It had been some time since I had been with anyone other than my husband. And I surely was not thinking of satisfying any urges I was feeling (frankly I wasn't really feeling any) or engaging in any adventures to satisfy my husband's craving my being slutty. Visiting a college with your kid isn't the time or the place for thoughts of sex with a stranger. Yet there was my husband's text:
"Baby. Here's the stuff I'm going to take care of today: grocery shopping, repairing the deck, cleaning the office, laundry, and encouraging you to find a cute Dad on the college tour to fuck later tonight."
"Sweetie! Thank you for all that EXCEPT the last one. You're so bad! Besides, if you saw the Dads on this tour you wouldn't be thinking of me getting frisky. Make sure you get lots of fruits and veggies when you go shopping," I replied, trying to change the subject.
"Of course I will. All the healthy things. Ok, if not a Dad on this campus, maybe the next one. Or a professor? You should just keep your eye out," was his reply. So tenacious. And so predictable. But it wasn't surprising. He would always get super frisky whenever I was away. I knew he didn't really mean I should find someone, this was just an expression of his lust for me while I was gone.
"Love you, baby. I'll take care of you when I get home, Mr. Frisky."
He replied with one of his "frisky" questions: "What is the percent chance you'll do something with someone? Or at least think of doing something with someone?"
"Zero and zero percent, baby! Now leave me alone!" I replied with mock (and a touch of genuine) annoyance. He replied with a heart emoji. I gazed out the window of the bus touring us through this little campus. I did feel a slight stirring as I thought of Jason and I having some proper time together when I got home. He owed me some orgasms and I was going to make sure I collected them. I smiled at his lust for me and then shoved those thoughts out of my mind to focus on our college adventure.
The bus stopped and we disembarked to visit the next stop on the tour. My gregarious daughter had already made a friend and had partnered up with them. They skipped along in front of us with the other kids as us parents stayed out of their way, watching them flap their little wings as they dreamed of exiting the nest. One of the dads put his hand on my shoulder and spoke.
"Amazing how fast they grow up," he said. "I am having the biggest deja vu of dropping my kiddo off at kindergarten and how it felt just like this.
He was right. It was all going so fast. I smiled at him and acknowledged the sentiment. For a brief moment my husband's frisky thoughts invaded mine as I, for less than a split second, considered this dad as a candidate for a slutty adventure (he was cute in his own way). I easily pushed the thoughts away. We continued with the tour as my mind wandered through years of sweet memories of our family.
Later that day, my daughter and her new friend informed me they wanted to have dinner together. I reminded her we were moving on to the next town right after the tour. Coincidentally they were going to the same college next. I conferred with their parents and we agreed to let them go discover the town together once we arrived. The parents had friends in that town they were having dinner with so I was excited to be on my own and not have to make small talk with strangers. I decided to find some good seafood and enjoy my book. I smiled, wishing my Jason were here with me.
In this new little town it wasn't hard to find great seafood and quaint little shops. I took full advantage of my time alone and enjoyed the opportunity to explore and reflect on what may be my daughter's new home, at least for a few years. I wandered through the streets after dinner and found a bookstore. Having just finished my latest mystery novel I popped in to see if I could find the next in the series.
The moment I walked in a fluffy kitty brushed against my leg which is, of course, the single, most definite sign this was a great bookstore. I imagined my life as that of a bookstore cat; well fed, well loved, and well rested from countless naps among the nooks and shelves, surrounded by the luxurious dusty smell of bookstore. I bent over at the waist and rubbed this ball of fur and was rewarded with deep purrs of pleasure.
"That's Olive," I heard a voice say. "He was born in this very shop."
"Olive!" I exclaimed. What a delightful, incongruous name for a cat. "How did he get the name?"
"Well his name was supposed to be Olivier but my daughter couldn't pronounce the last syllable when she was little. So her pronunciation stuck since it was just so darn cute to hear her say it, gender be damned."
"I had a cat named Oliver back in college," I almost shrieked. "He was a big boy just like this. And that story is very cute. Where is your daughter now?"
"That little kitten has left with the rest of the litter," he said. "She's off in college in California. It's just me and the books now."
Proclaiming that I went to college in California as well, I smiled in surprise at the cat and geographic connection. We engaged in surprisingly enjoyable conversation about life, parenting, books, the little town we were in and the college nearby. I delighted in meeting this intellectual, bookishly handsome, humorous man. He reminded me of my husband a little.
"Uh oh," I thought. Did I just think of having sex with this man? Damn Jason! He planted this seed. I felt myself flush a little and my mind wandered. I felt a touch of wetness between my legs. I scolded myself and tried to shut down this seed of desire from sprouting.
"What?" I heard myself say. I realized my mind had drifted and I hadn't heard a word he had said for at least the last 30 seconds.
"I said we are going to close soon. Was there a particular book you had in mind?"
"Oh, I'm so sorry. My mind wandered there for a second. I was looking for the latest book in the Louise Penny series. I'm not sure if it even out yet. I know they are a little pulpy but they are just so fun. The characters feel like friends at this point."
