The Tale of Two Affairs

If I had any concerns about where our marriage was going, they disappeared at that moment. Then I plugged in the flash drive to look at the pictures from Saturday night. The first one was her in the shorts and top she left wearing. The second was her wearing the other shorts and top as they left his house. There were a series of them at the party obviously taken by someone else. There were pictures of them kissing, of her top being raised to show her breasts, of her sitting on his lap with his hands under her top, and one with her hand down his pants. Then there were a couple of her in a tent like structure changing into her tiny thong swimsuit. These were followed with several in the lake and then several more with them lying on a deck next to each other. Finally, there was a half a dozen of them fucking on the deck. Most of them featured him on his back with Crys riding him. The images left nothing to the imagination about their actions.

When I finished looking at these, it dawned on me that while the scene seemed to be a party, no one else was visible in any of the pictures. Unless there were a number of people behind the camera, this party might have been for as few people as three or four. That seemed odd. I closed the file, pulled the flash drive and logged off. It was time for me to get to work.

At ten I entered my boss' office and ran through my plans for the two new products. He just smiled and nodded and made two minor suggestions that would be easy to make and implement. Then he talked to me for almost an hour.

I was rather unique among the marketing people in that we had a bonus plan that was based on the continuing profitability of our product lines. We had the option of taking our bonus in cash or in company stock which was available at a discounted price in this program. Most of the others took their bonus in cash and drove expensive cars and lived in big houses. With Crys and I both making decent salaries, I usually took a small amount of cash and put the rest in the stock fund. Since most of my programs remained highly profitable, at this time I held close to 10,000 shares of company stock and would probably add another 1000 or more this year.

My boss told me to keep this secret but that we were the target of a buyout/merger that would probably close after the first of the year. He wouldn't tell me who the other company was but said that since I had a nice portfolio of stock to sit on it and the value of my portfolio would probably increase significantly by this time next year.

This bit of news was both nice to hear and a shock to my system. The nice part was obvious but the shock was still a shock. In our world, there weren't a lot of secrets. There were only four potential buyers for our company. Three were very large bloated companies that to keep their stock prices up and their stockholders happy by regularly buying smaller firms that had good products and decent cash flow going forward. That meant that they didn't have to spend a lot of time or energy developing new products or launching new marketing programs. They simply paid a high price for a company and began milking the existing cash flow tit like a baby suckling its mother. The other company was a European firm that invested in companies for more traditional reasons like their R&D pipeline, distribution network and so forth. If this company was the buyer, I would be pleased; if it was one of the other three, I might need to polish my resume.

But it wasn't the time to worry about that yet. I had to launch two products and then would have time to watch things develop. Launching a product wasn't very taxing on me because I would bring in all of the main players and lay out the plan. Each of them would take their part and run with it. All I had to do was attend regular review meetings and watch the game unfold. I went back to my office and scheduled the meeting for next week. The two programs were so similar that I felt we could cover both of them in one meeting. With that done, I went to lunch and turned my thoughts to my own personal issues.

It didn't take me long to decide what I wanted and only a little longer to determine how I was going to achieve it. There were several unknowns and uncertainties along the way but on the whole, I felt that I could deal with them as they came up. So when I went back to the office, I spent several hours on the computer researching and evaluating several options. Crys called at four and said that she had a meeting and wouldn't be home before nine. I sent an e-mail to Luce to see if she was available for dinner. She replied quickly that she would love it but that she had to be home early to polish her next day's work and get to bed at an early hour. I told her to meet me at a seafood place not far from her house at six thirty and that she would be home by eight thirty. She replied with a smiley face.

I left and went home and changed into slacks and a sport shirt and checked Crys' e-mail. There were two messages. One was from him saying that his boss had given him the news and that he would be ready for the trip. The other was from Crys confirming that she actually had a meeting that night. I left and was waiting for Luce at six thirty.

We had a nice dinner. The first part was for her to unwind. The second part was just simple talk between two friends about a variety of subjects. Crys' name wasn't mentioned. I kissed her good night at eight fifteen in the parking lot and watched her leave for home. I then went home and poured myself a brandy and turned on the ballgame. Crys came home shortly after nine, kissed my cheek, changed clothes and was on the computer by nine thirty.

She left early the next morning again. There was only one message from her that morning. She told him that she had worked out a plan for the weekend and that he should prepare for a full one. She gave no hint of what her plan was. But by then, I was getting bored since I already knew what I was going to do and I could actually use the situation to help her out; sort of like a gift. I sent Luce a message to see if she was available for lunch.

I didn't get a reply until late morning but it said, "The Greek place, one o'clock." I sent back a smiley face. I felt that I must have started into middle age by using those little adolescent images now. But frankly, I didn't give a damn.

At lunch, I carefully carried out my plan. First, I asked, "Luce, you told me awhile ago that you might take some time off after this case and go on a trip or take sailing lessons. Have you thought more about what you want to do?"

"Yes, actually you kind of helped me make that decision. If you took the lessons up here, then we could be sailing buddies and I like that idea. So I'm going to take the sailing lessons. What about you?"

