A Margin of Lust (The Seven Deadly Sins #1)(50)
"If you need me, I'm right here." He winked.
Gwen turned and walked behind a wall of Malbec’s. His cheeriness was an affront. She found the shelf with her favorite blend. The last time she'd splurged on a bottle of Ravish was the night Art fell asleep while she was slipping into something a little more comfortable. She might as well have gotten a bottle of Boone's Farm at the grocery store.
She gazed at the other varietals, but nothing sounded appealing. She reached out and picked up a bottle of Ravish. She'd be damned if she'd let Art steal this pleasure from her too. Tonight she was buying the wine for herself, not to impress, not for romance. Tonight it was for comfort. She wondered if one would be enough.
"Gwen. I thought that was you." Lance walked around the stack of wine. His hair was disheveled from the breeze outside, his eyes and his handsome face all smiles. "I saw you park, but you didn't come into the office. We're meeting at 10:00 am tomorrow to sign papers."
Gwen couldn't find her voice. She was so touched to see someone who cared about her, someone who was genuinely glad to see her, she burst into tears.
Fifteen minutes later, she was seated at a high table in the corner of the tasting room with the remnants of a glass of Cabernet in front of her. Lance's hand rested lightly on hers. His eyebrows were knit in concern.
He had held her while she cried and listened while she ranted, but he hadn't yet spoken. After several minutes of silence, he said, "I think you're misinterpreting the facts, Gwen. Based on what you described, it sounds like Art was breaking it off with the woman. That's probably why she was crying. I'm sure he still loves you."
"Loves me? Then why would he have a fling in the first place?"
Lance shrugged one shoulder and gave her half a smile. "He's a guy."
"I'm so sick of hearing about how guys can't control themselves. Like they have some corner on the lust market. Women lust. Women have desires."
"This could be a blessing in disguise," Lance said.
"A blessing?" Her voice rose. Mo, who was unpacking a case of white wine, looked across the room at them. Gwen dialed down her volume. "Maybe you can look at it that way. You don't have children. You haven't been married for fifteen years. I don't see this as a blessing."
"Sometimes you don't appreciate what you've got until you try something else." His voice was soft.
Gwen looked at him horrified. "That's not comforting."
"Hear me out." Lance stroked her hand. "You may disagree with me, but I don't believe people are naturally monogamous. Just look at the culture. People get married. They have children. Then within ten years, they're getting divorced. Why? Because they're restless. The honeymoon is over. They start looking for another mate."
"So marriage is a farce? That's what you're saying? We're all destined to cheat and break up?" The words spit from Gwen's lips.
"No, that's not what I'm saying. I'm saying the institution of marriage should be more flexible. If people would bend with their biology, relationships might not break so often."
Gwen pulled her hand out from under his and sat up straighter on her stool. "Bend with their biology? Like my father bent with his biology? He screwed around on my mother then left her for a younger woman."
"You're putting words in my mouth again." Lance's voice was soothing. "If you're going to have an external relationship you have to pick the right person. It has to be someone who has the same goals for the relationship. Someone who's okay with not being first in your life. Someone who respects the institution of marriage."
"That makes no sense. If I respect marriage, the last thing I'm going to do is have an affair with a married man—or an unmarried one for that matter." Gwen gulped her wine. It was beginning to take effect. She felt calmer despite the disturbing conversation.
"What if marriages were better off, lasted longer, and were happier when they had... outside help?"
"I don't buy—"
"I've seen it, Gwen. A woman I dated in L.A. was on the verge of divorce. She credited me with saving her marriage."
"Ha," exploded from her lips.
"It's true. She said she was refreshed by what we had together, and she brought that refreshment into her relationship with her husband."
"Yeah, well, I think Art's had a little too much refreshing," Gwen said. "Call me crazy, but I'm pretty sure the waitress isn't trying to help our marriage."
"Maybe you can help your marriage, Gwen."
Lance's eyes searched her own. They were so soft, so brown. She could lose herself in those eyes. She shivered.
"How are you suggesting I do that?" she asked.
Lance trailed a finger across the back of her hand. "You're upset. You don't feel appreciated or loved. If you had your tank filled, you might be able to look at this situation more objectively."
Gwen needed objectivity, she'd give him that. She felt like a sailboat tossed in a tempest.
"Art made a mistake, but obviously he still wants you, even though he could have her." He dropped his hand beneath the table. A second later, she felt its heat on her thigh.
"Another round?" Mo appeared at their table with an open bottle like a servile apparition. Lance snatched his hand from Gwen's leg. She jumped and spilled the last drops of her wine.