A Couple's Destiny

Emily thought about the phone call she had received from her husband for the hundredth time as she made the drive home from work. His voice had been quite serious as he confirmed his young wife had nothing planned that evening and would be available for a serious talk. Despite her probing, she was unable to get any more information from him and was left anxious and concerned for the rest of the afternoon. She couldn't think of anything she had done wrong or even something she may have neglected but, because of the void of information, her mind had begun to speculate with all kinds of wild thoughts. Was her husband having an affair? Did he want a divorce?

Emily Anne Kragthorpe and John Patrick Howard had been married in a very lovely and expensive wedding two years earlier. The Howard family was quite wealthy and one of the bastions of society in the east coast city they called home. The Kragthorpe family was from the Midwest without the same pedigree but, Emily was a ravishing beauty in addition to being very friendly and kind. She had easily won over, not only her husband, but his family as well. They immediately purchased a nice home in one of the finer neighborhoods and established themselves on the social scene. As a couple, they would often chair fund raising events and because of their fine looks it was common to see their picture appear in the society section of the local paper.

With great trepidation, Emily pulled into the circular driveway behind her husband's car and entered their home where she found John sitting on a sofa with a tumbler of whiskey.

"John is everything okay?" She asked with a worried look.

"Yes, everything is fine. Why?" John replied with a questioning look.

"Well your phone call today was so strange. I don't know what to expect." She answered trying hard not to let her voice break.

"Oh Emily. I'm sorry. I had so much on my mind I guess I didn't explain myself well." He answered taking her hand and guiding her next to him on the couch where he gave her a soft kiss on the cheek. The teary look in her eyes let him know that she was upset.

"Okay." Was all she could think of to say. She sensed her fears had been misguided but she still didn't know what was going on.

"You look like you are going to cry." John said to her as he stroked her hair.

"Well...I don't know...maybe. You had me so scared. I thought maybe I did something wrong or..." She let out.

"No, no. You didn't do anything wrong. Nothing. I'm sorry." He consoled his trembling wife.

"Then what's going on?" She finally asked after regaining some composure.

"Let me get you some wine and let you relax first." John replied and left the room briefly returning with a full glass.

The smile on her husband's face allayed any remaining concerns and after taking several sips she felt calm. With a small nod, she indicated to her husband she was ready.

"Okay. You may think I'm crazy but I've been thinking about something for a while. And, well it's hard to explain. Actually, it's not hard it will just seem odd I think." John began to explain then stopped and took a sip from his glass before continuing. "Anyway. You know we are very privileged and it's always bothered me a bit and lately it's started to bother me even more. I mean I can be a complete dud, a complete failure, and we would still have all the money in the world. I want to do something on my own, I mean I want us to do something on our own. Prove ourselves and not just be another trust fund couple."

Emily didn't respond immediately. She mulled his words and after analyzing them, spoke. "John, I understand your feelings and actually they are very admirable. What were you thinking about doing?"

"I'm thinking we should get away. Move to another state and just start from scratch. See what we can do on our own without the family money or name." He said to her looking into her eyes to gauge the reaction.

"John, if it's important to you then we should do it. I don't care about the money." She answered instantly, which pleased her husband immensely and he pulled her to him and hugged her.

That conversation started the ball rolling on where they should go and what they should try and do. At first, Emily thought her husband had meant that they should go to another large city in another part of the country so she was surprised and nervous when John began talking about going to smaller locations in the South. Then, there was the whole idea of what to do - how to strike out. John was an attorney but had only worked in the family business and, although smart and ambitious, he didn't have any developed skills. Emily, for her part, had worked since college but in roles for non-profits that didn't pay very much.

Then, there were the families. Emily's parents had been pleased when she had married well as they knew she would be taken care of. They expressed some initial concerns about the couple's intentions but bought in without too much fuss, particularly her father who saw it as a manly idea.

John's family was a completely different situation. Although John had several siblings, he was the oldest and his father and grandfather had already earmarked him to take things over. In addition, they loved Emily and already had in their heads that she would dutifully produce beautiful children to maintain the Howard line. There were countless conversations, some heated, where his family tried to convince them that their place was here, in the city, where they would become leaders of the community. Only John's grandmother on his father's side proved to be an ally as she saw it as a romantic notion where the young couple could learn about life together.

When it was all said and done, the biggest issue that Emily had was John's choice of location. He had focused his attention on the South and after research and pondering had honed in on Mobile, Alabama as the place to go. Emily would have greatly preferred Atlanta, Dallas, or even somewhere like Nashville but John was adamant about breaking out of their comfort zone. So, she fell in line as the supportive wife. The idea was to take just enough money to get started and then live off what they earned. It would be a far cry from their current life and Emily knew that there would be no more designer clothes or fine dining for a while.

The couple made an exploratory visit to Mobile and found a small house to rent in an older but still quite nice neighborhood that had lovely, large oak trees. The best part of the house was an elevated wrap-around porch where they could sit and enjoy the evenings together.

