Idol Urges (3 page)

When the class was over, she and Gloria packed up their books and stepped out into the fresh air. The sky was darkening over the campus, but enough sun lit the natural landscaping, which Wendy typically ignored in her hurried pace. But tonight, she marveled at the bright greens and fragrant blossoms.

“So who is he?” Gloria asked.

“Who is who?”

“Come on. You arrive late to class, your buttons all askew and your hair mussed. You were with someone. I only want to know who this superman is who was able to pierce your hard shell and make you swoon into his arms.”

“Franco, the dishwasher,” Wendy said flatly.

Gloria laughed. “You’re kidding? I thought you’d brushed him off already. Can’t you make up your mind about him?”

They fell into step with one another as they walked toward the Mookini Library.

Wendy shrugged. “I’m not sure what came over me.”

A chill ran down her back and over her arms. She had let her guard slip. For a moment she almost let Franco touch her heart along with her body. She’d seen the pain her father caused her mother after he left.
That’s what happens when you give into your desires. That’s what happens when you throw caution to the wind and ignore what you need to do.

“I was desperate. I needed a quick fix,” Wendy said.

“Did it work?”

Wendy rolled her eyes. “No,” she sighed. “It took the edge off. But what am I supposed to do? Franco asked me out. I can’t go out with him. I can’t go out with anyone.”

“Don’t tell me you need to focus on school work. That’s all you do now,” Gloria said.

“I’m going to need every available minute to try to master organic compounds. I hate the science requirement. A relationship would wreck my GPA.”

Gloria cocked her head to one side. “I think I should invite you to my club.”

“Gloria, what makes you think I’d fit in at a social club? I’d feel out of place with all your wealthy friends.”

“It’s not that kind of club. I just want you to meet people you’ll enjoy being with. Get out a little bit.”

“I’m going to a friend’s party tomorrow.” Wendy hoped she could get Gloria off her back as well as Susan.

Gloria peered at her sideways. “I know you. You just got a poor grade on an assignment. There’s no way you’re going out tomorrow.”

“Honestly, I am.” Wendy didn’t tell her friend that she’d study before she’d leave for the party.

“Just promise to have a good time and I’ll leave you alone.”

“I promise.”
Only not too much of a good time.

She had seen her father go wherever the wind blew him and chase adrenalin rushes. She knew where having fun could lead.

****

Friday night, a pair of jeans and form-fitting sweater was as dressed up as she was going to get for Susan’s party.

On her way out of her bedroom to search for her keys, she froze. Her mother slumped in a chair at the kitchen table. It was the same position she had found her mother in when her father had left.

One day they woke up and he was gone. Leaving nothing but half of what was in the bank account and a note on the same kitchen table where her mom sat now.

At the age of seven, Wendy could read a little, but she stumbled over the words “stifled” and “freedom” written on the lined paper that had fallen to the floor from her mother’s hand.

“Mom?” Wendy recognized the same troubled tone she used sixteen years earlier.

“Oh, I didn’t hear you.” Samantha Johnson sat up and busied herself with the papers. Wendy rarely saw her mother down in the dumps. It might have taken a few months after Wendy’s father left, but Samantha had pulled herself together and done what she had to in order to provide for her daughter.

“Which bill is it?” Wendy sat next to her mother. Papers spread across the table, a yellow pad filled with calculations sitting in their midst. Wendy didn’t need to examine the numbers to know they wouldn’t add up.

“That’s just it, we’ll have to choose.” Her mother gestured to the table. “What can we go without?”

Wendy didn’t respond. Her mother still wore the scrubs from the hospital where she worked as a nurse’s aide. It was steady work, but without a degree, she earned just enough for them to squeak by and stay in their cramped but clean house.

“You work too hard for too little, Mom.”

“So do you.” For the first time, Samantha glanced up at her daughter. “Wow, you look great.”

“Thanks, Mom. I was going to a party at Susan’s, but I can stay home if you want me to.”

“Don’t be silly. You’re too young to be stuck here with me on a Friday night.”

“We could get some ice cream, do our nails, and watch a movie.” Wendy offered.

“No we can’t, the cable TV is getting cut off.” Samantha laughed. “Go and have a good time.”

