Your Bed or Mine?

by Candy Halliday

  Zada didn’t answer. She walked across Jen’s kitchen and paused at the kitchen door. She took one last look back over her shoulder and blew Jen and Tish a farewell kiss.

  “Oh, yeah,” Tish said, laughing. “There’s definitely a lap dance in Rick Clark’s future tonight.”

  Alicia would have been embarrassed over telling her neighbors her deepest, darkest secret, had she truly not felt better than she had since the day she’d come home unexpectedly and found Javier in a much more compromising position than the one she’d alluded to in her fantasy.

  And it did feel extremely good, finally getting all that off her chest. Finally putting into words everything she should have done to Edward, and didn’t.

  But Alicia had decided long ago, he wasn’t worth it.

  Edward was pond scum, pure and simple.

  And thanks to the Housewives’ Fantasy Club, she’d finally found a way to get her revenge, if only by fantasizing about it.

  That’s why she would be happy to host the next meeting. She wanted to tell Jen, Tish, and Zada personally how much they really had helped her, simply by listening. Tonight just hadn’t been the right time to have that conversation.

  The getting-even-with-Edward fantasy had come as a big shock to her, too. Just as she was sure it had been a shock to them. The outburst had hit her totally out of the blue. She hadn’t planned to tell them anything about the true reason behind her divorce. And she certainly wouldn’t have been prepared to answer questions if any of the three of them had asked for specific details after she finished spilling her secret.

  The reality of Edward’s betrayal still hurt.

  Better to wait until she hosted the next Fantasy Club meeting, before she thanked Jen, Tish, and Zada properly, until she had the right words formed in her mind. Until she’d had time to think about what she was willing to share if they did ask for specific details about her divorce.

  Alicia smiled.

  Maybe she’d even turn the meeting into a lavish celebration. Hire a staff and have a fully catered buffet. Give each of them a gift of thanks. A pricey bangle bracelet would be perfect, with HOUSEWIVES’ FANTASY CLUB engraved right on the bangle.

  Alicia almost felt giddy as she entered her house.

  Knowing her life in Woodberry Park was going to be so different now, was even more exhilarating than imagining Edward’s picture on the hospital bulletin board.

  There’d be no more watching from her bedroom window.

  No more exile.

  No more being left out of the loop.

  At last, she could look forward to new beginnings.

  All thanks to the Housewives’ Fantasy Club.

  And thanking Jen, Tish, and Zada properly was exactly what Alicia intended to do.

  When Tish yelled down to the basement that she was home, all interest in the poker game ended. Rick and Charlie both bolted from their chairs and headed for the outside basement entrance.

  Even if they had yelled good-bye to Joe, he wouldn’t have heard them. Joe had already disappeared up the basement stairs looking for Tish.

  Rick hurried across the street, the goofy grin back on his face. He hadn’t been privy to Zada’s fantasy tonight, but something told him he was still going to like it.

  That fact was confirmed when he opened the door.

  Zada.

  Standing at the top of the stairs.

  Wearing nothing but a sexy red thong, red high heels, and the long strand of pearls he had given her as a wedding present.

  “Well?” she said. “Your bed or mine?”

  Rick said, “Technically, your bed is mine.”

  She crooked her finger in his direction, then disappeared down the hallway. Rick and his goofy grin hurried up the stairs, taking his clothes off as he went. By the time he made it to the bedroom, he was completely nude.

  He realized he was in trouble when he looked around the room.

  Lights off.

  Candles glowing.

  Al Greene singing something sexy about “Here I am baby, come and take me.”

  Baby, oh baby!

  Zada pointed to the chair she was standing behind.

  Rick raised an eyebrow, but he headed for the chair.

  He sat down.

  Zada jerked his arms behind his back.

  “Be careful with those,” Rick warned when he realized she was using the pearls to bind his hands. “Those are more expensive than I think you realize.”

  Zada walked back around to face him.

  She smiled.

  Seductively.

  “Oh, I know exactly how expensive they are,” she said.

