Convenient

I sat at the hotel bar, sipping my second whiskey sour, and checking my twelve-year-old daughter's homework on my Chromebook, with her on Discord. It was Happy Hour, and the bar was pretty crowded. I had taken a stool at the far end, leaving a couple of empty seats when I arrived. I liked to unwind a little after a long day of meetings, when on the road. I had planned to have a couple of drinks and go to my room, but Maggie had called and asked me to look over her Powerpoint presentation on the reproductive cycle of flowers.

"Why can't you get your dad to check it, honey?" I asked.

"He's not here," Maggie replied. "I want to get the best grade in the class, Mom. Can you please check it for me? You know Dad never finds half the mistakes you do."

Maggie was becoming more like me every day. She was ambitious and worked hard for what she wanted, plus she had goals. Most kids her age prioritized video games and social media over everything else. Maggie had a strong work ethic and put her studies and practice first. I was a little surprised that Eric wasn't home. It was a school night, and he hadn't told me anything about being late.

"Ok, honey, can you share your screen with me?" I asked. As Maggie brought up the Powerpoint display, I asked her, "Do you know where he is?"

"He sent me a text saying he had to work late, then he and some buddies were going to a sports bar for dinner and to watch the game," Maggie explained. "Kat and I had a salad for dinner. Oh, thanks for getting the vegan cheese!"

"You're welcome," I replied. We spent the next thirty minutes reviewing her presentation. It was thorough, professionally executed, and didn't look at all like something a child of her age would produce. I had only found two minor mistakes and asked her to clarify one point.

"When will you be home?" she asked just before we disconnected.

"My meetings end around lunchtime tomorrow," I told her. "My flight is in the afternoon, and I should be home by seven."

"Don't forget my concert Saturday night," she said emphatically. "You and Dad are still coming, right?"

"Of course, we are," I reassured her. Maggie was the second-chair violinist in her school orchestra, with her sights set on challenging for first chair. "We never miss your concerts."

We said our farewells, and as I pulled out my earbuds and closed the laptop, a deep, incredibly sexy voice spoke over my shoulder. "That was an amazing presentation. You have a kid in high school?"

I turned, surprised, and a little miffed that someone had been watching my private conversation. When I saw him, all thought of being angry, melted away. A gorgeous man stood there, smiling at me. I felt myself melt as his gray-blue eyes peered into my soul. He was tall, built, and appeared to be in his mid-forties. He was well-dressed and confident, with dark hair and a tan complexion.

"Sixth grade, actually," I corrected him, then added, "Maggie is very advanced for her age."

He held out his hand, and I shook it. "Erik Somersby," he said. "Erik with a k' May I sit here?" he asked, indicating the stool next to me.

"Of course," I said. I couldn't help but chuckle. "It's very ironic; you have the same name as my husband, except he spells his with a c."

"That's very convenient," Erik said as he signaled for the bartender.

"Convenient?" I asked as I put my laptop away and made more room for him at that bar next to me. "How so?"

"If we have an affair, you won't get caught if you scream my name while making love to your husband," Erik replied with a wink.

I blushed and felt a warm tingling deep inside me. "Oh, that is convenient!" I agreed, laughing softly and sipping the dregs of my cocktail.

"Need a refill?" Erik asked. I nodded, and he told the bartender, "Another for the lady, and one for me. Make them doubles."

"The lady?" I said playfully. "You make me sound so old."

"Well, I don't know your name, and the lady sounds so much nicer than the broad."

"Yes," I admitted. "That's true. If you had referred to me as the broad, I would have walked out."

"Well, we can't have that, now can we?" Erik said with a cheeky grin.

"No, we can't," I replied, then added, "It's Allison, by the way."

The bartender placed the drinks in front of us, and Erik raised his glass in a toast. "Here's to convenience, Allison."

I raised my glass and gave Erik a sideways glance as I tried to size him up. Just what kind of a man was he? He was good looking, but no Brad Pitt. I was sure he was a bit of a player, trying to hit up the women at the bar in hopes of finding a lonely one. I decided to let him off the hook.

"Look, Erik," I began slowly. "I don't want you to waste valuable time that you could be using more successfully with another target, but I'm happily married, and I have no interest in sleeping with anyone other than my husband."

"What makes you think I would sleep with you?" Erik asked with an amiable chuckle. "I mean, I'm flattered that you want to have sex with me, but I'm not that easy."

