Date: Thu, 18 Jan 2007 14:05:45 -0800 (PST)
From: Mickey S <njmcmick@yahoo.com>
Subject: Wrong Turn, Chapter 13

If you are under age, or live in an area where reading stories that include
sex between males is illegal, or if you're not into this type of story,
please leave. This is a fictional story that takes place in a world where
everything is safe. In the real world where many things are not, the
characters would take precautions. Please respect yourself and others
enough to always play safe.

If you have read any of my previous stories you will know that I tend to be
a romantic with a bent toward happy endings. This story starts out as a
potential romance but is one that takes a wrong turn, or so it seems. And
as for the ending, you'll just have to read on. The author retains all
rights.  No reproductions or links to other sites are allowed without the
author's consent. Comments are appreciated at NJMcMick@yahoo.com.

Chapter 13

Once Anne's play was over I had to go back to only spending time with
Carlos once a week, on Thursdays. The first week it felt like torture. Even
though I'd spent Sunday morning with Carlos and then saw him for a few
minutes every morning in the office, I felt so apart from him. And spending
four evenings in a row with Anne only made her grate on my nerves even
more.

It wasn't just the sexual opportunities I missed with him, although I
craved his body all the time. I missed just being with him, talking to
him. I enjoyed that hour at Rick's nearly as much as the time at the
apartment afterward. Carlos seemed to enjoy that part of our relationship,
too, but I kept getting mixed signals from him. I knew he liked me for more
than just sex, but I couldn't tell how deep his feelings went. Were we fuck
buddies in a situation where he could exercise his dominant tendencies, or
was it more than that? Sometimes he seemed to really care about me, but
then he could just turn it off and be totally impersonal and physical at
others, especially when Jose was around.

I knew I'd fallen for him, although I tried not to think about it. There
was just no future in it. It wasn't just that I was married. Our lives were
totally different. And whatever his true feelings toward me, mine were
obviously stronger. The smart thing would have been to break it off
completely and try to get the life I knew back on track. But Carlos had
shown me a new life, one that meant so much to me, one I enjoyed so
much. And he was at the center of it. I'd never met anyone before whose
entire presence seemed to fit me so perfectly. So even though I knew there
was no future in it, I had to take advantage of the present as much as
possible, to get as much of him into my life as I could. He was the only
thing that made sense to me.

Thursday afternoon we were finally able to talk about the episode in the
park with Kyle.

"I can't believe how well that went, Carlos. How did you know he'd want all
of that and go along with us?"

"Well, I was a bit surprised myself at how well it went. I figured he was
probably gay, but sometimes guys his age are so into denial they fight
it. His blackmailing of you suggested that, like the only way he could act
on his real desires was to be the top, to force someone else to 'service'
him, so he wouldn't seem to be queer. I was thinking that at most I might
get him to suck me and then we could use the pictures to blackmail him,
sort of a stalemate."

"Once he opened up it was all the way, though."

Carlos grinned. "Yeah, kinda like you. Now the only problem may be that
he'll want more. Not that he'll try to force anything anymore but you're
the only guy he knows he can fool around with."

"I think I can handle it if he does get in touch with me now that I know
he's in the closet as much as I am."

"In spite of how well it went I still got plenty pissed off at Jose but he
thinks the whole thing is funny."

"Well, he doesn't like me so he doesn't care how much trouble I get into."

"Sometimes I think he hates you, although I can't imagine why. I mean, he's
angry at how you screwed up my job, but then so was I." I brightened at his
use of the past tense. "I think maybe it's a combination of disliking you
and being able to vent this little sadistic streak he's always had."

"Sadistic is the right word for him. He enjoys having his way with me and
if it hurts or causes trouble for me that's a bonus for him."

"Anyway, we've been fighting over it all week. I've had enough of his
attitude toward you."

That made me feel good, both that Carlos didn't have a bad attitude toward
me and that he was no longer going to let Jose get away with
anything. Still, I felt a little bad that I was coming between the two
friends and I said so.

"Yeah, well we've been friends forever and have had some great times
together but lately I've been thinking we don't know each other very
well. At any rate I told him I've decided not to include him in my fun with
you for a while."

'Fun with me.' I would have preferred a more personal description of our
relationship but at least Jose was out of the picture once again.

