Separate Vacations: Parallel Lives

"You're looking for a slave to own, aren't you? Someone who will have to give everything of herself to prove she loves you."

"Exactly, except for the slave part. You never got it, Tiffany. It wasn't so much about owning you, it was about being considered equal and owning each other. I'm a lot better off sharing a life with someone who doesn't have a thing but complete and total love for me. I'm making good money now, Tiffany. Not the megabucks you are, but I'm doing all right. When I find the right woman, everything I have will be hers, equally, and always. I wouldn't consider anything else."

"I'm leaving now, Tiffany. I could give a fuck less if Vik fires me tomorrow. Honestly, I can't stand the sight of you right now. You can't help but wave the red flag at me, and I always respond by charging like a bull. Not this time. Go back to your life, and try to do a little better on husband number three."

I was out the door and to my car in seconds. It was a brand new Cadillac Escalade. Bill Maitland had one, Lew had one, Hank at the company had one, and I had always admired them. Besides, I hated driving the vehicle I got in the settlement, because it always reminded me of what I lost. I got a really good trade value out of it, so I splurged. I was shocked beyond words when Tiffany jumped into the passesenger seat and crossed her arms, staring straight ahead, a determined look in her eye.

"What are you doing?"

"Pleading my case. I'm sorry, Bruce. Seeing you in nice clothes, working at the kind of job I always dreamed you would, kind of got to me. You should have done it for me, not because you wandered into it."

"I did wander into it. But I've found I really enjoy it. Eventually, with or without you, something like this would have happened."

She sighed. "Please, if we go back in, I'll behave. We'll just talk business, all right? And you could have knocked me over with a feather when Vik told me your name. MY Bruce, a respectable businessman, part owner of a very highly thought of firm! It was like I wandered into the Twilight Zone. And I had no idea it was you I was looking for, or we would have sent someone else, because we really, really want you to work with us. I swear to you it will be strtictly business."

I got out of the car. "One jab, one hurtful statement, and I'm gone, do you understand?"

She nodded, and in a move I never expected, locked down on my hand. People watching probably thought it was a romantic gesture. I took it as making sure I didn't leave.

Reseated, the waitress appeared, and we placed our orders. Tiff was surprised when all I ordered was a small bowl of their spicy soup.

"That's it?"

"Yeah. You never bothered to consult me, but I'm not much on Thai food. I never once thought I'd stay for over five minutes anyway, so I ate at Sonny's before I came here."

I saw her tighten her eyes, before she let out a big breath and relaxed. "While we're waiting for our food, let me run a few things by you."

She laid out her ideas, and while some were pretty good, many were disasters. Equally critical, she dismissed a few of my ideas out of hand, really liked a few, and wrote concise notes on the rest. Finally, she was enjoying dessert while I sipped some excellent tea. The waitess seemed to be hovering, and I looked at my watch. It was 11:45, and they closed at twelve. I left a very nice tip, but Tiffany snatched the check. "Business dinner, remember? We are going to do business, aren't we? I can get someone to take my place if it makes you more comfortable."

I laughed, surprising her. "If you behave like you did tonight, I have no problem working with you. It wasn' that bad, really. I can think of more painful things, root canals, for instance."

She smirked and grinned. "You're funny now. When did you get a sense of humor?"

I almost told I took some of her money and bought one but held my tongue. No need to spoil the mood.

Then she shocked the shit out of me. "You know, there's a bar two blocks over. I've heard it's a really nice place, and they have a live band that specializes in our music. Want to let off a little steam?"

I started to tell her no but saw the look in her eyes, so I shocked her back. "Sure. But we're not dancing, at least not with each other. I think your no body part touching rule is a very good idea."

She frowned, but grabbed my hand and we walked to the bar. It really was a nice place, the band was good, and the drinks were potent. Forty minutes later we were slow dancing to a favorite song of hers. We'd danced to it at our wedding, so when tears appeared and she pulled me forward, I didn't resist. She snuggled to me tightly, the feeling achingly bittersweet. She sensed it and ground into me tighter, until she was practically humping my thigh, while my hands wandered from the nape of her neck to the top of that tight little ass. She reached around with one of her hands and pushed me into her butt even harder. I had a negative thought and tried to push it away. She had always loved anal as long as there was plenty of foreplay to get her ready. I wondered how long it took to get her ready for Stephen's monster.

