The Wife and the Mistress
The doorbell rang and the wife answered the door.
“What can I do for you?”
The stranger at the door said, “I’m looking for ----. Is he home?”
The wife’s husband’s name hung in the air.
“He’s not home now. Who are you?”
“I’m his girlfriend. I drove all the way from ---- to see him,” said the other woman.
Completely stunned by the bare admission, the wife’s heart sank like a dead weight; her feet bolted to the floor. As she scrutinized the other woman, her business suit seemed a little too snug in all the right places and her long manicured nails, upon closer inspection, looked cheap and tawdry. The wife found herself flatly saying, “My husband is not home now, but you’ve come all this way. Why don’t I arrange a room for you in a nice, nearby hotel? Go there, settle in and I’ll let my husband know where you’re staying when he gets home. By the time you’re all settled in he’ll stop by to see you.”
The mistress couldn’t believe it; the husband had actually smoothed everything over with the wife. He must have told her everything about them, how he’d felt trapped and wanted to move on.
When the husband returned home, his wife greeted him as usual and calmly mentioned the stranger at the door. The husband immediately launched into a full confession of all the sordid details. His words were not chosen or considered. It was as if it was a relief to have it all out in the open. But the words deadened a part of his wife’s heart that day. After his catharsis, the wife simply asked, “Do you want to continue your relationship with her or do you want this marriage?”
The husband chose the marriage.
The wife calmly told the husband what he must do. He must offer the mistress some money to leave her in comfort. He must take full responsibility for starting the affair. He after all is the one who is married and betrayed his wife and family. He made that choice. He could not put the blame on the other woman. The mistress had only hoped for what he misled her to believe. He must make it crystal clear why the affair must end.
The wife had her husband back. The husband was more attentive than ever before.
The wife vowed to protect herself from disappointment. She knew that something had been lost and irreparably damaged but she stayed.
Was it attentiveness? Insecurity about his wife’s affections? Indebtedness? Or the projected suspicions of a guilty soul?
“What can I do for you?”
The stranger at the door said, “I’m looking for ----. Is he home?”
The wife’s husband’s name hung in the air.
“He’s not home now. Who are you?”
“I’m his girlfriend. I drove all the way from ---- to see him,” said the other woman.
Completely stunned by the bare admission, the wife’s heart sank like a dead weight; her feet bolted to the floor. As she scrutinized the other woman, her business suit seemed a little too snug in all the right places and her long manicured nails, upon closer inspection, looked cheap and tawdry. The wife found herself flatly saying, “My husband is not home now, but you’ve come all this way. Why don’t I arrange a room for you in a nice, nearby hotel? Go there, settle in and I’ll let my husband know where you’re staying when he gets home. By the time you’re all settled in he’ll stop by to see you.”
The mistress couldn’t believe it; the husband had actually smoothed everything over with the wife. He must have told her everything about them, how he’d felt trapped and wanted to move on.
When the husband returned home, his wife greeted him as usual and calmly mentioned the stranger at the door. The husband immediately launched into a full confession of all the sordid details. His words were not chosen or considered. It was as if it was a relief to have it all out in the open. But the words deadened a part of his wife’s heart that day. After his catharsis, the wife simply asked, “Do you want to continue your relationship with her or do you want this marriage?”
The husband chose the marriage.
The wife calmly told the husband what he must do. He must offer the mistress some money to leave her in comfort. He must take full responsibility for starting the affair. He after all is the one who is married and betrayed his wife and family. He made that choice. He could not put the blame on the other woman. The mistress had only hoped for what he misled her to believe. He must make it crystal clear why the affair must end.
The wife had her husband back. The husband was more attentive than ever before.
The wife vowed to protect herself from disappointment. She knew that something had been lost and irreparably damaged but she stayed.
Was it attentiveness? Insecurity about his wife’s affections? Indebtedness? Or the projected suspicions of a guilty soul?
1 Comments:
At 10/12/2006 7:44 PM,
Anonymous said…
In such literary matters I often ask more questions than have answers.
What kind of woman would drive all that way, go direct to the door, and say I'm his girlfriend etc.;it does not quite fit the smart business suit etc.
Why did the woman stay--also your question.
What kind of a future relationship would she have with a man who lied to the mistress, and then chose the marriage when caught. what kind of man is that? Would he really be more attentive or a toady?
The woman may have found dignity in the way she handled it; but to lock herself into a relationship with a man such as above what kind of enrichment does that offer her for the future?
I think she should have chosen a better way to keep her dignity.
Post a Comment
<< Home