Nicholas walked into Ebenezer's expecting to be stood up. That's what a woman like Serena would do, he thought. But there was something about her that made Nicholas think that there was something inside her that made her a little tired of being who she was, always had been. He had seen how Serena had looked at Amanda the previous night, pure, helpless sex jealousy in full flower.<br/><br/>Nicholas believed that a woman who was confident in her own sexuality, who used it liberally to satisfy herself and her partner, would never feel threatened by a woman like Amanda. She might envy the ample tits, but the confident woman would know that<em>she</em>had something special, something that neither Amanda nor any other woman had, and it wasn't the ring on her finger that she used as a noose around her husband's neck.<br/><br/>So he entered Ebenezer's expecting to find out something important about Serena, just from her presence or absence.<br/><br/>And there she was, sitting alone at a table.<em>Score one for her,</em>he thought, impressed that she had shown.<em>Was it anger or courage that brought her here?</em>If it hadn't been for her row with her husband, he believed, this would not be happening. He noticed that there was neither food nor coffee in front of her.<br/><br/>"Do you not trust the food here?" he asked lightheartedly. "Or were you just in the mood for something you knew they wouldn't have on the menu?" He let the double entendre hang there and flagged down a waitress and ordered coffees, then looked directly at Serena, in to her dark eyes.<br/><br/>"Actually, I think there are a lot of things you don't trust," he said, leaning in. "You don't particularly trust your husband, you don't trust his assistant, or whoever she was last night, and I'm not so sure you even trust yourself to be able to hold him through the power of your own body and your love." He paused for a beat. "I know it's forward and inappropriate of me to talk to you like that, but if it's so obvious to someone like myself, who only just met you and saw your small drama last night, I think it would be clear to you, too, if you gave it some thought."<br/><br/>The coffee came and Nicholas took on a lighter tone.<br/><br/>"So, anyway, we're just here to chat and have some coffee -- and maybe a pizza? -- " he laughed. "I'd like to know a little about you, but I'll bet I can guess some things already. You were raised strict, to honor your mother and father, and you had a good, religious upbringing. Always one boyfriend at a time, never fooled around with a girl, was never tempted to cheat after you were married. When you look at a man, even when you're at the beach, you<em>never</em>look at his crotch, rarely if ever imagine sex with another man. Your clothes -- which are lovely, by the way -- are all careful classics. But I have a question for you." He paused and looked away for a moment, and then back at Serena.<br/><br/>"Do you ever wonder how you would feel if a man other than your husband looked at you with real lust? Not that you or the man would do anything about it; you'd just know that he was looking at you with real desire. How do you think that would make you feel?"<br/><br/>He took a sip of his coffee and looked at Serena, truly interested in her answer. There was something in her eyes that made him believe that she was not as closed-off as she made herself out to be.<br/><br/>