Chapter 1

Fabian Barnes eyed the last few green shoots poking up from the top of the ornamental hedge. Three satisfying snicks from his hedge clipper, and they joined their companions on the lawn. He dropped the clipper and stepped back to admire his work. The top of the hedge, which enclosed three sides of the large, lushly landscaped back yard, was now as flat and green as a billiards table. In this quiet neighborhood, where the use of gasoline- powered trimmers and blowers was strictly regulated, nothing less would do.

It was three in the afternoon, the southern California sun was still high in the cloudless sky, and it had to be ninety-five degrees in the shade. Sweat was trickling down his face, making his eyes sting and his white t-shirt stick to his chest and back like a second skin. He turned to give the swimming pool a longing glance, and noticed a flash of movement behind the large picture window overlooking the yard. With a little smile, he peeled off his white t-shirt and used it to mop the sweat from his face and neck. Fabian was a big man in his late twenties, over six feet tall and well muscled, with shoulder-length blond hair pulled back into a ponytail with a rubber band. From a distance his face looked smooth and chiseled, but up close the scars around his eyebrows and the somewhat misshapen cartilage of his nose gave it more character. Either way, he was a good looking man.

He raked up the hedge clippings and put them into a big plastic bin, and then he walked up to the back door and knocked, still shirtless.

The woman who answered the door was attractive, in a thin overly-groomed sort of way. Fabian knew the type well: in her mid-thirties, she was bored and restless in her suburban castle. She smiled at him, flipping her shiny brown hair back with a practiced gesture. "All done?"

"Yes, ma'am. Do you want to come out and take a look?" Deliciously cool gusts of air from the house swirled past him, evaporating the sweat from his chest and face and making his nipples tighten.

"Oh, no, I've been... I happened to glance out and see what you were doing a little while ago, and it looks great. Real nice job." She was staring at his bare chest, and he saw the tip of her pink tongue moisten the corner of her mouth.

"Thanks."

"Jesus, it's hot out there. Why don't you come inside and have something to drink while I get my purse."

"Thanks, that would be great," he said, meaning it. He followed her into the kitchen, eyeing her long tan legs and her cute little ass, which was packed into a tight pair of snowy-white shorts. He didn't see any possible way she could be wearing panties.

She gestured towards the huge silver refrigerator. "There's all sorts of stuff in there - help yourself. I'll be right back."

Fabian rooted around and found a six-pack of Budweiser long necks lurking among the bottled water and fruit juice. He popped the cap off one and took a long swig, emptying half the bottle. Two more pulls and it was empty. He quickly stashed the bottle in the garbage and opened another.

"Now, how much do I owe you?" the woman asked, coming back with her purse. She came over and stood in front of him, a little too close.

Fabian looked into her eyes, and said "Before we settle the bill, are you sure there isn't anything else around here that needs taking care of?"

A little smile played across her mouth. "Hmm... let's see, I guess there might be something..."

"Something indoors, maybe? Sure is sticky out there."

She took the beer out of his hand and took a sip. Then she wiped her mouth delicately with the back of her hand and said "Now that you mention it, I think there might be something for you upstairs."

"What sort of job, ma'am? Physical labor? Any heavy lifting?"

She set the beer down on the counter and ran her hand up and down his chest, tracing the well-defined plates and ridges. "I think we've done enough dancing around the subject, don't you?"

"Yes ma'am," he said with a grin. He pulled her toward him, and she came willingly, tilting her head up so that their mouths met in a long, firm kiss.

"Is your name really Fabian?"

"I'm afraid so."

"No, I like it. You can call me Kathy, Fabian. Unless my asshole of a husband is around, in which case you better stick to ma'am." She stuck out her tongue and delicately licked his chest. Her tongue felt warm and soft on his sweat-cooled skin, and he twitched involuntarily when she flicked at his nipple. "What do you say we go upstairs and put you to work... Fabian?"

He grabbed the beer off the counter and followed her through the showplace home, which was filled with uncomfortable-looking furniture and oddly-shaped objects too useless to be anything but art. She led him up to the second floor, to a small room with a full-sized bed; probably a guest bedroom. Or maybe it was the designated room for fucking the help.

"You want me to grab a quick shower, Kathy? I'm kinda sweaty..."

"No! I want you sweaty. You can shower after."

He shrugged and sat down next to her on the bed. They kissed again, and she rubbed the bulge in the front of his faded jeans, tracing the outine of his cock, making it bigger. He slid his hand under her top and opened the front clasp of her bra with a practiced twist, spilling out her small, soft breasts. Just from their texture, he could tell that they weren't very sensitive, and he treated them a little roughly, cupping one in his large hand and squeezing it firmly, massaging the nipple between his callused fingers.

