Chapter 1

“As we begin the process of jury selection, I would like for Juror Number Six to please stand up,” the Honorable Veronica Cristobal, the trial judge, announced, making the butterflies in my stomach really get moving.

I knew what this was about. Roni and I had this weird love-hate relationship in high school, which consisted of her bullying me at first when we met. She had gotten a lot sweeter on me later, but by then, even as attractive as she was, I resented her and didn’t give her the time of day. I relented just in time for the final semester of my senior year, when we were cadets together in JROTC, me outranking her slightly as cadet sergeant to her rank of cadet corporal. We dated for about ninety days and Mom in particular couldn’t believe this “charming young lady,” in her words, had ever been my bully.

A quarrel during the prom had led to me dancing with Heather Estrada, Roni’s worst enemy, and sleeping with her instead of my date later that night. Heather thought that it was cute to then “lend” me to her best friend Candace Strong. I was too drunk to even notice or care that Roni had watched us get it on in that rather strange threesome. All that I knew was that Candace preferred to be called “Candy” and she lived up to her name. She was the first black girl to even so much as kiss me in my life and she did a lot more than that, proving utterly delicious! What happened after that, well, I didn’t keep track of it.

I was far more worried about the fact that Roni had sent me an angry, accusatory letter in seventeen pages, completely ignoring her own past of bullying me while blaming me for the fight and demanding an apology for “cheating” on her. My answer was much briefer. I sent her a postcard from my basic training location that read, “To the bully who dumped me on prom night: kiss my ass.” I had better things to do with my time back then, especially given the drill sergeant’s own brand of hazing, to even think about Roni.

We went separate paths after that, including six years in the Army before a piece of shrapnel from the Republican Guard in the waning hours of the invasion of Iraq sent me home with a medical discharge. Roni fell pregnant, but finished high school, and then spent many years attending college and law school close to home so that she could raise her children while finishing her law degree and taking the bar exam. I never learned the paternity of her twins, so I naturally assumed that she got knocked up on prom night with someone else during our last lovers’ spat, though we had been intimate and she took my virginity in fact. I never knew whether or not I took hers and frankly didn’t care.

I had seen her once or two after that, mostly as I made my way through the high school educational system. Yeah, I became a teacher, for a variety of reasons that mystified even me, leading me to even rise to the level of principal of the very same high school where we both attended. Whenever I encountered Roni, she’d give me this brief, haunted stare and never say a thing to me. I was never sure about any of that, particularly during the PTA conference where we last met, where she attended with her twins six years ago.

I heard a very brief giggle behind me and turned around to see Juror Number Nine blush in response to my reaction. I found myself briefly bewitched by her soft, wet lips, her dimples, her baby blue eyes, and her long, blonde curls. She was a bit slimmer than a lot of my recent lovers, but she had luscious, long legs and a truly delectable ass with the right amount of butt cleavage. Her breasts were smallish, but still were perky and slick with her sweat in the sun of an El Paso June. I heard a curious cough from the bench to draw my attention back to Roni.

“Juror Number Six, again, please stand and face the court. That means you, in case you missed it, Mr. Jack Jacobs,” Roni now singled me out by name.

“Ah, yes, Your Honor, if this is about prior knowledge of yourself, as the trial judge, I wish to confirm that I have such,” I cleared my throat.

“Indeed you do, as do I, Mr. Jacobs, but more relevant to this case is this question. Can you set aside your personal feelings well enough to deliberate this matter without bias, prejudice, or sentiment of any kind clouding your judgment? I wish to be clear that I will attempt to be impartial toward you as required by law, and I naturally wish to fully disclose our prior attachment, so as to carry out my duties as a trial judge in compliance with the laws and regulations of this state, as well as the Constitution of the United States. If not, I am prepared to excuse you from jury service today with the thanks of the court and consider this a fulfillment of your civic duties until you next qualify for jury selection,” Roni continued, putting me on the spot, though to be fair, she had a sensible concern.

“I cannot honestly promise that, Your Honor. I would like to think so, but I would be lying if I didn’t say that it’s taking an unnecessary risk and would do a disservice to our criminal justice system and everyone involved. I don’t think that it would be fair to either the prosecution or the defense to take such chances with such variables as human emotions and prior association between a juror and judge,” I admitted, getting a nod from Roni.

