A Gift For Joyce

Six loud thuds shook the wall.

The weekend was half over and had already been a disaster. Joyce and Theo stopped arguing for a minute and glared at each other in mutual embarrassment while the muffled music -- clearly meant to drown them out -- played on next door. Theo did up his shirt buttons and pulled the duvet up to his waist, covering himself up. Joyce's body language didn't change; she rested comfortably on her side in her nightie, her right hand flat on the bed where he'd placed it after removing it from himself.

"For fuck's sake, Theo" she whispered. "Why are we here, then?"

"I do want to have sex" he rasped back. "I just... I..." he flapped his hands, flustered. "I want it to happen naturally. I don't like it when you try and force it."

"Force it?" They had been kissing for fifteen minutes, and she'd touched his cock, attempting to stroke him hard. "I was touching you. That's how it happens naturally, Theo."

"I wanted to get hard naturally." His voice bristled.

She threw her hands down at her sides. "That is natural. That is fucking natural. That's how people have always got off--"

This time the thuds were at the door. They both froze again. Several seconds passed, and then a further few knocks and a muffled "hello?"

It was a woman's voice. "Can you open the door, please?"

Joyce rolled out of bed, put her glasses back on, and strode the door, matter-of-factly pulling it open. She stood at 5'7, and at 52 years of age, only a few hints of black hair remained in her wavy, shoulder-length mane of silver hair. She was quite trim for her age, she thought, such that she was confident showing enough of her mottled, freckled skin in her nightie. Even in front of a stranger.

She hadn't been prepared for the sight of a naked girl standing in the B&B's hallway. Well, naked was an exaggeration, but it fit with Joyce's impression. The woman wore a stunningly ornate blue lace lingerie set -- an intricate bra and thong, where the floral edging seemed to stop barely short of very intimate places. She seemed unembarrassed in a way that put Joyce's own ideas of immodesty to shame. Soft pale skin, tattoos around her thighs and generous hips. What were, in Joyce's opinion, amazing breasts, perfectly, symmetrically round and buoyant. Her hair was a pastel-coloured bob. Round, mascara-laden eyes met with Joyce's angular features in a look of exasperation.

"I'm so sorry, we were--"

"Yeah, I know." She couldn't have been older than 25. "We can hear you arguing? I'm trying to fuck my boyfriend?" Every sentence sounded like a question.

"I-I'm sorry, we'll keep it down." Joyce couldn't stop her gaze from sliding down to take in the young woman's body.

"Could you? That would be great."

"I..." she was almost whispering. "I like your... um, your outfit."

"Thanks." It was an unappreciative thanks. "Goodnight." Joyce closed the door, mortified.

The pair resolved to go to sleep, Theo changing in to his pyjamas. In the dark, they listened unavoidably to the sounds of the young couple next door having the weekend they had planned. It had been a halfhearted effort to rekindle something they knew they were losing. It had easily been a year since they'd seriously attempted to have sex. There was always more work, or friends, to distract them from the problem; always another arts funding application for Joyce to write, always another opinionated pub huddle with Theo's old friends and colleagues. They'd finally gotten as far as admitting the problem to each other, and planned a B&B getaway.

Joyce would never have judged Theo for his body. Also in his mid-fifties, he wasn't unfit, taking regular walks when he could, but they both knew he wouldn't be appearing on any magazine covers. He'd cropped his white hair short as it had thinned on top, and allowed a layer of salt-and-pepper stubble to soften the less flattering signs of ageing. Still, sometimes it was as if he didn't care how he looked. Unironed white shirts and ten year-old pairs of corduroys. Not even a suit jacket in the event that they went out for dinner. She'd tried to get him to put one on that evening. "Why? It's just us." As Joyce lay there, his breathing deepening as he drifted off, she thought about how his obstinacy had thwarted so much of their intimate life, bit by bit.

The next morning was a continental breakfast in the B&B's antiquated-looking parlour. The owners, an octogenarian couple, had milled around, checking how everyone's night's sleep had gone, freshening cups of coffee. Joyce and Theo were getting along a little better now, in more familiar circumstances with a croissant and a cup of something hot. As they chattered, Joyce noticed the girl from last night wander up to the table, followed by a giant of a boyfriend -- 6'2", she thought, with black hair in a tight crewcut, tanned, with piercing silver eyes. The couple both wore matching leathers over loose-fitting t-shirts, him in grey jeans, her in brilliant blue shorts that barely covered her butt. Their plates loaded, they turned to face the room and she found Joyce's stare before she could look away. The two immediately wandered towards them.

