Chapter 3

I didn't quite sleep the whole night away, of course. At some time point in the wee hours of the morning, I woke up to hear movement in the kitchen, so I got on my Santa pajamas and found Danielle making herself some warm milk, which often helped her sleep. When she saw me, she tensed up a bit, as if she felt a little guilty, but Lisa had the same habit at times, so I just smiled and pulled my eight-year old daughter to me for a bear hug.

Danielle looked up at me and asked me, "Daddy, are you mad at Mommy? You seemed to be for a while, but I wasn't sure if you were and why."

"Sweetheart, sometimes in marriage, husbands and wives get upset with each other, but we try to work things out. I believe that your mother and I will be just fine, okay? Don't you worry your pretty head about such things. Your mother and I are going to grow old together and be Grandma and Grandpa to your kids someday."

"Okay, Daddy. Thank you. I badly wanted you and Mommy to be happy and stay together, not get divorced like I hear that Pastor Jonathan is going to get from Sister Angel," Danielle told me, to my shock.

"Say that again, honey ... Jonathan and Angel are getting a divorce?" I asked, since I was floored.

"Yeah, I overheard Sister Summer tell Sister Amy that her sister ... Sister Angel, was tired of dealing with men and wanted a divorce from Pastor Jonathan. She said that Sister Angel liked girls ... what did she mean by that?" Danielle asked me to explain that bit.

"Danielle, in this day and age, you're going to hear a lot more such things, and there is nothing wrong with it. Some women like other women the way that most women like men ... the way that your mother loves me," I explained things as best I could, "and that's okay. Some men like men that way, too."

"I think that I prefer boys myself. Or men ... when I get old enough to marry, I'll want to marry a man, not a woman," Danielle announced.

"That's fine, but you can marry either one and I'll still be happy with you, as long as he or she treats well, sweetie. You don't even have to marry, but don't tell your mom I said that. She wants to see you wear a wedding gown," I laughed.

"Daddy, you're silly! Of course, I want to get married. But do you mean that it's okay for men to date men and women to date women?" Danielle's giggling stopped and her eyes grew wider.

"Yes, it is, baby. There's nothing wrong with it, honey," I assured her.

"So ... if Sister Angel dates women, she won't go to Hell for it? Sister Amy said that she'll 'burn in Hell for it, ' Daddy. She said that 'if she's a dyke, Satan will get her.' That's not true, then?" Danielle expressed surprise at what I said, "Grandpa always preaches that it's a sin, but Aunt Michelle and Aunt Missy ... I've caught them kissing now and then, and not pecks on the cheek, either."

"Your Grandpa is a good man, but I don't agree with him about this, sweetie. I don't go to church because I don't believe in what they teach and preach there. I just disagree with it," I declared.

"Grandpa said that if you're not a believer, you'll go to Hell. Does that mean that you're going to Hell, Daddy?" Danielle wondered.

"No, kiddo, I'm not going to Hell. Can you keep a secret, baby?" I asked her.

"Sure, Daddy," Danielle answered.

"Hell is ... like Hansel and Gretel. Jack and the Beanstalk. Santa Claus. The Easter Bunny. It's a fairy tale, but meant to scare people into being good. Hell isn't real, baby," I explained.

"Oh, okay. There is no Hell. I'll keep that a secret for sure. Don't want the mean girls at school to know that yet," Danielle snickered, but her face showed relief and gratitude that I had leveled with her.

"Especially don't tell Grandpa that I said that part. I want to get along with him and Grandma, not start a fight over my losing my faith. They probably suspect already, but no need to rub it in their faces," I instructed Danielle, at which point her six-year old sister Stacey got up and rushed to hug me, having had a nightmare.

"Seems that I have two rivals for your affections, dear," Lisa laughed softy to announce her presence, hugging both of our daughters warmly.

"Yeah, but in a good way," I chuckled as I ruffled Stacey's hair.

"Can we go to church in the morning, honey? All of us, even though you don't believe in Jesus nowadays. I have a feeling that you'd want to catch more than just the afternoon fellowship," Lisa spoke in code to me.

