Rumours

by Alison Tyler

  I nodded, remembering the different women talking at the NUDE shoot. ‘But how would Noah know all that about Alden’s fantasies? They’ve never hooked up together, right?’

  Mia laughed. ‘They’ve been friends since kindergarten. They tell each other everything. Like Alden told Noah about the two of you in the hot tub. And then Noah told Willow, who told Geneva, who told Alhambra, who told Sheila, and that’s how this whole game works.’

  ‘But why did you two get into his history?’

  ‘We were talking about things we like.’

  ‘Yeah? What does Noah like?’

  She batted her eyelashes at me. ‘Everything, as far as I can tell.’

  But, although I was happy for Mia, I couldn’t get the information she’d given me out of my head. Was that why Alden was testing me? Did he honestly want me to take charge? Up until now he had seemed more than willing to be in the driver’s seat. I considered the information. I’ve always been the submissive. Even before Johnny, I’ve always bowed to the desires of my partner.

  Would I be able to switch, to play the part of a domme? Although I’d never done it before, I had to admit, I liked the idea.

  Chapter Sixteen

  On Saturday night Noah’s band took the stage with a raucous burst of drums. I started out dancing with Alden, who almost immediately was pulled away from me by Sheila. My rival redhead didn’t even look in my direction; she just swooped in front of me and slid him away. Before I could even consider how to react, Cody stepped up and took Alden’s place. I was relieved to find that I didn’t have to engage in a battle for my firefighter’s attention, and I was flattered as always at the way Cody looked at me. His gaze sent shivers through me, and I wondered if he could tell.

  Quickly he danced me off to one of the darker corners of the already dark room and, for the first time since he’d spoken to me at the movie theatre, I felt as if he really wanted to talk to me.

  ‘So what is your secret?’ I asked him.

  ‘I don’t know what you mean,’ Cody said in a serious voice, but I knew from the look in his eyes that he did. Or that he at least had an inkling.

  ‘Rumour has it that you’re holding back.’

  ‘Rumour has it,’ he repeated with a wry grin. ‘You’re listening in. You’re becoming one of them. I thought LA women were made of tougher stuff.’

  I smiled, embarrassed to be caught without anything to say in my defence.

  ‘Instead, all that jaded LA surface on you is peeling away to reveal the true country girl beneath.’

  ‘I’m only telling you what I’ve heard. And I’ve heard that you don’t get mixed up in the town relationships any more. That you’re a loner, and that you hold yourself back.’

  ‘From what?’

  ‘From everyone.’

  ‘And who says that?’

  ‘Oh, Christ, Cody. Everyone says that. Nica. Alden. Geneva. They’ve all warned me off of you. Unfortunately, they don’t know me that well.’

  ‘What do you mean?’

  ‘Ultimately, I always rise to a challenge.’

  He laughed softly. ‘Yeah, you had that look about you when you moved to town. I think it’s what caught my attention first. At least, after your red hair and your city-slicker outfits.’

  ‘So what’s the story?’

  ‘Rumour has it –’ he started, and I leaned in, thinking that he might actually share a secret with me. But I was wrong. ‘Rumour has it that there are too many fucking rumours in this town. Be careful about who you listen to and what you believe.’

  ‘But what do you believe?’

  He stared into my eyes, silent, his hands slowly swaying my hips to the beat of the band. It was undeniably sexy to be moved by him, and I couldn’t help thinking about other ways I’d like him to move me.

  ‘You said you were going to tell me something about myself. After the movies. You said you were going to be a psychic –’

  ‘You said “psychic”. I was planning on stating the obvious.’

  ‘Then state it.’

  ‘I would have that night. But you took off on your own. Where’d you get to, anyway? Did you find someone else to give you what you wanted?’

  ‘Tell me, Cody. Tell me what you think I want.’ My heart was beating at triple speed, and I was desperate to hear what Cody had to say. If he named my true desire, would he magically win me? I found myself holding my breath, waiting for him to show me just how much he knew about me. Instead, he shook his head, as if amused by my behaviour, and then he kissed me. Right there, in the corner of The Saloon, and for a moment nothing else mattered. That is, until Alden saw us.

