To Save a Marriage

***All characters are over 18 and are fictional. Any resemblance to any real-life persons is purely coincidental.

...

THE CONVERSATION

Bryan ordered a cheeseburger and chili fries for lunch. He hadn't had it for a while because of a strict dieting and exercising routine he's been adhering to the last few months. Sitting behind a computer most of the day tend to make you lazy and out of shape if you're not careful. But today he thought he'd indulge himself today since his best friend Carl insisted on taking out to lunch to discuss something important. He originally said he couldn't because he had too much work to do in the office but when he saw how nervous Carl was behaving, he figured it must be something urgent so he accepted his offer.

Throughout the whole time they were eating, Carl wasn't saying much and was trying to avoid whatever it was he wanted to talk to Bryan about. It was getting near the end of their lunchbreak and Bryan knew they needed to get back to the office soon so he decided to just ask Carl what was wrong.

"Carl, what's going on with you?" He began to say. "You ask me out to lunch and you obviously have something on your mind you want to talk about, so come out and say it."

"Ok, here it goes," said Carl before taking a dep breath to get himself more relaxed. "Remember the secretary I had last year, Alicia?"

"Yes, the one you had the affair with and Lauren found out."

"Yes, and she eventually gave me a second chance as long as I got rid of Alicia from the office."

"I remember, you broke it off with her and got her a better paying job somewhere else."

"It was the least I could do for her and a good way to stay on her good side to avoid a sexual harassment suit too," said Carl. "But what I didn't tell you was that Alicia wasn't the only woman I was cheating on Lauren with."

"There were others?" said Bryan, surprised by this revelation. "Why didn't you tell me you were fooling around with other women."

"Because when I told you about Alicia, you got mad and told me how stupid I was for cheating on Lauren," Carl replied. "If I told you about the others, you would really be pissed off at me."

"How many others?"

"Three," said Carl. "One is a female client of mine."

"A client? You could get fired for that," Bryan warned.

"It's ok, she's married too, she won't risk saying anything," said Carl. "The other was a woman I met online, and the last one Lauren's best friend, Megan."

"One of her friends? Are you serious?"

"Yes," said Carl. "Eventually Megan felt guilty and confessed to everything. Afterwards, Lauren did some digging around and found out about the other women as well."

"The last time Lauren found about your affair she kicked out of the house for a month."

"Yes, and she kicked me out again," said Carl. "And that was two weeks ago."

"What? You're telling me this now?"

Bryan was astounded by these sudden revelations.

"Sorry Bryan, I should have at least told you but I just thought I could handle this problem on my own. I've been living in a hotel the last two weeks and making up excuses of why you couldn't come over."

"You should've told me. I could've been there for you at least?"

"I know, but like I said I didn't want to burden you."

"Carl, I'm your best friend. Let me help you with your burden."

"Thanks Bryan, that's kind of what I wanted to talk to you about. Lauren said she'd give me one final chance."

"After everything you just told me, I'm surprised she's even speaking to you."

"So am I. But she doesn't like the idea of getting divorce, so she wants to give me one last chance to make things right."

"At least she's giving the marriage one last chance."

"Yes, but that final chance comes with a few conditions," said Carl. "First of all, she wants me to completely cut it off with the other women, which I had definitely done."

"As well you should."

"The second condition is to see a marriage counselor with her," Carl continued. "Something I've always avoided before, but now I'm willing to give a chance."

"I know a few marriages that were saved with counseling."

"But all of this is contingent if I follow through on one major condition, which is where you come in."

"I'm glad to help in any way I can to save your marriage," Bryan said enthusiastically. "Whatever it is you need me to do, I'll do it. What can I do to help?"

"Please keep that in mind with what I'm about to ask you," said Carl who was suddenly looking extra nervous, making Bryan extra concerned for his friend. "Lauren wants me to feel the same kind of pain I had caused her from my affairs and she feels that she too deserves a little... extramarital fun as she described it."

"Where are you getting at Carl?" Bryan asked, who was now himself feeling nervous because he had a suspicion of where the conversation was leading to. Because he was a stress eater, he started eating his chili faster.

