Chapter 11
Coughlin's Club
When John finally got home -- he had had quite a bit of unfinished business at his MacDonald franchise -- Argie was waiting for him, and handed him a Scotch on the rocks even before he was in the door.
"What?" he said, and would have said more but Argie hushed him, saying, "We have to talk."
Taking a sip of his Scotch, he nodded, and said, "So talk."
"It's not a time for sarcasm, John. I want to get this over with before the kids come home. They'll disrupt everything."
He sat down in his favorite chair, took another sip, and said, "Well, thanks for the drink. I needed it. So what's the story?"
"I'm not sure how to begin, so I'll jump right into it. Doctor Coughlin called me back to the office this afternoon." She pulled a tissue from her pocket and wiped at some moisture that had built up just above her upper lip.
"God, I've been sweating like a pig since he called. Sorry. Anyway, he's asking us if we'd be interested in joining a club that he belongs to."
"Which one? I don't have too much time for clubs; they tie you up at the worst possible times."
Argie grimaced at his words. "It's not that type club."
"He's a sex therapist, isn't he?"
"Yes, of course . . ."
"He's already got you putting out for his . . . clients, right?"
"It's a valid occupation, helping those in need. Not like your little hobby -- fucking everything in skirts."
"Okay, let's stop throwing bombs at each other," John said, holding his hands out in an amicable fashion.
"Well, anyway" Argie said after a second or two, "you're close. He's offering us a membership in a very discrete sex club.
"How discrete can a sex club be?"
"As close-mouthed as its weakest member, darling. Right now that would be us. And I have to tell you, John, that Doctor Coughlin has some important members in this club. They can crush us if they wanted too. Believe you me."
"But we're not members," he said, puzzled.
"We have an invitation to join. If we decline, we have to keep our mouths shut. If not, I lose my job, and you may discover that the home office suddenly has major problems with the way you're running the franchise."
"I don't know . . ."
"John, you're always chasing pussy."
"That's not fair," he replied defensively, "I'm going to Sex Addicts Anonymous, aren't I?"
"Yeah, sure," Argie spat out, "and what's the first thing you did at a meeting? Cull a slut from the ranks and fuck her brains out. Yeah, you need Addicts Anonymous, and I need another ass hole."
"What about you?" he said, "and . . . and that boyfriend. And what about those patients needing a blowjob, or whatever?"
"Go to hell!" Argie shouted, and bent down, removed her right show, and threw it at him, hitting him in the shin.
As he hopped around in pain, he glanced at the clock on the mantle and saw that the kids would be arriving in just a minute or two.
"Wait," he said to Argie's back as she was leaving the room. "C'mon back here. I'll listen. I had a bad day and didn't appreciate hearing that my life, such as it is, is about to be controlled by your Doctor Coughlin."
"He's not about controlling us," Argie told him, doing her utmost to remain calm. He knows about you. He certainly knows about me. So a couple are being transferred to Las Vegas, and he thought we would be the perfect couple to take their place."
"How does this club work?" John asked.
"He'll tell us both tomorrow. We're invited to lunch at Spenser's."
John's eyebrows went up. Spenser's was the most exclusive place to dine in the region. He had tried to get reservations there several times to celebrate their anniversary, but had been told they were booked up months in advance.
Now Doctor Coughlin was having them to lunch there. The other members must be quite well-off and in powerful positions to accommodate them like this, he thought.
"Let's see what the good doctor has to say," he said, and Argie gave him a fierce hug.
****
The following afternoon, they arrived at Spenser's and turned their car over to the valet. John wore his best suit, a dark blue pin-stripe, with a yellow tie. Argie wore a new dress, a pale yellow with a revealing neckline, that had cost her over three hundred dollars.
Doctor Coughlin was waiting for them and they sat at the bar while waiting for their table.
"I'm pleased to meet you, John," Coughlin said amicably.
"The pleasure's all mine," John said in return.
"And you, Argie, look like a movie star," Coughlin added a second later.
"Oh, Doctor . . ." Argie gushed. She felt a little giddy as they made their way to the table, and she realized that she had already had three drinks. 'Where had they all gone?' she wondered, and then forgot about it as her eyes went wide on seeing the sumptuous table setting before her.
"Wow! They believe in going all out, don't they?" she said as the server held her chair out for her to be seated.
A bottle of fine wine was brought to the table, opened and poured. They drank, and then Doctor Coughlin got down to business.
"John, Argie, one of the reasons I asked you both here this afternoon was to extend a formal invitation to join a small club of which I'm a member."
"I would ask that you hold any questions for the moment. The club, or group, is relatively small in size, made up of . . . let's just say, prominent personages in the area. The two of you meet the qualifications for membership. There are no dues, by the way. Discretion is an important -- I might say, vital -- aspect of membership."