Timing is Everything

Mark and Judy (Jude, as he sometimes called her) met while in college and married a year after graduation. Mark went to work for a large insurance company and Judy became a high school history teacher. While Mark was happy that his corporate job paid about 25% more than Judy earned as a teacher, he was more than a little envious of her having a couple of months off over the summer.

They had been married about four years when Mark, once again, brought up the subject of children. It was a bit of a sore spot for Judy as she had grown tired of her mother and mother-in-law quizzing her about starting a family, and now Mark was bugging her about it - again.

"Babe, I'm only 27! I have plenty of time for having kids. Why do we have to rush into parenthood? I love having some free time for myself. Don't you enjoy being able to do things with our free time over the summer?"

"Yes, of course, but I also want to be young enough to keep up with our kids as they grow up. Besides, if we time it right, we'll still be young enough to enjoy ourselves when we're empty nesters."

"Well, I'm just not ready. I want to have fun for a couple of more years before I become a slave to my children. Please, Baby, just this year and next, then I'll go off the pill."

Mark reluctantly agreed but (only half-jokingly) made Judy "pinky swear" that she would stick to that promise. Now he'd have to have a word with his mother about not bugging Judy. While he felt his mother may agree to let up on the pressure, his mother-in-law was a lost cause. Hopefully, he and Judy together could get her to back off for a year or so.

Over the next school year, Judy befriended several new teachers who had recently been hired. They were young, attractive, and all single. Judy had gone to several impromptu gatherings held at various bars the "new" girls like to frequent. She usually begged off around 9:30 and was home well before 10:30 pm. Mark wasn't wild about her hanging out with the young hotties, especially after Judy divulged the fact that the ladies often "scored" when they went out.

"So how do they manage to hook up with these guys when they are out in a group?"

"Oh, well, they all love to dance and the guys usually swarm around our table as soon as the music starts," Judy said and then blushed a little, knowing what was coming next.

Dripping sarcasm, Mark said, "I see, and, naturally, the guys just go after the single girls. I'm 100% sure when the boys see your ring they completely understand you're off-limits and never try to hit on you. Right, Dear?"

"Uh, well, I sometimes get asked to dance, BUT I make it known I'm married and it's just a dance. Besides, I'm no competition for those girls."

"Bullshit! I've seen all those young Bambis. They are cute but you are every bit as hot as any one of them."

Judy blushed shyly, "You're just saying that because you're my husband and you're hoping to get laid tonight." Then she smiled and said, "Well, guess what, smooth talker, it worked!" She then grabbed his hand and dragged him off to their bedroom.

Mark stared at the ceiling as Judy rested her head on his shoulder. He loved moments like this. His naked wife in his arms softly purring as she came down from a powerful climax. He kissed her head and his mind slipped back to their previous conversation.

"Jude, I know guys hit on you when you're out and I trust you to fend them off, but do you ever find yourself wishing you didn't have to, you know, fend them off?"

Judy was quiet for a few seconds, she wanted to be honest with Mark. "Truthfully? Maybe one time. It was an older guy, who happened to stop in after dinner with a client. He said he was a Pharmaceutical Rep and was just taking over a new territory. He'd had dinner with the office manager of a medical practice in the area and decided to stop in for a drink.

"He talked to me for a while and we danced a few times. He was handsome and charming. I think he was about ready to ask me to leave with him when my watch vibrated at 9:30. I told him I had to get home to my husband and stood up.

"He grabbed my hand and asked me to stay. I looked into his eyes and I admit, for maybe two nanoseconds, I briefly considered it but quickly shook him off and walked out. I don't know what it was about that guy, but he's the only one that ever tempted me in any way."

"Let me guess, Alice's birthday 6 weeks ago, you guys went to the Hilton."

"Oh my god! How could you possibly know that?"

"I didn't, until just now. I remember how horny you were that night. You were soaked when I went down on you and exploded in just a few moments. Then you climbed up on me and rode me through two more climaxes. (Mark scowled) Shit, to think, I was so proud of myself for getting you off 3 times and now I find out it wasn't me that got you all excited! You were imagining it was him and that's what put you over the top."

"No, no, no! It WAS you I was hot for. Sure, maybe he got me revved up a bit, but it was you I wanted when I came home and it was you that got me off!"

