Mister Jack Miller Ch. 01

I called Donna the next morning and asked her to take out the full tape and replace it with an empty one, and asked her to meet me for lunch that day to give me the tape. I didn't want to discuss what was on the tape with her, but she didn't have to ask. She could tell by the stunned look on my face I had seen something as terrible as what she had seen the previous week. I was scheduled to leave the following Sunday for a two-day class in Detroit, so Wendy would be alone with the house to herself for the following three nights. During that time, I captured one more scene in the conference room, two more in her office, three in our bedroom and one in the living room, most of them with Greg, who seemed to be her favorite boy-toy.

After returning home, I collected up all the tapes, made several copies of every one, sent one set to a lawyer who could help me plan on a legally binding end to this marriage, secured the originals in a safety deposit box, and had Donna keep another set in her condo. I made another set of tapes of only the stuff that took place in the office, put them into a box addressed to Mr. Chalmers, but didn't have it delivered yet. The time was not quite right. I needed an opportunity.

And a few days later, the opportunity came in the form of a small, cream-colored envelope in my mailbox, hand-addressed in calligraphic style. The return address was printed simply, "Reunions, Inc." I opened it as I walked back into the house and discovered that my Great-Grandmother Ida, to celebrate her 100th birthday, decided to break open her piggy bank and pull as many of her direct descendants and their families into town so she could see them one last time before she died. Unfortunately, due to her age and other debilitations, she was not up to arranging the whole event herself, and so hired an event-planning company to handle all the details.

I showed Wendy the invitation, and she acted for a moment like she was ready to pack her things right then and there, then she looked at the dates, and sighed that she had her big Florida marketing conference that same week, and said how she couldn't bail on it, seeing as how she was the Senior VP of Marketing for the firm. I knew, though, that her display of eagerness and subsequent disappointment was all an act, because I could sense her real feelings of relief and disgust behind her fake disappointment. Of course, I was actually glad that it had worked out like this because as it stood, she was scheduled to leave for her Conference in Florida two days before I was to leave for the reunion, and would return the day after I left town, which left the perfect amount of "transition time" for my plan to be carried out.

So as I had already anticipated I would do, when I filled out the return acknowledgement form for the reunion, I left the "Spouse" box unchecked. I also decided, in the interests of saving Nana a little money, to go ahead and check "willing to share a room" and checked the "M" box indicating that I was male, so that I could be paired up with another male when rooms were assigned.

As the day of the trip approached, I began to think about all of the various relatives that I had not seen in a while, and a few I'd never seen. Some were familiar, like my older sister Alexandra, whom I had called and talked to for hours on holidays and birthdays and on a few whims lately but hadn't seen even a picture of in nearly ten years...some were distant like my loopy Uncle Hal who always managed to embarrass everyone he was with with his penchant for cultural insensitivity and one-too-many White Russians. I thought about my Cousin Darren who lived only a three hour drive away, but whom I hadn't seen in three years until he had died in a hiking accident about ten months ago. He had just gotten married about ten months previous to his death, too, though I couldn't remember the name of his bride because I'd had a business trip to Europe the week of their wedding so I never met her. And of course it would be nice to be able to spend a few moments with Nana, because despite her relative fragility, she always had an insight into my psyche, sometimes seeming like she could read my mind...

********

Well, a week or so before the reunion was to take place, I got a postcard informing me of my rooming assignment at the reunion hotel, and discovered to my great chagrin that I had been assigned a room along with Uncle Hal. But after thinking about it for a few moments, I realized that Hal would probably be spending most of his time in the bar, and even when he was in the room, he'd probably be asleep most of the time. So, other than having to put up with the smell of a sleeping drunkard's breath for a few nights, it would probably not be so bad. Besides, I had plans that would make any inconvenience associated with this trip seem but a trifle.