Now that we were back to spending so much time together, I concentrated on
trying to make things work better with Anne. For so many years we'd had
what I thought was a good relationship. Not perfect, not great, but pretty
good. While we didn't have many interests in common, we worked well
together as a team since our goals were pretty similar. I wanted to succeed
in my career, partially because success was what I'd been raised for,
partially to satisfy my ego. And the money and social status were pretty
cool too, although not the main thing for me. The money and social status
were a big thing for Anne and for that reason my career was important to
her as well. So I focused on my job and she ran the social things and they
occasionally overlapped.

But Carlos had shown me that a relationship could be so much more than two
individuals working toward goals that somewhat overlapped. There could be a
genuine joy and excitement in each other's presence, a desire to be
together not just for some outside symbols of success, but for personal
fulfillment.

Tuesday morning Carlos was upbeat when he delivered my mail.

"I've got a job interview with Citicorp Thursday afternoon. It's at the end
of the day and in midtown so I'll meet you at Rick's afterwards. You do
know what bus to take to get there, don't you?"

"Yeah, I think I can handle that."

I had a drink while I chatted with Rick. Carlos had said his appointment
was at the end of the day so I didn't expect him for a while. I ordered
another drink and went to the men's room. When I got back to the bar Jose
was sitting next to my barstool talking to Rick. I approached him
tentatively but he seemed friendly enough.

"Hey bro, Carlos called the apartment and said they were running behind
with the interview so he was gonna late. He asked me to come over and tell
you."

"Thanks. Jose. Um, can I buy you a drink?" I didn't really want to but he
was hanging around anyway and acting friendly so I thought maybe I could
show him I wasn't such a bad guy.

"Sure, that's nice of ya." He signaled Rick who brought him a beer.

We sat and sipped our drinks, making awkward small talk. My drink seemed to
hit me pretty hard but then Rick did make them strong and this was my
second on an empty stomach. I was nearly done when Jose suggested we go to
the apartment.

"Carlos said if he wasn't here by six-thirty not to wait here any
longer. Said he didn't want you to get drunk."

Even though spending time alone with Jose in the apartment wasn't something
I looked forward to it seemed better than staying in the bar. At least the
strongest thing the guys ever had on hand to drink was beer. I downed the
rest of my drink, stood up and nearly lost my balance as my head spun.

"Damn," Jose laughed. "How many did you have before I got here?"

"Only one. They don't usually hit me this hard."

"Good thing you're callin' it quits then."

I pulled a twenty from my pocket and tossed it on the bar for Rick, then
turned and tried to very carefully walk out of the bar behind Jose. About
halfway down the block I suddenly felt very woozy and stopped, swaying,
unable to continue without fear of tipping over.

"Shit, are you sure you just had one? C'mon, let me give you a hand." Jose
put an arm around my waist and was practically holding me up and we
continued down the block. By the time we got to the apartment building I
could barely hold my head up and the thought flashed through my head that
someone must have put something in my drink. A few feet from the door I
slumped forward and everything went dark.

The next feeling I had was one of floating, of swaying. It was all I could
do to open my eyes and even then everything was blurry. On some level I
realized I was in a sling and was being fucked. I had to struggle to raise
my head enough to see between my raised legs and didn't recognize the guy I
saw. My head rolled to the side and there was another ugly
stranger. Somewhere in the room I heard Jose laughing, then everything went
dark and silent again.

I woke up again to an excruciating pain in my ass. I felt a bit less groggy
but maybe that was just the pain waking me up. I again tried to raise my
head and this time I saw Jose. He smiled down at me.

"Welcome to the party, fucker. Glad you could join us." He grinned as he
again tried to work something huge into me. I gasped in pain. Just then I
heard Carlos across the room.

"Jose, what the fuck are you doing? What's going on here?"

"Hey bro, just getting' your slave warmed up for ya. No need to get
excited."

"Get your hand away from him! I told you right from the start you could
only play with him when I said so, and I've made it clear that ain't gonna
happen again."

"I'm gettin' sick of you and your rules, bro. This guy fucked your life,
man. You said you were gonna make him pay, that we were gonna share him
with our friends. You said you were gonna abuse him, fist him, use him to
extremes. But lately you've been actin' like a lovesick schoolgirl when it
comes to him. You've gone soft on him so I'm just doin' what you originally
said he deserved."

"It's none of your goddamn business how I treat him. Ryan is mine to do
what I please with. Now get away from him and leave him alone!"

Jose moved away and the pain at my ass immediately subsided. Everything got
blurry again and I felt woozy. As they continued to yell at each other I
passed out again.

