Nurse Penny

Meanwhile, I was quite happy with my social life. It sure as hell beat sitting at home waiting for phone calls that invariably didn't come. Absent phone calls that made me feel like some lovesick loser teen sitting by the phone.

I joined the Thursday night dart comp as one of the teams had a player get transferred interstate and I enjoyed the Tuesday night trivia competition far more than I ever thought I would. I met some new and interesting people of both sexes, always telling the single ladies I was married and not interested in cheating.

I often saw Andrea who always came for a chat when she was there with friends. She did start spending some time with one particular guy and admitted he was interesting enough to pursue a relationship with. That lasted only two weeks, though, before he disappeared. According to her, she'd resisted his pressure for sex and so he'd moved on. That was fine with her; he'd failed the seriousness test.

We were very careful to stay away from serious conversation about Penny's and my relationship, and at no time did Andrea offer an opinion on Penny or her behaviour, which suited me. I was angry with my wife and her utter dismissal of me. We hadn't seen each other for fourteen weeks and the pattern of short, infrequent phone calls had continued. Worse, the times we did speak I felt like I was imposing on her time.

Sure she was busy. Sure she had undertaken a demanding task, combining work with study but did that mean I had to be shoved to the side, forgotten like a pair of old worn shoes? Would regular short conversations and text exchanges really be so detrimental to her achieving her goal?

The more time I spent with Andrea, the more I liked her. She was warm and friendly. Funny and smart. I even liked it when she asked to use me. It made me feel useful. When she approached a new guy at the bar or was approached, I would wait for her signal. If she wasn't interested but was having trouble getting away, she'd give me a sign and I'd come over, kiss her on the cheek and give the guy the impression we were a couple. He'd bow out and I'd chat with Andrea until he left the bar.

It worried me how much I looked forward to talking to her. She was a great conversationalist. We actually talked. We didn't flirt, unless debating Pepsi versus Coca Cola could be considered flirting. There was never anything inappropriate. And yet, I couldn't deny feeling disappointed if I didn't see her on my nights out. For the first time in my life I realised how someone could be tempted into an affair. Suddenly, the old clichés like 'my wife doesn't understand me', or 'my wife neglects me' made sense. Not that I came to regard cheating okay in certain circumstances but I had a whole new understanding of how someone could slip and fall into an affair.

I was tempted, sorely so. It was a situation I never thought I'd find myself in and with each passing day my ability to resist temptation weakened that little bit more. Thus far, I'd managed to control myself and not touch Andrea in a way that was inappropriate for a married man, but I wasn't a saint or a eunuch. With daily reminders of Penny's indifference, I didn't know how much longer I could hold out.

I wondered if Penny was experiencing the same thoughts and feelings but dismissed the possibility almost immediately. She was too busy between work and study to miss me, let alone have time for being tempted by another man.

Still, we were only half-way through her training course and I knew I had to do something or our marriage would be a casualty well before the six months was up, and I would be the baddie; something I'd never imagined myself capable of being.

I decided to call Penny and not wait for her to call me.

"Hi, sweetheart. I can't talk long."

I bit back my annoyance at her opening line. Anger wouldn't be productive.

"I know. Seems you're always busy but I need you to make time tonight. I'll keep it brief."

I heard her sigh of impatience and swallowed a bit more annoyance.

"Penny, I'll get straight to the point. You have no time for me anymore. Calls are getting fewer and farther between and even when we do speak you treat me as if I'm an imposition. You dismiss my feelings and needs. It's like you've forgotten there's two people in our marriage. Yes, I'm here to love, support, and encourage you but I also deserve some time and consideration."

If I'd hoped for my words to reach her, I was out of luck.

"Jesus Christ, Mike. What are you? Two? I've spent my adult life putting my family first. Now it's my turn."

"You make it sound like I didn't put our family first as well, Penny. Like I haven't sacrificed and compromised for my family too. I gave up just as much. I have put you and the kids first in each and every way. Tell me, since you brought it up, when did I have 'my turn' because I think I missed it. I must have been too busy working my ass off to notice."

