Silver Anniversary

Thanks to angel-love for her editing and support. Thanks also to The Wanderer for all of his support and suggestions. Remember this is only a story so enjoy.

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Prolog

I sat on the lanai of my villa in the Colony Cove Resorts on the island of St. Croix and watched Bitsy say goodbye to her husband. She waved as he walked to the waiting golf cart sitting on the path, and with his three golf partners, drove off. He would be gone for the rest of the day and part of the evening as well. I hoped that today might be the day Bitsy and I shared more than each other's company. Bitsy was about 40 or so and was probably a trophy wife. She was a beautiful, petite blonde with 36 DD breasts probably bought by her husband, and lips so full you had erotic daydreams just thinking about what they could do. Phil was older than me and was fat and out of shape. It had to be his money that kept Bitsy happy.

I had been here at the Colony for just over a week. I rented this villa when I arrived in Christiansted and Bitsy and her husband Phillip had moved into the one next to me three days later. We met and shared the obligatory information and then Phil asked me if I would like to join him in a round of golf. I declined since I had never played the game. That was fortunate since I got to know his wife Bitsy.

He left her alone every day to play golf and often spent the rest of the evenings on the 19^th hole. She and I had hit it off and spent some of our days together shopping and touring the French perfume shops and the batik clothing boutiques in Christiansted where she spent a great deal of old Phil's money. She had accompanied me yesterday in my rented Jag as we drove down to a port about 15 miles away where we rented a boat and spent the day scuba diving off Buck Island. She wore a very tiny bikini and I had trouble watching anything else as I kept glancing at her wonderful legs and tits. Once when I was helping her into the scuba tanks, she had asked about my wedding ring, which I still wore. I promised her the story later.

We spent a wonderful day together, diving and exploring and sharing some incredible experiences. It was a great day and we were both happily exhausted when we returned to the villas. We shared a bottle of wine when we returned and I told her my story. She was very sympathetic and made little comment until I was finished.

To better understand why I was here and why I was alone, this is my story as I told it to Bitsy.

My Story

My name is John Parsons and I am 52 years of age. My wife's name is Serena who is 47 but looks much younger. She's a beautiful woman, tall at 5'7" to go with my 6' 2" frame. She has long black hair, pale skin and a great body. She maintains her looks by working out and eating well. We've been married 24 years with our 25th anniversary coming up in a month. We have two boys, Michael and Ben, both married and just starting families of their own. Both have remained geographically close to us and we see them often.

I work for a drug manufacturer in New Jersey that produces some ethical drugs, but we also make generics and we are one of the largest manufacturers on the east coast. The FDA closely monitored us and it was critical that all drugs were accounted for at all times.

Recently, our FDA inspector found some discrepancies in our paperwork and our audits were more frequent now and would continue that way until he decided we had our house in order. Because of my position as VP of Compliance, I'd been working very long hours and traveling twice a month for the past 8 months to our warehouse 110 miles away to show a presence when he inspected our drug inventory. It was difficult work but I was training three additional compliance techs to take over the load. It was starting to cause problems in my personal life but we were very close to recertification and I had started to back down on my workload. I had decided that I was going to retire just as soon as I had the new techs up and running and our recertification was either complete or in the works. I wanted to do that by our anniversary. I hadn't told Serena, as I wanted it to be a surprise.

I was able to find some time at work for myself one day, so I was downtown trying to find a jeweler to do a special job for me. It was for our silver anniversary and I was going to do something special for Serena.

I found the little jewelry shop I was looking for across from the downtown Hilton, down an alley, off to the side. A friend that used them for a special locket he had made for his wife recommended them to me. I had something similar in mind for Serena as my anniversary present to her.

