Courtesan Ch. 01

"I made a marinara sauce this morning. I stopped at the store on my way home from work and bought a chicken breast. I plan to dice it, saute it in olive oil with mushrooms and shallots, blend it into the marinara sauce and serve it on angel hair pasta. I'll make a small salad to go with it."

"How long will it take you to prepare everything?"

"About twenty minutes."

My wife picked up her newspaper. "I'm tired, why don't you start cooking now." She unfolded the first section and began to peruse the front page.

For a moment I stood next to Kelly and waited. I was hoping that she would change her mind and invite me to get a martini for myself so that we could read the newspaper together and discuss the events of the week. Friday nights used to be special for us. We would have several cocktails, share a bottle of wine while we ate a nice dinner and then retire to the bedroom for several hours of sex.

That night my wife disappointed me. She took a sip of her martini, focused her attention on her newspaper and ignored my presence.

I left the living room feeling incredibly dejected. Once I was inside the kitchen I leaned against the counter and took several deep breaths. I told myself that Kelly had to work hard at her job and I tried very hard to convince myself that I shouldn't take it personally when she came home feeling tired and a little aloof.

I quickly prepared our meal. As soon as everything was ready I set the dining room table and called Kelly to dinner.

My wife took her usual place at the head of the table and I sat down next to her. Kelly had been working such long hours that we really hadn't seen each other for several days. I was hoping that we would spend a little time talking about our daily lives. I was very curious to hear about my wife's new duties at work. When I asked she just sighed and said, "Timmy I really don't feel like talking about work right now."

We ate our dinners in silence. As soon as we finished eating I stood up and started clearing the dishes. As I was taking them into the kitchen Kelly said, "Timmy the firm is just finishing a very important project. This weekend I'm going to have to work on both Saturday and Sunday."

I stopped and turned around. Sunday was Super Bowl Sunday. While Kelly and I weren't actually football fans we enjoyed the pageantry and commercials of the super bowl. We always watched the game together. It had become a special evening for us.

"Will you be home in time for the game?"

Shaking her head, Kelly said; "I don't think so Timmy. You'd better plan on watching it by yourself. The firm is on the verge of completing a big merger. If the deal goes through everyone, including me, is going to get a nice bonus. There's an important meeting on Monday morning. All of the paperwork has to be perfect. I'm certain that I'm going to have to work very late on Sunday night."

I stared at Kelly. I was incredibly disappointed. "Why can't you get everything done on Saturday?"

My wife sighed. "Timmy I don't have the energy to argue about this." She stood up. "I have to work this weekend. You're not going to see much of me. Live with it!" Kelly stormed into the bedroom and slammed the door behind her.

I finished clearing the table and cleaned up the kitchen. By the time I was done I was feeling very petty about making a fuss because Kelly had to work during the Superbowl. This was her job and she made an excellent income for us. Working long hours was difficult enough, she didn't have to listen to me complain about it.

As soon as I was done with my chores I tiptoed to the bedroom, opened the door and peaked inside. The lights were off, Kelly was already in bed. I quickly undressed, slipped under the covers and put my arm around her shoulder. As I gently kissed the back of her neck I whispered. "I'm sorry that you have to work so hard this weekend. Please forgive me for being cross with you earlier."

Kelly ignored me, but as I lay next to her in the dark I was quite certain that I could hear her crying.

Things were better the next morning. When my wife got up I was making French toast. It was her favorite breakfast. The moment she walked into the kitchen I turned to her and said, "Kelly, I'm sorry about last night. I shouldn't have pressed you so hard about being home for the Superbowl. I know that your job is demanding. I was being selfish."

Kelly shook her head. "No Timmy, it was all my fault. Last night was Friday night. That's always been special for us. I may have been tired, but I still should have taken some time for you." She sighed. "Baby I know I've been neglecting you lately. I'm sorry, things should get easier after we finish this merger."

After breakfast Kelly took me into the bedroom so that I could go down on her. I gave her two orgasms. As soon as she'd recovered from her second orgasm she gave me one of her wonderful blow jobs. When I finished ejaculating we cuddled up together and slept in each others arms until the early afternoon.

