The Product Ch. 01-14

Her hands were shaking as she put the papers down on the dining room table. She had been consoling herself that things couldn't possibly get any worse, but they just had. They were going to lose their home. It had been a tough couple of months, and thus far she had held up under the pressure. But this news hit her like a ton of bricks.

It was bad enough that her husband was in jail, but she had held out hope that he would be able to clear himself once the case went to trial. After all, she was sure that he was innocent and the facts would ultimately free him. Then they could go back to their secure, yet indifferent personal relationship with one another. As strained and remote as their marriage had become, she still thought of him as an honest man and a good pastor.

After their daughter had died in childbirth the year after the twins were born, there had been a gulf between she and her husband Martin. Secretly, she blamed him. If he hadn't insisted on her going with him on the church outing when she was almost at full term, it never would have happened.

If the woman from the next motel room hadn't been there at the time, she would probably have died, as well as miscarrying what would have been their daughter. She still almost died as her husband and the woman rushed her to the local clinic in the remote desert community, unconscious and losing blood.

Jane's thoughts returned to the problem at hand. She hadn't counted on this. The church was going to evict them from their home of over 20 years. Even worse, the letter also said that they would be withdrawing her husband's salary and her stipend to work with the church's youths, leaving her penniless.

The church members had been very supportive at first. They too, didn't believe that her husband had embezzled all those funds from the church. But as the evidence mounted and the size of the missing funds became clear, the members started to turn on their jailed pastor.

Jane's phone had quit ringing with the supportive calls from the ladies of the church and the church office now referred all calls from the news media to her home phone number. The news cameras no longer hung out in front of the house all day, as they had in the first couple of weeks, they had moved on to the next big story. The throng of TV reporters, trucks and satellite dishes had been replaced by the snide notes left in the mailbox and the bricks that had been thrown through the windows on the front of the house.

Jane was glad, at least, that the twins were away at college and didn't have to experience being ostracized by their friends. The boys were hundreds of miles away in Phoenix, attending college. She was also glad now that the boys and her husband had decided for them to switch schools and transfer from the local junior college.

Jane didn't understand why they had made the sudden move, but that was something between them and their dad who made all of the decisions in the household, and it certainly seemed to have turned out for the best, in retrospect. Originally, she didn't like the idea of them being that far away from home. Unlike their father, they were a bit on the wild side, free spirits, she liked to call them.

But what was she going to do now? Her husband Martin had always made all the decisions. He was 20 Years older than her and he had always handled all their affairs. How long would she be able to stay in the house before she was evicted? Where would she find a job? How could she afford to keep the boys in college? Their attorney had told her that the case probably wouldn't go to trial for at least another six months, or longer. And because he was considered a flight risk, given the amount of the missing funds, they couldn't afford to make bail.

Jane finally decided to call their attorney, Richard Saunders, and get his advice. She really didn't want to call him, because he made her feel uncomfortable. He always looked like we was mentally undressing her and it really unsettled her since she was naturally very shy and wary of other men.

Her mind began to drift. She didn't know much about men, she thought. Her parents had pushed her into marrying Martin when she was just barely sixteen. They were devout churchgoers and they thought the new, assistant pastor at their church would be an excellent match.

Within months of getting married Martin got his own church just sixty miles away, and the house the church provided, and then came the twin boys, just weeks later. It had been a good life, until she lost her daughter. Following the miscarriage Jane was left sterile and her life had become the same.

After that, there was a void that had never quite been filled. She put up a good front, but she had felt trapped for years, and now she might end up out on the street, completely destitute. The thought filled her with anxiety.

Thank God, she thought to herself, that her parents were no longer here to see this. The thought of them brought her back to reality and the task at hand.

Jane picked up the phone and dialed Richard's office in LA. He should still be there, she thought, he wouldn't be making the commute back to the Antelope Valley for at least another hour.

