why don't you haul him out of here? He's not worth a damn to me the way he is and I know you sure as hell don't have anything left, not after all that time with Beth."
"It seems to me the whole world revolves around sex. I didn't realize everything could change so drastically."
"So," she shrugged, "I got left at the church. Tomorrow's another day. Want me to help you get him in moving condition?"
"It might help. I've never dressed a corpse before," Ted said, laughing. "Of course, we could leave him here and
"Bull! I don't want his ass cluttering up my place. I may get lucky and need the bed. Who knows?" There was a half-hopeful look in her eyes.
"No," Ted said quickly. He hurried into the bedroom and began to gather up Bob's clothes.
"So she did fuck everything out of you," Carol said.
"My, how you talk," he said.
"Plain and simple. I like fucking as much as anyone, but when that Beth gets her cunt wrapped around a guy, he's no good for anyone else. Yes, that's how I talk because right now I'm pissed. I had a good hot cunt saved up and look what happened." She pointed to Bob disdainfully. "I should go and sit on his face."
CHAPTER SIX
In his drunken haze, Bob wasn't much company on the drive home, but once in the confines of his own apartment and under the critical assault of his old friend, Bob managed to become coherent once again. During their brief conversation Bob managed to make it clear that he was in the habit of spending his weekends at the Lindsay cottage.
"Too bad you fucked up tonight," Ted said. "That Carol looks like she'd make a good piece of tail."
"Oh, she is ... she is. Great, in fact," Bob said quickly. He moved his thumb against his fingertips to indicate a closing motion. "She's got one of those snapping pussys. Really knows how to use it."
"How come you passed it up by bombing out?"
"What the hell gave you the idea you can be so damn righteous?" Bob snapped, surprising Ted. "I know you're not interested in why I didn't lay Carol. You're getting around to the reason for my getting gassed. Well, ole buddy boy, that's my business."
Ted forced a laugh. "I'm not being righteous, Bob, just practical." He paused to look at his old friend. "I can't see it-or the reason."
Bob poured himself a drink and downed it in one swallow. He turned back to Ted. "I always go up to the Lindsays' cottage over the weekend. How about coming along with me tomorrow?"
"What for?"
Bob shrugged. "No reason. Just thought you might like to get away, up in the cool, fresh air. You can meet Betty. I know you'd like to see what kind of broad your dad got hooked up with. I'm sure she'd like to meet her stepson." He tilted his head back and laughed a little, then quickly replaced his look of mirth with one of semi-seriousness. "There are a lot of other characters up there, too. Weirdies, real kooks."
"Sounds interesting," Ted said. "But I've got to get a job. I don't know if I should go gadding about up in the hills."
"You can't do anything about a job until Monday anyway. You won't find anything on Saturday and Sunday is out altogether. Come on, Ted, it might do you some good to see how the other half lives."
"Oh, all right. I would like to meet Betty Lindsay. That might prove to be real interesting. I wonder what the hell she'll think when I tell her who I am...."
"She'll probably try to make you. She doesn't give a damn who a guy is, just as long as he can put the dick to her," Bob said.
The cottage was set in heavy pines, tall and swaying slightly as their branches scraped the pale blue of the early afternoon sky. The building was nestled on the slope of a low hill, overlooking a small lake, which reflected the snow-capped mountains in the distance.
"Some place, eh, Ted?" Bob asked. "The land and the few improvements you see here cost Dick almost fifty grand. The view alone is worth that much." He looked wistfully out across the lake, and inhaled deeply several times.
A woman came toward them as they climbed from the car. She swung her legs in an easy, graceful lope of a walk that tended to make her breasts jounce enticingly as she neared. Fluffed, honey-blond hair danced on her shoulders, and deep-set blue eyes seemed to convey a meaning other than that expressed by the rest of her face.
A tanned hand fluttered out to Bob. "Oh, Bob darling," she gushed. "You're early and"-she paused to squint at Bob-"you're sober. How nice." Her glance raked over Ted who stood a few feet behind Bob. "Do come in ... both of you."
Well, thought Ted, at least he had achieved recognition. Bob had foolishly neglected to introduce him, apparently a failing brought about by the effervescent personality of Betty Lindsay.
"Oh, I'm sorry," she said, looking at Ted. "I'm Betty Lindsay." She held out her hand.
Ted took it and said, "Glad to meet you. I'm Ted Butler." He said the last two words very slow and held her eyes with his as he said them. A trembling came through her hand and a shadow crossed her face momentarily before she laughed, a pleasant, tinkling laugh that had the effect of wiping away whatever tension had crowded into the moment.
"Well, well, well," she said, "you're the last person I ever expected to meet. I was under the impression you were somewhere in South America, Asia or some dreadful place. I tried to locate you when your ... during our ordeal but no one seemed to know exactly where you were. In fact, I finally gave up when my letters were returned. But that's been so long ago and it's such a terrible thing to think about that I'm sure you'd just as soon not hear any more about it."
"I moved around a lot," Ted said. "Guess I never stayed in one place long enough for anyone to pin me down." He observed her carefully as he spoke. He noticed a pallor beneath her thin make-up and her eyes bored at him with a hard, brittle intensity that told him she was more than a little upset over his presence.
"I'm so glad you could come," Betty said. She hooked her arm through his and the trio started toward the cottage.
"Do you have a room for him or do you want him to bunk in with me?" Bob asked.
"There's plenty of room, Bob. We're not having too many guests this weekend."
"Good," Bob said, with hesitant approval.
"You'll have to tell me all about the places you've been," Betty said. "Ten years, isn't it? You must have seen just about everything there is to see. It must be terribly exciting just traveling all the time, going where you please when you please."
"Everything gets tiresome after a while," Ted said. "That's why I decided to come home."
"But I bet you won't stay," she said quickly. "Once a person gets the wanderlust he just can't stay in one place very long. I think I'd love to travel, just keep going and never come back."
Ted gave her a quick look, searching her face. He wondered if she meant her words as a threat or perhaps as a compromise. Her face showed nothing but the same forced smile she had held since they first met in the drive. It was hard to realize she had a grown daughter.
Betty Lindsay had a figure that pushed aside age with a contempt. Her long, slender legs rose in sturdy white columns below the shorts she was wearing, and her buttocks jiggled nicely as she walked a few quick steps ahead to open the door for her guests who were both carrying bags. While she seemed to be wearing a bra it was obvious there was a great shortage of material in its construction. Every line of her figure showed the summer clothes as mere veils to what was beneath, and her nipples could be seen boldly peeking over the top of the scanty bra.
Bob held Ted back for a moment. "She'll meet you on your terms," he whispered.
"What the hell do you mean?"
"Just what I said. Watch your step. She can be dynamite."
Ted frowned at the warning. Bob had already told him Betty Lindsay had hot pants, now he couldn't figure out what he meant by her being dynamite.
They followed Betty into the huge sunken living room, where it was obvious all activities of the household were centered, whether for entertainment, meals or just relaxing. A huge stone fireplace at one end provided not only what heat was needed but also the perfect backdrop for a mountain cottage. Bedrooms and baths opened off the living room. The kitchen was somewhere out of sight, at the opposite end of the fireplace.
After they freshened up, the two new house guests went out on the patio for cocktails and to meet the rest of the guests. A wall of mountains seemed to close in the cottage and lake setting. A blue sky, bloated with fleecy white clouds that allowed intermittent shafts of sunlight to probe the cupped-in patio, domed the almost idyllic setting.
Bob introduced Ted around. There were Mr. and Mrs. Hodges, who were neighbors of the Lindsays in L.A. and Mr. and Mrs. Meeker. George Meeker was one of the directors on the board at Butler's Securities.
It didn't take much imagination to see that both of the men were enamored of Betty Lindsay. Hodges, in particular, let his eyes reveal that he wanted some of Betty's pussy.
A slender youth was lightly fingering the piano.
"Gene Long, Ted," Bob said. "Gene works at Butler's, too."
Gene Long offered a limp, delicate hand. "I'm pleased to meet you, Mr. Butler," he said, letting his eyes dart to Ted's crotch briefly.
Ted nodded and a small frown formed on his face. Bob had said there would be characters at the cottage.
Ted and Bob were having a drink when the last guest put in her appearance. From what Ted quickly observed, the wait had been worth it. Her smile was disarming, and there was a touch of amusement in her flashing, bold eyes. And there was fuck written in them, too. It was quite apparent in the way she greeted Bob that they shared more than handshakes.
Lori Collins smiled and nodded her way around the small group on the patio, including Ted, then linked her arm through Bob's and led him down the path toward the lake.
Ted watched them go. Another one of Bob's broads, he thought. Ted made some fast judgments about Lori, using only what he had observed in a few minutes for his appraisal-protruding, cone-shaped tits, slim waist, and a working ass that left no doubt that Lori Collins would be one hell of a piece of ass.
Ted finished his drink and drew off to one side alone. He watched Betty Lindsay, laughing and moving about. She was like a magnet. She drew everyone's attention. Right now she was talking with George Meeker. Mrs. Meeker was at the far end of the patio with the Hodges.
Appraising the group. Ted decided the Hodges were nonentities, invited simply because they were neighbors. He saw Mr. Hodges looking at Betty like he'd like to throw her down and fuck her right there, yet there was a hopelessness in his look that said he couldn't get a hardon anymore. The poor bastard, Ted thought, he'd have to eat pussy the rest of his life and be satisfied with it. His wife looked like she'd never really found out what a good fuck was all about. And Ted couldn't imagine her ever having a stiff prick in her mouth. Poor bastards, both of them.
There had been no mention of Dick Lindsay and, although Ted wondered about his absence earlier, he had not asked. As a first-time guest he didn't feel it was proper to get too nosey, unless, of course, it was nosing around in some chick's pussy. In a way, he was disappointed Dick wasn't there. He would have liked to see how the junior executive he had known ten years ago wore his new title.
Lori Collins kept creeping back into his mind and he couldn't help getting a slight hardon every time he thought of her firm little ass. Her titties looked like they'd be a nice mouthful. His cock jumped a little when he thought of Lori Collins laid out naked in bed.
Ted walked over to the piano. "Nice place the Lindsays have here," he said.
"Yes, if you like fresh air," Gene Long responded, sounding sullen. "Mr. Lindsay wanted me to do some work. I wouldn't have come if I'd known he wasn't going to be here."
Ted laughed. "It's still a hell of a nice place to spend a weekend. Were you working for Butler's when my dad was the head man?"
Gene Long looked at Ted uncertainly before he replied. "I've only been with the company a few months. I didn't know your father." He looked away. "Betty wants me to play something after dinner. I have to get my music." He got up quickly and hurried inside. If he had had an interest in Ted's prick, he had lost it for the time being.
Dinner proved to be an elaborate affair. Ted was glad he had taken Bob's suggestion and borrowed one of his dinner jackets. Two maids did the serving on the patio.
As it turned out, Betty appeared at the table last, an old trick designed to draw attention.
She wore a flaming red gown. The V of the neck was very low, almost to her navel. Her tits hung like grapefruit stuffed under the thin material. No bra.
After dinner, Gene Long played the piano and sang several songs. The group gathered around him to join in the singing. Ted noticed that Bob slipped away with Lori. He grinned. At least Bob was staying sober so he could enjoy this delightful pussy, and delightful it must be, pinched into such a firm, young body. And her ass . ... Ted was puzzled though. Bob had been quite generous with his other two cunts, offering them freely to Ted. Yet there was none of this generosity in connection with Lori. She must be something special.
Finishing his drink, Ted lit a cigarette and wandered around the patio and out onto the terrace, where the tall trees already had hidden the sun. The air was growing crisp. A cloudless sky kept a slight aura of light against the sides of the mountains, splashing upwards until the snow caps were a deep pink and orange and violet. Soon it would be totally dark and the guests would be driven inside by the night air.
Ted moved off the terrace and along the path through the trees toward the lake. He couldn't help but think all this had been paid for by his father. Somehow, it just didn't seem right for Betty Lindsay to be a part of this place. One didn't associate her with the clean freshness of the outdoors. She seemed to belong to a world stunk up with the smell of money and booze and cigarette smoke and smelly, sweaty sheets. She seemed out of place in the great outdoors.
"Would you by any chance have a cigarette?" a female voice chimed out of the darkness.
Ted wheeled. Betty Lindsay had scared him. "I-I didn't hear you," he said.
She laughed. "I'm sorry. Everyone seemed to be occupied inside so I thought I'd take a walk."
"I was going to say the same thing to you," Ted said.
"It's a perfect night for ... strolling, isn't it?"
She had moved close to him, her perfume blending with the pine smell of the woods. He saw her weave slightly and wondered if she'd had one or two too many. And he wondered, too, if his presence hadn't caused her to drink just a bit more. He thought about what Bob had told him, that Betty had a hot cunt for cock of all types.
"This is nice country up here," Ted offered. "I've always liked it. You're within driving distance of mountains and ocean at the same time."
"Well...?" she said hoarsely.
"Well what?" he asked, puzzled.
"Aren't you going to give it to me?"
"Huh?" Ted's mouth dropped open. He took a step backward.
"The cigarette, silly," she said. "I didn't mean that."
He dug his pack out and handed it to her.
"Oh, dear boy, can't you light it for me ... please?" she purred.
He was annoyed with himself. He was nervous, upset. She had done that to him. She had caused his fingers to tremble, his stomach to lurch. She had lit the fuse on her own private keg of dynamite and he felt like a clumsy fool, not knowing whether he should put it out or let it burn and see what kind of an explosion would result.
She smoked in silence for a few moments, drawing the smoke in and letting it out in a strangely professional manner. She looked at him intently with her sharp eyes. Her expression didn't change but he sensed she was giving him a thorough examination. "You're not at all like your father, Ted," she said softly.
Ted wanted to say something clever, something that had perhaps an underlying meaning. He couldn't. He only nodded.
"Are you married?" she asked.
He regained some of his composure. "No, I guess I've never had time enough for that. Nothing permanent."
Her light laugh bore more depth than he thought it could. "Handsome men should never get married, Ted."
"Sometimes they can't help themselves, Mrs. Lindsay," he said.
"Ooh, I'd prefer if you called me Betty, dear one. It sounds so old to be called Mrs. anything. I don't ever want to get old." There was almost a desperate ring in her voice, as though she were at this very moment fighting the ravages of time.
Ted turned and looked at her. He saw the hot passion in her dark eyes, almost a wild urgency. He had to fight against walking away from her, to ignore her, leave the cottage, and get the hell back to the city. He knew he should-but he couldn't.
Bob's warning came alive in his mind.
Betty Lindsay's fuse was running short. The same wild compulsion that drove at her whenever she met a new man, a possible conquest, and especially young, handsome men such as Ted. She moved closer to him, her thigh met his-just a brush, but electricity leaped between them.
She looked up into his eyes, passion reflecting in her pretty face, her hands held up in an appealing motion. She slowly ran her tongue over her full lips, her eyelashes fluttered and her hips moved slowly in an unmistakable motion that could mean only one thing.
"I want you to kiss me," she whispered hoarsely. There was a hard command to her tone.
He wanted to say something. Surely, her request called for words from him. Her lips crushed out whatever he wanted to say in a wild, harsh kiss that took the breath from him. Her lithe body thrust fiercely against his, grinding into him.
Ted pulled back, forcing her away, virtually tearing his lips from hers. "Are you out of your mind?" he gasped. "You've got guests ... a husband. Suppose they came out here?" He tried to keep a reasonable distance between them but without success. She kept close to him, moving when he moved, smiling almost wickedly now. Her big tits were pressing against him.
"Oh, the hell with the guests and my husband, too," she whispered huskily. "It's you I'm interested in." Her mouth came at him again, hungrily, with her rapier-like tongue forcing aside his protests.
Ted felt the heat of her body against his. Her hands caught his and plunged them deep inside the cleft of her gown, cupping his fingers on the full white, firm mounds of flesh, forcing him to hold her. And all the time the lower part of her torso moved, circling against him in wild, round strokes that were more of a challenge than anything else.
Ted fought her. He fought himself. His mind tried to tell him to use good sense. His body demanded attention and satisfaction.
"I want you, Ted! Don't you understand?" she moaned, the sound a sharp hiss of womanly desire.
Ted felt his resistance melt away as his fingers molded her firm, out-thrust breasts through the thin material of her dress. If she was forty, she was a woman who wanted to be loved. And Ted, no novice at the game of love and seduction, suddenly thought of her as an answer to some questions that bothered him. He could fuck her and find answers at the same time.
Her mouth eased against his, her tongue stopped probing for his, her hands stopped their intimate fondling. "Tell me you want me, Ted ... darling...." she moaned.
"Don't be a fool, Betty," Ted said with far too much tremor in his voice than he wished. "When I take a woman it's not in the woods! Damn, that's just too-"
"Animalistic," she put in quickly, her eyes gleaming.
"Yes, I suppose that's what I mean."
"But don't you see?" she pleaded. "That's what makes it so exciting!"
"Maybe I've been spoiled by too many comfortable whorehouses," he growled. "Or maybe it's because I can still remember how goddamn uncomfortable it was when I was in high school and had to do it in the car. That's for the birds."
There was a tone in his voice that made her hands fall away from him. When she spoke, she reverted to the innocent schoolgirl bit. "We usually get to bed early in this high altitude. Sleep comes easily. I'll see you later, Ted dear. You know where my room is."
"Oh, sure, that's right up my alley to go prowling around in the middle of the night trying to crawl into bed with ... with my ... stepmother. Now, isn't that a gas for you?"
"No, that's childish. If you want to put labels on everything to make sure it's the right pedigree or under the proper zodiac sign, well, then I'm afraid there's no hope for you." She stopped long enough to shake her head lightly, then smiled, and added, "But I know better than that. You look like you're all man and know what you're doing when you're with a woman."
"I don't usually get complaints," Ted said wryly.
"I'm not the kind to complain if a man knows what he's doing," she smiled.
"You're the kind who doesn't mind coming right out with what you want, either, are you?" Now it was his turn to pause and shake his head.
"I had my share of those years when I was afraid to go after what I wanted. When you get a little older you realize it's foolish to act like a prude. Don't forget, darling, I'll be waiting for you." She took his hand, squeezed it, then wheeled and was gone up the path before he could say any more.
He watched her go back to the cottage, her dark form blotting out some of the light that came from the dwelling. For a few moments he wondered if this was all some sort of crazy dream. It seemed so incredible. His throbbing hardon began to sink.
He lit a cigarette and looked in the direction she had gone. Then, slowly, he made his way up the path. By the time he reached the house the bridge game was just breaking up and everyone was saying goodnight. Bob and Lori weren't anywhere around.
Betty was hovering over the guests, burbling her own goodnights, laughing gaily. She glanced at Ted and nodded her head in the direction of her bedroom.
Ted cursed softly under his breath. She seemed so damned sure of herself, so damned positive he was going to fall for the line she had neatly thrown his way. But the thing that made him angrier than anything else was that he knew he was going to do exactly as she asked.
Ted took hold of his sagging cock, squeezed it through the material of his pants. "Goddamn broad, makes you get a hardon just talking to her. No wonder the old man got hot nuts over her," he muttered.
He went to bed and tried to sleep. He had made up his mind that he wouldn't give Betty Lindsay the pleasure of a good fuck tonight.
It was close to midnight when the orange glow of his doorway outlined a feminine figure in a flowing nightgown. A low, husky laugh came with the figure.
"You evil man," she said. "You terribly evil thing. You were going to let me go without, weren't you?"
"I wasn't going to get my ass in trouble doing what you asked me to. No, baby, I've been around just a little too much to fall for that kind of shit."
"Wh-what? Do you think I had something evil planned? Oh, my, you have been educated in the wrong places." There was a rustle of silk and in the dim light Ted could see her slipping the gown over her head. In a moment, the figure drifted to the side of the bed, then lay down beside him.
"Don't talk," she whispered. Her tongue went into his ear, swabbing. Her hands were already on his thighs, fondling, probing, testing his reactions. She found his body receptive.
He squirmed slightly to face her. There was fire in her roving hands and her nibbling lips. Her tits pressed into his chest, hard knobs of her budding passion.
She covered his mouth with warm kisses. She stuck her tongue in his mouth, ran it around his upper gum, stroked it in and out like a rapier.
Ted's dick had leaped to attention only moments after her hot body came into contact with his. He pressed it against her, heard her gasp. She took hold of it, squeezing only slightly. Then she began a slow stroking motion that sent the skin back onto the shaft, then over the bulbous head. She ran her thumb over the eye. "Ooh, you are a man, aren't you. I knew it the minute I saw you this afternoon."
"Is that why you gave me those come-on looks?"
"Sure, darling. What else is there for a woman but a man and his tool?"
"Prick," he said.
She sucked in breath. Her warm fingers fondled, worked the skin up and down slowly. Her other hand took his balls and rolled them gently. Her body pressed against him, her moist pussy rubbing against his thigh. Then she moved slightly away and dragged the taut nipples across his chest while her lips burned against his.
Ted responded by ramming his hard cock against her, moving his ass as though he were already in her hot cunt.
