Hard Rain Falling - Don Carpenter [45]
He did not realize until the real light, gray, of morning, that he had slept with Sue instead of Mona, but did not care even then. He was hung over and feeling burnt inside; still erotic, only this time awake, and in the light. He began kissing Sue’s breasts and belly until she moaned and put her arms around him and spread her legs for him, her eyes shut, his cracked open, looking down, watching himself enter her, seeing her hips move sleepily, feeling her tighten just at the moment he was ready to come himself, letting go, feeling her body pull it into herself in bucking spasms; and then, with his mind empty, falling asleep still in her for another long doze of contentment.
When he woke up the second time, Sue was awake, sitting up, and staring at him.
“What’s the matter?” he asked her.
“God, you’re mean-looking,” she said. “My head hurts.” She pulled the sheet up over her small breasts, and Jack saw bruises on her shoulders, tiny purple marks almost like tattoos. “Mona’s going to kill me,” she said.
“Why?”
“Don’t you know? She’s really got the hots for you.”
The information pleased Jack. “How about you?” he asked. “Do you have the hots for me, too?”
“Denny’s my boy friend,” she said. “Oh, God, he’ll kill me.”
“Listen, what do you think they’re doing?”
She made a face. “You dragged me in here.”
He got out cigarettes and matches, and they smoked for a few minutes without speaking. Jack wanted some coffee and a drink of whiskey.
“You know,” she said. “It’s a good thing you showed up. It was getting kind of shitty in there with the three of us. I used to worry about Mona laying there listening to us.” She giggled. “I was afraid she’d say something, you know?”
“Why didn’t you have her crawl right in with you?”
Sue looked startled. “Are you kidding?”
“Hell no. What’s wrong with that?”
“Three people?”
“Bad scene?” Jack asked. He was smiling at her obvious discomfort. “Aint you never kissed a chick?”
But Sue did not want to talk about that. “But we couldn’t split up; we’re best girl friends. So it’s a good thing you guys happened to run into each other.”
“Didn’t Denny try to get rid of her, though?”
“He’s so sweet. I bet he’s not even fooling around with Mona. I bet they both passed out, too.”
“Did you pass out?”
She looked at him oddly. “Sure. Didn’t you? We didn’t do anything, did we?”
“You don’t remember?”
“Of course not.” She did a bad imitation of a girl trying to remember. “Gee, I don’t know. I was so drunk. Did I throw up or anything? My head sure hurts.”
Under the covers, Jack put a hand on her hip, but she pushed it away.
“Daylight bother you?”
“Close your eyes. I have to get up and go to the toilet.”
When she got back she climbed into the bed after only a moment’s hesitation, and snuggled up close. “Don’t do anything to me,” she said, “I just want to get warm and sleep.”
“All right,” he said. “I’m fucked out anyway.” He giggled, and a sharp pain passed through his forehead.
“You bastard,” she said. And a few moments later, “Did you really give Mona ten dollars?”
Jack was surprised. “Did she say that?”
“Yeah, but I think she was lying. Did you?”
“Why, do you want ten dollars, too? Hell, I ought to charge you.”
Sue was quiet for a long time, and Jack thought she had gone to sleep, but finally she spoke. “I think she’s afraid she’s going to turn into a prostitute. She gets real scared sometimes.”
“What about you?” he