Ascending Lauren Ch. 14

Lauren turned off the lamp next to the couch and the pair stretched out in the dark holding each other, twinkling lights from the city as far as they could see. The young girl's head felt good on her chest, crimson hair enveloping them like a blanket.

"So, you think I'm a MILF?" Lauren asked in a hushed voice.

"Hmmm," Chloe murmured, pulling the older woman's mouth down to hers. "You have no idea."

+++++

Hours later, as the sun rose high over the Atlantic Ocean, Lauren's eyes fluttered open to her cell phone dancing on the coffee table. Chloe was long gone. They must have passed out just after that long sensuous kiss.

Bleary eyed, she bent over and snatched up the buzzing device. It was Corey.

"Hi there."

"There you are!" the happy husband exclaimed, breathing a sigh of relief. "I haven't heard from you since the game yesterday. You okay?"

"Yeah. Sorry, must've had some bad, uh, sausage or something. I just came home and went to bed." She inhaled sharply as a shadow crossed her heart. It was the first time she'd outright lied about her whereabouts.

"Sorry, that sucks. At least you got to see a great game!"

"It was a great game," Lauren agreed, a little less enthusiastic about it than she'd been the previous day.

"So, listen, about this week. I've got a flight Friday morning. Should be there about ten-thirty."

"Wait, what?"

Shit! She'd completely forgotten about their call at the bar.

"For my interview with Dactyl on Saturday. He's coming down from Fort Lauderdale just to meet with me."

Goddamnit, that's the day of the stupid party.

"Figured I'd fly in on Friday, meet with him the next day, then hang out with you for a few."

Lauren perked up at the prospect of spending time with her best guy. Maybe she could find someone else to chaperone. I mean, how hard could it be?

"That's perfect, babe. I'll see about getting off a little early that day."

"Cool, okay, well, it's a date then," Corey sighed. "I miss you."

"I miss you too," Lauren assured him.

The couple said their goodbyes, ending the conversation in an upbeat mood. After hanging up, Lauren clasped her hands together. She wasn't lying. She really did miss him. While he might not be able to deliver the goods physically like he used to, emotionally she needed him like never before. A life partner and her best friend, forever. Drawing hot water with a melancholy heart, Lauren stepped in front of the bathroom mirror and dropped the soft robe.

Had any of the neighbors been walking down the hallway at that precise moment, the shriek that came from apartment 23f would have surely brought the police.

"Those bastards! Fuck, fuck, fuck!"

On her shoulders and breasts, several deep and dark bruises were forming with a most hideous green-yellow tinge. There was no doubt these were Hickeys from Cuba, with love.

+++++

The tired executive walked into Rekrap's headquarters early Monday morning with purpose. Stopping by the CEO's office, she poked her head through the door.

"Sir, sorry to bother you. Can we talk?"

The old man looked up from his desk and waved her in.

"Good morning, Lauren. What's on your mind?"

"The party this coming Saturday. I was wondering if someone could take my place. My husband is coming in town, and I'd really like to spend the weekend with him."

Jones set down his pen and asked her to close the door.

"Sorry, I'm afraid that's impossible. I need our best people on this. To ensure the clients have a good time."

"I appreciate the confidence that I can host a good party, but I'm sure someone else is just as qualified. There's a lot of people in this firm that know how to schmooze."

Stephan Jones stared at her from above the frames of his readers.

"Lauren, I think we both know why you were selected."

"What? Why? I'm a pencil pusher."

"Really? You have no idea?"

At first she didn't have a clue. Then her mind raced back to the chance meeting with him outside a restaurant where she'd just had dinner with a man that was not her husband. He'd notice the anklet Corey had given her and recognized it's significance.

"I don't see how my personal life is relevant here."

Jones fixed her with a coy smile.

"Oh, but it certainly is. Let me be blunt. Detrevrep's and Polymer Thermoset's owners Stretch Madison and Angel Tagliatelle are single guys enjoying the finer things in life. I'm sure they would reward our company handsomely with contracts should any of our staff be able to persuade them to do so. That being said, not many of my female staff are willing to use their charms of persuasion with men they hardly know. That narrows the pool down a bit, doesn't it?"

Lauren's jaw dropped. His expectations regarding her attendance were clear now.

"Uh huh...so there it is. What makes you think my next stop won't be HR?" she asked defiantly.

