Fire Woman

"Same here. They're both equally good and bad. I too have experiences with rape. It almost happened to me in adolesence. I fought off my aggressor, but if I hadn't..." Doug grimaced. "I've known plenty of toxic chauvinists, and the female equivalent too. It's important to recognize both."

"Yes." Emily was grimacing again. "I sent Courtney to prison on a plea deal. It wasn't easy, but I did it. The false accusations were only a misdemeanor, but the drug trafficking, attempted murder, her sexual assault of Henry, other aggravating factors... the judge gave her twenty years. Stuckey got the same. They're both still in prison. Langley helped us get his supplier, and received a shorter sentence. The Swift brothers were exonerated and reconciled with their family. Henry lives openly in San Francisco now, Roger's in Houston. He's happily married to a friend of mine, one of my former bridesmaids. After that case... I no longer wanted to be a prosecutor. I switched to defense to help frustrated defendants like the Swift brothers, who came to me and talked about how they were often still disbelieved for the truth of their experiences after people like Courtney and Stuckey tried to shame them. There are plenty of people who want to help prosecute criminals, not enough willing and able to help destitute defendants. Or the repentant. Or the wrongfully accused."

"Sonya tells me you prefer to represent the wrongfully accused and repentant. Get them released or keep their prison time minimal, work out deals."

"Yes. I will work with the guilty if I must, but if they are not repentant I have clauses in my contracts that allow me to step away from them when possible. Also, personal ethics and skills that allow me to lose their cases gracefully, without appearance of incompetence. If they disagree with the loss, they can appeal with another attorney. Not all of my clients or victims appreciate someone like me, but they all learn to respect me. Or at least I try to make it so."

"Sonya told me about an offender you defended before you left Austin who tried to defend himself after you messed up his trial, per his arguments. He ended up going to prison as a 'fool for a client'. Then you moved your business to Houston out of professional courtesy for your former colleagues."

"Yes. Before that, I saw Courtney Crowe, and a few others also, rightfully sent to prison. Let's finish up Courtney, please."

"No problem." Doug thanked a waiter who refreshed their drinks, then prompted Emily to continue.

"Del sorted through a lot of conflicting stories regarding Courtney, as every investigator must do with every case. Sonya and others assisted him. Once they started investigating the Swift brothers also, it got even worse. Roger was a womanizer and a drug user who was determined to kick the habit. Henry was closeted and hurting himself by holding the door closed. I don't blame him for it, but he was. His parents and society had him living in fear- his words to Del."

Emily took a drink and sighed. "The Swift parents had always suspected their son was gay but were hoping they were wrong and undecided what to do if they were right. It was the same for Roger. Once Henry asked them 'what if your son and brother is gay?' they quickly said they would love him regardless, they were just waiting for him to be honest. Henry asked 'why didn't you tell me?' when confronted with that. Everyone was willing to shift blame, few were willing to accept it."

"Usually the case."

"Yes. And no one wants to blame victims but... prevention requires accepting and anticipating issues, disregarding blame. Accepting that something could happen to you or someone you care about. And doing what you can to prevent it from happening- or happening again."

"The Ember Program mentions all this."

Emily smiled. "I tell the crime victims and offenders I meet who are interested in redemption to do that program. Voluntarily tear down, then rebuild their lives. Define your own ethics, worry about the consequences constantly, but do what you must to save lives. Including your own and those of others you care about. And always be able to recognize your mistakes and be ready to atone for them if necessary."

"Yeah. That's a key tenet of the Ember Program. Anticipate and overcome mistakes. Not just mistakes you have made, but ones you might make. And try not to be afraid. Be ready. Don't be sorry. Be better."

"Be better. Not everyone likes hearing that sometimes. Courtney was an example. When Del and Sonya refused to help her, mentioning the gloves and the drug cocktail bottle, she went nuts and started blaming Stuckey and Langley for conspiring to create the plan to frame the Swift brothers with her as patsy. But of course Langley knew nothing about the plan and Stuckey blamed Courtney for conceiving it. But it didn't matter who was to blame. Del, Sonya, and I had enough evidence to convict Courtney, Stuckey, and Langley also. They all went down."

