The Reunion Read online

  “You look quite refreshed, Sarah. I trust you had a good night’s sleep.” Maria smiled broadly. She had one leg tucked under her and she wore a long red dress with buttons down the front. If she was commando, there was no telling, though it was obvious she wore no bra. Her nipples stood at attention.

  “Very. I often get overtired when I travel.” Sarah tried not to stare at those pointed nipples. How could they possibly be growing larger? There were so many questions she wanted to ask. “So how long have you lived here?”

  “Two years,” Adam answered. “I’d wanted a place up here for a long time, and when this place came on the market I picked it up right away.”

  Maria rose from the bench. “You two probably still have a lot of catching up to do. I’ll go and start the omelets. Does that sound okay for you, Sarah? We also have a variety of juices and fresh fruit.”

  “That sounds fine. But please don’t bother on my account.”

  “It’s no bother.” Maria’s smile brightened. “We all want to eat.”

  Sarah watched Maria glide through the door, her dress swishing at her ankles. Was the maid eager to eat only breakfast? “You have a gorgeous maid, Adam.”

  “Yes, she is.”

  Adam’s sparkling eyes did nothing to dissuade her from her hypothesis. Maria was much more than his maid. But why would they bother disguising her role? Sarah grimaced. Of course, she'd been the one who’d made that assumption. But still, there was no need for subterfuge.

  What was Adam’s game? What was their game? Where did she fit in it? There'd be time to sort those questions out. Adam probably wouldn't be forthcoming with answers, but Maria might be more willing to talk.

  “I was sorry to hear about your mother’s death, Adam,” she said, altering the direction of their conversation.

  Adam’s face went blank, but not before she witnessed a wave of sadness. “Thanks. It’s been a couple years. But I do miss her. How about your folks? Are they still living?”

  “Oh yes, very much so. They sold the business about ten years ago and moved to Florida. Other than the hurricanes, they seem to enjoy Fort Lauderdale very much. I usually see them a couple times a year.”

  “Good. They always seemed like fair people. Most store owners either wouldn’t allow me and my friends on the premises or would watch us like hawks. Your folks were different. They didn’t seem to prejudge.”

  Lacing her fingers at her waist, Sarah flushed. It pleased her immensely to know her folks had been fair with Adam. He probably hadn’t found her nearly as evenhanded as her parents. As captain of the cheerleaders, she’d had status to protect. She could fantasize about the mysterious dark-haired boy, but she’d never allowed herself to reach out and touch him. Fair or not, that was the way things were in her social group.

  Adam’s mouth crinkled into a smile. “You look very good, Sarah. Commando is a style that fits you. You look ready, eager and willing.”

  She shrugged, dragging herself back to the present. “It’ll take some getting used to.” Here she was again talking to him about sexual matters as if they were discussing baking cookies. “But I suppose you’re right. I am more alert and on edge. You wouldn’t think the absence of a slim piece of fabric would make that much difference.”

  “Maybe it’s the changes in the mind more than in the fabric. You’re going to have to be patient.” Adam stood and stretched a hand out to her. She grabbed it and he helped her to her feet. He kissed her lightly on the lips. “I have things to do this morning in the city. We weren’t expecting your visit, you know.”

  She grinned broadly, glancing toward the doorway leading to the kitchen where she could hear the maid clattering dishes. “That’s obvious.”

  “So, I’ve asked Maria to show you around the house and grounds this morning. She can take you shopping if you like, or sightseeing if you want. I probably won’t be back until late afternoon. I think Maria’s planning a picnic for us this evening in the gazebo. It’s in that clump of pines to your right.”

  “That’s fine,” Sarah said, glancing in the direction he pointed. “But I don’t want to be trouble for Maria. She must have a lot do to keep up with a place this large.”

  “Nonsense,” Adam said, lifting her chin and giving her a winsome look. “You are our guest. I’m confident you are at the very top of Maria’s to do list.”

