I felt the warmth spread through my entire body as I closed my eyes and savored the pleasure of that first sip of coffee. It had been a long week and I needed a caffeine boost to get me going this morning. Just one more day and I could wrap up this trip and head home.
My name is Mallory Barton and I'm a sales rep for a large medical supply company located in Raleigh, NC. I spend most of my time driving from one doctor's office to another throughout my sales territory which covers Northeastern North Carolina and Southeastern Virginia.
But, this week, I have been in Miami for the largest medical trade show of the year. The event is sponsored by the American Medical Association and while all of the major medical and pharmaceutical companies are here to exhibit their new products, it's mainly a chance for its' members to escape the cold winter in the Northeast and Midwest for a week of sun and fun.
Just as I took my next sip of coffee, my friend Jessica flopped down in the seat next to me. "God, I'm beat. How about you?" she asked.
"Yeah, I'm pretty tired too. But, if we can just make it through today, we get to go home tomorrow," I replied. "I just dread packing up that damn display this afternoon. It always seems like a couple of the pieces just never want to go back into the case."
"I'm right there with you sister. But, with any luck, someone else will be doing the packing next year. I fully plan on getting that promotion when my boss moves to the Los Angeles office next month and I'm betting that Chris will finally convince you to give in and start a family by then."
I just smiled at her and drank my coffee. I was pretty sure that Jessica would get that promotion because she had been the top seller in the southeast for the past three years. Her sales were regularly ten to fifteen percent above the next highest performer, no doubt a result of her drop-dead gorgeous looks, voluptuous body, and naturally flirty personality.
"I think you're probably a shoe-in for that promotion, but I'm not sure if I'm ready to start having babies just yet. Chris has been dropping hints and gently prodding me for over a year now, but I'm not sure that now is a good time."
"Well, in our line of work, there's never a good time for something like having babies. But, if I had a husband as gorgeous as yours, I think it might be worth it just for the fun of trying. Hell, if you want, I could be your surrogate. I would be glad to take him home and fuck his brains out until we got the job done. I'm sure it would only take a few months," Jessica teased.
"Wow, that's really generous of you," I said, laughing. "But, for now, you just keep your hands off of my husband. I may not be ready to get pregnant, but I'm all in for the practicing."
As we continued talking, I shifted the conversation to work and today's agenda. I was getting enough pressure from Chris about the whole baby thing and I didn't need any pressure from anyone else. Besides, there would be plenty of time for that when I got home tomorrow.
We were just finishing our coffee, when Dr. Craig Miller walked in and sat at a table across the lobby from us. He was the managing partner of the largest Cardiology practice in Richmond, VA. He was also a teaching physician at Virginia Commonwealth University. I had known him since I began servicing his practice's account about two years ago.
"Look," Jessica said. "There's that cute doctor that's been flirting with you all week."
"I see him. He's been acting like that since I first met him. I think he's probably harmless, but I'm not going to let him get close enough to find out. Besides, he's married and so am I."
"Whatever you say, Mallory. But, let me fill you in on a little secret. These doctors have egos that are off the charts. So, if you're willing to stroke their egos a bit by flirting with them, they will buy a lot of product from you. And, if by chance, you're willing to stroke more than their egos then your sales will go through the roof"
"You have got to be kidding me! There is no way in hell that I'm going to cheat on my husband for a few dollars in sales," I responded.
"Listen, you do what you want. All I'm saying is that before you settle down and start having kids, use what you've got to secure your future. Just think about it, you can do something that feels really good while padding your bonus and securing the future of your family."
"Oh my God Jessica, if Chris ever found out that I cheated on him, there would be no family in my future."
"Suit yourself, but just know that there are more girls like me than there are like you. So, you're going to continue to struggle to meet your quotas while others, who are willing to do whatever it takes to succeed, are going to continually pass you by for promotions. Plus, you told me once that Chris was the only man you've ever been with. Don't you ever get even a little curious about what it would be like to be with another man?"
"Sure, I wonder what it would be like, but I'm not willing to take a chance of losing Chris to find out."
