Is Sharon reaping what she has sown? Can there be a happy ending, or is divorce the only option?
Psychologists say that we are quick to see our own worst qualities in others. The thief watches his own lest his friend should steal it. The liar is quick to disbelieve the word of another person. The cheat readily suspects others of deceiving them.
Sharon was suspicious of a phone call from Mark's secretary late Wednesday afternoon. She had to reach him with an important message from the office, but he was nowhere to be found. And his cell was not in service either. Was he at home?
Actually, he was very busy with Claudia Ullman at the West End Hotel.
That call put Sharon's mind on high alert. She knew from experience that she turned her own phone off when she didn't want to be disturbed, usually when she was with someone else. Sometimes it was when she was naked and indisposed.
It was almost 6:00 and Mark had just come through the door.
"Hi, honey," she gushed, and gave him a big kiss on the mouth, checking him close up.
She noticed right away how fresh he smelled, like shampoo and toothpaste- the way he might smell after showering and brushing in the morning. It struck her as odd, after being at the office all day.
"Baby, it's nice to be home. Busy day at the office. Really busy," he lied.
"Mark, they called for you around 4:00. Nobody could find you, and your phone was off," she challenged, then watched carefully for his response.
Mark's eyes flicked to one side as he mumbled, "Yeah, it's been acting up lately. I need to upgrade. What did they want anyway?"
"Your secretary said it was something important. Where were you? They wanted to know."
Another challenge, but this time he wasn't taken so much by surprise.
"Meeting a client out in the west end. They were in the city today and it just came together at the last minute. I was there from about 3:00 on.... So... how's everything with you, baby?"
Mark was eager to change the topic and his wife took note of that too.
Actually, everything was not very good with Sharon at the moment. He hadn't made eye contact with her, and she didn't buy his excuse about the phone. And that freshly showered and brushed smell at six in the evening was odd too, considering that he wasn't going to the gym these days, to her knowledge.
Psychologically-speaking, she had good reason to be suspicious, because she was doing some very shady things herself with Manuel and Antonetta. The cheat always suspects others of the same thing. Sharon wondered if Mark was up to something too.
****
Sharon and Mark were a married couple going off the rails. As an erotic model, Sharon was faced with sexual temptation on a very regular basis. Since entering this glittering new world after that first glamour shoot at Joannie's little studio about a year ago, it seemed like everybody wanted her. And no wonder. Blonde, beautiful and bodacious, Sharon was appealing to men and to women.
She could take her pick of sexual partners if she so desired. Sometimes she did just that, most recently Manuel and Antonetta with whom she'd enjoyed a torrid threesome just last Saturday afternoon. While Mark was suspicious about Manuel- he and Sharon went missing at the Ullmans' big party- he had no idea how far things had gone with him. Antonetta was a complete unknown.
Mark had strayed too, but only with Sharon's blessing up to now. There had been hot threesomes with Liana, formerly his wife's bi lover. And even been wild sex in the presence of two other couples, where they lived before escaping to the capital. But Mark's activities with Claudia was something completely new for him.
Why was he fucking this young woman? While he had always sanctioned Sharon's dalliances with women, he was adamant about not allowing men to sample her. Since the party, he was highly suspicious of Manuel, the male model. He knew Sharon had auditioned with him but had no idea how close to actual sex they had come in their steamy photo shoot. But he figured that the two of them were up to something at the Ullmans' party.
Had he simply decided that enough is enough? Was he with Claudia because he wanted to get even with his wife? There was an element of this in his actions, but there was more. This was what police might call a 'crime of opportunity', like keys left in an unlocked vehicle. Claudia was totally available, and her motor was running fast. Mark eagerly jumped inside for a thrilling ride.
Keeping sexual secrets from his wife was new for Mark, so it didn't come easy. But, the difficulty was offset by the kind of sex he was having with this attractive young woman. He was an old pro with her, using private times in secret hotel rooms to help her explore hidden fantasies of exhibitionism and control.
Claudia was his little slut during these hours, where he could exert a power over her to which his wife would seldom succumb. Aggressive Sharon often took the lead in bed, so it was exciting for Mark to call the shots with his afternoon toy.
Sex with Sharon was always satisfying, but there was something about being in charge that added another level of excitement. And Claudia seemed eager to keep taking their recreational sex up to another level. He already thinking about new elements he could add to spice things up even more.