Emily sipped her vodka, then continued. "By the time I was done with that case, I was ready to step down as a prosecutor and change careers. Courtney Crowe was just the straw that convinced me it was best for me. What could have happened... I never wanted to get manipulated by corruption again." She took a sip of water.

Doug let her be quiet and eat a few bites of her meal, doing the same himself. Emily mused over how he had listened to her in a way Jake never had, supported her words and inspired them. She was far more at ease with him now. When she was ready, Emily resumed speaking. "Courtney Crowe was a textbook case of why you must always trust but verify everything a criminal or crime victim tells you. Without prejudice."

"Yes. Thank you for telling me about her. I believe you have good character. Do you make more money as a defense attorney than as a prosecutor?"

"Somewhat. I could make more, but I like to take cases pro bono to help the destitute. The Friendship helps me with investment advice and lottery numbers. I'm also independently wealthy thanks to my parents. Not that money has ever been that important to me. I remember a boy I knew hating his attorney father who was the usual greedy scum type, swearing to avoid that if I ever became a lawyer." She chuckled. "Are you surprised to meet an attorney like me?"

"Honored, actually. Would you like to dance later?"

Emily did not blink at his offer. Instead, she smiled. I see the boy I knew, she thought, in the man before me. And just like back then, I do not plan to betray him in the least. "If your wife allows it, sure."

***

Chapter 4: Old Crushes Dance.

***

"So how does this Nobles Game work exactly?" Emily asked after they had discussed a few other minor matters. Their meals were finished now, and dishes cleared away.

"It's just a vetting process," Doug replied. "Same as any other good swingers' network uses to check its applicants. The dating process these days is plagued by too much crap. First, there's uncertainty. Then there are hidden scams and fakers. Then there are people with bad expectations of you."

Emily nodded at each point. "And after you work through the suspicion of all that?"

"You get to live your fantasies with the Game when you can. If you're at ease with them."

"And there's no trouble over it?"

"Not if you don't want there to be. Permission to play around keeps us from boredom and eases emotions. With forgiveness, this place is like paradise- almost."

Emily nodded, accepting the truth in his voice. "I must say, I was not expecting to meet an old friend doing this. Or have him remember me."

"Life is full of surprises."

"Yeah." She dropped her crossed arms and looked towards the dance floor, then back at him. "I had a crush on you, you know. Way back then. I had a fantasy that the shy boy would have hidden depths. They just needed the right person and circumstances to bring them out. Of course, we were too young for it to happen with us and you went away."

"I know." He didn't apologize or try to explain. Emily appreciated that. Instead, he looked at the dance floor and then back at her. "When can we dance?"

"When you're ready."

"Any music or style preferences?"

She shook her head. "Let's just go."

With that, they stood up in succession, Emily first. Doug approached her and took her hand, walked to the dance floor. A light techno beat was playing. They tapped their feet to it together, trying to get in sync. It didn't quite work at first, and then they found a rhythm. It made an odd sight for the crowd around them, a mid-40s couple trying a waltz in the middle of a mostly younger crowd. Then the DJ spotted them and switched the music, reacting to the club manager's presence. It became classical now, from the 80s. The Cult song "Fire Woman". Emily had heard it, of course. Jake had played it for her a few times, back in the days their romance was still going strong. She wasn't surprised another man was playing it for her now.

"This is cheesy, you know."

"Also accurate. You aroused passion in me, like the subject of this song did in its writer. But he could have been talking about any woman. No way he could have known you. So if not for our personal connection, maybe it wouldn't have meant as much."

She was content with that. Emily then let him sweep her into his arms and dance more closely with her. She put her fears aside, concentrated on the circumstances before her. She did similar things when she made speeches in a courtroom, or in her off and on striptease dancing. The latter only happened every few months, before the pandemic had put a stop to it. Emily had been more angered and depressed than usual during that time, upset that her relationship with her husband was not reviving and now society had to be shut down. She had disconnected herself, concentrated on one thing at a time. Her son, her cases- thank goodness they had mostly settled out of court- and her fantasies, when possible. Now she was going to live again, for a little while. She had decided to strip again, in due time, after she explored swinging. And this is a fantasy too, she reminded herself. For him and for me.