"Naturally, dear. Now, back to bed with both of you girls, okay? Get yourselves some rest, and Stacey, your mother and I will protect you from any monsters, sweetie," I told her as I gave both girls butterfly kisses and sent them back to bed.

That morning, I took Lisa aside when the kids were sent off to Sunday school to convey what Danielle had told me, which made her laugh more than a little. We hugged and walked, hand in hand, to our old pew, which still held some good memories in spite of my "apostasy." Lisa didn't hesitate to play footsie with me as the head deacon, Arlen Moore, began pontificating and telling jokes through the lesson. Deacon Moore was a bon vivant of sorts, noted for his bad jokes, his gluttony, and for rumors about his private life based on his lifelong bachelorhood. He taught the adult class, but everyone knew that he wanted to be a minister. It was just that no one would ordain a man whose sexuality was ambiguous like that. He was oddly one of the least gossipy people in church, even if he was the topic of more than a little gossip himself. When not serving as a deacon and Sunday school teacher, he worked as Chairman of the local Chamber of Commerce and ran his own service station.

"I wonder when he's going to come out of the closet," Lisa whispered to me, making me laugh even as she tickled me a little.

That was when Angel ran out of my father-in-law's study, crying, while Jonathan followed her into the main auditorium, where the lesson was taught. Jonathan was furious, even to the point of shaking Angel a bit, before I found myself standing up and stepping between them. I blocked Jonathan from reaching out to his wife and told him that was, "Enough," while Lisa's father stood meekly and let this happen.

"Don't tell me when it's enough, you fucking wimp! Your wife spreads her legs for half of the church and you want to play superhero? I'm still the assistant pastor of this church and you're just a dumb cuckold hubby whose wife gives up the booty for her exes," Jonathan taunted me, unaware that he had just cussed in church, in front of the senior pastor, "Hell, I fucked Lisa how many times now?"

"Nice to know that you men of the cloth practice what you preach, Shorty. From what Lisa told me in her confession, you only seduced her with your mouth, not with your wimpy little dick! But, of course, size doesn't matter, or so Lisa probably told you so as not to hurt your feelings," I laughed in his face.

Jonathan turned very red in the face, especially once I told him, "If you ever touch Angel again without her permission, I'll personally report you to the Sheriff's Department faster than you can say, 'orange jumpsuit.' If you do it in my presence, I'll kick your sorry, scrawny ass!"

"She's a dyke! She told me this morning! She's a motherfucking, goddamned rug-muncher!" Jonathan protested angrily.

"Yes, Jonathan, I'm gay! So what! I was a good mother to your brats and I will be still. Yes, I want a divorce, but that's because I'm tired of lying to myself and to you. I'm tired of putting on a mask for the rest of the world and pretending to be the prim and proper preacher's wife. I can't keep it up. I can't sleep with you anymore. I can't live a lie any longer.

"It's not fair to either of us, and look what it's driven you to do! Not that I blame you for fucking around, when I've been putting you off regularly and I haven't exactly been faithful, either. Look, I'm sorry, but Chrissy and I, well, what can I say?" Angel confessed to me that she was in love with Christina, one of her mutual friends with Lisa, "We're in love, and I can't bring myself to sleep with a man when I only want her."

"Chrissy Bolton? You two are lovers?" I smiled, hugging her for a second, "That was a very brave thing to do, but where is she?"

"Waiting for me at Sandwich Sam's. She's already left her husband. Sorry, Jonathan, but I can't live this life anymore. I'm getting a job and moving in with Chrissy. We can get married now, you know, when the divorces are final. The Supreme Court said so, so that' that," Angel declared, crying on my shoulder, "You don't judge me, do you?"

"Not at all, sweetie. I know that we used to date, you and I, but that was ages ago. I'm just glad that you're happy. Like you said, we'll always be friends. At least now I know why," I smiled at her and told her, "Run along now, hon. Go find Chrissy, make wild, sweet love to her, and start the rest of your lives deliriously happy together."

Angel ran out of the church like a bat out of ... well, you know (with apologies to Meatloaf), tossing her wedding band to the ground as she did so. It clearly was a vestige of a past that she wanted to forget and leave behind her at last. She was now in the open as a lesbian and it had liberated her from the chains of a bad marriage.