  ‘What’s going on?’ he asked, pushing in between us and reminding me of the brutish way he’d acted on my very first night at the bar.

  ‘Nothing, Alden,’ I told him, heat rising to my face. ‘Just a friendly kiss.’

  ‘This is a friendly kiss,’ Alden said, giving me a quick peck on the cheek. ‘In case you’re wondering. While this is something else entirely.’ And now he dipped me in his arms and French-kissed me, and I felt myself start to respond to him when I’d just had my heart pounding for Cody. Was I confused, or just fickle? When I opened my eyes, Cody was back at the bar, turned away from us to talk to Nica, and Alden was intent on making sure I was going home in his orange truck.

  ‘You trying to make me jealous?’ Alden asked me afterwards, pulling me out of The Saloon on the pretence of having a true discussion with me.

  ‘You should talk,’ I said, tilting my head towards Sheila’s turquoise car.

  ‘Oh, Jesus, Charlie. We were just dancing. Just a friendly little dance. You’re not going to get all worked up over something like that, are you? I thought we were beyond this stage.’

  I leaned up against the brick wall of the bar and shook my head. ‘Well, this was just a friendly kiss. Like Mia and Alhambra.’

  ‘So you know about that, do you?’

  ‘I listen.’

  ‘Well, I listen, too,’ he said. ‘I know you were at the movies with Cody last week. I heard the two of you got pretty cosy.’

  ‘We weren’t there together,’ I said, realising that I wasn’t the only one with my ear to the rumour mill. ‘We just happened to be there on the same night.’

  ‘That’s together, as far as I’m concerned.’

  ‘Yeah? Well, how about you and Sheila?’

  ‘What do you mean?’

  ‘I’ve heard talk about the two of you, as well. Her car at the station. Your truck parked outside of her house. The two of you eating breakfast together at the Daisy Diner. People can’t tell me this stuff fast enough.’

  ‘You can’t trust everything you hear.’

  ‘Then neither can you –’

  ‘Well, what about if I see it with my own eyes?’

  ‘You saw nothing but a friendly kiss.’ That was my story, and I was sticking to it. He didn’t need to know that my panties were damp from the kiss or that, if Cody had spelled out my number-one fantasy, I would have left the building with him, would have followed him anywhere to get what I was craving.

  ‘No.’ He shook his head. ‘You tell me, Charlie. Tell me what I can trust.’ As he spoke, he pulled me against him.

  ‘This?’ I grinned, taking his hand and sliding it under the waistband of my skirt. ‘You can trust this, Alden.’ His fingertips met the wetness that awaited him, and the expression on his face slowly softened. ‘Let’s go home,’ I said, suddenly uninterested in all of the gossip, in who said what and who was doing what to whom. I just wanted to get away from it, to retreat to the safe quiet haven of my little cabin in the hills. Retreat there with my fireman, who might not be able to make my fantasies come true, but was definitely able to set my bed aflame.

  He shook his head, then gripped my hand and pulled me with him behind the bar to the alley. I looked around, taking in the forest-green dumpster and the worn wooden telephone poles and the scattering of newspapers that fluttered in the light breeze. It seemed as if
this was where back issues of the Levee Road News came to die.

  ‘Come on, Alden. Let’s go to my place.’

  He shook his head again, and then he bent down to whisper in my ear. ‘I hear you like it outside.’

  I pulled back from him. ‘What do you mean?’

  ‘I heard about you, Charlie. You in the phone booth, your little cut-offs down around your ankles, your bare ass mooning the world –’

  So everybody did know. Just like in the Leonard Cohen song. I parted my lips to speak, and then I realised I didn’t have anything to say.

  ‘You like it outdoors, don’t you?’ Alden continued. I wondered suddenly if Mia was right. Alden seemed to be doing perfectly well in the roll of the aggressor this evening. ‘Out where people might see –’ As he spoke, he flipped me around, so that my palms were pressed against the rough old bricks of The Saloon, and then he tucked the hem of my short floral skirt up out of the way and started to work my panties down my thighs.

  ‘Alden –’

  ‘That’s right. You call out my name when you come. I’ve always liked when a girl does that. It turns me on, Charlie.’ His voice sounded hard and raw, and I felt myself instantly aroused. I liked this side of Alden, in spite of my reservations, but that didn’t stop me from voicing a mild protest. When I heard myself talking, I realised that I sounded an awful lot like I had on our first night together, back at the firestation.

