Holly and Greg

Our second non - "Loving Wives" story; written here in Non-Erotic because there's no sex in this tale. It's a cautionary tale of how a marriage needs two to succeed. Thanks for reading - Bill and Kate

Greg narrates:

I guess there are a hundred ways to find out your spouse is cheating or about to cheat. The most obvious way is to walk into your bedroom and find her getting pounded into the mattress by some asshole. My suspicion of Holly's possible infidelity started in a less obvious way.

It was an unusually chilly Saturday; one of my honey-do chores was to have the winter-weather tires put on Holly's Escape. I smiled when I got in her car; the heated driver's seat was turned up to '3'; I turned it off before driving to the local tire shop and waited while they switched the tires out.

When I returned home, Holly was dressed and waiting. "Greg, I need to go to the mall; do you need anything?"

Some men might be concerned upon hearing those words because it means the credit cards are about to take a serious hit; but Holly makes her own money, never overspends, and best of all, it meant I could relax in front of the television and watch some Saturday college football.

Holly wasn't fooled, "Try not to spend the entire day in front of the TV; the kids need some 'dad' time."

"OK, love."

Three hours later Holly walked back into the house with one bag from Nordstrom's. "Not bad for three hours." I thought to myself; then remembered something.

"Babe, did I leave my sunglasses in your car?"

"You did; I put them in the console."

I walked out to her car to grab the shades. As I reached in to grab them, I couldn't help but notice the seat heat on her side was back to '3'; but why was the passenger side on '2'?

Returning to the house, I found Holly in the kitchen. "Did you go shopping with anyone today?"

Holly made a strange face and waited a second before answering, "No, why?"

Shit, she had to have just lied to me. "No reason; just thought you were gone for a while and wondered if you had lunch with someone."

Holly turned away, pretending to do something at the sink when she responded. "No, I was all by myself."

The passenger side heat set to '2' was the catalyst for my suspicions. I told Holly I was heading downstairs to my shop to knock a few items off her honey-do list. The quiet of my shop gave me time to think.

****************

It took a half hour of solitude and reflection to realize that lately the signs were all there: coming home from work and not sharing details of her day, forgetfulness related to our home and family, a shortness toward me over the least little thing. Yes, the signs were there.

How did I recognize the signs of a cheating spouse? Because I'd been there before. My first marriage ended because of infidelity. But not my wife's; it was me that was the cheater. I was the one coming home late or working on weekends. I was the one forgetting to bring home the grocery items from the list Carol, my first wife, gave me in the morning. I was the one who made a big deal of and started arguments over the little things.

My affair with a co-worker was in its fourth month when Carol found out. The affair started in one of the most common ways; a little flirting, 'friendly' lunches with shared discussions about our respective mates and their shortcomings. It didn't take long before the friendship turned into intimacy.

Carol trusted me and would never have suspected if my fellow cheater's husband hadn't told Carol by showing her the photos his private detective took of us. Carol was devastated, said she couldn't believe anyone could betray her trust in such a way. Despite my vow to be faithful for the rest of our lives, she filed for divorce. "Why would I believe you? Two years ago you vowed to forsake all others. Look how that turned out."

Three months later I was single again. The thing is, I really loved Carol. My affair was stupid macho bullshit that led me into the abyss. A beautiful woman wanted my cock and I gave it to her to feed my ego. I fooled myself that it was just friendship, that what I shared with the other woman didn't affect my relationship with Carol. In other words, I was a dumb ass like millions of other dumb ass cheaters.

A year after my divorce I moved across country; from Atlanta to Seattle. Two years later I met, wooed and married Holly. I told her about my first marriage, but didn't confess to the adultery, just said my first wife couldn't deal with my (then) immaturity. Not exactly a lie, just not the whole truth. Why cause suspicions? I'd learn my lesson and would never cheat again.

Holly and I were married for six years with two beautiful children when temptation struck again. My job required me to attend training sessions every six months. For three days twenty operations-staff met at our Dallas headquarters twice each year. It was mostly the same twenty attendees every session and we ended up becoming close; friendships developed and there were even hints of a couple affairs.