Kelly had to go back to work at three. When I asked why she was going in so late, she smiled at me and said, "Everyone wanted to spend Saturday morning with their families. Now I understand what they were talking about." She kissed me. "Timmy it was a wonderful morning. Thank you so much for being so understanding." She turned. As she was walking out the door she said, "Baby I'm probably going to be very late tonight. You shouldn't wait up for me."

She was right. That night my wife didn't get home until 1:00 AM. The next night, Super Bowl Sunday, she didn't get home until 2:30.

Still, for awhile things were better. Kelly's mood improved and when she was at home, she tried to be a little more attentive.

The improvement was only temporary. By early March Kelly was working late on at least two and sometimes as many as four nights a week. When she was at home her foul mood had returned and our sex life was dead.

Kelly also started traveling in March. Her first trip was to New York City. She left on a Tuesday morning and was home again by dinner time on Thursday. She explained the trip by telling me that the three partners were meeting with an important Wall Street investment firm. They were bringing her along to keep track of the paperwork.

Four weeks later she had to go to Chicago and three weeks after that she accompanied the partners to Los Angeles. All of these trips seemed credible to me. The cities were all major financial centers and my wife did work for a firm that invested capital and bought and sold businesses.

It was in early May that she took the first trip that aroused my suspicion. Kelly and all three of the partners spent a week at a private estate near a well known golf community in South Carolina. When she told me about the trip I asked my wife why they were going to a golf resort.

She explained that the firm was about to attempt a hostile take over of a large well known corporation. The purpose of the trip was to get everyone together in a place where they wouldn't be disturbed so they could put together a strategic plan for the take over. Kelly's explanation made sense. I had to accept it.

After that her trips became more frequent and appeared to be increasingly less business oriented. In late May she spent several days at a luxury resort in Jamaica. In early June she went back to Evergreen. That was the name of the estate in South Carolina. At the end of June she spent a week in Hawaii. She took her first trip to Las Vegas in early July and by the end of the summer she'd made two more visits to that gambling mecca and four to Evergreen. She spent the Labor Day weekend on Cape Cod and in September she made another trip to Las Vegas and flew to South Carolina three more times.

When I asked her why she was traveling to vacation destinations rather than business centers, Kelly explained that they were trying to raise capital and it was easier to persuade potential investors to meet with representatives of the firm if they held the meetings in places that were fun to visit.

Again her explanation made just enough sense to make it plausible. Still, the fact was that my wife was gone more than she was at home and when she was at home, she was crabby, aloof and often stayed out until the middle of the night. It was clear to me that our marriage was falling apart.

On the last Monday in September Kelly spent a rare evening at home. We ate dinner in silence. After dinner I cleaned the kitchen while she sat on the couch reading a magazine. As soon as I was finished in the kitchen I joined her in the living room.

When I sat down on the couch next to her my wife didn't even bother to look up from her magazine. This was the final straw. I decided that I couldn't live like this any more. Something was wrong and I had to know what it was.

I took a deep breath and said, "Kelly we have to talk."

My wife set her magazine down and in an irritated tone of voice said, "What's wrong now?"

I shook my head. "What's wrong? Can't you see what's wrong? You're rarely at home and when you are at home you barely acknowledge my presence. Kelly honey we haven't had sex in over two months. You used to love sex. You used to live for sex. Baby I'm worried, there's something drastically wrong."

Kelly sighed. "Timmy your constant whining about my job and our life is really beginning to annoy me. I'm working my tail off trying to establish some financial independence for us and all you seem to be able to do is harp at me about it. Well I'm getting sick and tired of hearing your petty grievances." She stood up and glared at me. "If you were a man and had a decent job, maybe I wouldn't have to work so hard. Now I'm tired and I'm going to bed."

Kelly turned and started to walk towards the bedroom.

I called to her. "Kelly we have to talk about this. We can't ignore it anymore. Our marriage is falling apart. Baby I'd rather be poor and happy than rich and miserable."