"Excuse me, but did you just tell Angel to go live in sin?" Lisa's father objected to something at last.

"I prefer to think of it as exhibiting God's love in a more inclusive manner," I smiled at him, "Sorry, Reverend Tucker, but you and I don't think alike when it comes to matters of faith. What Lisa believes or wants to believe is entirely her choice. I don't believe in trying to convert people to my worldview. Everyone must figure that out for himself or herself. I just can't believe that God would send people to Hell for not groveling to him. The hypocrisy of some of your congregation hasn't helped matters, either."

"Well, that's your soul, but I will pray for you. Anyway, at least you have the guts to tell me to my face instead of being a hypocrite. I suppose that Jonathan sleeping with Lisa didn't help at all, no. And, yes, I know all about Michelle and Missy. I didn't want to admit it, but I can't seem to get away from lesbians, not even in my family. I take it that you've forgiven my daughter?" Reverend Tucker asked me, "That's, dare I say, downright Christian of you, for a non-believer."

"Yes, I have. We've been working through our issues, but I can't say that the solutions will always be acceptable to you. Which is why it is best that you not know ... not all, not at once. But, yes, Lisa's out of the doghouse with me. I wonder how much you've known and for how long, but that's okay. I'll just never trust you as a marriage counselor ever again. See you on Thanksgiving ... Dad," I answered calmly, walking back to my pew to sit there quietly with my wife, even if half the congregation moved away from me as if I had leprosy.

That was when Deacon Moore reclaimed the mic and simply told us all, "You know what? If Angel Harvey Cummings can be brave, so can I. Fuck this shit! My name is Arlen Jordan Moore. I'm gay and I'm done with this shit!"

With that, he grabbed Jonathan and planted a kiss on his mouth, which apparently stunned the assistant pastor for about two minutes before he melted into Arlen's mouth with his own, his tongue circling Deacon Moore's to our complete astonishment. Deacon Moore then took Jonathan by the hand and led him to his car, walking out of what turned out to be the very service where Pastor Tucker was to retire and turn over the ministry to Jonathan. Clearly, that wouldn't take place and my father-in-law was truly horrified at the events which just transpired. In the space of less than half an hour, he had lost his assistant pastor, the assistant pastor's wife, and his head deacon, not to mention having been told to his face that his only son-in-law was no Christian and having been forced to accept that his second daughter had a lesbian relationship going on with her best friend.

I could see Lisa's father grow ashen as he contemplated a further day of his retirement, too, but such was life, of course. It had to have been the most trying day that he had since his parents were killed in that car crash many years ago. I often wondered if young Lance Tucker had turned to God as a surrogate father and mother of sorts. He would hardly be the first to do so in the annals of human history. I was also sure that Jonathan had been a second son of sorts, and the man that he had always secretly hoped would marry Lisa. That had never been a possibility, as it turned out. Jonathan Cummings wasn't gay, but as Lisa said of his wife, he wasn't straight, either. I also wondered how long it would take for Arlen to get jealous of Jonathan and his trysts with the fair sex.

Everyone remained seated for several minutes before the song leader, Myron Gordon, stood and began leading a hymn clearly meant to console people..."It is Well with My Soul," by Philip Bliss. I felt like rolling my eyes for a second, but then I felt some empathy for Pastor Tucker, who had to be really suffering a bit. I held Lisa extra close, as if reassuring her and everyone else that all would indeed be well, to the extent that they would accept it coming from a heathen sinner like me. From the look on my father-in-law's face, it seemed to work at least a little. At least I was standing by his daughter, despite what she had done to me. It had to hurt to know that she had betrayed her vows and his preaching over the years, but seeing that she and I were determined to keep our marriage together had to be at least a little balm to his emotional wounds. Of course, if he truly knew the price of that continued commitment, he might have had a stroke. Well, he would find out soon enough when Michelle's belly swelled up from my seed.

