Midnight Escape

I’m not sure how long I had been sleeping when I opened my eyes and tried to adjust them to the darkness in the room. I turned and looked over at Jennifer, she was still deep in the sleep. But somehow, I could not shake the feeling that someone else was in the room watching us. I Looked toward to window and saw the drapes move slightly. I laid there for several moments, not noticing anything else so I must have started to drift off, I’m not sure, but I thought I heard Susan’s voice softly in my ear . “ Sleep my love.”

Jennifer was in the mist of a very big government fraud trial, so our time together was limited over the next few months. We did get together once or twice a week for dinner or a movie. Jen was so easy to get along with and though despite our age differences she made me feel like a young man. We both kept ourselves busy with our prospective jobs, making time for each other when we could.

On one of my normal Sunday dinners to my in laws, Jen’s parents were once again present, along with Lance and Beth, and one of my father in law’s sisters. I was determined to keep the conversation low key and avoid any possible unpleasantness.

I was the last to arrive, which was unusual, but made my way to the table. The conversation was harmless at first until Miss Margie, Jen’s mother asked how things were going between the two of us. I replied things had been very pleasant and that we had been out maybe three or four times, in the past month or so, but our work schedules were really brutal.

I couldn’t help but feel Beth’s cold gaze on me, however I did not look in her direction to acknowledge her. One thing however, I had noticed was that Lance had somewhat began to revert to his former sense. Not near as bad mind you, but he was having his moments.

After dinner was over, I got up to help my mother in law with the dishes. When we were alone in the kitchen, I asked my mother in law if we could talk. She replied that I was like a son to her and anything I wanted to say was fine by her.

“Mom, you know Susan meant to world to me, I loved her with all of my heart. You and Dad have always made me feel like the son you never had and since my parents died early in my life, I can never repay you for the kindness you have shown to me.”, I stated.

“That’s why I need to tell you something , Mom….”, I continued.

Before I could finish, my mom placed one finger over her lips to ask me to be quiet for a brief moment.

“I think I know what your going to say Jeff. You think that perhaps you might be attracted to Jennifer, but you want to make sure that Dad and I are ok with it.”, she replied.

“Jeff, you were the most doting, caring, loving, thoughtful and considerable husband that we could have hoped Susan would marry. For the last six months of her life, you never left her side, never let go of her hand.”, she continued.

“Jennifer is a very nice girl, you too have a lot in common, you have both of our blessings to move on. I know Susan would want you to be happy.”

“Thanks, Mom, I love you.”, I replied and hugged her.

I decided to make an early exit and avoid any unpleasant situation with Beth, I arrived home an hour later and found a message from Jennifer. The message said she had closed her case and it had went to the jury. They expected a verdict by Wednesday or Thursday. She mentioned she would love to spend a nice quiet weekend, just the two of us. That sounded great to me.

I had just gotten home Thursday evening from work, walked in the house and the phone rang. I picked it up and to my surprise, it was Beth.

“Jeff, I really need to talk to you. Do the think the two of us can meet us for an hour or so ?”’ she asked.

“Beth, I don’t think that’s a very good idea. You and Lance are back together, all we are doing is tempting fate.”, I replied.

“So you have blown me off already, Jeff ?”, she snapped.

“Now, wait Beth, what about the letter you wrote. After all we shared that’s the let down I get ?’, I retorted.

“Jeff, I have to talk to you to settle things once and for all, please.”, she begged.

“I will get back to you, Beth. Soon.”, was my reply.

Friday night came around, I went to the local Thai Restaurant on the way home and picked up dinner. Jen arrived about six thirty , we sat down and enjoyed a wonderful mean. We sat on the sofa and watched a movie on Lifetime, which I have to admit was not bad. Curled up on the sofa with Jen, just felt so right, so natural.

Right after the movie ended, Jen started flipping channels and stopped on the HBO Channel. They were starting the serials “Reel Sex”. The show started boring with a local strip club in Atlanta for women only, the second segment was about couples massage and the last segment was a sex workshop that was given In Colorado, when married couples went to expand their horizons,

I seem to notice that Jen’s interested piqued during the last segment. As the show went off, she turned to me and stated quite simply.

