Chapter 4

Morning light was filtering through his curtains. Martin opened his eyes. Irene lay beside, her arm across him. Her eyes were open. “Good morning. Been awake long?” he asked.

“Just woke up.”

“How did you sleep?”

“Wondrously well. I closed my eyes and next thing it’s morning. I needed this.” She reached for his cheek. “Any regrets?”

He shook his head. “Do you have any?” he asked.

“It was harder than I thought it would be,” she replied.

“Sex is complicated,” he replied. “I mean, on the surface it seems simple enough -- insert A into B. Repeat. But, there’s really so much more to it.”

“Overall, I think I like this arrangement. How do you feel about it?”

“I prefer a bit more commitment,” he replied. “But, I’ll go along with it.”

“I have to get up to pee,” she said.

“Are you coming back?”

“Yes, I’ll come back.”

Irene removed a short robe from her bag and slipped into it. Martin lay on his back and watched the backs of her knees as she walked out of the room. The toilet flushed and presently Irene stepped through the door. She took a bottle of lotion from her bag and worked some into her hands. “This cold weather makes my hands so dry,” she remarked. “Are you getting up?”

“I don’t need to, yet.”

Irene slipped off the robe and slid between the sheets. She lay on her stomach, her head turned to face him.

“Did you have plans for today?” he asked.

“No. You?”

“I was going to do some work ... a little later.”

“Here or at your office?”

“At my office. Want to tag along?”

“Sure.”

Martin gathered her hair and set it to one side. He began stroking her shoulder blades. “You have a sexy back, Irene.”

“That feels nice.”

“Do you like having your back rubbed?”

“Mmm ... I do. This is a real luxury, Martin.”

Martin sat up. He smoothed both hands up and down her back and then caressed her buttocks. “You have a nice butt, too ... firm ... nicely shaped. I like your complexion -- the color of your skin,” he said as he ran his hands along the backs of her thighs. “Do you like having your legs rubbed?”

“Feels good.”

“Your legs look great from the back,” he said as he ran his hand along the backs of her knees. “Of course, they’re spectacular from the front.” He worked his way down her calves. Irene rolled over and sat up. She grasped his shoulders and eased him onto his back. Then, she lay atop him, her breasts near his face.

Martin held her around her shoulder blades. He began tonguing her nipple and it firmed. Irene’s breathing grew deep and heavy. “Feels good,” she panted. “I like how you have your hands on my back.”

He switched sides and rimmed her other brown areola with his tongue and used his lips to gently bite her fleshy nipple. He could feel the muscles in her belly against his and her breath on his face.

Martin eased her off of him and grasped her breasts in both hands. “Make me come,” she panted. “When we were talking and you were touching my back ... it was making me so horny.”

Martin pulled back the covers and knelt by her feet. He began caressing her legs and massaging her calves. Working his way north he paused to kiss her knees. Easing apart her thighs he caressed, kissed and licked them, alternating from one to the other. He made his way to her mons. Gently he caressed her labia, spread them and kissed her clitoris. He began a gentle sucking motion on her glans with the tip of his tongue.

Working his arms under her thighs he cupped his hands over her breasts and began pinching her nipples in time with his tongue. Irene lifted one arm and the other over her head and crossed her wrists. Her breathing deepened to heavy panting and he could feel her heart accelerate and begin to race, her heartbeats telegraphed through her flesh to his fingers.

Irene’s thighs began to quiver as each stroke on her clit echoed in her muscles. She now was panting through wide- open mouth. Putting her fist to her lips she drew in a breath and groaned. She panted and moaned again. Martin cupped his hands under her buttocks and pressed her pussy hard against his lips. She grasped his hair and held his face against her vulva as she moaned, panted and moaned again.

Her legs shook as she made more loud, gasping moans. Then, she touched his cheek. “You can stop,” she gasped. “I had lots ... lots...”

He came up from between her legs. “No tears this time?” he asked.

“None this time.” He kissed her lips and she stroked his cheek. “You’re all ... funky now,” she said with a giggle.

“It’s you,” he replied. “Your scent is filling my nostrils.” Giving her his hand he helped her sit on the mattress. Kneeling and facing her he embraced her and caressed her thigh. Then he slipped his finger into her slit and pressed it against her clit.

Irene gasped. She dug her nails into his back. “Too much,” she panted.

Martin lay on his back and grasped the base of his shaft. Irene climbed atop him and he guided himself into her. They locked legs and he held her across her shoulders. He began stroking her back.

She lay still atop him. He felt her snuggle her face against his shoulder and neck. “This feels good,” she said. “I like how you smell, too.” She squeezed him. “I need this, Martin.”

He ran his hand along her back and down to her buttocks; then he ran his finger along her crevasse and over her anus, encountering some of the shorter hair that made up the savannah to her pubic jungle. He worked his finger lower until he located the backs of her labia and her entrance where his shaft penetrated her.

Irene’s legs jerked and she let out a soft moan. He continued to caress her. Again her legs and belly jerked. “Little ones,” she remarked, “like aftershocks.”

Martin guided her hand to his chest. She ran her fingertips across his nipple. “I felt you get bigger and harder,” she said.

“What you’re doing feels good.”

“How long can you stay like this?”

“I don’t know. Longer than the first time.”

She snuggled against his shoulder. Then, Irene wiggled her hips, sliding down a few inches. “Mmm ... Now I have some good contact.”

“Now I feel like I’m in at an awkward angle.”

“It is it uncomfortable?” she asked.

“Not too. Keep it this way if it’s good for you.”

