The Greatest Gift

I woke up to my doorbell ringing at eight in the morning and wondered who in the hell was coming by that early. I pulled on a pair of shorts and a tee shirt and went to open the door. When I did, there stood Tina dressed for the day and holding an envelope.

"I want to thank you again for hosting these two parties. They convinced me of something important. Please read this and consider it. I will be at work until four. You can call me after that." Then she turned and walked quickly towards her house.

All I could do was close the door and stumble to the kitchen to turn on the coffee. When it was ready, I would open the envelope and read what was inside on the patio with my coffee. Once settled, I carefully opened the envelope which contained several sheets of regular notebook paper with handwriting on them. I looked at the first words and sat up straight. I was instantly awake without even tasting my first cup of coffee. I had to read the first words slowly again to make sure I hadn't misread them. I hadn't.

"Good morning, this is Don McElroy writing this and I want you to date my wife regularly and make love with her often." The next lines were blank until he started again.

"I trust I have your full attention now. What follows is the story why I am asking you something which most people would think totally absurd. It isn't; please read on. Our background is fairly straightforward. I was married while I earned my doctorate but my wife hated the academic life and we got a divorce. Three years later, Tina was in my class and I was smitten as I know you were. I have seen the look on your face when we first met you and it's still there. Anyway, I wouldn't consider dating as student but when she graduated, I asked her out. We were married six months later. I can only tell you I have been in heaven ever since. She took a job as a legal assistant and worked there for seven years before deciding the legal life wasn't for her. She returned to school and earned her Master's degree. She taught for a year and decided to pursue her doctorate also. She began last year."

It appeared he had to take break because when he started again, the pen was different and his hand was shakier. "Things began to change a couple of years ago, before we bought this house. I developed testicular cancer and had chemo and radiation. They thought it was taken care of. It came back last year but had moved to other organs. The past year, I have been undergoing a variety of treatments with limited success. Many times, I have suggested she consider finding a lover since she is young and still very vibrant. She refused totally until six months ago when things began getting worse for me. The reason I'm writing this now is because next week I am starting a very aggressive treatment program which is still experimental. Frankly, the prognosis isn't very good. The first six months show promise but then either things stop or continue to improve. Right now, they have had more stops than improvements. Therefore, they are giving me less than a fifty percent chance of stopping the cancer. For six months, I can expect some improvement but it will be slow and painful. I will take a treatment every month and will be bedridden for probably three weeks and then have a week to gain strength for the next round. They are also worried if my heart can take the stress. For me, this is the least of my worries but it is there. I am taking a leave of absence for the duration of the treatments."

There was another break before he continued. "I don't want Tina to stop her studies or spend all of her time worrying about me. We started a month or so ago to consider suitable lovers for her to spend time with. You were the first one to come to each of our mind. But we also decided to consider others. The parties the past two weeks were her potential candidates. Tina told me last night when she got home you were the one, we could find someone else, or she would do without. I can't face this without knowing she is taken care of. If you accept, don't hide it. I will tell the neighbors you will be bringing her to the neighborhood activities while I undergo a medical treatment. They don't need to know the details. Take her out openly and freely without any guilt or concern. Tina is going to finish this and we will both sign it to let you know we have both read it all and agree to it. Thank you for considering this."

The next page began in Tina's handwriting. "You have read what Don wrote. I won't go into any details he wrote about but want to tell you my requirements. If you accept these, call me later this afternoon and we will talk. I'm available tonight if you want.

Rule 1: I am not a cheap fuck. If you want to date me, I want a nice date and then go home and sleep with you. When we sleep together, I will get up early and go home to tend to Don's needs.

Rule 2: On our dates, I don't want to talk about Don. We can talk about anything else. As things move on, I will tell you what you need to know.

Rule 3:I am on birth control and I don't want you to slow down or stop anytime. I will be yours to love and expect the same in return from you.

