The Magnificent Eight

The second pair to couple-up were Jarod and Michelle who were both dating others on a non-exclusive basis but ended up together at a couple of events we attended 'en-masse' and before we knew it they were an item also. After that we noticed that Olivia and Gary often watched each other when they thought no-one was looking so when Olivia asked Gary to accompany her to a dance we were all attending, we smiled knowing where it was going. By the end of the evening they were together - forever, as they proudly proclaimed.

That left Hugo and Carla. She resisted our push to get them involved in a relationship claiming that it was nothing more than peer group pressure. She held out for long time, but after a day when it was just the eight of us having long Sunday afternoon B-B-Q where they had both arrived unaccompanied, Hugo stormed up to Carla. "I can't carry on like this anymore." He announced. " Do you find me attractive Carla? Because I'm mad for you and I want to be more than just your friend." And that was that. 'The Magnificent Eight' were born and we knew that we would be together as the best friends forever.

Almost immediately we became somewhat insular and inward looking. There was no room for anyone else into the circle. It doesn't mean we didn't have other friends but we had become a clique. We were viewed with some admiration and sometimes envy and on the occasion even a bit of disdain. It was in fact a snide comment by someone who envied what we had, who commented out loud: "There go the Magnificent Eight." We overheard it and grabbed it calling ourselves that in jest until it became our moniker.

We all got our degrees within eighteen months of each other and it was time to join the real world. Jarrod and I knew we wanted to get into Nano Technology and our animated conversations drew in the rest until it became obvious that we would all open a company together. We set it up before we left the University with equal shares for all. We called the company Drive Tek and started with a big dream but small pockets.

He and I were the Design Team, Gary became our Production Manager making sure that our designs were manufactured to spec at the different manufacturers plants we utilised. Hugo was the accountant.

Carla and Olivia were the marketing team. Carla was the designer and social media expert while Olivia was the marketing strategist and business-to-business communication specialist. Michelle and Amy were our formidable sales team knocking on doors of both national and multinational companies.

Within three years we were designing a number of successful products in the Battery field predominantly for large format applications and especially for the motor vehicle industry. We managed to win a number of large contracts and we grew rapidly and exponentially. Within five years we were making waves in the industry.

Jarod and I were flat out on design and prototyping. Gary was spending more time in China than the US ensuring production standards were met and the only one that seemed to have a reasonable home time was Hugo. The girls were not faring better. Although, Carla and Olivia were predominantly office based they attended a number of Technical, Industrial and Motor Expo's in the US, Europe and the Far-East. Michelle and Amy were clocking up air-miles faster than pilots as they called on existing and potential clients world-wide.

We all travelled on a regular basis and often we would join up to extend a meeting or expo into a mini vacation. It wasn't all work as we were young and had the world by the throat, so it was no surprize when eventually it came to what we referred to as the wedding season. Amy and I were first and the rest followed within a year. It was a time of play hard and work even harder. We all bought houses in Springfield. Not mansions but they were all homes we could grow into. The guys drove branded Jeep Wranglers and the girls all went out and bought convertible Porsche Caymans. There was many a jaw dropped or near bumper-bashing especially when they went out in formation looking like it was a fashion shoot of hot, beautiful women, in sports cars dressed the latest high-end fashion.

Individually we were young, good-looking, fit and successful, making up an attractive package, but as a group we were all that to the power of eight both professionally and socially, drawing attention everywhere we went. Going dancing was an experience all of its own. On one occasion I was coming out of the toilets when a cocky ball player walked up to Amy. "I'm a football player baby and I'd love to score in your endzone" He announced, grabbing her arm and attempting to pull her out of her chair and onto the dance-floor.

"Why would I want you to score in my endzone when I have three REAL world class athletes right here!" She gestured at Jarrod, Gary and Hugo who gave him the stink-eye while the rest of the girls fell down laughing. He walked away tail firmly between his legs. She turned to me as I approached "Did you see me hand him a game penalty?"

I couldn't blame him too much though. Individually they were super-hot, collectively they were nuclear. Whenever the girls danced together there was a stampede of men trying to get to the dance floor.