"So did I," Penny shrieked. "How dare you imply I didn't, you ignorant son-of-a-bitch—"

I tuned her out for the next sixty or so seconds, knowing I didn't want to have memories of the abuse I knew was vomiting from her.

When she ran out of steam I tried again. "Penny, our marriage is in trouble. Can't you see that? If it continues as is, or even, god forbid, degenerates further, we won't have a marriage at all by the time you finish that course."

"Christ, I've had enough of your whining and guilt trips. Grow up—"

I didn't hear the rest of her diatribe because I hung up on her. It must have given her a jolt of conscience because she rang me back immediately.

"Look, I'm sorry, Mike, but you need to understand how important this is to me. I need this. Our marriage is fine."

I didn't bother arguing with her further. She wasn't listening.

"Of course, I miss you terribly too and I'm sorry you're struggling without me, but this will be good for us, long term. You'll see. We're half-way there. When I get back, I'll get the house sorted and you eating properly again."

Her tone caught me off guard. She sounded condescending. I felt like a child being scolded. Yes, I was struggling without her but not in the way she thought. She seemed to think I was incapable of looking after myself. I looked around the room. It looked as it always had; clean, tidy, and organised. I was coping just fine with the day-to-day things. My clothes were laundered, the fridge stocked, the floors and benchtops were clean, the dishes done. She missed the point totally. Where I was struggling was in the intimacy, the companionship. I missed my wife, friend and partner in life. After twenty-eight years our lives were intertwined in every aspect and her absence felt like a part of me had been lopped off.

I made a noise that she seemed to interpret as agreement.

"Okay, I'm glad we got that sorted. Now, I really must go."

After she rang off having forgotten yet again to tell me she loved me, I grabbed my keys and headed off to the pub. Perhaps a cold ale would soothe my frustrations.

Halfway through my first beer I knew I'd made a mistake. I was in no mood for people or conversation. I was hurt and angry. Worried, resentful, and frustrated. My gut was awash with too many emotions to process. They churned in my belly like a heavy-duty wash circle. Even seeing Andrea's friendly smile couldn't raise my spirits.

I gulped down the last of my beer and after a hasty goodbye, left and returned home. I'd only just walked in the door when my cell chimed with a message.

Are U ok? U weren't yourself 2nite. I'm worried. Call me if U need someone 2 talk 2.

I stared at the text. My eyes smarted with unshed tears. A woman I'd known for all of two months was showing more concern for my welfare than my wife of twenty-eight years.

I sat on the couch and for the first time since I'd met Andrea I didn't know what to say to her. I was scared. Were we getting too close? Was I guilty of engaging in an emotional affair? Until now we'd never spoken of Penny or the state of my marriage and I hadn't told her things that I would be ashamed to admit to my wife, but I recognised I needed to tread carefully.

I'm ok. Just a bad day. Will see you on Thurs if you're at the pub. Cheers, Mike.

I looked at the text a long time, checking and rechecking it was suitably casual before hitting the send button.

I heated up some leftovers, eating them while standing at the sink. While I ate I realised Penny and I hadn't discussed my coming to visit the following weekend. Penny hadn't specifically mentioned having anything on so I decided to book an impromptu flight for the following Friday afternoon. I couldn't wait another week to see my wife. I needed to see her face, hear her laugh, and smell her hair to remind myself how much I loved her.

While the possibility of Penny misbehaving while away never seriously crossed my mind, I decided to keep the visit a surprise. That way she couldn't fob me off yet again.

Friday finally rocked around. I left work early, going straight to the airport. Everything went smoothly and by six in the evening I arrived on Penny's doorstep.

The doorbell was answered by a girl who I recognised from her voice as being Jenny, the girl that answered Penny's cell phone that day. She showed me to their small living room and explained that Penny and their other housemate, Gail, weren't back from school yet. When I pulled my phone out of my pocket, she waved me away, saying she'd ring Penny, seeming a little agitated. Before she'd pushed three buttons, there was the sound of a key in the front door.

Penny seemed pleasantly surprised to see me and after a brief kiss dashed off to the toilet. I thought it odd that she took her phone with her but with Jenny hovering, didn't comment. Jenny and I made awkward conversation while waiting on Penny who seemed to be taking a long time in the bathroom.