She was becoming frantic, jerking at the hard cock that pressed against her, pressing it even tighter, hugging it with both hands, then dipping down quickly to kiss the head, lick at it frantically, then returning quickly to his face.
"Oh, Ted, Ted, you've got to give it to me ... now. Don't make me wait any longer. Ohh, Teedd!" she whispered with an urgency that was almost frightening.
"Yes, yes, baby," he panted. "You'll get it ... but not yet."
"You dirty bastard," she hissed. "I'm so hot for your cock I can't stand it and you want me to wait....You're rotten."
He patted her on the ass, a condescending move to let her know he looked on her now as a child. And then, to let her know who was boss, he slapped her fleshy ass.
She cried out at the slap and let go of his cock. She pushed away from him for a moment to look into his flushed face. There was a look of surprise on her face, but only for a moment. It was replaced by one of complete surrender.
"Ooh, Ted!" she sighed, nuzzling her head against him. She took his cock in her hand again. "What you do to me!"
His hands moved over her to grasp her tits, to knead the firm mounds, pushing them together so he could run his tongue over both nipples at the same time. Low moans of delight came from her. Her hand tightened on his stiff prick.
She tossed and turned savagely as his lips and tongue lapped hungrily at the rigid dark nipples. Her hand worked up and down on his rock-hard cock. She tried in vain to stab the tip of it into her pussy, tried to work her ass around so he'd have to slide into her.
He freely explored her now, running his hands between her legs and finding her cunt a delight, for it was soft and spongy around the edges of the lips, an indication that she would be more than heaven inside. He pressed his fingers into the wet hair, wet from the juices that had seeped from her slit. He felt the smooth, moist membrane of its interior; he ran his finger to the top of her cunt and felt the clitoris rise.
Then he eased her over as she moaned and thrashed. He put his fingers in her pussy and eased the lips apart. With a slight shift forward, he nestled the head of his prick in the warm folds, then stopped.
Her ass raised to force him into her. Then her hands went to his cock and her pussy and she clutched at the hot rod and virtually stuffed it into her after she had opened the lips a little more. "Now ... now ... oh, please," she pleaded.
He pushed it into her in a slow, relentless motion.
"Oh, God! Oh, darling!" Betty sizzled, her body in spasmodic contortions.
"Tell me you want me to fuck your cunt."
"Oh, Ted...."
"Say it," he ordered, sounding quite stern in the stillness of the room.
"Fuck my cunt. Yes, yes, fuck my cunt, Ted. Fuck it!"
In his own good time, Ted complied, pausing to make her ask him again, stopping altogether to make her plead. He wanted her to beg.
"Oh, Ted, darling, give me your nice big prick. Fuck me with it. Fuck my pussy. Oh, darling, I love that hot cock in me so much. Oh, yes, put that big prick in my cunt and fuck me!" She tugged frantically at his body, snatching at his buttocks, clutching at his shoulders. Then she spread her legs wide, took his rod in both hands, and pumped it into her cunt, rising and falling with her own hips to the motions.
He drove into her as she screamed in torment and delight. Instantly, her body closed on him, bringing firm, frantic pressure to the entire length of his palpitating body. She let out muted screams of release before Ted felt the thunderbolt strike and convulse him.
Several minutes went by before either of them spoke.
"You're quite a man, Ted," she whispered. "I knew you'd know how to treat a woman."
"Doesn't your husband?" Ted asked, wanting to sound sarcastic.
"Don't you worry about him. We have an understanding."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"You'll find out if you stay around long enough," she said. "But let's not talk about him. Let's talk about us."
Ted lit a cigarette and took a long drag before handing it to his bedmate. He lit another and they lay silent for a minute.
"There shouldn't be any more to talk about regarding us," he said. "Haven't you achieved your purpose by getting in bed with me? Or are you one who likes seconds and thirds?"
Betty moistened her lips. "I didn't intend for it to be just a one-time thing, Ted. I can give you a lot more, and not just sex, either."
"Such as?"
Betty laughed. "Money, for 'one thing. I imagine you think you've been taken because I married your father. Let's hear your price."
Ted stared at her. "You've got me curious now. Just what the hell are you afraid of?"
"Afraid, darling? Don't be ridiculous. I've never been afraid of anything or anyone in my whole life. I happen to want you, because you know how to handle yourself. You think I want to lose something I've looked almost my whole life to find? I need someone like you, Ted." She rose and picked up her negligee. "We'll have a long talk, Ted. I'll give you a call during the week. I'm sure there's going to be something good for both of us."
"And you're going to work it all out, right?"
"I'm good at working things out, darling. You wait and see."
Ted watched her slip on the negligee; it ballooned out around her as she fastened the snaps on its front.
The material, sheer to the point of being invisible, followed every curve of her body as she walked across the room to get another cigarette.
Her blond hair, mussed from the love-tussle, made her look a little like a young girl as the curls fell every which way. But her body was not that of a young girl. As she turned back toward him, he saw her large breasts bounce as she strode across the floor.
"I don't take orders, baby," he said.
Betty leaned down and kissed him hard. "That's something we have in common, darling. Suppose we wait and see what develops," she whispered.
Ted frowned as she swept out the door. He wondered just what the hell she meant. One thing he did know and that was that Betty Lindsay would have been right at home out in the woods with the animals.
"Maybe," he mused aloud, "that's why she wanted me to fuck her out there."
CHAPTER SEVEN
When Ted went onto the terrace to join Bob the next morning, the latter wore a wide, all-knowing grin.
"How was it?" Bob asked. "How was what?"
"Oh, come now, don't give me that innocent shit. I saw Betty deliberately plant herself in your path last night."
"Yeah, I ran into her on the path down there," Ted said. "Actually, she ran into me and wanted a cig-"
"A piece of ass. I presume you fucked her."
"Oh, shit," Ted said, trying to bluff his way. "You mean down there in the woods? Not me. I got over that childish shit years ago. I like my comfort."
"She's that all right-comfortable. She's got the softest pussy I've ever been in," he laughed. "What kind of deal did she offer you after you had fucked her?"
"Who the hell says I fucked her? You're presuming a hell of a lot. Just what makes you think we got together on any deals? What do you do-sneak around at night and see who's getting all the ass? How about you, did you get your session with that Lori chick? Hell, just because we talked doesn't mean there was anything more than talk involved." He forced a nervous laugh. "There's no explosion if no one lights the fuse, my friend."
"That fuse was lit the moment we hit the driveway yesterday. I think both of you were ready to cream in your crotches the minute you met. Don't try to hand me a line of shit that you didn't get fucked last night, Ted. I know that cock-hungry look in her eye and she had it trained on you all evening. You think I'm some kind of a fucking dummy who doesn't know what's going on? You probably fucked up the works for Hodges or Meeker."
"Shit. Those two old farts couldn't get hardons if you put their goddamn cocks in a cast! Besides, their wives were here."
Bob grinned. "Their wives like security. It's easier to look the other way than to make an issue of it and go through the rest of their lives alone. Hodges owns a business and Betty holds a big hunk of his stock. Oh, she's a real cute bitch. She doesn't just tie knots in a guy's dick-she gets it all down on paper. She thinks all the time."
"And you, Bob, does she have a hold on you, too?"
Bob frowned, tried to laugh through it. "Nobody gives me orders. I work for Dick Lindsay, not his wife. I've got enough cunt of my own. She can't use hers to buy me."
"Speaking of Dick-where the hell is he?"
"He couldn't make it," Bob shrugged. "Maybe next week."
Ted was sure Bob was hiding something, but there wasn't much use in pushing the point for the time being. Bob's chin was set in a determined line.
"That Lori, now there's a nice-looking chick," he grinned.
"Show business," Bob said. "She works the better clubs. Just finished a show in Vegas. Not really the big time, but good enough to keep her busy. Sings, dances ... stuff like that."
"I heard my name mentioned and I admit everything," a soft female voice said. Lori Collins came up to them, smiling. She was wearing two pieces of material that could have fit into a thimble. She kissed Bob lightly, smiled at Ted.
"I'll have to revise my earlier comment," Ted said. "I said you were a nice-looking chick. I'll change that to great." He looked at the sharp thrust of her titties, the pleasant curve of her ass, the long, firm thighs.
"Hey, you two, how about getting off your lazy butts and going for a swim? The water looks absolutely delicious."
"And cold as hell," Bob said, frowning.
"Good for cooling things off," she smiled, her eyes lingering on Ted. Then she turned and ran down the path toward the lake.
"How is she for fucking?" Ted asked. "Good as Beth?"
Bob's head snapped around. He started with a frown, then let it melt into a slow smile. "She's a different type. She can say no when she wants to. You have to take a lot of time building up to it so she'll be in the right mood." He shrugged. "You might even have to eat it for her first, just to show her you're sincere, or some bullshit like that. Goddamn cunts, they're all different. And nuts."
"Like last night?" Ted taunted, but good-naturedly.
"Touche," Bob grinned. "That's a trade secret anyway. Hey, how about a drink? Just thinking about Lori going into that cold water gave me the chills."
"No thanks, no drinks for me this early. How about a swim instead? Hell, that water isn't that cold. They keep spare trunks around here?"
"There's a bathhouse just to the right of those trees down there," Bob said, pointing toward the lake. "There should be some that fit you in there. Of course, you wouldn't really need any...."
Ted stared at him, a puzzled look on his face.
"You don't think that damn polar bear is going to keep that bikini on, do you? She hates any kind of clothes. I guess maybe that's why she's in the business she's in. Just a born exhibitionist."
"You mean she's nothing special to you? You wouldn't get sore if I took a shot at her?" Ted asked.
"None of them are anything special to me. Hell, I know enough broads to keep you busy as long as you want to play. Help yourself."
Ted wandered down to the bathhouse and went through a couple lockers until he found a pair of trunks that fit. He came out and headed for the lake he could see framed in the tall trees just ahead. The bathhouse had been built in a sheltered cove and did not sit directly on the lake itself. He could see Lori sunning herself on an anchored raft a short distance from shore. Her costume was bare skin.
Ted hit the water in a smooth, flat dive and came up wide-eyed and sucking for air. The water was colder than he had expected. He struck out immediately for the raft, swimming briskly to avoid getting cramps.
Lori's shrill laugh rent the morning air.' She turned on one side, propped her head on her hand and watched Ted swim toward her. She made no move to cover herself.
"Colder than you thought, isn't it?" she smiled as he pulled himself up onto the raft.
"You better believe it," he said, his lips blue from the cold water. "Now that I'm here, I'm wondering why."
"Me," she said simply.
"Oh, yeah, I almost forgot." He looked down at her naked body. One breast rested on the raft, the other looked as though it were trying to join it. One leg was tossed over the other so that only a few hairs of her ample bush were visible.
"I like your costume," Ted grinned.
"The female body. A whole lot of skin, some lumps here and there, some holes, some hair, and, well, that's about it."
"Boy, you sure simplified the hell out of that, didn't you?"
"You want me to describe the male body? It comes out the same. It's all anatomy. A male, a female. Skin and meat and blood and stuff."
"Jesus!"
"I got tits, you got tits. Only difference is that mine puff up a little more. The one place where we're really different is down there. Even then, it all boils down to meat and hair and stuff like that." She shrugged, closed her eyes, and rolled over on her back.
He couldn't help but stare at her. Her breasts now stood up from her chest, sagging only slightly, and that from the sheer size of them. She was tan from forehead to toes with no breaks in between where even the scantiest of bathing suits might have shut out the sun.
"If this bothers you, let me know," she said. "I'll turn over. I don't want any impetuous men on my hands this morning."
"Well, I'll admit, the view is damn good, but I'm not about to try to mount you out here where everybody can see."
"Especially our dear hostess," she said without opening her eyes. "She might get jealous."
"Meaning...?"
Lori laughed. "I'm not the nosey type, Ted, but I did happen to see her gadding about the hall last night. Poor thing must have been lost because she foolishly went into the wrong room."
"What the hell was going on last night?" Ted asked. "Was everybody, in the joint crouched at keyholes?"
"You don't have to peek through keyholes to know what's going on. We've all been here before. We know where the action is when Betty is up and around." She opened her eyes about halfway and looked at him with a steady, studied gaze. "Want some advice?"
"Do I have a choice?"
"Don't get involved in any way with her if you can help it. So, all right, maybe you and she spent a little time in the sack together. That's standard for her. But unless you've got a good reason for being around her, forget it."
"Maybe that's all there's going to be," Ted shrugged.
"Your name is Ted Butler. Betty was married to your old man. I doubt if you're here to console the grieving widow."
"So?"
"You might have something else in mind. That's where you might get into trouble."
"Trouble is one thing I don't want. Basically, I'm a lover," Ted said, laughing lightly.
"Well, I'm told your old man left a lot of money and I imagine Betty got it. Maybe you think part of it is yours. Maybe you think you can outfox Betty. You can forget that, too."
"You're assuming a lot," he said.
"Oh, it could be done legally, I suppose. Maybe that's why you and Bob are together. Maybe all you want is a job with the company your old man once owned. I don't know. Bob didn't tell me very much about you."
"I don't know why I should hold anything against Betty. The old man embezzled some money, then killed himself. Just because he happened to be married to her at the time doesn't mean she had anything to do with it." He tried to sound convincing but his words came out flat.
Lori smiled. "I don't have any opinions. After all, I don't know any of the details about what went on. I only know what kind of female Betty is and I wouldn't want to see you get hurt. By the looks of it, you're pretty scarred up already. Be careful. She likes to impress men, and from what I've heard she doesn't stop at anything to prove how much woman she is. I'm beginning to think she did quite a job on you."
"She's dynamic as hell, I'll say that for her," Ted said. "I can see now why dad was impressed with her."
"Put a little extra armor around your heart, Ted. That's where she drives in the first darts. She's like those spiders that stun their victims before killing them, and just like those spiders wind their victims in a web sheath, she winds her victims around her finger. Stay out other web if you can." Lori said those last words in an almost pleading tone.
"Just where do you fit into this act?" Ted asked quietly.
"I'm an innocent bystander. I met Betty at a party once. She invited me up here for a weekend and I've been coming up here ever since. She's the kind who has to have people around her and I guess I'm what you'd call good show."
"I'm surprised she'd have someone as attractive as you as a guest. Strange." Ted shook his head. "What about Bob? Have you known him long?"
"Yes, quite a while. I thought we had something going for a while but Bob washed it away with booze," she said wistfully. "He was a pretty decent sort before he stuck his nose so deep into the sauce."
"Which brings up another question," Ted said. "What the hell's all that drinking about, anyway? We used to drink a little in college but he never hit it this hard."
Lori shifted and rolled over on her back. The movement thrust her full, pointed breasts aloft, bringing Ted's attention to them. He had lain down on the raft a few feet from her and he raised himself on one elbow to get a better view. He suddenly found it extremely unusual to be on a raft with a completely nude girl.
"I'm not a detective," she said. "What's behind Bob's drinking is his secret. I've never asked him because I figured he'd tell me if I was supposed to know. Then, too, I figured some men drink more than others and there doesn't really have to be some mysterious reason behind it. I'm in show business and I'm always moving around. I just don't have time to stop and figure out why one man does a thing and another doesn't. If I worried about every man I met, I'd be worrying most of the time."
"I just thought you might know something," Ted said. "You said you were pretty close once."
"We're still close but it doesn't involve a lot of talk. You want me to give you the body bit again? Male, female. Get it? That's all we are now." She said the words with some sort of hidden hopelessness, as though she had gone out on a limb pretty far for Bob, only to be cut down by his indifference.
Ted looked at her for some time before he spoke. "Does anybody ever bother you when you're down here dressed like that?"
"Not often. Oh, I know some of the older men Betty invites up here get their kicks by watching me through glasses but that doesn't bother me. After all, I make a living taking almost everything off so why should I mind if a few men see it all? Anyway, what's there to see that's so exciting?"
"Yeah, I know," Ted said wryly. "Skin and mea and hair and stuff."
"You're learning," she smiled. "Speaking of clothes, I suppose I'd better get decent and go up and visit with Bob." She got up and tied the two small pieces of cloth around her, not bothering to face away from the ogling Ted a few feet away.
There were a lot more questions in Ted's mind but he could see that Lori was in no mood for further questioning.
"Come on, I'll race you back to the dock," she said. "You look like you need a little cooling off." Her eyes trailed down to his swim trunks where there was a far bigger bulge now than had been there some moments before. A hint of a smile crossed her lips as the tip of her tongue peeked out from between them. She poised at the edge of the raft, then arched gracefully into the cold blue water.
Ted followed suit. He caught her in a few strokes and they swam side by side until they came to the wooden ladder at the edge of the dock.
"What are my chances of seeing more of you?" he asked.
"You've seen all there is of me already," she said, laughing. "But if you mean you'd like to see me so you can ask me a lot more questions, then I'd have to say your chances are zero. If you just want to visit, I suppose we'll be going back to town together. A friend dropped me off and I'm supposed to go back with Bob. You'll be going too, I imagine, unless ... oh, but that's being catty, isn't it?"
"If Bob started drinking like he said he was going to, he'll probably be loaded by the time we're ready to go," Ted said. "I'll be doing the driving."
"That's just fine," she smiled. "That way, you'll have to keep both hands on the wheel."
"Oh, but I wouldn't think of doing anything but," he said.
CHAPTER EIGHT
Both Ted and Lori had reasoned correctly in their assumption that Bob would be drunk when it came time to leave. As Ted helped his almost helpless friend into the car, Lori looked at Bob with eyes misted over with tears. When Ted looked at her, she tossed her head proudly and looked away.
"I don't know why he always does that," Betty said. She had come along to see the trio off. "One day he's not going to have someone to drive him home and he's going to break his fool neck. These roads are bad enough when you're sober."
"Someday I might find out why the hell he does it," Ted said, looking evenly at Betty, who averted her eyes quickly.
"He's just having a good time," Lori put in, sounding not at all convincing. "One day he'll realize there's a whole lot of things going on and he'll sober up to find out what they are."
"Well, I hope he straightens out pretty soon," Ted said. "I'd like to sit down and talk some sense with him. I don't think he'd fall apart like this without a damn good reason." Again he looked directly at Betty as he spoke. Her eyes clung to his for a moment, again retreated....
"I don't think he should be allowed to drink so much," Lori put in. "Everyone knows he won't stop after the first one."
Betty glared at Lori. "Well, I'm certainly not his nursemaid if that's what you're implying. He's a grown boy, honey. He ought to know what to do."
Ted and Lori had put Bob in the back seat where he could stretch out. It was a long drive back to town. Lori got in beside Ted and once they had driven out of the Lindsay compound, she --edged closer to him. Ted kept his mind on the driving. The road was not exactly treacherous, but the curves were sharp and popped up at the most unexpected places. After an hour of driving, they reached the open highway.
"One thing about Bob," Lori noted. "When he gets bombed he'll sleep no matter where the hell he is."
Ted made a quick glance to the rear seat, then at Lori. She was wearing a two-piece playsuit and looked almost as inviting as she had in the nude-almost. Lori was smaller than Beth, a little bigger than Carol. Bob had apparently chosen from every category-and chosen well, Ted had to concede.
Lori caught his look and smiled. "Do I pass inspection?"
"You passed inspection this morning on the raft," he grinned.
"Most any woman would under the circumstances."
"Oh, I don't know. I've seen some pretty baggy creatures that wouldn't improve much by being naked. In fact, I think some of them would look downright revolting if they took their clothes off."
"You sound like an expert," she smiled.
"I've seen a leg or two," he admitted. "Some good, a hell of a lot bad."
"And you rate me as...?"
"Number one, Lori. A-one."
"I'm glad."
"Did you expect me to say anything else?" he asked.
"No ... not really," she grinned.
"Maybe we can do something about that," he said.
"Just stick to your driving and we'll make better time. Also, we'll get there in one piece." One of his arms had snaked around her neck.
"One piece is sometimes all a guy needs."
"Corn."
"Okay, I'll drive, but you've shut off two categories already. No questions and no hanky-panky. Would you like to select a subject?"
"You," she said.
"Diplomat," he grinned.
"You and some of the things you did while you were away. Oh, yes, Bob told me quite a bit about you, but there's still a lot that could be interesting."
"Booze and broads, Bangkok to Brazil. That's about it."
It had turned dark shortly after they left the Lindsay cottage and Ted's hand stole slowly across the seat to take Lori's. She did not protest, nor did she respond. She tolerated. Ted was beginning to learn what Bob meant when he told him Lori was good only if she was in the mood. Apparently she wasn't in the mood right now.
There was no further discussion about the problems Ted had on his mind, nor did he further his advances beyond the casual hand-holding he had begun about halfway home. In fact, after their original exchange, nothing of substance had passed between them. Most of their talk was banal, connected with the weather, the traffic or the scenery.
At Bob's apartment, Lori helped with the unloading of the rubber-legged attorney, and once they had hauled him into the place, Lori also helped with undressing him.
"Jesus, this guy really stays out once he decides to leave the living," Ted grunted. "I've never seen anybody passed out so long."
