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Hot Summer Desires pt 1
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I stood, stupidly, looking in the mirror after splashing my face with cold water. I was also looking for an explanation, which I didn't find there. After a pretty darn good round of sex, I'd been slapped hard, figuratively and literally, in the face.
Plenty was going through my mind just then, and I suppose I wondered what I would do next. Then I thought about our collective past...
Theresa Daniels, nee McDowell, was my wife. We'd been together for fifteen years as a married couple but I had known her for four years before that, going back to high school. To say Terri, (her nickname used by only a few select people, including me), and I weren't close would be an understatement. I was a pompous kid who felt I always had something to prove. Terri wasn't having any of it though. Whenever I tried to ask her out, I was quickly rebuked. In public, Terri often got the better of me in a back-and-forth war of words.
By my senior year, I'd learned the hard way to stay far away from Theresa McDowell.
College was a more defining time for me. I got along well with the guys I hung around with, and I had equal success with the ladies. I realized somewhere along the way that I could do just fine being myself.
The summer after my freshman year, I was home and attending a party with my old high school buddies. A group of people arrived while several of us were playing beer pong. My team won and I headed off into the kitchen area to get a fresh drink. There I felt a tap on my shoulder.
"Hey Tom," I heard as I turned. To my shock, there was Terri dressed in a white frilly halter top and tight jeans that were ripped at the knees, wearing an equally sexy smile. Behind that smile though, there was nervousness or anxiety, as if she feared I might rebuke her.
"Hi, Terri," I said cautiously, looking at the doorway to see if we had an audience. By my way of thinking she might have been there to pull a prank.
"Slumming it tonight?" I asked with a grin. Terri shrugged her shoulders, not answering the ridiculous question.
We settled into a meager if not meaningless conversation about our first year of college, our classes, and other general topics. Finally, she took in a deep breath and said, "If you're free over the summer, maybe you'd like to hang out sometime?"
Her choice of words wasn't lost on me. "You mean like going to the beach or the library?" I played dumb. "Like as in friends?"
Her expression changed. She had about as much trust in me as I had in her.
"No, silly!" she said a bit louder. "Hang out as in go out. Like a date."
"Well, that would be more fun," I jabbed. "What are you doing next Friday night, and do you like midnight bowling?"
Terri seemed to be considering what I asked. I think she expected a fancy dinner somewhere. Raising my eyebrow slightly told her I was serious.
"I've never been bowling," she admitted. "Well, not since I was a kid. Are you sure it'll be fun?"
"I'm sure," I replied. "It will give us a chance to get to know each other. We haven't exactly been friends, and we've both been gone for a year."
Terri and I had a great time. She was actually a lot more fun than I thought she'd be. She also seemed to enjoy my more mature personality and we talked about plenty. She admitted that she thought I was a cocky bastard in high school, plus she had a few steady boyfriends.
I told her I kinda of thought the same about her but admitted that I never took the time to get to know her. Needless to say, we spent a great deal of time together that summer.
The only serious argument we had that summer happened at a dance club when a very drunk and obnoxious former high school boyfriend came to our table and asked her to dance without ever acknowledging me. Terri just headed out to the dance floor with him, never giving me a second look. There were a few things about Terri that night that should have sunk in, or at least stayed in the back of my mind, but I was young and dumb.
When Terri returned to our table after three dances, two fast and one slow, she didn't even get seated before she saw my mad, red face.
"What?" she tried to play it off. Then she broke eye contact. I launched into her about the lack of respect, and everything else.
"Tom," she started in a disciplinary tone, "Dave didn't mean anything by it. We went out for more than half our junior year."
I don't know if she was playing stupid or trying to get the upper hand but I wasn't going to play along.
"Sure, but you're not seeing him now, are you?" I asked with anger in my voice, and she shook her head. "Well, that's something I suppose. What I do know is that you're out with me. He didn't bother to ask, and you just went with him, without a care in the world. I mean, I can leave if you two need some alone time!"
As soon as I began, I realized I was reverting to my former self. I could at least act like an adult and state my case at the same time.
I didn't have to correct myself though, because I got the full complement of Terri's Irish heritage. She went off on me in the club, making a spectacle for all to see. Thank God the music was so loud.
Her attack was so fierce that I didn't have time to respond, let alone the mental acuity to formulate any coherent responses, so I just let her give it to me, both barrels, right there in the club. When she finally wore herself out, she took several breaths and then a long pull of her beer. Most of her diatribe had been ranting with no real substance.
"The next time you do that to me," I stared hard at her, "we're done. You hear me? Completely and totally done."
I got up and left her sitting there as I headed for the door. I decided to move slowly toward my car in the parking lot just to see if she picked up on the lifeline I'd tossed her way.
As I slid into the driver's seat, Terri was at my door, almost begging me to wait. "Please, Tom, wait!" she half-wailed. "I'm sorry, okay?" She decided that was a good place to stop talking.
"Sorry for raging," I began. "Sorry for making a fool of yourself and me, or sorry for the disrespect you showed me when DAVE took you out on the dance floor?"
Terri and I did talk a lot that night sitting in my car, both in the parking lot, then after the drunks started piling out, sitting in front of her parents' home. We talked about her over-the-top anger and how it manifested. We talked about all of our past relationships and most importantly, talked seriously about fidelity. I made it clear, and she agreed, what the dance etiquette was going forward, although she admitted that she was still having a hard time understanding what had set me off. I found getting myself under control a little difficult at first, but then I explained it to her, and I must have found the right words.
That turned out to be a breakthrough conversation for us as a couple. Terri had a clear roadmap of what I considered to be cheating, disrespectful, and out-of-bounds.
We went back to our respective schools, mine Michigan State, and hers Ohio State. The town we grew up in, north of Detroit by almost an hour, was a tight-knit community of only five thousand or so residents. Everyone knew everyone else's business. We called each other almost every night for the first two months. I looked forward to us being together for Thanksgiving.