One of our group was a woman from the Cleveland office. Karen Bates was a beautiful, single, thirty-something who seemed to enjoy my company. We talked during breaks and lunches. One night, it was probably my fourth session in Dallas, she asked if I would join a few of them for dinner. It was a smaller group of seven; what harm could come from it? It was a lively group; after dinner we ended up at a bar that had a dance floor and a band. I danced with Karen and two other women from the group.

After a few hours or so I looked at my watch. It was midnight in Dallas and ten o'clock in Seattle. I hightailed it out of the bar without saying good-bye to anyone. I called Holly from my cell phone as I walked back to the hotel. A sleepy Holly answered on the second ring.

"Holly, it's Greg. Did I wake you?"

"That's OK, baby. Just glad you called."

"Sorry it's so late. I went out to dinner and had a few drinks with some of the others. Wanted to call to tell you I love you. I'm walking back to the hotel right now. Should I call you when I get to the room?"

"No, baby. I'm just happy to hear your voice. How was your day?"

"Long, too long. I catch my plane tomorrow at three; I'll land at SeaTac at five-thirty and be home for a late dinner. I miss you."

"I miss you, too. So do the kids. Fly safe; I can't wait to see you."

As much as I wanted to stay on the phone, I didn't want to keep Holly up. She was holding down the fort at home; taking care of the kids and going to work. It can tire a person out and I wanted her rested for my return home tomorrow.

We hung up after exchanging "I love you's" to each other just as I entered the hotel. I opened the door to my hotel room, sat on the bed and collapsed. Jeezus, that was close! One more drink and one more dance with Karen and we'd probably be fucking right now. One thing saved me - I suddenly recognized all the warning bells and whistles from the affair that blew up my first marriage.

I swore that night that I wouldn't fuck up my marriage to Holly like I did with Carol.

For the next four years I was able to keep my pledge. I avoided Karen Bates and a few other temptations that came across. I'm no George Clooney, but I had opportunities to dip my wick in some strange pussy if I wanted.

But I kept it zipped; and so did Holly as far as I knew - until now.

****************

With a renewed sense of direction, I walked up the stairs and into our kitchen. Our two children, Sal and Barb, were sitting at the kitchen table chatting away with their mother as she made dinner. This was worth fighting for; but I needed to know how far Holly had strayed. Had she already crossed a line in the sand? Was she in love with the guy? Where was the line?

I could feel Holly's eyes on me as I entered the room and grabbed a beer out of the frig. I sat between the kids and joined the conversation. Holly looked at the three of us and smiled. I knew at that moment she loved me; so why the fuck would she jeopardize our family? Or was I jumping the gun? I did my best to appear normal and clueless throughout the rest of the weekend. We even made love Sunday morning before going to Sunday service.

Monday morning I asked my boss for some flex time to take care of personal business. He was kind enough to give it to me without prying. I made a few calls and had an appointment with an investigator.

Monday afternoon, I was sitting in the outer office of Sullivan Investigations waiting to see Jake Sullivan. I walked into his office when the receptionist announced me; Jake was a big man, reminded me of a TV show my dad watched when I was a kid. Dad had the complete set of VHS tapes, starring a rotund actor with a mustache. What was the name? Frank Conrad or something like that?

Jake saw the look on my face, my blank stare, and laughed. "It was 'Frank Cannon' starring William Conrad; that's what you're trying to recall, right? I'm not a mind reader - I often get the same questioning look. My wife says I should shave my moustache; but it's more fun this way."

Jake and I exchanged more pleasantries and got down to brass tacks.

"If what you tell me is true, this shouldn't take more than a week. We'll do some surveillance with a team of two, get what you need to make some decisions; shouldn't be more than ten grand. If you agree, Sheila has the contract to sign and I'll have two operatives get on it by Wednesday.

Ten thousand dollars sounded steep; but all things considered, maybe cheap in the long run. I agreed, shook Jake's hand and signed the contract at his receptionist's desk.

Friday evening, I was back at the Sullivan Investigations office holding my breath.

"Greg, I've got good news and bad news."

Fuck!

"The good news is - your wife hasn't gone to bed with the asshole - yet. The asshole's name is Derek Turner, by the way."

