Chapter 1
'Can I use your laptop?'
'Yeah, of course, it's in my bag.'
Molly rose up off the sofa and wandered over to the back door. She opened Peter's work bag and slipped the laptop case out. Walking back towards the sofa she unzipped the case and slid the laptop out. As she pulled it free, an envelope slipped out with it and dropped to the floor.
'Oops,' she leaned over and retrieved the envelope. The sound of it caught Peter's attention. He looked up questioningly.
'Sorry; this fell out,' Molly said as she sank back onto the sofa next to Peter and held the envelop out to him.
'Oh yes,' he said, taking the paper, 'I'd forgotten about that.'
'What is it?'
'Beckie gave it to me straight after the lecture this morning,' Peter flipped it over and started to peel it open, 'I was in a bit of a hurry, so I just slid it in with the computer and then I'd forgotten about it.'
'Well; difficult to keep up with fan-mail, I suppose,' Molly said with a sly sidelong glance, as she tapped on the keyboard.
'Ha ha,' Peter responded dryly.
'Did Katie eat those little yoghurts last weekend or did you?'
'We both had them.'
'She liked them then?'
'Yeah, she ate some of it, but didn't seem wildly keen.'
'She's going through a fussy food phase. Do you think she'd like these?' Molly pointed out a different brand of yogurt from the online shopping list.
'Are you implying I know the mind of our fussy four year old?'
'No more or less than me.'
'Give it a go,' Peter returned to opening the envelope. 'I'll eat them if she doesn't.'
Peter slid the letter out and took in the handwriting as Molly continued to tap away on the computer.
Dear Peter
I just wanted to say thank you, for being a brilliant teacher. I'm amazed (and a little terrified) that I'm almost at the end of my degree, and I've been thinking back over the last three years.
'Oh bless her,' Peter murmured.
I've had the best time of my life, and that is in no small part thanks to you.
'What?' Molly glanced over.
'For your information, it is fan mail,' Peter replied, adopting a deliberately ironic tone of smugness.
'Poor misguided girl,' Molly quipped without looking up.
There have been ups and downs and I thank you again for talking me out of leaving the course at the end of last year. You have been a rock of wisdom, advice and caring support. Thank you.
There is one other thing that I wanted to ask you. I don't really know how to ask! I certainly would never have the courage to say this in person, but I really do want to ask. I've been thinking about it for a while. So I'm being a coward and writing to you. I think you're one of the nicest people I've ever met and I completely trust you. It is a bit of a crazy idea! -- so you can just ignore this letter if you want to. I don't want to put you in an awkward position and I don't want to embarrass you. I'm sure I'm embarrassed enough for both of us! But you know I have landed this job in Bristol, largely thanks to you, so I'll be leaving pretty soon after the final essay hand-in. So it is now or never.
The thing is I'm a virgin and I would like you to be my first.
Beckie
'Errr,' Peter paused.
His eyes flicked back over the last line.
'Has she stunned you with flattery?' Molly asked after a moment, sensing that Peter had finished reading.
'Err. Not exactly.' Peter hinged the letter back closed.
Molly looked up from the laptop and met Peter's eye. She frowned a questioning look, flicked her eyes down to the letter and then back up to his.
'It goes off on a tangent at the end,' Peter said.
'About what?'
Peter stalled for a moment, indecisive.
'See what you think,' he responded and passed his wife the letter.
She quickly started scanning through it. Peter could see the exact moment her eyes reached the last line. She also went over the last couple of sentences twice.
'I see,' she said.
'Yeah.'
Neither of them said anything for a moment.
'What the fuck am I going to do about this?' Peter asked.
'Well it depends,' Molly replied.
'On?' Peter responded.
'Well; it depends doesn't it.'
Peter slightly shook his head, with a questioning look.
'You've had a couple of students come on to you before. The same way you dealt with them.' Molly focused back onto the laptop.
'Well, yes, occasionally. But that's been like a come-on in person, like in a pub, when they've had a drink. This is...' he left it hanging.
'This is what?' Molly said, whilst scrolling through the online shopping.
'Well, it's,' he paused, 'it's a bit different isn't it? It's sort of calculated isn't it?'
'You could ask David what to do.'
'I'm not going to tell anyone else! Least if all my line manager. I'd die of embarrassment!'
'Why?'
'Well, I just would.'
