"Okay, dinner is served." She took a deep bow and extended her arm toward the table.
I walked over, pulled Holly's chair out, and helped her slide in. I poured the wine, and sat down at the opposite end. We raised our glasses.
"This looks great, babe. Cheers." I tilted my glass in her direction.
"Happy Anniversary," she said.
I choked on my wine and my eyebrows went up. "Excuse me?"
"Don't pretend you forgot. I'm wearing your present underneath." She tugged at her chiffon blouse and I caught a glimpse of her black lace bra. She smiled broadly and winked.
"Oh, right." I patted my pockets. "Damn it. I forgot yours. I had it sitting on my dresser and I forgot all about it. I got so excited about seeing you, I must've left it behind. Sorry." I hoped she'd tell me soon what it was all about.
"Well, as long as you have it. You can give it to me later. I was afraid you might have forgotten."
"Forgotten?" I feigned a look of surprise. "No chance." Hmm…November 22. Maybe she marks JFK's assassination as some kind of anniversary. That would explain the black bra.
"Who would have thought, four months ago today you took me to the Pat Benatar concert, our first date. And we're still together." She scrunched her shoulders. "That is so totally awesome."
"Has it really been— I mean, I know. It's amazing. That's the present I left behind. I got you the new Pat Benatar cassette, Get Nervous."
"Like, you are so thoughtful. And so am I." She sipped her wine. "I made us spaghetti and meatballs. That's what I ordered on our date. You had some foreign dish. Anyway, I added a little something to make it special. My grandma gave me the recipe." She bowed her head. "God rest her soul."
"Yeah, you've really outdone yourself here." I twirled up a forkful and took bite. I suppressed a gag induced by large amounts of anchovies and spinach. A feeling of sickness washed over me.
"Any good?" She held a nervous, hopeful, and expectant look.
I held the napkin over my mouth concealing facial convulsions. "Wow, I've never tasted anything like it. You got any more of Grandma's recipes?" I dabbed a corner of my mouth with the napkin and hoped she was about to tell me the precious book got destroyed in a fire. I took a gulp of wine trying to wash the salt off my taste buds.
"Yeah, I got the whole book." She beamed. "Grandma left it to me in her will when she died. She was like the best cook ever. She was totally awesome with a spatula in her hand."
"Yeah, well this meal really captures the atmosphere of the occasion."
"What a nice thing to say."
I choked down the spaghetti while she gobbled hers up, periodically emitting a moan of pleasure. A periodic puke would have been more appropriate as far as I was concerned. I never thought Navy roast beef would taste better than spaghetti, but Holly and her grandmother managed it.
After dinner, she insisted we watched Joannie Loves Chachi, because Chachi was like totally awesome. Then an episode of Dallas before we headed to the bedroom for the real reason I came over.
She made love while I had sex.
We lay in bed the next morning with Holly snuggled into my chest with my arm wrapped around her shoulder. She twirled her finger through my small patch of chest hair.
"Whatcha thinkin'?" she asked.
"If I wanted you to know what I was thinking, I'd be talking."
She smacked my chest and propped herself up to look at me. "I'm serious. What's going on in your mind?"
"Nothing. Just thinking about how good you are in bed."
She smiled and laid back into my arm. "You ever think about children?"
Oh shit. I didn't know what she was going to say next. Exactly four months ago was the first time I corked her. That would be enough time…don't be stupid. She'd be showing if she was up the duff. Her stomach was its usual flat self, wasn't it?
I patted her arm. "Of course I do. I think it's terrible what's happening to the starving children in Africa."
"You are so thoughtful. But I was thinking more like having kids of your own."
Hell froze over in the time it took me to answer. My eyes darted around the ceiling. "You're not, umm…not pregnant, are you?" I stared at the white stucco ceiling, then closed my eyes and offered a little prayer.
"Would it be so bad if I was?" Hell just got colder. She stroked my chest. "No, I'm not with child. I was just thinking, I don't want to be some totally old hag trying to bring up a baby."
