The only intimacy Marvin and I shared in the first four months of our relationship was a hurried peck on the lips. I was concerned by lack of chemistry and physical attraction. I thought about ending the relationship and cutting my losses. Marvin sensed this, and instigated intimacy. That’s not a good word. It was a completed sexual act, but it was not intimate. Marvin exhibited no signs of passion. It was as if he were struggling to perform. But it reassured me that I was loved. It was enough to make me close my eyes to his sexual shortcomings. It allayed my fears enough that I married Marvin. I was happy. Marvin was shielded. What a strange relationship. What lies.
Now the reasons are clear. Marvin was not physically attracted to any female. I doubt there was any sense of giving in having sex with men. He used the sex act solely as a means of conquest. It was a source of control and power purely for the sake of his amusement. After seven years of a manipulative marriage, we were divorced. I needed more from life and Marvin surely was tired of pretending he could be a proper husband. But I remained a friend he could call and brag to and boast about his business successes. We had moved a distance apart, and now our communication was by telephone. He would call me several times a month to boast about his latest business venture or the new contract that he was able to win. He delighted in telling me the details of his latest business conquest.
Marvin was a sales representative for a small but specialized company. He was able, with great ease and little effort, to acquire a sizable contract nearly every month. He would set up meeting with the intended client, show up in his recently “detailed” BMW, wearing a $1,000 suit, and chauffeur that client to a fine restaurant. Most often he would get the contract he sought. He lived well on the companies’ credit card.
Later, after the fall, it became apparent how Marvin got his way. He had sexually seduced his boss, and shortly after that, seduced his boss’s wife. Less than a year after those conquests, his base salary was raised from $35,000 to $100,000 a year. His commissions doubled and sometimes tripled his income.
Marvin seduced several co-workers and clients. His list of conquests was growing. He now had a number of people who would do his bidding, and never be able to undo what had been done. Being sexually conquered, they could be used for a lifetime.