As soon as I pulled up to her parent's house the day before Thanksgiving though, she came out solemnly and I knew something was wrong. I feared the worst; that she'd found somebody else.
"I quit school," Terri said as soon as she got in my car.
"Why?" I asked, stunned. "It's your junior year. What happened?"
Terri seemed embarrassed and didn't answer, looking for the right words, I guess. "Social reasons." She finally said.
"What do you mean?" I asked trying to pull the information from her.
"The people I was around," she answered with a deep sigh. "My roommate for one."
Terri went on to tell me that her dormmate was a promiscuous little minx who was constantly trying to get Terri to go to frat parties with her. The only other friends she'd made were in fact, the roommate's friends more than hers, and acted just as slutty.
"You could have simply said 'no'," I told her.
She nodded, but added, "I could have but the peer pressure was too intense. I wasn't going to cheat on you."
That last bit took me aback. "So you wanted to do the things your friends were doing?"
"No, it wasn't like that," she responded. "Honestly, Tom, I could have done some things. I mean I'm not very experienced, except with what we've done together. But I didn't want that reputation. The guys there, I mean, they're more immature than the guys I dated in high school. I didn't want to be known as the campus bicycle."
What she said made perfect sense but I realized her main reason didn't involve me - her boyfriend. That also threw me for a loop.
Terri and I had a low-key holiday with family. She seemed nervous - afraid even - of my returning to school. There wasn't much I could do to calm those fears.
None of it mattered, in the end as I received a life-changing call on January 23rd.
"Tom, it's Terri," she said, too formally. After a pause, she cried out, "I'm pregnant!"
Plans were made. My schooling was put on hold. I packed up my belongings and moved back home. A shotgun wedding ensued. Everything moved so fast and everyone who had an opinion gave it. Oftentimes, I felt like I was riding the Tilt-a-whirl right after winning a hot dog eating contest.
Both sets of parents were very supportive. I only occasionally saw the look of disappointment on their faces. They chipped in to get us an affordable two-bedroom apartment and they were already buying diapers and other child necessities before Terri was at the six-month mark. Terri's dad helped me get a job at Watson Builders, Inc., a decently sized contractor in the area. My dreams of designing houses and other structures would have to wait.
Through all the chaos, Terri and I grew closer. That was something that always made me feel warm in my heart. She could have been bitter, but she always made lemonade instead. There was tangible love in our hearts for one another.
Steven Riley was born on August 29th, a healthy beautiful boy. He was a week early, but as strong as an ox. Terri and my life had been enriched beyond belief.
After Steven's first birthday, Terri found a job in the county library thirty hours a week, while both her Mom and mine helped take care of our boy.
I started taking night classes online toward my degree. Money was tight, there was no way to spin it. We were on a wing and a prayer, just like the song says.
I took strength in Terri's tenacity. She was a fighter for her family and she inspired me at the times she looked wiped out and fatigued but pushed through. Amidst all the hustle and bustle, I made plans to get away with Terri for a short weekend once per month so we could reconnect in our love.
Her job at the library didn't hold up for long when Terri announced she was again pregnant. I worked a lot of overtime whenever I could and was able to work with the apartment complex to lease an end unit downstairs. It was still two bedrooms but had about another three-hundred-fifty square feet.
With the birth of Angela Lynn, the absolute apple of my eye, I was also given a promotion to site foreman. Terri went back on the pill as soon as she could.
We worked hard to provide for and raise our kids right. I finally caught a break when Steven was twelve years old. By that point, both Terri and I had become experts at managing our meager finances. Having two devoted sets of parents and living in a small community certainly helped. I had received my degree just a month earlier and was offered a job in my field of architectural engineering with Burton Industries, a regional company about halfway between our town and Detroit. Our monthly income immediately doubled and I was doing the work I loved. After working for Burton for just a few months, Terri and I bought a four-bedroom house just outside the city limits.
Those few years were great for our family. The children thrived and my wife and I settled into our patterns. Terri went back to work part-time at the library when a position opened.
For me, though, my fondest memories would always be the years we struggled. We'd rarely fight, even though we were frazzled. We always made up and kissed each other goodnight with a sincere "I love you."
The mundane life of having enough, but still barely getting by seemed to dull our senses. We had money but the kids always needed something. The house always needed something. I started to wonder if we'd ever get far enough ahead to truly relax.
Then a pandemic hit. Almost nothing was being built, except by large national companies. Burton held on to their employees as best they could. I was working on-site as well as drawing plans. Others in my department either left on their own or were let go for not agreeing to do more work for the same pay. Terri remained at the library until the day it closed.
As the virus subsided, we found ourselves with a new problem - several problems all at once. The housing market dried up. Prices skyrocketed as developers tried to right their greedy ships. Folks, including many from our town, were moving from blue states to red, and vice versa, desperately trying to find their villages and live near like-minded people. Remote work emptied the office buildings of traditional workspaces. Many were empty with 'for lease' signs out front.
Eventually, for Burton's very survival, fifteen of their twenty-one remaining employees were laid off. I was one of them.
Terri and I had built a small savings account of five thousand dollars. I had an additional fourteen grand in my 401K. We were in trouble again.
Our part of the country usually had more than our fair share of snow each year. Our town, being on a large river that fed water from one great lake to another, saw a lot of that lake-effect snow. That year, though, we had April showers and May flowers. Spring arrived early.
And the heat was unbearable for June. Muggy and in the mid-nineties for two weeks. Terri and I were coming unglued. Neither of us wanted to blame the other, but we often did, I think, even if just in the back of our minds.
"Mom, Can't we turn the air conditioner on for just a little while," my then fifteen-and-a-half-year-old daughter, Angela whined just before dinner. "I'm like, dying here!"
