The Halloween Party

As he approached the group, the chatting stopped with a pregnant pause. When Abigail turned around and saw Hank, her smile almost melted him. It was like she was happy to see him.

"Hey, handsome. Buy a girl a drink?"

"Me? Well, I should only be buying drinks for my wife, but since she isn't around, I guess you'll have to do."

"Lucky me," she replied.

Of course, the drinks, which were beer and wine only for a family gathering, were free. But they strolled together to go and get one for each of them, plus one for Jennifer. He asked, "speaking of Jennifer, have you seen her around?"

She replied, "I saw her earlier talking to Olive and then Mrs. Wilcox. I've not seen her since the two of you hauled Bud away. Olive is mortified."

This was before he knew what was going on, though he had wondered about Jennifer. "Any truth to what Richard said?"

She looked sad for a moment and said, "I don't know. Maybe. Probably. I've learned not to trust much of what he says. I do my job and stay away from him. If Jennifer and the others were smart, they would too."

"You just said, 'if they were smart.' That sounds like they aren't staying away. Is there something I need to know?"

She reached out and squeezed Hank's hand. "I really like you, Hank. If I get something I can share, I promise you I will. For now, it's just innuendo and hearsay. None of it is good, but whatever it is they do outside of the office, I don't participate. Richard isn't to be trusted."

"Listen, Abbey. I'm already worried. I'm hearing you tell me I have good reason to be worried."

She whispered, "yes."

"I appreciate your telling me that. I don't want to put you in the middle, but if you discover something that you think I should know, I hope you will tell me, as a friend."

"Are you sure you want to be friends with me, Hank? I didn't tell you much, but I've not said anything good about your wife today."

"You are just the messenger. If she is doing something wrong, that isn't on you. A true friend protects their friends and doesn't let them get blindsided by what we both are suspecting."

"I hope you and Jennifer will be okay."

"Me too, Abbey. Me too."

She smiled at his calling her Abbey. Nobody else would dare. "Well, it's hard to bring a bright note from that conversation, but how about this? I'm actually very happy that you showed up today, Johnnie." Since he shortened her name to Abbey, she had teasingly begun to shorten his last name to Johnnie, occasionally, when Jennifer wasn't around. "I usually have about three lecherous assholes swarming around me, but seeing me with you, they seem to be leaving me alone."

"That's probably because my mood and looks are ready to vaporize most males here."

"Exactly, which is quite useful to me at the moment, but you know what else?"

"What?"

"I actually enjoy spending time with you. I'm glad I've gotten a chance to know you."

Another angel must have gotten its wings at the moment, and for a brief second, in the middle of a shitty day, he had a moment of happiness.

"Thanks, Abbey. That will probably be the nicest thing I hear all day." Then under his breath he said, "or all month." Abbey heard that and felt terrible for him.

She knew more than she was telling, but she was trying to give Jennifer a chance to do the right thing. Hank was too good a man for the pain that was likely coming his way. She hoped Jennifer would get her head, or Richard's dick, out of her ass before it was too late.

Hank and Abbey strolled around the park and looked at the booths that had been setup for games and snacks. The park had a playground, and Hank was alternating pushing Abbey and a little boy on the swing for a few minutes when Jennifer walked up.

The fact that her husband was enjoying himself with this beautiful woman didn't seem to bother Jennifer at all. If she were jealous of this interaction, she certainly wasn't showing it.

"Hey baby," she said and gave her husband a nice kiss on the lips. Hank was tasting, trying to catch any odd tastes or smells, but all he could taste was wine and her lipstick. "Wonderful!" He thought sarcastically. It's come down to this. I'm suspicious of my own wife at a company picnic in broad daylight. He knew a long talk between them was coming soon. He dreaded it.

He should have been a man on cloud nine having his pretty wife on one arm and his gorgeous, but newish friend, on the other, but he wasn't. Hank was terribly troubled, and there was little that either lady could do about it. He knew that something had changed since Richard came into the mix; something not good.

____________________

When Hank arrived at the Hotel Granduca, just outside of Austin, he was already emotionally drained. Taking the last step for his wife not to recognize him, he took off his wedding ring and put it in the compartment inside the armrest of his SUV. It was the first time since his wedding, four years ago, that he had removed the ring.