“Do you have any unfulfilled sexual fantasies, Jeff ?”, she asked.

“Where the heck, did that come from girl?”, I replied.

“I dunno, I guess I am just trying to get to know you better.”, she answered.

“Well, how I about I ask, do you have any ?”, I fired back.

“A few, but you have to go first, or its no deal.”, she said shyly.

I went on to tell Jen, with a great deal of shyness, that I always was extremely aroused watching a woman masterbate herself to orgasm.

“What about watching two girls have sex together ?”, Jen asked.

“I can’t say Jen, I have never had that experience, but I am sure it would be pleasurable.

“So what about you Jen, whats your big turn-on ?, I laughed .

“Promise me you won’t think any less of me if I tell you this.”, she said looking down at the floor.

I agreed and Jennifer began to attempt to tell me, stuttering through the sentences, that just once , she wanted to make love to a beautiful woman.

“Do you think I’m weird ?”, she asked.

“No Jen, from what I hear, its very common these days.””, I replied.

Jennifer and I were becoming more and more at ease with each other. It seemed the more time I spent with her, the more attracted to her I had become. Jennifer’s birthday was July 3rd, and I was hoping to do something special for her. I had decided the weekend before her party , I would take Jen, her Mom and Dad, all out to eat. The meal was great success and everyone had a great time.

A few days later, it was time for me to renew my health club membership, so as I went into the trainer’s office to pay, I pulled put my wallet. I found my credit card and handed it to the young lady and as I was waiting, I happened to thumb through my wallet. I reached in and pulled out the gloss back business card that said only “Raine”, with a phone number. I had held on to that card for over a year, don’t ask me why. As looked at the card, I suddenly had an idea.

Two days later I called my friend Riley who owned the club that Beth, Lance and I had went to the previous New Year’s Eve. I called him
up and left word for him to return my call. He did the next day and we caught up quickly. I explained to him I had met Jennifer and what a great girl she was. He asked me to bring her down to the club, so he could meet her. I informed him, I was thinking of just that and asked him if Raine still worked there. He laughed, and told me, she was the absolute best, and he hoped she would never leave him. I asked him to see if Raine was up to a private party and I would make it worth her while.

It was Monday and Jennifer’s birthday was Friday, I had to figure out what I was going to do. I had previously bought her present, a very nice diamond necklace. It was a gift that said, I really like you, without coming on too strong. I was supposed to pick it up on Wednesday evening after work. I made reservations at Commander’s Palace, a five star restaurant in New Orleans, which some say in the best in the city.
I figured by Wednesday, I had the entire evening planned out. I had just heard from Jen, she explained the jury had reached a verdict and court would reconvene tomorrow morning, then she would be free for the weekend. After work I stopped at the jewelers on the way home, picked up Jen’s birthday gift. I had just returned to my vehicle and was backing out of the parking lot when my cell phone rang. I figured it was Jen again, so I quickly answered it. I was wrong.

“Hi Jeff, its Beth, how are you ?”, she asked.

“I am doing well Beth and you ?”, I replied.

“Well, not really that great, can we get together and talk soon ?”, she inquired, “How about tomorrow night ?”

“I can’t on Friday, I have plans that I cannot break.”, I stated.

“You going out with Jennifer ?”, she said in a very annoyed tone.

“Yes, I am , its her birthday. We are just going to dinner, nothing really special.”, I responded.

Beth was silent for what seemed an eternity, then continued the inquisition.

“Well how about tonight then. Can we talk tonight ?”, she asked.

“I guess so Beth, what time ?”

“I’ll come over after seven, see you then.”

I hung up and thought to myself, this is a bad idea. Jennifer still had no clue about what had happened between Beth and I, and really for the sake of the family, I hoped it never came out. But I hated to deceive Jen, she was a caring trusting person, I did not want her to find out from someone else. I decided to meet Beth tonight, then sometime over the weekend, try to explain what had happened between Beth and I to Jen.

Sometime between seven and seven thirty, Beth arrived. I immediately knew from the way she was dressed, she had more on her mind than just talking. She had on a very short skirt and a revealing top. She looked very lovely, as usual. I escorted in to the great room and sat down across from her.

She seemed nervous and appeared like she was trying to find the right words that would sound appropriate. Finally after an awkward pause she began.

