CHAPTER 1
Arriving in the big city for a two-day media convention Charles Munroe was rather taken aback by the size of the airport terminal. It appeared almost as large as his entire hometown airport including the single runway and the seething mass inside it would be approaching the population of Eltham.
Charles joined the long line waiting for a cab.
Someone tapped him on the shoulder. He took a good grip on his money belt and turned and the pretty brunette said, "May I share a cab if you're heading downtown?"
"Have you lost your money?"
The woman behind her, picking his rural accent, laughed and said it was a technique to get into a cab faster.
"Oh."
The brunette sighed. "Don't bother."
The more Charles thought about it the more the 'technique' made sense. He turned and said, "Are you of good character?"
Hissing the brunette swung back her slapping hand but fortunately the older woman behind her urged, "Have tolerance dear. This young man is a country boy."
"And that gives him the right to insult me?"
"Dear he's probably following his mom's instructions. See he's wearing a money belt under his jacket and had gripped it and ohmigod, just look at his hairstyle. Either mom or dad cuts that."
The brunette, relaxing, eyed Charles coolly. "Are you a country boy?"
"Sure am ma'am," he said proudly.
"My name is Della," said Adeline who used the shorten form when out of earshot of her mom and dad. "Yes you may share a cab with me."
"But I thought..." He cut off that comment, deciding who'd made the original sharing offer didn't matter. His ears burned when he heard the older woman whisper, "Look after him as much as you can dear; he needs being brought up to speed."
"Where to buddy?" asked the cabbie once Charles' one bag and Della's four were in the trunk and they were on their way. Charles had noticed on one of the luggage labels Della's surname was Armstrong.
He answered the driver, "The Albion International Hotel and Suites at 455 Richmond Avenue."
"Just the Albion is sufficient," replied the cabbie mysteriously.
"That's my hotel," Della said aghast and rolled her eyes when the stranger, er the strange guy, said that was simply coincidence because his hometown only had three hotels but this city would have a few more than that, so chances of them being booked into the same hotel would not be all that remote.
The cabbie asked, "Where did you find this one Miss?"
"Lost in space at the airport."
They both laughed.
Della simply stared out of the window when Charles asked would she like to share a room.
At the hotel she insisted paying half the fare and by her thrust-out chin Charles knew it would be unwise to argue so he watched the porter load the baggage trolley leaving her to pay the full fare.
Inside he waved Della ahead to book in for two nights. It was busy so he waited patiently behind her. She turned and looked at him carefully. "I had booked a suite and they have me in a double room suite. It seems wasteful not to share providing you agree to pay half of the room rate?"
"I have a pre-paid premium room for two nights in the name of Charles Munroe. Just ask them to effect a straight transfer."
"Effect a straight transfer; what kind of language is that?"
"English." said the English major stiffly.
Della turned away giggling and probably thinking what a dork. That was 'effected' and she was impressed to find their room now had a $64.00 credit thanks to the transfer.
Inside the room where Della had tipped the porter she said, 'You may pick your room."
"Do you wish to share?"
Her face darkened and her lips clenched. Charles said hastily, "Just joking."
The rooms appeared identical so there was no contest. Charles placed his bag in the nearest room calling, "There's no bathroom."
"It's between our rooms."
"Oh can we bath together?"
"Only if you get me drunk," she said sarcastically and rolled her eyes when he replied okay.
He entered the bathroom and yelled, "Look at all this stuff."
The thirty-six year old came through her door, looked around, and saw nothing out of the ordinary. "Have you ever stayed in a hotel before?"
"Yes of course."
"How many?"
"Only the Cattleman's at Ewing. It has twelve rooms and two bathrooms on each floor."
Della gave the poor guy a tour of the entire suit but left out her bedroom. She couldn't believe his TV at home didn't have remote control and the screen was only 20 inches.
Later she said, "I'm going shopping. Do you want to come with me? I think it would be unwise for you to be loose on these streets alone."
"Yeah providing you'll be buying lingerie."
"You just stay here drinking beer and watching TV."
"No I was just joking, honest."
During a café lunch Della learned Charles was advertising manager of his family's newspaper and new business manager of the printing works.
