A Throuple of Things

As the waning sun's softening light beamed through the gemmed facets of the stained glass window, I sat watching as the colours traced their way up until they almost touched the ceiling, all fading from sight as the sun dipped below the apex of a distant mountain. The twilight's veil sinking over the room and bringing an anxiety and wonder of what that night's events might bring.

The annual-Christmas-party. An evening of boredom and sickeningly tedious conversation with the same pallid, drawn faces I see every other day. The one addition that would perhaps make a difference was the inclusion of spouses which had never been considered in the company's eighty six year history. A move welcomed by the workforce but very much given through gritted teeth by management.

By 5pm any remnants of natural light had faded into thick darkness. Still I sat below the window feeling the draught of cool air dropping onto me like an invisible waterfall and giving me the motivation to move. As I did I looked towards the front door and saw car lights sweep across the patterned glass before hearing the low rumble of my wife's car engine.

Maybe it was my anxiety or the quiescence of the house but the welcome return of noise and movement lifted the mood and broke the monotony, as light opened the space. I walked into the kitchen and she came through the door with bags galore. "I'm home honey"

The glow on her face was either an indication of how cold it was outside or it was a sign that she was flustered by a hectic afternoon. Probably the latter since she'd only walked from the car.

"And how was your day, get everything you needed?" I asked while filling the kettle. The smile on her face gave an indication that she'd spent a small fortune on her items. Not that I minded because I wanted her to feel her best for the party. She and I both knew this was going to be an unspoken competition of status. The idea wasn't appealing to me but at the very least I'd enjoy watching as she showed off.

At the age of thirty one she wasn't the youngest of the wives or girlfriends but in my eyes she was absolutely the hottest. Having passed on having children, her body was her temple, and what a temple. The architect of that body was a master and over the past ten years of our relationship I'd wondered every single day how it was that I'd become the lucky custodian of such a work of art.

"The shops were hectic," her reply finally came as she entered the kitchen, "last minute shoppers everywhere. I bought some nice black strappy heels, a gorgeous velvet dress and just for you, some new lingerie."

I smiled as I contemplated that sentence. "Did you get the correct size for me?"

She must have considered the choice of words too because she laughed as I said it and slapped my arm. "I meant just for your eyes. I don't think size 8 panties are going to look too good digging into your waist."

"Did you just call me fat?" I joked, pulling her towards me and planting one on her sweet lips. Her eyes were bright as if full of mischief and I knew there was something brewing behind them.

"You're not fat, just not a size 8 which is a blessing because skinny boys don't do it for me. Want to go upstairs and have some fun before we go out? Her eyebrows flickered suggesting we go right now.

The time was gone 5pm and the party was starting at 7pm. Some quick arithmetic said we had precious little time to spare. An hour for her to shower and another twenty minutes for her to put her makeup on and get dressed just in time for us to leave and drive the twenty miles to the office. "As much as I want to, we don't have time. Drink your coffee and go get ready." I winked as I gently tapped her pert little bum and walked away with my steaming mug.

Looking at the bags on the sofa I had to wonder why there was so much if she'd only bought a dress and shoes. 'Typical woman' I thought.

As I sat down Helen walked through giving me a sly look from the corner of her eye. Completely silent, she took the bags and left the room. I knew she was a little annoyed and a bit frustrated at not getting to play before we went out. But she knew I'd make up for it when we came home.

By 6pm she was out of the shower so I took mine. I'm sure she knew what she was doing when she left her underwear in the bathroom because all her other clothes went into the laundry hamper. I lifted the flimsy white material and instantly noticed how damp they were. I felt guilty for not giving her a release as she must have needed it but I imagined she'd have taken care of it during her shower. I might have held on to the panties while I gave myself release but I didn't have the time. I dropped them back where they were and got into the shower.

About ten minutes later Helen walked into the bathroom and asked "what do you think?"

My face was full of soap so I couldn't open my eyes in that instant. I let the water run over my head and wiped the suds away before turning to see her. "Jesus!" was my first reaction. "I hope you're wearing more than that to the party!"

