Independence Day

Disclaimers

If you find any errors, please remember that I am striving to include something for everyone, and some people are always looking for mistakes.

This is a story. It is not a story about what you would do in this situation, or even what you think should be done. There would be no point in writing a story where everyone’s reaction is the same. This overlooks the individuality of the characters and what they, as created by the author, would do. That may not align with what you would do. Please try to keep that in mind when reading.

Word Count: 13,306

Meant to publish this around the holiday. Forgot. Oops.

[::::::::::]

INDEPENDENCE DAY

He made his own declaration.

[::::::::::]

A heavy rain had ended Ray’s golf game not long after it started.

He and the rest of his foursome had hung around the clubhouse for a little while to see if it would let up but it became evident that it wasn’t going to. He was disappointed because he really enjoyed playing, and because it was his best source of exercise for the week.

Of course, it wasn’t just his heart condition that limited his activity. At 64 years of age, that sort of thing would have been limited anyway. He was still in good shape. He watched what he ate and still handled most of the yard work around the modest house he shared with his wife of 40 years, Josie.

And so, Ray found himself walking through his door at just after 9:00am instead of the 12:30pm or so he normally would have gotten home. He hadn’t let his wife know he was coming home early, saw no need to do so, had never done so before when something like this happened. He would simply explain when he got home. But explaining why he was home early was quickly forgotten as he opened the front door.

It was forgotten because there in the entryway was his wife. She wore her pink silk robe but it was untied in the front, revealing her large, pendulous breasts with the dark pink areolas and her well-manicured blonde bush. In and of itself this wouldn’t have been an issue, but she was escorting a man younger than their daughter to the front door in that condition.

At 59 years of age, Josie was still a very attractive woman. She wore her dark blonde hair about shoulder-length. Her breasts had always been large but grew even larger when their daughter, Kristine, was born 39 years ago, though they stayed about the same when Leo joined the family 3 years later. As you would expect with middle-aged women, her ass and her belly had retained some weight over the years, but that didn’t matter to Ray, and apparently not to this guy either.

Ray noticed the disheveled state of the hair on Josie’s head, and a quick survey of her body caused him to notice her lower lips protruding from her bush, clearly indicating recent use, not that there was any doubt anyway. He took in all of this in just a couple of seconds.

She looked up as he walked through the door, and rather than the guilty, sheepish look he would have expected, she smiled as she always did, expressing her happiness that he was home. Then, to his surprise, she came forward to greet him.

“Hey honey, you’re home early.”

Josie moved to give him a kiss but Ray managed to quickly move his head out of the way. His wife looked at him, confused.

“Are you out of your mind, Josie? Worse than not knowing where your mouth has been, I have a pretty good idea of where it HAS been!” Ray explained.

Josie glanced back at the young man, seeming to have forgotten he was there, and realizing what she had almost done.

“Oh, Ray, of course, I’m sorry. Honey, this is Luke. Luke, this is my husband, Ray.”

Luke was perhaps an inch shorter than Ray’s 6 feet, but he had the well-defined physique of an active young man in his late 20’s or early 30’s. He had probably been an athlete in college, and maybe still was. He had dark brown hair, cut short, and a plain face, neither handsome nor ugly. He stepped forward, his hand coming down on Ray’s shoulder. Ray was tempted to respond physically but kept his temper for the moment.

“Hey, it’s nice to meet you. Josie has told me a lot about you. And don’t worry, I’m sure in 25 or 30 years I’ll probably have the same issue you’re having with the equipment, and I only hope that I’ll be as cool about this as you are.”

Of course, the one activity he missed the most was sex with Josie. Age had robbed him of his ability to maintain an erection, and his condition prevented him from using Viagra and the like, but he and Josie had maintained as much of a love life as they could, relying on Ray’s fingers and tongue, and a liberal use of toys.

Ray had even gone so far as to wear a strap-on but it hadn’t gone very well and Josie nixed any further attempts. Ray had always made sure Josie got off, even though it wasn’t possible for him. He had taken to gaining satisfaction from giving Josie satisfaction, and had thought that was enough.

Apparently not.

Ray returned Luke’s easy smile with a glare. Who the hell was this asshole to condescend to him like that? But he wasn’t willing to go to jail, so he restrained his temper yet again.

“Luke, get out of my house. And if I ever catch you in it again, one of us will leave in a body bag. And I have guns.”

The easy smile suddenly disappeared from Luke’s face and he took a step back, then went around Ray toward the front door.

“Hey, it’s cool man. I was under the impression you were okay with this.”

Ray locked the door after it closed, made ever-so-brief eye contact with his wife, then headed into his bedroom. He was incredibly angry, and perplexed at his wife’s seeming lack of remorse, or even concern, for what had just happened. She came into the room shortly after him. He noticed her robe was now secured.

“Well, that was rude.”

Ray turned on her, incredulous that she was finding fault with his behavior after what she had just done. He hadn’t intended to speak to her right now, but this was over the top.

“THAT was rude? I walk into my own house to see you walking some kid you obviously just had sex with to the door, and I was rude! You really are out of your mind!”

Josie’s face took on a softer look. She walked over to him and tried to put her hand on her husband’s shoulder but he pulled away as soon as he felt her touch.

“Honey, I’m sorry, but it’s just been so long. What we’ve been doing has been nice and I’ve enjoyed it, but it just doesn’t fulfill my needs.”

“That might have been nice information to share with me. Where in the hell did you find this guy?”

“He’s a friend of Marjorie’s.”

“A friend? He’s less than half her age!”

“And she was a single woman at the time. When she met Oscar she gave him up, but she and I had talked about him and she gave me his information.”

“You realize he’s just using you guys for easy sex.”

“Actually, he explained how he has a thing for older women,” Josie responded. “When he was 18 his mom had him help the neighbor ladies with things around the house. Some of them couldn’t afford to pay much so offered sex. He says he reached a point where women his age didn’t do it for him. And even if he is just using me for sex, I’m doing the same thing so who cares.”

“How long has this been going on?” Ray asked.

“A few months. When you leave for your golf game he comes over and takes care of me. He’s always long gone and I have everything cleaned up before you get home. It won’t affect you in any way. You’re getting you’re exercise and I’m getting mine, so to speak.”

