Rumours

by Alison Tyler

  ‘Head on back to the bedroom,’ I told Alden. ‘I’ll be with you in a minute.’

  When I walked into the room, he was sitting on the edge of the mattress, his brow furrowed, as if deep in thought. I wondered whether I was going to be able to pull this off. But then I found a strength within myself. Perhaps getting what I’d needed from Johnny would make me able to give Alden what he needed.

  ‘Take off your clothes,’ I said, lighting several sandalwood-scented candles on the dresser.

  ‘What’s got into you?’

  ‘Maybe it’s the costume –’ I grinned, not about to tell him the real reason behind my actions ‘– but I’m feeling like a different person tonight. Do you have a problem with that?’

  ‘No,’ he said.

  ‘No, Mistress Charlene,’ I corrected him evenly.

  ‘No, Mistress Charlene,’ he responded immediately. I snuck a look at his reflection in the mirror and saw that his cheeks were flushed. He looked younger than usual and unsure of himself.

  ‘Didn’t I tell you already to take off your clothes?’

  Quickly, he obeyed, undoing his shirt then tossing it aside, before pulling off his boots, socks and slacks. He left on his boxers, and I spun around and said, ‘Naked!’

  His hands seemed to tremble as he pulled off his blue-and-red boxer shorts, instantly revealing the majestic proportions of his strong, erect cock. I was gratified to see how hard he was, and we were only beginning. Wouldn’t Mia be proud of me? I wiped that thought out of my head, and forced myself to continue in the spirit of my character. I was dressed as a dominatrix; I’d sure as hell be able to act like one. Suddenly, I recalled Alden’s earlier comment about a quirt. Had he meant for his use on me or mine on him? Christ, I wondered if he’d been trying to give me subtle hints this whole time, and I’d failed to catch on to even one of them, focused too intently on my own desires. And then I pushed that thought out of my head as well, and decided to focus on the night ahead.

  When Alden was naked and positioned as I requested in the centre of the bed, I brought the handcuffs forwards.

  ‘You’re really serious about this?’

  ‘What are you worried about? I have the key.’

  ‘I’m not worried at all,’ he said, but his voice told me otherwise. He looked embarrassed, as if he’d been caught doing something he shouldn’t.

  With as much confidence as I could manage, I cuffed one of his wrists, then wound the chain through the brass headboard before attaching the other cuff to his free wrist. Was this why he had the cuffs? For girls to use on him? Did Sheila cuff him to her bed? I remembered how it had felt when he’d done this exact thing to me. But now the atmosphere seemed even more charged between us. There was a palpable electricity flickering from me to him. He leaned up to kiss me as I worked, but I pulled out of his reach.

  ‘Not until I say so.’

  ‘Is that right, Mistress Charlie?’

  ‘Don’t you mess with me, Alden, or I won’t give you what you need.’

  ‘And what do you think I need?’

  Being cuffed apparently brought out his confident streak, because the look of embarrassment had all but faded away. Now he seemed comfortable and incredibly sexy, his strong, muscular arms up over his head, his cock at full-mast. And suddenly I knew exactly what I wanted to do. I climbed between his legs and brought my lips to the head of his erection. As soon as the wetness of my mouth enveloped Alden’s cock, he sighed and the chains rattled out a melody of metal on metal. I could tell from the pull of his body that he wanted to stroke my hair, or touch my face, or do any of those gentle motions that came naturally to him. But now he was unable. And I found that I liked the power that flooded through me. Was I a closet dominatrix as well as being a closet exhibitionist – or does everyone possess a bit of all the different fetishistic desires that exist?

  ‘Oh, God, that feels good,’ Alden moaned, as I bobbed my head up and down, then used one hand, still encased in the black velvet glove, to cup his balls. Alden shifted his hips on the bed, and when I glanced up at him, I saw that his eyes were shut tight.

  ‘You like that,’ I murmured.

  ‘Oh, Charlie.’

  ‘Mistress Charlene,’ I corrected him instantly.

  ‘Yes, Mistress Charlene.’

  ‘Does Sheila do that for you?’

