Down & Up In Carolina

"Jed Dickens is one mean dude, buddy. You humiliated him in his own back yard. He is not going to take that lightly, and he's vindictive as hell. You watch your six, you hear me?" That's pilots jargon for watch your back. Rudy is a former Marine pilot who had seen action in Nam and Korea. As a former combat vet I value his warning.

"Thanks Rudy. I will"

The next day after work, and a quick trip home to clean up, I'm headed for Shelly's address. There are 2 cars in the driveway and I park the Harley next to them. Apparently the Harley's rumble has caught Shelly's ear, because she is at the door waiting as I get off the bike and walk to the door. She says, "John, she's out back by the pool. You can go on around if you like." Then she adds, "I need to go over to my mama's house for a while. I should be back in about an hour. She has seemed fine all day." I wave as I walk around the back.

When I reach the pool I find Doreen lying face up on a lounge chair with sunglasses on. She is wearing a one piece brown bathing suit with high cut legs showing lots of hip and cut low enough on top to allow the tops of her breasts to show. Her skin has a mixed sheen of perspiration and sun oil that looks very erotic. I stand near by watching as her chest rises and falls with her breathing. It is so even I think she is asleep. I walk closer to look down from above her, and allow my eyes to slowly devour her from head to toe. I notice how the suit fits snuggly around her sex and displays it so well, the swell of her breasts, and the exquisite legs and thighs totally on display before me.

I nearly jump out of my skin when I hear her say, "Enjoying the view, cowboy?" I assumed she was asleep, but this vixen is watching me watch her. A chuckle and that devastating smile of hers follow her comment. I am speechless and embarrassed to be caught so blatantly ogling, and my predicament must show because she adds, "Relax, it has been a long time since someone has even cared to look. I enjoy your looking as much as you do."

I sit down on the chair next to hers still not knowing what to say. She comes to my rescue with, "Thanks for stopping by sir Galahad. You saved me the trip looking for you so that I can thank you again for what you did last night."

"You owe me no thanks." I reply. "I would have stepped in on that one no matter who was involved. I don't like seeing anyone beaten on."

"Well thanks anyway." She removes her sunglasses and I can see the mouse is not too bad this morning. Getting the ice on right away helped. I am curious about her situation with her husband, but I am not sure if my interest isn't just to find out her availability.

I hesitate but ask anyway, "I don't mean to pry, and you don't have to answer if you don't want to, but what is it with you and your husband? I have seen men bully their wives before, but this seems different. This is more than mere male chauvinism, this seems more like hate to me."

She puts her sunglasses back on before replying, "I will give you the short version of a long sad story. Jed and I were childhood sweet hearts. He was the star tackle on the football team, and I was the cute cheerleader in high school. When we graduated we both had scholarships to Carolina. He had a full sports scholarship and I an academic one. We were married secretly after our freshman year. Our sophomore year Carolina got a bowl invitation. During the game Jed blew his knee out, it was so bad the doctors told him he could never play football again. No football no scholarship. Jed couldn't stay at Carolina without it, and I wouldn't stay there without him. We came back home, got jobs and settled down. I was in pre-law at Carolina and was able to get a job as a paralegal at a law firm in Morehead City. Jed went to work for Ledbedder boat works.

Things went along fine for a long time. Five years ago old man Ledbedder died, and his sons began running the firm. They started making changes that their daddy wouldn't. I guess they realized they had to modernize the business to stay competitive. Jed and the oldest brother Luke never got along. The two of them would argue about every improvement the brothers made. One-day Jed's temper got the better of him and he punched Luke out. Jed was fired and hasn't worked a day since. He has spent his time with his redneck buddies drinking beer and doing all the things that rednecks enjoy. He also has become meaner and more violent. He has been in jail for assault a couple of times. He is full of rage and hate, and it is beginning to spill out on others. I know it has just about ruined our marriage. He is usually so drunk or so angry that we don't even have a sex life anymore." Her face flushed a little on that one and she became quiet for a few seconds.

