Mulligatawny Soup

"I'm sure there are, but I've got a guy right here who's not only good looking, but has a kind heart, is smart, is a very good lover," she kissed me, "is honest, is trustworthy," she kissed me again, "is fun to be with, funny," she kissed me again, "and is so very, very kind and sweet and romantic."

"You forgot one thing," I said as I smiled at her.

"What's that?" her eyes wide open, not sure of where I was going.

"An excellent soup cook."

Her face brightened up with a big smile, "Yes that too."

"Okay Julie. Where do we go from here?"

"Out of the hot tub. I've got to get back home. Those workers will be back at seven tomorrow."

"Sleep with me here tonight Julie."

She grinned at me. "No, that wouldn't be fair on you."

"Why?"

"I'd keep you up all night with my incessant masturbating." With that she stood up and climbed out of the hot tub. "Are you coming?" She found the plastic bag with the towel inside and stepped into her boots.

She was too much. Damn right I was coming. I was ready to follow her anywhere in the world.

Safely inside the kitchen door she asked as I stood behind her draped in a towel, "Can I bring Lulu over again in the morning?"

"Of course," I said as she slipped her raincoat over her towel clad body. She was shivering.

"I'll get my things in the morning, come on Lulu."

"Do you need your purse?" I said, shivering too.

"No the house is unlocked." Lulu was at the door ready to go. Gomez thought he was going too.

"Good night kiss?" I asked optimistically. I got a quick peck on the cheek and she was gone with Lulu right behind.

I lay in bed and thought about how much fun I just had. Plus the sex was incredible. I realized that I'd led a repressed sex life. Cora was never that adventurous, not even when we first got married. Anal sex? Not a chance. Spank her till her ass cheeks are red? Not a chance. Tie her up? Maybe she was doing all that with Yvonne, it never happened with me.

I couldn't believe my luck. That woman, that beautiful woman next door, the one that I've known for years, is interested in me? Damn right I'll go on a life adventure with Julie. What a strange turn of events. That morning I pulled Julie out of her funk, then she pulled me out of mine. I wondered what kinds of adventures awaited me.

Could she really be masturbating?

The coffee wasn't through yet as Julie and Lulu appeared at the kitchen door in the morning. She was fresh and chipper, her hair was perfect. She had a little make-up on. I still had bed-head hair, hadn't shaved, nor dressed properly.

"Good morning Julie," I said as I opened the door. Lulu scooted right inside. Julie stepped inside too.

"Good morning love," she said then planted a big kiss on my lips.

"Did you sleep well?" I asked.

She grinned, her brown eyes twinkled, "I masturbated all night."

"Yeah right." Maybe I was wrong. "Coffee? Breakfast?"

"Can I come back in about an hour? I've got to talk with the contractor."

I agreed. That gave me time to shower and get dressed. I cleaned up our scattered clothes from last night. I'd left the hot tub cover opened. Our wine cups were still outside.

Julie sat on the stool at the kitchen counter, with her top on, as I fried ham and eggs. She had a mug of fresh coffee in her hand.

"Jim, do we go too far last night?"

"Are you having second thoughts about a life adventure with me?"

She grinned broadly, her eyes twinkled, "Not at all. Not at all."

"Good. Because I'm ready to go." I smiled at her as I held my spatula.

She looked beautiful as she sat there smiling at me, with the coffee mug steaming in front of her.

"And I don't think we went too far." I said as I popped bread into the toaster. "Did you really masturbate last night?"

She laughed, "No I didn't," she took a sip of coffee and then added, "I think I can put away my toys now."

"Toys?"

"What do you think I've been doing for years?"

"Toys?"

"I won't need them, I've got you now."

"What kind of toys?"

A huge grin washed across her face, "You want to play with my toys, don't you?"

My brain was reeling. All kinds of images popped into my head; huge dildos; Julie tied up to a post with nipple clamps on her, a flogger in my hand; being chased through the house with Julie right behind me wearing a strap on flopping from one thigh to the other.

The toast popped up.

The smirk on her face was priceless. "What are you doing today?" she asked.

I came back to reality. "I've got a number of emails to get out and a bunch of phone calls, otherwise not much. Oh, and I need to go into town. You are coming for dinner aren't you?" I pulled out two plates.

"Only if I'm invited." Her smirk was gone.

"I'm sorry Julie. I didn't think I needed to invite you. I just assumed."

She smiled. "Yes, I'll come for dinner," and then she added, "but I'm wearing panties."

"Aw, no fair!" I complained.

