TITLE    : My Wife was Wrong
STORYID  : my-wife-was-wrong
SUMMARY  : Too bad I married someone else to prove her right.
AUTHOR   : Ephesus14@lit
DATE     : 2020-05-25
CATEGORY : loving-wives
FLAGS    : h
TAGS     : |cheating wife|cheating wives|btb|


This story came from a reader who has become friend. A friend I will never meet. It has very little sex.



Thank you, Blackrandl1958. As usual, you make everything you touch, better.



<strong>My wife was wrong</strong> .....Too bad I married someone else to prove her right



My name is Randy Harper, and I own two truck-driving schools. The first one I opened is In Montgomery, Alabama. The other is in Lake Charles, Louisiana.



There was a trucking company in my hometown of Lake Charles and from the time I turned 15, I was always hanging around there. After a while they let me help change oil, tires, and adjust brakes: all the dirty jobs that nobody else wanted to do. Eventually, they let me drive the trucks around the yard.



The company is owned by Harley Francis, and while I spent virtually all my time around the trucks and trailers, his daughter, Vicki was working in the office. I had no interest in girls when I started working there and preferred the smell of diesel fuel to perfume. That started to change when I turned 17. That's when Vicki and I started sneaking into the trucks and making out. We became full-blown lovers when we were 18, and we did it in the sleeper berth of a brand-new truck.



We had graduated earlier that day and all of our friends were going to get drunk and party. Vicki and I had other ideas. We were in my graduation present from my parents. A BRG (British Racing Green) 1967 Austin-Healey 3000. Vicki loved the car, but hated the color. Her favorite color was red. We went to her father's trucking company. The gate was rarely locked because drivers were coming and going at all hours. There was always a security guard at the gate, but he knew us and waved us through.



We even knew which truck we were going to use. It was number 169. We liked the "69" reference, although we had never tried it. Like everyone else our ages, however, we had heard about it.



We parked beside the truck and hurriedly climbed in it, turned the bunk light on and closed the curtain. We were kneeling, facing each other and as nervous as whores in church.



She had let me play with her tits before, but I had never seen both of them at the same time.



"Go ahead," she said.



"Go ahead, what?" I answered stupidly.



"You undress first."



"Okay." I had taken my suit coat off earlier. No cool guy drove wearing a suit coat. I loosened and took off my tie and shirt. "Now you."



She unbuttoned her blouse and spread it open. For the first time in my life, I saw a girl in a bra. I could see her nipples pushing the material out and my dick got hard. The first sight of a woman's breasts is something never to be forgotten. There they were, gorgeous, spectacular, ripe, with all the firmness of her 18 years, the most fascinating sight I had ever seen. I couldn't move, couldn't breathe.



"Next," she said. I started, and my trousers came off post haste. I didn't wait for her to take anything else off; I turned around and forced my shoes off without untying the laces.



She got the idea and started ripping off her own clothes.



When we were both naked, we kissed passionately. "Randy, nobody can ever know about this. Nobody. Ever. Promise?" Her eyes were serious.



At that point I would have promised anything to get my dick in her. "Oh, God, yes. I promise." In my ignorance and haste, I had no idea what I was doing, only that I was at the gates of paradise, and couldn't wait to get in. She was as dry as a bone and I nearly tore the skin off my dick.



"Play with me first. It gets wet when you play with it," she said. I did. It was a night of firsts. The first bare breasts I had seen, and the first pussy I had touched. Between my clumsy attempts at fingering her and gnawing on her tits, we managed to get my dick in her and it was earthshaking. Paradise, and I was an initiate. It was the warmest, tightest place on the planet, like my cock was immersed in warm melted lava. She was uncomfortable, at first, but the feeling for me was so intense that the first time lasted about a second and a half before I came. I thought my heart would stop, and I knew this was where I wanted to be, in this woman/girl. The next time was better and the third time better still. She came, the third time, and the look of her, the ecstasy on her face, was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen. The worship in her eyes when she finally opened them and looked at me told me she was mine.



It was about three in the morning when we got back in my truck and left. The only one who knew we were there was the security guard and he smiled and waved as we drove out the gate.



After that we had sex every chance we had and many times we practiced 69. It was incandescent, I couldn't get enough of her and she couldn't get enough of me. We had never seen a porno movie, so all we had were the jokes and stories the boys told each other, but Vicki and I learned. Oh, did we learn. We didn't need no stinkin' movies or pictures, we learned by doing. Her doing me and me doing her. The first time she put my dick in her mouth, it was an indescribable pleasure, and I didn't think it would stay there very long, but she took to giving blow jobs like a duck takes to water, and it never dawned on her not to swallow.



"Why suck if you don't swallow?" became her motto, and she lived by it.



We learned to help each other fuck as well. And we talked about it. If she didn't have an orgasm, we talked about what we could do better next time. We were good and got better every time we got naked, or in some cases half-naked. Any chance to fuck, we fucked, and by the time we were married at 20 years of age, we thought we knew it all.



That was a year before I got my CDL (Commercial Driver's License).



Truckers are a rare breed and I enjoyed being around them. I learned a lot about life from them, not that their lives had anything to do with reality. There were some real philosophers among them, and most of their stories dealt either with their adventures while driving or romancing. Many of the driving stories dealt with mountains: either going up them or down. The mountains had names, Cabbage was a favorite. It's a mountain in Oregon, and caused more than one driver to piss his pants while going down it fully loaded. Grapevine, in California, was another. It seemed like every driver I talked to smoked their brakes coming off that mountain. There were others: Wolf Creek Pass in Colorado was a good one. Tennessee had one, as did Utah.



Most of the mountain stories were the same. The driver starts down the mountain at too high a speed and in too high a gear, and realizes too late that he can't slow down. Gravity takes over and pulls his 80,000 pounds at ever increasing speeds down the mountain, and the harder the driver tries to slow down using the brakes, the hotter and weaker they get until they just burst into flames. The escape ramps on mountains have saved more lives than penicillin.



Every driver knows another driver, who, when he realizes he's in trouble on a mountain, kicks his transmission out of gear into neutral. They called that Georgia Overdrive, and they just let the fucking truck "roll on, big mamma" until they got to the bottom in one piece or ten thousand pieces.



The stories I liked the best, however, were the sex stories. Those were the stories where they picked up a woman in a truck stop who needed a ride somewhere and she paid with her pussy, or a blow job, or both. Sometimes the woman would ride with the driver for weeks, or until the driver had to go home to his wife and kids, then she'd jump in another truck with another driver and ride with him.



There were also the "lot lizard" stories. Every driver had a lot lizard story. Lot lizards were prostitutes who worked the truck stops for customers.



One of the stories I liked was about two brothers who each had their own truck and were running together in a convoy with a major country singer's bus. When you're in a convoy, the front vehicle is called the front door. It's his job to watch for any law enforcement in front of them. The last vehicle in the convey is responsible for watching their rear. He's called the back door. Anyone between those two are "in the rocking chair," which means they can just cruise along without worrying. The country singer's tour bus was "in the rocking chair".



That system works really well as long as the front and back doors do their job.



This time, however, the front didn't do his and the three vehicles were rocking down the interstate doing 85 when they were all pulled over by a Tennessee State Trooper. The three drivers got out and were going through the motions of paperwork, insurance, registration and log book.



The two brothers had received their speeding tickets, and it was the singing star's driver's turn. The singer's name was on the front of his bus, and the Trooper asked his driver if the star was really on the bus.



"Yes, he is," said the driver.



Just then the bus door opened and the bigger than life star stepped off the bus and walked up to his driver. "What's going on, Ted?"



Ted had just signed the citation the officer had given him so he showed it to the star. Just then, the Trooper spoke to the star. "Could I have your autograph?"



The star looked at him then looked at the citation his driver had shown him. "No. You have my drivers'. That's enough."



The trooper got in his car and left.



"Boys," the star said to the brother truck drivers. "Let's get down here to the next truck stop, then get on my bus and I may have something to make you feel better about those tickets."



The three loaded up, and twenty minutes later, they pulled in to a truck stop. The brothers stepped up into the bus. The first thing they saw were four naked women.



"Come and get 'em boys," said the star. "They won't last forever."



For the rest of the night, that bus was jumpin'.



Truck drivers also talked about relationships, and the general consensus was that most of them were doomed to fail. I was determined that Vicki and I were going to be the exception. We were going to last 100 years. After all, we had to, because we loved each other.



We missed by 96 years.



What caused our divorce? Adultery? Nope. Physical abuse? Nah. The color of a car? That's it! The color of a car. My car to be exact. My daily driver was a Ford F-250 Extended Cab Pick-up, but my pride and joy was the Austin-Healey my parents bought for me as a high school graduation present. Vicki liked the car and enjoyed riding in it and driving it, but she hated the color.