He had always liked this hotel, and after the first two Halloween parties that he and Jennifer attended, they had reserved a room and stayed all night. With his discovery this afternoon, he wondered if she had a room and began to walk towards reception to ask.

Before he could get there, he was intercepted by Abigail. "Hi, Johnnie."

She was dressed to match his Día de Muertos themed costume and was one of the sexiest sights he had ever seen. She had on a striking, sequined wine red strapless gown, that was figure hugging all the way down to her thighs and with a side slit up all the way up her leg, which made it obvious that she was wearing either stockings or thigh highs. What made it a costume was that her face was painted in an intricate sugar skull pattern with deep reds that looked like blood and matched her dress. Also, someone had body painted skeleton bones on her exposed skin, which made her match Hank's costume. She looked frighteningly elegant; like an experienced seductress about to draw you into her inescapable web. Hank was entranced.

"Do you like it?" After several more seconds of Hank staring, she repeated, "Say something."

"Wow. Just wow, and thank you. My God, I think you are the most beautiful thing I've ever seen, and yes you will easily be the prettiest one here tonight. You're astounding."

"Thank you, Johnnie. I've always wanted to come dressed like this. I'm glad you like it."

He replied, "Oh, trust me. I do. I mean, still, wow. Amazing. Everyone else pales by comparison." He paused a second, "I want to thank you for my costume and doing this for me. I'm assuming it came from you, along with the invitation and this afternoon's video."

She gave him a confusing look. "I'll admit to the costume and the invitation, but I didn't send you a video. When we talked at the picnic, you asked for me to let my friend know if I had anything I could share, which is what tonight is about. Are you saying you received a video?"

Hank pulled out the video and showed Abigail. "Oh, I'm so sorry Hank. I guess it isn't hearsay and innuendo anymore."

"No. It's not. I'm supposed to meet him tomorrow night for more details."

Abigail paused a moment and said, "It may get worse before then. Who knows what Richard has planned for tonight? It won't get too crazy with Mr. and Mrs. Wilcox here, but I know she's hoping that you're not coming. As a matter of fact, it might be a good idea to text her that you are pissed off about the costume and not going to attend."

"Why would I say that?"

"If she doesn't think you are coming, then you will get to see what she is like without you. You can see if what she does passes the husband test."

From the video he could already see that Jennifer was failing that test, so he pulled out his phone. "The costume looks stupid, but I'm guessing that is by design. Even though I'm extremely pissed about the costume, I almost came anyway. Clearly you don't want me there, so now you can have your fun without me."

He looked at Abigail, "There. Let the games begin."

"I'm sure they will shortly. Oh, you look fantastic in your outfit. I do believe my picking those red cosplay contact lenses to match the red stones in the skull of your cane was the perfect touch, if I do say so myself." She paused a moment. "You know, I was afraid you might not come."

"I couldn't stay away. I feel like a moth being drawn to a deadly flame, but I had to come. I need to know. Thank you again, Abbey. For everything. I love our look. Clearly you put a tremendous amount of thought into this. You must be one of the classiest women I know. Wait, I take that back. Hell, you ARE the classiest woman I know."

Wearing her four-inch heels made it very easy for her to kiss him on his neck, since his lips and face were covered by the mask.

He told her, "I imagine I have a very lovely set of lip prints on my neck right now."

"Why yes, yes you do."

"Good." She smiled at the comment, leaned in and repeated the kiss on the other side of his neck, except longer, leaving it more pronounced.

"Damn, girl. If you keep that up, I'm going to embarrass myself here in front of everyone."

She squeezed his hand and replied, "You say the sweetest things to me."

From the entrance of the hotel they walked to the outside patio where many of the early guests were already mingling. They had their picture taken with their phones and also by the photographer who was working the event. It was a nice evening for an outside event. Early October can still get blistering hot in Austin, but by late October things have cooled enough for outside events to be quite comfortable, even wonderful at times. The sun had set, and the outside mood lighting was beautiful.

The guests filled up the patio and pool area. Things didn't usually get wild enough for anyone to end up in the pool, but obviously things were different now than a year ago, regardless of what Wilcox said. Food and drinks were inside, but with his mask on, he didn't anticipate getting to enjoy that too much, though he did try to take care of his 'date' for the evening.

