Intrigued

*Note to readers: Erotic stories involving couples don't have be extremely likely to be entertaining. They also don't have to fit into a tightly believable timeline. They need only be plausible and take place over a reasonably possible period of time.

Understanding how unlikely it is something like this would ever happen in real life, it's no less interesting to contemplate 'what if', right? So...what if?

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"Is Willow okay? I haven't seen her around here for a long time."

"Oh, um...yeah, she's fine."

"Oh, okay. Are you going over to her place all the time now for some reason?"

"No, not really."

He was on his way out the door to go to work but stopped and said, "You guys have been best friends for years. You do everything together. Did something happen? Did you guys have a blowout?"

"No, no blowout. Nothing like that. Getting together just hasn't worked out lately. That's all. Go on and get to work. It's nothing to worry about, honey."

"Hmmm. It doesn't sound fine, but...okay. I'll see you this evening. Love you, baby."

"You, too!"

Grace Finley had been best friends with Willow Morgan for the last six years. They'd met at a quilt show in downtown Seattle and hit it off immediately. Both of them had a newfound passion for quilting after discovering it wasn't something done only by grandmothers with nothing else to do. It was extremely popular and growing all the time. Their husbands had zero interest in it, but then the girls hated football as much as they hated quilting and they gave each other the space to do whatever made them happy without demanding they like the same things.

Grace and her husband Mark had been married almost eight years. They'd met in college and had a summer wedding right after graduation in June of that year. Derek and Willow Morgan were about the same age, but had married a year out of high school. Neither couple had children—by choice—and undoubtedly one of many reasons the girls were so close. Close was probably an understatement. Inseparable seemed to be the better word. They were often together from the time their husbands left for work until just before they got home and occasionally one of them was at the other's house when Mark or Derek got in.

That was just fine with the guys as both of them not only got along very well, too, but each also liked and respected the other's wife. And while it rarely came up, both of them had mentioned more than once that the other guy's wife was well...hot. Smokin' hot. As in 'total babe' or some other way to express hotness. The first time the topic came up, Mark had mentioned he'd overhead the girls talking about them and their looks.

"Oh, man. That can't be good," Derek had said as soon as Mark mentioned it. "How bad was it?"

"No, not at all. In fact, they had no idea I could hear them. I almost walked in on them when I heard Grace say something about how cute you were. I stopped dead in my tracks and just listened. You know, the fly on the wall thing."

"So your wife thinks I'm cute? Nice!"

"Not to brag but Willow told Grace, 'Thanks, but speaking of cute, that husband of yours is...yummy!' Both of them started laughing and I couldn't really make out what they were saying but it was the kind of stuff girls say about guys they think are cute."

"Ah, so we're both cute! Damn, man, we got it goin' on, right?"

A hearty high five punctuated their laughter as they cracked open another beer. "Well, I'll tell you what, Willow is like way hot, dude. I mean way hot. You are one lucky man, my friend," Mark told him.

"Me? Uh, okay. No argument there but Grace is freakin' smokin' hot. So...talk about lucky."

Mark took a long pull on his Bud longneck and said, "It's crazy, you know? When you first get married you're all over each other. You can't get enough of the other person. And my wife really is gorgeous. No argument there. But it's the same old thing week in and week out. You know what I mean?"

"Yeah, don't even get me started on that. I love my wife to death and she is hot as hell, but once you've done it all....and then done it again and again...."

"Over and over and over...." Mark said completing his buddy's thought.

"I know, right? It's like, okay, we gotta switch things up a little. So you try the sexy lingerie and the spiked heels and the fishnet stockings...."

"Yeah, and then you try the handcuffs or the blindfold thing."

"Been there, done that," Derek said. "We've tried all of that."

"Same here. It's gotten to were it's almost like an obligation to have sex. You know, it's Saturday night. Guess we better do it."

"Tell me about it! We've been on a schedule for three years now. Every Wednesday and Saturday. Otherwise, we'd probably never do it."

"Okay, this is insane! We've got these gorgeous wives and we're not even interested anymore. That is seriously fucked up!"

"I hear you, dude. I just don't see any way around it. 'Til death do us part' is a freakin' life sentence, you know?"

