Jean and the Great Beach Charade

I had met my wife at a friend's Christmas party when I was a graduate student in physics at Cornell. Jean was an undergraduate and six years younger. I'd had a string of girlfriends, but Jean was the first woman that I had ever pursued in earnest. She was smart, beautiful and a little wild. Normally, I would have considered her too gorgeous and out of my league, but I couldn't get her out of my mind. I didn't give up even when I found out she had a boyfriend. He had dropped out of college and was now a bartender at The Salty Dog in Ithaca. He was tall, good-looking and affable. I was a physics nerd. Jean couldn't make up her mind and convinced the two of us to alternate weekends with her. It was hell, and it took me nearly six months to win. We lived together her senior year at Cornell. The hard part was separating when she went to law school, and I left for a job in California. After law school, she joined me for good in Northern California.

After another hour of sun, I said, "I'm going for a swim. I'll race you twelve laps for dinner."

Cathy grinned because she knew she could beat me. She said, "Ok, but first you need to tie my top tighter."

I may always regret it, but I tied her top right this time. We dove in, and I swam for all I was worth. I've tried everything to beat my wife swimming. I'm in great condition and ride my ten speed to work every day. I've taken swim lessons and read books on technique, but Jean always wins. Today, I found my body tiring faster than normal. By the fourth lap, my groin was hurting, and I pulled up.

Cathy swam over and asked, "Are you Ok?"

"I had hoped to be fully recovered from my little procedure by now. I feel so much better than the first week, I forget I have a bit to go before I am back to normal. I'll be Ok. Let's get showered and go for an early dinner."

Cathy said, "Great because I'm ravenous, and I'm tired of these college boys undressing me in their horny little brains."

I'd like to say we went back to the room and fucked our brains out. Laying in the warm sun always gets my wife and me aroused, but my nervousness about my ability to perform infected both of us. Instead, we got dressed for dinner. I quickly put on a polo shirt and khaki shorts. While waiting for Cathy, I went out on the patio to enjoy the fantastic view of the Gulf.

My peace and quiet were interrupted by someone playing 'Burning Down the House' by the Talking Heads at full volume. The four guys from the pool ambled out onto the patio next to mine. They were still in their swimming trunks. They saw me and waved. Someone turned down the volume, and one of the guys walked over and apologized.

A tall, broad-shouldered young man said, "Sorry for the noise, man."

I said, "It's Ok. I like the Talking Heads."

"Can I at least offer you a beer."

"Sure, thanks. I'm waiting for my girlfriend to dress for dinner, and it may be awhile. Oh, my name is Steve."

He said, "I'm Wally. The short guy in the green polo shirt is John. The redhead is Robert and James is the quiet one. We're all roommates in a suite at the University of Alabama."

The guys came over to my patio, and I shook their hands. When Wally handed me a beer I accepted it with my left hand. My wedding ring flashed in the sun and caught his eye. I grinned when he raised his eyebrow. The woman I called my girlfriend was obviously not my wife.

I said, "So, what brings you here?"

John said, "It's Spring Break. We're down for a week of serious partying."

I thought about all of my careful plans. First, I had screwed things up getting the operation, and now I had booked us for the crazy season at the beach. Now I understood why I had been told I had gotten the last free suite on the beach.

I said, "Spring Break? Easter is two weeks from now. Why are you on break so early?"

Wally said, "It doesn't have anything to do with Easter. It's just the week after midterms."

John said, "Don't worry, there are a lot of places that will be free of students. There are some nice nature preserves nearby, and if you drive a couple of miles, the beaches will be clear of students."

I said, "Guess we'll just have to relax and enjoy it as best we can."

Wally said, "Um, we're getting a keg and having a party tomorrow all day. You and your girlfriend are welcome. I'm afraid it may go late but there will be a party at practically every room along the beach."

John said, "Where are you going to eat dinner? If you don't have reservations, you'll have a hard time getting in."

"I thought we'd walk over to The Crab Trap and eat outdoors. It was practically empty last week."

Wally said, "Man, you are so screwed. You'll have to stand around for a couple of hours to get in."

I said, "Shit! Well, I know a place on the water out by Valparaiso. Guess we'll have to drive at least that far for dinner, and I'll have to stay sober if I'm driving."

