Tainted Conception Ch. 03

A series of unread emails displayed on Mark's monitor. His attention was torn away from his work and onto his wife Brooke's incoming text messages on his phone.

I just finished picking up all the booze and food we need tonight.

I'll start laying things out in the backyard when I get home.

The young couple were hosting a New Year's Eve party in their backyard tonight. It wasn't going to be as large or crazy as Dave's Halloween party, but they still expected a couple dozen friends and coworkers to attend.

Mark was looking forward to relaxing and throwing back a few drinks in the safety of his own home. The last few weeks at work had been incredibly stressful for him. Since he had given in to Saul's demands, his personal and professional life had been thrown into complete disarray.

Saul now had an unchecked level of authority at work that he wasn't afraid to throw around. He had recently enacted new security protocols. Both Mark and Dave had each felt the sting of Saul's new position. Privately, Dave had rightly placed some of the blame on Mark for letting the asshole steamroll him without putting up a fight. Dave couldn't understand why Mark had endorsed Saul over email several weeks ago.

He couldn't tell his best friend about Saul's compromising material on Brooke. He also couldn't tell him about the wrench Saul had thrown into their marriage and the liberties he had taken with her at the company Christmas party. Mark wasn't even clear himself on everything Saul had done with Brooke. When she tried to tell him, he'd shut down. He knew the extent of what happened but couldn't bear to hear the details.

His sweet, loving wife now thought Mark had some weird fetish about seeing her with another man. Namely his workplace rival Saul. It broke his heart to keep lying to her to protect her, only to see her continue to support his supposed fantasy. She had been so caring, patient and understanding while he struggled to get the scripted words out.

She'd even gone so far as to dance with Saul at the Christmas party. She told him afterwards that Saul had taken her off the dance floor and had touched her, and she had touched him. She had done it for Mark, assuming he was nearby and watching. That she was seeking his approval by telling him what they'd done twisted the knife even further.

Unfortunately, Mark was doubled over in the bathroom while she was alone with Saul. He had seen them on the dance floor and had found himself sporting a massive erection, something he hadn't been able to achieve in the weeks prior. Getting hard while seeing his wife in the arms of another man didn't make sense. He wondered if the impending responsibilities of fatherhood had short-circuited his sex drive. The only times he'd felt his cock stir recently was picturing Brooke with Saul. Mark was worried that recent events with Saul had stained his mind.

His doctor couldn't find anything wrong with him. She'd run a battery of tests, but everything came back clean. She thought his erectile dysfunction and frequent trips to the bathroom were likely the result of stress and anxiety. Mark had left the doctor's office with a referral to a psychiatrist with whom he would follow up in the new year.

Mark shook his head, trying to dislodge the thoughts. He just needed to get through a few more meetings, and then he would be back home and could relax and have a good time at the party. He thumbed a response to Brooke.

Awesome, thanks for that babe. I'm going to duck out of here early. I should be home around 5:30. We'll set up everything and get some food on the grill before everyone arrives.

I love you, babe.

He smiled as he saw three little dots appear on the screen. Brooke was typing a response.

I love you too, baby. More than anything. Well, maybe the little one in my tummy has you beat ;)

Come home to me soon. ❤️

For a moment, everything else seemed to melt away. He couldn't wait to leave work behind and spend time alone with Brooke before the party. Mark hoped that if he was lucky, his dick would cooperate, and they could have fun before their guests arrived.

Clicking away from his emails, Mark stood up and slid his phone into his suit jacket pocket. He took one last swig of his protein powder and headed out of his office and down the hall to a conference for his next meeting.

***

Saul watched Mark from the crack in his office door. He saw the man enter a conference room at the end of the hall. Saul gently closed his door, shuffled back around his desk and turned his attention to his computer.

While his new position had led to increased responsibility and some additional recent direct reports, the best thing about it was the access. Upon assuming his new role, Saul immediately fired the only other person at the company who understood how their network and devices worked. He now had access to everything and no one to keep him in check or rat him out.

