Sarah rode the GO train Monday to Friday back and forth to her job at the long distance telephone provider she worked for in downtown Toronto.
She had worked for the company five years and enjoyed the high wages and benefits she would not receive in her own hometown.
The forty-five minute commute each was gave her an opportunity to drink her cup of Second Cup coffee and scan the Sun newspaper for the overnight news.
As she boarded the train at its Hamilton terminal she was always assured a seat in her preferred coach. Sarah liked to sit in the first or second coach of the train as when it pulled into Toronto's Union Station she would be close to the street exit.
Many of the same commuters occupied Sarah's coach during the week and she had struck up a casual acquaintance with a few of them.
There was Ron who worked for a major credit card company and was divorced and traveling from his rented room in Burlington. Ron was an affable chap always going on about how much he missed his children.
George was a software developer, a chubby prematurely bald bachelor who Sarah suspected may be gay.
Emily was in her coach most mornings as was Josie.
Emily was an older spinster secretary for a Toronto attorney and Josie a young attractive Asian girl betrothed to be married the following summer.
There were other familiar faces that did not have names and only warranted a polite smile and nod each day.
It was on this train that Sarah encountered temptation.
It was Monday morning and she had left her children at the daycare before boarding the train. She saw many of the usual people as she chose her seat in the second coach. She had just settled down waiting for the train to pull out of the station when he sat down in the seat beside her.
Sarah was a bit annoyed, there were plenty of unoccupied seats in the coach and she didn't like her space being invaded.
"O.K., if I sit here?" the stranger asked.
Sarah politely smiled her consent.
Trying not to be obvious she took a closer look at her new seatmate. He looked a bit younger than her, perhaps in his early twenties and was nicely dressed in a well-tailored charcoal suit. Sarah imagined he was an up and coming employee of one of the many Toronto firms employing young college graduates. His sandy hair was cut in a close brush cut and he had the build of an athlete. If she was going to have a seatmate it might as well be him.
"Brad." he introduced himself.
Sarah smiled and volunteered her name.
A Sarah had not yet started reading Brad engaged her in conversation, starting with an exchange of each other's jobs, families and friends.
Sarah learned that Brad had indeed recently graduated from university and had been hired as an intern for a big advertising agency. He still lived with his parents in Sarah's hometown and was betrothed to his university sweetheart and was to be married the following summer.
Sarah filled her new friend in on her husband and children, her job in the customer relations' department of Sprint Canada and how she had gotten into a rut.
Brad listened with a sympathetic ear as Sarah lamented that her life had turned into going to work and back, looking after the kids and how her husband had no interest in taking her out places. She said she yearned for the excitement she had experienced in her university days.
They were nearing Toronto's Union Station and would soon be parting when Brad made the bold suggestion that they meet sometime for a fun night out. Brad assured Sarah it would be just for fun and she could draw the limits as to where and what they did.
Brad had tugged on Sarah's interest and she was not ready to end their relationship. Boldly she gave the good-looking sandy hair lad her cellphone number.
Brad was not on the train the following morning and their brief encounter slipped from Sarah's mind. She was sitting in the lunchroom on her afternoon break when her cellphone rang.
"Hello." she answered warily not recognizing the number on the call display.
"HI, it's Brad!" the cheery voice on the other end replied.
"Hi Brad." Sarah acknowledged.
"Wanna go out tonight?" Brad asked.
Sarah was bedazzled, he had caught her off guard, "Where to?" she asked.
"Maybe just a club?" Brad offered.
"I will have to call my husband and see if it's O.K.?" she replied wanting to take Brad up on his offer.
"Let me know as soon as you can, you have my number." Brad agreed.
Sarah felt guilty lying to her husband as it was so out of character for her. But she definitely needed a night of kicking up her heels without kids to look after and obligations to fulfill. Making up a story about a meeting at work that would last until late she told her husband she was going to stay in the city for the night. It was not unusual, Sarah had stayed in Toronto over night before when she worked late or there was a snowstorm or some other reason it was impractical to come home. Rick told her to take care and he would miss her.