"Dixon, Murphy and Saunders," the receptionist responded, "How may I assist you?"

"This is Jane Fields. I am calling for Mr. Saunders."

"Just a moment Ms. Fields, let me see if Mr. Saunders is available."

Strains of new age music filled the void as the receptionist put Jane on hold.

"Jane, this is Richard. What can I do for you? Is everything all right?" Richard paused to think and then said, "Forgive me that was a stupid question under the circumstances. Please, what can I do for you? If you are calling about Martin, we won't have any further word until the next hearing in a couple of weeks."

Jane thought, perhaps, that Richard may already know what she was calling about, since he was a member of the church board, as well as their attorney, but then, maybe the rest of the board had acted without him knowing, since he was representing Martin as well.

"The church sent us a registered letter this morning and they are evicting us from the house and taking away Martin's and my salaries. What am I going to do?"

"I suspected something like that when the church called a board meeting without me last night. I'm so sorry," said Richard soothingly.

"How am I going to support the kids and me without Martin's salary? How are we going to pay you?"

"Don't worry about my salary," said Richard. "Let's make sure we take care of you and the kids first. Tell you what...I'm just getting ready to leave downtown now. I only have one more client. I'll stop by on my way home and we can discuss it. I'll see you in about an hour and a half. Don't call the church, let me handle that. From now on you need to let me deal with them. There may be litigation and I don't want you saying the wrong thing accidentally."

Before Jane could say anything, Richard clicked off. She would have preferred to meet him at his office the following day. She didn't feel comfortable having him in her home, especially since she was alone. Too late now, she thought. She didn't have much of a choice and she needed to trust him, since he was the only person to stick by her husband, and now with her, during this nightmare.

Jane decided to shower and change clothes before Richard arrived. She was depressed and hadn't been out in days and had been wearing the same sweatshirt and sweatpants for two days. She was sure she reeked.

Jane took a long shower and as the warm water washed over her, pulsing into her flesh, she found herself reaching down below her ample bush to touch herself. As the pleasurable feeling started to wash over her, she pulled her finger away quickly. That is nasty, she thought. I have been doing that too much lately. I have to stop.

As Jane stepped from the shower she dried herself in front of the mirror. She wondered what Richard imagined she looked like under her dress when he undressed her with his eyes. Would what he imagined be better than what she was looking at in the mirror? She took stock of herself from head to toe.

The long blonde hair still showed no sign of gray and still possessed its natural curliness. Her body was still lean and athletic and betrayed no sign of childbirth. Her breasts were a bit small for her long and willowy limbs, but gravity had not yet taken its toll. Her face betrayed no signs of her age.

Jane had one of those Scandinavian faces that seemed to defy aging and her freckled flesh radiated good health. She would have looked like a tall Amazon princess, were her overall appearance not so girl next door wholesome. Overall, she thought to herself, not bad.

Then she stopped herself. What was she thinking? She blushed in shame. Her husband was in jail, she was about to lose her house, her kids future was hanging in the balance and she was wondering how a guy who gives her the creeps thinks she looks naked. What had gotten into her? She immediately put the disgusting thoughts out of her mind.

Jane hurried to the bedroom to get dressed. First she donned the not very attractive granny panties and then the sports bra and then finally the drab flowered pastel sundress that completely covered her shoulders and reached down below her knees. She was the very image of the parson's wife. As she finished putting her sneakers on the doorbell rang.

As Jane opened the door she gasped quietly.

"Is everything OK?" asked Richard with alarm.

Jane blushed, and explained that she thought he would still be dressed in his business suit not a t-shirt and gym shorts and that she didn't think he would be there so soon. Jane was staring down at the bulge in Richard's shorts and was noticeably flustered.

Richard laughed and explained that he changed at the office, since he was off to the gym, immediately after he got through meeting with her and that his final client had cancelled at the last minute.