Ray suddenly realized why Saturday had become ‘change the sheets day’.

“Well, I don’t care if you think it doesn’t affect me just because I’m not here. I won’t accept it and I’ll give up golf if I have to.”

“Raymond, please. Be reasonable about this. You need your golf game. It’s the only exercise you have. And I have needs that need to be met that can be taken care of in that time. It makes perfect sense.”

“Maybe to you, Josephine, but not to me. This was the last time.”

With that, Ray walked into his bedroom to take a shower and change into something more casual. Josie went into her closet to put some clothes on, then left the house and drove the few miles over to where Kristine lived with her husband and their two daughters, Josie’s granddaughters.

By the time Ray had showered and dressed the house was empty. There was no note so he assumed his wife just wanted away from him. That was fine with him as he wanted the same thing.

The shower had calmed him down and he tried to examine this logically. He could understand that Josie still had needs, but this was simply too much. He would never do what she had done if their positions had been reversed, and he did not feel he was out of line. She would just have to accept it.

[::::::::::]

The next day, Sunday, was the 4^th of July, and all the local family was coming over for a lunchtime cookout and then to gather again in the evening to go to the big community park for a fireworks display. It was a tradition that had been going since Kristine was a child and Ray looked forward to it every year.

Ray spent the morning getting the meat ready. He marinated some chicken and burgers, and set some hot dogs out for the younger kids that would be joining them for the cookout. By the time guests started to arrive everything was set and Ray was looking forward to spending the time with his family.

The barbecue went smoothly. There were a lot of friends there as well, and Josie looked radiant as she smiled and laughed. He certainly had been upset about finding her with another man, but she had been a great wife for 4 decades and it was something he could forgive…this time.

As the guests started to flow out of the house, Ray excused himself to take a nap. His heart condition limited his endurance, and he wanted to be ready to enjoy the fireworks tonight. He kissed his wife on the cheek, let her know he was going to lay down for a bit, and made his way to the bedroom.

When his alarm sounded a couple of hours later, he felt energized. The rest had done him good and now he could enjoy the fireworks without worry. He changed into some clean clothes and went into the living room.

Surrounding the dining room table was his immediate family: his wife sat at the far end; his granddaughters (19-year-old Julia and 17-year-old Allison) were on the back side; Kristine’s husband, Eric, sat off to the side and Kristine herself stood in front of the table, the closest to Ray. Ray’s son Leo and his wife, Rebecca, sat on the other side of the table, opposite Julia and Allison. They were all looking at him.

Ray knew an intervention when he saw one.

“What’s this?”

His daughter, Kristine, was apparently the spokesperson for the group.

“We wanted to talk to you about mom?”

Ray looked at his wife, but her expression was flat. He hoped against hope that this wasn’t about what he thought it was about. He looked back at his daughter.

“What about mom?”

“Mom told us about Luke.”

“She did, did she?” Ray asked, the incredulousness evident in his voice.

“Yes. And about…your issues.”

Ray just stared at his wife, shocked that she would share information so personal with anyone, let alone their children and grandchildren.

“My issues, and really this whole thing, are none of your business.”

“But mom’s happiness is our business.”

“So, you’re not happy?” Ray asked directly to his wife.

“Yes, Ray, I’m happy. Please don’t think I’m not,” Josie answered.

“But she has needs, dad,” my daughter interjected, “and, well, it’s not something you’re able to take care of. I mean, that’s right, isn’t it?”

“So, you think I’m being unreasonable…selfish in not agreeing to this?”

“We’re not trying to put a label on it, dad. We just…look, all we’re saying is that since you can’t do it, we feel you should be more…supportive of mom discreetly taking care of it herself.”

Ray looked around at the eyes of his family. Every single one of them was, or at least seemed to be, standing in support of his wife being allowed to cheat on him. He may not have changed physically, but in just those few seconds, Ray felt himself mentally, emotionally aging what felt like 20 years. He had never felt more like a useless old man than he had right now.

“And,” he struggled to say, “you all feel this way?”

He looked them all in the eyes and they nodded their agreement. But Ray thought it was too easy for someone to just go along. He wanted to make sure, as best he could.

“Leo, you agree with this?” Ray asked, looking his son in the eye.

“Yeah. I mean, it’s not like you’d be here,” his son answered. “And it’ll help mom.”

“Eric?” Ray asked, turning to his son-in-law, Kristine’s husband. Ray had never known him to go against his wife and certainly didn’t expect him to start now.

“I don’t think it would be a big deal, Ray.”

“Rebecca?” Ray said as he caught the eyes of his daughter-in-law, who seemed to be almost hiding behind Leo.

“Oh, dad, I’m not really…” she said, trying to evade having to answer.

Ray had always found it interesting that, even after 20 years, Eric stuck with calling him by his first name, while Rebecca had easily slipped into calling him dad almost immediately.

“Nonsense, Rebecca. You’ve been part of this family for 3 years. Plus, you’re a grown woman, and I’d be interested in your opinion.”

“Well, it seems like it would be okay. I mean, as long as she’s careful and discreet.”

And finally, it came down to his granddaughters. They were from a completely different generation so he suspected they had a different attitude about it altogether. Infidelity in marriage seemed to be common, almost expected these days, but he still wondered if they’d choose against him. They had spent so many wonderful hours together. He’d attended recitals galore and spoiled them at the mall all the time. Would they really be okay with this?

“What about you girls?”

“Oh, grandpa, we shouldn’t really be a part of this.”

“C’mon. You’re both adults…well, almost…and I’m sure you have some thoughts.”

Julia and Allison looked at each other, then at their mom and dad, who seemed to be urging them to speak their mind. At that moment, Ray knew what they were going to say. Whether they believed it or not, their mother had obviously convinced them to speak up in favor of their grandmother.

“Well, I mean,” Julia, the eldest said, “lots of our friends are cool with their boyfriends and girlfriends being with other people. It’s just sex.”

Ah, the rallying cry for the unfaithful: It’s Just Sex. Ray had assumed it would come out at some point, and there it was, though he was surprised it took so long. His wife was willing to go this far to get her way, to get to fuck her boy toy once a week. Ray suddenly realized there was no point in arguing the point. She would likely find a way to do it regardless of his opinion or feelings. Whatever he had once was gone, and it was never coming back. He looked at Josie, who was looking at him with anticipation.