Everything was quiet and calm the next time I woke up. I was still in the
sling but my legs were down and my feet were on the floor. My arms were
folded across my chest and there was a cold wet cloth being gently pressed
all over my face. I opened my eyes and Carlos was sitting next to me. He
smiled down at me as he lay the wet towel across my forehead.

"How're ya feeling, Ry?"

"Like shit." I had to work my mouth a couple of times before I could get
sound to come out. "I can barely move and my head feels like it weighs a
ton."

"Think you can help me get you up and to the bed?"

"I'll try."

Carlos stood between my legs and pulled me up to my feet but my legs were
like rubber and I collapsed against him. I was at least able to wrap my
arms around his neck and hang on so he grabbed me around the chest and
dragged me to the bedroom. He managed to get me onto the bed and sat down
next to me.

"Take a nap, Ryan. Try to sleep it off a little. You've got a few hours
before you have to catch your train."

I was still having trouble processing information but I hoped what he said
was true. I was asleep in seconds.

He woke me by gently shaking my shoulder. He helped me up to a sitting
position, propped up by pillows.

"I'll be right back. I put some coffee on."

He was back in a minute with a steaming mug. He had to hold it while I took
a sip.

"So what happened?"

"My appointment ran really late so first I called here to tell Jose and
make sure he was going to be out for the evening. I was gonna call Rick's
to let you know but Jose offered to go tell you so I figured it might be a
chance for him to get to know you a little."

"That's what I thought, too, but obviously he slipped something in my
drink."

"Yeah, he said he gave you a roofie to 'get you in the mood.'"

"So what was that all about? Who were those guys?"

"That was our super and a couple of his friends. I think I told you back
when we first met that sometimes we do favors for him to keep him from
blowing the whistle on us living here in Jose's aunt's apartment."

"And I was a favor?"

"I'm sure Jose didn't have it all planned out. He didn't have time 'cause
he didn't know I was gonna be late until the last minute. He said he ran
into them in the hall downstairs and invited them to join in in exchange
for helping to get you up here. But even without them he was sure gonna
have some fun with you himself until I got here. I guess he thought I'd
just join in."

"So what did they do to me?"

"I don't know for sure but they only had forty minutes or so until I showed
up. I'm sure they all fucked you and then Jose was trying to fist you when
I got here."

"Fuck! No wonder my ass hurt so much. He didn't get his hand in me, did he?
That would tear me up."

"I don't think he was able to do it. Even as drugged as you were you were
probably fighting him."

"Thank God!"

"Besides, Jose has huge hands." He held his hands up and grinned. "Mine are
much smaller. I'm sure you could handle one of them."

"In your dreams, Carlos."

"Anyway, I'd better check out your butt and make sure you're okay."

He rolled me over and examined me, then went into the bathroom for the
lotion he'd used before. It felt so good as he applied it.

"So where is Jose now?"

"I threw him out. Told him to stay away until you were gone."

"Shit! What time is it? I'm never gonna catch my train feeling the way I
do."

"It's only ten, babe. I'm guessing he gave you the roofie around six and
you've been out cold most of the time since then so maybe it'll wear off
soon. Have a few cups of coffee and then I'll go up to Penn Station with
you to make sure you're okay to travel."

"I'd better be able to. I've got to get home. And I've got to call
Anne. I'm going to be a lot later that usual. What can I tell her?"

He picked up the phone and set it down next to me, leaving his hand on it
while he thought. "Tell her we went to a raw bar, you had some clams that
disagreed with you and you've been puking your guts out for hours. Say you
don't want to get on the train until you're sure it's over."

I stared at him. "You come up with these lies so easily. I'm not sure
that's a good thing."

"It's a good thing when they help you. Now call wifey while I get you a
refill on the coffee." He took the mug and left the room while I made the
call.

It was well after midnight when I got off the train in Middletown. I'd had
trouble staying awake on the train and once I got in the car I put the
windows down so the cold air would help.

I didn't even hear the alarm in the morning. Anne had to shake me a long
time to wake me up. When I was finally somewhat awake I called the office
and left a message that I was taking a sick day and went right back to
sleep. I didn't wake up again until noon. Sleeping that late had two
positive results. One, the roofie was completely out of my system by
then. Second, Anne bought my story about having been sick the night
before. I hadn't taken a sick day from work in years and she knew I never
slept in like that.

