The Offer

DISCLAIMER: If you're looking for "quick sex", please move along. This is a "story", and there's something to be said for 'anticipation'. You have been warned!

There isn't a time of year I love more than summer. Warm weather, plenty of sun, time at the shore, flowers in my garden, kids outside. I especially relish the last one. The kids are out of school, but both of them are old enough now that they spent most of their time over friend's houses. This allows me to spend less time cleaning up after the messes they always seem to create, and more out in the warmth of the sun.

It was a lovely July Saturday, and I was tending to the multitude of flowers that surround my front porch. Without fail, there is always an annoying collection of weeds, leaves, bugs, or some other hazard to my lovely flora that needs taking care of. I can quite literally spend the entire day arranging, pruning, fertilizing and pampering my prized possessions.

I sighed, though. It was a Saturday, and the one thing that was missing was the familiar sound of the lawn mower running in the back yard. Actually, that had become something of a trend the last few weeks. My husband, Paul, had been doing home renovations for a couple of his co-workers since the second week of June. He spent almost every Saturday and Sunday, as well as some weeknights, doing a number of major jobs he'd been offered.

Not that I was complaining. The owners were paying him an excellent salary. And Lord knew we could always use the extra money. But I still missed his company around the house. Despite being married now some eighteen years, I love him just as passionately as the first day I'd met him. And his job keeps him away enough as it is.

"Actually, that's not the biggest problem," I thought to myself. "The thing that drives me crazy is that he's working for two women." I knew I shouldn't think that way. Paul has been faithful to me, and was completely up front with me when the two women had first offered him the job.

Erin and Valerie were secretaries in the government office building he supervised during the day. They were both single, Valerie having divorced once, Erin not even dating, as far as Paul knew. Add to it that both of them were in their mid-twenties, and I couldn't help but wonder sometimes. I hadn't actually met either one of them in person, but they had called the house and spoken with me occasionally on the phone. They seemed nice enough and they'd often invited me over to see the work Paul had been doing. I just didn't want to give the impression that I was jealous and/or just a bit suspicious at times, so I'd politely declined.

I was broken out of my reverie by the sound of a truck pulling into the driveway. At first, it has sounded like Paul's pickup. But, when I lifted my head from the ground, I spotted an unfamiliar beige Ford SUV. The doors opened, and two young women hopped out of the doors. They smiled and waved, immediately heading over to me.

The driver was almost five inches taller than my five-six. Long straight blonde hair streamed out behind her, which looked as if it hung to mid back when still. She wore dark sunglasses and showed off a deep tan. The passenger was only an inch or so shorter than me, with a short cut, light brunette hairstyle. The style reminded me of the one wore by Catherine Bell, the star of TV's "Army Wives." It didn't so much as curl under as it 'rolled' under gently, framing a graceful jawbone and piercing blue eyes. Both women wore sundresses, the blonde a beige color similar to the SUV, the brunette an emerald green number.

I immediately felt somewhat self-conscious. Compared to these two attractive women, I must have looked like the typical house Frau. Knowing that I would be working in the weeds and dirt, I'd opted for a pair of grungy old blue jeans and a beat up gray sweatshirt. My hair, which was permed in a loose wave normally, was pinned back to keep the hair out of my eyes. I had mud and dirt everywhere on me. As they two approached, I wiped my hands furiously on a rag I'd kept in my pants pocket.

The blonde got to me first, removing her sunglasses. "Donna?" she asked in a husky voice.

"That's me. Can I help you?"

The woman put her hand out. "Valerie Hammond. I'm one of the women who've been making Paul work like a dog." She smiled easily, and I noticed now that her eyes were a warm mocha in color.

The shorter woman stepped forward and extended her hand. "And I'm Erin Seaward. The other half of the Twins, as we've been dubbed by your husband."

I shook her hand as well, noticing that her hands were very smooth. I grinned inwardly, thinking, "obviously not a person used to getting her hands dirty."

"Yeah, I've talked to each of you on the phone recently, but this is the first time I've had the chance to meet you. You're both as pretty as Paul said you were."

Erin blushed, but Valerie took the comment in stride. "Tell him that compliment still won't get him out of finishing the plumbing in the downstairs bathroom." This caused us all to laugh.