"May I come in?" he asked as he pushed his way through the door, brushing against Jane's left breast, in an almost massaging motion, as he did so. She jumped backward as though she had just received an electric jolt. She never allowed herself to get close to other men, much less have them touch her breasts. The tingling sensation she felt startled her. What was wrong with her?

Richard sat down at the dining room table and read the letter from the church. When he was through he looked at Jane who sat across from him. She had a forlorn look on her face. There were tears welling up in her eyes that she could barely hold back.

"What am I going to do?" she asked. "I've never had to work. I've always been married."

"I'm sure we can work this all out. First I'll contact the church and see if I can buy you some time. Then I'll make a couple of inquiries with one of my other clients. Perhaps one of them needs a receptionist or secretarial help. You've done a lot of that around the church, so it's not like you don't have skills. Let me see what I can come up with."

Jane's spirits brightened at Richard's words as he was getting up to go. Perhaps things would work out. Jane's momentary sense of relief took hold of her emotions and she began to sob openly.

"Just hang in there. This too shall pass," said Richard as he stepped toward her and wrapped his arms around her, drawing her into a tight bear hug. It happened so quickly, Jane didn't have time to react. Before she knew it her body was pressed against Richard's. Jane felt the same tingling sensation as before, only stronger and she felt slightly light-headed as the blood rushed to her head. The tingling intensified and now seemed to be centered between her legs. She pulled away, realizing that the source of all the tingling was the hard pulsating muscle beneath Richard's gym shorts that was pressed against her flat stomach.

Jane was beet red now and could barely speak as she stepped back. "Thank you so much," she stammered. "Please don't let me keep you any longer. I'm sure you want to get to the gym."

"Absolutely!" said Richard with feigned seriousness. "You know what they say about muscles, don't you? Use them or lose them."

Jane blushed, an even deeper shade of red as Richard disappeared down the driveway.

"This is going to be easier than I thought," Richard smiled to himself as he pulled away.


The Product Ch. 02 by darkdeceptions

Jane was all wound up and had a hard time sleeping that night. She worried about her husband. She worried about herself and her children. What would become of them?

When Jane would start to drift off, she was jarred awake again as her thoughts wandered to the giant appendage that had literally sent shock waves through her body earlier that evening. She had never known that a man's thing could be that big. Martin's was nowhere near as large and she had only seen his or felt it on the infrequent occasions when she found herself in the missionary position, tending dutifully to her husband's needs.

Both she and Martin were naturally shy about their bodies and never allowed one another to see each other naked. Jane couldn't get her mind off of what she had felt pressed against her. What did it look like, she wondered? She tried to put the wicked thoughts out of her mind but they kept intruding on her consciousness.

After a few hours of fitful sleep Jane awoke much later than normal, about 10 a.m. Jane felt out of sorts since she never slept in that late. The day was half gone, she thought. After breakfast Jane busied herself making lists. She made one list of the possessions they could sell to raise some money, another list of the things they would need to keep wherever they may have to move and a third list of the things they might have to put into storage.

The lists kept Jane busy for a couple of hours. She was hoping she might get a call back from Richard and that he would have talked the church out of evicting them, and if not that, perhaps at least some word on a job. Getting out of the house would be good for her, she thought. She was going stir crazy cooped up in the house all alone with no one to talk to and nothing but her worries.

As the afternoon faded away Jane's hope that she would hear from Richard began to fade. Finally she worked up the courage to call him at his office, but the receptionist told her that he was out of the office and tied up in a very important meeting with one of his major clients and wouldn't be available until the following day.

Hopes dashed, Jane decided to fix some dinner and turn in early. She was exhausted after a fitful night.

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The sound of the phone jarred her from her sleep and she knocked the receiver to the floor as she fumbled for it in the darkness. Once she pulled the receiver up by the cord and placed it to her ear she heard Richard's voice on the other end. He sounded excited. "Jane, are you there?"

"Yes, hello" Jane said sleepily. "I...I was asleep."

