Chapter 1

It was Trent O'Connell who got the first small inkling that something might be amiss. It was after one of his regular dates with his wife Sandy, this time at a dance club, that Trent mentioned to his pals something that puzzled him. On that night, Sandy had drunk much more than usual and the romp in bed was even more vigorous than usual. And make no mistake, usual was very, very good.

Going into more detail than he normally would, Trent told the others "Maybe I'm imagining it. I had a few drinks, too. But it was something we had never done - ever. And she just moved right into so smoothly! There was no hestitation, no fumbling. Her hands and... everything just went to the right places automatically. I just had this feeling that she had done it before."

The others did not ask what the exact move or position was, and Trent did not offer more detail. Will Crozier did respond, though. "Well, the night before, after our date, Val asked me about swinging. She was all giggly, like it was a joke, but it shook me up."

It was just two unrelated events involving two unusually inebriated wives, but none of the guys ridiculed the expressed concerns. They agreed to a higher level of vigilance - 'Defcon 3' as Bud VerBeek jokingly referred to it. None of the men wanted to believe that anything was wrong, but some nagging doubts had been sown. Over the next month, they all became hyper-sensitive about their wives' behavior and comments, especially in bed.

Being careful not to let vigilance grow into paranoia, the group still came up with a number of little things that raised questions. By themselves, none was significant, but the sheer number of them made the men uneasy. Most of the signals were something like an unusual level of distraction, a couple of unexplained bruises, and one or two turn downs of sex because of unexplainable tenderness. All three men had noticed that some of the phone calls between the wives were more secretive than usual.

"What could be going on, anyway?" Bud asked. "I can't imagine they would actually cheat on us. If they're doing something we wouldn't like, it's probably going to a male strip club, or something."

Will, often the group's idea man, told the others "It goes without saying that if there is anything going on, they're all in it together. We need to follow them when they all go out in a group."

"Yeah, but the kids will know we're gone. They might tell. I don't want to make a problem out of nothing."

"We can arrange a fake call from work or something. What say we invest in a tracking device that we can put in whichever car they leave in?"

"Does anyone really think there is a real chance they are screwing around? I mean, come on, guys! We do our damndest to keep them happy. Speaking for myself, I just can't see Sandy cheating on me."

After some more fairly energetic discussion, it was agreed that one guy would be assigned to follow the girls each time they went out together. The designated spy would get a fake emergency call before the wives left, and be in position to shadow them. The tracking device was never purchased.

Will Crozier was a Human Resources Director for a medium sized local company. A very good athlete, he had not been good enough for the large university he attended, but he was still playing in some league most of the year. He loved to compete.

A psychology major, Will was the prototypical people person, perceptive, intuitive, and empathetic. Except in sports, he was non-confrontational. As a former quarterback and point guard, he thought well on his feet. He had dabbled in local politics, and was intrigued with the possibilities.

Emmett (Bud) Verbeek embodied some interesting contrasts. As a corporate lawyer, he was comfortable with the dry intricacies of the law. He had been on the debate team as an undergrad. Perhaps surprising, given his cerebral occupation, Bud had quite a temper, and a generally volatile, expressive personality. On top of that, he had a quick wit and natural comic timing. He was big and strong, and loved outdoor sports. To reduce the impact on his family, he went fishing very early in the morning whenever he could. He also took an extended Canadian outing every year.

Trent O'Connell was an engineering manager, and in many ways fit the common perception. Rather reserved socially, he could easily get lost working on or thinking about a project or a problem. He was a very good musician, playing drums and keyboard. Once his two boys got into the sports scene, he quit playing any gigs to avoid the time away from the family.

Trent had a self-confidence problem. Probably because of it, he was fanatical about conditioning and self-improvement. Each spring, he ran in a half-marathon, and had aspirations for the whole twenty-six miles.

Sandy O'Connell and Valerie (Val) Crozier were cousins, daughters of twins, who grew up next door to each other. Celia (Cece) Verbeek had lived a few houses away, and the three were about as close as any three women could be.

Sandy and Val had similar temperments. They were vivacious, gregarious, and bright, but with an underlying reserve that was recognizable to those close to them. There was always something that seemed to be held back or hidden.

Cece was as vivacious and gregarious as her friends, but without the reserve. With her, nothing was held back. She was at least as volatile as her husband, which made for some very interesting clashes. Those clashes, however, were always more cathartic than destructive, and the makeup sessions were off the scale. Cece and Bud did not need the battles to get great sex, but it invariably happened after they fought.

