Doubles Match

Doubles Match



Melvin Good didn’t complain when his wife began walking around in the nude at home.

It was her way of celebrating their new found independence from kids. Mary Beth, the youngest, left immediately after high school. She went to college, majored in Human Resources and promptly moved to Arizona. She chucked her degree for a career in photography, met a man and produced two grandkids. The happy family remained out West. Melvin Jr. was another story. He moved into the basement and wouldn’t leave. Sharon said that he hadn’t yet found himself. Melvin thought that what he needed was a job. Finally, at age thirty-five, he showed up for breakfast with suitcase and guitar. He had met a girl and was moving to Key West. Just like that. One minute you think they’ll never leave and the next, you’re pushed headlong into an abyss that’s called the empty nest.

Melvin thought it was great. He could finally re-claim the basement space for a workshop. Sharon cried for three days before shedding her clothes. She still insisted on closing the bedroom door during sex. Go figure. The novelty of being a nudist wore off after a week. By then, Sharon had wheedled her way into the cruise she had never gotten. Melvin stayed queasy the whole time on the boat. He kept the grumbling to a minimum, figuring he was earning extra golf days back home. As often is the case, he couldn’t have been more wrong.

The problem was two-fold. First, Sharon was a whirling dervish at work and at home. The only time she sat still was to sleep. Second, she had no friends. Unlike Melvin with his legion of golf, poker and fishing buddies, she had no one. The empty nest was turning into his torture chamber as he assumed the role of Sharon’s friend. He gave up Saturday mornings and they scoured the city for yard sales. Next, they joined a bridge club and she began to talk about taking dance lessons. The whole thing was getting out of control. He was at the point of paying someone to be her friend when she went out and found her own. It was as unexpected as Mel Jr. running off to Key West.

“You’ll never guess what happened to me at lunch today,” Sharon said, coming in the door with two bags of groceries in her arms.

“You had an affair with Mr. Willis and in gratitude; he deeded half the company to you.”

“Funny, dear,” she dumped her load on the kitchen table. “If I ever let that man touch me, he’ll have to cough up the whole works. Remember me telling you I wanted to change the drapes in the bedroom? Well, I went to the mall during lunch and was in the store when this little boy walks by holding a soccer ball. He was just the cutest thing!”

Melvin paused with his hand in the bag. Sharon told the greatest stories, always gesturing and acting out. At the moment, she was marching along and holding the ball.

“What’s this?” He pulled out a plastic container.

“Bean sprouts. Anyway, all of a sudden, he drops the ball and kicks it right at me! I had like, two seconds and threw my hands up and caught it!”

Sharon had her hands up and was smiling victoriously. Melvin hadn’t seen her as excited since losing five pounds. Apparently, she had a secret passion for catching soccer balls in malls.

“That’s great honey but what about these sprouts?”

“You put them on salads. Will you let me finish my story?”

Salads? She might as well of yelled, bomb! Knowing he wasn’t likely to find any red meat or Cheetos in the bags, he shoved them aside and dropped into a chair.

Sharon dumped her purse on the table and began taking off her earrings. “So I roll the ball back to the little boy and this lady comes up to me. She goes on and on about my hand eye co-ordination and reaction time. We talk about drapes, museums, Broadway shows and guess what else? Tennis! We made a tennis date for Saturday morning!”

What? Could it be true that Sharon had a new best friend? He was willing to forego red meat and Cheetos for the rest of his life if that were the case.

“That’s great, honey. I’ll go play golf while you’re gone.”

“Don’t be silly. We’re having a doubles match.”

“We?”

Sharon nodded, “And the Diagos.”

Melvin stared at her. He was doomed and being fed bean sprouts for a last meal. All he could do was sit in stoic silence as she talked about her new friends.

Nueva, pronounced as Nova, was a youthful fifty and married to a Cuban tennis instructor. Rueben, twenty years her junior, was an excellent cook and gifted painter. Sharon opined that he was probably hung like a horse with twice the stamina. Anyway, one should pronounce the last name as, Di-ahh-go. Rueben was sensitive because that’s how he signed his work. Sharon tried the name in three distinct syllables, exhaling on the ahh. Melvin wasn’t having any of it. He sat at the table, staring at bean sprouts and thinking about kicking a little kid’s ass for showing up with a soccer ball. He started the mess and now, Melvin was playing tennis with a couple of screw balls.