"Bryan, the only way Lauren would take me back is if you would have sex with her."

Bryan almost choked on a piece of his chili fries and he started coughing. He saw what was coming but it still surprised him, nonetheless. After drinking some of his soda to help clear his throat, he began breathing normally again, then looked at Carl and tried to think of what I should say. But only one thing came to mind.

"This has got to be some kind of joke," said Bryan.

"Trust me, I wish it were a joke. But unfortunately, it's not. My wife wants to have sex with you."

Bryan didn't know what to say. All sorts of thoughts came to his mind at once and he had no clue on how to respond to what Carl had just said to him. He couldn't even continue eating his cheeseburger.

"I know this is too much for you to process," Carl began to say. "And trust me I didn't agree to this right away. I tried to convince her to come up with another way for her to forgive me. But ultimately it came down to this one subject. She would only take me back if you, my best friend, would have sex with her."

"But why me? Why not one of our other friends?" Bryan asked. "At least with one of them, it wouldn't be so bad since they're not as close to you as you and I are."

"I asked that also," said Carl. "Besides the ones who are already married or dating someone, she just wasn't interested in the few others who were single for a variety of reasons that I couldn't refute. Ultimately, it meant you were the only viable option."

"I still don't know what to say," Bryan replied. "You're asking me to fuck your wife."

"You don't have to decide right now. Just give it some thought."

"If I do agree to this, would you be ok with it?" Bryan asked.

"To be honest, I absolutely hate just asking you about it," said Carl. "But if I had to choose between getting divorced or this, I'd much rather have not get divorced."

"What about our friendship?"

"It would still be ok. It wouldn't be ideal and I can imagine a long awkwardness between us at first, but I could live with you having sex with Lauren just the one time."

They noticed their lunch break was almost over and it was time for them to get back to work.

"Can you give me an answer tomorrow?" Bryan asked.

"Sure, tomorrow should be enough time to think about it."

LAUREN

For the rest of the day, Bryan had trouble concentrating on his work. Some men would jump at the chance to sleep with one of their friends' wives, especially one as attractive as Lauren. Bryan admitted to himself that there was some appeal to it; he had always thought Lauren was a sexy woman, and had a few fantasies about her in the past. But ultimately, she was his best friends' wife; even with permission, he didn't think he could bring himself to go through with it.

Eventually, he thought the best thing he could do was to talk to Lauren directly. Hoping he could talk some sense into her. He sent her a text and asked if he could talk to her about her and Carl's situation; a few minutes later replied with a text agreeing and asked to come over to her place after work. Her text was followed by a winky-face emoji which did not seem like a good sign to Bryan, because it sounded like she was expecting a lot more than just talking. He didn't respond to that emoji, figuring it was best to let it go so she would still agree to talk to him later.

Later on in the day, he got to her place at the time she suggested. The whole ride there he practiced what he should say to convince her to change her mind. He prepared himself for whatever questions or arguments she may have so he could be ready to counter them.

When he rang her doorbell, she answered back that she'd be there in a minute. It was a long, frustrating minute for Bryan. He never thought he'd be in a situation like this.

Lauren finally opened the door and Bryan was stunned to see her standing there wearing a black silk robe that came down to just above her knees.

"Hello Bryan," she said with a big smile on her face. "I am so glad you came to see me."

"I'm glad you agreed to see me," said Brian. "I'm hoping we can talk about this situation."

"Of course," she said. "Come on in."

Bryan walked in and Lauren locked the door. She then dropped her robe and revealed the wearing black negligee she was wearing underneath.

"Wow," was all he could say.

"I'm glad you like it," she said

She immediately tried to kiss Bryan on the mouth but he moved away from her just in time. As tempting as it was for him after seeing her in the negligee, he needed to stay firm with the reason he was there.

"Lauren, I actually came here to talk," Bryan told her.

"You really came here to talk?" she said as she rolled up her eyes in annoyance. "So, you're not here to fuck me?"

"No, just talking, nothing else.," he said.

"Ok, fine, we can talk," she said angrily as she put her robe back on. "Have a seat and I'll get us something to drink."