Derek Turner is Holly's boss. I'd met him three or four times at Holly's work functions. I never thought much of the guy and had the feeling he thought even less of me; always talked to me in a condescending way. I had to admit he was a handsome man, about our age and kept himself in shape. As this ran through my head I noticed Jake watching me - waiting. Damn, this guy was in the right business; perceptive, waiting until I was ready to hear the next bit. I nodded my head and he continued.

"The bad news is - she may be planning to fuck him soon. He asked her to join him on an out-of-town work-related conference in three weeks. She hasn't committed to it, but she's definitely on the fence.

"My two operators followed the two of them on Wednesday and Thursday. One sat near them Wednesday at the diner, a different operator on Thursday. Neither operator was spotted, I can assure you.

"There were no outward signs of affection either day; no hand holding, kissing, anything physical. And we were able to record the conversations both days. The operators carry special purses with parabolic microphones. I'll give you both tapes so you can listen for yourself. There's some background noise; you may have to listen more than once to get used to that and hear everything that was said."

I took the tapes, actually two CDs, from Jake; handling them as if they were poison.

"There's more. Based on what we heard Wednesday, I followed Turner after work both Wednesday and Thursday nights. Wednesday, he went straight to his home; Thursday he left work and met another man in the bar at the Metropolitan Grill. They didn't seem to care they were in a public place. I couldn't hear the entire conversation; but I caught enough to know your wife isn't their first target. Given what I heard, I confirmed this morning the other man is James Young; Turner reports to Young.

"It appears one of the previous victims was a Karen Johnson; your wife is a replacement for this Ms. Johnson. Young asked Turner how the seduction was proceeding; gave him some shit when Turner told him she was resisting. Turner said he felt he'd succeed as soon as she went with him on this business trip. Thought a little liquor and dancing would overcome her inhibitions. He even confirmed something we have on one of the lunch hour tapes; that Turner was tempting your wife with a chance of future promotional opportunities if she gets with the program."

Jake waited another few seconds while I absorbed all this. He offered me a cup of coffee from the carafe behind his desk. I refused, already too wired; Jake continued.

"I can't stand assholes like this. I wrote my notes immediately after their conversation. The conversation was held in a public place, no expectation of privacy; my notes can be used in a civil suit against these two and the company. If I need to, I'll testify on record in a disposition and in court. I'll charge you less than my going rate; just to nail these assholes.

"The charges to date are almost half of my original estimate. If you need to have your wife followed this weekend, that will probably eat up the rest of your deposit."

I thought about it for only a second. "No, I'll listen to the recordings; but if what you've told me is all that's happened so far, we may be able to get past this. I'll confront her tomorrow, no sense in drawing it out. Unless she surprises me; she'll agree to counseling and that should help. I'll have to think about the lawsuit; right now, I'm inclined to agree; these two assholes should suffer."

Jake shook my hand. "Good luck. Let me know if there's anything else you need. We'll settle the billing next week, just in case."

I went home early; listened to the CDs on my computer. Derek Turner spent most of both lunches trying to seduce Holly. He spent some time trying to convince Holly I must have cheated on her when I attended the Dallas training sessions. I was pleased to hear Holly defend me when Turner bad mouthed me. He tried to convince her it was in her best interest to go to the next conference with him. It would be good for her career; he was due for a promotion soon and Holly had an excellent chance of getting his job when that happened.

Turner spent time complementing Holly's looks, brains and abilities. When he said it would be wonderful to get together with her in a more private setting, somewhere away from the day-to-day drudgery and find out if their feelings for each other was "more than just friendship", Holly interrupted him saying it was time to get back to the office. That was the end of Thursday's recording.

I sensed Holly was resisting; but tempted. The attraction was understandable; I'd been there before and know it happens. If someone had intervened before my affair, my first marriage might have survived. It was time for an intervention to save my second marriage.

I called Holly's folks to ask if they could watch the kids this weekend; Holly's mom was pleased to have the opportunity. I picked up Sal and Barb from school, came home with them to pack their bags and dropped them off at Nanna and Poppa's to get spoiled for two days.

Holly called me at five to ask if she could get home a little later and have a drink with a few of her co-workers. She was stunned when I told her "No, come right home; now, we have some things to discuss."