Once the party started, Abbey introduced her 'boyfriend' around to everyone. All the girls in the department seemed excited to meet him, and most of the men she introduced him to pretended to be happy for her. So as not to give himself away, Hank didn't say much.

Mr. Wilcox seemed enthused as well, and asked, "So, Johnnie, I presume. I cannot tell you how lucky you are. Abbigail is a fine lady, and very sharp. We're going to miss her. If you are as smart as she tells me you are, then I hope you are going with her."

Feeling like he just stepped into a private conversation, he didn't know what to say. Not wanting to drag out anything, he simply answered. "I'd like to. I hope we can work it out."

"Good man, good man. You won't regret it."

Abigail said, "remember, Spencer, nobody but you, and Johnnie knows."

After they left the Wilcoxs, he turned to her and before he could ask, she said, "I'll tell you later. I promise."

"Damn. I feel like that last glimmer of sunshine that I've been clinging to has just been snuffed out."

"Don't worry. I told you that I would explain it later. Come on, let's have some fun."

For the next half hour, they mingled and chatted with people that Hank had met many times over the years, but tonight he was Johnnie, not Hank. As long as he kept the mask and hat on, no one should recognize him.

They ran into Olive, who came alone. Abbey asked, "Is Bud coming tonight?"

"No. After the picnic, I told him he couldn't come to this one."

"Are you guys any better?"

"Yes and No. He's talking to me now, but we are just tip toeing around each other. We are both pretty miserable."

"Are you planning on divorcing him?"

"What? God, no. Whatever gave you that idea?"

"Olive, don't go through with tomorrow, please. Your marriage may still have a shot. Go home to Bud, now, and tell him you are going to be the best wife that you can be."

"Abigail, what's gotten into you? Since when did you become all domesticated?"

"I'm not. But from hanging around him and Hank at the parties and listening to what you and Jennifer used to tell me before Richard showed up, I know they are good men and treat you well. You don't know how rare that is. Trust me, most men aren't. If he finds out, replacing him is going to be very hard."

Hank was wondering what happened to her in the past for her to take that view of men, and what the hell was happening tomorrow.

"Well, I don't plan on having to replace him. I'm working a little less and loving him a little more. We'll be fine. Instead of talking about us, you need to be taking care of your boyfriend."

Abbey shook her head. Some people hadn't experienced enough of life yet to recognize good from evil.

It was time for the band to begin and Mr. and Mrs. Wilcox strode to the dance floor for their traditional first dance. It was a new routine every year, and it was impressive to see. At the Christmas party, they would lead things off with a grand waltz, hoping to set a more classy tone for the night, rather than just a bunch of bodies shaking their asses.

For the Halloween party, their traditional first dance was a tango. Spencer and Eliza Wilcox were about as conservative as two people in the Austin area could be, but they did love to dance, and for a couple in their early sixties, it was a damn sexy dance.

Last year they were dressed as zombies, but tonight they came as Dracula and the bride of Frankenstein. Their dances were usually about two minutes and tonight they didn't disappoint. When they finished, they received a rousing round of applause.

Hank offered, "I guess that is one of the ways they stay in such good shape."

Abbey replied, "I know. I'd love to find someone that enjoyed dancing like that."

"Me too. I asked Jennifer, but she says it's too stuffy. She's more of a bump and grind girl." He laughed out loud and said, "I guess in more ways than one."

"Well, I don't know how she gets stuffy from watching that, but if I were dancing like that with my boyfriend or husband, my panties would get wet during that dance."

"Then he would be a fool to not take lessons with you. I hope your boyfriend isn't a fool."

She picked that moment to kiss him again on the neck, and said, "Me too."

"Hey, what did we say about me embarrassing myself?"

"It was you that said that. I only said that you were sweet for saying it. I didn't say I would stop."

He secretly hoped she didn't. Hank grabbed her hand and pulled her to the floor. He wasn't going to let an opportunity like this go to waste. He told her, "I can do a basic box step and a Rumba box, and we can add on to that if you would like."

She did like that, and for twenty minutes they stepped and swayed and spun and moved and stumbled and dipped until they had their fill and left the floor together laughing until they ran right into Jennifer and Richard.