It started as a low-key campaign to get me to re-paint it, but the more I resisted, the more she insisted, and, on reflection, I think it may have actually started as a joke. For some reason, both of us got burrs under our saddles and it became a huge issue.



It had always been an issue, but up until one particular point in time, we managed to not let it become huge.



We had been going back and forth for about three months, with each discussion getting nastier and nastier. I finally told her that I had heard enough and that I had no intention of painting it, so she might as well stop discussing it. The last words I heard her speak for almost eight years were, "Well, I want the ugly thing out of my driveway by the time I get back." With those parting words, she got in her car and left.



I went to my parent's house, borrowed my father's toy hauler, went home and loaded the Austin. I decided while I was loading the car that I'd load a few other things as well: things like tools, clothes, computer, my favorite chair, a few pictures, some files and assorted other personal things.



I was just pulling out of the driveway when she came home. I saw the smile on her face because she thought she had won.



Five minutes later, my phone rang. I turned it off. It was late when I stopped for the night. I turned my phone back on and there were a dozen messages from her. The first called me childish. Somewhere around the fifth or sixth, she apologized. The last one was telling me I could paint it any color I wanted if I would just come home.



I had obviously been thinking about what I had done and how stupid it was, and was seriously thinking about turning around and going home. I mean, really. Who breaks up a marriage over the color of a car? On reflection, it wasn't just about the car. That was just the straw that broke the camel's back. There were several small things that irritated each of us about the other.



I was going to spend the night where I was, then go home in the morning, but I wanted one last dig before giving in, so I sent a message back saying that it was already the color I wanted, but since she didn't like it she no longer had to look at it. "Well, fuck you, asshole!" was her last message.



That did it. That message riled me up all over again. It told me that she was as mad as she had ever been, because I had never heard her use the "F" bomb. Ever. Neither had she ever used it in any context as far as I knew, so I figured she was serious.



The next morning, I called my parents and told them what I had done. They thought it was a bit extreme, but supported me. Then I called my father-in-law and boss.



"I figured you would call," he said. "She told me what happened. Are you coming to work?"



"No, sir."



"She can get on your nerves, son, but isn't this a bit rash?"



"Yes, sir, it is. But my rationale is that this was such a small thing, what the hell would we do if it was something major? Kill one another? I know no relationship is going to be perfect all the time, but we both made such a big deal out of something so small that I decided to cut my loses."



"She's pretty broken up, Randy. She's right here. Will you talk to her?"



"No, sir. There was a chance until she left me a message last night which said 'Well, fuck you, asshole'. That pretty well sealed the deal."



"She said that? I've never heard her use that language."



"Neither had I. Anyway, it's over. Thank you for everything you've taught me."



"I'm sorry it's come down to this, Randy, but good luck, son."



"Thank you, sir."



My phone rang within seconds and it was her. I ignored her.



I stopped at a truck stop to eat and picked up one of those free job magazines they have in racks outside. It looked like every trucking company in the country needed drivers. I had my CDL, so I figured, why not give it a try. I left and drove to the nearest Hampton Inn to spend another night.



I spent the next morning filling out online driver applications. The next day I spent several hours on the phone with the companies with which I had applied. I was told by all of them that since I really didn't have any experience, I would have to be in a truck with an experienced driver who would train me in that particular company's way of doing things. I would be with that driver until her thought I could have my own truck and drive on my own. I decided on a company in Birmingham, AL and pointed my truck in that direction.



When I got there, the Safety Director wanted to chat with me.



"Do you have any huge desire to go on the road, or are you just looking for a job?" he asked.



"Just looking for a job," I responded.



The bottom line was that I became his assistant. My new job was like my job with Harley. I conducted safety classes, inspected driver's records, and investigated accidents.



I talked to my parents every day, so they knew where I was and what I was doing.



I never heard from Vicki after the first two months. She would talk to my parents on occasion, and ask how I was doing, but she never asked where I was or what I was doing.



It was during my second year away that my parents received notification that I was divorced. It was sent to them because Vicki had no idea where I was. It said that Vicki got the house, everything in it and her car. She neither asked for nor received any alimony.



For the first time since I left, I felt free to start dating. For about six months, I played the field and dated quite a bit. I also got laid a lot. Those Alabama women really did like sex. Since Vicki was the only girl I ever had sex with, I was a bit nervous about being with anyone else, but nature took over and things went pretty well.



It was during my third year away that both of my parents were killed in a collision. Neither my father nor the other driver was drunk or on drugs. From what witnesses said, the other car just veered into my father's lane. An inspection of the other car didn't reveal any mechanical problems. It was like he just decided to commit suicide.



I went home for the funeral and to deal with the house and other necessary details. The funeral was huge. It seemed like everybody who was anybody was there. Harley Francis and his wife were there. I saw Vicki there and it seemed like she wanted to talk to me, but each time she got close, someone would start talking to me. I made up my mind to go to her, but when I looked, I couldn't find her.



When the dust settled and I sold their house, I had a shade over two and a half million dollars.



I went back to Alabama and work. Driver retention was always an issue. Not because companies were bad, necessarily, it just seemed that for drivers, the grass was always greener on the other side of the fence.



One day we were, again, discussing how to retain drivers when out of the blue, I knew what I was going to do with the rest of my life. Our company, like virtually every trucking company, had recruiters on staff who did nothing but travel from truck driving school to truck driving school recruiting new drivers. I thought, why have the hassles of owning trucks and keeping drivers in them? Why not own the school that trains the drivers?



I told my boss what I had decided to do. He was sorry to lose me, but understood. He told me that he had the same thought, but never had the capital to invest. I had developed a list of all the truck driving schools in the country. I pinpointed them on a map and saw that there were none in Alabama or in my home state of Louisiana, so I tossed a coin and Alabama won.



I said goodbye to Birmingham, loaded my father's, now my, toy hauler and headed for Montgomery. It took me a week to find the ideal piece of property, but ideal it was. It was an old, no longer used trailer park. It had paved roads, a huge parking area, and the former office complex that could very easily be turned into my admin offices and classrooms.



I checked with the Montgomery County Zoning authority and found that I had to personally appear in front of the zoning commission and request a zoning change to allow the school. The board met monthly, so I had to get my act together, post haste.



I went from door to door around the neighborhood, told people what my intentions were and found that there was some resistance to a truck driving school in the neighborhood. I located the community leaders and invited them and their spouses to dinner at a local, very nice restaurant. The restaurant seated us in a private room where we could all sit and chat.



After dinner, I put a plan of the overall property on an easel stand and started my spiel. I described what I was going to do and how it was going to look. The only major resistance I had was the safety of the children in the neighborhood because of the huge trucks driven by inexperienced drivers going in and out of the property all day. I assured them that each truck would have an experienced driver supervising the students.



There was still some pretty stiff resistance until I had what I thought was a brilliant idea. I went back to my plan. There was a small piece of property across the road from my property and adjacent to the neighborhood most of my guests lived in, and it was for sale.



"What if I bought this piece of property and donated it to the neighborhood for you to put a park in?" That was all I needed. All of a sudden, I was a hero. Two weeks later at the Zoning Board Hearing, there were no objections to my school by anyone in the neighborhood, and I received my zoning deviation. Two weeks after that, I, again, met with the community leaders and presented them with the deed to the property.

<hr pg="2" />The following week, contractors started modifying the existing building and widening the street corners that needed it so the students could practice making turns before actually going it on the streets and roads in and around Montgomery.



I also started hiring instructors and office staff. Of all the instructors I hired, four of them had been trainers for trucking companies, so had some of the experience I needed. I chose the one I thought was most qualified and made him my Chief Instructor. Then he and I started looking for equipment. There was a huge truck dealer in Montgomery, so that was where we headed. They had just taken in nine identical units as trade-ins on new equipment, so we bought them all. They had high miles, but had been well maintained, and we weren't going to put many miles or haul any freight, so figured they would work.



We cut a deal so that the dealership would take out the sleeper equipment and replace it with seats and side windows. Each unit would have two seats in the back where the sleeper used to be, a driver's seat and the passenger seat which was to be used by the instructor. Then we bought nine used trailers and my school was almost ready to open. All we needed were students. To get the students, all we needed was a recruiter. That's where April Hebert (pronounced A-bear) came in.



Our first class was scheduled to begin. I wanted 15 students, and April got them. So it began.



I chose to teach the first week of the course, because it was all classroom work getting them ready to pass the written tests they were required to pass. At the end of our first three weeks, all but two of our students passed their driving test and received their CDL's. The two who failed were re-tested the following week, and passed. All they needed was a bit more time behind the wheel.



Four months after we opened, I asked April to dinner for the first time. By the fourth time we had dinner, we also had sex. Then we had sex a lot. A year later, we were married.



I had invested almost a million dollars in my first school, but it was working out wonderfully. At the end of the school's fourth year, I was beginning to think about a second school. I discussed it with April and she agreed. The only decision was where.