Now it was Mark's turn to be quiet for a few moments. "I hope that's true. I want to believe it's true. ... Jude, I love you, but if you ever said yes to some guy, it would be the end of us."

"I know Baby, I know. I would never do anything behind your back. We talked about that, no cheating, ever! One and done! We both agreed." Judy clung to her husband and kissed his face until he turned to her and kissed her lips.

In time, Mark forgot about what his wife had revealed. She was always careful to tell him about all that happened while she was out with the Bambis. He trusted her and from what he could tell, she never broke his trust.

The next summer, three weeks before Judy's summer vacation ended they dumped the last of her birth control pills. In a couple of weeks, they would start trying to make a baby. Mark was excited about it, and Judy claimed to share his excitement, but part of her was nervous about starting that phase of her life.

Mark was vaguely aware of his wife's apprehension, so he planned a short trip to the beach, thinking it would be a good finish to Judy's summer vacation. Judy loved the idea of a romantic getaway and bought a skimpy new bikini and a few sexy summer dresses for the occasion.

The resort was beautiful and the happy couple was enjoying being pampered by the staff. They spent the first two days lying in the sun and wandering the beach hand in hand. Their evenings consisted of a light meal and then watching the sunset from their balcony, followed by hours of love-making. It was a blissful time for both of them.

On the third night, Judy suggested they go dancing at one of the nearby clubs. She donned a slinky emerald green dress and heeled sandals.

"Wow, Jude, you look fantastic! How am I going to keep the wolves at bay tonight?"

Judy laughed, "Don't be silly, you're the only animal I have any interest in."

The club was hopping. The music pounded as the dancers moved to the beat. Judy was a sexy dancer and she attracted a lot of attention. Each time they returned to their table for a break, several young horn dogs came to their table and asked Judy for a dance. Mark could see she was flattered, but Judy declined each offer.

Toward the end of the evening, a handsome casually dressed, older man slowly approached their table. Mark spotted him before Judy was aware of his approach and stopped talking in mid-sentence. Judy turned to see what had distracted her husband.

"Judy?" The gentleman cautiously asked.

"Steven!" Judy gushed. "What are you doing here?" She stood to embrace the interloper as Mark looked from one to the other. Judy then turned to Mark who had risen to his feet.

"Mark, this is Steven, we met at April's birthday celebration. Steven, this is my husband, Mark."

Mark was a little taken aback as his brain slowly assimilated the information. This was the guy who had tempted her that night when she was out with the girls. The guy who had sent Judy home all fired up. This guy was responsible for one of the best sex sessions he'd ever experienced with his wife! The man extended his hand.

"Hello, Mark, It's a pleasure to meet you."

"Uh, yeah, thanks, uh nice to meet you, too," Mark stammered as he shook the shorter man's hand.

Judy beamed at Steven, "My gosh, what a small world. How do you happen to be here?"

"My company was entertaining some clients here earlier this week and I thought I'd take a couple of days for myself. It's so beautiful here, I just wasn't ready to go back to work. And you guys? What brought you to this little piece of heaven?"

"Our last hurrah before the new school year starts," Judy said, still smiling brightly.

The handsome salesman turned to Mark, "I don't want to intrude on your evening, but would you permit me a dance with your beautiful wife?"

A voice in Mark's head screamed, "FUCK NO!" But before he could respond, Judy blurted, "Oh he won't mind." She then turned to her stunned husband, put a hand on his forearm, and asked "Do you, Honey?"

After a small pause, Mark said, "Uh, no, of course not." He then sat back down as Judy walked off while holding onto the man's arm.

Mark only sat for a few seconds and then decided he needed another drink, so he got up and went to the bar. The bar was busy and as he waited, he turned to watch his wife dancing with the other man. They moved well together and Mark's concern began to grow.

He finally got his drink and returned to the table just as a third song began. Judy and Steven made no move to leave the dance floor. Mark sipped his drink as his unease began to build. The third song ended and Mark watched as Steven pointed to him. Judy turned and must have realized she had been away too long. She said something to her dance partner and then quickly walked back to the table.

"Oh my, he is a wonderful dancer! Thank you for indulging us," she said breezily as she gulped her drink.

