Patiently Waiting for Marie

"There's plenty to do."

Nash checked the time and it was just after 8:00.

"Have you eaten?"

"No I've just come from work."

"Crazy hours plus irregular eating and sleeping can eventually kill even a strong person."

"I know. I caught up heaps today. Two weeks ought to see me back to normal."

"Right get juice or white wine from the fridge. Red wine is cupboard on left above the bench top. I hustle us up chicken pasta with cheese, a bit of onion and mushrooms, okay?"

"I'll cook it."

"I offered first. Scared I can't cook eh?"

"Oh I'm sure you can do anything."

She'd poured her wine. He told her to come over a give him a decent kiss.

She kissed him, almost affectionately he thought.

"I'm a divorcee."

"Yes so I heard. Over it yet?"

"It could take years."

"I suggest not if you engage in a full out affair."

Marie lowered her head and said the theory was fine but who wanted a divorced woman."

"Don't make me kick your ass until you drop that woe is me position Marie."

"You can't talk to me like that."

"I just did, remember."

"I'm going."

"Please stay Marie. If you don't it probably will be the end of us."

"What?"

"Your mom has figured out I'm a little soft on you. She told me. Why else do you think she suggested you come here and help me settle in?"

"This is lovely wine."

"Yeah I agree. I've finished my wine. Pour me a wine please honey."

"Don't call me that."

"Okay providing you give me some damn good reasons why I shouldn't."

She thought while pouring the wine while he got the chicken going in the skillet and had the pasta staring to boil and set the timer.

Marie came with the wine. She sighed and said, "You calling me honey is okay."

"You know I know fuck-all about pure psychology but I've had extensive training on psychological warfare and also train in interrogation techniques so it took in some of that stuff, quite a lot I suspect. Just allow me to handle you my way. Don't fight me, huh?

"I don't want you attempting to control my mind."

Without looking at her Nash turned the browning chicken and fished out the two rashes of bacon he'd started earlier, chopped them at great speed and had the small pieces back into the before they had time to lose much heat.

Marie appeared impressed.

"I am unable to control your mind significantly. All I can do is to try to help you adjust your thinking to get you out of this post-divorce hole you've fallen into. Everyone knows being shot at is traumatic but they don't realize something like divorce can be traumatic and that can last long after the court has done the deed."

"Jesus I've learned. Oh how I've learned that."

Nash clinked his wine glass against hers and said, "Hard to believe you'll be a better person after your divorce isn't it, I mean in terms of maturity?"

"Please don't attempt to load me with that bullshit."

"Easy Marie. Try to maintain constant calmness but don't worry if you do blow occasionally. Now where were we about sex?"

"We were nowhere and you damn well know it," she said calmly.

"Oh sorry. What I was going to suggest is that we should allow our relationship to meander for say a month before we contemplate having sex."

Marie said struggling, "What is this about OUR relationship?"

"It really began from tonight don't you think?"

"That is nonsense. I'm here on the whim of my mother."

"So you didn't want to come?"

She considered that. "I didn't say that. The truth is I was interested in how this place looks with furniture in it and some paintings on the wall..."

"You may help hang paintings and mirrors after dinner. So tell me how do you think a relationship starts?"

"All right you win. We appear to have started a relationship of some kind and already a couple of times it had almost severed because of your audacity."

"But it didn't severe?"

"No."

"That's saying something. But enough of my questions and now tell me about yourself Marie Jolliffe."

The body language and facial expression suggested a revolt was in the making. But then the bell went indicated the pasta was ready and Marie felt obliged to say the chicken was beginning to catch.

"You get the chicken while I drain the pasta," he said and she obeyed and said, "Mmmm. Lovely smells." And for that moment at least Marie was not in negative mode as a struggling divorced woman.

As requested, Marie talked about herself through dinner and while they cleared away and as they hung three of the pictures, one a print, one a photograph and the third an excellent quality water color by a local artist.

They were having coffee at almost 11:00 when Nash said, "How are you finding your new car?"

"Oh I like it. It looks so stylish."

"It looks so much like part of you?"

She giggled and said she could restyle herself but alas her car was doomed to retain its basic appearance.

