Carrie's Second Chance

"Er no way!"

"Well good night Nick. Expect me to start on the 1st of next month."

Debbie was very happy. She decided to focus entirely on Nick and not to succumb to the advances of other men although she accepted she'd find it hard to resist if Frank Bond made a play for her pussy.

Debbie had three prospective buyers return to inspect her very desirable property for the third time and one had commissioned a pre-purchase inspection to check out the structure and to independently appraise the market value of the property. The Realtor had made it quite clear to all three that the first one to front up with the asking price, or near to it, and was ready to sign would be the successful buyer. Debbie had been told she could expect to end up with approximately $2.3 million after settlement. Further, her attorney had reported making good progress in restoring her identity to Debbie Nelson.

CHAPTER 3

In great excitement Carrie told Frank about Debbie's job offer and because of his unsurprised reaction she charged, "You knew."

"Yeah Nick told me three days ago, told me confidentially."

"You beast. You could have told me."

"Darling, if I breached Nick's trust in me I would expect him to never trust me again."

"So?"

"Oh come on. Although we have not discussed it I trust you not to become involved with another man so long as you and I are in a relationship."

"Well I can understand that, I think. You feel the need to trust me."

"God Carrie. Can't you see it? You don't steal from the bank where you work because you perceive you have a duty of fidelity."

"Yes of course. The bank trusts me not to steal its money. But it has internal security system in place just in case I become a rogue."

"Are you likely to do that?"

"No because I have a responsibility to my employer. We call it fiduciary accountability and I understand what my obligations and duties are. We are periodically reminded of them."

"Do you not accept in your personal life you are still bound by fiduciary accountability even though it's never discussed?"

"It has never been discussed. Had it been discussed I would have been aware of such expectations."

"Are you aware of moral standards and aware of the meaning of ethical behavior?"

"Well yes, I do work in a bank."

"What about in your personal behavior?

"Well we girls had a tough upbringing and Debbie and I under her influence adopted the secret code that for us anything goes but I suppose in our minds there always was a barrier beyond which we'd not go, such as stealing money from our parents or denting dad's car and not telling him."

"So you were aware of morality and the demands of ethical behavior?"

"Yes of course. Well more or less."

"God and you work in a bank."

"Well instead of having sex why don't we sit down and you go through the standards you think I need to apply at all times to satisfy you. I want you to be very happy about your relationship with me."

"Um rather that missing sex, what say we concentrate on sex and do that morality appraisal at some later date?"

"Okay. I'd rather have sex than a lecture tonight but we must have that discussion. You are free to deepen my awareness about um, personal morality and my commitment to ethical behavior."

"Yeah right. Get your top off and show me those tits."

* * *

The following Saturday afternoon Carrie arrived at Frank's apartment to cook dinner. Frank had invited two other couples to dinner and he helped Carrie. They worked as a team and she told him yet again it was a lovely apartment, that he should buy it. She'd first visited it three weeks earlier and immediately felt at home. Frank's sister was an interior designer and had it redecorated and then refurnished for him.

"As I said before an economic downturn is not a great time to take out a big loan."

"Are you going to marry me Frank?"

"What?" he said, stalling.

"You heard."

"Are you proposing?"

"You are too conservative for me to try that and get away with it. Are you ready to answer?"

"Yes, I will marry you. When?"

"If you commit to marry me I'll give you the additional money you require to buy this apartment. There will be no need to repay me."

"Are you crazy? I need heaps of money. Apartments of this quality in this location cost big money."

"How much Frank."

"Three months ago I was told a price that left me just under $880,000 short."

Carried smiled. "Then no problem. My deceased husband's father is an insurance company executive and when his son became engaged to me he gave him an insurance policy for $1.5 million paid up for five years so that if anything happened to his son I and any children we had in that time would be taken care of financially. The insurance was paid out a month ago."

"Good god. Well give me the money I need as a properly registered first mortgage and then you'll have that loan secured in case something happens and we don't marry. I shall pay you market interest less 1%."

"Okay providing interest payments cease from the day we are married."

They sealed their agreement with a kiss.

* * *

Carrie and Frank were married a month after Debbie and Rick's wedding.

In the ten months since Debbie had arrived in the city she'd been promoted to head of marketing and had a seat on the seven-member management board. Rick's family believed they'd never seem Rick so happy in years and the full-on Debbie was accredited for uplifting Rick's spirit and giving him a greater passion for life.

Carrie had lost her job when her bank merged with a bigger bank and job redundancies followed. She had her finances rearranged and they each put in $600,000 towards the purchase of their apartment and took out a small mortgage. Frank had invested the $2.45 million Carrie had received after her former house sold at a higher than expected price. She new life had really turned round for her and she should take maximum advantage.

"I'm sorry you have been declared redundant," Frank told Carrie. "It must be demeaning to be told by top management you are no longer wanted."

"Yes but I was over it within five minutes, accepting it happens and has always happened to a lot of people."

"What kind of job will you seek?"

"I had decided to hang around the house darling and want you home for lunch. For several reasons this is the optimum time in my life to become pregnant so you are invited to bang me as much as you wish, including lunchtimes. I went off the pill today so in a few weeks I should be primed for pregnancy."

Frank licked his lips. "As much as I wish you said?"

"Oh Frankie, what a disgusting leer."

THE END