Black & Tan Blues Ch. 01

This is a story that took place in the swinging 70s. The Vietnam War and the draft were coming to an end. Richard Nixon really was a crook. We were still safe from HIV and AIDS. The internet was only a gleam in Al Gore's eye. The first portable phones were just being developed by Motorola. And General Motors, Ford and Chrysler actually made cars that people wanted to buy. Life was good.

This is a work of fiction. But in every story there is a kernel of truth, an incident that really occurred or maybe a character or characters that really existed. With that said any similarities to persons living or dead is purely intentional. My thanks to wildhafer for his editing skills and words of encouragement.

*

It was Monday and the start of a new pay period at the General Motors assembly plant. Most of our section was waiting for the buzzer to mark the assembly line startup. We were short one at our quality control station and it was beginning to look like we might have to pull our relief man or double down to cover the shortage. Just as the alarm sounded, running footsteps were heard behind the parts racks surrounding our location,

"Hold it guys, I'm here!" cried a voice and Trevor Martin came around the corner, a big smile on his dark face.

"What's shaking, Trev? Back on nights again? Has it been three months already?" I teased.

He laughed, "Hey Ken! Yep, it's time to rotate again. Breaks the monotony and let's me check out some different ladies." Trev grabbed a couple of torque wrenches and a clipboard and hopped across the moving line to take his station.

Trevor and I had been friends since we both came to work at the plant three years before. Both of us had gotten out of the Army within a few months of each other. And our overseas tours in Germany had overlapped about a year. Ironically we had been stationed within fifty miles of each other but had never met. I had been a buck Sergeant in a combat engineer unit stationed in Schweinfurt and he was a Spec5 tracked vehicle mechanic stationed in Wurzburg.

We had visited a lot of the same towns, restaurants and nightclubs. We had both spent many miserable training periods in Grafenwoehr and Hohenfels; suffering through the cold and snow in winter, and the heat and mosquitoes in summer.

We had also both gotten married before going into the army. My wife had accompanied me to Germany, Trev's wife did not.

I had met my wife Donna at the local community college. She was a year older than me and was finishing up a two year Medical Technician program. We had started dating and fallen in love within a couple of months. I had drawn a low number in the selective service lottery and when it became evident I was going to be drafted we decided to get married.

Somehow Donna ended up pregnant before I ever reported for basic training. You know when they say the pill is ninety nine percent effective? Well, we were part of the unlucky one per cent. I did manage to get home for the birth or our daughter, Samantha. And as soon as Sam was three months old, Donna and Sam came to Germany to live with me.

Trev's wife, on the other hand, had decided she wanted to stay in the States in order to save money. He did make it home on thirty days leave midway through his eighteen month tour, but when he returned home after his discharge he found his wife was six months pregnant and all the money he had been sending her gone. He later found out she had been shacking up with one of his best friends on and off ever since he shipped over to Germany. Apparently saving money wasn't her only incentive not to go with him. Needless to say the divorce was bitter and not in his favor.

Trevor was a very popular guy with the ladies; black, white or Hispanic. It didn't matter to him. But if there was any hint that a woman was married, separated or even divorced for reasons of infidelity, he would have nothing to do with her. And if you asked him if he ever thought of remarrying, he would just say, "Been there, done that and I have the bite marks in my black ass to prove it." Fact was he didn't trust women much and wasn't shy about letting anyone know it. His relationships tended to burn out pretty fast.

Trev and I would get together for a few beers after work about once a week when we were both on second shift. When we were on opposite shifts we would get together at the local American Legion a couple of times a month. Mostly we talked about our Army days and life in Germany, our progress in school and occasionally labor issues. Sometimes I would brag about my wife and daughter and Trev would brag about all the women he was dating.

Trevor also had become the assistant union steward for our plant a couple of years ago. He would laugh about that and say it was mostly so he could meet all the women that worked in final assembly. Even though we had a lot in common, we rarely socialized away from work or the legion. Trev had been busy completing his associate's degree at a local community college in order to qualify for the skilled trades program, and I had been working on my B.S. in Civil Engineering at Michigan State.

