That following Sunday morning, Meredith was sunning herself in the backyard--nude. She appreciated that Darrell had encouraged her to once again use the backyard this way. Still, there were a limited number of people who she was comfortable with nude, and she was still not comfortable with the idea of being naked anywhere other than her backyard. This was something she wanted to overcome; she wanted to be less timid and more carefree. The psychologist in her thought it was irrational that this was a hangup, but her nudity was. It was rooted in her upbringing. It was funny, however, that that same inhibition did not apply in the bedroom. She had done some very naughty things there, although only with her husband. Well, the roots of her shyness started before him.
Darrell emerged from the cottage, naked as usual. She always got a thrill when they were close without clothes. She was pleased when he walked over.
"I was going to work out; you mind?" he asked.
"No--of course not. No need to ask other than it is a good opportunity to say hi."
"Thanks, and hi."
Meredith's curiosity made her say, "I've got a question. I don't mean to pry, but do you have a new girlfriend? I only ask because you and Katherine seem good together. She's a nice girl."
"You saw Crystal and I working out?"
"Yeah, that and your dinner. I mean, it's really no big deal, and I'm sorry I asked. It's not my business."
"I don't mind. It's a bit of a crazy situation; your thoughts might be insightful."
"Well, I'd be happy to give you my two cents," she said.
"I pretty much knew this from day one, but it seems Katherine has some interesting ideas about relationships. You know she is going to be leaving for the summer. A normal girl would be concerned that her boyfriend would stray. Not Katherine. In fact, she is encouraging it by picking someone out for me. That someone is Crystal, who is a friend of hers. She has even said that if a serious relationship developed between Crystal and me, she would be happy for us."
"Sounds to me like she doesn't want to get into a serious relationship and is breaking it off in the kindest way possible. At least that is what she thinks."
"You are a hundred percent correct about her wanting to avoid a serious relationship. On our first date, she said she didn't want us to go there. I guess Crystal is supposed to help assure it won't happen. Either she is worried that I'm getting too attached, or maybe she's weakening."
"Looks like you and this Crystal were getting along."
"We were, and we had a night you didn't see. I have some reservations, but there is a real chance I'll keep seeing Crystal. However, the plot doesn't end there. The curiousness of Katherine's plan is that she wants her cake and to eat it, too. She still wants to have sex with me when she gets back, but more than that, she wants the three of us to have sex together."
"Wow, she is a sexual being. How do you feel about that?"
"Great. It was just a matter of getting Crystal to agree to it, which was what the other night was about. She was hesitant at first but is excited about the threesome now."
"So, what's the problem? It seems like you have an ideal arrangement. If I were a guy, I would be very jealous. I'm kind of jealous as it is."
"Well, it has my head spinning. What Katherine is doing is--hmm--let's say unique, but what you said makes sense. She doesn't want a serious relationship, and we might have been headed that way. Honestly, I was hoping it would. This was the kindest way she could redirect it. She was clear in the beginning that our relationship was primarily sexual, and I guess she meant it. And still does. If you ask me to put my finger on a specific issue, I can't other than I was starting to feel something more than just friendship and sexual attraction. And with Crystal in the mix, my emotions are confused. Maybe I feel like I'm being passed around."
"I think you better go with Katherine's wishes. It sounds to me that if you pursue her, she will cut it off completely. You probably should take what you can get now, and maybe someday in the future, things will change with her. But in the meantime, you are one lucky dog. If I were you, I would give this Crystal a go, but you said you have reservations about her?"
"Don't get me wrong. She is great, and man, is she sexy. She can be kind of irritating, however."
"Irritating -- how?"
"It's kind of hard to describe, but it seems she is a bit of a feminist. She has no problem taking charge in our relationship, even though we barely know each other."
"Is the problem that she is a feminist or that you are a chauvinist?"
"Yeah, well, maybe a bit of both."
"You do know this is the eighties. You won't get any sympathy from me on this one."
"I know, and I'm trying. It was just the way I was raised."
"Well, my opinion on this one is that you need to make the adjustment."
"Yeah -- okay. I'm not sure why, but I'll think about it." She had a point, but he was irritated that she was pushing it on him. He didn't want to discuss it anymore and changed the subject by saying,
"One more thing. Crystal was raised as a naturist. Being naked is important to her. She would like to come over and use the yard, mostly for nude yoga. I'm not always going to be here when she wants to come over. Is it okay if she comes over when I'm not here?"