  ‘Everyone’s inside.’

  ‘And if you’re loud enough, maybe some of them will come outside. And you’ll see that I don’t mind if people know that we’re together. It’s you who seems to have issues with that …’

  ‘Issues?’ I could hardly speak. He had my thighs spread apart and his fingertips danced delicately over my pussy, creating the most amazing flickers of pleasure throughout my body. Even though I’d failed at stripping at the NUDE shoot, I’d taken to shaving myself since he’d done the job the initial time, relishing in the feel of my silkiest panties against my bare skin. But now, instead of panties, I was feeling Alden’s probing fingertips, and that combined with the cool outdoor air made me incredibly excited. If he kept touching me like that, and talking to me, I would come before he even ripped open his button-fly jeans. But I didn’t want that. I worked hard to keep myself steady, to stay focused and simply let the pleasure roam through me.

  I could hear the smokers talking out at the back door, and the throbbing music from inside, and the sound of people’s feet stomping on the dance floor. I could hear a dog barking a block away – despite the No Barking signs – and the powerful rumbling sound of a Harley engine revving up on Main Street, and then I could only hear the rushing of my blood in my ears as Alden undid his fly and let me feel his cock.

  Why hadn’t we done this before? It made so much sense to go back behind this gossip-filled building and give people something to really talk about. If we got caught, that is. But maybe that was what had me so turned on – the thought of being caught combined with the hope that we’d get away with this. Alden slipped inside of me, and his hands gripped my waist as he anchored me in place. I looked down at the dirt beneath my feet, and then up at the moon in the sky. I listened to the smokers talk about one beer versus another, and then the reggae beat of the band kicked up a notch and I couldn’t make out their conversation any longer.

  I considered what would happen if someone did spot us. What would the News of the Week heading be this time? Firefighter whips out his hose to cool down a sizzling newcomer. Something filled with innuendos, that was for sure. The editor of the paper lived for sightings like this one. But luck was on our side, and we kept our tryst to ourself. We were out of sight, and out of the loop of local gossipers.

  Alden thrust inside of me with serious force, as if telling me everything with his body instead of his words. I felt as if he was trying to claim me, but I didn’t mind. He could claim me if he needed to. Claim me with his hands on my body, with his cock thrusting hard and deep, then slipping back before pounding into me again. My breathing matched the rhythm of his thrusts, and I knew that I would come when he did, that we would reach that place together.

  And then my eyes roamed up the side of the building and I saw the spray of old graffiti decorating the antique bricks.

  Noah + Willow

  Zeppelin + Tawny

  Alden + Sheila

  And I realised that, even if we were sealed together like this, so close nothing could get in between our bodies, there were always going to be words whispered in hushed tones when we strolled by.

  Always gossip to try to break us apart.

  Chapter Seventeen

  The next edition of the local paper didn’t contain a peep about me and Alden behind The Saloon. I read each paragraph in the Naughty Newsbite section feeling relief at not recognising myself or Mia from the descriptions. Still, I read the paper from cover to cover and, tucked away among the announcements for free firewood (you haul!), missing or found pets, various services offered by community members and recovery programmes, I found an advertisement for the monthly clothing exchange. I’d wanted to go to this since Sukie had first mentioned the concept to me.

  I searched my closet for items to donate, finally coming up with several sweaters, jeans that I never wore and a pair of almost new shoes that I had bought with the hope of fitting in with the Raysville fashion, but discovered that I just didn’t have what it takes to wear cowboy boots. I realised that I’d be putting myself into a situation that would undoubtedly include Sheila and her buddies. But wasn’t this also a good opportunity for me to find out how well Mia’s plan was working? Had the shock of my being with Alden continued to fade as the news of Mia’s exploits grew? I went back and forth in my decision, wavering until Geneva, one of the hosts of the event, called up and hounded me until I agreed that I would at least stop by the community centre. Here were her two passions in opposition: women taking off their clothes for politics and putting them on in the name of recycling.

