Ann: The Married Years Ch. 31

© 2020, All rights reserved - mimaster

~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Neil slammed down the phone, the loud bang piecing the quiet office.

"DAMMIT!" he barked, the frustration in his voice masked by the increasing anger he was beginning to feel.

"Still not home?" Thelma winced, her question a vast understatement.

Neil looked over at her, his eyes narrowing as he stared. "No, she's home. I just love pretending to be pissed!"

"There's no need to be sarcastic, Neil."

"There's every reason to be sarcastic. It was a stupid question."

"Fine. I'll just sit over here on my eggshells while you continue to freak out."

"I'm not freaking out."

"Sure you are... for like the seventh time in the last two weeks. And frankly, I'm getting pretty fucking tired of it."

"She should be home by now, Thelma. It's going on... ten o'clock," he sighed, glancing at his watch yet again.

"I'm sure she's fine. She's a strong woman... she can take care of herself."

"She's taking care of two now," he said in a hushed tone, staring at the blotter on his desk, thinking about how she was more vulnerable now that she had a baby to take care of.

Thelma got up, moving over to him. Sitting on the corner of his desk, she lifted his chin, the two making eye contact.

"She's fine, and so is Owen. Now stop doing this to yourself."

"I just don't like her being out this late. I don't like it that I can't... you know."

"Then stop bitching and DO something about it."

"Yeah, and just what am I supposed to do; tell her she's not allowed to leave the house?"

Patting him on the shoulder, she shook her head. "No Neil. She wouldn't do that anyway, and you know it."

"Then what am I supposed to do? I hate worrying like this."

"For one, have a little faith. And like I said, if you're going to be this concerned, then don't be passive. Do something." The resigned look on his face brought a soft smile to hers. "You're a smart man, sweetie. You've been talking about it for a month. I know you don't want to spend of money, but isn't it better to do that and have peace of mind?"

"It's not that I don't want to spend the money. I just... I just don't want her to think I'm being paranoid, you know? I don't want her to think I don't trust her."

"Okay, first, you are paranoid. Look at yourself. You're a mess right now. And as far as she's concerned, it would just be taking a proactive step. Better to do it and not have to, then not do it and wish you had. Don't you think?"

"I guess."

She shook her head, trying to figure out a way to get him past the angst he was feeling, and think of things more clearly. Thinking of Ann, she came to it quickly. "You know, what you really need to do is look at this entirely different," she said with an odd smile.

"What do you mean?"

"I've known you for almost five years, Neil, and if there's one thing I've been able to discern about your relationship with Ann, it's that you two always seem to find ways to turn everything into something sexual. Hell, you've even got me thinking that way with Vaughn all the time now. I'm sure if you put your imagination to work, you can figure out a way to do the same thing with this." He flashed a broad smile, his brain suddenly flooded with what seemed like dozens of scenarios where he could do just that. Thelma let out a hearty laugh, patting him on the shoulder. "See... I knew you'd figure it out!"

It was amazing how quickly Ann and Neil's lives were changing. Since they'd had Owen, their relationship was constantly evolving. Part of that was the idea that they were now a family instead of just a couple. Not that it was a bad thing. But it was a lot of work to keep up with the whirlwind their life had become.

One of the biggest adjustments came from Owen growing, seeming to transform from baby into toddler much faster than either of them anticipated. He barely crawled, instead pulling himself up and learning to walk at just eight months. And he was all-out running at nine, always seeming in a hurry to get somewhere. Neil felt a part of that was brought about by his peer group.

None of Ann and Neil's friends that were their age were parents yet. She didn't have anyone to lean on those first few months after Owen was born, other than Felicia next door. So, she reached out to her doctor, who put her in contact with several women who had started meeting together. Specifically, it was a breast-feeding support group; new mothers that could offer ideas and share experiences. That eventually evolved into a smaller play group, some of the same mothers getting together. It allowed the kids to interact, while giving the moms some needed adult time. It wasn't a girl's day out, but it allowed Ann to branch out and meet new friends, while doing the same for Owen. It gave her something to do, and it was a wonderful, nurturing environment for her son.