Her boss tapped his fingertips together.

"Will it be?"

Lauren looked at the floor and shifted in her seat.

"Before you answer that, let me just say that you have great business acumen. That will take you far. Whether it's here or somewhere else. We've all had to make sacrifices to get ahead. Sadly, mine was missing my son's childhood while I was busy climbing the ladder. You have to ask yourself what you are willingly to do to make the grade."

The office manager glared at the old man as he scribbled on a piece of paper and pushed it across the desk to her.

"As you know, Jose Rodriquez is planning on retiring next year. Which means that Operations will need a VP. That's the salary for the position."

Lauren picked up the stationary and her chest pounded. The number was almost triple what she was currently earning.

"That would significantly help a middle-aged couple from Iowa planning on retiring to the Sunshine State, would it not?"

Lauren just gawked at the figure. It was hard to argue the benefits.

"If I was to agree to...use my charms," she finally asked, slipping the note into a skirt pocket, "what of my husband? After flying halfway across the country I can't very well ask him to go watch the paint dry while I'm entertaining your bottom-line."

"Hell, I don't care. Take him along. Tell everyone he's the bartender or your new assistant. They'll buy that. And if you do happen to hit it off with one of our clients, let him watch. The bastard just might get his rocks off!"

Without speaking a word, Lauren rose and spread her hands out on the walnut desk, leaning over it just enough for gravity to do its thing. The old man found himself staring into what little cleavage his subordinate had, the white linen blouse falling away from her chest enough to see a frilly opaque bra rising and falling with every sexy breath she took.

"Okay," she whispered, warm breath caressing his cheeks. "You want me to be your whore? I'll be your whore. But there damn sure better be an announcement at Jose's retirement party, or this little birdie's going to sing."

He nodded, a bead of sweat forming on his forehead.

"Oh, and one more thing," Lauren looked back with a grim face as she reached his office door. "Don't ever mock my husband again. He's a good man, unlike pricks like you."

"Really, my dear?" Jones retorted. "Is what I'm asking you to do really that much different than what you're doing to satisfy his abhorrent desires? Only difference I see is that you stand to become financially independent with me."

Lauren stepped into the hallway a bit shaken. He was right, and that candid and insightful observation would haunt her the rest of the day.

+++++

Corey was beside himself as he packed for his flight the next morning. Four days of frolicking in the sun, drinking by the pool, and enjoying Christmas Eve in the arms of his loving wife. Maybe even get a little naughty. Either way, it would be a welcome break from Iowa's freezing temperatures.

It was while he was deciding between blue or green swim trunks that his phone started blowing up. Shit. It was Zane Picardo. More precisely, it was the best friend who'd introduced his Lauren to the pleasures of rough sex. That Zane Picardo. Corey let it go to voice mail as he'd done a dozen times since the "Ashley Date." Thirty seconds later, the messaging app blew up.

Zane: Are you ever going to answer? We need to talk about this.

Zane: I still consider you guys friends. Never would have taken Lauren to the awards ceremony if I knew it was going to cost us our friendship. I only did what you hoped I'd do.

Zane: So that's it, man? We're done?

The 61-year-old picked up the phone and quickly read the texts. He damn near called the biker back but decided against it. Corey wasn't ready to face him, knowing that he knew. It was just too soon.

+++++

Lauren wiped down the stair-master while cooling off from a long session. It was nice to have a gym right there in the lobby of the luxury apartment building. Membership was exclusive to residents, so there was always plenty of room and she recognized most of the regulars. Some were part-timers, only working out after eating chocolate cake. Others were gym rats like her, pushing themselves to the limit at least five days a week.

Four of them were there as she stepped off the machine and caught her breath. Two younger women, who could have been glamour magazine models, a 30-something who looked like he was born with free-weights in his hand, and a new resident who couldn't have weighed more than 100 pounds wet. Lauren chuckled. She could definitely picture her husband working out with this one. Skinny and softy hitting the mats.

Approaching the towel hamper, tall and lanky politely held the top open, allowing her to toss hers in first.

"Thanks," she acknowledged his chivalry. "I'm Lauren. You new to these parts?" Her midwestern colloquially was on full display. As was her small chest and abs, held tightly by a thin sports bra.

