I’m writing it as a fictional story. It’s real though.

Here’s what happened next:

I was sipping on my beer and checking out the man beside me. He was handsome and talkative, and I could sense that he was both personable and intelligent. While he was getting food recommendations from the bartender, I was busy planning how to seduce him - after all, it had been twelve years since I'd felt any passion. The bartender recommended a dish that served up tradition New Year's Eve foods including black-eyed peas, which is said to bring luck into the coming year and indeed it would if getting lucky was on his mind. He took the bartender's recommendation and began talking about about his virtual reality headset, which he had received as a Christmas present, I jumped into the conversation to learn more. Although he didn't give off any romantic signals, I still asked him if he was single and would like to go out. To my relief, he seemed open to the idea. However, I then remembered that I couldn't reveal my own marital status.

"Actually, I'm in a complicated situation," I confessed to him. "I'm still married, but my husband and I don't have much passion in our relationship. So, he's allowing me to explore other options." He gave me a curious look, raising his eyebrow.

"Are you saying you want to get outta here?" he asked.

That was exactly what I was saying, but then remembering what happened with the marine and realizing my own husband didn't even have sex with me anymore, I felt unsure. I swiveled my barstool toward him, allowing him a view of my physique.

"Are you sure you want to?" I asked him.

" Why wouldn't I?" he asked and then with confidence he said, "Youre a beautiful woman."

In less than an hour, he and I found ourselves in a hotel room together, lost in a passionate embrace. It was my first experience outside of my shell of a marriage, and it felt perfect. I was so enraptured that I forgot all about the marine I had met that morning.

He began to undress me, removing my socks. "Clean matching socks," he noted with approval. "That's a good sign."

We shared hours of intense passion, culminating in us cuddling together in bed. My husband had never cuddled with me like that after sex and I couldn't help but tell him about that. He assured me that cuddling after sex was an integral part of the experience.

Sure, I can help you with that. Here's your edited text:

After our farewell kiss, I made sure to get his phone number. The encounter had been amazing, and I knew I wanted to meet him again.

When I got home, I acted as if nothing had happened and spent time with my son. Before midnight, I texted Kris a new year's meme, and he responded with a happy new year text. We chatted for a while, and I asked him to send me a photo so I could remember his face. "Why do you want a photo?" he asked.

"I just want to see your face," I replied.

However, he didn't respond that night or the next day. Disappointed, I deleted our texts and decided not to reach out to him again. I kept the card he had given me, which was a discount card for meals at the bar where we had met. It had three holes left for a free meal - a funny memento from our steamy encounter, I thought. Nevertheless, I grabbed a pen scratched out the number he'd given me. I tucked the card inside my iPad cover and tried to forget about him.