"He's so saturated with the stuff I'm beginning to think he's about halfway out even when he's walking around. I've been through this business with him many times." She looked at Ted as though she wanted to say something, then decided against it.
"How about fixing us a drink?" he said. "I'll roll him in. I want to clean up a little, too."
She disappeared out of the bedroom and he soon heard the clinking of glasses. He stepped into the bathroom and rinsed his face, found a toothbrush and brushed his teeth. When he came into the living room, Lori was standing at the small bar with a glass in her hand. He took the glass she offered him and they sat in silence for a few moments, sipping their drinks.
"If you're all set, I'll be getting home," she said.
"And how do you go about doing that? A cab?"
She shrugged. "I was hoping for an offer."
Ted glanced toward the bedroom. "I don't suppose Bob would mind if I used his car. How far do you live?"
"Just far enough for this drink to begin its work," she smiled. "I'll fix you another at my place."
"I'm ready."
"That's what I know," she said. "But that's not why I want to get out of here. I get very depressed when he's like that." She tipped her head toward Bob's bedroom.
They set their glasses down on the bar after a quick swallow and he took her arm to lead her out of the apartment. She looked at him in surprise but made no move to stop or to take the lead herself. She was more submissive than she'd been all day.
Lori's apartment consisted of three rooms; it was nicely furnished, and located in a classy building. Ted decided it fitted her nicely. It was chic.
She pointed to one of the cabinets over the kitchen sink. "I'm not as fancy as Bob. I keep my booze up there. Mix us a couple, will you?" With that, she disappeared into the bedroom.
Ted felt anticipation rise in him. The scene was set for her to reappear in a filmy negligee, a provocative smile on her lips, some haunting perfume to raise his blood pressure, and willingness in her eyes.
It didn't happen.
She came back into the room wearing a rather plain dress. There was no provocative smile, no haunting perfume. The look in her eyes was a questioning one.
"Did you find everything?" she asked.
He nodded and handed her a drink.
Lori caught the look of disappointment on his face. She laughed a tinkling sort of laugh that had brushed elbows with sarcasm. "I blew the scene, huh?" she asked.
"All the way," he said glumly.
"I'm a firm believer in clothes for women. I don't think she should ever show a man too much."
He stared at her in amazement. "And just what the hell do you call that scene on the raft? As far as I could see you weren't dressed in anything but pure skin."
"That was outdoors," she smiled. "It's different when it's connected with a sport or recreation."
He had a feeling she was deliberately toying with him and his male ego. "Just what in hell are you trying to prove?"
Her low laugh came again. "Nothing ... really. Maybe I've been in show business too long. Maybe I sometimes forget when I'm supposed to act and when I'm supposed to be myself."
"And maybe you don't even know who you really are anymore. Whatever your motives are, to me they could become very annoying. I mean, after seeing you on the raft in your all-skin suit and knowing we're both adults ... well, it just doesn't seem logical to play games anymore." He shrugged indifferently and turned his back on her. He took a long drink.
Lori drew in and let the smoke curl from her throat. When it came to having finesse around men, she was all-pro, an artist. She had found out long ago that suspense was conducive to a great deal of later pleasure with a man, and regardless of how annoyed he might become with her, she would carry out her plans.
"I told you this morning that I was a dancer. I sing and do a little acting, too. Would you like to see how I make my living?" she asked.
"Do I have a choice?" he asked over his shoulder.
She was silent for a moment, then said, "Yes, you have two choices. You can either stay or leave. It's up to you."
He turned to face her. There was a slightly annoyed look on his face. It disappeared almost immediately.
Lori set her glass down and whirled across the room. Her dress flared out, offering glimpses of sinewy, well-formed thighs that seemed to thrill him more now than they had this morning when he had seen her completely naked. Suddenly, she stepped back to him. She glanced over her shoulder and said, "Watch!"
Ted watched in fascination as her firm buttocks started to tremble and then her entire body shivered in a slow roll to give a perfect example of muscle control. She was an expert at her trade. She stopped and spun away, stopping once again in front of him. An enticing smile was on her face, wickedness in her eyes. She spun away again, her nimble fingers moving to the side of her dress. Rolling her hips, spinning, she went into graceful gyrations in the center of the room and directly in front of him. She had not hypnotized him, yet she held him in an immobile trance that would not allow his eyes to move from her.
Her dress crept away from her luscious figure as she wiggled her body violently. The action made her breasts dance, moving counter-clockwise to her agitated body and causing Ted's eyes to open even wider. Finally, with one last effort, she stepped free and kicked the dress aside. Rising on tiptoes, she started to tremble again, forcing her muscles to obey the silent orders she issued.
Ted stared and felt the hunger for her rise. His eyes moved from the perfectly muscled legs to the pulsating breasts, barely hidden by a narrow black bra. Her hips became a blur of speed in front of him, and gradually the black panties worked down to her feet. His cock twitched with excitement.
She kicked them aside as she had her dress moments before. And she stood for a moment on tiptoe before she gave a slight cry, and her bra broke free and dropped away.
Lori stood before him fully naked, her breasts heaving from the motion of her dance and the thoughts in her mind about what was to come.
The insatiable hunger for sex was strong in Ted now. He was responding to the lure of a woman's body almost as though it was the first, time. He couldn't bring himself to move. He merely stared at her. His dick was throbbing now.
She came toward him in her graceful gliding walk, her curves seeming more pronounced than he had recalled a few moments before. She glided nearer. She stood before him, her hair loose and casual, and let him admire her. As he stared, her hands began to move deliberately over her writhing body.
To Ted, she seemed like an incomparably beautiful sculpture done in golden marble. Her skin was that flawless, her flesh that perfect. She stood before him wordlessly, but her pose was eloquent with invitation.
Suddenly, Ted snapped out of his rapturous trance. He wanted her.
He moved then, quickly. But she was quicker and before he could grasp her, her hands were pushing him back. She twisted away and knelt on the floor, sitting on her heels and holding her slender arms up to him.
"Ted," she whispered huskily. "I've never been loved right. Sometimes I go out of my mind, wanting it right. Ted, make me happy-make me know. Please." There was a kind of helplessness in her eyes as she knelt there, begging.
It was only a matter of seconds before Ted had his clothes off and was lying beside her on the rug.
Her fresh young loveliness intoxicated him. She was alluring, and rendered utterly exotic by the strange, indirect lights playing on her nudity, lights that he was just noticing for the first time.
His hands began a light dancing on her body, knowing explorations that made his fingertips tingle. His lips nibbled and teased her little strawberry nipples, then kissed their way over her feverish body until he had reached the little nest of silken hair.
She twisted and twitched like a virgin knowing love for the first time, yet he found that he had nothing to teach her. She accommodated and anticipated his every move, every caress, no matter how intimate or unusual. He blew his hot breath into her patch of hair, took the soft mound at the top of her pussy between his lips, then bit it gently. He ran his tongue down the slitted opening, flicking at the pulsating lips, then drove deep into her.
She put her hands on top of his head and worked her hips up and down against his face. There was a sweet, musty aroma to her-clean. It excited him to put his tongue into her, feel her churn and writhe in response to his gentle ministrations.
She began to utter the hot vulgarities, the tender little obscenities, that only thoroughly impassioned lovers find delightful to say.
"Oh, Ted ... baby ... lick me ... lick my pussy....Ooh, it feels so good. But I want your cock, baby ... your big, beautiful cock ... your prick. I want all of it in me...."
Ted did not let her rush him or herself. Even after her body spasmed and her legs clamped tight against his head, he continued licking her slit methodically and leisurely. Even after he had crawled atop her and slowly, slickly, made his entry into her silken nest, he held himself almost motionless. He did not want her to trigger his cum prematurely and thus leave her marooned. He rolled a bit to the right, a bit to the left. He ground at her with his loins. He pumped with excruciating, slow strokes. She responded with moans compounded half of joy, half of agony.
"Oh ... oh ... ba-beeee. I can't wait. Let me have you. I want your hot cock in me. Shoot it in me, sweetheart ... :"
"Sure, sure," Ted groaned. He pushed deep into the slithery mass of her eager pussy, tantalizing her.
He released her. Instantly, her body bucked in a mad rhythm, which he matched, divining the intolerable ache and hunger in her. In a way, Ted conceded she was one of the wildest pieces of flesh he had ever had under him. He plunged and plunged again, driving his hard cock into her cunt.
She stayed with him while their bodies rocked and arched and swayed and twisted. She moaned and sobbed and once she screamed, fearing his desertion of her. The inner muscles of her pussy clutched him.
"Baby, don't take that beautiful cock out of me ... please ... please ... please!" she panted. "Fuck me more ... more. FUCK ME!"
She stayed with him until he could hold back no longer. He exploded suddenly. Upward he soared, up, up to the ultimate summit. There he hung like a fiery cloud, exuding his ecstasy in spurts like blasts of lightning, his hot fluid searing her.
And there he lost her.
It was all over and she had failed and he sat beside her and held her in his arms as she sobbed.
"That's the way it always is," she wailed. "When the time comes, I just can't."
She let him wipe the tears from her eyes and she took the drink he gave her.
"I'm so ashamed," she said. "I'm not a real, whole woman. I never will be. Didn't Bob tell you?"
He shook his head. "We didn't discuss you that way. But I wouldn't give up. There are ways to fix things like that-I think."
"Oh, I've tried so many times," she sobbed. "I was hoping that you...."
"Now, wait a minute. I tried. Maybe it's because you try too hard. Maybe you've been trying to prove something that isn't in you to prove. Maybe a psychiatrist would help." He got up and paced around the room, his half-hard cock bouncing up and down as he walked. He went to the window and stood there for a moment, peering into the moon-silvered darkness. "Maybe if you try different things," he said, looking back at her still seated on the floor. He took hold of his cock and half waved it at her.
She looked up. "I've been there," she said. "If you mean the things, like going down on a guy, sucking him off, or maybe letting a woman eat my pussy. Heck, Ted, I've even thought of getting ahold of some girl and licking her pussy! I'm that desperate."
"It might help if you were in love with the guy."
"Bob."
"And it didn't work?"
"Nope."
"You thought that dancing and the holding off was going to do the trick, didn't you? You wanted me to really want you. That's why the naked bit out at the lake."
She nodded. "I've tried all kinds of things. When I saw you get all worked up, when I saw you get a hard-on so quick, I felt sure I.was going to really cum. You know, the big explosion sort of thing you read about."
"The way you acted, I was sure you'd popped. You even screamed a little."
She grinned at him sheepishly. "I read a lot," she said. "There are ways to make believe you've cum, just like there are tricks to make a man think you're a virgin."
"You had me fooled. Why the act, then the confession?"
"I did enjoy it, Ted. Don't get me wrong. I just wanted you to know that I had a problem. Maybe it's because you tried so desperately hard, because you were so sweet and gentle and seemed to know how to handle a woman. Maybe I thought you might have the answer, that you might be able to help me. You've been around...."
"Your problem goes a bit deeper than my knowledge," he said. "Yeah, I've been around, but I've never been faced with a thing like this before. Sorry."
"Sometimes I wish I could be a whore," she said angrily. "Maybe I'd run across just the right guy who'd know how to handle me."
That made the anger rise in Ted. His fucking ability was being put in doubt, and he resented it. He picked up his glass and drained it, then shoved it out to Lori, and said, "Fill it." He said it roughly enough to make her look at him strangely. "Goddamn it, move!"
She stared at him, then turned and went to the kitchen. In a moment, she was back. "Here," she said meekly. "Come here," he ordered. She moved closer.
"You just made a statement that pissed me off," he said. "Now you're going to pay for it." He took a drink, a big one. Then his hand shot out and snatched her wrist. He yanked her tight against him. "You little bitch, you're going to find out who's the boss."
"Ted
"Never mind the surprised look. I don't need your fucking acting now." He took another drink, set the glass on the coffee table. He still held her wrist. He moved to the couch and pulled her down with him as he slouched into it. He crushed his mouth to hers, ground his lips against hers, then rammed his tongue between them and plunged it in and out in a cock-like action. He took hold of one tit and squeezed it, pinching the nipple. He took his mouth away from her lips and went to her tits. He sucked the tips hungrily, then lapped as much of the tit as he could get in his mouth. He bit the nipples, lightly at first, then harder.
"Ouch," she cried. "Not so hard."
"Shut up. This is my ball game." Then, with a quick, flipping motion, he spun her over on his lap so that her ass was sticking up. He brought his hand down on the smooth skin. Once, twice, three times he smacked her.
She yelled, tried to wriggle free. "What are you trying to do? Have you gone crazy?" she moaned.
"Shut the fuck up! You've had this coming for a long time, you bitch!" He brought his hand down several more times. Then, with a strength that stemmed from his own desire, he picked her up and lay her on the floor in front of the couch.
"You've hurt me," she whined. "I feel it all through me."
"You haven't felt anything yet," he growled. He thrust her legs apart and fell between them. His cock was not fully hard, but he pulled the lips of her cunt apart and thrust the head of it into her roughly.
"Oh ... oh, you're hurting me," she groaned.
"Knock it off ... and fuck," he ordered.
He plunged into her. He worked his ass back and forth, driving the half-hard cock into her, feeling it get harder as he got it deeper into her cunt. Within moments, it was a driving spear, striking into her with a fury she had never felt before.
And then she began to respond, at first by ceasing to struggle and complain, then with a slow, easy movement of her ass, coming up to meet his drives, holding so his cock was buried deep in her pussy, then moving away with an easy grace that began to kindle fires of desire she had not known existed.
He plunged into, her vigorously. He took her legs and raised them, then tipped her ass up so that his drives were more direct and deeper. "Come on, baby, you wanted to fuck, now let's see what kind of a fuck machine you are," he said, with no touch of friendliness in his words.
"Yes, yes," she groaned. "I want to be fucked. I want your nice big prick inside me...."
Then, without warning, he yanked his cock out of her. Quickly, he crawled over her until his wet prick was in her face. She turned her face aside, but he lowered himself and pressed the wet cock against her cheek. Slowly, he raised himself again.
"Take it, you bitch," he snorted. "Suck on it! Now!"
"I-I...."
"Never mind the bullshit, just take my cock in your mouth and suck it, damn you!"
She wanted to turn her head aside but his legs clamped her in place. Then she wriggled her body a little so that her mouth was near the head of his cock.
"That's better," he said. "Now gobble on it. Eat my cock, baby."
One of her arms went around his ass, the other --edged its way up so she could hold onto his prick. She paused, raised her head slightly, as though still debating whether or not to take his dick into her mouth.
"What are you waiting for? Come on, taste your own cunt, baby. Find out what your pussy tastes like. Let's quit fucking around and get down to business."
Well, he thought, this was it. This was the moment of decision. She was probably angry at him for making her eat his cock. Or she was just catching her breath and adjusting herself mentally to the fact that she was about to blow a cock.
Then, as her fingers pinched his ass, her other hand moved his cock away from his body. She looked at the swollen head for a moment, then opened her mouth and gulped it in. She seemed to have a hunger for it, sliding it deeper and deeper into her, moving her head away and around to his ass until most of his hard prick was in her throat.
All he could do was brace himself on all fours and work his ass up and down whenever she gave the sign that she wanted it out of her. But she waited a long time, holding ft inside her mouth without moving. Only her tongue moved, licking at the underside, but with only slight movements.
Then she started her motions. As her mouth slid back and forth on his slippery cock, her hands alternately tightened and loosened on his ass. Her eyes were closed and she seemed to be enjoying herself immensely. She slurped, she gagged sometimes, she went slower, then faster. Her lips tightened on the head as she let it slip almost completely out of her mouth. Her tongue flicked at the tip and she nibbled it occasionally.
He got off her with a suddenness that made his cock slurp from her lips. He moved quickly between her legs again, rammed it into her.
"Ohh ... ohh," she groaned.
"I told you to never mind the comments ... just fuck. You've sucked my cock, now fuck it. Come on, baby, move your ass. Make that cunt of yours do things for you. Fuck me!"
She slammed herself up and down, moved around in circles, scraping his dick around inside her, against the walls, and working the inner muscles so that it felt almost like she was sucking on it again.
Electric currents were running up his spine and sparking the kisses he was dabbing on her face, her neck and her ears.
She moved with deceptive simplicity, with a precision of movement from her compact hips, with a rhythm that was sheer spontaneity. Lori was finding herself.
She let out a yell, but it wasn't from pain. It was from ecstatic delight.
"Ooh, Ted!" she groaned. "Ooh, you dear, beautiful man ... and all that cock is in me. That beautiful big cock on such a beautiful man."
He plowed into her with strong, demanding motions, making her reach up for him, denying her, then driving into her so deep he thought he might tear something loose.
And she knew now what she had a cunt for. She knew how to use it, how to work every corner, every nook. She came up for him and tugged at his ass so he couldn't move away, then moved her entire midsection in circular motions. And the muscles inside her pussy gripped him, milked him, then released and let him do his own moving for a moment or two.
"You let me have it now," she murmured. "I want you to shoot your juice right into my hot little pussy ... all of it. I love it...."
Then they came.
A million watts of power released inside her, blurring her brain, and making her body spasm as charge after charge was spewed into her.
She groaned, gurgled, then muttered, "Ooh, this is heaven!"
She drove herself up to him, held him in place with her arms locked around his body.
He could feel the spot at the base of his cock where his balls were attached sink into her slightly. It was wet and warm and just a little trickle of her cunt juice coursed down out of her.
Her head was rolling from side to side and her eyes were pinched shut. A couple of tears trickled down out of the corners.
"Oh, my God," she murmured a long time after all movement had stopped. "Oh, my God, Ted." She paused, gulped in air. "Ted, Ted, you dear wonderful man. You've done it. Do you understand, you dear sweet thing-you've done it!"
It made him glad. He had to explain to her later that the brutality was all part of the game and she understood-now.
An hour later, when he was almost ready to go, she put her hand on his, and said softly, "It was the most wonderful feeling I've ever had in my life."
"I wasn't sure what I did would work, but it was worth a try," he said.
As she let him out the door, she gave him a parting kiss that almost made him want to stay.
"Good night, Ted. And thanks." She kissed him again.
Driving back to Bob's place, Ted felt the sudden fatigue that can come only from a well-fucked evening. He had really worked on Lori Collins and he felt it. But he was happy he had been able to make her cum.
He found Bob still out. He looked down at him, shook his head, and went into the living room. He mixed a drink, debated if he should stay here or go to his own place. He decided to go home.
CHAPTER NINE
It was close to noon when Ted awakened. A cold shower pushed some of the cobwebs aside. He dialed Bob's number and frowned when a female voice answered after many rings.
"Bob there?" Ted asked.
"I'm sorry, he isn't. Can I take a message?" She paused a moment. "He left for the office about a half-hour ago. I'll tell him you called if you'll leave your name."
"Ted Butler. Tell him I'll drop over tonight."
"Ted! Ted Butler! Well, isn't this something? This is Darlene! Remember? Bob's sister."
Ted was silent a short time. Sure, Darlene was Bob's little sister. She was young, one of those pain-in-the-ass little sisters who always hang around the boys and act silly. But that was ten years ago. Ten years can do a lot to a little girl.
"Well, I'll be," Ted said "Gee, it's been a long time. How are you?"
"Fine, just fine."
"What are you doing there ... at Bob's?"
"I come to L.A. about once a month. I live in Santa Barbara, or close to it. Are you coming over? Can I see you?" she burbled anxiously.
"I hadn't planned on coming there. I was going to...."
"Can I come to your place? Where do you live? I'll take a cab. Oh, Ted, please don't have anything important to do. I want to see you so much...."
Ted frowned and hesitated a moment. "Okay, Darlene. I'm not too far from you. Here, let me give you the address."
After she took down the address, she said, "You sure you don't mind me coming over? Gosh, I just have to see you, Ted. It's been so terribly long
"No, I don't mind a bit. I'll be waiting. It'll be good to see what kind of a beautiful woman you turned out to be after being such a miserable little brat when you were young."
"Aw, now, is that nice? You mean I was a pest when you and Bob were dating? Sorry about that, but it's just my nature to be nasty. See you in a few minutes. 'Bye."
After he hung up, Ted tried to visualize Darlene. She had been eleven or twelve the last time he had seen her. He could recall her as a skinny kid with long scraggly hair that, if it wasn't tied into a pony tail, looked like a discarded mop. No freckles or braces on her teeth, but an impish nature and a somewhat sassy mouth were her tools in trade. At the time, Ted saw no hope for this animated broomstick and paid her as little attention as possible.
Darlene must have raced from her brother's apartment and leaped into the car for only ten minutes had passed when she was knocking on Ted's door. When he opened it, his mouth dropped open.
Darlene was a woman.
Her eyes were a deep, mysterious hue which, perhaps even in broad daylight would defy description, but were now stained with some unguessable residue of emotion brought on by the meeting with an old friend. Her hair was spun gold and the furrow down the center of her head proved no dyestuff had been applied. It was long, hanging in abundance at the sides of her face which, somehow, had acquired a scattering of freckles that had not been there during her growing-up years. There was only a hint of lipstick on her full lips, or at least so it seemed, for her lips were pulled tight in a pleasant smile. White, even teeth gleamed through the opening.
