Who Can Say?

"Never again with him, Carl, never again," Joanna told me in the car on the way home. "Would you like me to set us up with the other couple for next weekend?"

"No, I think I'd rather we take the next weekend for ourselves, and maybe see them for a night the week after."

"That's not a bad idea, Carl. You're sure a better man in the sack than that Fred. What does Dianne see in him?"

"Maybe she sees a fellow predator, Joanna. She sure watched close when he was fucking you."

"I don't think I was much more than a warmer substitute for Rosy Palm, myself. I wasn't any wetter. Maybe Dianne just needed to see that he wasn't any better with another woman than he was with her."

Our sex was really good for the next couple of weeks. Joanna asked whether I thought we should even bother with the follow up couple we'd considered. I should have known better, but I suggested we should see what was out there since it had already done a lot for us. Truth to tell, I just wanted to stick my dick into the beautiful wife. Something about her in that picture we had was incredibly erotic.

"Do you want to call?"

"No, I think it's better if the wives talk first. Less threatening, or something. Besides, women are more honest about sex."

"Okay."

We met up with Don and Chloe at a cocktail bar a couple of weeks later. Fred and Dianne had called, looking for a rematch, but we put them off. Joanna explained to Dianne that we were going to look around a bit before we committed too heavily to another couple.

Don was as I had expected: calm, confident, fit and attractive. He was about five years younger than I was. Chloe was a goddess, at least in my mind. She was understated: smaller tits than Joanna, decent ass, pretty face, maybe the same age as Don, although with women it seems to be harder to tell. She exuded good cheer. I got hard when I first saw her.

It was a good evening, fun for us all. After a while both couples made excuses to go off by themselves.

Joanna and I each agreed immediately that if they were willing, we'd set something up for the next weekend. It seemed to take Don and Chloe longer to settle on their decision, but they finally agreed to meet us the next weekend at a hotel downtown.

"I guess you aren't completely new to this," Don explained, "but every couple has their own rules. One of ours is that condoms have to be worn. Another is that nothing takes place except in the company of all four of us. We don't believe that you should shut your partner out of any part of your life for any reason."

"Okay by me," I agreed. Joanna nodded. I think she already lusted after Don.

"One of the important rules is that we start out as couples and end up as the same couples. The point of our decision to embrace this lifestyle is to enhance our own experiences and to have a little fun. If it gets too serious, we have to break it off."

We all agreed again.

"See you next week."

When Friday evening rolled around again, we met up in the hotel bar for a drink before we went up to the room together. We sat and chatted for a while. I was impatient to get my hands on Chloe. She could tell, I think, even though I was courteous and restrained. Joanna was much the same. Don, behind his imperturbability, seemed almost as anxious to sample Joanna's charms. I couldn't be sure of Chloe's feelings, but she seemed a tad reluctant. It wasn't the deliberate posture Dianne had adopted. Maybe she was genuinely reluctant. She entered into the spirit of the arrangement fully, so perhaps I was misreading her.

After maybe twenty minutes or so we went up to the room together. Joanna stood with Don, signalling her availability, though that had been agreed the week before. Chloe was not quite as inviting. She wasn't giving off signals of rejection, nor heat. More a sort of willingness or acceptance, it seemed. No one touched on the way up.

Once in the room, Don turned to Joanna.

"Do you really want to go ahead with this, Joanna?" he asked kindly. "I won't take it amiss if you'd rather just go home. I'm willing to go ahead, but only if Carl and Chloe are agreed as well."

"Yes, Don, I've been looking forward to this for a while now, even before we met in person." She didn't even look at me, though Don and Chloe had exchanged several looks, now. They were truly a couple.

"What about you, Chloe?" I asked. "I'm like Joanna. I've been looking forward to this for quite a while. Like Don, if it makes you uncomfortable, I'm prepared to put it off, or cancel. It's up to you."

I could hear the voice of my father, telling me that it certainly was up to her, and not to me or my cock, however hard it was.

"To tell the truth," Chloe started, "I have been conflicted about this. It's not that you're not nice people. It's more about you as a couple, I guess. You don't seem to me to have a strong enough bond to do something like this, sharing your significant other with someone who's almost a complete stranger. I'd certainly like to make love to you, Carl. I think it would be a rewarding experience. I'm not so sure it would be good for you. I guess what I'm really saying is that I don't think it would be good for the two of you, as a couple, I mean."