Both of them laughed loudly at the cynical—but seemingly true—comment. "I'd never cheat on Grace, but damn man, something's gotta give, you know?"

"I do, but what is there to give? You either hang in there and just go through the motions or you cheat and destroy your marriage."

"Not to mention you'd feel guilty as hell for having done it. I know I would."

"Same here. Shit. I don't know, man. Maybe this is just how it is with couples. I guess if you've got kids you channel all that energy into them, you know. Playing sports or taking them to ballet practice or whatever."

"Tell you what. If you ever think of a solution, lemme know because I'm about to go out of my mind."

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"Do you and Mark still get along?"

"What? Of course we get along. I can't tell you how long it's been since we had a serious argument. Why? Oh...are you Derek arguing?"

"No! No, we hardly ever argue. Maybe if we did, we'd have more se...." Willow just sat there staring across the room. "What I meant was... This is just so hard to talk about."

"Go ahead," Grace told her. "We're best friends. We can talk about anything, right?" She moved over to the couch and sat next to her friend and put her hand on her shoulder. "What's going on, sweetie?"

"When I asked if you guys 'get along' I meant, you know...in the bedroom."

"Seriously? Why would you even ask me that, Willow? Oh, my God. Did Mark say something to Derek? Is he unhappy?"

"No! Nothing like that. I was just wondering if things are you know—okay, in that department."

"Well, yeah. I mean—sure. Why wouldn't they be? Are you sure Mark didn't say something to Derek and ask you to bring this up?"

"I'm sure. Look, never mind. I'm sorry I brought it up, Grace."

"Oh. Are things um...not going so well for you guys?" Grace asked hardly able to imagine such a thing. "You guys always seem so happy."

"We are. I guess. Most of the time anyway. Maybe even all the time except for that one area."

"Is Derek having an affair?" Grace asked still baffled by all of this.

"No! Grace, please. It's nothing like that. It's just that...I don't know. It just seems like it's become...habitual, you know? It's...it's just the same old thing the same old way every time."

"Oh! Okay. Well...have you guys tried spicing it up? You know, like wearing some slinky thing from Victoria's Secret?"

"Oh, sure. We did all that after the first couple of years to try and keep things fresh." Willow looked over at her and said, "Don't get me wrong. It isn't terrible or anything. It's just so...blah. Very, very...blah."

Grace got very uncomfortable because Willow's comments were hitting very close to home. Over the last few years, Mark had mentioned several times they needed to try new things and they had because deep down, she knew he was right. She'd worn the sexy lingerie, the spiked heels, and even worn a blindfold once. She'd never tell Willow but she'd even let him handcuff her to the bed and have his way with her. How could she possibly tell her best friend how much she'd enjoyed it when she couldn't even tell her husband? She'd never considered herself prudish in the bedroom, but from the snippets she heard here and there about things other couples did, maybe she was. Because that was so difficult for to accept she always concluded she was normal and they were just...weird.

"Well, it sounds like you've done your part. You've tried new things. What more can a husband expect? Are we supposed to take up pole dancing or something?" she said derisively.

"Don't laugh but I've tried that," Willow shared. Grace's eyes got big as saucers in total disbelief.

"You have? Oh, wow! I don't think I could ever be that brave." She sat there quietly for a moment then asked, "Did it help?"

Willow smiled and said, "For a while. But after a few weeks it was just as routine as everything else." She put her hand on Grace's forearm and said, "I've been thinking about trying someone totally new. Something...outside my comfort zone."

"Do I want to hear about this?" Grace said almost defensively.

"No, probably not. Maybe it's better I just keep it to myself."

"Well, I want to be supportive, Willow. I just don't have a lot of experience with you know, um...extreme experimentation when it comes to lovemaking. But I am willing to listen. After all, we're women and if we can't talk and share, we might as well be men, right?"

Willow laughed and nodded in agreement. Then she said, "And you won't say anything to Mark about this?"

"Promise," she said.

She looked right at her friend and said, "I've been wondering what it would be like if you know...we maybe like...brought in another couple or something? To you know, kind of spice things up a little?" Grace was expressionless so Willow added, "Maybe even with like...with people you know?"

The color drained from Grace's face as she sat there in stunned silence just staring at her friend.

