I Think We Both Need This

"Wait a minute," Octavia suddenly realized. "Tonight's our date night. We're having Jude work overtime to entertain the kids upstairs for the night...so we can sit here and rehash the same old argument."

Mateo looked up from his laptop and closed it. "You're right." He patted the space next to him and Octavia rose from her desk to join him on the king sized bed. "What are we doing?"

"I love you," they murmured at the same time, and connected for the first time all day for a kiss.

Mateo cuddled his wife to his chest, and breathing her scent comforted him. "I've just been so stressed out...we all have. I want to be strong for you and the kids but I'm about to lose it."

"Talk to me, amor," Octavia coaxed, caressing his arm.

"Well, it's just stupid work stuff...I'm putting ridiculous pressure on myself to create lots of articles that will make people think and contribute ideas in every meeting, but it feels like they're shutting down most of my ideas..." Mateo exhaled in exasperation. "But forget that. Maybe we should do something to get our minds off this nonsense."

Octavia knew what he was hinting, but she pulled away. "Mat...I have to tell you something."

Mateo's handsome face dropped when he saw her serious expression. "What is it, Tavia? What's wrong? Tell me and I'll fix it." He rambled when she hesitated.

"Mateo, I..." her big brown eyes filled with tears. "I cheated on you...last summer."

"What the hell are you talking about? We were open last summer. You told me about all your..."

"It...it wasn't...I didn't tell you all of it."

She watched Mateo freeze over. "Your professor." It wasn't a question.

She nodded solemnly. "I know this is the worst time to tell you this, but I feel so guilty and I feel like it's coming between us. I hate it. I want things to be like before with us."

She explained, her words rushing together, the parts he knew and the parts he didn't. Last summer, before they moved to London, Octavia had been suffering from severe writer's block, at the worst possible time. Her publisher was breathing down her neck, so Mateo suggested that she join a local writing group. At the time, they were open, with the caveat that the extramarital explorations would be

Just one-time sex, no prolonged or emotional affiars

No secrets. No exceptions

"I knew it." Mateo paced the room. "You would never shut up about how brilliant Professor Rafael was. And that name, I mean what a cliche. I should have known..."

Octavia's lip trembled. "Do you hate me," she choked, wringing her hands. "I...I only fucked him one. Well...technically twice. But I stopped it before it went too far."

Mateo's face softened slightly and he came back to the bed and took her hand. "I'm the one that suggested this experiment, clearly that was stupid. It's just...why didn't you ever tell me?"

Octavia smiled slightly, remembering when Mateo would recount rushed, nameless sex with women half their age he had met on nights out and work trips. He would always tell her the same thing, that after all the excitement and novelty, he missed her. Her heart ached, realizing how little she deserved this man.

Octavia looked down. She knew you never asked was not the response she should give. "I'm telling you now because I want us to move forward...stronger than ever. No more secrets." She begged, "I'll do anything."

"Anything? I think I want you to make it up to me," Mateo mused, stroking his beard, with a playful gleam in his eye.

Octavia squirmed. "H...how?"

Mateo disappeared under the bed for a few moments, and returned with a familiar scrap of rope. Octavia flinched when he unexpectedly slapped the end of it against his own hand. He led her over to her desk chair in the corner and began unbuttoning her pajama top. He finally answered her question: "You've been a slut and need to be punished."

"Wh...but...aren't you mad?"

"Umm, yeah a little. But I want to do this, and it's your best chance of getting back on my good side." He kissed her softly. "I think we both need this."

He was right. Octavia melted inside and realized her pajama pants were quickly becoming damp between the legs. It had been so long since they had played out one of their more elaborate fantasies...given themselves completely to the other...or had sex at all.

Octavia helped him to undress her completely and she was hypnotized by the slow winding of the rope connecting her arms and legs to those of the simple wooden chair. She instinctively struggled but his handiwork was secure around her wrists and ankles.

Mateo turned the chair and they stared at themselves in the mirror. He lifted her hair and whispered in her ear, "Now you're going to tell me exactly what happened."

Octavia recounted how little she'd been able to pay attention in her class. Rafael was an accomplished, award winning author, and commanded the room in a way that stimulated her mind and made her worried her panties would soak through her sundresses. The Spanish summer heat made her lose her senses...

"Where did you fuck him, Tavia. How did it happen? Details." Mateo wrapped rope under and over her breasts. He spoke impatiently, but rubbed her breasts with tenderness.

"Right, okay...on the last day of classes, I stayed back to talk to him about one of my short stories, and told him about how much I had gotten from his workshop. I was wearing a low cut dress that day, and I caught him...appreciating this..." The ropes didn't give much wiggle room, but Octavia was sticking out her chest into Mateo's hands. Hemassaged the heavy handfuls and rubbed the hardened points a little harder.

Octavia didn't want to give him the satisfaction, but a moan escaped her lips. "It was Friday evening and the campus was deserted. I remember smiling up at him, and pushing my strap off my shoulder. The next thing I knew, he was bending me over the desk and rubbing my chest and I...you know I can't resist that."