“I thank you for your honesty, and I’m inclined to agree here. Even my attempts at impartiality risk erring on the side of either too much severity or too much leniency to avoid the appearance of the opposite. I’m glad that you’re not petty enough to use this opportunity to satisfy any personal grievances, grudges, or lingering issues with a trial court judge who has many responsibilities and doesn’t need the distraction of an old flame. Ladies and gentlemen of the court, I wish to confirm that I briefly dated Juror Number Six during my senior year of high school and he is the father of my twins, though this last news is probably a bit of a shock to him, as I never told him before.

“Accordingly, Juror Number Six is now dismissed from voir dire for today and the relevant period required by law. He is free to go home and doesn’t need to return to the assembly room to await further jury selection. I do not believe that he was quite prepared for this situation and neither was I. I wish to instruct the bailiff at this time to provide Mr. Jacobs with the documentation proving that he has satisfied his jury service requirements for the time stipulated by law. Thank you for your service in this jury selection process as well as in the military and to this community as a dedicated educator. Good day, sir,” Roni released me with surprising grace, given our past.

“Thank you, Your Honor,” I coughed as the bailiff led me out of the courtroom, all eyes momentarily focused on the man who had evidently knocked up the judge years back.

Leaving the courtroom, I made a beeline for the nearest cantina, finding my appetite for something very spicy return with shocking speed given my nerves. Thankfully, I had the foresight to take the new El Paso Streetcar route from my house to the courthouse, so any drinking would have less effect than if I drove. That was good, because I could certainly use an ice cold beer or two with my fajitas, frijoles, rice, and pico de gallo (yeah, Tex-Mex cuisine was a large part of my motivation for staying in West Texas).

I had a friendly flirtation ongoing with several waitresses and the hostess, which was funny because she was the aunt and they were all her nieces. If any of the ladies were pissed that I flirted constantly with their beloved Tia Pilar, they had to complain about it. I certainly hadn’t seen a drop in service from them and they flirted as fiercely with me as ever. Maybe I missed something in their body language that betrayed their secret feelings, but if so, I was blissfully unaware of the fact.

“Senor Jack, good to see you again. What brings you downtown today?” Pilar Campbell, the owner and hostess of Casa de Pilar, gave me her usual enchanting smile with a small trace of a mustache above her upper lip.

“Jury duty. No, I didn’t get picked. So, I thought, since I was in the neighborhood,” I grinned at her, the meaning in my eyes intentionally risque.

“Anytime that you ever want to do more than tease, senor, feel free to come for me,” Pilar was at her boldest yet, just about inviting me into bed with her fine married ass.

My blush must have been bad, because she winked at me and leaned over to whisper, “I know that you like my tits and ass, so you don’t need to hide it. I also know what kind of man you are. I mean it, vato. Anytime, papi. Anytime. I need to get over my ex and I have such a weakness for gringos. Especially the lotharios. I married one, after all.”

I could barely walk to my seat due to my bulge and I had to excuse myself to go to the bathroom before the waitress could take my order. I really had to rub one out to my ex, the trial judge, to Pilar, the lovely hostess, to Juror Number Nine and her delightful golden locks, to the saucy senoritas who worked for their auntie. Hell, there were a number of cuties back in Iraq, both American and Iraqi, as well as Candace and Heather, for that matter, who came to mind, and a couple of teachers and moms at the school, even several students (it being high school, after all). I didn’t have much privacy for long, though, as the stall door opened and Pilar walked in on me to kneel and pop my boner into her eager mouth.

“No, Senor Jack ... you don’t take care of yourself in Casa de Pilar. You don’t ever take care of yourself. I serve you! I serve you with a smile!” Pilar scolded me about masturbating on her turf when she was clearly ready to satisfy my needs.

“Damn it, Pilar ... I’ve wanted you for so long, but I didn’t want to distract you from your job,” I gasped, but she winked and hushed me as she put her sweet, ruby red lips around my cock.

“Your money’s no good here, Senor Jack. You’re my lover now! Do you hear me? You’re my lover and I’m yours! I’m tired of waiting to be yours! I know what kind of man you are, I told you, and I don’t care! I’m a married woman, so why would I care? I want you! I need you!” Pilar demanded far more assertively than usual, clearly going after what she wanted so much.

