Belinda

A few months had passed.

Belinda and Rachel were still seeing one and other whenever Rachel was in town, which was not as frequent as either would like, but, you make do, right? Belinda even traveled to Rachel's home town for a couple of visits, but they had had a long discussion about their relationship and both agreed, for at least the time being, it shouldn't get serious.

In the meantime, Belinda had become a bit more serious with Carl. They had been seeing each other almost every night, well, except when 'something came up'. Belinda didn't fully explain. Carl seemed to simply accept it. He was a very good natured guy and very easy going. Belinda liked that. He was no pushover nor was he a wimp, but he could accept things like something coming up. It was really one of the things that Belinda was beginning to love about him.

Eddie hadn't become a hopeless alcoholic, but he did drink more. His girlfriend seemed to notice and asked one night. Eddie had simply said, "Family matters that are too way out there for even me to comprehend.....yet. Please, let it go." She did, so far.

Work was still going well for Belinda and she had really become used to/accepting of being a 'housekeeper'. It was hard work, not overly rewarding but it was a steady paycheck with some occasional decent tips and certainly some interesting stories. She had begun to bond with the other girls even more than she had expected. She even began to pick up some Filipino and Spanish. Belinda was feeling quite the woman of the world.

One Saturday, she was making a little overtime and assigned to the 2nd floor. The girl at the other end was a high school kid named Sophia. Sophia seemed like a sweet kid, maybe a bit naïve, but not stupid. Belinda got a laugh when suddenly; out of room 219, Sophia came screaming. Belinda ran and grabbed her asking what was wrong.

"HIS DICK, HE'S SHOWING HIS DICK!" screamed Sophia.

Belinda ran into the room ready to curse out the latest weenie wagger when she was confronted by a Great Dane with a raging hard on. He approached Belinda who let out a yell and ran from the room pulling the door closed behind her. "What the HELL was that all about?" was all she could say.

She comforted Sophia and before either one knew it, they were sitting on the floor of the second floor hallway laughing hysterically. It turned out that the woman using the room had brought the dog to mate with another Great Dane in the area. The dog apparently was over eager, something that was NOT expected. The owner had gone down to the pool for a quick swim before the mating was to take place.

Sophia had asked, "How does he KNOW why he's there? What did that broad coach him? Did she, you know, uh," she made a pumping gesture with her hand and added, "get him 'in the mood'?"

The whole Housekeeping staff laughed at that and everyone had their own opinion, each one more outrageous that the last.

"Well, I talked to the front desk, and her; the woman's name, is Heidi. Maybe she and the dog had a date before hand?" speculated Ruthie.

"That would ruin the chances of a good mating, wouldn't it?" queried Belinda.

"Oh yeah," replied Ruthie.

"Of course that doesn't mean she didn't prime the pump, so to speak." Finished Belinda.

Everyone understood and laughed like hell at that, except Jodie, but she didn't seem to get most of the jokes. Good kid, but a tad slow.

Belinda left work a bit late, about 4:15 and picked up a sub sandwich. When she got home Carl had left a message asking her if she wanted to go out to eat. "Shit," she thought, "I just got this sub and now I'm psyched up for it." She called him back and explained and added, "Why don't I hold off eating, you pick one up too and come over to the house? I can nuke mine for a few seconds and bring it back to life."

When Carl arrived with his tuna sub with LOADS of onions, Belinda nuked away and both sat with their subs and a bottle of Burgundy talking away and laughing, comparing their days. Carl was a good guy and Belinda truly appreciated him. The 'love' thing was still blurry. She had Rachel to think about.

"So, this weekend, anything coming up?" asked Carl.

"No, don't think so. Why? Plans?" was Belinda's reply after washing down a large chunk of sub with some wine.

"I thought we could take a drive up the coast. I know a guy who can loan me a cabin on the shore in Maine if you might be interested," came the reply from Carl.

"That sounds like fun, and ro-MAN-tic. Count me in." said Belinda. She actually liked the idea. So far, they hadn't taken a trip together and she loved Maine. She put it in her phone and thought nothing else of it.

Friday afternoon when Belinda got home from work, she saw that she had a message on the house phone. A bit old fashioned, she still had a land line and refused to give it up. "It's my first line of defense. This way, I don't have to give out the cell number to everyone and his brother!" The message was from Rachel.