Her dress was a gray and white print, not fancy but fitted nicely to a body that had acquired considerable flesh-and curves-since last he had seen her. Her perfume entered Ted's room before she did. It was one of the musky varieties, a scent that could not be labeled with any definite tag. It was strictly a nighttime aroma, full of eroticism.
Darlene threw open her arms, waited for Ted to enter. "Ted ... darling-g-g!" she exclaimed. She had a musical voice, pitched low but not husky.
He moved into the trap.
She closed it.
His arms went around her waist, then one hand crept up behind her head and he pressed her close. "Darlene! Why, you little devil! You've really grown up, haven't you?"
He eased her away from him and looked down at her. But down wasn't exactly right, either, for she was almost as tall as Ted in her high heels.
Her hazel eyes flashed in amusement as she stood in the hallway. "Well, well, it's been such a long time, hasn't it? Aren't you going to ask me in?" There was softness in her voice and her eyes twinkled as she spoke.
"Oh, yeah, sure," Ted said, grinning. "I guess you were sort of a surprise to me. I don't know what I expected. After all, it's been about ten years since I've seen you and I suppose I still imagined you as the little brat who used to bug us. I must say, there's been a marked improvement over those ten years."
"Was I really that much of a brat? No wonder you never gave me a second look. I was simply mad about you and you never knew it, did you?"
"You mean you had a raging fire for me and still gave me a bad time?" he asked.
"Sure," she said curtly. "That was my way of trying to get your attention. I was madly in love with you."
Ted noticed the graceful way she walked, head thrown back, her manner just a little on the defiant side. "It's a little hard to believe you're the same person," he said.
"Well, there's a lot more to me than there was," she smiled. Her breasts pushed out just a trifle and her eyelids fluttered.
"Yes, I can see that," Ted said. He fumbled for a cigarette. "I'm afraid I can't offer you a drink. I just moved in and haven't had time to stock anything yet."
"Just as well," she shrugged. "I see enough of drinking when I come to see Bob."
"Yeah, that kind of surprised me. I know we used to live it up a little in the old days, but this is-"
"Yes, I know," she cut in quickly, frowning. "But let's not talk about that. Gosh, it's been so long since I've seen you. When did you get back?"
"A few days ago," he said.
"Because of your father?"
"Yeah, that's part of it. That and the fact that I was getting a little sick of wandering all over the damn place and never really settling down to anything definite. How about you? What's been happening to you? Everything good, I hope."
A smile crossed Darlene's face momentarily. "I have a dude ranch up near Santa Barbara. My husband and I started it a couple years ago."
"You're married?"
"Was. My ... husband was...."-she looked down at her fidgeting hands-" ... killed some six months ago. A horse threw him and She shrugged, unclasped her hands and threw them limply in front of her.
"Sorry to hear it," Ted said.
"Don't be," she said, surprising him. "I can't be a hypocrite. We were on the verge of a divorce. Things weren't working out at all. Of course, I didn't want to see him die...."
Ted saw a trace of agony in her eyes and voice. Suddenly he remembered her as a gay, laughing child. It was just a bit strange to see her in the role of widow.
"How did you ever get interested in a dude range?" he asked.
Darlene smiled. "It's something I've always wanted. I love the country and horses, things like that. I'm a regular little campfire girl when I get cuttin'." She tilted her head back and laughed lightly, a tinkling, delicate sort of laugh that ran its course with a series of rapidly rising titters. On anyone else it might have sounded silly, on her it was cute.
"So what brings you to town now? To see Bob?"
"Yes, that mostly. Of course, I like to shake some of the horse manure off my boots occasionally. Camp-fire girling is okay for a while, then I like to see some bright lights and live it up a little. But Bob needs help. Now that you're here, maybe we can...." Her voice trailed away. She looked at him evenly, her eyes full of an inner fear.
"I'm not sure he even wants help," Ted said almost helplessly. "And if he does, where the hell do we start?"
"I don't know," she said, frowning. "But he's killing himself. Every time I see him he looks worse. This morning he swore at me and told me to go home and mind my own business. I used to be able to talk to him, but we seem to be drawing farther and farther apart. Oh, Ted, let's try to help him. You and he were such good friends...."
He studied her lovely face for a moment, seeing the deep concern racing wildly in her hazel eyes. "Like I said, if he wants help, that's one thing. If he doesn't, well, there isn't a whole lot anyone can do for him. He has to decide that for himself. I think the first thing we should try to find out is why he's hitting the booze as badly as he is. I know he doesn't really like the stuff that much. At least he never did."
"Have you tried talking to him?" she asked.
"I haven't been able to catch him in a really sober mood. I tried the other morning, but first he made a joke of it, then he got a little teed off. I think the whole thing has something to do with the Lindsays, mainly Betty."
Darlene's eyes lit up, but it was not from admiration. A moment of hatred had ignited them, then quickly disappeared. "I know he started after he met Betty Lindsay," she said. "It wasn't so bad when she was married to your father, but afterwards...."
Ted nodded. "I figured as much. That's why I have a hunch it all revolves around that ... that...."
"Bitch," Darlene finished.
He looked at her for a moment. "It might even amount to more than that," he said. "I wonder if she has some kind of hold over him. And I don't mean the usual man-woman sort of thing. I wonder if he got himself tied up somehow and can't wiggle out. That could account for all those trips to the sauce bucket."
Darlene shook her head. "I wouldn't know. I've never been able to discuss his personal life with him. As far as his business goes, well, that's even farther removed. He won't talk about that part of his life at all. I've given up on that."
"Would you know if Bob handled much of the legal work for Butler's when dad was alive?"
"He did some. But, you know, he was just a new attorney so Rankin and Daley did most of it, the same as when you were there. I think it was your dad's idea to gradually turn everything over to Bob as he gained experience. Rankin and Daley were out when your father insisted that Bob handle the trial. They were a little miffed, I suppose, but maybe not. I wouldn't really know about that."
Ted frowned. It puzzled him that his father had not retained the older, more experienced law firm of Rankin and Daley when the situation was so serious. Instead, he had entrusted the case to Bob. Young, friend of the family-that was one thing, but when it came down to the nitty-gritty it would just seem natural to get all the brains and experience behind you that money could buy. Why? And now Bob was the sole attorney for Butler's. It had to add up to either Bob having something on the Lindsays, or the other way around. And Ted was inclined to think it was the Lindsays who had some kind of a hold on Bob. That, Ted decided, was the place to start. And that, he also decided, was one hell of a place to poke his nose into.
"I suppose you know that Bob and Betty play around now and then," Ted said bluntly. He watched Darlene closely for her reaction.
Darlene's cheeks flooded with color first, then set her eyes ablaze. A shrug, a twitch of her hand and a nod completed what she was going to do as far as her reaction went. "Yes, I know," she said. "I know how Bob is with women. I've been up to his apartment and seen a few things. And I know how she is with men. But that's not what bothers me. It's his drinking. I'm afraid he might even kill himself. He seems so ... so desperate at times. It seems almost as though he'd welcome it."
Ted saw the anxiety in her eyes. He forced a smile. "I don't think he'd do anything like that, Darlene. He didn't impress me as being desperate exactly, just a don't-give-a-damn attitude."
"The way he acted this morning She turned away, took a deep breath and let it out in a gush. "Please promise you'll try to help, will you, Ted?" She turned to him. Her eyes were full of pleading.
Ted could see she was really frightened. Without thinking, he put his arm around her and held her for a moment. Then he realized that he was holding a vibrant young woman in his arms. A sudden surge of electricity went through him. It startled him. He had never looked on Darlene as a possible love mate, a sexual partner now that she was grown up. True, he had admired and marveled at her beauty, her lithe figure, but he had not been truly excited as he was now.
She nestled against him, offering no protest, seeming content to be so close to him. She put her face in the crook of his neck, her lips brushed his skin. A soft murmur crept up to him which he could not understand.
He dropped his arm from her shoulder and looked down at her. With his other hand he eased her away. "I'll try to do everything I can. I have a little stake in this deal, too, you know. I'm just nosey enough to go poking around until I find out what I want to know."
"Oh, thank you," she said softly. She tilted her head back and invited a kiss.
Their lips met for only a moment.
Electricity again.
What the hell was going on inside him, Ted wondered. No woman had ever done this to him before.
He had been excited, he had panted and puffed when he knew he would soon have his woman in bed with him, he had walked around half a day with a hardon just thinking about some particularly sexy broad he had met. But none of them had ever caused that bolt of current to shoot through him and excite him entirely, and not only from a sexual standpoint.
Ted's momentary nervousness shot one hand to his pocket for a cigarette. He poked the pack at her, flipping it lightly so that several stood out.
She shook her head. "Talk to him, Ted. Make him tell you what's bugging him. You and I both know he isn't the Bob we knew. There has to be something pretty darn serious to make him go to such extremes."
"When are you going back to your ranch?" he asked.
"Well, I was going back tonight, but that was before I knew you were in town. Bob told me to beat it. I hope you don't tell me the same thing. I'd like to talk to you some more."
He smiled broadly. "You just asked me for a date and I accept. I'm not the type who plays hard to get. Okay, dinner, maybe a few drinks and a whole truck-load of talk. How's that?"
"Great ... just great. I thought you'd never ask. And I want to hear all about what you've been doing, where you've been, and I want you to tell me about all the terribly dreadful women you've been to bed with. Just looking at you I can tell you haven't lost any of your sex appeal." There was an excitement in her voice that made Ted lean forward.
* * *
The evening went as planned. A short cab ride to one of the quieter spots, a stop to buy Darlene a single gardenia, and a leisurely dinner at a side table that had taken refuge between a pillar and a large potted plant.
It was nearly midnight when Ted walked her to her door at the small hotel where she had taken a room.
"Oh, Ted, you dear thing," she gurgled. "I haven't had that much fun in years." She stopped suddenly. "Well, ifi a very long time, at least."
He kissed her once.
She said, "Again."
So he really kissed her.
"I'm scared," she said.
He kissed her again, pulling her tightly against him.
She stepped away. "I'm not so scared now."
"You shouldn't be scared."
"I know, but I am."
"Why?"
"I'm afraid of what's happening to me inside. Since seeing you, all sorts of strange little motors have begun whirring away and I can't seem to shut them off."
He thought about that, toying with her fingers. The tips of her breasts were within a half-inch of his chest. He knew what she meant. The same things were happening inside him, but he had a different reason for wanting to get back to normal. He had nothing to offer her. He had no job, no future, only himself. A body. And bodies were plentiful.
"Kiss me again, Ted."
He looked at her longingly, then made a slow approach. Their lips met, just barely touching. He moved away slightly, then grasped her firmly and crushed his mouth to hers. They clung to each other. Finally, his hands clutched her shoulders and he moved her away from him.
Darlene seemed to have lost herself. She was signaling passionate interest with her eyes, and her body was responding with an almost imperceptible movement that undulated her hips back and forth. She closed her eyes and tossed the shower of her hair away from her face as she lifted her lips to his.
"I think I'd better go," Ted said hesitantly. "I've got a busy day tomorrow."
Her eyes opened slowly. "Kiss me just once more."
He leaned and pecked her lightly on the lips.
"Oh-h, Ted...."
"Enough of that," he said curtly. "I didn't even mean to kiss you the first time. Not that way, anyway."
There was silence for some time.
"I'm not scared now ... not scared at all," she finally managed to say.
"I'm glad. You know, with me there was nothing to be afraid of in the first place," he said. "You know I wouldn't do-"
"It's not that, Ted. Oh, you poor dear, it wasn't you I was afraid of. It was me. Now I'm happy. I know I'm still me. I know I'm a woman, a whole, complete, total woman. Don't you see?"
He shook his head. "No, not really. I thought you looked like a pretty good example of a woman before."
"No, no, you poor dear," she smiled. "You see, after my husband was killed, something died inside of me, too. Oh, it wasn't that I was so crazy in love with Jim, because all that had ended. It's afterward I'm talking about. I went out with a few fellows and, well, you know how men are. A widow or a divorcee seem to be prime targets for all the lusts of men. Oh, not that I'm a prude about sex, but no matter what kind of man I went out with or what he did to me-short of sex, of course-just didn't interest me. That's what I was afraid of. I thought Jim's death had taken something out of me permanently. Now I know it didn't. Oh, I'm so glad." She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him soundly on the mouth. Just as quickly, she thrust him away from her.
"How about lunch tomorrow?" he asked.
"I do have to get home," she said. "The ranch won't run itself. I have a man taking care of things but you know how it is." A touch of fear went through her, deeper now with the memory of Ted's lips.
"Just where is this ranch of yours? Maybe I'll try to get up there when I get myself squared away."
She fished a piece of paper out of her purse and carefully wrote out the directions, finishing it off by drawing an abbreviated map on the reverse side. "It's not too far from Santa Barbara, but you have to be careful so you won't miss the roads I've marked," she said. She handed the paper to him.
"It's been a long time since I've been on a horse," he said, "but maybe with a little help you could teach me to ride all over again."
"And maybe you could teach me a few things, too," she smiled.
"Hah," Ted snorted. "I'm not too good at anything to be teaching someone else."
Her smile was beyond warm, almost wanton. Her eyes took on an even more seductive look. "I've heard different," she said softly.
A bit of unimportant banter filled the remaining few minutes they were together. Ted fought for control, resisting the temptation to invite himself into her room, resisting the most natural of all instincts.
"Good night, Darlene," he mumbled. He did not kiss her. He couldn't trust himself. He wheeled quickly and hurried down the hall, knowing a pair of very passion-filled eyes were boring into his back.
CHAPTER TEN
Betty Lindsay had made up her mind and was out to convince her husband that she was right. She had decided Ted Butler was going to work for the Butler firm where she said he belonged, by name if nothing else.
Dick Lindsay was skeptical of his wife's plan.
"He won't stay around long enough to get acquainted," he said. "He's a wanderer. He's been chasing around for ten years, and probably the only reason he came back here was to find out if there was anything left over from his old man."
"He told me he's tired of traveling," Betty said. "I believe him. Besides, Bob tells me he's broke. Where can he go without any money? Not far, that's for sure. As long as he's in town, I want him where we can keep an eye on him."
"Yeah, that figures," he groaned. "Anything with pants on comes under your careful scrutiny, doesn't it?"
She spun around and faced him. There was fierce fire in her eyes, a burning that seemed to sear the distance between them. "I wouldn't say too much, Dick," she snapped. "I could add a few remarks of my own about pants."
A flushed look came over his face, then one of hurt. "You didn't have to say that," he said meekly.
"Then let's not put our conversation on a personal plane," she snapped. "What I have in mind is of benefit to both of us."
"You sound like he had something on us. Hell, his old man was the one with his hand in the till. He admitted it. Bob knew it, so did the jury. What the hell could Ted have on us to make you want to bend for him?"
Betty glared at her husband briefly. "Sure," she said, "everything you say is true. But he strikes me as the curious type and he might just poke around enough to drag up something unpleasant."
"Then why not let him get on his way again instead of trying to hold him here? Seems to me he could be a lot more trouble right under our noses than he would be a thousand miles away. I think he's back here for only one reason, and that's to prowl around to see what he can find out."
Dick Lindsay looked at his wife with calculating eyes. "Why don't you admit the real reason, Betty. You .want him around so you can control him, just like you do the rest of the men who crawl into bed with you. Jesus Christ, woman, don't you ever get tired of trying to rule men? Don't you get tired of sex, sex, and more sex? All you ever seem to have on your mind is how to satisfy that damn pussy of yours!"
Betty's head snapped around. For a moment, there was fire in her eyes. Then she tilted her head back and laughed. "You don't impress me one bit with your vulgarity, nor with your attempt at melodramatics, Dick. You shouldn't have any complaints about my likes and dislikes. You knew how I was before you married me. I don't pretend to be anything different now than I was then. You were perfectly willing to steal your share of another man's pussy-as you put it-before the old boy knocked himself off. Seems to me you were more than willing to take a lot of risks to get what I offered."
"Suppose young Butler doesn't want the job," he growled, feeling uneasy under the taunting leer of his wife. "What then?"
"He'll take it because I'll make it so attractive he won't be able to turn it down. He's broke. He needs money. Right now is the best time to bargain with him. Don't worry, when I get through with him, he'll see things my way-he'll take the job."
"You can always wear him down by screwing him to death," Dick said, chancing a glare at Betty, then quickly dropping his eyes to his lap.
She smiled. "Now, Dickie boy, you're trying to be nasty, aren't you? But the idea sounds intriguing. Yes ... I might just try to wear down some of his objections the way you suggested. You know, Dickie dear, sometimes you impress me as downright brilliant." She paused to smile wickedly down at the fidgeting man on the couch. "At other times, you impress me as a goddamn, stupid asshole!"
"Betty! Don't use that kind of language," he protested.
"Why not? Isn't that what you said excited you when we were in bed? That's when I told you to fuck me, to put your cock in me and fuck me until I told you to stop. Those words are a little harsh to your sensitive ears now, aren't they. Well, fuck, fuck, fuck, Dickie dear. And fuck some more. Cunt and cock and pussy and prick and asshole! HoW does that sound? Does that excite you? Hell no, it doesn't! Not since you got yourself mixed up with Gene Long and had him suck your stupid little cock for you!" She stopped to take a deep drag from her cigarette, waiting for a response from him that she knew would not be forthcoming. "Oh, bullshit, Mr. Richard Lindsay! You make my ass tired!" She turned and stamped from the room.
Ted Butler had been killing time in his room, waiting for a possible job offer through Bob Ross, when the phone rang. He snatched it up eagerly, feeling certain it would be either from Bob or from one of the contacts Bob had made in his behalf.
He was quite surprised to hear Betty Lindsay's voice. He was also disappointed, for he was hoping more for a job offer than an offer to go to bed.
The second surprise he had within a few minutes was that Betty did not ask him to take her to bed. Instead, she asked him to meet her because she had something very important to tell him. "Can't I meet you right here?" he asked. "No, I don't think that would be wise. I think you'd better come here first, then we can go somewhere where it's quiet and talk over what I have in mind," she said.
"If you have in mind what I think you have," he said, "this is about as good a place as any, because no one knows I live here."
"Oh, no, dear one, that's not what I had in mind-not right now, anyway. But it is important. Come to my place." She quickly rattled off the address, then hung up.
Ted shrugged. If it wasn't sex Betty wanted from him, maybe it had something to do with his father. Maybe Betty was getting nervous and wanted to spill a few beans in his direction before he found out something really important.
Betty answered the door to his ring. She was wearing a pale blue negligee that accentuated her dusky complexion. Ted assumed she wore nothing underneath.
Ted laughed. "You don't believe in fooling around, do you? I believe, though, that this scene has been a bit overdone. I think you could improve on it if you didn't wear anything."
She wanted to be angry, but she smiled and said, "The next time I might just do that. Come in. There's no one here but me."
Ted followed her through the doorway and pushed the door shut behind him. The secondary click let him know the door had locked.
She led the way, pausing only once to wave her hand casually at the stairway, which wound itself in a sharp hook around a graduated growth of potted plants.
"Up there," she said, pointing. "We can talk without being interrupted."-"Talk?"
She turned to smile at him. "Of course."
She moved ahead of him, her full hips swaying gracefully with what appeared to be a practiced motion. A light at the head of the stairs lined her body through the filmy material of her negligee. Ted felt the whole effect had been the result of careful staging to make her appear more desirable; yet with her looks and general sex appeal, he wondered why she had gone to the trouble.
At the top of the stairs, she turned to the right and opened the first door. It was a bedroom. She motioned him inside, and the moment the door closed, her passion-crazed body was against him, her lips a wild hunger on his mouth. Her breasts virtually dug into his chest as she pressed herself tightly against him.
There was untamed passion in her eyes, a raging fire that smoldered as he returned her torrid kisses. She tore free of his embrace for a moment, then she pushed him away and stood before him with her robe held wide with each hand. Her breasts jiggled slightly as she twitched her shoulders. A wanton, almost evil smile was on her lips. Her eyes were languid, half-closed.
Ted fought for control. His first urge had been to reach for her, take her breasts in his hands, smother them with kisses, smother her body with kisses. His passion had risen, and the sight of a naked woman before him was almost the determining factor in his actions. He shook his head, blinked.
"Y-you said you had something important to talk to me about," he said, annoyed with himself that his voice was ragged and tremulous. He could feel his cock getting hard.
"We can talk later, darling," she purred. "You don't want want to talk business at a time like this, do you? Look at me, Ted. Look at my body. I'm all woman, Ted. You're a man ... a real man. We belong together. Love me, Ted. Make violent love to me...."
Her voice seemed to come from several different directions at once, and Ted found himself glancing beyond her or beside her to make sure he wasn't hearing things. Without realizing it, his hands went to his tie and slowly started to untie it. He could not take his eyes off her now. He was in a trance, a wild, hypnotic coma of passion.