“Wow, I thought that you were just flirting with me ... what about Lewis ... oh, God!” I grunted as Pilar sucked me more furiously than ever.

“Fuck Lewis! He’s been fucking every waitress and busboy in this cantina for years and he thinks that I’m blind or something? I don’t mind, just don’t lie to my face! That gets old! He thinks me stupid!” Pilar said as she bent over for me and I naturally took the opportunity to slide my cock balls deep inside her sloppy gash.

“What if I started fucking the waitresses and busboys, too?” I teased Pilar, who laughed before she started moaning.

“Why not? Half of them went to your high school in the past few years and they all think that your cock would look great in their cunts and asses! Yes, make Lewis share them just as he shares me and I share both of you! Fuck all of my nieces and nephews! Do it! Bend them over and make them scream your name as they scream his!” Pilar proved to be one hell of a wild ride as I probed further inside her delicious twat.

“You hate him a lot, don’t you?” I asked as I slapped her plump, juicy butt, admiring the sweaty slickness of her crack and puckered asshole.

“Yes ... and ... no! I still love him! But I love you, too! I could never leave him, so don’t ask me to, but I will never give you up, either, papi! You’re both gonna have to share me, too, just as I share both of you!” Pilar urged me as I bottomed out inside her luscious snatch.

“Oh, God ... oh, fuck, Pilar, why didn’t we do this sooner? Adultery’s the sweetest sin of all!” I groaned as I pounded Pilar’s slippery slit and smacked her booty a few times.

“Because you thought that I was faithful to Lewis ... but I got tired of waiting for you to take a hint!” Pilar welcomed me with more vigorous strokes as she bucked her hips to take me deep yet again.

I fucked her very hard then, doing my best not to let her gorgeous rump push me past the brink, as I wanted to do her justice on our first adulterous fuck. Pilar still had her wedding band on, too, as I thrust roughly into her cunt, much to her delight. The sight of her proof of commitment to another man while I plowed her but good, threatening to breed her, made it that much tougher not to explode inside her hot, juicy gash as I kept fucking her. She might be a fortysomething cougar, but she had nice, long, silky, wavy, jet-black hair that begged me to pull it.

“Tell me, Pilar, would you like to be a mama?” I dared her, curious to see if she’d go for it.

“Yes, but Lewis is sterile, so I’ve dealt with it! Would ... you ... put a baby in me? Lewis would know that it wasn’t his and then we’d have to talk things over and have it out at last. Oh, please, papi ... do it ... knock ... me ... up!” Pilar pleaded for my seed and I was happy to oblige, spending myself inside her dripping wet cunt.

“Thank you, papi. Now, your money really is no good here! I’m fertile today. You did it! You put a little bambino in this womb and I will get to swell up with it soon! Thank you ... I’m yours, honey! Yours forever! I hope that you know that I won’t hide your paternity. I want to give you full credit for putting a bun in my oven! I won’t hide our affair at all. I want to flaunt it for everyone to see and know. If Lewis doesn’t like it, too bad! He’s never bothered to cover his tracks very well. I’m just upping the ante by going public!

“Maybe you should fuck him, too, since he’s likely to be a whiny bitch about this! I’ll pass the word, too, that the waitresses and busboys can keep fucking Lewis, but they also can start fucking you!” Pilar stunned me with the extent of her kinky, nasty, wanton slut aside, sensing that I loved seeing her like this.

I responded to that by planting a lip lock on Pilar that left her in no doubt of where she stood with me.

“You want me this badly, you got me. Same goes for your nieces and nephews, too. They want this dick, they can have it, too. So can Lewis. All that they need to do is just ask. I’ll fuck you all, babe. I’ll even bend over and let him fuck my ass! Hell, you can peg me, if you wish,” I offered Pilar, who really made out with me using a lot of tongue now.

“These panties are yours now, papi. They’re wet for you, just like those of my nieces, I dare say. I’ll do anything that you ask of me, baby! Anything for you!” Pilar told me as she led me back to my table and called Lupe over to wait on me.

“He’s my lover now, Lupe. His money’s no good here. Are we clear? Take care of him like you’d do for me or Uncle Lewis. Are we clear?” Pilar told her in Spanish, knowing that I could understand them.

“Si, Tia Pilar,” Lupe told her auntie, even as she slipped her hand up Pilar’s dress, “no panties? Auntie, I’ll be happy to clean you up with my tongue, you know. Anytime.”