“There are more important things than having fun.”

“Don’t start that with me. You are not your father. You can be responsible
and
have some carefree moments.”

“But—”

“Promise me you won’t think about all this tonight.” She waved at the bills. “Now, go.” She pointed to the door.

“Okay, Mom.” Wendy stood and kissed her mother on the cheek. “I love you and I promise not to let the bills worry me tonight. But I also promise that I’ll fix all this and get a good job.”

Wendy yanked open the screen door and waved goodbye. She wiggled it closed behind her, as it never latched correctly. She trotted down the neatly swept, but badly in need of paint, porch steps and headed toward her friend’s house.

Susan and Billy lived in the same rundown neighborhood as Wendy. The houses here sometimes didn’t withstand the big storms that came through, but they were at least well maintained and the amount of junk in the yards was kept to a minimum.

Wendy heard the classic rock music before she turned up the walkway. A cushionless, old wicker sofa and some milk crates stood in as the patio furniture. Wendy didn’t knock on the door, but entered directly into a dark living room, lit by one red and one green bulb.

The television entranced Billy and a few of his buddies. Two of the guys brandished controllers. On the screen, one bloody figure had his arm pulled off by another leather-clad character.

“Hey, Wendy. You made it.” Susan appeared from a back room carrying a beer in each hand. She shoved one at Wendy, who accepted it with a scowl.

“I made it,” Wendy said, then took a sip of the warm beer.

“Robert’s in the other room. Come on.”

Wendy rolled her eyes, but followed because the other room had to be better than this one.

Marginally better, regular bulbs cast white light, and the lack of stereo and television allowed for conversation at a normal level. About ten people sat around on the floor and in various chairs. Two people in the corner were making out. Wendy found an unoccupied bit of worn shag carpet and plopped down, cross legged.

“Wendy, this is Robert.” Susan gestured to the man on Wendy’s left.

His height was obvious, even though he sat on the floor. His long legs stretched out into the middle of the room. His dirty-blond hair was cut close to reveal a square jaw and strong neck.

“Hey,” he said.

“How are you?” Wendy replied. His aqua blue eyes flashed behind round glasses.

“Susan says you’re a student at University of Hawaii.” He stammered slightly. He only held her gaze for a moment before he looked away

Thanks, Susan. Someone just as reluctant to be set up as I am.

“Yeah, I’m still working on my Bachelor’s. Struggling to get through the chemistry requirement.”

“Oh, that can be tough for some people,” he said almost apologetically.

“What are you studying?”

“Nematode parasites in milkfish.” For the first time, he gazed straight at her.

“Are there many jobs for nematode experts?” She tried to keep the edge out of her voice, but it didn’t work.

Robert feigned interest in the carpet. “Well, not many, but it’s what I’m interested in.”

“Sorry. I didn’t mean anything by it. You should follow your passions. At least that’s what everyone tells me.”

Billy sauntered into the room and found Susan. He greeted her with a deep tongue kiss. He cradled her head in his large hand. When they separated, they gazed at each other and laughed comfortably.

Wendy studied the couple, and something twisted in her chest. How could they find their passion for each other amidst the crowd of raucous party guests?

“How do you know Susan?” Robert had followed her stare.

“We went to high school together. Billy, too. They’ve been together forever.” Her voice caught in her throat. The lucky few who could make a relationship work despite hardships.

“Billy’s my mechanic. But he became my friend right away. It’s hard not to be Billy’s friend. Susan and Billy are both so outgoing and cheerful.” Robert adjusted his legs to make room for others and brushed against Wendy’s thigh.

“Some people are like that.” Wendy took another sip of her tepid beer and set it down on the shag carpet. The plastic cup didn’t balance well and some beer sloshed over.

“Yuck, that’ll smell tomorrow if I don’t sop it up.” Wendy rummaged in her bag. She pulled out a wad of clean, but frayed tissues wrapped around something that felt like a candy bar.

“Here, let me.” Robert took the tissues from her to blot the liquid. Wendy was left holding the small tiki idol from yesterday.

“What’s that?” Robert asked.

Heat swelled in her body. A hum in her brain blocked out all thoughts except one—to get Robert naked and between her legs.