  His brown eyes snapped open, and he licked his lower lip but didn’t respond. I could tell he wasn’t angered by my query, only surprised, and that he was searching within himself for the proper answer. I didn’t know what the proper answer was, but I was determined to punish him for his doglike behaviour. Of course, who was I to do or say anything? After my tryst with Johnny we should have been even. But maybe in situations like this, even isn’t what’s most important – getting what you want is.

  ‘Does she, Alden? Does her mouth feel just like mine on your cock? Warm and wet and willing? If she were with us, taking turns with me, would you be able to shut your eyes and tell whose mouth was whose? Does she know different tricks than I do? Is she dirtier than me?’

  He licked his lips again, and then bit the bottom one, but he remained silent, as if knowing that nothing he could say would be the correct answer.

  ‘What if she were licking your balls while I licked your cock? Would you like that? Or what if she got way down between your thighs, kissing between your cheeks while I deep-throated you? Her tongue inside you. Probing you back there. She’s the dirty one, isn’t she, Alden? Or is she? If we blindfolded you and took turns astride you, would you be able to guess which one of us you were fucking?’

  I pushed myself up his body and kissed his lips for him, then slid back down again, pressing my body against his. I could feel his mammoth erection tremble against me, and I made my way back down to it and kissed him there. I worked slowly, taking him into my mouth millimetre by millimetre, intent on sucking him all the way to the root. I relaxed my-throat and closed my eyes, trying to make contact with my lips against his skin.

  ‘Oh, Jesus,’ Alden murmured as my gloved fingertips stroked his balls. ‘Oh, Charlie.’

  ‘You didn’t answer, Alden,’ I told him when I took my next breathing break. ‘But really, the question isn’t “could you tell or not?” The real question is: which one of us is better?’

  He squirmed and I knew that if his hands had been free he would have pulled me tight to him, slipping my panties aside and driving into me. He was so hard now, so ready, and I could imagine the type of hell he was going through. The sweetest torture of all. But he’d earned it. That’s how I felt. He’d earned every dreamily devastating moment.

  I recalled what he’d asked me for in the truck on the ride home, and the thought made me smile. Yeah, maybe we’d agree to a truce. But later. After.

  ‘Roll over,’ I demanded, pushing away from him. ‘On to your stomach.’

  His dark eyes burned into mine. He suddenly looked helpless and confused. I found that I liked the look. It suited him.

  ‘Don’t test me, Alden. I’m in no fucking mood.’

  Slowly, he obeyed me, working his wrists in the cuffs so that the chains criss-crossed but didn’t bite into his skin. He had to move carefully, because of his powerful erection, and as soon as he had turned over, he bucked against the mattress, grinding against it gently, obviously to see if I would let him get away with that.

  No way. Not on my watch.

  I smacked his ass hard with my open hand and, even though the gloved spank couldn’t possibly have hurt, he stilled the motion of his hips. Then I pulled the leather belt free from his pants and slowly dragged it against his bare skin. Mia had said he wanted this. I knew full well about wanting something you couldn’t have – something you couldn’t ask for. Mia said he needed this. I knew plenty about need as well. I found myself getting even more turned on at the thought of punishing Alden with his own belt. It seemed the perfect antidote for the anger I’d been feeling.

  ‘How many times have you seen her in the past six w
eeks?’ I demanded.

  ‘Oh, Charlie. Don’t –’ He turned to look at me over his shoulder, and his eyes were pleading.

  ‘Tell me.’

  ‘I don’t know. I can’t.’

  ‘Try.’

  ‘A couple. Come on, Charlie. We have a history together.’

  ‘You said that before. It means nothing to me. I want a number, Alden.’

  He didn’t answer.

  ‘Fine. We’ll go with ten. I expect you to count each blow.’