Rule 4: I fully expect we will become emotionally involved with each other. I already am to a degree and Don says you are too. Whatever, my first commitment is to Don and it will continue to be until his heath issue is resolved. Don't expect or try to tempt me to change this.

Rule 5: If I decide to have a child even if Don recovers totally, he can't father one. I will stop taking birth control and you will father my child. If that happens, I will not hold you responsible for anything. It will be my decision. Don and I have put together a decent financial plan and I won't be looking to you for financial support. If the worst happens, the company will provide a life insurance policy payable to me which will support me for the rest of my life.

Rule 6: There isn't a Rule 6. Writing these sounds cold and barren. That's not what I feel. I want some happiness and joy. I want to put the sadness aside for a while. When we are together, I want us to enjoy each other both in and out of bed.

Again. Think this over carefully before you answer. If it takes days, that's fine. The earliest I will take a call from you is four this afternoon. I seriously want you to understand what you are getting yourself into."

Then they each signed it. Don's hand looked very shaky. I immediately reread the whole thing to make sure I understood it and didn't misread anything. I hadn't. My first inclination was to celebrate but this was quickly put away because of the circumstances. After thinking it over, I reached for my coffee finally and found it cold. I went to the kitchen and decided I need to talk to someone. That someone was next door and had invited me for tea and talk at nine. It was nine and I needed more than one cup to talk. I got down my double sized cup, filled it, and went next door.

I knocked once and the door opened, "I've been expecting you. She said you would want to talk. Let's go out to the patio."

As we walked, I asked, "You knew?"

"Only parts of it. I don't know the details of why but I know Don needs come complicated medical treatment and recovery and he doesn't want her to just sit with him since she can't do anything to help. She didn't say it but I suspect you and she sleeping together is part of the deal. That's all I know and no one else even knows this much. Sit and tell me what's bothering you. I can see it on your face and I doubt sleeping with her is the problem. You've been in lust or love with her since you met her. And, she feels the same about you."

I just stared at Dixie for a moment. "How do you know that?"

"Hey dumbass, in case you haven't noticed, we are women; women talk and don't hold much back. She knows you have been sleeping with the others and has wanted to be part of it but hasn't because of Don. She loves him for what he is but she loves you for what you can be that he can't ever be again."

"Oh. That changes a couple of things I was thinking about. I won't admit I am in love with her but I have a serious case of like for her and would love to see where it might lead. But when I thought about this, it dawned on me if I found out I did love her, I might be left alone at the end of the day. How can I resolve that? The promise is beautiful but the reality might be very painful."

"She probably didn't tell you this and might not for quite some time but she is also very concerned about this. If she is satisfied with you as she expects and I know, she won't give you up. If Don fully recovers, he has already told her she can continue to see you afterwards. This was one of her issues they discussed and when he agreed, she agreed. If he hadn't, she probably would have said no. In the meantime, just think about both of your happiness until whatever happens happens. Think short-term and just hold the long-term in check until the time comes."

"That makes sense. I think I can do that. They also said I should bring her to the neighborhood parties as if we were a couple. They said they would let everyone know about it and to accept it. Do you think the neighbors can accept it if this is open?"

"Actually, if Don tells them, they will. If Tina tells them, they might raise an eyebrow. Only one couple might have a problem but they don't participate very often because they travel. They also have their house for sale. I wouldn't worry about them."

"I want to be able to bring her to these things without conflict. Both of us enjoy them and I don't want to change because of it."

"Don't worry. Once Don tells people, Tina and I can back it up and when we get together and you and she are your normal selves, things will be fine."

"The last thing is I have no idea how to respond to her. They wrote everything in a letter to me. I would feel stupid writing her back. But I would feel just as stupid calling her and saying, "Hi, chick. Do you want a drink before or after we fuck?"

