Glasgow
Friday, 1st June 2018
I sat at the table, looking around at the large number of people in the function room, absently wondering how many had attended because it was a special night out, and how many had simply turned up because there was a free bar for a while, paid for by the company. The dance floor was full, so a lot of them were enjoying themselves. I was also pleased that, from the following Monday, I’d be working from home as a freelancer, so as and when I wished.
“Karl, you lucky sod,” a woman said as she joined me and passed me one of the two drinks she was carrying. “Brandy and Coke is your poison, isn’t it?”
“It is, Cheryl, and thank you.” I pushed away the empty glass I’d had in front of me and sipped from the fresh one. “Are you jealous of me getting out of the office environment and the rat race?”
“Too right I am,” she said, laughing. “And at fifty, you’re young enough to enjoy life.”
“Well, I thought that while I could afford it, I might as well take the option of working from home when the notion took me, and treat it like early retirement.”
“I’m forty, so god only knows when I’ll retire.”
“Are you really forty … I thought you were much younger?”
“Don’t you start flirting with me, just because we won’t be working together any more.”
“Seriously, I didn’t think you were more than thirty.”
“Well, that’s kind of you to say, so I’ll let you off.” She grinned. “Why are you sitting alone?”
“Lauren is up dancing with one of the young guys from the advertising department, and the other three couples from our table are up there too, all squeezed among the throng of gyrating bodies.”
“I recall from the Christmas party that you didn’t hit the dance floor.”
“When I was in my teens and twenties, I was known to dance, but not since.” I paused. “I’m surprised that an attractive woman like you isn’t in demand to dance with all the eligible guys.”
“I told you not to flirt.” She laughed and sipped her drink. “Do you have any immediate plans for your extra freedom?”
“I’ve always wanted to write a novel, so I’ll finally have time to get started.”
“Do you know much about the craft, or which genre you’d try?”
“Obviously my article writing is handy, and I read a lot, but it takes different creative writing skills to write books.” I laughed. “I’ve built a small reference collection, and I’ve been practising with short stories. I won’t be a stranger to it when I get underway.”
“Will Lauren be reducing her hours, so that you have more time to enjoy together?”
“That was the plan when we discussed my decision to end my contract, but though she loves her present job, she’s in the running for the role of national training manager for her company.”
“As I recall, she’s with a top fashion company.”
“Yes, she is. She currently covers Scotland, and there are individuals who cover England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, but the national trainer is moving on and must be replaced. When we discussed it, I pointed out that we were financially stable, so she could finish or reduce her hours if she wanted to. I think she’s holding out for that big job to come her way because she’s always wanted to do it.”
“That would be amazing … but once again, it would surely mean a lot of time away?”
“She’s still keen, and she’s been short-listed, although it’s not common knowledge.”
“My lips are sealed, Karl, and for your sake, I don’t know if I want her to get it.”
“I’m not a selfish person, and she’s only forty, so while she still has the ambition and the opportunity, I wouldn’t hold her back. Sometimes we have to let our loved ones do their thing.”
Cheryl sipped her drink and nodded. “That’s how I thought about things for a long time, but I took it a stage further with my marriage.”
“Your marriage … I thought you were single?”
“I am now, but six months ago, just before I joined this company, I was happily married. Things at home changed, and I set my husband free to enjoy a new lifestyle.”
“Free to enjoy a new lifestyle … that sounds intriguing?”
“I arrived home early one day to find him prancing around the bedroom wearing one of my dresses and high heels.” She paused to sip her drink. “His hair was neatly styled, he was wearing makeup, and when asked, I found out he was wearing a bra, panties and stockings too.”
As if in response to Cheryl’s statement, the music changed again. The crowd on the dance floor continued to enjoy themselves, and I turned to my soon-to-be ex-colleague. “Did it come as a shock, or were there any signs?”
Cheryl half-turned to me. “It was a shock, because I thought our sex life was good, and it never occurred to me that Robert also needed a secret kinky outlet like crossdressing.”
“It must have led to an interesting conversation.” I paused. “Did you tell him to go, or did he suggest leaving?”
“I was pleased and surprised with myself that day.” She smiled. “I told him to get downstairs so we could discuss it, and when he said he’d get changed, I insisted on his being dressed as he was. I asked him about the how and the why, and the how long … you know, as you would.”
“Did he open up to you about it easily, or—”
“Yes, he told me that he’d never truly gotten over his porn addiction, something he’d told me about before we married. The new kinky pastime got underway when he was home alone on a day off. He’d been browsing naughty videos again, and from there, because he had easy access to feminine clothes that would fit … most of my wardrobe, it was a slippery slope. He developed a fetish for wearing my lingerie and high heels.” She slowly shook her head. “Apparently, he’d been borrowing my panties for months to wear under his suits. Anyway, his kinky pleasure reached a new height when he transformed himself fully en femme. I caught him taking selfies all dressed up with makeup applied and hair styled differently.”
“Did he keep his pastime a total secret and only do it at home?”
“No, he didn’t, and I think I’d have dealt with it differently if he had done.” She sipped her drink. “He was on contact websites, and apparently on several occasions went off to another town, changed in the car, and met fellow crossdressers for coffee, or to walk around outdoors while en femme.”