“That’s it then, Josephine. Majority rule. I guess you get what you want.”

His wife’s face lit up as if she had been granted her fondest wish, and perhaps she had. Ray simply turned and walked toward the front door. He got only a few feet before he heard his wife’s voice call his name. He hoped that maybe, just maybe, she had reconsidered after she saw how it had affected him, and he turned back to face her. But it wasn’t to be.

“Can I tell Luke you were just kidding about the body bag thing?”

“Sure. Whatever. I’m taking a drive.”

“But dad,” Leo called out. “It’s just about time to leave for the fireworks.”

“Go without me,” Ray responded. “I don’t feel like going anymore.”

It was still silent as Ray walked out the front door, but he heard the sounds of celebration as soon as the door closed. He looked back through the front window, the blinds open with sheer curtains dangling closed, and could see Josie getting hugs from all her supporters. It appeared they were all in this together…against him.

[::::::::::]

No sooner had the mini-celebration ended than Josie was on the phone to her lover. She assured him that she and Ray had talked it over and he had removed his objections. She wanted to make sure that he hadn’t moved on to another woman, that she could still expect a visit from him Saturday morning. He answered the phone on the third ring, and assured Josie he would be there and was looking forward to it.

With that, the family piled into the vehicle and headed off to see the city’s always-impressive fireworks display. They were talking and laughing, glad to have the unpleasantness behind them and certain that Ray would be just fine, that he would realize this wouldn’t affect anything.

At the exact moment that Eric was parking the car (it was ironic that Ray’s absence from the festivities now allowed them to take a single 7-passenger vehicle rather than 2 separate cars, making them the ‘family’ and him the outsider, though no one made the connection), Ray sat alone in his car overlooking the city. He had found this road into the nearby hills many years ago, and came here when he needed to think.

He was stung by the support Josie got from every member of the family. He would have thought that at least one of them would have recognized that his inability to perform was not a reason for his wife to be unfaithful. But they had unified against him, and that hurt. He felt like an outsider, like he was old and had been dismissed.

It reminded him of the stories he’d heard when he was a child, that some communities would set their elderly off on their own to certain death when they were deemed too old or frail to contribute, and were thus simply a drain on resources. He was just in the way and he was being cast out. All he wanted to do now was sleep, but the nap he had taken was getting in the way

It was near midnight when he finally got back to the house. He noted that his daughter’s car was still here along with Josie’s, but all the others had left. He could only assume the horn sound that signaled the vehicle was being locked alerted the home’s occupants, because the front door opened as he approached. It was Josie.

“Where have you been? I’ve been worried sick.”

Ray simply walked past his wife without a word. He noticed his daughter was on the couch and looking at him with interest.

“Why are you here?” he asked.

“Mom was worried when you weren’t here after the fireworks. Everyone else has somewhere to be tomorrow morning so I stayed with her. You could have at least answered your phone.”

Ray glanced at his phone and remembered turning it off when he arrived on the mountain. He hadn’t wanted to be disturbed.

“Well, as you can see, I’m fine. You can go home now.”

Kristine was taken aback. Her father was the kindest, most polite man she knew and had never known him to speak to anyone like that, let alone her, his little girl. She watched his back as he walked into his bedroom until the door closed between them, then picked up her purse from the table and kissed her mother goodbye.

By the time Josie finished picking up the house and made it into the room, Ray was asleep.

[::::::::::]

Things were cool around the house for the next week. Josie knew that, despite his acquiescence, Ray was not happy with what she was doing with Luke. But she believed it would come to be something he could live with because he loved her, and she was certain that he’d eventually forget about it, or at least put it out of his mind.

For Ray, it was the complete destruction of his life. He had been a dedicated family man for 4 decades but that hadn’t stopped his entire family from tossing him aside when his presence became inconvenient. The simple fact that Josie had even sought the support of her family for her adultery had ended his marriage as far as Ray was concerned. That they had all, every single one of them, sided against him was the death blow to his family, or at least to his being a part of it. He had put everyone else first for years. That was about to change.

As he had every Saturday morning for the last several years, Ray climbed into his car and made the drive to the country club to meet up with his foursome. There was a group of 8 older men that reserved two tee times back-to-back and then mixed up the foursomes each week. Ray tried his best to focus on the game while knowing what was going on in his house, and he had no doubt what was going on. It wasn’t his worst performance, but it was the worst in a very long time. He tried to smile at the good-natured ribbing he received but it wasn’t easy.

[::::::::::]

Meanwhile, back at his house, Josie watched Ray climb into his car and leave for his golf game promptly at 7:00am. She tried to express some affection and give him a kiss goodbye, but he wouldn’t speak and barely let her press her lips to his cheek. She felt bad knowing her husband was hurt but she put that out of her mind as soon as Luke came up the walkway.

She had asked him to park down the street and around the corner. She felt having him park in front of the house was a bit too blatant and would draw attention from the neighbors, but there wasn’t anything to be done about him walking to the door.

She allowed him to knock before opening the door and then invited him in. She wore her robe and nothing else, and it was on the floor seconds after the door had closed. They greeted each other with a long, passionate kiss and then Luke easily scooped Josie up into his arms and carried her to the bedroom, laying her softly on the bed.

Luke stepped back and undressed. What he had told Josie was true. He genuinely preferred mature women to women his own age. He often thought of the women he had done favors for, and the favors they had done in return. While Josie was somewhat older at 59 than his usual partners, she looked closer to 50 and still maintained a youthful energy.

Josie admired Luke’s physique as he undressed. He wasn’t overly muscular but he was strong and in good shape, something Ray hadn’t been in some time, mostly due to age, of course. Damn, she thought, put him out of your head. This isn’t a competition.

Josie had always kept her pubic hair well-groomed but it was always there. She had never shaven it clean and had no intention to do so, despite Luke’s requests. She sat up as his boxers went down, taking his ample cock in her hand before moving her mouth down around it. She had always enjoyed sucking a hard cock and Ray’s inability to get one had been a disappointment on that level as well as the lack of intercourse. Luke had no such problem.

