Crossing Party Lines

Hi! If you have not read my first story, "Crossing Party Lines", you should read that one first. It's a pretty quick read. I'll wait here!

When I submitted that story, I wasn't sure if it would be a one-off or if I would continue writing. I enjoyed the process more than I expected, both the writing and the reactions from readers. I decided to write more, and used their comments and feedback to craft this next chapter. There are additional chapters in progress!

I hope you will enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it. Thanks to everyone who commented on my first story. One reader in particular provided lots of help with this chapter. I'm sure she knows who she is.

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When I woke up again the morning after the party, sunlight was streaming into the room through a small gap in the curtains. It took a few seconds for me to remember where I was. When I did, I smiled, remembering the wonderful night I had with Jodie. I was alone now. She had gone back to her own bed.

I needed to pee, so I pulled on my boxers and shirt and crept down the hall to the bathroom. I didn't know if the others were awake yet. I worried about how Jodie felt about what happened last night. And I knew it would be awkward to be around her husband, Todd. Did he even know I was still here? Did she tell him that I stayed over?

I finished washing up and quietly pulled open the bathroom door. I was surprised to see Jodie standing outside in the hallway. She held her pointer finger up to her lips, her eyes opened wide, and she raised her other hand to my chest, pushing me back into the bathroom. She closed the door behind us. She was wearing a fluffy white robe.

"Good morning", I said when the door was closed, wondering what was going on.

"Hey.. uhhmm.. Todd is going to work in about 10 minutes, so... stay up here until he leaves, okay?"

"Sure.. okay." I was still curious, but relieved. She didn't seem to be upset about what happened last night. As a bonus, I didn't have to talk with Todd. I still wasn't sure if he knew I was there or not.

She turned and went downstairs without another word, and I crept back to the guest room to get dressed.

I checked my phone, and there was a message from the garage letting me know that my car was ready to be picked up. I texted my friend Joe, and asked him whether he could come and pick me up and drop me off at the garage.

Jodie seemed cool, but I didn't want to impose on her further. I didn't want to overstay my welcome or ask her for a drive to the city. I was sure it would be a bit awkward between us for a while after what happened last night.

Ding! Joe replied, "wait ur still at jodies?"

"Yeah, I'll explain later"

"ok man cu in 20"

I walked around the room, thinking. After a few minutes, I heard a car door slam closed outside. I peeked out through the curtains and watched Todd drive away. I waited another couple of minutes before heading downstairs, still not knowing how Jodie felt about everything.

I found Jodie sitting at the dining room table, sipping on a mug of coffee. She smiled and pointed to another chair, a cup of coffee already waiting for me.

"Did you sleep well?" she asked.

"Yeah, it was great. Very comfortable. How about you?"

"I did. It was pretty great." Was she blushing? What was she really thinking about?

As we drank our coffees, I told her that Joe was on the way to pick me up. "Oh, okay." I wasn't sure how to interpret her terse reaction. Did she think I'd be staying longer? Did she want me to stay?

"My car's in the shop, for maintenance, but it's ready now." I explained.

A few minutes later, I heard a horn in the driveway. Joe was here. Time to go. I stood up, and she did too. I couldn't leave without broaching the subject that I had been trying to avoid.

"Jodie.. How do you feel about..what happened? Are you okay? Are we okay?"

She didn't answer right away. Then a tumble of words: "Yeah, I'm okay. It was good, I needed that. I felt..wanted, desired. But it was bad too, you know? I feel guilty, I guess. I don't know. I have some more thinking to do."

I told her that I didn't want things to be weird between us. I had just wanted to make her feel good. Of course, I had really enjoyed it too. Joe honked the horn again. "Thanks again for everything, Jodie", I said. "I'll see you at work.. Call me any time if you want to talk, okay?"

She walked with me to the door, and after I put on my shoes, she gave me a quick hug. I felt relieved, like everything was going to be okay.

As Joe and I drove away, he asked me about what happened after he left the party. Why did I stay over? I explained that I couldn't find another ride and had stayed over in the guest room. I left out some minor details. Like, you know, the part about fucking Jodie.