She felt me stiffen and looked up, realizing what I was thinking. She backed off the humping, but still held me close. I was happy and sad in equal measure when the song ended. There was a lull in the music and she started talking. "Bruce, Stephen and I never..."

I held my fingers to her lips gently, but the look on my face wasn't gentle. "You don't ever get to tell me about anything you and Big Dick did. I already got the reports live and in vivid detail, remember? This is a no go subject for me. Not now, not when we're eighty. Am I clear here?"

She nodded, as tears leaked down her face. I excused myself, to give her time to recover. When I got back there was a man standing in front of her and she was shaking her head vigorously. "NO! I will not dance with you. My date is due back any minute, so please leave."

I walked around him and she saw me, her face getting white. I didn't give her a chance to speak. "Sorry honey. Long line, you know. Who's your friend?"

She shrugged. "Just a guy. I asked him to run along, and yet here he is."

I gave him the look I'd used when I was fighting. He didn't seem scared, having about three inches and forty pounds on me. "The lady asked you to leave."

He puffed up. "You gonna make me little man?"

I grinned. "Why yes I am. I'll probably enjoy it. I hold black belts in two different styles, and fought UBC for two years. Oh, it was a while back, but I still train. I could kick your ass and still be in my chair before the ice starts to melt in my drink. Here's your one chance. Fight or flight. Reason, or stupidity. It doesn't matter. In ten seconds I'm going to take the decision out of your hands. You may even still be able to walk, after rehab. NOW GO!"

He looked stricken and scurried away. I turned around and Tiffany was looking at me like a feral cat in heat. All she ever knew about my involvement in martial arts was that I held a black belt. I'd never told her about my fighting career, and she never followed the sport, so we hardly ever talked about it. It got out after the fight at the bar. There were even two pictures of me from my fighting days and both times I was in the middle of a knock out.

We danced one more dance, and she did everything short of actually fucking me on the dance floor. Just before the song ended she pulled my head down and jammed her tongue down my throat so far I couldn't breath, holding it for what seemed like forever.

The lights flickered on, and last call was given. I looked at my watch, surprised to see it was 3 a.m. We walked outside, watching the people leave, those hooking up grinning, those that missed out looking dejected. Some were staggering, and a few were practically being carried.

"What was that all about?

She knew, but she made me ask again. "What was what?"

"What was the tongue bath about? If I remember correctly, you told me early on there would be no touching, much less the mixing of bodily fluids."

She shrugged. "It's been a while since I had a man in my arms, and I'm a little drunk. And horny. It meant nothing. That's as far as you'll ever get with me, ever again."

I sighed. "Good. I thought for a minute you were sending me signals. I doubt I'd do you any good after being wallowed out by Stephen's monster. I probably couldn't feel the sides. It would be like fucking a coffee can."

She stood upright, fire dancing in her eyes. "It'll be a cold day in hell before I ever fuck you again! Share a cab?"

Forty-five minuites later she was on her knees in my condo, slurping on my dick like it was the best thing she'd ever tasted. I had my hands in her hair, and would thrust every once in a while, making her gag. "Shit, I thought you'd be better at this after as much practice as you got."

She looked up, grinning. "I thought this was the best way to get you off. I'm not letting you put that pathetic little sausage inside me, I doubt I would even feel it. I thought I'd give you a mercy suck though, I still have pretty good suction."

Two minutes later I had her slammed against my living room wall, and she screamed as I dropped her down on my dick. "Damn, bitch, you're tight! What did you do, get a pussylectomy or something?"

"Fuck you! It's...oh, shit!...been a while. Damn, baby, where did you learn that?" She screamed a little as I pounded her savagely.

"Did your new hubby not ever get into that snatch? You...uh...feel like a sixteen year old virgin!"

"He was a lot...ahh... smaller than you, and way smaller than..." I slammed her savagely, not wanting her to ever mention his name. I felt her tighten up, and then felt a small flow of moisture trickle down round my balls.

