Slapped Upside The Head Pt 02

Slapped Upside the Head

Part 2: Buying In, Taking Responsibility

From part 1:

In fact, why would two women who fucked strangers more times per month than their husbands want to reconcile with their husbands? Again, what the hell?

And yet, he and Danny knew it was coming, like an F5 tornado for a trailer park.

****

As soon as they announced their engagement, Rita's dad demanded protection for her trust, and required separated bank, savings, and investment accounts, fearing Danny's fledgling company would go belly-up. DMc, LLC was born a limited liability corporation, with Daniel Kirk McMillan as the sole proprietor. Neither Rita nor her dad paid any attention to the business he was growing, but the 'affordable housing' contract with Dallas was steady money. It also grew his reputation for good work done quickly and within contract parameters, and soon he had another contract to build more housing for Dallas.

Then a hotel of a major chain, a performance hall for a nearby school district, several buildings on the joint military base at Fort Worth, and before he knew it, he was hiring craftsmen and construction workers, and executing leases for equipment, for the fourth time.

At that point, he gave up on the 'owner-operator' job, hired a third office manager and a CFO, and then found the COO he wanted. They didn't get those titles, though, because he wanted the company to be as flat as possible, in keeping with the teachings of W. E. Deming that he had studied and internalized in college, and implemented as core values of his company, even back when it was only the five of them.

Demands and proposals flowed upward in D-Mac, as the employees called it, and he was responsible for providing them with whatever they needed. He had questioned a few orders, proposed changes, and the need for certain equipment a few times, but each time the explanation had been solid, and he quickly signed off.

Of course, being onsite every day eliminated the disconnect that plagues too many larger businesses, and his COO - Roberto Flores - continued that critical practice at least part of four days each week. The other day he was in the office, coordinating with the office managers and the new CFO/accountant, Cindy Belvin. Cindy was single; a tall, long-legged blonde with a nice ass and small boobs who looked like she could hurt you in bed! But Danny didn't fish in the company pond, although she was a temptation, even when he was married.

Over the last thirteen months he focused on acquiring new contracts, including the crown jewels that would last five years, and might result in even larger contracts! In the end, he won both, and favorable contracts were signed. If his people didn't mess up, and he was confident they wouldn't, they would be fittingly compensated with even better benefits for the foreseeable future, and his accounts would prosper.

The $6.2 million certainly wasn't pocket change for Danny, and it did dent his acquisitions account pretty good. But for five years, he had driven the same pickup and worn work clothes, except when meeting with potential clients. His only extravagance was his wife, to whom he had given a credit card with a $100,000 limit, and leased whatever expensive vehicle fits her current lifestyle. Right now, that was a Mercedes Benz luxury SUV, the lease for which he had abrogated effective tomorrow. That would also be fireworks worth observing, if it didn't require being in the same area code with her!

He knew they would find him, but he'd already enjoyed a few days of peace, and wasn't too stressed when good old Daddy Warbucks called his new phone. It started off civilly, with him thanking Danny for the video featuring his wife, and commenting, "We had an agreement that we both could play discreetly and safely, but your video proves she isn't abiding by it. That said, Danny, Rita loves you. She wants to bear your children, and sit in swings watching the sunset in your golden years.

"I blame it on her mother and sister, who I've learned have been doing this for years. She was lonely because you were gone all the time, and she gave way to familial persuasion and temptation. She swears to me, her dad, that if you take her back, she'll never let

anyone but you

touch her again!

Her dad had some clout around OKC, where the divorce was filed, so Danny overcame his dislike enough to calmly say, "Wayne, did you listen to the conversations? Go watch the videos again, and this time listen to the conversations. The three women demeaned and ridiculed their three men in about every way you can, from lack of brains, to being wimps, to sexual failings, and, in the hotel room of that last film, they recounted when this began years ago, and why.

"If, after listening to that, you still feel I should give her another chance, call me and we'll talk. But you won't. No one with any self-respect would ever put up with the contempt she, and the others, displayed toward their husbands! Do what you will with your wife, but don't try to convince Bill and I to take ours back - that will not happen!

