"Hon, would you get the door. That's probably Mark"
Jenna, like usual, was running late. A pile of dresses lay on the bedroom floor, as she scrutinized the latest choice in the full-length mirror in the upstairs bathroom. Although the latest option was not as flattering as she'd hoped, she realized that it would have to suffice if they were going to make their dinner reservations, and she frantically began the process of applying make-up.
At 36, Jenna was still quite gorgeous. Although two children had softened her form, her husband still routinely devoured her with his eyes. After nine years of marriage, their love and passion had gown more intense, and when their busy schedule permitted, their lovemaking, although fairly conventional, was very much steamy and enjoyable. Aside from occasionally watching online gang-bang or bisexual porn, commitment to family life in the last six years, as well as their busy work schedules, had tempered some of the sexual experimentation that they'd previously enjoyed, and their brief foray into the swinging lifestyle before the kids were born had come to an end- at least temporarily.
As Jenna applied her lipstick, she thought back at some of the occasions when men had stared or flirted with her recently. Although men of all ages and ethnicities showed interest, often the men were African-American. And she found herself being ogled by high school and college age kids quite frequently. She thought to herself that it must be her incredibly large, beautiful breasts- the size of which she was, at times, annoyed by. Her husband, however, was immensely aroused by them, as were many of the young men (and women) in her painting classes at the college where she'd recently been hired as an adjunct faculty member. The dress that she settled on for the evening, which exposed much of her robust bosom, would surely elicit some hearty stares.
Ben, who had been watching the football game, while Jenna was getting ready, strolled to the front door to greet Mark, with whom they arranged to sit the kids during their date. Ben still possessed an imposing physique. His 6'4" frame had not changed much since his days as a college quarterback, and although some gray had emerged around his temples, he looked almost ten years younger than his forty years of age.
"Hey Mark, how are ya?" Ben asked as the door opened.
"Good, thanks. Sorry I'm late, Mr. C."
The two men exchanged a firm handshake, and Ben smiled, "No worries. Jenna isn't even ready yet. At this rate we'll be eating at Denny's tonight. Come on in."
Mark was nineteen, and although he carried himself with significantly more confidence after a year of college, he was still a bit deferential, much like the young high-school kid who had occasionally babysat Ben and Jenna's kids when his girlfriend, Ashley, wasn't available. Several inches shorter than Ben, and a bit more svelte, a year on the college swim team had broadened his shoulders, and resulted in a more muscular body. His loping gait and shaggy blond hair revealed his youthful, carefree demeanor.
"You want to go in and say 'hi' to the kids?" Ben offered. "They're in the den watching a movie. They've been excited to see you. I'm going to see if I can hurry Jenna along."
Mark disappeared into the den to let the kids know that he'd arrived, and from the bottom of the stairs, Ben prompted Jenna to speed things along. In a mildly annoyed tone, she responded, "I'm almost done." Mark emerged from the den, and Ben asked about how things were going with college, and with the swim team.
"It's going well. I made the dean's list last quarter," Mark replied, "and I think I'm going to have a chance in the 100 freestyle at the conference championships next year."
"Ya, your mom mentioned that you won conference Freshman of the Year. I ran into her at the grocery store a couple of days ago." Ben continued, "How are things going with Ashley?"
"We broke up," Mark said. "It was hard to stay connected. A long-distance relationship wasn't working, and we wouldn't have been able to really spend any time together this summer, because she's doing an internship in London."
"Sorry to hear that," Ben offered.
"Ya, thanks. We'll see how it goes. We're still close, but a committed relationship isn't realistic."
Jenna's arrival into the living room was met with an enthusiastic greeting from Mark, "Hey Mrs. C, how's it going?" The two hugged.
"Good Mark! Look at you- you're turning into quite the young man. It seems like yesterday when you were a cute little freshman in high school, and now- facial hair. How is school going?"
Mark replied, "It's pretty cool. I partied a little too much fall quarter, but then I buckled down, and got on the dean's list."
"Nice. Good for you. How is dorm life?" Jenna asked.
"It's alright, I guess," Mark responded. "I'm looking forward to finding an apartment for next year. I might move into a place with my dorm mate and a couple of his football friends."
"Jenna, we're so late," Ben interrupted.
"Right," Jenna agreed.
"Listen Mark, I put together a snack for the kids. If you could offer it to them once they've finished watching their movie. It's in the fridge. The kids should go down by 8:30 or so. You remember the whole bedtime routine?"
"Yep, I remember."
We're going to see a movie after dinner, and should be home around midnight. We'll call if we're running late, cool?"
"No worries, Mrs. C.," Mark assured her. "I was up late last night. I hung out with some friends I hadn't seen in awhile, so I'm beat. I'll probably crash out by 11:00. So go have fun! And, by the way, you two look really nice."
"Thanks, Mark," Jenna responded. "OK, well, call us if you have any problems. And thanks again for sitting tonight."
"You're very welcome. I was looking forward to hanging with the kids again," Mark insisted.
Saturday evening traffic into the city had been worse then usual, and Jenna and Ben, already late leaving the house, had arrived well after their reservation time of 6:00. Fortunately, the well-regarded sushi restaurant located atop the Hilton building featured a swanky bar with an extensive menu. The balcony bar, which offered a stunning view of the city on a pleasant early summer evening, was packed with hip bar patrons socializing and enjoying immaculate entrees. The couple slipped into the lone vacant table after venturing around the corner from the main outdoor seating area, and marveled at both the breath-taking view and their good fortune at finding an empty table.
The smaller, narrower portion of the L-shaped balcony where Jenna and Ben found themselves had only enough room for three tall round tables pushed near the railing, each with two tall chairs. At Ben's back were several pots of bamboo, which served as a partition for what was, until the recent smoking ban, a small, secluded smoking area. Unlike the main portion of the balcony bar, there were no windows through which one could see into the main dining area of the restaurant. Conversely, no one could see Jenna, Ben and the four other bar-goers seated in the little nook tucked around the corner of the building, and just as the couple was beginning to feel forgotten by the bar staff, their waitress approached. She cordially introduced herself, presented menus, asked if they had questions, and took their drink order.
"The calamari sounds good," Ben suggested. "Do you also want to get some edamame?"
"Ya, and let's get miso, too."
"Sounds great," Ben agreed. "Do you think the kids will be alright with Mark? He sure has grown up, huh?"
"Ya, he has. And the kids adore him. They'll be fine. In fact, they always seemed to enjoy hanging out with than him more than Ashley, when she sat for them."
"True, but he doesn't seem to have the same goofy quality that the kids found so entertaining," Ben continued. "And did you notice at all how much he was salivating when he saw you in that dress? I was about ready to peel him from you when you two hugged."
"Please, Ben. He's nineteen," Jenna said dismissively.
"Oh, he's old enough. Don't be coy. Don't pretend that you're not at all flattered that a hunky youngster was staring at your tits."
A devious smile emerged on Jenna's face, but her response was cut short by the waitress's return. A large bottle of Kirin, and two small glasses were set on the table, as were the small tumblers of sake that the couple had ordered. The waitress took their food order, and disappeared around the corner. Ben filled their glasses with the Japanese beer, and raised his glass.
"Here's to your luscious tits that the men, including young, hard college kids always stare at," Ben teased.
"Stop it," Jenna scolded, as a smile emerged.