Royal foot in mouth.

Mara had spent most of the taxi ride home rehearsing what she intended to say to Hugh. She'd expected an argument, perhaps another round of accusations and denials, but she hadn't expected him to look quite so relieved when she walked through the front door. He'd barely slept. There were unanswered work emails on his laptop, a cold cup of coffee on the kitchen table and several messages he'd sent her during the previous two days.

"Thank God you're home," he said, approaching her. "Can we please talk?"

Mara folded her arms. "That depends on what you've got to say."

Hugh sighed and handed her his phone.

The message she'd been so suspicious of wasn't from Elaine at all. It was from his brother, who'd been helping organise a family holiday. Hugh had been arranging dates, accommodation and a few surprises for Mara.

She read the conversation twice, her confidence evaporating. "And Elaine?" she asked.

"Nothing happened with Elaine. I've told you that a dozen times."

"But the perfume?"

"She hugged me after we finished the project. That's all."

Mara looked down at the phone.

Hugh sat beside her.

"I've even applied for a transfer to another team. I don't want this coming between us anymore."

"You've done what?"

"I spoke to my manager yesterday. It hasn't been approved yet, but he thinks we can arrange something."

Mara stared at him. He'd been telling the truth. Worse, he'd been trying to organise something lovely for her while she'd been accusing him of having an affair.

"Oh, Hugh." She threw her arms around him. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."

He held her tightly. "I love you, Mara. I don't know what else I can do to prove it."

She pulled back, tears gathering in her eyes. "I know. I've been horrible."

"You've certainly been difficult."

She gave a watery laugh. Hugh brushed her hair away from her face and kissed her. For a moment, Mara forgot everything else. This was familiar, reassuring and affectionate. She'd missed him more than she'd been prepared to admit. She returned his kiss, slipping her arms around his neck.

Hugh smiled. "Does this mean we're all right?"

"I think so," she whispered.

He kissed her again. And Mara, still carrying the excitement of her afternoon with Richard, found herself responding with unexpected enthusiasm.

Their reconciliation carried them quickly to the bedroom, where the argument and the miserable previous two days seemed to disappear.

Inside the room, Mara pushed Hugh backwards onto the bed. He crashed out on his rear as Mara started pulling the resort cover up over her head. Hugh lay there mesmerised for a moment as Mara got naked in front of him; only when she started crawling onto the bed towards him, did he snap into action and start climbing out of his clothes.

Mara waited in baited anticipation as Hugh belatedly got undressed. She crouched by his knee, biting her bottom lip as Hugh kicked off the last of his clothing. Once he was completely nude, she quickly straddled him and started to slide her snatch along his cock. Hugh was already extremely hard in delight at the prospect of making up with Mara. Her pussy oozed too, soon basting Hugh’s fat sausage in her seasoning.

Reaching between them, Mara took Hugh’s cock and stood it up straight. She lifted her hips up and placed his head between her wet lips. Hugh moaned as Mara started to lower herself down on top of him. Her pussy swallowed and encompassed his manhood as she settled herself into a riding position. Hugh hips flexed in time with his moans as Mara started to rock her hips with him.

She looked down at her boyfriend Hugh and tried to focus on the man she was with, but her thoughts weren't entirely where they belonged. Richard kept intruding into them.

Hugh mouth was cast open as Mara began to drive her pelvis harder in short back and forth movements. His lightly tousled brown hair had grown longer and in need of a haircut. His nice, average, acceptable cock filled her pleasantly enough as she rode him, her juices seeping out from her hungry pussy to pool around the base of his penis. Hugh chin was grown dark and hairy as he’d allowed his stubble to grow out even with Mara asking him to keep it clean-shaven.

Richard wasn’t like that. He kept himself impeccably groomed, Mara thought as she started to bounce on the cock between her pussy walls. If she’d run her hand along Richard’s chin, it would have been as smooth as skin could be. Richard… his handsome face. His quiet confidence. The warmth of his embrace beside the pool. The unexpected thrill of discovering that he wanted to kiss her just as much as she wanted to kiss him.

Mara tried to push those memories aside and concentrate on Hugh. She loved Hugh. She really did. She paused her hard bouncing to step up onto the balls of her feet and began to plunge herself all the way along the length of Hugh’s cock with each spring. She could feel her excitement building. If she tilted her hips at just the right angle, Hugh’s cock would strike her at just the right spot to make her heart skip. Mara needed to cum. She was desperate to feel herself orgasm. The excitement with Hugh wasn’t quite cutting it.