When I returned to school after getting out of the Army I had decided to pursue a civil engineering degree because of my military experience. Many of the combat engineer officers had degrees in civil engineering and most of my job had been assisting them. I admired their skills and abilities and thought it would be a great career.

However the reality of supporting a family while trying to go to school full-time set in fast. The VA education benefits and working part time just wasn't enough. I finally decided to take classes part time year round and work nights in the auto plant. Donna had stayed home with Sam until she was about two then she went to work part-time in the hospital as a Cardiac Tech, typically working three or four days a week. While not rich, with both of us working money became a non-issue. Finally I was just about to reach my goal of completing my degree. Our plan was as soon as I finished school and got a job in my field Donna would quit working, get pregnant and we would give Samantha a sister or brother and that would complete our family. Our dream was to buy or build a house in the country on a few acres and give up renting for good.

Donna was a typical Nordic blond. Her family was from the upper peninsula of Michigan where many of the original settlers had been from Scandinavia. In fact her grandparents on her mother's side had migrated from Sweden before WWII. And she had Finnish ancestry on her father's side. Donna was tall, only a few inches shorter than my six feet two inches, slim and athletic. When we had met she suffered from some self-confidence issues. Mostly because growing up she was tall and gawky for her age and she intimated the boys. She claimed she only had two dates before college, but after high school she had filled out, developed grace, style and looks.

When I met her she was a real catch. While saying someone is the love of your life seems to be a cliché, it makes it no less true when it happens. No one else I ever dated came close to the feelings we had for each other. While neither of us was a virgin when we married we were not very experienced either. Teaching each other what sex and love was all about when we were stationed in Germany had brought us even closer together.

While having Samantha was a surprise to both of us it was the best gift we had ever gotten. Sam had Donna's blond hair and eyes, my nose and chin. We both doted on her. Donna was a good mother and we both were looking forward to adding another child to our family. While it is true most men talk about having sons, secretly I preferred another daughter. I just loved hearing my little girl's laughter and listening to her talk. She was just adorable and it was a real challenge not to spoil her.

As the evening progressed Trev and I would talk across the assembly line as it moved slowly past. With the lunch period approaching, he asked me what I was doing for lunch. I told him I had brown bagged it and would eat on the table by the employees locker room. He said he would join me and we could catch up the latest news.

As we sat down we started to talk about school. Trev had finished his Associate Degree the previous semester and was excited that he had finally gotten accepted into the skilled trades program. He was expecting his notice to begin his apprenticeship in the Machinery Repair program any day now.

I was equally as excited by the news I had received in the mail from the university before coming into work today. My last elective class had been waived due to my military experience. I had taken two of my finals today and once I passed my last final exam on Tuesday I was done and my degree requirements completed. We both congratulated each other.

Trev asked if Donna was as excited as I was. I said I hadn't told her yet since she had been at work when the mail came. I thought maybe I would wait until I knew I passed that last exam then surprise her. I told Trev that I already had my resume complete and a mailing list of every architectural and engineering firm in the state, as well as every county road commission office ready to start sending them out.

As most conversations between guys tend to do, the subject got around to women. The last gal that I knew Trev had been dating was gone now. They had broken up a couple of months before. He was now involved with a woman named Vicky who worked the first shift over in the paint shop. He didn't know how long that would last with him moving to seconds but he didn't seem too worried about it. We talked a bit about some of the other women who were working in the plant in various departments. Who was fooling around with whom, who was getting married and who was getting divorced.

After a bit, Trev said casually, "Say Ken, do you still have that picture of your wife hanging in your locker? I saw a woman a couple of weeks ago I swear looked just like that picture."

I said, "Sure, but the last one you saw was at least a year old. I have a couple of new ones now. Where did you think you saw her?"