Her seventeen-year-old brother Steven was old enough to understand our financial woes but still looked hopeful. That was a very low point in my life. One the lowest. I couldn't provide for my family, and even though I knew it wasn't necessarily my fault, it hurt.
Terri saw the discomfort on my face but never broke with her half-smile. "No kids, I'm sorry," she told them soothingly. "Use the spray bottle on your face, sit in front of the fan, or go out and run through the sprinkler." The kids huffed and went outside.
My wife's mood seemed to improve in the week leading up to the Fourth of July. Our parents and Terri's brother, Peter and his family, were coming for a big barbeque like always. This year they were bringing the meat and most of the fixings. I tapped our savings for a little money and took the kids to the fireworks stand.
In addition, Maggie our neighbor was always a staple at every family get-together. There was a specific reason for that. Maggie was a widow who'd already been living in our neighborhood when we bought the house. Even though I had just gotten a job and Terri was going to work at the library, we were still catching up on our bank account.
Maggie offered to watch the kids when needed, which was only three or four days a week. She also picked them up from school until they were old enough. The kids loved her warm caring spirit and remained close to her even as they grew into adulthood.
Stan, Maggie's husband, and 'love of her life' as she often referred to him was a fighter pilot in the Navy. He died suddenly during a 'training accident' over the Mediterranean. Maggie was a salt-of-the-earth type with an extremely positive outlook on life. I asked her about it one day when Terri had to cover an extra four-hour shift at the library.
"I grew up in the church," she told me. "Although I'm not a church-goer, I believe in being kind to everyone and not judging them. That doesn't mean I'm not judgmental at times, because I'm only human. I believe that people reap what they sow. Everyone. Since I can only control myself and my actions, that's what I try to do."
While Terri and I were thirty-eight, Maggie was forty-five. She kept herself in great shape, claiming her Pilates class as the reason. Had I not known her age, I would have easily pegged her around the same as my wife and me.
"Wow!" I answered. "That's incredibly insightful, the way you explained it, I mean. Very good advice. Did your husband subscribe to the same values?" I realized then I had never mentioned her hubby out of respect.
"To a point," she sighed while stirring the spaghetti sauce. "He was a big dreamer, but we complimented one another, and I was very content to be his wife. I'll always love him. So much so, that I'm only going to ever be with another man if it's God's will. I'll not go looking for another love."
I always found Maggie's outlook on life refreshing, not only because she had it, but also, because she lived it.
The barbeque was a success as always. Peter had brought a bunch of new microbrew beers that we sampled. I took it easy because I was always in charge of the pyrotechnics. The kids had a blast as Terri and our parents sat on the deck sipping wine. The entire day helped me forget our troubles.
Terri was feeling amorous after everyone left and the kids went to the city fireworks with friends. I was beat but never one to turn down my lovely wife.
"Leave that," she said in a sexy voice as I was helping to clean up. "We can do it in the morning. I want you - upstairs - now." Who was I to argue?
Bathing in the afterglow of a wonderful love-making session, Terri leaned into my chest, fitting perfectly.
"I've found a solution to our money problems," she said softly and sweetly. I almost missed the words. Almost.
"What? What solution?" I asked moving my head so I could look down at her.
"A few weeks ago, I found an advertisement on Instagram for a TV game show," she continued. I applied and was accepted. The grand prize is $350,000."
I felt like I couldn't breathe. I quickly disentangled with her and sat up. "What do you mean, you were accepted? What kind of game show - like Jeopardy?"
"I filled out an application, never thinking I had a real shot, but heard back from them last week. It's a reality show, sort of a cross between Survivor and that one where all the people lived in that big house - oh yeah, Big Brother."
"No way! Absolutely not!" I was angry and stern but I knew I sounded a bit pathetic too. "No way am I letting my wife go on one of those trash shows and get used and abused, or worse. Do you know what happens? Of course, you do - you watched some of them!"
"Come on, honey," she tried a comforting approach. "It's not as bad as you're thinking. Nothing is going to happen that will embarrass you or our family, I promise. I'd never let that happen."
I took several deep breaths. I shouldn't have had to explain to her in the first place, and I was beside myself with anxiety.
"Terri, listen to me," I restarted. "Those shows are all about the deep fakes. The people on Big Brother are a bunch of wannabee Hollywood stage actors. One hundred percent of the guys in our neighborhood could outlast anyone on 'Naked and Afraid' or 'Alone'. Hell, I'm not any kind of survivalist, but even I know you fish for the first day, eat like crazy, and then expend energy to build a shelter. Doing it in any other order would be suicide, never mind roaming the forest, foraging for mushrooms, or trying to take down a full-grown black bear with a bow and arrow.
"So, just the fact that they're either using real, actual contestants or bullshitting you about it, sends up a major red flag."
The logic seemed to have taken some of Terri's steam, but then she changed tactics and went on offense.
"We need the money, Tom," she stated. "If I win, it's life-altering money for us. If I come in second, it's still one hundred thousand. It's just a bunch of couples doing challenges."
She wasn't going to listen to reason. "So then, who's your better half?"
"What?" she asked, not quite getting it.
"You said couples," I threw her words back at her. "Who's your other half?"
At least she blushed. "The couples, well, not really couples... more like teammates are selected before the first show airs."
"Terri," I replied as sternly as possible. "There are obviously things you're not telling me. My answer is no. No way is my wife going whoring on some stupid reality show and ruining all of our lives and reputations no matter how much money is at stake."
That's what earned me the hardest slap of my life.
>>>>
I stood in the bathroom looking at myself in the mirror and the guy looking back seemed ten years older. My shoulders slumped. I dried my face with the towel. I wanted to go out there, grab my wife by the shoulders, and just shake her.
The thought of that previous thought told me Terri and I were done for the night. I'd never raised a hand to a woman, any woman, let alone my wife, but I was no longer in control of my emotions.
Stoically, I walked back into our room, staring daggers at my wife.