I breathed a sigh of relief. Her soft hair tickled my fingers as I stroked the back of her head in comb-like fashion. "Oh, well then. You got plenty of time, darlin’. Beauty like yours doesn't just disappear. It'll take sixty or seventy years for you to become an old hag."
I felt her face tighten into a smile against my chest.
"Besides, I read somewhere that women are waiting until they're twenty-five, thirty even, before starting a family. Gives them time to live their own life before getting tied down with rug-rats."
"Where'd you read that?" she asked.
"One of your Cosmopolitan magazines."
She sighed. "Maybe. I just don’t want to leave it too late." She leaned in and kissed my chest. "I want you so bad. I want you to make love to me."
I wished she'd quit calling it making love. Wait. What if she stopped taking the pill? Maybe she wants to get knocked up if she's not already. Shit. That's why she wants to make love. My mind went momentarily blank. I wiped my brow with the back of my knuckle, checking for traces of sweat. An image of Debbie popped into my head. She stood there wagging her finger, saying, 'I told you to stay away from her. She's trouble.'
"Have you ever had sex with another woman?" I asked. Where the hell did that come from?
She jumped up from lying down next to me, knelt on the bed, and looked down at me. Her eyes twitched with anger, her lips pressed tightly together. "Where the hell did that come from? I ask you if you want to make love, and you ask me if I'm a lesbian!" She threw her hands on her hips, still kneeling. I couldn't help noticing her nice tits, while at the same time my silence seemed to intensify her anger.
I checked my brow for sweat again. A trace. "Sorry, I guess that was just a little foreplay thought. You know us guys, always think about two women going at it and stuff. Thought maybe that would help get me in the mood."
Her hand came across the side of my face. Hard. The smack echoed around the room, and my cheek burned from the sting. Holly jumped out of bed and stood there in all her naked glory.
"Great! So now you can't get it up unless you start thinking about me starring in some lesbian porno flick in your head. Is that it? I've never been so insulted in my life. Get out!"
"Holly, I'm sorry. That's not what I meant. I just—"
"I said, get out!" She stood there with one hand on her hip, and the other arm extended pointing to the door. "Grab your things and go. By the time I come back, you better be gone." She shook her cute little ass to the bathroom and slammed the door.
Following her orders, I got dressed and gathered my things. "Sorry," I called out before slipping out the door.
#
I got back to the dorm room around noon. Mark had dressed better than he usually did and splashed on some aftershave as I came in.
"What are you doing back?" he asked. "I thought you were staying with Holly for the weekend."
"She kicked me out. I think it's over." I took off my shirt and threw in it on the foot of my bed.
"Congratulations. So you managed to pick a fight with her, did you?"
"Unintentionally."
He stood in front of the mirror combing his hair. "What nerve did you strike to get her to dump you?"
"Sit down." I extended my arm, pointing to the two chairs. Mark looked at his watch as we walked over and sat down. "I think I screwed up, big time."
"You? Naaaw, I can't believe that."
"I know it's hard to believe, but I did. I think Holly can be quite vindictive if she wants to be. She might still get me kicked out. Anyway, sh
e started asking me if I wanted kids, and stuff like that. Man, she scared me. She says she not pregnant, but why would she start taking about kids?." I stopped and lit a cigarette.
Mark looked at his watch.
"Anyway, she no sooner says she's thinking about having a kid, then asks me if I want to make love. Not fuck, but make love." I shook my head. "Man, maybe she stopped taking the pill or something. Maybe she's using me as a direct deposit sperm donor." I ran my hand back and forth across my mouth.
"A chick using you? Wouldn't that be funny? Wait…no, you didn't. You didn't ask her if she's still taking the pill, did you?" He had a worried look on his face.
"No, I asked her if she was a lesbian."
Mark burst out laughing. "You take the biscuit, Chambers, you really do. Do you know when you're going to say something stupid, or does it surprise you as much as everyone else? 'Do you want to have sex?'" he mocked, "'Only if you're not gay.' It's a good thing you're not Dutch. That little boy just used his finger. You…you use your dick to plug dykes." He held his stomach as he laughed some more.
"It wasn't quite like that. It just slipped out. I wondered if she dumped Debbie because she knew she wanted kids some day. She slapped my face and told me to get out."