Trev kind of hesitated then said, "I don't remember off hand, but I'll think of it. Do you mind if I look at your new pic's?"

Like a lot of guys I was always proud to show off my family. I had several pictures hanging inside the door of my locker. We had had new ones taken for our church directory just after New Year's. The company that took them took a variety of poses and groupings and you then picked the free one you wanted in the directory and then they would sell you any others you might want.

I had one of the three of us, one of Donna and Sam and one of Donna alone and a couple of Sam alone. Samantha had just turned four when the pictures were taken.

Donna was wearing a v-neck maroon sweater with her long blond hair hanging loosely to her shoulders. She filled out the sweater nicely and even though you couldn't tell from the pictures Donna had great legs. Samantha was almost a carbon copy of her mother with her blond hair and pale complexion, and they had almost identical smiles on their faces. I didn't look half bad myself wearing a dark sports jacket and an open collar shirt under it. My short dark brown hair and darker complexion was something of a contrast with Donna and Sam.

Trev admired the pictures and made appreciative comments about both my girls. He seemed to study the picture of Donna for a few minutes and finally made up his mind about something. "Ken, you mind if I borrow this picture of Donna? I want to show it to Vicky to see if she thinks this is the woman I thought we saw a couple of weeks ago."

"I guess so, but I don't know what the mystery is Trev. You can't even remember where you saw her," I said.

"I know, I know, but Vicky might remember. I will bring it back tomorrow or the day after."

About that time the buzzer signaling the end of the lunch hour sounded and we hustled back to our stations on the line and I forgot all about the photo.

The next morning I spent about three hours cramming for my last final exam and went over to the university and got it over with. I felt pretty good about it afterwards. I was certain I did well and was anxious to see the results which were to be posted by the end of the week. I looked at my watch and saw how early it was. I had a couple of hours before Sam had to be picked up from pre-school.

Today was Donna's off day and I thought what a great time to get a little loving before I had to go to work. We had been getting short changed on mattress time the last couple of months. The assembly line was working overtime three, four days a week and usually about six to eight hours, three out of four Saturdays. The money was good but it was putting a strain on us. And I had been carrying three classes this semester which created a huge study load. With her working days and me nights, during the week we only overlapped an hour which didn't give us any quality time. I know she resented not getting the attention she deserved from me but every time we talked about it she told me she understood that we were doing it for our future and that it was almost over.

Truth was Donna had been in a funky mood the last five or six weeks. On the weekends she would be short tempered, lethargic and unresponsive to any overtures I might make, romantic or otherwise. She would improve as the week progressed and by Thursday or Friday she would be back to her old self. Which didn't do us much good since it was the weekends which gave us the time and opportunity to recharge and reconnect with each other. After a couple of weeks I finally confronted her about it and she just grimaced and said she guessed that our schedules were finally getting to her and she would get over it, but that hadn't happened yet. I had decided to let it drop and not press it until the semester was over.

I walked in the door and yelled, "Hello?"

"I'm in the kitchen!" Donna yelled back.

I walked around the corner and Donna was standing at the sink preparing dinner. The one or two days she was off during the week we would try to have a family dinner together before I had to go to work. It was a routine we hoped to maintain daily when I finally quit the plant and was working a regular day shift.

I walked up behind her and wrapped my arms around her waist and started kissing her ears and neck while pressing my groin against her butt.

She twisted away and without turning away from the sink she said sternly, "What do you think you're doing?"

"My last final is over, I don't have to study anymore and I want to celebrate a little with my wife. Anything wrong with that?" I said mildly as I tweaked her breast.

She snorted, "I don't know what there is to celebrate about, you still have one semester to go and you still have to work second shift and I am still home alone with Sam almost every night. I don't feel amorous so keep your hands to yourself!"

I stopped and stood back and looked at her. "Donna, what's with this attitude you have had for the last month or two? What's got into you?"

Without turning around she said, "Not a damn thing!"

