The Trouble With Eden - Lawrence Block [77]
When they were in the house he took her in his arms and kissed her. She was considerably shorter than he was and stood on her tiptoes, clinging to him with her arms around his neck. She was wearing a great deal of perfume. He had not noticed it as much in the restaurant, or even in the Buick. He wondered if she had put more on before getting in her own car.
He kissed her again and they moved over to the couch and sat down clutching at each other. “I’m glad we’re not in a motel,” she said. “Just a bed and a dresser and a chair, and all you can do is get out of your clothes and get down to business. Let’s take our time, okay?”
“Why not?”
“Let’s fool around like kids and get each other so hot we can’t stand it, and then we’ll go to your bedroom and fuck like crazy.”
They kissed. Her mouth was eager, demanding. He put a hand on her bare midriff and stroked her. Her skin was as soft as it looked and stroking her was like petting a kitten. He dipped a finger into her navel and she moaned and writhed against him.
When he reached to unclasp the halter top she shook her head. “You don’t have to take it off,” she said. “Just pull it up. See?”
She pulled the top up and her breasts popped into view beneath it. They were large and perfectly firm. He stroked them and she purred, and he lowered his head to kiss her breasts.
“See? It’s sexier with clothes on.”
She was right. He did not know her age but knew she could not be more than twenty-five; Sully’s wives were never older than that. In speech and manner she was younger still, and this urgent clothed lovemaking made him feel he was in high school again. He kissed her breasts and put a hand under the band of the hot pants. The skin on the inside of her thighs was the same perfect velvet as the rest of her.
“No panties.”
“I didn’t think you’d be wearing them.”
“I was before. They’re in the glove compartment. I took them off as soon as I got in my own car. They were already wet by then. God, you’re good. You know just what to do to me.”
“You’re beautiful.”
“Oh, are we gonna fuck. You’re getting me so hot. Anything you want to do. What’s that?”
A car had turned into the driveway, and for a moment his heart froze. He could see Sully coming through the door with a gun in his hand. Then in an instant he recognized the unmistakable sound of the Volkswagen.
“It’s all right. It’s my daughter.”
“I didn’t know you had a daughter.”
“She’s spending the summer here.”
She sat back, brushed her hair out of her face with her fingers. “You want to go upstairs before she comes in?”
“There’s no need.”
“Well, you want me to go upstairs?”
He shook his head. “We have a fairly open living arrangement here.”
“Well, open or not, you don’t want me sitting around with my tits hanging out.” She tucked herself back into the cocoa brown halter. She started to say something but stopped when the key turned in the door. He lit a cigarette and settled himself on the couch next to Melanie. He was taking a second drag when Karen and the boy came into the room. There was a glow in Karen’s cheeks and a firm smile on her face.
She said, “Dad, this is Jeffrey. Jeff, my father, Hugh Markarian. And you must be Linda.”
“That’s right,” Melanie said.
“I’m Karen, and I’m glad to meet you. Dad’s said a lot about you.”
“Well,” Hugh said. He got to his feet, shook hands with the boy. “You kids like a drink?”
“I think we’ll just go upstairs,” Karen said. “We wanted to listen to some records.”
There was no record player in Karen’s room. “Enjoy yourselves,” he said. He turned to put out his cigarette in an ashtray, and when he looked up again they were already on the stairs.
“Control.”
“How’s that?”
“What I noticed about you right away,” she said. “You stay in control. You don’t get rattled.”
He smiled. “Why should I get rattled?” He sat next to