Love Thy Neighbor

"Or then you're just too old to tell," Laura teased him.

"Oh you, I'll show you what I'm too old for," he said and started to tickle her.

—#—#—#—#—#—

Deborah lay wide awake and listened to the noises coming from upstairs. Laura was giggling and then they were talking something in a low voice. She wondered if they'd...do something tonight. She didn't know if she wanted them to or not.

It had been such a disturbing day she had no way to cope with it all. She still had trouble understanding what the police had told her. They had talked of crimes she didn't even have names for. She couldn't believe the elders were involved in something so foul. And least of all David, it couldn't be. He was an accountant, not a criminal.

Of course she had never been to where he worked and knew nothing of it. She was the wife, she wasn't supposed to meddle in men's affairs. The police had asked her many things but the only thing she could tell them were David's travel dates, which she had written in her own calendar.

Eventually she must've fallen asleep because when she woke up it was undoubtedly morning. Sun was shining in through the window and she sat up disoriented and confused of where she was. It took awhile for everything to come crashing back.

She dressed herself and started to look around. The house was empty. There was coffee in the pot and she poured herself a mug. She went to the porch with it and spotted Tom painting the garage.

"Good morning!" he said and put the brush back into the jar. He walked up to her wiping his hands into a rug. "Can I make you some breakfast?"

"What? Oh no, don't quit on my behalf," she said.

"Is omelette okay?" Tom asked as he walked up the stairs. "Laura's gone to town, she'll get groceries later, we can text her if there's something specific you'd like."

"I wouldn't want you to bother because of me," she said curtly as she followed him inside.

"Well, you're our guest now, of course we'll feed you," he said. "Did the police give any estimates as to when you'll get your house back? I was thinking we could get you a proper bed and put it in one of the bedrooms, the sofa is not l that nice for long term, you'll get a sore back."

She didn't know what to say. He probably noticed it, because he didn't continue. He went to the fridge and went through it. He offered again to make her an omelette and she accepted. He washed his hands in the kitchen sink and started cooking. She sat beside the table and looked at him when he didn't notice and away when he did.

He looked at ease in the kitchen, like he did this every day. It felt weird to Deborah, she had thought Laura would do the cooking. Men didn't do household chores, did they? He was renovating the house, but that was different of course. But she was a guest here and it wasn't her place to ask, and so she didn't.

Tom kept up the conversation. He seemed nice, even funny. He reminded her of her brother back when they'd been small kids and had still interacted freely. He presented her with the omelette and himself with a cup of coffee, sitting down to the table with her.

It was difficult to be so close to him. He was somehow more masculine than David. He was bigger, more muscular, his voice was deeper. And he had a bigger...

Deborah blushed and wished he wouldn't notice.

After breakfast Tom went back to painting the garage and Deborah sat on the porch looking. She was restless, she felt like she should be doing something, cleaning or gardening, but she was a guest here and had no such duties. She wondered how long this would go on and if she would go crazy if she wouldn't get to do something.

Laura came home and Deborah got to help empty the groceries to the cupboards. Laura said she was planning on writing for a couple of hours and that she could do what she wished. She writhed uncomfortably.

"What is it?" Laura asked.

"Well, I'm not used to being idle," Deborah said. "Would it be possible for me to...clean or do the laundry or something?"

"Certainly," Laura said. "If that's what you want to do then I certainly won't stop you. We manage, of course, but I can't say it's something neither of us enjoy doing. Except that Tommy likes to cook, so I don't think you get to do that. Or maybe if you insist. You'll have to ask him."

She smiled and proceeded to show her where their laundry hamper was, and the washing machines and cleaning supplies. She smiled encouragingly and disappeared upstairs to work on her next book.

Deborah decided to start with laundry, it was straightforward enough and the hamper was almost full. She sorted the dirty clothes by color and degree and started to fill up the machine.

Her hand happened upon Tom's underwear. She hesitated, glancing around to make sure nobody was near, and then she lifted it to her face and smelled it.

His smell was strong but pleasant. She couldn't remember ever smelling anything quite like this. David certainly didn't smell so...manly.

She filled up the machine quickly. Her face felt hot and her heart was thumping.

