All of Us Fit in Our Places

He looked up to where Dave was watching him with slitted eyes. "You can fuck me if you want. Have you got any lube?"

He shook his head and Perry felt a little twinge of disappointment. He hadn't been looking for any action when they came out that evening so had left his behind.

Gina let out a series of hoarse grunts as she reached her second climax of the evening and Perry looked round to stare wide eyed at the sight of Eleanor's hand slipping from Gina's opening.

"You got any lube, love?" Dave asked. "When you've got your breath back and all."

Gina gasped, "I've got some baby oil. It's in the bathroom. Would you mind, love?"

Eleanor scrambled off the bed and padded into the bathroom, where she scanned the vanity unit in vain. She put her head round the door to be greeted by the sight of Gina's full lips round Perry's cock, as Perry attempted the same feat with her husband's much larger weapon. The woman had staying power, she'd grant her that.

"I can't see it?"

Gina disengaged for a moment. "Try my bag; at the bottom."

Eleanor rummaged through the overnight, and found a bottle and another firm, familiar shape. Her curiosity piqued, she drew them both from under the spare clothes and toiletries.

One was the baby oil, the other was a realistic looking strap-on. She pursed her lips thoughtfully. Who might Gina have been planning to use this on? Dave? Or maybe some passing fancy?

As she reappeared in the doorway, she held the two items up for inspection. Dave caught sight of them.

"Gina can do you while I'm doing your boyfriend if you like."

Eleanor met Perry's eyes. He lifted his head, and a string of saliva connected his lips and Dave's purple crown. She thought it was one of the most erotic things she had ever seen. Her sex pulsed in response, and she felt her lubrication dribble down her thigh. They nodded to each other. In for a penny, in for a pound.

Gina expertly strapped herself into the sex toy while Perry liberally coated Dave's thick shaft with oil until it glistened. Eleanor helped anoint Perry's sphincter, taking the opportunity to slip a finger into the snug warmth.

He looked round at her, startled, as she murmured, "I could do this for you."

Moments later they were kneeling side by side on the bed. Eleanor looked sideways at Perry and reached out to hold his hand. He looked into her amazing grey eyes; and wondered where they might be going. Assuming they survived this, of course.

The next moment any such thoughts were driven out of his head as Dave's cock invaded his passage. He heard Eleanor gasp as Gina drove the dildo deep inside her and then they were both being savagely fucked, the room filled with gasps and rhythmic liquid sounds as they were penetrated.

***

Sometime in the small hours, Perry awoke to the sound of snores from their evening companions. Quiet sleepers, Dave and Gina were not.

Carefully he extracted himself from the tangle of limbs and went to wake Eleanor as quietly as possible. She looked a mess, hair plastered to her face and neck, with various bodily fluids smeared across her skin. He smiled at her; he probably didn't look any better.

Dave and Gina seemed dead to the world, so they dressed as quietly as possible and let themselves out of the room. At the bottom of the stairs was a fire escape door that led to the pub car park. They retrieved their bikes and set off for the estate.

By unspoken agreement they made their way back to Eleanor's cottage. Perry groaned quietly as he got off the bike.

"Are you alright?" Eleanor asked in concern.

"I'm a bit sore. I haven't been fucked like that in an age. Dave's a big lad."

"Do you think we'll ever see them again?"

"I hope not."

"Why do you say that?" she said as she let them in the front door and turned the light on.

"I had a good time and everything, but they didn't offer or use condoms. If they're in the habit of picking up strangers for fun, then there's no knowing who they were last with."

Eleanor grimaced.

They sat in the tiny living room.

"You know when you said you could do this for me, what did you mean?"

"We could get a strap-on. Then I could do you. We could try it out."

She uttered the sentences with tiny punctuating gaps, staring into her lap.

Perry blinked.

"Monogamy?"

"Yes. No. I don't know. I think I want you for myself."

He smiled and she thought she might burst.

"Really?"

"I think it's worth a try. Do you think you could tell that jerk where to get off?"

He laughed. "I've been wanting to for a while. Until you came along, I just didn't have the will."

She glowed. "Come to bed."

***

Scenes from a Wedding

June

The weather had been kind. The day had been bright and not too hot and now the shadows lengthened as the big Mercedes Vito wound its way through the park.

