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Chapter
21
"What!" I said with
a defensiveness that would have undoubtedly earn me a severe punishment
if it weren't for our 'time out.'
Linda giggled, "I know
a lot more about you and Margo than you think. Margo was over visiting
my mom about a week before she left. They were talking in the sewing
room where mom was making a dress -- for my dad." She paused to
giggle. "What Margo didn't know is that the heat vent in the sewing
room conducts noise very well into my room. Your wife was pouring
her heart out to my mom."
"I heard her say, 'Eden,
how do you and Bob do it? Together all these years and still there's
obvious sexual attraction there. Bob seems so polite and attentive.
Tom is such an oaf. I mean, I like his rugged manliness at times,
but he just ... Well, there's no spark in bed. He comes to bed,
does a little kissing, hops on, gets it off, and gets off. I'm left
totally unsatisfied.'"
"My mom asked the right
question. 'How often does he have sex?'"
"Margo laughed, 'Funny
you should put it that way. We have sex several times a week.
He has sex nearly every day. I've caught him masturbating more than
once. He gets into that girlie magazine collection of his and beats
off sometimes a couple of times a day. You'd think he'd learn to
flush after leaving his come in the toilet.'"
"'How do you feel about
that?' mom asked"
"'I feel a little taken
for granted. I do the best I can with sex, and he still has to go
elsewhere for satisfaction. What's worse, the bedroom's not the
only place he ignores my needs. Just once, I'd like to get some
help around the house. It's like he came straight to me from his
mom. He lives in a fantasy word where beds make themselves, carpets
get vacuumed automatically, meals appear miraculously whenever he's
hungry, and I'm supposed to feel like hopping in the sack after
doing all this.'"
I was feeling very uncomfortable
listening to all this. Not only because it's what Margo really though
of me, but also because it was true, and I never knew I was doing
it. I just expected that Margo was supposed to do all these things.
She was right, I was an oaf.
Linda looked at me and
said, "Do you want me to go on?"
Normally, the macho
me couldn't stand all this berating by women, however, in the past
week these two girls taught me humility. In this humility I found
the strength to say, "yes."
"Margo was really upset.
It sounded like she was crying. My mom tried to make her feel better.
She was successful, then Margo really opened up. My mom asked some
very intimate questions about your relationship and love making.
The responses were not very flattering. Mr. Greer, you are not giving
your wife what she wants and deserves."
I didn't want to believe
my ears. Linda was right, of course, the events of the last week
certainly opened my eyes to that. But how did an 18-year-old get
to be so smart?
"What do I do?" I asked.
Linda laughed, "That's
what she said, your wife, that is. She asked my mom what to do and
mom said, 'You have to take charge.' 'How do I do that?" Margo asked.
'Can you trust me?" my mom responded."
Linda paused, raised
her arms in a "stick 'em up" pose, palms up, circled her hands,
and looked up as if she was indicating that the gesture was to embrace
the newly painted room. "All this was all a set-up."
Linda dropped her arms
and fixed her gaze on me. "You've been had. One of the things Margo
told my mom was how you look at younger women whenever the two of
you go out. That was a weakness we could exploit. My dad didn't
have the flu at all. It was all a ploy to get me into the house
to assess the situation. The way you looked at me that first day
confirmed your wife's report. I was worried when nothing happened
immediately on the second day. I was afraid I'd either have to escalate
my plans or back out and let dad finish a routine painting job.
Then I caught you sniffing at my sneaker; that blew the door wide
open!"
"I called Kim while
you were still in the bathroom, and told her we had 'a live one.'
Kim and I started there and then on how we were going to train you."
"Congratulations, you
have passed what could be considered the kindergarten of your new
life style. You have a lot more to learn, but you're off to a good
start."
"However, you are going
to have to learn more. There are some things you are going to have
to change right now."
"First, you are going
to have to learn to be smarter with your money. Instead of paying
$50 a seat to sit in a gym and watch a bunch of tall millionaires
dressed in shorts and undershirts run back and forth doing something
called 'dribbling,' you could be spending money on Margo. That $50
could go a long way towards a romantic dinner and an evening of
dancing."
"Margo says that you
spend a lot of time swatting at and swearing at a little dimpled
ball. You will use your time more productively from now on. You'll
need some new hobbies, some with tangible outcomes."
Linda leafed through
some women's magazines. "All you need is right here. You admitted
that you are beginning to understand how much trouble Margo goes
through to look good for you. I'll bet she spends a fortune at the
hairdressers. Look at this hairstyle magazine. If you could learn
to style Margo's hair, you could take the money she spends, combine
it with the greens fees you won't be spending, and use it for more
productive things, like your next hobby."
Linda fanned out the
magazines and read off some of the titles as she suggested new hobbies
for me. "Better Homes and Gardens has a number of special books
on decorating. That den of yours is the pits, it needs a woman's
touch. Here, look at this, you can redecorate the kitchen and bathrooms.
Now that you have the rest of the house painted, they'll need attention
too. I think a country motif would work well, but that's something
for Margo to decide."
"Here we go, something
you can do on those winter evenings. You can do country crafts or
quilting. Ooh, look at this, 'Holiday Cooking' -- There are so many
new skills you can learn."
"But most of all, you
have to condition yourself to think of Margo first. Before you do
anything, ask yourself, 'Will this please Margo?' if the answer
isn't yes, you should think of doing something else."
I heard a car pulling
up in the driveway. I was getting apprehensive. I couldn't take
any more embarrassment. Linda touched the tip of her index finger
to the top of my lip to indicate that I should keep silent. "Don't
worry, she assured me. Nothing bad is going to happen to you."
I trusted her. I relaxed.
Linda continued, "Of
course, you are only one half of the team. Margo is going to have
to learn how to dominate. My mom assures me that she is a promising
student."
Suddenly, I understood.
The door opened. There
stood Eden Worthington and Margo. They had Margo's bags in their
hands. Apparently Eden had picked up Margo at the airport. Margo
looked exactly the same as when she left, however she looked over
the scene with an air of confidence. She had expected this. Her
knowing gaze changed everything. Margo never excited me this much
before. I knew I loved her more deeply than ever and that our relationship
was changed forever. I rose, curtsied, and said, "Welcome home,
Mistress Margo."
-End
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