It started simply enough - Judy came to work as one of two replacement nurses with our team. She was a team leader, small and blonde, quite cute... and married. As a more junior member of the team - in 'rank' if not in years - nevertheless it was my job to show her around, introduce her to people she needed to know, and generally set her right for the rigours of her new job. Over the ensuing months we developed a close working relationship, friendly and flirty while remaining within the bounds of professionalism. Being recently separated, I found the risquΓ© nature of some of our exchanges quite uplifting, but never thought it as anything other than harmless fun. After over a year of working together, however, things started to change.
Judy had always moaned good-naturedly about how inept her husband was at even the most basic of home-life tasks; she virtually had to tell him step by step how to boil an egg! Sometimes, he would phone up 4 or 5 times in the space of an hour, seeking instructions on how to prepare a meal for himself and their 8-year old daughter. Although she laughed it all off, I could see that it was getting her down quite a lot - but as she said, she loved him to bits, so she just had to put up with things as they were.
Part of the shift pattern in our workplace was having to work occasional weekends, which as a single guy didn't bother me unduly. On these occasions, junior staff usually worked with another team leader, to spread the load with unknown clients. However, one weekend Judy and I were working together due to another team leader being off sick, and no-one else able to cover. I didn't know this though, so it was quite a surprise to see Judy waiting at the gate when I arrived on the Saturday morning. As we entered the building, I noticed Judy was dressed much more provocatively than usual; in contrast to her usual 'smart but casual' look, today she had on a mid-length gypsy skirt and a quite low-cut top. I thought she looked very sexy, but refrained from commenting in other than a jokey,
"Oh yeah, going for a rumba tonight, are we?" as we set up for business.
I made a point of watching Judy as she moved around the office, and was struck by what I thought was a much more pronounced wiggle in her hips than normal, her slightly too-large for her frame behind causing the skirt to sashay and twirl very intriguingly. Over the months of working together, Judy often wore lowish-cut tops, and on many occasions I had been able to sneak glimpses down her top to see a pair of small yet firm breasts, the barely visible stretch marks at the sides a reminder of the daughter she so clearly doted on. Despite this, I privately thought her breasts were gorgeous, the moderate tan Judy seemed to maintain all year round adding to the allure. I had wondered for ages if her tan was 'all over', and if the white bits looked as good as the rest!
Over the course of that morning, we dealt with various calls and paperwork, crossing paths near the water cooler or going to answer the phone. Several times I heard Judy on the phone to her husband, explaining yet again the procedure for some trivial household task. Just before lunch time he phoned for about the sixth or seventh time that morning, this time, it appeared, to ask her where the butter was! Judy went ballistic, shouting down the phone at him how useless he was, and he'd better get his act together or there would be big trouble. I could hear all this from the next office, and decided to give her a bit of time to compose herself before I went back in; I knew she'd probably be quite embarrassed if she'd been crying or similar, and I had seen it. When I did eventually go through, she was sitting at her desk as if nothing had happened and asked me what I wanted to do for lunch.
This was actually quite a big deal for us, as through the week we all tended to eat at our desks and catch up on paperwork (the bane of our lives!) as we ate. However on the weekends we had time enough to go out for lunch, and consequently this was normally the highlight of the day. Today was different though, not least because the way she asked seemed to me to indicate she couldn't face going out. I wondered if she was quite as composed as she seemed to be on a superficial level and, when I looked at her more closely, decided that no, she wasn't.
Not only were there still small spots of red at her cheeks, there were also hints of moisture at the corners of her eyes - bright green eyes made more luminous than normal by the sheen of wetness covering them. It was then I made the move that, unbeknownst to me, would be the catalyst for all that happened after - I walked over to her and hugged her, not in any kind of a sexual way, nor with any such intent, but simply as one human being to another, hoping to make her feel at least a little bit better, so I was extremely surprised when, instead of a short return hug, Judy clamped both arms around my waist and squeezed like there was no tomorrow, her head buried into my chest on a level with my suddenly thumping heart!
After standing tightly together for several minutes Judy began to speak, initially merely a muffled murmur into the thin cloth of my shirt which was now damp from her tears.
"I don't know what to do, Tom," she eventually managed to make me understand, "I do love him, but he's useless in the house, and with Hannah, he doesn't want to do anything but watch football or go fishing - he never has any time for me. Sometimes I think I should leave him, just to see if he'll change, you know?"
"I..." I began, but Judy shushed me with a squeeze to my ribs.
"Do you know what hurts the most?" she asked - rhetorically, I knew. "He doesn't come near me anymore... for... you know... sex".
Well, saying I was surprised at that statement was an understatement. To me, single and horny admittedly, Judy was one of the most gorgeous women I'd ever met, and I just couldn't comprehend how any straight man wouldn't find her attractive. I bent my head down until my chin rested lightly on the blonde curls leaning against my chest, drinking in the subtle aroma of Judy's body. Hugging her tighter now, I breathed
"I'd come near you, given half a chance," not realising I'd spoken out loud until I felt Judy stiffen in my arms.