Chapter 6
Right at seven p.m. Ethan carried the boxes down to the lanai where Lena was waiting. There was a pitcher of what looked like iced tea on the table along with an ice bucket and two glasses. Next to the table was a fire pit with a bed of kindling and an artificial fire log in it. He placed the boxes on the table and sat down.
"I hope you like this," Lena said, pouring Ethan a drink. "It's iced tea with a kick!"
"Long Island Iced Tea?" he asked.
"I don't know about those things. This has tea, vodka, rum and lemon juice. Maybe a Short Island Iced Tea!"
Ethan took a sip and smacked his lips. "Good!" he said.
"I agree. But be careful, they're stronger than they seem!"
Lena picked up the first box and placed it in front of her.
"So, shall we get started?" she said.
Ethan nodded. "The envelopes are numbered. Chronologically, I guess."
"Yes, he was always very organized," she said, picking up the first envelope. She was going by the numbers.
Lena opened the first envelope, the pictures with her on the mountain.
"Ah, Emory Peak!" she said. "Big Bend National Park. I was nineteen. We camped and woke in the dark and hiked to the peak for the sunrise. It was beautiful. We could see the desert and mountains of Mexico and Texas in all directions." She leafed through the photos quickly and holding one of the nudes added, "I had a pretty good body in those days."
"Yes," Ethan said. "You still do! Your body looks about the same now to me."
Lena looked at him dubiously and said 'Thank You'. She struck a match and lighted the fire log at each end. Once the log was ablaze she fed the photos into the flame two or three at a time. When she started to open the next envelope Ethan noticed there were two photos left on the table that didn't get burned.
Lena pored through the photos of her wearing the see-through dress, dwelling on one here and there before tossing it in the fire.
"I remember it was freezing in that studio that day!" she said. "It was cold outside. There was no heat and he had a four foot wide fan blowing full blast and he kept walking around shouting 'Do this, do that, turn this way, try that!' Look at my nipples in this one!"
One picture remained unburned on the table.
Next were the photos of her with the dildo. With a sour look on her face, she went through them pretty quick and dumped them in the pit. But she chuckled when she opened the envelope with the fruits and vegetables.
"My introduction to gardening!" she laughed, and took a big swig of her drink. She went through these more slowly and burned them one by one, all but two of the more tasteful ones: kissing a cucumber and sensually eating a banana.
Ethan was enjoying watching her and was putting a large dent in the pitcher of drinks. They were going down easy as Lena plowed through the pictures.
Lena went through the photos of the kissing sessions one after the other, usually with no more than a nanosecond of a glance. All but one went into the pit. She was standing naked, looking away from the camera, with her arms crossed over her breasts and the blond guy was seated in front of her blocking her lower body.
Ethan noticed a pall come over Lena's face when she opened the pack with her and the black guy. She went no further than the first picture. She took a healthy gulp of her Short Island Iced Tea and threw them all in the fire.
"I'm sorry you had to see those," she said. "That was my husband's idea. I hated myself for months after that."
"Really? Why?"
"Because of the things he called out for me to do. And because I did them. And because I enjoyed it."
They both stared at the fire pit as the flame flared and the pictures were reduced to ash.
"We need more of this!" Lena said, picking up the empty pitcher. She went to the kitchen, whipped up another pitcherful, and returned to fill their glasses.
The next batch with Lena and the blonde chick going at it were quickly burned.
"His idea again, he egged us on," Lena said. "I'm not lesbian or bi. She was a bitch and smelled. Ugh."
When she got to the pictures of her and the transsexual, Ethan could almost feel the air go out of her lungs.
"Aw, poor Trixie," she sighed. "She was sweet, but so messed up. She was my husband's first affair." She looked into Ethan's eyes and said, "I can't believe I'm telling you this! I've never told anyone."
"Maybe you needed to tell somebody," he said.
"Yeah, maybe." She didn't look at any other photos in that envelope, she just burned them.