Fifty Year Itch

John and Kate Dawson were having sex on their marital bed. It was satisfying sex. It was two am, and the party at their big house was over. The party celebrating their fiftieth wedding anniversary. It was loving sex, and they both got off.

They were both seventy, born four days apart. Their birthdays had just passed. She was the eldest. John always called her his 'older woman.' They had a son and two daughters. And six grandchildren. All of them had been at the party, along with friends, neighbors and remaining parents - her mom, his dad. Her two brothers and their wives and kids came. Just a lot of people. It had been a bash, and they'd both had a fine time, dancing and making merry.

John was quite fit at seventy - 5'10" and slim. He had all his hair, and it was mostly brown. He ran, lifted, and did aerobic boxing (aka shadow boxing). Kate was also fit, slim, some gray in her light brown hair, but very, very attractive. Her smile always lit up the room for John. She had long, toned legs and showed them off in how she dressed.

Both of them were attorneys. John was a trial lawyer with his own firm, now medium sized. He had been gradually withdrawing from trial work for ten years. But when he had done trials, he had been quite good at them, and made good bucks. He had a talent. Now he supervised younger lawyers at the firm, often from home. He worked at the office one day a week. He had another interest, which had become more than a hobby. He wrote bodice ripping fiction for women. (Go figure.) His books began to be published on-line, progressed to paperback, and now to hardback. He'd written eleven books and had made an increasing amount of money from his writing. And....he loved doing it. His pen name was Bella Cardinal. No author pictures on the books.

Kate made fun of the hobby. That annoyed John, but he kept at it. He simply liked telling stories. And he was very good at telling stories. That was why he was good at trials, which were simply storytelling over a period of time, and within certain rules. John was always amazed that many lawyers didn't see this.

As his books began to sell more, and make more money, Kate's attitude changed a little. Kate worked at a big law firm that did mostly lobbying in D.C. They had a trial section, but Kate had long since moved on from that. She was a partner at the firm and earned big bucks. In fact, Kate had always outearned John. At least until the writing. When they started, John was trying criminal cases, paid by the government. Very serious cases, eventually. Then he moved from that, using the skills he'd developed to win a lot of money in civil trials of various sorts. But still, Kate was making more. Because of this, they kept their finances separate. Neither of them wanted to argue about money. Their one co-owned asset was the big house outside D.C. where they raised their children. They split family expenses. Now, neither one had to worry about money, or argue.

Kate also had a hobby. In her early years she'd been a dancer. In fact, she was so good at it in her teens and twenties that she almost passed up law school to try to go pro. But she was married to John and got pregnant. She could go to law school while pregnant, but not dance much. Now, she went to a dance studio and practiced various types of dancing. She was quite a good at it, even now. She'd been going to the studio for twelve years, one or two times a week.

John really appreciated the way her dancing kept her lithe and limber. It helped their sex life a good bit. Kate was so.....entrancing to him. Their sex life had had its ups and downs throughout the marriage. Sometimes one or the other would be so involved with work that home life suffered. Overall, however, the two meshed in bed. And when John slacked off the lawyering, he amped up the bedroom activities. Kate appreciated that a lot. So, for the last ten years or so they regularly had very good sex. Better in their sixties than before, maybe.

Now they were entering a new decade - their seventies. John wondered a bit but hoped for the best. There had been no signs of either slacking off. And, since his workload eased, they got along so very well, outside the bedroom.

Life was good for John, and, after the fiftieth anniversary sex, he relaxed, in a great mood. Things were fantastic......so naturally.....

Kate snuggled up to him when they finished. She said, "Thanks, John. That was great. I cannot believe it's been fifty years."

"But it has, though, babe."

"Yes. And we've been faithful to each other all that time."

John stiffened up a bit when she said that. He had been faithful, and he was virtually certain that she had as well. He knew that both had had temptations. But he had never crossed the line, and he was sure she had not either. So why say that?

He said, "Yes. Yes we have."

Kate said. "You know that I love you so much."

Now John was very uneasy. The way she said it had a 'but' at the end.

He said, "What's the but?"

She scootched around to look at him. She was so lovely. She said, "I believe we need to branch out some. Fifty years with just us is.....enough. Don't you agree?"

Now John was struck with a very deep sadness. Right out of the blue, she was...what?