Wally said, "Hey, we have a reservation at The Crab Trap at 9. You guys are welcome to join us. We can easily fit six of us at one of the outdoor tables."

I had to think for a moment about his offer. I'd been at The Crab Trap when it was crowded and noisy. It had been out of my comfort zone, but this was going to be our last vacation before we settled down and raised a family. Besides, Cathy was supposed to be wildly extroverted.

"Thanks, guys, we'd love to join you."

Wally said, "I'm sorry you'll have to wait for a couple of hours before we leave. Hope you're not starving."

Robert brought out another round of beers. I guess my first bottle had sprung a leak.

I said, "I was here last week for business. I have a carton of dip and a bag of chips in our room. Give me a second."

I ducked back into the room and grabbed the food from the kitchen.

Cathy came out of the bedroom and said, "I'm ready."

She looked amazing in a short, tight party dress and outrageously high heels. I had never seen the dress, and I had a hard time deciding where to look first. The dress had a slit up one side, and it nicely showed off her long legs and curvaceous ass. At the same time, it showed so much jiggling cleavage, I thought if she leaned over her tits might fall out. Swimming had added curls to her long blond hair tumbling down her back.

She saw the food in my arms and said, "I guess you must be hungry."

I laughed, "I was getting hungry, but now I'm starving."

Cathy grinned and gave me a long kiss. She broke contact when one of the guys on the patio whistled.

I said, "I'd like you to meet our neighbors. They're on Spring Break from the University of Alabama."

I led Cathy outside and dumped the food on the patio table.

I said, "Guys, this is my girlfriend, Cathy. She is a corporate attorney for a hi-tech pharmaceutical company in Palo Alto. Be careful or she'll eat your lunch."

The guys laughed and introduced themselves.

I said, "Cathy, it seems that Fort Walton Beach has been invaded by a hoard of college students here for Spring Break. Every restaurant in town is booked. These guys have reservations at 9, and they have been kind enough to invite us to join them. What do you think."

Cathy stared at me for a moment. These were the same guys who had been gawking at her while she rubbed suntan lotion on her breasts and legs.

Wally said, "We're a bunch of socially awkward engineers, and we'd love to have you guys join us. I promise we'll behave. Honest, we will. Right, guys?"

Cathy said, "Ok, but what are we going to do for the next three hours? Swimming has made me hungry, and there's hardly enough dip for one person let alone a bunch of young men."

John said, "We bought munchies for the party tomorrow. We can hit that. Would you like a beer?"

"I desperately need some food, but I'm more of a wine girl."

I said, "I have a couple of half bottles of Riesling in the frig. I'll get one. Any chance I can hit you guys up for another beer?"

I left the room to fill the ice bucket. By the time I returned to the patio, Cathy was sitting on the couch facing the Gulf and the table in front of her was covered with an array of dips, cheeses, and crackers. The quiet engineer, James, was sitting next to her on the couch and looking nervous. Maybe the cause of his anxiety was the slit in her dress that revealed her long legs all of the ways up to a hint of white panties. The boys had brought a couple of beach chairs from their patio and were sitting across from Cathy. Their obvious attempts to stare up her short dress was frustrated by her legs being crossed at the ankles.

I poured her a glass of wine and put the bottle into the ice bucket. I placed the bucket on an end table next to Cathy before taking the last chair across from my wife. Now that she had something to drink, she began to dig into the appetizers. It was quite a sight watching her lean over the table. When I took my eyes off of her beautiful display, I noticed the guys were also gawking at her generous breasts.

Cathy said, "Wally just explained to me that he and John were majoring in Engineering Management while Robert and James are Electrical Engineers. I hope you don't mind, but I told them you had a Ph.D. in Physics from Cornell and worked at a big aerospace laboratory in Palo Alto.

I have to be careful discussing my work because parts of it are classified secret. I said, "That's fine. The laboratory is well known, and we are always looking for new, bright recruits. What area of Electrical Engineering are you guys studying?"

Wally and John looked at Robert while James just looked even more uncomfortable. Robert said, "James and I are working in radio communications. We're helping one of the professors develop a prototype mobile phone using wireless communications technology."