  I watched the cut lines of the muscles in his back tense and relax. I watched his whole glorious body prepare himself for what I was about to give. I told myself not to retreat. At least for one night, I wanted to be the person Alden needed me to be. I doubled up the belt and snapped it in the air, smiling to myself as I imagined Johnny doing the exact same thing with me bent over the trunk of his car. The leather cracked and Alden’s back tightened again. Oh, but he was handsome. His body looked like a work of art on display, not a spare ounce on him. His muscles gleamed in the candlelight. I let the belt fall against his naked ass, lightly teasing him with the leather, not counting that stroke at all. He tensed again, then relaxed, and, as soon as I sensed he’d accepted the situation, I struck him once for real.

  Then a second time.

  And then a third.

  Alden turned his head to the side on the pillow, and I could see what the pain did to him. The same thing it did to me, I suppose. Opened him up. Relaxed every part of him. I thought of my favourite Chili Peppers song and wondered if it were Alden’s favourite as well: ‘Airplane’, with the line about liking pleasure spiked with pain. That’s how it’s always been for me.

  And clearly that’s how it was for Alden.

  Book Three

  ‘Scandal is gossip made tedious by morality.’

  Oscar Wilde

  Chapter Nineteen

  Although I was mildly worried that the news of my public display at Johnny’s concert in San Francisco would be making the rounds, the gossip of the day seemed to be the fact that Mia had disappeared. Right after Halloween, she’d gone back to LA, and Noah was mooning around town in a daze, despite a flurry of renewed attention and affection from Willow and the other two Sweethearts. I heard about Noah’s broken heart in yoga, and again at the Cowpie, and finally at the post office. People even asked me what I thought about the situation, so I knew for certain that our plan had worked. Then I saw the new mural in town.

  It was a perfect rendition of Mia, leaning against the rear of The Saloon, one foot up behind her, a red rose dangling between two fingers. So, even though she wasn’t here, she was here. Who had painted the picture? Nobody seemed to know. But everyone was talking about it. I didn’t mind that at all, because the more people were talking about Mia, the less they were talking about me. Yet I wondered how Mia would feel when she found out. She’d been immortalised by some anonymous artist, and I couldn’t imagine that the person who had so well captured her was Noah. Yes, he was artistic with his music, but he didn’t seem the type to skulk around town with a palette and brushes.

  The next issue of the Levee Road News featured this new picture, and I Fed-Exed a copy of the paper to Mia. So I wasn’t all that surprised when she showed up in town again the next weekend. Or when Noah’s face lit up when he saw her enter The Saloon. The duo definitely seemed to have something special. Something that was apparently lasting well past the blush of the new.

  But did Alden and I have anything in common other than chemistry? We’d been seeing each other steadily since the Halloween concert. I didn’t let him fuck me for days, but he thought that was part of his punishment. I waited until my ass was the pure skin colour without any faded blush-marks, and then I let him take me. It was election night and, after hanging out with the regular crowd at The Saloon, we went to the firestation and saw our hopes for a new democracy fade away.

  ‘I guess NUDE wasn’t strong enough to topple Dubya,’ one of the Joes commented.

  ‘It’s because you didn’t join their ranks,’ Alden whispered to me. ‘If you’d been in the picture, things would have been different.’ He was teasing me and I knew it, and, when he took me back home, I let him make love to me again. Alden seemed adept at playing both roles – the man in charge and the boy who wanted me to overpower him. And, for a few weeks after that, everything seemed to be going smoothly.

  That is, until I saw his truck parked outside Sheila’s cottage.

  I shook my head when I saw it, knowing that I’d be headlining the gossip columns once again, and suddenly not really caring. I felt truly exhausted. Were we dating or were we just fucking? And, if we were just fucking, what were the rules to that? Could I go off with someone else the way he seemed to disappear any old time he wanted to with her? Could I hook up with Zeppelin, or Noah, or Cody?

  When Alden showed up the next night at my house, something inside me snapped. Maybe he did need discipline, as Mia had suggested. Was I the one to dish it out on a permanent basis?

  ‘You can’t be serious,’ I told him. ‘Coming here when the whole town saw your truck at her place.’

  He stammered some nonsense response, but I had no time for him.

  ‘I didn’t have to hear about it all over town, Alden. I saw her car myself.’

  ‘You can’t expect me not to hang out with my friends.’

