Our Throuple

The most bizarre six weeks of my life took place last August and September. First, some backstory. My name is Jerry and my wife's name is Ada. We are both 31. We met seven years ago, the ink on our MBA's still wet and as new hires in a training class at an old established financial management company in the upper Midwest. The company has been managing people's money for over 100 years. Ada and I were from the same mid-sized city in the Southwest, 1000 miles from where we met. During the training, when I discovered that Ada was from my hometown, I asked her to lunch and she accepted.

We had lunch together, alone or with others, nearly every day after that. We started to hang out after work and on weekends. I was able to buy a nice two story, three-bedroom condo with an inheritance from my grandfather. Ada lived in a small, gloomy, rental. She gradually began to spend more time at my place and soon Ada began leaving clothes and makeup at my condo. Most days, we went to work together in the morning and came back to my place together after work. We spent every weekend together.

After about a year, I had asked Ada to move in with me. She was spending all her time at my place anyway so why not give up her apartment and live with me? Ada was on a month-to-month lease, so she gave her notice, and we moved her in. Life was great.

After orientation, Ada and I were put in different work groups. Our job was to find new clients who would give us their money to manage. My group's boss, Elizabeth, was great. She was helpful, always seemed to know the right thing to do, and gave credit where credit is due. We all loved her. And we were all terrified of her.

Ada's boss was a jerk and she hated him. He was the opposite of my boss. After a year with him, she realized that she was not going to advance with him as her boss. She couldn't transfer to another group in the company, so she began looking for work at another firm.

Around the time Ada moved in with me, she found a job at a relatively new, smaller, boutique money management company about 10 miles from my job. She was very excited about the new place. Everyone was our age or younger. Almost everyone was single. They all hung out together after work and on weekends. A very friendly, close-knit group of people. It was a much less structured atmosphere than where I worked. Ada told me that it reminded her of college, always a party atmosphere. Everyone was welcoming and helpful to her. She thought she could do well and advance her career at her new place.

Ada and I got married a year later in our hometown. When we talked about our future, we discussed someday opening our own money management shop but that was years in the future. We also talked about having children but we both agreed that we would have to wait a few years. I was doing great at my job and Ada was building a client base that would soon pay off for her. We got a rescue dog from the local Humane Society. A golden retriever we named Charlie. Ada was happy, I was happy, Charlie the dog was happy. Life was great.

Ada would occasionally go for drinks after work with her co-workers. She always called when she was going to be later than usual. When we discussed this, she told me she wanted to develop camaraderie with her co-workers. They all went out after work together pretty much every night and she didn't want to be the only person never to join them. So she went out with them occasionally. Maybe once a week and no more than twice a week. I had no problem with her doing that.

She told me that I was more than welcome to meet them at the bar they always frequented, but she didn't stay long, and it was always a last-minute decision whether or not to go. "I won't go if there aren't at least one or two other girls going. A couple of the guys in the office hit on me at work. I can handle their advances at work but if these guys are part of the group going out for drinks, I don't want to have to deal with them in a bar. So, if they go, I don't go."

I asked Ada, "What do you mean guys hitting on you."

She replied, "Flirting, compliments, sexual innuendo and being asked out on dates. They're young and think they're hot stuff. One of these guys even asked me to go on a ski weekend with him. I told him I would ask you if you wanted to go skiing and he responded that no husbands were allowed. A husband would get in the way of him and me hooking up. Unless the husband is willing to watch. I told him, 'No husband, no wife'. I made it clear to the guy that he and I would never hook up."

I said, "Can you report this guy? Get him fired or at least warned about his behavior? Do you want me to talk to him?"

Ada responded, "He's just a nuisance. The group vibe is that it's all friendly and innocent. Just harmless flirting. If I report him, everyone will think I'm a tattletale and that I'll run to the boss with every little thing. I'll be ostracized. He does this sort of thing will all the women. If you do anything, it'll be even worse. They'll think I can't handle it. If you're uneasy, I'll stop going for drinks. But I think it's better for me to get to know my co-workers in a more relaxed setting. I can keep the predators at bay."

I went for drinks with her and her co-workers after work a couple of times. Everyone was very nice. I didn't see it as a problem.

My crazy six weeks began early last August. I came home from work and Ada said, "We need to talk."

I thought, "This can't be good," and asked, "Now?" She nodded and we sat down together.

Ada said, "I have a confession to make. I've always been attracted to women. You are the only man I'm interested in being with but there are women I find attractive and fantasize about having sex with. I experimented with women in college but I was always conflicted about it. I realize now I'm bisexual. I haven't acted on any of these urges since college. I've been completely faithful to you since our first lunch together seven years ago. No other men or women, but I have this itch and it's becoming hard not to scratch it.

"I don't want to go outside our marriage. I would never have relations with anyone without you. I thought that maybe we could find a woman we both find attractive and would be agreeable to a three-way. And have sex with her together. What do you think?"

We had committed early on not to hide anything from each other. We agreed we could discuss anything with each other, be completely open, not get mad and be taken seriously by the other person. So, I took what she said seriously and tried to remain calm, "Thank you for trusting me with this, but I'm not interested in having sex with anyone but you. I don't want to have anyone else in our bed or in our marriage. This is a no-go for me."

Ada replied, "I'm disappointed but I understand. I won't bring it up again. I would never become involved with anyone without you present and on board. I'm completely happy and fulfilled by our sex life. I just get a hankering for women at times. Please don't be upset with me. My fantasies will remain just fantasies. Your needs and wishes are always my priority."

I said, "It's difficult to hear you want to have sex with anyone else, with or without me involved. But I'm glad you felt you could be honest with me."

Ada saw that I was really upset, "I wish I had never brought it up. It's not that important." Ada didn't bring it up again.

Ada's company had a mentoring program where new hires are helped by older employees. Ada had been mentored by a woman when she went to work there and she was currently mentoring another woman, Kathy. Kathy had been hired about four months earlier. Kathy and Ada became close friends. Kathy had followed her boyfriend from L. A. when he got a job here and she found a job at the firm where Ada worked.

Ada and I met Kathy and her boyfriend for drinks one Saturday. Kathy is very pretty, smart, funny and has a radiant smile. She is about four years younger than Ada and me. Her boyfriend made it clear that he really didn't want to be there. He didn't say much, just looked unhappy, but Kathy, Ada and I enjoyed ourselves despite him. Kathy is very hard not to like. I could see why she and Ada became such good friends.

The first week of August, Ada called me at work, "Kathy's boyfriend hit her so she has to move out of their place. She doesn't know anyone here who can take her in except us. Would it be OK if she stayed with us until she can make other arrangements? Can she stay in a spare bedroom for a week or so?"

I asked Ada, "Will her boyfriend become a problem?"

"Kathy will have to pick up most of her clothes from their apartment but she and I can do that while the boyfriend is at work. A confrontation with her boyfriend is unlikely. She's not going to tell him she's living with us. If he wants to cause trouble, he'll do it where we work." I said OK and Kathy began to stay with us that night. It wasn't for just a week or so.

I'm going to describe Ada and Kathy but I won't do them justice. My wife Ada is what's called "Black Irish." She has black hair down to the middle of her back but she's very fair skinned with freckles and has blue eyes. She's 5'5" and is very well built, great up top and an incredible bottom. I used to enjoy men looking at her and wondering what a beauty like her is doing with me.

Kathy is also a beauty but the complete opposite in looks. She's a natural blonde with green eyes and hair down to her shoulders which she usually wears in a ponytail. She's probably 5'9" and has a huge warm smile that she's always flashing. She was a model in her teens and could still be one. She's not as big up or down as Ada, but there's nothing wrong with her figure. Everyone stares at Kathy when she passes by.

I think if I were to rob a bank with these two standing on each side of me, no one would even notice I was there.

Living with Kathy has been great in some ways and a challenge in others. Ada usually wears only a T-shirt to bed and walks around the condo in the morning in only her T-shirt. Kathy walks around in the morning wearing only panties and a very loose singlet with giant arm holes nearly down to her waist. It's not much of a shirt and doesn't really hide anything. Her panties don't have much to them either; they barely cover her crotch and not much else. Between my two flat mates, it's hard to concentrate in the mornings.

After a couple of these mornings, I asked Ada, "Can you ask Kathy to cover up a bit more? You could also put on something when you get out of bed. At least wear panties. We have a guest."

Ada put her hand on my cheek, got up on tiptoes so she could whisper in my ear, "Try not to look." She then patted my cheek, kissed me, and went on with what she was doing. End of discussion. Interesting living with the two of them.

Kathy, Ada and I became good friends. We hung out together both in the condo and when we went out. Ada is usually very analytic and practical. She's takes pride in her ability to analyze a problem unemotionally and find a solution. It's somewhat disconcerting how dispassionate she can be at times. But that's when she has to take something seriously. She also has a fun side that borders on zany. Starting our first weekend together, Kathy and Ada brought the outrageous out in each other. Everything from running through water sprinklers in the park topless (and seriously discussing running through them in just panties, which I was against) to trying to sneak into a pro baseball game. (We ended up paying.) They were always ready for some adventure and dragged me, the cautious homebody, along with them. They refused to go anywhere without me and, honestly, it wasn't very hard to get me to go along. If you think we were behaving as badly as teenagers, that's probably an insult to teenagers.

So, the first weeks with Ada and Kathy were entertaining. Kathy is a great houseguest: Always agreeable, always cheerful, helpful with chores, and a great cook. She knows when to give Ada and me our space when we need it. And there's always Kathy's morning attire to look forward to seeing. Although I try not to look.

A couple of weeks after Kathy became our houseguest, on a Friday, Ada suggested, "Let's stay home and get high. The three of us. I got some X from a guy at work. I also bought some weed." Neither Ada nor I get high very much but occasionally we get stoned at home, chill and watch a movie. We have never tried X. At least I never had. Ada convinced me to try it, Kathy was in, so the three of us put on a movie, took some X and passed around a joint. Ada pulled me down between them on the couch. It was hard to focus on the movie. We got comfortable. And very high.

Ada suggested, "Let's play a game with the smoke. I'll take a drag, blow the smoke in your mouth Jerry and then you turn and blow the same smoke in Kathy's mouth. Then Kathy will take a drag and blow the smoke in your mouth. Then you do the same to me. I'll start."

After a few times, Ada began to put her lips on mine to blow the smoke into my mouth. Transferred the smoke while we kissed. Ada said to Kathy, "OK if we touch lips too?" Ada leaned over me and kissed Kathy, blowing the smoke in her mouth. Ada then took another drag and kissed me, putting the smoke into my mouth. Ada then climbed on my lap, took my head in one hand, Kathy's in her other hand, and gently pulled our heads together until our lips were touching to exchange the smoke. Kathy and I kissed. We were all very high by this point. Then Kathy took a drag and kissed me back. More kiss than an exchange of smoke.

With the kissing, weed, X and Ada moving around on my lap, I was getting pretty hard. Ada, of course, noticed and exclaimed, "What's this? Kathy, we woke the sleeping giant! Another guest at the party! Kathy, let's make him feel welcome!" She got off my lap, opened my shorts, pulled them down and began to stroke me. Kathy watched. I closed my eyes and just enjoyed it. I felt something change, opened my eyes to see that Kathy had taken over stroking me while Ada watched. When Ada saw that I didn't object to what Kathy was doing, she got up, took off her clothes, and grabbed Kathy's and my hands, pulled us up and said, "Let's go to the bedroom." In our bedroom, Ada helped Kathy out of her clothes while I watched. Then they helped me with the rest of mine. The two joined me in bed.

It was an experience. One thing was evident though. Ada seemed only interested in Kathy and me having sex together. Ada sort of acted as a stage director, taking Kathy's hand and guiding it on me, bringing Kathy's mouth down on to me, putting a condom on me and then gently pulling Kathy on top of me. Putting me in her. Ada and I never used condoms, so I had a fleeting thought about where the condom had come from. But there were other more interesting things to think about. Ada kissed us both, caressed us both but didn't have sex with either one of us the entire night. When Kathy and I were done, the three of us were wrapped in each other's arms, me spooning Ada and Kathy spooning me, cradling my balls in her hand. That's how we fell asleep.

I was the first one to wake up the next morning. I just lay there between them and thought about what had happened. I was still somewhat high, had been very high last night, but realized this was a huge problem for our marriage. I vowed this would never happen again. I would ask for Ada's forgiveness for my infidelity. I knew that when she woke up, down from the drugs and remembered what happened, she would be furious with me and would likely kick Kathy out the door. She'd probably tell me she wanted a divorce. I would beg her to forgive me.

I gently eased myself out of bed without waking them, put on some shorts and a T-shirt and went to make coffee. I was dreading the confrontation with Ada about my adultery. I also felt incredibly guilty about what I had done. I loved Ada and felt I had betrayed her love for me.

The smell of coffee must have awakened them, and they came into the kitchen. Both were completely naked, giggling, and holding hands. I looked at Ada who smiled at me and came over to kiss me. Ada patted me on my butt and said, "Well done stud." She seemed happy, not mad at all.

Kathy also kissed me, patted me on the butt, and said, "Very well-done stud." They thought this was hysterical and started laughing. What the fuck?

I asked if they wanted eggs and sausage for breakfast. We ate. Kathy asked, "Do you guys want to go to the park later? It's supposed to be a beautiful day."

Ada replied, "That sounds great. Water sprinklers again?"

Kathy said, "Just panties this time." More laughing.

Ada said, "Let's get carry out for dinner. Maybe Thai? We still have some weed left. We can get high again tonight."

They acted as if nothing had happened. I said, "This is crazy. I had sex with Kathy last night and no one but me seems to care. We need to talk about last night."

Kathy looked concerned but Ada smiled and said, "OK, what do you want to talk about?"

"I just had sex with another woman and you, my loving wife, don't seem to care at all. Kathy doesn't seem to be concerned that she had sex with her friend's husband. Am I the only one upset about how this affects our marriage?"

Ada came over, sat on my lap and asked me, "What do you think we should do about it?"

I said, "Kathy has to leave immediately, and you and I need to start marriage counseling. I want to save our marriage. Can you forgive me?"

Ada asked, "Forgive you for what? Save our marriage from whom? Kathy?" Ada moved off my lap to one of my thighs and motioned to Kathy to join us. Kathy sat on my other leg. Both had an arm around me, and I put my arms around their waists. Ada continued, "Kathy's not going anywhere unless she wants to. Our marriage is in great shape. We just have someone else with us whom we're both very fond of." Ada kissed me and then kissed Kathy.

Kathy kissed me, put her head on my shoulder and said, "I'd like to stay here. I didn't think this would be a problem for you or your marriage. I'm sorry. I'll just stay in the guest bedroom from now on. We won't do it again."

Ada said to Kathy, "There's no problem. Jerry is just being Jerry. You're more than welcome to share our bed whenever you want."

I was uneasy but that began our life as a throuple. We pretty much did everything together. Kathy moved out of the spare bedroom and into our bedroom. The three of us slept together every night. I would have sex with Ada while Kathy watched or with Kathy while Ada watched. Ada and Kathy kissed and touched each other but never had sex. At least not while I was around.

The following Friday this all blew up. Ada called me at work, "Kathy wants to bring a date to dinner at our place tonight. His name is Rico, a great guy; someone we work with. Kathy has a crush on him. Very informal. Kathy and I will buy the food and make the dinner. Is that OK?"

"Sure." I was somewhat disappointed that Kathy had eyes for someone else. But, I thought, our throuple can't last forever. Fun while it lasted though.

I helped Kathy prepare dinner while Ada set the table and opened the wine. Kathy was dressed in a conservative summer dress. She looked very pretty for her date. Ada was wearing a tank top, no bra, and very short shorts, butt cheeks visible. I asked Ada, "Are you planning to change into something more appropriate?".

She looked irritated and answered, 'I'm fine the way I am."