Kathy moaned and broke the kiss. "Oh, that feels very good... God, I love a man who knows what he's doing."

She pushed him back on the bed, straddled his chest, and took off her top. He continued to squeeze and pinch her nipples, doing it hard enough to hurt, and she gritted her teeth and twitched. "Fuck yes," she said, her eyes starting to glaze with lust. "That feels really, really fucking amazing."

As he continued working her breasts over, she reached behind her back and unzipped his jeans. He lifted up his butt, and she pushed them down past his hips. Then she closed her hand around his stiffening cock and pulled it out of his shorts.

"Oh yeah... beautiful... I love a nice thick juicy cock more than anything, you know that? More than any-fucking thing. I haven't even seen this one yet, but I just I know I'm gonna love it."

Fabian smiled to himself. These upper-income housewives always liked to talk dirty and to be treated a little rough. He supposed it was all part of the fantasy - the lady of the manor slumming with the husky, sex-crazed yard boy. He wondered what sex between this woman and her husband was like. Probably neither one of them said a word the whole time.

She was jerking his cock with her hand behind her back, and he was fully erect. "I'm making you hard, Fabian. You like that? Do I make you hot, Fabian?"

"I want you to suck it," he said, deadpan. Might as well play the part.

"You want me to suck this sweaty old cock of yours?"

"Yep."

"Not much of a talker, are you?"

"Nope."

She swung her leg off his chest and kneeled next to him, and he reached down and finished taking off his jeans, his erection bobbing back and forth, and then lay back down.

"You have a beautiful fucking cock, you know that?"

Whatever. She gripped the base in her right hand and licked his shaft with long fluid strokes, using her whole tongue. Apparently she was into licking. "Mmm, tastes so good... I love a big, hard, sweaty cock more than anything..."

She moved her attention up to the head, teasing him with little flicks at the sensitive opening, pretending she was a porno actress or something. He put his hand on the back of her neck and gently pushed her head down. She got the hint and started sucking him in earnest, slurping away greedily as she worked her mouth up and down his thick shaft.

It wasn't the best head he had ever gotten, but it was pretty decent, and she didn't show any signs of letting up. He hated it when a woman gave him head for thirty seconds and then stopped, like they had done their duty. But not Kathy, she seemed to be genuinely enjoying herself. After a little while she started fondling his balls with her left hand, and he realized he had better start fucking her before he blew his load in her mouth.

"That feels awesome," he said. "How about we fuck now?"

"Mmm, lets," she said with a smile, wiping the excess saliva off her chin.

He stood up and stroked his hard, slippery cock while she lay on her back and peeled off her tight shorts. No panties. "Oh God, I need to be fucked so bad," she said, somewhat unnecessarily. He pulled her shorts off her ankles and dropped them on the floor, and she spread her legs and writhed on the bed.

"Come and get it, Fabian."

He could see the moistness inside the dark tangle of her bush, and her spicy scent was in his nostrils. He moved over her, aiming his cock with his hand, and entered her warm depths with one delicious plunge that left him lying on top of her, face to face. Her pussy was loose and slippery.

"That feels so good," she purred.

"It most surely does, Kathy," he agreed. He raised up on his elbows and started fucking her with short hard pumps of his hips, grinding his groin against her pussy at the end of each stroke. Her eyes opened wide, and she reached around and grabbed his muscular buttocks, pulling him even deeper into her.

"Oh god... yes, fuck me... fuck me..." She continued to chant into his ear as they fucked. It was sort of silly, all this dirty talk, but he decided he could get used to it.

He kept up a steady rhythm, making a wet slapping sound with every thrust, and her voice started getting ragged and uneven.

"Fuck me... oh god, don't stop..." Some heavy breathing, and then she came, bucking her hips sharply up at him and moaning with her eyes shut tight. If it was an act, it was a damn good one, and he was rather pleased with himself.

"Oh Fabian," she said, running her hands through his hair. "That was fucking amazing. Your turn now... I want you to come inside me... fill me up."

"Roll over," he said, getting off her.

"Mmm, whatever you say." She rolled over and waggled her ass in his face. Definitely her best feature. He pressed his cock into her ripe, swollen pussy and pulled her ass back against him. Holding her hips firmly in place with his big hands, he fucked her with rapid, powerful thrusts that made her ass cheeks ripple like waves.

"Oh Fabian, yeah, take me... give it to me..."