"I want to take the lessons too but I was wondering if you would mind if I took the lessons with you down at the coast?"

Her face lit up and she grinned. Then she said, "I would love to learn to sail with you. We could begin early and learn together." Her face clouded a little, "I know Crys has given us a pretty broad approval; do you think that she would go along with the two of us spending a weekend together at the coast?"

"Actually, I wasn't planning on telling her that we would be traveling and staying together. I was going to tell her that I was going to Houston to take the sailing lessons. If it comes up, you can tell her the same thing except that you are going to Galveston. I don't think she will have a problem with it because she is going to be pretty occupied herself."

The concern left Luce's face and she replied, "That might be a good thing. That means I need to get busy and get signed up for the class but it might be the weekend before I can do that."

"I have a suggestion if you are willing. I thought that I might drive down there Saturday morning and look the place over and talk to them before I sign up. Would you like to go with me and we can sign up at the same time?"

"Bill Edwards, did you plan this or are you just perfect? Yes, I will go with you. Let's leave early and come back late. I want to let this part of the trial go. As far as I am concerned, we can go Friday night."

"I like that idea even better but I'll have to confirm that with you because you know who might not like that part; but Saturday morning early for certain."

"One more thing." She said but there was a glimmer in her eyes. "We get one room with one bed. I am not going to spend the weekend down there sleeping alone. I won't promise you anything more than sleep, but I want you next to me for two nights."

"I think that I can manage that." My words were sort of blasé but my body was surging with energy. "Can I buy you the night gowns to sleep in?"

"Don't waste your money; I will sleep in the nude and so are you." She grinned.

"I think I can manage that." She swatted my arm. I walked her to the courthouse door, kissed her and told her that I would make the arrangements and would let her know the details when I saw her tomorrow night at her party.

That afternoon, I booked a room for two nights and confirmed with the sailing club that two of us would visit them Saturday afternoon. They would be pleased to meet with us.

That night, Crys was already home I arrived. She had been doing laundry and packing. I suspected that she didn't want me to see some of the things she had packed. I fixed a light dinner and we ate and chatted quietly. When we finished, she again told me how much she appreciated my support during this busy time. Then she casually brought up that she was really going to be psyched when she got back and that she and a couple of girls from worked talked about going to a spa hotel an hour away for the weekend and would I mind if she went.

I replied that I wouldn't have a problem with that, if that was what she needed to do. She then said that maybe Luce and I could do something together. I replied that Luce was going to of town for the weekend. She looked closely at me and then asked what I was going to do for the weekend. I did my best imitation of screwing up the courage to bring up and awkward subject.

"Um, Crys, we haven't talked about this for a long time but I still think about taking sailing lessons. I heard about this club in Houston that offers a program and well, I thought that I might drive down there Saturday morning and check them out and if I like it, I might think about signing up for the lessons."

"If you sign up, what will that entail? It is a long drive to Houston." Her voice sounded concerned but the look in her eyes said otherwise.

"Well that is the deal, if I decide to take the lessons; it will be four consecutive weekends down there. I would have to drive down on Friday night and come back late on Sunday." Her eyes went from bright to glazed over. I had just handed her a gift from heaven.

"I think that this would be a great idea for you. In fact, why don't you go down this Friday straight from work? Then you can relax and look around down there."

"But you will be home Friday and..."

"I know but I am going to be exhausted and will probably go straight to bed. Then the girls want to leave early Saturday, so we would hardly see each other anyway."

"As long as you think it is alright, I'll do that. I'll take my bag and leave straight from work."

"Good choice. I'm going to finish packing and I have a little work to do. I will leave a little early again. So enjoy your night with Luce tomorrow and have a good weekend in Houston." She got up and went back to the bedroom.

When she left, I couldn't restrain my smile any longer. Things had worked out perfectly. I cleaned the kitchen and went out and took a long soak in the hot tub and thought about the future some more. I felt that the major hurdle had been passed and now I just needed to be patient.

I went to bed before Crys came in but I feigned sleep. She got in bed naked for the first time in over a week and I wondered if she was going to wake me up for a going away fuck; but she decided not to. I then fell asleep and dreamed of a sailboat on the water in the sunshine with Luce next to me.

The next morning, Crys was frantically getting her last minute things together and left after giving me a brief kiss. Once again, I took my coffee into the study and logged in. After this weekend, I felt like I might need to only log in once or twice a week since the weekend issues were resolved.

There was a flurry of short messages from the night before. Crys began, "You aren't going to believe this. He is going out of town for the weekend and leaving Friday after work. Plan on coming here when we come back and we can spend all weekend together."

"Why not my house?"

"Because I have a pool and hot tub. You will need to be gone Sunday afternoon so I can clean up before he comes home."

"What about the next weekend? Can we still go to the spa?"

"He will be gone for the next four weekends after this one. We can spend all of that time together."

"Great. What is the plan for tomorrow?"

"I'll pick you up at seven thirty in the morning; so put your car in the garage. We will leave for the airport at about eleven."

"I'll be ready."