  ‘It’s a real treat,’ she said. ‘There’s wine, food, gossip –’

  ‘Oh, great,’ I said wearily. ‘Gossip.’

  ‘You have to get over yourself,’ she said with a laugh. ‘People talk out here. That’s all there is to do. But if you’re at an event in person, they won’t talk about your indiscretions to your face. It’s a safety zone. Haven’t you learned that yet?’

  ‘No, they’ll just challenge me to a catfight.’

  ‘She was drunk,’ Geneva insisted. ‘Sheila won’t bother you. I promise. Besides, I think she’s started up with Zeppelin again.’

  ‘Which Zeppelin?’

  ‘Willow’s brother.’

  After we got off the phone, I tucked my clothing into a canvas satchel, then headed to the community centre. As I pulled into the dirt parking lot at the back, I saw Sheila’s sporty turquoise convertible head out the far exit. What a relief. At least I wouldn’t have to worry about running into her tonight. I might have fun after all, even if it was unlikely that I’d find anything suitable to wear.

  When I entered the room, I realised that I’d sold the town short, because Nica was there with a pile of leopard-print outfits, and Willow had an armful of pretty silken slip dresses, and I actually thought I spotted a few of the vintage-style cardigans that I wear daily. I recognised almost all of the women, and nobody seemed to have a problem with my arrival.

  The room had been decorated with paper streamers and party lights, and bottles of wine and plates of homemade snacks were set up in one corner. All appeared to be peaceful – until I saw Geneva, and Alhambra, and Mia. Geneva had slapped Mia across the face, and Mia stood there stunned, her hand held to her cheek. I dropped my bag, astounded. Then Mia turned on her heel and hurried from the room, eyes wide with shock. This was the sort of gossip-making scene that one wanted to witness in person rather than hear about afterwards, tatters of the story containing truth, the rest fully fictionalised. A hush spread throughout the room and then, very self-consciously, the women began
to rifle through the clothing again, although there was far less of the chattering I’d heard when I entered.

  I wished I could follow Mia to find out what was going on, but people would surely notice my exit right after hers. So I began to slowly sort my clothing on to the tables, based on the different hand-printed signs on each one. Petite pants. Size 7 boots. Small sweaters – cardigan-style. As I worked, I hoped that somebody would fill me in on the story up to this point. I didn’t have to wait long. In moments, Nica hurried to my side to explain.

  ‘Did you see?’ she asked, glowing with excitement.

  ‘Just the slap.’

  In a hushed tone, Nica quickly explained. ‘When Geneva got here, Mia and Alhambra were behind the curtain together.’ She pointed to the makeshift dressing room, where a large purple and blue tie-dyed bedspread dangled from one of the rafters, shielding the shy from prying eyes.

  ‘What were they doing?’

  ‘From the silhouettes on the curtain, they weren’t only trying on clothes. They were trying on each other.’

  ‘Oh, Jesus –’

  ‘And Geneva’s none too pleased.’

  When I glanced over my shoulder, I saw that Geneva’s face was a mask of fury. It seemed as if she was working her hardest not to lose control completely. I wondered about what she’d told me in the past – that Alhambra liked to kiss the pretty girls, but that she never took things further. Apparently, tonight she’d crossed a line. Alhambra was standing with her head down, looking at her shoes. She appeared seriously contrite and, although I couldn’t hear what she was saying to Geneva, I could guess that the major part of her conversation were the words ‘I’m sorry’, repeated over and over. My heart sped up when I saw Geneva grab hold of Alhambra’s wrist and drag her back behind the curtain.

  ‘Oooh,’ Nica hissed, poking me to make sure that I was watching. She needn’t have worried. Everyone in the room was watching, even if the viewing was done sidelong and surreptitiously. ‘Someone’s gonna have a hot behind tonight,’ Nica continued. I couldn’t believe how nonchalant she sounded, or how matter-of-factly all of the women seemed to take the situation. Because in moments we all heard Geneva’s stern tone of voice, if not the actual words. I could fill in the dialogue easily. Geneva was saying that Alhambra deserved this, and she was going to get it. That if she misbehaved in public, she’d be punished in public. Something to that effect anyway. And I was right. Because the next thing we heard was the clear, unmistakable sound of Alhambra getting a spanking.