Ted Franklin was a guy who had it all. In high school he was popular with the girls. He was taller than anyone else in his class. He had a dark complexion and raven colored hair. His eyes were as dark as coal. He had a perfect smile with dazzling white teeth. His hair had just enough curl in it so that could be worn in a casual, tossed look. He looked just as good after an hour in the wind as he did when he showed up for school.
Throughout high school he had dated Becky Thatcher. Becky could have easily been a spoiled brat. He father had inherited a small tool and die business and had built it into the largest manufacturing company in Watahoochee County. Becky was cute even before she was beautiful. She was tall, slender, and blonde, and she had developed through the years into a beautiful teenager when she caught Ted's eye. They started dating in the ninth grade.
Ted seemed to have it all. In addition to his natural looks, he also had tremendous athletic ability. In spite of his tall frame, he was quick on his feet, fast, and smart. He also had one of the best throwing arms the coach had ever seen. By his sophomore year, he had played starting quarterback.
At the end of Ted's junior year, all of Watahoochee County was talking state championship the next year. Then tragedy struck. Ted's mother died during the summer. Ted's father owned a small farm and struggled each year just to have enough crop and livestock to pay all the annual debts and get the farm a little closer to being paid off. Without his wife to help, it looked like Ted would have to work on the farm instead of playing football.
Becky's father, Nat Thatcher, rode out to see Ted's father. The next day Ted went to work at the factory, just summer work, a few hours after practice, no work on game days, and half a day on Saturday. The pay was worked out so that Ted's father was able to give Ted some spending money and to hire a worker full time. Football is almost a legend in the South, and no one questioned or even mentioned the unlikely relationship.
The team did indeed win the state championship, and Ted got a full scholarship to the state university. He was to have had the starting position on the university team in his junior year, but a freak knee accident during spring practice ended Ted's career. He came home to find Becky still waiting for him and to find that local pride and Mr. Thatcher's good favor secured him a good paying job.
Ted became the sales representative for Watacoochee Tool and Die, which was now called Thatcher Manufacturing. With Mr. Thatcher's ability to run his company, and with Ted's ability to charm and to sell, the business continued to grow. Somehow, Ted had gotten in with a government bid coordinator, and Thatcher Manufacturing seemed always to have two or three government projects under way, all of which payed extremely well. He and Becky were married within the year.
Becky knew that Ted, while at the university, had enjoyed flings with several girls on campus, and even some of the local girls at the state capital where the university was located. She had waited for Ted, seeing him on every trip home, but during that time he had treated her almost as a pit stop in his busy life. She was sure that things would be different now that they had married.
During the first year, Becky and Ted spent a lot of time together and went on trips together. Becky was the happiest she had ever been. By the end of the first year, however, things began to change. Ted mad more and more trips out of town, saying that he needed to do more selling. Although Becky had gnawing doubts about his truthfulness, she had no proof that he was lying, and the sales continued to soar. Still her frustration grew month by month.
Then Becky's father died, and Becky was devastated. Ted took over the Thatcher business and ran it well, but his time at home was less and less. Becky began to hear rumors about Ted and his out of town trips. Then she began to hear things about him and workers at the company. She noticed that some of her female friends either very obviously changed the topic or else became strangely silent when she came into the room.
Although Becky loved Ted, he always assured her that people spread rumors because of jealousy. And it was true, the company continued to grow, and Ted had decided that Thatcher Manufacturing was no longer prestigious enough and, as CEO, had changed the name to Trident Industries Southeast. It was an easy change. Although the company had gone public, Mr. Thatcher had reserved 60% of the stock so as to maintain both control and the 60% quorum necessary under the company's charter.
After one of Ted's frequent trips, Becky was removing the soiled laundry from Ted's suitcase and found a bra too small to have been hers. She remained silent. Over the next year, she found other incriminating signs of Ted's infidelity. They ranged from lipstick on his shirt and shorts to an occasional bra or panties mixed in with Ted's laundry.
Becky challenged Ted on the various items, but he always presented some excuse that would not have sounded plausible to most women, but Becky wasn't most women. In spite of Ted's philandering, she still loved him and thought that he would eventually be the husband he had promised to be.
Marriage was not what Becky had imagined. They had moved into her father's huge home with all its grandeur and elaborate furnishings. They were members of the country club. Once a year, they went on a fabulous vacation to some exotic location, but except for that one annual vacation, Becky's life had become a nightmare.
On a typical night, Ted would come home, and the maid would serve dinner. Although the dining table would seat twelve, she and Ted sat alone. Ted had not yet decided he wanted children, and Becky was wondering if he ever would. Becky beside him at a table for twelve, Ted would consume his food, talking only when a question was asked. Then he would go watch television while Becky got ready for bed. It didn't matter what Becky wore to try to make herself more appealing, the bedroom routine was the same.
Ted always came upstairs whenever he was ready. He showered and came to bed nude. Sometimes he would just go to sleep. When he didn't, he would reach over and kiss Becky lightly, usually only once. His breath smelled of scotch, and Becky endured the smell. Then with no further foreplay or tenderness, he would rise up and pull Becky's panties down and raise her legs. If she was not adequately lubricated, he would frequently mutter "You're not getting old and menopausal on me, are you?"
Those words hurt Becky deeply. She was only 28, but Ted's tenderness had faded years ago, and when he did speak, it seemed that he only did so to control. Ted would make a quick and painful insertion, and with the influence of alcohol, took a long time to finish. Becky would close her eyes, forgetting the inflammation that intercourse with Ted often caused her, and she would remember those early years when he was passionate. She would picture Ted as the young man just returned from the university who told her constantly that he loved her.
Then Ted would grunt and roll off of her, going to sleep immediately. Becky had learned long ago not to try to touch him or talk to him afterward. If she did, he would become angry and would go to another bedroom to sleep. She lay in the darkness, feeling the burning of he vagina where Ted had been so rough. Softly, she would exit the bed and go to the bathroom where often she would cry for hours before returning to bed.
Yet, through all this, Becky never stopped loving Ted or believing that he would come around some day. The only sign she ever showed was when she talked to her friend Yvonne. Yvonne was a mirror opposite of Becky. She was shorter and had straight dark hair. Although Becky sported a very attractive figure, Yvonne had undergone surgery for breast enhancement and always showed a lot of cleavage. Her husband, Frank, was an accountant who had eventually opened his own firm. She had been Becky's best friend since high school.