Josie tended to get Luke off quickly, usually orally, so that he was good for a nice long time the second time. As a woman nearing 60, not only did she produce very little lubrication but she was not particularly sensitive. This meant is usually took her a while to climax and she didn’t want to interrupt the process to clean up after Luke. It was better to get him off quickly so he could go non-stop for her.

Thanks to the skills Josie had developed during her 4+ decades of sexual activity, she was able to get Luke off quickly again this morning. She’d never had a problem with swallowing a man’s semen, especially knowing what a turn-on it tended to be for them, but Luke came a lot and she simply had never been able to take it all from him. However, a simple swipe of her fingers and she scooped the excess into her mouth. Like it always had, this made Luke hard again almost instantly.

Applying lube is a decidedly unsexy thing to do, so Josie made a point of preparing herself before Luke arrived. She made herself nice and wet using a flavored gel. Luke was never much for eating pussy but she used the flavored, edible one just in case. This morning was like most mornings in that Luke sucked her tits and fingered her but made no effort to bring his mouth to her crotch, which was fine with her. He had no issues getting his fingers inside her thanks to the artificial wetness. Josie simply closed her eyes and reveled in the pleasure.

Josie was never a dominant woman in bed. She always allowed Ray to take the lead and she enjoyed being in the submissive position. This meant intercourse was usually done in the missionary or doggy-style positions, or some variation. She could count on one hand the number of times she had been on top of Ray over the last 40+ years, and she had never done so with Luke.

Josie laid out flat on her back and Luke took the cue, getting on top of her and easing his impressive manhood into her pussy. The first few times had been a little uncomfortable for her because she wasn’t used to someone of his size, but she had become acclimated now and accepted him easily. They eased into a nice, slow coupling, Luke ever respectful of the fact that was making love to a woman 30 years his senior.

Josie’s body swallowed Luke’s entire cock and she let out an unintentional moan of pleasure. She had missed this so much when Ray began to have his health problems, and the opportunity to get it again proved too much to resist. When Ray found out about it and she risked losing it again, it was too much for her to even consider. She regretted recruiting the family to help with convincing Ray but it had worked, and she was certain Ray would get past it.

After several minutes Luke began increasing the speed of his thrusts. In the past, Josie has been able to take the harder thrusts after the warm-up period and the same was true today. She spread her legs and accepted Luke’s kisses, including his tongue in her mouth, as he pumped into her.

They changed positions after a few minutes, Josie got to her knees and pushed her ass into the air. Luke go behind her and pushed into her, immediately resuming the faster pace of moments ago. Josie clutched her pillow and reveled in the pleasure of a hard man fucking her. She pushed back against him to maximize the impact, letting out a small grunt with each thrust. God, she loved being fucked by this strong, young man.

She hadn’t realized how much Ray’s performance had changed over the years. Obviously, it’s to be expected as one ages and it’s so gradual that you just don’t think about it. You don’t think about it, that is, unless you get the opportunity to compare them at some point in your life. True, she and Ray hadn’t had actual intercourse in some time, but it was still fresh enough in her mind for her to be aware of the difference between that and what Luke did to her. No, this was far too good to give up.

Their coupling lasted about 2 hours. Luke took a shower while Josie stripped the bed and started the laundry. He helped her put new sheets on the bed and then departed. Josie then climbed into the shower herself and made sure to scrub herself thoroughly, inside and out. She knew this was hard on Ray and it was important that there be nothing to remind him. She did not allow Luke to mark her in any way and she made every effort to make sure there were no signs in the house, either.

By the time 12:30 rolled around, Josie was more than satisfied that the house and her body were in pristine condition, ready to face her husband, who should be home any time. She had gotten her pleasure, fulfilled her needs, and was ready to dedicate her attention to Ray for the rest of the week.

He was usually home between 12:30 and 1:00.

When he hadn’t arrived by 2:00 she was anxious but not yet too concerned.

By 3:00, she was getting concerned so she tried calling his cell phone. It went straight to voice mail.

By 5:00, having made several phone calls and sent several texts in the meantime with no response, she was getting quite worried.

Finally, at 7:00, after another 2 hours with no response from her husband, she called her daughter.

She explained the situation, and in just a few minutes Kristine and her husband, along with Josie’s granddaughters were in the living room. Eric made a drive out to the country club just on the off-chance he could find some information. All they could tell him was that Ray had been there and had left several hours ago.

Kristine called the police and found there was no record of any accidents involving Ray, and that they were unable, at this point, to issue an official missing person’s report. But they would make note of his name in case anything came to their attention. Kristine thanked them and hung up, with no confidence that would come to anything.

There really wasn’t anyone else to call. Josie knew none of the men he played golf with, let alone had any of their phone numbers. There was nothing left to do but wait.

It was nearly 11:00pm when Julia, who had been sitting near the front of the house, announced she had just seen some headlights pull into the driveway. Then, perhaps sensing a confrontation was imminent, she and her sister escaped to their mom’s old bedroom upstairs. Eric, who had always been an early riser, had sacked out long ago in Leo’s old room. That left just Josie and Kristine to face Ray.

Ray walked in the front door, not surprised to see his wife breathing fire in the entryway and only a little surprised to see his daughter hanging back in the living room. He had seen her car outside but thought perhaps she’d leave he and Josie alone. She must be all-in in support of her mother getting some strange.

“Where have you been?” Josie spat.

“Golfing,” Ray calmly replied.

“Not for over 12 hours, you weren’t.”

“That’s true. After golf I had lunch at the club. Their Chicken Piccata is quite good. Then I went to see the new Dwayne Johnson movie. A little formulaic, but I enjoyed it. After that…”

“God damnit, Raymond, I don’t want to know every place you went…”

“Well, you asked where I’ve been.” Ray mumbled.

“…I want to know why you didn’t come home after golf like you usually do and why you never answered your phone?”

“I never answered my phone because my phone never rang,” he answered, showing his wife that his phone had been turned off. “And I didn’t come home because I wasn’t going to be in this house at the same time as your fuck buddy.”

“That’s ridiculous, Raymond. Nothing has changed. We were done and I had the entire house cleaned well before you were done with golf. There was no reason for you to come home late at all let alone be gone the entire day.”

