Chapter three – Tom and Karin
An uneventful flight the next morning, and the evening's reception at the hotel kept Tom's thoughts occupied. Checking in, unpacking, confirming the summit itinerary had him hopping until evening. He'd seen Karin twice so far at the hotel in passing, both had waved, but both had been on normal business seminar type errands and didn't even stop to chat. At dinner they finally spoke face to face for the first time in three years. There was some awkwardness at first, but soon, they were chatting and flirting like they'd been doing for the last several months. The rest of the banquet room faded away as Tom began to lose himself in Karin's blue eyes, and more than once he had to yank himself back to reality. God, how he wanted her! Her body was beautiful, a bit more slender than he recalled, and he complimented her on how great she looked. She mentioned something about a gym she'd joined, and her dress that evening showed off the results of those workouts. It clung tightly to her curvy hips, and its plunging neckline showed an ample amount of milky white cleavage. Her light blond hair was shoulder length now, longer than her remembered. Although tonight she had it was done up in a sweep with a jeweled clasp in the back. A strand or two lay against her willowy neck. Her eyes, oh damn those eyes! Her blue eyes had that darker ring around the iris like a husky's. Yes, god, he was a sucker for eyes…Dani's were brown and soulful, and whether she meant to or not, always showed her deepest feelings. Tom always felt like he was drowning when he looked deeply into Dani's eyes. Karin's were different though, they were a flashing, sparkling blue, like the azure of a deep mountain lake. He shook his head for a moment. He had to stay focused. The juleps weren't helping. Bourbon had always had a heady effect on him, his biggest mistakes in college could be attributed to fine Kentucky sour mash. Despite the look of disappointment in her pretty eyes, Karin didn't complain when Tom excused himself after dinner, feigning a headache so he could go to bed.
He couldn't sleep, even after he'd called Dani. They'd talked about how he was feeling after seeing Karin earlier this evening. Dani told him that it was ok with her if he and Karin got together during the upcoming week, but he protested, wanting to keep to their original agreement. He could tell from her tone that it really wasn't ok, that she would've had a problem with it. None of that helped the monstrous hard on he had though, even after he's masturbated while Dani spoke to him on the phone to bring him off, whisperingly sweetly of soft kisses, sensual oil massages, and candles. He lay frustrated in bed for a while before finally falling asleep clutching the extra pillow to his cock, softly grinding into it until he slid into dreams of Karin's touch.
The next several days, Tom threw himself into the summit, talking marketing strategies, playing the corporate ass kissing game, making new business contacts. He wasn't actually avoiding Karin, but he didn't let himself get into any situations that might cause him to succumb to his attraction to her either. It had to wait, but the feelings didn't subside. He called Dani nightly, having phone sex with her each time, although that barely knocked the edge off of his need for Karin. Before long however, he found himself seeking Karin out after the meetings for drinks in the hotel bar, and they'd even gone out to the bars on Bourbon Street one afternoon, had dinner alone together, and then checked out some of the famed New Orleans nightlife. The city was alive, as revelers from all over the world began to arrive for the biggest party in the southern United States.
Friday came, it was the last day of heavy meetings, as the rest of the weekend would be devoted to follow ups, and writing up the results of the week's work. Most of the lower level attendees would be leaving by Saturday, but Tom, Karin, and a handful of other middle to upper management would be in those follow ups Saturday and Sunday afternoon. But this was Friday, the last day for most. There was an unofficial pub crawl scheduled for that night, and Karin asked Tom to go. He'd had a cocktail or two at dinner and without thinking, he agreed.
"What the fuck are you thinking!!??" he asked himself aloud as he got changed for clubbing. He wore conservative slacks, and a dark button down shirt. He called Dani, and told her he what he was doing this evening, and that he'd be out for a while. He wanted to let her know, in case she called while they were all out, she'd worry about him, and Karin. She'd asked if Karin was going too, and he told her she was. He asked her if it was ok with her, and she assured him it was. He could tell she was unnerved by the thought of he and Karin going out together, even if they were only two of twenty co-workers. But she played it cool, and he promised to call her later when he got back to the hotel room.
Off they went, a group of twenty or so, having rented a bus to take them from the hotel downtown to the French Quarter. They were dropped off on the corner of Esplanade Avenue and Bourbon Street, and began the crawl. The first place was beautiful, and looked pricey. Ornate wrought iron decorated every fixture on the building's street front façade. Hanging plants bloomed fragrantly from the balcony. High tempo jazz could be heard from the street and as a group the workers made for the entrance. Inside a pre-Mardi Gras party looked to be moving into high gear. A long, polished walnut bar stretched the length of one wall, with a few tables adjacent to it. The rest of the room was dedicated to the dance floor, with the exception of a few dark booths along the far wall. It was dark, loud, and smoky. The band was amazing, playing traditional jazz. They had a five piece horn section as the backbone, and they were wailin'!
