Jill's Past? Ch. 02

Ryan smiled at me with what I thought was an admiring look, but all he said was, "Of course you're a Steelers fan, too."

Ryan and I silently agreed to let our conversation lag in order to eavesdrop on our wives, but their hushed voices in the back seat dropped into barely audible murmurs. We remained quiet in the front seat as I navigated the busy Saturday night streets and highways for another several minutes. We were still at least twenty minutes away from the club when, just as Ryan restarted our conversation by simply saying, "Jerome Bettis," Jill's surprised laugh exploded out of the darkness behind us.

"Joy Fisher! No! Ooo, how was that?" she asked eagerly, then after getting a whispered answer from Joy, she finished with, "Really?" Her tone was both scandalized and admiring.

I caught a movement in the mirror and saw Joy nodding as Jill turned to look more closely at Ryan. Joy continued to whisper her side of the conversation. Without taking her eyes off the side of Ryan's face, Jill continued to acknowledge Joy's comments with her own. "High school, it started in high school? No! Where did you go? Oh, I've always wanted to go on a Caribbean cruise."

I didn't even have to look at Ryan to know that he was trying very hard to not react to my wife's comments. His smile got bigger at the mention of the cruise, but he kept his eyes firmly locked on the uninteresting road in front of us. It was perfectly clear that he knew exactly what his wife was telling mine, so it was also pretty clear that Jill was saying just the right things to tease him with that knowledge. I was intrigued as to why he was not engaging in their conversation since he knew what they were discussing, especially since it involved him.

"Honey?" Jill addressed me a few seconds later. "Can we go on a cruise for our next anniversary?" Thinking she was serious, I was about to reply when all three of them, including Ryan, started laughing uproariously.

Ryan looked over at me and I could tell from his laugh that whatever uncertainty he held at the restaurant had been resolved. Unfortunately, I seemed to be the only one who was not up to speed on things. He continued to chuckle as he spoke for the first time since Jill started teasing him. "Ty, if you need any suggestions about cruise lines, destinations, or things to do onboard ship, I have all of my research files on my computer." His offer prompted another round of laughs when he added, "I have a lot of pictures and a few videos of the really fun stuff, if you're interested."

"And you called me bad?!?" my wife exclaimed as laughter filled the car. At this point I figured I had qualified for the title of Captain Obvious because I finally allowed myself to believe that the conversation, at least since we had been in the car but probably starting much earlier, was about sex. I decided to earn my new title by continuing to play dumb or at least maintain plausible deniability.

"Thanks, Ryan. I'm a visual learner, so the pictures and video would probably work best. Can I access them online?" I asked loud enough to be heard in back.

"They better not be, buster," Joy laughed.

"You know Ty, I hadn't thought about putting them online." Ryan teased back. "That's not a bad idea." Then he turned his shoulders so he could see into the back seat and continued, "I'll bet Flickr would be a good way to share them, don't you think Joy? The video files are way too big to send through email and we all know how much size matters in these things." Ryan sounded positively thrilled with himself as he turned the tables on his wife. The only thing he forgot was that women are only catty about other women amongst themselves. Once a man enters the picture, women protect each other first.

"Oh, I don't know, Ryan," my wife answered with a playful, yet menacing tone, "I email files to Joy all the time and she never complains that they're too big." I nearly choked at my wife's enthusiasm for teasing a man she just met about his sexual exploits. "Maybe she just has a bigger, um, I mean better service provider." Both of the women dissolved in laughter, pleased with Jill's quick wit.

I was about to feel sorry for Ryan when he looked at me and announced, "You know, Ty, I think Jill might be right. I should look into a new service provider and do some comparison shopping. Who do you use?" His quick comeback pushed our wives into gales of more laughter intermixed with short phrases that I couldn't make out clearly.

I wasn't sure I wanted to get involved in the back and forth on the topic, but since he had explicitly included me twice and Jill had declined his offer of ganging up on Joy, I figured it was officially the guys against the girls. Still, I decided to join in carefully. "I've always been happy with the service I get from the provider I've had since college."

"Oh well played, Tyler" teased Joy as she reached forward and patted my shoulder. We were stopped at a traffic light only a block or so from the club, so she wasn't interfering with my driving.

