He felt anger building rapidly as he ripped two tissues from a box on Jodi's dresser and fished the used condom from the bag of trash. With eyes flashing, Nate barged into the bathroom.
Jodi, nude, was sitting on the commode. She snapped her thighs together and wrapped her chest with her arms. “What's wrong with you, Nate?” she screeched.
"What's wrong with you, damn it? How do you explain this?” He held out the tissue on which rested the incriminating evidence.
Jodi's lips moved but, at first, no sound emerged. She dropped her eyes. “It's another of my bad choices."
"You raised holy hell over me sleeping with Mariah, but you were humping someone else right here in my own house."
"He wanted to do it in your bed, but I wouldn't let him."
"Is that supposed to make me feel better?"
"Nate, it was a mistake. I'm sorry."
"The mistake was in chewing me out yesterday when you knew damn well that you are sleeping around too. I ought to throw your smutty ass out right now.” Nate slammed out of the bathroom, grabbed the garbage bag, placed it in the golf cart and drove down the tree-lined driveway. Jodi was sitting on the top porch step when he returned.
"You going for your walk now?"
Nate nodded but did not speak.
"Want some company?"
"No!"
He walked away rapidly. Jodi fell in step beside him. “Can't we talk about it?"
"Sure we can. For starters, who was he?"
"That doesn't matter."
"It matters to me. You know about Mariah. Why shouldn't I know who your lover is?"
"It was a mistake, Nate. He means nothing to me."
"Bullshit. How many lovers have you enjoyed since you and I met? Two, three, a dozen? Is that why your shopping trips take so long?"
"There's only been one and he was a mistake. A big mistake."
"Was he good, Jodi? Did he ring your chimes? From the looks of things, you sure as hell rang his."
"No, Nate. He did not ring my chimes. You do."
"Sure I do,” Nate replied sarcastically. “That's why you won't let me touch you. You don't want your bells ringing."
"Nate, it's ... it's complicated."
"There's nothing complicated about it. You shut me out because you had another lover, but raised hell when I turned to Mariah. You're a damned hypocrite, Jodi."
"I said I was sorry."
"Saying and meaning it are two different things. Isn't that what you once told me?"
Jodi quickened her pace, got in front of Nate and stopped him in his tracks. “Do you want me to move out?"
"That's what you said you were going to do. You've been looking for an apartment. I saw the classified section with the ads circled when I was picking up the recycle bin earlier. I also read your ‘Dear Nate’ letter. You can keep the clothes and I want you to have the convertible, but I insist you keep your promise before moving out."
"What promise?” she asked, trying unsuccessfully to keep her chin from quivering.
"You promised to write five computer game manuals so I can devote my time to developing the software program. You finish the manuals and then go to hell for all I care."
"Whatever,” she muttered.
Nate stepped around her and continued his walk. Jodi trudged slowly back to the house. Let him fix his own breakfast, she thought as she closed and locked her study door behind her.
She began a new chapter, not caring much for either style or content. She wanted to finish this manual and the next four as quickly as possible. Nate was right, of course. She did promise to write all five of the manuals. She resolved to fulfill her promise and accept in payment the clothes, jewelry and automobile he bought her.
She heard Nate banging around in the house like a child having a temper tantrum. She didn't care. Her fingers flew over the keyboard. At noon she was ready to begin the final chapter but, having skipped breakfast, hunger pangs drove her to the kitchen. She fixed and ate two ham sandwiches and washed them down with a Pepsi.
As she began putting away the sandwich materials she relented, made two more ham sandwiches and carried them to Nate's study. He hunched over his keyboard and did not acknowledge her presence.
"I thought you might be hungry,” she said, placing the sandwich tray on his computer desk.
With eyes glued to the computer monitor, he waved her away.
"It's going to take me weeks to complete the manuals. Are you not going to talk with me the entire time?"
He continued to ignore her.
She shrugged her shoulders. “Whatever."
"Did you feed him nipple-speared slices of tomato like you did me?"
