Chapter 38

After she called Bud, Robin searched frantically through Cheryl's closet for something to wear. It was useless. Not that Cheryl didn't have clothes, but Robin could not think of what would look right. Actually, she could hardly think at all, and she ended up not changing anything.

When he rang the bell, she opened it, but she could not look up at him. He had a good idea what she was going through, and he realized how careful he had to be not to do anything that would cause her to regress.

The previous night, he had been sure that she had gone to bed fully intending to have sex with him. Once in bed, though, she had been almost shaking with fear. It had taken a lot of talking to convince her that he would be happy just to have her sleep by him.

Eventually, she was able to talk to him, and it went on for over an hour. Part way through, he took her hand, but other than that, he waited to see if she would make a move. When he was telling her again about discovering his ex's infidelity while he was in the Middle East, his voice caught at one point.

Instantly, she was pressed against him, saying comforting words. She never moved back away from him. To both of them, the night had been tender and loving, and their relationship grew stronger. However, both of them wished that they would have taken the final step. She just could not do it, and he knew that putting any pressure on her could undo everything.

Julia's pep talk and instructions had given Robin an extra boost of courage, but one thing Julia said had hit her particularly hard. Robin had tried to help Darlene become 'normal', and Julia was trying to help Robin be 'normal'. Normal women show their love for their men with their bodies. Robin knew that. She knew that she had been wounded and angry ever since the attack, but somehow, the inference that she was not normal frightened her. She did not want to be a freak. She could not let that bastard do that to her any longer.

Bud stepped up to her and wrapped his arms loosely around her. She still did not look up at him, and he just waited, not even stroking her back. It was over a minute before she raised her face up to look at him. "My shrink says I have to give it at least six tries," she said, to his complete confusion.

"Huh?"

Suddenly, she was was acutely embarrassed. "Oh, shit, I... I..." The word 'normal' flashed through her mind again, and with an effort of will, she squared her shoulders. "Sex. She said even if it was tough the first time, I had to try five times more. Will you risk that, Bud? I can't promise how it will go."

"Robin, you have to tell me why you want to do this," he said.

"I want to be normal. I want to enjoy what other women do," she told him.

"But why now, after all these years?"

She realized that she had almost made a bad mistake. "It's because of you Bud. I want to be with you, and I can't until..."

She did not get to finish because her mouth was suddenly covered by his. He had never been a dominant, demanding lover, but this was a totally different situation. Robin did not have the confidence to do it on her own. He sensed that she wanted it so badly that she would go along if he took a strong lead. It was certainly not typical for her, but he had to try.

"Do you trust me?" he asked, pulling back from the kiss. She nodded, and he went on "Just for tonight, let me take complete control. Will you do that? I promise I won't hurt you. This is as important to me as it is to you, Robin. I want to be with you, too." Her only response was to sag limply against him, tears soaking silently into his shirt and arms in a death grip around him.

To her surprise and concern, he released his hold on her, only keeping ahold of her hand. He led her to the phone, and his intention soon became clear. Calling one of the premier hotels in town, her managed to find a luxury suite that was available, and booked it.

When he started to lead her out of the apartment, she pulled back, saying "Bud, I have to pack some things!"

"No. We are going just the way we are. They will have anything that we absolutely need."

As romantic as that idea may have been, there was no way even a love-struck woman would agree to that. Robin pulled free from him, dashed to the bathroom, and came back in a few seconds with her cosmetic case that had never really been unpacked. By the time they got to the car, she was holding his hand in both of hers and giggling like a teenager.

Entering the hotel was a jolt to Robin's confidence. They were both in shorts, tees, and sandals. "Bud, we can't go in like this! Look how all these people are dressed," she hissed at him.

He pulled out his wallet, extracted his credit card, and waved it at her with a chuckle. "This is all they really care about, you know."

The blows to her confidence weren't over. When she walked into the suite, she froze, and it wasn't from the opulence of the place. When Bud saw her reaction, his first instinct was to comfort and reassure her. Tonight, though, his role had to be different. He had to supply whatever willpower she was lacking. It was clear that she wanted to make love, and he did not think that she would resist anything that he asked her do to. She just was not able to take the initiative herself.

Putting his arm around her and talking calmly, he led her around the suite, commenting on everything that they saw. He left the bathroom until last, and it was as luxurious as he had hoped. As soon as they walked into it, he started the sunken tub filling - the first big test. When she looked up at him, he wondered how a tough professional women capable of what she had done for Darlene could look so much like an uncertain little girl on the verge of tears.

"I can't wait to see and touch all of your body, Robin. The way you were dressed the other night; and then holding you close last night - I won't frighten you, I promise. I will make it good for you." Saying that, he was about leave so she could undress, but he thought better of it.

Quickly shedding his own clothes, he was somewhat embarrassed but not surprised at his semi-aroused condition. He reasoned that when he undressed her, it would be less frightening if he was already naked.

