Doctor Harden woke up early in the morning. His wife was sleeping with her back turned towards him; usually she slept snuggled against him. He got up, walked around the bed and delicately sat down next to her, doing his best not to wake her up. He looked at her face. She was so beautiful. He loved her so much.
"
What is happening to you Mary? If I only could know what the problem is. If only I could know how to help you.
"
Seeing that his sleeping wife won't answer his silent questions, he got up and went to the bathroom where he took a quick shower and shaved. Mary was awake when he returned. She was still lying in bed. She paid him no attention as he entered. She was busy staring through the window.
"Good morning my love," he said lovingly.
"Good morning," she replied melancholically without looking at him.
Doctor Harden looked through the window to see what his wife was staring at, but except for trees and few clouds lazily sailing on the blue sky there was nothing of interest there.
"It's a beautiful day," he said.
"It is." Her voice was absentminded.
"Do you have any plans for what to do today?"
"No."
He could see that this discussion, assuming you could call it a discussion, was going nowhere. He desperately tried to think of something to say that could get her attention. It was then that he recalled his talk with Alice last night. When he came back to his room Mary was already sleeping. Now was as good time as any to tell her. Sooner or later he had to do it. Besides, he was curious about her reaction. Some small, selfish part of him still hoped that she was going to get jealous.
"My love, I have something to tell you." She kept staring through the window and gave no sign that she heard him. "Last night, when you were sleeping, Alice called."
"Alice?"
"Alice Chong, my assistant. There is some sort of emergency at the institute." He decided to be vague, especially since he himself did not fully understand what Alice was rambling about last night. Judging by her state, the last thing Mary needed right now was to hear spooky stories about weird meteorites and alien energy.
"Apparently, they have a problem and they urgently need my opinion. Alice is going to come this afternoon to discuss the problem with me." Mary continued to ignore him. "It shouldn't take more than few hours. She's going to sleep here tonight and then she's going to depart in the morning."
"Ok," Mary said in completely unconcerned voice, as if he was making comments about last year's weather.
"Well, I'm happy to see that it doesn't bother you."
Actually, he was quite worried by the lack of any emotional response. Mary insisted on this vacation for months. When he finally agreed and they started to make plans, she was very clear about him completely forgetting his work for these five days. He expected anger after telling her about Alice, or at least some sort of reaction. Instead, he got nothing.
"Are you going to eat breakfast? I'm going to prepare something nice and we could eat on the balcony. The view is magnificent."
"Ok," she agreed with as much enthusiasm as she did before. "I have to wash first."
"Absolutely. Go take a shower and do whatever you need to do and relax while I'll go and make a truly delicious breakfast," he said with faked cheerfulness.
Mary got up and went to the bathroom. Her husband followed her every step with worried eyes.
***
Mary locked the door to the bathroom and immediately found herself facing a dilemma. Should she take a shower or a bath? By now she was feeling better. A good night of sleep helped her mind to heal. She was still emotionally shaken by the memory of her kitchen adventure with Billy, but she was starting to put it back behind her. She still could not explain it. Was it a fantasy or hallucination or a dream? At this point it didn't matter. Her mind was healing and that was the important thing.
She decided to take a bath. A bath was more relaxing than shower. A long, relaxing bath would do her good.
The bathroom was equipped with one of those luxurious bathtubs large enough to accommodate a small group of people. Mary turned on the water and poured in some oils and lotions. Soon the bathroom began to fill with the delicate, artificial scent of flowers. As water continued to pour in, foam started to form and expand.
It took time before the bathtub filled. While waiting, Mary returned to the bedroom and watched the garden through the window. It was another hot, sunny day and the garden looked beautiful with thousands of colorful, blooming flowers. She promised herself to go for a long walk after breakfast.
When the bath was ready, Mary tied her long hair into a bum and slipped off her nightgown. She lowered her naked pornstar-like body into the hot water and spent the first moments enjoying herself and playing with the foam. Then, she put a little bit of liquid soap on a sponge and started to slowly wash her body. A warm feeling started to form inside her. She lifted one of her gorgeously shaped legs high in the air and delicately half washed, half caressed it.