went to the bed. She lay down and beckoned to her lover.
Saturday morning, Max put Lynda on the airplane back to DFW. She started to tear up, but he got on to her and she controlled the tears. On the flight, she sat next to an insurance man. He tried to convince her that she and her husband needed a term-life policy. She fought him off.
When she got off the plane, she went straight to the restroom. She checked her make-up, her suit, and her lipstick. She wanted everything perfect when she got home.
She pulled up into the driveway and no one came running out to her. The kids were in the backyard with Marcus. He was showing them how to make a rocket out of a two-liter Coke bottle, and a water hose. All three of them were soaking wet, and paid little attention to her.
Lynda went into the house and sat on the sofa with her skirt showing a lot of her thigh. She would get someone’s attention when they came in. But they did not come in. Ted was chasing Marcus with the water hose. She had to laugh. She went in and put on shorts and a tee shirt, and joined the melee.
Ted began to chase her, and squirted her right in the back of her shorts. She ran and giggled. Marcus caught Ted and took the hose away from him. He squirted Ted, and Ted took off waddling. Lynda grabbed Ted and took him into the house while he squealed like a little pig. She pulled his clothes and diaper off. She dried him off and put clean clothes on him. She changed her own shorts. She went to the back door and said, “You two urchins get in here and put dry clothes on before each of you get sick.” They both recognized that it was an order.
Marcus carried Tasha into the house and set her down on the kitchen floor. Lynda yelled, “You two, get out of here; you are getting my clean floor wet.” They both scampered into their bedrooms.
Marcus came out first. He sat at the kitchen table and Lynda made coffee.
He said, “Honey, how would you feel if I adopted Ted and Tasha? I love them so much.”
His question stopped Lynda in her tracks. She said, “I don’t know. I guess it would be fine.” She did not want him to do this, but could think of no way out of it.
She went into the living room, and sat down. She was thinking about Max. She was wondering if he had a girlfriend. Surely he did; he was too good a catch.
Marcus walked in and sat down by her. He asked, “What are you so deep in thought about?”
Lynda thought quickly. “I was thinking about having dinner with the Secretary of Defense. Was it an honor, or was he just hitting on me?”
“You are too beautiful for your own good.”
“Thank you, sweetheart.” She lavished a smile on him, and watched him crumble.
He nodded. “I was just wondering, are we okay? You seem distant again.”
She fought panic. “Honey, I am tired. The past three days have been long and hard.”
“I am sure they have been. Why don’t you go to bed and get some sleep?”
She shook her head. “I want to stay up with the kids. I have missed them.”
Marcus leaned back and closed his eyes. He said, “You didn’t miss me, did you?”
She realized that she had to be careful; a fight was brewing just around the corner. She said, “Of course I missed you.”
Marcus got up and went in the bedroom. Lynda could hear him lay down on the bed. She got up and went to Tasha’s room. She was sitting on the floor in her panties. Lynda asked, “What’s wrong, darling?”
“I could hear you and Marcus talking. You don’t like him anymore, do you?” she asked.
Lynda said, “Honey, Mommy is tired. I like Marcus; we just have some issues to work out.”
Tasha asked, “What kind of issues?”
She thought quickly. “He wants to adopt you!”
Tasha went, “Wow!”
Lynda got up before Tasha could ask another question. She went to Ted’s room. He was playing with some toys. She picked him up and whispered, “Your daddy would turn over in his grave.” She hugged Ted until he squirmed to get down. Then she put him back on the floor.
Lynda stood up and went into her bedroom and sat down on the bed. Marcus rose and stroked her back. Lynda stiffened, and he pulled back. He said, “There is someone else, isn’t there?”
She turned around slowly. She said, “Marcus, I have two kids. When would I have time to mess around?”
Marcus leaned back on his pillow and sighed.
Lynda got up and shut the door. She didn’t want Tasha hearing this conversation.
Marcus asked, “I guess you want me to leave. You would be happier?”
She spun around. “Marcus, don’t be ridiculous. There is no one else.”
He asked another question: “Lynda! Do you want me to leave?” He was getting loud.
She said, “Keep your voice down, Marcus. Little ears hear too much as it is.”