His eyes gleamed as he read through the text exchange between Mark and Brooke. Mark stupidly got rid of his personal device when the company offered to pay for his phone plan and gave him a new smartphone.

Saul now had access to every mobile device in the company and could easily monitor everything Mark did, including his communications. Mark had agreed to the company having this level of access to his data when he accepted the phone, after all.

I love you too, baby. More than anything. Well, maybe the little one in my tummy has you beat ;)

Come home to me soon. ❤️

A smile spread across Saul's face at the acknowledgement of the child growing in Brooke's belly. He was positive that the child was his after his encounter with Brooke on Halloween night.

He clicked on a few prompts on the monitor before him, enabling the real-time communication software to which he had recently upgraded the company. He had buried this upgrade purchase in his budget, wondering if anyone would approve of its capabilities.

It allowed him to put anyone's device into a sandbox environment, allowing Saul to control all communications that ultimately passed through it. He had been thinking about this since the night of the Christmas party, and now it was time to try it out.

With Mark's device in the sandbox, he could text Brooke from Mark's number. Her messages would never reach Mark's phone unless he wanted them to.

He typed up a message and pressed send.

***

Brooke walked up the sidewalk to her front steps, purposely ignoring the stares of the teenage boys across the street. They had been talking loudly and shouting but had gone quiet as soon as she'd appeared. She could feel their eyes on her. She couldn't blame them. She knew she looked appealing today, sporting a dark pink tank top and a pair of maternity Lululemon pants. Even though her brunette hair was thrown up in a messy bun, she still felt sexy.

The young men's eyes roaming her body further confirmed that men still found her attractive, even though her husband didn't seem to. Ever since she revealed she was pregnant, it was like a switch had gone off in his brain: he couldn't get it up for her anymore, no matter how much effort she put into arousing him.

He claimed it was work stress, but she just knew it was about her. Everything else about their life was fine, but she'd never felt more alone. The attention from the neighborhood boys invigorated her. She knew her hormones were out of whack due to the pregnancy, but she was so horny lately that any kind of male attention seemed to make her weak in the knees.

Her phone buzzed in her purse as she closed the front door behind her. Brooke set the grocery bags and booze on the kitchen counter and pulled out her phone. There was a new message from Mark.

Brooke's eyes grew wide as she read her husband's message.

Should I invite Saul?

She felt her heart immediately start to beat heavily in her chest. She had tried not to think about Mark's coworker, but he kept slipping into her thoughts. The events of the Christmas party and Mark's admissions of his secret fantasy were still fresh in her memory. Brooke closed her eyes and thought back to Saul's cock jutting out from between her thighs as she had stroked it and rubbed it against herself. It had left a considerable amount of cum on the floor in front of her because of her.

She knew it was wrong to think about. It was abhorrent. She was married and a soon-to-be mother. Saul was much older than her and wasn't her type at all; quite the opposite. He was a smoker and didn't take care of himself. He wasn't the least bit pleasant to look at.

But she had wanted to support Mark's sexual interests, which seemed to make him hard for her. She just wished he could get hard for her without this messed-up fantasy of his. Maybe after the baby was born, things would be different.

Still, she couldn't help but find herself somewhat drawn to the idea of Saul. That man being in their home should not happen. It was so utterly against what Mark should want. Then again, she was learning about a new side to her husband she had not previously been aware of.

The fact that Mark was bringing up Saul made her happy. It meant he was thinking sexually about her, a thing he hadn't seemed interested in since the night after the Christmas party. She tried to frame this as a season in their long life together, a phase they could work through and be done with. She wanted to make her husband happy and fulfill his fantasies. She decided to lean in and try to be flirtatious with Mark.

She typed back.

Mark.....if you invite him....who would I kiss at midnight when the ball drops?

Brooke wanted to put her groceries away, but her eyes stayed glued to her phone, wondering how her husband would respond. It took forever before his response finally appeared. Oddly the usual three dots indicating he was typing never displayed.

May the best man win

Brooke smirked; she loved Mark, but he was terrible at flirting. She would have to pull what Mark really wanted out of him.

What if he gets to me first? Would you really want Saul to kiss me in front of all our friends? In front of your coworkers?

