When Winning Isn't Enough

"No problem," she said, smiling. "It was an exciting evening for sure."

"Have a safe trip home, Lucy."

She'd nearly forgotten. "You too."

Lucy closed the door behind her, checking that the hallway was empty. Linda didn't need to be seen here.

In her room, she stripped off the dress and thong and put on her pajamas. When she had left the room in that outfit, she was only vaguely aware of what to expect. What she got was a little more than she had anticipated, probably because her anticipation had been purposely vague. Still, it was what she wanted and needed, and now she could crawl into bed and sleep, waiting for the wake-up call from the handsome assistant coach who'd be driving her to the airport.

She was still curious about Bryan and went to the clutch purse to check the card he'd given her. When she pulled it out, something came with it, and her breath caught in her throat. She picked it up and unfolded it...four one hundred dollar bills. Obvious thoughts raced through her head. One side of her wanted to go to his room and slide it under the door, while the other side was saying she didn't ask for the money and hadn't expected it. He was just tipping her, kind of like a server at a restaurant who'd given good service. She sighed at her weak efforts to resolve the issue. She finally decided it was simply a part of the daring excitement she was seeking and was a fringe benefit.

She refolded the money and stashed it away, not sure what she'd eventually do with it.

***

Linda came out of the terminal building and spotted Jack's car. She tossed her small suitcase in the back seat and jumped in beside him, giving him a kiss that he'd be sure to remember.

"So, good trip?" he asked.

"Eh," she said. "Okay, I guess, at least the recruiting part, and I did get to stay in a nice hotel with some good food."

"I thought you were supposed to stay in student housing."

"Technically, it was, I suppose. Three of the twelve floors are used for students, but the rest are just a regular hotel with very nice rooms. I doubt the students get rooms like I had."

"They probably do that on purpose, to get on your good side."

"Probably so, but hey, are you free this evening?"

"I can be. Why?"

"I'd like to go for a walk in the park," she said, licking her lips and smiling at him.

"Will a lot of the walking be done laying down?"

"I hope so."

"This is getting to be kind of fun," he said. "Maybe we should look for another place to take our walks."

"Your backyard is pretty dark."

"Yeah, but if someone switches on the porch light..."

"They might see something, but thinking about that maybe happening would be kind of exciting and might ramp things up a little."

"Linda, when I'm with you, I don't need things like that to 'ramp me up.' You're more than enough for me."

"Too bad you're driving, or I'd be tickling your tonsils," she giggled. "But I'll take a rain check on that for later tonight."

Though she'd only been gone a couple of days, he was anxious to, well, reconnect with her as it were, even if it meant hiding in the bushes.

"What time?" was his simple question.

"Five o'clock?"

"Linda, it's still light at five." These days Jack never knew when she was being serious.

"Chicken?"

If he answered what he knew she wanted him to answer, they'd be having wonderful sex ... in the bright sunlight. Chicken described him perfectly.

"Yes. So you lose."

She looked like she was pouting. "Okay, nine o'clock then. But you better be ready because I missed you."

"Should I be afraid?"

"Not this time, but one of these days."

At nine, he was at her house, and they walked to the park, which was not deserted tonight. Linda didn't seem concerned, despite Jack's evident anxiety. She simply waited till no one was looking and pulled him around the bushes.

"We're safe," she said, chuckling.

Jack wished he could believe her.

"Do we wait till they leave?" he whispered, noticing she already had her top off.

"You chickened out about five o'clock, so you've used up your clucks for today," she whispered back.

"Okay, but you have to be, well, quiet."

"I don't know if I'm quiet or loud, the way you take care of me."

Another ten seconds, and she was naked. It took him thirty to join her, and, It was less than five seconds before her lips had surrounded his erection. Now it was his time to stay quiet. Her mouth seemed to have picked up a magical quality, and he couldn't believe he was about to come...and could hear people talking and laughing.

She stopped before he did, laid back, and spread her legs. But Jack wasn't ready for that just yet. He caressed one breast, then sucked the nipple as he loved to do. It felt like she flinched.

"You okay?" he whispered.

"Just tender. That time of the month, I guess."

