Chapter 19

Her lunch with Jeff didn't go at all like she thought it would. First, he was early while she was the one running behind. Second, he'd made an effort to clean up and look nice, reminding her of that cute puppy dog look he'd had in high school. And third, he seemed to understand their relationship was trembling on the brink.

Linkins was crowded, but Jeff had managed to find a quiet corner and motioned her over when she stopped in the middle of the room, looking for him. He was behind her in a flash, helping her with her coat, holding the chair for her, and generally looking anxious. He hadn't done this since that first dance they'd gone to back in high school.

"I know we haven't been seeing that much of each other," he said as he sat back down. "We've both been busy with school, and, well, my church has been trying to help me with my education."

"We've had a few lunch dates," she said.

"The last time we studied together was a few weeks ago, and--"

"Five weeks ago," she said. "five weeks and four days to be exact."

He looked uncomfortable. "You mean you know the exact day?"

"Girls remember these things."

"You know, I didn't get a chance to apologize for the behavior of my mother that night. She was way out of line and..."

He said more, but Devlin was remembering that Sunday evening. She'd gotten to Jeff's early, wanting to make him dinner and maybe tease him a bit. She'd taken a shower and put on one of his shirts; she loved how it smelled of him. She'd busied herself in the kitchen making dinner and checking out the window from time to time.

When she'd seen Jeff's parents drive up, with Jeff in the backseat, she' forgotten all about dinner. She grabbed her clothes and ran into the bathroom to change. When Jeff's mother found her she'd had the inspired idea to slop some ammonia in a bucket and had rubber gloves on while she scrubbed the toilet. She remembered how his mother had stared at her, and then her grudging nod at the ammonia, rubber gloves and brushes. A few days after that Jeff's sister began coming over to keep house.

Worse followed. She cooked dinner for everyone, and afterwards she and Jeff had settled down to study under the watchful eye of his parents. She wasn't sure Jeff's mother bought her story of coming over to study (and then go home); she'd brought her overnight case and had to sneak it out of the apartment when (hopefully) nobody was looking. Jeff and his father had escorted her back to the dorm--she'd waited an hour and then snuck back to get her overnight case from where she'd hidden it under the stairs.

In many ways it had been a thoroughly unpleasant evening. She could still feel his mother's eyes as they followed her around the kitchen. Maybe Sue and Danny were right, maybe he was a bit of a momma's boy. But he wasn't acting that way at the moment.

"... my life is my own, and she had no call to question you like that."

"Some mothers are like that," Devlin said. "They fell protective towards their children. Mothers are especially protective of their sons, while fathers protect their daughters with shotguns."

"You'd think it'd be the other way around," he said.

Devlin shrugged. "My mom's next door neighbor has two daughters. Their father said he remembered what he was like as a teenage boy and was determined to protect them from the boy he was."

"I find that... wouldn't the police..." He bit off what he'd been going to say. "Anyway, Devlin, she was way out of line doing that, and even if she never apologizes, I want to for her."

Devlin didn't know what to make of that. "Apology accepted, I guess," she said at last.

Jeff smiled. "Good, I'm glad. Look, I don't have a tutor on Thursday or Sunday nights any more. My grades are up where they want them. I thought we could start studying together again."

She blinked at him in surprise. This was a little too soon. "I, uh, I'll have to think about that," she said at last. "I have my Business Work Group on Thursdays. We get together in the library to work on our joint projects, so that wouldn't work out very well."

He looked disappointed. "I can see that," he said. "Would some other night work out?"

"I thought your church took up most of your evenings?"

"Well, it does, but I'm sort of excused from some of them as long as I keep my grades up." He gave her his goofy smile. "And anyway, I always thought I studied better with you than with the tutor."

"Then why did they bring in a tutor?"

"I think that was my mother's doing. The elders wanted reports from someone who had worked in the field; that was my math and chemistry tutor. I'm still seeing him," he added, "just not as often as before."

She wondered if Jeff's mother was spying on them. It could be that if she and Jeff got together again right away his mother would find a reason to have the tutor show up again. That sounded awfully paranoid, but it made just as much sense as anything else.