I had arranged for the lawyer to put together iron-clad divorce papers, giving up the house and the SUV to Wendy, and keeping only my Volvo and my personal belongings and whatever savings were in the bank at the time...and with the video evidence I provided of her infidelities, it was all too easy for him. I then called a moving company and arranged for them to show up at the house about three hours after Wendy had left for her Conference. I identified all of the objects in the house that belonged to me, had them packed up and moved into a vacant apartment in Donna's complex, and with the house seeming no longer like a house, I set up a little surprise for Wendy. I put together a mechanism that would start the TV and the VCR as soon as Wendy walked in the door. The tape would be a composite of all of the various tapes that I had made over the previous few weeks. On the coffee table in front of the TV, I put a set of copies of all the tapes (which I had a morbid feeling she would probably want to keep and watch over and over again when this had all blown over), as well as her copy of the divorce papers. I signed the house over to her (I had plenty of savings to last me which I had also protected during this time), and left those papers on the coffee table as well. When everything was ready, I removed my wedding band from my finger and put it on the top of the stack. It was almost time for me to leave to be with my family, which I know I would need at this point.

The last part of the plan was to switch the wiring of the office cameras so that the VCR's, instead of being in Donna's office, were now in Wendy's office (thankfully, since she was the assistant VP of Marketing, Donna had the spare key to Wendy's office). I didn't want Donna experiencing any negative feedback from any of this, so I cleaned up my mess so that there would be no trail whatsoever to Donna. Finally, I arranged for a courier service to deliver the set of tapes to Mr. Chalmers about two hours before Wendy was scheduled to arrive back in the office (if she followed her regular routine, she would go directly from the airport to her office that morning, and expect to "work" late that night). Everything was set. And if it sounds to you like this whole thing was carried out with a callous, heartless attitude, you might be half right. The tears I shed every step of this journey, the anguish I felt at losing someone whom I thought was my best friend in the world, the feeling of waking up every morning feeling like I had a knife stuck into my heart...THAT was what drove me to act. THAT was what tipped the scales...

I pulled the door closed, threw my bags into the car, and drove to Donna's house. She then drove me to the airport, reminding me she was there for me, whatever I needed. A soft kiss of goodbye this time, a whispered thank-you, and I was off...

I boarded the plane with great anticipation, hoping I could catch a little nap to make up for all the sleepless nights of late. I have to admit, though, that part of my anticipation was due to the idea that I would be alone on this trip and that there were several of my female cousins, like the twins, Victoria and Viviana, who I remember as being certifiable hotties, and having the freedom to ogle them without worrying about what Wendy would think was kind of nice. In fact, that same notion made me relax here on the plane as I exchanged smiles with a couple of nice-looking women as people moved in to find their seats. Finally, when I had almost decided to stretch my legs out over the adjoining seats, thinking that the doors to the plane would close without my having any seating companions, I watched as a very well-built redhead in a white blouse with red pin-stripes, a black skirt and low-heeled red shoes sauntered onto the plane, and, after taking a second to stow her overnight bag up into the overhead bin, smiled at me and said, "Sorry, but I think you're in my seat."

"Are you sure?, I could have sworn..." as I fished in my pants pocket for the boarding stub. Just as I got a hold of it and started to bring it up into the light, she said, "No, wait, you're right. I've got the window. Sorry about that. I normally get an aisle seat when I fly. I'm a little on the tall side, so I like to stretch my legs a little bit. If you'll excuse me, I'll just squeeze by you here..."

"No prob..." I began to say as she started to slip past me, facing me as she moved. I couldn't help noticing three things...one, that she WAS pretty tall, having to bend way over to duck beneath the overhead bin as she passed...two, that she was wearing a perfume that I recognized, a freesia-rosewater mix similar to one that I had bought for Wendy last anniversary but which she had not worn once since that time....and three, that she could not have been wearing a bra under the blouse, because as she bent over, her v-neck blouse loosened and I could clearly see the inside halves of her breasts jiggling rather freely within...I think I may have caught a brief glimpse of nipple as well, and that's when I jerked my head back so as not to be so obvious. Though for some reason it seemed like she had lingered there for a split second as if she knew I was looking and wanted to give me a moment to enjoy the view. Needless to say, I experienced a mild twitch at this moment of presentation...but it was quickly squelched by my anguish over how my "presentations" would go over back at the house, and wanting to be as careful as I could at not entangling myself until I was "in the clear."

