Dan Carson had to admit that his curiosity was piqued. Ben Stevens had asked to meet with him at Megan’s Ale House. He hadn’t seen Ben in several years, although they had been pretty good friends at one time. Dan was sipping a beer when Ben entered the bar.

The two men shook hands before Ben asked the bartender for a draft beer. Dan waited patiently for Ben to return and take a seat.

“I know you must be wondering why I asked you to meet me tonight. I wish I had better news, but it is what it is,” began Ben. “We’ve known each other for eighteen years, give or take. Years ago, we were pretty good friends, but we were never as tight as our wives are.”

Dan felt a knot begin to form in his stomach. He immediately wondered what news Ben had for him and just how bad it might be.

“You can’t lead with a comment like that and then change the subject,” Dan stated. “Do you have bad news about Angie, Dana, or about both of them? Has there been an accident or something?”

“I guess you could call it an accident. I don’t know it you remember my Army buddy, Glen Thomas, but he called me two days ago with some bad news.

“His daughter, Julie, works on a cruise ship. She’s a bartender on the Sea Princess, the same ship that our wives are on. Like I said, Glen and I were in the Army together and became best friends. We always had each other’s back.”

“How does all of that concern me?” Dan demanded. “Does Angie have a problem, or did she get hurt?”

“I’m getting to it. This is hard as hell for me, but I think you need to know. Our wives appear to be on some sort of sex junket,” Ben revealed as he wiped a lone tear off his cheek.

“What in hell are you talking about? Our wives wouldn’t cheat on us, especially with their other friends on the same cruise. They’d never be able to keep it secret.”

“They don’t have to, Dan. All five of them are getting their brains fucked out on that fucking ship,” Ben replied. “They each have their own room and have a male ‘friend’ shacking up with them.”

“How can you be so damned sure of this?” Dan asked. “It could be Julie saw something that she misinterpreted. I don’t think she even knows Angie. I bet when the facts come out, you’ll feel pretty foolish about these accusations.”

“Julie recognized Dana the same night they set sail. She and the other four were at the bar Julie was working. Dana never recognized, Julie, obviously,” Ben added. “The five were drinking a lot and got pretty loose with their conversation. The gist of it was they were going to bed five lucky bastards that Michelle had lined up for them.

“You know how they were all in the same sorority in college,” Ben continued. “It seems they made a pact way back then that they’d get together in 25 years for a week of casual sex with men who were not their husbands, or boyfriends.

“The women were drinking and talking at the bar for almost an hour when five men sauntered up and joined them. They took their drinks to a table too far away for Julie to hear their conversation,” Ben said. “She was able to see them quite clearly, however, and they were making out with the guys like school girls at the prom.”

“I’m sure you mean well, Ben. You drove quite a distance tonight to tell me this, but I still have some doubts. Your friend’s niece doesn’t know Angie. She may not have been part of that group,” Dan reasoned. “I’m not going to ruin a twenty year marriage because your friend’s daughter saw your wife and thought one of the women with her was Angie. It’s too big a stretch. I trust Angie implicitly.”

“I understand that,” Ben agreed. “Hell, Julie’s seen Dana quite a few times when she was younger but I still couldn’t bring myself to believe what Glen told me about what she saw and heard. Julie was thirteen the last time she saw Dana. Julie’s changed her hair color and grown up since then. She was certain that Dana didn’t recognize her. You know how bartenders and maintenance workers become almost invisible to most of us as we go through our days.

“When I told Glen that I thought Julie was mistaken, he told me he thought that I’d feel that way, so he showed me a dozen photos that Julie had surreptitiously snapped with her phone. Sure as shit, Angie and Dana were in them, as well as the other three fucking sluts,” Ben practically snarled.

“You have pictures?” asked Dan. “Even so, sitting around a bar with friends on a cruise ship doesn’t prove infidelity. There could be another explanation.”

“Again, I thought the same thing until Glen sent me the photos. They were bad enough to cause me a sleepless night,” Ben admitted. “Since I couldn’t sleep, I had lots of time to stew over this.

“I thought of Rob Hanson, Josie’s husband. You know he comes from old money, and lots of it. I remembered that Dana once told me that he made Josie sign a prenuptial agreement. It occurred to me that a wealthy man with a possibly unfaithful wife might have the inclination and wherewithal to investigate the situation. I called him first thing the next morning. To say he was interested is an understatement.”

“Did he agree to check into it?” Dan asked. “I wonder if he’ll be able to find out anything since they’re at sea. He can’t get a detective on board now. It’s a five day ‘Whoopie Cruise to Nowhere’. There aren’t any ports of call. Angie told me that the five women just wanted to enjoy some time together, like the old days. She never said anything about all of them getting laid like their college days.”