On the way to see Betty Lindsay, Ted had vowed that she would not have her way with him. He knew she wanted to get laid, but he had planned to do this after she had told him what was so important. He surely had not intended fucking her right after stepping inside the door.
Now Betty couldn't wait. He had been too slow in removing his clothes. She came to him and began to clutch and pull at his clothing. A button from his shirt flew off and rolled across the floor. Hypnotically, he watched it as grasping hands tore at his belt.
He felt himself being stripped. He wanted to help but everywhere his hands went they found two others already at work. And then he was naked, his rigid prick standing out from his body. He looked at her, then down at the hard cock.
"Come here, baby," she hissed through gritted teeth. "Give me that big, hard cock of yours and let me do things with it. I want you up inside of me. I want you in my cunt. I want the lips of my cunt to kiss your nice hard prick and wrap it in my nice silky hair. Ooh, what a nice head it has. Come to me, Mr. Cock. Come and see how nice I am inside. There, that's it, stick your head right in mama's hairy little pussy. Come on, baby, right in there. Let my cunt snuggle you. Now ... now, baby, go in a little farther. That's enough out there. I want you to go way up inside me and just let my cunt be nice to you."
Her eyes were closed, pinched tightly shut. Her head rolled from side to side as she talked to Ted's cock, murmuring and whispering.
"Ooh, I'll bet it's dark in there, isn't it? But don't be afraid. It's nice and warm and soft, isn't it? And don't you dare spit your nice hot juice in me until I tell you...."
Then the gentleness left her. She came alive suddenly, a gasping wildcat of a female. Her breasts were flattened out against his chest, and she was moving now, demanding everything he could give her, arching her frenzied body and clutching at his arms and shoulders, trying to merge their bodies into one again. Suddenly she let out a cry, a low hoarse animal moan of completion, and sank back, her fingers kneading the flesh of his shoulders violently as she gasped for breath; in the same moment he felt her quiver and hold him tight.
"That's it, darling ... the juice ... the hot juice.
Shoot it in me, fill me up with it. Oohhh-ahhherrr...." She let go of his shoulders and shot both hands between his legs and squeezed his balls gently. "Oh, yes, darling, yes, yes, yes ... more: Give me more!" She took hold of the base of his dick with one hand and plunged him into her, milking, squeezing, pulling, grasping the hot prick.
Ted did everything he was told. He performed. He vaguely recalled that he liked it. But this woman was something altogether different than he'd ever experienced before. She made him lose himself. He wanted to do things but couldn't. He didn't want to do things and she made him do them. It was crazy.
He went through the motions, struggled in the wild throes of her savagery, but responded sharply.
They rested.
But Betty refused to let him rest for long. Her love-making became an ordeal, much the same as it had been at the cottage. She didn't know when to stop.
Finally, Ted couldn't take any more of the ministrations of her hands, fingers, mouth and tongue, her unsatisfiable pussy. He pushed her aside roughly.
"What's the matter?" she demanded, impatience tinging her voice. She looked down at his naked form, moist from the sweat of love. She looked down at his reddened cock.
"A man can take only so much of that, baby," he said in a low growl. He took hold of his half-limber cock and flopped it back and forth slightly. "This thing has to get recharged."
She thought about that for a short time, looking first at his face, then down at his cock lying in the dark hair. "How about a drink?" she asked. "This little kitten needs some more lovin' . ... a lot more." She patted herself between the legs. Then her hand lingered, pressing and caressing the soft pubic pad. A strange look came into her eyes as her hips began to move back and forth.
Ted stared at her. He felt a sudden disgust for this woman. He realized she was completely unaware of what she was doing to herself.
Rising from the bed, he poured himself a drink and then turned back to look at her naked form. "What the hell did you want to tell me that was so important?" he demanded, suddenly recalling the reason for his being with her.
Betty smiled up at him, her usually bright eyes still brimmed with raw passion, her thighs and midriff sweaty, her hips still quivering in the aftermath of lovemaking. Her nipples still stood out boldly and invitingly.
"I had a talk with my husband this morning. He's going to offer you a job. Bob Ross told me you were looking."
Her statement surprised him slightly. "You mean with Butler's?"
"Of course, darling. I think the company owes you that much. I know how terrible it must have been for you. A thing like ... like your father did ... well, I know it hasn't been easy for you."
Ted's mouth was a tight straight line. "Conscience?" he asked.
Her reply was a bit hesitant, enough to let Ted know his surmise had been at least partially correct. "Maybe it's just because I want to help you," she said. "I know you don't have a whole lot right now and after what your father did it might not be too easy to-"
"What the hell makes you think I give a damn? He was one guy who made a jackass out of himself. Thousands do it every day. Don't come on with that sympathy crap. You don't have a sympathetic thought in your head. Why don't you admit it's me and this cock of mine that you want? And I think you only want that for a little while ... until you get tired of it."
Betty's laugh was shrill. "You've found me out, darling. Of course it's you I want. But I know you have some self-respect so I thought I'd make it look good by offering to give you a job so you could earn at least part of your money. I know there's too much pride in you to accept charity." She stopped and half smirked down at him. "By the way, the salary for this particular job is in the neighborhood of ten thousand a year."
"That's not too bad a neighborhood to stomp around in," Ted grinned. "Jesus, you're willing to pay pretty good to get your fuckin'. By the way, would I have to do anything other than take you to bed to earn that kind of loot? Do I get a title? I can't just up and tell people I fuck the boss's wife for my pay."
"You foul-mouthed creature," she laughed. "I love you when you talk to me like that. Damn you, you're the first man I've found who doesn't wilt when the going gets rough. You know how to use that dick and you can hold off longer than any man I've ever known."
"Will power and training," he grinned. "And as for your job, you can take that and stick it in your ass. I'm not interested in going into the male prostitution field just yet."
A cunning look came into her eyes. "I think you should give it a little more consideration. From what I've heard you're not trained in much of anything, and I doubt if you could make ten grand a year puttering around the way you've been doing for the past ten years or so. Sure, there are a lot of jobs, but none of them are going to pay what I'm offering you."
"Maybe I should bargain for a higher salary. That seems to be the vogue these days," Ted said. He fought for control. The anger was rising in him. Ten thousand a year was damn good money for starters and his anger stemmed from the fact that he was actually giving her offer serious consideration. He was in no position to turn down such an attractive offer. Somewhere in the back of his mind he had the feeling he could keep Betty Lindsay under control. At least he hoped so. "I'll do a little thinking about it," he said at last. "I'll let you know in a few days."
A wicked smile spread over Betty's face, the smile of another victory. Her eyes displayed satisfaction, then lust as she stared down at his naked body.
"Ooh, darling, we'll have to do something about that poor thing," she said sweetly.
Ted rolled away, groping at the side of the bed for his shorts and pants. "Oh, no, you don't," he said. "You've had your ration for today. Who knows, I might run across somebody else before the day is over and I'll need every ounce of strength I can work up."
"You put that thing in someone else's pussy and I'll cut it off, Mr. Ted Butler!" she snorted heatedly.
Ted stopped his groping and looked up at her. He wanted to laugh but the grim, determined look on Betty's face frightened the laugh away. He frowned instead. "You sound like you mean it," he said.
"You want that peter attached to you, you just behave. Do you understand? When I make a deal, it stays made until I say differently."
Now Ted laughed. "And up your ass, too! I didn't say we'd made a deal yet, sweetheart. Don't twitch your box too soon."
She glared at him. This man was different. He didn't frighten like so many had. But she couldn't let
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Bob Ross greeted Ted at the apartment door with surprise. For a brief moment he held the door only partly open, as if he were trying to clear the cobwebs of sleep from his brain. He was in his pajamas and he had thrown a robe over his shoulders.
Surprisingly, Bob appeared to be sober and in fairly good shape compared to his usual appearance at that time of the morning.
"What the hell are you doing here this early?" Bob grunted when he opened the door.
"I wanted to make sure I'd find you sober," Ted said. He examined Bob for a moment, then pushed past him into the apartment.
"So, I'm sober. That make you feel better?"
Ted merely looked and shrugged his shoulders.
"I was just leaving for the office," Bob said, laughing.
"Yeah, you look like you're all set to go to work in that outfit," Ted said, returning a smile. "I'd like to go with you after you and I do some talking. I think there are a lot of things you can explain to me."
"Boy, do you sound grouchy in the morning. How about some coffee? Maybe that'll make you feel better." He stopped, then grinned. "That is, if you make it. I'm not too domestic when it comes to things around the kitchen."
Ted nodded. "Okay, but how about you leveling with me about everything? You and everyone you know seem to be mixed up in some kind of intrigue that no one seems to want to talk about. I'm not saying there's anything sinister or very seriously underhanded going on, but there's that feeling that there's something happening that I don't know about. Even your sister seems to be evasive."
"What? You've been talking to Darlene? When?"
"One night," Ted said. "We went out. I thought you knew. But then I guess there's a lot of stuff you don't know. For instance, that I spent the night with Betty Lindsay. She mentioned that you had put in a word for me about a job. Thanks. She offered me one."
"You're not going to take it?" Bob asked, looking surprised.
Ted shrugged. "I might. After all, it's supposed to pay ten grand a year to start and from what I gather there wouldn't be a hell of a lot to do. Anyway, being on the inside, I might find out what I want to know."
Bob looked at Ted evenly. "I warned you about Betty. She's like a cancer. She'll start 'on you like a small sore and then fester into something that you can no longer cure. Malignant, that's what she is ... a rancid bitch."
"So," Ted shrugged, "I have to lay her once in a while to keep her satisfied? What's so bad about a fringe benefit that smells like cunt?"
Angry lights danced in Bob's eyes. "Don't be a damn fool, ole buddy. That bitch is no good. Sure, you can handle her for a while, but then she'll begin to eat away at you, the same as she has the rest of us ... and slowly, the way she likes it, the way that makes her turn into a she-bitch instead of a woman."
"Tell me more," Ted sneered sarcastically at his old friend. He wanted to get Bob angry enough to talk. He had tried when Bob was drunk and it hadn't worked. Now he had to make it work. If there was one little spark of the old temper in Bob Ross, it had to come out now.
Bob reached for a bottle on the table.
But Ted was too quick for him and knocked it out of his hand. "I said tell me more. I don't want to hear it from a damn bottle!" he blazed cruelly.
"Aren't you forgetting that this happens to be my apartment?" Bob bellowed.
"No, I haven't forgotten. It's your apartment, your whiskey, your women . ... all paid for with my old man's money. No, I couldn't hardly forget that. Now, how about telling me why, Bob?"
A look of defeat came over Bob's face and he dropped heavily into a chair. He looked up at Ted. "Pour me a drink and maybe I can tell you something that might interest you," he muttered sullenly.
Ted half filled a glass and handed it to him.
Bob downed it in one swallow. He looked up again. "I'm not so sure where the hell to start, Ted. It isn't at all pretty. Even when I'm bombed it doesn't come out looking too damned pretty."
"So? I wasn't expecting beauty, just facts. How about starting at the beginning?"
Bob shrugged. "It takes dough to start a law practice. There are days and sometimes weeks when you don't have a paying client. You have to build up a clientele and that can take time, effort, and money. Just starting out, naturally I was short of money."
"So?"
"I met Betty Lindsay at a party. She had just come back from Reno and she was making no bones about being happily single again. You know me, Ted, a broad is a broad and I had a pretty good glow on that night. I guess I was feeling a little sorry for myself. Well, one thing led to another and I spent two days at her place. The bitch made me feel like I was somebody." He paused and looked evenly at Ted. "If you spent last night at her place, you know what I mean."
Ted grinned. "She's a lot of woman, that's for sure."
"I kept seeing Betty about once a week after that. About two months altogether, I guess. One night she told me about a friend of hers. The guy was in trouble and he had dough. I took the case. Betty won it. I hardly had any say in it."
"Huh? What do you mean?"
"Fixed jury. Somehow, she got to two of them. I wanted to win that damn case. Betty told me if I did, it would mean a lot of business coming my way. The guy got off. He was guilty as hell but the jury hung, thanks to the two jurors."
Ted shook his head, then looked at Bob. "And?"
Bob laughed. "Betty is one hell of a thorough broad. The way she handles a man makes it easy for her to get her way. Both the fixed jurors were men. She got signed statements from them, admitting they received payment to hang the jury. I imagine they did that in a moment of weakness after she got through screwing them practically to death. Anyway, that's the way it started."
Ted thought a few moments, then asked, "Where does my old man fit into all this?" Almost automatically, he poured a drink and handed it to Bob.
Bob took a drink and gave Ted a grateful look. "That was my doing. I introduced Betty to your father. It was just an innocent thing, or so I thought at the time. Your old man went ape over her. I tried to talk some sense into him but he was so goddamn sold on that bitch he almost threw my ass out of the office one day. They got married a month after they met." He looked down at his hands and shook his head sadly. "Poor old guy ... didn't know what the hell he'd gotten into...."
"Don't tell me it affected you so much you turned into a booze hound," Ted said, sarcasm edging his voice. "I didn't think you cared that much for the old man."
"I'm trying to tell you everything that happened. You can quit with the sarcasm. I tried everything I could at your dad's trial, but he'd gotten his ass so tied up there was nothing I could do. I did the next best thing, though. I took a job at the Butler office."
"That was Betty's idea?" Ted asked. "I thought maybe my dad might have taken you in when you got out of school."
"He mentioned it, but I didn't want to ride on anyone's coattails. Maybe I should have. I wouldn't have been so vulnerable to that bitch. Anyway, that's all over now. I took the job with Butler's hoping to find out something. As I suspected, she gives the orders and Dick carries them out. Neither one of them are fools. Everything that's happened has been legal. They don't make mistakes. The way things stand now, they don't have to. Butler's is a solid, well-established firm."
Ted saw the anger in his old friend's face. Bob could be right, of course. His own anger pushed the thoughts aside. "Maybe you can't lick them clean, Bob. Have you ever thought about fighting their way?"
Bob laughed bitterly. "Betty Lindsay wrote the book on how to fight dirty."
Ted frowned. "So you just gave up and decided to dunk yourself in sauce? I never knew you to be a defeatist, Bob. I remember some ball games that we thought we'd hopelessly lost until you pulled us together and made us win. Defeat just isn't part of you." Ted looked at his friend hard, trying to find a reason why he had given up the battle so soon. "I'm going to take the job, Bob, and we'll see how the chips fall. Maybe together we can win this one. I'll take care of Betty Lindsay."
"You're a damn fool," Bob said sullenly.
"Maybe not," Ted said. "Sure, I know she wants me around so I can lay her, but why did she offer me a job in the first place? Have you thought about that? Sure as hell she could hire herself a stud other than one of the Butlers. It might prove interesting why she made the offer and the more I think about it the more sure I am that I'm going to take the job."
When they reached the Butler building, Ted said, "I suppose you arranged the loan on Darlene's ranch."
Bob's head snapped around. "How the hell did you know about that?" he demanded angrily.
"She told me," Ted said simply.
Bob shook his head. "It's some loan, too," he said. "Something like thirty-three grand. Just another of Betty's cute tricks to keep me in line. She doesn't miss much."
"I promised Darlene I'd drive up there," Ted said. "She seems quite concerned over you."
"Yeah, yeah, I know," Bob said. "She wants me to reform ... just like you do. By the way, she has quite a setup, a real going place."
Dick Lindsay was all smiles and enthusiasm when Bob and Ted walked into his office. "It's good to see you, Ted," he said. "Mrs. Lindsay indicated I had a job waiting for you." He laughed, but it was a shallow laugh.
"You mean you don't know about a job?" Ted asked, surprised.
"Just kidding," Dick Lindsay said quickly. "Of course I know about the position. I feel you can help us a great deal. There are certain accounts that have been slipping away. We feel you may be able to bring them back."
"Whatever the job, I'll do my best," Ted said.
"I'm sure he will," Bob said. "I've known him a long time."
The brief interview was over in five minutes. Details of the position Ted was to fill would be given to him by the head of one of the departments.
Out in the hall once again, Bob said, "He's burned but there's not a damn thing he can do about it. Betty'd pinch his damn peter off if he tried to buck her."
"He looks like he's already beat down to nothing," Ted said, shaking his head. "Hey, how about going down and surprising Beth?"
Beth was more than pleased to hear the news and liked the idea even more when Ted suggested they have lunch together. She hoped Ted would pick her as his personal secretary but Ted was in no such position as yet.
"Do you think you could get the file on Gene Long for me?" Ted asked after a brief exchange.
Beth stared at him. "You know I can't do that," she said, trying her best to look officious, then added impishly, "at least not without some help."
"And I'm just the guy who can help," Ted laughed. "Where do we start?"
"At my place," Beth giggled. "How's that for openers?"
That evening, in her apartment, Ted laughed to himself as he read the file on Gene Long. He grinned now and then at some of the entries he found, frowned at others. Yet overall, he was satisfied with his findings. Gene Long was queer; there was no doubt. No references were listed. The signature on the application was Lindsay's. Added to that was the starting salary, considerably higher than a man with no experience had a right to be paid.
Beth moved into Ted's arms in a hot embrace, nudging the file on Gene Long aside. Her mouth sought his and she-moved down to his crotch, where her fondling sent spasms of ecstasy through his body.
"I think you've read enough about Mr. Long," Beth murmured. "Kiss me."
He put the paper aside and kissed her.
They continued to caress each other for several minutes, locked in an embrace that flattened her big tits against his chest and pressed his hard dick into her belly.
"Ooh, you get hard fast," she gurgled.
Quickly, he undressed her, laying her beautiful body bare on the bed, her firm breasts standing erect and heaving with her panting. Just as quickly, he undressed and lay down beside her, pressing his hot, hard cock against her.
She came to him, then backed away. She had unusual strength in her slim body. When he tried to take her, she denied him, and laughed as though playing some sort of game.
"Darling," she sighed. "Different this time ... please." She spread her legs wide and put both of her hands on the back of his head.
There was a moment of hesitation as Ted contemplated this new development. Then, slowly, he began to kiss her breasts, then between them, then pushed them together so that he could hold both nipples in his mouth at the same time. She writhed under his hot kisses and he kneaded the firm tits with his hands as his lips coursed over the erect nipples. He bit them gently, felt her gasp, then moved downward to her stomach.
He ran his tongue into her navel and slid his hands around so that he could hold her ass as his kisses increased in number and intensity. Her hands were on the back of his head now, tugging at his hair, then pressing his face into her stomach. Her hips were gyrating under his grasp and he picked them off the bed and continued his kissing until he had reached her inner thighs. The pressure on the back of his head increased and she tried to push her hairy pussy into his searching tongue. But he moved away, teasing her as she became almost frantic in her movements, then returned to her inner thighs until he could feel the silken hair against his face.
He gently pushed her legs apart, and she willingly spread them as far as they would go. She snatched at the back of his head, pulling him roughly to her sex. He held back for a moment, then plunged his face into the fur-covered cunt. With a gasp, she rammed herself upward to his probing, teasing tongue, twisted her hips in a circular motion as his tongue shot in and out of her moistened slit.
"Oh, darling ... darling...." she gasped. "Oh, lick me! Lick my sweet pussy! Oh, yes, yes, yes!"
His tongue was a darting, fiery spear now, working itself in and out of her pussy in an easy tempo. Her hands were flat against the side of his head, her thumbs around his ears as she pulled him back and forth between her heaving thighs.
Then her grip tightened on his head and he knew the time was near for her first explosion. He grabbed her ass firmly, held it still, then with long, flattened strokes of his tongue, sent her into ecstasy. For a moment all movement ceased. She seemed to hang in mid-air. Then, with a loud, gurgling groan, she thrust herself upward, tugged wildly at his hair, and worked her hips against his face, smearing her wet cunt into his face, fucking it. Then, as though the wind had suddenly gone out other, she collapsed.
He lay still, his face pressed into her drooling pussy. He could feel his breath rebounding from her thighs, felt her heavy breathing beneath him. He could smell the pungent sweetness of feminine sex, a musty, exciting aroma that made his cock throb with excitement. She had released her grip on his hair now and she rubbed the back of his head gently.
"Oh, darling, that was wonderful ... just wonderful...." she whispered hoarsely. "I liked that."
She slid down slightly so her hand could feel his bare stomach, then let her fingers trail farther down until they touched the throbbing, red-hot prick that prodded into her.
"Ooh, darling," she said softly, "we'll have to do something about that poor thing." She squeezed it gently. Then a sudden spasm shot through her, making her body rigid with the mere anticipation of getting fucked.
All at once her hands became busy again, stroking his face, his chest, his stomach. "Baby," she sighed delightedly, finding his hard cock again. "Ooh, I just love a nice, big prick like you have." With a quick motion, she dipped her head and kissed the head of it with a light kiss. Now she urged him up with her hands, deftly sliding her body beneath his.
With a practiced motion, she drew him onto her body, clenching her legs about him. A surge of surprised rapture renewed itself with Ted as she welcomed him into her wet cunt. Her legs stiffened, her hips and ass suddenly twitched, and then the wild, undeniable rhythm began.