  ‘I can expect you not to fuck them, though, can’t I? I don’t have to worry about you bending Noah over a bar stool, or ending up in a ménage à quatre with the Joes, or taking down your jeans for Cody, do I?’

  He gave me his sly grin and shook his head. ‘Well, then, maybe you ought to take down your jeans for me, then.’

  ‘Is that what you want?’

  ‘It’s what you need,’ I told him, my voice like ice.

  He gave me his lost little boy look again, but he didn’t argue. His fingers started to work the buckle of his jeans. Usually that made me feel weak inside, but now it did something else to me: it made me feel strong. I realised with total clarity that we were playing a game. Alden was using Sheila to bring out this side of me, and I was letting him. How twisted was that? I’d become like one of the locals for real. Caught up tight in a sticky relationship without any way to get myself free.

  Mia arrived at my house on the evening of what was supposed to be her real last night in town, but she parked around the corner so nobody would see her car.

  ‘People still might notice,’ I said, rushing her inside and looking both ways.

  ‘You live up here in the wilderness. There’s nobody around except your ghost. All the houses nearby are vacation rentals, shut up tight for the winter.’

  ‘Yeah, but people noticed when I had Alden’s truck for a mere six hours.’

  ‘Well, if they think I’m with you, then they’ll just assume you’re a lesbian. Or that you’re bi. Whichever is more interesting.’

  ‘Just like Geneva said.’

  ‘Worse things can happen,’ she told me, throwing herself on to the sofa.

  ‘Meaning?’

  ‘I’m not leaving again.’

  I sat down in the chair opposite her and waited for Mia to explain. She stared around at the decor and sat up on the couch. ‘Wow, you know, you’ve done an excellent job decorating the place,’ she said. ‘This really suits you!’

  ‘But we’re talking about you.’

  ‘I think I’m in love,’ she said, standing and going to look at the art on the wall. ‘I mean, I know I am. I just am.’

  I stared at her. She was still dressing in her ‘local’ style, but with more flair than most of the women in town. Her hair was french-braided today, and she had on a Sweet Girl shirt, a tight pale-blue baby T-shirt with the words in navy on the front and dates that Noah’s band was playing on the back. I smiled when I realised that she was a walking advertisement for her man.

  ‘So what are you going to do?’

  ‘Zeppelin wants me to move in with him.’

  ‘Didn’t you tell him yo
u were just here on vacation? That this was only supposed to be a fling.’ I stopped. ‘Did you say Zeppelin?’

  ‘Yeah.’ She got a goofy look on her face.

  ‘What’s going on Mia?’

  ‘You know that picture? The one on The Saloon?’

  I nodded.

  ‘Zeppelin did it. That’s why he’s been acting the way he has. Not because he was angry that I’d taken Noah from Willow. But because he’s been crushing on me since I first got here, yet he only confessed his feelings the other night. And, when he did, we had the best sex I’ve ever had. He says that if I keep going back to LA, then he’s going to come with me.’

  I sighed. Things had suddenly got way too complicated. I thought about our initial plan. It had been my intention that we would jostle up the lives of the locals without permanently changing them, like something from a nature documentary. The producers of those animal-themed specials don’t change the way the facts unfold, even if they might be able to save an animal: they simply film the story as it occurs. But Mia and I had got ourselves entwined in this unnatural nature documentary. We’d gone in undercover and got in deep. How had we ultimately changed the course of reality for these people?

  ‘But what about Noah?’

  ‘What about him?’

  ‘The last thing you told me was that you loved him.’

  ‘He’s going to wind up with one of the Sweethearts. It’s his destiny. Like it’s Alden’s destiny to wind up with Sheila.’

  Again, I just stared at her. What did she know that I didn’t?

  ‘The town talks, Charlie. That’s what it does. People know things – like the mystery patron. You do know it’s Cody, don’t you?’

  I shook my head.

  ‘He owns the movie theatre. He bails everyone out when people need a hand. He even owns your cabin.’

  ‘But what was that you said about Alden and Sheila?’

  ‘She gives him what he needs, kid. You’re just postponing the inevitable. Think about it. You know I’m right.’