As time passed my opportunities for further dalliances diminished as the age difference between the students and me became greater, and the flow of mature age students slowed. I still had the occasional fling, but it was nothing like the early days. My wife returned to teaching. At times I wondered if she had affairs, but since I couldn't claim the high moral ground, I took the view that what I didn't know wouldn't hurt me. In any event, if she did stray she was sensible enough to be discreet.
Concluding my reminiscences, I found my mind returning to the affair that my colleague Tim was having with his German mature age student. I realised I was finding it quite disturbing. For one thing, rather than being low key he flaunted it as if it were a matter of pride, and I couldn't help but notice he had a new spring in his step. I didn't dare mention it to my wife, Lucy, as I feared she'd immediately tell his wife. Adding to my conflicted emotions was a personal matter that had arisen quite unexpectedly.
I had received a flirtatious approach from a student in my class, a dark-haired beauty in her mid-30s, named Zelda. My Shakespeare course was due to end the following week. She had invited me to spend a weekend at her beach house on the south coast, attending a party to which she had invited many of the class. I knew her husband was a property developer, as he had been in the news recently trying to finalise the opening of a new resort on an island in Queensland. Zelda had indicated that he'd be away.
Touching me on the wrist and looking deep into my eyes she had said, "Please come, I'd like to repay you for making the course so interesting for Julie and me. You'll be the centre of attention as a lot of the class are coming. There's room for you at the house, so all you need to do is turn up with an overnight bag."
I must say I was flattered, and the thought of a night with such an attractive woman was almost irresistible. The men in the class tendered to cluster around her, but she kept them at a distance. Julie was her inseparable companion but looked as if she came from a different world. Zelda always dressed like a fashion model, whereas Julie tended to wear rather shapeless tops with wide-legged trousers which did nothing for her figure. Her hair looked untended and her round rimmed glasses gave her a rather owlish appearance.
There was, however, no doubt about her intelligence as her questions in class were incisive and her occasional comments well-informed. Zelda's work was nowhere near as impressive, but still adequate. I couldn't help suspecting that Julie's contribution played a significant role in ensuring that Zelda could hold her own with the majority of the class.
It was unusual to see them separated. Following two young men out of the class I overhead one describe Julie as Zelda's 'duff'. Intrigued, I looked the expression up. 'Designated ugly fat friend,' the dictionary explained, based on a book and film about senior school students in the United States. That sounds a little cruel I thought, but the young can be rather nasty.
I mentioned the party invitation to my wife. "Don't you think you'd be a bit out of place," she commented, before pointing out that there was a bridge tournament that weekend she was thinking of attending, so a night away wouldn't worry her. That night I dreamed of Zelda beckoning me with a seductive smile towards a candle-lit room and woke with a throbbing erection. Well, I thought, what have I got to lose? Before I changed my mind I sent a text to Zelda, accepting. She immediately replied, welcoming my decision, and giving me the address.
Backing an overnight bag, I felt a bit like a teenager on the first date. On arrival Zelda, looking stunning in a slinky dress slit up the thigh almost up to the waist, greeted me effusively with a kiss on the cheek before taking my arm to introduce me to some neighbours as "her favourite professor". She then left me to attend to other guests, while a number of her classmates took the opportunity to discuss the term's work with me in the hope of some tips about the final examination.
I noticed that Julie didn't seem to be around, which certainly surprised me. Moments later I heard her voice, and was startled at what I saw - Hans Christian Andersen's story of the ugly duckling immediately sprang to mind. While not in Zelda's class for outright beauty, she presented herself as well-groomed and stylish mid-30-year-old, the sort of student I would have lusted after in my early days as a lecturer. Gone were the owlish glasses and the shapeless tie-dyed clothes. Her elegant green cocktail dress proved that she had a figure to admire. I couldn't help thinking that the young men who had classified her as the DUFF had missed a prize right before their eyes. I enjoyed our mutual banter and her rather mischievous attitude. "It must be great to be the cynosure among all these talented young people," she commented. "A lot of them envy your success. To win an academic career is pretty challenging these days."
It appeared Zelda had delegated her the role of keeping an eye on me, as whenever I was alone, she would come over to chat. Few of the young men from the class were in attendance, presumably because they hadn't been invited, but later in the evening I noted the arrival of Stanford, a towering north American, who was on secondment from a US university, and was attending my class as an audit student. I understood that he had played sem-professional sport, and still retained a fit, athletic look. All the students seemed to find him very personable, and he had certainly attracted a lot of interest from some of the female students (and one or two of the staff, I'd noticed)
Around midnight most guests were leaving. Zelda suggested that we sit down for a final drink before bed. I'd taken the precaution to swallow a Cialis tablet half an hour earlier to ensure I'd be ready for action. Julie sat on the sofa beside me, while Zelda and Stanford were in armchairs opposite. Zelda looked meaningfully at me, saying, "Professor, I can't stress how delighted I was that you were able to come. It made the party a great success, and I wouldn't have been able to get Stanford here for the night without you agreeing to come. My husband is far too jealous to allow me to invite anyone young or good-looking to stay while he's away."
She stood up and, stepping forward, leaned down to kiss me on the cheek. "Thanks again, I really appreciate it. Now Stanford and I are off to bed."
I gulped, knowing I must look gobsmacked. All my fantasies of a night with one of the most attractive women I'd ever met had blown away like smoke. Julie pressed my hand in a consoling fashion. With their arms around each other like two lovebirds, Zelda and Stanford headed for the master bedroom. As their door closed, Julie turned to me, placing her arm around me as if comforting a child.