My neutral answer coupled with our arrival at the club proved enough of a distraction that we all shifted our focus to the scene outside the club. We were staring at a line of twenty-somethings that stretched almost the length of the block as I drove slowly past. Many were dressed to kill in revealing dresses and stylish jackets; others in strategically torn shirts and jeans. Some had spiked hair with tattoos over much of their bodies, and the obligatory dark eyeshade, made them look as if they had just died. "I think the phrase 'Under New Management' applies to our dance club," Jill concluded.

"I don't see anyone who looks like a mom in that line," Joy observed with a laugh.

"More importantly," I suggested, "I don't see myself standing in that line. It's gonna be midnight before we get in."

"And another hour before we get anything to drink," Ryan said matter-of-factly.

"O-kay," Jill started slowly as we reached the light at the end of the block. "I am so sorry I didn't check this out before we left. And I really didn't think I needed a plan B. Sorry, guys."

"That's because your plan B was to drag your husband back home and enjoy the rest of the night without interruption," Joy joked.

I didn't see the response Jill gave her, but whatever it was made Joy shriek and then laughingly answer with, "Oh, so that's how it's gonna be, huh? First you're my friend, then when I speak truth, you turn on me."

"OK, sorry," Jill extended the peace offering playfully. "Yeah, you got me. If it had been just me and Tyler looking at that line, I would have been good with teasing him unmercifully all the way back home then having my way with him."

Jill's playful admission prompted everyone to silently consider our options while we waited for the light to change. Joy suggested that there was a nice bar in their hotel and, while it didn't really have much of a dance floor, it would still be a good alternative if we wanted to keep the evening going. "Of course," she concluded, "if you would rather carry on with your original plan B, I'm sure Ryan and I can find a way to comfort each other over our shared grief at the premature ending of a wonderful evening in the big city."

"You are just something else, aren't you?" Jill replied. "To the hotel, James, and no need to hurry. Joy and I have some girl things to talk over so don't mind us." I made eye contact with Jill in the mirror. She silently mouthed 'I love you,' and gave me a reassuring smile. It was all I needed to leave the rest of the plans, whatever they were, in her hands.

I pulled away from the light and restarted the conversation about the Steelers with Ryan. We both quickly regained our enthusiasm for the topic, aided by the fact that we each talked slightly louder than necessary in order to give our wives the privacy they asked for. The trip back to their hotel seemingly took no time and I was surprised how quickly we arrived at the front entrance.

"I got this," Ryan said as he got out of the car and spoke to the valet. When the valet opened the back door allowing Joy and Jill to exit, Ryan just nodded, letting me know everything was arranged for my car. Jill took my arm by wrapping both of her long arms around my bicep and snuggling close. I was pretty sure it was not just the air temperature that accounted for the hard erasers I had noticed poking prominently against the shimmering fabric of her top. Now, with her body pressed against me, I could feel her unrestrained breasts topped with her hard nipples against my upper arm as she held onto me in the cool evening air.

We waited a few moments as Ryan spoke again to the valet. I noticed Joy holding his hand in hers, fingers intertwined. Absentmindedly she reached up and rubbed the length of his arm with her free hand as she and Jill talked about the building décor. Since we were standing facing them, I also noticed an area of especially sparkly blue sequins right over where I guessed Joy's nipples pushed the fabric out. I let my mind wander as I considered how erect feminine nipples had such different effects on the fabric covering them. Jill's nipples created sharp, distinct points in her shimmering top's smooth material whereas Joy's aroused buds elevated an entire region whose exact boundary was less well-defined due to the weight of the fabric and number of the small reflective disks that covered her dress. Just as I congratulated myself on this insight, I glanced up at Joy's face to see that she was looking at me with an amused and patient smile. Her sly wink confirmed that she had caught me staring intently at her chest, but also indicated that she was not at all uncomfortable with my interest.

Far from oblivious to my unintended, but evidently welcomed, interest in Joy's breasts, Jill let me know she saw me looking too. She casually leaned into me and whispered, "Does she make you consider trying out a new service provider?" Jill ended her inquiry with a quick, subtle swipe of her tongue around the outside edge of my ear.

