Carol Saves a Marriage

I have read many of these bar conversation stories and liked them. However, I think they were always from the man's point of view. I thought I would try my hand at it from the woman's point of view. Not being female I may have missed the mark. In any case, I hope you enjoy the quick read.

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Carol Saves a Marriage

Once again Carol found herself sitting at a bar sipping a Manhattan thinking about all the other times she had done the same thing and wishing things were different. Her coworker Lisa, a new employee, just took the seat beside her. Nothing was said other than the casual hello acknowledging her presence. Carol watched as Lisa would play with her wedding band on her slender finger as she snuck a wanting glance to her left looking in the distance. Carol, following her glance, observed the young handsome man across the room also casually sneak a glance back at Lisa. This cat and mouse game played on for some time until Carol spoke up.

"Don't do it".

"Excuse me?"

"I said don't do it".

Frustrated Lisa replied "Don't do what? I don't know what you are talking about?"

"Don't cheat".

"Oh my god! Where do you come off saying something like that?"

"I know what you are doing and I know what you are thinking. I'm telling you don't do it."

"You don't know what you are talking about. How can you accuse me of wanting to cheat! Just like you, I came down here for a drink. That's all."

"I know you are alone on the road all the time. I know that hunk of a guy over there has been hitting on you all day and he is not the first. I know you are frustrated and thinking about how good it would be to get together with him just for a night. I know you think no one will know or find out so no big deal, right? I know right now you were wishing I wasn't here so he would come over and take my seat."

"You're wrong"

"Am I? If I get up right now and leave he will be here in a minute. He will start up some idle chitchat; buy you a drink and maybe dinner. Before you know it you're in his room for just one more drink or maybe he just offers to walk you to your room. Either way tomorrow morning you will be doing the walk of shame from his room to yours. At some point, the guilt will leave and you will have a very contented smile on your face looking forward to the next time. And trust me, there will be a next time."

"You're crazy! I love my husband and I would never cheat."

"That's what we all say"

'Oh, is that right? And what makes you such an expert?"

"Tell you what. Give me time to tell you my story and when I am done I will leave and the decision is yours to make. Deal?"

Lisa again glances over to the young man, sees him give a smile back, again twists the ring on her finger, and says "Deal".

Here is Carol's story.

"I had been happily married to Peter Whilham for 23 years and thought I was living a dream. Peter is a very loving and caring man. He gave me all I could ask for and I never wanted for anything. Anything, that is except to experience sex with another man. But I am getting a bit ahead of myself.

I am one of five children of Jane and David Jackson. My parents met working in a factory in Lowell, MA. After a short courting, my father proposed to my mother and they were wed. According to my mother, it was in their first year of marriage that my dad made the announcement that he enlisted in the Air Force and he was off to basic. Her upbringing had taught her that it was the wife's duty to be supportive of her husband and as much as being in the service frightened her, it was the time of Vietnam, and she reluctantly became a service wife.

My dad had a travel bug. As often as he could, he would volunteer for duty anywhere at any time. As a result the family moved about every two years. They moved to Taiwan, Guam, and several U.S. states. Each of us was born in a different state or country! We were what we jokingly referred to as "Air Force Brats". Because of all the moves none of us really had time to establish any true friendships. We were always the new kid in school and on base we had new neighbors all of the time. That was bad enough but when we hit the formidable teen years that also meant we never dated. So while other girls in their late teens experienced dating and puppy love and even "petting" in the back seat, I experienced none.

It wasn't until my dad was stationed at Pease Air Force Base in New Hampshire that things finally settled down. He decided that being back in New England was home so he retired from the service and bought a small home in Durham, NH. Durham is a college town, home of The University of New Hampshire. It was there that I met my to be husband, Peter.

