THE X FACTOR
Todd Green had been married to Lydia Green, nee Lipscomb, for five years. They were both twenty-six and had married right out of school. No kids yet. Lydia was a looker, and so was Todd. They were both 5'10", but he outweighed her. She had light brown heir and blue eyes. He had dark hair and dark eyes. Some had called them sinister.
Lydia was an associate at a law firm in town. Todd ran his own small construction business and also sold some computer material to larger corporations. These were security programs that he'd written in college and constantly updated. His construction business was a hobby. His money came from the programs and related consultations regarding security for the computer systems at the various companies.
The two had met as juniors at State. They hit it off right away. They were both lively sorts, outgoing and funny. They also hit it off in bed.
Lately, though, Todd had noticed some falling off in that regard. He was a careful person, at bottom, despite his demeanor. This trait was what allowed his success in the security business. Maybe some called him overly suspicious. He didn't see it that way.
Lydia was only two years out of law school. She made good money working for the firm, but the hours could be long. Todd wondered what was causing the fall-off in their bedroom. Maybe the long hours. But she'd always had that, since she started work at the firm.
Todd went on the firm's web site and looked at the roster of lawyers. There were two new names there. One was a new hire, Megan Johnson. The other was a lateral transfer from Chicago. William Nestor. He was a partner and handled tax matters. He'd arrived six weeks ago to take over for a woman who was retiring. His picture on the web site made him look like a movie star.
Lydia had taken lots of tax courses in law school. She was not working in that area to begin her employment. But later she did get some tax assignments. Todd had never heard of William Nestor. He considered that odd.
So, he did a very thorough investigation of Mr. Nestor. He was forty, married with two children, twelve and ten. His wife's name was Melanie Driscoll. She'd kept her maiden name. He had a good reputation in Chicago as a tax lawyer. Nothing popped out from the initial look-see. A deeper dive was required. Down to the basement went Todd to a different set up.
Nestor's marriage had been a troubled one in Chicago. A separation agreement had been written, filed, and then withdrawn, six years ago. Todd got in touch with a woman he knew in the Windy City. Looking for rumors about Nestor. He found that there had been talk of an affair with a younger woman.
Todd looked further into Nestor, back through his college and law school years. Not a lot was there. He'd been a good student. There was one thing - an expunged arrest when he was twenty. The arrest was for sexual assault. Todd was not supposed to be able to see that, or any details. The expungement did not mean that no one on earth could get details. If there was further trouble law enforcement could access the expunged file. But there had been no further criminal problems. Todd accessed the file anyway.
Nestor had been arrested on a date rape charge. The allegation was that he'd slipped a drug into a young woman's drink and then had sex with her. He'd claimed consent and denied the drugs. She hadn't reported anything for two weeks, so there was no possible blood analysis. The case was dropped. Later, the arrest had been expunged from the public records.
Todd thought of this as the X factor.
All this information was obtained one afternoon. Todd thought to ask Lydia about Mr. Nestor.
Over dinner that Tuesday evening - late as usual - Todd asked, "Hey, Lydia, I hear you have a new boss."
Lydia gave a small but perceptible start. She said, "No. Well, there is a new tax partner."
"Who?"
"His name is William Nestor. He's from Chicago."
"How come I haven't heard about him, Liddie?"
"I was about to speak to you about him. He's new to the area. He asked me about restaurants and all. I...well...he asked me to take him to dinner Friday."
"Huh? What's that about? He asked you on a date?" Todd couldn't hide his displeasure. Didn't try.
"It wouldn't be a date. Just dinner. I'd be home by ten."
Todd simply stared at her. She got even more defensive.
She said, "Todd, it's to....I mean, sort of show him around."
"Around where?"
"Angelo's." That was a very high-end Italian restaurant downtown.
"He's taking you on a date to Angelo's"
'It's not a date. Just dinner. A get acquainted thing. We're going to start a fairly large case."
Angelo's restaurant was owned by Todd's client Herman Fischman. He'd taken Lydia there several times. The staff knew them, because Herman had joined them twice.
Todd said, "If you go on a date with this guy to Angelo's, all of them will think you're stepping out on me. And, I guess they'd be correct, huh?"
"It's not a date, I told you. But....I do see what you mean."
"You're not stupid. You always saw that. What's up, huh?"
"Nothing. Nothing's up. It isn't s date."
"Is this guy married?"
'It is NOT a date!"
"So, he is. Maybe I should ask his wife if she approves?"
"No, Todd. I mean, I have no idea about their marriage or whatever."
"Lydia, this is a very, very bad idea. You need to cancel. Just say no."
"I already agreed. He has reservations."
"So? He can cancel. We can ask them - him and his wife - over here for dinner that night. A real get to know you event."
"Todd, I'm not in a position to jigger this all around. I'm going. I'll be home by ten. Just dinner." Lydia was quite flustered. She'd planned to tell Todd that she was going out Friday with work people. But then he'd asked directly about William. As if he already knew about him. This was not the first time her husband had surprised her with some unexpected deep knowledge about something.
She had no intention of cheating. She did find William Nestor attractive. All of the women at the firm found him attractive. But she absolutely was not going to do anything but dinner.
Still, she knew that Todd wouldn't like it. Despite what she'd said to Todd, she did believe that it was a date. Kind of a date. She thought that William might consider it as a date. She hoped not. But....you know....maybe.
Todd simply said, "If you do this, I'll probably leave and not come back. This guy is poison. And I am going to call his wife. Ask her about what he told her about Friday."
Lydia was stunned. She knew that Todd had been somewhat dissatisfied lately. She said, "You're just looking for an excuse, Todd."
"To do what? I mean, we need to deal with this. Have you already screwed him?"