"Sorry to wake you, but I wanted to call you right away. I think I have some good news for you."

"Has the church changed its mind?" Jane asked hopefully.

"No, unfortunately. They were adamant in their position. As a matter of fact, they have retained other counsel and have decided to sue you and Martin for the missing funds. I have had to recuse myself as their attorney for now, but that isn't why I called."

"You said you had some good news," Jane said. She had enough bad news already and some good news would be nice for a change.

"Yes, I just got done meeting with one of my major clients and they are about to roll out a new product. I told them about your situation and they seemed to think they might have a position for you. Given your background, they think you would be a perfect fit for them. They said you have the wholesome appearance they are looking for and that you seemed to be very well spoken."

"How do they know that?" Jane asked quizzically.

"They saw you on the local TV news a couple of weeks ago when you were talking to the reporters outside your house," said Richard.

"Oh? And all the negative publicity doesn't scare them away?" asked Jane.

"No," said Richard, "They don't see it as a problem. What is more, this isn't a low paying entry level receptionist job. They think you have some unique qualities that make you perfect for their project. They are willing to offer you a generous starting salary, plus bonuses if you meet certain performance goals. Even better, they are willing to provide you with housing while you go through training and a signing bonus that should take care of the boys' tuition and expenses for the next few months, but only if you are willing to move forward quickly."

"I...I don't know what to say," Jane said groggily as she tried to assimilate the information in her slowly awakening, but racing, brain. "It sounds too good to be true."

"Well it is true, but what is important is that you need to move quickly on this offer before they find someone else...or have second thoughts," said Richard. "They want to meet with you tomorrow morning. I'll pick you up at your home at 7 a.m."

"Yes, I guess, I...I'm sorry this is going so fast. What should I wear? What do I need to bring along? Do I need a resume or anything? Shouldn't I drive in myself? I wouldn't want to impose on you." asked Jane as her mind continued to race.

"Don't be silly," said Richard, "besides it is going to be an all-day affair. I can give you a ride home. You won't need a resume and just wear one of the outfits you wear to church, that should be fine. Make sure you bring your driver's license and social security card. If you have a passport, bring that too, just to be safe. You'll have to fill out an application and they are probably going to put you through their normal battery of tests."

"Tests?" asked Jane quizzically.

"Yes, they are a big company and they put every potential hire through a battery of psychological tests as well as a physical. Don't worry about it. That's normal. Besides, I'll be there to help you with any questions," Richard reassured.

"Well, OK then. I guess I'll see you in the morning. Thank you so much. I can't tell you how appreciative I am." said Jane earnestly.

"We can talk about that later," he laughed, "I'll see you in the morning."

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"Well, she bought the whole thing. You'll need to make sure you are ready in the morning. I'll have her here at 9 a.m.," Richard said to the woman sitting across from him as he hung up the phone.

"I think we need to proceed as quickly as possible. I want to be crossing the finishing line in two weeks. The faster we move, the less time she will have for second thought," said the woman.

Both he and the woman got up and walked out the door as Richard clicked the light off behind him.

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On the way into LA Richard filled Jane in on what was in store for the day. There would be an initial interview with the senior members of the team she would be working with. If all went well, she would then fill out an application, go through a battery of psychological test that might take a couple of hours and then, finally, take a physical.

Once all this preliminary stuff was out of the way, then they would get down to the contract and other agreements. According to Richard there would be an employment contract, as well as what he called the usual non-disclosure agreement. It seemed like a lot, but Jane had never had a real job, so she guessed this was the normal process.

It was just 9 a.m. as they drove through the gates of the complex in the San Fernando Valley. It was an impressive parklike complex with a tall fence surrounding it. It was on the edge of a commercial complex that contained the campuses of many companies, whose names she recognized.

There was no sign on the gate or on the front of the building like the other complexes. It was a very modern looking three story building with trees and lawn surrounding it with the parking in an underground structure.