"Oh honey, I was hoping you'd be happy with my party outfit." Her wicked sense of humour giving me a rise... literally.

She stood in her new strappy heels, the ribbon laces criss crossing around her sleek ankles. A completely sheer and almost non-existent black thong showing her entirely cleanly shaved pubis, clitoris and labia. To top it off a thin black/red two tone velvet choker. Her perfect curves and beautiful breasts on full show. With the shoes she was probably the same height, possibly even taller than me at 6'1". I just stood open mouthed and staring. Sure I'd seen her body so many times before but she was such a beauty that I would take any opportunity to enjoy such a view.

"So you like?" She asked pushing her tight size Bs out.

"Oh yes, I like a lot and I'm sure aaaaall the men I work with would like it too, but it might be better if you covered up. Go and put your dress on before you make us late."

"But this is my dress." She said running a forefinger along her choker. "This is what I'd really like to wear tonight."

Unsure of the game she was playing, I light heartedly said there was no way we were walking in to my place of work with her dressed like that and to go and put a dress on. She turned to the door and walked out in a mock huff. I shook my head and continued washing fully aware of my tumescence.

One thing I'll make clear to you as you read this. I've never claimed ownership of Helen. She is her own woman her body and her mind are her own and what she does with them is her own responsibility. I've never stopped her from doing anything or forced her to do something she didn't want to do. Actually she's such a force of nature that I don't believe I'd have any influence either way in any case.

As I stood in the shower I wondered if she was actually being a little bit serious. Would she really? I didn't think I wouldn't be comfortable with her being practically nude in a crowd but what if it was something she really liked the idea of. We'd played with the fantasy in bed but as a reality I wasn't sure.

I finished my shower, dried myself off and left the bathroom. Walking into the bedroom I saw her in her dress and gave a quiet sigh of relief that she did actually have a dress for the party. She looked delectable.

Off the shoulder, fitted, short but not so short as to be slutty. It was black/red two tone velvet just the same as her choker. I'd have happily stayed home with her for the night at that moment but her mood had changed and sex was no longer on the table. She'd made her effort and was damn well going to go out.

Commenting on her choice of dress I told her she was beautiful to which she replied "I know!" and left the room.

Shit, I'd fucked up. She felt rejected and it was all my fault. All I wanted to do was stay on time and have a good night but I'd pissed her off. It didn't happen a lot but when it did she made sure I knew about it.

I chose black pants, black shirt, grey suit jacket and a deep red tie. I thought it might at least make her a little happier if we coordinated.

It didn't.

The drive to the office was silent and all I could wonder was how she was going to be when we got there. I didn't need a drama. As we pulled in and parked up I apologised for not being more attentive, explaining that we needed to be there on time. Quietly she said it was ok but I could see she was still annoyed.

We walked up the steps and in through the large double doors to the foyer where we were greeted by Cecil and Julia, the branch manager and administration manager respectively. "Greg, you came? I wondered if you were going to show." Cecil said to me as he offered his hand. I took and shook it while Julia introduced herself and welcomed Helen with a hug and a kiss. Then the swap as Julia came to me and Cecil headed for Helen.

Julia had the appearance of a wicked headmistress in her fifties. Not old but quite stern looking, even while smiling. Cecil was a shorter, rotund man in his sixties with grey hair. I watched as he hugged Helen tightly, his hand falling very low on the small of her back. He was obviously attracted to her and understandably.

There were glasses of sparkling wine on the wide marble reception counter which were offered to us as we were pointed in the direction of the party. I looked at my watch and realised why Cecil had commented on my arrival. It was almost 7.15pm. That didn't look good, even though being fashionably late was, well, fashionable, it had been noticed and I was sure to catch some shit for it.

Helen's mood seemed lighter as she had a smile on her face. On arrival into the party room I could see all of my colleagues and their partners. Most were married but a few had girlfriends/boyfriends and fiancés/fiancées, fewer still were single. Glancing around at the unknown faces of the spouses in the crowd I could see that there were a good few very attractive women there, none of whom held a candle to Helen. A fact that was proved by the looks on my male colleagues faces when they saw her. It wasn't lost on the female contingent either as they seemed to look jealously at her as we entered the large space.