We had all decided to put babies on hold until the company had reached critical mass and was stable and after five years of hard work we were nearing that time. We had made a proposal to Tesla and Nissan for a new generation nano tech battery with a capacity of thirty percent more amps and able to charge at half the time of the current batteries. We presented the concept only, as we hadn't even prototyped it and in fact the only place it existed was in my head. But it was enough to win a ten million dollar contract to develop a prototype from Tesla based on nothing more than the idea. Nissan also got on-board signing a contract giving them the first opportunity after Tesla to buy into the technology, provided it proved feasible and was scalable into mass production. We had a time frame of twelve months to present the working prototype.

Which brings us full circle to 2018. We were all in my Jacuzzi, passing round a bottle of vintage Dom Perignon. The girls were all in bikinis and looking hotter than ever if it was even possible. The intervening years had added a bit of meat to their athletic bodies and they all sported significantly bigger breasts and the added body fulness made them look more sexy than ever before. They had progressed from the pages of Sports Illustrated to the Victoria's Secret catalogue.

Typically when we were together the sexual innuendo's were at a premium and the girls, well, women actually, gloried in their appeal and their ability to drive us to distraction. Many a time one would step up and rub her boobs or ass playfully against a non-spouse... Calling to the wife that she'd warmed up her husband for her which led to giggles and naughty grins. That night was no exception.

"I think it's disappointing that you girls aren't even a little bi." Jarrod was pontificating. "Just think of all the possibilities"

"You want bi, do you?" Chimed Michelle. "Come here sweetie." She beckoned Amy. The two girls made a show of embracing and smooching each other to roars of approval from the rest of us. Amy pulled off Michelle's bikini top waving it around and throwing it on the patio floor. Unconcerned Michelle jiggled her boobs around. Her nipples hard in the cool night air. Amy pulled off her top and they rubbed their breasts on each other. Giggling, they pulled off Olivia's and Carla's tops. And suddenly we were enjoying the view of four pairs of magnificent breasts. The girls conferred and decided that the boys would be allowed a quick feel each.

Amongst the giggling and laughter from the girls, there were moans and groans from the boys as we claimed that we needed more than one feel. Suddenly, the evening had acquired a smoking, sexy undercurrent and when we all sat down again I had my hand on Amy's thigh and happily headed north towards the honey-pot while she playfully kept slapping my hand away. More champagne was called for and all four girls walked topless to the house to get it. The boys settled back basking in the glory of our women and our business success. Inside the house the giggling had reached fever pitch. They came out a long time later with champagne and naughty looks.

"What's all that about?" We asked.

"You'll see!" They blushed and giggled simultaneously.

We held and caressed and kissed our wives and chatted briefly about our next steps in business and in life but the evening started winding down fast, driven by the girls wanting to head out. The guys were in as much of a hurry, as our earlier shenanigans had left us horny and ready for sex.

I was feeling mellow with a good buzz going as I wasn't going to be driving. Amy asked me to either chlorinate or empty the Jacuzzi, bring in the bottles and towels and do a quick clean up while she saw the guests out. There was fist bumps from the boys, hugs and kisses on the lips from the girls. Then they left and I started collecting the detritus from the party, hearing cars start and leave.

I cleaned up, locked doors and switched off lights and eventually headed up calling out. "You'd better not be asleep honey! I want the surprise I was promised."

There was an unusual giggle and I skipped up the last few steps and into the bedroom. The main light was off but there was more than enough soft warm illumination from the bedside lamps to reveal a body in the bed. The sheet was turned half down leaving her breasts exposed. She had a nervous smile hoping I would like what I saw.

I stumbled to a stop my mouth dropping open in surprise. The woman in my bed was Carla.

"Carla?" I managed not to stammer. My head was not quite connecting what I was seeing. "What are you doing here?" I looked around wondering if this was some sort of joke. "Where's Hugo?" I was looking around for Amy. I called out but there was no response. I looked back at Carla.

"Uhh, they're not here Tim." She was losing her smile and looked at me with growing uncertainty, but she managed to gather her resolve. "We... We all thought it would be fun to have a one-time swap." Her eyes were begging me to understand.