I wiped the back of my hand across my forehead, removing the sweat that had collected there. ""So, what brings you over?"

"Well, you know that Paul is almost finished with the work we've asked him to do. And, trust me, he's done a fantastic job! You're one very lucky woman to have such a talented husband." Valerie winked. "Is he that talented in everything he does?"

I grinned and whispered, "I'm not telling. Don't want to give away any secrets."

Erin's eyes seemed to widen with the unspoken 'yes' the comment hinted at. Valerie sighed. "Wish my former husband had been like Paul. I'd be one happy girl if he had."

"Yeah, Paul has mentioned that he was a scumbag, pardon my language. You're better off without him."

"You're not kidding! Good thing we didn't have any kids. It just would have made getting rid of him that much more difficult." She looked around and admired the foliage. "You've done a fantastic job here. Real green thumb, huh?"

I shrugged. "I try." I nodded towards the house. "Care to go inside and get something cold to drink?"

Erin nodded. "Please! Unlike the 'bronze queen' here, I'm not a big fan of heat and humidity. Give me winter and a nice warm fireplace, and I'm a happy camper."

******

Once inside, I took a few minutes to clean up and got everyone sun tea to drink. We sat in the living room. I was perched on the edge of Paul's recliner, while Erin and Valerie shared a seat on the couch. "So, what can I do for you two ladies?" I asked again.

Valerie, who seemed to be the "leader" of the two, set her drink down on the coaster in front of her and placed her hands on her crossed knees. "How much as Paul told you about us?"

I sat back and frowned. "Not a whole lot, to be honest. I know you both work with him, and I know you're both single. Other than that, not a whole heck of a lot."

"Well, to start off, I just want you to know there's nothing going on between either of us and Paul."

I nearly spit the soda out of her mouth as I sat forward. "I'd never even think such a thing!" ("Liar!" I thought to myself)

Erin tilted her head. "It's OK, Donna. Trust me, if I had a husband, and he spent a lot of time doing work over a house with two single women in it, I know I'd be at least somewhat suspicious."

I was about to protest again, but there was something about the honesty these two were showing me that caused me to open up to them. "Well, to be completely honest, there have been times..."

Valerie nodded. "It's OK, we understand. We should have stopped by a lot earlier and put your fears to rest." She reached over and took Erin's hand in hers. "See, Erin and I are lovers."

For the second time in the last minute, I almost choked on my drink. This time, however, I was able to cover my full reaction with a cough. "So you're...?"

"Lesbians, yes. Or to be more exact, I'm lesbian; Valerie here is more along the line of bisexual." Erin glanced at her partner. "I never have understood why you can't make up your mind one way or the other."

Valerie shot her an amused look. "Don't knock it unless you've tried it, hon. There's something to be said for both sexes in the sack."

I waved a hand, not wanting to get into THAT topic. "OK, I get the idea. But what does that have to do with me and Paul?"

Valerie took the lead. "Well, no one at work knows about us, and we'd like to keep it that way. Some folks don't react well to our choice of lifestyle."

I nodded. "Yeah, my sister once had a fling with another woman, and my mother didn't speak to her for three years."

"Exactly. Some people can handle it, some can't."

I relaxed a little. "Well, your secret is safe with me. While it's not my thing, as long as you two are happy, that's all that counts."

Valerie smiled. "Paul has said that you don't have a problem that way. Which is why we should have come over earlier and let you know that we'd never even think about making a move on him." She looked sideways at her friend. "However, by his reaction at times, I can see the idea has HIS attention."

I snorted. "Typical guy. There's something about lesbians and having two women at once that seems to run in the species."

Erin shot Valerie another look. "Well, that's kinda the other reason we're here."

An alarm went off in my head at Erin's comment. "I knew it!" my mind screamed. Outwardly, I betrayed nothing. "I'm not following you."

Valerie stood and began to move around. "Donna, because we KNEW nothing would happen with Paul, we've had the occasion to innocently tease him about his sex life. Nothing bad, trust me. Just the usual stuff about 'Isn't it every guy's fantasy to be with two women?' Well, one day when Erin said that, he told us he'd love to, but you weren't into that sort of thing."