"Donna, turn around and look at me!" I said and took her arm and turned her to face me.

She turned and said, "What?" Her eyes looked into mine then slid away. For the first time I was uneasy, this wasn't like her.

"I know this has been hard Donna. But we are getting close to the end. I miss you and Sam terribly during the week. But it will be worth it in the end. Just hang in there. Please?" I pleaded.

Donna just stared out the window, face expressionless. Finally she muttered, "Sure, sure Ken. I'm going to go pickup Sam from pre-school. Finish this will you?" Without waiting for an answer she wiped her hands on a towel and walked away.

I sagged against the counter and shook my head in disbelief. What the hell? This was so out of character for Donna that I was totally floored. I thought about telling her that I was done with school to see if that would improve her mood, but then I thought 'screw it.' I would be better off to wait for her to pull out of this, whatever it was.

After we had dinner, I had a chance to play with Sam for awhile. When I finally got around to leave for work, Donna was sitting in the living room reading the newspaper. As I went in to give her a kiss goodbye, Donna put down the paper and said, "Ken, I want to apologize for being such a bitch earlier. I don't know why but I have been on edge lately. Will you forgive me?"

I sat down next to her and took her hand in mine. "Donna, do you know it's been at least two weeks since we have made love? We have never gone that long unless one of us was sick. I feel I'm losing touch with you and I don't like it."

Donna looked down at her hands and said, "I know Ken. We will do better once this is all over, I promise."

Once again her inability to look me in the eyes disturbed me. But I accepted her apology as a good sign and kissed her goodbye.

Work was uneventful, Trev and I didn't speak much and he was gone on some union business during the lunch hour. I got home at my usual time. I was so exhausted from the day I had had, taking my last exam, thinking about my confrontation with Donna and working a full shift I went right to bed. Usually I stayed up for awhile and read or watched TV to unwind. But I cuddled right up to Donna and put my arm around her and pulled her close. She murmured something and went right back to sleep.

I came out of a sound sleep feeling a hand stroking my hard cock through my sleep shorts. I managed to open one eye and look at Donna in the dim light; her eyes were closed as she massaged me with one hand and tried to pull my shorts down with the other. I struggled to turn my head toward the nightstand to see the alarm clock. Shit, I had only been asleep about four hours!

I lifted my butt and let her pull my shorts off as I slipped my hand under her nightshirt and caressed her thighs and belly. As I rolled toward her she sat up threw the covers off and pulled the nightgown over her head and threw it on the floor. She laid back down and turned her back to me and pushed her ass against my cock. I reached around her and stroked her tits and played with her hardening nipples. She lifted one leg, reached between her thighs, grabbed my cock and placed it at the entrance to her pussy and slowly pushed back. She was so wet I entered her easily. She gasped as I hit bottom and froze for a moment adjusting to my size. She moaned as I slowly pulled back then pushed back in. After a couple of slow deliberate strokes she started rocking her hips and thrusting back at me.

"Damn it, Ken! Do it to me, do it to me hard!"

I took a hold of her leg behind her knee in one hand and held it up in the air, spreading her thighs open as far as possible and started slamming into her from behind as hard as I could. Every time I hit bottom she would make a grunting sound. After a few minutes she started to pant, "I'm coming, I'm coming, don't stop, don't stop."

Stopping was the last thing I had in mind. My balls were boiling and I was going to blow. I wasn't going to last long. With a groan I slammed into her one last time as I blasted two weeks of pent-up need into her pussy. She gave a small scream, and her body went stiff and her legs twitched uncontrollably. In the dim light I could see her neck and shoulders turn a bright red as she came.

I lowered her leg back down and we laid there spooning for awhile. Finally with a sigh Donna pulled away and sat up. "So good, but I've got to get ready for work."

She leaned over and gave me quick peck on the cheek, "I love you Ken, and I will try to be more patient." She rolled off the bed and headed towards the bathroom before I had a chance to reply.