When Rico arrived, he hugged and kissed Ada on the cheek and did the same with Kathy. Ada took him to the living room, sat on the couch and they discussed work and gossiped about the people they worked with. The kitchen is adjacent to the living room, so Kathy chimed in while I listened to them laugh about the antics of their co-workers. Rico and Ada seemed very friendly. The wine kept flowing.

It quickly became clear to me that Rico is a blowhard who thinks he knows everything about everything. He has slicked back hair and is short and chubby. He's about Kathy's age, 27. There is no arguing with him; he's the expert regardless of the topic. I have much more experience in money management than he does and I'm pretty successful at it, but he knows better about that and everything else. If I disagreed with him, he was condescending. I found him insufferable and couldn't understand why Kathy, or anyone, would find this guy attractive.

After dinner, the four of us sat in the living room. Rico sat between Ada and Kathy on the couch while I sat in the recliner adjacent to the couch. Rico pulled out a joint and lit it up. He also took out some X and gave a couple of pills to Ada. Ada took a pill, got up and offered one to me. Something about this whole evening was wrong. Rico was in the middle between Ada and Kathy as I had been when the three of us ended up in bed for the first time. I decided to remain sober.

I told Ada, "I don't want to take the X."

Ada, surprised, asked, "Why don't you want to get high with us?"

"Don't feel like it."

Ada got angry, "You're a real downer. I want you to be a part of things. It's embarrassing that you don't want to get high with us. Rico will think you're a real wimp. Take the X Jerry."

"No."

Rico had given the joint to Kathy. Ada took the joint from Kathy and tried to hand it to me. She said, "Take it. I want you to join in."

I told her, "I don't want that either."

"If you don't want to take part, you should just go to bed like the old fogey you've obviously become. Leave the youngsters to their fun. I'm tired of you sitting there being all disapproving, spoiling our good vibe." Ada took a drag and blew the smoke in my face. She put the joint near my face and demanded, "Take it." I looked away.

I couldn't understand why she was so upset that I didn't want to get high. I was also getting angry and was about to tell Rico it was time for him to leave. But he was someone Kathy was supposedly interested in, and I didn't want to get in the way of her being with him. I didn't say anything. Ada glared at me but handed the joint to Kathy and sat back down next to Rico. She smiled at Rico, squeezed his thigh, and apologized to him, "I'm sorry for my useless husband. He can get like this. At times he can be a real jerk." She left her hand on his thigh.

Ada and I will have to have a long, serious talk later about her behavior and disrespect.

Rico offered a pill to Kathy, but Kathy refused, "No, I'm not up for exstasy." Ada glared at her, but Kathy said, "The weed is ok, but no X for me."

As the three of them got high, Rico and Ada got closer together and started to touch each other, not in an overtly sexual way but casually. When the dobie was done, Rico leaned over Ada to put it out in an ashtray next to where Ada was sitting. He put his hand at the very top of Ada's bare thigh for support when he reached around her. He left his hand there. Ada had been doing the same to him when passing the joint to Kathy. He lit up a new one. Kathy continued to smoke the weed but seemed detached from both of them. Kathy just kept glancing at me, looking concerned. Ada and Rico seemed to be in their own little world, giggling, whispering, touching, and smoking.

I had enough. Charlie, our dog, needed walking so I got his leach and said to Ada, "Charlie needs to go out. Walk the dog with me." I thought it would provide an opportunity to talk privately about what the hell was going on with her.

Ada replied, "I'm too stoned to walk. Besides, I don't want to be with someone as pathetic as you."

Kathy got up and said, "I'll come with you. I need some fresh air."

When we got outside, Kathy put her arm through mine and held me close. I asked her, "What do you see in Rico? I think he's a jerk."

Kathy replied, "I think he's a jerk too."

"Why'd you ask him to dinner?"

"I didn't ask him to dinner, Ada did."

"Is Ada trying to fix you and Rico up?"

"Ada knows I can't stand him. Rico came on to me when I started to work at the company, but I made it clear I have no interest in him at all. I think Rico is only interested in married women and those in committed relationships. He gets his thrills stealing women away from their men. I overheard a conversation at the bar after work between Rico and another co-work, Sam. Rico knew I could hear them but I think he thought what he had to say was going to impress me. Earlier that day, an angry husband came looking for Rico at work and Rico had to sneak out the back entrance to avoid the guy.

"Sam asked Rico about the husband and why he messed around with married women. It was wrong to break up a marriage. Here's what Rico told him:

"'Think about it this way: A good-looking single woman has lots of guys following her around. Lots of guys wanting to fuck her. But unless she's already cheating, there's only one competitor for a wife. Her husband. The husband is at work all day, comes home tired and cranky. He just wants to be left alone with his beer to watch the game on TV. He doesn't pay any attention to his wife. The wife doesn't feel appreciated anymore. She's bored and tired of her husband's lack of interest. She's ready for an adventure with someone who does appreciate her. I'm always ready to provide the attention and show my appreciation.

"'Wives are generally easy, especially if they're at a club or bar for a girls' night. I pick the prettiest wife from their group to go after, 'Can I buy you a drink, gorgeous?' and tell her all the things her husband hasn't told her in years. This eventually leads to my inviting her back to my place. She's so excited, she goes to tell her girlfriends. Not that she's seriously considering leaving with me. At least not yet. But her girlfriends egg her on, telling her, 'We'll cover for you. Your husband will never know. Go on, have some fun. You deserve it.' They'll be able to gossip for weeks about their friend's adventure with me.

"'Once the girlfriends became cheerleaders encouraging the wife to sleep with me, I know the deal is done. The wife doesn't want her girlfriends to think she's under her husband's thumb. She tells herself, 'My friends are right. He doesn't own me; he's just my husband. I'm an independent woman with my own needs and desires. Unlike my husband, this man appreciates me. What's one night? Besides, my husband will never find out.' Plus, she's now the center of everyone's attention. Her girlfriends will want to know every delicious detail and she can't wait to tell them everything. She's excited just thinking about sneaking off with another man. She hasn't felt like this in years. She's actually tingling. Almost always, with her girlfriends pushing her, the wife comes home with me so I can give her what she's not getting at home. If she doesn't come with me that night, I know she'll be back, probably with her girlfriends to give her courage, in her sexiest dress, all ready to let me fuck her.

"'It's a real turn on knowing that the wife will go home after having sex with me, give her husband a big kiss and the husband will unknowingly be tasting me. I like the idea that I know the wife better than her husband does. Once she's opened her mouth and legs for me, it's never just one night. Over the next weeks, the wife will do things with me the husband can only dream about.

"'After a while, when I begin to tire of the wife, it's time to make things more exciting, I make sure the husband knows about what his wife is up to. I'll put hickeys all over her body. Or I'll wait for the wife to fall asleep so she won't know I wrote my initials on her ass. Just imagine the husband seeing someone's initials written on his wife's ass. Hard for the wife to explain that away.

"'Humiliating the husband and getting the wife in trouble is lots of fun. I love hearing from the wife about the husband's emotional collapse when he finds out about his wife and me. When the wife calls me or meets with me 'for the last time,' because 'I want to save my marriage so this has to end', I press her for details about her husband's confrontation with her. If I can get the wife to make fun of the husband's humiliation, laugh at him for his tearful pleas for her to end things with me, I know the wife belongs to me for as long as I want her. Honestly, I don't understand why any husband would want to keep such a wife but a lot of them are just too weak to throw out the trash and move on.

"'Ruining a marriage is great fun. If the husband does end the marriage, I end it with the wife unless I'm making money off her. But the best is when the husband knows his wife is still cheating but loves her too much to end the marriage. I do whatever I can to destroy his love. I sneak a look at the wife's phone, get the husband's cell number and call him. I tell the husband I'm his wife's lover and give him a play-by-play of his wife's real sex life. All the details of her and me together. Most husbands will listen to it all, probably to punish himself for being such a pathetic excuse for a man.

"'Sure, the husbands sometimes come after me. Like today. But that's the cost of enjoying their wives and the husband's misery. So far, the cost is more than worth it.'"

When Kathy finished telling me about Rico she said, "I listened to Rico say all this and thought, 'What a worthless piece of shit this guy is.'"

Kathy stopped me, turned toward me and said, "Rico is currently spending his time with a married woman. Ada. Ada thinks he's cute, and they flirt with each other at work. When he knows Ada's going for drinks with the crew after work, Rico always goes too. Always. He's sits next to her at the bar, puts his arm around her possessively, pulls her in close to him, whispers in her ear. They obviously enjoy being together. He even asked her to go with him on a skiing weekend."

I said, "We'd better get back. Time to get Rico out of my house." We hurried back to my condo.

When we came in Ada was straddling Rico on the couch. Her shirt was off, and he was kissing her breasts. He had pulled down her shorts enough for his hands to squeeze her butt and was moving her up and back on his lap. When she heard us come in, Ada said cheerfully, "Hi honey. Short walk." Rico took his face out of her chest, looked at me for a second and went back to kissing her breasts and playing with her butt.

I was stunned. It took me a couple of seconds to comprehend what I was seeing. I yelled, "What are you doing? Get the fuck off him."

Ada looked at me with feigned confusion and asked, "What's the matter?"

"Get off him. Now." and then to Rico, "Get the fuck out of my house." I grabbed Ada's arm and pulled her off Rico.

Ada said, "We're just having some fun. Just like you and Kathy have fun. Why are you so angry? You opened our marriage when you had sex with Kathy. I have every right to have some fun too. Rico isn't leaving. I want him to stay. You and Kathy can join in the sex or not. If you're upset it's your fault. You refused to take the X. This would have made much more sense for you if you had gotten high with us."

I told Rico, "Get out now."

Rico replied, "Ada wants me to stay so I'm staying. Your wife asked me here because she wants me to fuck her in front of you. Show you how to fuck your wife properly. I'm here to oblige her. If you don't want to watch, you should be the one to leave. Ada, get your husband to chill out or get rid of him."

Ada was between me and Rico and put her hands on my chest to stop me from going after him. She said to me, "Maybe it would be better if you left for a few hours. We can talk when you get back." She began gently pushing me towards the door.

I'm pretty big and in pretty good shape. Rico is a good four inches shorter and twenty lbs. lighter than me. He's mostly fat and flab. I pushed around Ada and grabbed Rico by his long greasy hair. I pulled him up by his hair and grabbed him at the back of the neck. I frog marched him to the front door, opened it and tossed him on his ass into the hallway of our building. Rico got up and scurried away down the hall as fast as he could. Ada was shouting at me to leave him alone, hitting me on the back. I picked up Ada's shirt from the floor and used it to wipe the grease from Rico's hair off my hands. I threw the shirt at Ada and said, "You can get the fuck out too. Go with your lover and don't come back. We're done."

Ada put her shirt on, picked up her keys and pocketbook, glaring at me the entire time. She yelled at me, "You fuck Kathy, I'm going to fuck Rico," and left.

After she closed the door, I told Kathy, "Pack your things and get out."

Kathy sat down on the couch and said, "I have nowhere to go tonight but if you still want me to leave in the morning I'll figure something out. It's pretty late. Can I stay here at least for tonight?"

I thought about it and said, "I have some questions and if you're completely truthful, you can stay the night in one of the guest bedrooms."

"Ask me anything. I'll tell you the truth. I have nothing to hide."

"Ada said you were thrown out by your abusive boyfriend after he hit you. Is that true?"

"He's never hit me but I left because he thought I was cheating on him. I wasn't cheating but we were always fighting about something he didn't like about me. He told me that we were over. I left. It's only been a couple of weeks but he hasn't contacted me. That's fine with me.

"I was planning to go back to L. A., but Ada insisted I stay here with you and her. I enjoy my job and I'm beginning to make money. I'm good at it. I like Ada and I thought you were fun when we ate lunch that time with my ex. I figured I can always go back to L. A. if things didn't work out here. Ada had told me before that she and you had an open marriage. Ada said if I moved in with you guys, I might just find out what you were like in bed. I thought that might prove interesting."

"This is the first time I've heard about Ada and I being in an open marriage."

"When Ada told me about your open marriage, I thought that explained her behavior with Rico. I only realized that your open marriage was BS after the first night you and I had sex. I knew it was BS because of the way you reacted the next morning. You actually apologized to Ada, told me I had to leave, and that Ada and you had to go to marriage counseling to save the marriage. It was clear your marriage wasn't so open after all."

"What do you mean, 'Ada's behavior with Rico?'"

"They spend a lot of time together talking and laughing in the office. On the nights Ada goes for drinks after work, she and Rico would leave the bar together before everyone else. I once saw them kissing outside the bar.

"After I started living here, on nights when we went drinking after work, Ada would leave with Rico but insist I stay at the bar until she returned for me. Ada didn't want me to arrive home without her. You'd ask too many questions if I came home alone."

"Where did Ada and Rico go?"

"I never asked. Rico lives very close to work and the bar. And Ada never left me alone in the bar for too long before coming back for me. Rico was never with her when Ada returned to get me.

"Before I moved in with you guys, Ada told me Rico wanted her to go away with him for a weekend ski trip. Ada asked me if I could figure out a reason to be away for a weekend without making you suspicious. I asked her, 'Why do you need to come up with an excuse to go away with Rico? You told me you were in an open marriage.'

"Ada told me, 'Our open marriage doesn't include weekends away alone with a lover, especially a co-worker lover. Someone I see every day. We're supposed to come home after our hookups. Jerry will freak out if I tell him I'm going away with Rico.'

"I asked her, 'Why do you want to risk your marriage for an absolute loser like Rico? If you want to sleep with other men, why don't you just leave Jerry?'

"Ada told me to mind my own business. Ada said she loves you and wants to stay married. But she has more enlightened ideas about relationships than most people. She told me she's working on a plan to open your marriage further. She would be able to do whatever she wants, whenever she wants, with whomever she wants. You and she would stay married, but you wouldn't be able to say a thing about her going off with other guys."

It wasn't hard now to figure out what Ada's plan was. I wondered how much Kathy knew about Ada's plan.

So I said, "I want to know about getting high and our first night having sex. I assumed that this was being staged by Ada because she wanted to sleep with you. Ada told me she's bisexual."

Kathy said, "I'm not into women. It's a turn on to kiss and touch other women with guys watching you and drooling at a club, but I'm not interested in having sex with women. It's news to me that Ada is bi. She's never seemed interested sexually in me or any of the women at work. She's interested in the guys though, especially Rico.

"Ada grabbed me to talk the morning before the three of us got high and you and I had sex for the first time. She asked me if I was interested in having sex with you. I was taken aback but answered warily that I'd like that, but you didn't seem interested in having sex with me. Ada said to follow her lead that night and she could pretty much guarantee that you and I would hook up. Ada said she got some X from Rico and that tonight anything goes. I should just go along with what Ada did. I followed Ada's lead and, Ada was right, you and I hooked up.

"I hope you're not angry with me. I went along with Ada because I wanted to sleep with you. If it was OK with Ada and OK with you, then I wasn't going to say no. At that point, I still believed you and Ada had an open marriage."

I said, "Ada's plan was to get me to have sex with you and that would allow her to openly sleep with other men. As she told me when I pulled her off Rico, I was sleeping with you, why couldn't she do the same with Rico? I fell into her trap without knowing there was a trap."

Ada planned to have sex with Rico in front of me that night, to blow open our marriage once and for all. But she must have been crazy not to think I would react in any way other than I did. Even if I had gotten wasted like Ada wanted, I wouldn't have allowed Rico and Ada to have sex in front of me. At least I hope not. I would have to have been unconscious not to stop that.

I asked Kathy, "Why didn't you tell me all this before?"