Mateo stopped touching her, but gestured for her to keep talking. He was only wearing boxers and Octavia thought to herself that he was much sexier than any stupid old professor could be. Mateo knelt between her bound legs, and pushed them further apart. His face was inches from her pussy that was drenching the chair from thoughts of her indiscretion. Mateo dipped two fingertips inside and rubbed impossibly slowly, much to Octavia's frustration.

"Okay, so we went at it like animals...He even pulled my hair and slapped me around. It was great. But it didn't last very long, I think. He came on my chest and he tried to ask me for dinner but I ran home and I didn't expect to see him again."

Mateo stroked inside Octavia's pussy a little more insistently. "And what happened the next time," he growled impatiently.

"Well the next day, we went for dinner and talked about books and drank wine. You were away and the kids were on a school trip. I really tried to not go, but in the end I did. He apologized for being so...forward, and we agreed to keep things professional. Because I'm married, and...and a mom, and we were already planning our move to London anyway."

"But then?" Mateo's fingers worked inside, and he finally licked her clit with the tip of his tongue.

"Then ...ohhh...mmm...we went to his car and I sucked his cock. I couldn't help it. But after that, that was really the end. I seriously never saw him again." Octavia rushed the ending to make room for the moans that were filling and escaping her.

Mateo pulled his hands and mouth away and Octavia was left gasping for more. She pressed her thighs together as much as she could.

"Want to come, huh?" Mateo raised an eyebrow. "My slut wants my cock?"

Octavia nodded.

"You'll get your chance, but for now, I need you to do something for me."

Mateo untied Octavia from the chair, but tied her in a new position. Her arms were behind her back, but she was now kneeling at Mateo's feet. "Mat..." she begged. She was watching the large bulge in his pants that he was now stroking while he sat a few inches away at the edge of the bed.

"You're going to have to beg a little more, Tavia. I need to know that my slut has learned her lesson."

Octavia took a deep breath. "I want it in my mouth, Mat, please please please. I was bad, but I want to make it up to you. Please." Each word made her pussy ache with need.

Mateo finally stripped off his underwear and stood before her so her mouth could just reach the tip of his cock. He lovingly stroked her hair as she licked the tip into her mouth. "Good girl. My sweet girl." He tightened his grip on her hair and told her to relax while he pushed deeper into her obediently waiting mouth. Octavia hummed with satisfaction when she felt his beautiful stiff cock pressing into the back of her throat.

Octavia knew her husband would be weak at the knees within a few minutes of the pleasure of fucking her mouth, but he preferred to come inside her. Sure enough, he backed away, caught his breath and untied her.

"I've learned my lesson, Mat," Octavia declared, letting the ropes fall to the ground. She led Mateo to the bed.

"On the contrary, I don't think you ever will." Mateo smiled, and slapped her ass hard. He

pushed her back onto the bed and stood over her as he finally penetrated her.

Octavia wrapped her legs around his waist, pulling him closer. Their bodies aligned perfectly together, and in a moment of clarity Octavia felt strongly that this inverted the problems in their marriage. The last few months they had fought because they felt swallowed up if they came too close, and unseen if they gave each other too much space. But when their bodies were entwined and making love...this was just right.

Date Monday May 24th

Weather: Sunny, 16 degrees

Time: 6:58pm

Veronique

In a short space of time, Veronique and Jude had become inseparable. Well, as inseparable as two people can be when quarantined in neighboring houses. They started off shouting pleasantries to each other from their rooms or backyards when partaking in Veronique's daily exercises. But when Veronique had the courage to hold up a piece of paper with her phone number written in sharpie, their friendship deepened overnight via a flurry of texts. Texts became calls, and calls became video calls.

Today, Veronique prepared for their new ritual by unboxing a salad at the table she had moved next to the window facing Jude's, then clicked the green call button at the stroke of seven. She saw the blond cheerful Jude come into view. "Hey Veronique!" She held up her dinner, takeout from the Chinese restaurant around the corner and grinned. "I was just finishing up some painting." Jude angled the camera to show about forty ceramic birds spread out on newspaper on the floor, which were being painted vibrant colours.

Veronique knew the backstory behind these figurines, and realized that continuing with the creation process, despite the fact that the museum had delayed the commission contract indefinitely, was Jude's unique way of coping with the grief Covid-19 brought. Veronique and Jude had discussed at length how they felt like failures because the passion was still there but their jobs didn't seem to exist anymore in the new world where they found themselves.

"When will tourists come back to London to buy my hand-painted souvenirs?" Jude would wonder aloud.

"How long will it take for people to feel comfortable attending the ballet, or even a dance class?" It was comforting to share these concerns with each other, rather than screaming them into the void.

"How's your viking doing?" Jude asked innocently but smiled mischievously as she popped a dumpling into her mouth.

