Many thanks to those who offered comments and constructive criticism on my previous stories. For those who want to say this or that would never happen, remember this is my universe, a place where nearly anything can, and often does, happen. At least on paper...
Please refer to my profile for more on my personal policy regarding comments, feedback, follows, etc. And please remember, this is a work of fiction, not a docu-drama...
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Jason Chandler sat on the couch, looking at his phone. Not long ago, he received a disturbing call from Karen, his wife of nearly ten years. Earlier that day, his PI told him she and her lover had just boarded a flight to Honolulu. He knew they planned to spend the week there, even though she told him something different. It was just the latest in a long line of lies and bad decisions on her part.
He wondered to himself how he could have been so stupid and blind. For nearly ten years, he had given everything to build a life with Karen, but that was all gone now. He took another sip of his coffee and sat back in his chair, closing his eyes.
He thought about the last decade. He met Karen in college 13 years ago. They were both working for a business degree and were part of the same study group. That led to them dating. Eventually, they fell in love and married after graduation.
He went to work for his father, who owned a chain of successful tire stores across the state. He had always worked for his dad, spending his summers in one of the many stores his father owned. Sometimes, he worked in the shop, replacing tires and brakes. Sometimes, he worked as a runner, driving tires and parts to some of the local shops. As a result, he learned a lot about the business.
After college, his father talked him into working for him at the corporate headquarters in the accounting department. Over the years, Jason proved himself to be more than capable of handling whatever needed to be done and was now in charge of the accounting department, working directly for Mike Allen, the CFO, who was set to retire in a couple years.
Jason knew that it was his father's dream to hand the company over to him when he retired and he knew that when Mike retired, he would be promoted to take over his position.
Karen, meanwhile, had taken a job as a Realtor. After they married, she went to school and got her license to sell real estate. She was darn good at her job and made pretty good money, even during leaner years when the market wasn't doing very well.
They had a good life, or so he thought. They scrimped and saved and were able to buy a nice house in the suburbs. They each drove a nice fairly new car and to all outside appearances, had a secure marriage. They didn't have any children, something which bothered him more than her.
Right now, he thought that was something of a blessing in disguise. Early on, Karen said there was something wrong with her tubes, so she had them tied. He consoled her and suggested they look into adoption, but Karen dismissed the idea. Eventually, he accepted the notion that they would never have any children.
But several things happened over the last year that made him think something was going on - something that would forever change his relationship with Karen. For starters, Karen began spending more time with "the girls" than ever before.
He never begrudged her some time out, as he knew how stressful her job was. But the every-two-week "happy hour" that only lasted until 7 pm became a two or three-night-a-week event. And depending on the day of the week, she might not get home until midnight or later.
Jason wasn't happy about it and expressed his displeasure, but she waved him off, saying she was under a lot of stress at work and deserved time to blow off some steam.
"So what are you doing until midnight?" he asked her one night when she got home, her hair disheveled and her clothes smelling like cigarette smoke.
"Oh, we just had a few drinks," she said. "Sometimes we might dance if the mood hits us. Look, Jase, it's none of your concern. I'm a big girl and I don't need you telling me what to do. So lay off, okay?"
Jason looked at her, shocked. She had never spoken to him like this before. She saw the look on his face and softened up.
"I'm sorry, Jase," she said. "I didn't mean to go off on you. It's just that we're under a lot of pressure with the market the way it is."
"You've worked through tough times in the market before and it didn't bother you," he said. "What's different about this time?"
"You have no idea how hard it is sometimes," she said. "The competition is getting worse and worse and the higher ups are putting more pressure on us to sell property."
"I understand that, dear," he told her. "But you don't need to take it out on me. I'm on your side, remember?" She smiled and wrapped her arms around him.
"You're right, dear," she said. "Please accept my apology."
"All right, I accept," he said. "But please take a shower or something. No offense, but you smell like an ashtray."
"Sorry," she said. "There were a lot of people smoking at the club. I'll go take a shower." He laid down and was asleep by the time she made it to bed.
The next few months saw other changes as well. The frequency of their sex dropped dramatically. Before this started, they used to make love three or four times a week. That dropped to twice a week and eventually fell off to about once every two weeks, if he was lucky.