With only five days till the doubles match, Sharon was on a mission. She bought new racquets, shoes, matching outfits and a jock strap for Melvin. He considered reminding her that they hadn’t played in twenty years but she was too far gone. Instead, he held up the jock strap.

“This is a small. I haven’t worn that size since junior high.”

“It’s an adult small and needs to be tight to hold things in place.”

“How would you know? I’m the one with the balls around here. At least I think so!”

Sharon stopped in her tracks. Her brows arched in surprise and quickly scrunched low over her eyes. The lips followed, going to a thin hard line. She was pissed and brushed past him without a word. Melvin followed at a safe distance and watched her attack the hall closet in search of an old exercise mat. When she found it, she turned and went into the bedroom. Melvin hesitated and trailed behind, hanging at the door. He still held the jock strap in his hand. Sharon wasn’t happy to see him.

“Will you leave me alone? You can go and tie a burlap sack around your nuts for all I care!”

“Look, I was just saying-”

“I know what you’re saying,” Sharon tossed the mat on the bed. “You hate change. If it doesn’t involve beer, cigars and dirty jokes, you’re not interested. Well what about me! Am I supposed to sit around, staring at the wall while you’re out gallivanting with your buddies? It wouldn’t hurt you to meet the Diagos and some of their friends at Mont Shannon.”

“Mont Shannon?”

He would have asked more but the door slammed in his face. He knew enough. Mont Shannon was an ultra exclusive gated community with multi-million dollar homes and a championship golf course. People like himself didn’t play there. However, with a connection like the Diagos, it might be possible to wrangle a tee time. Damn! Why did women always leave out the most important details? If he could pull this off, he’d gladly play tennis. He’d even wear a burlap sack!

The first order of business was damage control. When in doubt, always admit you’re wrong. I’m sorry are the two most important words for a husband. It should be a mandatory part of wedding vows. Instead of, I do, go ahead and apologize. It won’t be the last time. With Sharon stewing behind closed doors, that part would have to wait.

Melvin trotted down to the basement and swept out his work space. He stowed away tools and set up the tread mill. Mel Jr. had left weights behind and Melvin added those to the brand new work out room. Sharon was impressed when he dragged her down later. She wasn’t quick to cool but a well placed, I’m sorry, sealed the deal. The rest of the week passed in harmony and when Saturday rolled around, they were ready for Rueben and Nueva.

She lectured him all the way to Mont Shannon. Melvin was determined not to complain about the tightness of his jock strap and just listened. He figured a couple of hours on the court to fulfill his obligation, weasel a tee time with Rueben and hit the road.

“Remember, the Diagos have eclectic taste. If you don’t understand something, smile and nod. Please don’t burp, scratch or tell any of your jokes. I doubt the Diagos would think them funny.”

“I guess a good long fart is out of the question?”

“Melvin!”

“Just kidding,” he smiled. “Relax; these people can’t be so different from us. They have more money, that’s all. Frankly, that doesn’t impress me.”

“Oh really? That sounds kind of shallow, coming from a man who spends a hundred dollars a week on the lottery.”

“I know, four hundred a month, forty-eight a year. Don’t start up with that again.”

“Stop!”

“Honey, we can’t win if we don’t play.”

“No, I mean, stop the car. This is the house.”

The entrance was flanked by brick columns with bronze lion’s heads on top. He followed a circular drive that led to a two story brick monstrosity, compete with four columns. On the front lawn was a flowing fountain that featured a man and women, both nude. The figures were six feet high and the man appeared to be chasing the woman. He was reaching with a hand that was inches from her generous rear.

“Holy shit, look at that!” Melvin stopped the car in the driveway.

“It’s art, Melvin. Quit acting like a tourist and follow the drive around back.”

“Looks like porn to me. What kind of people put that out front in full view? No telling what they paid for it and the guy doesn’t even have an erection!”