He confessed, "It's a very modest business."
"I would have picked that."
He grinned and she grinned back, showing she recognized he had humor.
Charles was twenty-six with a BA. His parents had married when they were both nineteen and he was born four months later. He had two younger sisters and his hobbies were hiking and kayaking, fast women and fast cars.
"You are lying about fast women aren't you?"
He hung his head.
"There's not need to attempt to impress me. Actually I prefer honesty.
Della lied and said she was thirty but was truthful when she said she was an attorney in her father's law firm and her mother continued as his partner although she was now fulltime mayor of their city. She had a much older brother.
"I'm here to shop and team up with fast men."
"You're lying about shopping," he said, straight-faced and she giggled uncontrollably.
"God you are funny," she said, dabbing her eyes with a tissue.
Walking along the busy streets Charles, inadvertently proving he had a purpose in life by carrying Della's shopping bags, was bumping into people while gawking up at high-rise buildings. By now she was whistling to attract his attention when turning into a store or arcade.
A beautiful red and black bustier had caught her attention.
"My husband urged me to buy one of those. What do you think?"
Opened mouthed Charles said, "Y-you are married?"
"Yes of course. Oh didn't mention that? Actually I didn't, did I?"
Charles snorted and turned away to hide his disappointment.
Della placed a hand on his arm. "I'm sorry to have upset you by being married."
"No it's okay," Charles sniffed, turning back to the window. "Buy that aquamarine and Royal Blue one with lace up front and with black straps. Ask for a matching g-string."
"Okay, I'll try both on and decide. How do you know about a bustier?"
"My mother and one of my sisters sometimes wear them when dressing up."
"Oh I see. Now be a good boy and sit on that row of seats over there marked 'Gentlemen'.
"Ah can't I..."
"No," she giggled and walked into the depths of the store.
* * *
Charles thought he was in with a chance. Della would be thinking he was a country boy without much experience with females. Well that wasn't altogether true. His youngest sister had taught him all he needed to know to get by and both sisters had arranged dates for him with their girlfriends... er one at the time.
Della had demonstrated she had no concerns about inviting him to share a suite. That had been a real surprise although being two people alone in the big city it made sense. No doubt some people would view it as an unusual decision. Della's husband and mother would have a fit while his own parents would be appalled he'd seized the opportunity to prey on a woman, a married woman.
God if she offered it to him he'd been in like a hungry horse. Guaranteed. But she was married. Oh yeah.
* * *
Della didn't bother asking to try the red version. She knew Charles was right in opting for the blue tones with her dark hair and light olive skin. The sales assistant asked was she wearing a cami and when told yes said it would be okay for Della to try on the garment providing she kept her cami on after removing her bra.
The size was perfect and pressing her breasts into place for the fitting Della had a vision of Charles sucking them and tweaking the nipples.
Ohmigod.
Well if he did turn sexy she had only herself to blame. When told she had a two-room suite it had seemed perfectly natural to think of him having one of those rooms. She shouldn't have made the invitation but she did. God Kevin would probably slap her around a bit and abuse her if he found out. Her mom reaction would be to label her a disgrace to the family and her mother-in-law would just smile and say, 'From the outset I'd picked you for a whore'.
Della felt uneasy. She hadn't made the offer hoping country boy would be in for all he could get had she? She didn't think so. Well what if Charles seduced her. Would she mind? She didn't think so. God she'd answered that one pretty fast. Oooh you wicked girl Della.
Returning to where she'd left Charles preparing to give him yet another shopping bag to carry Della found him looking at two fake-hair and fake-breasted women across the street in boots and tiny black skirts. God they would leave him half-dead and with his billfold cleaned out.
"Oh hi," he smiled, making her nipples begin to firm. "Those women across the street; are they prostitutes?"
"Charles how could you? They are probably two mothers waiting outside an upstairs pre-school facility," she lied.
"Well mothers like that should be trained on parenthood," he said sternly. "One of them is smoking and the other one is chewing gum with her mouth open and when she lifted her skirt to scratch her butt it was obviously she wasn't wearing panties."
"She probably is wearing a thong or g-string."
