Chapter 6

After they had eaten the evening meal, Jim, who was rapidly regaining his strength, remarked that he was in need of exercise, and walked out into the glade toward the smoldering fires.

"Don't go too far away... !" Buzz warned.

"Hardly... I'm not up to a hundred yard dash... yet!" he returned.

Joan, whose duty it was to wash the dishes and cooking ware, looked up as he arose. Quickly, she said, "Jimmy... if you'll wait a few moments... I'll go with you..."

"I'll be all right, Joan, besides I've got my trusty shooting iron... Got to get some of the kinks out..."

With true wifely concern, she said, "Please, be careful... Darling..."

"I will..." he grumbled as he walked away into the rosy half-light of the dying day.

She watched him go, her heart going with him; she was proud to be his wife. It had taken her some time, after the shock of the excitement of the bear, for her to realize that it was her husband, Jim, who had with seeming calmness pumped three shots into the charging Grizzly Bear. To be sure, Buzz had joined him in the final volley that had dropped the bear dead in its tracks, but it was Jim, her Jim, who had faced the first, deadly test, the big pistol bucking in his hand with deadly accuracy.

The shame and humiliation Joan had experienced with Buzz and, subsequently, with Andy, had been almost more than she could bear. She had been a helpless tool of her emotions and passions, and she wax frightened; of course there had been the transitory fulfillment of sex... satiation as she had never known it. His job had almost ruined their married life; Jim's driving ambition to rise to the top in his chosen field of architecture had caught the attention of the partners in the world-famous architectural firm of Sloan, Kitchen and Wilson of San Francisco. They had hired him away from a staid old firm in the Midwest; Jim had jumped at the chance to prove himself. He had, literally, worked night and day, putting in long, overtime hours on his assigned projects.

He always seemed to be too tired, at night; he fell into bed and slept, his sex drive diminished to the point where Joan sometimes mused to herself she might as well be a sister as a wife. She had heard often about the development of such situations, a wife becoming a work widow, hardly ever seeing her husband, almost never enjoying him in bed, because the man was so tired he had no energy left to perform his husbandly conjugal duties. Joan was sure it would never happen to them... until it did. The weekends were the only times she could have him to herself, but even then his work took him away from her most of the time. She was hurt and confused, but she had decided to live with it, sure in her own mind that it had to come to an end... one way or another!

She tried to rationalize away her actions in succumbing to the temptations of sex and the idea of a sort of perverse revenge... a revenge of pent-up sexuality and of hurt, when she had accepted at face value the allegation that Jim had in some way-- for a reason as yet known only to him--bargained her chastity away with his boss. She vowed strongly that Jim would never know of her aberrant behavior; further she vowed that there would never be another episode, telling herself that it was the strange circumstances of the plane crash, the resultant close relationships and her need to do something for her husband that had opened up the pandora's box of wanton sex. She hoped, fervently, now that he was ambulatory and gaining in strength so rapidly... that his libido would return to their mutual advantage.

Out here... away from his work and all its pressures... maybe we could pick up the threads of our sex-life! I want him... and need him... so much! Jimmy is really the only man I could ever love... !

Of course, she told herself, the reason she agreed to come along on this trip... was to regain Jimmy's love... the sexual love they both needed. Then, the bomb shell of the crash and his injury had exploded in her face, and she hadn't the experience to handle the situation. She had acted the fool. She would have to bear the burden of her own mistakes in silence. Then, she remembered! She had made a foolish assignation with Buzz... for tonight!

Oh, God! What made me do a thing like that? I can't let him think... that I'm an-an adulterous wife of my own choosing! What can I do to get out of it... ?

While she had been thinking about her problems, she had worked steadily at her camp housekeeping tasks; now, she had completed her chores, and she looked around for Jim. He was nowhere to be seen in the camp area. She was worried, but she didn't want to alarm anyone, so she resolved to go look for him herself. She felt a little thrill... a hope that she would find him feeling even better... that she might be able to interest her husband in some good old-fashioned love-making.

Soon after Jim had left the eating area, Buzz Henson excused himself and headed for the plane to do a little more work on the radio transmitter, while there was still some daylight left.

Andy went to his shelter to lie down. He told Gayle and Joan that he still felt shaken up after his experience with the charging Grizzly Bear.

"I still feel kind of queasy..."

"I'll be with you in a little while, Andy," Gayle said.