He went to the living room and sat on the couch while he waited for Lauren. He felt a little embarrassed about what just happened between them. He did suspect that she might expect more out of his visit than just talking, but he didn't think she would make a move on him as soon as he walked into the door. At the same time, he should've realized what she was expecting as soon as he saw her in that robe.

Lauren came back with a couple of beers for each of them. She handed one of them to Bryan and sat down next to him. To be sure she wouldn't try anything again with him, Bryan moved away from her a little further on the couch.

When she crossed her legs, her robe moved up a little and Bryan couldn't help looking at them. Lauren was a beautiful woman with long auburn hair and an excellent hourglass that most artists would love to make sculptures of. He couldn't understand why Carl would want to sleep around when he had this beautiful woman at home. Bryan forced himself to look away from her body to stay focused on why he was there.

"Listen, I understand why you're upset with Carl but this isn't the way to get back at him."

"No, this is the perfect way," she said.

"No, it isn't, you see--"

"Let me tell you something," she interrupted. "I was always faithful to Carl. I have had plenty of chances to cheat on him in the past, and I do mean plenty, but I never gave in to those urges. And despite this incredible amount of betrayal on his part I still love him. But I can't let him back into my life until I let him feel a little of my pain and at the same time have the kind of fun that I've turned down so many times."

"But can't you just have sex with someone else? He won't like that either, but it does seem like a better alternative."

"Yes, it could work and I could easily have sex with any other man I want; I know a few men who would kill at the chance at getting into bed with me. But he needs to feel how I felt when I found out about those affairs. Especially, when I found out that one of them was my best friend."

"So, sleeping with his best friend would make him feel a more equal pain that you felt?" Bryan asked.

"Exactly."

Bryan had nothing else to say, it was obvious she had thought this through. Even the arguments he came up with on his way over here wouldn't help change her mind. He finished his beer and told her he would think about it some more. She said she would give him as much time as he needed to decide and he left the apartment.

"I'm sorry, Lauren, but I just can't do it," he told her. "I understand where you're coming from, but I just don't think it's right to sleep with my best friend's wife, even if there were good intentions behind it."

"I understand," she said before taking another big sip of her beer. "I should've known you may not want to go through with it. Not every man would want to just because he got permission."

"Are you upset with me?"

"A little disappointed, but not upset," she said. "I just wish Carl had some of your morality, then we wouldn't be in this situation."

After they finished their beers, Bryan said it was time for him to go home. On the drive home, he thought about everything that Lauren had said to him. He felt that she was right, she deserved some fun of her own and Carl deserved to feel some of the pain she felt. Even though Carl was asking him to do this, he saw that he was not happy about it at all which is Lauren's goal.

Later that day, he met up with Carl at a local bar and grille for dinner a few beers. He told Carl about meeting up with Lauren and how he tried to talk her out of the idea of sleeping with him, but she was very adamant on the idea and wouldn't change her mind.

"So, you're definitely not going to sleep with her?" asked Carl.

"No," said Bryan. "I just can't bring myself to have sex with my best friend's wife, even with permission and the reasons behind it. It's just morally wrong."

Carl took a deep breath and looked relieved.

"It's OK, Bryan. I'm actually relieved that you don't want to do it," said Carl. "It was already hard enough for me to even ask you for that kind of favor, I don't know what I would've done if you had actually gone through with it."

"Do you think she'll change her mind?"

"I certainly hope so," Carl replied. "At least change her mind about you. She may just have sex with another man. I wouldn't like it either, but at least it's better alternative."

They decided to change the subject and continued their dinner.

ONE MONTH LATER

Bryan was sitting at home watching TV when someone started banging on his door.

"Bryan I've got to speak to you!" Carl cried out.

Bryan opened the door to find his best friend in a frazzled state. He looked as if he had been crying before he arrived.

"Dude, what happened?" he asked.

"This happened," he replied holding up a manila envelope.

He handed Bryan the envelope as he walked past him and straight to the kitchen. Carl took out a six pack of beer from the fridge as Bryan took out the papers from the envelope revealed them to be divorce papers.

"Oh shit," said Bryan.