The stunned look on Pilar’s face as she heard that offer from her own niece was nothing compared to what I had when Lupe insisted on sitting on my lap as she took my order. She wrapped her arms and legs around me, too, while giving me a kiss that defied description. She also slid her panties down and gave them to me, too. Then she rose with a wink and let her skirt lift just enough to tease me with the lower half of her perky ass.

“What? It’s what I’d do for Uncle Lewis or Tia Pilar and I know that you can understand Spanish, too. Seems that my auntie likes to put her men out to stud. I don’t blame her. It’s a lot better than the traditional jealousy, I know that much. Uncle Lewis can’t breed me, so you’ll just have to do that for me, too,” Lupe winked again as she kissed the top of my head.

“I hope that you’re fine with some extra company,” I heard suddenly, looking up to see Juror Number Nine, who slid in next to me and slapped Lupe on the tush as she did so.

Lupe just laughed and planted a steamy French kiss on my impromptu date.

“Hey there! Did you get picked?” I asked her, getting a nod.

“Yep. So that topic is off-limits, which lets me think of other things, such as how many waitresses’ sloppy seconds can I expect when we start fucking. Not that I mind. I love a stud who owns what he is these days instead of making excuses for himself. I’m a slut and I own it! Even now I want to lick the judge’s cunt juice off your cock and start riding you in the courtroom itself. I’d love for you to fuck me from behind over the bench, too. Really pound me hard in public, my pants down to my ankles. I’d love to lift her robes and eat her out, too!” Juror Number Nine told me with a saucy grin on her face.

“Oh, is that how you feel about me?” Roni’s voice interjected, “I was going to join my ex-boyfriend here for lunch if he wished it, but now I definitely have to join both of you.”

“Well, in her defense, Judge, you’ve always had a sweet pussy ... and your ass, well, let’s just say that I jacked off to memories of it for years,” I observed, causing Roni to raise an eyebrow.

“First off, let’s just drop the whole... ‘Judge’ business, Jack. You’re my high school sweetheart. You’re the father of my children. My only two children, by the way. I’ve never had any since then. And yes, I was your bully for much of high school. And yes, I dumped you at the prom date and then had the nerve to get jealous and angry at you for moving on to Heather Estrada and Candy Strong. It was completely unreasonable of me, too. I don’t blame you there, either. They were both such yummy Goths or nerds or whatever. Candy in particular more than lived up to her name. I found that out on reunion night when I grudge-fucked both of them in a threesome of my own.

“Did you know that they had a pregnancy pact together and moved in together to become a couple? They got married last week, in fact, after years as lesbian lovers. Rumors abound that they still like to lure men into bed to share, so you’d probably get some booty there, too. It’s just that they were always into each other most of all. Soulmates, I guess. Just like you and I are, honey. I was such a fool. After your postcard, oddly enough, I realized that I needed to get a grip on how I was seen by others.

“But if you want to know ... why ... I bullied you in high school, I’ll tell you tonight. In bed. Not before then. You have to sleep with me to get the answer. Don’t like it? Tough. That’s the deal. I want to make love ... oh, fuck it, I want to jump your bones and ride you like a fucking stallion, and then have you mount me and take me hard from behind until I scream your name. Then and only then will I tell you why I bullied you for all of those years until I stopped.

“Oh, and Little Miss Cutie here is welcome to join us in bed, but she has to consent to me dropping her from the jury. Today. Before we get it on. Right after lunch. It wouldn’t be proper to fuck my jurors, including the lady ones,” Roni took a sip out of my beer before passing it back to me.

“Wow, Roni ... the more you change, the more you stay the same! Drop-dead gorgeous, pushy, saucy, kinky, manipulative, and determined to salvage your reputation by any means necessary. How come you didn’t tell me that I had twins? For that matter, how come didn’t Heather and Candy? Wow! Anyway, full disclosure ... I’ve started tapping Pilar and I might do that to her nieces and nephews soon. I might even end up fucking her hubby the way things are going now. And if Juror Number Nine still wants it, I fully plan to fuck her sweet ass as well,” I announced, making Juror Number Nine blush and show off her dimples a bit.