"I'm sorry..." she began, "I shouldn't have..." I held up my hand in a grand gesture.
"Not now," I stated. "No more tonight. I can barely stand the sight of you. I'm going to bed."
As I grabbed my pillow and started for the hallway, Terri watched me closely. "Wait, Tom," she tried with all her might to use a soft nonconfrontational tone. "We need to talk about this, I know you're upset. Please let me explain it."
"I said, not now!" I couldn't help raising my voice. "Tomorrow. I'm tired and a little out of my mind with you, trying to spring this on me after... Never mind."
"Tom!" she sounded borderline hysterical as I started towards the spare room. "I need you to listen to me. We don't have time. My flight leaves Sunday afternoon to the island."
I stopped dead. That's how I felt too. I leaned just my head back into our room and glared. "Just perfect, Terri. You're a secretive conniving bit... on top of everything else."
Needless to say, sleep didn't come easy, if at all. I know I dozed off a few times, but it was like watching golf on TV after a big lunch. Every time I opened my eyes I simply had to recall the nightmare my life had suddenly become.
I had coffee ready in the morning. The kids would be sleeping in since they were out so late. Terri came in wearing her long robe just like any other Saturday morning.
"Hey," she said sorrowfully. I replied in kind and sat down with my coffee and a bagel. I didn't ask her if she wanted one.
"First," she said, "I want to apologize for how I sprang that on you last night. That was thoughtless, I know. I've been meaning to tell you... for a week now, at least. I just couldn't quite find the words or the right time."
"The right time would have been before unilaterally decided to do it." I admonished.
"Can I please explain without you losing your mind?" she asked pleadingly. It was a look I'd gotten many times over our marriage. What once seemed endearing, now seemed cheap. "Calling me a bitch to my face, I'm going to let that go this one time because I could see how angry I made you."
"Sure," I answered. "And sorry for losing my temper. We need to work this out." She looked hopeful and then prepared her little speech. It took her a moment to compose herself. I idly wondered how big of a lie she was building. That wasn't like my wife at all, or so I thought.
"Like I said," she finally got going. "I saw the ad and applied, and then last week, I was accepted. The show is called "Island Fire" and airs over eight weeks. It begins with a bunch of contestants and their 'partners', which they described as other contestants, all males, who team up with the women to compete by winning physical and mental challenges. Contestants, from both groups are voted off the show or asked to leave if they can't complete the tasks." She paused a moment looking at me.
I figured I knew where this was headed but decided to let her finish before I gave her the final 'no' to end it. Since I didn't open my mouth she carried on.
"I know what you're thinking," she said. "It's some trap for the contestants with a vile twist, or there will be tricks played on us because sex sells. That isn't it. I asked the questions. I'll give you the paperwork to look at."
"Terri," I couldn't take it anymore. "The paperwork was written by corporate studio lawyers. You'll be 'tricked' regardless of what you think or say, and by then, you'll already be there so you'll have little choice but to play along."
Her scowl told me it was time to switch directions. "We've always made it through tough times, Terri," I reminded her. "Remember that we live in a small town and we have very conservative neighbors and family. Any 'mistake' you make while on this show is going to bring an unbearable amount of scrutiny, probably something we won't be able to overcome. I want you to contact them right now and back out."
"I... I..." she stuttered. "Can't do that, Tom. I signed a contract with the executive producer. With the production company. They'll sue us."
"We don't have much for them to take, except this house," I warned.
"No." she looked left, then at me, then right. "No. No. I've already committed. Why can't you understand? I'm never going to jeopardize our marriage or our love."
"You already have," I let out an exaggerated sigh. "You acted unilaterally. You locked me out of a decision that should have been mutual. Then you kept a secret, knowing I wouldn't approve. Finally, you dump this on me one day before you're supposed to leave. One damned day, Terri!"
I was getting loud and animated. I walked away to the downstairs bathroom to throw water on my face. That's when I realized how bruised my cheek was from her slap the previous night. "Fuck her!' I thought. Just let her go and let the chips fall where they may.
When I came back into the kitchen Terri was giving me a look that I found unreadable. It was something between smug and apologetic.
"I'm sorry," she at least sounded sincere. "I broke trust by not telling you before but I knew you'd be... against it."
"You broke more than that," I pointed out. "How about respect? Even when money was extremely tight, did I ever make decisions behind your back? Did I ever disrespect you the way you've done to me? Did I ever...?"
"We're in one of those 'extremely tight' situations now, Tom," she cut me off. "I've found a way to correct it, not forever, but at least until you can find a decent job. If you would stop worrying about me possibly embarrassing you, you'd see that it's the right thing. I want us to be able to afford Christmas this year; maybe take the kids somewhere nice. I don't want to fight with you, because we won't see each other for a little over eight weeks. I'm telling you now, I won't embarrass you, or the kids, or anyone else. I'm... hoping you'll be proud of me when this is over."
I sat there saying nothing; just thinking. It occurred to me that for most of our married lives, I'd acquiesced to her, at least deferred whenever possible. Because of our money woes, I'd not been a very good leader of my family, instead trying to please her during the rough patches. Finally, I knew what to say.
"Terri," I stood up to face her. "I highly doubt that I'll be proud of you after this is over. But I want you to know that even if that happens, you and I have big problems to work out when you get back. The kids have one foot out the door, and soon it will be just you and me. After this little stunt, we're going to need to recommit to our marriage - if we end up having one left - and probably get a professional involved to help us."
It was Terri's turn to acquiesce to me, which felt abnormal. It proved how far off-balance our relationship was. She thanked me for giving her the opportunity and promised once again not to disappoint me.
My wife spent the rest of the day telling our kids, our parents, and telling Peter, his wife, and all her friends. Even Maggie appeared at our door at about five-thirty in the afternoon. I happened to answer.
"Hi, Tom," she said it more solemnly than usual. "Can I come in?" I honestly couldn't remember the last time she'd asked that question.
