and along came SPIDER ( A Martina Spalding Thriller ) (Spider Series Book 1) Read Free Page A

Marti
extended the room one more day and left the hotel.  Locating her car in the
parking lot next door, she got in and drove away.  There was nothing like a
long drive in the country to clear her mind.  And it wasn’t just the job, but a
multitude of things, that needed to be thought through.  Here it was four days
since she had left home and all this stuff had already started coming her way. 
This newfound freedom somehow didn’t seem so liberating anymore. 
    Number one on the list:
virginity.  How long was that going to last?  And was it even healthy at her
age?  Certainly, she could have handled that situation during the interview
better today, had she not been so anxious over the mere thought of intercourse
being involved.  What was she thinking, asking such a question?  It was a
wonder Scott Harris hadn’t tossed her from his office over it.  But since he
hadn’t, now she wondered if he’d been completely honest with her.  Still, she
thought there must be another reason they were so generous with the hourly pay
and shorter hours. 
    But then, could that
bit of paranoia have been brought about by the natural insecurities that come
along with virginity, as well?  Of course it could.  Freud had a lot to say
about that.  Now that she had made that determination, what on earth was she to
do about it?  She could hardly grab the first guy she saw coming down the
street and say, hey, I’ve got this problem, can you help me out?  She didn’t
have the guts for that.  So then what?  Go to a bar, get wasted and hope to be
picked up?  That didn’t particularly appeal to her either.  If she was going to
do this thing, she at least wanted to remember it, perhaps even treasure the
memory for years to come.
    She had dated a fellow
during nursing school for a time.  And there was a bit of exploring that went
on, but that was more clinical than anything else.  After graduation, they each
went their own way and that was the end of that.  She had held his erect penis
in her hand a few times.  Even masturbated him on one occasion, just to see
what that was like.  She smiled about that now as if it were a big first step. 
And it was for her at the time, but that was near three years ago.  Now it
appeared she had gone backward ever since.  The little bit of courage she had
back then seemed to have disappeared, leaving her more insecure than ever.  No
doubt, her desire for sex had greatly multiplied since then.  Perhaps that had
something to do with the insecurity as well.  Prolonged periods of unsatisfied
sexual needs will do that to a person, she knew… even worse, if the word never entered the equation.
    Having reached nothing
that even resembled country yet, Marti looked around for a place to grab
something to eat.  It wasn’t quite noon yet, but she was hungry.  The light
breakfast had given out a while ago; now she could wait no longer.  A roadside
hamburger stand caught her eye and she pulled onto the gravel lot, parked the
car and got out.  Ten minutes later she was seated at an outside table
devouring a hamburger and fries.  Now, if only satisfying her other urgent
needs were this simple, she mused.

 
     
      
     
     
     
    CHAPTER
THREE
     
    Back at the hotel, near
six, Marti was surprised to see Gloria, the attractive brunette receptionist
from the Spencer House, sitting in the lobby.
    “Martina!” she said
cheerfully upon seeing her enter and sprang to her feet.
    “Gloria, what are you
doing here?”
    “I thought we could
talk.  Can I buy you a drink?”
    “Of course, but I’m not
really dressed for…”
    “You’re fine.  I know a
little place down the street where you may even spot a cowboy or two,” she
laughed.
    “Great,” Marti said,
not necessarily in response to the part about cowboys.  But she did slip off
the old wedding ring and put it into her pocket.
    “So I take it by our
conversation this morning, you’re not familiar with St. Louis,”  Gloria said