Husband's plans

While driving to Dayana's house, Robert was thinking about his wife. He thought about her too much; his body had become very warm, and he liked the way Alice responded to the kiss or how she moved when he touched her breasts or put his face between them. He still felt her nipples on each side of his cheeks, so warm and soft.

Could it be that in a week she would truly agree to have sex with him, or would he have to do it as he always did? He enjoyed it a lot that way, even though the pleasure was always fleeting, but... he admitted that he needed Alice to show some interest in him, for her body to express that she felt something, that she liked it, and not that coldness with which she always greeted him in the act.

"Do I not please her, or what?" he wondered, somewhat tormented, for the first time considering that possibility. But he had been the first man she had been with; she hadn't experienced anyone else. Could it be that she didn't like it? His head was filled with too many doubts, so he stopped in the middle of the road, needing to think. He checked an email he had received from the doctor a few weeks ago when he had asked for information, read the content, and didn't like it. It would be some time before she could get pregnant again, as the first one had been through a cesarean section. "Damn! What am I supposed to do in the meantime?"

Not getting pregnant didn't mean they couldn't have sex. He lowered his gaze to see the bulge in his crotch. The erection was still very much alive.

Dayana's call came in while he rested his head against the seat with his hands on the steering wheel.

No, he knew he didn't want to satisfy himself with Dayana; he was craving Alice, his wife, not his lover.

"Why haven't you arrived yet?" she demanded to know when Robert answered. "You said you were on your way. Did you... stay with her?"

"I left a while ago, Dayana," he surprised himself by answering annoyed. "I've stopped, I don't think I'll make it home."

"Are you going to her?! Are you going back there?!" she suddenly asked, filled with anger. "Tell me you won't stay with her, Robert! Tell me!"

"I'm going to my father's house. See you tomorrow."

"But..." she ended the call, not giving him a chance to voice her complaint.

He set off again, now heading to his father's house.

It was very late when he rang the bell; he had forgotten the key at Dayana's house, although he wasn't sure if it was in his Ferrari, as it was the last car he used to go to his father's house.

The maid opened the door, discreetly rubbing her eyes at being awakened at that hour by the sound of the bell. When she saw that it was young Robert, she threw herself into his arms.

"Robert! Are you okay?! What are you doing here at this hour?" she looked him up and down to make sure he was okay. "I hope you're not drunk, you know your father doesn't like that." She had seen him grow up, and the affection they had for each other was very obvious; the lady was like a mother to him. And he loved her very much.

"I'm fine, Katy. I'm sorry to wake you up," he left a kiss on her cheek and smiled at the lady. "I just didn't bring the key, and the idea came to me spontaneously. Is Dad still awake?"

"He might be reading. You know he goes to bed but doesn't fall asleep right away," as Robert entered, Mr. Graham, in pajamas, appeared at the entrance.

"Robert? If you're drunk..."

"I'm not," his son intervened. "I just wanted to come here. Maybe I want to talk to you. It's about my marriage." His father had given him thousands of pieces of advice before he got married, but it was very clear that Robert hadn't followed a single one.

"Then come to my room. I'm already in bed."

Robert followed his father's steps into the room, took a seat in his father's reclining chair, and watched him settle onto the bed, closing the book he had been reading before.

"For now, I can't get Alice pregnant," he explained. "I didn't want her father to bring up the same topic again."

"And you know it now? Thanks to you, and only you, your son died. Mr. Taylor has talked to me several times in the last month. They say you're not doing a good job as a husband, Robert. You need to pay attention to your young wife. You've completely isolated Alice from society since she became your wife, and she doesn't like that." They hadn't been seen in public even once because Robert had always kept her captive. Few people knew about Alice's pregnancy and even more about her loss.

"That's how I decided."

"Well, they don't like it! They don't like that their daughter is in seclusion! Change it! You have to start being a better husband. You have a young wife; live your marriage with her and get rid of that woman you always have hanging on your arm. I'm tired of it too. You haven't even brought her here; you never take her out of that house. I don't even know where Alice Taylor lives! If you ruin this just because you're still immature... you'll ruin everything."

"I tried from the first day to make things go well. But my wife loves another man."

"And you? Who do you love? Are you in love with your lover?"

"No! Of course, I like her. She pays attention to me! And that's what I need with my wife's coldness. I couldn't live with Alice Taylor's cold and lifeless body alone. But I don't love Dayana, Dad. She's a good outlet for me."

"Win your wife over. Who is the man she's in love with?"

"I don't know."

"But she's married to you; you're the only one with all the possibilities. Make her fall in love with you; she's a young woman who knows little about life. I'm sure you have every chance with her; maybe you haven't put in the effort. Improve your methods from now on. I want the Taylors to see their daughter happy. And you can't delay. If it's as you say and she loves another man, she might bring up the topic of divorce, and if it happens, the Taylors might accept it because of how you treat their daughter. Don't gamble with everything, Robert. You've been married for a year now. What did you do for your first wedding anniversary? I imagine she's still very sad about her loss, but you must have celebrated something."

Robert looked confused, he didn't even know they had been married for a whole year. "You didn't even know?!" his father noted, assuming they hadn't celebrated anything.

"I...," he stood up. He really had no idea. He had never paid attention to it, and he never thought that a whole year had passed since he had married Alice Taylor. In a way, for him, all that time hadn't passed with her. He hadn't been there for the entire

pregnancy, and he had spent very little time with her. They didn't know each other. One year of marriage, and they still didn't know each other. "I'll do something. It will be a good start. I'll plan something tonight, and tomorrow morning I'll take her wherever I think of. It might do her good. I'll come up with something suitable for her; this time I'll do it right."

"I trust you, Robert. And it wouldn't hurt if you grew fond of the woman you're married to. Give your marriage a chance and start to see something you like about her; it can't be that bad to be married to a young and beautiful woman."

"The bad part is not loving her or feeling that...," feeling that she believed she was superior to him or knowing that she loved another man. "Forget it. There are probably worse things. And at some point, I'll have to like something about her. This won't end very soon. I suspect this marriage will last."

He said goodbye to his father and went to his room; he had to think about what to do to celebrate his first anniversary married to Alice Taylor.

He was still stunned to know that a whole year had passed since that wedding.

From his phone, he searched for various ideas on the internet, but none seemed to fit Alice. He didn't even know what she liked, and the ideas didn't come to him.

"A yacht ride? It can be organized quickly, and... it's something everyone likes. I can't go wrong with that. Some romantic moments, maybe that will lighten things up."

And that was the idea Robert took to celebrate with his wife. He would go back home the next day and take her out to celebrate their anniversary.

He continued to think about his father's words.

What changes did he have to make with Alice?

Always making his wife happy wasn't in his plans, but if he wanted her to fall in love with him, it was clear that his actions towards her had to change. He would have to be more present in her life; otherwise, Alice would continue to be in love with the man she claimed to love.