Chapter 1. The beginning (where else?).
Amanda Silk closed the last file on her desk and looked at the watch on her wrist. Six thirty again, she thought, wondering if Andy had started dinner yet. She smiled, thinking of her husband, sitting at home, beer in hand, and watching a game on cable. No, probably hadn't even noticed the time. Andy was a panel beater who managed to go to work early and come home at about five every day. He would then have a shower and sit and relax until she got home. Dinner tonight would be out of the freezer and a packet, and then a bit of relax time in front of the TV before bed. Amanda tingled just thinking about the bed bit. They had been married for eleven years and the sex was still every night and still just as good as the first time when he had swept her off her feet at Susie's party.
Susie was Amanda's best friend and they had gone through college together, learned about boyfriends together and been there for each other when they needed a shoulder to cry on. Even after college they had stayed in touch, despite the three hundred miles separating them once they had settled into working. Susie had had a party, yet another one, this time for her birthday and Amanda had made the effort to get there early in the afternoon to catch up on the gossip and help with setting up.
"Boyfriend?" Susie asked Amanda, in the usual first serious question of the day.
"In between." Amanda replied, thinking about yet another boy who had pursued her because of her looks and, once successful, had lost interest in keeping the effort up to maintain it.
Amanda had come to the conclusion that most boys thought they were the world's greatest lover and once you had sex the girl should be eternally grateful. The last guy had been pretty big downstairs, but he had known it and assumed he did not have to work at making it good for her. They had never had sex for longer than half an hour and he was always under ten minutes from the time he put it in to the time he grunted in satisfaction and rolled over to sleep. Amanda had managed to endure two months of this, hoping for an improvement, before she had finally broken up with him. He could not understand why, and made a halfhearted attempt to win her back before he found a girl with huge tits and no IQ that agreed with him that he was a great lover. Amanda thought they deserved each other and imagined a brood of children with no brains but big dicks or tits who would be the start of the next master race.
Susie giggled, "There are quite a few single guys coming tonight, lets see, Phil is a doctor, well off but not too handsome, Richard keeps the girls very happy, but its all the girls, he doesn't want to be tied down, Kevin on the other hand is..."
"Stop it Susie," Amanda interrupted the flow, knowing Susie would list the good and bad points of every single guy that might be there, just so Amanda would not be lonely, "I'm here for you, not to look for Mister Right. I need a bit of time before jumping in again."
"Bad experience?" Susie asked seriously.
"Yeah," Amanda replied, "so let's just leave it."
"OK." Susie said, knowing when to leave a discussion alone with Amanda.
"Who's your current toy?" Amanda asked, referring back to the early college days when Susie had a number of vibrators for use between boyfriends. She had named them all and only Amanda had known that when Susie said in conversation that she had a date with Ron for that night that she meant a pink tickler with rotating bits too.
"You are going to love Sean," Susie enthused, "he's tall and handsome, and got the ability to keep me happy."
"Great." Amanda said, happy that her friend was happy.
They had continued talking for the couple of hours they had alone before the guests started arriving. They talked about old times and naughty things they had done, they talked about work and where they were going in their companies, and who wanted to get them there quicker, and what they wanted in return. They talked about fashion and make up. They talked about families and babies (not yet I want to live a bit first, they agreed). It had been a great afternoon.
Sean was one of the first to arrive, his widening eyes showing Amanda he had noticed her good looks immediately. He had taken Susie in his arms and given her a kiss better suited for moments alone, before asking if there was enough time before the party for a quickie. She had pointed out they already had a guest and he shrugged and went to get a beer.
From there it got worse. Once Sean had a couple of beers in him he started hanging around Amanda, and before long he was telling her how frustrated he was and how much happier they would both feel if they found a quiet room and got to know each other better. Amanda tried to put him off gently but he just wouldn't take the hint. He started groping and just as Amanda was about to destroy the party by slapping him someone she didn't know rescued her.
"Darling," she heard behind her and turned to see a handsome man with piercing eyes smiling as if he knew her, "it's been ages, how have you been?" He continued, touching her arm lightly. Amanda was about to say she didn't know who he was when Sean muttered something about getting a beer and left.
"I, uh..." Amanda was not sure what to say.
"Don't worry," the man said smiling, "I don't know you and you don't know me, I was just watching that octopus and thought you may need to get away before you slapped him."
Amanda was surprised it had been that obvious. "Thanks," she said, a bit worried that this might be a frying pan to the fire thing, "you did get there in the nick of time. I'm Amanda." She smiled and held her hand out.
"I'm Andy," the man said, retuning the smile with a mischievous grin that was somehow exciting, "lets grab you another drink and sit down for a few minutes like we are old friends and that should allow that prick to latch on to another target."
They sat and talked, as much as the music would allow, and Amanda felt comfortable with Andy. She had no idea later what they had discussed but they worked out pretty soon that they had a lot in common.
After they had a few drinks Andy excused himself to use the toilet but promised, on Amanda's insistence to come straight back Susie made a beeline to Amanda.
"Who is that divine man?" She asked.
"Hands off, I saw him first." Amanda giggled, a bit tipsy. "His name is Andy and he came here with Kevin apparently, but Kevin has disappeared with that blonde with the fuck me boots."
"Yvette." Susie said.
"Yeah." Amanda agreed.