The only good thing about being an empty-nester is that I can drink all the Black and Tan that I want without being harassed. I was expecting more. Both the kids were long gone and they had completely cut the apron cords. I figured that Norma and I would finally be able to relax and enjoy ourselves. It never happened.

I tried everything; flowers, candlelight dinners, nights out to the theater, and such. Nothing seemed to work. We still slept together, but there was very seldom any sex and what there was, was mediocre at best. I wasn’t really looking for sex, but I was hoping for a bit of romance. I know that sounds silly coming from a man, but that was all I was looking for.

Now Norma wasn’t mean or nasty. She didn’t turn into a shrew or a disagreeable hag. She just wasn’t interested. I was not looking forward to the next thirty years. I guess her job had a lot to do with it.

I was still working as a claims adjuster. It was a laid back job and I was able to handle it with no stress. Norma’s job, however, was a bit more complicated. Norma worked as an editor for a textbook publisher in Baltimore. It was a two-hour drive from our house. She had been there for about five years, loved what she was doing and I assume she did it well. She never complained about the long drive or the separation. Yes; separation. She drove down to Baltimore on Monday and drove back Friday. I argued and argued that she could do everything that she was doing from home, but she insisted that she had to be there to do it right. I tried to convince her to give it up completely, but she refused. She claimed that she needed the stimulation that came with the work to keep her from going bonkers.

I always tried to have a nice supper ready when she got home Friday night. I was usually able to time it pretty well, but occasionally things got a bit out of kilter. I solved the problem with a smartphone location app. Now, I always knew when she left work and how close she was to getting home. It made meal preparation a lot easier. There was one small thing that confused me, however. The trip to Baltimore on Mondays always took about two hours. The trip back on Fridays, on the same route, usually took three hours.

I was interested, but not enough to confront her.

The next Friday I stayed close to the computer and monitored her trip a bit closer. Everything seemed fine until she got just East of York. She stopped. There was no movement for about fifty minutes, then it started again. The rest of the drive went as expected. I had the broiled salmon on the table just as she got home.

I didn’t question her at all about the stop.

In all the years that Norma had been working away from home, I never had any reason to doubt her fidelity. Now I wasn’t sure. If she had wanted to mess around it would have been easy for her to do it and I would never be the wiser. It didn’t seem like something that she would do, however.

The next Friday I was waiting. When she stopped again in York I copied down the GPS coordinates. She stayed over an hour this time. We had baked Ziti for supper.

It took me an hour to get to the coordinates. There was a gas station, a veterinarian clinic, and an adult video store. I picked the most obvious.

It was just like all other adult stores; books, videos, toys, and magazines. The guy behind the elevated counter was also just what you would expect to see.

“Hi. I was wondering if you could help me out.”

“Five dollar minimum.” He didn’t even lookup.

I gave him a ten and tried again. “A good friend of ours is having a birthday and we are looking for a place to bring him. We were hoping for a place that had some working glory holes. Are there any in the area that you might know about?”

“Are you a cop?”

“No! Why?”

“I had to ask.” He shuffled a few papers around and then leaned over.

“We have two glory holes. The girls who work them do not work for us. They come here on there own. Of course, they don’t have any posted times, but there are a few regulars who keep pretty steady hours.”

“When would be a good time to bring him in?”

“There are two local ladies who come in every weekday from noon to 1 pm. I think it is their lunch hour. That’s a joke.”

I grimaced a bit at the humor.

“Most evenings from Seven to Ten there are a couple of girls here. Oh yeah, one of the favorites is an older lady who stops by every Friday between five and six. She doesn’t say much and she is not very friendly, but gives a hell of a blow job.”