Red Roses Ch. 05 - Blue Roses

Her lip caught between her teeth and she stared at me, the lust building in her eyes. Neither of us had spoken since we'd gotten in the back seat.

My fingers crept inside her underwear, crawling across the heat of her shaven mound. My forefinger found her cleft and eased between the fleshy folds. Trish was already wet. She squirmed and moaned when I grazed her clit. I watched her eyes close and her head loll against the seat's headrest. I stroked the pad of my finger against her nub, delighted at the shivers and tremors that rippled through her. My fingertips glided up and down her lips, rubbing and caressing. Trish's hips began to wobble back and forth as I picked up the pace.

Without breaking the rhythm of my strokes, I tore my attention away and glanced out the windows. The area of the parking garage wasn't busy but there were cars moving back and forth and not too far away, other shoppers coming and going. The back windows of the SUV were tinted but that didn't mean we were invisible. I leaned close to my lover's ear. "Trish?"

"Yes, sir?" Her eyes were still closed.

"You know we're in public, right?"

"Yes, sir."

"Someone might see us."

Her eyes flicked open for a second and I caught a glimmer of fear and chagrin... but as I kept caressing the soft heat of her pussy, she closed them once again.

I said, "Doesn't that worry you?"

"You'll keep me safe." A whimpering moan escaped her lips and I could tell she was getting close.

I brushed my lips against the soft skin of her neck. "Yes, I will. I love you."

Trish stiffened and emitted a long groan. Fresh moisture splashed against my hand. Tremors wracked her whole body. I gave her an extra rub; she jerked, and her hand came down to grab mine. I think it was an instinctive reaction to the intensity of the feeling, so I decided not to reprimand her for stopping my fun. I withdrew my hand from her underwear, rested it on her thigh, and lightly stroked the exposed skin just above the top of her stockings.

After a moment, her breathing returned to normal. She licked her lips. "Wow. That was unexpected."

"Hopefully, that will help you relax when we go in the store. You don't need to be nervous."

"It will help. Thank you, sir."

"Good. Do me a favor: lift your butt off the seat."

She gave me a funny look but did what I asked. I slipped her panties down her legs and over her boots. At her inquisitive look, I said, "These are soaked. You sit on them, you're going to leave a wet spot on your skirt. As it is, get some paper towels from the console box to sit on. You can get back up front now."

If Trish had any hesitation about going without underpants, she didn't show it. We returned to the front seats and drove off.

Silk Sheets was an upscale adult store--a far cry from the seedy, run-down places populated by creepy-looking dudes in trench coats that I'd first seen in my college years. Brightly lit and splashed with pastel colors, everything about it was designed to look soft and sensuous rather than pornographic. We sat in the parking lot for a few minutes and I told Trish to observe the people coming in and out. We saw a number of couples and the split between genders was about even--both of which I think reassured her. I opened her door, placed her hand on my elbow, and escorted her inside.

The rack with the objects I wanted was not too deep inside. I led Trish to it and pointed to what I wanted. "I'd like you to wear that sometimes when we're out, like to my Christmas party."

She picked it up and turned it over in her hands. It was a black velvet choke collar, with an adjustable snap in the back. A silver dangle in the shape of a key hung from the front. She examined it and looked at me. "I will but may I ask why?"

"Because it will be a symbol of our arrangement--one that only we know. I can look at you in public and know that you're saying you belong to me and obey me and no one but us will know it. The key symbolizes me having the key to your heart. And it's dressy enough to go with a cocktail dress."

"Yes, it is." Trish smiled at me. "I'll try it on."

We found a mirror a short way off. I took the collar and placed it around her neck for her, sweeping her hair out of the way. I found what felt like a comfortable snap and secured the collar. "Is that too tight?"

"No, it's perfect." She gazed at herself in the mirror.

As I admired my wife admiring herself, my skin prickled and had the sense I was being watched, but when I looked around, I didn't spy anyone paying attention to us. A murmur from Trish drew my attention. "I'm sorry?"

"I said, I like it. It's very soft and more comfortable than I thought it would be--and you're right, it has a very classy look. I think I'll enjoy wearing this."

I paid and we returned arm-in-arm to the car. When we were inside, she leaned toward me and kissed my cheek. "Sir?"

"Yes?"