It didn't take Mark as long to respond this time.

Well, maybe you'll have to give him a kiss in private. Like, maybe in the bedroom?

Brooke's mouth dropped open. Mark had gone from barely flirting to full-on suggesting she hook up with his coworker. She didn't think she was ready for that, but she didn't want to dash her husband's hopes either and kill the sexual interest he was showing in her.

Mark. Are you seriously thinking about inviting him tonight? Won't your coworkers find that weird? I thought you hated the guy.

She tried to distract herself and put some groceries into the fridge. When she turned her attention back to the phone, another message from Mark was waiting for her.

I am inviting him. They don't need to know he is there. Everyone will be out in the backyard. I'll keep everyone entertained outside while you keep him entertained upstairs.

Brooke couldn't believe what she was reading. Was Mark really suggesting this? She was ashamed to find that she was growing wet. She thumbed a message back.

Is this really what you want?

She couldn't wait for a reply. She pressed the phone button and called Mark. It went straight to voicemail. A message popped up as she put her phone down on the counter.

Sorry, stuck in a little meeting. I do want this, more than you know. Before the ball drops, head up to the bedroom. I'll let Saul know. Part of what's hot for me is the idea of you kind of stepping out. Let's not talk about this anymore until after the party. We should act naturally around everyone and let the fun play out. It'll be so hot being at the party, being the only one who knows what you are doing with Saul upstairs.

Brooke looked longingly at the booze on the counter. She had just gotten used to the idea of not drinking or doing anything ("having any fun," as she called it in her head) to affect the baby, but Mark's message had seriously rocked her. Sighing, Brooke focused on her breathing exercises. She needed to settle herself down. She bit her lip and typed a response to her husband.

Okay. I'll do it. I don't know if I'm ready to give myself to someone else but I'll 'entertain' him. I love you.❤️❤️❤️

***

Brooke stood admiring her appearance in her bedroom's full-length mirror. She looked at her impressive breasts held up by her burgundy lace bra. She loved how her freshly curled hair hung down next to her breasts, framing her face and cleavage.

She twisted to look at her ass. Her matching panties hugged her shapely backside. She thought her body looked great, but a seed of doubt still ate away at her. She hadn't felt like this before she got pregnant. Mark usually drooled over her and couldn't keep his hands off her, but lately, it seemed he wasn't interested in her. She composed herself and focused on her face, putting on the same confident appearance she'd worn for most of her adult life. Only now, it felt hollow and insincere.

Brooke padded across the warm carpet and entered her walk-in closet. She ran her hands over her clothes until she found it the perfect dress for their New Year's party tonight.

She stepped back out into the bedroom and checked her phone. Mark still wasn't home less than an hour before people started arriving. He'd promised to come home early after his meetings were done, but now he was running late. She didn't want to read too much into that and had to focus on getting ready. She'd spent too much time preparing for the party without her husband, and now she was running behind.

Glancing at herself in her underwear one last time, Brooke turned her attention to the burgundy sequin dress on the bed. She loved this dress and how it made her feel. Whenever she wore it, all eyes were inevitably drawn to her. She gently eased the hanger out and pulled the dress over her head. She pulled it tightly down her body and turned to appraise herself.

The dress ran down to her mid-thighs, just a few inches below her panties. It hugged her hips and made her ass look even shapelier than usual. It was tight around her chest, her breasts pushing against the fabric. The dress came up to her collarbone, and the loose sleeves ran down to her wrists. While the cut on her upper torso might be considered conservative, the way it shaped her body was anything but.

After putting on her wedding ring and earrings from her nightstand, the only thing left was to find her matching heels in her closet and zip her dress up. As she started to look through her shoe box, she heard the door open and close downstairs.

Her heart skipped a beat. It better be Mark coming home to get ready for the party, but she worried it might be his coworker Saul arriving early. She didn't know what she would do if that happened, trying to entertain him while her guests were due to show up any minute.

She moved to the hallway and looked down the banister to see Mark ascending the staircase.

