My wife, Linda, and I were out with four other couples for a much needed evening of dining and dancing. It had been a long winter, and we more than ready to bid it adieu. Linda and I had reserved a room at a nearby hotel while our two kids were spending the night at the sitter’s. It was shaping up to be a very good evening, or so I thought.

“Hey, isn’t that Marc LaValliere?” Phil, one of our friends, asked as he craned around me to see.

“It is, it is! He’s coming our way!” Dave’s wife, Dee, squealed excitedly. Marc LaValliere was the star tight end on our city’s football team. Unlike many others on the team, he made his year-round home here. He had the reputation of being a genuinely good guy, and he was as well known for his community activities as for his exploits on the field. Marc became the main topic of conversation at our table, as the guys talked about his football feats and the women praised his good works and good nature.

Everyone watched in fascination as he made his way to our table. Once he reached it, he began to circle it. He looked like a man on a mission.

“Hi, I’m Marc. Would you like to dance?” He was standing behind my wife, Linda’s left shoulder, holding his hand out to her.

I felt Linda gasp as she dropped my hand as if it were was a hot potato. I watched, dumbstruck, as she turned her back to me, gave Marc her right hand (it almost disappeared in his big paw) and gracefully rose from her chair.

“Hey, man, now my feelings are hurt. I thought she was only dancing with you tonight.” Dave smiled as he needled me.

“Yeah, that’s what I thought, too,” I groused.

“Relax, Jim. It’s just a dance.” Jane tried to soothe me. I tried to believe her, but I couldn’t help having a bad feeling about this.

The band played a couple of fast songs, and our whole table watched them dance. So did everyone else in the room. Marc was good, far better than I was, and Linda was clearly enjoying herself. Her partner and her dress combined to show her off to perfection.

“Don’t they look great together? Come on, Jim, let’s join them,” Dee invited, clearly trying to distract me.

“Thanks, but no.”

The next song was a slow one. I watched Linda melt into his arms, fitting perfectly as though she belonged there. He was good at that, too. Lots of practice, I’ll bet, I thought to myself sourly. Marc said something to Linda; she smiled sweetly as she responded. He wasn’t doing anything I could legitimately object to. He didn’t dance any closer to her than I danced with Dee or Jane; his hands didn’t go anywhere they weren’t supposed to go.

Another slow song, a ballad this time. I could see the band leader watching my wife and her partner, taking his cues from them. Marc was smiling as he held Linda in his arms; he was clearly pleased with whatever was going ontaking place. I’d seen enough. I rose from my chair, and felt Jane’s hand on my arm.

“Wait, Jim. Let her have this. Don’t ruin it for her.”

I jerked my arm free, and then I looked at Linda’s face. She clearly wanted to be exactly where she was, and nowhere else. She did not want any interference from me. I slumped back into my chair. Finally, the song ended. Marc nodded at the band leader, who started a faster song. He and Linda left the dance floor, smiling at each other, but not touching, not even holding hands. Linda gave him a last brilliant smile as she turned toward our table and Marc turned toward his.

The difference between a woman’s best smile and her second-best smile isn’t much. Unless you know the woman well, you probably wouldn’t notice it at all. As Linda neared our table and our eyes met, her best smile faded to her second-best. I knew then that we had a problem.

“I keep telling you that you’re the most attractive woman in here,” I whispered in her ear as I seated her. I reached for her hand, and held it in both of mine. “Is it time to take the next dance back to our room?”

For just the tiniest moment, I could have sworn Linda was afraid. Her eyes widened and I could feel her hand trembling. She covered the moment quickly, though, and looked away from me, across the table.

“I’m sorry, everyone, I just have to go to the restroom right now. Linda, come with me?” Dee’s voice could be heard far beyond our table. I was too preoccupied to wonder why she had to broadcast this to the room at large. Linda looked at me apologetically.

“Sorry, Jim. I can use some freshening up, too.” She rose and left, without answering my question. Of course, the conversation immediately turned to why no woman who is out with a group can possibly go to the restroom by herself. I had just started to wonder why my friends were working so hard to keep the conversation going on that topic, when Dee came back. Alone.

“Where’s Linda? Is she okay?” I practically shouted.