The couple sat silently for a minute. Molly continued to tap items on the laptop. Peter re-read the letter.
'It's a joke? They've gotten together and they're winding me up?'
'No.'
'No?'
'No.'
'Would you care to explain?' Peter responded with an unmissable hint of irritation in his voice, that he instantly regretted. Molly looked up at him.
'Sorry.' He put his hand on her thigh. 'What makes you think it's not a joke?'
Molly reached forward and put the laptop on the floor.
'Peter, we've had this conversation before. When you first started this job; and we've skirted around it a couple of times since. Except you don't believe me. Which is very sweet.'
She put her hand on top of his.
'You're a good-looking man. In your mid thirties. You're smart, funny and you care a lot about people. You work with young adults; a lot of whom are going to find you attractive. And you're an authority figure. A number of young girls, and boys, are going to find you very sexy.'
'But I'm their teacher. I don't think of them like that,' Peter responded.
'That makes no difference to what they think of you,' Molly stated, before quipping, 'honestly, for a so-called academic you can be very dense.'
'That's true of most academics I would say.'
'Have you given Beckie any signals that you're interested in her?'
'No,' Peter responded quickly.
'Then that's fine then isn't it?' Molly said, giving his hand a reassuring squeeze. 'As long as you've not led her on, you can let her down gently and that'll be that.'
'Hmmm.'
'Does she know you're married?'
'Yes. They all know I'm married. It's not a secret. And I do wear my wedding ring,' Peter said, holding up his hand.
'Is she good looking?'
Peter paused nervously, whilst trying not to look nervous.
'Why do you ask?'
Molly detected the tone.
'I'm not trying to catch you out. Neither of us are blind. We've both talked about people we find beautiful, in films and stuff.'
'Yeah. It's a bit different when it's someone you actually know and not a film star.'
'Yeah, but it's fine. Is she pretty?'
'Yes. She is.'
'Good. Then you can tell her, honestly, that she's very attractive, but that you are happily married. And that'll be that.'
Peter paused, thinking.
'Presumably that last bit is also true, so you can say that with honest sincerity as well?' Molly asked.
'What?' Peter came back from his thoughts.
'Happily married?'
Peter shook his head as though to shake the distractions away and leaned in to kiss his wife.
'Very happily,' he said, squeezing her thigh and then pushing a firm kiss onto her lips.
'Good. Can I finish the shopping now? Why don't you put something short on to watch, whilst I finish this? Then I don't know about you, but I think I'll be ready for sleep.'
'Yes, thank goodness it's Friday.'
Peter flicked the TV on.
*****
After brushing their teeth, they went upstairs and stripped off. They slid under the bed covers and naturally adopted a well-used, familiar cuddling position. Peter on his back, Molly on her side, pressed up against him. He had one arm under her neck, with her head resting on his shoulder. It enabled him to reach round and down so that his hand rested on her bottom. She lay on her side with one arm draped across his chest. His free hand rested on top of hers.
He sighed a deep breath out as they lay still together.
'You alright lovely?' she asked.
'Yes. Fine. You?'
'Yep.'
He squeezed her bottom and then began softly brushing his fingertips across each of her cheeks; feeling the smooth, firm roundness of her bum.
She slid her hand from under his and circled his chest.
'You really are very sexy you know,' she whispered in his ear. 'It's no wonder you're beating students off with a stick.'
He glanced down at her in the gloom and playfully smacked her bottom.
'Just saying,' she replied, as the circling movement of her hand wandered down from his chest to his abdomen, 'if I were one of you students, I'd have a go.'
With this last phrase she reached down and took hold of his penis. It was already fairly firm and quickly hardened up to fully erect as she held it.
As they cuddled each other, Molly gently played with his erection; she alternated between softly sliding her whole hand up and down the length of his shaft with gently teasing the underside of his cock-head with her fingertips. Occasionally she ran her fingers across his balls, making him twitch and murmur.
He enjoyed running has hand across her bottom; particularly sliding one finger softly up and down the crack between her cheeks.
Both were tired after a long week and neither had the energy for anything more active. After several minutes of loving caressing, Molly gave Peter's erection a firm squeeze, and then let it go.
'Night night lovely,' she whispered, as she rolled into a comfy sleeping position.
'Night gorgeous,' he replied contentedly, before they both drifted off to sleep.