He was out of her arms and standing at the side of the bed. The movement was so quick and decisive that it frightened Kate. He stared at her.

She said, "I don't mean to cause you any....pain, John."

He stared at her, still, his face impassive. Finally, he said, "Just spit it out, eh?"

She said, softly, "I want to have other men, John. Not often. We'd still be married and have our good times."

John answered her in a flat voice. "You have some plan, Kate. What is it?"

"Next weekend I'm going to spend with Ted Sorenson. Leave Friday, back Sunday afternoon."

Ted Sorenson was another partner at her firm. He was tall and good looking, fifty-eight years old. John had never liked him. He was her firm's main litigator. John had gone up against him three times. Each time John had cleaned up. Ted never could get by that, even though it was a few years ago. Recently Ted had lost his wife, Helen, to lung cancer. That was eighteen months ago. John had always liked her and wondered how she put up with Ted.

When John heard Kate's plan, he knew that fifty years was all that there was. He was truly hurt by what she'd said. But he had many years practice hiding his emotions. He looked at his wife with a stony face. He turned without another word and went into the bathroom. He took a shower, brushed his teeth. He packed his shaving kit and toothbrush into a small case. He emerged from the bathroom, went to the dresser and started getting dressed.

Kate watched this. She was wondering what he was doing. But when he started dressing, she said, "Where do you think you're going, Johnny? You're not just walking out."

He said absolutely nothing to her. He was almost dressed. He took the kit and put it and some clothes into a small duffel. Kate got up, still naked, when he did that. She was unnerved by his reaction. She expected him to argue, maybe to plead with her. She had steeled herself for that. She was far from certain that she would really go through with the plan. She wanted to stay married, and still have her fun now and then. John could do the same. It wasn't only Ted that she was interested in bedding. There were young guys at the dance studio who came on to her all the time. She'd put them off long enough. That was what she thought when she decided to use the anniversary as a time to make her move. When John would be in a really good mood.

So, Kate stepped to him. She tried to hug him, but he pushed her away. He said, "No more hugs, Kate. Call Teddy bear."

He slung the bag over his shoulder, hitting Kate in the arm. It wasn't intentional, but she was almost knocked over. He walked out of the room, down the stairs and out of the house. Kate threw on a robe and tried to catch him. He was too fast for her. His SUV was parked in the garage. The door was going up as she moved through the front door, barefoot. John never even looked at her, even though she shouted at him, "Johnny, Johnny, no. Johnny, no."

He was gone, though. These modern cars couldn't burn rubber. If it had been a sixty-three GTO, the street would have been covered.

John drove ninety minutes to their cabin on a lake. Really, it was his cabin. He owned it, and Kate never liked staying there much. His kids and grandkids did like it. It was two bedrooms and had a dock and boathouse. He had a sailboat there, as well as a small motorboat.

During the drive, John emptied his head. When he got to the house, he stowed his things and went to sleep.

Meanwhile, Kate was very worried. Her plan to catch John in a good mood and talk to him about opening the marriage had utterly failed. Now she was afraid that her marriage also had just failed - all due to her....what? Due to her desire for something new in her life. She had been well satisfied by her marital sex. She simply wanted some big change, and that seemed to be a quick way to achieve a big change. Maybe she could have picked skydiving, or something. Or quit work. But she didn't want to give up her work. She loved her husband, who had been the main person in her life all these years, through thick and thin. She had likely fucked that up.

She was going to say that he, too, could seek new partners. She knew that he could get those. He was fit, good-looking and rich. Now, as she considered it, she knew that she had deluded herself. He was not the sort to have hook-ups. She maybe was - now.

She couldn't sleep. She paced. She tried to see what John would do now. And she tried to figure out what she wanted, now that he had broken bad on her.

After quite some time, she decided that she wanted to go back to the status quo ante. But how to get there?

At four-thirty, she ran the phone locator to find out where he was. He was at the cabin, as she thought he'd be. She texted him. The text said: 'John, it was a very bad idea. I apologize. I won't do it. Please come back so we can talk it out. I love you so much. Kate.'

John read the text at seven-thirty am, when he was eating cereal that he found in the cupboard. Powdered milk. He didn't answer right away. Instead, he tried to see what he wanted, and how he could get there.

