Vickie woke up sporting a lasciviously broad smile. The events subsequent to her discovery of her husband's infidelity certainly were unanticipated, but there was no denying her delight and satisfaction in the experience. She was in a very good mood as she went to have a shower. As she was washing, her mind was racing overtime as to how to confront her husband.
At first blush, she didn't want to end her marriage as there were lots of societal benefits for her which she was loathed to forgo. Although, in the back of her mind, was the realization that if Johnny did want to leave his wife to marry her then she would comply without a moment's hesitation and without any regret.
However she was cognizant that no matter how hot their sex would become; no matter how much they became enchanted with each other, Johnny was not about to leave his wife. And Vickie was cool with that.
What she knew she now wanted was an apparent visibly happy marriage for public consumption. But her marriage would have to allow her freedom to pursue an all encompassing torrid affair with Johnny Whitaker. Her assumption was that Gregory, having committed adultery first, was in no position to object to her desired indulgences. However if he balked, she knew she was prepared to walk out on the marriage never mind the benefits.
She now acknowledged in her mind that she no longer loved Gregory; or not at least to the extent she had loved him prior to this weekend. It was not because of his infidelity, as she certainly could live with that! No, the problem was that the sex with Johnny Whitaker was vastly superior to the sex she had had with Gregory and she was no longer willing to be satisfied with mediocre sex. Still Vicki wanted to preserve the possibility of occasionally having sex with her husband. After all Johnny would as a matter of course not be available every time she desired really hot sex and on such eventualities she would be willing to resort to him to fulfill her sexual needs.
Besides she wanted the door left open for her to conceive another child. She preferred that if her son were to have a sib that such sib be a full blooded one.
Vickie realized her desires were essentially selfish and ignoble in the eyes of most, but she could not deny them. Her greatest problem was how to implement them with Greg's complete co-operation. She knew his guilt for his cheating would only get her so far. So she would have to utilize her utmost skills to get the concessions she wanted from Greg. But no matter what, she was determined to establish her affair with Johnny. Gregory would not be able to dissuade her on that point, and as soon as she could convince him of that fact, the easier it would be to secure his acquiescence; or so she hoped.
After Vickie finished her shower she checked her cell phone. Amidst various messages from Greg was a recent urgent text message from her mother which simply said: "Call me ASAP!" Ignoring Greg's missives for now she called her mother:
"Hi Mom. It's me, what's up?"
"Thank God Vickie that you returned my call so soon. John St Clair is dying. He was admitted to the hospital, about a week ago but as the prognosis was not good he insisted on returning to his home to finish out his remaining days. He plans to have a special meeting tomorrow morning at nine and he wants you to be present besides me and others. He wants to wrap up his affairs before he dies and he wants to provide for you."
Vickie paid no attention to the possibility that she might receive something from John St. Clair's estate upon his apparently impending death. Instead the news that he was dying overwhelmed her.
Kristina continued:
"I'm sorry that I delayed calling you earlier. I was so distraught with my grief that I could not act sooner. Besides I knew you were in DC at the convention and could not have come any sooner anyway. I supervised his transfer from the hospital to his home and I'm keeping a vigil. Now that the convention is over could you please come at once? Will you have any trouble arranging time off from work?"
Vickie could not but help note that her mother did not consider Greg as an impediment for her coming to Dallas. Apparently her mother believed that Vickie's only problem to come on such short notice was getting permission from work. Did her mother sense anything about the state of her marriage?
Shaking off her reaction, Vickie responded:
"Oh my God Mom! I'm so sorry. I got used to the idea that he was going to live forever. Of course I'll come. I'm sure I can arrange for some time off; after all I am a partner in the firm. I'll get back to you when I've arranged a flight so you can pick me up. By the way I'll be coming from Atlanta as I arrived last night after deciding to skip today's wrap up convention events."
"Thanks Vickie and yes I'll pick you up as soon as you land in Dallas. Just get back to me with flight info."
The news definitely saddened Vickie as John William St Clair was the closest thing she had to a father figure in her life. She knew that he and her mother had been lovers in an unorthodox relationship during the time she was born. Despite her mother being a prostitute, John St Clair held her in high esteem, and Vickie had always hoped that they would marry. But as she got older and understood things better she knew he had a family that precluded such a happy outcome.
Although her paternity was unknown, John St Clair volunteered to fill the gap. In particular he hired and paid for the tutors that home schooled her and provided the superior education that paved the way for her academic successes. Besides that he always remembered Vickie's birthdays and attended her graduation from the University of Texas. He would have been there for her Duke graduation and her civil marriage events but he was held back by a bout of flu at the time.
Consequently, Vickie had a special regard for John William St Clair, and felt justified that it was proper for her to attend his presumed forthcoming funeral. She did not speculate why he wanted to see her the next day but considering his attentions he had devoted to her she was not surprised by his terminal request. One silver lining to the dismal news was the opportunity to postpone her confrontation with Gregory. She realized she was not yet fully prepared for the inevitable unpleasant meeting and welcomed the forced delay.
Following a chosen deliberate path of priority, Vickie first booked a flight leaving Atlanta 12:30 arriving at Dallas at a quarter to two, (Central Time). This was ideal for her purposes as it did not allow her enough time to go home to pack a suitcase and thus she could avoid seeing Greg physically.
She then contacted Andrew Spears, the senior managing partner of Queen and Fish, via his cell phone. Spears was sympathetic and foresaw no difficulty in arranging for a leave of absence despite such short notice. However since Vickie was so important to the firm, he extracted a promise that she check in with the office each business day during her absence so that important matters requiring her input could be dealt with efficiently. Vicki had no problem in complying with such request.
Vickie then called Kristina back advising of her arrival time in Dallas. She also told her mother that as she was arriving with no luggage. Therefore, she would need to stop at some appropriate stores to acquire a wardrobe to get her through her stay in Dallas and possible funeral. In addition she told Kristina that she needed to acquire an extra cell phone as well. Kristina was not at all curious at the extent of her daughter's requests, and merely confirmed her assent to Vickie's agenda.
And then she had to contact Greg. As she was determined to avoid any unpleasantness she took control of the conversation. As soon as Greg answered she said:
"Greg, I do not wish to talk about last night. It can keep for now. I've just had some dreadful news from my mother. John William St Clair is dying and wants to see me before he dies. You know how I've told you that he was like a father to me while I was growing up so I could hardly refuse such a request. I've already booked a flight to Dallas and as it is departing soon; I'm heading for the airport as soon as I finish talking with you."
Greg interrupted:
"But Vickie you left your suitcase that you had taken to Washington. You cannot have any clothes with you."
Vickie couldn't hide her sarcasm as she replied: