Chapter 5: CHAPTER FIVE
Lucas The past few weeks post Jana has been thankfully uneventful. The boys have returned to school, Marie is back with me and we’ve been going to see a marriage therapist together. Jana is still trying to get to me, but she can rot in hell for all I care. I can’t forget the day I found out about Jana, the memory is permanently etched in my brain. She kept pleading and begging, and she kept saying how much she loved me, how Marie doesn’t deserve me, and so on. I knew Jana was crazy, but a pregnant Jana is crazier. When I told her to get out of my house and my life, she ran to the kitchen and began to cut herself. I had to call some of my workers to physically restrain her and then called a psychiatric home, that’s where she is right now.
Ashley was coming over for dinner, that woman hates me!!!
The last time she came over, she brought a butcher’s knife with her and told me if I don’t keep it in my pants, she’ll cut my dick off and I knew that bitch wasn’t joking. I honestly wasn’t looking forward to dinner tonight.
Marie was still working for that Jameson fellow even when I said I would pay her double what she earned, she bluntly refused. She said she found fulfilment as a working woman. Now I had no problem there, where I had an issue was word was getting around about some hot and single woman working in her department and they all wanted her. My Marie is no single.
I arrived home and found Marie’s car in the driveway, she was back early today. She was sometimes home around 7:00 pm, I honestly wasn't okay with that but as a man who works long hours, I'm honestly not one to complain.
I walked into the house and found Marie in the kitchen preparing dinner, I walked up behind her and wrapped my hands around her.
"Hello, darling."
“Welcome honey, how was work today?”
“Great, no annoying secretaries today.”
We both laughed at the joke. Marie turned around and put her hands around my neck.
“Honey, I forgot to tell you something really important.”
“What is it?”
"It's not just Ashley joining us for dinner...I invited my boss too."
I took several steps back. I know I do business with Jameson, but I like him a whole lot less than I like Ashley. Two of my 'favorite' people eating with me at the same table, just what could go wrong?
....................................................................
Everything went wrong!!!
Jameson made it a point of duty to flirt shamelessly with my wife and Ashley encouraged him. Sending snide and awful remarks like ‘If you get tired of this wimp right here, you know where to find me...’ and Ashley began telling the story of my marriage with Marie. Not that it's any of his business, or hers for that matter. It got to a point that I couldn’t take it anymore. I could still hear myself from last night when I had to tell them off.
'...Jameson let's not forget that you are in my house and I can destroy everything you've worked for with just a snap of my fingers and as for you Ashley, include yourself in marriage talks when you learn to keep a man long enough to get him to marry you...”
That was the last of it, I retired to bed without as much as a glance in any of their direction.
Marie Lucas was pissed, I could feel it in my bones. Dinner last night was a total failure. I knew Ashley didn't like my husband but I didn't expect that kind of crass behavior from Mr. Jameson, after all, they work together. I know my Luke, there is only so much he can take and he made that clear when he made a veiled threat to destroy Jameson’s business and made a very direct insult to Ashley.
After Lucas left, Jameson began to apologize like a child who's hand got caught in a cookie jar and Ashley...well, she rained curses on him and stormed out the door. And since last night, Lucas has been reserved and I don't know if it's because of last night's failed dinner or there's something else. I'm really glad we decided to enroll the boys in a boarding school for the session while we work on our marriage else I don’t know how the boys would have handled it.
I arrived work a little late because I didn’t get to bed on time and I was really happy my director was running late as well. I buried my head in work immediately and I didn’t even realize it was already lunch break until a sharp knock on my door startled me.
"Mrs. Johnson?”
“Jesus, sir! How may I help you?”
“I was wondering if you would like to come to lunch with me.”
“Umm...I’m kind of really busy right now. I can’t make lunch.”
Mr. Jameson chuckled and leaned against my door frame.
“I know your boss...”
Maybe it's just me but Mr. Jameson has been paying some sort of 'special attention' to me as of late. I couldn't decide if I was comfortable with it or not.
“I know you do, I just...I honestly do not think it's an appropriate thing to do.”
“Come on, what’s a tiny lunch break going to do to you?”
He continued until he finally wore me down and I agreed. I thought he would be taking me to MacDonald’s seeing as it was much closer to work but instead, he took me to a five-star Italian restaurant way across town.
“Sir, what are we doing here?”
I asked as he pulled to a stop and moved to get out of the car. I, on the other hand, stayed put.
“We’re here for lunch, Marie.”
This was the first time he has ever used my first name, it was always Mrs. Johnson. I didn't want to believe what I was thinking, after all, he knew I was married and wouldn't make a move on me...right?
“Okay.”
I agreed and finally stepped out of the car and into the restaurant. The inside was much grander than the outside, the food was spectacular and Jameson was on his best behavior. He was chatty and making jokes, although I thought he was kissing and nuzzling my hand a little too much that people began to think that we were a couple. This particular old lady walked up to us and said that we looked exceptionally good together and prayed that we last long. What bothered me wasn’t what the woman said but how Jameson reacted to it. He thanked the woman and said he hoped we lasted just as long too. When I asked him about it, he turned it into a joke and we laughed it off. Jameson held my hand in his and peppering kisses and nuzzling the back of it when my eyes caught the ones of Lucas. He looked at me with hurt and anger and honestly I knew deep down that things were going to get messy when I got home, he was preparing to leave anyway. He just cleared the bill of himself and his partner, a man I assumed was a client and they walked out of the restaurant, his eyes on me the whole time.
“I think we should go, sir. Lunch break was over a long time ago.”
He checked his watch and I took that moment to withdraw my hands from his. We left the restaurant and drove back to work and throughout the rest of the day my head wasn’t in the game at all, I kept thinking back to the look Luke gave me when he looked at me back at the restaurant. He looked hurt and angry, those two in combination with Luke’s persona was a recipe for disaster I decided to leave the office at about 4:00 pm and go prepare to face Luke, make him something nice. I opened the door and walked into the house, I was met by the sight of Luke drinking beer and watching the sports channel, and by the look of things he has been home for quite some time.
“Hey honey, you’re back early.”
Silence.
“Have you had anything to eat?”
Silence.
“What about a shower?”
Silence.
“Do you want me to run a bath for you?”
Silence.
“Okay then, I’ll go change and get started on dinner.”
As I got to the foot of the stairs and made to begin the climb, he spoke. Finally!
“How was your lunch date? You have fun?”
I turned around and sat on the couch next to him, he probably doesn’t want me close to him right now but I wanted to be close to him.
"It's not what you're thinking?"
“What am I thinking?”
“That it was more than a lunch date.”
“Wasn’t it?”
“No!”
“Really? Because the way he was making love to your hand and the way you were giggling like a high school teenager begs to differ.”
I sighed, I knew I really shouldn’t have let him get so far with my hand but I didn't think anyone would read so far into the gesture. I didn't expect to see my husband there either.
"It was nothing, he was just making jokes."
He laughed then, you know that laugh when something is the opposite of funny?
That’s the laugh.
“How would you have loved it if I took Jana to a very expensive restaurant and cozied up to her as you did with that dickhead?"
Excuse me, what?!!!
Just who does this man think he is?
“Well, I didn’t cheat on you with Jameson now, did I?!”
I saw the hurt flash over his face for a second before it was replaced by anger. Deciding that I have had enough of this, I stood up to leave. If he wants to be an absolute brat about this then he can go right ahead. As I climbed the stairs, I heard his voice.
“You do know that he wants you right, Marie?”
I didn’t know that before but it was becoming clearer to me now. The thing is I’m not exactly sure how to ward off this attention without causing harm to anyone.