"The pre-nuptial agreements your attorneys crafted, and all four of us signed, are the guidelines by which these unions will be dissolved, just as you planned. They walk away with their trust funds and whatever else they brought to the union, and that's all.

"However, I've added $100,000 for each year Rita and I were married if she will sign within a month. That's the sum total Rita is getting, and if she tries to fight me, or if Claudia tries to fight Bill, those tapes might make it into the public domain, where they will be seen by your friends, competitors, and clients!"

I took a deep breath to calm down, and asked, "Are we clear now?"

"Yes, I understand. But you can believe my attorneys are digging hard for any error they made in crafting that damn pre-nup! Rita deserves a part of that business you built with her support, and I'm going to get it for her, video be damned!"

"That spoiled shit deserves nothing, and you damn well know it! After the first year, she was in Oklahoma City as much as she was here, and she never showed any interest in my business, much less support my tired ass while I labored long hours to build it!

"She didn't work, but she had a housekeeper and a cook! I gave her everything she wanted, from clothes and jewelry to cars and trips to exotic locations. She apparently believed that leeway included fucking everything with a cock, too! So don't think for a minute I won't ruin your family name along with her! I know shit about you that would get you removed as Chairman of your company, and trustee of the family estate! Hell, it will get you locked up!

"So fuck you, old man! You married a slut and raised sluts - that's on you! I leased one for a while, but that's over whether you like it or not, so shut the fuck up and go away, or suffer consequences you won't survive!"

After a bit of sputtering, he replied, "And to think I thought you were too soft to succeed in business!

"I'll look your offer over, and Bill's - he's with you, I assume - and get back to you. And fuck you, too!"

Roberto confirmed they had a small crew that just finished an apartment building, and said they had a month before their next project began. It was one of Danny's favorite crews, and he asked Sara, one of the office managers, to get them housing in Chance for a month, beginning in four days.

There was only one motel, but she found a luxury house on a hill overlooking town with five bedrooms and baths on VRBO, and rented it for a month. That meant the five-man crew would each have a bedroom, and a backyard pool. The owner explained that they bought the house because he and his wife intend to move to Chance next July, before school starts, and renting it via VRBO seemed a good way to put money on the mortgage without worrying about it getting torn up.

Road builders, fence builders, welders, and brush removal crews were advertised in the paper, but claimed to be booked a long ways out. Plumbers and electricians? Maybe in a few months.

I was so frustrated I complained to Charlie, who made a few calls, offered bonuses for starting within a week, and teased Danny about his poor business skills when they accepted.

"Up here in the hills, it ain't

what

you know, it's

who

you know and how well you barter! But I'll vouch for these boys and girls, and once they've worked with you, that won't be a problem moving forward."

"Girls?" Bill asked.

"Yep. Miss Maddy, the woman that operates the bulldozer with the roller-chopper is the best around, and Grace, the welder, lays the prettiest bead you ever saw. Grace shows her work at the craft fairs, but she was on vacation with her kids and hubby during our last one. They're good looking women, too, which you'll see when they show up next week."

Bill's stomach growled, which reminded me I was starving. "I don't hear Kay and don't smell anything cooking - is she not around?"

"Once a month she goes off galivanting with some girlfriends, so she won't be back until dark. Load up in my truck and I'll introduce you to original pit barbeque, Hill Country style.

We were close to town when Charlie turned the conversation back to the BBQ joint. "They've been in business since the 1950s, so their meat ain't bad! Take a gander at their 'celebrity board' with pictures of all the famous people who've eaten there, including Ray Price and the Cherokee Cowboys. Who, by the way, used to drive out of their way to eat barbeque here."

He then teased my partner, "Sorry, Bill, but none of them were actually Cherokee. Or cowboys, for that matter. Most were members of Hank Williams' Drifting Cowboy Band, and I'll bet you didn't know old Ray started out as a veterinarian!"

Bill replied that he was eager to try the barbeque, and asked what kinds of meat they had. "You'll see it all, in just a minute," Ken replied, and pulled up in front, ignoring the signs to the parking lot in back. We got out, got in line, and looked over the offerings on the grill of the twenty-foot long, six foot wide pit. A guy was carrying hot coals from the fire pit, which was a tall, enclosed metal structure shaped like a football with the bottom cut off. He tossed the coals through a little door on the end, away from the meats, put his shovel away, and came over to the line. "Can I help you?" he asked.