Then, the older woman helped Joan for a few minutes, finally, pleading a headache herself, and went to the lean-to to join her husband. She flopped down on the sleeping bag next to him, leaned over and kissed him, hungrily.

"Well... " she asked, leaning back away from him. "How did you enjoy her?"

"Great! I think she could learn to swing!"

"Not yet... ?"

"No... It's too early..." he judged. "But she'll come around! It'll take a little more work with her."

"Pleasant work... though! I couldn't teach Buzz a thing... He's a real stud!" she gushed.

"That's what I told you... remember?"

"Yes... lover! I'll always remember!"

"How about Jim?" he reminded. "He's up... walking around, now."

"He might not feel up to it..."

"I always figured, if a guy could walk... he could also fuck!" Andy observed. "Anyway... you don't have to make him work for it!"

Gayle stood quickly to her feet. She looked out and saw that there was still a waning half-light in the sky.

"Good idea!" she smiled. "I'm going to go look for him... while there's still a little daylight left..."

She looked toward the cooking fire; Joan was still busy washing up the dishes, unaware of anything else, as she concentrated on getting a stubborn pot clean; then, Gayle walked from the camp, swiftly, quietly, keeping the shelter between herself and Joan, heading slightly up stream, then turning to walk downstream when she came to the bank. She searched ahead of her as she walked. He was not hard to find; he was sitting on a fallen log, resting... or deep in thought.

Jim saw her, recognized her, in the dim light as she came toward him and wondered why she had searched him out; he was in no mood to talk to anyone. He had been trying to think of a solution to the problem of Andrew Sloan. The proof of the man's embezzlement of company funds lay in a waterproof package of bank notes in the bottom of a soft duffel bag in the Sloan's lean-to shelter, but there was no possibility of his notifying Kitchen and Wilson. He would have to do the best he could under the circumstances. The only saving grace of the present situation was that he was in a position to know where Andy was at all times. The man couldn't walk out of this place with the money, so, for the time, at least, the money was safe.

His boss' wife came to where he sat, easing herself onto the log beside him. She smiled.

"I'm glad I found you... Jim..."

He looked up at her with a query, "Oh?"

"Yes... I-I... wanted to tell you... how very thankful I am for your quick action today..."

"Just luck... Mrs. Sloan..."

"Buzz said it was pretty good shooting... three of your bullets were in a six inch circle in the bear's chest! Where did you learn to shoot like that... ?"

"In the army," he said. "It's one of the necessary skills they drum into you..."

She caught his tone of voice. "You don't like to shoot... ?"

"No! Guns are for killing! When I left Southeast Asia... I swore I'd never touch one, again... but when Andy went down... I knew I'd have to kill the bear! It was a hard decision to make!"

Gayle put a trembling hand on his shoulder. Her voice was low. "For Andy's sake... I'm glad you made the right decision!" Her eyes misted. Her lips quivered open, and she lifted her mouth to him to be kissed.

The realization of what she wanted came to him a beat late, but as she melted into his arms with a moan, her lips, moist and soft, begging him for his kiss, he dropped his mouth to hers, surprised at the avid, emotional return. Her tongue flicked out to outline his lips, then snaked inside to tantalize the inner, sensitive surfaces; finally, bursting through the barrier of his teeth to collide and intertwine with his own.

He was surprised and shocked; he had never really entertained a serious idea of carrying through on his swap agreement with Andy; that was only the key to clinching the invitation to accompany the Sloan's on this trip.

Her mouth was sweet, vibrant... sexy, and her probing tongue was alive, moving, as it searched and sent its message, sensual and sinuous to his very being, the center of life, his loins, where the contracting, crawling sensation, the racing, instantly trapped blood bringing him to throbbing, erect alertness, below, jerking and growing moment by moment and bulging out between his legs, told him how long it had been since he had made love to his wife. It surprised him, also, because of the weakness he had experienced, earlier in the day, when the walk across the glade to the signal fires had seemed so horribly far. His erection coming up so quickly at the touch of her lips gave him a feeling of assurance, a sign that he must be healing well. Then, he remembered who it was generating the sexual fire in him! It was not his wife, Joan! It was his boss' wife whose voracious mouth aroused him.

Damn! She must be trying to carry out the crazy swap thing... that Andy suggested!... And, I sure as hell had no intentions of carrying it out! I was sure I'd be able to blow the whistle on him... or stop him, somehow, from bugging out or whatever it is he's going to do with that big bag of money he's packing! Then, there would have been no reason... for swapping wives!