"Sure," I gave a quizzical look.
Terri came into the room. "Oh hi, Maggie," she said like Maggie was there to take her to the senior prom. "Thanks for coming on short notice. Let's go into the kitchen and I'll go through everything with you. I fully trust you but I know it's been a bit since you took care of the kids."
I let the two get started on their own, but then I went and sat at the table with them about ten minutes later. Terri was going over who needed to be where and when.
Maggie kept stealing glances my way and seemed to be only half-listening to my wife as she went over meals and the kids' after-school activities that would cause them to miss dinner. Steven already had his license and could use Terri's car to shuttle himself and his sister around. As soon as they were finished, Maggie stood, looking uncomfortable. I walked her to the front door.
"When did you find out about this?" Maggie asked as I opened the door for her.
"Last night, after the barbeque," I answered sadly.
"You poor man," she touched my cheek gently. "Well, I'll be here helping you out for eight weeks. If you feel the need, I'll be a good listener."
I thank my wonderful neighbor and bid her good night.
In bed, Terri started right in. It was a familiar dance we'd done forever.
"Do you want to get a bit naughty?" she asked seductively. "It will be a pretty long dry spell for both of us."
"We had sex Friday," I replied without emotion. "I'm emotionally exhausted and need some sleep."
Terri hesitated. It was slight and someone who didn't know her like I did wouldn't have noticed. Then she reached into my shorts and started stroking me. "Tom, I am going to be gone from you for two months... without you for two months. You don't like me now, but my love for you is strong, strong enough to endure...for us." She kept stroking, then whispering to me, "I want you to have a memory of us, of me, that will help us through, so we can resume when I return. Don't deny me!"
With that, she bent down and swallowed my stiff cock in one gulp. Try as I may and pissed as I was, it felt too good to resist. She didn't wait, stripping off her thong and positioning herself above me.
"I love you, Tom, I always have. You love me as well, and you want me now as I want you." I stared into her eyes with little emotion as she sank onto my rod, twerking and stuffing her nipples in my mouth. It felt good but I did not want to give in to what was now a selfish act, another selfish act. I fought my orgasm with every ounce of strength I had left.
She was out of control, alternately grinding and bouncing herself on my pelvis until she finally screeched in orgasm. It seemed to go on endlessly until she finally settled down, still looking at me for some sort of sign.
"Thank you, Sweetie, I love you." She kissed my forehead before rolling over. I went to sleep having no real confidence that our relationship or marriage would survive.
The morning found the bright sunlight pouring into our bedroom. The worst part of the summer heat wave was that the heat didn't dissipate during the night. I awoke with just the sheet over my calves.
Terri was up and moving about, walking back and forth from the bathroom to the bedroom. I figured out quickly she was busy packing. I'd decided before falling asleep that I wasn't going to make it easy for her. In the light of a new day, I felt even more strongly about it.
"Good morning, sleepyhead," Terri greeted me jubilantly. I sat up and glanced at her suitcase. It was our medium-sized travel bag, not the larger one in the set. We'd gotten them as a wedding present but rarely used them. Even a weekend excursion though would have prompted Terri to pack almost everything she owned. I made a mental note of that.
"Would you mind fixing breakfast this morning?" she sweetly asked. I was already about to gag with the pomp and circumstance of her lackadaisical attitude as if she wasn't abandoning her family for eight damn weeks.
Steven was asleep still. He always slept in on Saturday morning. Angela was getting ready for soccer practice. As a sophomore, I was proud of her being on the JV team.
The morning went by quickly. Terri seemed in the zone and we had little contact. I drove my daughter to practice and she had plans afterward, so she said her heartfelt goodbyes to her Mother before leaving. Later I drove my wife to the airport, most of the trip in complete silence. Finally, she found things to say.
"Honey," she started. "I know you're worried. I know you don't like this at all. Remember my promises. Even if they muck things up for ratings and viewership, remember it's all edited, and it's not as bad as it looks." She didn't think I picked up on her almost begging.
"You're not making things any better," I responded. "Not making me feel any better at all."
"Sorry," she said as we pulled up to departures. "Remember, I can't call you. In fact, my phone is at home. I left the show's paperwork on top of your laptop bag. There's a number to call in case of emergencies."
She wanted to make a big spectacle of saying goodbye but my heart wasn't in it. It was the first time I saw any kind of worry in her eyes. That almost made me smile.
That night I was surprised to hear from both sets of parents. I was equally dumbfounded by the way they treated me.
"How could you let her do this?" her father, Steve McDowell berated me. "Are you out of your damned mind?"
I did my best to calm their obvious fears the only way I could - I lied. That night I steadied myself to come up with at least the outline of a plan, instead of facing the third night in a row with little sleep. Considering that if everything was on the up and up, then things would be exactly as I'd told my wife before she left: we'd go on as a married couple but with definite counseling. However, I also had to plan for the worst.
Along with that, I wouldn't be able to afford counseling, or much else if I didn't find a job.
Maggie wouldn't be over until Tuesday night to help with dinner, as I had an interview that afternoon with a construction company across town that did many jobs in Ohio during the winter. When finished I checked on my kids and then put my head to my pillow.
I woke refreshed and pulled out the paperwork I'd reviewed the previous night - the ones Terri had left for me. At eight o'clock sharp I was on the phone using the number given. I had to keep it down since the kids were on summer vacation, other than my daughter's soccer, and still in bed.
Right away, I found out there was a three-hour time difference, so I'd need to try again later. It gave me some time to go over what I was going to say, think about the answers I might get in response, and settle down enough to not go off half-cocked.
From eleven until eleven-thirty, I was transferred several times and spent too long listening to elevator music. So much for an emergency number. Instead, it was an exercise in extreme patience. Finally, the man himself, Levi Jenkins, executive producer for Overboard Productions came on the line. After his formal greeting, I got right to it.