"Can't it wait?"

"Not if you want to be married to me after this weekend."

"What are you talking about?"

"I'm talking about a divorce unless you're home in the next half hour."

"Greg, why are you talking about divorce? What's happening?"

"Holly, come home. I'm not going to discuss this over the phone." I hung up.

Twenty-six minutes later Holly walked in the door; she looked like she'd been crying.

"Greg; what's this about a divorce? Where's Sal and Barbara?"

"They're at your parents. Now; tell me about your affair with Derek Turner!"

I don't think I could have surprised Holly any more if I had punched her in the nose. The effect was almost the same. Her eyes got big and she stammered until the words came out. "I've never cheated on you!"

I took a chance and called her bluff. "There's all kind of cheating; just because you may not have fucked him - yet - doesn't mean you haven't cheated. Now, tell me about last Saturday afternoon."

Holly froze. "We didn't do anything but talk. I swear to you."

"Why on a Saturday? Don't the two of you talk often enough at work and during your lunches together?"

"Have you had me followed?"

"You can't change the subject. Tell me about your Saturday get together."

"I picked Derek up at his condo; we went shopping and had lunch. I dropped him off at his home; he invited me in, I said "no" and came home."

"No kisses, no hugs, no touching or rubbing?"

"He tried to kiss me when he got out of the car. I turned my head and he kissed my cheek. I swear that's all!"

"So, he went shopping with you; what did you buy?"

Holly looked scared now. "A dress and something else."

"Stay here!" I ran upstairs and into her bedroom closet. The Nordstrom's bag was half-hidden behind her hanging pantsuits. Inside the bag was a little black dress, a pair of heels, and worse of all, a sheer white teddy. I walked downstairs, my teeth grinding.

"What are these for?"

Holly had her face in her hands, she'd been crying ever since I left the room.

"Derek had me buy the dress and heels in case he convinced me to go to a conference with him next month. If I didn't go to the conference, they are for you to take me out."

"And the teddy?"

Holly bowed her head back in her hands and sobbed, "I'm sorry. He bought that."

"What were you going to do?"

"I don't know, but I swear I haven't done anything with him."

"Not anything physical; but!" I couldn't finish.

"Are you going to divorce me?"

"Depends; do you want to stay married to me? Are you willing to end this shit with Turner?"

"Yes, I want to be your wife; I never doubted it, you shouldn't either. And yes, I never want to be alone with Derek ever again."

Holly rose up from her chair and came over to me. She sat in my lap and melted her head into my chest. "I'm so sorry; please don't hate me."

I thought about throwing her off my lap; but couldn't. "I don't hate you; but that would change if you destroy our family."

Holly and I spent that evening and all Saturday talking over how we were going to go forward. If I had any doubt regarding Holly's love for me and our children; those doubts were removed by the time we picked up the kids Sunday morning.

We decided to see a marriage counselor together. Holly needed to reconcile her love of her family with the temptation of an affair. (Although it became obvious Derek Turner was an experienced seducer of women. For example, Holly said that Monday morning Turner asked if I'd seen her Nordstrom purchases. When she replied I hadn't looked in the bag, he turned that into another slight. "See, your husband doesn't care about you; probably has a girl on the side." I told Holly the only reason I didn't ask about her purchase was I was beginning to suspect something and needed time to think without losing my cool.)

I decided to let Holly know why my first marriage blew apart and how close I came to screwing up a second time; I thought a counselor could help me tell Holly the truth in a way that wouldn't blow up my family. To be honest; our relationship could use a boost and the right counselor could help us with that.

We also decided to go to Holly's HR department and file a formal complaint against Turner. Although Holly was outraged as she read Jake Sullivan's notes of the Turner/Young conversation ("Everyone in the office wondered what happened to Karen Johnson; she quit and moved away without a word to anyone."), Holly remained reluctant until we met with our attorney Tuesday; she convinced Holly it was the proper action.

And, we returned the dress, shoes and teddy to Nordstrom's. As much as I would love to take Holly out in the dress or remove the teddy off her sweet body, I couldn't stand looking at them because Turner picked them out.