There were eight mothers in all, and they would rotate between homes. Owen seemed to love it from the start, learning to play and interact with his little mates. Through that group she became good friends with three of the other mothers, getting together individually with them between the official play group dates.

The official group had started out meeting once a month. As it turned into more of a play variety than the support gathering, they started getting together more often, to the point that it seemed to Neil like they were always on the go. And in a way they were. If they weren't getting together with people from the playgroup, they were running errands.

Neil was totally on board with it... at first. He loved that Ann had met knew friends, and that Owen seemed to love being with the other kids. He also liked the idea that it gave her an outlet during times when he was on his odd shifts. But as autumn arrived, the days became shorter, at least as far as daylight was concerned; he became more and more concerned with them being out after dark.

Ann had never been the best driver at night, her vision affected by the lights of oncoming cars. With the hills and curves of the roads of West Virginia, especially with her being a little more unfamiliar with the ones heading back from the homes of her newer friends, it made him nervous.

It wasn't that he didn't trust her. After all, she was exactly as Thelma described; an incredibly strong woman. She was smart, and independent, and he'd never been concerned about her being out before. But a part of that was she usually didn't go out that late at night on her own; generally just coming home from work. Now she was not only out more, she had a baby with her, and that changed everything.

If she got lost, or had car trouble, having a baby made a bad situation worse. It made her more vulnerable and put them both at risk. It wasn't that he wouldn't be worried for her in the same situation if she were alone. But she'd never really put herself in that spot before. Now she was doing it routinely, and with a baby.

Things had come to a head when he went to second shift. Ann was taking advantage of the shift she hated most, meeting up with her girlfriends in the afternoons and often staying until evening. She would usually be home by seven, but there were times, like this one, that she didn't come home until late. And it was happening more and more. That made him nervous, and in some cases, even angry.

Thelma was right. He knew what he needed to do. He'd talked about it at work dozens of times. He just didn't know how to do it without making it seem like he didn't trust his wife's judgment. With Thelma's suggestion that he resolve his dilemma by using sex as a solution, he was suddenly confident he could make all his fears go away, and have some fun in the process.

"You're right, Thelma," he nodded as he got up to check the production floor. "I'm going to go do it tomorrow."

~*~*~*~*~*~*~

"Baby," Ann called back toward the bedroom, trying to get Neil's attention.

"Yeah," he answered from where he was, standing in front of the master bathroom mirror. It was six-thirty in the morning, and he was getting ready to go to work.

"Can we talk?"

"Yeah, let me finish shaving first."

She appeared at the end of the small hallway in their bedroom, Owen following her with a Playschool truck in his hand. "Can you shave and talk at the same time?"

"Sure. What's up?"

"Owen... always," she said as she appeared behind him, staring lovingly in the mirror.

"What?"

"He's always up, and he's always at my feet," she sighed.

"I sense this is more than that. He's not up all the time."

"More than he used to be. And when he is up, he's going a hundred miles an hour."

"Gee, I wonder where he learned that from?"

"Me," she groaned.

Wiping his smooth face with a towel, he turned to look at his amazing wife, for the first time seeing weariness in her eyes. Leaning against the counter, he pulled her into a hug. "What's going on, babe?"

"I need a break," she answered, actually breaking down and crying softly.

His hand went to the back of her head, slowly stroking her silky hair as the tears landed on his shoulder. "Okay... what can I do to help?"

She was just over nine months into being a mom, and she was starting to feel the strain. She hadn't counted on Owen being so mobile so fast, and now that he was actually walking, he was constantly at her side craving attention. She loved him, but there were times, albeit rare, that she felt trapped by motherhood. She'd just gotten back to feeling like Anna again, and she didn't want to lose that sense of self; the exciting sexual rush that came with being a slut.

Pushing back, she leaned against the wall, looking down to see her son at her feet, now sitting on the floor playing quietly with his truck. Just the sight brought a smile to her face. Taking a deep breath, she glanced back at her husband, her lower lip quivering.

"I feel like such an awful mother," she blurted out.

"You know that's not true, Ann. You're amazing."

"Then why do I feel so bad about what I'm thinking right now?"