"Ted, precious...." she chanted, her hands pressing his back, grabbing his ass to pull him tighter against her own driving ass, her lips sliding on his throat. "Take it out on me. Whatever anger you have in you, pound it into me...."
Abruptly, the fevers of passion overwhelmed Beth, and she said no more, concentrating all her efforts on the beautiful fucking. Her cries became animalistic, coming from deep in her throat. Then her body stopped suddenly, the trip-hammer cadence lost for a moment. Her nails dug viciously into Ted's back, and she ground her stomach into his. "Again, lover...." she urged ecstatically. Rapidly, the rhythm was regained, her exertions resumed with feverish, fresh vigor.
Beth let out a short, shrill gasp, then nipped his chest with a series of hard bites, soothing the bruises instantly with another series of swift, bird-like kisses, then a swipe of her pink tongue. "Lover ... oh, my lover...." she sighed.
Their passion was a frenzied, brutal thing this time, with Beth clawing and biting, screaming and gasping intermittently, bringing her torrid body up to meet Ted's savage, jarring thrusts with vindictive retaliation. The red-orange blur grew greater, hotter, as again and again Beth cried out in supreme release.
She twisted her head from side to side, moaning, "Oh, yes, big lover man, fuck me hard. Drive that big cock into me, baby. All the way. Oh, yes. That's it, that's right ... you're something out of this world, lover. Oh, yes, yes. Fuck, fuck, fuck. Cock, cock ... prick ... I want it rammed in me ... yes, yes, yes...."
Then suddenly, he was paralyzed by the darkness-and the stillness. From far away, he heard the sound of soft sobs, the pleading of an alien voice. He brought his mind back from the darkness, forced his lips to form words.
"Beth," he said hesitantly. "Is there something wrong?"
She sniffed, rubbed the backs of her hands across her eyes. "Oh, no, no, lover. It's just that you're so great ... so wonderfully, absolutely great."
"Oh," he said softly. "I thought maybe...."
"Oh, Ted, you're the best fuck-man in the business," she said emphatically. "You've just got to be. Oh, yes!" She raised up and kissed him lightly on the mouth. "I never dreamed," her voice throbbed, "I never dreamed it could be so very wonderful. I've never felt anything like this before ... never."
They they drifted off to sleep. He felt an empty feeling of a passion being drained, of a passion that would not be revived again on this night.
Ted's eyes grew angry when he knocked on Bob's door after he had left Beth's place. Carol Haines opened the door. She was half-dressed and more than half-drunk.
Bob, sprawled on the divan, offered a grin and a half-filled glass. "Hi, ole buddy, why didn't you bring a broad with you? I've only got one tonight."
Carol pushed against Ted. He caught her whisky-laden breath and slapped her hard. "Get the hell out of here," he growled.
She reeled away from him and clung to a chair to keep from falling. "Hey, you son of a bitch," she screamed, "where the hell you get off hitting me?"
Ted picked up her blouse and bra. "Put these on and get your fuckin' ass out or I'll toss you out the way you are!"
"Hey, who the hell do you think you're ordering around?" Bob demanded, but there was no authority in his voice, and he turned to his drink before Ted could offer a reply.
When Ted closed the door behind Carol, he turned to face Bob. As he did so it was just in time to avoid a wild swing that was meant for his jaw. Ted ducked and shoved his friend back onto the divan. "Look, you dumb asshole, if a guy is willing to offer some help, take it. Now, are you going to listen or do I walk out and let you go to hell?"
Ted told Bob what he had found out about Gene Long, but Bob insisted that what Dick Lindsay did didn't count, because it was Betty who was ordering all the plays.
"And she orders, she doesn't just call the plays," Bob said.
"Well, you know what they say about a chain and its weakest link. I think Dick Lindsay is the weak link we need. Through him we might be able to force some very interesting developments."
Bob grunted. "You could be right but you have to remember Dick Lindsay is no fuckin' dummy. He's been around. Just because he happens to be under her thumb doesn't mean he doesn't know his way around."
"I think he has a very serious weakness and it's not for Betty, either," Ted said. "Oh?"
Ted grinned. "I'll fill you in later. Right now, I think I'll have that drink you didn't get around to offering me." He went to fix one, then turned and grinned at Bob. "And just for the hell of it, I'll let you have another one, too."
"I'll drink to that," Bob grinned.
CHAPTER TWELVE
Up at the cottage that Saturday, Betty Lindsay attached herself to him, taking possession of him about the time his feet hit the ground. But that night apparently had been reserved for George Meeker for she did not come to Ted's room as he had expected. The tired look on George's face the next morning verified that he had gone through the famous Betty Lindsay wringer.
Betty, however, was bright and cheerful, full of bounce. "I'm in the mood for a spin on the lake," she gushed to Ted after the two had had breakfast together. "I suppose you know how to handle a power boat."
Ted nodded. "Most of them. I don't suppose you've got the Queen Mary anchored down there."
"No, darling, just a sixteen-foot speedboat that's built more for comfort than speed," she smiled. "Let's go now before the others decide they want to go along."
Minutes later they were in the speedy craft, moving out onto the lake. The bow lifted as the stern dug into the clear water and Ted felt a certain exhilaration as he pushed the throttle to full. The boat had a canopy and waterproof'pads placed along the sides.
"Slow down," Betty shouted. She pointed to a cove and motioned for Ted to steer into it. She was already tossing seat cushions onto the boat's floorboards. She turned as Ted killed the motor and let the boat drift under the low-hanging branches of a group of willows that lined the bank. Her piercing eyes seemed to strip him as she began undoing buttons and kicking off her sandals. Her blouse was the first to go and now her bra was on the boat's floor and she was struggling with her shorts.
He slowly stripped off his clothes, enjoying watching her wriggle to get out of her snug shorts. But he was naked and ready for her when she finally turned to face him.
Ted wasted little time in reaching out for her trembling body, a body that seemed more than anxious to wrap itself around his hard prick. Her cries of sexual delight began from the moment he touched her.
"Oh, Ted ... Ted. Damn you! What you do to me! Ooh, you sexy son of a bitch...."
Her tits, so round and heavy, seemed to flatten as his chest met them and the nipples dug into his flesh. His tongue hit her every tender spot, from her ears across her face, neck, and shoulders, to her throbbing breasts, across the flat stomach and navel and then maddeningly close to the hair-covered mound between her luscious thighs.
Her hips shot forward, her hands clutched at the back of his head, tearing, twisting the hair. "Oh, yes, baby, yes ... yes ... yes. I want that big, hot cock of yours, but I want other things, too!" She tried to push his face deeper between her legs.
He eased away, calling on extra strength because her grip was tight on him, her eagerness demanding. He decided that he wasn't going to lap Betty's cunt just on principle. "Oh, no," he said.
"Anything, darling ... anything!" she moaned. She tried to twine her legs around his head but he pulled away.
"My cock, baby ... you've got to suck it for me , first."
"Oh, yes, yes," she said eagerly. She flipped around and grasped him firmly, then shot her head onto his stomach. The head of his cock was in her mouth in only a second and her head bobbed vigorously up and down on it, her tongue hungrily licking it as it slid in and out of her mouth, her lips closing tightly, slurping, sucking, licking. "Oh, darling," she said, taking her mouth away. "I've got to have it in me. I can't stand it any longer!"
"But you were doing all right where you were," he said.
"No, no ... no more ... not now," she panted. "I've got to have your nice prick in me ... in my cunt. It's screaming for you, darling...." She straddled him and her hands went to her pussy, pawing it open to allow his wet cock to slide into her. She wriggled a little, then settled herself slowly onto it, sinking it deeper and deeper. "Ohhh-hhh, that's what I want...." she moaned.
Her hips kept moving up and down, her fingers coiled and uncoiled in his hair, and her moans were pleading demands to go faster, to go deeper into her.
"Ohhh ... Ted ... what are you doing to me? Oh ... ohhh . ... "
He moved with long, deliberate strokes, taking his hard cock deep inside her, then almost all the way out. She drove her ass up to him, her pussy opening and reaching out for his stiff prick. He timed it so that he was on the in stroke when he came. It gave his charge extra velocity, driving the hot fluid deep inside her. With each stroke he sent another burst spewing into her hot, waiting cunt, flooding her.
They were like two tightly coiled springs, driving at one another, each demanding more of the other. They rammed together, separated, then rammed together again. It was violent, brutal.
They loved it.
After a while, they managed to untangle their spent bodies. The hair on her pussy was wet and matted. He pushed her legs together, then picked up her clothes and tossed them onto her naked body.
"Better get dressed," he said.
When she had dressed, she turned into the serious businesswoman once again. "I run Butler's. I imagine you know that by now. I'm the one who can put you right up on top ... or out on your ass. Everything that happens at Butler's happens because I ordered it. That's the way I operate, both in business and in pleasure. When I want something, I simply take it." Her voice had the sort of tone that charged the air with some hidden emotion.
Ted looked at her intently, seeing the cunning look in her beautiful eyes. "So? What's that supposed to mean to me?"
"It means simply that there could be a hell of a lot more in this for you than just stud service," she said.
"You're blunt."
"Truthful. I'm not kidding myself and I'm not trying to kid you. Maybe I want more out of you than just that one part," she said coldly, nodding toward his crotch. "And you know, I most always get what I go after."
"I'm not like my old man, baby," Ted said. "I don't bend quite as easily." He stopped to look evenly at her. "And I make it a habit of getting what I go after, too."
"Do you have the patience to wait?" she asked. He shrugged. "How long?"
"Maybe a year. I have to find a way of getting rid of ... someone."
Ted's eyebrows raised. The hint of a smile began to form. "Anyone I know?" he asked, increasing the smile.
"My husband."
He had expected as much. "Like I said, you're blunt."
"Dick is a pain in the ass, for one thing. For another, his sexual ability has suddenly dried up."
"So you want to dump him just like you did my old man, huh?" Ted asked.
"Don't be a little boy, Ted. In this world you get what you go after. All those nice rules you read about are for the slobs who don't give a damn about having anything in life. I'll find a way for us, darling. Just have a little patience."
"And when you get tired of me, well, I guess I'll be as expendable as the rest, eh?" Ted said wryly.
"There's one big difference, Ted-you know what the hell to do with the thing that makes you a man. The others didn't."
"It's comforting to know that all that fucking all over the world didn't go to waste," he said. He hit the starter and in moments the boat was racing across the smooth blue water of the lake.
Bob came down to the dock just as Ted finished tying up the boat. "Must you start so early?" he asked, grinning.
Betty glared at him and went up the hill. When she was out of earshot, Ted said, "Does a guy really have a choice with a broad like that?"
"Yeah, I know. I've been there," Bob said.
"She offered to make me head of Butler's, too," Ted said after a brief pause. "All she wants is a little time to dump Dick and then I'm the chosen one."
"I've been a member of that club, too," Bob said. "Funny what a new dick does to her. She gets all shook up inside and wants to give you everything and, buddy, when she tells you that, look out! Betty never gave anything away in her life and she sure as hell isn't going to start now. Did she give you that bit about you being the greatest, the only man who had ever satisfied her?"
Ted nodded, grinning. "I knew I was good, but I had no idea my screwing ability could buy me a company."
"My bet is she's up to something besides giving you a free ride for a while," Bob said. "I'd be damn careful if I were you."
Ted laughed. "The funny part of the whole thing is I wouldn't take Butler's as a gift. I hate the goddamn investment business." He looked at Bob for a moment, frowned, and asked. "How did you get yourself out?"
"Drank my way out. As soon as she started with that bullshit about giving me anything I wanted, including the company, I went out and got gassed. She got tired of having a drunk on her hands."
Ted nodded knowingly. "So that's the reason," he muttered, half to himself.
"Hey, I want you to meet Lenore. She's a redhead. We're going to drive into town tonight. How about coming along? We can dig up someone for you." There was a hopeful tone in Bob's voice and Ted didn't know if it was real exuberance or merely put on to get him to go along.
"No, I'm going to hit the sack early," Ted said. "I want to keep my eye on a few things, mainly this cat Gene Long."
"So he's queer. What does that prove?"
"You can't be queer and practice your trade all by yourself. I thought you were going to help," Ted growled.
"What do you want out of me ... let him eat my cock?"
"You know those heat ducts in your room are right next to Lindsay's. Take the louver down and I'll bet you can look into the next room. With some special film and a camera at just the right angle...."
"Hey, that's right," Bob exclaimed, showing interest once again. "But what about Betty?"
"There should be heat ducts in her room, too. A guy should be able to see there, too."
"But there's one catch-Betty's room is the one next to Dick's, a corner room. They don't use the same room, you know."
"It would have to be done some weekend when Dick isn't there," Ted grinned. "Suppose we can get the goods on both of them. I think if we got something bad enough on Betty she'd see things our way. We could demand those papers she holds against you. Hell, maybe we could even get that mortgage off of Darlene's back."
"Smells like blackmail," Bob said.
"Yeah-and she's damned familiar with the term, too."
"And then what? What do we get out of the deal except getting me untangled and maybe Darlene's mortgage lifted?" Bob asked skeptically.
Ted grinned widely. "Enough cash to leave this damn mess and start over somewhere else. As for me, hell, ten grand would get me a good start in some place like Australia." He paused to study Bob's face. "All I need is a good camera with some infrared film. If you can get that, I'll handle the rest. Anything goes wrong, you don't know a damn thing about it."
Bob thought a moment. "I think I know where I can get what you need. Processing, too, with no questions asked."
Early that evening, after Bob had gone to town, Ted went to his room and moved a table under the heat duct, then lifted a chair up onto it. He found the height almost perfect. He took out the screws that held the grate in place on his side, then pulled it free. A grin covered his face as he reached through and tilted the louvers on the vent on the wall of Dick Lindsay's room. He could see almost the entire room.
He made a pretense that evening of drinking heavily; a flower pot on the edge of the patio took care of most of his drinks. He weaved off to bed earlier than most of the guests.
It was almost midnight when he heard the door in the next room slam shut and Dick Lindsay moving about. Ted eased the table and chair close to the wall and climbed up. By that time Lindsay was propped up in bed, paging through a magazine.
Soon the bedroom door opened and Gene Long sidled in, wearing outrageously flowered pajamas. Ted felt his stomach lurch with a strange inner excitement as he watched them begin. There was a certain fascination in their actions;-regardless of how repulsive he may have thought the idea was, Ted found himself watching avidly, and the revulsion gradually began to leave him.
Dick Lindsay had left his bed lamp on and as Gene Long came near the bed neither made a move to turn it out, to Ted's relief.
Dick Lindsay's face was twisted in wild passion as Gene applied his nimble lips and mouth to his body. The lovemaking was slow, deliberate, as though it had been rehearsed, as though there were no urgency. It was obvious they had been together before.
Gene's hands ran gracefully over Dick's body, pulling, caressing, urging. His lips coursed over the older man's chest, into the crook of his neck; then he held his lips up so that Dick could reach down with his own mouth and kiss them. Their arms entwined; their kisses were torrid and lasting, hungry with the perversity of their passion.
Gene had stripped off Dick's pajama top, and his slender fingers were working on the cord to the bottoms. In a moment the knot had been undone, and Gene's hands molded against the hot flesh, rubbing over the hipbone, onto the buttocks, and onto the inside of Dick's thighs.
Dick began to writhe with anticipation. His legs churned slightly, little murmurs escaped his lips, and his eyes pinched shut with the ecstasy of the moment. His hands went to the back of Gene's head and his fingers entwined themselves in the hair.
Ted watched calmly, yet the excitement rose in him until he was not too surprised to discover that his own cock was now hot and stiff; instinctively, his hand rubbed the tip. In a sense, he wished he were in Dick Lindsay's position, although he could find no explanation for such a wish, since his sex life had been more than full since his arrival in the States.
Gene Long's lips were now nibbling over the rounded mold of Dick Lindsay's stomach, touching the black hair, then moving away teasingly. Dick's cock lay straight, slightly to one side of where Gene was kissing. Gene's hand felt for it, touched it lovingly, then began the slow strokes that would excite his partner even more. He moved the skin from the head, then back over it, then took the balls and rolled them gently in his hand.
Dick's head began to roll back and forth on the pillow and Ted could see more pressure being applied to the back of Gene's head.
Gene's lips were but an inch from the bluish tip of Dick's throbbing cock now. He moved slowly toward it. His mouth opened. His tongue came out and licked at the knob. His eyes closed as he savored his task. He inched toward it. His mouth opened wider.
His eyes opened for a moment, then closed as he brought his lips down on the bulb. His cheeks hollowed as his sucking motions began, the red cock slipping out of sight completely, then emerging, wet and shiny.
Dick's hips moved in unison, slowly and not demanding. Now his hands lay casually on Gene's head, stroking the hair, toying with the younger man's ears, loving, caressing ... enjoying.
Dick's hand stroked over Gene's shoulder, down onto his stomach, and his body twisted slightly so that he could reach between Gene's legs where a rather slender, pointed prick stabbed from between slim thighs. He stroked it gently as its owner increased the sucking tempo.
And 'then, through a sense he must have felt through his lips, Gene pulled himself around and dropped to his knees at the edge of the bed, resting between Dick's legs, and took the older man's cock in both hands and pumped it into his mouth as his head moved vigorously up and down on the head.
A groan, a stiffening, a pause. Then the slow movements of Gene's head up and down on a spasming prick. Gene took the charges, holding the cock out of his mouth so that the hot liquid had room to spew into the waiting chamber. In a careless moment, he allowed the discharging peter to slip from his mouth and the gray fluid splashed once against his upper lip. Quickly, he recaptured the hot cock with his lips while a slender finger pushed the glob of sperm into his mouth.
And Ted wobbled on his precarious perch. His stomach wanted to empty itself. He clutched for support, caught himself just in time, and stopped the nausea. He eased his big frame down to the floor. A drink from the bottle on Bob's night table helped, but his stomach still recoiled at what he had seen. The sexual excitement he had experienced was dissipated with that final sperm-swallowing act of Gene Long's.
* * *
He had been in his bed less than an hour when he felt Betty Lindsay's warm body, nude and craving, move up against him. He had not been asleep, yet he had been so deep in thought he had not noticed or heard his door open when she came in.
Anger and disgust rose in waves. Ted took his violence out on her and she seemed delighted, a sex-crazy, driving female force.
He took her almost cruelly, spending little time in preparations and welcoming her moans of mingled delight and pain as he drove her to new heights of sexual pleasure.
Betty was moaning, writhing as if she would burst under Ted's pressure of hands, lips, fingers and hard prick. He rode her relentlessly, driving as she fought to respond. Her hips and torso moved of their own accord, her arms around his back, her hips thrusting upward.
And then she cried out brokenly, like a wounded animal. Her cries mingled deliciously with his thrusts, her heavy breasts and big nipples pressed against his chest as he lay on top of her quivering body. His rigid cock continued to plunge in and out, trying to hurt her, trying to bring out a cry of pain from her.
He slipped his hands over the knobs of Betty's breasts, stroked them, gently pinched the nipples. This seemed to arouse her to final completion, and she went into wild spasms as she carried him to the ultimate finish.
He stayed with her to the end, toying with her nippies and biting them, pinching her lower body and biting down hard on her shoulder as his own flood of passion sprayed into her, blending with the juices from her cunt.
She managed to get one hand between their bodies and added pleasure to pleasure as she manipulated his hardened cock, milking the cum into her eagerly pumping pussy.
Her moans at the end were of sexual fulfillment rather than pain, but Ted knew she had been hurt, mentally as well as physically, and he loved every moment.
She tried to hold onto him afterward but he pulled back. "I'm going to get some coffee. Don't be here when I get back," he told her gruffly.
For one of the few times in her life Betty did as she was told. When he returned she was nowhere in sight. Her perfume, heady and haunting, had spilled itself in the room and now hung heavy on the night air.
She had taken part of Ted Butler with her, but had left some of herself behind. She could flush his sperm from her.
He had to live with the perfume.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Traffic on the super highway thinned after Ted left the congestion of the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Ventura Freeway stretched ahead, two white ribbons in the early morning sun with the slight haze of the coast obscuring patches where the roadway dipped into a valley. He was headed for Santa Barbara and what he hoped would be a visit with Darlene.
A strong feeling had come over him during the week that the answer to his problems with Beth Aldrich, Bob, Betty Lindsay, and Betty's friends lay with Darlene.
Darlene appeared on the ranch house porch as he got out of his car close to noon that Saturday. It seemed to Ted that she belonged there. She was wearing a pair of faded blue jeans that clung to her long legs and thighs.
Her eyes sparkled as she hurried down the steps to his car. His eyes caught the saucy bounce of her modest breasts under her white blouse. For a moment, Ted felt ashamed of his thoughts.
As they stood admiring the ranch layout and as she rambled on about the number of acres, number of cattle, Ted looked at her in surprise. The surprise stemmed from the fact that Darlene suddenly appeared more like a young girl than a woman. In that brief moment, she was once again the little tyke who had given Bob and him so much trouble.