"I don't blame her. Well, I don't think you'll have to worry about Miss Holly anymore. Sounds like you're well and truly dumped. Be happy, that's what you wanted."
I took another drag of my cigarette. "I dunno. I got used to her. She's kinda fun, really. I didn't think about it till she dumped me. Now that I can't have her, I want her. I think I actually like her." She was certainly an anything goes kind of girl in the bedroom. Like a sex education class with hands-on demos.
Mark looked at his watch again.
"You going somewhere?" I asked.
"As it happens, yeah. While you were poking around the Holly bush last night, Debbie stopped by. I got a date."
I sprang to my feet. "With Debbie?" My heart fluttered and I immediately felt betrayed.
"Whoa. Touch a nerve, did I?" He waved a hand in the air. "Relax, no, it's not with Debbie." He motioned a sit down gesture. "You got a bit worked up, almost jealous like. God, I don't want anything to do with the women you get involved with. None of them seem too mentally stable, much like their boyfriend." He smirked. "She's got a girlfriend, straight, before you ask, who wants to meet a nice guy. She said she thought of me. She probably figured you were too busy."
"So you're taking one of Debbie's friends on a date?"
He nodded.
"Good, I'm pleased for you. Where ya goin'?"
"Museum. Debbie said she's a good laugh and she showed me a picture of her. She's quite a looker. She works in Payroll. I'm picking her up at her dorm at one this afternoon, then we're taking a bus down to the museum, and then dinner. I'm hoping she's nice."
"Museum, huh?"
"Yeah, Debbie says she a real art and history buff, and I'm pretty much into that stuff myself. It should be cool."
"Well, good luck, buddy. I hope it works out for you." I stood up and patted him on the shoulder.
"Thanks." Mark gave himself the once over in the mirror and left, on his way to what sounded like an intellectual date. But I wasn't jealous. My dates were screwed up but fun.
I walked over to Debbie's dorm, hoping she'd be in. As I got to her building, she came out.
"I didn't expect to see you this weekend," she said, "I thought you were staying with Holly."
"Long story. You going anywhere in particular?"
"No, just down to the geedunk bar. I like sitting there looking over the harbor at the ships and subs."
"Mind if I join you?"
"What if someone sees me walking and sitting with Miss Knight's boyfriend?"
"I'll tell you all about it when we get there."
We walked down to the geedunk bar which was nothing more than several vending machines and half a dozen picnic tables sitting on a slightly raised concrete patio. Being the weekend, we were the only ones there.
Debbie bought a couple of candy bars, known as geedunk in Navy slang, and I splashed out on the cokes. We sat down and admired the haze gray vessels moored on the other side of the harbor, and the black sails of the subs, menacingly sitting above the surface of the water.
"So, you set Mark up, huh?"
She popped her can of coke and took a drink. "Yeah, I think Mark's a really nice guy. My friend, Lori, wanted to meet someone, so I hooked them up. I think they'll like each other."
"I hope it works out for 'em," I said while I unwrapped my Three Musketeers bar.
"So, you wanna tell me why you're here and not with the lovely Holly?" she asked.
"We kind of had a fight. Well, I didn't do much fighting. I thought she was dropping hints about having a kid and I kinda freaked." I took a bite and enjoyed the texture of the soft nougat on my tongue.
"Please tell me you didn't ask her if she was sure that you were the father." She lowered her head, raised her eyebrows and looked at me from the tops of her eyes. "Women hate that, ya know. May as well call 'em a slut."
"No, I didn't." I softly thumped my fist on the table. "I'm not that stupid." I took another bite of my candy bar. "And I don't think she is pregnant. Not yet anyway. But I think she wants to be, and I was afraid she might want me as the father. I don't do it very often, but I just blurted out what I was thinking at the time."
She put her index finger under her chin and looked up. "Gee, I used to think I was a pretty smart girl, but when it comes to the workings of the mind of Tyler Chambers, well, it would be like asking Stevie Wonder to identify a suspect out of a line up. Spill. What magical line did you spin?"