"Oh my God!" David exclaimed, as they crested the small rise. Rosemary whistled and Josh and Tilly squeaked with excitement. Jason and Martin joined in, even if they weren't quite sure what all the excitement was about.

Jen gave a delighted little chuckle. "Anna said it would be something special!"

A marquee the size of a minor English county had been erected on the far side of the lake from the house. Fairy lights twinkled from the trees round about.

"We ought to run a sweepstake on how many people end up in that glorified pond," Rosemary said.

"That is not a challenge!" Em said, fixing the older children with a gimlet stare. They giggled and pressed their faces to the window.

Rosemary did not follow the sign to the car park, instead taking the road the other side of the house down to one of the three grace and favours a half mile further on. Pulling up outside they were met by the girl Eleanor had recommended to babysit Jason and Martin for the evening.

"Hi, I'm Kelly," she introduced herself as David got out, and immediately blushed and looked down at his easy smile.

The three women exchanged glances and shook their heads.

Em advanced and took her hand. "Lovely to meet you, Kelly. I'm Marjorie, let's get the little ones settled." They went round to the back of the Mercedes.

Rosemary rubbed the back of her neck. "It might have power assisted steering but it's still a bit of a bus."

"Give you a massage?" Jen offered putting a hand to Rosemary's shoulder.

Noticing the intimate undercurrent, Kelly's eyes flicked to them. David winked at her, and she coloured again, busying herself with the bags of clothing.

The children were already exploring the cottage. The older ones were going to be bedded down in the tiny sitting room while the rest wedged themselves into the two bedrooms.

"It's a bit of a squash and a squeeze," Jen said, "but it's nice to have somewhere to ourselves."

"Now," said Em, "have you been filled in regarding our domestic arrangements?"

Kelly looked at her uncertainly.

"That we are a quartet, a group marriage."

The girl nodded. "Mrs Cane told me."

Em smiled. "Good! No awkward surprises. Now, come on everyone, get changed!"

"Bossy boots," muttered Rosemary.

***

"I don't know how I'm going to explain your sister's marital arrangements," Charles remarked as more of the guests arrived.

"Then don't," Anna responded. "It's no-one's business but their own. They can explain if anyone asks and who's going to be gauche enough to do that?"

"Some of my relatives are less well-mannered than you might expect," he murmured, looking at the horsey set by the windows, growing increasingly noisy with drink.

There was a sudden stir by the entrance to the marquee. A slight woman in a grey dress and ash blonde hair. Anna smiled.

Charles stared incredulously. "Mother?"

***

Rosemary came into the marquee behind Em and Jen. Their reputation did not appear to have preceded them as few heads turned to remark their arrival.

However, one face was staring at them and, as Rosemary made eye contact, it quickly looked down but not quickly enough to prevent Rosemary recognising Naomi. When the girl looked up again briefly, she rewarded her with a little wave of her fingers.

Rosemary's scandal detectors tickled, and she watched as Naomi made her way through the crowd to the side of another face she recognised.

Suddenly aware that her wife was on alert, Jen squeezed Rosemary's hand.

"What is it, darling?"

"A familiar face, Jen. Two in fact, that I never expected to find here. Relics from my previous life."

"I'm intrigued! Who?"

As casually as possible Rosemary directed Jen's attention to Giles and Naomi. Suddenly Jen's hand was holding hers rather more tightly.

Rosemary looked down at it and then up at her wife's face.

"What is it, darling?"

Her wife looked Rosemary in the eye. "Are you absolutely sure?"

Wondering quite what was so serious, Rosemary smiled. "When you've been as intimate as we were, you don't forget a face."

"And Giles and Naomi?"

"Very enthusiastic! Wait, you know their names? What's the big deal?"

"Giles is Charles' brother!"

"Oh! He's that Giles. My, my!" Rosemary's eyes sparkled with mischief.

"Did you never meet him at Dearborn?"

"No, I was always trying to avoid him so he couldn't ask what we were up to."

Rosemary's voice cut off as Jen pulled her over to Anna and her new husband. A hasty explanation later and Charles was looking at Rosemary with amazement.

"You and Giles and Naomi?"

"Sure. Consenting adults and all that."

Rosemary could tell that such a scenario had never occurred to Anna or her husband. With a wry smile she waited for the consequences to shake out.

"And you'll stand witness?" Charles looked at her intently.

"Certainly. Scandal and the use of it was my stock in trade before I got married."

