The empty chair - Part One

 The Empty Chair

Part One - Date Night

Tuesdays, Yech! Don't you just bloody-well hate them. The fifteen mile drive from my home in Guildford, Surrey was only supposed to take twenty minutes to the place I work in Leatherhead, but the traffic was even more of a nightmare so inevitably, I only just made it to my desk by eight thirty and was obliged to abandon my routine preparations for the working day (toilet, hair comb, coffee and football chat with my colleagues at the desks surrounding mine) until later in the morning.

Later than usual, I was standing, having a pee in front of one of the urinals in the Executive Toilets when I became aware of someone standing beside me. The heavy splashing noise coming from the next bowl told me that I had been joined by my Boss, Geoff; the CEO of the large company for whom I was the Deputy Human Resources Manager.

Geoff was one of those men who are best described as a dynamo. Tall, handsome and strong; in his mid thirties he was a graduate from Oxford and MIT with a specialisation in management and leadership within the engineering world. The company that he headed and that I worked for was a research and development organisation that specialised in natural energy.

"Hi Pete," he said to me, after tucking away what I perceived to be a very large purple headed pink python back into his trousers, "how's it hanging?"

"Fine thanks Geoff," I replied as I joined him at the nearby line of sinks to wash my hands. I was nervous because, although Geoff was always polite, friendly and good company in the pub, there was always something going on behind his eyes. He was never someone to play poker with; that was for certain.

I was happy to wait for him to finish using the noisy hand dryer and stood patiently waiting my turn, however after finishing he turned to me and said, "I saw Chris in Waitrose yesterday evening. Did she mention it?"

My hands were still dripping wet so I was a touch distracted and didn't realise what he was saying.

"Chris?" I asked.

"Christine," he replied. And then because I was still distracted he said, "Your Wife Pete! Christine!"

"Oh! Of course," I exclaimed - embarrassed. "She normally picks up our dinner after her keep-fit class. She didn't mention it. Should she have?"

"She didn't mention it.
Should she have?"

He laughed and then continued, "No, not really. She needed some Basmati Rice from the back of the top shelf so I reached up and got it for her. We then had a nice little chat about things in general."

"That's nice," I commented weakly. Hoping that he would get out of the way so I could use the hand dryer.

"And I have a favour to ask of you," he continued.

I said nothing in reply, but I was intrigued. And behind my smile there was some undeniable trepidation.

"Well I might as well get straight the point." he said in response to my silence. "My Sister has invited me to dinner on Thursday evening at her house in Wimbledon and I need a 'plus-one'. Otherwise she is going to try and match me up with her socialist journalist friend Rebecca Makepiece. The trouble is that I can't stand the silly cow."

"She's quite pretty isn't she?" I asked lamely.

"Yeah! But as boring and opinionated as hell."

"So you want to take Christine to a family dinner Geoff. Is that it?" I asked, already knowing the answer.

"If it's okay with you Pete. I'll look after her, I promise."

"I see! So what did she say when you spoke to her about this?" I asked.

"She said that the decision is yours Pete. If you say yes, you will definitely get me out of a tricky situation. I'm fond of my Sister and I don't want to upset her."

"I'll talk to her tonight," I replied as he opened the toilet door for me to go through, "and you  can have your answer tomorrow."

"If you can ask Chris to phone me tonight with your joint decision," he said, "she has my number. I put it in her mobile phone yesterday. I hope you don't mind. She said it was okay." He then changed his mind and said, "on second thoughts Pete it would be better if you phoned me, just so I know that you both agree."

As he walked away back to his office I knew that I had been manipulated. 'Perhaps she'll say no or perhaps she'll say yes. Either way he wants me to arrange what is effectively a date for him with my Wife, and to then to confirm it myself', I thought ruefully as I made my way back to my office desk deep in thought. So deep in fact, that I suddenly realised that my hands were still wet and was obliged to return to the hand dryer.

Christine was waiting for me when I arrived home that night and it was clear to me that she was thinking about her meeting with Geoff and was waiting for me to raise the matter of her date with him. Nevertheless I waited until after dinner to raise the subject.

"Well I suppose that we should talk about the subject that you have been wanting to raise with me since I walked through the door," I said to her as I loaded the dishwasher after dinner.

"I was wondering when you would get around to it," Chris replied,

"You know that Geoff is not the kind of guy to hold it against me if you say no. So you are not obliged to go to dinner with him for the sake of my career," I said as my hand started to tremble causing the plates to rattle as I placed them in the rack.

"I know!" she replied in a quiet voice, "he pretty much said that himself."

"So the question is Dear," I said, dreading her reply, "do you want to go on a date with him?"

"I thought I was just helping him out with a problem," she said, "but if you say it's a date then the other question is how you would feel knowing that I am out alone with a big attractive hunk of a man Pete?"

'.. big attractive hunk of a man?' I already knew how she was going to answer my question before I asked it. But her own question deserved a considered answer.

"The answer to that, I guess, is that I won't know until the time comes," was my honest reply. But she didn't respond to my own question, so I continued, "so do you? Want to go on a date with Geoff?"