  Was it her wild imagination, or was everything Adam and Maria said laced with sexual innuendo? It was probably just her. She squeezed his hand as he escorted her toward the kitchen to put her in Maria’s care. Sarah tried her best to ignore the pooling of juices between her thighs, hoping it wasn’t the result of an overwrought imagination.

  By mid-morning any chill that might have existed between Sarah and Maria had evaporated. Sarah loved the woman’s humor and wit. Maria took most everything in stride and didn’t seem a bit annoyed that the task of showing their visitor around had fallen to her.

  After breakfast, they’d toured the grounds first. The manicured lawns had the feel of a small private park. Eucalyptus trees and pines along with a privacy fence provided seclusion. Flowers of countless shapes and colors flooded the yard as if it were a painter’s palate. Small stone walkways led to the gazebo, the gardener’s shed, and to a heart-shaped in-ground pool.

  Maria had suggested they might like a swim after lunch. Sarah looked forward to being in the pool. It was inviting, and she did enjoy time in the water. One of the problems with living in Chicago was the limited amount of opportunity for swimming. She’d never found a private pool in the city that met her expectations.

  Maria had made lemonade when they returned to the house mid-morning. Sarah sipped the frothy drink as Maria guided her from one room of the house to the next. There were eight bedrooms in all—plus a living room, sitting room, den and a few rooms they hadn’t visited. The bedrooms were sizeable. One had been turned into a dance studio with mirrors lining all four walls. Maria seemed vague about its current use.

  But it was another room where they now stood that had sharpened Sarah’s interest. She and Maria stood at the center of a darkroom. Photo equipment of great variety filled the shelves. Maria demonstrated the safelight and the entire room turned to a very familiar red glow.

  “This is precious,” Sarah breathed. “This has to be as large as the darkroom we used at college.”

  “So you’re a photographer,” Maria said. “What was your medium?”

  “Calling me a photographer is a stretch.” Sarah couldn’t keep the longing out of her voice. “But it was my passion in college. I was an art major. I couldn’t paint my way out of a paint can, but I was fairly good at photography. I specialized in black and white. I liked playing with contrasts, with light and shadows.”

  “You make it sound like past history,” Maria said, turning the red light off and returning the room to its natural light.

  “Ancient history. My first husband thought it was a frivolous hobby. It was out of the question for a career.” Sarah shrugged. “I got involved in advertising instead.”

  “A more honorable profession?”

  “Something like that. So who uses all of this equipment?”

  Maria hesitated before responding. “Adam used to use it some, but hardly any more. If he takes any photos now, they’re all digital. I’m sure if you’d like to use this room while you’re here, he’d be delighted. Would you like that?”

  “I’m not sure.” She crossed her arms. “Sometimes maybe it’s best to let past passions fade away.”

  “I see.” Maria paused and took a step forward.

  Sarah tensed but didn’t back away as copper hands fluffed her hair off her shoulders. Maria smiled warmly and ran the back of her hand across her cheek. Trying to breathe evenly, Sarah kept her hands at her sides. It was too soon. They had to clear the air about Adam before exploring each other. Did that make her methodical and Maria spontaneous?

  Maria gave her an impish smile and took a step back. “I think you may be talking about your pass
ion for Adam as much as your passion for photography.”

  “Maybe.” Sarah took the opportunity to take a seat on an old stuffed couch. She knew she was buying time. She wanted to reach out and run her fingers through Maria’s long curly hair. She wanted to unbutton Maria’s dress slowly, to ogle her breasts as Maria had ogled hers. But she needed more time. She needed some answers. “Maria, can we be honest with each other?”

  The younger, cinnamon-skinned woman looked only slightly wary before nodding. “Sure, why not? What’s on your mind?” Maria curled up on the floor in front of her.

  Sarah took a deep breath and locked her gaze on Maria’s. “Are you a maid as well as Adam’s lover?”

  Maria didn’t blink. “I wouldn’t know the first thing about keeping a house this large clean. No. You’re right. I’m not a maid.”

  “But...”

  “I never said I was Adam’s maid.” Maria shook her head. Her long black hair swished around, hiding first one side of her face and then the other. “You assumed I was. You wanted to believe that I was. There was no need to disabuse you of that belief. Not then.”