Dixie laughed loudly. "I'm going to tell her that one. She'll love it. She got hit on daily when she worked at the law firm and now when she is back in school, she gets lines like this two or three times a day. Listen to your heart, dumbass. Ask her to dinner. Take her somewhere nice and talk to her. You know her from our parties but do you have any idea what music she likes or if she likes to dance or go to the theater. You're going to end up in bed soon enough but it doesn't have to be tonight. She's scared too. She has only been with three men. The first was in high school, the second in college, and the third was Don. The first two were very forgettable. She needs to learn what you like just like you do. My only caution is if you like opera. and I think you do, based on what I hear playing through the fence; she speaks Italian fluently and is more than decent in French and German. She won't need to read the subtitles if you take her there."

"That settles that. I was thinking about getting a season ticket for this year. I'll get two tomorrow. Thanks. Dixie. You really are special. I'll bet you didn't even know your top was unbuttoned and I have been ogling your bare breasts all this time."

"Dumbass, no woman shows her breasts to a man unintentionally. It took me the whole time we walked out here to get the damn thing undone. Now at least have the courtesy to tell me I have nice tits."

I grinned and said, "You have magnificent breasts and I would love to wallow in them for days. When you are ready, just knock on my door but tell your husband to stay gone."

"Honey, when I knock of your door, wallowing in my breasts is fine for the first twenty minutes. After that, I will want something else and I'm a demanding woman to please."

"Ok, I'll have a key made for you so you don't have to knock."

"Good boy. Call her."

"She said she won't answer a call from me until after four."

"Bullshit." She picked up her phone and punched speed dial number. "Hi, yourself. Your lover is sitting here and is too stupid to just pick up his phone and call you. Here, talk to him and maybe he will quit salivating all over my floor." She handed me the phone.

When I put it to my ear, all I heard was laughter. I need to learn more about women for certain. She finally said, "Hi. Have you considered everything?"

"I took every word to heart including the part which said you wouldn't answer a call from me until after four. I should have known women conspire against men and you would really answer my call anytime."

I could hear her smile through the phone as she replied, "My intentions were good but I also knew if you called earlier, I couldn't ignore it. So, what do you think?"

"I think I would like to take you to dinner tonight at a nice quiet place where we could get to know each other better. Then we will see what develops after that."

"I think I would accept that offer, if you would ask me."

Before I could respond, Dixie put her mouth near the phone and said, "Make him ask you the way he is afraid to. I don't think you have heard this one." Tina started laughing again.

I tried to regain some composure and said, "Would you like to go to dinner with me tonight. I will pick you up at seven."

"The answer is yes, I would love to. What's the dress?"

"Nice but not formal. Maybe a little black dress kind of thing. I will wear slacks, a turtle neck, and a sport coat. I don't do ties anymore."

"That will be perfect. Now what is the line I haven't heard before?"

"If I tell you, when I finish, I am going to take your friend across my knee, pull down her pajama shorts, and paddle her ass until she can't sit down. I suspect her husband will thank me for that."

Dixie was rolling on the ground laughing when I said this. Tina laughed too but said, "He probably would thank you but wait to do it until I'm there to watch. She needs it. What's the line?"

"Ok here goes. 'Honey, do you want a drink before or after we fuck.'"

Tina joined Dixie in laughter until she final said, "You had to make that up."

"I swear, Boy Scouts honor, I heard it in a nice club in Houston. The guy was slightly drunk but he walked up to a nicely dressed and good-looking woman and said it to her. I'm not sure who reacted first, her or her husband who was standing next to her. I didn't stay to find out."

Dixie roared again loudly, "Add it to your list and show him the others you have collected."

Tina replied, "I will definitely add it to my list but you will never see it. You don't need any lines anymore. Oops."

Dixie asked, "What did she say?"

"She said, and I quote, 'I will but to tell you that I will never see it because I don't need any lines anymore.' Then she said, 'Oops.' One of these days, one of you is going to have to explain how women think."

This ended the call with both of them laughing hard. I let myself out and went home. I had several things to do before my date that night.