She spun around. "Timmy I don't want to hear another word out of you tonight. Do you understand me? Not one more word."

Kelly turned her back to me, stormed into the bedroom and slammed the door behind her.

For a little while I sat on the couch in silence. I just couldn't make any sense out of this situation. Before she went to work at JTandR Kelly never really cared much about money. Writing poetry, listening to music and taking the time to cook a nice dinner, those were the things that used to motivate her. Oh and of course sex. She always loved sex. Kelly lived for sex. It was the greatest joy in her life.

I shook my head. We hadn't made love in over a month and Kelly claimed that she was still being faithful. If that was true, then she was living a celibate life. Could a person really change that much in two short years? I didn't think it was possible.

I decided that my wife had to be having an affair. It was the only reasonable explanation for the radical change in her behavior.

The problem with that theory was that it really didn't make any sense. Why would she bother to hide it from me? She'd dated other guys right up to our wedding day. I chuckled to myself. Her girlfriends told me that she had quite a bachelorette party. Apparently there were a half dozen very handsome men in attendance and my bride started the festivities by sucking all of their cocks while everyone else watched. I gather that things went down hill from there.

I never asked my wife to stop seeing other men. In fact on our wedding night I made it clear to her that if she wanted to continue dating it would be perfectly all right with me. I explained that I actually got a thrill out of being her cuckold.

Giving up other men was Kelly's idea. She told me that she was grateful that I'd given her the opportunity to sow her wild oats, but now that we were married she wanted to try to be a faithful wife.

If she'd started dating again, why wouldn't she just tell me? She had to know that I wouldn't care.

Suddenly the answer became clear. It was the only scenario that made any sense. My wife must have fallen in love with another man. It explained everything; the frequent trips, Kelly's foul mood when she was at home, her late nights, her lack of interest in having sex with me and most of all her reluctance to tell me about her lover. It all fit together.

When I realized that it was likely that I'd already lost Kelly my stomach churned and then I buried my face in my hands and started to cry.

I cried for over an hour. When I finally stopped and pulled myself back together I felt better. The emotional outburst had released tension and anguish that had been building up inside of me for the past several months.

I was able to think with more clarity. I now had a theory that my wife may have fallen in love with another man; but that was all it was, just a theory. I needed proof before I dared to confront Kelly. I also realized that there could be other explanations. It was possible that Kelly was either ill, or the pressure of her job had caused her to have a mental breakdown. I decided that I would wait and watch. If my wife had actually fallen in love with another man, there would be signs.

The next morning my wife's mood had not improved.

When she walked into the kitchen I was making French Toast. I greeted her with a warm smile and said, "Good morning Kelly, I made your favorite breakfast."

She glared at me while she silently poured herself a cup of coffee and then she sat down at the kitchen table. When I offered her a slice of French toast she waved it away and in a monotone voice said, "I'm not hungry."

I sat down at the table and watched her sip her coffee. After a moment I said, "Kelly, you're not yourself. I think you should consider seeing a doctor."

My wife looked up at me. There was pure venom in her eyes. In an icy voice she said, "Timmy I am going to repeat what I told you last night. I work very hard at my job. It's taking all of my energy right now and I would very much appreciate it if you would stop harping at me every time I come home." Glaring, Kelly stood up, turned her back to me and stormed out of the kitchen.

I followed her. "Kelly I'm starting to wonder if you're having an affair with another man."

My wife stopped. For a moment she stood perfectly still and then she turned and quietly whispered. "No Timmy, I am not having an affair."

"Do you still love me?"

She nodded. "Yes, I do."

Kelly and I stared at each other. After a moment she sighed and retreated to the bedroom. She quickly returned carrying her overnight bag. "Timmy I have to go to Las Vegas for a day. I'll be back tomorrow night." She walked over and gave me kiss on the cheek. It wasn't the kind of kiss that a wife would give to her husband before she left for an overnight trip to another city. It was more like the kind of kiss a mother would give to her son as she was leaving for work.

I watched Kelly walk out the door. After she was gone I silently mouthed the words, "I love you."