"Grace? What? I'm just asking a question. And it's only hypothetical."

"Um, you know, I should probably get home and get dinner started. I completely lost track of time."

"Grace? Don't be like that. Please? I wasn't insinuating anything about you or Mark. I was just kind of thinking out loud."

"Oh, I know," Grace said. "I just really need to get home, you know?"

Willow knew better. She knew that look. "Well, okay. I guess I'll see you tomorrow then."

"Sure. Definitely."

Two weeks had passed when Mark finally said something about it to Grace and she'd assured him everything was just fine. Okay, she'd told him they hadn't had a blowout and that much was true. Grace had avoided Willow's phone calls and texts and Willow had even stopped by once and rang the doorbell knowing Grace was home. She heard the dog barking, but Grace wouldn't come to the door.

Willow was so upset by it Derek finally had to ask her what was going on. "Are you gonna tell me why you're so down lately? And where's Grace been? I know they're not on vacation and you guys do everything together. Has she been sick?"

Willow fought hard not to cry as she quietly said, "No, she's not sick. She's just...sick of me."

"What? Are you kidding?" He sat down next to her and said, "Honey, I'm so sorry. Talk to me. Tell what happened."

"I guess it's all my fault. I never should have said anything to her but I honestly thought it was something we could discuss or that she could at least listen to me. But as soon as I brought it up I could tell it really bothered her. She immediately made up an excuse to hurry home and we haven't talked since. She won't answer her phone or even acknowledge my texts." Willow lost it. She laid her head on her husband's shoulder and just sobbed.

"Hey! It's okay, honey. Whatever it is I'm sure you guys can find a way through it. Come on, it can't be that bad, can it?" Derek had absolutely no idea what Willow was talking about but he did know his wife. She would never intentionally hurt anyone's feelings. Ever. So whatever this was, it must have been huge.

"I'm here for you anytime you want to talk about it, okay?" he told her as he stroked her long, dark hair.

"Thank you, sweetie," she said. "I just feel so awful! It's like someone I love died, you know?" Willow's voice was shaky and when she finally made it to the end of that sentence she lost it again.

Derek had no idea what to say or how to comfort her. He didn't tell his wife he was going to talk to Mark and try and get some information. It was killing him to see the woman he loved hurting so badly. The next day was Saturday and the guys had a standing tee time to play golf. Derek waited until they were teeing off on the fourth hole before saying, "Have you noticed the girls aren't hanging out anymore?"

"Yeah. Grace said they've both just been really busy. I'm not buying it."

Derek hit driver off the tee for just over 240 yards. "Tiger Woods, watch out!" he said.

Mark teed up and Derek told him, "Yeah, I'm not buying the 'too busy' thing. They always find time to hook up, you know? Something's going on. Something serious. You don't have any idea what it is?"

Mark also hit driver and fell about 5 yards short of Derek's shot. "Nope. Not a clue. You?"

Derek just shook his head as they started the walk for their approach shots.

That evening after dinner Mark asked Grace if they could talk. "Is this going to be about Willow?" she asked.

"Honey, look. You guys can't let something, no matter what it was, come between you two. Derek told me Willow just cried her eyes out over whatever's going on. It's affecting him at home and at work and I'm really worried about you. Can you please tell me what happened?"

"If I tell you, you have to promise me you won't tell Derek."

"Wow. This must be bad. Okay. I'll keep it between you and me," he assured her.

"It was just so unexpected, you know?"

"Um...not really, honey. I kinda gotta hear what happened first."

Grace pulled her legs up on the couch and said, "She was talking about how things are...I don't know...stale or something with their...in the bedroom."

"You guys aren't talking because she mentioned things are stale?"

"No! You didn't let me finish. That's how the conversation started. She asked if you and I had any of the same problems."

"What did you tell her?" he asked without accusation.

"Nothing, really. It all just spilled out so fast that you and I never became part of the conversation. It was all about her and Derek."

"Yeah, Derek's mentioned that before. You know, how it's the same thing over and over."

Grace's eyes opened wide and her jaw dropped. "He said that?" She paused then said, "Did you talk to Derek about us? Please tell me you did not do that."