"You are such a funny man," I replied, joining him in a laugh. Erik had a very gentle personality, that combined with his looks, was making me think naughtier thoughts than my words implied.

"You're pretty sure of yourself," He added with a wink. "But, you're also right. I would love to take you to bed."

I smiled and tilted my head to acknowledge his confession. "I am tempted, honestly, but I love my husband too much to cheat on him. I've traveled for work a long time and have yet to succumb to the charms of a would-be Casanova. I think my vibrator will just have to take care of things tonight."

"I could hold it for you," Erik suggested, leaning closer. I could smell him. It was a heady mix of man, deodorant, and an earthy cologne. It was enough to trigger my body's lust reaction.

"I don't think my husband would appreciate that," I said, sipping my third cocktail of the evening. The alcohol was going to my head. I felt a bit flush. Maybe Erik had something to do with that. Especially when next he spoke.

"He's not here. He doesn't have to know."

I literally gulped and immediately became nervous. As I fidgeted with my phone, I noticed the time and that I had no messages. Why hadn't Eric called me yet? The girls were home alone, and it was getting late.

"Hang on, I need to call home," I said, holding up a finger.

I pulled up my husband's number and hit call. It rang through to voicemail. "Hey Eric, it's me," I said. "Where are you? It's late, and the girls told me you were not home yet. What's going on? Please call me or at least give me a text."

I called three more times, and it went to voicemail each time. I tapped out an angry text message: "Where are you? Answer me!"

"Trouble in paradise?" Erik asked.

"Huh?" I replied, only halfway hearing him. "Uh, no, I can't reach my husband. He told my daughter he was going to a sports bar to watch the game. We have never left them home alone this late. I figured he'd stay for the first quarter and then head home." I pointed to the television over the bar. The third quarter was beginning.

Erik nodded.

"Sorry, I don't mean to bore you with my family issues," I said, feeling guilty for talking about personal things to a stranger.

"It's fine," Erik said, putting a hand over mine gently. I didn't feel uncomfortable and didn't make him remove it. "Do you have the phone numbers of the guys he's allegedly with?"

"Allegedly?" I asked. "Are you suggesting he's lying?"

Erik shrugged. "I mean, you are out of town, right? Out of town, out of mind."

"What are you implying?" I asked, growing slightly agitated, a mix between frustration over not reaching my husband and outrage that Erik was suggesting my husband was up to no good.

"When the cat's away, the rats play," He replied. "Are you sure he went to a sports bar to watch a game?"

I looked at my phone, then raised it with a grin and replied, "I don't have their numbers, but I have something better. I have their wives' phone numbers."

I called one of my best friends, who was the wife of Eric's best buddy Dave. She answered quickly. "Hey, Tina, I hate to bother you," I said when she picked up.

"It's no bother, Allie, what's up?" she asked.

"I'm out of town on a business trip, and Maggie told me that Eric hasn't come home yet. I've tried calling him, but he isn't responding. Do you think Dave is with him, and do you know where they are?"

"Well, hmmm," Tina replied, sounding concerned. "That's weird. I can tell you he's not with Dave. Dave's here. Let me ask him."

I could hear them talking.

"Honey, do you know where Eric is? It's Allie and Eric isn't home yet. The girls are alone."

"No," I heard him say, then follow up with, "not exactly."

"Not exactly? What does that mean? Either you know, or you don't know."

"Well, I don't know exactly where he is," Dave replied, "but he mentioned something."

"Well, what did he mention?" she asked. I could tell she was getting irritated.

"Uh, come on, Tina," he pleaded. "It's the bro code. I don't want to get him in trouble."

"David Walker Adams," Tina snapped. "Unless you want your ass to be in even bigger trouble, you better spill your guts and spill them now!"

"Ok, ok," Dave conceded. "All I know is he said he was going to the Lodge after work to have dinner and watch the game. He asked me to go, and I said no."

"The Lodge? What's that? A sports bar?" she asked. I was wondering the same thing.

"Kind of," Dave replied. "A sports bar with strippers."

"A strip club!?!" Tina asked, shocked. "Eric went to a strip club?"

"A Gentlemen's club, but yeah, that's what he told me," Dave admitted.

Tina returned her attention to me.

"Oh God, Allie, uh," she said, hesitating to repeat what Dave had said.