So they danced to "Fire Woman", staring into each other's eyes with deliberation and intensity. Doug was good on the floor, using various ballroom styles. Emily had not danced with another person in a while, but she matched him as best she could. She let her heart calm. It was obvious their affair would not be long term. Garin-Ruiz was a weekend vacation for her. Local swing clubs in Houston would be of more regular interest in the future. Jake had promised to take her to them, once she calmed down to the lifestyle in general. They would stay friends during the divorce process, and afterwards. Eventually, she hoped, she would find another spouse.

"Fire Woman" soon ended. The song did not arouse passion in her as it once had. It had not seemed to work for Doug either. A Garth Brooks country song came on next, and Emily frowned. She went through the motions of dancing to it, letting Doug hold her close, but still whispered in his ear with frustration. "'Unanswered Prayers'?"

"It no longer applies," Doug smirked. "Maybe I shouldn't have picked it."

"No, it still does apply," Emily shrugged. "You got any more surprises on the playlist?"

"Just the 'Single Female Lawyer' song from a certain sci-fi cartoon."

"Always did like that one. Wish the 'having lots of sex' part applied to me more."

Doug caught the hint and waved his hand at the DJ. The special mix shut off and the earlier music resumed. He then slowed his step and spoke to Emily softly. "My suite is upstairs. Don't worry, I don't have any dungeon stuff in there. I just want to shag you, not get freaky."

"I'm fine with that. I've never been into the freaky stuff."

They passed several couples as they headed to the elevator. Heterosexual and queer, making out in corners or talking in pairs. Emily recognized a large bald black man and a pale white-haired man in casual slacks and shirts. The pale man was waving his hands in sign language while the black man watched and then slowly replied. Both looked in their early fifties, once she accounted for the pale man's albinism. Clarke and Asher- she recognized them from Doug's autobiography. She decided to meet them later. They were too intent on chatting and then kissing at the moment.

The freckled brunette female bartender- Jodie Lee Nichols, Emily recognized her- was similarly exchanging words and kisses with Wouter, while a lesbian couple made the same motions nearby. Other club members did likewise. All normal, vanilla to use a porn term. Emily supposed that the freaky fetishes would come out in private, or maybe not at all. It was not her business to speculate. As long as everyone enjoyed their play and followed the law, or at least did not object to someone like her, it was fine. Only if someone did object would she cause trouble.

For now, she was not pounding desks or speaking before a courtroom. For now, she was relaxing. Her jury consisted of only two people. Both had preconceived notions they were slowly dropping in the face of reality. This would be a hook-up, nothing more. She might return to Garin-Ruiz one day, swing with Doug again in a similar way, or smile at him fondly and then return to the man with her at the time. Maybe she would get back to women at some point too, she hadn't decided yet. Lisa had told her it was as easy as asking a person out and opening her mind. Emily would do that when she was ready.

"I am curious about where this might go," she asked Doug as they reached the elevator. "Your first marriage disintegrated, mine's on the verge, and your wife's not here."

"Lisa and I have a lot of friends with benefits. We move around among them sometimes, not always together. You can easily be part of that. Or... Marie and I are still friends, before you ask. There's just platonic friendship between us. She wanted to find happiness on her own terms. I allow that. Outside our swinging, pretty much every other person I've dated is happily with someone else now, or I obviously don't click with them. Except Lisa."

"And you'll go back to her tomorrow. You're just using me tonight."

"No. This too is special. If you have the opposite attitude, we can stop this right now. Go find someone else, someone you can be happy with. Good luck."

Emily mimed dropping his hand, then shrugged, smiled, and leaned closer to him. "I'm fine with a brief swing if you are."

No more harsh words were necessary. They entered the elevator and rode it up to the top floor of the Inside Out building. Doug Ramsay's suite was a three bedroom, two bathroom apartment, typical of the floor arrangements according to him. Emily noticed a jacuzzi tub in the master bathroom next to a shower stall. Both were large enough for two people to occupy comfortably, three if they squeezed. The master bathroom adjoined two bedrooms, while the other bathroom and bedroom formed a smaller guest suite. Doug took her to a king size bed in a room that was bare of knicknacks and posters. Its sheets and blankets were drawn back.