"I fed him water. Nate, do you want a blow by blow description?"
"No, but that brings up another question. Did you?"
"Did I what?"
"Blow him."
"Damn it, Nate. I was vulnerable and it happened so quickly. He turned me on. I wasn't wearing anything but panties and your old blue shirt. It didn't take him long to strip me. There were a couple of kisses and caresses. He wanted to take me on your bed but I wouldn't let him. It happened in the guestroom. I realized it was a mistake and told him to get out. Nate, it was a damn mistake. It won't happen again."
"Did his hands feel good on your breasts, Jodi. Did he nibble on your nipples like I do? Did you get all nice and juicy for him, Jodi?"
"All right, Buckshot,” she screamed. “You want details? I'll give you details right after you tell me about your experiences with Mariah. Did you go down on her?"
Nate turned back to the computer, ending the conversation and she slammed his study door as hard as she could.
She again sat in front of her computer and began to review the day's work. She shuddered as she read incomplete sentences, incoherent thoughts and a myriad of grammatical errors. That's unacceptable, even for me, she thought and she began the long, boring task of converting trash into acceptable literature.
It was almost seven o'clock when she was at last satisfied with her efforts and again felt ready to attack the final chapter. She stretched and went looking for Nate. He was not in his study, the great room or his bedroom. She checked the parking area from the kitchen window. His Taurus was not there.
"Bastard,” she mumbled on the way to her bedroom. “He could have at least told me he was leaving.” She showered, dressed, drove to Mammy's Kitchen and ate alone.
Nate was in his study when Jodi returned. “Did you have a good dinner?” she asked.
He seemed to hunker down in his computer chair and did not respond.
"There's a good movie coming up on HBO—just the kind you like with plenty of sex and violence. Let's fix a big bowl of popcorn and try to relax this evening."
He wheeled around and glared at her. “Woman, can't you see I'm busy?"
"Nate, we both made mistakes. Can't you see I'm offering you an olive branch?"
As he turned back to the computer he said, “If it's companionship you crave this evening, go find your new lover. I don't need you. I got along without you before I met you and I sure as hell can get along without you now."
Jodi fought back the tears, went to her bedroom, locked the door, stripped, brushed her teeth and crawled into bed. What was it about Bob Renegar that had attracted her? She tried to remember Bob's naked body, but it was Nate's body her mind's eye pictured. She tried to recall the smell of Bob's sweating skin, but it was Nate's aroma she sensed. She tried to recall Bob's caresses, but it was Nate's hands on her buttocks she remembered. She tried to remember Bob's kisses, but it was Nate's tongue she tasted. She gave up and relived the good times with Nathan Watson.
Hours later Jodi heard Nate easing down the hallway. She knew he paused at her door. She pushed back the coverlet, ready to spring to the door at the sound of a knock that never came. She adjusted her pillow, turned over on her stomach and relived in detail the first time she and Nate became one in the biblical sense.
With pulse racing, bre
ath coming in short gasps and labia drenched, she tried to recall the brief encounter with Bob. She burst out laughing. That she did remember.
This is ridiculous, she thought as she again threw back the coverlet and sat on the side of her bed. So he screwed Mariah. He's right. I did cut him off. He did think I had left him. The telephone was out of order. He couldn't call me. Maybe he did try. Hell, I love the big lug, but I've never told him that. That's one mistake I can correct, damn it.
She lunged for her bedroom door, fumbled with the lock, crossed the hall, twisted the knob and pressed her shoulder against Nate's bedroom door. It was locked and there was no response to her knocking. She refused to beg and went back to her own bed and a sleepless night.
When twilight began to push the darkness out of her bedroom, Jodi eased out of bed, went through her morning routine, pulled on the old shirt she used as a robe and sat on the edge of her bed, waiting for sounds from Nate's bedroom indicating that he, too, was up. Those sounds came as brilliant sunlight streamed through her bedroom windows.