Trust Joanna when she's in heat.

"It would be good for us, Chloe," she said. "We've only done this once before, so we're not as experienced as you two are. But when we did, it certainly livened things up at home, and we paid a lot more attention to each other. That's why we're doing this, sharing ourselves with other people to stimulate our own reactions to each other."

"Well, I still have doubts," Chloe responded, "but that's all they are, doubts. Don thinks it might strengthen you, but even if not it's not really likely to cause rifts. After all, neither of us plans to run away with either of you." She laughed. "All right, let's go ahead."

We were still a little embarrassed to do anything. With Fred and Dianne, Fred had pretty much taken over and started with Joanna and everything flowed. There hadn't even been the ritual "Are you sure?" question, that I recognized was an important part for people who treated others as people, not as fuck toys.

I sidled over to Chloe, put my arm around her and gave her a gentle peck on the cheek.

"Damn, Carl," she laughed, "you can do better than that."

She looked up at me and drew my head down to where she could kiss me properly. After a startled moment, I joined in heartily. Soon my tongue was exploring her sweet mouth while she caressed my tongue with hers. Her hands started to wander over my back and bum. I dropped my hands to grasp her rear and pull her in to me. She came willingly, and while I enjoyed the feel of her firm buttocks she wriggled herself against me, raising my penis to incredible hardness in moments.

Beside us, Joanna and Don were engaged in similar activities. Don was treating Joanna well, as he slipped away from her hands trying to unclothe him.

"All in due course," I heard him gently admonish her.

With Chloe's hand on my bum, hauling me in to her, ramming my cock into her centre, I slid my hands to cover her still-clothed breasts. I rubbed my thumbs where I calculated her nipples to be, and she moaned softly.

"Carl, I think we're over-dressed for where we want to go, here."

We separated for a short while to get rid of the impediments. I noticed Don and Joanna in roughly the same state, though they were undressing each other. My cock lurched when I saw Joanna's breasts appear naked, and Don's head dropped immediately to draw one into his mouth. He was very gentle with her.

Chloe came back into my arms once we were both naked. My cock lurched again at the sight of her, grinning happily as we kissed, caressing me affectionately more than sexually despite our nakedness. I ran my hands down her back and over her flanks, jiggling a little as I curled under the curve of her buttocks. She pressed her pretty breasts into my chest and rubbed me with her firm, upstanding nipples. That was more erotic than friendly, to me. Chloe ran her hands lightly the same way I had, down my back and over the curve of my buttocks.

We broke for a moment to move onto the bed. Then we picked up our hugging and kissing and liking for each other. On the other bed, Don was insisting on cuddling before sex. Joanna was moaning with need while he continued to worship her body, demonstrating in so many little ways the regard he had for her as a person.

I picked up on some of his practices, slowing down our sexual activities and speeding up our simple affection, our liking for each other. They were almost strangers to us, yet they made it clear that they liked us as we proceeded towards a sharing of our bodies, that we were exchanging affection, regard for each other as people, as well as the physical joys of sex. It was an eye-opener for both Joanna and me.

I suckled Chloe's breasts gently. Somehow it added to my enjoyment of her body that I could hear Joanna's little cries of passion, of enjoyment, at the same time as I was pleasuring Chloe, who moaned happily. I knew she was happy. She made sure I knew. If I started to do something that she wasn't ready for, or simply didn't want, she gave me a very subtle, friendly signal that I couldn't misinterpret.

Chloe wasn't simply passive, either. She continued to use the tips of her fingers to inflame me. She touched my penis, but only lightly, enough to keep me aroused, but not overflowing.

I slipped down her body, intent on bringing her to orgasm, not as a mark of my abilities as a sexual partner, but because I wanted to give this happy, friendly woman as much pleasure as I could. I was more gentle than usual in kissing her labia, in sucking lightly on her clitoris in its hood, in tonguing her vagina, then retreating to her clitoris. Chloe signalled when she was about to come, and I kissed her clitoris, softly and sweetly, falling off to her labia and she gave a great gasp and started to thrash, gripping my head tightly with her hands and thighs. We stayed like that for a few minutes as her orgasm petered out and she regained the use of her senses.

