While this story contains no male to male contact, it does involve a man eating a creampie.
It was Pen's office party and we thought it would never get over. Some of the guys just wouldn't go home. Pen's boss was moving to San Diego and this was his farewell. His name was Dennis and he had been flirting with my wife for almost a year. Pen commuted from Denver to our home in Greeley and some days it was just a long drive. They had developed a friendship of sorts and went out to grab a bite to eat sometimes after work so Pen didn't have to drive in rush hour traffic.
I went to an office get-together one evening and had a chance to meet all the people Pen worked with, including Dennis. He was a funny, outgoing guy, and was pretty sharp. We had a chance to chat for a while and he told me how much he enjoyed working with Pen and how much he valued her input at work. He appreciated all the time she put in on a project the team was putting together, even when it involved some extra hours for the whole team some nights.
Now and then, the team would go out for a quick dinner if they worked too late, complements of the company. Sometimes it was the entire team and a couple times, it was just Pen and Dennis since Pen was the only one who lived out of town. No big deal. It happens frequently in the tech world.
One evening, I got a call from Dennis while I was waiting for Pen to get home. He seemed a little nervous and admitted that he may have said a couple things that may have offended Pen. Of course, I wondered just what that was, and asked him. He said they were out having dinner earlier and he'd had a couple drinks and told Pen he thought she was attractive and desirable. He said Pen got uncomfortable and said she had to leave. He apologized again for his actions. I told him I thought we needed to meet and talk about it. I could sense the nervousness in his voice but assured him not to worry, that I just had something I wanted to discuss with him. We agreed to meet that weekend for lunch in Denver.
When Pen got home, I could tell she was a bit upset. She finally told me that she thought Dennis was hitting on her at dinner earlier and it made her uncomfortable. We talked about it for a while and I told her she was a desirable woman and if he'd had a couple drinks, he may have just said some things he regretted. That seemed to calm her down the more she thought about it. We talked a little more and I asked her if she thought Dennis was attractive. She said she hadn't really thought about it before but she guessed he was. Then she went on to say, she was married and didn't need anyone but me. (I noticed she didn't say she didn't say she didn't "want" anyone but me though.) Later that evening when we were in bed, I asked her if it flattered her that another guy was interested in her. She admitted that it was flattering, since she was 50. I was thinking, a seed has been planted.
Dennis and I met for lunch and I could tell he was nervous. Dennis told me that he was also married and his wife traveled a lot with her job. I told him to relax and before long we were just enjoying the conversation. I finally asked him what he thought about Pen. He admitted that he thought that she was smart, attractive and he enjoyed being around her. He apologized again for hitting on her. Then I said something that made his jaw drop open. I asked him what he would say if I told him to go for it and see how far he could get with Pen, without her knowing that I was part of it. All I wanted, was to be kept in the loop on what was going on. I told him that I'd tried to get Pen interested in playing 20 years ago without any luck, and it was still a fantasy of mine.