We had recruiters from most of the major trucking companies, as well as some of the medium sized and smaller companies throughout the South recruiting from our school. One of those recruiters was from my old company. Once I found out who he was recruiting for, we became friendly and spent time just sitting around chatting. His name was Johnnie Samuels.



"How's Harley doing?" I asked.



"Same as usual. He bought five more new trucks last month."



"So how many does he have now?"



"Seventy-eight, at last count."



"Good for him."



"Yeah, but as usual, we can't keep drivers in them."



I laughed. "That's what keeps me in business."



We both laughed. "You know," he said, "if you ever decided to open another school, Lake Charles would be a perfect spot. The closest school to us now is in Houston."



"Louisiana was on my original list, but it lost a coin toss." Then I added, "I've been thinking of opening another one. Let me give it some more thought." I hadn't thought of Vicki in years, but the possibility of going back there brought her to mind. "Oh, by the way. Does Vicki still work there?"



"Vicki? You mean Harley's daughter?"



"Yeah, that's her."



"Sure. She's in the safety office and her husband works in the garage."



"Husband? How long has she been married?"



"About a year now, I guess."



"Well, good for her."



"Yeah. This is her second marriage. Apparently the first didn't work out so well."



"Oh? Why not? Or do you know?'



"Don't know for sure," he said chuckling, "but rumor has it she drove him off."



"How?"



"Don't know, but everybody who knows her thinks there must be another reason. As nice as she is, she couldn't chase off a fly. He must have been one dumbass."



We both laughed. "I guess we never know what goes on behind closed doors, do we?" I asked.



"No, we don't. Well, it's been nice talking to you and give some thought to a school in Lake Charles."



"I will. Tell Harley hello for me."



"Will do. See you next month."



I went into April's office and talked, again, about a new school and asked her what she thought about Lake Charles.



"I think it would be neat. I have family there."



The next Sunday evening I was back in my hometown. The first thing I did was drive by my parents' old house; the house I grew up in. I checked in to the Hampton Inn just a couple of miles from my old company. I never bothered driving by the house Vicki and I lived in.



The next morning, I called Harley



"Hello, Randy. How the hell, are you?"



"Not bad, Harley. How's tricks?"



"Same old, same old. Hey, I understand you have a school and we're getting some of your students."



"That's what I understand. Speaking of schools, do you have a minute? I'd like to talk to you."



"Sure. Stop by anytime you're in town."



"How about now. I'm at the Hampton."



"Come on by. I'll be waiting."



Twenty minutes later, I walked through the same doors I had walked through hundreds of times before. I walked by my old office and glanced in. Vicki was sitting at what used to be my desk, talking on the phone looking out the window. It had been about eight years since I heard that voice. Whoever she was talking to apparently said something funny, because she laughed. I always loved her laugh. When I heard it that time, I smiled.



Just down the hall was Harley's office. His secretary was the same one he had when I was here. "Hi, Jody. Is Harley available?"



"I'm sorry, sir, do you have an appointment?"



I smiled. I wasn't sure if the fact that she didn't recognize me was good or bad. "No, just tell him Randy is here."



"Yes, sir." She got up, started for his office door, stopped then turned to look at me. "Randy? My God, you're Randy Harper." Then she rushed to give me a hug before she sat down again. "Go on in, Randy. He's expecting you."



He stood as I entered. We shook hands. "Have a seat, son. It's good to see you."



"Thank you, sir. It's good to see you." We had been chatting for just a couple of minutes when I saw his eyes shift to the window behind me. It was the window between his office and Jody's. He shifted his glance between the glass and me several times quickly. I assumed Vicki was standing there. I told him that I was looking for a location for another school and was considering Lake Charles. I asked him what he thought.



We went over the pros and cons and I told him I would give it very serious consideration. I left his office, walked down the hall, past my old office, where I glanced in but didn't see Vicki, continued out the door and into my truck. I was parked facing the building so when I got in, I started to close my door when I looked toward the building. Vicki was standing in the door I had just walked through. We looked at each other for about five seconds before I closed my door, started my truck and backed out.



I spent the next couple of days looking for a place for a school. I knew I would most likely not find anything as perfect as Montgomery, but I looked anyway. I found an adequate, though not ideal, place just northeast of the city within half of a mile of the interstate. I talked to the listing agent and discovered that since it was outside the city limits and listed as commercial property, virtually any legal enterprise could set up shop. I asked her to confirm that and get back to me.



She called me on Thursday afternoon and confirmed that a truck driving school on the property would be no problem.



That evening, I went out to dinner at what had been my favorite restaurant. I had just walked in the front door and the hostess asked, "how many?" I started to say one, but a voice behind me said, "Two, please."



I turned and Vicki was standing there.



"Do you mind?" she asked.



I was so taken aback that I just shrugged. The hostess led us to a booth and we sat facing each other.



"I figured you wouldn't come back to town without eating here," she said.



"You were right."



"You didn't even say hello when you came by the office."



"You'll recall I never said goodbye when I left, either."



She smiled. "No, you didn't."



"What can I do for you, Vicki?"



"Honestly?"



"Yes."



"Nothing. I just wanted to see you and talk to you. Find out how you are doing," she said.



I wanted to be tough and firm, but for some reason it wasn't in me. "I'm doing fine. And you?"



"Fine. I hear you're married," she said.



"I am and I hear the same about you."



"I am."



There was a pause while we gave our server our order. Then she started. "Randy, I am so sorry. How I let things escalate to the point they did is beyond me. It was such a small thing and I made a mountain out of it. I think back and try to imagine how stupid...."



"Whoa, whoa, slow down. It wasn't just you, you know. I was half of that stupidity duo, and I could have stopped it... but I didn't. Let's just eat and don't dwell on it."



It was quiet until our food arrived. The salt and pepper shakers were on my side of the table. I never add either to my food and she always did, so I pushed them closer to her. She looked at me and smiled. We ate and occasionally stole glances at each other. After we were finished, our server cleared our table, and as she left, I started to chuckle.



"What's so funny?" she asked.



"You must have been really mad," I said.



"When?"



"When you left that last text."



She grinned. "You mean the one with the 'F' word?"



"Yeah. That one. I never even knew you knew that word."



"I guess I learned it from hanging around truck drivers. I'd never used it before and I haven't used it since."



"Well, the one time you used it was effective. Had you not said that to me, I was ready to turn around and come home."



"Are you serious?"



"I am."



"Her eyes got wet. "Oh my God. One little word."



"Yep. One little word," I said.



"That makes it even worse."



"That makes me special, then, I guess."



"In more ways than you can imagine."



"Did you tell your husband you were meeting me?"



"Yes, I did. I also told him about last night and the night before."



"What do you mean?"



"I was here hoping you would come by so we could talk."



"What does he think about you coming here?"



"He wasn't too happy, but I explained that we had some unresolved issues so he agreed to my coming."



"Sounds like a good man."



"He is, and the fact that I've never lied to him helps."



"Did you ever lie to me?"



"No."



"Are you sure?"



"Absolutely."



"Did you ever cheat on me?"



"Absolutely not."



"Have you ever cheated on your husband?"



"Absolutely not."



"Do you think you would ever cheat on him?" There was a pause.



"Don't ask me that."



"Why?"



"Randy, we've been divorced for a long time. Our divorce was my fault, and I take full responsibility. Whether I would cheat on my husband is not something I care to discuss."



"You are right. It is none of my business." I decided to change the subject. "Did your father tell you why I'm here?"



"Yes."



"What do you think of the idea?"



"You can do what you want."



"You don't think it would cause a problem?"



"Problem? How?"



"With you and me."



"Your school would have nothing to do with you and me. There would be no reason for us to associate with one another."



"Good. Because it's going to happen. I bought the property today."



She smiled for the briefest time. "Good luck. I hope it works for you... and your wife."



We spent another hour or so in general chitchat before she had to leave. I spent an almost sleepless night before driving back to Alabama the next day.



Within three months, the school in Lake Charles was up and running. April and I left the Montgomery school in good hands and moved, albeit temporarily, to Louisiana.



I had neither heard from nor seen Vicki in those three months. I had, however, seen and talked to her father. He and I tacitly agreed that he would get first choice of my students and I would use his maintenance shop for my equipment. In fact, most of my equipment was some of his old equipment. He gave me a great deal and I paid him cash, so we were both happy.



I had invited Harley, his wife, Vicki, and her husband to our opening day ceremony. Vicki was invited because she was in charge of the Safety Office and the person, other than the driver dispatcher, who dealt closest with their drivers. The local press was also there. It was the first time that Vicki and April met. When I introduced them, sparks didn't fly, but I could tell immediately that they were never going to be BFF's. When I met Vicki's husband, David, I felt a wave of ice coming from him. Like the two women, he and I would never be drinking buddies. I had a quick mental image of him fucking Vicki and for some reason, I felt jealous. Then I thought of how many men she may have fucked before Davis, and I got even more jealous.



