Maxine's New Life Ch. 01

The Sedgefield was so classy that when I asked for his room, they not only called ahead, but they escorted me to the room. I supposed that they didn't want the riff or the raff rubbing elbows with the sweaty golfers.

The young man in the cheap suit knocked on a door with the number 8 attached. The number was brass and had to be original to the door. James Sidmore opened the door himself. He looked to be about my age or a little Older, but not much,

The young man stepped back after the door opened. "Mr Sidmore, I presume?" I asked in my special smart ass voice.

"I see you don't care for my accommodations. To be honest I don't either, but they are discrete here."

"Well it is a little stuffy for my taste," I replied.

"Yes, I can imagine. You don't strike me as the country club type, and I mean that in a very good way."

"Okay. so what exactly is it I can do for you?"

"You can have a seat for starters."

I sat on the small sofa. The sitting portion of the room was small. "So where is the package?" I asked.

"I am the package," he replied with a smile, but there was no humor in it.

"I think you need to call a hooker, I'm sure they know someone at the desk," I replied standing to leave.

"I'm afraid those are not the talents I need. You see Ms. Stone in three hours my cell phone will ring. When it does a man will give me an address and I hope you will drive me there along with a briefcase filled with cash. At that address I will trade that brief case for another briefcase. Then we shall leave. When we arrive safely at the airport, I will hand you an envelope with one thousand dollars."

"And what will be in briefcase number two, the one headed for the airport?"

"That is of no concern to you."

"Actually it is. If it is drugs, then a thousand bucks it way too cheap. If it is stolen classified documents, there is no price high enough."

"Sorry to tell you this, but nothing so glamorous. The briefcase contains the formula for a new cancer drug. What's even less glamorous is that I already own it."

"Somebody ripped it off and now they want to sell it back?"

"Something like that," he replied.

"So you are sure that he has the only copy of the formula. It wouldn't be hard to sell it to you, then sell it to someone else as well."

"True, but I'm not buying it from the thief. I am buying it from the person the thief sold it to. That person assures me there are no other copies and he has no interest in selling it to anyone else. He is simply a recovery expert."

"Ah like the insurance company that pays the thief to return the painting."

"Exactly, the formula would make news if someone else tried to manufacture it. This way the recovery man gets his reward, and I secure the formula."

"I see. So why do you need to pay a grand for a cab ride."

"Let's say, I'm not a trusting man."

"I would say that in this case, it's probably for the best. Now the big question is why me?"

"I think a woman would raise fewer eyebrows at the exchange. It is a proven fact that you are capable of defending yourself."

"And of defending you and the money, should your expert prove to be a con man."

"Yes that to," he admitted.

"I'll take my money in advance, and if this goes sideways, I will take a hell of a lot more than a thousand dollars for my trouble."

"Sorry,I don't pay in advance," he replied seriously.

I didn't answer I just stood to leave. "Don't you trust me?" he asked.

"About as much as you seem to trust me, but it's more than that. If this goes sideways, you may not be able to pay me. I could wind up in a jail cell for a couple of days while the cops sort it out, and still end up with nothing."

"I see, very well." He opened the brief case. From it he removed a brown postal envelope. After he handed it to me, I looked inside. There were ten $100 bills.

"So what would you like to do for the next three hours?" I asked.

"Let's go have a drink on the patio and watch the golfers coming in."

"If that's what you want?" I agreed.

I was on my forth diet coke when the call came in. As I had instructed he wrote the address down. He didn't try to memorize it. The instructions were that we were to leave immediately. Sidmore settled the bill while I got the van.

He wasn't impressed with the van, I could tell. It was pretty obvious when he said, "I figured you for a sports car."

"A van is a lot more practical for changing clothes, than a two seater with a rag top."

"Yes I can see that," he agreed.

The address proved to be an abandoned auto sales lot. Not one of those fancy bankrupt dealer things, but a vacant lot with a small frame building used previously as the pressure cooker office. We arrived early so I gave it a quick once over. Then I moved my van to the center of the parking lot. It wasn't a big lot and there was only one entrance from the street. Since my van had blacked out windows, it was going to make the recovery man nervous.

When the black Chrysler pulled into the parking lot, I said, "James get behind the wheel, when I get out. If this goes bad, just drive right over us and get the hell out of here."

