Once again a big thank you to blackrandl1958 for her editing and encouragement.
Nicholas Lance found a nice chaise on the patio near the in-ground pool and settled into it slowly, making sure not to spill the frozen margarita in his right hand. He let a small moan escape his lips as he settled in.
"You look good like that, Nick," his ex-wife, Aubrie, said, as she approached with her own glass of white wine--expensive white wine, Nick knew. "You know, this could have been your life everyday..."
They both knew why Aubrie let her thought hang in the air.
She settled into the chaise next to his.
"Quite the place, Aubrie. You've had a really great run these last 10 years. I guess you were right," Nick said matter-of-factly.
She sat quietly. She had run this conversation over in her head so many times, but real life was so different from how it seemed in her head.
"We could still share this, Nick," she said softly. "I've gotten more than enough real world experience to last the rest of my life. We could get back together, grow old together, share all of this and someday die in each other's arms, as we always said we would.
"The timeout in the middle doesn't even have to count."
"But the reason for the timeout would always count, Aubrie. You gave up me and you gave up us for all of this," Nick said, spreading his arms wide. "The Aubrie I married wouldn't have made that trade, not for this or all the money in the world.
"Too much water under the bridge. Too much disrespect to me. Too much lack of trust for you. It was one of your brethren, so to speak, who coined the phrase, 'You can't go home again.' He was right."
"At least think about it, Nick. Please," she said as three of their grandchildren came running out of the house toward the matriarch and patriarch of the Lance family.
"Come on, Nanna. Let's go, Grandpa. It's time to cut my birthday cake and open presents," yelled Lucy, the middle child in the stair steps of grandchildren who ran out to them.
"Right you are, Gingerbread," Nick said to the redheaded child as he rose from the chaise. "C'mon, Nan. Birthday cake awaits!"
Aubrie rose as well, realizing that she couldn't disappoint her 5-year-old granddaughter. Her heart was heavy, though, knowing she might not get another chance to talk to her ex alone until the next grandchild had a birthday.
A wealthy woman, Aubrie had paid a private investigator a handsome sum to pry into her ex-husband's life. She knew he had dated some but never had a long-term significant other in the 10 years the two had been apart. He lived well—why shouldn't he after getting half of the fortune she had built in the divorce—but always seem to live within the means of his own salary as an accountant. She had given him the house they owned in the settlement, and from what their two children had said had made only superficial changes to it—most of those to erase her presence from the abode.
Aubrie had moved to an upscale neighborhood immediately after the divorce before having a new palatial home befit for someone of her fame built on the outskirts of the city two years ago. Since then, every family event and holiday had been held there. There were enough bedrooms for both children and their families and even a bedroom for Nick if he wanted to stay the night—and not sleep in the same room as his ex-wife. Although she had hoped that room would never be used because she hoped to lure Nick into her bed, it had still never been used because her ex had steadfastly refused to spend the night in her home, choosing to make the trip back to his own home an hour away.
******
"I'm not sure how to say this, Nick, but my last two books haven't sold up to par, and Wanda thinks I may be getting a little stale. She thinks I need to spice things up a bit... by experiencing things first-hand again. She thinks that my mindset isn't as fresh after 15 years, and I need to get out in the world again," Aubrie said.
Nick looked at her in confusion for about a minute before the light bulb went on.
"Wait a minute. Are you telling me Wanda wants you to freshen up your writing by going out and having sex with other men?" Nick practically yelled.
Aubrie literally jumped back from where she was standing when Nick cried out. He had never yelled at her before in their 25 years of marriage.
The two were standing side-by-side at the kitchen sink doing the dishes when the conversation started. It was not uncommon for the pair to discuss important things while doing the dishes.
Nick put down the dish he had been drying and glared intently at his wife. She gulped and put down the plate she was washing.
"Ummm... sort of... yeah," Aubrie whispered.
Nick looked absolutely alarmed. Who was this woman who looked like his wife, but gave answers that his wife would never consider.
"Don't you think you need to explain that... dear?" Nick said pointedly.
"Ummm... you know that my books have a lot of sex in them, and I've been using our experiences to write about since I started... well, Wanda thinks I'm not connecting with my audience because I don't have anything... new to offer. She says she can tell that I'm not excited as much as I used to be," Aubrie said.
