Chapter 1

Thanksgiving dinner was over and they had just said good-bye to her parents. Darren Davis watched his wife putting away the last of the dishes that she and her mother had finished cleaning. He grabbed his glass of wine and stepped out onto the patio. Every year he stepped outside as Thanksgiving ended and thought about all the things he had to be thankful for.

Stephanie was always at the top of the list. She was not the same lithe brunette he had married fifteen years ago, but she was still gorgeous. Just looking at her through the window, he felt himself harden. He frowned as he wished they had more time for each other. Their lives had gotten so busy that they rarely had time for each other. Even the sex had gotten boring. They did the same thing two or three nights a week. It was satisfying, but something was missing.

"Penny for your thoughts," Stephanie said as she slipped up behind him and hugged him. He had been so lost in thought that he hadn't heard her open the door and come out onto the patio.

"Probably not worth the penny," he said, turning and wrapping his arms around her.

"You come out here every Thanksgiving."

"I didn't think anyone noticed."

"Well, I didn't until I saw you come out here tonight and then it hit me. I went to grab your wine glass and saw you staring off into the sky. What do you think about?"

"Are you sure you want to know?"

Stephanie closed her eyes and stepped away from him. She took a deep breath. "Yes, I really want to know."

Now it was Darren's turn to think. Dare he bare his thoughts to her? He didn't want to hurt her feelings. He did still love her after all.

"Okay. I come out here to reflect on the things I am thankful for."

"Not very original. So how many things are you thankful for?"

"I didn't get past number one tonight. You."

"Me?" Stephanie seemed genuinely surprised. "I can't believe I'm at the top of the list. You don't seem to have much time for me any more." A tear appeared at the corner of her eye.

Darren saw the tear and heard the emotion in her voice. "I don't have time for you?" he said defensively.

"You spend four nights out every week. I'm lucky if you come to bed when I do three nights a week."

"You know I'm on the school committee and the church women's council."

"And spend three hours a week at the salon getting your hair and nails done. Yes, I know what your schedule is. Busy, like mine. Only mine is all done by 9 or so."

"And then there's golf every Saturday. Between that and keeping the yard up, you have the weekends tied up. You never have the time or energy to take me anywhere."

"Like where? You and Cassie go to the movies every Saturday night after you shop all afternoon. You're rarely home before 9 anyway."

"We don't go every Saturday."

Darren looked at Stephanie and she looked back at him. This wasn't even an original argument. It had been ongoing for almost six months now. One of them usually walked away at this point. Darren wasn't leaving. It was obvious that Stephanie wasn't either. He turned and looked out across the grass and wondered how it had come to this. She used to be playful and flirty. Her hunger for him used to be inexhaustible. What happened? Did he change? Did she?

"How did it come to this, Darren? We used to do everything together?" Stephanie said, echoing his thoughts as if she could read his mind.

"I don't know, Steph. I don't know. But does it really matter how?" he asked rhetorically. He looked into her dark eyes and touched her cheek. She put her hand over his and held it to her cheek. "I don't know what it is, Steph, but something is missing."

"I know what you mean, Darren. I love you. But I don't get the same thrill I used to get when you walk into the room. I know you can't get the same thrill when you look at me. I'm fat. My tits sag. My butt is huge and my belly is too. I've got wrinkles on face and gray in my hair. Look at you. You put on a little weight, but your hair is still brown. You don't look thirty-nine, but I look forty-five."

"Oh, bullshit, Steph. Sure you've put on some weight, kids do that. But you're still the same gorgeous lady I married."

"Don't give me that. I've seen you staring at the blonde across the street with her skimpy bikini."

"Christine? Well, I guess I do stare at her a bit. But that doesn't mean I don't like what I see when I look at you. I was standing out here looking in at you putting the dishes away and I could feel myself harden. You still turn me on." He took her hand lowered it to his crotch. His manhood was tenting his trousers.

"Well, hello soldier boy. Maybe we should go to bed now," Steph hinted with a gleam in her eye.

"Maybe we should forget the bed. The grass is soft."

"Darren!" Steph hissed as he grabbed her waist and pulled her to him. "The neighbors will hear us."

"So?"

"So! God you are such an animal! Don't you ever grow up?"

"There was a time when you'd have been shucking your clothes and heading for the grass before I even finished the thought."

Stephanie blushed. "Well, I guess I've matured."

"I guess."

"Is that what this is about? We don't have sex out in the backyard any more?"