“Wow … but he didn’t go any further … physically ….”
“No, he promised me that he would never have indulged in sex with any of them.” She shook her head and smiled ruefully. “That was probably the only reason I didn’t kick him out right then, in a minidress, stockings and high heels.”
I waved to one of the waiters and ordered another drink for both of us.
Cheryl said, “I’m sorry, Karl. I shouldn’t be unloading all this on you.”
“You’re not unloading anything on me, and it goes without saying that even if I were back at the office on Monday, I wouldn’t say anything to anyone. I’d also like to think that if I had a deep secret, you’d be happy for me to share it with you.”
“I’m sure there must be a few of our colleagues that you could confide in?”
“Strangely, even after so long at the company, I’m not that close to any of them. I don’t know why, but I’ve found you easier to get along with than many of those I’ve known for years.”
“Well, that’s nice to know.” She opened her handbag, took out a pen, and wrote on one of the nearby cardboard beer mats. “With that in mind, this is my mobile number if you ever find yourself needing to discuss something during your days of reduced workload and relaxation.”
“Thank you,” I said, and accepted the mat. “That’s a kind offer, and I appreciate it.”
The waiter appeared at the table with our drinks and left us with a polite nod.
Cheryl sipped her drink. “Do you think I was a bitch, telling Robert to go?”
“No, I don’t, if you thought at the time that it was the right thing to do.” I paused. “Do you regret it, or are you content with your life now?”
“In all honesty, Karl, I’m a bit mixed up. Now, I live alone, don’t have anyone in my life, and on the odd evening, I wonder what it would have been like if I’d allowed him to continue with his kinky pastime and stay. I could, of course, have insisted he only did it when I wasn’t around.”
“Do you think it might have affected your regular sex life, knowing about his pastime?”
She arched an eyebrow. “Honestly, I’ve read about how some married couples have dealt with it, and I sometimes wonder if it might have improved our sex life.”
“Now that’s an interesting thought.” I winked at her and sipped my fresh drink.
Cheryl laughed. “If you ever venture into the world of crossdressing, get in touch, so I can experiment spending time with a man who’s seriously in touch with his feminine side.”
“Are you saying you’ve been tempted by the idea after reading about those couples who indulge while the husband is crossdressed?”
She glanced left and right. “Yes, if I’m honest … but that’s another secret, okay?”
“Cross my heart,” I said, and I’ll keep an eye open for a good-looking crossdresser for you.”
We both laughed, and our conversation drifted to more regular topics, like those in the room around us, how good the atmosphere was, and the world of publishing.
It seemed like the people missing from my table had been on the dance floor for a long time, but when they returned, it was all at once.
Cheryl said, “Here come your table companions, so I’ll get going.” She stood.
“Thank you for joining me,” I said. “I enjoyed our chat, and I will call you sometime.”
“I enjoyed our chat too, and I’ll miss you at work.” She nodded. “Please do call me, Karl.”
As Cheryl walked away, my wife and the others pulled back their chairs, sat down, and every one of them reached for their drinks, panting after their fun exercise on the dance floor.
Lauren said, “I’m sure I ought to know the attractive blonde you had all to yourself?”
I laughed. “It was Cheryl from the editorial section, and you’ve met her.”
“Actually, I do remember her. It was at the magazine’s Christmas function, and she was lovely.” She met my gaze. “Didn’t you two get on particularly well at work?”
“We did indeed. Both Cheryl and Mitch, another of our new editors, joined us in November, so they were quite new to the magazine at Christmas. I got on famously with both of them.”
“Isn’t it strange how you can have a large number of colleagues that you’ve worked with for years, but you only hit it off socially with a handful?”
“Yes, and I recall we discussed that same topic not long ago, and you only have two or three people at your head office that you particularly like.”
Lauren nodded. “Andrea, James, and Eddie. They’re all area managers, and when there are maybe ten people or more at a meeting, it’s those three I end up joining for the coffee break.”
“I suppose the main difference between the two people I like and those you like at your company is that your colleagues are closer to your age. Cheryl and Mitch are younger than I am.”
“Andrea is about my age, but the biggest difference now, of course, is that after this evening, you won’t be working alongside any of these people.” She laughed.
We clinked glasses and toasted my imminent farewell to commuting and the office.
I’d already had a chat with several people, so as it neared the end of the evening, we finished our drinks, said goodnight to those at our table, and quietly left to catch a taxi home.
I couldn’t stop thinking about Cheryl’s ex-husband and his secret crossdressing pastime, and when Lauren got into bed, I found myself admiring the black diaphanous babydoll nightie she wore. We kissed goodnight, and without a hint of intimacy, Lauren rolled over and fell asleep. For a while, I lay on my back, trying to remember when we last had sex more often than every other month.
I recalled that the lack of sex was what drove me to browse porn whenever I got the chance. As I lay there thinking of how I dealt with my regular sexual frustration, I wondered what the lovely Cheryl might have said earlier, if I’d confessed to having something in common with her Robert. I sometimes borrowed a pair of Lauren’s panties to have a kinky wank.
So far, I’d never gone any further than wearing panties, but I wasn’t sure if I’d be capable of going as far as Cheryl’s ex-husband. It was my last conscious thought before sleep took over.
***
Katya Cumming Erotica 