I was losing it badly. "Who's 'WE'?" I demanded and she cringed visibly pulling up the sheet to cover her breasts.

"Us... The... The girls." She sniffed. We pulled straws and... Oh God this is so stupid." She sniffed harder. I ignored her and ran downstairs for my cell phone. I called Amy and I heard it ringing in the kitchen. She had left it behind.

I ran back upstairs. "Who's Amy with?" I demanded. She shook her head like she wasn't going to say but the look on my face must have convinced her otherwise.

"Amy's with Jarrod, Michelle is with Gary and Olivia's with Hugo." She was crying now. We didn't tell you guys until it was time to leave and we paired off at the cars. Amy thought it would be a great surprise if I was to wait for you here in bed."

I ignored all that and dialled Jarrod's cell phone instead. It went straight to voice mail. Behind me Carla was crying even harder. "I'm sorry Tim, I'm sorry. I thought you'd have wanted a night with me." She climbed out of the bed and grabbing her clothes ran to the bathroom shutting the door. I heard her sobbing but I was too busy running for my car keys. I hit the remote for the garage door and burned rubber heading for Jarrod's place. I kept calling his phone but it kept going to voice message so I left him one.

"Jarrod, If you screw Amy, your life is over! I'm on my way."

I was about a mile from his place when I got pulled over by the cops for speeding. I tried to explain that I was trying to get to my wife but once it transpired that she wasn't under any actual danger other than having sex with another man the cop didn't want to know my story. It's a free country after all. Next thing I knew I was breathalysed and arrested for being over the limit. Within a short period of time I was taken to the police station on Monroe Drive and booked. The cops were kind and let me have my phone so I could make a phone call and I called David Blumenthal, our company lawyer. He also didn't answer but I left him a message and hoped for the best.

I found myself in a cell with two teenagers caught drag-racing in the street. They were loud and treated the whole experience, like a rite of passage. I sat by myself ignoring them and the rest of what was going-on in the jail wondering what awaited me.

I didn't sleep at all, I simply sat there stewing at my impotence. The harder I tried not to think about what Amy and Jarrod were doing the more it felt like my chest would explode. I had seen the fucker's cock in the showers and it looked like a blunt instrument of mass destruction. I tried not to imagine it penetrating Amy's pussy but the inverse happened. The harder I tried the more graphic my imagination became. After a while I was left with nothing more than a black cloud of anger at my inability to stop things and despair for my future with Amy.

The next morning we were given instant coffee in paper cups and a ham sandwich. I drank the coffee. Somehow I must have dozed because I awoke near lunch-time with a start to see David Blumenthal outside the bars. He explained that he had spoken to the station commander and I was to be released as soon as I signed the paperwork. I went through the paperwork process while he kept responding to messages on his phone and a suspicion began to form. "Is Amy waiting for me outside?" I asked.

He nodded in the affirmative. "Can you get me out through the back?" I implored him. He looked at me with obvious concern.

"Why Tim?" Your wife's here to take you home."

I could see that I would either have to explain the whole story or ditch him and her. "I'll see you out front" I said. But once I was finished and had all my possessions my phone still had some battery left so I called an Uber. I had been informed that my car had not been impounded but was left on the street where I had been arrested in the early hours of the morning so I gave that as my destination.

I asked if there was another way out. Turns out that there was and before anyone could come looking for me I was in an uber and heading for my Jeep. It was where I had left it and intact so I climbed in fired up and headed for home. Once there I grabbed my travel bags and a number of refuse bags and emptied out my wardrobe and started piling it all into my car because I was getting out of there before I killed someone. I was aware enough to make sure I had all my documents and Important files as well as my Apple Mac from my home office and prepared to leave but it wasn't to be.

The front door burst open and there stood Amy and the rest of my friends and business partners. "Where are you going?" shouted Amy rushing to embrace me. I side stepped her and pushed her away. She collapsed to the floor and burst out crying.

"Hey, You can't treat her like that." Jarrod stepped forward to protect Amy and I punched him with all the rage I had. It caught him flush on the nose which splintered in an explosion of blood. He staggered and lifted his hands to his face giving me the perfect opportunity and I kicked him in the crotch. I didn't connect quite right but there was so much force from my anger that he shrieked as I obviously caught at least one of his testicles and down he went.