"I'm sorry. I feel terrible about not telling you. But before I moved in and until the morning after we had sex, I thought you had an open marriage. That's what Ada told me. So there was nothing to tell. After it was clear there was no open marriage, I told Ada that she should stop the insanity with Rico. Ada asked me if I liked living with her and you. I do. She said if you heard about Rico and her before she was ready to tell you, she'd kick me out. But she claimed she was going to tell you about Rico. You couldn't have sex with me if Ada couldn't have sex with Rico. Or anyone else she wanted to have sex with. I didn't want to leave but I should have told you and moved out. I'm sorry I didn't but Ada said she was going to tell you when she was ready. And she did, I guess. Everything's out in the open now."

"Any other men Ada's hooking up with?"

Kathy answered, "Maybe. I've heard some rumors, but I've only been at this job and known Ada for a few months. Ada certainly flirts with other men at work but it's only Rico that I know about.

"I want to stay with you regardless of what happens between you and Ada. I hope Ada and you can figure things out, but I'd like to keep living here."

"Ada and I are divorcing. You can stay in the guest room tonight. I may have some more questions for you in the morning."

I went to bed, my bedroom, and Kathy went to a spare room. I tossed and turned. About 1am I felt someone climb into bed with me, trying to spoon from the back. I thought it was Ada and said, "Get the fuck away from me. Get out of my house."

But when I felt her hand cup my balls, I knew it was Kathy. She asked, "Can I sleep with you. We don't have to do anything. I don't want to be alone tonight." I shrugged and tried to sleep. Kathy's presence had a calming effect and I finally fell asleep.

When I woke up Saturday morning, Kathy was still asleep on her side behind me with her hand in its usual place. Ada had not returned home and, when I checked my phone, she hadn't called or texted me. I got out of bed and went to the kitchen to make coffee. I saw that Ada's phone was on her charger on the kitchen counter. In her frenzy to catch up with her lover, she'd forgotten it.

I came back from walking Charlie to find Kathy in the kitchen drinking coffee. She was dressed in shorts and a T-shirt, not her usual morning outfit. No makeup and with her hair pulled back in a ponytail. She looked like a teenager. She looked at me concerned and asked, "Have you heard from Ada?" I pointed to Ada's phone on the charger.

Kathy asked, "Do you want me to leave?"

"I have more questions." We sat down at the kitchen table. "How much did you know about Ada's plan to open our marriage?"

"I didn't know anything about it. I couldn't understand why Ada invited Rico to dinner. That was nuts. When Rico pulled out the molly, I knew the night wasn't going to end well. That's why I didn't take any. But I never thought Ada and Rico would be so brazen. I apologize again for not telling you sooner about Ada and Rico. I should have."

"Where did the condom Ada put on me came from? The night you and I had sex for the first time. Ada and I never use condoms. Was it yours?"

"I have condoms, but they were in my room. Ada must have brought condoms. After that first time, I've used my condoms. They are in the lamp table beside our bed. You've seen me get them out."

"We're good. You can stay here if you want. I'll be divorcing Ada. She will no longer be living here. Do you still want to stay if it's just the two of us?"

"Yes. It'll be difficult at work with Ada if I'm living here and Ada isn't, but if things get too bad, I'll find somewhere else to work." Kathy smiled, "Maybe I can get a job at your firm."

"I need some time to think through what I have to do to rid myself of Ada. Go ahead and make yourself breakfast. I'm not hungry."

I sat at the dining room table and made a list of things to do. Get a lawyer, get an STD test, change the locks on the door. I thought about what a divorce would entail. This is an at-fault state. I make significantly more than Ada. I bought my condo before we were married but the title was now in both our names. We each had separate bank accounts with a joint account we both contributed to for food, utilities, etc. I had a brokerage account in my name only. She had one in her name only. Our 401K's, of course, were separate. The two cars were in both our names as were our credit cards.

The first thing was to get a lawyer. I looked at my watch and figured my sister, Sarah, a lawyer back home, would be up by now. I called her, "I'm divorcing Ada. I found out last night she has a boyfriend. Please don't tell Mom and Dad yet. I'll tell them when I'm ready. But I need a divorce lawyer."

Sarah said, "I'm sorry to hear about Ada. I went to law school with an attorney who practices where you live. We've remained friends. She doesn't practice family law but there's undoubtedly someone in her firm who does. I'll call her now and call you back."

I looked online for a local 24-hour locksmith, found one and called them. They told me they'd be here within two hours. My sister called back. "I talked to my friend and she's calling the woman who does family law at her firm. Her name is Sharon. Expect her call."

The locksmith showed up and re-keyed both the front and the patio doors. The family law lawyer, Sharon, called, "I understand you need a divorce lawyer."

"I apologize for disturbing you on a Saturday."

"No problem. I'm working today anyway. It seems that no one wants to stay married. Tell me about your situation."

"My wife left last night with her lover. It's evidently been going on for a while. I'm not interested in being married to someone who cheats on me."

"I'm sorry to hear that. But this is an at-fault state so we can use her infidelity in your divorce. We can prevent her from taking your assets."

"She can also claim that I've been unfaithful. She manipulated me into a threesome with another woman. She sees me sleeping with this other woman as a free pass for her to hook up with her lover. Or lovers."

"This threesome was a one-time thing? You and your wife both participated?"

"No, it's been ongoing. The woman, Kathy, has been living with us for a few weeks."

"And you're still with this other Kathy?"

"Yes. She's still here."

"Well, your wife may have manipulated you into this threesome but she's also taken the adultery card off the table. You've both been unfaithful. So we have to go for a no-fault divorce. How long have you been married?"

"Five years."

"Both of you working?"

"Yes, but I make more than she does. Also, my savings and brokerage accounts are much larger than hers. Those accounts are in my name only. Hers are in hers."

"Let's plan to meet Monday. Can you be here at 7am? I have a full day but I'll come in early so we can get started."

"I'll be there." She gave me her address and contact information.

"Bring all your financials. I'll need to see what you have and what she has. I'm going to tell you now that you're going to end up parting with a substantial part of your assets. Without infidelity, you're going to split 50-50 at best and you'll probably end up paying some alimony. You'll have to sell your house unless one of you can buy the other one out. Divorces are a negotiation and she needs to get an attorney so we can start the negotiations."

"I changed the locks in case Ada returns. I don't want her here."

"Changing the locks can be a problem. It's her home too. It would be better to get your wife to agree to leave instead of trying to force her out. Don't threaten her. Certainly, don't hit her or push her. She can fight being evicted and a judge might not like you changing the locks. Figure out a way to get her to agree to leave. Maybe tell her you need space to think things over or something. Maybe you'll get lucky and she'll want to stay with her boyfriend. But you can't force her to leave."

I thanked her and told her I'll see her Monday. We got off.

At about noon, I got a text message from a number I didn't recognize. It was from Ada, probably using Rico's phone: "I'll be home in about an hour. I'm sorry about everything that happened last night. We need to talk. I know you're angry but just give me a chance to explain. I love you." I didn't respond.

About twenty minutes later, I got a call from the same number. I figured it was Ada. Maybe she wasn't coming home after all; it would solve a lot of problems if she decided to stay with Rico. It wasn't Ada, it was Rico. He started by saying, "You must think you're a big man because you blindsided me, got me when I wasn't looking. The next time you see me I'm going to kick your ass good. Maybe you won the first round because you took me by surprise, but I've won your wife. She totally belongs to me. But, lucky for you, I'm tired of her so I kicked her out. You can have her back."

Rico continued, "After two or three times a week for 10 months, I've lost interest in her. She's all used up. She's getting clingy and I've filled all her holes too many times. I'm bored. Ada told me you've never been able to satisfy her. After being with me, no other man will be able to sexually satisfy her either. But at least she knows how it feels to be fucked by a real man. I've made Ada into a sex toy who will now go with any man who smiles at her. But no one will be able to please her after being with me. You certainly won't."

Rico started to tell me details about their sexual activities, "I got her to really love anal and I've helped her improve her blow jobs, sucking...."

I interrupted him and said, "If you want to try to kick my ass, you know where I live. Come by anytime." I hung up on him and blocked his number.

A little while later, I heard a key in the door. Ada's key no longer worked. When she realized that she knocked on the door and said, "Please let me in."

"What do you want? Why are you here?"

"Please let me in. We need to talk. I love you and want to explain."

I let her in. My lawyer made it clear I really can't keep her out. She looked like she hadn't slept in a week. She wore the same clothes she left in and she smelled. She came into the living room, looked at Kathy standing in the kitchen and asked me, "Did you change the locks?"

"I did. You no longer live here so you won't have access to my condo. I've already talked to a lawyer and the divorce is underway. Pack your shit and get out. Don't forget your phone. You were so excited about having sex with your lover last night that you ran out without your phone."

Ada realized I was serious about divorce. We weren't going to kiss and make up. She asked, "Can we sit down and talk?"

"We can talk about divorcing. That's all there is to talk about."

She asked Kathy, "Can you leave us alone?"

Kathy started to leave. I told Ada, "Kathy isn't going anywhere. She was there for me when you weren't, when you were busy fucking your lover. Kathy can stay if she wants." I didn't tell this to Ada or Kathy, but I wanted Kathy to witness our talk. I didn't want Ada to be able to lie about it later.

Ada sat down and said, "I've behaved atrociously. I don't know what happened to me. I'm sorry and will do anything you ask to get you to forgive me. I slept with Rico last night but it was the molly, the X. When I sobered up, I realized what a colossal mistake I'd made. I told Rico we're done, not to contact me again, and rushed home. It wasn't just the drug's fault. I put us in a bad situation by inviting Rico and doing the drugs. I pretty much knew what would happen. But I was upset that you're sleeping with Kathy. I know I pushed Kathy on you but it was a sort of loyalty test. You failed the loyalty test miserably and I wanted to get back at you. I wanted to show me how much that sort of betrayal hurts. But I want to stay married. I don't care about Rico. I love you. Just tell me what I have to do to save our marriage. I'll do anything."

"Why should I believe anything you tell me. You've been lying to me for months."

"I've been honest with you. I'm being honest with you now."

"You told me you're bisexual. Is that true?"

"No, that's not true. It was part of my plan to test you. That test you passed."

"Was last night your first time with Rico?"

"Yes. I haven't been with him or anyone else since we got together." She looked at Kathy to see if Kathy would contradict her lie. Kathy wisely said nothing.

"Rico just called me. He said he and you have been fucking two or three times a week for months. He also said that he broke it off with you, his sex toy. He threw you out because he was tired of you. You didn't break up with him."

Ada started crying, "It was never three times a week. Rico lies about everything. It just sort of happened. I'm sorry. It didn't mean anything. I'll be completely honest with you from now on."

Ada continued, "And Rico didn't end it, I did. He just said that to cause problems. He's always willing to have sex with anyone who'd have sex with him. I finally came down from the high and realized how terrible I'd been to you. How stupid I've been. I couldn't face you if I was still involved with him. You and our marriage mean more to me than Rico ever could. I told him it was over. He didn't take it well so he made up a bunch of lies to tell you."

"The night Kathy and I first hooked up; did Rico know about your plans? Did he suggest the extasy?"

"Yes. He has a lot of drugs in his apartment. He's selling them. Whenever I was at his apartment I was always worried that he be raided by the police. Or some druggies would break in for the drugs and kill us both. He always tried to push them on me. He knew I couldn't spend more than a couple of hours with him but he wanted me to spend the night. If I had taken the drugs he was trying to get me to take, I'd probably have spent more than just a night with him. The drugs he has are serious. I don't want to be around them or the people he sells to. That was one of the reasons I brought him here. This is where I'm safe."

I thought, "Not anymore," but I asked her, "Did you use condoms with Rico?"

"Always."

"Was the condom you had the first night I was with Kathy from your supply to use with Rico?" She nodded. "Where do you keep the condoms?"

"At work."

"So you planned my first night with Kathy down to every last detail, even bringing condoms home for me to use with Kathy. It wasn't the drugs. You had this all planned."

Ada bowed her head but didn't say anything. I asked, "Why did you plan all this? Why not just keep going the way you were. A few times a week. You must have known how I'd react."

"We could only spend a few hours together a couple of times a week at most. If I could see Rico because you were screwing Kathy, he and I could spend more time together. Hotels, resorts, here occasionally, anywhere other than Rico's filthy apartment. I wanted away from the drugs.

"And Rico was going to tell you. Or at least make sure you knew. He started to give me hickeys so you would see them and ask where I got them. I was able to cover them up. Rico wants to humiliate the husbands of the wives he sleeps with. He somehow thinks it makes him more of a man. He'd make sure you found out. He'd make up a bunch of lies about what he and I did together. I thought it was better for you to find out without having to listen to Rico describing a bunch of made-up shit we supposedly did together. Even if I broke it off with him, he'd have made sure you knew. And got all the details. Instead of him continuously trying to humiliate you, I thought it was best just to get it out in the open.

"I'll be the perfect wife from now on. We're even, we've both been unfaithful, so we can start over fresh. A new beginning. I'm willing to do anything you want.

Anything. We can rebuild our marriage. No more outside distractions, Kathy or Rico or anyone else. Kathy should leave so we can be alone together to work on us. We were happy when it was just us. We can be that way again."

Good. I have no intention of reconciling with this woman. We're done. But if Ada would do whatever I want, here was the opportunity to get out of this marriage with as little financial damage to me as possible. Maybe also a little revenge. Maybe make this woman sorry she ever met me.

I said, "I'll consider reconciliation, just consider it, but I have a specific set of demands you have to comply with. If you don't agree to follow them or fail to follow them, you have to move out and we'll divorce."

"I'll do whatever you ask. I just want to go back to how our marriage was before Kathy and Rico."

"Here's what I want you to do. There will be no negotiation. You do these or you leave.

"1) Text Rico and tell him you never want him to contact you again."

"I've already told him we're done. If you want, I'll tell him that again at work Monday."

"Text him now."

"Ok." Ada went to get her phone in the kitchen. She wrote a text, handed me the phone to approve what she'd written. It said, "I never want to talk or see you again. Don't bother me at work or anywhere else."

"Add that his dick is so small that he was never able to satisfy you." I know, a little petty but so what?

Ada looked at me concerned and said, "If you're worried that Rico is somehow better than you in bed, he isn't. Not in any way."

"Just add what I said." She did and sent the text to him. "Block him." She did. "When we finish talking, you need to delete all your social media apps. I want full access to her phone and computers." She agreed.

"2) You need to call your boss first thing Monday morning and tell him you're quitting your job effective immediately. That you won't even be back to pack up your desk. They can throw your stuff out or Kathy can collect what you want to keep and bring it home. You also need to tell your boss the reason you're quitting is because you've been having an affair with Rico. You're so ashamed you can't show your face at work. I'll be listening to your conversation with your boss."

Ada said. "If I quit without notice I'll probably never be able to get a job in our field again. How can you ask me to do that?"

I told her, "It's probably true that you won't be able to get a job in our field again, but it's absolutely true that I'll divorce you if you don't quit Monday morning. Your choice."

"OK, I'll do what you say. I'll call my boss Monday morning" She was crying again.

"3) You'll be staying in a spare bedroom. Kathy will stay in my room with me if that's what she wants. Or there's another spare bedroom for her if she wants. Up to her. I won't ask Kathy to leave."

Ada stared at me, "I thought we'd be starting over without any outside distractions. I thought Kathy is leaving."

"I'm happy to have Kathy stay. As I said, Kathy was there for me when you were off screwing Rico. Kathy can stay as long as she wants. If I see you treating Kathy badly in any way, you'll be out the door. At this point, Kathy's friendship is way more important to me than my marriage to you." I looked at Kathy and asked, "Do you want to stay in this weird arrangement." Kathy looked relieved and nodded.

"4) You need to call your parents and confess all the details about your affair with Rico. You need to tell them that you're doing everything you can to reconcile with me but that a divorce is still probable. You have to make sure they understand that this is all on you. I was not at fault in any way. I'll be listening to your conversation with them."