"Okay, maybe I won't," she answered grinning. I smiled right back.

"Do you want to come into town with me?"

"I've got bridge club at eleven. If you're going into town just to pick something up, I can do it."

"No Julie, I've have a bunch of shopping to do. I need to make way more soup, plus I have a companion now that I plan to share many, many dinners with."

She smiled a wide toothy smile.

We had breakfast, then she had to leave.

"See you sevenish," she said as she put on her jacket. "Do I need to dress fancy?"

"No Julie," I answered, "and don't worry I'll feed Lulu." She kissed me as she headed out the door.

I couldn't believe how my life had changed in just twenty four hours. I guessed that Julie's had too. For both of us it was a big positive. For me anyway. I wondered how long it will last. Will she tire of me? I didn't think I could ever tire of her. I couldn't believe my luck.

I decided on Italian for dinner.

Would we get up to more adventures after dinner? The thought of Julie in my bed bothered me a bit. It was Cora and my bed. Bad vibes, Cora would just spoil it for me. The thought of making love in Julie's bed with Bill's ghost hovering nearby, sent shivers through me. I needed to work something out.

I got all my work done that day, went into town and bought enough groceries to last for a week, plus a lot of wine. I bought flowers.

When I returned I padded out the Mulligatawny soup with fresh ingredients. I had at least six servings. I wasn't sure if I was going to serve some with dinner or not. If Julie was expecting it, I had it ready.

The dogs had already eaten when Julie tapped at the back door. "Hi," we said to each other and kissed. She looked absolutely stunning as she slipped out of her jacket. She put her bag down and slipped out of her boots. She wore tight faded blue jeans, a pink sweater, braless I thought, and a gold chain around her neck. As always her hair, make-up and nails were perfect. She slipped into a pair of black, flat shoes.

"Good thinking," I said, "how's your ankle?"

"It's fine, what's for dinner?"

"Garlic shrimp appetizer to start; Mozzarella, tomato and basil salad; veal pizzaiola with a little whole-wheat spaghetti; sautéed porcini mushrooms; grilled zucchini and I have some really, really good spumoni ice cream."

"Wow," she said. She looked a little shocked. "Do you always eat so well?"

I held both her hands in mine and told her in all sincerity, "No, but we do."

"Ahhhh I love the melodrama," she said as she pulled herself up for a kiss, she wrapped her arms behind my head.

Gomez and Lulu were all over her as she we walked through the kitchen.

"Flowers," she said as we walked out of the kitchen hand in hand. "I meant what I said yesterday, I'd never been treated so romantically in my life."

"Scotch?" I asked.

"Sure."

"I'm sure Bill was romantic," not really sure if I should go there.

"Are you kidding? He didn't know what romance was."

I filled two tumblers with ice. "Come on Julie," I said as I reached for the scotch.

"Jim, I was his trophy wife. He was my booby prize. He didn't have a clue how to treat someone like a lady."

"Get off it, we were all friends. I could see that he treated you kindly." I said as handed her a glass. "Besides you two were high school sweethearts."

"That's exactly it. He, and I suppose I, never matured. Our relationship never really grew beyond teenagers. I was his girl and that was it. When I was fifteen I dyed my hair so that I could catch him." We sat down in front of the fire. "Three weeks later he was mine. In high school he had all his other friends and his school work, I was his girlfriend. We were a hot item together. Later, after we married, all of that that evolved into his stupid golf and his work. I was just the doe-eyed pretty girl that went along with his ego."

"But you two loved each other." I said, or maybe I asked.

"I certainly did. I loved and cared for him. I didn't know anything else. I'd like to think that he loved me, but I don't really believe that he cared for me."

I was stunned by what she was saying. Clearly it was showing in my face.

"Oh, he cared in the sense that I was fed and dressed and that I would have nice jewelry and be looked after, and he cared in the sense that if something was bothering me, he would try to make things right. But he never put my needs or my desires ahead of his. Never. That was unheard of."

"Sex," she continued, a little animated, "was the worst part."

My eyes must have been like saucers.

"It was all about me pleasuring him. If I didn't have an orgasm before he did, then I wouldn't get one. I was his little whore and that was it."

I took a deep breath. She was upset.

"You have a lovely house..."

"He bought the house," she interjected, "so he could be closer to his golf. I never wanted to live in the country. Now, as it turns out I never want to live anywhere else but here. But that's a different story."

I sipped my scotch.

"Jim, he never cooked me dinner. He never set a nice table for me. He never pulled the chair out so that I could sit first." A tear rolled down her cheek.

