She heard the door close and heard Barts' feet tip-toeing down the three steps then heard his feet on the pavement as he broke into a jog. Relieved that he had gotten away undetected she relaxed, laid back and rubbed her hand on the spot on the mattress where the young man had been sleeping. It was 4:15.
For the first time in her life her body was sexually sated. Why couldn't it have ever been that way with Phillip, she thought, tears welling in her eyes? How many times had she wished that Phillip would have ravished her the way this stranger, and such a young stranger, did?
She would have thought that the fact that Bart and she were such strangers would have made sex awkward. Perhaps it was because Bart had admitted to numerous such experiences that made it come together so seamlessly. Also, she had felt kind of motherly feeling for him; maybe that was it. Whatever it was, she had been incredibly hungry. Perhaps that hunger had made her unaware of any feeling of unease. Their initial coming together took the edge off that hunger but then made her even more ravenous.
Until yesterday it had only been a fantasy, a fantasy she expected, most women married had imagined. Then, last night, the fantasy became real...and it lasted into the morning.
But her fantasy was always with a man her age or slightly older, or slightly younger. Never in her wildest dreams would it have ever been someone as young as Bart... only a year older than her son, Malcolm. True, she had had fleeting fantasies about Malcolm, always with a sense of supreme guilt, knowing such a thing would never happen. Maybe, she thought, had it been with an older man it would have been more awkward. But, would that have made it more right?
As long as it was merely fantasy it was personal, within the depths of her mind. Only she knew. But now she had done it...committed a terrible sin. The thought of being unfaithful to her husband made her feel like such an incredible cheat. But hadn't she begged him so many times over the years to be more attentive? Did I really tell him, she asked herself? I did, and asked him at least three times to seek marriage counseling.
I'm a slut, she thought. I've broken my marriage vows. She prayed, knowing above all else that God would forgive her. If she were Catholic she could confess to a priest. He would say, "Go out my child and sin no more." She was unsettled and tired. She slid her hand again over the spot on the mattress beside her, vowing that she wouldn't do it again. Her thoughts became muddled and she fell into a deep sleep.
Agatha awoke just before noon. She stretched and winced at the soreness between her legs then remembered how thick Bart's erecting penis was and how many times he had thrust it inside her. She pushed on her abdomen and tested the soreness but it was isolated to her vaginal muscles. It was a hurt she had never felt before and it felt good to her. She sighed and said, "Too bad I won't be able to do it again."
Lying on the beach was different that day. It was as if she had been massaged inside and out and she felt totally relaxed. She didn't look at others in the same way has she had the day before. But today her eyes searched the life guard towers. She wanted to see if she could find Bart...to see if he was as she remembered him. But she couldn't find him. The sun baked her and she felt warm and relaxed, disappointed in a way, but safe.
It was 2:30. She hadn't eaten and needed something. Walking the short distance to a stand on the boardwalk she ordered a hotdog and a coke. As she was putting condiments on the hotdog she heard laughter behind her and turned. There were two lifeguards and two young girls, gorgeous in their bikinis. Both of the lifeguards had their backs to her but, by the mop of blond hair she recognized Bart, and her stomach flopped like she had just gone over the first crest of a roller coaster. Bart glanced over at her without so much as an acknowledgement and seemed to move the other three away from where she was standing.
Agatha was hurt. After all the things he had said to her last night. Was she just another one of his "older women" conquests? She watched as the four young people, laughing and joking, walked away. She eyed the two girls, both with slim, hour-glass figures...watched their shapely bottoms swinging seductively...knew they were strutting their stuff...knew these were the kind of girls a young man like Bart really wanted to be with.
She put her hand on the pooch of her belly, pursed her lips and shook her head. "Stop trying to fool yourself. You're not Aggie; you're Agatha, just an old woman." Her breath shot from her nostrils and she whispered in disgust, "You're such a slut!"
In the evening she found herself in the same outdoor restaurant as the previous night, eating at the same table by the railing, where Bart had approached her. All day she had convinced herself that it was only a fling, a one night stand for him...and, for that matter, for her, her only stand. She had realized her fantasy and could now go back to being the dutiful preacher's wife. Her feeling of hurt at being ignored by Bart on the boardwalk had been massaged by philosophical practicality. She accepted a sleazy episode of her life and vowed she'd never repeat it. But, try as she might, she couldn't get the pictures out of her head at what she and Bart had done. The tenderness between her legs persisted and the feeling of raw sex was still on her mind.
Agatha had slept 'til almost noon, and on the beach had basked in the sun all afternoon. She came home from the beach about 4:30 and took a two hour nap. It was just after ten o'clock. The Mets had just won their game and she had turned off the TV. Being alone was a luxury she had never had before, and she was lavishing in it. She had been on retreats with other women from the church. But had never been alone, just by herself.
She was wide awake and couldn't get last night off her mind. Trying to erase her actions she smiled, shook her head, and jibed, "Aggie...you slut." Then, as Agatha, she repented of what she had done and considered how she was going to live with it. Telling Phillip about it would serve no useful purpose and would probably be more hurtful than helpful. She had learned a lesson and she hoped it would make her a better, more understanding person. As a minister's wife, she reasoned, she could be helpful in talking with women who had similar cravings and were having difficulties in their marriages. Perhaps, she thought, this is the Lord's way of making me more responsive to other women.
She went to bed and was reading, thinking that she was so wide awake that she would probably get half way through her book. There was a noise in the and her heart fell into her stomach. It was the doorknob at the back entrance. The door was locked. Maybe she was just jumpy and had been mistaken about the noise. Then, there was a light tapping on the door.