"Do you have anywhere else to go?"

"No, we're headed home."

She squeezed my arm. "Good. I have a backseat favor I'd like to return. Maybe twice, if I'm allowed. Or if sir is agreeable, maybe we can trade off."

Somehow, I managed not to get a speeding ticket on the way to our house.

#

The Christmas party's social hour was in full swing by the time we arrived. Because the company had had a great year profit-wise, Briggs had rented out a room and catering at the Ritz-Carlton at Buckhead and it was swanky. Gerald and his wife Helen greeted us at the door and encouraged us to enjoy ourselves.

Helen pointed at Trish's neck. "That's a lovely choker, Trish. It matches your dress so well."

"Thank you. I just felt it was fitting for the occasion."

We checked our coats and joined the swirl of my coworkers and their spouses celebrating the holiday.

We'd mingled for an hour, nursing our drinks, before I went to the bar for a second round. While I waited for the bartender to finish the orders of those in front of us, my eyes sought my wife. She was talking to a tall thin man I didn't know. The man wore an oily grin and Trish looked slightly uncomfortable. He said something; she frowned and her eyes narrowed. I caught her attention and jerked my head in the universal signal for her to come my way. She gave an imperceptible nod and excused herself from the man. His eyes drifted to her ass and I suddenly felt vaguely glad I was across the room.

Trish smiled at me as she approached. "Hey. Everything okay?"

"Later." I took her hand and squeezed it.

I'd just relayed the order to the bartender when I felt a presence at my elbow and Trish's grip on my hand tightened. The hair on the back of my neck stood up and I fought to avoid snarling. "Good evening, Meredith. Merry Christmas."

"Merry Christmas, Justin." I faced her just in time to see her face break into a smirk. "I saw that Development managed to get the updated study numbers to the old man yesterday." She grinned. "A week late."

I ground my teeth. We had been a week later than Briggs's requested date and even that had been a Herculean effort involving some late nights and missed family time. My people hadn't complained but I'd felt the stress from them, and I thanked my stars that I had spent our slower times building teamwork and camaraderie between my crew members and myself. Morale is a currency a leader has to spend with caution and my regret was having to cash in my team's to answer for Meredith's bullshit ideas.

Still, I was not going to let her know how pissed off she'd made me. I shrugged. "Yeah, well, in the end, our original numbers were correct and your proposed replacement part would have been an utter disaster. I could tell Briggs was annoyed your suggestion had set back production for almost a month."

"We could have--"

"You could have kept your mouth shut, Meredith. Maybe next time you'll leave development to the developers."

Trish coughed and covered her smile with her hand. Meredith glowered but before she could respond, she was joined by a man in a fitted suit.

I tensed. It was the same man who had been talking to Trish.

He extended his arm, offering her a half-filled champagne flute. "Darling, you left your drink."

"What? Oh, thank you." Seeing him eyeing me, she said, "Justin Halstrom, my husband Frank."

We shook hands. He had a firm grip, without being overpowering. I said, "Nice to meet you, Frank."

"You too. Meredith has... told me all about you."

I flicked my eyes at her. "I'm sure. This is my wife, Trish."

The two women made the inevitable small talk. I wasn't really worried about Trish consorting with the enemy or anything; I'd given her a full briefing on Meredith and let her know not to talk about work or give the woman anything she could use against us. I was dying to know what she and Frank had talked about but there was no way to have that conversation at the party--mostly because if she told me he had propositioned her or something, I might earn myself both a pink slip and an assault charge. I only watched him.

Frank's eyes raked up and down Trish's body, which was far tighter than Meredith's. He wasn't even being subtle about it. Then he winced suddenly, as if remembering where he was, and glanced at his wife, but she wasn't paying attention. She stared at Trish with a slight grin on her face. I was annoyed that he'd been concerned about his wife's reaction to his lechery and not mine, and something about the whole thing made me increasingly uneasy. I excused us and pulled Trish away, ignoring Frank's eyes and Meredith's half-scowl.

Fortunately, the room was called to dinner before long. Far from the usual rubber chicken one usually gets at these events, our meals were fantastic. We were not seated with Meredith and her husband, though every time I glanced at her way, the bitch's burning eyes were on me. Her husband seemed to only be looking at her. I tried to put her out of my mind and not let it ruin my meal.