Peter and I met quite by accident. There was no big party or friends that set us up. It was just two people who saw each other often on campus. Somehow our schedules just aligned where if I were studying in the library I would see him or if I was in line for coffee he was also there. It was just these random but frequent sightings. It was mid-year freshman year that he finally had the nerve to approach me and start a conversation. It was love at first sight for both of us. We shared our past and found that our lives to that point couldn't have been more different. I described my travels and the constant moves and how I was so close to my brothers and sisters and he shared how he rarely left the state and how his family and cousins all lived within miles of each other. My first holiday spent with Peter was overwhelming! There were so many relatives all in one place! My past holidays had always been with just my immediate family or one of my dad's service friends who had no place else to go. When our family's finally met his side was shocked and would laugh at how we all addressed them as "Sir" or "Mam". Old habits are tough to break.

Pete and I married right after graduation. He took a job teaching at the High School in Portsmouth, NH and I found a job in Manchester, NH working at a company specializing in setting up and coordinating trade shows. My department was simply called "Marketing Support" and my role was to work with each location, generally, a convention Center or a large Hotel, to secure the date and then travel to that location arriving on a Friday morning to ensure everything that was supposed to be available was available. The remainder of the weekend was supervising the setup crew, making certain any literature or displays had arrived. I would stay that Monday morning to make certain that the event kicked off without a hitch and then I would leave later that day. When the events were in Boston or New York I would drive so I was always home later that same day. When the events were farther away like San Diego, Los Angeles, or Chicago my departure on Thursday or Arrival on Monday or Tuesday a.m. all depended on the flights.

At the beginning of the marriage, my travel was not concerning, as Pete understood I was just starting out and I really couldn't dictate the schedule. We also would try and leverage some of these trips as a mini-vacation. When Pete could get the time off he would travel with me especially if it was someplace warm and things in New England were cold and snowy. But as the years progressed and we wanted to start a family something had to change.

It was the third year when I approached my manager and explained that I needed to cut back my travel. It wasn't like I was not appreciative of the work and I was not threatening to leave but something had to change. To my surprise, she was very supportive. I don't know if it was because she had a similar situation in her past or if she was just sympathetic to my needs. She was able to make some changes to staffing and the end result was that I would cover the more "important" clients, which would mean traveling only once a month, while others could cover the remainder. She had been thinking it was time for some of the newer hires to take on some additional responsibilities so my request was the catalyst to make it happen.

So anyway, with the reduced travel schedule we felt it was time to start our family. Both Pete and I must have been very fertile as our son was born just nine months later. We had always used a condom, as I was afraid of the Pill. I didn't want any extra chemicals in me and honestly Pete liked condoms. He said that little bit of separation from skin contact affected the sensitivity just enough to allow him to last longer yet not enough to ruin the experience. I didn't care because when the advertisement had said ribbed for her pleasure they weren't kidding. So with no delay in waiting for the pill to wear off, I swear we conceived that first night. Because I didn't want to be a stay at home mom and expense wise we could only afford one child in daycare we waited until our son was in Kindergarten before we tried again. Kindergarten was half day so the cost of one child in daycare half the time would allow us to have a second child in daycare full time. So four years later we were blessed with a daughter.

Our life continued like a storybook tale. Peter continued to teach and I continued to do this job and we raised two wonderful children in our little house with the picket fence and the customary dog."

"So your life was perfect. Where is this going," said Lisa with a bit of annoyance in her voice?

"I'm getting there. So just like you, I was young and if I don't mind saying so, attractive. I was constantly on the road and constantly hit on. I too said I would never cheat, as I loved my husband. But I still always had a feeling that I married too young. After so many years of hearing the stories from other women, some good and some bad, I felt I had missed out on so much. I never dated a lot and never experienced much. Pete was my first and only. I am not just talking about sex. It's true I was a virgin when I met Pete. He was the first sexual partner I ever had and he had to teach me everything. Until I went to college I never had a guy make any move on me. My sex was limited to some making out in a dorm room and only two guys ever had my bare breasts. A little fingering here and there and I gave one guy a handjob. It was so bad I think I rubbed him raw! I was so scared and embarrassed all the time I would end the date and run home and cry.