“Jeff, I know that what I did hurt you badly. That was never my intention, to be honest with you, I was thoroughly confused and to some degree, still am.” she stated.

“I am sorry about the note, you deserved better than that, I should have told you in person, I just didn’t have the courage.”, she continued.

“I have been married a long time and I simply had to see if their was any chance to salvage my marriage.” she added.

At this point , she looked down at the floor and exhaled, like all the breathe had left her body. I figured I had better say something.

“Beth, if you remember way back way, I said I thought the idea of us becoming intimate was an extremely bad idea. However, I did tell you that if you decided to go through with it, I asked you please not to deceive me.”, I said softly.

“Beth, I fell in love with you and I wanted us to be together, no matter what anyone else thought.”, I added.

“I know Jeff.”, Beth replied, “ I thought I was in love with you as well.”

“You thought ?”, I asked.

“No…..what I meant was …….”, she was fumbling for words.

“Look Beth, you owe me nothing, all I want is for you to be happy. If Lance makes you happy then by all means stay together. I will never mention a word of what happened between us to anyone.”, I promised.

She seemed somewhat relieved at that statement but disassociated as well. The longer I sat here across the Beth the more difficult this conversation was becoming. For a second, I really wished I could turn back the hands of time before I knew Jen and before Beth and I had gotten together. I had grown to care for Jennifer, she was a kind, caring, interesting person to be with. And as much as I wanted to deny it, I still had feelings for Beth.
“I know you want what’s best for me Jeff, that’s why I love you so much. Never has a man put me first. You always put me first.”, she finally replied.

“Can I ask you a question, Jeff ?”

“Sure, you can.”, I responded.

“Are you in love with Jennifer ?”, she asked.

“Honestly Beth, I don’t know. I do care for Jennifer a lot. She is a great woman and we get along really well. I’m just not sure I have fallen in love with her yet.”, I replied.

“But you fell in love with me so quickly, Jeff. How could that be ?”, she shot back.

“I can’t explain it you Beth. Perhaps it was due to the fact I have known you so long and already loved you in a different way. It made it so easy to get to the next phase.”, I said.

“Beth, what has happened, why are you bringing all of this up now, after you and Lance have gotten back together ?”, I continued.

“Well…..because…..I think I might have made a mistake.”, she stuttered in reply.

“By taking Lance back ?”, I asked.

She nodded her head yes immediately. This was not a situation, I was prepared for. I knew that this time, I had to be really cautious and think things out carefully before saying or doing anything else. Now, instead of turning my family upside down, I would do the same to Jennifer and her family. Not to mention that both families were extremely close friends. Before I could even finish with the thought of the consequences, Beth spoke up.

“Jeff, I have missed you so much. Your touch, your kindness, your gentleness. I need to have you hold me, make me feel needed as a woman.”, she softly whispered.

I wanted to jump out of my chair, grab her by the hand and run down the hall to the bedroom, and make love to her for hours. She looked so helpless, but so beautiful.
“Beth, first of all, you said you thought you might have made a mistake by taking Lance back, which makes me think you’re still not sure. Secondly, what you and I did happened before I met Jennifer, had no effect on our relationship. However, if I sleep with you again now, it does effect her and it makes me a piece of crap.”, I responded.

“So, you do love her ?”, Beth snapped back.

“No, I am not sure that I love her, but I am certain I respect her and I will not do anything to hurt her needlessly.”, I replied.

“Especially since you’re asking me to sleep with you but you are still not sure you want to leave Lance.”, I continued, “Beth, you really need to be alone and think things out. I can’t help you make this decision, but the fact you are still with Lance, tells me you love him.”

She looked down again, then stood up. She told me I was right, that she needed to think and thanked me for being understanding. She left abruptly.

Friday morning rolled around and I left for work as usual. I was surprised not to see Lance’s car in front of the house. He never left the house that early, I wondered if they had another fight. About mid - morning, the secretary announced I had a call on line three. I picked up the phone to a sultry female voice.

“May I speak with Jeff ?”, the voice said softly.

“This is Jeff.”, I replied.

“Hello, Jeff.”, the voice responded, “We met last year at Riley’s Club, he suggested I call you.”