The rest of the service was a blur, but when I was about to head to the parking lot to check things out, I felt a tap on my shoulders and found an envelope left there for me. The note on the envelope read, "Banquet hall, 15 minutes. Meet me. J. R. Cummings." That was odd ... what was going on with Jonathan now? Lisa followed me as I went to the usually empty banquet hall, where I found, not just Jonathan, but Arlen and Jon's sister, Jenna, as well as Angel's good friend Amy. They were up to something, but what was it, exactly?

"Did you open the envelope?" Jonathan asked me, which made me curious enough to open it and find a key.

"What's the meaning of this?" I demanded to know.

"It's quite simple, really. I've wronged everyone here in this room, in some way, shape, or fashion. Now, I'm not sure what I believe any more about God, Heaven, Hell, Satan, Jesus, and all that Gospel stuff that I've preached for years. I'm going to have to try to make sense of it all. But I do believe that when you've wronged people, as I have, you should try to atone in some manner. So, today, after running out on Arlen here, I came to a decision. I will keep my secular job, resign my ministry, and do my best to make up for how I've treated others. This key is just a symbolic one for now, but the real McCoy will arrive in two to five business days, along with a cock cage for it to open and lock.

"Here is the deal. I, Jonathan Roger Cummings, will spend the next year as the shared property of those of you in this room. That includes you, too, Lisa. During that year, you can have me any way that you want me. Bent over, tied up, cowgirl, reverse, missionary, etc. You can peg me, tickle me, whip me, chain me, etc. You can pour hot candle wax on my body, too. I will be your plaything ... all of yours. All that I ask is that you do not invoke your rights when I'm visiting my kids, that you do not interfere with my work, and that you do nothing that will cause permanent bodily harm. Those are the only limits, of course ... well, and no scat, please. That's a bit much, even for this," Jonathan shivered at that thought.

"If that's the case, why put yourself in a cock cage?" I asked him the most obvious question, obviously lingering in all of our minds.

"Because all of that must be geared toward your pleasure, regardless of mine. You will have the right to enjoy yourselves without even thinking of my needs. For the next year, my own pleasure will be incidental at best and under the particular control of the person who has the least to gain from this: Dan. Dan is the only one of you who can be impartial at all. He doesn't find me attractive. He has no particular interest in this except revenge. He has no desire for me. He's perfect for this role, that of the key holder. I will trust that Dan is the good man that I believe him to be, a much better man than I am, in fact.

"So, anyway, that's the deal. A full year of enforced chastity, with Dan as the holder of the key and the decider of all of my releases. If he'll accept it, that is. In case you're wondering, this isn't going to be permanent. This isn't a fetish of mine. It isn't going to be fun for me at all, being forced to endure this punishment. That's the whole fucking point, of course. If I enjoyed it, this wouldn't be a form of suffering and atonement, would it? It will not, must not continue past a year from now. On this date, exactly one year from now, I will expect to have the key returned to me and I will remove the cock cage for good myself.

"At that point, any relationships that survive this year can be reviewed, and if one or more of you still want me, I will commit to a relationship of some kind with you ... on more equal terms than I will experience this coming year, of course. This will be a good test of what you guys want from me and what I want from you, free of all of this baggage, you see. Now, any questions?" Jonathan asked us.

"How do I control your releases until the cock cage arrives, Jonathan?" I naturally probed.

"Well, I will have to go on the honor system and you will have to trust me, of course. No masturbation or cumming without permission, of course. If you catch me breaking that rule, you can add a day to my sentence for each incident," Jonathan offered us an incentive to give him a chance.

"So, you're basically our bitch, but Dan's most of all, because he doesn't want you that way. Clever, I must say, but I must warn you that all that I really want from you is your tongue. Your dick never really did much for me, as Dan told you earlier today. So, I personally don't care if he lets you out of your cock cage at all or not. What about the rest of you?" Lisa smiled wickedly, thinking of ways to torment Jonathan, or at least that was the impression that I got from her facial expressions.

"So, when with you, he'll be lucky if he gets out, and then only when it suits me. Hilarious! What about you, Arlen?" I asked the ex-deacon.

"I don't really care about his dick. It's his ass and his mouth that I crave. Those I will use frequently, especially his butt. If he gets out at all during his time with me, it will be your doing, Dan," Arlen didn't hide his true feelings.