She no sooner returned to the lounge area before dashing down the hall to her room, telling me to keep talking to Jenny. Jenny seemed to relax and our conversation became less stilted. After my evenings at the pub, the twenty years plus difference in our ages didn't faze me. As we chatted, I saw Penny take a load of sheets to the laundry and return with fresh ones. I smiled. Was she trying to impress me, like when we were dating?

When the room had obviously been tidied to Penny's satisfaction, she invited me to shower and freshen up with her before we went out. Despite the frigid air, Penny had opened the window to her room which I found strange as I knew she hated the cold.

After a three-plus-month absence seeing Penny naked, water cascading over her ample breasts I got aroused. My dick was acting like a Ferrari—it got from 0 to 60 in under three seconds. I made overtures but was told to wait for my dessert until after dinner. It was late and Penny was hungry.

We managed to get into a pretty nice seafood restaurant Penny had been told about. When Penny laughed at my traditional seafood restaurant joke, 'don't believe the tales of oysters being an aphrodisiac. I had twelve once and the last three didn't work', I thought my decision to surprise her was the right one.

We had an okay time with two bottles of a good Riesling between us, but one detail marred the evening. The detail that made it merely an okay evening instead of a great one; Penny kept interrupting our conversations to read, then reply to texts. I wondered whether to say something about it as we'd drilled the rudeness of this sort of behaviour into our children. At the risk of spoiling the evening I brought it up.

"Oh, sweetheart, you know I wouldn't ordinarily do this sort of thing but I'm one of the older students here and some of the younger ones look to me for mentoring. I won't be long."

And with that she replied to another text.

In between mouthfuls of salmon and texts she asked how long I intended to stay as she had two assignments to complete over the weekend. I tried not to feel put out by her question. I'd hardly arrived and she was already putting me on a plane home.

Despite my desire to be alone with Penny, I took my time over dinner, wooing her as if we were young lovers again instead of an old married couple who knew each other inside and out. Consequently, it was eleven before we walked the seven or so blocks back to Penny's digs, hand in hand.

There was a second car in the driveway which belonged to Gail, according to Penny. Gail, I learned, had a part-time waitressing job to help pay for her course and usually finished around ten. The apartment was silent with only the hall light left on for illumination as we entered.

After dinner and wine, not to mention, our earlier shower, I was as horny as a ram with two cocks. The time for wooing was past. I picked up my wife, carried her to her room and threw her on the bed. After fifteen weeks of abstinence I was battling the urge to just take her roughly. That's what I normally would have done, but there was a strange atmosphere that evening. It had been lurking on the edge of consciousness all evening. It was almost as if we were strangers. Conversation during dinner and the walks to and fro had been a little stilted, as if we didn't have as much in common as we did a mere four months earlier. A rough taking implied familiarity. I felt like I had when we were first dating; in short, I felt the need to impress and satisfy.

So, with Penny on the bed, tired and a little tipsy, I ripped off her panties as she did the same to her top. She got a little tangled, which allowed me to quickly strip. Throwing an ankle of hers over each shoulder, I slid up in preparation to munch away.

Strangely, Penny made like she was resisting, yelling at me to just fuck her. This was highly unusual for her. Normally, she liked me to get her motor running with oral. I ignored her demands, determined to satisfy her first. Besides, by that time my tongue was like a clit seeking missile. Her legs were as tense a wood. I soon discovered why. Where once there had been a neatly trimmed bush, there was now bare skin. I tested the whole area with lips and tongue and encountered not a follicle. It wasn't until I murmured my approval that she relaxed and got into it.

That wasn't the only surprise in store for me. When my tongue hit the spot, Penny began thrashing around and moaning quite loudly. This was a far cry from the Penny I knew, the one who'd always been a little reticent sexually. I'd always put her inhibitions down to her strict Catholic upbringing. That and three children down the hall.

The new Penny was having fun and didn't mind who knew it. Even with my ears muffled by a pair of thighs, her groans were loud. I was just starting to get in a rhythm when Penny tensed and her back arched, causing her ass to come right off the bed. This was all accompanied by a sound that was half groan and half scream. It made me feel like the porn star Ron Jeremy at his best.