“That’s how you see it, Josephine. I simply wasn’t going to risk even being exposed to his…after-affects. Let me say again, I will not be in this house at the same time. Now, it’s late, and I’m going to bed.”

Ray walked past his wife, giving his daughter a hard look but saying nothing as he walked into the bedroom. He had expected one of the women to follow him but neither did. As he got ready for bed he heard other voices in the hall and realized Kristine’s whole family had been in the house. Great.

By the time Josie had said good bye to everyone and come into the bedroom, Ray was asleep…or at least pretending to be. Josie couldn’t be sure. She considered just waking him so they could talk some more, but instead just got ready for bed.

[::::::::::]

The following weekend played out much the same way, though this time there were no calls and texts. Josie simply accepted that Ray would be gone all day and she took the opportunity to straighten up the house in its entirety.

As it got later though, Josie began to get a little anxious about being home alone so she called Kristine, who agreed to come over to keep her company until Ray came home. Eric and their daughters stayed at home. Ray rolled in again at just about 11:00, surprised to see Kristine’s car parked on the curb. He wondered if there was about to another confrontation.

He walked through the door but only to a pleasant greeting from his wife, a kiss on the cheek, and a smiling daughter in the background.

“Why don’t you get changed, love, then you can tell me what you did with yourself all day,” Josie said, leaving Ray a bit confused.

Josie made her way into the kitchen to get them each a drink while Ray went into the bedroom to change. The only conclusion he could come up with was that she had been well taken care of by her lover today so was in a particularly relaxed and good mood. He changed into pajamas then returned to the living room, where Kristine seemed ready to leave but apparently was waiting for him.

“Dad, I know this whole thing is hard on you, but I just wanted to say how wonderful it is that you’re showing your love for mom by allowing her to do this. It’s really made a difference.”

‘Allowing her?’, Ray thought. Is that how they see it?

“Now I have something to say to you, Kristine. This is the last conversation that I’m having on this topic. The last one. Make sure everyone knows that.”

“Oh, sure dad, I understand. Kind of hard to put it out of your mind if people keep talking about it. I’ll spread the word.”

With that she kissed her father on the cheek and left. Moments later, Josie entered with drinks for them both. It seemed to Ray it took a long time for her to get drinks and wondered if this had been planned to allow Kristine to tell him how ‘wonderful’ he was.

[::::::::::]

And so it went for a few months. Josie continued to enjoy her physical relationship with Luke, and Ray found himself experiencing, and enjoying, some new activities. He still golfed every Saturday morning, and he certainly saw every movie that interested him, but also made a point of varying his activities. He did some bowling, miniature golf, and even tried his hand at some arcade games. He didn’t do well but he had fun.

Life at home was fairly normal, though the topic of Luke was carefully and meticulously avoided. They had dinner together each night and had pleasant, if generic conversation. The intimacy they shared had changed. Josie, with the belief that her relationship with Luke had no bearing on her marriage, continued to express her love and affection to her husband, and if she noticed that he rarely reciprocated anymore she didn’t say anything.

Perhaps Josie just got too comfortable with the situation. Perhaps the fact that Ray didn’t talk about Luke at all led her to believe he was more okay with it than he was. In any case, when Thanksgiving came along, Ray was in for shock.

“Mom, Luke’s here.”

That was Kristine calling from the front of the house. Ray had been in his recliner reading the newspaper (yeah, the printed version, very old school) when he heard this pronouncement. If he’d been drinking anything he’d have spewed it across the floor.

“Oh, good!” remarked his wife. “He hadn’t committed to showing up for sure.”

Ray slung the lever that lowered his footrest and leapt (as best he could) from his chair, which caught Josie’s attention.

“What in the hell is he doing here?” Ray sputtered, quite irate.

“I invited him for Thanksgiving,” Josie responded, as cool as could be. “He has no family in town and nowhere else to go.”

“I told you I wouldn’t be in this house at the same time as him. You know that’s why I’m gone all day on Saturdays. And now you invite him into my house on a family holiday?”

“It’s my house, too, Raymond, and it’s not like he’s coming over here for sex. It’s no different than when the kids were growing up and we had their friends over. It’s just a meal. And I expect you to be on your best behavior.”

Josie turned and headed for the front door to greet her guest, effectively dismissing her husband and proud of herself for standing up for her…well, they were certainly lovers, but she also considered Luke her friend. And she thought this was an entirely appropriate gesture to a friend.

She greeted Luke at the door and introduced him to her children and their spouses, as well as her granddaughters. She took him by the hand and led him into the living room to greet her husband. She even started speaking before she rounded the corner.

“Luke, you remember my…”

But Ray was gone, or at least no longer in the chair he occupied just a few moments ago. She looked around and didn’t see him, and assumed perhaps he had gone to the restroom. She started to walk into the bedroom when she heard the motor for the garage door opener kick in. She made it to the kitchen/garage door just in time to see the door start to come back down and Ray’s car pull away.

“Was that dad leaving?” Kristine asked her mom.

“Yes, it was.”

“Where’s he going?”

“Who knows,” Josie answered in exasperation as she stomped toward her bedroom to get herself together.

Luke walked up to Kristine as Josie closed her bedroom door.

“Is there anything I can do? Would it be better if I left?” he asked.

“No, Luke, it’s fine. It’s dad’s issue, not yours. You are totally welcome here.”

“I just don’t want to be the cause of problems, but if you’re sure…”

“We know, Luke, and we appreciate it.”

The family and Luke socialized over the meal. Luke, being the new person, was the focus of much of the conversation, but he expressed an interest in the family as well. After the meal he joined Leo and Eric in watching football while the ladies went shopping. No one noticed when Ray’s car passed by.

The holiday had long since broken up. It was nearing 10:00pm and the house had been cleaned, the dishes done. The ladies had returned from their shopping trip with a few things but nothing much. Leo and Eric had fallen asleep on the couch, and Ray was still nowhere to be seen.

Kristine roused her husband and children and told them to go home, with the plan of waiting with her mother and spending the night. She had always kept a few things here (nightgowns and changes of clothes) so she could spend the night at her parent’s house as needed. Leo and Rebecca also took their leave, and Kristine sat to wait with her mom.