She rushed to the kitchen and, when she heard him coming down the hall, filled two mugs with coffee and presented one to the sleepy eyed, stubble-faced man she now knew she loved deeply. He did not speak, but at least he nodded as he accepted her offering.
He roamed to the kitchen window and scratched his butt as he peered outside. He turned and propped against the counter. “No,” he said as his eyes met hers.
"No?"
"I didn't go down on Mariah.” He grinned sheepishly. “The damn thing stunk so bad I couldn't get my nose close enough to taste it."
The comment was so unexpected that Jodi could think of no reply. She followed Nate down the hall, entered her bedroom and dressed quickly in exactly what she planned during the long night. She waited for him on the front porch.
When he emerged, she joined him, uninvited. Silently they descended the incline to the beach. She was barefooted and tripped along beside him, splashing in the edge of the water. He neither looked at her nor spoke.
It's now or never, Jodi told herself. She raced in front of him, stopped and faced him. He walked around her without slowing down. She ripped off her skimpy dress and again raced in front of him, turned and backpedaled furiously. Except for the red bikini panties he bought her, she was naked. This time he stopped, focusing on her bouncing breasts.
"I must smell pretty good down there. You certainly have lapped at my door many times.” She cupped her breasts and sensuously massaged the tops of the white flesh with her thumbs. “Tell me you never again want to see my boobs. Tell me you don't want to taste them or fondle them. Tell me your soldier is not standing at attention at this very moment. Tell me you never again want to park your motorcycle in my garage."
Without changing expression, he resumed walking. Jodi grabbed up her dress and, holding it in her hand, caught up with him. “Damn it, Nate. I can't stand this cold shoulder routine. Tell me you no longer have any interest in me and I'll move out. I'll move out today and take the computer equipment with me. When I finish the manuals, I'll return the computer stuff and the manuscripts."
"Whatever."
"Whatever? Damn you, Nathan Watson. That's your answer for everything. Do you want me or not?” she screamed.
"Mariah never meant anything to me, you know,” Nate said slowly. “I was flattered that she wanted to sleep with me. You'll have to admit she's a sexy woman and I thought you were out of my life. Hell, Jodi. She walked out on me during the middle of the first night."
"Ouch. That must have been embarrassing. She didn't find you to be a good bed athlete?” At least he's talking to me, she thought, aware that her breasts were jiggling furiously as she almost jogged to keep pace.
"No. At least I don't think that was it. She got a better offer. She found two horny guys who were willing to share their hotel room with her. I suppose it made sense. My motel room was a long way from Mariah's conference, which was in the hotel where these two studs were staying. Truth is, she intended to spend the night with me, but when I realized how little I meant to her, I kicked her butt out."
"My experience wasn't all that great either, Nate. Hell,” she said with a hint of laughter in her voice, “he ejaculated so quickly I'm not sure he was even inside me."
Nate looked at her sternly and said, “I don't find that amusing.” In spite of himself, his lips turned into a grin. “Well, maybe I do."
"Nate,” she said just loud enough to be heard over the roar of the ocean, “I don't want anyone but you and I think I'm woman enough to keep you happy the rest of your life. Have you forgotten what I feel like in your arms?” She looped her arm in his and pressed her bobbing breast against him.
"I haven't forgotten, Jodi. Sex with you is terrific, but I'd gladly be celibate the rest of my life if..."
"If what Nate? What is it you really want?"
They reached the spot across the inlet from the pier and, as usual, Nate propped against the large boulder that marked the boundary of his property to rest. Jodi playfully placed her feet on his and her arms on his shoulders. She sighed as his fingers found her nipples.
"What do I really want?” His head turned towards the ocean. “I want us to walk together every morning, laughing and talking and making plans for the day. I want us to have breakfast together every morning, just gazing into each other's eyes. I want us to work together, content in the knowledge that only a thin partition separates us. I want you to catch more fish than I do, beat me at golf and bowling and kid me mercilessly about it. I want to watch your beautiful hair, blowing in the breeze as you drive the convertible. I want to sit across from you in restaurants and bask in the jealous glances of the other male customers. I want to go to sleep at night with you snuggled next to me. I want you to love me as much as I love you."