He changed his focus, and soon, she was writhing, her hand over her mouth to stifle the sounds, her hips thrusting against his face. As she was coming down from her orgasm, he rolled onto his back, fumbling with the condom.

"Don't lie on your back," she whispered. That thing will stick up above the bushes."

"I wish," he said, laughing loudly enough he was afraid he might have been heard. He waited but heard nothing. It seemed everyone had left. Jack liked it much better when they were along, although he was sure Linda preferred sneaking and hiding.

As always, sex with Linda was the best, particularly with her murmuring her desires in his ear. "Faster, faster, and harder," she urged to his immediate response. It and she were more than he could have ever desired.

Walking home, she clung to his arm. "I love you," she said.

"Love you too, Miss Linda."

***

Running was going exceptionally well for Linda, and it was showing in the meet results. Her times in both dual meets and invitationals were state meet level, that level now being defined by her results the prior year. She had never lost a race in high school, and Coach Conrad was pushing her, having had her drop down to the 400-meter run in a home dual meet. Of course, he picked the one with Covington High, whose 400-meter runner was last year's district winner. It was certainly the closest race she'd ever experienced, except for the state meet where she fell, and she won by a bare yard. In the end, she was glad she'd done the improbable and had still been able to win.

Away from the running, things seemed to have settled down considerably, and Jack had only one more park adventure. He wondered whether something had changed or was it just the cold weather. As much as he enjoyed the goosebumps and the rock-hard nipples, it made more sense to find a warmer place. When he'd asked about it the other day, she'd looked a little chagrined that he had asked. Earlier, she'd had two more visits to universities recruiting her, and, although prepared, she was housed in the student dorms, and her roommate in each case was an upper-class runner. So, no chance for a repeat of what had happened on her first trip.

The week before the state meet, Linda had her fourth visit, and the red dress and thong stayed in her dresser drawer at home. She was perplexed about what had happened on that first visit, understanding how she felt then but not understanding why she felt that way. Despite how she was with Jack, who she loved dearly, she was bewildered by what she had done with a complete stranger. Also puzzling was the dichotomy she faced; what she had done being so unlike her, but how intoxicatingly pleasurable it had been. She still had the four hundred dollars tucked away in a drawer and hadn't decided what to do with it.

But, about two weeks before the state meet, she began to sense that, rather than an answer to her questions, she might be about to create more of them as that feeling of excitement and daring seemed to be returning. She felt more alive and energized and found herself itching to do something daring and audacious, something that pushed the limits, that threatened to put her over the edge.

Jack knew something was up when she asked if he was ready for another "night in the bushes." He could see the extra sparkle in her eyes, the suggestive postures she sometimes chose, and the kisses he was getting were very different from those he had gotten just a couple of weeks ago.

State-meet Saturday came, and, as expected, Linda overwhelmed her opponents in both the 1600- and 3200-meter runs. Medals around her neck, she went into the stands where her parents received hugs, and Jack got his usual hug and kiss, photographed by the newspaper for Sunday publication. The look he got from Linda told him she wished she could give him a much better kiss, but...

On the Sunday after the state meet, Wendel Baker left for a week-long training class for a new process being installed where he worked. Molly talked with Linda, and Mom convinced her that spending a few days together in another city might be a fun way to celebrate before Linda went off, wherever she was going, to college and more running. Molly had everything planned, she said, and they'd leave in the morning. In the meantime, she had a meeting at church.

Jack's phone rang.

"Hey," he answered, seeing it was Linda that was calling.

"Hey, yourself. Mom's gone for two hours so get yourself over here on the double. I have plans."

"Am I allowed to ask about the plans?"

"No. Just get over here. My clothes are half-off already."

Jack heard the phone go dead. He knew Linda was in her "I dare you" state, and he wondered what she might have in store for him. The only way to find out was to hurry over. He did take a second to stuff a condom in his pocket before heading out.

Jack knocked on the door and, from the corner of his eye, saw a curtain move slightly before the door opened, and he stepped inside. Linda had completed the other half of removing her clothes and jumped into his arms, her tongue quickly searching for his, her hips rubbing against his leg.

