The Reunion (6 page)

“Maybe.” Sarah took the opportunity
to take a seat on an old stuffed couch. She knew she was buying time. She
wanted to reach out and run her fingers through Maria’s long curly hair. She
wanted to unbutton Maria’s dress slowly, to ogle her breasts as Maria had ogled
hers. But she needed more time. She needed some answers. “Maria, can we be
honest with each other?”

The younger, cinnamon-skinned woman
looked only slightly wary before nodding. “Sure, why not? What’s on your mind?”
Maria curled up on the floor in front of her.

Sarah took a deep breath and locked
her gaze on Maria’s. “Are you a maid as well as Adam’s lover?”

Maria didn’t blink. “I wouldn’t know
the first thing about keeping a house this large clean. No. You’re right. I’m
not a maid.”

“But...”

“I never said I was Adam’s maid.” Maria
shook her head. Her long black hair swished around, hiding first one side of
her face and then the other. “You assumed I was. You wanted to believe that I
was. There was no need to disabuse you of that belief. Not then.”

“But—Adam and me.” Sarah frowned. “I’ll
pack my things and be gone before he gets back.” She stood.

“No.” Maria clambered to her feet. “Please,
Sarah—sit down and I’ll try to explain.”

Sarah retook her seat and watched
closely as Maria stood before her with feet planted wide apart, as if to block
her exit.

“It’s okay,” Maria said quickly. “You
and Adam, I mean. You and he go way back. He returned from the reunion
troubled, on edge and,” Maria smiled, “thankfully horny as hell. You got to
him. Maybe you’re only a vestige from his past. Maybe you’re his vision of what
a woman should be. I don’t know. I doubt if he knows. But believe me, Sarah,
you are under his skin—and until the two of you work that out, he’s going to be
trouble to be around, even for me.”

“How long have you two been
together?”

“Two years. I moved in a year and a
half ago.”

“Two years. And you want to just
throw two years over?”

Again, Maria shook her head. “Not at
all. This isn’t a contest between you and me. Adam and I do not have a
committed relationship—at least not in the way most couples talk about it.”

“I don’t understand.” Goosebumps
began clambering up and down her arms.

“You’re the first woman Adam has
been with since he and I got together.”

“And you’re not jealous?” she
squeaked.

Maria shrugged her shoulders. “Why
should I be? I’ve not been with another man since I started up with Adam.” Maria
knelt on the floor. Sarah didn’t flinch away from Maria’s hand resting on her
bare knee. “But I do take other women to my bed from time to time. And
occasionally Adam joins us.”

The air in Sara’s lungs whooshed
out. “Oh.” She covered her mouth. “Oh.”

“But you must be something very
special,” Maria said, squeezing her knee and removing her hand.

“Why do you say that?” Sarah managed
to whisper.

“Because Adam is letting you stay
here in the house.”

“Those other women?”

Maria shook her head.

“Oh my God. But I just showed up on
his—on your doorstep. I wasn’t invited.”

“Maybe not. But don’t you think
there was a hotel room available somewhere in Pacific Palisades, Santa Monica,
or L.A.?”

Sarah nodded. So what was the woman
saying? Was Adam pimping for his lover?

“I know what you’re thinking, Sarah.
You're thinking Adam let you stay so I could play with you.”

Smoothing out her dress, Sarah
couldn’t help wondering if Maria was commando.

“That’s not the reason.” Maria’s
lips formed a sly smile and her eyes snapped. “But I wouldn’t mind playing, if
you’d like to. You’re the first woman Adam—in a round-about way—brought to me.”
She held her palm up. “But no rush. I’m a very patient woman. If it’s meant to
be, then it will happen.”

“So,” Sarah huffed, “I’m supposed to
stay here and fuck Adam.”

“Isn’t that why you came out here?”

“Yes, but...I didn’t know he was
attached.”