"It will be safe in the lock up if I stay the night won't it?"

"Yes."

"Omigod did I just say that?"

"Yes but keep calm. That's just you taking another step toward breaking truly free."

"Yes quite right."'

"Where do you wish to sleep?"

She looked very calm when she said, "You decide."

"You should sleep with me."

"That could lead to sex. You did say we should wait a month."

"Indeed I did but that was my point of view. Now that you are aware I don't care a fuck you have the tag of divorced woman, you may have developed a hugely compatible and sexually aroused feeling toward me."

"You have the mind to become a great attorney."

"Heaven forbid."

They laughed and she said, "Let's go to bed."

Nash couldn't fault that suggestion although he accepted he must be careful.

Marie was helpful. As they kissed before walking off she said she ought to be okay because over past months she had used a dildo.

"Right."

"I mean I shouldn't be tight or dry."

"Right."

"Say something."

The words were ready. "Perhaps we ought to indulge in plenty of foreplay to get you relaxed, hot, lubing well and your cervix retracted."

"You seem to know a lot about sex for a guy."

"I become very interest in most things I do."

Alas, in the short walk to the bedroom doorway something apparently began to change for Marie. She looked in at the bed, stopped abruptly and scrubbed her hands up and down on her flanks and she blurted, "I'm sorry I'm not going through with this."

Nash, his patience taking a big hit, forced a laugh and said no it was fine and asked what did she wish to do, suspecting what the answer would be.

"I must go to my apartment."

"Okay let's gathering your things and I go down with you and wave you off."

As Nash watched the doors come down and the car move away slowly he muttered, "You poor stupid bitch."

He felt like punching something but expelled deeply instead, just as he'd trained to do to 'put a lid on it'.

Nash jerked off in the shower and felt calmer. Within ten minutes he was asleep, oblivious to what might be rushing through Marie's mind.

Late morning next day the receptionist to the executive floor, known as the 5th Floor called him. Nash had not appointed a PA.

"Mrs Jolliffe is here to see you accompanied by two other ladies."

Prison officers to take him away for the mental abuse of Marie? Nash had to chuckle.

"Hi Lily," he said, kissing her. The fact she actually pressed forward a tad rather than jerk away told him Marie had not delivered an emotional outburst to her over last night.

"Girls this is the guy we are here to serve," Lily said a little pompously. "Nash this is Clara Murchison, a long retired design consultant and Nash this is Felicity Sharpe, a not so long retired color and décor consultants. We three went through college together although we are becoming somewhat hazy about those days. Now that all purchases of immediate things to make yourself comfortable plus a few knickknacks are here, I felt we must arrange everything studiously to achieve the right flows. If you don't like anything where we have place it then move it. We have brought lunch and you are invited to join us at 1:00."

"Gee this is amazing and what a great team you guys appear to be," Nash grinned wondering if Felicity was the mother of the younger Felicity Sharpe, the gorgeous promotional manager of the city's Cultural Events Center. It would be rude to ask and to have the mother say oh no, her daughter looked nothing like that Felicity Sharpe with her Miss International looks.

The office manager Mrs Dempsey had been up to collect the responses about the retention of PAs for processing and said not a word about the uproar throughout the building from near hysterical PAs about the uncertainty of retaining their jobs and Nash knew she would have been taking the complaints full-bore.

"Mrs Dempsey may I call you Della and you call me Nash? I believe your first name is Della."

The tough-faced, tough attitude woman was totally taken aback.

Nash said smoothly, "I'm not sorry I bawled you out over punctuality on my first day here but what I want to do is to compliment you for the manner in which you coped with that verbal assault. In the Army we found frontal attack over unpunctuality was the only method that produced instant solutions with offenders. The only other alternative was to shoot them."

"I'm not sure I would have taken a bullet so stoically Nash."

They laughed.

"I've checked out your personal file Della and there's nothing in it but evidence of top professionalism in management. You're a good woman to have working here."

"Thank you sir, I mean Nash."

"Very good. I take it staff particularly females are curious about the new apartment."

"Yes Nash, very much so."

