âYesâŠ. yesâŠokay. No, I canâtâŠ..you know I canât!âŠ..Oh, yes please. That would be wonderfulâŠâŠâŠ.eleven oâclock?âŠ..Me tooâŠâŠâŠ..ERâŠNO, SORRY, I THINK YOU MUST HAVE THE WRONG NUMBERâŠ. THATâS ALL RIGHT. GOODBYE.â
Linda OâSullivan replaced the receiver quickly and glanced nervously over at her husband as he stood framed in the doorway. He was looking directly at her. But how long had he been there? And how much had he heard? Linda immediately decided that he couldnât have heard anything suspicious; it was the most comfortable option and, besides, the alternatives were too horrible to imagine.
The Reverend Michael OâSullivan had just finished dressing and was fixing his white clerical collar in the mirror when he had heard the telephone ring. The face that stared back at him was older and more haggard than he imagined himself; his skin was lined and creased and the eyes that had once boiled with fire and brimstone as he preached from the pulpit now looked sunken and dark; almost lifeless. Not for the first time, he wondered what on earth Linda saw in him.
It had been a whirlwind romance and one that had made Michael question his faith. He had been celibate for ten years prior to meeting the lovely young woman that had so quickly entered his life and then consumed it. Ten long years spent crushing his emotions and down-treading his manly desires. Ten years without the comfort of female companionship.
At first he had tried to resist the carnal temptations that Linda â albeit unconsciously - put in his way, and it shouldnât have been too difficult. Their initial meetings were innocent enough; parish meetings and garden parties etc. But the day that he called at her house to discuss the editing of the parish magazine suddenly changed everything.
Linda had greeted him at the door. Clearly she had just stepped out of the shower; her mousey, blonde hair was wet and seemed to glisten in the afternoon sunlight and a large, fluffy white towel was wrapped around her body. She had invited him in, smiling. He had apologised for interrupting her and gladly accepted the offer of coffee. But as she had turned to him with the cup the towel had accidentally dropped to the floor. For several seconds the two had simply stared at each other; Linda with the cup still in her outstretched hand and Michael with a look of bewilderment on his face. Michael looked at the naked female form before him; the swell of her breasts, the flare of her hips, her slender, tapered legs and, of course, the light thatching of moist, downy hair that sat above her sex. He had tried to look away, tried to avert his eyes, but it was impossible. She seemed to draw him. The last ten years of restraint were building up and, despite himself, his body was reacting. No words were spoken. No excuses were made, the couple simply fell into each others arms.
That first time was fast and furious and, Michael guessed, quite unsatisfying for Linda. He took her there and then in the lounge of her house. They coupled on the floor like animals, Michael moaning and grunting wildly as his pent up passion, in that instant, completely overshadowed any respect for a deity. But when he was finished, his masculine fluids released and spent, he felt no remorse, no guilt. He felt alive again.
They had attempted to keep their courtship clandestine, but, inevitably, there was gossip around the parish. Tongues wagged in a small community such as theirs and eventually the couple were forced to come out of the shadows and announce their wedding plans.
But the gossip continued. Young Linda would never be a suitable wife for a parish priest, they said. Too flighty. Too young. Too impressionable, they said. A girl half his age. He should have taken a more eminent wife â so all the eligible women in the parish clearly thought. But Michael was unperturbed. He was in love and his celibacy was broken. He saw no reason why he should not continue to watch over his flock while being able to make love to a beautiful young woman.
âAnother wrong number? We seem to be getting a few of those recently.â
Linda nodded quickly and breathed an almost imperceptible sigh of relief.
âYes, wrong number.â
âMaybe we should get in touch with the telephone company. Perhaps there is something they can do.â
âMaybe.â Linda replied. âIâm making coffee, would you like some?â
Michael nodded as his wife walked passed him and into the cramped vicarage kitchen. He stared at the silent telephone and then moved dream-like towards it. He knew that he shouldnât do it. He knew that it was wrong â a betrayal of trust. He knew that he should have faith in his wife.
Michaelâs hand slowly lifted the receiver and his finger pressed the button to access the last number that had called. For a moment the line was quiet while he was being connected. The telephone was picked up before the first ring had finished.
âLinda? Is that you? I guess you were not able to speak. Donât worry, Iâll see you at eleven oâclock.â
There was a click as the line went dead.
Michael replaced the receiver slowly. His heart seemed to be racing and his face was flushed. Despite the shock of his findings there was something deep down inside him that told him that he shouldnât be surprised. He knew he was no great catch for a beautiful young woman. Wasnât it inevitable that she would find more excitement in the arms of another, younger man? But what should he do? A confrontation seemed a particularly unattractive prospect and, besides, what proof of Lindaâs infidelity did he really have? A phone call? No, that wasnât going to be enough for a meticulous man such as he. But he had information, didnât he? Times and places. And didnât they say that information was power? There was only one type of proof that would convince him.