Mark didn't speak he just stared at his wife as she looked around the room, trying to avoid his stare. Finally, she focused on him, "Are you okay?"

"No, I'm not. He asked for one dance and if he hadn't reminded you I was sitting here, you would still be out there, continuing to ignore me."

"I'm sorry, Honey. I saw you head to the bar, so we just kept dancing. I didn't mean to ignore you."

Mark was still pissed but said yes when Judy asked him to dance with her. They danced to several slow songs and Judy clung to him as they swayed to the music. When they returned to their table, Mark left to get them fresh drinks.

Mark turned away from the bar with a drink in each hand. As he navigated around a few patrons, he glanced up to locate his table. He nearly dropped his drinks when he saw Steven standing by Jude's chair. He was bent over and talking into her ear. He placed his hand on the table then turned and walked away.

"So your boyfriend was back. Was he asking for another dance?"

Judy just shook her head and reached for the glass of wine Mark had placed in front of her. She took a long drink and then another. Mark glared at her waiting for her to speak. She drained her glass and then stood.

Mark gulped his drink and stood, "Are we leaving?"

"Yes, I think we should head back to our room."

When they got to the room, Judy flung herself into his arms. She kissed him deeply as she gripped his curly hair. When they broke the kiss, she slid down to her knees and reached for his belt. She tugged his pants down and grabbed his hardening cock. Mark moaned as she sucked him into her mouth.

His hands came up to lightly cup her head as he began to pump his dick into her soft mouth. Her tongue flicked over his glans as she sucked him in deeper.

"Oh damn, that feels good," Mark moaned.

Judy began to bob up and down, faster and faster.

"Shit, Babe, you're going to make me come!" He tried to pull her off his dick to put her on the bed. Judy sucked him harder and mumbled "Huh-uh," as she bobbed her head. Mark surrendered to her efforts and exploded into her greedy mouth. She sucked hard as he emptied his balls.

Mark fell back onto the bed, panting, as Judy climbed up beside him. "Damn, Babe, it's been a while since you sucked me like that!"

Judy kissed his cheek, "I love you, Baby!"

She rose from the bed and went into the bathroom. Mark followed her in a few moments later. Naked, he stood over the toilet as Judy finished brushing her teeth and exited the bathroom. He washed his face and hands and when he came out Judy was standing in front of a mirror applying fresh lipstick.

As he watched her, Judy fluffed her hair and dabbed on some additional perfume. She was still completely dressed.

"Babe? What are you doing?"

Judy picked up her purse and stuck it under her arm. She took a deep breath and said, "Mark, I told Steven I would join him for a nightcap. I will only be gone for a little while."

"YOU WHAT?"

"Honey, I really want to do this. It's just a nightcap, I shouldn't be too long."

"Are you out of your fucking mind? You are NOT going to that asshole's room!"

"Mark, please, he's leaving in the morning and I'll never see him again. I need to see him and say goodbye. Just give me this one last thing before we start our family and I become a "mom" forever."

"Are you crazy? I'm not about to let you go fuck some other guy! You're my WIFE!"

She stepped to him and placed a hand on his naked chest. "Yes, Baby, I'm your wife and always will be. That's why I need to do this now before I become the mother of your children."

Mark pushed her away, "No fucking way! You leave here and we're done!"

Judy blinked back a tear. "I thought you'd understand. It's just a nightcap, just a goodbye, you have to let me do this and then I'll be back forever."

"No, you don't HAVE to do this, you WANT to do this! So don't give me this shit about what you NEED to do!"

Mark grabbed his pants and pulled them on as Judy backed away toward the door. She half expected him to charge her, but he turned and grabbed a suitcase and slammed it down onto the bed. Judy was frozen, she'd never seen her husband so angry.

Mark grabbed his things and stuffed them into his bag. He went into the bathroom and quickly returned with his toiletries. Judy had one hand on the door handle.

"Wha ... what are you doing? Why are you packing?"

"I'm getting as far away from you as I can get! You don't honestly think I would wait around here for you to come back from your little fuckfest? I'll get my own room and will be gone tomorrow, I don't give a fuck what you do!"

"Mark, please! You're making way too much of this. Everything will be fine tomorrow, please Baby, don't do anything crazy."

He turned toward the door, "Get out of my way, SLUT!"