Charles turned and stared at his younger brother who was carousing with his cousins.

Rosemary looked at her wife and her sister-in-law who had identical fierce expressions. They had Italian genes after all. With a bit of luck there might be fireworks.

Charles turned back to Rosemary.

"It occurs to me that this may, however distastefully, facilitate the arrangements we propose to put in place. When Giles finds out he will likely be upset."

Rosemary thought that that was likely an understatement.

***

Across the marquee a very different conversation was taking place.

"It's her!" Naomi hissed.

Giles was already ruddy faced. "Who?"

"That woman we ... met, in London that day. If you remember, you slipped some E into my drink and then we went back to her place. I haven't forgiven you for that, Giles."

"Oh yeah, that was a good one," he said airily.

Naomi scowled at him, there wouldn't be any repercussions for him, just salacious tales about a threesome he had one time.

"But what's she doing here?"

Giles peered across to where the Pipers were talking amongst themselves. He met Rosemary's eyes and raised his glass to her. She looked unamused. Oh well, serve her right after she booted them out that evening. Humourless cow.

***

Kim was wearing a blue sequin dress that clung and sparkled as if she were a mermaid come ashore. Heads turned as they passed by.

Valerie felt a curious mixture of self-consciousness and pride. Wayne walked behind them, and she kept stealing glances over her shoulder at how handsome he looked in the classic tux, his rugged features atop the crisp black and white. Kim tilted her head.

"He brushes up quite well, doesn't he?"

They both looked back at him admiringly and he stood a little taller, with a pleasantly arrogant set to his shoulders, the corners of his mouth hinting at a smile.

"So, you're the butch, Housey?" Giles leered at them.

Wayne stepped forward but Valerie put out a restraining hand.

"Actually, Kim's a dab hand with the strap-on," she said, unsmiling.

Giles looked as if he'd gone to kick a dog and instead it had turned and bitten him.

They passed on by, Kim's lip curled in contempt.

He stared after Wayne. There was something familiar about the big man, but he couldn't quite place it.

***

Seated at a table with half a dozen strangers, the Pipers set about making conversation.

"I've got parish council on Tuesday," Em announced.

Rosemary tsked in annoyance. "Those talking shops never achieve anything."

"Talking things through is the civilised way of resolving disputes," Em retorted.

"Not if nothing ever gets done!"

Jen took David's hand. "Aren't they adorable when they fight?"

"Mm-hm."

Their spouses turned as one to protest. "We are not fighting!"

The other guests at the table looked from one to the other. "You all know each other?" asked one.

"Oh yes!" laughed Em, picking up her glass and toasting Rosemary, who grinned back.

Their rings had been noted by another at the table and she leaned to whisper in her companion's ear. "They've all got three rings!"

His gaze flicked between the combinations of gold and silver. He looked up to find David watching him with amusement.

"The rings. Are you members of a society?"

Em, mid drink, snorted and then spent the next minute coughing and spluttering, trying to get the last of the wine out of her nose.

Amidst the laughter and proffered napkins, David showed his hands to his inquisitor. He pointed to the two gold rings on his left.

"Spouses."

Then to the silver ring on his right.

"Consort."

And sat back, to watch things unfold, as he usually did.

The man's eyes widened. His gaze moved to Rosemary's hands and then settled on Jen's and his eyes got even wider.

David watched with delight as he leaned to his partner and whispered in her ear.

"What!" she said, rather more loudly than intended, judging by the way her other half shushed her.

Rosemary divined the nature of the other woman's shock immediately and winked at David.

"Rosemary!" Em scolded, still wiping tears from her eyes, but it was too late. All other conversation at the table had stopped and now six pairs of eyes were scrutinising their hands and trying to work out what the relationships were.

Jen was embarrassed, this was supposed to be about Charles and Anna and now all anyone would ever talk about was their community.

"Please, this is Charles and Anna's day. If you want to know how we are then I'll tell you, and after that I must insist we stop speaking of it."

Suitably chastened, their dinner companions mumbled apologies. However, it was clear that their curiosity remained.

David had an idea. "I know, let's make it a game! There are only two possible combinations of this that work. A prize to the first correct guess!"

Inwardly, Jen groaned but to her surprise they fell to it with a will; taking at least ten minutes to come up with the right answer.

Along the way there were hoots of laughter, the loudest when someone connected David and Rosemary as husband and wife and Rosemary responded with a wonderfully teenage, "Puh-lease!"