"My name is Tom Daniels. I need to get my wife off your show." I stated boldly.
"Ah, Mr. Daniels, is it," I could feel his smirking smarmy attitude through the phone. "I'm happy to address any concerns you may have, answer any questions, but I'm afraid we have a signed contract with your wife, um... Theresa. The show must go on, as they say."
I'd believed he would play it that way and I felt more positive knowing how I was going to address the situation.
"She signed that contract without consulting me," I began. "I have to believe that based on other reality shows I've seen, she was either tricked or coerced."
"We would never force a potential contestant to participate in one of our productions," he said confidently, cutting me off. "That would be unethical, and certainly open us up to scrutiny, if not legality. I'm sorry that you and your wife may have had some... problems communicating, but I assure you, she is well aware of how the show works, how the prize money can be attained and today, she along with all the other contestants are being briefed on all the little contingencies of the rules - including decorum - what is allowed and what isn't."
"Tell me about the show, then." I wanted him to see me as emotional, plowing through all my points of concern.
"I'll be happy to do that," he told me. "But, you need to understand first, that like any production of this nature, certain aspects come to light in real-time."
I didn't respond so he continued. "You may ask things I can't or won't be able to answer, either because they are integral to the success of the production, or because they haven't happened yet."
"What do the contestants have to do to win?" I asked straightforwardly.
"I'm going to skip ahead a bit, Mr. Daniels," he exclaimed. "Because I'm a busy man and I'm pretty sure I know what you want - what you're going to ask that's troubling you. What I can tell you is that in my business, sex sells. Otherwise, we'd have a show like this take place somewhere other than a tropical island. Will your wife be seen on TV by your friends and family in a skimpy bikini? Yes, that is the answer, but remember, she agreed to that. Will there be sexual innuendo? Of course, but it's a family show in primetime. Will there be challenges the contestants need to complete that involve some double entendres? Sure, but not any more than some of the performances you've seen on Dancing with the Stars."
"But how do they win?" I wasn't going to be deterred.
"That is for us to know," he was still cocky. "And for you and all the rest of America to find out. What I can tell you, without revealing too much is that like in all of our productions of this nature, there is a twist. Something the contestants will need to figure out for themselves if they want to have a chance at the grand prize. And, Mr. Daniels, I can say with assuredness that you too, will be very happy about the twist, provided your wife has the good sense to stick to her moral character."
Jenkins rushed me off the call, not letting me ask anything more, and bid me ado. Ten minutes later I made two calls, then I went into my Fidelity account and withdrew ten thousand of my $14,246.00. The remainder might cover the taxes.
I looked at my weather app, seeing it was already ninety-five degrees outside, and turned the air conditioner on full blast. I planned to leave it on.
The kids and I had a decent, laid-back meal that night. Angela dominated the conversation, talking about her friends at school and how amped up everyone was about Terri being on a major TV game show. It wasn't just our family because of the size of the town, everyone probably knew by then what was going on.
I felt better about my plan and in those few seconds of second-guessing myself, I reaffirmed my need to protect myself and my family if the worst happened. To me, there was about a ninety percent chance that Jenkins was just blowing smoke up my ass. He had a signed agreement, he'd said it himself. Whatever the producers were planning to throw at Terri and the rest, I didn't know, but I also didn't have much confidence in my wife to figure it out.
Terri was hotheaded and steadfast. She was certainly a good person. It was her character flaws, however, that led me down the path I embarked on. Those traits meant that she'd reach a conclusion and decide on a course of action before she could see the end of the shell game.
Terri was also a great wife and mother. I almost felt sorry for the shitstorm that might soon be her life, but she'd created the situation she was in. She also did so without including me.
Maggie made dinner the next evening, engaged as always with my children. I noticed for the umpteenth time how easily she drew the kids into conversation. She kept stealing glances at me too. After dinner, Steven and Angela helped clean up the kitchen and then headed to see their respective friends. Maggie poured us both a glass of wine and we sat at the table.
"How did your interview go?" she genuinely wanted to know.
"I think it went great," I told her. It really had. I felt I might be employed again by week's end, although it would be a step back from designing.
"How are you holding up, Tom, with this... bombshell?" I knew what she was asking.
"I'm not sure," I admitted. "I think I'm still in shock."
"Perhaps," she said pointedly. "But I think the initial shock wore off already. What I see in your eyes today is... I suppose contrivance. You seem like you've figured something out, or maybe you haven't but made plans anyway."
I was shocked but tried not to show it. Maggie had been a family friend for so long, but I had no idea she could read me like that.
"I don't have an all-seeing eye or crystal ball, Maggie," I responded. "But I also have to protect my family in case things go south on that show. I'm not going to allow my children or myself to be made public fools of."
Maggie sipped her wine reflectively. "I see. Tom, can I ask you something? Before Terri blindsided you with this, would you say in your heart, that the two of you had a good marriage? Even a great one, perhaps?"
"Yes I would," I stated honestly.
"Then I'd like to give you some advice - and because I care about all of you - advice is all it is. Can you try to let Terri work her way through this? Give her some benefit of the doubt and let it play out. I have a feeling she's going to figure out quickly how over her head she is and realize her mistake. What she does with that realization is the very thing that is going to matter when she returns to her family. Can you give her that chance?"
"I'll try," I told Maggie. "Actually, I can say for sure that I will."
The company called me the following morning and congratulated me, offering me the job. They asked if I could come in for orientation on Friday and I told them I'd be there. I was finally employed.
Wednesday night, Maggie and the kids sat in our living room waiting with great excitement and I baited breathe for the first episode to air.
The private island was very small and just south of the British Isle of Basse-Terre which most people referred to as Guadeloupe.
I was surprised to see the name of the show - "Desire Island" - appear on the screen. Just another thing I'd need to file away under the 'lie' column. The women were from all over the U.S. and one from Canada. There were twenty-eight of them ranging in age from twenty-six to forty-four. Terri was in the median age but absolutely one of the hottest women to adorn a tiny bikini like they all wore.