His partial erection turned out to be a good thing. Her eyes locked on it, and when he lifted her shirt, she almost unconsciously raised her arms. As he pulled it over her head, the little girl look was there again with a bit more fear. "You believe me, don't you, Darling? I only want it to be good for you."

Perhaps it was his impromptu use of 'Darling', but something changed most of the fear to wonder and anticipation. When he pulled down her shorts, she was able to step out of them. He had gotten on his knees and he stayed there to take her sandals off. Just as he was about to pull down her panties, he remembered a little negative remark he had made about her breast size.

Standing up, he looked at her bra and moved behind her to unclasp it. Taking a chance, he slid his hands around to her tummy and moved them up smoothly until they cupped her breasts. "Do you have any idea how much I love your body, Robin?" He punctuated the question with a kiss below her ear.

His wife had been voluptuous, and the feel of her generous curves under his hands and pressed against him had always aroused him. But ever since meeting Robin, he had been fascinated by her tautness, her smooth skin, and the look of strength in everything she did. He was quickly realizing just how sexy strength could be.

He was on a role. That had been exactly the right move. Without dislodging his hands, she pushed her panties down until she was able to shake them to the floor and step out of them. "Do you have to use the toilet?" He asked softly in her ear. "Do you want me to step out?"

She still had not said anything since entering the suite. She turned, took his hand, walked over to the tub, and daintily tested the temperature with her foot. When she looked back at him, there was no longer anything partial about his condition. Her nonchalant little move had been graceful and sexy, and he was already stimulated from undressing her and caressing her.

Still holding his hand, she stepped into the tub and waited for him to follow. He had thought to sit behind her, but she wanted full view of and full access to his cock. Pleased that she was entering in so willingly, he still wanted to keep leading her along. Finding the soap on the edge of the tub, he opened it and reached for a washrag. "No, Bud. Just use your hands. Please," were her first words in the suite.

That was a request he was delighted to fulfill. He started first with her neck, leaving her to do her face herself. He did her arms and her torso, down to the water line. They were sitting with her legs up over his, so her feet and legs got the next attention.

If she was still skittish, his next move could spook her. He did not think it would be a problem and he went ahead. Moving as close as he could get, he reached around and washed her back. His cock was almost touching her, and it was the biggest thrill in a long time when he felt her hand wrap softly around it. He did not try to stifle the moan of pleasure that escaped him.

"Get up on your knees, Robin," he told her softly.

When she rose up, her knees were naturally outside of his, spreading her crotch open for his attention. He spent a long, gentle time on her bottom and the backs of her thighs. She leaned forward with her arms around his neck and her head on his shoulder.

When he first ran his soapy hand down her crack from behind, she moaned and brought her face around to kiss him. As he washed her pussy, the kiss became more intense and was accompanied by little squeaks and moans. He thought she was working up strongly and he wanted to get her off, but he was not sure what the effect would be.

"Should I make you come, Sweetheart?" he managed to ask around the kiss.

"Oh, God, yes!" she said into his mouth. That was the point when Bud knew that she was going to be fine and that he would really have her as his life partner. Just the simple act of masturbating her with his hand in that strange position eclipsed all of his other sexual experiences because of its emotional impact.

Her orgasm was no gentle warm-up climax, and she collapsed in his arms, still trembling. The tub had continued to fill and he moved back and laid her down in the warm water to prevent a chill. Her head was on his leg and she moved her face over to brush her cheek against his rigidity. Still a bit breathless, she said "We need to take the edge off for you."

He made sure that she stayed where she was until she was breathing normally. Then, she did indeed take the edge off for him, after which she washed him just as lovingly as he had done for her.

The actual intercourse was by no means anticlimactic, but the suspense had been played out. They both knew that she was going to be fine. He had her on top for the first time. He was good-sized, and she had not been stretched in a long time. With patience and her copious flow, she took him all the way with no real pain. It was almost a cliche, but she was soon asking him when he would be ready again.

They ate room service food in the robes provided by the hotel, and they talked and talked. When he was adequately restored, they made love again before falling asleep.

Both of them woke early and they enjoyed another coupling before getting up and showering. It was still quite early, but they both had the same wish. They had breakfast at his parents', where his mother tried laughing and crying at the same time all the time that she served. Robin was a bit embarrassed that they knew about the love-making, but their unabashed joy for their son finding a knew love was the overriding emotion.

Robin insisted on visiting the athletic department on campus, and Bud was happy to accompany her. By the time they went to watch Cheryl practice, Robin had a tentative offer as assistant softball coach, and a very strong possibility of becoming a rehab specialist on the athletic training staff.

Her potential jobs did not resolve the question of where they would live, but it was agreed that they would be together, even if it took a while to work out.

Friday night, Laura came over for dinner and a swim after Will had left for yet another weekend away. Both Elaine and Cal did a good job of acting naturally around her. When she arrived, she looked a bit down, probably from a nasty scene at Will's departure. Little by little, she loosened up to become her normal self. Since she wore her usual barely-existent bikini, she certainly looked like her normal self.