She asked, "Can I just tell my parents I had an affair, am trying to make amends, trying to get you to forgive me. I want to spare my parents the details."

"I want you to give them the specifics of your affair. With whom, for how long, and the reasons you did it. You need to take full responsibility. Be very clear about what you did and that I was in no way responsible. You'll call them as soon as we're finished talking." She was really crying now.

"5) I'm going to see a divorce lawyer Monday morning. I'll have her draw up a divorce petition which we'll both sign. I'll hold off on the divorce agreement for forty-five days. At the end of forty-five days, I'll decide to continue to try reconciliation or to divorce you. The divorce agreement will include my keeping my condo outright, everything in my bank and broker accounts, my 401K, my car and Charlie, my dog. You will forgo any claim on my condo, any of the assets in my name and my car. You keep your bank account, your 401K, your car, your clothes and jewelry. Except your engagement ring which you'll return to me. There will be no alimony. There may be other things in the settlement after I talk to the lawyer. If I decide to divorce or you decide you want to divorce me, this agreement we sign now will be what is submitted to the court as our divorce agreement"

"I'll sign the agreement but I want more than forty-five days to prove my love for you."

"You have forty-five days and we go from there." She didn't like it but agreed.

"That's all I have for now. You, of course, can leave at any time but if you don't do exactly as we discussed, you'll be gone. And you will probably still be gone after forty-five days even if you do exactly as I want."

"I understand. I'll do whatever you want if it keeps us together."

"Call your parents."

"I'm exhausted and need a shower. And some sleep. Can I call them later?"

"No, call them now. I want to hear a complete confession. No shading the truth." She reluctantly picked up her phone. "Put it on speaker."

She called and her father answered. "I need to talk to you and Mom. Can you get Mom on the phone too?"

"She's not home. What's going on?" He sounded very worried.

Ada looked at me and asked, "Should I just talk to my father now? If you want, I can call Mom later." I nodded.

She started crying and said to her father, "I was unfaithful to Jerry, the love of my life. I had an affair with a co-worker. The affair has been going on for a while and Jerry just found out. Jerry was in no way responsible for causing the affair. It was nothing he did or didn't do. He's a loving and wonderful man and husband, so wonderful that he's willing to give me a second chance. I've behaved so shamefully I don't deserve another chance, but he's willing to try to forgive me. I'm grateful for this chance. I won't screw up a second time."

She continued, "The affair, of course, is over. I'll be quitting my job immediately because that's what Jerry wants and Jerry and our marriage are more important than any career. I don't understand why I did this to Jerry, myself, and our marriage and I'll start therapy to work on my problems. And these are my problems, not problems with Jerry, not problems with our marriage. I love Jerry and will do anything for him. I'll do whatever it takes to regain his trust and love."

Her father asked, "Are you in love with the guy you had an affair with?"

Ada sighed and said, "No, I don't even really like him. He's arrogant and stupid and isn't man enough to stand in Jerry's shadow. I only love Jerry."

Her father asked, "Why would you risk your marriage for someone you don't even like?"

She responded, "For some reason I was attracted to him. I really need help sorting this out."

"Have you had any other affairs?"

Ada looked at me and adamantly told her father, "Absolutely not. No other affairs. This one is bad enough."

Her father asked to talk to me and Ada handed me the phone. He asked, "How are you holding up?"

I told him, "Not good."

"How did you find out? Did Ada tell you?"

"Sort of. She invited her lover over for dinner yesterday and started to have sex with him on the couch in front of me. When I threw the guy out, she followed him home. I guess you could say that was her way of telling me she has a lover."

Her father didn't say anything for a time and then replied, "I apologize for her behavior. Is there anything I can do for you?"

"No, but thanks."

He said, "You're a standup guy to give her a second chance. If there is anything you need or anything you want to talk about, I'm here. Can I talk to Ada again?"

I gave the phone back to Ada and heard him yell, "What the fuck is wrong with you?"

She was really crying now and said, "Daddy, I don't know what's wrong with me. I love Jerry, I've loved him every minute for seven years. I can't imagine life without him. I'm going to work as hard as I can to hold on to him. And I hope I can. I don't know why I did what I did. I have no excuses. I'm just a horrible person. I can't believe I did any of this. But I did and I have to fix it now.

"Do you have any further questions?" Ada asked her father. He said no and asked if she wanted her mother to call when she got home. "I'll call her later." She looked at me and asked, "Do I need to tell him anything else?"

"Make sure he understands that divorce is still on the table. We'll try to work things out for forty-five days and I'll decide then whether you stay or go." She told him that and looked at me to see if I wanted her to say anything more. I told her, "OK."

She told her father, "I'm sorry that I'm such a horrible wife and daughter but I'll be a better person from now on."

"You'd better make it right by Jerry." They said goodbye and hung up.

She sat on the couch and cried and asked, "Can I hug you?"

"You can't be serious." She curled into a ball on the couch and continued crying.

"Go take a shower. You stink of sex and sweat. Get some sleep. Not in my bedroom. You're no longer welcome in my bed. You probably need a wire brush and battery acid to get Rico's stink off you. Maybe a powerful disinfectant for your mouth." She went off to shower crying.

Kathy came to sit beside me. She hugged me and thanked me for letting her stay. She said, "I still consider Ada a friend and I'll do whatever you want to help Ada and you get through this. If you and Ada need alone time together, I can visit my parents in L. A. for a while."

I told her, "If you need to see your parents, that's fine. But I'd like you to stay." I didn't tell her I had no plans "to get through this" with Ada. Kathy didn't need to know that now. Kathy said she'd stay.

Ada's mother called when Ada was napping so her call went to Ada's voicemail. She then called me. When I answered she asked, "How are you doing?"

"Not good."

"Bob [Ada's father] told me and I apologize for Ada's behavior. I can't understand why Ada would do such a thing. Ada loves you. Thank you for giving Ada a second chance."

"I only agreed to think about a second chance. It is still likely that I'll decide to divorce her. I'll decide one way or another in forty-five days." She asked if Ada was available to talk. I said, "Ada is taking a nap. Ada was fornicating with her lover all last night and the poor dear is all tuckered out. She needs her beauty sleep."

Her mother didn't say anything for a while, I thought she hung up. Finally, she said, "You don't know how sorry I am. I hope with time you'll be able to move on from this." I didn't reply so she said, "Please have Ada call me. I appreciate your maturity in handling this horrible situation." We got off but I wondered if she was being sarcastic about me being mature.

When Ada finished her nap, I told her to call her mother and provide details about her affair. Ada called and put the phone on speaker, "I had an affair with a co-worker lasting several months. I'm ashamed of myself and will be working exclusively on rebuilding Jerry's trust and our marriage. I have forty-five days to convince Jerry to continue to try reconciliation. That's my entire focus now. Jerry is great husband and I love him. I'm prepared to do anything I can to get us past this awful nightmare. Jerry is the victim in all this and I'll be making amends for as long as it takes."

Her mother asked, "Did you really bring this guy home and try to have sex with him in front of Jerry?"

Ada had been crying since she got on the phone with her mother, but the crying got really bad now. Between sobs, Ada told her mother, "I'm sorry Mommy."

'You should be sorry. You're a sorry excuse for a woman and a wife. Bob and I have always been proud of you but I'm so angry and so ashamed of you now that I want to just forget I have a daughter. I didn't raise my daughter to be a useless slut who sleeps around on her husband."

Ada apologized again. Her mother told her, "Apologies aren't worth shit. You deserve to be tossed out on your ass. I'll be calling Jerry to check up on you. If I hear one bad thing from Jerry about your behavior going forward, if Jerry has any complaints about you, I'll come and slap the shit out of you. I feel like doing that anyway. You better fix this. Don't call me with apologies or excuses. All I want to hear is what you're doing to get your marriage back. You'd better be willing to do anything." She hung up on Ada without saying goodbye.

After her mother hung up on her it took Ada a long while to calm down. Ada asked me, "What do you need me to do to help work past this?"

"I want you to try to be as invisible as possible and talk to me as little as possible."

On Monday, I saw the attorney, Sharon, and explained to her the forty-five-day agreement with Ada and what I wanted in the divorce settlement. I did not tell Sharon that I'd already made up my mind to kick Ada out after forty-five days. She didn't need to know that.

"Ava doesn't want to talk to an attorney?"

"No. She says she'll sign the agreement."

Sharon said, "We should proceed like this: You and Ada will sign separation and divorce agreements now. We'll hold off submitting the divorce agreement to the court. If you decide not to reconcile, we'll file the signed divorce agreement you're signing now in forty-five days. In our state there's a six-month cooling off period so the divorce won't be processed for at least that long. With a separation agreement, you can remain under the same roof, legally separated, for your forty-five days, until the divorce or however long you want. There can be no intimacy between you and Ada. Any sex means the six-month cooling off period starts over. You'll need to have someone you know sign a letter stating that you and Ada have not been intimate for six months. Maybe this Kathy. Part of the divorce package we have to file. Since you're living together, we may have to start the six months once Ada has moved out.

"If you wish to continue the marriage, we can nullify the separation or divorce agreement at any time up until the divorce is granted. You should remain civil toward Ada until the divorce. It usually makes the divorce go smother if the spouses aren't trying to kill each other.

"I'll have the separation and divorce agreements ready to sign tomorrow. Can you bring Ada by so you can sign them together?"

"Let me know when the paperwork is ready and we'll be here."

My meeting with the attorney was at 7am. When I got home, I told Ada it was time to call her boss. I listened as Ada quit her job. She told him exactly what I wanted her to tell him about her affair with Rico. And how ashamed she was.

Andy, her boss, told her, "You don't have to quit. I've gotten several complaints from women about Rico's behavior. I've already warned Rico twice and this is his third strike. I'll fire Rico as soon as we get off the phone. He's way more trouble than he's worth. His work is sub-par and we don't want employees like him. Whether you continue at work or not, Rico is gone.

"You can keep working and not have to worry about seeing him again. You're a valuable member of the team and I don't want to lose you. You'd also be leaving us in the lurch. What about your clients? If you really want to quit, OK, but we still need your help transitioning your clients to other account managers."

Ada replied, "I need to quit today, I won't be back. I want to work on my marriage and myself. That's my focus now. Kathy and I share all our clients. She's more than capable of handling them on her own. Just let her continue with them. But thank you for your kind words and for being a great boss." They hung up.

When Kathy got home from work she reported that Andy fired Rico. "Big scene. Rico started yelling that he was better at his job than everyone else there. He threatened to sue. Andy told him that he was going to call the cops and Rico finally left."

The next morning Ada asked if we could talk. I told Ada, "It's too early to talk. I'm still too angry and upset."

"I understand but we have to start sometime."

"My attorney should have the paperwork for us to sign today. When she calls, I'll come and pick you up. We can talk in the car."

In the car, on the way to the attorney to sign the agreements, she began, "I want to explain about Rico."

"I know all I need to know about Rico. You wanted to fuck him. He wanted to fuck you. So you fucked. For 10 months." Ada looked down, nothing to say. I asked, "Are there any nude pictures of you going to show up on the internet?"

"Rico insisted on taking pictures but there were only a few and there's no reason for Rico to show them now. If he and I were still working, he might pass them around at work to embarrass me because I dumped him. But neither of us is at work anymore."

"How could you be so stupid to let that piece of shit take pictures?"

She replied, "It turns out 'stupid' is my middle name."

"Was there was anyone else besides Rico?"

She signed and said, "I drank too much and made out with a guy from work around the block from the bar. But that was a while ago and it only happened once. That's it." She looked at me, "But that doesn't excuse what I did. I shouldn't have been kissing anyone. Even once.

"The co-worker and I were embarrassed when we saw each other the next day. He apologized and we agreed it would never happen again. It didn't."

I thought, "She's confessing this, a relatively minor infidelity given she tried to fuck someone on our couch, so I'll think she's now being completely honest. Finally coming clean. No way she's telling me everything." I asked, "Who was the guy you kissed?"

"My boss, Andy."

I told Ada how our household would work while the three of us were living together. "You will be responsible for cooking, cleaning, and shopping for food. All the domestic duties. You will pay some rent and contribute to food costs. You will stay in a guest room. Kathy will continue to work, pay some rent and contribute toward food. She'll share my bed as long as that's what we both want. You should think of Kathy and me as a couple while you are just a houseguest. Kathy and I will include you in things or not as we wish. Otherwise, invisibility and silence are what you should strive for while a guest in my home."

Ada was visibly upset over this. "How can you and I reconcile if you're screwing Kathy. You have to tell Kathy to leave so you and I can sort out our marriage without a third party in the middle."

I told Ada, "You're the third party, not Kathy. Kathy was there for me when I needed someone. Where were you when I needed comforting because my wife left to fuck another man. Oh, that's right, you're the wife who went off to fuck. I find Kathy's presence soothing. She makes me feel better just being around her. And the sex with Kathy is great."

I continued, "I want to thank you for all the thought and effort you put into getting Kathy and me to hook up. That was an incredibly generous thing for you to do. I really appreciate that you brought Kathy into my life. My relationship with Kathy has been a wonderful experience for me and, hopefully, for her too." Ada started crying. She was still crying when we signed the separation and divorce agreements in my attorney's office.

My attorney asked Ada, "Are you being coerced into signing this agreement in any way?"

Ada looked at me for a while but finally replied, "No."

I'll get everything I want in the divorce. She won't get anything of mine.

In the car driving home, Ada was less teary. She wanted to talk about Kathy, "What do you see when you look at Kathy. A bimbo? A Barbie doll? Kathy is smart as hell and always knows what she's doing.

"All three of us have the same job. You and I are good at our jobs. Kathy is on her way to being a superstar. Because of her looks and personality, because she's so smart, clients love her. They just want to make Kathy happy. They want to see her big, beautiful smile. And to make her happy, they throw their money at her. They're right to trust her with their money. She knows what she's doing and will make them money. Kathy has only been doing this a few months and she's still learning but, if she sticks with it, she'll be really successful.

"I'm telling you this because Kathy always gets what she wants and she wants you. We will never reconcile if Kathy stays with us. She won't let it happen. Kathy is basically an honest person. She never lies to clients and, as far as I know, she's never lied to me. But she will pass on gossip and whatever she hears about me to make me look bad to you. She'll always say it's just gossip. She'll aways say she's not sure it true. And then go on to tell you every bad thing she's heard. Kathy's very smart. She'll know just how to say awful things about me while seeming to dismiss that I did those things. You have to ask her to move out so we can get on with rebuilding our marriage."

Ada looked at me, determined to get me to ask Kathy to leave. I said, "I'll think about it."

Later that night, in bed, I told Kathy about the conversation Ada and I had earlier. I asked Kathy, "Did I say anything to Ada that is a surprise to you or wrong in any way?"

"Me and you being friends or friends with benefits is fine with me. If you or I want something more or less someday, we'd talk then."

I asked her about other men. She said, "My ex has called me at work a couple of times asking what I've been up to and where I'm living. He also showed up at the bar we go to after work. He wants to rekindle our relationship. I still feel something, a pull, for my ex. We were together for a long time. But there's also a push. Being with him was always difficult. There was constant fighting because he didn't trust me, always jealous and angry over my supposed cheating. Always pointing out my flaws. I've been putting him off. I told him I've moved on. But there is that pull. If I ever want to act on it, I'll let you know. As for other guys, there's no one I'm interested in. I'm happy with our arrangement and I'll let you know if that changes."

"What are people saying about Rico's firing?"

"Rico and Ada are the talk of the place. Mostly people are glad Rico's gone."

"Is there any gossip about Ada and your boss Andy?"

"How do you know about that?"

"Ada told me she was drunk and they kissed once. I don't believe that's all there was to it."

"I told you I heard rumors about Ada. One rumor is that Ada and Andy had an affair a few years ago. An older co-worker who has worked at our company forever comes to the bar with us sometimes. She told us Rico wasn't Ada's first. She saw Ada and Andy in the back seat of an Uber together. They were kissing and probably not on their way home to their spouses. This was a few years ago. Andy and Ada are very fond of each other. They're very much alike. Ada told me once that they understand each other."

