The wolves were at it again.

And this time around, their duel was fiercer than an El Classico Champions League final (I mean, we all know there would be literal blood, sweat and tears all over the pitch at the end of 120 minutes).

After the way our chat ended last night, I knew I was treading on very slippery ground. And I was bound to fall flat.

Holding a woman close to you as she falls asleep? Bro, that’s a very deep level of intimacy. One you should not be having with another woman who’s not your wife. Yet as I lay on my bed, I had done that with Marilyn the previous night. And I had stewed over it all night, knowing that was nowhere near right.

Richie, enough is enough. You need to stop! You barely know this girl from Adam, or Eve. There’s absolutely no reason why you should continue engaging her the way you do. The only woman who should be cuddled in your arms is Ellie. Please, Richie, set the boundaries! It’s not too late. Set those boundaries!

You know which wolf that is. And of course, he spat facts only.

Oh come on, Richie! What is the big deal? It’s just a harmless cuddle. You didn’t end up having sex with her, did you? No! She didn’t make any moves on her part either. Please, please, it’s just a silly overreaction. Pipe down. I mean, look at her. Look at that innocent, baby-faced smile. How do you say no to that?

I sighed. Wolf number 2 wasn’t lying, though. There was this something about her that just made it hard to say no to her. I knew I had to, yet a part of me felt like putting my foot down would be too cruel to such a sweet soul.   

“I dunno why it’s so hard to say no to her,” I muttered to myself. “I dunno what it is, man. Hmmm… I just don’t know…”

***

So our last day at the farm was a good one. We got ourselves well and full acquainted with the place, and Sebastian gave his final pep talk, where he reminded us all that our dedication to the project would be the difference between success and failure.

I had similar words for the guys sitting around me as we returned to the hotel. “Chale, my brothers, like Sebastian said, it’s all up to us and our attitude. The man has shown us his many failures and all, he’s learned from them, and he’s now paved a roadmap for us to follow. I beg you guys, let’s make sure we’re on top of our game. A leader is only as good as his followers, let’s make sure this works, because his success will be our success. It won’t be about Sebastian Ahmed alone, it will be about us all.”

I sure hope they got the message.

Now I was in my room that evening, thinking about what to do concerning Marilyn. Just a couple of hours before I was set to leave, and I was thinking it would be a good time to set the record straight on how things had gone between us.

Of course, the wolves had their say.

Chale, you need to do the right thing. You’ve been doing too much, giving this girl privileges that only Ellie is entitled to. You need to end this. Remember you’re going back to your wife. You’ve messed up enough, time to do the right thing!

Number 1, as you’d know by now.

Massa, you don’t need to say or do anything. And stop letting him influence you. What wife privileges have you given her? Don’t you give attention to many other women in your life? Ah, please, ignore him. There’s nothing to speak about. The girl doesn’t even show you flesh. How many times have you seen her thighs or even cleavage? Please!

I sighed. Ugh, Number 2 sure knew how to sound convincing!

I thought over it for a while, then decided to take the advice of Number 1. It was time to sit down and talk with her.

Just as I reached for the phone, though, it rang.

It was Marilyn, no surprise.

“Hey, Richie. Umm, I need to see you right now.”

***

I entered the room, my heartbeat on steroids. There she stood before me, in her pyjamas as usual. “Ummm, can we sit and talk?” she asked softly.

“Uh, sure, sure,” I agreed as I followed. “You know, I was just about to call you and ask if we can talk. There’s something I need to discuss with you as well.”

As I sat on the edge of the bed, she sat in the middle, as she always did. “Oh, okay. Well, I’d like to go first.”

Heart still pounding, I nodded.

“Richie,” she whispered, reaching over and gently taking my hand in hers, “I… I’ve been thinking about you all day, and… I need to tell you the truth.”

I silently looked into her eyes. I had a strong hunch I knew what was coming out of her mouth as ‘the truth’.

Richie… I… I’m in love with you.”

Had I expected anything else from her? Nope, not at all.

I held my breath as I looked into Marilyn’s eyes. Such innocence and beauty and vulnerability.

All of a sudden, that talk I needed to have with her didn’t seem so important. Matter of fact, it was as important as the Twix wrapper in my bin.

“I know we won’t be here for long, but… I love you, and I don’t want this to end here.”

Enchanted by the sudden aura that her confession of love had created, I cupped her chin in my palm and looked into her eyes. “You beautiful angel,” I whispered.

Staring deep into my eyes with loving abandon, she smiled a bit, then slightly bit her lower lip. Her eyes moved from mine to my lips.

Still enthralled by the magic feel of the moment, I knew what she wanted. I understood the assignment, and honestly, I wanted it too. I slowly moved my head toward her as her eyes closed.

As our lips touched at that moment, it felt so right. It felt like the right conclusion to everything that had gone down between us since we became close. It felt like that famous Ross and Rachel kiss in Friends. You know, that passionate one in the bar where Rachel worked, after their little fight? It felt just like that.

The intensity of the kiss deepened.

The hunger for more of each other grew.

Before I knew it, Marilyn found herself on my lap, her arms around my neck as our lip lock increased in passion.

Goddamnit, this is so good!

She was really doing her level best to thrust her tongue down my throat. Literally. But oh, how sexy was her desire for me! It was sweeter than I ever would have imagined.

I then felt her hand reach for my crotch area. Ready to switch from first to second gear.

Mmm… I love that feeling, I thought as her hand scrambled to grab me downstairs. Damn, the chills I get whenever Ellie reaches for it… wait…

…what-what the… only Ellie does this… oh my God, Ellie!

My wife’s name had crossed my mind.

And it hit me.

This was wrong. So very wrong.

What the hell was I doing? Why was I passionately kissing a woman that isn’t my wife?

And why was I letting this woman touch what belonged to my wife?

Why was I a few seconds away from making love to a woman that is not Mrs. Eleanor Acquah??!!

Conviction fell like an anvil on my head.

I immediately pulled away from Marilyn’s lips and pushed her off me. I sprang to my feet, a bewildered expression on my face.

“Richie! Richie, what are you doing?”

Marilyn’s upset voice was the last thing on my mind. I was too overwhelmed with guilt to even look her in the face.

“I can’t do this. I’m sorry, I just can’t do this. I gotta go, I gotta go…”

That was all I could mumble as I quickly made my way to the door.

***

Throwing myself onto my bed, I burst into tears.

What the hell had I just done??

No words could describe how terrible I felt at that moment. For all my belief that I would never allow myself to get intimate with any other woman, here I was.

I happily, and stupidly, sat back and watched as a fire blazed on my lap, instead of dousing it. Now I had been burned.

The cries grew louder as reality dawned on me in the most piercing way possible.

I, Richie Acquah, had cheated on my wife.

Oh God, the shame! The overwhelming shame!

Well, he’s fully fallen into the trap now! He might not have gone all the way, but he’s certainly stuck in it! What’s he gonna do now?