This is part of a novel. Previous parts should be read first.
Chapter 10
On the morning after Kelly's binge with Andrew, Kurt and Clark, a throbbing headache was starting to develop. She put it down to a hangover, took pain killers, thought nothing about it and fell onto her bed. She was exhausted, of course, she'd had a tremendous bout of physical and mental exercise, within a few moments she was snorting in her sleep.
It was after two in the afternoon when she roused herself. The pain in her temples persisted, she was groggy and grumpy. Twinges in her box reminded her of the great time she'd had, but she knew she was out of sorts. When Andrew called her late in the afternoon she didn't have a clue.
"Where would you like to go tonight?" he asked.
"What do you mean?"
"On our date. Remember? You said I could pick you up. I was thinking maybe six-thirty or seven."
"Oh, damn!" She remembered her promise. "Listen, I'm just not in the mood. A bad headache. Do you mind?"
"Sure, no problem," Andrew agreed. "Maybe during the week?"
"Okay."
That night was spent peacefully, although her mind failed to concentrate on the smutty novel she was reading or the television she tried to watch. It kept returning to Kurt's big and hairless dick, the loving way Clark had accepted her into his bed. Could this be right? Could this be moral? It was one thing, she supposed, to have relations with one man; after all, she was practically divorced. But when she remembered the way she'd willingly stripped for the guys, then let Kurt have whatever he wanted, she was irked. That was probably the alcohol, she'd had at least three drinks before the poker game, then shots. But what was her excuse for opening Clark's door and forcing herself upon him? No, this just wasn't right.
The next morning she decided a trip to her congregation might be in her best interests, she still had qualms about her wild night. The congregants, all familiar to her, greeted her warmly, not knowing a Scarlet A invisibly grew on her chest. The Pastor's sermon that morning was on the assurance of salvation and Kelley was glad for that; if the topic had been sexual sin, she wasn't sure she could have stood it.
On Wednesday, Samantha drew her into her office. "Okay, what gives?"
"Nothing."
"Oh, come on. Something's eating at you, what is it?"
"Last Friday night, I went over to Andrew's place and we played strip poker."
"You're not worried that Kurt finally got a look at your hide, are you? Come on, that's nothing!"
"It was a little more than that." Sam slowly drew out the story, how Kelley'd let Kurt take her into his room and had his way with her, then later she'd gone into Clark's room.
"Wow! So it's over with Andrew?" Samantha asked.
"No. I'm surprised about that. I'm sure he knows that Kurt and I went at it, but he seemed cool about it the next day. You know, he's been saying that sooner or later I had to get more experience."
"Well, great! So now, you're really ready to fly, huh?"
Sam was so excited that Kelley had added notches to her paltry collection that Kelley never got around to explaining her sudden moral unease; it was certain Samantha wouldn't have comprehended her concerns.
Nor would anyone else Kelley could talk to, she thought. Her acquaintances other than Sam were moral prudes, such as her pastor. Oh, if she visited him he'd console her, but would explain that God's purpose was for sex to be reserved for holy relations within a marriage. She disagreed. No, sex could be had without the sacred bonds. She wasn't the slightest bit bothered by the visits she'd had from Andrew. But this latest adventure, three men in one night, seemed suddenly aberrant, beyond the pale.
When Andrew called her for a date midweek, she declined again, explaining untruthfully that work was piling up. She added that the coming weekend wasn't good either, she was heading for her girlhood home of Glacier to spend time with her father.
She hit the village on Friday afternoon, before her father got home from work, using her key to let herself into the house. It was clean, no dishes in the sink, recently dusted. She allowed herself a long look at the family pictures on the parlor wall, she and her two older siblings growing up, her mother and father on their wedding day, then the formal portrait they'd had for their twenty-fifth wedding anniversary. Less than three months afterwards, a drunk driver had pulled out of a road, her mother had gone to heaven when Kelley was only nineteen. That was twelve years ago, Kelley still wasn't over it, she doubted her dad was.
When her father arrived home, they hugged. "How have you been?" she asked.
"Fine, fine, just fine. How about you?"
"I'm great," Kelley lied.
"Joan said she'd like to meet us for dinner. Would that be okay with you?"
Joan was her father's girlfriend, a widow he'd met at a picnic and had been dating for nearly three years now. Of course Kelley didn't want to think about what they did when she wasn't around. Parents having sex, yuck! "Yeah, I'd love to see her."
"Good, we'll meet her there."
Around 6:45 they pulled into the parking lot of the Italian restaurant at the mall, a middle aged manager led them to their table, perhaps the best job he could get after being laid off from the mill. Joan was a nice lady, early sixties like Kelley's father, the talk was of Kelley's business, the attractions of the city, Kelley's new apartment and furniture.
At one point, Kelley heard her name, it was her old friend Peggy from elementary and high school, she was with her husband and children. A hug, a little talk. "Want to get lunch tomorrow?" Peggy suggested. "Okay, 1:00 at Pete's? See you then."
The rest of the meal was spent with the older couple talking about such amazing prospects as the new regional park that was being developed out in the country, the need to cut down on teenagers speeding through town.