"Hey, can we sit with you?" She seemed much more friendly than last night. Theo proffered the empty chairs. "We're Alice and Marcus." She was smiling now. "I'm sorry about knocking on your door last night."

Theo shrugged. "It's fine. I'm Theo, she's Joyce."

"Well, um... I suppose we should be apologising for disturbing you." Joyce returned Alice's smile. "Did you sleep okay?"

"In the end." Marcus' voice was as deep as he was tall. Was this just how young people were these days? The awkwardness Joyce had braced herself for was nowhere to be found, except perhaps in the perpetual tightness between Theo's shoulderblades. "Oh, I'm glad you had fun" Joyce's smile widened, warm. "Young love is always so sweet."

Theo rested his cup on its saucer. "Come on, we're basically old people to them, they don't want us nosing at them."

"Oh it's cool" said Marcus. Even at normal speaking volume, it was a boom. Joyce swore she could feel his voice. "We're pretty chill about stuff. Why be embarrassed, right?"

"Yes, I agree!" smile lines and crow's feet blossomed on Joyce's face. "We're trying to be adventurous this weekend too."

"Oh no, did I mess it up?"

"No, no!" Joyce hazarded a touch of Alice's smooth leather sleeve. "I wanted to say, by the way, I loved your getup last night. You looked like a supermodel. I expect something like that is quite expensive."

"Um, not toooo bad..." Alice thought for a moment. "There's a few places where you can get stuff like that more affordably, but it's better to pay for quality, I think. If you give me your number I can send you a bunch of links."

"Oh, that would be lovely!"

"Sorry, what are we talking about?" She had been out of Theo's line of sight, behind the door. Joyce turned to him, as if whispering conspiratorially. "Her underwear, dear." Theo merely raised his eyebrows at this, as if taken aback, and took another, final, sip of his coffee.

"Anyway, you're not old" said Alice, knowingly. "You're older. So what?"

"Theo thinks anyone over 40 is pretty much out to pasture" Joyce smirked. "If he just dressed up a little every now and then..."

"Aw, no! No, Theo, you've got that cuddly dad thing going on, it's cute!" Alice leaned forward with a grin. Marcus raised his cup. "Nobody's out to pasture here, guys. Can we clink on it?" Joyce laughed, and brought her cup forward. Even Theo managed a polite smile and a clink of his cup against Alice's. "Good." Alice downed the last of her coffee as well. "Besides, Theo, older guy, with a hot wife..."

"Am I hot? Do you think?" Joyce was enjoying this much attention from two vivacious young people. "Oh, yes!" Marcus and Alice replied in unison, with Alice continuing, "you're fit, you have lovely silvery hair, those cheekbones..."

The group chatted, Joyce and Alice flirting, Theo attempting respectful dialogue with Marcus, until 11 o'clock, when they parted, each couple away to enjoy their days. Theo and Alice took a walk down a bare country road to the nearby village, eating ice cream cones on a bench there and chatting about the state of their lives. To Joyce's delight, as the sun dipped and the later afternoon light shimmered gold, Theo kissed her. They held each other for what seemed like forever, kissing lovingly, as they'd used to. She felt as though he'd finally managed to relax in their solitude, away from the demands of life as they knew it.

"Can we try again tonight?" she'd asked softly.

"Of course."

Back at the B&B, they showered, and took dinner in the parlour again. Alice and Theo were nowhere to be seen, this time, but as they returned to their room, they found the couple knocking on their door again.

"I'm sure we're not disturbing you this time" Joyce quipped as they came up behind them. Alice turned around, startled, holding a black shopping bag. "Um..."

"Yes? Hi?"

"This suddenly seems so stupid, um..." Alice was clutching the bag in both hands now. "I got you a present? I feel really silly saying that, now."

"You got us a present?"

"No, not... well, technically for you, but for both of you? Um... can we come in?"

The four shuffled in to the room, closing the door behind them. Alice held out the bag.

"Okay, this is... totally stupid, but you said you liked my outfit, and I thought, maybe I could get you something, to be nice... I think it's your size, I've got a knack for judging..."

Joyce pulled an intricate mass of blue fabric out of the bag. "Oh, it's..."

"It's a lace body, yeah. It's the same make and colour as mine."

"I love it!" Joyce was genuinely thrilled. Finally, someone had bought her lingerie.

"Oh... well, okay." Theo seemed reserved. "That's certainly... generous of you."