"I do love you, Buckshot. I love you more than I ever thought possible and it took ... it took another big mistake on my part to make me realize it."
The tears slipping from her eyes and the expression on her face told him that she meant what she was saying.
Jodi placed her hand firmly on his crotch as he tightened his grip on her breasts. “I love you so much,” she continued, “that if you say the word, I'll never again ask you for sex."
He grinned and locked his eyes on the tiny strip of red cloth between her legs. “I think I was being melodramatic when I mentioned being celibate. Are you going to slip out of your panties or must I rip them off?"
She turned her back, bent over, sensuously peeled down the scanty undergarment and moaned as his lips brushed her perfect buttocks. “You do smell good, Jodi,” he mumbled against her inner thigh, and then he proved it. He proved it again halfway back around the inlet, and she changed her mind about having her buttocks ground into the sand when they reached the ramp up the cliff.
She was surprised that he had anything left as they showered after breakfast and she wondered if Mariah had supplied him with a bottle of Viagra when he again made love to her instead of eating the sandwiches she prepared for lunch.
As they moved through the cafeteria line that night, she followed his lead and reached for a slice of chocolate pie, but his hand on hers let her know that he again wanted to share his slice.
She didn't mean to do it, but she beat him by four strokes at the Par 3 course and he complained bitterly all the way home. After she parked the convertible in the driveway, he pushed her onto the warm hood of the vehicle and punished her with the longest lovemaking session of the day.
They laughed like children at a circus as they ate popcorn, drank Pepsi's and watched a Goldie Hawn comedy on television. Jodi had not slept for thirty-six hours, but when the eleven o'clock news ended, she was not ready for bed. They strolled hand in hand to the end of the pier and, as he held her under the starlit sky and told her how much he adored her, she knew that Mariah and Bob were mistakes of the past that need never be mentioned again.
On the way back to the house, they went skinny-dipping and later she lay i
n his arms with the magic bubbles in the WhirlPool caressing her body. They dried each other lovingly with large soft towels and she pressed against his muscular back and buttocks as she brushed his teeth for him. He returned the favor, but no matter how seductively she wiggled her bottom, she felt no evidence of arousal.
She snuggled next to him in the bed and stroked his scrotum.
"You're a dreamer,” he sleepily laughed and then miraculously turned her dream into reality.
Chapter Fourteen
Jodi grinned mischievously as she tried to focus on her computer screen. Going to bed last night and waking up this morning in Nate's arms felt so right. During their morning walk around the inlet they laughed, talked, played, and made plans for the day. Although the exact words were not spoken, she knew they had forgiven each other for past indiscretions.
She shifted her weight, trying to find a more comfortable position in the chair and the wicked grin stretched broader. She closed her eyes and relived the reward she gave Nate in the shower this morning. Never before had she allow a man to make love to her in that way. The pleasure she received came as a complete surprise, but now her bottom hurt. It was a good kind of hurt, though. It wasn't the sort of thing she would want to do often, but an occasional excursion on the kinky side was somehow exciting. She wondered how Nate managed to enjoy her back door while at the same time giving her pleasure with his talented fingers. She vowed that next time—if there was a next time—they would do it in front of a large mirror.
She giggled as she wondered what it would feel like to let Nate make love to her between her full breasts. She took a deep breath and typed, “Chapter Fourteen.” As she glanced at the outline, she heard someone banging on the front door.
"Damn,” she muttered, pushing away from the computer desk. When she entered the hallway, Nate was emerging from his study.
"I'll get it,” he said with a hint of annoyance in his voice.
"Fine with me,” she replied and returned to the final chapter of the first manual.
"Morning, Mr. Watson,” Bob Renegar greeted. “I sort of forgot to leave my bill the other day."
Sintown Chronicles III: In Dark Corners Page 43
