As I sit here staring at the dim glow of a computer screen, trying to collect my erroneous thoughts onto metaphorical paper, I am unsure of where to begin my story. To start from the beginning would be too long, so I'll start from the middle.
My wife Julie and I have been married for 7 years. She is without a doubt a wonderful woman and caring wife. She and I were high school sweethearts, each other's first love and have been together for almost 15 years. Our lives have been that of a fairly standard couple. We both hold bachelor's degrees, earn decent incomes and come from loving and supportive families.
However, for the last several years we have been trying with no luck to conceive our first child. Having been to fertility doctors all over the state has confirmed that there is nothing wrong with either of us physically, which has made the problem all the more frustrating. Through advice of doctors, we have been having sex the same way for almost 2 years now; the same missionary positions that are less erotic than you'll find in a supermarket romance novel.
This has left me, shall we say, unsatisfied. Sex is no longer erotic or fun; it is a duty required of me when she is most "ready" that amounts to nothing more than habit. Not only this, but the tension of the situation has almost boiled over, causing almost constant bickering about the littlest of things. Anyone in a long term relationship will know that sometimes when something just isn't right the smallest little inconvenience or misuse of words can blow up into a catastrophic explosion of emotion.
Because of this, my mind has been tortured. I've always been the person who's condemned friends who've engaged in infidelity yet I can't help myself looking a little too long at attractive women in the gym or walking on the street. I find myself being slightly flirtatious with the receptionist at work or the saleswoman at the car dealership. I've tried to pass this off as a mid-life thing, that is until I met her.
We were attending a Christmas party for a long-time friend (at least I was, we had yet another argument and Julie opted to stay home). Not long after arriving, while working on my third glass of scotch and mingling with friends I eyed an absolutely stunning brunette out of the corner of my eye. I turned and smiled at her, which was returned, and went back to my conversation trying not to make it seem obvious. It didn't take her long to get the idea and soon she was sauntering across the room directly towards me. Her seductive hips swaying side to side as she walked, barely contained by her tight black cocktail dress. As she came closer I came to realize she couldn't be older than 25, but her eyes looked as though she had seen more than her years. She broke the ice.
"Hi there" she casually remarked.
I tried to make it seem as though I had barely noticed her approach with a fake cough "Oh, hi how are ya. Do I know you? You look familiar."
"You don't remember me Tom? I'm Danielle, Bobby's niece." I almost hit the floor. Standing before me, doing terribly dirty things in my mind was the niece of my long time friend that I hadn't seen in probably 10 years. "Holy shit! Danielle? Really? The last time I saw you, you were playing little league. You sure have grown..." My voice trailed off, hoping my last remark didn't come across as sleazy as I thought it had in my mind. I tried to do the math in my head quickly. She couldn't be older than 20.
She giggled, looking downward slightly then back up at me, batting these perfectly groomed eyelashes. Her emerald colored irises seemed to pierce my defenses.
"A lot of things have changed since then. I'm graduating from college soon. The real world is coming soon, I'm a little nervous, especially in this economy." Her voice trailed off in my head. While one half of my brain was trying to remind myself that she was my friend's girl, the other half was being mesmerized by her very womanly features. Perhaps it was the scotch, but my good sense was nonexistent. Everything from her slightly curled hair, to her perfect teeth, down to her elegantly long legs was drawing me in like Odysseus to the sirens. Even her smell, I can still remember her perfume. It was the last straw that weakened my defenses.
"I see that. Don't worry you'll be fine if you work hard enough. Are you going to be living nearby? Perhaps I can give you a hand finding a job?" I thought I was so clever, posing as a helpful gentlemen while extracting personal information.
"Yes. I'm looking for a place on the cheap on the other side of town until I get my finances in order. Let me give you my number..." I was dumbfounded, but not too much so that I pulled my Blackberry out of my jacket pocket and handed it to her to add herself.
"I've got to get going before I'm too sloshed to drive, but call me anytime Tom, we should catch up." She handed my phone back, gently caressing the top of my hand as she walked off with a smile that could kill. I'm not sure if she was giving me a show or not, but I couldn't help watching her ass go from side to side as she did so.
Several weeks passed from the Christmas party and the holidays came and went. I found myself wasting time at work simply looking at her name in my contact list, spending hours debating with myself about whether or not to call.
Late one night, after another emotionless romp with Julie when her temperature was right and the moon was full or whatever the hell the doctor told her to do, I decided to make a call. Leaving Julie asleep in bed I quietly crept down the hallway to my office, closing the door. It was almost 11 but remembering my college days, I was hopeful she was still awake.
"Hello?" I struggled to answer.
"HELLO?" She repeated with slight indignation.
"Hi Danielle, it's Tom." Her tone changed very quickly.
"Oh, hey there Tom, what's going on?" I had been out of the dating game for a long time, so foreplay was just not what came to mind.
"Not much, I was checking my schedule for the week and I have a few openings. I was hoping you could drop by the office and we could talk about finding a place for you after you graduate".
"Oh that's fantastic! You've always been so sweet to me. But isn't your office in downtown? It's really hard for me to get there during the day. How about you meet me at a bar?" This girl wasn't fucking around. My assumptions were right on the money. I hesitated for a moment before answering.
"...Sure. There are a few by the college. Tomorrow night? 5:30?" My voice probably sounded giddy.
"That sounds awesome. Text me when you're close. G'night Tom".
"Night..."