She takes a deep cleansing breath, and her former jovial mood returns. She says, "The sun won't be high much longer and you, young sir, are blocking it. I need to work on the back side, so would you be so kind as to oil my back for me?" With that she turns on her stomach and removes her arms from the top of the suit and places her hands under her head as a pillow.

Here I sit with bare woman back showing from her neck to the top of her buttocks and the tops of her thighs to her toes. The swell of her breasts is showing where they mash into the lounger. How could any man refuse a request from this woman?

I kneel down beside the lounger, reach for the sun oil, and apply a liberal amount to my hands. My hands lower to her back and begin to spread the oil around. Medical training comes to bear and the oil application becomes a relaxing gentle massage. She sighs audibly as my fingers begin at her shoulders and work their way over the muscles of her back. The sides of her rib cage and swell of the sides of her breasts are included. That move doesn't cause any reaction as I thought it might. I work the oil into the skin and have reached her narrow waist. The top swell of her buttocks is revealed by the low cut back of her suit, and I massage the oil there as well. Her breathing has become deep and regular and I assume she is falling asleep.

Sweat has popped out on my forehead and I'm breathing heavier both from the heat of the day, and more from my increased state of arousal. The touch of her skin is very erotic. My body is responding with a pleasant erection. I move to the lower half of her body and repeat the massage on her legs, beginning at her ankles. The backs of her calves are well toned and defined, the skin soft and warm to my touch. My hands begin working her thighs from the knees up. She repositions her legs slightly farther apart and sighs again. As my hands work higher up her thighs I notice that her hips rise and fall once or twice, and slight mewling sounds come from the area at the top of the lounger.

I smile and am relieved to know that I am not the only one responding to the touch of man skin to woman skin.

I complete my work on her thighs, and successfully avoid the urge to massage her sex in the process, which was a mighty struggle. My attention now turns to her feet. After applying oil to the tops I begin to work on the soles. I am very slow and deliberate in my ministrations, being careful not to tickle. I also know that this can be very erotic for some people. Apparently Doreen is one of them for out of the corner of my eye I notice here hips beginning to rise and fall as she rubs the front of her sex against the lounger. Her breathing has become more ragged, and the sounds from her throat tell me she is enjoying the foot massage.

Her foot is suddenly pulled from my grasp as she makes to get up quickly. In her haste she almost forgets the top of the suit. She tries to put her arms in and quickly replace it, but not before I get a delectable glimpse of her breasts hanging down slightly. Finally on her feet she moves to the edge of the pool to quickly dive in. When she comes up for air and pushes her wet hair out of the way, she turns and looks to me and smiles. "This sure feels good, the sun is pretty hot this afternoon. Why don't you shuck those clothes and join me."

I chuckle to myself and reply "There's more than the sun that's hot right now."

I stand up and move closer to the edge of the pool looking at Doreen waist deep in the water. My hands slowly pull my T-shirt from the waist of my Jeans and over my head. Doreen is standing very still and watching my every move. Boots and socks drop next to my shirt, and I begin to undo my jeans. While not actually doing a strip tease I am very slow and deliberate. I haven't taken my eyes off of Doreen's, and I'm enjoying watching her reactions. When my jeans are undone my hands begin to push them down going slowly again. I kick them to the side with the rest of my clothes and stand up in my boxer/briefs. They are of a colored material that doesn't show much, but my semi-erect shaft is readily apparent, and Doreen is looking right at it. Her eyes then slowly devour the rest of my body the same way mine did hers a short while ago. She completes her inspection and her eyes return to my boxers and the tent that had become bigger as her eyes roamed my body.

Diving into the water I tried to come up next to Doreen, but she swam for deep water. I followed her. We then begin a game of grope tag with our hands touching each other playfully and grabbing and squeezing. A thigh grabbed here, a hip there; an ankle or buttocks all are fair game. She dunks my head and I grab her ankle as I sink to bring her with me. When I let go of her ankle to take her in my arms she sprints away to shallower water. She waits in waist deep water, and I rise to stand before her. I look into her brown eyes and see a mixture of mischief and arousal. "Are you going to finish what you started?" she asks while looking me squarely in the eye.

"That is up to you. Isn't it Doreen?" My gaze is as intense as hers is.