I talked with the owner, a Pakistani who had immigrated to this country over 15 years ago. His English was perfect and I told him what I wanted. I had a 1.15 caret diamond ring that I no longer wore and the stone was a perfect clear white. I wanted to have it reset into a necklace for Serena because she had always loved the diamond. He looked at the stone, made appreciative noises and pulled out some white gold and sterling silver settings for my choice. I picked one that had three small diamonds surrounding the large stone that would go in the center. It was magnificent. We agreed on a price and I gave him the ring. He took a picture of it on his scope and made a copy for me for security. It would be ready in about two weeks. Perfect.

As I walked back out to the main street, I glanced over to my right and saw Serena coming out of the hotel lobby. Afraid that if she saw me she would ask what I was doing, I ducked back into the alley and watched as she hailed a cab. I was surprised since I knew of no plans on her part to come down town and certainly no plans that involved the hotel. As I watched, I saw Bill Collins exit the hotel and come up to her side. He said something to her and she laughed. She got into the cab and left as Bill walked away.

Bill Collins was my best friend. He and I had met when I first joined the company and he was our realtor. We became friends and he and his wife Sally were frequent visitors to our home. We had known them for just over 10 years and we'd taken a few trips with them before things got a little hectic with my job.

As the cab pulled away, I wondered about what I'd just seen but decided that maybe she was planning something for me on our anniversary and Bill was helping her. While I had no idea of what they could be doing at the hotel, I decided to wait and see how it played out. I would raise some questions at home tonight and see what she said.

Serena and I lived in a large two-story colonial in a very nice part of town. I had done quite well in my job and had a comfortable salary. I had also inherited almost three million dollars from my parents who had both died in a car accident 12 years ago. With good advice from my investment counselor, it had grown to almost twice that amount. Serena and I had decided that we would not touch it until I decided to retire. I wanted to do that now and the time looked right. Since our two children had graduated from college and moved on to their own lives, the house was way too big for us but we loved it and continued to live there. I loved coming home to it and to Serena. She always had a drink ready and waiting and we had a routine that included just talking about our day. I thought tonight might be very interesting.

I walked into the kitchen from the garage and put down my briefcase. I shed my jacket and tie and put them on the hanger in the hall as I made my way into the room we called the library even though it had few books. It was dark, paneled and comfortably small. I found Serena waiting as usual.

"Hi, darling. How was your day?" Serena's typical opening.

"My day was very productive. I was able to take care of some things I wanted to get done. I finished all of my work for the trip to Johnsonville next week." Johnsonville was where the warehouse was located.

"That's great honey. I was here at home all day and just did some cleaning and straightening up. I need to run some errands but I guess I'll have to do it tomorrow or Friday." She leaned over to pour a martini for me and refill hers.

I was immediately alerted to her comment about staying home all day. Why would she say that when she was downtown just about lunchtime? I hadn't called her today but she didn't know that so it gave me an idea.

"I called here at home just about noon and there was no answer. I thought you were here."

She started a little but then said, "I was here but I didn't hear the phone. Did you leave a message?"

"No. I just let it go and decided to wait till I got home. I forget what it was about now. It must not have been important."

Serena was not very good about lying so I decided to push it and see her reaction.

"Have you seen Bill lately? I need to tell him something about a question he asked me on some drugs. I thought he was coming by. Have you seen him today?"

I watched her face as I said that. I saw the sudden flush on her face and the grimace she made as I mentioned Bill's name. Her reaction was a guilty one, not innocent planning for an anniversary gift. I wondered what was going on.

"I haven't seen Bill since we went to their place. I guess it was about a week ago? I don't think he has called either. Why don't you call him tonight?"

Now the lies were beginning to compound. At this rate, she was going to make a mistake if I pushed it. I decided not to. I was far too concerned at what I began to suspect was happening.

Serena and I had not made love for over six months. I tried to initiate it several times lately and each time she had quietly turned me down with some excuse that meant she didn't want to have sex. The last time was Sunday evening and she pleaded a headache that came up suddenly at bedtime. I hadn't discussed it with her for fear of making her angry. Now, I thought maybe there was another reason.

"Maybe I will. I think we should have them over for dinner this week. Maybe Friday night would be good. Can you have something for a dinner by then?"

