Cheri--Part Two

September 1988 to October 1989.

"Okay then...."
"Wow."
"I was going crazy I missed you so much."

We picked up right where we left off. Cheri started coming over twice a week. Her business had done so well that she employed a staff of eight part-time employees and was in the black. Her marriage was another story.

She was fed up with her husband. He still wasn't supportive and even though his daughter was older and in school, he wanted Cheri to "sell high", and take the money and run. Finally, she decided to come to the one guy who had supported her all along: me.

I wasn't about to argue. I wanted to marry her. But I didn't dare ask. I know when to be greedy and when not to be. Well, maybe not; a few weeks earlier, I had been running away like a scalded dog.

Whatever the case, I could position myself to have it all. A great job, a great lover, and a girlfriend. Sure, I had to find one, but that wouldn't present any problem now, would it? I could still play around with Cheri and other women while I looked for one.

Jim took care of that, introducing me to a single girl named Caylie in October of 1988.

Caylie completed the trifecta. A girlfriend, a married lover, and lots of girls on the side. Lots of women, and Cheri was at the top of my list. She knew I fucked around, but what could she say? She was still fucking her husband. I had every right to sleep with other women. All she asked was that I always use a condom. That was fair enough.

One night Cheri dropped by with some papers for me to look over. She had landed an exclusive account to cater a local company's executive meetings and parties. Lots of money, and she wanted to make sure everything was on the up and up.

Caylie and I had just finished some serious fucking when Cheri arrived. I let Cheri in and introduced her to Caylie. Everything was fine--although a bit awkward for me.

Caylie headed off and Cherie put the papers down on the table.

"So, how long have you been seeing her?"
"A few weeks."
"Like her?"
"Yes."
"Okay. She seems nice. That's cool."

I told her that I'd look over her papers and give her a call when they were done. She smiled, gave me a kiss and left. Cool. My married girlfriend approved of my "regular" girlfriend. Life was good.

A few weeks later, I decided to really, as Montgomery Burns of The Simpsons would put it, "wallow in my crapulence."

I had just completed work on a personal injury case and the attorney was so happy with the lawyers and paralegals assigned to the case, he handed all of us big fat bonuses. Bonuses in the thousands.

I felt I could do no wrong. I was fucking invincible. I had a huge chunk of change in the bank. I had lawyers calling me for my services and could work for whoever the fuck I wanted. And best of all, I could fuck just about any woman I wanted.

Ah, but that weekend I was feeling self-indulgent. Well, more so than usual. And I wanted to celebrate. So I scored some pot (something I rarely did) and bought several bottles of Crown Royal and lots of beer. And I called two bi girls who loved smoking weed and drinking.

There names were Jen and Sally. I had met them at Chaffey (of course) several years back. And the three of us became fast friends. I was able to get a couple of threesomes with them that quarter and it was an absolute blast. Whenever I wanted a threesome with them, all I had to do was score some pot and invite them over. They were roommates, friends, and lovers.

But while I liked them, they could be a headache. Both were wild and only tolerable on occasion. This just happened to be one of those occasions.

And why not? Mr. Lucky just had to call and he'd get a weekend of pure hedonism. And my luck held out. These two were great girls and they loved smoking pot. And I had a nice fat bag of it for them to toke on.

The following Friday night, they came over and were ready to party.

Jen started stripping and laughed and said, "Do we fuck before, during, or after (the pot)?"

I tossed the bag and said, "Start now and don't stop till Sunday night." Sally smiled and said, "Excellent."

Oh, I got fucked that weekend. I ate pussy like crazy and my cock was never dry. These girls partied and fucked like crazy. I smoked a little of the pot, mostly helping myself instead to the Crown Royal.

Pizzas were ordered and clothing was banned. These girls rarely fucked guys, so when they did, they went at it hard (no pun intended). If I met these girls now, at my age, I'd get a fucking doctor's clearance first.

The following Monday I spent recovering and cleaning up my apartment. I vacuumed, washed the drapes, mopped, cleaned the kitchen...... Cheri came over around 3:30 and didn't suspect a thing. And neither did Caylie when she came over the following Tuesday.