Sharon’s brows were starting to scrunch up. Melvin took a last look and drove to the rear. There was a three car garage and a pool with gazebo. Beyond was the tennis court, complete with lights for night play. Rueben and Nueva were standing at center court. She was taller than he expected and lacked softness or curves. Her yellow sun dress hung like a limp sack and was suspended by two straps. With the minimum cleavage, Nueva could have shrugged and the dress would collapse at her feet with lightening speed. Her shoulder blades moved in rhythm as she rubbed sunscreen on Rueben’s shoulders.

The guy looked like he was posing. His face was held upward to the morning sun and he stood like a statue. Dark skinned with an abundance of chest hair, he was as lean and long as his mate. He was wearing a pair of cut-off jeans and scuffed tennis shoes. Melvin felt over dressed in his crisp new tennis whites. Unconcerned, Sharon bounced out of the car and waved.

“Mel-veen and Charon!” Reuben voice was a booming baritone. “I feel we are already good friends. No? My Nueva, she talk and talk about this day like a little kid at Christmas.”

“Don’t let him fool you, he does all the talking around here,” Nueva smiled and offered a hand.

Melvin grasped the long fingers and looked up into her face. The woman wasn’t pretty by any means. Her glossy brown hair was gathered back in a bun. The effect was maximum exposure for a long narrow face with hard cheekbones and a pointed chin. Her smile was huge and literally stretched from ear to ear. She looked predatory with her teeth exposed.

Sharon seemed more impressed with Rueben. She giggled and blushed as he kissed her hand. Melvin couldn’t blame her; the guy had the scruffy good looks of a male model with the bristled strong chin and liquid brown eyes.

“You have a beautiful home,” Sharon cooed.

“Ahh, you are much too kind,” Rueben smiled and kissed her hand again. “I think you would make good partner. Yes?”

For once, Sharon was struck dumb. She nodded and followed Reuben onto the court. Melvin joined Nueva on the opposite side and they lobbed balls back and forth, warming up. Thirty minutes later, winded and sweating bullets, Melvin stepped up to the line to serve the first game. The big first serve had always been his forte. Reuben was waiting, relaxed and confident. Melvin decided to cross him up with his trick shot, a half speed spinner that bounced at a crazy angle. It almost worked but Reuben lunged forward, fought off the spin and returned a perfect drop shot. Melvin sprinted pass the baseline, reaching with his racquet. The yellow ball was falling in slow motion. Anticipating the bounce, he cut right and his left calf thumped as if hit by a ball bat. Seized by a cramp, he went down hard.

His failed effort to retrieve a drop shot resulted in two skinned knees, a sprained pinky and the cramp. It wasn’t his first but definitely the worse. Reuben was no stranger to seized muscles. Using strong hands, he massaged the muscle till it relaxed enough that Melvin could straighten his leg. They settled him on a bench with an ice pack and resumed play.

Melvin was embarrassed and slumped with his head down. Maybe it was time to listen to Sharon and get serious about fitness. Heck, Nueva was only a few years younger than he and she moved around the court like a twenty year old. It was hard to imagine her snaring a guy like Reuben. The lady was built like a stick with feet. Even he had bigger breasts than her. By comparison, Sharon had sturdy hips, comfortable tits and a nice ass. Melvin liked the way his wife was built. He raised his head to watch her. Flushed with exertion and excitement, she was happy and looked younger than ever. It was quite the trick to meet her needs while serving his own. All he had to do now was get to Rueben and ask about golf. The opportunity came as soon as the match wound down.

“Mel-veen, my friend! The leg is hurting but you live to play another day. Yes?”

“Uh…yeah, sure. Say, I heard that this place has a golf course. Do you play?”

“Golf?” Reuben ran a towel through his close cropped hair. “What is this game? Old men and women chase little ball around with stick. You wan fun? Reuben show you fiesta! Nueva! Charon! We fiesta tonight!”

Tonight? What the hell was this? The two women were screaming like school girls, caught up in the excitement. Melvin didn’t have a chance. He’d been ambushed by a crazy Cuban. Getting it from the wife was one thing but a stranger? He had no choice but to go into survival mode which meant, play dead till the danger passed. He hobbled meekly to the car and let Sharon drive. She was chattering like a canary. Melvin didn’t want to rain on her parade but something was bothering him.