As expected, Jennifer was dressed as Harley Quinn, but there truly wasn't much to the costume. She had the makeup and hair perfect for her character, but her hot pants and t-shirt provided about half the coverage of what Margot Robbie wore in Suicide Squad. Her t-shirt was practically transparent, as was her sheer white bra underneath. Richard was dressed as the joker, from the same movie, and looked cool and in command at the moment.

Jennifer said, "There you are. You shouldn't have been too hard to find. You look amazing."

For a brief moment Hank, forgot he was wearing the mask and thought this woman who he had loved for over five years was talking to him, but realized it was Abbey to whom she had been speaking.

Abbey replied, "Well, thank you. I was wondering when you would show up."

Hank thought he was going to kill them both on the spot when his wife said, "Well, it took us a while to get ready. We have a suite upstairs. You can join us later if you want. I can't stay overnight, unfortunately. We would have been down sooner, but Richard hid my costume and made me pay for each piece before we could come down.

Abbey said, "Well, girl, there isn't much there to hide."

She laughed and replied, "well, as soon as the old man and his wife leaves, I'll ditch this jacket and the bra. I'd like to keep my job, so it's best not to prance around in front of him half naked while his wife is around. Speaking of prancing, damn, you and your lover boy here looked good out there. It almost makes me want to take Hank up on his offer to get dance lessons.

Richard didn't want to hear about Hank, again, so without acknowledging him or Abbey at all, he said, "I'm going to get us some drinks, babe."

Hank was about to lose it at hearing the 'babe' comment, plus what Jennifer said about the suite and wanting to stay all night.

Fearing a reprisal, Abbey grabbed his hand and said, "Jennifer, I'd like for you to meet my date, Johnnie."

She smiled and shook his hand. "Nice to meet you, tall, dark and mysterious. I like those eyes. You looked good out there dancing with Abigail, but then again, most men do. So, you're the man with the magic tongue?" Looking at Abbey she said, "Lucky girl."

Abbey told Jennifer, "Well, from what you tell me, you're the one that has the man with the golden tongue at home. Where is he anyway?"

"Oh, he's pissed at me for renting that old-school batman suit for him. He said he isn't coming."

"Well, that worked out well for you."

She laughed, "Yes, it did. I almost died when that invitation showed up in our mailbox. I could strangle whoever sent it."

Abbey asked, "From what you used to tell me, if he's so good to you and so good in the sack, why risk it with Richard and the potential clients."

"Oh, girl, you know why. One word -- M-O-N-E-Y. The money. My bonus next year is going to be as much as my salary this year, and that doesn't include the marketing and sales money Richard diverts to us on the side, through his 'Entertainment' company. I have that money in a nice hidden account that I can use in the future when I need to. Also, the sex and networking are hard to beat."

"You're playing with fire, girl. If I had a man like that at home, no way I would risk it. You should think long and hard about tomorrow."

"You're talking to me? What's the old saying about glass houses and stones?"

"Well, that was a while back before I got to know this man here." She squeezed Hank's hand. "Besides, I'm not married."

This conversation was starting to piss off Jennifer. "Well, Hank is my concern, not yours. I almost wish he had come so the two of you could keep each other occupied while I play like I did at the picnic. And if you really must dig into my private life, tomorrow afternoon is the last time; at least for a long time. Richard and Mr. Wilcox aren't seeing eye-to-eye right now, so Richard's decided to join his old mentor out in San Jose in a couple of months. So, I'll make up with Hank starting this weekend, and we'll be fine"

Jennifer paused a second thinking, "Didn't you used to work for Richard's mentor, also, here, before Gail. What was his name? Jason?"

Had Abbey not been wearing so much makeup, she was certain Hank would have seen her pale at that comment. "Yes, I did. His name is Jace Roberts. He invited me to go with him to work for him in San Jose, but Texas is home, so I stayed."

Jennifer said, "If he was like Richard, I can understand why. Look. Richard is interesting, entertaining, has that beautiful chest and washboard abs, and has that long, magic dick, but I won't be sad to see him go. I hope whoever Wilcox brings in to replace him can help land the clients, though. You have to admit, Richard is good at that."

Realizing that Hank had heard and seen enough for the night, Abbey tried to bring the conversation to a close. "I will admit to nothing good, where Richard is concerned. Be careful, girl, he's going to get you hurt."