The following is a work of erotic fiction and includes scenes of sexual activity. It includes characters that are copyrighted by William Broyles, Jr. and John Sacret Young and the ABC network, as well as characters copyrighted by Richard Hooker, Larry Gilbert and CBS Television. This story is intended for the non-commercial enjoyment of fans and should be considered parody. No copyright infringement is intended and no profit will be made from the distribution of this story.
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Lieutenant Colleen McMurphy sat at the rearmost table in the hotel bar, listening to Linda Ronstadt and the Stone Poneys on the jukebox and enjoying her second scotch of the evening. Both simple pleasures made her think of home, a place she hadn't seen in well over a year. For most of that time, she had been stationed at the 510th Evac Hospital at China Beach in the Republic of South Vietnam. A place she definitely needed some time away from.
It had come as quite a surprise to the short haired brunette when the commander of the 510th, Major Lila Garreau, appeared at her door two days ago and asked if she would be interested in going to the medical conference at Tokyo General scheduled for the long weekend. It seemed that Dr. Richard, who had planned to deliver a paper on advances in combat surgical procedures had hurt his leg and would be unable to make the trip. Since she couldn't run two surgeons short, Garreau asked the nurse if she wanted to go in his place.
Four days in Tokyo might not be a trip home, but it was a chance to relax and unwind for a while. Colleen didn't hesitate a minute before jumping at the opportunity.
The paper had been delivered at this afternoon's session, leaving the Lieutenant with another day and a half before she had to catch the transport back to DaNang. The only thing she had to decide on now was how she wanted to spend that free time.
Looking out across the bar of the American-run hotel, Colleen decided that if she wanted, it wouldn't be very hard to find someone to spend that time with. The room was filled with good-looking men of various ages, some in uniform and even more in civilian dress. Several had their eyes on her since she'd come in a half hour before.
Despite her strong Irish Catholic background and the small town she had grown up it, Colleen hadn't been a virgin when she'd first arrived in Vietnam. Few girls her age were in 1968. And in the interim since, she had hardly been living a life of celibacy. The question at the moment, however, was if she actually wanted company or not.
"Mind if I sit down, Lieutenant?" a female voice asked as a blonde haired woman suddenly appeared next to the booth.
Colleen looked up in surprise, especially since the woman had addressed her by her rank. After the presentation, she had made it a point to change out of her uniform and into the non-descript blue dress she had on. Dressed in a pair of cream slacks, a black short-sleeved blouse and a light colored sweater that barely contained an ample bust, the woman, who appeared to be in her late forties or possibly even her early fifties, was unfamiliar. Curious as to what the woman wanted, especially since she'd had to cross the entire bar to reach where she'd been sitting, Colleen motioned to the empty space on the other side of the table.
As the older woman thanked Colleen and took the seat, one of the waiters appeared at the table to take her order.
"I'll have whatever the Lieutenant is having, and bring her another while you're at it," the new arrival said.
From the inflection in her voice, Colleen got the impression that this woman was used to giving orders and more importantly, having them obeyed without question.
"I hope I'm not disturbing you," the woman said as the waiter quickly returned with the drink order. "I saw you sitting here when I came in and I just wanted to come over and tell you how impressed I was with your presentation this afternoon."
"You were there at the conference?" Colleen asked, then realized that obviously she had been since she knew her rank and that she had delivered a report.
The curly-haired blondee answered with a nod as she took a sip of her drink. The expression on her face indicated that while she was willing to drink it, it was hardly the best she'd ever had.
"Are you in the army?" Colleen asked, remembering having seen a few other women in uniform at the conference.
"Once upon a time," came the reply, framed in a faraway smile, "I retired a bird colonel a few years back."
Colleen was impressed, even her own CO was only a major and that was a rarity for a woman.
"What brought you to the conference?"
"I was visiting some old associates here at the hospital in Tokyo, and I saw the conference on the schedule. I haven't totally retired from nursing so I decided to stop by and take a look." she explained. "It's a sad fact, but war does seem to bring on major medical advances and I like to keep up if I can."
"Well it was actually Doctor Richard's report," the younger woman said with humility, "I was just standing in for him."
"Nonsense, doctors get way too much of the attention," she cut in with a wave of her glass, "People don't credit nurses enough for the success rate in the operating room."
"Is that what you were, a surgical nurse?" asked Colleen.
"More than that," the woman said with a noticeable pride in her voice, "I was head nurse at a MASH unit in Korea during the war, the 4077th."
Colleen was now very glad she had asked the woman to sit down.
"I'm Colleen McMurphy."
"I know. I'm Margaret Houlihan," the older woman said, realizing she hadn't yet introduced herself.
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A few more rounds of scotch and an hour and a half later, Colleen and Margaret felt like they'd known each other the longest time. Despite the age difference and the times in which they'd served, it was amazing how much they had in common.
"Two biggest mistakes in my life," Margaret was saying in response to a comment Colleen had made about men, sex and military life, "were Frank Burns and Donald Penobscott - losers both. The first was a married man I was playing around with and the second was a Lieutenant Colonel I married and then divorced."
"If they were such losers, what attracted you to them in the first place?" Colleen asked out of curiosity.
"Well, that's a little hard to explain," Margaret said, "let's just say it had to do with the times."