When they had finished and gotten dressed again, they snuck back onto the path and dashed ahead, keeping as quiet as possible. They joined the group from behind, luckily not having been noticed by anyone. From there they separated again, Jason moving off to the side, Veronica blending into the crowd.
Several times a week did the group meet up, and each time Veronica and Jason found themselves sneaking away, hiding from curious eyes and making hot, sweaty love. Their locations varied depending on where the walk was taking place, but they weren't very discerning: public washrooms; behind buildings; in a copse of trees. Every place afforded them new opportunities to explore each other's bodies, to sate their lustful desire for one another.
One day, after making love, Jason gave Veronica a folded piece of paper. She opened it up and saw a phone number — his phone number. He said that she should call if she ever wanted to meet up outside of group meetings. Veronica's heart felt swollen, and she said that she would, putting the number in her purse. They kissed and Veronica felt the ground leave her feet as Jason picked her up, holding her tight.
~~~
At home, Veronica was glad to find out that things between her and Greg were steadily improving. He was helping out around the house more, and as the weeks passed she found her anger with him slowly dissipate. He wasn't that bad of a guy, when it came down to it. And besides, she had something else in her life that was making her happy, even if Greg didn't know about it.
One night, at dinner, Greg asked if he could join her in their bed. At first Veronica didn't know if that was a good idea -- she had become used to sleeping on her own, and introducing Greg back into her life in that way might make things complicated. But he really seemed to have changed. They hadn't fought once since that day, and she had begun seeing in him the things that made her love him all those years ago, when they were still young.
She said yes, and that night Greg and she went to bed together for the first time in almost a month. They changed into their pajamas together and got in under the covers. Greg came up and spooned Veronica from behind, a hand draped over her stomach, like he used to do. She felt the warmth of his body and it was comfortable, being held in bed after so many nights alone.
She felt his head nuzzle into her shoulder and his lips kissed her there, softly. She could feel the stubble of his cheeks as he pushed her hair away, kissing up towards her neck. Veronica closed her eyes. His hand began sliding up and down her stomach, his hips already grinding into her from behind.
As his kisses reached the side of her neck he grabbed onto one of her breasts, squeezing it through her t-shirt. She felt the familiar hardness pressing into her from behind, Greg's breathing becoming heavy as he fondled her breast, pinching at her nipples.
His kisses came heavier as he moved around to Veronica's mouth. She turned her head and their lips met, his tongue penetrating into her mouth with borderline ferocity. He grabbed onto her other breast and gave that one the same treatment, his hardness digging into her ass, pushing up into her unaroused body.
His hand left her chest and quickly found the waistband of her panties. He hooked his fingers in and pulled them down, sliding the fabric out from underneath Veronica's body. W
hen they were off he did the same with his own underwear. Veronica felt him springing up against her thigh, a cold smear running along her skin.
He started shuffling his weight over her, climbing on top of her body as Veronica rolled complacently onto her back. She spread her legs and in the darkness felt him try to find his way into his destination. At last he made it and she winced as he pushed into her. He kissed her again, his breathing hard as he kept insisting his body enter hers.
When he was finally inside of her he ground his hips frantically. She heard him grunt, his body hot, her own in slight pain and discomfort. The image of her and Jason flashed in her mind, Jason's hold on her firm but tender, his body lovely, masculine. Being with Greg right now was nothing like that.
Veronica heard Greg groan and his body shuddered as he suddenly released himself inside of her. She felt her body flood with warmth as he collapsed on top of her, panting heavily, his head down beside her own. After a minute he rolled off of her, reaching over and grabbing onto her breast again, massaging it once more.
Veronica closed her legs as she heard Greg's breathing begin to subside.
"I'm just going to go clean up," she said, sliding out of bed away from his body and his hand. She went to the bathroom and wiped away as much of the mess as she could, dropping the Kleenex in the toilet.
When she came back she could hear Greg snoring, already asleep. She stopped where she was, listening to him in the dark. Instead of joining him in the bed, she grabbed her dressing gown and put it on, cinching it shut at the waist. Tip-toeing to the door, she left the room and went downstairs. There she sat in her chair and turned on the light, picking up her book. Snuggling up in a sitting position, she turned to her place and started reading.
~~~
"What's the matter, my dear? Aren't you enjoying your mutton?"
Lady Violet snapped out of the daydream she was having and looked up across the long table at her husband. He had both knife and fork in hand and was chewing voraciously on the large piece of meat in his mouth.
"Is it too well-done for you? I can have the chef do it again if you'd like."
"No, it's fine," Violet replied, and she looked down at the elegant fine china in front of her. On it was a rare and bloody slice of mutton, surrounded by vegetables and mashed potatoes. She cut a piece of the meat off and put it in her mouth. It tasted bland but she smiled to appease her husband, who was watching her intently.
"It's delicious," she said, and he nodded.
"Good, yes, best mutton money can buy!"
Lady Violet chewed the meat slowly as she returned to her thoughts. It had been two weeks since her rescue from the pirate ship and all she had been able to think about was that one moment, that fateful second when she and Emmanuel were together, not as kidnapper and captive but as man and woman, as two lovers held in embrace.
Now that she had returned to her old ways of life, she became starkly aware of just how different things had become to her. Whereas before she would think nothing of wearing fancy outfits and talking down to her servants, now the clothing felt too stiff, the servants too much like her equal. She no longer enjoyed the forced conversations at dinner parties, the constant intellectual rivalry amongst the men who claimed to be friends. Instead she longed for the rugged camaraderie that the pirates had had, all the drinking and yelling and engaging in legitimate, manly fun.
And what was more, ever since she'd been rescued, she felt as though her feelings toward Roland had changed. He was her dear husband, and had been for six long years now. But even though he cared for her just as dearly as he had before, she wasn't sure that she felt the same way about him.
For instance, whenever they walked together in the park, Violet found herself becoming bored too easily, longing for the raucous nature of the pirate ship. Their meals together felt cold and detached, and dinner parties became almost a chore to her mind.
What's more, Roland's touch felt almost to be that of a stranger's. Violet no longer felt the connection she had once had with her husband. Her thoughts, and her heart, kept returning to the man on the ship, Emmanuel. That man had offered her a glimpse into a different life. And that man had stolen her heart and left her, cold and alone, to await the return of a life she had once lead.