"Isn't it lovely of her?" Joyce grinned toothily and hugged the garment under her chin, before leaning forward to give Alice the softest peck on her cheek. "Oh gosh. Shall I try it on? Fashion show?"

Alice and Marcus both clapped their hands together. "Yeah! Catwalk!"

"Dear, are you sure..."

"Come on, Theo, I used to life model. This is nothing."

With that said, she did lock the bathroom door behind her. An age-old habit, but as loath as she was to admit it, Joyce did feel vulnerable at this point. The young couple were so eagerly familiar, and so beautiful together. She made a pile of her clothes on the floor tiles, and slid the blue lace over her torso. The plunging, high crotch of the garment exposed her hips up to her waist, her navel also exposed by a seductive floral gap in the fabric. Her nipples were barely covered, too, just as with Alice's outfit last night, and standing back to take herself in, she felt... naked. She hadn't considered wearing anything like this for a very long time, and seeing herself like this felt seductive, not un-erotic. She worried that Theo would consider it Too Much. She held her own stare and let her hands wander, feeling the largely transparent fabric, teasing at its edges, trying out poses.

As her hand reached her crotch, she felt bare skin, and realised that this woman she hadn't known for 24 hours had gifted her a piece of crotchless underwear. Her hand stayed over the slit, her fingers teasing at her lips, rolling gently at the hood of her clit. She took in the sight of her face again, trying to see herself as Alice quite possibly saw her. Framed by her glasses and brilliant grey hair, replete with faint lines and freckles, there was a beautiful woman there. Her fingertip pressed a little more firmly into her clit, and she closed her eyes.

She opened them immediately at the sound of Alice's voice out in the room. "Do we get to see?"

She emerged, trying to keep her posture as elegant as she could, her palms facing forwards in a presentational manner. "I do love it, it's beautiful. Thank you Alice."

There were whoops and cheers from the young couple. "You look amazing!" Alice clasped her hands together. "Theo, don't you want to tell your wife how beautiful she looks?" "Yeah, man," Marcus followed up. "She's all dressed up for you."

Theo crossed his legs. The hardness that didn't seem to come naturally yesterday was definitely on its way now. "Oh, of course" he said, trying to find the right tone for the setting. "She looks lovely. You look lovely, darling."

"Thank you, my love." Joyce beamed, and strode over, sitting herself on her husband's lap, bringing a hand behind his head, and kissing him, soft, lingering on his lips. Alice and Marcus made excited murmurs, and Theo ducked his head behind his wife's shoulder in pure embarrassment as she felt his erection against her buttocks. "I think he likes it. Thank you so much, Alice." She had crossed her legs, as well, painfully aware that her pussy was exposed.

Theo's head emerged again. "Well, um... I'm not sure what I should say, now."

"Do you wanna see mine?" Alice chirped. "You missed it last night, after all."

"Oh, I think he should get to see" smiled Joyce. And Alice shrugged off that luxurious biker jacket, kicked off her shoes, and shed her shorts and t-shirt to reveal the blue lace bra and thong she'd worn at their door the previous night, and all too much of her young, smooth skin and dramatic curves. She stood over the middle-aged couple, stretching with her arms behind her head to show off her tummy and stick out her chest, twisting left and right.

"She loves showing off" Marcus smirked.

"So would I" said Joyce, this time unabashed about feasting her eyes on the young woman's body. "Theo, tell her how beautiful she looks, won't you?" His cock strained against her backside as he looked at the barely-clothed young goddess in front of him, and she gave him an encouraging kiss on the forehead.

"Yes, of course, you look... I can't believe how beautiful you look." He stammered, then turned to Marcus. "Is this... okay, to look at her like this?"

"She likes it, man. It makes her happy." Alice nodded vigorously, waving her hips left and right, tracing her curves with her fingers, turning around to show off her butt. "I'm really not shy about showing off," she said, "and I think... maybe Joyce is the same?"

"It's true, I used to life model, so..." Joyce trailed off, with Alice taking hold of her hand and gently drawing her upright. Alice pulled her into the middle of the room, and as if anticipating this manoeuvre, Marcus strode to sit on the edge of the bed about a foot apart from Theo. The two formed a little audience together as their partners, in matching scant blue finery, displayed themselves side by side. "We make a cute pair, right?" Alice laughed, sliding a hand around Joyce's waist. She jumped a little at the touch, and made a snap decision to reciprocate, her fingers grazing her new friend's bare back and finding the cinch of her waist. They gave each other gentle squeeze that melted into ever so subtle caressing. "You're a minx, aren't you" Joyce whispered. Alice rested her forehead on her shoulder in response.