"And I will be ready to; especially for your wonderful cock tomorrow night. Giving you a blowjob Tuesday night didn't help me at all. I might just try to fuck you on the plane this afternoon."

That was that. Now, I could tell Luce about our plans for the weekend during the party tonight. I dressed for work. The day kind of dragged until I got a text from Luce just before lunch. It simply said, "Be ready to party tonight; I am."

I took the afternoon off and went home to install the things that I had ordered. It didn't take long to install and test the system. Then I got dressed again and I walked into the Hilton at five thirty and by five forty five, her arm was through mine and we had a glass of wine in our hand as she introduced me to her fellow workers. Many of them had a look of surprise on their faces as they knew that Luce hadn't begun to date yet. She deferred all subtle and not so subtle questions by saying, "This is our second date. Don't read too much into it."

We danced exclusively with each other, ate the great hors de oeuvres provided by the hotel, and watched her fellow workers get fairly bombed. We drank but not nearly as much as everyone else. At ten, one of the partners approached her and called her aside after she introduced me to him. She was beaming when she came back and led me out into the hall for a quiet conversation.

"He just told me that I would almost certainly be named a partner at their meeting next month. One of their concerns had been that I was still tied up socially after the divorce and that tonight showed them that I was coming out of that and that removed their last concern. So, like it or not, you just helped me make the next step up in my career." I smiled and replied, "Glad I could be of service to my lady." That earned me a swat on the arm.

Then I told her about the weekend and she was all smiles. She suggested that she could leave anytime after lunch on Friday. I said that I could too; so we agreed to leave early. Then I made a bold suggestion.

"Luce, why don't we go to your place after the party? You can pack your bag for the weekend and then you can come to my house and spend the night. I'll take you to work and pick you up and we won't have to worry about your car or anything. We can just hit the road."

She smiled and replied, "My bag is already packed and I will be happy to spend the night at your house tonight on the same terms that we agreed on about the hotel." It took a moment for that to sink in but then I grinned and asked if she was ready to leave yet. She said that she was but that we needed to hang around for another thirty minutes or so and when the partners had left, we could leave then. Most of the others had reservations in the hotel and were staying. I took her hand and we walked back into the room and watched as one partner after another said their goodbyes and left. When the last one left, we waited ten minutes and said our goodbyes. The last person we went to was the office manager who looked at Luce and said, "The partners are tickled to death about how you managed this part of the trial. They told me to tell you that they did not want to see you in the office until Tuesday morning. Go relax and have fun."

As we walked out, Luce asked, "What are the chances of you getting off tomorrow?"

"Pretty good since I already told them that I wouldn't be in tomorrow. I planned on doing some shopping for sailing things in the morning before I picked you up."

"How about we just go shopping in Houston tomorrow afternoon after we get there?"

"We will leave right after breakfast or we can stop to eat along the way."

"I like stopping better than making a mess that we need to clean up. Let's get out of here, now. I think I need a little while in the hot tub tonight."

"I am following you at least until we get your bags in the car and you are locked up for the weekend." We held hands as I walked her to her car. In twenty minutes we were at her house and her car was parking in her garage. Twenty minutes after that, her bags were in my trunk except for the swim suit she was going to wear in the hot tub and the clothes she was going to travel in during the drive.

At eleven thirty, she went into the bathroom and came out in her swim suit. At eleven forty five, I took her swim suit off of her after telling her that we didn't want to travel with a wet swim suit in the car. She made no argument but took mine off also for the same reason. At midnight, she announced that she had enough and that it was time for bed. Once we were in bed, she rolled over to me and said that we weren't going to have sex but that she wanted a lot of kisses and touching before we went to sleep. We lasted until one before she begged me to enter her and make love to her. We fell asleep in each other's arms at three after several earth shattering orgasms. So much for our well intentioned intentions; but I for one had exactly no regrets. The smile on her face seemed to say the same thing.

We didn't wake up until eight and didn't get out of bed until nine after another flurry of mutual orgasms. Neither of us felt any need to rush. I made coffee while she stripped the sheets from the bed. We felt that the huge wet spot in the bed might concern Crys and her lover. We drank coffee while the sheets were washing and then got dressed. When the sheets were in the dryer, we looked around, smiled at each other and locked the door before we left. I hadn't felt that it was important but Luce insisted on putting a fresh set of sheets on the bed before we left. I wasn't going to argue with her about anything, so we had fitted the fresh sheets and then left.

We could have made it to Houston by one o'clock or so but we didn't actually make it to our hotel until five. First we stopped for breakfast and then we stopped for awhile at a deserted roadside park where we discovered that making love in my backseat was doable but uncomfortable. I resolved to trade my car in on something more practical for us. Then we had a pit stop to make before finally discovering why people cussed Houston traffic so vehemently. We were actually staying at a luxury hotel near the marina where the sailing school was located and were in our room and unpacked by six. After we made love again, we went out to dinner at a great seafood place on the bay. We were back in the room by ten thirty and wore each other out again. By my quick calculations, I had come more times with Luce in less than twenty four hours than I had with Crys in the last six months. But don't misunderstand me; Crys never actually crossed my mind until late Sunday afternoon.