"Well at least he has had the good manners to ask you," she replied, "so yes, I will, but only if you're comfortable with it."

I was far from comfortable but the die was cast, therefore my reply was simple, "I guess so. I had better let him know then. Can you let me have his number? I know that you have it. He told me this afternoon."

Geoff did not sound surprised when I phoned him and just said "Thanks Pete. Now pass the phone to Christine."

Chris talked animatedly and in a familiar way with my Boss for approximately twenty minutes as I sat beside her and listened to them becoming intimate friends. For my part, I followed very little of their private conversation until the words 'Wedding Ring' sprang out and alerted my attention.

"What about my wedding ring?" Chris asked him. ......... "Oh I see. I'm supposed to be your Girlfriend and not happily married to somebody else," she remarked, glancing towards me and raising her eyebrows as she smiled at me.

Turning to me, she held her hand over the phone for a second and said, "Geoff wants to show me off as his new Girlfiend."

"I heard!" I replied testily, "and how would he like you dress for the date? Ask him that."

She did ask him and his answer was, "leave it to Pete's good taste."

Christine let out a small giggle at this answer and said, "I think Geoff wants you to help me get ready for our date."

"Of course he does," I replied sarcastically as the now familiar feeling of manipulation swept over me again.

Geoff was not in work the next day, Wednesday. "He's in Barcelona," Tina his PA confirmed when I asked if I could see him in his office. I was having second thoughts about Christine going out to dinner with him and wanted to talk.

"He's back late tomorrow afternoon Pete," Tina confirmed; thus killing off any chance of stopping the emotional train that was thundering down the line towards me.

Wednesday at work passed and I said nothing to Christine that evening about my qualms; I don't know why, but I instinctively knew that she would be pissed off with me if I were to change the arrangement now. 

Thursday at work was the same old boring rubbish and it was with a sense of relief when Geoff failed to appear before I had left for home. To call off his date with my Wife at such a time would have shown me up to be indecisive and weak.

Christine was in the shower when I arrived home and shouted for me to help her prepare. The sound of the water spray and her humming a happy tune seemed to be inconsistent with my mood of impending doom. Nevertheless I complied with her request for me to lay out her black hold-up stockings and the new dress that I had bougnt her recently.

Stepping naked from the shower she called to me in the bedroom and said, "Geoff phoned earlier and told me that he would pick me up at seven thirty so I need to hurry."

I had already placed her dress and stockings on the bed but as she walked into the bedroom she said, "can you get my little black thong from my panties drawer please Pete."

"Thong?" I asked incredulously, "isn't that a bit much for just a 'plus one' dinner date?"

"isn't that a bit much for just a 'plus one' dinner date?"

"I'm supposed to be his sexy Girlfriend tonight Pete," replied my lovely Wife, "I can hardly go with big granny-knickers on."

"I guess you're right," I replied, as I handed her what was little more than a piece of black elastic string with a postage stamp attached.

"You know I am Dear," she replied, as she pulled the tiny thong up to cover her trimmed pussy hair.

'When did she do that? And why!' I thought to myself as I passed her the pretty black stockings.

Each new item seemed to change her. When she had stepped out of the shower she had still been my lovely and happy Wife, but with each item of clothing she became increasingly a desirable young Woman. Not looking like a Wife any more, but very much another man's Mistress.

Not looking like a Wife any more,
but very much another man's Mistress.

I just stood and stared at the apparition before me. "You look beautiful Dear," I said.

"Thank you Pete," she replied, "now take this and put in somewhere safe."

It was her wedding ring. She had placed it into my hand in what I thought at that very moment as something symbolic of our future marriage. 'Don't be so daft. It's only a dinner with friends.'

Geoff arrived at seven twenty just as Chris was putting the final touches to her make up.

"Hi Pete," he said conversationally after we had shook hands and I had shown him to a comfortable chair, "Tina phoned me on the way back from Heathrow," he said, "and she tells me that you wanted a word."

"Oh no problem!" I lied, "It was only about last month's personnel absentee figures."

The look on his face told me that he did not believe a word but he said nothing. Seconds later his eyes popped wide open and he grinned from ear to ear as Christine came into the room.

"For the first time in many years I am totally speechless," he said as he looked at her as she walked towards him. "You look totally ravishing."

He stood and took a hold of her hands and lifted them up to place a gallant kiss on each.

"Will I pass as your Girlfriend then?" Chris asked as her face grew red at his compliment.

"My God yes!" he replied, "and then some."

It was clear to me that there was some kind of rapport building between them, even now. And it was little surprise to me when I saw them holding hands as they left to walk up the path and get into his Bently  Continental.

I was left alone for the night with the odd sensation of her wedding ring now on my right little finger for safe keeping. My Wife was going out to dinner with my Boss. It felt strange that she was not there beside me as I sat down to watch the usual rubbish offered up by BBC television. Twice, out of habit, I turned to speak to Christine but she wasn't there. The only thing that I was talking to was an empty chair.

To be continued.