Judy stepped back, Mark stormed past her and out the door. She called after him but he continued down the hall and turned the corner. He went to the front desk and requested another room.

"I'm sorry sir but we're completely booked," the clerk said as she took in his disheveled appearance. ... "Uh, let me make a few calls."

At nearly midnight there was not much foot traffic in the lobby. Mark paced around as the clerk kept shooting him concerned glances. Finally, she hung up the phone and handed him a slip of paper.

"The Nova is about a block down the road. They have a single available, but just for tonight, it's booked for tomorrow."

"I'll take it!" Mark snatched the paper from her hand which startled the young clerk. He stopped, took a few deep breaths, then smiled at her. "I'm sorry, you have been very helpful, please forgive my rudeness." She smiled as he calmly turned and walked out.

Judy dabbed the tears from her eyes as she walked down the hall. She checked the room number on the napkin that Steven had placed on her table. She found the door and knocked. Steven was wearing a hotel robe when he opened the door and let her in. Judy stepped to him and sobbed as he wrapped his arms around her.

"Hey, hey, hey. What's going on? Did he hurt you?"

"No, he got very angry when I told him I was meeting you for a nightcap. He said some terrible things and then grabbed his clothes and stormed out."

"Oh, honey, I'm sorry he reacted that way," Steven cooed as he patted her back. "Here, let me get you a glass of champagne and we can talk about it," he said as he guided her to sit on the bed.

Mark dragged his suitcase to the front counter of the Nova Hotel and gave the guy his name. Evidently, the other clerk had given him all of Mark's information because he just asked him for his credit card and 20 seconds later handed him his room key.

Mark found the room and flopped down on the bed. His mind reeled, just 24 hours ago his life had been perfect. Now, it had all gone to shit. Suddenly, he was exhausted and his eyes grew heavy as sleep took him.

The sound of doors slamming and the sun streaming through the open shades woke him at about 8:00. For a few seconds he was disoriented because he didn't recognize his surroundings. Slowly the horrible events of the previous night came back to him.

At about that same time, Judy sleepily stretched a hand across the bed to caress her husband. The bed was cold and empty on that side. Her eyes cracked open, and she looked around, hoping Mark had returned to their room, but she was alone. She turned her face to her pillow and sobbed.

She pulled herself together and found her phone. She called, but Mark did not answer. When his voicemail prompt came on she said, "Mark honey, I fell asleep waiting for you to come back. I'm alone in our room and I'm scared. Please, Baby, I'm sorry for everything, please come back, I need you."

Mark felt a bit better as he stepped out of the shower. He dressed and picked up his phone. He listened to Judy's voicemail. Her message confused him, but he was undeterred. He called the airline and got his flight changed to one leaving that afternoon. He ignored the several calls he got from his soon-to-be ex-wife. He called his brother and asked him to pick him up at the airport.

Judy spent most of her day calling home and calling Mark's cell but never got an answer. She called her parents and told them she and Mark had argued and he left in a huff. They tried calling their son-in-law but got no answer. Desperate, Judy called Mark's parents. Her Mother-in-law, Martha answered.

"Marty, we had a big fight. It was all a big misunderstanding. We both said some stupid things and he stormed out. I thought he might come back last night but I woke up alone. I have no idea where he is."

"He's back here. He's staying at John's. You'd better get home and get this mess straightened out, he's talking about divorce."

"Oh, God! I don't want a divorce. Please, Marty, can you talk some sense into him?"

"He's my son, I love him, but he makes his own decisions. If you love him, you better get your ass back home and convince him that you do."

While Judy was making her way back home, Mark was meeting with his attorney. "I just want out! She went off to fuck another guy, no way can I forgive that!"

"Okay, this is a "No Fault" state so you can file right away if you wish. You will split everything 50-50. She makes a little less than you, but there will probably be no maintenance. They will likely let her stay in the house until it's sold and then you each get half of the proceeds."

"How long will it take?"

"If she signs right away, 4-5 months. If she fights it and asks for counseling, it will be more like 8-9 months."

"Okay, serve her as soon as possible."

Judy tried to see Mark, but he avoided her. She called, texted, emailed, and even sent him a written note, but he did not respond. She finally asked her attorney to request counseling and the judge approved it. She was eager to speak with him at their first session.