The Art of Lust

The weather this evening calls for an outdoor (preferably rooftop) dinner with candles and rose petals scattered all over the floor, sweet red wine and juicy conversation. All that is possible, if I pulled some strings. However, I have an art exhibition to attend with my new, yummy friend. I decided to wear a lacey but classy red cocktail dress, minimal make up and red stilettos. It may be a bit much for the occasion, but I have a game plan to work, and impressions are vital for it to work out. I don’t have to worry about betraying Morena just yet, because I don’t plan on doing anything mischievous with Zeus tonight. Tonight, we are just two good friends going out and having a good time. Harmless fun.

Zeus’ driver pulled up to the driveway around 18:55 in a classic black Merc, much like Morena’s car. I gather my things, and head out to the front door to find Zeus standing outside the car with a massive bouquet of roses in hand. He looks amazing in his off-white suit, cream-colored shirt and white sneakers. He doesn’t have a tie on, so his built chest is exposed. It makes him look sexy, and I’m doing my best not to fall for this man because I am married. I’m sure you’re getting annoyed by me mentioning this and trust me when I say I’m just as annoyed because I must remind myself of this too. I approach the car, grab the flowers after thanking him for them and give him a hug. He smells delicious. I feel like he is really doing his best to make sure I end up in bed with him, and it just might work if he has any more tricks up his sleeve…

“My lady, you look absolutely stunning. Every detail of you look complements the other, and hats what makes you flawless. I hope you’ve taken coffee before leaving because it’s going to be a long night. Have you told your mom you’ll be out late?”, Zeus says to break the silence.

“Yeah, she knows I’ll be out. I let her know of this about six years ago, she hasn’t expected me back since. Thanks for the concern. Let’s go!”, I responded.

A large part of the night was filled with awkward introductions and conversations about the art pieces in the gallery. All the pieces were abstract, and I couldn’t interpret any of them. If there was ever a moment when I felt black, it was then. I smile my nervous smiles at strangers whose names I won’t remember and laugh awkwardly at the remarks Zeus has about the pieces we have seen. I can barely hear anything he has to say, because he looks amazing. His smile just makes butterflies in my stomach flutter, which is a feeling I haven’t felt in a long while. In fact, everything I feel with Zeus I haven’t felt in a while. This experience feels so new yet so familiar. I want to bring myself to the reality of my marriage as a reminder to stay faithful, but I don’t want to because this is bliss. This is my new happy place. Zeus, he is my new happy place. After the exhibition, we leave for a late dinner at the nearest Italian restaurant. I’ve been craving pasta for weeks, so it seemed just about right choosing this place. Lo and behold, we found ourselves on the rooftop of the restaurant, thanks to his reservation, where candles and rose petals have been left out on the floor. Wishes sure do come true when you’re around the right person.

“So, tell me why you’re single, Zeus. How is it that one of DRC’s most eligible bachelors is single?”

“I was in a long-term relationship for about five years. We lived together, shared everything together and loved each other very much. The end of the road came when she had to leave for the USA for work. She had been promoted and had to work at the company’s new offices in LA, and she wasn’t about to let anything get in the way of that. I also refused to move out there because my businesses are based here, so we amicably parted ways. In case you’re wondering, we still talk but not often. In a week, we talk about once in our Twitter DMs, nothing major. Why are you single?”

I paused, took a deep breath, and said…

“I’m single because I don’t like being betrayed. My last relationship ended because he cheated on me with his PA. We’d been dating for six years before being married for three years. After losing our baby, things got weird and we lost the spark we once had. I found comfort in journaling, he found comfort between his PA’s thighs. So, we got divorced and moved on. The house you picked me up at was ours, and now I live in it alone.”, I responded.

I had to lie… There is no way I am throwing away my shot at happiness (no matter how temporary) away just yet.

“That’s unfortunate. Did he even bother to fight for you?”

“Couple’s therapy. But it made me angrier than it healed me, so I stopped going and filed for divorce.”

“Wow, okay… Well, I hope you find happiness someday. I would hate to see a beautiful woman such as yourself sad and lonely for the rest of her life. I want to believe you’re a good woman, and a good woman deserves a good man. Make sure you choose a good man next time, or I’ll be mad at you on your behalf.”, he said with a smile. That killer smile that gets me every time. I struggle to pull my lips back from his every time he flashes a smile at me. Anyway, we have dinner then head out clubbing. I haven’t been in this game for years, and it felt good to just drink and dance the night away. Better still, I did that with someone other than Morena, who would have complained throughout the night about how noisy the club is and how women were not dressed classy. He can be annoying sometimes…

The night went on, with more drinking and dancing. Zeus and I had a moment where we were holding each other, looking into each other’s eyes and feeling the moment we were in. I’m so tempted to kiss him, but the better half of me chose to push him away instead, turn around and let him hold me while my back is facing him. Almost immediately, his arms wrap around my body, his chest rests on my back and I faintly hear him say something I couldn’t make out, so I just turned to face him, gave him a peck on the cheek, broke our embrace and walked towards our table. He followed behind me, and every time I turned back to check on him, I saw him checking me out as I walked. It felt flattering seeing a man admire and look at me the way Zeus does. I loved it! We stayed in the club for another hour before calling it a night. Zeus was kind of sloshed and told his driver not to take him home because he won’t be able to punch in the code for his alarm in that state. His driver suggested hotel, and before he could even accept the suggestion, I suggested that he crash at my place. I had two guest bedrooms that have been gathering dust for weeks, so it made sense to save the man some money and let him crash there. We got to my place, I dragged him to his room for the night, undressed his Greek-god body down to his briefs, got him into bed and tucked him in. I went to my room, took a quick shower and slept.

The next morning, I heard activity downstairs, so I got into my gown and left my room to see what was happening. I found Zeus cooking in his underwear and one of my aprons. I thought to myself, “This is a view I can definitely wake up to”. I snapped out of that thought quick, went back upstairs to prepare for work and come back down when I was done. Zeus said he made breakfast to thank me for helping him settle down after last night. After breakfast, he took a shower and got dressed for work. On our way out the house, we bumped into Lesedi. Shit! I forgot that I had planned to carpool with her for work.

“Hey now! Moving so fast already?”, Lesedi exclaimed.

“Lesedi! I forgot about our carpool arrangement. I am so sorry. Zeus, meet my best friend Lesedi. Lesedi, this is Zeus. The guy I told you about the other day…”

“Yes, yes! Of course. Hi, Zeus! You look… Rested.”, Lesedi said with a suggestive smile.

“Chom, I still have to drop you off so let’s leave or we’ll both be late. Zeus, thanks for everything. I’ll keep in touch.”

Zeus, being the smart man he was, took the hint and gave Lesedi a nod before getting into his car and driving off. The conversation with Lesedi was awkward. She wouldn’t believe that nothing happened since he “looks much yummier in person than on Instagram”, according to her. I’m surprised I didn’t do anything either, but I must honour my husband as much as possible. Sounds weird saying that, because I should be honouring him completely, but we’re past that point now. I got to the office, and after putting my things down a text message from Morena comes in.

Oh shit… He knows…