I was surprised to see the strong reactions to Mike's story as people imparted their own feelings of what's acceptable, so I'm curious if this story changes anyone's perceptions of the situation. Since some people seemed unaware, until later, just to be clear, this is a cuck story in the end. It's in the tags, but some people seemed caught off guard, so I figured I'd throw that out in the beginning. For me, there were two antagonists to the story, Mike, being the tangible, and Chad's lack of engagement, being the other, and with that one comes details, not yet shared. And both of which Lucy has to navigate.
This is part of a multistory series. Each story is designed to work as a standalone, but is also told from the perspective of each of the three characters. With that in mind, they each have a slightly different feel to try and account for each character's feelings and personality. The woman's is the longest. The last to be uploaded will be the shortest, having cut out a lot of the timeframe that didn't really involve him anyways. That one also fills in some gaps that were intentionally left out from the other stories. I'm curious if there's any interest in a series where it's told from multiple perspectives. It's a lot of work to line up timelines and conversations for continuity, so I'd love to hear feedback in the comments. Enjoy! Hopefully :)
The office anniversary party was in full swing at an upscale rooftop bar downtown. It was a warm clear night, and the city lights twinkled below. String lights above reflected off the glass tables where employees mingled and laughed, drinks in hand. The air was filled with the clinking of glasses, boisterous conversations, and the occasional burst of laughter.
Lucy stood with her husband, Chad, her best friend, Ella, and a few other coworkers. Chad was a tall man, holding a bottle of beer in one hand and gesturing with the other as he recounted a story to their group. His face was animated, and his eyes always reflected the smile on his face. He was a good man, in Lucy's opinion, but she couldn't shake the feeling of detachment from him lately, due to their lack of intimacy.
Ella, on the other side of Lucy, was engaged in a lively debate with a few others about the latest office gossip. She used to work for the company, and while she'd been gone for some time, she was still friends with many people and often ended up at various functions as someone's plus one.
As Lucy stood there listening to one of Chad's stories she'd heard before, she noticed Mike out of the corner of her eye. Looking over, she saw he was standing at the bar, wearing a black suit with a white shirt and no tie.
Giving her husband a quick squeeze, she said, "I'll be back in a few, honey. I'm going to say hi to Mike really quick." He barely acknowledged her, continuing his story. She approached the bar where Mike was standing, having a drink.
"Mike," she said as he leaned in toward her. She gave him a tight hug, making sure to press against him, but ultimately keeping it brief to avoid giving the wrong impression to anyone who might notice. "You're looking rather dapper tonight." She took a moment to take in the sight of him. He always filled out his suits nicely. He wasn't overly built, but he was well-toned with broad shoulders.
She felt a rush when Mike didn't even attempt to hide the fact that he was looking over her body, which was encased in a long emerald green evening gown with a slit up to the middle of her left thigh. "And you are looking..." His words trailed off as his eyes traveled from hers down her body. Shifting her weight under his gaze, she ensured that her leg was exposed through the slit. "...Amazing." She could hear the dryness in his throat and see his Adam's apple bounce, swallowing reflexively despite his dry mouth. His smile was wide as he made direct eye contact again.
She rolled her eyes at him, playing it off as if she had done nothing to solicit this response. Allowing a smirk to cross her lips, she said, "You always did know how to make a girl feel special, Mike." She tried to hold back a laugh, which escaped as a small chuckle through her clenched teeth. But her comment was true, nonetheless.
Lucy and Mike had a long history of flirting back when they worked directly together. He always came across as non-threatening. His comments were more jokes than genuine attempts to hit on her. They were generally just cheesy lines, delivered with so much humor that they couldn't be taken seriously. With that safety, though, came a comfort level for Lucy to push things further than she should have. The result was a definite underlying sexual tension, even if they never took it any further.
Lucy saw Mike lean toward her while his eyes moved around the patio. "You know, I remember when we used to talk like this in the break room."
Lucy felt that familiar rush and warmth rise from her chest, recalling the days at the height of their flirting. She could see the smile playing at the corners of his mouth as he fought to keep it from becoming a full smile.
Their flirting had diminished once she started dating Chad. To Lucy, it always seemed that the abrupt end of that dynamic had come more from Mike's side. For her, it had always been playful and therefore harmless. It had never stopped when he was dating someone else, but if her seeing someone made him uncomfortable for some reason, she respected that and was grateful he was considerate of her relationship.
Smiling as she remembered the times he was referring to, her eyes lit up at the thought of the inappropriate comments they shared over the years. "Yeah, those were always a fun time,'" she said, watching his eyes continue to scan the area as if avoiding her gaze. "But we were never caught, were we?" She saw his mouth tighten into a smirk that he seemed to be trying to restrain until he finally looked directly at her. They shared a knowing smile as memories of long-past, inappropriate comments came and went.
After a moment of shared reflection, Lucy finally broke the silence. "Well, I suppose I should get back to Chad and Ella. I just wanted to say hi quickly when I saw you over here." She looked back toward the group she had been with previously and saw Chad still chatting away, as was his nature. Ella, on the other hand, was watching her like a hawk. Lucy had shared some of the comments she and Chad had exchanged in the past because she found them funny and wanted to share with someone. Ella never seemed overly fond of it. While it may have been harmless fun, Ella always cautioned against letting it go too far, worrying that it might give Mike the wrong idea. Now that Lucy was married, she could only imagine what opinions Ella might have, especially since they were still best friends, and Ella was aware of the current frustrations Lucy was having with the physical aspect of her marriage.
Chad and Mike always got along. They may not have been friends who hung out, but they always had an easy rapport with each other. Coming back to the moment, Lucy said, "Be sure to come say hi to Chad. He was asking how you've been just the other day." Finally looking back at Mike, they exchanged another quick hug. It was one of those stiff hugs, the kind where one arm wraps around from the side, which seemed more obligatory than affectionate. Knowing that Ella was watching them made her a bit uncomfortable. She realized she had been a little more flirtatious than usual, and Ella's gaze made her feel slightly ashamed.
She heard Mike's small chuckle before he answered, "Of course. Let me do the rounds, check in with my team, and I'll come say hi shortly."
As Lucy made her way back toward the group, she caught Ella's eyes on her. The moment she got close enough, Ella leaned in.
"What was that?" she asked, keeping her voice low enough for Chad to not hear.
Lucy blinked, playing dumb. "What was what?" She reached for her drink and took a sip.
Ella raised an eyebrow. "You and Mike. That looked like more than a simple 'hi.'"
