The Neighbor [The Complete Collection] (12 page)

—What the hell’s going on, Janey said. What deal are you talking about?

—Not now, Ben said to her. We’ve got to go. We’ll meet you all at the Best Western on Fourth Street, he said to Luke.

Luke nodded. He was in agreement, it seemed. Whatever beef he’d had with Ben had been resolved. Janey couldn’t believe it. She had a sinking suspicion that the deal had something to do with her. Had she just been traded like a cow at a meat auction? She pieced things together rapidly as Ben dragged her out of the restaurant and into one of the waiting cabs outside. Had Luke found out about the affair Suzy was having with Ben? Had Ben cut some deal with him to get himself out of trouble? Was she the one who was going to be paying for it?

IV

T
HERE WAS NOTHING FANCY OR
romantic about the Best Western on Fourth Street. It was an entirely practical and functional place, the kind of hotel that a group of real estate agents or a company sales team would use to host a conference or meeting. The lobby was spacious and clean with a white tiled floor and French doors leading to an empty restaurant that was already set up for breakfast. A generic looking chandelier hung over the whole space and lit it in a warm, yellow hue. There was no one at the reception and Ben had to ring the bell to wake the concierge. They checked in. The room cost eighty-nine dollars plus taxes. It wasn’t quite what she had in mind when she’d pictured going back to a hotel with Ben, but then, neither was this little deal he’d cut with Suzy’s husband.

—We’ve got some friends arriving after us, Ben said when they’d checked in. Will you please send them to our room?

—Certainly, the concierge said and gave Janey a second look over.

She felt cheap and used. She couldn’t believe what sort of a guy Ben had turned in to. In the space of just a few weeks he’d changed everything about their life. He was staying out late, drinking till all hours, driving home drunk and hardly even taking the time to hide the fact that he was fucking his secretary.

Now he’d made it clear that even Suzy’s husband knew about the affair, and that there was actually some shady deal going on between the two husbands.

—What the hell’s going on, Ben?

—Listen, Janey. I just made a very big deal today. Fifty grand a month is life changing. I think you can understand that.

—I understand that perfectly, but what’s it got to do with meeting your secretary and her husband at a cheap hotel?

—Can’t you just shut up for two minutes?

—Ben. Why are you speaking to me like this?

—I’m just sick of all your questions.

—Please tell me what’s going on. I’m getting scared.

—Just shut up, would you, Janey?

Janey was stunned. He’d never been so aggressive with her before. It wasn’t like him at all. Was this what she had to look forward to now that he was making some real money? Was this the kind of man he was going to turn into? Was he going to some abusive brute of an adulterer? That wasn’t quite what she had in mind when she’d married him.

She sat quietly on the side of the bed and looked around the room. There was a large, flatscreen TV on one wall and Ben had put on a football game. It wasn’t live. It looked like Buffalo was playing. Ben wasn’t even that into sports. The bed was a standard, queen-size bed with cream colored sheets and pillows. There was a lamp on each side of the bed and a phone.

—Are we going to make love? Janey said.

She was already afraid she knew the answer. Ben had no intention of sleeping with her. He was waiting for Luke to arrive so that the two men could swap wives. Janey didn’t want to sleep with Ben, in fact he disgusted her right now, but she didn’t want to be traded like a possession either.

Ben was already dozing to sleep. He opened his eyes.

—What?

—Isn’t that why we’re here?

—You know why we’re here, Janey. Don’t play coy. We’re waiting for your friend.

—
My
friend?

—Yes.
Your
friend. Luke. Isn’t that what you call him?

—Luke’s not my friend, Ben. I’ve never seen him before in my life.

—Oh really? I saw the way you were looking at him at the bar. You’ve been flirting with him all night.

—That’s a lie, Ben, and you know it is.

—Don’t give me that crap. Explain to me why he arrived at exactly the same time you did.

—I arrived alone.

—You want to fuck that guy and you know it.

—You’re crazy, Ben. You’re losing it. I’ve never seen that guy in my life. The truth is he caught you fucking Suzy so now you’re offering me to him as payment. One for one.

—That’s the stupidest thing you’ve ever said.