After a lot of thought, he concluded that his relationship with Kate could never return to what it had been. He accepted that she would likely withdraw her plan to fuck around with the asshole next weekend. But he absolutely did not accept the idea that they could simply return to the way it had been. (aka: status quo ante.) That was because Kate had formed the plan to screw around, plotted about when to discuss it, and sprung it on him in a cynical and premeditated way. Indeed, she had already picked out a partner for her new sex life, a time to begin, and, undoubtedly, a place to go.

That being so, John felt as if she'd tried to play him to get - what? Better sex? Maybe. New experiences? Maybe.

John knew that she'd pinged his phone. She knew where he was. What would she do if he simply didn't respond? She seemed to say that she would not go through with her plan. Not so soon, at least.

He decided to let her stew. No reply. See how she reacted.

So, he drove into a small town nearby and bought a used motorcycle for $500.00. Including helmet. He had that much in cash, and more, stowed at the cabin.

He had a guy from the dealer drive his car back behind him as he tried out the bike. He found that his driving skills had not deteriorated from the time in his mid-forties when ha rode a motorcycle quite a bit. Back then he was a trial lawyer, and a natural risk taker. Now, he saw no reason to be too careful. He had less to lose.

He packed things into the saddlebags of the bike, drank the rest of the morning coffee, and started to get onto the bike. But then he stopped. He went back inside and answered Kate's email. He said: 'The fact that you so meticulously planned your betrayal of our marriage, and also plotted to spring it on me when you did, shows premeditation and blatant disrespect. I do not believe we can recover from that, and I do not see how you could have deluded yourself otherwise. In fact, I believe that your plan likely included an eventual divorce. So be it. John. He cc'd each of his children and her brothers. He sent the email. Then he packed the laptop back into the saddlebag and drove away. His cell phone was at the cabin. Turned off. On top of it was his wedding ring.

John rode west all day, stopping here and there for food and gas. He couldn't say that he enjoyed the ride. But he could say that it was better to be moving on the bike than to mope around. Also better than seeing Kate again. Examining his emotions that morning, he found that he had a tremendous amount of hatred. Some for Teddy bear. Mostly for Kate. He considered and reviewed their married life - mostly good. Mostly pleasant and productive, in work and with family. And she'd risked it all. Tossed it away, really. For a fuckfest weekend. He found that he couldn't find any love for her left inside. Bringing her image up in his mind also brought white hot hatred.

John fetched up at a motel outside of Columbus, Ohio. He checked in and went to a local store to get another cell phone.

Meanwhile, back at the ranch, John's emailed answer to Kate dropped like a bomb on the entire family. Her son, Jay, and her daughters Ann and Liz, all came to the house. In a group. The doorbell rang and when she opened the door, there they were.

There was a silence. The Jay spoke. "What have you done? How could you....Jesus?"

Kate fled. She ran upstairs and into the master bedroom. But she was not quick enough to lock the door before Ann, the most athletic of the three, burst through. Ann stood there panting, and actually growling. She said - shouted really - "WE WANT SOME EXPLANATION, DAMMIT!"

The others were now in the room. There was a general babble, and then footsteps on the stairs. Her two younger brothers were at the bedroom door. Harry and Larry, sixty-eight and sixty-four. Both very, very unhappy. More babble. Then Harry raised his voice over the others.

"Downstairs, everyone!" Pointing at Kate, he said, "You especially, Kate."

All of them trouped down, into the big living room. No one sat. They all looked at Kate. She was disheveled - and confused. Unlike her husband, she had not spent a career trying cases and facing intense pressure. She was frazzled from lack of sleep. And, she'd gotten the emailed reply only a hour before. It came close to gutting her. She hadn't noticed that all of them had been cc'd.

She was hyperventilating, but was able to say, "I've made a mistake. A mistake." Then she sank to the floor.

Larry said, "We'll never get anything unless we calm her down." He turned to Ann and told her to make coffee and toast. She moved to do that. Liz sat next to her mom, put her arm around her and said nothing. Gradually, Kate's breathing evened out, and she seemed to come to her senses. She looked around. Ann brought coffee and a plate of toast. Kate ate the toast but didn't drink much coffee. Jay went and got a cup for himself.

After some time, Harry asked Kate, "Now, tell us about the mistake. Don't lie, Kate."

Kate said, "I wanted....well...I wanted an open marriage. After fifty years! Spice up our life."

Ann asked, "When did you tell him that, Mom? I mean the party only ended yesterday evening?"