“Mmm ... It is.” She began rocking and rotating her hips. “This feels really good.” Irene lifted up on her elbows. “Breasts?” Martin placed his hands on her sides so he could massage her nipples with his thumbs. “Oh, this is really good.”

“I can feel your heart,” he said, “beating faster.” She began panting. Her rocking motion was giving Martin scant stimulation; nonetheless he was able to keep his erection strong.

“Oh, God!” she gasped. “Martin -- I’m coming!” She pushed against him as he continued massaging her nipples, and he could feel her heart racing under her breast.

Irene drew in a breath and groaned. She lowered herself onto him and he caressed her shoulders and the small of her back. Grasping her buttocks he eased her up, which straightened the angle of his shaft inside her pussy.

She began lifting and thrusting her hips to give him friction. She was making slow, full-length strokes. Martin began making complimentary thrusts with his hips. Now he could feel his arousal building and his erection intensifying. He put his hands on her buttocks as he felt his climax approach. “Oh, Irene,” he grunted as he pressed his hips against hers and felt the ecstasy of his pelvic muscles pumping his fluids into her.

Martin closed his eyes as the orgasmic rush dissipated, replaced by a sense of warm satisfaction. Irene held his cheeks and kissed his lips. “That was really good,” she said.

“It was really different,” he replied. “It was the first time I think I’ve brought a woman to orgasm through penetrative sex. It was really sexy feeling your heart start pounding and then racing. It would be interesting to wear a Fitbit during sex.”

“I have one,” she said.

“You have a Fitbit?”

“Yeah -- I wear it when I play tennis. I’ll bring it next time. I felt yours this time, too --Felt like you had a strong one.”

“Real strong one ... the kind that almost hurt.” He caressed her back. Although his erection was subsiding he continued holding and stroking her. Her muscles began to relax. Her lips parted and she began deep and regular breathing through both her nose and her mouth.

Irene slept atop him for about twenty minutes before she began to feel heavy on him. Martin leaned to one side to slide from under her. She stirred and he drew her against him under his arm. She held him across his chest and rested her head on his shoulder. “Mmm,” she said. “You listened...” She kissed his cheek. “ ... you paid attention ... gave me what I needed.”

“It was good for me, too,” he said softly. Her legs twitched against his and she again fell sleep.

She drowsed for an hour and then stirred. “What time is it?” she asked.

“Ten thirty.”

“Did you sleep more?”

Martin shook his head. “No. I was enjoying the view.”

“I must’ve needed it.”

“You must’ve needed something else.”

“That, too. It all felt really good, Martin.”

“At thirty-four, you’re probably right at your peak,” he replied. “I’m thirty years past my prime.”

“You’re doing very well.”

“Now, I have to get up,” he said. Are you hungry?”

“Very hungry,” she replied. “My stomach is growling.”

“I can make some popovers. They take a while in the oven. If you’d like to take a shower they’d probably be done when you are.”

“Okay.”

Martin arose. He slipped into a pair of trunks and headed for the bathroom. When he emerged he saw Irene standing in her short robe regarding his artifacts and photographs. “What a life you have lived,” she remarked.

He set a basket of popovers on the table and poured two mugs of coffee. Irene sat across from him, her freshly dried hair in a ponytail. She wore a knit turtleneck and jeans. She set a plastic compact containing her birth control pills on the table. Pressing on it she ejected a pill.

“Do you want water with that?” he asked.

“I’ll take it with coffee.” She popped it in her mouth and swallowed it with a sip from her mug. “These are good,” she said after biting a popover. “Light and eggy.”

“Irene ... if you ever want to talk about anything ... like what happened in Pittsburgh...”

“What do you know about Pittsburgh?” she asked. “You must know people there. What have they told you?”

“I do know folks at Pitt,” he replied. “Nobody has told me anything, and I haven’t asked about you.”

“Martin -- if you pry into my private life, it will end our friendship. Understood?”

“Understood. I’m not prying. What I’m saying is, sometimes it helps to talk. If you ever want to talk, I’ll listen, I’ll be non-judgmental and you can trust me.”

She cradled her forehead in her palm. “I know I can trust you. You probably think I’m a fucked-up mess.”

“I think you’re a mystery,” he replied. “You’re a puzzle inside an enigma inside a conundrum, Irene. I like a good puzzle.”

Martin unlocked his office. Irene stepped in and sat in a chair near his desk. He picked up a stack of papers. “I have a test to grade,” he said.

“You should use the online testing system. That way the computer does the grading.”

“Can the computer be programmed for partial credit?” he asked. Irene folded her hands in her lap. “I didn’t think so...” He started scanning a sheet and marking it with a red pen in one hand and a blue one in the other. Irene stood and began examining items and papers on his work table.

Martin looked up at her. “Do you have any work you can do?”

Irene shook her head. “I make it a point to have everything done by Friday. The weeks are long enough without working on Saturday and Sunday, too. Do you not want me here?”

“I’m getting vibes from you that you’re ... impatient ... bored. That’s going to distract me from what I need to do.”

“Sorry ... Don’t mind me -- take your time.” She locked her hands behind her back and wandered around his office. “What’s this?” she asked, pointing to a manuscript box.

“Those are the galley proofs of a book I’ve written. I’m in the process of proof-reading them. It’s agony for me -- I’m no good at proofreading.”

“Do you want me to?” she asked. “I’m somewhat of a pedant when it comes to spelling, grammar and punctuation.”

“Feel free,” he replied. “It would be a big help to me.”

“Of course, I’m not familiar with the content, so you’ll still need to go over it and make sure that’s all okay.”