"I never know what to expect," he groaned when her lips finally left his.

"Have I disappointed you yet," she asked coyly.

"No, never. Are we going out behind some new bushes?"

"Oh, no. We're not going anywhere," she said as she began unbuttoning his shirt.

"You said your mom was gone, but where's your dad?"

"He's in the kitchen, but I don't think he'll bother us."

"What the f...?" Jack whispered, grabbing Linda's arms.

"You're so easy," she laughed. "He's on a week-long trip--left this morning."

"When I have a heart attack, you won't think it's so funny," he answered, catching his breath.

"You'll have a heart attack before I get through with you today," she giggled as she unbuttoned and unzipped his pants. "Plus, we need to get that thing out in the air," she added as she pushed his boxers down his legs. "Now, a ten-second preliminary, and we can get serious."

His erection was instantly in her mouth and was sliding in and out as she held her hands in front of his face, counting off the seconds with her fingers, and at ten, she stood up.

"Grab your clothes, and let's go?"

"Go where? Your room?"

"Nope. Mom and Dad's room."

"Linda, what the hell?"

"I can sit and talk to Mom or Dad when they're in bed, and they'll never dream that you and I had sex right there in that bed. Mom will crawl into bed tonight and be right where we were just a few hours before."

It was nearly beyond reason that Jack was naked in Linda's parent's bedroom, watching her carefully fold back the covers. Then he was in the bed, the smell of her mother's perfume very prominent, and Linda was doing her best to give him that heart attack she had talked about before. She kept him from going down on her, riding him cowgirl while she brought herself to the edge with her fingers, finally repeating, "Coming, coming, coming," with each spasm of her orgasm squeezing hard on Jack's cock until he joined her, pumping the condom full.

"My hands were on your chest, and I could feel your heart pounding. It was kind of exciting."

"How would you know?" Jack teased. "You were already so excited that a little more wouldn't have even been noticed.

"You think you know it all," she laughed as she licked his lips. "Ready to go again?" She began moving her hips.

"I know you're daring, and you get me into it too--"

"--and you can't resist," she interrupted.

"True, but we are in your mother's bed, and she'll eventually be home, and I'd like to have the bed made and looking like it did before."

"There are other places to play," she said, climbing off his shrunken cock. "It does look like that thing could use a rest," she giggled.

They carefully made the bed, dressed, and went downstairs to watch a movie. Linda had that look that said that Jack's day wasn't quite over yet.

"I only brought one rubber," he said.

"Pessimist," she said. "Thanks to the self-checkout lanes at the grocery, I have my own supply."

Linda continued to torture him as they watched the movie if a fantastic blowjob could be called torture. She managed to make it exciting as she was just swallowing as they heard the garage door opening.

The summer lay ahead of them, and Jack wondered where it could go from here.

The next morning, Linda didn't even debate with herself before stuffing the four hundred dollars in her backpack, finally deciding the reminder from an escapade she'd like to erase needed to be used. But since it was money, and feeling as she did, she knew how to make it disappear.

Mom had been doing a little browsing on the internet and had located a couple of museums that they could visit, but she'd also located several stores where they could do some shopping. Linda would need a few new clothes for school, and she was looking forward to spending that special money.

It was fun to ride and talk with her mother, but she was wary, keeping her bubbling excitement a little under wraps. They'd be gone for three days, and when they checked into the hotel, it stirred memories of another hotel stay...and had her wondering.

They had a delicious dinner at a small Italian restaurant that happened to be only three blocks from the hotel and just one block from a large mall. Of course, they walked, and Linda got used to hearing, "Slow down a little, honey, please." They stayed together for a while, picking up clothes Linda was looking forward to wearing wherever she decided to matriculate. Then they separated, Molly shopping for herself, while Linda would be shopping also, shopping she could only do by herself.

At her first stop, she picked up two very lacy and skimpy thongs, one blue and one black. Next, she went to look at dresses, dresses like she wasn't used to wearing. She picked one to match the blue thong, and a black one, of course. She went to the changing rooms, praying she didn't run into her mother.

