The Reluctant Hero: The Tainted Series

by T. L. Tate

  “B-but you didn’t love him. How did you…?”

  “How did I have sex with a man I didn’t love?”

  “Yeah.”

  She giggled. “Well, don’t you have a very puritanical view of virginity?”

  “It’s not that. I just think that it would be better if you were in love that’s all.”

  She turned to look at me. Her green eyes pierced the depths of my mind. “Were you?”

  “Was I what?”

  “Were you in love with the first girl you fucked?”

  “I…uh?”

  “Do you think that broken brat over there was in love with her first? The answer is no. She had sex because she thought it was what he wanted, which it was. But as soon as it was done he was out the door and she was left to clean up the mess…both figuratively and literally.”

  “I didn’t know that.”

  “I know. She never wanted to tell you. But since she’s spilling my secrets then I’m going to spill one of hers.”

  “I see.”

  “Yeah. So you see if neither you nor Jen were in love with your firsts then why the hell did I have to be? I’ll tell you why. Because you just want to feel righteous and tell me what’s best for me. I don’t need your righteousness. I get what I need from you already.”

  Despite her aggression, I knew she was trying to bait me just so that we could switch topics. I didn’t fall for it. “Yeah, that’s true. I wasn’t in love with my first. I thought it was love at the time but in all honestly, I was just attracted to her and wanted to graduate from being a virgin. But that doesn’t compare to you. Sure, you don’t have to be in love and I’m sorry for trying to force my ideology on you. But you married him. You married someone that you didn’t love and as near as I can tell, you’re trapped in a marriage with him. Do you really think he’ll ever sign the divorce papers?”

  “I’m not trapped. I can and did leave him. Remember?”

  “So what about him? He was just okay with letting you go?”

  “I don’t give a shit. He feels how he feels. There’s nothing I can do about it.”

  “Well, what about him?”

  “Huh?”

  “Does or did he ever love you?”

  “Hmm.” She was quiet for a couple of minutes as she contemplated my question. “I think at the beginning he tried to love me. I can’t say if he ever succeeded but I think he tried.”

  “I see. Well when did that all change?”

  “I guess it change when I didn’t…” She hesitated and glanced towards Jen. When she continued there was a spiteful tone in her voice. “It changed when he started wearing saddles on his back.”

  “I see.”

  We were quiet for a bit. When she finally broke the silence, her voice was quiet. It almost sounded shy. “W-what else did she tell you about me?”

  “Who Jen?”

  “No! The Dalai Lama! Of course, Jen!”

  “Oh, well she told me…she told me that he was the only one that you’ve been with.”

  She bit her lip and under her breath she seethed, “That little bitch!”

  I couldn’t look at her so I stared at a blank space on the wall in front of us. “Was that true?”

  She sighed loudly, “Yeah it was true. He was the only man that I’ve been with.”

  “S-so that makes me the second man?”

  “My, aren’t you good at math? Yes, genius! You’re the second guy to get to fuck me. Aren’t you lucky?” She cackled but I felt like her frustrations were directed at herself and not at Jen or I.

  “So why did you do it? I mean, why me? You’re an attractive woman. You could have your pick of guys. So why did you choose to focus on me?”

  “You know why.”

  “Do I?” I’ve often wondered how much was true from what she said the first time that she coerced me into sleeping with her. Was there antagonism towards Jen? Yeah. Sure. But was that all that there was? I don’t know.

  Instead of answering me she turned and growled, “It doesn’t matter. Nothing has changed between us. You’re my little Black bitch and you’re going to do whatever the hell I want you to. Got it?”

  I sighed, “I got it.” Despite her words, I could feel that I was touching on a nerve. Perhaps it would be sensitive enough that it would help me find a way out of her grasp. I just had to unravel the mysteries surrounding Jessa.

  A little while later things finally wound down. Lisa and Lily went to their homes while Jen and I left too.

  As were drove the few blocks to our home Jen leaned over and kissed me. “Thank you for being there for me tonight.”

  “Of course, baby.”