Will's approach to marital disputes was to absorb, deflect, and redirect. Sometimes, his 'bobbing and weaving' infuriated Val. When she wanted something to pound against, he just wasn't there. Instead, he was coming at her from a different direction, trying to defuse her anger with kindness and occasional humor.

In some ways, Sandy was just as infuriated with Trent when it came to controversy. He just gave in and would not fight. He had never really believed his great fortune in winning Sandy. There was always a lurking fear that if he did anything to displease her, he would lose her.

From all indications, there were three happy marriages with lots of genuine friendship, shared interests, mutual respect, and fulfilling sex.

The men had a strict 'date-a-week' rule that they enforced on each other. That had started several years back when the marriages of a number of mutual acquaintances began to crumble. Will was an avid student of psychology and relationships, and he encouraged the others to focus on specific activities to keep romance and excitement in their marriages.

All three men were achievers, and all had some travel demands on them. In part, the date nights were compensation for some very long hours at work during the week, and frequent nights away from home. They all thought they were striking the best balance they could, and the consensus was that the wives were all happy.

Variety was enforced, as well. None of the three had any financial problems, so premium events such as concerts, ballets, gallery openings, etc. were regular dates. Trips to vacation hotspots and exotic destinations happened less frequently, but all three wives had plenty to brag about. The awesome wardrobes needed to support so many events took a definite bite, but there were few complaints from the guys.

All three couples enjoyed vigorous, extended sessions of lovemaking with lots of variety. The men were never turned down, and the wives initiat sex often. They all enjoyed plenty of loving, contented snuggling afterwards.

For three weeks, the spy job proved very boring, as five different group outings proved totally innocent. Trent and Bud wanted to forget the whole idea, but Will hung tough.

It was Will on the tail the next Tuesday night when the wives' group ended up at a house that he did not recognize. As he watched from a few houses down the street, several couples and a few singles entered the house. Will was probably the one most concerned that there really was a problem, and the situation he saw was just too strange.

"Get Trent and get over here right away," Will said on a curt call to Bud. He gave the address where he was parked. "Bring cameras and a full toolkit. See if you have a ladder that will fit inside the Suburban."

While waiting for the others, Will did a little exploring. The house was quite secluded, but the yard was not surrounded by a fence or a wall, except for the pool area. Apparently, there was no concern about discovery on the part of the owners. He found a way into the back yard, and made a mental note of all the windows that were lighted.

The walkout level had a patio door that was covered by drapes, as were several other windows on the lower level. The lot sloped downward from one side to the other, so the walkout exposure was on the end of the house nearest where they were parked. The pool deck opened off of either the kitchen or the family room on the main level. He could not see over the wall to tell for sure which it was. He could tell from music and laughter that there were a number of people already around the pool.

Once they were all together, they sat in the Suburban to strategize.

"Do we even know what we're looking for?" Trent asked.

"We know our wives are in the house. We want to find out what is going on in there," Will answered.

"I say we just walk in," Bud insisted. "We'll find out pretty quickly that way."

"And if it's a network marketing party or something, what will the women think?" Trent pointed out.

Ignoring the potential argument, Will said "Let's try the wall around the pool. Maybe there's a gap that will let us see into the house a little."

With at least that much of an objective, they headed back toward the house. Just as they reached the edge of the yard, the lower patio door opened and they all ducked behind some shrubs. Muttered oaths were mixed with groans as a naked man stepped into the side yard and lit a cigarette. It was a badly shaken trio that retreated to the Suburban once more.

It was two or three minutes before anyone said a word. Then, it was Will who once again took the lead. In a shaky voice he said "We need a plan. I think we should all act together, since the girls are together in this."

"Maybe it's not that bad," Trent said, the hope drowned out by the sadness in his voice.

"Don't kid yourself," Bud said angrily. "That's a swinging party going on in there. Do we bust in there and get them out, or what?"

"I think we need to know more," Will counseled. "I think Bud is right, but I would hate to jump to a wrong conclusion. Let's try the pool enclosure again."

This time, they were very careful, lest someone else come out the patio door and spot them. When they got to the pool area, they found that the redwood slats were old enough that there was some warping and there were some gaps. The gaps were easy to find because of the light coming through from the pool side. The gaps were all behind some very thick, prickly bushes.

Very carefully, working hard not to curse at the pokes and scratches from the thorns, they all got in position to look through a gap. What they saw made Trent turn violently away, ignoring the cuts and scratches he got. Only the moderately loud music piped out to the pool hid the sound of his vomiting.

Sandy could be clearly seen, sitting naked on a lounge chair on the lap of a naked man. That was bad enough, but after a few seconds, she raised herself slightly and moved in a way that could only mean that she was impaled on his cock. Her facial expression verified that fact.