The room was normally used for large presentations of the items we produce. The company had grown over the past eighty six years and expanded to include five branches and sales teams across the country and 1 based in Qatar, of which ours was head office, which mainly promoted our products at internal events. This time the presentation room was just for the employees.

With glasses in hand our walk through the room was watched by the majority of eyes. I say 'our walk', it was mainly Helen's. I noticed wives and girlfriends pinching and slapping their men's arms as they gawped at my wife. I felt a mix of pride and awkward unease as they all devoured the sight of her. She loved it. She could feel all the eyes on her and played her part for them.

One of my colleagues, Sean happened to be married to a friend of hers, Elle, so she made a beeline for her leaving me to be intercepted by the vultures. "Who's the fox you brought with you tonight then, Greg? Does your Mrs know you've brought a hottie to the works do?" James, one of the sales team asked. "If you're dropping her off before going home, drop her at my place!"

"James, you couldn't handle a woman like her. God knows I can't either sometimes. But in any case she'll be coming home with me." I said bullishly.

"You're taking her home? How's that going to go over with the Mrs?" He asked.

I looked at him with a sly puzzlement. Did he really think this was just a naughty date I was on behind my wife's back? "Dude, she is my wife!"

The look on his face changed from cheeky and playful to shock and regret. He turned to look over at her as she in turn looked over at me, giving me a little smile to show she was ok spending time with Elle while I circulated, and then he turned back to me. "You dog, you're married to her? Well done mate!"

I wasn't particularly electrified by his choice of words but I acknowledged his admiration and moved on. The evening continued in much the same vein with other colleagues professing their disbelief at me having such a wife. While it was nice and positive knowing they found her to be exceptionally attractive, it was also hard to hear and negative that they thought she was too good for me. I didn't let it show and gave it straight back with clever retorts regarding their own shortcomings.

By 9pm all of my colleagues had given their opinions and the booze was really starting to flow. I wasn't drinking because I was driving but it seemed that was the opposite case for pretty much all the other men. They were becoming particularly merry and enjoying themselves. Helen was mingling with the crowd at the side of Elle so I decided to go and see if she was feeling less agitated about missing out on fun before the party. "I think you're the main attraction of this party, baby."

With a large smile on her face and lifting her arms to put around my neck as she turned to face me she replied, "I've been getting that impression too. I've never felt quite so stared at. Good job I did put on this dress. Maybe the choker alone would have been too much?"

"Or too little!" I said with a raised eyebrow.

"Imagine their faces though."

Oh I could imagine their faces. I could imagine far more besides too but I wasn't about to make that known. "I need to go and find the boss. He wanted to know that the Belford account was completed, but I didn't have a chance before I left at lunch time. You'll be ok down here for half an hour won't you?"

"Of course. I'll just find another man to put my arms around. There doesn't seem to be a shortage."

I gave her a peck on the cheek and told her to behave, knowing full well how she could be after a few drinks and I could tell she'd had a few.

As I reached the door to leave the room I looked back to see her in the centre of the crowd, happily chatting with the other women and some of the men. With a deep breath I left to find Mr Worth.

Most of the building was in darkness but his office had a full glow so I supposed he was in there away from the volume of the party. As I approached his open door I saw an empty office, the large chair behind his oak desk left untidily facing the side wall. I knocked on the open door and called out "Mr Worth?"

"Who's that?" Came his voice from around the corner.

"It's Greg. You wanted to know that I'd finished closing on that account.

"Ah, Greg, yes yes come on in." Stepping into the dimly lit office and away from the darkness behind me. I felt a weight seem to gather on my shoulders as I peered around the corner to see him standing with a glass in his hand while he looked into a picture on his wall. "How did it go? Did you manage to get it done?"

"Yes sir, it was done this morning but I didn't have a chance to get the message to you before I left."