She pulled me up.

"Thank you, Carl, that was loving and sweet and a wonderful orgasm. No wonder Joanna loves you."

She kissed me kindly, as a thank you.

"Come, Carl, share my body, let me give you pleasure, too."

She grasped my penis and rolled on a condom.

I rose up and slipped into her. I did not ram home immediately, as had become my custom with Joanna. I pushed into her with minimal force, stopping if there appeared to be a problem, or if I'd run out of lubrication. Chloe was so hot and moist and tight I wanted to savour every inch of her as I slowly thrust into her depths. I adjusted myself slightly, to make sure her clitoris would be stimulated, while I searched for any other sensitive area I could use to add to her pleasure.

We continued in this way for what seemed like a long time, longer than I normally took to bring Joanna to her climax, until I could feel Chloe starting to grip me even tighter than she had, gripping and releasing, and then she moaned happily as her orgasm hit and her vagina clutched while she writhed totally out of control. Her movements forced my own climax, which I had been trying to hold off, and I filled the condom while I continued to stroke, prolonging Chloe's enjoyment of our act.

I glanced over to see Don and Joanna wrapped in each other, sleeping, both fulfilled.

It had been a wonderful evening, with two wonderful people. We hadn't invaded each other's space, or swapped back and forth. We'd simply enjoyed a marvellous encounter while our partners enjoyed theirs, the knowledge that our partners were having the same good feelings and happiness increasing our own. It was the best sex I'd had in years. I was certainly ready to continue our relationship with them.

In the morning, I almost thought Chloe would refuse another attempt. Don and Joanna had begun another affectionate joining. Chloe looked, shrugged, and joined me for a repetition of the previous night, resulting in strong and enjoyable orgasms for us both.

Later, Don and Chloe showered together. When they were done, Joanna showered. Chloe, dressed again by now, came over to talk to me. I hugged her, and she did not draw away, but returned the hug briefly, then started.

"Carl," she said. "Don and I have agreed that the two of you are both wonderful people. You have work to do on your own relationship, though. As much as I've enjoyed our time together, and as much as Don enjoyed his time with Joanna, we can't continue this relationship. You would hide your problems in meeting with us. You have to face them, deal with them, and cure them if you can. I will always treasure having met and made love with you."

They left as I went into the shower. When I was finished, Joanna and I drove home, sobered by our experience of what sex could be. We were both reluctant to discuss what Don had told her, and Chloe had told me.

Once home, however, I repeated what Chloe had told me. Don had told Joanna much the same thing.

"I don't understand what they're seeing that we don't see, Carl. Do you think we have problems?"

"No, I don't. We don't have the same relationship that they do, and maybe that's what they're talking about. For me, though, different people have different relationships, so just because we get along differently than they do doesn't mean we have problems. We've just come up with different solutions than they have."

I was wrong.

"Why do you think they swing when their own relationship is so good?" I asked.

"Don said they thought they could show older couples, with potential, like us, I guess, what can be, and have a little fun themselves. They don't repeat very often, even though they have discovered some soulmates this way."

There wasn't anything I could say to that, though I didn't understand it.

Joanna and I continued in the swinging scene every couple of weeks for the next six or eight months. We never ran across anyone as affectionate and caring as Don and Chloe again. I don't think there are any more like them. We did run across another couple of Freds, though we learned how to pick them out and discard them most of the time. Mostly it was good sex. Usually we arranged a second meeting. Then, by mutual consent, we would set our sights on another conquest.

Strangely, our early forays into the world of swinging made sex at home more spontaneous and enjoyable. We'd always had good sex, but then we sort of faded out. Not in quality, but in quantity. Swinging proved we hadn't lost the knack or the interest. In the beginning we had sex a lot more. Over time, though, we looked to our swinging encounters to satisfy our sexual needs. We had sex less and less on our own. After five months, I would only fuck Joanna if it was part of a swinging encounter. I'm not sure why.