—Is it, Ben?

Ben didn’t answer her. He flicked the channel to some more sports. This time hockey. Janey got up from the bed. She wanted to drink some water from the tap in the washroom.

—Where do you think you’re going?

There was something menacing about Ben’s voice. Janey could tell that he’d crossed some line that he’d never crossed before. It wasn’t just that he was drunk. It was like he’d become a different person. She sensed that if she tried to leave the room, he’d get up and stop her.

—I’m going to the bathroom, she said.

He watched her go in.

—I’ve got my eye on you, he said.

She entered the washroom and began breathing in long, deep breaths. She tried to calm her nerves. It was probably a very bad thing that she was so drunk, but she also had the feeling that if she didn’t have all that alcohol in her blood, calming her nerves and dulling her senses, she wouldn’t be able to handle this situation. She was being kept in this room against her will. No one had said as much, and it wasn’t like she’d tried to leave, but she could tell that if she did, Ben would be on her in a second.

Things certainly had taken a turn for the insane. Her own husband who was a respected attorney for the firm of Bauer and Hansen was whoring her out in payment for sex with another man’s wife. It was hard to get her head around. In fact, it was impossible to get her head around. Only half of her actually believed that was what was happening.

At least, until she heard a knock on the door.

In an instant, Ben was on his feet. Janey stepped out of the washroom just in time to see Ben shake hands with Luke. They were buddies now, it seemed. Everything was friendly. Ben laughed at something Luke said and slapped him on the back. Suzy wasn’t there. Then Ben handed Luke the room key, and Luke gave Ben his.

Could this actually be happening?

Ben didn’t even look back at her before he left. He really didn’t care. All he wanted was Luke’s room key so he could go and get dirty with his slut of a secretary. What kind of a woman was she? Her own husband was agreeing to let her sleep with her boss in exchange for this sordid agreement.

But then, what kind of a woman was Janey? Her husband was doing the same thing. Her husband was worse in fact, much worse. He should have known better.
She
should have known better. She should never have allowed herself to get into this situation. If she’d cried out for help back at the restaurant or even in the hotel lobby something might have been done to prevent this. She would have been able to get some help, get the cops called. Now, she was alone in this tiny hotel room with a man named Luke who she knew virtually nothing about.

Janey sat on the bed. Luke joined her in the small room and slumped heavily onto an armchair by the bedside.

—We meet at last, Luke said to her.

He leaned back in the chair, his legs spread open, has hand resting on his thighs. He looked confident and comfortable, in complete control of the situation. He had dark stubble and a mop of messy, light brown hair. He was tanned and fit. Janey guessed that he worked outdoors, maybe in construction. He was handsome and if it weren’t for the exceptional circumstances of their situation, Janey might ordinarily have enjoyed the opportunity to talk to him.

—What do you mean? Janey said.

—Well. I’ve heard a lot about you. I’m sure you’ve heard a lot about me.

—What are you talking about? I’ve never heard of you in my life.

—Come on, Janey. You’ve never heard of me?

—Why? Should I have?

—Fuck, Luke said. You’re kidding?

—What are you talking about?

—Jesus. I can’t believe this. Your husband’s been playing me like a fool for weeks.

—If you’re talking about his affair with Suzy, then I already know about it. He’s not exactly the most careful adulterer in the history of the world.

Luke looked at her intently.

—I guess you could call it an affair, he said. But it wasn’t exactly typical. I knew about it from the beginning. And Ben assured both me and Suzy that you knew about it too.

Janey was surprised. Her mind began racing.

—How could you know about it? Why would you let your wife sleep with my husband if you knew about it?

He raised his eyebrows, as if to say he’d wondered the same thing many times himself.

—Suzy and I are swingers, he said after a moment. When your husband started hitting on her, she told him so.

Janey couldn’t believe it. It seemed Ben would stop at nothing to get inside Suzy’s pants.

—And let me guess, she said. Ben said he was too?

—He did.

—I can’t believe it. He’s a goddamned liar.

—So it seems, Luke said.

—And he told you that I was ok with all of this?

Janey looked around the dingy hotel room. As if she would ever in a million years agree to this! Ben knew her better than that.