"Andy's married?"

"Oh yeah. Two kids. He always has someone on the line. He likes them young. He goes after new hires. He's currently hooking up with a twenty-two year old, just out of college. He's in his mid to late thirties."

"Did he go after you?"

Kathy laughed, "He showed some interest. I showed a lot of disinterest."

Kathy and I had great sex that night. Kathy is a very generous lover. After snuggling together I turned on my side, away from Kathy to sleep. She spooned behind me, as usual, and cupped me, as usual. I asked her, "Why do you do that?"

"What?"

"Hold on to my balls all night."

Kathy immediately removed her hand and said, "I'm sorry. I didn't know it bothers you. I won't do it again. And it's not all night. I just do that when I'm spooning with you."

"It doesn't bother me at all. I'm just curious why you do it."

"I'm not sure. It's weird, right? But it makes me feel connected to you. I guess I just want to hold on to you. I can't put my arms around you while we're sleeping. If I could, I would. So I grab on to something that's convenient. Something sticking out. I could grab your hair. Or you ear. Maybe a toe? I got it, your nose. Would that be better?" Kathy leaned over me and kissed my nose and said, "Yeah, your nose." She put two fingers on my nostrils and pressed them closed.

I could hear her giggling and said, "I don't mind. Put your hand back. It helps me sleep knowing my balls are in good hands."

A little over a week later, thirty-four days to go before I kick Ada out, Kathy came home with some news about Rico. She shared what she heard with Ada and me at dinner, "One of my co-workers, Sam, lives in the same apartment building as Rico. He got the story from Rico's next-door neighbor and from Rico directly when Sam visited him in the hospital. Sam talked to the neighbor before he talked to Rico so he got the second part of the story first. Sam told us the story in chronological order and I'm going to do that too. I'm also going to edit out Rico's whining, self-justifications, and bluster.

"Rico pissed off a husband enough for the husband to come looking for him. And the husband found him.

"The neighbor told Sam that Rico was in the hospital. Sam figured out which hospital and went to visit him. When Sam got to his room, Rico was doped up for the pain but lucid enough to tell Sam what happened.

"Here's what Rico told him: Rico wanted the husband, whose name is George, to know his wife was cheating so he wrote his initials on her ass with a magic marker when she fell asleep. George saw the initials and the wife had no choice but to confess. George wanted to remain married but couldn't stop his wife from continuing to see Rico. Just the situation Rico lives for.

"Rico called George to try to humiliate the guy with details about his wife and their affair. George got mad, cursed at Rico, and hung up on him. Rico said he was offended by the husband's rude behavior. He texted George pictures of Rico and his wife having sex and very explicit nude photos of George's happy, smiling wife in Rico's apartment. Rico also texted George that he was going to introduce his pretty wife to a couple of Rico's friends. Did George want to come watch or should Rico just send him pictures of his loving wife enjoying herself with multiple guys? Maybe a video would be better; George could enjoy hearing his wife moaning and screaming with pleasure. He probably hadn't heard those sounds in years, if ever. Either way George would see what his wife was willing to do for real men.

"George apparently followed his wife to Rico's apartment building, figured out which apartment was Rico's and knocked on the door. When Rico opened the door, he punched Rico in the balls with the end of a baseball bat. That's all that Rico remembers until he woke up in the emergency room. But the husband didn't stop there. He hit Rico some more in his privates, also broke his arm and smashed up his knee and thigh with the bat. Broke some ribs. He broke Rico's nose and cheekbone. Rico will be in the hospital for a while. The bat evidently did considerable damage to Rico's privates, forearm, knee and leg. Lots of surgeries ahead.

"Sam said there was a cop sitting outside at Rico's hospital room door. The cop screened Sam, searched him, before he was allowed into Rico's room. Sam asked Rico if the cop was there to protect him. Rico told the Sam that when they entered his apartment, the cops found him unconscious but also a lot of exstasy and some other stuff lying around. The cop is there because they're arresting Rico for the drugs.

"The next part of the story comes from Rico's next-door neighbor. According to Sam, this neighbor was telling anyone who'd listen about all the excitement. He told Sam he heard a woman screaming next door and called the police. The neighbor then went out in the hall and saw a man dragging a screaming, naked woman out of Rico's apartment by her hair. This, of course, was the husband and his wife. The husband had hauled his wife all the way to the parking lot when the police arrived. They arrested the husband, put him in the back of a police car. The cops gave the wife one of those silver blanket things to cover herself and she was put in the back of a different police car.

"The neighbor said the woman was crying hysterically, very loudly, while trying to hide her face and keep herself covered. A policewoman walked up to her and told her through the car window to shut up. The cop told her she despised cheaters and if the woman didn't shut up, she'd take back the blanket and walk her into the police station naked and in cuffs. The wife shut up. The husband just sat in the back of his police car with a big smile on his face."

While Kathy told Ada and me about this, I looked at Ada and she remained stone-faced and didn't say anything. I wondered if she felt bad for Rico. I wondered if there were pictures of Ada smiling and naked somewhere in Rico's apartment like this guy's wife.

George made bail. I found a number for him online. He's my hero and I wanted to thank him. I called him but his phone was disconnected. His lawyer was mentioned in the news so I called his office and left a message that I was willing to be a witness against Rico in George's trial. I expected a legal assistant or clerk to call me to get my information, but George's lawyer called me back himself.

I told the George's lawyer, his name is James, "Thanks for calling me back. I thought I'd hear from one of your law clerks."

James said, "There's a bunch of people who have called wanting to give evidence against Richard."

I interrupted, "I thought his name is Rico."

"He goes by Rico but his real name is Richard. I'm calling back people who call in because I want to talk to them all myself. The information I get may lead to other information that may help my client. I don't want anything to fall through the cracks. Thanks for calling. How do you know.... Rico?"

"George's experience with Rico is similar to mine. I'd be willing to testify about just how vile Rico is."

I explained the circumstances surrounding Ada and Rico. The lawyer said, "Welcome to the club. Others have come forward, both wives and husbands, with similar stories and are willing to testify against Rico. The more the better. When we start the plea bargain process, I want to be able to tell the prosecutor that we have dozens of people hoping to testify against Rico at trial. It's harder to get a conviction when the jury isn't sure who the real bad guy is and the D. A. knows it."

I asked, "What's George charged with?"

"Everything from attempted murder down to possession of a deadly weapon, the bat. Many of the charges are nonsense; they always inflate the charges to scare the defendant. They'll drop some of them. George will probably go to jail but, hopefully, I can get it down to a minimum."

"Does George need anything? Can I do anything for him?"

"George owns a string of restaurants with his brother and his parents have money so he was able to post bail. Money is not George's problem. Offering to testify is a big help. If you know of anyone else, ask them to come forward too."

"What happened with George's wife?"

"George and his wife are still living together. George found out about the affair because Rico wrote something on her body which she didn't notice but George did. She confessed and agreed to end it; she said she wanted to remain in the marriage.

"George's wife had been seeing Rico on 'girls' nights' when she 'had to sleep at her girlfriend's because she was too drunk to drive.' When he found out about Rico, George told her no more girl's nights and the wife had to ditch the girlfriends who enabled her. The wife complied. The husband though she was done with the affair. She stayed home every night. Rico was still texting George pictures of his wife but George thought those were just old pictures, taken before his wife ended things with Rico. The wife wasn't out at night anymore so George thought Rico was just screwing with him. But one of the pictures of his wife had her posed in front of a window in Rico's apartment. It was daytime out the window. George went back and looked at the other pictures. It was clearly daytime in some other photos too. Rico had been fired from his job and wasn't working. His wife was now seeing Rico during the day. George stayed home from work and followed his wife to Rico's."

"Are they divorcing?"

"George's wife said she was seeing Rico as much for the drugs as for the sex. She said it made her feel like she was in college again. Here's this good-looking thirty-six year old woman with two children married to a very wealthy man who absolutely adores her and she screws this piece of shit and takes drugs to feel like she's back in college. I don't understand it. People don't make sense to me anymore.

"Anyway, they tried to charge George with assaulting his wife when he marched her out of Rico's apartment. She refuses to testify against George but is happy to testify against Rico. So we want to keep her happy. We want her sitting behind George in court every day standing by her man, the husband who saved her from this evil sexual predator and drug dealer. And George has more to worry about now than getting a divorce.

"If there is a trial. I doubt the prosecution wants to take this to court. There might be a sympathetic husband or wife on the jury. I don't want to risk a trial if I can get a very good plea deal for George. But it would have to be a very good deal."

"What happened with Rico?"

"Rico was charged with possession and distribution. He may also be charged with pimping and pandering. The cops found extasy, fentanyl and a lot of crack and some powdered cocaine in his apartment. Rico evidently had a side gig selling this stuff. Part of what kept some of these women seeing Rico were the drugs he provided. And Rico was pimping out some of these wives to guys who came to buy drugs.

"George and Rico might end up in the same prison. Even if that doesn't happen, Rico will have serious problems in prison with his fellow convicts. Married convicts and those with girlfriends spend a lot of time wondering what their women are up to on the outside. Men like Rico aren't very popular.

"Right now, Rico is in the jail hospital wing for his surgeries. Rico's arm should be OK but he'll always walk with a limp because of his shattered leg. His face is fixable. The most serious injury is to Rico's testicles. They were crushed by the bat. The prognosis there isn't good. The bat also did some damage to his penis. I heard somewhere that men can still orgasm even if they don't have functioning testicles. Just nothing comes out. Rico will be able to tell us if that's true. That is, if his penis still works."

I said, "I'm glad Rico finally got what he deserved. Your client did the community a service."

"George wasn't the first angry husband to visit Rico. I have all the police reports of attacks on Rico." I heard him shuffling through papers while he continued, "Nothing too serious: broken nose, split lip, eye swollen shut, another black eye, bruised cheek, bruised jaw, broken tooth, a dislocated shoulder, cracked ribs.

"The split lip report was just five days before George caught up with Rico. Too bad that guy didn't put Rico in the hospital; maybe George wouldn't be in the mess he's in. These attacks only include the ones Rico reported to the police. Who knows how many other angry husbands he didn't report. We're contacting each of the men Rico reported. Hopefully, they'll all want to testify against Rico too.

"So George isn't the first guy to try to correct Rico's errant ways. He just took it to a new level. You'd think Rico would have learned his lesson and stop baiting the husbands."

I said, "I don't think Rico can help himself. Tell George I'm thinking of him, thank him and tell him he was there for all of us. If he needs anything, let me know. Please keep me informed about testifying." He thanked me and we got off.

I didn't think the lawyer would be so forthcoming about all this. I guess he wanted me to feel part of the defense team so I wouldn't change my mind about testifying. He didn't tell me anything that was privileged, nothing that wouldn't be revealed if it went to trial. And I'm sure he was billing George for his time on the phone with me.

I was curious how Rico covered up these beatings he's been taking from unhappy husbands. I asked Kathy that evening, "Did Rico ever came to work looking like he'd been in a fight?"

"Every once in a while, he'd come in with a black eye or bruises or busted lip or swollen jaw. Once with his arm in a sling. He always had a story."

"What were his stories?"

"A few weeks before Rico was fired, he came to work with a black eye and a knot on his forehead. He claimed a husband came looking for his wife at Rico's apartment. Rico said he had called the husband and told him he was keeping his wife for a few days so she could learn how to give the perfect B. J. Rico told her husband she was talented and very enthusiastic. With a little instruction and lots of practice on Rico and some of his friends she could be world class. Rico followed up the call by texting pics of the guy's wife practicing BJ's on various guys. The husband found Rico's place somehow and coldcocked Rico when Rico answered the door. Rico claimed he then proceeded to kick the husband's ass.

"When I first started working with Ada, Rico came to work with the side of his face bruised and swollen. This time he said some guy dissed him in a bar. The guy was with his girlfriend but the girlfriend, Rico claimed, kept smiling at Rico. When the guy went to the bathroom, Rico went up to the girlfriend and they started talking. The were just getting to know each other when the boyfriend returned. The guy told Rico to beat it, that's his girlfriend. Rico told the guy that his girlfriend is coming home with him, Rico. The guy pushed Rico and Rico hit the guy, knocking him to the ground. Rico was repeatedly punching him in the face when the guy's friend hit Rico to stop him. Rico said the girl did come home with him.

"I just started working there and really didn't know anything about Rico. I remember the story because I looked at Rico's hands when he said he kept punching the guy. There were no bruises or cuts on Rico's hands. His knuckles weren't red or swollen. Rico didn't hit anyone with those hands. That taught me everything I needed to know about Rico. I thought Rico was an idiot to think that his stories made him look like a big man instead of a clown."

Rico lying. Shocking.

So we continued living like that. Ada at home sleeping in the spare bedroom while Kathy and I went to work and shared my bed. I'd listen to Ada politely whenever she wanted to talk about reconciliation, how she's willing to do anything, what our life will be like together. I'd nod so she knew I was paying attention. When she asked me what I thought, I'd tell her that I'm considering everything but haven't made up my mind. When she asked me when I'm going to ask Kathy to leave, I'd tell her I'm still thinking about it. Otherwise, we all eat together, sometimes Ada accompanies us when we eat out or go to movies or whatever. I'm civil with Ada, but that's all.

On the Thursday before Ada's forty-fifth day, the following Monday, I told Ada that we needed to talk when I get home from work. I asked Kathy if she could give us a couple of hours alone after work. She said sure, she'd go for drinks and be home 7:30 or 8. Perfect.

When I got home that Thursday night, I asked Ada to sit down in the living room. "We're coming up on forty-five days."

Ada interrupted and said, 'I think the best thing for us is to go back to where we were before Rico fucked everything up. You, Kathy and me sleeping together. I don't like the idea of you sleeping with Kathy but I can live with it and it would be twice the fun for you. I don't think Kathy will mind. She didn't mind before. I think that's the best way to go forward for now. I, of course, will not be seeing any other men. That's never going to happen again."

I replied, "I'm going to go through with the divorce. My lawyer will be filing on Monday. You have to leave Monday. My decision is final."

Ada became belligerent, "What am I going to do now? You've put me in a horrible situation. I gave up my job because that's what you wanted. I have no place to go, no place to live. I have some money saved but that will go fast if I'm not working."

"You knew the risks of quitting your job and the likelihood of us divorcing when you agreed to do what I asked. All that was your choice. You were unfaithful to me for months. You brought your lover home so you could fuck him in front of me. You ran after him when I threw him out. I can't get over that. I can't forget and I'll never forgive you."

Ada got up in a huff and went to her room. Slammed the door. I didn't see her again until I got home from work the next day.

I told Kathy when she got home from the bar that I told Ada we're divorcing, "Ada is leaving and the divorce paperwork will be filed on Monday."

"OK, thanks for telling me. No great surprise. Have you eaten yet?"

Friday after work, Ada, Kathy and I were together again for the first time since my talk with Ada. Ada and I were in the kitchen when Kathy arrived home. She joined us in the kitchen. Ada said to Kathy, "We're divorcing because you wouldn't get out of the way. If you had just left us alone, Jerry and I could have worked things out."

Ada was yelling but Kathy calmly replied, "I'm sorry that things haven't worked out the way you wanted but I didn't destroy your marriage. I didn't have an affair with Rico and then invite him over for sex. That was you."

Ada was really angry now. She got in Kathy's face, put her hands on her hips and shouted, "Why couldn't you leave us alone. We could solve our problems if you weren't around all the time. You just want Jerry for yourself. You're wrecking our marriage, trying to get rid of me so you can replace me. Jerry's my husband, not yours. Get out!"