"Look, I can't make it tonight. Like I said, I have my study group, but we can see about Sundays, though this weekend doesn't work out. My, um, my Aunt Flo is, uh, is visiting."

"You're Aunt Flo?" He looked confused. "You've never mentioned an Aunt Flo before. Who's she?"

Devlin wanted to laugh. "It's a euphemism, Jeff. When a girl says her Aunt Flo is visiting it usually means she's having her period."

"Oh. Then why don't you just say so?"

That had to be the engineer in him talking; other girls in the dorm had talked about engineering students and their blunt approach to things... "It's a girl thing, okay? So if we did get together to study, that's all we would do, study."

He managed to hide most of his disappointment. That made her think he really was more interested in the sex they'd share afterwards, not the chance to study. A dozen thoughts tumbled through her head in an instant. She wanted to say something to him about that, like how she'd missed the sex, too, but she didn't. He was trying to get them back together, and that was something. She decided to see where this would lead.

"Maybe we could get together, you know, maybe at the library or something, and study."

"Sure, I'd like that." He glanced at his watch. "What are you doing this afternoon, after your classes, I mean?"

"Nothing too exciting, get something to eat and prepare for my study group."

"Would we, um, you know, could we get together and eat? I could meet you after your last class and we could go get something then."

"Um, sure, why not?"

"Good, I'll see you then. I've got to go, I've got my Statics class in 15 minutes." In the past they would have kissed. He didn't presume that much. Instead they shared a smile and he picked up his things and left.

Devlin watched him leave. She sat there stirring her coffee, thinking. Sue thought she should dump him. Danny thought she should dump him. Connie, the one time they'd talked about it, Connie thought she should dump him. If she talked to Krissi she had no doubt Krissi would say she should dump him. What were they seeing that she wasn't? She thought back on what Sue had said. That was the perspective of an older woman. Danny had a guy's perspective, and he didn't like Jeff or Jeff's church one bit.

She wondered how much of a real believer Jeff was. They'd never talked about faith or things like it. Danny was right: if she kept seeing Jeff she was going to have to learn to live with his church. Sue had said much the same thing, as had a couple of other girls on her dorm floor when she had mentioned him. She wasn't sure she wanted anything to do with his church.

There was always the chance she could wean him away from his church. She snorted. How many times had she read of a woman marrying a guy and setting out to change him, only to divorce him in the end because what he turned in to wasn't something she could live with? In other words she was stuck with Jeff the way he was.

She finished her coffee and headed back out into the weather. Jeff was trying to patch things up between them. She had to give him credit for that. She'd meet him halfway if she could, but she wouldn't compromise on his church. She could change, but only up to a point. The question was, could he change?

In the next week she learned that she and Krissi could have fun outside of the bedroom. They went ice skating, something that neither one of them was very good at. They laughed, they fell down a lot, they held each other up on the ice, and they laughed some more. The day after her period ended she and Danny had some fantastic sex; afterwards they were both too tired to move and the bed was an absolute mess. When she'd tried to pick up her clothes Danny had tackled her and they'd enjoyed themselves again on a blanket on the floor.

"Can you get it up again?" she asked when he finally recovered his breath.

"Not any time soon. How about you?"

"Silly man," she giggled, "I don't have to worry about getting anything up. Of course I'm going to have a hard time concentrating on anything the rest of the day, but right now I don't care about that."

"Well, you should, that's why you're here." He moved and his cock slipped out of her.

"Oh, I was hoping it wouldn't be leaving so soon."

"I don't know how many times I've heard you say that."

She shrugged. "Can I help it if I like the way it feels in there? I'll probably say it a dozen times more, at least, and..."

He put his finger against her lips. "I know, I know." He leaned forward and kissed her. "Today was great. The doctor told me Sue can go home tomorrow; she'll be an outpatient for a few months, and she has therapy. Then this morning I learned that I'm getting a promotion, and finally you give me such hot sex I can barely move. Right now my life is full."