“Yes, I still want it! I’m Amy, by the way. I have to warn you that I’m married, too. Relax. Hubby loves sloppy seconds. I’ve fucked his boss, two colleagues, three clients, his brother, his father, his best man, the stripper at my bachelorette party, the preacher, two other groomsmen, the dry cleaner, a waiter, the stripper at his bachelor party in a threesome with Ryan, that’s hubby’s name, and the mailman. Hell, I think that I fucked an Uber driver or two for him and even a pizza guy. I’ve fucked at least one plumber, too, but that was because he was too yummy to resist. That’s kinda the category that you both fall in, to be honest. You two ... and Lupe over there.

“Hubby chose me because I’m a slut. That’s the kind of wife that he wanted and he told me so. He encouraged me to fuck whoever I wished and then some. All that he’s asked in return is sloppy seconds, details, maybe some pics, videos, and the occasional hall pass for him and threesome of both kinds. He’s really wanting me to get bred by at least one other man besides himself during our marriage. I think that he wants to breed me himself, too, but the idea of another man’s baby bump definitely turns him on, no doubt of that.

“Before you ask, no, it isn’t a fully open marriage on his end. Hence the hall passes. That’s not my doing. If it were up to me, we’d just be swingers. That’s how he wants it, because he can only find some women slutty enough for his taste. So when he does ask for the rare hall pass, I tease him about it, but I gladly hand it over from my little box of hall passes. Without the hall pass, it would be cheating, but to be honest, I would probably get a rush out of him cheating on me. It would be so naughty of him and I would love exacting my ‘revenge,’ too. It would be such a sexy revenge, not a mean or vicious one,” the blonde cutie showed her dimples again.

“Well, Jack, you really are a stud, you know. No question of that. You’re banging the hostess, plan to start in on the waitresses and busboys, maybe the husband, maybe Amy’s husband at this rate, certainly Amy herself, and who else? Maybe Heather and Candy again? I can only guess how many folks you’ve fucked over the years since we parted ways. Did ... you ever do any of our former teachers, working in our old high school as you have? I did it with Mr. Malloy once or twice, actually, and his wife never did find out,” Roni teased me, just as Lupe brought my fajitas and took down the ladies’ orders.

“Good thing that I’m the judge and can set the recess times, right?” Roni said as she began fondling Lupe’s ass under her skirt and collecting salt for her margarita.

“You’re a judge? Wow! Would this be out of order, then?” Lupe asked as she slipped Roni more tongue than a butcher at a shop in Montana.

“Maybe. I might well have to hold you in contempt of court and find an appropriate penalty,” Roni teased her some more.

“So ... you really want some of this, do you? Or does all of this competition discourage you?” I needled Roni, who just laughed and put her head on my shoulder while Amy did the same to the other.

“Papi, I’m in love with you and I have been since high school. That will never change! Never! I’ve fucked plenty of men ... and women, to pass the time, but I’ve never loved a man quite like I love you, not that I haven’t tried now and then to get over you. I just can’t, baby. I’m in love with you and I always will be. I was a rotten excuse for a girlfriend and I’m sure that you’ve had lots better, but that’s the honest truth here.

“I charmed the pants off you quite literally ... and also off your mother. Yeah, that’s another dirty secret. I fucked your mom. Not your dad. Just your mom. I cheated on you with your own mother. I guess that’s why she sided with me so much. She saw me as her little Latin bedtoy, I think, and I was fine with it. But I felt guilty as fuck and so I provoked that fight. And, yes, if I’m being honest, I spent our prom night in your mother’s arms, which is how your father caught us.

“That’s why they got divorced, in case you wondered. It was my fault. Well, partly my fault. They were both cheaters. That’s when I realized that monogamy was bullshit. Goofy, silly nonsense that priests, pastors, etc. like to sell society in order to control them and cut down on sex. That and what happened when I learned about you and the ladies. I think that your father could have forgiven them doing that to him, but not to you. He didn’t know or care what you were doing, but he saw what we did as a major betrayal.

“So, honey, sorry for that ... for being so cold to you in court for a second, though I had to get your attention, sorry for dumping you, sorry for not telling you about the twins, and sorry for the bullying. Sorry, dear ... for being so fucking cruel! There is so much more to tell you, but I can tell you that there is a major legal reason why I could never be your wife, not even now. I’m a judge, after all. I know the law. Just saying that for the record. You and I, whatever happens, and I do want us to be lovers again, but we can never get married.