"That's it, bitch. Come for me! Come on that dick you swore was never going near you again."

"You're small, but like I said, it's been a while."

I pulled out, her feet hitting the floor, her arms pinned above her head by my hand. She looked confused. "What?"

"If I'm not doing you any good, why continue? To be honest, it's nowhere near good as I remember it being." I let her go. "Get dressed, and I'll call you a cab."

She screamed in my ear, nearly breaking an eardrum, sliding down the wall until she was on her knees, swallowing me again before I could react. She was going to town and I was getting into it when she pushed, and I sprawled across the carpet. She was on me before I could breath, slamming down on me like a jackhammer at speeds I didn't believe possible. She came, screaming, and five minutes later had another massive orgasm, her muscles contracting around my dick and sending me over the edge. I nearly threw her off when I lunged up. She collapsed on my chest, and I felt tears.

I couldn't stand it. "Why, Tiff? Why did you do such hurtful things to the man you were supposed to have loved? Was his dick that much better?"

She raised up, gazing at me with intensity, and hopefully a little shame. "I'd lie to you, but you'd know it. His dick was a lot bigger, and he was very good, hitting places that had never been touched before. I'll admit, I loved fucking him. But I never loved him. And though it shames me a little, every time we had sex part of it was getting back at you for the way you hurt me."

For a guy who had just pounded a woman almost comatose, I didn't feel so good right now. She knew she had hurt me, yet again, and hastened to assure me.

"Yes, Bruce, I know it's hard to hear, but remember, I always loved you, and the sex we had was special, because we were in love. I will always chose what we just did over a big dick every time. Hear me, every time!"

"Still doesn't explain the calls."

"I was angry, all right! I was furious. You had disappeared, I couldn't find you to beg you to come home, to tell you how sorry I was I had hurt you. Then you filed for divorce. Even then, I tried to fight for you, right up until the divorce was final. And yes, we did fuck that night, but it would kill his ego to know it wasn't because I wanted him, it was because I wanted to hurt you. Then the girls come home telling me about the hot Italian bitch with the big tits you were banging, and I lost it all over again."

"Well, you definitely succeeded in hurting me. When he attacked me in the bar, it took six guys and a ball bat to keep me from killing him. And every time I tried to hit him, I saw your face, grinning at me. Does that give you any idea of the hurt you caused?"

She went pale, stroking my cheek, and sighed. "You're right, you know. If you had done something like that to me, I would never forgive you. But honey, you've always known I had issues. I always depended on you for balance, right up until the last six months. I was just so tired of everyone considering you a loser I started to think that way myself. Mom was on me to dump you and get 'a real man', the people at the office wondered behind my back how I put up with you."

"And who put those thoughts in their head?"

She had the decency to blush. "Well, Mom..."

"You can stop right there. Your Mom is the root of most your problems, Tiff, and that made her the root of most of ours.. I should have been a lot firmer about the bitch when we were married. Now I have no constraints, so I'm telling you. The woman is bat shit crazy. If I could find your father I'd kick his ass on general principle. I've told you before, and you didn't listen then, and you won't listen now, but the whole male population is not him. We're decent guys all told. You'll never know because you won't trust a man long enough to find out. Tell me, why did you and the esteemed Mr. Hampton break up?"

She got that stubborn look on her face, and I knew I'd hit a nerve.

"Let me guess, he tried to own you, right?"

She looked away and didn't answer, instead talking about her mother. "Did you know the court ordered mandatory counseling after the last time she confronted you? When she missed her second session the deputies showed up and she spent ten days in jail. Apparently her personality didn't mesh with the other inmates, and they had to put her in protective custody until she was turned loose. She still had bruises when she was released. The Judge terrified her when he told her the next session she missed without a medical excuse would get her six months in state prison. 'It's a medium security facility ma'am, and the state doesn't have the time or money to make sure you have a pleasant stay. Now, am I going to have any more problems with you?' Another incentive was me telling her if she didn't change, I was cutting her access to the girls. I'm fucked up,Bruce, I know it, but I'll be damned if I let the girls follow this path."

She glanced at me, with her calculating face on. I knew the look. She was deciding whether to tell me something she though I might use against her. "I... I'm in therapy now, too. When James left, I hit rock bottom, wondering why I couldn't sustain a relationship. So I found someone who I thought could help me."