At the same time, Sharon was angry with herself for becoming such a sexual push-over with others. Antonetta had used her to gain a favourable introduction to the photographers, and Sharon was ready to honour that promise because it been yet another gratifying sensual experience. Having Manny join in had made it even better! But she told herself to put the brakes on before Mark became suspicious.
Both partners were playing with fire. Mark was just getting started, and had every intention of doing Claudia regularly until she left for school overseas in a few weeks. Sharon had resolutions to contain her sex drive, but if the past was any indication, they rang hollow. Could they both keep these secrets, or would they blow up in their faces?
The circle was small. Sharon was in bed with the occasional male lover of her photographer, Tom Miller. Mark was fucking Claudia Ullman, the daughter of Sharon's biggest promoter. If either of these liaisons came to light, it could bring Sharon's new career crashing to the ground. Their marriage would burn in the wreckage.
After supper, Mark was sitting with the kids in the television room, engrossed in cartoons. She could hear all three of them laughing and knew the program had another twenty minutes to run. Questions about her husband's afternoon plagued her mind, and there was his wallet on the counter.
Quickly, she picked it up and turned her back to the other room as she snapped it open, looking for what, she didn't really know. But she found it.
There were two credit card receipts for hotels, one the Premier Inn last Wednesday and another for the West End Hotel just today. Both identified the time of payment at around 3:00 and the large amount strongly suggested a room rental rather than a few drinks at a meeting. A closer look at the receipt from the first week showed a phone number penned along the margin, the area code plus 977-1234.
Sharon memorized the number and returned everything to the wallet. After it was back on the countertop, she wrote the number on her hand. Then she returned to watch television with the family, seeing images on the screen but not registering anything. Her mind was whirling with thoughts that Mark was up to no good.
Later that evening, her worst fears were confirmed. She dialed the number and waited.
"Hello," a pleasant woman's voice answered, and Sharon recognized it immediately- Claudia.
She ended the call without saying anything, then sat with her head hanging low. Mark was having an affair with the Ullmans' adult daughter! Tears welled up as the trust she had in her husband evaporated. He had turned the tables on her. The cheater was the cheated, and Sharon didn't like the way that it felt.
She knew that direct confrontation would only lead to a big scene, possibly in front of the children. There'd be angry recriminations from Mark about her going into his wallet, and heated accusations about her time with Manuel in the darkened alcove at Ullmans' party. It would be very messy.
There had to be a better way to deal with this. After all, Sharon knew that Claudia was returning to school in Europe at the end of the month. What to do? But it wouldn't be tonight in any case. Mark made sure of that.
"Sharon, I had a very tiring day. I'd like to turn in before 10:00 tonight and catch up on my rest," Mark claimed, as he stretched and yawned.
"Yeah, I'll bet you had a tiring day," Sharon thought, "With Claudia Ullman at the West End, you bastard."
Instead, she simply said, "Goodnight, honey. I have a few things to think over anyway, so I'd like a quiet evening to myself."
Mark wondered for a moment what she meant by that, but he let it pass. They got the kids to bed and the house was quiet as Sharon paced in the lower level of the house, dwelling on her problem. Was there anything constructive that she could do to make it go away, at least until that girl was off to school?
The next morning, Sharon sat alone thinking about Mark in bed with Claudia. It made her angry, but it hurt more than she could ever have imagined. She spent a long time swinging back and forth between anger and pain, asking herself why this had happened to them.
Why had her loving husband suddenly fallen into the clutches of a spoiled young bitch? What did Claudia offer Mark that Sharon herself couldn't provide? Was it the age difference, a nubile woman a dozen years younger? Was it the fact that she found him so handsome and charming?
Finally, the truth struck Sharon- she had taken Mark for granted since she started posing. He was always there for her while she followed her erotic dream. He spent his weekends minding the kids while she was off on modeling assignments. He accepted her bisexuality, and looked the other way to give her freedom. Mark even left his company and moved when her affair with Liana became public.
How had she repaid him recently? By having sex with Manuel and his girlfriend Antonetta? Surely not. Sharon realized that Mark was now giving her a harsh dose of her own medicine, and it left a very bitter taste. She knew that she had to share in any blame for his affair.
****
The following evening Sharon sat with Mark after the kids were in bed. She took his hand and looked into his eyes.
"Mark, honey. Don't make any plans for Friday evening. The kids are going to stay with their grandparents. We're going to make up for some lost time. I think you'll like what I have planned."