Embarrassed at having been caught in what I thought was kind of a non-sexual appreciation of the female form, I had the presence of mind to not try to deny that I had been staring at Joy. I briefly considered trying to explain the insight I had gained while staring at her co-worker's seriously impressive breasts, but mercifully, the explanation sounded stupid even before I said it out loud - a sequence that did not always work out in that order for me.

"It's OK, Ty, she likes that you're looking," Jill informed me before she drew away and took my hand in hers. "And so do I," she added coyly.

"All set," Ryan announced handing me a small, plastic card that I assumed I would need to claim my car when we left. "Shall we?" Ryan offered as he proceeded through the large doors into the lobby.

We made our way to the bar, pleased to find that it was not too crowded. We were able to secure a corner booth that was just being reset in the wake of the previous patrons. The deep leather cushioned seats required some effort for Jill to slide in while retaining a measure of modesty, but the booth was nicely situated with a view of the small dance area and the bar itself. The mirrored wall above the high, cushioned back on Ryan and Joy's side of the booth allowed me to sit with my back to the room, but still get a good view of the open space behind me.

I took the lead and ordered a bottle of Bollinger to celebrate Joy and Ryan's anniversary and asked for a wine list. The waitress returned with the wine list and a bottle of Bollinger in a silver cooler. She turned the bottle toward me so I could see the label. "This is the only Bollinger we have at the moment, but there are other champagnes on the wine list," she explained.

I poured as Jill and Joy huddled closer to each other with Ryan trapped between them so they could all look over the wine list together. When I finished pouring, we all raised our glasses. "To Ryan and Joy on their anniversary: may you have many more," I toasted.

"Mmmm, not too sweet. I like it," Ryan commented as he savored the taste. Jill and Joy both commented that they, too, liked the selection, then took turns thanking each other for agreeing to make it a double-date.

Joy raised her flute saying, "To new friends: may our shared interests bring us closer and our shared secrets keep us close." She ended with a cute giggle and peered intently over the rim of her flute at Jill as she drank to her own toast.

Jill returned Joy's gaze as she sipped her champagne. I felt Jill's fingertip locate my knee under the table, where she gave me a meaningful squeeze. "It's very full bodied with a powerful, pleasant bouquet," Jill said pointedly as she replaced her glass on the table. She and Joy were still locked on each others' eyes and I watched in fascination as Jill licked her lips purposefully.

Enjoying the double-entendres that filled the conversation, Joy smiled. "It's quite feminine, but I'm sure it will taste even better if we tried alternating with something more masculine like a dry cabernet. Shall we try one . . . or maybe two . . . from different wineries?"

Jill broke her lingering gaze with her co-worker and looked intently at Ryan for a second and then at me, moving her hand up the inside of my thigh as she spoke. "I think I would like to try a cab and a zin, both domestic," Jill answered.

I swallowed hard at the implications of my wife's conversation, unsure if this was just wildly erotic teasing or if she was really interested in acting on her obvious interest in our new friends. Ryan evidently needed a break from the teasing, too.

"Is it me or is it getting warm in here?" he asked as he removed his jacket. Jill and Joy watched him carefully as he draped the jacket over the back of the booth and rolled up his sleeves. His forearms revealed that he was more heavily muscled than was evident earlier. Joy saw that Jill was watching her husband and, when Ryan completed his adjustments, she looked at Jill and raised her eyebrows as if to confirm that Ryan was a hot-looking man.

Our waitress returned and we spent the next few minutes deciding on the number and types of wines we wanted to order. In the end we decided on two bottles just as our wives had negotiated while they were really talking about something other than wine.

"How about a little game?" Joy asked as our waitress, Becky, retreated to get our wine.

"What did you have in mind?" Ryan asked. He was obviously interested, which I thought was a good sign.

"Well Jill and I have known each other for a few years, but haven't really gotten to know each other socially until now. Of course, we just met Ty and he us. And," Joy turned to face me and I was pleasantly surprised when she reached across the table and put her hand on mine as she made her point, "Ty, here, is still pretty much in the dark about much of our conversation so far."