Several booths were occupied, and she found the last one, at the end of the aisle, free. As she pulled off her clothes to try on the dresses, the door to the stall swung gently open. She glanced up to meet the eyes of a man outside the changing rooms and probably waiting for his wife. He didn't look away as she reached out and pulled the door closed. The latch was broken, and she'd have to hope the door would stay shut, or maybe hope for something else.

He'd seen her in her regular bra and bikini panties, so perhaps she could provide him with an even better view. Linda stood with her back to the door, conscious that it was swinging open very slowly. She loosened her bra and tossed it onto the small bench. She stepped out of the bikini panties, careful not to expose her intimate parts. She pulled on the blue thong, carefully tucking the string between her butt cheeks. Next, she pulled the blue dress over her head, settling it into place and checking her profile in the mirror.

Linda turned quickly, and this time she saw him avert his eyes. Once more, she pulled the door closed. When it immediately swung open, she saw her watcher talking with a woman. As the pair left, she waved. Another look in the mirror, and she decided she was as sexy as any high school girl she'd ever seen. Trying on the black dress only confirmed it.

Linda paid for her "finds" and pushed them to the bottom of her sack. She stopped to buy a pretty sweatshirt to have if her mother asked. Walking back to the hotel, they talked about dinner and their purchases, enjoying the warm weather. As they came into the lobby of the hotel, Molly chuckled.

"Want to go to the bar and see if we can pick up a couple of men?"

Linda looked at her mother, eyes wide.

"Just poking you," Molly replied. "Let's go to our room and watch a movie."

"Sounds good," Linda said, hoping the movie would allow her heartbeat to return to normal.

***

Jack sat at the back of the press conference at Crawford High, there to watch Linda announce her choice of a university. Despite what most of the speculators had predicted, Linda chose the Division I school just thirty miles from her home, actually just on the other side of town. Several of the schools she'd visited had outstanding track and cross-country programs, but she'd ignored them in favor of staying close to home. What the pundits didn't know was that the university had promised to hire an assistant who was a distance running specialist.

Since it was summer, Jack and Linda were free to spend more time together. She was deciding what daring, dangerous, and hopefully erotic things she and Jack could do together. She wasn't ruling out things she could do by herself, like the other day in the changing room at the mall. She'd just have to see how things worked out.

Jack was seeing the same change in Linda he'd seen once before. It was a little scary but also very rewarding as he'd never imagined that he'd have a girlfriend as pretty as Linda, nor the amazing sex he'd had either. Now, he was wondering what lay ahead for his summer.

It was two weeks later that Linda received a phone call, asking if she could be at the university the next day to meet the newly hired assistant coach. She drove herself there, curious about the new person she'd be working with--they hadn't told her if it was a man or a woman.

It was a man. Alessandro Lombardi was in his twenties, handsome, with black curly hair, dark eyes that held your gaze, a dark complexion with two days' growth of beard, and the lean, angular build of a distance runner. That, along with the big smile and the flashing white teeth, nearly overwhelmed Linda when they met.

"They said you were a fantastic runner, but they didn't tell me how gorgeous you are."

Unusual for her, Linda's cheeks turned bright red.

"Thank you," she said quietly.

"I've been looking at your times, and they're exceptional," he said, his slight Italian accent very fascinating to her ear.

They walked outside to the track, discussing workout regimes and philosophies. Linda noticed that Alessandro (call me Ali) was very handsy, touching her much more than she wanted to be touched. If she wanted a daring, dangerous, and erotic adventure, she was sure Ali could provide it. She understood that would be unnecessarily dangerous and wasn't about to go there. Alessandro could coach her, period.

Something unexpected had happened, though. It seemed as though her existence was split into two halves. One part of her was turned off by Alessandro's actions and wanted only to be coached. Another part of her was aroused by his touching her, picturing what she would do if they went into the deserted locker room. She could barely constrain her thoughts as she raced home to Jack.

"Let's go," she called to him as she pulled into the Murphy's driveway.

"We going running?" he asked since he went with her on track workout days.

"Hardly. Get in."

Jack knew that look and wondered what new adventure she had in store for him.