The women were all interviewed about where they lived, what kinds of lives they lived, and a bit about their families. Only ten did not have children. All of them were in a committed relationship. Most were married. As I did the math, interview by interview, my stomach became queasy. Maggie noticed and instead of going to get me a beer during the commercial break, came back with a glass of my favorite whiskey on the rocks.
After reconfirming the basis of the game and rules for the TV audience, the women and their much younger and buffer gentlemen, were given their first task. The men were all in their mid to late twenties and every one of them looked the most handsome guy you'd pick out of a large crowd.
The first task turned out to be an affront to their real first task. The women were told they needed to pair up with one of the men that they considered to be both smart and fit if they wanted to make it to week two.
The final ten minutes showed the men and women sitting around a pool drinking fruity cocktails and getting to know each other in the tropical heat. The women had one big house and the men were housed next door to them. I saw that only as a tease to the viewers.
Terri was shown in a hallway inside the house by one of the bathrooms, quietly talking to Jules, an attractive blonde just a year my wife's junior. The two of them had figured out one of the unspoken rules; ally with someone you're competing against. The two asked some basic questions trying to discern if they could trust the other. After they got as much info as they could glean from each other, Jules told Terri she had a plan to get both of them the two best candidates for tomorrow's challenge. All she expected from Terri in return, was never to vote her off the island during the contestant pow-wows. It seemed to me that Jules overplayed her hand with my wife but I had deeper concerns.
I let out a sigh of relief when the show ended, and it wasn't only Maggie who noticed my physical discomfort. Angela gave me a curious look.
"Geez, Dad," she said with emotion. "You're really unhappy - no, you're really worried about Mom, aren't you?"
"Sis," Steven ran interference for me. As a nearly grown man, he must have figured it out or maybe had some of the same concerns as me. "How'd you like it if your boyfriend was one of the male contestants? Chasing all that hot cougar a..." He stopped dead.
Angela wisely didn't reply to the question. "EWWW! Steven was gonna say a..." Maggie laughed and so did I. It couldn't be helped.
The kids took off upstairs and Maggie reached for my hand. "See, that wasn't so bad," she tried to say with conviction. "I think she handled herself very well."
"She did," I had to admit. "But she's still traipsing around in a swimsuit that's two sizes too small for her."
Friday was the kind of rare day where a person feels like they are floating on air and that's exactly how I felt. The heat wave wasn't expected to break until the following Monday, and I used the relief of the silver sun shield on my car window to apply some additional deodorant. The orientation went very well, since it wasn't anything new for me, just different processes.
That night Maggie made a big deal of getting me to talk about everything that happened with her and the kids over dinner. She knew I was hurting, not having my wife there to share my big day. My children were genuinely delighted for me. They never asked about the air conditioner, oddly enough.
We settled in to watch Terri on TV. Right away, there was a twist. Of the twenty-eight female contestants, half of them had been sent home. Almost an equal amount of men had been sent packing as well.
The host spent way too much time being vague about why but it did pique the audience's interest in speculating what sort of unwritten rule had been the cause. The next challenge would involve brains over brawn and the field would again thin out by half. There would be seven female contestants remaining, and eight males. Since the focus was on the ladies, a quick tally of the math told me the last show would come down to two women.
The host gave away nothing about the upcoming task but encouraged the women to get to know their partners 'intimately,' in a plutonic way, of course, he told them with his fake teeth smile. Then he told them to make sure their partner knew as much as they were comfortable sharing, and even more if they wanted a shot at the grand prize. Both the men and women were free to stay with the partner from the last challenge or swap partners, but that had to be done that night (who knows how the show was edited). The rest of the show had the contestants pairing up. There was almost no airtime for my wife. Terri remained with her guy Travis, but since Jules was one of the casualties, she began a new alliance with a woman named Ivy.
After the show, Maggie kept me preoccupied by going over every detail of my schedule for the next two weeks. We needed to do it, but I couldn't help thinking about what a sweet, caring woman she was.
I was going out of town Monday through Wednesday and would return Thursday midday from a construction site in Toledo. Maggie offered to stay at my house with the kids, even though we both knew they were old enough to care for themselves. With all the changes I agreed right away.
"Maggie," I started. "Can I ask you something personal?"
"Sure, I think," she was smiling but also tentative.
"How come you never remarried?" I saw her face change. "Sorry! I'm sorry, that was too personal on my part."
"No," she responded. "No, I just wasn't expecting it." She took a deep intake of air and let it out. "I loved my husband, Dale, with everything I had in me. He was a wonderful man, besides being the true love of my life. I never liked him being in the service, so I suppose if I only had one thing to complain about, it would be that. The fact that it was the thing that took him from me permanently was almost too much to deal with at first.
"That first year almost broke me," she continued, sipping her coffee. "I saw him in my daydreams. I dreamt of him at night. The dreams were different only by place and circumstance. We were always separated, sometimes only by a hand's length. I couldn't get to him and he couldn't get to me. The look he gave me just before I violently woke up was probably a mirror of my expression to him. It always conveyed a deep sadness and regret that he was unable to perform that simple task - reach out that extra four or five inches and grab my hand. There was profound and genuine sorrow there."
"He sounds like an extraordinary man," I said with honor.
"He was," she agreed. "Eventually the dreams faded, but not my memories. Then I began to realize that I was trading my life for my memories, and he'd never want that. I'd never want it of him, had things been reversed. So I started to live again."
"I'm sorry we couldn't ever pay you more," I felt guilty just then.
"Money wasn't and isn't an issue for me," she gave a wan smile. "The government, in my humble opinion, does far more for their deceased than their wounded. Between the death benefits, insurance, and lifelong military pension, I'm in good shape. Dale also had a private life insurance policy his uncle had sold him. I never expected them to pay out, but they did. I owe nothing on the house or the car, and my monthly income far exceeds my expenses."