I called Carlos at the office as soon as I got up. I was sure he would be
worried when he saw I wasn't in and he was. I assured him I had recovered
from the night before. I lazed around all afternoon but I did manage to get
out and accomplish one thing. I bought myself a cell phone.

Monday morning when Carlos brought the mail I showed him the new phone. He
immediately programmed his home and cell numbers into it, then put my new
number in his phone.

"So, since Thursday is Thanksgiving I was thinking it would be nice to
spend some time together tomorrow afternoon, Ry."

"It would be very nice, but I can't do it. Anne doesn't like my night out
with the boys as it is and after 'getting sick' Thursday she's on my case
even more. And if she knew you were the only 'boy' I was hanging out with
it would be all over."

"How about Wednesday then? I really hate to go so long without seeing you
and we didn't get to do anything last week."

As much as I also hated the idea of going another week without having sex
with Carlos I was disappointed to hear that it was the lack of sex that was
bothering him.

"That won't work either. I'm off Wednesday because Anne and I are driving
up to Syracuse to spend the holiday weekend with my parents."

"Oh shit, I forgot you were going away. I was hoping that you might be able
to get into the city some time over the weekend."

"Sorry, I won't be back until Sunday. I wish we didn't have to go so long
without getting together but maybe it's a good thing."

"Good? What are you talking about?"

"Well, I really want to keep seeing you but I don't think I can bring
myself to go back to your apartment again. Not only do I want to avoid Jose
at all costs but I have some really bad memories of that place now. Maybe
you can take some time this weekend and find a small hotel in the
neighborhood where we can get a room once a week."

Carlos nodded. "Yeah, it would probably be a good idea to keep you and Jose
apart for a while. He and I have been alternately yelling at each other and
not speaking to each other since Thursday. He thinks I've lost my mind and
I think he's lost his, so it's a bit of a stalemate."

I wasn't looking forward to the drive up to Syracuse with Anne. I knew that
any tension I was sensing between us was all in my head, no doubt a result
of the guilt I was feeling. That guilt hadn't been a constant throughout
the summer and fall. After that first time with Carlos I felt bad and tried
not to go any further. As I failed to resist Carlos' charms and started a
regular relationship with him, I somehow managed to separate it from my
marriage. I knew I was cheating, but I was able to convince myself that
what I was doing with Carlos had nothing to do with Anne. That was
especially easy to do when she was away in August. Those few weeks spoiled
me and since she'd been back I felt more like she was coming between Carlos
and me than the other way around. But as annoying as I found the traits I
usually overlooked in her, I knew the change in our relationship was my
doing.

Anne never looked forward to Thanksgiving with my family. She got along
reasonably well with them although she didn't fit in very well. Our
families were of similar income and social backgrounds but mine was much
more down-to-earth and less concerned with social standing. Still she
seemed to like my mother and had a reasonably good time when we
visited. But her four years at college in Ithaca had more than enough
winter to last her a lifetime. November in Syracuse was usually far worse
than most winters in Raleigh.

The five-hour ride wasn't as bad as it could have been. Anne spent most of
it on her cell phone, chatting with friends and planning social
events. That was how she often spent her days at home when she didn't have
club meetings or luncheons. Fortunately we had good weather for the
trip. It was cold but clear and dry. Traffic was heavy on the Thruway but
not as bad as it would have been if we'd driven up in the evening. We
arrived early enough in the afternoon so we had time to relax and freshen
up before taking Mom and Dad out to dinner at their favorite restaurant on
the lake in Cazenovia.

Thursday morning Dad and I were banished from the kitchen after
breakfast. Anne helped Mom prepare the dinner, as much as Mom would allow,
that is. She was firmly in control of her kitchen. Dad and I talked in the
living room. He was a quiet, reserved man but he always wanted to know how
my life was going. Unfortunately, there wasn't much about my recent life
that I could share with him. My baby brother Todd and his wife Katie
arrived just before noon. Todd was 29 and a slightly smaller and, I
thought, better looking, version of me. Katie was small and bubbly, a real
charmer. They'd been married for two years after a four-year courtship and
they always impressed me as pals who had a blast together, unlike Anne and
me who were more like partners working our way through life. Katie joined
the women in the kitchen while Todd, Dad and I watched a football game on
TV.