"So she wants you to fuck other men so you can have new experiences to write about? Seriously?" Nick cried. "What kind of an editor is she?"
"She's an excellent editor. Look what she's done for me for the last 15 years, and for several other writers as well. I think I really need to consider what she's said," Aubrie replied.
Nick couldn't answer his wife. He sat down at the kitchen table and stared blankly at the wood grain.
"Nick honey... don't panic. Let's think about this carefully and I'm sure we can arrive at something," Aubrie said in as soothing a tone as she could manage.
"Something?" Nick whispered. "No. No. No. No."
******
Life was breathed into Skye Avalon when Aubrie was a stay-at-home mom before the couple's two children started school. An English major in college, Aubrie started writing stories for several fiction websites, making a little extra money for the family. She graduated to writing "bodice-ripper" books, and when her third effort netted her $10,000, a career was born. Two years later, her kitchen table scribblings had netted the family more than $400,000 and she was offered a three-book deal for $1.5 million.
Things really picked up for Aubrie when veteran book editor Wanda Saranick contacted her and the pair began a very lucrative partnership. A year later Aubrie was among the best romance novelists in the country, her earnings well over the million-dollar mark.
Nick was ecstatic with Aubrie's career and the money it generated. Nick made a nice six-figure salary, but Aubrie's yearly income had topped $5 million for the last 13 years before she dipped a bit the last two years. The couple had plenty of money in the bank, both drove nice cars and took great vacations.
Another plus to Aubrie's career came in the bedroom. They had a good sex life before Aubrie started to write, but the writing seemed to kick her libido into a much higher gear. The two would make love or fuck every day—sometimes twice a day—while Aubrie was in what Nick called "Skye mode."
As the manager of the couple's finances, Nick knew Aubrie's sales numbers and income better than his wife did. He knew her last two books hadn't generated the same sales and income, but he was realistic enough to know that not every book was going to be a New York Times bestseller. He was surprised then at his wife's reaction.
"Kathleen Woodiwiss and Judith McNaught aren't having slumps," she railed when she and Wanda were talking numbers one day. "What am I doing wrong, Wanda?"
Wanda knew Aubrie used the couple's sex life as the model for the sex in many of her books. She thought the couple was way mismatched as Aubrie was a stone MILF but her husband was more than a few notches beneath that.
"You know your books would be hotter if you could imagine yourself having sex with a hunk of manflesh instead of your husband," Wanda said, not for the first time.
"We've talked about this a few times through the years, Wanda. You know I could never cheat on Nick," Aubrie whined.
"Yeah, but I keep telling you it wouldn't be cheating if you told him about what you were going to do and were open about it. It would be even better if he would love you enough to give this to you... especially since you are far and away the breadwinner in the family," Wanda explained.
"Wow. So you're telling me to just hammer him, crush his ego, leave him bleeding in the dirt. Perhaps that explains why you've been married and divorced twice so far, Wanda. I'd like to remain married... if possible," Aubrie said.
Wanda was a trained communicator. She accurately heard the last two words of Aubrie's answer. Without saying the words, Aubrie told the other woman she was perhaps open to her suggestion.
"Maybe now is the time to broach this to hubby, while you're still on top of the pile," Wanda said. "Tell him the truth. This isn't about sex, it's about your brand. If he loves you and respects your work, he'll get it, especially if he likes all the fun things those big dollars can buy."
Aubrie's brow furrowed markedly. If she was being honest with herself, her thoughts weren't all about her brand.
******
"It's not all on Wanda, babe. I think she's right. I need to shake things up. New experiences will give my writing a freshness, a joie de vivre," Aubrie said as the two sat down at their kitchen table with a bottle of wine and two glasses.
Nick couldn't look his wife in her eyes as he was afraid of crying in front of her. She smirked as he fidgeted noticeably.
"We made vows to each other, Aubrie. We've always agreed that marital fidelity is important to both of us," Nick said.
"I agree, but this wouldn't be cheating if I told you what was happening and you let me do it," Aubrie said. "We made those vows, and upon agreement, we can change them."
"I suppose they are our vows to do with as we want, but that's just it. Wouldn't we have to agree upon changing them, sort of like congress has to vote on amendments to the Constitution. What if I don't want to change our vows? I like them just as they are," Nick said.
"Nick, we are soul-mates. Nothing could ever break us apart," Aubrie said.