We all made it through the day, however.



April was our recruiter for the new school and we were full from day one, but we hadn't been open long very long and our attendance started tapering off. From 15 students to 12 to nine and I started asking April what was going on. Her only answer was we "couldn't get them qualified." Our selection process was pretty rigid, and we were able to pretty well determine beforehand who would qualify and who would not. I couldn't understand why our student numbers had dropped so drastically and they kept getting worse.



The original plan was for April and me to bounce between the two schools and keep our presence known. She was never intended to be our permanent recruiter in Louisiana, and with the drastically low numbers, I started working to replace her and take the pressure off her.



That same period brought some drastic changes in April, as well. Her appearance went from perfect to almost slovenly. There were times when her makeup didn't appear to be applied correctly, especially her lipstick.



She and I talked about it and she offered no excuse other than "I'm tired" or "I don't feel well," or even, "leave me alone."



The week we had only three students starting class was the last straw. Anything under five students put us in the hole, financially. Five and a half was our "break even" point. Anything over that and we were making money. I went to her office to have a talk, but she was gone. I asked the office manager, Kate, if she had seen her. She hesitated before saying that April and one of the instructors, Gus, had gone out back to check supplies. I went to the supply room, but they weren't there. I called her cell phone, but got no response. I never saw her until I got home. She told me that she hadn't felt good so came home.



"Why didn't you tell me? Or call me?" I asked.



"Leave me alone. I'm sick," was her response.



I had an appointment with Harley early the next morning. He had asked to speak with me. When I left home, April was curled up in a ball in bed.



As I walked into Harley's building, I again walked down the hall past my old office. It was empty.



"Good morning, Harley," I said as I entered his office.



"Good morning, Randy. Have a seat." He didn't beat around the bush, but went straight to what he had to say. "I'm not one to tell anybody else how to run their lives or their business, but there's something you should know. I understand one of your instructor's is Gus Pendleton. Is that right?"



"Yes. Why?"



"I fired him last year. He's a drug dealer and a womanizer. I won't let him within a mile of this place."



"Thank you, Harley. Thank you very much." I intended to get rid of him before he started selling to the students and then having them drive my tucks high on drugs.



I left Harley's office and went directly to my school. I had noticed that April and Gus had become pretty good friends since I hired him, and whenever he wasn't busy working with students, he was in April's office.



April wasn't there, neither was Pendleton. I drove home as fast as I could. April was in the same position as when I left earlier. I started searching her things. They weren't hard to find because she made no effort to hide them. In one of the side pockets of her purse was a small plastic packet that had six pills of different colors and shapes. I put the packet in my pocket, then I tried to rouse her. No such luck. She was completely out of it, so I checked her pulse and left her there. I also took her car keys and the spare set just in case she woke and decided to go someplace.



Back at school, I found Pendleton and took him into my office.



"What have you been giving my wife? Or are you selling it to her?"



"Whatcha talkin' about?"



"Come on. I know all about it. You're furnishing her drugs, and I need to know what they are."



"You're full of shit. I ain't furnishin' nobody nuthin'."



For the first time in my life, I wanted to hurt someone. I walked around my desk, grabbed him by the front of his shirt and jerked him until he and I were nose to nose.



"Goddamn it, tell me what she took."



"They's jest somethin' to make her feel good and work hard." I let him go and pushed him back. He continued. "Ya see, she feels a lot of pressure to get students in here for ya, and she needs a little hep; so I'ma hepin' er'.



"You're not helping her. She's curled up in a ball and hasn't moved all night. What is it so I can tell the doctors?"



"Don't worry 'bout them little ole pills. She'll be right as rain by noon and be rarin' to go. It's your ex-wife's husband you better be worried about, and not them little pills."



"What do you mean?"



"What I mean is, she's mighty jealous of yer ex and somebody tole her that you're tappin' that pussy pretty hard, so she's worked out a deal with yer exes' old man and he's tappin yer wife purty regular, jest to make it even."



"You're full of shit."



"Am I? You better check it out, boss-man, or you ain't gonna have no wife left."



"I'm not your boss-man. You're fired! Now get out of here."



"Thas all right. I been fired by men bettern' you. I'm just getting' even with ole man Harley fer firin' me." he said as he headed for my door. "I'll fuck up his uppity daughter's marriage. Oh, and by the way. Yer exes' old man ain't the onlyest one doin' yer wife. I've ridden her a few times my own self."



He laughed as he turned one of my chairs over blocking my way as I started after him. He was out of my office and out of my building before I could catch him. I returned to my office, sat at my desk and called the police.



Two hours later, I was at police headquarters, told my story to a narcotics investigator and given him the packet of drugs I found in Aprils purse. Pendleton was arrested less than three hours later, trying to sell to an undercover officer.



When I got home, April, just as Pendleton said she would be, was "rarin' to go". In fact, she was almost bouncing off the walls, running around wearing nothing but a bra; but it was unfastened and just hanging off her shoulders.



"Where are my keys? I need my fuckin' keys." I have no idea who she was talking to, because she ignored me when I tried to talk to her. "I need Gus. Gus will help me. Where are my keys? Maybe David has them. David? David? Do you have my keys? WHERE ARE MY FUCKIN' KEYS?"



I couldn't calm her down enough to get her in my truck and to the hospital, so I called 911. EMS arrived and they had trouble controlling her, but they managed to strap her to a gurney until the sedation they gave her started working. It was difficult to watch.



At the hospital, they told me I could sit and watch her for hours or I could leave and try to do something constructive. I left and went back to school. I sat in my office until we were finished for the day and I had a meeting with the whole staff.

<hr pg="3" />"April is in the hospital suffering from drug withdrawal. I know she was getting stuff from Gus, and I know she was sleeping with him and at least one other man. I also know that some of you knew about both of those things. When I find out which of you knew, you're out of here and I will try my best to have you prosecuted for knowingly helping to provide drugs to an addict." I had no idea if I could do that, but I was depending on their not knowing, either. Then I dismissed them and went back to my office. Kate knocked on my door. My office was surrounded by windows and her office was right outside mine, so I knew who was knocking. "Come in, Kate."



"I know you'll find our sooner or later, so I might as well tell you and get it over with. I knew about the drugs and I knew about Gus and the other man."



"Why didn't you tell me?" She started to tear up. I waited for her answer.



"She's my cousin. We didn't tell you because she said you believed that loaning money to or hiring relatives was always a bad idea, and that if you knew she and I were related, you would fire me. I couldn't afford to be fired... still can't... but I guess that's a moot point now."



I had no idea where that came from, because I had neither said nor implied anything like that. I always tried to use Harley as an example, and he hired his daughter and both of her husbands, apparently without any problems; at least he had no problems with me until I walked out on him and quit without notice. Kate continued. "She's originally from here. as you know, and we were raised pretty much as sisters. When she came back with you, she found that recruiting was more difficult here than in Alabama, but she didn't want to disappoint you so she tried to work harder. She found that the harder she worked the worse things got. One day, she was in my office, crying out of frustration, and Gus came in to see what was going on. April told him, and he gave her a pill he said would make her feel better. She took it, and apparently, it worked.



"As time went by, she kept working harder and accomplishing less and he kept feeding her pills. One afternoon after school, she told him she needed more pills. He told her no. I almost threw up watching her begging him. Finally, he told her she could have more if she gave him a blow job. She was so desperate she ignored the fact that I was in the room, dropped to her knees and fumbled with his zipper. I tried to get her to stop, but she wouldn't. I left the room and waited for them outside. When they came out, Gus told me that if I told anyone, especially you, that he would say that I was the one who gave her the pills in the first place. April nodded her head and said that she would agree with him."



She was crying now and was hard to understand.



"Since then they have had sex in exchange for her drugs. He has even pimped her out to at least one other man. Gus told her it was to get even for you fucking his wife."



"Who is the man?" I asked.



"His name is David, and I think he is married to your ex-wife."



"Who else on staff knows about it?"



"Lenny is the only one."



I took a deep breath. "Thank you, Kate, for telling me, but you have to know how pissed I am at you. You thought more of your job than you did your cousin. We could have stopped this when he gave her the first pill, but now she's in the hospital and will be going to rehab. All you would have had to have done was tell me; but you didn't. I hate that you are a party to all of this and especially that you never told me about it. You probably know that my marriage is over because of it, and your job is as well. Don't bother coming back."



She sighed. "I knew that was coming, but please re-consider divorcing her. She couldn't help herself with the pills. She was only trying to please you."



"There were many different ways she could have done that. She could have started by talking to me and explaining how difficult she thought it was to recruit, and we could have hired someone to help her. No, Kate, she made her own bed and so did you. You hurt her more than helped her."