“And I’m telling you that doesn’t
matter.” Maria arched an eyebrow. “I don’t mind sharing, at least for a time. I
don’t know where all of this goes. I do know if you leave, both you and Adam
will have lots of unfinished baggage. At some point, too much baggage functions
like a large anchor, pulling you down.”

“You don’t have to explain that to
me. I’ve gone through two husbands. Or maybe two husbands went through me.”

Maria gave her a puzzled look. “Were
you planning on marrying Adam?”

Sarah blinked. “Not hardly. Twice
burned, I’m not too eager for that.”

“So you traveled out here to fuck
and be fucked until maybe your body was too sore to carry on.”

“Yeah.” Sarah giggled softly. “Something
like that, I guess. I haven’t had much sex in years. The reunion was an
eye-opener. It seemed like a good thing to pursue.”

Maria flashed a broad smile and
plopped down on the couch beside Sarah. “Good sex is always something worthy of
pursuing.”

Sarah tensed but did not shrink
away.

Maria took her hand and turned the
palm up as if she were a palm reader. “So you must be wondering about me. How
hard will I pursue you? Do you owe Maria a good time because she’s willing for you
to fuck her man?”

It was Sarah’s turn to shrug. Both
questions had flashed through her mind.

“Let me take them in reverse order,”
Maria said, tracing the lifeline of Sarah’s palm. “You owe me nothing. Adam is
his own man. I can see if my future with him is to continue, he—and maybe we—must
work through what it is you desire. As far as my pursuit is concerned, I won’t
seduce you.”

Sarah couldn’t hide her
bewilderment. The woman was tying her into knots. “But I thought...”

“You,” Maria said with a measured
degree of haughtiness, “will seduce me.”

Sarah’s lips parted but no words
came.

“That doesn’t mean I won’t take
steps now and then to assure you of my willingness and my desire. But you will
initiate our lovemaking, not me. Do you understand what I’m saying?”

Sarah nodded, not entirely sure she
had a brain anymore.

“Good.” Maria squeezed her hand, but
did not yield it. “So tell me about your photography passion. I too have
dabbled in it. More than Adam, really.”

Exhaling softly, Sarah welcomed the
sudden shift in conversation. She’d have to sort out the implications of what
Maria had said later. Apparently, Maria and Adam operated from the same
premise, that Sarah had the ultimate veto in matters of sex. That was good
enough for now. She avoided looking at their interlaced fingers, but couldn’t
ignore the amazing warmth radiating from them. “As I said, I loved to play with
light and shadows, so I focused most of my energy on black and white
photography. There’s something more primal, more stark about the medium that
appeals to me.”

“Yes, I understand. So are you most
interested in landscape, animals, people or what?”

“I never was much into landscape. I
did enjoy working with animals. But mostly I did studies of people. Faces. Some
laughed. Some cried. Some were angry. Emotions.”

Maria squeezed her fingers.

Sarah hesitated, and then squeezed
back. “Black and white photos are a wonderful way of depicting emotions.”

“What else? Tell me more.” Maria’s
thigh pressed against hers. “You really should pick your passion up again,
Sarah. You can’t be whole if you don’t honor your passions.”

“You may be right. So how old are
you, Maria? You sound like such a voice of wisdom.”

Maria sobered. “Some people say I’m
thirty-two going on sixty. But we were talking about you and your passion for
photography. What else?”

“Oh. I did people at work. Farmers. Factory
workers. Teachers in the classroom. Cops. Welfare mothers.” She felt herself
blush but suddenly she couldn’t stop chattering. Maria was an excellent
listener. “I always wanted to paint, so I did several series lifting up the
nude body.”

“Really!”

“Yes, it was supposed to be an
initial step toward painting, but I never was able to follow up well.”

“But the photos—how were they?”

“Some of my best work. You’d be
surprised how light and shadows can be used to celebrate the human body.”

“Beautiful. I think I know what you
mean.” Maria gave her a genuinely shy grin. “Maybe you can do me?”