First, I washed what I called my small car. It was a two seat Mercedes. I took my truck on the road and used the small car around town. It's comfortable and has a great sound system. I had it detailed while I walked across the street and bought a small corsage which would fit any color she chose to wear. Then I made a reservation at an excellent Italian restaurant. If she could speak Italian, she would love this place. It was a tedious drive to get there because it was downtown, but I felt it would be worth it.

Then I went home and took a nap. I wanted to be fresh and alert for tonight. The final thing I did before I left was to freshen up the bedroom. I didn't know if we would use it tonight but I wanted it ready in case we did. I took a deep breath and drove two houses over and parked in front of their house.

I was surprised when Don answered the door. He welcomed me in and said she would be right out. Then he reassured me, "Thank you for this. She is looking forward to it and I'm grateful you are a considerate and gentle man. I hope the two of you thoroughly enjoy each other."

Tina came out and said hi but led Don to the living room and settled him in his chair. Then she came to me with a smile while I put my eyeballs back in my head. She wore a beautiful little black dress which perfectly highlighted her curves and graceful lines. Her hair was done in a style I hadn't seen before. She was radiantly beautiful. When I handed her the corsage, she smiled and then handed it back to me to pin it on. Her dress was just low cut enough that to pin it on, my fingers would have to touch the skin of her breast. She didn't make it easy either by thrusting them out to meet my touch. I successfully pinned it in place and discovered she wasn't wearing a bra. Her nipples dented the fabric when I removed my hand. She said, "You did that very well. Thank you; it's beautiful." I wasn't sure what she referred to but I was thinking how beautiful her breasts were. Then she lightly kissed my lips and said, "Shall we go?"

I led her outside and she smiled when she saw the car we would be going in. I got a good look at her long legs as she folded herself in side. As soon as I was seated and started driving, she took possession of my hand and continued to hold it unless I needed it for something. The radio was on my usual classical channel and she seemed to enjoy the music as I drove. As I pulled into the parking lot of the high rise building where the restaurant was located on top of the city, she grabbed my hand before I could get out.

She was blushing as she said, "I want to clarify something I wrote this morning. I meant it but after I gave it to you I got worried you might take it the wrong way."

"What was it?"

"I said I wasn't a cheap date. I meant it to mean I wasn't cheap and easy. I realized later you might have taken it to mean I wanted you to spend lots of money on me when we go out. I don't mean that at all. I like a nice date sometimes to dress up for but this is the exception not the rule."

"I didn't take it that way. That's one of the things I realized, thanks to your friend who I postponed spanking at your request. Anyway, she pointed out we know each other from our neighborhood get togethers but neither of us really know what we like in music or things to do. So, I decided we would take our time for the first several dates to talk and get to know what we like and can share and what we don't like. We can use it to build our dates to satisfy both of us. Let's go on in and we can talk during dinner. I was also thinking about dancing but I don't even know if you like to dance."

"I love to dance as long as it is good music and not music to wiggle and get sweaty. The kids like that; I don't and I like your choice of radio stations just fine. Take me away to your magical choices for tonight."

"Gladly, I hope you aren't afraid of heights though. It's on the top floor of the building."

"I'll love it. Let's go."

We rode the elevator to the top. When we stepped off, we were in the waiting area of the restaurant. I told the hostess my name. She smiled and said our table would be ready in a moment. Once we were seated, they handed us each an ornate and leather-bound menu.

I said, "I understand you speak Italian. I may have you explain some of these dishes. I speak three languages myself; English, street English; and some barely understandable Border Spanish."

She giggled and replied, "I'll help you with Italian, German, and French but you will have to help me with street English and Border Spanish."

"I doubt you want to know what street English means and Border Spanish is basically a way for you to spend money for junk you don't need."

"Okay, if that's the way you want to be. Let me order something for each of us and we can try two different things."

"I like a woman who takes control."