Even worse, her attitude toward him seemed to change. Before, she always asked about his work and took interest in his hobbies. Now, it seemed that she could care less what he had to say. Then there was the day he caught her in a blatant lie.
One day, he decided to drop by her office to take her out to lunch. When he got there, however, he was told she was out showing some property. That night after Karen got home from whatever it was she was doing with "the girls," he asked about her day.
"I was in the office all day today," she said. "I had a lot of paperwork to catch up on so I just grabbed a sandwich out of the vending machine."
Jason was shocked. She just lied to him with a straight face. As far as he knew, this was the first time she had ever done that. He thought about pressing her on it, but chose not to. In her frame of mind, she would probably blow a gasket and he was simply too tired to deal with that. He began to wonder, though, how many other times she had lied to him.
Later that night, as they lay in bed, he rolled over and looked at her. She saw the concern on his face.
"What's wrong, Jase?" she asked.
"I'm concerned," he said.
"About what?" she asked.
"Us," he said. "I feel like we're drifting apart from each other. Do you still love me?"
"Of course, I do, honey," she said, putting an arm around him. "You know that, don't you?"
"Honestly, I don't know," he said. "I can't remember the last time you told me. And it's been a while since we've had sex. It seems you're gone more than you're home."
"I'm sorry," she said. "It's just the pressure from the job. I do love you, please believe me."
"Can you start showing me a little more?" he asked.
"Of course, baby," she said, kissing his face. They made love that night and Jason felt better, but he still had concerns. Things went back to normal for a month or so, but the same pattern began to emerge again. What the hell is going on, he asked himself for the umpteenth time.
It started to become clear to him what was going on the day his longtime friend, Ron Greene, called him, asking if he could get away for a bit.
"Sure, I can meet you for a beer," Jason said. "What's going on?"
"I really can't say over the phone, Jase," Ron said. "But it's important."
"Okay," Jason said. "I'll meet you there at 5:30 if that works." They ended the call and Jason met Ron at the bar that evening. Jason wasn't too worried about being late as Karen was almost always gone until 6 or 7 pm - sometimes later.
"Okay, bud," Jason said as they sipped their beer. "Spill it. What's going on?"
"Jase," Ron began. "I saw your wife today while I was out doing my runs."
"Yeah?" Jason asked. "She sells real estate. Probably out showing some property."
"I'm sure," Ron said. "But I never knew selling real estate involved kissing and hand-holding."
"What?" Jason asked. "Come on. You're pulling my leg."
"I wish I was, buddy," he said. "I was going down Riverside Drive and I saw your wife coming out of a house with some man. They were holding hands and then they kissed. I'm not talking about a smack on the cheek, either. He had his hands all over her ass at the same time."
"That can't be," Jason said. "Are you sure you're talking about my Karen?" Ron pulled out his cell phone and showed Jason a picture. Sure enough, it was Karen, kissing a man who had his hands all over her backside.
"Fuck," Jason said quietly as he handed the phone back. "Can you email me that picture?"
"Sure," Ron said, hitting some buttons on his phone. "So, what are you gonna do?" Jason shook his head.
"I don't know, buddy," he said. "Things have been off for a while now, but I would never have thought she'd do something like this."
"A friend of mine is a private investigator," Ron said. "If you want, I can put you in touch with him."
"Do that," Jason said. "I need to know what the hell is going on." They said their goodbyes and headed out the door. Karen was in the kitchen when he got home. This was something new, he thought to himself.
"You're home early," he said, giving her a kiss. "I'm not complaining, by the way." She smiled and kissed him back.
"Where were you?" she asked.
"I was down having a beer with Ron," he said. "I wasn't expecting you home so early, so I figured, what the heck."
"Everything okay with your friend?" she asked.
"Not really," Jason said. "He just learned that the wife of a friend of his is running around on her husband."
"Oh?" she asked.
"Yeah," Jason said. "He saw her kissing and holding hands with some guy earlier today." Jason thought he saw her flinch just a bit.
"Well," she said. "Maybe he's reading too much into it."
"I don't know," Jason said. "I'm just glad I don't have that problem." Again, he thought she seemed to flinch just a bit at that remark. "It would kill me if you ever did anything like that to me."
"I'd never do anything like to you," she said, wrapping her arms around him. "I love you too much."
"I'm glad to hear you say that," he told her, kissing her pretty face. "So, why are you home so early?"