Anger swelled inside of my chest. "How DARE he discuss anything about our personal life!" I seethed inwardly. I was going to take this up with him the first chance I got.

Erin picked up right away on my mood. "Don't be mad at him, Donna. He didn't say it in a mean way. Matter of fact, I'm sure if you asked him about that comment, he probably wouldn't even remember it. We've been able to kid around about him on a lot of things. The one thing he always make perfectly clear, though, is his love for you, and the fact that he'd never do anything to hurt you."

"Still, that's not the sort of thing that exactly makes me happy."

Valerie stepped back in. "You know how guys get when you tease them about their manhood. It was all in good fun, Donna. Honest."

The look on their faces made that point clear. Once again, their naked sense of honesty won out. "OK, so I won't kill him right away." I looked back and forth between the two of them. "That still doesn't explain what you want to tell me otherwise."

Erin looked like she has having a hard time finding the words, so Valerie came right out with it. "We want to offer him the chance to be with two women. Sort of a 'Thank You' for all the work he's done."

"What?" I was shocked and pissed at the same time. "Did he AGREE to this?" I spat.

"He doesn't even know we're over here, Donna! That's just the thing. Erin and I were talking about this one night, and we both agreed to come to you first. Before we even thought about making an offer to him."

Erin nodded emphatically. "Yeah. Because, we know all too well that he'd never have the stomach to do anything behind your back, no matter how inviting the offer might be."

I was stunned. For a lack of anything better to say right that second, I asked, "What makes you think he'd do it, even if I agreed?"

Valerie shrugged. "That's just the thing: When Erin and I first discussed this, we thought the best thing would be for me and YOU to be his threesome. This way, he wouldn't feel any guilt at all."

I looked over at Erin. "You'd agree to this? Having your girlfriend sleep with another couple?"

She nodded. "If it made her happy, of course! I'd do anything I can to make Valerie happy."

Valerie continued. "It HAS always been a fantasy of mine, as well. I've never had sex with more than one person before, and the thought of two strangers working on me makes me horny as hell!"

I couldn't believe what I was hearing. "So, you're telling me you want to be with me and my husband?" I shook my head. "I'm sorry, Valerie, but I'm just not into that sort of thing."

"We kind of figured you wouldn't be. But we thought we'd ask anyway." I was about to get up and escort them to the door when Erin blurted out the next bombshell.

"That's why we BOTH came over here to ask you if Valerie and I would be OK instead of you and her." She looked over at Valerie. "Trust me, I'm not real big on the idea of being intimate with another man, just like you wouldn't be with another woman. But if there is the chance here to satisfy your husband's fantasy, and MY lover's fantasy at the same time, can either of us really afford be that selfish?"

My head was reeling. Erin's words held a certain ring of honesty and truth. This would allow both Paul AND Valerie to do something that might be a once in a lifetime thing. And I didn't have to actually DO anything, except allow Erin to join them. Still, the fact that Erin was willing to make that sort of sacrifice and I wasn't made me feel just a bit guilty.

Before I could respond, Valerie added another thought. "Make you a deal. If you allow Erin and me to do this with Paul, we'll agree to allow you in there while it's happening, so you could stop anything you didn't like."

"I don't like the idea at all!" I thought defensively to myself. I didn't think being a spectator would make this any better. I couldn't believe my day had gone completely haywire like this.

Valerie tried to sooth me over a bit. "Look, we're not going to pressure you into anything that you're THAT against. I don't want you thinking we're monsters! If you say no, then the whole things off, and Paul will never be the wiser."

"Yeah. And it's not like we'd hold it against you. I mean, I have a feeling we could be really good friends, given the chance." Erin's gaze bore into me, an almost pleading gleam in her eye.

I looked at the two of them and sighed. "Part of me wants to throw you both out on your asses." She sighed. "But the rest of me appreciates the fact that you've come and even offered me the chance to give my 'blessing', as it were, instead of just doing it and hurting me." I closed my eyes. I knew they were waiting for a decision, but I just wasn't ready to commit one way or the other on ANYTHING at that moment. "Just... Let me think about it, OK? I mean, it's a hell of a lot to hit me with all at once."

