Country Girl In Town

CHAPTER ONE She had wondered why he was gone so many nights of the week, but it didn't occur to her that he would be having an affair, the town was entirely too small for that sort of thing. She and Tom had fought often about their conjugal rights, and she had always ended up in tears, locking herself in the bathroom or bedroom and he would go storming out to the neighborhood bar. She didn't think that she was frigid, yet their nights had been something that she just tolerated and never really enjoyed. Her wedding night was still a painful and humiliating experience for her and she wondered what was wrong with her. s*x had been something that had never been discussed in their home and she had always taken it for granted that her virginity was the most prized gift she could give her husband. She had been a virgin when she was married, but the tender, loving, understanding man she had dated had turned into an animal once the minister had pronounced them man and wife. She shuddered with anger and shame when she remembered how he had taken her from the reception barely an hour after it had started and took her to a motel even before they bad reached the airport to go on their honeymoon. He had torn her wedding suit from her, threw her on the bed and raped her! Raped, she thought, and wondered if it was rape if you were married. At any rate, ever since that first terrible and frightening experience, she had never enjoyed s*x. She knew that she had perhaps driven her husband to find another woman, but the girl he had seduced was no more than a child, under-age, even though she had looked a lot older. She could still remember the day when her father appeared at her front door and asked for Tom. His face had been contorted in anger and he could barely speak. Tom had come to the door and listened calmly while the girl's father called him every vile name he could think of and told Tom that if he didn't marry his daughter, he would go to jail for the limit of the law. She had listened, numb and unbelieving, then ran into the bedroom and cried for hours. When Tom finally came in to talk to her she had just listened as he told her that the accusation had been true, but that it was her fault, because she had denied him once too often and after all, he was only human. She couldn't believe it, but his voice still haunted her sleep when he said that he wanted a divorce and that this child was more a woman than she could ever be. Her pride was hurt and she was trembling too severely to argue with him; besides, there was no way that she could continue to live in that town with everyone knowing that her husband had been unfaithful and was going to marry someone else. She had asked him to give her a few days to make some arrangements, then she left for Reno to get a divorce. She didn't want to sue him for adultery, the scandal would be disastrous for her and she could never hold up her head again, so she asked if he would object to her doing things her own way. He had agreed, but had moved from their apartment that same day and set up housekeeping with his new wife. The day she called Tom to tell him that the divorce was final, he married the other woman and went on with his life as though nothing at all had happened. She returned to the town to spend a few days packing her things, but she knew that she could no longer stay there. Several of her friends had gone to New York right after high school and through one of them she had contacted a women's residence and made a reservation for a month until she could find another place to live. The city was windy and cold as she walked onto Sixth Avenue and hailed a cab and gave him the address of the hotel. The residence club, as it was called, was a large yellow building on the upper East side of Manhattan, and the door to the lobby faced the East River. It would have been pleasant enough in the Spring, but in February it just looked cold and austere, unfriendly and forbidding. She was assigned a room with another woman, a girl about her own age who was also divorced. When she knocked at the door to her new room, a cheery and rather loud voice told her to come in. "I'm Janice Wolper," she said meekly, "I guess I'm your new room-mate." "Hi, I'm Sara Wilson,' the other girl said. "Welcome to the home!" She laughed and her whole face seemed to light up. Her make-up was heavy, yet she had a kind of earthy, jovial quality that Janice couldn't quite pinpoint. "I know it's not much," she continued, "but with a little luck, you'll be out of here in a week or so, no one ever stays very long!" "Why are you still here if that's the case," she asked her. "Oh, I move in here between boyfriends, which happens to be the case at the time, but just give me a few days and I'll be on the move again!" "I see," Janice answered, not knowing what else to say. "Where are you going to work?" Sara inquired. "Do you have a job?" "No ... no, but I've written to several places and I'm to have interviews tomorrow." "Well, they need a new girl in my office. Do you type?" "Yes ... at least I did in college," she answered. "Oh, oh ... an educated girl, they'll like that!" "Where do you work?" she asked, not sure she would like the same type of office, but she did need a job and right away. "It's nothing glamorous, but it's close to here and there are several swinging single men there, so that's a start!" She laughed again and moved to the other bad so that Janice could put some of her things away. "Listen," Sara told her as she began filling her drawers, "I know what you've been through and divorce is never a nice thing, but give yourself some time and you may learn to like your freedom again." "How did you know that I was divorced," Janice asked, surprised. "Oh, they always match roommates up like that and