“As I said, he has money and a lot of it. He knows a guy who, for a substantial fee, can manage the impossible,” Ben revealed. “His fixer found out that there was a vacationing private detective onboard the ship. They agreed on the fee and the detective was on the job by noon.”

“From your grim attitude, I’ll bet that the private dick got the goods on Josie,” Dan surmised. “Since the five are together so much, they must all have some damning evidence against them.”

“That’s exactly what happened. They weren’t very discreet once they left port. Hanson sent me a shitload of photos and videos. Our wives are fucking stars. I mean that literally,” Ben stated.

“How did he get access to their rooms?” Dan asked. “I don’t think that’s legal or at least not admissible in court.”

“What the fuck are you talking about?” Ben demanded. “Most states are no fault, including the one we live in. All I needed was to see Dana with her big cocked lover to know my marriage was over. I don’t need to prove shit to anyone else.

“I’ll show her a few highlights so she won’t try to talk her way out of a divorce,” Ben declared. “I think she’ll be pretty reasonable when she realizes the havoc I can wreak on her career and family.”

“I can’t argue with your logic,” Dan admitted reluctantly. “I hope one of the reasons we’re meeting tonight is so you can give me the files showing my loving wife’s debauchery.”

“Yeah, I have a flash drive with everything, including Dana, Michelle, Josie and Taylor,” replied Ben as he handed the device to Dan. “Taylor’s already divorced, so she won’t suffer much, if at all. Hanson told me he’s dumping Josie like a bad habit. I know that I can’t stay married to Dana after this kind of betrayal. It was planned twenty five years ago! Can you believe this shit?”

“This certainly puts a real strain on my marriage,” Dan said in agreement. “If the proof is as damning as you’re telling me, I can’t imagine staying married. I never heard of women planning to cheat on their husbands before they even met them. I wonder if we can use the videos from the room in any possible law suits.”

“You’re hung up on hoping that some law will somehow save your ass,” Ben declared. “If it makes you feel better, Hanson said he’d grant us permission to use anything that he supplies to us. Remember how his wife booked the cruise and paid for all the rooms so they could have a contiguous block? Our wives paid her back, but all of the rooms were booked on one of Rob Hanson’s credit cards. He gave the PI permission to plant electronic devices in the rooms.

“Since the detective couldn’t go shopping for that shit on the ship, he used his, his wife’s and his brother-in-law’s phones to bug the rooms and get the goods on the cheating bitches. It required two nights since there were five sluts and only three phones, but the guy earned his money.

“Hanson was going to contact Michelle’s husband tonight. He suggested that we all get our ducks in a row before we let the women know that the shit has hit the fan. He said we need to find a capable lawyer immediately and follow his suggestions.”

Dan was reeling from all the information Ben had given him. His wife was a cheating slut and he needed a lawyer pronto to protect his interests. A few hours ago he had been scanning the internet for ideas for Angie’s birthday. That problem was no longer a concern.

“I don’t know what to say,” Dan confessed. “I’m stunned. I don’t feel like thanking you for letting me know the situation, but I sure as hell appreciate knowing what’s really going on. I have a lot to think about. Angie’s going to be home Saturday, so I need to get working on this tomorrow morning.”

“I’m sorry to be the one to tell you, Dan, but you needed to know,” Ben responded as he held out his hand. The two men shook hands briefly and went their separate ways.

Saturday morning found Angie anxious to get home. Her cruise with her friends had been an extremely enjoyable experience. She had thanked Michelle several times for lining up such passionate, experienced men for the week’s activities. Michelle had promised she’d handle that part of the pact twenty five years ago and she had more than fulfilled her promise.

Angie wanted to reconnect with Dan after all the sex she had enjoyed with the other men. All the participants had agreed that it had been a onetime event and none of the men would ever try to contact any of the women again. It was safer that way.

Angie knew Dan would be eager for sex since they had been separated for a week. He was a good man and a patient lover, but lacked the stamina and enthusiasm of the slightly younger men who had spent the week with her and her friends. She found herself looking forward to the slow, gentle love making of her husband. She’d do her best to put the others in her past and concentrate on pleasing her husband. He deserved to be rewarded.

Angie had texted Dan that she’d be home by noon and was surprised that Dan wasn’t there to greet her upon her return. As she dragged her luggage from the garage into the house, she realized that something seemed off. Was it her guilty conscience or was something actually amiss?

Angie decided not to dwell on it and carried her suitcases up the stairs to the master bedroom. She was torn between taking a relaxing hot shower and unpacking her bags. She hated that part of traveling, but she decided to bite the bullet and put away her good clothes and place what needed to be washed in the laundry room.