Val was standing just outside the patio door, talking to a man and a woman. All three were naked. In fact, not a single item of clothing was visible on the dozen or so people gathered around the pool and hot tub. As Will and Bud watched, Val reached out and took hold of the man's limp penis and led him to the pool. Once in the pool, the man sat up on the edge while Val moved in front of him and began a blowjob.

Around the edge of the pool away from the house, there were several pads scattered. On two of those pads were scenes of obvious intercourse. There was no chance that this was just a friendly skinny dip.

Cece was not in the pool area, nor could she be seen in the family room that was visible through the patio door. Trent did not return to his peep hole, but wandered unsteadily back toward the cars. Will and Bud watched for several more minutes, but Cece still did not appear.

Bud was the one to break away, but he did not go back to the car. Instead, he headed for the downstairs patio door, and Will followed. The door was draped, but Bud very carefully pulled on it and found it unlatched. Taking many seconds, he very slowly opened it enough to look into the room. There, on one of two leather sofas, he saw his wife. She was stretched out on the sofa with her head in one man's lap and her legs over another man's. Her hand was reaching back to fondle the cock that stuck up right by her cheek while that man teased her nipple. The other man's hand was busy with her pussy. It was apparent that they were watching a porn flick as they played. Will also came to the viewing crack and they both watched as Cece reached a small orgasm.

Bud had been transfixed by the sight until Cece came. Then, he stiffened, and Will knew that he was about to charge into the house and commit mayhem. He quickly squeezed himself between the larger, stronger Bud and the door, risking discovery as he pushed it shut. "Think, Bud! You know how much trouble you could be in if you go in there and start busting heads. Please! Back to the car!"

Will thought at first that Bud was going to punch him out to get into the house, but he suddenly went slack, and Will was able to lead him away without resistance.

Back at the Suburban, no one said anything for a long time, and Trent cried openly. Bud was panting, obviously struggling to control the anger that was returning full force. Will just sat, his unfocused eyes pointed out the windshield. Bud was the first to speak.

"Let's go and drag their cheating asses out of there!"

That jarred Will from his stupor, and he replied softly. "No, I don't think that would be a good idea."

"Why not?" Bud demanded.

"You're so angry right now, you might do something to land you in jail. We all might," Will explained.

"But we can't just leave them in there to... to... God damn it!!" Bud was nearly at the breaking point.

"Whatever they might do, I'm sure they have already done before, sad to say," Will told Bud. "I really think the best thing is to just leave, get away from here?"

"Why do you think that?" Trent asked.

"Well, it will give us time to settle down a little and think before we act."

"Thinking won't change what they've done," Bud spat out.

"No, but it could keep us out of trouble. Also, when the women realize they've been found out, what's the first thing they will want to do?"

"Explain it away, probably apologize. Maybe try to lie their way out of it. Try to talk us out of leaving them," Trent ventured.

"Wait a minute! Wait a minute!" Bud said angrily. "That's my wife! It's my house! My kids - my family! I'm not leaving!"

"What? Are you just going to ignore this?" Will asked.

"No fuckin' way!" Bud declared. "But if I just leave, I lose. That's just wrong! You were right, Will. Let's get the hell out of here. I'm getting angrier all the time."

Bud drove the Suburban and Will followed in his car. Bud and Trent were silent except for Trent's heavy breathing as he fought for control. No one had said where they should go, so Bud just headed for home.

Will parked in his garage and walked across the circle to Bud's house. Trent just sat in the passenger seat of the Suburban until Will opened the door and said "Let's talk on Bud's patio. His kids should be asleep."

"We have some choices about what to do," Will said. "The one thing we can't do, at least I can't, is ignore this. I think the big question is whether we can stay with them after what we saw."

"Do you realize how divorce fucks up a man's life?" Bud demanded. He had used more coarse language in the last half hour than he normally would in a year. "I want to punish Cece. I want to hurt her so bad! But I'll be damned if I going to give up everything I've worked for because she's been fucking around on me."

"Would you ever be able to have sex with her again?" Will asked.

"Damn right I would. But it would be different. No more of this thinking of her first shit. Oh, no offense, Will. I know how hard you tried to help us all, but guess what? It didn't work. I don't blame you. It's their fault. Cece will become my bitch from now on!"

"I can't imagine how I could ever make love to Sandy again after what I saw," Trent said. "Did you see the size on that asshole? I can't compete with that."

"I don't know, Bud. I hear what you're saying and part of me agrees. I don't know, though. Something is just too strange about this whole thing. It's so out of character."