I've been divorced, so I assumed that you were too." "Just a few weeks ago," she told her. "It was awful, but I'd rather not talk about it right now." "Okay," she said, "but when you're unpacked I'll take you to the dining room and introduce you to a few of the other girls." Janice put as many of her things away as she could and stored the rest under her bed, then followed Sara to the dining room. There were women and girls of all ages, some looked as though they were on welfare and others looked as though they were show girls, heavily made up and gaudy, and some looked very much like herself, scared and confused. Sara introduced her to several of the other girls and they all ate together. She was beginning to feel more at home, but the thought of looking for a job the next day was scary, and she confided her feelings once again to Sara. "I told you not to worry about it. I know that I can fix you up. Try it, and if you don't like it, at least you're working while you look for something else!" "I guess you're right. What time do you go to work?" "We'll go in early so that I can introduce you to the boss and get you to fill out an application, so be ready to leave about eight o'clock, okay?" "Fine, I hope it works out!" The next day Janice was up at six-thirty and getting ready for her day of job hunting. She hoped that Sara's firm would hire her so she wouldn't have to look any further. "Up already," Sara called to her. "You are nervous." "I just want to find a job, anything, and I guess I am nervous. It's the first time I've ever had to find a job and I'm not sure what to do." "Honey," Sara winked at her, "With your figure and face, I doubt that anyone will even care if you type or not, so relax!" She had to laugh, Sara seemed so sure of herself and she secretly wished that she could be more like that, more open and natural. They ate breakfast and walked across the street to catch a Fifth Avenue bus to take them to the office. The bus was not crowded that early and she was glad, because she had heard so much about the pushing and shoving in New York that she wasn't sure that she would be able to handle it the very first day. They arrived at the office shortly after eight and Sara took her directly to a small office in the back of a very large room that was filled with desks, typewriters and other office machinery. "This is it," Sara told her, "It's not much but the people are nice and they aren't too strict about lunch hours and things like that." Janice didn't care what the rides were or how strict they were, all she cared about was getting a job that would keep her busy so she wouldn't have time to think about Tom with that other girl. Sara knocked lightly on the door and a strong male voice told them to come in. "Mr. Warren, this is Janice Wolper. She's just moved into the hotel, first day in New York, and she needs a job. She can type and I thought that maybe she could take June's place." "Well, maybe she can. Have a seat, Miss Wolper, and thanks Sara." Sara turned and walked out of the office, leaving her there with Mr. Warren. He smiled at her, watching her wiggle nervously in the chair, her skirt creeping just above her knees. "Ever work before," he asked. "No, I was married, so this would be my first job." "Oh, you're divorced?" he asked. "Yes ... yes, I am, does it matter?" "Not at all. In fact I prefer it because then you may stay with us longer. The single girls get married and the married ones have babies, but the divorced ones usually need their jobs and therefore we can count on them." "I never thought of it that way," she muttered. "How's your typing?" he asked, but he didn't really seem too interested in her answer, he was more intrigued with how she moved, how she held her hands, and his eyes rested on the large, full curve of her breasts. "About sixty words a minute," she lied because she had no idea how fast she could type. "That'll do," he told her. "The job isn't very challenging, but maybe in time we could move you to something else. Interested?" "I'll take it," she said, not bothering to ask the salary. "Good, fill out these forms and you can start today." Her hands were shaking as she filled in the blanks on the application and handed them back to him. His hand brushed against hers when he took the application and he grinned at her. She had never met a man like him, so sure of himself and so obvious in his admiration for her figure. It made her feel uncomfortable, but at least it assured her that she was still attractive. He showed her to her desk and introduced her to the other girls in the office. "Watch out for him," one of them warned. "He's a big flirt and a pincher!" She laughed and told them that she would be careful and thanked them for the warning. "I see you're all set," Sara said, "welcome to the ranks of the working." "Thank you so much," she said. "This really helps finding a job right away." "Don't mention it, besides I'm glad to have someone to travel back and forth to work with." She spent most of her first day just getting to know the routine in the office, but when it was about time to leave Sara told her that several of the men were going out for cocktails and would like her to join them. "I don't know," she hesitated. "Should I?" "Come on, they're harmless and besides it saves us some money. We won't be out too long." The girls put on their coats and followed the rest of the people to the elevator. "We're meeting them across the street at this little cocktail lounge. It's nothing imagine, but it's a nice place." The men were already there when they arrived and stood up to let them slide in the large booth. Sara introduced her to everyone, and one young man said, "I saw you in the office this morning, and I must say that you're the prettiest addition we've had in some time."