Jan and Marsha were already seated at a high top by the time I had parked the car and entered the restaurant.
"Where's Mike," I asked as I pulled out a chair.
"Don't ask," Jan replied, giving a slashing motion to her throat to let me know that I had entered dangerous waters.
"It's okay," Marsha offered and took a long drawl on her drink, which was already half empty. "As usual, Mike said he didn't realize we were having dinner with you guys tonight. He's at the casino with Jerry. I swear, if I want my husband to actually hear what I say, I should just ask Jerry to tell him. He obviously listens to him much closer than to me."
"Mike probably just forgot," I offered. "He ..."
"Don't defend him!" Marsha cut me off in mid breath. "I've had it! This isn't the first time he hasn't paid attention to me or even the second." She downed her drink and waived to the bartender for another.
My wife, Jan, and I had known Marsha and Mike for nearly twenty years, so I knew Mike's behavior was nothing new and I also knew that it would be best to just let Marsha's fire burn out on its own. Jan and I are empty nesters as are Marsha and Mike. We are all professionals, well respected within our individual fields, and financially secure. Jerry was Mike's best friend even before Mike had ever met Marsha. Mike had maintained that friendship after he and Marsha had married and through two of Jerry's failed marriages. It was not unusual for Mike and Jerry to take spur of the moment trips to the local casino or an impromptu vacation for a short week to Reno; both seemed to prefer their odds with cards, dice, or ponies over their odds with their women.
Jan was sipping her glass of wine as the waitress delivered Marsha's refill. "I'd like an Angry Orchard, please, and a refill on my wife's Moscato." The waitress nodded acknowledgment and made a note on her order pad.
"Are you folks ready to order or do you need a few more minutes?"
"I think a few more minutes," Jan said and opened her menu. "What sounds good to you guys?"
"I'd be happy with just drinks and sharing some appetizers," I said.
"I'd be happy with just drinks," Marsha offered and threw back another gulp of her drink.
"That's fine," Jan said, "but you're going to eat something before those drinks start going to your head."
"You're not my mother, ... but at least I know you care. Now if you could just teach me how to make Mike as attentive to me as your Ryan is to you."
"Maybe a few drinks from now," I suggested.
"Be careful where you're going, Ryan, or you may be starting down a road that you really don't want to go."
"I just assumed that Marsha already knew."
"I don't share everything with the girls," Jan said and gave me a sly wink.
"Okay, you guys! Now you've really got my curiosity aroused. Spill it!"
"As I said, Marsha, maybe a few drinks from now."
The waitress returned with our drinks and we ordered a few sharable appetizers. Marsha ordered two more drinks.
The evening passed pleasantly. Jan, who doesn't drink very much, was feeling the warm glow of her wine and was a bit more liberated than normal. Marsha, who also doesn't drink very much, wasn't feeling much at all. As the designated driver, I had limited myself to just two drinks, so I was fine.
"Okay, ladies, I think we better be going so they can put somebody in these chairs that will actually order some real food."
"Since Mike won't be home until tomorrow, I think that Marsha should spend the night in our guest room." Jan stated it as a suggestion, but we all knew it was a directive.
Marsha perked up, "Then you can tell me the secret to your wedded bliss; I've had my few more drinks, so I've held up my end of the bargain."
"We'll see when we get home how you're feeling. If you're still awake, we'll tell you then," Jan said and gave me a nod.
I had an uneasy feeling as I drove home realizing that I may indeed have started down that road, our hitherto private road. Jan patted my leg in reassurance as I watched Marsha in the rearview mirror. She showed no signs of falling asleep.
When we got home, Jan and Marsha disappeared into the guest bedroom. I went into our bedroom and slipped into a pair of exercise shorts and a soft tee and walked down to the living room. Jan and Marsha were already seated and conversing in hushed tones.
"Since you opened this discussion," Jan began, "I decided that I'd let you finish it."
Jan and Marsha were each dressed in silk pajamas; both looked relaxed and very sensuous. I was surprised that Jan had found a set that fit Marsha as she was much taller than Jan, but she had, and they displayed Marsha's assets quite favorably.
"Okay. So where shall I begin? To get a man, any man, to pay attention to you and your needs, you must first remove his distractions. You have to take control, ownership actually, of his manhood."
"And just how do you do that?" Marsha asked skeptically.
"You lock him up."
"Lock him up?"
"Well, actually, you just lock up his cock and balls."
Marsha blushed slightly, but pressed on. "What do you lock them in?"
"Ryan, if we're going there, you better go grab a few cages to show Marsha what you're talking about."
As I left the room, I could hear Jan and Marsha talk in whispers interrupted frequently by short giggles. I retrieved a couple of stainless-steel cock cages and returned to the living room.
"This," I said, as I handed Marsha one of the two identical cages, "is a cock cage."
Marsha held it in her hand and looked at it intently. "How does it work?"
Taking the cage back and unlocking it, I began, "The guy's balls and cock are passed through this ring, the cock sleeve is then placed over his cock, and then the lock is inserted and closed."
"Oh, for goodness sake, Ryan, demonstrate it for her!"
I hesitated and glanced at Jan briefly.
"Don't make me tell you twice!" Jan said and then turned to Marsha, "Marsha, would you like Ryan to demonstrate?"
"Very much," Marsha said and licked her lips lightly.
I felt my face redden as I slipped my shorts to the floor and kicked them off. Standing directly in front of Marsha, I began the demonstration. "As I said, the balls and then the cock are passed through the ring like this; the cock sleeve is slipped on, being careful not to catch any skin on the prongs or between the sleeve and the ring; and then the lock is inserted, closed, and the key removed."