It began; "Hey babe, guess who? I have a proposal. Next month I'm going to Chicago for a seminar. I'm not sure you've ever been, but I want to take you. Just think, we could make out in the Sears Tower, or whatever they're calling it now. Let me know if you can make it."

Belinda grinned so wide that her cheeks ached for an hour after. "Deep dish pizza and Rachel. HEAVEN!" she thought to herself. "And it's NEXT month, I can still make Maine."

She called back Rachel a few hours later and confirmed the trip. Then she poured herself a drink and then went to the bed to masturbate thinking of the adventures she'd be having with her two lovers. Though she left her bra and blouse on, she slipped off her slacks and panties. Her fingers wormed their way into and around her wetness as she sat on the edge of the bed and sipped her whiskey. Then, she put her glass down and really began to get into herself.

For several minutes, she fingered herself and finally, after what seemed like a lot of effort, she came. It wasn't the best orgasm she'd ever had, or the worst, good but a bit of a let down. She'd gotten used to the hands of others and, though at times she was a magnificent self lover, things weren't the same flying solo lately. She smiled at the whole situation, sipped her drink and put on the TV.

The next day, Friday, after she got out of work, she went home and showered and was ready at the door when Carl arrived. Ok, he was no Greek God, but he was cute, funny and had some talents, especially in the bedroom. He cared enough to make every effort to see to it that Belinda came, no matter what. On a few rare occasions his enthusiasm could be irritating, but more often than not, it was gratifying. Carl was a keeper.

Belinda sauntered out to the car, threw her pre-packed overnight bag into the back seat of his car and off they went to the wilds of Maine. The three hour ride was lovely. Though there would be occasional pauses in the conversation, the conversation was never forced and simply flowed beautifully. They talked about so many things but of course not everything. Belinda had even said that a good relationship could have some secrets and still be strong. Carl agreed and gave her knee a little squeeze before changing lanes.

The cabin was very quaint and rustic but had a magnificent view of the bay. Just an hour north of Portland, it was amazingly remote and this being fall, it was even more remote than normal and it was just starting to get dark. Belinda looked over the grounds and sighed. It was beautiful and so very peaceful. She looked over at Carl who was getting ready to open the door with the keys his friend had loaned him. "Handsome enough," she thought, "and thoughtful." Was she actually in love? She feared that word and all it stood for, especially since she was feeling the same damn way about Rachel. She vowed to herself that she wouldn't dwell on Rachel this weekend. It would be her and Carl and no one else. They walked in together and inside was as lovely as outside. Belinda had to pee.

That night, after a quick trip to the local market, Carl made dinner. He had taken a culinary arts course at Newbury College and passed with flying colors several years ago. Cooking was his go to for stress relief. Not simply a hobby, but a sort of refuge from the day to day bullshit that everyone faces. He made lamb chops with some brown rice and vegetables. He poured them each a glass of Shiraz and sat at the table. Belinda was always impressed at his talents, even the ones in the kitchen. Dinner was spectacular.

Once finished, they made love. Carl kissed every inch of Belinda, letting his tongue slip over and into various places at random. Belinda shuddered with delight each time his lips moved while on its oral excursion over her body. She could not get over his amazing talents. He was a bit of a nerd for goodness sakes! And yet, he was pleasing her with such skill and deep rooted love, Belinda immediately thought of Rachel. She shook her head, squished her eyes shut, thrust her hips upwards (right into her man's face) and focused on Carl. Ah, remember the famous line from "Revenge of the Nerds"; that all jocks thought about was sports, but all nerds thought about was sex. Well, she hooked up with a hell of a nerd, apparently.

They made love for a good portion of the night though at one point, she needed some water and Carl needed a breather. It was a very long night that didn't seem to last all night, even still, Carl managed to get hard and complete the deal 3 times. Additionally, he got her off orally twice. "An animal," she thought.

The next day they did the tourist thing, visiting antiques shops, the beach, had lunch in a local diner and did a bit of hiking. It was a spectacular day and both were simply spent when it was over. That night, they slept, worn out from a night of passion, a full day of 'stuff' and a lovely dinner in a fancy restaurant overlooking the ocean.

When they got back Sunday evening, Belinda was exhausted. She sent Carl home saying she really needed to get some sleep since it was back to the salt mine in the morning. They kissed deeply and off he went. Belinda then went and checked her messages. Rachel had called.