I wanted to change the subject before he asked more. I asked about his girlfriend, Kim. Was she feeling any better? He said that she was feeling much better this morning. That's why he agreed to come pick me up. He told me that he felt bad for abandoning me at the party. I couldn't help but smile at that. I couldn't say it, but if he knew what had happened with Jodie after he left, he wouldn't have to apologize to me. I'd be thanking him!

I asked him about a new TV series that he wanted me to watch. I knew he'd have a lot to say about it, and I hoped he wouldn't ask anything more about the party.

The next day, a Sunday, I thought several times about texting Jodie, but I wanted to give her space to think. She didn't call me either.

I ran into her a couple of times at work on Monday, but we didn't really talk about anything serious. I think we both still felt a bit awkward. Tuesday morning, she sent me a message. "Can we talk? Come to my office at noon?"

She explained that she enjoyed what happened, but she didn't think it would happen again. She wanted to be friends, but not more than that. No benefits. She wanted to be good. Faithful. I understood, and I was glad that we were still friends. Over the weekend I had imagined many messier scenarios.

Of course, I was also disappointed. I had always been attracted to her. She was so sexy. I wished things were different.

About a week later, we were in an all hands meeting, so everyone from both of our departments were there. We made eye contact across the room and I smiled at her, but she looked away. That was unusual. She was quiet during the meeting.

Afterwards, I wanted to talk to her, to see why she was acting strange. But she was talking to her boss, and writing some notes in a notebook. So I headed back to my office, intending to send her a message after a bit. Halfway there, I felt a hand on my shoulder. I turned around, and it was Jodie. She looked a bit upset, like she was worried about something. She pulled me into a breakout room just down the hall, and closed the door.

"Hey Jodie, what's going on? Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm okay...but..."

I couldn't guess what she was going to say. Was she pregnant? No, too soon to know that. Did she tell her husband what happened, what we did together that night? Was she planning to tell him?

I could never guess what she did say next.

"I found your story."

"What?" My stomach dropped.

"I found the story online. About the party.. about.. what we did.. after my party."

I didn't know what to say. My mind was both blank and racing at the same time.

"You need to delete it. What if someone we know finds it? What if Todd finds it? We need to be careful next time."

I felt defensive. "I was careful! I changed your names. I left out some details..no one will know."

I didn't describe Jodie or anyone else in the story, so that noone would recognize us. Also, I don't know about you, dear reader, but sometimes I like to insert someone I know, or sometimes a celebrity, into these stories, and I don't need the author's description interfering with that.

She brought me back to reality. "Seriously? My name is Josie. And you just changed it to Jodie! Do you think that's being careful?" Since I had met her, this was the first time she was angry at me.

I admitted that it was maybe a dumb move. I never expected anyone I knew to find the story, especially not her. I didn't know that she read erotica. Loving Wives at that!

Something she said was bothering part of my mind, and it bubbled to the surface, getting my attention. "Wait.. you said 'next time'?", I asked.

"What?", she said, still trying to be mad at me.

"You said we had to be careful...'next time'."

She looked at me, her lips pursed, but didn't say anything. Then she looked away. And just then, her phone rang. She looked at the screen. I thought that she was blushing again, realizing what she had said. "I need to take this." She left the room. She didn't answer my question. Saved by the bell. Was she thinking about a next time with me? I stayed in the breakout room for a few minutes before heading back to my office, trying to concentrate on work for the rest of the afternoon. I didn't get much work done.

Before I left the office, I sent her a message, asking her to call me. When I went to sleep that night, she still hadn't called. It wasn't until the next afternoon that she finally did. We talked about my story, and I tried to convince her that she only recognized what happened in the story because she had lived it. Other people, even people close to us, wouldn't clue in, even if they happened to come across it.

Things were still a bit awkward between us for a few days, but getting better every day. She actually told me that she had read the story again a few times. I told her that I was sure that no one would find our story, but that it was kinda hot thinking about someone that we knew finding it. She even admitted to me that she found that hot too. "Is that too naughty??" she asked me.

