. ?"Jack Heath made a tight little chuckle. He had yet to find himself at ease with the open callousness of their arrangement; in fact, he still wasn'...t quite sure how Carol had inveigled into it so easily the night before... and then he remembered their wild lovemaking session and reasoned that she probably could have sold him the Brooklyn Bridge had she wanted to. He'd never seen her so damned wanton... nor with her determined, stubborn mind so set on anything as this dinner... dinner, hell.... Perhaps Aunt Melissa's need for herbaby sister had been just what Mom needed. I had no worries about hergetting inebriated that afternoon. I helped Mom get ready and didn't askher if she minded if I wore my diamond studs. I knew what her replywould be. Still, I decided that it was the right time and the perfectoccasion to wear them. We headed over to Sam's just after one. The Peters were ready as well.Fifteen minutes later we arrived at the church. Sam was led away to takecare of his usher's. I felt beautiful and very, very sexy. When I arrived at the bar I parked out back and thenwalked around to the front door. Tom had selected thebar from the yellow pages, and it was prettyunremarkable. As I walked in I scanned the room. Therewere a lot of younger men here (I am 26), so I guessedthere must be a college near by. I used to work at acollege, so it was kind of nice to be back in thatenvironment. Walking in, however, deserves comment. Ifelt that every man’s eye was on me. I. It was a threat to his mortality to step out of the car and walk into this school each day as well as a threat just to walk down the hall. Kids bringing weapons to school albeit guns, knives, or shanks fashioned out of metal or any material handy. It was a virtual battle zone when one of the gangs that walked through the school butted heads against another. He wondered how much longer he would be safe slipping from one corridor to the other and not catching a bullet or knife in the back. Even.