"Hi babe, guess who," it started, "I was just thinking of you. Landslide has a new CD out and I wanted to let you know. They've kind of become 'our' band." She giggled. "So, anyway, I'm guessing you and the boy toy are off having a grand time for yourselves. I'm dying to meet him. Ok, that's about it. Luv Ya!"

Belinda wasn't taken aback by the 'luv ya' since it was just one of those cute expressions people use. Had she said, LOVE you, it would have been different. It made her wonder if Rachel was having the same inner rumblings that she was having. J. Geils put it so beautifully, "LOVE STINKS"; pure genius. It was well after ten p.m. so Belinda decided to simply call the next day when she got home from work. Belinda went to bed and within minutes, was in a deep sleep.

Monday morning she got all 15 rooms that she would normally cover. Sure, it was better for the hotel to sell out, but for the housekeepers, a slow day was a good day. Five checkouts, the rest were stayovers. Most of the stayovers were businessmen which meant they were often out the door early for meetings. She scanned the hallway and watched for anyone leaving on her end of the hall. Two men, impeccably dressed in what looked like expensive suits and shoes left one room and headed towards her. They looked to be in their early 40s. They stopped at Belinda's cart and the taller of the two asked for extra towels in the room. He had what sounded like a German accent. He wasn't cordial, but he seemed nice enough, just, formal.

"Pardon me. Miss, ve vould like extra towels in our room. De hotel baht towels are simply much too small und meaningless for the act of drying. Coot you accommodate us?"

Belinda said sure, not a problem. She asked if everything else was OK in their room. The shorter one answered, "Ya, ist gut. Gustav, ve must go or ve vill be late. Zay don't like it ven ve are late."

"Ya," agreed Gustav. "Danke Frauline," and off they went.

Belinda headed straight for their room, 502. When she walked in she was struck by how clean and orderly the room was. Neither bed looked as if it had been used and the towels were on the floor, obviously used, and yet, folded. They're belongings were neatly arranged on the sink and the sink didn't look like it had even been used. She double checked with the front desk, they had indeed checked in the night before so they had spent the night, supposedly in the room and yet.... She left the extra towels, not much else to do, and went on to the other rooms. Just one of those things. She did look forward to examining their room the next day so see if those two were just as tight assed two days in a row. "Very stereotypical German," she thought to herself.

That night she raced home and called Rachel. Rachel picked up on the third ring. Caller ID was a wonderful thing. She said, "Rachel here, lover and confessor to the most beautiful women in the world. How may I please you Belinda, my luscious and exquisite muffin?"

"Well, for starters, you can take my car to be detailed. It's a mess."

"Consider it done, next time I'm in town and if you remind me. I'll forget, either accidentally or on purpose. I haven't decided. Enough about me, so, you and Carl have a good weekend? DEE-tails!"

Belinda wasn't surprised by this, Rachel knew full well about Carl, but talking about their weekend with Rachel almost seemed like cheating and bragging about it. She wasn't sure she wanted to tell. The hesitation wasn't lost on Rachel. "Ok, babe? Are you being shy on me?"

Belinda sighed. "No, I just figure what we have is special and it's like, shit. I have no idea. It's weird talking about it with you. I mean, it's YOU."

"I'm me, Carl is Carl and you're YOU. I luv ya lots and will not get any jealousy pumping through my system, you can be assured of that. I'm just a horny lady who loves a good dirty story!" Belinda could sense the huge smile though the phone line. "Come on, did he do ya good?" Then in a rather horrific British accent, "Did he roger you properly and did he get you all crackerbarrel?"

"What? Do the English say that? Sorry darling, but that sounded terrible and I'm guessing that WAS supposed to be an English accent, right? Or Swedish? Mexican? I work with a lot of Spanish speaking women and believe me, that did NOT sound terribly Mexican, just terribly terrible."

The two of them 'tee hee'd' over that one but in the long run, Belinda relented and told Rachel how the weekend went. Rachel was impressed and said she kind of envied her, AND Carl. Which one she envied more was hard to say. When Belinda reminded her that envy and jealousy were similar, Rachel admitted to SOME jealousy, but not THAT kind. More just, they had sex, Rachel had spent the weekend visiting her folks and was even uncomfortable pleasing herself.

They talked for an hour with the last topic being Rachel asking Belinda if she was free the coming weekend. She was going to be in town.