Chapter Three

“What
is
that?” Robert asked again.

“Oh, some weird woman gave this to me yesterday and I forgot to throw it away.” Wendy tried to keep the hoarseness out of her voice.

He peered over her shoulder. “Well, don’t throw it away. It looks real.” His chin brushed against her hair.

More people had come into the room, causing him to move even closer. The silky blond hair on his arms feathered against her skin.

“Oh, I don’t think so.” She didn’t see any place to dump it so she dropped it back into her bag. “Wow, what’s in that beer anyway?” She held her head in her hands.

“Huh?”

“Did they mix something in the beer? I feel all…all…I don’t know.”

Robert picked up her beer and tasted it. “I don’t think Susan’s the type to slip something in your drink. Tastes fine to me.”

Wendy pulled at her low-cut shirt, but it still constricted her. A throbbing grew between her legs, the rhythm speeding up. She regarded Robert, his ridiculous glasses and pinched expression, and all she wanted to do was get him naked.

“You okay?” he asked.

“Yeah, come with me.” She stood and beckoned with her hand for him to follow.

All the rooms of the house were filled with people, but Billy had a shed where he fixed up old motors. She led Robert out the side door and into the shed.

A bare bulb hung down. Wendy pulled the string and a circle of yellow light made the oil-stained concrete floor visible. She pulled out a metal folding chair and set it down in the center.

“Sit,” she ordered.

Robert sat in the chair slowly. “Wendy, I’m not sure. I mean, someone could come in. And I don’t know—”

“Shhh,” she said as she pulled down an old sleeping bag stored on a shelf. She unrolled it at his feet. “Watch me.”

A small part of Wendy’s mind told her she shouldn’t be doing this. But the rest of her shouted that part down. Only the beating of her heart and the coursing of her blood made any sense right now.

The music from the party drifted faintly into the shed and Wendy swayed to it, with each beat, unfastening one button of her shirt. Shedding her top, she reached behind to unhook her bra and gazed at Robert through heavy-lidded eyes. When her breasts spilled out, she sighed in relief.

“Now take off my pants.” Wendy stood directly in front of him, his face level with her breasts. She pushed them closer until he had to reach out and caress them. He guided one into his mouth and the heat inside her reached inferno levels.

“My pants!” she repeated.

Robert obeyed and unsnapped her jeans, peeled them down over her ass and legs. The strap of her panties snapped as he tugged. Wendy took a step back.

Each beat of the music moved her to slide her panties down and press a finger against her sex. She touched her moisture—warm and ready. She was slick, and she had to rub hard to make enough friction to begin to satisfy herself.

She followed Robert’s gaze, his eyes fixed on her hand and her pussy. He shifted on the seat again, the bulge in his jeans growing, surely becoming uncomfortable.

“Now your turn.” She kneeled on the sleeping bag in front of him and bent her head over his lap.

When she reached out to unzip his pants, he groaned, gripping the sides of the chair. She opened his fly and bathed him in warm breath when his cock sprang forth. In an instant, she took him fully into her mouth.

“Oh, yes.” He released a breath of relief.

She dipped her head up and down, sucking hard on him. His solid erection glided over her tongue. He wove his fingers through her hair. With a final pull, she scraped her teeth along his shaft.

“Ow!” he cried.

“Oh, did that hurt?” She mocked innocence. “You’ll have to punish me.” Wendy got onto hands and knees, displaying her ass. She peeked at him over her shoulder. “You’ll have to spank me.”

“Uh…”

“Go on.” Her voice husky with desire.

Robert tapped her bottom.

“Harder!”

His next attempt left her with only a slight sting.

“HARDER!”

He drew back his arm and spanked her once. The slap reverberated off the shed walls.

“Ahhh,” Wendy sighed. “Now get a condom.” She rolled on her back and waited for Robert to cover himself with the condom he retrieved from his pants. She spread her legs wide. Her thighs quivered with anticipation.

He hovered above her.

“Go, now,” she directed.
What is taking him so long?

Slowly, his tip entered, parting her damp folds. With the stretch came the beginnings of relief, as if stepping in a warm bath to ease her muscles. She wrapped her legs around him and begged him with her hips to move faster.