"I kinda asked her if she was gay."
Debbie's eyes widened and her mouth dropped open like she had just seen a flasher. "What? Oh, for crying out loud. You can't be serious." She scrambled for her cigarettes, pulled one out, and lit it. She took a deep drag and sighed as she exhaled the smoke. "For the love of Pete, Tyler. You would have been better off asking her if she was sure it was yours. Oh, nooo, you wouldn't do anything as stupid as asking who the father is. But asking her if she's a lezzy, well that's okay." She shook her head and took another drag. She waved her finger toward an imaginary line-up. "Yes, you were right, Mr. Wonder, it was suspect five. For your next trick, guess what the fuck Mr. Chambers is going to say next. Can't do it, can ya?"
I held my arms out. "I was freaked. I wondered if she gave up being a lesbian so she could have a baby." I shook my head and sighed. "I didn't know she was going to go off her head."
Debbie put her hand under the table and felt my crotch. "Doesn't feel like she cut it off, which does surprise me." She put her hand back on top of the table. "No doubt she dumped you."
I nodded. "After a slap."
She took another puff. "Well that doesn't do us much good does it? She'd be very suspicious if she saw us together now. You asking her if she's gay, and then she sees you knocking around with her former lover." She dropped her head in her hands for a moment. She raised up, took a drag of her cigarette and stubbed it out. "I still can't believe you. She'll probably think I put you up to it to get back at her. So did she fess up? 'Yes, Tyler, I'm only screwing you until I find someone with bigger tits.' Is that what she said?"
"I'm really sorry, Debbie. I could be in a world of shit, all the way 'round. I'm going back to my room. I need to think. I'll catch you later."
I left Debbie sitting at the table and went back to the room. One little slip up, and everyone's going ape shit. I figured I better give Holly some space. She seemed pretty pissed. God, I hoped I didn't blow it with her.
I laid on the bed with my crossword book. Contrary to what I told Debbie, the last thing I wanted to do was think. I needed some escapism. Hmm…eight letter word for 'A person who ducks responsibility.' Starts with 'd'. Sixth letter 'e'. Seventh letter 'a'. Umm…Something - head. Nope, got it. 'Deadbeat'.
I dozed off doing the crossword and fell into a light sleep. A
knocking woke me at around five o'clock. I rubbed my eyes, walked over and opened the door. To my surprise, there stood Holly in white hemmed shorts and a pink and white striped blouse.
"Holly? What are you doing here?"
"Can I come in?" I stepped aside and extended my arm. She marched over to the table and sat down. Her Chanel Number Five brought a fresh fragrance to the room. It was her favorite perfume and I had learned to recognize the scent. I followed her over to the table and sat, remaining silent. I figured it would be best if she spoke first.
She drummed her fingers on the table, looking into my eyes. She cleared her throat. "That was like so hurtful what you said. Why on earth would you ask me if I was a lesbian? Am I like a disappointment in the bedroom?" Her lip quivered.
Reaching over, I picked up her hand that was resting on the table. She looked so vulnerable and sexy, I suddenly forgot what it was that bugged me about her. "No, not at all. You're a screaming little vixen. Sex with you is fantastic."
She broke my clutch and slapped the table. "Then why would you call me a lesbian?" Tears formed in her eyes.
"Holly, I'm really sorry. It's just, before I came over to your house yesterday, Mark came in with a Hustler, you know, the girlie magazine." I dropped my head like a shamed schoolboy. "He showed me this layout with two girls going at it. They were pretty hot pics. I just wondered if you ever did anything with a woman. You know, guy thing." I raised my head and caught her gaze. "I got carried away, and I'm sorry."
"Tyler, I might forgive you, but I'm not sure. To answer your question, and just so we're honest with each other, no, I never did anything gay after puberty."
"Oh. Some people just experiment, and I—" Holly's face tightened with anger. "I believe you. It was a stupid thing to say, and I'm sorry. How can I make it up to you?"
"Well, if you're really, super sorry, I might forgive you. This time." She shook her finger at me. "But if you ever…"
Trouble Triangle (Tyler's Trouble Trilogy) Page 8