The Network

I had no idea where this was going when I started. I was thinking stroke, added some fetish elements that I know very little about and then tried to make it all work in the end.

"Fred, this neighborhood has got to have the cutest teenage baby sitting corps in the whole state!"

The two friends were chatting on the periphery of the typical neighborhood pool party.

"It would be hard to argue with that, Mike. On the other hand do I need to remind you of the legal penalties for having sex with an underage minor? Anyway, your wife is a stone cold fox. I can't believe you would seriously consider..."

"First, this is just guy talk. I have no intention of trying to seduce an underage girl, Fred. Second, never judge a book by his cover; Angie is a hottie but after eight years of marriage...you know what I'm talking about. Third, you need to pay better attention! All these little babes were underage five years ago when we moved here. Guess what? They've grown up, quite delectably in my humble opinion. Most are in their final year of high school and are eighteen or nineteen."

"Mike, little girls like these tend to fall in love too easily, are incredibly fertile and in a small neighborhood like this one, can't keep a secret. Plus, if you start fucking the babysitter, you'll leave traces; your young wife will figure it out."

"Fred, Angie and I have our three kids; that's why I had my tubes tied. I would guess that you've got to pick your target very carefully in terms of the 'falling in love' issue. No screwing around at home --- certainly not in the marital bed! That's what motels were made for!"

"If you're looking for a little strange, open your wallet and pay for it, Mike old buddy. There are half a dozen places within an hour of here where you can find pros --- very high-end pros --- it'll just cost you a few hundred bucks. Or consider a little wife swapping --- that's not an offer, by the way. There are a dozen women in this neighborhood I'd ball in a New York minute --- including your wife. I also know you'd fuck my wife Jamie in a heartbeat."

"That gets out and it can get very messy. It's the old 'falling in love' trap. Come on, admit it! You've thought about it, Fred!"

"Of course I have. Look, Mike, I travel in my job a bit more than you do. I've gotten the urge a few times and always opted for the 'no strings' professional. You need to pick your poison very carefully. I'm not talking about picking up some hooker on the street. I tend toward high-end independents; stay away from the escort services. These are women you would not remotely be ashamed to be seen in public with."

"The sex is amazing, they're bright and fun to be with and love has nothing to do with it. I have a regular three hours from here in a town I have to visit every other week. It's almost like a date without all the downside. It's not cheap but it's well worth it and I've rationalized that no one is getting hurt. When I get home, Jamie gets her brains fucked out so she's none the wiser."

"Where are these 'places' you were talking about?"

"I'll be glad to tell you but would caution against fucking around this close to home. Someone sees your car parked somewhere for too long and recognizes it and you are screwed! Plus, I enjoy spending the night."

"Okay, I am traveling a little more though not as far ranging as you do. As of this week, I'm going to be going over to Centerville at least once a week. It's only a little over an hour from here but we're bringing up a satellite customer service center and it's a 24/7 operation so I have to stay over a lot."

"Mike, I'm going up to Bakerton on Monday; that's where my regular lives. Independents like her tend to be college students, professional women, shop girls and housewives looking for excitement, extra money or both. They appear to have an informal but well developed network. I'll ask her if she has any friends in Centerville."

"I know I sound desperate but bluntly, our sex life --- Angie and me --- was tapering off well before she went back to work and now she just seems to be too tired too often. Plus, there are things that I used to enjoy..."

"Angie gave up a promising career to marry you and have your babies, Mike. I can't believe you aren't enjoying the dramatic increase in income since she went back to work."

"You're right and we don't have any serious problems; I love Angie and she loves me. Maybe it's just the 'seven year itch'. When we do fuck, it's as good as it ever was, we just don't do it enough. The kids have all reached a less demanding age; Angie seems really happy to be back in career mode. It's given her a life of her own and that's very important to her."

"Is she out of town much?"

"Fortunately it's seldom more than one night a week and we coordinate our schedules so that the kids don't have to have an overnight sitter. How about Jamie?"