Now if it had been Richard Arnett she was fucking! The excitement she'd felt with Richard was still fresh, and the more she tried to ignore it, the more persistently it returned. Richard’s seductive older features. His well-toned body. His thick, long, hard cock she’d feel pressing against her in his hotel room that afternoon.

In a moment of overwhelming emotion, Mara made a terrible mistake.

"Richard!"

The name escaped before she could stop it. Just as she started to cum.

Hugh went completely still. For several seconds, he didn’t speak as Mara shook and climaxed on top of him. Then he pushed Mara off him mid-climax.

"What did you just say?"

Mara's stomach dropped. She collapsed forward onto her knees and one arm, and she held her abdomen tight as it continued to throb with her suddenly ruined orgasm.

"Hugh…"

"Did you just call me Richard?"

She stared at him, horrified. "I didn't mean…"

"Richard Arnett?"

Mara closed her eyes. Oh, bloody hell?

Hugh rolled away and sat on the edge of the bed, looking as though somebody had struck him.

"Richard Arnett," he repeated. "Your father's friend?"

Mara pulled the sheet around herself. "Hugh, please."

"Is that where you've been staying?"

She hesitated. "He's been helping me."

"Helping you?"

"He arranged a hotel room. I was upset, and he offered somewhere for me to stay."

Hugh turned towards her. "Have you been sleeping with him?"

"No!" The answer came quickly because it was true.

Hugh studied her face. "Then why the hell did you say his name when you came?"

Mara couldn't answer. She could hardly tell Hugh that she'd spent the previous evening modelling expensive lingerie for Richard, that they'd kissed beside the hotel pool or that she'd been hoping to take their relationship further.

Hugh stood and began pacing. "I've spent two days trying to work out how to fix this. I've been worried sick about you. I've even asked for a transfer because I thought it might make you feel better."

"I know."

"And now I find out you've been thinking about another man?"

Mara felt tears forming. "It's not what you think."

"Then explain it!"

She opened her mouth, but nothing convincing emerged.

Hugh stopped pacing. "Have you kissed him?"

Mara looked away.

That was answer enough. "Oh, you've got to be kidding me."

"Hugh!"

"You accused me of cheating. You screamed at me about Elaine, walked out, blocked my number, and then went off and kissed somebody else?"

Mara flinched. "I didn't plan it."

"Does that make it better?"

"No."

Hugh shook his head. "And Richard? Of all people?"

She stared at the sheets. "I know."

For several moments, the room was silent.

Then Hugh spoke again, more quietly. "I haven't done anything wrong, Mara."

She began crying. "I know you haven't."

"I love you. I've been trying to make you happy, and apparently the whole time you've been thinking about somebody else."

"That's not fair."

"Isn't it?"

Mara wiped her eyes. "I love you too."

Hugh looked at her sadly. "Then I think we need some time apart."

Mara stared at him. "What?"

"A break."

"Hugh, please don't."

"I can't do this right now." He sat beside her, but didn't reach for her hand. "I need some time to think. And I think you need to work out what you actually want."

Mara wanted to argue. Ordinarily she would have argued, perhaps loudly enough to wake the neighbours, but this time she knew she'd caused the problem. Hugh hadn't betrayed her. She'd betrayed his trust.

"Are you breaking up with me?" she asked.

"I don't know."

The uncertainty hurt more than she'd expected.

"I just know I can't pretend this didn't happen."

Mara nodded miserably. "All right."

Hugh looked towards the wardrobe.

"You said you'd booked a hotel?"

"Yes."

"Then perhaps you should stay there for a while."

She swallowed. "For how long?"

"I don't know, Mara. A few days. Maybe a week."

He stood. "I need some space."

An hour later, Mara was packing her suitcase. She'd told Hugh she'd arranged a week's accommodation at the Four Seasons, and he hadn't questioned it. He seemed too upset to care where she was going. As she packed her dresses, cosmetics and toiletries, she kept replaying the moment she'd said Richard's name. How could I have been so stupid?

She'd gone home intending to resolve things with Hugh. Instead, she'd discovered he was innocent, briefly reconciled with him and then managed to destroy everything with a single word. The worst part was that she couldn't entirely blame it on confusion. She had been thinking about Richard. And Hugh knew it.

When she finally wheeled her suitcase outside, Hugh was standing near the front door.

"Will you call me?" she asked.

He hesitated. "Give me a few days."

Mara nodded. "All right."

She stepped towards him, hoping for a goodbye kiss. Hugh gave her a brief hug instead. It felt terribly final.

"I'm sorry," she whispered.

"I know."

Then he opened the door.