“Relax, Jim,” Dee said, smiling. “Linda is fine, she just has something to do. You don’t need to worry about her. She is a grownup woman, you know.” Upon which my friends started teasing me about how much I worried about Linda. It’s true, I did; she worried about me the same way. I put up with it for about five minutes, and when Linda still hadn’t returned, I’d had enough. I got up and headed for the bar, taking an empty plate with me as an excuse. I approached one of the female bartenders.

“Excuse me, but my wife went to the restroom about fifteen minutes ago, and hasn’t come out. She never takes that long. Could you please go, or send someone, to be sure she’s all right?”

The bartender gave me a dubious look. The plate in my hand gave me an idea.

“The wings are great, and she likes spicy food, but every now and then she gets a reaction. Really, I just want to know she’s all right. Her name is Linda. Here, let me show you a picture of her.” I put down the plate and pulled up Linda’s picture on my phone. The bartender was beginning to look somewhat sympathetic when there was a voice at my elbow.

“She’s all right, you don’t need to check on her.” Dee was addressing the bartender. “Everything’s fine. I’ll take care of this.” She placed a five on the counter. I wondered why the bartender looked at me with what seemed like sympathy as she pocketed the bill.

“What ... why ... but she went there with you,? because you asked her,?” I was completely confused.

“Jim, she’s not in the restroom. She has left the club.”

“Left? Without me? Why? What’s the matter? Why didn’t she tell me? Where did she go? Is she all right?” I still didn’t get it.

“Let’s go to the end of the bar where there’s some privacy.” I just went where Dee dragged me. It was quieter in the dark corner at the end of the bar. Dee looked me in the eye.

“Jim, Linda loves you. She loves you and the children more than anything else in the world, and she always will, and you know it. But she is spending tonight with Marc.”

I stood there with my mouth open, looking stupid as my world ended. Pictures whirled madly through my mind, or what was left of it. Linda at the top of the stairs in her beautiful blue dress. Linda at dinner; Linda at the club; Linda as we fed wings to each other. Linda in Asshole’s arms. My anger rose.

“So, on what was supposed to be our special night, she left me for some asshole jock.” I glared at Dee as I growled the words.

“Jim, she hasn’t left you. She’ll come home to you tomorrow, and you’ll have plenty of other special nights together.”

“She didn’t even have the guts to tell me to my face that she was leaving me. She just snuck out the back door.”

“Jim, listen to me. She hasn’t left you...”

“Well, if she hasn’t left me, then where the hell is she? She sure isn’t with me now, is she?” I was getting loud, and didn’t care who heard me.

“Please, settle down, people are looking at you. Listen, I know this hurts for you, but it’s just tonight. Linda knows, we all know, that you’re the only man for her and you always will be. You’re the good guy.”

“Yeah, and we all know where the good guy finishes, don’t we?”

“Jim, it isn’t like that. You’re making way too big a deal out of this. It’s only tonight, then she’ll come back to you tomorrow and everything will be just like it was before.” I snorted at her. If she really believed that shit, nothing I could say would make any difference anyway.

“So, Friend, what was your role in all this? You didn’t really need to go to the restroom, did you? My wife gave you the signal, right? She told you to stall me and keep me out of the way long enough for her and Asshole to make their getaway?”

“Yes, she asked me to do that, because she didn’t want you to embarrass yourself by making a scene while Marc was here. She also asked me to make sure you remembered that she loves you, and she will always come home to you.”

Yeah, I’d remember exactly how much she loved me tonight, for a long time to come. “More like she didn’t want me to embarrass her as she walked away from her husband to spend the night with an asshole jock. I don’t suppose it occurred to you, Friend, to remind her that she had a husband and a marriage, and she might lose them over this?”

Dee looked me in the eye. “No, it didn’t, because I know she won’t lose you over this. You’re too good a man to let that happen. I told her how lucky she is. She’s lucky because the man that every woman in the room wanted, wanted her; but she’s even luckier that she has a husband who loves her enough to get past his hurt feelings and not make this a bigger deal than it should be. You know she’ll be willing to do whatever it takes, for as long as it takes, to make it up to you.”

“What if it isn’t possible to make it up to me? What if there is no way to make this right?”

