David Ingram

Hot bed family

CHAPTER ONE

Linda Palmer twisted free and pushed herself away from Tom Henderson's broad chest. Her lipstick was badly smeared, and a lot of it was on Tom's face. She pushed his hand out from under her skirt, holding him tightly by the wrist.

"Tommy, this is insane; we've got to stop. I never should have let you bring me home. I just knew something like this would happen," Linda cried.

"I knew it, too. I wanted it to happen," Tom said.

"But… but Bill is your best friend. You're going to be the best man at our wedding."

"Friendship goes out the window where you're concerned, Linda. I hated him the first time he took you out."

"We'd better cool it for a few minutes," she said, sliding over against the car door. "We've both had too much to drink."

"Bill should have better sense than to get bombed," Tom said, slamming his palm against the steering wheel.

Linda had gone with Tom Henderson first, only a few times, and nothing had happened between them. It was through Tom that she had met William Temple. She was a freshman at State and Bill was a senior; it was almost love at first sight. Bill was only twenty-one, but very bright, an intellectual. He turned twenty-two the day before he graduated. He asked her to marry him that night. Tom was three years older than Bill, and their engagement hadn't seemed to bother him at all, at least then.

They had gone to a party arranged by Linda's friends, and Bill had too much to drink and passed out. Linda and Tom took him to the motel where the two young men were staying and put him to bed. Tom drove her home and they had been sitting in front of the house talking. Both had been drinking and one thing led to another.

"Are you mad?" Linda said.