I'm not sure whether it was the horn-dog or the gentleman in me which gave rise to the next thing I said, but as she began to slip down into her seat, I blurted out, "You know, if you would like the aisle seat, I'd be more than happy to give it up to you. I also tend to favor the aisle, but I like to stay on the good side of my seat-mates during these long flights..."

She giggled, and said, "Honey, if I had a good side, you'd be there, but I tell you what. We'll probably have to get up once or twice during the flight. How about every time one of us has to get up and stretch, we switch? That'll help keep things a little interesting. Mint?"

She offered the open box of Altoids to me, and rather than taking it as a hint about my breath, I saw it more like she wanted her own breath to be fresh, and she was just trying to start our flight-relationship off on a good footing. "Thanks, I could probably use a few right about now."

"I'll keep the box handy," she said as she tucked it into the seat-pocket in front of her. "By the way, I'm Shari. Nice shirt," she said referring to the tailored dress shirt I had worn (unusual for me, as I normally dress more casual for airplane flights). She proffered her hand. I noticed the red nail polish that complemented rather than upstaged her hair, and shook it, trying to send a message not just that I was happy we were seat-mates, but that I was also happy we were of the opposite sex. Not sure why I did what I did next, but I quickly yet softly brought the delicate hand to my lips and gave it a mock kiss. "Thanks, it's a favorite. I'm Jack. Ever so pleased to make your acquaintance. Nice blouse..." She giggled again...

It was then that I noticed the ring finger of her hand had a thin tan line around it, as if it had been used to carrying a ring until very recently. She must have caught me staring at it, or she saw the similar tan-line around my finger, because she pulled it away rather quickly after that and gazed out of the window. "I'll be glad to be getting out of here for awhile. When do they serve the drinks on this plane?" While she didn't break down, I did notice her eyes getting a little wet, and decided that I would leave her alone to work out whatever issues she had on her own, and I took to buckling my seat belt and preparing for takeoff.

********

Her reverie transformed into a nap as the flight began, and as I absentmindedly scanned the airline magazine, I took opportunities to glance over at her. She had a light spray of freckles over her cheeks and nose, full lips with just the slightest layer of gloss, and thin, but not skinny arms and legs. Those long legs were stretched straight under the seat in front of her, and her arms were folded gently over her belly. I took special notice once again of her blouse, and the pressure of her arms against her belly caused the fabric to tighten somewhat over her breasts. Her nipples were quite clearly hard under her blouse, whether from the cool vent over the seat or for some other reason I'm not quite sure, but I also noticed, that, as she slept, she would occasionally squeeze her thighs together and wriggle her butt against the seat. My imagination began to work overtime and I began to fantasize that the motions her legs and ass were making were the result of an erotic dream that featured myself as the male lead, and whether I just imagined her nipples got even harder or whether they really did, the end result was a full-blown erection on my part. Since takeoff was complete and the "fasten seat belts" sign had been turned off, I unbuckled my belt, and stretching my legs forward, took the opportunity to adjust my hard-on to a more comfortable position, and then glanced over in her direction, more to ensure that she hadn't seen that than anything else...

And, of course, I was horrified to see that she was, indeed, looking over in my direction, with a half-smile on her face. Now, to tell you the truth, I wasn't sure if the smile was her way of greeting me after her nap, or her way of telling me that she had seen my movements a moment ago. "How long was I out? Did I miss much?" And did she specifically glance down at my crotch that time? I was so flustered that I'm sure I visibly blushed, because my cheeks felt hot.

"Other than the announcement that we are going to be making an emergency landing in ten minutes, you didn't miss much." I smiled, and it was returned. "But your timing is perfect, Shari. They're loading up the drink cart right now. I'm going to get up a moment and..." (...try and get this hard-on to subside a little bit...) "so we can switch seats now if you like..."