—#—#—#—#—#—

The case against Deborah's husband seemed complicated. The police came to the house almost every day and they interviewed Deborah on multiple occasions. Deborah was constantly apologizing for overextending her welcome and Laura and Tommy tried to convince her it was no trouble. She did more and more of the household chores so she was more than making up for her keep, and they got used to having her around.

It did take a few days before they made love with her in the house. Initially they thought she'd be gone soon and tried to be polite and wait it out, but days followed one another and the police didn't release her house. She went to her church on Sunday, and all three of them had hoped she would find a sympathetic crowd there and maybe be offered a place to stay with a sister of faith. Instead she wasn't even allowed to stay for the sermon. She was devastated and Laura and Tommy didn't know how to help her.

Come Wednesday Laura was so horny she couldn't wait any longer. Tommy didn't object, and they made love as quietly as they could manage. It was sweet, and they did it again in the morning. Deborah didn't seem to have noticed, and they settled into doing it in the night before going to sleep.

—#—#—#—#—#—

On the following Sunday Deborah was once again turned away from the church. She felt abandoned and insulted. She didn't doubt her God, but her faith in her congregation had all but vanished. She couldn't believe they'd throw her under the truck so easily.

She knew her parents hadn't been in the inner circle of the congregation, but they had never done anything wrong. After they'd passed on she had been just a member amongst others, one sheep in the flock. She had thought she had gained a respected position by marrying David, but of course that had backfired just spectacularly.

She had still believed she had a place among them. And now even the best of her friends seemed to pretend she didn't exist. She was innocent of any wrongdoing David had done and she had always done her very best to follow every rule dutifully. This was so unfair it made her really resentful.

She had accepted that David had indeed been doing something hideous on his business trips and maybe when he left to work. She wasn't aware of anything in the house, she was sure nothing had happened there but apparently David had some stashes of something awful there since the police still held on to it. She was getting angry, she felt like David had robbed her of her whole life. She wondered if he had ever loved her at all. She had thought so, because husbands were supposed to love their wives, weren't they?

She kept thinking back to Friday. Laura had gotten a letter from her publisher and it had included copies of multiple reviews of her book from different newspapers. Laura and Tom had read them together over lunch.

They were so friendly and open with each other, so tender, they sat there with their heads close together and compared the reviews. They laughed together at some of them and cited the best parts. Tom kissed her and said he loved her and was so proud of her. Deborah had been filling up the dishwasher in the kitchen, eavesdropping on them as she was doing it, stealing a glance every now and then.

Deborah could never in a million years imagine a scene like that between her and David. It made her jealous but she didn't know what she was jealous of and to whom.

Now it was Sunday evening, she had once more been humiliated at the church, and she was angry and jealous and restless. She tossed and turned on the couch, trying to sleep.

And then she heard it. There was a distinct moan from upstairs. They were doing it! Blood flushed through her body, making her cheeks burn and her...thing throb. She hadn't been touching herself while she was staying in their house, but now she felt an awfully strong temptation to do so.

There it was again. It was Laura, she was making the same sound she'd made in the garden when Deborah had first heard them.

She got up from the sofa, almost unwillingly, and started to tiptoe upstairs.

It was easier to make out the sounds as she got closer. Laura was breathing heavily and occasionally she'd let out that small moan.

Deborah noticed the door was ajar. The house was old and despite Tom's renovations the floors and door frames were slightly crooked and sometimes doors opened on their own. Maybe this was why she hadn't heard them before.

To her horrified excitement she realized there was the long mirror so that she could see into the room from the crack of the door. She stopped and drew a deep breath.

Laura was laying on her back and Tom once more had his head between her legs. They were both naked, and Deborah felt a twitch between her legs as she took in the sight. She looked curiously at Tom's backside as he was hunched over her. She could see his behind, and was that his...testicles hanging between his legs?

"Oh honey, that's too good," Laura whispered and pushed him away. "Just come here already."

Tom kissed her abdomen, then up her body to her breasts. Deborah could see how she reached for him, pulled him upwards, didn't let him stay and kiss her breasts but pulled him up to kiss her. They got closer together and...oh Lord, he pushed it in her, didn't he? She still couldn't see his thing, but the way his muscles tightened as he moved closer to her made it somehow very obvious what he was pushing and where.

