After more than 18 months in the US, Carolyn & Dennis had a lot to catch up on with their friends and neighbours back in Sydney.
Following a leisurely lunch and a couple of bottles of premium Marlborough Pinot Gris, Jenny and David were conscious of how relaxed and assured their old friends had become after their attachment to Den's company head office in San Diego.
Eventually Jen asked, "There's something about you two that has changed while you've been away. And I don't mean that in a bad way, it's just that you seem more confident, warmer, easier, ...more alive somehow. Not that you weren't all those before, just that you seem to have ramped up a bit.'
Den & Caro shared a long look, and a slight nod of Den's head indicated Caro should take the lead in their response.
"Well, it's kind of a long story, and I'm not sure how you're going to feel about what we have to tell you, but we wanted to let you know how much we value our friendship, and love you both so much. We ask you to hear what we have to say, and know that our love for you will not change."
"Wow, this is sounding really heavy. Have you guys gotten into something illegal or something?" said David, sounding like the lawyer he was.
"No, no, nothing like that, said Caro, laughing at the thought, "and sorry to alarm you like that. It's actually quite legal, but not everyone will understand, so we have to be careful. Den & I have opened up our sexual relationship. Specifically, we are swingers, or to put it more correctly, joined The Lifestyle."
Jen smiled and high-fived her husband. "Ha, I knew it! When we met for coffee after you first came back, and you wore that gorgeous top that showed off a lot more of your girls than I'd ever seen you show before, and I've never seen you flirt with anyone like you did with that waiter..."
Caro threw her head back and laughed. "I've discovered how gorgeous those girls are, and the fun of dressing up. And as to the waiter, he was kind of hunky, wasn't he? I'm going back there for sure, I'm dying to know if he's single, or committed and open."
It was David's turn to laugh, "And you're cool with this Den?"
"More than cool. We've started something special, and there's no way we're going to let it go now we're back home. I love to see Caro enjoying herself, and even more, I love to share those times with her. We've met some fabulous people over the last few months, and had some really exciting experiences with them. If Caro wants to have a good time with the waiter, then I'm looking forward to either hearing all about it, or being there to share her with him."
"So, tell us how this happened," said Jen, still taking it all in, and quite excited about doing so. Her nipples standing out from the sheer fabric of her blouse.
Caro resumed, "We'd been thinking and talking about it for quite a while. We'd both realised that if the only sexual experience we had to look forward to for the rest of our married lives was with each other, there was a chance we were going to feel had missed out, and might even become resentful about all the chances for fun we might have passed up. The idea of deceiving each other with affairs was poisonous to both of us, yet we both wanted to experience more than we would ever be able to offer each other alone.
"As long as we set some ground rules, which could be flexible and mutually modified, were truthful with each other, and kept communicating honestly, there was no real barrier. We worked out that if we both were on the same page, then sex with other people could just be fun, we could learn a lot from those others, and we could enjoy sharing the experience with each other.
"We'd seen a couple of episodes of a cable show called 'Swing', in which a couple interested in opening up their relationship spends a weekend in a mansion, generally around Hollywood or Las Vegas, with 5 or 6 other couples who are regular swingers. The newbie couple get the chance to get to know the others, play games and usually later have the option of sex with anyone they click with. It's all filmed of course, and they do an amazing job of keeping the crews and gear out of shot.
"At the end of one show there was an ad seeking committed couples who would like to be on the show to apply and audition, so we raced around looking for paper and wrote down all the contact details. We didn't intend to actually do it, at that point we just thought it would be fun to think about it. We knew our time in the States was coming to a close, and we didn't have the friend and family commitments there which might have inhibited us."
With a glance at Jen's bemused expression, Caro hastened to add, "Not including you guys of course. I know you're pretty broad-minded and trusted you wouldn't judge us harshly."
Jen smiled again and looked smilingly at David. "Of course not, it's your life, and if you're loving it then we are happy for you."
Caro continued, "Anyway, that piece of paper just sat around for a few days, calling to us both, and finally we just looked at each other and said 'Let's do it.'"
"We sent them a letter and a quick audition tape, and a month or so later the producers called to arrange a video conference interview, which was really all about finding out how serious we were and whether we might back out. After a couple more days they offered us the gig, and we thought 'Shit, what have we done?'
"When it came to work and friends, we knew word might get out, but figured the people most likely to see us on the show were probably pretty simpatico anyway, so no big deal. And if there were any who couldn't handle it, we probably wouldn't hear from them again. Plus we knew we were going back to Oz in a couple of months. If we were serious about our lifestyle choice, then something like this would be a great start to it.