"That's just an excuse girl. You know as well as I do that there is no way in hell that Chris would ever find out if you tried out a different model at one of these shows. These doctors sure as hell aren't going to tell. They're all married, with kids and a lot of money. Do you think they are going to risk that for some tradeshow fling? Hell no, they're not. Just admit it, you're too scared to even try."
"Maybe so," I said. "But, speaking of Chris, I need to go call him before we head to the booth. So, I'll see you there in a few minutes."
The rest of the morning was spent fielding questions and demonstrating our new products to the show participants. Then, after lunch, we spent a couple of hours packing up the booth and getting the cases ready to be shipped back to Raleigh. We finished at around 4:00PM and I headed back up to my room to rest a bit before dinner.
After a long bath, I relaxed on the sofa in my room and called Chris again before getting ready for dinner. Then, at 6:30, I met Jessica and another friend, Dawn, at a restaurant down the street for dinner and drinks. We had a nice dinner and I was having a good time listening to the girls talk about the different doctors that they had slept with over the past week at the convention.
Unlike Jessica, Dawn hadn't used sex to advance her career. She simply did it for the excitement. According to her, she was starting to get bored with her life. She was a wife and a mother of two small children, but something was just missing. So, she started having these "meaningless" little flings when she attending shows like the one we were at.
After dinner, the other girls were heading to a club for some dancing, but I made an excuse about being tired and walked back to the hotel. I was pretty sure that they had more than dancing in mind and I just wasn't in the mood to spend the evening watching them pick up random men at some club.
Walking back to my hotel, my mind wandered from thoughts of what my colleagues were doing tonight to the pressure I was feeling from a lot of angles. I was being constantly pressured at work to generate more sales and pressured at home to start a family. I hated my job and wished that I hadn't followed the money when I graduated from college but had instead followed my original plan to be a teacher.
I think that's why I was so reluctant to start a family. I often thought of quitting my job and getting certified to teach, but we needed my income. Chris had left his teaching and coaching job to start a gym with his brother and they were only taking small salaries and pouring as much as possible back into the business. I had fully supported this decision, but now it just felt like one more thing that was keeping me trapped in a job that I no longer liked.
Then, as luck would have it, when I walked into my hotel, I ran into none other than Dr. Miller as he was heading to the hotel bar. "Hey Mallory, it's good to see you again. Could I interest you in a drink?" he asked.
I knew that I should decline, but Jessica's comments from this morning were still fresh in my mind and for some reason, I found myself saying, "sure, a drink would be nice."
This was new territory for me, but I figured there was no harm in having a drink with the good doctor and flirting just a bit. The thrill of the back and forth flirting and the excitement of doing something that I knew was wrong, was making me unbelievably excited. Over the next hour or so, we had several drinks and the conversation got more and more provocative as the drinks added up and the night wore on.
At some point, he reached over and took my hands in his as he leaned his head close to mine. "Listen Mallory, I really like you and I've been attracted to you since the first day you walked into my office. How about we head up to my room for a nightcap and a little privacy?"
"Wow, uh, that's really flattering, but I'm married and I'm not sure if that's a good idea," I answered.
"How about this? How about if you come up to my room and we have another drink and talk for a bit more? If anything else happens, it happens. If at any point you want to just leave, that's okay too."
I knew it was wrong, but for some reason I agreed to go. Looking back, I wish I could say that it was the alcohol, but it wasn't. I wasn't drunk. Hell, I wasn't even really buzzed. I was fully aware that I should have said no and went back to my room, but I didn't.
When we reached his room, Craig shut the door and pulled me to him. With one hand in the small of my back, he reached the other behind my neck and held me in place as he leaned in and kissed me. Red flags were waving like crazy in my head, but the wetness spreading between my legs encouraged me to keep going, so instead of stopping him, I began kissing him back.
After a few seconds of kissing, I pulled away and excused myself, telling him that I needed to go to the bathroom. Once I locked the door, I stood there staring at myself in the mirror, debating whether I should stay or whether I should run like hell.
Eventually, I convinced myself that Jessica was right and that this was something that I needed to do. I had only been with one man in my entire life and before I settled down and started having babies, I deserved to see what it felt like to be with another man.