First and foremost, a big thank you to Tim, for his assistance, and Randi for her fabulous guidance and editing talent.
"Hey babe," my wife called from the kitchen. "Dinner won't be far away. Come on in and give me a hug."
Dropping my work bag and jacket on the floor, I walked into the kitchen. Coby, my wife, looked as sensational as ever. She certainly learned to make the most of her beautiful features. These days, she spent a lot more time on her appearance. As a senior exec at a national finance house, and with a much higher expendable income, she now made sure she looked hot.
She was proud of her appearance, and why shouldn't she be?
Coby had chased down her current role at Voxman's with clinical determination. She had been like a huntress stalking her prey.
With the job secured, she had moved into proving she was the perfect manager. She worked damn hard. For a little than two years she had worked her ass off, pushing harder than anybody I had ever met. She was now well ensconced in the management team.
Coby and I had a great marriage; her work hours were my only complaint. She was so determined to get to the top. After several heated arguments, I stopped fighting and just went with the flow.
Our big ambition had always been to buy our own home and start our family. I wasn't complaining when it came to her income; she earned a hell of a lot more than I did, and I was fine with that. I just worried about her burning herself out.
The kitchen smelled awesome. Damn, my favorite. "Are we having pork chops?" I said hungrily, my tongue wetting my lips. "Damn, girl, that smells so good."
"We sure are," she answered. "Honey, I got some really big news at work today. I was hoping to turn this into a celebration."
"Wow, sounds good. What's the big news?"
Giving me a sly grin, she whispered seductively, "I thought we could eat dinner first, have a couple of celebratory drinks and then discuss it."
If the news was so good, why did she look so nervous and uncomfortable?
"Okay, cool." I held my arms open for a hug and kiss, but she waved her hands in front of her face. "Phew, no way buddy. You go and have a shower first, you smell."
My look of disappointment must have made her feel guilty. "Babe, I want a hug, just shower first, you're covered in dust." She leaned in and planted a kiss on my cheek. "How was your day?" she asked, her inquiry driven, I'm sure, by guilt.
"Oh you know, same old same old. It's construction, what can I say."
I walked off up the stairs. The shower was refreshing, although her reaction when I asked about her news did leave me feeling anxious.
The table was set, candles burned and the lights were low. "Very romantic." I chuckled.
She flew into my arms, and the kiss was passionate. Her tongue snaked sensuously into my mouth like a wild snake. Her body crushed against me, the heat plainly felt. Damn, I could feel her nipples digging into my chest. She was braless, the shimmery silk top doing nothing to defend her.
"Whoa, slow down sailor." She giggled. "Dinner first."
We sat down to the fabulous repast; but throughout, I kept stealing furtive glances at her, and she was nervous as fuck. She tried to cover it up with questions about my job and the project I was working on.
She was a career girl. I, on the other hand, had dropped out of college to tour with what I thought at the time was the hottest fucking band on the planet. Yeah, we were good, but god damn, it's hard to break into that world. We tried hard, toured our asses off, played every two bit dive we could get into. In the end, we failed. We gave it everything, but we just couldn't make it work. I suppose it just wasn't meant to be.
Coby wasn't really interested in my job. All the questions were her way of hiding her unease. We had a few drinks with dinner, but even the bourbon couldn't mask the growing tension. In the end, I asked.
"So when are we going to hear your important news?"
She gulped down her vodka in one go. "I've been offered a promotion."
"Wow, that is great news. Why so pensive? I thought you'd be pretty happy."
"Babe, this is big news, and I am a little nervous. Wyatt has offered to make me his VP of marketing."
"What, no way. Wow, VP, sheesh, that's big all right."
She jumped up, poured herself another vodka and me another bourbon. Sitting back down she added. "There's more, babe; he has offered if I do well in the VP's role, in eighteen months, he is moving on and will recommend me for promotion to take over his role as CEO."
That didn't make sense; it was like my brain had been filled with molasses. "But you've only been there two years. Why the hell would he do that?"
Insulted, she bristled. "Why did you say that? Don't you think I'm capable or something?"
Back peddling quickly, I replied, "No, of course you're capable. There's no question, but why would he do that? There are managers there who have spent their whole working careers at that company. And, they have way more experience than you."
"Yes, but he thinks I am the perfect replacement. He thinks I'm right for the role. Darren, this is a huge opportunity. The VP's role carries a two hundred grand annual salary, plus there's shares and stock options, an expense account. There are special privileges, such as children's college funds."
"You make it sound pretty amazing. What's the catch?"
She threw down her vodka in one mouthful. "Well, there would be a lot of travel. Probably every other week. Long hours, and a hell of a lot of stress."
"Yeah, the stress I can understand. Is that what you really want?"
She rushed over and jumped into my lap. "Babe, this is what I have always wanted. God, you know how ambitious I am. I want this so bad it hurts. I will be CEO, and in less than five years. Do you know how unheard of that is?"
"Yeah, I'm starting to get the picture. You're gonna tread on a lot of toes. The senior managers are gonna be disgruntled. Especially seeing as how you're a woman. You'd have to constantly watch your back."
"Yeah, well they can bite me. That's what's so amazing. I'll be the first female Voxman's CEO. Jesus, Darren. Even if I didn't get the CEO's role, I'd still be the first female VP."
"Yeah, sorry. I shouldn't have doubted you. It just seems too good to be true. I should have said congratulations. I'm proud of you, honey."
She kissed me again, the passion meter set to max. "Thanks, babe."
She jumped up to get fresh drinks. My head was already getting a bit woozy. The rate we were knocking them back was way out of character, especially for Coby.
"Okay, so long hours, and travel, That's it? I mean, you already get home late most nights."
"This will be different, I'll have to deal directly with our most prestigious clients. If they have issues or problems, I won't be able to just walk away. That would mean staying to make sure everything's completed. Plus there will be dinners and functions. Some of those, you'll be expected to attend as well."
