This story spans several Literotica genres. It's in Erotic Coupling as a default.
Just because I can, I'm trying something new: rather than locate my story in North America my story is set in the UK, in an area called The Weald that's located between the north and south downs, south of London. (Google The Weald under images.) There are still some pleasant rural areas tucked away.
I have tried to use British English, words (knickers for panties, Headmistress for Principal, etc.) and spelling but I'm sure some of you will straighten me out where I've failed with just Word as my companion.
Be aware that the story has a slow but steady build up to the steamy bits. This is a purely fiction yarn. Any resemblance to existing or past names, places and events is purely coincidental. All characters having anything to do with sex are well over the age of 18.
******
"Nathan."
Elizabeth's loud call out from the front hall did not receive a response. She increased the volume using her best Headmistress summons with, "Nathan. Are you there?"
There were no way the old stone walls of the extended thatched cottage could dampen such a shout. Tucked away in his closed-door office at the back of the house Nathan heard his wife's more than usual strident call. With a tinge of annoyance, he quickly closed the computer's incognito mode window halfway through an erotic story.
Only an hour earlier he had submitted his final thirty-page report that would bring in a substantial five figure fee for the last month that he had spent on its preparation. Reading erotica was a small reward for his dedication by issuing the report three days earlier than the deadline.
He levered himself out of the comfy desk chair. As he opened the office door he shouted back, "Coming!" He grunted to himself, "Huh!" as he thought that he'd just uttered the last word he had read in the erotic story before he was interrupted.
Even after twenty-three years of marriage Elizabeth still managed to raise a shudder of delight in Nathan as he saw her as he rounded the corner in the hallway.
In her two-inch-high heels she brushed up to being close to six feet tall. His height. Arriving home from work, with her dark stockings, navy blue pencil skirt, crisp white blouse covered by a jacket, her professional demeanour and authority shone through. But Nathan knew and always saw the tennis devotee's refined figure concealed under her work clothes. The taut muscles stretching up her legs that went on for ever, the flat stomach, muscular glutes, the sinuous arms finished with long elegant hands, smooth neck and shoulders, bold breasts that remained stubbornly perky and a neatly trimmed bush covering quite a prominent mons were all indelibly etched on Nathan's mind. The girl-next-door, an English rose face with a perfect complexion completed the picture. She was his wife and lover.
"What's up? It sounded urgent. How was your Monday? "
"Not urgent. Just worrying. Follow me." Ignoring the Monday question, Elizabeth led Nathan out into the front garden. During the early spring Elizabeth brought in a local man to help dig the redesigned flower-bed layouts that sat between the house and the stereotypical white picket fence that delineated their front boundary. "Do you see it?"
Nathan was puzzled as to where the conversation was heading. "Er. The garden? The fence? Oh, the gate? Yes, I still must oil the hinges."
"No. Not that. The bed. On the right. Nathan Stone, you are so dumb for a such bright guy."
Nathan drew out a long, "Yesssss," with no idea what she was talking about. All he saw was a grid of small plants Elizabeth had planted the previous weekend all valiantly trying to grow in the slightly cool spring weather,
"See. Some are missing. The round rocks. They've gone. Five of them."
With his focus now directed, Nathan saw that there were some gaps between the rounded rocks at the edge of one of the beds. She was always a detailed person. "Can't you just spread them out a bit to be equally spaced." As soon as he saw the expression on Elizabeth's face, he knew he's made a poor response.
"Nathan. They've been stolen. They've gone." She didn't need to say, "Dummy. Can't you understand that?" Her body language and expression said it all.
Without showing it, he silently thought, "Oh my. Another mountain out of a mole hill. This is not your triple string of pearls that's been pinched." He did respond, with, "Oh. That's a shame. Who on earth would want to steal those river rocks? "
"Yes. That's the question. Wouldn't have been the guy who came and helped me dig the area. He thought I was nuts putting them there." Nathan did not visibly show his agreement with the labourer.
"Well, I've not seen anyone hanging around looking furtive. It's interesting though that they only took five random stones. Why not the lot?"
"I'd call it moronic. Anyway, how do we stop this happening? Can we get one of those CCTV security cameras?"
"We could buy a ton of those stones for the cost of a CCTV setup." Once more Nathan knew he'd headed in the wrong direction by the expression on his wife's face.
"Nathan. That's not the point. How can I feel secure if the rocks are disappearing from outside our front door? We need to catch the miscreants before they move on to other things to steal. Now how do we do that?"
Resorting to an old strategy he'd used many times before. He frowned as if he was thinking, "Let me give that some thought."
"There's those doorbells with cameras..."
Nathan jumped in, "Elizabeth, let's go in and have a cup of tea and I'll think of something."
Elizabeth brought up the subject three times before they went to bed. She wore her long flannel nightgown and presented her hunched back to Nathan as she settled to sleep in their shared bed. A gesture he accurately read as a statement about his inability to identify the rock stealing culprits. Short of one of those wildlife automatic cameras Nathan had no answers for Elizabeth.
By Friday Nathan was getting to his wits end trying to come up with a solution that did not involve cameras, computers, and monitoring. Setting the stones into a concrete sill was dismissed with more than a light dusting of derision earlier in the week. The good news was that no more stones were missing. Maybe it was one time thing, Nathan hoped.
Nathan took a break from the data collection for his next big analysis and report by making a cup of tea. Cup in hand, he wandered into his front room to look out at his next unpaid project - protecting the rocks.
Two girls about aged twelve or thirteen were hanging about by his gate looking furtively up and down the lane. He watched them and realized he knew them. Their daughter, Veronica, in her third year at university, babysat them quite regularly before she left for Uni.
Then in a lightening move they opened the gate went over to the bed and each slipped a rock into the other's satchel and were out of the garden. Carefully closing the squeaking gate behind them, they leapt on their bicycles and sped off. He had found the rock-nappers.
He slipped on his outside shoes and followed the two young ladies at a steady pace to their home at the vicarage. Nathan was not far behind them when he knocked on the front door. He had never met the Vicar or his wife. As a non-observant Jew he did not attend church. On the other hand, Elizabeth was a regular attendee at the Sunday services. She had spoken of the Daniels family. He knew their names were Charles and Susan, but he couldn't remember the twin daughter's names.
A woman answered the heavy iron dolphin doorknocker's summons.
Nathan smiled and asked, "Susan?"
"Yes." She looked surprised, "I know you. You're Elizabeth's husband, Nathan. Nice to finally meet you."
Nathan could hardly take in the words as he looked down at an auburn-haired Goddess with a beautiful face and a figure that defined what it was to be hot. Her casual but somewhat tight t-shirt and high cut shorts defined her shape.