The next week, our office was going to hold its annual Winter Holiday Party in a large ballroom at a hotel downtown. The hotel had just opened a few months earlier, so it was the first time I was inside. The company maintained several holiday traditions each year. One popular one was the famous Ugly Christmas Sweater Contest. The company also kept a set of holiday themed outfits, which some of the employees borrowed each year. Everyone's outfits were judged, with the best ones winning some prizes and gift cards. The head of the planning committee this year was named Jessica. Her office was across the hall from Jodie's, and they often worked on projects together. They also went to lunch together every Friday, for the last year or so, becoming close friends.

I had a few ugly Christmas sweaters at home, but I had worn them all at previous parties, and I wanted something new. So I talked to Jessica in her office and she recommended one of the Mr. Elf costumes she had. There were three Mr. Elf and three Mrs. Elf costumes. When she showed one to me, I thought it looked silly, but she said it would look cute on me, and I wanted to play along and have fun. No one wants a complainer at their party, right? Jessica told me that she and her fiance were going as Mrs. and Mr. Santa Claus this year.

I usually had a steady girlfriend who I took to these kind of parties, but this year I was single when the party came around. Joe's girlfriend Kim was trying to hook me up with her cute friend Pam, but I didn't want to date someone so soon after Jodie's party. I don't know... it felt like it would betray her, in a way. So I went by myself, single for the first time since I had started working for the company.

Jodie's husband had only come to her work social events once in a while. He usually stayed home or hung out with his friends on those nights. That's one reason why I didn't really know him well. So she was coming solo too.

Our HR department had a policy that any employee who lived more than about a 40 minute drive from the party venue would be provided with a free room for the night, for them and their guest, with supper and breakfast included. That meant that Jodie got a comp'ed room this year. I think it was a legal liability issue for the company. They had provided an open bar, and they didn't want to be held liable if someone decided to drive home after one too many drinks. People who lived closer to the party venue could also request a taxi or other paid drive home, covered by the company.

The night before the party, I pulled out the Mr. Elf costume and tried it on. As I looked in the mirror, I did think it looked silly. It was a short-sleeved green shirt and green shorts, with a thick black belt that had a large gold square buckle. It had red and white striped socks under the shorts, green velvet elf shoes with the toe part sticking out and curling up to a point. On top there was a floppy, pointed green hat, curving to a bell at the end. Silly as it was, I decided to wear the costume anyway. I didn't really have anything else. And Jessica did say it would look cute.

I showed up at the hotel around 7pm, grabbed a drink from the bar, and chatted with some of the other people from my department. Most of them had come with their spouses or partners.

I kept an eye on the door, and about 20 minutes after I arrived, I saw Jodie come into the room. I couldn't help but laugh. She was wearing a Mrs. Elf costume! Her outfit looked as silly as mine. It was pretty much the same, but with a green dress cinched tight at the waist and a frilly white cotton hem at around her mid-thigh level. Her socks went just above her knees, leaving a few inches of her smooth thighs exposed below her dress. Yes, it looked kind of silly, and it was not designed to be overly sexual -- not like some Halloween costumes -- but it was very sexy on her.

When she saw me looking at her, she cocked her head to the side, laughing and smiling, as surprised as I was that we had matching costumes. She turned and headed my way, and we said hello. Jessica must have seen her arrive too, because she came over to us a moment later. She greeted Jodie and they shared a quick hug. Jessica said hi to me, too, and said that I really did look cute in my elf costume. She introduced me to her fiance, Jake, dressed as Santa Claus. He was carrying a sack over his shoulder, filled with toy boxes. The four of us drifted apart a bit, and I talked to Jake while Jessica and Jodie chatted.

After a few moments, Jodie and Jessica walked back over to us guys, and Jessica told me that she needed to take a picture of Jodie and I together, as Mr. and Mrs. Elf. We smiled for a couple of pictures. In one of them, I put my arm around her shoulder, and she put hers around my waist, her head leaning on my shoulder. Photos done, Jessica and Jake went off to talk to other people around the room.