Jim raised his head, suddenly, breaking the erotic kiss.

"This is crazy... Mrs. Sloan!"

"Please, call me Gayle... Jimmy..." she said, languidly, leaning her head against his chest.

"We can't do this... I'm married... and you're married... it just isn't right!" he moralized.

"So... we're married... you mean, of course, to different people..." she corrected.

"Well," he huffed. "You know what I meant!"

"Are you worried about Joan... ?"

"Yes... I've never..." he began.

Gayle cut in, "Well... don't worry about her any more! According to Andy... she takes care of herself pretty well... as far as sex is concerned!"

"What do you mean?" Jim growled.

"I have every reason to believe that he made love to her this afternoon... !"

"That's impossible! Joan wouldn't... ! She just wouldn't do something like that!"

Suddenly, he remembered!

Christ! While I was looking to Andy's luggage... and Buzz and Gayle were having their bang-bang party... Andy was off somewhere with Joan!

Didn't you find anything strange about their coming out of the woods... at the same place... before the bear came after Andy... ? she goaded.

"Well... yes... I did think of it, at the time... but with the excitement caused by that Grizzly... I-I must have let it escape me..."

"... Of course... that was one of the agreements you and Andy made... before we came away on this trip..." she reminded him. "As a matter of fact... it was the big reason for bringing you two along..."

"... But, Christ! I never thought it'd ever get to that point... !" he blurted. "I-I..." quickly, stopping himself, before he said more.

"You thought... what... ?"

"That it could be avoided," he modified.

"You wanted to avoid... making love... to me... ?" she pouted. "Don't you find me... attractive... desirable... in any way?"

"It's not that... you're really a beautiful... woman... but I-I've never..." he groped.

"Had any other woman... ?" she supplied.

"Well... yes... but, my boss' wife... it's just not right... !"

"Andy's already laid Joan!"

The flat statement made him gasp, "No! It can't be!"

"He told me he had!"

"H-He told you... ?"

"Yes! We have no secrets," she asserted.

"God!"

His face flushed in anger.

How could she... ? God... ! How could she make love to another man... ? Joan... unfaithful!? I can't believe it... !

"He must have taken advantage of her... forced her!" he flung out, trying to find a reason.

"Andy's not a rapist! She must have done it of her own volition!" she countered.

"Bitch! Why the little bitch!" he thundered.

"Don't be too hard on her... she was just fulfilling her part of..."

He cut her off. "She didn't know about any agreement... damn it! She had no idea... none at all... about that!"

"For Heavens' sake... why... ?" Gayle probed.

"Because I didn't tell her... she would have refused!" he confessed. "She must have given in... made love to him... on her own! That's it! That's what happened!" he concluded.

"So... now... you can have me... if you want me... ?" her voice was low, a bare murmur.

Jim looked down at her, now, in the rapidly failing light and saw her in a new way, as a desirable woman, a potential sex partner... one who could soothe him, at the same time give him a certain perverse satisfaction in knowing that he had repaid his wife in kind.

"God... yes! I want you!" he said, taking her in his arms, his mouth seeking and finding hers, his lips opening to take her tongue to suck and nip, and as she came into his arms, he was aware of her nipples, spiky against his chest through the light blouse she wore.

His hand went up under the blouse to fondle and massage, the fullness of her breasts plastic in his strong-fingered hand. He found the globoid hemispheres smooth and warm to his touch, their magnificence beyond comparison; he had to see more... feel more. His trembling hand reached and fumbled with the buttons, she finally helping him with nimble fingers, then shrugging and moving arms to make its removal easier.

His quick, indrawn breath caught in his throat at the vision of loveliness revealed to him, his mouth going to a breast to kiss, his lips and tongue paying homage to the satiny smooth skin, then finally, taking an erect, coral nipple to suck and tease; meanwhile, Gayle's hands explored his body, her sensitive fingers running up his thigh to his crotch to feel and measure, the warmth of his hard penis being transmitted to her through his pants. She found him hard and ready, his penis bulging out, throbbingly, against her hand, begging for release from its confinement. She obliged... zipping, dipping and freeing, bringing his long, hard cock out into the night air that was now becoming cool. He shivered as the chilling air washed over its length. Mentally, she compared, feeling and measuring; he was longer than Buzz, but thinner, almost slender, she decided.