The next year went very smoothly. I dated Caylie for about eight months until she moved back to her home state of North Carolina. She was a blast. Cute, 20 years old, incredible in bed, and as laid back as could be.

But I didn't want to settle down with her, and she didn't want to get serious with me, either. So we went our separate ways. Soon after, I started dating a divorced lady  named Caryl.

Cheri and I slipped back into our familiar routine where she'd come over a couple of times a week. Her business was extremely successful (and still is, to this day) and she was content. Things were good.

And if any other women wanted to meet for fun, you know where I stood on that.

In October, though, Cheri came by and ended our relationship for the second time, although she didn't phrase it that way.

"We need to cool it for a bit, honey."
"Why?"
"He's getting suspicious. I have too much to lose if I'm caught. The kid, half my business....."
"Okay. How long?"
"Not sure. But strictly business for the meantime. And we have to meet at my office if something needs to be done."

Meh. A break. Been there, done that. But hey, her call.

"Okay."
"Cool. We'll pick it up again as soon as we can."

And she split.

October 1989 to March 1990.

I liked Cheri. I liked her alot. But at some point you have to cut bait. Caryl and I were getting along okay. She was divorced and in her early thirties.

But this "cooling off" period with Cheri never made sense. If he was suspicious in October, why would that change in a few months? Oh well. It's not like I was going without sex.

In January, though, I'd get my answer about Cheri.

I dropped by her office to bring back her lease. Time for renewal and she had me review it. I walked in and the place was deserted. This wasn't really too odd, except that the receptionist wasn't there. I went to the back to see if everything was okay. Maybe a robber had stopped by, whatever.

Trust me, there was no rabbit in that hat!

I stepped into the back and heard some rustling. I followed the sound into a back room and saw Cheri and some guy kissing.

"Having fun?"

She looked up.

"Oh shit...."
"Relax."

The guy just about freaked.

"Dude, it's cool. I didn't see anything, okay?"

He calmed down a bit and said, "Thanks."

I looked at Cheri and said, "Give me a call later. Your lease is on the front desk. And for fuck's sake, lock the door. Are you trying to get caught?"

Cheri decided to do just that.

"Be right back, Mark."

She walked up front.

"Sorry. I wasn't honest with you."
"No big deal. Where'd you meet him?"
"Client."
"Mistake #1."

She bristled and said, "That's how you met me."

True.

I walked out the door and she said, "Sorry. I....uh....sorr."

I wasn't mad. I would've preferred her telling me that she wanted to pursue an affair with this guy, but I think she had been trying to spare my feelings.

March 1990 to January 1991.

By the time March rolled around, Caryl was long gone, having caught me having an affair with her friend, Hillary. To those of you who say I'm bad, I have two things to say to you: One, Carol didn't knock and walked right in, and; two, her friend was really, really cute.

Soooooooo in March, Cheri called me and asked me to come over. I hadn't heard from her since that day I saw her kissing Mark and wasn't sure I really wanted to bother.

However, ever since her business took off, she paid me handsomely for the work I did for her. And while I may be a total hound, I'm also a money-grubber. The way I figure it, this was the least of my faults. So when she called, I agreed to come over.

I drove down and she smiled and took into her office.

"So......I missed you."
"Is that why you haven't called since I walked in on you?"
"Um.....I handled that badly. I'm sorry."
"So why'd you have me come down? I'm due in Rialto in a bit."
"Wanna start up again?"

Oh for......

"What happened to Mark?"
"His wife caught us in a motel."
"Ouch."
"Yeah. It wasn't pleasant. She blamed me and said if I didn't stay away from her husband that she'd tell my husband."

So.....I'm second fiddle? Fuck that. I didn't mind her getting some from other guys, but don't cut me off, lie about it, and then expect me to come back like a starving dog.

"Um....so......"
"Cheri, I think we've run our course."
"Excuse me?"
"We're done."
"Just like that?"
"Just like that? You've ended it twice."
"So the fact that I'm married.....all of a sudden is a problem? That sometimes I can't just meet you?"
"No, the problem is that you lied and the only reason you want me back is because your boyfriend's wife caught you fucking him."

Cheri didn't appreciate my take on the situation.