I looked at Wally and John as I said, "The job of management is to guide the development of these guys' inventions and then market the final product. Do you really think there is much of a market for a mobile phone outside of the military and maybe someone working in a remote area exploring for oil?"

Robert said, "The professor thinks everyone will someday have a portable phone."

I said, "Why would anyone want to be interrupted by some moron at any time of the day or night? I don't want my boss calling me at 3 in the morning every time he has a brain fart. I have no need to talk to my relatives except on weekends. Maybe it would be useful to find out what is taking Cathy so long when I am waiting at a restaurant. Being constantly reachable would dramatically change society. I don't see it happening. Besides, I'll bet your device weighs a ton."

Robert said, "Our prototype fits in a suitcase, but we think we can get it down to the size of a briefcase."

Wally said, "Give it time. Did you see this year's Super Bowl commercial for the new Apple Macintosh? It wasn't too long ago that a computer filled a room. Now IBM and Apple are selling personal computers."

I said, "Computers are great for work. I have a $20,000 Sun workstation in my office which is really a high-performance personal computer. These so-called personal computers are too expensive for the average person. You need a killer application before anyone would buy one for personal use at home. They cost as much as a car and who needs to do word processing at home?"

John said, "What do you use your workstation for besides word processing?"

"We're doing research on digital images. We just got a prototype imaging chip from Texas Instruments. We're trying to detect vehicles in the images and determine if they are friend or foe. The TI chip is the largest ever made; it's a whopping 128 by 128 pixels. Someday these chips could replace film in high-end cameras. Hey, maybe someday everyone will have a filmless camera.

Wally laughed, "Now who's selling snake oil. I'll bet you can't top that story."

I finished my third beer and reached for another. I laughed and said, "Ok, try and top this one. We combine my camera, your phone, and a computer and shrink it down to a Dick Tracy size watch. People could then take photographs, oh hell, let's go all of the ways, they could take movies and send them to friends and family. Think about sharing a live movie of a wedding with someone who couldn't attend."

I have to admire my wife's patience. She was used to my nerdy friends and me and had developed a knack for getting engineers to talk. I used to be a shy, studious graduate student. The first time we met, she got me talking about my favorite winter sport, cross country skiing. The next thing you know, I invited her to go cross country skiing. Years later she laughed when I said she was the first woman I actively pursued. She said she was happy she had convinced me she was reluctant, and I had had to struggle to catch her.

Cathy crossed her legs, and I caught a flash of her white panties. She poured her third glass of wine and turned to look at James. She put her hand on his shoulder and asked, "Maybe one of you could explain the difference between engineers and physicists. It seems you both do the same things."

She left her hand on his shoulder, and I thought James would crawl out of his skin. He gulped before saying, "Physicists are focused on theory and basic research. Engineers take ideas and turn them into real things people can use. It's the difference between Einstein and Edison."

Cathy said, "Since Edison died richer than Einstein, I should probably drop my boyfriend Steve for an engineer. Are any of you guys available?"

The guys all laughed and leaned forward hoping to catch her attention. Wally said, "We've been talking about ourselves too much. Steve said you were a corporate lawyer for a hi-tech pharmaceutical firm. What does that position entail?"

Cathy said, "My company makes drug delivery systems. I'm sure you've seen the nicotine patches we developed. We're trying to use the same technique to deliver painkillers. The government imposes a lot of restrictions on opioid medicines. I've been helping to ensure our policies and procedures satisfy the law. I've only been with the company a couple of years so I have to struggle to get my ideas accepted. Usually, I convince one of the senior staff that it was their idea in the first place. Now everyone wants me on their team since they say I inspire them. Eventually, I hope to be able to take credit for my own ideas."

Wally said, "I don't suppose you have any drug samples?"

Cathy laughed, "We control the drugs, so tightly I haven't even seen any of the drugs myself."

Wally said, "Speaking of drugs, is anyone interested in smoking some weed? We will enjoy our dinners a lot more stoned."

My wife and I had enjoyed marijuana in college. It is hard to beat stoned sex.

Cathy said, "I'd love some, but Steve has a clearance, and he has to be careful."