“Jim, I know how much you love Linda, and how much she loves you. This doesn’t have to be a big deal. It’s just one night, a one-time experience, compared to all the years and all the love you two have together. It isn’t a big deal, unless you make it one. I know she’ll come home to you, and I know, eventually, you’ll be fine.” Dee spoke gently but confidently. It was all I could do not to grab the stupid woman and shake her until her teeth rattled for spouting such nonsense. She must be living in some sort of alternate universe if that’s what she really thought.

“So if Asshole had picked you, as you wanted him to, you’d have done the same thing?”

“I would.” She flung her answer into my face.

“Does Dave know that?”

“No, and he doesn’t need to, because I don’t think it will ever happen,” she said softly.

“Maybe I should tell him.”

“Jim, please don’t. Don’t think that way. I know you’re hurting, but that won’t help. Please come back to the table. Let us take your mind off it for a while. You haven’t danced a single dance with me all night, you know.” She smiled invitingly at me.

“I wanted to dance with my wife, but thanks to you, and her and Asshole, that doesn’t seem to be an option, now does it?” I turned my back on Dee and stalked back to our table.

The talk at the table stopped abruptly when I appeared. The averted eyes told the tale: all of our friends now knew that my wife and Asshole were at that very moment making a cuckold of me.

“Uh, Jim, are you going to be okay?” Dave asked hesitantly after he seated Dee. I wanted to tell him what Dee had said and ask if he would be okay, but I couldn’t force the words past my throat. I guess I hadn’t gotten over being the good guy yet. I would have to work on that.

“It depends on what you mean by okay.” There were a couple of nervous giggles.

“I mean, yeah, that was a shitty thing to do, but you two are going to make it, aren’t you? You’re not going to divorce Linda over this, are you?”

“I don’t see why I shouldn’t,” I responded coldly. There was a gasp around the table.

“Why are you all acting surprised?” I continued. “We all know how we feel about cheating: once and done. We established that long ago.”

“But Jim, it’s Marc LaValliere...” Dee interposed.

“So what? I don’t care who’s fucking her. If it isn’t me, that’s that.”

“Jim, what about your kids? We all know how much you love them, and how much they need you. Think of them before you do anything.” Jane’s kids were about the same age as mine and were best buds.

“You mean, like my wife is thinking about them right now?”

“Well, that’s why you got a sitter, so you wouldn’t have to think about your kids.” I think Dee meant it to be funny. It fell as flat as it deserved to. “Come on, Jim, it’s just one night. It’s an opportunity she’ll never have again. You wouldn’t divorce Linda over one night.”

“Why not?” I glared at her. An uncomfortable silence followed.

“Jim, try to think of it this way, maybe it will help.” Jane was trying to sound sympathetic. “What if the cover model from the Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue was here tonight? Say she picked you out of everyone here to dance with, and then she offered to spend the night with you. Can you honestly say you wouldn’t be tempted? Can you honestly say you would turn her down?” The pleading look in Jane’s warm brown eyes made her look like a particularly winsome puppy dog, and was usually quite effective in getting her what she wanted. Not tonight.

I stood and looked down at Jane. “Yes, I would be tempted, but I would turn her down. You see, I have a wife, and I don’t want to hurt her. At least, that’s what I’d have done before tonight.”

There was another one of those deafening silences. I looked around the table at each of my former friends, all of whom were siding with my cheating wife. At that moment, I sincerely hoped never to see any of them again. I pulled out a twenty and dropped it on the table. “That will pay my tab. You’re all covering for the slut I came with; you might as well cover her bill, too.” I turned on my heel and stalked out of the club.

My anger cooled as I walked the block and a half to the hotel. It was replaced by the deepest sadness I had ever known. Linda and I were supposed to be making this walk together, holding hands, chaffing our friends about what they were going to get up to once they got to their rooms, and being chaffed in our turn. She was supposed to be holding my arm that way she does, and pushing her face into my coat sleeve when the conversation got too risqué. Instead, I was alone. Alone, I rode the elevator, trying not to remember what Linda and I had gotten up to in other hotel elevators. Alone, I entered what was supposed to have been our room. Alone, I faced the wreckage of our special night.