"I...yes, moved in last week," he managed, trying hard not to look at her firm figure. "Luke. 15b."

Although clearly an adult, the guy appeared to have the social skills of a nervous 16-year-old.

"Well, nice to meet you, 15b," Lauren replied, smiling and turning towards the elevators. She could feel his eyes on her.

There was no longer any doubt.

All men ARE perverts. Even the ones you wouldn't expect.

A girl just had to find the right way to exploit that trait.

+++++

The phone vibrated incessantly as the sweaty brunette opened her apartment door. Multiple calls, all from the same number. How curious. They were from Zane Picardo.

Fearing something had happened to Corey, she immediately returned the call.

"Hi there," the biker picked up right away. "How's Miami treating you?"

That was an oddly casual greeting, especially since he'd not said boo to her since she slept with him over Thanksgiving.

"Fine. Is Corey okay?"

"How would I know? That's what I'm calling about. And yeah, don't worry, I doing okay too."

Lauren sighed. "I'm sorry. It's just that...well, you don't call me much. At all, actually."

"Should I start?"

A heavy silence fell hard.

"What's going on, Zane?"

"Your husband. Hasn't talked to me since you and I hooked up. I text, I call. Nothing. You know how tight we were. Now, I think that's all fucked up. I should've never agreed to that date."

"Calm down. Look, it was Corey's stupid idea. I went along with it. It wasn't your doing. Period. I threw myself at you and he got what he wanted. You and I had our fun too. But I don't think that's what's keeping him from calling you."

"Then what the hell is he trippin' on?"

"Himself."

"What?"

"I think it's pretty clear. Your buddy's been a regular guy for a long time. A guy's guy. Sports, drinking whiskey, girlie mags. Then he develops that...interest...I told you about. Now some would say a real man wouldn't never allow another man to touch their wife. But plenty do. And when they do, they don't broadcast it. Especially to biker friends. He knows I let it slip about his kink. So, I'm guessing he's worried what you're going to think of him."

The mechanic said nothing.

Lauren listened patiently to the dead air. "Zane?"

"Damn. And I thought he was just pissed at me."

"Hardly. Remember, he engineered that night."

"Yeah."

Another long silence.

"So, all good with you?" Zane asked, his voice gentler now.

"Yeah, its good," Lauren replied walking into the bedroom, her tone softening too. She draped a strand of straight black hair behind one ear. "Working hard. I wish Corey was here."

The one-time lovers talked about Miami, how her job was going, and the latest from Des Moines. He confessed he was getting tired of being a motorcycle mechanic and wanted to do something different.

"But then you'd never get another award," she giggled.

"Ha. Worthless trophies. Speaking of that, I guess you still have the last one? My boss has been asking about it."

Lauren felt the heat rise in her cheeks, thinking of the things she'd done with that glass wrench while Corey watched.

"Uh, yeah. It's at the house."

"Good. I guess it'll give me an excuse to go see the old fucker."

More silence.

"You were great that night, Lauren. I mean that."

"Zane..."

"Yeah, I know, it was a moment in time. I gotta say though, you were definitely not the prim and proper girl we've all come love. That was some surprise."

Lauren closed her eyes. "You're right. I'm not the same girl," she whispered, biting her lip. "I don't think we'll ever see her again."

"Well, for what its worth, that'd be alright by me."

There was a long pause as they listened to each other breathe.

"What I meant," Zane explained with an exhale, "is if you guys are still playing, I'd be up for an Ashley reprisal."

He could feel Lauren smile through the phone.

"I'll keep that in mine," she assured him.

"Well, I hope you enjoy your new life, Laur. I miss having your guys around."

Tears welled up in the transplanted Iowan's eyes. "I miss you too. Tell everyone hi for me. I hope your job gets better. You're a great mechanic, Zane, stick with it. And please go see Corey, okay?"

"I will, even if I have to drag his sorry ass to the bar."

The screen went dark leaving Lauren in deep thought. How many times had she masturbated to the biker roughing her up in Bakersfield? Nailing her to that mattress for hours. It was truly some of the best sex she'd ever had.

Her eyes shifted to the bottom dresser drawer where the Chairman lay at the ready. Bending down, she picked up the large ten-inch vibrator and checked its batteries. It whirred to life, it's little head rolling about the end of the shaft. Plenty fresh. Good.