"He is expecting me." James said.

"If he is straight up, he will be asked what the hell is going on. If he is not right, he will get hinky as hell. Like I said, if it goes wrong, get out and send the cops back."

I stepped from the van and walked between it and the Chrysler. "Nice ride," I said to the man who got out of the car.

"Are you carrying?" he asked.

"Of course, aren't you?"

"Yeah, whose in the van?"

"Sidmore, whose in the car?"

"Mr. Issac, so you got the money?"

"Yeah, you got the merchandise?"

"Sure," he replied

"Your boss shows me his case then my boss will show you his money."

"We are making the rules," the voice in the back of the car shouted.

"You are being careful, and so are we. I think you should respect that."

"Okay, I'll get out when your boss does," he said.

I walked back to the minivan. "He says he will get out of the car when you get out of the van."

"You seem to know what you are doing, should I?"

"Would you recognize the formula as real?" I asked.

"Hell no, I'm the money man not a scientist."

"Shit you should have gotten one of the lab coats to come along. There is no need to risk yourself. Just give me the case and I'll get his. When I come back you drive this thing the hell out of here. I don't want to waste any time."

"Fair enough," he said handing me the case. "If you don't do this right, I'm going to runyou over."

"If it goes bad, trust me you are the least of my worries."

Actually it went perfectly. I carried the case to the man in the back of the Chrysler. He took it opened it then opened his case for me to see. There was a thick book with a cover that looked scientific to me. We made the exchange. "You know if this isn't legit, there is no where you can hide. Sidmore has more money than god."

"Yeah, it's legit," he assured me.

It must have been I got Sidmore on the plane without any incidents and he didn't call asking for his money back. So I considered it case closed. The formula things had been interesting, but it was only a tiny island in a sea of bullshit.

I had become a regular at the Cop Out. Most of the people in the club knew me or knew of me, so it didn't require me to be on stage. I liked the laid back atmosphere. Too bad that Andrew the intern, as I began to think of him, never came back.

The men began to hit on me right after Andrew, but I said no while I waited to see if he would return. By the time I gave up on him, the men had given up on me. Since no one knew that I was bi, the women all wanted to be my friend. None of them had any interest in me sexually. Yes I could tell just by talking to them. So many straight women in one place. It was depressing.

I was in the Cop Out one night in the middle of the week. It was also in the middle of September, when a stranger came in. At least he was a stranger to me. Blevins knew him enough to speak, when the man walked in. The stranger nodded then moved to the bar. The stranger wasn't real big but he was solid. I liked the way he looked.

"Hey Blevins who is the kid?" Yes he was younger than me by about twenty years.

"Careful Max, you could be messin' with a minor."

"I don't think so. He just bought a beer. So give Blevins who is he?"

"His name is Jerry something or other. He has been undercover with narcotics. Straight from the academy to buying coke and rock on the street."

"Hell there ain't enough drugs in Aster to keep anyone busy. I think the dealers come in on the bus." I laughed.

"Sheriff has Aster and Tryon. Kid was on loan to the Sheriff's department."

"Then how do you know him?" I asked. "He ain't family is he?"

"No Max, he isn't family. I knew him from the academy. I teach out there."

"Very good," I said with a smile. "Introduce me."

"I had no idea you were a cougar," Blevins said.

"I am not really, I just don't rule anything out. He is cute. What's that old saying, waste not, want not." I smiled at Blevins as I said it.

The kid stood at the low lunch counter with a long neck beer bottle. "Hey Jerry, come here a minute," Blevins said.

When the kid arrived he went on, "I want you to meet Max Stone."

"It's Maxine and hi."

"Hello Ms Stone, I have heard a lot about you."

"I know, I'm even more beautiful in real life," I laughed at the sarcasm.

"Well that wasn't exactly what I heard. The word is that you need to buy a big life insurance policy."

"Why is that?" Blevins asked.

"The three bangers she ambushed didn't belong to the 5th Street Rollers, but they were relatives of a couple of them. Also that warning you gave Paco was taken seriously by the Rollers."

"Oh really, well I'll head on down to Wallymart for a vest."

"Just thought I would pass that along. Kind of showing my goodwill." Jerry suggested.

"I appreciate that. I can use all the goodwill and information I can get."