I turned on the light, and shut the door behind me. Suddenly, I was weary beyond the telling. I dropped my winter coat on the floor and slouched toward the bedroom. There was a Godiva chocolate on each pillow. Laid out in the middle of the bed was a bra and panty set that I hadn’t seen before. They were dark blue, darker than her dress, edged with black lace. In my mind’s eye, I could see her modeling them, with that combination of love and sensuality in her eyes that was all her own, that had been all mine until tonight. I took the lacy little garments tenderly into my hands, as if holding them might bring her back to me. It didn’t work. I wept.

My wife, my lover, my best friend, had been taken from me by another man. He had casually, easily, plucked her from right beside me, as if he had every right to do so. He didn’t care what she meant to me; all he saw in her was a pretty fuck toy for the night,. aAnd she had just let him! I didn’t matter enough to her to inspire even the slightest resistance. It was as if she, too, thought he had a right to her, stronger than whatever right I had earned by almost ten years as a faithful, loving husband. Yes, it was supposed to be just one night. And the next morning, I supposed. So what? And what would he, and this night, leave in her heart and mind and senses? What could I ever do that would compare to, let alone compete with, the city’s hero, the handsome stud, Marc “The Asshole” LaValliere?

Thinking about what we had planned for this room, I knew I couldn’t sleep there. Home, in our bed? No, that was even worse. Another hotel? That was stupid, I had already bought a hotel room. Maybe one of the kids’ rooms. That might work. I repacked Linda’s suitcase and my own. I ate both chocolates— -- no point wasting them— -- and threw the sodden bra and panty into the wastebasket. They were empty and worthless without Linda, just like our “special night.”

I was sitting in the living room when Linda finally made it home shortly after noon. She did her best to act like nothing was wrong. I had to appreciate her acting skills. I just hoped mine were as good.

“Jim? Jim, I’m home.” She sounded just like she always did when she came home from running errands. She closed the front door and flicked on a light. I turned to look at her.

“Was the night, and morning, with Marc everything you expected?” I asked in what I hoped sounded like a neutral tone.

“Everything and more.” There was both sympathy and resolution in her gaze as she looked directly at me. “It was the best sex of my life!”

“I knew he would be amazing,” I admitted. “I bet his cock is pretty big, isn’t it?”

“I have to say you’re taking this much better than I thought you would,” responded Linda as she broke into a smile. “He’s a big guy, so I would say his endowment was proportional. It took a little getting used to.”

“Were you able to deep throat him, or was it too big?”I asked expectantly. “How did his cum taste? I bet it was sweet as honey.”

“Wow! You’re really into this, aren’t you?” marveled Linda. “I was barely able to get the head of his big cock in my mouth. He almost drowned me when he came. I couldn’t even spit it out because he held it in my mouth until I swallowed it all. Honestly, it didn’t taste much differently than yours, maybe a little bitterer.

“I’m so glad we’re able to talk about it. It’s going to add zest to our love making. It’ll be even better,” predicted Linda optimistically. “The night was too amazing to not be able to share.”

“You must have really turned him on. Did he take your ass? That would have been an impressive first time for you,” I suggested.

“He asked me if he could, but if you saw that monster, you’d know why I refused him. It was hard enough for him to work his cock into my pussy. It took a couple of minutes the first time,” recalled Linda with a faraway look.

“Is his cum still running down your legs?” was my next question as I wondered just how much she would admit.

“No, I showered and cleaned up really good well before Marc brought me home. I was worried you’d be upset and having him on me and in me wouldn’t have helped at all. Would you have preferred I still had his stuff in me?” asked my loving wife with a sinister smile as she confirmed she had let him fuck her bareback and dropped his cum inside her.

“I think it’s better you cleaned up,” I responded truthfully. “Wasn’t he worried about having sex with a married woman and how your husband would react?”

“Not really. In fact, it seemed to turn him on that I’m married. He told me that married pussy was the best, and my pussy was one of the sweetest he ever had. I know he was just saying that to compliment me, but it really cranked my motor when he whispered it to me,” admitted Linda. “All this talk is making me horny. Why don’t we go upstairs and get you to reclaim my pussy?”