It didn't take long. He leaned his head back and stared unseeing at the ceiling as the semen came flowing up his shaft. Grunting through gritted teeth, he spurted his hot liquid into her, and for a few seconds an ordinary, carnal encounter was transformed into something magical. But only for a few seconds.

"I've got a feeling my hedge is going to need trimming again real soon," said Kathy.

"You gotta stay right on top of 'em, they grow back pretty quick," he agreed.

"Should we say a week from today, then?"

"Sounds about right."

She looked at the clock on the nightstand. "Shit - it's later than I thought. My husband could be home any minute. You better be running along, Fabian."

"Right."

An hour later, showered and changed, Fabian was sitting in a folding chair watching a hard-fought beach volleyball game. A blond girl named Lynn was stretched out on her stomach next to him in a skimpy bikini, soaking up the last few rays of sunshine. Fabian was sleeping with her, but they weren't really in a relationship. In fact, he didn't even like her all that much. Lynn was the manager of a local Wendy's. She had been his boss before he quit to go into the landscaping business, trading in his mop and paper hat for a mower and hedge clippers. But she still treated him like she was his superior, as if managing a lousy fast-food place gave her some sort of intellectual edge. Besides that, she wasn't really that hot, although she did have a mouthwatering set of tits.

He was pondering how he should go about disentangling himself from Lynn, when someone called out "Fabian, my man! How's the lawn mowing gig treating you?" A skinny black guy with a cheerful smile and a cleanly-shaved head came up and slapped him on the back.

"Hey Mickey," said Fabian, looking up with a smile. "I prefer to call it a holistic landscaping maintenance service. So far business is so-so, but I'm enjoying the perks. I see you're managing to stay out of jail."

Mickey was a hustler, a small-time criminal who always had a couple of scams going. Fabian knew that with his own rich history of bad luck he'd be sure to end up in jail the first time he did something illegal, so he never gave much serious thought to Mickey's schemes. But he and Mickey went way back, and he enjoyed hanging out with him.

"Jail? Jail is for chumps," said Mickey with a snort. Fabian gestured towards an empty lawn chair and Mickey dragged it over and sat down.

"So what's shaking?" asked Fabian. Mickey had plenty of friends in low places, making him an excellent source of juicy gossip.

"Something right up your alley." He leaned close, and in a conspiratorial tone said, "Beach brawl tonight at eight, over at Tigertail. Ten bucks a head. You interested?"

"What are you talking about?" asked Fabian, turning away from the volleyball game.

"Latest thing, man - couple guys go at it on the sand, winner takes all. Guy called Basher is fighting tonight, he's a real trip. Gotta keep it under your hat, though, this shit's illegal."

"I don't need to pay ten bucks to see a fight. I want to see a fight, I'll just start one myself."

"Whatever you say," said Mickey, holding up his hands. "Thought you might be interested, that's all."

Lynn pushed herself up on her elbows, displaying a dangerous amount of cleavage. "What are you guys talking about? What kind of a fight?"

"Boxing," said Mickey, helping himself to an eyeful of her tits. "Light gloves, no hitting below the waist, last man standing wins. None of that chop-socky oriental shit, or anything like that."

"Sounds pretty cool," said Lynn. "I like a good fight, you know?"

"Sounds kinda lame to me," said Fabian dismissively. Actually it sounded fairly interesting, but if he spent twenty bucks tonight he wouldn't be eating tomorrow.

"I bet you're short on cash again, Mr. Holistic Landscape Man," said Mickey. "Tell you what, I'll pay."

And that settled it, of course.

A little before eight they piled into Mickey's car and headed up to Tigertail, one of the more remote beaches. There were a couple hundred people on hand; lots of yelling and laughing, and the air was filled with the sweet smell of pot. As they walked into the milling crowd, a guy holding a paper shopping bag shook them down for the ten bucks each. Mickey handed the guy a crisp hundred-dollar bill and got change, and then led them toward the action.

The fighters were easy to spot since they already had their gloves on, and Fabian gave them each a close look. Basher turned out to be a big white guy in his thirties with a bald head and a goatee. He had "hard time" written all over him: crude tattoos on his arms and neck, a cold sneer, and the lopsided muscular physique that guys developed in the exercise yard: big chest and bulging biceps, but skinny legs and no core. All for show, like a peacock's tail.

His opponent was a fat black guy with a jiggling belly who looked more like a sumo wrestler than a boxer. Fabian reserved his judgment on him, but Mickey shook his head and said "That poor, tubby brother's gonna get his ass kicked big time." He didn't sound too broken up about it.