He knew it wasn't post-partum depression. At least, he was fairly certain. He'd been worried about it early on, but Ann took to motherhood just like he thought she would. He'd actually been looking for signs all along, but he'd never seen them until now. That's why her question surprised him.

Remaining calm, he simply asked, "What is it you're thinking?"

Blinking wildly, she paused for the longest time, finally saying, "I... I want to go back to work."

"You do?"

"Does that make me horrible?"

"Horrible? What are you talking about? There are tons of mother's that go back to work after having a baby. Most of them right away."

"Not me. I always thought I'd be a stay at home mom, you know?"

"Okay, so now we know different. That doesn't make you a bad mother, or a bad person."

"So, you'd be okay with it?"

"I love you Ann. I want you happy. And frankly, if you're not happy, Owen won't be happy. And if both of you aren't happy, I know I won't be happy. Have you talked to Mary Ann about it?"

"Yeah... yesterday. I... I wasn't sure if she'd want me back."

"Why in the world would you think that?"

"I don't know. Because I'm a mother now, I guess."

"You're still Anna, aren't you?" he smiled.

She lit up, the fear of telling her husband her desire suddenly gone. "Very much," she nodded.

"Well, that should tell you something. So, I guess we just need to figure out how to work your job around mine with Owen," he said with a positive nod of his head, already thinking of ways they could make it work.

"I don't want you to worry about that, Neil. It's not fair to interrupt your sleep with the way your job is."

"Not fair? He's my son, Ann. That's what I'm supposed to do."

"Nevertheless, you need to be able to sleep to do your job. This is about me needing time to stay sane for the both of you. If you go nuts trying to help me out so I can work, that doesn't solve anything. It just creates another problem."

"So what, you're thinking about daycare? That's kind of a waste, don't you think?"

Her sweet sigh made him melt, as did the loving look in her dark chocolate eyes. Taking a step toward him, she wrapped her arms around his neck, staring deeper into his wondrous gaze. "It's not going to be that big of a deal, baby. I'm not going back full-time."

Arching an eyebrow, he realized she already had everything worked out. She just needed him to be okay with it. "Enlighten me then. Tell me what you want to do."

"I talked to Mary Ann about coming back, but I also want to be a stay-at-home mom as much as I can. I just need a chance to be free a little bit. I'm not running away."

"I know that Ann. Just... tell me."

"Okay," she nodded. "I told her I only wanted to work one day a week, which she was fine with. But, she asked if I would work one Saturday a month as a compromise. I told her I would, if you were okay with me going back to work at all."

"What's with the Saturday? Why is it a compromise?"

"Apparently she's been getting feedback about the classes I used to teach. She's been getting asked when there are going to be more of them. She'd like me to start doing them again. And since the majority of them were on Saturday's, she'd like me to schedule one each month."

"Hmm. There must be a big demand to learn how to deepthroat," he chuckled.

"You loved it when I learned," she shrugged. "But I'm going to do more than that. She wants me to do another bondage class, and she has ideas for a couple others. I have one too."

"Yeah, what's that?"

Offering a sexy wink, she said, "Teaching women how to juggle between being a mom and a slut. I'm still learning that one myself, though."

"I'd say you're doing pretty well so far. So... what day would you work during the week?"

She looked at him like he had just said the craziest thing ever. And perhaps he had, since he really didn't consider the question that well. Her reaction, a particularly wicked grin, made his heart skip a beat. "I want to work Wednesday's, silly. It's Humpday, and I'd get to dress up for whatever sale they're having each week."

"Always thinking like Anna," he smiled.

"That's why you married me. So... are you okay with this?"

"With everything but the daycare. I honestly can't see why I wouldn't be able to watch Owen one day a week."

"What about like now, when you're on first shift?"

"Wouldn't you just work the afternoon?"

"No. I want him to get used to a routine. I don't want to him having to be on an odd schedule like you or me. I told Mary Ann I'd work from nine to four on Wednesday's."

His sigh wasn't one of disgust or resignation. It was more the inevitability that their life was once again changing, and he needed to accept it. "Do you have a daycare in mind?"