Mark knew he'd just made a huge mistake by mentioning that. He went right into damage control mode. "Honey, we only talked in the most generic of terms. I would never say anything specific. Just that we've been married a long time...just like them...and that sometimes it's hard to think of ways to keep things fresh and exciting."

"Oh, my God! How could you tell anyone about our sex life, Mark?" She wouldn't even look at him.

Mark saw an opportunity for an end run and decided not to answer directly. "Willow tried talking to you about their's, right? And she didn't betray any confidences. Derek's my best friend, too, you know. We're not as close and you and Willow are, but...."

"Were," Grace said correcting him.

Mark sat next to her and said, "The point is, we share stuff. But I would never tell him anything deeply personal. I just told him we'd tried spicing things up in the past and he said they'd done that, too."

Grace's countenance softened and she said, "Willow's even tried pole dancing in the bedroom. Can you believe that?"

"Sounds pretty tame to me, honey, but I obviously look at this from a guy's perspective, you know?"

"I know. I get that. I also get that Willow had a valid point. I mean, it is hard to find new ways to be creative." She looked over at Mark and said, "I didn't mean that to sound like I'm not happy."

Mark smiled and said, "Of course you didn't. I'm not unhappy, either. But you're right. After a few years it's really tough to find new ways to do the same thing. It doesn't mean we don't love each other. It just means we're being honest."

"Anyway, back to our conversation...and you can NOT repeat this to Derek...Willow said she was considering or thinking about or whatever...maybe inviting other people into their bedroom."

"No kidding?" Mark said with genuine surprise.

"From what I gathered, she hadn't said anything to Derek yet. It was just something she was kind of mulling over."

"And that freaked you out?"

"Not the idea of it, per se. It was when she said something about doing it with people they knew. That freaked me out."

"Wow," Mark said shaking his head. "That really narrows things down, doesn't it? I mean, it's not like we're the only people they know or anything, but we're the only couple they really hang out with, right?"

"Well, yeah. We're together nearly all the time. It just seemed like she was hinting around about the four of us...you know...doing it together or something."

Mark raised his eyebrows and said, "Yeah, that would be a trip. I can't imagine how you would even get started let alone follow through on something like that. Talk about changing your friendship."

"Yes! Exactly! That's why I said she had a point. It is hard to find new things to do to keep it fun and exciting. But why would you involve your best friends in something like that? I just got so freaked out by it I had to leave. And now things are so weird I can't get up the nerve to face her." Grace was tearing up and Mark put an arm around her. "And...and I feel so...horrible! I want my friend back. I want things to be like they were before and...." This time, Grace lost it. Mark held her and did his best to comfort her but he knew it was up to the women to fix this.

"Why don't you just tell her how you feel, honey? Tell her how much your friendship means to you and that you maybe...I don't know...overreacted to her comment. Maybe not those exact words but let her know you're sorry and put this behind you."

Grace held him tight as she fought to get hold of her emotions. "I know. I know I need to do that. It just feels so...different now."

"Different doesn't have to mean worse, honey. And different or not, you two are best friends and you can't let one odd conversation destroy that. Look, if you can't face her, then respond to one of her texts or say what you want to say in a text. Maybe she'll call you and you can work through this. But take the first step. Please?"

Grace wiped her tears with her fingers then wiped them on her pants. "Yuck," she said after she was finished. "I need to wash these jeans anyway."

She stood up and said, "Thank you for letting me to talk about this, honey. You're right. I'm gonna text her right now. I don't know how it'll go, but I can't stand this anymore."

In less than two minutes, Grace got a gushing reply telling her how sorry she was and moments later her phone rang and the two of them were back to being what Forest Gump called 'peas and carrots.'

That night, Grace was so happy and so relieved, she initiated sex. When it was over, she was laying in Mark's arms running her hand over his chest. "I'm so glad that's over," she told him.

"You and Willow or the sex?" he said only partially teasing.

She hit him playfully and said, "With Willow, you stinker. The sex was...nice."

"Yes it was...nice," Mark agreed.

"What's wrong?" Grace asked lifting up her head.

"I dunno. I mean, it's like we...you...solved one problem but the other one is still out there just looming over us. You know, the one where sex is always and only 'nice.'"