We were huddled around the fire pit of the cabin. In real life, I’m a dolphin at heart. Especially living in a city without a beach, I would always travel near and far to be by one. But now, it was the dead of winter, and my husband and Cassie decided to go to the mountains of Gatlinburg, Tennessee, to celebrate my birthday.
The room was full of love. There was Tim, Cass, Dex, Lisa, Mel, Baja, and ironically, Shareese. She and I had kept in contact since Turks two and a half years ago, and we became fast friends.She was my “let’s go in a store and run up a check,” friend. Whenever either of us was in the mood to go shopping or even get our nails done, we called each other.
Hardly, if ever, did we mention what had happened in that villa. Our relationship was just a genuine friendship without the benefits, and I appreciated that. She had become such a staple in my life that Cassie reached out to invite her to celebrate with us. I was happy when I pulled up and saw her standing outside with them.
Cass set the cake on the table in front of me as I blew out the candle and wished to have moments like this more often.
“Alright, this would not be a Cass production if we didn’t play a gameeeee!” Cassie yelled. All of us groaned at once, and she hollered out in laughter. Shareese looked around in confusion.
“No ma’am, not one of your games,” I protested in light fun.
I was teasing her. Cassie came to me a couple of months after the game night and apologized. She thought that my sudden hiatus from our weekly dates was because she had made me uncomfortable. I told her that our dealerships had gotten hectic, but assured her that I had the time of my life at game night, and I appreciated her apology, though it wasn’t necessary. If anything, I owed her, that game night led me to some of the best moments of my life.
“No, no, I’ve learned my lesson about those games. I swear. This one is just something fun,” she said as she held her hands up in mock surrender.
Neither of us protested as we waited for the game she suggested.
“We’re going to play a game similar to charades. One person will wear a card on their forehead with a word, and the team will give them hints to help them guess it. If they don’t guess the word correctly in one minute, the whole team takes a shot,” shesaid as she explained the rules of the game, and we broke into teams.
On my team, I had my husband, Baja, and Shareese. It probably wasn’t the best idea to elect the person who had been downing drinks all evening to be the one wearing the words. But Shareese kept insisting that she was the best one for the job and had us all cracking up from the first word.
The word on her forehead was, “Titanic.”
Baja screamed, “JACK AND ROSE!”
Shareese then yells with a straight face, “Masturbation! Foreplay!” The whole room erupted. We laughed so hard that we cried.
Needless to say, by the time that we got done with that game, our team was damn near blacked out drunk.
We all lounged in the living room, heads heavy.
“Baby, I don’t know about you, but I’m about to head to bed,” I said as I kissed Tim lazily, leaving him in the living room and going to find some relief from the room spinning.
“Aight, ma.” He said as he tapped my butt as I walked past him.
I had the reputation of being the auntie of the bunch. I don’t care whose birthday it was; they would just have to celebrate me without me. I dived across the bed, I didn’t even have the energy to get in it straight. My head felt like it was falling through the mattress, but once it stopped, I was knocked out.
***
“Are you sure this is what you want for your birthday, Breeze?” Tim asked me as he stood at the door, arms crossed, waiting for my response. I was hesitant in my answer, but, on the same token, this is what our newest therapist, Melanie, told us to do.Speak candidly about what we wanted, even if it was tough or uncomfortable.
I nodded. Heat burning my cheeks like never before.
He exhaled and then walked toward me.
“If you’re uncomfortable at any point, then I want you to tell me. Aight?” He asked as he held my chin. I nodded again.
He walked out of the door, leaving it slightly ajar, as I sat on the bedroom bench and fiddled with my fingers. I could hear the front door of the cabin opening and closing, and footsteps getting closer. The beat of my heart sped up as they both entered the room, and the door closed again.
When Quentin came into the room, it was as if time stood still. I hadn’t seen him or spoken to him since the night of the club. I had promised myself that I would prioritize my husband and my marriage, and I was determined to do exactly that.
Q looked just as good as the last time I had seen him, if not better. He looked younger, more relaxed, and even a little more buff, like he had been dedicating all his free time to the gym. I crossed my legs and looked at the floor as he slowly walked across the room, and the scent of his cologne got more potent.
I would be lying if I said that this wasn’t a fantasy that I’ve had repeatedly. To have two sets of hands on my body at once with one shared goal. But now that it was happening, I almost wanted to call it off. Not because I no longer wanted it, but because I was unsure if Tim would be able to watch it in action. I don’t know if he could handle the visual of seeing me being fucked by someone else. Especially with that someone being Quentin, and knowing how polar opposite they were in the bedroom.
I don’t know why it took me so long to come to that realization, but I didn’t believe he could handle it long-term. Like it’d be something that he’d always think about or probably resent.
“What’s up, B?” Q spoke as he stood and stared down at me. When I looked up, our eyes locked.