I pulled her tight to me. "I'm sorry Julie, I didn't mean to upset you."

"And he never said anything like that to me!" Tears erupted from her and she cried.

I felt like a jerk. What had I done? I stroked her hair and simply let her cry it out. I had to get the box of tissues. She was a mess when I returned. Her mascara was running.

"I'm sorry Jim," she said then blew her nose.

"Julie?" She looked up to me with questioning eyes.

"Can I make a suggestion?"

"What?" she said as she blew her nose again.

"Waterproof mascara."

"Stop it." She whacked me on the shoulder, but I saw a smile through the tears. She blew her nose again and cleaned off her cheeks. "I'm sorry."

"It's okay." I paused, "It's over now."

"Yes it is," she said sniffling, "it most certainly is." She stood up, "I've got to fix my make-up."

I stood up too and caught her arm before she could step away. "No you don't Julie. You don't have to wear make-up for me at all. I like you just the way you are."

She looked shocked. It all clicked in to me at that moment. What she said was true. She was Bill's trophy wife, his painted pretty girl. His whore. She knew no other life. Then she had to maintain herself to be the brave wife with the dying husband and then the valiant widow. Always painted. Always the sideshow. The accessory.

"In fact Julie, I'd prefer it, if you didn't fix your make-up."

"I'd feel naked without it," she said looking a little lost.

"I prefer you naked," I said grinning. She stood and stared into my eyes, unsure of what to do or say.

"Come sit back down." We sat.

"Julie, I don't know where our relationship is going to end up. I do know where I'd like it to go. Forward. But please understand this. I'm not going to go on a life adventure with Bill Cavanaugh's widow, I'm going to go with you. I'm not looking for a trophy wife, I'm not looking for a replacement for Cora. I'm looking for happiness. I know that sounds selfish, but here's the key ingredient. Nothing is going to make me happier than me making you happy." I paused for a moment and then added, "And by default that means that I have to put your needs and your desires ahead of mine."

Julie sat with her mouth open, I thought, in a little disbelief. Then tears started streaming down her cheeks again. She leaned forward and put her arms around my neck. She sobbed on my shoulder. Were they tears of joy or did I upset her again? I hoped they were tears of joy, because if they weren't then I wasn't doing a very good job of making her happy. That was for sure.

"I must be dreaming," she said between sobs.

Tears of joy. Good. I pulled her off my shoulder, reached over and grabbed another tissue. She blew her nose a few times and wiped her cheeks dry."

"Can I ask a favour?" she asked.

"Anything."

"Can I fix my make-up?"

"Sure," I answered smiling.

I watched the fire and sipped my scotch. Did I just blow it? Did I just make a complete fool of myself? Maybe I just insulted her by saying that I'm not looking for a trophy wife. Did I just demean her relationship with Bill? Fuck.

She waltzed into the room all fresh and clean. Gomez and Lulu followed her in. Her boobs swayed under her sweater as she sat down and picked up her scotch.

"Jim, you have no idea how much my life has changed in the last day or so."

Funny I had that exact thought. "Yeah, your kitchen is gone," I said trying to lighten things up.

She chuckled, "Yeah, that too." She sipped her scotch and then added, "Just like my kitchen, out with the old and in with the new." Her hand reached out to hold mine. A grin spread across her face, "I tried some of the new appliances yesterday," she was beaming as she twisted her fingers through mine, "you wouldn't believe some of the features they have nowadays. Things I've always wanted but never dreamed I'd get." She couldn't get that big toothy smile off of her face.

"I'm so happy for you," I said grinning.

"I'm so happy too," she giggled.

Gomez and Lulu insisted on coming in for scratches. Their tails were wagging.

"Come on Julie, let's go into the kitchen, we've a number of things to do before we can eat." We stood up with our scotch glasses. The dogs followed.

Julie sat in her customary position on the stool. "What can I do?" she asked.

I was very tempted to ask her to take her sweater off. I grinned at her.

"Tomorrow, Julie, what would you like me to make for you for dinner? Anything, your choice."

She looked a little shocked. Maybe I pushed too hard?

A smile emerged from her beautiful lips. "I don't know, but can we have candlelight and soft music?"

"Should I wear my tux?"

She had a huge smile, "I'm wearing sturdy heels."

"No knickers though," I giggled as I pulled the veal from the fridge.

We both chuckled a knowing chuckle.

"Are you wearing any now?" I asked through my silly laugh.

She was blushing, "No," she giggled.