"Yes. It's already set," she affirmed. It was no surprise to him that she already had it all figured out, but he was still concerned and she knew it. Answering his unasked question, she patted him lovingly on the arm. "Its right next door, baby."

"Felicia?"

"Yes. She already watches Millie on Wednesday's, and she thinks it will be fun to have them both. Millie really loved it when we left Owen there overnight that time. Now that he's more active, she'll love it even more. And I think it will be good for him to interact with a child that's a little older. Plus, it will be a routine... something he can look forward to."

"Sounds like you got everything figured out then."

"Everything except whether you're really okay with it or not."

"Of course I'm okay with it. Why wouldn't I be okay with it?"

"Because we haven't talked about it, and I figured we both kind of thought I'd just be a stay-at-home mom once we had a baby."

"Well, you're right; we haven't talked about it before now. But we never talked about you staying home either. I just want you to be happy. And I want him to be happy too. And if you think having him stay at Felicia's once a week is a good idea, then so do I. How much per hour is she asking?"

"She's not charging us money," Ann smiled.

"Really? That seems a bit much. We should pay her something."

"Oh, I'm going to pay her. It just won't be in cash."

"What the hell does that mean?"

"I'll leave that to your imagination. Just know that Anna has the fees all taken care of."

"Fuck," he mouthed; the word unable to escape. Ann giggled and Owen reacted, starting to laugh with her. It was amazing to Neil how much they sounded alike. He was going to have his mother's infectious laugh. Shaking his head to get over the erotic thought of just how his wife might repay their neighbor for taking care of their son, he attempted to recover. "So... when do you start?"

Picking up Neil's watch off the counter next to the sink, she looked at the time. "Two and a half hours," she winked.

"You're... you're starting today? What if I would have said no?"

"Then I wouldn't be going to work."

"Just like that? You'd be okay with not working?"

"I'd have to deal with it Neil. I really was prepared for you to say no. I can't tell you how happy I am that you said yes, though," she said as she moved closer, pulling him into a long, steamy kiss. "But... I promise I'll show you tonight. Whatever I wear to work today, you'll be taking off me when you get home."

"When I get home? What about Owen?"

"I get off of work at the same time you do, so we should be getting home around the same time. Felicia knows one of us will come get him once you're done fucking my brains out. It'll probably be you, since I plan on being naked the rest of the night afterward. Unless of course, you make me go pick him up that way."

He let out a long, lustful moan as she ran the back of her hand against his crotch. "I love you Anna."

"I love you too, baby. So... just to make sure, am I going to work at the brothel today?"

"Oh hell yes," he groaned.

"Good. Time for me to get ready," she said as she moved toward her walk-in closet. "Come on Owen. Mommy has to get ready for work. I've got to pick out my outfit."

Neil turned back toward the mirror, laughing as he saw the shit eating grin on his face. He tried to concentrate on flossing his teeth, but he couldn't get her last comment out of his mind.

"Hey babe?"

"Yeah?"

"What's the theme?"

"The what?"

"You know. What's the theme for today's Humpday sale?"

"Oh," she responded, her laugh bordering on dirty. "We're having a 'Back to School' sale. I'm dressing up as a slutty schoolgirl. I can't wait!"

"Me either," he whispered to himself as he thought of tearing it off of her later that night.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Neil made one last sweep of the production floor, making sure everything was good to go for the next shift. Once he had that done, he updated his schedule. He went over it with Derrick, the supervisor that followed him, currently working third shift. Being the second week of his stint on second shift, Neil was now used to the hours, but like Ann, it was still his least favorite of the three shifts.

He had time to kill once he got Derrick up to speed. He had to wait until the crew clocked out so he could quickly verify their hours in the computer for the payroll department. Once that was done, he'd be free to go. But with fifteen minutes left on the shift, he wasn't able to do anything. And that had him fidgety. He kept staring at the phone, wondering if he should call home again.

Ann had never called him back, even with all the messages he'd left. He was sure they were home at that hour. After all, it was Tuesday night and she had to go to work in the morning. But he couldn't keep himself from worrying. He suddenly felt a bit like his mother, and now that he was a dad, he knew why she'd always been concerned when he was out late.