—Yes he did.

—Well I’m not.

Luke nodded slowly. He seemed sad, probably because his wife was next door, fucking Ben’s brains out as they spoke.

He said to her, —So you knew Ben was having an affair?

—I found condom wrappers in his pockets. He even called me Suzy in his sleep once. I knew what it meant but I tried to forget about it. I guess I was in denial.

—Well, I’m sorry to be the one telling you all of this. I can imagine it’s not easy to hear.

—No it isn’t. But it’s not your fault. It’s Ben’s.

—That’s true, Luke said. He shouldn’t have lied to you. But it’s my fault too, I suppose. I was the one who approached Ben.

—I thought you said he started hitting on Suzy.

—He did. He flirted with her non-stop, from what she’s told me. And then when Suzy told him we were swingers, and he was ok with it, I decided to approach him. I’d seen you before at one of the firm’s Christmas parties. You stood out.

—You noticed me?

—I couldn’t help it, you’re an attractive woman. You know it.

—Don’t flatter me.

—I’m not. I’m just telling you what happened. I spoke to Ben one day when I was picking Suzy up from work. I told him I’d seen you, that I had the hots for you, and that he seemed to have the hots for my wife.

—So you cut a deal?

—I asked if he’d consider swapping wives.

—And he agreed?

Janey was shaking her head. She couldn’t believe what she was hearing. It was like having all of her worst fears confirmed. She had been traded like a piece of property to the highest bidder. She wanted to kill Ben. She literally wanted to kill him.

—He agreed.

—He agreed to let you fuck me in exchange for you allowing him to fuck Suzy?

—Basically. Although he said you two had never tried swinging before. He wanted time to talk to you about it, make sure you were comfortable with it. And he wanted to try out Suzy in the meantime.

—And you let him?

—Well, Suzy was game. We have a pretty open relationship as you can see. So what could I say? I just hoped he’d come through and deliver on his promise.

—His promise regarding me?

—Yes.

—Well he never mentioned it to me. If he did I would have told him to go to hell.

—The bastard. Here I was, letting him get his cock into my wife any way he wanted and he never even mentioned the whole thing to you?

—Not once. You’d have been waiting a long time if you were expecting Ben to act honestly.

Luke was shaking his head.

—I knew I should have punched his lights out.

—Yes, you should have.

—So you’re not into this?

—Of course I’m not into this. What do I look like? A complete whore?

Luke looked sorely disappointed.

—Ben never had any intention of paying me back, did he?

—Don’t act like you’re the aggrieved party here. I’m the one who’s just learned that her husband’s tried to whore her out.

—It’s hardly whoring you out. It’s not like you’re here against your will.

—Am I not?

—Jesus. Of course not. I don’t want to go to jail, Janey. If you want to leave, you go right ahead. I wouldn’t dare stop you.

Janey stood up. Her coat was on the back of the chair Luke was sitting on and she went over to get it.

—But before you go, think about this. Ben’s out there right now, fucking my wife like the slut she is. You’ve got this one opportunity to get even, to fuck your brains out with me, and you’re just going to walk out and get a cab home, alone. How’s that going to make you feel?

Janey looked Luke over again. He certainly was well built. He’d be really something to have a tussle in the hay with. He seemed like a decent enough guy. He had an open relationship with his wife, but at least he didn’t cheat on her. He was honest about his position and his intentions. From what Janey could see, he was ten times the man Ben would ever be.

—No offense, Luke, but you’re not exactly my type, she said.

—Come on, Janey, Luke said, smiling. I’m every girl’s type. I’m a fire fighter. I work out five nights a week. I’m not some creep off the street. Swinging is just a lifestyle decision that Suzy and I made a long time ago. It’s better than cheating on each other, which, no offense, is what Ben’s doing to you.

Janey thought about that. Who was she fooling? Ben was cheating on her. And not only that, but she’d cheated on Ben with Henry and his mysterious friend too. Was this really so different from what she’d already been doing?

—Let me see it, she said to Luke.

As soon as the words escaped her mouth she was surprised. She put her hand on her mouth. She hadn’t expected to be so bold. She really was changing.