  Rick tensed when she straddled him and the chair.

  She stood above him.

  Hands on her hips.

  Another sexy smile on her lips.

  “And because I do know how expensive my pearls are,” she said, “I’m counting on your full cooperation. One false move and you could break them. And we wouldn’t want that? Now, would we?”

  Rick gulped. “No. We wouldn’t.”

  But Rick forgot about the pearls when Zada made a big production of running her hands suggestively over both breasts. His focus turned to the nipples that instantly came to life.

  Be strong. Be strong. Be strong.

  Rick forgot about being strong, when Zada lifted her long, dark hair and held it on top of her head as she danced provocatively to the music—this time, old Al singing something about “Oh baby, look what you’ve done to me.”

  I can tell you what she’s doing to me, Al!

  She’s killing me here.

  That’s what she’s doing to me!

  Those magnificent breasts, right in his face, almost close enough to taste. Until Zada purposely leaned back, completely out of his reach.

  Rick let out a sigh of relief when Zada stepped back.

  Until she slithered right out of her thong!

  Oh God. Oh God. Oh God.

  He was nude and at full attention.

  She was nude and writhing right above his salute!

  “Be careful,” Rick warned again.

  He leaned his head back and closed his eyes.

  One more wiggle that close, and he knew he’d lose it.

  Zada fisted his hair.

  Rick’s eyes popped back open.

  She pulled his head forward, covering his mouth in a blistering kiss.

  Al belted out, “Love can make you do right. Love can make you do wrong.”

  At that exact moment, love made Rick do wrong.

  He jerked his hands free, pearls be damned.

  His hands grabbed Zada’s waist, and he pulled her on top of him.

  They both gasped when he slid deep inside her.

  There was no way of stopping what happened next.

  His hands, still clasped tightly around Zada’s waist.

  Her head, thrown back.

  Back arched.

  Hips moving.

  Faster.

  And faster.

  And faster.

  And faster.

  They both cried out.

  Their simultaneous orgasm shook the earth and took them both straight to paradise.

  Rick fell back against the chair, his heart still pounding. Zada collapsed against him, her head on his shoulder. They remained that way, trying to catch their breath.

  One second.

  Two seconds.

  Five full seconds.

  “Oops,” Zada finally whispered. “What happens now? Do we both lose the game?”

  Rick’s mind was still too foggy to answer.

  But Al sang out loud and clear, “Let’s stay together. Whether times are good, or bad. Happy or sad.”

  I couldn’t agree with you more, Al.

  Rick slid his arms beneath Zada’s hips. He stood up from the chair, picking her up with him. Zada didn’t protest when Rick carried her across the bedroom to their king-size bed.

  Chapter 14

  On Sunday morning, Zada got up at 0500 hours, for
the first time in her life. At first light, she even went on a run with Rick and Simon—another first in the life of Zada Clark. A run that slowed to a jog after five minutes. Slowed to a walk after ten minutes. And ground to a halt when she couldn’t take another step.

  “Keep going,” Zada yelled, waving Rick on when he looked back over his shoulder.

  Can’t you see I’m in no shape to exercise?

  Evidently not.

  Rick and Simon turned around on the path, and headed back in her direction. Bent over at the waist, Zada looked up at them when they reached her.

  “I have a great idea,” she told Rick between gasps for air. “You run that way. I’ll run back to the house.”

  “We don’t have to make the full loop around the golf course this morning,” Rick said. “We’ll go back with you.”

  “No,” Zada said. “You and Simon finish your run. But if you get back to the house before I do, come looking for me. I’ll be passed out somewhere along the way.”

  Rick laughed. “Will getting up early and exhausting yourself this Sunday be worth it? If, say, I take next weekend off and leave the training classes to Scrappy? We’ll sleep in. We won’t get dressed all day. And I’ll even leave the Sunday paper scattered all over the floor.”

  “Define ‘sleep in,’” Zada said.

  “Your idea of sleep in,” Rick said. “We’ll sleep until noon.”

  “Can I have that in writing?”