"I heard him," I said. "He went to the Lodge, which is a strip club."

"Yeah," Tina said.

"Great, thanks, Tina," I said, preparing to hang up.

"You ok?" Tina asked.

"I'm glorious!" I replied. "Thanks, I'll talk to you later."

I hung up the phone and tossed it in my clutch. I drained what was left of my cocktail and slammed the glass on the bar.

Erik looked at me, trying to gauge my mood. "You alright?"

"Never better," I said, then looked him deep in the eyes. "Know much about strip clubs?"

"I've been to a few," Erik admitted.

"Ever heard of one in Dallas called the Lodge?" I asked as I searched for it on Google.

Erik whistled. "The Lodge? Your husband has excellent taste. That's one of the best Gentlemen's Clubs in the country. It's the best one I've ever seen."

"Well, he's apparently been there since he left work," I told him. "I can't believe he went there and even worse that he lied about it and left our girls alone."

"Well, in his defense, it has great food at surprisingly fair prices, and they don't gouge you on drinks like most strip clubs." Erik offered.

"And naked women?" I asked, raising my eyebrows.

"Mostly, but not quite," he replied. "Remember what I said about the rats and cats?"

"Mmhmm, I do," I said. "So, what kind of trouble can a guy get into at a place like that?"

"Well, it's a highly professional club, so mostly guys just admire the ladies. Sometimes they'll sit on your lap and hang out with you, or you can pay for lap dances."

"What about sex?" I asked.

"That would be illegal," I explained. "So, I would highly doubt he could get more than his crotch rubbed and boobs in the face at the club."

"You said that last part funny, 'at the club,'" I said. "What did you mean?"

"Who is to say that he's still at the club?" Erik asked, letting me contemplate the possibilities.

I was browsing through pictures on the Internet, "Oh my God," I said, "these girls are all gorgeous!"

"They do have the best looking women," Erik said, then added, "present company notwithstanding."

I was hurt and furious. My husband was at a strip club with some nearly naked girl rubbing her body against him, grinding on his erection. Or maybe not. Maybe he met some hot girl, and they went to her apartment or a hotel. All these years, I had never done anything remotely inappropriate. I had always turned down every opportunity and had remained a good, loving, loyal wife. That asshole! How dare he cheat on me!

"Buy me another drink," I instructed Erik. He grinned and as he signaled for the bartender, I put a hand on his to stop him. "On second thought, can we get a bottle sent to my room?"

*****

The alarm clock went off far too early and much louder than I believe was necessary. I woke suddenly, sitting up, and immediately regretted the quick movement as my head felt like it was being split in two. At the same instance, I realized I was going to be sick.

"Oh, God," I groaned as I grabbed my head with both hands, determined to keep it from separating down the middle. I felt my stomach flip and try to dump its contents, so I jumped out of bed and ran to the bathroom. I made it to the toilet just in time to avoid puking all over the floor.

I lay on the cold tile until the spasms passed, then forced myself to get up and drink a glass of water. I was able to keep it down, thankfully, but the dizziness and shakes were nearly unbearable. I turned on the shower, as hot as I thought I could handle, stripped and climbed in, sitting on the floor and leaning back as the water flowed over me. I trembled with a chill, even as the steamy water seared my skin. I must have been in there for at least half an hour before I felt human enough to get out.

When I emerged, I glanced at the messy bed and thought back on the previous night. Much was a blur. I remembered drinking at the bar, then more drinks. The thought of alcohol made me shudder as a wave of nausea passed through me. I pushed those memories away with a sigh. I was thankful that I was alone and made a pot of coffee. As I waited for the restorative elixir, I quickly dressed, not bothering with makeup. I sipped on a cup as I threw my clothes into my bags haphazardly.

I had one more round of meetings in the morning, after which I could escape to the airport. Thankfully someone had the foresight to schedule the meeting to start at ten. I had just enough time to walk to the office, so I put on my darkest sunglasses, grabbed my suitcase, and left the room and my shame behind me.

On my short walk to the office, I checked my phone. Eric had neither called nor replied to my texts from the night before. There was nothing to remind me of Erik, either, as I had refused to give him my phone number or email. Fortunately, I had a text message from Maggie saying that her father was taking her and her sister to school, that she missed me, and looked forward to my coming home. I choked up as I read it. I was relieved that Eric had come back but felt a mixture of strong emotions, emotions that I would have to deal with once I was home.