Ray finally came in at almost midnight. He had hoped Josie had gone to bed but she was waiting for him. She started to go at him but instead of stopping as he usually did, he simply kept on walking right past her. He went to his chair and resumed reading the paper, as he had been doing before he was interrupted. If he thought Josie would back down, he was wrong.

“Where were you all day?” she practically screamed.

“I went to Denny’s for Thanksgiving dinner, then spent the rest of the day at the movies.”

“We had a perfectly good meal right here, Raymond. Why on earth did you go to Denny’s?”

“It wasn’t the food, Josephine. It was the company.”

“I can’t believe that a 64-year old man can’t be civil to a guest that I invited into our home. I would never treat anyone you invited that way.”

“I told you I would not be in this house at the same time he was, ever. I didn’t mean only when he’s here to take care of your so-called needs; I meant ever, and you knew that and you did it anyway.”

“It was just dinner, Ray.”

“Maybe to you,” said Ray, then raised his paper between them, signaling the end of their conversation.

There was about 5 minutes of silence before Kristine, his own daughter and apparent traitor to the cause, knelt next to him on the floor.

“Dad, please try to understand that he means a lot to her. She doesn’t love him or anything but she cares about him and didn’t want him to be alone on the holiday.”

“And you don’t see a problem with your mom’s fuck buddy becoming part of the family?”

“He’s not part of the family, dad. But he’s a person in her life. A friend like any other friend.”

Ray knew it was a lost cause.

“Sure, Kristine. I get it.”

“I hope so, dad. I’ll see you later.”

With a kiss on his cheek, Kristine left. Josie did not reappear that night, and when Ray finally lifted himself wearily out of his recliner and went into the bedroom, she was in bed asleep.

[::::::::::]

Thanksgiving seemed to be the turning point, at least in some ways. The displays of affection were practically non-existent as Ray and Josie became more roommates that anything else. Josie felt she was justified in taking on a lover since Ray was unable to do the job and saw Ray’s reaction as selfish and ego-driven. Ray simply saw Josie’s choice as a betrayal of their marriage and life together. He managed to treat her kindly and they communicated as they needed to, but the love that had been built during a 40+ year relationship was ebbing away.

When Josie said she had some last-minute shopping to do on Christmas eve, Ray said nothing, even though she hadn’t needed to do last minute shopping in years. He knew where she was going, and he didn’t need to follow her or track her phone. The look in her eye told him everything he needed to know. Whether she just wanted to exchange gifts or wanted to do more than that he didn’t know, but he knew she was having a private celebration with him.

On New Year’s Eve, Ray did give his wife a kiss at midnight, though it lacked the passion of past years. Josie was disappointed that she hadn’t been able to communicate anything to Luke, but she did call him the next day to wish him a happy new year.

As Valentine’s Day approached, Ray made plans for a nice dinner at an upscale seafood restaurant, and Josie was delighted at the prospect of the celebration. It gave her the idea that perhaps her husband was returning to her.

But Ray had a niggling suspicion. Josie’s desire to spend holidays with her lover made him wonder about Valentine’s Day. It was, after all, the day for lovers, and Ray doubted Josie would let it pass without seeing Luke.

So, he decided to leave the office for a bit and stake out his house. He parked down the street, giving himself a good view of the front door and the adjoining streets. Sure enough, he saw Luke park around the corner and walk up the sidewalk. Ray half-expected him to just walk in but he knocked and waited for Josie to let him in. Ray doubted they were just going to talk. This was their own private valentine’s day celebration. Obviously, they were no longer just fuck buddies.

The dinner that evening was subdued. Josie went into it with a positive attitude and hope for a rekindling of her relationship with her husband, but the upbeat mood that he had displayed the last few days had disappeared. She was disappointed but tried to make the best of it, wondering what could have led to the change.

With no young children, Easter was mostly just an excuse for a big family dinner. They did hide a few eggs around the yard but they were the large plastic kind and usually had a gift card or something in them. It was just a little fun to get into the spirit of the holiday.

To Ray’s relief, Luke had not been invited (or at least he didn’t show up). Josie had at least honored that request ever since that Thanksgiving debacle, but Ray knew she had been to see him on days other than Saturday mornings, and probably more often than he knew. She had arranged it for valentine’s day and could certainly have done it on other days as well.

After the morning festivities were over, Ray announced that he was going to lay down. True, he was a little tired but nothing he couldn’t handle. He just wanted to avoid having to sit and socialize with the family that had betrayed him. He couldn’t avoid them altogether but he could limit the amount of time he spent with them.

It was a beautiful day so he opened one of the windows that led to the backyard. A cool breeze flowed through the room. Unfortunately, so did Josie and Kristine’s conversation.

“So, how’s Luke?” he heard his daughter ask.

“Shh. Not too loud. I don’t want your father to hear.”

“Okay, okay,” Kristine responded, lowering her voice but still speaking loud enough for Ray to hear her clearly. “I just can’t believe my mom has a boyfriend 10 years younger than me.”

“He’s not my boyfriend, Kristine. He’s just…”

“Oh, come on mom. You’re having sex with him 2 and 3 times a week, and you two are going out to lunch as well. You may not want to use the word ‘boyfriend’ but that’s still what he is.”

“Okay, fine, he’s my boyfriend. I just want to be considerate of your father’s feelings.”

“I know, mom, and I love dad, too, you know I do, and I don’t want to see him hurt. But let’s be honest: he’s an old man and you’re a young woman.”

“He’s only 5 years older than me, Kristine.”

“In physical age, sure. But you’re an active woman and he can barely make it through the day without a nap. You deserve this. Frankly, I’m a little envious of you getting the whole getting-to-know-you process again.”

“Does anyone else know? I mean, that it’s more than just Saturday mornings?”

“Leo, Eric, and Rebecca do. I’ve kept the girls out of it.”

“Is everyone okay with it?”

“Leo and Eric don’t see a problem. They agree with me that you should be allowed to see to your needs since dad can’t do it. Rebecca is the only one that thinks it’s wrong but she doesn’t want to see dad hurt so she promises she won’t say anything. What dad doesn’t know won’t hurt him.”