"Well could you please invited all line managers and that includes you of course, to come to the apartment at 5:00 if they wish and take a drink and walk around the place. I'm afraid viewing invitations do not extend below line managers."

"That's understandable. I shall issue the invitations on your behalf and organize light catering. I believe we ought to make this something of an occasion to engender mutual goodwill. Your reputation around here goes something like this: "He's very good looking but God he sure acts like he's still in the Army."

"Omigod," Nash said. "That possibility of earning that mantle never entered my mind."

"Well I wouldn't rush to dispel it Nash. If you hadn't gained that reputation your memo over PA justification would have come close to producing a revolt whereas everyone has been thinking and scribbling like mad while only bad-mouthing you."

"And you believe that's good?"

"Oh yes. Everyone knows we know have a real commander in charger of this outfit."

"May I kiss your forehead?"

"Yes of course."

Nash touched her forward with his lips and said, "Thank you for helping to put my mind into proper perspective about this outfit as you call it. You must understand I have rather a jaundice view about the genteel culture that pervades this outfit, er this commercial establishment. Thanks to you I now see that the kick ass approach must be used alongside plenty of velvet glove in this ye olde environment if it is to be changed successfully."

"Thanks. You are a complex and interesting, very interesting character Nash and good luck. You'll need if major change is envisaged. For a start you are up against three with the directors whom you may find bask in their comfort zones. I must be off and work with my assistant manager to process these reports expeditiously so that you can attend to fermenting uncertainty. Jennifer fears assistant managers will be next to be hung up on hooks. At a better time I must talk to you about introducing six monthly performance reviews. The directions have knocked back my recommendations to introduce performance reviews three times in six years."

"Well things have changed. Can you introduce it and keep additional expenditure below $25,000 in extra expenditure?"

"Yes if it were introduced progressively. It entails using an outside consultant and as team leader he or she will be heavier involved initially than in future occasions."

"Then promise me will keep the consultancy fees and other costs below $25,000 and there will be no need to refer the project to the directors. I will simply advise them the project is underway."

"So you are permitted to got up to $25,000 on any new expenditure without reference?"

"You are very smart Della. Rip into the project but consult with me fully. No way do I wish this to misfire."

"Yes sir. May I kiss your forehead?"

"Yes."

Nash felt the lips just touch his skin.

She asked, "Um why the forehead and not the lips?"

He grinned and said because it tended to inhibit carnal thoughts.

Della grabbed the reports and was still laughing hugely when leaving the room.

Nash watched her ass through the door and thought that meeting had gone exceedingly well. He and Della were now relating well and tactically it was very successfully because she would now work at improving the somewhat distorted view some people within the company might have. Er did have.

At 4:30 that day fifteen PA's tearfully assembled in the meeting room where the head of HR and Della the office manager announced the services of those women were redundant to the company's new change of direction in administration. The hapless women were then told about their exit options. Della announced there were three immediate opportunities in clerical work with another two or three coming up but the highly paid PAs facing termination indicated no interest in those positions.

"Does Mr Nash require a PA?" asked on of the women.

Fifteen pairs of eyes focused on Della.

"No sorry. I have been instructed to leave the PA station in place because it will be used occasionally when assistant is required. The assistant is to come from the secretarial pool."

"Those people will be under skilled."

"I've explained that to Mr Nash but he said secretarial workers in his company had to be fully up to speed or else they would ship out. Those were his exact words," Della lied.

"God this company is going to the dogs," one of the women sniffed. "We are better out of here."

In an incident that appeared to evolve like something from a Hollywood movie, a beautiful woman walked into Nash's office, the face of the distraught receptionist showing over the women's shoulder.

"It's okay Janice. I'm always prepared to see visitors who arrive at the start of cocktails time."

"Hi Mr Reeves. Mommy told me I must come and see the work she and her girlfriends did on your apartment."'

"Why Miss Sharpe, welcome."

"It's Felicity. Actually my name is Mrs Felicity Buckle but my husband and I agreed I should continue calling myself Miss Felicity Sharpe because I became so well known in amateur theater and especially in skating with that name and now that I am in professional promotion work that name is even more value to me."