I was overwhelmed by the offerings! I recognized pork and beef ribs, brisket, pork loin, and chicken, but not the other meats. When we walked away, he followed us inside with a tray mounded with barbequed meats, including goat, lamb, and bacon wrapped jalapeños stuffed with brisket. I paid - it was over $100, including the potato salad, Cole slaw, drinks, and apple cobbler - but we got free beans, bread, onion slices, pickles, and there were jars of pickled jalapeños on the table.

"Charlie, I've got to know - what wood makes this kind of bark on the brisket?" Bill asked. "That's the best tasting bark I've ever had!"

"Post oak and mesquite," he answered. "Walk around back and you'll see stacks of it."

"So don't roller-chopper all the mesquite and oaks on the place? Save it for barbequing?" I laughed in response.

We ate until we were sick, and still took a sack full home with us. Thanks to Charlie, we also met a score or more of men and women, some eating there, some taking it home. As promised, it was amazing Q, but I seriously needed a nap after the gut overload. Turned out we all did.

Just before we left their house late that evening, after a few card games and beers, Kay came home on a wine high, and blew her cover. She was giggly, fidgety, full of stories, and what could best be called effervescence. After a half-hour of being entertained by her, Charle leaned over and whispered "See why I married her? This is the way she used to be, but hasn't been since our kids moved so far away. Maybe she's adopted you two banditos."

She might have, but that was a hug to remember when we left!

We drove to San Angelo in Bill's truck the next day and bought him all the tools and equipment he would need, as well as custom paints I had chosen (with Kay's approval). He also needed hardware and supplies, so we got those too.

There were other things we needed, including something like a hazmat suit, to clean out the barn; Amazon was delivering the white suit Friday. I was the head of and only member of that crew, but I bought another, in case I found someone hungry enough to help me in there. Hell, I was planning to take my shotgun with me, just in case. Dark, scary place full of bats and varmints, and who knows what else!

Friday afternoon late, after we'd finished our preparations for next week, Bill came over with a grin on his face. "Guess who just called?"

"With that grin, maybe Claudia? Just kidding! Don't blow up on me! I have no idea who!"

"Remember Tricia, from your girl gang? She's going to visit her grandmother in Brownwood Saturday, but wants to come down here that evening and spend the night - with me!"

I congratulated him, but I was jealous. You'd think that, out of six, one would have given me a call by now!

He went back to the trailer to begin cleaning up; I went back and called my esteemed friend Lyndon on his cell phone. I hadn't gotten around to calling him before, but I knew he and a mixed group from his office went to a bar after work on Friday, so his wife wouldn't be along.

We exchanged greetings and salutations, he took his phone to a quieter area near the restrooms, and asked me how things were going. "Not that bad," I replied, "but I'm calling to get some information I just received verified. How long have you and our other friends been fucking my wife? And don't say you haven't - I have photos and video!"

Lyndon had played cards with me, and had never caught me bluffing; not that I hadn't, but I'd never been caught. He hesitated, and I warned, "These pics and vids are queued up and waiting; if I don't get a truthful answer from you, I'm sending them to your wife and parents! 5-4-3-2..."

"Wait! Okay, we have enjoyed her favors a few times, but you were too busy to care, so it didn't cost you anything! She's just so sexy, and she came on to us, and we weren't strong enough to tell her no!"

"So, how long has it been going on, and which one of you took the videos and photos that I received samples of in my email?"

"Shit, I don't remember exactly when! I remember you were working on that first round of affordable housing for Dallas, if that helps. Chris took the videos, but he shared them with all of us! I don't know how you got samples."

"You have five minutes to get the entire bunch to me. I don't care what you do with them after that, but I want them as backup if she doesn't sign the divorce papers by April 15."

"If I do, you won't send anything to my wife, right?"

"Not if you send me everything, and give me some detail on when and where they were taken."