“You know when Nueva was telling us to come back at six and not to bring anything? She mentioned that swim suits were optional. I’m thinking the wackos are planning on skinny dipping! So, before you say one word, I ain’t showing this body to a bunch of strangers.”

“Easy tiger,” Sharon patted his arm. “The only person I’m skinny dipping with is you. We can bring suits. Besides, I like your body.”

“You do?”

“I really do. When we get home, I’ll show you how much”

Sometimes it’s nice to get ambushed. He couldn’t remember the last time they had made love in the middle of the day. Sharon smelled like sunshine and sweat. She didn’t care that the sheets were clean, they rumpled them with fervor. Sleep came easy in the languid afterglow. Ever the practical one, Sharon awoke in time, shook Melvin and dashed off to the bathroom. By six, they were standing at the door of the Diagos.

Nueva let them in. She was dressed in a peach blouse with white shorts. With her hair down, she appeared less severe and almost pretty. Her make-up was a tad heavy and failed to hide the crinkling at the eyes. With the woman gabbing, Melvin wandered a few steps along the foyer. One of Rueben’s paintings hung on the wall, lit by tiny spots overhead. Melvin wasn’t sure but the scene appeared to be a fierce sun with three tiny stick figures, walking into it. The last figure was small, probably a child and carried a single flower. All three had flames spouting from their heads.

“One of my favorites,” Nueva said over his shoulder. “I call it, Hope.”

Walking into the sun sounds more like stupid, Melvin thought. It looked like the work of a five year old, let loose with finger paints. Per earlier instructions, he smiled and nodded. At least Sharon was impressed. She was gaping at the picture in wonder. Melvin decided to have a little fun.

“How much would something like this cost?”

“Oh, between five and seven.”

“Hundred?”

Nueva laughed, “No, darling. Thousand.”

“Wow!” Melvin stared and rubbed his jaw. “Honey, wouldn’t this piece look great in our living room?”

Sharon’s eyes were daggers. She opened her mouth but nothing came out, something Melvin seldom got to see. Fortunately, she was saved by Rueben. He appeared still clad in apron and white puffy chef’s hat. Ringing a tiny bell, he announced that dinner was served.

The entrée was called Ropa Vieja, which translated means, old clothes. The name was fitting due to the appearance of the shredded flank steak, simmering in tomato sauce. Also, there were red beans and rice, plantains, fried yucca and black bean soup. To wash it all down were silver buckets of iced beer. As if that wasn’t enough, dessert was on the menu. Flan de coco y Ron, a coconut rum flan was served with espresso.

The dinner lasted two hours. Melvin was stuffed and had a nice buzz going. He counted five empty beer bottles in front of him. Sharon wasn’t feeling any pain, either. She had an orchid from the table arrangement stuck behind her ear and was practicing rumba steps with Nueva. Rueben laughed, slapped Melvin on the back and dragged him off to the study.

These people didn’t know when to quit! Armed with a cigar and glass of rum, Melvin sank into padded leather and put his aching leg on an ottoman. He was two degrees from numb and couldn’t keep his eyes open. Undeterred, Rueben began spinning a tale about his Grandfather, leaving Cuba. The guy took down the front door, tied plastic milk jugs to the edges and paddled to Miami. Melvin nodded and fell asleep.

Nueva woke him up, speaking softly. He was disoriented, couldn’t make sense of it and lurched upward, almost falling. Nueva caught and steadied him.

“What time is it? Where’s Sharon?”

“Out here,” Nueva patted his arm and turned.

Out of habit, he followed the woman in front of him. That’s what husbands do. She led him to the back deck that overlooked the pool. The crickets were chirping and he heard the bubbling of the hot tub. He rubbed his bleary eyes and looked at Nueva. She was barefoot and wearing a robe.

“Where are the others?”

“Oh, they’ll be out in a bit. Sharon wanted to see the studio. Rueben thought you might like the spa; it’s good for the muscles. He always gets in when he’s hurting.”

“I forgot my suit.”

“You can sit on the edge and dangle.”