Briggs gave a boilerplate speech about teamwork and the company moving on to bigger and better things before the band broke into sedate dance music. I led Trish to the dance floor and we swayed together to the slow rhythm.

I had heard some men say they lost attraction to their wives after decades. I had not. It did not matter that we had been married for almost twenty years, or that we had spent all that time and more absolutely punishing each other's bodies. It was all old territory, for both of us. There was not an inch of her skin over which I did not have carnal knowledge, and vice versa. And yet, every time I held Trish in my arms, and the heat of her body pressed against me, my cock responded. Each time our eyes met for more than a few seconds, I yearned to draw her into me, to sink into her, and just hold there forever. I knew that if we lived for another fifty years, I would never stop desiring my wife.

Trish knew it too. She ground her abdomen against my groin. Her eyebrows arched. "Did I do that?"

"You know you did. We'll deal with it at home."

She placed her lips next to my ear and whispered, "I can't wait, sir."

We stayed a bit longer, then called it an evening.

Trish didn't even wait once we were in the car. "I suppose you want to know about Frank Carter and what he was talking about."

I nodded as I pulled from the parking lot. "I would like to know, yes."

"I didn't know he was Meredith's husband. He started with small talk and I played along, keeping my ears open, listening for anything interesting you might like to know."

Not being able to help myself, I smiled, thinking I had a wonderful wife who looked out for me at all times. However, her next words wiped the smile from my face.

"Then he made a comment about my choker." She touched the silvery key. "He said he had seen something like it in a catalog and then said, and I quote, 'They'll send you a copy in the mail if you submit a request.' And yes, he placed emphasis on the word 'submit.' Then he asked me if I had questions about certain lifestyles and that he was free to... 'tutor me.' "

I gripped the steering wheel a little tighter. "And?"

"And? It pissed me off that he would proposition me so blatantly. Other than blowing my top, I didn't know what to do. I was thinking about how to respond without embarrassing you when you motioned me over."

"He checked out your ass when you walked away."

Trish's lip curled. "I'm not surprised. He came off as a creep right from the first word."

I had no idea what Meredith and Frank's game was but I was tired of playing. Meredith was leaving after Christmas on a three-week trip to the Middle East, to liaise with our military customers and see how our products held up in the field. That would buy me some breathing room and I was going to use it wisely. A handful of courses of action came to mind, but one stood large.

Trish's hand fell on my thigh. The contact vaporized my worries and anger. I glanced at my wife, who stared at me with concern. She said, "What are you thinking?"

"I'm thinking I am going to put an end to Meredith's meddling." I outlined my rough plan. By the end, Trish was nodding. We pulled to a stoplight so I looked at her again. The love and beauty radiated off my wife in waves and I was struck yet again at just how damn lucky I was. A small smile curled my lips. "But work matters can wait until Monday. In the meantime, I have to take care of something else."

"What?"

"My wife was seen consorting with the enemy. I'll have to do something about that."

She looked at me, alarmed, and immediately fell into her role. "No, sir, I wouldn't do that."

"We'll see."

We were quiet the rest of the ride home. Mason and Tabitha were in their rooms, online with their friends. I told Trish to go to the bedroom and went to let the kids know we were home. Mason nodded, hardly looking up from his video game, even when I told him not to stay up too late. Tabitha got off her bed and gave me a hug goodnight.

Trish waited in the bedroom for me. She hadn't started changing clothes but I reminded myself I had only told her to go to the bedroom and nothing further. I walked to my wife, gave her a kiss, and told her to get ready for bed. When we climbed in, I gave her another soft kiss. Trish responded, kissing me and telling me she loved me. I snuggled up to her. "Sleep well, dear. We have a big day tomorrow."

"We do?"

The curiosity in her voice was telling. Mason was going to watch the Falcons game with his friends and my mother had volunteered to take Tabitha shopping. Trish and I had planned to spend some quiet time at home.

I pulled her hips to me and held her close. "Yes. So we sleep now."

"Yes, sir."

#

The morning went as expected, with nothing of interest happening. I got up early and ran out to a florist shop that I knew opened early and got back just as everyone else was climbing out of bed. We ate breakfast as a family and Trish and I bantered with the kids for a while. My mother came to get Tabitha around ten, and Mason left shortly after that.