I remember one of our last encounters, which Joanna had arranged to be with two couples instead of one. We had to get a room with two king sized beds, and then there were two guys and a woman in one bed, and two women and a man in the other. We played musical beds all night long and well into the morning. I'm not sure of the others, but I managed to screw all three of the women. Joanna said she'd been fucked four times, once by two guys at once, which she'd kind of liked, and had a session with each of the women, too.

We agreed that it had been a lot of fun, but we weren't going to go there again. I was horny when we got home, but Joanna put me off, so even that wild experience didn't improve sex at home.

I guess it was about eight weeks after our mini-orgy that I came home to find Joanna gone, a fairly common situation by then, but what wasn't common was the note:

"Dear Carl:

"We have had a great relationship for the past twenty-five years, but now it is time for me to move on. I hope we won't have any difficulty sorting things out, and at least there aren't any kids. I'll be with Benny and Dot for a while until I can find a place of my own."

"Joanna"

Benny and Dot were a couple we'd met swinging. As usual, the man was quite taken with Joanna. Unusually, so was the wife, and the two of them (Dot and Joanna) had a pretty wild session with each other while Benny and I were recovering. Benny and Dot had been at our three couple orgy, too. I suspected the three of them could happily play bed games with each other for a while until they got tired of each other. I heard later that Benny dropped Dot for Joanna, and then beat Joanna. I doubt that's true, about the beating, I mean, because Benny really wasn't that kind of guy, and Joanna wouldn't have taken it. Of course, you can never tell. It was true about Benny dropping Dot. She told me herself before we had a little revenge sex together.

I was surprised that Joanna had left me. There hadn't been any signs that I'd noticed, but that might simply have been one more of the reasons, that there had been signs and I hadn't paid attention. I was even more surprised that I didn't particularly miss her. I wasn't mad at her, either. I might have been relieved.

A couple of weeks after Joanna left me, while I was still trying to come to grips with the fact that after twenty-five years I was single again, Beth dropped by.

"I'm sorry, Beth. Joanna isn't here. I don't expect her back."

"I know, Carl. Joanna told me the two of you were finished. I'm sorry. I've always had a soft spot for the two of you, and the sex was always marvellous. Actually, I've come to see you."

"Come in, come in. You're always welcome, you know. I'm never sure who Joanna's told. I don't see it as my duty to tell her friends. She probably wants to put her own spin on it anyway."

Beth took her coat off and settled into one of the easy chairs, showing a substantial slice of a sleek thigh. Like Joanna, age hadn't done any real damage to Beth. It had been a few years since we'd had one of our frantic threesomes, but the memories hadn't dimmed.

"How's your husband, whatsisname, I can't keep up?"

"Oh, Larry, I think. He's gone, like the rest of them."

"Why did we part, did Joanna tell you? I'm not all that sure myself."

"She said the two of you were getting tired of each other after so long together, and had agreed to split up, now the children were gone, before you started hating each other. By that I took it that she wanted to screw around and you didn't want her to."

"I suppose that's the Reader's Digest version. Yours, I mean."

"You've always been a steadier person than Joanna, Carl. If I ever wanted to really settle down, and not play husband roulette, I'd make a play for you now that she's out of the way. I never stood a chance while the mother of your children was on the scene."

"Perhaps not, Beth. Can I get you something? Coffee? There's fresh. Or a drink?"

"Well, actually, I did come over for something."

I stood, ready to get what she asked for.

Beth stood up, too, and came over to me. She threw her arms around my neck.

"Carl, baby, I came over for a piece of you, one that for once I won't have to share with Ms. Perfect Tits."

She started to kiss me. Her lips were soft and insistently demanding. With no reason not to, any longer, I gave in immediately and began to kiss back. I thrust my tongue into her opening mouth just as she poked her little pink messenger into me. Our tongues played happily with each other, and played in each other's mouth. They could hardly be explorers. Our tongues knew each other's mouths from long before I married Joanna.

I dropped my hands to her waist. She had on some kind of top, sleeveless. The important thing was that it came off easily. I unfastened her bra and she dropped it on the floor. Her hands were busy at my belt as I grasped her beautiful tits. If Joanna was Ms. Perfect Tits, Beth was runner up. I dropped from our kiss when we broke for air and zoomed in on her nipples.