I walked out to where the trucks were parked. Lenny and two other instructors were still there. "Could I have a word with you, Lenny?" He had to know what was coming. "I don't need you anymore. I'll mail your last check." He reached in his pocket, took out his keys and gave them to me.



"I'm sorry, Randy," he said as he walked to his car.



I was back inside in time to see Kate walking out the front door. She left her keys on her desk.



The next two weeks were a challenge. There were four students in the pipeline ready to start class, so we could at least start a class. I hired a temporary office person to answer the phones while I took care of all the other administrative work that was required for day-to-day operations. I also contacted my Montgomery school and asked the recruiter there to do double duty and recruit for both schools until I could get a replacement hired. I offered him a bounty for each student he was able to get in class. As I said, those couple of weeks were tough, but things smoothed out.



During the second week, I was able to locate and hire an experienced recruiter. She was on maternity leave, but was willing to work from home. I saw no problem with that, so we cut a deal whereby she was paid for every butt she put in our classroom seats. The caveat, was they had to graduate and get their CDL before she got paid in full for them.



While I was trying to keep the school afloat, I still had April to deal with. I had talked with an attorney to start divorce paperwork. He thought I was pretty chickenshit to serve her while she was in the hospital. I decided that he wasn't the attorney for me, so I actually called Harley to see if he knew which attorney Vicki used. He gave me the name and number and I called him. It took three days to finalize the paperwork. I picked it up from his office and went to the hospital. It was the first, last, and only time I visited her there. I went in her room and Kate was there with another woman. They left as soon as I walked in. I went to the foot of her bed and looked at her.



"I'm sorry," she said.



I handed her the packet of papers. "All you have to do is sign these and our marriage will be over. I think I'm being fair," I said.



She took them and put them on the table next to her bed. "I'm sure you are," she said.



"Why didn't you talk to me?" I asked.



"I was afraid you would think I couldn't handle the job and I wanted to do a good job, Randy; I really did.



"I would never think that that you weren't doing your best. You were brilliant in Montgomery."



"It seemed easier there. There wasn't any pressure."



"There was none here either."



"Yes, there was. After I met your first wife, I was jealous and felt inferior. She's beautiful and she runs that company almost by herself."



"No, she doesn't. It's her father's company and he runs it."



"No. She does. He told me when I met him on our opening day that he was gone half the time and she ran it." She grabbed a tissue and wiped her tears away. "I wanted to show both of you that I was just as good as she was, but the harder I tried, the worse it got. Then when Gus told me the pills would help me, I wanted to try them. I wanted to show you how good I could be. They helped at first, but the harder I tried, the worse I got and the more pills I needed. Then one day, Gus wouldn't give me any more. I begged him, but he kept saying no. Finally, he said that he would give me more if I.... If I...." She turned her head away from me.



"If you what?"



"If I gave him a blow job. It was in Kate's office and she was there, but I was desperate and didn't care. I dropped to my knees and fumbled with his zipper to get his dick out. Kate was pulling at me to get me to stop, but I told her to leave me alone. I finally got it out and started sucking on him. I think Kate got sick and left. When he was finished, he gave me some pills, but they weren't enough. He told me that I would have to do more for him if I wanted more pills. I knew what he meant, but I didn't care. I followed him to his apartment and he fucked me, but I didn't mind because he gave me my pills."



I was almost sick to my stomach, and started to leave, but turned back. "I could have dealt with the drugs, but not the cheating."



"I know, but I had to do that to get the drugs."



"How many were there?"



"Drugs? I have no idea."



"Men. How many men?"



"Only two. There were only two, sweetheart, and I couldn't help myself. I couldn't ask you for money for my drugs, so I paid for them the only other way I knew how."



"Who else besides Pendleton?"



"You don't know him."



"Tell me." I was back at the foot of her bed.



"Why? So you can go after him? What would that prove? Our marriage is over, leave his alone."



"Is that the way you want it?"



"Yes."



"Okay. That's the way it will be and his wife will never know what kind of lowlife he is."



"He isn't a lowlife," she insisted. "Besides, it's your fault."



"Mine?"



"Yes, yours. If you weren't screwing his wife, he wouldn't have been screwing me."



"Who told you I was screwing his wife? Pendleton?"



She hesitated before answering. "Yes."



I laughed. "And you believed him? Did he tell you that when you were high? He had to; you would never have believed him if you weren't high on drugs. Listen to me and listen well. I never cheated on you. Not once. Not ever. Pendleton lied to you so he could have sex with you. Then he passed you on to David so he could have sex with you."



"How... uh... you said his name. You said David's name. How did you know? If you knew why did you ask me?"



"It wasn't hard to figure. You were running around the house naked asking if he knew where your keys were."



"Oh my God."



"Besides, Pendleton told me who it was. He seemed proud of the fact that he was your pimp."



"He wasn't my pimp!" she said halfheartedly.



"No? What do you call a man who provides a woman for other men for sex? A saint? Robin Hood? He was your pimp. He made you available to have sex with another man and he paid you in drugs after fucking you himself." She was crying all out at that point. I couldn't tell if she was genuinely upset or just in need of more of whatever kind of medicine they were giving her. "I'm leaving, but just tell me one more thing. How often did you have sex with them?" She turned her head away again. She didn't say anything for several seconds. "It should be an easy question to answer," I said.



"Two or three times a week for a couple of months."



"Two or three times a week, each?"



"Yes." Then she looked at me. "I'm so sorry, Randy. Please forgive me. Please. And let me come home when I get better."



I moved as close to her bed as I could and asked in a soft voice. "How did I not know? How could you keep both the drugs and the cheating hidden from me?"



"Because you loved me and could overlook anything I did."



She was right. That's exactly what I had done, and it bit me on the ass. I left the hospital and went to see Harley. He wasn't there, but Vicki was. She was in her office. I hadn't seen her since the evening at the restaurant. I stuck my head in. "Hi."



"Hi," she said with a smile. "What brings you here?"



"Do you have a minute to talk?"



"Sure, come in."



I went in and closed the door behind me. "May I sit?"



"Of course." I sat and looked at her. "What's up?"



"Two weeks ago, I put my wife in the hospital."



"Oh my God. Two weeks? What happened?"



"She overdosed on drugs."



"Oh, Randy. I'm sorry." I could tell she meant it. "Will she be all right?"



"I don't know and don't really care."



"What do you mean by that? She's your wife. Of course you care."



"Not in this case. She was screwing her dealer for the drugs."



"Uh, oh. If I remember correctly, that's a big no-no in your book."



"You remember correctly, but it doesn't end there." I took a deep breath. "Gus Pendleton was her dealer ...."



She interrupted me before I continued. "What a slimeball. Daddy fired him last year for trying to pedal that stuff around here."



"I know. Your father told me. I went back to my school and had a chat with him. That's how I found out about him not only providing that stuff to April, but having sex with her in lieu of her paying for the drugs; hell, maybe in addition to the drugs, I don't know. I reported him to the police and the dumb shit tried to sell to an undercover officer, so they threw his ass in jail."



"Good. That's where he belongs," she said with finality.



I took another deep breath. "That's not all."



"What else can there be?"



"Pendleton made her available to another man for sex. He convinced her I was having sex with this man's wife so she should screw the husband for revenge."



"That miserable lowlife. How can someone do that?" There was a long pause. "Do you know who the other man is?"



There it was. Shit or get off the pot time. I decided that what I was going to say next was one of the most difficult things I would ever have to do. Ever! "I'm pretty sure I do. I know his name is David and Pendleton told me that he was the husband of my ex-wife." She sat there speechless for a long time before speaking.



"That doesn't make any sense. I'm your only ex-wife, I believe, and my husband's name is David, but that couldn't be. David wouldn't cheat." She looked around in something of a panic. "David wouldn't cheat," she repeated. "There's a mistake. You misunderstood. You're wrong."



"No, I'm not, Vicki."



"Yes you are. You're wrong. Get out. Get out." She jumped up and came around her desk. "You're wrong. Get out."



I left. As soon as I got in my truck, I called Harley and told him.



"Son of a bitch," he said.



"Vicki is falling apart. How soon can you get there?"



"I'm there now. I was just pulling in when you called."



"I'm sorry, Harley. If there's anything I can do, let me know."



"I will. Thanks, Randy."



"I don't know what for."



For the next couple of months, I concentrated on building the school. All the time and effort seemed to work and we, thanks to our stay-at-home recruiter, almost all of our seats had butts in them every week. I did receive a call from April when she was getting out of the hospital. She was on her way to rehab, needed some clothes and wanted to come by our rented house and get the clothes and her other stuff.



"Of course. Use your key and go on in. Oh. I forgot; you lost your keys. Okay then, I will be there a 6:00 this evening." I had her keys. They were on the kitchen table when she was running around the house naked looking for them.



She rang the doorbell shortly before six. I opened the door and ushered both her and Kate inside. "Do you have boxes?" I asked.