+++++

December 22nd. Nine weeks to go.

Harvey watched from the concierge's desk as a grayed haired gentlemen entered the lobby of the luxury high-rise dragging a suitcase and attached camera bag behind him. It wasn't until the man took off his sunglasses did he recognize him as Mr. Miller, the absent husband of one of the hottest residents in the building. He wondered with amusement if Mrs. Miller was aware her hubby was in town. If not, and the rumors about her were true, they both might be in for a big surprise.

Entering the apartment with his own fob, Corey breathed in deeply. Although it was half-past eleven in the morning and she'd been gone to work for hours, he could still smell his wife's perfume and almost sensed her presence. Even though his name was on the lease, the place didn't feel like he belonged. No telling what kind of debauchery had taken place in this building...in this apartment...while he'd been gone.

The kind I jerk off to every night, thinking of what she's doing without me, that's what.

And the damn décor was way to female too. That would have to change. Sighing, he grabbed a beer from the fridge and stood in the kitchen. Lauren promised to leave work early so they could go to the beach, but that was still at least two hours away. What to do until then? It would be utter boredom. He walked into the eerily quiet bedroom and set his luggage on the bed. Everything was the way he remembered it, right down to the large mirror above the dresser where they had enjoyed watching their reflection as they made love.

I can't believe I'm actually here.

Having not been to visit since early November, he was curious to see how Lauren had settled in. One could tell a lot about how someone lived just by observing them "in the wild." Especially a beautiful wife in a long-distance marriage. It was the little things that told the story; how she went about daily life, how she interacted with new friends, coworkers, and neighbors. And more importantly, her attitude towards him being there. Would she welcome him back with open arms, or be contentious about his visit?

Selecting a drawer to stow his things, he unpacked and neatly folded his underwear, socks, and a few pairs of shorts. Standing at the dresser, Corey opened the bottom right-hand drawer. Sure enough, there sat the Chairman of the Board, right on top of some linens, almost like it had been recently used. Next to it was an empty tube of lube. Strange, he could have sworn that was nearly full his last visit. Naughty, naughty. Probably been through quite a few batteries too from the looks of it. In the other drawers were his wife's bras and panties. He was surprised to find that most of the latter were thongs, something she never used to wear at home. Pulling them out one by one, Corey caressed each and sniffed the crotches before gently putting them back. He stuffed a particularly thin and sexy red one into a trouser pocket and moved to the next drawer. More treasures. Swimsuits and racy lingerie, some he recognized, others he didn't. Here was the black bodysuit she'd fucked her coworker Steve in. There was the teddy Corey had given her years ago which she hadn't worn since. At least for him. Who knows what lucky guy had seen her in it? And what was this? A see-through mesh bra and panties? Hold on, that wasn't fucking underwear, it was a nearly transparent two-piece bikini! Christ! There was only one reason to wear that and it wasn't to attract the clergy. Other unmentionables were in there too, some with the tags still attached.

Across the room, one side of her closet had been left open. Corey slithered across the floor and took inventory. He finger-walked through a variety of clothing, all neatly pressed and organized. On one side was her work clothes, all far sexier than what she used to wear at the paper distributing company in Des Moines. On the other were colorful fun skirts and tops, as well as more provocative outfits. There was the mesh crop top and leather pants which she'd worn to tease men at the pub crawl. And what the fuck were these? Actual latex leggings? Really? Jesus. He'd only seen those in porn clips. Who had she worn those for? Certainly not him. Let's face it, dude, she doesn't wear anything sexy for you. Just THEM. A familiar tingle of jealousy began to tantalize his crotch in a way that made him groan. Why did that please him so much? It's not right, you sick fuck.

Looking around, he spied a framed cherished photograph of their wedding day on the nightstand. Corey ran his hand fondly over the glass. Besides the birth of Caroline and Amelia, it was the best day of his life. Next, he opened the table's small drawer and peeked in. Nothing but an old phone charger, hair clips, and aspirin. He was about to close it when a rectangular box beneath some blank post-it notes caught his eye. It bore the logo of a popular brand of condoms. Lifting it, Corey examined the carton. Only 4 left out of a pack of 12, all size XL. Corey's hand trembled, his dick twitching with bittersweet turmoil, the implication unmistakable. Even back in the day, he was at best a size medium.