Ryan laughed, saying, "Oh honey, the way you and Jill have been teasing us I don't think Tyler's too confused at all." Jill and I joined in with Ryan, laughing at his accuracy and honesty.

"Yes, yes, I know that," Joy countered happily, "What I meant was let's get some of the details out in the open. Shared secrets keep us close," she finished coquettishly.

"Joy and I talked about a Getting-to-Know-You kind of game earlier and we wanted to know if you gentlemen would like to play with us?" Jill caught herself and giggled. "Oops! I meant play it with us?" she said quickly. Jill had done a great job of making it look like her "error" had been intentional, but I could tell from the rising color in her cheek that it had been more of a Freudian slip than intentional joke. "And," my wife continued, "Ty doesn't know it yet, but I was going to give him a special opportunity this evening." Jill paused as she smirked at me. "You see, Ryan, I was planning to use our date as a chance to talk to Ty about . . .well, things that I should have talked about a long time ago. In appreciation for his patience, I was going to give him three questions he could ask at any time and I would agree to answer them immediately and honestly. Instead of limiting the questions to Ty, we can adapt the same rules to our new group. We'll go around the table and ask each other questions. If you don't answer or don't answer truthfully, the person asking the question gets a wish that their spouse has to grant." Jill ended by turning to me, "public embarrassment is out of bounds of course. But other than that . . . whatever you want."

"So this is like Truth-or-Dare, but without the Dares unless someone fibs? And we can ask anyone at the table, right?" Ryan clarified.

"Yes and yes," Joy answered as Jill squeezed the inside of my thigh a final time before putting her hands on the table in front of her. "And I get to go first," Joy finished immediately. No one argued, so Joy turned toward my wife. "Jill," Joy's smile promised something especially devious while Jill bit her lower lip in nervous anticipation. "Have you been with more than one man . . . at the same time . . . since you met Tyler?"

Jill's changing reaction as Joy drew out the question was wonderful to watch. I didn't expect the first two parts because it meant that Jill had, in fact, told Joy about the cabin. The third part however was beyond belief. Surely not? When? Joy wouldn't have asked that unless she knew something I didn't, right? Jill's tightened grip on my leg told me she was nervous about her answer. Jill continued to look at Joy as if expecting the question to continue, so Joy obliged her. "And you have to look at Ty when you answer."

Jill took a moment before turning to me. She released her hold on my knee and took my hands in hers, looking intently into my eyes. From her physical response, I already knew the answer to the questions, but I desperately wanted to hear her say it out loud. "Yes," she said simply. I could tell she was trying to tell me more with her look, which I assumed meant she wanted to explain or possibly apologize, but what she said next was neither of those. "More than once." Jill cocked her head a bit in a move I interpreted as a combination of 'You didn't expect that, did you?' and 'Your wife is naughty, isn't she?'

My mouth was suddenly very dry, and my gulp of the champagne drew an appreciative chuckle from Ryan. Jill held my gaze for a few moments longer, teasing me with her boldness. I desperately wanted a lot more details, but the jumble of questions again all seemed to reach my throat at the same time. This was now twice in less than 24 hours Jill had left me speechless.

"Ok, I'm up next," Jill said finally when it was obvious I wasn't going to say anything. "Mr. Fisher," Jill began while she looked quickly around to make sure we were still enjoying our privacy, "since your wife has set the precedent of multi-part questions, I would like to know if you have ever watched Joy being intimate with another guy and, if so, when was the first time."

It was clear from her question that she already knew the answer to the first part, but needed to ask it.

Ryan looked at her confidently and answered, "Would you define 'being intimate,' for me please?"

His question caught Jill off guard, but I stepped in for her as much to free my own voice as to help my wife. "I would say that if someone has an orgasm, then whatever they were doing was intimate." I looked at Jill and Joy who both smiled in agreement.

"Well, in that case, 'yes,' and the first time was," he looked at his wife as if recalling the event, "at our senior prom in high school." Ryan looked at Joy with so much love and admiration that I was embarrassed to think that I had expected him to be shy or embarrassed about such unconventional behavior. "However," he continued, turning back to face Jill, "those details will have to wait for a more private setting. I believe it's my turn."