"A few. I thought there might be a couple here and some big trash bags I could use."



"Help yourself to anything you need. I'll be in my office. Oh, before I forget it, here are your car keys. I made sure it started so you shouldn't have any trouble with it." With that, I tossed her key ring to her, after being obvious as I took the house key off. I went to my office and just sat there until they finished. When they did, she knocked on my office door. "Come in."



"I think I have everything."



"Good, because I have to be out of here next week."



"You're leaving? Why?"



"I'm going back to Montgomery."



"Oh. Of course. Uh, Randy, I don't suppose..."



"Goodbye, April. Good luck in rehab. My insurance will pay for it until the divorce. After that it's your problem." With that, I swiveled my chair around to my desk and pretended to work.



I hadn't talked to either Harley nor Vicki since the day she kicked me out of her office. The week after April removed her belongings, I was back in Montgomery. That site was running smoothly.



I had been back there three months when my Louisiana attorney called to tell me the divorce had been granted contingent upon my giving April a check for two hundred and fifty thousand dollars, which was the amount I offered to pay her.



It took a huge chunk of my reserves, but I sent him the check and it was over.



I headed for Lake Charles and reported in when I arrived in town and spent the afternoon being brought up to date. Lots of our students were coming out of northern Louisiana and eastern Texas, so I was beginning to think about opening another school in the Shreveport area. Of course, I would have to either borrow the money or wait a couple of years until my reserves were built back up. I wasn't thrilled about borrowing money.



I thought about driving through Shreveport on my way home just to look around, even though it was quite a bit out of my way.



I was talking to Kris when April walked in. "Excuse me, Randy. Could I talk to you?" Kris excused herself, walked out and closed the door leaving April and I alone. "I was driving by and saw your truck, so I thought I'd stop and say hello. How've you been?"



"I'm fine. How're you?"



"Pretty good. I've been clean for almost a month now."



"Good. Are you going to be able to stay clean?"



"I hope so. I'm going to need help, though."



"Well, you have Kate and the rest of your family."



"It's not the same."



"What's not the same."



"It's not the same as having someone who truly loves you looking out for you and taking care of you."



"Maybe not, but if you want to badly enough, you can do it yourself."



"I suppose so." There was a long uncomfortable pause before she spoke again. "I don't suppose that there is any chance you and I could try again, is there?"



I didn't hesitate. "No, April, there isn't. Like I told you in the hospital, had it just been drugs, it is possible we could have worked it out, but you cheated. And you cheated not with one man, but with two. And you cheated for drugs. No, April, there is absolutely no chance of us trying again."



With that, she rose, walked to the door, opened it, and turned to me. "I guess I knew that, but I always loved you."



"No, you didn't. When you were high, you were begging for your pimp and other lover. You had no idea I was even in the room. Goodbye, April. Try to stay clean."



I stood and watched as she walked out of the building. I had a fleeting thought that if she took my rejection too much to heart, that she might go out, find some more drugs and start over. I was hoping she wouldn't do that, but if she did it was because she chose to.



Thanksgiving came and went. Harley and Edie had invited me for dinner, but I chose not to go. I had Thanksgiving dinner alone and at my favorite restaurant



It was Christmas Season. I wanted parties for both schools. I took a trip to Montgomery for their party and I handed out bonus checks as gifts. Then back to Lake Charles for their party.



I handed out more rather nice Christmas gifts in the form of checks to the staff and I received a hand carved wooden truck painted in our company colors. It was very nice. Our party was held at a nice restaurant in a room away from the rest of the patrons. Spouses were invited, and we had a very good time. My General Manager, Kris, her husband, and I were still there after everyone else said goodnight and thanked me for their checks.



Our conversation naturally got around to school business. They told me that Gus Pendleton had received seven years in prison for selling to the undercover officer. I laughed. Seven years in Angola was not going to be easy, and it couldn't happen to a more deserving piece of shit.



I also heard that Harley was still very happy with the students he got from us. It would be nice if he could hire all of them; obviously, he couldn't, but he always had the pick of the litter, so to speak.



After another hour or so of business, we had talked ourselves out and the three of us started to walk out. We were outside before I remembered I hadn't paid the bill, so I went back to our room. The staff was cleaning up and I asked for the bill. It was brought and I paid, leaving a very nice tip. I was, once again, on my way out when my attention was drawn to laughter coming from the other side of the room. I looked and it was Harley and a couple of other men. I took a slight detour to say hello.

<hr pg="4" />He saw me coming, jumped up and shook my hand. "How are you, Randy? Damn it's good to see you. Come on, join us, have a drink."



We closed the place at 2:00 AM without mentioning Vicki a single time, but with a promise that I stop by his office the next morning.



I walked in his building just after 10. I walked by Vicki's office. She was on the phone looking out the window and didn't appear to see me.



Harley and I chatted in his office for a couple of hours before I figured it was time to leave. I never bothered to look in her office this time. I figured she made it clear what she thought of me.



I went back to my school and spent the afternoon. That evening, I was back at my favorite restaurant. I walked in the door and the hostess asked me how many in my party. It was like déjà vu all over again when the voice behind me said, "Two please," before I could say anything. I turned and there she was. "Hello, Vicki."



"Do you mind if I join you?"



I actually hesitated and almost told her that I did mind, but the hostess beat me to it and said, "Right this way, please." We followed her to a booth and she put our menus on the table. "Your server is Will and he will be right with you."



I sat, picked up my menu and put it in front of my face so I didn't have to look at her. Will came and took our drink orders. I told him gin and tonic without putting my menu down.



"I'll have a Margarita," said Vicki. Then she gently took my menu and put it on the table. "You don't need this. You know what you're going to get and so do I." There was a pause. "Dad said you came by this morning."



"Yeah, I did."



"You could have stopped in."



I chuckled. "The last time I was in your office you kicked me out."



"I'm sorry about that." She looked at me. "It seems that I am never prepared to talk to you unless I can ambush you here."



I grinned. "Okay. You ambushed me. What do you want to talk about?" I asked. Just then, Will brought our drinks and asked if we had made up our minds. We gave him our orders and he went away.



She lifted her Margarita as if in toast. I lifted my drink, and we clinked glasses. We both smiled. When we were married and did that it was always a sign that sex was going to happen when we got home. I had no such illusion that it meant the same that time.



"I wanted to tell you that you were right about David." I nodded. "I also wanted to tell you that your ex-wife and my soon to be ex-husband are living together."



"Really?"



"Really."



"Who would have guessed?" That was a little detail April forgot to mention when she visited me.



I told her about April visiting me and telling me she had been clean for a month.



Vicki laughed. "I don't think she ever was. She has David on them now, and they seem to be going through a lot of money."



"Well, they have it to go through."



"How. David doesn't have a pot to piss in." I told her about how much I had given April in the divorce.



"Wow. From what Dad says, Your schools are going great. They must be if you had that much money."



"They are going great."



"So, other than a cheating wife, you're doing fine?"



"Better than fine, and I don't have a cheating wife any more. Now, for better or for worse, she's more your problem than mine."



She chuckled. "You might be right."



"What did David say when he found out you knew about his cheating?"



"He denied it at first, of course. Then he admitted it and tried to say it was because you and I were sleeping together. He said he just did it out of revenge."



"That was Pendleton's doing. When he had April completely hooked on drugs, he told her the only way she would get more was to have sex with him. Then, apparently, he convinced her to have sex with David to get back at you and your father for firing him. He told April it was revenge for you and I sleeping together.



"That's pretty sad."



"Yes, it is."



It was then that Will brought us our food. As soon as he set it down, I looked and the salt and pepper were on my side, and as I did the last time we were there, I pushed them closer to her. Like the last time, she looked at me and smiled as she picked them up and seasoned her food.



We didn't say much as we ate, and we took our time; almost as if we didn't want the meal to end. But end it did. We were getting ready to leave. "When are you going home?"



"Tomorrow morning."



"Are you going to stop by and say goodbye to Dad?"



"Nah. No reason to."



"You could take the time to say goodbye to me."



"We can say goodbye here."



She grinned. "It's probably best. I'm never really prepared to see you. It always comes as a surprise, and I don't know how to act or what to do."



"Then, I suppose it's best that I stay away from you," I said with a grin.



She cocked her head and looked at me before speaking. "You might be right." I paid the check and we both stood and started out. We were just ready to go out the door when she turned to me. "You know it will be Christmas in a couple of days."



"I know," I said.



"Did you get me anything?"



"No. I didn't think I would be seeing you."



"I have something for you if you want it, but it's at my house so you'd have to come get it."



"Oh? You didn't have to do that."



"I wanted to. Do you remember when you asked me if I had ever cheated on you?"



"Yes. You said you didn't."



"That's right, and it was the truth. Then you asked me if I had ever cheated on David."



