Chapter 3

The choices I had when it came to getting back at Marie were limited. She had two good looking female cousins, but Angelina was a lesbian and so I scratched her off the list. Fiona was just recently married and she was still a starry eyed, blushing bride so apart from using a date rape drug or getting her totally drunk and taking advantage of her she was a dead end. Besides, either of those two methods might bring things to light and that was the last thing I wanted. My revenge against Marie needed to be the same as my revenge against Tom. I needed to do it and be able to smile at her knowing that I had done it and that she didn't know. After all, isn't that what she was doing to me?

Her mother was out. While Mrs. DeLuca had been a raving beauty in her younger days she had become your typical Italian-American grandmother, stout, bosomy and gray hair up in an unbecoming bun. That left only two possibilities — her sister Veronica and her sister Rosario. Rosario was married to a nice guy and I liked him well enough not to make him a cuckold. On the other hand, if I were to find out that Rosario was out slutting around all bets would be off. That left Ronnie.

Veronica was on her third husband and I didn't like him. No need to go into the reasons for it, I just didn't like him. The first two were history because, depending on who you talked to, they had been caught running around on her or she had been caught running around on them. Marie and the rest of the family took Ronnie's side that it was them, but a guy I knew pretty well who knew one of her ex's told me that the ex had told him he had caught Ronnie doing the dirty on the back seat of a car. He had become suspicious of her and had followed her on one of her nights out with the girls. I didn't know which story was true, but for my purposes I hoped it was the back seat one.

Ronnie was a lot closer to home than Shelly or Mary so I was going to have to very careful if I was to keep Marie in the dark. I had pretty much burned up my comp days and sick leave following Marie, Shelly and Mary so when it came to Ronnie I was going to have to operate blind. My only exposure to her was at family events and, fortunately, there were plenty of those. Again, I was going to go with what had worked for me so far; I would let Ronnie make the first move. If she never did I would move on to Plan B (once I figured out what Plan B was).

I started watching Ronnie at anniversary and birthday parties. I was never far from her at christenings; weddings or funerals and I made sure that every time she looked in my direction I was looking at her. When her eyes met mine I didn't smile, but I didn't look away either. This went on for about two months. It was at the wedding reception for one of Alphonse's daughters that it finally got to her. About two hours into the reception while, Marie was out on the dance floor with her dad, Ronnie came over and sat down across from me at our table.

"Why are you always watching me Tony?"

"Why, don't you like being watched?"

"All women like to be looked at Tony, but there is looking and then there is watching and they are not the same."

"Why don't we just say that you are a good looking woman and I like looking at good looking women."

"Bullshit Tony. Most of the women in this family are good looking, but you aren't watching them, you are watching me."

"Yes, I guess I am."

"Why?"

"You won't like it. You'll get pissed if I tell you and you might even slap my face and I wouldn't want that to happen in front of family."

"Now I am even more curious. I promise I won't slap you so tell me, why are you always watching me?"

"I'm trying to picture you on a back seat. Would you have one leg over he front seat and one leg over the back of the back seat or would you have both knees pulled back to your chest and your legs spread wide. Or maybe your legs would be spread wide and pointed straight up with your high heels almost ripping the headliner."

"You are a sick bastard Tony."

"No Ronnie, just a curious one" I said and then I got up and walked away from the table.

For the rest of the party every time I looked her way she was watching me. Good, I thought, I've planted the seed and now all I can do is water it and hope that it grows. The watering was simply to keep watching Ronnie. If she was the slut that I had been led to believe she was she would not let it lie. She would pick at it like a scab.

Two weeks later we were at a birthday party for Marie's grandmother and when Ronnie and her husband arrived I made sure that I was watching whenever she looked my way. It was an hour before she came over to me.

"Well Tony, what's going on in that sick little mind of yours tonight?"

"Same thing Ron, only with more questions. Do you have on nylons and a garter belt or thigh highs with elastic tops? Do you carry a spare pair in your purse in case you get sperm stains on the ones you are wearing?"

"You are disgusting Tony."

"True, but I'm not the one who likes back seat romances. At least I didn't think I did, but after talking with Hal I'm not so sure."

"Hal? Who is Hal?"

"Just a guy who has seen you in action. Excuse me, I need to use the john" and I walked away from her.

Hal was they guy who knew the ex-husband who said he had caught her having back seat fun. Hal hadn't seen a thing, but Ronnie didn't know that. Of course Ronnie might not have been caught on a back seat and if that were the case she would be calling Hal all kinds of a fucking liar the next time we talked. But if she had been caught on a back seat?

Ronnie was waiting for me when I came out of the bathroom.

"We have to talk Tony."

"Go ahead, I'm listening."

"No, not here. Someplace where we can't be overheard or interrupted."

"You call it."

"Meet me at Rico's for lunch tomorrow. Around noon, okay?"

"Whatever you want Ron, just don't hurt me" and I gave her a smile and walked back to the party.

The next day at Rico's she cut right to it. "Who is Hal and what is he saying about me?"

Hal is the guy who was watching you play back seat games the night that Joey caught you."

"Who have you told?"

"No one."

"Are you going to?"

"I haven't much thought about it."

"You watch me all the time, but you haven't thought about it?"

"No. What I'm thinking about when I'm watching you is what you look like being a wanton slut."

"Can't you be nice Tony? Do you have to talk to me that way?"

"Hey Ron, I was happy just doing my watching and letting my imagination run wild. You are the one got us talking about it."

"What do you mean, letting your imagination run wild?"

"Oh come on Veronica. You know I've had the hots for you since you put on your first training bra."

"Bullshit Tony. You've never said anything, not even once."

"Of course I didn't. You were four years older than I was. At sixteen you wouldn't have even looked my way. Age meant a lot when we were kids. You were looking at older guys, not younger ones. It wasn't until we hit our late twenties and early thirties that age didn't seem to matter any more and by then we were both married so I never had a chance to take a shot at you. Anyway, I've never stopped lusting after you. Couldn't do anything about it, but after what Hal told me I can fantasize and what I fantasize about most is you on a back seat."