As Ray listened to the depths to which his wife’s betrayal had sunk, and his daughter’s wholehearted support of her mother having a boyfriend (never mind the things she said about him), he felt the last traces of love and affection for them leave his heart. While he had made many preliminary preparations, he had held off on taking anything too far because of his love for his family and his long marriage to Josie. Now, it was time to begin the final process in earnest.

Ray closed the window slowly, then climbed into bed.

[::::::::::]

As the next couple of months rolled along, Ray’s relationship with his wife and daughter deteriorated. It wasn’t much better with his son or son-in-law, but he tried to improve things with Rebecca and his granddaughters, based on what Kristine had said about Rebecca and his belief that his granddaughters were simply too young to truly grasp the situation.

Mother’s Day.

Every family has their traditions. Mother’s Day for this family was an upscale brunch at a local French-inspired restaurant. The food and the service were excellent, and the prices reflected that. When the kids were young, Ray took his family out to celebrate their mother and his wife. When the kids got older and became employed, they took over the responsibility of the celebration. They did the same thing with Father’s Day.

Where this family differed from most is that the other parent did not join in the celebration. Many years ago, Ray stopped going on Mother’s Day and Josie stopped going on Father’s Day. They allowed the kids to celebrate with the appropriate parent and would express their own feelings later.

But Ray had a feeling, brought on by the events of the last several months. So, while he usually took advantage of his free time to get some reading done or some other personal activity, this morning he got dressed and drove over to the restaurant. Josie had been gone for about 30 minutes so he knew she’d be there.

He had no intention of participating in the brunch, or even making anyone aware he was there. In fact, he doubted he’d even have to get out of his car.

He went up and down the aisles of the restaurant parking lot, easily finding Kristine and Eric’s car, then Josie’s car, then Leo and Rebecca’s car. He was beginning to build some hope that he had been wrong until he saw it, the thing he had been looking for but had hoped he wouldn’t find, tucked into a corner parking space.

Luke’s car.

Ray had seen it enough times and had memorized the plate number. His wife, or maybe his daughter, had invited his wife’s lover…boyfriend…whatever, to participate in a family event, knowing that Ray would not be there. Despite what had been done up until now and the fact that Ray’s love for his wife was essentially gone, this newest betrayal made him angry, and where he had been planning to moderate his actions, he longer had any such intention.

Ray drove back to his house, picked up his golf clubs, and made his way to the local driving range. He went through several buckets, losing count along the way. By the end he was exhausted and his shots were not going very far or very straight, but he felt better for the release.

He drove back home ready to take a nap. They thought him to be useless, incapable of getting through the day without a nap. He would allow them to continue to believe that.

Josie greeted him as he walked in the door. He wondered if she’d had a ‘private celebration’ with her boy toy, though in truth he really didn’t care anymore. It all still hurt but that’s different than really caring. As he entered the house, he wondered if she’d confess to having invited Luke, if given the opportunity.

“How was your Mother’s Day celebration with your family?” Ray asked, putting a slight emphasis on family.

“It was lovely, Ray. Thank you for asking. I had a wonderful time with the children,” Josie answered.

She hadn’t mentioned Luke. Did that mean she, and maybe the rest of the family, considered him family, or did she just choose not to mention him at all. Ray supposed he would never know. He continued to his bedroom and took his nap.

Chapter 8

Soon the Fourth of July was again approaching. Josie was always in a good mood, and Ray knew precisely why, of course. He had hung around for almost a year now, and no doubt Josie thought she had pulled it off. She had her husband to support her and a young boyfriend that she was seeing several times a week. Her life, as she saw it, was nearly perfect.

Luke had proven to be a wonderful boyfriend, except for his general unwillingness to perform oral sex on her. Since Ray was no longer willing to make love to her in any way, that was the one thing her life was missing, but that was something she was willing to endure.

Luke had gotten a new job that had him working evenings, freeing him up to spend several afternoons a week with Josie. It didn’t pay anymore but she wasn’t with him for his money. Not wanting to rub Ray’s nose in it (well, if she was being completely honest, she just didn’t want to get caught) they avoided Josie’s bedroom for everything but Saturday mornings. That meant using Luke’s apartment, or borrowing a friend’s place if that wasn’t an option. He did have roommates, after all.

The most difficult thing for her had been having to exclude Luke from events. She had not raised the subject with Ray again and did not think he would change his mind. It was the only thing she could point to that she was dissatisfied with. She had hoped at the beginning, and still wished for now, that Ray and Luke could be, if not friends, at least friendly. They provided different things to her so were really not in competition as far as she was concerned. She had her days with Luke and her evenings and weekends (well, most of it) with Ray. She couldn’t see why this shouldn’t work out just fine. So, with reluctance, she did not invite Luke to join the family for the family barbecue and the trip to see the fireworks.

The family came over early to help with the food prep. Ray made a point of being visible and active, so there would be no doubt that he was tired later. He kept a watchful eye on the crowd, wondering if Josie would sneak Luke in, but he never appeared.

As the day wore on, Ray pretended to get more and more tired. Okay, not all of it was pretending, but a lot of it was. Maybe he laid it on too thick because Josie seemed to notice and walked over to him.

“Honey, why don’t you lay down so you’re rested for the fireworks?” she gently suggested.

The hard thing about this whole situation was that he knew Josie loved him and genuinely cared about him, which made it even harder to do what he was about to do.

“I won’t be going to the fireworks so I decided to just enjoy the day with family and turn in early,” Ray responded.

“Are you sure? You missed them last year but before that you always looked forward to it,” Josie noted, genuinely concerned that he was missing them again.

“I’m sure. Guess I’m just getting old. But I’m sure everyone will have fun without me.”

“Okay, if you’re sure.”

As soon as she left him, Josie went immediately to track down Kristine. Ray watched as she weaved in and out of the crowd and tracked their…her daughter down. Josie, he suddenly realized, had been trying to find out whether he planned on attending the fireworks display, and there was only one reason that would be a priority. She planned to invite Luke to join them for fireworks. Not that it mattered anymore, but this last fresh betrayal stung hard.