"How do you want to do this?" he asked once they were inside.

"Let me dance for you," she said, waving him to sit on the bed. She moved slowly before him, discarding and dropping each garment with purposed ease. First her suit jacket, then her skirt, then her shirt after careful unbuttoning and minimal flashing. Her gray lace bra came off next, and afterwards her matching panties. Her black flats she took off last. She was not wearing any stockings.

Her body was shaved. Emily found that an erotic act, a way to give herself pleasure. Her breasts were small with prominent pink nipples, the cosmetic surgery not obvious unless you looked closely at the scars on the sides. She dropped her arms from her breasts once her bra was off, letting him stare. "Well?"

"They did fine," Doug answered. "It's a nice body."

"Thank you." Emily could see no lies or disappointment in his eyes. Maybe Jake would get used to it again one day, she had once thought. But no, she was not the type to force that on him, and it had not worked out. He might have defied me anyway, she reflected, given the looks I saw him exchange with his secretary sometimes before I gave him the hall pass. After Emily had allowed that affair and the subsequent ones, everything had calmed. At least he told her about the encounters he had with other women. They fueled her fantasies now and then.

I'm fueling this man's fantasy now, she told herself, discarding her panties and then her flats, and my desire too. She twirled around for him, displaying her well-toned back side. Emily did a lot of walking on treadmills while dictating and rolling around on beds with vibrators in her trimmed beaver. Her muscles showed evidence of this. "You ever strip?" she asked Doug.

"A few times. Mostly in private for women. I don't feel like it tonight."

"Then just get naked."

Doug stood up and disrobed while she sat on the bed and watched. His body was well-muscled under a slight roll of firm chub, exactly what she had imagined. Not as strained as the gym rats she sometimes saw, or the posers. She pushed those men away, having long soured to them after her experiences her freshman year. The steady firm men like Jake were of more interest to her. Doug seemed like such a man also. He dropped his clothes in the same order she had, twirling a bit at her hand motion. She stood up and twirled again, then fell back on the bed and opened her arms.

Her celebrity crush- she could not think of him as the boy she'd known long ago, even though he was that also- moved into her arms and kissed her cheeks, then her neck. "My lips are fine," she then insisted.

He submitted to her request, kissing her hard on her mouth. They exchanged warm breaths, then tongue swipes. Emily felt her inner temperature rising, his also. She ran her fingers over his chest, feeling the muscles beneath the skin. She did the same with his backside, then his legs. His cock was firm in her hand when she touched it next.

"Already hard," she noted.

"Objection?"

"No." She smirked, then pushed him away from her, moved over him, and advanced her lips downwards. She kissed his mouth, then his neck, then each of his nipples. Light pecks down his stomach, then on his thighs. Finally she opened her mouth and sucked on his member carefully, squeezing the head with her lips while her fingers rubbed his back and buttocks. Doug let her breath and tongue arouse him further. His organ was soon dripping with her saliva. She pulled herself off him and smirked.

"We're using protection for this, I hope?"

He nodded. "Condoms in the bedside table, top drawer. I have several styles."

She rolled that direction and grabbed a ribbed condom that smelled like raspberries. After quick unwrapping, she fitted it over his cock. She flicked the wrapper nonchalantly at the room's far corner. He probably would have a maid clean it up later. For now, there were more important things on her mind than littering.

She stroked his cock up a bit more, then rolled around on the bed and pushed her cunt towards him. "I saw lube next to the condoms. You know how to use it?"

"Yes." He grabbed the tube, squeezed some onto his hands, then rubbed it across her thighs and petals. His fingers darted in and out of her pussy, tickling the insides. Emily's clit was a hard nub thrusting out of its hood.

"Not my ass," she said when he started lubing that area. "I won't want anyone in there for a while. I do enjoy rear cunt assaults, though."

"As you wish." He then rolled her over onto her back and pushed into her from behind, thrusting hard between her legs. She took hold of his cock and guided him, twisting her body with the yoga she practiced. The teachers were right, Emily mused. It does come in handy for this. I'm glad the Net allows me to keep it up late at night, with vibrators in my pussy and fantasies on my mind.