"So ... that's two votes for continued chastity, then. What about you, Amy?" I turned to the lover of Jonathan who most surprised me.

"Sure, I'll use his dick now and then, but he'll have to really grovel for it, of course. I'm going to love having the power in this relationship for a change. He used to be my boss at Sandwich Sam's, after all. This is going to be such fun for me. I'm definitely going to peg him, too. He tends to be a bit smallish and cum too fast, anyway. Maybe I'll make him wear a strap-on most of the time and earn fucking me with his own dick as a privilege, you see," Amy giggled at that prospect.

"And you?" I asked Jenna, Jonathan's sister.

"I'll let him fuck my mouth, tits, and ass, honey. My pussy remains off-limits, because he's my brother, of course. I'm not going to inbreed, after all. I'll peg him, too. I also want you to breed me, so he'll have to watch me grow large with your spawn," Jenna laughed, "And he won't ever get to do more than lick that area, of course. He'll get even better with his tongue, I do believe, than he was before."

For my part, I told him, "You'll have to service James now and then to get out of your cock cage. Since the man, albeit accidentally, helped open up my previously monogamous marriage, we owe him that much. By the way, I would suggest some sort of making amends to Angel, but you'll be paying her child support and she won't want you touching her, anyway."

Jonathan slumped his shoulders and nodded, "I will endure and survive this, even the sex with James part. I just hope that he doesn't carry it too far. From what I hear, he can be a real jerk at times. Then again, so can I."

"Well, that being said, bend over. Someone bring me some lube. I'm going to fuck you in the ass today to symbolize your submission to me. It shouldn't take long, because I won't even try to hold back my cum. From time to time, I might do this again, not because I want you, since I don't, but to remind you further that you're my bitch and that I have the power here. There, drop your pants and spread your cheeks. Oh, and you're to keep your asshole clean in the future. Clean and ready, with a butt-plug there, for the benefit of anyone who wants to sodomize you and who has our permission to do so," I grinned as Jonathan bent over and Jenna lubed him up for my cock.

I wasn't gentle, of course. The man had been a religious hypocrite, had played mind games with everyone present, had called me vicious names, had been cruel to Angel, the mother of his children, and had been a jerk to me and others for years. He had humiliated me on more than one occasion, so this was payback and that part of it was sweet, even arousing, for me. I basically raped Jonathan's ass like he was a prison bitch, making it clear with each thrust that he was at my mercy and I wasn't in a forgiving mood. He groaned, winced, grunted, and, in spite of himself, got very hard, even leaking precum.

"Don't you fucking dare cum! Remember, I didn't give you permission to cum at all!" I said, as I emptied my balls into his asshole, leaving a load that leaked down his thighs in a hurry.

"My turn," Arlen said, grabbed Jonathan's ass and just ramming his rather impressive cock balls deep within the disgraced minister's butt.

"I think that Jonathan enjoys getting his ass plowed by men! He loves it even more than I thought. Pity we don't have this on video. It could be so much good leverage to hold over him, of course," I declared as I went to go wash my cock.

By the time that I returned, Arlen already came and pulled out of Jonathan's butt. He now had two loads buried deep up his backdoor, both of them leaking onto his legs. Amy began stroking his dick in front of me, while Jenna played with his balls, as if to tease him further and make him desperate to cum. I laughed as precum continued to leak from his engorged dick and he silently begged for my blessing to cum. I shook my head and told him.

"You're going to need to build up your endurance of this. If you can't hold back after this, what will you do over the course of the year? You need to get used to not getting any relief, because it will be rare, I can tell you that. Perhaps a lot rarer than you think. You have until the cock cage arrives to change your mind and back out of this, which is what I think that you'll do," I grinned wickedly, just thinking of a delicious form of revenge for James to suffer at my hands.

After all, even if the man had accidentally opened up my marriage, he had also treated my wife like shit and pimped her out like some crack whore. The more I thought about that, the more I was sure that outweighed any incidental good that he did ... and far outweighed any evils Jonathan had committed. The dickless wonder would suffer a bit, but not a whole year's worth. I just had to get his lovers on the same page. James had behaved far worse than Jonathan, if you asked me.

I had at least two to five business days to figure it out, of course.