Although they hadn't yet explicitly addressed what Jude had observed last week, Jude had shared her nickname for Veronique's boyfriend.

"Yeah, um...we broke up. Today actually." Veronique looked into her new friend's wide blue eyes. "We met online, right, and I moved here because I wanted to make things work, but also to attend the dance company I worked my ass off to get into. Maybe things moved too fast between us because...he didn't understand how important dance is to me. He seemed to think the dance company was just an excuse to come here and live with him, and actually admitted his prediction that I would drop out when I realized how time-consuming it would be. Fuck him!" She chomped angrily on raw vegetables.

"Yeah, fuck him." Jude encouraged, grinning broadly.

Veronique giggled. "Actually...that's the only thing I miss about him. He was the best fuck I've ever had." Veronique was surprised by her own words and brought a hand to her mouth. This was the closest they'd gotten to discussing the incident.

"Yeah, I...er, saw him around last week. He's gorgeous...for a viking." Jude smirked.

"Anyways, he's gone to stay with his brother and said I could stay here until quarantine ends." Veronique didn't know why she was changing the subject.

"Quarantine is making me so horny, it's ridiculous," Jude admitted casually, still stuffing her face with takeout. "I can hardly remember the last time I had sex."

"Same...I envy anyone who's locked in with someone who can...make them moan." That was a clear reference, and Veronique was proud to see Jude's cheeks glow pink.

"I dunno, I bet most people can't stand each other right now! It's so much more exciting to get to know someone new..."

"...even if we can't touch." With each passing second the girls grew bolder. They looked up from their screens and locked eyes through the window. Veronique pressed her palm to the cool glass, and Jude did the same.

Veronique set her empty plate aside and studied the girl on her screen. "We need to do something together...to stay sane."

A forkful of rice teetered and fell off Jude's fork. "L-like what?"

"My body usually tells me what it wants. What's yours saying?"

"That's easy for you, you're a dancer. I only use my fingers to paint."

"Now, I'm sure that's not true. And even if it was, what are those fingers saying?"

"My fingers aren't quite enough, I prefer to use my toys or showerhead."

There was silence.

Then Jude was looking at Veronique with an eyebrow raised. "I will if you will."

The girls retreated from their places at the window, but perched their phones on their bathroom counters and undressed. Veronique was interested to learn new things about Jude: her hips and thighs were wide so her waist seemed tiny in comparison. She wore loose cotton clothes but her underwear was lacy and vibrant. Her pussy was bare, and there was an illegible tattoo on her lower belly.

Veronique retained her composure, and showed off her body proudly, and even bent over provocatively to turn on the taps to fill the vintage clawfoot tub. "I'll have to be a bit creative with angling the camera so you can see but I'll show you how I like to do this..." She lowered herself into the slowly filling tub and raised her poised dancer's legs so the rushing faucet was pouring water directly onto her sweet spot. She held the phone the best she could, then positioned it on the ledge above the faucet.

"I can't really see..." Jude protested, but her friend was too far gone.

"Uhhh.....uhhhhhh..." Veronique moaned. Her black hair floated in the bathwater behind her, and she gripped the edge of the tub. She floated and rode each wave of pleasure, then backed away from the faucet. "There, that was it," she said, breathless.

Jude was watching, still wide-eyed, but now sitting on the shower floor and feeling her breasts. "That was hot, Veronique. But, how did you get an orgasm so fast."

Veronique tipped a capful of bubble bath into the tub with her and let the warm bubbles and soothing scents envelop her. "It was easy, I just thought of you...and it felt so good. It's your turn, Jude," Veronique told her firmly, and turned the hot water off.

Her view of Jude became slightly further away but more informative as Jude placed her phone against the shower wall. Jude stood up to turn on the tap and pull the shower head out of its socket. This sight inspired Veronique to want to go again.

Jude sat on the tile floor with her back against the wall and pointed the currents between her legs. Veronique watched her open her legs and find the ideal position. Jude held the spout against her clit like a vibrator. Jude's expression faltered. "Veronique...It's...I...I'm going to..." Her legs shook.

"Don't stop," Veronique ordered from inside Jude's phone.

Jude rested the shower head on the tile floor and straddled it, leaning forward towards the camera. Veronique couldn't see between her legs anymore, but her beautiful face and breasts made up for it. Euphoria crossed Jude's face, and her mouth contorted into a smile, open-mouthed groans, and finally one long shriek.

She lay on the shower floor, exhausted and high on endorphins. "Wow...Veronique...I've done that before but that was...different."

"Your body is a masterpiece." Veronique sighed. She wanted nothing more than to go outside, hop the fence, and join her neighbor in that small shower. Maybe spend a few hours in heaven with her face pressed into that glorious pussy. But that would have to wait an unspecified amount of time. "Leaving my curtains open that day was the best decision I ever made."

She closed her eyes, enjoying the warm bathwater and virtual company.

When I watch the world burn

All I think about is you

So I put my phone down

Fall into the night with you

-Bastille, Doom Days

[The End}