Kayleigh shook her head, laughing. “Hold your horses, Kate! It’s just a fantasy – those never really come true, you know. Besides, I’m not sure I’D be able to do it!”
Kate grabbed her shoulders and gave her a playful shake. “You idiot! You might possibly have a chance to have sex with a crazy hot guy and your husband is okay with it – how can you not jump at this? Frig – I will personally come over and slap you silly if you pass this up,” she exclaimed, raising one hand and waving it in the air near her friend’s face.
“I’m not -” Kayleigh broke off, shaking her head. “Disinhibited enough,” she finished.
“You?” Kate laughed in disbelief. “Your frontal lobe is turned off more than anyone I know! You just need to get into the zone.”
“What? Like you? You sex-maniac!” Kayleigh laughed too, zipping her bag closed and taking a swig of water.
“I am just a healthy 30-something woman who has needs like everyone else,” Kate said solemnly. “Like you have. Like Mike probably has – well, except the ‘woman’ part,” she continued, nudging Kaleigh’s shoulder with her own. “And hey – if some of Liam’s needs involve watching you with another guy – then who are we to argue?”
Kate buttoned her coat and grabbed her bag. “Let’s stop by the liquor store. You’ll need a nice bottle of wine for supper tomorrow. Or three. Relax you a bit, get you in the mood…” she left the sentence hang and wiggled her eyebrows suggestively. Kaleigh slapped at her butt, laughing.
“OK Horn-Dog,” she called Kate again. “We’ll go shop for wine. But no promises!” She grabbed her purse and the two women started toward the door. “Although,” Kayleigh said finally, “they do say that ‘everything is twice as nice when you share it with a friend'”.
“More wine?” Kayleigh offered the bottle of Saint-Emilion Grand Cru towards Mike. They were still seated at the dinner table, working their way through the second bottle of red. Kate had suggested the wine as being a perfect pairing for their steak tonight and Kayleigh was pleased with the outcome. Although Liam had initially balked at the idea of barbequing on their snowy back deck, Mike’s good-natured teasing had finally convinced him and the results were well-worth the effort. Kayleigh fiddled absently with the stem of her glass and resolved that barbequing would become a four-season activity from now on.
She sipped her own wine and watched the two men laughing at some remembered story from their youth. It was great to see her husband relaxing and taking some time away from the office – he had promised the entire weekend, for a change. She was lost in her own thoughts when she heard her name.
“…Kayleigh, for instance,” Liam was saying. “She’s not overly controlling like some women. I can go out for a night with the guys – or even lunch with a woman friend – and she’s okay with it.” He ran a calloused hand up her forearm where it was resting on the table. “You need to find a SANE woman, Mike,” he finished.
“I don’t know if sane is a word you can use to describe me,” Kayleigh laughed as she stood and started clearing the table. “My friend Kate would argue with you with about that!” She dropped a light kiss on Liam’s head, ruffling his short-cropped blond hair as she moved into the kitchen with their plates.