“It’s all tied in together, and yes, I told your father the truth later. There was a moment of mutual forgiving right before his death. Yes, I was there when he died while you were in Iraq. I also made love to him, had a nice little tryst with him at the very end there. My notion of atonement for it all. The affair, the bullying, all of it. The twins. He died knowing that I was the mother of your children and that I truly loved his son. I promised him that I would someday win you back and I would grow old with you. I fully intend to keep my word about that. You’re stuck with me now papi. You’ll never be rid of me,” Roni swore to me, much to my shock.

“Nor me,” Pilar told me from behind, Lupe standing behind her as they both personally plated the rest of the meal.

“Nor me,” Amy added, as Roni and she now caught up with in their ravenous hunger for their lunches, “I won’t be happy until I’ve become your mistress, girlfriend, whatever, or one of them, for the rest of your life.

“Face it, Uncle Jack. You’ve got at least three Tejanas and a blonde, and all of us are playing for keeps with you, just like we are with the others in our lives. You’re not the only collector around,” Lupe added her two cents as she stuck her tongue in my ear.

“Uncle Jack?” I asked, rather curiously.

“Si, Tio Jack! You’re Tia Pilar’s other man, so just like Lewis is Tio Luis or Uncle Lewis, you’re Tio Jack! You’re also papi now ... just you wait until I get my hooks into you!” Lupe told me as she actually fed Amy for a second with a fork that she had slipped up into her own twat.

Amy just ate it up with no qualms or sense of disgust and then told everyone, “Feel free to do all of this kinky stuff at my place. Ryan not only won’t mind ... he’ll join in and I’ll be happy to not give two fucks about hall passes tonight. By the end of the night, Ryan will realize that he has a permanent hall pass with you guys, anyway. I hope that you end up sodomizing him tonight, too, babe. He’s just such a deliciously understanding guy, I want the guy to have as many options as possible, whether he uses them or not. So, how about it?”

“Well, now I know why I’ve stayed in El Paso,” I chuckled, “damn, I’m such a lucky bastard! Yes, you four with me tonight, probably Ryan as well, from the sound of it, even if it kills me. Even if it does! I’d die with such a wide grin on my face.”

“Oh, papi, just you wait until I get Heather and Candy back into your arms, as they should have been all along. Then there’s my neighbor, Violet, and boy does she have the most delightful red hair and freckles! Honey, you’re gonna be so hip deep in pussy and ass that you won’t know what to do with yourself, as you should be!

“Violet likes to eat me out and I know that she’s between husbands, so perhaps she can be your wife in time. She’ll never even have the chance to ask for monogamy. It will just never happen,” Roni assured me as we finished devouring our lunches and drinking our various poisons.

“Don’t forget me, hon,” I heard a very familiar voice indeed.

“Mom?” I saw my mother standing there, still shockingly beautiful in her classic sandy hair and freckles, but a lot more ... revealing clothes.

Mom pulled me in for a steamy kiss, definitely a lover’s rather than a mother’s, her tongue sliding in and out of my mouth, telling me simply, “yes.”

“Yes? Yes what, Mom?” I asked my mother, who didn’t look her sixty years of age at all.

“Yes, much of this was an ambush. Except Amy. She was a very nice surprise and we had very little time to prepare when we learned that you had jury duty. Pilar was in on it for sure. It wasn’t hard for Roni to pull strings to get put on the bench, among other things. Lupe was part of it, too. So, how about we get out of here as quickly as we can, go to my place, and yes, you’re invited, too, Amy, and your husband, and fuck like minks!

“I have an angry son who I mistreated years ago to appease. Let’s heal this breach our way ... in bed. Oh, and yes, I made love to your father several times at the end to make it up to him, too. But now I have to give it up to my son and I’ll have you know that this is yours, on tap, for the rest of your life or mine at least,” Mom declared her true feelings.

Somehow, I’m still not sure how, I ended up getting hustled into Mom’s car and a bunch of us headed to her place ... the same old childhood home that I had years ago, in fact. We had been estranged for so long that I hadn’t returned in forever, but there it was. Mom undressed the moment that I walked inside, slowly disrobing to tease me first, after which she simply ripped off my clothes with little thought as to the consequences. I saw that she had no hair on her snatch and that she had kept herself in remarkable shape, especially given her status as a divorcee from a long dead man.