"Still..." I began but she waved me off.
"So, to answer your question," she finished, "I haven't found him yet. The next love of my life. I forced myself out into the world, doing charity stuff, helping your family. I even joined a widow's bridge club for a while. I was the youngest by far and decided it wasn't for me. When I meet him, I'll know."
Maggie's story had shaken me so much that I gave her a heartfelt hug. She accepted it with grace and then told me to get some sleep as she headed out the front door.
I laid in bed that night considering Maggie and her sad tale. The thing that struck me most was the comparison between Terri and my relationship and the one she had with her late husband, Dale. Terri was a driven person. Back then, I had been too. That's not to say I still wasn't, but things hadn't worked out the way either Terri or I had wanted or planned. Of course, we had our wonderful two children, but I couldn't help thinking that Terri saw me as a failure. She'd never said it out loud but the idea could have festered - made her think she needed to take control even for a short eight weeks.
If that was the case, and replaying our lives in my mind, I was beginning to see the validity of it, Terri and I had a bigger problem beyond any sexual shenanigans the TV show might get her caught up in. That aside, I knew I'd never stand for blatant disrespect or public humiliation heaped on me by her actions on that island.
Things changed for me the following week. First, I was put on a new job and I gave it my full undivided attention. Tuesday night I went out to a little Toledo sports bar and had a few beers with the 'guys' so I could get to know my new workmates. Wednesday, I begged off, ordering a small pizza to my room so I could watch Terri.
The show started a bit differently and showed the contestants acting more like couples. Terri remained paired with Travis, a sun-bronzed twenty-six-year-old, who was both strong and witty.
The toughest part for me to watch was the private time between the contestants, especially my wife with Travis. They sat by the pool, telling each other all about themselves. Swinging together in a hammock talking about their future dreams. The proximity alone made me want to divorce her when she got home. She never said anything derogatory about me. In fact, Travis seemed quite skilled in my mind. He spent a lot of time asking questions about her high school and college years, and her aspirations after. I took it like he was softening her up to trust him, so he could later begin talking about me.
Every time Travis got handsy or too personal in their conversations though, Terri quickly disengaged with him and politely said 'Good night.' It dawned on me that maybe that one unspoken rule hanging over everyone's head might have to do with fidelity itself. Maybe holding your desire in check on Desire Island was the key to winning.
Late into the show the women and the men were given a series of clues, things they were supposed to already know about their partner, but the catch was they needed to find the answers that were hidden throughout the complex, including the beach. That included both houses, so the guys could hunt through the lady's personal effects and vice versa. We wouldn't get the winning results until the next show.
Life went on. I worked my new gig and went home to my family on Thursday. I spent time with the kids, not that they needed me much at their age, and with Maggie there. I spent some nights, even the weekends, talking to Maggie about things we'd never shared before, sort of like Terri was doing with Travis on an island somewhere.
The fourth week saw another casualty but it wasn't Terri. The viewers had voted, and it wasn't clear whether Terri and Travis had staged one answer, or if Travis was just that smart, I'll never know.
The intimate question had to do with how much money Terri had envisioned having for retirement when she was graduating from college. An interesting question, I thought, but Travis found her answer in her personal toiletry bag taped to her toothpaste.
"I just figured she was lying to me," he said proudly around the ritual campfire when confronted by the host. "If she and her ole' man were on track, she wouldn't be a contestant here. An old saying came to me, 'Do you kiss your... uh, significant other with that dirty lying mouth?' So I decided to seek out her toothpaste."
Travis was complimented up and down by the remaining contestants, and of course, my wife lived to see another day. I found it putrid, the way it went down, and of course, my wife never graduated college.
The 'test of the week' was for the men to teach the ladies how to surf. That had been a question in the preliminary paperwork the contestants answered and the host warned the home audience but not the women, that if anyone had lied, they would be automatically eliminated, however, if not, then the first woman to stand through a wave would be safe from the next week's challenge no matter what. The rest of the players would face the scrutiny of their fellow contestants at the ritual fire and one would be voted off.
The woman, Ivy, was the first to figure out how to surf a wave and become safe. Terri had some trouble as Travis patiently tried to help her understand the dynamics. There was a lot of physical contact for all the contestants, both on the beach - to start - and then in the water. Terri wiped out hard on one of her attempts and Travis dove under the break to be the hero and save the damsel in distress.
What I saw didn't affect me as I thought it would. Maybe that was because I'd resigned myself to plenty of this horseplay. I certainly worried about how much happened before the director and production team edited the final product. I also reminded myself that from the day after Terri left our house, I had a solid plan in place.
Maggie seemed to sense my relaxed position and asked me if I was feeling better. When I told her I was, she surprised me yet again.
"Remember, Tom," she warned. "We're only halfway through. A lot can happen."
I told her she was right. Of course, I was a grown man with decent reasoning skills. Maggie didn't say it to me in a condescending way, she was only verbalizing what I already knew and validating me. I appreciated that from her.
My job had me out of town the following week. We were up against a strict deadline and I worked late into the night, each night, not watching the show. It paid off because we finished mid-morning on Thursday, so I got an early start on the drive home.
Upon arrival, I thought the house was empty but when I climbed the stairs, I heard the shower and Maggie singing! It occurred to me that I had not had sex in several weeks...and I did not count that final night when Terri used me as a human toy. I was ashamed of myself but I decided to step back and watch.
The bathroom door was slightly ajar and the shower door was fogged so I could not see anything. My mind went back to those times when Maggie dressed in something revealing and I envisioned what she looked like nude. I didn't have to wait long.
The shower was turned off but the singing continued. She opened the door and I got a quick glimpse of an enticing female form with curves in all the right places. I also felt myself getting excited.
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Posted on : Apr 14, 2025
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