Family and friends demanded a going away party where they were hounded by pleas that it wasn't too late to reconsider. Emily's girlfriends spent all evening huddled around her with tears flowing as the drinks went down. John's friends, while much more stoic, felt the same as they realized they were losing their de facto leader.

After selling their imported cars and buying more "practical" replacements - a Tahoe for John and a Camry for Emily, they loaded a U-Haul with just the things they felt essential for their planned reduced lifestyle. John pulled the trailer with the Tahoe while Emily followed in the Camry as they headed south. Both felt nervousness as well as exhilaration as they contemplated the challenges and adventures that were ahead.

It took a week to get moved in and settled but finally it was finished and on a clear October evening, the couple sat together on their porch watching night come to the neighborhood.

"Now it's time to find jobs." John laughed.

"I don't even know where to start but I guess that's part of the adventure." Emily replied. Her words caused him to cringe a bit. He knew how much she had sacrificed for his idea and he wanted her to enjoy it too.

"You're wonderful for doing this." He said smiling and looking into her brown eyes.

"It will be fun." She said wanting to maintain a positive attitude.

In reality, she loved her husband very much and wanted to have a strong and lasting bond with him. The money had never been a motivation for her even though her friends liked to tease her about "bagging the elephant". To her it was much more about his honest and caring ways and the fact she found him very handsome. At 6'1" tall with a medium build, black wavy hair and a killer smile she had been drawn to him instantly. Of course, other women were as well but, once they connected, he had completely ignored them and gave her all his attention.

John noticed Emily's smiling at him then watched as she took a drink from her glass and looked over the rim at him with playful eyes. John knew that look. It was her way of saying she was up for lovemaking. Emily was a willing and at times passionate lover but rarely took the initiative in starting sex. She preferred to drop hints, like she was doing now, and wait for John to make the first move. John had certainly had wilder sex before he met Emily and he had hopes that she would loosen up as she got older but, none of his prior conquests were as emotionally fulfilling as his wife.

Of course, it didn't hurt that she was stunningly beautiful. At 5'7" tall and a slender 126 pounds she had a model like body. Her hair was a soft, light brown color that fell just over her shoulders and her eyes were a very dark brown that seemed to draw you in. She had a wonderful pure complexion and, when she had been in the sun light, freckles would appear on her cheeks. John loved her B-cup breasts that stood high on her chest with tiny pink nipples that pointed upward. But, he felt her best feature was her long perfectly proportioned legs that transitioned into a butt that was toned from her bi-weekly workouts. Even with her great looks, men usually treated her with the utmost respect due to her charming nature. There had been a few times he had had to subtlety intervene but it was quite rare.

Later, with the bedroom windows open and a gentle breeze blowing in, John made love to his wife reveling in the feeling of her body and the soft purrs of arousal that his movements brought forth. He tried to wait for her, to let her climax, but she didn't seem to be progressing and he was unable to fight the soft milking of his dick by her folds. With a series of grunts, he emptied into his wife then collapsed on her nuzzling his lips against her soft neck. Emily stroked his hair until he rolled off and within minutes John was asleep.

Emily stayed up a little longer after cleaning up in the bathroom. They had discussed starting a family and John had even stated he wanted five children. Emily was more in favor of two or three but was willing to fulfill his desires. Now though, she wondered when they would be in a position for her to get pregnant.

Emily actually found a job first. In just three weeks, she had applied then interviewed for a position as a state social worker in the Mobile regional office. Of course, there had been lots of curiosity about her background and how she had ended up in Alabama from her prestigious East Coast University but, she was able to convince the interviewer she was sincere about the role. She was to be paired with a senior member of the staff for a four month training and probation period starting the following Monday.

The young couple celebrated that weekend by splurging on a night out at an Italian restaurant followed by a night of lovemaking. John was thrilled when Emily used her fingernails to tease his dick to a second erection after he had cum then climbed onto him and rode him while he played with her breasts until she had a nice orgasm. The couple was finding that with less demands on their time they were together much more. It translated to their lovemaking too, as they were now doing it four or five times a week instead of the two to three times they were used to in the city. John was pleased that Emily was becoming more relaxed in bed and her sighs and moans were now more pronounced, giving him verbal clues as to what she liked. They were even experimenting with different positions! There was still a long way to go but nonetheless it felt to him like progress.

On Monday, Emily was introduced to Janice her trainer and supervisor. She was an early 40's black woman that was several inches shorter than Emily and much heavier. Janice gauged her new charge with a look of confusion then led her into a small conference room where she explained the work they did and what was expected of her. Just before lunch, she finished and gave Emily another once over.

"Girly, we will be going out to the field almost every day. You can't be wearing clothes like you stepped out of Cosmo or you'll have all the men horny. Hell looking at you they going to be horny enough anyway." She said in her thick, southern black accent.

Emily had no idea how to respond so she just stood quietly and stared. After lunch, they climbed into one of the government cars and headed into the field. Their job was to check on the condition of children where a parent was receiving government assistance or where a court had applied a condition on the household. The "field", in their world, was typically homes and apartments in the poorer neighborhoods. After a twenty minute drive, the car pulled into a rundown trailer park littered with trash and broken down cars.