Valerie smiled. "That's all we can ask, Donna. Please, don't feel pressured into rushing to a decision. Take your time."

Erin nearly sprinted over and and gave me a big hug. Maybe it was the entire tone of the conversation, or some dark, perverted part of my soul, but I actually took notice of the way her breasts pressed against mine. "Plus, the three of us can spend some more time together, get to know each other, maybe become friends. What do you say, sweetie?"

Feeling as if I was caught in a riptide that was pulling away my sanity, I nodded. "OK. I'll give it an honest thought. But no promises!"

******

That night, Paul came home, exhausted. He'd stayed late at the girl's house to finish up the last of the work he'd been in the middle of from the previous week. He'd barely had the energy to stand in the shower, poor guy! Afterward, we'd had some of the chicken I'd made for dinner. Time seemed to speed by, and the kids slowly made there way upstairs to get ready for bed.

But all during that time, I was distracted. The events that had taken place that afternoon kept spinning around in my head, like dogs do when chasing their tails. On the one hand, the entire proposal went against everything that I believed in sexually. I mean, there had been times when Paul had joking suggested a threesome for his birthdays over the years, but he knew that there was nothing about other women that I found attractive or appealing, at least on a sexual level.

Still, something Erin had said about doing something to make her partner happy, by living out a fantasy, kept forcing it's way to the front of my head. Was I that selfish of a person that I'd deny my husband an experience that most men would kill for? And I could REALLY get off easy! I didn't even have to do anything but say, "Yes", and that would be the end of my obligation. Erin and Valerie would take care of everything else. But could I let something like that happen, and have to live with the knowledge that I'd approved it? I couldn't help that I'd feel left out, jealous, missing such a memorable experience in his life.

Could I really be so selfish and say "NO"? Could I really be so crazy as to say "YES"?

We were in bed that night. I could tell that Paul would have no problems falling right to sleep. But I was tossing and turning. This problem was starting to take up all of my time and attention.

I rolled over and ask my husband, "Honey, are you awake?"

He grumbled and responded, "Well, I am now."

"Would you ever do something for me that you knew I would love, but you would hate?"

He rolled over and propped his head in his hand. "What are you talking about?"

"Let's just say I wanted to... I don't know... hold a Tupperware party here in the house, and asked you to help me, would you mind?"

He stared at me for a few seconds. I knew it was a stupid question, and I could see his one eyebrow go up in confusion. "Why in the hell would you want to have a Tupperware party? Does that stuff even exist anymore?"

"That's not the point. Would you?"

"I suppose so. Why? What's up?"

I wanted to tell him so bad, but I stopped myself at the last second. "Nothing. I was just wondering. Go ahead to sleep, hon."

He shook his head and turned over. I could hear him mutter, "And they wonder why some men turn gay."

******

I wrestled with the idea for the next few days. Each and every time I saw Paul, I thought about him being sexually pleasured by Erin and Valerie. I thought about how happy he would be, but I often wondered how he would feel. Would he even go through with it? Would he consider it cheating on me? It was at that point that I knew I had to make a decision one way or the other, or I was going to drive myself crazy.

It was Friday morning, and the kids were already off to their friend's houses to go swimming. I decided to take a little ride myself, over to my best friend Fran's house. As usual, I found her sunning herself on her backyard deck, her skin already a golden color. Frannie is a year younger than me, but still very much enjoying the single life. She had her occasional boyfriend here and there, but she made excellent money with the bank she worked for, and had no need for a "provider," as she often called Paul.

I walked up on the porch and sat down next to her. She didn't hear my approach, as she had headphones on, and the music blaring away. I took the bottle of water she had next to her chair and poured it directly on her stomach. She nearly jumped off of her deck until she realized it was me. She sat on the edge of her lounge chair and toweled herself off.

"What the hell are you trying to do? Scare the living hell out of me?" That was one thing I knew all too well about Fran. Despite her job, and the fact that she dressed like she was a princess, she could swear with the best of people, and was a die hard sports fan. That, of course, had made Paul getting along with her very easy.

I shook my finger. "One of these days, some maniac is gonna sneak up on you and rape you right in your own backyard," I scolded.

She wiggled her eyebrows. "Ya think so? It'd be an improvement over my current love life."