"Well, that's awfully nice of you. See you in a minute, Jack." She winked at me as though she knew my predicament, and it wasn't very easy to disguise, but I faced away from her as I stood up and made my way to the restroom. Once inside, I splashed a little cool water on my face, and stared at myself in the mirror. "Despite how your wife has been acting lately, you ARE still technically MARRIED, Jack. Try and remember that..." That helped a little, which allowed my hard-on to subside enough so I could take a leak, but I still made a point to check my hair, my teeth, and express regret that I hadn't shaved this morning before I exited the stall and made my way back to the seats.

I noticed that Shari had already moved to her new seat, which, unless she stood when I got to the row, would require that I scoot past her just as she had done to me a short while ago. She saw me coming, and rather than get up, she pulled the seat belt a little tighter against her lap, which caused her blouse to tighten a little more against her breasts, and, instead of moving both her legs together to one side or another, instead she spread them apart as a way of making a little more room for me to get by. Now the decision was mine: Do I slip past her facing her, or facing away from her?

I decided that sticking my ass in her face was probably not the wisest thing to do at this point, despite the fact that my hard-on was once again returning to its former strength, I took the chance and faced her as I moved past her. Like her, I had to bend over so as not to bang my head into the overhead bin, and in doing so, brought my head very close to hers. She looked up at me for a second, and just as she smiled, the plane must have hit a pocket of turbulence, because the plane gave a little jolt and I was forced to move my hand quickly against the back of her seat to keep from falling on top of her, and at the same time she instinctively moved her hand up to keep me from falling. Nevertheless, my lips made the briefest of contact with her forehead, and I felt an electric jolt surge through me. The turbulent moment past, I stood there with her pressing her hand up against the left side of my chest, her fingers spread wide.

The moment of self-preservation, however, turned quickly into something else as I smiled down at her saying "Thanks, you saved me," and as she replied "Anytime," I felt that her hand was now no longer being used to prevent my fall, but to feel the beating of my heart, which was pulsing a mile a minute, keeping the rhythm with the throb that had recently begun in my once-again-hardening dick.

I slipped past and flopped down into the seat, trying to divert attention from the rising problem by saying, "ANY time? I'll have to take you up on that...you're a natural. I owe you one. In fact, let me buy you your first drink." That's when I noticed that she had taken the liberty of moving the armrest between the seats out of the way, so that there was nothing between us. Wow. Being married and faithful for so many years, had I been hit on as many times but just not noticed it? Or was this woman just getting to me, melting my defenses away? Amazing, I thought...

The limited selection of liquor combined with the stewardesses' limited ability to make anything that required any effort or style caused me to settle and ask Shari, "Jack and Coke?"

"Sounds great...and," turning to the stewardess, "make mine a double," she said as she started to reach over my legs to claim her purse from under the seat in front of me. But I grabbed her gently by the arm and lifted her back up, "Now, I SAID I was buying, and I meant it. If you want a double, I'll buy a double, too!" This time it was my turn to address the stewardess, "Make 'em both doubles, thanks." I handed her a twenty and she passed two cans of Coke, four tiny bottles of Jack and a couple of cups of ice over onto the tray that I had just lowered over my lap, which, thankfully, served to hide my boner from Shari's eyes..."You can buy the next round. This one's on me."

I suddenly realized I was still holding her arm, because she put her hand over mine, and said, "We'd better keep her close, 'cause the way I'm feeling now, we'll be needing the next round pretty damn soon..." She squeezed my hand and as she did so, I realized that the backs of my fingers were pressing softly against the side of her braless breast. In fact, I got the feeling that she wanted that, because I noticed that my fingers were somewhat trapped between her arm and her side. The erection quickly became uncomfortable again, so I tried to refocus by slipping my hand politely out of its trap (did she just pout?) and began the process of creating our libations. Of course, when I did this, it seemed like she wanted to make up for the lack of contact by pressing her thigh against mine, and despite all the warnings flashing off in my brain, I gently pressed back. "Here you are milady," I said, handing her a cup containing half a can of Coke and the contents of one bottle of Jack. "Why thank ye, kind sir," she twittered and brought her cup up to "clink" with mine, and as she did so, I said, "to a pleasant flight," to which she added, "and good company!"