"She stays pretty local in her job but we coordinate so that the kids don't get screwed. She has some long days but is home virtually every night...well, except Wednesday. She has a big client out of town that is very demanding."

*** "What do you suppose our husbands are having such a serious conversation about?" Five foot seven natural blond Angie asked her very good friend and neighbor, Jamie, a stunning brunette of roughly the same height and form.

"Women and fucking; not necessarily about the women they are respectively married to --- nor about fucking said spouse."

"Mike gets a perpetual boner at these functions. He's so obvious! He can't help himself; all of this nubile young teen cunt makes him drool, not that I really think he'd have the nerve to try to seduce one of them."

"He's at that age and stage --- you've been married what, almost eight years? Men always check out pussy," Jamie observed. "But this is the time in a marriage when they start giving serious consideration to acting on their urge for a little strange."

"Do you think Fred is fooling around?"

"Maybe. Probably, but not dangerously or indiscreetly. I'm pretty sure he's not cruising the bars looking for pussy. Mike is very detail oriented and very careful. I would expect that he's tapping something up in Centerville every other week. Knowing Mike, it's a regular thing, quite probably semi-pro and not remotely a threat to me, my kids or our marriage."

"Jamie, that's a lot more philosophical than I think I'm ready for."

"Oh, come on, Angie! How many guys did you sleep with before Mike took you out of circulation in college?"

"Not many --- three? Only one that had any longevity and that was barely a semester."

"Is Mike great in the sack?"

"He's okay; he's learned and I've learned; there are things I like that I've never really been able to articulate to him."

"I hate the double standard, Angie! Fred was the third guy I ever went to bed with. He's a very competent lover but, after almost eight years, we're in a rut; we know each other's requirements too well. We have kids and have to schedule our love-making. There's not a hell of a lot of spontaneity and no surprises. I'm sure he'd say the same thing in all candor. We are best friends and we love each other. We're committed to our children.

"If knocking off a strange piece of ass every once in a while keeps us together, so be it. What you really have to worry about is the affair with a friend from work, a customer --- or one of these little teenage bitches with their tits and asses hanging out. That's when they fall in love and the marriage goes down the toilet. In terms of preferences, there are things I enjoy a great deal that I'm pretty confident Fred would not find appealing."

"Have you two ever talked about it?"

"Hell, no! That's the unwritten rule; you don't confront it and you don't discuss it."

"What do you do Jamie?"

"What's good for the goose is good for the gander!"

"Jamie, are you telling me you're having an affair?"

"Not in a million years; I told you --- affairs are dangerous on every level --- as is wife swapping. Look, I met a girl --- one of my customers --- when I started working again. She's hot --- every bit as hot as you and I are. We became friends; we're the same age and have similar educations. We have lunch together when I'm in her town. She's married; her husband's a cute guy, they have a couple of kids and seem quite happy together.

"Every other week she has to spend the night out of town visiting her home office for a staff meeting. She makes three hundred bucks on that night with one of a very small and discreet group of men --- all evident happily married --- and they fuck their brains out. More important they do things that she would not be comfortable doing with hubby. He's very comfortable paying her --- no strings, no romance --- no falling in love.

"The men know she's just 'semi-pro' but if she senses it might be slipping over the line she breaks it off and hands that particular one off to one of her friends. They're all very attractive women so no one seems to object. The guys are close in age, successful and attractive. It's just fucking, Angie, and she --- and her friends, some of whom I've also met --- swear it's helped, not hurt their marriage."

"And you...?"

"Starting six months ago right after I went back to work, once a week, Angie."

"Does he --- do they --- know your name?"

"It's strictly first name basis."

"I've thought about it, Jamie; there's a guy at work who..."

"Don't go there, Angie! Look, the guys I'm talking about...you would not be remotely ashamed to be seen in public with. They're clean, respectable, good looking guys."

"How do you meet them?"