"Would you like to call your husband to tour the apartment with us?"

"No he's away somewhere. I didn't take much notice where he said he was going. Being handsome and something of a hunk he earns huge money leading parties of Asian women on tours of the country."

"Then you can stay for dinner?"

"Oooh I'd like that but I can't cook."

"But I can."

"Wow and do you drink cocktails?"

"A maximum of two before I switch to wine."

"Oooh what more could a girl ask for? There must be one other think but it's right off my mind?"

"I guess it will come back to you over time. Let's get that quick tour out of the way and then I'll haul out my cocktail book."

"Oooh Nash. Your hospitality is simply amazing."

God what an amazing difference to the woman who visited three nights ago, Nash thought, dabbing away some drool. However if she kept on like this, just a few hours of her company would becoming rather too much although when fucking she might cease talking. Yeah that would be a great way to modify her behavior. He assumed she did fuck carrying on the way she did.

She did. When oohing and aahing her way through the apartment Felicity sat and bounced on the bed and said, "You know darling I'm feeling really lonely tonight."

Yeah well there was a time for everything. He laughed and pulled her up from the bed and neatly sidestepped as she attempted to slam into him. In the same movement he swiveled her around by her hand and they were back facing door again.

"What happened?" she asked vaguely.

"Didn't you want a cocktail?"

"Oh yes, that was mentioned wasn't it?"

Much later when they were back in the bedroom and Nash's ears were ringing from almost nonstop mindless and high-pitched chatter she said, "Drop your pants and let me see what I have been holding on to?

Surely the evening had to get better. He obeyed his commander and pulled off his pants and briefs.

Nash wasn't aware Felicity's mom procured men, usually married man, for her daughter's pleasure with Donald being away so much. He was also unaware that Felicity liked to tease.

"Omigod that's a solid piece. It should be in the Smithsonian in Canada."

"Don't you mean Washington?" Nash said sternly and she giggled, really enjoying herself.

"Please undress me."

Well there wasn't much to do. Nash jerked off her shoes and eased her out of her dress and decided to leave on her hold-ups and that was it.

She had a great body and he went for it and thankfully the chatting stopped. And then the constant groaning began and got to him. She groaned even when he wasn't touching a sensitive part. He speculated the poor woman must have been fucked so many times over the years she'd lost all feeling of sensitivity and was simply adlibbing.

He rolled on a rubber and he banged her and had her squealing and dribbling and her tongue was busy licking and her mouth sucking and that was good. No words, no groans.

He rolled on a new condom and she pulled up on to her knees and spread her butt cheeks for him, saying nothing but dribbling excessively it appeared.

She was like many Army nurses and female officers. Um to put it politely it was simply a matter of pushing straight in the butt rather than working slowly.

As he began stroking she squealed on and on like a stuck pig and was thrashing her clit like crazy and then for the first and only time she climaxed whereas he'd to ejaculated four times and they were big ones.

"Could you take me home now? I'll stuff myself with paper towels."

Good gracious.

Actually she only partly inserted one paper towel.

Her apartment was not far away and as he was about to leave she leaned through the car window and gave him the best kiss he'd received in years.

"Good night darling. Mom knew you'd fuck well. Perhaps we might do this again?"

"Yeah, yeah," Nash said, making sure he head was out of the window before accelerating away.

Shaking his head he thought peace at last. That woman probably could service a full strength company of soldiers by herself and just yawn and douche. Or was that being unfair?

CHAPTER 3

The next day after his bout with Felicity, Marie called Nash.

"I'm sorry."

But the time he'd struggled for a suitable reply she'd cut the call.

Nash was tempted to drop it but he believed he had a duty to fuck her and see if that would push her into a big leap forward. Yeah like screaming happily she wanted to be fucked again.

He smiled and thought it was unlikely after months skirting depression she would be a good fuck. Guys tended to think that's what women do and they found it difficult to accept when they found a woman who couldn't fuck well and even worse, a woman who simply didn't like to fuck. He grinned and though what many women would know there were guys who couldn't fuck for shit, er he wasn't quite meaning that.

He went out to the receptionist and handed her the address.