Kathy moved forward so Ada's and Kathy's faces were inches apart and said to Ada, "You've done horrible things. You've hurt people. People don't just forgive and forget. I'm not in the way, your lies and manipulation are in the way. You can't have an honest relationship with Jerry unless you start being honest with him. You haven't been willing to do that."

Ada looked stunned, glanced at me and glared back at Kathy. Ada backed off. She didn't know what Kathy knew and couldn't risk Kathy saying anything. Ada just said, "If Jerry and I had been left alone we could have worked past our problems."

The rest of the evening was tense but we got through it.

Ada was gone much of the day Saturday and came home in a better mood. She didn't say where'd she'd been. She certainly wasn't off fucking Rico. He was in the hospital and from what I could glean, Rico can't fuck anyone anyway. I didn't care where she was but hoped she was making arrangements to leave.

So Monday came. I stayed home from work to help Ada leave. And to make sure she left. After Kathy left for work, Ada asked if we could talk again. I nodded. She said, "I want you to reconsider and let me stay. I love you and will do anything to work out our problems."

I asked her, "Why do you want to stay married? You obviously want to be with other men and that won't be possible if we're together. Unless you continue to sneak around and I don't catch you. I would never agree to an open marriage. Why not just divorce and be single. You can sleep with whoever you want openly and won't have to worry about me."

"Rico was a onetime aberration and I'll never cheat on you again."

I asked, "What about your affair with Andy? We both know that it wasn't just a drunken kiss outside a bar. People saw you drive away with him. How long did that one last? How many others have there been? Have you ever been faithful?"

The color left Ada's face while her neck turned red. She said, "It's not true. I only had the affair with Rico, no one else."

"Come on Ada. We both know that's not true."

Ada finally realized that there was no convincing me to let her stay. She became cold. No more reason to lie. No more displays of emotion. All business now. Time to twist the knife a little more in my back. She asked, "You're not going to take me back, are you? We're not going to reconcile."

"No."

"Is there anything I can say or do to change your mind?"

"No."

"Did Kathy tell you about Andy."

"Everyone at your old job knows about you and Andy."

"It's because of Kathy that you want me to leave, isn't it?"

"It's because of you. Why do you want to remain married anyway. It's obvious you don't want to be monogamous. Why stay married?"

"I love being married to you. I thought we had a great marriage."

"Then why the lovers? Why bring that clown into my home."

"The lovers are part of what made our marriage great. They spiced up the marriage even if you didn't know about them. I had you and our wonderful marriage and I had them and all the variety and excitement they brought. You had a very happy wife. Doesn't every husband want a happy wife?

"I brought Rico home because it was time you knew. Rico's apartment is close to work so hooking up with him was convenient. I couldn't stay out all night or even get home very late without you getting suspicious. Rico's place worked because we could fuck our brains out and I'd still be home by 8pm. But that was getting old. Rico's place is full of drugs and is beyond filthy. He was constantly pressuring me to take drugs. I was afraid of the people who came to buy drugs. I didn't like that some of them asked him if they could have a turn with me. Or that Rico seemed OK with that. Sooner or later, I knew Rico would try to force me to fuck other guys for his amusement. I wanted out of his apartment.

"Also, I was getting tired of having to rush everything. I wanted to spend the night. I wanted to go away for weekends. Not necessarily with Rico, he was just convenient, but with whoever I wanted and whenever I wanted. Rico's apartment really wasn't working for me anymore. To spend more time out with guys with any regularity, to spend nights or weekends with them, you'd have to know we had an open marriage. So I got you Kathy. You were supposed to reciprocate and let me play with Rico. And then with others.

"And Rico was going to tell you about him and me soon anyway. I didn't want you to hear what we were up to from him. He would have been much too graphic. I thought I'd do what worked getting you together with Kathy. I'd get you so stoned you'd just go along with it. I thought Rico and I would be fucking right next to you and Kathy fucking and you'd think it was the most natural thing in the world. But you didn't want to take any drugs because you were worried about Rico. I should have anticipated that or stopped it with Rico but I was too stoned to realize my plan wasn't working. I should have been the one not to get high. But you're sleeping with Kathy. I still don't see why you were upset that I had Rico. What's the big deal? We could have continued our wonderful marriage with a few added benefits. You would have had an even happier wife."

I said, "Time to get going."

Ada realized we were done so she went to finish packing and loading her car. I helped her to speed things up. When we were done, I asked her, "Where will you be staying?"

"I rented a two-bedroom furnished apartment last Saturday. The landlord said I can move in today." She gave me her new address which I put in my phone in case my attorney needed it.

"I'm going back to work for Andy. I've been talking with him all along and he's willing to give me my job back. He understands the situation I was in when I quit and he figured I'd be back sooner or later."

We said our goodbyes and she drove off.

What a relief. Much less drama than I expected. I didn't have a problem with her going back to work. As long as the divorce we agreed to goes through as is and as quickly as possible, I don't care what she does.

Kathy came home at her normal time and I asked her to sit down to talk. I said, "Ada is gone for good but she'll be back at work with you."

"I know. Andy told me this morning. Ada wants to continue to work with me as a team. I'm fine with that. We're better as a team than me working on my own at this point. I can still learn a lot from her."

"Watch your back."

Kathy replied, "With Ada? Always."

I wanted to know Kathy's plans so I asked her, "Have you been in touch with your ex?"

"He calls and has been coming to the bar where the gang goes after work. He's trying to convince me to get back to him. He says he's changed but we've been down that path before. He doesn't know about you. I'd tell him about you if I were to decide to get back with him. That'd probably bring back all the old jealousies and fighting and make the decision easier to cut him out of my life for good. I told you that I feel a push and pull with him. Right now, the push is still much stronger than the pull."

"So you might still get back with him?"

Kathy shrugged and said, "Not likely."

"I thought you would tell me if you were seeing your ex or anyone else."

"I'm not seeing him if you mean in any romantic way. I told him I'm not going out with him. We have not hooked up. He comes to the bar to talk. If I decide to take things further with him, I'll tell you." Kathy stopped and looked at me. She saw that I didn't look happy so she continued, "Look, lots of guys try to talk to me. You know that. I understand how talking to Tom is different because he's my ex. He makes you uncomfortable. I get it. From now on I'll let you know when he comes around. I have no problem doing that."

"Why haven't you told him about me?"

"He and I aren't together. It's none of his business what I'm doing, who I'm seeing or where I'm living. I don't tell him anything personal about myself. I don't want to discuss you with him. If I tell him about you, he'll want to know all about you. It'll end up with him wanting me to explain why I'm with you and not with him. I don't want to go there with him. I don't need to explain anything to him."

"What are your plans now?"

"Work with Ada, make a lot of money, live with you, fuck you and play with your balls while we drift off to sleep."

"That works for me."

Most of this happened last August into September. Ada moved out and we filed the divorce paperwork in mid-September. It's now April. A lot has happened.

First, Ada's and my divorce was granted last month. We're finally divorced. The divorce settlement was the one we signed to kick off the forty-five days I gave Ada to convince me to reconcile. A really good settlement for me.

Kathy came home after work one night last November and said, "Do you want to hear the latest with Ada?" Ada and Kathy were still working together as a team, sharing the same clients.

I responded, "Let me guess. She's selling crack cocaine out of Rico's old apartment on weekends."

"No. Well, that's possible I guess but not what I found out. You remember Sam, my co-worker who told me about what happened when that husband showed up at Rico's place with a bat to fetch his wife? Sam who's Rico's friend?"

"Yeah, I remember. The husband's name is George. Is Sam still in touch with Rico?" I realized I haven't heard from George's attorney about testifying at his trial.

"Sam and Ada are hooking up. They have Rico in common. He's Rico's friend, Ada is Rico's.... friend too. Sam still sees Rico and Ada always wants the news about him. I think she went with Sam to visit him in the hospital. Anyway, Sam's her latest."

"Better him than me. What's happening with Rico? Have you heard anything?"

"He's in the prisoner wing of the hospital having one surgery after another. All I know is Rico is facing charges for the drugs and that Sam is allowed to visit him in the hospital."

"Can you find out from Sam, or maybe Ada knows, what's going on with George's trial? Where that stands?"

Kathy asked Ada at work the next day and reported back, "Ada gets reports from Sam after he visits Rico. Rico couldn't or didn't want to make bail. While he's in jail, his medical expenses are taken care of. Our taxpayer dollars at work. But they're telling Rico that he'll be back in general population eventually. The last thing he wants. So Rico has some decisions to make. Go into general population with a bunch of guys who will not be very friendly or make bail and pay for his own health care out of pocket. Rico lost his health insurance when he was fired. He never got his own health insurance. Sooner or later Rico will be put in gen pop or have to put up bail money. But, for now, he feels safe and is being taken care of.

"Ada says Rico won't talk to Sam about permanent injuries. His face and arm are healing. There're still more surgeries and lots of physical therapy. Right now, Sam says he's using a catheter. Sam doesn't know if that's permanent or just something from the surgeries. Ada told me she visited Rico about a month ago. It was clear to her from what Rico said that he'll.... never have children. She says that Rico suffered a lot of damage. He'll never be the same.

"As for the trial, Ada says it's scheduled for next fall. Rico is suing the husband for $25 million. They dropped the pimping charges against Rico. Rico told Sam that most of the wives involved will testify that Rico pushed drugs on them but they won't admit that he pimped them out. Rico said they were all been volunteers.

"Rico's attorney is arguing that Rico's been punished enough. Rico is hoping the drug charges just go away. But there are a lot of angry husbands and wives who don't think Rico's been punished enough. There's not much of a chance the charges will be dropped."

I wondered about where plea negotiations between George's attorney and the prosecutor's office were. Will there be a trial? Will I be called? I decided to call James, George's attorney, again. I left a message and he called me back. After hellos, he said, "I've been meaning to call you back. It's just been so busy here. You're calling about being a witness at the trial. There won't be a trial. They should drop the charges against George any time now. The guy who attacked Rico is dead."

I thought, "The guy who attacked Rico is dead? Is George dead?" I asked him, "What happened to George?"

"Nothing. He didn't do it. When George got to Rico's apartment the door was open and Rico was unconscious on the floor. Rico was the only witness to the attack and he told the police he didn't remember who hit him. But his memory has returned. Rico owed his drug supplier money. Rico claims his drug supplier came looking for his money and got carried away. Rico only saw his attacker for a few seconds before he was knocked unconscious but it was definitely his supplier and definitely not George. The supplier had a dispute with a competitor and ended up dead a few weeks later.

"George's wife was in the room when Rico was attacked but she was too drugged to remember anything about the attack. She had nodded off and was out until her husband yanked her up. That's when she saw Rico on the ground unconscious. She didn't see the attack but assumed her husband did it.

"George's fingerprints are on the bat because he moved it off Rico's body to check on Rico when he found him unconscious on the floor. Lots of fingerprints on the bat, George's among them but only because he moved the bat to try to help Rico. The drug supplier who beat Rico up must have been wearing gloves.

"They can't tie George to the bat, can't prove it was his, and no one saw him enter the building with it. Not really worth it to try to tie George to the bat since Rico says it was the drug supplier who did it.

"The neighbor who heard George's wife screaming and called the cops only saw George dragging a naked woman, his wife, out of the apartment. He didn't witness the attack either. George's wife didn't start screaming until she saw Rico unconscious on the floor after George woke her up to take her home. She thought Rico was dead.

"They'll drop all the charges except maybe disturbing the peace. Creating a public disturbance when George walked his wife out of Rico's apartment down to the parking lot. There were lots of witnesses to that. George will probably have to pay a fine or maybe some community service. Once they drop the charges against George for Rico, that'll be the end of it."

"I heard that Rico is suing George. If he says his drug dealer did it and not George, how's he suing George?"

"The cops said George did it so Rico filed his lawsuit. He's since dropped the lawsuit. George feels bad for Rico. Not because he did anything to Rico but because Rico's in pretty bad shape. The reconstructive surgery didn't work. He'll be on a catheter the rest of his life and he'll walk with a bad limp. George has agreed to pay Rico's bail, get him health insurance, pay his medical expenses and attorney's fees. He's also going to give Rico a sum of money. George is being very generous. I wouldn't do it but George is just a good guy. Feels bad for Rico. And it's the best solution for this mess."

"So George is paying for all this stuff for Rico and Rico now remembers someone else did it?"

"Exactly."

"What's going to happen with George's wife?"

"George and his wife are still living together. I really can't say anything further about George's plans for his wife. George's legal problems aren't over until they drop the charges. That should be soon but it hasn't happened yet. We can't afford to piss off George's wife until the legal stuff is over."

I thanked him for the information and we got off. The following evening the news reported that all the charges against George have been dropped. The D. A. announced that Rico identified his assailant as his drug supplier. The drug supplier is deceased. Rico is still being prosecuted for drug charges but he's out on bail. His trial date will be set once he's medically able to stand trial.

A few weeks later I saw a short follow up report on the news that George and his wife were divorcing.

Kathy and I have remained together since Ada brought her into our home last summer. She and I have evolved past friends with benefits. At least that's what I think. Kathy and I haven't discussed our arrangement since the day Ada moved out. I don't bring up my feelings for her because I'm sure how she'll respond. She doesn't bring up her feelings about me. Maybe she doesn't have those feelings for me. Or maybe she's afraid to tell me. Things are going well so why rock the boat? We behave in a lot of ways like a married couple but we haven't formalized anything. Or even really discussed it. We're just having fun being together.

Her ex is still a problem for me. I think for her too. She hasn't been going to the bar with her co-workers very much. Maybe once every couple of weeks instead of once or twice a week. I think she wants to avoid her ex. If her ex shows up at the bar when she's there, she tells me. He's still trying to convince her to give him one more chance. But she hasn't told him about me. She says she doesn't want to get into it with him. When he asks why she won't even go to a movie or dinner with him, she just says she doesn't want to. But I think there's still that strong pull Kathy feels for her ex. She hasn't told him to leave her alone.

After she went for drinks at the bar and her ex showed up yet again, I asked Kathy, "Do you talk on the phone. Does he call you? Do you call him? Text each other? How much contact do you have with him?" We were sitting next to each other on the couch in the living room.

"Tom used to call and text. Leave messages on my phone. I ignored them. He'd ask me at the bar why I don't return his calls and texts. I told him not to call and text me. I'm not interested. Eventually, I blocked him."

"I don't like this guy hanging around you. Why don't you just tell him you're with someone else."

Instead of answering, Kathy got on my lap and said, "Look, he's my ex. We were together a long time and I still have feelings for him. He's not a bad guy. You shouldn't worry about me reconnecting with him. Unless he shows up at the bar, I don't interact with him." She took out her phone, opened it and tried to hand it to me. "Here, you can look through my phone. I have nothing to hide."

"I don't need to look at your phone."

"Anytime you want my phone, just tell me. Not a problem."

"What are you going to do about your ex?"

"Nothing. I'm not encouraging him. I'm here with you." That's where we left it.

This past January, Kathy told me, "Ada is dating one of our clients. He's much older, in his sixties, but filthy rich and smitten with Ada. Honestly, I'm worried about losing him as a client."

"Why?"

"Ada's track record with romances isn't great and you don't date clients. Ada's also still seeing Sam. I don't know if Sam knows she's seeing our client but I guarantee that the client doesn't know about Sam. If he finds out, goodbye client."

"What's his name?"

"Arthur Renner."

"Big bucks. He's also one of our clients. Actually Elizabeth's, my old mentor's, client."

"I know. That's why I'm telling you. Ada's planning on marrying him. That's all she can talk about."

"What happens to the co-worker she's seeing? Sam."

"Ada cheated on you. Do you think she'll be faithful to Arthur?"

"Let me know what happens."