I was in unchartered territory as Penny relaxed like a rag doll after cumming quicker than I'd ever seen her do, but her recovering and pulling me up to her chest was all the guidance I needed. She pulled me in for a kiss while manoeuvring her groinal area toward my probing cock. Tab A aligned with slot B and I pushed in. Penny let out another big gasp and huge groan. I guess she'd missed our sex life as much as I had during our time apart. I was in heaven as I began to plough away for all I was worth.

They do say heaven and hell are only a molecule thickness apart. It's true.

Just before I lost control completely, there was an impatient banging on the flimsy interior door of the bedroom. An unfamiliar female voice shouted clearly and distinctly, "Penny! Jake! For fuck's sake. Three nights in a row? I need to get some fucking sleep."

It was the verbal equivalent of a bucket of iced water thrown on my gonads. A whole lot of things suddenly made sense. The shaved minge; the strange unfamiliarity between us; the reducing phone calls; the opposition every time I suggested coming to visit; the sudden changing of bed sheets. Even her disappearance into the bathroom for an uncomfortable amount of time when she first arrived home to find me there. I could well imagine her in the shitter whispering to her boyfriend about the change of plans. Was that who she'd been texting with the whole time we were in the restaurant?

My erection vanished. Overcooked pasta would have been firmer than my dick. It slid out of her, wetly slapping my thigh as I disentangled myself. I looked into her eyes and saw terror. I saw a person who knew she had to say something, and quickly, but having no idea what words to use to salvage a disastrous situation.

I looked down on her. Her hair was in disarray, her make-up smeared. Legs I once thought the longest and loveliest on the planet were splayed. Once upon a time I would have found her pose sexy. Now it sickened me. Now she looked like what she was; an adulterous whore. Now all I could see was a backstabbing bitch.

Instinctively, I knew I had to get out of there before my caveman instincts took over and I did damage. She wasn't worth going to prison for. Rapidly donning my strewn around clothes left me with only my not unpacked carry-on luggage to close and zip shut. The whole time I was doing this I avoided looking at her. I couldn't; my self-control was tenuous enough without being goaded by her wanton appearance.

Penny clearly didn't recognise how close I was to succumbing to my outrage at her betrayal and physically hurting her as she began screaming at me. Words I only vaguely took in.

"Six months is a long time..." You've only been away fifteen weeks, bitch, and I suspect you started fucking around weeks ago. And what about me? Wasn't I also alone for the same amount of time?

"All the other students are doing each other..." How many of the others have husbands at home?

"They made me feel young and free again. Not like someone on the verge of grandmotherhood..." Thanks for telling me there was more than just good old Jake, bitch.

"We can get over this..." Oh no we fucking can't.

Penny's shrieks got louder and more desperate as my escape progressed. I could hear an increasingly worried echo from the other side of the door. Finally, with suitcase in hand, shoes untied and with not so much as a glance over my shoulder, I opened the door. It almost hit me in the face as it was pushed from the outside at the same time I pulled it from the inside. That left me face to face with a young woman who I guessed was Gail. Over her shoulder I could see a bleary-eyed Jenny as well.

As I strode past the bewildered housemates toward the front door, I heard, "Who the fuck are you?"

Just before I slammed the outside door, I threw over my shoulder, "Penny's ex-husband", emphasising the éx' and disappeared into the night.

I had a plane to catch; a lawyer to see; a marriage to dissolve; families, friends, and loved ones to tell a sad tale to; a broken heart to mend; and a well put together honey-blonde in a bar to get to know better.

CHAPTER TWO

I JOLTED TO attention when Mike answered the phone; I'd half expected it to go to his voicemail as all my other calls had over the last four days.

"Hi, Penelope. What is it? I can't talk long."

Despite all my attempted calls and all the things I thought I'd say when I finally got him on the phone, I was speechless. It was his tone. It threw me. It was neither heartbroken nor furious, both of which I'd prepared for. I hadn't prepared for indifferent. Neutral. As if I was little more than an acquaintance.

In the ensuing silence I heard his sigh of impatience. It sounded loud and I panicked, terrified he'd hang up on me.