"Not to worry. As long as it's done, that's all that matters." Mr Worth turned his head to the side slowly to make his words heard more easily. "That's my father," he said lifting the hand holding the glass and pointing at the photograph in front of him. "He was a proud man and tried as hard as any man I know to make something of himself. His downfall was that he had strong ethics. If he didn't feel right about something he wouldn't go through with it." He paused for a few seconds before turning to face me. "Business is no place for ethics. If you're ethical you're destined to fail in business."

That weight I felt began to grow.

"Take a seat son." He gestured to the basic office chair in front of his desk. Filling his glass from a decanter, I could only imagine what he was drinking to be some kind of whiskey. That's what people like him usually drank right? A single malt scotch whiskey aged for thirty odd years? Whatever it was, he didn't offer me any.

"I've been watching you." He said waggling that finger at me. "Had my eye on you for a very long time. I'll be honest, a few years ago I thought you'd be a waste of desk space. I spoke with Cecil a few times about you, and to your benefit he persuaded me to keep you on. He could see a spark in you that I didn't recognise. But you've done well."

"Thank you, I think." I said with some suspicion. I've never been a fan of back handed compliments. The art of the shit sandwich is strong with Mr Worth.

He smiled as I gave my thanks. "That's it, right there. That's the thing I like most about you. You're pleasant without being a pushover. You have an uncanny ability to speak your mind in the fewest words of anyone I know and still get the point across. How do feel about your colleagues, the men specifically?"

"They do the job, eventually. They don't quite push for the finish line though, at least that's my opinion."

Raising his generously sized head and jutting out his chin while taking a deep breath, he looked down his nose at me before relaxing. "You think they drag their heels?"

"That's exactly how they come across. For a while now I've seen a lot of lethargy within the workforce."

Pulling his large seat around to the desk as he sat he asked "what would you suggest we do to improve the motivation in the office?"

This wasn't really my area of expertise but if it was my own business I knew what I'd like to do, right or wrong. "To be honest I'd be inclined to fire the two or three worst performers as a warning shot to the rest and then dangle a carrot to get them off their arses."

Mr Worth slowly nodded his head as he watched my expression. "Greg, Cecil has been a good branch manager but he's getting to that age where he's going to be thinking of retirement. We need a younger person to step up and give this place an injection of enthusiasm. You understand?"

I pursed my lips as I nodded slowly, hoping I actually had understood correctly.

"How old are you now, son?"

"I'm thirty two."

"That means with the right incentives you could give us another thirty three years of service." He smiled.

I smiled too. "With the right incentives, I'd say so."

So it's agreed then. You'll take over when Cecil retires?"

"Are you sure I'm the right candidate for the job?"

He smiled and replied. "The fact that you can put yourself aside and want what's best for the business... yes I know how you think. That's why I chose you."

We spent some time going over his history in the company. He told me how Cecil had joined as an apprentice when he was sixteen and worked his way into management. Stories of successes and failures. His outlook was much different than mine. I liked to be diplomatic while he was gung ho.

After a while of listening, chatting and most of all learning he sat back in his chair. "You'll do well here son. Just don't be a pushover. Now, go back out there and enjoy yourself. You've earned it."

I simply said "Thank you" before leaving into the darkness again. The weight that was with me in the office was still with me as I re-entered the party. I was in disbelief that I'd just been promoted without so much as an interview. My salary would near double and the other benefits would be the cherry on the rather large and cream filled cake.

I stood in the doorway looking into the room before looking down at my watch. 10.25pm. I'd spent almost an hour and a half in his office. Looking up I searched the room for Helen but didn't see her. Elle was pouring a glass of something by the drinks table so I went to see if everything was ok. She'd obviously had a bit too much to drink as she was swaying and struggling to focus. "Have you seen Helen? I left her with you when I went to see the boss."

She shook her head while taking another drink and without saying a word turned to walk away.

Again I slowly scanned the room to see if I'd simply missed her. There was no sign of her. Interestingly there was no sign of some of my colleagues either. Out in the foyer there were a few people talking where it was quieter. They said they'd seen her go outside with Ed, one of the only single men from the office.