But then I met Pete and he was so gentle and kind somehow that made me feel comfortable enough to start a relationship. He never pressured me and over the next few years, he taught me to be a good lover. At the time that was all I wanted and all I needed.

But like I said I still had someplace in the back of my mind that I missed out on something special. The dating, the courting, the chase, it was all missing. And yes, sex with different partners. On nights like this on trips sitting around a table with the girls I would hear of getting fucked or making love. The dancing and how some guys would compete for their attention. Some would tell stories how they targeted a guy and how they finally won him over and then after the conquest send him packing. I wanted so badly to experience those things, both good and bad.

But I didn't cheat. There were two big reasons why I held out. The first was Pete. I loved Pete and I didn't want to see him hurt. I didn't care about what I would lose in a divorce as a house and money are all just material possessions that could be replaced. What I feared the most was the betrayal. Pete loved me more than life itself so for me to crush him by betraying his trust would kill me. To have him think less of me or to think he wasn't man enough for me was devastating. The second was my children. I wanted them to grow up in a home with a mother and father. If I divorced Pete to go out and experience what I felt was missing would mean we would end up sharing the kids. Whoever got full custody wouldn't matter as we would still see the kids. But I had no desire to be a part-time mom or have Pete only get visitation rights. Just the sound of that phrase visitation rights sounds so clinical and unloving."

"So what happened to change all of that?"

"It was a few years ago when I was out in LA that changed everything. I have been doing this for many years and like I said I have always been hit on. There was this one gentleman that was a regular at the show, David. For years he would flirt and he never got farther than a handshake. This time, however, when he asked me if I would like some company at dinner I said yes! I thought he was going to drop dead of a heart attack. Now don't think I got all made up and dressed sexily for dinner. I didn't plan this so all I had was my work clothes and besides if I all of a sudden started to dress on the slutty side I would draw attention. But we dined and talked and had a few drinks and I tell you I loved the attention! We touched hands, I flirted, he had his hand on my thigh and I felt electricity like I was hit by lightning. I did let him walk me to my room and I did kiss him goodnight. And it was not a peck on the cheek. It was a long deep romantic kiss in the hallway as I leaned against my door. He thanked me for the evening and I went into the room and collapsed on the bed. I felt so turned on and satisfied and I felt no guilt. The satisfaction wasn't like sexually satisfied. I was satisfied that I did something I had wanted to do for a very long time and I was satisfied that I could do it again. As far as anyone who saw us knew we were two businesspeople having dinner. There was some small talk; some casual touching that may pass the husband test and a walk out of the lounge. Now the kiss at the door was a bit much and something that needed to be avoided in the future but I think what I realized is that I now had the means, the trips, and the method, the business look, to continue to take this further.

So my reasons for not cheating had been the betrayal of Peter and the kids. The kids grew up and went off to College. They were now adults and on their own. That left Pete. Could I now betray Pete? I kept saying no but the little voice in the back of my mind was saying what he doesn't know won't hurt him. Didn't I just prove that I could get away with it? I didn't have sex but I was with another man. What if I just continued to flirt and have dinner and maybe a kiss or two? I decided then that I would continue.

For the next three months, I did just that. When a guy that hit on me that I felt attracted to and comfortable with I would have dinner, drinks, flirting, and then we would make out. I made certain that part was out of sight. We would take a walk out of the hotel and find a nice place in the park or in a corner booth in another bar. Again, we looked like two adults enjoying each other's company. Not a hooker and her John.