  “I don’t know what would’ve happened if you didn’t stop me.”

  “I do. It would’ve ended with me needing to bail you out of jail.”

  “I can’t help it. When I saw her it all came rushing back. I’m surprised you were as calm as you were.”

  I laughed, “Oh I wasn’t. I felt the same. Jessa stopped me before I could get my hands on her.”

  “Jessa did? Hmm. How did she do that?”

  “She just reminded me that the Aesop and Avi were there. Despite how hurt and angry I was I wouldn’t do anything violent in front of them.”

  “Well that’s good.”

  “Yeah. So how are you doing now?”

  “I don’t know. It’s not like I want to be friends with her or anything but towards the end of the night I started to think what if she was as damaged as I was back then? I mean I did some pretty bad and self-degrading things. It’s not hard to think that maybe things were bad for her too. We were just kids.”

  “Yeah. You do have a point.”

  “Besides, did you see her tonight? She’s like a totally different person. Lily! Heh! Her name is Lily. All this time I hated anyone named Izzy and come to find out that that wasn’t even her real name. I guess she works as an executive assistant at some place downtown. She’s like a functioning adult in society.” She leaned back and closed her eyes as I pulled into our driveway. “Man…time is strange.”

  Our house was dark. After checking on the twins to make sure they were both asleep and covered, I met Jen in our bedroom.

  She was lying in bed with her tablet on her lap. When I came in she sat it aside. “Come here for a second, Lance.”

  I did as she asked and sat down next to her. When I did she grabbed a handful of my shirt and pulled me closer to her until her face was less than an inch from mine.

  Her brown eyes were lovely and I could see mirth in her eyes. “I saw you tonight.”

  “Yeah? I saw you too. We were both at Jessa’s.”

  “Nuh uh. That’s not what I mean.”

  “Oh yeah?”

  “Yeah. I saw you staring at that Lisa chick.”

  I laughed. “I didn’t stare at her.” “Oh yes you did. You stared and I caught you.”

  I smiled. Leaning forward, I kissed her lips gently. “Yeah? So are you going to punish me?”

  She smiled back. “No. I’m going to make you beg me for forgiveness.”

  I continued kissing her. Once my lips touched her neck, she sighed. “Oh? And how should I beg forgiveness?”

  I pulled down the covers and just as I expected, she was naked. Her small perky breasts were hard as the neon green piercings grabbed my attention. She pulled my arm until I was bent over her body. She slid onto her back and smiled. I leaned down and rolled one of her hard nipples on my tongue. She spread her legs and I positioned myself between them.

  She reached down and grabbed my face. She looked like she wanted to eat me alive. And if I’m being honest, that sounded like a damn good proposition in that moment. I could see the wanting written on her face, but we couldn’t have sex. My parents were there and despite her best efforts, Jen was not quiet when it came to lovemaking. She knew this and so did I. So instead of getting undressed I decided to pleasure her another way.

  Holding my face, she smiled, “Apologize.”

  I smi
led back and while making my way down her body, I said I was sorry.

  I started at her neck.

  Kiss.

  “I’m sorry.”

  I moved towards her chest.

  Kiss. Kiss.

  “I’m sorry.”

  After rolling her nipples in my mouth, I continued south.

  Making my way passed her navel.

  Kiss. Kiss. Kiss. Kiss.

  “I’m sorry.”

  I kissed the jumping koi fish on the side of her abdomen.

  Kiss.

  “I’m sorry.”

  When my chin first touched her triangle of brown pubic hair I kissed around the entire triangle before I delved further south.

  Kiss. Kiss. Kiss. Kiss. Kiss. Kiss.

  By this point she was more than ready. But what’s a proper apology without putting in the effort? Instead of diving into her delectable snatch, I kissed down her legs, paying special attention to her foot and toes.

  She was rolling her hips and gasping for air. I watched her squeeze her nipples while she tightly shut her lips. She was trying to quiet her moans but every so often a cute little squeak would emerge.