"That's bullshit. With our history, you're just walking away because of one lie?"
"No. Nobody's perfect. It wasn't just the lie. We've been involved for what, almost three years? We were together.....stopped......got back together....stopped.... It's just run its course, Cheri."
"Okay. Fine. We'll end it. And I think I'll be getting myself a real lawyer as well. I need a bit more than you can offer."
"Oh ouch. That really hurts, Cheri. I'm wounded. A 'you're not a real lawyer' joke. That's fine. I have more to offer than reviewing your stupid leases. And you go get yourself a real lawyer and enjoy paying 200 bucks an hour. I charge you sixty, max."
"Get out."
"With pleasure."

I didn't intend for it to end that way, I really didn't. But I was tired of getting jerked around by a woman I had done so much for. I had not only helped her with the legal stuff when she started her business, but with other issues as well. I helped her find a bank to partially fund her start up. I had given her name out to business people I knew through my work and Jim's. I had served as a sounding board for her ideas. Enough was enough.

We never did officially bury the hatchet--it kind of buried itself. Once in awhile I'd find myself at a lunch she was catering. And we always gave each other that nod and smile you give an acquaintance.

I never stopped throwing Cheri's business out as a suggestion to people who were in need of her services. She was very, very good and it made me look good when she completed a job. One day, in January 1991, I was working on a temporary assignment for a large law firm in Orange County. It was a huge firm and they were holding one of those lame company picnics that businesses think their employees love but secretly hate wasting part of a weekend on.

One of the senior partners, who loved me for some reason, nodded to the flier one day in the lunch room and said, "You know you're invited, right Ryan?" That was cool. I'd go, of course. Good for business.

"You got a caterer?"
"No, we've decided to try someone else"
"Got anyone in mind?"
"A couple, why?"

I took out Cheri's business card and handed it to him.

"Call this lady. You'll thank me. She's fantastic. Specializes in catering for business events."

Cheri got the job. I didn't see her at the picnic, but I did eat well. And later that week, I got home from work and found a box of food on my doorstep.

The note said, "Thank you. For everything."

So I called her and thanked her. And she asked again if I wanted to see her. And this time I said yes.

January 1991 to October 1991

And we were on the roller coaster again. Cheri settled into her old routine of stopping by twice a week and I resumed seeing other women when she wasn't around.

The sex was incredible, as always. And taking a page from the business world, it was "at will". Either could end the relationship for any reason. No reason needed. That was the way we should've done it all along.

And Cheri exercised that right in October. She didn't need to give a reason, but she did. Her business just kept growing and growing and she just ran out of time for our fun.

But a few months later, she was on my doorstep again. And we ended up heading straight to the bedroom.

This time though, it wasn't steady. The relationship settled into a "friends with benefits" type of thing rather than a romantic affair. That was finished. But we were always attracted to each other. So we'd fuck a lot for a period of time, then it would drop off.

I saw Cheri on and off until I started getting serious with Alex in January of 1993. Cheri gracefully bowed out of the picture and gave me a hug and a kiss and wished me well.

Alex and I had been married for a couple of months when she took a trip up to Fresno for a few days to visit a girlfriend from college. I was lonely, so this time I called Cheri.

"You sure, baby? You're married now......"
"Definitely. Come over tonight?"
"I...hmmmmm......let me make a call."
"Okay."

She called a few minutes later.

"Okay. I changed my plans. Just for you. Let's have some fun. Been too long."
"Whenever's good for you."
"Be there around six."

And that's how it ended up. Over the next several years, we ended up getting together whenever one of us wanted to get laid. Cheri had a couple of guys on the side, and that was fine by me. We last slept together in February of 1998.

We still talk. She's divorced now and has no intention of remarrying. "Been there, done that." Ellen is all grown up and married with a family of her own.

The divorce was amicable. Her husband didn't want to take any of her business. He was pretty successful in his own right and they just split their assets right down the middle. She ended up buying a huge house in San Antonio Heights, an area just north of Upland, and hired Jim to do some serious work (he jokes that Cheri gave him enough business to purchase his own house in the area).

I'm trying to get her to fly out here for a visit. It's been far too long.