"That's great about Sue. Will she ride in with you every day, or what?"

"Don't you want to hear about my promotion?"

"I figure you'd tell me about it eventually." She began tracing imaginary circles on his chest. "Sue didn't say a thing when I saw her this morning. What are you going to do about the kids? Will you bring them with you, or what?"

He began caressing her breasts, paying special attention to her nipples. "Sue is going to ride down with me every day. Mrs. Witherspoon will watch our kids. You remember her."

Devlin made a face despite the way Danny was making her feel. "How could I forget her? She kept showing up at the most inopportune times. I think she was convinced we were sleeping together."

"I wouldn't call what we were doing sleeping."

She reached down and grabbed his cock. It was covered with her juices and he'd already cum twice, but it responded as she stroked it. "No, you're right, we didn't get much sleeping done, unless you fell asleep exhausted, or I passed out from a strong climax."

She had had to learn to work around Mrs. Witherspoon. The woman would show up unexpectedly and start nosing around. More than once she had managed to appear demure and composed, even though Danny's jism was seeping out of her and her body was still reacting to her climax.

Danny pushed her over on her back and repositioned himself so his face was next to her pussy. He wet his finger and slowly stroked the foreskin of her clit. "Yeah, we were busy doing this, weren't we?"

Devlin kissed the head of his cock. Over the years she'd gotten used to what her juices tasted like. Today there was that combination of his jism and her juices. It was a heady mixture, one she was sure a proper lady wasn't supposed to taste. But at times like this she wasn't a 'proper lady'.

She lifted his cock and gently sucked his balls. She liked how they moved in their little sack when she caressed them with her tongue. She could never get enough of that part of a man's anatomy. Other girls in the dorm giggled and whisper about how 'big' a guy was. They might joke about feeling a guy with their hands, or feel a guy get a hard-on when they danced, but they totally ignored the other part of a guy's sexual equipment, his balls. They were what made the jism, and guys responded so well when you kissed and sucked them.

Finally she had to let them go. Danny might like getting his balls sucked, but he really liked it when she sucked his cock. While she'd been busy with his balls his cock had stiffened out to its usual respectable length. Now she kissed and licked her way up his length, feeling the taut expectancy of his masculinity.

When she reached the helmet-shaped head she smiled at him. "This looks nice and ready. I didn't think you could get it up again."

"Well, it surprised me." He slipped his finger in her. "You're that wonderful mixture of hot and wet."

Devlin lay back, opening her legs. "Put it in," she said, rubbing her clit.

Danny knelt between them, his cock jutting out eagerly. He rubbed it through the wet folds of her sex before guiding it to her entrance and pushing. He slid all the way home in one continuous fiery thrust.

"Ah," she murmured when he reached bottom, "this feels better already. I don't think I could ever get enough of it."

"You and me, both," Danny replied, his voice low. He shifted his weight, taking more of it on his hands. "Here we go." He drew back and thrust again.

She was already wound up from the first two times, so in the next few minutes she came twice. Both times it was the gasping, clutching him kind of orgasm that she loved. He finally stiffened, moved to short hard strokes, and groaned as he bathed her interior with his cum. Afterwards he relaxed against her looking absolutely wiped out.

"I'm not 18 years old and able to cum four or five times in one night," he finally got out.

"Could you really cum that many times when you were that age?" she asked. He had slumped across her, his head on her breasts. She stroked his forehead, brushing his sweat-soaked hair away from his face.

"I only did it that many times twice: the night Sue and I met, and the night she accepted my proposal." He laughed softly. "I couldn't get it up the next morning either time, and she was too sore to do anything, even if I could have."

"I'd say it sounded romantic," she chuckled, "but people insist girls aren't supposed to consider nights filled with non-stop sex to be 'romantic'."

"Yeah, and you know what I think of people like that."

"About the same as I do." She shifted slightly to get more comfortable.

"If you want I can get off. The floor has to be hard."

"Well, it is, but..."

He rolled off and settled in beside her, cradling her in his arms. "We can't spend long doing this." He pulled the blanket off the bed and arranged it around them.