After a little prep work, I went looking for Trish and found her in the den, reading a book. She had curled up in a corner of the couch, with her legs tucked underneath her. She smiled when I entered. "Hey."

I straightened up. "Are you ready to continue last night's conversation, about consorting with the enemy?"

Trish's eyes widened but she put her book down and whispered, "What does sir need me to do?"

"Go to the bedroom. Take off everything and lie on your back on the bed. Then wait for me."

Even though they were covered by her tee shirt and bra, I could swear her nipples got harder at my tone. Trish all but sprang off the couch and with a hurried, "Yes, sir!" she vanished into the back. I gave her a few moments and picked up my purchase from earlier that morning before I joined her.

I found Trish lying on the bed as directed, completely nude. She gazed at me with hungry eyes as I entered the room. I smiled at her and touched her cheek. "I'm so glad to see you following directions."

"Yes, sir." Her breath came rapidly and the rapid rise and fall of her chest made her breasts heave.

I caressed one breast. Trish's breath caught in her throat... and then she winced and inhaled sharply when I gave the nipple a slight pinch. I'll give her credit, though; she didn't cry out. I said, "You are accused of fraternization with my forces allied to my archenemy at work? How do you plead?"

That was laying it on thick, but Trish played along. "Not guilty, sir."

"Your plea is entered. However, I know what I saw. Guilty." I wasn't really interested in punishing her but I figured by the time we were done, she wouldn't care how we'd gotten there. My fingers caressed her cheek and she trembled. "Are you ready to accept your punishment?"

"Yes, sir."

"Spread your arms and legs." She did, though she was shaking so hard the whole bed quivered. With her arms stretched to her sides, Trish's hands almost touched the edge of the queen-sized bed. I reached under the mattress by her right hand, pulled the furred manacle free, and used the velcro strap to immobilize her wrist. The binding ran to a joined harness between the mattress and box spring that connected all four of the restraints. In an emergency, she could slide the restraint out from under the end of the mattress but if she only pulled, she wasn't going anywhere.

I moved around the bed, securing each of her limbs. While I was binding her ankles, I stole a quick glance between her spread legs. Trish was already wet to the point of glistening. When I had her fully strapped to the bed, I opened the top drawer of my bedside table and pulled out a sleeping mask, which I worked around her head. Trish eagerly raised her head to let me place it on her.

I stepped back and admired my handiwork. My wife lay helpless and blind. Every indicator--her rapid breath, her rock-hard nipples, and shining pussy lips--told me she was as excited as she had been in a long time.

With a tentative touch, I whisked my fingertips across her taut stomach. Trish jumped. I said, "You're helpless, aren't you?"

"Yes, sir."

"Are you scared?"

"No, sir. I trust you with my life."

"But you know you're going to be punished?"

She swallowed. "Yes, sir, that's what you say."

I touched her belly again and she flinched again, though not as hard. Trish wasn't ticklish, so I figured she was just nervous. I allowed my hands to walk up and down her torso, caressing her skin and squeezing the muscles of her arms and legs. I gently traced the contours of her neck, her cheeks, and her lips. Her breath was hot against my palm; the sensation made my cock throb.

My touches migrated to her breasts. I cupped each of those firm half-globes. My thumbs flicked across her nipples, eliciting a sharp inhalation. I squeezed and pinched her lovely tits, enjoying Trish's moans and gasps. After a few moments, I let my hands wander lower. Trish tensed. I inched across her shaven mound and tentatively pressed between her pussy lips. Trish moaned and rotated her hips. I made short, gentle strokes, making sure to caress the lips too. She was so turned on that it took her no time. I watched her orgasm build. Just when I thought she was set to go over the edge... I stopped.

Trish froze, panting.

I chuckled. "You were close, weren't you?"

"Yes. Yes, sir."

I patted her thighs for a few moments and stroked her legs. Trish's trembling subsided and her breathing slowed. Even as it did, I slid my finger between her labia and stroked the slick flesh. Trish quivered but immediately began rolling her hips again. I picked up a small vibrator. I didn't turn it on but worked it to her entrance and nudged the tip into her.

Trish gurgled and tipped her head back.

I flicked her clit and watched her build to her climax a second time. As she got closer, I stopped again.