In my furious brain, I told him 'Believe that if you want, dumbass! But if she doesn't sign and I file for adultery, all five of you will be named and the videos and photos will be entered into evidence anyway! And, since our friendship means nothing, why should my word matter when it comes to you and the others? You all fucked me over; now it's your turn!'

I didn't say it, but it was true!

I went outside, fed Chase, and got into my pickup. I was pissed off, and I needed beer and companionship. I found both at the craft brewery, where Kayla was glad to see me and immediately poured our favorite dark beer! I say 'our' because this is her special concoction, and we both love it.

I'd also like to taste the special concoction at the triangle of those skintight jeans she was wearing. Being taller - 5'8" or so, and slender - 140 pounds, maybe - there was a gap between her legs that allowed me, and everyone else, to see a place you usually only see when they spread their legs for you. Anyway, I found it kind of sexy last time, and very much so this time.

Sitting at the bar, I could watch her running around behind the bar and out into the room. She had a higher, tighter ass than I remembered, and plumb-size titties, but her frame was narrower and more athletic than curvy. She knew I was watching, and gave me plenty of opportunities to assess.

Curly brown hair cut shoulder length, a nice face with strong, Germanic features - all in all, not half bad! A solid 7.5, and although it wasn't close to closing time, I decided she would do.

I used to be pickier, but college took that out of me. The nines who thought they were tens, and thought that fucking them should be such a thrill they didn't need to participate, about cured me of that search. Then there were the 6s and 7s who fucked your brains out with great enthusiasm; they cured what was left of my search for the perfect 10.

Well, the sevens, and a 50 year-old who took me under her wing and tutored me until I got it right. She was outstanding for her age, but barely a 6 if put up against the 19 year-olds I had been enjoying. Still, being helped to understand the mysterious female body, being given positive reinforcement when I got it right and gentle correction when I didn't, made her a ten in my diary. I was sorely disappointed when she found Mr. Right and left her star pupil (her words) behind.

Anyway, what I saw in Kayla was a mixture of a hot nature and a bad attitude about being fucked over by hubby and misused by more than a few other boys and men in her life. She'd be a good fuck, IMO, but then what? Not sure she'd go for fuckbuddies, and she's not my next life partner, so I thought I'd just watch and speculate, in case she suggested fuckbuddies.

The words came from over my right shoulder. "Aren't you Charlie and Kay's boarder? I saw the way you handled that mess at the dance last weekend, and wanted to thank you, on behalf of all other girls and women those assholes have molested!"

I got turned around about half-way through that opening gambit, and I had to clamp my mouth shut to keep it from hanging open. It wasn't that she was a sophisticated ten; no, she was a country beauty with long, silky blonde hair that reached her leather belt in back, wearing a tight tee-shirt with a picture of the long haired singer and WWWD - What Would Wille Do?

Her jeans weren't as tight as Kayla's, but she had curves everywhere Kayla didn't, and the belt was necessary to cinch the jeans around her small waist. Her waist probably called for a 4/5, but her butt and legs needed the 7/8. The blue eyeshadow above her cornflower blue eyes was the only makeup I could see. I reassessed, and decided, "County Gorgeous, with an overlay of innocence - not numerically rate-able."

That instant attraction should have sent me running, but she seemed so guileless I got stupid. "I'd give the credit to the posse of young men from Chance who hunted the predators down and dealt with them, the EMTs who took care of her on the way to the ER, and the doctors and nurses who helped her recover. But if you want to believe I did something to help, I'll accept your gratitude.

"Now, who are you, and who are you with?"

She pointed at a table and started drifting that way. "I'm Brooklyn, and I'm here with my friends Carrie and Sherry. I turned 21 last weekend, so they brought me here to have a legal beer in a real beer joint!"

I chuckled. "That you think this is a real beer joint and not a craft brewery tells me all three of you are 21, and only recently reached that age. Am I right?"

She smiled in agreement before introducing me to her friends, both of whom were different shades of country pretty. "Would you like to sit with us?" Brooklyn asked.

"Well, of course, but, if you are all really 21, I'll buy you your first legal beer in a real craft brewery, and your friends one too, if they'd like. Everyone's really 21, right?"