"Even a few minutes is nice. So Sue is going to ride in with you every day."

"I'll drop her off at the hospital before heading in to work. Apparently her rehab work will take most of each day. The doctor told me that if she was too tired she would have to stay here in town, so I'll probably bring her here."

"Before long it'll be down to only part of a day. What'll you do then?"

"We'll figure it out when we get there."

They lay there for a few minutes more. Devlin felt content to be held. Her life was getting complicated. She had spent the night before with Krissi--the girls in the dorm thought that she and Jeff had gotten back together, but she wasn't going to tell them the truth. She and Jeff were still getting back together, she was just taking it slowly.

"Something bothering you?" Danny asked. "Suddenly you tensed up."

"Nothing I'm not learning to handle." She reached up behind them and found her watch. "That can't be right."

"What?" He squinted, trying to see the face of the watch.

"You have about 15 minutes to get cleaned up and get back to work."

"I've... what?" He sat up and grabbed his own watch. "Jesus, you're right." He gave her a quick kiss and scrambled up, trying to find his clothes.

"Get in the shower," she said. "I'll lay your clothes out on the bed."

He gave her a grateful smile and headed for the bathroom. She took her time, finding his clothes and laying them out properly for him. When she was done she folded up the blankets they'd been using and stored them in the closet. She really should wash them. She didn't have any way to take them with her this afternoon so she made a mental note to come over after class to get them.

She opened the door to the bathroom just a crack. "All set, better hurry."

"Want to use it?" he asked as he got out.

She shook her head. "I'll get a shower downstairs. I'm not supposed to be doing anything in my room that would require a shower."

"Well, technically speaking, we're not supposed to be doing anything in this room that would require a shower, either." He dried himself hastily and headed for the bed and his clothes.

"Friday?" Danny asked as he pulled on his pants.

"Um, maybe. I'll let you know. I have some tests on Friday afternoon." She gathered up her things and paused at the doorway between their rooms. "I'll call you Friday morning."

"Let's not," he said after a moment. "I'll make it up to you on Monday."

She nodded and closed the door between their rooms. She tested the door to make sure it was locked, and put the door handle in a pocket in her purse. The room was cold, and she rubbed her arms briskly as she headed for the bathroom. She wouldn't shower, but she could do some other things to clean up, something the maid who cleaned these rooms would find perfectly normal.

She threw on just her slacks, blouse and boots, enough to be decent, and took the stairs to the Women's Locker Room.

After a soothing shower she was half-dressed when Sgt. O'Connor sat down next to her. "So how long have you been sleeping with Daniel Mitchell?" she asked in a low voice. "And does his wife know?"

"I beg your pardon?" Devlin tried to hold her shock in check. "What are you talking about?"

"I wouldn't be much of a detective if I didn't know what you two are doing upstairs three times a week."

Devlin took a quick glance around. They were alone, but that was probably only because they were in the locker room. The officials from the Athletic Club were probably waiting just outside the Locker Room.

"Look," Sgt. O'Connor said, "I don't personally care what you two are doing. You're both of legal age, so what you're doing isn't illegal in the eyes of the city. And as far as I can tell you aren't charging him for what you're doing, which would make it my business. I'm just here to satisfy my curiosity."

Devlin decided to tell as much of the truth as she felt she could get away with--she'd just leave out how long she and Danny had been doing this.

"His wife knows," she said. "In fact she approves of it."

"She... what? Approves of it?" Sgt. O'Connor looked surprised.

"She's the one who suggested it."

"She... no," Sgt. O'Connor said, glancing down the aisle, "she didn't."

"You can ask her. She's over at University Hospital right now." She glanced at her watch. "It's Visiting Hours right now and I'm on the list to see her, so we could go over there together and ask her."

Sgt. O'Connor looked at her and shook her head slightly. "This isn't what I expected. I thought... no, it really doesn't matter what I thought, not now." She gestured at the doors to the Locker room. "Why don't you finish getting dressed and we can talk about this in a little more privacy."

"So I'm not under arrest?"