He looked like he wanted to fight. He was flexing his muscles. “Lynda?” he said more calmly.
She took her index finger and played with the hair on his chest. She said, “Marcus, if you don’t want to be here, then leave. I have not asked you to leave, but you are your own man. I understand that.”
He quickly grabbed her finger and bent it back. She winced in pain. He said, “Why do you have to be a bitch so much?”
She smiled as he let go of her finger. “Am I?”
He laughed, “Oh yeah. Your problem is, you know that you are beautiful, and you are afraid that I will tame you!”
She laughed and went back to playing with his chest and belly. She said, “Why do you have to be so handsome? All the girls at the office want you for themselves.”
He smiled. “Me, handsome? I have an extra hole in my head.”
She looked him in the eye. “It just adds to your macho.”
He grabbed her by the tee shirt and pulled her down on top of him. They both giggled. She let him undress her.
Afterward, Marcus was asleep and Lynda lay on the pillow looking at the ceiling. She was thinking about Max. She was also thinking about Marcus. He wasn’t stupid. If he thought she was seeing someone, he would try to catch her. She could not ever let her guard down. She wasn’t sure when she could see Max again.
Marcus flopped over and put his arm over her. She moved it off her and put it on the bed. She saw one of his eyes flutter open. She patted his hand and said, “Go to sleep, baby.”
He began to snore again. She got up, put on her night gown, and went into the living room. She turned on the television, but could find nothing interesting. She stared at the television while she thought about Max.
Suddenly she was aware of someone in the hall. It was Marcus. He was watching her. He said, “Come back to bed, please.”
She got up, turned the television off, and followed his naked body back to bed. She finally went to sleep.
The next morning they went to church again. No one seemed to pay them the slightest bit of attention. Of all things, the minister’s sermon was on adultery. Lynda felt like the minister was talking specifically to her.
After the service the four of them went to lunch. Ted sat in Marcus’s lap. He was as happy as a little boy could be. Tasha kept touching Marcus’s arm for his attention. The kids both loved Marcus so very much. Lynda knew that neither liked Max. In fact, neither did her parents. She might be ostracized by everyone in her family if she did what she wanted to. She could see no way to make it work with Max. Hell, she could see no way to make it work with Marcus either. She began to question if she really loved him or not.
She thought, Everyone loves Marcus so much. He is a hero. Why don’t I love him that much?
That afternoon, they went to the park and flew kites. Marcus helped Tasha and got her kite way, way up in the air. Lynda could not get Ted’s kite off the ground. Ted began to cry. Lynda held him. Then Marcus came over and got the kite up into the air. He held onto the string, and Ted jerked it all around. Finally Ted threw the ball of string down; he was fin
ished. He headed for the swing. Marcus handed his kite to Lynda. He chased Ted to the swing. She asked again, “Why does everyone else love Marcus so much?”
They went home, and Ted and Tasha were worn out. They went to bed. Marcus said, “If you don’t mind, I am going jogging. Want to go?”
Lynda had not been jogging in a long time. She put on her tennis shoes and met him at the front door. They took off and Marcus led her down the street, to the next. Lynda had to stop. She bent over and put her hands on her knees. She was heaving hard. Marcus ran around her, then took off down the street. She watched him go. He was fast. She began to walk back home.
She made it home and began to jog in the other direction. She asked, “Max, do you jog?”
She was jogging slowly about a block from her house, when Marcus flew by her. “Show-off,” she yelled. She turned around and began jogging back to her house. When she got there, she kept going. Marcus flew by her again. She realized that he was keeping an eye on her. She wasn’t sure why, but she liked it.
She decided right then that she would try and make her marriage work. She said, “Goodbye, Max.” She wanted to cry.
Marcus came back and jogged beside her. She noticed that some neighbors were out in their front yards, watching them. She wasn’t sure why. When she looked at them, they all waved. She and Marcus both waved back.
When they got back to the house, Tasha was out in the front yard. Lynda started to get onto her for being out and alone. Marcus said, “I was watching her. There is not a problem here.” Tasha ran to Marcus
CIA - The Slave Traders Page 43