"I guess it is." Her right hand moves to the suit strap over her left shoulder and pushes it down on her arm. The left hand does the same to the other strap. She pulls both arms out of the straps and the top of her suit drops to her waist. Her beautiful breasts are exposed to my gaze. Their nipples are swollen with desire, and drops of water hang from them like little pearls. Winded and excited her shallow breathing causes them to rise and fall. Her sides taper to her waist and the swell of her hips disappears into the lower half of the suit. She takes one step forward, places her arms around my neck and presses her breasts into my chest. The hard nipples making dents beneath them. My hands go to the naked warm flesh of her hips and pull her lower body to mine. The erection she has created presses in to her and she moves her hips against it arousing me further.

I run my hands up the silky skin of her back to her shoulders, and back down to slowly descend beneath to suit bottom. One luscious globe in each hand I squeeze and pull her closer against me. The sensations this causes make her pull her head back and gasp. I take the opportunity to begin kissing down her neck. Her head stays back to let me continue. My lips encounter the slopes of her breast and continue to plant loving kisses until they reach her nipple. Her hand has slipped between us and slowly makes its way into my shorts to fondle and stroke the stiffness she finds there. Just then my mouth closes over her nipple and my teeth close on the delectable morsel and cause a jolt through her body.

Suddenly she pulls away from our embrace. There is fear in her eyes. She asks herself, "What am I doing?' and quickly pulls her suit back up, climbs out of the pool and begins sprinting for the house. Over her shoulder she says, "I'm truly sorry." Before I can react or respond the door closes, and I hear the lock snap. I haul my bewildered body from the pool and dry with the towel she left behind. Leaving my shorts off I redress and make ready to leave. As I pull away from the house I think I see a curtain in an upstairs room move. I look again, but see no one.

A couple of weeks later I am in town getting the oil changed and the tires rotated on my pick-up. I bought a used Ford 1/2 ton for those days the weather won't let me ride the Fat Bob. It is a sleeper. There are scratches, dents and rust all over it, but that is deceiving. She is solid. The former owner must have been a shade tree mechanic who knew what he was doing, because there are some engine modifications made. She has all the reserve power you need, and can push you deep into the seat when you mash the accelerator.

I am sitting in the diner across the street sipping coffee while I wait. The seat I have taken is at the corner of the counter. I can see the door and watch people go by on the sidewalk outside. My second or third cup is just about empty when a vision in yellow walks in. It takes me a second to realize its Doreen. I haven't seen her in a dress before. Man, what I have been missing. She wears a yellow summer dress that would be completely modest on anyone else. On Doreen it is purely erotic. The dress buttons all the way up the front with big white buttons. The hem is just above the knee, and shows off the prettiest pair of legs I have ever seen. The top 2 and last 2 buttons on the front are left undone. This allows just a hint of cleavage to show and a whole lot of thigh to show with each step she takes. The yellow is a fantastic contrast to her tanned skin and dark brown hair. The heels she wears give more shape and definition to her calves, and make her look taller. A white purse and sunglasses complete the outfit. She is totally delectable.

She stands in the doorway looking around for a seat. A virtually, except for me, empty diner gives her a wide selection. The sun is behind her and makes it obvious she is not wearing a slip under her dress. Her shapely legs are showing in silhouette all the way up to those magnificent thighs, and the narrow gap between them at the top. I choke on my coffee at the sight. The loud effort to get coffee out of my windpipe catches her attention. That devastating smile lights up her face and she makes her way toward me. I notice that she doesn't take her sunglasses off inside as she comes near me.

Standing next to me she places her hand gently on my shoulder, reaches up on tiptoe and plants a chaste kiss on my cheek. "Hi there, Sir Galahad. I have been hoping to run into you again." She says this as she climbs up on the stool next to mine. In the process her dress rides further and further up her thighs. I realize that she is not wearing hose, and that I am looking at warm smooth and very naked thigh flesh. My hand has been resting on my thigh closest too her. The warmth of her naked thigh is very apparent to the back of my hand. I leave my hand where it is, and try to force my rising erection to behave itself. An impossible task, as I'm sure you know.