Belinda said, "Well, as it just so happens, it's Eddie's birthday and we're having a party for him. Not a lot of people, about 20, but I would LOVE it if you came along. I would love to see the look on Eddie's face when you come in the room. You can meet Carl."

Rachel hesitated. "You want me to meet Carl?" That hit Belinda. She did, but did she really? She spoke too quickly maybe. The 5 seconds of silence seemed like five minutes. Rachel broke first, "I mean, I'd love to and we certainly don't have to go into details as to our 'friendship', at least not yet.

"Dammit, you're absolutely right. I DO want you to come," Belinda announced. "When are you getting in and of course, you're staying here. Mi Casa, es Su Casa, SI?"

"Of course," replied Rachel. "I've gotten spoiled staying with you and wouldn't have it any other way."

Rachel told her she'd be arriving Friday which was perfect since the party was Saturday evening. They both said goodnight and hung up. Belinda contemplated just how the upcoming weekend would go. She decided not to tell Eddie. The surprise would be too fun to pass up. As for Carl, well, he wouldn't be staying at her place this weekend since she had a 'modest' friend staying over. It would be great fun.

Tuesday was rather dull, especially room 502. It was once again picked up and neat. What was with these two? Ok, so Belinda had no problems with things, it made her job so much easier, but it was perplexing. Sadly, she saw that they were checking out that day and would probably never find out what their story was. Knowing check out time was noon for late check outs, she took her time, lingering in the hall during lunch.

When the Germans arrived, she meandered towards their room and listened to their conversation in the hall. "DAMN!" she thought, "They're speaking German." Then she thought, "What the hell else would they be speaking?"

The door opened and they emerged with their luggage. Belinda mustered up the courage and met them head on. "Hi, gents, I see you're checking out. I hope you enjoyed your stay. Can I ask you one question though?"

"Ya, ONE kvestion; und it is vaht?" said the shorter one, Gustav? No, he....oh who cared.

"You guys were so.....NEAT. I mean, I had almost nothing to do. I'm not complaining, just curious. Did you actually sleep in the room? Please, PLEASE don't think I'm rude, I just........."

The taller one cut her off. He abruptly said, "How is this YOUR business?"

Belinda was floored, embarrassed, angry and more curious than ever. "I...I didn't say it was. I said I was curious. If you don't want to say, DON'T. I've got other things to do. I'm sorry to have troubled you." She started to leave.

The shorter one stopped her, somewhat laughing. "Ok, ve apologize for the curtness auf our responses.

Ve vere raised to clean up afta ourselves. Ve haff nevah gotten out of ze habbit. Today, ze bets are a mess. You may do your job to ze fullest extent, however ve stripped ze bets und neatened ze tub. Ve can only hope you are not offended. In hopes of placating your fragile emotions, ve haff left you a $100 tip."

Belinda nearly fainted but stood her ground. "Ah, sure, that sounds fine. I appreciate it very much. I hope you didn't think I was being too forward....mein Herr."

This caused both of the men to laugh. "Oh, you silly madchen, you are lovely," said the taller one. "Ve are bruders und in ze business of selling S und M toyz. Vood you like to see some?"

Belinda started to laugh but held it in. These guys had just left one hundred bucks. Why do ANYTHING that might piss them off. She swallowed hard and said, "You know, thanks, but I've just received my catalogue and I'm a loyal customer to....my usual supplier. I hate to be a traitor."

Both men began to laugh and the taller one said, "VE GOT YOU! Ve sell pharmaceuticals. Und, ve are Austrian, NOT German. It's amazing zat you Americans cannot tell ze difference. Ve must go now. Please, danke for ze entertainment." With that they both hugged her and left.

Belinda stood in the hall for about five minutes and mumbled, "What the fuck was that?" about twenty times. No mystery to solve, nothing sinister, nothing exciting, just two very anal Austrians who sold drugs. "AH," she thought, "They never said they were LEGAL drugs!" The bottom line, the whole thing was so, so, ANTI-CLIMACTIC!

The rest of the entire week was dull beyond belief. Friday, this was the day Belinda waited for. Rachel would be arriving and the next night was the birthday party.

Rachel pulled up to the house in her rental, a mini-van. Belinda was surprised. Rachel didn't seem like a mini-van person. Rachel got out and Belinda had to ask, "So, why the soccer mom mobile?"