"Shit is right," Carl replied then taking a big swig of one of the beers.

Bryan took one of the beers and drank it as I read the papers. It was asking for a lot of money and cited his affairs as the reason. From what Carl had told him, she has the evidence of his affairs to make a good case for herself.

"I can't believe it has come to this," said Bryan.

"Can you blame her? I cheated on her many times, even I know I deserve this."

"I could recommend you a good lawyer. I know this guy--"

"I don't need a lawyer," he interrupted. "What I need is you?"

"Me?"

"Yes, you Bryan," he said. "Lauren said the deal is still on. If you have sex with her, she would take me back."

"That again?"

"Yes, Bryan. She still wants to sleep with you."

"Carl, you've got to understand--"

Carl walked over to Bryan and put his hands on his shoulders.

"Please, Bryan. Don't give me that morality bullshit anymore" Carl began to say. "I understand your reasons, and they're admirable. But at this point, you're not being a good friend by not sleeping with my wife; instead, you're being a bad friend by not sleeping with her. So please, I'm begging you, have sex with my wife and save my marriage."

Carl's face was bright red and full of tears. Bryan couldn't bear to see his friend like this.

"Will you promise to never cheat Lauren again?"

"I promise," said Carol holding up his right hand as if taking an oath. "I learned my lesson. After all this I will never cheat on her again."

"This is so crazy, I can't believe I'm agreeing to this," said Bryan shaking his head in disbelief. "Ok, Carl. I'll do it. I'll have sex with Lauren."

Carl gave Bryan a huge hug.

"Thank you, thank you so much. I never thought I would be so happy to have my best friend fuck my wife."

'Who would?' thought Bryan.

Bryan convinced him to stop crying and go to the bathroom to clean himself up. He came out of the bathroom minutes later and Bryan handed him another beer. Bryan knew he felt embarrassed by how he was crying, so he changed the subject all together and got him to watch a game with him and ordered a pizza.

The next day Byan called Lauren to let her know about his decision. She tried to act cool about it, but he could tell she was trying to hide her excitement. But first, he made her promise that she would definitely take Carl back afterwards and she solemnly swore she would. Afterwards, they agreed to meet the following evening before hanging up.

ONE NIGHT STAND

The next day, Bryan called Lauren directly to talk to her about agreeing to spend the night with her. He thought a call instead of a text about this situation was more appropriate. She was very excited that he agreed to her proposal and they made plans on when he should come over to her place.

They met a couple of nights later, Bryan arrived at around 8pm. He wore a suit, was freshly shaved and used cologne; this was after Lauren sent him texts insisting on him looking presentable. He thought it was a little much for what the situation was for, but he decided not to question it. He felt it was best to stay on her good side and give her what she wanted for Carl's sake.

She opened the door and instead of a robe, this time she wore a sexy black dress. The hem was cut way high to show off plenty of her leg and the top had a deep V neckline to show plenty of her cleavage.

"Hello, Bryan," she said. "You're looking very handsome tonight."

"Thank you," he replied. "You look... wow!"

Lauren thought it was cute the way he stammered as he eyed her up and down. This was exactly the kind of response she was looking for.

She let him in and Bryan handed her the flowers that he brought her. He then followed her to the living room where she told him to have a seat. He sat down as she walked away to the kitchen to put away the flowers, he gave her and poured two glasses of brandy. She came back to the living room, handed one of them to Bryan and sat down on the couch next to him. They both took a sip and he complimented her on her choice of brandy.

They talked for a few minutes as casually as they could. Afterwards, she led him to the kitchen where she had a big meal waiting for them.

"You didn't have to go through all this," said Bryan.

There were two big juicy stakes on the table for each of them.

"Oh, it was no trouble," she said. "The last time you were here I threw myself at you like a whore. So, instead, I decided to take it slow and at least make the situation more friendly."

"Oh, I thought we'd just go straight to the bedroom," he told her.

"Oh, come on, I made this steak just for you," she said. "Do you really want it to go to waste."

"They do look delicious; how can I pass up some good breasts?" Bryan realized what he just said. "Steaks, I meant to say steaks."

Lauren laughed. "I know what you're talking about."