The holiday dinner was incredible as always. It was basically the same meal
I'd grown up enjoying with aunts, uncles, grandparents and cousins. As the
family had dispersed throughout the country Mom had downsized the
quantities of everything, but didn't leave anything out. I looked forward
to it all year. And in spite of how well it went and how good the company
was, about halfway through the meal my mind wandered and I found myself
thinking about Carlos, wondering how he was doing. I knew he had family in
the Bronx and was planning on being with them. As much as I was enjoying
the meal and my family, I missed him.

The next day the women honored the tradition of 'Black Friday' and spent
the day at a couple of area malls, getting a good start on their Christmas
shopping. The men of my family had a tradition of our own. We went to a
local tavern, had a light lunch and then spent the afternoon drinking beer
and playing pool. Dad joined us for lunch but went home for a nap after one
game, leaving Todd and me on our own. We were in the middle of a game
around two-thirty when I went to the bar for another round. On the way back
I noticed Todd looking at me oddly.

"What's up, bro?" I asked as I handed him a bottle. "My fly open or
something?"

"There's just something different about you this weekend."

"Different? In what way?"

"I don't know. I can't put my finger on it. You seem more relaxed, more
together, happier in some way."

"I don't know about more together. I've got a lot going on in my head
recently. But I have had some pretty happy moments lately."

"Work must be going good because I don't see any difference in the Ice
Queen."

Ice Princess had been Todd's nickname for Anne when he first met her but
after we were married he decided she rated the rank of queen.

Just then I was startled by a musical tone coming from my pants pocket. It
took me a few seconds to realize it was my cell phone since I hadn't yet
received a call on it.

"Speak of the devil." I pulled it out and looked at the screen and was
surprised to see Carlos' name instead of Anne's. Todd must have noticed the
look on my face.

"Not who you were expecting, huh?"

"Um, no." I looked around the bar. "I think I'll take it back there where
it's quieter."

I headed for the hall leading to the restrooms and answered the phone on
the way.

"Hey, Carlos, what's up?"

"Me, baby, me."

I felt a twitch in my groin as I thought about him getting up. "That's
nothing new for you, horndog. But what's the occasion for the call?"

"Well, I'm up in more ways than one. I'm in Syracuse."

"What! How? I mean, why? Where are you?" I quickly looked around the bar,
half-expecting to see Carlos grinning at me from across the room.

"Chill, man. I had enough family yesterday to last me a year and didn't
want to spend the rest of the weekend with Jose glaring at me, so I caught
an early train up this morning. Thought I'd check out your hometown."

"But why?  I mean, you know I'm with Anne and my family. It's not like I
can spend any time with you."

"You sure? Not even an hour or so? You could say you were going out for the
paper or something."

"I expect a better lie than that from you. I just don't see how I can get
away." I racked my brain. "Maybe I could pretend to go to the gym in the
morning."

"Tomorrow? That's so far off. How about now? You busy?"

"Just hanging with my brother, playing pool."

"Think you can get away? I'm at the Sheraton, room 416. If you come over
maybe I'll let you fuck me."

"Like I need any more incentive. Let me see what I can do. I can't let him
know what I'm doing but maybe Todd will cover for me."

"Try, babe. Just think of my hot little body and how much pleasure it can
give you."

"Enough already! I'll see what I can do and get back to you."

I went back to Todd and resumed our game without any explanation. He
probably thought it was a friend from home but he looked at me strange
after a few minutes when I asked if he could cover for me for a while.

"Cover? What could you have going on around here that you want to keep
quiet?"

"Nothing much, bro, I just want to go see someone and don't want to have to
make explanations."

He was quiet for a minute. "Okay, if you don't want to talk about it. But
you're not in any kind of trouble are you?"

"Oh no, nothing like that."

"Well, if you do need someone to talk to I'm here. You know I'll keep it to
myself, whatever it is."

"Thanks, Todd, but it's no big deal, really. I'm okay. I appreciate the
concern and help, though."

He nodded. "Okay, I'll just hang out here for a while. You coming back here
or just going to the house?"

I looked at my watch. Nearly three. "I'll try to be back at the house by
six. Is that okay with you?"

"Sure, no prob." He smiled at me. "Be careful, Ryan."

Careful. As though it was ever possible to be careful where Carlos was
concerned. I drove downtown to the Sheraton, not quite believing Carlos was
in town or that I was going to see him. I'd called him as soon as I got in
the car so he was waiting for me when I got there. He was naked when he
opened the door.

"You can't come in here if you're wearing clothes, Ry. Strip and I'll let
you in."

"Get real, Carlos. I'm standing in a public hallway."

