Three is a crowd: If only David knew!

(Continued from last issue)

David and Diane have been married for years; then there is Julie, the young secretary whose axis collides with the couple’s in ways none of them saw coming.

DAVID

I regretted striking Diane the minute I did, and for a few seconds, we stared at each other in shocked horror and disbelief that I had, but I found my voice before she did.

“I’m sorry; I shouldn’t have done that,” I apologized sincerely.

She continued to stare at me in silence, her eyes now welling up with unshed tears, the sight of which made me feel even worse – Diane hardly ever cried in front of me.

I reached out for her, but she quickly stepped back out of my reach, though the movement seemed to jolt her out of her shock.

“How dare you! What’s wrong with you!” she cried.

“I’m sorry,” I repeated, my tone low with remorse and shame.

“Don’t tell me you’re sorry; tell me what the hell happened to the man I married!”

While there was no doubt that I was wrong to have hit her, right or wrong, no one likes to feel like they are being attacked; pushed into a corner, I went on the counter-offensive.

“How about what the hell happened to the woman I married! I planned an evening of love and romance, and got home early complete with a bottle of wine and roses to woo and seduce my wife; but not only wasn’t she home when I got here, she didn’t even bother to call, or answer her phone all evening; not even to let her husband know where she was, or check in on her kids! She then strolls in well after nine acting like there’s nothing wrong, and when I push for some sort of explanation, she gives me a cock-and-bull story about being at work!” I shot back.

It was wrong of me to have hit her, but I certainly was not the only one at fault here, and I was determined to spread the blame around.

DIANE

I had stayed out late to avoid facing David, but it was just my sort of luck that not only had he stayed up waiting for me, but that he was furious when I arrived.

However, while his anger was understandable, that he had actually hit me was not; and even more surprising was that he seemed to believe there was some way he could justify it.

The David I had fallen in love with, married, and had children with, would never even dream of hitting me, but ever since he started messing around with that whore, he had turned into a man I barely recognized.

His actions took me back to the myriad of thoughts I had had spinning around my mind all evening, but despite the numerous hours I had spent mulling over all the different aspects of our lives, I still did not know many things for sure.

I knew that I did not want to walk away from our marriage, but there had to be a limit to what I would put up with. For starters, I would not be a battered wife; I had always thought of women who were beaten by their husbands as weak, pathetic beings with no sense of self-respect or pride, and I would not let David turn me into one.

“Just so you know, I really was at the boutique, but that’s beside the point; whatever you have going on with that whore, I will not let it turn me into an abused woman!”

“Now you’re just being dramatic! I apologized for hitting you, but she has nothing to do with that!”
“Doesn’t she? You’re mad because I stayed out late and you’d bought me some wine and flowers, but instead of reaching the ridiculous conclusion that I was with another man, maybe you should have considered the possibility that I was staying away because of last night!”

“What about last night? We made love,” he answered with a confused frown.
“No, we didn’t; we had sex, but don’t think I couldn’t tell you were thinking of her!”

“You’re crazy,” he shook his head, but he glanced away as he answered, and his voice lacked conviction.
“Good night, I’m going to bed,” I replied coldly and turned back for the staircase.

JULIE

Kenneth and I made love for hours; we would doze off briefly, then wake up, reach for each other and pick up from where we left off, almost spontaneously.

I loved making love to Kenneth; I loved the way our bodies moulded together perfectly and how he made me feel. Although David was without question a skillful lover, it always felt like he was taking, or asserting and reaffirming his superior position, while Kenneth treated me like an equal, giving as much as he took, and not always feeling the need to lead – I appreciated and loved him for it.

By the time the first rays of sunlight began to filter into the room through a gap in the curtains, we were both fully sated, and it was only then that the reality of what we had just done began to sink in.

Not only had we made love in the apartment David paid for, but we had done so in the bed he and I used, and although
it had been quite a while since David and I had last used it, Kenneth had technically just spent the entire night in it!

There was admittedly a certain degree of satisfaction and come-uppance that came from the thought that while David was
busy with his wife, I was getting my own sexual gratification, but it was not enough to squash the increasing sense of nervousness at the knowledge that David could show up unannounced at any moment, and that all hell would break loose if he found Kenneth here.

Thankfully, Kenneth seemed to sense the direction my thoughts had taken and saved me the discomfort of having to hint at it being time for him to go.

“I’m working the afternoon shift today; so, I should get going,” he announced regretfully, as he stretched and sat up.

I did not pretend to protest, for there was no need for games between us.

“Alright,” I nodded, and sat up as well.

It had been a beautiful night, but the real world had come knocking with the morning light, and it was time to return to it.

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