"Sorry. I know. I'm late. I got held up with an urgent task that popped up unexpectedly," Mark said, raising his hands defensively. "I'm going to jump in the shower quickly, then I'll get changed and help get things set up out back..."

He stopped in his tracks as his brain finally registered what his wife was wearing, "Wow. Brooke. You look amazing. That dress is...just wow." His eyes traced the curves of her body, ogling her up and down.

Brooke beamed at the compliment, despite the nagging voice telling her it wasn't sincere, "It's been a while since I've worn it. I figured you might like showing me off tonight."

Mark finished climbing the stairs and stood right in front of his wife. "The ball in Time Square tonight couldn't hold a candle to you in that dress, babe."

He leaned in and kissed her. Brooke felt her knees bend involuntarily as she returned his kiss. She reluctantly broke it a few seconds later to look up at her husband. "People are going to be here soon. You need to jump in the shower, and I need to find my shoes and double-check everything downstairs."

She hurried into the bedroom and across to the closet. Mark followed her and started disrobing as he headed on into their adjoining bathroom. Brooke found the pair of heels she wanted and sat on the bed to slip them on.

The sound of the shower starting caught her attention. "Mark?" she called.

Her husband popped his head out from behind the door, "Yeah? What's up?"

"Are you sure?" Brooke asked as she finished tying the leather lace behind her heel. "I mean, about tonight?"

"Yeah," Mark replied nonchalantly, "of course, I mean, too late to back out now, right?"

Mark's head disappeared, and she heard him getting into the shower.

"Yeah," Brooke said uncertainly as she looked at herself in the mirror one last time. As she left the bedroom and headed downstairs, she thought about what might happen around midnight. It disturbed her that the wife she saw in the mirror seemed to be looking forward to it.

***

Mark dried himself off as he walked into the bedroom. He thought he'd had his work day on autopilot, but by the time he'd gotten out of his back-to-back meetings, he'd been hit with several urgent emails all at once.

If he hadn't known better, he'd have thought the senders had conspired to send him their requests simultaneously. He'd only had to stay a little later than planned while he tried to bang out all the replies. But then he'd hit a ton of traffic on the way home, greatly extending his commute.

He sat down on the bed next to the ironed clothes Brooke had laid out for him. Mark breathed slowly, trying to expel the stresses of the day. Things at work weren't great at the moment, but he was determined to figure out how to get through them.

His brain still felt foggy; he hoped that his impending meeting with the psychiatrist might help alleviate his issues or at least help him see beyond them. Until then, he planned on having a couple of extra drinks tonight to self-medicate.

Just as he finished getting dressed and was about to head downstairs to help his wife, he felt his stomach gurgle, and he quickly retreated into the bathroom.

***

The first guests began to arrive a few minutes after Mark finally came downstairs. Brooke played hostess in the backyard as other partygoers started to filter in. Some entered through the side gate as instructed, while others came in through the front door, which they had left unlocked for the time being.

Brooke glanced over at Mark, who was beginning to get some burgers and hotdogs on the grill. Thank goodness they lived in Southern California and not New York. The people on the TV under the patio looked like they were freezing their butts off in Time Square.

It wasn't lost on Brooke that her dress was drawing the eye of many men and some women in attendance. She pretended not to notice as she navigated the crowd, engaging in some small talk with each guest while she was giving them directions to the beverage cooler and other amenities for the night. The attention she was receiving gave her some confidence that the issues she and Mark had been having in bed were not due to any loss of her looks.

She was thankful that she hadn't seen Saul yet. Part of her wondered whether he would actually make an appearance or if Mark was just teasing her. Almost like a fantasy foreplay to them messing around tonight.

Brooke decided it was a good time to check on the food. While there was plenty of pasta salad, regular salad and other munchies, she still wanted to see how Mark was making out on the grill. She casually strolled up behind her husband as he was flipping a patty. Mark sipped on a beer as he talked with his friend Dave from work.

"It's just annoying, man. It's like, for the past month, that douchebag has just been on a meteoric rise at the company. I still can't quite figure out how no one sees through his complete bullshit," Dave complained as Mark nodded.