Liz added, "You told him in bed, right? My God!"

Jay said, "After sex. That's what the gist of it was in his email. You and dad had sex after the party and then you told him some plan. What plan?"

They all stared at Kate. She was looking down at her lap. She knew how stupid she sounded. How manipulative. Foolishly manipulative, to boot. She said, "I'm sorry. It was so dumb."

Harry asked, "What did you have planned, Kate?"

"I was going away to a resort next weekend. With Ted Sorenson from my firm. I was going to offer a free pass to your dad. But he was gone. So fast. He never even cussed me out."

Liz said, "Less that a week after your fiftieth wedding anniversary you were going off to fuck some guy. Unbelievable. Totally narcissistic and brain dead stupid."

Larry said, "That's for sure. You could have snuck around. Snuck around to fuck around."

The others stared at him, aghast. He said, "It would have been better that what we have here now." He was a bit defensive. Jay wondered about Larry's own marriage.

Liz said, "No, Uncle Larry, because now she hasn't fucked the guy yet. If she snuck and got found out, that would have ended them. Maybe now there's a chance."

Ann asked, "Mom, are you still going to the weekend?"

Harry said, "She said in the email that she wouldn't."

Larry said, "Yeah, that'll mean a lot to John. If I'm in his place, I'd assume that she'd wait and do it on the sly. That's exactly what he will think."

Jay said, "Larry, you seem to have a cynical viewpoint about all of this."

Larry looked away. Said nothing.

Ann asked, "Mom, where's dad now?"

"At the cabin. I located his phone."

Ann asked again, "Mom? Are you still wanting some new guy?"

Kate didn't answer right away. She was looking down at her lap again. Eventually she said, "Yes and no. Not if it means my marriage. I want things back to what they were."

Larry snorted. It was an 'I told you so' snort.

Harry said, "Someone should go to the cabin. I called his phone. No answer."

Kate said, "I have to go. I have to face this head on. Someone can drive me."

Larry and Harry stayed at the house, in case John came back. Kate and her three kids went in her Mercedes SUV. Liz drove. The drive took the normal ninety minutes, and it was getting dark when they got there. Liz pulled in next to John's Ford Escape. They were all relieved to see it there.

The four walked up to the door and knocked. No reply. Another knock. Nothing. Jay got the spare key from under a nearby planter. There was now some true concern for John. No one said anything, but they were all worried.

Jay went inside and shouted, "Dad. Dad." No reply. Ann walked by him into the kitchen. She saw the cell phone. She saw the ring. Kate was behind her and also saw. She sank down onto a kitchen chair and moaned, "Oh, no. Oh, Johnnie."

Jay went room to room searching the house. Nothing. He went outside to the dock and boat house. Both boats were there, and no John. He scanned the lake, shore to shore. Nada.

The girls searched for some indication of what had happened. But Kate joined them and soon concluded that John had taken the duffel that he'd left with, and his shaving kit and toothbrush. She told the rest.

Liz used her phone to email her dad. "'We're all at the cabin. So worried, but we see that maybe you left. We're all worried sick. PLEASE, DAD! Get in touch.'

John got the email at his motel. He replied, 'I'm okay. No worries. Sorry to worry you. No further contact until I sort through my options.'

Ann stayed at the cabin, and the rest went back to town. Ann had always enjoyed the cabin. She intended to stay a bit, and then drive her dad's car back. Maybe a few days. The next morning, she took the car into the small town to get supplies. On the way back she passed a motorcycle repair shop that had two cycles out front for sale. She turned in. She soon discovered how John was transporting himself. It made her smile. She recalled him riding many years ago.

Meanwhile, on the road again, John had decided where he wanted to go. The beach. He turned around from Ohio, drove through Pennsylvania and part of Maryland. He stopped for the night. The next day he got all the way through Maryland and into the Virginia shore islands. He rented a place on the bay side, with a dock and a kayak. He spent the next few days just floating outside his own problems. He got a beach bike, rode to the ocean every morning to see sunrise. Then he swam, rode back and caught crabs to eat. In Ohio, he had arranged for someone to watch his house, and his wife, and to make reports. He got two reports, but didn't open them until he'd been at the beach for a full week. Kate had not gone to the resort to fuck away the marriage - yet. She was going to work. No idea what she was doing there.