Time for Love?

Time for Love?  A Saturn Herald Short Story by Penny Nair Price.

Bob and Jessie were in love – they’d been in love for years and had a weekly tryst at a fairly top London hotel which lasted a matter of hours only as they were both married to other people with children and weren’t planning to ever marry each other, at least not until their children had grown up.

Their “cover stories” meant Bob was doing solo walks in London to alleviate the stress which built up at work in a big Finance company and meant his wife Rita could not get any evidence from friends or colleagues as Bob went “solo” every Friday evening, before getting the last train home from Charing Cross station.

Jessie – who worked with Bob but kept up a pretense of hardly knowing him in a very busy office told husband Greg that she worked as a private counsellor to teenagers on their way to college and London locations for the work varied enormously so Greg, unsuspicious anyway, would find it very difficult to check up on her.  When school holidays came, Jessie would counsel in coffee bars near to where each potential student lived but always in the boundaries of London.

Jessie never wore perfume on a Friday – in case the scent went onto Bob’s clothes.  Once their love tryst was over until the next time, she would spray it on from a bottle in her bag.  Jessie and her husband Greg got on really well.  Greg would use Friday evenings for a carpentry project or to fix his bikes, or take the children to a film.

Bob’s wife Rita had her neighbours round every Friday for Prosecco and knitting, sewing, jewellery or art projects so she was glad to have Bob off her back one night a week at least.

So Fridays came and went.  The Hotel knew Bob and Jessie who checked in as Mr. and Mrs. Green.  They were always pleased to see them.  Bob paid for the room with cash and they were allowed to bring their own drinks with them as off-peak they were still the best and most reliable customers. It was a three and a half star hotel in central London but quite a few miles from where they worked.  They would leave work separately and then meet later at their venue.

Once the room door was closed, Bob would gently press his beloved Jessie against the door and spread his hands in all the places that were his known trigger zones to give her an erotic sensation and ecstasy.  Jessie would bury her lips in Bob’s neck and slowly undress, kiss, and caress him, and then together they would move to the bed.  The curtains were always drawn so they could not attract any unwanted attention, being that they were in a big bustling city.

What they had to drink would vary but a well-known brand of Rose wine was one of their pleasures, together with chocolates which they fed each over while they lay down together.  There would be two glasses for the wine and soft lighting made their intimacy a real delight.  It was at least more luxurious making love with each other because of the naughtiness of their deceit and the longstanding nature of their secret affair.  The stolen moments and the excitement of knowing no one suspected their relationship at home or at work was an ecstatically pleasing part of their loving union.

Bob caressed Jessie’s shoulder-length wavy hair as they lay side by side propped up on plump red velvet cushions on a tapestry bedspread, and kissed her tenderly first on her cheeks then on her lips.

“I think we should raise our glasses to how many years is this? Seven and a half? God – you’re still as beautiful or MORE so than the day I met your sugar plum.  But I need to say Jessie baby one day I want to make you mine ALL mine…I can hardly wait from one week to the next to see you.  Do you think we could maybe book a little holiday together?  We could go somewhere remote – a lovely little Greek Island.  We could get a boat over with some provisions and wine and just the two of us could spend a week in a lovenest?”

“Oh, Bob! I feel the same.  It’s like the opposite of a seven-year itch! I don’t know how I can leave you to go home tonight.  Your power over me is so strong. You’re not just my lover, you are my friend, my father figure, my alpha and omega. “

Suddenly Jessie started to sneeze and she couldn’t stop.

“What’s the matter sugar plum?” bleated Bob, and he grabbed a tissue for Jessie then found he was doing the same – sneezing uncontrollably and then coughing. To quieten down the noise of sneezing and coughing, Bob reached for the remote and put on the TV just as the six o clock news was being broadcast. By this time, Jessie was coughing loudly and quickly.  Tears started to spurt from her eyes.

The news came on at the same time as there was a knock at the hotel room door.  Rob told Jessie to put her blouse on and as he answered the door, she was still coughing.

“Yes – can I help you?” There was a senior looking man with a mask on and latex gloves there. Rob recognised him from the hotel reception regular staff.

“Good evening Mr. Green. I am afraid you won’t be able to leave the hotel tonight.  All travel is cancelled and any guests in the hotel especially people coughing and sneezing showing the sign of the virus will have to self isolate here for at least a week.  We will ensure you and your “wife” get meals brought to you every day. You can call down to reception with any questions from the phone by the bed. But….if you try to leave, there will be police outside the hotel who have been told to arrest you.” The man smiled then pushed the door at Rob and walked away.

In the background, Rob, and Jessie, who was standing behind him staring at the hotel staff,  could hear the television broadcast about the Corona Virus in full blast.  It confirmed all those with symptoms would have to self isolate in the premises they were in for a week. Rob shot a glance at Jessie who was standing behind him still sneezing and coughing and rolled his eyes to heaven and then smiled.

Jessie just managed to raise her hands to heaven then clasped them together in a kind of awesome spectacle that if her pose had been a picture, it would have spoken at least a thousand words.

The door closed.  “What to do Rob?  I’ve no other clothes with me nor have I got a phone charger.”

“Well, the same goes for me,” blurted Rob who had just managed to stop coughing, his face almost a pinkish violet hue.

“We’ll be seen OK for food and stuff and we’ve got an en suite.”

But they then started  the sentence together…”It’s a bit of a long way from a tiny Greek island and a love nest just for two………”

“First things first…we’ve got to make a plan to tell our families a story,” spurted Rob.

“Then – my darling Jessie, if we live through the virus, which I am confident we will, we are going to have ONE WEEK together.  It’s just important that our families don’t know where we are, or what we are doing….just that we’ll be back with them in a week or so…”

Jessie squirmed and wriggled on the bed.

“OK.  Let’s sit down and sort this out.  So the rest of the week we have to stay here will be a “love in” and we MUST have wine…”

“Oh yes,” said Rob…”We MUST have wine…”

“Our dream prayer and wish for a week together has been answered.  But in a very strange way…” cooed Jessie.

“Yes – in a VERY strange way” bleated Rob.

Rob joined Jessie on the bed and put his arm around her shoulders.

“Well Jessie, we were eventually going to get married when our kids grew up, but for now we’ll stick with a plan to dupe your husband and my wife.”

Rob grabbed his briefcase and took out a brand new sheet of A4 paper.

“No computers, tablets, or Ipads.  You and I can come up with a plan right here and right now.  And never forget I love you and you love me.  Whatever now happens in the next week, let’s stick together.” The couple embraced deeply with tongues. They adored each other.

And then my readers,  Rob and Jessie ordered a bottle of champagne from reception and began to work on their plans for the next week which they had titled on their A4 Sheet…”The Corona Virus Love In Plan”.