Donald’s legs burned as he did his last set of squats for the morning. “Great job Coach, you have really been getting after this spring!” said one of his senior basketball players. 

Donald smiled and said, “Just trying to get back into shape.”  

Morning weights with the team used to be something Donald had given to an assistant coach, but for the past six weeks, he had been working out with the students every day. It was beginning to show and he felt great. He grabbed his phone on his way to his first period class and texted Kay, his wife of nearly a dozen years:  

“Morning honey! Have a great day!”  

Kay heard the buzz of her phone and looked down. She read the text, thought for a moment, and then finished checking herself out in the mirror.  

“Not bad for a forty-five-year-old,” she thought as her mind was racing with so many conflicting thoughts. She loved Donald. She did. But…

She had chosen an outfit she had not worn in quite a while. She did look good today, very good.  

The skirt she chose had always accentuated her bubble butt shaped by the past few years of yoga. Donald LOVED it when she wore it.

The snug top showed off her beautiful curves that were courtesy of their eight-year-old twins and showed just enough cleavage.  

She decided to wear a light button-up long sleeve over the top to remain professional most of the day. She grabbed her phone. 

“You too, Happy Friday!”  

Kay’s stomach was full of butterflies. Her boss, Andy, had made plans to take her to dinner tonight.

Donald HATED her boss. In his view, Andy was everything he wasn't–smarmy, smug, rich, and completely full of himself. Donald hated Andy’s designer suits, perfect hair, and dismissive attitude.

“I don’t like that guy,” Donald told Kay after the Christmas party.  

“Oh stop, Andy is harmless. He's so nice, and he’s helping my career so much!” she replied. 

Donald hated how Andy looked at Kay. He hated how Andy gave him a smirk that said “There is nothing you can do about it” when Donald caught him looking at Kay’s ass as she walked away.  

He hated how Andy’s voice dripped with contempt when he called him “Coach”. “Hello Coach, it’s sooo nice to see you again.”   

Donald knew when people were fake, it was a gift (and a curse), but Kay saw none of it; she almost had a little crush on her thirty-five-year-old boss.  

Donald was embarrassed by how bubbly and excited his wife had gotten talking to her boss after a couple of glasses of champagne at the party.  

The ride home from that Christmas party did not go as Donald had hoped it would. Kay thought Donald was being ridiculous. “You are jealous over nothing!” she told him.

Donald sighed. Another date night strikeout. The couple used to have an amazing sex life. The crazy sex of their early thirties was not going to happen that night. He had hoped some champagne would help them return to the “glory days” but all it did was make his wife more irritated with him.

Fourth period ended and Mr. Anthony sent his Government students to lunch. Donald grabbed his stuff and walked briskly to the locker room to change. He changed quickly into his shorts and t-shirt, grabbed his airpods, and went out the door.  

Time for his lunch run. As he started at a good pace, he thought about his wife and their relationship. It had gotten….mediocre. 

 Nothing was wrong, but nothing was awesome either. It has been almost six weeks since Spring Break. That was the last time they had sex. “What has gone wrong?” he thought.

 Donald rounded a corner and braced himself for the last big hill of the run. He knew he was part of the problem. A college athlete, he had gained fifty pounds since college (granted he was rather skinny in college). Donald did not feel good about himself and his physique, so that in turn hurt their love life. He did not think his wife wanted him like that, hence the new workout routine. 

Kay had become a yoga instructor a few years back, in addition to her sales job and she walked regularly. Donald thought she looked better than ever. This made him even more self-conscious.

That led to the last six weeks. Morning workouts, lunch runs, super healthy lunch during his prep period, and finally another short workout with his last period weight training class. He had lost fifteen pounds and had turned some of his belly into muscle.  

He felt great about his body, but less so about his relationship with his wife.  

“When was the last time she texted me first?" he thought. “When was the last time she initiated sex? When was the last time she wanted to cuddle? Why doesn’t she want me anymore?”

He had been trying for the past few weeks to improve things. Random lovey texts, a spa day on a Saturday for her, a conscious, random touch of her shoulder, or that round ass he loved so much. More compliments, and he made sure to ask about her day and really listened to her.  

But nothing worked. She wasn’t distant, but she wasn’t close. She wasn’t mean in any way, but she sure wasn’t returning the affection like she used to before. Donald knew he needed to act and he needed to do it now.

Kay got to the office and settled into her office. The administrative assistant Page gave her a little whistle as she walked in “Looking good girl! Damn!”  

Kay laughed and blushed a little. Page had been with her before her children were born. She wasn’t a close friend really, but they had known each other for a decade and were on great terms. “Coach taking you out tonight??” Page asked.

 “Something like that” Kay mumbled as she walked into her office.  

Page’s oldest son had played in high school for Donald and loved him. “Coach Anthony” had played a big part in her son growing up and maturing in high school. She always had a soft spot for Donald.  

Page gave Kay a funny look as she walked away.  “I wonder what is up with those two? I hope it has nothing to do with that weasel Andy” she thought.

Fifth period ended and Donald started texting people before the students were even out of his classroom. Sixth period was his planning period and he had a plan. He wrote out several texts, made a few phone calls, called in a couple of favors, and even ran to the grocery store next door. When he got back he checked his phone. The replies were quick and all positive.  

“Yes!” 

“Of course!”  

“Happy to help Coach!” 

 “No problem, that works!"  

Donald breathed a sigh of relief. “This is going to work,” he thought. Now to text his wife!

Andy walked into Kay’s office. “Wow, don’t you look amazing?" he said.  

“Oh stop, thank you!” she said.  

His gaze never left her body, a subtle smirk on his face as he knew she had dressed for him today. “I am excited to take you to dinner tonight,” he said. 

“Where are we going?” she asked.  

“Palostos,” he said “only the best for such a fine-looking lady.”  

“Palostos?? I have never been!” she exclaimed. 

 “Why am I not surprised?” he said with an eye roll.  “You deserve dinner like this. Tell ‘The Coach’ you are going to be late” he said with more than a trace of innuendo about where the night would lead.  

With that, he looked at her up and down one more time and left her office. 

“What am I doing?" What am I going to tell Donald?"  she thought to herself. 

 “I’ll just tell him we are working late and all having dinner together. It’s just dinner, right? Oh God, what am I doing? I can't. This is a line. "No, it’s just dinner. Nothing will happen.” 

She knew her boss wanted her, had showered her with compliments for months, and looked at her with lust in his eyes, but she had kept him at bay. She stayed flirty but never inappropriate. She hadn’t crossed any lines…yet.

“It’s just dinner, right? Dinner. At Palostos. Palostos is the best restaurant in town. Totally ok.  Then I go home, right?”

 She convinced herself, or did she? 

She knew Andy wanted her…and it excited her. She loved the look of pure lust in his eyes when he looked her up and down. She felt so…wanted. So powerful. So sexy. But what about Donald, her love? She grabbed her phone to text her husband.  

“Hey honey, I have to work late tonight and we are getting dinner, so can you and the twins get dinner?” 

 Before she could hit send, her phone dinged. It was Donald!  

“Hey baby! Head home at 4:00, pack your bikini, overnight stuff, some comfy clothes, your favorite book, and an outfit to walk in! Leave everything else to me!”  

 She stared at her phone. “What am I going to do?"