  When I finally wrapped my lips around her pussy she grabbed one of our pillows and slammed it on her face as she moaned. “Oh shit!”

  Her muffled cries reached my ears and furthered my own excitement. Her wet pussy was dancing on my tongue as I plunged myself in and out of her depths. Her flower tasted delicious as it continued to leak all over me. There was so much nectar that I thought I would drown in it and I didn’t care. That would be the perfect way to go.

  Soon she was moving her hips up and down as her hand snaked down and started to rub her clit. While she played with her clit I kept assaulting her depths with my tongue. Both of us were rewarded by a loud but muffled scream. When she came she wrapped her legs around my neck and squeezed. I couldn’t move and all that I could breathe and taste was her. It was Heaven. I loved it so much that I almost came right then and there.

  Once she released me, I crawled up her body and lied next to her. “How was that for an apology?”

  “Mmmm! It was glorious. I forgive you.”

  I laughed, “Thanks.” I kissed her cheek and then stood up.

  “I’m going to take a quick shower.”

  She nodded and sighed. “I’m going to go to sleep.”

  I laughed again and headed into the shower, leaving her to her post-climactic bliss. Before heading in the shower, I stopped and looked back at her. She had somehow managed to grab a handful of covers and pulled it up to her chin. There was a beatific smile on her face that showed how happy, satisfied and in love she was. I left her to her dreams, praying the entire time that I would one day regain my honor and that I would be the man that I can see reflected in her eyes.

  Part II

  Several months have passed. During this time I continued to be at Jessa’s beck and call. However, the further that Jen got in her pregnancy the less Jessa would call on me. My guess is that even for her, seeing her sister pregnant was enough to put a damper on her seduction plans. As a matter of fact, the last few times that she’s called me over to “help around the house”, she actually did need help around her house. It’s been weeks since she’s made me have sex with her. I was beginning to think that I was going to be seeing an end to this little arraignment of ours and I was more than okay with that.

  I was sitting in the living room reading when Jen and Jessa showed up.

  I heard Jessa’s voice through the door but I couldn’t make out what she was saying until the door was open. “…So that’s why I didn’t see him until then.”

  When they both saw me sitting on the couch they stopped. “Hey baby.” Jen waddled over towards me and I stood to kiss her.

  I smirked and she hit me. She knew why I was smiling. “Ouch!” I laughed.

  “Yeah, whatever you jerk. I know that didn’t really hurt you. Would you stop laughing at me already? I can’t help it if I walk like a penguin. It’s your big-headed child that I’m carrying around you know.”

  I wrapped her in my arms and smiled. “I’m sorry. But you know this is my favorite time. Look how beautiful you are. It’s comical when I see you moving around like that.”

  She hit me again and then smiled. Kissing me, she said, “You’re lucky I love you.”

  Jen took Jessa to her 32-week appointment. Apparently, Jessa had an appointment at the same time so it made sense to drive together.

  “I love you, too. So how was the appointment?”

  “The doctor says I’m doing well and that the baby is healthy.”

  “Did she say anything about twins?”

  “No! How many times do I have to tell you that there’s only one baby in this belly?”

  I laughed again. “Sorry honey but a man can dream right?”

  “You’re crazy. So speaking of twins, where’re the kids?”

  “Upstairs. They wanted to build Aesop’s racecar track.”

  “Oh.”

  Jessa stepped forward, “Hey, Lance.”

  “Hi, Jessa.” Now that we haven’t been having sex I reduced the general animosity that I would normally direct towards her. “How’s it going?”

  “Fine.” She seemed bothered by something. As she plopped down on the couch, I looked at Jen for answers.

  Jen walked (waddled) over to Jessa and placed her hand on Jessa’s shoulder. “Why don’t you tell Lance what’s been going on?”

  Jessa reached up and absentmindedly squeezed Jen’s hand. “Well, I’m having a hard time with this car salesman.”

  “Car salesman?” I sat down on the couch next to her. “I didn’t know that you were looking to get a car.”

  She nodded. “Yeah. I normally just take one of your cars when I need one but I don’t like being dependent on you guys.”

