Knocked up in Chicago
Joanie wants to get pregnant. Philip has an idea.
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I'm a professional woman. I am, in fact, a university professor, and I'm reasonably good at what I do. Consequently, I get invited to give talks on my research at conferences all over the world. Quite frankly, I think I get more invitations than my research deserves, because I am skilled at giving talks, and also because I'm a woman in a subject that has a dearth of women. (Think STEM subjects.)
I'm also fairly pretty, with a good figure, and -- at least for my male colleagues, it seems -- I'm exceptionally sexy. I think it's due to my long legs, my boobs which are just a tad too big, or at least that's how it seems to me, and to my filthy mind. Of course, men cannot see how dirty my mind is; at least, I hope they can't! At my talks, I'm sure that for every four men who are listening to me explain my results, there is one who is sitting there undressing me in his imagination. Maybe even more than one.
It's a natural consequence, things being what they are, that I often get hit on when I'm at a conference, especially if it's one in a far-off land, such as Europe, Latin America, or Asia. Men seem to think if there's an ocean between us and my husband, then it's okay to have a fling. I don't know why they think that, and at least where I'm concerned, they come away frustrated. I've become skilled at graciously batting away attempts to seduce me. Harmless flirting is fine, but only as long as it's harmless.
My husband Mark is a hot-shot lawyer, and he never has the freedom to come with me, since he is a litigator and is always on-call for this trial or that one. So, I'm alone, and I'm on my own at all these conferences. Mark's a corporate lawyer, doing his part to keep American capitalism safe and prosperous. He works in trademark and copyright law. It's amazing how much money one can make doing that. We're not hurting for cash.
I was all set to go to Chicago, at the Midwest Annual Meeting of my professional society. I was invited to give a keynote address, a real feather in my cap.
"I hope you have a good trip, and that your talk is a big success!" Mark said, as he helped me carry my carry-on downstairs. "What do you pack in this? Lead bricks?"
"A few books in case I need last minute improvements for my slides," I said.
"Isn't that all available electronically now?" Mark asked.
"Yes, but the physical books have my annotations," I said.
"You have great annotations," Mark said, as he felt up my boobs through my sweater and bra. I giggled happily. "Yes, truly great," as he moved on to feel up my ass.
"You know, when they asked for the title and abstract of my talk, they asked for my T. and A. And no, there was no irony intended," I said, in between smooches goodbye, as Uber patiently waited just outside our front door.
"Well, don't sleep with any men in Chicago unless I get their wives," Mark said, giving me his always-the-same admonition.
"I'll do my best, especially after this morning!" I said, referring to the fabulous orgasm Mark had given me just this morning. We kissed again, he squeezed my ass again, and I left, giggling, to let Uber spirit me off to the airport.
***********
I saw Philip almost immediately, as I dragged my carry-on into the hotel lobby. Philip and I went to graduate school together, and we even wrote our theses with the same professor. (Yes, the professor had hit on me, and I was totally grossed out and let him know that! Nothing happened, thank goodness, and he behaved himself after that one ugly, awkward episode.)
"I'm looking forward to your big keynote. It's tomorrow, right? Nervous?" Philip said.
"Horribly! At least I'll know that you're there, so I'll have a friendly face. You'll sit near the front?" I replied.
"Sure. You'll do fine, Joanie. You give great talks, and if I may say so, you have great legs," he said.
"I plan to wear a pants suit," I said, waiting for his reaction.
"How Hillary of you," he said, emphasizing his disdain.
"I have a long, flowery skirt that I got at a vintage clothing store. It's from the sixties, I was told. I could pair that with a blue blouse and a bandana? Add some long gold-tone dangle earrings from India, and now that's an outfit!" I offered, teasing Philip.
"You trying to make Marianne Williamson jealous?' Philip jibed.
"She's pretty. You got a crush on her?" I teased.