  “Yes,” Rick said. “You write it. I’ll sign it.”

  He leaned down and kissed her forehead.

  Zada waved as he and Simon ran off.

  Surprisingly, she did make it back to the house without passing out. She also carefully chose her selection from the soy coffee variety pack this time, instead of picking a packet at random.

  Hazelnut Hugs and Kisses.

  Perfect for the new game they’d agreed to play: Extreme Makeover: Marriage Edition.

  Not a full reconciliation, a trial reconciliation.

  Just because they’d orgasmed themselves silly, didn’t mean they weren’t fully aware that they were far from being out of the woods, yet.

  What they needed was more time, and they both realized that. Time to see if they could overlook each other’s faults, learn to compromise. And possibly learn to live together.

  And speaking of compromise.

  Zada took her coffee cup with her into her private office off the kitchen. By the time she finished her project on the computer and hit “print,” Rick and Simon were back from their run.

  Paper in hand, Zada walked into kitchen.

  “What’s this?” Rick asked when she handed it over.

  Rick laughed when he read the words: “IOU one sleep till noon, not get dressed all day, leave the paper scattered on the floor WITHOUT picking it up, Sunday.”

  Zada handed over a pen.

  Rick grinned. “Okay. Where do I sign?”

  “Anywhere you like,” Zada said. “Just as long as I have your IOU in writing.”

  Alicia watched Zada make her morning trek across the street, coffee cup in hand. She cursed herself for being so pathetic—always peering out her bedroom window like some sleazy voyeur.

  She just couldn’t help it.

  Watching Jen and Zada go to Tish’s every morning was like that car wreck on the interstate; you knew you’d regret it, but you couldn’t keep from looking.

  She also cursed herself for being annoyed that they hadn’t thought to call and ask her to have coffee with them this morning, but she was. If she had a life, she wouldn’t have time to stand at her bedroom window, spying on her neighbors. If she had a life, she wouldn’t give a crap who was having coffee without her. If she had a life…

  The telephone rang.

  Alicia sighed.

  Life’s little reminder that she did have a brother.

  “How did the meeting go last night?” were the first words out of Alfie’s mouth.

  “Well enough, I guess,” Alicia said. “I’m having the meeting at my house next Saturday night.”

  “Wonderful!” Alfie exclaimed.

  “Don’t get too excited,” Alicia said with a sigh. “Things could still backfire.”

  Alfie said, “There you go being piss-imistic again. I truly wish you’d see my therapist, Alicia, before you turn into a bitter old troll.”

  “Well, ex-cuse me!” Alicia said right back. “But I’ve had a lot to be piss-imistic about lately. I’m pissed that I picked a total ass for a husband. I’m pissed that our nutty mother is a hypochondriac, and our delusional father thinks the twenty-something bimbo he’s running around with at the moment really loves him. I’m pissed that you let women walk all over you, which is why you’re in therapy. I’m pissed that I spilled my guts about Edward to my snotty neighbors last night, which means they’ll probably really treat me like poison now. And most of all, I’m pissed that I can’t seem to get out of this stupid blue funk I’m in!”

  “And that’s why you have me,” Alfie said. “I’m the best blue funk slayer in the business. I should be, I’ve fought my way out of enough blue relationship funks in my lifetime.”

  “Then tell me, Alfie,” Alicia said. “By all means, please tell me what to do to slay a blue funk. Tell me before this stupid blue funk ends up slaying me.”

  Alfie gasped. “Don’t talk like that!”

  Dammit!

  Wrong choice of words.

  “I’m serious, Alicia,” Alfie warned. “You’ve been depressed for months now, and you’re really starting to scare me. Maybe I should come stay with you for a few days.”

  Go ahead and shoot me now!

  Alicia said, “Alfie. Listen to me very carefully. I do not want you staying with me for a few days. I do not want you calling me for hourly reports. And I definitely do not want to see your nutty therapist. What I want you to do is let me deal with my problems and my neighbors in my own way. Got it?”