âActually, my dear, donât worry about coffee for me.â Michael called into the kitchen, forcing himself to sound relaxed. âI have to go out; to the church. I should be back later this afternoon, okay?â
He heard his wife call her goodbyeâs as he walked out of the house. He closed the front door and began the short walk to the church â his refuge.
As she heard the door close, Linda OâSullivan breathed another deep sigh of relief. It had been a close call that morning. She had no real desire to hurt her husband but, frankly, she was completely fed up with being a vicarâs wife. It wouldnât have been so bad if the community had accepted her as such but the gossip and the whispers had continued long after the wedding.
And then there was the sex. She had accepted Michaelâs prematurity that first time they were together â she was well aware of his long period of celibacy â but in the two years that they had been together since, nothing much had changed. She had longed for more experimentation, more variety, but the Reverend OâSullivan seemed only interested in straight-forward, missionary position sex. Foreplay was non-existent and, although she had achieved orgasm whenever she had had sex with previous partners, she rarely even came close with her husband. She had quickly realised that she was becoming a frustrated housewife and when the first offer of adultery presented itself she had grabbed it like a drowning man clutching a lifebelt.
Rinsing out her empty coffee cup, she glanced at the kitchen clock. She shivered involuntarily as she realised that Mark would be with her in less than an hour. She felt her body react as she thought of his young, smooth body, his heavily muscled limbs and his solid manhood. A tingle ran through her body. Beneath the bathrobe her nipples hardened to excited points and she could feel the familiar wetness between her legs. She was more than ready for her lover. The question was, could she wait until eleven oâclock!
The Reverend Michael OâSullivan knelt in prayer before the great altar; his head bowed and his mind compliant. He had asked God for guidance, for direction. His body craved leadership. But there had been little in the way of response. No sign, no omen, no portent. Clearly this was something that he was going to have to deal with alone. Something mortal.
Michaelâs hand gripped the alter rail for assistance as he stood. His joints seemed to creak and complain more these days â possibly due a lifetime spent kneeling in conformity. He bowed his head once more in the direction of the crucifix adorning the wall above the altar and turned on his heel. He glanced once at his watch and was surprised to see that he had been praying for just under an hour â it was now just after eleven-fifteen. His mind was made up. A decision had been produced. It was an unpleasant task, he knew â furtive and underhanded â but, without concrete proof, he was disinclined to form the conclusion that, deep down, he knew to be true. His fingers traced a pattern around the clerical collar that encircled his neck. On an impulse he pulled hard and felt the fastening break. Dropping the collar to the floor he strode purposefully from the church and back in the direction of the vicarage â today he would not be a priest.
As he padded silently up the stairs towards the vicarageâs single bedroom, Michaelâs heart was beating faster than he had ever thought possible and beads of perspiration freckled his forehead. Halfway he stopped suddenly, wondering what he was doing. His theological training had taught him to question everything and now he was enquiring of himself. What did he expect to achieve by this action? What good would it do? Why was he here at all and not still safely ensconced in the sanctity of his beloved church? He had no answers, he realised. He simply knew that he must discover the truth.
The sound of voices from above broke his reverie. Not ethereal voices these but mortal, human voices. A man and a woman laughing quietly. Enjoying each otherâs company? His legs felt as though they belonged to someone else, but Michael forced himself to press on and up the remaining steps to the bedroom.
Linda OâSullivan and Mark Haywood lay together on top of the recently made double bed. It mattered little to either of them that Linda and her husband had vacated the sheets only a few hours previously; they were more concerned about exploring each otherâs bodies.
Linda had prepared herself â as she always did â for Marks arrival. Her hair had been freshly washed and she had changed into a short skirt and a thin halter-neck top. Her feet and legs were bare and she had added nail polish to her toes that precisely matched her fingers. As usual, she thought, Mark had not made such an effort. His jeans were the same as he had worn for their last meeting and his black shirt was a simple button-down affair. But Linda wasnât too concerned â it wasnât his clothes that she was after!
Michael closed his eyes in regret as he peered through the gap in the door and
saw his young wife and her lover together for the first time. The hairs on the back of his neck prickled like sunburn as he watched them and he swallowed hard as he prepared himself for the inevitable confrontation. But as his damp, clammy palm closed around the door handle, there was something that halted him. He was suddenly unsure of his ground; the man currently caressing Lindaâs body was considerably younger than he was â and clearly much fitter and stronger. But Michael was no coward and, again, steeled himself to burst in through the door. Again, though his body refused to obey his brainâs command and remained frozen on the handle.