"There was a lot of discussion about whether to take a woman seriously or not."

"Too bad they decided to take me serious."

"Yeah it is. Just keep your eyes open and your head down." Jerry said as he turned to leave.

"Guess you don't have to worry about me robbing the cradle."

"No, now I have to worry about a gang hit in my town."

"I think I'll worry about it a little more than you," I suggested. It looked like a good time to find a new place to live. I decided that Jen and her husband didn't need to be in the line of fire. "Blevins, I need to find a new place to live. If the Rollers are going to play games, I need to get out of my friend's house."

"Probably a good idea, you can also make your own place more secure. If you don't pass the address around, you can limit their ability to cause mischief."

"So where can I find a little place?"

"Try the newspaper," he suggested.

I went home alone. In all honesty I always went home alone, since I wouldn't take a stranger into Jen's house. The one time I went wild in town, I went to his place. I hadn't been home long enough to go on weekend sex orgies to the beach. For that I wanted to know the guy better. Hell, I found it hard to believe I had only been laid once in seven months. I had also managed to stay away from women during that time, so my reputation was heterosexual. I had no idea if that was a good thing or not.

I waited until the end of business the next day before I talked to Jen. I asked her to come into my one room. "I found out last night that a street gang in Tryon plans to take a shot at me. I do not want you or Bob in the cross fire."

"Oh my God you are such a drama queen," Jen said. "One damn shootout and suddenly everything is life or death."

"Jen, you have never been in a shoot out. The only gangs you know anything about are the ones you see on TV. When these yo yos do a drive by they just spray lead everywhere. Anyone can be killed. I will not be responsible."

"Have it your way. You always do." She said as she stood to leave. "But you better not let anything happen to you, or I will kill you." I could see her eyes glistening.

I held her in my arms and said, "Don't worry hon, I'm a lot badder than a bunch of kids."

"Jesus Max, I know that." She lifted her head pushed me back, then kissed me. It was not a mother, daughter or best friend's kiss. It was a kiss with a lot of promise. "When you get your place you better invite us over for dinner." She smiled as she left the room.

That woman knows how to stage a dramatic exit, I thought. I sat down on the one comfortable chair and then looked around. Most everything in the room belonged to Jen and her husband. The clothes, towels, and bed covers were mine but but hardly anything else. I didn't even own a TV. Fortunately living in my friends house had allowed me to save my separation pay. Not only that the business was actually in the black. I wasn't worried about the cost of the move, I just wanted to get to it before anything happened to Jen.

The way things get done in small towns is that someone knows someone, who knows someone, who has what you want. In my case it was Ed, who had a recent client, who had lived in an isolated fishing cabin about five miles from town. The cabin was about seventy years old so I had some evaluating to do. The driveway leading to the cabin was only a little less than half a mile long, and it was dirt. In the bad weather I was going to need a place in town to crash.

The cabin itself was hardly bigger than the one room over Jen's garage. Ed, who went with me to inspect it, explained that the exterior walls were board and battens. I had no idea what that meant except that I could see the outside was real wood. I liked that.

"The owner is going to be gone a minimum of 2 years even with good behavior. His mother wants to rent it to help with the expenses. Taxes and maintenance on the place plus she put up a lot of money to get him a decent defense. She would sell it but he is adamant that she not sell. Renting, he did agree to though I doubt that anyone would care what he thinks at this point."

"Well, I would hate to shoot him, if he just showed up one night. I want him to know I'm staying here, if I decide to take it."

""I'll make sure his mother explains it all. and that she gives you plenty of notice before he is released. I expect your present problems will be gone by then. When that is done, you can live like a real adult." Ed said smiling.

The cabin was actually one big room. Larger than the over the garage room, because their were no roof eves. The roof was a steep shed roof, high on one end and lower on the other. To carry the roof load there was a line of 6x6 posts half way inside the room. If that line of posts had ever been a wall, it was long since gone.

The floor was covered with an old rug from someone's house no doubt. The furniture wasn't the classy kind of shabby chic, it was just crap. Everything had been discarded from someone's house. Of that I had no doubt. That said, the old refrigerator was cold, There was no range, but I really didn't mind. My plan was microwave all the way. There were no cabinets in the kitchen. The pipes under the sink were even exposed, since it was a plastic utility sink. For storage the house came equipped with metal warehouse type shelving units. Those had started life in some other place no doubt. There was an old ironing board bolted to the wall with one leg on the small end. It served as a breakfast bar, at least that would be its purpose for me.