But then things changed. The scheduling of the trips was constant and consistent. I was now set to be back in LA and I was with the same guy I had met months ago, David. Just as last time he asked me to dinner and I accepted. However this time he didn't walk me to his room. He instead slipped me his room card key and said he was going to his room. If I would like his company to just come in. If I didn't arrive within an hour he would understand. As he left I felt the weight of the world on my shoulders. For months I was fulfilling a need, the need to flirt, to date, to experience the give and take of romance with another man. But I always ended it where I felt was a comfortable and safe place. Would Pete be angry at what I had done? Certainly. But would he divorce me? No, I don't think so. But this is the line. This is the line that once crossed there is no return. Is it worth it? Do I feel confident enough that I could do this and not get caught? Could I somehow think that betrayal only occurs when caught? No, betrayal doesn't occur when you are caught, betrayal, in my case, occurred the moment I let these guys kiss me and I allowed them to lay hands on me. I already cheated. But in my mind I was safe. I wouldn't get caught and Peter would be safe, as he would never know.

Earlier I mentioned that my husband and I use condoms. Using them when I cheated would be a must. I didn't want to bring home a surprise to my husband. I know they are not perfect and you can catch an STD from kissing but the risk is greatly reduced when using a condom, even for oral. By my buying the same brand I used at home reduced the risk of getting caught should I forget to throw out any leftovers before I left the hotel. If Pete all of a sudden found another brand at home I would have no way to reasonably explain how they appeared. I left the Hotel lounge and went to the next-door pharmacy and bought condoms, paying in cash. I went back to my room, freshened up my makeup, removed my bra and panties, and went to his room.

I knocked once and used the card key to enter. The room was dark, lit only by the lamp in the corner. David was sitting there and as I entered a look of confidence came over his face. He stood, went over to the desk and I saw he had the entire making for a Manhattan, my drink of choice. He put the fixings in a shaker and as he was shaking the drink he looked over to me with a satisfying grin. I felt arousal come over me like never before. My nipples were so hard I thought they would tear holes in my blouse. Without saying a word I slowly undid the buttons of my blouse pausing a bit before I slipped it off my shoulders letting it drop onto the floor. I then undid the zipper of my skirt and it also fell to the floor. Slowly I walked over to where David was standing. He filled the glass with ice, then poured the drink and handed it to me. Staring into each other's eyes we took a sip and then all he said was "magnificent". After that sip all I can remember was lying on the bed feeling fully satisfied. I should have felt guilt or remorse but instead I felt joy and complete. We had sex again that evening and then I showered, dressed, and went back to my room.

That was the beginning of my end. For the next four years, once a month, over the course of several days, I would have sex with someone who was not my husband."

"Well excuse me for saying but that doesn't sound all that bad. Why would you tell me to not do it? Sounds like it was a great four years".

"Oh it was, but like the saying goes all good things must come to an end."

"Why?"

"I thought my plan was foolproof. Use condoms, don't change your dress, don't do anything in public view, keep to the proven routine."

'What changed?"

"Kevin, Kevin is what changed. It was the trip to Minnesota that was my downfall. Minnesota was always Kevin. On this one trip to Minnesota, Kevin was a no show. Apparently, Kevin left the company and in his place was a new guy, Steve. Steve was new to that company having just come from a competitor in Boston. Steve was my age, good looking, single, and a huge flirt. We hit it off very well and just like the others he invited me to dinner and one thing led to another and I found myself in his room in his bed for two nights out of the three. Just as before I stuck to my routine but being confident in what I had been doing for so long and having been used to the guys I was with I had skipped the normal small talk of our personal lives. I never asked much about him and his past and he asked nothing of mine. It was all flirting and get to the sex part. Honestly, that wasn't a problem for me. The fun of the chase and the dating had long been gone. It was now about sex."

"So what was the problem?"

"When I returned home nothing was different but two weeks later just before my next trip Peter said we were going to host a cook out. Apparently, an old friend of his from his hometown was in the area and looked him up. He hadn't seen the guy in years and they were very tight and he felt bad for not keeping in touch. They had exchanged emails and some phone calls over the years but neither one had taken the initiative to get together. I told him I thought that was sweet and I would be on my best behavior. I would play hostess and they could catch up. So you know where this is going, right?"