A Beauteous Flower

Chapter 44 - The Plan

Nervous and conflicted, the next day Madison waited at the breakfast table. On the one hand, the sensual memory of the night before ignited a little hope for a thaw. Maybe last night meant that the polite glacier between them had thawed a bit.

On the other hand, Madison felt more guilty than ever. Once again, it seemed that Daniel had dutifully seen to her wants and needs like an attentive husband. Once again, she had received from Daniel and given him nothing in return, and it served as yet another stark reminder of her failures as Daniel's wife. While he satisfied her needs and she screamed out in epic orgasm, Daniel was still miles away, isolated and unable to shake what she had put him through.  Again, Daniel had given her warmth and joy and satisfaction while he churned with unexpressed pain.

For that reason, Madison wasn't sure if she was happy or sad when Daniel arrived at breakfast and their lives settled back into the distant, polite, and ritual routine. Daniel made no mention of the night before, so Madison didn't bring it up either, but inside she considered if she should say or do something.  Daniel had reached out to her last night and maybe she should reciprocate?  Then again he had left her last night without allowing her to reciprocate, so she struggled with her next move.  Meanwhile, they made polite conversation, ate oatmeal, shared a platonic side hug and then Daniel left a conflicted and chastened Madison alone at the breakfast table.

Madison fretted away most of a lonely afternoon before she finally reached for her phone and called up her girlfriends for some insight. With a few clicks Madison had Deva, Kelly, Ivy and Adalina in a group video chat. Advisedly she added Cassidy, but Cassidy didn't answer immediately, so the impromptu discussion started without her.

"I came so hard my teeth hurt," Madison finished her description of the events. "And now I feel like such a creep. Worse than I did before, and I didn't think that was possible."

Everyone was silent for a moment.

"He really loves you, though." Kelly guessed obviously.

"I know that. He tells me that. But what was this?"

"Dominance?" Ivy guessed. "Some kind of male claiming ritual? Maybe he was just worried that if he left you all horny, you'd go someplace else to get yourself straightened out?"

"I'd never do that!" Madison asserted.

"Well, you don't say?" riposted Ivy.

That gave Madison a bit of pause and allowed Adalina to tut to Madison in disappointment.

"I thought we taught you better than this, Madison," Adalina jabbed.  "All this trouble over a kiss? What kind of rube is he? It was a kiss! Tell him to get over it or you'll follow through with the divorce. Take control, girl!"

"Yeah," interjected Kelly but without much enthusiasm. Without Cassidy around to guide her thoughts, Kelly wasn't exactly sure what to think of the whole situation.

"You've got to get this man of yours under control, Madison," agreed Ivy. "He's way out of pocket. Hire the lawyer and tell her to crucify him. And Steve is available, by the way. Just a phone call away."

Madison didn't tell Ivy that just the thought of Steve the Oaf made her queasy. It was obvious what they all expected of Madison, but rather than try and argue her girlfriends into agreement, Madison sat quietly and let her original question work its way around the video chat.

"Maybe instead of guessing, you should just ask him?" Deva interjected.

Madison shook her head at that.

"I couldn't."

"So let me get this straight," Deva continued with a little exasperation. "You can't touch him. You can't talk to him, and you can't even ask him a question. Am I right?"