That was early in January. In February, Kathy reported, "They're engaged. Ada is wearing the engagement ring Arthur gave her. They're waiting until your divorce is final to announce it publicly along with the wedding date. If they marry, she'll probably stop working but she'll have enormous influence on what Arthur does with his money. Most of it is now with your company, with Elizabeth. Ada and I are managing about $2Mil. I think Ada will try to convince him to take his money out of your company. She's not very happy about how she was treated when she worked there. Or with you. I don't think she'll want him to leave any money with me. She's not very happy with you and me being together. I think she'll try to screw us both over and convince him to go with another management company."

"You know I have to tell Elizabeth."

Kathy shrugged. "I like Arthur. He's a good old guy. He deserves better than Ada."

The next morning, I called Elizabeth's office and made an appointment to see her that afternoon. Elizabeth is probably in her mid-fifties. She's worked here forever. She's by far the most successful account manager at our firm. I was in her group when I started working and she was always fair with me and the others. Always encouraging. Always knew the right thing to say and do. I owe her. I respect her. I'm scared to death of her.

We met at 2pm that afternoon. Elizabeth asked me to sit down. "What's up?"

"Arthur Renner has some money at Ada's firm. She's his account manager."

"You and Ada are divorcing?" A question I didn't see coming.

"Just waiting for the judge's signature."

"I understand you cheated on her and that's why the divorce."

"No. I initiated the divorce because she had a long-term affair with one of her co-workers."

"OK, cheating didn't sound like you. I know that Arthur moved some money to Ada's company. Our clients are older, wealthier men and women who inherited their money. They are normally very risk adverse and we do a good job of maintaining their wealth by investing in safe securities. But they don't get the best returns. The company where Ada and Kathy work have clients who mostly made their money themselves and are willing to assume some risk for their investments. They're used to risk from running their businesses. Jack, Arthur's son, doesn't have to work but he does. He has money with them because he wants nice returns. Most of his money is here with me. He also wants safety.

"Jack told me that his father got engaged to Ada. He asked about you. Ada told Arthur she's divorcing you for infidelity. Again, it didn't sound like you but who knows? You don't talk much about your personal life so there's not much gossip about you. I'll talk to Jack about Ada. Set the story straight about your divorce. Are your grounds for divorcing Ada infidelity?"

"No. Irreconcilable differences. I got the settlement I wanted. There was no reason to make it bloody. Just so you know, even though she's engaged to Arthur, she's also sleeping with a co-worker. She'll probably continue to see him."

"What's the co-worker's name?"

"Sam."

"I'll let Jack know. Arthur moved some of his money from here to Ada's shop because his son, Jack, kept raving about this woman Kathy. He persuaded Arthur to let her manage some of his money."

"He was raving about Kathy? Not Ada?"

"Kathy. I'm hearing about Kathy from lots of people. I understand she and Ada work together."

"Yes, they have been since Kathy started there. About a year ago. They share clients."

"Kathy has only been doing this for only a year?"

"If you boil what we do all the way down, it's selling. Kathy's a natural at sales."

"How well do you know Kathy?"

"Pretty well."

"What does that mean?"

"We live together. We're romantically involved."

Elizabeth stared at me for what seemed like an eternity. "You don't waste any time do you? You're sleeping with you wife's work partner." She shook her head slowly back and forth. "I despair of your generation. I assume Ada knows?

"Yes."

"Well, that she's with you and can still work with Ada says something about this Kathy. At least if she's with you, she's not in men's rooms in bars giving blow jobs on weekends. She's not doing anything like that, is she?" She smiled. "These days, you have to ask."

I smiled back. "I don't think so. I hope not. We're together weekends and we do, occasionally, go to bars. If she's giving blow jobs in their men's rooms she'd really have to be quick about it or I'd notice. So far, she hasn't invited me into any men's room with her."

Elizabeth chuckled, "Tell me about Kathy."

"She's smart, good at what we do, and clients love her. She and I talk about stuff she's proposing to clients sometimes. She's always prepared and very clever. Some of the stocks she's talked about I've invested in. In my personal account."

"You're taking investment advice from her?"

"Yep. I'm making money from her recommendations. She knows what she's doing."

"How do you know clients love her?"

"Ada told me. Kathy's smart, genuine and honest. She's gorgeous and has a great personality. She makes money for her clients. What's not to love?"

"I've also heard that clients love Kathy. From clients. I hear nothing but good things about her. I'd like to meet Kathy. Would you ask her if she'll meet me for lunch?"

"You want me at the lunch too?

"No, Kathy alone, talk to her without distractions. It's a business lunch."

"I'll talk to her and let you know." I went back to my office.

I talked to Kathy that night, "I told you that Elizabeth was my mentor when I first started working."

"I wish I had her as a mentor. Elizabeth is a legend."

"Elizabeth wants to meet you. She wants to take you to lunch."

Kathy was taken aback, "Did she say why? Is it about Arthur or his son Jack?"

"We talked about them but I don't think it's that. She said it's a business lunch and that she wants to get to know you. More likely she's thinking about offering you a job." Kathy looked at me for a long time. Finally, I asked, "What should I tell Elizabeth?"

"Tell her I'm free for lunch any day any time she wants."

Elizabeth and Kathy met for lunch the last week of February. After their lunch, Elizabeth came by my desk and asked me to come to her office. When we were seated, Elizabeth said, "I offered Kathy a job. If she accepts, she'd begin by helping me with my accounts."

"What did Kathy say?"

"She says she wants to think about it. She asked if I knew about you and her. I told her I did. She wanted to know if that's a problem. Did you tell Kathy I know you're living together?"

"No, it never came up. She was too excited to meet with you."

"That she asked if I knew about you and her, a potential roadblock to her working here, is really impressive. If neither of you said anything, I wouldn't know the two of you were together unless you invite me to the wedding. She could have said nothing, just taken the job and kept your relationship quiet. But she was up front about it. I like that."

"What'd you tell her?"

"You won't be working together and you'll have more or less the same job status. You'd be senior to her but you won't be her boss. I will. It won't be a problem unless Kathy and you make it a problem. You're not planning to dump her anytime soon are you? Or she you?"

"I might if she keeps spending her weekends giving blow jobs in men's rooms. Other than that, we're good."

Elizabeth smiled, "If she takes the job, I'll tell her to cut back some. Maybe only on Saturdays. Kathy and I left it that she'll talk to you and get back to me. I think you have a veto over whether she works here or not." Elizabeth smiled, a big smile with a lot of teeth. "Give her good advice."

After her lunch and my meeting with Elizabeth, Kathy and I went to dinner at a nice restaurant. I told Kathy, "Elizabeth wanted to talk after she got back from your lunch. She told me she offered you a job."

Kathy replied, "Lunch was a sort of relaxed job interview. Elizabeth talked about her management philosophy. Portfolio management. I'm more aggressive, she's more conservative. What's interesting is what she wants me to do.

I interrupted, "Sex slave?"

"So Elizabeth did tell you why she wanted to hire me."

"No, I guessed. That's what I want."

"I'm already your sex slave, idiot."

"Right. I'm glad we straightened that out. What does she want you to do?"

"I'll help with her accounts but she wants me to work with clients who are willing to assume more risk for better returns. Instead of clients like Arthur and Jack moving money to places like where I work now, Elizabeth wants to keep them in house. If a client gets antsy about better returns, she'll have them work with me.

"I asked Elizabeth why she hasn't done this before? She said they have but most of the established account managers are wary of letting their clients talk to anyone else. So the people they've hired in the past haven't been successful. I asked her why she thinks it will work this time. She said this time I'll have her backing. She'll be pointing clients to me. Everyone else will follow her lead. If they don't, I'll be able to live off her clients plus I'll be bringing in my own new accounts. She also said that the people they've hired in the past didn't know what they were doing. She thinks I do. Jack and Arthur are both happy with me. Happy with the returns they're getting from my management of their money."

I asked, "What'd you think?"

"Elizabeth looks at the same securities I do. She knows what I know and probably more. She doesn't recommend securities I would to clients because they involve more risk. She's hiring me to do stuff she can do herself. But if she does it herself, it may cause her problems. If she recommends a more aggressive approach and the client loses money, they'll blame her. If I recommend more aggressive positions and her clients lose money, she'll blame me. Not her fault, mine. She'll throw me under the bus in a minute to keep her stellar reputation. So I'll be there to keep her clients from looking to other companies for investment management but I'll also be there to blame if things go south."

"Is that what she told you?"

"No. But that's why she wants to hire me."

"What're you going to do?"

"I don't mind that I'm there to cover her ass. I'm not going to lose clients' money and your firm is willing to pay me a lot. I'm more interested in what you think. Will it be a problem for you if I'm working there? In any way?"

"We can drive to and from work together. We can eat lunch together. We won't be working together. I don't see a problem. It's up to you. You can learn a lot from Elizabeth but our company is much more structured than yours. And a lot of the managers with big money accounts aren't going to want you around their clients. But if it doesn't work out, you can always go back to where you are now. If Andy took Ada back, he'll certainly take you back. You have a backup."

"Not if I take Jack and Arthur away. I think part of the reason Elizabeth wants to hire me is that she thinks Jack and Arthur will follow me back to her. She'll have all of their assets under management again. She figures there will be other clients who will come with me too. She's probably right about that."

"Do you think Jack and Arthur will come with you if you take the job with Elizabeth? Arthur's engaged to Ada. Hard for him to tell his fiancée he's taking his money out of her firm and away from her."

"Well, there's some news about that too. Jack and Arthur demanded a meeting with Andy this morning. They wanted to know about Ada. And about Sam. They asked Andy if it was Ada who cheated or you who cheated on Ada. They wanted to know the reason for your divorce. Andy told them his understanding is that you both were cheating.

"Then Jack and Arthur demanded that they bring Sam into the office. They grilled him about his relationship with Ada. He evidently broke down and told them that he and Ada are lovers. Have been for months and Ada promised they will continue to be. Arthur and Jack left Andy's office, came over to Ada and Arthur told her the engagement was off. Jack demanded Arthur's engagement ring back. Which Ada gave him. They stormed out. Ada was devastated.

"Then Andy called Ada and me into his office. Jack and Arthur had demanded that Ada be fired. Andy is never going to fire Ada so they worked out a compromise where Ada won't be fired but she's off their accounts. Jack and Arthur want me to work their accounts on my own. There's a good chance that if I jump ship, they'll jump too. But if I steal them away, Andy will never hire me back."

"How did Jack and Arthur know about Sam."

"Elizabeth told them. Or told Jack who told his father."

It took me a few seconds to piece this together. "So you told me about Ada and Sam because you knew I would tell Elizabeth. And you knew Elizabeth would tell Jack and Arthur. Once they confirmed Ada's affair with Sam, you knew Arthur and Jack would push Ada out of their accounts and you would have them for yourself."

Kathy smiled, "You make it sound so cold blooded and calculating. Arthur's a good guy. He doesn't deserve Ada. It would put me in a bad situation if I told Jack or Arthur directly about Ada and Sam. But if they didn't hear it from Elizabeth or somebody else. I would have told Arthur. I wouldn't have let him marry Ada without telling him that she's already cheating on him."

Kathy continued, "Tell me about your meeting with Elizabeth."

"She was impressed that, right off, you brought up that you and I are living together."

"I knew she knew. She asked you about me and I knew you'd tell her that we're together. So I figured I'd get it out there. If it was a problem for her, I wanted to know so I could deal with it. And I don't have anything to hide. Elizabeth didn't seem to think it's a problem. What else did she say?"

"She didn't ask about you giving blow jobs in men's rooms again."

Kathy and I were sitting at a table for two. Two or three feet from us to my right was another table for two. Right before Kathy asked about my meeting with Elizabeth, they seated a couple at the table next to ours. They were two kids in their late teens, boyfriend and girlfriend. Cute, good-looking kids. They were all dressed up and the restaurant is a ritzy one, so this was probably some special occasion. When they were shown to the table the boyfriend sat down but they girlfriend left their table right away. Probably to the lady's room. He could hear Kathy and me talking. He was listening to us when he heard me tell Kathy that Elizabeth hadn't asked again about Kathy's BJ's in men's rooms. I know he was listening because he snapped his head around to look at me when I said it. Kathy thought I was still teasing her so she replied, "Yeah, Elizabeth asked if I was willing to have sex with the clients. Duh. Of course. That's my job."

Kathy glanced at him and saw him staring at her. She looked at me, shifted her eyes toward the kid and then back to me to make sure I was aware that he was listening to us. He was staring at Kathy and looked a little shocked. His mouth was open. Kathy said to me, "I need to go to the men's room right now. Are you ready yet?"

I answered, trying to sound as distressed as I could, "You've sucked me dry. I gave you everything I have." Then trying to sound pleading, "Please, I don't have any more to give."

Kathy said, "I understand, Sweetie. I just wish you had more.... capacity. There must be some virile man here who will come to the men's room with me." She looked at the boyfriend and smiled. He blushed and turned away.

I thought, "I hope his girlfriend gets back here soon. Otherwise, if Kathy keeps this up, I may have to fight this guy." Thankfully, I saw the girlfriend walking back toward the table.

As she approached, the boyfriend got up from the table, took her hand and said, "I need to show you something." He began to lead her away toward the bathrooms.

The girlfriend asked, "Where are we going?"

"I need you to do something. I'll explain in a minute." They walked away. We watched as they entered the short hallway where the bathrooms are and then lost sight of them.

Kathy started giggling first. Then we were laughing so hard that the other dinners paused eating and gawked at us. After taking longer than it should have, it probably took some time for him to persuade his girlfriend, the boyfriend returned to the table. He was wearing his jacket, had loosened his tie and his shirttail was out, covering the front of his pants. His girlfriend wasn't with him but he had a big smile on his face.

Kathy and I were still giggling from when they left. I looked at Kathy who was desperately trying to keep a straight face. When the kid sat down, I turned to him and asked, "How'd it go?"

He looked at me, still beaming, and said, "It's my birthday. Best birthday yet." Kathy started laughing again and the kid and I joined her.

We were still laughing when his girlfriend returned. She must have made a repair stop in the ladies' room. She halted when she got to their table, saw us laughing and, looking confused, asked, "What?"

The boyfriend popped up from his seat, hugged her, pulled out her chair for her, kissed her on the cheek and said, "I love you."

She smiled and said, "I love you too, Baby. Happy birthday!" They held hands across the table.

Kathy and I went back to our discussion about Elizabeth's job offer. "Elizabeth really didn't ask about me giving BJ's did she? You were kidding, right?"

"It's a very conservative firm. She just wants to make sure you don't do the sort of stuff that might embarrass her or the firm."

Kathy, now angry, asked, "Did anyone ask you if you give blowjobs in bathrooms when you were hired?"

"No, but I wasn't hired by Elizabeth. If she was the one hiring me, she probably would have asked me that. She's just putting me on record saying that you're 'of good character'. That I vouch for you. You won't do anything too scandalous. Nothing that will embarrass them. She didn't seriously expect me to say anything bad about you."

"What did you say?"

"That you've never invited me into a men's room to give me a blowjob. I didn't tell her about you running topless through the sprinklers in the park last summer. Or that you and Ada had your shorts off ready to run through in your panties when we saw a park police car and you had to give it up.

"Seriously, though, I don't see you working for her as a problem for us. You should make your decision solely on what's better for you. Staying where you are or working for Elizabeth."

"She say anything else?"

"When we finished, she gave me the most evil grin and told me I'd better give you good advice. It was terrifying."

Kathy laughed, "She wouldn't really get you fired if I don't take the job?"

"I'm not worried about being fired. I'm worried about being disappeared. No one ever seeing me again. Her grin was that evil."

We finished our meal. I signed the credit card receipt and asked Kathy, "You ready?"

Kathy got up and grabbed my hand, pulling me away from the restaurant exit and toward the bathrooms. She said, "We have to use the men's room," loud enough for the boyfriend and girlfriend to hear.

I heard the girlfriend say, "Did you tell them what we did? Is that why you were laughing?" I didn't hear the boyfriend's response.