"Certainly not hanging out at the Marriott bar! As I mentioned, we have a sort of network --- I have no idea who started it. It's now strictly referral. A girl knows a guy --- someone she works with, a friend's husband, a customer --- who in some way indicates that he is interested in fooling around. Now she knows this guy; to her he is not remotely a stranger. She 'refers' him to someone in the network that he does not know and would be unlikely to 'bump up against' in the normal course of events. It's made very clear up front that it's strictly business and that once he's been handed off she doesn't want to know any details about whether or not he acted on the referral."

"The referrers introduce them and the three of them get together for a drink; if the chemistry is there, they put together an agreement and the referrer bows out. Either party can end it; the guys know the rules --- and they know if they break them, they will be shut out by the network. It's funny; the guys break it off as often as the women do; they're no more interested in getting serious or falling in love than the women are. Married men only; most of the women are married but not all."

"If I were interested --- and I'm not saying I am, how do I..."

"Where do you travel out of town, Angie? Never, never do we meet someone where we live."

"Currently I'm going to Brookeville --- about thirty minutes this side of Bakerton but that could change as my responsibilities change."

"I got an email from the network that there is a girl up that way who is getting ready to change clients. It seems it's a mutual thing; they both recognize that they are getting a little too comfortable with each other. The window is pretty small; if you're interested let me know by Sunday night. He is evidently a very good client; she is his third and he tends to want to switch before it gets too close to being a romance."

***

"Fred!" Mike shouted to his next door neighbor the next morning as each was recovering the morning paper."

"Yeah, buddy?"

"How do I get into this network of yours?"

"I'll need to check, Mike. Traditionally I understand that you have to be referred by another woman --- someone who knows you, is part of the network herself and will vouch for you. My 'friend' in Bakerton and I are getting ready to break it off. Monday will be our last night together. Centerville --- right?"

"It's a pretty small town; why don't we say Brandon, fifteen minutes North of Centerville? Someplace within a reasonable distance."

*** "Fred, it's been a blast! I'm going to miss you...which is exactly why we're smart to move on. You're a pretty neat guy. Let's talk about your next referral. She's about thirty minutes south of here...any problem?"

"Not at all. I only stay over in town because you are here; thirty minutes south is thirty minutes closer to home the following day."

"Okay, well, this is a new girl --- you're her first. Since you are almost a founding client and trusted completely, it was thought that you'd 'be gentle' so to speak. I gather she's never done anything like this before. You know if it doesn't work out..."

*** " Mike, evidently someone --- a woman --- from your work knows you and vouched for you."

"Who?"

"I'm sorry, that information wasn't shared. I also gather that a little bit of rule bending is going to occur. Normally, as I told you, the first meeting is chaperoned but there isn't anyone available in that neck of the woods. The woman in question is not new at this and is comfortable meeting you alone. Let me give you the rendezvous information."

***

When Angie walked into the discreet bar in the upscale suburb of Brookville, she was more than a little apprehensive. The security of her female escort who would be "handing her off" helped a lot, but she knew that she was about to take a "no turning back" step in her life. When "he" turned and stood to greet them, Angie was in for the shock of her life. "He" did a much better job than she did of hiding his surprise. He and her escort embraced fondly.

"Angie, it's a pleasure to meet you."

"Likewise," she said, demurely extending her hand.

The three of them made small talk. After an appropriate interval, the two women went to the powder room. Angie told her escort that she felt confident in taking over from that point on. Her chaperone excused herself and the next door neighbors and best friend's spouses faced each other. Did Fred know about Jamie? She doubted it.

"Why did you stay, Angie, and put on the very convincing act?"

"A combination of fear and curiosity; you recognized me and knew why I was here. You?"

"Pretty much the same," Fred replied.

"We both have a lot to lose if our respective spouses find out."

"My thoughts exactly," he responded.

"Do we really want to go through with this, Fred?"

"The rules absolutely say no; as does common sense. I gather that many 'couples' decide not to pursue the arrangement after first meeting. It's not a problem. The network will find alternatives for both of us."

"Have you ever thought about fucking me?"

"Every time you work out in the yard in your sports bra and worn nylon running shorts?"

She smiled, almost seductively at the complement.

"How about you, Angie, vis a vis me?"