"Must be a hell of a lot of work for a girl to handle," Ted offered, frowning.
"I have help, you dope. Jess Haines takes care of the stock and when it gets real busy I hire five or six more men. Actually, I sometimes feel like I don't have quite enough to do." She caught his arm and they moved toward the house where he could smell cooking.
Ted noted the color in her cheeks as he praised her cooking after lunch. He liked the bounce in her walk, the way she held her head high, her breasts standing out high on her chest, her slim waist, long thighs and legs. It was refreshing. A blush on a woman's cheeks had become a lost art.
"Bob and I have been having some pretty interesting talks the last few days," Ted said. "He told me quite a bit about Betty Lindsay."
Darlene's eyes drew away, her teeth took her lower lip. "I suppose he told you about the mortgage."
Ted nodded, drew in his breath. "It's a lot of money, Darlene. Bob said some of the payments were a little hard to meet."
A flash of anger swept over her face. "He had no right. Besides, I've managed. If a person wants something badly enough it all works out."
"I hate to see you doing business with a bi-a woman like that," he said.
"I suppose Bob told you it was Jim who made the deal," she said. "I know the kind of woman she is. You could have said bitch and it wouldn't have offended me. Can't you see that's the biggest reason I can't ever give up, no matter how big a problem it is? I won't let that she-witch beat me!"
"She damn near beat Bob," Ted offered. "She got him on the sauce." He went on to tell her what Bob had told her.
"I had an idea she was behind it, but I could never make Bob admit it. Oh, I'm so glad you're back, Ted.
Maybe now we can all get straightened out again."
"Take it easy, kiddo, I'm no miracle man. I'm just Ted Butler, world traveler and lover," Ted laughed. "But I can tell you something else. I've taken a job with Butler's and Betty has stuck her neck out for me. Wants to eventually make me the head man if I play her game. I'll play her game all right, but with my rules."
"And while you're waiting to get something on her you'll have to go to bed with her, right?"
Ted blushed. Now he was the one who felt young and naive. He shrugged while his mind tried to form some words that might sound innocent. He took too long.
"That's the idea, isn't it?" she asked. She wasn't taunting or teasing. "That's one big weapon she has and she doesn't mind using it as often as is necessary." She took a deep breath, tilting her head back and closing her eyes as she did so. Then she said suddenly, "Let's go for a ride."
Jess saddled up a pair of horses, and Ted and Darlene rode off on an unofficial inspection trip of the ranch. Ted had a feeling that Jess was giving him a close scrutiny, as though measuring him for a job on one hand and on the other, keeping an eye on him to see if he was fit company for Darlene. He suspected the older man had deep and respectful feelings about his boss.
As they rode through the gate leading out into the land, Ted said, "I wouldn't say this is much of a life for a woman like you. A pretty girl like you hasn't the right to coop herself up with an old man and a bunch of horses. Where does it end?" He noticed how nice her ass fit the saddle, as though molded.
Darlene twisted in the saddle and looked evenly at Ted. "Cooped up? Much of a life? My God, Ted, this is a great life, and I certainly don't feel cooped up. Just look." She waved her hand in a semi-circle. "I can ride for miles without seeing a soul. It's great. It's what I like. In the city is where I feel cooped up. Where does it end? Where does anything end? For a lot of people there's no end right in the midst of the city. You just have to take each day as it comes, live it to the fullest, then go on to the next. The wide open spaces have nothing to do with that."
There was a fresh coolness as they rode through the tall pines where millions of pine needles matted the forest's floor; there was a spring-like briskness that sweetened the air in the meadows, and a score of different birds sang the praises of this outdoor wonderland.
Then Ted knew. It was here that life was more important. The freshness, the newness, the stillness. A huge dome of pale blue overhead cupped them to the clean earth while fleecy white clouds rode across the huge interior.
The city and its noises and its smells and its sins seemed a very long way away.
"I'm beginning to see why you like it out here," he said when they finally returned and tied their horses to the rail outside the ranch house. Jess Haines had already started to stroll their way to take care of the horses.
"Oh, yes, I just love it out here," she said. She stood on the porch and inhaled deeply, again closing her eyes to fully savor the freshness.
Instinctively, Ted did the same. "I had almost forgotten what fresh air smelled like," he said.
"I'll get supper started and then fix the guest room for you," she said.
Ted looked at her sharply. "I wasn't really planning to stay all night. I had intended going back tonight."
"Don't be silly. You can't drive all that way tonight," she said. Then she paused and color rose in her pretty cheeks. He noticed her embarrassment and he, too, flushed slightly at the vague implication.
Somewhere inside him, electricity crackled. He stood staring at her, catching the odor of her hair as she stood close. Without thinking, he took her in his arms, held her close, molded her soft body to his. His lips sought hers. The kiss lingered in a long, sweet embrace. It was Ted who finally had to ease her away.
"I'm sorry," he said. "I had no right to do that."
She was silent for some time. She was still in his arms, her head resting on his chest. "You had every right because I gave you that right a long, long time ago, Ted. I'm glad you had the courage to do it."
"A long time ago? What are you talking about?" Ted asked, puzzled.
"You idiot," she laughed. "You really don't know, do you?"
He looked at her strangely, not knowing whether to smile or frown. "Know? Know what?"
"Oh, you poor dope," she said, shaking her head. "You poor, sweet, innocent dope. As much as you're supposed to know about women
"Oh? Am I supposed to be some kind of expert or something?"
She laughed lightly and shook her head. "No, I don't think you're an expert about women," she said. "At least not about this woman."
Her words and her manner began to clarify what she was driving at, progressing through several layers of concrete in the process. "Y-you mean you ... you, ah...."
Her eyes sparkled with a glow that could not be mistaken. "Oh, you poor dear," she sighed. "I thought you knew. I thought you always knew what my feelings were about you. I thought you were just ignoring me because you weren't interested in my love."
"I-I don't know what to say, Darlene, Maybe I've been blind to a lot of things in my life. I just never thought of you as ... as ... well, that way."
She took his hands in hers and looked up at him. Her eyes had lost some of their sparkle with the seriousness of the conversation, and the glistening look had been replaced by one of depth that could not be readily defined.
Love?
Ted frowned. Nothing was making sense. A man didn't fall in love with a girl merely because he kissed her, and yet something had disturbed the roots of his emotions and he found difficulty in trying to analyze what was happening to him. Something was suddenly present in him that gave him a sense of deep satisfaction.
She took her hands away slowly. "I-I'll go in and fix us some coffee," she said softly. She turned and went into the house.
She fumbled with the coffee pot. She felt completely unnerved. Every inch of her trembled with the memory of his kiss. She wondered if he was thinking of her as a grown woman now or still as the pesty little sister who was just part of the scenery.
She wondered another thing, too. Would he try? Would he try to go to bed with her? And if he did, what should she do? Would it be childish to resist? Or lady-like? Did he care one way or the other?
All the loneliness of the past months raced through her mind. She was a full-grown woman with desires and needs to match, she told herself. She went into her room and changed into a dress. She stood in front of the mirror and studied her reflection. She nudged the back of her hand under one breast to bring it a little higher, then did the same with its mate. She turned and studied the profile she had created, frowned when she saw she was several inches short of breaking any world records. She ran her hands down her sides, pressing them into her slim waist to make it appear even slimmer, then molding her palms over her hips. "Well, Darlene," she murmured to herself, "this is what you have to offer, and if he doesn't want you like this there isn't a darn thing you can do about it." She took one last look and went out of the room.
After dinner they went out onto the front porch, sitting in a swing as she told something of her work at the ranch, how the nights got cold quickly, strange, yet not frightening, sounds of the nights, and how genuinely peaceful it was to live so far from the noise of the city.
"I'll have to admit, it's peaceful. I think a guy would have to get used to the quiet just like getting used to noise," he said. "I've never felt so damned contented in my life. Why?"
Darlene smiled. "Maybe it's because you don't have to rush off somewhere. After you're here awhile all the urgency seems to go out of life. Oh, I don't mean that one gets lazy. Far from it. It's just that you don't knock yourself out rushing around like a nut. We get a lot done, but we never seem to have to rush to do it."
"That's because you like what you're doing," he said. "If you hated your work, you'd probably find yourself hurrying to get it done so you wouldn't have to face it as long."
Sitting close together on the swing, which he nudged slowly back and forth as they talked, seemed to be only a temporary lull for what both knew was coming. He turned suddenly and took her in his arms. Her return kiss was warm at first, then grew into a fire as long-dormant passion brought a demand. Her lips parted to accept the delight of his exploring tongue.
He fought for control of his emotions and finally found it. He pulled free. "No, Darlene! Damn it, I won't make you cheap!"
"It can never be cheap with me, Ted," she said softly. "I love you, don't you know that?"
Ted ran his hands through her long silky hair. "Don't talk like that. Two people meet and things happen. Emotions can get out of hand."
"What are you afraid of?" she asked. "I've always loved you. Even when I was only twelve or so I knew there'd never be anyone else. Then you went away and...." She put her head against his shoulder, took a deep breath. "I thought I'd never see you again."
"A lot of little girls have crushes on older boys or even men. You don't know what you're talking about."
"I know, Ted. Please listen to me. Please let me show you." She rose and went inside.
Ted stared at the flat folder she brought to him. The pasted newspaper clippings brought back many memories of his college years, football, basketball. He looked at Darlene and frowned.
"Y-you saved all this ever since...? "
She nodded vigorously. There was an embarrassed, almost hurt look on her face. She turned away and nudged the back of her index finger into the corner of her eye. "You see how ... silly I've been all these years...."
He put his hands on her shoulders and pulled her to him.
Neither remembered when they went into her bedroom, nor when moments later they were lying in each other's arms. Their lips met, parted, only to join again.
They had undressed quickly, yet not with a crude urgency of lust. They were well aware of each other's bodies as the clothing was removed. Darlene admired his strong physique, his handsome face and the gentleness with which he handled her. He did not grasp her, did not ram his body against hers.
As they laid back in each other's arms, he caressed her breasts, nipples and stomach, slowly building up the fire in her to match his own. As he continued, her breath came in deep gasps, her long legs thrashed about, finally scissoring over his thighs as he got atop her.
They continued to kiss and fondle each other, exploring naked hot flesh with tongues and fingers. Her hand moved over his stomach to his stiff cock, toying cautiously with the tip for several moments, then taking the full length of it in her hands and stroking it gently.
"I-I've thought about this so often," she sighed. "Is that bad?"
"No, of course not," he said. "I didn't know
"You used to come over to the house to see Bob and I'd hide somewhere where I could see you. I'd steal a look to the lump between your legs and wonder what your ... your cock looked like. I mean, I was really curious," she said. "I knew what a boy's dick looked like, naturally. I'd seen Bob often enough."
"You saw Bob's? What'd you do? Peek?"
"Oh, no," she said quickly. "He showed me. You know how kids fool around. I had to show him my pussy, even let him put his finger in it, then he'd show me what he had. There wasn't a whole lot either of us didn't know about each other." She paused a moment, then said, "No dear, we never got around to screwing. We just did a lot of looking and touching. I think that goes on a lot between brothers and sisters."
"It does, a hell of a lot more than people like to admit."
Darlene whispered softly as he put his hand on her cunt. "Be gentle, Ted, dear. It's been a long time and you're ... so big...."
He shifted his weight a bit so that the tip of his cock positioned itself in the silk hair of her pussy. He eased the warm lips apart, using two fingers to spread them, then put the head of his hot prick into the folds of soft skin. He eased forward slowly ... ever so slowly.
She sucked in her breath and held him tight. His lips caressed her neck, shoulders, lips and tits, then moving to her face and ears. Her low moan of delight made him stop the penetration of her cunt momentarily, then he went deeper into her warm slit.
She dug her fingers into his back, then grabbed his ass as her desire for his hot cock overcame her, clinging, tugging, then pushing him gently away. She matched his every move with a thrust of her own lower body, twitching her cunt as he was deep inside her, toying with his balls as he withdrew.
"Oh, my darling, this is heaven ... just heaven," she sighed. "I want your ... your c-cock to stay in me forever." She held him tight against her.
He twitched his cock with short spasms, enlarging the head, moving it only slightly.
"Ooh, yes-s-ss," she hissed. "Do that again. Oooh, I love it...."
He repeated the slight movement.
Darlene emitted a low moan of delight as his thrusts went deeper and deeper. Her eyes rolled back, then she closed them, pinching them tightly as the ecstasy of the moment consumed her. She could feel his slight quiver as his climax neared.
"Oh, it's been so long ... so terribly long since I've had hot cum shot into me. ... Oh, please, my darling, let me have every drop. Squirt it into me, into my pussy ... my cunt....Oh, yes, Ted, my darling ... Oh, yes...."
He tremored, hung for a moment, then lunged into her for the final thrust that would begin the flood.
"Oohhhh-hhhh . ... YES-S-SSSSS!" she hissed, clutching madly at him as his cum shot into her, pulling his ass as tight against her as she could.
"Fuck, baby, fuck," he whispered urgently, then began a frantic motion of his own.
"YES, YES," she screamed. "FUCK ME, Ted. FUCK ME!"
"TAKE MY COCK!"
"YES. FUCK MY CUNT!"
"OH-hhhh ... God!"
"HHHH-OHH-hhh!!"
They hung for a long time, neither of them wanting to break the spell of their ecstasy. Ted looked down at her tenderly.
"Oh, darling ... it was wonderful," she sighed at last. She put her hands on each side of his face and brought his mouth close so she could kiss him.
"I-I don't know what to say," he fumbled. "I feel just a little embarrassed."
"Embarrassed? Why on earth would you feel embarrassed?"
"Maybe you've been too close to me over the years," he said. "It's hard to take you out of the romper room and put you in bed with me."
She thought about that for some moments. "You mean you look on me as your younger sister, is that it?"
"A feeling like that is there," he said. "Just give me time, Darlene. There's another feeling developing, too, a feeling I've never had for any woman before."
She kissed him again. "I'm glad," she murmured. She looked at him with renewed desire. Her hips twitched just slightly and deep inside her, the soft flesh began milking his still-stiff cock.
He groaned and made a move to roll off her.
Her arms clamped around his back. Her legs went over his and held him tight.
"I told you it had been a long time," she said. There was softness in her tone, yet underneath there was a firmness that could not be mistaken.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
Ted spent two days at Darlene's dude ranch, then followed it up with a week of misery during which he tried to figure out what had happened to him. He couldn't seem to erase the image of Darlene's eyes and the hurt look in them when he left. He knew he was the cause of the tiny fires that burned there and the fact that she had ignited the same type of fires in his eyes was disturbing.
He called Beth Aldrich one night and found the contact between himself and a woman other than Darlene made him feel even worse.
Wednesday he went to see Betty Lindsay. Her wild savagery in bed and her lust for sex with any man brought on a disgust he couldn't hide. Satisfying his own flesh did nothing for his emotions.
He tried to concentrate on plans to get Betty in a spot that would let him do the dictating. He thought of accepting a cash settlement through blackmail and getting out of town. It seemed like the world was closing in on him and he wanted to run out from under it.
Bob drove with him to the mountain cottage the next weekend and told him Alice Lindsay would be there.
"She anything like her mother?" Ted asked.
"I wouldn't know," Bob replied. "She's out of town most of the time. I think she's fooling around with an acting career."
"I thought she was just a kid and away at school."
Bob grinned. "She's almost twenty and she's sure as hell no kid. I think she'd make one hell of a sex cat in bed."
Ted turned to his buddy and smiled. "You mean you haven't tried?"
Bob shook his head. "No, I never had the chance. If I ever get her alone some place, though, pow!"
Ted knew what Bob meant when he met Alice Lindsay. She was a younger version of Betty. She had the same almost-perfect figure, the same smoldering eyes.
He was surprised when Alice asked him to handle the boat while she water-skied the next day.
Just before retiring, Ted cornered Bob and told him he wanted to change rooms that night. "This could be a good night to get those photos of Dick and Gene," he said.
"What happens if Betty decides to pay you a visit and she finds me in your bed?" Bob asked.
"The door has a lock. I doubt like hell that she'd break it down."
Bob laughed. "That ought to piss her off. You know how she is when she wants sex."
Ted frowned. "Just see that you don't get too damn plastered-and foul up the works," he warned.
Bob nodded.
Ted came close to whistling the next morning when Alice Lindsay put in an appearance. She was wearing a black bathing suit not much bigger than a small handkerchief. Her breasts, held tight by the bra top, swelled and threatened to break free.
Ted shot a furtive glance in Betty's direction and caught the look of displeasure. It was exactly what he had hoped for.
Alice skied well. There was a supple grace in the way she ripped from side to side behind the speeding boat.
Ted glanced back at her from time to time. He guessed she couldn't be more than eighteen, but her womanhood had blossomed.
As he started to make a turn, she waved to him to keep going straight ahead across the lake. He held the boat on course and pushed the throttle open more until the speed indicator showed they were traveling close to forty.
Her gay, young laugh came above the sound of the motor. She apparently knew he was trying to frighten her and the laugh was her way of showing her defiance.
They landed in the cove where he and Betty had been just a few weeks earlier. Ted thought he'd detected from her opening conversation and actions a hidden meaning which made him feel certain she was in a playful mood.
Alice saw the look on his face. "A penny for your thoughts, Ted, if I'm allowed a bit of triteness."
Ted grinned and dropped down beside her. "My thoughts might shock you," he said.
"Don't bet on it. I don't shock too easy," she laughed. Her full red lips parted and she moistened them with a tip of red tongue that darted over the surface then disappeared.
Ted caught her in his arms, his mouth finding her parted lips. When he felt her response, he let his hands move to her breasts in a gentle caress.
There was a momentary tremor in her body and then she broke free. Her hand ripped out and slapped him sharply, the sound like the crack of a pistol in the stillness of the woods.
"Wh-what the hell," he snorted, surprised.
Alice was on her feet, head thrown back, her eyes blazing angrily. "I'm not an alley cat like my mother, Mr. Butler," she said heatedly.
"Then why the hell did you have me bring you over here?"
"I was interested in seeing if you had been added to her stable of studs. It's quite obvious you have."
Ted's face clouded. He forced a laugh. "I could take you whether you like it or not, you little spitfire. If I thought you were worth it, I might fuck you right now but I doubt if you know what the hell it's all about." He stopped for a moment to look at her steadily. "I could, but I won't. For one thing, I don't believe in forcing a woman. For another, you're too damn young to be much of a lay."
"You put your hands on me and I'll scream rape so loud they'll hear it way back in L.A.," she said icily. "Now, I think it's time we started back. I suppose you're surprised to find out I'm not like my mother."
He forced a laugh. "I learned a long time ago, baby, that a man can't figure a woman. I figured you were asking for it, so I made a pitch. If I hadn't, you'd be sore about that, too. I don't know what the hell you want-really-so let's just play the game the way you want it right now. Hell, who knows, you may want to rape me on the way back!"
She looked at him strangely for a moment, then a small smile crept over her lips. "You disappoint me. I didn't think you'd give up that easy."
"If I thought it was worth it, I'd keep on trying, but like I said, I doubt if you know how to use your equipment properly yet and I sure as hell don't feel in the mood for playing teacher." He pressed the starter button and sent life into the motor.
Alice tilted her head back and laughed. But it was a hollow laugh, tinged with the hurt he had just inflicted on her pride. "I'm not interested in men. My career comes first. I see enough of the beast in men when I'm around my mother. She does enough of that sort of thing for both of us."
"Bullshit!" Ted snorted, easing the throttle so the motor purred softly. "You envy her. You'd just as soon get laid every day, but you're afraid you can't live up to your mother's reputation as something special in bed. I'm not saying you should live like she does, but I think you could learn a hell of a lot about life and love and how to satisfy a man if you followed her example. Sure, she's a real bitch but that doesn't mean she's not all woman. She knows what her pussy is for."
"You place a lot of importance on a woman going to bed with a man. Do you think that's all there is for a woman-satisfying a man? How ridiculous!"
Ted looked at her until she averted her eyes. She puzzled him. Was she actually jealous of her mother? Or disgusted? Something inside him told him Alice wanted to get fucked as much as her mother but hadn't quite gotten up the nerve to take the first steps. Well, he decided, he wasn't going to be the one to bust her cherry, if she still had one.
Betty Lindsay caught Ted alone shortly after he returned. There was undisguised fury in her eyes. "Stay away from Alice," she warned. "You'd tear up her ass with that damn cock of yours!"
"Don't worry," Ted said nonchalantly. "I'm not interested in her." Then, teasingly, he added, "No one could ever measure up to you, baby, so what would I want with someone else?"
With sarcastic sweetness, she replied, "Just make sure you keep feeling that way, darling. We wouldn't want things to get messy for Ted Butler, would we?"
Ted got the message. "Yeah, I hear ya, baby-loud and clear. I'll hang a reserved sign on my dick for you."
"Just be patient. Everything is going to fall into place for us. You just wait and see." She patted him lightly on the cheek, giving him the feeling he was a mere boy to her.