Deborah tried to remember what it felt like when David moved inside her, but somehow the whimpers Laura was making made it sound like she was feeling something better. Tom sighed deeply and they rocked together from side to side.

"Oh, darling," he said in a low voice and kissed her ear.

He started moving, pulling his hips back and pushing them closer, and Laura lifted her hips to meet him. Deborah couldn't help it, she pushed her hand over her nightgown, over her mound, and pushed it in the rhythm they were moving. She realized she was really wet between her legs and it felt like the meltdown was surprisingly close.

Tom was picking up speed and Deborah matched it with her hand, and suddenly she almost moaned as intense pleasure washed over her. Her knees wobbled and she lifted her other hand over her mouth to stifle the sound.

Unfortunately Laura had been looking at the direction of the mirror and the sudden movement in the darkness caught her eye. She stared at Deborah and for a few seconds Deborah was just frozen in place and prayed she hadn't seen her.

"Uh, wait a minute, baby," said Laura and as surprised Tom slowed down she pushed him off her. Quick and nimble as a cat she leaped out of bed, out the door, into the corridor and next to Deborah. She grabbed her by the wrist and pulled her into the bedroom.

"What? Oh man," said Tom and to Deborah's amazement he blushed. He pulled the sheet over his lower body and hid his head under a pillow, laying face down on the bed.

Laura didn't seem abashed at all. She stood there, completely naked, and held her wrist. It wasn't a tight grip, but Deborah could tell she would tighten it if she tried to get loose.

To Deborah's horror Laura lifted her hand and sniffed her fingers.

"So, you like to watch?" she asked and her eyes were twinkling mischievously.

Deborah would've wanted to deny it, but she had been caught red handed. Or at least with her hands literally betraying just what she'd been doing while watching them. She nodded and blushed as she lowered her eyes.

Lowering her eyes made her gaze meet Laura's breasts. They looked remarkable up close, soft and round, and her nipples were hard. She slid her gaze lower, and now that she was so close she thought she could smell her...lady parts.

"So what's the deal?" Laura asked. "You wanna just watch or you wanna participate? Have you watched us before?"

Laura lifted her hand from the wrist again and placed it over her breast. Deborah's breath caught in her throat and she watched with a keen interest and horror at her own hand which was moving to get a better grip of Laura's breast. She fondled it slowly and finally touched her nipple. It was similar to her own but different, and it felt surreal to feel another woman's breast in her palm.

She let go, horrified at what she'd done. Laura looked at her and her expression was friendly. She didn't seem angry or in any way embarrassed.

"I...I have watched...before, not now that I've been in your house but earlier...in the garden," Deborah confessed. She was thoroughly flustered and didn't know what to feel but Laura's effortless ease at being naked in front of her helped her relax a little. And her breast had felt excellent in her hand.

Tom moaned. "I told you we shouldn't do it outside," he said. His voice was muffled as his head was still under the pillow.

"Oh honey, it's okay," Laura said. "I don't think she has minded."

"Well I'm embarrassed anyway," he said.

Laura pulled Deborah towards the bed and sat her down on the chair in the corner. She let go of her wrist tentatively, but she didn't bolt, she had lost her urge to flee.

Laura sat on the bed beside Tom, on the half that was nearer to Deborah so that she was between them. She put her hand on his back and stroked him slowly. He took his head out from under the pillow and pressed his forehead against her upper thigh. It was somehow a really endearing gesture, like he was drawing strength from her. Deborah felt a flicker of feeling inside her.

"See, about sex," said Laura. She still stroked Tom's back and hair but turned her attention back to Deborah. "We're somewhat adventurous but we've never done it knowing someone's looking. I've been tempted to try but Tommy's been reluctant, so we've never taken the trouble to try and arrange it. There's been plenty of other things to do, after all. But here's an opportunity that's practically thrown at us."

"I'm sorry," Deborah stuttered. "I...I've never watched before either. I mean I've never even considered before I...heard you one time when I was hanging my laundry outside."

She didn't know what to say.