"Totally, in a MILF kind of way, but we're talking about you. How about a low-cut blouse and a short, tight skirt, like you wore at the Washington, DC conference?" he proposed. I had actually packed my DC outfit, too.
I ended up wearing the outfit Philip suggested. I had a great new result, and I wanted to maximize the chances my talk would be a success. Looking like a hippie throwback, which I thought was a great idea, or as a throwback to the Hillary campaign, also entertaining, ultimately lost to the correct but sexy look put forth with my DC outfit.
While I'm sure (well, I hope!) it was unrelated to my sartorial choice, my talk was a huge success! It was even a bigger success than my talks are normally. I was sailing on cloud nine, and when Philip invited me to dinner to celebrate, I accepted happily.
As I've said, Philip and I go back a long way, all the way back to graduate school. Now if you've never been to graduate school, in particular studied in a PhD program, then perhaps you don't know, but it's a time-out-of-time, a kind of artificial prolongation of one's adolescence, and people act out in ways they might never otherwise behave, in any other of life's endeavors.
This can include all sorts of things, such as playing strange board games (my favorite was the Japanese/Korean game known as "Go;" yes, I know, it probably originated in China thousands of years ago, but as far as I'm concerned, it's a Japanese game), and also using non-serious drugs and even some serious ones on occasion, and, of course, sex.
Philip is a man. I'm a woman. We were both in graduate school. We liked each other; we still do. So perhaps it's not surprising that once or twice, drunk, stoned, and happy at a grad school party, we kind of got it on, you know?
It was just casual, recreational sex, expressing affection between grad school friends, nothing more, or so I thought. Later, well, much later, I realized that it was much more meaningful for Philip than it had been for me. Shit like that happens. The point is, Philip and I had some history. He had seen me naked, and he had enjoyed my body in the most intimate of ways a man can enjoy a woman. The other point is, that took place long ago, in a time-out-of-time context, and since then we've both grown up and I, for one, am married.
Philip was trying to take a look down my blouse at dinner. I didn't care, I was still on a bubbling high after the over-the-top reception my talk got. Everyone was slapping my back (and the occasional few, my ass as well) congratulating me on the best talk in memory. Philip and I were drinking champagne at dinner to celebrate, and the stuff always goes straight to my head, and it probably loosened my tongue.
"So, how's your hubbie, what's his name, Mark?" Philip asked during the pause between the meal and the dessert. We had already caught up on personal news and discussed practically everything else at that point.
"Oh, he's fine, I guess," I said, and there was something in how I said it that Philip, who knows me as well as anyone, picked up on. Philip is also much too sharp. I was not used to being around someone as perceptive, in that kind of way, as Philip was. It was a little disconcerting.
"What's wrong?" he asked.
"Nothing, we're both fine," I said.
"You don't have to tell me if you don't want to," he said.
"I tell you nothing's wrong! Get off my case," I said. I had an edge in my voice, dammit.
"Milady doth protest too much, methinks," Philip said.
"Well, it's rather an intimate issue. Not a good idea to discuss it," I said. "Oh! Here are the desserts!"
I had a chocolate mousse which I picked at, now distracted by my marital issues Philip had brought to the fore, while Philip plowed right into his piece of chocolate cake, which was big enough for three strong men, but which he managed to inhale in its entirety, and with alacrity.
We returned to the conference hotel, and neither of us was ready to end the evening, so we adjourned to the hotel bar. We found a table off to the side, in a relatively dark corner.
"Okay, Joanie. Talk to me. Tell me about your marriage. Something's troubling you, and you need to get it off your fabulous chest, and share it," Philip said, never missing a chance to mention my boobs. I think he liked my boobs more than he liked me. Granted, all men seem to like my boobs.
"Just between us? You promise not to tell another soul?" I said.
"Yes, of course. Spill," Philip said.
"I don't know...." I said. "It's just too personal."
"Now you have to tell me. I love you, Joanie. You can trust me. I want only what's best for you," Philip said.