  “Got it,” Alfie said. “But there still has to be something I can do to help you through this.”

  Alicia groaned. “I’m hanging up now.”

  “Okay,” Alfie said. “I’ll call and check on you later.”

  Jen peeked into Zada’s cup.

  “Let me guess. More Arouse Me Mocha?”

  Zada shook her head. “Today’s flavor is Hazelnut Hugs and Kisses.”

  “Forget today’s flavor,” Tish said. “I want to hear about last night’s flavor.”

  Zada took a deep breath and said, “Which part? Me carrying out the lap dance fantasy? Or Rick and I having a simultaneous orgasm?”

  Jen gasped. “You didn’t!”

  “I knew it!” Tish yelled.

  She gyrated all around the kitchen.

  She looked over at Jen. “Pay up, Jen. I told you they’d zip right past foreplay and head straight to consummation last night.”

  Zada’s mouth dropped open.

  “You bet money on us?”

  “Of course we did,” Tish said. “What are friends for?”

  “It wasn’t much,” Jen said, trying to appease Zada.

  Tish said, “Too bad about the eighty-something more days of foreplay, though. I would have milked that puppy for all it was worth.”

  “Of course you would have, Miss S&M,” Jen mumbled.

  “On the other hand,” Tish said, “now, we don’t have to wait in suspense any longer. You and Rick are officially back together in every sense of the word.”

  Zada shook her head. “Not a full reconciliation. Just a trial reconciliation.”

  Jen said, “Sorry to bring this up, but doesn’t sleeping together void your separation agreement?”

  “Neither of us is going to run to the judge with the information we slept together, Jen,” Zada said. “But if we can’t work things out, we have at least reached a property settlement. Rick wants me to keep the house and Simon. And I’ve agreed to let him see Simon any time he wants.”

  Jen said, “You mean, like the two mature adults you should have been
from the very beginning?”

  “Yes,” Zada said. “Like two mature adults, Jen. Rick and I really talked things out last night. He admitted he was disappointed because I wasn’t more like his mother. And I admitted I was waiting for him to disappoint me, just like my father did. Now, we’re going to take things slow and see if we can learn to compromise, accept each other’s faults, and live together without killing each other.”

  Tish walked over and hugged her. “Well, I’m happy for you, Zada.”

  Jen said, “I’m happy for you, too, Zada. As long as you and Rick are over the game playing. Marriage is serious. I hope you’ve both figured that out.”

  “I just thought of something,” Tish said. “Now that you and Rick are at least trying to work things out, why don’t Jen and I get babysitters this weekend, and we’ll all go out to dinner on Saturday night to celebrate?”

  Jen brightened up. “We could even hit a club later, and make the guys take us dancing. Back when we were in college, Charlie and I practically lived on the dance floor.”

  Zada said, “God, how I envy all of those ‘back when we were in college’ stories you and Tish tell. You two grew up with Joe and Charlie. Rick and I haven’t even known each other two years.”

  “Trust me,” Tish said. “Joe and Charlie ‘growing up’ is debatable.”

  Jen laughed and nodded in agreement.

  “In fact,” Zada said, “I don’t even know if Rick can dance.”

  Jen said, “You’ve never danced with Rick? Not even at your wedding?”

  “You mean the quickie wedding we had in Lake Tahoe?” Zada shook her head. “The gondola ride up the mountain took longer than the ceremony.”

  Zada sipped a few more Hugs and Kisses.

  “And now that I think about it,” Zada said, “not having a past together was probably one of our biggest problems. We jumped into marriage too soon. Before we really knew each other.”

  Jen said, “But now you do have a past together, Zada. And you’ve proved to each other that your love is strong enough to at least want another chance to work things out.”

  Tish said, “And if we can talk the boys out of their poker game Saturday night, that will give us a perfect excuse not to attend Alicia’s Fantasy Club meeting.”

  Jen said, “What we should do is remind the boys why they call us the Housewives’ Fantasy Club. We’ll tell them they have no choice. Our fairy godmother granted us a night on the town.”