Chapter 10

When Mark and Cindy returned to the city, Cindy called Pete immediately and asked him and Mary over to dinner. Pete laughed and told her they had already eaten, but both he and Mary would like to see them and asked if they might come later. Cindy told him they could indeed, and Pete hung up and went to look for Mary. He could not find her anywhere, not even in the back yard. The car was not gone, so he suspected she had gone to visit one of the neighbors, a thing she rarely did, most of their neighbors being of a different bent than Mary.

He went back into the house and went to the bathroom and showered. When he had toweled his powerful body dry, he dressed and returned to the front room. Mary lay on the sofa, a drink in her hands. "Hey," he said. "Where were you? I looked all over for you. Mark and Cindy called. I mean she did, and invited us over. I've showered. Are you ready to go? I mean, can you get ready quickly?"

Mary straightened up and looked askance at him. "I'm not sure I want to, honey. Oh, I don't mean not want to see Mark and Cindy. I mean I'm not sure I want to go next door to Rose after the way she screamed at us and called you names and... well, you know."

He shrugged. "Hell, we can't let her separate us from our friends."

Mary nodded thoughtfully and finished her drink. "All right. I guess you're right, honey. I'll take a shower and get ready. Won't take me long. Half an hour."

It required an hour and forty minutes before she was set to go, but when she entered the room and turned around lightly on one foot to let him see her, he drew in his breath sharply and wished they were not going anywhere. Mary looked lovely. That was the word for it. Lovely. White blouse, short black skirt, black pantyhose and shoes of the same color. Pete looked her up and down, noting her legs especially.

"Beautiful pair of legs, baby," he said. "Do I know you?" he added, grinning.

She smiled at his remark. "You have fucked me often, sir. Surely you remember the poor little street urchin you found stumbling through that winter storm, alone and freezing to death. You must recall, sir, how you took her into your home, warmed and fed her, bathed her and then fucked her all night long. How can you have forgotten?" She pretended to weep at the very thought.

Pete howled with laughter. "Hey," he said at length, wiping his eyes, "maybe we should stay home and have a ball all by ourselves."

She dropped her eyes demurely in a continuing playful manner. "I'm terribly sorry, sir. My grandmother says I cannot fuck you any more, even though you have been very kind to me."

"Wait a minute," he cried, choking. "How the hell did you suddenly develop a grandmother? You were alone in the world just a moment ago."

"Grandmothers are born, too, sir. Mine happened to grow up very quickly."

Pete had to wipe his eyes again. "Will you please ask your grandmother if I may have one more fuck before you leave me to go out into the cruel, cruel world?"

"My dear sir, I haven't said I was going out into the cruel, cruel world."

"Oh, aren't you?" he cried, his shoulders shaking.

She rolled her eyes. "My dear kind sir, I have an excellent position. I'm off to join the circus. Didn't you know that?"

"And what do you do in the circus, my dear little girl? What will your position be?"

"Flat on my back, baby. I'll be working."

Pete stood up and, shaking his head as he laughed, walked to the liquor cabinet and poured two drinks. He gave her one. "Here's to fun," he said.

"Fun and fucking!" she cried. "If there be fun, let there be fucking. If there be no fun, let there still be fucking."

I Pete nearly choked on his drink. "You nut," he said. "You're positively a nut and I love you."

Mary finished off her drink. "Tell me something, Pete," she said, her tone sober now. "Are you glad that Cindy's back home?"

He knew he had to field that one cleanly. "Yes, of course. Not all worked up about it, if that's what you mean, but glad? Yes. I'll also be glad to see Mark."

She sighed. "You said it perfectly. You know..." she lifted her empty glass and squinted at it theatrically." I have a beautiful husband. He's just something else, this guy." She eyed him playfully. "You ever meet my husband, baby?"

"Yes," he replied, going along with her gag.

"Where?"

Pete rubbed his nose. "One time when I was shaving, my reflection disappeared as if by magic and your husband's face appeared. Oddly though, he was shaving, too, only at the precise moment of which, madame, I am speaking, he was shaving the opposite side of his face. Opposite side from my own. Does that answer your question clearly, my dear girl, and if it does, I'm sorry, for alas and alack, this is supposed to be Confusion Evening."

"We'd better go and see them before we get too far out and decide we're already here, honey," Mary said, grinning and putting her glass down. "Come on, let's go."

"Okay," he replied. "I'm glad you got over your... feeling about not wanting to be next door to Rose."

She shivered a little. "Oh, that," she said, and said no more.

They arrived at the Alexanders' a few minutes later and climbed out of the car. Both of them appeared to be deliberate in not glancing towards Rose's house as they climbed out of the car and walked to the front door. The door opened immediately and Mark, his brown hair askew, his equally brown eyes bright, let them in. He and Pete shook hands, grinning at one another as they did so while Mary kissed Mark on the lips lightly and asked where Cindy was.

Mark closed the door behind them. "She went next door to invite Rose over," he said. "What'll you have to drink, people?"

Pete did the answering because he saw the look on Mary's face. She seemed to have frozen; her face was set, her eyes fixed. He wondered what it was that was really bugging Mary. Did she fear that she, too, might one day indulge in what Rose did?

Pete shook his head slightly as if telling himself to stop speculating about Mary. The probability was that she was still hurt and angry because of the nasty remarks Rose had made to Pete.

"Bourbon will be fine, Mark, if you have it," Pete told his host.

All three had drinks now and were seated on the sofa, Mary in the middle. Her set look had disappeared, and she seemed relaxed now.

"I suppose," Mark said slowly, "that you two are curious as to what took us out of town."

"No, Mark," Pete said. "Not particularly. You said it had something to do with your family, I believe. Mary and I realized it was a personal thing, so we didn't ask questions."

Mark smiled. "Thanks, Pete. Damned nice of you, too."

Mary reached over and tugged at Mark's leg. "Mark," she said, "I hear Cindy and Rose coming in the back door. Why don't you take me to the bedroom and give me a good reaming? Pete won't mind. He knows how much I've missed that long cock of yours."

Mark seemed surprised. He flashed a quick look at Pete, but Pete merely grinned and waved his hand. Mark took Mary's hand, pulled her to her feet and together they disappeared through a doorway, the door shutting behind them just a second before Cindy and Rose appeared from the kitchen.

"Well," Cindy cried, "look who's here! My favorite bed partner, outside of my husband, of course." She winked at Pete, came to him quickly as he stood up, and kissed his mouth wetly. "Hello, hot pants," she whispered intimately. "How'd you like a nice, wet cunt to stab?"

Pete kissed her and grinned. "Love it." He glanced across the room. "Hello, Rose," he said, his tone even.

"Hello, Pete." Rose looked good, being dressed much better than usual. Her short skirt and dark blouse were becoming to her. "I didn't know you were here. Where's Mary?"

Pete winked at Cindy. "She and Mark had something they wanted to talk over."

Cindy stood on her tiptoes and kissed Pete again. "Hey!" she cried. "I'm so glad to see you, baby. You look great tonight."

"And so do you, my dear girl," he replied gallantly. "You look positively ravishing."

Cindy shook her head, her long blonde hair flopping about her pretty face entrancingly, her titties jouncing, also, and she turned about quickly. "Rose," she said, "I'm terribly sorry, but will you excuse Pete and me for a while? We, too, have something to talk over."