Jen's discomfort melted away as her partners effortlessly worked the crowd.

A couple turned out to be lawyers and were fascinated as Rosemary detailed the financial arrangements.

Another discovered that all three women had children and, asking after the father, looked at David and Rosemary and asked, "But how? As you're not. Uh. Not."

Em put her out of her misery by saying, "Donation."

Jen surprised herself by remarking, "I didn't even have to walk far."

There was another gale of laughter and thankfully, no prurient comments.

Em caught the expression of a woman at the other end of the table who looked wistful and sad.

'Heavens, that could have been me.' she thought and was reminded of her exchange with Rosemary.

David noticed and reached to take her hand. "You okay?"

"I seem to have been struck by lightning."

He smiled his lazy smile, and all was right with the world.

"Yes. Yes, we have."

Rosemary looked sideways at this exchange and gathered Em into a hug.

***

Charles sighed. "All anyone's talking about is your sister's circumstances. Although, peculiarly, the prevailing emotion is one of envy,"

"You can blame David for that. He made it a competition to guess how they were wired!"

"Sometimes Mr Piper just likes to throw all the cards in the air and see how they land. I confess it is a strategy that has paid dividends on occasion. Not least in his domestic arrangement."

"What you mean is that he relies on other people to rescue him when he gets in over his head and then charms them into staying!"

"It is an enviable skill. He has charmed, if that is the right word, himself into a privileged position at Cross. Max prizes his inquisitiveness and lateral thinking and Derek is fully confident of his honesty and loyalty. Would that we were all as elevated."

Anna looked at her husband. "Charles, darling! You're not jealous, surely!"

He smiled at her. "Not at all, but I sometimes wonder whether I could have risen to my current position solely on my merits."

Anna put her arms round him and lent against him. "You're a Stanforth, Charles, your family motto is 'Disdain Them All'."

"Actually, it's 'non inferiora secutus,'" he murmured.

"Of course it is. And what does that mean?"

"Following not the inferior."

Anna cuffed him on the shoulder. "And?"

"Broadly speaking, striving for higher ideals."

"Well, you've achieved one today."

He tilted her chin up and kissed her. "I have, haven't I? Now, where's my sister?"

"You're going to tell her today?"

"Yes. Today makes a break with the past. Anastacia can be shown a future."

***

A little later in a small room off the main marquee, a baffled Stacia sat down with her brother and his new wife.

"What's this all about, Charles? Why all the cloak and dagger?"

He spared a quick sideways look at Anna and launched into it.

"Dearborn is doomed, Stacia, one way or another in its current form."

His sister's shoulders slumped. "It's not anything I didn't know or at least suspect. So, what am I doing here?"

Charles grinned. It was so out of character that Stacia sat up straight in her chair.

"What?"

"I do not intend to stand idly by while the ship sinks, Stacia. To continue the nautical metaphor, I propose to have it refurbished and set on a new course."

Her brows furrowed. "What on earth are you taking about, Charles?"

"And to change the captain."

"Has Mother changed her mind about Giles?"

"You could say that."

Nonplussed, his sister sat back. "But if you're not going to be Master, and Giles isn't, then what? Saints' preserve us, not the National Trust!"

"No, I'm not going to give up on Dearborn but I'm not going to lead it."

He leaned back and steepled his fingers.

"However, you've met my new sister-in-law, Rosemary. She's here tonight with her," he paused, and smiled wryly, "collective, and she's going to invest in the estate."

Anastacia was astounded, she'd known nothing of this. "When did this happen and why didn't anyone tell me?"

Charles inclined his head. "Because it was all pure speculation until Mike Johnson agreed to sell us some land. There are also some inheritance issues to be resolved."

She shook her head, "What inheritance issues?"

"Well, that's partly why we're having this discussion. Rosemary has outlined a business plan and now we need someone to put it into effect. We've agreed on the best person to be Master of Dearborn in the new era."

He looked her in the eye.

"And that's you."

Stacia's jaw dropped. She looked at Anna, who nodded confirmation, her eyes crinkled in amusement.

"Rosemary and an Australian winemaker called Wayne Thompson have been taking a look around."

"I've seen them!" Stacia exclaimed. "Tall bloke and a small woman, that was Rosemary? I thought they were walkers who'd got lost!"