As the evening wore on, guests started to take their leave until it was just family. Josie, Kristine, Leo, and Eric all came by at some point to ask if he was sure he didn’t want to join them for fireworks and all expressing that they would miss him when he said he would be staying home. Ray saw it for what it was, and knew his family was lost to him.

As the family was getting ready to leave for the fireworks, Ray swallowed his anger and made a point of interacting with each member of his family. Whatever had happened over the past year, he had many fond memories of their time together and he would miss those times. He hugged his granddaughters tightest of all.

Ray watched in melancholy as the family joyously climbed into Kristine’s minivan. It was clear no one even really missed him. He put them out of this mind and went on with his own business.

[::::::::::]

The family returned a little later than usual, allowing time for Josie to have a little private time with Luke. He had thanked them for inviting him, especially since he had no family nearby and no close family at all. While no one other than Josie had spent any extensive time with him, they had come to consider him a part of the extended family, and were thrilled at how happy he had made Josie. They said their goodbyes at the park, since he obviously couldn’t return to the house with them.

They tried to be reasonably quiet as they entered the house, not wanting to disturb Ray. They poured some drinks and gathered around the dining room table to visit for a while. Probably 30-45 minutes had gone by before Josie thought about Ray, and asked her son to just please go check on him. Leo dutifully got up from the table and went slowly into the master bedroom.

He did not find Ray asleep in bed.

What he did find was the covers pulled back, revealing the crisp white sheets underneath. Josie had always insisted on white sheets. On those sheets Leo found Ray’s wedding ring alongside a flash drive. This did not bode well.

“He’s not there,” Leo said as he exited the bedroom.

“What do mean he’s not there?” his mother asked.

“Just that, mom. The bed hasn’t been slept in and I found these sitting on the sheets next to his pillow.”

Not fully believing what her son had to say, Josie went into the bedroom and looked for herself. It was true: the bed was unused and there was no sign of her husband.

By the time she returned to the living room, Eric was already plugging the flash drive into a laptop to see what was on it. Once the files had become visible, there was only a single file listed, though it was fairly large. Eric glanced at his mom and she returned his glance with a single nod. He double-clicked on the file.

The computer’s video player sprung to life, and Eric maximized the image to full screen. At first it was just a blank wall but they could hear voices. After a few seconds, Ray stepped in front of the camera.

“Is it recording?” he asked the invisible camera operator.

“Yes,” answered a feminine voice.

Ray looked at the camera.

“Good evening, everyone. If I’ve timed this right, you’re watching this at a little after 10:00pm after just getting back from the fireworks display.”

Everyone reflexively glanced at a nearby clock and saw that it was nearly 11:00pm because they hadn’t bothered to check on Ray when they got home.

“As you watch this video, I am sitting on an airplane that is flying through the air and will not land until I am well outside the United States. If you’re wondering, I won’t be coming back.”

“NO!” Josie screamed as she burst into tears.

“You betrayed me,” the video continued. “Every single one of you. My wife, who benefitted from my love and support for over 40 years, who didn’t have to work a day in her life other than raising our kids, tossed me aside like trash for a guy half my age just because he had a hard dick. And when I had the gall to object, she turned the entire family against me.

“I would have thought that 40 years of loyalty, dedication, faithfulness, and support would have meant more to you, Josephine. I believe I earned that. Your wants, and I think we all know they were actually wants and not needs, but your wants should have taken a backseat to my feelings. It was bad enough that you were doing it behind my back, but that you would get the family to take your side was even worse. I felt like I was stabbed in the heart seven times that day.

“Kristine, your betrayal was just as bad as your mother’s. You had always been a daddy’s girl when you were growing up. We did everything together. That you would support your mother in cheating on me, in committing adultery against your own father, broke my heart even more than your mother doing it. Even if I hadn’t heard you say that I was an old man that didn’t deserve a faithful wife, my heartbreak would have been total.”

“I never said that!” Kristine said aloud. “Never!”

“Leo, Eric. You must be the biggest morons in the world. Do you even realize that you’ve just given your wives permission to cheat on you? Leo, I doubt Rebecca would do that, but some of the things I’ve heard from my daughter should concern you, Eric. All she has to do is find a reason to claim you’re not satisfying her and off she goes. She already told her mother how envious she was of her.”

Eric glared at Kristine, wo shook her head in denial, as Ray’s words poured from the speaker.

“No baby, I never said that and wouldn’t do that.”

“It’s not like you can object,” Ray continued. “You’ve already said it’s perfectly okay for Josie, unless you only meant that it was okay because you weren’t the one being cheated on. Was that it, Eric? You were perfectly fine with someone else being cheated on? I’ll bet when it’s your turn you won’t be quite so agreeable. And I’ll bet Kristine is already denying she would do something like that, but ask her if she thinks it would be wrong for her, why was it okay for her mother? Her answer will be telling.”

Eric paused the video and looked at his wife.

“Did you say you envied your mom?” he finally asked.

“I don’t remember exactly what I said. I know I was just excited for mom getting to go through that new relationship/getting to know you phase again.”

“So, you want to ‘get to know’ someone again?” Eric persisted.

“No, baby. Please don’t read too much into it, okay? I love you and I have no interest in being with anyone else.”

“Unless I can’t perform, right?”

“Honey, can we please talk about this later? We need to focus on mom right now.”

“Okay, but this isn’t over.”

Eric hit the play button again and Ray continued.

“I was not willing to stay in a marriage that saw my wife cheating on me every week, and I certainly wasn’t going to stay once I found out it had increased to several times each week. Sorry, Josephine, but you weren’t nearly as discreet and subtle as you thought you were. And to invite him to your Mother’s Day celebration? That was just tacky.

“As you might expect, I have no intention of telling you where I’ve gone, but I can assure you that even if you find me, there won’t be anything you can do about it. I should also mention the financial situation I’ve left for you. I have taken the vast majority of our money, as I intend to live out the rest of my life as a retired person as a reward to myself for putting everyone else first for most of my adult life. Josephine, I have left you the house, which is paid for as you know and is worth a few hundred thousand. My attorney will contact you and help you complete the sale if that’s what you want to do. I also left about $400,000 in the bank. That’s $10,000 for each good year that you gave me. No credit for the last 12 months, I’m afraid.