It took a minute for everything to kick in, then suddenly I realized it was Raine, the beautiful red head from the club.

“Oh yes, how are you ?”, I asked.

“I’m fine Jeff.”, she responded, ”What can I do for you ?”

Not sure what I should discuss on the phone, I vaguely asked that when she had given me her card, she had told me about private encounters. I continued on to ask if that was still possible. She said it was something that she did in very rare occasions, but the people and surroundings had to be very discreet and low key. I explained to her that it would just be myself and Jennifer, recalling to her how Jennifer had a fantasy about another woman. I quickly added that in no way did I expect anything more then the performance she had given to us the club.

She responded that what she did was basically up to her mood and the connection she had with the people that were present. She told me that she preferred women to men, although she was not a lesbian. She then asked me what I had in mind exactly and when did I want this encounter to take place. I explained to her what I was thinking which seemed to interest her, adding tonight was the special occasion.

“Tonight is Friday and my most lucrative night of the week. There is no way, I could do it tonight. I would lose entirely too much money.”, she stated.

I asked her what would she normally make on a Friday night, that I might be able to compensate her in an equal manner. The only thing that I asked in returned was that if Jennifer could not go through with it she would understand and we could stop at whatever point Jennifer wanted to. She explained that her take home depended on how many dancers worked that night and how many private dances she did in one night. She told me usually she would take home between eight hundred to a thousand dollars a night. She also added that she understood the situation and that was fine with her. We settled on an amount that would guarantee Raine would spent approximately one hour with us upstairs later that night.

That night I picked Jennifer up at about six thirty in the evening at her place. She was wearing a white dress with thin straps and a rounded neckline. The dress was mid thigh and very snug at the hips. She looked absolutely ravishing. We arrived at the restaurant on time for our reservation and enjoyed a fabulous meal, desert and coffee. All the while Jennifer kept asking me what was going on. She said I was acting anxious, not like my normal self. I just kept passing it off that I had a really bad day at work, that it was nothing.

After dinner, we walked down to the Mississippi River and sat in one of the Gazebo’s facing the city. We talked for a while, held each other close and shared a few kisses. We decided to leave a short while later. I glanced at my watch, everything was going according to plan so far.

We arrived back at my car about eleven o’clock, I opened the door and let Jen in and went around to the driver’s side. I got in the car, opened the center console and removed Jen’s birthday present.

“Happy Birthday, Jen”., I told her.

“Oh Jeff, you shouldn’t have done that, the dinner was quite enough.”. she said softly.

“I wanted to Jen, just open it.”, I replied.

She carefully opened the long narrow box and opened the cover ever so slowly to expose the diamond necklace I had picked out. There in the long green velvet box, it looked much bigger then it did surrounded by all of the others in the jeweler’s showcase. I knew immediately it was a hit.

“Oh My God, Jeff, its beautiful.”, she squealed.

She threw her arms around me and hugged me very tight. I held her for what seemed like a few minutes, then she finally eased her grip. When we parted, I saw tears in her eyes.

“What’s wrong Jen ?”, I asked, “Did I do something wrong.”

“No, no, no, Jeff. I am just so happy, I love the necklace. Thank you so much.”, she whispered, “Please put it on me.”

I took the necklace from the box and as Jen held her hair off of her neck, clasped it on her. She turned and faced me and I had to admit, it looked lovely on her. She took my face in her hands and gave me a kiss that told me just how much she liked her gift. She leaned up and whispered in my ear.

“Let’s go to bed Jeff, I want to make love all night long.”, she purred in ear.

“Soon, Jen, but there’s still more birthday to come.”, I informed her.

Chapter 15

“More ?”, she asked, perplexed.

“Yep, more.”, I smiled.

“You trust me Jen ?”, I asked.

“Of course, I trust you Jeff.”, she replied, “Why do you ask ?”

“Good then, we are going to see a friend of mine before we go home.”, I told her.

We drove the few short blocks to the club and pulled into the private lot I had parked in last year. The valet took my car and we approached the club entrance.

“We are going in here ?”, Jen asked in surprise.

“Well, you told me that you sometimes fantasized about beautiful women. Now you get to see them up close.”, I replied.