“He likes married pussy? Do you think he wanted to knock you up? Does he knock up a lot of married women?” I wondered. “Did he say he was trying to breed you?”

“No!” exclaimed Linda. “He never talked about getting me pregnant. What kind of man do you think he is?”

“My opinion wasn’t considered,” I replied. “If he made you pregnant, we can get child support from him, at the very least.”

“I shouldn’t get pregnant,” insisted Linda. “I’m a couple of days from my fertile period. I don’t want to have his baby. Why would you even suggest something like that?”

“Don’t get your panties in a wad, if you’re wearing any,” I snapped. “You had unprotected sex with a stud football player. His swimmers could be working their magic even as we speak.”

Everyone in the family knew I had a vasectomy after the birth of our two children. Our family was complete and we didn’t want the stress of worrying about an unwanted pregnancy.

“I told you I cleaned myself thoroughly,” insisted Linda. “Don’t make the best sex of my life into a negative thing. I won’t get pregnant.”

“As long as you’re certain,” I replied, apparently relenting on the subject. “Have you figured out how you’re going to respond when friends and relatives start asking you about your night of incredible sex? Will you tell them how good it was, how much you enjoyed everything and how proud you were when he chose you to fuck?”

“I don’t see any reason to bring the matter up with other people. We’ll just keep it between us,” answered Linda naively. “It was quite a rush when Marc chose me. Were you surprised?”

I just stared at her for a few seconds. “I was very surprised. Your plan is to hope no one ever mentions your fuck-fest? Doesn’t that seem a lot like hiding your head in the sand? Eight other people dining with us knew you left to get fucked, never mind all the other patrons and staff.”

“Our friends wouldn’t tell anyone,” assured Linda. “No one else knew I left with Marc, so I don’t see any issue.”

“You seem to have thought of everything,” I replied with a nod of agreement. “Could I ask why you left without telling me? You had to know I’d be worried.”

“I knew you’d never go along with it and try to stop me. I’m sorry about not trusting you to accept my decision. Most husbands would be making an unpleasant scene right now,” reasoned Linda. “I appreciate how understanding you are about it all.”

“Let me get this straight. You actually thought I would be upset and try to stop you from getting fucked by a football star?”

“I wish you wouldn’t keep referring to it as ‘fucking’. That makes it sound vulgar and cheap. To answer your question, I did think you’d be upset. Having your wife leave a restaurant to make love to another man could be a little embarrassing,” she concluded.

“Are you saying it was your intention to humiliate me in front of our friends?” I asked thoughtfully.

“No! I didn’t want to humiliate you. It’s just that many husbands would see it that way. Male ego is such a fragile thing. I realized that you loved me without any reservations and we’d be able to work out any little bumps my night with Marc might create. It seems I was right. Let’s go upstairs and make love now. It’s time for you to reclaim your wife!”

“I have to mow the lawn. I should have done it this morning, but I was distracted,” I replied as Linda’s smile suddenly disappeared. “Did you get some sort of bill of health or something from your fucker? We can’t have sex until we know you’re clean. There are some nasty STDs out there, as well as HIV.

“On second thought, never mind any paperwork he might have had. He could have contracted something after he was tested. I hear he’s a real man whore,” I stated, with emphasis on the whore part.

“He’s a professional athlete!” protested Linda. “He must get tested all the time. He’s a very neat, clean guy. You don’t have to worry about Marc giving me anything.”

“You’re right. I don’t have to worry about it, but you do. I Googled it this morning,” I added. “It can take up to 6 months after infection for the HIV antibodies to develop. You’ll need to be tested now for STDs and HIV, and then again for HIV in six months.”

“Are you serious?” demanded Linda. “You know damn well the odds are against Marc giving me HIV. You’re just being petty.”

“The odds are against me blowing my brains out in a game of Russian roulette, but I’m still not going to play it,” I responded patiently. “Six months will be over before you know it, unless you’re going to fuck him again. That would set the time table back.”

“It was just one time!” exclaimed Linda. “I’m your wife. I won’t be having sex with anyone but you from now on. I want to be your loving wife as long as we both live. You and the kids mean everything to me. There won’t be a second time with Marc.”