The strange thing was that she did not make any nasty remarks to Cal when she seemed down. It was while they were relaxing after dinner and a swim that it happened. Cal had gone into the kitchen, and for some reason, she went in also. Passing him, she quipped "Has Cheryl found herself a stud, yet, now that she's free of you?"

For the whole year that she had been throwing these barbs at him, he had never let her see any negative reaction. Perhaps it was the fact that he and his parents had talked about it, or perhaps because of how much he missed Cheryl. Whatever the reason. His jaw tightened and anger flashed across his face before he could get control of himself.

Laura was looking right at him. He saw her face register confusion for just a moment. Then, it was if she lost all expression, and she shook her head slightly. A couple of seconds later, she walked off toward wherever she had been headed, acting as if nothing at all had happened.

Cal may have gotten control while still facing Laura, but it must have slipped as he walked back out to the patio. "That bitch! She did it again, didn't she?" Elaine demanded.

She seemed headed after her sister, but Cal caught her and held her tight. "Mom, you know we have to play this out. We're not ready yet. Compose yourself before she comes back out. Please! I'm OK."

Laura spent several hours on both Saturday and Sunday at the Banner house, and there were three more 'incidents'. The frequency was increasing, perhaps as her anger with Will or her fear of him increased.

Cal was in the blind late Sunday afternoon when Will returned, and it was an extremely frustrating outing. The argument between Laura and Will started almost as soon as he got in the house, and it ended with him hitting her hard on the back a few times. From the way that she winced, Cal knew that it hurt her. Cal's frustration came from his inability to get any kind of picture because of the way the light reflected from the patio doors.

Laura was very tanned, and perhaps that disguised the bruises that must be on her back if his blows were a regular occurrence. Cal had a thought that he was thankful it wasn't her face or her chest, but that was not at all comforting.

Cal stayed in the blind until late that night. He had brought a book and a light, some snacks, and water. He told himself that from then on, he would bring his cell phone and pay the price of the long-distance cell calls to talk with Cheryl while he waited.

It was as hard watching Laura and Will have sex in the dim light of a small lamp as it was watching him hit her. He knew that he should have left, since there was no way he could get a picture in that light if Will did abuse her again. If he was going to help her, though, he needed to know what things were like between them. What he saw that night made him ashamed to be the same sex as Will. No man should treat his wife that way.

The summer's strenuous conditioning had helped Cal a lot. He was probably as heavy as he would ever be while in shape, but his strength had increased noticeably, and he was almost a second faster in the forty-yard.

At football practice, there was no Vick to open the way for his blitzes, but the defensive line overall was very good. The previous year, the character of the offense had changed after the loss of Brad and Greg. This year, the coach decided to take advantage of Cal's talents and make the blitz a regular part of the defense.

Because of the increased contact, there was always more chance of an injury to Cal, but the coach decided it was a worthwhile risk. The incoming freshman kicker showed real talent, and he could take over in the worst case. It made Cal feel good to know that it was not just his kicking that got him on the team. He had practiced his kicking diligently over the summer, and he did enjoy it. He was just finding that the strategy and the contact of defensive football really appealed to him.

His senior year looked to Cal like it could be one of the least stressful times of his life. Of course, Cheryl was away, and that was stressful, but it was not really a negative thing. The only looming conflict was with Laura. Clearing the last obstacle to a peaceful year made it all the more important that he resolve the Laura situation quickly.

"What are you going to do to Laura when you're ready?" Elaine asked one evening when Cal and his parents were relaxing after supper.

"Do you really want to know?"

"Well, yes. I mean, I don't think you would do anything really bad, but I was wondering..."

"One thing you have to accomplish," Martin said, "is to convince her to divorce Will. That won't be easy."

"I have a personal goal, too," Cal said. "I'm going to convince her that all of her nasty remarks about me were wrong."

"But she was always knocking your, um, your... sexual abilities," Elaine protested hesitantly.

"That's right, she was," Cal agreed.

"Then how can you... ?" Elaine was looking at Cal's face and she just gasped. "No, you couldn't... !"

"You can't be thinking of doing anything sexual with your aunt," Martin cautioned.

"Listen, Mom and Dad. Do you really want to know what I do with Laura, or will you just trust me with the situation? I know she needs to get out of her marriage, and I want to help with that. But you have to understand, the main reason I'm doing this is because her crap has hurt me a lot more than you realize."

Cal paused a moment to compose himself before he continued. "I'm sorry, but I want some revenge, and I want to humiliate her a little. I think I will have to do that to get her attention. But even after everything, I do love Laura. Most of all, I want to show her that she's wrong about me - that I know how to treat a woman."

"But you can't have sex with your aunt!" Elaine objected.

"I would never have intercourse with her," Cal assured them.

"That, uh, still leaves a lot that you could do," Martin said.

"I don't think Laura knows about those other things," Cal proclaimed.

"She's a married woman!" Elaine said. "Of course she know about them."