"You son-of-a-bitch!" Screamed Michelle, running to her man. Gary and Hugo looked at me in shock. Olivia staggered back and collapsed onto the nearest chair. Carla was holding onto the front door sobbing. Amy crawled across the floor to help Jarrod giving me a hateful look.

"How could you Tim?" she cried at me. "Jarrod's your oldest friend."

"You all listen to me now" I snarled at them. "you all had an opportunity to say yes or no before you got into a car with each other but I didn't. For me it was fait-accompli and too late to do anything about it."

They were all shouting over each other trying to explain, justify, mitigate their actions. Michelle helped Jarrod to the couch while Amy rushed off and came back with some clean kitchen towels for his nose. He was groaning in pain and I was glad. They ran out of steam and stopped talking and we all stood about not knowing what to do next. Michelle looked up at me with tears in her eyes.

"It was meant to be a fun one-time thing Tim. Something that would express how we all felt about each other but no, not you. You had to go and reject Carla." Carla wailed louder and Hugo tried to console her but failed. Michelle wasn't finished berating me though. "There's not a straight man alive that would say no to Carla. Hell, half the gay male population would jump to be with her for a night but not you. You had to go and treat her like shit and now you're treating Amy like shit as well." She reached out her hand to me but I recoiled backwards. My instinct was to reach over and slap her stupid face off her shoulders and I was scared I'd follow through if I stayed in range.

Amy came and stood before me. "Please Tim, please stay and let's talk about this. Just the two of us." Her eyes were red and her hands were shaking. My heart went out to her but at the same time I wanted to lash out to hurt her like she had hurt me.

"Talk now." I said. "Pretty soon I'll be back in jail on an assault charge." They all jumped in to assure me that Jarrod wouldn't press charges. Except Jarrod that is. "Well, what's it going to be?" I glared at him.

He glared back. "You're such a dick, Tim. It's always your way or the highway isn't it?" He spat through pain clenched teeth. "I won't go to the cops but you have to forgive Amy." The guys helped Jarrod up and they all left, probably heading for the nearest hospital and I found myself alone with Amy.

"Go shower." She urged me gently. I'll make us an early lunch. I did and when I came out she was busy unpacking my crumpled clothes from my travel bags and the refuse bags I'd squashed them into and re-hanging them back in the wardrobe. I had a towel around my waist, and I pulled out some casuals then turned away from her and started getting dressed. "For God's sake Tim, I've seen you naked a million times." She admonished. I didn't know how to respond. It felt like I was in my bedroom with a stranger. I had felt less uncomfortable with Carla in my bed than I felt with Amy right now.

"So, did you have a good fuck?" I asked her snidely. "Was Jarrod a good lover, did he rock your world?" Her eyes went wide with shock and filled with tears.

"Fuck you Tim" She stood her ground. "How can you even ask me that. I thought you'd be having sex with Carla." She caught her breath. "Hell, how did you not have sex with Carla? I know how hot you find her so I even cheated with the straws so you could spend the night with her." She looked at me both angry and sad. "This is so fucked-up. It was meant to be a bit of fun and now I feel like we're hanging by a thread."

She tried to hold my hand but I pulled back and we just stood there, staring at everything except each other. After a long uncomfortable silence, she went downstairs where she made Spaghetti Bolognaise with a small side salad and she turned some left over hot dog rolls into garlic breads. She called me down from where I'd been sitting on the corner of the bed and we ate quietly and without talking. I was drinking beer and she had opened a bottle of white wine that she was going through at a rapid rate.

"So what happens now?" She asked me so softly that I almost didn't hear her. I shook my head not knowing what to say. "I'll do anything to fix this Tim. For you, for us." She looked me in the eyes. "Will you meet me halfway?" I could see the pulse in her neck beating with fear. We were at a crossroad. All I had to do is pull her into my arms and tell her it would be alright, but would it? I knew from that first night all those years ago that she was the only woman who could break my heart and now she had.