“What?” Sarah gasped. “I don’t have
the equipment.” She glanced around the room, suddenly aware equipment was
hardly an issue.

Maria rose from the couch, pulling
Sarah with her. “I really like the idea of you doing a pictorial study of me. I
think Adam would appreciate that, too.” She closed her fingers around Sarah’s. “And
this isn’t seduction, Sarah. You must know from experience that nudity can
actually be desensitizing.”

“That’s true.” It was increasingly difficult,
though, to imagine Maria’s nude body having a desensitizing effect.

“Let’s go have lunch,” Maria said
with a soft laugh. “Later, we’ll let you try out the pool.”

Had their conversation been that
stimulating? Sarah couldn’t take her gaze off the shapely rear end swaying back
and forth in front of her, leading the way downstairs toward the kitchen.

- o -

Draining his beer at the oyster bar,
Adam wondered if the women were getting along or if they were fighting like two
cats in heat. He’d have to figure out what to do with Sarah soon. The quicker
the better.

Had she really traveled across the
county just to get fucked? That should be an ego booster, but it also served as
a warning sign. Weren’t there guys capable of satisfying her closer to home?

She shouldn’t have to find a
husband. From the research he’d done on her, he knew she was at least as
wealthy as he was. So what the hell was she after?

Had she come to chase a teenage
fantasy? Or maybe to tame the wild boy she could never quite confront in her
youth?

No matter, he wasn’t about to be
tamed. If that was her scheme, she was going to be greatly disappointed.

And what about Maria? She’d taken to
Sarah even before she’d met her. Her intuition bothered him more than it
should. But she had an uncanny sense, particularly regarding women.

Sarah was at least a little
frightened of him. That was good. Maybe he could use that leverage to send her
packing. But she wasn’t a slut. She was Sarah Atkinson. Thankfully, she’d taken
back her maiden name after her second divorce. She was Sarah—she wasn’t
supposed to be his sex slave.

That was supposed to be Maria. Not
that she’d ever been particularly adept at submission. She could dish out as
much as she took. He doubted Sarah could come close to matching her.

At least Sarah hadn’t balked at
going commando. That should keep her uneasy a little, thinking about why he’d
want her available at all times. Maybe she was having second thoughts already.

He glanced at his image in the
mirror behind the bar and scowled. He’d wanted to show her the kind and
considerate lover he could be. She deserved that. She would welcome that. Wasn’t
it her praise and warmth he’d wanted back in Bumper so many years ago? But she’d
denied him then.

He should deny her now. He shook his
head. How could he deny a vision?

- o -

Standing at the pool’s edge, Maria
breathed deeply, watching her guest cautiously. It was time—beyond time—to take
another one of those steps toward the inevitable. Sarah would make the final
decision, but a little help along the way might help. “I so enjoy a daily swim.
I don’t know if I could live in a place where that’s not possible.”

“It’s tough,” Sarah acknowledged. “I’m
in the water a lot in the summer, but I’ve yet to find an indoor pool I really
like for the colder months.”

“Not a problem here.” Maria reached
for the buttons of her dress and began unfastening them as if it were the most
natural thing to do. Sarah’s inquisitive look caused her to pause. “I only swim
in the nude,” she explained. “I love the freedom of it. Is that okay with you?”

“You do what you want.” Sarah
swallowed, but didn’t glance away. “I’m not sure I’m ready for that.”

Maria showed her white teeth and
continued undoing buttons. She shrugged out of the dress and pulled on her aching
nipples.

“You
are
commando,” Sarah
gasped, her eyes rounding.

“Of course.” Maria responded,
fluffing up the curls guarding her pussy. “What did you expect?”

“You’re...you’re beautiful. So
exotic. Your nipples look cold.”

“Warm them,” Maria teased, “if you
like.”

Maria stilled as Sarah tentatively
raised her arms and then clamped them to her sides. She shook her head.