"I think it's fine," Laura said. "It's not wrong to want to watch. And we're all adults here. No harm done."

Deborah nodded. She was still horrified by what she'd done and that she'd gotten caught, but her attitude eased her.

"You okay?" Laura asked Tom.

"I'll live," he said. "It's gonna be a few weeks and then we'll move on, anyway."

"Yeah," Laura said. "So do you wanna try it?"

They looked at each other and Deborah could see the love between them. It wrenched her heart, it was like romantic scenes in movies or TV but somehow more real and raw. Maybe it was because it was authentic and not an act.

Tom sat up slowly. He still kept the sheet around his waist. Laura didn't rush him, she just looked at him nicely. Maybe she saw something in his eyes Deborah didn't, because she turned to her next.

"Do you still wanna watch?" she asked. "Or is it ruined for you now that you got caught?"

Deborah blushed. "I'd still want to watch. If it's okay with you."

She looked at Tom questioningly. He was solemn and it seemed he was still a little hesitant.

"I won't tell anyone," Deborah said. It sounded childish and a little stupid, who would she have told, and what? But she felt like she needed to say something. "It's just...it's so different from anything I've ever done, I'm...intrigued. I never thought it could be like...what you do."

"Well, that's maybe a little too much information," Tom said. "But don't you think it's a sin? You're religious, right?"

"Well, I would think so," Deborah admitted. "And at first it was what I thought. But after all I've heard David has done it doesn't feel so awful. I mean, it's not a crime, and before you were doing it outside so it wasn't like I insulted you privacy, right? I'm sorry about tonight, but I heard you and I just...I couldn't help it. I know it was wrong. I apologize."

Tom seemed to consider this.

"Fine," he said to Laura. "I'll try it for you. But I'm not sure I can."

"I love you," Laura said with tremendous warmth. She took his face in her hands and kissed him. He responded, and Deborah held her breath looking at it. There was so much emotion there, they were gentle but extremely intense.

Laura keeled him over slowly, kissing him all the while. Deborah looked at his abs, mesmerized by how they stood out when he went down slowly. He touched Laura's back, caressing her skin with widespread hands.

Laura kissed his neck and as she leaned down she shamelessly exposed herself towards Deborah. Tom had his head towards the foot of the bed now, and as the chair she was sitting on was in the corner next to the head of the bed Laura's behind was towards her. She could see her behind, even her...hole, and there, between her legs, she saw her privates.

It was similar to hers and then again not, although it was difficult to say because she was moving her hips and she wasn't that close. This was much closer than the yard had been, anyway, and she watched mesmerized. Laura was gleaming in the dim light, it was obvious she was wet.

She kissed down Tom's body, taking her time. Tom laid back, his hands on her body at first and in her hair once she got lower. Deborah noted he kept his eyes closed and felt a pang of regret, it was plain he wasn't as into her being here as Laura was.

Laura got to his waist and started to pull the sheet down, and it made Deborah stop contemplating leaving. Now she would get to see his...thing!

Laura pulled the sheet down slowly and exposed his privates. Deborah watched closely. It looked interesting, it was darker than his skin and looked like a smooth, reddish pole. The tip was especially red and smooth. She had never seen even David's member this plainly although she had seen it, though not many times when it had been hard like this. Laura wrapped her fingers around it and stroked it, up and down. She kissed down his abdomen and to Deborah's horror she kissed his thing. She kissed the tip slowly and then she took it in her mouth and moved her head along it as well as her hand.

Deborah hadn't even thought about this possibility. There had been something like this in the book, but still she hadn't thought they would actually do it. She felt silly. What if all she'd written in the book was something they did, or had done? She tried to remember the specifics of the book, but her concentration was shattered as she focused on the couple on the bed in front of her.

Laura didn't do it with her mouth for very long. She sat up and straddled Tom. She held him positioned with her hand and slowly started to slide down onto it. Deborah watched with fascinated horror how it disappeared inside her. She looked at the back of Laura and then at the mirror to get the view from front, and as she did she realized Laura was looking straight at her via the mirror. Tom still had his eyes closed, he slid his hands up Laura's thighs to her hips and moaned softly.