  “So you went looking for a car? Makes sense. What’s going on?”

  Jen lowered herself into the chair. “I think he’s being uncooperative with her because she’s a woman.”

  Jessa didn’t disagree. “I’ve been holding out for a better deal. I’ve been telling him that my husband wouldn’t agree unless he came down on the price. He’s asked to speak to my husband on a few occasions and I think that he knows I’m stalling because I haven’t let him.”

  “Your husband? You mean Richard? Do you really think he’ll help you? You guys haven’t spoken in months.”

  “I know but I didn’t really plan on getting him involved. I doubt that he would even speak to me even if I wanted to though.”

  “So what are you going to do?”

  She sighed and rubbed her temples, “I don’t know.”

  “Why don’t you do it, babe?”

  Jessa and I both looked at Jen. It was like she had grown a second head. We asked in unison, “Huh?”

  Now that the floor was all hers, Jen looked at us in turn. She looked at us like we were idiots and were missing something very obvious. “Why don’t you pretend to be her husband and see if you can help her out? We’re talking about thousands of dollars here. There’s really no reason that he’s being difficult on this.”

  I shook my head. “Let me get this straight, you want me to go to the dealership and pretend to be her husband?”

  She nodded without an ounce of hesitation. “Yeah.”

  I looked at Jessa and she was watching me. Looking back at Jen, I had to ask, “And you’re okay with that?”

  She shrugged, “Why wouldn’t I be? It’s just pretend and she’s my sister. We should try to help her, don’t you think?”

  “Well, yeah. I guess.”

  “Okay. Then it’s settled. The dealership closes in a few hours. Why don’t you two head over there right now? Oh! Wait. I have something that’ll help.” She reached up and unclasped the chain around her neck. Several weeks ago, when her bloating was worse, she was forced to stop wearing her wedding bands. Instead, she had them wrapped on a chain around her neck. She slid them off the chain and held them
towards Jessa. “Here. You don’t have your wedding bands anymore, right? When Jessa nodded in wordless awe, Jen smiled. “It’ll be pretty hard to play a married couple without the right props right?”

  We both nodded. Jessa took the rings from her and slowly slid them on her finger. They were a perfect fit.

  Jen watched us both and smiled. “Come on guys. I know this isn’t ideal but you don’t have to look like you swallowed something bad. This will work. Trust me. Now get going. I’m going to go play with Aesop and Avi.”

  I helped Jen stand and she kissed me. “Take care of my sister, okay?”

  “Of course, honey. Of course.”

  I watched her walk up the stairs before turning to Jessa. She was oddly quiet as she stood there staring at the rings on her fingers.

  “Well, shall we get going?”

  There was a queer look in her eyes when she finally tore her eyes away from the rings. “Oh! Umm, yeah. Lets go.”

  As I drove her towards the dealership, she gave me a rundown on what has been going on. She’s only been in communication with the salesman, Todd, for a week. She’s looking at purchasing a new SUV. She wanted one big enough to fit all of my kids in it. I guess she had plans of being just as involved with the new baby (whose sex Jen and I refused learn). Apparently they hit a standstill when she wanted him to either take a few thousand off or agree sale her the luxury version for the same price. He wouldn’t budge on either, saying that his manager wouldn’t allow for the reduction or swap.

  Pulling into the dealership, Jessa reached over and grabbed my hand. “Thank you for doing this. I really appreciate it.”

  “You’re welcome. Happy to help.”

  “I know this is a little awkward but I’m really appreciative. You’re my hero.”

  I smiled, “Don’t mention it.”

  Once we walked into the dealership a tall White man in an expensive suit approached us.

  “Welcome! My name’s Harry. What brings you folks in today?”

  I shook his hand. “Hi, Harry. My name’s Lance and this is my w-wife, Jessa. We were hoping to speak to Todd.”

  “Nice to meet you Lance and Jessa. I’m sorry but Todd is on vacation. He left today. I don’t think he’ll be back for a couple of weeks. Is there something I can do for you?”