"What happened to the bed?" I asked.

"When his mother decided to try to rent this place, she cleaned it. She had the bed taken away. She didn't think anyone else would want to rent the place with that old smelly bed in it."

"That was probably a good idea. I'll tell you Ed, I just don't know. This place is pretty dismal."

"Max, if the rollers come for you, it will be down that long drive. They won't be walking five miles through the woods, or paddling a boat over that pond. Those city boys will come right down the road. It won't be hard for you to rig a surprise for them. I understand you have had some experience with IEDs. What was it they called the course you taught?"

"Cooking with Maxine." I replied. "Well all that is true enough, but I still have to work."

"You work from a cell phone, nobody knows where you are more than half the time. The rollers won't know either."

"Ed, I'll have to stop coming to the office."

"The hell you will, I have bailed out almost every bad guy in the county. They are not going to shoot up my office, unless they have a death wish. None of this will guarantee you a long life, but it's your best shot."

"Yeah, you are quite the salesman," I said kissing his cheek.

"I owe you, this is just a payment on the debt."

"So, let's go pay the woman and buy a bed." And that's exactly what we did. Ed was too old to help, so I fought the bed from the minivan into the house alone. It is the kind of situation where a boyfriend would have come in handy. I also bought myself a shopping cart full of household crap. I had brought my sheets and towels from Jen's house. I knew winter would come soon, so I also bought three blankets. You can never have too many blankets, my dad always said.

I had to go to the power company to leave a deposit and sign a contract. I planned to spend one more night at Jen's house. I had not wanted to put them in danger even one more night, but I gave in to her whining. I almost always gave in to her.

We came as close as possible to a family dinner that night. We ordered take out spaghetti from a class restaurant. Bob opened a bottle of wine making our last supper even more special. After dinner we sat around drinking even more wine. I got very mellow over the course of that evening.

Around midnight Bob walked over to me with the wine bottle, but rather than pour more wine into my glass, he kissed me. It wasn't a best friend of my wife's kind of kiss. It was more of a lets get naked kind of kiss. I could have resisted, but I didn't. All the excuses I had for not getting involved the last time were gone. I didn't have to live with them afterward and they both knew it.

Since Jen was sitting there watching, it obviously was okay with her. I had no idea what she was thinking or planning and at that moment I didn't care. I just wanted to float along to a huge orgasm. I just didn't want that to happen for a long long time. I wanted to enjoy the feeling of his tongue in my mouth for a while longer then move on to even more delicious things.

I smelled her perfume even before I felt the hands reach around me from the rear. The hands lifted my knit top into a wad under my chin. Then she deftly opened my bra snaps. There must have been a signal of some kind between them because Bob pulled back at the same time that she lifted my top and bra over my head. I was naked to the waist and it was a marvelously free feeling. I was floating on a cloud of lust.

Somehow I found myself standing. Bob turned me to Jen and she kissed me with a smaller tongue but it was still marvelously erotic. While she kissed me and cupped my breasts, bob unbuttoned my slacks from behind. Before I even realized it my slacks and panties were around my feet. I stepped out of the rumpled clothing. I was naked sandwiched between two people who were still clothed. That didn't last long Bob pulled away. I was trying to beg him not to leave but Jens tongue was in my mouth and I was gasping for air.

My body shivered as though a cold wind had blown into the room, but it wasn't the cold. I shivered at the feel of Bob's naked body against my back, and the sensations created by his erect penis against my butt. Working its way into the cleft of my ass.

I reached behind me and guided it so that it rubbed between my legs and across my vulva. As he stroked my vulva the head of his cock hit my clit at the end of each stroke. It add to my arousal. I felt hands push me forward bending me at the waist. My knees gave way, after some pulling and tugging I came to rest on my knees with my head in Jen's lap. I felt Bob's thick cock push into my pussy. It was not a gentle entry, but it was thrilling. I felt his cock force its way deep inside me. I was soaking wet but my pussy wasn't able to stretch fast enough to compensate for the size of his cock without some discomfort. More of a deep burning sensation than actual pain. It was a thrilling sensation as he drove deep into me.