  “But—Adam and me.” Sarah frowned. “I’ll pack my things and be gone before he gets back.” She stood.

  “No.” Maria clambered to her feet. “Please, Sarah—sit down and I’ll try to explain.”

  Sarah retook her seat and watched closely as Maria stood before her with feet planted wide apart, as if to block her exit.

  “It’s okay,” Maria said quickly. “You and Adam, I mean. You and he go way back. He returned from the reunion troubled, on edge and,” Maria smiled, “thankfully horny as hell. You got to him. Maybe you’re only a vestige from his past. Maybe you’re his vision of what a woman should be. I don’t know. I doubt if he knows. But believe me, Sarah, you are under his skin—and until the two of you work that out, he’s going to be trouble to be around, even for me.”

  “How long have you two been together?”

  “Two years. I moved in a year and a half ago.”

  “Two years. And you want to just throw two years over?”

  Again, Maria shook her head. “Not at all. This isn’t a contest between you and me. Adam and I do not have a committed relationship—at least not in the way most couples talk about it.”

  “I don’t understand.” Goosebumps began clambering up and down her arms.

  “You’re the first woman Adam has been with since he and I got together.”

  “And you’re not jealous?” she squeaked.

  Maria shrugged her shoulders. “Why should I be? I’ve not been with another man since I started up with Adam.” Maria knelt on the floor. Sarah didn’t flinch away from Maria’s hand resting on her bare knee. “But I do take other women to my bed from time to time. And occasionally Adam joins us.”

  The air in Sara’s lungs whooshed out. “Oh.” She covered her mouth. “Oh.”

  “But you must be something very special,” Maria said, squeezing her knee and removing her hand.

  “Why do you say that?” Sarah managed to whisper.

  “Because Adam is letting you stay here in the house.”

  “Those other women?”

  Maria shook her head.

  “Oh my God. But I just showed up on his—on your doorstep. I wasn’t invited.”

  “Maybe not. But don’t you think there was a hotel room available somewhere in Pacific Palisades, Santa Monica, or L.A.?”

  Sarah nodded. So what was the woman saying? Was Adam pimping for his lover?

  “I know what you’re thinking, Sarah. You're thinking Adam let you stay so I could play with you.”

  Smoothing out her dress, Sarah couldn’t help wondering if Maria was commando.

  “That’s not the reason.” Maria’s lips formed a sly smile and her eyes snapped. “But I wouldn’t mind playing, if you’d like to. You’re the first woman Adam—in a round-about way—brought to me.” She held her palm up. “But no rush. I’m a very patient woman. If it’s meant to be, then it will happen.”

  “So,” Sarah huffed, “I’m supposed to stay here and fuck Adam.”

  “Isn’t that why you came out here?”

  “Yes, but...I didn’t know he was attached.”

  “And I’m telling you that doesn’t matter.” Maria arched an eyebrow. “I don’t mind sharing, at least for a time. I don’t know where all of this goes. I do know if you leave, both you and Adam will have lots of unfinished baggage. At some point, too much baggage functions like a large anchor, pulling you down.”

  “You don’t have to explain that to me. I’ve gone through two husbands. Or maybe two husbands went through me.”

  Maria gave her a puzzled look. “Were you planning on marrying Adam?”

  Sarah blinked. “Not hardly. Twice burned, I’m not too eager for that.”

  “So you traveled out here to fuck and be fucked until maybe your body was too sore to carry on.”

  “Yeah.” Sarah giggled softly. “Something like that, I guess. I haven’t had much sex in years. The reunion was an eye-opener. It seemed like a good thing to pursue.”

  Maria flashed a broad smile and plopped down on the couch beside Sarah. “Good sex is always something worthy of pursuing.”

  Sarah tensed but did not shrink away.

  Maria took her hand and turned the palm up as if she were a palm reader. “So you must be wondering about me. How hard will I pursue you? Do you owe Maria a good time because she’s willing for you to fuck her man?”

  It was Sarah’s turn to shrug. Both questions had flashed through her mind.