"I don't think I want to have a dinner party this week. Maybe we can plan it for next week?" She knew I had to go to Johnsonville and I hated to plan anything for one of those weeks.

"I have to travel next week so I would rather do it this week. Why, is that a problem? Don't you want to see Bill, and Sally of course? I thought you liked Bill?"

Again she flushed. There was something going on between her and Bill and I thought I knew what it was. One more question.

"Have you had a disagreement with Bill over something that I don't know about? You seem to be uneasy when I mention his name."

Now she was really uncomfortable. Her face was red and her breathing was becoming ragged. She stood up and left the room, saying something about the bathroom. I considered her reactions and answers to my questions and I knew without a doubt that she was guilty and that Bill was involved. I decided not to push her again when she came back into the room.

As she sat back down, looking a little more under control, I asked,

"Have you thought about what you want to do on our anniversary next month? I thought a party here at the house with our friends: Bill and Sally, Justin and Phyllis and maybe the kids and their wives. What do you think? We could have it catered so it would be no strain on us."

"I haven't even thought of it yet so I don't know. Is that what you want to do?" She seemed preoccupied and wouldn't meet my eyes.

"I think that might be a good idea and it might be fun. You and I haven't been having much fun lately. I don't know why, do you?" I wasn't planning on this but what the hell. I was becoming angry and I wanted to jab her to see her flinch.

"What does that mean? What kind of fun? You've been working so hard and we don't have a lot of time to do much what with your trips every other week or so." Her response was too quick and too heated: guilt again.

"How does that affect our love life, or what used to be our love life? I haven't been too tired for that but you've not been 'in the mood' for the last six months. I don't know what's going on but you seem to have no interest in me anymore."

"How dare you! I have not been feeling well and you know that. I have not been 'in the mood' as you say because of that and you shouldn't treat me that way. Anyway, it was you that wasn't 'in the mood' not too long ago."

She was angry and not because of my attack. She was angry because I was right and she wasn't going to tell me why. I now almost knew for sure.

"I'm sorry and I'll back off. I guess you have your reasons, even though I don't know what they are. I'll make all of the plans for the dinner next month and you can just relax and let me do the worrying. I'm sorry about the crack about our sex life. I'll just wait till you tell me you're feeling better."

With that, I got up and left the room. I went into my study and turned on the TV. There was nothing on I wanted to watch but I needed the time to decide what to do. I decided that my trip next week was the key. She and Bill would be too cautious to do anything while I was home since Serena was now alert to my awakened suspicions. She certainly didn't think I knew anything but she couldn't be 100% sure. They would be careful.

The next day was Thursday and I went in to work to make a phone call to a friend of mine in the electronics industry. He and I had worked together on some projects and I knew him well enough to confide in him. I told him what I needed and he told me what to buy. I called a supply store he recommended and gave them the order. It was delivered to my office that afternoon. It helps to have friends in the right places.

My plan was simple. I had ten voice activated bugs, all small and innocent looking and easy to plant. I also had two receivers, one single channel, battery operated that had a range of up to a mile and one with a range of just fewer than 300 feet. The short range one would go into the house to monitor all of the bugs but one, one in each room. The other bug would go into her purse and the receiver would be in her car. That way, if she went anywhere in her car, the bug would pick up her conversations in the car and anywhere she carried her purse, and the receiver in the trunk would record up to 5 hours at up to a mile away.

I placed all of the bugs that evening while she went to the drugstore and set the recorder up in the workshop in the basement. I turned on the radio in the spare bedroom and went down to the shop to listen. Perfect! I thought that I would have to wait until she went to bed to plant the one in her car and her purse. Fortunately, she fell asleep early on the couch in the living room so I glued the bug in her purse right then and there and took the recorder to her car. I set it up in the trunk and again did a test. All worked perfectly. Now I was ready.