"Oh, sure...you're a hunk. I've checked out your cock through your bathing suit on more than one occasion," Angie replied. She was flirting now.

"Let's try dinner; if we decide—as we should --- not to pursue this there would be nothing unusual about the two of us meeting while out of town on business and having dinner together. We'd certainly tell Mike and Jamie. Fair enough?"

She agreed and followed him the short drive to an upscale and quite intimate restaurant. What would he say if she asked him if her own husband was part of the network? He wouldn't lie; her husband was as much of a virgin to the network as she was. It would be pretty hard for her to be pissed about it.

They enjoyed their dinner together immensely. They talked as they had never talked before, learning things about the other that surprised them. It was different being on a "date" with your spouse's best friend as opposed to chatting with them in two-couple get togethers. She finally blurted out the question burning inside her; Fred told her the truth about Mike's budding involvement.

"When's it going to happen, Fred?"

"Wednesday."

"I need to tell you something, Fred; I'm pretty sure it's going to take you aback. Do you know who 'referred' me?"

"No, not up to this very minute but now I'm guessing it's my lovely wife and your best friend."

"How did you guess?"

"Little changes at home, Angie --- good changes, actually, and as I said, you two are best friends."

"And you're okay with it Fred?"

"Yes and no. First I can hardly pass judgment considering my activities. No, because it's entirely too close to home --- we're all next door neighbors and best friends for Christ's sake! I'd love to be a fly on the wall when they meet their network dates."

"Do you think Mike would enjoy doing your wife and my best friend? It certainly would be financially better if the four of us ever decided to just..."

"I'm warning you, Angie---don't even think of going there! The network is the perfect arrangement. There are no strings and no risk of things getting too friendly. Jamie flirts with Mike but when it gets 'down and dirty,' it would end up getting dangerous and messy." Fred trailed off, then changed the topic. "Speaking of down and dirty! I don't even believe I'm about to propose this but, you are smoking hot tonight --- always --- and..."

"Do you want to try it, Fred...just this once? Common sense says if it happens at all it shouldn't happen a second time but..."

"Angie, you need to know what I, ah, like and I need to have some idea of what you are and aren't comfortable with."

"It's been a long time, Fred. I've never cheated on Mike before but before he and I hooked up...I, ah...liked it rough." Fred smiled.

Fred discreetly passed an envelope across the table to Angie as if in answer to her question. She could tell by feel what it contained. She discreetly put it in her purse.

"Where are you staying?" she asked. He told her. "I'll follow you," she replied.

In fact, their ardor began in earnest as they ascended in the small elevator of the upscale inn. They were lucky to get inside his room with any of their clothing still in place. They had known each other for five years as their spouse's best friend and next door neighbors. This was very different.

Mike was generally a slow and gentle lover and Angie found security in that. Fred on the other hand was bold and aggressive --- at least with her during this first meeting --- and she found it incredibly exciting and arousing. She knew what she really wanted: a nasty, hard, rough, slut fuck. As his tongue probed her mouth and his hands caressed the crack of her ass and the inner folds of her pussy, Jamie felt even more like a slut than the acceptance of the envelope of money had made her feel.

She loved the feeling; he wasn't going to make love with her, he was going to take her...fuck her. She doubted he'd ask what she wanted him to do as Mike so often did; Fred would do what he pleased with her. It didn't matter; she would do anything he wanted. For tonight she was his whore...a fuck slut. Mike never treated her that way; he treated her like what she was --- his wife. Fred was treating her like what she was at that instant: a high priced, bought and paid for piece of ass.

Her husband would ask her to please suck his cock. Fred didn't ask but she understood what was expected of her. Mike always pulled out before he came; he'd never really asked her if that was what she wanted but the one time back in college when he had cum in her mouth she had gagged and cried. She'd only been nineteen and it was the first time a man had cum in her mouth and she thought it said he didn't really love her. He'd never done it again. They had broken up for almost a year and then gotten back together. It was during that year that another man introduced her to a different kind of sex and it turned her on more than she had wanted to admit.