"Cute as buttons" answered Marcus, the two women in front of them turning left and right, playfully, restlessly. Theo leaned right to whisper to Marcus, as reserved older men are often in the habit of doing.

"What's going on here, exactly?"

"Huh? Are you uncomfortable?"

Theo considered the erection he was becoming less and less able to conceal. The turn the evening had taken reminded him of the "life modelling" sessions Joyce had mentioned. She'd been altogether too ready to undress and pose herself for dinner guests who expressed a fondness for drawing. During that period -- which ended in another argument -- some of their friends had seen his wife nude as much as he had. It wasn't his first time sitting in silence while his wife undressed. But there was more to this situation than his own guarded unease.

"No, no." Yes, he was.

"Quit whispering, Theo," said Alice. "You've got two beautiful girls in your room, aren't you excited?"

"He's just shy" said Joyce, who'd already felt her husband throb at the sight of both of them. Marcus had leaned back on his elbows with a grin, and Joyce could see clearly that he wasn't trying to conceal his bulge at all.

"Haven't you ever fantasized about Joyce and another woman?"

"...not really." Yes.

"I bet you have. Don't you think he has?"

Joyce held Alice close, massaging her shoulder and leaning her face against her fragrant pastel hair, her voice barely louder than a murmur. "I hope so."

Alice turned into the embrace, sliding both her arms around Joyce's waist and squeezing their bodies together. Joyce let out a satisfied sigh at the sensation of those pillowy breasts squashed against her own. Alice nuzzled into her neck for a moment, and her hot breath made every fine hair on Joyce's body stand on end. "Joyce..." she looked back over her shoulder, staring dead into Theo's eyes. "Is your husband gonna mind if I give you a kiss?"

Theo didn't know where to look. He glanced at Marcus again, as if awaiting instruction, or hoping that he'd step in with the answer he couldn't find. Marcus merely returned a knowing grin. "Well are you?" He turned back to the sight of his wife embracing this young seductress, neither of them able to stay still. They were squirming in each other's arms as if the tension was looking for a way out. He gave an imperceptible movement of the head that truly could have been perceived any way they wanted, and the ambiguity was enough. Alice's cheek stayed in contact with Joyce's skin as she turned her head upwards, seeking lips that were already searching for her own. Joyce closed her eyes and hugged Alice tight around the shoulders as their mouths locked, the first few kisses slow, tender, tentative. A pleasure Joyce had never felt in her life; the supple smoothness of Alice's lips was dreamlike. Hands traced the groove of her spine and spread out at the top of her backside. Through the pulse of the kisses she let out an excited chirp, opened her mouth, and her tongue found Alice's. Their fingernails dug in to each other's flesh, their shoulders hunching in thrilled passion. The kisses got wetter and wetter as Alice salivated with apparent desire, her torso undulating needily against Joyce's. The pair let their hands explore further as they kissed and kissed, palms and fingertips sliding over necks, shoulders, tummies. Alice slid her left hand underneath the lace she had gifted and grasped lovingly at her breast, squeezing, and then pulling back, two of her fingers trailing back and forth with her nipple between them. Joyce moaned breathily in between kisses and reached, unrestrained, for Alice's breasts, feeling out their shape, squeezing, stroking.

Alice's hand slid down Joyce's stomach, gliding over the gap in the lace that framed her navel so beautifully, and found the second, lower opening, where her pussy, ever more moist since the second they kissed, had been on display to the room. Alice rested her palm against Joyce's pubic bone and her middle fingertip found her clit, throbbing and already eager for touch. Joyce's moans stopped dead as she caught her breath and pulled back from the kiss, looking straight down as she failed to do anything to prevent herself being touched in this way. Alice's mouth hung open in an excited smile, watching Joyce watch her fingers. Stroking, gradually, in circles, teasing pleasure into her pussy.

Joyce glanced up, noting that Theo had, uncharacteristically, done nothing to stop anything that had happened in a three-minute period that had felt like twenty. He and Marcus wore the same expression: agape, their eyes trained on Alice's hand as it worked at her clit. She locked her gaze on her husband's obsessive stare, knowing he was seeing her as she'd never allowed him, and as she'd never seen herself. She didn't even mind Marcus getting an eyeful; the fact that he was a stranger made that so much easier. But Theo... he was so sexually awkward and closed off, and yet there he was, his navy cords tented around his straining cock, wearing the indulgent, if panicked, expression of a voyeur.