"Then you'd better do it quick before someone comes along." I'd thought he
was joking but suddenly I realized he was serious. He really expected me to
get naked in the hall.

As risky as that was I was surprised to find that I was turned on by the
idea. I looked up and down the hall as I took off my coat. I handed it to
him and he tossed it on one of the beds. I thought for a second about the
fastest way to proceed, then I went into motion, first kicking my shoes
into the room and peeling off my socks. I unfastened my belt, and
unbuttoned and unzipped my pants but left them up. I checked out the hall
one more time, then quickly pulled my shirt off over my head, tossed it
into the room and yanked both my pants and boxers down at once. I stumbled
a bit getting them off my feet but managed and threw them at Carlos. He
caught them and started to push the door shut in my face but I slammed into
it, nearly bowling him over as I fell into the room, kicking the door shut
behind me.

"I can't believe you actually did it! I really didn't expect you to."

"Now you tell me. Usually your requests are more like demands. I'm getting
used to obeying."

"That's what I like to hear," he grinned. "Now come here."

He pulled me into a hug and pressed his lips to mine. As his tongue pried
open my mouth he ground his hips into mine. We both groaned as he
kissed. When he finally pulled back, he smiled.

"Man, I've missed that."

He didn't end up letting me fuck him but I thoroughly enjoyed the two hours
we spent in bed and I made it back to my parents' house before six. I had
to be careful how I sat during dinner but the afternoon had been worth it.

Saturday morning I used the gym excuse and went back to the hotel for
another hour in bed with Carlos. The whole family gathered for a late lunch
at Todd and Katie's house. I knew Todd was dying to ask me questions but he
kept his mouth closed while the others were around. After lunch he took
their black lab for a walk and invited me to join him.

"Okay man, I know you didn't want to talk yesterday and maybe it's none of
my business, but something is going on here that has all the signs of an
affair. Believe me, I'm not taking Anne's side, but do you know what you're
doing?"

"Like you said, I don't really want to talk about it, Todd."

"Then just listen while I say my piece. I'm totally shocked by this. You're
the last guy I would have expected something like this from. You're always
so in control, so planned, so together. But like I said before, you seem
happier than you've been in years. I'm not saying I think an affair is a
good thing, but if you're gonna have one you've got to be more careful. I
got the impression you weren't expecting to hear from your babe yesterday,
much less see her up here. That makes it sound like she's pretty hung up on
you and that could be dangerous. A casual fling is one thing but that babe
sounds like trouble, Ryan."

'If you only knew,' I thought. "I can't say I know what I'm doing with
this, Todd, but I'm trying to be careful."

"Well, you know I'm always on your side, bro. I don't have any experience
in this kind of thing but if you ever want to talk, you know where I am."

The weekend turned into a microcosm of my recent life. The time spent with
Anne and my parents was good. I think my guilt made me try extra hard to
get along with Anne. And then there were those few exciting hours with
Carlos. Two very different lives mixed together.

Sunday Anne and I were leaving at noon so I went to 'the gym' early while
she went to church with Mom. Carlos made love to me slowly and passionately
as though we had all the time in the world, but we somehow managed to keep
within my rigid time restrictions. We talked as I got dressed.

"You know, Carlos, this was a pretty expensive weekend for you, just to see
me a few brief times."

"It was worth it. We had some fun, I checked out the gay nightlife here and
I got away from Jose for a while."

"Well, you should have at least found a less expensive hotel to stay in."

"It didn't cost all that much. I sweet-talked the desk clerk into giving me
a great rate. Of course, I had to do a favor for him at the end of his
shift as a bit of a payback."

"You fucked the desk clerk?" I was surprised by how jealous I felt and knew
I didn't hide it very well.

"It was just a fuck, Ry. Nothing for you to be concerned about."

"I know I don't have any claim on you, Carlos. I'm the one who's married. I
know what we have can't be called a relationship by any stretch but I just
don't like to hear about you being with other guys."

Carlos was quiet for a minute and walked over to the window. He spoke with
his back to me.

"One of the reasons I had to get away from Jose was that I realized that
some of what he was saying was true. You and I started out just having a
little fun. Then it turned a little ugly and became a revenge thing, a
chance for me to get even and have even more fun along the way. That's all
it was supposed to be." He turned and faced me, looking me in the eyes.
"But somewhere along the line I realized I was falling for you. That wasn't
supposed to happen and I just don't know what to do about it."

To be continued.