Angie took a long relaxing shower and was a bit flummoxed that Dan wasn’t home yet. This was out of character for him. They had agreed to not call each other while she was on her cruise unless there was an emergency. That wasn’t unusual for them. Talking to each other on the phone never had much appeal for either of them, so they usually waited until they were reunited to share any news they might have.

Angie became more concerned as the day wore on. She tried calling Dan a few times but her calls always went straight to voicemail. As evening approached, Angie called her daughter, Monica, who was a freshman in college.

“Hello, Mother,” was Monica’s rather unemotional greeting.

“Hello, Sweetheart,” Angie responded cheerfully. “I’m back from the cruise and thought I’d see how you’re doing. I missed you every day.”

“Have you talked with Dad yet?” was Monica’s immediately response.

Baffled by her daughter’s terse reply, Angela admitted that she had not. “He doesn’t answer his phone and he isn’t home, so I haven’t seen him yet. Do you have any idea where he might be?”

“I really don’t, Mother. I think you should talk to him before we have our discussion,” Monica stated flatly before disconnecting the call.

Angie tried calling Monica back several times but her calls went directly to voice mail. Concerns about the cruise began creeping into Angie’s thoughts. There was no way Dan could know about the activities of the past week. All five of the women had vowed to keep it secret until death.

It was almost six when Angie heard the garage door open. She was sitting at the kitchen table facing the door to the garage when Dan stepped into the house.

Not knowing exactly what was going on, Angie had decided to behave as she usually did. That meant she would let Dan know that she was pissed that he hadn’t been home when she returned from her vacation and that he hadn’t answered her calls or returned her texts.

“Why didn’t you answer my calls, or at least my text messages?” Angie demanded before Dan could take a seat. “I was worried about you. You never shut me down like this before and I want an explanation.”

“The short answer is that you’re a fucking cheating slut, unworthy on any effort I might expend on your behalf. I’m sure that you’ll force the long answer out of me before this is over.”

Angie didn’t try to hide her shock and dismay at Dan’s pronouncement. “How can you call me, your wife of over twenty years, a slut? An apology is in order, and I mean right now.”

“I agree, although it won’t do any good,” Dan replied. “I’m anxious to hear this, so try to make it sound believable.”

“I meant that you owed me an apology, you asshole,” Angie snarled. “I thought we’d go upstairs and take care of our pent up desires, but that isn’t going to happen now.”

“That’s a relief,” Dan retorted. “I won’t have to risk STDs or falling into that stretched out tunnel and getting lost.”

Angie had tried to pretend that she didn’t understand Dan’s comment about being a slut, but she now realized he had some inkling of what went on during the cruise. She decided on a different tact.

“Why are you so rude, Sweetheart? We’ve been separated for a week and I thought you’d be glad to see me. Why all the crude insults?”

“What you refer to as insults, I call facts. You don’t need to pretend anymore, Angie. The cat’s out of the bag, or maybe I should say the pussy is up for grabs,” Dan replied sarcastically. “You spent the entire cruise getting fucked every which way but up. Wait! I was wrong about that. You’re as fucked up as anyone I ever met.”

“You think I had sex with some man while I was on the cruise? Is that what this is about?” asked Angie as she sought the high ground. “You can ask any of the girls. They’ll tell you I was totally faithful. I never so much as flirted with a man, although there were more than a few who acted interested. I take my vows seriously.”

“I’m sure you do,” replied Dan with a grim smile. “You made a vow with your friends to get your brains fucked out this year and you kept it. I can’t tell you how proud that makes me. It’s just too bad you didn’t take our marriage vows as seriously.”

“Dan, someone has been giving you bad information. They must be trying to break us up. They have some unknown agenda,” Angie reasoned.

“Angie, I’ve always been faithful to you. I was in this marriage for the long run, but you made plans to cheat on me, or whoever your husband might be before we even met. That isn’t the worst of it. You kept that vow. I don’t have to tell you that the two vows are extremely contradictory.”

“Who told you about that silly pact? It was made one night when we had too much to drink our freshman year. None of us took it seriously. I’d never cheat on you,” Angie insisted.

“I have to give you credit for coming up with some impressive bullshit in an attempt to avoid the truth. You won’t be gas lighting me anymore, Angie. I was in an alternate reality for the twenty years we were married, but I’m in the real world now,” Dan stated. “Your version of how the world worked was less painful, at least until I found out the truth. I won’t knowingly live a lie. I won’t live with a liar, either.

“I got home a bit late because I was doing the paperwork on an apartment down on Jackson Street. I guess you didn’t look in my closet, but it’s pretty much empty. I’m divorcing you.