"J what's this bitch doin here?" A disheveled young black woman asked after opening the door of the trailer in response to their knocking. At her side, were two young children that Emily guessed were two or three.

"Her name is Emily and don't be calling her a bitch. She works with me now." Janice explained matter-of-factly.

The door was opened and the two social workers entered the mobile home. Emily was shocked at the mess inside. It looked to her like it had been intentionally trashed with fast food wrappers littering the floor and stacks of soft drink cans on various surfaces. There was a foul smell too and she guessed no one had made an effort to clean in a very long time.

"Where's Davonte?" Janice asked.

"He's sleeping." The young woman answered and nodded towards the hall. Emily followed Janice as she went towards the back and, looking over her shoulder through the bedroom doorway, saw an infant curled up sleeping on an unmade bed.

"Jaquay not coming around now is he?" Janice asked when they returned to the front.

"Nah. I ain't seen him in a while." She answered.

"Okay. I'm going to write up the report clean but you need to get to work on this house. It's a pig's house. Next time if it ain't clean we're going to take these kids." Janice told her.

"Okay Ms. Janice." The young mom said as they moved to the door.

They made two more stops that afternoon with both being very similar to the events of the first. Emily was impressed with the easy way her supervisor interacted with the people and dealt with their issues. She wondered, with great doubt, whether she would ever be able to be so relaxed.

"We're going out first thing in the morning so be on time and wear some better clothes." Janice instructed her new trainee when they arrived back at the office.

At home, Emily explained to her husband what had taken place and together they discussed the positives and negatives of the job. Emily liked that she was helping people and viewed it in the same vein as her prior non-profit work. Both of them had some concern about the potential danger, but Emily felt Janice would be a good teacher.

When they met in the office the next morning, Janice was pleased to see that Emily had dressed down. She was wearing a simple dress that extended below her knees and had a high collar along with a pair of "practical shoes". The loose fit masked her shapely body although her facial beauty was still there. Janice knew there wasn't much she could do about that so, after pouring some coffee in a styrofoam cup, she directed Emily towards the car.

All morning they made calls which were about a 50/50 mix of black and white households. In most cases, the father was absent from the family, there were multiple children and a young mother with no job. They would check on the welfare of the children or confirm they were going to school if they were old enough, direct the mother to take action if something was amiss, then move on to the next case.

They had just got in the car after leaving a trailer house that had been there first stop after lunch when Janice took her cell phone and called the office.

"Bryan, we need the police out to 45 Shady Lane. There's drugs in the house." She heard the black woman say into the phone. Then after a pause she answered to Bryan. "Yes, that's right. Paula Henry."

When she finished Janice turned to Emily and said. "You missed it."

"Missed what?" Emily asked.

"There was a pipe on the back table behind some soda cans." She explained.

"Pipe?" Emily asked feeling foolish as she did so.

"Yes, Ms. Priss. For smoking meth or crack. You do know what that is don't you?" She replied in an irritated voice.

"What's going to happen?" Emily was very interested to understand what would take place but was still nervous about Janice's scolding.

"Police are going to come, search the place and probably make an arrest. We will take the kids into protective custody." She explained.

Twenty minutes later a squad car pulled alongside their vehicle and two officers emerged - an older white man that was overweight and a thirty something black man that was tall and in reasonably good shape. Both men made no attempt to hide the once over they gave Emily when they got out of the car.

"Who's your new girl, Janice?" The white man asked.

"This here is Emily she just started." She explained.

"What you got?" The black officer asked and Janice explained in detail what she had seen and where it was located in the trailer.

"Okay, let us take a look." He replied and the two men headed towards the door.

Fifteen minutes later they emerged carrying a bag and leading the handcuffed young black mother towards their squad car. As soon as they walked by, Janice moved towards the trailer with Emily in close pursuit. They gathered the three kids along with a few personal items, took them to the car, and left after rigging up child seats that were pulled from the trunk.

That night Emily described to John the events of the day and they discussed how different the world felt in just the short time they had been in Mobile. It was eye opening for them and, although it was tragic to see a mother being taken to jail, they knew it was a learning experience.

"I have some news too." John announced when Emily had finished telling about her day.

"Tell me." She prodded. The grin on her husband's face made her think it would be good news.

"I decided to attend a local civic club luncheon today and I just decided to introduce myself to anyone that would listen. One of the people I met was an officer of a bank here in town and when I told him I was looking for something to do he said one of his clients might need some help on a real estate development. I'm to have lunch with the two of them tomorrow." He explained.

"That's excellent news!" She declared.

"I'm so antsy to get going and something like this would give me a chance to meet people." He responded.

The following day seemed to drag by for Emily as she was eager to get home and hear how John's meeting had gone. Fortunately, it had been uneventful and after spending the final three hours in the office doing paperwork, she jumped in her car and pointed it towards home. When she pulled up, she could see her husband on a chair on the porch with a bottle of wine and she knew it was good news.

"Tell me about it." She demanded as John handed her a glass.

"I start Monday. It's not huge. Just a little under $4 million. But I will be the point person on the project. I'm very excited." He answered with a huge smile.