We smiled at each other for a few moments and let the chuckles subside. "Seriously Julie, what would you like tomorrow?"

"Sausage, lot's of sausage."

That was it. She and I burst out laughing. We gasped for air. I dropped the veal on the floor. Tears filled my eyes as I doubled over. Gomez had the veal packet as soon as it hit the floor.

"Nooo!!!" I chased Gomez. Julie fell into hysterics. She cackled and pounded the counter as I chased the dog. Lulu chased after me. Around the dining table the three of us went, back through the kitchen, Julie howled at the top of her lungs, a reverse back out the kitchen into the dining room, around the table again and then into the den. I cornered the bastard next to the fire place.

The brown paper packaging only had a few puncture marks in it. Julie still clutched her sides and cackled as I made it back to the kitchen, out of breath. Her mascara was ruined again.

I plopped the meat packet onto the counter and sat on the stool next to Julie. Elbows on the counter, head in my hands, I gasped for air as Julie came back to her senses.

"Not very romantic is it?" I said after I caught my breath. Julie rubbed my back with her hand.

"It couldn't be more romantic," she said.

I lifted my head off my hands to look up at her. She was smiling. The mascara was definitely ruined.

"The veal's fine, just a little tenderized," she said, as she and I, broke out into giggles again.

I shook my head and I got up to open up some wine. A nothing pinot noir bottle. The last twenty four hours had changed my life too. Is it possible to bruise from too much laughter? It's not just that Julie was fun to be with, she was a frikkin' riot. Not like Cora at all. I really felt happy. I felt I had purpose in life again.

"Red, or should I open some white?"

"Red's fine," she answered as she brushed mascara laden tears from her cheeks.

Eventually we had dinner. She never did fix her make-up again. We talked about going on a cruise together in the Caribbean. It sounded like a dandy idea. Neither of us had been on one. She had to get her kitchen finished first and settled back in. I needed to sort out some work things, but for the most part as long as I had email and internet I'd be fine. Her middle son Daniel had a birthday coming up the following week. She was going to make dinner for her family to celebrate his birthday. She insisted that I attend too. I wondered if that was right. 'If he's bringing his girlfriend, then I'm bringing my boyfriend.' She was steely-eyed determined about that. If it made her happy then definitely, yes I would attend. We agreed that we should start checking out last minute cruise deals.

"What about Lulu and Gomez?" I asked.

"Kennels. Doggy holiday. They'll get pampered."

"Okay." I said.

Julie reached out across the table as we finished our meals and grabbed a hold of my hand. "Jim, I want to pay."

"Pay for what?"

"For the cruise."

"No, that's not right. We'll each pay our own way."

"You said you want to make me happy? Then you'll let me pay."

"Why?"

"To make me happy."

"Julie, I can afford it."

"Jim, I'm sure you can but I seriously suspect that I can afford it more."

She was getting a new kitchen put in. She didn't work.

"Bill did very, very well. He had many faults, but he turned out to be a shrewd investor. Financially I'm okay. I'm more than okay."

Money-wise I just hung on. I still needed Cora to help support the house.

All of a sudden I felt very small. I must have looked very glum because she said, "What's wrong?"

"I'm sorry Julie, maybe the cruise is a bad idea."

"Honey, what's wrong? Is it because I offered to pay?"

"No it's not that." It was exactly that. I stood up and picked up some plates to clear away. "I don't feel I should be taking advantage of you."

She stood up immediately and cupped my head in her hands. Mine were full of plates. "You're not taking advantage of me. If anything it's the other way around."

I broke away and carried the plates to the kitchen; she followed me with a handful. I realized that if I really said what was on my mind that I would be perceived as being a drama-queen. I had to bite my tongue.

"Jim," she said as she put plates down onto the counter, "I'm sorry I didn't mean to upset you. Okay let's just forget about the cruise thing."

"Let's just not try to take advantage of each other." I said.

"Me offering to pay for a cruise is hardly taking advantage."

She was right of course. It was me. Was I so insecure with myself that I could be intimidated by her money? I knew I was. I felt like a mouse. A weak little mouse. I was mad. I was mad at myself. I could feel my heart race, my blood pressure about to explode. My hands shook. I couldn't allow myself to become a new appliance. Something that was bought. Was I her boy-toy? Is that why she asked me to come along on her life adventure? As an appendage? After she spent most of her life being Bill's trophy did starting a new life mean finally getting a trophy for herself? If it was, I was a pretty pathetic prize. Fuck I was mad. I saw that she could see it in my face.