Dear Reader,
Thank you for joining me for the next chapter of Maya and Tarik's story. If you are new to these stories, I suggest starting at the beginning with "The Journey", followed by "Them" and returning to this chapter. A note before you dive into this chapter. There are five parts to this chapter, and these are a bit longer than previous chapters. This chapter focuses on a lot of details and world-building for Maya and Tarik, along with additional character development, which is partially why it's filed under "romance". There are still lots of juicy bits, don't worry. But if you aren't a big fan of the additional detail, you may wish to skip ahead to those sections. I won't be offended if you do, after all, I know why you're *really* here. ; )
Without further ado, I hope you enjoy this next installment.
----I----
Maya and Tarik had settled into life in their new town and were enjoying every bit of it. Thanks to their overall frugality and both of their savings, they were able to buy a large piece of property in the foothills of the neighboring mountains. The property was about 30 minutes from the city, where they were still close to urban amenities and the university, but it was far enough away that there would be plenty of peace and privacy. Maya didn't have too long of a commute, and Tarik was able to rent space to open a yoga studio in one of the suburbs and taught classes regularly.
The property had sat abandoned and neglected for many years, so they were able to buy it for practically nothing. This left plenty of room in their budget to design and build their dream home. Using the rest of their savings and some loans to build the house and eventually design and install the landscaping, Maya and Tarik were thrilled to begin the project. What remained on the property was in shambles, and they would have to tear down the old house and lay a new foundation. Building an entirely new home, even with an ace construction crew, would take at least a year to complete.
Luckily for Tarik and Maya, there was an old stable at the far southwestern end of the property that had already been partially converted into two guest apartments, and they were able to live on the property while the main house was being built instead of renting an apartment. It was right along the main road and was in surprisingly good condition. With a few minor repairs and hiring someone to finish the remodel before they relocated entirely, they were able to move into that space right away once they arrived with most of their belongings going into storage.
The grounds of the property, however, were a mess. Everything was overgrown, weedy, and the soil was eroding due to crumbling retaining walls along the northern edge. There was plenty of acreage, however, with enough room for Tarik to have a massive swimming pool, Maya to have a writing retreat, plus large vegetable and flower gardens with fruit trees. But, it would need a lot of work to get there. After the house was built, Maya and Tarik spent quite some time designing the future garden, and once the winter was over, they were excited to find a company to help them bring their vision to life.
Life was happy and quiet, even with the stress of building the house for the first year and a half of their transition. Maya and Tarik's marriage and relationship were as strong and healthy as ever. They had plenty of robust and healthy debates about a range of topics, but they rarely fought or argued. Their most serious disagreement was over whether or not Thai Palace really was the best Thai restaurant in town. Sometimes Tarik would get annoyed at Maya's hair ties everywhere, and Maya would get irritated from tripping on Tarik's yoga mat lying in the middle of the floor. But beyond that, they were so good together, balancing each other out where they needed it while supporting and loving each other endlessly.
They still talked openly about sex and their deepest fantasies, and they were not shy about wanting to try new things and explore their desires, unafraid to share what they wanted. This openness did not change with the routines of marriage and deepened their passion for each other even more. As they continued to explore, they always came back to the pleasure of Maya being with other men, and soon, they both wanted to revisit the possibility.
As Maya had lost weight, she became more comfortable and confident in her body, and enjoyed flirting with her admirers. Tarik loved seeing her blossom and grow into this newfound version of herself. He would love her any way she came, but seeing her happy with herself filled his heart with joy. So, it seemed like it would be easy to find someone given how men fell over themselves around Maya, hungry for her attention, but it was turning out to be more complicated than that.
One night, Maya and Tarik were having dinner out in the city at the Thai Palace, and it was clear that the new waiter was flirting with her. In the short time since their arrival, he had fallen prey to her charms, even with Tarik sitting there. Maya was dressed somewhat casually, in soft jeans and a deep v-neck sweater, her hair pulled back, short tendrils poking out around her face. The sweater accentuated her cleavage, and this, along with her easy charm, seemed to have enamored the young waiter. Tarik smirked at Maya as she slyly batted her eyelashes at the waiter when he brought her dessert plate.
"Why are you giving me that look?" Maya asked Tarik, laughing, and blushing as she spooned a small bit of the delicate mango custard in her mouth. She watched the waiter walk away, and when he turned around to look back at her, she gave him a smile.
"Ha, because you are flirting with him," he replied, still trying to hold back his smile.
"And?" she teased, laughing and cocking an eyebrow. Maya returned Tarik's smirk, gently licking the underside of her spoon clean, curling her tongue to remove the last bits of custard.
Tarik leaned across the table, lightly tracing the shape of her wrist with his fingers, his eyes fixated on Maya, his voice soft and excited.
"And...it's been a while...do you maybe want to ask him?"
"Would you like that, Tarik?"
Maya kept her voice at a whisper, and she leaned forward, slipped off her shoe, and ran her foot along Tarik's calf. She took another bite of custard, slowly withdrawing the spoon from her moist lips. Tarik licked his lips and looked up at Maya. Feeling her unexpected touch and the topic of the conversation caused his cock to stir, trying to stay calm in the busy restaurant.
"Yes, yes I would."
Maya smiled wider at him and took his hand in hers, lacing their fingers together. She looked at Tarik and rested her eyes on him for a moment. He was wearing a pair of dark jeans, a white v-neck t-shirt, and a dark blue flannel shirt. Even in his casual clothes, Tarik always looked so handsome, his hair laying just right, his dark and sparkling eyes shining in the light on the table. Maya's smirk pulled at the corner of her mouth as she looked at Tarik.
"Well, I would like that too," she said, placing the last bite of custard between her lips as she sat back in her chair. "But. We can't just go around asking random guys if they want to sleep with me while you watch," she said matter of factly, licking her lips as she dabbed the corners of her mouth with a napkin.
Tarik sat back a little and laughed, rubbing Maya's hand with his thumb, resting his leg on hers.
"That's true. We do want to be careful. We could try online?" Tarik offered.
"Hmm...even then, I think that could go wrong. You never really know who people are and who you can trust. I don't know," Maya responded, somewhat solemnly.
"Isn't that how you met your last men, though?" Tarik asked.
"It is, that's true," Maya admitted, "But I got lucky that none of those guys were serial killers or something. And now, I'd have too much to lose if something went wrong," she continued, trailing off and looking down as she squeezed Tarik's hand.