Well, I never expected her to say that. "Has it? Helped I mean?"

She wouldn't meet my eye. "I don't know, it's too early to tell."

I knew then she was resisting whatever the therapist was telling her. Old habits die hard, I guess.

Emotionally wrung out and physically exhausted, I let it drop. I stood and looked down at her, her face a mix of misery and hope. It was in my mind to call her a cab and send her home, but what could one night hurt? Morning actually, it was after five. I reached out. "Come on, we need rest. Do you need to call someone?"

Again she wouldn't meet my eye. "No, Mom is with them, and I told her I might be really late."

"So, then, did you plan to spend the night with me?" I let the anger at her mother with our kids go, for now.

"No," she said, her face under a veil of hair, "but I was hoping for more than a business meeting."

"Well, you got it. Bed, now."

She followed along docilely, climbing into the left side from force of habit. I let her snuggle to me, my thoughts a jumble. I heard her sigh and knew she was asleep. She snuggled deeper, and I drifted off myself...

The next morning, actually more like noon, I woke to a very pleasant sensation. She raised her head, grininng. "Good, you're awake. I've already had my shower, and I cleaned you a little with a warm cloth. Now that you're among the living, let's have some fun. She tried to mount me, but I threw her off, grabbing her from behind and mounting her doggy style. I felt her flich when I buried myself in her. I'd taken her anally last night, the key word being taken. I wasn't gentle or considerate, I just lubed her and rammed it home. I knew what it was, and I wasn't ashamed. It had been a hard, brutal, grudge fuck, and even today I felt no regret for it. She resisted at first, but when I took her hand and rammed her fingers into her cunt, she was off to the races, begging me at the end to ram it in harder and faster. Today, I wasn't brutal, but I wasn't gentle either. She didn't seem to care, screaming out her climax so loud I figured if I had any neighbors home they knew what I was doing. We snuggled a little after, then I got my shower.

She had explored the condo while I was in the bathroom, and had made coffee. We sipped in silence for awhile, until she started talking about how great the girl's rooms were. "I let them decorate, within reason. I wanted to create a safe space, their own sanctuary so to speak. I know our split was hard on them, so I wanted to do my best to make sure they knew I still loved them."

She sighed. "We don't have stupid kids, honey. When you left, the hard questions started. Kathlyn knew it had to do with the vacation, and once, when she was really angry at me, she told me she wished she had stayed home with you, that maybe if she had we'd still be together. What was I supposed to say to that? I just kept on loving them, and things settled down."

"You know they never liked your husband."

She flushed. "I know. Marrying him was a mistake."

I flinched, remembering when she'd said the same thing about me. She had her head down, so she didn't notice.

"Looking back, I don't know why I married him. Maybe I was just lonely, and he was there. We met when his company wanted mine to find them locations for his new chain. He was handsome, intelligent, and charming. Things started coming apart right after we married. He wanted the girls to go to an expensive boarding school, the same one he had attended. His mother was British, and that's a pretty common practice there for the affluent. When the girls found out they had a fit, and said they would live with you instead of me shipping them off. It took a lot of hugs and talking to convince then it was never an option. Before, they had tolerated him, after, they ignored him.

He had invested a lot of his own money in the new chain his company had started. it was his baby, and was astounded when America didn't embrace the concept of Thai fast food. The numbers and reviews were horrible. When they started losing money, he came to me, wanting me to pour a million into the chain, to prop it up."

I interrupted her with my laugh. She was pissed when she looked at me, knowing what I was thinking.

"When I refused, things started going downhill. Of course, I had him sign an ironclad prenupt. Hard experience had taught me that, at least."

I couldn't help grinning. She wasn't looking at me, but I knew she knew. I had more money now than I did then. Lew had set me up with his investment advisor. His fees seemed high, but the meeting left me feeling good. "I don't operate like most advisors. I don't farm you out to a bunch of mutual funds. I personally pick every stock I want you to invest in and put my money where my mouth is." It was enough for me, and after a little over two years I had made back the money I paid Lew and was about a hundred grand ahead.