Obscure

Today was a relatively relaxing day. Natalie was going boating with Luke tonight, so there was no rush to get my chores done on time.

I spent a good part of the day taking care of the little things I usually don't have time to do. I thoroughly scrubbed out the refrigerator and polished all the silverware. I also caught up on all Natalie's hand-washables. There was a huge pile of dirty lingerie and nylons, and I spent a good two hours painstakingly hand-washing my beautiful wife's lacy unmentionables.

At first I tried to ignore the crusty yellowish stains that marked a few pairs of her underwear, but how could I? It's hard to overlook someone else's cumstains on your wife's panties. But I just tried to block it and finish my washing.

I finished with my daily chores around 5, then went down to my room to rest awhile. I knew Natalie would be getting off work shortly, and soon she'd be out on the water with Luke. I secretly hoped that it would rain so maybe she would come home early, but no such luck: it was a gorgeous, sunny day, without a cloud in the sky.

Maybe I'd get lucky and Luke would fall out of the boat and drown!

I met Luke once, at a work function Natalie dragged me to. She usually doesn't let me come to her "lawyer parties", but this time she brought me with her for some reason. As soon as I laid eyes on the tall, handsome man standing assuredly on the other side of the room, I knew it was him. Luke spotted me gawking at him and winked at me. After a few minutes, Natalie made her way over to him and they sat on the couch, engrossed in conversation. I stewed at the bar for the rest of the night while they laughed and enjoyed each other's company.

Luke is one of the rising stars in the New Hampshire prosecutors office. He's as sharp as my Natalie, and tall and handsome, to boot. Even I have to admit; they make a perfect couple.

Luke knows all about our strange marriage. He calls the house all the time for Natalie, and when I answer, he really goes out of his way to embarrass me.

He called for her one day last week...

"Hey, Brian, where's that sexy little wife of yours?" he drawled. "Wait - before you get her, do me a favor. I want you to be sure Natty wears those black silk panties to work tomorrow, okay? The French-cut pair, with the paisley lace. Those are my favorites! You know the ones I'm talking about. Pick them out for her and tell her I wanted her to wear them. You think you can handle that, Brian?"

"Uh..." I couldn't get any sound out. Luke took my silence as a yes.

"Good! I'm glad you're being so...cooperative," he chuckled. "Now go get my little Natalie-poo and tell 'er daddy's on the phone."

Luke's calls would always put me into a deep depression. It got to the point where I jumped every time the phone rang.

I read a book for a few hours until my eyes got tired. From my bed, I could see the day's last sunrays beaming through the basement window. It would be dark soon, and they probably wouldn't stay out on the water after dark...

I took a nap, and when I woke up it was past 10. She still wasn't home. I sat in my room with my ears pricked, listening for the sound of her Mercedes pulling up in the driveway. I stayed up until four in the morning waiting for my wife to come home, but she never did. Eventually, I cried myself back to sleep.

* * *

Natalie returned home just after 10 o'clock Saturday afternoon. Her face was slightly burned from her afternoon in the sun. She was still wearing the blue shorts-outfit I'd pressed for her the day before.

"Go get my bag from the car," was the first thing she said to me when she came in.

When I returned with her bag, Natalie was talking on the phone to somebody. "Okay, I'll see you in a minute," she said, then clicked off the phone.

"Laura's coming over for breakfast, Brian, so get busy in the kitchen," she announced as she leafed through her mail. "I want Eggs Benedict and hash browns. Bring me a glass of orange juice first, though."

I fetched Natalie's juice, then started cooking her favorite breakfast. After a few minutes, I heard Laura come in, and they sat at the dining room table talking while I fixed their meal.

Laura is kind of a stuck-up bitch - which would explain why my wife gets along with her so well! She only lives a few blocks away, and she comes over two or three times a week. Natalie brags to her all the time about our uneven relationship, and Laura thinks it's just the coolest thing! She's always riding me about being pussy-whipped. That's what Laura calls me: P.W.

I served my wife and her friend breakfast while they chatted, ignoring me completely. Natalie was telling Laura about her date with Luke last night.

"So we finally ended up at his place," Natalie was saying while I poured the coffee. "Another marathon, baby!"

Laura shifted forward in her chair, interested. "How many times?" she asked.

Natalie sipped her coffee and smiled impishly. She held up five fingers.

Laura squealed. "You did it five times?!? My God - you guys are sex fiends!"

Natalie leaned back, tossed down her napkin dramatically and heaved a loud sigh. "Well, Laura, you know what they say: a hard man is good to find!"

They both giggled. Suddenly Natalie looked up at me, irritated.

"What are you doing eavesdropping on our conversation?!? Don't you have some clothes to wash or something?"

"Y-yes, Natalie, I'm sorry," I stammered as I retreated from the dining room.

"Boy, now THAT'S the way you're supposed to train 'em!" I heard Laura exclaim as I left the room. "I just can't get over it! P.W. to the max! How in the world do you do it, Natalie?"

STAY TUNED FOR PART 4: "GUESS WHO'S COMING TO DINNER?"