Jodie told me that the day before, Jessica had insisted that Jodie wear the Mrs. Elf costume. Later in the afternoon, Jessica had told her that she had a surprise for her. Jessica said that she would figure it out at the party, but she refused to give her any more hints. So now, finally, Jodie realized that I was the surprise, in my matching costume. That made me wonder how much Jessica knew about Jodie and me.

We hung out now and then as the evening progressed, but we made sure to spend time with other people as well. I mostly chatted with people from my department, and Jodie did the same with hers. One time the band played a fun song, and I asked her to dance with me, but she thought that people would notice and gossip about us. She asked for a rain-check. Even if some people didn't know that she was married, the company frowned on relationships between employees.

After a couple of drinks, I had to use the washroom. I told the people at my table that I'd be back in a few minutes. The signs outside the ballroom led me up one level.

I pushed open the door, and heard an instrumental version of "Frosty the Snowman" playing from the speakers in the ceiling. As I was using the urinal, I shook my head, wondering how many hundreds of times I had heard that song. When I was washing my hands, "Silver Bells" started playing. I shook my head again as I headed back toward the party.

On the way back, I found a pair of doors opening onto a balcony that overlooked the ballroom. It was directly across the hall from the main elevators. I could see everyone downstairs, some dancing in front of the music stage, some sitting at the tables, a few people at the bar, others mingling around the room. I spotted Jodie sitting next to Jessica and Jake at their table. She was so cute in her costume. I'd have to get the photos from Jessica later.

A few minutes later, I noticed that Jodie was no longer at her table. I looked around the room, but I couldn't see her anywhere. Then, suddenly, she appeared beside me on the balcony. She must have seen me up here. "Hey there, I saw you up here by yourself and came up to say hi." She had brought me another drink from the bar. Always thoughtful. She was sipping on a glass of wine. I smiled at her and we starting chatting and gossiping about the people downstairs.

At one point, I told her a joke, and she laughed, playfully bumping her hips into mine. I bumped her back, and soon we were gently bumping each other in time with the music from downstairs. When the song ended, we stayed pressed together, hip to hip.

I slid my hand along her back and rested it on her hip, my thumb on her waist. She didn't really react, pretending not to notice, and we kept chatting. We were just friends. Fortunately, the walls of the balcony were high enough that anyone downstairs who was looking could see us from our heads to about our elbows, but nothing below that.

"Ding!" The elevator doors behind us started opening. We both jolted a bit, and I pulled my hand away, putting it back up on the railing. We both shuffled a few inches apart. I looked behind to see who it was. I was relieved. It was a young woman in a hotel uniform, pushing a room service cart out of the elevator and down the hallway.

After a moment, all was quiet and I slid my hand back on Jodie's hip, pulling us together again. She briefly looked at me and smiled before looking down at the other people downstairs again. I slid my hand lower, brushing over her ass, giving her cheek a gentle squeeze. Maybe a bit more than friends.

As I rubbed my hand in circles over her ass, she pulled up her purse and took something out, but I didn't see exactly what she held in her hand. As they say, turnabout is fair play, so I wasn't surprised when she slid her hand up and over my back before sliding it down over my ass. She gave me a squeeze too, and I felt her slide her hand into my back pocket.

Then she slipped her hand out of my pocket and pulled away from me again. I could feel that she left something in my pocket. I wondered what it was. She said "I want to ask you a question, in private. Fifteen minutes, okay?" With that, she turned and started walking out of the balcony, without waiting for my answer. I spun around, "Wait.. What? Where?" She turned her head toward me and smiled as she walked away, but she didn't answer my questions.

I reached into my pocket, and pulled out a hotel key card. There was a sticky note attached to it. "Room 7012".

My mind reeled. What was she going to ask me? As I considered the possibilities for a moment, I saw her downstairs, crossing the ballroom. She walked over to Jessica, in her Mrs. Claus costume, bent over and said something in Jessica's ear, over the music. Jessica nodded and they said a few more things to each other, back and forth. Then Jodie headed back out of the room, toward the elevators.

I waited for a few minutes and then headed up to the seventh floor. I found her room. I thought about knocking, but she had given me her spare key, so I decided to open her door myself. I made sure no one else was in the hallway, cracked open the door and called out her name. "Come in!", she responded.