The meeting was relatively uneventful. I wasn't the only one moving slowly. Some of the others had gone out and made a late-night of it. I took it easy on them and just went through the motions to get done as painlessly as possible. We had catered sandwiches for lunch, and I felt better after getting something substantial in my system.

By one, we finished, and I called an Uber to take me to the airport. I was able to get on an earlier flight and arrived home two hours ahead of schedule. Maggie and Kat jumped up excitedly when I came in the front door and hugged me.

"Is your father home yet?" I asked when I was able to get them to stop squeezing me.

"No," Maggie replied. "He said he'd probably be home just before you got here."

I told the girls I needed a shower and suggested they order a couple of pizzas for dinner, then went upstairs to my room. I dumped out my bag and put most of the clothes in the hamper to wash tomorrow. I stripped out of my outfit and stared at my naked body in the mirror. I was still desirable. Had I doubted that? Was that part of it? I turned back and forth. Thoughts of Eric admiring naked young women filled my mind.

Fuck him. I'm still hot. If he doesn't want me anymore, as last night proved, other men would.

As my mind flashed back to the night before, I felt a wave of shame wash over me. In all these years, I had never cheated on Eric. In spite of everything, I still loved him. I turned on the shower and climbed in. I tried to wash away my guilt, but all I could do was curl up in the bottom and cry. I cried until the water went from hot to warm to cold, then turned it off and got out. I put on a pink, plush robe and crawled onto the bed.

I took a deep breath and called Eric's phone. He answered on the third ring.

"Hey," he said, not bothering to make excuses for not returning my calls and messages last night. "You just land?"

"No, I got in early," I told him. "I'm already home."

Should I confess my sins and tell him what I had done? Or should I confront him about what he had done, making sure he knew how much I knew?

"Oh, ok," he responded. "I'll finish up and head home. Want me to grab some Chinese on the way home?"

"No," I explained, "the girls ordered pizzas. Just come home. I missed you so much."

There was a short pause, then he replied, "I missed you too, honey. I'll be home soon."

He hung up, and I rolled over on the bed, covered my head with a pillow, and cried some more. I must have dozed off because the next thing I knew, Eric was in the room, making noise. I turned over and saw him getting out of his work clothes.

"Where were you last night?" I asked, unable to stop myself. I needed to know, but, at the same time, was afraid of learning the truth.

I could see him fidgeting. "I told you. I went out with some of the guys to watch the game," he said, repeating the lie he had told me.

"The Lodge had the game on?" I asked. His eyes got wide at my mention of the Lodge. "Doesn't that distract you from paying attention to the strippers?"

It was obvious he didn't expect that I knew where he'd been. He stammered a bit with his response, "H-how did you know?"

"When I couldn't contact you, I called Tina, and she harassed Dave until he gave you up," I admitted.

"Uh, well, they have TV's by the bars," he eventually explained. "I mean, they show the games and have great food."

"And naked women sitting on your lap," I suggested.

"Not completely naked,' Eric admitted. "They wear thongs."

"Oh, how nice," I replied sarcastically. "Sounds like it has everything: great food, drinks, sports on the TV, and hot woman to rub their nearly naked asses on your cock." I let him fidget a while, then added, "The only thing they seem to be missing is cell service."

When he had no response, I pressed forward, "Why did you not respond to my messages and calls all night? Maggie needed help with her homework, and I had to do it for her over Skype."

"I'm sorry," he mumbled, looking chagrin. "It was loud when we first got there, and I didn't notice your calls. By the time I did, I figured it was too late to call you back, so I let you sleep. I didn't realize Maggie needed any help. She didn't tell me when I spoke with her."

"You mean when you texted her," I said, letting some of my anger show.

"Right," Eric said. He looked worn out. I could tell he had a late night and probably felt like I did in the morning.

"What time did you get home?" I asked.

"Uh, it wasn't that late," he said. I could tell he was lying.

"How late?" I asked. "It was too late to call me, even though we've frequently spoken late when I travel. So, how late was it that it was too late to let me know you were alive and not in a hospital? You look like you pulled an all-nighter."

He wouldn't look at me. "I don't know, maybe 1 or 2," he said rather noncommittally.

"The game was over by 11," I reminded him. "So what were you doing at a strip club until 2 in the morning? Did you cheat on me?"