Melvin looked at the hot tub. It was recessed into the deck. With no steps to climb, he figured, why the hell not? He walked up to the edge and sat, sticking his legs into the warm gurgling water, shoes and all. He caught a glimpse of naked hips and lean ass cheeks. Nueva reclined up to her shoulders and faced him across the steamy warmth.

Holy shit! She was naked and he was about ten seconds from being in real trouble. It was one thing to look at women in a magazine. That was expected in males, but the real thing? Sharon would never believe it but he was too drunk to move. The one good thing about his predicament was that he could say what he wanted and blame it on the booze, later.

“You and Rueben are swingers, aren’t you?”

Nueva laughed. “That’s so retro. I haven’t heard that term in a while. It makes me think of lava lamps, polyester and sideburns. Rueben couldn’t relate, we’re libertines according to him. But yes, we do swing a bit. Are you shocked?”

“Not really.” Melvin leaned forward, letting the spray bathe his face. “The fountain out front seems…suggestive.”

“What you mean is tacky but thanks for being sensitive. Sometimes I miss that with Rueben and his mucho macho persona. Our cultural difference does keep things interesting. It’s the age difference that gets me. I was trying to tell him about Linda Lovelace of Deep Throat fame and realized that he wasn’t born when the movie was made.”

“I remember that one. It was quite the sensation at the time.”

“Tell me about it. That woman was an inspiration. I use to practice with a banana. The boys in high school loved me and the girls thought I was a tramp. Hey, I just loved sucking cock. Still do.”

Nueva pushed upward to expose bare breasts. The mounds were mere suggestions but the nipples were working overtime to compensate. Those babies could put a man’s eye out! They were thick and at least an inch long. Nueva stroked them with her fingers. Melvin tore his eyes away and looked back at the door.

“Don’t worry, Sharon is fine. Rueben will keep her occupied for a while.”

Her predatory smile was a slap in the face. The woman wanted to devour him! He thought of Sharon and needed to find her. When he tried to get up, the room began to spin. The hot steam from the water wasn’t helping. He swallowed, took a few breaths and closed one eye. That seemed to help and he stood, swallowed once and vomited a fine Cuban meal in the general direction of Nueva. Even as she screamed, he was stumbling into the house.

Where the heck was the studio? A man could get lost for a month in this place. He paused at a stairway and heard Rueben laughing from above. Melvin took one look at the stairs and made the longest climb of his life. It helped with the dizziness to keep one eye closed but reaching the top, they both popped open. The image would be etched in his mind for a long time. Sharon was backed into a corner, clutching herself. Surprise and fear was on her face. Rueben, leaning into her, turned his head, smiled and put some distance between them. Melvin stepped around an easel and marched into the room.

“Did you touch my wife?”

“Mel-veen, please, you’re upset. We were just talking.”

Melvin looked into his eyes. If the guy was lying, he was going to hit him in the mouth. Rueben could probably kick his ass but he was sure that he could vomit again. It was a matter of aiming in the right direction.
Rueben broke eye contact and walked over to a window. Melvin turned to Sharon.

“Are you ready to go home?”

She gave him a nod and he took her hand. They walked away without looking back.

The last thing he needed was to get pulled by the police on the way home. There was no way that Sharon would drive. She piled into the car, shrank against the door and stared out the window. She never said a word the whole way. Melvin drove slowly with two hands, thinking of the evening. When he pulled into their driveway, he turned off the car and sat there, relieved that they had made it.

“Whew! Remind me not to drink so much next time.”

Sharon finally looked at him. “I think that you… saved me. Reuben was going to kiss me.”

“Yeah, I should have gone ahead and decked him. He deserved it. At least we got out of there in time.”

Sharon’s eyes were glistening. “What bothers me is that a part of me…wanted to. I was shocked but I think I would have let him. I always thought that if anyone messed around, it would be you.”

“But nothing happened, Sharon. It was a crazy moment that we shouldn’t have gotten ourselves into. Tomorrow, we’ll be laughing about the whole thing. Heck, if my leg is better, I’ll go play tennis with you. No doubles, though.”

“Agreed. No doubles match.”