  “Let me take them in reverse order,” Maria said, tracing the lifeline of Sarah’s palm. “You owe me nothing. Adam is his own man. I can see if my future with him is to continue, he—and maybe we—must work through what it is you desire. As far as my pursuit is concerned, I won’t seduce you.”

  Sarah couldn’t hide her bewilderment. The woman was tying her into knots. “But I thought...”

  “You,” Maria said with a measured degree of haughtiness, “will seduce me.”

  Sarah’s lips parted but no words came.

  “That doesn’t mean I won’t take steps now and then to assure you of my willingness and my desire. But you will initiate our lovemaking, not me. Do you understand what I’m saying?”

  Sarah nodded, not entirely sure she had a brain anymore.

  “Good.” Maria squeezed her hand, but did not yield it. “So tell me about your photography passion. I too have dabbled in it. More than Adam, really.”

  Exhaling softly, Sarah welcomed the sudden shift in conversation. She’d have to sort out the implications of what Maria had said later. Apparently, Maria and Adam operated from the same premise, that Sarah had the ultimate veto in matters of sex. That was good enough for now. She avoided looking at their interlaced fingers, but couldn’t ignore the amazing warmth radiating from them. “As I said, I loved to play with light and shadows, so I focused most of my energy on black and white photography. There’s something more primal, more stark about the medium that appeals to me.”

  “Yes, I understand. So are you most interested in landscape, animals, people or what?”

  “I never was much into landscape. I did enjoy working with animals. But mostly I did studies of people. Faces. Some laughed. Some cried. Some were angry. Emotions.”

  Maria squeezed her fingers.

  Sarah hesitated, and then squeezed back. “Black and white photos are a wonderful way of depicting emotions.”

  “What else? Tell me more.” Maria’s thigh pressed against hers. “You really should pick your passion up again, Sarah. You can’t be whole if you don’t honor your passions.”

  “You may be right. So how old are you, Maria? You sound like such a voice of wisdom.”

  Maria sobered. “Some people say I’m thirty-two going on sixty. But we were talking about you and your passion for photography. What else?”

  “Oh. I did people at work. Farmers. Factory workers. Teachers in the classroom. Cops.
Welfare mothers.” She felt herself blush but suddenly she couldn’t stop chattering. Maria was an excellent listener. “I always wanted to paint, so I did several series lifting up the nude body.”

  “Really!”

  “Yes, it was supposed to be an initial step toward painting, but I never was able to follow up well.”

  “But the photos—how were they?”

  “Some of my best work. You’d be surprised how light and shadows can be used to celebrate the human body.”

  “Beautiful. I think I know what you mean.” Maria gave her a genuinely shy grin. “Maybe you can do me?”

  “What?” Sarah gasped. “I don’t have the equipment.” She glanced around the room, suddenly aware equipment was hardly an issue.

  Maria rose from the couch, pulling Sarah with her. “I really like the idea of you doing a pictorial study of me. I think Adam would appreciate that, too.” She closed her fingers around Sarah’s. “And this isn’t seduction, Sarah. You must know from experience that nudity can actually be desensitizing.”

  “That’s true.” It was increasingly difficult, though, to imagine Maria’s nude body having a desensitizing effect.

  “Let’s go have lunch,” Maria said with a soft laugh. “Later, we’ll let you try out the pool.”

  Had their conversation been that stimulating? Sarah couldn’t take her gaze off the shapely rear end swaying back and forth in front of her, leading the way downstairs toward the kitchen.

  - o -

  Draining his beer at the oyster bar, Adam wondered if the women were getting along or if they were fighting like two cats in heat. He’d have to figure out what to do with Sarah soon. The quicker the better.

  Had she really traveled across the county just to get fucked? That should be an ego booster, but it also served as a warning sign. Weren’t there guys capable of satisfying her closer to home?

  She shouldn’t have to find a husband. From the research he’d done on her, he knew she was at least as wealthy as he was. So what the hell was she after?

  Had she come to chase a teenage fantasy? Or maybe to tame the wild boy she could never quite confront in her youth?