"I remember and you said that you never had."



"That's right, and again, it was the truth. But then you asked me if I thought I would ever cheat on him. Do you remember my answer?"



"You told me not to ask you that question."



"Do you know why I said that?"



"Why?"



"I said it because I knew that if you ever asked me to sleep with you, regardless of who I was with or if I were married, that I would."



I smiled broadly. "How about now? If I asked you to sleep with me now, would you?"



She moved so that our bodies were touching. "That's the present I have for you at my house." With that, she stood on her tiptoes and kissed me. Just as she did a couple came through the door. They saw us kissing, and the man said, "Get a room."



We laughed and held hands as we left. I followed her to her house. When we got there, she pulled in her garage and I pulled behind her. We walked hand-in-hand into her house.



"Would you like a drink first?" she said as she put her purse on the kitchen table.



"No, but I do have a question."



"What's that?" she said as she hugged me.



"Was this a spur of the moment decision, or did you know we were going to be here when we 'clinked' glasses at the restaurant?"



She laughed. "I knew it was going to happen the first time I saw you before you opened your school."



"But you were really pissed when I told you about David and you kicked me out of your office."



"I was upset, but that didn't mean I still didn't want to have sex with you, now shut up and make love to me. We have a lot of time to make up for."



In her bedroom, there was no sense of urgency. There was just a sweet anticipation of what was to come. She took off an article of clothing, then it was my turn. Blouse, then my shirt, then her slacks, then my slacks. I held my breath as she took off her bra. It was at that point that the urgency took over and we clawed at what remained of each other's clothing. When we were naked, she dove for the bed and I leaped on top of her. Then it was like four or five octopi with all of their arms moving at the same time searching, feeling, moving, trying to find a different sensual part of the body to touch. Finally, one of her hands found what she was looking for and pointed it where we both wanted it to go.



It was almost dawn when we finished. We didn't say much as she got ready for work. We had taken a shower together, and I was happy to watch as she dressed. When she was ready, we went through the kitchen to the garage where her car was. I opened the driver's door for her and just before she got in, we kissed. We never talked or said goodbye. We just kissed. I walked to my truck, got in, went to the motel, packed my stuff, checked out, and went home to Montgomery.



There were no phone calls, texts, emails, or other form of communication between us. I was thinking that spending the night with her, regardless of how enjoyable it was, may have been a mistake.



Kate, who used to be my office manager, and was April's cousin, called in mid-January to tell me that April was back in rehab. "I don't care anymore, Kate. She and I are divorced, so what happens in her life is no concern of mine."



"I understand that, but when she gets high, the only thing she does is talk to you. It doesn't matter who she's with, she always thinks it's you. This is her second time in rehab and her counselor thinks that if you were to talk with her, it might help. As a minimum, it couldn't hurt."



"Okay, listen. I'll be coming over there in a couple of weeks and I'll call you then."



"Thanks, Randy."



It was the first week in February when I drove into Lake Charles. The first place I went was to my school to check in. I spent the next day there as well. The following day, I went to see Harley. Actually, seeing Harley was just an excuse to see Vicki. I pulled up just in time to see her leaving the building with a man in a suit. He escorted her to his car, opened the passenger door for her then he got in. She and I exchanged looks as they pulled out.



I went in and right to Harley's office. We chatted about nothing import for a while before I mentioned that I had seem Vicki leaving the building with a man.



"Yeah. I saw that." Was all he said. He never volunteered that they were dating, or they were a couple, nothing. Just, 'Yeah, I saw that'." I wanted to ask about him, but decided against it. After all, one night with her did not mean she was mine again, and I wasn't sure I wanted her to be mine again.



That afternoon, I called Kate to see what was happening with April. She told me that April had been in rehab, but that David had come and taken her out.



"David?"



"Yeah. Vicki's ex-husband. He and April have been living together. She has him on drugs now."



"Yeah. I heard. Listen, Kate, I'm willing to talk to her counselor, but I don't know what good it would do. Give me the number and I'll call tomorrow.



Turned out, I never had a chance to call. That evening, April and David were caught in a drug dragnet. The police raided three houses in town where drugs were being sold and used. April and David were living in a trailer and were arrested for distribution and sale of drugs. They were facing some pretty stiff prison sentences.



I didn't know whether to feel sorry for her or relieved.



That evening, I went to my favorite restaurant and while I was eating, I was fondly remembering the last time I was there. I was just finishing my meal when the hostess walked past me. She was showing a couple to their booth. I heard a familiar laugh, and looked up to see Vicki walking past. The man she was with was the same one I had seen her with earlier. I knew it was the same man because of his moustache and goatee. The only thing different about both of them was they were wearing different clothes. Lots of thoughts came to mind. Had they been together all day? Why did they change clothes? Was it because they spent the day in bed and wanted fresh clothes for dinner? And on and on.



That night, Kris called to tell me that the mother of one of our instructors had just died and he was on his way to his parents' home in Arizona. She wondered if I could take his place for a few days. "Of course. Let me tell Montgomery. By the way, find out where the services are and send flowers from the school."



"Be happy to," she said.



I stayed. I figured he would be gone at least a week, so I made arrangements with the motel to extend my stay then headed for school. I didn't have the driving experience to take the students out on the streets and highways, but I could certainly handle the classroom work.



I had been there three days and was going to eat dinner. As I pulled into the restaurant parking lot, there was a parking place right at the front door so I pulled in. Just as I did, Vicki and her goateed friend walked by and headed for the front door and they were holding hands. I decided I would eat someplace else so I started my truck. They were right in front of me when the engine started. When they heard the sound, they both looked in my direction. He didn't know me, of course, but she did and her eyes got big and her mouth opened. He stepped in front of her and opened the door for her, but she was still looking at me. I was backing out of the parking space and he reached out, took her hand and pulled her through the door.



I went down the street and had a cheeseburger and a beer before going to the motel.



It was almost midnight when my phone rang. It was Vicki. I answered it. "Hello."



"Why didn't you tell me you were in town?"



"I went to your office several days ago to see you, but you were just leaving with your friend. Then I saw you that evening with the same guy. I figured it was none of my business and you seemed to be enjoying yourself. I guess I confirmed that earlier this evening when I saw you with the same guy and you were holding hands."



"Randy, there's nothing between us."



"I didn't say there was. I do have one question, however?"



"What's that?"



"The other day I saw the two of you together in the morning. Then I saw you again later that evening at the restaurant and you were both wearing different clothes. What did you do during the day that prompted changing? Did you fuck him?" I intentionally used the "F" word because it upset her and I had never used it in that context with her.



There was a long silence before she spoke. "You aren't my husband and you aren't my boyfriend. Who I fuck is no concern of yours." She ended the call. Well, that was something. For someone who didn't care much for the "F" word, she threw it out there pretty definitively.



I taught several more days until the regular instructor returned, then I headed home.



I hadn't driven 50 miles when I received a call from Harley's wife telling me that he had a heart attack and was in the hospital. Harley had been my boss, father-in-law, and friend since I was 15, so I turned my truck around and headed right for St. Patrick's. His wife, Edith, was standing by his bed holding his hand. She let go of him long enough to hug me. He was awake and alert and knew me immediately.



"What's up, Randy?"



"Nothing much. I was in the neighborhood, so I thought I'd stop by."



"Liar. Edie called you. She told me."



"It doesn't matter how I got here. How are you?"



"My frickin' heart tried to kill me, but it didn't work... this time."



"So it seems.'



We chatted for a few more minutes and Edie decided that since I was there, she could take a break. I sat in the chair next to his bed and we talked for about thirty minutes before he fell asleep. I waited another thirty minutes and Edith came back.



"I guess I'll go check into the motel. I'll be back shortly," I said.



"Why don't you wait until Vicki gets here." She looked at her watch. "She's just closing for the day, so should be here in just a few minutes."



"How long does she usually stay?"



"Until he goes to sleep. Then she goes home and comes back in the morning and helps feed him breakfast before she goes to work."



"Good. Tell him I'll be back sometime after his breakfast tomorrow."



"But you'll miss Vicki."



"I think she would prefer it that way." I hugged her, kissed her on the cheek, and started to leave.



"Randy?" she said as I headed for the door. "You're wrong about that. Trust me."



"I think you're wrong, Edie. I think she's had her fill of me." I left before she could say anything else.



My school was closed for the day, so I decided to have an early dinner and call it a night. I drove right by my favorite restaurant and realized it wasn't my favorite anymore, so I went to my second favorite.



The next morning, I waited until I thought Vicki would be gone before I went to the hospital. I walked in Harley's room expecting to find just Harley and Edith, but Vicki was still there. I turned around and walked out. There was a small waiting area at the end of the hall so I had a seat where I could see when she left.



While I was sitting there, my phone rang and it was Kate. "Hello, Kate."



