Nice Couples Do by Joan Elizabeth Lloyd Read Free Book Online

so that it formed a small cloud around her head. She frequently wore huge earrings that hung down to her shoulders. Her makeup highlighted her large brown eyes and smooth skin and she wore clothes that accentuated her figure, but she never really felt good about the way she looked.
    Tracy’s banker husband, Paul, was twenty-seven and attractive enough that Tracy occasionally became jealous at parties when some woman paid too much attention to him. He was six feet tall and worked out at least twice a week to keep his almost two-hundred-pound body firm.
    Tracy and Paul had been married for five years. Before they were married, their sex life had been great, but after the ceremony, Paul’s lovemaking became routine. A year earlier, Tracy had been tempted to have a brief affair with a handsome man she met at work, but, in the age of AIDS, she was afraid to indulge her desires. More recently, Paul had spent a weekend at a convention and, after a long evening of partying, had ended up in bed with a sexy conventioneer from another state. Other than those brief encounters, Paul and Tracy had been monogamous.
    One afternoon, Tracy and Paul and another couple, Sarah and Gil, went to the beach. They walked down to an area where there were only a few other people, spread their blanket, and dropped their belongings. Tracy pulled off her T-shirt and shorts and sat down next to her husband.
    As she sat, she became aware that Paul’s eyes were riveted on Sarah, who was slowly unbuttoning her blouse. As Gil egged her on, she did a slow striptease, taking almost five minutes to reveal her skimpy bikini. As Tracy looked down at the bulge in the front of Paul’s trunks, she couldn’t misread his reaction.
    As they lay in bed that evening, Tracy hesitantly said, “I was watching you as Sarah slowly took off her clothes today. Did it excite you as much as I think it did?”
    Paul was a bit embarrassed by the question, but he answered truthfully, “Yeah, I guess it did.”
    “Did you ever go to a strip show?” Tracy asked.
    Paul sighed and gazed at the ceiling. “Once, some years ago, some of us went to a topless bar after work. The stripping was real ritualized. You know, three girls each took off their clothes at the same time. Each of them looked bored. One actually looked annoyed at the customers for being there and making her bother with it all.” His eyes closed as he momentarily lost himself in the memory.
    Tracy waited silently and hoped he would continue.
    After a few moments, he opened his eyes and looked at his wife. “I guess I have to admit that it was very exciting in spite of everything,” he said. “Today, at the beach, just watching a woman slowly exposing herself…”
    Tracy leaned over and kissed him.
    They made love again in the morning. It seemed to Tracy that just talking about that scene improved their sex life.
    The more Tracy thought about Paul’s reaction, the more she became intrigued by the idea of helping him act out this bit of fantasy. She wasn’t sure that when the time came she would be able to carry it off, but, judging from Paul’s ardor, it would be worth the effort.
    About a week later, she was ready to try. She arranged for each of the children to be away overnight. She cooked a special dinner and served a bottle of white wine. She wasn’t sure whether the wine was to improve Paul’s mood or to give her courage, but it did both.
    While Paul went into the living room and settled in front of the television, Tracy went into the bedroom and changed into the outfit she had planned over the past week. It had been exciting just buying the different pieces, each in a different store. She had hunted for the shoes for three days.
    She finished her makeup and checked her image in the full-length mirror on the back of the bathroom door. It was the first time she had seen the entire outfit and she was startled at the different woman who looked back at her. Could she be that person? What the hell, she said