"Yeah, I got time," he muttered. He left Betty and crossed the terrace to where Bob was sitting. Bob was well on his way to getting gassed.
"How did you make out with Alice?" he asked, a silly grin on his face.
"I didn't."
"Oh?" he said, raising his eyebrows and his glass at the same time. "You must be slipping. I saw you head into the cove across the lake. So did Betty. She was mad as hell. I figured you were giving it to the chick when you didn't come out right away."
Ted's laugh was a short snort. "Betty got on me about it," he said. "But I didn't make out. Oh, I suppose if I'd worked on her she might have come across, but my heart really wasn't in it. Anyway, if she wants it she knows now she'll have to come and get it. Puts me in a little better bargaining position."
"Yeah," Bob agreed. "Probably pissed her off when you didn't crawl all over her."
"I'm not taking any chances tonight," Ted said. "You take my room and I'll lock you in. As soon as I get what I want I'll come back." Ted was determined more than ever to get something on either Betty or Dick Lindsay. The cleanness of the air at Darlene's dude ranch had put ideas in his head and he felt his presence in a crowded, noisy city was merely a temporary torture. The sooner he got out, the better.
Ted set the table and chair against the wall in Bob's room and then settled down against the wall to wait. When he heard Dick Lindsay enter the next room, he took up his position on the chair. He had already removed the grating.
There was nothing happening. A half-hour passed. Ted's muscles began to ache. The queasy feeling in his stomach from the memory of the last time didn't help matters any. Suddenly, the door opened. Ted stifled a gasp of surprise.
Alice Lindsay's face wore a cruel, unreal expression. Her negligee was a tight wrap, lining the luscious curves of her young body. She closed the bedroom door and turned.
"Alice, I thought you were going to disappoint me," Dick Lindsay said, his voice a harsh, agonizing plea.
"Do I ever, lover?" she said softly, moving across the room.
She evaded his desperate, one-handed grasp that almost threw him from the bed. "I've been going crazy with you in New York," he said.
Her laugh came cruel and cold. "What about Gene Long, lover boy?" she sneered.
"You know he doesn't mean a damn thing to me," Dick whined.
Ted gasped as he watched Alice slap Lindsay hard across the cheeks, her hand rising and falling in flailing violence. His face turned a crimson hue under the beating, yet his eyes were glowing with pleasure.
"Oh, oh," Ted whispered to himself, "he's one of those."
"Please, Alice, let me hold you," Dick's whining voice said. He was reaching desperately for her half-clad body.
Her hands caught in his hair, forcing his head from side to side, cruelly. Her face was a mask of naked lust.
With one agile step, Ted was down off the table and across the room where he had left the camera. In only seconds he was back on his perch. He watched in utter fascination, lost in the bizarre scene which was unfolding before his eyes-and now being recorded on film. He almost forgot where he was. His hands were sweaty on the camera so that he had to change hands to keep from dropping it.
Alice removed her negligee and stood defiant, naked, in front of Dick Lindsay. Her hands caressed her naked young breasts and a wild look came into her eyes.
Ted felt disgust, but he couldn't discount the fact that she was beautiful. There wasn't a flaw on her creamy, youthful skin.
"Please, Alice!" Dick Lindsay begged, reaching for her.
Ted heard her moan as Dick buried his flushed face in her young breasts and then quickly let his lips travel over her body in wet, noisy kisses.
Alice's face was a picture of pure lust now as she twisted and writhed in savage passion in the arms of her stepfather. "Love me, you fat slob, love me!" she commanded. Her hands dug into his hair, demanding, imperious, her body quivering, her hands clutching at his back, his thighs, his buttocks as she urged him on.
Ted could see the glisten of sweat on the folds of Dick Lindsay's neck as he worked on her. He felt sweat course down his own back. He had to force himself to continue to snap the camera shutter. He swore to himself that he did not have a movie camera.
Alice was like a wildcat and managed to keep her lover where she wanted him, caring nothing for his feelings, but only for what he was doing to her.
Ted saw Alice's body tremble in one terrible shudder as she pulled free, looking down at her naked stepfather with disgust and hate. Her fist struck out a hard, vicious blow to the side of Dick Lindsay's head. Her voice was a vitriolic curse. "You beast! You dirty beast!" she cried. "You think I'm going to let you eat me. Well, I'm not. I don't want your filthy fat head between my legs."
"Alice
"Forget it! You've had your kicks, now let me out of here."
"Please ... Alice, just a little more. Let me taste you. Let me put my tongue in you, just a little bit ... please...." the craven man whined.
"Never. It's bad enough I let you slobber all over me. I'm not going to let you stick anything of yours in me. You think I want even your tongue in me after you've licked around on that dirty little creature you play with. Never, never, never!"
Then she was gone.
Ted stared down at Dick Lindsay, sitting naked on the edge of the bed, still recovering from the strange world of passion into which he had entered some moments before. His hand fell onto his half-limp peter and he pumped it half-heartedly as he stared at the door. Suddenly, tears began to course down his cheeks. When this happened, he increased the tempo of his masturbation and soon his cock stood erect and red between his legs. He pumped it more vigorously. His head fell back, his legs spread, and his hips began to move up and down in simulated copulation.
Then there was a jerk, a gasp, and an arc of white shot into the air, then another with less intensity, and another. The man was a hulk of spent passion then. He was sobbing, deep, wracking sobs that shook the bed.
And Ted's camera clicked on.
Ted climbed down and stared at the camera in his hand. It felt hot to the touch. Suddenly, he realized the dynamite he held. At the same time, an anger caught at him. The anger was directed to Alice Lindsay. That afternoon she had made him believe she was above her mother. What Ted had seen her do to her stepfather indicated she was ten times worse. Ted shrugged off the bitter feeling and went back to his room.
"You get the pictures?" Bob asked anxiously. He was far more sober than Ted had expected. Apparently he was getting interested in what was going on.
"I've got them," Ted said, patting the camera. "It's a thing you won't believe, Bob. Dick didn't entertain Gene Long."
Bob looked at him curiously. "You mean he was actually in bed with his wife? That doesn't sound-"
Ted shook his head. "No, hell, no, not that. Alice came to see him. They're both a little on the weirdo side."
When Ted was through, Bob studied his college friend with considerable interest. "You aren't gassed, are you, old buddy?"
"It's all right here," Ted said, again patting the camera. "I think I've got what I need to bring Betty around to my way of thinking. I don't think she'd stand for any scandal that involved her own daughter and the guy she's married to. I damn near feel sorry for her. The pictures will cut her heart out."
"Hah! That's granting her a lot-that she has a heart. I hope those pictures turn out. I want to be there when she crawls and begs. I want to see her the way she's made me beg, that lousy bitch!"
"Hey, hey, easy, old buddy. Just let me take care of it and I think we'll all be out of the woods before long. And I'm including Darlene in this, too."
Bob's eyes brightened. "Hey, yeah, I never thought of that. Gee, Ted, I sure hope so. That kid deserves a break out of life. I'm afraid I haven't been much help to her."
Ted studied his old college roommate for a moment. "No, you haven't been much help at all, Bob. She could have used some from you, you know."
Bob nodded gravely. "I know," he said softly.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
Ted Butler shuffled the prints in his hand and looked at Bob Ross. There was a deep determination in his eyes, a definite set to his jaw. But there was satisfaction there, too. As he looked at the prints, then at his friend, his face broke into a wide grin.
"You think Betty Lindsay will still be in control after she sees these?" Ted asked.
"Hold them carefully," Bob grinned. "The damned things may go off. They're dynamite!" He held his hands up in mock defense.
Ted reached for the phone and dialed Betty's number.
"I was just going to call you, darling," Betty's husky voice came over the line. "It's Wednesday."
"Yeah, baby, it's Wednesday. I didn't forget. I'll be over in about a half-hour," Ted said, and hung up.
"Watch your step, old buddy," Bob said, frowning slightly. "She may go along on everything you tell her and all the while be plotting how the hell she's going to cut your throat. She's pretty clever."
"Don't worry, Bob, I think I can handle her. I've got a set of pretty nasty rules to play by too," Ted replied with determination. "This is one Wednesday I think I'm going to enjoy."
When Betty opened the door to Ted's ring, she wore the same negligee, the same ravishing smile and the hunger in her eyes which had become a trademark.
Ted followed her to her room. She stormed into his arms as soon as they stepped inside. He caught her hands and flung her halfway across the room.
"I've got something more important than that on my mind," he growled.
Anger sprang into Betty's eyes and clouded her face. Her breasts heaved and quivered with her rapid breathing. "What's the matter with you?" she asked, still puzzled over his attitude.
Ted's answer came with slow deliberation. "The show is all over, lady. I decided I don't have the patience to wait any longer."
"What do you mean?"
"Just what I said. I'm tired of this town and tired of Butler's and for damned sure I'm tired of you. I want out but it's going to cost you to get rid of me. I need ten grand in cash."
Betty threw back her head and laughed. "Just like that. You expect me to give you that kind of money? What kind of a fool do you take me for anyway? You think because we've been in bed together you have some kind of hold over me-that you'll run and tell if I don't give you the money? Oh, Ted, really...."
Ted hovered over her. A slow smile spread his lips. He reached into his pocket. Her eyes watched the movement of his hand without wavering. He took out a print and tossed it in her lap.
Betty stared at it. Her face went chalky white and her hands went to her mouth to stifle a scream.
"Wh-where did you get this?" she stammered.
"Does it matter? You can see who it is. Maybe you'd like to talk business now," Ted sneered.
"It's a fake," Betty cried. "You've done something to make this ... this dreadful picture."
"No fake. I have the negatives. You have quite a family."
She did not take her eyes from the print as she spoke. "Why, Ted? Why are you doing this to me? I told you what I was going to do for you-for us. Ten thousand dollars is just pocket money compared to what you could have."
"Sure, I know. But like I said, I don't have the patience to wait. And I don't have the stomach to watch you turn men into crawling worms. I don't want any part of Butler's or you. All I want is enough dough to keep me going for a little while."
Betty gave him a cunning look. "Just what can you do with a picture like that?" she asked. "With sex and everything so out in the open these days do you think anyone would really care anymore?"
Ted grinned. "I figured you'd start thinking that way. I have a big pile of them. I can get a hundred prints made of each, a thousand if need be. Suppose I sent them to the scandal sheets or a few to Butler's biggest investors? The answer could be the end of your little free ride in this world. Just where the hell would you be without Butler's? You're even too old to be a decent whore!"
"You wouldn't dare!"
"Wouldn't I? Look, I don't give a damn what happens to me. You can sue me and what the hell would that get you? You don't have any hold on me. I don't scare easy because I've got nothing to be scared of."
Betty's shoulders sagged. "And if I give you the money? Will you give me the negatives?"
Ted nodded. "You get the negatives and I keep the prints. That way you don't get cute."
"You intend to blackmail me later?" Betty blazed angrily.
"No, it's just a little built-in protection. Blackmail puts me in your class and that turns my stomach. Just like I don't like doing what I'm doing now."
Betty's lips curled. "And you expect me to believe that? If you went this far, you're surely not going to stop with just one little ten-thousand-dollar payment," she sneered. "Don't tell me that kind of crap, Ted."
"You have no guarantee how far I'll go. All you have to go on is what I tell you. Hell, woman, I don't want you to get too comfortable. I want you to feel just a little uptight all the time. That way I'll know there's someone thinking about me when I feel left out of things on a lonely winter night."
She looked at him evenly for a long time. "You're very persuasive," she said matter-of-factly.
He shrugged. "Not really," he said. "It's just that I'm holding better cards than you are right now. Now, let's get down to the rest of it. Ten grand for me, that I've told you about. Now, I want-"
"I thought so!" she cut in. "I knew you weren't going to get out of my life for a lousy ten grand. That's just for openers, right?" She had leaped to her feet and now paced up and down angrily, glancing down at the picture which she had thrown in the chair, then glaring at Ted.
"In a way, you're right," he said. "Ten grand for me, that's the deal. I also want the statements you hold against Bob Ross on that tampered jury bit you got him into. Then I-"
"Wh-why, you-"
"Hold it. Don't get excited. You haven't heard it all yet. I want the mortgage you hold against Darlene's dude ranch."
She stared at him. "You've got to be kidding. Why, that's over forty thousand dollars!"
"Peanuts," he said. "Compared to what you're worth and what Butler's brings you, that's strictly minor league dough. The old man stole a quarter of a million for you. Pay me off out of that. He sure as hell didn't take that kind of money for himself."
Betty stopped in front of Ted. She smiled sweetly. "That's what would be yours if you used your head," she said. "It's all there-and more. Just for you and me. We're two of a kind. Why should we worry about the weak ones? Think, darling. Think how far you and I could go together. I can't use up that kind of money by myself. I need someone like you to share it with. I need a man near me. You're a man, Ted ... a real man. You and I belong together." Her arms went around his neck and her lips crushed against his mouth. She thrust her body fiercely against him.
The old game.
Ted freed a hand and slapped her hard. She fell back in a heap on the floor, her negligee open now. He stared at her and started to laugh, harsh, insulting laughter that echoed through the room.
Suddenly, she was no longer a beautiful, enticing woman. Her face had an old look, her breasts were sagging mounds of flesh. He saw her as a woman a thousand men had fed upon.
"I'll give you until Saturday to raise the money and bring the papers to me," Ted growled. He stepped around her toward the door.
Betty scrambled to her feet and reached him as his hand turned the knob. "You think you can force me, you bastard!" she screamed into his face. "You've used my body and now you think you can walk away from it. Well, I know different. I know you'll want me. You'll always want me!"
Ted caught her hands and twisted them cruelly behind her. "I give you credit enough to know when you're licked, baby. I'm letting you off damn cheap and you know it. Why don't you admit you're through?"
"Please, darling, I want you. Can't I make you understand?" she moaned. She reached out and tried to take hold of him.
Ted pushed her hands away and stood looking into her pleading eyes. For a moment, he felt sorry for her but it passed quickly. "Saturday, Betty," he growled, and walked out.
"You goddamn lousy prick!" she screamed as the door slammed in her face. "One hardon and you'll be back. You need me!"
* * *
"You think she'll pay off?" Bob asked, sounding more skeptical than Ted thought he should. "I've had a lot of dealings with her and it's hard to believe she'd give in so easy."
"Nobody ever had the kind of stuff we've got, either," Ted said. "Of course, you know this blows the shit out of your association with Butler's. No doubt you've thought about that. What are your plans?"
Bob shrugged. "Just being out is a relief," he said. "But I have thought about it ... naturally. I thought I might tie up with Jerry Marsh. He has a law practice up in Frisco. He's asked me to come in with him a couple of times. It won't be near the loot I take home from Butler's, but it's enough."
"And all the broads and booze? Do they go along with you or is that a thing of the past?" Ted asked, smiling.
"You don't ever give up the broads, baby," Bob laughed. "I think the booze situation will develop into one of moderation now that I'll be free again. What about you?"
"Austrailia, maybe. The country is growing and a guy could make it with ten grand to start with. I suppose I'd better think about settling down someplace."
Bob poured a couple of drinks. "Suppose we celebrate? Let's get Beth and Carol and live it up."
Ted nodded and laughed. "Why not?"
Hours later, Ted had lost himself in the passionate wildness of Beth Aldrich and told himself it was what he needed-what every man needed. But the conviction wasn't there. Darlene's face was a mirage that haunted him throughout the intensity of enjoying Beth's body. And he couldn't enjoy her to the fullest. Darlene wouldn't let him. She was there, staring at him with a hurt look in her deep eyes.
"What's the matter, lover?" Beth asked from beneath him, her hot body pressed against his lunging thrusts, her sobs of delight ringing in his ears.
Their naked bodies were joined at the hips, her wildly gyrating hips kept the rhythm going, her breasts swollen in sexual excitement, rolled around her chest with her frantic movements.
She knew a wonderful climax was near and had no intention of having him fail her at the last moment. A few more thrusts would do the trick. She began to scream out.
"Ted! Ted! Give me cock! Give me your hot cock! All of it. Come on, baby, way up in there, make it hit bottom! Oh, Christ, fuck me ... plow me, baby ... tear me up! God damn!"
"Yeh ... yeh...." he grunted.
"Oo-ahhh-hhh...." Her hips drove upward. "Ahhherrr...." Her hands clutched at his ass. "Nnnnummmphhhh!" she snorted, then shot her legs out stiffly, clamping his prick. Little throbbings came from her clitoris, nudging against the base of his cock. A pause, a moment of explosion.
Then a frantic movement of bodies, agitating, exciting, milking, pounding with desperateness.
Collapse.
Hot sperm tickled its way alongside his shaft and against his balls which were pressed tightly against her wet hair. He moved slightly and a burble came from her like escaping gas. A giggle then, a readjustment.
After a time Ted tried to unravel their entangled bodies only to have Beth scissor her legs over his hips to keep the contact. She pleaded with him with wild eyes and lips to keep it up, but he was determined and finally rolled free.
"Oof, I'm beat, baby," he said.
"So early, lover? The evening is just beginning," she complained. "Rest a little and bring us a drink."
Ted looked at her and poured the drinks. Suddenly, she was Betty Lindsay and a hundred other broads he had taken to bed through the years. She offered him nothing other than brief satisfaction of the flesh.
A short time later, Ted found himself walking in the rain. He stopped at a drugstore for cigarettes and thumbed through a magazine. The picture of a girl in an ad reminded him of Darlene. He put the magazine back and took another. This time all the girls' faces seemed to bear a resemblance to Darlene. He couldn't seem to get away from her.
Was she the final answer?
* * *
Betty Lindsay showed up at the apartment Saturday afternoon and lay an envelope on the table. They hadn't been in contact with one another since Wednesday, and Ted had been more than a little concerned that Betty might ignore him altogether.
"The money and the papers," she said coldly. "Where are the negatives?"
Ted examined the contents of the envelope and found everything in order. He took an envelope from his inner pocket and handed it to her. "Your negatives," he said, smiling wryly.
She flipped through the contents and decided everything was there. "I can't be sure you don't have a dozen others, can I?" she asked, sounding almost hopeless.
"No, you can't," Ted said. "And you sure as hell can't trust me, either."
"You prick!"
"Now, now, let's not be bitter. You're getting off light. You keep talking nasty to me and I might reconsider." The firmness of his tone made Betty's eyes blink.
Betty's lips twitched a ragged smile. "Maybe I meant it as a compliment," she said. "You are quite a man, you know."
"Get off it, Betty. You're still full of shit. Now, get the hell out of here before I vomit!" He turned his back and went to his bedroom.
Betty stood for a moment looking after him, then turned slowly and went out of the apartment.
After she had gone, Ted went to Bob's apartment and gave him the statement Betty had given him.
"She could have a photostat of this, you know," Bob said.
"Yeah, I know. But she won't do anything as long as I don't. I think the whole thing will just die out now. She got rid of a pain in the ass-me-and she can always get another attorney for Butler's. And she's sure as hell not going to miss the money."
"What are you going to do now?" Bob asked.
"I'm going to Santa Barbara. I have to deliver a cancelled mortgage to Darlene." He stopped and looked carefully at Bob. "And then," he said slowly, "I'm going to ask her to marry me."
The surprised look he had expected from Bob did not develop. Instead, Bob took a slow sip of his drink, then said, "I kind of figured you two might get together some day. I'm glad, Ted. Lots of luck. Darlene has always been nuts about you."
"And like a goddamn dummy I never realized it," Ted said. He took a sip of his drink.
"You'll have to learn how to read the stars in a woman's eyes," Bob smiled. "They were there a long time. Hell, I knew she was gone for you when she was just a little brat."
"Yeah, she told me," Ted admitted sullenly.
Ted spent the rest of that afternoon and early evening packing his few clothes and doing some shopping. He and Bob shook hands warmly as Ted prepared to drive to Santa Barbara.
A little over two hours later, Ted was on the highway leading to Darlene's dude ranch.
"Ted, I ... I ... are you sure you mean what you're saying?" Darlene asked, laughing and crying together as he told her of his intentions.
"Yes, I mean it, honey. I was a damn fool the last time I was here. I should have asked you then, but things were a little different then."
"Yes, they certainly are different now," she said. "How on earth did you get enough money to pay off my mortgage?"
"Never mind that now. I'll give you all the details later." He took her in his arms and kissed her. "What's done is done. All I know is that I haven't been able to get you out of my mind since the other night when I was here."
"I know," she said against his chest. "I cried myself to sleep every night since. I thought this was going to be a repeat performance of ten years ago when you left. I had already made up my mind that I'd sell out and chase after you. You see how foolish a woman's heart can be?"
"Not foolish, sweetheart, not foolish at all. When you really care for someone you'll do anything to be near them."
Darlene stirred in his arms. "I know I'm in love with you, my darling. I'd go anywhere with you and do anything you asked. My love for you is all that matters."
"Are you planning on a family?" he asked softly. "Y-yes, I guess so," she said, frowning slightly. "Why?"
"Don't you think we'd better get started then?" He took her elbow and led her into the bedroom.