Kelly returned home from her trip to Las Vegas at about 6:00 pm the next day. When she walked into the house I was in the kitchen making fettuccine carbonara for dinner. I smiled at her and said, "Hello Kelly."

She went straight into the bedroom without acknowledging my greeting.

I stood perfectly still for a moment. I wasn't sure what I should do. Finally I decided that I had to try to talk to her again. I followed her to the bedroom. Kelly was in the bathroom. Her overnight bag was on the bed. It was open. There was a black lace baby doll nightie, a pair of black nylon stockings and a black lace garter belt in the bag. Underneath the lingerie I could see a black cocktail dress. I took it out of the bag and held it up. It was short, very short, almost indecently short and shockingly low cut. It was obvious that the dress would just barely conceal my wife's large breasts.

"I see that now you've even stooped to searching my luggage." Kelly walked over and took the dress out of my hands, put it back in her overnight bag and closed it.

I stared at my wife. "That's not exactly your traditional business outfit. Kelly, I think you owe me an explanation."

I waited. Kelly just glared at me. Finally I said, "Kelly you know that I've always been willing to let you date other men. If that's what you're doing, please just tell me."

My wife looked at the floor. She didn't say a word.

Finally I said, "Kelly I'm worried that you're having an affair. I'm afraid that you've fallen in love with another man."

"I am not having an affair and I am not in love with another man." Kelly took a deep breath. "Timmy yesterday you pointed out that we never have sex anymore and you found it necessary to remind me that I used to love sex. Well you needn't have bothered to remind me. I am very aware of how much I miss sex. I am sorry that my job saps all of my energy and if you must know, these clothes are my one refuge. When I'm alone in my hotel room after working all day it feels good to put on some lingerie that makes me feel sexy and masturbate. Yes, Timmy you heard me correctly, I masturbate when I'm alone and I'll bet you do too. There, are you satisfied? Have you humiliated me enough tonight or is there something else you want to cross exam me about? If there isn't, then I'm tired and I want to be alone."

Kelly turned, fled into the bathroom and slammed the door behind her.

I stared at the bathroom door for a moment and then I turned, walked out to the living room and sat down on the couch. Kelly's explanation was ridiculous. I believed that she might masturbate when she was alone at night in her hotel room, but I didn't believe that she put on sexy lingerie and a slinky black dress when she did it. I was now even more convinced that my wife was having an affair, but I still wasn't a hundred per cent certain.

As I sat on the couch I realized that this situation was destroying both of us. I had to find a way to resolve it. While I realized that I would be devastated if I actually found out that my wife was in love with another man, I still had to know. Our life was falling apart. We couldn't keep living like this.

Kelly was asleep by the time I came to bed. I slept fitfully and got up well before my wife. She slept in. She often did that after she came home from a business trip. It was ten o'clock when she finally walked into the kitchen.

I smiled at her. "Would you like some breakfast?"

Kelly looked at the clock on the wall. "No thank you Timmy, It's late. I have to get into the office."

I quietly said, "Very well."

As Kelly picked up her purse she said, "I'm sorry but I have a late meeting tonight. I probably won't be home until well after midnight."

I looked at my wife. "Kelly please don't go out tonight. Come home, we need to talk. I promise you that I won't be upset if you tell me that you're just having a casual affair with this man." I paused for a moment and then I whispered, "And if you're in love with him, well we need to talk about that too."

Kelly shook her head. "Timmy how many times do I have to say this? I am not having an affair. I'm working." She sighed. "What do you want from me?"

"I want it to be like it used to be. I want to love you and I want you to love me."

"Timmy please believe me, I do love you."

"Then come home tonight."

"Timmy I can't, I have to work."

Kelly turned. As she walked out the door she said, "Don't wait up, I'm going to be home late."

I huddled in the doorway of Smithson Jewelers. It seemed to be getting colder. I glanced at my watch. It was 8:30. I'd been waiting there for over an hour.

The confrontation that I just described had taken place that morning. I'd spent the entire day considering possible courses of action. Finally I decided that my only choice was to follow my wife so that I could find out what she was actually doing while she was out at night.