“Yeah, I almost forgot you lovedhow much we mean to you us that last night when you were in Marc LaValliere’s bed sucking his cock. Thanks for reminding me.”

Linda must have noticed the sarcasm dripping from my response. “You really aren’t okay with me spending the night with Marc, are you? You were just pretending to be happy for me so you could find out what I did with him. I was expecting more from the man who claims to love me.”

“If you’re referring to me, you’ll never go wrong underestimating my character. The good news is you certainly weren’t disappointed last night,” I shot back.

Linda appeared to have an epiphany. She looked worried. “Jim, I never meant to hurt or embarrass you. I love you! We can get past this. Let’s never discuss it again. We can work to get back to where we were before yesterday if we try. You’re the only man for me.”

“Why would I believe that when you dumped my ass in a very public manner as soon as some stud told you he’d like to fuck you? How do I know it won’t happen again?” I demanded. “What if he calls you up in a week and tells you he wants another piece of your married ass? What then?”

“I’ll tell him my husband is the only man who gets a piece of my married ass!” responded Linda hotly. “I’ve been hit on quite a few times over the years and I’ve always been able to turn the guy down.”

I just stared at her until she broke eye contact and looked down at her feet while her face turned red.

“I have to mow the lawn,” was all I said as I headed for the garage. The good thing about mowing a big yard is it gives a guy a lot of time to think. I did just that as I spent a couple hours cutting the grass and trimming the edges.

When I finished and went inside for a drink, the house was quiet. I looked for Linda and found her asleep on the sofa. I assumed she hadn’t managed much rest the previous evening.

I washed up and went into the small room where we have our desk top computer. I turned it on and logged into Face Book. The first thing I saw was a message from a friend of mine from work. I didn’t usually use Messenger, but I clicked on the icon.

“Jim, you should look at Jane Freeman’s page. It’s about you and Linda. I hope it’s all bullshit,” was the entire message. With a feeling of dread, I entered Jane’s name in the search and found her immediately. I went to her home page.

It only took me a few seconds to find the post to which my friend had referred. Jane had a rambling description of her evening at the swank ‘Chez Pierre Restaurant’ and the surprising turn of events. She never mentioned Linda, or Marc LaValliere by name, but that was just about the only thing she had omitted from her recount of the evening.

It seems that one of her female friends was approached by a famous football star while dining and was asked to dance. After a few dances, she excused herself to go to the ladies’ room and never returned. Her friend’s husband briefly searched for her until another friend of his wife’s explained she had left with the famous athlete.

I decided I might dodge the bullet aimed for my heart since, after reading it twice, I saw that no names were mentioned. Then I read some of the replies. A woman whose name was unfamiliar to me commented that she had seen Linda Bennett dancing with Marc LaValliere for several dances. A bit later, she noticed Linda’s husband was standing by his table alone. Linda was nowhere in sight, and neither was the famous Marc LaValliere.

That was all it took. Dozens of comments about Linda, Marc and me, or any combination thereof were quickly posted! I skimmed the comments and came to the conclusion that most of those posting had determined I was a cuck wimp. Linda was an easy lay. Marc, on the other hand, was a great tight end and a lucky bastard.

So much for Linda being able to trust her friends! I was disappointed, but not surprised in any way. People love to talk, and Linda had given her so-called friends plenty to talk about. Oddly, I felt worse about the names they were calling Linda than I did about my new nicknames. It was slightly easier, although far from pleasant, to be considered a wimp than to have my wife, the mother of my children, called a whore, a slut, a skank, or at times, all three.

I worked in marketing for a large company and knew a lot of the tricks on how to shine shit, but this was beyond anything I had ever encountered. How could I protect my wife and kids? Hell, should I even try? Linda had fucked more than a football player, namely our marriage. It was floundering in deep shit.

My boss at work had always preached that we need to think outside the box. I sat at the keyboard for half an hour before an idea began to take shape. It wasn’t a solution so much as it was directing the conversation. Linda and I would suffer greatly, but why shouldn’t we? Somehow, Linda had determined it was okay to fuck a complete stranger, albeit a famous one. Somehow I had given her the impression I would forgive her for doing it. Was she right? Could she shit all over me, humiliate me in such a horrible manner and then be forgiven? It seemed unlikely at the moment.