"Hello, Randy. I know you said that you wanted nothing more to do with April, but I thought you should know that her trial was this week and she was found Guilty of distributing drugs, and was sentenced to four years in prison. David got six."



"I hope she learns her lesson and is able to stay clean this time."



"So do we all. She is putting you on her visitors list."



"Well, tell her she's wasting her time."



"I did, but she still thinks you will forgive her and take her back."



"She's delusional, Kate. It will never happen, but thank you for telling me."



Just as she finished, I saw Vicki come out of her father's room. She didn't look in my direction. She just turned the other way and headed down the hall.



Edith and I spent most of the day with Harley. I was just leaving when Vicki came in, accompanied by her goateed friend. They were holding hands when they came in, and as soon as she saw me, she reached for him and pulled him closer to her. I patted Harley on his leg and hugged Edith. Nobody offered to introduce him to me, and I had no desire to meet him anyway.



"When are you going home?" Edith asked.



"Tomorrow, I imagine."



"Well, be careful going home," said Harley.



"I will, and you keep getting better."



"I'll try," he said.



Vicki was standing in my way as I started to leave. "Excuse me, please," I said to her. She just looked at me and didn't move. I wasn't going to make a scene, so I tried to step around her, but Mr. Goatee was standing there. I just turned sideways and pushed my way between them forcing their hands to separate. I had just gotten through when I heard her say so only I could hear, "You're an asshole."



I acted like I didn't hear her and just left. I went back to the motel figuring I'd have a decent night's sleep before my drive the next day.



I had taken my shower and was standing in my bathrobe when my phone rang. It was Vicki. My first thought was something happened to Harley. "What happened?"



"Nothing happened. What's your room number."



"Three twelve. Why?"



She hung up. I went back in the bathroom, got my toothbrush, put toothpaste on it and started brushing. A couple of minutes later, there was pounding on my door. I stepped out of the bathroom and opened the door. Vicki stormed past me into the room.



"What is wrong with you?" she almost yelled.



"What are you talking about?" I asked with a mouth full of toothpaste.



"You know good and well what I'm talking about."



I stepped into the bathroom, spit out my toothpaste, rinsed my mouth out with water, and wiped my mouth off with a hand towel. "No, I don't."



"Didn't our night together mean anything to you?"



"It did to me, but apparently not to you. I don't have a girl that I'm hanging onto for dear life. I haven't gone out on dates. I haven't fucked anybody since then. I thought there might be a chance of our getting back together but apparently, you'd prefer not to."



"I haven't done any of those things."



"Well, who is Mr. Goatee?"



"He's my cousin, and he has an IQ of 52. That's why I'm hanging on to him. He's terrified of people unless he's with someone he knows. And you, you big bully, tried to knock him down at the hospital. He'll be with me for another two weeks. His parents are on a much-needed vacation. Usually, his brothers or sisters look after him, but I volunteered this time."



"I didn't try to knock him down. I tried to leave but you were in my way and wouldn't move."

<hr pg="5" />Her voice toned down considerably at that point. "Maybe I didn't want you to leave. Did you ever think of that?"



"To be honest? No, I didn't." I told her just as softly.



She walked over to me and grabbed the lapels of my bathrobe. "Did you really think about us getting back together?"



"Yes, I did."



"And what did you decide?"



"I thought it was a good idea after we spent the night together, but I changed my mind when I saw you with the goatee."



"What about right here? Right now?"



I put my arms around her waist and pulled her toward me. "I think it would be a wonderful idea. What do you think?"



She pulled my lapels closer to her and kissed me. "I think it would be wonderful, too." Then we kissed.



I started unbuttoning her blouse, but she stopped me. "Not tonight. I have to go get my cousin. He's with my Mom and I can't leave him with her. She has enough problems."



"How much longer is he going to be here?" I moaned.



"Two weeks. We can make it two weeks, can't we?"



I smiled. "I will wait as long as I have to."



Her cousin's name was Bobby. Bobby had been spending his days at the trucking company and kind of became their mascot. The mechanics and drivers were great with him. He had never been allowed to get dirty before, but he made a big deal out of it the first time he got dirty. At Vicki's house that night, he didn't want to take a shower he was so proud of being dirty.



I didn't want to go back to Montgomery, and after spending all my evenings with her, I made up my mind to move to Lake Charles permanently. In the two additional weeks Bobby was with Vicki, she and I managed to have sex three times.



Harley was out of the hospital, but not back to work. Bobby, Vicki, and I spent several evenings with him and Edie. It was two days before Bobby was to go home that Vicki and I told Harley and Edie that I was moving back, and that Vicki and I were going to try again.



I was never so underwhelmed with a response in my life. It was like we had just told them the sun was going to come up tomorrow. Turns out, Vicki and I were the only two who didn't know it.



The day that Bobby's parents picked him up, I moved my stuff out of the motel and into Vicki's house. I went to Montgomery, packed all my personal stuff, made arrangements to rent my house fully furnished, hooked up my toy hauler and moved to Lake Charles. I left the toy hauler at my school, as there was no room for it at Vicki's.



Her birthday was fast approaching and there were a couple of things I wanted to do. The evening before her birthday, we had gone out. We went back to her house and plopped side-by-side on the sofa with our feet spread out in front of us. I reached to the center of the sofa and took her hand. It was a very relaxed moment. We turned our heads to look at each other, then we leaned in and kissed. Then we kissed again. Then we ran upstairs and made love. The next day was her birthday. We had breakfast naked. Then we had lunch naked. We were going out for dinner, so we started getting ready. I was all dressed and ready, so I told Vicki that I had to pick something up and that I would be back in time to pick her up. Then I went to school and my toy hauler.



I pulled up her driveway and went inside to get her. When we got to the front door, I reached around in front of her, pulled the door open and she walked out. She took three steps and stopped. She turned to me and she was crying. Not just tears, but full-fledged crying. She threw her arms around me and planted kisses all over my face.



"It's the most beautiful car I've ever seen." I grinned and led her to my newly painted Red 1967 Austin-Healey 3000. I opened the passenger side door and she got in, showing some very nice legs in the process. I always thought that Vicki had the nicest legs I'd ever seen, and her ass was perfect. I was reminded of the saying, "if you've got it, flaunt it".



As I put my hand on the key to start the car, she covered my hand with hers. I looked at her. There were still tears in her eyes as she spoke. "I love you, you know. I've never stopped loving you and I will love you for the rest of my life."



I lifted her hand off mine, kissed it, and held it between my hands. "I feel exactly the same way."



I hadn't driven the Austin very much over the years, but I did drive it occasionally and I kept it in mint driving condition. That evening we left the house and went to the trucking company. The Security Guard just waved as I drove in. Vicki looked at me started to say something, but I put my finger to her lips. She kissed it and said nothing.



I drove to the back row of trucks. Sitting there was a beat-up old truck which was just being cannibalized and used for parts for other trucks. On its' bumper were the faded numbers 169. I got out and walked around to her side, opened the door for her and led her to the truck. By then she realized what was going on and was crying. Again.



I opened the truck door for her and she climbed in. Inside, it looked and smelled like brand new. The maintenance shop had done itself proud refurbishing it. We knelt facing each other just like we did on graduation night. I took the ring out of my pocket and asked her to marry me. I didn't hear her answer because she was crying, coughing, laughing, choking and trying to talk all at the same time, but I assumed her answer was yes because she let me put the ring on her finger and then she tried to fuck me to death.



We never made it to dinner that evening. In fact, we didn't leave that truck until after three the next morning .... Just like last time.



We were as happy as any two people had a right to be, and time marched on.



I was sitting in my office at school one day going over plans for opening the next school up in Shreveport when I heard the door open. I looked up. She didn't look much like her old self. I guess time in prison will do that to you.



"Hello, April."



"Hello, Randy."



"I thought you still had a couple of years to go."



"Got out early. Time off for good behavior."



"What can I do for you, April?"



"May I sit down?"



"Not for long. I'm going home in a few minutes." She sat in a chair on the other side of my desk. "How's David?" I asked her.



"I don't know. I haven't seen him in a couple of years. Since our trials, I suppose."



"What is it you want?"



She took a deep breath. "I want a second chance. A second chance with you. We were good together, you and I, weren't we, Randy? Weren't we good together?"



"We were, until you started preferring drugs and other men to me. Then it was horrible, and I couldn't remember the good, anymore."



"But we can do it again. You and me together again. I love you. I've never stopped loving you."



Just then, I heard the sound that never failed to put a smile on my face. It was a heel and toe downshift of my Austin-Healey as Vicki wheeled it into its reserved parking slot right in front of the building.



April looked in the direction of the sound and her eyes got big. "Isn't that your car?" she asked.



"Yes, it is."



Just then Vicki came in and looked at April then at me. "April, you remember Vicki. We're married." Then I rubbed Vicki's stomach. "And this is our son, Harley."