Friday went by at a snail's pace. I wanted so desperately to listen to what was happening in the house but knew I would have to wait until after dinner to check. I was divided about what I expected to hear. On one hand, I wanted nothing to be on the tape. I wanted my world to remain just as it was: dull, boring, but safe and with a wife who was still true to me and our marriage. On the other hand, I expected to find that was not the case and that she was cheating on me.

That got me to thinking. Why would she cheat? Why had she suddenly stopped our love life? What was the problem and why wouldn't she come to me to see if we could solve our problems? We had been married 25 years and as far as I knew, the first 24 had been wonderful years for both of us. We were very much in love and we had a great life. What had changed? Maybe nothing had changed and I had simply been unaware of her actions? I thought about it all afternoon but found no answers.

That night, our dinner conversation was non-existent and we missed our 'how was your day' conversation earlier. Serena was very moody and seemed to be in another world. I was keyed up and nervous about what I was going to find later. We passed the evening without any more than the mandatory exchanges.

Serena finally said she was going to bed early and went up the stairs to our bedroom. I waited for about an hour and walked up the stairs to look in on her. Her breathing indicated sleep and I went downstairs to the shop. I looked at the recorder and noted it had recorded something. I rewound it with a touch and pushed play.

At first, I heard the sounds of the phone ringing. It was very clear and I knew the recorder was working perfectly. I heard Serena answer. From then on, I only had her side of the conversation but I could read between the lines.

"Hello? This is Serena."

"Why are you calling me now Bill? What do you want?"

"No! You know I won't meet you today or tomorrow. Yesterday was a mistake and I won't do it again. I won't do anything now until he goes out of town next week. He leaves on Wednesday, as always."

"Yes, I want to be with you too, but not till then."

"No, we haven't made love for the last six months. You know that; I told you. I can't make love to him while I am cheating on him with you. No, I will not do that to him! I love him and I always will love him. You're just a distraction now and I think we need to end it soon. I think he's beginning to suspect something."

"It was you who badgered me into this suggesting that he was ignoring me too much."

"I'm not going to compare you with him. I have never wanted anyone else but him until you seduced me."

"I know I went along with it. I have enjoyed it but I think it's time to end it."

"Yes, I'll meet you one more time next week, same time and place. No, I won't give you a blowjob then."

"Yes, you do know."

"Goodbye."

After that there was nothing else except a call from one of our kids that she took later that morning. There were no further calls that afternoon and she didn't leave the house so I didn't need to check the car recorder. I didn't need to check anything else period.

Serena

For her part, Serena was confused. John was acting very strange tonight and he had mentioned Bill several times. Since she had been with Bill that very afternoon, she was immediately on the defensive and she wasn't sure how to relax and not appear guilty. She finally got up and went to the bathroom to give herself time to calm down and convince herself that John knew nothing. How could he?

Why had she agreed to meet Bill today of all days. They had been very careful, meeting only when John had to go to Johnsonville, but today Bill had been very persuasive. They had met for lunch and he had already booked a room in the hotel and he convinced her that a quickie would be OK. She went but hated herself afterwards. She knew that what she was doing was now just a cheap affair. It was never supposed to be like this.

It had all started out about 4 months ago, innocently enough, as lunch with a friend. Bill had discovered that she went to a health club downtown twice a week and that John scheduled his trips to Johnsonville on one of those days. He began to show up every Wednesday at about the time she and some of her friends went to lunch and she soon found herself waiting for him so they could lunch together. Bill was very handsome and he was very appreciative of how she looked just after her exercise program. He made her feel attractive and sexy.

They had been meeting for lunch once a week for a couple of months and for some reason she had never mentioned it to John. Bill had not told his wife either. There was nothing to it at that time and they just enjoyed each other's company. Truth was that Serena enjoyed it much more than she should since she and John had not been together for some time. He was always tired and he ignored her appearance and her needs. She suggested on several occasions that they needed time together without work interfering but he was not receptive to either that or her complaints about ignoring her. He just kept saying that things would get better. They weren't! She didn't know why she had just let it drop. She should have confronted him and made him listen.