"How have you been?" I ask. Hoping against hope that banal conversation will hold my raging hormones at bay.

"Doing fine now." She replies. I'm not sure that means she's fine in her personal situation or fine being here next to me.

"I want to apologize for what happened the other day." I start to interrupt, but she holds up a hand and continues, "I behaved abominably by letting what happened happen, and then leaving so abruptly with you in the state you were in. I lost my nerve for a couple f reasons I don't want to go into. Please accept my apology."

"Apology accepted."

"You sure look gorgeous today, Doreen."

"Why thank you, John. It is always nice to receive complements from a handsome man. Especially one as handsome as you." I start blushing at that one. "Oh. Did I make you uncomfortable? I'm sorry. I didn't mean to do that."

" It's o.k. I'm just not used to receiving those kinds of compliments from beautiful women like you." I replied.

Now it is her turn to blush. Her tanned skin has a slightly reddish cast to it, and she looks down at her lap. "John, please don't say that."

"Why?" I am astounded.

"Because it's not true. I'm a 46-year-old woman, and I know that the years are catching up with me. I don't hold any illusions about my appearance." She says this in a quiet humble voice.

"My dear Doreen, you are one of the most beautiful women I have ever met." I say trying to make her understand.

"And how many have you met. You can't be more than 22, and you can't have seen many. How would you be able to judge." The slight sarcasm in her tone is irritating.

"Madam," I say because I know it annoys her, "I am not as young as you think. I am 30 I'll have you know. I have also spent 12 years in Uncle Sam's Canoe Club, and have been to some very exotic places and seen many beautiful women. I can assure you that in my opinion you are one of the most beautiful creatures ever to walk this planet. And your age be damned. Beauty has nothing to do with physical assets or years of age. It is a state of being. You will be as beautiful when you are at 86 as you are at 46. You have been blessed with physical beauty as well as being a beautiful person. I don't know who has been telling you that you are not beautiful, but they need glasses."

All during my monologue her chin has been dropping lower and lower. She has not removed her glasses, but I am sure that her eyes are as big as saucers. I have left her quite speechless. I have a big grin on my face when I finish.

"I'm truly sorry John, and thank you for all of those kind words. To hear them from someone even only 16 years younger than I is a great boost to a gal's ego." With that she places her hand on my thigh and squeezes gently, so much for keeping my hormones in check.

She is quiet for a moment, and just looks at me through her sunglasses. I can't tell her emotions through the dark polarized lenses. I can't stand it any more and ask, "Would you please take the shades off so that I can see your beautiful eyes?"

She stiffened and replied, "I'm afraid of what you'll do after you see them."

I thought she meant I might jump her bones right here in the diner. I am starting to try to assure her when I see her hand move slowly up to her glasses. She slowly removes the glasses from her face. She looks strait at me. Her beautiful brown eyes look out at me through ugly purple bruises on her cheeks and brow. My erection wilts and I am immediately filled with a rage so intense I can hardly breathe. Someone has beaten this beautiful woman badly. It is apparent that the bruises are well on their way to healing. I have taken care of teammates after not a few bar fights. I am well aware of how she looked after the beating she has as taken. I begin to reach to soothe her wounds, but draw back knowing that they are still tender.

"Did he do this to you?" referring to her husband

She nodded her head slowly and replied, "I stayed at Shelly's place for 2 days. When I went home Jed was waiting for me. We had a big argument, and he began to slap me around. He then began to hit me with his fists. He hit my face and my body. I was trying to defend my self and got off a good kick to his balls. When he fell to his knees I ran for the door. By the time I got back to Shelly's my eyes were almost swollen shut.

She of course wanted to know what happened. After telling her she put me back in the car and took me to the emergency room. The doctor determined nothing was broken after examinations and x-rays. He asked me if I wanted to press charges, and I said yes. When the police got there they took my statement and pictures of my bruises. They found and arrested Jed before we left the hospital. He was in jail for a week before his family could post bond. I have been living with Shelly ever since. I also called the law firm where I work and asked them to file for divorce. I refuse to be his punching bag. The bruises on my body are almost gone, but they're still tender.