Kathy dragged me into the hallway where the men's and women's bathrooms are. I asked, "What are we doing?"

"I'm going to give you a blowjob in the men's room." Kathy looked around nervously.

"How about we do it in the car instead? Or we go home and I do you in bed."

"Don't worry, you'll get your chance with me later. We're going to do this. A thank you for dinner."

"How"

"I don't know. I've never done this before. I guess we lock ourselves in a stall. I'll sit on the toilet and you pull it out. Hopefully, no one calls the cops."

As we were coming out of the stall, there was a guy pissing in a urinal. Kathy was wiping her mouth with paper towels she had grabbed. They looked at each other and Kathy said, "I work for BJ's Unlimited. Do you want my business card?" He quickly looked away, eyes fixed on the urinal.

When we were in bed, after having, as Kathy put it, got my chance, I asked, "What was blowing me in the men's room about?"

"We probably won't do that again. I don't know. The idea that I won't do anything scandalous is upsetting. I still want to do outrageous things. I'm too young to be settled in. I still need excitement. I worry that I'll become another Elizabeth, getting my kicks by terrorizing young, handsome, sexy account executives like you. I don't want to turn into a proper, staid, tight-assed woman like Elizabeth. It scares me. I still want to run through sprinklers in the park in my panties.

"But the whole time we were in that stall I just wanted to go home. I kept thinking, 'We'd be so much more comfortable doing this in bed at home. This is silly'. I usually enjoy you but I couldn't wait for you to finish. I don't want to be an adult with responsibilities and I'm worried that's what I'm turning into. Look at the two kids we ate dinner next to. They probably really enjoyed their blowjob in the bathroom. It was exciting. Something to tell their friends about. Brag about. They're not worried about what people will think. They're just having fun. Enjoying their freedom. Enjoying their youth."

"So it wasn't exciting giving me a blowjob in the men's room. Would you have liked it better if you gave the kid sitting next to us tonight a blowjob instead of me?"

"No. I don't know him. I've never been interested in random hookups."

"What about if it was your ex instead of me. Would you have found that exciting?"

"You mean Tom? You know his name. Let's call him Tom instead of 'ex'. OK?"

"Why? Is he no longer your ex?"

"No, Tom is still my ex. Stop it."

"You haven't answered the question. If it had been your ex, would it have been exciting?"

"I don't know. Yes and no. I don't want you to take what I'm going to tell you the wrong way. You're part of the culture at your work. If I take the job, I'm afraid I'll conflate you and the job. I may already be doing that. If I do something that Elizabeth disapproves of, it reflects on you. I'll have to keep my nose clean not just because it affects me and my job but also because of you. I don't want any blowback on you for something I do. I'm afraid you'll end up being my conscience: 'Will this affect Jerry?' 'What would Jerry say?' 'Will Jerry be embarrassed?'. I'll have to look at what I do through your eyes."

I didn't like where this was going but I asked, "So it wasn't exciting giving me a blowjob in the men's room because you were thinking that Elizabeth would disapprove? And I represent Elizabeth to you? I brought Elizabeth into the stall with us?"

"Where I'm working now is a lot like being in college. Everyone's young. Everyone wants to party. Tequila shots for everyone at noon if someone scores a big commission. Random hookups. Getting high before a client meeting. No one judges anyone else. At least not to their face."

"I don't understand. That's what you do at work? Party, drink Tequila, get high. Hook up with your co-workers?"

"No, I don't do any of that. I didn't even do that in college. I was never a party girl. It's the atmosphere. Everyone's young and carefree. I feel young and carefree. I feel I can still do whatever I want. No one would disapprove. They're all doing the same or worse. Working with Elizabeth will be different. It's not that I suddenly want to be a party girl. I just want to feel as though I still can be. I can still do whatever I want and not feel as though Elizabeth is going to be shaking her finger at me, disapproving and disappointed in me. And you disapproving and disappointed.

"If I want to give someone a blowjob in a men's room, I want it to be your dick. No one else's. You wanted to know if I would be more excited if it were Tom in the bathroom stall instead of you. The honest answer is I don't know. Maybe. He and I did a lot of crazy things together that were very exciting.

"I just don't want to feel as though I can't do crazy stuff like that anymore. That it's all over. If I take the job, I feel I'll have to put all that in the past. I'm sorry but you're beginning to represent the job in my mind.

"It's not you. You just had a blowjob in a bathroom. You're up for anything. If I did anything which would get me in trouble with Elizabeth I'll have done it with you. But I still want to run with the bulls. If I take on all these responsibilities, I'm afraid if I did run with the bulls, I'd spend the whole time worrying about what's happening at work rather than enjoying the adventure."

I laughed, "Ada wanted to run with the bulls. Look where it got her."

"I didn't mean it like that. I meant in Pamplona. You're bull enough for me. But accepting the job with Elizabeth means I have to behave like a grown up. I'm not sure I want to leave my youth behind. I don't want to be like Elizabeth. I want to be outrageous. I don't want to worry about what people at work will think.

"Right now, we have a wonderful, fun, easygoing relationship. You're up for anything. You don't really ask anything of me. You're happy with me as I am. At least that's the way it seems. You don't complain about me, don't want to control me like Tom always did. If I take the job, I'm worried that may change."

"Why don't you cut it off completely with him. From what you've told me, it was a toxic relationship."

"Tom and I have been together, off and on, since high school. The time I've been with you is the longest he and I have been apart. He reminds me of younger days. Free, unrestrained, exciting days when I felt the whole world was there for my own personal amusement. When he comes around, I remember old times with him. Fond memories. It's hard to close that door."

I said, "I don't want to be your conscience. I don't want to represent a job to you that makes you feel like you're not being true to yourself. Maybe we should take a break. Sort out your feelings about me, about your ex and what you want to do. I think you have stronger feelings for your ex than you let on. Then you even admit to yourself. Maybe that's the solution. Get back with your ex. Then you can be the staid, proper, tight-assed executive at work and after work you and your ex can run with the bulls."

Kathy looked at me, trying to read on my face what I was really saying, "Is that what you want?"

"I don't think you've resolved things with your ex."

"I guess not. One way or another, that has to happen. But let's not talk about him. I have two concerns about the job. The one we've been talking about. I just have to separate you from the job. When I think about work, I'll think about Elizabeth. When I think about you, I'll think about how much I love being with you. I can separate you at work from you at home. Can you do the same with me?"

"What'd you mean?"

"What I'm really worried about is you. What happens if we're no longer together. We'd still see each other at work every day. That may prove difficult."

"So we are breaking up."

Kathy didn't answer for a long time. That made me very uneasy. Finally, she said, "Shit happens. The world is not a rational place. People don't think with their brain, they think with their hormones Their dicks and pussies. Who knows where we'll be in a month or a year. Or even in a week. Even if I worry about conflating you with Elizabeth, working there and living with you are two different things. I don't want one to affect the other. Especially, if one or the other doesn't work out. If we're not together anymore will it be a problem seeing me at work?"

"Are you asking if I'll go to Elizabeth and bad mouth you if we break up?"

"No. I'm worried about you. How you'll feel."

"Don't worry about me. Just do what's best for you. But if we're going to stay together, you have to resolve things with your ex. If we break up, I'll survive."

"Don't worry about me. Just do what's best for you. If we break up, I'll survive. But if we're going to stay together, you have to resolve things with your ex."

"I have to talk to Tom."

Kathy's head was on my chest, leg across my legs, slowly running the tips of her fingers over my balls and dick. I didn't ask what she had to talk to him about. But she started to stroke my cock, ready for another round. I took that as a good sign.

When we finished, before we drifted off to sleep, I asked "What're you going to do about the job?"

Kathy sighed and said, "I don't know. I can learn a lot from Elizabeth. She offered me a five-year contract and the money's really good. It's time for me to move on from Ada. Now that she's no longer marrying Arthur and leaving the job, it would be hard to extricate myself from her if I continue to work there. And I need to separate from Ada. This business with Arthur was nuts. You don't sleep with clients and Ada knows that. It never ends well. She just didn't care. She thought she'd found her sugar daddy and he would be her ticket out of the working class."

"What about your ex?"

"I don't know. If I take the job with Elizabeth, I won't be at the bar after work anymore so I won't be seeing him. As I said, I have to talk with him. I need to meet with him."

"What are you going to tell him?"

Kathy looked at me and shrugged, "I don't know. I have to think about it."

Kathy decided to take the job with Elizabeth and gave her two weeks' notice. She called me from work late in the afternoon on the Friday before she was starting at her new job the following Monday. "The gang here is giving me a going away party at the bar tonight so I won't see you until later. We'll need to talk when I see you." Kathy said, "when I see you" and not "when I get home." Was this no longer her home or was I overthinking things?

"What do we need to talk about?"

"Well, wait until I see you." Kathy paused for a while and said, "Things are going to be different. We're going to be working at the same company, seeing each other a lot during the day. We should figure out how to navigate that."

We'd already talked about how we'd work together. The only reason we'd need to do it again is if something has changed. If things, as Kathy put it, were going to be different. Kathy wasn't going to tell me what she wanted to talk to me about but I had my suspicions. So I asked her, "Should I come to the party? Meet you at the bar?"

She was quiet again but finally said, "Probably not a good idea. Ada's going to be there. And............. Tom is also going to be there. I'm going to tell him about you, what I've been doing these past months. So he'll know. I don't want a big scene. I don't want you to get upset. Or him. I don't want a fight." She sounded very nervous.

My heart froze. Kathy told me repeatedly that she was only going to tell her ex about us only if she was planning to get back together with him. Our relationship would become his business because she doesn't want to hide anything from him. So she was subtly letting me know she's getting back with him. Telling me without saying it directly. I always figured that she would get back with her ex. She never seemed willing to let him go. Sooner or later this was coming. I just didn't know how much it would hurt. Or how angry I would get.

I felt like my insides were contracting, a sick feeling. I was having trouble catching my breath. I was also really pissed off, "So you invited your ex to your little party to tell him about us because you've decided you can't live without him. That's why you were so worried about taking a job where I work. Worried about me. 'It'll be so hard for poor Jerry to see me every day at work after I've dumped him.' You used me to get a job with Elizabeth. Now that you have the job, you don't need me anymore.

"That's why you want to talk later. To tell me you're leaving me for him. There's no need to talk. Nothing you need to explain. Don't come back here. Just go home with him. You can pick up your shit over the weekend. You want to know how we should navigate things at work? Don't talk to me. Ever. I don't want to know you."

I hung up on her. She called me back three times, probably worried that I'll run to Elizabeth and try to convince her to not hire Kathy. I ignored her calls.

When I got home from work, Kathy was sitting on the couch. Her arms were crossed with one leg over the other, shaking her foot with impatience. Charlie, my dog, was lying on the couch, his head in her lap. He didn't leave Kathy to greet me. He's always excited to see me but tonight he just looked at me. I guess he felt the atmosphere. He seemed angry at me. He must have sensed that Kathy was furious with me.

I stopped after I closed the door and said, "What are you doing here? You here to pick up your things? Where's your ex, out in the car? Too chicken to come in? Oh right, I forgot, he's not your ex anymore. I'm not supposed to call him that."

"Shut up and sit down." Kathy pointed to the recliner across from where she was sitting. "I'm not interested in any more of your nonsense. I need to talk to you and you need to listen."

I went to get a beer out of the refrigerator, opened it and leaned against the counter. The kitchen opens on the living room so we could see and hear each other. "You want to talk, talk. I'm not sure I'm interested in anything you have to say. I think I already know how this ends."

"You can't sit down?"

"Talk."

Sounding less angry, Kathy started, "I didn't invite Tom tonight. Ada goes to the bar every night with Sam and the others now that she's no longer engaged. She says Tom comes by every night, looks in the bar for me and leaves if he doesn't see me. I figured he'd come by and see me tonight. We could have our talk.

"I planned to tell him about us and that I want to be with you, that there's no chance he and I will ever be together again. I was going to tell him that I love you. I was going tell him about us because I want him to get on with his life. And out of mine. If I tell him how I feel about you, maybe he'll finally move on. I've been too cowardly to tell him that I'm in this wonderful relationship with you. But it's time. Way past time. I wanted to talk tonight when I got home to tell you that. I also want to talk about our future together. If you aren't serious about me, we won't need to talk. There won't be anything to talk about.

"I came home instead of going to the bar because you were so upset. I don't know where you got the idea that I was going back to Tom."

I interrupted her, "When I asked what you were going to do about your ex, you told me you didn't know. You kept asking me if it would be a problem for me seeing you at work if we broke up. You said you weren't going to tell him about us unless you went back to him. That and other things you've been saying is where I got the idea that you're going back to him. What was I supposed to think?"

"I told you I didn't know what I was going to tell Tom. I meant I didn't know how I was going to tell him that he and I were completely done. There is no future he and I have together. I decided the best way to do that is tell him about you.

"I kept asking if you could separate our working together from everything else. Breaking up was just the worst-case scenario. I wasn't telling you that we were actually going to break up. I was asking if you could leave work stuff at work. Not bring our personal stuff to work or work stuff home. I don't want to come home to an interrogation because I took a client out to lunch and it lasted longer than an hour. Or I talk to someone at work and you get jealous and angry at me. Or I did something else you thought was inappropriate and you want to "correct" my behavior." Kathy did air quotes.

"That was my life with Tom. With him, it was always something I shouldn't have done or something I should have done instead. You're not Tom but I don't want to have that relationship with you. I'll always be concerned about what you think. I'll always consider your feelings first. Of course you can talk to me about anything you want. I just don't want to be managed. Or shamed. I want to come home and snuggle in your arms. Leave work at work as much as possible.

"I'm never going to cheat on you. I'm not going to stay here with you if I want to be with someone else. If I ever did become interested in someone else, I'll tell you. I don't need you for security. I don't need your money. I don't need to live here. I don't need this job. I want to be here with you because I love you, you idiot.

"I want to go forward with you, not backwards with Tom. I thought you knew that. If you think I played you just to get a job, I'll call Elizabeth right now and tell her I'm not going to work for her. The job isn't as important to me as you are. I don't want you ever to think I'm somehow using you.

"Besides," Kathy smiled, "I got the job because I'm good at what I do. Getting a job is another thing I don't need your help with. I really just need you for sex. I guess I am using you. But just for sex. Pull it out now and I'll help you carry it to the bedroom."

Then, more serious, Kathy continued, "I came home instead of having the discussion with Tom. I won't be working there so I won't be going to the bar anymore. So I'll just disappear from Tom's life. Maybe that's for the best. But it doesn't matter, he's out of my life, our life, for good. I really don't owe him any explanation. Ada's interested in him. If he needs consoling, I'm sure Ada will be there for him. That's fine with me.

"If you want to talk about us, sit the fuck down so we can talk. If you don't, just stand there like a jerk and drink your beer. I'll go walk Charlie. He'll be better company."

I still didn't know what to say so I thought some levity might help, "OK, so I don't have to worry about you taking him to the men's room and giving him a BJ?"

Kathy didn't say anything. Just looked at me disappointed. I guess she expected a different response. So I walked over and sat in the recliner across from her. She smiled her radiant smile and said, "Well, I didn't say that. Just because I was going to tell him to get lost doesn't mean he wouldn't get a BJ. I've given twelve blow jobs in men's rooms today and I thought Tom would be thirteen."

"Remind me later not to kiss you on the mouth."

"I'll kiss you somewhere else. I missed out on Tom so you can be my thirteenth today."

"Kathy, there's nothing more I want to do than talk to you about our future together. I'm not interested in friends with benefits anymore. I want a future with you. I love you too."

Kathy came over, sat in my lap, put her arms around me, kissed me and said, "Good to hear. Finally. We are definitely way past friends with benefits."

Charlie came over and put his chin on my knee, no longer mad at me. I scratched his head. I guess the three of us are now a family.