"You mean you think they were drugged or something?" Bud asked.

"Well, it didn't look like it, but... God, there was never any sign that they could do something like that!"

"You know what," Bud said as he paced around, unable to relax enough to sit, "I'm turning over a new leaf. I've only ever had sex with Cece. That's gonna change pretty damn fast. I've been a faithful fool, but no more."

"We've all been faithful," Will said angrily.

"You know what, Will?" Bud said, "I know how we can get back at them. You don't want to leave Val and go through a divorce, either, do you?"

"No, you were right about that," Will agreed.

"Let's have our own orgy, right here on my patio. It's nice and private. I'll bet it wouldn't be hard to hire some women to come out."

"Would we really have sex with them?" Trent asked.

"I sure would," Bud declared. "I'm done being the one-woman man. Wouldn't you do it, Trent? Will?"

Will thought about it for quite a while. "I really do love Val and want to stay with her. Unless I somehow feel equal, though, I'll be angry at her for the rest of our lives. Yes, I'll do it. Call it equalizing."

"Count me in," Trent finally said.

None of the men seemed happy about the decision and there was silence for quite a while. Will snapped his fingers and said "How about we make them be the women for our orgy?"

"You mean have sex with each other's wives?" Trent asked in amazement.

"That's exactly what I mean," Will said. "If they can give it up to those assholes, why can't they give it up to us, supposedly their best friends?"

"Will, that's brilliant! I think they will find it more humiliating than anything else we could do," Bud said excitedly. Then, he thought a moment and said "I don't mind you two having Cece - she deserves it. But if either of you don't want your wife fucking us, we'll just forget it."

"I'm not sure I'll be able to make it with any of them, after what I saw," Trent said, "but I agree. Sandy deserves that?"

"Do you suppose there's any chance they'll like it?" Will asked. "Could they have been secretly wanting this?"

"Shit! I never thought of that," Bud said. "Well, if we think they like it, we'll just get some other women."

"How do we set this up?" Trent asked, now getting into the idea fully.

"Look, the important thing from now on is that we have to be strong, Bud said. "We're the offended party. We can never appear to be hurt, just angry and determined. We have to stop asking and start just telling."

"That's... that's a pretty big change," Trent complained.

"Don't you think if you keep that scene of Sandy riding that big-cocked bastard in mind that you can do it?" Bud asked.

"Yeah. Yeah. I see want you mean. It can make me do anything except maybe fuck Sandy."

The men went to bed early, and all of them feigned sleep when their wives came to bed. None of the wives were inclined to rouse them. Since Bud was the host of the upcoming 'orgy', and also a good actor, he was the one to deliver the blow. When he was all ready to work out the door for work, he told Cece "Oh, be sure the kids are sleeping somewhere else tonight."

"Oh, why? Are we going out? They can stay alone, you know?"

"No, we're not going out. We're having a swap party on the patio," he said matter-of-factly.

"A what?"

"A swap party. You know, where guys get to fuck other guys' wives?"

"Bud! What are you talking about?"

"Well, after you fucked all those assholes last night, I'm sure you'll be happy to give my best friends a chance. I'd sure love to try out Val and Sandy."

"Bud, you're talking crazy. I didn't..."

"Don't even start, Cece. We were there last night. We saw."

Cece turned ghostly pale and staggered to a chair, where she collapsed in tears. Bud just stood and watched her cry for a while, then he lifted her chin and told her "Cece! Cece! Are you paying attention? I'm leaving it up to you to tell the other two. Can you do that for us? You're to be on the patio at nine, naked and ready for some more fun. I hope your pussies are all recovered enough from last night."

Bud walked toward the door to the garage. Just before he went through he turned back. "Oh, I almost forgot. If for some reason all three of you can't be there, be sure and let me know by noon. We'll get some other women and just call it an orgy instead of a swap party."

When Bud met the other two men out on the street, he was much less flip than he had appeared to Cece. "God, that was hard. I did want to punish her, but... I know it's crazy, after what she did, but when she collapsed, I almost couldn't stop from comforting her."

"I guess that's the best argument for not just leaving. We still love them. Wanting to protect them is just natural. We've got to stay tough, though," Will cautioned.

"Are you sure they'll end up in your kitchen?" Bud asked Will.

"They do 95% of the time. I hope that old dictation unit will pick up what they say." By the time they had thought of it, there was no place open to buy a voice-activated recorder. The hand-held dictation unit from another era was voice activated, but was designed to be spoken into. For want of anything better, Will had taped it to the underside of their kitchen table.