I said, "Actually, I just had my security update, and I'm good for five years. They included a polygraph, and I may never have another. So, I'd be happy to have some mary jane."

Wally pulled out a joint and lit it. He got up and walked over to give it to Cathy. He stood next to her as she took a hit. His eyes were focused on her breasts as she inhaled deeply. She held her breath and handed it to James. When he was done, Wally walked it back to the rest of us. It was strong shit. It was also adulterated. Soon after I took the hit, I felt a rush of energy. I am sure it was laced with speed. I thought about warning Cathy but decided to keep quiet. I thought it was just what she needed to treat her jet lag.

Cathy looked at James and said, "Have you ever had a hit shotgun?"

James stared at her blankly and shook his head.

She said, "Ok, James, open your mouth a little and inhale when I blow into your mouth."

She reversed the joint in her mouth and knelt on the couch beside him. She tilted his head up and fastened her lips to his mouth. I thought his eyes would explode out of his head as she blew the strong smoke into his mouth.

She passed the joint back to Wally and smiled. We all smiled back like a bunch of stoned idiots. Cathy's dress had ridden up as the result of her twisting around. Even when she crossed her legs, her bikini panties remained visible.

I was surprised when James leaned close to Cathy and whispered in her ear. She sat back and drained her wine glass. The bottle was empty when she went for a refill. I was sure no one had helped her finish the half bottle of Reisling.

She looked at me and asked, "Did you say there was another bottle in the frig?"

I said yes and started to get up.

"Steve, stay seated. You're still recuperating from your little procedure. James can help me uncork the bottle."

She got up and held out her hand to James. He was a little unsteady as she led him inside. It was several minutes before they returned. Cathy had an opened bottle of wine that was already half gone. James looked to be in shock. He had a big grin like he had just won the lottery. I noticed a smudge of Cathy's lipstick near his mouth. Later that night, she told me that James had confessed that the shotgun was the first time his lips had touch those of a woman. She took him into the kitchen and gave him a lesson in kissing technique all of the ways up to French kissing.

When they sat back on the couch, she watched me as she pulled his arm around her shoulders and leaned against his side. Her hand was in the middle of his bare thigh, and her fingers were casually tracing a circle. It was hard not to notice the tent in James' pants. He probably thought he had died and gone to heaven. The rest of us were just jealous. Damn, my girlfriend was hot.

We sat talking for a few minutes before John went and got more munchies. The table was now littered with empty containers. He sat a tub of guacamole on the table in front of him. Cathy sat staring for a moment as the rest of us dipped chip after chip into the dip.

Cathy said, "You guys are pigs. I hoped you might offer James and me some dip. Guess I'll have to get it for myself."

She leaned all of the ways across supported by one hand in the middle of the table. She was bent so far over her athletic ass was higher than her head. Her dress was riding high enough in the back I'm sure James was getting a good view of her bikini panties. His mouth was open, and his eyes were staring at heaven right in front of his bulging eyes. The rest of us were treated to a view down the top of her dress of her barely constrained breasts. She dipped several chips before falling back onto the couch and feeding herself and James. She paid no attention to her dress which was now only half covering her panties. Her thighs twisted open when she turned to feed James.

I said, "Now that is an example of top notch engineering. I was sure if Cathy leaned over, her tits would fall out of her bra."

We were all pretty stoned on weed and beer. The guys laughed nervously and looked at Cathy wondering how she would take my crude comment. My motivation was simple; I wanted to win our wager. I thought if I pushed my conservative wife hard enough, she would use the excuse that we were married to avoid any inappropriate behavior. So far, my wife was enthusiastically playing the role of the sexy girlfriend. Ultimately, it was a question of who would blink first.

Cathy looked me straight in the eye and said, "I guess that is why you are a physicist. So much for all of your theoretical calculations. I'm confident my tits are not going to fall out of my bra."

"As a matter of fact, I am an experimental physicist and rely on carefully designed experiments before I come to any conclusions. My observation was a hypothesis, and it needs testing before it is verified. I still maintain that given the right load, your nipples will pop out of that skimpy bra."

Cathy laughed, "Just what do you mean by the right load?"

"I was thinking about the kind of shaking your breasts might undergo if you were dancing vigorously."