Dancers gyrated on the huge parquet floor. The tension that always builds as Mardi Gras approaches was palpable in the room. The group took over several tables near the bar, and ordered pitchers of locally brewed lager, as well as a pitcher of kamikazes. But when the waitress came around to where Tom and Karin were sitting, she ordered Sazeracs for the two of them. A Sazerac is a signature New Orleans cocktail. Some say it was the first mixed drink in a city that became known for their mixed drinks. It's a delicious mixture of rye whiskey, simple syrup, bitters and absinthe. In this enlightened age however, the absinthe is replaced by Herbsaint or Pernod usually. It's a very smooth cocktail, layered with flavors. If it's made right, one or two are enough for a night of bacchanalia and revelry.
Tom had never had one, and Karin instructed him to sip it slowly, to savor the depths of the flavors. Tom enjoyed it immensely, it was so much better than a Hurricane or a Julep. The rye was a new experience for him, he'd never had it. It warmed him up inside, leaving him flushed and excited. The band took a break, and the house music came up, a Zydeco dance song came on, and before Tom knew what was happening, he and Karin were out on the floor. She was an amazing dancer, and teased him for having two left feet. He grabbed her around the waist at a change in tempo, and began to lead her across the floor. He was no amateur as a dancer, and she was the one flushed and excited by the time the song ended. The night went on like this, a cocktail or two at each bar, a dance or two as well. Every now and then one of their party would say goodnight and take a cab back to the hotel. The sexual tension between Tom and Karin increased with each passing moment. Her flashing blue eyes and her infectious laugh had him mesmerized. Soon there was only a few of their coworkers left, and Tom was feeling mighty drunk. He told Karin he'd had enough, and needed to go back to the hotel. Truth be told, he was worried about the effect one more drink and one more dance might have on his willpower. She demurely stated that she too needed to go, as she had a busy morning planned, sightseeing around the French Quarter before the day's afternoon meeting began.
So they decided to split a cab. They made their farewells to the hardcore drinkers remaining of their original group. After waiting for fifteen minutes and no cabs had come by, they saw a horse and buggy heading their way. The buggy's passengers called for the driver to halt outside the bar Tom and Karin had just exited, and he thought "Why not?" and hailed the driver. The driver dickered a bit about leaving the touristy area of the French Quarter, but eventually agreed to take them back to their downtown hotel. During the buggy ride, Karin snuggled close to Tom. The breeze off the river was chilly and damp, and her closeness, and their bodies touching at various places, had him warmer than the weather should've allowed. She yawned and put her head on his shoulder. Tom was so confused. Here was this beautiful woman, who his wife had told him he could fuck if he wanted to, and he couldn't bring himself to allow it. Did it relate to how he felt about Dani's attraction to Jim? He didn't think so. That was a purely physical thing, and something they'd admitted to fantasizing about. So was the issue with Karin. Tom was in the position to realizing that fantasy though, this very night.
The buggy arrived back at the hotel, and Tom realized Karin had dozed off. Tom had been so wrapped in thought, and both were so comfortable, that he'd not noticed. He gently shook her, and she opened her eyes. As she stared at him focused for a moment, he found himself lost in her beautiful eyes again. He leaned to her and gently kissed her. She returned the kiss, with fire, and pulled him towards her. The kiss lingered and the passion of it grew.
The driver coughed politely at this moment, and Tom and Karin both jolted up. Slightly emabarrassed, Tom stood and climbed out of the buggy, turning and offering Karin a helping hand. Karin held Tom's hand and gently led him into the hotel. In a city seeped in the Vodun lore, she led him, zombie like onto the elevator. The doors slid shut, and alone for the first time all night, she turned to him.
"Tom," she began, "I want you. Now. Badly."
"Karin, I can't!" he protested. She moved towards him then, arms open. Tom couldn't stop what was happening, and they embraced.
" I promised Dani," he said, "that we could do something experimental with our relationship, become more open in our sexuality. Try something new, new people. I want to try this with you Karin, but I can't tonight. I want to so badly, and I may lose another chance, but I can't."
"We may not have to wait," Karin began, and before he could stop her she'd grabbed his cell phone off his belt clip.
"What are you doing?" he asked.
"Can't ever let a man make a decision," she mumbled as she began to scan through his phone book. As she thought, "Home" was one of the first, and she pressed "Talk".
"Karin! NO!" Tom cried.
The line rang twice before Dani picked up.
"Hi Baby!" she said.
"Dani," Karin replied, "It's Karin. We should talk. Tom's here, and he's really upset that I've called you."
"Umm," Dani started, "I'm really not sure I'm all that happy about it either, but what's on your mind?"
"He's a good man Dani. He truly loves you. I know you love him to. He's sort of given me the idea of what's going to happen here next week with you two. You have another man for yourself down here don't you, and Tom's going to let him fuck you, isn't he?"
"Uh, yeah. It's sort of a honeymoon thing…" Dani stammered out.
